A Daily Lesson in Parenting and Manners: A TR by a real life Wicked Stepmom!

[Enchanted]

EEK! Poor, poor little Ellie! She really won the parent lottery, didn't she?

When the mother admitted that she didn't know HOW normal parents function without a nanny, I physically winced. It's one thing to need a nanny while you're at work, but to need a nanny on VACATION IN DISNEY WORLD because you don't know how to relate to your kid? That's just plain sad.

Thank goodness for you and Sally, MissCammie! You swooped in and saved the day yet again! Girl power!

I loved Teddy's indignation when he saw the pull-up. "I did NOT wet my pants!"

And a big heartfelt AWWWWW! to Sally saying you were a great mom after Ellie's mom complimented your parenting. See! It's not just us wacky Disers who think you're a wonderful mama!

Another great installment, MissCammie! You even make riding the bus a fascinating and adventurous experience.

Can't wait for more!

 

[HerdOHuds]

What a great TR! Thanks MissCammie, for remembering all these fascinating and compelling details of your trip and taking the time to boil it all down into a story that is simply perfect!

I'd be willing to bet, if I was a betting person, that you have a very close group of friends with whom you love to lunch and you all sometimes get odd looks from other tables at restaurants because you are all laughing and having a bit too much fun!

A Susie! And the whole lacking in the undergarment department is totally something my DH might do. Like the time he forgot to take the diaper bag into the church nursery and one of the kids managed to make use of his oatmeal breakfast before church was over . . .

 

[2ScottishPrincesses]

OMG when DH has dressed the girls in the past they usually look as though he's done it in the dark (you know totally not matching, possibly garments too wee, etc) but he would NEVER forget knickers...exposed "flowers" are unthinkable. Niamh at the moment has a new game which starts with her saying "Where's my flower?" and then she searches around the room for it...looks in the potty, toy box, sideboard. etc "no my flower's not there, where can it be?". We've decided to ignore her and hope she grows bored with this game but she did it the other day at my parents house and I swear my dad nearly needed a defib , I was brought up in a home where such thing WERE NOT, on pain of death, discussed...OOPS!!!

 

[ProudMommyof2]

Miss Cammie strikes again with another great installment! I always tell my husband that the real factor in a kid's life is what kind of parents he/she is blessed with. Money and disabilities can all be overcome, but bad parenting will stick with you for life!

Honestly, are people ever able to look outside of themselves and view the situation from someone else's perspective? What did little Ellie learn about personal boundaries that day? Sorry for the soapbox but, ahem!!!

 

[CampbellScot]

EEK! Poor, poor little Ellie! She really won the parent lottery, didn't she?

When the mother admitted that she didn't know HOW normal parents function without a nanny, I physically winced. It's one thing to need a nanny while you're at work, but to need a nanny on VACATION IN DISNEY WORLD because you don't know how to relate to your kid? That's just plain sad.

Thank goodness for you and Sally, MissCammie! You swooped in and saved the day yet again! Girl power!

I loved Teddy's indignation when he saw the pull-up. "I did NOT wet my pants!"

And a big heartfelt AWWWWW! to Sally saying you were a great mom after Ellie's mom complimented your parenting. See! It's not just us wacky Disers who think you're a wonderful mama!

Another great installment, MissCammie! You even make riding the bus a fascinating and adventurous experience.

Can't wait for more!

This was definitely an odd start to the day...although Jay and I said later that it felt like we were back at work!

Teddy STILL remembers that moment and often references it when he is feeling unjustly blamed for something..."Remember that time at the bus at Disney when you said I wet my pants and I said I DIDN'T wet my pants..." Which is NOT how it happened at all...but it's how he remembers it!

What a great TR! Thanks MissCammie, for remembering all these fascinating and compelling details of your trip and taking the time to boil it all down into a story that is simply perfect!

I'd be willing to bet, if I was a betting person, that you have a very close group of friends with whom you love to lunch and you all sometimes get odd looks from other tables at restaurants because you are all laughing and having a bit too much fun!

A Susie! And the whole lacking in the undergarment department is totally something my DH might do. Like the time he forgot to take the diaper bag into the church nursery and one of the kids managed to make use of his oatmeal breakfast before church was over . . .

I'm glad you are enjoying the report!! Thanks for reading!!

Yes, my girls and I do tend to get wild...but usually only at Karaoke night at Kell's Pub!

OMG when DH has dressed the girls in the past they usually look as though he's done it in the dark (you know totally not matching, possibly garments too wee, etc) but he would NEVER forget knickers...exposed "flowers" are unthinkable. Niamh at the moment has a new game which starts with her saying "Where's my flower?" and then she searches around the room for it...looks in the potty, toy box, sideboard. etc "no my flower's not there, where can it be?". We've decided to ignore her and hope she grows bored with this game but she did it the other day at my parents house and I swear my dad nearly needed a defib , I was brought up in a home where such thing WERE NOT, on pain of death, discussed...OOPS!!!

Her FLOWER?! Oh that little Niamh of yours is an impish little thing isn't she?! Just full of sass and mischief I'll bet! Where on earth did she learn such a game?!

and seriously...when I read "garments too wee..." I laughed out loud! I would give ANYTHING to be able to HEAR you say that! I'll bet you'd sound like my Great Auntie Morag...

Miss Cammie strikes again with another great installment! I always tell my husband that the real factor in a kid's life is what kind of parents he/she is blessed with. Money and disabilities can all be overcome, but bad parenting will stick with you for life!

Honestly, are people ever able to look outside of themselves and view the situation from someone else's perspective? What did little Ellie learn about personal boundaries that day? Sorry for the soapbox but, ahem!!!

That was probably my greatest concern upon leaving that situation. I noticed right off the bat that this child has NO fear of strangers. It was not the least bit concerning for her to be handled by people she didn't know. I'm pretty sure that Nanny Angelica was not the first nanny that came through that house. This child's complete lack of boundaries is extremely concerning on a lot of levels.

All I can do is pray for her at this point.

thanks everyone for reading...bet y'all never knew that a bus ride could make for such a long chapter!!!

 

[62travelDisney]

Hi MissCammie, I'm really enjoying reading your report. Do you write professionally? You should see my trip report - very "we did this and then we did that" Not only that, but your WDW trip was much more eventful than ours, naked children, rude pooting guys in line, getting whacked on the plane - we had nothing eventful happen (other than the fact that my son broke his foot before we left) - we just had some good old WDW fun. Your kids will appreciate you preserving all of these details for them - keep going with it and thanks for sharing.

 

[CampbellScot]

Hi MissCammie, I'm really enjoying reading your report. Do you write professionally? You should see my trip report - very "we did this and then we did that" Not only that, but your WDW trip was much more eventful than ours, naked children, rude pooting guys in line, getting whacked on the plane - we had nothing eventful happen (other than the fact that my son broke his foot before we left) - we just had some good old WDW fun. Your kids will appreciate you preserving all of these details for them - keep going with it and thanks for sharing.

wow! Thanks for reading...nope, I don't write professionally...unless you count social services reports and evaluations and endless paperwork as "professional"!!

I imagine it seems like our trip was overly eventful b/c I tend to write in depth about things most people ignore or just don't give that much attention to. As you can tell, even a bus ride can be pages long with me.

When I was in college I had to write a 10 page paper on a day in the life of a piece of dust...I got an A! That's actually a little sad...for the professor who thought of it and the fact that I actually did it.

sorry your son broke his foot! YIKES! THAT is my worst nightmare before a Disney trip. My step son is SUCH a klutz...he would be the one to do that! So we made a rule about not getting sick or hurt before our trip!

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

"Our daughter is TWO...NOT three.

I didn't think there could be a more serious "date-related" offense than a husband not knowing how long he'd been married to his wife. Until now.

SO I pulled the Pull-Up out of the bag.

It's Miss Super Cammie!!!

"Thank GAWD! Oh thank you. I don't know WHAT we would have done...thank you thank you..."

I held the pull-up out to her as I thought she was going to want take it, but she turned back towards her husband and started dialing her phone.

I think this is the part that disturbed me the most. (Well that and the fact that sweet little Ellie was so comfortable with strangers.) Mom was so upset about the state of her daughter and yet didn't do anything about correcting the situation when given the solution. I'm not judging, I know quite a few wonderful parents who have nannies and are used to the help but I just don't know that they would've behaved like this. I dunno, I guess the whole situation is just a bit disturbing.

The mom turned to me and said "Oh my gosh, where is my HEAD? I keep forgetting Angelica isn't here! Would you? Thanks!" Then turned back to her phone.

Ellie was pleased. She clapped her hands and said "PANTIES!!"

Miss Cammie, let me end by saying that it's people like you and Jay and the way you're raising your kids that makes this world a better place and gives me hope everytime I see rude, disrespectful kids in the world.

As always, thanks for sharing. And not to sound cheesy, thanks for caring.

 

[starrzone]

When I was in college I had to write a 10 page paper on a day in the life of a piece of dust...I got an A! That's actually a little sad...for the professor who thought of it and the fact that I actually did it.

Oh my GOSH, that's funny...a piece of dust! I'm a voracious reader and word "nut" (I actually paid to subscrice to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary); my friend jokes that if there was nothing else to read, I'd read the instructions to the fire extinguisher! I'm the same way about writing, though; when my family first got a computer with a printer (this was in 1993!), I wrote stories about anything and everything, just to be able to print something out. I've never written about a piece of dust for 10 pages, though; I'll have to try it to challenge myself!

You should write kids' books; you are very descriptive and are very good at telling how things happen from a child's perspective. I bet Sally and Teddy could give you some great ideas too! I'm loving your TR and look forward to each new chapter.

ETA: I just went back and read your latest update; it is quite frightening that the little girl had no qualms about a total stranger putting "undergarments" on her! At least you were all around to help, though; Sally should be quite proud of herself for handling the situation the way she did.

 

[Shannie]

Boy, I know my DH has forgotten some things, but NEVER has he forgotten to put undies on either one of my daughters when they were that small. That poor little girl. Glad you could help her out!!!! Teddy is so cute with the things he says!! You are doing a great job with both of those kiddos!!!

 

[Piper]

I once taught Pre-K in a private school in Houston. We were making a class book titled: What is a Mother? Some of the replies were so sad. A few that I still remember (20+ years later)

• a mother is someone who takes care of you if the nanny and housekeeper are both sick
• a mother goes to meetings every day
• a mother wears pretty clothes and doesn't want you to mess her up

Of course, I didn't put those in--I would have been fired--but I sure wanted to. But then the mothers that needed to see what their child thought of them wouldn't have gotten it anyway!

 

[seawitch0313]

I love reading your reports! I'm subscribing so I don't have to keep looking for them

I had the odd sensation of being and during your last installment. In one of my college classes we had to do a presentation on how the world should function and my contribution was that I wanted everyone implated with a fertility chip at birth and to get it deactivated you have to go thru a screening process No kids until your a certain age, education level, completed a parenting course, had a psych eval.....

Seriously tho, if the nanny does everything, why have kids? Why not get a dog, or better yet an artificial plant that you don't even have to water?


Can't wait for the next installment, and I'm also happy that you've got another trip to look forward to!

 

[Briarmom]

This morning I told my son to shake a tailfeather. Pretty soon everyone will be using MissCammieisms.

 

[dreamalittledream]

I didn't think there could be a more serious "date-related" offense than a husband not knowing how long he'd been married to his wife. Until now.

too funny.
so were they tring to pass off the child as under 3 for Disney? maybe the Dad wasn't on board.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Oh my word!!! I'm flabbergasted. Poor little Ellie. *shakeshead* Glad Miss Cammie and Sally were there to save the day.

 

[2ScottishPrincesses]

Her FLOWER?! Oh that little Niamh of yours is an impish little thing isn't she?! Just full of sass and mischief I'll bet! Where on earth did she learn such a game?!

and seriously...when I read "garments too wee..." I laughed out loud! I would give ANYTHING to be able to HEAR you say that! I'll bet you'd sound like my Great Auntie Morag...

I love that you have a Great Auntie Morag...a phrase one of my friend's and I use when we're debating who's paying for something is "Put your purse away Morag" (said in a very old lady voice)...I'm sure that's the voice you're relating to

Heaven knows where Niamh get her ideas from, she's heavily into shocking people for amusement at the moment so God help us when she reaches her teens This morning she came into bed with me for a snuggle and DH and I thought she'd gone back to sleep ....Donny proceeded to get changed for work....yes you guessed it the little voice pipes up "Bare bum Daddy...cheeky, cheeky". Poor Donny was mortified and Niamh nearly wet herself laughing.

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

too funny.
so were they tring to pass off the child as under 3 for Disney? maybe the Dad wasn't on board.

Is that a worse offense than trying to use your refillable mug at another resort?

 

[Sorsha]

This morning I told my son to shake a tailfeather. Pretty soon everyone will be using MissCammieisms.

I use them already! I think Miss Cammie has changed all of our lives, for the better!
When my DD13 was being snarky the other day, I told her I would slap her down with a well-arched eyebrow. Then later I called my DH a pootsnorkel. He was totally confused, but the kids thought it was hysterical.

 

[doodlesmommy]

I use them already! I think Miss Cammie has changed all of our lives, for the better!
When my DD13 was being snarky the other day, I told her I would slap her down with a well-arched eyebrow. Then later I called my DH a pootsnorkel. He was totally confused, but the kids thought it was hysterical.

I only hope you ended all of that with a pronounced "ya'll".

 

[wendy3]

I love reading your reports! I'm subscribing so I don't have to keep looking for them

How do you "subscribe"? I'm following 4 trip reports and that I'm totally hooked on (they're better than ), and I have to search for them each time.