hiatus...

i'm going on one. too busy. too crazy. too everything. be back someday.

tap, tap, tap...is this thing on?

i know...gone for a month. What can I say? I've been busy being studious, a mother, a wife, and a preschool director. The last thing there? Yeah, it's pretty much taking over my life. Being a preschool director even part time is an all consuming thing sometimes. I need desperately to find a balance. But enough about that madness. Let me talk about something I don't ever talk about. School. I know, I'm a liar. I always talk about that. I just must, for once, pat my ownself on the back for a job well done. I got a 97 in a class that I was FOR CERTAIN NOT A DOUBT IN MY BRAIN going to drown in. I was {} this close to dropping it and someone said to me, "don't drop it. Have faith." So I did. And I got an A. I was one of the few in the class that pulled it out. Coming from someone who lost a lot of faith in her abilities over time, I am so proud of myself. I got outstanding grades in high school, but I was woefully under prepared for college the first time around. No one had ever taught me time management. That is a TOUGH lesson to learn as a college freshman, when along with your regular classes, you must also squeeze in 'Beer Bong 101', 'Nasty Keg Beer 104', and 'Which Frat Boys To Ignore 106 & 201'. No, but seriously, the first time I got a C in college I began to doubt myself and wonder if I really had what it takes to be ANYTHING and slowly began down a slippery slope. It wasn't until I dusted off my college transcripts last summer and realized that I was actually a pretty good student, and I needed to cut myself a serious break. But going from that, to going back to a real live school requires a big in-between step. A leap even. About a week before the quarter started I had a blind moment of whatthefuckhaveidone. To say I was scared was an awesome understatement. Then, the first week of classes, I got to one class 3 minutes late and he had already started. And he was the scariest human being I had ever been in the same room with. As I listened to him lecture I looked around and thought I had just stepped into very deep water and gone a little too far. I made a mental note to call my advisor and ask her what she was THINKING when she put me in a Master's level class the first quarter back. I still don't know what she thinking, by the way. The girl sitting next to me said that this was her 3rd try taking this class. She dropped it the previous 2 times because he scared the daylights out of her. So I wasn't alone in my petrification. I mustered up all of the courage that I had and went to the professor after the class was over and told him that it was my first quarter back in 15 yrs and that I was certain I was about to drown in this class. He told me to give it another week before I gave up and to remember that sometimes life experience counts double time over student experience. I still was going to drop the class because I wasn't at all sure what scrubbing toilets and wiping butts had to do with discovering my educational philosophy. But in the end I persevered. And why? Because in each of my classes, with each assignment and test that I took and scored well on, my confidence grew. I am not a confident person. At all. This quarter of classes has done more to boost me than anything I have EVER done. EVER.
I cannot begin to describe what it felt like to look at my final grades and know that I was mere points from a 4.0. A 4.0. While balancing my family, and a job, and just life in general, I made the dean's list. Consider it a serious boost. But please don't ask me how clean my house is. All I want for Christmas is a maid service :)

february 18, 2009

all over america this will be happeneing.

get on out there...

AND VOTE.
Go on, rock the vote. Just do it. What are you waiting for? Go. Just go.

zero points...

i have LOADS of mom guilt. I always have. Even when I spent my every waking moment devoted to parenting my children, I wondered if I was doing it all the right way. If I was screwing them up by being involved in their every moment. Now that I have run off to the world of academia and gone to work part time I have more mom guilt, just distributed in different places. Now I forget things (more often) like snacks, permission slips, you know- the basics. And my kids, who didn't feel like I spent enough time helping with school events before (because I can't be in every child's classroom at the same time, who knew?) now are really feeling slighted because I can hardly ever be there. However, I did some serious schedule juggling at work and went in ALL DAY yesterday. The elementary school's PTO sponsors a cool program every year where they bring in COSI (Columbus's science center) into the school and they have a huge hands on thing for the kids to play with and learn from. Very cool. They always need volunteers for it and no one wants to do it, because as cool as it is it is labor and time intense. Did I mention ALL day? But I volunteered for it, because I knew I could make the older 2 both happy by being at their school to help out. So I showed up at 7:45 and worked my hiney off until almost 4. As we were walking out of the building to my van, Justin looks over at me and says, "are you coming to help with my party tomorrow?"
Dude. I got zero points for the whole day???
I can't win.

baby bellies...

ryan scared me today. We were in the car and he started asking baby questions. Those sweet innocent ones that usually lead up to the big one...how do babies get into your tummy mommy? I'm not sure why he started talking about babies today because there is most certainly not one brewing in this family, but anyway...I offer our sweet converstaion up for your amusement.

Ryan: Do boys ever have babies in their tummies?

Me: nope, just girls.

Ryan: why?

Me: because boys can't handle the pain. Only girls can, and God has a sense of humor like that.

Ryan: Oh.


:::::::::::pause::::::::::

Me: (silent- fearing pause is the lead up for the "big question")

Ryan: so why is daddy's tummy so big?

Me: HA! because sweetie, daddy likes to eat good food and that's what happens.

Sorry, Matt.

laugh out loud....

it's friday...it's funny...
This almost caused a diet coke out of the nose reaction.
Enjoy...

cool mom...

i was sitting in my communications class on wed., listening to the children talk amongst themselves about their Halloween plans. I was chuckling to myself because their plans are quite funny to me. You know basically stumbling from one party to the next in a drunken stupor. If that doesn't scream the true Halloween spirit to you, well then...I don't know...me neither. One of the boys who usually sits next to me was particularly funny. He always is. He likes to run his ignorant ideas by me before he calls his own mom. You know, to get an old lady's opinion first. He decided to ask me what I was doing for Halloween. I told him I was doing what I always do. Sipping spiked hot cocoa while passing out candy. He started laughing and said "you have got to be the coolest mom I have ever known!" Really??? Because I drink spiked hot cocoa? You should meet some of my other mom friends then. I must be hanging with a cool crowd :)

friday funny...

this cracked me up today. Sorry for the severe lack of posts. There's a lot of studying going on and it is really hindering my ability to do fun stuff on the internet. My 2 main websites are now brittanica.com and merriam-webster.com. Go figure.
Anyway...I happened to cruise past this today and laughed out loud.
Enjoy!

janet rocks it...

gotta love someone who makes you blog headers before you even ask for them :)
I especially love that the little pumpkin in the middle is much like my middle child in her grumpy demeanor. Spot on Janet!

week one down....

several thousand more(i think) to go.
Thoughts on the first week:
-You can't feel truly old until you're in a classroom with 30 people and you are the oldest by a good 20 yrs.
-The next oldest person after you is your professor, who appears to be at least 10 yrs your junior.
- No, really. My professor is YOUNGER than me. By 10 or so years.
-Life science classes are always going to be taught to me by a cranky, gnarly old man. Who is 97. But not YOUNGER than me.
-Did I mention that my communications professor is younger than me? Oh! and she'd like us to call her Ashley. Because that's what name was popular for little girls born in the 80s.
-I was the only one in my class this morning would had actually
r-e-a-d the reading assignment. Proven by the fact that in our small groups, I had all the answers because I had highlighted them in my text. The 18 yr old CHILDREN in my group were impressed by my thoughtfulness. So sweet of me to do the reading for them.
-When asked to design a theory of our own, I was the only one in class whose theory had something to do with my own children.
-Sweats and a t-shirt are still good campus duds. Even 15 yrs later.
-I am lovin' learning again. Even if I am RIDICULOUSLY old. To them.

it's the end of the world as i know it...

and i feel fiiiiiine....
so tomorrow I am back to the world of academia. Yesterday as I stood in line to get my parking pass, there were 2 YOUNG girls behind me whining because "like omigod, I had to get up at 10 this morning. I am, like, so TIRED!" And I had to do my best to keep from poking sharp objects into my ears. I know I am going to be that old lady in their class. I hope I'm the old lady that is always screwing up the curve. As if! Either way, I remember being them and staring at the old ladies in my class (who were probably younger than I am now) and wondering why in the world they were in school at their age, because,like omigod! Don't you have anything better to do at your age? I know I'm in for a rude awakening. I know that the time I have cut out for myself to study is not going to be nearly enough- especially since I'm going to be that old lady that actually READS the text. As if! I know that the next couple of years are going to be tough. I also know that this is exactly what I am supposed to be doing right now, and this is when I was supposed to do it. Not when I was 18, but now. I'm not nervous, I am ecstatic.
I am totally going to be the dorky old lady who blows the curve :)

addict...

add me to the twilight fan club. I read the first book in under 24 hrs and my plan is to go and get the 2nd today. I LOVE Edward. Love him. Love. I've never been a huge fan of vampire stories, but I love the way these are written. Love them. Love. No really, I'm a fan.
I don't know how far Stephenie Meyer will run with these, but it sure is fun to have a good series to devour again!

never forgotten...

last first day...

it was ry's last first day of preschool today. ***sigh*** mah baby...he is growing so fast!

from the other side...

today was the first real day of preschool for us. Today all of the 3 year olds came- for most of them it is their first time away from mom, and tomorrow is the big day for the 4 yr olds. It was a little surreal watching from the office (and the hallway, and the classroom, and the playground) all of the things that happen during the kid's time at school. I got to be the one comforting the moms whose children had to be peeled from their legs, screaming and crying. Most of the kids where fine as soon as mom walked away, but mom was not. I had more than one tearful mommy in the hallway. It's all the stuff that happened after I walked away and went home last year. The things that I missed because I was at home, being a mom (probably cleaning toilets). This has been a very exhausting experience for me, mentally and physically. I've put in about triple the hours in the past 2 weeks just getting everything together and making sure it runs as smooth as possible. I've had many sleepless nights, worrying that I am going to miss something huge. It's my personality to make sure things are done completely before walking away. I'm lucky that school doesn't start for me for another couple of weeks, and hopefully then the preschool will be running smooth and won't require me to be "ON" 100% of the time. I actually FELL ASLEEP at 8:30 last night. And slept the whole night until my alarm went off this morning. A testament to how worn out I am, since I usually hang on until at least 11:30 every night.
All that being said, it is a very rewarding spot to be in. To get a giant bear hug from a 3 year old who I just met last week. To get a big thank you from a mom because I checked on her son 4 or 5 times to make sure his nerves were calm. A thank you from a teacher because I got done something she asked me to do.
The good is out weighing the bad right now, but DUDE I can't wait until the weekend!!

this is my life...

this picture is the goat version of my two youngest children. They are frequently on the "naughty step" (thank you super nanny) at the same time, and having that same conversation.

the daily crack up...

ryan strikes again. The kid has a daily mission to make me laugh, and he usually accomplishes it. Yesterday I was cleaning up the mess of the day after they had all gone off to bed. He was up in his room playing, but not in bed yet and I heard his door creak open.
Ryan: (at the top of his lungs) Mooooooooom?? Where you at?
Me: (exasperated- it's bedtime and I want to chill with a beer) In the kitchen, what do you want?
Ryan: I want to sleep like Spiderman tonight.
Me: ??? you want what ???
Ryan: I want to sleep just like Spiderman.
Me: You want to sleep WITH your Spiderman?
Ryan: (exasperated because his mother never GETS him) NO! I want to sleep LIKE Spiderman.
At this point I'm like "Whatever you want son. Just GO TO BED." Keeping in mind that I am downstairs and he is upstairs and we're screaming all of this back and forth at each other.
After I chilled with my beer and watched the Olympics for awhile, I went upstairs to do my kid check and this is what I found:

He had the mask, gloves, everything. He must have gotten hot because the mask ended up next to him, but he still had the whole get-up- including gloves- on this morning when he wandered out of his room.
He says to me this morning, "Now I know what Spiderman sleeps like."
I hope he at least sleeps comfortably :)

first day...

no jitters today. I'm glad because I was a little worried that when it came down to it, Hannah would be nervous. Our district is weird about the way they do things. They have a kindergarten center the feeds into all 3 elementary schools. So she went to kindergarten last year in a different and much smaller building than she is in now. I think because Justin promised to show her where to go and because she's heard from about 100 people that her teacher is wonderful, she was a lot more at ease. Justin is a pro at it now, so it was all just another day to him.









Now I get to sit and sip coffee in quiet. Ryan is watching tv and has no one to fight with, it's a beautiful thing to behold :)

As a total aside to my Minnesota friends- Matt just got back from Minneapolis and is a fan of your fair city. He loved it there and I had to remind him several times that I was pretty sure is was nice- since it's August. I'm guessing it pretty much sucks a big one in February. Not that Ohio isn't a frozen wasteland in February also, but I think I'll take my chances and stay here a little further south :)

has everyone seen this???

everyone needs to. I thought the whole world had seen it, but the last 4 people I have mentioned it to were completely clueless. It makes grown men cry. You MUST watch it. Have volume on please and thank you. Part of the making "grown men cry" is the song. As cheesy as it is, it's part of the experience. Trust me. Now go watch it already. What are you waiting on? GO!

you'd think we never buy him toys...

so... a few years ago, at justin's 6 yr old check up, i promised him he wouldn't have to get a shot. Because I was sure he wouldn't. Except he did. So to soothe his scarred psyche (they had to drag him out from under the chair kicking and screaming- he's not a huge fan of needles), I took him to Target and let him pick out a toy. Thus, the start of that little tradition. Go for your check-up, get a shot, get a toy.
Because I am vying for mom of the year once again, I forgot to schedule Ryan's 4 yr old check up. Last April. I realized it when I was putting together parent packets for all of the other preschool parents. I noticed that I was stuffing in medical forms to be filled out by the Dr. and *OOOPS* I won't be able to get Ryan's in because *OOOPS* I forgot to take him this year. Yep...mother of the year is pretty much sewn up for me this year. Sorry girls, it's all mine.
So this morning Ryan comes down and starts up this conversation:
Ry: do I have to go to the Dr. today?
Me: yep, for your check up.
Ry: YES!!
Me: why are you so excited?
Ry: Do you think I'll have to get a shot?
Me: maybe. I don't know if you get any this year or not.
Ry: AWESOME!!!! I hope I get a shot. I want to get a prize!

Me=Baffled.
Who wants a new Star Wars figurine that bad? Ryan. That's who.

free week...

so, summer is winding down. In less than 2 weeks the monkeys will return to school. Where-o-where has my summer gone? It's gone to kid's camps and working. I signed the kids up for a lot of camps and workshops this summer and I don't know if I'll do that many again. It has kept them busy and that was the plan, but maybe a little too busy. We haven't had NEAR enough time to just veg out. And isn't that what summer is all about? This is the first week that I don't have to take any kids to camp or have to work a bunch of hours. It feels blissful!
Aside from a crazy camp schedule and shuttling them to and from their various activities, I have been learning slowly how to be a working parent. It ain't easy. I have been extended an offer to continue on as director of the preschool. Once we get a few contract things ironed out, it's a go. And that is exciting and scary as all get out. I love the job and all of the people that I work with, but between that and a full time college schedule, I worry that my kids and family will suffer. For the first time ever I will require a babysitter. Only for a few hours every afternoon for Ryan, but that is a huge leap for me. I am blessed to have a friend whom I have known since childhood, who also has a son Ryan's age who is willing to take him on. She already babysits one other little girl (also Ryan's age) and her son goes to preschool with Ryan. So it seems to be the perfect situation. It's just hard to let go. I have always been there for my kids when they are picked up from school. Now 3 days a week, I'll be on campus in the middle of a class when he gets done and instead of running out of his classroom into my arms, he'll walk out to someone else. I know in the long run it will be good for them to see what I am going through to further my education and how important it is to me, but I don't ever want them to feel like I am sacrificing them or our family for something. Even if it is something that will make our family better in the long run.
I have pondered holding off and going back to school once Ryan goes off to 1st grade but I figure at that point, I'll almost be done with college all together. Plus if our district goes into a split session like they are talking about doing, I'll run into a whole new set of scheduling obstacles then too. No...now is the time. The doors are open for me and I won't shut them again. It is just painful. Almost physically so, to shift our family around and try to make this all work out. But it will work out. It always does. I may be a lunatic for the next couple of years, but it will work out.

for the love of shakespeare...

to say i've been busy this week would be a gross understatement. More like a completely disgusting understatement. There's a lot going on around here. Stuff that involves scheduling fall quarter classes and figuring out how to maintain my mommy status while taking said classes. But you're all sick of reading about me going to college. I know. Matt is enjoying being able to tell his buddies he's sleeping with a college chic again. So that's at least a funny little college anecdote.
Anyways...college...classes...blah...blah...blah... Amy's busy again. Been there, heard that, but it is Fun Friday, so in keeping with my Education concentration of choice (English Lit) here is my Fun Friday nod to Shakespeare (who is I'm SURE rolling in his grave right now) But it's funny damn it! Admit it!!

where did my june go???

how old and crotchety do I sound when i say time is going by too fast?
I fail to believe June has come and gone already. Because when I was a youngun' July meant my summer vacation from school was 1/2 over. The 4th of July has always been on my list of favorite holidays, but once it was over all I could do was look with dread upon the impending doom of the start of school. But I don't have to do that now that I'm all growed up. Oh but wait, I do. Because I've lost my rocks and decided that since I have approximately 7.6 extra seconds every day, I should head back to the collegiate game. At least I've chosen a school that doesn't go back until mid-September so that gives a couple of extra weeks of summer. Right?? Right?!?!?
The difference is, that for some bizarre reason I am looking forward to it. I think kicking my brain back into gear and working again, has made me see how much I have missed using adult brain cells. Don't get me wrong, I have loved being a mama bear and raising my chiclets. I'm grateful for it. However, even though I'm just getting started, I can see a dim light at the end of the tunnel. When Ryan goes to school all day in 1st grade, we can have 2 incomes. We haven't had that in YEARS. It will be so cool!!
I keep waiting for someone to find out I'm going back and look at me like I've lost my mind, but so far only one person has done that, and I don't value her opinion much. Everyone else has been uber-supportive and been excited for me. That makes me think maybe, just maybe, I can do it.

lucky 13...

so, 13 years ago today, I walked down the aisle and entered into the state of wedded bliss. Not all of our 13 years have been blissful, but that would just be boring and make you throw up in your mouth a little bit, now wouldn't it? I thank my lucky stars that Matt & I found our way to each other and that we still like each other after living in the same house together for this long. He puts up with my quirkiness (aka bitchy mood swings) and I put up with him leaving his dirty socks on the floor and used tissues on whatever he happens to be standing next to. And we still love each other. Better yet? We still LIKE each other. He's still my best friend. The first person I tell my brilliant plans to, the first person I bounce ideas off of. The person whose opinion I value the most.
He didn't snicker at me when I told him last week I wanted to finish my degree. I expected him to roll his eyes because as long as he's known me, I've been deciding what I want to be when I grow up. I feel like I have finally come to a plan (at least for the next phase of Amy-as-a-grown-up), and I was nervous to mention it to him. I was afraid he'd list all of the negative stuff that was brewing in my own head (like where will I find time, how will I afford it, and homework, and exams, and homework, and exams) instead he said he couldn't wait to watch me graduate in the shoe. And that's just one of the reasons why 13 years later I still love him the bestest.

she's not dead...

just on vacation. And trying to plot out the rest of my life.
Am I:
a. a stay at home mom
b. a jewelry lady
c. a preschool director
d. all of the above
If you answered d. you've just won a fabulous weekend for 2 Buckeye Lake! OK, not really, but you can drive over and come with us next time we go.
Several moments of the last 2 weeks have been spent thinking I've completely lost my mind for thinking I can take on the preschool thing. I probably have. But when I'm knee deep in it, it's fun and I'm using my brain for something other than toilet cleanliness and laundry tackle-ing. And frankly, that's enjoyable! Who knows what the future holds? We shall see how it pans out in the fall.
On another topic... Some people just can't be made happy. Most of the crafty people I know (and even some of you non-crafties) enjoy homemade gifts. I, myself, would prefer homemade over store-bought anyday because I know what goes into pulling something together with your own 2 hands. Not to say I don't enjoy a good Starbucks gift card now and again (yoooohooooo, Matt....) but I love getting something that comes from the heart. Especially if it's wicked cool. I know now that not everyone in my world can be pleased by something homemade and as such will be purchasing from a store from this point forward for said person. So HA! No more gifts from the heart, made with pure love for you, said person!!!

i don't know about myself sometimes...

I read LOL cats daily because I just think they're cute. Sometimes I come across one that has me gasping for air in laughter.
Like this one.



I have no idea why. But that totally cracked me up. Must be that the rest of my day has sucked ass. But... I was nice to someone today, so I have that going for me :)

random acts...

i flipped on the ellen show today. Mostly because David Cook was performing today, but also because she always makes me laugh. After David sang (YUM), her next guest was Dr. Wayne Dyer. Apparently a month ago he was on the show and they challenged the entire audience to practice random acts of kindness daily. He is one of those people that believes small bits of kindness can change the world. It was a really good show and they interviewed a lot of the audience members who had participated. What I noticed most was not how their kindness changed another's world, but how it just made them feel better. What struck me most was that he said that it becomes habit really fast. And that if you just consciously try to be nice to a stranger once a day, that soon, you just do it, because it's what you do, not because you're trying to. Interesting concept! Going out of your way to do something nice for someone else makes you feel good and you never know when letting someone go ahead of you in line at the grocery, might just be the only thing nice that happened to them that day.
So go on. Get off of your ass and do something nice today for someone else. And then do it again tomorrow. Wouldn't it be nice to be the bright part of another person's day?

is that your phone?

just think of the money we'll save...

hannah already knows pretty much everything she needs to know. No, really. Just ask her. She'll tell you.
Today she learned all about the esophagus and how food can get lodged in it. She learned the Heimlich maneuver, and how to do it on yourself if you're ever alone when you start to choke. Her kindergarten teacher is very hands on with the kids. Obviously. So, as she is explaining to me how to Heimlich yourself, and how we have a breathing tube and a swallowing tube, and how sometimes food goes down the wrong tube, she pauses and says, "did you know all this already mom?"
"Yes, dear, I did."
She replies with, "oh, so you learned it in kindergarten, too?"
"Umm, no I learned it in college".
She very matter-of-fact like says "Oh, well then I don't even need to go to college then!"
Well I guess not. Good, I can go buy some shoes or fill up my gas tank with all of that money we have socked away for her college education.

things that made me smile today...

it takes a lot to make me smile today. I'm feeling a little like Eeyore.
However, Ryan is always good for a few smiles. He has been in a sunny mood today. I told him how nice it was that he was in such a good mood today, and he asked me what a mood was. So I tried to explain "mood" in a way that he would understand. "It's how you feel and act every day. You can be happy, or sad, or funny..." and he says "or cranky, like you mama?" Yes, son. I believe you grasp the concept. It made me smile in spite of my grey mood.
Then Hannah came home from school. After lunch Ryan asked her to read a book to him. Fish Out Of Water is his current favorite, so Hannah began reading. She still does a lot of sounding out but when she came to the pet store owner's name (Mr. Carp) she read it out loud without sounding it out much. Mr. Crap is the new name of the owner of the pet store. That made me laugh out loud.

mom!! I peed standing up!!

subtitle: my son is going to kill me for posting this if this blog still exists when he is 13 years old.
Ryan has had some bizarre fear of peeing standing up. He's never been cut off by the toilet seat, but I think in the back of his mind somewhere he visualized it being a possibility. We tried all the various tricks for getting boys to stand (i.e. fruit loops floating in the water- why does it appeal to boys to try to shoot down fruit loops anyway??) but it never worked. Finally I just thought...hmmm...his wife might thank me one day because she never has to clean his pee from around the rim of the toilet. He can sit for the rest of his life if he wants. I do.
So today...I'm on the phone with a friend of mine who works at a real job with a real paycheck. The same friend who questions my sanity at least once monthly because the thought of staying home makes her cringe in much the same way that the thought of working full-time makes me cringe. Mid-sentence I had to stop, because Ryan came flying in the room with his face all lit up and he was so excited that he was stuttering and speaking in tongues. When I finally got a legitimate sentence to spew out, it was "Mom mom mom mom I peed standing up!!! I peed standing up! Can I get a high five?" I completely dissolved in hysterics- but not until after I gave him his high five. I guarantee nothing that fun would've happened if I was in an office working at a 'real job'.

happy may...

mine won't be happy until about the 3rd week or so. May is consistently known as "volunteer month" in this house. Although in all fairness to May, it is actually in APRIL that I do the volunteering, it just all happens in May.
I practiced saying no in the mirror. Because I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggonit people like me! I should be able to say it better than I do. Instead I get Catholic guilt (and I'm a watered down Catholic, Lutheran girl) because I'm letting people down.
However, I got better at it this year. Several people have asked me to do things, and I surprised my ownself by saying "I have too much on my plate already. I'd love to help you, but I know I couldn't give you 100%" And you know what? I didn't spontaneously combust! Who knew? I still have too much on my plate, but it was stuff I mostly anticipated having on my plate. After this weekend when the Preschool's Mother's Tea is over, I'll almost be able to have a life again. I've mostly maintained a good attitude this week (shaddup Matt) even though it was the busiest of my existence. Only a slight exaggeration. I think I only cried in complete desperation once. Compared to this time last year, that's golden.
I think I'm slowly learning that "No." is a complete sentence.

it's friday...

so it MUST be funny!

This was almost more than I could bare. This dog could be one of my very own. If any of my dogs still had their testicles, that is.

just makes me wonder...

what did this piggy see that took him by surprise? Feel free to take a guess in the comments section.
From personal experience, I'm guessing this little piggy's person had the AUDACITY to take his pigloo away. The pig probably turned around and caught his person in the act right as she was replacing said pigloo with something ignorant... like a cardboard tube. Just a guess...

bloom where you're planted...

i didn't get to appreciate this last spring. I was wonderfully surprised to find out that one of the trees in front of our house was a flowering tree. I've never had one, but always wanted one. It had approximately 3 blooms on it, and then we had a wind storm and suddenly, no blooms. I never got to see it in full bloom. This year, it is bursting with blooms and making me ever so thankful for Spring and this place I am currently planted in.

peeves...

since i have nothing much exciting to say, i'll just keep borrowing from other people's ideas this week. MZed listed her pet peeves and asked for everyone else for theirs. I'm not letting her off the hook however. She still owes us her 5 things list. I can't wait to hear 5 things I don't know about her :)

So my pet peeves?? They change day to day actually. Most often on my list?

1. people who drive down country roads with their brights on. And don't turn them off for oncoming traffic. Matt, I'm looking at you.

2. Business owners who don't check the spelling on their outside signs. Seriously, no matter how much I like your food, I can't go into a restaurant that keep trying to sell me "really graet food" or "yumy chiken sandwiches". And BP down the street? I'm counting you in this. You've been try to sell me a $19 corn dog for 2 weeks. I have to assume it's really $1.90 or something like that. But, advertising a $19 corn dog for 2 weeks? Not even the world's finest corn dog is worth that much money. Pay attention to your signs. It makes some of us twitch to have to pass by those things every day.

3. People who assume I live the life o' leisure because I don't have a job. Oh yeah. It's all bon bons around here. Believe me.

4. The girls in the locker room at the gym who are fixing their hair and makeup BEFORE they work out. Really, girls? Get over yourselves.

5. Cell phone users with the ear buds. MZed, totally with you on that. I really hate to look like an ass when I answer someone who isn't talking to me. Also, the people who are sitting in restaurants with their friends, talking on phones. I divorced the friend who always did that to me. It's so rude. Unless it's an emergency, don't talk on your phone when you are out with other people.

6. People who honk at green lights when the light has been green for approximately 2.3 seconds. Really, are you in THAT big of a hurry? R-E-L-A-X.

That's my list today. Tomorrow it will be something else.

5 things...

i've been avoiding this for a few days. Jen tagged everyone for a list of five things that few people know about you. I haven't done it yet, because I'm having a hard time coming up with 5 things that ANYONE would find interesting.
Here goes nothin'

1. I can also tie a cherry stem in a knot with my tongue. And Jen...the coincidences just get creepier :) Although in my defense if someone forces me to prove this, I haven't done it since college and I'm guessing my tongue is out of practice. But...how about that for college money well spent?

2. I once held a mountain lion (a sleeping one) for an x-ray of his broken leg. I also held a wallaby (a not sleeping one) for an exam on his infected ear.

3. I can still do the splits- all 3 ways. No one will get this unless they are a former dancer.

4. I cannot fathom a life with no coffee. I just can't. Don't ask me to.

5. I once rode in an elevator with John Black from Days of Our Lives.

There you go. Now the rest of you have to do it too. Mel? Janet? Tee? Elle? MZed? I'm looking at you!

best ever birthday party...

so most of ry's buddies are of the preschool variety. DUH, since that's where he hangs out, it should come as no surprise. I don't know many of their moms, so I felt a little odd having their children come to an event. When the rest of my children were turning 4, they had friends that had come about because I was friends with their mommies. Convenient that we were all having babies at the same time! Ry is a different story. He left all of his built-in friends in Michigan and had to start fresh at the beginning of the school year. I have become friends with one of the moms in his class (she's not in the class, her son is actually, but you get my meaning?) and as luck would have it, her son is one of Ry's best buds. I decided in lieu of a party with children and parents I didn't know all that well, that we'd take Ryan and Joe (his bud) out to lunch and to a movie. We left the older 2 chiclets at grandma's house (because Hannah doesn't have the capacity to allow her brother a day that was about him. She would have spent the day showing off and doing things to bring attention to herself. Since it WASN'T her birthday and all. But I digress...) and Matt and I took the 2 boys out for a day. We went to Steak and Shake because the boys were all about a giant milkshake, and then to Horton Hears A Who. I ADORED the movie and the boys did too. It was a wonderful day and Ry had the time of his life! Best part? It didn't involve any soul- sucking, light-blinking video games, nausea inducing noises, or germ infested party facilities. It could have been one of my top 3 favorite kid birthdays of all time.
Horton got 8 solid thumbs up from us. It will definitely enter our DVD collection ASAP!

four years...

ryan's fourth birthday was this past week. We celebrated in normal style, birthday cake for breakfast, all that good stuff that earns me mom of the year status, even if just for the morning.
Again I find myself in shock that four years have come and gone since my little man of mischief has come into my world. He makes me laugh at least twice a day. He also makes me cringe once or twice a day. It all evens out! I can't imagine the world without him in it. He's a ray of sun, a mess of laughter, all underneath his crazy curly hair.
Happy Birthday little man :)

fresh...

that's what i feel. I love the first few days of spring in Ohio. Those first days of back-to-back 60 & 70 degree days. When you can leave the house and not have to pile on jackets, gloves, hats, boots, etc, etc, etc. My very favorite thing hasn't happened yet, but I think this weekend, I'll get it. The first fresh cut grass. I can wait a few more days. In the meantime I get to open the windows, let the breeze blow in. Spring has o-fficially arrived. Thanks Mother Nature :)

because i *heart* joy...

i forgot how much i missed 'my name is earl' until it aired again last night. I cannot express how very much I love Joy's character . I found this Earl outtake to share. Laugh away.

no fair...

i'm sure in the fine print of the mommy contract i signed there is an illness clause. I'm positive I saw it somewhere. Because ***I*** do not have time to be sick. I got hit by a flu bug Tuesday and yesterday was spent in complete oblivion. I slept about 22 of the 24 hrs available to me. I guess that means I needed it because I feel marginally better today and am not a pool of whiny human like I was yesterday. Thankfully Matt was able to work from home yesterday as I don't know what I would have done if I had to be responsible for my 3 chiclets.
But...in better news...it is warm enough to open windows!! Release germs into the outside world!! Smell the fresh air instead of blah inside air!! Look at the buds peeking up!! It's totally spring!! Do you hear me Mother Nature??????? IT. IS. SPRING. This means no more snow, cold weather, ice, etc. Got it? GOT IT???

offering up my stupidity...

for your utter enjoyment. Follow along on my little journey. Ryan is going to be 4 in about a week. He's not a small child. Last fall we decided he needed a real bed. He'd been sleeping in the crib/daybed so he wasn't locked in a crib, but he was too big for it. Last fall he was too big for it. Still with me? Good. I have a wonderful, thrifty friend who told me to watch garage sales for twin beds. I suck at garage sale-ing, but one day one of our neighbors happened to be having one and as I drove by, I spotted a cute bed. I called Matt and told him to go have a look at it and see how much they wanted. He went. It was $20 and in great shape. I believe he talked them down to $15. Done. Except, it sat in the garage ALL WINTER LONG. I wanted to paint it white because Ry's dresser is bright white. Last week I noticed that the poor child was literally balled up sleeping in his toddler size bed. It was just this side of pathetic, so I got out my paint brushes and got busy. I stared at the bed all weekend as I was painting. No red flags going up, no whistles sounding off, nothing. Finally yesterday, I was satisfied that it had the right amount of paint. We went out and got a mattress, let Ry pick out new bedding, took down the crib, etc. Last night we had to do the final step and actually assemble the bed. For any of you that have fallen asleep at the length of this story and it's lack of anything interesting thus far, sit up, pay attention. We moved furniture around so that the bed would be up against the wall that I wanted it to be on. Set up the headboard and went to get the rails. The headboard was long and it covered part of the window, so scratch that idea. Move furniture around AGAIN so that the bed will be on a different, wider wall. Still, nothing in my head is sending up flags. We put the entire frame, headboard, footboard together and stood back. Then we stared at each other in complete disbelief. The bed that we have been staring at in our garage for almost 6 mos., that I lovingly painted for 2 days, that we couldn't fit on the wall that it totally should have fit on? Yeah. It's a double size bed. Pretty much NOT a twin size. Go ahead. I'll let that sink in for a moment. My own stupidity astounds me.
Needless to say we're going to some furniture stores today to look for a new, twin size bed.

this is funny...

i'm 98% sure. O.K. 99.7%. Only 2 more weeks to go...

broken spring break...

that's all you can say about our spring break thus far. It must be broken. It has been BOOOOOORING. We did have a fun trip to the dermatologist yesterday. Justin had to go with me to get his mole-y noggin checked out so now he's been scarred for life by watching his mama get her whole body skin check up. Not at all fun for the 8 year old crowd in case that's what you were planning for your Spring Break. My skin checks out and I got some new million dollar gel for zapping zits, and he was told to keep a hat on his nog this summer. Lovely!
Let's see, what else have we done that is o-so enjoyable? We did go to Target today! I know, I know, how much more fun can I possibly squeeze into one week? While other children are going to the Jelly Belly factory and visiting the sites of Chicago, my kids are strolling with me in the aisles of Target. Woo. Hoo. We were planning a zoo day, but it seems that while yesterday the weather boy said the weather would be perfection on Friday, now he tells me that it will be raining.
Like I said, this Spring Break appears to be broken.

because there is nothing funnier than jim & dwight...

and i need an office fix. Only 3 more weeks...

eating bon bons...

anyone who has spent any part of their life as a stay at home mama, knows the drill. You tell people, who ask about your occupation, that you're "just a mama" and they tell you how lucky you are. Granted, I know I am lucky. We live a nice life. Not full of luxury and top of the line gadgets, but we are comfortable and happy. And we can live our comfortable, happy life on one salary. I am blessed that we can do that. I have always wanted to be "just a mom". Always. I wanted my mom home for me after school and she had to work. I wanted to be June Cleaver- minus the skirts and heels. So I'm lucky. I didn't think we'd be able to do it when I was pregnant with Justin, but when we did the math it became clear that I was working because I loved being a vet tech, not because I was pulling in the big bucks. So I decided to try the stay at home thing and see if it worked. Then one chiclet, turned into two. Two became three. At that point, if I worked, I couldn't even cover child care. And anyway...I LOVE being home with my kids. I love being able to get homework done and help them with reading and things, and get all of the stuff done at 4 pm that would have to wait until much later in the evening if I had a regular job.
So what is my peeve? People who think because I stay at home, I'm doing NOTHING during the day. People who volunteer me for projects and positions because I don't work, so I must have all the time in the world. Dude...I DO NOT have all the time in the world. People who assume that since Ryan is in preschool, I might as well go back to work. Right, because that 4 hrs a week would allow me a primo job, right? I don't mind volunteering and helping out. In fact I love that I have the freedom to do so most of the time. But seriously??? Stop looking my way every time you need someone to take on a massive project that no one else wants to do. My laundry is out of control and I haven't vacuumed in forever. Because I am over-extended. This is a recurring theme in my life, but I'm working hard on taking a stand. I actually said no OUTLOUD several times last night to people who were glancing in my direction looking for someone to say "I'll do it!!" And it felt GOOD.
I'd love to spend my days lounging and watching Days Of Our Lives while eating bon bons. Well I'd love to at least have the opportunity to do it. I doubt I'd love it long term. But please don't assume, that's what my days are full of. I have a job. It just pays with kisses and hugs from my chiclets instead of dollars.

quick change...

very quick because easter is too flippin' early this year. The almighty and powerful Janet has sent me not just one but TWO new banners. You have to wait for the fun and magical Spring banner until after Sunday.
Enjoy :) For a few days anyway :)

when you're having a bad day...

pray for a telemarketer to call. No, really. Give this a shot. It would make my day and yours :)

what next?

i keep trying to blog something witty and fantastic. Alas...I got nothin'. I believe last weekend's blizzard (20 inches of snow in 24 hrs) sucked my life force away. Mostly because a mere 4 days before the blizzard it was SEVENTY DEGREES. Way to go Mother Nature. Give us a nibble of spring. Let us play outside without down coats, hats, scarves, gloves, boots, and snow pants and then turn around and hand us our asses in the form of snow. Thanks. Love ya. Smooches Mother N.
So anyways...I'm a little weather beaten and bitter and also, word has gotten out around town that I lack the capacity to say no and damn if people aren't using it against me. Bastards! I am an over-committed, sleep deprived moron who STILL can't say no. But, hey! What would I bitch about if I didn't have crappy weather and a cup that runneth over? This blog would be covered by pictures of this..



and this...






And while that's funny (isn't it? Or is it just me?) I doubt me posting pictures and videos is all that entertaining. My whining? Oh, VERY entertaining! So for you, my 2 readers, I will continue to over-commit. You're welcome.

how much wood can a woodchuck chuck?

because i am dying from the cuteness of this!

what the...

my brother brought this one to my attention. It is a spoof on David Blaine's Street Magic and it had me in hysterics. There is some significant f-bomb usage, so not one for the chiclets :)
Happy weekend...

eight...

my first born turned eight today. It's crazy to me to think that I went to bed a mere eight years ago, a whale of a human being who was 5 days overdue and cranky, and now I have this boy who calls me mom and rolls his eyes when I make a corny joke. You blink and 8 whole years are GONE. Granted, we've had a busy eight years. 3 states, 4 job changes, 2 more kids, 4 houses...I could go on forever. We've had our share of change. But through all those changes Justin has proved to be the easy-going kid, who rolls with the punches, and accepts change as a part of our life.
I know it's only a matter of time before he stops telling me he loves me every time he gets out of the van to get on the bus, or letting me kiss the top of his head in front of other kids at school, or climbing up to snuggle in my lap. He hardly fits in my lap, but he still wants to try it from time to time. I feel like the next time I blink, all of that will be gone and he'll be a cranky teenager who slams his door in my face when I tell him he can't go somewhere or do something.
In the meantime. I cherish the fact that he still tells me he loves me every day before bed, and still wants birthday cake for breakfast.
Happy Birthday little man. Hope all your wishes come true!

rock the vote...

today was the big primary for the great state of o-hi-o. Along with voting for my candidate of choice (and wondering how much longer Huckabee is going to hang on? Seriously... President Huckabee? Sounds too Andy Griffith for me. Sorry Mike.) I also got to vote on our school levy. We live in one of those booming districts that used to be covered in farmland and is now covered in subdivisons. We've got the old folks not wanting to part with any more tax money for new schools and the younger crowd seeing the need for new schools. I hope us youngun's win out, but I've run into a few ignorants over the past week who think our money would be better spent on portable trailers. Because, you know, they're so much cheaper than a whole new school! Right and they last like 4 years and then we are right back where we are today only with 5 $40,000 trailers that we can't use now. But, I digress. The major bonus for me- aside from the cool "I voted today" sticker I'm currently sporting- is that Matt stopped on the way home and got me a giant Starbucks coffee to reward me for being a responsible voting adult. SWEET! This from the responsible, grown up, voting adult man who voted for one of the county commissioners because he likes his name. I can't make too much fun of him I guess, because I'd have voted for Bill Clinton again before I put someone in office whose last name is Huckabee. Again, sorry Mike. I just can picture other world leaders mocking you behind your back. It's hard to take someone seriously and not call them a Huckleberry. Maybe it's just me.

it's friday, it must be funny...

enjoy :) Jen...this makes me think of John :)

janet is amazing and fabulous once again...

or should i say janet is amazing and fabulous as always? Yep, that's it. As always! I didn't even ask this time, I just received :) Such a fun surprise in my inbox!! Now my blog is all cute and o-so festive!!!

In other news, I tried a new class at the uber-fabulous gym today. Spinning. In the name of all that is holy, do not attempt this class without someone who knows what they are doing. If I had followed the instructor's cues instead of listening to my mother who was 'spinning' along beside me, I would not be walking upright. She kept telling me not to up my resistance every time the guy told us to do it. I consider myself fairly in shape and that class KICKED MY ASS. Literally. I believe my ass is bruised from the bike seat. And I barely raised my resistance. I will feel like I can conquer the world when I can make it through that class and actually follow the resistance cues and remain standing the whole time I'm supposed to. Today I was seriously afraid to get off of the bike when it was over because I was certain my legs (which felt like wet jello) would give way and I'd fall on my face in front of all of those in shape people. I did NOT fall on my face in case you were wondering. But walking down the steps to the locker room was a serious challenge.
But on a bright note, I did not fart. I could have and totally gotten away with it because it isn't quiet like pilates class, but I didn't. I know you're all so proud!

it's friday...

so let the friday funnies continue. The dogs are feeling slighted, so it's funny dogs this week :)
Enjoy..

gym nirvana...

oh my. I have lived most of my adult life using my local YMCA as my gym. I'm not a gym snob. I only need the bare essentials. I've never seen the need for a big, pretty, expensive gym. I'm not a huge fan of exercise. I make myself do it, and then I feel better, but I still have to make myself. The Y that we used in Michigan was NICE. It was not new, but they had great equipment, a great staff, a super hot trainer...you get the picture. Then we moved to Ohio. We found out they opened a !! NEW Y!! right across the main street that our subdivision runs off of. A mere 3 min drive from my garage. Only, it was not so much a new Y as it was a REALLY old building that they inherited. But it had new equipment. All I need is an elliptical and a treadmill to keep me happy (or so I told myself) because it's so close to home!! So convenient!! Only they were supposed to start renovations last Fall and never did. It is a dump with new equipment and I despise the woman who runs the kid's playroom. She's always late opening it and makes me late for classes. ALWAYS LATE. Major pet peeve for me.
Anyway...our year long commitment with them was coming to a close and I was trying to decide whether I was going to continue to give them my money in hopes that they would somehow, someday have enough to begin renovation and, oh I don't know, start by adding a locker room. Did I mention it was a dump? Then last week my mom mentioned that the uber-fabulous gym she belongs to was running a special where she could add me to her existing membership for only $29 a month. I was wary because I knew it was too good to be true. Except it was true. I joined last weekend and ventured in today for my first workout.
To call it uber-fabulous does not do it justice. They have a cardio cinema. Seriously. An actual movie theater filled with cardio equipment. I worked out for over an hour today on an elliptical machine while watching Ocean's 11. Brad Pitt & George Clooney make you forget that your thighs are burning because you're on an ellitical machine. Because, you know, they make my thighs burn just with their mere presence. And the cardio cinema is only ONE of the 9 million amenities that are now mine to enjoy. One of my favorite things about it is the kid's playroom. It has a climbing gym inside of it. Like McDonalds- only clean. The walls are lined with cool toys and books and paper and crayons and and and....it is perfection :)
It is so wonderful that I keep waiting for someone to walk up to me and say "I'm sorry, maam. There was mix up and you have to go back to the dump you were formerly a member of. Buh-bye" If they do you'll hear my cries of despair from miles away.

if you don't think this is funny...

you need to get your head checked. Friday funnies continues. You have to give this one a minute because the very beginning lacks funny at all. Then the music changes and you'll need to have on your Depends undergarments. Or maybe I'm just a sadistic cat owner. Because I'm dying to see if I can make Pickles fly, by hooking a ball to our ceiling fan.

ain't no other man...

because i can switch from bitch to sweet in 0-6 seconds, I'm switching gears. To wish my man a Happy Birthday :) In his honor, I will list the 36 reasons I love him so good. Since he's 36 and all.

1. He and I don't see eye to eye on music. AT ALL. And yet he rarely whines about having to drive in the car with me listening to country music. Even though it sometimes makes his ears bleed.

2. He can fall asleep in under 5 seconds if he is sitting down.

3. We can carry on an entire conversation around him as he sleeps, with no response until we make fun of him. He always gets us with an "I heard that"

4. He loves giving our kids a bath. I hate it. Enough said.

5. He knows random trivia about everything. He rocks at Trivial Pursuit.

6. Also, he can make Jeopardy! entertaining.

7. He taught my 18 year old brother & his girlfriend that you can't read a fortune cookie without putting "in bed" at the end of the fortune. You have to know my brother to understand why that is so damn funny.

8. He can watch ESPN all day long. Wait, I hate that about him.

9. When he walks into a room and I am watching Sweet Home Alabama for what has to be the 875th time, he might just sit down and watch it with me.

10. Only 10? This is going to take forever! He can listen to me bitch about my mother without ever reminding me that I am JUST LIKE HER.

11. That thing he does when he lifts the lid of every container and says the same stupid phrase to whatever food is inside.

12. That he can't play a video game of ANY KIND without using his tongue.

13. He thinks he's a good dancer.

14. He dances in public.

15. He requires a hug every day when he gets home. Requires it.

16. He also still likes to hold my hand in public. Awwwww....

17. He doesn't roll his eyes at my ignorant ideas. Well almost never.

18. He helps with the massive quantity of dogs at my parent's house. Most husbands would give you a "hell no". He does it, and does it well.

19. He lets me hog the bed AND the covers.

20. He scratches my back whenever I ask.

21. I have used 'The Promise' on him more times than I care to admit and it still works. I guess he always can hope?

22. He gets up first almost every morning and gets the house running so I can have a few minutes extra sleep. Back off girls. He's mine. You can't have him.

23. He never says "spaghetti again?"

24. He goes to the store for me. At 11:30 pm when I remember we have no milk for tomorrow morning.

25. If I am craving wings at 10 pm he can also be persuaded to get them for me. See #21.

26. Yes. He spoils me. It's one of the things I love :)

27. 2006 Valentine's Day gift. It was one for the husband of the year record books. I wish I had blogged it so that I could share it now, but it was gooood.

28. He accepts my family. No really.

29. He thinks his mom likes me.

30. He tries to be open-minded everytime I decide on the spur of the moment to paint/rearrange/redecorate any given room in our house.

31. He lets me think I'm right. Even when I know I'm wrong and don't want to admit it.

32. He has not one time looked at my pile o' scrapbooking equipment and said "seriously? What else could you possibly need?"

33. Same goes for shoes.

34. He understands my need for 20 minutes of alone time at night and usually wrangles the kids so I can have it.

35. He has never given me shit for telling him before we were married that I needed a clause written into the contract. 'If and when Tom Cruise came to sweep me off my feet, our marriage contract was null and void'. Seriously, Amy? Tom Cruise? I was so young and naive. **I** give **myself** shit about it, he never has.

36. He still needs me to match his pants/shirt/shoes at least 3 times a week.

and one to grow on....

*****He is the world's greatest husband/daddy/person that I know and I am so glad I got talked into dating him.

If there are 57 heinous spelling errors in this post, it's blgger's fault. The spell check isn't working :)

life on the tundra- day 11,510 give or take....

to quote my husband's favorite comedian ever (chris farley) "holy schnikeys" it's cold out there today.
I shouldn't complain outloud since a couple of my loyal readers reside in Minnesota where the term "freeze your ass off" doesn't begin to describe the tundra they are currently in. However, I'm in my own frozen wasteland, so bitch away I will. It is COLD. DAMN COLD. It seems like we always hit this run of freeze in February. Where it's so freakin' cold you think you might just succumb to hyperthermia before spring rears it's glorious head. I haven't succumbed yet. But I do bitch about it. Because have I mentioned it's coooold?

In other news, the chiclets are all fighting off a dread virus. Because they love me best, they decided to share it with me. Awwww.. thanks guys! So sweet! The snot here in this house is copious. And we all know how fun it is when the snot in your nose freezes because it's so DAMN COLD OUTSIDE? Oh, the joys of winter!

friday funnies...

because my day has SUCKED so far, i need something funny. I found this youtube clip on another blog I read and had to share, because it had me rolling. I love me some kitty outtakes :)

jammie day...

it's a blah, yucko, rainy day here. The kind that always makes me want to forego the shower and stay in my jammies all day watching chic flicks on TBS. Except that when you have 3 kids, that is somewhat impossible. I can forego the shower and stay in my jammies if I want to get weird looks from the neighbors at the bus stop, but staying in bed all day and watching movies? Not gonna happen.
Today Ryan is giving me a little of my rainy day wish. He is sick, so he stayed home from school. His only request besides pancakes, was that we stay in our jammies and watch movies. Never one to deny a sick child, we are making our movie list for the day :) I doubt I'll get to watch chic flicks, but if I'm lucky his entire list won't be comprised of Star Wars episodes and Hot Wheels movies.

let the music continue....

o.k. I'm starting to get addicted to searching youtube. Whatever will I do when Jen returns and takes over the music world again?? Kidding.
This one is posted for your listening pleasure because it's FEBRUARY! The month of LOOOOOOOOOVE.....
While this isn't our official "song", or maybe it is??? Matt??? Is this our song??? Whatever, I can't even hear the opening notes of this song without being immediately transported back to the summer of '94. Steamy summer nights in the frat house.....

jen's on vacation....

so I'm filling in the music for this week. Lucky for her she's gone, because I'm guessing two doses of country music in one week might cause her ears to bleed.
This one is chosen because I cannot believe in is the end of January already. I just started to write 2008 on things without having to think 4 times about what year it really is. And already the first month of '08 is outta here! Just this past weekend, I heard the parent of a teenager lament on how fast it has all really gone for her, and how when her kids were younger she rolled her eyes when people told her to enjoy every day because it would go by so fast. Admit it- who hasn't done the same? Because when you're in the middle of chasing three kids all running in opposite directions at the park in 90 degree, humid weather, the toddler years can't go by fast enough sometimes. But already, my oldest is nearing 8 and I can't believe how fast his life has rushed by me.
So just remember...don't blink.

that's not MY dog...

ryan was the star of the week at preschool last week. This is a BIG DEAL in the world of a 3 yr old. It was sort of a pain in the ass for me because he had to do this "all about me" poster. And because he is 3, it was not so much HIS homework as it was MINE. The hardest part was the oval in which he was supposed to put a picture of his 'pet'. Because, you know, normal people have 1 or 2 animals and we have like, 47 or something. OK...not 47...but we have several critters. We decided to leave off pictures of the fish (it is technically Justin's) and the pig (it is technically Hannah's) so in the oval we had to fit pictures of the 3 dogs and the cat. Not only do we not own 1 picture of all 4 together, our 2 oldest dogs haven't been photographed well for approximately 8 years. So I found so puppy-ish pictures of Shasta and Baxter and trimmed them up and fit them in the oval with Stanley & Pickles (don't ask) (Ryan named Pickles- because Pickles is the perfect name for a cat. Of course.) (like I said, don't ask)

ANYWAY... yesterday it was someone else's turn to take over star of the week position so Ry's teacher handed me back his poster. She stopped me as I turned to leave and said "Are those really your dogs?" I did a double (perhaps triple) take and said "uhhh, yes?? Why do you ask?" She said that Ryan had a chance to talk about all of the stuff on the poster and when she pointed to Shasta and Baxter he had not one clue who they were. I looked at my son like he was an alien and said, "Ryan...you know who these dogs are! Who is this?"(pointing to Shasta) He then looked at me like I was an alien- can't you just feel the love in our family- and said "I don't KNOW mom!" I told him he was silly because of course it was Shasta! He again rolled his eyes at his alien of a mother and said "No mom, Shasta has a white beard. This dog has a black one. You picked the wrong dog."

How to explain the aging dog to a 3 yr old? Poor Shasta and Baxter are apparently unrecognizable in their younger years to their own chiclets. I admit Baxter doesn't look a BIT like he did 8 yrs ago, but Shasta...I didn't think she had changed much. I guess she has.

In the end we all got a good laugh about the fact that it was the first time this year that a kid didn't recognize a pet on his own poster. Ryan gets to keep his one of a kind status :)

In her defense, Shasta has earned every single white in her 'beard'. She has the patience of a saint-dog. And 3 chiclets that make her earn her white the honest way.

just a grain of sand...

sometimes certain songs speak to me. I can hear it a hundred times or more and then one day I'll hear it for the 101st time and BLAM it suddenly means something to me. Today Carrie Underwood wins the prize.
I have some people in my life who are dealing with various struggles. Some bad, some worse, all of them stressful and weighing them down. These are people who normally are a ray of sunshine in my life. They deserve a big fat ray of sunshine in their lives right now. I'm praying for answers to their problems, and for their burdens to be lifted, but in the meantime, this song spoke to me today, because so many times in our life we struggle with what appears to be a mountain and in retrospect, it's only a grain of sand. I hope their mountains melt to sand soon. And that the sun shines into their world again soon.

overheard today...

always subject for blogging...the conversations between hannah and ryan.

Hannah: you can't marry Padme, Ryan she's already married to Anakin
(these are characters from Star Wars for those of you that are uninformed or not the parents of kids who watch these movies endlessly)

Ryan: Oh. OK. I marry Princess Leia.
(also Star Wars. Although if you don't know who she is, what exactly were you DOING in the late 70s early 80s anyway??)

Hannah: *sighing* No Ryan. She is in love with Han Solo.

Ryan: *pouts a moment* I just marry Hermione.
(Hermione Granger. Harry Potter.)

Hannah: You can't marry HER Ryan! She's not real!

At this point I am losing it down the hall, because seriously? How is Hermione is less real than Queen Padme Amidala? Or Princess Leia? At least Hermione is contemporary. Ryan has my blessing. It might be sort of cool to have a smart witch in the family. I didn't want to ruin the end of the 7th Harry Potter book for them and tell them why he couldn't technically marry her either :)

imperfect and loving it...

my mom and i were out shopping this weekend and we ran into a friend of hers. She is one of those people who can talk about herself and her perfect family endlessly. The sort who makes you want to punch yourself in the face 2 minutes into ANY conversation. Without boring you with the details, her children are perfect. P-E-R-F-E-C-T. They make excellent decisions, they pull perfect grades, they are beautiful, popular, etc.

I walked away feeling sorry for her kids and her husband. He is a really nice guy and I feel bad that he has to stand there and listen to her spout blah-bitty-blah-blah-blah every time they run into someone. She tells the same stories every time I see her, so I know he has to listen to them A LOT. I feel for her kids because they have to feel like they have to stand up to the perfect dream she has woven into their lives. How do you make a mistake in that house and live to tell? I know mistakes have to be made, they're just covered up and woven into some grand fairy tale making them seem like they weren't mistakes at all.

Lucky for my kids. The stories I tell are about them clogging my toilets, beating each other up, and basically acting like the normal, goober kids that they are. No high standards to live up to in this house :)

the pig lives to tell...

so apparently because milo spends 90% of his day munching hay, he can eat random stuff without getting plugged up. Which goes to show you, you need a little roughage in your diet. Maybe not Timothy hay, but a little romaine might go a long way if you ever happen to mistakenly eat a nerf dart. Just sayin'

We also now have our hands on a new gameboy DS. Thanks to the lovely Marsha for the lovely e bay links. We thought we had one ordered online only to find out 3 days later that it was backordered. There was much hate spewing about that day. But the lovely Marsha had taken time to dig up a few on e bay and we ended up buying one of those. The lovely e bayer who the lovely Marsha found, sent it so fast my head was spinning. Now I have a happy 7 yr old. And I can stop calling Target, Meijer, Best Buy, Circuit City, and Gamestop every day. Now I can get back to cleaning toilets.

Have a lovely weekend :) We have a whole lot of nada going on which is just what I need!

anyone? anyone??

what do you suppose a nerf dart will do to a guinea pig's intestines? Anyone?? Anyone?? I'll be finding out in the next day or two. Apparently nerf darts look and taste like carrots to guinea pigs. That is the only food I have seen Milo eat with that much speed. Nerf darts and carrots. Who knew? Anyone?

nintendo, why do you not ship enough product?

go into the stores. Just, go. Walk thee into any electronics section and have a looksie. What you'll find is xbox and playstation out the wazoo. What is missing? Nintendo products. I'm not looking for the Wii that everyone else was on the hunt for. No, I need a DS lite. Why now 2 weeks after Christmas can I NOT FIND A STINKIN' DS LITE? Why, Nintendo?? Why?? No one can answer that for me, and the geek at GameStop had the audacity to laugh in my face when I asked if they had any in stock. Then I shot him with the semi-automatic I keep in the minivan for just such an instance. You know, when a pimple-faced 19 yr old makes fun of my stupidity. He had it coming. Asshat. Really, I just thanked him politely for his complete lack of help and wished him luck getting a 'real job' someday.

The people at Nintendo have been on my personal shitlist since the first time Justin's gameboy broke and they charged an outrageous $75 to fix an game that only cost $120 to begin with. I thought that was the charge because he had broken the screen. Nope. This time something minor is broken and I find out that $75 is the STANDARD repair charge. So now they want me to pay a second $75 charge. Meaning, if I've done my math correctly, I've paid more for it to be repaired than I paid for it initially. How's that for a side dish of ironic? One of the things on Justin's wish list to Santa was "something to fix my broken DS" Awww...pull at mama's heartstrings. So we decided to just get a new one. Only it was a week before Christmas and we didn't have the spare budget to fork out the cash for it right then. Santa left Justin a new charger for his old Gameboy SP (his mysteriously has disappeared several times) and a note telling him he had taken the DS to the workshop to see if the elves could fix it and that he'd send it back in a week or 2 (coincidentally pay day time) and that hopefully he could charge up the old SP and that would keep him happy in the meantime.

So...fast forward to today. Payday!! I'm going to buzz over to Target and get a nice latte and a new DS. Only they're out of stock. So I take my delicious latte, hop back in the van and go next door to Meijer. Nope out of stock. Only a little deterred, I sip my latte on the way to WalMart. Again, denied. I then think to try GameStop. Which is when I got made fun of and began to think there maybe, just maybe, would be a little problem getting my hands on a DS today. Or any day soon. I came home and began making phone calls. People, they are sold out everywhere within a 30 mile radius of my house. WTF? This is not the "in" toy this year. Why can't I find one? I finally found a WalMart 30 min from my house that had a few in stock. They wouldn't hold one for me so I jumped right skippy into my van and drove (minus the latte this time). When I got there a different pimple faced boy told me they had just sold the last one. He was lucky that I had to park really far away and it was too cold to walk to the van to retrieve the semi automatic. I was a smidge on the angry side.

So, Nintendo. I must ask you...why do you make fun toys that everyone wants, but not enough of them? Why do you mock me with shelves full of pink DS and nary a black, red, or white one in sight? Why?? WHY??

true confessions...

it has been 4 months since my last official weigh in.
I haven't exercised regularly in almost that long.
I have gained ___ pounds. I can't say it outloud. Don't try twisting my arm. I won't say it.
I did 45 min on the the elliptical today and it about killed me.
But it didn't.
My ass is SO back on the wagon even though it's so big it barely fits up here.
Holidays are a bitch on my waistline.

buh-bye 2007...

is it just me or was 2007 the fastest year EVER?? I seriously do not believe that I have to write 2008 on stuff already. One of my family members said aloud yesterday to anyone who was listening (I think just me) "hopefully 2008 will be better because 2007 sucked". It gave me pause because my own personal 2007 wasn't all that bad. It was pretty good. I made some new friends. Settled into a new house that I love- leaky pipes and all. Got to spend more time with my family- psychotic behavior and all. Got to spend more time laughing with my oldest (not in years, just in time) and dearest friend than I have in years. Continued to laugh my ass off with my oldest (in years- sorry Carol) and bestest friend. Laughed at my husband (not that this is unusual, just seems like I laughed at and with him more often).

There was a little bad here and there thrown in, but if it was all good people would start questioning my vodka/tequila consumption.

When asked for my resolutions I snort. No, seriously. I literally snort. I don't DO resolutions. I suck at them. I want to get back on track with my weight loss but that has less to do with a new year than it does with the holidays being over and me being less likely to encounter trays of cookies at every destination. I guess if pushed I would say that I resolve to start running this year. I want to run the 5k that I usually walk in the Race For The Cure this summer. However I have been saying for 2 years now that I am going to do that, so is this THE year? I dunno. Maybe. No really, trust me. I suck at resolutions. I could resolve to say NO more often, but puh-lease. Who would I be if not everyone's 'yes girl'? It is not a resolution I can even say with a straight face. So I guess I resolve to make no resolutions and just try to keep laughing at myself and those who I love and hold dear. Sounds good for 2008. Cheers!