Friday, September 30, 2011

I made something mostly edible


Having a personal blog and a family blog can be a little confusing. There's a line where something is more family-related than ME related, right?  Anyway, I decided to post this particular post onto the family blog, but I think you'd enjoy it too.  I actually sound domestic!  And there's a bonus video of the Dude laughing.  Who doesn't want that??

Thursday, September 29, 2011

BANANA!!



This is one of the Dude's favorite books, and I LOVE to hear him read it.  Its moments like this that get me through the bipolar badger moments of his toddler-hood.  The sweet moment was gone when he tried to lick the camera, which is why the video ends with me yelping.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

feed me

Does my sidebar look kind of naked?  I think so too.  I should put some of my favorite blogs up there.  I'll TOTALLY get around to that super soon.

But if you left comment and told me what you were having for dinner, I'd totally add yours for sure.

Is that bribery?  Maybe.  If it is, you're almost as easily bought as I am.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

brain bullet list

1. My head cold/pounding sinus headache and snot producing episode is now approaching 2 weeks. 2 weeks.  How on earth is that fair??  Also, the kids are goopy, but husband - who has refused to stop smooching me - has stayed well.  I take more vitamins than him.  The injustice is getting to the point that I’m thinking of recruiting Al Sharpton to champion my cause.


2. I’m slightly glad facebook has gone all skeewumpas.  I’m much less tempted to be on it, and more tempted to live an actual life.  And though my actual life has far less human interaction, it also has far fewer ALL CAPS NOTIFICATIONS THAT REPOSTING SOMETHING CAN PROVE MY LOVE AND SUPPORT FOR ALL THINGS AND ALSO MAKE STUFF MAGICALLY FREE.  


3. My birthday is coming up and I’m seriously thinking of asking for Spanx.  Really.  I miss a flat stomach, and these sit-ups are not doing a durn thing.


4. I love the blogging stuff and I’m pretty sure the only person who has blogged longer than me is Dooce.  But I’ve never had a consistent comment thingamajig in my over 10 years blogging and it is REALLY annoying.  I love Tumblr, but I have no idea why Disqus won’t let 70% of people who come here post anything.  Do I really have to make the move to WordPress or Blogger?  I really cannot understand WP, and I already have a few blogs with Blogger.  It feels “meh,” whereas I prefer my personal blog to feel “WHEEE!!”  Although actually being able to have people comment would feel pretty WHEEEEEE…


5.  I’m going home for Thanksgiving, where I have not one, but 2 fresh-from-heaven nephews!  I’ve never really been so excited about getting new relatives of the baby variety, but in my defense, I’ve never really liked babies anyway.  For some reason, I’m totally pumped to squish these guys!  I’m getting better about being bitter at seeing other people have a decent non-suicidal transition into motherhood (and getting to give birth in a nice place like America that also has a Target and where they live within the same time zone as family).  So that’s helping.


6. This sounds grumpy.  I’m not TERRIBLY grumpy.  I think it’s the snot talking.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

tmi mommyness

Holy snap so remember how the Dude has done the poo in the potty thing well it’s always when I catch him grunting like he’s about ready to go and I’m like “let’s go to the potty!” and he runs up there and he’s all excited because I read him books and he gets candy and he likes books and candy and then snuggles and praise who doesn’t like snuggles and praise so anyways yesterday he came up to me saying “potty potty!” and I took him up there and he’d already gone in his diaper but I figured that’s a big step that he knew he’d gone and associated that with the bathroom so whoop whoop I was all happy for that well then today he grabs my hand and drags me to the bathroom saying “potty potty!” and when we get there his diaper was dry so we sat there reading books and stuff and then HE WENT IN THE TOILET YES THAT’S RIGHT HE TOLD ME HE HAD TO GO AND THEN HE DID HOLY SNAP I’M SO EXCITED AND SLIGHTLY HORRIFIED THAT MY LIFE HAS GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE THIS PARAGRAPH IS THE GREATEST THING THAT HAS HAPPENED THIS WEEK.

Friday, September 23, 2011




I dress funny.  Husband even gave me a pile of money when we got to NYC and told me it was mine to spend on whatever I wanted.  It mostly went to food and souvenirs for the kids.  And a plain grey tee and a bracelet for me.  I saw tons of neat fancy clothes, but I had to admit to myself that fashion-wise, I’m a die hard pragmatist.  I have to wear what I feel purty in, but also what can be pulled on without exposing myself, and must accept that it will also be used as a Kleenex and may meet a premature end when a loving toddler covered in chocolate and mud decides to charge me.


But it goes deeper than that.


I LOVE clothes.  I e-window shop constantly.  I dream about outfits - literally.  I’d dress up every day if I could.  But I can’t.  I wear tee shirts and jeans almost everyday because of that pragmatism thing, but there’s something else I’m starting to realize about myself.


I performed a lot as a kid and teen.  Oh, and during those 7 years I spent pursuing multiple performance degrees.  Recitals, competitions and concerts - each with it’s own level of dressiness.  Sometimes I played well. Sometimes I bombed.  Heck, once I lost my place and just walked off stage.  And when I bombed, I’d think about how much time I’d spent primping, and how much time I’d spent actually practicing and preparing.  I always came to the sick conclusion that I’d much rather have looked less fancy and sounded better.  I WANT to be pretty, but I also want to do awesome things.  And for some reason, those two don’t coincide for me.  Some people look put together and have fabulous children and homes.  When I look put together my kids look like swamp things and the house is a disaster.  When they look good, I look certifiable.  But I (grudgingly) think I’d prefer that over looking good myself with nothing to show for it.


It would still be nice to think I could pull of wearing heels and something flashy on a random Tuesday.  But I’d look in the mirror, and change into trademark bag lady chic every time.


Wednesday, September 21, 2011



GPOYW - Nap time in Central Park edition.  The NYC trip was divine.  The head cold I am now sporting is less so.  Besides that and a house that looks like a pack of monkeys passed through, I am feeling quite blessed.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

trip ticks

I’m almost done tying up all my loose ends so I can go to New York City in two days and turn my brain completely off. Just look at everything, eat everything, take pictures of everything, and walk hand in hand with my sweetheart. The idea is completely surreal.



Except it just occurred to me that I’ll be away from my kids for 3 whole days. They’ll be in excellent hands, but I’ve never spent this much time away from the kids. With husband. They will be away from us. They are never away from us. And though I know logically I should embrace this, I’m having an involuntary urge to hide under my bed. So now I’m fighting this urge and I’m feeling jittery. This is not the point of a vacation. How do I get my brain and my stomach on the same page??



Motherhood is complicated.

Monday, September 12, 2011



The next best thing to not having to chaperone a youth dance at all?  Having your awesome husband show up (not a small thing, seeing as we live a ^%$#% hour from the stake center) and hang out with you.  Oh yeah, we danced.  Have you seen the husband dance?  If not, you are an unlucky soul.  I don’t get to dance with him often, but holy smokes he’s got killer moves.  He makes even the electric slide awesome, which he forced me to do at our Atlanta wedding reception.  I was NOT amused, but at least I got to watch him doing it.


slidin


OMYGOSH I just realized that’s my mom back there!!  AWESOME!!  So anywho, I’m pretty sure we freaked out the teens but if I’m going to have to chaperone a dance, that’s just the price you gotta pay.  Not like last time, when they made all the chaperones do the Cha Cha Slide which I hate more than almost anything else in the entire universe.  NOT EXAGGERATING.  Anywho, THANK YOU HUSBAND.


Also, Google Chrome’s spell check keeps telling me I misspelled “chaperone” but Wikipedia said I was right.  Darn red angry squigglies are all over this post.


Now onto trying to plan my NYC trip this weekendish!!  ANY SUGGESTIONS??  Really, I think mostly I want to walk everywhere, eat everything and take pictures.  Anything else I MUST do??



Okay ladies, RUN over to thebrightbit and then gallop over to eShakti before Thursday so you can get a customized dresses for $20 off.


That sure brightened up my Monday!

Friday, September 9, 2011

a prayer

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray Mother Nature my state to obliterate. I mean, if you were planning on sending a typhoon here at some point, tomorrow would be nice because then I wouldn’t have to go down to Madison and chaperone a youth dance, standing there for 3 hours, looking almost as awkward as the teens because I don’t know any of the adults and they all know each other and don’t talk to me so I spend all night playing on my phone and pretending I’m totally not uncomfortable. I’d settle for a blackout, or a monsoon. I’m not picky.



Amen.



I read this twice and then snorted.  I dare you to do differently.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011



GPOYW - twintastic edition.  She’s SO excited we have the same hair!  This will last until Monday when I go back in to get highlights and whatever other color that strikes my fancy.  But for now, I couldn’t think of another person I’d rather be twinners with. :)

Monday, September 5, 2011



I took some rainbow yarn that was in a tangled mess and rolledit into a ball. It was oddly satisfying and now I want to toss it around and play with it like I’m a kitten. (Photo by onebrickshy)

Sunday, September 4, 2011

this modern life


“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just like people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, and most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is just like an old time rail journey … delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.” 
— Jenkin Lloyd Jones



This quote gets to me. The history of the world is an amazing thing - we went from living in caves, nothing, to this world of cars, cellphones, indoor plumbing, medicine, grocery stores and machines that can weave pantyhose.  It’s amazing!  I benefit every day from people who thought up and achieved amazing things.  And then there’s me.  I won’t ever do anything to benefit millions of people.  I feel like a taker - a user of what the world has to offer.  And the world needs people like me - it wouldn’t function without it!  (Yes Sanny, right now I’m thinking of that go-getter quote too).


But every now and then it gets to me.  A guilt, maybe?  The feeling that I’ve been given so much by this cool modern life and I’ll never give that much back to it.  And I know it’s best to not fret over that fact - just do the best I can with what I’ve got and enjoy it that.  But… the guilt… who is with me on this one?

Friday, September 2, 2011



Have you ever thought - “Hey, I want a map of the world as big as my kitchen table.”  Me too! Is there nothing that Ikea can’t do?

In answer to your questions, it’s almost ridiculous to imagine WonderGirl NOT having the time of her life at school. She LOVED it. Plus it’s a fantastic school and the teacher specializes in reading - so she won’t have to endure another year of learning the alphabet and she’ll be given extra time and work on HER level. She adores any teacher who is willing to say hello to her (especially you, Julie!). Seriously, I would home school her in a second, but I can’t deprive her of teachers to idolize and peers to stalk. Sigh. What about MY needs?? Anywho, this song is how school makes her feel, so I have to grin and bear it. Also, thanks for the support and encouragement :)

In answer to your questions, it’s almost ridiculous to imagine WonderGirl NOT having the time of her life at school.  She LOVED it.  Plus it’s a fantastic school and the teacher specializes in reading - so she won’t have to endure another year of learning the alphabet and she’ll be given extra time and work on HER level.  She adores any teacher who is willing to say hello to her (especially you, Julie!). Seriously, I would home school her in a second, but I can’t deprive her of teachers to idolize and peers to stalk.  Sigh.  What about MY needs??


Anywho, this song is how school makes her feel, so I have to grin and bear it.  Also, thanks for the support and encouragement :)

HEAR YE. I need to document the fact that I ran 3 miles and didn't feel like death.  So just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, I did...