Ten Things

MamaBear invited her readers to join her in listing 10 things that make them happy.

I actually had to stop myself at 10. I guess that's a good thing, right?

1. My husband and the way he works so very hard to provide for his family.

2. Unsolicited hugs a/k/a "gug" from my Little Man.

3. Girl talk with my Tween Queen.

4. When the Princess gets in the car after school and starts telling me about her day before the door closes behind her.

5. Late night IM chats with my bestie. Am I allowed to say "bestie" at my age?

6. Venting to my sisters.

7. Coffee.

8. Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer.

9. Taking and editing photos. Although I really, really want a fancy new camera!

10. My computer because some of my friends "live" there!

Now, I'm inviting any of my readers to write their own list. If you do, leave me a comment so I can check it out!

Oh, and I have a Christmas post or five planned, but I'm still working on the pictures!

Whew!

I just looked through my posts, and saw that this one was never published. Although it wasn't funny to me the day I wrote it, it made me laugh tonight.

Also, by the end of our time dog sitting, The Boy had taken to crawling around and picking up toys with his teeth. Can you say peer pressure?

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My morning:

*Let The Boy eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

*Cinnamon rolls + 21 month old boy = icky, sticky, eewy, gooey mess.

*Removed pj's from icky, sticky, eewy, gooey mess of a boy on the spot, removed boy from the high chair and went to get him some clothes.

*Returned to find The Boy running around buck naked, wet diaper thrown over the baby gate onto the stairs.

*Got The Boy re-dressed, and cleaned up cinnamon roll mess in the kitchen.

*Walked into the toyroom where The Boy was playing with Daycare Girl, and found The Boy standing in the Little Tikes grocery cart. Fine idea!!

*Smelled a giant stink.

*Investigated and found giant stink to be coming from The Boy's diaper.

*Started changing the diaper. GROSS! Messy, stinky, eeeewww!

*Got poop on the comforter of the bed where I was changing him.

*Phone starts ringing.

*Captain Obvious Daycare Girl starts screaming, "Phone ring! Phone ring! Phone ring!"

*Let the phone ring while attempting to clean up The Boy.

*Pink cell phone starts to ring.

*Captain Obvious Daycare Girl starts screaming, "Pink! Pink! Pink!"

*Finished up with The Boy, found cell phone, saw it was my mother who called.

*Walked back into toyroom while calling her back to find The Boy standing in the grocery cart AGAIN.

*Broke up numerous tiffs between The Boy and Daycare Girl.

*Broke up numerous tiffs between Daycare Girl and Nana's dog who I was dog sitting while she had my girls in another state for Thanksgiving.

*Wiped The Boy's nose 5,687 times.

*Made lunch for The Boy and The Girl. And the dog.

*Enjoyed a moment's peace.

*Went to change The Girl's diaper after lunch.

*Finished with girl, and found The Boy on his hands and knees lapping up water from the dog's dish.

*Changed The Boy's clothes again.

*Put the kids to bed, walked the dog, put the dog and his bed in the bathroom.

*Breathed a sigh of relief.

*Whew!

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours. May you have a joyful holiday season filled with family, friends, peace and love.

Jesus came that we may have life - and have it more abundantly! John 10:10

Is This Cheating?

I've been a very bad blogger. I know!

I guess I've been trying to pull myself up out of my funk. Then I have had the added stress of Christmas shopping with little time and even less money. And of course the fact that I am now officially unemployed. Hello, stress, nice to see you. You may leave now, thank you very much.

But I have kept up with my blog reading, and four of my very favorite bloggy ladies are having an awesome giveaway. MckMama, Kelly at Kelly's Korner, BooMama and Stephanie (a/k/a the A Year of Slow Cooking lady) at Totally Together Reviews are each giving away an HP TouchSmart 600 computer. Seriously!

That computer looks so cool, and the coolest part, for me at least, is that it has wireless capabilities. I have a PC. It's in my kitchen. Can you imagine what wireless would mean for me? Of course, my husband already thinks I spend too much time on the computer. Having a computer that would allow me to sit in my jammies on my couch with my blanket while watching some reality something or another on Bravo and chatting online with my BFF or my sisters? Wow!

So, is it cheating for me to link to all four in one post? I hope not.

Anyway, click on the links above to enter for your chance to win.

And I promise to get better with my blogging!

25 Days of Christmas Ornaments

My friend, Carrie, at 4 The Love of Family, is hosting another blog carnival. For the first 25 days in December, she is posting a photo of one of her favorite Christmas ornaments and the story of why that ornament is special to her family. I had planned to jump right in on day one, but have I mentioned I've been in a funk?

At this point my tree is up, and I have put 2000+ lights on it. We have not, however, got our act together enough to get the ornaments on the tree.

Hopefully tomorrow will be our day to finish getting our house Christmas ready. It's supposed to be cold and rainy here tomorrow, so it sounds like the perfect day to do stuff around the house.

I can't promise 25 days of Christmas ornaments, or even the 21 days we have left at this point. Maybe I'll just have 12 days of Christmas ornaments. Or 8.5. Or, you know, whatever.

I did get the angel up on the tree today. She really isn't much to look at. Sort of cheap and a little tacky, actually. But, I bought her the first Christmas after my husband and I were married, and she has been on the top of our tree since that time.

Next Thursday is our 15 year anniversary. I think she's held up quite nicely, don't you?

In a Funk

I've been in a bit of a funk lately. This time of year always seems to bring out that side of me, for various reasons.

I'll be okay. I'll get over it. Once Thanksgiving is over, and I can focus on Christmas, I'll be fine.

But for now, I'm in a bit of a funk.

Yesterday was a day to fit my mood. It was dreary. There was a misty rain off and on all day.

When I got home from the second leg of my morning bus route, I looked around my rather overgrown yard. There are weeds that need to be pulled. The few leaves that actually change color around here have gone from green to dark brown and are littering my yard. And the Spanish Moss that attacks everything, has attacked.

I don't mind the moss really, except that I know it can kill a tree if too much of it collects there, and my Camellia tree is covered. My tree, in fact my whole yard, seem to be in a bit of a funk too.

And then I saw it. Do you see it?

Look closely.

That one bright red speck amongst all the moss and misty rain and brown leaves and dreariness.

Can you see it?

I know there is an analogy here. Beauty in the midst of the mundane, even the ugly? Bloom where you're planted? Fight your way out of the funk and shine brightly? Hope springs eternal?

Maybe it's telling me that you can be right slap dab in the middle of a funk and still be fine, still be yourself, still be normal. You know, sort of embrace the funk, enjoy it a little, wallow in it and just let yourself just be.

Maybe it's a combination of all those things.

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Just before I started working on this post, I read Angie Smith's latest post.

If that's not a sign of hope, I just don't know what is.

The Procrastination Gene

Have I ever mentioned my mad procastinational skills?

Imagine my delight at realizing my daughter possesses the same skills!

Our conversation this morning:

Me: You really need to go get dressed for school.

She: (Playing with her brother.)

Me: You really need to go get dressed for school.

She: (Talking to her Daddy.)

Me: You really need to go get dressed for school.

She: I usually wait 'til the 40's. (Meaning 7:40...we have to leave at 8:05)

Me: What time is it?

She: (Looking at clock that reads 7:46) Oh well, I still have the 50's.

Not Me! Monday

I did not wake two sleeping toddlers, lug them out to the car, buckle them into their car seats and drive to my 8 year old's school to pick her up only to realize that, "HEY, moron, it's Friday. She has girl scouts on Friday. You don't have to be here for another hour and a half."

I did not lose my cell phone.....again.

I am not old enough to be Taylor Lautner's mother. After seeing New Moon, I do not want to bring him home and stand him in a corner just so I can look at him.

I am not counting the days until Eclipse comes out in June!

A Good Dawg

Uga Vii

2005 - 2009

Record: 16-7

(Photo from www.onlineathens.com)

Uga Vii has gone to the big dog house in the sky. I can't be sure, but I'm willing to bet his afterlife there won't be much better than his life here. Is there any dog in the world more pampered, loved and admired than The Dawg in Georgia? I don't think so.

I'm also willing to bet Uga Vii is eating Gator for breakfast.

Or maybe that's just my idea of Heaven.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letters J & K

This blog carnival was created by MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family. For more Alphabitty Moments, check out her site!

This week, I am doing the letters J and K. I got behind again. So sue me.

I had a hard time with the letter J, which explains why I got behind. I didn't like anything I could come up with. Then it hit me.

My 8 year old is required to read something out loud to me every night as part of her homework. Lately, she has been obsessed with the Junie B. Jones books written by Barbara Park. They are a little below her reading level. She's in 3rd grade and reads on a 5th grade level. Not that I'm bragging or anything. She's only required to read for 15 minutes each night, but she won't stop until she has read the whole book. And these books are hilarious. Her older sister had the same obsession a few years ago, so I believe we own every Junie B. book ever written.

Funny side note: These books all start with the same paragraph, "My name is Junie B. Jones. The B stands for Beatrice. Except I don't like Beatrice. I just like B and that's all." The first time The Princess read one of these books out loud, she pronounced Beatrice just like it's spelled. Beat rice. Now she giggles every time she gets to that name.



K is for Kindergarten Luau. All the Kindergarten classes at my daughter's school have a luau at the end of the year. Some of the teachers have been there for many years, so they have it down to a science. They know exactly what works and what doesn't, and the kids all have a ball. Even the 6th graders are a little jealous when they see the Kindergarteners on luau day. I was room mom when The Princess had her luau, and I had almost as much fun as the kids.

Large Photos a la Kristine

I hinted, she obliged.

I have the best friends, both online and IRL!

Thanks, Kristine!



I also changed my header. What do you think? I'm not sure!

Photo Layouts a la MckMama

MckMama posted a tutorial on making photo layouts.

I have spent the last two hours or so trying to get a layout I like!

Here are my issues:

*MckMama is a professional photographer. I am not.

*MckMama has a fancy shmancy camera. I have a point and shoot.

*MckMama uses Photoshop. I use free photo editing provided by Paint.

That said, I was able to use MckMama's instructions, translate them a little, and produce a layout I sorta like.

Or maybe it's just midnight, I'm tired, and I'll change what I don't love (a/k/a the off centeredness that is kicking my OCD into overdrive) tomorrow!

For instance, the photo on the bottom right? It needs to be moved to the right just a smidge.

You can click on the layout to see it bigger. Next, I really need someone to teach me how to post bigger pictures.

Then maybe I can have a post titled Large Photos a la Kristine (hint, hint, Kristine)!

And then I got carried away and made two more layouts.

I even made the background black in the frog one.

And now......sleep.....zzzzzzzzz

Not Me! Monday - New Moon Version

I am not a twelve year old girl.

Therefore, I am not at all excited about the premiere of New Moon next weekend!

I have not read all 2,458 pages of the Twilight saga.

Nor am I thinking I just might need to read them again.

I do not see Edward Cullen and Jacob Black and think Cedric Diggory and Shark Boy.

I do not watch too many movies.

In preparation for our trip to see New Moon on Sunday (when tickets are just $5 each), I am not planning a Twilight movie night for Saturday.

I would not like to hear any suggestions for vampire or werewolf themed food for movie night.

I am not a nerd.

Raindrops on Roses.....

LeeLou Blogs, the lovely ladies who designed my blog layout, have just opened up their new SWAG site, and they are giving away some pretty cool stuff. You should go check it out.

They have asked us to make our own list of our favorite things, so of course, that song is now stuck in my head.

Before I begin my list, I would like to ask for your prayers for my friend, Jenn, a/k/a MckMama. She is in Boston with her one year old son, Stellan, and things are not going well. At this time, they are desperately trying get Stellan's heart to stabilize enough to get him into surgery. His heart actually stopped beating at one time, and they had to use the paddles to bring him back. As a mother, I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to watch that taking place. My thoughts and prayers are with Jennifer, Stellan and the rest of their family today.

And now on to my list.

**Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Watermelon. It leaves my lips feeling tingly, and I never get chapped lips anymore.

**Coupons. I have recently starting couponing, and I am obsessed. I have to say, it gives me a feeling of accomplishment to feed my family of five for half the money I used to spend. And somehow, when I manage to get something for FREE, like the two boxes of Special K in my cabinet right now, it seems to taste a little better.

**Starbucks Peppermint White Mocha. I know this is one of their holiday specialties, but I ask for it year round.

**Coffee Mate in Peppermint Mocha or Gingerbread or....I could go on and on. And if you go here, you can print a coupon to save a dollar. Hello? Two favorites at once!!

**Bath & Body Works body lotion in Japanese Cherry Blossom.

**Huggies Baby Wipes I have changed SEVEN stinky poo diapers in the last 24 hours, so I have wipes on the brain. I know Huggies aren't the most economical, and I buy store brands of almost everything else, but when it comes to wipes, I want my Huggies! Plus they come in such cute boxes!

**The kindness of strangers, especially Willie at Save-A-Lot who jumped my car off when my battery died in their parking lot.

**Happy, joyful, non-whiny toddlers. Sadly there are none of those to be found at the moment, so my list must end here while I attend to the needs of the whiny.

Your turn. What are some of your favorite things?

You Don't Say Saturday

Do not be afraid to go out on a limb ... That's where the fruit is.

- Anonymous

PJ Day

I ♥ toddlers in PJ's. They are just so stinking cute!

As I watched my Little Man toddling around in his PJ's this morning, I wanted to capture the cuteness in photos. Alas, he's not the most willing photography subject these days.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter I

This blog carnival was created by MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family. It's a way to capture and celebrate the little things that make up the big picture.

This week is the letter I, and once again, it was great timing. My 12 year old daughter was assigned a project for her geography class. She had to write a paper about her family's cultural heritage and include a type of food, music, dress and traditions.

Now, we were really hoping we could get away with 'Southern' as our culture. We are not one of those families that celebrates any other culture, but we are proud of our Southerness. And also our ability to make up words to suit our needs. When her teacher said that really wasn't what she was looking for, we had to dig a little deeper. Our last name is Irish, so we went with that. And also, my Daddy was born on St. Patrick's Day, and we always joke that he is a leprechaun.

Anyway, we decided to attempt to make Irish Soda Bread for her to share with her class.



It actually turned out pretty well despite the fact that she set the oven for 225 degrees instead of 325 degrees. We baked it for a full hour at the wrong temperature, then cranked the heat up to finish baking!

If You Give a Mom a Muffin

If you give a mom a muffin, she'll want a cup of coffee to go with it. She'll pour herself some.

Then she'll remember she was in the middle of doing laundry. When she puts the laundry in the dryer, she'll realize the thing on the door that tells the dryer the door is closed, isn't working. She'll try to tape it down with masking tape to make it think the door is closed. She'll realize that isn't going to work.

She'll start looking for the Phillips head screwdriver so she can remove the dryer door. Her 12 year old will call her crazy.

She'll wake up her husband to ask where the screwdriver is. He'll try to find it and will also go check the dryer door, doing the same things the mom did.

She'll realize she has to leave to take the snarky 12 year old to school.

She'll return to find the husband and the 20 month old snuggled in the bed. The husband will tell her how she can rig the dryer door to work. She'll wonder why he didn't just do it himself.

She'll want to go take a shower. She'll realize all the towels are either in the dryer that won't work or in the washer waiting to go into the dryer that won't work.

She'll get the 20 month old out of the bed with his daddy and take him downstairs for some breakfast. While making his breakfast, she'll see her now cold coffee. She'll stick it in the microwave. And chances are, if she gets to drink the coffee, someone will have eaten the muffin that went with it.

based on If you Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff

Yolanda, Holander and Bob

Meet Yolanda and Holander, our scarecrows. They are a lovely fall addition to our front yard. We buy new scarecrows every couple of years because the Florida humidity causes them to mold, so they don't last any longer than that.

On several occasions, we have found Yolanda and Holander with their backs to each other. We think they argue a lot.


My girls picked these costumes to wear to church last Wednesday. The Princess was a cheetah, and Sweetpea was a Publix employee. She wore her Daddy's name tag, but in reality he wears neither a hat nor an apron to work.


And finally, Bob, the jack-o-lantern. Bob got his name because after the girls finished carving him, and we lit his candle and turned out the lights, Little Man pointed to him and said something that sounded like "Bob".

Are we the only people who name inanimate objects? Scarecrows, jack-o-lanterns, our car, all have names. The car is Rosie, by the way. It is just us? Are we crazy?


Bob was purchased and carved Thursday night. By Saturday afternoon, he was already a little slimy. Bob is still on my front porch. The trash truck doesn't come again until Thursday. I am quite certain by then he will be filled with black mold.

Oh, the joys of fall in Florida.