memory lane

The picture below is of me and my friends' mom. Hopefully she won't get too mad about being Famously Internet blogged, but she's gorgeous so she shouldn't care, right?

When I was in high school, I hung around her twin sons, or should I say, I drove them around where they wanted to go. Yeah, I was their bitch. They always had a real strict curfew, and if they were like a second late, they were grounded. I had a Plymouth Champ at the time, and the highest speed it went was 40 mph so usually I was seen high-tailing it to their house to get them home on time.

Due to this, the first time I met their mom I was probably thinking, "yeah, this woman is hella crazy what with the freaky curfews and crap" but the instant I met her my little teenage sassy attitude turned into complete admiration. She and I clicked instantly. Soon enough, I didn't even have to knock on the door, and I would go see her before I'd even see what the boys were doing.

We would sit at her dining room table and talk, laugh, and basically make fun of whatever shenanigans the boys were up to at the moment. She was always funny, and smart, and totally unassuming. It was natural I started calling her Mom!

About 10 years ago, we had a falling out. Needless to say I was butting my nose in where I shouldn't have, natch. This past Christmas, she called me and it was like not ONE day had gone by. That love between us never changed!!

This weekend I got to spend time with her, the boys and their kids. It was fantastic. Fortunately the boys still had fodder for us to make fun of, and it was just like old times.

I am so blessed to have people like her in my life!!!!!

Love ya Mom!

Me and my PseudoMamma 

top 5 things I wish I still had from my childhood

5. My mom to put me to sleep. Insomnia last night made me wish for those nights when she'd rub my hair and sing me Ray Charles songs. If I had that, I know I'd sleep better. LP just rolls over and snores.

4. The ability to act silly anywhere, anytime. If I want to start belting out a song in the middle of a store, or start dancing on top of a picnic table, it really just is not as acceptable now as it was when I was 8. Damn adulthood.

3. Kangaroos. Man, those shoes were AWESOME. When I needed a nickel, I had one right there in my shoe! Yesssss!!!

2. Colecovision. We played Ladybug and Pole Position all the time, and my hand actually got callouses on them. Yeah it wasn't no Atari but that's what made us cooler than everyone else.

and the #1 thing I wish I still had from my childhood....

1. Rock hard abs. I was a dancer and full-time playground enthusiast as a kid and since we were poor my diet consisted of Cheerios and pork steaks, so I was always rail thin. Al has my exact body type, too. If I knew then that I'd become a poochy saggy belly mamma I would have thought twice about eating all those damn french fries. Evil!!!

living in the sunlight loving in the moonlight

Having a wonderful time!!

We decided that today was such a beautiful day that we would ALL go on the bike trail, together, as a family.

People who do not have children will not and cannot relate to this post. When non-parents want to go for a bike ride, they go. They get their bikes, tra-la-la, what a grand day it is. They ride, they smell the honeysuckle, they wave to other bikers, they come home and drink iced tea and have lovin' in the middle of the day.

We have 2 children. It does not go down like that.

First, I spent 20 minutes with a crying Rug because I told her to wear shorts instead of the skirt she had on. Slamming doors, screaming and a huge hissy fit later and she wears shorts. "Fine! Are these okay with you?" Ga-rumph.

Next, 20 more minutes of Rug crying because her helmet does not fit anymore and I make her wear one of my helmets. "This is SO embarrassing," she cries. "What does embarrassing mean?" I asked. "I don't KNOW but it is." Ga-RUMPH.

I videotaped the whole thing, it's great blackmail material.

So then there is about 10 minutes of her crying saying she will not be able to keep up with us and she WILL NOT be riding her bike. Oh, the drama. Meryl Streep was certainly channeled today.

We arrive at the bike trail, and for approximately 15 minutes we are enjoying the day, riding, feeling the wind in our hair, smelling the honeysu.....ERRRrrrRRRRRRRR.

Al does not understand the idea that you CANNOT brake when someone is right behind you. We had two or 3 pile-ups due to her slamming on her brakes with us right behind her. THEN Ms. Speedy Fastgirl decides she does not have to follow the bike trail rules and goes on the OPPOSITE side of the track, causing 2 poor bikers (with no children I'm sure) to almost wreck and fall off into a ravine. I had to use the middle name on that one.


She knew she had screwed up, but was not at all happy with me pointing that out to her. So she stopped talking to me and rode far ahead of us.

Then we smelled more honeysuck.........WHAMMMMMM!!!

Rug totally and completely wipes out. Watching something else entirely, la dee da. LP had to carry her back in his arms, walking both the bikes back to the car. There was quite a bit of blood, so the only positive part was LP had to take his shirt off to stop the blood and I got to see him shirtless.

We finally get to the car, put the mangled bikes into the KSHE van, slide in, beaten and conquered by the drama of the bicycle ride, and Rug says,

"What? We're leaving ALREADY???"

Computer geek I'll never be

http://www2.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200505/tows_past_20050523.jhtml


Okay, I've sat here for an hour now trying to figure out to link something, and I know most people know how the hell to do this, but I do not. SO until I figure it out, you will have to deal with me just posting the entire URL address. I suck. I have mentioned that before, though, you know, so it's not like the latest news bulletin.

Al has the strep throat now too, woo hoo. I don't even know if I'll be able to go to the BBQs this weekend. :( But on the plus side we did rent "Team America" which I hear is funny.

Have a safe Memorial day y'all, and if you are a Tom Cruise fan, this link might hurt your pride. He is a total Willy Weirdie.

No Crystal in here, just a few Caprisuns and antibiotics. That's all ya need, yo. 

SPD--Stuff Portrait Day. 

Rarely do I use a purse, so here is my wallet. LP's uncle gave this to me for Christmas, in dear reference to my sockmonkey affliction.

Frisk Me Minnie

That was the name of the horse I bet on last night at the racetrack. Of course she came in 7th. This, people, is why I do not gamble. I must've slept with Lady Luck's boyfriend in a past life.

We had a good time though, it was fun. No blood was shed, and all of us remain friends the next day, which is always a good sign.

As I previously mentioned we don't have a lot of plans this weekend save for a couple of BBQs to go to. LP and I decided to go down to "Rib America" which is going on downtown St. Louis, and is also apparently going on in a few other cities. I made the mistake of reading the entertainment lineup from the other cities and guess what? St. Paul and Indianapolis are treated to RICK SPRINGFIELD. Yeah, they get Bop till you Drop and you know what St. Louis gets? Morris Freakin' Day and the Time.

If you recall, on my top 5 least favorite songs, lies Morris day and the Time. I loathe Morris Day and the Time. How many versions of "Jungle Love" can you play to fill up a half hour of playtime? Seriously. St. Paul will be Lovin' Somebody and Indianapolis won't be talking to Strangers but holy crap we'll have lots of friggin' Jungle Love going on.

Well I guess I could always wait till their set is finished and go see "Cameo" sing "word up" eight billion times instead.

Procrastinatin'

I really suck. That being said, I have no plans for Memorial weekend. See? I told you. I feel like such a losah.

Other things that are going on:

Rug's graduation last night: She was so proud, and I took a picture that looked frightenly like a high school graduation, so I deleted it because it hurt too much to look at!

Old friend getting divorced: I feel really bad for him. He told me today she paid homage to a 19-year-old in their basement while he was sleeping. Ouch.

New friend has bad news: I found out yesterday Rug's best friend's mom has breast cancer. It looks pretty bad, and I am devastated. She is a wonderful person and I pray she comes out of it okay. I feel for her so much, and she's only 40. I run the Susan Komen 5K every year, and I really never thought I'd actually have someone to run it for.

Adventures in Babysitting: I started babysitting again for our neighbor girl, Claire. She's a great kid, and the girls get along really well. But no more running around the house naked singing Rick Springfield. Oh, not that I did that before or anything.

Adventures in strep throat: One of those things, Rug has been complaining of a sore throat for a few days, and instead of getting her antibiotics I just let her eat all the ice cream she wanted. Today I finally took her to the doctor and she gave her some antibiotics and told her to eat A LOT OF ICE CREAM. See? I knew what I was doing.

Free day: Tomorrow Aunt Kim is taking the girls to see "Madagascar" so I will have the afternoon to MYSELF. What to do!!! What to do!!! I'm going to pee I'm so excited.

last of all, ladies night: And I'm feeling right. Yes, all of us 2nd grade (now 3rd!) moms are going to the racetrack (horses not Nascar dears) tonight for a buffet and all the drinks we want. It should be fun. It's always fun to watch the Stepford Wives get all drunk and throw up on themselves and tell each other what they really think of each other! Good times, good times!

famgraduate

famgraduate
Originally uploaded by Vajana.

Rug graduated from preschool tonight. I really cannot believe it. I SWEAR it was like Monday when she learned to walk.

Ladies and gentlemen, I will be a mess come this August when someone goes somewhere and leaves her mamma all alone. Oh. My.

Science Project

On the way home from school yesterday in the car:

Al: "Today we had a sub for science."

Me: "Oh really?" (I was listening though, I swear)

Al: "Yeah, it was the 8th grade teacher. Jordan said she didn't want him coming in because he would probably make us digest frogs or something."

Me: ".......uh, you mean dissect?"

Al: "Well, what does digest mean?"

Me: "To eat. Dissect means to take apart and look inside."

Al: "oh yeah, I don't think we have Fear Factor at our school."

driveby

driveby
Originally uploaded by Vajana.

Rug and I went on the bike trail today, and as I was rollerblading by her, I snapped a quick pic of my favorite 5-year-old.

I cannot believe she will be graduating from preschool tomorrow.

This was our last day together by ourselves. Gulp.

superkid

superkid
Originally uploaded by Vajana.

Keep on rockin in the free world

Barefoot in the Park

Today I took Rug to the park. We had a great time.

When I first walked up, I saw a girl I sorta knew from the gym I used to work at. She worked there full time, I was a sub, for the daycare.

A little background: I've exercised at the same gym for years, and they needed someone for Tuesdays in the daycare, so I agreed to it, seeing how I would get a free membership for 1 night a week. Well, one night turned into 2, then people would call me at 3:30 to sub at 4, etc. etc. So I told the head girl I only wanted to sub. Anyhoo! Background done.

Well, when we made eye contact, I said, "Hi!" to her, very friendly, very chirpy.

I got a deadpan, "Hi" and walking away from me, no chirpy whatsoever.

Alright then, more background. A few months before I quit, this gal got fired. I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. I guess she had a beef with the boss, and started talking, and she never showed up, etc. etc. So from what I've heard, she is trying to sue for what is it, unjust termination or something? So whatever, I have Nothing. To. Do. With. That.

So what the fuck? Why does she need to drop me the cold shoulder? I barely knew her, and just because I was a semi-employee there does not mean I was in cahoots to get her fired.

I stood there for a few minutes, enjoying every minute of Riley's park visit, cuz she's gor-gee-ous. We were within 4-6 feet of this woman. I had a pretty friendly relationship with her prior, that hey-whats-going-on at local picnics and fairs or the grocery store, and now she was making every effort to avoid looking at me, let alone talk to me. This woman who obviously is a bit bitter about her axing,was taking it out on happy, park-going Me. So I decided, nope, it ain't goin' down like that.

I walked over and started petting her dog, and asking her questions, yadayadayada. Only then she had no choice but to talk to me back. We had a nice conversation, discussing school, kids, the like. She asked me if I worked there anymore, and I said no, and that was it. It was really a pleasant talk, and we left saying goodbye and have a nice day.

Kill 'em with kindness, and that is exactly what you will get back.

top 5 trends that needed to stop a long time ago

5. 80s miniskirts. Okay boys, I know you're loving them, but they're making adult women look like morons. They should stay on cute high school girls, I agree, but they're branching out, just like Spandex biker shorts did in the 80s, and that was pretty bad.

4. Try-to-top-this birthday parties. Who the hell had a Sweet 16 birthday party? What the frick? I got 2 movies from Blockbuster, some pizza I paid for myself, and a black Metallica T-shirt for my 16th birthday. God I'm embarrassed for these people.

3. Dogs as accessories. When did the Humane shelter start having to stock Prada?

2. Tom Cruise. Sorry, but this guy is losing it. And I quote, "When I make a move like that, I'm saying, this is MY WOMAN!" What the hell? I want the old Risky Business Tom back, not this odd, deformity Robin Williams-esque Tom that flits around on crack.

and the #1 top trend that needed to stop a long time ago:

1. Celebrity on reality. I do admit I watched a few episodes of the "Surreal Life" when Vanilla Ice was on (word to yer mutha) and the Osbournes were entertaining the first season, but after seeing the excess and the poutiness and the spoiled rottenness of horrible individuals, it's time to stop. Yes, Britney, I'm talking straight at yo mug, Princess.

In a word

I'm supposed to use just ONE word for each question:

What is the one word you would use to describe your appearance? Raggedy
Favorite body part? Toes
Least favorite body part? Rest
Most often complimented on? Smile
Most often criticized for? Forgetfulness
Your romantic relationship? Fabulouso
Your relationship to your parents? Better
Your feelings about parenting? Overwhelming
Your hobbies? Computering
Your favorite personality type for a friend? Loyal
Favorite personality type for a spouse or lover? Hilarious
Favorite type of movie? Teen
Favorite cuisine? American
Favorite treat? Brownie
Favorite gift? Sentimental
Most sensitive “unusual” erogenous zone? Back
Favorite pet? Clean

Bliss

Ahhh, love. Last night, they aired Attack of the Clones and since we'd just gone to see Revenge of the Sith, we sat and watched it since it was all fresh in our minds. Afterwards I said to LP, "Boy I bet all those girls that turned down George Lucas in high school are kicking themselves right about now." LPn, without skipping a beat, says, "Not as much as the boys that went to Belleville West around 1990" (that's when I was in high school).

I think he almost made me blush!!!

Ooooh I just saw someone else recounting how they met their husband, perhaps I should include that story today. More at 11.

castle

castle
Originally uploaded by Vajana.

This is a souvenir from our trip to Disney. It's not my souvenir. LP bought this for Rug at midnight as we were walking out of the Magic Kingdom. Yes she is spoiled. But, she plays with it daily and just got this instead of a bunch of crappy little stuff. Look, Prince Phillip forgot his keys!!

I had a bad feeling about this

But now I feel great. Revenge of the Sith was great. I really, really liked it. And I loved that my kids kept up with the plot, and linked it all together with the other movies. Riley, when the babies are born, leaned over and said, "Now, is that Leia or Luke?" :)

It was fantastic. My brother, who started this whole thing for me when we saw it as kids, didn't like it as much as I did. He feels like there wasn't enough character attention, too many battles. Well I thought it was awesome, and George didn't rely solely on CGI crap to make it look good, which I thought was the big problem in Phantom Menace. Oh, and Jar Jar, dear God.

Wow. What I geek I am (eh, yoda). I don't care. But, seeing this pic did teach me something though.

My husband and I are SO made for each other. When Obi-wan does something in this movie, he and I locked eyes and both of us afterwards said, "Oh my gosh! Did you see that part? Wasn't that cool?" and we both knew exactly what we were talking about.

I love that we are Star Wars geeks together. It's our little secret though.

I will tell you that he was wearing this shirt he got at MGM studios that says "Rebel Alliance" and I told him he might as well have worn a C-3PO shirt or something. He said he 'forgot' he had it on. Yeah, whatever. Geek.

But he's my Star Wars geek.

SPD with guest

Okay, so it is obvious by now I have no computer skills whatsoever, so please bear in mind that I'm trying to figure out this picture posting all by meself. Anyway, Pac-Man is my guest this week on Self Portrait Day. He didn't look well though, like he'd just seen a ghost or something. (yuk)

wocka wocka

wocka wocka
Originally uploaded by Vajana.

In Orlando there is a Pac Man Museum. It gave us a chance to pose in front of a life-sized Pac-Man. My world is complete.

This is one of my favorite pictures. There are so many things going on yet it is so simple. Sibling rivalry at its finest.  

Okay, I've told this story to 3 other people, and only one of them acted surprised or thought it was strange, so i thought I'd throw out to you all.

While LP, the girls and I were waiting in line at the Happiest Place on Earth to ride "It's a Small World", I saw this woman, let's call her She-Ra. I saw a person come up to this woman and say, "What is this?" The 'this' said person was referring to, was the fact that She-Ra was not only carrying in her arms 3 Build-A-Bear like stuffed animals, but also had 3 or 4 more of them in a LARGE STROLLER pushing them around the park. She-Ra's husband/boyfriend/gargoyle was carrying 2 more, and another, older woman (Mary Poppins?) was carrying 2 as well.

Now then.

She-Ra responded to the 'what is this?' question in a matter-of-fact way: "These are my children." Okay.

Now, I know there are people out there who have stuffed animals for decoration, or Beanie Baby collections, etc. But She-Ra, man, this is going way past the getting a prize at the county fair obsession with stuffed animals.

My first thought, being a mother of two, was, "What the hell, why on earth would she want to RENT a stroller for some motherf***ing animals? I didn't even rent a stroller for my children and they are LIVING BREATHING BEINGS." This of course comes from my years of diaper-toting and pumpkin seat carrying and my idea of a good time is the less to lug around the better.

So stay with me here, this She-Ra girl, not only has her hands full with stuffed animal goodness, she is also pushing/navigating a LARGE, rented stroller through thousands of people.

Here's the topper.

She is dressed HEAD to TOE in leopard. Leopard tights, shoes, shirt, and of course the accessory that puts it all together, the leopard ears.

I'm totally digesting all of this, and as I pull my camera out to take a picture, my husband yells, "NO!" He was afraid She-Ra might act on her animal instincts and pounce me and my new digital friend. (See? I have friends too, I just don't RENT THEM STROLLERS) Therefore I have no evidence of She-Ra and her furry pals.

But when I was standing there in line and watching her, (yes, I did watch her board the ride and I think they only let her bring 1 or 2 of the friends along) I recalled a show I saw on MTV a few years ago.

Apparently in this world of ours, there are "Plushies" and "furries" and I don't know which is which, but they are sexually aroused by people in fur suits, being in fur suits, and pretending to be furry animals in general.

http://pressedfur.coolfreepages.com/press/sex2k/ Seriously, this is whacked out.

She-Ra was SO one of those people, and I really had to keep my personal space after that when I went to hug Eeyore.

domino effect (in no relation to that awful movie with Ashton Kutcher)

Here is the dilemma. I am a stay at home mom, or SAHM, or Shit Ass ho Mother Fucker on most days. it gives me a lot of time. More time that I'd like to admit, less time than i admit to my husband that I have. It is a spiral though, and I've learned in the first year that if you are not out of your PJs by 9, they ain't coming off and you will have to hurry scurry around 4 pm to take a shower and be presentable if you want your husband to arrive home to a wife and not a mangy looking dog-like wife. (no mention of pearl necklaces will be on this website thank you very much, this is a family site!) Anyway, now that I've discovered blogs, well, that just shoots an hour out of my day right off the top.

I wake up, get my breakfast, get the kids moving, make the beds, start a load of laundry, then PLUNK goes my sweet ass in front of this computer. And I read.

I used to start at www.dooce.com but now I've found Kristine's blog to be my first. Then CircusKelli, paintergirl, homedetentionlady, dashababy, susie and then Dad gone Mad, who usually ends up having me have to go to the bathroom.

This would be enough, but no. There are comments, that make me laugh OUT LOUD so then I have to follow the link to THEIR blogs, and then THEY have funny links to OTHER blogs, it's just madness.

So please, all you bloggers out there, STOP BEING SO DAMN FUNNY.

No wait, keep being funny. It makes me feel better about myself, knowing you're out there.

Life of bees

Well when I picked up Al today from Brownies, she was holding her left hand in a fist and there was a Band-Aid on her wrist. Apparently she was stung by a bee. She says she can't open her left hand all the way.

Tonight is her piano recital.

She and I had a good laugh because last week in the car down to Disney World, she and I had a discussion about stings. She'd asked me what I've been stung by (a bee--while roller skating I fell down directly onto one, and a wasp who didn't take too kindly to my Love's Baby Soft) and then she said, "I've NEVER been stung by anything" and therefore sealing her stinging fate.

I love a girl who can get stung and laugh about it.

Tag-thanks paintergirl

The idea here is to pick 3 from the list, you get the idea. I was tagged and I feel so special since well, no one has tagged me before, and I'm supposed to tag 3 people but I don't think that many people even read my blog, so Greg, Kathy and Shari, if you're reading this, you're tagged!!

If I could be a scientist,
If I could be a farmer
If I could be a musician,
If I could be a doctor
If I could be a painter
If I could be a gardener
If I could be a missionary
If I could be a chef, I would have my in-laws over for huge feasts and make chocolate every day of my life, and make dinner for my grandma and her prisonmates at the nursing home
If I could be an architect,
If I could be a linguist
If I could be a psychologist
If I could be a librarian I would make reading books the new 'fad' and make it as popular as reality TV and turn this idiot society around
If I could be an athlete
If I could be a lawyer
If I could be an inn-keeper
If I could be a professor
If I could be a writer
If I could be a llama-rider
If I could be a bonnie pirate
If I could be an astronaut
If I could be a justice on any one court in the world
If I could be married to any current famous political figure
If I could be a world famous blogger I would inspire someone to do something wonderful each and every day

Return

Well we are back. I want to post about 8 million things but my house looks like a hurricane hit it so I have priorities here people. Anyway, we had the time of our lives, it was so much fun. I hate to use the term 'magical' but it truly was.

a few gems from the trip:

When we got to check in for our Cinderella dinner, the hostess asked, "How many in your party?" LP said, "4". Rug grabbed his arm and said, "NO! We have 5!!" (the 5th being Cinderella of course, duh!)

Maria, the CM (that's short for 'cast member'...there are no 'employees' at Disney ya know) at Big Thunder Railroad, saw Al looking a little tired and said, 'Are you having fun?' Al just said, 'eh' (she was hot) and Maria said, 'here, give these to your dad, maybe that will cheer you up'. She handed her fastpasses for Splash Mountain so we did not have to wait in line. I was so appreciative I took Maria's picture when we got off, and when I did she gave us MORE fastpasses. That was pretty cool.

At Magic Kingdom, the girls got to do the hokey pokey with Minnie Mouse and limbo with Eeyore. It was raining so a lot of people left, so it was like their own private party with the characters.

And last of all, to tug at my heart, I asked the girls what their favorite part of the trip was, and Al, with NO prompting whatsoever, said, "Being with you and Rug and Daddy."

Sniff.

Oh my gosh I wish I could bottle up the feelings I had and keep them forever.

random things

so yeah, Reeg and Kelly will be taping the VERY DAY we will be at Magic Kingdom. Sigh.

I got the $200 CD yesterday for the KSHE van, Aaron's uncle 'pulled some strings' and got it for me for $175. Oh what to do with that 25 bucks?

Al had a soccer game last night and apparently the stopwatch they had 'stopped' working so the game ended up lasting an hour and 20 minutes! Whew! They won 4-1 but it was probably more like 2-1 since they played till sundown.

I tanned yesterday, trying desperately to get some color on my honky ass, and yeah of course that is what is sunburned. Ouch!

So we're leaving in less than 24 hours. I am way super excited. Tired, due to transcribing until after midnight last night, but excited. Now I just have to figger out the language of Regis and Kelly fans, get on their good side, understand their dialect so I can figger out what their strategy is. This. Is. outofCONTROL!

Ode to Regis and Kelly

Oh Regis, you're such a funny guy
You laugh and make the ladies cry
but to me you are a thorn
you make me so forlorn
why are you visiting Disneyworld the exact same week as I?

I've planned, I've saved my pennies so,
my week would be the perfect show,
but now your fans will yell
and shriek and cry and smell
while my girls try for an autograph of Pluto.

Oh Kelly! you're cute and squeaky clean,
you're just a little jellybean.
but my plans have gone awry
i just want to sit and cry
Live with Regis and Kelly will be seen.

So Magic Kingdom here we come,
the plans are made, the trip is done.
I hope your fans are nice,
And treat us without a vice,
Because I will have to go medieval on their asses if they act like rude lunatics.

top 5 things I can see sitting at my computer

5. These great porcelain elephants my neigbor has in her yard. Of course they are flowerpots.

4. My other neighbor who consistently, all seasons, wears those polyester shorts your gym teacher wore. His look like they fit him in about 1980.

3. our bay window, and on the shelf are usually at least 2-3 'people' Riley is interacting with. There is always someone there,today it looks like the Mom and the ice cream truck driver.

2. At least once a month, some ridiculous bird doesn't realize our window is not a portal to the other side of the house, and SMACKS right into to, scaring the bejeebus out of me, and then I have to go throw away the brain-dead bird away.

the #1 thing I can see from my computer:

1. A picture of me and my dad at my college graduation. he was so proud. I wonder what he would think if he knew the picture NEXT to that one is one at my husband's high school reunion where I got so shit faced I sang karaoke in front of everyone and ran naked down the hotel hallway?

top 5 things I can see sitting at my computer

consumed

I was feeling a little overwhelmed the other day with all the things I need to get done in the next few days, and I took a step back. Someone said to me once that the best way to fix a camera is not to look outward through the lens, but to open up the camera and fix what the inner workings. I don't know, maybe it wasn't anything like that, maybe it was a radio or a toothbrush or something else but still, I think the point was, don't look the same way you are looking to fix what is wrong, go from inside yourself.

Anyway, I'm not all that philosophical, most of my inspirations come from Homer Simpson and random things my kids say. But I decided to do something...I crumpled up all the lists and ideas and itineraries and strategies I had going for this Disney trip and threw them out.

I do NOT want this to be a stressful, planned-to-the-second vacation. I want this to be chillin' like Bob Dylan on the beach watching my kids frolic in the waves. I want to see the sunset with my husband and have him put his arms around my shoulders.

So other than the Cinderella dinner and the hush-hush surprise Tigger/Pooh lunch I have planned, we are going totally on the seat of our worn out pants! or, as my mother would say, we're 'playing it by ear', which was a phrase I always hated, because what the hell? Who has ever played with their ear and why?

top 5 nicknames I've had in my life

5. Jana Say Qua?

4. Bobo

3. Juana, Mary-juana, Mary-Jo Juana, Wanna what (all high school of course)

2. SchwalbleDobble Head Jobble

and my top nickname I've had, given to me by my brother at age 5:

1. Miss Moo

This I know

He loves me. He must.

While I was doing my hair today for the Mother's Day Tea at Al's school, the girls walked in the bathroom. One had a card. The other had a box.

The card was nice.

The box was full of digital camera wonderfulness.

I'm so happy!!!!