stars

A PSA.

2011-05-24T14:42:00.000-05:00

Are you, your family and your friends aware of the number one threat facing humanity today?

This threat is insidious - it's in your home, your business, everywhere you go. There is no escape, and there is no cure.

It may start small, but it will breed, not unlike a Gremlin who has been fed after dark - a greedy, monstrous creature.

What is this dire threat facing us?

Entropy.

This hideous creature knows no bounds, no decency. No one is safe from its reaches. You can try and fight it, but it will beat you every time.

Won't you join me in raising awareness of this terrible threat? Simply stop fighting it for a couple of days - don't do dishes or laundry. Don't even throw away your trash. Soon, everyone around you will be asking questions, and you can do your part to increase humanity's awareness of entropy.

Leave the lawn unmowed. Do it for humanity.

Day 1

2011-01-31T22:15:00.002-06:00

After day 1 of training, I am considering reevaluating my goal of running a half marathon at the end of September.

Just kidding. I'm going to do it.

You know sometimes things seem like such a good idea in your head, and then in the midst of executing them you wonder just what it was you were thinking?

That's pretty much what happened to me tonight. :)

I'll try not to be boring with daily posts of my training progress. (As if I could manage to work out daily! Ha!) But for my first day, I ran 2/3 of a mile in 10 minutes. Nothing spectacular, to be sure, but it's a start. :)

2010-11-10T10:21:00.003-06:00

Jadyn: (in the midst of her snack) Mama, does your mouth have gravity?

Me: (pausing a moment) Everything, everything, everything, everything is pulled down by the earth's gravity.

Jadyn: Yeah, but what about what's in your mouth?

Me: Even what's in your mouth is pulled down by the earth's gravity.

Jadyn: Okay.

pause

Jadyn: Like a magnet!

pause

Jadyn: We stick to the earth like a magnet sticks to the fridge!

Me: (what else is there to say?) Yep.

Isn't homeschooling swell? :)

2010-05-27T11:30:00.002-05:00

Dear Unconstitutional Census Takers,

While you are hard at work wasting taxpayer dollars sitting in Chick-fil-A discussing the aforementioned unconstitutional census, please keep your comments about my children and myself to yourself. Fortunately, the right you enjoy in this country of saying nearly anything you want also affords you the right to be wrong. Furthermore, if "graduation" and "prom" are the first two things you name when referring to school, as examples of "getting out into the world," might I point out that both of those events have nothing to do with education? Likewise, if graduation and prom are your foremost memories of school, then it's no wonder you're participating in another example of the fleecing of America. And in a fit of irony, my children whose lifestyle you see fit to criticize this fine morning were actually "out in the world" rather than cooped up in some classroom.

Sincerely,
7 People Live Here

ah, homeschooling

2010-04-23T14:11:00.002-05:00

We're discussing ancient Egypt and what their houses looked like. We talked about how they spent a lot of time on the roofs of their houses because it was cooler up there. We talked about how Grandpa used to sleep on the roof in India when he was growing up. We talked about how only rich people in ancient Egypt had a bathroom indoors, but they probably only had one and had to share, and the servants had to empty the lavatories and pour the water for the showers.

Alaina: "I'm glad I don't live in ancient Egypt."

Jadyn: "Me too. I'm glad we're Texans."

reason #512

2010-04-15T12:02:00.002-05:00

...why I love Crocs.

A.J. (not yet 18 months old) put his Crocs on his own feet this morning. Each on the correct foot.

Hooray for things that make my life easier!

a photo progression

2010-03-30T22:15:00.003-05:00

unaware of the camera, doing his thing

wait, someone is watching me?

sitting up straight and hamming it up for the camera!

overachiever

2010-03-29T10:32:00.003-05:00

To prove his talent and/or his stubbornness, Jared managed to get an ear infection WITH tubes in his ears. So what's next? Antibiotics and then tubes again. Happy Monday!

it's really true

2010-02-25T17:52:00.000-06:00

You may or may not have heard that my friend Ashlee is turning 30 next month. Today was the beginning of her 30 Rock Tour. (Links to follow. I'm blogging from my phone at the little gym.) It's just as much fun to see her blog about her gifts as it was for me to open my own last year!

Hopefully this marks a return to my poor neglected blog. It's been a little crazy at my life lately. More so than usual, believe it or not. At the very least I'm sure I have some amusing photos to share.

And now I have to attend to a crayon disagreement. Never fear, I will prevail.

autumn? nope. crazy season.

2009-11-23T18:36:00.010-06:00

I'm not sure this past weekend will fit into one blog post, but I'm going to give it a whirl!

Friday night, thanks to my mom being here to oversee what's here of the collective, Joe and I went to the Switchfoot concert. Despite the fact that they are my favorite band ever, this was only the second Switchfoot concert I'd ever been to. And it was fabulous! It was just Switchfoot, no openers. They played the new album ("Hello Hurricane") in its entirety then they played some older stuff. The concert was at Warehouse Live, which is a pretty good venue. I'm not sure I'd willingly attend a standing room only concert for just any band, but with this concert it actually worked. And here's a picture of Jon Foreman when he came out into the crowd and stood with the guy directly in front of us to sing a chorus of one song.

Saturday was Jared's birthday party. He had requested a Thomas (the Tank Engine) cake for his birthday party. And this is why it is useful to marry an engineer (among other reasons):

I also had train engine shapes for the kids to color and then I would assemble them with shoulder straps so they could be trains on the train tracks. Well, that didn't pan out. Instead, after Jared opened his presents, which were literally *all* trucks, with a few clothes thrown in for good measure, he took to driving his trucks around on the tracks. So it all worked out.

Sunday was Ashlee's 5th anniversary at our church. She got a golf cart for a gift. That didn't really have anything to do with us, nor did it add to the craziness of my weekend. I just thought I'd share.

Today, I implemented plan A of the "get Jadyn to stop chewing on her fingernails" attempt. This consisted of painting her fingernails (and her toenails, just for kicks). She chose red glitter polish - one of my personal favorites for the Christmas season. So I painted my toenails too. Her toes look cute, and so do mine! Hooray for having daughters!

I talked to Alaina today...she's doing well. I am really looking forward to seeing her pictures!

This is the conversation I had with Jared this evening. He decided that one of his little cars - a school bus - also had ice cream in it. So he offered me some.

Jared: "Here's your ice cream!"
me: "Thanks!"
pause
Jared: "Give me a money!"

A little later, he offered me some more ice cream.
me: "I don't have any money."
Jared: "Get some!"

hooray technology!

2009-11-19T14:25:00.005-06:00

Check this out! Clearly she's tired, but my dad told me today that she's doing really well and having a lot of fun.

She told me that she hadn't written in her journal yet, but that she was going to do that tonight before she went to bed. She also has a black and white (her favorite colors) punjabi, and she has chosen punjabi material for Jadyn that will "look like a pretty princess dress."

So far, so good. /whew!

Thanks to my cousin Dev for posting pictures on Facebook! Isn't technology amazing? :)

boys are special, reason #111 and #112

2009-11-10T20:59:00.004-06:00

So I'm driving home from the Galleria area at 6:00pm tonight. (Enough said, right? It gets better.) I was picking up my sister's and daughter's passports which had been freshly approved and stamped with visas to India. I had Jared and A.J. with me. (Told you it was better.)

Determined to suck it up and deal the best I could, we made it out of the visa office without a trip outside/to the bathroom/wherever for some, um, more stringent discipline. Anyway, we're in the car, sitting in traffic, and Jared is alternating between entertaining me and telling me which way I should be driving. At one point, he starts singing "Twinkle Twinkle," and asks me to sing along. So I do. Then he asks me to sing the Doxology (we've started singing that at bedtime also...long story), so we sang that together too. As soon as we finish, he says, "Okay, time to go to bed now! Going to sleep in the car!" He then closed his eyes and leaned against his headrest, feigning sleep.

Of course I had to play along. "Jared, are you sleeping?"

Without blinking, "Yes!"

A few seconds later, in his delightful yelling voice, "Wake up time!"

After about 30 minutes and 10 miles, I asked him about one of his classmates at Mother's Day Out. I had been tipped off about this particular classmate from my informant.

"Jared, was Aubrey in your class today?"

"No."

Knowing otherwise, I persisted. "Jared, was Aubrey in class today?"

Unintelligible mutterings, then, "Yeah."

Different tactic. "Jared, is Aubrey your friend?"

Without hesitation, "Aubrey's a girl."

Clearly, being a girl disqualifies one from friendship status in Jared's world.

2009-10-24T22:45:00.002-05:00

Ask for pink state of Texas cookies...

get pink state of Texas cookies!

I would give you one, but they're for Azina's going-away party. She's moving to my house next weekend!

the dawn of understanding

2009-10-12T14:04:00.002-05:00

You may have heard the tales of Jared's naptime and bedtime exploits.

So I have taken to locking the door to the bathroom and putting up the gate in his doorway so that he cannot get out or relocate the bathroom accessories to his bedroom.

This afternoon, I did as usual, first locking the door to the bathroom.

"Mommy, you lock the door?"

"Yep. So you can't get in and make a mess."

I put up the gate in his doorway.

"Mommy, now I'm stuck in here!"

"Yep."

Hysterics ensue.

old fashioned sing-along

2009-09-28T23:20:00.005-05:00

(to the tune of "Frere Jacques," emphatically and at the top of your lungs)

R-E-D red
R-E-D red
That spells red
That spells red
Fire trucks are red
Stop signs are red too
R-E-D
That spells red

(take a breath, then continue, same tune)

I am special
I am special
Look at me
You will see
Someone very special
Someone very special
It is me
It is me

Go ahead, try to get that out of your head now.

Uh-huh. That's what I thought.

You're welcome.

firsts, part ii

2009-09-17T13:57:00.003-05:00

And the winner of the first package? A tie! Jadyn's shoes and my anniversary present arrived at the same time on Tuesday. The curriculum arrived the next day.

I love this plate! And it was engraved by the artist.

But never fear! There are more exciting firsts to report!

Last night I made the first new recipe I've tried in my new kitchen - my mom's beef and noodles (homemade noodles!), except I made it with venison. The noodles were fabulous, and I'm told the venison was good, too.

(Curious what the last new recipe I tried in the old house was? Molten chocolate lava cakes. Definitely a high note to go out on!)

The most recent first? Today, right before naptime, was the first time the girls locked everyone out of the rooms. Their bedroom and the boys' bedroom connects via a bathroom, and they locked all the doors and pulled them shut behind them. Awesome. Consequently, I took apart a doorknob for the first time for a reason besides painting! Time to take those Lois Lane lock-picking classes...

firsts

2009-09-12T13:16:00.004-05:00

Two weeks ago, we moved into our new house. It has, logically, led to a series of firsts that we have experienced recently. It's the kind of thing that OCD nerds like me keep track of.

This house has a gas stove, which is new to me. The first thing I cooked on it was omelets, successfully, I might add.

The first dinner we had for our Friday night Bible study was tortilla soup and sopapilla cheesecake, which makes sopapilla cheesecake the first thing I baked in my shiny new oven.

Last night, to celebrate Lisa's triumph over her last exam for her master's degree, we had the chocolate fountain for the first time in the new house.

I'm waiting to see what the first package to arrive at my house will be - Jadyn's new Crocs (her feet finally grew!), our new homeschool curriculum (which I am very excited about!), or our anniversary present (which I am also very excited about!).

As for the boxes...well, there are at least a few rooms where there are no boxes. That's all I can say...

how to tell if your kid is a nerd, tip #12

2009-08-12T11:33:00.003-05:00

If your six-year-old has ever thrown a tantrum that sounded anything like this, "I wanna write a nonfiction book!" then your kid is a nerd.

movin' to the country/gonna eat a lot of...cookies

2009-07-19T18:34:00.003-05:00

Ever wondered what 116 decorated sugar cookies look like?

Wonder no more!

And some close-up shots.

Do you want some cookies? All you have to do is volunteer on a Creekside Christian Fellowship children's ministry team!

In other news, go to my mom's blog and help her name her business! She's giving out a prize, which you get to pick too!

spew

2009-07-10T23:10:00.002-05:00

The children and I went to Target yesterday afternoon. Now, in order to make this a bearable experience for everyone involved, I often employ an incentive (read: bribe) in the form of an icee as a reward for good behavior.

They kept their end of the bargain, so I kept mine. I paid for the icees and distributed the cups, and then we moved down the counter to icee dispensers. As we were paying, some kids came in and stood by the icee machines as they waited for their parents/guardians/responsible parties to buy their own icee cups.

It would have been one thing had these children merely been standing there waiting for their icee cups. No big deal. Not terrific manners, but not a big deal. However, these children - I think there were 3 or 4 of them between the ages of about 4 and 10 - apparently just couldn't wait another minute for the icee goodness and were using their fingers to swipe the drips off the end of the icee nozzles. Gross.

But even this wasn't good enough for them. They then proceeded to stick their nasty little fingers INSIDE the icee nozzles.

It was on the tip of my tongue to say something. I had no idea at that point if their responsible parties were around (I later figured out that they were behind me in line), but that wouldn't have stopped me. I was honestly too shocked and appalled at their behavior to actually form the words to tell them to stop.

So let this serve as fair warning. If I ever see anything like that again, rest assured that I won't suffer the same vocal paralysis. I will be making my objections known because seriously, that's just disgusting.

2009-06-29T12:32:00.002-05:00

I turned on Pandora on my laptop.

Jadyn: Can we hear a fourth of July song?

Me: (a little bewildered) Like what?

Alaina: Like this. "Saturday, in the park, I think it was the fourth of July..."

guess what time it is?

2009-06-27T00:34:00.010-05:00

Game time!

We're going to play a little game called "put a caption to this picture." I'll post pictures from our trip to Omaha, and you can think of an amusing caption for each one. It'll be great!

Aren't they cute?!?

where were you while we were getting high?

2009-06-04T09:24:00.002-05:00

No time to blog...too much painting. And if I'm not painting, there are about a million other things I should be doing. What was I thinking?!?

My house smells like paint.

Don't believe any allegations that I have committed appliancecide. They are untrue. (But I will post a picture when my new dryer gets here!)

yesterday

2009-05-18T08:06:00.002-05:00

We had church in our brand new building yesterday. I've never been part of a church that has built a new building. The church I grew up in bought their building, but I don't remember the first Sunday in that building. I'm sure it was great, but those kinds of things just don't impact children like they do adults.

The funny part is that our building isn't done. Apparently it's about 70% done. But there's something kinda cool about having church there, while it's still being finished. I guess it feels more like being part of the process.

Yesterday morning, I was sitting on the edge of Jadyn's bed to do Alaina's hair.

Me: Alaina, could you sit on the floor please?

Alaina: Yeah, I'm too big.

Me: You are tall.

Alaina: I get that a lot.

And now for the completely nerdy part of yesterday. Don't judge me because I'm very excited about this. My very first fanfic was uploaded to the Lois & Clark Fanfic Archive yesterday! I've only written two, and this is actually the second one I wrote, it just got uploaded before the first one. I just had to share because it's a big deal to me! Okay, I'm done now. :)

out of the box

2009-05-12T15:10:00.004-05:00

Some of you may not believe it, but sometimes I just have to let the nerdiness out.

See, I hear the disbelieving sounds you're making. You can't believe that it's ever hidden away. Well, it is.

Joe and I went to see Star Trek on Sunday afternoon. It was fabulous! I really, really loved it.

If I can get away with it, I'm going to try and escape and go see it again. (Anyone out there up for a late night nerdfest with me?)

Here's a fun quiz to test your nerdiness. I missed one.

Have you seen Star Trek yet? If not, why not? If you have, what did you think?

Happy May Day!

2009-05-01T10:20:00.004-05:00

I couldn't find a picture of a basket with popcorn and jelly beans, but that's what you'd be getting if you were anywhere in my vicinity on May Day.

But Happy May Day anyway!

Yes, I know it's probably some made-over pagan festival. Yes, I know that basically no one outside of the midwest has any idea what May Day is or has even heard of it.

But I have these great memories of one of my best friends and her sibs (who lived two houses from us if you went through the backyards but three if you went through the front yards) leaving styrofoam cups filled with jelly beans and popcorn on our doorstep, ringing the doorbell, and running away. Then we'd reciprocate. We always found each other, but we never made anybody kiss anybody else because "ew."

So Happy May Day to you, and if you should come to my house, I'm still not gonna kiss you. Jared probably would, though.

hmmm...

2009-04-23T21:32:00.002-05:00

I'm not sure how this fits into the conspiracy, but I went to HEB tonight for lunchables for our play date at the water park tomorrow. And when I checked out, the dude asked me if I wanted some reusable bags...for free. So I said, "Sure." And now I have 3 reusable grocery bags. Which is cool, I'm all for reusing stuff, but I wasn't about to actually buy the bags myself.

I'll let you know when I work this into the conspiracy theory.

walks like a duck

2009-04-22T11:36:00.002-05:00

I'm beginning to suspect an Earth Day conspiracy.

I haven't quite worked out the specifics, but something is going on.

Last night, sometime after midnight, the power blinked. Not unusual by itself, but the first in a series of troubles.

All morning, the cable has been erratic, as has the internet.

Then my brother called me, on my cell phone, and the connection was terrible - kept breaking up - which is unusual.

I think the environmentalist wackos found me.

They're welcome to come find me. They'll be getting my carbon footprint on the rear.

Disclaimer: I'm all about environmental stewardship. But there is nothing on this planet more important than people. Oh, and once/if the environmentalist wacko "scientists" start applying the scientific method in their experiments, magically most of our "problems" will disappear. Have you heard the ice is actually getting thicker in Antarctica? Global warming my big fat toe.

I will not be outstubborned.

2009-04-20T01:16:00.004-05:00

Some miscellaneous thoughts that have not yet made it to my blog:

We went to the UH vs. UCF softball game today. It was a lot of fun! We lost that game, but we won the first game of the doubleheader, so we came out even. I think the kids had fun, but sometimes it's hard to tell. Joe almost caught a foul ball. He would've caught it had he not been holding the baby. As it was, he made sure it didn't hit any of our small children, which is what really matters. He and Alaina took it to the concession stand, where she traded it in for a blow pop. Good times.

Ravi was the color commentator for the radio broadcast of the Omaha Beef game last night. He was really good. I actually listened to 3 hours of an indoor football game on the radio and enjoyed it. The Beef won.

I discovered something depressing the week before last. When I was growing up in Omaha, I always said that when I had a house of my own, I wasn't going to live so far out that I'd have to drive by cornfields to get there. (The cornfields across from my parents' neighborhood don't count because they are owned by Boys Town.) When Joe was looking for our first apartment the summer before we got married, he kindly took a picture of the fields he drove by to get there. But that didn't really count because those fields aren't there anymore.

So a few weeks back, I decided that the equivalent of the cornfield rule around here was Buc-ee's. For the uninitiated, Buc-ee's is a gas station chain with a near-cult following. I don't know, I don't really understand it. I suspect the beaver mascot has brainwashed people or something. ("The moon and stars..." Sorry, better now.) Anyway, the new rule was that if you had to drive past a Buc-ee's to get to your house, you lived too far out. To my dismay, the week before last I discovered that there is a Buc-ee's on the other side of the freeway from my neighborhood.

Apparently my rules are a cosmic joke.

Last Tuesday, as I was changing Jared's third dirty diaper of the day, I asked, in what I thought to be a rhetorical fashion, "Jared, what did you eat?" To which he responded, without missing a beat, "Dirt. Eat dirt, Mama." (That wasn't a command, he just skipped the sentence subject of "I.")

In case you were curious, I won the stubborn contest. I knew when Jared napped until 7 the day was not going to end well...(it's 2am right now).

2009-04-18T09:56:00.003-05:00

Eat something other than sopapilla cheesecake for breakfast?

The idea was briefly considered and quickly rejected.

After all, it's raining. I'm tired. It will go well with the coffee I made. The children ate all of the bagels. And Jared's antibiotics have already given him diarrhea after only one day.

See? You would have made the same decision.

how I spent my Easter vacation

2009-04-14T12:32:00.004-05:00

When I was in Los Angeles (for Sibling Fest West Coast 2009!) over the weekend, I kept a running commentary of the things I wanted to blog about when I got home. So now I'm home.

Seen at IAH (on the way to L.A.):
-Dude wearing a hiking backpack and a "kill your TV" shirt flying to L.A.

It's like raiaiaiain on your wedding day! Sorry, better now.
And I had just been wishing for some fanfic to read on the plane...

Seen at the ballgame (Red Sox vs. Angels, Saturday afternoon):
-Apparently people in L.A. have a hard time with the concept of ticketed seating. People would sit, and when the people who actually had tickets for those seats would come, the seat switchers would just move over or down or what have you. And inevitably the people with those seats would come, and the seat switchers would migrate again. It was bizarre.

Seen at LAX (on the way back to Houston):
-zappos.com shoe advertisements in the bottom of the loose articles bins at security.

Capitalism at work!

-Baggage handler dude riding the conveyor into the cargo hold.

Kooky.

Not seen in L.A.:
-Postcards.

Sorry Jadyn. (That's what she requested when I asked the girls what they wanted me to bring them back from California. Of course, she doesn't remember that she asked for that, but I did try.)

By the way, consider this official notice. If you happen to sit in front of me and my baby in an airplane and decide it'd be a good idea to recline your seat, I'm not going to feel bad when the baby hits your seat. In fact, I might encourage it. I think if we all agreed that no one will recline their seats on an airplane, we'd all be happier. It's not like reclining those seats makes them any more comfortable anyway.

So back home now. And Joe was very sweet and went to the grocery store this morning at an unholy hour so that there would be breakfast for the children. And he brought me donuts.

I vote for an annual Sibling Fest, and I think we need to institute Childhood Movie Night as part of the schedule of events. Next year, Ferngully!

aluminum linoleum

2009-04-03T12:52:00.000-05:00

Go outside. Seriously.

Okay, I don't know what the weather is like where you are, but it is amazing here today. It's so amazing, in fact, that you might think you're in the midwest in May.

But you're not.

But that doesn't change the fact that it's beautiful today.

It's one of those days that, upon exiting the house, the first thing that enters your head is, "it is a beautiful day" . . . to the tune of a scale. But of course you can't stop there, so you proceed to sing "it is a beautiful day" on a scale for an entire octave. Thank you, Nancy.

Come on, choir peeps. I know you're with me. Bel Canto forever!

For the record, I am blogging from the backyard.

different...but the same

2009-04-02T13:04:00.004-05:00

I just finished my lunch.

What was it?

A couple of spoonfuls of chunky peanut butter and a caffeine free pepsi.

Seriously.

What is blogworthy about that?

It's basically the same lunch I had for the entirety of my senior year in high school.

I seriously kept a jar of peanut butter in the top of my locker, and I would grab a plastic spoon (from the journalism room, I think) and sit at my locker and have peanut butter for lunch. I think I usually had a Dr. Pepper, too. Often my friend Michelle would join me for at least part of the time with her own jar of peanut butter. Why, you ask, did we eat peanut butter for lunch? I have no idea. It seemed like a perfect logical and reasonable thing to do at the time.

And you know what? It seems like a perfect logical and reasonable thing to do now. (I'm a semi-vegetarian. I'll take the protein wherever I can get it!)

It's fascinating to me how much my life has changed since high school but how much of me is still the same. It's even better rediscovering some of those things that I loved to do (or eat!) that are just as great now as they were then. Fanfic, for example. Joe laughs at me, but it doesn't really matter. Not just any fanfic, of course. Lois & Clark fanfic. I suspect that part of the reason that Joe laughs at me is because he was never really into the show. It's cool because it was/is a show that you either were totally into or you weren't at all. Yes, the show ended in 1997, and yes, there are still people (a lot of them!) writing stories based on the show/characters. And yes, there are still new ideas. Besides that, it's a great fandom - the people are nice.

By the way, I miss my friend Michelle. The last time I talked to her was at least 2, maybe 3 children ago. So if anyone knows her, tell her I miss her!

just a glimpse

2009-04-01T10:45:00.004-05:00

Monday night, we were all at Alaina's softball practice. Typically, this means that Joe is on the field, practicing with Alaina, and I hang out at the playground with the other 3. Last Monday, we were doing just that, but I had to go to the grocery store for milk and minor details like dinner (for that night). So I explained this to Jadyn and asked her what she wanted for dinner.

Jadyn: Let's get supper ables.

Me: What do you want for dinner? (not understanding what she had said)

Jadyn: Let's get supper ables.

Me: What is that?

Jadyn: (matter-of-factly) It's like Lunch-ables, except for supper.

Well, duh.

Last night, Alaina, Jadyn, A.J., and I went to Target to get diapers. I was explaining to the girls that we only had to get a few things in Target - diapers, wipes, Alaina's mouthwash, and a game for Daddy.

Alaina: What game?

Me: Guitar Hero Metallica. (incidentally, it's as much for me as it is for Joe!)

Alaina: Is that the game with the commercial with the boys who come sliding out of the room?

Me: (astonished) Yes, that's exactly right.

If you haven't seen the commercial, it's hilarious. I've seen it once - it was on during the UNC-Oklahoma game. (This is a relevant fact if you've seen the commercial.) Alaina has also only seen it once.

In fact, how about I just put it here for you? Look at me being helpful.

Have I mentioned that I love Guitar Hero? I'm pretty sure it is the very first video game I've ever been any good at it.

I actually missed this...

2009-03-30T12:21:00.003-05:00

It's been a whole 3 days or something since I last blogged.

And I actually missed it. So that's it. You're stuck with me now.

Before the craziness of the 30 Rock Tour, I posted this picture:

It's from January of this year, which makes A.J. about 3 months old. It's a classic Jared face.

Apparently, it's also a classic Alaina face! Jadyn was about 2 months old in this picture.

You know it's bad when complete strangers, i.e., checkers at Academy, comment on how your children look exactly like you.

We were at an Upward training conference this weekend, which is what prompted my blogging absence. If I'd really had it together, viz., if I hadn't had any children with me, I would have blogged from the conference. I always love going to an Upward training conference. They give out good free stuff. Plus it's great to be around people who are as excited about a thing as you are. A.J. made a lot of friends too. I think most of the staff of Upward knew his name by the end of the first night. He was a total flirt, and I don't think he cried the entire time. He was just drawing people to him, not unlike a certain uncle of his who shall remain nameless (Ravi).

This was one of those weekends that require a period of recovery, which has led to one of my all-time pet peeves - clean laundry on the floor. I just hate when that happens. Am I the only one? Or do you have a different housecleaning hot button?

birthday buddies

2009-03-26T15:31:00.004-05:00

I'll bet you thought I was done talking about my birthday.

No such luck, sorry.

One of the great things about my birthday is that I get to share it with my birthday buddies. When I was growing up, my birthday buddy was my brother, Raj. He was born 5 years and 1 day after me.

Being an efficient mother, my mom tended to plan our birthday parties on the same day - just shuffle one group of kids out and bring on the next group. I still remember the year that Raj's birthday was on Easter and we both had Easter bunny ice cream cakes from Baskin Robbins for our birthday parties.

This picture has nothing to do with birthdays or parties, it's just amusing to me because it's a completely unremarkable moment in time. How often do we get pictures of those moments? Azina is on the left, and Raj is on the right. They're sitting at the Smurf table, which is a piece of furniture that was an important part of our childhood.

When I grew up, I found another birthday buddy. My friend Ashlee's birthday is today also!

This is what all of my kids think of Ashlee:

They're right on.

So, happy birthday birthday buddies! I love you both!

not bad for a first try

2009-03-25T16:40:00.002-05:00

Important lessons learned from the first attempt at the butterfly cake:

- It only requires about half of a cake mix.
- "Lightly spray pan with cooking spray" means make sure you spray the dickens out of the sides and corners.

All in all, it was a successful first attempt.

Looks to me like all it needs is a Superman candle!

happy birthday to me!

2009-03-25T09:53:00.004-05:00

The day you've all been waiting for!

Day #

It is a big box! The girls had very disparate guesses. Alaina guessed a brick. Jadyn guessed a "big dress for you." I had no idea.

So I opened it. It's my birthday, I'll do what I want!

I love it! I've wanted one for a long time - it's a stick blender/motorboat/immersion blender/whatever you want to call it. It is absolutely the best way to make refried beans. I'm very excited! And it's the very first Cuisinart I've ever had. This is a big day.

There's a good chance we'll be having refried beans for part of dinner for our next Friday night dinner.

Tami, Lisa, and Ashlee - thanks!! You are all such great friends, and you've made this a great birthday before it ever started!

Butterfly cake update: The cake has been made, but it has not been decorated yet. Stay tuned.

and tomorrow, the season finale

2009-03-24T13:21:00.003-05:00

Which means that today should be a cliffhanger episode, right?

So I should leave you hanging with this picture, or have someone propose to someone but end before an answer is given, or turn someone into a Borg, or something equally as nefarious.

Or wait, this is just the episode before the season finale, so this is the setup for the cliffhanger. So I should be blowing up the Daily Planet.

Blame the weather. The humidity has returned. Or blame the oncoming depression because the 30 Rock Tour is almost over, which means I'm about to be 30. And I'm supposed to be depressed about that or something, right?

Any suggestions about where I should go to lunch or get takeout for dinner tomorrow?

But let's focus on the present (both definitions of the word).

It's Day #

and I have no idea what this is. It doesn't feel as weird as yesterday's, but it still feels weird.

I'll do the actual math tomorrow, but I'm pretty sure I'd never make the bigs with my batting average.

One of the few things I wish I had done in high school but didn't (because I didn't know I liked it at the time) was play softball, or at least try out for the team.

Sorry, that has absolutely nothing to do with anything.

So what is the present?

Superman stickers and a Superman candle!

So now I have a Superman candle for the butterfly birthday cake that I'm going to make and decorate myself...I think I have an answer for the question, "If you were a food, what would you be?"

Psychoanalyze that one.

This has been the best birthday ever. Seriously.

If you were a food, what would you be?

back to life, back to reality

2009-03-23T12:07:00.003-05:00

It was nice last week when the rest of the world was on spring break. It meant that we didn't have anywhere to go or anything to do, which made it kind of a spring break for us too.

And now it's Monday.

But it's also Day #

of the 30 Rock Tour!

This one was weird. It's not a box. It's kind of...squishy. That's the best I can come up with. The girls weren't much help either.

So I opened it.

Look at this! It is so cool! You pour cake batter in all of the little compartments and bake it. Then you pop out all the pieces and decorate it like a butterfly!

The girls were pretty excited too. They wanted me to make it right now, the instant I opened it. But I don't have any cake mix. So they wanted me to go buy cake mix and make it tomorrow.

"Can I be in the picture?"

"Jadyn, this is my picture!"

I finally told them that I'd make it on Wednesday, for my birthday.

That's what happens when you turn 30. You have to make your own birthday cake.

if this is coherent...

2009-03-22T22:27:00.003-05:00

...it will be a miracle!

It's Day #

I know it's hard to see, but that says "27."

Blogging for 30 days in a row is not the easiest thing to do when one is accustomed to blogging once or twice a week...but I'm a champ, so no worries.

This is by far the biggest box so far.

My guess is...a box. It makes noise, but not much and nothing determinate.

So what is it?

An at&t commercial!

Okay, sorry. Aren't they pretty? I love them! I won't, however, be placing them on the mantle, in the event that an unnamed uncle (Raj) should come to my house and participate in a game (unadvisedly) of catch with the small children in the living room, endangering them (the candle holders, not the children). Not that anything like that has ever happened before.

Three days left...

not over yet

2009-03-21T22:31:00.002-05:00

It's still Day #
around here for another hour or so yet.

Well, the streak has ended. The Official Committee can cool its jets because it's not like I'm giving any of my presents back anyway!

So what was in the cute little bag?

A cute little gift card!

I love Panera. It was a very happy day when I discovered that a Panera was being built here. (And in front of Target, no less!)

Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll get to go to Panera without my dear children. Or maybe I'll go to Panera for my birthday!

a good number

2009-03-20T16:22:00.003-05:00

I'm weird about numbers. You've probably figured that out.

Today is Day #
I've always liked the number 25. It's my birthdate, of course, and it's the date of Christmas. It's the same date as my mom's birthday. It's an odd number, which is a strike against it, but it's a nice round number, and it's a square of another nice round number.

Don't worry. I'm done now.

Believe it or not, I guessed this one too!

Okay, I didn't guess it specifically, but I guessed the general category.

And this is my game and my birthday, so it counts.

Yes, I do a very good impression of a 4-year-old. I have good material from which to study.

So this present was soft, but way too big to be a shirt. I could also tell there was a rod of some sort the whole length of the present.

I guessed a wall hanging.

My friends know me even better than that!

It's a VeggieTales advent calendar! I love advent calendars!

I'm all about celebrating anything and everything possible. (You may have noticed.) But for me, part of that celebrating is the anticipation. I count down to everything. I always have. Usually it was counting down until a school vacation, or even the entire school year.

We've had an advent calendar for three years now, I think. It's a Christmas tree from Starbucks, and it has numbered boxes that hold candy, and when you turn the box around after that day has passed, a Christmas scene begins to emerge.

When I was growing up, we had an advent calendar similar to the VeggieTales one - a Christmas scene, and there was a little mouse that you moved from day to day.

When I get ambitious and have more time, I'm going to experiment with small wood crafts. I have a great idea for a three dimensional wooden Christmas tree on a pedestal. The pedestal will have numbered drawers containing an ornament to be placed on the tree each day. It's going to be very cool.

The three older kids were outside when I opened my present, so I took it outside to show them. The girls were swinging, and Jared was sitting on the porch swing with his bowl of frosted mini wheats (from breakfast, no milk) in his lap. I showed the girls, who oohed and aahed appropriately and then I heard this:

Jared: "Mama!" (in his particular form of 2-year-old insistence)

I showed him the advent calendar.

He looks at it for a second.

Jared: "Wow! Oh!"

In Jared's limited vocabulary, that is high praise, indeed.

bet you thought I forgot

2009-03-19T18:18:00.003-05:00

We didn't even leave the house today, so I don't really have the excuse that we were busy...I think that by Thursday the week just starts to catch up with me. I'm tired.

But it's Day #

of the 30 Rock Tour!

And I'm going for a three-peat!

I'm currently getting trounced in the Friday Night group bracket challenge...but it's early. And there's enough disparity in all of our picks that the winner could potentially win big and the losers are going to lose big. (We have an official group on ESPN's website and everything. It's bonafide.)

But I'm kicking butt at the "guess the present" game!

This one is a candle. Specifically a jar candle.

Ta-da!

This candle seriously smells like coffee. I'm not sure how I feel about my house smelling like coffee without actual coffee existing,..seems like that could be a cruel joke! I'm kidding of course, this candle is fabulous!

One of the worst parts of being pregnant for me was that my sense of smell was way out of whack. The last time I went to the Yankee Candle store, I could only find a couple of scents that weren't disgusting to me. My sense of taste also gets messed up - it's called dysgeusia, and it's not uncommon in pregnant women. I still think it's a bad sign when you've had something that's been a symptom on House.

But no worries, I'm good now.

and then there was one...week

2009-03-18T09:22:00.003-05:00

I've actually read that Agatha Christie - in eighth grade Reading Appreciation. (The title is And Then There Were None.) I've never really understood what the big deal is about her writing. Maybe you have to be British.

It's Day #

and I totally guessed this!

Jadyn's observation: "It's soft. And it's hard, too." Which was accurate, if somewhat contradictory.

But because I'm a pattern matcher, I guessed it, which gives me two in a row! So I'm 6 for 23, which, again, is little better than .250.

If you gave me long enough to figure out the patterns, I could probably predict anything. I'm a professional at life, after all.

(Sorry, that's not as ridiculous as it sounds. Or rather, it would be, except I'm joking.)

It's stationery and a magnet.

Look! I was right!

I forgot to take a picture of the magnet on the message board, but it's very cute there with the other butterflies!

And just having thank you notes on hand is half the battle, right? I love these because it can be difficult to find thank yous that don't look ridiculous. I'll admit it, I'm terrible about thank you notes. I always intend to write them, and then I get distracted. If you have the same problem, you can confess it here. That way we'll all know that we mean to write thank yous to each other and we can sympathize with how it doesn't get done, and no one will feel as if they are intentionally being slighted.

World peace is next on the list.

("I really do want world peace!" One of my favorite movies. Don't judge. It's hilarious.)

Completely unrelated, here's the conversation I had with Jadyn yesterday afternoon.

Jadyn: (gibberish) That's how you say it in French.

Me: You're just making stuff up.

Jadyn: Yep. That's what I do.

once again, here we are

2009-03-17T12:56:00.003-05:00

Another palindrome day!

It's Day #

I totally got this one! So did Jadyn, for that matter. There are two things in this one, and it's a book.

Okay, so it was two books. I showed it to Alaina, whose response was "Another one?" There are some really cute desserts in this book...including May Day basket cupcakes. I'm a bigger fanatic about May Day than I am about Pi Day (I know, hard to believe), so watch out!

So we went to the rodeo last night, which makes my boots totally legit now. I actually had a lot of fun. It was a little bit like going to a foreign country, except I knew the language, or at least most of it.

The rodeo started at 6:45, and we arrived at 7:30. We had planned on arriving late, knowing that there were actual rodeo/animal-type events happening before the concert, and as we know basically nothing about such things, we weren't going to break our necks getting there right on time.

So we got there, got some food, and then found our seats. We sat down during the middle of the Saddle Bronc Riding, which was followed by Steer Wrestling, Barrel Racing, Bull Riding, Calf Scramble, and Mutton Bustin'. The whole thing was fascinating to me. Seriously. It's interesting to find yourself in the middle of something you don't understand at all. I mean, understanding it is not complicated, so you can watch for a while and basically pick up the gist of things. But it really is a whole different world. The only thing I had some trouble with was the Mutton Bustin'. For the uninitiated, that's when a series of 4-6 year olds throw on a helmet and hang on to a sheep for as long as they can. It's somewhat amusing and cute, but at the same time, I was a little disturbed. I'm sure it's completely different for a child who has grown up on a farm around animals, but the thought of one of my girls trying that was disturbing. (Hey, I've always freely admitted to being a suburbanite.)

And then there was the concert. The stage was on wheels. The thing just drove on out to the middle of the rodeo arena. It was pretty impressive. Yes, I went to a country music concert, and I had fun. Don't die of shock. Darius Rucker wore a baseball cap. It was hard to tell, but it looked like a Tiger Woods cap. That's the kind of country music star I can handle. And the dude playing the electric guitar looked more like he belonged in the Foo Fighters than on a rodeo stage.

So happy birthday to me! There are pictures, but they're currently on their way back to Kansas, so I'll post some as soon as I get them. Definitely a 30th birthday to remember!

those were the days...

2009-03-16T15:03:00.003-05:00

On days like today, Day #

when I only have the baby to take care of, I wonder what I did in all that time before I had children, or even when I only had one child. I've tried and tried to remember, but I just can't. The kicker is that I felt like I was busy. Especially after my first was born, I thought I was doing well to get as much done as I did (which was practically nothing).

I've decided it's me. My capability has changed. (Obviously, or I'd be a complete nut with four kids. As it is, I'm only partially a nut.) I'm fairly certain I could do nearly anything at this point if I were just taking care of one, or even two, children. I don't even dare imagine what kind of trouble I could get myself into without any children...

It's probably the sleeping-in-until-after-10 that's talking. Don't mind me. (And don't hate me. I was still up several times overnight feeding the baby. And I still woke up in the recliner.)

Did you notice the shape of my present? Although my girls aren't here to guess, I feel fairly confident in surmising that Alaina would've guessed a candle. Heck, on shape alone I guessed a candle. But it wasn't heavy enough. And it didn't sound right. When I shook it, it sounded more like sand. Knowing there was little to no chance I got sand as a present, my best guess was colored sugar for cookie decorating, even though it would've been the biggest container of colored sugar I had ever seen in my life.

So, I opened it, resigned to the fact that I was about to get another one wrong.

But then I didn't care anymore about getting it wrong! Because I got chai. I love chai. I've been drinking it since long before it was trendy. You know, when you had to know how to make it yourself. :) Helps that my dad is Indian (dots not...never mind, you get it).

One of my favorite parts of this gift is the tin. Look at that elephant! It is so quintessentially Indian it just makes me happy. I know it sounds crazy, since I've only been there twice in my life, but I really do miss India and my family there. I don't even know that I could adequately explain the things that I love about it. You'd have to come with me and see for yourself.

I must admit that I wondered exactly how you take chai and use the words "Italian Hazelnut" as a description. So I had to try it.

It has an interesting flavor. It is definitely chai, but I can also taste the Italian Hazelnut flavor. I never would've guessed it possible with any success. I think it would be best frozen. Conveniently, there are directions on the label for that!

Oh, and in case you'd forgotten, tonight is rodeo night! I know you will be anxiously awaiting my commentary tomorrow!

listen carefully...

2009-03-15T16:34:00.004-05:00

that sound you hear...is nothing. Three of my darling children have departed to spend the night at the grandparents' because tomorrow is rodeo day!

Happy early birthday to me!

Don't get me wrong. I love my children. But I am happy to let other people who love them spend time with them too.

Let's be honest. I'm pretty impressed if you've stuck with me through the 30 Rock Tour so far. 30 days is a long time. So to show my gratitude, I'll pull an old elementary school tradition: I will make cookies for my blog readers that I see during the week of my birthday. (Do you remember taking treats to school for your birthday? What kind of kooky tradition is that, anyway? Giving other people food on your own birthday?)

Today is Day #

Somehow, my friends pulled some crazy reverse psychology or something on me because I found myself a little sad at the thought that my birthday was getting closer since it meant the 30 Rock Tour would be over. Oy!

Unfortunately, I won't be amusing you with my fascinating observations or ridiculous guesses about today's present, since it's in a bag.

So I'll just have to open it!

Isn't it pretty?

I certainly do not suffer from a dearth of candles in my house, yet even so, somehow I never have enough votive holders.

So this is great!

You might think that since I don't have many votive holders, I wouldn't have votives. Not so.

Can't you just see the silence in my house from the pictures?

happy pi day!

2009-03-14T09:48:00.003-05:00

Just one of the several reasons that March is the best month!

We had pizza (pie) and pie for dinner last night. I forgot to take pictures, sorry. But there's still some of all three pies left, if you want to come over.

It's Day #

and we're almost 2/3 of the way through the 30 Rock Tour. But don't think about that because that's just depressing.

Do you remember being 19? I do. It doesn't feel all the long ago, at least time-wise. Life-wise, it might as well have been a lifetime ago. I have 4 children now. And a house. And a stinking minivan.

Anyway, moving on.

Jared was up until after 11 last night. He just kept getting out of bed. I was a little annoyed because at that point, even A.J. was asleep. I understand not getting much sleep with a small baby, but it's not supposed to be because the 2 year old keeps you up. In the end, I sat in front of his room and held his door shut (by this point I had tried everything else), which caused him to scream so loudly it woke Joe up. Subsequently, he laid down the law and about 10 minutes later Jared was asleep.

What was the point of that interlude? I have no idea. I just wanted to complain. He was so sweet as a baby.

So, about my present. I think I'm getting better at this game. I could tell that it was definitely two things. The one felt kind of like a small book. And the other one felt squishy.

Clearly I'm not getting that much better at this game.

Luggage tags are one of those random things that I dig. I'm already trying to figure out which piece of luggage I'm going to put this one on...even though I don't have any trips planned until June. And even that is just a car trip. But it doesn't matter.

And butterfly stationery! This is very unique butterfly stationery - I like it a lot!

So back to your regularly scheduled Saturday...2 days until the rodeo!

on the other hand...

2009-03-13T09:37:00.003-05:00

It's 9:30 in the morning, only Jared is dressed, and only he and I have had breakfast. The toys haven't been picked up, and I have a lot of pie to make today. Eh, oh well. So maybe I don't have it together. You wouldn't like me as much if I were perfect.

So it's Day #

I don't know what happened that made this picture so out of focus. Sorry. Like I said, not perfect.

But isn't it a cute shape? I know, I'm weird, but it's just a cute little box.

Though guessing what it is is a different story...not heavy but not light. Doesn't rattle. Definitely a box.

Golf balls. (No, I don't golf.)

So what is it?

Look! Isn't it cute?!? It is a happy day when the red cups appear at Starbucks. And a Christmas tree snowglobe! I love it! I don't know how I didn't see this at Christmas because I would've bought it myself.

What this proves is how long my friends have been working on this gift...you guys are so sweet. I am blessed.

can you believe it?

2009-03-12T08:52:00.002-05:00

Not quite yet 9 in the morning and 4 out of 5 of us are dressed, we've had breakfast, the toys are picked up, the dishes are done, most of the laundry is done, and I'm blogging. It's only taken me almost 30 years to get my act together. Better late than never, I suppose.

"Can I be in the picture?" For Day #

Have I mentioned how much fun it is to open a present everyday? You should try it sometime.

The girls offered the following observation: it's soft. But it also had a solid spot in the middle that felt kind of like a bottle of nail polish.

Jadyn guessed a headband for me, and Alaina guessed hairbands. They're pattern matchers, too.

I'm starting to think that my dear friends purposely wrapped things so that there was no chance of me guessing the contents.

Because, seriously, who could've guessed this?

The yellow and gray thing is called a palm peeler. There's a vegetable peeler blade on the underside of it, and you stick your finger through the ring on top. Pretty cool, huh? And gloves so I can look cute while I'm cleaning!

In case you were unaware, Saturday is pi day. Our Friday night group will be celebrating tomorrow. (Because we meet at my house and so I declared that we must celebrate pi day. Not like it's a real hardship - who in their right mind would turn down pie?) If there's anything I like to make as much as cookies, it's pie. Don't you wish you lived closer to me?

at least I'm consistent

2009-03-11T10:24:00.004-05:00

And I can predict the future!

Yesterday I said my average would be 4 for 16 today. I was right. (This is why you should never doubt me.)

Today is Day #

It's very light, and it rattles. It's a noise that seems familiar, but I can't readily identify it.

Here are my girls to model my present:

Jadyn is sporting the pink butterfly clips that coordinate with her pink sparkly leck-a-tard. (Combine the words "leotard" and "guitar" and that's how to pronounce it.) She has class at The Little Gym today. She doesn't just wear leotards for the fun of it. Although I would probably let her if she ever asked.

Alaina has chosen to pair the green butterfly clips with her earth-tone top.

They left the purple pair for me because they know purple is my favorite color. (The clips are very cute, by the way. Thank you!)

This is the great thing about having girls - there are things that you can do together, like all of us wearing butterfly hair clips, or painting our nails, or going to Bath Junkie.

a big day

2009-03-10T10:24:00.002-05:00

Halfway through the 30 Rock Tour! (I'm a little sad about that, how about you?)

So there's been a lot of bantering about this particular gift. Apparently Lisa picked it out but was unsure that it had actually been included in the box. Day #

has become rather infamous. It looks so innocuous, right? It's just laying there. It made me a little suspicious, to be honest. I mean, I would have normally guessed it to be a shirt or something equally non-controversial. But now I don't know!

So I opened it...

And it was a shirt! (That totally counts as one I got right! For those keeping stats, that's 4 out of 15 - a little better than the .250 I was averaging previously. I'll save the math for tomorrow when I don't guess and it brings me back to a nice, evenly divisible 4 for 16.)

But not just any shirt. Come on, you've been reading this long enough, you've surely guessed by now.

It's a Superman shirt! I went to the extra trouble of hanging it up to take pictures of the front and back for all of you. No need to laud me for my dedication.

You can't tell from the pictures, but the "S" symbol and the "Superman" are velvety.

Here is the back.

So, um, I guess I don't get the controversy...I like it! It's unusual, which makes it interesting, which makes it cool. I mean, I don't think I'll be wearing it to the rodeo, but I will definitely be wearing it. I'll try to take a picture when I do. It reminds me a little of the style of the shirt Joe got for Christmas - a DaVinci-esque rendering of the leader shell from Mario Kart.

And in regards to the rodeo...

After Ashlee and I decided to get cowboy boots for our birthdays, Ashlee came up with the brilliant idea that we should go to the rodeo as our birthday outing. (I reiterate, I have wanted cowboy boots since high school, when I lived in Nebraska. So no more of this "becoming Texas" nonsense.) I was initially resistant to the idea of going to the rodeo. Seriously not my thing. But Ashlee kept cajoling me, bringing up the valid points that it would be fun because everything we do as a group is fun and that it would be a completely new and unique birthday event. We eventually agreed that we would go only if we could get tickets from somewhere (we have connections), since it would be a pricey proposition otherwise. And while I would be willing to set aside my hesitation for a new adventure, it wasn't going to happen if we couldn't obtain tickets. My other requirement was that we had to get tickets for a specific day.

If you are unfamiliar with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, then you could easily be misled by the name of the event. Granted, there is a livestock show and a rodeo, but for the majority of the populace, the Rodeo is a euphemism for 20 days of concerts, primarily country in nature. This, of course, would be my primary objection to going to the rodeo. I can't stand country music.

I'm sorry, I just can't. It's fine by me if you like country music, but it's just not my thing.

So when Ashlee made the suggestion of going to the rodeo, I checked the list of performers to see if there were any concerts I would be willing to see. Taylor Swift? Out. Jonas Brothers? Out. Tejano Night? Out. A myriad of country stars? Eh... Darius Rucker? aka Hootie? Now, there's a possibility. I don't know why, but the idea of the frontman from Hootie and the Blowfish becoming a country singer amuses me tremendously.

So we managed to secure tickets (and a parking pass!) to go see the country star formerly known as Hootie.

And we got boots.

Here are mine.

I love them! They look great with jeans. And I love how they smell.

"your birthday is taking forever."

2009-03-09T11:38:00.003-05:00

I should probably feel sorrier for her, but I don't. Today's present prompted that statement from Alaina.

It's a remarkably-not-so-bad-for-a-Monday (especially after spring forward weekend) Day #

This one is an odd shape. I'm not sure what to make of that. It's also flat. My guess was stickers. It just had that kind of feel.

But I was wrong...again.

A.J. was "helping" me take these pictures. I think it was his passive-aggressive way of letting me know that he was hungry and done with me ignoring him. ("Just let me get one more thing done. Just one more minute, A.J.")

I love dyeing eggs. I know it can be a mess, and it takes a considerable amount of patience to dye eggs with small children, but it's fun. And hard boiled eggs are delicious. It helps to just take the whole mess outside. The girls were very excited to see this present, but that's what prompted Alaina's statement. I told her Easter wasn't too far away - in April, after my birthday. Someday she will understand...

As for the rodeo (because I know you're just dying for the rest of the story), it all began like this. Ashlee mentioned (at coffee, I believe) that she wanted new cowboy boots for her birthday. So I said "I've always wanted cowboy boots!" I know, it sounds crazy. But I really have, ever since high school. I just have a thing for boots of any kind. Of course, then it became a thing that we should get boots for our birthdays. Birthdays are way more fun when you can share them with someone, though I'm sure everyone else is sick of us by now! More on the continuing saga of the rodeo tomorrow...

uh...

2009-03-08T14:22:00.003-05:00

Apparently blogger dislikes my blog. (Sorry, Ashlee, you can continue to dislike firefox all you like, but internet explorer is doing the same thing to my blog.) Of course, if you are reading this right now, then clearly you aren't having any problems viewing my blog. If, however, you should encounter a blank space where you had hoped to be enlightened by my witty commentary, you can scroll down and find where the posts are organized by date (on the right hand side of the page) and click on the title of the post you'd like to read.

But never fear! Neither wind nor snow...oh wait. (Although I'd like to think I'm at least as reliable as the Postal Service, plus the blog is free, nor is it junk mail or bills.) It will take more than technical difficulties to keep me from my blogging duties!

As I'm certain my tangents have borne tangents by this point, I'll get on with it.

It's Day #

It's floppy. Alaina guessed a book. Jadyn guessed a window. My guess was a comic book. I had comic books on the brain. We watched a little of Spiderman on tv last night. I just don't like it. (Are you shocked?) That led to a discussion of why Joe prefers Batman or Spiderman over Superman and the differences between the characters. (He likes them because a normal person could theoretically be either one of them. There's no hope for magically becoming the Last Son of Krypton.) The conclusion we came to, which is obviously the answer, was that girls don't like Spiderman as much because Mary Jane is totally codependent, which is obnoxious. Lois Lane, on the other hand, can totally hold her own and is basically on equal footing with Superman/Clark Kent (at least in more recent incarnations). I also personally think that the Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent identities are far more interesting and less annoying than Peter Parker.

Um, sorry about that. We really do have those kinds of conversations. I told you we were nerds. You've been warned.

But here's my cool present! It's butterfly rub-on transfers! (My correct guess percentage gets more dismal everyday.) The one on the top right that you can't really see is a blue morpho, which is my favorite. One of the best things about Houston is the Butterfly Pavilion at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. If you haven't been, let me know. We'll plan a trip. Seriously.

Obviously, the writing mood I'm in today would allow me to continue on for days jabbering about nonsense. I don't think anyone needs that, so I'll depart with this: I'm going to the rodeo next Monday. Close your mouth, you'll catch a fly. But don't worry, there will be more to come regarding this event.

I love birthday month!

2009-03-07T10:57:00.003-06:00

Before I get to the 30 Rock Tour present of the day, I have to share this:

Isn't it beautiful?!? I know, I have a depth of field problem (at least, I think that's what the problem is) in this picture, but I'm pretty sure I would have been lynched had I fussed around taking pictures of this cheesecake rather than letting everyone have a piece. This is the very first plain cheesecake I have ever made, and it turned out beautifully. And not only did it look good, it tasted amazing. I mentioned before that I'm better at baking than cooking because I'm better at things that require precision. This is Alton Brown's cheesecake recipe. That may not mean anything to you, but if there is anyone more concerned with precision than I am, it would be him. Plus his show amuses me. The really great thing is that this cheesecake wasn't even hard to make. I still have a few pieces left, so if you really want some and can make it to my house today, you can have one.

Now back to our regularly scheduled 30 Rock Tour.

Just in case you were getting a little bored, today's present will shake things up!

Okay, so maybe not that much. But it is in a bag instead of being wrapped! Unfortunately, that also means I don't have any guesses for your entertainment.

Hot chocolate mix! Yum! And do you see the tiny whisk? It's so cute!

Sorry, better now. But I do love the tiny whisk.

I always was a pattern matcher...

2009-03-06T09:14:00.002-06:00

I'm sensing a theme...

It's the first palindrome day of the 30 Rock Tour!

Day #

This one is a book. There's no doubt about it.

There's something familiar about this present...

I love it! Cookies are definitely my thing. I mentioned before that I didn't cook much when I was growing up. Well, chocolate chip cookies were the one thing I did make.

Alaina already read through the whole cookbook. (By the way, when did she learn how to read so well?!?)

It's a big day for us, so I won't be able to extemporize for long...I'm making cheesecake today, wish me luck! Jadyn still hasn't finished picking up toys...wish her luck!

milestones

2009-03-05T13:40:00.002-06:00

Do you remember when you turned 10? I do. I was in fourth grade. I specifically remember a conversation I was having with my friend Sabrina as we walked up the stairs at our elementary school with the rest of the class, on our way back to class from PE or music or something. I was about to turn 10, and we were discussing how it was a big deal because it's a two-digit number.

That was twenty years ago. I have a hard time trying to fathom that.

Where did that come from? Well, it's birthday month, I'm blogging about birthdays, and today is Day #

You do the math.

Speaking of math, this means I'm 1/3 of the way through the 30 Rock Tour. That's a little sad for me. I mean, who wouldn't be thrilled to spend every day of their lives opening a present from a friend?

Okay, I'm finished with sentimentality. On with the presents!

There is only one word to describe today's gift: bumpy. Seriously. That was the only thing I could come up with. And the girls weren't allowed to guess because they were picking up toys. I know, I'm horrible. Jadyn is still working on picking up toys and may be until bedtime. We'll see.

I'm fairly certain there was an ulterior motive behind this present.

I just laughed when I opened it. In a good way, of course.

Every year at Christmas, the girls (Tami, Lisa, Ashlee, and I, and now my daughters, and soon Addi) all set aside at least half a day for our annual Baking Extravaganza. The items on the baking agenda vary from year to year, but chocolate-dipped pretzels are always on the list. Two years ago, Ashlee found Christmas tree pretzel molds. So now we have Santas and reindeer to go with them! Do you see that ridiculous picture, though? Who on earth decorates chocolate-dipped pretzels that intricately? Don't worry, Lisa, we'll be sticking to the plain chocolate and sprinkles method! (It seems like Lisa usually ends up being in charge of the children and the pretzel dipping...and the sprinkles.)

I love Christmas. It's the only time of year better than my birthday.

I don't know how well you can make out this picture, but I had to post it in self-defense. See, bumpy. You wouldn't have guessed either.

stumped

2009-03-04T10:19:00.003-06:00

Welcome to Day #

We have a major day today, so I was threatened that I had better blog before we go. (Because, really, I have nothing else to do to get all of us out of the house on time. I'm kidding. I was already planning on blogging before we left because otherwise I probably wouldn't get to it until tonight. And how could I leave my tremendous audience in such suspense?)

Yeah, so this one was totally a mystery. It seemed as if there was more than one item, but there was no discernible shape or even a consistent squishiness throughout (I'm sorry, I just could not think of real word to describe it). Like I said, stumped. Or if you prefer, stymied. ("I hate that word. I hate that feeling!" If you can tell me where the quote comes from, I will send you cookies. Sorry, sibs are ineligible.)

If by any chance you have navigated through the tangents to make it to this point, I will finally reveal the contents of the mystery gift!

Animals!

Okay, not really, but that's what I first thought when I opened it. And that's funny, given the dichotomy of the present givers - Ashlee adores her world without animals, and I don't think Lisa has ever met an animal she doesn't like. I think Tami and I fall somewhere in the middle of that spectrum.

The girls wanted to know if I was going to share the candy. I told them maybe. The butterfly is a magnet. Isn't it cute?

Ever since I got my new refrigerator, I have stubbornly refused to put magnets on it. It's just too pretty, even though now it sports dents courtesy of my toy-wielding son. The kids got a set of Magnetic Poetry for Kids for Christmas, and they were lucky they were allowed to put that on the refrigerator. (But I've always thought Magnetic Poetry was cool, so we all played and my refrigerator OCD was not terribly offended.)

So the butterfly found a home on the message board next to the front door. I haven't actually written a message on it in a while...any suggestions?

Doesn't that just give you a "happy spring" feeling?!

happy square root day!

2009-03-03T11:43:00.003-06:00

As big of a nerd as I am, I didn't make that up. Seriously, my mom sent out an email linking this article. I'm a little skeptical. Sounds to me like mathematicians and other nerds just wanted more excuses to throw nerd parties. But it's not as if there's any food that really goes with square root day. (Just wait until Pi Day! Then you're going to wish you lived near me!)

Besides being square root day, it's also Day #

(Incidentally, a number without a whole square root...)

This one stands up! (As I'm sure you gathered.) My guess was a cup. Alaina, wising up to these things, guessed a candle. Jadyn said something along the lines of "a sticky thing that you stick things in." I don't make these things up.

I was right! (For those keeping score, that would be 2 out of 8, or 1 for 4, or a solid .250 batting average.) Okay, it's technically a travel mug, but I was close enough.

But did you see how cute it is? The insert is fabric, and the initial is embroidered. I love it! And now I have my own travel mug! (We have something like 4, but they're all Joe's for taking apple juice in the car on the way to work.) I can guarantee my won't be carrying apple juice!

Isn't birthday month great?!?

here I am to save the day!

2009-03-02T15:28:00.003-06:00

Yes, I have a minor obsession with superheroes. (Another thing that may not be psychoanalyzed, so back up off!)

Sorry, I may be a little punchy today. This is the first greater-than-5-minute period in which A.J. has been awake and not screaming at me.

This is the thing about having babies that I always seem to forget and have to relearn each time. I like to have a general idea and plan for the day - what we're going to get done when. I'm not an obsessive planner by any means, but I like to have a goal. And then there are those days when the baby just will not be put down, or one of the older ones is sick, or something. So you just have to roll with the punches and try not to be depressed that the house (and by extension, life) is sinking further into a pit of entropy. (Okay, that was a little dramatic. But you get the idea.)

But now I've had a Runza for lunch (a necessity for the psychological boon, but sad they can't freeze the fries with such success), and so it's on to blogging! (Which is clearly a more important task than dishes or laundry or somesuch rot.)

And today marks a week of the 30 Rock Tour! Day #

Smallish, but bigger than the stationery gift, and squishy but not soft. Alaina's guess was a book, which incidentally was the same as my guess.

We were sort of correct!

A cookbook! And not just any cookbook, a breakfast cookbook! I love making breakfast, especially for dinner. Eggs, cheese, and potatoes are easily three of my favorite foods. So I hope the person who chose this cookbook is prepared to have breakfast for dinner on a Friday in the near future! Alaina and I found some good recipes already.

But there was one more thing in the package.

Recipe cards! As soon as I saw them (and they are very cute, for the record), I was reminded of one night when we were at the McCools' house, and Ashlee had asked Debbie for one of her recipes. Debbie agreed, but has this rule that whoever asks for a recipe has to write it down themselves. I don't clearly remember the reasoning, though I'm sure it was sound, but that scene has just stuck in my head. I have a couple of Debbie's recipes that I had to copy myself too.

The other thing that is sort of amusing to me about this gift in general is that when I was growing up, I wasn't much of a cook. My mom always said that if a kitchen used beakers and graduated cylinders and other laboratory instruments I'd do a lot better. She's probably right because I'm not much of a cook (aside from recipes), but I'm very comfortable with baking, which requires specificity and employs lots of chemistry. Besides, who needs dinner when there's cookies? And cheesecake? And brownies? And a million other things? And now, I'm thrilled to get a cookbook and recipe cards...nuts!

birthday month begins!

2009-03-01T15:04:00.002-06:00

It's the first day of March! Welcome to birthday month!

I felt like I did so much complaining about softball yesterday that I needed to post some pictures about the good parts of the day. It was still windy as all get out during the good parts, but what are you gonna do?

I think this might have been Jared's favorite part of the whole day. Well, this and the candy. See, this makes it a totally legit parade - there was a fire truck leading it!

Here was her first at bat of the season. Her swing looks decent. Joe thinks if she could've connected, she would've hit a good one. I still can't believe how old and how big she is.

Oh, right. Besides being the first day of March, it's also Day #

Did you think I had forgotten?

In the comments on my last post, Ashlee figured there was no chance of me guessing today's present, as I had a hard time guessing yesterday's. She was correct. It seemed to be about the right shape and size to be pens, but it didn't feel quite like pens. But that was my best guess, so I went with it.

It turned out to be better than pens! (And that's saying a lot because I really love pens!)

Beads! And buttons!

A couple of years ago, I was searching for soccer beads so that I could make soccer earrings. (I know, I know. Give me a break. I have four kids, and I drive a minivan.) I didn't find any, so I free-form beaded some wire in a spiral shape to look like a soccer ball. I don't have a picture, but I thought they looked cool. But now I have actual soccer ball beads! (And baseballs, basketballs, and footballs!) I'm brainstorming ways to use them already...

30 Rock Tour, weekend edition

2009-02-28T17:02:00.002-06:00

Day #

has been eventful. Today was Opening Day of softball, which includes a parade and all sorts of happenings besides an actual game. So we were out of the house early(ish) this morning, and I didn't get a chance to open my present until this afternoon. (I know you were all on pins and needles in suspense!)

True confessions: I felt a little dumb after I opened #5 for not having guessed what it was. I don't know, but I'm going to blame the lack of mental acuity on softball. (Don't get me wrong, I love softball, and I love enabling my children to participate in these things, but wow. You should spend a Saturday with us someday. You would undoubtedly be convinced of my insanity.)

Then again, Alaina guessed that it was socks. ("You're talkin' gibberish." I think I need to pull that movie out.)

So what was the mysterious gift?

A pretty purple candle!

I have no doubt set a precedent of regaling you with witty anecdotes with some connection to the gift I received. Sorry. It's not going to happen today. I mentioned softball, right? And the sick children?

The candle smells like lavender, for those who were curious. I love it!

"that's how old I am!"

2009-02-27T09:01:00.002-06:00

Which can only mean that it is Day #

And I guessed it today!

I was very proud of myself.

Let's see if you can guess.

It was small, about 4 inches by 6 inches and an inch (maybe less) thick. It was squishy, but not like a shirt.

Any guesses?

Well, I suppose I didn't guess the entire contents, to be fair. The girls snuck a surprise in there.

Here's the thing I didn't guess:

Initial post-its! In purple! Aren't they cute?

And I'm going to use them. My trouble is that I'm a hoarder. I like to save things that I love. I don't know what I'm saving them for, really. But it applies to everything, and I've been doing it since I was little. I can distinctly remember saving the best of my Halloween candy for literally months (because, of course, you eat the stuff you like least first). I think it's something about wanting things I love to last as long as possible. (Lisa and/or any other psych majors out there, you are not allowed to psychoanalyze me!) I'm pretty sure I can blame it on at least one of my parents. My dad stashes things like you would not believe. In fact, it's a familial trait.

Anyway, back to the birthday present!

Did you figure it out? It's stationery! And check it out:

It has my name on it! I think every girl needs personalized stationery. If you don't have some, I will get you some at the next gift-giving opportunity. Seriously. Just find some clever way to let me know that you don't have any. Or just come right out and say it, doesn't matter to me!

I have received personalized stationery as a gift at different points in my life. The first time was when I was 5 or 6. I'm not sure when exactly, but I was old enough to write. Anyway, it was lined letterhead that said "from Amber Lulla" with a cartoon drawing of a little girl writing a letter. I am pretty sure I still have a few sheets. (I told you I was a hoarder.)

The second time was for my high school graduation. A family friend from church gave all of the graduating senior girls personalized note cards. I love these note cards. My first name is embossed on the front. And yes, I still have some!

When we ordered our wedding invitations, we ordered matching thank you notes with our first names on the front. They are vellum with two purple butterflies. I like them, of course, since I picked them out. There's a story about the day I went to order wedding invitations. But I'll save that for another day - it's a very rainy story.

I could be wrong, but I'm guessing there's a story behind this present. As in, where did it come from and how was I not told about this?!?

and now, the moment you've all been waiting for...

2009-02-26T10:22:00.002-06:00

Day #

Ashlee thought it would be fun if I tried to guess what was in each one before I opened it. The thought actually crossed my mind yesterday, so I readily agreed.

Here is the paraphrased transcript of my thoughts:

{It's heavy...kind of like a book. It could be a book. Seems too heavy for a picture frame or photo album. I think it's a book or...photo coasters.}

End transcript. Are you in awe of the inner workings of my mind? You should be.

Now I'll bet you'd like to know what was actually in the bag. Or you may not care. But if you don't care, I'm pretty sure you have vowed not to visit my blog for at least the next month and aren't reading this anyway!

So without further adieu...

OH! Do you grasp the significance of this beautiful purple package?!?

Here, let me point out the most relevant details:

and:

I have a little story to tell you. I must admit that I am not the world's biggest fan of m&m's. Well, more accurately, I wasn't the world's biggest fan of m&m's. I mean, the peanut ones were good, and the peanut butter ones were good; I was just never addicted to them. And then these marvelous confectionery creations appeared in stores. They were originally released in conjunction with one of the new Star Wars movies (not even worth getting into that), with some sort of marketing slogan about going to the dark side. Clever enough. They only came in the little bags, and I don't mean the little big bags. I mean the little bags that you find in the checkout aisle. At first, we only found the plain variety. And those were good, don't get me wrong. But then, on a day that will go down in the history books (or maybe not, as I have no idea what day it was...I could maybe figure out the year with some strenuous mental calculations) someone found the peanut variety! I honestly don't remember who it was.

Of course, as these things go, just about as soon as we discovered the wonder that is dark chocolate peanut m&m's, they disappeared. (Remember the part about them being linked with the Star Wars movie? Yeah. Movie done, candy done.) Then again, maybe it was Ashlee who discovered them because apparently things she discovers and loves get discontinued.

A tragedy of such proportions requires action! So we sent emails to m&m's. Again, as these things go, they listened to Ashlee but not to me and about a year later, dark chocolate m&m's (plain and peanut) triumphantly returned!

If you'd like, you can submit my history of dark chocolate peanut m&m's to wikipedia. It couldn't possibly be anymore ridiculous than some of the stuff that ends up on there.

By the way, there is a proper way to eat m&m's. (Warning: nerd alert.) Any guesses why you must eat all of the colors besides red, yellow, and blue first and then ensure the correct numbers of those three colors so that you can eat one of each color together? I've been doing this since high school.

and behind door #2...

2009-02-25T09:48:00.002-06:00

Welcome to day #2 of the 30 Rock Tour!

Instead of wisely using this time during which the baby is sleeping to clean something or do something similarly productive (or even eating breakfast), I am blogging. Because I can. (And I don't know how long he will sleep - I'm pretty sure this is a trauma-induced nap brought about by a visit to the doctor which included vaccines. But at least he doesn't have an ear infection. He does, however, have allergies. And what can you do about allergies for a 4 month old? That's right, zippo.)

Have I kept you in enough suspense yet?

Can you guess what I got? Here are some clues.

I got something for day #2 that I've never had before. It fits in my purse. (I already put it there!) It's cute. It's little. It has purple on it (my favorite color).

Any ideas?

I should clarify. I've had several of these in my lifetime, but never a cute little one that would fit in my purse.

The first one I had was blue and had a bear head for the handle. I think it had hearts on it. I loved it. There's a decent chance it's still in the closet in my parents' house. I got it when I was in kindergarten. In fact, I still love it! But even it would not fit in a purse.

Have you figured it out yet?

Have I ever told you about the rain boots my mom sent me my freshman year of college? There's not much need for rain boots in Omaha. Snow boots are necessary, of course, but it just doesn't rain in quantities that would call for rain boots. Or if it is raining that much, you'd better be inside because there's probably a tornado or a chance of a tornado accompanying it. So I moved to Houston for college and was soon acquainted with the subtropical climate. I think it was October, and it rained for a week. Literally. I wasn't entirely sure what to do with that, but I quickly learned that I needed a rain coat and rain boots in order to get to my classes. I didn't have an umbrella either, but a rain coat with a hood is much easier to deal with than an umbrella when traveling from class to class. So my mom sent me a red rain coat and bright yellow rain boots! I love these boots. I still have them and occasionally get to wear them. They're the kind of boots that require you to splash in puddles. Seriously. They're fabulous.

So have you guessed yet? (Hint: the above tangent was also a clue.)

Ta-da!

Isn't it cute and little?! Thanks girls! I love it!

on the first day of the 30 Rock Tour...

2009-02-24T13:30:00.004-06:00

my good friends gave to me
a VeggieTales calendar!

So last night, Joe and I were watching 24, which we had recorded, of course. It's 9:35, and there is a knock at the door. Knowing that only crazy people knock on the door at that hour and that we are somewhat suspicious people by nature, Joe answers it. On the doorstep sits a giant box, wrapped with a bow on top. He stands there for a moment, looks around the corner, and says, "It's for you." So I went to the door, and there stand Ashlee, Tami, and Lisa, surrounding the giant box.

Did you know that today begins the 30 day countdown until my 30th birthday? I didn't. My friends did. So what did they bring me?

A giant box of toilet paper!

Not really. It is actually full of presents with numbered sticky notes! And today was day number one.

And this present proves just how well my friends know me. . . first that I get a VeggieTales calendar every year and second that I hadn't gotten one this year.

Now all of you get to celebrate 30 days of my birthday with me!

In other news, the children and I got to have lunch with my mom today during her layover on her way back from California. We ate at Godfather's Pizza. Did you know that in second grade I was friends with the son of the CEO of Godfather's Pizza? Well, I was.

In other other news, at least 2, maybe 3 out of 4 children have ear infections. Awesome.

dirty little secrets

2009-02-23T09:57:00.002-06:00

There are a few things no one ever tells you about having a baby (and no, none of these are things I'm figuring out for the first time).

1. Your hair may start falling out after the baby is born. By the handfuls. It's gross. It gets everywhere. (It will come back, but you will start to wonder just how much hair can fall out.)

2. In the beginning, breastfeeding hurts. Like nothing you can imagine.

3. You will feel schizophrenic or bipolar or something. Somehow you have to achieve a balance of patience and calm during the times you have to feed or rock or otherwise entertain the baby and then find the motivation and opportunity to work as fast as you can during the brief periods of time the baby is sleeping or content to get as much done as possible.

4. You will probably only find any time to yourself if you forgo sleep.

I know it sounds like it, but I'm really not complaining. I'm actually pretty good at dealing with reality. But sometimes you step back and look at it and wonder at the reality.

pop quiz

2009-02-19T16:05:00.002-06:00

image by Paul Carlson, from http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/fractals.htm

What spreads farther, faster, and more insidiously than a virus?

(Because I want to be Ashlee when I grow up, I may just send out a prize for the correct and/or most creative answer.)

seriously?

2009-02-18T13:43:00.002-06:00

I'm sorry, but it has to be said.

I have no strong feelings either way about tattoos. I personally would probably never get one, but I don't have a problem with them out of hand. Rather, I just feel that they are not as counter-cultural as some people who get them believe them to be or want them to be. Honestly, it seems to me that tattoos have become downright trendy. (Don't hate me, it's just my opinion from my observation of society.) Here is my proof. Sorry, I couldn't get a picture to load. It's "Barbie Totally Stylin Tattoos." Enough said.

ya gotta be quick!

2009-02-13T08:59:00.002-06:00

I'm officially the worst mother ever.

Wednesday night, I (along with my semi-permanent arm accessory) went to dinner with the girls (Ashlee, Tami, and Lisa) for Lisa's birthday dinner. We went to BJ's, it was great! Anyway, this left Joe in charge of the other three children. (They played "Wii!" as Jared informed me the next morning.) So Joe texted me while I was at dinner, informing me that Alaina's tooth, which she had been messing with for a good 4 days, fell out. I texted him back to let him know that I would take care of it when I got home. Well, as it turns out, A.J. has been sick again this week (the weather has gone nuts again), and when he is sick, he refuses to be put down. So when I got home, my primary concern was to quiet him down so we could both get some sleep. Needless to say, I completely forgot about being the Tooth Fairy...until about 7am the next morning as the children were about to get up.

Naturally, I waited to see what Alaina would say. It was something along the lines of a shocked, "The tooth fairy didn't come!" This, of course, required some quick thinking on my part. So in case anyone ever asks, the Tooth Fairy occassionally takes a day off...and makes up for it with two quarters the next night.

just call me Sir Edmund

2009-02-09T08:14:00.004-06:00

I wanted to post a picture of Jared's new haircut. But he wouldn't cooperate last night, deciding instead to stick out his chubby little hand and maul the camera lens. (Joe cleaned it, so no harm done.) So here is today's random photo:

Baby smiles make it all worth it.

I did something last Friday that I have not done before. I took all of the children out on a shopping expedition. For most, going to Target is a simple errand - run in, wander around for a while, run out, done. Nothing to write home about. Not so for us! It requires logistical analysis, pit stops, and crisis-aversion skills. Alaina pushes the stroller with A.J., and I put Jared and Jadyn in the cart and push it. (Child containment is the #1 strategy.) Two bathroom stops later, we finish shopping and have to stop for lunch. This kind of shopping trip demands nourishment. We did make it, and we got everything we needed with a minimum of behavioral issues, so it was a success. However, I don't believe I will be making a habit of it anytime soon.

I've decided that Jared compensates for his limited vocabulary through sheer repetition. Have you ever read the book Jacob Two-Two? Well, this is more like Jared Six-Six. I mean, what's the difference, really? As long as you're jabbering away nonstop all day long, who can tell that you don't say that many words? The entire time we were at lunch at Target, all I heard was, "Mama! More b's! Mama! More b's!" A "b," of course, is the generic term for any letter.

We're rearraging our office upstairs. My family can attest to the fact that it was out of control. The trouble is, boys don't stay out of anything. It's a harsh realization to which I've had to adjust. When the girls were little, they typically stayed out of stuff. They didn't bother things that they knew weren't theirs. Jared, on the other hand, wanders around the house looking for things to get into. We have a big chair and a half with an ottoman upstairs, and out of necessity, it is situated next to the railing. The girls have always been careful to sit in it after I told them they could fall out an hurt themselves if they stood. I'm fairly certain Jared has taken to standing in the chair more after I told him the same thing. So, of course, the chair must be moved. As is often the case, this cannot be accomplished until 20 other things have been done in order to have a place for the chair to move into. Have I mentioned that we're going to be looking for a bigger house?!?

miscellany

2009-02-06T10:01:00.005-06:00

I have decided blog posts are much more interesting if there is a photo included. So, here is today's photo:

It has nothing to do whatsoever with this post, but it's cute.

I have been completely remiss in mentioning this, but my mom started a blog. Seriously. I posted way back when about how I thought my parents were cool, and so she went and proved it again. It all reminds me of the time I called my grandma and she asked me to hold on because she was on the other line. Technology is way out of control.

The conversation I had with Jadyn this morning:

Me: Jadyn, you can't wear that sweater, it's too warm today.

Jadyn: But I love it!

Me: I understand that, but it's too warm today for a sweater.

Jadyn: But I love my sweater.

Me: (getting a little sterner) Jadyn, you may not wear that sweater today.

She bursts out crying. But there are no tears, so it's really more whining.

Me: Are you seriously crying about the weather?!

Jadyn: (wailing) Yeah!

I'm not sure how she thought she could get away with that in this house...

There's more, I'm just out of time, so it'll have to wait for the next post and random picture.

Oh, and happy birthday Lindsey! :)

inconceivable!

2009-01-24T20:18:00.005-06:00

Although it is not even possible, my baby is about to be 6. A two-hands number. I remember being 6 - not vividly, but I remember some of the things I thought and felt. Anyway, enough nostalgia. On to the party!

She asked for a Nutcracker party. (What can I say, she's my kid, it's not a real surprise she's obsessed with Christmas.) I told her there was no way I was doing a Nutcracker cake. I know my limits. So we agreed on Sugar Plum Fairy cupcakes. Believe it or not, it's not all that easy to find ballerina cupcake toppers. So I got creative.

I made tiny gingerbread men out of a thin layer of cake. The tops of the cupcakes are supposed to be the ballerina's skirt. I thought they were cute. I bought a decorator tip set in order to make them, which I'm kind of excited about. Undoubtedly my next endeavor will be more involved.

As it was a Nutcracker party, she directed a meaningful new interpretation of the ballet, in which she also performed the role of, you guessed it, the Sugar Plum Fairy. So that Joe doesn't take my blog away, I will refrain from posting video. (He had a supporting role. Literally.) Jared helped with the scenery.

And then there were presents. Ashlee won.

She's holding her brand new leotard. It's purple with butterflies. Don't believe Ashlee when she tells you she had to buy it for her because I would not. As predicted, though, Jadyn wants one too.

So, here comes 6!

what is it with men and "the godfather?"

2009-01-22T09:13:00.002-06:00

Seriously, what is it about children and cat litter that they must intersect at some point?

A couple of years ago, when Alaina and Jadyn were in the vicinity of 3 1/2 and 1 1/2 years old, respectively, the two of them decided to hunt for treasure. . . in the cat litter. But they weren't just digging in the cat litter. No, they were throwing handfuls of the stuff. And as the cat litter is located in the laundry room, they managed to get cat litter not only all over themselves and firmly ground into their hair, but also inside the washer and every other corner of the laundry room. It was gross. Fortunately, they were the only two children at the time, so cleaning them up wasn't major drama.

This morning, when now there are four children, Jared decided it would be a good idea to spread the cat litter from the laundry room into the hallway. Now, I will admit that it was nothing short of a miracle that he wasn't chucking the stuff as hard and as far as he could. He was, however, taking handfuls of cat litter and dropping it all over the laundry room floor and hallway carpet. But it gets better. After removing him and disciplining him and washing his hands, I sent him into my room with the other children so I could go get the vacuum from downstairs. During the 30 or so seconds it took me to go downstairs and retrieve the vacuum, Jared had gone into the master bath, where one of the cats currently lives (long story, not worth it) and picked up the cat litter scoop to play in the cat litter in there. I'm thinking, "Seriously?!? I just spanked him for that!" So once again I removed him and disciplined him and washed his hands, but this time I sat him down against a wall where I could watch him while I cleaned up the mess.

Stay tuned. I'm sure A.J. will have his own exploits with cat litter in a couple of years. . .

what's the "call in sick" number for my job?

2009-01-16T19:16:00.000-06:00

All I wanted to do when I woke up this morning was not talk. My throat hurt, I was coughing, and I felt awful. I knew I'd have to deal with the world; I just didn't want to have to talk to it.

And then they woke up.

terrible

2009-01-12T16:17:00.000-06:00

I am officially a terrible mother.

For her birthday, Ashlee (I would link to her, but even if I can do that from my phone, it wouldn't be easy) took Jadyn out for a special day. Part of the special day was getting to pick out her own present. Jadyn selected a truly delightful baby doll that makes noise - sucks its pacifier, cries, etc. Fortunately for Ashlee and Jadyn and the doll, it also has a "magic blanket" that quiets the crying instantly.

This afternoon, Jared was playing with this particular baby doll. (He has taken an interest in baby dolls since his baby brother was born.) He put the pacifier in the baby's mouth, but it kept falling out, which made the baby cry. After several attempts at pacifying the baby, Jared just busts out crying. As I'm trying to discern just what has happened, he keeps trying to make the baby stop crying. I can't help but start laughing. The poor kid was so upset that the baby wouldn't stop crying that he has big fat tears rolling down his cheeks (which, of course, makes me laugh harder). I enlist Alaina's help in retrieving the magic blanket from upstairs, as I have my hands full with the aforementioned baby brother.

So we get the baby doll quiet, which helps Jared to calm down. And then the baby starts up, and so does Jared. I am still laughing and hoping this won't be the foundation for a neurosis.

So what have we learned? a) Jared can be a sweet and sensitive boy. b) Crying baby dolls can have their moments as entertainment. c) I probably need to get out of the house more often.

2009-01-10T09:36:00.000-06:00

"Jared thinks all the food in the world is his."

- Jadyn, in the car this morning on the way to Alaina's basketball game, as Jared is screaming incoherently about wanting something I neither understand nor could possibly give to him while driving

"Why are you laughing?"

- Jadyn's next remark, to me

a blogging resolution

2009-01-07T16:40:00.000-06:00

So, not really. I don't do resolutions. But I am trying something new...blogging from my phone. It's an attempt to blog more frequently, as I know all 2 of my readers are eager for more wit and wisdom from me.

Anyway, blogging from my phone might actually work as it is very conducive to multi-tasking, and while I don't often have an empty lap for my computer, I can usually manage unoccupied thumbs. (I may finally be able to keep up with Ravi at texting.)

I am truly amazed somedays at the difference between being pregnant and not for me. But it's the little things like actually getting something done during the day and feeling like I'm accomplishing something rather than merely surviving that support our decision to be done at four. I'm also fairly confident that each child would not get as much attention as I want them to if we had more.

So we're looking at bigger houses. I know, Ashlee, I said I wasn't moving unless it was out of this state. Well, I changed my mind. I don't really understand how or when it happened, but we've run out of room. I don't really feel like we have an excessive amount of stuff, but apparently the house disagrees. And wouldn't you know it, I'm actually getting excited about the prospect. The idea of having a space for all of my craft stuff and room for our books and a classroom for school nearly makes me giddy. And why else do we have four kids if not to help clean the house?

I've just discovered the most amazing thing about homschooling: seeing Alaina learn something and incorporate concepts she's learned into learning new things. She's learned how to read, for crying out loud. She can write in cursive, and she's developed good problem solving skills (when she chooses to employ them!). It really is amazing to observe firsthand. I know homeschooling isn't for everyone, but I am so glad that we can.

So, any brilliant thoughts on how to do a Nutcracker birthday party?

mile marker 16

2008-12-07T21:18:00.005-06:00

I've always felt sorry for people whose birthdays were around Christmas. I mean, how could they possibly not feel gypped? But I've changed my mind since my children were born, as they all have birthdays basically during the holidays. Now I feel like we essentially have one unending party from the end of October (A.J.'s birthday, not Halloween) through the end of January. It's great fun, but it's also a bit of a marathon to plan and execute. I'm not complaining, as planning and organizing is what we OCD types love to do.

One of the events during party season is our annual "Bible Study Baking Extravaganza!" (Yes, that's its actual name. Don't ask me, I don't make this stuff up.) It was started by a dear friend who has since abandoned us for the midwest, but we're not bitter or anything. Baking Day has since evolved a bit, but I'm thankful that we always make the time for it. I'm also very thankful for my friends who are so patient and willing to work with my small(ish) children, even though I know it is not easy! (Have you ever tried cooking or baking with small children? If they don't drive you bananas asking every 3 minutes when it will be time to frost the cookies, then there's the mess.) But my friends are champs and good sports about the whole thing.

Speaking of bananas, as my mom always said, "what goes around comes around." The other night, after asking for a banana and eating half of it, Jared decided that the way I had peeled the bottom half of the banana was simply unacceptable. So he dropped it on the floor. And then, in the midst of his tantrum, I told him to pick up the banana and throw it in the garbage. When I looked back at him a moment later to ensure that he was doing as instructed (as there are three other children and this was not the only thing taking place at that time), I see him noticing a convenient banana-stashing nook under the hutch and beginning to take advantage of said nook. The following things flew through my head almost simultaneously, the last being the one that actually left my mouth:

- Ha! That's hilarious!*
- Where's the camera?
- Wow, it must be genetic or something.*
- Jared Robert! Pick up that banana right now!

*There may be an anecdote about Raj and me and a not-so-silent fruit consumption protest involving stashing a banana under a hotel room bed in India. First of all, it was hilarious, and second of all, I was not going to eat that banana.

Up next: a Clarice birthday party for Jadyn, who couldn't possibly be 4 already, as I'm certain Alaina just turned 4 the other day; a Christmas here and there; some family coming; other assorted events.

gonna walk all over you

2008-11-14T16:09:00.001-06:00

"These slippers are made for walking, Mama. ... My slippers are made for walking."

So says Jadyn.

2008-11-07T08:48:00.001-06:00

It's a wonder what 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep in one's own bed can do for a person...

a source of frustration eliminated

2008-10-14T16:45:00.004-05:00

For a few years now, I have harbored a death wish towards my dishwasher. But it was just one of those things I accepted. It was getting old, it was installed when the house was built, and I didn't pick it out. (Implication: The person who did pick it out had inferior opinions.) However, when it started to not clean the dishes, that's when I wanted to throw it out the window.

If there is one thing I learned from my dad, it is the art of being patient. Though Joe may be snorting as he reads this, I really can be patient. I might be loud and opinionated while exercising said patience, but I can do it. So here's to the practice of patience:

Oh, yeah. I may have sold my soul to Samsung and/or Lowe's. What are you gonna do?

who knew?

2008-10-07T19:18:00.002-05:00

It's actually possible there is one decent writer on the staff of SNL. This aired Saturday night, and oddly enough, was pulled from the official NBC SNL site...possibly because there's actual truth in it. But it's funny, so here you go (for as long as it manages to stay on youtube).

addicted

2008-09-29T15:43:00.002-05:00

So we just spent the last 5 days without phone, tv, or internet.

It's brutal.

I didn't mind being without the phone; after all, that's what cell phones are for. And usually the phone only rings when telemarketers are calling, so it's not like I answer it anyway.

I sort of missed the tv. It was the first week of new shows, but there's not much worth watching anyway. There is something to be said about the utility of Nick Jr. in the morning, though.

I am completely addicted to the internet. I can't decide if this is a bad thing or not. Part of me doesn't care, even if it's not that healthy. But I felt completely cut off from the outside world, which I don't think is a good thing. Then again, maybe it's inevitable...I've been an internet junkie for nearly 15 years now.

why do they name hurricanes?

2008-09-15T11:01:00.002-05:00

The answer we gave Alaina was that hurricanes had to have names to distinguish them. I'm beginning to wonder if it doesn't serve a secondary purpose of personifying them in order to facilitate hating them. Or perhaps, to be less hostile, they need names because they take on lives and personalities of their own.

Just for the record, I am very grateful to have had no damage from the hurricane. Nothing. I am also grateful that we had a place to go to, despite the fact that the hurricane was actually worse there and we should've stayed here. I am very impressed by the way the various governments handled this storm - the reality is that things went just about as smoothly as could be expected.

What I said before Ike hit still stands: hurricanes are like high school girls - all drama.

I have experienced a fair amount of weather phenomenon in my life: ice storms, blizzards, tornado warnings (though no actual tornadoes), tropical depressions, and now a hurricane. Hands down, hurricanes are the worst. I could give you all the reasons why, but I won't. Suffice it to say, the weather on the Gulf coast bites, and hurricanes are merely the epitome of the truly awful weather.

By the way, someone please connect the dots for me, because I can't. Obama canceled his appearance on Saturday Night Live last Saturday because of the hurricane. Uh....? Not like 99% of the people affected by the hurricane could watch SNL on Saturday night anyway...

if you're interested...

2008-09-05T14:53:00.002-05:00

One of the most well written articles about Sarah Palin and why she is important to this election and to conservatives as a whole comes from, of all places, the Times of London. If you're interested in reading some of the real story as opposed to the absolutely biased drivel (at best) and downright lies (at worst) of the mainstream media, you can find it here.

Why you should vote for John McCain...

2008-09-04T00:05:00.001-05:00

2 words:

Sarah Palin.

2008-08-22T14:05:00.002-05:00

I hate summer. Have I mentioned that before? Well, I do. I didn't used to. I used to love summer, but that's another story. Mind you, there isn't really a season that I do like in this climate, but I really hate summer. Any guess what the temperature was at 11am this morning? 103. That's right, 103. And that doesn't account for the humidity and therefore the heat index, that was just the temperature. You can't even placate me with the knowledge that September and theoretically fall are on the way. It's a lie. Not the September part, the fall part. Why? Because there is literally no chance that the weather will become bearable, even temporarily, until late October at best. No, the reality is we will still be running the air conditioner in December.

I'm done complaining now. (To be fair, it is my blog.)

In other news, Jared figured out how to turn on the tv in the kitchen with the remote the other day. He thought it was basically the coolest trick ever, giggling all the way into the living room, where, sadly, the same trick didn't work on the tv there...

Alaina has decided she wants to be in a choir, which is, of course cool with me. Anyone know of a children's choir around here? She's also decided she wants to learn to play guitar and be in a band. That may have been slightly influenced by watching us play Guitar Hero...but I still told her to talk to Uncle Raj about it next time she sees him... (Yes, Guitar Hero. Yes, we are nerds. Our children had no chance.)

The Great Toy Standoff of '08 was merely the opening skirmish. It is, in fact, a war...of wills, of stubbornness, of control, of something. But it is decidedly a war. Jadyn literally fell asleep on the bench in the playroom last night because she refused to pick up toys and I refused to let her go to bed or do anything else until she picked them up. The sobering part is that I know this is not really about toys and that I have to win this particular war, for her sake. This parenthood thing is bar none the hardest thing I will ever do in my life.

getting there

2008-08-06T20:09:00.002-05:00

This summer has been rough for me. So it is with a sense of relief that I welcome the month of August. I used to love summer. Of course, that was when I lived in a climate where summer was just another season rather than the prevailing weather pattern.

I will give that it could be entirely psychosomatic (August means summer will be ending and therefore things will be changing), but it's getting a little easier to do things. Doing small housework tasks no longer seem comparable to scaling a cliff. I still have next to no desire to cook anything, but I don't really expect that to resolve itself until November. (Nothing like Thanksgiving and the thought of pumpkin dessert month to motivate the cook/baker in me!)

I even feel like I'm getting a handle on the homeschooling thing. I didn't exactly jump into this particular pool completely unaware of the depth, but this has definitely been one of the bigger challenges I have ever taken on. The whole idea of no boundaries and no guidelines is a bit of a double-edged sword. The past nine months have definitely tested my perspective on the philosophy of learning in general.

All I can hope is that this breathing space lasts for a little while. I know it's going to come crashing down soon, but if I could have a couple of months to get things together, I would be doing really well.

love for my bro

2008-07-25T09:22:00.002-05:00

My brother Ravi has started a blog. It has taken much persuasion and cajoling, but you should go visit it. Ravi has an interesting perspective on life...you won't be disappointed.

is this what it's going to be like?

2008-07-08T11:14:00.001-05:00

Last week, Jadyn spent the better part of 2 days gated in her room. (I let her out to eat, of course.) Ashlee called it the "Great Toy Standoff of '08." The disagreement was about picking up toys in her room - I told her she must, and she refused. So after trying a number of disciplinary methods, I finally told her that she wasn't leaving her room until she picked up her toys. Thus the standoff. She had started to pick up her toys by late afternoon of the 2nd day, but the standoff ended when Joe came home and took matters into his own hands.

The other night, Jared decided he didn't want to eat the last half of his banana and promptly deposited it on the floor. This being an unacceptable behavioral choice, I told him to pick up the banana. As this was not on his list of things to do, he and I disagreed for the next two hours about the placement of the banana. The banana standoff finally ended when I decided that he was far too happy to just play in the 4 square feet of the kitchen to which he was confined and that he would probably fall asleep on the kitchen floor before he would willingly pick up the banana. So I had to make him pick up the banana and throw it away.

I never really saw myself as a stubborn person. I mean, I know that I have my opinions and that I'm pretty certain of the way that I do things, but I never really felt like I'm the type of person who is just stubborn for the sake of stubbornness. And I'm sure if Jadyn or Jared could articulate their motivations, they wouldn't categorize themselves as simply stubborn either. I'm just getting the feeling that this is what it's going to be like - navigating very strong personalities and figuring out how to guide them.

2008-06-24T11:22:00.002-05:00

And so it has begun. Sleeping in a chair is bittersweet; while I do appreciate being able to walk when I get up in the morning, it is just not the same as sleeping in a bed.

I have noticed that driving around in a big city late at night is very lonely. Not because there aren't any cars around, rather, because there are a lot of cars around. I understand that this seems counterintuitive, but in my reality, no one is supposed to be out at 11 o'clock at night. (Except, of course, for me and the few other people like me who don't know enough to go to bed.) But in a big city, there are a lot of people driving around, and the city accommodates that; the stoplights and whatnot behaving as they do all day long, with no comprehension of the hour. In a smaller place, on the contrary, people do actually go to bed (or at least have the sense not to leave the house). And the city infrastructure changes in understanding. There's something friendly about the stoplights blinking yellow on my way home, as if to say, "Hey! Goodnight! I'm taking a break too. Go on through, there's no traffic." I suppose this feeling of loneliness is not far removed from the mild depression I feel when the weather fails to consult the calendar, e.g. when I'm running the air conditioner in December.

my poor neglected blog

2008-06-10T10:32:00.002-05:00

In order to appease the angry masses as a result of my shameful, though temporary, abandonment of my blog, I submit a cute picture of small children. (Hey, what's the use in having children if you can't use them as cannon fodder every once in a while? Seriously, calm down, it's a joke.)

Every so often I feel like I need to draw back, regroup, take a mental vacation, something. I'm not terribly proud of it, and I'm sure it's an attitude problem more than anything. I just sometimes get sick of all the things that I "have" to do, so I do nothing.

favorite things

2008-04-25T13:35:00.002-05:00

It's interesting how different things can trigger memories. Yesterday the small children and I shared a cantaloupe (yes, between us we ate the entire thing) that was really good. I couldn't cut the thing fast enough to keep up with the speed at which they were shoveling the fruit into their mouths. But this cantaloupe was very good - it tasted just like the ones we used to eat at Grandma Jackie's house during the Fourth of July in Iowa (where it's not a little sketchy to buy produce from the farmers selling on the side of the road out of their pickup trucks). I so want to take my kids to small town Iowa for the small town Fourth of July celebrations, which aren't that much to speak of, but they also aren't put on for the show. It's not like I have memories of days that were without their share of drama. I remember it was always either ridiculously hot or raining, and I have no doubt that we were usually a chore to entertain. But I also remember how much fun it was to watch the fireworks, play bingo, watch the parade, and how good the cantaloupe and the watermelon tasted, and how the adults in my family didn't try and entertain us at every moment with this plan or that but let us figure things out for ourselves.

I haven't been to Yale, Iowa, for the Fourth of July celebration in a really long time. I'm sure things have changed, and I'm sure there are plenty of not-delightful things I would notice about small towns and their residents were I to return. But that doesn't change my desire to go back.

The other thing that has stirred memories lately has been a return to using matches. I think I really prefer matches over a firestick. Yes, a firestick may be easier, but there's nothing remarkable about it. Matches have an instantaneous, unmistakable smell associated with lighting them that just reminds me of afternoons after school, going downstairs to do my homework and lighting either a candle or incense from India. Even accounting for the homework, it's a pleasant memory.

so tired

2008-04-17T13:58:00.004-05:00

I realized something depressing the other day. I probably won't be able to get back to Omaha until next May or June. That will make it a full year and a half between visits. I know that I probably sound crazy in my inexplicable attachment to a place, but it is what it is. Everything just feels different there. And there are some people who will point out that the drought between visits is largely my own fault, which I acknowledge but reject as a valid argument. :)

Anyway, so a few weeks ago, when my mom was here, I offhandedly remarked that I wanted fried ravioli from Malara's. It's one of those funky little restaurants in the middle of a neighborhood that is just barely converted from a house itself. One of the things this restaurant is famous for is its fried ravioli. It really is amazing. So when we were in Target today trying to figure out what to get for lunch, I stumbled upon a box of frozen fried ravioli. Attempting to contain my excitement, I decided neither the price nor the ingredient list were too appalling and subsequently had fried ravioli for lunch. It didn't even remotely resemble the fried ravioli from Malara's, but it was decent enough, particularly because I have never seen fried ravioli in another restaurant, much less a grocery store.

By way of update, my new washer is amazing. The clothes are actually cleaner, which I had hoped for but never really expected. Things like children's socks, for which there is little hope anyway, have returned to a state of actual whiteness. It is truly a wonder. And so the list of appliances which need to break is down by one...

for the record

2008-04-08T14:12:00.002-05:00

I'm just going on record to say that I did not kill the washer. I have wished it dead for some time now, but I did not kill it. However, that does not change the fact that it is dead, which does not bode well for the clothing situation.

I made an amazing discovery the last time I went to the grocery store. Whole Foods has organic tater tots! I know this probably does not seem all that amazing, but really it is. I had some for lunch, with cheese on top, and it was yummy.

conquered! (almost)

2008-04-04T17:05:00.002-05:00

I can't say it's been completely conquered until I have successfully done it more than once, but this afternoon I made a really good smoothie, and it made me happy! :) I would even dare to say that it was as good as the one I got from Smoothie King last week.

Just a little update for everyone who I know was very concerned about me and my smoothies.

83

2008-04-03T11:07:00.002-05:00

Yes, that is the number of this post. Pathetic, compared to Ashlee's 403. I guess it means that Ashlee is 4 times cooler at blogging than I am.

Does anyone know how to make smoothies? I'm terrible at it, and I really want one. There is a Smoothie King right by my house, but $6 for a smoothie is a little more than I'm willing to pay (unless I'm desperate).

One of the great things about my mom being here was that she just took care of things for me. Like making breakfast for me. I know, it sounds pathetic, but I have been making my own breakfast basically since I was old enough to pour milk. So today when I really wanted eggs but didn't have the stomach to make them myself, there was no one here to make them for me. (Yes, I'm just whining, but it's my blog, so deal with it.)

There's something wrong with my dumb cats. They have never, ever fought with each other. But for some unknown reason, this morning they've decided they don't like each other. It's been the whole thing - growling, hissing, weird cat moaning. I'm thoroughly annoyed. The thing they don't know is that if they start injuring each other, they're both done for. I really do love my cats, but not when they're acting so bizarrely and unpredictably.

happy birthday to me!

2008-03-25T09:56:00.002-05:00

Today is my birthday. Is it okay that I don't feel like I'm 29 or act like it seems someone almost 30 should act?