Too Much Perfection?

Squeaks Eats!

2011-08-13T16:55:00.004-04:00

Squeaks got her first taste of solid food this morning. She dined on uber-delish rice cereal. The little girl took to it like a pro, she ate one bite after the next until the little bowl was empty! Perhaps she should have been nicknamed the wutz!

Here are a few pictures of the scene, but I command you to completely ignore my presence in the photos. I am totally rocking that just-rolled-out-of-bed, no-hair-did, no-makeup-on look. Sexy. Kinda.

First Day of School

2011-08-13T16:53:00.004-04:00

The wutz survived not only his first day of Kindergarten, but also the entire first week. But not without ending it with a sore throat. Figures.

The Hair...

2010-11-17T10:39:00.002-05:00

This morning the wutz decided he wanted to fix his own hair. This isn't particularly unusual and I don't consider it a big deal, so I left him alone in the bathroom so he could do what he wanted. Now, you might expect this to be where I begin in on the horrid things he did to his hair - in normal posts from me it would be - but not today. Today he used just enough water to flatten out the rat's nest in the back of his hair and he brushed it out nice and flat. It looked pretty good, if I do say so myself, but I was too busy then to notice anything other than it wasn't spiked with gel or suddenly green or something like that.

So off to school we went. Upon arrival we got out and as I was walking him to his class, I looked down and realized his hair did, indeed, look rather nice. Of course I took the opportunity to compliment him on his hair and a job well done. With a small hand he smoothed back the coif and said, "Thank you, Mommy, I wanted it to look good like this today." I queried him as to why and he replied, "Because I am going to take you on a date today, Mommy!" Shocked, I asked where were we going on this date. He looked at me and smiled sweetly and said, "Wendy's!"

Oh. Yay.

Incentives and name writing...

2010-10-16T09:52:00.001-04:00

The wutz finally wrote his name without any help. He'd been long reluctant to do so because he's a lazy sort of kid and said it was too much hard work! Finally, after an agreement made a week ago that he'd get a toy he wanted once he did the work, he began practicing. This morning he sat down and spent time focusing on his c's and e's, which were both the hardest part of his name for him.

After some more hard work and frustration and then finally lots of concentration, he wrote his name all by himself. First the C, then he'd look at me for approval, next the o, again looking at me, he got the l easily and moved on to the t. Once he got to the e he said, "This part is tricky!" and began work on the letter. As he finished he looked to me and I clapped for him. Lastly was his r, which again he had no trouble finishing. He was so excited to have accomplished it all by himself!

But mainly he was excited because he gets to go get Captain's Boathouse to add to his Thomas collection.

First Day of School

2010-08-09T10:51:00.000-04:00

Well, I know I have slacked greatly on this blog, but I'm copying this from the wutz's blog. Hehe!

It is a new school year! Amazing. My boy has gotten so big!

This morning he woke up on his own at 6am. Also amazing! And we got up, dressed, teeth brushed, hair brushed... and we had time to watch TV. Lately he has been demanding we watch The Upside Down Show ad nauseum, so that's what was on. While we were sitting there, I plucked off a piece of red fuzz off his navy blue shorts. The fuzz was from his blanket. I said, "Look, it is a baby Schmuzzie!" (A creature from the show) and he said, "Awww. It's adorable!" and he took it from me and that was the end of that.

Then we got to school and I did the obligatory first day of school pictures. We marched to Mrs. Nancy's room and he threw the door open. She greeted him with a hug. To which he promptly extracted this piece of red fuzz and announced, "I brought my baby Schmuzzie!" *facepalm*

So, thus begins the school year...

Newest Project!

2010-03-30T19:12:00.003-04:00

I have yet another project. Or addition to the family. Whatever. Meet...

Ummm..

Well, damn. I haven't named him yet. He's a registered Tennessee Walking Horse. He's not quite five yet, which means he's still got some growing to do. He'll be taller and he also needs to put about 100lbs of weight on. But he has the sweetest, calmest disposition as far as I have seen thus far. I'm excited. I've wanted a TWH for at least a decade and he looks almost identical to one I passed up on several years ago that I still kick myself for not snapping up.

So, anyways, here are pictures...

This last photo is just to show how freaking tall this guy is. Those panels are at least 5ft high!

"Hello. 911. What is your emergency?"

2010-03-09T20:09:00.003-05:00

"Um. My husband is an idiot."

Ugh.

So Sunday DH caught this nasty bug that the wutz had at the end of last week. He wasn't feeling well so he went to bed early. Before he slept, I told him that he should stay home and rest on Monday. He promised he would if he was feeling bad. When he woke me up Monday he said he was feeling better, so he got dressed and took the wutz to school then drove 50 miles to work.

I got up early, tidied the house, fed the horses, then by 9:30am I was curled back in bed ready to enjoy a lazy day ALONE! Yes, I said it. ALONE.

At 9:35am my phone rang. It was one of DH's coworkers. DH had passed out during a conference. Twice.

They ended up calling 911 and he was taken to the hospital. So I had to climb back out of bed, get dressed, go get my mom and drive over an hour to the hospital. Turns out the only thing that showed up was some dehydration. Basically, the dude has the flu. And he was too stubborn to stay home and rest.

He flinched when I walked into the ER because he knew he was going to get an earful, too. I told him that his refusal to take one day off probably just cost us an entire paycheck (deductables, yanno) and that when he got checked out he was going home and going to bed until I said otherwise.

So now, Mr. Macho is in bed, with a fever of 103. Please God, don't let me be next!

RIP my sweet blue boy

2010-02-08T17:34:00.002-05:00

My cat, Zoos, that I've blogged about before had continued to get sicker and sicker. His asthma attacks were coming more rapidly and more frequently so I made the arrangements this morning to send the wutz to my parents' and I took Zoos in to the vet to have him put to sleep. I stayed with him while my favorite vet told me I was doing the right thing and then he helped Zoos peacefully drift off.

It was a terrible decision to make. One I don't regret, but I am sad I had to make it. But it was better than him suffering over and over each time he suffered one of the asthma attacks.

I'm trying to happily remember the big fat cat that was given to me by DH as my wedding present. Zoos never wanted to be the center of attention and never even wanted to sit on a lap, but was quite content with a head rub or a light scratch behind the ears. The big blue eyes of that beautiful blue point as he would always follow me into the guest bathroom and use that as the only time he ever demanded attention.

He never complained, he never fought, he was never aggressive. Such a sweet sweet boy. My biggest regret is that I cannot find a photo of him. I know I have to have some from when he was younger, but several computer malfunctions later and I just cannot seem to dig any up. So I'm not posting a photo for that reason. I hate that I can't find one.

He's going to be missed.

Rest in peace, my sweet Zoos.

Saturday Quote

2010-02-06T15:54:00.001-05:00

The more powerful and original a mind, the more it will incline towards the religion of solitude. - Aldous Huxley

(Stealing this idea from a friend, because I'm too lazy to blog today!)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Perfection

2010-02-05T21:23:00.003-05:00

Too Much Perfection? Not possible when it comes to chocolate chip cookies, but I've been working on it for years.

However, I think I have finally found the recipe that comes as close as I'll ever get. These cookies turned out nice and thick and perfectly brown and soft at the same time. Glorious. And weight-inducing.

Here's the recipe:

•2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
•1 teaspoon baking soda
•1 teaspoon salt
•1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
•1/2 cup butter flavored Crisco
•3/4 cup granulated sugar
•1 cup packed brown sugar
•1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•2 large eggs
•2 cups chocolate chips

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, Crisco, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

Once mixed, toss the bowl into the fridge and let it cool until firm. Then preheat the oven to 375° F. Take dough out of fridge and use a tablespoon to spoon out rounded balls of dough onto a greased cookie sheat. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

Start eating them while still warm. Stop when they are all gone.

Don't Blame Me!

2010-02-04T18:30:00.004-05:00

While at work today, my cell phone started ringing. I really should change my ringtone because hearing the lyrics "You and me baby ain't nothing but mammals, so let's do it like we do at the discovery channel!" is probably not work appropriate. But, as usual, I digress...

I answered the phone and it was the wutz's teacher. She was calling to inform that my darling angel had dropped trou, while playing on the playground, and urinated in the grass. It took me the beat of a few moments to realize she expected me to be ahgast. When, really, I was thinking, "Isn't that what little 3 year old boys do??" I was good, though, I didn't say that. I acted appropriately appalled and told her I was and that we would handle it. She said he was in time-out for punishment and she would talk to him as well.

Then she let it slip that another little boy did the very same thing yesterday. Well, okay, lady... why the hell do you think my child is suddenly urinating on the playground then? Because one of your OTHER students taught him that trick. So YOU deal with it instead of calling me at work and bothering me with what is a non-issue to me.

Again, I was good and didn't say that. I just promised we'd give him a good talking to.

*sigh*

What can I say? He's all boy. Deal with it.

Newest Addition. Maybe.

2010-02-03T17:07:00.001-05:00

We just added a new family member to our home. Maybe. If she doesn't piss me off and I ship her back to her previous home.

What is she, you wonder? She is a smooth coated Fox Terrier. I think I've mentioned the breed some time ago. A guy that works next door to me shows them. This dog is named Baby. *blech* But she's a sweetie. She's 2 years old and is a retired champion. Champion at what, I'm not sure just yet. I'll keep you posted on that.

So far she's done very well. She's a teense hyper, but I know she's also nervous. Fortunately, she's already housebroken and crate trained. The wutz said he'd take care of her if we could keep her. Hah. Yeah, right. But cute cute cute of him to offer.

I'll post a picture later, because I still haven't transfered all the software to my new laptop out of sheer laziness. (Don't act like you are surprised.)

Don't judge me, dammit...

2010-02-02T22:45:00.002-05:00

Alright, I'm feeling kinda like shit, so the blogging well is still dry. I have managed to blog every day for a month, though I've cheated much of it. Whatever.

Today I'm going to fess up to something very few know about me.

My favorite movies!

Here goes. But dammit, don't judge me.

1. Lost Boys
Vampires. Comedy. Coreys. Need I say more?

2. The Princess Bride
Seriously. Does this need an explanation?

3. Labyrinth
Jareth. *drool*

4. The American President
Honestly, I have no explanation other than I just enjoy this movie. It's my go-to movie if I'm sick or bored out of my skull.

5. Save the Last Dance
I'm slightly addicted to dance movies and this one is a fave.

6. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
Kate and Matthew? Yum. And it is just fun as hell and funny.

7. Dirty Dancing
I can't be female and not have it on my list. Sorry.

8. Terminator 2
One of the few movies that is better than the original.

Okay enough for now.

And stop judging me, I said!

Hello February

2010-02-01T20:44:00.002-05:00

Where the hell did you come from?

Seriously. February already? For 14 more days we'll be plagued by aisles and aisles of crimson cellophane-wrapped hearts filled with scrumptious candy that is enough to buckle the knees of even the most stoic Jenny Craig or Weight Watcher's advocate. And I love it.

Mmmm... that creme filled goodness brought to you courtesy of Russell Stover. Pure bliss.

Damn. Now I'm hungry. For chocolatey goodness.

Sunday Song - Mean Kitty

2010-01-31T20:31:00.001-05:00

The Mean Kitty Song

Blahness

2010-01-30T22:14:00.002-05:00

I know I've blogged about it ad nauseum, but my headaches and migraines have returned to me full force lately. I don't know why. Maybe it is the cooler weather. Maybe it is all the rain we've had this season. Maybe I'm just put together cheap and I'm falling apart. Whatever the reason, it well and truly sucks.

I just feel so blah and useless lately. With the headaches I don't sleep well and when I am awake I just don't want to do a damned thing. It's like this depressive black cloud is hovering over me. I hate it.

During my pregnancy with the wutz I didn't have headaches at all. Nor did I have them for the nearly two years I was breastfeeding. After that they were few and far between. Until the past few months. Now they have returned to what they were before I was pregnant. It has been long enough that I actually started to love live without them. *sigh*

So once more I am on a quest to wade through prescription after prescription to find the right cocktail that will make them tolerable.

Wish me luck.

Because I took an Ambien, I'm too loopy to be coherent...

2010-01-29T21:53:00.002-05:00

A great blast from the past...
(And somewhat appropriate for the night)

Tom Petty - Girl on LSD

iWhat?

2010-01-28T22:33:00.002-05:00

Okay, there are some situations where you can just tell that the marketing and think-tank people are all male. This new Apple release of their iPad is a prime example. I recognize that every comedian in the country is likely cracking very similar jokes, but it wouldn't be me if I didn't pause to offer the ole What. The. Fuck. Apple?

So there, I did. Seriously, Apple. Hire some more women. If you had, you'd know that iPad sounds like something we women loathe to wear once a month. Didn't one person... I mean, just ONE stop and say, "Wait, I think maybe we should rethink this whole iPad name. Let's give it 28 more days and see if it sticks."

Twitchy

2010-01-27T16:55:00.002-05:00

I am so tired of cold weather. I'm even tired of cool weather. We've had more than our share this winter, with record breaking cold and all. Enough is enough. I'm getting all twitchy and restless.

I am ready for Spring. And I'm doubly ready for the time change. I hate that it gets dark so early. Not only is it cold, there aren't enough hours in the day.

I'm done.

Cleaning and a Haircut...

2010-01-26T14:50:00.002-05:00

The wutz had his first dentist appointment today. I recognize we are a little behind schedule on that, but I really didn't think he was emotionally ready to sit still for the process until now. I think I was right. He was such a good, good boy today in that dentist's chair. He opened his mouth, let them 'count' his teeth and they brushed them and flossed them. He asked questions and played with all the non-pointy instruments and just had an absolute blast.

Unfortunately, he has one tiny cavity in his very back molar that the dentist wants to have fixed. Which means we will now be referred to a pediatric dentist, shell out money for them to 'count' his teeth again, and then have to return to have the cavity filled. *sigh* I knew I should have just went straight to a ped. dentist, but my dentist's office said they could handle it. Had I known that by 'handle it' it just meant charge me $80 bucks to brush his teeth and 'count' them, I'd have started off at the pediatric dentist. Ah well. Lesson learned.

I just hope the wutz is as good next week for the next appointment as he was this one!

My new toy, revisited

2010-01-25T13:48:00.001-05:00

This is the laptop I got. It is the Asus G60Vx. It's a gaming computer and so far I love it. I'm not fond of Windows 7, but this computer simply screams. Technorgasms once more!

New Toy

2010-01-24T20:42:00.002-05:00

I spent the day shopping for a new laptop. Mine has been overheating and I'm pretty sure it is the heat sink. It is out of warranty and I think I'd go into DTs if I had to send mine off and be without a computer! So I wandered for store to store until I settled on a new Asus laptop. I have always preferred Toshiba, but this last one is the third to have the heat sink go out in it. Time to try a new brand!

I spent more than I'd hoped, but so far I like this computer. The screen is bigger and I still haven't adjusted to the keypad on the side that causes the keyboard to be shifted to the left. That is strange. But the graphics on this computer are a-mazing. And it really sings.

I'll spend tomorrow transferring files and backing up, but so far, so good!

I love me some new tech stuff!

What I really want to do...

2010-01-23T12:56:00.002-05:00

What I really want to do is crawl back in bed, toss the covers over my head and sleep for a week. Then when I wake up I want it to be Saturday morning. Of next week. Nice, calm. Peaceful.

And having had a week's worth of sleep.

Who's with me?

Mid-Winter Swim

2010-01-22T16:17:00.001-05:00

Crazy Catlady...

2010-01-21T21:03:00.002-05:00

I'm beginning to feel like the crazy cat lady. After all the doctoring I'm doing to keep one alive, I've now got another fuzzbutt that has spent two days crying. Screaming. Crying. Whining.

Yeah. The siamese kitten. Her. She's driving me nuts. She normally is a very vocal cat, but the past two days have been constant. At first I thought it was the weather because we were expecting nasty storms. Now I think she's just pissed because she's getting old enough to sow her furry oats.

Too bad, pussy. Too bad. So just shut up already. Geez.

Science Fiction

2010-01-20T16:48:00.003-05:00

A cool friend of mine passed me an article that her equally cool DH showed her and I thought it was a fabulously interesting article about those that can (and cannot) read and understand the Science Fiction and Fantasy genre.

I have to admit that I'm fairly new to the SF types of novels. By new, I mean in the last 8 years or so. I still don't have the patience for Harry Potter and I still loathe Lord of the Rings, but my enjoyment of SF has long extended past romantic vampires and I'm now exploring a wider rang of SF and I find myself enjoying it.

Here is the article:
SF reading protocols

Stuck

2010-01-19T21:49:00.002-05:00

I blogged previously about my sick siamese. He's been diabetic for a few years and we recently discovered that he has advanced stage asthma/respiratory problems. As in, the worse the Univ. of Georgia radiologists have ever seen. Yeah. That bad.

I wasn't surprised, though. It seems my animals always have firsts. Like my golden retriever's fishing line leg ligament. Or one of my horse's massively stobbed tendon sheath. If the shit can go wrong, it does go wrong. On an epic scale.

But I digress. As per usual.

Anyways, he's been doing so-so. I'm giving him insulin twice a day now instead of once. I'm also giving him oral steroids. A pill.

Yeah, I'm giving a cat a pill. I've done worse, though. Thank goodness he's got the mildest disposition ever. And I'm doubly thankful for experience in the whole feline med-giving because I once had a siamese that had to have medication daily and she was like trying to get medicine in a cheetah. Not fun.

Again, I digress.

So tonight I was giving the cat his insulin. It went well. I injected him carefully, because he's lost a lot of weight and I don't want to put the needle in the wrong spot, and because I hate needles and I try to be mindful and respectful with them. Until it got to the point where I had to recap the needed. I wasn't paying attention as I drove the needle into the little plastic orange cap. No, I didn't miss. Instead that little fucking needle pierced through the cheap plastic cap and pierced my finger. To. The. Bone.

Argghhhh.

Such a little needle. So much owwie. I nearly fainted. Yeah. Seriously. Did I mention I hate needles?

I think I'm going to officially fire myself and make it DH's job from now on. Either that or I want hazard pay or something.

Ouch.

Wordless

2010-01-18T22:19:00.001-05:00

I'm tired. I completely forgot about this blog today and I just haven't had anything to write about lately. Okay, I have stuff to write about, just nothing I want to sit down and think about long enough to put into coherent sentences that you could make heads or tails of. I really promised myself I'd do better with this whole blogging thing, but I'm still sort of burnt out on it.

I will press on, however. I just wanted to admit my feelings about this blog right now, so maybe I can move forward and contribute something that's worth freaking reading, because lately I just haven't been about to cough anything up and spit it out on the screen.

I'll keep trying, though. (I'm sorry for that.)

Heh.

Sunday Song

2010-01-17T06:32:00.000-05:00

Casting Crowns - Until the Whole World Hears

More Belated Christmas Pictures!

2010-01-16T16:26:00.001-05:00

We took a look, we bought a Nook...

2010-01-15T21:19:00.002-05:00

One of my Christmas presents this year was a pre-ordered Nook from Barnes & Noble. It arrived via my wonderful UPS dude yesterday afternoon. I pried open the packaging eagerly to reveal what looked like a massive clear plastic iPod case. Gorgeous.

Then I opened it, pulled it out, and plugged it in. Patience. These things have to charge, you know.

So finally today, the sucker was all charged up and I was at work - a location that actually gets great cell service for downloads - and I turned that sucker on and registered it. Simple and quick. Nice.

I downloaded my first book. It cost me a whopping $3.99.

I had a doctor's appointment today so I tossed the Nook into my purse and carried it with me. In the waiting room, I finally turned it on and turned the 'page' to read my new Nook book.

Let me tell you. I think I had a technorgasm.

I love it. It is so easy to read from. No eye strain. No heavy book to carry around. No pages to dog ear. Mmmm... I'm in love.

Randomly Random

2010-01-14T19:30:00.002-05:00

Just a few random things...

1. The wutz survived school today. And apparently so did all of his classmates. *whew* The teacher made a point to make sure I was notified that he was very good today. So the kiddo lives to see another day. We're all kinda grateful.

2. I am thrilled that my DH is working. I'm also kind of thrilled that the work he does has him working from home 4 days a week. He's very awesome about getting up first, getting dressed, making my coffee, then waking me so I can get dressed while he dresses the wutz and even brushes his teeth. How awesome is that? So I can hardly complain, when at the end of his day he kicks back in his recliner, remote in hand, and states "Okay. Leave me alone. I'm done with work and officially driving home."

3. My Nook came today! I'm so excited. I've got that sucker unboxed and on charge. I know I won't have cell service at the house to download books tonight, but tomorrow I'm going to give it a go from work. I'll report back how I like it soon!

4. I got my hair cut Tuesday. No. I don't have a picture. But it is short. I mean pixie short. And I think I kinda love it. It's different for me, kind of edgy, but very easy to fix in the morning. Suh-weet.

5. Tomorrow is Friday. Hot. Damn.

A Day: Reluctantly Revisited

2010-01-13T15:06:00.002-05:00

Alright, in the light of a new day I feel that I can finally write a bit about my day yesterday. I still find little humor in it, however. But maybe you will.

The day started out like any other. Coffee was made. Teeth were brushed. Kid was dressed. But the kid was also sniffly. By the time we finally pried him off the sofa and into the car, he was very whiny. I did manage to get him into class and out of the goodness of my heart, I warned her that he was not feeling 100% and there may be issues that day because of it.

I arrived to work late, but that's not a rarity. It's cool. Really. Then later in the morning just as I'd downed my second cup of coffee, the phone rang. It was DH calling to inform me that I had to go pick up the wutz. Immediately. "Oh shit!" I thought. He must be really sick. I was quickly informed that no, that wasn't the reason. Apparently the teacher had called him to tell him that the wutz had severely bitten another student and therefore he could not stay in school.

Yep. My little angel was tossed out of school on his ass. At age three.

I'm was so proud.

*exhales* So I threw all of my stuff in my bag and flew out of the office. I'm pretty sure I told them why I was leaving, but if I hadn't I'm certain they'd have known since steam was coming out of my ears. I arrived at school to find a screaming/crying wutz who was demanding to go outside and play. I talked to the teacher and she informed me that he did not break the other child's skin when he bit.

Well hell.

It's not severe unless there is blood and stitches required, if you ask me.

I informed her that I'd take him home and we'd keep him home on Wednesday and try again on Thursday at school to see if he could be better behaved. I hope to God he will be or Momma's gonna go postal on a three year old. I thought it was the twos that were supposed to be terrible?

A day

2010-01-12T12:32:00.003-05:00

I am having a day. A very bad day. It has all culminated to the point where I am ready to get in the car and drive off to an undisclosed location, never to be heard from again.

I'm sure there's a funny story in here. I'm sure I'll laugh about it soon. But today is not the day. Right now, there is no humor in the day I had. I'd love to blog some tragically funny sorry about this day, but right now it isn't going to happen.

I'll be back as soon as it does.

I present to you something so rare...

2010-01-11T11:11:00.001-05:00

This is exciting. I cannot tell you what a rare find this is. It is amazing. I'd like to present to you something that the human world has never seen before...

In their natural habitat, my entire family, all together, posing for a camera...

Sunday Song

2010-01-10T08:01:00.000-05:00

Free to Be Me -- Francesca Battistelli

(Not the official video, but the one with the best sound that I could find.)

Avatar

2010-01-09T21:17:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I've been resistant to seeing Avatar because I didn't think it would be my sort of movie. Reviews have varied. Some said it was excellent for the filming, scenery, etc... but lacking in substance. Some said it was overall a fantastic movie. Either way, everyone I spoke to that had already gone said the same thing, "Go see it. Now." Not one person that saw it held any reluctance in urging me to see it. Even after I protested.

So today we bundled up and trudged out to see the movie. In IMAX. 3D.

All I can really say is wow. Wow.

I was truly surprised at how much I enjoyed the movie. It was gorgeous. And very enjoyable.

So to all of you that urged me to see it: Thank you.
And to all of you that have yet to see it: Go see it. Now.

Helloooo Twentieth Century!

2010-01-08T10:55:00.003-05:00

Well, it only took a decade or so, but I have finally entered the 20th Century! (I know, I know, I'l start working on the 21st someday!)

Yesterday we finally got DSL installed at our home. This is huge. Up until this week, our only options were dial-up *gasp!* or satellite *cha-ching!* or cellphone tethering. I've been using my cell phone to tether to my laptop for quite awhile now. It has worked so much better than dial-up and the speeds were similar to DSL, but the consistancy sucked. I'd drop connection on a regular basis, which is simply maddening.

But now! Now we have wireless DSL. Suh-weet.

I'm a happy happy girl.

Yay me.

Christmas Morning

2010-01-07T09:57:00.003-05:00

Christmas morning began at our house with way too many presents! Santa left the wutz an ATV and some toys from the movie Cars. He was so excited he ran right past the ATV, he didn't even see it!

More Christmas Eve...

2010-01-06T08:58:00.006-05:00

Yeah, yeah, I know... but I'm still playing catch up.

On Christmas eve, the wutz woke up to the last visit from Jingle (original name, I know). Jingle is our Elf on a Shelf. He'd been causing trouble every night for weeks, but on his last night in our home he brought a little present that was left hanging on the bedroom door. The present was a ton of party favors that the wutz is absolutely in love with. Fortunately, they weren't noisemakers. Yay Jingle!

After we got home from the Santa Fly In, the wutz was allowed to open his Christmas Eve present. He had been eyeing this shiny green package that his Granny wrapped for well over a month. When he finally tore into it, he discovered a light up music box with an animated train.

And I couldn't wrap up Christmas eve without displaying the cute sweater that the wutz was forced to wear. He looks just thrilled with it, doesn't he?

Santa Fly In

2010-01-05T11:11:00.000-05:00

Since I am still playing catch-up, I would kick myself if I failed to post about the annual Santa Fly In, since I've posted about it every year!

This year we got the opportunity to fly in the plane with Santa and Mrs. Claus. We did it when the wutz was a baby but he had a cold last year so we declined the offer. The wutz was so excited to fly with Santa. He loves Santa, of course, but he reeeeaaaaalllllyyyy loves planes. Typical boy. You may remember pictures from last year's Fly In of him in Santa's lap, pointing toward the plane when Santa asked him what he wanted for Christmas. Yeah. That's my boy.

So this year he was excited to fly! At first he didn't want to sit near Santa, but after about 60 seconds he changed his mind and parked himself directly in front of Santa. They proceeded to converse for the entire 30 or 45 minute flight. It was great and the weather was perfect for flying!

It was very cool to see all the people waiting for Santa as we did our fly-by!

Disney Re-revisited

2010-01-04T11:11:00.000-05:00

One of the things we did while we were at Disney in November was visit all of the deluxe resorts that we'd never seen before. We rode the boat to the Wilderness Lodge, we took the monorail to the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian. Loved the meal at the Polynesian, as I've already blogged...

Anyways, here are more photos from the trip...

These were taken at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It is such a gorgeous place. I hope we can stay there someday.

We took the water taxi to Downtown Disney. I did love the view from the boat as we traveled through Port Orleans - Riverside.

So far behind I think I'm in front...

2010-01-03T11:11:00.000-05:00

Alright, I admit that I've been a ~~lot~~ little slack with this whole blogging thing. Which means, dear reader, that we shall have to travel back in time to do a little catching up.

I think I shall start the boredom with a few pictures from our Disney trip. We traveled there in November, as is becoming a wonderful tradition. We stayed at Port Orleans - Riverside and we enjoyed every moment of it.

Even the wutz picked out his favorite sleeping spot in our hotel room:

It was a great step up from the Pop Century that we stayed at last year. That was nice, but I liked Riverside much better! Couple that with the fact that we made a point to do LESS this year, we were able to enjoy a relaxing vacation with no rushing from park to park. We just did what we could and didn't push ourselves beyond an enjoyable limit.

This trip was a lot of fun because adding an extra year to the wutz seemed to make a huge difference. He was able to grasp the rides better and enjoy them to their fullest. I can't believe what a little adventurer he is! He'll try anything once, and usually loves it enough to try again. I can't wait till next year to do it all over again.

Anyways, here are a few pictures from the trip...

Sick Siamese

2010-01-02T10:53:00.001-05:00

My 12 year old blue point Siamese boy was diagnosed a couple of years ago with diabetes. Recently I've noticed the symptoms returning so I took him in to the vet to have his levels checked. We made some changes and he did okay for about a week. Then he started panting. I assumed it was Kussmaul breathing which can happen if their blood sugar skyrockets. He did it off and on for two days over the holidays. I took him in on Monday to see what they thought. In the end they couldn't see how the blood sugar would be causing the continued rapid panting, so they x-rayed him. His lung films looked like someone laid a piece of lace over them, there's that much asthmatic type damage. The vet said it looked like end stage asthma. I've never noticed anything odd about his breathing other than he was a little noisy and he snores.

So the vet sent the films to the radiologist at UGA. He looks at them and says the same thing, but he also says it is one of the worst cases he's seen and he wants to use the x-rays in his teaching.

Now Zoos is on steroids to try to make his breathing better, but that will likely screw up his blood sugar levels. It's a Catch 22. Poor guy.

So if you have it in you to say healing prayers for a feline, he could certainly use some. *sigh*

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T22:52:00.004-05:00

2009 was an interesting year. It was full of ups and downs. With DH out of work for nearly nine months, it was a very scary time. However, we survived it and as of right now we are truly no worse for wear.

The wutz continues to grow like a weed and he's the brightest fella ever (gotta love a mother's perspective!) and he continues to be the light of my life.

Life is good going into 2010 and I hope it only improves.

My intent is to return to this blog once more and become more frequent in my posts. I would love to accomplish another round of 365, so we'll see!

Happy New Year!

Who are all these people and you want me to do WHAT in front of them?

2009-12-21T17:48:00.003-05:00

For weeks now, the wutz's school has been practicing for the Christmas program. Over and over. Bless them, they have worked so hard for this program. The wutz has been singing the songs nonstop. He'll be playing, then suddenly he'll burst out in song - a Christmas song, of course. You likely saw the video I posted of him singing "The Chubby Little Snowman" which is one of the songs they have been practicing.

During practice, my dear child was the loudest and the most boisterous of the entire school, according to the teachers. So that's why I was so surprised when Friday, after waiting for over an hour to make sure I had a good seat, as the Christmas program began, my child came down the aisle with his face as bright as his red pajamas he was wearing. Tears of pure terror streaked his cherub cheeks.

Ut oh.

As soon as he saw me, he ran up to me and I kissed his cheek and whispered he'd be okay. I gave him a loving shove down the aisle, then he suddenly collapsed to the ground. Face first. So there my crying child was. In the aisle as if he'd been struck down and laid out in the Spirit or something, until the teacher ran and picked him up and carried to his seat, where I could hear him crying that he wanted his Mommy.

Awwwwww.

Finally it was his class' turn for their two songs. I waited eagerly to see if he had calmed. But, alas, I did not see my dear child. I looked over each child standing there on the risers. No wutz. Then I leaaaaannnnned over in the pew so I could see down the aisle to the front of the church and what I saw, I shall never forget:

My child, my dear, darling child... was army crawling down the center aisle searching desperately for me. He would raise up at each pew looking for me. Then he finally found me and he scrambled on my lap. Where he proceeded to whisper/sing each and every song in my ear as we watched the rest of the Christmas program from the pew.

*sigh*

Gone away...

2009-12-13T21:15:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we took the wutz to Granny and PopPop's house so we could sneak off and make our annual Christmas toy run. The wutz, as always, was delighted to be able to spend some time with my parents. He adores them, of course, as they do him. So while he got to eat way too much sugar, we trekked to Tallahassee to enter the bowels of hell, otherwise known as Toys R Us.

On approach to the parking lot there were cars lined up waiting for vacant parking spots. Not a good sign. We bypassed as much of the traffic as possible by veering straight to the back of the parking lot because it is easier to hoof it than wait for some idiot to back up and depart.

Upon entrance to purgatory, we were greeted by a line of customers that literally wound around the inside of the store. Damn. After a few moments' panic, we realized that said crazies were in line for Zhu Zhu pets. Hahaha! I already have three of those suckers! So we marched into the frey and began our shopping. We impatiently waited for people blocking us left and right to decide on their purchases and continue on so we could get the things we needed and get the hell outta there. Finally we did. But not before I passed an employee clutching extra Zhu Zhu pet tickets. So I asked him for one, he handed it to me, and I purchased it for $9. No waiting in line required. Take that, suckers!

After we left purgatory, we drove to the outskirts of the city to a restaurant I'd been dying to try. Once we arrived at Z Bardhi's, we realized they didn't open until 5pm. It was 4. But the owner saw us approaching and he quickly unlocked the door and ushered us inside. The waiter asked if we minded waiting about 10 minutes over drinks while they got everything fired up so they could serve us. Of course we didn't mind a bit. We didn't even have to wait that long and we had the entire place to ourselves. The house salad was delicious and the lasagna was even better. But the bread was the best ever, soft and crispy all at the same time. Heaven. I can't speak highly enough of the place and I cannot wait to dine there again.

After leaving a substantial tip, we departed and made our way back to the parents' house to pick up the wutz. But once we got there he refused to leave. R e f u s e d. Why? Because his cousin Michael was there! He wanted to stay and play with his cool cousin. After trying for way too long to persuade him to come home with us, we finally caved and told him he could stay. It was to be his first night away and I was fully prepared for a 3am phone call from a crying kiddo to come pick him up. I am happy to report the call never came! He finally called at 8:30am to tell me he was ready to come home. And by the time we arrived, he'd changed his mind!

So, we all survived not only a harrowing shopping experience, but also the wutz's first night away from home!

Snowman Song

2009-12-09T09:59:00.003-05:00

I've no idea how to rotate videos, I'm impressed with myself for managing to upload it off my phone, so my apologies.

Original Video - More videos at TinyPic

A cup full of Thankful

2009-11-26T13:30:00.004-05:00

I want to wish my blog readers (both of you!) a very Happy Thanksgiving.

As we all know, today is a day to reflect on the things we are thankful for, so I suppose I'll make this post all about me and give that a go...

I am thankful that my scale has gone up. Though I really would like to shed ten pounds or maybe twenty, I'm grateful that even after DH being laid off for ten very long months, we still have enough food on our plates that I actually could gain weight. Even if that makes me shudder a little. I'm thankful.

I am thankful for the mess my house is in. The mess consists of toys being scattered from one end of it to the other. Even after I've picked up the house 1,264 times since Monday. The glorious mess is made by my darling son and I am thankful he is in my world to make his messes.

I am thankful for the glasses on the counter that should have been put in the dishwasher, but instead they are sitting perched right next to the dishwasher, placed there by my husband. I am thankful for that because my husband is home to make his own brand of mess, instead of a thousand miles away as he was a month ago. I am thankful he is home.

I am thankful for the loss of one bedroom because said husband has converted it into his home office. I am thankful he has the need for an office and work to perform within those walls of the former bedroom.

I am thankful for the chaos I will enter into at 4pm this evening as I walk through the front door of my parents' house. With fifteen friends and family gathered in one too-small-for-us-all dining room, the noise is loud, the space is cramped, but I am thankful for each and every one of those people that I call family and friends.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Twilight: New Moon

2009-11-22T22:07:00.004-05:00

I went to see New Moon this afternoon. I loved it. It depicted the novel pretty much exactly as I saw it in my head as I read the book. This book was my least favorite of the four, but I enjoyed the movie better than I did the novel. I thought it was so much better than Twilight, the movie. Definitely give it a chance. Even if you haven't read the novels!

And now, a friend of mine is offering a contest, giving away Twilight swag.

Check out her cool stuff:

Honey-Lime Asian Salad

2009-11-18T14:30:00.003-05:00

I made this for lunch and it is definitely worth posting!

Enjoy.

For the Salad:
6 Cups Asian Greens Mix
1 Cup Golden Pineapple, large dice
1 Cup Strawberries, quartered
½ Cup Carrots, julienne cut
10 each Mint leaves, torn in pieces
1 Cup Honey-lime Dressing
½ Cup Almonds, sliced, toasted
4 each Lime wedges, quartered
½ Cup Mango Puree
½ Cup Coco Lopez
Pinch to taste Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Pinch to taste Kosher Salt

For the Dressing:
¼ Cup Honey
¼ Cup Rice Wine Vinegar
¼ Cup Canola Oil
¼ Cup Lime juice, fresh
Pinch to taste Kosher Salt
Pinch to taste Freshly Ground black Pepper

Method of preparation:
Mix all ingredients for the salad season with salt and black pepper, mix all ingredients for dressing and add to the salad. Toss well to make sure all salad is coated with dressing.

There's no place like home

2009-11-15T12:07:00.001-05:00

After a fabulously magical weekend, we are headed home. The wutz had a great time and so did we.

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party was just as wonderful this year as it was the last. And in keeping with tradition, nearly every ride I was on either broke down or stopped. I am starting to get a complex about it. The worst was a breakdown about halfway through the Haunted Mansion with the 3 year old wutz in the doom buggy with us. Oy. But at the end of the ride he declared, "That wasn't too scary!" That's muh boy!

Happiest place on earth with the grumpiest kid on the planet

2009-11-13T23:18:00.000-05:00

The wutz has been uncharacteristically grumpy today, but we have nearly survived the day. We only have 45 minutes left on it at least.

And on another positive note, the castle looks gorgeous all trussed up for Christmas.

But if i drink one more cup of hot chocolate i am gonna hork. And that won't be so festive.

As always, the socks sell it...

2009-11-11T13:15:00.000-05:00

The one good thing about Wednesday...

What is wrong with this picture?

2009-11-06T13:27:00.004-05:00

I had to park next to a small throng of protesters when I went to get my yummy, delicious cyclone shrimp from Jonah's today at lunch. Of course, the protesters were attempting to rally the troops against government mandated health care. Blah blah. Lots of the signs had statements about being informed and being angry.

But the one that amused me the most was the one that was so informed, she didn't know how to spell her own profession correctly:

My Emancipation Proclamation aka Save the Tatas

2009-11-04T14:48:00.002-05:00

Last week I was nagged, poked, prodded, and cajoled into snapping a picture of my tatas for Twitter's Boobie Wednesday or whatever the hell they call it. The purpose is, of course, to promote breast cancer awareness. Since i hate the color pink, snapping the pic was a helluva lot easier to swallow then wearing their pink swag.

Today my tatas were featured on the the Boob Emancipation Project!

Check me out:

I've been Emancipated. Okay, well my boobs have been at least.

Vanishing Act (Or Why does this shit always have to happen to me?)

2009-11-03T13:52:00.003-05:00

This morning I spoke to my parents on the phone. At the end of the conversation I inquired on who would be the one responsibile for school pick up. It was decided that I would be the one to accomplish this task.

Not a problem.

Right?

Well, I left work fifteen minutes early in order to be there when school let out because the majority of the children ride the bus to the YMCA and the wutz hates being left out there alone. Mission accomplished. I got there with a few minutes to spare.

But upon my arrival one of the teachers on outside duty looked at me then looked to where the wutz always is and then back to me. Then the school's Director did the same thing. Not a good sign.

The wutz wasn't there. The Director then asked me to call my Dad to see if he had picked him up. I wasn't panicked as I grabbed my cell phone and made the call. I assumed that, being the flake I am, I'd simply gotten my wires crossed and Dad had picked the kiddo up. Wrong. I could hear the panic rising in my Dad's voice as I explained that the wutz was officially AWOL.

The Director then mentioned that he could be on the bus with the YMCA kids. It was in that moment that my rising sense of panic began to ebb a bit. "Yeah." I told her. "He's on the Y bus." She then looked at me with a questioning glance, and I had to explain that the wutz had been talking for a few days about how he wanted to ride the big school bus to the Y. I knew in my heart of hearts that he was safely on that bus. After a phone call confirmed it, I headed off to the next preschool to pick him up while the bus was held up for me.

When I arrived at the school, I was met with apologies and a screaming/crying wutz. He did not want to get off the bus. He wanted to ride it all the way to the Y. I was too frazzled, though. I just pulled him off the bus and all but threw him into his carseat. Then I had to field half a dozen panicked phone callsas word of the wutz's Great Escape had filtered through the family grapevine.

Shortly thereafter, the Director called to offer sincere apologies once more and to tell me she wasn't making excuses for the error, but it was something that had never happened before. Fortunately, for her, I know her very well. Her daughter was one of my bridesmaids in my wedding. I know she'd never ever purposefully be neglectful. I told her that I wouldn't say it was okay, but as long as she made certain it never happens again we could consider the matter closed.

It turns out that both of the wutz's teachers were out sick today, so she was in his classroom along with a substitute teacher. But the Director had been called out to go to her office to tend to another matter as the morning came to a close. So when the substitute teacher asked the wutz if he went to the Y, he saw the opportunity to ride that wonderful school bus and he chirped, "Yeah, I do!"

In addition to the absent teachers, the YMCA bus was being driven by a subsitute today, too. The bus driver normally does roll call as the children enter the bus, but the new driver didn't know to do that or either just did a head count and the wutz apparently filled a vacant slot.

It all added up to be the perfect storm that allowed my child to slip onto a bus that he wasn't supposed to be on and shave at least five years off his Momma's life.

I'm just glad he is safe and sound, though.

Now, where's that damned drink I need???

Seriously? Cheap candy? That's all I get?

2009-10-31T22:16:00.000-04:00

The wutz decided over a month ago that he wanted to be Thomas the Tank Engine for Halloween. I was saddened that he picked out a cheap costume from Target instead of some of the uber-cute costumes I'd found online, though. Apparently he's grown out of the stage where I can use him as my dress-up doll. *sniffle*

So tonight we dressed him up in his little costume and took him first to Grandma's house, where she gave him a handpainted cauldron of treats. Inside the cauldron was a toy tractor and trailer. Wutz bliss in a cardboard box.

Next we drove to town and went to Granny and PopPop's house. There he got an entire bag of chocolate and another toy package that contained a truck, tractor, and trailer. He was thrilled to death and immediately started playing with his loot.

Finally it got dark enough to go Trick or Treating. We went to the Polo Grounds because they close off the streets so vehicles cannot drive through. It is very crowded with children, so it really makes it a lot of fun. Except for the handful of snotty kids with zero manners that I want to bop in the head with the wutz's treat pail. And I did it several times in my head, too. It made me feel a little better. But I digress...

After the first house, the wutz realized something was very wrong. We walked up to the second house and he stepped closer to the steps and the lady handing out candy. He hesitated. Then he leaned forward and looked into the basket containing oodles and oodles of candy. When he realized there really was no tractors in the basket he shook his head and turned around to leave. Fortunately, the lady had no clue why he stepped back and turned, so I eased in quickly and steered his shoulders so he had to accept the candy in a quasi-polite manner.

Back on the street we had to have a brief little talk about what Trick or Treating is really supposed to be about. Fortunately, he got the hang of it and ended up having a great time.

Open Letter to my Poor Widdle Lonely Blog

2009-10-27T11:18:00.002-04:00

Dear Blog,

I promise, I have not forgotten or forsaken you. Life has been crazed but I hope to return to you very soon. If the whole pain-in-the-ass writer's block goes away. And the flu. And the insanity.

Pending the disappearance of all that, I'll be back very soon.

Love,

The REAL Demolition Derby

2009-10-08T16:06:00.005-04:00

Tuesday night I met up with a friend of mine and her two kids to take them all to the county fair and the Demolition Derby that was also being held there that night. The wutz was looking forward to the Derby and was already bellowing, "Derby!" back from his carseat as we traveled to the fairgrounds.

However, when we got there all was forgotten once we wove our way through the building where all the booths of vendors hawking their cheap wares were set up and we then arrived at the threshhold to the fair itself. Once the kids saw the lights and the rides the Derby was all but forgotten. So we gleefully tanked the Demolition Derby plans in exchange for $20 armbands for each child in attendance.

My friend and I followed the small tugging hands of each child, first to the flying Dumbo knockoffs. Then we made our way to the race cars that looked much like the vehicles I could hear being destroyed mid-Derby.

After the race cars we stood for about 15 minutes outside of a funhouse that had a plexiglass maze. We laughed so hard our sides hurt from watching each of our oh-so-graceful children bonk their heads repeatedly on the SAME pane of plexiglass each and every time they attempted to wander through the maze.

It was a grand time.

Until little dudes and the diva started getting tired around 10pm. Then we knew it was time to depart. So as we wandered back out the fair we then had to retrace oursteps through the gauntlet of vendors.

While trying to make our escape my friend's son kicked over a fairly large potted plant, sending it toppling onto its side. My friend and I both turned around and looked down at it and then each other, both faces mirroring the "I'm not bending over in these jeans to pick that up." So we all just walked past it and acted like nothing happened.

But then...

A little further down the gauntlet, so close to the end I could see the exit, the wutz walked up to a giant stuffed dog, stared at it for a moment then head butted it so that it went tumbling backward onto the floor. Fortunately a booth worker was there to retrieve it, because I can assure you none of us planned on it. Too much effort, you know.

On we continued toward the grand exit when a small group of teenagers stopped us and one said, "We just have to tell you, you two have the coolest kids EVER. They are awesome!" It was then that we cracked up and laughed all the way back to our cars.

Yes. Our own personal Demolition Derby. We were so very proud.

They say you can't go home again, but you can, it just won't be the same because your parents are out to terrorize you...

2009-10-05T10:54:00.006-04:00

Saturday night, I spent the night at my parents' house. The wutz stayed there as well. It was actually a welcome break because he loves playing with his Granny and especially his PopPop.

While he worked on covering their entire Den with toys, I snuck upstairs and took a long hot shower and then I went into my old bedroom to enjoy some peace and quiet.

However, since I moved out over a decade ago, my room has been slightly renovated. And I think it was done with one purpose: keep me from ever wanting to move back in.

First, I hate pink. I loathe pink. And the walls are now a pink that could only be described as Pepto. To accent the shade of pink, the walls are bordered with a floral wallpaper that matches the equally feminine bedspread that was slathered with flowers. And don't forget the matching accent pillows.

Second, I am terrified of clowns. I hate them. They are the freakiest things on the planet. But there, on the walls were these awful harlequin masks. Oh, and a painting of a court jester. Both were too close for creepy for me!

And THEN (as if all of that wasn't bad enough) I realized that they'd planted a monster under my bed!

Seriously.

It doesn't get any worse than what I found when I happened to glance under the bed:

AGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

*Photos taken with the cell phone and a terrified and trembling hand

The hard truth about Southerners and segregation

2009-09-22T14:04:00.002-04:00

Today marks the first day of Autumn, even though it is nearly 95 degrees outside. However, to me, what marks the season is the realization that in my southern community we are once again well and truly segregated.

This fact is often forgotten during the blazing summer months while school is out and students are enjoying their temporary freedom but, even before Labor Day, once school renews itself and the students trudge through the hallways of their respective schools, it gradually becomes clear once more: your colors determine your worth down here.

Yes, it is true. I confess, we southerners love segregation. We herald it. We celebrate it and we fairly well demand it. This segregation is no more blaringly obvious to me than when I eat at one of my favorite local fast food eateries. The place is locally owned so they get away with a lot more than the typical chain restaurant would, even the entrances are clearly marked and segregated.

Pick your side:

Are you blue and gold or are you red and gold? Only then may you enter!

Yeah, it really should be of no surprise, down here, your choice of football teams defines you. You are expected to stand up for them. You are expected to support them. And you are expected to tolerate the segregation required all for the sake of a good cause: The love of your team!

So no matter what colors you may prefer, now’s the time of year to enjoy the spirit of the sport and raise a little hell at your opponent’s expense.

The book that started it all and for that I apologize.

2009-09-19T20:28:00.007-04:00

Last month, while on vacation, I made my way to the mainland to Apalachicola. I love the little town, with its quaint clothing shoppes, amazing restaurants, and neat little stores that stock some of the craziest things you've ever seen. If you've never been, then I highly recommend you pay the town a visit.

But I digress. While there, I meandered into a little bookshop that carried next-to-nothing. I was in search of an easy beach read because I'd already sped through all five of the currently available House of Night novels. In five days.

Instead of finding a read for myself, a children's book caught my eye. It was the cover (as is always the case with children's books) that caught my eye. On the cover was the spitting image of Harley, the newest addition to our family.

Even though the wutz was eyeballing a book with a cool dump truck emblazoned on the cover, I managed in my oh-so-persuasive manner to convince him that he absolutely had to have the book I clutched excitedly in my hand.

And so we both brought home our first introduction to SkippyJon Jones, the Siamese cat that thinks he is a Chihuahua.

The next few evenings at our beach house ended with repeated readings of SkippyJon Jones and I confess I loved every word. But I didn't realize how much until our exhausted drive home as I clutched my phone and occupied myself with Twitter, as I'm oft to do.

For whatever reason I went to tickity-type in the exclamation "Holy Fuck" over something I'd seen, but instead it came out, "Holy Fuckitos" and since that day the phrase has seemed to spread like wildfire. Okay, okay, a small brush fire. Very small.

But still.

It is a phrase that has slowly creeped into my real life vocabulary. Much to the chagrin of those in my company. I just can't help but smile and laugh every time the phrase chirps across my twitter feed, as I imagine a masked Siamese cat exclaming, "Holy Frijoles" and I realize that "Holy Fuckitos" is so much more amusing and satisfying, even if I can't read it to my three year old.

RIP Patrick Swayze

2009-09-15T14:45:00.002-04:00

The Truth is Out

2009-09-13T20:45:00.003-04:00

Last night, my DH and I went to Pockets in Tallahassee at the invitation of @LesleeHorner to meet her and listen to her husband's band, Spatial K. We arrived at 9:30 and took a seat as we noticed that the band was already playing. The next thing I noticed was that they were really good. Which, I have to admit, was a fucking relief. How do you tell someone you are meeting that her husband's band sucks? Well, okay, I know the answer to that: You don't. But the GREAT thing was, I didn't have to. They were awesome. One of the best cover bands I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. And I've seen a lot of cover bands in my time. Yeah, yeah, okay, it was a long time ago, but whatever. They were good. Trust me. And go check them out.

A bit after 10pm, Leslee and her friend arrived. DH spotted her before I did. It was very nice to finally meet someone I met via twitter and have been tweeting with for months. I'm also very happy to announce that she (and her great friend) were very cool and it made for a quite enjoyable evening. Meeting up in a bar with a band playing really doesn't lend to fluid conversation, but that didn't matter. I still had a blast. And the bar even served Yuengling, which you, my dear reader, already know is enough to make me a very happy woman.

The one terrible thing about meeting an internet friend in real life is that I am stone cold aware of the fact that I am definitely not as cool in real life as I seem to come across online. Okay, I don't even think I'm that cool online, but at least here I can self-edit. In real life I am missing that feature. Totally. So, the realization is that I know I am totally disappointing the person I am meeting. I'm so uncool it is painful. I often feel socially inept. So, I am sorry, dear Leslee, but I know that my secret is out. I hope you had fun anyways, though! I know I did.

I have to confess though, not only am i totally uncool, I'm also old. We finally got home well after 3am and I have to be honest, the last time I saw 3am it was only for a bleary eyed breastfeeding session with a hungry infant. I'd completely forgotten what 3am feels like. And likewise, I'd forgotten what the morning after a 3am felt like. And let me tell you, in case you've forgotten, too: It fucking sucks.

However, it was a small price to pay for such a fun evening. It made me miss my club-hopping days, that's for certain. And the resilience of my youth that allowed for those days!

Ahhh to be young again...

Sunday Song - Shinedown's Second Chance

2009-09-06T06:13:00.000-04:00

My eyes are open wide, by the way
I made it through the day.
I watch the world outside, by the way
I'm leaving out today.
I just saw Hailey's Comet she waved
Said, "why are you always running in place?
Even the man in the moon disappeared
somewhere in the stratosphere."

Tell my mother, tell my father
I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life
I hope they understand.
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance.

Please don't cry one tear for me
I'm not afraid of what I have to say.
This is my one and only voice
so listen close, it's only for today.
I just saw Hailey's Comet she waved,
Said, "why are you always running in place?
Even the man in the moon disappeared
somewhere in the stratosphere."

Tell my mother, tell my father
I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life
I hope they understand.
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance.

Here is my chance
This is my chance!

Tell my mother, tell my father
I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life
I hope they understand.
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance,
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance,
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance.

Wutz in Water

2009-09-02T21:58:00.001-04:00

Here are a few photos of the wutz from the beach trip last week. Once I recover I'll post more and go into further detail, but I'm going to be a lazy ass until I feel I'm back to normal, which could be... uhhhh... never.

Sunday Song - Pop Culture

2009-08-30T09:16:00.000-04:00

I think I may be starting a Sunday trend for myself by posting Sunday Songs!

I've been meaning to feature this fabulous artist for awhile. His name is Curvine. He and his wife are wonderful people and I totally respect his work and their own ministry. Not to mention his songs are awesome.

My personal favorite of his is Pop Culture, though there are others that are just as fabulous. So today I'll tease you with this one and I promise to share more later as YouTube allows.

Summer Rerun

2009-08-27T21:32:00.001-04:00

The wutz has been taking swim lessons for the past two months. We've really enjoyed watching him as he has begun learning to swim. Last year he wasn't very confident in the water and it was a bit overwhelming to him. Since the end of summer approaches, I'll soon be posting pictures of his swim lessons and also of our vacations, but for now I wanted to take today to look back on last year's swimming experience...

This was originally written in June of 2008:

I hate drunk people and I hate sober people and I hate all the people today. And I hate short people and I hate tall people and I hate all the people today.

‘Cuz I’m havin a bad day.havin a bad day. Get out of my way. cuz im havin a bad day.

Blue Flannel hit the nail on the head when they wrote that song. It totally described my mood right as I stood in my kitchen and begged God to give me one small break today. Then I sat down to eat rerun pizza and the piping hot cheese promptly slid off the slice and dropped gracelessly onto my bare lap.

It has been a rotten day.

What’s worse, Thursday pretty much tanked, too. I won’t even go into that, though.

I did learn a great lesson today. Never wear a string bikini to a public pool while accompanying a rambunctious toddler. Seriously. Just. Don’t. Do. It.

The wutz was a wild man today. A total and complete hellion. He’s always a bit hyper but today was a whole new level for my little dude. I thought taking him to the public pool this evening would be a wonderful experience. For sure, he’d be so grateful for my kindness and generosity at letting him enjoy the amazing kiddie pools and play with all those children, that certainly he’d be a grateful little angel. Wrong. Oh so wrong.

We arrived and mosied into the locker room to change clothes. He was wiggling with excitement as I tugged up his Winnie the Pooh swim trunks. That was my first mistake. I never should have dressed him before I dressed myself. He was full throttle to the pool, and there I was as naked as the day I was born, trying to catch him and simultaneously keep my dignity intact. Yeah. Right.

Once he was wrangled, I had to forcibly pin him to the bench with my knee, while I teetered on the other foot and attempted to tug on my string bikini. Here you’ll find mistake number two, which I’ve already touched on.

Finally dressed we barreled toward the pool. He was wide-eyed and amazed. Until I tried to guide him into the shallow pool. Apparently I wasn’t notified that it wasn’t water in the pool. It was acid. Or at least that’s how he acted. Full out, shame-your-parent, tugging and clinging to anything and everything you can grab meltdown right there. So, being the loving mother that I am, I cradled him in my arms and proceeded on a straight path into the water until we were both submerged to our shoulders. I can tell you, he appreciated that. Eventually he realized that he could touch the bottom. That gave the oh-so-amused pool patrons about ten minutes sans temper tantrums. But only ten minutes. Because then he saw the slide. Oooooh. A slide! A very very big slide. It really was a pity that he had to be four feet ride that ride. Now that, he most certainly did NOT appreciate. Nosirree. Not one bit.

It was an effort to distract him, but a shiny pink ball that a little girl had was enough to do the trick. “Ball Momma! Momma ball!” Cue next meltdown.

That wrapped it up for me. We were done. I was done. We proceeded, quickly, to the locker room, to repeat the previous changing room experience, only in reverse this time.

I cannot tell you how glad I was to get out of there. And every single person there agreed wholeheartedly.

So yeah… I’m havin’ a bad day.

Go Fly a Kite!

2009-08-24T22:37:00.000-04:00

The wutz flew is first kite this evening. The sun was beginning to set and there was a little breeze, therefore he decided that he must fly his new kite. Because there was so little breeze, getting the kite off the ground required effort and lots of running. So I ran and he jogged after me holding the plastic spool with yards and yards of white string wound around it. As the kite flew higher and higher he struggled to get it unwound but he managed after a little practice. He ran and ran and ran to keep that kite afloat. Finally he looked at me mid-stride and said, "I'm tired." Which was enough to make me put the brakes on (gratefully, I might add) and reel in the rainbow colored kite.

It was exhausting. And awesome.

Sunday Song

2009-08-23T10:11:00.000-04:00

Since I skipped church this morning, I thought I'd do penance by posting one of my current favorite songs.

Enjoy.

The Post Where I'm a little disappointed I cannot say I nearly died of food poisoning because I'd had it all written out in my head. Obit and all.

2009-08-21T09:18:00.002-04:00

We've yet another person from our office retiring very soon. Soon as in like a week. Therefore, it is the expectation of everyone else in the office to pitch in way too much money and haul our sorry asses to some strange town to eat at some strange place in celebration of said coworker's retirement. It is a ritual we've endured time and time again and at least we typically get to enjoy a high-priced meal out of the torturous journey.

Last night's retirement party was held at a restaurant in a small down named Poulan. Poulan is famous for its yearly Possum Poke celebration. Whatever the hell that is. Cuz, really, I don't know.

Situated right across the street from the Welcome to Poulan: Home of the Possum Poke sign was the restaurant in which we were to meet, eat, and send our coworker off into retirement bliss.

The name of the restaurant, and I shityounot, was Ed's Truck Stop. Honestly. We held this retirement party at Ed's Truck Stop. But if you didn't know where Ed's Truck Stop was located, you'd drive right past it. Like us and 50 others did before realizing that Ed's Truck Stop was actually labeled Ed's Nascar on the dilapidated metal building. The only indicator that the hellhole was now a restaurant was the wooden sign precariously perched upon the roof that declared "Restaurant".

It was my intention to get pictures, but I have to admit that I was so mortified that I forgot. Completely.

I have to concede to two things about the evening, though:
1. The food was awesome. I had fried chicken, fries, and homemade mac & cheese. If I nearly died of anything it was starch & fat overload, because it definitely wasn't from the expected food poisoning that I didn't get. Seriously. Great food.

2. The food was cheap. For three of us our bill was $16.80, which included a 20% tip.

Moral of the story: If you want surprisingly good, cheap food... head to Ed's.

New Look

2009-08-20T11:26:00.003-04:00

I decided I wanted a new look to celebrate an upcoming beach trip* that I've been looking forward to for quite some time.

I realized I hadn't changed the look of my blog since like the first of the year, so why the hell not now?

It's a little fun and a bit more goofy than I usually go for, but I figured since I'd planned to fully enjoy the last little bit of summer, why the hell shouldn't my blog?

So, there ya have it.

*For those lowlifes that just troll my blog waiting to know when I'm going out of town so you can come over and steal all my cool stuff, including my collection of Statler Brothers 8-track tapes, just know that I have a live-in house-sitter and some really fucking HUGE dogs. That are hungry. Very hungry.

I have a personality! Hot damn

2009-08-19T10:02:00.001-04:00

Your main type is which ever behavior you utilize most and/or prefer - in my case Type 5. Your variant reflects your scoring profile on all nine types: so = social variant (compliant, friendly), sx = sexual variant (assertive, intense), sp = self preservation variant (withdrawn, security seeking).

Main Type	Overall Self

Take Free Enneagram Personality Test

I really should start blogging again more but twitter is my current obsession

2009-08-18T17:39:00.002-04:00

I seriously spend way too much time tweeting. I know I used to devote my time to this blog and I really do miss it. Honest, I do. But I have to admit that I'm currently obsessed quite thoroughly with Twitter.

Posting 140 characters or less suits me just perfectly. Why say in 20 words what you can say in 2? That's always been my motto. And it is a motto just made for twitter, if you ask me.

However, I find that I've wasted far too much time and energy on tweeting. Take today for example, I spent the entire afternoon twebating with a rightwing nut compassionate (his label) conservative that believes Michael Vick's prison sentence was too harsh. He believes that Vick should not have been jailed. At all.

I couldn't help myself. When someone tells me that animal abuse has no correlation on domestic abuse or murder statistics, I tend to get a little preachy. Because that's bullshit. Then the guy had the nerve to bring up abortion. I kept waiting for Hitler's name to get thrown into the argument so I could scream "Godwin's Law - I win!" but alas, it never happened. Either way, the guy was a whackjob. Here's to hoping he never wins a political seat.

Four Days of School...

2009-08-14T16:51:00.001-04:00

... That's how long it took before the wutz was up all night horking his wee brains out.

Gotta love the petri dish that is called preschool, right?

Finally!

2009-08-13T20:50:00.004-04:00

The other day, while driving to the store to buy some seriously overpriced cat food, I happened to glance up toward the sign on the road in front of one of the liquor stores in town. On that sign I saw a word that I know oh-so-well. The word of my most favorite alcoholic drink in the world. The word of the one drink that I covet that I have not previously been able to find here.

That single word caused me to attempt and perfect a U-turn in busy lunch time traffic in effort to return to the store to race in and frantically search the shelves. It didn't take long. I honed in on it faster than the clerk could say, "Can I..." and I had the object of my desire in hand and headed to the counter.

Moments later, I had my darling prize nestled in the seat beside me, cradled lovingly as we traveled home so I could enjoy the spoils of my conquest.

MMMMmmmmmm...

The End of Summer

2009-08-10T20:59:00.003-04:00

Wow. It is hard to believe that we're entering another school year. The wutz is now in the wee-3 class and he is going half-days, five days a week. He's growing so fast!

Here are a few pictures from his first day:

And a trip down memory lane -- last year's picture from the first day of school:

How Bold is Too Bold?

2009-08-05T15:55:00.002-04:00

A wonderful woman (@lesleehorner) that I met via Twitter actually blogged about me today. About the fact that I am... umm... ermm... bold. Ballsy. Well, I think she kinda was referring to the fact that I have a big mouth and no filter on it. I do have the habit of just blurting out exactly what I am thinking. But at the same time, when I need to be tactful, I have finally learned to do that. I can be a rather skilled tactician when need be. Fortunately, for me, I don't need to be tactful all that often.

Online is one place where I am guilty of allowing my darker (let's just say wittier, because it sounds better) side come to the forefront. It also helps that online I can backspace and self-edit until my vipery tongue can also be taken as amusing and not just entirely insulting.

So, it is a fine line between the two. I try to balance it, but I am certain I still offend people on a daily basis. And another thing I've learned lately is that is okay, too. So what if I offend you? You'll get over it. I did.

Anyways, go read Leslee's Blog. It is awesome. Especially today's post!

All about me Monday

2009-08-03T15:54:00.003-04:00

I got my haircut again. It is shorter than I've ever gone before. Well, except for that one time in high school which was entirely a mishap and I've tried to black it from my memory forever and ever.

Anyways, I'm kinda happy with it. I like how easy it is to take care of and fix in the morning. Sometimes I wonder if it is too short, but it'll be easy enough to grow out if I change my mind!

Overall, I'm quite happy with it.

Sunday Blessings & Silent Sunday

2009-07-26T15:15:00.002-04:00

This is definitely a blessing:

Naptime Prayer

2009-07-25T22:03:00.002-04:00

This is the prayer I now have the wutz saying at naptime:

Now I lay me
Down to nap
I pray the Lord
My mom won't snap
Hold me safe
While I rest
So when I wake
I'll be my best
Amen!

Family

2009-07-19T12:30:00.001-04:00

My biggest blessing this week (aside from really getting the Princess good with that pic!) was my family gathering together for a family dinner. My brother and his family from Conneticut were even there. We had a fabulous time and I enjoyed every moment of it.

Happy Birthday, Princess!

2009-07-16T19:26:00.003-04:00

Today is the Princess's 50th Birthday! So, in honor of such a special and once-in-a-lifetime occassion, I decided to do something very special for the Princess.

Special meaning I ran the most hysterical picture I owned of her on the front page of her local newspaper. Oh, and I also ran a larger add in Section A of the same paper. I just wanted to make sure everyone knew it was such a momentous occasion!

Here is the picture from the front page of the paper. It was located on the top left hand corner. Prime real estate, if I do say so myself!

And this was located deeper inside of Section A:

Apparently, once her coworkers found the pictures they were photocopied, enlarged, and plastered all over her workplace.

I knew they wouldn't let me down!

Happy Birthday, Princess!

With love,
The best sister you've ever had!

(Okay, the only sister...)

Sunday Blessings

2009-07-12T23:40:00.004-04:00

A friend of mine came up with the idea to take Sundays to blog about some of the blessings in our lives and I have to admit, I love the idea. Even though she's yet to post her blessings *ahem!* I think I shall go ahead and give it a whirl!

I am blessed to have a beautiful son. He is the sweetest child that is always in motion. I am grateful to have a healthy, happy, active boy. I am blessed to have each hug, each kiss, each declaration that he loves me the whole world! I am blessed to hear his sweet voice when I come home from work, "Mommy, I missed you today!"

My blessings of having such a wonderful little boy are just immeasurable!

Don't you dare!

2009-07-11T23:54:00.002-04:00

The wutz has started an annoying habit. One I had hoped he'd never take on, but I suppose it was inevitable. He has begun asking the horribly annoying question: "Why? Why? Why!?!" Yes, that's all I hear these days. Why? Why? Why? Why, Mommy? Why?!?

Oy.

Just shoot me now. Please.

Another little quirk that the wutz has taken on is the one where he takes pleasure in doing the exact opposite of what you tell him to do. This is where the infamous reverse psychology comes into play. "Don't give Mommy a kiss!" *smooch*

But the best way I've found to exploit this bad habit is by, at bedtime, sternly telling the wutz not to scratch my back. "I mean it, don't you dare scratch Mommy's back!" equals a good ten minutes of back-scratching-bliss.

*insert wicked laugh here*

Babies on Skates

2009-07-09T09:21:00.002-04:00

Silent Sunday

2009-07-05T23:09:00.001-04:00

Happy Fourth of July

2009-07-04T11:13:00.001-04:00

I wish everyone a wonderful Fourth of July. Please have a safe and happy holiday!

Addition and Subtraction

2009-06-29T17:07:00.004-04:00

For the past week or so, I have been in contact with a woman that had a litter of siamese cats available. I really cannot believe I was even thinking of adding another animal to our massive herd, but since LoLo passed away there has been a gaping hole in my household. I miss her. Terribly. She was my cat. I've always had seal point siamese cats and I really feel like something is missing by not having one.

I don't want to dishonor my LoLo by replacing her, because I know she cannot ever be replaced. She was the best cat. I just can't tell you how awesome she was for me. But I still felt like I needed to fill that gap the best I could. That's how I found a wonderful woman about six hours away that had a seal point female available.

After firing off about 50 emails in which I pestered this poor woman relentlessly, we decided to drive to pick up our new kitten on Sunday. The plan was to leave at 6:30am so we could get there and back at a semi-decent hour.

Yeah. Right.

The morning began with the alarm clock failing to go off. I woke up at 6:17 and asked DH (whom shall now be known as Big Daddy to the online world simply because the southern nickname amuses me and if I call him Bob everyone will think I'm talking about my pink vibrator, and I'm not) what time he'd actually meant for us to wake up. Because, you know, I'm too ~~lazy~~ good to be the one to have to wake up to the horrid twang of country music first thing in the morning. So I let him man the alarm clock then kick me awake once he's been fully awakened. And yes, even on his days off, he is the one with wake-up duty. He loves me.

Once we hauled our tired asses out of bed, Big Daddy went out to feed the animals while I dressed and then woke the wutz. It was right after I finished brushing the wutz's teeth that Big Daddy came back into the house and informed me that DD, one of our dogs, was dead. He then had to carry her down to the shop and fire up the infamous backhoe of death and bury the poor dog.

I don't know what did her in, possibly a combination of things. She was a dumpster dog, hence the name, and I have no idea how old she was. We'd had her for several years, though. I feel terrible that she passed on, but I have to be honest and say that I'm damned glad she was gone. She was a horribly mean dog and the only reason I kept her was because I was afraid she might hurt someone else or someone else's livestock. So I kept her just because I was too soft to euthanize her or send her to the humane society.

Anyways, that was the beginning of our day. We finally did make it on the road. Our long journey had begun! Then, about an hour into it, the wutz notified us that he felt sick. This announcement was accompanied by some coughing and a stuck out tongue. Swiftly followed by projectile vomiting all over himself and everything else. It took forever to slog through the vomit and get it all cleaned up. Fortunately, I'd had the foresight to bring a change of clothes. And even more fortunate was that we realized how serious he was about being sick the second time he announced it and we actually had time to slam the vehicle onto the shoulder of the road and haul him out to get sick on the outside of the vehicle! Blech.

After a long nap while we drove, the wutz felt well enough to play on the slide at the requisite lunch stop at McDonald's. He even dined on chicken mcnuggets and kept them down.

Eventually we made it to our destination and we introduced ourselves to the woman and her husband. Her husband offered me a cup of homemade coffee. Seriously. He made it himself. Roasted, pressed, the whole nine yards. It was awesome. I mean, truly delish. It made my coffee this morning taste like dishwater. Dirty dishwater.

While we were there, another couple with their two lovely children arrived to get a siamese of their own. They were coming for a chocolate point male. They had just put their 14 year old cat, Mouse, to sleep the day before. The woman was heartbroken and having gone through the same thing just the other week, I completely understand how she was feeling. And her kitten is gorgeous! I know they will totally love him.

We finally got to meet 'Red' and she is the sweetest little kitten. She wanted her mommy, but she was very well mannered and so tiny and adorable with the fruitbat ears that I love. I'm definitely very pleased with her. I held her most of the time while we all sat and talked and the kids ran amok and played with one another. I feel like I made some great new friends on the trip and I am very happy to have had the opportunity to meet them all.

I'm even more delighted with our newest addition to the family! Her birthday was April 1st. Yes. April Fool's Day. So I named her Harley Quinn.

*waits*

*waits longer*

*sighs*

Fine, I'll tell you. Harley Quinn is the Joker's girlfriend. Yes. From the comics. Fitting, no?

Yes. I'm a dork. I admit that. Freely.

Harley slept on the wutz's lap almost the entire way home. It was the sweetest thing ever. He loves her and he kisses on her and she just looks at him with these wide eyes as if she expects him to eat her or something. And it isn't beyond the realm of possibility, I realize this.

But for now they are getting along wonderfully. He constantly wants to spend time with her, which I think is adorable. I threatened to turn around and go back to get another kitten for me, too. But Big Daddy refused. *sigh*

Finally we made it home. At 1am. After retrieving Harley from behind my cedar chest after she squirmed beneath the bathroom door and darted into my room, we all collapsed in bed at 2am and succumbed to sheer exhaustion.

Today Harley is settling. She's still terrified of her new surroundings, but I cannot blame her. She is a sweetie, though. I haven't had a kitten for 11 years, and it is a lot of fun to have one in the house again!

So, after all that blabbing, please meet Harley Quinn:

More pix soon, promise!

Father's Day Fast Food

2009-06-21T09:08:00.003-04:00

This idea was inspired by Bakerella and I had a lot of fun doing it. My finished product doesn't look nearly as spiffy as hers, but they are cute and I think everyone will enjoy them at the Father's Day lunch today!

Rest in Peace LoLo

2009-06-19T20:17:00.002-04:00

Rest in Peace, sweet LoLo.

I love you so much and you fought so hard to get better, but your little body just couldn't handle the stress. It was a hard decision, but I know you will be at peace now.

You'll always be my alien-faced fruitbat cat.

My little doppelganger.

Praying for healing...

2009-06-18T15:06:00.003-04:00

My siamese kitty, LoLo, is a very sick girl. She lost a lot of weight and when I took her Monday to the vet they said her white bloodcell count was sky high and her potassium was low. They gave her a shot of antibiotics and sent her home with me. She ate a little when she got home, but over the next day she started breathing rapidly. I took her back to the vet, and we tested her blood sugar and she appears to be diabetic.

However, something has happened to affect her heart and her lungs in the process. She has fluid in the space between her lungs and they don't know what kind of fluid it is. They are going to try to put her under and drain some of it out to test it. But the vet doesn't sound so certain she's strong enough to survive the procedure.My heart is breaking for my poor girl. She's my sweet alien-faced fruitbat cat. And DH calls her my doppelgänger, because she is always wherever I am. So please send up prayers and positive thoughts for my darling LoLo. I'm so heartbroken and worried about her. To be honest, I was amazed she made it through the night.

*Update*
LoLo survived the surgery to drain almost 60cc's of fluid from the areas on each side of her lungs. The vet also had to reinflate one lung, because the amount of fluid had collapsed it. Unfortunately, her breathing is still rapid and looks terrible. I just don't know if she's going to make it. If the fluid reaccumulates tomorrow, I guess we'll be done trying for a miracle. So right now, we're just praying for one.

Trading Tuesday Recipe: Lemon Bars

2009-06-09T18:25:00.005-04:00

I made this recipe Monday, after I saw it on Bakerella's Blog. It is her recipe, I've simply five-fingered it off her site. But it is good! So good, I felt it was worth coming out of my hiatus for.

So here it is:

Lemon Bars
Crust:
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup confectioner's sugar (plus more for dusting)

Topping:
1 1/2 cup plain sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup lemon juice

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 9 X 13 pan

To make crust:
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and confectioner's sugar
Cut in butter until combined and crumbly.
Press mixture into bottom of pan.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

To make topping:
While crust is baking, prepare topping.
In a larger bowl, add sugar, flour, and baking powder.
Then add slightly beaten eggs and lemon juice.
Mix well and pour on top of warm baked crust.
Bake for 20-25 minutes.
When cool, dust with confectioner's sugar and refrigerate.
Cut into bars and enjoy them cold!

Booyah!

2009-06-04T09:10:00.004-04:00

When I started this blog, the purpose was to complete the Project 365 Blog. Yesterday was my 365th day of posting to Too Much Perfection? Can you believe it? I can't.

I am a procrastinator. I'm not typically one to be consistant with anything, either. I'm far too scatterbrained. I really did not think I could ever pull of this Project 365, but I thought having a far-fetched goal might motivate me enough to at least post randomly. Well, yeah. I guess some of my posts -- okay more often than not -- have been totally random. But it has been a daily randomness! 365 days worth!

Wow.

I have really come to love this blog. I love that this is a safe place for me to spew anything and everything and even nothing at all.

I love every one of you that read my blog. I especially love those of you that have taken the time to leave comments to my entries. You all rock! Thank you for making me feel that my drivel has been worth reading.

I also want to thank each of you that have brilliant blogs that I adore reading. Keep up the great writing!

So for now, I am going dark. I think. Just a little vacation, as it were.

Not for long, though. I still have too much spinning in my brain to stop blogging entirely. However, I doubt I'll be posting every single day. I'll spare you the lazy cheats and the boring YouTubes. Maybe.

Thank you all for sticking with me this past year. I love ya!

Because 13 is my favorite number...

2009-06-03T16:39:00.005-04:00

Here's how to play. Post that pretty little ditty from up there on your BLOG and let us know the 13 things that YOU love!

1. I love...

The way the wutz says "Good morning!" even when he is waking up from an afternoon nap.

2. I love...

That DH loves me so much he cannot and will not ever say no to me.

3. I love...

My siamese cat, LoLo.

Especially the way she snuggles up against me every time I'm on the computer.

4. I love...

All of my fellow bloggers.

Those that read my blog and those that blog on those blogs that I am hopelessly addicted to!

5. I love...

Big fat eggrolls.

I have two waiting in the fridge for me right now. (Is it suppertime yet??)

6. I love....

My blog.

This is the only place that is all about me, for me, by me!

7. I love...

Chocolate.

'Nuff said.

8. I love...

Listening to it rain.

Like it is right now.

9. I love...

All of my horses.

Even if they are eating me out of house and home.

10. I love...

That the wutz just jumped in my arms and grabbed my neck and said, "I'll keep you safe, Mommy."

Because it is storming so badly.

11. I love...

All the wonderful people I've been fortunate enough to connect with online over the years.

12. I love...

My family.

Even if they drive me nuts at times.

13. I love...

That I've been successful in keeping up with the Project 365 Blog.

I cannot believe that I, a procrastinator, has been able to keep this up every day!

It's kinda like a fortune cookie

2009-06-02T21:31:00.002-04:00

If you haven't heard of Lucky jeans, please trust me when I say they are probably one of the best fitting pair of jeans I've ever owned. I love them. They fit like a glove, they make my ass look great, and they aren't really expensive at all. Run out to Steinmart and grab up a pair, cuz they have them cheap.

Aside from all that, the best thing about these jeans is they give me a grin every time I unzip them. It is like opening a little fortune cookie several times a day.

Hello June!

2009-06-01T19:22:00.004-04:00

Wow.

I canNOT believe that today is the first day of June. I think I entirely missed spring. I'm sure most would agree that it was the weirdest Winter-slash-Spring ever.

The wutz and I celebrated June 1st by accepting an invitation extended to us by my birthday buddy. We have been friends since our freshman year in high school. We shared a college dorm room together. We even share a birthday.

Unfortunately, life these days keeps us from sharing much except for long-winded phone calls. So I was delighted to have the opportunity to meet with her at the pool and enjoy a nice swim with the kids and my friend's mother. We floated in the crystal blue water and chatted briefly about politics and extensively about various novels that we each enjoy. Even though our conversations were often interupted by the demands of little tadpoles demanding to be caught mid-air as they jumped into the water, we still savored every moment of our adult conversations.

It was fabulous. So much so, I may do it again tomorrow.

Silent Sunday: Barrel of Monkey

2009-05-31T18:33:00.001-04:00

Up, UP and Away!

2009-05-30T16:43:00.002-04:00

We took the wutz at lunchtime to see the movie Up. I came laden with packs of M&Ms, a bag of toy tractors (just in case), and a cold sippy cup. We were also required to take out a second mortgage on our home so that we could afford to purchase a bag of popcorn for him as well.

As is always the case, we arrived as the previews began and we fumbled our way to mid-row seats in the dark. The wutz settled into the middle seat and staked claim on the bag of popcorn. The crunching sound was tremendous, but it was obvious he was one happy camper.

The popcorn lasted longer than I expected. Approximately fifteen minutes. Then he was on to the M&Ms he saw me trying to sneak while he had his attention on the giant screen before him. I surrendered the pack of M&Ms to him and he devoured them as if he hadn't just done the same with the popcorn that cost him at least a year's worth of allowance. If he got allowance, that is.

The most surprising thing that occurred was that the wutz behaved! He sat and enjoyed the movie. And if he wasn't sitting, he was standing, peering through the seats in front of us so he could get a better view of the movie screen. He was also relatively quiet! Amazing.

It was a very cute movie. Not really my style, but I am still so glad we went. And I am very proud of my wutz for sitting through an entire movie!