Blog That Mommy!

The 'S' Word

2009-04-03T18:55:00.002-02:00

I've tried so hard to make sure my kids don't use bad words. Two words I despise are "hate" and "stupid". It is difficult to keep them from these words since they pop up frequently on children's shows.

And there are still times when I'm not thinking. The other day when Eli came in to tell me, "Mama! Mama! Mama! They said the 's' word on SpongeBob!"

I was shocked! "They said what?"

Eli: "The 's' word! They said the 's' word!"

I was thinking that surely they wouldn't say that word on SpongeBob. So I finally asked Eli, "Honey, did they say 'shit' on SpongeBob?"

Eli looked at me mortified. "NO! They said stupid!"

So, I'm the one that ended up teaching him a new word. Great!

Eggo Bake Shop Twists are a big hit!!

2009-04-03T11:53:00.000-02:00

I love the blog tours where we get to try new foods!! My kids are huge fans of breakfast foods, and often go for Muffin Tops, Cinnamon Toast Waffles or Chocolate Chip Pancakes.

When I found out that Mom Central was doing a blog tour for Kellogg's new product, Eggo Bake Shop Twists, I was very excited. They sent me two coupons in the mail, so I went out and bought s box of the strawberry Bake Shop Twists and a box of the apple Bake Shop Twists. This was on Tuesday. When I got home, I showed my son and said, “Look what I bought!” His response was “Oh! Can I have one? Can I have one?” And for the rest of the day, he kept asking, “Can I have another one? Can I have another one?”

I asked him which one he liked better, the strawberry or apple, and his response was, “The strawberry . . . no the apple . . . no, definitely the strawberry . . . they’re both really good!”

They came four in a box, and by Thursday morning, they were gone. I did get to taste one before my son and my husband devoured them all, and I definitely agree with my son. They are yummy! A lot of frozen pastries that you get have a weird, processed shell-like thing for the pastry portion. The Eggo Bake Shop Twists actually taste like a real, nice soft pastry! They are good!!

Eggo Twists are a great fast breakfast. They are microwavable, and one is ready to go in 25 seconds. They are filled with real fruit and are currently available in strawberry or apple. Visit Kellogg’s Web site to learn more about Eggo Bake Shop Twists and other delicious Eggo breakfast products!! Then next time you’re at the store, pick up a box of Eggo Bake Shop Twists for your family! I’m sure they will love them as much as we did!

Projectile Vomiting at Cracker Barrel

2009-03-23T12:25:00.005-02:00

This week's Manic Monday word is Wet. For more Manic Monday info, don't forget to visit Morgen.

I haven't done Manic Monday in awhile, but I thought this would be a good day to give it a shot since I had the perfect incident for Wet. Anyone who follows me on Facebook or Twitter might know a little bit about this incident.

I have been craving Cracker Barrel pancakes for weeks! Last month, we were planning to go get pancakes on my birthday, but my son decided to have a fever that weekend, so we couldn't go anywhere. We rescheduled for this last Friday because Eric was off work and the kids were on Spring Break.

We woke up on Friday morning and headed to Cracker Barrel. We walked in, sat down, and I asked Georgia "Do you want pancakes?" Georgia turned, looked at me and threw up all over me. Everyone's first reaction when I tell them this story is "Oh, poor Georgia." My first reaction was, "You have GOT to be fucking kidding me!!"

I immediately pulled her to me so the waves of puke would just go on me and not everywhere else. Unfortunately, the woman next to me was directly in my line of vision, and at Georgia's first gag, she put her hand to her mouth, and I thought she was going to toss her cookies, too. I figured I had better get Georgia out of there as quickly as possible, so I scooped her up and carried her out of the restaurant as quickly as I could. I thought I was being subtle, but the wet clomping of my shoe proved otherwise, and I knew I was leaving a trail of throw-up as I walked out of Cracker Barrel. Plus, Georgia threw up on me two more times on the way out the door, leaving me completely wet and covered with throw-up.

And here is the really annoying part. After we got home, she was FINE! Never had another incident, and acted perfectly normal! She just had to be sick at the one time we were getting pancakes - something I had wanted for weeks. Then she was fine. Can you tell that I'm still a little bitter?

Twitter Schizophrenia

2009-03-19T18:03:00.003-02:00

I am now making it a point to blog more often! I think my problem is I've become addicted to social networking. It's hard to blog, when you can post mini blogs on Twitter and Facebook 100 times a day. Not only do I have a Facebook and MySpace account, but I have two accounts on Twitter. That's right, because one Twitter account just wasn't enough for me.

I would seriously like to know what happened that Twitter just so suddenly exploded in popularity. Seriously! WTF happened?!!! I have had a Twitter account for almost a year, and the only followers/followees I had were my workmates. Twitter seemed perfect because my workmates are anywhere from Albuquerque to New York to Jerusalem, so tweets seemed a great thing. Then, my blogging friends found Twitter. Then my Goo friends found Twitter.

I already had an issue of my worlds colliding on Facebook. It's a little hard to be yourself when your Facebook friends consist of the CEO of your company, your ex-boyfriend from high school, your husband, and your best friends who know all your secrets. In addition, I'm the Teen Program Coordinator at WikiAnswers.com, so I'm also followed by several teens. Dude! I'm afraid to say anything. God forbid I should slip and say the "F" word!

Twitter was getting just as bad. My Neila222 persona was feeling a little bit stifled, so I decided to break out with my alter ego, BlondieGoo. The difference is that Neila222 posts things like "I just got tickets to The Fray concert." BlondieGoo posts things like "Who do I have to blow to get good tickets?" You see the difference. So feel free to follow me on Twitter. I'll let you decide which of my personalities you would like to follow - mild or wild.

I soooo can't believe I'm doing this!!

2009-03-18T18:22:00.000-02:00

I signed up for a Whole Foods Cleanse. It starts next week, and once it does, I will be on here giving you a blow-by-blow of how it goes. It was recommended by my Hypnotherapist and Holistic Foods Nutritionist. It's a 21-day cleanse. The first week, you just eat fruits and veggies, and nothing else. The second week, you add in grains. The third week . . . well, I'm not sure about the third week because we have to see if I can get past the first two weeks.

Okay, this is going to be a great health benefit, and a wonderful way to kick-start my weight loss since I have a 20-year class reunion (!!!) coming up next year! I really think I can do it except for one minor problem. No. Coffee. Dude! I don't quite know how I'm going to handle this. There are supposed to be three people available all the time if you need support. This is seriously going to be like I'm in AA. I can see myself in line at Starbucks, calling my hypnotherapist. "Kelly, help me! I just ordered a white mocha and I'm about to drink it." I'm trying to look on the bright side. If I can do this, I can do anything, right?! I certainly hope so!

Child Friendly Activities

2009-03-17T18:16:00.000-02:00

I need to get back in mommy mode. I used to take the kids to Gymboree, Wonderscope, all the fun stuff. Today, Eric is with Eli at the NCAA tournament, so I decided to take Georgia to do something fun. You know what we did? We went and sat outside on the patio at Starbucks because it was such a nice day.

Yes, for mother-daughter bonding time, I took my 3-year-old to Starbucks! Dude! What is wrong with me? You know what's even worse? She had a great time!! That's right, most 3-year-old's need toys or a park to have a good time. But take my daughter to Starbucks and give her a vanilla milk, and she's good to go. I guess as long as she's not asking for espresso shots, I shouldn't complain.

13 Things I've Posted To My Facebook Status

2009-02-18T23:06:00.004-02:00

I know I haven't been blogging much lately. Aside from being busy with work, I am horribly addicted to Facebook. Where else can you post all the random shit that you're doing and have everyone you've ever met before comment on it? I love it!!! I can post that I'm making dinner, and I may get a comment from a relative, a blog friend, and someone I went to high school with 20 years ago. It's awesome!!

Last night, I was merging questions on WikiAnswers, and happen to be going through a slew of questions about Selena Gomez and the Jonas Brothers. For some reason, this led to an in depth discussion with Eric regarding which Jonas Brother was the cutest. Eric says Nick. He's on crack. It's Joe. Anyway, I put this on my Facebook status. This got me thinking about some of the bizarre things I post from day to day. So, here we go - the first Thursday Thirteen I have done in months. And it is 13 things I have posted to my Facebook status!!

1. Neila wrote a check for fall preschool enrollment this morning. It was painful.

2. Neila can't believe she's having a disagreement with her husband over who is the cutest Jonas Brother. They have agreed to disagree.

3. Neila found the sharpener for her eyeliner buried in Eli's crayon box. "But Mama! It looked like a crayon sharpener!"

4. Neila needs to spend 12 more cents on Amazon to get free shipping. WTF can I buy for 12 cents?!

5. Neila is wondering why she goes to the grocery store for one thing and comes out with ten.

6. Neila is hoping I'm not too tired after this busy day to celebrate romantically with my hubby.

7. Neila has been to Chuck E. Cheese and Eli's basketball game, and it's not even 2:00 yet.

8. Neila would love to be in San Antonio seeing Goo tonight!!

9. Neila can't wait to see the Friday the 13th remake.

10. Neila just bought cupcakes for Eli's V-day party tomorrow. When did cupcakes get so expensive?!!!

11. Neila is heading to Starbucks for a quad-shot latte.

12. Neila left her sunroof open all night. And it rained. A lot.

13. Neila is drinking.

Wow! Wow! Wubbzy

2009-02-18T12:31:00.000-02:00

My children have been Wow! Wow! Wubbzy fans for years! My son, who is now six, began watching it when he was three, and he still enjoys it today. My three-year-old daughter has been into the show for the last year. She LOVES to sing the theme song! In fact, I even recorded a video last year and put it on YouTube of Georgia singing along with the Wow! Wow! Wubbzy theme song:

When I found out Mom Central was doing a Wow! Wow! Wubbzy Blog Tour, I jumped at this one. This show airs about 40 times a week on Noggin and Nick Jr. (And there for awhile, I was beginning to think we were watching all 40 airings. ;-) This is a very cute show that provides kids with a great message, and helps them learn by example. Wow! Wow! Wubbzy is an Emmy award-winning show, and provides kids with a positive model to teach skills such as honesty, cooperation, and fairness all while having fun!

On February 3, the newest Wow! Wow! Wubbzy DVD was released – A Little Help From My Friends. The DVD features six episodes, all centered on teaching children the important values of friendship. If you’ve never seen Wow! Wow! Wubbzy, it centers around fun, lovable, and very curious Wubbzy. In this newest DVD, Wubbzy and his friends Widget and Walden search for a lost Wiggle Wrench, escape a runaway Doodleberry Cake, build a Super Robot, teach Walden to boogie, and work hard for Wuzzleburg trophies. They discover the importance of positive values like confidence, cooperation, teamwork and friendship. DVD extras include bonus episodes, a music video, games, activities and sneak peeks.

Parents can get involved by visiting www.wubbzy.com. There, you can join the Wubb Club, sign up for the newsletter, read the Wubbzy Blog, and listen to Wubbzy podcasts. Your kids will love the activities provided on the Website, such as fun activities, recipes, printable coloring pages, and more!

You can also learn more about the newest Wow! Wow! Wubbzy DVD on the website, as well as all available Wow! Wow! Wubbzy DVDs. Or you can look at a store near you, such as Wal-mart or Target, for your copy of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy – A Little Help From My Friends.

February already??

2009-02-01T14:54:00.003-02:00

Okay, what the hell happened to January? It is really February already, and I can’t believe it! I’m trying to look on the upside. February is my birthday month. Woo hoo!! My birthday is Feb. 22, in case you would like to mark it on your calendar.

Eric asked me yesterday what I would like for my birthday, and I did come up with a few things – most of which he scoffed at. So chanced are I won’t get any of them, but I have hope.

Tickets to see David Cook – This got a “Yeah, right. Like I’m going to see David Cook” from my husband. I’ll be buying those tickets myself.

Detail My Car – You should see my car. It is scary. The kids seem to think the floor in the back seat is a huge trash bin. God only knows what’s growing back there. I would LOVE for my car to actually be clean. Eric said, “I wouldn’t know where to take your car. And doesn’t that cost a lot of money?” Translation – I’m not getting that.

Red Tea Kettle – I know, it sounds simple, but it’s something I have asked for for like four years for Christmases/birthdays, and no one ever freaking gets it for me. I’m not quite sure WHY no one ever buys it for me, but it’s really starting to get on my nerves.

New camera – One with image stabilization would be nice so all my pictures don’t turn out like this:

Rebuild Communities with Plant a Seed

2009-02-01T09:59:00.005-02:00

I’m sure you remember what it was like when you were a kid. I know when I was little, there was no such things as video games or the Internet. Kids played outside, exercised, and had fun. We played outside with our friends, building that sense of friendship and community. Maybe you were involved in softball, soccer or football.

As a mom today with kids who are becoming increasingly interested in sports, I was thrilled that my children would experience some of the same exciting times that I did as a child. However, when we travel from soccer field to soccer field, I am too often seeing the decline of so many sports fields.

With today’s economy, many towns are facing budget cuts, and many of these fields go months, or even years, without maintenance or renovation. When these fields fall into disrepair, we lose them as a place our children can gather, losing a piece of community in the process.

Taking steps toward improving our communities is one of the most effective way we can become involved.

Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Earn Your Stripes program has initiated a call-to-action for a national field renovation program, and it kicks off today – Super Bowl Sunday!!! A commercial will air today during the Super Bowl entitled “Plant a Seed.” Here is a preview of the Super Bowl commercial:

The ad focuses on the role we all play in building stronger communities and making a difference in kids’ lives. The Earn Your Stripes program is designed to inspire children to be their very best, and Plant a Seed shows kids that by planting a seed, you can help give kids places to realize their promise and potential.

The field renovation will renovate approximately 50 fields across the country to help provide better places for children and families to stay active, once again making fields a central and vibrant place of activity and community.

For more information on the Plant a Seed program, visit the official Web site at www.frostedflakes.com/#/plantaseed.

6-Year-Old Basketball

2009-01-29T01:27:00.001-02:00

Okay, my kid is not into sports. Given, Eli is only six, and many say that he’s too young for us to judge his potential effectively, but I think a mother just knows these things. Eli has been playing basketball the last couple of months, and he does seem to be having fun. That’s the important thing, right? Right?

I will say this for my son. Watching him play basketball is not nearly as painful as watching him play soccer. I actually enjoy watching him play basketball. He bounces around with all kinds of spastic energy, never quite sure where the ball is. He guards his person no matter which team has the ball (so I’m thinking defense is his strength), and when the ball comes near him, it’s as if someone dropped a bomb and yelled “duck and cover”.

Like I said, this is actually better than watching him play soccer.

This weekend, they take the official basketball pictures, and I’m excited about that. A cute picture of my son in a jersey. Who cares if he wins.

Oh yeah, my husband cares if he wins. Dude! He’s six! So far, I have successfully halted my husband from jumping up out of his chair during the games. I’ll have to be content to listen to him scream things like, “Eli, get open!” This just causes Eli to stop in the middle of the game and stand on the court staring at us, saying “Huh?” Yeah, best not to scream at the kid while he’s trying to play.

But like I said, I think he has a strong future in defense. I have to try to get a picture of his best defensive move. He stands in front of the person he’s guarding and inches ever so close. Then he gives them “the look”. Oh yeah! It’s the look that says, “I’m going to hack up your body and hide the pieces.” This causes every kid, no matter how big or small, to back up!

That’s my boy!

Stop and Shop Healthy Ideas

2009-01-28T11:33:00.000-02:00

As some of you may know, I have been very into holistic nutrition. I have been working hard to eat healthy and to get my family to eat healthy, which isn’t easy when I have two children (three including my husband) who are desperately addicted to sugar. Going to the grocery store each week has become very time-consuming because I have to read label after label after label trying to determine if foods are healthy.

I was very pleased when Mom Central launched their latest blog tour for Stop and Shop! Stop and Shop has made finding nutritious foods much easier and has created a huge time-saver! Stop and Shop has launched Healthy Ideas, which is a new symbol they use to label healthy foods. This helps consumers easily identify foods that fit into their healthy lifestyle.

Stop and Shop has placed the Healthy Ideas symbol (pictured above) on more than 3,000 items throughout its stores. This symbol helps you identify foods that have less fat, saturated fat and sodium. It also helps you locate foods that include a healthy amount of at least one nutrient, such as fiber, whole grains, calcium and minerals.

Healthy Ideas was developed by a team of registered dietitians to create a healthy foundation of foods that you can purchase with confidence for your family.

For more information on Stop and Shop and on Stop and Shop healthy Idea, visit the Stop and Shop Web site at http://www.stopandshop.com. Their Web site offers more information about the Healthy Ideas Program as well as expert testimonials and Healthy Idea recipes. In addition, if you are interested in learning more about Mom Central, please visit them at http://www.momcentral.com.

Happy New Year!!!!!

2009-01-01T21:45:00.005-02:00

Yes, I am still here, and it is my New Year’s Resolution to blog more often! I miss all my blogging buddies!! I have been so busy with my new job the last couple of months that everything else has kind of taken a back seat. But that is no excuse! I know all of you are just as busy!!

I wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year!! We have been crazy around here as usual. Here are my babies celebrating the New Year last night as they banged pots and pans on the front porch screaming Happy New Year at midnight! Well, okay, it was 10 pm, but I lied and told them it was midnight. I’m not going to go to hell for that, am I?

The kids are really growing up so fast! Eli is mid-way through kindergarten. I still can’t believe that!!! And Georgia is really enjoying preschool. Here is a picture I took of them last weekend. One of those rare pictures where they are both smiling and looking at the camera!

My Sister-in-law informed me that Georgia’s hair looked like a hippie out of the 70’s, and while I thought that was a little harsh, I did agree that she needed a haircut. So I took her to my friend Megan’s on Tuesday night who gave her the cutest little bob. Eric was sad because he thinks it makes her look older, but it is flipping cute!!!! See?

I hope everyone got what they wanted for Christmas!! Santa brought me a Wii Fit! So now I am on my way to fitness! Woo hoo!! And let me tell you, I am already an expert hula-hooper! Oh yeah, baby!!! Plus, I am kicking Eric’s ass on the Wii ski slope! Watch out!!

Did everyone have a good New Year’s?? Mine was AWESOME!!! You all know my love of the Goo Goo Dolls, right? Well, they were performing last night at the House of Blues in Atlantic City! While I was unable to fly across the country for a concert, I have a friend who went to the concert and called me during my favorite song, Naked, and held up the phone so I could hear it!! Thank you, Karen!!! I let my voicemail get the call so I could listen to it over and over!! That’s right! I had John Rzeznik singing my favorite song to me live on my phone on New Year’s Eve! 2009 couldn’t have started off any better!!

Personalize Your M&M's!!!

2009-01-01T12:59:00.000-02:00

Who doesn’t absolutely LOVE M&M’s?!! Seriously! They are my favorite candy, as well as my daughter’s (she likes to pick out the green ones). In fact, my kids love M&M’s so much that very often their grandparents will enclose a bag of M&M’s in with birthday gifts, Valentine’s gifts or Easter gifts.

When I saw that Mom Central launched a blog tour on personalized M&M’s, I was thrilled. You can go to www.mymms.com, and personalize your own M&M’s!!! My kids are going to be thrilled when they open their Valentine’s candy and find their picture on M&M’s!!

MY M&M'S allows you to customize your M&M’s by choosing your colors, messages, and uploading your photos. You can make your order special for all occasions. And it’s not just for kids!! Imagine how much Grandma would love her grandchild's face on her birthday M&M'S, or how great the bride and groom would look on their wedding favors!

The site also offers dozens of gift options to accompany the MY M&M'S, such as candy dispensers, decorative tins, and MLB-themed containers. And new this year, MY M&M'S has even teamed up with Martha Stewart for ideas to make personalized gifts even more special. Each of Martha's MY M&M'S personalized gift options provide easy step-by-step instructions.

The site is very user-friendly, and makes personalizing and ordering your custom M&M’s a breeze!! I just placed my order for Valentine’s Day, and I can’t wait to see my kids’ faces!! I just know they are going to be thrilled! Visit www.mymms.com today to check out their different options and place your order for that special gift!

Ultimate Meatballs - YUM!

2008-12-31T10:03:00.001-02:00

There is seriously nothing I like better than party food!! I could honestly eat nothing but munchies and appetizers at every meal. My favorite things to eat are little smokies or little meatballs in the crock pot!! Everyone seems to make these, but everyone has a different variation on what kind of sauce to put over them. Some people just dump them in with barbecue sauce, but I like to be a little more creative than that.

When Mom Central announced the Ultimate Meatball Blog Tour, I was very excited! A new way to make little meatballs?! Oh yeah, baby! Bring it!! Heinz and Ocean Spray provided me with Heinz Chili Sauce and Ocean Spray Jelled Cranberry Sauce so I could make my own party meatballs. I first thought “Cranberry sauce? Really?” I have made something similar with cocktail sauce and grape jelly, but this was a little twist on it.

Now, instead of trying the meatballs, I bought little smokies. I LOVE little smokies, and those are also one of the few things my son will gobble up! All I did was dump two packages of little smokies in the crock pot, and I added the Chili Sauce and Cranberry Sauce. I let it simmer on low for about 3 hours, and voila!!! AWESOME!!! Oh yeah! Sweet and tangy! They were great! And my husband (Mr. Picky) thought it was much better than the way I usually made them with the grape jelly!

In addition to this great recipe, Heinz and Ocean Spray have created an Ultimate Party Meatballs Website! Woo hoo! Visit www.ultimatepartymeatballs.com. They have the recipe for the ultimate meatballs, as well as other great recipes that are perfect for parties, snacks or emergency yummies when you have unexpected guests. For example, they have a recipe for ultimate baked brie! Sweet Lord, that is some goooood stuff!! Yum!!!

Check out their Website and enter their contest to win their sweepstakes with a $3000 grand prize to throw the ultimate party!!

Spiderman!

2008-12-04T00:25:00.001-02:00

I was going to do this as a Wordless Wednesday, but I really thought this photo needed an explanation. Eli went to a birthday party last weekend where the entertainment was a face painter. As you can see, the lady did an awesome job. The only problem was that the party was in the morning, and we had errands to run afterward. Needless to say, we got a hell of a lot of attention at Wal-Mart, Costco and Red Robin!

Clorox 2 Coupons!

2008-12-03T11:31:00.000-02:00

With two kids in addition to being a klutz myself, I have become used to stains on most . . . okay, ALL of my shirts. I have tried several different stain fighters with no results except to watch my bright colors fade. So I can’t tell you how thrilled I was when I was asked to participate in Mom Central’s Clorox 2 blog tour.

Clorox 2 launched a new stain fighter with an advanced formula that works better on tough stains and keeps clothes bright! Whether you’re fighting grass stains, food stains, arts and craft spills, or Starbucks espresso truffle spills (like me), Clorox 2 will work for you! All you need to do is add Clorox 2 to every load with your detergent for cleaner and brighter clothes.

Now for the test. Does it REALLY work? I received my coupon in the mail for my free bottle of Clorox 2 and went to the store and got it. I made my morning Starbucks run, and as if on cue, I dribbled my espresso truffle down my bright blue shirt. (I have never been able to multi-task and drive.) Anyway, when I started the laundry, I put a little bit of Clorox 2 in the laundry. Guess what? The stain came out! Woo hoo! I was thrilled! (You have no idea how many coffee stains I have on my shirts!)

If you want to learn more about how Clorox 2 removes stains and gets your laundry clean and bright, visit their Web site at www.daretobecolorful.com. If you are interested in trying a bottle of it for free, you are in luck. I have three coupons to give away for a free bottle of Clorox 2. Be one of the first three to leave me a comment below complete with your mailing address, and I will send you a coupon so you can try a bottle of this great new stain remover for free!

It's Santa Time!

2008-11-24T18:40:00.002-02:00

Yesterday, we took the kids to see Santa, and for the first time EVER (!!) Georgia did not scream or cry!! I was thrilled! Now, she didn't smile either, and in fact, she has a weird look on her face in the picture, but this is progress, right? Right?

Keep your child safer with SeatSnug!

2008-11-23T23:59:00.002-02:00

I was very pleased to be asked to participate in Mom Central’s SeatSnug blog tour. If you are a parent, you know there is nothing more important than your child’s safety. SeatSnug helps you keep your child safer in the car, and that is something we all need.

My son is 6 years old, and currently rides in a booster seat. I remember when we switched him to a booster seat, and I was surprised to discover that it wasn’t more secure. The booster seat is not attached to the car at all. It just sits in the car, and the seat belt goes around the seat and your child. This makes me nervous because my son does not like his seatbelt tight against him. It is a constant battle for me because I have to keep telling him to leave his seatbelt alone so it fits against him securely and doesn’t leave any slack.

Even if you are not in a car accident, when you quickly maneuver your car or swerve, the seatbelt is not locked, so your child can be easily jostled around resulting in injury.

SeatSnug attaches to your child’s safety belt and can be gently tightened at the child’s hips, diminishing any seatbelt slack, and keeping the seatbelt snugly fit against your child. SeatSnug dramatically reduces bouncing, rocking and tipping, and helps your child avoid injury or death when involved in a car accident.

This is one of the best products I have written about for Mom Central. I was very impressed with how easy it was to adjust, and the secure fit gave me peace of mind that I was lacking. SeatSnug retails for $34.95, which is a very small price to pay for your child’s safety.

I hope you will check out the SeatSnug Website where you can learn more about the product and how SeatSnug can make your child’s car rides safer. On the SeatSnug Website, you can also watch a video to see SeatSnug in action. Seatsnug is all about preventing injuries and saving children’s lives!

Manic Monday - Season

2008-11-17T00:05:00.001-02:00

Happy Manic Monday! This week’s word is Season. That reminds me, it is the season for Christmas shopping, so if you still have a job and have money to spend, head over to The Wren’s Nest for some kick-ass holiday gifts!!!!

I really do love the holiday season. I always have Thanksgiving at my house and both sets of parents come up for the holiday. I think I’m beginning to perfect it. I no longer serve turkey because there are way too many leftovers. This season, we are doing pork loins, cream cheese & chive mashed potatoes, dressing, noodles, rolls, and green bean casserole. For dessert, I’m doing pumpkin pie and pecan pie, and I’m trying to decide on that all important third pie. I found a great recipe at Pillsbury.com that I was thinking of trying for a pumpkin-ginger pie with marshmallow topping. It sounds orgasmic. Let me know what you think.

Oh! And lots of wine! I can’t forget that. Because who could resist an entire day of my mom calling me a wino.

The thing that screws me up this year is that Thanksgiving is so late. I’m one of these people that doesn’t start shopping for the Christmas season until after Thanksgiving, even though the Christmas season apparently starts now in October. I swear, it just gets earlier and earlier every year. At least this year, the kids are getting a Wii for Christmas, which we already have, so there shouldn’t be too much more shopping to do. That’s good because I’m heading to New York for work the second week in December. I’ll have the “ohmygodihavetogetonaplane” anxiety leading up to that, and by the time I get back, well hell – it’s almost Christmas! This season is flying by!!

What are all your plans for the holiday season. Online shopping – plan #1! The further away I can stay from the mall, the better!

I'm Still Here!

2008-11-11T00:22:00.002-02:00

I know it may have seemed like I have dropped off the face of the earth lately, but I haven’t. I am still here, and I wanted to share with you why I have been so busy lately.

Many of you may know that I have done freelance work for WikiAnswers for the last four years. Last week, I started work with the company as a full-time employee. Woo hoo! That’s right, I am fully employed, in addition to my full-time job as a mom. I am really enjoying my job, but it hasn’t left me a lot of full time to blog.

Hopefully, once I get into my normal routine, I will have more time to keep up on my blog. I have so much going on that I want to share, including all of the cute things that my kids are up to. Eli is doing awesome in kindergarten, and already received his first report card. Dude! They grade things so much differently than they used to. Instead of A,B,C,D,F, now there are a bunch of S’s and N’s. Well, Eli only got one N (Needs Improvement) in Art. That sent me straight to the school to meet with the Art teacher. Yeah, I’m still crazy. Some things never change!

Georgia is going full steam ahead at preschool, and she is doing great. We had her first parent-teacher conference last week. I was extremely pleased to discover that she never screams or throws fits at school. Okay, I was pleased and a little surprised when they told me how well she was doing. I said, “Really, she doesn’t scream ‘I need my drink’ and then yell at the top of her lungs? Or she doesn't wiggle the zipper on her coat and scream because she wants you to zip it?” They just looked at me like I was crazy and said no, she doesn’t.

Her teachers informed me that meant I was doing things right. She knows to act like a decent, well-behaved child when she’s in front of other people. Now if I could just get her to act like that all the time, I would be in business!

Barbie and the Diamond Castle

2008-11-10T00:25:00.001-02:00

Oh, how I wish they had all these great DVDs when I was a kid. Oh, who am I kidding? They didn’t even have VCRs yet when I was a kid!

These days, children’s programming is very educational. It’s not just the violent cartoons we had as children. I don’t mind when my children watch TV because the shows and DVDs available today teach them important lessons.

My 3-year-old daughter, Georgia has really been getting into her Barbies lately. She has two that are her favorites – one with purple hair, and one with pink hair. When she started seeing the commercials for Barbie and The Diamond Castle, she stared, hypnotically transfixed at the television. When the commercial was over, she would say, “Mommy! I really like that one!!” That is her usual mantra when she sees something she really wants.

When Mom Central sent us the new DVD for Barbie and The Diamond Castle, I was absolutely thrilled because I knew how much Georgia really wanted to see it.

Barbie and The Diamond Castle is a great musical story that teaches children about the importance of friendship. If Barbie and her friends want to preserve music for the entire world, they have to save their friend Melody who is trapped inside of a magic mirror. Melody holds the key to the Diamond Castle. The girls must journey to the Diamond Castle and overcome obstacles in order to save music for everyone. This is a great story to teach children about friendship and how important it is to believe in yourself.

My daughter Georgia not only loved the DVD, which she has now watched several times, but she also is going crazy to get the new Barbie Dolls from Barbie and The Diamond Castle, with the very pretty dresses. Every time she sees them on TV, she says, “Mommy! I really like that one!!”

To learn more about this fun and educational DVD that your children will love, visit the Barbie and The Diamond Castle Web site! And if you loved Barbie as a kid as much as I did, you will love it just as much as your child.

Manic Monday - Colorful

2008-11-03T00:14:00.000-02:00

Happy Halloween a little late! I know I haven't been blogging a lot lately, and I do have a good excuse, which I will (hopefully) blog about this week. In the meantime, I wanted to share some Halloween pictures of my little goblins, and this week's Manic Monday theme gave me the perfect word - colorful.

Eli was the new Speed Racer, Georgia was Stephanie from LazyTown, Daddy was classic Speed Racer, and me? Well, I went as Speed Racer's girlfriend. The comment we received the most from people was about Georgia's colorful hair! Her costume did come with a wig, but she refused to leave it on. Rather than fight with her, I just bought pink hairspray, which she loved. The only problem is that the hairspray rubs off on EVERYTHING!

Now, having been a blonde my whole life, there have been times when I have made my hair very colorful. I learned that the colorful hairspray comes out easily (unless you use black). Other people, apparently have never used colorful hairspray because everyone who looked at Georgia's hair would say things like, "I can't believe you dyed her hair pink. I hope it comes out," or they would just flat out say, "You've ruined her hair. That's not going to come out."

Dude! First of all, I get really sick of everyone and their opinions. But instead of offering them a great big cup of shut the fuck up, I just smiled and said, "It will come out. I've done this before." And guess what? It came out just fine. If anything, Georgia is upset because we no longer have a reason to color her hair pink. Maybe I should just do it every Friday for fun. What do you think? (see slide show in next post)

Trick or Treat!!

2008-11-02T15:24:00.001-02:00

Manic Monday - Ghost

2008-10-27T00:02:00.004-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Ghost! Oh, how I absolutely LOVE Halloween – when all the ghosts and goblins come out! Halloween is great fun now that we have kids, but even before kids, we always had a great time this time of year! Eric and I actually had our first date on Halloween weekend 1992.

The year we got married, 1994, we went to Boston in October to visit some friends. They took us to Salem, where they were having the Witches’ Festival. Now, THAT is a freaking AWESOME place to be at Halloween! Salem is full of ghosts and witches – one of which read my palm. Thank God her reading didn’t come true. She told me I was going to have twins.

A few years ago – 7 to be exact – Eric and I visited San Antonio in October. This was our last vacation before we had kids. I remember thinking how much fun it would be to stay in a haunted hotel. We stayed at the Emily Morgan, which is right across the street from the Alamo. This hotel is really haunted because it is an old hospital that was converted into a hotel. In fact, when you make a reservation and tell them you’re a ghost hunter, they’ll give you a discount.

It was all fun until I got the bright idea for us to take a ghost tour of downtown San Antonio. We learned all about the ghosts that frequent the Alamo, which was very cool. The freaky part was when the guy focused on our hotel and we heard about how haunted it really was. There was one room that they didn’t even rent out to people unless it was specifically requested because there were too many people who left the hotel screaming in the middle of the night due to the ghostly happenings in that room.

Now let me tell you, as cool as it is to stay in a haunted hotel, it certainly does not seem cool in the middle of the night when you can’t sleep and have to get up to go to the bathroom at 2 am. I actually woke my husband up to walk me to the bathroom in the middle of the night because I was that terrified. Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll be staying in anymore haunted hotels. They are awfully fun to visit, but not spend the night in.

Friday Craziness

2008-10-24T11:44:00.004-02:00

I’m sorry my blog has been lacking lately. I have been so busy with kids and work that I haven’t had time to keep up. I certainly don’t have a shortage of things to write about! I wanted to do a TT yesterday of weird things my kids have done lately, but I ran out of time.

I swear, the kids are definitely getting more interesting each day. Yesterday, Georgia was dancing around with her green Brobee doll. You’ve all seen Brobee, right?

After awhile, I noticed she was holding her doll around the neck (in the same affectionate way she does the cats) and saying “you want a piece of me?” Seriously. I don’t know what the Brobee doll did, but for a second I thought she was going to kick his ass.

Then there’s Eli. After we read stories and put him to bed last night, I went in to check on him after he had fallen asleep. He was lying on top of the covers with no pants on and a jean jacket. I took a picture, but Eric refused to let me put it on the blog.

The kids continue to crack me up each and every day. This weekend, we are really going to hit the Halloween activities hard. Tonight is Freaky Fall Fest, tomorrow is Boo at the Zoo, and Sunday is Trunk or Treat at Georgia’s preschool. Dude! I get tired just thinking about it!

I can’t wait to get pictures of the kids in their costumes. Georgia decided that she was going to be Stephanie from LazyTown. I only hope she’ll keep her wig on this year.

Eli decided he was going to be Speed Racer.

They wanted me to be Hannah Montana for Halloween.

Sorry, I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Fighting Allergies with Clorox

2008-10-24T09:18:00.000-02:00

I can’t believe it is the end of October already. With that, comes the cold weather, and you may begin to notice that your kids are spending a lot more time indoors. My allergies tend to be worse in the fall and winter because I’m not able to spend as much time outside. Indoor allergies flourish when you’re cooped up in the house.

Apparently, I am not the only one. Fifteen percent of people suffer from indoor allergies whether it’s dog and cat allergies or dust mites.

I was very pleased when I found out that Mom Central teamed up with Clorox to promote their new Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray, to help us fight those miserable indoor allergies!

Clorox is helping you battle those indoor allergies with the new Clorox Anywhere Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray. It’s easy to keep those countertops and hard surfaces clean, but what about that easy chair you can’t keep your cat out of, or the comforter on the bed where your dog hangs out all day? That’s why I was thrilled when I learned of Clorox’s new Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray. I have used it to spray bedspreads, chairs, ottomans and carpet, just to name a few things.

It is safe to use on any soft surface in your home, and when used correctly, it deactivates cat dander, dog dander and dust mite matter by up to 90 percent! On top of that, it smells great, giving your home a nice fresh scent!

To learn more about the new Clorox Anywhere Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray, visit Clorox’s Web site today, and look for Clorox Anti-Allergen Spray in a store near you!!

Wordless Wednesday - Dancing Queen

2008-10-22T01:02:00.005-02:00

Manic Monday - Bite

2008-10-20T00:37:00.006-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Bite! As some of you may know, I am a huge Buffy fan just like Mo!! That is the first place my mind went to – those lovely vampires. Oh, there will never be another Angel, will there?

Anyway, I got to thinking about some of the vampire movies that I absolutely love, and one of my favorites is Love At First Bite! Have you all seen this? This 1979 movie stars George Hamilton as Count Dracula, who moves to New York to find his bride, and he falls in love with Cindy, played by Susan Saint James. This movie is flipping hilarious! It’s worth watching just to see Arte Johnson play Renfield. I love this movie! It is a great laugh, and this is the perfect time of the year to cuddle in and watch it. Here are a few great lines from the movie:

Dracula: “I’m going out for a bite to drink.”

Dr. Rosenberg: “You know what Freud said: if you don't pay for it, you don't get better.”

Dracula: “Without me, Transylvania will be as exciting as Bucharest... on a Monday night.”

Dracula: “Ah, Cindy Sondheim, you should have lived in an earlier age. Things were simpler, less complicated. Do you know how many women had nervous breakdowns in the fourteenth century? Two.”

What are some of your favorite vampire shows or movies? Many people have directed me to the HBO show . . . is it Torchwood? I still want to watch that. And I know Twilight is really big. I bought the book, but I haven’t read it yet, and I know there is a movie coming out soon. I have so much to catch up on!!

Have a great Manic Monday! And if you don’t, you can just Bite me!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

2008-10-15T10:37:00.004-02:00

Manic Monday - Moon

2008-10-13T00:02:00.001-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Moon, and as I write this, I looked over to see my daughter’s bare bottom. Originally, I was going to write about something with the full moon for Halloween. I had a whole thing going on in my head about Friday the 13th and the “sh sh sh sh fu fu fu fu” music. Then I thought about my friend Andrea, the nurse, who cringes every month when there is a full moon because she gets all the crazies.

However, when I am constantly faced with my daughter mooning me, I feel that I need to write about that. She has been potty trained now for going on three months, but we have yet to get her to pull her pants up afterward. In the summer, she did okay because we put her in dresses all the time. But now that the weather is cooler, she is wearing pants, and apparently she deems them way to difficult to yank back up after using the bathroom. So what does she do? She pulls her pants down and kicks them completely off, uses the potty, and then runs around the house half-naked. I guess that’s not a huge problem when we’re at home, except for the fact that she sits like a guy with her legs spread wide open.

I would just prefer not to be mooned by my 3-year-old every five seconds. So I try to keep pants on her – a difficult task. I can’t wait until parent-teacher conference at preschool because I am really curious to see if she does the same thing there. Although, I have a feeling if she was running around, airing out her vajayjay, they would have told me by now . . . wouldn’t they?

Share your turkey tales!

2008-10-13T00:01:00.002-02:00

Mom Central teamed up with Electrolux in a quest for the perfect turkey! I have made Thanksgiving dinner at my house every year now for the last 14 years, so I have tried making turkey many different ways. For me, it seems like something always goes awry. (Last year, I gave up completely and just served pork loin.) It seems like the turkey is either too dry, too dark, or still frozen in the middle (yes, that actually happened to me).

Everyone has a great turkey story to share, whether it’s horrifying, funny or triumphant. This year, Electrolux and Kelly Ripa invite you to share your turkey tale. What is your memorable story in your quest for the perfect turkey?

Simply log on to electroluxappliances.com and click on Kelly Confidential. You can submit a photo, story and/or video showcasing your turkey tale. Everyone who submits a turkey tale will be automatically entered for a chance to win a stylish new Electrolux wall oven or range with the Perfect Turkey button – just in time for the holidays!!

The perfect turkey quest runs from October 1 through November 14, so don’t waste time! Submit your tale today. I can’t wait to hear about everyone’s memorable holiday cooking experiences!

13 Things I Did Today When I Should Have Been Working

2008-10-09T20:07:00.002-02:00

1. Went to Whole Foods to buy truffles.

2. Made hummus.

3. Went to Starbucks.

4. Listened to some vintage Goo Goo Dolls interviews.

5. Cleaned the bathrooms. (Woo hoo – something productive)

6. Cut Georgia’s hair somewhat evenly.

7. Went to the hypnotherapist.

8. Had lunch with Andrea – yum Mexican food!

9. Helped the kids make aliens with the Monster Matter Alien Maker.

10. Spent too much time on MySpace.

11. Backed up my pictures on a flash drive.

12. Cleaned up cat gak – damn leaves.

13. Played Trouble with Eli.

Wordless Wednesday - The Grasshopper

2008-10-08T23:52:00.003-02:00

Manic Monday - Leaf

2008-10-06T12:03:00.002-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Leaf. Thank you to Janna from Jannaverse for today's Manic Monday graphic!

When most people think of Leaves, they probably think of beautiful fall foliage. I, however, think of an increase in cat gak.

Yes, I’m a realist. I have a cat – Marcel – who loves to eat plants and leaves. It’s like chocolate mousse to him – I don’t get it. His favorite treat is dried up fall leaves. We have a lot of trees around our house, so there is never a shortage of leaves blowing around our house. I’m not quite sure why, but every time one of the kids runs through the door, they create enough of a wind gust that my living room looks like someone dumped out a bag of leaves on the floor.

That’s when Marcel pounces. No matter how much I sweep, there are always leaves on my floor from October through December (at least). I wouldn’t care so much that he ate them if he didn’t puke them all up in strategic places. Yes, Marcel likes the leaves, but they don’t like him. I dread the “crunch crunch crunch” chewing sound because I know that tasty leaf is going to end up as cat gak between my toes at 4 am the next morning when I’m walking to the bathroom.

And that’s another thing – why do cats have to gak it up in high-traffic areas? Why can’t they sidle over to the side of the room, or under the dining room table? Why do they have to throw up in the middle of the family room or kitchen, or (my personal favorite) in doorways? And usually in the middle of the night?

So, that is my curse. Yes, those fall leaves sure are pretty. Until they actually fall and then get hacked up by my cat.

Spot Shot Works

2008-10-05T23:18:00.004-02:00

As a mom with two young children, my carpet often looks like a heard of muddy farm animals has trampled through my family room. I have tried several different spot removers to try to get rid of the various stains on my carpet. It doesn’t help that the breakfast bar in our kitchen/family room is also over a carpeted area.

I have tried so many different spot removers, and many of them do nothing but give me a sore arm from scrubbing. When Mom Central and WD-40 teamed up to do a blog tour on the new Non-Toxic Spot Shot® Instant Carpet Stain & Odor Eliminator and Spot Shot Pet, I was more than happy to try it out.

I read about Spot Shot before I received it in the mail and was pleased to see that it was supposed to remove old and new stains as well as neutralize odors and incorporate anti-resoiling agents into the carpet to keep stains from returning. Spot Shot Pet is formulated to permanently remove the most difficult pet stains and odors, and can treat every type of carpet.

When I received the Spot Shot in the mail, I pulled it out and ran to the family. I was faced with probably hundreds of stains, so I jumped right in. I sprayed it on a dirt stain right in front of the sliding glass door, and some sort of food stain by the breakfast bar area. I sprayed a little of the Spot Shot on, let it set for a little bit and then rubbed using a cloth. And guess what? It worked! I was extremely pleased to see that the Spot Shot removed several tough stains from my carpet, including a cat gak stain. (I have a lot of those.)

One thing that concerns me about all of my household cleaners is how they will affect my children. I have found some cleaners that work well, but many of them contain chemicals that I don’t want near my children. Spot Shot is very appealing because not only does it work, but it is non-toxic. It is safe to use around children and pets, and it is bio-degradable so it is environmentally friendly for those of us moms who are concerned about going green!

Check out Spot Shot’s Web site for more information about this effective, non-toxic stain and odor eliminator.

13 Things I LOVED About Last Night's Tina Turner Concert!

2008-10-02T17:08:00.002-02:00

1. Tina’s legs! That woman is almost 70 years old, and I would KILL for legs like that!

2. Proud Mary – There is no better song to get you pumped up! And she saved it to the end! Love it!

3. The Dancing – Tina’s dancing is really freaking impressive! Did I mention her awesome legs?!

4. The Dresses – We counted seven outfit changes. Seven!! Soooo cool!

5. The Ninjas – When Tina had outfit changes, there were really hot guys, called the Ninjas, who came out to perform on stage. Wow!

6. The Back-up Dancers – The dancers were awesome, but I think Eric got way more out of them than I did. He has a favorite dancer, named Claire.

7. Tina Over the Crowd – There was a big arm that came up out of the stage and swung Tina out into the crowd. That was COOL! I think I just stood there with my mouth hanging open!

8. The Entrances – WOW! She had a cool entrance every time there was a costume change. You never knew where she was going to pop up, but all her entrances were very dramatic!

9. The Pedestal – There was a pedestal in the middle of the stage that would raise her way way up at times. When the show started, the curtain opened to the pedestal all the way up with her on it.

10. The Fireworks – Oh yeah, it’s a good show when fireworks are shooting

11. Tina’s Amazing Voice – WOW again! She’s the best!

12. Did I mention the really hot Ninjas?

13. Her hair! – Dude, I need a Tina wig!!

Wordless Wednesday - Poser

2008-10-01T11:01:00.003-02:00

Eli knew I was taking a picture of him, so this is the pose he struck:

Manic Monday - Nuts

2008-09-29T00:02:00.000-02:00

I am so excited that Morgen – our Manic Monday leader – has started a Manic Monday Blog!! (You know, because he wasn’t busy enough already!) I hope you will all check out his new Manic Monday Blog here.

This week’s Manic Monday word is Nuts. I thought of a couple of things for this one, so I am going to post both of them. Some of you know that I have a problem at times controlling my cussing. Before I had kids, I never really thought about it. However, that all changed very quickly. I tend to yell at people when I am driving, and one day, a 2-year-old Eli came home after a trip out with mommy, and asked his dad, “What’s a fuckwad?”

After that, I tried really hard to replace the “F” word and the “S” word in my vocabulary. One of the terms I tried was, “Oh, nuts!” Dude! I’m sorry, but that’s just not the same. I also tried “Oh, fudge!” That one seems to have stuck with Eric. I just can’t do it. Sometimes you just need to use the “F” word. Now, I just say the letter in front of the kids, such as “I can’t believe that effing jerk cut me off!” That seems to work okay. For now.

The other thing that came to mind with nuts is all of the yummy fall recipes it’s time to make. Oh, I love fall baking – the pumpkin, the cinnamon, the cloves, the nuts. YUM! Tomorrow, I am making a new recipe for pumpkin loaf. I haven’t tried it before, but it sounds really good. Here it is:

Ingredients
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup margarine
1 1/4 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup cinnamon chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.

2. Put softened cheese, butter, and sugar in mixing bowl. Cream together well. Beat in eggs one at a time until blended. Mix in pumpkin.

3. In another bowl combine flour, soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, cinnamon chips and walnuts. Stir until thoroughly mixed. Pour all at once over batter. Stir just enough to moisten. Turn into greased 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.

4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 60-70 minutes until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove to rack to finish cooling.

13 Things I Thought About In The Shower This Morning

2008-09-25T11:01:00.002-02:00

1. Oh crap! I forgot to post a Thursday Thirteen.

2. What the hell am I going to write about?

3. I am not going to go to Starbucks today. I am not going to go to Starbucks today.

4. I wonder if it’s going to be warm enough for me to wear shorts today.

5. Who used all my shampoo?

6. I wonder if Eric woke up the kids yet.

7. That’s probably why I hear screaming.

8. I remember that I needed something at the grocery store . . . now what was it?

9. I don’t know if I’ll have time to do my hair this morning.

10. Screw it. I’ll just wear a pony tail.

11. I sure hope Eric started laundry last night.

12. I wonder if hot water really kills all those bed mites like they said on the Discovery Channel.

13. I’ll bet I can come up with 13 things I thought about in the shower.

Thank you, ma'am

2008-09-23T16:15:00.001-02:00

Okay, you all know how much it irks me when I get called ma’am. I know I should appreciate the politeness, but it just makes me feel old.

I went to the store over the weekend to buy beer for a get-together we were having Saturday night. I remember when I used to go buy beer in my early 20’s. I would bring it up to the counter and set it down. The guy would look at me, and immediately ask for my ID. When I gave it to him, he would look at the picture, and look at me, and look at the picture and look at me. I used to hate it because they always made me feel like a guilty teenager trying to buy beer even when I was 24 or 25.

I’ve decided that was better than the way it seems to go down now. This weekend when I went for beer, I got my Boulevard Wheat and set it on the counter. I started to reach for my wallet to take out my ID, but before I could even get to it, the guy rang up the beer and said, “Thank you, ma’am.”

“Ma’am? Are you freaking kidding me?” Dude! That was so depressing. I would really like to know when I turned that corner. When did it go from “May I see your ID?” to “Thank you, ma’am.” *sigh* Not. Cool.

Manic Monday - Formula

2008-09-22T00:32:00.003-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is formula. When you’re a mom with young children, only one thing comes to mind – baby formula. Dude! No one ever told me how expensive that stuff is. When I had a baby and got to the point where I wasn’t breastfeeding (and let’s be honest, it wasn’t long), I about hyperventilated when I saw the price of formula.

Then after going through the emotional (and painful) hell of stopping the breastfeeding and switching to formula, you get the “looks” from all the other moms because you’re not breastfeeding. Or even better than the looks, the comments! Grrrr. . . I would get very annoyed with other women commenting on my breastfeeding, or lack thereof.

There are definite benefits to the formula – the biggest of which is that you don’t have to get up every single time in the middle of the night with the baby. Men can bottle feed babies with formula, too!!! Oh yeah!!

Eric and I were actually discussing this today. With the money we spent in formula and diapers, we could take a freaking cruise around Hawaii. I know some women who miss that baby phase. And okay, there is a part of me that does. However, now that everyone in my house eats regular food and wears regular underpants, I am jumping for freaking joy!!!

Friday Ramble

2008-09-19T17:34:00.003-02:00

I went out with my friends last night for a girls' night. (Woo hoo!) Except I am beginning to notice that when we get together, we talk about kids way too much. We spent so much time talking about the discipline procedures at our elementary schools that we barely had time for anything else. Dude! Where's the fun talk? Where's the hot sex talk? *sigh*

I was just happy for a break, which was interrupted half way through dinner when Eric called to wearily inform me that Georgia had not stopped screaming since I had left the house. Okay, quick note to my husband - calling with that information is NOT going to make me want to come home any sooner!

I was mainly enjoying my time away because I was recovering from my minor surgery . . . okay, so I'm being dramatic. I had an inflamed cyst removed from my back, but it freaking hurt! And I think it's safe to say that my husband was not a doctor in a past life. He can't even change the dressing without making gagging noises. And when he does change the dressing, he presses down, so the bandage will stay on - like he's sealing a freaking envelope. Okay, OW!! I finally just had my friend Andrea, the hospice nurse come by each day to change the dressing. Thank God for good friends.

I've also been using that as an excuse not to do vigorous cleaning around the house. How long do you think I can get away with that excuse? Hmmmmm . . .

Qlubb - Get Organized!

2008-09-19T05:34:00.000-02:00

If anyone has read my blog, you know that I am about the least organized person on the face of the earth. I try so hard to stay organized, so anytime there is a new tool out there to help me, I get very excited.

When I found out that Mom Central teamed up with Qlubb to take your organizational skills to a whole new level, I was thrilled!

Qlubb is a web-based service that helps organize your real-life groups online, providing all the functions needed to easily and actively participate within a group. Qlubb allows you to connect, plan meetings, assign responsibilities and share pictures with all of the members of your group at once. Features include an event calendar, sign-up sheets, member rosters, a task reminder service, and bulletin boards, which every member of your community can access and update from their home computers.

This could not have come at a better time for me because I went to a PTA meeting the other night and got roped into being Head Room Mother. (I’m still trying to figure out exactly how that happened.) At first, I wasn’t too concerned because I thought about what the room mothers did when I was in grade school. They brought cupcakes, passed them out, and then sat and talked to each other. I can do that. Well, apparently, things are different now. You have to organize which parents are helping with which party, what they’re bringing, and you have to plan games and activities. Dude! Seriously!

Anyway, Qlubb is the perfect way for me to keep all of this organized as Apache Elementary’s newest Head Room Mother!! The best part is that it is easy, and it’s FREE! Accessing and using the site is incredibly easy for even if you’re not computer savvy. Qlubb's secure sign-in protects group information, so only members of your group have access. However, participants don't have to individually register and can simply sign in using the group password.

Visit http://www.qlubb.com/ to try it out today. You will love it no matter what it is you’re trying to organize. I know you will find it as incredibly helpful as I did!

13 Valley Girl Words/Phrases I Miss

2008-09-18T00:12:00.003-02:00

Yes, back in the 80’s I actually spoke like this. And some of these phrases I like totally still use, okay? :-)

1. To the max – Translation: To the extreme.

2. Barf me out – In response to someone who says something offensive.

3. Gag me with a spoon – A response to something you don’t like.

4. Tubular – something that is cool.

5. Totally – yes, I totally still say this all the time.

6. Rad/Radical – attractive

7. Gnarly – Great/cool

8. Have a cow – As in ‘Don’t have a cow, man.’

9. Grotesque – you’re making me sick.

10. Hoser – i.e. jerk/loser

11. For sure/fer sher – Used in exclamation, as “Fer sher, dude!”

12. Awesome – One of my all-time favorite words, still in high rotation in my vocabulary.

13. Bogus – Unfair.

Get back to the table

2008-09-18T00:01:00.000-02:00

When you have children, moms seem to turn into the mom taxi! Children are so busy with activities – soccer, dance, cheerleading, etc. – that sometimes it seems almost impossible to find the time to sit down as a family and eat dinner.

Libby’s has launched a Get Back To The Table campaign to remind families how important it is for families to sit down together at mealtime. Although 98 percent of moms think it is important that is important, only 61 percent of moms said their family actually sits down together every day at the dinner table.

I am thrilled to work with Libby’s and Mom Central on this blog tour to help spread the word about the Get Back To The Table campaign. The campaign highlights the benefits children receive from regular family meal times:

· Perform better in school
· Have a lower risk of smoking, drinking, and drug use
· Have higher self-esteem
· Develop stronger interpersonal relationships
· Eat healthier
· Teenage girls develop a healthier body image

For more information, visit Libby’s Get Back To The Table Web site at www.getbacktothetable.com. This Web site offers family dinner planning tools, time-saving tips, healthy recipes, and grocery-shopping and money-saving advice.

When's my next vacation?

2008-09-16T00:36:00.001-02:00

One week after being home from New York, and I am ready for another trip. We had torrential rain over the weekend, which somehow resulted in our house being infested with large black ants. I hate ants. They’re almost as bad as spiders in that they like to pop up at the most inopportune moments. Like in the kids’ bedrooms right before bed. I went into the bedrooms tonight ti see Eli standing on the bed, yelling “Squish it, Georgia! Step on it!” And Georgia was running around after an ant. Dude! That is so wrong!

Then I have to deal with the children not eating each and every day. Tonight for dinner, we had chicken and polenta. The children refused to try dinner, and after a few moments of arguing, Eric had enough. He stabbed a forkful of polenta and held it up to Eli’s face. He informed Eli that he was not allowed to leave the table until he tried it. Eli reluctantly took the bite of polenta, turned to me, gagged twice – long enough for me to say “oh no” – and then he threw up everywhere. Luckily, I have fairly good reflexes, so I was able to back up enough so the flying vomit just hit my arm, and went mostly all over the floor.

I looked at Eric, who was shaking his head in a combination of disgust and disbelief, and I said, “I am soooo not cleaning that up.” Dude, seriously! If you are the one who decides to force feed the children, then you are the one who has to deal with the aftermath. That is all I have to say!

Somebody tell me, when is my next vacation? While you’re pondering that, I need to go stomp some more ants!

Manic Monday Carnival

2008-09-14T14:39:00.003-02:00

Don't forget the

Manic Monday Carnival

this week, sponsored by

The Jannaverse!

Circus Trip

2008-09-12T23:29:00.001-02:00

Okay, we took the kids to the circus on Wednesday night. It didn’t start off well because it was loud, and Georgia was scared to death. She sat on my lap and wrapped her arms in a death grip around my neck, burying her head in my chest. She warmed up when the animals came out, so it got better. She really seemed to enjoy the tigers and the elephants.

However, things took a serious downturn when it was time for the human cannon. That thing is loud. So loud that it scared Georgia, who then peed all over my lap. Dude! This is the second time this has happened. Luckily, that was toward the end of the show, so we left shortly after. But still.

My only other complaint about the circus is that it is so expensive. For a snowcone in a souvenir cup - $9. If it was a souvenir cup that lights up - $16. A box of popcorn? $7. So yes, I spent $32 on two snowcones and a box of popcorn. Dude! That is so wrong!

Hasbro Noodleboro teaches manners!

2008-09-12T00:04:00.000-02:00

My whole life, I have been a board game freak! I love Hasbro and their classic games that I grew up with such as Clue (my favorite), Scrabble, Battleship, and Candy Land. I was thrilled when I discovered that Hasbro introduced a new line of children’s games – Noodleboro. The Noodleboro games focus on listening well, cooperating with others, sharing with friends, getting along in groups, and acting respectfully.

My children always love when we get a new board game, so when I can find a board game that actually teaches them something, I am thrilled. Mom Central and Hasbro sent me the new Noodleboro game to try out, and my children and I have had fun playing it. This newest Noodleboro game is the “Learning About Manners Picnic Basket Game.”

This came at a very appropriate time for my 3-year-old, who seems to be struggling with the concept of ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. The age on the box is 4+, but it was perfect for my 3-year-old.

The game comes with a game board, of which, each side has the pictures five tokens that you are trying to collect for your picnic. All the tokens go into the picnic basket. Each player then asks “May I please have a token?” “Thank you.” Before drawing a token. The first player to match all the tokens on his side of the board wins.

I did like this game. It’s great if you are trying to teach your child about manners. I would definitely say it’s perfect for children in the 3-4 age range. My 6-year-old son sat down to play the game with us, and after a few turns, he said, “Is this all we do? That’s it?” Apparently 6-year-olds need a little more action. But the Hasbro Noodleboro games are great because there are so many different game options, and they have specialty games for all aspects of learning. If your goal is to teach your child manners, and the importance of saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you,’ this is a good game that is simple enough for younger children to comprehend – a great concept!

In addition, the game comes with a story book, ‘A Very Pleasing Picnic’, and an audio CD for the children to enjoy!

Look at the game aisle in your local store, or visit Noodleboro’s Website to learn more about the “Learning About Manners Picnic Basket Game” or other Noodleboro games.

If you are interested in receiving a free Noodleboro game, Mom Central is raffling off 200 Noodleboro games to moms who sign up through the following link: http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB2285CWRZFAU

Sign up today for your chance to win a great Noodleboro game to share with your child!

13 Things About My New York Trip

2008-09-11T12:49:00.006-02:00

1. This was the first time I had met the people that I have worked with online (some of them for almost four years), and I was pleased to know that the friendships you make online translate very well to real life.

2. The drivers are extremely skilled in New York. Dude! When the car was taking me from the airport to the hotel, I had to close my eyes about three times while my driver weaved in and out of traffic.

3. The drivers REALLY like to use their horns.

4. The panhandlers are more expert than the ones here in Kansas City. New York panhandlers don’t just ask you for money. They come up to you with a long, detailed story. Then they ask for money.

5. Going through security at LaGuardia airport is not fun. They yell at you.

6. I’m shocked I didn’t get mugged, as I walked down 7th Avenue with my big “I Love New York” bag in one hand, and my camera in the other hand. Next time, I might just have “tourist” tattooed on my forehead.

7. I LOVE New Yorkers! I have never been much for quiet people – I always think they’re hiding something. New Yorkers are loud (like me) and say exactly what’s on their minds. I LOVE that!!

8. I got to experience one of those few times in life when you click with someone, and you know in moments that you have found a true friend. This is Nirel:

9. As cool as New York looks on TV, it is soooooo much cooler in person. In fact, I think my coolness factor has gone up just because I visited New York. Yippee!

10. I discovered that I really miss the corporate world. Oh, did I really say that?! I think I miss the adult interaction. I can’t tell you how nice it was to have conversations about other adults that didn’t have anything to do with children.

11. Even though I loved having a break, I still can’t be away from my children for two days without crying. I know – I’m a big wuss.

12. I thought drinks were expensive in KC. I don’t think that anymore after drinking a $10 Cosmo in NYC. (and it was really little)

13. I love my company! I can’t wait to go to New York and see them all again.

Nearly Wordless Wednesday - New York

2008-09-10T00:21:00.007-02:00

Hey all! I'm home from New York, and I am sooooo tired!! I had a fabulous time, which I will write all about after I've had some sleep and caffeine. In the meantime, here are a couple of my favorite pictures I took during my first New York trip!!

The Extra Table

2008-09-05T00:05:00.000-02:00

I am finding out that kindergarten holds a lot of surprises. The first of which is lunch. Lunches at Eli’s school are $2.05 each day. That alone makes me cringe because the boy eats like a bird. But, I figured this would be cheaper overall than him taking his lunch.

Every day when Eli comes home from school, I ask him what he had that day for lunch. We get the menu a week in advance, so we can see the choices each day. They always have two hot lunch options (I think today you could choose either Nachos or a Hot Pocket) and a cold option - peanut butter sandwich. I started noticing that when I asked Eli what he had for lunch that day, he was telling me things that weren’t on the menu. For example, he told me he had a giant pretzel for lunch, or a big chocolate chip cookie. I wondered why these items weren’t listed on the food menu, so I asked one of the other moms.

She explained to me that there is an “Extra table” in the lunch room. It’s a table right before you get to the cash register that has lots of extra goodies on it. Uh-huh. These extra goodies are not included in the $2.05 school lunch. Dude! I would like to know who the hell came up with this brilliant idea. Who thought it would be a good idea to have a table with cookies on it in front of 5- and 6-year-old kids.

Plus, the kids have a lunch card that they just swipe, so they don’t even understand that they are actually spending any money. Eli told me yesterday that he got cookies off of the Extra Table. I asked him how much the cookies cost, and he said, “They don’t cost anything. You just ask them for the cookies, and they give them to you.” Grrrrrr!

When school started almost three weeks ago, I put $100 into Eli’s lunch account. You can go online to see how much money is left in the account. I haven’t done that yet. Because I’m scared. And in denial. And I’m jealous because things sure have changed since I was in grade school. We didn’t have any freaking Extra table!! WTF?!!

It's A Circus!!

2008-09-05T00:01:00.004-02:00

I absolutely love the circus! It is truly a show for kids of all ages. When I found out the Ringling Bros Circus was coming to town, I immediately bought tickets for the whole family. I have not been to the circus since I was 8 years old! I can’t wait to go and take the kids. They are going to love it!

We go to the circus on Wednesday night, so I will still be tired from my out-of-town trip, but I know the circus (and the cotton candy) will pep me up! When I was a little girl, I thought the Ringling Bros Circus was a truly magical experience – the colorful clowns, the acrobats flying through the air, and the performers on elephants. It’s an experience that you never forget, and it’s a childhood experience that is not to be missed.

I had already bought my tickets when I found out that Mom Central was doing a blog tour on the Ringling Bros Circus. I wanted to participate so I could share my love of the circus with my readers, and so I could share the discount code!! Hopefully this will help you buy tickets to enjoy the Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus in your area. I want all of the moms and dads out there to experience the pure joy on the faces of their children, their gasps of delight, huge grins and mesmerized stares.

When you buy your Ringling Bros tickets, be sure to use the code MCC for 20% off your purchase!! You can visit the Ringling Bros Website to learn more about the circus, and to purchase tickets online.

The code is valid for the circus shows in the following cities:

Indianapolis, IN - Sept. 4-7, 2008
Kansas City, MO - Sept. 10-14, 2008
Grand Rapids, MI - Sept. 18-21, 2008
Denver, CO - Oct. 2-13, 2008
Boston, MA - Oct. 8-13, 2008
Cleveland, OH - Oct. 24 - Nov. 2
Chicago, IL - Nov. 6 - 30, 2008
St. Louis, MO - Nov. 6-9, 2008
Auburn Hills, MI - Nov. 12 - 16, 2008
Highland Heights, KY - Feb 27 - Mar. 1, 2009
Cincinnati, OH - Mar. 4 - 8, 2009

Please take advantage of the MCC code, and spread the MCC code around to your friends and family. You can simply go on ringling.com and type in your zip code to find the shows and purchase tickets online with the MCC code.

13 Things About My Week

2008-09-04T00:06:00.000-02:00

1. My baby started preschool on Tuesday, and she did very well! She was happy as a clam to be left with all her new friends and teacher. I, on the other hand, walked out crying.

2. This was a perfect excuse for me to head to Starbucks and drown my sorrows in a triple-shot latte.

3. Today, I spent the afternoon with Eli at the doctor’s office.

4. This is not a fun experience when you’re there for an hour and a half, and Eli and Georgia are fighting.

5. My son became a total drama queen when they had to prick his finger.

6. We found out that he was positive for strep, and negative for mono.

7. This means I have to leave town on Saturday, and leave a sick child.

8. I think the universe is trying to give me something more to worry about than the actual flight.
9. I hate to fly. Is a 9:30 am flight too early to drink?

10. I’m still trying to figure out my iPod.

11. And my camera.

12. After buying a bunch of new clothes for the conference this weekend., I found out that we are supposed to wear a company T-shirt and jeans.

13. I’m not taking back my new clothes.

Wordless Wednesday - First Day of Preschool

2008-09-03T14:01:00.004-02:00

Mommy's a wreck!

2008-09-02T15:05:00.003-02:00

I'm late in posting my blog today mostly for the fact that Georgia started preschool this morning, and I've just been an emotional wreck. She seemed fine, except it will be really anxious to see if she listens to her teachers better than she listens to mommy or if they have a problem with her tantrums like we do.

One thing I have noticed about both Eli's and Georgia's schools is that they waste no time requesting money. In Eli's second week of school, the kids are already selling stuff. We're selling the Entertainment Books for $20. Some of you may have received an email from me. I should point out that the Entertainment Books are specific to your area. So if anyone is interested in buying one, shoot me an email. So far, we've bought one, and Eric's parents have bought one. Yes, we've sold two. woo hoo.

When I dropped Georgia off this morning, they had a list of school supplies we needed to bring, along with $5 for a "processing fee". Dude, I don't even know what that means. I paid a $40 "registration fee" in the Spring when she enrolled. I don't know what that's for either. They should just start charging a "we can't think of any reason to charge you money, so we're just coming up with an inane fee" fee. That's probably coming next week.

Tomorrow, I will post pictures of Georgia's first day of preschool. *sniff*

Manic Monday - Iron

2008-09-01T11:56:00.002-02:00

Okay, I’m anal as all hell. That shouldn’t really be a surprise to anyone, should it? I mean, usually, I’m just crazy obsessive anal-retentive on a daily basis, and thank God, my husband has chosen to find it endearing. However, when I am in any sort of a stressful or unfamiliar situation, my OCD is taken to a whole new level.

Personally, I don’t think it’s a bad thing that I like to have all details ironed out. Apparently, this drives everyone else completely insane. I am leaving for New York on Saturday morning for a business trip. I am very excited because I have never been to New York City. I am also a little freaked out because I have never been to New York City. To top it all off, I am traveling by myself. You can imagine my stress level.

For the last two weeks, I have been ironing out every little detail I can possibly think of. I have lists upon lists – lists of what I’m packing, of what I’m carrying on, of what I’m going to do when I’m there – lists, lists, lists. I have a new book to take on the plane, as well as a new iPod, which I bought specifically for the trip (and, btw, I did figure out how to rip a dvd to the ipod, if I want to pay $30 for the software). I bought a huge new suitcase for the trip, and I’m hoping it’s going to fit everything for my 2 ½ day trip. Yes, I’m leaving Saturday morning, and returning Monday night. Eric just gawked at my suitcase, and said, “I could pack two weeks worth of stuff in that suitcase!” He obviously doesn’t understand that I need to pack options! Hello!!

The next set of details I needed to iron out was getting to and from the airport. Once I get to New York, I won’t know where the hell I am or where to go. My plane lands at 1:30 at LaGuardia, and I have to be at the hotel by 3:30 if I want to make our group bus tour. Everyone says, “Oh, that’s plenty of time!” Is it? Is it really? Because to be perfectly honest, I don’t think I have ever ever had a flight that has been on time. My flights always get delayed! I don’t mean to send out negative cosmic energy here, but I’m just saying.

Luckily, I found out on Friday, that my company is providing transfers, and there will be someone waiting for me when I get off the plane, holding a sign with my name on it. Just like in the movies!! Woo hoo!! I have my camera ready so I can snap pictures of whoever it is that is holding the sign. Eric rolled his eyes at that one, thanking the heavens that he wouldn’t be with me.

I just hope that after ironing out every detail I could possibly think of, I haven’t left anything that could go wrong. Cross your fingers for me.

I'm in sync!

2008-08-29T11:05:00.002-02:00

I leave for New York a week from tomorrow, and I am trying to get everything in order that I need to take with me. There are a few things that I needed to buy – like a couple new dresses, a new suitcase, and an iPod Nano.

Yes, I think it’s a necessity for the trip. Dude! It’s a 3-hour plane ride. If I’m not busy doing something, I’m going to end up talking to the people next to me, and nobody wants that. Because yes, I’m a talker. When I flew to Chicago by myself a few years ago to meet up with Eric who was on a business trip, I think I got to know everyone on the plane. And it was only an hour and a half flight. I’ll never forget the look on Eric’s face when I got off the plane, and several people came up to say “Bye, Neila! It was so nice meeting you,” and gave me hugs. Eric said, “That must have been one hell of a flight.” I’m friendly, what can I say?

Anyway, I’ve been having fun the last couple of days loading songs onto my iPod. I think I have 336 songs on there right now – 100 of which are Goo Goo Dolls. Now, I am trying to figure out how to put video on there. So, here is my question to those of you who are more iPod savvy than I am. I know you can put video on your iPod, but can you rip DVDs to your iPod. I know you can load video that you buy from iTunes, but if I just have a DVD that has music videos on it, how can I get those videos on my iPod? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Eric was sweet enough not to complain (too much) when I bought the iPod. However, I don’t think he realized that with an iPod, you need iPod accessories! That opens up a whole new realm of ideas for Christmas present, right?

13 Reasons I'm Late Posting My TT

2008-08-28T11:19:00.002-02:00

1. My computer and I have been having a love/hate relationship the last couple of days.

2. Yesterday afternoon was spent watching a hot British guy from Home Depot install my new front door.

3. He thought the fact that he was hot and British excused him from screwing up.

4. It didn’t.

5. I’m way too freaking good at procrastination.

6. I just downloaded AIM (big mistake). BTW, I’m WikiNeila.

7. I have been trying really hard to work more hours.

8. I keep getting interrupted because I have to stop Georgia from jumping on the cats.

9. I’m working on writing my new romance novel.

10. I couldn’t freaking think of anything to write about.

11. I was too busy helping Georgia make aliens in the Martian Matter Alien Maker.

12. I am downloading every song I have to my new iPod Nano.

13. I need to clean the house. I didn’t do it. I just sat here and thought about how I needed to do it. (See #5.)

Green Works Dish Soap Blog Tour

2008-08-28T00:01:00.000-02:00

You would think with the majority of households having dishwashers, that dish soap wouldn’t be in such high demand, but it still is. At my household, it’s amazing how many dishes and pans I’ve collected that aren’t dishwasher safe, plus I use my dish soap daily to scrub down all the sticky messes off of my countertops.

With two kids who are constantly climbing up on the counters, it is important for me to have a dish soap that cleans effectively, as well as kills germs. Gone are the days when we could just buy any cleaner that was on sale, and not worry about where all those soap bubbles went when we washed them down the drain. Now, we are conscious enough to know that everything we put down the drain has a direct effect on the environment.

A few months ago, I did a blog tour on some of the new Green Works products including their all-purpose cleaner and glass cleaner. When I got the opportunity to try the new Green Works Natural Dishwashing Liquid, I was very excited. Mom Central teamed up with Clorox for a new blog tour and sent me a bottle of the new dish soap to try. As much as I loved my previous Green Works products (and have been buying them ever since), I was very excited to try the dish soap.

Green Works Natural Dishwashing Liquid uses all-natural plant-based ingredients such as coconuts and lemon oil, making it effective and biodegradable. Plus, it has an awesome smell! In fact, the EPA recently recognized Green Works Natural Dishwashing Liquid for its environmentally preferred chemistry.

I used it immediately when I got it in the mail. I filled up a sink full of sudsy water and was immediately struck by the scent. We received the original scent, which smells very clean and citrusy. Green Works Dish Soap also comes in Water Lily, Tangerine, Free & Clear, and Simply Lemon.

I began cleaning the dishes I had in the sink, and I was pleased at how well the dish soap cut through the grease in the pans. Overall, it was a success! The only complaint I had about the dish soap was that after washing a few pans, I looked down and saw that the bubbles had dissipated. When I wash dishes (or the car, or my hair for that matter), I really enjoy lots of suds and bubbles. Green Works Dish Soap is very effective, but it definitely is not big on the suds-o-meter.

So the main question here is – would I buy it again? Absolutely! I really do love all the Green Works products. They clean effectively, they smell great, and they are environmentally friendly. Look in a store near you today for Green Works Natural Dishwashing Liquid and the full line of all-natural Green Works cleaning products, and visit Clorox Green Works Website for more information.

Nearly Wordless Wednesday

2008-08-27T00:05:00.001-02:00

I'm still so excited that Georgia is using the potty that I can't seem to stop myself from taking pictures of her.

Whether it's at home . . .

Or at K-mart . . .

The Friendly Waiter

2008-08-26T02:00:00.001-02:00

Okay, I have just come back from a girls’ night out, and I am here to tell you that the friendly waiter is not a good thing! I only get a night out with Stacey and Andrea every 2-3 weeks, so when we get together, we have a lot to discuss before it is time to get back home to the hubby and kids.

So here we were sitting outside at Old Chicago embroiled in a very graphic sexual discussion, when our waiter saunters over. We all shut up as the waiter approached. The waiter stood there making idle chit chat, and we were all hoping he would leave because we really wanted to get back to our discussion.

So what does the waiter do? Dude! He pulls out a chair and sits down! I am not kidding. The guy sat down at our table, and proceeded to tell us about his high school experience with his mom’s boyfriend who moved in with them and tried to act like his father. I wish I were kidding, but I am not. This guy obviously had some deep-seeded psychological issues.

Now I am all for friendly waiters, but when I am out with my friends, please do NOT sit down at my freaking table! I was just wondering if this ever happens to anyone else? And once the waiter is sitting down, then what do you do? It’s not like you can just say, “Dude! Get your ass out of that chair and bring me some nachos.” Well, okay, maybe some people can say that, but I can’t. I just sat there and gave lots of “yeah,” “oh really” “mmmm” “oh, that’s too bad,” until he FINALLY left us alone!

Needless to say, we totally forgot what we were even specifically talking about in our sex discussion. Grrrr. . . I don’t like it when someone ruins my train of thought. So, my question to you is this: How in the hell do you get rid of the overly friendly waiter?

The Bra!

2008-08-25T00:20:00.000-02:00

Scroll down for Manic Monday.

After my post on Friday, I had several people ask what the bra was that lifted the girls so much that I was getting whistles when I walked down the street (yes, I've now embellished it from 'a whistle' to 'whistles' - work with me.)

Anyway, I bought the bra from Lane Bryant. The brand is Cacique, and it's the Balconette bra. I bought three, and they are awesome! They come in tons of different colors.

Here is the link to purchase them online:

http://www.lanebryant.com/pagebuilder/cacique_thumbnails?cgid1=79&PAGEID=1604

If you have a C cup or larger, this is the way to go. And they're currently having a sale - buy one, get one 1/2 off!!

Manic Monday - Club

2008-08-25T00:10:00.000-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Club, so I thought this would be the perfect time to tell you about our Friday date night. Eric and I went to see Kathy Griffin while Grandma and Grandpa watched the kids.

I know I’ve talked about Kathy Griffin before. I am a big, big fan!! She was at Starlight Amphitheatre here in Kansas City, which is one of my favorite venues. About a week before the show, Eric got an email from Starlight giving him the chance to buy tickets to their VIP club for the show. Apparently, if you have VIP club tickets, you get to enjoy dinner and drinks in their nice little club at Starlight before the show. It was only $45 per person. I really wanted to do it since Eric and I don’t get many date nights.

Eric thought an extra $90 was way too much especially since it didn’t include VIP parking. *sigh* So we went to Mr. Goodcents to eat before going to the show. Dude! That is sooo not the same thing. Speaking of parking, I did wonder how that works as we walked into the venue. They park everyone out in a field and you walk up to Starlight. However, there are a lucky few who get to park in the up-close parking lot. I would seriously like to know what club you have to join or whose d*ck you have to suck to get a good parking spot. Seriously, I’m curious.

Anyway, back to Kathy Griffin. Even though we were not VIP club members, we still had an awesome freaking time, and she was on for two hours! I was very impressed. She was very funny, and when she talked about Paula Abdul and Nancy Grace, I thought I was going to pee my pants. I literally laughed so hard that I cried. Here is just a little snippet of Kathy Griffin talking about Paula Abdul and American Idol. Freaking hilarious! If you ever get a chance to go see her live, GO!!!

Book Review – Dangerous Days of Daniel X

2008-08-25T00:05:00.000-02:00

I have read several books by James Patterson, so when I had an opportunity to review the first book in his new Daniel X series, I jumped at the chance. I had no idea what the book was about when I agreed to do this, and when I found out it was a Sci-Fi book, I was a little hesitant. I don’t read a lot of Sci-Fi books, so it was a little out of my comfort zone. I was pleased to find that it had a similar “voice” as other James Patterson novels I have enjoyed, even though I’m guessing there was A LOT of input from Michael Ledwidge.

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X begins with Daniel’s parents being brutally murdered in front of him when he is three years old. The book flashes forward to Daniel at age 15, who is on a mission to avenge the death of his parents by going after The Prayer – the most dangerous alien in the world, and the murderer of young Daniel’s parents. Daniel has been able to survive with the help of his special skills such as shape-shifting and manipulating objects, animals and people with his mind.

It’s obvious from the start that Daniel is not a regular boy. In addition to his special skills, he is an Alien Hunter, as his father was, and has taken it upon himself to rid the Earth of those dangerous aliens intent on destroying it.

I definitely found the book interesting, but it was obviously meant for teen readers. I can see where the alien action, and the adventures of Daniel would really draw in readers in the 13-16 age range. The book definitely has some intense situations, including alien violence and the murder of Daniel’s parents, so I would fully evaluate your child’s ability to deal with these types of situations before letting him read the book.

You definitely find yourself rooting for Daniel. As a mother, I immediately felt sorry for this young boy who was so lonely that he creates his own friends in his mind. That evokes emotion in the reader, so right from the beginning you want Daniel to be happy and triumph over the demons in his life – internal and external alike.

Overall, I would recommend this book, depending on the what type of books you like to read. If you like Sci-Fi books, I would definitely suggest reading The Dangerous Days of Daniel X. If you like James Patterson, I would also suggest giving the book a shot. Even if you normally don’t read Sci-Fi, the character development make this a book worth reading. I didn’t know if I would like the book, and now I know I will be buying the next Daniel X adventure which comes out in Summer 2009.

For more information about The Dangerous Days of Daniel X, visit Amazon, where you can read more user reviews, or visit the book’s official Web site.

The Girls Get A Whistle

2008-08-22T01:31:00.002-02:00

Last Friday, I made the best purchase I think I have made in years – an underwire bra. Usually I don’t wear an underwire bra because . . . I mean really, what’s the point? Two kids just ruined my boobs.

I was out shopping for new clothes when the sales woman said, “That dress would look so much better if you had a bra that pushed you up.” I told her I seriously doubted they carried bras in my cup size. Well guess what? They had three bras in my size. So I tried one on. Dude! The way these girls were lifted and pointing out, I was afraid I was going to take somebody's eye out.

The sales woman and Eric thought the new bra did amazing things for me. And I have to admit, they were right. With my boobs up, you can actually tell I have a shape.

So, I was already feeling good about myself when school started this week. Not to mention, about 5 people have commented on the weight I have lost (this bra freaking rocks)!

The first couple days this week, we decided to walk Eli to and from school because we wanted to observe the whole car line. And by the way, after four days, I still don’t know how the hell that works.

When we were walking home from school the other day, Eric and the kids were walking a few feet in front of me, and I was just cruising along behind them at my own pace. Then all of a sudden, a truck drives by, and a guy hangs out and whistles at me! Seriously!! Dude! I haven’t been whistled at since college!!

And every woman loves to be whistled at! Even the ones who lie and say they don’t. I just kind of stood there in a very pleasant shock when Eric whipped around and said, “Did someone just whistle at you?!”

“Yes! They DID!!” That’s right! Not only did I get whistled at, but my husband heard it!! It has been a great week! And I feel so validated!

13 Yo Mama Jokes

2008-08-21T00:15:00.001-02:00

1. Yo mama's mouth so big, she speaks in surround sound!

2. Yo mama's so short you can see her feet on her drivers licence!

3. Yo mama's so poor she can't afford to pay attention!

4. Yo mama's so bald that she took a shower and got brain-washed!

5. Yo mama's so fat she fell in love and broke it!

6. Yo mama's so stupid it took her 2 hours to watch 60 Minutes!

7. Yo mama's so old she was a waitress at the Last Supper!

8. Your Mamma is so ugly, she went to the bathroom and scared the sh!t out of the toilet.

9. Your momma's so dirty that when she went swimming at the beach, she left a ring around the ocean!

10. Your momma's like a hockey puck everyone gets a whack!

11. Yo Mama's so dumb she got hit by a parked car.

12. Yo Mama's so fat she took her chin as carry on

13. Yo mama's so lazy she thinks a two-income family is where yo daddy has two jobs!

Wordless Wednesday - Michael Phelps

2008-08-20T00:42:00.004-02:00

Dude! Can you believe he's only 23?!

Even though I'm old, I can still appreciate this! Yowza!

Kindergarten - Day One

2008-08-19T00:02:00.000-02:00

Today was the day I have been dreading for the last six years – Eli’s first day of kindergarten. I really thought I would be fine, but all last night, the only thing I could think of was the day he was born. And now he is six years old and going to school.

Even then, I thought I would be fine . . . until we dropped him off at school this morning. When we walked in, there was another mom walking out, sobbing. Dude! I about lost it right then. As if that weren’t bad enough, there were PTA members in the kindergarten room, offering you Kleenex and saying things like, “Are you okay? I know it’s hard. I’ve been through it, too.” Okay, that just about broke me. I would have been fine if everyone would have just left me alone!!!

After we finally dropped Eli off and got home, we made it in the door before Eric broke down in tears. Dammit! Everyone was determined to make me cry this morning.

After an emotional start to the day, I thought we recovered pretty well. Until the school called around 10:30. That freaked me out. Eli had only been there 2 hours, what could he have possibly done in that amount of time?! It turns out that it was the school nurse calling, and Eli had a lot of mosquito bites on his neck and arms. They wanted to make sure it was okay to give him calamine lotion. Then, she asked if he had the mosquito bites when he came to school. Well, I certainly didn’t notice them. She said, “Well, if he got them here, I would think there would be other kids who also got mosquito bites.” So on day one, I am already concerned that the school thinks I am neglecting my child.

Then when it was time to pick him up, we walked to the side of the school where they let out the kids. I watched all the kindergarten classes come out, and Eli was not there. I really began to freak out. They lost my kid on the first day of school?! I tracked down a teacher who told me that the “walkers” were brought to a different door of the building. Okay, no one told me that before. So we walked around the building, and sure enough, there was Eli.

Then, the kids stopped to play on the swings, and we were quickly approached by a teacher who informed us that kids couldn’t play on the equipment until after 4:00. They had to make sure all of the kids were off school property first. Eric couldn’t believe that we got chastised.

All in all, I think everything went well. As far as I could tell anyway. Eli was gone for seven hours (the most time I think he has ever been away from me), and when I asked him what he did today at school, he said, “Oh. Nothing.”

Manic Monday - Wax

2008-08-18T00:02:00.000-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Wax. I wanted to post the scene from The 40-Year-Old Virgin. You know the one – where Steve Carell got his chest waxed. For real! That scene is freaking hilarious! Anyway, I couldn’t find it on YouTube. Grrr . . . YouTube failed me!

That got me thinking about my own waxing woes. Thank God I have never needed to have my chest waxed. Yowie! And I thought eyebrows were painful. I put off getting the eyebrows done as long as possible because even though my stylist thinks she’s being stealth (pulling the tape off on the count of 2 instead of 3), I am on to her! And it still f*cking hurts!

But let me tell you, nothing will ever be as painful as the Epilady. Does anyone remember that? It rips the hair out of your legs by the roots. Dude! Who EVER thought that was a good idea? I’m guessing it was invented by a man. I can’t fathom that a woman would inflict that kind of pain on another woman. Seriously.

Another thing I have never had done is the bikini wax. I’m sorry, but I would rather shave. There is no way it hell I am letting anyone down there with a strip of wax. When I was still doing Passion Parties, I had one group of ladies who was trying to convince me of the joys of laser hair removal. They all went in for so many laser hair removal treatments so the hair down there was permanently gone because there husbands just loved the no-hair look. Dude! If my husband preferred that my vajayjay looked like that of a pre-pubescent girl, I would have some serious concerns. Plus, if I am not letting anyone down there with a strip of wax, I sure as HELL am not letting anyone come near me with a freaking laser!! Are you kidding me?!

And what exactly is the joy of the no hair down there anyway. I’m sorry, but I have tried that, and sex with a hairless cooch HURTS! You need the hair for a little padding!

Okay, this train has become seriously off-track. I will shut the hell up now. Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

School Supply Lists - WTF?!

2008-08-15T00:02:00.000-02:00

Alright dammit, this is like a whole new club that I never knew existed – the club of parents scouring the Wal-Marts and Targets of the city in search of non-existent school supplies. I had no idea this was a problem for every other parent out there.

My biggest challenge has been the 16-pack of Crayola crayons. Now, I get people who tell me, “Oh, I found those at Wal-Mart.” Well, I went to Wal-Mart. They carry an 8-box of crayons, a 24-box of crayons, a 64-box of crayons, and like a 712-box of crayons, but no freaking 16-box of crayons. I looked at Target, Office Max, K-Mart, and finally found them at Staples.

I know, I know. I should have just bought the 24-box of crayons at Wal-Mart, but the supply list specifically says, “16-count box of Crayola crayons – NOT 24-count or 48-count.” Well, f*ck me. I have decided that this is the teachers’ test for the parents. They want to see which parents pay attention and which parents care enough to scour the entire damn city for a box of crayons. My fear? That if I broke down and bought the 24-pack of crayons, it would reflect badly on my son. I didn’t want Eli beginning his school career with scathing looks from his teacher because his mom can’t follow simple instructions, which means he probably wouldn’t be able to either. No, I wasn’t going to put that blemish on his permanent school record.

Next on the list – a 3-pack of dry erase markers. A 3-pack. Dude! They sell 2-packs and 4-packs, but they do NOT sell 3-packs. I swear to God, I looked everywhere for this one. Our solution for this? Eric “borrowed” three dry erase markers from work. Maybe it’s not a 3-pack, but I am really hoping this is close enough.

Today is the big day where we meet Eli’s teacher for the first time. We have all the school supplies ready to bring in, and I have myself in check. I will try hard not to ask stupid questions, be overly sarcastic or use any curse words. The meeting only lasts an hour, so I think I can do it. It will be hard, but I can do it.

Then, the kindergarten teacher can go back to her little club where she sits with the other elementary school teachers making up non-existent school supply items for us to buy next – like a 13-inch ruler or a 7-count pack of all purple Crayola markers.

13 Interesting Tidbits About My Week

2008-08-14T00:09:00.004-02:00

1. Everyone in our house is now wearing regular underwear. Holla!!

2. When I tell my daughter to be sure and wipe after she goes potty, I really need to specify that she do it with toilet paper and not the kitchen towel.

3. After four years of using a flashlight when I went up in the attic, my husband today informed me that there was a light in the attic. It took him four freaking years to tell me that.

4. Don’t leave a library book sitting on the same desk as a pen. At least don’t do it when you have a 3-year-old in the house.

5. When you lose the library’s copy of the Meet Blue’s Baby Brother, you have to pay them $16.99.

6. A 16-count box of crayons is damn near impossible to find. I’ve decided that teachers are f*cking with us when they make the supply lists.

7. My husband sending me to the store to buy any garage item is the same as me sending him to the store to buy maxi pads. It shouldn’t be done.

8. When PMSing, I can justify eating a tub of cookie dough.

9. Eli and I had a long conversation about how the toothfairy knows she has a tooth to pick up. We decided she is either notified by email or she has a watch that beeps.

10. I’m looking for business attire to wear on my New York trip next month, and I realized that things have changed a little bit in the last six years (the last time I needed business attire).

11. I discovered that it doesn't matter if you haven't seen someone for two years - they're still going to invite you to their Mary Kay party.

12. I have realized that the more my daughter’s little attitude increases, the more I start channeling my mother. I can’t tell you how many times I have recently said, “Watch your tone, young lady!”

13. If promised sexual favors, my husband can put up an entire wallpaper boarder in one hour.

Wordless Wednesday - Sisters

2008-08-13T00:01:00.001-02:00

Andrea and Stacey

My two best friends in the world!!

Water Sports

2008-08-12T00:36:00.004-02:00

Okay, I have to ask, who else thinks Michael Phelps freaking rocks out loud!!! I am really enjoying the Olympics. Eli is not. Today, he came in whining, “Isn’t this almost over?” When I said, “No, it’s on for two whole weeks,” I thought his eyes were going to bug out of his head.

Georgia seems to be getting into it a little bit more. She really seems to enjoy the gymnastics and the diving – anything where people are flipping and twisting. This evening, she was watching the diving and just said, “Ohhhh Mama, I don’t want to do that.”

The kids have been enjoying water sports of their own. We went to a birthday party yesterday. My best friend Stacey’s daughter turned 5. They had a big water slide set up in the backyard. I tried desperately to get a decent picture of Eli coming down the slide. I think I am just cursed. This is the shot I got of my son:

This is the shot I got of my friend’s son:

Dude! What the hell? How come I can get great shots of other people’s kids, but never my own? I just don’t get it.

After the water slide, all the kids went in to play dress-up. All the girls dressed up like princesses. Now, here is something I didn’t really notice until we lined the kids up for the picture. There were a couple of little boys there who were two and younger, but here is a picture of all of the non-baby children in attendance.

Yes, that is my son on the end. Stacey seemed to feel bad that he was the only boy, but let me tell you. Eli was LOVING it. Is it wrong that he’s only 6, and he’s already such a player?

Manic Monday - Boil

2008-08-11T00:01:00.001-02:00

We decided to take the kids to the zoo this weekend because it was Member’s Day, which meant free doughnuts! Holla! Plus, it wasn’t boiling hot. Unfortunately, it started pouring down rain while we were there. I think if I had to choose between boiling hot and pouring rain, I will choose rain. Less crowded.

Aside from the weather, we did have a good time. Eric got attacked by an army of really freaky looking spiders. Last time we were at the zoo, he was attacked by bats. He gets annoyed with me for laughing at his terror. I’m sorry, but it’s always fun to hear him scream like a girl!

Eli was chasing the peacocks, which was scaring the hell out of me. I just knew at any moment they were going to turn on him and start clawing. (At least that seems to be the reaction of our cats when Eli chases them.)

I kept taking pictures of signs. I can’t help it. Signs make me laugh. Does anyone else find it amusing that there’s a camel attendant? Maybe I’m just entertained easily.

We stayed at the zoo until Georgia’s temper started to boil over. She always gets to the point where she refuses to walk and has to be carried or she will scream. That’s about the time we head to the car. At least this time, she lasted longer than last time. Progress! I did get a great picture of Eric holding her. I think I may print it out and frame it:

Double Time

2008-08-08T00:01:00.000-02:00

Some days I feel like the kids haven’t been out of the house enough, so I try to be a good mom and take them out. Then I remember why we don’t go anywhere. We had three simple stops to make: we had to check on a friend’s house because they’re out of town, we had to get gas, and we had to make a (in theory) quick stop at the grocery store. We were gone two freaking hours. I don’t know why everything has to take twice as long as I think it’s going to.

First, we stopped at my friend’s house. All we needed to do was a quick walk-through. The kids, however, found it necessary to play with every toy they saw in the house. That caused me to run in a panic to put things away only to catch them going through a closet. I got Eli out of the closet, and by the time I drug Georgia out, Eli had discovered the piano. Crap. That stop took much longer than it should have.

Then, we stopped to get gas. Eli can’t just sit in the car. He has to “help” by washing the windows with that damn window cleaner. The problem is that he doesn’t use the squeegee part, so I end up with dirty water all over my windows and dripping down my car. Plus it takes him way longer to “clean” the windows than it does for me to get gas, so we have to sit there and wait on him to get done.

After that, we made our last stop at HyVee where I only had five items on the list. I chose to go to HyVee because they have those shopping carts that look like cars, and the kids will actually ride in them. Well, today when we walked in, there was only one “car” left, and a woman was already situating her five kids in it. Dude! She needed it more than I did. Georgia didn’t see it that way. She stood right in front of them and screamed, “NOOO! THAT’S MINE! I WANT IN THAT ONE!” I had to drag her away from them. It’s always fun when you’re child starts the screaming in the entrance way in front of all the cash registers.

The screaming finally subsided, but since the kids weren’t riding in the cart, they ran around like crazy people. There were tons of samples out today, and the kids went nuts over them, which I find really interesting considering they won’t eat at home. Maybe I should start putting all their food in those little sample cups. Hmmm . . .

So, anyway, two hours later, we walked back in the door, and I was exhausted. I think tomorrow, we’ll just stay home.

13 Things I'm Addicted to on Facebook

2008-08-07T01:00:00.004-02:00

Okay, dammit, Facebook is about the biggest distraction I have when I’m trying to work. They’re evil, I tell you! Evil! Here are a few of the things that suck me in.

1. Scrabble – Scrabulous is gone, so now it’s just Scrabble. And Morgen continuously kicks my ass, but I’ll sit there and look at that damn board for 20 minutes when I should be working.

2. WordTwist – It’s some bad ju ju, baby! This is the most addictive thing I have found since coffee. I have one friend with a higher score than me in ladder mode, and I just can’t let it go! I must beat her!

3. Food Fling – It took one damn person to fling chocolate mousse at me, and now I can’t stop.

4. Scramble – I’m not as addicted to this as WordTwist, but it’s right up there.

5. Name it! – This one really tests your knowledge. And it's addictive. Damn my friends for inviting me to play these games.

6. The Quizzes – Because I kick ass on anything related to 80’s movies!

7. Flair – I spent about 30 minutes yesterday organizing my flair board. It’s pathetic.

8. Greenpatch – I swear to God, sending and receiving Greenpatch plants is about half of what I do. And I’ve still only saved like 4 feet of rain forest.

9. Send Coffee – I don’t really Superpoke anymore, I just send people fun coffee. It’s much more satisfying.

10. Music – I recently discovered you could add music to your page. If you want to listen to some classic Goo, check my page out!

11. Groups – I love the groups that I am in – you can find something for whatever you’re interested in. My favorite group is entitled, “I judge you when you use poor grammar.”

12. Friend Updates – I really enjoy the friends who update this every day. Either I’m really a voyeur, or I’m just really freaking nosy!

13. Bumper Stickers – Oh, dude! It’s almost as bad as the flair.

Wordless Wednesday - Waterbug

2008-08-06T00:02:00.000-02:00

An Exciting Day

2008-08-05T01:15:00.003-02:00

Today was such an eventful day. I received a phone call early this morning from the company I work for (WikiAnswers), and they asked me to attend the Supervisors Conference next month in New York City. All expenses paid. Holla!! I can’t tell you how excited I am! I have never been to NYC before, and I am thrilled. This will be the first time I have left the kids, and the first time I have traveled by myself, so I am way out of my comfort zone on this one. All the more reason for me to go. Yippee!!

In my excitement, I noticed that the kids were incredibly bored this morning. It was over 100 here today, and the kids were feeling like caged animals since it was too hot to do anything. I packed them up and we headed to Wonderscope Children’s Museum for a couple of hours, where Georgia proceeded to find several boys in the age range of 8-10 to follow around and play with. Dude! She’s falling for the older guys already? Some days, visions of the teenage years just scare the hell out of me.

After Wonderscope, we hit McDonald’s on the way home, where Eli desperately wanted an apple pie. I got apple pies for everyone since it had been so long since I’ve had one. They’re so different now! What happened to the McDonald’s apple pies of yesteryear? You know the ones I’m talking about! The ones that were deep-fried into a hard crunchy shell, and they were so freaking hot that you blistered your mouth when you bit into it and the boiling filling oozed out all over you. Damn, those were good! Is that sad that I prefer the deep-fried, hot-ass apple pies as opposed to the new mouth-friendly version?

Here is the old-school apple pie:

And here is the new one. They're baked now! WTF?!

Manic Monday - Big

2008-08-04T00:02:00.000-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is big, and I think it’s just Morgen’s personal test to see if I can control my dirty mind and actually write about something clean. I think I can do it, although it’s going to be hard. Big and hard. (Stop that!)

I can just tell you about the big weekend we’ve had around here. I was invited to a jewelry party last night, and I told myself before I went that I was not going to spend a big amount of money. I was only going to buy two pairs of earrings, and that was it! Well, out came the alcohol. The hostess had one of those big buckets of slushy margaritas. Yum! She seemed to know how to market it. With the big bucket of margaritas and the big box of wine, everyone at the party ended up making some big purchases. I ended up getting four items (Bad Neila), but at least I had fun!

On Sunday, I woke up to find Eric shopping online for a big flat screen TV. We have a continuous argument about how big is too big. I think if we’re going to get a new TV, we need to get a big one. Eric doesn’t think a super big TV is necessary. Well, of course it’s not necessary! It’s a TV! Is that really even an argument? Since all the TV’s still seem to have big price tags, we are trying to comparison shop and get the best deal. Because once you buy a big TV, you need a new TV stand, and that leads to redecorating the family room, and then you’re just screwed. So we need to be frugal.

After that, we went to pick up pictures of the kids from my friend Nicole who is a photographer. You should check out her blog - she is uber-talented! Anyway, I ordered a 16x20, which was too big for her to mail. Honestly, it was a little bigger than I thought it was going to be, so I’m not quite sure where I’m going to hang a big ass poster size photo of my kids. But since they rarely take great photos together, I couldn’t resist getting it. It was just too perfect:

Simply Chic Eye Candy

2008-08-03T23:59:00.000-02:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not the most organized person in the world. However, I do try. I try really hard actually – organization just is not one of my strong suits. So, anytime a new product line comes along to help me get myself in order, my interest is definitely peaked.

Although I embrace electronic technology, I still prefer to use an actual planner, sticky notes, journals and folders. You know, the things you have to actually write in a pen with! Call me old fashioned. I would hazard a guess that even if you are one who is more electronically organized, you still churn out a lot of paper.

Since getting organized is not something we usually enjoy, Carolina Pad and Paper and Jacqueline Savage McFee have introduced two new lines of products to make getting organized fun, cool and chic with organizational tools that reflect your personality!! Mom Central teamed up with Jackie and Carolina Pad and Paper for this blog tour to help women get organized in style.

They sent me a box of several new Simply Chic and Eye Candy products, which my daughter is already trying to steal from me, including a note pad, datebook, magnets, journal, and organizational folders – all in fun and sassy colors and designs. I love the fun new designs! You should see the desk in my home office now. I’m organized, and it looks bright and fun!

These new lines of products specially designed for women and teens are available at Wal-Mart, so you can find these two beautiful lines at great prices! These stylish organizational tools are perfect for all women whether you work at home, at the office, at a power lunch, or if you’re just trying to keep your kids and family organized!

In addition, the team is currently running a “Glam Your Office Makeover Contest.” To help women and teens get organized in style, submit your best organizational tip by visiting http://www.carolinapad.com/. The 10 most original and creative entries will be featured on the Carolina Pad and Paper Web site’s “Get Organized” page, and the winners will receive:

Complete Eye Candy or Simply Chic office system
$100 gift card
1000 Best Quick and Easy Organizing Secrets by Jamie Novak

Visit http://www.carolinapad.com/ today, and good luck!!

Mommy needs a break!

2008-08-01T00:06:00.001-02:00

It has been a very long day. Just to give you an indication, here are a few comments I made today:

“Georgia! Be careful with that magic wand! It’s sharp!”

“Eli, stop screaming!”

“Georgia! Quit casting spells on your brother.”

“Don’t hug the cats so hard!”

“Did you poop in the sandbox?”

And there are so many more. The children were in rare form today. At first, I thought it was a good thing that they were going to play outside this afternoon because then I could concentrate on work. Ha!

Eli came in about 10 times, and I noticed that he is really becoming quite the tattle tail. ‘Georgia is throwing sand on the slide.’ ‘Georgia got in the mud.’ ‘Georgia pooped.’ ‘Georgia threw sand in my hair.’

At the last one, I asked, “Did you tell her to stop?”

Eli: “Um, well, no.”

Me: “Well, tell her to stop.”

Moments later, I heard Georgia screaming, so out I went to see Eli repeatedly kissing the top of her head while she was crying. I asked what happened and Eli said, “I hit her in the head to get her to stop throwing sand.” I just stood there and blinked at him. I didn’t even know what to say to that. Then Eli said, “But it’s okay, because I’m kissing it.”

I said, “Eli, it is NOT okay to hit your sister in the head!” He answered, “But she was throwing sand! And I thought it was okay to hit her in the head as long as I kissed it after.”

Okay, I never thought that me kissing their owies would actually end up having a negative effect on them. Before I know it, Eli’s gonna smack her upside the head and give her a concussion. A kiss won’t fix that.

I tried to explain to him that it is NEVER okay to hit your sister in the head.

His response? “Can I hit her on the arm?”

Gaaaaa!

13 Things About My Day

2008-07-31T00:26:00.004-02:00

1. Georgia had a major meltdown today in Micro Center. I don’t think they ever want me to return again if the children are with me. I could tell from their looks.

2. I wondered how long it would take someone to call 911 when I was dragging a crying girl to the car who was screaming, “NO! LET ME GOOOOO! I DON’T WANT TO GET IN THE CAR!!!”

3. Should a power adaptor for a laptop really take a visit to five different stores to locate?

4. Eli has a new expression that he picked up from me today – a very exasperated “Jesus Christ!” . . . Lovely.

5. If you drink Chlorophyll water, it makes your pee glow.

6. Three weeks until school starts. Can I get an Amen?!

7. Best Buy apparently has one adaptor for a Laptop, and a different one for a Notebook. I’m convinced they’re just trying to f*ck with me.

8. I discovered that I am out of vodka.

9. Why the hell does every store have a picture or even empty boxes of Wii Fits even thought they don’t actually have any Wii Fits?

10. Georgia only had one potty accident today, which would have been fine except she used my decorative palm tree towels to clean it up.

11. I found out that my husband will come close to hyperventilating if you tell him that I spent $30 for Georgia to get her hair cut.

12. I am still addicted to ebay. I just need to flat out block myself from the site.

13. I realized today that Eli has worn the same shirt for the last five days. This really has to change when kindergarten starts.

Wordless Wednesday - Olympic Team 2020

2008-07-30T01:19:00.004-02:00

Potty Palooza

2008-07-29T01:00:00.003-02:00

This weekend, we took the kids to yet another birthday party. A 5-year-old girl’s Hannah Montana-themed birthday party. This was the cake:

Okay, I knew Hannah Montana was popular, but when I went to the party I was surprised that there were girls there as young as three who knew ALL the words to the Hannah Montana songs! Dude! Then the presents ranged from anything and everything related to Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus or High School Musical. For a 5-year-old? I am out of touch. I thought 5-year-old girls were still into Dora. I have a lot to learn in the next two years.

On the homefront, we proclaimed this weekend Potty Palooza. Georgia began wearing big girl panties on Saturday. Okay, I did put her in a Pull-Up for the party, but other than that she wore her big girl panties. The first couple of times, she had it. She pulled her undies down and went potty. After about the third time, for some reason, she said, “screw it” and decided it was just easier to go in the big girl panties and them scream for me to change her. *sigh*

Sunday was a little better. This time she did well all day. She pulled her pants down every time to go pee in the potty. Then she had to poop, and she pulled her pants down and pooped in the middle of the living room.

Monday, there was again a poop incident, but this time she did try to go to the potty. She just didn’t quite make it. But we are making progress, right? I’m hoping that it’s going to completely click soon. Eventually, everyone in my house will be wearing regular underwear. Without incident! It will happen! I know it!

Manic Monday - Storm

2008-07-28T00:01:00.000-02:00

I love this week’s Manic Monday word – Storm – because this was one I could think of a few things to write about. My mind always seems to go to music first, but I will save that for the end.
I LOVE storms! Mid-summer, late evening thunderstorms are just about the best thing! I have a friend who moved to Seattle who told me that it never thunders there! What?! It rains all the time there, but no thunderstorms?! Dude, that is just not right!

Unfortunately, the storms have recently been working against us. Last weekend when we went out of town, we checked the weather, and there was only a 10 % chance of storms. Uh-huh. That 10 % chance managed to rain on us for the entire 4-hour trip. We even stopped once on the turnpike to look at the radar, and it was raining nowhere else except all along the interstate. Imagine that.

Then, this weekend I have had a serious craving for grilling out on the deck. Two days in a row, it has been perfectly sunny until we are just getting ready to cook out. Then it rains. Last night, the sky just opened up and let out a torrential downpour complete with thunder and lightning right after Eric put hamburgers on the grill, so he had to snatch them up and finish cooking them inside.

I try to pay attention to the weather, but honestly, how much good does that usually do? Even with all of that, I still love thunderstorms, as long as we don’t lose power. That is not cool.

On to the music. I recently made a lullaby CD to play for Georgia when she goes to sleep. One of the songs on it is Over The Rainbow sung by Harry Connick, Jr. (lurve him!). He sings it with a full orchestra, and at the beginning, the orchestra sounds like a big storm is rumbling. I wish I could find a clip of that on YouTube, it is super cool. Anyway, I made a copy of the CD for my 4-year-old niece, and later found out that the storm scared the crap out of her. I guess I need to be a little more careful when making mix CDs for children.

One of my favorite songs is Stay With You by the Goo Goo Dolls. You all know I am a Goo slut, so it shouldn’t surprise you that this came to my mind. The chorus is:

“I’ll stay with you
The walls will fall before we do
So take my hand now
We’ll run forever
I can feel the storm inside you
I’ll stay with you”

Fabulous song, freaking awesome video! See below.

Snacktivate!

2008-07-27T23:58:00.000-02:00

You may have read that I have recently been seeing a holistic nutritionist. I am really enjoying try to get healthy, but making those changes for my children have not been so easy. That is why I was thrilled when Mom Central teamed up with Kellogg’s for the Snacktivate Blog Tour!

Kellogg’s Snacktivate Web site offers great ideas and recipes for moms to make snack time healthy for children. Kellogg’s sent us two boxes of Frosted Mini-Wheats cereal and some recipes so I could try out a few healthy snack ideas. All of their ideas are great because they are all recipes kids can help with, and my kids are definitely more apt to try something new if they created it themselves.

My kids are like me in the fact that they looooove cookies. (I drool like Homer Simpson when I think of homemade cookies!) The day we received the boxes of Frosted Mini-Wheats in the mail, I made the their recipe of Sassy SunDrop Cookies, which can be found on their Web site. It is a basic peanut butter cookie recipe with crushed Mini-Wheats added to the batter. Just as a side note, I think the best way to crush the cereal is to put it in a large Ziploc bag and bang the hell out of it with the flat side of a meat tenderizer. That way you can be productive and take out some aggression – multi-tasking!

Those cookies were delicious!!! I actually made a double batch, and not just because between me and my two kids, we eat half the batter. In addition to the kids loving the cookies, my husband couldn’t stop eating them. I was happy that I found a sneaky way to get a little extra fiber and more vitamins into everyone’s diet.

In addition to the cereal, we also received a Kellogg’s snack cup in the mail. I have never seen anything like it!

Hello! Coolest thing EVER! If you love cereal like me (my absolute favorite cereal is Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Gold), this is great. You can freeze the bottom portion, and then pour your milk in it, so your milk will stay cold. The top cup screws onto it, and you add your cereal to that. On the go cereal!!! Awesome idea!

For more great healthy snacktime recipes, visit the Kellogg’s Snacktivate Web site. They offer recipes for quesadillas, muffins, parfaits, apple pie, you name it! In addition, the Snacktivate Web site offers comprehensive nutritional information and sensible snacking solutions. Visit their Web site today for some great ideas!

Now, I love peanut butter cookies, but I love chocolate chip cookies even more. So, I created my own recipe for Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies (below), using the crushed Mini-Wheats. They are YUM-O!!!

1 cup butter-flavored Crisco
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 beaten eggs
2 ½ cups wheat flour
1 cups crushed Frosted Mini-Wheats
1 12 oz. bag chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Cream Crisco and sugars together. Add baking soda, salt, vanilla and beaten eggs. Mix well. Add wheat flour, and stir it in. Add crushed cereal and chocolate chips and mix thoroughly.

3. Form dough into walnut-sized balls, and place on cookie sheet. Press them down with a greased fork in a criss-cross pattern (same as peanut butter cookies), or just flatten them a little bit with the palm of your hand.

4. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to a wire rack until they are completely cool. Enjoy!!

Rambling Friday

2008-07-25T00:28:00.002-02:00

It was the last day of Mom’s Day Out, and the pedicure won! I hit up Beauty Brands this morning, and now I sit here with purple toenails. All is right with the world. And I didn’t even have to feel guilty because I had a gift certificate.

After that I went and spent $40 on my luxury purchase of gas! It’s really sad that I got excited because gas was ONLY $3.87 on the Missouri side.

Anyway, once I pick the kids up from Mom’s Day Out, they are always exhausted. You’d think that would be a good thing, right? Nope. Not my offspring. Georgia fell asleep on the way home, and all you moms know what that means. If your kid sleeps for 10 minutes in the car, that is their nap for the day. Yeah, no way in hell was she going back to sleep when we got home. So, that meant I had two very tired, very cranky kids on my hands who began fighting about everything, including such important issues as who got to hug the cat or who got to put the broom away.

At one point I banned the kids from watching anymore DVDs because I couldn’t handle the argument of whether they were going to watch Speed Racer or Backyardigans. After I announced the DVD ban, they left the room for about 30 seconds, and I immediately heard a Backyardigans DVD start up on the office computer. I went in there to find the kids sitting on the office chair, and I glared at them. Eli said, “I didn’t do it. It just started all by itself.”

I said, “Really? You mean the DVD jumped out of the case and into the computer and started playing all by itself, and you never even touched it?”

Eli said, “Exactly!” My sarcasm is lost on him. Although I am glad he is such a bad liar. I hope that skill doesn’t improve before high school.

Once they settled down, I continued on my quest to get my family healthy by making a dinner of citrus tilapia and brown rice with almonds. They bypassed that and began screaming because I wouldn’t let them have taffy.

I think I am ready for another Mom’s Day Out.

Neila's Random Thursday 13

2008-07-24T00:36:00.003-02:00

You could say I got creative this week, or stole a page out of Mo’s book, or just flat out couldn’t think of 13 things to write about.

1. Eli desperately needs a haircut and I refuse to spend $20 when I can do it myself. The problem is – he HATES having his hair cut. I asked him today what it would take for him to sit still while I cut his hair. He looked me square in the eye and said, “75 cents.” It’s nice to know he has a price.

2. Today is my last “Mom’s Day Out” for the summer. I can’t decide if I should do something productive or just say ‘screw it’ and go see The Dark Knight.

3. I could also get a pedicure – that falls under “productive,” right?

4. Is there anyone who actually likes the show Little Bear on Noggin?

5. You would think that since I work from home, there wouldn’t be a time when I feel the urge to smack a co-worker, right? Wrong.

6. Less than one month until The Goo Goo Dolls, Volume 2 comes out on August 19th. I have already pre-ordered my copy. I am so excited!

7. I never believed my stylist when she said I needed a $100 flat iron to get my hair straight. Then I finally broke down and bought one. She was right. The Croc iron is a freaking miracle!

8. I would really like to know why healthy foods are so freaking expensive! I just paid almost $6.00 a pound for Rainier cherries. This annoys me because they jack up the prices so high that no one buys it. Then it goes rotten, and they have to throw it out. Does this make sense to anyone?

9. If you can’t afford to spend $6.00 a pound for cherries, you could always go buy some bulk Brach’s candy. That’s only $3.00 a pound.

10. I am so excited that Project Runway is back on. This has nothing to do with the massive girl crush I have on Heidi Klum.

11. Georgia’s quote of the day was when she stomped up to me in her princess shoes and loudly stated, “Excuse me! But I am NOT a monster!” And stomped away. . . oooookay.

12. I learned that you can add fiber to your diet easily by crushing up Mini-Wheats and using them in recipes!

13. I had a hypnotherapy appointment last night, and my therapist is awesome. This is just one of the reasons I love her. She showed up in tight jeans, a bullet belt, a sheer black shirt and black bra, and dark make-up. She had a “gig” right after our appointment (her husband is in a band), and she knew I wouldn’t mind if she was herself. I love her!

Wordless Wednesday - Princess Georgia

2008-07-23T00:18:00.002-02:00

This place is a zoo!

2008-07-22T01:13:00.003-02:00

We took the kids to the zoo this weekend with Eric’s parents, his sister, and her kids. The zoo always sounds like a good idea in theory. Then when I get there and it’s the middle of July, I realize that it is f*cking hot! (I get irate in upper-90 degree heat.) It also doesn’t help that the stroller is a very distant memory for Georgia.

That is something I don’t understand. She doesn’t want to ride in the stroller, but she doesn’t want to walk either. I had to carry her through the whole zoo because she didn’t want anyone else but mommy. I tried many times to tell her that daddy needed love, too, but when Eric did tried to hold her, she was not happy:

The kids did seem to have a good time. I suppose I would have had a better time if someone was carrying my ass all over the zoo, but I digress.

The kids loved the petting area. I discovered that Georgia likes to hug the goats and lay on them just like she does our cats. Except the goats aren’t nearly as tolerant as the cats are. I had never seen a goat actually buck a small child. (Said goat is pictured below before the “incident”.)

Luckily, we escaped the petting zoo without injury. As we were leaving the zoo, we asked Eli what his favorite part was. Guess what he said. “The lady making the snow cones. That was cool!”

Manic Monday - Lick

2008-07-21T00:04:00.001-02:00

Sorry, I couldn’t resist! That is one of my favorite Johnny photos! I really think Morgen – our fearless Manic Monday leader – was testing us this week to find out how many Manic Monday Minions have a dirty mind. Come on! I know I’m not the only one! When I asked my husband to help me think of something clean to post for Lick, he paused, gave me a naughty smirk and said, “I really don’t think I’m the best person to ask.”

After much thought, I did finally think of something. Ice cream! We have been enjoying a lot of ice cream this summer because the kids both received coupons for their birthdays from Baskin Robbins and Cold Stone Creamery. (I drool at the thought of their cake batter ice cream.)

Eating ice cream with Georgia is always a challenge because she only licks one side of the cone. I have to be very sneaky about licking the other side of the cone before rivers of ice cream stream down Georgia’s arm. I discovered this weekend, when I bought her a snow cone at the zoo, that she licks snow cones exactly the same as she licks ice cream cones. Without nearly as much success.

Speaking of ice cream, I got very excited by Ben and Jerry’s lately when I heard they were coming out with a new limited edition:

This ice cream is only available in the scoop shops until July 25! I will be there tomorrow! Is it sad that I get this excited about ice cream?

Tales From The Potty

2008-07-18T00:54:00.001-02:00

And my attempts to potty train Georgia continue. Dude! She starts preschool the day after Labor Day. I have a little over one month with her, and she must have it down! I don’t think they would buy it if I just sent her to preschool, said she was potty trained and then acted shocked when she had an accident every single day. Or maybe I could try that. Hmmm . . .

At home, she does not wear pants. This tactic worked with Eli – naked from the waist down. With Georgia, that even works better because I bought her lots of little fun summer dresses, so you really can’t tell that she doesn’t have pants on. If I don’t put pants on her, she goes potty. So, we’re half way there.

Occasionally, I try putting regular panties on her. The first few times I tried that, she peed right through them. She didn’t get that you were supposed to pull them down to go potty. I tried again on Tuesday. She had on her little sundress and panties, and every time she needed to potty, she pulled the panties down! Woo hoo! Did she finally get it? Did it click? Is it possible the universe could be so kind to me?

Tuesday evening after a full day of success, we took the kids to the library. I took Georgia to the potty right before we left the house, and I decided to leave on her panties since she had been doing so well all day.

Picture this. We are in the middle of the (fully carpeted) library. Georgia was standing next to me, and all of a sudden I hear someone pouring water. Hmm . .. that’s odd. Then I looked down. Georgia was standing there, her legs slightly spread, and the biggest torrential downpour of pee I have ever seen was streaming out of her, flooding the carpet.

I gasped and snatched her up, wrapping her legs around my waist. I mean if she’s going to be, hopefully it would be less noticeable to those around us if she peed on me rather than in the middle of the floor.

Now, here is something I wish for you. I hope you are never in a dilemma in which the optimum choice is to have your child pee all over you.

I ran with Georgia to the restroom and sat her on the potty – not that that did any good since she was all finished by then. I pocketed her soaked panties – I mean what the hell, right? I was already soaked in pee. And I tried to subtley leave the library with urine-soaked clothing and a half naked 3-year-old.

Eric was waiting outside for me. Laughing his ass off.

Okay, so in retrospect it probably was funny. But still, I hope next time Georgia pees all over daddy.

13 Photos We Took At Eli's Chuck E. Cheese Party

2008-07-17T00:21:00.015-02:00

1. Eli with his friend Jack and mechanical Chuck E. Cheese.

2. Georgia was happy before she got near the scary ass Chuck E. Cheese.

3. Then she had a melt down.

4. Eli loves playing the games.

5. Here is one of his favorites - the roller coaster game.

6. Eli and his girlfriend Savannah. This gives me a visual of what things will be like in 10 years!
7. Yay! Time for cake!

8. More mechanical Chuck E. Cheese fun until . . .

9. The real Chuck E. Cheese came out.

10. In this shot, you can see our bored hostess.11. Eli was just happy that Chuck E. Cheese gave him a medal.12. Then it was time for presents!

13. Woo hoo!

Nearly Wordless Wednesday - The Alien and The Princess

2008-07-16T01:28:00.003-02:00

We went to Red Robin last night, and the balloon lady was there. Eli asked for an alien, and Georgia asked for a princess. Doesn't that just say so much?

The Chuck E. Cheese Experience

2008-07-15T00:29:00.003-02:00

I have been to Chuck E. Cheese (CEC) before, when Eli has begged me until I gave in. This year, he decided that is where he wanted his birthday party. No matter how hard I tried (and trust me – I REALLY tried), I could not talk him out of it.

Yesterday was the big day. 10 kids, 11 adults, and a CEC hostess that looked like she was just about bored to tears. Seriously. For what they charge for parties at that place, they should at least hire employees who can muster a smile.

Other than a couple of little hiccups, the party seemed to go smoothly. One of our adult guests did get chastised by a CEC manager for going to the salad bar when salad wasn’t included with the party. I’m glad our guest didn’t get kicked out, but if he had – what an entertaining story that would have been!

(My TT this week will be 13 pictures we took at CEC, so check back on Thursday.)

Anyway, the kids seemed to have a great time. Except for Georgia. Our party table was located right in front of the big, animatronic Chuck E. Cheese. That thing scared the living shit out of my daughter. Admittedly, Chuck E. Cheese is a little scary, but Georgia was freaked. She wouldn’t sit at the table – I had to take her to a table towards the back to get her to stop screaming. I sat her by grandma and tried to go back up front to take pictures, but Georgia seemed to be worried that I would be attacked by the giant scary mouse and started screaming again.

If I thought that was bad, about an hour into the party, the real Chuck E. Cheese (i.e. person in a CEC suit) came out to greet the kids, hug them, and sing Happy Birthday.

Georgia flipped the f*ck out! She ran, screaming, “NO! NO! NO! NO!” Seriously, she was running as if she were being chased by Jack the Ripper. I picked her up, and the poor girl was shaking like a leaf. I felt so bad for her. I tried to explain how mommy wouldn’t let CEC hurt her, but she was having none of it. If I took one step back toward the party, she started screaming again.

So, the moral of the story is this. Eli had the best birthday ever, and informed me that he wants to have his party at Chuck E. Cheese every year. But, that trip Eric has been wanting us to take to DisneyWorld is definitely out. I don’t think poor little Georgia would be able to handle it.

Manic Monday - Bug

2008-07-14T00:02:00.000-02:00

This week’s Manic Monday word is Bug! Yay, a Manic Monday word that doesn’t bug me when I try to think of something to write. (ba doom ching)

If any of you have little boys, you may be experiencing some of what I am going through this summer. My six-year-old LOVES bugs. Actually, it’s not just bugs – it’s pretty much anything that is alive and crawling . . . or flying for that matter. I have noticed that in the last few weeks, my mantra (which was previously “Look with your eyes not with your hands.”) has now become “All bugs stay outside!”

I think I am going to have to alter that mantra just a little bit because Eli is extremely literal. One afternoon I was working on my laptop while the kids were playing in the backyard. Eli comes in and shoves his hand in front of my face and says, “Mama! Look!”

He was holding one of the biggest freaking spiders I had ever seen about two centimeters from my face. Of course, I let out a blood-curdling scream so loud that I’m sure it was heard across town. I’m sorry, but the spider scared the crap out of me. Unfortunately, my screaming scared Eli so much that he jumped . . . and dropped the spider, which went scurrying under the coffee table.

NOT. COOL.

I seriously don’t do spiders! My first apartment in college was infested with daddy long legs. It was like living in Arachnophobia. I hated those damn things. And why is it that spiders like to achieve that element of surprise? They’re always popping up when you least expect it!

But, I digress. After Eli set a spider loose in the house, he said, “But Mama. You said that all BUGS have to stay outside. You didn’t say anything about spiders!” I informed him that included spiders. I said, “No bugs, spiders, roly polies, ladybugs, june bugs, fireflies, or anything that flies.”

So after that, guess what I found out last night? As Eli came in and shoved his hand under my face, saying, “Look Mama!” I realized that I forgot to say worms. *sigh*

Strawberry Explosion

2008-07-13T23:58:00.000-02:00

Strawberries must be my absolute favorite fruit! I love just about anything that has strawberries in it or that is strawberry-flavored!

Recently, Mom Central teamed up with the California Strawberry Commission to spread the word about all the wonderful benefits of strawberries, plus fun strawberry facts to share with your kids, and fun interactive games to play on the Web at Strawberryville.com.

Did you know that California growers pick about 6 million crates of strawberries each week to ship to grocery stores nationwide? So, what do we do with these wonderful strawberries?

Take advantage of the hundreds of strawberry recipes that can be found here. Whether you enjoy strawberry shortcake, strawberry drinks, desserts, or strawberry salads (my favorite is the strawberry chicken salad), the California Strawberry Commission has hundreds of recipes absolutely free for you and your family to enjoy.

Not only are strawberries the most delicious fruit out there (in my opinion), but they also have numerous health benefits. Here are just a few things that moms should know:

• Strawberries contain powerful antioxidants.
• One serving of strawberries contains more vitamin C than one orange.
• Strawberries help fight some types of cancer, lower blood pressure, and reduce the risk of heart disease.
• Strawberries aid in memory function, and help prevent Alzheimer’s.
• Strawberries decrease stress and inflammation.

If your kids are picky eaters (like mine), you can find a way to serve them strawberries by trying one of the many recipes found on CSC’s Web site. In addition, they also have a lot of fun strawberry facts to share with your kids. Increasing their knowledge of strawberries will make eating them more fun!

Here are a few fun facts to share:

• If you lined up all of the strawberries grown in California in one straight line, they would wrap around the Earth 15 times.
• There are about 200 seeds on the outside of each strawberry.
• California harvests over a billion pounds of strawberries each year.
• One acre of land (about the size of one football field) grows about 50,000 pounds of strawberries - that's the same weight as 4 elephants!

Visit http://www.strawberryville.com/ today for more fun facts and fun strawberry games. For more information and recipes, visit http://www.calstrawberry.com/.

All together now – Ewwww!

2008-07-11T01:13:00.001-02:00

Do you ever have a day where your children do something, and you wonder what happened to the brain that God gave them? Eli has something new he started doing the other day.

I was sitting in the family room, and he came out of the bathroom with a big wad of wet toilet paper in his hand. I said, “WHAT are you doing?” He explained that he decided to throw the toilet paper away in the trash can rather than in the toilet. After he used the bathroom, he used the toilet paper and then put it in the toilet. Then dug it all out of the toilet (I won’t go into how disgusting this was – you can imagine), wrung it out and brought it into the family room.

I was trying to be calm. I said, “Eli, YUCK! Toilet paper stays IN the toilet! Why would you take it out?” Then I got the answer that is really beginning to annoy me.

“I dunno.” Gaaa!

I explained about germies, and how we don’t stick our hands in the toilet (Ewwww!), and Eli said he wouldn’t do it again.

Fast forward to yesterday. I was on the phone with one of my best friends, and I had to go to the bathroom. (Come on, you’ve all gone to the bathroom when you’re talking on the phone. Don’t pretend you haven’t.) However, I didn’t flush, because I didn’t want the person on the other end to hear the toilet flushing.

I was on the phone for a few more minutes, and as I was hanging up, here comes Eli out of the bathroom with a big wad of toilet paper, asking “Mama, why did you waste all this toilet paper?” Yes, he had dug every last bit of it out of the toilet. This time Eric was home. It was very entertaining to see the look of horror on his face when he realized what Eli was doing.

This time Eric talked to Eli and scrubbed his hands clean. We got the same, “I won’t do it again.” Uh-huh. I certainly hope not. I would just really like to know where Eli developed a sudden fascination with toilet paper.