My two youngest kids are always trying to beat the other in telling someone about...well, anything. They are always clamoring to be the first to recount a story or tell about a new purchase.
Yesterday, Bubba bought a new toilet seat. (Fun times in our house, huh?) I got home from work and went to the bathroom. I was sitting on the potty and Jameson comes flying in the bathroom and says, "Mommy, did you see that thing?" "What thing, buddy?" "That thing you're sitting on?" Mr. Obvious, himself.
When we got home later after picking Braelyn up from school, she had to use the bathroom. Because nobody, save for Brianna, knows anything about privacy, the door was open. Jameson hears here in there and he hurdles everything in his way to get to her.
"Bay-win!" (yeah, the speech still leaves a little to be desired) "Did you see that thing?"
I'm not really celebrating, but I thought I would mention that my last post was my 1000th on this blog! Yay, me! It only took me 3 years. What is that? An average of 333 posts per year? Not bad, I guess.
Anyway, what I really wanted to tell show you all is my new plaything. See? See?
Please ignore my crazy hair and ginormous forehead. Photogenic I am not.
Yes, I know it's no Canon Rebel DSLR, but this is a serious upgrade for me. I am sooooooooo excited. Even though it's still in the box. I don't really have the time to devote to learning all about it tonight. You know, 'cause American Idol is on and then I have to go to bed early because I have to work at 5am. For tonight, I will lovingly gaze at the beautiful blue box.
In other news...it's BAAA-ACK! Diet Dr Pepper Cherry Vanilla is back in 2 liters at my Wal-mart! If only they would now get rid of that cherry chocolate sh...er..crap and bring back my berries and cream! (just how many times can I actually blog about Dr Pepper?)
When we got home from Wal-mart earlier, I almost immediately made myself a wonderful ice cold glass and when I opened the 2 liter and that tell tale **fiiizzzz* sound came out I hear Bubba's voice from the back room, "Did I just hear the crack pipe?"
My mom has multiple health problems. Recently, she's had trouble with falling as she tries to stand up or sit down, so my dad bought her a lift chair so she can get up and down easier.
I was over at their house yesterday and just had to try out this chair and all it's bells and whistles. It has heat and massage in 3 'zones.' It's pretty cool as these things go.
Of course, the kids wanted a turn as well. So, Braelyn and Jameson hopped up into the chair and I turned on the massage feature. Zone 3 is the seat, so I turned it on. Jameson's eyes got wide and he grabbed at his crotch and said, "Mommy! I feel it on my pee pee! Turn it off!"
Remind me not to take him over there when he is a teenager.
Today is the first contest for Brianna's winter guard. Here's a sneak preview of the show if you care to watch. It's not a real clean performance, but you can sort of see the whole cyborg thing going on. The music is odd and somewhat annoying, but the kids love it. We'll just see what the judges think.
It is soooooo cold outside. Yet I still dragged (drug?) my family out in the cold in search of the perfect pen. You see, I have a favorite pen at work. I love this pen. We used to be able to order refills for this pen and all was right with the world. Then, the company I work for was bought out by a much bigger corporation. They are much more aware of the little things and we no longer can get refills for that pen. I ran out of my last (hoarded) refill yesterday. It was a sad, sad day in my world.
Today, Bubba drove all over town (literally) looking for refills for my pen. There was none to be found. I got off at 1:30 today so after I got home, we loaded back up in the van and while Jameson got his hair cut, (a very bad haircut, I might add, but that's a different story) Braelyn and I went in Staples. No luck. So, after a trip to Wal-mart for a few other things, I came home and searched the all powerful, ever-knowing internet.
The kids in Staples as I searched for the perfect pen.
Cue the angelic chorus for I have found my pen!!! Ok, well, it's My Favorite Pen v2.0, anyway. It's been sort of redesigned, but it's close enough! I ordered 2 each for me and my friend Shonda at work who also loves this pen as much as I. (and no, I am NOT going to tell or show which pen I am talking about because I don't want everyone to point and laugh....any more than you already are!) I also ordered several refills for both of us.
That alone made this a very good day.
Buuut, that is not what I was going to write about. I was going to tell you how stinking COLD it is here. It's 3 degrees with windchill of -7. I know it could be colder, but it feels pretty dang cold out there with that wind blowing!
We went to watch Brianna and the guard do a dress rehearsal of their show. Again, we were out traipsing in the cold. We parked and headed up to the school and Bubba started running to the doors. Braelyn and Jameson laughed and were running a little way behind him and Braelyn shouts, "DADDY CAN RUN!"
To which Jameson said, "Mommy can too 'cause when the phone rings she runs to get it."
This is the mask and hat which the winter guard will be wearing as part of their "cyborg" costumes this year. Yes, that's Brianna wearing them. Though, they have since gotten rid of the red over the eye as it severely interfered with their depth perception. That doesn't bode well when one is throwing heavy wooden rifles around.
21 days into Blog365 and I am hurtin'. But it's just a lull. So, I decided to do Manic Monday. Yep, it's a meme. Memes are necessary sometimes. At least in my little world.
If you had to be named after one of the 50 states, which would it be? I think I'd pick Nebraska. Then, I'd have everyone call me Braski. Hey, at least it would be unique.
Where do you go for advice? I'm not really one to ask for advice. I was going to say, 'my blog readers' but I really don't do that. I might ask Bubba for advice on occasion. Mostly, I go to the internets. Scary, huh?
What is the sickest you've ever been? After I had Brianna (17 years ago!), I got a 'spinal headache' from the epidural. (really, I have no idea what it's called, but it sounds good enough.) My head hurt so badly that I couldn't hold it up at all. I was puking and crying and I couldn't take care of Brianna. This was the first night I was home with her and it was awful. I ended up having to go back to the hospital so they could fix me with another epidural, but this time, they used my own blood and it "patched" the problem.(again, I have forgotten the terms for this stuff.) Headache gone.
I totally forgot to do Fridge Friday. Maybe this week. How exciting can one fridge be from week to week, anyway?
The new season of Rock of Love pretty much bites. But, it's a train wreck and I can't look away.
I love Friday Night Lights, but everybody knows that. Why can't Riggins catch a break? Why won't Tyra just admit she loves Landry? Why won't Julie grow out those awful bangs? When will Matt Saracen speak a sentence without stammering? How is it that Coach Taylor is so dang HOT?
I am excited for Jericho to come back, finally. Jake's brother (whose name I forget) still looks like Peyton Manning (with a beard) to me.
Edited to add: Yay for TK and Rachel on The Amazing Race! I was happy they won!
The Winter Guard Season has begun. Be prepared for photos and stories. You've been warned.
I really, really want Hillary Clinton to disappear from every TV station. Is that too much to ask?
As you can see, it's been a pretty uneventful weekend. I've got nothin' else.
Before we left for Weight Watchers today, I told Brianna that I felt like I had gained a pound or a pound and a half. I had the munchies ALL WEEK!
So, we get to WW and I step up on the scale and watch her write down the number and I am squinting and almost ready to rub my eyes to make sure I saw it right! The WW girl ('cause you know, that's her official title) said, "6 pounds." Huh? Oh. My. Heck.
That throws me up over 20 pounds gone! It's actually 22 pounds!!! (22 POINT something, but I am too lazy right now to go get my WW stuff to look.) I was practically dancing right there by the scales!
If I lose a half pound I will be into the next "decade" of poundage. You know, 50s, 60s, 70s! I am giddy!
I haven't been at this weight for probably 6 years. After I had Jameson, I briefly lost some weight and was about 20 pounds lower than I am now, but, man, it's been a long long time!
Oh, and see that picture up there? Yep, that's me and my jeans that are way too big for me now! There is still a thunder thigh in there, but my jeans ARE TOO BIG! Do you understand how long it's been since something was too big on me?!
Dreams fascinate me. I have some pretty funky dreams. Take last night for instance.
We (not sure who was with me) were outside and there were a whole bunch of hot air balloons in the sky. But, all the balloons were pulling away from the baskets and flying away. We could see all these hot air balloon baskets now without balloons and as they came closer, we could see that they were able to stay afloat because each basket was actually a sort of stationary bike. As long as each passenger kept peddling, they could keep from crashing to the earth and then land easily. Though I didn't feel the wind, it was blowing very hard. We watched as another balloon way up in the sky was blown very quickly by in the wind.
So, now, it is apparent in the dream that we are actually standing in the alley behind my parents' house watching all this balloon craziness happen.
Next, we see one of the bike/baskets coming down closer and it seems as if the lady peddling is getting very tired and it is obvious that she will crash if she doesn't keep up. She starts reaching for an electrical pole and I am saying, "She's going to get electrocuted!" but she keeps reaching for the pole and then I start screaming, "Noooo!" The woman finally reaches the pole and grabs on, wrapping her arms and legs around it and it starts buzzing and it does electrocute her.
The end. I woke up. I was completely freaked out.
What the H?
So, tell me, what does all that symbolize? Just that I am a freak? The subconscious mind is an odd thing.
While watching the train wreck that is the American Idol auditions, this guy came on screen.
He was ridiculous and pointless, of course. Paula told him his chest hair was distracting and somehow it was decided he should go get it waxed and come back. So he did. The cameras followed him, of course, and showed him get it done. He came back and looked equally stupid like this.
Braelyn and I were watching together and after the guy came back hairless, she said, "That boy had to do that because he must have been eating LOTS of onions!"
It took me a second and then I had to laugh and hug her because she's been listening to her daddy WAY too much. He tells them often that eating onions will put hair on their chest. I'm PRETTY sure this is why none of my kids will eat onions.
I promise not to get too American Idol-y for a while, but I can't let opening night of Season 7 go by without a mention. Plenty of weirdos on night one, of course. I managed to not be too uncomfortable during the montage of strange people. Nobody blew me away, yet.
One audition night down....several more to go. Where is Chris and Taylor when you need them??
So, I knew I wouldn't make it through this year of Blog 365 without getting tagged. BUT...you all know I don't mind. One of my fellow Dork Bloggers, Cyli, tagged me for that old tried and true "7 Weird Things" meme, or whatever you call it. Because I am lame and can't think of 7 more things about ME, I am going to put a slight twist on the thing. I'm going to do...
7 Random/Weird Facts about my husband and kids.
1. If I don't list this one first, Brianna will be disappointed. Brianna eats everything with a fork. Soup, ice cream, etc.
2. Jameson is a picky eater. His salad consists of lettuce and "carrot sauce." (ranch dressing.) Tacos? Hard shell, meat and sometimes lettuce. Chocolate milk? He PRETENDS to want it, then won't take a drink. Potatoes? Yeah, right. His favorite meal? Popcorn.
3. Braelyn sweats worse than any person you will ever meet. Once she starts getting hot, her hair is almost immediately soaked. She will HATE this in a few years.
4. Bubba color-codes the plastic hangers.
5. Brianna still calls me mommy. (and mother and mom and madre, etc...)
6. Jameson has two scars on his upper chest from chest tubes he had as a baby. The most prominent one he calls his "hole."
7. Braelyn bites her fingernails. She got this from Bubba. It's in her genes, I think. I worry that SHE worries and it makes her bite her nails.
Ok, these aren't so weird and only a little random, but cut me some slack. My allergies decided to act up tonight all of the sudden and with a vengeance so I had to type this through 357 sneezes and extremely watering eyes. The things I do for this blog. Oh, and I'm not tagging anyone because everyone and their blog brother has done the 7 things meme.
Sadly, my Colts lost today to the Chargers. What a game, though! I spent the entire time cheering, yelling, jumping up and down, clapping and telling the stupid announcers to just shut up, already. It was nerve wracking! In the end, the Manning Magic just wasn't enough. I still love my boys in blue, though (especially Peyton and Saturday, obviously) and I am totally ready for next year! We couldn't have beat the Pats, anyway. Even I can admit that.
At least I can watch the Super Bowl commercials this year without worrying about the game!
I've finally passed that 15 pound mark! I thought I'd never get past it. But, yes, I have finally lost ONE MORE POUND and have now dropped 16 pounds of nasty FAT from this body! Brianna is kicking butt, still. She got her 25lb charm today and her total is 26 point something. She looks great! I'll get there eventually.
In other Saturday news, I went to my aunt's house to get some books today. And by some, I mean 3 boxes full! Paperbacks, hard cover, you name it. And many of the authors I read like Stephen King, Dean Koontz and James Patterson. Yay! Plus, she had several for the kids. AND, she makes those fleece blankets. You know that ones, made from patterned fleece and then the edges are cut into fringe and the fringe knotted. Yeah, Braelyn and Jameson came home with at least 6 of those! Bubba (the laundry man) was none too thrilled with that!
I also stopped at my parents' for a while. I am having a big problem relating to them these days. They are frustrating for many reasons. But, it was a good visit.
Everybody else went to the basketball game tonight at the high school and I had the house quiet and to myself all evening. It was nice. I took a shower and watched Titanic and just enjoyed doing nothing. (Of course nothing is what I usually do, but tonight it was especially nice for some reason.)
I joined a couple of groups over at Blog 365 because I am totally a joiner. One of them is Fridge Friday. It's pretty self-explanatory. Just show us what's in your fridge every Friday. Easy enough, right? I figure that is one thing I can keep up with.
So, here it is. My Fridge Friday.
But wait! There's more! Here's the FREEZER!
And? If you want to see our condiments AND the freezer door and all the photos complete with notes, just go to the whole set on my Flickr. Your breath, it MUST be bated! Go! Now! Look! Gaze upon the food we eat!
Thirteen Things I Love About My Husband (who turned 36 today)
Bubba's birthday is today so I thought I'd do a TT to honor him.
1)The crinkles around his eyes when he smiles. 2)His goatee. 3)The ability he has to stay organized. (I do not possess this ability much to his chagrin.) 4)His rockin' cooking skills! 5)The gray he's getting in his goatee and chest hair. Sex-ay! 6)He is the resident bat catcher, mouse trap setter, spider killer, drain hair/goop getter outer, trash taker outer and any other dirty job doer. And he doesn't complain. Though garbage water/spilled garbage makes him gag. 7)He takes his role as a dad very seriously. 8)His head when it's just shaved. It's smooth as a baby's butt. Even though I love his hair, I do like his bald, too. 9)His laugh when he is laughing really hard. You can't help but laugh, too. 10)The fact that he is giddy about the new Knight Rider that's coming out. Now he can't make fun of me and my obsessions! 11)He still finds me attractive after all these years (and pounds). 12)Every once in a while, I find an 'I love you note' in the car written on a napkin or gum wrapper or something. I know he thinks about me. 13)The stuff that goes on behind closed doors. ;)
"Capture." As in, "Did you see her awesome CAPTURE on flickr?" It is a picture. It is a photo. It could even be a snapshot. But stop with the capture, already!
Hilary got all teary-eyed. Barack was 'cocky.' And whatever they are saying about the Repubs. Hand shaking, eating in diners, buying tea. Amongst 'the people.'
In which I wipe my tongue off like Tom Hanks in Big when he ate the caviar.
Do NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT let the new Diet Dr Pepper Cherry Chocolate pass through your lips to your tongue where it will wash over your taste buds! If you venture out and buy some to try it out, don't say I didn't warn you.
My reaction to DPCC
Now, who here has NOT seen the youtube video for "Chocolate Rain," raise your hand. If you are that one person left on earth who HASN'T and you happened by my blog today, then click HERE. (Have you seen Tay Zonday interviewed. I swear the guy is so smart that he has no idea that he's being made fun of all over the place.)
Ok, now that we have that out of the way, did you know that Dr Pepper made a "viral video" to help promote their new liquid nasty flavored cola, Diet Cherry Chocolate? Guess who the star is? Guess! Yep, TAY ZONDAY! Now, I KNOW that Chocolate Rain has been played to death, but man, I have to admit "Cherry Chocolate Rain" is pretty dang funny. Check it out HERE. I especially like the chocolate rain smacking the squirrel and "Ohio's agriculture's based on grains." Doesn't take much to entertain me. Obviously.
Oh, I don't know what that title means, either. But someone in Camarillo, California found my blog by searching for that.
In other news, my husband rocks the Saturday/Sunday morning breakfast making. (all on WW program, I assure you.) Turkey bacon is the shiz.
Speaking of Weight Watchers, I didn't go this week because I had to work. So, I am still, as far as I know, hovering at 15 pounds lost. Slow and steady wins the race, right? I'd rather have fast and furious, but whatever.
I have an odd obsession with bananas these days. I HAVE to have one every day. (shut UP pervs who may visit this blog!) (Bubba: I got your banana right here, baby.)
I've been listening to a lot of 80s music today. That surprises you all, doesn't it? I know! So very unusual for me. INXS, Wham!, ABC, Depeche Mode, Duran Duran...you name it.
I've managed to do nothing all weekend (except work, yesterday) and now it's almost Sunday evening! And I've managed to post the most lame blog post ever. I rule!
I wasn't even going to mention a certain particular thing because I suck at life blogging and the pressure, my god the pressure! But now? I'm a tad skeeved slash scared, and well, I have to share.
Hi, I'm Angie and I joined Blog365. See?
What. Have. I. Done.
The posting every day thing is not even the scary part. Oh, no. HERE is the scary part...
Ya gotta click it to big it to see it.
Should I cancel my membership and rejoin?
PS Why, yes I am still using my Christmasy FireFox theme, thank you very much.
Wanna come over? We can totally make popcorn and eat ice cream and drool over Coach Taylor and paint our toenails!!
I'll be here hanging up blue and yellow streamers (Go, Dillon Panthers, y'all!) so you don't even have to knock. Just come on in. Oh, and it's BYOMDPRM (Bring Your Own Mixed Drink Preferably Raspberry Margarita), just so you know.
After watching the show, edited to add: Do NOT mess with Coach Taylor's boys!
So, I mentioned earlier that I worked in the mail room today at work. Let me explain a little.
I work in client services for a medical laboratory. A few years ago, the mail room and it's operations fell into our hands. When I say 'mail room' I mean much more than sorting US mail that comes in. We have to sort hundreds and hundreds of patient lab reports and ready them for delivery to our clients be it via courier or US mail. (hence the paper cuts today) We sort interdepartmental mail as well as US mail. We also run a postage machine and do various other things that no one else wants to do such as 'copy jobs.' You know, the mass copies of some special memo or report that, once distributed, ends up in a shred bin somewhere. I could go into more detail but, wow, those of you who have read this far are already wondering why.
Anyway, there are 4 of us who know the workings of the mailroom and we rotate every fourth week and other days here and there when someone has a day off or something.
Obviously, I was in there today.
Ok, so I said all that just to get to this...
There is a physician in the area whose name is Dr. Ulrich. We get reports for him every day. Every single time I see his name, I say (in my head, of course) "Sir Uuuulllrich von Lichtenstein!!!" Every time. I'm not even kidding.
Yes, I am a dork, BUT, can you name the movie that is from?? It's one of my favorite movies and I watch it often. Come on..name that movie!
Is it possible for a person to die from multiple paper cuts? I mean, SERIOUSLY!
I'm working the mailroom today at work and I'm sure those walking by have heard my loud, 'OUCHes!' and mumbled pretend curse words and that loud sucking in of the breath between my teeth.
Everyone knows that the new year brings new hope for many people. It's a time of change and good intentions--a time of resolutions. I'm a new year's resolutions maker. But I don't put that much stock in them. More often than not, I just try to think of a few things I'd like to do or get accomplished for the coming year. It's more..fun..than anything for me. Some people get adamant about how they "don't make resolutions" and by golly don't try to make them. It's not THAT big of a deal. Seriously.
Most years, my resolutions include things like "lose weight" or "read more" or "get [insert area of home] organized or cleaned up. All of these things are ongoing so this year, I didn't really make a list, per se. I kind of wanted to make this the first year since I was about, oh, 12, that I don't list 'lose weight' as a resolution. Mostly because I'm already doing it. I have 15 pounds gone so far. It seems like it's taking FOREVER, but slowly I AM losing. So, I guess I could list 'continue losing weight' as my resolution. I like the sound of that much better.
What I was really getting at in starting to write this post, is that I feel like something is missing. Like I SHOULD have a long list of things to make resolutions for 2008. I can't put my finger on it, though. Oh, don't get me wrong, there are many areas of my life that I'd like to and need to improve. I think maybe I'm afraid to actually list them and put them out there because what if I fail miserably?
I'm going to try to follow in the footsteps of my girl, TARA and JUST BE. I think it's a good motto and it is certainly working for her.
Anyway, I am optimistic about this year. Not that I haven't been every other year, before, but I feel especially so now. I hope, by the end of 2008, I can say I've changed at least one thing in my life.
I think I've spoken of my addiction to Diet Dr Pepper Cherry Vanilla and also Berries and Cream. I believe I called it my liquid crack or something like that. (because it IS) A few weeks ago, Bubba went to the store and when he came back he said they didn't have any of "my pop." (I prefer two-liter bottles) I was bummed, but no big deal. I could make it a day or two without my fix.
The next time he went, still out. Now my brain was just in the beginnings of panic/I-need-it-NOW mode but it was still manageable. A few days ago, we went grocery shopping and when we got to the pop aisle (or soda, for you weirdos out there) THE HORROR! There wasn't even a spot for my pop!! I was near a pop panic attack! How could Pepsico betray me like this??? The day was saved when we found a 12 pack of cans (blech) and I thought, fine, that'll do pig. (<<--random Babe quote)
FF to today when Bubba calls me at work. He was at Wal-mart and the Pepsi guy happened to be there so he asked him about my pop. (Now THAT is true love, huh?) They are no longer making either of my pops in 2 liters (gah!) and apparently they are no longer making cherry vanilla at all. Someone get me a paper sack to breathe into, STAT!
I guess it's ok because I don't need the caffeine, anyway.
But, the "good" news is, they have a new flavor coming out tomorrow or monday or sometime. Cherry Chocolate or some such thing. Like, gag me with a spoon.
