Ode to my fake Uggs

And now, a haiku...


Dear fake Uggs, You ROCK!
My feet are so toasty warm
All is right today.

If all the raindrops were lemon drops and gum drops...

Do NOT be fooled.  These are not gum drops.  I was so disappointed...

Lucky for you...

...I'm stuck on a conference call.  Which means this blog will include a random stream of consciousness...

My feet are FREEZING. I think I want some Uggs for Christmas.  Or just because I need them.  I know they are ugly and kind of 2003 or whatever, but obviously they are useful.  Because honestly, there is nothing worse than not being able to warm up, especially on the bottom half!

I broke down and had a diet Dr Pepper.  Or 3.  Today. Shut up...

I'm going part-time for work in exactly 23 days.  I started actually working part-time on Monday.  Oops! 

Every year my mother-in-law buys me a Hallmark Wizard of Oz christmas ornament.  I LOVE them but they don't match my color schemes on my trees every year and so they don't get put on the tree.  It's a damn shame really.  I think I have decided to have a "tacky" christmas next year and I'm going to put every single ornament I own on the tree, along with all of the lights... that includes the red lights, the blue lights, the colored lights, and the white lights.  Aw yeah baby!  Every colored ball, no matter what color, every handmade ornament, every childhood memory ornament, and every single Wizard of Oz ornament.  It's going to be legen...wait for it...DARY!

I am super late this year with Christmas cards.  A friend of mine took BEAUTIFUL pictures of my family and I wanted the pictures for the cards.  Hold your horses people, they will be mailed before the 25th...

This new diet sucks because I actually have to PLAN what I'm going to eat.  Ugh...

More to come later today - conference call is OVER and I can actually do some work now!

AGONY!!!!

So in light of the recent medical problems I've had going on, my doctor has suggested putting me on a low GI diet. For those of you unfamiliar with those words, that means a low GLYCEMIC INDEX diet. In other words, no sugar, no breads, no rice, no sweet fruits, no soda, no anything that I deem worthy of eating lately. I used to be very good about the way I ate. I was a walking advertisement for the South Beach diet or cleaning eating, but here lately, I've developed a bit of a sweet tooth. In fact, a very BAD sweet tooth. I would recent have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich than eat a salad. (This is very rare for me!)

That being said, one of the things I've had to cut out because of my torture... I mean, uh, "diet" is diet Dr. Pepper. I live for a Diet Dr. Pepper. Most people drink coffee to wake up in the morning... not me! I drink DDP. And I love it! And not being able to have any of it is A-G-O-N-Y!!!

This diet sucks.

Blah.

I'm having a down kind of day. I got some interesting news yesterday relating to my health and it's put me in a funk. I normally have a pretty good idea of what's going on when I go to the doctor, etc, but I was definitely not mentally prepared for the news I received yesterday. I'm turning 33 next week and my doctor has suggested that I have a hysterectomy or do a different procedure called an endometrial ablation. Doesn't that sound pleasant?! Either way, I am terrified of what I need to have done. I've never had surgery before and I am scared that something could go wrong.

Blah. :(

'Tis the season

The local radio stations around here waste no time when it comes to playing holiday music.  I heard my first christmas carol on November 1st and I rolled my eyes at the time.  But not this morning.  Oh no sir - this morning I heard one of my favorite christmas songs on the radio...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMtuVP8Mj4o


How can you not get all in the christmas spirit when you hear this song?  This guy is SO peppy and upbeat and FEELING it!  I love it!

I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas...  ;)

Virginia Cops are CRAZY!

Coming back from my in-laws house this past weekend, I think I discovered the secret to how Virginia police officers sniff out speeders...

NINJA TRAINING

Seriously!  Think about it!  They sneak up on you, they show up out of nowhere, and you don't realize you've been caught until they pull you over on the side of the road.  Freakin' NINJAS!

My only speeding ticket I ever got was in rural Virginia, way out in the middle of nowhere in a little town called Woodstock.  I was cooking along in a line of other cars and I swear the police officer appeared out of nowhere.  There was NOTHING on the side of the road for miles around and then "Poof!", there's the cop!  I realized he was there way too late, and I got a ticket.  I don't deny that I was speeding, by any means, but this VA cop must have somehow evaded my police ESP.  Sneaky NINJAS!!

oh ahhh I just died in your arms tonight...

Dear Lost 80s Lunchbreak,

You make me happy! Does that make me old? Keep up the good music!

Faithfully,

-C
xo

I hate technology

Well, I don't really hate technology... but I do despise it when it doesn't let me get jack $hit done during the day!  I love that my company has invested in a super fancy prospect tracking and calling tool, but it doesn't work half the time and the other half I have to re-enter all of the information I already entered because it didn't save anything.

And my boss thinks it makes us more efficient?  Geez...

25 Things you don't know about me

I love this feature in US Weekly so I thought I would blog my own...

1. I used to hate being late - it was a huge pet peeve of mine. Now I don't care so much. It's not worth a speeding ticket.
2. I live my life in song lyrics. Most of the time they are in my head but every situation is funnier with a musical accompaniment.
3. I'm terrified of guns.
4. I don't eat seafood or beans, and I don't drink milk.
5. I don't have a clue how to put on makeup.
6. I would wear flip flops every day if I felt like I could get away with it.
7. I get compliments on my hair. A LOT.
8. I am a closet Clay Aiken fan. And no, not THAT closet...
9. I've never watched an episode of CSI, Law & Order or Grey's Anatomy.
10. I can recite the ENTIRE munchkin scene from the Wizard of Oz, complete with voices.
11. Chewing ice gives me the shivers.
12. I have a soft spot in my heart for hair bands. Especially Warrant.
13. I think the world would be alot more fun if people would randomly break into a song and dance routine like they do in the musicals.
14. The word "moist" bothers me.
15. If I could live my life over, I would have been a doctor.
16. I make a mean chocolate chip banana bread.
17. I am obsessed with making mix CDs and I think they are the greatest gift on earth.
18. I used to be a majorette.
19. I love dirty jokes.
20. I chew the flavor out of a piece of gum in a matter of minutes.
21. I have yet to be beaten solving a puzzle on Wheel of Fortune. It's not very fun to watch with me.
22. I'm amazing at cornhole.
23. I love boiled peanuts and cheerwine.
24. I think it should be a law that everyone knows how to drive a stick shift car.
25. I think my children have the most beautiful eyes.

I'm Old.

Daily reminder that I'm getting old #327: I just added Thermacare Heat Wraps to my Target shopping list.

Crap.

Mayhem in Bennington!

My neighborhood is like a war zone today! Between the lawn aerators on my left and the sodcutters on my right, it's total mayhem here. My dogs are barking and going crazy and I'm not getting any work done because of the noise level. Awesome huh?

Homesick

I never realized how homesick I was until I actually went "home" yesterday. I use the term collectively because I have never known what the word "home" really signified. Growing up as a military brat, you never really have a home town. I remember seeing a picture in a friend of mine's house one time that said "Home is where the Marine Corps sends you." In my case, it was the Navy. Sure, my parents have a hometown, but considering mine never visit where they are from either, there is no connectedness in my life.

My husband thinks its funny that I like to go to the town where his parents live every now and then. As much as I make fun of the place (it is tiny, very back-woods and the people are definitely crazy), it's STABLE. It doesn't ever change and the people who live there have known each other their whole lives.

I used to be envious of the kids I went to high school with because literally, most of them had grown up together. They were in the same kindergarten class. They always lived in the same house their whole life and they had been friends since they were 5. I've never known what that was like.

When I was in college, my Dad moved from the town I considered "home" and I was instantly uprooted again. He followed me to the city I live in now and his house is newer than mine. Yet again, I'm an orphan. Home is supposed to be the place you escape to when the world is just too much to handle. Your refuge. The place you go at holidays to reconnect with friends and family. The place that knows all of your flaws and still loves you just the same... The place where you can be yourself and you find comfort. Maybe that's what's wrong with me? I need the comfort...

I got a taste of that yesterday and it was almost too much to handle. I had lunch with a friend from high school that I haven't seen in 15 years. We were pretty close in school - we lived 4 doors down from each other. We were some of the only children of divorced parents in our school - we had alot in common. Just talking to her and reminiscing about all the crazy people we knew really made me nostalgic. Not nostalgic to be 15 again. Not nostalgic to be in high school again. Just made me long for that connectedness I had for a short period in my life.

I mentioned my nostalgia to a friend yesterday and he asked me if I was making myself more sad than necessary. I didn't think I was... but now I'm not so sure. It was only 4 years of my life that we spent there, but I will always consider that small town that I used to label on my letters as "middle of nowhere NC" my HOME.

As Alabama put it -

Down home, where they know you by name
And treat you like family
Down home, a man’s good word and a hand shake
Are all you need
Folks know, if they're falling on hard times
They can fall back on
Those of us raised up down home

He Will Carry Me

To say I've had a rough week or two would be a gross understatement at this point. I literally have felt like I've been at the end of my rope for days now. I was feeling particularly low this morning after dropping my son off at kindergarten and this song came on the radio. I swear God always knows exactly what I need to hear...

He Will Carry Me by Mark Schultz

I call, You hear me
I've lost it all
And it's more then I can bear
I feel so empty

You're strong, I'm weary
I'm holding on
But I feel like giving in
But still You're with me

And even though I'm walking
Through the valley of the shadow
I will hold tight to the hand of Him
Whose love will comfort me
And when all hope is gone
And I've been wounded in the battle
He is all the strength that I will ever need
He will carry me

I know I'm broken
But You alone
Can mend this heart of mine
You're always with me

And even though I'm walking
Through the valley of the shadow
I will hold tight to the hand of Him
Whose love will comfort me
And when all hope is gone
And I've been wounded in the battle
He is all the strength that I will ever need
He will carry me
He will carry me

And even though I feel so lonely
Like I have never been before
You never said it would be easy
But You said You'd see me through the storm

And even though I'm walking
Through the valley of the shadow
I will hold tight to the hand of Him
Whose love will comfort me
And when all hope is gone
And I've been wounded in the battle
He is all the strength that I will ever need
He will carry me
He will carry me
He will carry me

6 weeks and counting!

I came across an interesting post on a friend's blog today about her 10 year high school reunion and it really made me laugh. I can see why some people get excited about reunions... maybe they want to prove something? Maybe they want to see an ex? Maybe they just want the chance to reconnect with friends they haven't seen in years? Maybe it's all of the above!

I stole this cartoon from my friend's blog - I couldn't help it. It's HILARIOUS!



This October I am the person in charge of planning my 15 year class reunion. I have mixed emotions about all of it. I didn't have a very easy time in high school. I was living through the hell of my parent's divorce. I was borderline depressed most of the time because of alot of different things. High school was ROUGH. But what I didn't realize back then that I actually realize now is that I didn't have it nearly as bad as I thought I did, and certainly not as bad as the kids nowadays do! Life was actually O K.

I think what I'm looking forward to the most is going back to the person I used to be. That girl who lived for beach days and the simple life. Who played sports and drove a hyundai and dated a boy on the soccer team. I'm not concerned about what new fancy car I'm driving or what label clothes I'm wearing (which, to be honest, I have NEVER cared about that shit anyways, why start now?), or where I live or where I work. I'm concerned with seeing people who knew me during those tumultous 4 years. Who got through it with me, who drank beer in a field with a bonfire and cried when we needed to, and laughed and laughed...and moved on to their own adulthoods, battered and scarred, yet thankful to look back and be appreciative of the friends they lived through it with.

And I'm ready to have a KICK ASS time with some of my best buds from those years and their spouses. And I'm ready to spend some time back "home". I never get to go home anymore because my family lives up here with me and not at the coast anymore. Being a military brat, "home" is where the military sends you. Richlands is the closest thing to home I will ever have. And I'm looking forward to going home for a little while.

But on that note, I would be lying if I didn't say that I'm kind of excited to show the boys I grew up with what they were missing. HA!

Carolina in the late summer

So my photography class assignment for the week was to take landscape and flower pictures. I couldn't really think of any place to take shots so I headed over to UNC to try and take some pictures in the arboretum. Note to self: late summer is a HORRIBLE time to try and capture plants and flowers. Everything is just green - not much color at all. And it's HOT. Here are some of the photos I took - enjoy!

Order in the court!

I'm sitting in the holding room while waiting to find out if I will have the "pleasure" of sitting on a jury in Durham County in NC. I could list a zillion other things that I would RATHER be doing right now than sitting here with my "peers", determining someone's guilt.

I understand this is my civic duty and all but I honestly would rather be any other place on earth but here right now. UGH.

I hope you dance

I've been so emotional lately. I mean, I'm always emotional, but I feel like I've been at the breaking point for days now and everything came to a head earlier today. My oldest child just started kindergarten, my brother's wife had a baby girl, my youngest son is walking... my children's childhood seems to be passing me by at a rate so fast I'm screaming for life to slow down.

And then it happened. F-ing country music station... I have to actually blame my friend Mike because he's the one who decides what the station plays. He's the program director. Thank you Mike for giving me a partial breakdown and now a splitting headache. And anxiety. And the sad longing for my babies to stay babies forever... Maybe one day my son and I will dance to this at his wedding.

I hope you dance by Lee Ann Womack

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat
But always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small
When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you'll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Living might mean taking chances
But they're worth taking
Lovin' might be a mistake
But it's worth making
Don't let some hell bent heart
Leave you bitter
When you come close to selling out
Reconsider
Give the heavens above
More than just a passing glance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
(Time is a real and constant motion always)
I hope you dance
(Rolling us along)
I hope you dance
(Tell me who)
I hope you dance
(Wants to look back on their youth and wonder)
(Where those years have gone)

I hope you still feel small
When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you'll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
Dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance
(Time is a real and constant motion always)
I hope you dance
(Rolling us along)
I hope you dance
(Tell me who)
(Wants to look back on their youth and wonder)
I hope you dance
(Where those years have gone)

(Tell me who)
I hope you dance
(Wants to look back on their youth and wonder)
(Where those years have gone)

Getting better

Here's one of my first attempts for a still life photo. I hope I get better than this!

Say cheese!

Tomorrow I have my first official photography class and I'm super excited. I don't have any aspirations to start a business or whatever, but I do want to know how in the heck to use the expensive camera my husband bought me for christmas last year. I tried reading the owners' manual that came with the camera, but it doesn't really tell you how to frame shots, use the aperture and shutters speeds and all of that other stuff. I'm really excited because my friend April is taking the class with me too and she and I are going to practice taking pictures of each other's children. Should be fun! So far I've only experimented on taking pictures of the flowers in my yard. I know I'm capable of alot more!

God speed, Moose

The War overseas got very real for me today. Today I drove two hours to Wilmington to say Goodbye and God speed to my cousin Seamus. He was supposed to be deploying to Afghanistan in late September but they moved up his date to next Thursday. We had a party planned for him with a lot of my family being able to come up and say Bon Voyage, and give longer than usual hugs while fighting back tears and trying to stay cheerful. I dodged the bullet on this war twice. My Dad had already retired from the Navy in 1995 and he is "disabled" so they won't be calling him back up. My brother managed to get out of the Air Force in time to not be sent over either. I have a few friends from high school that have been deployed, served their time abroad, come back home, and a few of them sent again. I have many friends whose husbands are serving overseas right now. But seeing my baby cousin - he would argue that he's not a baby... He's 25 by the way - getting all geared up to go fight this war that not many support anymore is just heartbreaking. I held it together long enough to tell him his first care package would include as many cheese balls as I could fit into the box (an inside joke between us) and I told him I missed him already.

I'm scared. I'm seriously terrified that something is going to happen to him. I'm scared he's going to get hurt. This kid is very special to me - I consider him my adopted little brother and I would be devastated if anything bad happened to him. Fighting back tears, I'm going to be working overtime on my prayers tonight. God, please keep Seamus safe.

It's a cruel, cruel summer...

I feel left out this week. My husband took our oldest son to the pool every day this week and many of my stay at home mommy friends are off at the beach with their kids. I'm stuck behind this computer and watching people walk by the front of my house and I'm not going to lie... I'm bitter. I'm bitter that I actually HAVE to have a job and I can't be home with my own kids anymore. Sigh... I will feel better soon, I know, but I this has been a particularly LONG week and all I want to do is escape to the beach and relax.

Boo freakin hoo right?

Pandora

Ok yes I've heard people talk about Pandora for a few years now, but honestly, I just checked it out. HEAVEN!!! Bon Jovi and Def Leppard and Three Doors Down and Joan Jett and all kinds of crazy rock music on my computer while I'm working? HEEEEAAAAVVEEEENNNNNNNN!!!!!

WHY?!

Why did I decide to go back to work? Or better yet - why did I decide to go back to work in the middle of the summer... when the pool and the beach and vacations and everything else are beckoning me to come out and play? Even my 5 year old doesn't understand why Daddy can take him to play and to a friend's pool but I have to stay chained to my computer. I'm having a very hard time staying focused this week. A friend of mine and I have played the "Damn-its-still-not-friday??" game every day this week and guess what? It's STILL not Friday.

Juror Number 6

Why did I have to open my big mouth?? I literally was saying to someone this weekend..."I can't believe I'm 32 and haven't had jury duty yet. I don't know how I keep dodging the bullet!" Well, dangit, I got the summons in the mail today. I am to report to jury service on September 1st and I'm Juror Number 6. The likelihood of me being dismissed is very low. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...

I don't want to go. I have better things to do than to be sitting in a stinky old courthouse in downtown Durham, trying to pretend like I'm even interested in this case. I don't care if it's a murder trial, a grand theft auto, drug charges, whatever it is. You're guilty. I'm not impartial. GET ME OUT OF HERE!

Dear Monday...

You suck.

W. O. R. D... up!

I'm convinced that songwriters nowadays try to outdo one another with the song lyrics they are writing. Everything seems so contrived and "artsy" instead of just fun and upbeat. Case in point:
__________________________________________________

Matt Nathanson - Come on Get Higher...

I miss the sound of your voice
I miss the rush of your skin
I miss the still of the silence
as you breathe out
and I breath in

If I could walk on water
If I could tell you what's next
Make you believe, make you forget

Come on get higher
Loosen my lips
Faith and desire and the swing of your hips
Just pull me down hard and drown me in love
___________________________________________________


Now let me add my disclaimer here - I actually really LOVE this song. But what in the hell is this guy really singing about? Yeah, that's poetic. Whoopdee do. I want to sing fun stuff!! Like the Humpty Dance! I mean, there was some creativity with that song, but it was fun to sing. I mean, His name was Humpty, pronounced with an umpty, he liked to rhyme, he liked the beats funky, he was spunky, he liked his oatmeal lumpy. FUN!

Today I heard the Word Up song by Cameo and it reminded me of being a kid and actually being able to sing along with the words of the music I heard on the radio. I don't even like to listen to the radio with my kids in the car anymore because frankly, I'm worried about the stuff they are going to hear. But not with the Word Up. It's the code word - no matter where you say it, you know that you'll be heard!

2 HOURS

I just spent two hours on the phone with Dell tech support. Granted, the gentleman that I had the pleasure of spending my afternoon with was really nice and had a great sense of humor, but I could think of 100 other things I would rather do than spend it on the phone, trying to fix my BRAND NEW computer. I am convinced that you have to have at least a bachelors degree in computer science nowadays to operate a home wireless network, or to be able to use "advanced" tools such as a firewall, virus protection software and anti-spyware systems.

Between uninstalling, re-installing, configuring, adding drivers, updating drivers, and rebooting and resetting multiple times, my computer is finally working again.

The Challenge

So I've been reading a lot of books about food and nutrition lately and I've decided to challenge myself and my family to eat primarily at home, home-cooked meals for all of August. Eventually I would like to eat 90% of all of our food at home and not in restaurants or fast food. I feel like we've gone a little crazy over the last two months when I look at our bank statements and we've spent $700 this month on eating out!

So here's the idea:
1. I will start cooking dinner every night again. The only exception to this rule is if I am on a date with my husband, or we're on the road traveling.
2. I will NOT go to McDonalds or Chic-Fil-a for breakfast. This is going to be the hardest part considering I will be driving past both (twice!) to drop off the baby at daycare.
3. Make a real breakfast every saturday morning, complete with eggs, bacon, biscuits, pancakes etc.
4. PLAN my menus every week so that I don't get lazy and end up ordering pizza because I didn't decide on something for dinner.

Wish me luck - change is hard! And I'm so lazy lately.

Just got paid, it's friday night...

Haiku of the day:

Dear Employer Man
I'm trying to be patient
Payday was FRIDAY.

Feeling sad today

Normally the sight of a butterfly makes me smile. It makes me think of my sister. I see them everywhere lately as the summer is winding down and they are all starting to migrate south. But today it makes me think about how much I miss her and how badly I wish she was still here. I'm feeling really sad today.

I was pulling weeds out front this morning (my usual activity for pent up anger and frustration) when this little guy came by to say hello. Thank goodness my camera was just a step inside the front door so I could snap a picture!


I can't help but wonder sometimes if God makes it possible for loved ones to come back and check on us from time to time and disguises them like this. I'd like to think that's definitely possible. Maybe God knew I needed to see her today...

Godzilla!

Last night I walked in the front door of my house, only to be greeted by a pair of yellow eyes looking up at me from the foyer. I stifled a scream because the babies were asleep and I was NOT about to wake them up for something like this. Somehow a lizard had managed to find his way into my house and was staring me down, trying to figure out what to do next. I ran upstairs to get my husband because, you know, that's his JOB to get all the creepy crawlies out of the house and he looked at me like "Are you kidding me? I'M not touching that thing!"

The next 5 minutes looked like a scene from a comedy you would see on the movie screen involving the bumbling hero and the equally annoying, squealing heroine. Every time the hubby would chase the lizard with the broom, he would run DIRECTLY at me! I finally decided to stand in the doorway and see what happened next. Thankfully after chasing this devil back and forth for several minutes we got him out the front door. YAY for my husband, my hero!

Now to hear him tell this story this morning to our nanny you would have thought he was fighting a dragon or Godzilla. After the effort he showed to get this THING out of our house, he can call it whatever he wants!

Ahhhhhhhhh

The weather here has dropped 25 degrees in the last 24 hours from 100 degrees to 75 degrees and its a welcome change for everyone. Maybe with this "cold spell" I will be able to run some more this week. My air conditioner won't blow another capacitor anytime soon and I won't have another $200 power bill!

Quote of the day

A life well lived is shown on the feet. Vive les Pedicures! :)

Rain rain go away

Today was payday and all I could think about in the days leading up to today was to have the chance to get my car washed! I worked at a car wash when I was in high school and there is nothing better than a clean car, with freshly vacuumed floor mats and the smell of lemon air freshener. Yes lemon - not that nasty "new car" smell or an overly strong vanilla. A nice, clean car.

Currently on the floor of my car there is an ecclectic mix of M&Ms, baby puffs, cheerios, old french fries, and sand from the beach. I can hardly see through the windshield because there are so many dead bugs streaked and splatted all over the place. My car is actually a deep steel blue, almost navy, but it's so dirty it looks powder blue right now.

The only thing keeping me from my sanctuary on wheels is the fact that it's raining cats and dogs outside and that would pretty much ruin a nicely washed car. Sigh...

All we need is just a little patience

I find it completely impossible to listen to "Patience" without whistling along. Seriously... Just try it!

Haiku of the day:

Monday morning sucks
Wish I had stayed just a mom
Twenty years to go...

One thing, one one thing leads to anooooother

Yeah so I thought it would be a good idea this morning to take a nice little run at lunchtime. Sounds pretty harmless right? Watch this trainwreck chain of events unfold...

Bad decision #1: It's 100 degrees out with a heat index of 105 and blistering, blinding sunshine. I forgot my sunglasses. DANG.

Stupid idea #2: In my haste to leave the house, I forgot to bring something to drink...water, gatorade, anything. And I didn't realize it until I got back to the car. CRAP!

Obviously rational decision #3: I was starving when I was done and the closest food to the lake was Arbys... One big beef and cheddar, curly fries and the largest Mt Dew this side of the Mason-Dixon line later, I just negated my entire reason for working out. DAMMIT.

So now I'm sitting in my office, behind my computer again, sweaty, uncomfortably full and overheated. $#!+

You're the inspiration

I love this song. I heard this in the car today and I was singing at the top of my lungs. I wish they would make love songs like this one nowadays...

You know our love was meant to be
The kind of love that lasts forever
And I need you here with me
From tonight until the end of time

You should know, everywhere I go
You're always on my mind,
in my heart In my soul

You're the meaning in my life
You're the inspiration
You bring feeling to my life
You're the inspiration
Wanna have you near me
I wanna have you hear me sayin'
No one needs you more than I need you

And I know, yes I know that it's plain to see
We're so in love when we're together
And I know that I need you here with me
From tonight until the end of time

You should know, everywhere I go
You're always on my mind,
in my heart In my soul

You're the meaning in my life
You're the inspiration
You bring feeling to my life
You're the inspiration
Wanna have you near me
I wanna have you hear me sayin'
No one needs you more than I need you

You missed a spot...

One of the greatest investments I have ever made was to hire a housekeeper. I know that this is a luxury for most people, and believe me, it's worth every penny! My lady comes to the house every two weeks and cleans my house top to bottom - all for $65. I would gladly pay TWICE that amount to not have to clean my bathrooms. Or vacuum my stairs! Or honestly, to not have to do anything. I am a little worried about how much I enjoy watching her do all the work and not me. (insert evil laugh here)

Irrational fears?

I had an unusual conversation with a friend at the gym this morning that I thought was funny enough to share. We were talking about irrational fears - and just how irrational they actually were. The conversation started because we were discussing a Zumba class, and how dancing in front of all of those people was intimidating. (I didn't think so, but she certainly did.) This started us down the path of what we're afraid of and the list kept getting more and more bizarre as it went along. Our conversation was something like this:

me: Well everyone is afraid of critters - maybe spiders or bees or something. I'm afraid of all of them. Spiders of course. Bees - they are unusually attracted to me and somehow seem to love to divebomb me in the head.

her: What about rats? I'm afraid of rats. They have those huge tails and scary eyes. Ugh... I'm shuddering just thinking about them! Eww!

me: I'm terrified of lightning. I didn't used to be - I almost got hit by lightning back in high school and ever since then, I seem to be deathly afraid of it. If it's off in the distance, I can handle it, but I can't drive in bad storms. I have to pull over!

her: Yeah that's a good one. I hate singing in public. You couldn't pay me to do karaoke!

me: Wow, you don't know what you're missing! I'm afraid of champagne bottles - I'm always afraid I'm going to shoot my eye out opening one. I physically have to go in the other room when people open them! How dumb is that?

her: I think you have a problem with loud noises. Do you get startled alot?

me: Yes, all the time! The worst for me though are cans of biscuits.

her: Huh? Cans of biscuits?!? What the...??

me: Yeah, like crescent rolls or grands or whatever. I'm scared to death of them. I can't open them - when they pop open I scream. I think the anticipation of it popping open is almost worst. Like, if you take the wrapper off and nothing happens... and then you go to pick up the can and it explodes in your hand! Ahh!! That's the only reason I keep my husband around - to open the biscuits for me!

As you can imagine, this led to almost 10 solid minutes of laughter. I didn't realize my biscuit fear was that irrational until someone else learned about it. It makes me wonder what other people are afraid of... What about you?

Your love, your love, your love is my drug

I can't get this stupid song out of my head. It's annoying, it's catchy, and I can't help but sing along every time I hear it.

LMAO!

One of my girlfriends from high school said it perfectly this morning: "wouldn't it be great if laughing your ass off actually worked?". Could you imagine how much more fun this world would be? Working out would be enjoyable! Everyone would be addicted to the gym! I think it would be heaven - and I certainly would have buns of steel. :)

Quote of the Day

Quote of the day across the top of my gmail...

- If God had wanted us to play soccer, he wouldn't have given us arms." - Mike Ditka

Moving to the country, I'm gonna eat alot of peaches

My headline on my Facebook profile pretty much sums up my life: "I live my life in song lyrics." I don't know how it got to be like that, but I feel like I have a soundtrack playing through my head all the time. Sometimes its pretty comical - how many situations can you think of where a song exists that describes the mood or the situation to a T? Example: You're running in your first 5k race and you're thinking..."it's the eye of the tiger, it's the thrill of the fight, rising UP to the challenge of our rivals..." Oh yeah, you'll be singing that one all day. Or maybe you were thinking "And I can't fight this FEELING anymore...I've forgotten what I started fighting fooooooor..." Yes, those are the obvious ones. Mine are more random. Like this morning, for instance. I'm feeding my son his breakfast and he's having peaches. And immediately I start singing this ridiculous song from the 90s by the Presidents of the USA.

Moving to the country, I'm gonna eat alot of peaches
Moving TO the country, I'm gonna eat me alot of peaches
Moving to the country, I'm gonna eat alot of peaches
Moving to the country, I'm gonna eat alot of peaches
Peaches come from a can, they were put there by a man in a factory dooooownnnnntooown
If I had my little way, I'd eat peaches every day
Sun soakin bulges in the shade...

Yes, it's catchy. Yes, it's borderline obnoxious. But I'm being honest when I say that EVERY TIME I feed my son peaches, this runs through my head. Seriously. I can't stop it.

i hate feeling broke...

I'm so glad I'm working again. I don't do very well with delayed gratification although I have learned how to live within my means over the last year or so. But still - I want to be able to buy things for my children whether they need it or want. I want to have nice things and do fun things with my family. I've never been one to be materialistic - in fact, I despise people that only care about what kind of car you drive or what label is on your clothes. I mean please, there are much more important things in life. But I truly don't want my children to grow up feeling like mom can't give them what they need. Its frustrating!

Regardless, I am very thankful to be working. I have a friend who has been unemployed since December of 2007. Yes, almost 3 YEARS. I couldn't even fathom being that down and out for that long. I'm enjoying my new job and really trying to understand what it takes to run a company from the ground up. I hope this gamble pays off too!

But back to my point - being broke sucks! Here are my vows that came from this situation:
1. I will pay myself first. No exceptions. My emergency fund will be monstrous!
2. I will contribute the maximum allowed to my 401k
3. I will contribute $100 or more a month to each child's college fund
4. I will not spend money on stupid things - like eating out all the time. My bank account and my waistline will thank me.
5. I will invest in important things - like spending time with my husband and kids.
6. I will pay it forward whenever possible.
7. I will not be impulsive with my spending. If it can't wait a day or two, I probably didn't need it in the first place.
8. I will not buy junk just because its on sale.
9. I will pay every bill as soon as it comes in - no more falling through the cracks!
10. I will read this list every day. :)

July 30th can't get here fast enough.

I have an obsession

I have an obsession. Yes I'm addicted - to pedicures. It started back in 1999 as a harmless little habit that I would often do on my lunchbreak. And then I started going more regularly until it became an addiction. I've cut way back now, but I had started going to the nail salon once a week while I was pregnant. I couldn't see my feet, much less paint my own toenails, so I considered it a necessity. There's nothing worse than wearing sandals or flip flops in the summer and looking down and seeing a girl with chipped nail polish... or worse - no nail polish. When I try to paint my own nails, I swear it looks like a monkey did it!

Yes it's prissy. Yes it's expensive. It's the most girly and self-indulgent thing that I do and I'm OK with that. But I can promise you, I've got the prettiest toes you've ever seen. :)

Five for fighting

I'm 15 for a moment
Caught in between 10 and 20
And I'm just dreaming
Counting the ways to where you are
I'm 22 for a moment
She feels better than ever
And we're on fire
Making our way back from Mars
15 there's still time for you
Time to buy and time to lose
15, there's never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live
I'm 33 for a moment
Still the man, but you see I'm a they
A kid on the way
A family on my mind
I'm 45 for a moment
The sea is high
And I'm heading into a crisis
Chasing the years of my life
15 there's still time for you
Time to buy, Time to lose yourself
Within a morning star
15 I'm all right with you
15, there's never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live
Half time goes by
Suddenly you’re wise
Another blink of an eye
67 is gone
The sun is getting high
We're moving on...
I'm 99 for a moment
Dying for just another moment
And I'm just dreaming
Counting the ways to where you are
15 there's still time for you
22 I feel her too
33 you’re on your way
Every day's a new day...
15 there's still time for you
Time to buy and time to choose
Hey 15, there's never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live



Capital One used this song in their commercials back in 2004-2005. In the commercial, the person was getting older and they basically were saying that no matter what stage of your life you were in, they had a card for you etc. This stupid commercial used to make me CRY like a baby when I saw it. Yes it's ridiculous, but I was pregnant at the time and anything like this used to bring me to tears in an instant. The crazy part is, I still have the same reaction from this song. Stupid advertising...

I feel old today. Like really old. I'm going on 33 and this is supposed to be the prime of my life and I just feel like I've lived so much already. Slow down time, please?

Our "stalker"

We have a hawk that lives in the woods behind our house and I finally got a good picture of him this morning.  This little guy wants to eat my dogs - I swear he is stalking them!  I'm not sure how long he's going to hang around, but hopefully I will get better pictures than this one.

I really feel like crap.

Who gets a cold in JULY?!  I mean seriously, who does?  I guess me because I feel really crappy right now.  I woke up on Sunday morning with a sore throat and it has progressed into a really bad cough now.  Ugh... I haven't traveled in over a year and I get on an airplane for a short 45 minute flight twice last week and suddenly I'm sick.  What are the chances?

How fortunate...

My fortune in my fortune cookie today:

"It could be better, but its good enough."

Um, way to aim high?  WTF?

Let Freedom Ring

I don't know what it is about good songwriting, but certain lyrics and music just totally gets me right in the heart.  Today I was driving home from my in-laws and it just happened to be July 4th, so the radio was playing patriotic music every now and then.  I managed to hear "God Bless the USA" and halfway through the song, I realized I was crying.  It's hard to describe - I have always felt that I was a patriotic person.  I grew up a military brat and my father served in Desert Storm and Vietnam.  But this song brings me back to 9/11 every time I hear it.  I remember looking all over town for American flags to put in my car and on my balcony of my apartment.  I remember people singing this song at karaoke for months and months after 9/11 happened.  Our country has been fighting a war I don't really understand for over 7 years now and it makes me sad that so many of my friends and their husbands can't be together on a day like today, to celebrate the freedom that is so precious, that so many of us take for granted in this country.  I am constantly disillusioned by some of the things that are happening in our legislature and the way my country is changing right before my eyes.  I feel powerless to do anything at times.  But for one moment today, I am thankful for how good I really have it. 

"and I'd gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today, cause there ain't no doubt I love this land, God Bless the USA..."

U! S! A! U! S! A!

It's been a long time since I have watched this much soccer...  I mean, like, YEARS.   And I forgot how exciting the sport was!  My oldest son played soccer for the first time this fall and I would hesitate to say that they actually played GAMES.  It was more like organized chaos.  My son did pretty good despite the true lack of direction or guidance from the coaches.

I'm sitting here watching the USA/Ghana World Cup game and it's been really fun to cheer and scream at the TV like a crazy person.  My children both think I'm weird, but who cares!?  The score is currently 1-1 and hopefully the USA will put out a win.  And if they do, I'll be a proud soccer mom.