Entertainment Value of Disorganization

I’ve mentioned a few times that our garage has been an ongoing project. We’ve now successfully cleared out nearly all the “big” baby things we no longer use and have worked our way through several boxes of baby clothes which we’ve sold on eBay. Since we often have something to get rid of via eBay I’ve made it a rule to save any re-usable packing supplies. This includes not only boxes but bubble wrap, "peanuts" and those nifty little air filled plastic pillows that are so great for padding. Whenever we get a package and I want to save the packing supplies I’ve tossed it out into the garage. Yes, I admit, I’ve not taken the time to stop everything I’m doing, make sure the baby’s safe and gone out to find an actual spot for it. My method is simply to open the door and chuck it out there. (Yeah yeah, I can see how the garage got this way. Sort of.) Anyway, this is something that greatly annoys the hubby since the garage of horror has been a major sore spot for us. Well, the other day we drove into the garage and were bombarded with a very sudden; "BANG, bang, bang, bang!" This is when I realized we had just driven over a whole row of air filled plastic pillows making it sound as if we’d been under attack by the mafia with machine guns. After a very surprised reaction which included jumping up a few feet in his seat the hubby shot me a look that said it all. So, I promised to be better about stuff I toss into the garage. Right after I stopped laughing.

Eating my words {and apparently a few too many other things}

For those of you following along on my weight loss journey, or as I like to refer to it: Operation Fit [back into my pants] you might have noticed the ticker did not move this week. It didn’t move because had I gone in to edit it in order to be accurate I would have had to move it the opposite direction. That’s right people, I’ll admit it, this week not only did I not lose weight I gained. And the worst part, even worse than gaining, is that prior to my weigh in yesterday I asked the hubby how he did for the week and he reported he’d lost a pound. Apparently instead of exclaiming; “Honey, that’s wonderful! Good job!” I said something which sounded to him like: “That’s all? Only a pound? When on earth are you going to get rid of that big spare tire you’re sporting?!” But in reality I’m sure it was something closer to; “Oh ok, I’m surprised you didn’t lose more since men tend to lose it faster and easier than women—but just keep it going in that direction Lovechunk” or something like that. So, due to my remarks the hubby tells me that I had better have lost more than a pound when I weigh in at Weight Watchers. Yeah, about that.. oops. Sorry honey! You are the weight loss KING this week.

They're really more like “Doglets”

My folks have a toy poodle named Barney. And by “toy” I mean it could easily be mistaken for one, except of course for the yappity yap yapping oh so common for small dogs. I have never quite understood the small dog phenomenon, which seems to be most prevalent among the older generation. I remember the first time I saw a “dog in a purse”. Then came the doggy stroller. And if that wasn’t enough one on one time with your pooch there’s the doggie carrier so you can have Fido strapped to your chest just like a baby.

My folks have not gotten quite so carried away with Barney but they are pretty crazy about the dog. And by “crazy” I mean, it must be in the same room with them at all times, must have people food, must be held on their laps and to suggest something as outrageous as the fact that they leave the house for more than an hour or two is met with stern objections about how they can’t leave the dog that long.

I must confess the hubby and I are not small dog “people”. We always have been of of the notion that to be “a dog” said animal should actually be bigger than a cat. In fact our cat Chloe, whom you’ve all heard from in her post could take this dog in an instant and we’ve actually had to keep the two of them away from each other during their visits. Our dog, (who I’ve asked to write a guest post but so far he's been too lazy) is about twenty times the size of this poodle and puts up with him most admirably. Murray will put up with Barney barking incessantly at him, chasing after him and even nipping at him to the point of Barney ending up with a puff of Murray’s cream colored fur in his mouth. A couple years ago when the folks were here for Christmas, Barney was harassing Murray by taking his toys and scurrying off with them. Murray was apparently so traumatized by this he took one of his own toys and chewed it up to the point of eating it—we are assuming all in an attempt to keep Barney from getting it. Fortunately it did not hurt him physically, but it was at this point we realized that separating these two might be a good idea to avoid the high cost of doggie psycho-therapy for poor Murray.

Which leads me to my point about small dogs and their owners. Why must people drive with their dog in their lap? Am I the only one who sees the potential danger in this? Children must be in cars seats for their safety as well as our own, we’re told not to hold cell phones while driving but yet it’s okay for Muffy to sit right there as you’re attempting to steer an automobile? The hubby put it quite well when seeing a woman driving along with her poodle in her lap and mentioned he hoped she didn’t have an accident in which her airbag deployed. “Hey lady, you’ve got some poodle on your shirt”.

Fun with Keyword Searches or You found me how?

Time for a round of “How did you find SAHM: Surviving Assorted Home Mayhem”?

It’s always amusing to take a look at the key words people type in Google and other search engines to find this site. Let’s take a look, shall we?

If you cut off eyelashes do they grow back?

Thankfully, yes! They also grow back when you accidentally yank them out!

Seriously So Blessed

Who doesn’t love a good parody?

Do Not remove Under penalty of Law

Because the cuteness of this photo says it all.

Letter to neighbors

Neighbors are great, aren’t they?

Why isn’t my husband romantic?

Ah yes, the age old question.

Frugal diaper bags

Inspired by the story involving both diaper bags and frugality but not in combination.

How to survive being a SAHM and surviving being a SAHM

I’m still working on this one. Every day.

Drivers Ed notes

Holy crap! A teen driver in the house.

Snap a picture of my bra

Ok, I rarely do this, but when presented with this photo op I’m afraid I had no choice.

Deadbeat dads and child custody

Yeah. Always a fun topic.

Crazy wife of ex-husband blog stalking

Oh No She Didn’t! aka the infamous “Special Reader” posts.

I told you so!

As you all know, I've been dedicated to Operation Fit [back into my pants] for weeks now and have diligently been walking, counting points and really watching things closely to lose weight. As you might have noticed from my weight loss ticker it's been paying off. I'm currently down by a little more than 5 pounds. The hubby and I have been great about getting up at what we refer to as the butt-crack of dawn to walk and this morning was no exception. That is until an unfortunate incident occurred not more than one minute into our walk. Perhaps you'll recall just two posts ago I mentioned my frequent injuries due to being a big klutz? Well, I no sooner walked across the street when I somehow twisted my ankle on the curb and tumbled to the ground. The hubby describes this as: "walk, walk, splat!" (Yes, he's hilarious that way.) So, hubby helps me up and tends to a few of my boo boos then heads off for a jog with little guy who's all ready to go in his jogging stroller. At least one of us got our exercise this morning. I however got road burn for nothing.

Happy Blogiversary SAHM: Surviving Assorted Home Mayhem

It’s been one year since I started this thing. I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going with this whole venture when I started out and I’ve pretty much just let it take it’s own natural course. I find it hard to really describe what this blog is truly about. Sure, it’s a “mommy blog” and there are mommy things in here, but there’s also plenty of other day to day musings on life in general, marriage, home, family, issues like weigh gain/loss, child custody, clutter, simplifying life, just enjoying life and even the occasional recipe. Along the way I’ve had “couldn’t pass-by opportunities” to have a little bloggie fun writing about my “Special Reader” and those posts [Oh No She Didn’t! & Oh No She Didn’t! Part 2] have been some of my more popular ones. The entertaining and amusing things that happen in day to day living are just too fun to not share and I think that’s why I really enjoy writing this blog. Also, I figure there’ve got to be some people out there who find me as hilarious as I think I am. Of course it’s not all funny and there are plenty of topics I don’t even approach. (I don’t want to touch this election with a ten foot pole, thank you!) I look forward to continuing this journey and sharing various tales with my readers. I’d also love to hear from you and welcome your comments and e-mails. To all of you who’ve been following along so far thank you and to those of you newcomers welcome and I hope you all enjoy the stories to come.

Hannah

And Speaking of Bras...

I decided it was time to get rid of all my nursing tops. After all, baby weaned himself a year ago and they've been sitting in the garage ever since. While I was going through the boxes baby found a nursing bra and discovered a new use for it.

This leads me to a story of when he was born. Somewhere during the middle of my hospital stay I decided I wanted to wear my nursing bra. The problem was I was confined to bed and hooked up to a multitude of things that would be too difficult to remove and replace in order for me to actually get a bra on. My nurse had a creative idea. She thought she would simply thread the straps of the bra over the machines, down the tubes connected to me and eventually up onto my shoulder. It seemed reasonable to me, of course at the time I don't think my brain was in any condition to put much thought into the logistics of such a complex operation. She managed to get the bra over the IV pole and bag, thread it through some more tubing, wires, etc. but somewhere along the way she got lost. She was determined though! She kept at it like one of those brain teaser puzzles and I swear she did not want to give up! Sadly, she could not make her way over to me and her self-created puzzle became so complex Houdini himself couldn't have made it out of this thing. So, you know how you start these things and then can't undo them? Yeah. Well. Ultimately, she could not undo this tangled mess and get the bra off. So I think you know where I'm going with this. For the rest of my hospital stay, I had a bra dangling from my IV unit until I was unconnected and discharged. Unfortunately, neither I nor the hubby thought to snap a picture of this (silly us, we were taking pictures of our new baby!) The hilarity that ensued down at the nurses station from the frequently repeated "Did you see the bra hanging from the IV in room 301?!" was priceless and I'm sure still talked about today.

Apparently it Runs in the Family

I am not the most coordinated person in the world. I have taken the occasional tumble, spill, head bonk, toe jab among various other injuries. Those who know me find this highly amusing. I however find it highly annoying, both that I hurt myself and am the source of others amusement through my own pain. Yesterday there were no less than three tragedies in our household. During my hosting a houseful of crumb crunchers or shall we call it playgroup, UPS arrived at the door. While trying to hold back a pack of wild hyenas small children I managed to kick my big toe into the edge of the door and against something sharp taking not only a chunk of flesh off my toe but also a chunk of nail polish—I am not sure which was the greater tragedy. (I’m kidding, it’s the nail polish.) Later in the day when Grandma arrived for a visit the little guy was doing his usual “I know you want to hug me so I’m going to run” routine when he stumbled and fell hitting his forehead on the floor. The hardwood floor. So, we applied ice and snuggles and despite the boo boo he was all better within a short time. Then not ten minutes later we all went out to the car to go to dinner and I manage to open the car door on my head creating an almost duplicate boo boo on my own forehead. This is somehow hilarious to the hubby. The next time he’s in a grumpy mood and displaying some “hub ‘tude” I think I may just have to trip over the ottoman or slam my thumb in a door. My talents are limitless.

Birthday party, a couple raccoons and a tricycle

It sure feels like a Monday. I'm dragging today thanks to a 3am wake up. The dog heard a cat squabbling with two raccoons who he then chased up a tree. The hubby woke up and went out to investigate  dressed in Hawaiian print boxers (because what else do you wear when looking for raccoons at 3am?) I wish I had video footage of this whole thing (well, maybe just the raccoons up the tree part) to share with you.

What I can share with you is a few shots from the baby's birthday party. Okay, okay, technically now he is not a "baby". He just turned two. That's 24 months for a mommy-in-denial. We had a cute Classic Pooh theme complete with Pooh ears instead of birthday hats. 

I found a darling Pooh & Piglet with a 2 figurine to use both as a cake decor and a keepsake but I underestimated how heavy the thing was. After putting it on the cake it fell backwards so I was forced to prop up Pooh's bum with a few Altoids. [In thinking about it, that might have made a better title for this post.]

As the little guy was opening gifts we saw this little entertaining sequence of events.....

 

 

The big birthday gift was a tricycle. Daddy has been very busy lately and did not have a chance to assemble it, so right after the party teenager assembled the whole thing himself for his little brother. We are all impressed.  After nap time, the little guy hopped on. He doesn't have the hang of it quite yet but he sure loves being pushed around on it!

Math skills and an update

So, I want to announce that we are now on day four of Operation Fit [back into my pants] and it's going quite well! I'll have you know that not only have I managed to stay on track with my WW points but hubby and I have been getting up at 5:45-ish to go power walking four days in a row. Yea us! Here's the thing about this whole eating plan: not only does it all boil down to choices and planning (Planning people! I tell you it's necessary for nearly everything!) but some mathematical calculations as well. I'm anal about these things because I've learned I have to be.

"If there's one thing I've learned about weight loss it's that it requires planning. If I fly by the seat of my pants it means I'll need bigger pants."

The continuing Weight Loss saga

If there’s anything I know from years helping people organize and simplify home and life it’s the need for plans and routines. You really do need some sort of a routine/strategy/plan for basic daily tasks and it's necessary for things like diet and exercise as well. Our previous weight loss and exercise routine clearly needs to be revamped. In a nutshell, here’s what’s happened; I was doing Weight Watcher’s pretty faithfully though I’d been struggling with my loss of points/food when baby stopped nursing (i.e. I was still eating too much) and I had stopped going to meetings because baby-cranky-pants was not cooperating. As far as exercise, I had been getting up to do the elliptical while baby slept then trying to hurry and get a shower before hubby left for work. I have to admit that I’ve let it all fall apart over the last few weeks and have done nothing towards a healthy, weight loss oriented eating plan and exercise routine. Basically, it’s all pretty much went to he** in a hand basket at this point. I’ve now learned precisely what happens when I allow this to occur; I gain a bunch of weight, don’t feel good and the husband has to hear me say “Honey, I don’t have any pants that fit!” on a regular basis. (Oh, and the hubby also accuses me of “shrinking his clothes in the dryer”, but that’s another story.) So, it’s time for some action around here. I figure maybe if I actually post this for all the world to see I can hold myself accountable more so than just keeping my intentions to myself. So here’s what I’m doing: I’m going back to Weight Watchers tomorrow (wish me luck on keeping the little one happy during the meeting!) I’m pulling out my handy-dandy menu board the hubby and I created to plan dinners, and the hubs and I are planning to get up early, put baby in the baby jogger with his sippy cup of milk, and head out walking/jogging most mornings before he has to go to work. In addition, as the weather starts to cool off we are going to get out for more weekend morning bike rides as well as weekday afternoon bike rides when the Fall weather hits. (It’s just been too hot for this lately.) In all honesty when I am sticking to the WW plan it is doable and does leave room for splurging without blowing it and that’s why I like the program. But on a daily basis, it does take discipline and a lot of creative food planning to eat healthy, feel satisfied and not go over the points allotment. It’s frustrating that it is in fact harder to take weight off the older you are. Yet another reason why we need to step it up with the exercise. For those of you who’ve been reading a while you may recall this idea of mine which never really got off the ground. I’m sure you also recall me previously mentioning my attempts at weight loss and falling off the wagon before in more than a couple of posts. As I’ve said, I would truly love to be one of those “results not typical” cases where I can proudly boast about my successful weight loss efforts and exercise payoffs. And frankly, having recently turned forty I would also love to “look good for forty” and feel like it, too. So, you are all welcome to follow along with me on my journey with weight loss, exercise and self improvement. I have a few goals in mind I’ll share with you; in addition to getting back down to a healthy weight for me [I’m not going to pin down an exact number, but somewhere in the 130’s-140’s range is realistic] and losing inches around the “widest” parts of me, I’d like to also feel comfortable enough to wear two things I’ve not worn in quite some time, namely, a skirt that does not look like I just stepped off the prairie and white or beige colored pants [for next summer, of course!] They say dark colors are slimming and it stands to reason that light colors do the opposite because I’ve always felt like I looked wider than the broad side of barn in light pants. And frankly, if I wear khaki color pants I resemble “Pat” from SNL. Not a good look for me. Feel free to join me on this journey and share your own insights and experiences. Stay tuned for updates!

When all else fails, cuteness prevails

*Hold mouse over photo for captions.

 

Just another Morning of Mayhem

This morning while I'm getting a screaming baby out of bed the teenager tells me its picture day. The notice the school sent home said it was suppose to be tomorrow, but he informs me that it’s according to when their schedule has a free period and it’s today! Yikes! (And thanks for letting me know at the last possible second.) Luckily, we’d already picked out the shirt he’d be wearing and I'd already started filling out the order form but still had to go online to pay (or find the checkbook and I wasn't about to attempt that). So, after changing a poopy diaper I hurriedly hop online to pay for school pictures. At this moment I’m thinking, what on earth would I do with more kids?! Thank heavens hubby is relatively self sufficient because frankly if I had him yelling from the other room; “Honey, where are my brown socks?!” that would be it. So, while getting the little one in his highchair and putting together a “breakfast on the go” for teenager who has no time to sit down I notice that once again he’s gotten up too late get everything done that he's supposed to which irritates me to no end so I have to nag at him about this for a while. Teenagers love that. While trying to get breakfast ready for baby, I say goodbye to hubby heading out the front door and to teenager heading out the back who at this point is full of TT [teenage ‘tude]. It’s very interesting to have this age spread between kids; on the one hand I’ve got a little one who I can’t reason with and on the other hand I’ve got one plenty old enough to reason with, however, he’s a teenager! Need I say more? (Not to those of you with teens, I’m sure.) To be fair, part of his ‘tude came from his mother refusing to let him take his skateboard because it’s picture day—of course this wasn’t obvious to teenager but the equation goes a little something like this: skateboard+helmut=flat hair which means we paid forty-six bucks for “teenage helmet head hair” to be displayed on the wall for years. No thanks.

Wordless Wednesday

Wherein I liken a Grocery Store to Disneyland

After baby’s playgroup this morning I decided to stop by a new grocery store that recently opened. Wow, what a store! Yeah, it was so good that I have to write a blog post about it. I wish I had photos to show you, however, whipping out my camera to snap pictures in a grocery store and in fact of a grocery store would have been reaching a height of geek-dom I was just not comfortable with. Even for the blog- sorry folks. Frankly, I didn’t know that that level of excitement existed in a mere grocery store. I’ll be honest, I like my full–service stores for the selection, service, amenities and overall appeal and this one exceeded all my expectations. As a SAHM to a high maintenance little one, often the few times we make it out of the house during the week is to go the grocery store, so I have to “make the most” of it. After I stared in amazement at the awesome selection of baked goods, gourmet cupcakes, etc, I noticed next to the coffee bar that they actually had a Gelato Bar—a Gelato Bar! There were other various food bars with just about everything you can name. There was even fresh baked pizza and freshly made sushi (one of my favorites). We strolled by the hot foods section so I could get baby a little portion of macaroni and cheese for his in-store lunch. I sat down with him to eat my bagel and of course that’s what he wanted. So after sharing half my bagel and getting the idea that he’ll only eat what he sees me eating I start to eat his mac & cheese. Big mistake. This was the best macaroni and cheese I’ve ever eaten. I finally get him to eat most of it and gladly help him finish the rest—besides the fact that it was delicious, it was also $6.99 lb. After lunch we start heading up and down the aisles and I was amazed at the selection. One of my biggest complaints about grocery shopping is going to a store and ending up with several things on my list that they don’t carry. Not only did this store have numerous specialty and gourmet items but also lots of natural foods items and organic, which we purchase quite a bit of. It was a bonus to find a local organic milk which was much cheaper than the national brands carried by my usual store. There was even a whole section with supplements, natural health and beauty items, etc. The grand finale to our trip was baby getting a balloon that actually had a clip on the end, thus avoiding the usual balloon-chase-down-in-the-parking-lot fiasco. This store was so great in fact, that I’ve got to go with the hubby so he can see it too. This sounds like a “date night” just waiting to happen.

Guest Post from The Cat

My owners have now required me to live outside. It happened around the time that new little person arrived, after my owner’s tummy got slightly smaller. [Funny though, her butt stayed the same size.] Anyway, this is the same time the dog was also given the old heave-ho out back. I’m not sure about him, but I think the reason I’m here is because of the numerous mice I’ve brought in, both dead and alive. Or maybe it was the bird whose feathers I coughed all over the dining room. Perhaps it was the many lizards who I’ve played with casually in the living room. But in thinking about it, it was more likely the snakes---the live ones, slithering down the hall at 2 AM. Yeah, it had to have been the snakes. I just don’t think they appreciate my friends. I also don’t think they realize that referring to me as the d*** cat hurts my kitty feelings. I’ve now had to resort to sleeping with the dog. They went out and bought him a house…can you believe it, a house!! Nothing for the cat, but a fully furnished, shingled roof, weather protected, window opening house with a skylight for the stupid dog! So, I’ve taken over. Yeah, I let the big furry guy in though, but only because he’s warm and frankly, I like to cuddle. Don’t tell anyone – I’ll deny it.

Oh no, Mom bought a hair clipper!

Since my family consists of a houseful of males who need frequent haircuts I recently had the brilliant idea to buy one of those hair clipper things [not to be confused with the hubby's mini hair trimmer, mind you].  So, I figured with boys who wear their hair short, how hard could it be? My first victim customer was teenager who thankfully likes his hair really short because when I got done with him he looked like he was ready to don some camouflage and ship out. Next up was baby, who'd had couple haircuts already and since I didn't think they did that great of a job I figured I probably couldn't do much worse--and hey, I was saving money! Okay, in all fairness, baby has a double cowlick and his hair pretty much sticks up no matter what you do to it. I have gotten better with practice; teenager's most recent cut looks every bit as good as the paid cuts he usually gets and even baby's hasn't been too terrible lately. I figured there was little chance I'd ever be allowed anywhere near hubby's hair since he's super picky about it (let's just say I spend less time on my hair!) But he's been griping lately about needing a haircut (it grows like crazy) so I "suggested" he let me try. I felt like I had enough experience that it might not be such a bad idea. I think it turned out pretty good there was just one little problem--apparently I held the ear tapering guide upside down and this resulted in a section getting a little shorter than I'd planned. Hoping it would blend on I didn't say anything. When hubby took a look he said something about a "patch of hair missing" so I had to confess and do some more blending. All in all, not so bad. Frankly, he's had worse haircuts that he had to pay for. Of course, we'll be using our haircut savings on a hat for hubby, but still.

Oops I did it again!

Please forgive the title, I just couldn't help myself.

So, the hubby and I are busily involved in Summer of Fun 2008 (which loosely translates into doing a boatload of crap around the house that needs to be done or I am going to scream) and I ask the him to find me a particular organizational item from the garage to send to the lucky winner of the SAHM Giveaway (congrats Meagan! I know you were probably shocked to win, what with those odds and all!) when I noticed he'd been gone quite some time. So I ventured out to the garage to see what was going on and he tells me that he can't find the thing I'm looking for and he's looked everywhere. When a man says he's looked everywhere what he means is that he looked in all the places that jumped out in front of him and completely ignored anything that might be behind or under something else because apparently those places simply don't exist. Or at least they don't qualify as "everywhere". So within seconds I spot the box that was sitting right there on a shelf behind something and said; "Right there, that's it!" He got it down and handed it to me and I went in the house while he stayed out in the garage to organize a few more things. Meanwhile back in the house I'm busy sweeping up Cheerios and crackers off the floor when the phone rings. It's the hubby. He says he'd like to me to unlock the door and let him in. Sadly, this is not the first time I've done this.

Conversation outside our bathroom

Me: “Hey, you know that mini-shaver/trimmer thing you use on your beard?”

Hubby: “Yeah, what about it?”

Me: “Well, it’s the rechargeable kind right? I didn’t see a charging unit anywhere.”

Hubby: “Yeah, it’s rechargeable, I just haven’t found a good place to set up the charger, it’s under the cabinet. Why, does it need to be charged?”

Me: “Yeah, it’s pretty dead.”

Hubby: *Giggling a little, then laughing out loud.*

Me: “What’s so funny?”

Hubby: “Well, I’m just wondering how you know this.”

Me: “Just go charge your shaver.”

What God has in common with Juan Valdez

When we went to drop the baby off in the nursery at church on Sunday it was quite a scene. It was the whole heartbreaking scenario: handing him over and having him throw his arms out towards us crying and calling “Mommy!” “Daggy!” (yeah, the daggy thing is darn cute!) As I’m about ready to burst into tears myself hubby tells me it will be ok (baby only cries for a few moments and then has fun playing) and then he reminds me we should make our trip out to the coffee cart before services start. I've got to say, the whole coffee cart at church thing; brilliant! I know it’s pretty standard to have the complimentary coffee available in the lobby, but I’m talking about the fully stocked coffee cart where you can purchase (for a reasonable cost) a good coffee drink. I’m a firm believer in the simple joys in life and coffee at church is one of them. [insert obligatory joke about staying awake for the sermon here] I’m sure it's also another thing to bring folks in that perhaps otherwise might not be so inclined; kind of like the whole casual dressing thing and modern music. I think it’s great that churches are doing things to encourage attendance. I guess the come as you are/casual dressing thing is a big one nowadays. Personally, our family is pretty traditional and I have never in my life not worn a dress or skirt to church—I just can’t do it! I relaxed my standards on what teenager wears (cotton pants, button up or polo shirt and loafers) and apparently this is even considered dressy to most! Then there’s the music; today’s Christian churches with the full on “rock” style bands are a little hard for me to get used to and honestly I'm not a huge fan. But, it’s popular with a lot of people and if it gets them out then I suppose that is point. And really, who am I to argue? After all, I get to enjoy my cappuccino during services and I’ll tell you what folks, that I consider a little gift from God.

BIG news!

We have so many great things happening I can hardly believe it - when it rains it pours! So, we are getting ready to leave on the most awesome trip (can’t tell you where, it’s top secret) and we are so excited but that’s not even half of the news. We just found out we won the lottery! But wait, there’s more--- I am pregnant! And I’m almost sure it will be multiples this time! Can you believe it?! Yeah, me neither because none of its true. Doh! (Sorry to disappoint you, Special Reader.) In real news, we are taking a trip to the mall this weekend (the hubby can hardly wait!), I did win some free diapers and today I’m currently working on multiple loads of laundry. Just sharin’.

Be sure to bookmark SAHM: Surviving Assorted Home Mayhem and check back for more exciting adventures in the life of this stay-at-home-mommy and writer whose life is so fascinating that her ex-husband’s wife can’t get enough of her blog and must check in every hour to see if she’s said anything shocking/exciting/incriminating. Wouldn’t you like to be a “Special Reader”, too? Well ok, maybe not that “special”.

SAHM: Surviving Assorted Home Mayhem- Giveaway!

Okay, seriously people! I know there are lots of you reading according to my stats. But, you'd never know it by the lack of comments. Okay, I know, what you can you say about a Wordless Wednesday photo, but still! Lately the comments to recent posts have been non-existent. So here's what I'm going to do: I am getting ready to do a giveaway here soon, but let's just say in preparation for that I'll do a "practice" giveaway in the meantime. Here's the deal: leave me a comment, you can say whatever you like but here's some suggested topics; tell me what you like about SAHM: Surviving Assorted Home Mayhem, what you'd like to see me write more about, (for those of you just joining us you might want to catch up with a few posts by reading some of the popular posts to right or taking a peek in the archives) a question you're just dying to ask, or anything else you'd care to write. The winner will receive an organizational item (given my career in this field I've got a few new items in the garage waiting for just such an occasion) of my choosing. Okay folks, let's hear from you! The winner will be chosen using a highly scientific method (random number) and upon receiving your mailing address (I'll contact you if you win--as long as you aren't posting anonymously I'll be able to reach you) you'll receive your prize within a few days of my making it down to the Post Office. Edited to add: (because apparently I forgot one little detail!) Comments will close on Monday at 4:00 pm Pacific and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter.

Wordless Wednesday

Sometimes it’s just regular ol’ stuff

Okay, okay, you’re dying for a new entry, I get it. As I sit and think about something interesting to write I realize that sometimes there just isn’t anything. Now there’s an opening line to bring readers in...have I lost you yet? Anyhoo, my point is how do you entertain people with tales of a trip to the warehouse store for paper towels and toilet paper? Well ok, there was this one time when I did this… and hilarity ensued. I know, I know, it’s like a re-run post. (Hey, they do it all summer on TV.) Anyway, that didn’t happen this time. Oh, I’d previously mentioned (for those of you on the edge of your seats following this story) that we were going to venture into the garage this weekend—we did, and though we didn’t get as much done as I would have liked, there was some significant clearing out done. The hubby worked his way through a lot of the stuff and we managed to sell one of the baby items we no longer use that was taking up space. We are getting closer to beating a path to some much more interesting items that I am anxious to go through as I know they will inspire several intriguing blog posts in the near future. Stay tuned.

In other news…

The baby got one of those wooden puzzles that makes the appropriate animal sound when you place the shape in its spot. Apparently the thing is light sensitive as we discovered the first night we had it.

Kinda sounds like a party at Sea World, huh?

Teenager has been busy with summer school and the other morning when I went to his room to see if he was ready for school I saw he was wearing perfectly pressed khaki pants, a polo shirt and loafers. For a teenager this is practically formal wear. I asked what the heck he was doing so “dressed up” and he replied that he had an assignment to dress business casual and give a presentation about possible career choices. “That sounds good” I said. Then I realized that he’s only taking Driver’s Ed and Health and how on earth does this assignment have anything to do with either of those subjects? He said; “Oh, teachers just like to give us random assignments that have nothing to do with the class.” Ok then! Sounds like a good idea to me in any case. Despite summer school teenager has been able to do at least a few fun things this summer. He’s gone to see a few movies, including Karate-Chop Koala (or something like that) and Wall-E as well as Ironman. Baby is getting ready to turn the big two in another month (which means I may have to start officially referring to him as a Toddler) so we are preparing for his little birthday party. The other day we sat him on his potty for the first time and to our amazement he actually used it. We were so excited we all clapped and cheered for him so hopefully he will get the idea. The hubby and I have been attempting to work on various projects around the house (clutter clearing, sorting and other household fix-up projects.) I know, I know, the excitement around here is non-stop! I’m pretty sure next week we’re going to venture into the garage and who knows what kind of tales I’ll have to tell from that adventure.