Go Girl

I have to admit something. I have a crush. On a girl. Okay, it's a crush on several girls, but either way, writing it out loud makes me feel a lot better. Seriously though, These women are intriguing to me. I'm sure they get that a lot since they're famous, but they are out there in the public eye, so it's an occupational hazard.

Now don't go sending me the latest lesson on same gender attraction, I've read it, and this isn't that kind of crush, so mellow out.

First up we have Ellen. Let's face it, this is one funny freaking lady. I have always loved her sense of humor, even back in her mullet days, but now that she's gone mainstream with her show, I think more people are apt to appreciate sarcasm, which bodes well for me. But really, she has her opinions, lives her life, and still manages to wrangle top conservative show hosts to come and chit chat with her. That ability to span the gamut of political and personal views so graciously makes me love her that much more.

Next up is Catherine Keener. How adorable is she? I admit, I don't know much about her personal life, but as an actress, and a babe, I love her. She was in 40 Year Old Virgin, one of Sugar Daddy's fave films, and she was in Sideways and Friends With Money, two of mine. She has a cute almost alternative style about her, but she manages to keep it mainstream enough to skim past the worst dressed lists. She has a great smile, and how can you not covet her hair just a smidge?

And here comes one from left field. P!nk. I know, I know, she such a biddy, and she has a mouth on her, and she dresses all slutty and what not, but I'm telling you, I like her. Her music is totally not my style at all, but I still like her. I like that she proposed to her husband, even though they're now divorced. I like that she rides a motorcycle. I like that every time I see her, her hair is a different color. But she has a ripped body, and it works nicely with her arrogant attitude. I'm quite sure if we were neighbors, she would scare the crap out of me, and I would totally talk crap about her behind her back. But here in internetland, I like her.

So that's it. My girl crushes. Lovely ladies that I admire for one reason or another. Perhaps one day I'll do a Boy Crush post. Although that would be much less exciting, I'm sure.

Product Review

Recently I've come across a few products that I feel deserve a review. Some good, some bad, some just down right ugly.


First up, CVS brand diapers. These were on sale, and with the ECB's I got back on them, coupled with the ECB's I already had, they ended up being free. How could I not try out free diapers? After a few days of dealing with soaked pants, and changing sheets each morning, I give these diapers 2 thumbs down. Way down. Even for free, I won't be getting these again. Ever. I love free, but I can't skimp when it comes to hygiene. Huggies for me, thankyouverymuch.

Next up, Bali's new bra with modesty petals. Where was this bra when I had to get up to give a speech at Meg's wedding luncheon? I'm sure if they made it in teeny tiny size, Jill and Meg could both use this. Really, though, it is one less thing I have to feel self conscious about, especially when I'm wearing a lightweight T-shirt. After my breast reduction, things have been quite perky, and this bra takes good care of that! 4 Stars, for sure!

Moving on, we try out the Swivel Sweeper. This is a little cordless rechargeable vacuum that looks similar to a Swiffer. It has a little LED light on the front so you can see into those dark corners under the cabinets and whatnot. As far as cleaning up goes, it's about average. I have to empty out the dirt trap often, even if I feel like my floors are clean. I guess that speaks to what kind of housekeeper I am, huh? I do like that my kids love to use it, and will just turn it on and start vacuuming up the kitchen. Whatever help I can get out of them, I'll take it! I give it a 6 out of 10.

Finally, it's Cascade Gelpacs dishwasher detergent. I've always loved Cascade, but I prefer to use some sort of tablet so the kids don't overfill the dishwasher. For the longest time we used Electrasol (now Finish brand) tabs, but I had a coupon for the Cascade Gelpacs, and with them being cheaper than Electrasol, I thought I'd better try them out. I like that you don't have to open them up like you do the Electrasol tabs. You just throw the whole thing in, wrapper and all. The wrapper dissolves in the water, making it easy and mess free. I have noticed a few of the packs being stuck together, like they got a little wet and started prematurely dissolving. They pulled apart just fine, though, and still cleaned wonderfully. I would say the cleaning is equal to Electrasol, but without coupons they are more expensive. I don't think I would pay full price for them. I give them 4 golden goblets out of 5, but the price is an issue.

So there you have it, my product review. I hope you can use these thoughts to make better purchases in the future.

No, I'm not getting paid to do this, either. Are you kidding? Paid to blog? That would be my dream come true!

Motivation

I've had a good couple of days. Actually, it's been about a week and things are still good. But I can feel a change. I can feel the mood sinking. I'm fighting it with everything I've got. I think it will pass, so I have to stay motivated and just work through it.

I think a lot of my mood change is coming from comparisons. I've started comparing my life with the way I perceive the lives of the women around me. I've begun to feel very inadequate. Suddenly I'm doubting my parenting skills, my craftiness, my humor, my home, my car, my clothes, my appearance in general, and whatever else I can find to compare. And I keep coming out on the losing end of it.

Comparisons by nature are not a bad thing. But when it comes to comparing one's self with what is perceived to be another person's self, there is no winning. We always put our best face forward, and hope to win out on the comparisons.

Normally I don't really care about what other people think about me. I really don't. I got past that insecurity long ago, and about 30 pounds ago. I also use my humor to mask any insecurities I may feel. It might not be the healthiest option, but I'm not really known for my healthy choices, now am I? The last few days have really brought out some underlying fears I have of being left behind. I have started feeling like I'm not keeping up with those around me. I don't mean materially, I'm getting over that, I mean humanly. I don't do a lot of what the people around me are doing. I don't see what I'm doing as wrong, or what they're doing as wrong, but I feel out of sync.

I think what I need is a good old fashioned dose of "keep it up, girl". I feel like my family is doing well, my kids are happy and well adjusted, and we have a good schedule going. I try to keep it as low stress at home as possible, and the kids respond well to that.

Then I see some people that give their kids the newest toys, go to the newest restaurants, see the newest movies, and I start to feel lacking. I start to feel that I have to do those things in order to make my family and myself happy.

I know in my heart of hearts that we're happy just as we are. But still the motivation to keep it up is deeply buried, and it's hard to see through the mumbo jumbo of every day life. I think I just need to see my kids thrive in a simple environment, and then I'll feel better. I'll give it a day, and hopefully that will help me feel motivated to keep it up.

Time to 'fess up

Because I'm lacking a little blog posting creativity, I'm doing the standard roll call.

All you lurkers out there, don't be shy.

All you have to do is state the following:

1. Your name
2. How you found my blog
3. Your favorite movie, tv show, or CD.

Easy, right? That's just how I roll.

So far, so...

Good? I don't know. I've off-centered these cute prints on my big big blank wall. What do you think? Good? Bad? Ugly? Note there will eventually be furniture in this room, although at this point Sugar Daddy is convinced it should be a pool table. What is this? A bachelor pad?

And here's a little sumthin sumthin just cause she's so cute. She sticks her tongue out at everyone. She thinks she's pretty darn funny. And she is.

So I was thinking

I know, hard to believe. But I just discovered today that it is indeed February.

That means January is now officially over.

Finally.

I may be a little slow on the uptake here, but I almost breathed a sigh of relief. I walked outside today only to hear Geese flying over head. Is over head one word or two? Whatever. Geese, yes of the Canadian kind, were flying overhead, honking their little honkers out! It was adorable. I guess that's what I get for living so darn close to the Canadian border. I hear you have to watch out for those Canadians, though.

So I was thinking. I need a Spring pick me up. Here's what will help give me a little burst of energy to get through this remaining Winter. So pick the one you think will be the best.

1. A new outfit.
2. A spray on tan.
3. A mani-pedi.
4. A new hand bag.

What do you say? I'm leaving it up to you, folks. You've all done so well with the Writers block challenge, I just know you can do this too.

And I'm sorry this post sucks. Please refer to the previous post for my excuse. I promise to be back on track soon. Really. I do.

Moooving Day

Okay, okay, I know it's been too long.

Yes, the movers have come and gone. And yes, I'm posting from Illinois, which is now home. Although I'm not quite home as of yet. I'm at Michelle's house in Peoria, and I'm a mere 4 hours from my new town. I had a vision of what our cross-country trip would be like. It included several new downloads from iTunes, and sleepy children lovingly gazing out across the plains as we whizzed by. Insert laugh here. Our iPods are inexplicably missing, and they better be packed and not stolen.

We left Utah on Sunday morning in a blizzard of previously unmentioned snow. 30 MPH until Evanston, WHYoming made for a long morning, especially when coupled with tear-stung eyes. Finally the snow stopped, and thy WHYoming sky shone a brilliant blue. Our initial plans of staying in Cheyenne flew by like our truck in the night as we realized we needed to cut a day off our trip, so we pressed on into NebrASSka.

Monday morn we woke up and played in the local hotel water park. We had the entire 2 slides to ourselves most of the morning. After showers and vomit, we headed to Peoria. Through Winter Quarters and on into Council Bluffs, I-OH-wa. I'm sure these places hold deep history of the pioneers, I'm just not sure exactly what. Maybe Barb can expound. We arrived in Peoria late last night, and after yummy dinner with Michelle, Ken, and Tressa (aka Grandma Hashbarger reincarnated), we headed off to find a local Hotel to rest our travel weary head. Not as easy as I thought. Finally, after midnight, we rolled into Comfort Suites. Thank goodness for suites. Sweet.

Today we enjoyed butter and egg yolk waffles and home made syrup. Michelle has the cutest little house, and it's not haunted like our turn of the century house was. So now we head up to our new home town. Hopefully we can get there in one piece and not have any poops or vomits or fuel issues on the way. I hope to post some pics of the new diggs in a couple of days, so keep in touch!

Kisses!

Sugar rush

I had to make Sean's birthday cake yesterday. A banana cream cake. It is quite a yummy dessert. (Un)Fortunately for me, I only had to use about 2/3 of the cake mix. What would you do with 1/3 of a yellow cake mix? Make cupcakes? Make a mini cake? Throw it away? Well, if you know me at all, you don't even have to ask what I did with it.

Yep, I did.

All of it.

And it was mighty scrumptious.

What the?

Black Friday

This year I passed on the frenzy that is Black Friday. Last year I was 14 months pregnant, not sleeping, and nesting, so of course I went. This year I lied in bed with my new pillow embracing my sleepy head, and enjoyed the breeze from my open window as I cuddled with my hubby. Nice. Not that I won't do my fair share of shopping later today. We have lunch at Mimi's with ALL the girls, extended family included, and then it's off to blaze a trail of shopping destruction. We have to burn off those turkey calories somehow.

And the "holy crap that's good banana cream pie" was a hit. In case you were wondering.

Deep thoughts

This is probably a first for me. Or maybe a second, but either way, it's unusual for me.

I'm about to go deep. Yes, people, I've been thinking. Scary.

In hearing of the Malibu fires that have affected Bonny and her crew, and especially after hearing Esme say she took a box of "things money can't buy", I started wondering about what I would take if I had to leave my home so quickly.

And honestly, I'm not sure.

I know I would grab my fireproof safe with all the important documents, birth certificates, passports (which there will be another post about shortly), car titles, and insurance info. I would grab my scrapbooks. I would grab the Wedding Egg from Nunn Bee, and the quilts from my mom. After those things, I'm not really sure what else I would take. What else would be irreplaceable? So many things are merely material. It kind of makes me sad that so much of my life is replaceable. I guess I should take more time and effort to make things special. What is irreplaceable to you? What are your "things money can't buy"?

The latest

This week has been unusually serene. Especially considering I'm leaving in 3 days for 10 days. So that translates into not much to blog. So sorry. But for those of you on the edge of your seats, here is the latest from our home front.

And Meg, these bullets are just for you.

• It would seem some thoughts and prayers are in order for Bonny and her family, as they battle the Malibu fire near their home. You can see the updates here.
  
• My passport is nowhere to be found. We had it expedited in 4-8 days, and 8 days later, still no sight of it. Hmm, what will I do to get on that ship?
  
• Gretta came down with the pink eye, which then spread into the other eye as well. Now we have to put gunky antibiotic ointment in her eyes twice a day. Try doing that on a wriggling 9 month old.
  
• Gretta is 9 months old today. 15 pounds, and a super crawler.
  
• I have a new addiction. StumbleUpon, on Firefox. Holy crap, this thing is addicting.
  
• The red paint in my kitchen and up my stair well has been discontinued. Too bad we have another coat to do on one wall, and a few touch ups on the existing red. I wonder how that will look? The new red is close, but I don't think it's close enough. Stupid Lowes.
  

That's pretty much it. I will try and figure out how to post from my email account so you won't have to wait 10 days for an update. I know how torturous that can be.

Halloweenies

Last night we were treated to a wicked fun party, courtesy of Mom and her mad party throwing skills.

Thanks, Mom!

They had soup in bread bowls, and doughnuts. It was muy delicioso. I made Gabe/Laura's tortellini soup with ground turkey. Super yummy. You can find the recipe here.

Later today will bring:

A trip to the craft store for Halloween party invitation shiz.
3 kids getting flu shots.
Gretta getting a prescription for antibiotics for her pink eye (thanks mom!).
Probably laundry.
Me battling with Maggie for her to wear pants. She only wants to wear "soft shorts" and it's 50˚ outside.

Good times.

Random

I have pink eye.

Maggie has a fever and won't eat.

Gretta is pulling up on anything that she can get her hands on.

Emma has decided it's better to do her entire homework packet on Mondays, so she's free the rest of the week.

Sean and I saw each other for a total of 1 hour yesterday. Today will probably be the same.

I have to start packing. I do, I do, I do.

We leave for our cruise in a week and a half! Yay!


.

Where to begin

I've just been overwhelmed with the thought of packing. I can't even seem to begin to wrap my mind about the task that lies ahead. Luckily Sean and I both love dejunking, so we don't have too much stuff, but we do have three kids and all the stuff that goes along with that. I've perused the internet fully on tips to move seamlessly, but still, I find myself in a funk when it comes to organizing it in my mind. What are some ways you all (or should I start saying y'all?) have found to make the moving process easier?

Jill, this is for you.

Today is National "Talk like a Pirate" day.

Jill will like this.

I hear, so will Aaron.

I don't want any details.

Now I lay me down to sleep.

Things I'm looking forward to today:

1. Going to Costco. Love Costco almost as much as Ikea.
2. Chilling with my kids. G is so fun now that she's crawling everywhere, and Maggie has really grown up and that makes it much more fun to hang out with her.
3. Having my King Size Bed ALL.TO.MYSELF


Sean has a sleep test tonight. He may have sleep apnea. So for one night he gets to sleep while hooked up to dozens of machines and being watched by strangers through a window. I hope they don't mind a little flatulence.

Thank you, thank you, Ikea

The Billy BYOM bookcase has found a new home in our home. Only mine isn't blurry.

As has a stainless steel shelving unit. Not this one. I don't own a crappy wood deck.


And Emma scored a cute hot pink chair for her room. Not this one. It goes with a desk. No picture of that, but you know the type, square, silver legs, blah blah.
So all in all, we got cool stuff, but no picture of it yet. You'll just have to wait and see.

My Celebrity Look Alikes

Thanks to Kalli for this funny little tid bit.

Another adventure

Today I asked Meg a question. Do you think it's weird that we, as sisters, do everything together? I mean, I think it's normal for sisters to do lunch, or go to the mall, or get a mani-pedi, which we do, but to attach a 16 foot kayak to the top of a truck and head off to the wild blue just doesn't seem normal. And trust me, normal is a relative term here. I guess I should just consider myself extremely lucky to have such an adventurous counterpart. I was also a little concerned that we looked like lesbians. Which is fine, don't get me wrong, but I was worried that people would look at Meg and think "what is she doing with someone like her?". But all stereotypes aside, we had a great time. We met a guy with his 3 four legged kids who just happened to chill on our beach all afternoon. The dogs were cute, very playful. I don't know about you, but I certainly don't like a strange dog licking my face and leaving sweater-size chunks of fur all over my wet body. Gross. I think he might have had the hots for Meg. Gross. He also said he would lay out naked on that beach when no one was around. Gross. And after a paddle suicide, and depleting the ozone single handedly with our black smoke spewing diesel truck, we made it home safe and sound. Another great adventure under our belts. Now we have to start thinking about a winter activity. Any ideas?