Janice, Janice?!

OH MY GOD.

My husband thinks I'm insane. He's always thought that, but the more he reads of my Blog the more he thinks I'm losing it. My mom complains that I link to much.

So, to make them both happy, here we go.

I know I said I wouldn't link to her for at least a week, but I have to. It's just too beautiful to take the chance that you might miss it.

Moments after I read this, we heard a suspicious sound at the front door. Then heard heavy boots outside the window. It is, after all, raining and almost 8:00pm here. Who on earth could it be? After looking at each other with much alarm, DJ got up to go take a shower (that's just how alarmed he was) while I quickly pondered all the horrible situations that may be about to befall us. Then I heard the friendly sound of the UPS truck. BEADS??!! I thought and rushed to the door. No, a package from Grandmaother with some random bits and pieces we'd left behind on our recent trip. Maybe tomorrow vis USPS. What are they, Irish?

I just noticed that I'm officially over 1,000 hits. That's got to be some sort of milestone, right? Let's pretend that Google & accidental clickings DON't count for the majority of them, which would make it SEEM as though more than 3 people actually read this on a semi-regular basis. Right on. Now, if I could just figure out how to get the lurkers to comment.

I'm drinking this wine right now. Yum. Sorry, sis. To the rest of you, I highly recommend it.

Okay, I think I'm done. I hope you don't think I'm as crazy/annoying (Janice? Janice!) as DJ seems to think you might. I guess I'll have to remember that "You have to stop the Q-Tip when there's resistance."

Friday's Recipe-1/4/08

That's the first time I've written 08 this year. Fun. Too bad I'm starting it off Half-Assed. I can't come up with a good recipe for today. And, quite frankly, given the nastiness that has been passed around this house in the past week, I'm pretty sure you don't want to eat anything I'd cook anyway.



So, I send you to this. I promise it's the last time I'll link to her for at least a week. I promise.



I think the Lasagna looks good. Or the Cinnamon Rolls. Or the Olive Bread. Or the Marlboro Man's Favorite Sandwich. Or the Pico de Gallo. Or the Chocolate Cake.



There you go. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Dessert, but not necessarily in that order.



Bon Appetit

Day O' Boys

I officially declare January 3rd the "Day of the Boy"

As I mentioned here, I was looking forward to becoming a Step-Aunt to three little boys sometime this month. Well, that day arrived today!

My Step-Sister gave birth to her babies this afternoon. At 7 weeks early, they came a bit before they were expected, but they're doing great. The littlest, Clay, is receiving a little help with oxygen, but he's doing awesome. Here they are!

Clay, 3lbs. 2ozs.

Paul, 3lbs. 10 ozs.

Seth, 3 lbs. 12 ozs.

Clay and Seth are identical. If you ask me they all look identical. They come from the family of Damn Cute. I love how Seth is just chillin' out, sitting like a "big boy" as we call it. And how Paul is giving the finger. That's my kinda kid. I'd be pissed if I was him too. And how Clay is the littlest, but he's the only one with his eyes open. He's going to be fiesty. Funny.

Today is also the Day O' Boys because Miss Zoot found out she's expecting a boy. She's due the same day as my sis, so I'm not sure if all this testosterone means we'll be welcoming yet another boy into the family, or if maybe, just maybe, we might actually get a girl. We'll see. That would make a whopping TWO girls in all the extended family members you can come up with. Two. My side & DJ's. Step-siblings & Cousins included. Two. But, it might still just be one girl, if my sister is having a boy, which would bring our boy count up to something like 462. Since I'm starting to confuse myself, I'm going to stop typing now.

Good night.

In Which I ALMOST Share Too Much

I don't really have anything interesting to say today. And, if your first thought after reading that is "Does she really have anything interesting to say EVER?" then you can bite me and stop reading. Good Day to you.

For those of you left, I could regal you with stories of the un-humanly things coming out of my sons (mostly Dylan) and of the many trips we've made to the bathroom after I've heard "Mommy, Wash Me!" in a half crying, mostly whining voice. Luckily I stocked up on 3T-4T Pull-Ups yesterday, or we might be running dangerously low. I am using each event as an opportunity to remind him that if he'd use the potty, he wouldn't need to be "washed" so frequently, but he's not getting it. I'm going to stop now, because I'm sure you don't want to hear about it (don't worry, Grandmaother, you'll get all the gory details in about 10 minutes) and, quite frankly, I don't want to relive it anymore than I have to.

Moving On...

I mentioned FlyLady yesterday. I can't tell from HRH's comment if she signed up after reading about it here, or if she'd already jumped into the abyss that is FlyLady and I just happened to post about it. If it's my fault, I apologize! The amount of emails that freakin' group sends out is INSANE. So, to save you all the time spent deleting, I'll explain it here. Basically, it's a 4,369 step program aimed to get the hopelessly cluttered & unorganized people like me Uncluttered & Organized. DJ laughed when I told him I was going to try it. You're probably laughing right now, too. BUT, the concept is simple, the steps are SLOW & EASY and it's something that I REALLY want to do for myself. You start off cleaning your sink every night and then you slowly move on to bigger and better things, eventually falling into the habit of picking up after yourself (& everyone else in your family) and keeping things neat. I'm going to try it. The problem is that once you sign up for the group, they start sending you an INSANE amount of emails. Little reminder emails (Where are your shoes? Go shine your sink! Do your Nighttime routine! Where's your laundry?) That reminds me, I'll be right back...

...Okay, I'm back. On a side note, that was the first time in I don't know how long that I've put a load of clothes in the washer without poop on them having to unload the dryer, move clothes from the washer to the dryer and then run the washer. There wasn't even a load in the dryer! Maybe FlyLady IS rubbing off on me.

So where was I? Oh yes, the emails. There is an Ungodly amount of email. One of the "steps" is that you're supposed to read them for 2 minutes a day and then delete whatever you haven't read. I've finally figured out that you can get around the emails by simply following the steps on the FlyLady website. There's a day by day list of what you're supposed to do. The emails are just succeeding in cluttering up my Inbox. Ironic, isn't it? Plus, every time I sit down to read them, I see something more interesting and end up doing something completely different. Like catching up on Pioneer Woman's story of how she met her husband.

Which brings me to another point. Pioneer Woman's life should be made into a movie. Seriously. It's a freaking awesome story. It could star Jake Gyllenhaal as a straight cowboy, 'cause he was HOT as a gay cowboy, so imagine how yummy he'd be as a straight man wearing chaps?! I'm just saying. ANYhoo, the story is long, but well worth the read. I likened it to reading a novel, which we all know is not going to happen in my life anytime soon. If you've got the time, sit down, grab a glass of wine or a cup of tea, and start here. But seriously, you need TIME to read it. Kind of like where this post is heading. If and when you ever finish that part, go here for the rest. That will catch you up to where she is at this point (not in life, but in her story telling). Then, when the movie comes out, you'll have me to thank when you can brag to all your friends that you knew that story long before they'd ever seen the first movie trailer. You're welcome.

I just went to check my email so I could share with you the most recent FlyLady update, but, surprisingly, there weren't any. There was, however, an email from a fellow blogger giving me shit for siding with her husband in regards to her recent post. Let me know what you think. I've never heard of it before and I think it sounds completely disgusting. Completely. Almost as disgusting as what's been coming out of my boys. Ha! Like how I tied things up there? Damn, I'm good.

**After re-reading this post before I hit "publish" I realized how many times I used the words "steps" when referencing FlyLady. It brought this to mind:

FlyLady,
grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change,
the courage to change the things I can,
& the wisdom to delete all your emails before wasting my time reading them.

And, We're Off...

Okay, This is it. I promise. Zach and I are off for an exciting trip to Target and the grocery store. Oh, and to the bank to deposit all of my Kissmas/Birthday loot to make up for the $$ I've spent on jewelry supplies. Sheepish Grin.

Then it's home to take down the dead tree. Put Kissmas away and move on to cleaning & organizing.

But first, I had to share this with you. Because even if you're not a dog person (wha?!) THIS will make you smile. OMG. I. WANT. HIM ONE.

Mazel Tov!

Meghan Does Dallas Uppers PERKY in 2008

I'm going to start 2008 -granted a few days late, but cut me some slack--it wasn't FOOD POISONING, it was worse. Some sort of nasty, and when I say nasty I mean NASTY, virus--with a clean, organized house. At least as clean and organized a house as I will ever be able to accomplish. I'm starting today. I'm going to be happy & perky (a la Katie Couric-Today Show Katie, not CBS Evening News Katie). No more Miss Crabby Pants. Again, cut me some slack, the past few days have been rough. I'm not taking back anything I said about the Rose Parade. I still hate it.

Some explanation:
1) I know it was a virus because sweet little Baby Zach has a nasty case of baby diarrhea and he even threw up yesterday. He doesn't eat food (esp. Quiznos or Old Juan's Cantina) and all 37 Google recommended websites I read said that it's safe to breastfeed with food poisoning. So, Rotavirus, or some other bug, decided to wage a mean attack on our Posse. Again.
Clorox Anywhere and I are going to be best buds today and the worst enemy of The Bug.
2) Due to poor Baby Zach's spewing episode last night I took today off from "work" and sent Dylan down to spend the day with DJ and GP.
3) One less kid leaves me with an ENTIRE day to disinfect, clean, throw unwanted shit out, get rid of Kissmas, disinfect, put away laundry, do more laundry, disinfect, and go to the grocery store without having to use one of those godawful, ginormous kid friendly carts.

In an effort to ACTUALLY get stuff done today, I'm putting down the computer, actually turning it OFF, and getting in the shower. As FlyLady says (insanity, but it may just be my Resolution, without subscribing to the self affirming bulls*#t, etc.) I'm going to "get dressed to my lace up shoes, do my face, shine my sink" and get my shit together.

2008 is going to be my Year. I'm ready for it. Rubber gloves, scrub brush and all. After all, I do need the practice so that I can keep my HGTV DreamHouse clean. :0)

Get On With It Already

I've decided, once and for all, that New Year's is my least favorite of Holiday's. I can't bring myself to stay up until Midnight, and am RUDELY awoken at 12:05am by my neighborhood boys setting off fireworks. Then, I have to spend the entire day on the 1st trying to avoid the Rose Parade. Gag. Hate. It. Is that Un-American? I find it ridiculous. I find it annoying. I find it completely useless and a COMPLETE waste of money. What other things could all that money be spent on? Food for the Hungry, funding SCHIP, Cancer Research. Nothing really important. Certainly not as important as gaudy floats decorated with flowers and other decaying pieces of organic, natural products. Sounds pleasant, right?! Quick, run to the T.V.! You're missing it!

Moving on...

DJ has finally emerged from the bedroom. I think he's going to make it. He just propositioned me to make him a glass of tea, and I politely told him to kiss my ass. I've been waiting on him hand and foot for two days and it's now his turn to take care of himself. Happy New Year. I still have an (Almost!) 3 year old and a 4 month old to take care of. Not to mention myself. I have much EBaying to do today and can't be bothered by his tea drinking needs. Just kidding. EBay and I are on a break for the time being. We needed to distance ourselves from each other for a while.

OMG, he just turned back to the Rose Parade. Gag. Again.

It's time to move on. To look ahead to the upcoming year. To go to the grocery store and stock up on all of the things we've run out of in the past few days. To do laundry. To get Kissmas put away once and for all. To vacuum. To make some more cheap jewelry before my beautiful Swarovski crystals get here. To Blog. To donate to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital to make up for all the frivolity associated with the Rose Parade. To change diapers. To disinfect.

OMG, he just turned back to the Rose Parade. Gag. Again.

One last time, before I move on, Happy New Year! May 2008 hold great things for you. May it finally be the year you ACTUALLY keep your New Years Resolutions. May you win the Publisher's Clearing House $5,000 a week for the rest of your life (& share it with me). May you come visit me in my HGTV Dream House in the Keys (Sorry, HRH, but it's MINE). May you look even more beautiful while wearing my jewelry. :0)