Seriously?

We've had some break-in's in the neighb. I have decided to leave my car unlocked so that I don't get a window broken or my jeep's soft top cut. I take all of my valuables out and usually lock my console and glove compartment.  However, I didn't lock my console the night before last, apparently. Someone had gotten into my car during the night and strewn all the random contents (band-aids, hand sanitizer, scissors, napkins, receipts, etc) of my center console about the passenger seat.  The only thing that was missing was my new make up bag with my super awesome new make-up!!!   

F-ers.

my banner

I tried to change something in my layout and I screwed up my banner. Then, I sort of panicked and odly enough, I ended up creating my entire layout from scratch. I think I'll redo it to make it better, but what do you all think?  Go back to my old banner?  Like the new layout? 

It Is Hard To Stay Strong

I'm not really the stereotypical mother, so I've been told. I've been analyzing why I think the way I think. Metacognition if you will.

And I will.

Ok, this could get long and self-indulgent. Stop now if your time is valuable.

Here's a little secret about me. I'm into visualization.  I totally believe that if you can see it, you can achieve it.  I used to visualize myself playing sports. I used to visualize a married life with a tall, red-headed lumberjack (close). Now, I visualize where I would like to live, travel and even how I'd like to design my house.  That all being said, I never visualized me having children.

So, on my life went: married, employed, self-absorbed, sporadic, unplanned, always looking for the next destination, experience or at least the next get-together with friends.  I had no need for children.  

Now, I have children. Two.

I'm going to get to the point.  Here's the shakedown:

There are two types of moms:

1) Moms that have always wanted kids. Moms that before they were moms were practicing to be moms. Moms that before they had kids didn't really like to go out or get crazy, but are now finally most happy in life when at home with their children.

2) Women that will become the moms listed above.

I guess what I'm trying to articulate is that I've been trying so hard to hold on to my prior life. I resolved to not change who I was just because I was having kids. I didn't want to be like those women. Give me some examples you say. Ok, I will. I thought I could still just travel like always. I thought I could (Scott sold me on this one.) still go out anytime with friends and to happy hours.  I was determined to keep my sports car.  I was still going to raise hell and maybe take off some clothing after a night of drinking.  Yes, I was not going to let kids, babies, tots bring me down.

Well ladies and gentlemen, it is FREAKING HARD TO HOLD ON TO YOUR PAST LIFE once you become a mom.  Oh it is so hard.  And, let me just break it to you. Two kids makes it damned near impossible.  So, here is my struggle. I am laying it all on the line here in the virtual reality of blogger.  

I am about to just give in.  I am about to just throw in the towel and say, ok, I'm a mom #1 now.  Give me the mom jeans. Give me the minivan. Give me the Hobby Lobby membership discount card so I can buy stamps and ink pads. Give me play dates and MOPS and growth charts.  Hand over staying at home Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday night and liking it.

But I haven't given in yet. I still visualize my camper, my road trips, my rifle, my cooler of beer, my campfires, my kayak, my dreams of adventure.  I just have had to add in the two little girls bouncing around in the back with a portable dvd player, juice boxes and marshmallows for the campfire. I've had to expand my dreams and add Scout and Brooke riding quads and purple dirt bikes, and fishing with their dad and learning to surf and snowboard and start a fire.  If I can see it, I can achieve it.

Combining The Worlds

Isn't that what Thanksgiving is about? Combining the worlds? We had a great time tailgating and the Cowboy win was good too. Yes, there are some stories to the game; the good the bad and the ugly.  But I will just say that 6 of us had counterfeit tickets.  I mean, it didn't stop us from getting in the park....finagle! But, well, it was eventful. We'll say that.

Big Group Above (L-R) Adam, Jack, Shay, Trish, Kamie, Scott, Jeremy, Ro, Jerry, Braden, Amanda, Reuben. We had California, New Mexico and Alaska represented along with various Texans.

Jesus, the Homeboy and the Tradish

As we were walking up to church this last Sunday, I said outloud "no matter how hard I try to go to 'other' churches, I keep ending up back at the old baptist."  I laughed about it because not only did I sporadically attend baptist churches as a kid; later a teen, but I spent five years on a southern baptist college campus.  Yet, I haven't ever really considered myself baptist.  

I know, I know..... I shouldn't bring "religion" to a blog that started out named "peeing in the shower," but I wanted to write a little blip about this past Sunday.

Now, a few years ago we hit the neighborhood baptist church after our friend Lani invited us to the contemporary service. Addison Road was the worship band and it was all pretty good.  The sanctuary was still like the old "churchy" type building, but the service was current and even Scott, aka Mr. Traditional, was ok with it.  But, after the band left and our friends moved away and we had babies, we hadn't been back.

Fast forward to this past weekend. Again, it was at the invite of a friend that we took our show back to the neighborhood baptist church.  Except this time, we hit the early service which is a 

TRADITIONAL service.  

Ok people if you haven't been to church since you were a little kid, well you can still go back and recapture the feel....just go to a traditional baptist Sunday service!  Let me start by saying that

 the message was good, kids enjoyed Sunday school, and we were happy to get some Jesus time.  Now, I will say that it cracked me up when I walked in to the sanctuary because it was wall to wall grey-hairs!  I was surprised that I was surprised at how old the congregation was.  I looked at Scott and told him that he was in the right place because everyone in the entire room had voted for McCain (ba-dum-bum).

But seriously, the choir sang hymns right out of the hymnals and the music worship leader guy looked just like this guy:

However, he led us in song in a way that reminded us of this guy on the right from the movie The Breakup:

I'm just letting you know what I was thinking about while we were singing.  I don't want you to think I'm making fun of a church or baptists. I mean really, I love Jesus.  But, I will get sidetracked in church looking around at people, at the band, the choir, the violin players, whomever.  Sorry I get distracted. 

I'm not sure if I have a point to this blog post, but I will say that you should give tradish a chance if you haven't ever or if you haven't in a while.  It is pretty fun.  And, I think it sort of makes people like me appreciate the movement towards contemporary and emerging.

NKOTB

Yes, Scott surprised me last night with New Kids on The Block concert tickets. THANK YOU SCOTT!! I was excited. He even arranged for our girls to have a babysitter. THANK YOU SHAY!

The picture above is of the main stage at the beginning of the concert.  The picture below is fro when they popped up right in front of our balcony seats and sang a few songs on this spinning stage deal. (These pics are struggling because they were taken with my phone.)

You know you had a favorite:

So, the question is...was it a good concert? Yes. It was hilarious because it was thousands of 30-something women screaming their hearts out. I was cracking up.  The "new kids" were really good and were a lot of fun to watch perform. There were some cheesy parts, like when Jordan sang a solo song and unbuttoned his shirt with smoke behind him, but over all it was a lot of fun. They had a lot of wardrobe changes which kept it good to look at. Oh, and Danny did a whole breakdance deal by himself which is always good times.

Just for the record: My favorite new kid was Jonathan, and he pretty much did not a thing at the concert, but just barely dance and sing back up. However, I still like him.  And, five dancers is always better than four.

I've Concluded It's Genetic

The Difference Between Men and Women

These are our thoughts on any given Sunday....

8am

WIFE: 

What will I do with the kids today? Maybe I'll take them over to visit family. 

What will I cook for breakfast? 

What will I need to do now to prepare for dinner tonight? Thaw out meat? Slow cook it? Marinate it? Do I have all of my ingredients?

I need to make sure the kids clothes are clean for the week. 

When am I going to do my grad schoolwork since it is due tonight?

I wonder if naptime is going to be difficult today?

8am

HUSBAND:

I hope the Cowboys win.

I hope my fantasy football teams win.

I hope the other NFC East teams lose.

Coastal Life Here I come

Surely, all four of us could fit into 388 square feet just to sleep right? I mean, the beach is at our door step...at least according to these photos.  How much do you think I'd have to pay for a piece of land in NorCal for this to fit?  And, do you think it would be awkward for the girls to have friends over?  

See more on this site: http://www.studiomama.com/chalet.html

Waylon the Dog Wears Me Out

This is a documentary post of how my house looked when I got home from work one day.  The first picture is when we walked in the back door we saw all this torn up carnage:

This picture is of Scout's "baby brooke." Notice Waylon chewed the feet and fingers off:
Here is one of Scout's toys. It was a giraffe.  Now it looks like the Hannibal Lecter of giraffes:

And, here is Scout's recently favorite stuffed animal "kitty-cat" and yes, her face has been removed:
Yes, we had to throw everything away, even the tiny baby boppy.  Scout initially looked around and started bawling at all her favorite things destroyed (she had them all on the couch that morning and I forgot to secure the).  But, she regrouped to make this video.

NEEDLESS TO SAY, WAYLON STAYS OUTSIDE DURING THE DAY NOW.

THANK YOU FOR PLAYING.

"Campy" Website Reviews

If you want to see lots of outdoor fun stuff and reviews, check out this site: http://www.travelizmo.com/

Crazy Website Antics

You can make yourself go back in time. This particular picture of me is from if I wasn't in elementary school in 1984.

www.yearbookyourself.com

House Hunters International is The Devil

I know I put too many posts up here about TV shows, but that is about all I have interesting in my life after my adventures in motherhood. So, let me just tell you that if you want to be disillusioned with your life or if you want to second guess your current living status, then watch House Hunters International on HGTV.

Once you watch a few episodes of this show you too might start to think about a geographic relocation where the sun always shines or the city never sleeps.

This film crew will take you to new builds in Central America (picture at the bottom - Honduras); flats in Europe including some of my favs like Sweden and other Scandinavian countries (middle pic below); and of course they will temp you with beach front properties in Latin America (top pic is Cabo) and the Caribbean.
My mind starts to turn as I think of what our budget would be and what we could afford south of the border. I've thought of how we'd home school the kids, but really just snorkel everyday while practicing our new language to communicate with the locals.

So, don't watch this show unless you want to see some really cool places. Leave a comment letting us know where you would move outside of the U.S....where would you move and live the dream? (I already know my sister desires Italy!)

A Special 2-Hour TV Show You HAVE to See

Nuts and Bolts:

*Please look on the Style Network if you have it on satellite. They are running the Clean House annual "Messiest Home in America" contest winner show. They show it like everyday. Set your TIVO!

Anyway, these people are filthy and it makes for great entertainment. I want everyone to see it, then comment here and tell me what you think! Are you happy for the people or do you wish they would have suffered more? Are the disgusting lazy pigs or just in need of a kick-in-the-pants?

Want a preview...

Click here for a story and video clip!

Living The Dream? Um, no.

For those of you out there that don't have kids, and are wondering if you should have them, I present you this:

Summer used to be just a ball of fun and freedom....I would travel (pic above is from Mexico) and read and sleep late and stay up late and go to happy hour a lot and travel and watch every movie that came out. However, Summer has now become like being in in-school-suspension. Trapped. Under someone's control.

Yeah, I'm a mother now. I spend my summer days picking up poop off the floor, wiping it off butts, and keeping the dogs from eating it. I go to bed at 10pm and wake up at 6:30am to manage the house and entertain the child. I bribe my kid with chocolate milk to get in the car so I can just go to a mall (pic above is from this mall food court) and watch her play in the "birth control center" --- play area.

I can't believe I've let myself get here. Don't feel sorry for me, just save yourself.

And for all the mothers that think I'm sick, and you love being a mother, and you can't believe how awesome your life is now that you have children. Well, I say congratulations on finding your passion.

Salmonella-Free Tomatoes

I'm so excited about the first tomato I've ever grown myself that I took a picture of it and I'm blogging it. Here are pictures of my tiny garden which also includes jalapenos, and parsley. I picked the four jalapenos I had this weekend and they became integrated into pico de gallo by Aunt Dianne. I haven't used the parsley yet, but the first tomato ended up on our sandwiches this week, and it was delish. The following picture is from this morning showing the up and coming tomatoes...

Next time, I'm going to spread my plants out more and offer better support. But, they are doing pretty well in their masses right now. I see how gardening can be addictive.

Our Pudge - 10 Years

Pudge a.k.a. "Francis; Walter; and Old Man River" went to doggie Heaven last week. He loved following his big brother Emmitt around, but in his later years he was pretty much content to just sleep all day. He was a good dog that only wanted to be scratched and loved. We brought him home from Canton's Trade Days ten years ago, and we've enjoyed his Pudginess ever since.

You Can Exhale

I got a new iphone from the Apple store. All's well. I guess my last one had a "hardware problem." So, they handed me a new phone. I was worried I'd lost all my info because it seemed that is what the dude at the store alluded too, however all is well. I tunes backed everything up. Nice.

Hold Your Breath

My iPhone is on the fritz! I mean seriously? Yeah, I have an appointment with the Apple store tonight for an intervention. I got the blue-blinky screen of death. At least that's what I'm referring to it as. I'll post when I get a diagnosis.

So, I waited a few months for this phone, saved money, and then....I get dead phone. Irony? Anyone?

Scott Is Nesting

Scott has been obsessed with outdoor improvements over the last couple of months. Every weekend he is working on the pool, the yard, or other projects. Here is an updated picture of our patio with the sod Scott planted a couple of weeks ago. There was a ton of work that went into it because we had the area covered in stupid rocks that he had to shovel and rake out, then transport away. It was a nasty job. Then, he had to get a tiller, etc. Finally, he planted the sod. We are pretty happy with it now.

This last picture is of the "shutters" that Scott installed. He was just hell-bent on getting shutters. I never even thought of them. But, I think the look good and he did pretty darned well.

TV Show I'm Into Right Now

Discovery Channel has a program called the Alaskan Experiment. I TiVo'd it not knowing if it would be corny or good. Turns out...it totally has my interest. Here is the link to the website : Alaskan Experiment

It comes on Tuesday night, and it's pretty good because it is reality tv combined with Alaska (in HD), survival, fishing, hunting, hiking, and people getting cabin fever. All pretty interesting.

Yes!

It was a long wait, but the iPhone is worth it. I love this phone-camera-tiny laptop-mp3 player. I have my personal email accounts hooked up to it, so the emails come flying in. Shoot me an email anytime. I can even put in my school attendance on it. I can make my grocery list via an internet program and email it to Scott. There is really no limit to it's greatness. Except: I can't text more than one person at a time (so I just email if it dictates that). And, I can't open text'd multimedia messages. But, I can look them up on the built in wi-fi internet. The other scarey part is there is no insurance. So, I've been protecting it like my precious.

I Guess He Didn't Read The Poll From This Blog

After much debate, Scott ended up "winning" the battle of getting another dog. Last night, while I was out with Lisa for a couple of hours, Scott took his accomplice (Scout) and went to Midlothian to "rescue" a one year old boxer. See Below: So, now we have a male boxer named, Waylon. I think I can get used to him. He didn't bug me really last night. And, it is funny to see Scout with him. Pudge doesn't know he's there until the wind blows. Emmitt is probably pissed off. But, Scott is a giddy as a school girl. Whatever makes him happy.

?

Why do I think it is awesome when a fight breaks out at school and the police officer puts a choke hold on someone/takes someone down/maces a kid?

I Killed the Phone

I've documented my cell phone desires as far as getting the iPhone. I mentioned that I cracked the screen on my Motorola Slvr. Well, yesterday I jumped in the pool unexpectantly (long story) and later realized my phone was in my pocket. So, my cell is dead. Please don't text me. I won't get it. If you call, don't expect me to pick up. I will check my messages. That is all. Call me at work if you need me. Or call Scott's phone. I'd tell you to call my home phone, but I don't even know the number. Thank goodness I'm getting the iPhone in two weeks.

Patio Rebirth

Patio Before (taken this Saturday am): Patio Day 1 of construction:
Patio Day 2 of construction:
Patio Day 3 - Cover pretty much completed:
Scott and I are so excited about our new patio cover constructed by my cousin Adam. Didn't he do a great job?! I've dreamed of this cover since we moved into this house almost 10 years ago. The huge concrete slab gets SO hot in the summer and puddles during rain, so this cover is going to make our backyard much more enjoyable and livable.

We are going to add some landscaping to the side strip of land, stain/seal the patio lumber, and decorate with some tacky lights. Hopefully, we'll break it in over Memorial Weekend.

Are You Quirky?

I don't think I'm quirky at all nevertheless, I've been tagged by my sister, aka Charlie to complete this list. I now pass this little meme-virtual chain letter on to Ryann, Kam, Lisa, and Christy because some of them have time, yet some may just blow me/it off.

Here's the skinny:
1. link to the person who tagged you.
2. post the rules.
3. share 6 non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. tag at least 3 people.
5. make sure the people you tagged know you tagged them by commenting to them.


So, on to it... six non-important things/habits/quirks about myself:

1. I HATE to wear my seat belt. I don't like to wear it when I'm driving myself nor when I am being driven. My new car blings at me because I don't have it on which drives me crazy. So, I've now stooped to just putting the seat belt into the click and sitting on top of the belt.

2. I always wait until the last minute to complete school work. This includes when I am a student (which is currently) and when I am a teacher grading paper or preparing lessons. It is sometimes quite stressful, but I never wonder why I do it to myself. I just accept that I do it. My reward? I get some weird satisfaction in knowing I can wing it and still come out with a decent product. (I'm supposed to be grading papers right now, but this is a good distraction.)

3. I don't like sweet and salty treats. You know how some people will eat a milkshake and have fries on the side? Or, how about drinking beer and eating cookies? I can't stand those combinations. I'm pretty much a strictly salty person, so I just avoid sweets. But, if I do... I have to commit to a sweet, and I have to keep only a sweet path.

4. I totally look for bad grooming on people. I will check for earwax, rogue nose hairs, and blackheads on people. Usually, this is just something I do when students come to my desk and ask me questions, but I'll look at grown people I work with too. Maybe they are looking down at a piece of paper or talking to the person on their side? Well, I'll take that opportunity to stare at their t-zone, at their nostrils, or in their ear. Then, I torture myself with how I'd pick it, trim it, or swab it.

5. I'm addicted to tomato-based, non-meat foods. Salsa, marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes, etc. I don't like to eat a lot of meat, and I sure love tomatoes. I'll chose salsa over queso and marinara over alfredo anytime. Too bad it takes carbs to go along with all the goodness.

6. No matter how long I'm traveling for or where to, I like to get everything to fit in one bag. I don't have any really big suitcases, so my one bag rule pretty much limits me to a medium suitcase or travel bag. I like it that way.

The Easter Bunny Cometh

Today Jesus died on the cross. In memory of this greatest sacrifice, we put rabbit ears on and wait for eggs. Any questions?

There Is Still More Texas I've Yet to See

I just got back from a little jaunt to the edges of Texas Hill Country. I started in Buda, TX south of Austin in Hays County. Buda itself is growing fast as Austinites spread out from the city. I stayed in Buda with my gracious hosts, my family the Murrays.

Day two took us down to New Braunfels where I met up with my cousins who have recently taken up residence in the area. They are just a rock's throw from the Guadalupe River not far from where the Comal River feeds it's spring fed water into the Guadelupe. The neighborhood is so calm and quaint, with the inviting blue/green river running close by, I could have stayed for years. I was even thinking of how I'd apply for jobs there.

Yes, the adventurous cousins (Malinda and Randy) have landed in a nice piece of Texas and once I arrived, they were ready to show me around the area including Gruene, Texas which was just 5 miles over the river and up the hill. I had never heard of Gruene before, but I'm glad I know about it now. It is a cool little town that is known for it's historic dance hall which is the oldest in Texas: Gruene Dance Hall. We went inside and checked it out, and I sure wish I could have had what was sitting on the table sweating, waiting for the next gig:

The trip was sort of short, so I can't wait to go back and give the area a better run for it's money. I hope I don't have to wait until next summer to revisit and raise heck.

Emmitt Merle and Crawfish

Emmitt antagonized the crawfish all day. Only once did one of the hundreds get a pinch in on his paw.

iRO

I can't hold back anymore. I must have an iPhone. Ever since I cracked the screen on my Motorola Sliver, I've been debating the iPhone in my own mind. The right side of my brain is winning because of the applications like mp3 players, photo storage, video capabilities, and just a righteously cool design with a touch screen. The left brain is losing because even though it is expensive, and I could just get a cheap phone; well, the gluttony side of me is winning. Screw sensible left brain.

I might be a 30-somthing mom, but I'm scratching a clawing to keep afloat of dorky-waters. The iPhone just might be one arm floaty.

Death Pool

I don't know if you have heard of this, but some sick people put a list together at the beginning of the year which contains the names of people they think will die by the end of the year. And, there is money involved. Thus the Death Pool. Well, I am one of those sick people, and here is my list:

JEFF CONAWAY
BRITTANY SPEARS
ZSA ZSA GABOR
LIZ TAYLOR
ANDY GRIFFITH
BETTY FORD
NANCY REAGAN
LINDSEY LOHAN
MICHAEL JACKSON
MAGIC JOHNSON
Y.A. TITTLE
RUE MCCLANAHAN
ELIZABETH EDWARDS
DICK CLARK
WILLIE NELSON
GARY COLEMAN
ANDY ROONEY
RON SPRINGS***
AMY WINEHOUSE
TOM SIZEMORE


I'll let you know if I win. Oh yeah, ***denote the joker which is worth triple the points. And, points are scored upon death with the young ones being worth more points than the older ones. Wish me luck, er, um... them death.

New Post

I decided it was time to post because I was tired of seeing plantar warts speaking to me when I opened this page. Now, I can look at this cool bike. I've always had a little motorcycle love within my blood. Owning a bike and riding on the weekends would definitely be cool. Alas, I won't get one, for now.

On other notes, nothing much is going on. I just work at school and at home. The grammy's were dumb. I don't know what movies are out in the theaters. At this time, my mind can't stop imagining camping trips at spring break and vacations over the summer. I'm hoping right now for the camping. A summer vacasche probably won't happen, let's focus on the Choats and their pop-up and the rest of us in our tents. It could happen.

On a final note, I've finally gone facebook. It has been fun to see some old friends there. Maybe you'll find me there.

Diagnosis: NOT Plantar Warts! Hurray!

What I actually have on the soles of me feet is "porakeratosis." They are a sort of "deep root" calluses which are tender and causing me pain. My super fly podiatrist, Dr. Prigoff, diagnosed them, then treated them. You may wonder the treatment: Lots of scraping with a scalpel, Lots of "sanding" with a Dremmel. Yes, a Dremmel. My feet are really smooth now. But, apparently not smooth enough because I have to apply some heavy duty skin cream (must use a rubber glove). I have to pumice 3X week.

So, essentially, I need to not have funky feet. I need to be more like Christy....lots of feet scraping, pumicing, and exfoliating.

Shout It From The Roof Tops...I'm Filthy

Here is what I need you all to know:
1) I have pink eye.
2) I have plantar warts.

Disgusting. Rotted. Dirty.

Can you say Viral-Girl?!

I've got medication on the way for the eyes. And, I've got a dr. appointment for the plantar warts lined up. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

Sorry my eyes and soles of my feet are hurting.

Cool Blogger

One the many scenic/vespa images you'll see...

Dee Ann emailed me these two blogs for reading:
http://vespa-vagabond.blogspot.com/ and http://dailycoyote.blogspot.com/

I'm still reading them, but I wanted to pass along to others. They are from the same 30 year old author and have great photography which illustrates the author's journey across the US on a Vespa and then, her current WY living.