And I Am Officially Losing It

It's been a very long day. A hard slog from start to finish.

I took the kids to Dairy Queen for a treat today. I got both kids out of the car and into the restaurant. I ordered two kid size chocolate cones, paid, and then went back to the car. Outside, there was a long line at the drive-thru and a narrow lane for people to drive around the restaurant. We were parked in one of the parking spaces on the side of the lane. As I buckled Monkey into his car seat, I was surprised by a car horn. I stood up and stared in surprise at the middle-aged man who was too impatient to wait for me to buckle my child safely into his seat . My butt was in his way, basically, and he thought he'd honk. When I looked at him in surprise he indicated by gesture that he wanted to drive up the lane. I made the international sign for "I've got a little kid here and I'm just buckling him into his car seat." He made an impatient gesture and indicated in even larger gestures that he would like to get his ice cream RIGHT NOW. So I (and here's where things get a little out of character) stuck my butt out and smacked my butt cheek as if to say, "Kiss it, Mr!" Then I nicely got out of his way.

I think I'm officially losing it.

Did I mention it was a LONG day?

Oh Yes We Are EVEN MORE Excited

Guess what?

My best old friend from college, we'll call her CG for "College Girlfriend," got us tickets to see Madonna!

See? CG (isn't she cute?), Madge and Reluctant... Bffs (and ever). Naturally.

Squeeeeeee!


And in other housewife news. I'm done the bear for my giveaway winner.

Here he is:

Differences between my bear and the pattern bear: There was no pattern for the little bag, so I made one up & decided to do a skull n' cross bones thing since he's a pirate; and there's an added ridge along the edges of the sweater to make it look like he's wearing the sweater.

Here he is with Monkey so you can get an idea how big he is.

Here he is from behind - he has a wee little tail.

And, for no particular reason, here's a picture of me in my strange mirror cubby.

Look at me with my bad self y'all.

Oh Yes, We Are VERY Excited

Buddy has been playing Mario Cart on the Wii.

He is really good at it.


Are you familiar with the Wii? It allows you to create little beings called "Miis". They're very similar to our Meez avatars. Buddy's Mario Cart game is saved under his Mii. It looks exactly like him... Down to the bedhead and freckles.



The reason we are so excited?



Buddy has won 1st place is so many races that he's opened a racer based on his Mii. Now, instead of racing as Mario or Donkey Kong, he can race as himself. Imagine his excitement... I'm sorry I didn't get a video of it.

"Oh! Mommy! Look! I can race as me! That's ME! Look! Ha! Ha!" etc...



And it is the CUTEST thing EVER - the little Buddy racing along in his little cart in video game land.



Seriously.

10 Things About Right Now

1. I'm way behind getting the bear done for my last giveaway winner. That's right... still not done. I emailed her, though, so she knows I haven't forgotten. This is what I'm making, at her request:

Cute, eh?

If you'd like to make one too, you can get the pattern at Crochet Me. I'll post a picture when I'm done so you can see how I did.

2. We've been using a new laundry detergent because they didn't have our regular stuff at the store. I think we'll have to switch back, though, because it's making me itchy.

3. My hair parted in the middle today. I think it makes my face look wider. But I still kind of dig it, cause it makes me look more artsy.

4. It looks like two little boy pinatas exploded in here - cars, transformers and Pokemon everywhere... Must tidy.

5. We went for a walk this morning, first thing, but I didn't bring my camera. How very out of character, no?

6. I saw that there were a bunch of new episodes of Bones up on the 'net and I'm looking forward to watching them. Sadly, I read at one of the blogs that Zach is somehow responsible, or in cohoots with the crazy bone collector guys (or whatever - haven't seen an episode since the start of the writer's strike)... Total spoiler! Hello! These should have WARNINGS people. Not all of us have cable.

7. I'm am surprised to find myself developing a bit of a crush on Gordon Ramsay... I know! What the hell, right? Well, I've been watching the F-Word. He's not all red-faced and screamy on it like he is on Hell's Kitchen (not attractive at all - the red faced, screamy thing). He's just sort of enthusiastic, and funny. He has a funny little bounce he does when he's excited about something. I like his carefully messed-up blond hair and blue, blue eyes. And he's huge! So tall that he makes everyone else look short. And you get to see him with his kids. And you actually get to see him COOK. And then there's the opening. Have you seen it? Okay, youtube does not have the opening, just on its own, so I'm putting part one of episode one of season one. K? Just watch until after he takes his clothes off (un hun). Whee. Or watch the whole thing... I don't mind. But it's a fun show & I recommend it.



8. Gordon Ramsay is not really not my type.

9. The maintenance guy is here fixing the few things that were wrong with the place when we moved in. Yay.

10. And it's time for me to go get Buddy at school

Bye.

Maybe This is What's Wrong With the World

Cost of a new toner cartridge for our printer?

$88.95

Cost of a new printer?

$69.00

So we bought a whole new printer because our old printer was out of ink.

That's sick.

Especially considering that there's a GIANT FLOATING ISLAND OF GARBAGE in the Pacific Ocean.

Paragraphs and Stuff

So, I've noticed a marked difference between the blogs of real writers and my own. The real writers actually write - their posts are well thought out, carefully worded, intelligent and long... You know, with paragraphs and stuff. I, on the other hand, am simply playing. My posts are short, picture filled and jokey. It might be fun, but I don't think it can be called writing. Not much for content, am I. I read the real writers' blogs with interest... with a touch of envy... and just a bit of hero worship. Hero worship is a bad habit of mine. I tend to think other people are universally more accomplished than me; and, worse, I let that intimidate me. People? Kind of scare me.

I've always been shy. Well, that's not true. My mother tells me that I made friends with ease when I was a small child. It was when I started school that the shy thing kicked in. Starting in grade one, I remember feeling ashamed whenever people noticed me. I developed a "don't look at me, please," attitude. I was quiet. I hung back. I didn't assert myself. In my teens and twenties, my shyness intensified. I would almost describe it as a social phobia. Speaking to new people, or in class, or to people I didn't know very well (speaking to anyone who wasn't immediate family or a close friend, really) would induce panic. My heart rate would go up, I'd blush, I'd feel warm and shaky, I'd feel nauseous and I'd want to run away. It was not a good thing. Now, at the notthatoldbutnotyoungeither age of (almost) 33, I've managed to work past most of my shyness. I am comfortable in my own skin and able to speak up in company without dying of embarrassment. I've finally come to the conclusion that, maybe - just maybe, I might have something to offer; I might be just as worthwhile as everyone else. I'm even able to relish a bit of attention on my blog... But that makes sense, I've always been more comfortable expressing myself in writing than face-to-face or, god forbid, over the phone. I hate the phone!

Possibly because of my shyness, or maybe just because I actually am a bit left of "normal", I've never felt like I fit in. Let's just say that I've never been one to jump on any of the passing bandwagons, waving a flag that reads, "I fit in here." So, I'm surprised to find "my people" among the mommy bloggers of the internet. Mommy bloggers are often funny, articulate, intelligent, creative types who are looking for an outlet for all their fabulousness in between all the dishes, laundry and diaper changes. They're like me*. It's great. Here comes the bandwagon, just let me get my flag.

I might never be a writer. In truth, I'll probably never be a writer, but I'm okay with that because, for now, I can proudly call myself a mommy blogger.


*Shy reaction I am having right now: I dare to call myself "funny, intelligent and creative" in writing (well, pixels anyway) where anyone can read it and scoff? Scary stuff. Yikes!

Interview with a Buddy and a Monkey

I got these fill-in-the-blanks questions off of the Friday Playdate blog and I thought it would be fun to ask Buddy and Monkey to fill in the blanks. I put Buddy's answers in italics and Monkey's answers in (brackets).

My mom’s name is Mel-A-nie (Melly).

She is 25 (5) feet tall and weighs 10 (5) pounds.

She is 30 (5) years old.

When I’m at school my mom takes care of Monkey. (works her Melly-puter?).

Her favorite store is... I don't know. (Chipmunks? Silly chipmunks?)

Her favorite food is broccoli (chicken nuggets).

Her favorite TV show is designers (chipmunk movie).

The thing my mom likes to do the most is watch chef Ramsay. (Play toys?)

The thing my mom likes to do the least is eating garbage. (Play?)

My favorite food my mom cooks is peanut butter sandwiches... actually, soup... yeah, soup. (Potatoes and chicken nuggets and french fries and eye balls and broccolis and charlies... Charlies? Charlies? Charlies? Ha! Ha!)

My mom’s favorite color is pink. That's easy, right? Because girls really like pink... Am I right or am I left? (Pink)

I love her because she's my mommy (Chipmunks love Daphne).

Buddy requested some questions about him.

Me: Buddy, what is your favourite character from a book?

Buddy: Uh... (pointing at Asterix in book he's reading) that guy.

Me: You don't have to pick from the book you're reading right now, you can pick from any book, ever.

Buddy: But this is my best book and I like that guy best.

Me: Okay, why do you like that guy best?

Buddy: Because he's strong when he drinks his potion.



Me: What's your favourite game to play?

Buddy: Mario Cart and Super Mario Galaxy.

Me: What about a game that's not a video game?

Buddy: Uh, I think Pokemon.

Me: Who is your favourite Pokemon?

Buddy: I think... I think Graveller.

Me: What does he do?

Buddy: Hun? What? What does he do?

Me: Yeah.

Buddy: He punches everybody... Every Pokemon, just to beat them.

Me: And you think that's a good thing?

Buddy: Uh... He's STRONG!



Me: Can you tell a funny joke?

Buddy: Why did the horse cross the road?

Me: Why?

Buddy: To get to the hay store! Get it? It's a funny one.



Monkey's turn:


Me: Monkey, what is your favourite character from a book?

Monkey: Chipmunks books?

Buddy: There's no chipmunks books!

Monkey: In the library... the chipmunk library.... I want to watch the chipmunk movie in a minute?



Me: What's your favourite game to play?

Monkey: Chipmunk games... and Monkey Ball Banana Bits.



Me: Can you tell a funny joke?

Monkey: Uh... Poop. Poop? Ah-hahahaha! Poop on the floor. Ha! Ha! Can I watch the chipmunks in a minute?

Fun Little Personality Test

Quirky pointed out this fun little personality test, called Personal DNA. Try it out and let me know what personality you have.

I'm a Considerate Idealist.

Here's the description it gave me:

About you

You are an Idealist

As an IDEALIST, you are distinctive for your integration of confidence, imagination, willingness to explore, and desire for competence over style.

You have a strong capacity to comprehend the inner workings of things, finding new ideas and innovative insights to feed your curious nature.

You are quite comfortable in the realm of abstract thought. You don't need a practical solution to every one of life's questions.

You are comfortable with the decisions you make in life. You don't need to second-guess yourself, or seek a lot of opinions before you make up your mind.

You enjoy the routines that you have created in your life, and don't feel the need to shake things up just for the sake of change.

You generally succeed at what you do, and others would describe you as successful.

It is important to you that products be efficient – looking good has to come second to working well.

You aren't the kind of person who needs to collect stylish items in an attempt to create an attractive environment – you know that what matters most is function, not style.

Generally, you believe that you control your life, and that external forces only play a limited role in determining what happens to you.

how you relate to others

You are Considerate

You trust others, care about them, and are slow to judge them, making you CONSIDERATE.

You value your close relationships very much, and are more likely to spend time in small, tightly-knit groups of friends than in large crowds.

You enjoy exploring the world through observation, quietly watching others.

Relating to others so well, and understanding their emotions, leads you to trust people in general, even though you're somewhat shy and reserved at times.

Your belief that people are generally well-intentioned contributes to your sympathy regarding their problems. Although you may not vocalize it often, you have an awareness of how society affects individuals, and you understand complex causes of people's behavior.

You like to look at all sides of a situation before making a judgment, particularly when that situation involves important things in other people's lives.

Your close friends know you as a good listener.

Extraneous Shots of Trees in Spring

Another Sunday, another walk in the park.


The trees were beautiful.

Just Buzzing Along with the Cosmos

I get a horoscope delivered to my email everyday. You can click in to read all the details about what your day is supposed to be like, apparently, according to the stars. I like to read the subject line of the email; I usually don't bother even opening it to get the details. The subject line sums up what is in store for Geminis for the day. Usually, it is comically apt. Usually, it says things like: "Gemini: Your thoughts have a mind of their own." Or, "Gemini: Your emotions can impact your creativity today."

Today it is gibberish. Today it says, "Gemini: You are buzzing along with the cosmos."

Hmmm... Okay, then.

Thanks, I guess.



So, for today only, if you hear an unexplained buzzing you're probably standing next to a Gemini.

Extraneous Tulip Shots and One of a Cherry Tree