feeling crafty

I am bursting with creativity at the moment and I have to admit, it all comes from looking at such amazing blogs. When I come across a crafty (or just plain ole fun) blog I love (and if they have a button) I try to post it over on my sidebar for others to click on and enjoy. It's been such a treat reading these blogs the past few days. Even though I would never describe myself as "creative" I feel the juices running through my veins and I'm dying to try and make something with these two hands! My absolute favorite blog is the Be Different...Act Normal blog - I can guarantee you I've spent at least a solid 2 hours on there this afternoon just browsing around drooling over all the craftiness going on! I honestly don't know how I'll manage my life now that I'm going through a million and one new ideas in my brain. This has given me such a kickstart to get back on the wedding planning wagon and be nifty with my ideas! Honestly, right now I'm shaking with excitement - I wish I could make you understand how refreshing all of this is!

And it's not just the crafty-blogs that have got my heart racing. It's all these amazing blogs where people talk so candidly about their families, their triumps and their struggles. I have seriously been missing out on some great material out there! And if you're one of my readers who's not a blogger, I encourage you to look around and find some new blogs to follow. You can create a Blogger account without ever creating a blog - this should help you track and manage all the great blogs there are out there to follow! And I'll say it again, if you're not on Twitter you need to join now! You can connect with amazing people who can uplift your spirits in ways you don't even now is possible.

I'm high on life right now, folks. It's almost 5:00 and I'm heading off to pick up the little SidMo at her mamaw's house. Let's hope this feeling is contagious!!
Have a GREAT EVENING!!!

late night fun

Believe it or not but there are actually some things I can do at night to un-glue SidMo from her 2-hour block of cartoons before bedtime. Let me address that first: she doesn't sit/lay/be still for two hours to watch TV. Usually, I turn the TV on in Mom's room & she runs back and forth from room to room watching TV and playing. Sometimes she will sit still and watch all 4 cartoon back to back (The Backyardigans, the WonderPets, Wow Wow Wubzy and lastly Blues Clues) but usually she only does that if someone will lay down with her (and she has all her equipment like her paci, her favorite Snoopy blanket and some kind of plushy toy, usually her Ming-Ming doll).

Last night I decided to make these mini-cupcake things (I think their really just little muffin trays) and I had a ton of cake batter left over, so I made a little cake as well. SidMo loved the cake (she loved the mini cupcakes, too)! So as I was frosting my cake, she hopped up on the counter to enjoy. I didn't even fix the icing when we were through - I thought it was perfect as it was :)


Icing on the finger - eyes on the TV.



It was cream-cheese yummy goodness!



Smooches for SidMo!!!!


(All of these were taken with my phone, hence the fuzziness...)

he was a smartie

I used to have a larger portion of Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry" lyrics at the top of my blog when I first started this thing under the name "Blogger's Delight". Then I grew tired of it & re-vamped my whole blog - doing away with the lyrics completely. But yesterday I heard the song on my beloved 102.7 and I just couldn't help but smile. To me this song sums up our entertainment-centered lives perfectly. I adore me some celebrity gossip, but I know deep down it's all crap. It's fun crap - but it's always crap.

So I put another little snippet of the song back up as a description for my blog - not that I think my blog is crap, it's just that on some deeper level I know that some of the stuff I write about sometimes is nothing more than crap. Some of my stuff is just glamorized garbage that has no real substance to it at all. But that's OK - sometimes it's nice to just air our dirty laundry and let the stank out. Listen to the song below - you know you love it!

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

connection gives us direction

I've had this blog for a couple months now and I've been bothered lately by the fact that no one new has really stumbled upon it. Then I realized 'DUH!' I haven't been putting myself out there meeting other bloggers so of course no one is really bothering to meet me. It was the same way for me on twitter - until I made the first move and put myself out there, I wasn't meeting anyone else.

I'm so grateful for this blog - even when/if no one's reading it. This is a place of refuge and escape for me where I can sift through my emotions while writing about them or while playing with the layout and design. It gives me my own escape where this entire site is my creation and I am in control. I love the empowerment and the endless possibilities. I love the fact that this is something I "made" and put out there for the world to either embrace or shun. This is my blog and I love it - I admit I've been struggling with my feelings for being a blogger, but now I feel reassured.

I think part of that feeling comes from reading other blogs out there. So many times in my life I feel like I have this incredibly mundane and uninspiring life. I feel like I'm not going through anything special or unique or worthy of an audience. But when I read these other people's blogs, I get so excited reading their stuff. It may be something totally ordinary like taking the kids to the store or browsing through old music collections - things that I have often written about but find boring from my own point of view. I've realized that my life is totally boring and ordinary and nothing much really ever happens that is news worthy! But that is 100% OKAY!!! Someone out there is having a bad day - and they need a good laugh. And if my totally unoriginal story of stepping in dog poop on some random Wednesday can cheer them up a little, then my blog is worthwhile. If my life can somehow invoke an emotion in someone else's life, then my life truly is worthwhile. If I keep writing about this blissfully boring existence that is my life then eventually someone else is going to realize "HEY! This woman leads my kind of life: simple, homey and mostly uneventful. HOW COOL IS THAT?!"

So I'm going to keep blogging away about nothing - about all these little nothings in my life that mean something, if only ever to me. And I'll keep reading your little nothings because sometimes they strike a cord with my own life. Together, we can just keep blogging about a whole lot of nothing. But the point is, we're all doing it together.

a picture post

I thought instead of pouring endless words into a blog today I'd simply introduce you to some of the people in my life through pictures! I'm sure most of these will end up being my favorite shots of Sidney, but I did try to restrain myself and not completely shove my kid's totally cute face down your throats!!! It'll be tough though, I hate to admit.


(this is Justin + me at our HS graduation. very cute!)

(this is Justin himself - the Clyde to my Bonnie)

(this is one of the first pictures we ever took together! we were so young...)

(these are my BFFs from HS - and Sidney was still a bun in the oven!)

(this is Cassie - my sister from another mister!)

(and this is Stephanie aka Dobby - my 1st cousin & friend since birth)

(this is Dustin - a self proclaimed D.A. he dates Dobby & he's nice to Sidney so he's OK)

(9.5.07 - when the smushy one was borned)

(my mom - Sidney's "Gran")

(my grand-father Sid - for whom Sidney was named after...)

(when the wee one was little & still resembled me somewhat)

(life's not always roses & sunshine - a lesson learned early in life)

(channeling my father when she was about 11 months old)

(first time seeing the ocean - she's still never techically been to the "beach")

(this is my papaw's Jack - we call him Jack)

(my franns again - cassie + dobby)

(this is my mamaw Ruth for whom I am partially named after: Mary Ruth)

(this is LeAnna aka Aunt Fanny - Sidney's fulltime babysitter & Justin's sister)

(Sidney really does love Dobby...somewhere deep down in her heart)

(halloween 08: dustin, me, gerald (cassie's BF) & dobby! fun stuff)

(mamaw Shirley aka Justin's mom with Sidney on halloween)

(the cutest kid in the world right here, folks)

from sidney

uhuhd
oooovvvvvvb xxxx,,v.

love,
sidney

(I let her blog for the first time! it's mind-blowing, right?)

mommasaurus

Another weekend gone, and I really don't have that much to show for it. Instead of being productive and cleaning on the house, I made a two hour pit stop to pull everything out of the cabinets and left it all sitting on the kitchen floor. I went through six boxes of donated stuff and instead of really doing anything with all of it, I just shuffled it from room to room placing it in different spots on the floor and furniture. I did however finish painting my kitchen - it is 100% done as of this weekend. I'm very proud of it, red paint and all. I've got a million little ideas of things I need to be doing. I just haven't really executed any of those things yet. I'm hoping tonight Justin & I can sit down and talk about his "honey do" list for this week. Last time I asked him to do something out at the house (i.e. finish the trim work in the kitchen) he managed to completely demolish the only drawers we had in the entire place. Needless to say, his renovation tactics scare me.

I'm getting very excited about moving and becoming a "homeowner". It's an exciting but scary concept to deal with - becoming an adult and all that jazz. How does one transition? Well for me, it's definitely not going to be overnight. I've been on my way to adulthood ever since I joined the mommy club. But I've still managed to act my age sometimes and be a complete ass. It's like a character flaw I can turn on and off. When the kid's asleep, or when my darling Mom will watch her, I get to be a semi-normal totally foolish 20 year old. And it's fun for awhile and I enjoy my "me" time...but I always love my "mom" time more. It's going to be a new adventure moving in together as a family: me, Justin and Sidney. Justin and Sidney have never really lived together and I cannot wait to see the dynamic that unfolds! They are such an odd pair as it is - living together 24/7 can only magnify that weirdess!

Life is moving along at the speed of light - I'm doing my best to hold on as best I can and play catch up when things get going too fast for me. I'm working on finishing up all my school stuff and getting prepared for the big move! I'll keep you updated as we begin this new and exciting stage of our lives - as they say on twitter 'w00t w00t'!

things you'll never understand until...

Living with a 19-month-old (and Sidney in particular) has taught me many many many things about life that I didn't fully understand before. Take frustration, for example: you never know the full extent of being frustrated until you're standing in the kitchen screaming at your child, who is sobbing uncontrollably, because all she keeps saying is "NUM. NUM." and you as a parent aren't bright enough to know exactly what that kind of NUM NUM is! You never fully understand aggravation until you've got a kicking, screaming toddler on her back on the changing table trying to clean up the projectile poop she has sprayed all over her diaper and herself, and the only thing she does is kick like a young buck until your fingers make a deep dive into the poop inside the diaper. Ever had toddler poop on your hands? It's an experience unlike no other.

You never really understand exhaustion until you've watched 8 straight hours of Noggin and your head is near exploding - BUT WAIT! There's a super-special episode of Franklin or Yo Gabba Gabba or the Wonder Pets coming and we've just got to stay awake another two hours to watch them all! You never understand the true meaning of privacy until you're cramped down on the toilet with the stomach bug, crapping your guts out and the whole time you've got two little eyes peering at you from the doorway looking at all your lady-parts with this horrified look. Why don't you just close the door, kid? BECAUSE THEN I CAN'T SEE THE MYSTERY LADY PARTS!

You never understand a good night's sleep until you haven't had one because you keep getting up and down all night with a screaming baby - or a toddler who is sleeping in your bed with her butt in your face farting all night, or her arms smacking in the cheek as they toss and turn constantly. You never understand desperation, loyalty, guilt, alienation, or deprivation in their full extent until you become a parent.

But at the same time, you never really understand glee until you're playing outside in the front yard right before it gets dark with nothing but the fresh-cut grass and a volleyball to amuse you. You never understand sweetness until you get suprise kisses from a slobbery little mouth for no reason at all. You never understand being wanted until you've got a toddler wrapped around your legs crying your name, begging you not to leave. You never understand pride until you see your child showing off her new skills in the grocery store when she can pick out the fruits you've told her to put in the bag. You never understand joy until you come home from an 8-hour shift at work and the first thing you hear is "MOM-MOM!" and the sound of stomping, little feet running your way. You never understand simplicity until you're cuddled up in bed together watching those damn cartoons with the faint smell of baby shampoo from little curls surrounding your face and a hand resting on your cheek. You never understand admiration until you see your child sleeping beside her father, the two of them a perfect match in their sleeping habits.

You never understand love until you have someone who loves you unconditionally for who you are as a person, as a parent, and as a friend. I knew of these emotions before Sidney came along - but I never really knew them fully. I'm so thankful that I do now, and I owe every bit of that to her. Thank you, my Sidney Morgan.

wedding update

It's been awhile since I've updated anything about the wedding. It's not that I don't enjoy talking about the wedding anymore, it's just that not much has happened really. I was all excited and organized and very precise about planning our wedding those first couple months after we got engaged. Now, I kind of completely ignore the whole thing! Sometimes I think if I hadn't already bought my dress, we'd be getting married at the courthouse and just have a big BBQ to celebrate in someones backyard. But alas, the dress has been (mostly) paid for and so the formal-ish wedding must go on. And I am excited, don't get me wrong. This is going to be "our" wedding full of personal touches, and if no one likes it - I really don't care.

We have changed location: instead of getting married at Roller's Chapel in Blackwater, we're now getting married at High Rock in Mabe! I used to go that bible camp as a kid, and I love the area. It's very cute and very home-y. I've been given a thumbs-up unofficially; I'm just waiting for Friday to roll around so that I can get my official thumbs-up and hear what our restrictions and requirements are going to be. Hopefully we can have the ceremony in the little chapel that sits on the property; if so then we really don't need much for decorating. The chapel itself is so cute! And I'm going pretty minimal for the reception site, too - simple and pretty.

I started painting on the pails that will sit on the table filled with sand and candles as centerpieces, but I have to stack them up to store them and the paint is sticking; so I'm not going to paint all 50 of those cans until closer to the actual day of the wedding. We still have to find table-cloths, but I'm sure between now and then we can find something nice and inexpensive. For favors, we're doing a little "make your own goodie bag" station. It should be cute and personable if all turns out how I'm planning! I still don't know who's going to do our cake, but all of the food/drinks are being taken care of by my wonderful future MIL. I know she'll do an amazing job, no matter what kind of budget we give her so I'm really looking forward to that! I'm mixing all of our music; we're just going to borrow some big speakers! I don't really plan on there being too much dancing - just our first dance and maybe some crowd pleasers. Mostly I just plan on people to eat and mingle and go home with full bellies and a smile on their face :)

I've got my dress; we've got the girls dresses picked out already. We just have to order them sometime this month. I'm going to put off getting Sidney's dress until the last minute. Justin is in charge of tuxes (I'm really really REALLY hoping he'll go with brown tuxes - even though he's afraid they'll look like "giant turds"). Jodi & I still have to go pick out flowers so she can make our bouquets and boutonnieres. I know what I want, I just can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I've still got to make it down to Ben Franklin, so hopefully I'll find something good there!! It's coming along slowly, but surely. Lord knows I need to hop back on the wedding-planning express and get my butt moving! Only 5 more months to go!!! WOW.

what a weekend

My weekend was busy, to say the least. I've been painting up a storm in the kitchen down at the house. I decided to go with red/black as my color scheme. The red turned out to be a little brighter than I had originally planned, but I love it. It's a big pop of color (and anyone who has seen my room knows I love me some color)! I'm on the hunt now for coordinating black/red kitchen items! I also found a loveseat over at Rhoton-Smith's that I love; it's old with this god-awful pattern on it, but it's pretty cheap and it's in great condition. All I need is a slip-cover and voila! It'll be better than new.

Also busy this weekend was our Basset Hound who gave birth to 11 healthy puppies! It's her second litter (the first litter she had 12!) and it went perfectly. The puppies are all gorgeous and doing great. I'll get some really cute pictures up in a couple of weeks. Right now they still look like hairy-rats with pink noses; not the cutest of things. But once those feet and ears start growing, they get mighty cute!

And lastly, to top off the busy weekend of running back and forth to paint and help deliver puppies, my darling daughter was sick all day Saturday. She's thrown up 4 times in her entire 19 months of living, and 3 of those times happened all in one day! I have no idea what made her sick, but it always happened in the car. I moved her carseat, I changed the temp. inside the car, and I even tried to drive a little slower - nothing helped. She puked twice inside the car, and the last one went rolling down my back as I lifted her out of the carseat. NOT FUN. My car now reeks of baby vomit, and I'm pretty sure that smell is never going away. Even here at work, I think I catch little wiffs of it as I walk down the hallway. It's all mental, but it's a strong odor. I'll never be able to outrun it, thanks to Sidney.

But she is so cute when she sleeps, so I'll forgive her...this time.

YIKES

I just realized that we should be moving into the house in less than 2 weeks; technically I said we'll be moving in in May and that's only 13 days away. Where has time gone? I've got so much to get done! School work to finish up. Packing to do. Re-decorating and re-arranging the house. Prepping for graduation. Wedding planning. Time is spiraling away from me, and I feel a panic attack coming on. It's time that I switched into high gear and get all this stuff done ASAP!

I don't want to be beyond stressed and move into an even more stressful environment. I want this to go as smoothly as possible. And I am the one in control of a large amount of that; it's time to buckle down and do the dirty stuff. Summer will be here soon and I want to enjoy the beginning days of it with a big smile on my face!

preview of my life

I was able to spend the entire day yesterday with two of my very adorable + entertaining much younger family members: ages 5 and 11. It was such a dynamic day between the age differences and the conversations and all that shopping we managed to accomplish in a three hour window of time (we finished up just in time to go see Monsters v. Aliens 3D - very good!) Throughout the entire day, I kept thinking to myself about the future and if scenes like this would be playing out soon for Sidney and me. I could just picture me driving her and her sister/friend/cousin around shopping and having our "mini-girl-talks". It was eye-opening, really.

Basically, it scared the shit out of me because I realized I'm going to be dealing with teenaged girls someday...OH DEAR GOD. Teenage girls?! Is there anything more frightening than a teenage girl (A: yes, two teenage girls TOGETHER!) I'm going to be driving the car listening to all that talk of "oh my god", "no way", "totally", and the way they say "like" in front of every situation. I'm pretty sure every girl goes through that valley-girl stage where they're trying to fill out their vocabulary with some extra spice and zing: it's only a few years later that we realize we just sound like talking barbie idiots (and for those that still haven't realized it, sorry I just spilled the beans)!

In so many ways, I'm looking forward to watching Sidney grow and change. I cannot wait to see what kind of person she is going to become after she survives our parenting techniques (it shall be interesting nonetheless). But I'm not looking forward to those loud, noisy, obnoxious teenage years - it drives me crazy to be out in public and overhear a group of girls chattering away (while texting the person sitting two seats down...DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THAT ONE). I know it's all a part of life and we all go through it in some form or fashion. I've just never thought about it from a parent's perspective. How did my mother do it?!

The teen years are far away at this moment. We've still not made it to the second birthday, yet. But if her sharing habits don't improve much between now and then, I'm going to have one of the bitchiest teens on the block. YEE-HAW.

words cannot express the feeling

I'm going to try to keep my thoughts focused and my words clear. Lately, I've been hanging out on twitter as I mentioned last time and I have to say it's been joyous. I love interacting globally with people, some similar to me and some complete opposites. I realize it's all internet interaction and some of it may be totally false, but there's a sense of friendship among the folks over at twitter, and I for one enjoy partaking in it. There is a downside to all of this merriment and connection, however. Life isn't roses and sunshine all the time. As much as I enjoy learning about these people and hearing their amazing tales of life, some stories are heartbreaking. Lately's there's been a lot of grief over the death of a beautiful little angel named Maddie (please check out her site by clicking on her name). I knew nothing of this family and their struggle, but in the days after her death, I have become attatched to this story and these people. It is achingly painful and I wish there was a way to do more for them in this time of need; mind you, I've never met these people. I've never even spoke with them, not even on twitter. But like so many others out there, I have read their stories and become aware of their loss. It is so heartbreaking - and I hope they find comfort somewhere over the next few weeks.

Life is so delicate, and lately I've been feeling guilty for having such a blessed life. I've done nothing extraordinary to deserve what I have and the luck that has been bestowed upon me. When I was pregnant, I used to feel so guilty for having a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. I was pregnant by suprise - it wasn't planned or desired at that time in my life. But it happened, and I was thankful. I was also so conflicted because I knew there were women out there who were trying so hard to have children of their own with no results. Why did I deserve this? What made me so special? Our children are gifts, and all too often I think we overlook that small but mighty detail. They were given to us - not the other way around. I just keep battling with myself over whether or not I should feel happy or sad. It's an agonizing feeling as a parent and as a person in general. I want to feel so thankful and happy for my healthy little girl, but when I read these people's stories, it just breaks my heart. What did they do to deserve such misery? Nothing, I'm sure. From what I can tell, they were amazing parents who loved their darling little daughter from the moment they met her. It's unfair beyond words, and I'm really hating the powers that be right now.

If you're a parent out there right now, and even if you're not, please just remember to cherish those little ones around you. They are so innocent and so deserving of our love and affection. Are we deserving of theirs? That's an entirely different question. I can only hope that my daughter continues to love me as she has from the moment I met her: unconditionally. I know I don't deserve it...but I'm so thankful she does anyway.

neglect

go ahead - call the blog police on me. I've been very neglectful towards my blog, I admit. but Easter weekend kept me "hopping" (bad joke) and so I've been busy. plus, I'm really loving twitter right now. it makes me looooong for a blackberry so I can take it with me anywhere. I think I could give up all my internet vices if I could just enjoy twitter all day, every day:) (yes, I'm obsessed - so, bite me.)

I have some very cute + adorable pictures of the SidMo to post up (hopefully tonight) and I cannot wait for you all to see them. this Easter kicked last year's Easter in the ass - Sidney was so cute hunting for eggs! she had no regards for the real eggs & treated them like all the other plastic eggs - with brute force. our front yard is covered in a million different pastel flicks of egg shells because of her delicateness. very sweet! she was a charmer as always & I'm pretty sure she enjoyed the day as much as I did.

so be looking for those pics on here (and myspace, facebook, twitpic & flickr)... I'll try harder to keep coming back to my roots and to blog more faithfully - but in the meantime, if you need me, I'm on twitter :)

PEACE.

bad blogger

it's official - I'm sucking at my DELIGHTS. didn't do one Monday - and I didn't even blog at all yesterday.

I'm thinking this is a good thing. you see, as much as I love my Internet world, sometimes I worry I spend too much time engorged in it as opposed to living in reality. so if I'm not blogging, then it means I'm out & about in the real world; which is a good thing!

so from now on, I might not always do a DELIGHT everyday. I'll just get to it when I get to it. and if I don't, well then that's okay, too. I'll blog when I can. believe me, I still love all of this - I love it very much. I'm just a little busy right now so I don't always have the spare time. but I'll keep it going - I promise. even when there's no one but fanny & cassie reading this, I'll still be blogging.

blogging soothes the soul...and I love it!

funny stuff

you must check out this website - I wouldn't link to so many sites if I didn't think they were TOTALLY AWESOME, okay? so do me a solid here & just go have a looksie...

THIS IS WHY YOU'RE FAT.

weekend worrier

needless to say I had an amazing weekend! it was equal parts fun & relaxation & it was exactly what I needed :) I won't go into big details, but let's just say I've never had that much fun at the Hog in my entire life - the people outside are 10x better than the people on the inside!

I did realize one big thing this weekend - and that's the concept of "worry". any time I go anywhere, I always let my mom know where I'm going and what time I should be back. if I'm not near that estimation, then she'll call me to check on me. now, some people might find that annoying - the thought of your mother always knowing where you're at & who you're with. but it doesn't bother me: she doesn't judge who I'm with, she just wants to know where I am. and most of the time, the only purpose that serves is to ease her mind and let her worry less. but there might come a day when I need someone to know where I should be at a certain time - and when I don't show up somewhere, they'll immediately start looking for me. as crazy as times are these days, it's nice to know that I've got a watchful eye keeping me guarded. again, this concept might totally freak people out, but I'm comforted by it.

and I want to instill this in Sidney as well - to always let me know where she's going, who she's going with - what time she thinks she'll be back home. I don't want to know out of simple curiosity. I want to know because there will be a night many years from now when I'm sitting in my house somewhere, watching the clock & waiting for her to get home after a night out on the town. and if she's a little late, I'll understand. but if hours go by & I haven't seen or heard from her, then I'll immediately know where to start looking for her: I'll have a jumping off point. and god forbid this situation ever happen, I'll be able to tell the police "she was here at such and such time. she said she was going there and she'd be home at this time..." I don't think that makes me a bad, nosy mother to want that information from her. and I feel guilty if I ever made my Mom worry by not giving her that info. I know I've done it - and I can only imagine how incredibly worried she was about me at times.

so, yes, I had an amazing night with my amazing friends - and I kept my Mom in the loop so she didn't have to worry about me. I've learned that when you become a parent, you never really feel emotions 100%. sure, I was so excited to get a night out to be the 20 year old kid I am - but I was also guilty for leaving my SidMo. as much as I wanted to be out having fun, I also wanted to be snuggled up at home with her. at least if I was home, I wouldn't have to worry about her! maybe that's what I'll do - I'll just block up the house & stay inside with my kid 24/7...

then again....hell no - sometimes Momma needs a drink!

hope ya'll had a good weekend, too! :)

check this out

it's a visual frenzy of beautiful photos.
I'm loving the "vintage" section...

copy & paste to enjoy, yo.
http://vi.sualize.us/

make new blogs but keep the old

I made up my mind. It was last night in the bathtub, actually. Two things:
first, I'm making a blog for Sidney - something fun & quirky & memorable. I have a million things to remember and pinpoint and explain to her, so I want to have someway of doing that & sharing our experience with others.
second, I'm going to do better with my layout and content of this blog. I use way too many of the following (+, -, :, ;, etc.) that I think it clogs my blog (haha!) and makes it hard to follow. Streamlining really is the best!

So today I'll be working mostly on setting up my new blog DEARSIDNEY & hopefully it'll be something fun for all of us to enjoy now and for Sidney to enjoy as she gets older. We shall see...

dirty stuff

it's TOTALLY justin's fault, but I get these stupid David Allen Coe songs in my head & they never go away. there's about a million different ways to describe them: dirty, degrading, embarassing, pointless, nasty, vulgar, repulisve, uncooth, etc. BUT they're kind of funny (and equally catchy). I'll put some youtube links below so you can click + enjoy (if you enjoy that kind of stuff!) but I must warn you: it's totally R-rated stuff & not for the normal people...it's for the kinks out there who like to laugh at the dirty jokes... like me + Justin :)

VIDEO ONE!
VIDEO TWO!!

VIDEO THREE!!! (I'm not sure if this is David Allen Coe or not, but Justin loves it: you should hear him sing it!)

VIDEO FOUR!!!!
VIDEO FIVE!!!!!

livin la vida sick...

we worked on the house yesterday + even though I was totally sick & felt like "hammered hell" (justin's expression)...and I have to say, I'm very proud of my boy: he was able to let go of a ton of "stuff" (i.e. crap) that he's been keeping for no reason for far too long + we took an entire truckload of trash off to the dumpster! Justin is a known hoarder & he will keep anything that has the least bit of sentimental value - which I appreciate in many ways, because I'm the opposite. when something gets on my nerves, I toss it - irregardless of the value it may hold to me. of course, there are certain things I'd never trash - but some things I should keep, I toss & then regret it later. Justin is the exact opposite - he'll keep everything he can & then years from now he'll have it to look back on and remember what it meant to him at a different time in his life. he's got all of our old HS letters (I have a couple). he's got all the old teddy bears & posters & notebooks from our early years (I've got our S'MORE book...)he's got ticket stubs, recepits, empty bags, tags and more! it's kind of romantic & kind of annoying - maybe it's just because he's not organized; if his chaos were actually neat, then maybe it'd be sweet + sentimental to me. but when I see it all splattered out in the room that eventually will become our daughter's, it just annoys me.

so needless to say, I probably made him throw away 10 years worth of memories yesterday; well, I don't like to say "made" - how about "heavily encouraged". it was fun to tempt him about throwing away things I knew for sure he'd never part with (like his ninja turtles trunk in the closet that's a million years old...or his old football stuff from HS!) the house is coming along slowly/surely. it's nice to be able to take our time & just do a little here and a little there - especially since I'm in death-mode right now with this cold; I'm feeling OK today, except for the fact that I sound like a 40 year old man. my voice sounds awful with all this congestion; and to top it all off, the kid is sickly, too. I've been wiping away snot-boogers since yesterday morning. everytime she sneezes, a big snot stream goes down her face, covering her paci & everything else in the way. TMI? sorry - this is parenthood. I SHARE EVERYTHING WITH YOU. :) and you love me for it, right? RIGHT.

sick/DELIGHT

ok - so I'm sick again today; I'm not going to the doctor because I can't really afford to waste money seeing as how I haven't been able to work. I think this is strep creeping back in on me - but maybe it's just a severe cold. either way, I'm handling it myself & hopefully I'll be better in a few days.

right now I'm cleaning up the house & getting ready to go down to the house in b.water to clean some more...I don't want to waste my day, so I'm going to get a little something done if it kills me.

I'm also probably not going to put up a DELIGHT for today; so here's a delightful suggestion!!!

if you love status updates & you love sharing your random thoughts & ideas - then join TWITTER. it's absolutely free & you can use it from your phone; there's all kinds of extras to play with (I just joined TWITPIC yesterday & now I can upload photos & post the link over on TWITTER - it's fun stuff!) so if you're looking for something new and fun and easy, then I say join in on the goods! you won't be disappointed...