Run, Lance, RUN!!!

Last night we attended the Mercedez-Benz Corporate 5K Run. Hubby and I were "support staff" for the runners-- he manned the food table, I took a few pictures and recorded everyone's time. We brought Lance along with us-- the race site was in a lovely park in downtown Ft. Lauderdale along the Intracoastal Waterway. I knew Lance would enjoy seeing all the big yachts going by.

Here is a picture of Lance and I sitting comfortably under our team's tent. Yes, he has a monkey on his back. (I just love baby leashes! It was nice to be able to let him down and walk around without being afraid that someone would snatch him or that he would wander away from me. For the most part, he stuck close to us, but he liked seeing new people and exploring the park, too!)



There was a little stage area where a DJ was set up. Lance likes to dance to music, so I took him up onto the stage during "I Will Survive" and he was a little dancing fool. Unfortunately I have no pictures of it, but it was just too cute!

Stop the world, please...I'd like to get off...

My head is spinning. Whirling around wildly, threatening at any moment to liberate itself from the confines of this mortal body.

Yesterday: Doctor appointment in the morning, trip to the New House to drop stuff off in the evening.

Today: Music rehearsal with kid in church band.

Tonight: Participate in Hubby's Corporate Run; I'm taking pics of the athletes, he's running the food table

Tomorrow: Hope Pregnancy Center fundraising benefit dinner, must make hair appointment and find shoes to match dress, arrange to pick up babysitter sometime between the two.

Saturday: Work at New House (painting, install new cabinet hardware, drill hole in pool deck for the baby gate, put up curtain rods) Church service in the evening

Sunday: Band playing at local homeless shelter



It usually takes me a whole month to do all that stuff. This is going to be one memorable week.

Ride, Ride, Ride, Hitchin' a Ride

My little boy is growing so fast! *sniff sniff*

WHO is the person who developed sliding doors?

They obviously didn't have a toddler. Even with a stick of wood jamming the door, Lance can open it. See, he's smart. He simply picks up the wood, drags it through the house, hits things with it, then smears his grubby hands all over the glass, licks it, then finally opens the door. Yes, he can reach the lock and has seen how to open it. Clever little kiddo!

Or in his room-- his closet is sliding mirrored doors. I was very foolish to place his crib up against the closet doors. (At the time, I thought, "if I put the crib here, then he won't be able to get into the closet.") Now I'm thinking that would be preferable to him standing in his crib and opening and closing and opening and closing (I mean slamming) the door to protest his naptime.

Someday I'll look back on this and laugh. But not today.

Chiropractic GENIUS

I stopped by my chiropractor's office yesterday. Not for an adjustment (although I'm due for one soon,) but to look at a piece of furniture he's giving away. He knows that we are getting a new house, and he had a cabinet that he was going to be getting rid of. He asked me to come by and take a look at it and see if we could use it.

We can.

But that's not the point of the story. While I was there, I mentioned to him that Lance had a little bit of a cold.

Did you know that chiropractors can greatly relieve cold symptoms with a few spinal adjustments??? For BABIES??!! I held Lance, and the Doc gently worked the muscles around Lance's spine and also some in his neck, effectively allowing all the "gunk" to drain away. Lance was much better afterwards! I have not had to give him any more cold medicine. His nose is still a little drippy and he still coughs now and then, but he's improved immensely since his adjustment.

I wanted to share all of this with you because not a lot of people would consider chiropractic care for things like colds and flus. I didn't know about it myself until I met my chiropractor at my church. I started going there because my back and hips got all torn up after having Lance. In this last year of going there, I haven't been sick once. At the first sign of a cold or sinus infection or whatever, I make an appointment, the Doc works his magic, and I am better.

I wish more people knew about this. My primary care doctor never suggested chiropractic care. I guess some people are a little leery of "alternative medicine" but if it works, I say go for it!

Doc says the reason chiropractic care is effective for colds is that the nervous system runs through the spine, so if something in the spine is out of alignment, your nervous system won't work effectively. Makes sense! So while I can't say that my cold (and Lance's) was wiped out immediately, Doc made it so my body was able to heal itself much more quickly, and without the use of chemical medication.

I found this website that answers some basic questions about chiropractic care. Let me know what you all think!

Thanks!

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday!

Remember awhile back when I posted a picture of this shirt? Well, Hubby got it for me for my birthday! He also bought me two other shirts, one that has a diagram of a chocolate molecule, and the other one that has binary for "Mommy" on it. (He got matching t-shirts with binary for "baby" and "Daddy.")

Yes I am a geek.

But I'm a geek with a cool shirt.

Happy Birthday To Me!!!!

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Guinevere....Happy Birthday to you!"

I'm 26 today.

Birthdays are fun!!

Going to hockey game with Hubby and Lance tonight, then Sunday night Hubby's taking me out to dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant! Friends treating me to lunch at a fancy "tea room" where we have to make reservations and get babysitters! Yeah!!!!

Lance is sleeping now, so I'm going to go make myself a cup of coffee and watch TV. Because I can. Because it's my birthday.

Teething!

Poor Lance. He's working on four teeth. Simultaneously. Along with the pain, he also suffers from a runny nose while teething. I don't know why this is, but every time a tooth is about to poke through, the kid turns into a faucet.

On the brighter side, once he gets a few more teeth, I can start giving him more and more real food. I'm sure his digestive system is ready for him to eat more than he does, he just doesn't have the teeth for it! Although his gums are awfully strong!

Gotta run. Having guests over in a little while. Have a lovely day!

Oh, the Fatigue

I can tell it's been awhile since I've done any regular exercise. How, do you ask? Well, because I feel completely exhausted and without energy. It's just mean of nature that when our bodies most need exercise, we absolutely Do.Not.Want.To.

I was so good for awhile! Lance and I would take nice long stroller walks in the morning, and during his morning nap I would vigorously do the housework that needed doing, and I had tons of energy. Then I got sick for a couple days, broke the pattern, and now I sit around in my PJs all morning until he goes down for his morning nap, then I go back to bed, and inevitably when we wake up, I feel worse than I did before. By then, the day is half gone. I'm so lazy!

I need some motivation. Help!

I Heart Yard Sales

Yard sales ROCK. (I've been using that word a lot lately. In my last 3 comments to other bloggers, I said that something-or-other-in-their-post-that-inspired-me ROCKED.) Mourning my youth, perhaps?

Anyway. Our church youth group does an annual "garage sale" in our fellowship hall. (Why don't they call it a "Fellowship Hall sale?" lol!) I went over there this morning, and found a fantastic chair and ottoman for the grand total of $20.00. The chair is a beautiful navy blue, is in great shape, and is comfy! Best of all, it coordinates with the furniture we already have. It is going to be my chair. Hubby has a hideously ugly (albeit super-comfy) beige recliner which I always sit in during the day when he's not home, so now I can have my own chair.

Sweet!

Oh, I also scored 4 hardback books for $.50 each. That also rocks. See, I'm a bit of a book snob. When possible, I prefer to buy hardback books. Why, do you ask? Because when I find a book I like, I read it over and over and over again. There is one particular book that I have had to replace three times because I wore it out. So while it's true that paperbacks are cheaper than hardback books, by the time you have purchased a third copy, you might as well have sprung for the hardback.

It's been a pleasant morning.

(I'll post a picture of the chair later on. I have to send Hubby back to the church to go pick it up because the chair wouldn't fit in my teeny tiny car!)

On Being a Trekkie

Tee hee. I'm not the only one!

Apparently among mommy bloggers, there are many of us who enjoy the same guilty pleasure. Many more than I would have imagined!

There are Trekkies among us. In my blog party post, I mentioned that I liked to watch reruns of Star Trek: Voyager. I was amazed at the number of comments I received from people who had similar likings to mine! (And yes, if you so much as know what a tribble is, you are a trekkie, whether or not you want to admit it! lol!)

Why have we not discussed it before? Why are we afraid to admit it?

I'll begin.

Hi, my name is Guinevere.

Hi, Guinevere.

I'm a Trekkie.



I don't think there's a 12-step program for us. We just need to be woman enough to admit that we have a problem!

Maybe it's not so much of a problem.

So I get excited by things like temporal anomalies and stellar phenomenon. Yes, I wish someone would hurry up and develop transporter technology. And a holodeck! Apparently you do too!

Tee hee. Glad to know I'm not alone!

Live long, and prosper.

Ultimate Blog Party 2008!!

I can't believe it's that time again! In fact, I almost missed it! The Ultimate Blog Party 2008!!

I do believe that I met most of my regular readers at last year's party. Wasn't it fun!!

Anyhoo. For anyone visiting for the first time, WELCOME! My name is Guinevere Meadow. I have a wonderful Hubby and an adorable 15-month old baby boy I like to call Lance. Currently, I stay at home with him, but I have plans to return to school this fall and finish my degree in elementary education.

I am short with brown hair, and I like strawberry banana smoothies. I sing in a band at my church and Hubby plays guitar. I was a big dork in high school, but I earned myself a full-ride scholarship with the grades I earned because I didn't waste my time partying with people who are miserable and sad.

I like to cook and to take pictures. I sing whenever I can, whether or not anyone is listening. I like to watch reruns of Star Trek Voyager. (I guess I'm still a big dork.)

Now tell me about yourself! I hope we can be friends!

Daddy's Boy

There's no question about it, Lance is a Daddy's Boy. This kid loves his daddy like nobody's business. Here is a picture of them wearing father/son t-shirts. In case you can't tell, Hubby's shirt has "v1.0" and Lance's has "v2.0." Did I mention that Hubby is a computer geek for a living? Those shirts came from a website called thinkgeek.com.

From the time Lance was a newborn, he would always go to sleep for Hubby much more easily than for me. Hubby had the knack of holding him just the right way to get him to sleep. Even now, most of the time it is Hubby that puts Lance down for the night. I do the bath and jammies, but Hubby takes him into his room and puts him in his crib.

Two nights ago, we switched. Hubby did the bath, and I put Lance to bed.

Lance took offense to this. Usually, he goes to sleep without too much complaint. He may whimper in his crib for a few minutes, but then he quiets down and settles himself to sleep. Not so this night. As I closed the door to his room, the wailing began. Lance's wail sounds eerily like an ambulance siren. (So much so that one night an ambulance actually went by, we thought Lance was crying so we went in to check on him!) Anyhoo. Between siren-like wails, he started calling for Daddy.

He has never done this before. He will say "Daddy," but this was the first time he called Daddy. It was a call to be rescued from the evil Mom-Lady. "Daaaa-ddyyyyyyyyy.....Daaaaaaa-ddyyyyyyyy."

Just heartbreaking I tell you. Lance was very unhappy that Mommy was the one to put him to bed.

After a couple minutes though, he quieted down and settled himself to sleep.

Good boy.

Bragging About My Son

Here is a list of things that Lance can now do that make me very proud of him:

1. He can draw a picture! We bought him those new crayons that look like an egg so the kid can wrap their whole hand around it. While he enjoys eating the tip of the crayon, he also likes drawing pictures. I've written the date on the first picture he drew and I will save it forever.

2. He misses me when I'm gone!! Lance never exhibited any kind of separation anxiety, which while on one hand I am very grateful, I couldn't help but wonder why he was not upset that I was leaving. Now, when I go to pick him up from the church nursery or a babysitter, he drops when he was doing, runs over to me, throws his arms around my head and gives me a big hug! It's the sweetest thing.

3. He can point to various body parts. He can show you his nose, his ears, his mouth, his tummy, and his head. Oh, and when he shows you his mouth, he opens wide and says "Ahhhhh" a la dentist visit.

4. He can get himself up and down the stairs with minimal assistance! This is important because we live on the second floor, and it was getting very hard to try to carry him in one arm and the diaper bag and my purse and anything else that needed transporting in the other. Getting up the stairs after a grocery shopping trip was particularly anxiety-ridden. He still needs to hold my hand, and it takes forever, but he can manage the stairs now. Yippee!

5. He likes curry. I was shocked. Hubby made a South African dinner for us a few nights ago, a dish called "bobotie" which is heavily seasoned. We gave a little bit to Lance to try, and he gobbled the stuff up! Go figure. (He won't touch plain old potatoes. The kid likes his food to have flavor!)


This photo was not from the curry dish. This was from lunch today, some left over pasta and meat sauce. My little spaghetti-face!

I am so proud of my little boy. *smug grin*

Google Searches

Hi everyone.

(No, Anne and Amber, the ants did not "et" me. We have called a cease-fire. Currently regrouping!)

Sorry to disappear for a little while. I've had a number of projects to work on which has taken time away from blogging. We're getting ready to move in a couple months, so there's lots of preparations, and I'm also working on putting together new music for our band to do for Easter. It's taking more time than I expected.

Anyhoo.

Here is a list of recent google searches that have led people to my blog.

cake stuck to pan crumbled recipe

pickles and ice cream baby shower theme

can you feel dilation and effacing

2 cm thin cervix blogspot

sipping pina coladas

things that go with easter

im sleepy

guinevere blogspot

I never cease to be amused by such things.

Must get back to work. Things should quiet down once we get settled into the new house. I'll be popping by as often as I can!!!

They're BUGGING me!

Hello blogworld. How are you? What's new? Anything exciting?

I've just been so busy this last week. Crazy busy. Working on some new music for church, making plans for the new house, going to various appointments, and just generally keeping the house running.

Speaking of keeping the house running, I've had to call the pest control people out twice and I STILL HAVE AN ANT PROBLEM. It's driving me crazy. We've been living here almost two years, and only in this last month have ants been a problem. If a crumb of food falls to the floor and stays there for a maximum of ten minutes, the ants have already found it. That just seems a little extreme. We're talking a single cheerio here, people. Lance drops one. I don't notice it, so we go play in the other room for awhile. The other room gets boring, so we go back to the living room where a veritable colony of ants have descended upon this single, lonesome, vulnerable, unprepared cheerio.

Or imagine for a moment that I have used a knife to slice up a block of cheddar cheese. Since Lance is hungry, I immediately go feed him and I leave the knife laying on the cutting board while he eats. In 15 minutes I return to the kitchen to clean up, and there are ants crawling all over this knife trying to get up the last bits of the residue clinging to the knife for its very life.

First, the pest control people squirted this goopy stuff in corners of the kitchen. Apparently it was food for the ants which they would take back to the nest, share it with the queen, and everyone would die.

They didn't.

Then they came again at the end of the week and sprayed some icky, smelly chemicals all over my house.

Those ants are still alive and kickin'. I swear, they have a conspiracy against me. They just won't die!!

I guess the only good thing to come out of this is that I have suddenly been forced to become a much better housekeeper. I'm using up an insane amount of Clorox disinfecting wipes, and I ensure that all leftovers get packed up or thrown away immediately. After Lance eats his meals, I lay down on the floor and wriggle on my belly like a snake, examining every square inch of floor to make sure that not a single stray crumb is allowed to draw the attention of The Ants. After I slice cheese, I immediately rinse off the knife and submerge the cutting board in hot, soapy water.

I declare war.

Aggravation. Grr.

edited to add:: *Warning: It's my blog, and I'll whine if I want to. Lest you think I'm a spoiled brat, please know that when I wrote this last night I was bone-tired and patience-less. I realize there are women whose husbands are serving overseas and they are totally alone with their kids. I completely admire and support these women, because after the 4 days described below, I know how difficult it is to be the only adult in the household trying to care for a young person. Also, please know that I am not angry with my husband. It is not his fault that the leaders of his group imposed three nights of rehearsal in a row.*

/end soapbox


I'm aggravated.

Aggravated, irritated, all-twisted-up-in-a-knot ticked off.

Hubby has joined another music group at our church. (Gasp! How horrible! Just kidding. That's not why I'm frustrated.) He's been a member of this second group for a number of months, and it's been great. He's had a wonderful time. This week, though, has just been tough.

This is the fourth night in a row he has been away at practice and has not returned before Lance goes to bed. The first night, Monday, was the rehearsal for the band that Hubby and I are both in, and for which we hire a babysitter. Tuesday and Wednesday he had extra practices for band #2 and tonight was their regular rehearsal. The Tuesday and Wednesday practices were supposed to be "just a run-through of one song." Both nights he was gone for over an hour. Tonight is the group's regular rehearsal which runs 2 1/2 hours.

I don't want to begrudge him his church involvement, but I've felt like a single parent all week. I was telling a friend about this and she started laughing at me. She works nights and was saying that she never sees her husband, and she was totally unsupportive. I know she wasn't trying to be mean, but my feelings were pretty hurt by this. She has chosen that lifestyle of working nights and not seeing her husband. But she is not alone with her one-year old for fourteen solid hours.

I'm okay if once in awhile Lance and I have a long day together. Maybe I'm spoiled. Hubby gets home at 6:30 each day, and just simply having another pair of eyes and set of arms makes a HUGE difference. Hubby often will do the bath and bedtime routine so I can get a bit of a break in the evenings. Lance usually goes to bed at 9:00, so it's only 2 1/2 hours of my day that are any different when Hubby has these long days, but let me tell you, those 2 1/2 hours certainly make a HUGE difference!

Now, though, after 4 days in a row of this, I'm beat. Purely worn out.

I want my mommy. Waaah.

Wordless Wednesday: Day at the Zoo

Lions and tigers and bears...who cares? The water fountain is *much* more exciting!

Although it sure was fun to feed the giraffe!!

Dude, look at that!

Yeah, I saw some of those in someone's yard once. Or twice.

But those didn't move.

Dude, you're right.

Awesome.

Our House is a Very, Very, Very Fine House

...but there won't be two cats in the yard!! (maybe a dog, later on.)

I am pleased to announce that the Meadow family is getting a house!! On May 1st, we will be moving into this lovely 4-bedroom 2-bath house with a lovely backyard and swimming pool!! We will rent it for 2 years, and then we will be able to buy. A friend of ours owns the house, so we're getting a really fantastic deal. A portion of our monthly rent will go towards a down payment. Plus, we're locking in a purchase price now, which will most likely save us a ton of money, as the housing market is expected to go back up by the time we'd be able to buy. I'm SO PSYCHED!!!





(Those are our friends Ivy and her son Cole. She's going to help me plant a garden!)

Where Have All the Naptimes Gone?

It's my own fault. I didn't appreciate it when I had it. How does the song go, "Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone..."



If only I had known, I wouldn't have stood over your crib, begging you to wake up...



It was too late that I learned my new philosophy. "Let sleeping babies lie!"

I think one of the naps is being phased out. I've been very spoiled by Lance. At 14 months, he still takes both a morning and an afternoon nap. Each nap is between an hour and a half and two hours. I'm one lucky mama.

Not so the last few days. He's still taken two naps, but each day they grow shorter and shorter. It seems like he is on the verge of phasing out a nap.

There are upsides to this. I have more freedom to do things during the day. My schedule does not revolve around naps as much as it used to. Also, on the days in which he has napped less, he has gone to bed earlier. Tonight he went down at 8:00, a full hour earlier than usual. He was so exhausted, I didn't dare keep him up just for the sake of enforcing a bedtime. (I just pray he doesn't wake up an hour earlier tomorrow morning!! I can wake up any time as long as the sun is already up. An hour earlier than his current wake-up time will still be dark, so that just won't work.) Along with growing out of naps, Lance is growing more and more independent, so I can do things that before I could only do while he slept. Thus, his lack of sleep is not as detrimental as it would have been.

But oh, how I shall miss those two long naptimes during the day!

Whenever baby #2 comes along, I will make sure to rejoice in every single minute of napping that occurs.

There are just so many things I would do differently if I had only known...

What I'd Wear Wednesday: Blogging T-Shirt

Damselfly is hosting "I'm Sincere!" week over at her blog. In order to facilitate the communication of our admiration for fellow bloggers, we are asked to write a blog post in the style of a blogger we admire.

Since I admire Damselfly in so many, many, ways, I am writing a post in honor of her.

What I'd Wear Wednesday!

This shirt from Thinkgeek.com. In classic black and white, it sets the world on notice that anything that is seen, overheard, or eavesdropped upon is fair game for blog fodder.

How many times have you been at the park, in the mall, or someplace else equally public and seen something incredible, and your first thought was, "I've GOT to blog about this!" It's happened to me fairly regularly. With this shirt, everyone has fair warning.

If you'd also like to write a post in honor of a blogger you admire, go visit Damselfly and get your instructions. Also, if you write a post, you get to snag this button:



Buttons are fun. Also make sure to let the person you're sincerely imitating know that they are being sincerely imitated!

A Birthday Surprise!!

Today is my husband's birthday. He'll be 36!! ;) I am very proud of myself because I have planned a lovely birthday surprise. Well, it's not a surprise anymore because a couple people let the cat out of the bag, but it'll still be nice!

I've arranged to take Lance to a friend's house this evening so Hubby and I can enjoy a nice meal together. I am going to prepare Chutney and Cheddar-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Smashed Potatoes.

I have never made this recipe before, but I watched it on Rachael Ray, and I think I can manage this one. It looks SO YUMMY, and Hubby loves anything with chutney in it. He's from South Africa, and they use chutney very frequently as a condiment or sauce. ANOTHER thing I'm proud of is that I found a very nice South African wine. Hubby always checks the wine aisle at the grocery store and even the liquor stores, but he has a hard time finding good ones. Well, I went to a small market called The Fresh Market (I don't know if this is a major chain or just something local to my area) and they had a display of South African wines. The particular kind I got was made in limited quantities and flown over specially for this market, so I hope I'll earn some brownie points with the wine!! (On a side note, Hubby works for a wine distribution company, and not many places import South African wines. I don't know why.)

Anyhoo. I am very excited. We haven't enjoyed a romantic evening together for quite some time. Please pray that I won't severely mess up our dinner!!!!

My dear sweet boy,

You are 14 months old. It is amazing what you have learned in these last few months, how much you have grown. You understand so much of what we say to you! You can point to your nose, your head, and your tummy. When we tell you that it's bathtime, you eagerly run towards the bathroom, ready to squirt and splash! You love to play outside, and find endless fascination in things like leaves, fences, trees, sand, pine needles...

In the photo above, you learned how to go down the slide all by yourself!! You had a marvelous time and wanted to do it again and again.

You have an impish little grin that makes everyone who sees you fall in love with you. You're going to get away with all sorts of mischief when you get bigger! Especially when you and James get together. Your Aunt Holly and I are going to be on our toes!

I love you so very much, my precious baby. You bring joy and delight to every day. I am so very, very blessed to have you for a son. As you grow up, I pray that you and I will be able to keep this very special relationship that we have. Don't stray away from me, small one. You will always be my Punkin-Boo-Bear!

love love love

Mommy

I'm getting sleepy. Very, very, sleepy.

For heaven's sake. No matter how much sleep I get lately, it just isn't enough. After a good night's sleep AND an afternoon nap, all I want to do is crash.

So I'm going to. Lance is napping. I shall follow his lead.

The laundry can wait.

For the Love of Diapers

(Hey, I just noticed that I passed the "200 post" mark. I missed my 200th post!! This is the 202nd!! Go me!)

Back to our regularly scheduled posting...

Lance has decided that diapers are evil. He will not, can not, stay still for a diaper change. I beg. I plead. I offer distractions of toys that light up and sing. I sing. I jump around and make silly noises. I cajole. I bribe.

Doesn't work. He insists on rolling over the instant he hits the changing table. Or the bed. Or the floor. Or the couch. I have learned that a change of location is futile. The little guy is suprisingly strong, too! I used to be able to hold him down. (Gently, of course!) Now, I feel like I am exerting a tremendous amount of force in order to keep him still, and I am afraid that I may be hurting him. He screams and screams as though he's being subjected to cruel and unusual punishment.

I've learned to put a diaper on him while he's sitting up. It's not as neat and tidy, but at least it's on.

Has anyone else experienced this? Please tell me that it is just a phase. Perhaps he's ready to start potty training??? (Totally wishful thinking, here. He's only 14 months old.)

Sigh.

Let's Play a Game

Take a look.




Take a good look.

How much did all this cost me?

$1.78

Yes, you read that correctly. I have begun playing the "CVS Game" as Crystal from Money Saving Mom likes to call it. (Thanks Jessica, for posting your CVS savings-- I found Crystal from one of your posts! My husband thanks you too, he just doesn't know it yet...lol!) I signed up for the CVS ExtraCare Rewards program. This was my second shopping trip on this program, and only my first using ECBs (Extra Care Bucks) I earned previously. How did I do it?

$5/$30 CVS coupon
2 different $4/$20 CVS coupons
$6.30 in manufacturer's coupons
$6.00 of ECBS

for a grand total out of pocket of: $1.78

Oh, plus I earned an extra $15 of ECBs for next time!!

This rocks. This is so fun.

(I did want to note that my ORIGINAL transaction also included a Maybelline eyeshadow, which was advertised in the CVS flier as $5.49 with an equal amount of ECBs earned). When I saw my receipt, it rang up at a higher total and gave me no ECBs. When I asked the cashier about it, he said, "sorry, there's nothing I can do. It's all in the computer." So I just returned the Maybelline.

This is really a fantastic way to save money. As you earn ECBs, you use them to purchase items which will earn you more ECBs. Additionally, you can use this as a ministry. Considering I spent less than $2 on all of that stuff, I am going to donate one of the toothpastes and one box of Excedrin to our local homeless shelter.

I still can't believe that I got all of that stuff for less than what the Starbucks Frappucino alone would have cost me.

This is awesome.

A Description of the Cuteness of My Child

I have the cutest baby in the world. He's been doing some really cute things lately, so I want to write them down so I won't forget them!

His new favorite game is "Boo!" We'll chase each other around the house, I'll duck behind the couch or hide around a corner, and when he "finds" me, I say, "Boo!" Then he giggles and giggles, and runs the other way. I follow him, then he'll turn around, look at me, and then he'll say "boo!"

He also has a version of hide-and-seek. He has figured out how to open up his closet, get inside, and close the door again. He'll go in there, shut himself in, and stay there until I open the door and find him. If I wait too long, he'll open the door slowly and peek his head out to see if I'm still there.

He is learning to feed himself using his spoon. Now that he has somewhat figured this out, he does not want to be spoon-fed by us anymore! I gave up trying to "help" him use the spoon. Now, I just put a bowl of something on his high chair tray, give him the spoon, and let him have at it. He usually does pretty well for the first few bites, but then he wants to start experimenting. "What will happen if I wave the spoon around in the air?" "Maybe if I just bang my spoon on the food, it'll work." "I think I'll smear a spoonful of oatmeal in my hair." After awhile I will get tired of this, so I take the bowl away and give him some finger food. I realized I just had to pick my battles. Each time he manages to get one or two more bites into his mouth, so I guess we're making progress!

Lance just loves his Daddy! When Hubby leaves for work each morning, Lance will hold out his arms to him until Daddy picks him up. Then Hubby hands him back to me and we have a "family hug." Hubby kisses me goodbye. As he pulls away, Lance will reach up to Hubby's face and draw it back to mine until we kiss again. SO SWEET!

That's it for now. Lance is asleep, Hubby is out of town for the weekend, and I have the house to myself.

I'm going to go have a glass of wine and watch one of my chick flicks.

Have a lovely night.

A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Polls

I don't know why Florida has such trouble with elections.

Yesterday I had to drive all over the place just so I could vote in Florida's primary elections. (See, we decided to hold our primaries early, which caused the democratic party to withdraw delegates from our state PLUS the candidates couldn't do much campaigning here. I don't know what that means, but it seems to me that preventing voters from getting as much information as possible is just not the smartest move in the world.)

Anyways. It was my fault that I didn't send in my change of address to get a new voter registration card in time. The day before the election, I called the elections office to find out where I was allowed to vote. Could I vote in my new precinct, or would I have to drive three towns over to go to my OLD precinct? No one answered the phone there. After awhile I was prompted to "press 1 to leave a voicemail." So I did. I left a message, but no one called me back.

I decided first to go to my *new* precinct, which is just around the corner from where I live. I got Lance all ready to go, attached his kid leash to him so he wouldn't run off, walked into the precinct, explained my situation, and was told I couldn't vote there, that I had to go to the other precinct where I was registered.

I was a little annoyed, but I understand that rules are rules. Later in the day, I went to the old precinct. They were very confused over there. I explained what happened at the new precinct, showed both my voter card and my driver's license, and then I found myself surrounded by 6 elections officials who all had a different idea what I should do. People were waving pieces of paper in my face, some of them telling me to take this paper to the new precinct, and then someone else would promptly yank it out of my hand saying it wasn't necessary. (This happened about 4 times.) I just stood there with a bewildered expression on my face. Finally, I said, "I JUST WANT TO VOTE!"

Someone finally took me over to a voting booth where I was able to cast my vote.

It was crazy.

And they wonder why people don't turn out to vote. They make it such a hassle!!!

Guinevere's Chicken Enchiladas

Some of my best recipes have been ones that I have stolen from some of you, dear blog-friends!

So I'm going to share one of my recipes. This is a recipe for Chicken Enchiladas that has become a staple in my house. It's one that has enough flavor for Hubby (he grew up in South Africa and they cook with much more spices and flavorings than the average American. He finds much of our food bland, so when I find a recipe that he doesn't have to add anything to, I consider it a success!!) PLUS Lance likes the chicken mixture. He still only has 4 teeth, so instead of wrapping it up in a tortilla, I just set aside some of the meat mixture, plop it down on his high chair tray, and let him have at it. He loves it. Here ya go!

Chicken Enchiladas
(I modified this recipe from the magazine Every Day with Rachael Ray. The original recipes calls for the tortillas to be dipped in the sauce, but I can't stand a soggy tortilla, so I put the sauce in the meat mixture and just drizzled a little sauce over the tops of the enchiladas before baking.) I also removed the jalapeño peppers because last time I chopped jalapeños, I ended up with nasty burns on my fingertips. A few drops of hot pepper sauce would work well if you just really love the flavor of the jalapeños!) You can find the original recipe here.

3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, finely chopped (I prefer red onion for this dish.)
3 tbsp flour
1 29-oz can tomato sauce (use whatever you like when you make pizza or spaghetti!)
1 tbsp chili powder
2 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
2-lb rotisserie chicken, meat shredded
(Last time I made this recipe, I just boiled 3 chicken breasts, then chopped them up finely. Another time I cooked a whole chicken in the crock pot, and just pulled the meat off the bones. As long as you have basically a whole chicken's worth of meat, any way you want to cook it will be fine.)
about 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
3 chipotle chilis in adobo sauce, seeded and finely chopped.
(These are sold in cans. I found them in the "ethnic foods" aisle of my grocery store. It is VERY IMPORTANT to cut open the chili and scrape out the seeds, because the seeds are where the heat "lives." Remember, Lance loved this recipe, so they're not TOO hot!)
12 6-inch flour tortillas

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add 2/3 of the onion and cook until softened. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups water and the tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, chipotle chilis and salt, bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Preheat the broiler. In large bowl, mix the cooked shredded chicken, 2/3 of the cheese and 2/3 of the sauce.

Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture, roll up and transfer (seam side down) to a 9 x 13 baking dish. Top with the remaining sauce, cheese, and onions.

Broil until golden, 5-7 minutes. (If your chicken was cold when you made the meat mixture, turn off the broiler and leave in the oven for a few more minutes until heated through.)

I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you decide to make it, let me know how it turned out for you!

Midnight Rant

I can't sleep. Grr.

It's not because of Lance. He's sound asleep.

It's not because Hubby is snoring. He's not.

It's because I drank caffeine with my dinner tonight. Not a lot of it, mind you. Just a kid-sized soft drink (Diet Coke specifically) from Boston Market on our way home from church tonight. I thought it would be harmless.

Nope!

I broke my own rule. I know that if I consume caffeine past 4 p.m. that I will have a miserable time getting to sleep without additional chemical assistance. (By which I mean Benadryl.) I don't like taking Benadryl just to get to sleep. I don't think God designed our bodies to absorb all these chemicals all the time. (I'm not anti-cold medicine when I need it, of course.)

But ya see, I haven't had a Diet Coke for several days. I'm trying to wean myself off of the stuff because I know it's not healthy. But when we went to pick up our dinner and ordered Lance a kid's meal, it came with a drink and I didn't want to waste it! We knew we would be giving Lance milk at home with his dinner. We didn't order drinks for ourselves for the same reason. The kid's meal just comes with it. I can't help it if the people who plan the meal combos decide to put a drink with a kid's meal but not with an adult meal!

So it's their fault.

Can you sue someone for sleep deprivation?

Hee hee. Before you know it, the soda cups will have this warning label printed on them:

WARNING: If you use this cup to consume caffeine in the late afternoon/early evening, it is possible you will have trouble falling asleep. By purchasing this beverage, you agree to hold (Name of Our Restaurant) and its affiliates, parent companies, and subsidiaries harmless for any damages or losses suffered due to sleep deprivation. Any disputes arising in this matter will be adjudicated according to the laws of the state of (Name of Your State or Province If You Are One of My Canadian Readers).

LOLOLOLOLOL

I crack myself up sometimes.

Sleep deprivation encourages hilarity, I suppose.

Maybe I should be a comedian.

Maybe I should forget going back to school and start a career as a comedian.

So I wonder if I can get That Restaurant to pay off my student loans since I won't be needing my degree to be a comedian.

Because it's Their Fault that their menu planners include a drink with a kid's meal and not with the adult meal, and thus I am awake at 1 am contemplating becoming a comedian.

Now we have to edit the warning label as follows:

ADDITIONALY, the consumption of caffeine at a late hour may also cause you to doubt the course of your future. By purchasing and drinking this beverage, you agree that you will not hold (Name of Our Restaurant) responsible for any debts incurred while pursuing your education, which you no longer need because you're going to become a comedian.

And Now Let's Break for Adulthood

Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles.

I had lunch with a friend a few days ago. (That's not the miraculous part. In fact, it's a fairly commonplace occurrence between me and this particular friend!) This friend also has a young baby.

We actually had an adult conversation that did not involve poopy diapers, naptimes, what new foods our children have eaten and their newest accomplishments. (Although Lance recently ate the chicken mixture I made for enchiladas the other night, which was seasoned with chili powder, cumin, and even had some chipotle chilis in adobo sauce. And did I mention that Lance can say a few new words, and he will remain sitting in the bathtub when asked to do so?)

We discussed politics. We discussed stuff happening at our church. We bounced ideas off each other for a girls-only camping trip. We threw around words and phrases like "demographics" and "standardized testing" and "environmental policies."

We debated whether or not it was the place of government to enforce moral issues. We tried to decide which was more important: does the leader of the free world need to share our religion and ethical ideas, or can those be set aside in favor of things like the economy, education, and national security? (Because to me it seems like there is not a candidate that matches me both in religious/ethical ideas and all the other stuff. Please correct me if I'm wrong!)

We didn't really come to any conclusions, but let me just tell you it was nice to use words with more than two syllables on a regular basis!

Of course we're having this discussion in between singing silly songs to our kids to keep them quiet and happy and rescuing bits of food that were "liberated" from our children's plates onto the floor.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I watched the Republican presidential debate on television last night. It was very educational! I want to encourage all of my U.S. readers to get yourselves informed about the presidential candidates and the issues facing our nation today. A few days ago I posted about how I was woefully unprepared regarding current politics. I've been doing some reading, been watching the news and most recently, the debate, and I now feel pretty caught up. After watching the debate, I found myself changing my mind about some things. As the candidates explained the ramifications of particular decisions, it helped to open my eyes.

Whether you are Republican, Democrat, Independent, or something else entirely, it is so important to be a well-informed voter.

I can recall hearing a statistic that more people tuned in to watch the American Idol finale than turned out to vote in a recent election. That saddened me. (I was one of those people at the time, I'm sad to say. It was pure laziness on my part.)

Enough of my political soapbox. I don't intend for this blog to become a political forum by any means. It's just a current interest of mine, so you may see a post here and there regarding something of a political nature! I also don't want to alienate anyone. I know that people have lots of different ideas regarding politics and the running of the country, and I certainly don't want any bad blood here. Feel free to share your ideas (nicely, please!) because the only way to learn about the political scene is to really get into it, to ask questions, and learn from others.

Have a great day!

Adventures in Baking (Or, "My Failed Attempt at Domesticity")

I laugh at myself a lot.

Particularly yesterday.

See, I have some friends. Some wonderful friends whom I adore and admire. I attempted to imitate one of them.

This particular friend (We'll call her "Ivy") often takes it into her head to bake something from scratch for no particular reason. Sometimes it's just to do something nice for her husband (whom rumor has it adores dessert,) and sometimes it's just because she feels like it.

About a week ago, I had the pleasure of partaking in one of her delectable chocolate cupcakes, made from scratch from Ghiradelli cocoa. (It was divine. Heaven in a cupcake.) I also stood and watched her make icing from scratch. Perfection. Pure, unadulterated, perfection.

I love this friend so much I decided once again to copy her. (Ivy hon, I'm sorry. I just can't help it! You are my role model.)

I baked a cake.

I have not baked a cake in years. I'm the one who goes to the grocery store bakery and buys a cake there, and then only for special occasions.

While perusing my pantry for items needed to make dinner, I found a boxed cake mix. I have no idea why it was in there. (They must have been two for one or something like that. Hubby made a cake awhile back, so maybe that's where it came from.) So I decided that I would bake a cake. Just because I felt like it.

Mistake #1: Using the wrong bakeware.

I have a Pampered Chef stoneware baking dish. It's fantastic and I use it for all sorts of things. Lasagna, chicken, casseroles, pretty much for anything one would use a standard sized baking dish. When I attempted to remove the cake from the pan and place it on a wire rack, it made a big, gigantic mess. The stoneware is very porous, so even though I used cooking spray, the cake stuck. I tried to unstick it from the sides using a knife and that served to loosen it just enough for half of the cake to come tumbling out of the pan. I then proceeded to use a spatula to loosen the other half of the cake from the pan. It came out in crumbled bits.

(At least the crumbled bits of cake still tasted great!)

Mistake #2: Trying to make icing from scratch.

I phoned my dear friend Ivy and asked her to tell me how to make icing. She told me, I followed her directions precisely, and I ended up with a gooey, lumpy, drippy, mess.

(At least the gooey, lumpy, drippy mess still tasted great!)

I do not blame Ivy for this. I must have skipped an important step, or set the mixer to the wrong speed, or added the ingredients in the wrong order. (So maybe I didn't follow her directions precisely...) Or Perhaps Ivy assumed I knew a thing or two about baking, so she left out something obvious that anyone else who had ever baked a cake in their lives would know. (Have you ever played that game where you tell someone how to make a peanut butter sandwich? You say, "put the peanut butter on the bread" and the person picks up the jar of peanut butter, and sets the jar down on the whole loaf of bread? I need specifics here.) Again Ivy, not your fault, babe.

A few moments ago, I trashed the cake. I should have photographed it for you all to gawk and point fingers at, but I'm not quite that willing to undergo that kind of humiliation. You'll just have to use your imaginations.

Lessons learned?

Use a plain old baking dish.

Buy a tub of store-bought icing.

Or, just go to the grocery store bakery and buy a cake.

Thanks, Brento, for reminding me about the website that you posted about and I commented on regarding the presidential candidates.

The Minnesota Public Radio website has a section called "Select-A-Candidate" in which you can take a quiz to determine which candidate most closely aligns with your views, and you can also see each candidate's answers to the same questions. Click on "candidate positions" to see where each candidate stands. (No, I do not think each candidate took the quiz, but their answers were taken from various debates and public statements they have made. Very often, they will link to the candidate's own websites, in which you can delve in more deeply to see where they stand on each issue.)

I find the site to be very objective and informational. For anyone who is a little confused about who is who and what they stand for, this is a great place to begin!

Thanks Brent!

Politically Ingnorant

I should really be ashamed of myself. I haven't updated my voter registration in several years. My current voter card lists the address of our very first apartment when we got married three years ago. (That was three addresses and a couple of counties ago.) Yikes!

I was equally embarrassed when I realized that Florida's primary elections are being held later this month and I didn't have a clue who the candidates were other than Hillary and Obama, let alone the Republican party!

SO...this morning I purchased a newspaper. (You know, where they print out all the news stories for you so you don't have to do it yourself!) I spent a couple of hours happily thumbing through it.

There's a whole lot going on in this world that I had no idea about.

Like an art festival a few miles from here, an airstrike over Gaza, a local grant to provide restaurants with equipment that will reduce their use of water and electricity, reasons why I should (and should not) say "yes to Amendment 1!" and most importantly to me, information on the presidential candidates.

Last night I obtained the paperwork necessary to update my voter registration.

(Why is it you can renew your driver's license online, make payments for everything online, but you can't register to vote online?)

Anyhoo. Now that I know I will once again be a participating member in the government of our country, I decided I needed to educate myself about what is going on.

I'm WAAAAYYYY behind.

So I'm starting with baby steps. I read the feature in the paper that listed each candidate's strengths and weaknesses. The article gave a website for further election information, so I've been digging through that for awhile.

I feel much more informed now.

After 2 hours of reading up on election info, I can say with total confidence that for the moment, I am going to support John McCain.

That could change. It could easily change.

Because I am only 2 hours into my presidential education.

Thoughts, anyone?? Is there a website with objective information about each candidate and where they stand on issues?

It's Official.

It's Official.

The application has been submitted.

Childcare has been confirmed.

I WILL be returning to school this fall!!! In December, I will finally, finally, have my bachelor's degree in elementary education.

Such a weight off my shoulders. All this time being one semester away from graduating. So close, yet so far. When looking for a part-time job earlier last year, my lack of a degree was a significant hindrance. No matter that the coursework had been completed. No matter that the state's certification tests had been passed.

I didn't have the piece of paper from a university that said I was qualified to be a teacher, so nobody thought I was.

I'll show them.

Ha.

Why?

I don't get people sometimes.

Why do people assume that because I choose to stay at home with my son that I must be a poor, uneducated, drudge of some kind?

It doesn't matter to them that I am one semester away from earning my college degree. I may as well have dropped out of high school.

I look very young, so they assume I "got knocked up" and am now burdened with the trials of raising a child. They don't know how much I longed for a baby, how much I prayed to be a mother. They don't understand the encompassing love that I have for this small person.

Which is why I am grateful for all of you! You are very special women to me. I get you and you get me. We all understand what it is like to love a child. We don't think of it as a terrible sacrifice to spend time raising our children. We are intelligent, well-read, and we all have an excellent grasp of the English language as shown in our ability to construct (for the most part) grammatically correct sentences with correctly spelled words (thank you spell-check!) which people find interesting to read.

I'm just in a funk today I guess. It's a bit of a blustery, gray day and I didn't get enough sleep last night, so I'm savoring a crabby mood.

I really should get some housework done, but I'm not going to. I'm going to take a nap.

Ta-ta.

I Won! I Won!

For the first time ever, I have won a bloggy contest that I entered.

I won this card-making kit given away by Haley!!!! Thanks so much, hon! I really enjoy scrapbooking and card-making, but assembling everything you need for such a project is exhausting when you have a toddler. Kits are fantastic!!

I Miss You!

Hi everyone!

I miss you! Every single last one of you!

Been busy busy busy. Trawling (is that a word?) the internet for scholarships in what little computer time I have.

Started a new "system" for getting things done around my house. During one of Chris' naps, I do housework. During the other nap, I do whatever I want. Unfortunately, his naps aren't long enough for me to eat, read, sleep, watch TV, play keyboard, flip through magazines, scrapbook, take photos, AND blog.

(But my house has been MUCH cleaner this week, which has been nice!)

Maybe things will start to calm down a bit...


* * * * * * * * * * * * *

I've just entered a fun contest! Go over and visit Haley and have a gander at some cool scrapbooking and card making stuff you can win. I really enjoy doing both those things but have little time for it, so having kits with stuff done for me is FANTASTIC. Good luck if you decide to enter too!

Going Back to School!!!!

If all goes according to plan, it looks like I may be going back to school this fall!!! I have only my internship left to complete before they give me the piece of paper that says I can be a teacher.

Does anyone know of any scholarships available for mommy bloggers??? If I can do this without going any more into debt, that would be fabulous.

There's No Place Like Home

Whew.

It has been a whirlwind week and a half.

And it ain't over yet.

Beginning Christmas Eve, Hubby, Lance and I have been on a Road Trip spanning the greater southeast United States. Every other day for 10 days we have been on the road.

Christmas Eve, we drove four hours from our home on the east coast of southern Florida to my parents' house.

The day after Christmas, we drove seven hours to my maternal grandparents' house in the Panhandle.

Two days after that, we drove a couple more hours into Lower Alabama to visit my paternal grandmother and various and sundry relatives.

Today we drove 6 hours from there back to my parents' house.

Tomorrow we drive the final 4 hours back to our own (very-much longed for) home.

Sigh.

It was wonderful to visit with everyone. Lance is the first great-grandchild on my mom's side of the family, and the fourth on the other. None of them had met him before. Why?

Because it's a freaking long drive for such a little guy. (And now a short pause for ranting: WHY is no one else in my family willing to travel???? Grrrr.) I have to say though, Lance was wonderful. He slept an appropriate amount of time, and when he was awake I hopped to the backseat so that I could hand him the toys he would inevitably throw on the floor of the car and entertain him with silly faces and read him stories and feed him snacks. This kept him happy between rest stops and mealtimes. Then he slept some more.

I am sure that someone hates me for that.

That said, it's still not a trip I want to repeat anytime soon. I will look for a flight next time. It just seemed like by the time we get settled in somewhere, it was time to leave. While I know that Lance will have no memories of this trip, I really want him to get to know his great-grandparents, because I never knew mine. I want him to spend time with his aunts and uncles and cousins, because when I was a little girl we lived across the country and I only saw those relatives (at best) once a year.

I took lots of photos, though. (Which I will post here when I am back at home at my own computer.) And I will tell him stories of how he chased his great-grandmother's dog around the house and how his little cousins pulled out their toys to share with him and how the neighbor scared us when he burst out of the bushes and into the backyard. (I'll share that story with y'all another day.)

It was a time to treasure.

But boy, am I ready to be back at home, in my own bed, with my own kitchen to cook in and my routine to settle into.

(Holly! I miss you!)

It ends tomorrow. The last leg of our journey, bringing us home.

There's no place like home!

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from Guinevere and Lancelot!!!

To Everything There Is a Season

He's growing up.

He doesn't chew on book pages anymore. Now, he brings a book to me, places it in my hand, and crawls up into my lap so I can read it to him.

He helps with the laundry. He pulls clothes out of the dryer, throws them on the floor, then I pick them up and hang or fold them.

He points excitedly to objects that he wants to know the names of. Today he saw several Santas in the grocery store and eagerly pointed out each one.

He tries to say so many words! Sometimes I get the idea of what he is saying. "Bud" means "build" after he heard me say "Santa builds the toys!" "Iss" means "Chris" (which is his real name.) "Ba" means "bathtime" which he says happily as he runs towards the bathroom as we sing his bathtime song to him.

He likes to share his lunch with me. He holds out pieces of food and likes to "feed" me the same way I feed him.

He likes to play ball. If you ask him to bring you "the purple ball" he will find the purple ball, bring it to you, and go after it once you roll it across the floor. Then he picks it up and tries so very hard to roll it back to you, though usually it goes in quite the opposite direction!

My little man astonishes me each and every day with what he is capable of doing.

He can turn on the TV.

He can lift the lid to the toilet and throw things in it.

He can put his toys in his diaper pail.

He can pull diapers out of their basket and drag them around the house.

He can dig through the laundry pile, find my unmentionables, place them on his head, and giggle.

He can wriggle away while I'm changing his diaper resulting in a VERY disgusting mess.

But he can also give wet sloppy kisses and baby-sized bear hugs.

And I am just so in love with him!

20 Items or Less

I had a dilemma.

All was quiet in the mega-store. (For a change.) Not too crowded. I was able to push my shopping cart through the aisles with relatively little hassle. Approaching the cash registers, I counted the items in my cart hoping against hope and wishing against wish that I would be able to employ the "20 Items or Less" line, thus ensuring a hasty departure and a happy return home.

I had 25 items.

10 of them were baby food jars.

Would I sneak into the special line? I glanced behind me, no one else was approaching the queue. The adjacent lines without an item limit were all occupied by people with shopping carts that "overfloweth" with groceries.

Of the 10 baby food jars, I only had 5 types of baby food, two jars each.

So did that count as 5 items instead of 10? Could I get away with it? Dare I try?

My soul wrestled with itself.

"Self, no one else is coming to the line. If someone does approach the line, those extra 5 baby food jars will already have been bagged and no one will be the wiser."

"Yes, but self, I've been behind people in line who tried to sneak through. It's just not polite."

"Who cares about polite? It's a dog eat dog world, baby. Wake up and smell the spilled coffee."

Sigh. What to do?

The polite self won. I stepped in line behind a woman whose Cart Runneth Over.

I felt very pleased with myself.

"Self, when you go up to heaven and your deeds are judged by God, this will be a shining example of doing what is right when no one will see."

"Whatever."

I was still pleased with myself.

I had to stand there for nearly 10 minutes before it was my turn to load my items onto the counter and have them bagged, while I watched 6 other people get through The Line Which I Was Good Enough Not To Enter.

It was the most wonderful 10 minutes of peace and quiet that I had the whole day. I could stand there, breathe in and out, and not worry about a toddler throwing his toys into the diaper pail or pulling something heavy onto his head.

It was blissful.

A World of Good

Hi!

I want to share a great website I found if you still need a few last-minute gifts and want to be eco-friendly and help economies in struggling nations.

www.worldofgood.com

This website sells handmade gifts made by local artisans in countries all over the world. It is a "fair trade" group, ensuring that the workers are given a fair wage and healthy, safe, working conditions in their local area.

The prices are great and the items look fantastic. I just purchased 3 gifts on this site, a necklace, a small purse, and a bracelet.

It feels good to know that not only am I choosing unique gifts for the people I love, but that the money I am spending is going to support people who really need it and not just stuff the pockets of large corporations.

Oops. I'm starting to get on a soap box here!

Anyway. Head on over and see what you can find.

My Little Fireman

He's figured out how to get on and off of his firetruck.

Now I just have to teach him the difference between front and back!

What Holiday Is This?

If you are among the majority of Americans who decorates a Christmas tree, sends Christmas cards, and sings Christmas carols, GO WATCH THIS VIDEO!!!!

http://www.citizenlink.org/Stoplight/A000005834.cfm?eafref=1

New Words!!!

I'm so excited. Lance has uttered his first real words!

He had been saying "mama" and "Daddy" and a variation of "Wow" for awhile, but now he can say "baby" and "up." It's the cutest thing ever!!

We were having lunch and I had the television on the discovery channel. There was something about penguins on, and they showed the baby penguin hatching from its egg. I said, "Look Lance, there's a baby penguin!" He looked at me, then at the TV, pointed at it and said, "Baby!" Melt my heart!

Later that same day, he wanted to be picked up. I was standing in the living room doing some walking-in-place exercises and he came right up to me, lifted his arms in the air and said, "Up!"

I'm just a puddle of besotted Mommy right now. Sigh.

Because I'm Just Mean

I know many of you live in a northerly direction.

Just because I'm a mean, pernicious sort of person, I will show you a photo of how we spent our day today.

Although I'm jealous of you all. What I would give for a fresh fallen snow and a blazing fire in a fireplace, to sit and drink hot cocoa by.

I guess we always want what the other guy has.

Taking a Little Break

I'm sure some of you have noticed that my posts have become less frequent lately. I just haven't felt like sitting at the computer! :) I'll still post every now and then, but I'm pursuing some other interests for a little while now. I won't completely disappear though, I promise!

I'll see ya when I see ya! ;)

Happy Birthday, Lance!

What a busy week it has been! Between hosting Thanksgiving and then having Lance's birthday party all in the same holiday weekend, (NEVER going to do that again!!) I'm exhausted. So I'm going to go take a nap while you vicariously enjoy Lance's party, and I'll tell you all about it later, after I've caught a few zzzz's.

Merry Elfin' Christmas!

Tee hee hee hee...

Click on this link to see my family wishing yours a very merry Christmas. *chuckle chuckle grin*


http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9583603783

Update on Shayna

A few days ago, I posted about a little girl with Down Syndrome who has been recently diagnosed with leukemia and requested prayers. A few of you asked for an update, so here you go!

This is an email written by the little girl's father. It was forward to me from my friend who knows this family.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

In addition to the leukemia, Shayna is having moderate to severe heart
problems. She is having what they call infusion around the heart. There
are other medical issues going on too.

In spite of this, I am not worried because I dreamed this child into our
lives and feel we were meant to spend many wonderful years together. I
truly believe that this is simply another test. I believe Shayna will pull
through all of this. Like you said she is a survivor! She has had several
transfusions of palettes and will continue to need 3 to 4 transfusions per
week. Therefore, for right now the doctors are saying that she will not be
going home anytime soon. The bone marrow biopsy came back and they found the
"bad" blasts (cells) in the bone marrow so they will now decide how to
proceed.

Thank G-d we live in a time when so much technology is available to us. G-d
bless these doctors that they we re imbued with wisdom to understand the
complexities of the human body.

Join us as we send Shayna our positive energy and be ready to expect and
celebrate, with G-d's will, Shayna's quick and complete recovery.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

My Baby is Gone

I'm a little sad. My baby is gone. He's a big boy now. He can walk, he can communicate many many things even without knowing the words, and he's an independent spirit.

I'm going to wallow a bit in bittersweet nostalgia for the days that aren't too far behind me. They might as well have been a lifetime ago.

Ideas?

Hey everyone.

Lance will be a year old on the 28th of this month. (Can you believe it? I sure can't.) Anyhoo, I'm trying to plan a weekend getaway for Hubby and I, and I was wondering what you all thought of leaving Lance with the grandparents for a weekend. We've left him overnight with them before, but never for a whole weekend. (It wouldn't be for a few more months, probably sometime in the spring, so he'd be 15-16 months old by then.)

I'm aching to go see New York City. We have friends who go a couple of times a year and they always have the most fun. I would love to go see the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty, take a walk in Central Park, eat a hotdog from a street vendor, see a taping of Rachael Ray.

It just seems that it would be really tough to enjoy NYC with a toddler in tow. I know people who live there have babies, but because they live there they know how to get around. (I don't want to lug a car seat around and hop in and out of taxis. Ick.)

Anyhoo. Your thoughts? Is he too young to be left with the grandparents for a long weekend?

Prayers Urgently Needed

Hey everyone.

I received an e-mail from a friend of mine today. A young couple, Jeremy and Stephanie, have recently adopted a Down Syndrome baby. Shayna is the 10th special-needs child this couple has adopted. They have recently learned that Shayna has leukemia, and due to laws regarding adoption and waiting periods, they have not yet been able to obtain medical coverage for her.

I don't know this family personally, but as a mother I can only imagine the nightmare it must be to have a terribly ill child and not have the means to do anything about it. Please send up prayers for this precious family!

First Word!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday, November 12, 2007, Lance said his first word:

"Wow."

His first word apart from "mama" and "dada" anyway. I really couldn't say which one of those he said first, because he had been saying them just as syllables for a long time. Yesterday though, he said "wow." It's so cute too, because he almost whispers it and gets this look of astonishment on his face as he says it! I'll try to get it on video for you sometime!

I need to go give him a bottle now. He is so tired and is having trouble sleeping. He caught a little 20-minute power nap in the car on the way home from mom's group which is keeping him from sleeping now, but I know he needs a nice long nap because usually he's had a 2-hour nap by now. Poor little guy!

You know the holidays have arrived when...

1. When The Red Cup is back at Starbucks!

2. When the palm trees outside of your apartment complex have been covered in white twinkle lights. (I will have to post a photo of this later. For those of you who don't live in an area populated primarily by palm trees, it's a sight that brings warmth and joy to your heart. lol!)

3. When you begin rehearsing Christmas music at your church.

4. When all the Halloween candy is on clearance at Target.

5. When you suddenly feel the urge to start wrapping up boxes.

6. When you start seeing ads for the annual holiday specials on television. (It's a tradition in my family to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in the morning while dinner is being prepared, and then to watch It's A Wonderful Life in the evening.)

7. When you attend social gatherings and spiced apple cider served out of a crockpot is a guest of honor at every event.

8. When you pull all your red sweaters out of the back of the closet and start wearing them regularly just because you can.


I know a lot of people think that it's too early to start celebrating Christmas. (I have to draw the line at Christmas music being played in the stores before Halloween. No joke. That actually happened in early October at a local craft store. Anyhoo.) But you know what? I love all the red and green, the twinkle lights, the festive music. I love picking out wrapping paper and carefully selecting gifts for the people I love. I adore the tastes and smells of the season. (While I previously mentioned the spiced apple cider, I do restrict myself to only making it between Thanksgiving and New Year's to keep it special!)

What things put you in a holiday mood?

Am I A Bad Mother?

I desperately need just 10 minutes of down time. Just to sit and breathe in and out without jumping up every 2 1/2 seconds to put back whatever Lance yanked off the shelf.

Just 10 minutes.

So I put him in his crib with his stuffed monkey. He's not too thrilled about being left alone, but y'all, I need some air.

Am I mean?

Ouch!

If you're going to chop up jalepeno peppers for the new chili recipe you're making for dinner tonight, either use gloves or be prepared for the tips of your fingers to be sore and tender for the rest of the afternoon.

I Need Me Some Z's

First of all, noisy upstairs neighbors kept me from falling asleep. I went outside to my balcony, yelled at them, and they were finally somewhat quiet.

Then, Snoring Husband kept me from falling asleep, so I went out to the couch.

It got hot in the living room, so I stumbled back into our room.

I finally fall into a comfortable sleep.

An hour later, Lance wakes up screaming.

And here I am.

Am I Nuts?

I went jogging this evening.

Jogging. Me.

I used to say that the only way you could get me to run is if you were to chase me with a knife. Or throw a snake at me.

However, I recently had the experience of watching some friends participate in a 13K marathon, part of which ran through Disney MGM studios while we were there last week. How fun would that be, jogging through Disney world after hours and the place is SILENT except for the stretch of road they allowed spectators?

Plus they got medals.

It's all about the medals, dude. Duh.