Do it, girl

I'm feeling a little girl powery today.
And let me tell you why.
Women are awesome.

I have so many awesome women in my life who continue to amaze me with their strength(s) and talent(s).
I read in the Charlotte Observer that over 11, 000 women in Charlotte alone participated in the Susan G. Komen Race for the cure. Over 11, 000, dude, like WOW.
This is quite literally women saving other women's lives. (read more at www.komencharlotte.org) are we awesome or what?
Of course there are women like Sarah Palin who are paving the way for future generations of women who want to be political and mothery and have good hair all at the same time.
The big drawback here is that women tend to do so much for others that they don't do quite enough for themselves. So here is your job Mommies, ladies and girlies of all kinds.
Do one kind thing for yourself. Take a bath, get a manicure, pedicure, massage, new book, new sweater.
Do you love something that's too expensive? ask yourself if you would hesitate for one second spending that money on your children, husband, parents or boyfriend.
Then why hesitate spending it on yourself?
You're awesome women!
Now go out and feel it!

Seven Years ago Today.

(NOTE:*should have been posted yesterday, but something wonky was going on with blogger)

Seven years ago today I was

One month away from finding out I was going to be a mother the first time.

Apalled and horrified.

Petrified.

Still not watching regular programming.

calling everyone I knew to see if anyone had been traveling.

wondering if we'd ever catch the bad guys.

Today I'm-

A mother of three who still is wondering if we're going to catch the bad guys.

There are a million tributes to the needless loss of life on 9/11, let this be a million and one. There cannot be enough said about the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, some body's to someone who are no longer with us.

I have always been fiercely proud to be an American, and I hope that you all take a moment to remember what is was like to be a part of a nation falling apart seven years ago, and to realize how far we've come and how far we have to go.
Have a great day...R

Long time no blog

I think it's this way with everyone this summer with the notable exceptions of those people without children or children who are of age to amuse themselves without maiming themselves, I mean, I can barely find two seconds to bath (don't get too close and thank you Bath and Body Works Body Spray), much less blog, write, breath, eat or um...oh yeah, that distant memory sleep. So far this summer I haven't.....
1. won the lottery.
2. died my hair green.
3. officially potty trained Leesy.
4. figured out how to find some energy.
5. even started tagging my fall weeruns stuff.
6. found a cure for any diseases (though I faithfully donate my dollar anytime they ask at the grocery store, restaurant or gas station, but how can I be sure the wierdo behind the counter didn't go to Kinko's and make some hearts/clovers/hand prints himself just to raise beer money?)
7.gotten a bad sunburn.
8. read half my summer reading list (I did finish the Harry Potter's good stuff, that)

But, I have....
1. made some great new friends
2. got a great pedicure (see color here)
3. kept most of my appointments
4. remembered to take my vitamin.
5. decided to move to Tahiti indefinitely
6. moved on from my obsession with karaoke to being obsessed with karma (I like K what Kan I say?)
7. tried to pull my daughters teeth out while she's sleeping.
8. discovered a new way to sleep with eyes open, well, it's called being awake and is really nothing like sleeping. Will keep you posted on results of staying awake for days on end.

Summer as we think of summer is officially grinding to an end, we've registered for dance, I have PTO meeting tonight and we've begun making family labor day plans....but I LOVE fall, and hopefully will be V. productive concerning my writing come September. We will see.
Hope everyone is well....R

Cute Shoe Events

So there I was, at some random shoe store on Friday, contemplating the most adorable pair of peep toe pumps, complete with embossed cherries and snazzy ankle straps. I had tried them on (twice) regaled my husband with the why's and why nots of purchasing such impractical shoes. I mean, on one hand, we all need a little frivolity, but on the other hand, even such adorable footwear would surely only languish in my flip-flop/tennis shoe/ barefoot world.
But.

YOU know.
They were ON SALE.

ON SALE is kryponite to my very shopping soul.

I am generally of the mind that if it is NOT ON SALE, then it will be shortly and I can just wait. Then if it is gone when said item goes on sale, then well, it was not meant to be.
But shoes....shoes are a pump of a different color.

Before M snoozed off, I decided NOT to get them.
I mean, they were truly REALLY cute shoes. They made my ankles look not so baggy and elephant like (see earlier post) and my toes look tiny and feminine, but I honestly don't have that many cute shoe events in my life right now.
We have some friends we meet for dinner (like once every four months) and there are our monthly (ok, more like every other monthly) dates, but even then, you can only justify so many pair of new shoes (and believe me, I've tried) we have a company Christmas Party, (peep toe pumps probably not appropriate esp. with cherries)
And then it hits me,
in the middle of random shoe store,
MY REALLY CUTE SHOE events have mostly all passed me by.
And this makes me so sad.
My prom, graduation, bachelorette party, and actual wedding (THE cute shoe event) have all passed.
Is it possible that I need to inject cute shoe events into more mundane things?
I think it is, even still, as I purused the non-slip ubersneaker collection, I had to wonder, what in the world happened to the girl that had seven hundred pair of underwear and thirty to fifty pair of shoes?
Of course we all know that her feet and butt expanded and she is built more for comfort than speed at this point, but before I say no to all peep toe pumps in the future, I may think about making PTO meetings a CUTE SHOE EVENT after all.
Best. R

Baggy elephant ankles.

So this is probably the ninth or tenth time I've started to blog only to be interrupted, loose focus, be distracted, think of something more pressing, get a phone call, text message, email, IM or random communications that demand my time or attention.

But I am hoping to make that up to you all now.

It sounds as if every one's summer is whizzing by at breakneck speed and mine is no exception.

We've already done the beach thing, the family thing, the recital thing, the swimming thing, the many playdates thing and both M and I working thing resulting in about twelve minutes a week together (and Um, we're asleep).

I'm sure that their are busier people than myself (I'm sure there are, as a matter of fact, but you know sometimes how you feel like you're one of the only people on the planet who is moving at the speed of light while everyone else is meandering towards a sunny place?) That's me, under the desk.

Ok, you got me, it's Tina Fey, who undoubtedly has a heavier schedule than myself, but has the good grace to only have one child (admittedly, the kid looks like a handful, though, am I right?)

But other than the ridiculous lack of sleep and obnoxious amounts of 'I told you so' from my one true love, I'm good.

I do have several 'So there I was waiting on these people when....' stories that I'm anxious to share, but I have been tagged, so I'll deal with that first.

Where were you ten years ago?

This is interesting because I was working for Outback ten years ago, working towards my degree. If I'd stuck with Outback, it's possible I'd be running one.

But, I wouldn't have the joy of my children, or my husband so Ce' la Vie..

Five things on your to do list today..

(really, just five?)

1. Laundry

2. Mom's bday lunch.

3. Power bill, bank, Post office (that's one, right?)

4. Dinner with Rebecca

5. Movie date with hubby. (oh yeah, change sheets..hehe)

Snacks I enjoy.

Let's be clear, if it's a snack, I enjoy it.

What would you do if you were a billionaire?

Well, I hope I'm never a billionaire, because I think I'd be a terrible rich person, but if I had to take it, I'd take M to Ireland, the kids to Disney, Myself to Monte Carlo, Barbados, Hawaii, I'd fix my teeth (and possibly my breasts), I don't even know really, I can't even fathom that kind of green.

Places I would live:

I'm not sure, I love it here, but maybe closer to water? The lake?

And now, I will not pass on the taggage, but I did have fun..

and now a list Target Diva style of the things my customers (drunken or otherwise) have ACTUALLY SAID to me.

1. Can I have some more ranch?

2. Your teeth need bleaching.

3. Wow, you've got baggy ankles. (oh, yeah? you can tell that through orthopedic non slip shoes, ankle socks and bell bottom black pants?)

4. Seriously, more ranch?

5. What's with all the pins?

6. Is there dressing on this salad?

7. Is that your natural color hair?

8. Did you remember the ranch?
9. Those uniforms aren't very flattering are they? (not actually no, not unless you are approximately the size and width of a clothes hanger and then ooooo pretty!)

10. Can I have some more ranch?

Have a great week guys, thanks for all the emails and calls!

Will be posting a BRAND NEW excerpt at Writing MOMMY by weekend!

R

Cellulite Shadows 2 ( or there I was crying in the dressing room at Wal-Mart)

So, you guessed it.
I left my bathing suit quest to the last minute.
I was left with two choices.

1. No swimming.
2. Swim in old stretched out unsupportive bathing suit.

or

3. Buy new bathing suit.

So, today in the midst of all the going out of town preparations, I had to also find a new bathing suit.
which i loathe.
have i mentioned that?

So I go. Because the days of lazy waiting are over.
I go to My Sisters Closet, where I am hoping to find a decent suit for cheap.
Can I mention that there are three way mirrors in the dressing room? Three way mirrors are NOT MY FRIEND.

NOT. MY. FRIEND.
AT. ALL.

Ok, so back to bathing suit mission impossible.
I couldn't find one there. And after three more stores still no top fitting and bottom fitting bathing suit.

Sometimes I feel like my head is on someone else's body.

Long story short, I did find a cute cheap bathing suit that will work(um, hopefully) until I can have more time.

Why can't I wear shorts like a boy?

off to see the wizard. have a great rest of the week.
R

Come on ride the train

I rarely do this, because I could go on for hours about my kids, but we went to Tweetsie for Thomas the Tank Engine's Magical Mystery Tour (*not the real name of the tour) and it was, for once a completely wonderful experience. My husband is not a fan of theme parks, or heat, or being out in the heat at a theme park. But, for our kids, he's generally a really good sport and pretty much up for anything.

Our prior theme park/ outdoor adventures have been somewhat lackluster and a teensy bit less than fun, but this time it measured up to the hype.

We'd been to Tweetsie with K and A once before (let me mention here that A was two months old, which means I was two months post partum and still recovering from major abdominal-having-baby-through -opening-in-stomach surgery) so even the most fun thing (say, shoe shopping with someone else's credit card while eating chocolate) would have still not been superfun.

If you've been to Tweetsie you know that it is ALL UPHILL. Now there are ways to get uphill without walking, for instance a chairlift, a bus, a trolley and of course, walking.

We had a double stroller and foolish delusions of granduer, so we walked (it's only like a quarter mile or so, but still ALL UPHILL) the last time we went there were no options for the uphill trek other than the chair lift, which was out for me and A, so of we go up the HILL, I swear it took us an hour to get up that hill last time (MAJOR ABDOMINAL SURGERY, PEOPLE) but this time, Mike and I are flying up it like we have wings. (so proud of ourselves we were)

But that's not all, not only did we wow everyone with our athletic prowess, but we were smart enough to get an early morning ride (uh, only about six hundred other people had this very same idea, BTW) so we were done with the park by the time the temp was really cranking up.

B was a little wary of how loud the train was, but other than that good times were had by all. A loved every minute and was not whiny, fussy or otherwise moody for most of the day. K was fascinated by the gem mining and managed to get not only herself soaked but her sister and her brother and the bottom half of her Nana as well. It was OK, though, because she cheered herself up with a sucker as tall as she was.

We made it home by bedtime and while the kids conked out we ordered Applebee's.

Good times.

R