Any Mac People?

I desperately need a new computer. The one I have now seems like it should have plenty of memory and speed, but it just can't handle editing my picture files.

And I don't have the time in my day to restart my computer four times just to Photoshop a picture or two.

So I'm thinking of switching to a Mac. It seems like all the people I know who work with photographs and scrapbooking have them.

Do you? What do you think of yours? Is it a desktop or a laptop?

The power of the will

I made some chocolate chip cookies for the family last night. The kind that you actually mix together in a bowl, not the kind you take out of the package.

And I was really, really tempted to grab a spoon and sit down in front of a movie and eat the cookie dough right out of the bowl.

But I fought the temptation, and I was victorious.

I ate it with my fingers, standing up in the kitchen instead.

It only seems organized because it's in list form

A few things to catch up:

1. The chocolate was gone by Monday night. Let's not speak of it ever again.
2. My sister had a slight cold when she got on her plane on Thursday. By Friday night she had bronchitis.
3. It's after 2pm and I'm still in my pajamas.
4. I don't plan to rectify this until just before Isaac comes home from work.
5. So far none of us are sick. Yet.
6. The only productive thing I've done today is to buy this clock from Pottery Barn Kids.
7. I told myself that it's a homeschool expense since it will help teach time.
8. I really did buy some real homeschool stuff, too. I bought the Math-U-See primer program for Chloe. She has been driving me crazy lately with, "Mommy, what's 9+1? 5+3? 63+102?" She was watching the promotional dvd with me and suddenly could answer for herself what 9+1 was, even though she didn't understand it at all the 217 times I tried to explain it to her.
9. I think I will post the next installment in the story of me tomorrow. It might just be the last one. Of course, when I started writing, I thought it would be three posts long and not eleventy-three, so I could also have twelve more parts to go.
10. I just bought Chloe some new clothes, and they're all falling off her. She is so skinny that she needs a 6 in the waist but a 7 for length. Any ideas on cute brands that have skinny sizes?

I know why the caged bird sings

And it's because after 6 months all alone in a nice, roomy, king-sized cage, some boy bird moved in and spread his wings and snuggled up and pinned the bird to the very edge of the bed cage and then proceeded to fall asleep within 15 nanoseconds (how does he do that, how, HOW?) while the girl bird was stuck there, wide awake and trying to tug her leg wing out from under him while various itches cropped up all over her body and the urge to move overwhelmed all other thought processes and I NEED TO BE FREE TO ROLL OVER AT NIGHT PEOPLE!!!

This post was brought to you by a sleepless night and three cups of coffee...so far.

My weekend with Brad and Angelina

Recently our family had a near life-altering experience in New Orleans.

And I'm not talking about eating fresh hot beignets from Cafe Du Monde.

Although that is enough to make you believe in God, as something as good as deep-fried dough smothered in powdered sugar could only have been created by a good, loving God.

And only a source of pure evil could have made it so fattening. It had to be the devil who made me eat so many.

No, it wasn't the beignets. We were on the street in New Orleans when we came across this:

And from the way that he turned to us and said, "Hey guys. How ya' doin'?" I knew that it was only the presence of Angelina and the children that kept him from throwing himself at my feet and declaring his undying love.

Which is good, since I would have turned him down, since he was not stepping in between Angelina and the paparazzi the way Isaac did for me.



Of course, they weren't the only sights we saw there.





But of all the sights we saw, these were my favorites:

A miraculous event

Today I come to you to bear witness to a miraculous event.

One unsurpassed by any other in the After a cup of coffee...or two household.

I was standing in my closet when a voice came as from on high.

And it was the voice of my husband.

And he spake unto me, and he said, "Hey, Babe? Would you want to go through my clothes and throw away anything you think I shouldn't keep?"

And I asked of him, "Even the clothes you've saved since high school and I've never seen you wear?"

And he answered unto me, "Yeah, even those."

And the angels rejoiced, and I raised my arms and shouted, "Yes! Yes!"

And I say, that our God is good, and if it can happen to me, then it can happen to you.

Can I get an amen?

I need opinions on a very serious matter

One of utmost importance.

What to wear when I see Isaac for the first time in six months.

I've lost weight since he's been gone, but I like myself at a size 12- feel really skinny at a size 10- and am currently a size 16. There's a chance I'll be a 14 when he gets back, but I'm not counting on it.

Although I will be a 10 or 12 next year for the Seabee Ball, and then I'll be rockin the heels and formal dress, lemmetellya.

Unless we get surprised with another post-deployment baby.

In which case the only thing I'll be rockin is my poor knocked-up self while I vomit into a toilet.

But until then I have a few more curves than I want, and it's a thin line between looking nice and, Hey ya'll, come check out my boobs!

Anyway.

Here are some options:

I like the idea of a dress, but who knows what the weather will be like? Plus I'll have all three kids with me, and it is a military flight, so we may get stuck for a few hours waiting, and I don't want to know how many times I'll have to bend over or pick up a child. So it doesn't seem very practical.


These are both options I could wear with dark jeans and my black boots. I like the style of the wrap shirt, but I'm not loving the pattern, though.

Any opinions? Anyone seen a fabulous outfit while you've been out shopping lately?

They say it's your birthday

What's that?

It's not your birthday?

Well it is mine!

I'm turning 30 today.

And I'm just desperate enough for attention to announce it to anyone who happens to stop by my site.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

We're home

We visited Joy. We arrived home yesterday. I will post pictures sometime after I clean all the Chick-fil-a containers and dvd's out of van.

Maybe sometime in early 2008.

But first, I will say this-

There is a sad lack of Starbucks between Mississippi and North Carolina.

Now, I'm off to relax and catch up on the new shows that I dvr'd while I was gone. Anyone watch Pushing Daisies? I'm about to!

A soul-deep need

Bloggers everywhere seem to be talking about it lately, and I have been feeling an aching void inside that needed filling up.

Boomama, Bigmama and LilyLakeMom have caused to me to face the emptiness inside.

I needed to go to Target.

So today we all piled in the van and drove over an hour and across state lines to shop at Target.

But we stopped at Panera Bread for a snack on the way in.

I'm dieting, so I had french onion soup and avoided the croutons on top.

But I may have finished Luke's cinnamon crunch bagel.

And Chloe's cobblestone muffin.

But those don't count since I didn't actually order them.

Really.

We had a great time at Target and many absolutely necessary things were bought. Like Method eucalyptus mint cleaner and vanilla apple air freshener. And clips for Audrey's hair. And wild blueberry honey.

Obviously, things we couldn't live without and desperately needed to cross state lines for.

Before starting the long drive home, we stopped at the Starbucks counter. I got a pumpkin cream cheese muffin because I am dieting. You need veggies and everyone knows that dairy makes you skinny. It's in all those commercials.

I might have "forgotten" to ask for nonfat milk in the cinnamon dolce latte that I needed to keep me awake for the long ride home. But since we've already established that milk makes you skinny, I'm sure it was fine.

But I have no comment on the coconut macaroons that jumped into my cart.

Really.

They did.

I have Biblical evidence that these things happen. Exodus 32:22-24. The golden calf just jumps right out of the fire. Aaron had nothing to do with it.

Just as I had nothing to do with those macaroons.

Except for eating one or two five.

But it's ok.

Milk makes you skinny.

And I had a really big latte.

So, as you can see, a very satisfying trip to Target.

And I am feeling replete complete once more.

Today

So my break is over and here is some of the excitement of our day today...

(baby crying)
ME: Luke, did you hurt Audrey?
LUKE: Yeah.
ME: Was it on purpose or by accident?
LUKE: By my elephant.

If that doesn't scream "on purpose" I don't know what does!

*****

We went to the bookstore after dinner, where Chloe and Luke were scared silly by a girl in a Curious George costume, but Audrey was utterly entranced.

Would you believe I walked right past their cafe with nary a snack or coffee cup in my hands?

Really.

We went out the door carrying our books (you didn't think we'd escape without purchasing anything, now did you?) and noticed some smoke coming from the trash can.

Suddenly Luke yelled, "FIRE!"

And there was. The trash can was on fire.

And everyone sitting at the little cafe tables outside looked over and commented on it.

They ooh'ed and aah'ed and laughed.

And sat there.

Apparently it is more work to take your coffee cup back inside to alert the staff to their impending crispyness, than it is to do the same with three children, because I was the only one to go back inside and tell anyone about the blaze.

Good thing I resisted the pull of the coffee and snacks, eh?

A break from my break

I'm taking a break from my blogging break to let you all know that you need to check out the giveaways at 5 minutes for mom! They are giving away a $100 gift certificate to Land's End and a brand new HP Photosmart A626 Photo Printer! Go leave a comment and enter to win.

Since I'm here anyway, I have to tell you what happened yesterday. We were getting in the van and Chloe and Luke both went around to the passenger side to get in. I was putting Audrey in her car seat on the driver's side and went to put the diaper bag down on the floor of the van, and almost set it on...a black widow in a web!

Thank God Chloe and Luke went to the other side because it was right where they put their hands to climb in.

And it was mean! It went right into attack mode when we tried to kill it.

Needless to say, I've been a little twitchy while driving since then!

Burned Out

Lately I've had so much trouble thinking of anything to blog that is more interesting than "grrr...argh...frustrating kids...must wash more dishes..." and I've realized that I am burned out. I'm tired and I feel like I spend 70% of my day yelling at or in some way disciplining my kids, 25% cleaning and 5% sleeping.

And I don't want to be *that* mom, who resents her kids and complains about them all the time.

My dad is coming in two days and is going to spend an entire week. He's going to help with some household projects and the kids love playing with him, and I am going to get out a bit. I'm going to leisurely browse Lifeway and find a new book to use for my quiet times, since lately I seem to just be reading the Word blindly with almost no comprehension, much less any application to my life. We're also going to do some fun trips as a family, and it will be so nice to have someone help with buckling three kids into carseats in 100 degree weather!

I may even get the last of the boxes in my bedroom unpacked and have a yard sale so I can finally park in my garage.

I'm going to take a break from the blog for the next week or so, and hopefully I'll come back refreshed and finding joy in my life again!

Have a great week.

A blank canvas, a wide open space

Ok, seriously. I have nothing to write about. I have been wracking my brain trying to think of something funny, but my days lately, well, they haven't been exciting.

The most thought-provoking thing in my life right now is what sort of bed to buy Luke. And I am really struggling over this. The movers lost pieces of his toddler bed and he has been sleeping on his mattress on the ground since we moved! And I just can't decide- should we get him a regular twin like Chloe's? If we have more kids or adopt this would give us the most space.

Or we could get a full-size bed, which we already have a mattress for in the garage. Then it could serve as a guest bed when family comes and Luke could sleep in Chloe's room.

And I won't even get started on the various bunk beds.

It's riveting stuff, I know.

In other news, our personal financial information has been stolen for the third time! Tomorrow I have to place a fraud alert and order copies of our credit reports. Again!

Oh, my dad is coming to visit for a week, and we are going to paint one wall in my living room, and paint and install cabinets in my laundry room. Is anyone out there good at decorating and painting? Because I really need some advice. There are all sorts of funky niches and cutouts in my house and I just can't decide which walls to paint and which to leave white. But I did decide on a color- the one on the very right.

Maybe tomorrow I'll take some pictures of my walls and see what ya'll think I should do with them.

Note to self- part two

Next time you pull Audrey out of the carseat and grab a handful of poop from the leaky diaper, don't forget to go back out to the car to get the carseat and wash it.

When the heat index is 113-115.

Your nose will thank you when you get back in the van.

Two days later.

Note to self

When hardboiling eggs over very high heat, it is helpful to have water in the pan.

There is much less popping and exploding.

Not to mention the smell.

Logistics

One of the hardest things about living without my husband around has been the logistics of handling three small kids. I have only one set of hands and there are times when Chloe and Luke both need their teeth brushed, Audrey needs a bottle, everyone needs pajamas, I still need dinner, and we all need it RIGHT! NOW!

But sometimes it's really a little ridiculous! Our tv broke, so I did all my comparison shopping online, then bought a new one. from Sears (because have I mentioned that I am watching the entire Alias series on dvd while my husband is gone? How did I not know this was such a great show and I was totally missing out while it was actually on the air?)

Anyway. I ordered it to be delivered to our local Sears and went to pick it up today. The designated loading zone for the pick up area was full, so I parked in the nearest parking space about 10 feet away.

Got all three kids unstrapped and out.

Got Audrey in the stroller.

Splashed in puddles.

Went inside to have them load up the tv.

But they could not load it into my car that was 10 feet away from the designated loading area. So I went back out.

Splashed in puddles.

Got Audrey out of the stroller.

Got all three kids in and strapped.

Drove 10 feet and waited while the guys put it in the back of the van.

Drove 10 feet to park again.

Got all three kids unstrapped and out.

Got Audrey in the stroller.

Splashed in puddles.

Went into the mall to have dinner and look at sand sculptures.

And we all had ice cream.

Because it really does make everything better!

The Most Beautiful Words

From my dishwasher's instructions:

"There is no need to prewash your dishes."

Doesn't it send shivers down your spine?

I have a dishwasher!!!

And I have no idea how it is possible but somehow the new dishwasher- which is exactly the same size and fits in the same space as my old one- holds about 14,000 more dishes.

And the top rack raises and lowers and there are things that attach and detach and fold over, and it brings me joy and fills my kitchen with light and happiness just to look at it.

It does not, however, bring me joy to see the scratch/chip that somehow got put in my cupboard. I've had three phone conversations about it today, the original guy who came out is coming back next week to look at it, and you can bet that Home Depot is getting a visit by me in person.

I'll keep you updated about that.

And I know you'll all just be on the edge of your seats until this drama plays out.

I hope you can sleep what with all the excitement and new developments going on.

But hey, at least it got rid of my blogger's block!

The magic words

So today I discovered that Home Depot really does appreciate it when you use the magic words.

But they aren't "please" and "thank you" no matter what The Backyardigans sing.

No, the magic words for Home Depot are "baby" and "health hazard."

As soon as I said that, they were all about coming out today to try and fix my sink, instead of maybe tomorrow or whenever their contractors had time.

Wouldn't the world be so much nicer if people really did respond to please and thank you?