Gratitude journal

No preaching today, I promise. Don't go thinking I'm all good and holy. I'm truly, embarrassingly not. Just sometimes I get a chance to be silent for a while, and it is good for my soul. I like remembering it, so I write it down.

Here's the AJ report: MAN, did he wake up grumpy today! And he was last night, too! No Brush Teef! No Eat! (not even ABCs and 123s from a can. I do not understand him, those are the BEST and a critical kid food-group.) No Tooo (school)! No Mama Room! RRRAWR, it was annoying. Kid needs a damn vacation.

Here's the vaca report: We leave tomorrow! We were going to leave tonight, but I think we need one night to chill on our couch (after we pack), instead of scurrying around like little squirrels in November, like we have done all week -- not to mention giving AJ one more good night's rest to try and kick this cold. So here's to 6:00 am tomorrow!

Here's the gratitude report: 1. For my husband, who takes a figurative punch to the gut every day and continues to push through. I am so grateful for his constancy. 2. For my parents, who are planning (and paying for) another wonderful, relaxing weekend (full week!!) that is so needed I can't even tell you!! 3. For coffee. 4. For Zinc and Echinacea. (yep, my glands are swollen and throat hurts) 5. For the gift of an idea, finally -- an easy Ice Cream Sundaes birthday party at our house -- and a Party City right across the street!

God uses Clorox

I read this post at one of my new favorite-est sites yesterday, about cleaning products. I'm not a huge fan of cleaning, but I do like to live in a clean home, so recently I embarked on the Great Bleaching of the Tile project here at my casa. It went well. I sat on the floor and scrubbed all the grout in our master bath, and BOY, does it look good. It took a minute to get used to, since the outline of every tile appeared to have been erased. It looked like a "blank" floor there, for a while. But it thrilled me to have removed years (yes! years!) of nasty foot residue. (I'll wait while we all *shudder*.... twitch, twitch, *shudder again*... okay. Sorry. Shake it off.)

Last night, inspired by all the Clorox-talk over at Mir's, and needing to disinfect our place from AJ's recent hoarde of germs, I donned the blue gloves and got busy again. This time, the downstairs half-bath. It, too, was in grand need of a washing, and this time I wore gloves because last time, my knuckles actually started to bleed from scraping the floor with bleach as I worked my sanitizing toothbrush! (Don't you feel sorry for me?!) Anyway, last night was a good time to do it. I was tired, and DH was working very late, and AJ had gone to bed, so it was just me and my thoughts and the *bleach fumes. (Note! fumes!)

For some reason, a church song got stuck in my head; I think because of the rhythm of the scrubbing, which was very even, just like the straight rhythm of the eighth notes in these verses. The words go,

"If-an-y-one-lives-with-Me,
Then-they-must-die-with-me,
If-you-hold-firm-you-will-reign-with-me..."

And I wondered to myself, What does that really mean? To die with Jesus? It is, of course, to suffer with him. We always hear, "one must die to one's self." Accept God's will instead of our own. Surrender. The heart is willing but the flesh is weak -- it's not easy to do this. It's suffering... but that's the key! Jesus' death was full of pain, and suffering. And yet, He did it. He didn't want to go through what he went through. He Begged his Father to make it go away. Much like I beg! But if we are to live with Him in eternity, we must die -- suffer -- too. Pretty powerful stuff. I also started thinking, as I Cinderella'd my floors, about the Latin phrase I've learned from the very wise Selkie : Ancilla Domini. I love when she posts under that category -- it means, "handmaid of the Lord." Maid -- handmaid -- Cinderella -- cleaning lady. That's the connection. (Remember, I'm buzzing on fumes by this point!) You know who said ancilla domini, right? Mary! 2nd-best example of accepting God's will! Maybe she "DIN't WANNA" be a mom right away. Maybe she was planning on being an artist, and selling her pottery in the market! Or maybe she simply wanted to enjoy being a housewife for a while. (I know, I know, gender roles... she probably would have been pregnant within a week of her marriage anyway, but who knows what she was thinking. I can adapt the story a bit for the sake of my self-serving-sermon!) But she said, "I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to thy will." A phrase I need to embrace and embrace again. Every. day.

The bath was half-done at this point, when another appropriate song drifted without warning into my consciousness:

"We shall draw water joyfully,
singing joyfully, singing joyfully,
We shall draw water joyfully
From the wellspring of salvation."

Quite funny, since I was, in fact, drawing (rinse) water from the pink bucket to my left. But again, there was a message: Do your work joyfully. Of course I was joyful to be doing this work (Feet! goo! *shudder*) -- but I asked myself... is there some work, perhaps, in my life, that I do not do joyfully? Hmmm??? Perhaps my clean bathroom floors are God's intention to help me, as I've asked Him to do, learn to accept things in my life with less resistance. Less muck, less whiny b.s. in my heart. More joy. (Not that you should accept the status quo or not try to change your situation, if it's bad; but you know what I mean, right?)

Of course these are all things I've known. But I was happy to have them revealed to me again, in a way I could understand, in the moment. SDW, it was one of those tiny whispers you talked about. :) I'm not done with this topic; I would like to absorb it all and really start living it, but we're all works in progress, all the time. I'll likely never be finished with the work of surrender, because it's hard. Harder than scrubbing floors with a toothbrush. But the reward is similar: Clean floors! Clean heart!

illustrative photo

Please see the antique laundry wringer and my current state of being, to your right. New feature! Instant Personality! Woo!

Zucchini Bread

I made some zucchini bread the other day in an attempt to sneak a vegetable into AJ's banana bread-loving mouth. It is dry. I am a whole wheat flour virgin -- at least I was, until Sunday night -- but how can a recipe with 1 cup canola oil, and a big wad of wet grated zucchini, come out dry? Anyone? Bueller? Is it the whole wheat or my poor cooking? (Don't answer that.) But, do. If you know.

Sucky things

Here are some things I've done in the last 2 days that haven't been all that much fun:

1. Made my first visit to the pediatric ER. Yah. It's located in the back of the hospital, among the dirt and unnerving chain-link construction fence where they are re-doing the parking lot. And it's about 34 degrees in the triage waiting area. My kid was probably grateful for the cool air on his 103 degree lethargic body, but I was not-so-much. ERs can be kind of yucky places, even when they're playing Shrek II on the DVD.

2. Held my child against his will on the X-ray table. He looked at me with little doe-eyes of horror when they put the lead skirt over his legs and tied it on him. He didn't know what the hell he was doing there and screamed to make sure everyone knew it. Of course I had to force his head to face forward, while they made a clean chest x-ray. His chest is fine.

3. Bathroom tile. Grout. Toothbrush. Clorox. (that was Sunday and I still smell the fumes in my nose.)

4. Rescheduled a conference call for work in a 12:30am pleading email to the client, only to have them NOT CHECK EMAIL before calling me 15 minutes after the event was supposed to start. I know they were thinking, "This slacker is 15 minutes late calling us." I had to gently ask "Did you get my email?" And wait while they checked it. And then listen to them feel bad for being mad at me before. That whole episode sucked of embarrassment and unprofessional-ness but whatcanyado?

That's it, I guess. Oh wait:
5. Left AJ with his Aunt Colleen and listened to him cry and scream because he's never been left with her before. He's met her, but he was understandably confused about why Mommy was leaving. OUCH. Hurts a little bit, every time.

Sigh.

Home again, home again

AJ is home with me again. I am convinced his molars are coming in and that is what's causing these weird fevers. We keep thinking, "He's all better!" and then at dinner, he goes all stare-into-space and then crawls into the crook of his Daddy's neck and goes to sleep. While the Mariachi band is playing! Kid is not well. He slept well last night, and even though I got on my knees and asked PLEEEEEEEZE, God, to make him feel better in the morning, he woke up with between 102 and 103. Which isn't cause for worry when all other features of a kid seem OK, but.

It's GOT to be teething.

The good news is, my creative juices are flowing and today we have built a FORT, and marched, 2, 3, 4 around the house, and emptied the dishwasher together. He's in a good mood and I'm having fun. :)

I'm hoping the Motrin will create for me a long nap in which I can work. Last week before vacation.

Please tip your waitresses, I'll be here all eternity

You remember that Depeche Mode song called "Blasphemous Rumors?" The refrain went,

I don't wanna start
any blasphemous rumors,
But I think that God
has a sick sense of humor
and when I die, I expect
to find Him laughing...

I always felt a bit sacreligious listening to that song but had to admit it was one of my favorites of theirs, because I DO think sometimes God has a sense of humor (and also it is a very singable tune). This week I had a revelation about that -- not to mention I actually heard the song on the TV music channel! I am being chuckled at from Heaven (and I'm okay with it). To wit:

What's the one thing I want more than anything in the world? Right, to stay home with my boy. And how can I be super-sure that God has listened to and answered that prayer? AJ's been sick one day per week, these last four weeks. I've been forced to saty home with him. Heh. Not quite the way I wanted to be answered, but I've been told my whole life God's got his own way of answering prayers. Funny, huh? I am a tiny bit grateful for the gift of all that time with AJ, but I also wish he'd get well already. Thank you, God, for the lesson, and now please commence with the merciful healing.

A 2nd funny example of God talking to me: Of course one thing that would make it possible for me to stay home is more moo-lah. I try never to pray for money (tsk, tsk, it's SUCH bad form)! But God knows what's on my heart, and every time I say "If it's your will, let it be," he probably hears a tinge of "Sure wish we had more money money money."

THEREFORE! In another stinging little joke, as He's taught AJ to talk, God has also infused in him a LOVE of MOVIES. AJ will ask all day can he watch his movies movies movies. And I get slightly irritated. Except you know how he pronounces it? You betcha: "Wat money money money."

Hahahahahaha. I get it, God. Thank you again. Lesson received. :)

Public Service Announcement

Just FYI, Wendy's latest concoction is about like I'd expected: Not That Good. I tried the turkey basil and pesto "Frescata" -- winner of the 2006 "Not a Word!" contest -- and it was flavorful, but rather dry. Or maybe I'm just used to enjoying a mouthful of grease and tomato at Wendy's. We always used to call their burgers "The Messier, the Better!" Was that an ad slogan at one time? Anyway, I say stick with the Single w/Cheese unless you're dieting. In which case, do not stop, do not collect $200, get yourself over to Subway with Jared.

Incidentally, if you're into nicely designed web sites, I was goofing around trying to find other "Not a Word!" winners, and thought probably Taco Hell had some. They didn't, but their site is pretty slick.

Lookie

Perhaps I should
consider curtains. But still...
Pretties!





















And, oh, okay, one more:

This is to that, "food" edition

Honey Nut Cheerios :: Best cereal ever!

Yesterday's Rain :: Good for crops and gardens.

Fox's Hell's Kitchen :: Freaking hilarious! (And soooo stupid and contrived. But hilarious.)

My Banana Bread :: AJ's favorite. "Anana Bay."

My Spanish Rice :: Made up last night out of thin air. (And everyone -- yes, AJ too -- liked it and ate it!)

Week-old chocolate chip pound cake :: Should've been tossed after eating one piece (pound cake!!) but still sits on my counter. Garbage day is Thursday!

Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition

This week I am going to write about nothing but good things. I am going to resist nature's monthly urge to whine, and instead band-aid over it by Thinking Happy Thoughts. I am Mrs. Merry Sunshine, and gratitude is my weapon. EVERYBODY SMILE, DAMMIT.

--Children's (purple) Motrin gets my wholehearted endorsement. Even more wonderful, I did not have to administer it at all yesterday, after 3 days of shameless reliance on it. AJ survived his fever. I always imagine those who lived when fever was cause for major worry -- Laura and Mary Ingalls and their scarlett fever come to mind -- and wonder how they survived being mothers back then. Not to mention how they survived to grow old enough to become mothers, but I'm talking about surviving the fear of your child being ill. Even though we mothers today know the Motrin will kick in any minute now, it's a quiet hell to sit there and feel the wet, red heat coming from every surface of your little one. Those women in 1870 were tough as nails. But back to the grateful: Motrin! Hooray! AJ sucks it right down like honey.

--Good thing: My boss just left the office for a business trip. Always good when he's not here.

--Good thing: Blatantly doocing myself with the above statement. (Hi, coworkers!)

--Good thing: Pool-time with friends and acquaintances, and discovering spray-on sunscreen! I haven't known very many years of squirmy kids who won't let you put that zinc stuff on without a fight, but for those moms who have, here is your salvation! Just spray it on? GENIUS! I went right out and bought 2 bottles. The days of grinding little granules of razor-sharp SAND into your sensitive skin while applying lotion at the beach are officially over.

--Potty trained not-yet-3-year-olds are a VERY GOOD THING! Congrats, larry and family! It feels like forever before AJ will get there, but hey, what's a day if you can't hold your breath and look some poop right in the eye, eh?

Material girl

The china cabinet is installed and it looks beautiful. Pictures to follow after I gently position all my pretties inside! I have to say, one of the sweetest things about it is how much DH is anxious for it to be ready for me to "play with." He worked really hard last night, not even taking time to change out of his work attire, to clean off the masking tape residue from the glass and inspect the wood and the metal and all. He ran out to Home Depot to get some thingamabobs to help it sit level on the carpet. He checked and rechecked to make sure it is just right. The care with which he's preparing it says a lot to me. I'm one lucky material girl.

In other news, AJ woke up with worse fever this morning than he had yesterday, so once again he is not going to school. I swear, the money we have offered to the daycare gods is starting to add the hell up. The days he hasn't been there since May 1, that we've paid for (because he isn't ALLOWED to go, sick)? 5. Let's clicky-click on our calculators... that's 180 bucks, dude. This is why it is ANNOYING to live away from your family where there are no grandparents handy for such emergencies. This is also when I start wishing and whining for THINGS WHICH ARE NOT, which I am not supposed to mention.

ANNNNyway, let's talk about something else. What's new in the news? My Senior year American History teacher used to always ask that to begin her current events talk before class. A 10-second scan of this morning's cnn.com brought me to that HORRIBLE photo of the dead Al-Zarqawi, did you see it? -- gross, CNN!!!! Are you kidding me? His lips are blue! There is uncouth, and then there is UNcouth - and I don't care if he IS a terrorist of the worst kind, I don't need to see his extreme close-up, fat DEAD above the fold at 9:50 in the morning. Good Lord. -- and also this shark story, which is equally wonderful to behold right before our beach trip. Two news items proving that this world is not the same as when we were young and carefree. We used to go all the way to the sandbar, at least 200 yards out, swimming, jumping waves, getting nibbled by minnows, not a care in the world about possible sharks. Hours of pure innocent sunburn-inducing joy. I never even saw "Jaws." But no way am I letting my kid swim there, now that the beasts have been lured **by us** to the seaside for their snacks! They can keep their shark-teeth, thankyouverymuch. I'll be at the pool!

Oh, for Pete's sake.

Now we're throwing up and feverish. AJ, I mean. What is WITH this kid? What in heck are they feeding him down at that school? Woke my butt up at 12:30 last night and kept on yuking 'til about 2 am. That's TWO changes of the crib sheet, 2 sets of jammies, and one stuffed bunny that may never be the same.

On a day when all I wanted to do (besides work my tail off for Mr. Multi-National Corporation Owner, of course) was set up my pretty china cabinet. Doesn't he know Mama's got PRIORITIES?

Sheesh.

A day in the life

Remember, we did this in April? Invented by Sheryl, my content supplier. Seems every fun thing I find can be attributed to her! So without further adieu, my (yester)day:

June 6

5:50 am
Woke up ten minutes early to begin getting us all ready to get out the door early so DH and I could get to his colonoscopy appointment in midtown by 7:30. AJ actually woke up in a very pleasant mood (asking for "Cheh-joos [in] a bowl" first thing). We made it out the door on time!

7:40 am
DH whisked away for his procedure and I wave bye-bye. I've been waiting to sit here uninterrupted for 2 hours and dive into my book, because I can't wait to finish it before hosting Book Club tonight.

9:00 am
Tears sting my eyes as I read the last few pages. And no tissues to be found in my purse or the waiting room. I know people are looking at me. Crap! Stop it, tears! Heh, heh. GOOD BOOK.

9:15 am
Go back to DH's recovery area and listen to him mumble as the anesthesia wears off. Laugh 'cause we have the same dialogue twice -- he doesn't remember. The nurse tells me that they biopsied a lot of places in the intestine, and all of a sudden I think to get nervous because "biopsy" is sometimes a scary word. Selfish me, didn't even think about a negative possible result... should I have? Silently say the quickest prayer for good results. But not too worried, really.

9:30 am
Doc comes in, tells us (me) he looks great inside. Yay. I really like his gastroenterologist. DH is coming to now, so we get him dressed and head out to pick up some food (he hasn't eaten, as instructed, since noon the day before, and I haven't had b'fast so we're both starved).

10:15 am
Since he was such a good little patient, we stop at Best Buy. DH buys a movie and a video game, and I get a little treat for myself, as well. Best Buy on a weekday morning, without the Saturday masses? Very Cool. Then off to Sonic 'cause DH wants burgers and Cherry-Limeades. Yum! (I swear to myself after this, no "bad" food 'til after the Beach. Ha.)

11:30 am
We sit down at home, I open up the laptop and start my work-at-home day. Meanwhile, DH revs up the DVD player and relaxes, as he deserves. It is kinda hard to resist joining him -- the lights are off in the den, there's a cozy blanket on the couch... a nap would feel mighty nice... but I resist.

2:00 pm
Still working, checking web sites and taking 1 phone call. Make marinade for london broil, and put the meat in. Mmmm.

4:00 pm
Time to pick up AJ from dayare. He is standing at the glass door of his classroom when I get there and starts banging on it, The Graduate-style. It's very cute.

4:30 pm
Run through the bank drive-through, and head home. Let AJ watch 1 hour of his movies (Chip-n-Dale and Goofy on DVD). Now starts my stress-fest, since I'm having folks over. I make an appetizer dip, then stop. No one's coming 'til 7, Self, just relax. Then I make some tea. Then stop again. I have time, no need to freak out. Then I remember the downstairs bathroom hasn't been cleaned, eek! Get on hands and knees. Scrub. DH plays with AJ and I keep going in there to remind myself, It's just 4 people, no biggie. None of my food takes a long time to prepare. Then I remember I should peel potatoes and get them going so AJ can have some for his dinner, too. It's so funny -- I can tell myself not to worry about hosting a party, but it's in my GENES to get a little wigged out. I only snapped at DH once, I think, the whole evening, but my mood was definitely FOCUSED, no-time-to-have-fun, don't-bother-me-I'm-PLANNING. I did go outside and pick the last gardenia blossom and put it in water. So pretty! I didn't even know I had gardenias 'til this year! (Yay for DH cutting down the tree that was blocking them from the sun!)

7:00 pm
Everything's set out and it's time for the guests to arrive. AJ's been fed (not "AJ's eaten," but "been fed," much to my frustration as usual). Grill is turned on. Wine is open. Apps are out. Table's set. I'm ready.

7:30 pm - 10:30 om
Girl-time! We chatter while I let DH do the work of grilling, then bathing/reading to AJ. Ha! Everyone is impressed by this! The steak was a PERFECT medium, we had a great discussion -- even managed to talk about the book this time -- wine poured, dessert shared, and we wrap up about 10:15. Then I start cleaning up and am left with my thoughts, which is no good because the old self-esteem monster comes in my head to tell me no one really liked the meal, that cake was too dry, they probably didn't have as much fun as we do at Stacy's house, I'm not that great of a hostess... Stupid. Why do I let myself think that way? Everyone was perfectly nice and there was laughter, it was enjoyable, people licked their plates clean! Whatever. I close up the kitchen by setting the dishwasher to start in 1 hour. Then I reconsider, and set it to start right away, so I get to hear that satisfying "swoosh" of water, telling me I accomplished a dinner party, and the day is now officially over. That's a nice feeling.

The Poisonwood Bible

by Barbara Kingsolver

I must write about this book, but I don't quite know what to write. I know that no review of mine will ever do it justice. I couldn't even completely wrestle out my thoughts for note-taking, which I tried desperately to do in the back, blank extra pages of my mass-market copy, so I'd remember some of its nuances and complexities. As if I'll ever forget.

It's the story, in case you don't know, of a Baptist missionary family - a preacher and his wife and 4 daughters - who travel to the Congo in the 1960s. Not my usual fare right there for starters, despite its being an Oprah Book, but WOW. My eyes are opened. More than the story of the family, it is the story of our WORLD -- our relationships with Africa and her countries, for good and for very bad, and the balance between all of the opposing forces. Nature vs. technology, have vs. have-not, black vs. white, our "God" vs. their mamba snake, husband vs. wife, democracy vs. other systems, "African-American" and what a contradiction the term sorta is... Communism as a possible good in the case of those starving native families.... it's a confusing, startling, wonderful book. It brought me to tears, and that is the best recommendation I can give to any story. Only a few novels bring me to tears (which is surprising, as much as I'm prone to crying!), so only they get put on my List of Favorites. This one belongs there, without a doubt.

I've wanted to read this book for years -- have seen it on bookstore tables, promising a literary lesson, but keeping many of its best secrets hidden. Finally, last month it was my turn to choose for Book Club, and I couldn't resist it any longer. I learned so much. I hesitantly want to ask my Mom to read it, because I want to know her views as someone who was around in the '60s. What did she know about Africa, at that time? And I want to hear her reactions to the book. (I say 'hesitant' because I'm not sure she'll love as much as I did. But then, that is the point of discussion great literature, yes?) I'm fairly certain my sister would like it, and eager to share it with her, too, as it is a story about sisters. I'm excited to host our meeting tonight, and see what my girlfriends have to say about it. I'm serving a marinated London Broil and Ranch Mashed Potaotes, as well as the requisite girly salad with feta and dried cranberries, and red wine. :)

Bday weekend 2006

What is the deal with blogger? I am typing this in Word and am going to have to copy/paste it later. Because the thoughts are in my head NOW, and they will soon be gone. My mind is like that.

I had a very nice Birthday Weekend, despite the fact that I was sick all of Saturday and most of Sunday. Urgh, the tummy bug got me. Including bedtime chills, achy shoulders, Charmin, and quite possibly a low-grade fever. Amazing how crappy just a teensy bit of fever can make you feel. Thank goodness for Advil. Am feeling much better today and food is appealing again. We had a fun time at the pizza place, and not just because we were watching our friends chase their little girl. AJ sat in his high chair while she ran wild around the restaurant "making friends" with the other patrons. And sitting on the wet floor (gross)! And getting in the way of the servers. AJ did his share of squirming, to be sure. But he was told to Sit Down in his High Chair, and he did. Grinned at me every time he tried to stand back up, the little weasel. But then sat back down again like the good little boy we are raising him to be. Smug smug smug. Toward the end of the evening he began saying "Weddy duh DOH, Mama. (Ready to GO!)"

So, to sum up: We purchased my china cabinet in what must have been the Easiest Rooms-To-Go shopping experience ever. I took a nap with AJ in the dark cool of my room. I read my book for more than an hour. We played outside. We ate dinner with good friends. I got calls from my loved ones. I watched Bridget Jones' The Edge of Reason, and ate cake, after my non-singing husband soloed Happy Birthday to me in his (actually lovely) baritone. Truly, it couldn't have been a nicer day. Except for the Charmin, of course.

P.S. larry! Thanks for your message! Would have called you back but it seemed awfully tacky to call back to "receive" my birthday greetings. :)

Just some stuff

So, Grandad met with a surgeon yesterday and following another consult with a pulmonary doc, they will try to schedule a surgery for him. When we saw him last weekend, he seemed in fairly good spirits for a guy who's been through what he's been through the past year, and I was glad of that. He'll need all the strength he can muster for the next phase.

We're hoping for some rain. Not for our plants and flowers, since AJ and I broke out the garden hose yesterday and doused them nicely. (AJ also enjoyed watering the rocks.) But for the cleaning of my driveway, which is covered in drawings of apples, rainbows, cats, sailboats, additional apples - the kid is obsessed - hearts, flowers and fish (I draw "girly" what can I say??)... due to the recent purchase of THIS monstrosity:

Please, Mr. Weatherman! Let it rain! We're running out of canvas!

Even though it was a three-day week, I'm anxious for the weekend break. Here's our plan:
Saturday
9:00am: I have "good choir" practice 'til 1:00pm. Last practice of the year.

3:00pm: I would like to visit the furniture store and purchase my anniversary/birthday gift with DH -- a china cabinet woo hoo! This is something I've l-o-n-g-e-d-f-o-r, since the dawn of time and my china collection. Since we got married, we've used that china and its corresponding silver exactly twice, because it is such a royal pain to drag it all out of the back of the closet where it's hidden (from potential robbers, you understand) in acid-free, bump-preventing cushioned bags. I would love to see my china on a daily basis. I would walk by it lovingly and say, "Good day, my preciouses." I might even Windex that cabinet regularly so its sparkle would be apparent. DH has been saying "Just PICK a cabinet, already!" for a couple of years now. So it is time. :)

6:00pm: My friend Mags is coming over to babysit so that DH and I can attend a party. I'm hoping there will be drinks involved, although it's a h.s. graduation shindig, so I doubt it. (I'm starting to sound like quite the lush with all my talk lately. I don't know why -- we totally don't even drink and therefore one glass is about all we can handle. I just like the taste of cocktails, more than anything. Aaaaand... the giggling.)

Sunday
10:00am Unfortunately Pentencost falls late this year, so Parish Choir stretches all the way into June. But that's it -- after this Sunday, sayonara Parish Choir. Really, I'm quitting it. No REALLY. I CAN TO tell someone No. Shut up.

5:00pm Plans are in place to visit the being-revitalized Downtown Square and let AJ run around in their park, as well as meeting my best pal from college. We'll walk to the pizza place after that and have a nice birthday dinner. I'm pretty psyched about that because I'm all about pizza. Beach Week, pfft. I think I have shed all my delusions about being skinny for the beach. I just don't care all that much if I look roly or poly. Wait, yes I do. How many abdominal crunches can I work in today? How many tomorrow? ...Nah, shrug, I don't. Sue me.

26 sounds like a good number

From papernapkin, the A to Z meme:


accent: Southern-fried.

booze: Margaritas. On the rocks, with salt.

chore I hate: unloading dishes.

dogs/cats: allergic to both, but we have a dog. I can't decide if I'm more a dog person or a cat person.

essential electronics: iBook G4. Although I'd love a newer one. It's sad, the speed at which something electronic becomes 'old.' I also have an iPod nano and rely pretty heavily on my cell phone. Oh, and Tivo/DVR! Essential!

favorite perfume/cologne: I'm wearing Warm Vanilla Sugar by Bath & Body Works these days. Cheap Cheap! I really loved wearing Tommy Girl for a long while. On a man, I love Cool Water.

gold/silver: silver

hometown: currently, Marietta, GA. But my heart calls Pensacola home since my family lives there.

Insomnia: never! I bet I can sleep standing up.

job title: web producer

kids: 1 precious boy

living arrangements: This question always cracks me up, I don’t know why, it just seems a dumb thing to ask. 2-story house (3 if you count the unfinished basement), in the 'burbs.

most admired trait: Calm, collected.

number of sexual partners: Well, hello! ….One. (at a time)… hahahahaha, I will never tell. My husband and I have never even discussed this about each other. The past is the past.

overnight hospital stays: just the one, when AJ was born

phobia: don't really have a true phobia, but little innocuous fears about bad things happening

quote: "Thank you, God, for this good life and forgive us if we do not love it enough." - Garrison Keillor

religion: Cradle, mostly practicing Catholic, infinitely grateful for my tradition and all the depth of knowledge it's given me, but not as devout as some; love to learn about other traditions and gather useful things from them, too

siblings: 1 wonderful sister

time I usually wake up: 5:38…snooze…5:47… snooze…6:00 am

unusual talent: I can fold fitted sheets like a pro.

vegetable I refuse to eat: Tsk, tsk. Shouldn't refuse any veggie, they're good for you. But I refuse to even TRY Vege-Mite.

worst habit: spending time online when I should be working?

x-rays: Teeth, once a year. I think that's it!

yummy foods I make: Crepes, banana bread, jerk chicken, Shrimp Durango

zodiac sign: Gemini.