Mail Call

Every really look at what you get in the mail? It's our habit to dig through and throw out all the junk mail and leave the few pieces that are left (usually bills or catalogues) on the table until we feel like dealing with them.

Our mail sometimes has fun things in it (like the Pottery Barn catalogue or something I ordered for scrapbooking). But, rarely does it have something fun and unexpected.

I've always thought the most interest part of Brad's job (he's a mail carrier) must be getting little glimpses into people's lives by being able to see what they get in the mail every day.

This is what we got in the mail yesterday. Not quite sure what it tells out mailman about who we are and how we live. Here it is in itemized form (in case you were really wondering!):
2 Priority Mail boxes of scrap-goodies
1 Pottery Barn catalogue
1 Crate & Barrel catalogue
1 Lands End Catalogue
1 Stenhouse Leadership in Literacy catalogue
1 Outdoor News
1 J.Jill credit card bill
1 bill for car insurance (AAA)
Application for student loan consolidation
Another application for student loan consolidation
Application for Life Insurance
Credit card application
Newsletter from Tom Petri (my congressman)
Ad for Linda Clifford (running for state supreme court)

All of this is part of this week's Trendy Tuesday at Fancy Word for Simple. There might just be a RAK involved.

My twin!!!!!

I saw my fashion and food twin today at the grocery store.

She had the exact same purse as me!

And. . . one of the only items in her cart were Cadbury Mini Eggs.

I almost introduced myself!

Reason # 96 that Natalie is a Genius

So, tonight I shared the fabulous happiness that is pink cupcakes with sprinkles with Miss Natalie. She learned how to say "cupcake," so she earned one.

She was successfully eating each and every bite of the cupcake with frosting on it. I finally got her to take a bite of just cake (so there'd be a little frosting left in case I needed a bite!).

She promptly spit out the cupcake and demanded a bite with frosting.

Frosting = Yum
Plain cake = Yuck

Smart girl!

Signs of a Bad Day

I knew--at 7:40 tonight--that when I decided to leave the house in my pajamas (flannel pants, sweatshirt, tennis shoes, no socks, hair in a pseudo-ponytail) to go to the grocery store to get what I needed to make cupcakes that it had been a bad day.


Pretty. Pink. Sprinkles. Sweet.

The perfect cure.

Never a Kid

Is it possible that I was never really a kid?
I think I was just a miniature grown up.

Here are my reasons:

1. I don't remember ever playing with my brother and sister or any other little kids like cousins or neighbors.
   
2. I don't remember having favorite toys. Sure. I had Care Bears and Barbies and Rainbow Bright and My Little Ponies, but I don't ever really remember playing with them. And I don't still have any of them.
3. I don't remember watching any kid television shows or any shows that might have been popular when I was little. Never watched Dukes of Hazzard. Never watched Family Ties. Never watched Happy Days. Never watched Cosby Show. Not any of them. Not even in re-runs. It's possible I might have watched nerdy things (like the news) instead.
4. I've never broken a bone and have no serious or traumatic childhood injury stories. Wait. That might not be true. I did run hands-first into a lit Weber grill when I was two.
   

I do remember some things from being a kid, though. Like:

1. Piano lessons with Mrs. Piper
2. Selling Girl Scout cookies
3. Getting chicken pox for my birthday and Thanksgiving in second grade
4. Taking swimming lessons
5. Having school pictures taken
6. Getting my ears pierced in second grade
7. Birthday parties
8. Writing notes
9. Riding in the wood-paneled station wagon
10. Happy Meal toys
    

Things you never want to hear. . .

Tonight, at my house.

Me: Could you take the garbage out?
Brad: no response
Me: It stinks.
Brad: You must have been a blood hound in a past life.

Truly? As much as I don't want to compare myself to a blood hound, I will admit that I have a hyper-sensitive sense of smell. I can sniff something out from miles away!

My Super Six

I've been reading a lot of brain research lately and have gathered that the brain can only really focus on six tasks at a time. So, I present to you six highlights of my life since I left you.

Number 1: Good news about the camera.
I'm finally figuring out how to use my camera. Accept this picture of an icicle suspended from a tree branch as proof!Number 2: Bad news about my brother
My bro seems to have hit a stretch of very bad luck. After the whole Target fiasco a few weeks ago, he woke up on Friday morning to discover his car was stolen. Not only did he lose the car, but he also lost everything in it (golf clubs, Matchbox car collection, clothes, books, etc.). Worst part? He only carries collision. Bad situation.

Number 3: Mom's Bday
Momma Sue turned 49 (for the first time ever!) and hosted a big bday dinner. YUMMO! Monkey bread, Kabobs, Asparagus, French Silk Pie, Bailey's and Coffee.
Number 4: Got my scrap on.

Number 5: Got my ice cream.
Banana Foster Brownie Flurry with chocolate ice cream. There wasn't even a line.

Number 6: Surprised with flowers today.

On the road again. . .

We're going home this weekend.
For some reason it stressed me out to even say that. Lots of things about home stress me out (family, packing to leave, not getting things done at my real home, 3+ hours in the car, etc.)

So, I need to focus on the positive. Here are a few things I enjoy about going home:

1. Acoustic Cafe: We have nothing like it here. Great sandwiches and soup!
   
2. Visits with friends: I don't have a lot of friends who still live in EC but love seeing the few that still do.
   
3. Scrapbook Store: Every once in awhile I hit it big at the store at home. Hit or miss.
   
4. Things on the Way: There's an ice cream place in a city along the way that is open only through the spring and summer. I think it's open for this year and soooooo see a stop in my future.

I'll be MIA until Sunday. Will be too busy focusing on the positive, seeing the glass half-full, and thinking sunshine-y thoughts about home to blog until I get back.

Grad School Junkie

This time last year I was celebrating being incredibly near the completion of my MSE.

Now, I am frantically planning the logistics of starting another one.

I spent my evening gathering references, GPAs, and other random data to fill out an application and a financial aid form. I have a list a mile long of other parts of the application I need to finish by April 1st. Transcripts, letters of recommendation, statements of purpose. . .

It's a little terrifying to think about giving up my life (and money) to go to school again. But, I truly think this step will put me in an administrative position where I can have the greatest possible impact on student learning.

And, who knows. It might just lead to Babs, Ph.D.
Dr. Babs does have kind of a nice ring to it.

Airhead

I think I've eaten too many Cadbury Mini Eggs and the chocolate has gone to my head. Here's what I did tonight. . .

I left my brother a lengthy message about a house-warming package I sent him last week. I went into depth about how much I'm sure he loved what was in it (spices from Penzey's). Blah, blah, blah. Lots of details about what the gift actually was.

Come to find out?

He still hasn't gotten the gift and I totally gave it away.

Luckily, he didn't listen to the message and promised to just delete it.

Scrappy Goodness

Here's my latest. . .

This is for the AE Patterned Paper challenge hosted by Fevvers. Check out her gallery. Seriously fabulous work. The challenge was to use geometric papers in strips.


This is just for the Dare this week--to take a picture and scrap it in the same day. Is it strange that I took a picture of my new camera with my old camera? I'm still a little nervous about using it. I'm finally using my February Cocoa Daisy kit. It's been a challenge for me.

This is just for fun. The pic is from Trendy Tuesday a few weeks ago though. By the way, stay tuned for an ultra-fun photography related Trendy Tuesday tomorrow.


And if you're looking for a good scrap-related laugh, check this out! This week's AI challenge was to create a rap song about scrapbooking. The song had to be at least four lines long and modeled after a well-known rap. The LO also had to include painting, stitching, bling, and at least one picture of yourself striking a rap-esque pose. The results have been completely hilarious!

I know I haven't shared any pictures taken with the new camera, but I did take the pictures of these LOs with the camera.

Rollerskating

We are devout watchers of the CBS Sunday Morning Show. My favorite parts of the show are the reports by Bill Geist. This week his topic was. . . .

rollerskating!

He went to a roller-rink that has organ music for elderly skaters once a week. It was a report of older people telling about their love affair with rollerskating. People met their spouses at the rink and continued to come. People come in costumes and do special, waltz-like dances. People are still wearing the same skates they bought in 1940. People who walk with canes come in to rollerskate. It was pretty incredible. (I'll post a link when there is one added on CBS.)

But, really? Rollerskating is quite interesting.

We have an on-going joke at our house about rollerskating. The conversation goes something like this:
Brad--What do you want to do tonight?
Barb--Go rollerskating.
We both know we won't go rollerskating; it's just my traditional smart ass response.

Molten's was my home-town roller rink. It was a place meant almost entirely for middle school kids on any given Friday or Saturday night. There were an intricate set of tubes you could crawl around in above the rink. My mom (a smart lady) knew those tubes were the ultimate make-out spot, so I was never allowed to go to Molten's on the weekends.

We once went roller-skating on a forensics trip to South Dakota. There's not much else to do there. The guys in the group went in drag, if I remember correctly.

I can't remember the last time I rollerskated. I think that's what I want to do for my thirtieth birthday--have a roller-rink birthday party. That might just be the ultimate throw-back. At least everyone has a few years to make their travel arrangements.

A quirk. . .

I don't think I even realized I did this. . .

This morning in the shower I squeezed the absolute last possible drop out of my bottle of Amazing Grace shower gel. I've had the bottle since August. But, I loved it so much that for some reason I felt like I needed to savor every last drop of it and make it last as long as possible.

I realized that I do this with Girl Scout cookies, too. I actually hid them in the back of the cupboard this year because I knew if Brad found them he would eat them all too quickly. Then, what would we do until next year when Girl Scout cookies are available again?!?

I guess I probably do this with scrap supplies, too. I caught myself wondering yesterday if I should order more of the Scenic Route background papers. I already ordered two of each sheet, but I might just need more sometime.

Do I have some kind of strange hoarding disorder? It isn't caused by a desire to save money; we all know I'm not particularly frugal. Is this really that weird? Do other people do it?

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down

Thumbs up for chocolate martinis at Happy Hour. Thumbs down for missing the dinner Brad cooked for me due to chocolate martinis at Happy Hour.

Thumbs up for having the day off tomorrow. Thumbs down that no one else has off to hang out with me!

Thumbs up that it's Thursday. Thumbs down that Grey's is a re-run tonight.

Thumbs up that my new camera came today!!!!!!! Thumbs down that I have no idea how to use it and that the chocolate martinis completely killed my creative mojo.

Thumbs up for all my bloggy friends. Thumbs down that my very best real life friend shut down her blog.

Thumbs up that we booked our spring break on Wednesday night and got a fabbity deal. Thumbs down that it's still more than a month away.

Thumbs up that it will be 60 next week. There's no thumbs down involved in that!!!!!

What to talk about?

I thought about a lot of different things to blog about today. Discarded topics include:

• Old School--things that remind me of being a teenager
• 30 Sexy Conversation Starters (an article I found by Googling conversation starters)
• My upcoming vacation to sunny San Diego
  
• How very much I'm looking forward to spring
• Girl Scout cookies
• My recent lack of scrap-ability
• Eating tacos for dinner
  

Just can't quite seem to come up with anything I really want to talk about.

Day of rest? Yeah. Right.

Sunday has been anything but restful for me.
(Maybe it's because I was a big slacker yesterday.)

I will say, however, that I did all of the following in my pajamas!

Things I did today:

1. Shared breakfast with Brad (Memphis let us sleep until 7 a.m.)
2. Online shopping (memory card for the camera and a digital photography book)
3. Prepared RAKs (4 of them total. I'm a little behind with my Trendy Tuesday RAKs)
4. Sent a few cards (3 of them total including one for the girl who is holding my CJ hostage)
5. Prepared birthday packages (2 of them total)
6. Put together a house-warming gift for my brother (spices and recipes)
   
7. Paid bills / balanced checkbook
8. Completed 5 loads of laundry so far (Wearing my last pair of clean underwear today!)
   
9. Updated Fancy Word for Simple
   

Things I still need to do:

1. Vacuum
2. Dishes
3. Check messages (missed three calls while balancing check book)
   
4. Put away laundry--not just leave in heap on floor
   
5. Shower and dress
6. Make dinner (pasta primavera and grilled chicken)
7. Deliver bread to Nicky's (I baked four loaves of Amish Friendship Bread on Thursday)
8. Book spring break in San Diego!
9. Watch new Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters
   

Shhhhh.

Okay. So, try as I might to convince Brad just how much a new camera would revolutionize my life, I just wasn't able to fully bring him over to my side. The dollar signs were just more than my power of persuasion could over-come.

But, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

This! will be at my house in 7 - 10 business days!

We don't have any money left to pay for a divorce, so I think it will be okay in the end.

So excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fun Fact Friday

Okay. Here's a little quiz about me for a Friday. I really am a teacher, aren't I? The kind of teacher that gives quizzes on Friday--not the kind of teacher that shows videos.

1. I've dabbled in each of these hobbies, EXCEPT:
quilting
gardening
basket weaving

2. I have many pet peeves, but ___________________ really doesn't bother me much.
waiting in line
spelling words wrong on purpose
fidgeting

3. Which of these is NOT true about my entertainment habits?
I grew up on Growing Pains and Who's the Boss?.
My first purchased CD was Vanilla Ice's debut album.
I've never seen Braveheart in it's entirety.

4. Which of the following jobs have I never had:
sandwich maker at a bagel shop
salesperson at a book store
harpist at weddings

5. Which ice cream flavor would I be LEAST likely to eat?
chocolate peanut butter
Oreo
mint chip

6. I never dated anyone named ____________________.
Brad
Jeff
Neil

7. I've never driven a ______________________________.
1978 Chrysler LeBaron
1998 Chevy Malibu
2004 Ford Escape

8. If faced with these choices, I'd be least likely to shop at ___________________.
Eddie Bauer
Pottery Barn
the Limited

9. I've never traveled to:
San Diego
Las Vegas
New York City

10. Sometime in my life I'd like to:
be on a game show
earn a Ph.D.
go on a cruise