Watch Out For The Finger!

My almost 16 month old son, Jr. Peanut, has been up to no good lately.

While at my niece's birthday party a few weeks ago, my sister in law (SIL) came up to me to report on my son's activities. Apparently, when my SIL crounched down to pick up something off the floor, Jr. Peanut ran over and stuck his finger down her plumber's crack. I wasn't sure whether I should laugh or if I should scold him, so I just laughed.

Later that weekend,Jr. Peanut stuck his finger down my hubby's unsuspecting plumber's crack.

I was starting to feel a little left out when lo and behold, he stuck his finger down MY crack while I was bending over cleaning up all the water he spilt on the floor (he's in the habit of opening bottled waters and dumping their contents out-- that's another bothersome habit)

So if you come to my house to visit sometime. . . watch out for the finger. It might go down your a**.

Time Suckage

I wish I could say that the reason I haven't been blogging regularly is because I've been living a fantastically busy life these past couple weeks. Truthfully though, it's because I've been spending too much time in front of the boob tube. With the onset of TIVO/DVR, I find that I watch WAY more TV, especially now that there are many good new shows out there. At any rate, here is a list of the shows I watch:

• Grey's Anatomy--By far my most favorite show and my "Must-See-TV" (i.e. I have to watch it live in HD). I kind of feel though that it doesn't hold as much excitement for me as the previous 3 seasons. Maybe it's because the Meredith/Derek romance is kind of on the skits. Come on Shonda Rimes, can't Meredith get over her relationship issues? I used to love this show so much that I read Shonda's blog and listened to their podcast religiously. Now-- with all the other shows I have to watch-- I only have time to watch the actual show. Also, it's worth a mention-- Patrick Dempsey is the hottest male doctor on TV by far and in my opinion, the hottest actor on TV.
• Heroes--This show is the coolest show out there. I think it appeals to both genders. Last night's show, got me riled up and thinking about the possibilites. I think that Adam is the father of the Petrelli men.
• Men In Trees-- I really like this show. My sister told me that I would really like it and of course I did. I think most of the shows I watch have to have some sort of relationship that I really love. Marin & Jack's relationship falls into that category.
• Friday Night Lights--I had a "discussion" with a friend of mine about this show. We both love it, but she says Riggins would be the guy she would have lusted after during high school. I on the other hand like Sereson (QB1). What I want to know is, how come there weren't this many good looking guys at MY high school?
• Samantha Who?--I really like this show. Sometimes I feel a little disappointed that it's a half hour long though.
• Brother's & Sisters--I used to only watch this show because I felt like I had invested too much time in it to give it up. Now, I actually like the show. The family kind of reminds me of the Breadwinner and his family.
• Beauty & the Geek--How can anyone not watch this show? Ashton Kutcher is a genius. If you ever feel stupid-- watch this show. It's an elimination show where the couples complete challenges in order to avoid elimination. The challenges force the geeks to be less geeky and the beauty to learn something. The women were soo brainless that when told that they were going to complete a challenge that involved reading and arithmetic...one of the beauties had no idea what arithmetic was!!! One of them also thought the moon and the sun were the same thing.
• Journeyman--I didn't like this show at first but it has gotten better and better. I loved Quantam Leap as a teenager and this show is kind of like it but with a little more excitement.
• Ugly Betty--I started watching this show simply because it was right before Grey's Anatomy. Now I watch it because I like it. It's like a Desperate Housewives for the fashion world. Very soap opera-ish and outlandish.
• Lost--When is this show going to start up again?
• ChuckSometimes this show is good and sometimes it's not. I don't watch it religiously.
• Big Shots--This show is like Desperate Housewives for men. I watch it because my husband likes it and it's right after Grey's.
• Private Practice--I don't really like this show because the people aren't very good looking to me. I know that sounds shallow, but it was a spin off of Greys Anatomy where everyone is just so...attractive! It's also about a bunch of 40 something year olds that are all single! Which is kind of boring to me.
• Dirty Sexy Money--I liked the first episode, but it has failed to impress me since. Like Big Shots, I watch it because my hubby likes it.
• Carpoolers--This show is actually pretty funny. Once you get past the first few episodes.
• October Road--It's starting up soon. Not a great show but I think it has potential.

What are YOUR favorite shows? I know a lot of you like The Office. I'd probably watch it too but it conflicts with Grey's Anatomy.

Perhaps, with the onset of the Writer's Strike, I will have more time to blog and read blogs. But with NaBloPloMo, it's making it difficult for me to catch up and the strike probably won't affect us until after the holidays. But oh well. I'll try my best.

I'm Bringing Meme back!

Hi beautiful blogging people! I got tagged by Jackie for a Meme. She was nice enough to tag my after I mentioned that I've been wanting to do this one for a while now.

4 Jobs I have had:

1. Financial Analyst (ever noticed how ANAL is present in Analyst?)
2. Recruiter (I hated doing this. I had to tell someone that they needed to wear deodorant to work)
3. Mutual Fund Administrator
4. Mom (hardest by far)

4 Movies I love to watch over and over:

1. Can't Buy Me Love (I love Patrick Dempsey even when he was geeky)
2. Dying Young
3. Dirty Dancing (NO ONE puts baby in a corner)
4. The Cutting Edge (Toe pic!)

Ecclectic list huh?

4 Places I have lived:

1. Los Angeles, CA
2. Houston, TX
3. Chicago, IL
4. In my mommy's belly (womb)

4 TV shows I enjoy watching (4 is not enough-- I'm going to have to do a post about the TV shows I watch):

1. Grey's Anatomy ( I told you! I lurve me some Patrick Dempsey)
2. Heroes
3. Beauty and the Geek (WOW! are these girls airheaded!)
4. Brothers and Sisters (Kitty's miscarriage made me BAWL last week!)

4 Places I have been (this was on a trip that my in-laws paid for. We didn't get to pick where we went, they had a complete itinerary and tour bus for all the places THEY wanted to see):

1. Barcelona, Spain
2. Venice, Italy
3. Istanbul, Turkey
4. Zurich, Switzerland

4 Websites I visit daily:

1. Gmail
2. Yahoo Mail
3. Your Blog
4. ESPN FFL

4 Favorite Foods:

1. Filipino -- but particularly my mom's food
2. Freshly made Salsa
3. Butterfingers
4. Carnitas

4 Places I would rather be:

1. Back in college without responsibilities.
2. Reading a book in Hawaii again.
3. Rolling around in a trillion 100 dollar bills.
4. Vegas with the breadwinner while the kids are with their lola.

I Realize This Might Get Me in Trouble But. . .

I breast fed both my kids. The Princess was breast fed until she gave it up on her own at 11 months. My son was breast fed until almost 16 months. I'm a breast feeder. I breast feed in public and I usually do it covered up with a nursing bib. I understand what it's like to nurse your child and have to do it in public. I don't mind when women breast feed in public -- even if they do it openly. It's a food/drinking source and the baby should be able to eat/drink it in public.

However. . . today in my children's music class, a woman was sitting on the floor with her hands back. Kind of like this (I know it's a man, but this was the only image I can find):

Her daughter walked up to her mom, straddled her, tilted her head and nursed. Now, the reason this was disturbing to me was because I believe that nursing is about being close to your child. I think you should cradle/hold your child while you nurse and it is a form of bonding. But the way this child nursed almost seemed dirty to me because it was in a position that you would see a man performing foreplay with his wife or something.

So there. I said it. Now I'm probably going to get hate comments.

It's Not You, It's me

October was kind of a hectic month for me. My family and I had a lot of things to do. Then there were the fires (I totally thought they were going to hit here--they hit here 4 years ago). We were lucky this year and so were our family members and friends. I did however, lose a lot of sleep over it. I worry a lot (like my brother) that's why I have all these gray hairs (my sister, who is 8 years my senior, only has like 1). At any rate, I digress.

While I've been "away", I've accumulated 643 unread posts. Luckily, 225 of them are announcements of the new DVDs that have come out, but um, the rest are real posts. I actually split my reader into groups:

• Craig's List
• Entertainment
• Food
• Friends
• Geeky
• Occasional Reads

I'm purging everything except friends. I'm going through them one by one this week, so give me some time (it leaves me with 184 posts to read). I thought about purging the friends one too, but then I thought I'd be missing something. I would hate to miss out on all your lives!!! Thanks for hanging in there with me. Just remember, it's not you . . . it's me!

And just so you know how "busy" I've been -- I've only read ONE book in the pas 2 months. That's a record low for me. :-) BTW, tell me about this Shelfari thing, it intrigues me. I've been invited by Jackie & Janet, but I haven't signed up yet (I'm lazy).

It's Crazy Here!

The air quality is terrible. Last night, the smell of smoke permeated my entire house. The winds are horrible and reaking a lot of havoc . . .

This is an LA Times photo of fire fighters that got put into a very dangerous situation. Luckily they survived. You can see and read the article at http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2007-10/33404633.jpg

My thoughts and prayers go out to those who have lost their houses. I've never seen so many houses go up in flames, it's absolutely crazy. I've got friends and family that have been evacuated and damage due to the wind but we're still pretty lucky so far. . .

The Shirt Says It All

I think it was a sign. Almost two weeks to the day I bought the Housewife Hag Minivan, I went to the Pasadena Flea Market.

I found this shirt:

Yes. It does say I'm too cool for a minivan. And yes, I am too cool for the minivan.

I also got this shirt:

If you're envious, of my new t-shirts, go check out Mommy Aarin's website or visit her at the Pasadena Flea Market (yes, this is the famous flea market that talk about on Shabby Chic). (She's a mommy too.)

Shameless plug, I know. But I thought my new shirts were cute. I wore it today and got lots of compliments (and laughs)from my mommy friends.

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On another note . . . While I was at the flea market, my brother's wife straightened The Princess' hair after she gave her a bath:

The next morning, it looked like this (even though she didn't get another bath):

It's so hard to keep straight hair.

It's Official!

Three and a half years ago, I was contemplating the next car I was going to buy. My in-laws were adamant that I should get a minivan and I have to admit that the features were certainly tempting. I was determined to find the best car for me so, I started asking my mommy friends why they chose the car they chose. I had narrowed it down to about 4 cars:

1. Toyota Sequoia
2. Acura MDX
3. Honda Odyssey
4. Toyota Sienna

I asked one of my friends why she chose the Ford Explorer over a minivan and she said: "I'm already a housewife, I don't want to be a housewife hag."

So, I was forever affected by that statement. I narrowed my choices to the Sequoia and the MDX. In the end, I chose the Sequoia because my husband thought the Acura was to girlie and didn't think that it felt like a real truck.

I loved my Sequoia, up until Jr. Peanut was born. Then, I started dreaming of the doors on a minivan. When I got accosted by a homeless man I promised myself, I'd get a minivan specifically for the doors.

This past week, I made it official...I'm now a housewife hag with my new Honda Odyssey:

Although I am a housewife hag, I have some pretty cool gadgets, so please call me the "Geeky Housewife Hag". I pimped my ride with the following gadgets:

• Navigation System
• DVD Player
• iPhone

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I'm sorry I've been so mysto lately. I didn't have that great of a birthday last week, I got sick, and I was busy contemplating the purchase of a new car. I will do my best to start reading the 200 posts I have in my google reader...especially now that I can read them on my phone. I also received some recognition from some of my peeps-- Jackie (who thinks I'm nice) and Brillig (who thinks people should read my blog). Thanks ladies, you're the bestest (a remnant "word" from my youth)! Badges and meme to follow.

Today Is the Day

Today is my birthday! I'm the big 3-2. I feel older, fatter, and less pretty than I was 10 years ago. But hey, most people do too.

This past weekend, we went to the USC vs Washington State game. We went with some friends, so of course we pre-partied and tailgated. We were stoked...we had a babysitter watching all four kids, the breadwinner was the designated driver, and each couple had a pair of tickets on the 50 yard line (we were on the shady side they were on the sunny side).

I made some super strong Vodka/cranberries, so we were pretty liquored up. We also didn't have very much to eat before we went to the game.

About 15 minutes into the game, we get a call from our friends. My friend puked in front of her chair and people were starting to smell the vomit. We told them to come over to our side since there were a couple empty seats.

They came over and sat for about 10 minutes but then they left. So when I had to go to the bathroom, I went to look for them. My friend was in the bathroom sitting on the pot with puke on the floor. She also picked the one stall that didn't have a lock on it so every few minutes someone would try to open the door and whack her in the head. So, I had to stand guard in front of her door while she sat passed out on the pot after taking a humongous shit.

Needless to say, we left at half time. All she cared about though was how she ruined her husbands one chance to watch an SC game. Not a single apology for ruining the night out for me and my husband. Typical.

And if for some reason, she remembers the address for my blog and she reads this...you told me I couldn't tell certain people. You didn't say I couldn't write about it. No one you know reads this...unless you gave them the address.

The Ineffectual Parent

Yesterday, we arrived early at the Princess' preschool. We got out and waited on the steps with a couple of the other girls in her class. The Princess and the other girls started playing on the steps. Running up and down the steps, they giggled.

As the minutes ticked by, more kids arrived. It got to be too crowded for the girls to run up and down the steps.

The mother that was watching the other two girls told them to stop and they stopped immediately.

I told the Princess to stop too.

Of course, she kept on running up and down the steps anyway. I said, "That's one" after she went running up the steps. I said, "That's two", after she went running down the steps. I said, "Do you want to leave and go home?". She said no (so, I knew she could hear me).

Then, the little boy standing nearby honestly and bluntly said to his mom, "That girl isn't listening to her mommy."

Leave it to a child to say what the other moms probably were thinking. And how true it was. She went running up the steps one more time and gates opened, so I didn't get to follow through with my threat.

That's the story of my life these days. "She doesn't listen to her mommy." I've asked her countless times to stop jumping on the couch. I've asked her countless times to stop stepping on her toys. I've asked countless times for her to stop pulling her brother along by a limb. She just doesn't listen.

That's me in a nutshell...the ineffectual parent.

Eye Candy for Wordless Wednesday

(all photos were googled)

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I just posted my summer reading reviews here, if you're interested. :-)

Lessons Learned

Here are a few lessons I learned in the past few weeks:

• Always remember how much you love football season during the fall before planning anything.
• Never let your potty trained child con you into letting her drink an entire glass of water before bed time (unless of course you like waking up in the middle of the night to change soiled bed sheets.
• Never suggest an Adult Toy party as your next fundraiser for your mom's group unless you want them to look at you like you're some sex fiend. (God forbid if I spice things up a bit right?)
• Never volunteer to do the mom's group newsletter. It's a lot of work with little appreciation. There's also that one person that's late for a deadline and then complains that there are things missing from the newsletter. Uh yeah...if you don't make the deadline, it doesn't make it in. These deadlines are for a reason...I have a life and I've got better things to do than sit around waiting for people to actually read the emails about deadlines.
• If you're lactose intolerant...that smoothie drink will catch up with you eventually.
• Make sure to warn the public if you've had a smoothie.
• I need to get a prescription for xanax if I'm going to deal with the morons that call themselves "Customer Support" at Direct TV and AT and T.

Preschooler Sleep Problems -- SOLVED

Since April 2006, the Princess has had trouble going to sleep. It's a dreaded chore for both the breadwinner and me. We hate it. She always wants us to sleep with her and once we leave, she always comes out (even if we sleep with her until she falls asleep). It's so hard to put her to sleep that she often doesn't even get to bed until 10pm...sometimes even later! What's compounded the problem is that with the exception of once or twice a week...she's given up her naps.

For over a year, we've been miserable with the whole situation. But we may have found a solution...we borrowed our niece, Cousin Princess (CP). That was all it took! I went in there once to tell them to go to sleep and when I checked on them ten minutes later...THEY WERE ASLEEP! So there you have it people, the best way to solve your preschooler's problems...borrow a cousin. CP stayed with us for two glorious nights.

Last night, I had to sleep with her for a few minutes, but she didn't come out. The downside was that she kept saying "I miss my CP. My CP is at Lola's house and I want my CP to come back" (Lola is tagalog for Grandmother and I dropped her off there so my sister could pick her up).

I'll let you know if the Princess regresses. If she does, we may have to borrow CP and her magical powers again.

This is my 100th post!!!

Like an Amex

We went to Sonoma last weekend and we did two things that made our trip enjoyable:

1. We stayed a place with a full kitchen (a cottage)
2. We brought my mother with us.

I wasn't so sure how the weekend would turn out because my mom and I fight like cats and dogs. But, I didn't fight with her at all. The only disagreement I had with her was over her letting my four year old daughter watch Predator (yes, the one with Arnold Schwazenager and yes, I know you agree with me). Other than that, it was great. It was like bringing a baby sitter and a chef at the same time! My mom cooked all my favorite foods and she watched our kids at night while we went drinking. How awesome!

If my mom found it tolerable, I think we'd like to take her with us on all vacations. She's like an Amex card...we shouldn't leave home without her!

The Proverbial Question

As a stay at home mom, the one question that bugs the crap out of me is...

What do you do all day?

My answer? The same thing that everyone else does...I work. I do the job that I would have had to pay a Nanny 10-15 dollars an hour for. And of course, just like all other working stiffs that work for pay...I get my internet time in during the job (so don't question my blogging!).

You want to know the biggest difference between my job and the traditional job? It's that I give up my life for these kids. As all my friends without kids (or that work) move on to bigger, better and higher paying jobs, I get stuck in a job where there is little appreciation, no monetary pay, no promotions, minimal adult conversation, and maximum whining. People also seem to think that when the kids become independent and go to school...we can just go right back into the work force. We CAN'T! It's almost like we have to start over again...things change in the work force, we have to explain our employment gaps, we need to polish our skills. The worst part about it is...we NO LONGER fit into the work clothing we kept from before we became SAHMs.

And of course, nobody seems to sympathize with me (queue the violins)...least of all the Breadwinner. I think maybe the only other people that empathize with my plight are other stay at home moms...I guess that's why I joined my mom's group and started blogging. It makes me feel better to know that other people are going through the same thing...

I'm Back!

And newly tanned (not that I wasn't tanned before). Me n' my Peeps (The Princess, Jr. Peanut, and the Breadwinner) flew to paradise (aka Maui). Despite the impending threats of Hurricane Flossi and the tsunami advisory, we managed to have a good time (I think...vacations aren't really vacations for a stay at home mom...unless no kids are involved).

This was the view from our hotel room:

While we were there, the Breadwinner and I celebrated our 6th Anniversary (only one more year to the 7 year itch):

My Island Princess:

Mi Familia:

Me and the Princess looking for sea shells (her newest obsession):

The "sun challenged" (due to lighter skin tones) duo waits for the shell seekers:

The future booze hound sippin his virgin fruit punch

The princess learns the huki lau with her mau mau (I mean dad)

Some photos that rival Shauna's avatar. Even though I don't like chocolate, it doesn't mean that my daughter doesn't...

Gross!

Jr. Peanut, the Princess, and I were hanging out on the Princess' queen sized bed playing with one of Jr. peanut's new toys.

We were playing and having fun. Then the Princess said to her brother "Ooohhh, you look tired baby brother." She proceeded to pull down her shirt and then said "here baby brother, you want my boobie?". She proceeded to try to feed him while I giggled.

Then she stopped and her shirt went back up. Then she turned to look at me.

She moved over to where I was, pulled down her shirt, and shoved her nipple toward my face. "You want my boobie Mommy?"

Aaaah! yuck! It's not pleasant having the mosquito bites shoved in your face.

I told her "No thank you. I'm not hungry. Maybe when you're older, you can nurse your own baby when you're older.

Kids are weird like that.

Are PG and PG-13 Movies Safe For Your Child?

I think I'm feeling better after last week. I've decided to post something informative that I wrote in the Newsletter that I edit. There's been a lot of buzz about it in my Moms Groups because of that Transformer movie...

It’s often difficult to gauge the Motion Picture Association of America’s movie ratings. Although a movie may be rated, it doesn’t tell you exactly how it got the PG rating as opposed to the G rating. It is also often surprising how much violence or latent sexual innuendo there is in a PG movie. If you’re looking for a great place to get the REAL scoop on the violence, sexual content and profanity in movies try the following very helpful websites. They detail the questionable sections of the movie for your young ones so that you can make better choices for your children:

Kids In Mind: http://www.kids-in-mind.com

Family Media Guide: http://www.familymediaguide.com

MPAA Rating Info: http://www.mpaa.org/FlmRat_Ratings.asp

My Almost Nightmare

I went to a pool party playdate today. Everything started great. We had been there before, so the Princess was looking forward to it. There's an in ground trampoline and a 30 foot water slide in my friend's backyard. The Princess was having tons fun going down the slide by herself with her life jacket on.

When the pizza came we all got our kids a slice of pizza. I took off the Princess' life jacket, dried her off and wrapped her in her towel. I sat her down and told her she had to eat before she went back in. All the kiddies ate at the kiddie table while the adults and the younger kids ate at the adult table.

Soon, the kids finished eating and started jumping on the trampoline. I finished feeding JR. Peanut and wiped him down. I decided to change him back into his regular clothes because he was shivering. While I was taking off the swim diaper, my other friend, J., was trying to ask me if I wanted her daughter's old floating bathing suit.

Then I heard something and I turned. On instinct, I put Jr. Peanut down and ran to the deep end of the pool. As I got to it, I saw my friend, A., jump in the water. The Princess had gone down the slide WITHOUT HER LIFE JACKET! I started screaming like a mad woman ( I didn't know this-- but J. later told me that I was screaming blood curdling screams). Just as A. reached her, the Princess was submerged and she was trying to reach up her hand. I was freaking out and delirious.

A. handed her to my other friend, D. (she's a registered nurse). The Princess was okay, but just shaken up and crying. D. handed her over to me, and I held her for a while. When she stopped crying, I lectured her about swimming without telling an adult and without using a life jacket.

I was really upset...and she just wanted to go back in. I wanted to leave because I was so upset and she wanted to stay. When we left, I visited the Breadwinner's office and started bawling. I can't seem to get rid of the image of her sinking with her hand reaching out, out of my head.

I'm traumatized. I don't think I can go to a pool with two kids or the beach when I'm out numbered 2 to 1 with my kids (Jennifer, I don't know how you did it!).

Today has been the scariest day of my life.

Princess Drawing

I've been meaning to blog about this for a while but I've been extremely lazy busy this summer. So I lolligagged until I read Shauna's Post today.

When the Princess showed me this picture, she told me it was a drawing of me. So, I asked her where my body is (drawing a body is one of those developmental milestones you can find in drawings). She took the picture and drew those two circles that I drew the arrows to. What part of my body could those be??? Here are my possibilities:

• my boobs
• my ovaries?? It is in the general vicinity of my ovaries.
• My nursing pepperoni sized aureolas? (I don't know how to spell it)
• My nipples?

I give up. You decide. You tell me what my little Picasso made.

Did you notice how my badges from Butrfly and Jackie got cut off?? I'm a Rockin Blo and I got a Thoughtful blogger Aw. Maybe I should come up with a new design...everyone else is doing it right?

I'm Afraid of the "C" Word

I'm truly fear the "C" word don't you? CANCER. A woman in my moms group just passed away after a 4 year battle with breast cancer and it's truly made me think a lot about how precious life is. You really just never know what is going to happen and how devasting it is to the family that gets left behind.

Our group has been exchanging crazy amounts of emails regarding her. Some people are interested in making her surviving family our "charity" for the year. I'm kind of hesitant about giving money to the family even though I know the treatments and funeral arrangements must have been costly. I would much rather give money to fund Breast Cancer Research in memoriam of her or find a way to give it directly to the children.

Money just doesn't seem appropriate to me because no amount of money would bring the parent back and in no way compensates for that sense of loss. The Breadwinner's Aunt died at the age of 29 from Hodgkins Lymphoma and left behind a toddler and a baby. His Aunt's husband remarried within a year of her death. He wound up remarrying several times and I think the children were really affected by all the mother figure changes. This is why I would want to do something that would directly benefit the children. Death has profound effects on children and it shapes the rest of their lives (not to take away from the pain an adult feels-- but children can't grasp a lot of "adult" concepts).

What are your thoughts? What do you think would be the best way to help a family through this period of time?

I actually would like to participate in Passionately Pink For the Cure. Has anyone participated in this at all? Do you have any other ideas to support Breast Cancer awareness/research?

The Princess-isms

Here are some conversations we've had with The Princess. Remember she's almost 4.

Breadwinner:What are you doing?

Princess:Nuthin'

Breadwinner:Are you making a mess?

Princess:(she doesn't answer)

Breadwinner:Can you help me clean up your mess?

Princess:Can't you just give me a break?

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Me:When I grow up, can I be gorgeous just like you?

Princess:No

Me:Mommy can't be gorgeous like Princess?

Princess:No, silly. I not grown up.

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On an excursion at Home Depot:

Breadwinner:OK Princess, I expect you to behave. (this is a tactic that I use and it works for me)

Princess:Why? Mommy's not here.

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On an car ride to the Breadwinner's office:

Princess:I want to go see Grammie. (this is the breadwinner's mom -- my mom is called Lola)

Breadwinner:You do?

Princess:Yeah, I want Grammie to give me stickers.

Breadwinner:Do you want to go see Grammie because you love her or because you want stickers?

There's a pause while she thinks about it.

Princess:I want the stickers.

I'm Restricted

I decided to copy Butrfly (she copied Shauna) and do a short post involving getting my blog rated:

I'm rated R because...I'm bringing sexy back baby!!!! Move over desperate housewives, now there's something sexier!!

(It's also because I mentioned piss (6x), crappy (4x), and breast (1x). This is surprising because I say ball sack, sexy, and I'm sure a lot worse than those words. Apparently I can't say breast, but I can say ball sack as many times as I want!!!!)

Piss on THIS!

My kids have a play room. We block it off at night because the cats love to piss on things in the play room.

So, I've been smelling piss in the play room for the past week. I've looked and looked for the area that the cats pissed on. I didn't find anything and I was getting increasingly annoyed with the cats.

I found it today.

There was piss all right. But it was human pee (cat pee has a distinct smell). In our Little Tikes sport thing:

Right in the basket that the boy is putting the ball in.

It had to have been a boy. I don't see how a girl can sit on the basket without falling over or getting hurt.

There were only 6 boys at the party.

Only 4 could walk.

Only 2 are not in diapers.

One is 8 years old and knows better (his mom is awesome).

The other will be 4 in November and his mom lets him run amok.

I think I'd be able to venture a guess as to who did it.

Absolutely.

Disgusting.

-------------------------------------

On a happier note, I got a Rockin Girl Blogger award from the equally rockin' Butrfly

I also got a Thoughtful Blogger award from the equally thoughtful Jackie.

Thanks ladies. I'm [blushing] honored!

Jr. Peanut's B-day Pics

Getting My Money Back From This Crappy Excuse For a School

Remember when I blogged about The Princess going to summer camp? Well it didn't go over very well. The following letter explains why the school is crap.

Dear Preschool Director,

Per your request, I am sending this email to you to formally request that the "two weeks notice" policy be waived. I feel that it should be waived because I don't think my daughter is being provided the kind of preschool program I thought she would be getting based on the policy manuals that were given to me and my visits to the school. I do not wish to have my daughter exposed to an environment with the following things that my daughter and myself have experienced:

• Candy was provided to my daughter as a reward. I have several problems with this: 1) In the handbook it states that the parents are not allowed to bring candy to school and I feel that it is hypocritical to not expect parents to be allowed to bring candy but the teacher can give it out. 2) Lying by omission because I was never told that my daughter would be given candy as a reward. 3) It was given to her without my express permission. 4)These are four year olds and they don't brush their teeth very well. They shouldn't be given candy and this is the only preschool that I have ever heard of that gives Candy as a reward.
• When I confronted the front office person (not K, but the blonde woman that fills in while K is out and about) on 6/28 about the candy she said that there is a no candy policy and that someone would talk the teacher about it. When I told her that my friend caught her child's teacher (a different one) giving her kids M and Ms she said that sometimes the teachers do give candy out as a reward. Basically -- this woman LIED to me and then took it back.
• My daughter sat at a table all by herself on her first day of school because there is assigned seating. Assigned seating at 4 is ridiculous to me and I don't think it should be at the price of isolation especially on the first day of school.
• My daughter sat watching TV while eating lunch. 1)This is disrespectful to her food. 2)She can watch TV at home. 3)On the Summer Program Calendar, Monday is reserved as Movie day-- which is precisely why I chose Tuesdays and Thursdays. But she was still watching a movie...on a Tuesday.
• On 6/19 Before I gave K my check for the entire summer's tuition, I asked her if I would get a refund if my daughter didn't like it there and she said yes with no mention of the two week notice.

I really just don't feel comfortable sending my daughter to a school with this kind of environment and she has told me that she doesn't want to go. I have pre-paid the tuition for the entire summer and would like a refund of my money without the two weeks notice policy. Which would be $508.

Sincerely,

Cherann Translation: YOU GUYS BLOW!

Success!

After several long days of preparation, 24 party favor bags, loads of party decorations, hundreds of dollars dished out and lots of help from Godparents...Jr. Peanut's first birthday party was a success. It was a really good time. I really have to thank Cheryl, Kyle, Gomez, B, and J. You guys ROCK!! I think these god parents have learned a valuable lesson: Don't come to your god child's party early...or you'll get put to work.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but the party was a baptism/birthday party...so we had several things going on. We did the baptism during a public catholic mass and it was a totally different experience. The priest had us walk up during the processional, mentioned us several times during the mass, performed the entire thing while we stood at the front with loads of people watching, and made us walk down the aisle again for the closing. Good thing I'm not an extremely SHY person...otherwise it would have been a really painful experience. It was also hard keeping a 12 month old occupied during an hour long mass.

Althought the party was a success, there were some mishaps along the way:

• My sister-in-law crashed into our light post taking The Princess to my other SIL's daughter's Birthday party.
• Kyle left Cheryl's shoes on top of the car and drove away with it still on the roof. I found the remains of the mangled show down the street. I wish I had taken picures of it before I threw it away.
• B and J's flight was delayed THREE hours and they didn't even find out about it until they got there. They must have been so tired (they're east coasters)because their flight didn't leave until midnight (California time).
• The Breadwinner bumped his head on the BBQ trying to install the sink.
• While running around the pool table, The Princess fell and bit her lip HARD!
• Jr. Peanut's ear drums ruptured from an ear infection.
• The Princess and her cousin took several of the sprinkles jars (from cup cake decorating) and ate them in the jumper (The Breadwinner had to shop vac the jumper). Not to mention the fact that the kids ATE way to much sugar.

Thank god it's over. The house was a mess, there are tons of brand new scratches all over my hard wood floor. Lots of food left over. (Note to self: when you buy lots of appetizers...you need less food catered)I have a two month hiatus until the Princess' birthday... who already has decided that she wants a Hello Kitty party.

I'll post some pictures later.

Ta Ta!

My Thoughts on Raising a Daughter

I have to say that raising a daughter is probably one of the most difficult things I've had to do. When I see and hear the things that the Princess does, it painfully reminds me... of me. She is like a magnifying glass of all my most annoying traits.

The irritating stubborn as a mule trait? That's from me.

The hot temper? That's from me too.

Ugh. I hate seeing all that stuff in her. When she's being like me, I wonder how I even put up with myself. I wonder if maybe my mom thought the same thing about me too.

There's a New Badge in Town

At the suggestion of one of my reader's comments, I've worked hard and fashioned this special badge. Let me know if you want one too...

Not many people can say that about such a special search...

My Own Melt Down

It's the Monday before Jr. Peanut's Birthday party. He's turning one and he's getting baptized. So it's a big deal. There are so many things to do and I'm being bombarded by other things that I need to deal with:

• I am having difficulty with the crappy summer camp I sent my daughter to for the past two weeks and I'm trying to get my money back (I'll write a separate post about it later)
• The Caterer for the party tried to tell me that he didn't have the tables and chairs that we requested last week. He all of a sudden had two weddings come up. But luckily he has changed his mind.
• There are a ton of things on my to do list.
• The Breadwinner has decided that he absolutely has to golf the day before the party and the day all of our out of town guests come. And I'm the bitch that says he's got to get all these things done before he goes...
• Jr. Peanut bumped his chin on the kiddie fence and bit his lip. Now he's going to have a fat lip for his birthday party pictures.

So, I ask myself, is it really worth it? The next child (if there is a next one) isn't getting a big party.

Calgon! Take me away!

Googlers Crack Me Up

All of a sudden, I've had a whole slew of new search terms appear on my keyword analysis from StatCounter. Some of them are kind of interesting...and it begs the question that I'm actually scared to know the answer of...Did they find what they were looking for???

NOTE: I typed in some of their locations so you'd know where some of these people are coming from. You can click on the image to make it bigger (I know it's hard to read the way it is.

I Used to be a Germ Phobe

I'll admit it. I was. Most of my Germ Phobias had to do with public restrooms:

• I would unravel a little bit of the toilet paper and throw it away (in case the person before had touched it) then I'd unravel the toilet paper that I would use.
• I never actually sat on the toilet to pee. I squatted.
• If I had to sit (for obvious number two reasons) I would put soap and water on a paper towel and wipe the entire toilet seat. Then I'd take a dry paper towel and wipe it dry. Next, I'd put not one, but two toilet seat covers.
• I never used my hand to flush the toilet
• I would meticulously wash my hands afterward. But before I washed my hands, I would crank out the paper towel (so I wouldn't have to touch it after I washed my hands).
• Using the paper towel that I used to dry my hands, I'd open the door (so I wouldn't have to touch the filthy door handle).

Some non-restroom germ phobe stuff I did included:

• At restaurants, I would wipe my silverware down with a napkin.
• I constantly carried a hand sanitizer with me and used it like a maniac.
• I never opened doors with my whole hand or I used a paper towel to open it.
• I NEVER drank water from the water cooler at work (this actually reduced the number of times that I got sick during the year). It's disgusting. People are always filling their water bottles and there was constantly lipstick on the spout.
• I never ate anything that dropped onto the table. Let alone the floor.

Well...now I have kids and all that went out the window. I call them my germ magnets. And man oh man, are they disgusting. If I was still that germ phobe, and I saw what my kids get into, I'd be horrified!

• My kids pick up crumbs off the floor of my car (that looks like it's a week old) and eat it (I know, why aren't I shop vac-ing my car).
• My son plays and drinks poop infested water.
• The Princess actually touches the toilet seat when she pees (aaahhh!) and she touches everything.
• The kids eat everything that falls on the floor or table.
• They suck on the wash cloth after I've used it to wash them (Yuck! It's touched their bottoms!).
• They touch everything and constantly have their hands in their mouths.
• I'll catch the Princess itching her butt (inside her panties).

So now, I'm like a germ-phobe's worst nightmare. Kids are gross. If you don't have kids...beware if you're a germ phobe!!

Tagged Again!

I got tagged by Jackie to do a Goal meme.

These are the rules:

1) In a new blog post, list and write about the top 5 to 10 goals that you gotta get so that you can truly say you have achieved your wildest dreams in life. These have to be your best, most exclusive, and over-the-top goals that you can pick off your goals list. (I know I’ve previously said Do Not Share Your Goals, but we’re making an exception!)

2) In the introduction of your post, explain what you’re doing with the Gotta’ Get Goals project and “put a link and/or a trackback to this post”, for the purpose of giving them the full rules and for me to compile the master list of all participants that I’ll link to in a future post.

3) As with Simply Success Secrets, don’t forget to put a link or trackback to the blogger who tagged you for Gotta’ Get Goals in order to let your readers follow the conversation around.

4) Sharing your Gotta’ Get Goals with your own audience, will also share them with the blogger who tagged you and the bloggers you tagged, as well as their whole audience!

5) There is no limit to how many bloggers you are allowed to “tag”, so go crazy. It will help their exposure as well as your own when they tag back to your Gotta Get Goals post. That’s how meme’s work.

6) Sit back and enjoy the show. As Aaron would say, “watch the gotta get goals and the crossover audiences start rolling in!”

I'm not following all the rules, but I'm doing the essential part of the meme. Here are my goals:

1. I want to be the kind of mom that my kids feel they can tell anything to. I never got that as a kid and I didn't really need it but I think with so many bad influences these days, I think my kids will definitely need it. I'm also trying to be more accepting of less traditional types of intelligences (i.e. the arts, social). It's really difficult for me because I'm Asian. Asians are all about Math and Science.

2. I want to work my way back to my pre-pregnancy weight too (Jackie had this goal too).

3. I'd like to go back and get my MBA and/OR get back to working again. (I miss my mad money).

4. I'd like to make more "really good" friendships as opposed to those more acquaintance type friendships.

5. I want to stop putting my foot in my mouth. I always say the wrong thing especially in social situations. Most of the time I don't really mean to sometimes, I just can't think of anything good to say.

So there you have it. Those are my goals. If you'd like to be tagged by it, leave me a comment stating that you want to. and I'll add you to the post. Enjoy!

Sorry!

I know I've been MIA lately. Thanks also, to those of you that have wondered where I am. I've been busy lately. For some reason, I all of a sudden have A LOT of things to do. I promise, I'll write soon and that I'll read all of your blogs. I'm busy doing that newsletterI mentioned earlier this month. JackieThanks for tagging me, it will be the first thing I write...maybe my goal will be to blog?!?! HA ha ha. I guess that wouldn't fulfill my wildest dreams...or would it??

Super Silly Search Sunday 6/17/2007

I know I've taken an extended break from Super Silly Search Sunday, but I just didn't like the search results I was getting. Plus, lets just face it. I've grown lazy. Fat and lazy I might add. I'm weaning JR. Peanut but still eating the same amount...so I've gained some extra poundage. I may have to join Weight Watchers or what I really need to do is find some self control when it comes to the richer foods in life something.

I don't think I mentioned this, but I found out that some of my ball sack searches came from Belgium. Perhaps there is some crazy ball sack stretching tendencies going on over there. Why would you want to stretch them? That's what I want to know.

At any rate, I guess I should tell you what I searched for this Sunday....drum roll here

My Armpit Hair Smells Good

There were only 230,000 search results. One of them was one woman's quest to become "one of those hairless freaks that you see on the MTV". In her June 2nd post, she describes how she tried to wax her armpit hairs off. Painful huh? (I occassionally pluck my own armpit hairs because they grow back so quickly when I shave them-- I got used to the pain).

Another search result was some guy's epiphany about the difference between men's and women's deodorant after using his wife's Degree deodorant. I always thought degree was actually a unisex deodorant. At least, when it first came out, it was. The writer didn't like the smell of it (I don't either) and he decided that women's deodorant doesn't take into account armpit hair. I wonder if that really is true.

Some other noteworthy sites:

• gurl.com asks people to vote on armpit hair...do they dig it or diss it? The fact that 87 people actually dug it baffles me. But then again, maybe I've just been brainwashed by society.
• I also found this marijuana site that explains how to avoid getting tested positive for marijuana in your hair. He talks about how he buys an extension kit that uses real hair and then he glues it to his armpit for drug testing purposes. Geez. The lengths that people will go to right?
• Here's a picture of Tyra Bank's armpit. I don't really see anything except skin irritation.
• Here's a picture of Julia Roberts'armpit hair...I can't figure out if this is for real or doctored.

Well folks, that's it. A lot of the results that came up were teens/pre-teens asking about armpit hair and what to do about it. I barely remember being that clueless. I'm so glad I'm not a teenager anymore. I certainly don't miss the awkwardness and the huge zits that I got on my nose (right before picture day right?). However, I do miss being twenty something.

By the way, did I ever mention that the Princess gets a kick out of smelling our (The Breadwinner's and my) "stinky armpits". She always asks if she could smell them...then she giggles hysterically.

Nothing Ever Tasted So Good...

This evening, The Breadwinner came home while I was feeding my kids grilled cheese sandwiches a gourmet meal that included all four food groups (bread, cheese, chicken, and Munchos Chips--potatoes are vegetables, duh!). So, I sat down, with a glass of wine in front of my computer and proceeded to read my daily blog feeds.

When my kids were done, I took them out of their seats and they were off. A few minutes later, while I was reading about Butrfly's run in with the law and drinking my wine (instead of hearing WHINE for a change), I heard the Princess grunting while she was sqeezing out little turds into the toilet. I thought nothing of it until...

I heard splashing.

I ran to the bathroom and found Jr. Peanut playing with the toilet water while The Princess was hiding by the sink.

To my horror, I noticed that The Princess had failed to flush her poop away. Jr. Peanut was sucking on the toilet paper he found in the toilet water and splashing away.

I mean really...what kind of princess forgets to flush the toilet? I guess an almost four year old one does. And where the heck was the Breadwinner?

I suppose I can legitimately get googled for baby eats poop or to be more precise, "baby drinks poop water".

He seems OK but I may need to call the pediatrician tomorrow--just in case.

Just Call Me Horrible Mom

So, today was the Princess' last day of school. I knew it was the last day and I knew there was going to be an ice cream social. Knowing that it was going to be the last day of school, I wanted to stop by Target and buy her teachers a thank you present.

Of course, going to Target made us a little late...and what I didn't know, was that each preschool class was going to sing a special song for everyone. When we got there, The Princess' class was getting ready to sing their song. We were late! I didn't bring my Camera. All the Daddy's were there and I neglected to tell the Breadwinner (I thought it was going to be an ordinary day). So, no daddy for the Princess. It was the one morning that I didn't have time to comb her hair...so she sang with nappy curly hair (everyone else had their hair in braids and wore pretty clothes).

To think...if I had taken a little bit longer, she wouldn't have been able to perform. Thank God for letting me get there just in time. How was I supposed to know??? I read the newsletter...but it didn't say anything specific. So yeah, call me a horrible mom that doesn't have her act together.

School's Almost Over :-(

I am so sad. The Princess' last day of school is tomorrow. Even though I wrote this post about her not wanting to go back, she wound up loving her preschool. She quickly made some friendships and has actually started begging to go there every day. I am so happy I took her out of that "Hell Hole" preschool that she hated. I can't wait to send her back in the fall.

She will be starting summer camp next week...at a different preschool. So we'll see how that goes. It's kind of like the Hell Hole school in that it has extended care hours. Which makes a difference because friendships are often forged between the all day every day kids and not the half day, two days a week kids. So, it's a different experience. I'll let you know if she adapts well.

Now, my next decision to make is whether or not I'll hold her back (the Princess has a fall birthday and our school district has a December cut-off). Granted, she has another year until she turns five, but I'm already thinking about it. I'm inclined to hold her back. I've spoken to several teachers and they say that you don't notice a difference in Kindergarten and first grade, but once second grade comes around, you notice a maturity difference. It has nothing to do with academics-- but the social aspects of school

If your preschool aged child has a fall birthday, what are you going to do?

Oh, and it's official, I'm soliciting travel tips for families based on In The Trenches' suggestion from my last post. I'm going to put it in my mom's newsletter. I found these tips from Parent Hacks, for keeping kids entertained at an airport during delays or layovers. Any other tips?

A Request From My Bloggy Friends

Hi again my bloggy friends. I'm not sure if I mentioned this or not, but I have taken on a board position and newsletter "editor" for my mom's group. It starts in July and it made me think ..."oh sh*t, I've got to get a newsletter together before the end of this month. What the hell am I going to write about?".

So I started thinking really hard (and this may be why I have a headache now) and I thought...why don't I ask my blogging community? I'm asking you dear readers if you have any blog posts that I can put into my Mom's Group newsletter. It has to be a post that is relevant to moms and I have to approve its appropriateness. In exchange, I'll give you complete credit for the article in the newsletter and list your blog address (maybe you'll get some new readership).

Thanks bloggers

How Many Women With Degrees...

Yesterday, I had some friends over for an evening playdate. I bought some hamburgers and hot dogs to grill on the Barbecue. It then begged the question...how many women with degrees does it take to figure out how to barbecue? The answer? None. All three of us couldn't figure it out. It took my husband coming home to get it going. Sorry to the ladies that read my blog. We were a disgrace yesterday for not being able to figure it out.

I guess I never realized how much BBQing became a duty only for men. I don't often see women working the grill. In fact, I don't think I ever have. Not even on TV.

Then I kinda got to thinking, what other tasks have become "gender oriented"? These are some of the ones in my household:

• Road Trip Driving: My husband complains that my driving makes him nauseous. I think it's just because he's not driving. Plus, I like to sleep on drives.
• Laundry: I'm basically the only one that does it because my husband is pretty inept when it comes to washing the laundry. If he did it, stains would stay on clothes and they wouldn't get separated properly.
• Cleaning the Kitchen: I don't know why, but men really don't do a very good job of cleaning the kitchen.
• Mowing the Lawn (get your filthy mind out of the gutter): The breadwinner does this for now. But we may have to hire a gardner. My husband has developed an allergy to garden work that not even Clariten can fix.
• Nursing the baby: For obvious reasons.
• Making Pancakes: I've told The Princess that I don't know how to make pancakes. That way, I can avoid the sticky mess when I'm by myself. Plus, I don't really think pancakes are all that healthy. Especially when the Princess douses it with tons of syrup and butter. Of course, the Breadwinner has told the Princess that mommy knows how and that I'm just lazy. Now, the Princess goes around telling me that I'm lazy. Thanks hubby!
• Fixing things: Daddy is best at this one.

Are there gender based tasks in your household too?

BTW? Yes Goldy, I did say Penis Ring of this variety.

I've Noticed Some Things

So, I've noticed a couple things about my blog. First and foremost, I've been noticing that people have been searching for the EXACT search terms that I've mentioned in my Super Silly Search Sunday. For instance, I told people that people have found my blog with "bookworm hotties" and "ball sack stretching". Yesterday people found my blog using the exact terms! It's almost like people don't believe me and they're googling the terms just to see if I pop up...and obviously I do. People also searched "ball sacks" and "saggy balls cure" yesterday too. Hmmm. Yes, people, I told the truth about those search terms.

It's interesting that those terms bring people to my blog. But I'd like them to find me with better search terms. So, here come the gratuitous words that I'd like to be found with...

• Best mom ever
• My playgroup rocks
• Hot Mommy
• Cherann's the best thing around since sliced bread
• Brunettes have more fun
• Did I already say best mom ever?

Now, the other thing I noticed are the foreign language comments. I've been noticing it on other people's blogs too. What's the deal with that? Are they cussing me out or something? Am I too ball sacky for them or what? Anyway, that's all I have to say about that.

Ta Ta for now. (TTFN)

Where in The World is Cherann?

I know, I know, I've gone misto in the Blogger world. What have I been doing? Nothing much, just carting my kids around to school, play dates, kid classes and the like. But here I am again only to complete a meme. Sorry...I didn't do Super Silly Sunday. I came up with something, but didn't have time to search it. So maybe I'll save it for next week.

Anywhoo, Janet at Dancing Through tagged me for this one!

INSTRUCTIONS: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so.

1. Bun in the Oven

2. You da Mom

3. Worker Mommy

4. Janet @Dancing Through

5. Confessions of a Former Bookworm

Next, select five people to tag... cuz I'm lazy (I don't want to look back and see who hasn't done this meme yet) and I don't want to nag anyone, if you want to be tagged, feel free to do this meme.

What were you doing 10 years ago?

I was living in Houston, Texas dating a man that was 10 years my senior and a VP of the company I was working for. I was training to be a recruiter. Yes...one of my many different jobs.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Waiting to give birth to my sweet baby boy. He's almost one!!!

Five snacks you enjoy:

1) Classic BBQ Kettle Potato Chips

2) Strawberries

3) Candy

4) Pretzels

5) Toffee covered Peanuts

Five songs that you know all the lyrics to:

1) Somebody by Depeche Mode

2) Fruit Salad by the Wiggles

3 The body electric by ??

4) I'm a drunken Alpha Phi by ???

5) Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:

1) Pay off all the bills

2) Get a new car

3) Get my house professionally decorated

4) Invest it

5) Travel

Five bad habits:

1) Binge Eating

2) Impatience

3) Grinding/Clenching my teeth

4) Being critical of people

5) Picking

Five things you like doing:

1) Reading

2) Being with my family

3) Blogging

4) Playing Fantasy Football

5) Watching TV

Five things you would never wear again:

1) Bikini

2) Bangs

3) Anything that exposes my midriff

4) Paisley

5) Baby clothes

Five favorite toys:

1) My iPod

2) Nintendo

3) My Computer

4) Penis ring

5) Tivo

Sorry to those that read this without formatting. How lame am I? I also completely forgot to put in my own answers for the millionaire question.

I'm In Trouble Now

You know you're in trouble when...

• Your toddler starts understanding you even though you're s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g it out.
• You start getting called out on the lies you tell (like telling her there are no more chips even though they're sitting in the pantry)
• Your infant boy is already flirting with women by reaching out and grabbing them (yes, he's reached out and grabbed another woman's boob)
• Your infant boy discovers his penis and thinks its a new toy
• Your Princess starts talking about her wedding at the tender age of 3
• You fart and your toddler (that just discovered she can smell things) rats you out buy saying "I smell something. I smell your stinky bottom".
• Ball sack is the number one google search term that brings people to your blog.
• Both your mother and your sister accidentally call your niece by YOUR name whenever they're mad or reprimanding her.
• Your SIL's daughter touches her butt while she's pooping and smiles when you ask her..."did you just touch your poo poo bottom?"
• Your 3 year old daughter starts trying to french kiss everyone--even though she doesn't know what a french kiss is.

Super Silly Search Sunday 5/27/07

It's Sunday again. Time for another silly search. Today I searched for...

"I got addicted and now I'm in blogger rehab."

I wanted to see how many people out there are as addicted as I am. There's a decent amount. The search also brought up search results for druggies in addition to bloggies--so I skipped over those drug addicts and tried to find the blog addicts. Like Blue Girl in a Red State, the first thing I do when I get home (especially after a long weekend) is turn on the computer, check my email, and read my blogs. I may have to attend bloggers anonymous with her. There's a whole forum here for blog addicts. It seems like a forum version of mybloglog. I decided to join it. I had never heard of it before. I'll let you know how I like it.

Daniel Solove, wrote a post called A Day In the Life of Blogging. Here's an excerpt:

Wake up

Check email

Check blog – see if co-bloggers have posted anything and read comments to posts

Check site meter stats – see how many people visited and who’s linking to the blog

Check Technorati – see who’s linking to the blog

Check out blogs linking to the blog

Check The Truth Laid Bear – see the latest ranking of the blog

Check other blogs for ideas for blog posts

Check news sites for ideas for blog posts

Write blog post

Check email

Check blog

Check site meter

Lunch

Ha!! Mr. Solove is soooo candid and soooo RIGHT.

I also found this blog which had an article about what exactly is inside a twinkie. As a kid, I used to eat twinkies like a maniac. Hmm. Glad I don't eat them anymore. The same blogger also talks about how strict China is on people who are addicted to the internet. Good thing, I'm not living in China. Instead, I live here in my house where my husband tells me that I blog too much. Which reminds me...people always wonder how I have so much time on my hands. Let me just say that other people have just as much time on their hands...they just spend it doing other things like sleeping, watching TV, searching the internet for other things (man-- I've caught sooo many people doing non-work stuff at work)...so don't tell my I have too much time on my hands-- because they have too much time on their hands too!!!

I'm tired now from my mini rant. So, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to fuel my blogging addiction.

I Have a Secret

Remember how I said that every time you push out a baby out of that itty bitty hole (at least hopefully it's itty bitty), you push out a little piece of your brain (#96)? Well, I'm beginning to think that the toll it's taken on my intelligence is starting to really show.

Which brings me to my secret...sometimes I read blogs and I don't get what they're trying to say. My only thought is--huh? Did I miss something? Then I read it all over again...and still nothing. Where the heck is my brain? And why did my kids hide it from me? Maybe my brain loss metamorphosed into that extra poundage located in my tummy and thighs.

You know, I just had a thought that I was going to include in this post and I've forgotten what it was. Alas, further evidence of the steady decline.

P.S. You know what would really help me? Is if people allowed their subscribers to view their entire post rather than just the teaser. If I comment on the post-- I go to your blog site anyway. BTW sometimes, if I can't see the whole blog in my reader...I just don't read it (unless I consider you one of my blogging friends and we talk via comments left on our respective blog sites)

5 Blogs I Read...And Never Linked To

I got tagged by the ever so hilarious Oh, The Joys. I never knew that all of the crap that we, as parents, go through could be so funny. Because it sure isn't when you're actually going through it (hindsight is 20/20)...Anyway, go check her ( Oh, The Joys) out.

Oh, The Joys tagged me with a meme to list 5 blogs that I read and have never linked to. By pure laziness luck, I've started reading more blogs and commenting on them but haven't yet put them on my blogroll. So here they are...

1. Because I Must Blog A funny mommy blog by a woman with bi-racial twins...and she works (for pay...unlike me). She blogs about rude people,vaccinations, and her feet.
2. Chesca, the exskindiver. She's one of my peeps (i.e. she's filipino), a Wammer (a wife and mother -- another reason why she's one of my peeps), and an intelligent read (her blog, that is).
3. Kate, the Walking Kateastrophe. She is friends with Brillig-- that's how I found her. She blogs about the things going on in her life, including her kateastrophes. She is also sometimes...Shakira-esque.
4. Sugar Kane, who currently is MIA, but normally is single mom, a supervisor that plays funny jokes on unsuspecting newbies, and she's got a lot of spunk.
5. Janet, the wonder mom that dances too. She's got the dog from h-e-double el, has a miraculously organized purse, she's funny and she gives good advice..."Don't give up, be consistent".

Anyhoo, that's it. Please read them. They're good blogs, in fact, they are in my Google Reader Feeds. And by the way,

I also tag them for the meme.

Super Silly Search Sunday 5/20/2007

Dear heavenly readers, it's been two weeks since my last Silly Search posting. Forgive me readers, for I have sinned! I didn't do the search last weekend because of the Holiday and today, I almost forgot about it!

Before I tell you what I searched for this week, let me tell you what strange google searches brought people to my crazy wonderful blog. Yesterday, "ball sack stretching photos" brought a new reader to my blog. Thanks google! I'm now probably the number one hit for ball sacks. And just to up my relavance in those searches, I'm just going to scream BALL SACK, BALL SACK, BALL SACK!! Another search phrase used was "From My Uterus"-- which makes sense because of The Mixers post. Someone also technorati'd "Saggy Boobs". My favorite though, was the google search term..."bookworm hotties". I popped up!! So, yes, kind readers-- I'm a bookworm hottie because Google says so.

Now, time for what you've all been waiting for... drum roll. Today's Super Silly Search Phrase...

I've Got My Finger Stuck Up My Nose

This search phrase kind of reminds me of Karly's old blog layout. Or at least, that was my visual, after I came up with the search. Anyway, the number one hit (out of 1.8 million results)was a poem by Brian Patten called The Day I Got My Finger Stuck Up My Nose (the link is the cached version because the actual site brings up too many pop up windows). The funniest site that the search brought me to is I Used to Believe's website. The site contains a section on what adults believed would happen if as children, they picked their nose. The funniest one posted was:

When i was young, my parents told me that boogers were part of your brain, so to stop me from picking my nose. Logically, i thought that if i ate them, they would just go back into my brain, and no harm done. needless to say, i never wanted to blow my nose, because then that part of my brain would be lost forever!

It's amazing how many lies parents tell. At any rate, here are some of the blogs that showed up:

• Confessions of a Hypochondriac has a funny blog entry about why one of her nostrils is bigger than the other.
• The Common Wombat wrote about how he vomits incorrectly and it vomit gets lodged in his sinuses.
• This guy went to the doctor and had a "spatula stuck up his nose". But the reason I'm listing it is because he got "dooced". I think he's talking about the web designer that created the blog called Dooce. I learn something new every time I do these searches. Word to the wise: don't blog about work.
• Ali admits that her ten year old picks her nose due to genetics...
• A hilarious exchange between a mother's two kids.

That's all I can find dear readers... until next time.

Ticket Systems and Home Based Businesses

The other day, I went into Staples to buy some tickets. I had read an article on Parent Hacks about using a ticket system to monitor your child's TV consumption. I modified it to be reward system similar to what In The Trenches of Mommyhood commented in my advice solicitation post. Except that instead of using a chart, I'm using a ticket system that rewards her for doing her "chores" and allows her to redeem the tickets for TV time, a toy, Disneyland, etc... each reward requires a certain amount of tickets (kind of like at Chuck E. Cheese's-- so that she understands the concept).

It's working out pretty well for me. She L-O-V-E-S being able to collect the tickets. It's teaching her quite a few things:

• how to save
• what chores are
• how to count her tickets
• that tickets are priveleges that can be taken away...
• It also reduces the amount of times during the day that she asks if she can watch cartoons.

Things have definitely improved. I'll let you know how it goes.

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While I was at Staples, I picked up a magazine called "Get Rich At Home" . The cover story was "Home Based 100 - 100 Surefire Money-Makers to Run From Home". I thought quite a few of you would be interested in the article. Especially if your a SAHM or a Part Timer or maybe even a mom that would like to make extra money. I'm not going to list all 100 (you'll have to pick up the magazine for that) but I thought I'd point out some of the ones that I thought were pretty good:

• Special Events Videos/DVDs - get paid to make videos of special gatherings.
• Calligraphy Service/Special Invitation Marketing - get paid to address invitations
• Parties for Kids - This would be awesome for a lot of you party planning moms
• Keepsake Albums - Perfect for the scrapbooker (you can charge per page)
• Howdy Neighbor Service - Get paid by merchants to include them in your get to know the neighborhood package
• Computer Tutor
• Kidproof Homes
• 900 # Entreprenuer (this would be kind of funny)
• Child Care Center (I've thought about doing this before)

Well, the list goes on, but those were my favorite.

Double the Memes Double the Fun

I got tagged for a couple of Meme's. The first one is from Shauna at Pass The Chocolate. The rules are simple, give five reasons why you love blogging (not hard at all) and tag five other bloggers. No tag backs either but be sure to let them know who tagged you. I'm going to be lazy however and say that I'm tagging anyone that has not yet done EITHER meme:

5 Reasons Why I Blog:

1. It's good to know that there are other people going through the same torture thing situations that I am. (You guys also give some decent advice)
2. It's like selectable instant messaging (and at my own reading pace).
3. It's better than reading chick lit (and shorter)
4. It allows me to vent.
5. I've met lots of cool people.

So mosey on and complete that meme-- don't forget to give me some linky love.

I was also tagged by Christy at Christy's Coffee Break for an In The Spotlight Meme. Please check her site for the rules .

I've chosen to do all the questions:

When did you start blogging?December 2006

Is this your first meme?No

What do you hope to accomplish with your blog?Nothing really. Maybe entertain some people and let my family/friends know what's going on (or not going on)in my life.

What are your feelings on the "blog popularity" issue?I'm not sure what the issue is. I'd love to be popular though. I've always been a nerd.

What's your favorite childhood memory?My birthdays.

What makes your blog unique?Moi. I think the title is pretty unique. There are Confessions of a Bookworm but no "former" bookworm.

If you were stranded on a deserted island what three things would you want to have with you?My family, unlimited supply of food, a Wal Mart or Target

Are you a spiritual person?Not as much as I used to be.

Do your moral values affect the way that you blog, and if yes, how?Um, no. I don't think I really blog about anything that involves moral issues.

What is the weirdest thing that ever happened to you?At one point, I was having dreams about friends/family getting pregnant. I was right about every single one for the first 2 years.

What is your best quality?I learn things pretty quickly (except when it comes to gambling games)

What is your worst quality?I have a short temper.

So mosey on and complete this meme too-- don't forget to give me some linky love.

Missed You Guys

Hi all! Sorry for the hiatus. I took it off for the obvious holiday on Sunday...so no Super Silly Search Sunday on Mother's Day. Hope everyone had a good one. I'll do a real post later but I just want to check in. Now, if you excuse me, I have over a hundred posts awaiting my reading eyes in my Google reader.

The Mixers

As a mother of two racially diverse children, I was quite fascinated with this article by Peggy Orenstein from Parenting.com. The author of the article is a Caucasian woman that is the mother of a child that is racially half Japanese and half Caucasian (i.e. her husband is a Japanese American and she's blonde and blue eyed). Her daughter looks more Asian than Caucasian and this is an excerpt of what happened:

... while I was jogging in place in the galley trying to lull Daisy into a nap (and, as a side effect, working off the pregnancy weight), another passenger noticed us. "What a beautiful baby," she cooed and, before I could even smile in acknowledgment, added, "Where did you get her?"

This woman was a complete stranger!! I can only imagine the horror. If my kids looked completely like The Breadwinner, I'm sure someone would probably mistake me as the nanny (this actually happened to a friend of mine). Luckily mine do look like they are part Asian. But I wonder what people would say if I was the Caucasion and The Breadwinner was Asian. Anyway, the best is her new comeback for people that ask her where she got her daughter from:

From my uterus. I loved it. It was insouciant, surprising, and it stopped further conversation in its tracks. Best of all, it works. Every time. Where did you get her? From my uterus. Is she from China or Korea? From my uterus.

HA! Take that--ignorant strangers!

I've always wanted mestizo children-- because I think they're beautiful. But after reading the article, I kind of wonder if growing up Hapa (half asian/half white) will make things difficult for my kids in the future. Eh, who am I kidding, my kids are going to grow up to be Hotties and EVERYONE loves a hottie. (Can you tell I'm a proud parent?)

Anyway, It's an interesting article and voices what it's like to be asked questions about your racial ethnicity. This happens to me a lot. Sometimes I get annoyed at the ignorance (i.e. where am I from-- even though I don't have an accent or they'll ask me where my parents are from-- which BTW is from the Philippines but for all they know I could be 5th generation American) but most of the time, I just tell them that I'm Filipino because most people don't mean any harm by it.

BTW, Thanks everyone for the good advice. I may try the charting and making a list...if I can get off my slacker mommy ass.

Help! We've Fallen [into a Rut] And We Can't Get Up

Remember when I blogged about how The Princess didn't wan't to go to school? Well, for the entire month of April, I had her home with me because she complained about it so much. Like I said, why spend $600 a month if she hates it.

Well, I found another preschool that I REALLY loved. The teachers were nice, she actually was learning something (unlike the other school), her clothes come back clean, each piece of artwork she brings home is labeled with a description(from The Princess) of what The Princess drew/made... you get the picture, I love it. I love it so much, I wish I was a kid again and that I could go there. Well, she loved it the first three times she went there. This morning she woke up..."I don't wanna go to school" even though she doesn't have school today. WTF?? It was a great transition, the kids were really sweet (even the boys), she took to her Australian teacher a lot. I just don't get it. And of course, the kicker was that she says this the day after I paid for her registration for the fall. Yeah. Thanks Princess.

Plus, I think we're spoiling her. This morning she asked The Breadwinner if he was going to work and of course he said yes. So she says:

"Oh yeah. Daddy goes to work so he can pay lots of bills and buy me lots of presents."

She's also been telling us that we're not nice when we don't buy her things. Also, the bribes and threats (aka rewards and punishment) aren't working. Does anyone have advice for me? Is there another way to parent other than offering bribes and threats? We have lots and lots of trouble with sleep (and yes, we do have a routine), sharing toys (this makes play group at my house very trying and now that her her brother wants to play-- she's constantly taking away toys from him), school, getting her out the door, basically-- you name it, The Princess has problems with with it.

So it's official, I'm throwing it out there...please advise me...before all my hair turns gray.

Super Silly Search Sunday - "Britney Spears Farted in Kevin Federline's Face"

It's Sunday again! And...as you can see from the title, I searched for a "singer" and her husband. I put singer in quotes because there has been talk lately that she is a huge lip syncher. The results from my search yielded only 36,700 hits. I'm guessing it's because my search was so specific. I'm secretly hoping that this post generates some sort of link between Britney, Kevin and Farts in the Google Search Engine (I'm not sure how it works but if I search for it, say 50 times, doesn't it create some kind of correlation???).

Britney Spears Farted in Kevin Federline's Face

You know, I kinda feel sorry for Britney Spears. Most of the sites that came up had derogatory remarks about her. It must be hard having people scrutinize your every move. But sometimes she just makes some bad decisions ya know? Like marrying Kevin, chewing gum during that interview with Matt Lauer, shaving her head, hanging out with skanky Paris...the list goes on. Including these pictures. She's holding a box that says flash... how appropriate considering her boobs are about to burst out of her dress. She doesn't look very motherly, in fact, she looks a little trashy. I think she could have picked a dress that actualy fit her engorged boobs. Aside from the trashiness, she looked great in the pictures and I wish I looked like that when I was pregnant with my second child. I think fart popped up in that above post because one reader had commented that he farted on some other commentor that was defending Britney.

Another site that came up was a whole page on about.com devoted to spoofs, parodies, and jokes of Britney. Including Ask the Buddha Britney, some funny cartoons about her, a game (the object of the game is to stop the Britney Spears and Kevin Federline sex tape from reaching the public), a cartoon video of "oops I farted again" and bald "Britney" pictures.This is one that they posted from Kristin P. (Check out the others. They're pretty funny!):

There really weren't very many results that made sense. In this review of Chaotic, the writer describes a scene in the show where Britney farts in her bodyguard's face... "she farted in her bodyguard's face, picked her nose, and passed out in her own vomit, mumbling something about the burdens of fame and god-given talent." . This site posted about Britney's divorce and someone else posted that he just farted and wrote "I think my fart is bigger news than Britney getting a divorce. "

That's it folks. Everything else was kinda lame.