In My Hometown

I am one of those lucky people who loved where they grew up so much that I came back to raise my family and hopefully give them as many wonderful childhood memories as I had growing up. 

It’s a place where:

~falling asleep to the sounds of the ferry and the train horns in the distance is considered soothing

~all coffee is DEFINITELY not the same

~you can watch a great movie at the local family owned theater that only has one screen and gives popcorn to children free of charge

~virtually everything is within walking distance if you are willing to venture out

~you can have an amazing meal at your choice of several fancy little hole-in-the-wall restaurants

~there are children and retirees GALORE

~the beach is just a few minutes away (don’t get too excited, it’s not a beach by California standards, but we love it)

~the poor fountain in the center of town is always the focal point for high school pranks

~you don’t have to drive or walk very far to find nature.  There are beaches, trails, woods, and parks abound.  And the views, oh the views…mountains, water, and gorgeous sunsets. *sigh*

~people feel safe.  They care for their friends and neighbors and generally look out for one another.  They are always willing to lend a hand and they care about their community.

I love my hometown and I hope that my children will someday feel the same way!

What do you love the most about your hometown?

Linking up with The Listmaster herself for Monday Listicles and this weeks selection was chosen by the fabulous Amanda from Lilahbility.

WTF Wednesday ~ There Is Something Seriously Wrong With My Kids

As a child I knew that the holiday season started as soon as the toy magazines would arrive in the mail.  Back then it was mostly Toys R Us, Kmart, Sears (back when they used to sell a TON of toys…yeah I know, I’m dating myself with that one).  But as soon as they were in our mailbox my brother and I would negotiate which one we would look at first and the rotate until we both had made it through all of them.

After the initial looksie I began the methodical process of deciding which toys to circle and which pages to dog ear so that I would not forget to put it on my Christmas List. 

Once on the list, I would put stars next to the items that I definitely didn’t want my parents to miss.  A Christmas list is serious business people!

C’mon, you know you did the same thing!

The thing is.  My children…they don’t!! 

Okay, so I may have taken it to extremes but I had several years to build up to that extremeness. 

My boys didn’t even know what to ask Santa for this past weekend.

I mean to the point of running around the house chanting “I don’t know what to ask Santa for” over and over again. 

I had to get into the car with Big T (8) and Sweet Pea (5) on the morning of the day we were going to go see Santa and take them to the toy store so they could see what is out there. 

Did anyone else have to do that?  No?  Just me?  Thought so!

I’m either doing something really wrong or really right as their mother.

What kid doesn’t know what toy they want for Christmas?

WTF????

Wishful Thinking Christmas List

YAY!  The holiday season is finally upon us.  The season of giving! 

It really, really is my favorite time of year for so many reasons!  Watching the joy on children’s faces as they take in the magic of the season! 

But it is also Monday, and you know what that means…Monday is Listicles Day here on the Sea of Testosterone!

This week Stasha has asked us to put aside our giving mommy hearts for a brief moment and actually make a list of things we want for ourselves.  Now this was a harder task then I anticipated because I love finding the “perfect gift” for everyone on my list.  LOVE IT!  Love it so much it’s probably considered a sickness.  I will hunt and hunt for the “perfect gift.”  Even when I find something that someone would like, I keep shopping to see if I can find something better, which of course means, I’m shopping A LOT!  See, told ya…a SICKNESS!  But when it comes to making a list of things I want.  I draw a blank.  Every. Single. Year!  There isn’t much I want in the way of material things.  In fact, when we saw Santa this last weekend he asked Sweet Pea what his mommy wanted for Christmas and his answer was “Good Children.”  Ding, ding, ding, ding…we have a winner!!

But I’m going to give it my best try for today because of my love for list making!

1)      Self-cleaning bathrooms.  Three boys well four if you count my husband, four bathrooms….enough said!

2)      Everyone has heard about men and their “Mancaves.”  Well, my whole HOUSE is a giant Mancave.  I would give anything to have a little piece of my house designated lovingly as “Chickville.”

3)      I would kill for a personal Chef.  I’m tired of having to come up with creative dinner ideas for my family only to hear “ewwww I don’t think I like that.”

4)      A personal shopper.  I need HELP in the fashion department.  I am currently the Mayor of Frumpville and I’d like to step down and have someone else take over thankyouverymuch. 

5)      Diamonds!  I’m sorry, there is just nothing that makes you feel more girly then sparkly diamonds and you can never, EVER have too many!  EVER!

6)      I would love for my two older boys to stop fighting for a whole month!  What??  It’s my list right?  I can ask for the moon and stars…just this once.

7)      I would love not to have to pick up a spill of some sort for a day…just a day!

8)      I would love for my family to remember how we feel during this time of year and keep that special magic in our hearts all through the year.

9)      I would love to be able to help everyone in need.  I really would.  I feel so very blessed to have the life that I do.  Everyone, EVERYONE should feel that way.

10)    Happiness for all.  Peace on Earth might be asking a tad too much.  But if everyone were happy, really truly happy…I think it would take the human race a long, LONG way!

What are you wishing for this year??

Gone Sailing To Embrace The Chaos

Today I’ve traveled east to visit my dear friend Jamie over at her fabulous site Chosen Chaos.

Jamie is just flat out WONDERFUL we always have a great time together during #wineparty on Twitter and I was so very honored when she asked if I would participate in her fabulous meme called If I Could Turn Back Time where you get to write a letter to your 18 old self!  How FANTASTIC is that?

So please, go over to Jamie’s place and see what I’m saying to my much younger and much thinner 18 year old self!

If you are visiting from Chosen Chaos,

WELCOME!! I'm so glad you're here. May a pour you a cup of Starbucks Coffee? A little wine perhaps (my beverage of choice)??  Sit and stay awhile. 

I’m a mom to three boys….yep I said that right THREE boys. 

So I bet you wonder what I say when people ask are you GonnaTry For A Girl?

Or my thoughts on Murphy's Law now that I'm a mom.

Did you know I have a Superhero living in my house? Yep! I do!

But after all is said and done, I owe my crazy happy life to one very special gift.

 I would love for you to ride the waves of the sea with me, please leave a comment so that I may get to know YOU better too!!

Thanks so much for visiting!

Hopes

I Bet You’re Wondering….Now Why Don’t She Write?

HOLA! Como Estas?

I’m back!

Well, I’ve been back for almost a week already!

So I’m sure you’re wondering where I’ve been, right?  Why haven’t I posted anything?  Yeah okay, so maybe not…maybe that is all in my head, in my DREAMS even…but I’m going to tell you anyway. 

I came home all relaxed and with a TON of fabulous blog topics in my head.  I couldn’t wait to get back into the blogging world.  But then my world went WACKO!  Like Wow-Wow-Wiggle-Waddle-Wazzy-Woddle-WOOOO! Wacko!

First, Buggy got an ear infection and a fungal infection while I was away.  So I was expecting it, but he was so uncomfortable and clingy.  Just wanted to be with his mama!

Then BAM!

We had yet ANOTHER water issue in our home that had to be dealt with ASAP!

BAM!

Big T gets a fever of 102!

Another BAM! No…I’m not channeling Emeril.

Sweet Pea has a coughing fit in the middle of the night that lasted 3 friggin hours!

So three sick kids home for the last 4 days and they decided to share with their mommy.  SO very kind right?

The last straw?

BAM!

My Internet went kaput on my laptop. 

So needless to say the reentry into real life hit me like a falling tree!!  I must have done something to Karma in a previous life because apparently she doesn’t like me much. 

BUT, the kids seem to be on the mend, and I finally have my Internet access back so things are starting to balance out. 

But tomorrow is Thanksgiving!  How did that happen anyway?

So I’m here.  I’m back.  I’ll be flooding your inbox once again very, VERY soon you lucky, lucky readers you. 

But first, I’m taking a day to be with my family.  To show them how thankful I am for each and every one of them.

Even if they do rub their snot all over me when they give me a hug and sneeze in my coffee…

I’m thankful nonetheless. 

I’m also thankful for you.  Yep, you!  Thank you for hanging in there with me while I went away.  Thank you for welcoming me back and thank you for your patience as I got things all squared away!

Since I’ve been out of the loop lately I’m dying to know…what’s been going on with you?

WTF Wednesday ~ Do You Hear What I Hear?

I don’t know what it is about commercials that get me.  Some will make me laugh to the point of tears and other ones make me wonder who was asleep at the wheel during the production.

For others I just know someone was reverting back to their childhood days and trying to get away with something without their boss catching it.  OR they were doing it with their boss and well, that’s just all kinds of messed up.

Take this one for example

Okay, so what do you hear those little elves doped up on Helium saying?

Sure it’s a commercial for a cell phone company so you can figure it out. 

But the last time I checked, cell phone carriers were not in the business of offering an Orgy Wonderland with their plans.

I know sharing is all part of the Christmas spirit, but...WTF?? 

A Perfect Vacation

It’s time for another fantastic list for Stasha’s Monday’sListicles.  I’m really loving making these lists and reading everyone else’s lists.

I’m even more excited about this week’s topic.  Because well, I was given the honor of choosing this week’s topic and it’s all about VACATIONS.  Which is my favorite topic aside from my children of course. 

You all know how I feel about family vacations.  They aren’t vacations at all, they are adventures.

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with adventures (I’m really fond of them), sometimes a perfect vacation is just what the doctor ordered.

Here are the things that HAVE to be present in order for me to call a vacation perfect.

1. SUN!!  I live in the land of rain, so sunshine is a must for my vacations.

2. A large body of water preferably a tropical sea of some sort.  I am a water girl.  Love the sound of the water lapping up onto the shore.  I love the swimming and snorkeling you can do.  Yes, my perfect vacation needs to have water in it.  Pools are fine too, but they have to be in addition to sea. 

                                                                                                                 

3. To go along with that water there must also be sand!  There is nothing like putting your bare feet into sand that has been warmed by the sun!  NOTHING! 

4. There must be a tropical flower, fruit, or a fun umbrella in whatever I’m drinking…even if it’s just water!!  I love it!

5. There should be a wonderful server who brings these drinks.  Someone who is attentive and notices when the glass is just about empty.  It helps if there is a flag you can raise to have your server come out to the beach and take your order.  Hey now, the topic is PERFECT vacation after all.

6. A swim up bar at the pool.  Need I say more.

7. A book.  Not a computerized copy of a book.  An actual book with actual pages that I can crease and turn and basically ruin by the time I’m done.

8. There does need to be things you can do in the area if you are feeling adventurous, but if you’re not…no biggy.

9. The company!  I need to be able to enjoy the company I have on vacations.  To not feel like I have to do everything they want to do.  When it’s my husband that’s a no brainer.  Friends can get a bit tricky because you are living with them for a solid week.  Family is the same way.  Your company can make or break a vacation so choose wisely.  I haven’t been disappointed yet!

10. TIME!  I need more time while on a perfect vacation.  One week just isn’t enough, two would be ideal or hey…if I’m dreaming a month would be OUTSTANDING!

Sunday Sweetness ~ The Wonderful Man In My Life

This weeks Sunday Sweetness without a doubt goes to my husband. 

Here’s the skinny.

We bought a timeshare at our favorite place in Cabo San Lucas.  With that purchase we received a few bonus weeks one of which expired this year.

Since we went to Maui for our 10 year Anniversary in May of this year, and my mom watched all three of my boys, with all three of their schedules we didn’t want to ask her to watch them again, which I know she would have agreed to do, despite the bowing down to me when I got home from Maui (which I’m convinced she did just to make me feel like a better mom). 

So we were left wondering what to do with that extra week. 

My husband suggested that I should take my mom for a week down to Cabo. 

That’s right!  It was HIS idea for me to go away, without him or the kids and just with my mom.  Partially as a “Thank You” for all the free babysitting she’s done in the last 8 years.  But MOSTLY for my mom and I to have time together!

Back off people, he’s MINE! 

And you know what?  He’s excited to have this time with the boys.  Excited to see the things he misses on a day to day basis.  Excited to hear the stories, and share in the excitement of things when they happen instead of hours later.

HE, gets to be the parent our boys run to if they are hurt, or sad, or have a fantastic story to tell about their day at school.  HE gets to do all the things I’ve title as mundane and repetitive because I do them every single day.  But he sees it as something new.

Did I leave a list a mile long about all things I do on a daily basis and the running schedule I have in my head?  You can bet your bottom dollar I did.  #ControlFreak!

But!

Do I feel he can handle it?  Absolutely!  I even think he will do a better job than I do on any given day (because who can’t rise to the occasion for a week?). 

But after all is said and done.  He gave me a gift.

Sure we bought the timeshare together.  We live under the whole “what’s his is mine and what’s mine is negotiable mentality” (not really, but I FRIGGIN LOVE that saying).  But he spoke up.  HE said that I should do this.  HE had to talk me into it. 

And for that?  The man surely deserves a trophy right?

Okay, that may be going a bit too far. 

But at the very least he deserves a Sunday Sweetness post expressing my deepest gratitude for his genius idea that puts me sitting here sipping a margarita under a palapa with my mom!

So thank you my love!  You are AMAZING!!

What selfless thing has your significant other done for you??

It’s Not You, It’s Me

So most of you know I’m on vacation right now in Cabo San Lucas Mexico.  If you don’t know, man oh man, I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again…get yourself on Twitter!!  Not just to keep up with me (but why wouldn’t you want to) but for the vast amount of knowledge that is shared there!!    

I’m unplugging….for a whole week.

In the blogging world that usually implies an understandable bloggy burnout.  I’ve learned very quickly (as we all do) that blogging can take a toll on you and you need to just walk away sometimes.

But that’s not the case for me.  I don’t have bloggy burnout. I actually spent the last few days vacillating between which computer devices I want to take with me to “stay connected.”  Turns out, laptop, iPad, and the iPhone are just a bit too much for me to bring to Mexico. 

No my burnout is of a different sort.

I’m in a Mommy Burnout!

So I planned this trip a long time ago, even BEFORE I started blogging…GASP!  It is going to be a fun week away with no children and no husband just me and my mom for a mother-daughter getaway! 

My mom, I LOVE my mom.  We have so much fun together.  We used to go out on mother-daughter weekend getaways here locally.  But the last time we did that was before I got pregnant with Sweet Pea so that is basically 6 years ago.  This time?  This time we are doing it up BIG!

We are going to have a BLAST!

As far as blogging goes, I am of course going to have stuff for you fabulous people to read.  I’m too much of a control freak not to.  Wait, did I just admit that?  DAMN that was supposed to be a secret! 

But what I won’t be able to do, and what I really do feel badly about…is read and comment on all your fabulous blogs. 

Hear this!

I LOVE to read your words.  You inspire me.  You make me think.  You make me cry.  You make me go and hug my children just a little bit longer that evening. You make me laugh. 

I want to be able to tell you these things every time you put yourself out there with your posts.  But for one week, I won’t be able to.

Now I know you don’t rely on my comments for validation (hardly).  I realize that I’m not the end all be all to your comment feed.  Far freaking from it.  But I wanted to let you know that I will miss reading your thoughts, your insight, and your humor.

I promise I will be up and running in a weeks time!

And you better watch out.  Because this mama is going to have blogging/tweeting/commenting withdrawals and there’s no telling what she will do when I get back!

Will I think about you ABSOLUTELY! Will I go out of my way to spend a bazillion dollars just to connect with you via my phone (oh yeah, I checked into it), nope.  But that doesn’t mean I don’t love you or want to know what you’re thinking.

It just means that I’m in Mommy Burnout mode.  I’m taking a break for station identification and will be back soon.

Hasta La Vista Baby!

I will raise a Margarita in honor of each of my readers.  Well, okay.  Not each and EVERY one of you because that would land me in a Hospital in a foreign country and THAT is something I would like to avoid at all costs!

So I will catch you on the flip side and I expect a full report about what I’ve missed when I get back! 

Since I’m in paradise, what is your favorite tropical drink??

Wordless Wednesday ~ Seasons Over

It's been a LONG season.

But the boys had a great time and are already excited for next year.  Me?  Well I'm ready to put these things away

And not have to look at them, until next year.

Goodbye Soccer Season.  It's been fun. 

{Linking up for Wordy-Wordless Wednesday with the fantastic By Word of Mouth Musings, Live and Love...Outloud, Angry Julie Monday, and Merry With Children}

10 High School Memories

This week is such a fun week for Stasha’s Monday Listicles because the fabulous Lovelinks got to choose the topic and even created a cute button to go with it.  The topic is High School. 

But, before I start on this week’s list I have to tell you how VERY excited I am to have been chosen to come up with next week’s topic.  Little Ol’ Me was actually asked to come up with a Monday Listicles topic.  I swear I must be dreaming right??  I’m honored, so very honored.  But along with this honor comes a bit of pressure.  I mean there are some great topics out there.  I don’t want to let all the wonderful listicles people down now do I?

So I had a ton of ideas run through my head.  But I kept coming back to one.

I’ve talked about how I just started embracing Fall.  Well it seems Winter is here already!  How did that happen??  I’m not ready!  So in protest I will be going on a vacation later this week.  And by vacation I mean a REAL vacation.  No kids, no husband, just me and my mom for a whole week in Cabo San Lucas.  So next week’s Monday Listicles topic is:

10 things that make a perfect vacation.

Have fun with it, spin it however you’d like!  I can’t wait to read them all!! 

And now, here are 10 of my High School Memories.

Being in High School during the early 90’s in the Pacific Northwest really was, well…lets say interesting!  I have a lot of fantastic memories of High School but there are a few that stand out.

1.  One word.  FLANNEL.  I never wore so much flannel in all my life.

2.  The footwear.  You basically wore three things.  Keds.  KSwiss   And my personal favorite…Birkenstocks with socks for every. Single. season.  You wear them with jeans and flannel shirts in the fall and winter, and shorts in the spring and summer.  They were extremely versatile and extremely UGLY!  HA!

3.  All the many, many concerts I performed while in the select choir called the Mello-Aires.  We performed at a used car lot and the fanciest hotel downtown and everywhere in between.

4.  Along the same lines of our select choir.  We were able to march in the Inaugural Parade for President Clinton and then later that week, in Disney World.  Band/Choir geek or not, that was a pretty amazing trip and one I will remember forever.

5.  School dances.  Looking back it seems we had dances for everything.  There was the homecoming dance (which wasn’t formal by the way…yes I’m still bitter), Winter Formal, and Tolo’s up the yin-yang.  Didn’t matter if it was formal, or if you were in a safari costume (yep…I was).  They always, ALWAYS played Billy Idol’s song Mony Mony.  And of course, everyone in the school changed the lyrics!  For the record, Billy Idol’s lyrics were much better. 

6.  Football games. These were the most memorable because of the friends and not the game itself.  Well, friends and a little candy.  This candy I’m referring to are those “O” shaped gummi candies that taste like apple or peach or something like that.  Of course these candies were re-named by a certain friend who brought them to every game.  The new name was “penis-rings.”  Childish, immature and stupid right?  Abso-freakin-lutely.  But it was High School.  I can name a bunch of things that fall into that category.

7.  I can’t make a list about high school without mentioning my car accident.  It was a HUGE part of my high school life.

8.  Skipping school in the afternoons in the spring time, like A LOT to go down to the beach and play volleyball, have a BBQ, more volleyball.  It was HEAVEN!

9.  Glasses.  I had contacts, but I was up so darn early in the morning for my select choir class I never wore them.  I should have.  I look back at so many of my pictures in high school wondering why the hell I didn’t wear my friggin contacts!! 

10.  Friends.  They made my high school memories what they are, plain and simple.  They were there for me in my times of need, celebrating my times of triumphs, and reassuring in my times of uncertainty.  I couldn’t have made it through High School without them.

Six Words Sunday ~ 4 Days Until I’m Cabo-Bound

Sun-kissed Cabo.  Margaritas, fun, relaxation.  Bliss.   

I’ll BEE Cruising Today!

That’s right.  I’m taking a cruise.

Well not a REAL one…I WISH!

But I am taking myself on an imaginary cruise up to my Northern neighbor to BEE with one of my favorite people in the Blogosphere.  She is so very sweet, kind and supportive and her blog was one of the first ones I started reading religiously when I started on my blogging adventure. 

I’m so incredibly honored to be able to say that I’m over at Bruna’s place today.  She is the amazing talent behind Bees With Honey.  She is the stunning mother of three GORGEOUS little girls and she writes about her life.  I can’t wait to meet her someday, SOON I hope.  She also has an amazing feature on her fabulous blog called Let’s Bee Friends where you can link up and meet new people?  How fantastic is that?? 

So please go and visit me over there today.  I’m shedding a little light on what makes me, ME. 

If you are visiting from Bees With Honey,

                  

WELCOME!! I'm so glad you're here. May a pour you a cup of Starbucks Coffee? A little wine perhaps (my beverage of choice)??  Sit and stay awhile. 

I’m a mom to three boys….yep I said that right THREE boys. 

So I bet you wonder what I say when people ask are you GonnaTry For A Girl?

Or my thoughts on Murphy's Law now that I'm a mom.

Did you know I have a Superhero living in my house? Yep! I do!

But after all is said and done, I owe my crazy happy life to one very special gift.

 I would love for you to ride the waves of the sea with me, please leave a comment so that I may get to know YOU better too!!

Thanks so much for visiting!

Hopes

Wordy Wordless Wednesday ~ Halloween Round-Up

The questions started early in the morning before breakfast.

Mommy, when can we go Trick or Treating?

After school

Mommy, can we go Trick or Treating NOOOOWW?

Right as my husband walked through the door.

Mommy, Daddy is home lets go, lets, go, LETS GOOOO!!!!

It wasn’t looking good and two little boys were on the verge of panicking.

Okay, Okay I say.  Let’s get you guys into your costumes and we will take our pictures.

They were so excited to just be in their costumes.  They spent the next 30-45 minutes “practicing” their doorbell ringing, Trick or Treat asking and “Thank You” techniques. 

Then they took it upon them selves to save the world and rid it from all it’s evil candy.  It’s a tough job.

Then I asked for Just ONE more picture with their baby brother! This of course turned into twelve pictures before I could get Buggy to look at me.

Finally!  We were off.  Had a fantastic time at our friends house for pizza, wine (adults only of course gesh) and trick or treating in their neighborhood. 

Then it was off to Nana and Papa’s house for pictures galore and some awesome Halloween presents!

Then back to our neighborhood for the final wave of Trick or Treating. 

At the end of the night I had three very happy and excited little boys.

Well, wouldn’t you be?  Look at this haul!!

Here’s hoping our children come down from their sugar high sometime this week!! 

Linking up with the fabulous Nicole at By Word Of Mouth Musings because I think this fabulous Bat should be named HARVEY!

And also with the amazing Jessica at Four Plus An Angel  and Tracy at Sellabit Mum for Boo In The Blogosphere

And of course since all the pictures were taken with my iPhone Camera, I'm linking up again for #iPPP

Sharing My Two Cents

Happy Happy Halloween everyone!! 

I hope everyone is having a fantastic day and enjoying all the festivities of this creative and fun holiday!  May your costumes be epic and your Halloween Candy buckets be plentiful.




As with any holiday, even the ones that require costumes, I believe you should surround yourself with people you love.

So, I have floated myself on over to Tammy’s Two Cents place today to give my two cents about what friendship means to me in her fabulous Blog Hop!! 

So come and visit me over there because I’m talking about you, and you, and you,and even you. 

Because friendship is where it’s at for me! 

Sunday Sweetness ~ A Normal Day

For the last few weeks we’ve been living in chaos.

There have been water damage repair companies, plumbers, insurance adjusters, contractors, contractors, more insurance adjusters, and did I mention contractors? in our house.

There have been fans, dehumidifiers, and plastic containment barriers up in our home.

There is no immediate end to the chaos in the near future.  We need to get used to this being a way of life for the next few months.

But last Friday? 

Friday was the first day in over 2 weeks where we didn’t have some stranger come into our home to look at something, or test something, or do something, or quote something. 

No, Friday we woke up had breakfast, and ran errands just like any normal day.  I got to play with my two younger boys.  Buggy was calm and not scared and clingy like he had been for the last two weeks because of the sheer volume of strangers in our home.

I got to put Buggy down for a nap.  ON TIME!  And he slept so well.

I got to rock with Sweet Pea, read him a few books and then let him have quiet time while I went downstairs and sat in the silence of the house. 

By the time Big T got home from school everyone was up and rested and ready to have some fun. 

It was a typical normal day, and I LOVED every minute of it.

I will think back and remember that day whenever I feel myself feeling antsy because I need to be “doing something” other than they typical normal day-to-day stuff.

Because sometimes a normal day is just what the doctor ordered.

Do you find pleasure in your normal day?

Mommy Mush Brain

People warn you.

Mothers, grandmothers, friends…the warnings come from all over.

They come fast and furious.

They come by way of “enjoy your brain now sweetie because once you’re pregnant it all goes bye-bye.”

Ah yes, pregnancy brain.

For me that meant a certain amount of fogginess that just never went away. Pair the fogginess with hormonal emotions and you’ve got flying blueberry pancakes and a major breakdown over the texture of the nursery walls.

After you give birth, more warnings come.

“If you thought pregnancy brain was tough just wait until mommy brain.”

Ummm yeah….mommy brain?  Mommy brain is tough! 

Early on mommy brain meant not remembering if I showered, brushed my teeth or had a meal that day. 

It meant trying to remember how many ounces of formula my baby had and how long ago he had it. 

It meant trying to remember all the stats and percentages after a well baby visit at the pediatricians’ office.

After getting out of the infant baby stage and you’re starting to sleep through the night you think that you will finally get your normal non-pregnancy, non-mommy brain back. 

Yeah, that doesn’t happen.

Well at least it hasn’t happened for me yet and I’ve been waiting and looking for it.

Mommy brain sticks around well past the baby stage because now what you are trying to remember is not just meals and doctors appointments.

In addition NOW you have to keep school work, activities, field trips, and parties in your brain.  You have to keep soccer practice, games, and snack schedules in your brain.  Don’t forget the pick up and drop off times (for school and sports) You have to keep dentist, and hair appointments in your brain.  Not to mention all the typical household stuff like if everyone has enough clean underwear or not.

Sure an organizer and calendar help, IF you remember to look at it.  But then again, that is one more reminder to keep in your brain.

AND if you have more than one child you have to keep all of it straight and try not to mix it up between the kids. 

This usually results in you calling one child by every other name in the household (including the dogs) before actually getting to his real and actual name. 

So after a long day of remembering everything listed above and then some by the time the evening rolls around I don’t just have Mommy Brain, but Mommy Mush Brain.

It hits about the same time every night, right around 7-8pm.  You ask me a question and I’ve got the “deer caught in headlights” look as a response. 

There is nothing left.  My brain feels like Cinderella after the ball, except I’m not the princess who goes from wearing a gorgeous gown to rags.  My brain is the gorgeous flowing carriage that turns into a pumpkin and then gets trampled on by horses.

And that….that is Mommy Mush Brain!

Do you get Mommy Mush Brain as much as I do?

Embracing Fall

Okay, most of you know that I've seriously been fighting the arrival of Fall, mostly because we didn't really ever HAVE a REAL summer this year.



But I've finally caved.  The crispness in the air, the changing colors, the rain. I simply cannot deny it anymore.



But there is another more compelling reason why I've resigned to the fact that Fall is actually here.



Those of you who aren't on Twitter, first...why the heck not? And second, you may not know that I recently got my very first iPhone.  See if you were on Twitter you would totally known this! 



I’m not going to lie.  I’m having a TON of fun with it since getting it only last week.  One of my favorite parts about it is the camera.  I’m finding myself taking all kinds of pictures I never would have before because of how easy it is to do with my new iPhone.  Which also means I can finally participate in the #iPPP (iPhone Photo Phun) meme that I've been dying to link up to! 



So here I am, finally willing and ready to embrace Fall:

By enjoying my hot coffee on cool brisk mornings while waiting at the bus stop with Big T.

By taking in all the vibrant changing colors of the fall leaves 

And by picking the perfect pumpkin at the patch with my kids.

Bring it Fall!  But please stick around for a little while, because I'm definitely not ready for winter yet!

{Also linking up for Wordy-Wordless Wednesday with the fantastic By Word of Mouth Musings, Live and Love...Outloud,  Angry Julie Monday, and Merry With Children}