Pictures.

I decided it was time to upload a few pictures. I'm sure there will be more after Halloween.

All The King's Horses.... October 2014 Funny Friday

Today’s post is October’s Funny Friday, a regular feature published on the last Friday of every month (We are posting early this month, due to the holiday). Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by The Bergham’s Life Chronicles (http://berghamchronicles.blogspot.com/) Yes, that's ME!!!

1. Sit on a cloud, they said. It will be fun, they said.

2. I should've taken a few extra skydiving lessons. I just don't think I'm doing it right.

3. Look, Mom, I'm flyinnnnnnng.

4. Obviously, I'm going to get there way before the chicken. 

5. I hope the King's men stocked up on Krazy Glue.

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile:

Sanity Waiting to Happen http://angelaweight.com

Cluttered Genius http://www.clutteredgenius.com

Stacy Sews and Schools http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com

Follow me home http://followmehome.shellybean.com

Baking In A Tornado http://www.BakingInATornado.com

Someone Else’s Genius http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com

Confessions of a part-time working mom http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/

The Momisodes http://themomisodes.com

I hope you all have a happy and safe Halloween next week!!! Feel free to let me know what you and/or your children are dressing up as this year!!!

Bump.

Yesterday was Embee's eleventh birthday. My mind is blown. She was four, when Chadski and I started dating. Now, she is eleven. How did that even happen??

While searching for a small gift for Embee (she got all her gifts last weekend, but I decided we should give her something small on her actual birthday), we ended up at TJMaxx. We found an electronic basketball hoop. It hangs on the back of a door and is interactive.

Lately, we've been playing with the suction cup hoop on the back of our door. A lot. I'm not so good. Chadski is decent. Weewee is the best rebound girl ever. We have fun. Why we didn't just buy the electronic hoop, I don't know.

At around 7 pm last night, I was crawling into the car, and going to buy our hoop. The hoop we should've bought earlier in the afternoon. It was fine. I bought it and home it came.

Chadski masterfully assembled it, with a bit of help from Weewee, and we were shooting hoops in no time. We were having fun. Weewee was having fun. In the midst of her fun and excitement,  Weewee started to do her twirling, and she was really into it. Twirling is new for her. She's only been doing it for a few weeks. She loves it. It's fun to watch, and her joy is infectious.

So, here we are... a joyous basketball playing, twirling family... and then it happened. Weewee fell. She fell hard, face/forehead first, into her wooden toy box. The sound isn't something I'll forget anytime soon.

I screamed. Chadski scooped her up. She cried. I hyperventilated. It was horrible. She had a huge bump on her forehead, and it was bright read. Chadski put frozen peas on it. I held her.

I was so scared. I'm a new mom. I don't trust myself. So, I called Nana Cici for backup. Since she didn't answer, we headed over to her house. She met us at the door, and went into Doctor Nana mode. We decided to treat it with frozen peas and keep her awake for a bit.

We returned home and Chadski kept her occupied,  while I sat and watched her like a hawk. Then she puked. Then I panicked. Her doctor was called. The on call physician was contacted. We waited for a call back. We finally were told to bring her to the ER. The puking could be normal, or it could be a sign of something horrible.

We went to the ER. Waited and waited and waited. The doctor was fabulous, and I'm not just saying that, because he said Weewee was genuinely one of the most beautiful babies he's ever seen.

He was thorough and calm. I think he knew I was a mess inside. He calmed me and kept me informed. We finished her observation, received our instructions, and came home.

Being out until 3:15 in the morning is far from our norm. Chadski and Weewee went to bed. I stayed up for hours, watching Weewee closely. Finally, I slept.

So far so good. She woke up in a good mood. Ate breakfast like normal. She seems fine. I'm grateful. I'm sure one day, I'll tell her the story about the bump she got on Embee's eleventh birthday. I'm sure we may even laugh. For today, I'll hug her tight and remain grateful.

Owl always love Fall.... Use Your Words October 2014!

Today’s post is a writing challenge. This is how it works: participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once and all the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That’s the challenge, here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the writer will take them. Until now.

At the end of this post you’ll find links to the other blogs featuring this challenge. Check them all out, see what words they got and how they used them. 

My words are: 

Candy Corn ~ Costumes ~ Chili ~ Banana Peppers

They were submitted by: http://followmehome.shellybean.com     Thank you for such great words! 

It's Fall y'all!!! I love Fall. I truly love Fall. Now, I will confess, I used to be a lover of Winter. That was before I lived in Buffalo, New York, for five years. Five long, freezing cold years. That ended my love of Winter and snow. Permanently. Then for a short time, I LOVED Summer. I still do, just not as much as I did. Now, I am a steadfast lover of all things Fall. I am not sure if it is because I live in California, and Fall is amazing here, or if it is just that I now realize the true wonderfulness of Fall. Either way, Fall and I are BFFs. 

I think the only things I don't like about Fall are candy corn and spider decorations. The hot cocoa, falling leaves of various colors, pumpkins, apples, hay rides, apple cider, Football (Go Packers!!!), etc etc - all that I love. I love Fall foods in general. Caramel apples, pumpkin bars, apple cobbler, Pumpkin Spice Lattes, apple cider, stews, chili, turkey, cranberries... I could go on and on. It is all so yummy, If I were forced to pick a favorite, I think I would pick chili. I love meaty chili and bean filled chili and mild chili and spicy chili. I especially love it full of peppers, but please no banana peppers. Not sure why, but I do not like how they taste. 

Here are a few chili recipes:
Crockpot Beef Chili from Baking in a Tornado
White Chili from Baking in a Tornado
Black Bean and Stout Chili

This year, Fall is a bit special. Weewee is fifteen months old, and she is really developing by leaps and bounds. Every day she grows, her vocabulary grows, and her view of the world grows. She will be sixteen months old, by the time Halloween is here. This will be her first year dressing up and going Trick or Treating, It may be her only year. I am not decided yet. I knew we would definitely let her go out this year. I looked everywhere for just the right costume. They tend to cost a small fortune and I tend to not like any I find. Finally, we found some cute costumes at Costco, and they were under $20! Win! So, this year Miss Weewee will be... pause for dramatic effect.... an owl! The cutest little owl ever! Okay, I may be biased, but she is darn cute! I will definitely post pics! If Daddy had it his way, she would have been the cutest little shark ever, but luckily Mama got her way! Yay! 

We attended the local Pumpkin Festival this past weekend. We had a fun time. We went through a haunted house, and I fell on my booty in front of a ton of people. Yay! Haha! It really was a fun time. I am certain it will be even more fun next year, when Weewee will be able to be more interactive. We are planning on going to the local pumpkin patch, and enjoying their corn maze and hay ride. I also would love to make a trip up to Apple Hill, and pick a few apples. We do not really have any traditions, so this year and next, I plan on starting as many as I can. I know they will change and evolve as Weewee grows, and that will be great.

I really hope she grows to love Fall as much as I do. I hope she never takes any interest in Winter or snow. I will be a sad Mama if I have to trek to the snow, and let her experience it. I am still traumatized from my years in Buffalo. I am just not ready for snow yet. Maybe one day. Maybe.

Do you have any Fall traditions? I'd love to hear about them. I am open to ideas and suggestions, on what to start with Weewee. What is your favorite season? Are you a Fall person, like me, or does a different season strike your fancy? 

I hope you all have a fabulous Friday and a wonderful weekend!


Links to the other “Use Your Words” posts:

http://www.BakingInATornado.com                    Baking In A Tornado

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/             Spatulas on Parade

http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com/        Stacy Sews and Schools

http://followmehome.shellybean.com                Follow me home

http://batteredhope.blogspot.com                     Battered Hope 

http://www.eviljoyspeaks.wordpress.com           Evil Joy Speaks

http://themomisodes.com                                  The Momisodes
http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com                Someone Else’s Genius   

http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/                   Confessions of a part-time working mom

http://www.crumpetsandbollocks.com               Crumpets an Bollocks

http://sparklyjenn.blogspot.com/                       Sparkly Poetic Weirdo

http://eileensperpetuallybusy.wordpress.com/   Eileen’s Perpetually Busy  

Thanks for taking the time to read this! I hope you enjoy all the Use Your Word posts this month! I hope you all have a wonderful Fall!!!!!!!!!!!!

Word to your mother.

Doggy. Mama. Daddy. Sasha. Night night. Ear. Shoe. Shark. No. Nose. Five. Uh oh. Ball. Balloon. Bottle. Oh yeah. Nana. Up. Banana. Eat. You. Light. Bye. Baby. Doll. Cup. Color. Pretty. Tickle. Hi. Keys. Cookies. Go. Book. Sock. Choo choo. Molly. 

This is a list of the words Weewee can say thus far. I feel like I'm forgetting one or two.

My Rant. October 2014 Secret Subject Swap

It's that time again! Welcome to a Secret Subject Swap. This week, 14 brave bloggers picked a secret subject for someone else and were assigned a secret subject to interpret in their own style. Today we are all simultaneously divulging our topics and submitting our posts for all the world to read! 

My “Secret Subject” is:

Is 2014 anything like you pictured it would be 20 years ago?

It was submitted by: http://themomisodes.com  

(Thank you for this fabulous subject, Sarah!! Thank you for assigning this subject to me, Karen!! Perfect timing eh?!)

Twenty years ago, I was eleven, and the thought of 2014 was mind blowing. It was 1994, and to be honest, many things were mind blowing to me. I lived a very sheltered life in many ways. I never really went to a real mall or rode an escalator until I was nearly 14. I did not go to the movies until I was almost 13. I experienced a lot during my childhood, and yet there was a lot I never experienced.

If you had asked me in 1994, what I thought 2014 would be like, I definitely think I would have said there would be flying cars and robots everywhere. I would have probably said that people would make trips to the moon, like as if they were simply going to the grocery store. I definitely would have described 2014 as being extremely high tech. I would have been correct... sort of.

We definitely live in a high tech world. I think it is high tech in ways I never would have imagined. If you had told me that we would all (for the most part everyone) walk around with mobile phones and use social media sites, I don't know that I would have believed you. I never would have imagined myself to be somebody that would use a website to share details of my life and pictures with friends. The thought definitely would have seemed extremely silly to eleven year old me. In some ways, I think it is silly to thirty-one year old me, but at the same time, it makes perfect sense.

If you had told me in 1994, that we would mostly use our mobile phones as anything but phones, I would have laughed. I would have asked what is the point of that? I am living it, and I find myself asking that. Why do we use our phones as anything but a phone? How many people do you know that won't answer when you call them, but immediately text you back? I think the vast majority of people choose texting for Facebook communication over actual talking.

I am on the fence about whether or not it is a good thing or a bad. I think it is a good thing, that can definitely be bad. I love to text. It is simple and easy. I can text and care for Weewee, much easier than I can speak on the phone and care for Weewee. Weewee is a very vocal fifteen month old! (YES! Can you believe it! It is the 28th of September as I am writing this, and she turned 15 months old yesterday! It is crazy!) 

I do think a lot of the social aspect of communication is lost in texting and social media. For one thing, it is very easy to misinterpret the mood/emotions behind written word. Far too often people are too quick to anger over things that are said, simply because they read into them emotions that weren't there. Also, sarcasm is often lost in text. That is sad, because I am sarcastic quite often. 

Another thing that gets lost in the mix, is individual communication. We so often announce things to the whole, and sometimes forget the individuals. This happens to me far more often than I would like. I have found out far too much personal information through public Facebook posts, than I would like to admit. I find out things publicly, that I definitely should have found out privately. 

Here are a few examples of things I found out publicly, that I would have rather found out through a phone call or text, before the big public announcement... multiple births/pregnancies and engagements. My sister was in a car accident. Several deaths. My mom moving. A few divorces. Several people having illnesses/cancer.

It really frustrates me that people do not seem to care enough to message or call me, and tell me these deeply personal things. They think it is perfectly okay to just let me find out with the rest of the world. By people I mean my own family and my closest friends. If you had told eleven year old me, that people would tell me personal things in such a public manner, I really think I would have laughed at you. I do not think I ever would have thought that possible.

I am here to tell you all that I am hurt by this. I am also done with it. I have made up my mind that if people don't care enough to tell me things in a form of personal communication, than I will not longer afford them this courtesy. I am always texting/calling people to tell them things. No more. It is so hurtful and really makes me feel like because I live so far away, that I just don't matter as much. If this is the truth, so be it. 

I love social media. I think it is a fabulous thing. I think in many ways, it has hindered interpersonal relationships. I live thousands of miles from the people I love most. This has been the case for most of my life. I guess it is an "out of sight, out of mind" situation. This makes me sad, because honestly family and friendships are everything to me. My family that I have not seen in decades, mean just as much to me as the folks I see daily. Family is family. 

I am going to challenge everyone that reads this, to make a conscious effort to always maintain your interpersonal relationships with those that matter to you. Never let technology and social media hinder them. Don't let public announcements be how those that are personal touched by the news, be how they find out. Care enough to text/call/visit those you should, before you make everything known publicly. 

Most recently I found out via Facebook that my mom was moving thousands of miles. I was upset. That is a major life change, and nobody thought to tell me. I was told that everyone thought somebody else had told me. Luckily, I found out in time to pray for the remainder of her trip to be safe.

I also found out yesterday, via Facebook, that my cousin died. I cannot even go there, and tell you how this made me feel. I just would like to ask all of your to pray for my family, and most especially my beloved Auntie and Uncle. Death is never easy, but I always find the death of younger folks to be even harder. I really wish I were closer to my family, and able to be involved more. Unfortunately, I am far away, and rarely involved in anything. My heart, love, thoughts, and prayers are with them all now. I pray that we can all find the comfort we need. 

Donald, I am sorry we did not get to spend much more time together. I do love you, Cousin. I always will. May you forever and always rest in eternal peace. 

So, no, 2014 is absolutely nothing like I thought it would be twenty years ago. It lacks in advancements I thought we would have, and has many advancements I never could have even dreamed up. I will say, on a side note, eleven year old me had a horrible sense of direction, as does thirty-one year old me, so I am so completely grateful that 2014 has GPS! Can I get an amen?! I can't possibly be the only one that would (literally) be lost without GPS eh? 

Is 2014 anything like you imagined it would be twenty years ago? How is it the same? How does it differ? Any piece of technology you are particularly grateful for? 

Here are links to all the sites now featuring Secret Subject Swap posts.  Sit back, grab a cup, and check them all out. See you there:

http://www.BakingInATornado.com                    Baking In A Tornado

http://themomisodes.com                                   The Momisodes

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/              Spatulas on Parade

http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com/         Stacy Sews and Schools

http://www.eviljoyspeaks.wordpress.com            Evil Joy Speaks

http://dinoheromommy.com/                              Dinosaur Superhero Mommy

http://www.silenceofthemom.blogspot.com        Silence of the Mom

http://climaxedtheblog.blogspot.com                  Climaxed  

http://sparklyjenn.blogspot.com/                         Sparkly Poetic Weirdo

http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com                  Someone Else’s Genius

http://www.crumpetsandbollocks.com                 Crumpets and Bollocks

  http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/                   Confessions of a part-time working mom

http://www.smalltalkmama.com                           Small Talk Mama

As always, thank you all for taking the time to read this! I hope you all have a great Friday and an amazing weekend! 

Funny Friday- September 2014.

Today’s post is September’s Funny Friday, a regular feature here published on the last Friday of every month. Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by Stacy Sews and Schools (http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com).

1. What did we get ourselves into?

2. Did we get them all? 

3. What was that?

4. (Girl, front right) What was I thinking picking them as teammates? I am doomed!

5. My thoughts... I have never seen this ride and know nothing about it. So, as I was studying the picture, I was wondering what the ride is and what goes on. I have really not ridden any amusement park rides. I have never been to Disneyland or Disney World. Looking at this picture made me want to go ride some rides. So, I have decided to put that on my bucket list. I want to ride at least a roller coaster and a Ferris wheel. Also, I have made a promise to myself, that I will let Weewee be a kid. I will let her go to fairs and ride rides. Something I did not get to do. I will admit, it is a scary thought, but she deserves a full and fun childhood. Now, anyone willing to tell me about the ride in this picture? Where is it? What happens during it? Stacy?

Thank you, Stacy, for an awesome picture. I am sorry I couldn't do a better job with it, but I think my lack of experience with rides really led to me drawing a blank. I did imagine there being scary creatures, that you had to spray with the nozzles. Am I close?

Thank you all for taking the time to visit my blog! I hope you all have a fabulous weekend! 

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile:

The Momisodes (http://themomisodes.com)

Sanity Waiting to Happen (http://sanitywaitingtohappen.blogspot.com/)

Cluttered Genius (http://www.clutteredgenius.com)

Stacy Sews and Schools (http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com)

Follow me home  (http://followmehome.shellybean.com)

Baking In A Tornado (http://www.BakingInATornado.com)

Someone Else’s Genius (http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com)

Confessions of a part-time working mom (http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/)

The beginning of a great love story... Using my words September 2014.

Today’s post is a writing challenge. This is how it works: participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once and all the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That’s the challenge, here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the writer will take them. Until now.

My words are: soft drink ~ animal ~ midnight ~ tense ~ blue

They were submitted by: http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com/  Thank you so much for such fabulous words!!!

As usual, I glanced at my assigned words, and immediately thought "What have I gotten myself into?!?" I have sat on them for a few days, and then I just opened them back up, and glanced at them again, and suddenly I just knew what I am going to tell you about. The words have inspired me to tell you about the beginning of a great love story. A love story, that is hopefully far from over! The beginning of the love story of Jules and Chadski. 

It was back in February of 2008. It was about midnight and I was winding down and getting ready to go to bed. I was hanging out in an online chat room, when a friend sent me an invite into another room. In general, I didn't accept invites, but that night I decided to pop in and say good night. I went in, and was surprised to see quite a few people I knew, despite having never visited the room before. There were some really good tunes playing, and the conversation was flowing, so I decided to stay a bit.

I am not one to watch web cams. I am not sure why really. It isn't that I don't care what the people I chat with look like, but really, I guess I don't care. I can see a person's face once, to put a face to a name, and I am fine with that. So, for me to watch a web cam is fairly rare. Though, I do have a few people I have been great friends with for years, that I will sit and watch their cams. This night, for some reason, a name on the chat members list attracted my attention. The name was "cbflyman4". What the heck is a "cbflyman4"?? That was the question that crossed my mind. He was on cam, so I pulled it up to see just what a "cbflyman4" looked like.

He was a stunning vision of handsome in blue. He was gorgeous. The blue shirt he was wearing really brought out the blue-green of his gorgeous eyes. His bald head was clean shaven and perfect. His nose and mouth were perfect. He was perfect. I was quite taken by him. I decided to watch his cam. I watched and watched and watched. After a while, I realized he looked somewhat tense. He was actively participating in the room conversation, but he didn't laugh at the funny comments. He didn't smile. I really wanted to see his smile. I am big on smiles. A nice smile can win me over. 

So, I found myself on a mission to see his smile. I started making a fool of myself. I was cracking dorky jokes. Those jokes that are so silly, they are actually kind of funny. I was trying everything. No smile. No laugh. No anything. So, I got bold and I directly asked him in the room what it would take to get him to smile. This opened up some chat between he and I. I told him I was on a mission to see him smile. I think that put him on a mission to not smile. 

It was suggested by a friend of mine, to show him my butt. That would surely make him smile/laugh. Sadly, it is an ongoing joke among my friends, that I have no butt. A dear friend of mine, that recently lost his battle with cancer, used to call me NoAss. So, of course they were all pushing for me to show my booty, or lack there of. So, I asked "cbflyman4" if I proved that I had no butt, if he smiled for me. He agreed.

So, I got up and changed out of my jammies, put on my best jeans, and turned my cam on. I then showed that I had no butt. He was a man of his word, and he did smile. It was magnificent. I tell people that Chadski and I were "love at first smile". It is so true. I saw his smile and I absolutely fell for him. Head over heels. That smile was so worth the embarrassment of showing my booty on cam! So.Worth.It.

It was also a great ice breaker. He and I started chatting in the room. Not too long later, the DJ played "Animal" by Def Leppard, and announced the room would be closing. I was sad. I definitely wanted to talk more to this "cbflyman". I was bold and told him this, and he agreed that he would enjoy talking more with me. We found a new room to chat in, and spent the next while talking. He needed to head to bed, and we agreed to meet up the next day.

Over the next few weeks, we chatted quite a bit, and developed a friendship. I gave him dating advice. We chatted about anything and everything. He got hurt (wake boarding accident), and had to take a week off of work (He works for a famous soft drink company- think Polar Bears/red), and we got even closer. My friends started teasing me that we were dating and didn't even know it. I was insistent that we were not dating. We did not want a long distance relationship. 

Before long, we decided that we were in fact dating, and neither of us wanted a long distance relationship. He flew out to visit me. It was a fabulous visit. We were just as great in person, as we were over the computer and phone. After he returned home, we started planning my move to California to be with him. He visited from on May 31st (until June 8th) and on August 5th, I moved to California. 

It has been six years. We are still together. Stronger than ever. We have had some rough times, but they have all been worth it. We have a beautiful daughter. I couldn't be happier. I am still very on the fence about Internet dating, but must admit it was highly successful for Chadski and I. I am sure we will have many more happy years. 

Links to the other “Use Your Words” posts:

http://www.BakingInATornado.com                         Baking In A Tornado

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/                  Spatulas on Parade

http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com/             Stacy Sews and Schools

http://sparklyjenn.blogspot.com/                             Sparkly Poetic Weirdo

http://www.eviljoyspeaks.wordpress.com                 Evil Joy Speaks 

http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com                      Someone Else’s Genius

http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/                         Confessions of a part-time working mom

http://followmehome.shellybean.com                       Follow me home . . .

http://thesadderbutwisergirl.com                              The Sadder But Wiser Girl   

http://batteredhope.blogspot.com                            Battered Hope