Happy Easter

Happy Easter! The belief in the Easter Bunny is hanging on by a thread...so goes childhood.

FYI...

...the beautiful bouquet of flowers I mentioned in my earlier post that was selling for $120 pre-Valentine's Day is now selling for $50. That, my friends, is what makes a "Hallmark Holiday."

Happy Valentine's Day

Today we celebrate St. Valentine - the patron saint of overpriced flowers and man-guilt.

May your wallet be empty and your man feel guilty.

New Year's Resolutions: The Two Lists

From the DailyOM:

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I was fortunate to spend time with an enigmatic man named Robert during a very special period of my life. Robert taught me many things during our days together, and this time of year reminds me of one particular interaction we had.

"Now that you are becoming more aware," Robert said, "you need to begin to set goals for yourself so you don't lose the momentum you have built."

"Like New Year's resolutions?" I asked.

"That's an interesting idea," he smirked. "Let's do that."

By then I was used to his cryptic responses, so I knew something was up because of the way his eyes sparkled as he let out an impish laugh.

"Tonight's assignment is to make two lists," Robert continued. "The first is a list of all the New Year's resolutions you WANT to keep, and the second is a list of all the New Year's resolutions you WILL keep. Write the WANT List first, and when you have exhausted all of your ideas, then write the second list on another sheet of paper."

That night I went home and spent several hours working on the two lists. The WANT List felt overwhelming at first, but after a while I got into writing all the things I had always wanted to do if the burdens of life hadn't gotten in the way. After nearly an hour, the list swelled to fill the entire page and contained nearly all of my ideas of an ideal life. The second list was much easier, and I was able to quickly commit ten practical resolutions that I felt would be both realistic and helpful.

The next day, I met Robert in front of the local food Co-op, where we seemed to have most of our enlightening conversations. "Tell me about your two lists," Robert said as the familiar smirk crept onto his face.

"The first list contains all the things I SHOULD do if I completely changed my life to be the person I always wanted to be. And the second list contains all the things I COULD do by accepting my current life, and taking realistic steps towards the life I want to lead."

"Let me see the second list," he said.

I handed him the second list, and without even looking at it, he ripped the paper into tiny pieces and threw it in the nearby garbage can. His disregard for the effort I had put into the list annoyed me at first, but after I calmed down I began to think about the first list in a different light. In my heart, I knew the second list was a cop out, and the first list was the only one that really mattered.

"And now, the first list." Robert bowed his head and held out both of his hands.

I purposefully handed him the first list and held his gaze for several seconds, waiting for him to begin reading the page. After an unusually long silence, he began to crumple the paper into a ball and once again tossed it into the can without looking at it.

"What did you do that for?!" I couldn't hide my anger any longer.

Robert began to speak in a quiet and assured voice. "What you SHOULD or COULD do with your life no longer matters. The only thing that matters, from this day forward, is what you MUST do."

He then drew a folded piece of paper from his back pocket and handed it to me.

I opened it carefully, and found a single word floating in the middle of the white page:

"Love."

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Happy New Year, y'all. I love you!

Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas, y'all!

Short-Timing

I think I finished my shopping between yesterday and today. I went to the store to get "penny gifts" for Punkin's holiday party tomorrow and walked out with everything except penny gifts. So there's a quick trip to the grocery store in my immediate future for a bag o' candy - the ultimate pre-wrapped, lazy mom's penny gifts! Muhahahaha!

I also picked up a copy of Twilight yesterday. I am halfway through it and am now obsessed with seeing the movie. Like I really want. to. see it! I guess I am just a sappy romantic chick at heart, even though I'd probably never come across that way. Maybe this weekend...

I have one client tomorrow morning and then I am free of work responsibilities for something like 10 days! So I kinda feel sorry for tomorrow's client...I am feeling like a short-timer.

My New Toy and Other Stuff

So this is my latest obsession - the Pantech Matrix dual slider phone. After dropping my Razr in the toilet the other day, this is what replaced it. Now, I sit and text people instead of blogging...eating...sleeping...you know, the little stuff.

I don't know why I can't seem to find a middle ground with my little obsessions. I was literally afraid to get an iPhone. I think my entire social life would have become virtual with it. Not that I have a huge social life anyway, but still...

Speaking of social life, I attended Reggie's annual Christmas bash last night and had a great time! There was a really hot guy there, too. (Shhh...don't tell Shane) Go check out his blog to see what I stuffed my face with all evening. Yeah, I just went for the food. (Shhh...don't tell Reggie).

My Week "Off"

5:00 came early this morning, but I didn't really mind getting up. My friend Kat (who has been neglecting her blog) is having her sinuses roto-rootered today.

Someone asked me if I have this week off. I initially responded in the affirmative, but when I think about it, "off" is not the correct word. I am not going into work this week, but I had to get up early today and will hang out here at the hospital for 3 - 8 hours. Tomorrow I will be responsible for at least 2 little girls. Wednesday may be my only real day off without commitments. I was going to go visit my mom, but I think I might be delirious by then. 

Thanksgiving will be spent with my in-laws as tradition dictates. It's nice not having to worry about cooking. And it's one of the few times per year we get to see certain family members. It should be really nice.

I hope your holidays are turkey-licious!

I Have a Rash

I have a small patch of skin on my back that's raised and itchy. Shane says it looks exactly like poison ivy. How in the heck did I get poison anything on my back? Anyway, it's starting to really drive me nuts. I woke up in the middle of the night, catching myself scratching. Nice. I've used half a bottle of calamine lotion since yesterday.

Besides my RASH, the big topic is Punkin going to Girl Scout Camp. She's leaving tomorrow and we're doing her laundry and packing today. She had a suspicious "stomach ache" yesterday, leading me to believe that she's experiencing some stress about the whole thing. She's not out of bed yet today, so I am hoping that a good nights' rest killed the stomachache germs.

Someone told me that .mac is down. Why am I not surprised?

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July, y'all!

Happy Father's Day!

...to all you dads (and father figures) out there! Hope you have a great day!

What We Did on Sunday

3-Day Weekend

Happy Memorial Day! It's not just a 3-day weekend - it's a time to remember those who died defending our country.

I have never been interested in the armed forces. I've never thought, "I should enlist!" So, I tend to really respect those who are disciplined enough to go through all the training and do whatever is necessary to reach that goal.

Of course, it's also nice to be in bed blogging at 10:45am.

Happy Mother's Day

To all you muthas out there! Take a load off...you deserve it!

Please Procrastinate

Happy Easter everyone! This quote was in my in-box when we got home today. I have found myself living by it already lately, so it really resonated with me. Procrastination can really be a good thing sometimes!

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If there is something that you have to do, resist the temptation to do it under duress. Ask yourself, "What's the worst thing that would happen if I didn't do this?" And if you can get away with not doing it at all, don't do it. And then imagine what would it feel like to have this done. Spend a day or two, if you can, just 15 minutes here, 5 minutes here, 2 minutes here, here and here, imagining it completed in a way that pleases you! And then, the next time you decide that you're going to take action about it, the action is going to be a whole lot easier.

Spring Brake

Today I took Punkin and her BFF to the natatorium in the Angleton Recreation Center. For you philistines like me, natatorium, according to dictionary.com, is a fancy-schmancy word for "indoor swimming pool." All I know is that it offers a plethora of indoor water activities for about $2.50 per person.

They have the traditional "adult swim" for 10 minutes every hour. I noticed that I was the only adult in the pool during that time. Thus, I was the only person in the water. Sweet! I got the big waterslide all to myself, and took much delight in passing the kiddos on the staircase and saying "nah nah nah nah nah." Yes, I am that mature.

When the second round of "adult swim" came about, I got the girls out of the pool and into the showers so that we could go home. As I waited in the locker room, a flood of women and girls suddenly poured in. I asked one of them what was going on. Apparently they found a floater in the hot tub, and it wasn't a Baby Ruth bar! They ended up closing the pool for 2 hours so they could clean out the spa and sanitize it. I thank God, the Universe and all that is holy that we hadn't been in that particular area.

The fun never ends...

The Dream

Happy New Year

So far this year, I have:

• Drank champagne
• Slept a lot
• Cooked Ramen noodles
• Cleaned up after the kitchen sink leaked
• Made popcorn
• Watched TV
• Pet the dogs
• Forgot about a speaking engagement
• Chaperoned a sleepover
• Balanced 2 bowls of cereal and 2 cups of OJ in my arms while walking up the stairs
• Thought about taking the Christmas decorations down
• Decided to do that "later"
• Looked at the full laundry basket
• Reviewed my calendar so that I will not miss anymore business engagements

I am finally very relaxed...but the down side is that I am getting nothing done. Or maybe that's the point. It will all be there tomorrow.

Happy 2008!

Do as I Say Not as I Do

So, good ol' depression hit me a couple of days ago. I have yet to see much of my house besides the bedroom, haven't eaten anything but 2 slices of pizza in the last 3 days and haven't gotten out of bed except to pee. My brain chemistry rocks.

As I am striving to see the silver lining, my family and friends have been nothing but supportive and concerned. Shane even learned how to do the laundry!

Christmas was less than lovely in my own head, though the actual gathering of family and friends went off without a hitch. Although no one on "the outside" thinks so, when depression strikes, you can never think of being anything but a burden to those you love.

'Tis life. The most fretful thing that I think about in times like these is that Punkin will probably have similar problems since it runs in both sides of the family. Hopefully we'll know how to make things better for her this time around.

And as for Self-Care, I do consider letting myself rest doing a good thing. Last year, I'd be pushing myself to do laundry and pick up the house. Not this time, though. One wall is enough for me to hit this week.

As Kambri said, I hope you all had a Joyeux Noel.

The History of Christmas

I love studying theology. This morning, The History Channel presented a documentary on the origins of Christmas. Recently having heard a story about a friend being accused of being a pagan because she bought Christmas tree postal stamps, this particular program caught my eye.

So, did you know:

1. Jesus was most likely born in the Spring since shepherds usually don't watch their flocks by night in the Winter;

2. 12/25 was signified as a holiday way before Christ because it is the Winter Solstice in Rome, and they needed a reason to cheer up because of the cold and darkness;

3. The Puritans outlawed Christmas for hundreds of years because folks would be out drinking and otherwise being "naughty";

4. Christmas is originated from the words The Mass of Christ;

5. St. Nicholas was the dude who decided that he was going to give gifts and other charities to the commonfolk because he thought everyone should feel cheerful at this time of year;

6. Evergreen trees are a pagan tradition because they could survive for long periods of time indoors (thus cheering folks up);

7. The Yule Log is also a pagan tradition - they cut down a large tree and burned it for warmth and cheer - this usually lasted about 12 days (hmmm...that reminds me of a song);

8. The Catholic church decided "if you can't beat them, join them," and designated the celebration of the birth of Christ on the same day as the existing pagan holiday.

So basically, even though Christmas has morphed into a celebration of the birth of Christ, it originated as a way to keep spirits up in this cold, dark time of year. There's more, but you'll have to read the History Channel stuff if you're interested.