Kiss me, I'm kinda Irish!

One of my many favorite "foreign hubs" was Shannon, Ireland. As this meant stomping around as close to my Scotch Irish stomping grounds as I could get. We often stayed in Bunratty, County Clare with it's famed Durty Nellys, Blarney Woollen Mills, and Bunratty Castle.

The one big downfalls to all my stops into Shannon, was Mama was broke broke BROKE. No shopping at the Mills, no Guinness with the girls, no tours of the Bunratty folk park or castle. But I did get to wander around by foot and take loads of pictures! And you KNOW I can tell you all about the food. Let me tell you about blood pudding. Don't know what blood pudding is? OH YOU POOR DEAR. Just hop on over to Wikipedia and fix yourself up. If you're on a diet, check it out before you eat. Just go ahead now... I'll wait right here. My inner vegetarian was disgusted with myself for trying it, because SERIOUSLY, nations of people eat variations of this as a staple in their diets! It can't be that bad, right? Let's just put it to you this way, it's an acquired taste. Kind of like eating baked beans for breakfast... and we all know what beans do to you. Do you really want to start your day off with that much fiber and it's intestinal side effects? Just my two cents.

 Woollen Mills was within a stones throw of our hotel. It gave me a place to window shop and listen in on all the dialects and accents flying past me.

 Durty Nelly's. Apparently this place has become so popular that they're branching out worldwide. WHO KNEW??? Not I. 

 Bunratty Castle. I wish I actually had the time and money to have toured the grounds.

It was my understanding that at "Bunratty Folk Park" they have a traditional Irish village with chickens running amok and people in "period" costume acting the part of that time period much like the Renaissance festivals here. That has nothing to really do with the picture above, I just found it a neat little tidbit. I really do wish I knew what exactly that little porthole type door was actually used for. I need to know. Anybody got any guesses???

Here's another neat little fact. The last time I visit Bunratty was right at St. Patrick's Day. I woke up in my hotel room with a couple literally going at it (and I don't mean fighting) under my window. I was on the ground floor. I should have introduced myself seeing as they were more than comfortable with consummating their love for each other right outside my room. Maybe I would have had a baby named after me. Happy *not quite* beginning of March, everybody! May you be Irish all month long! 

Hard to believe this is my last NaBloPoMo entry. Did I really write for 29 days? That is INSANE. I'll no longer be making it a point to write at least once a day next month, but I will try to be more consistent with my posts. That is the biggest lesson I've learned during this "project" so to speak. About halfway through the month I didn't quite lose steam, but I began losing my mind under all the stress of some possible life changing choices we've begun. And no, as far as I know there won't be any new sweet pwecious widdle babies shooting out of ye olde cooch shoot before the year is up. THAT I KNOW OF. Accidents happen, y'all... just sayin.

Tracing the footsteps of Churchill himself.

One of the charter trips I was assigned had me flying into England to do flights for the Royal Air Force. Today as I was doing laundry, I came across my ratty in-flight blanket given to me by one of the passengers emblazoned with the Royal Air Force's emblem. Queue "Memories" any moment now...

Two words people, clotted cream. Who knew scorched milk left out overnight could be so damn tasty? I sure didn't, but I do know that I now look for it (unsuccessfully) every time I go into some sort of specialty shop. You know... just in case someone carries it as I'm not the adventurous chef in our house.

 

 The Swan and Old Mill.

The Old Swan and Minster Mill in Oxfordshire housed us during our stay there, and had it not been for the fact that we were in our heels and dragging 80+ pounds of luggage behind us, the authentic cobblestone flooring would have been a pleasurable sensory experience. The grounds and some of the buildings went back 600 years and was often frequented by Winston Churchill himself. Walking around the premises, you were transported to a time of simple living and small cottages. I very well could have lost myself simply walking alongside the River Windrush or lazed dreamily beneath the willow trees. It was very "English Countryside" at it's best (or as I thought of it.)

View from across the River Windrush.

 

 Ivy and greenery taking over the bridge. 

I wish I could say that I got to spend time in London, or that I got to visit Oxford, but the time was never really there to leave the grounds during those turnarounds. I was lucky to see the RAF's "big birds" and jets at the Air Base.

 It felt very much like walking into "The Secret Garden." Which just so happens to be one of my favorite books growing up.

 Quaint little rose gardens dotted the lawns.

The majority of time spent there I was either sleeping, eating, or walking off all of the scones I inhaled (both off the plane and on.) I was also spending an unfortunate amount of time indoors as I remember vaguely that it rained for a good portion of our layovers. I spent a lot of nights watching "Big Brother," drinking tea and sipping tomato soup (they gave us boxes and BOXES of the stuff at one of our stops during this particular charter.) If you know me, you'll know that I despise tomatoes. If you knew me late summer/early fall of 2006, you'd also know that I got pregnant with Logan around that time and all I wanted was tomatoes. During this particular trip, I was pregnant and didn't know it yet.

Again, this is one of those destinations I wish I could take the kids to. There's so much history just on the grounds alone. Let's just add Oxfordshire to our "re-visit before I kick the bucket" list. Tomorrow? Ireland! Just in time for our transition into St. Patty's Day month (also known as March... you know... in case you've been living in a cave or something.)

Off to bed I go to dream of strawberry scones slathered in clotted cream! Diet? What diet.

I'm a BARBIE girl!

I'm not one of those Moms who is against her little girl's having Barbies. As a matter of fact, I played with them until I was almost 12 and turned out mostly fine. I vaguely remember my Sister In-law out in Texas mentioning something about her own daughter outgrowing them and packing them up to give away. And then I saw a butterfly and followed it down the street about 7.24 seconds before noticing a cloud shaped like an ice cream cone. This month brought to you by medicinal side effects, the most pronounced of all being ADD and general scatterbrainedness. Which that's totally a word. Don't believe me? I'm an official word maker upper. I just made it official. SO THERE.

Anyways? What was I talking about? Helicopters? Oh wait, that's right, Barbies. Saturday we received a package in the mail from Texas, which in itself is ironic, but that's a WHOLE other story for another day (week, month, who's counting?) We opened it up and HOLYSHITBALLS, THAT'S A TON OF BARBIES, BARBIE CLOTHES AND BARBIE'S DOG POOP.* The peanut is smitten with her "new to her" Barbies. We immediately donned Brenda (yes, my old 90210 Brenda), who had been nekkid as the day she was born for a good 20ish years, in some stylin' new threads. The peanut no longer refers to her as "that Hussy." I don't know where she learned that from... cough. Out of all the Barbies there was one Ken. ONE.

 "Holla at a PLAYA!!!"

Lillie says, "Dis is Barbie and Brenda's boyfwiend. He also Ariel and Belle's boyfwiend." I say, "Dude, Ken, better wrap it UP! You don't know where Brenda's been... come to think of it, she probably doesn't know either... that Hussy."

 Another day that doesn't pass without me wondering if we qualify for disaster relief due to the damaging effects of Hurricane Lillie. This is also the downfall to having a brand new obsession with Barbie... also, Legos are no longer the herpes of childhood toys. Barbie shoes are.

On a different note, I went pinning Saturday night and found something that moved me to the point that I didn't even have time to pin it before it was shooting out of my printer and hanging on my wall. I tend to forget just how lucky I am, WE are, despite what's going on in the world around us. I shouldn't have been able to get (and stay) pregnant as well as I did. For that, I am grateful. We shouldn't have a roof over our heads, but we do. And for that, I am 10 times as grateful. We are lucky for the family we have, our health and well being, and the life we are able to live. We are lucky to be alive. Every single day I am able to wake up, is the biggest blessing in itself. We are SO lucky.

Click the picture to head on over to my link on Pinterest, or go visit Sweet Rose Studio and pick out a version of the print for yourself!

Tomorrow I hope to get back to my "travels" seeing as so many of you are asking for another "quick jaunt" away from wherever you may be. If you saw my last post, you'll know that I'm ready to get away too. Anybody want to whisk me away to Costa Rica? I hear it's warm there right now.

*Ok, so Barbie's Dog "Tanner" as I've so recently learned, was actually recalled as his poop was/is magnetic. Kind of glad I tossed "the poop" now. I couldn't quite figure out what was in the bottom of the box and thought it looked too much like candy (I know... I KNOW!) to keep around. Seriously though, a pooping Barbie dog? Toy fail.

Pockets full of stones...

I'm drifting in and out of dreamworld. Which oddly enough, I've got a wicked bout of insomnia tonight. I'm allowing my fingers to take me to far away places, searching for real estate in foreign lands. Feeling the cool tile under my toes in Spain. Running my hands along the warm earthen walls in India. Smelling the sweet, musky air in Japan. Tasting the rain in England. Running free through fields in Australia.

I want to go, I want to run. I need to feel the air pulsing in and out of me. I need...

Security, stability, ability.

I'm so weighted down with responsibility and worry today that I feel like I'm sinking deep in the ocean instead of upright and rooted on the land beneath my feet.

I don't want, anymore, to feel as if I'm choking and gasping for air. Instead, I want to feel that air burning in my lungs, alive.

I need to be somewhere that drips with comfort and peace.

And now for intermission...

Lots of stuff going on today, but I'm too ADD to really talk about it just yet. So for your listening enjoyment, how about a little Bowie?

Viva Costa Rica!

On the rare occasions that we weren't flying DOD flights, we flew for different touring agencies. I was never lucky enough to do the tours on a regular basis like some other flight attendants, but I did get a handful during my career. My favorite tour was our 24 hour stay in Liberia, Costa Rica.

 

The open air lobby.

 

We were able to stay in the Allegro Papagayo and it was all inclusive... meaning we had free reign to the pool bar. We had so much time available to us there that we were legal to drink all night long. And this was a time in my life where I actually enjoyed drinking on occasion. The day we got there, let's just say my Spanish got better the more drunk I got. I vaguely remember something about the life size chess board on one of the patios and shenanigans involving the little dance hall and the pilots causing drama. I was more than fine to get ridiculously drunk that night, hike back up the hill to my room and pass out face down on my bed.

 

Most amazing pool and pool bar ever. You could swim right up to the bar and drink.

 

I woke up with the worst hangover of my LIFE. Amazingly enough though, I did not puke my brains out. We ate an authentic Costa Rican breakfast, dried ourselves out by the pool and unwillingly trudged back to the airport the next day. We all talked about what we could have done if we'd had more time. At night you could hear the monkeys in the rainforest next to the resort and by day you could see large lizards holding up traffic on the sidewalks leading down to the pool area. They were here first, OBVIOUSLY.

 

Hello, friend!

 

Costa Rica is definitely at the top of the list when it comes to places I want to take the children back to one day. And at least at this specific resort with everything being included and there being so much to do, it's really not as expensive as it could be. I keep eyeballing their latest specials and thinking "if only the rest of my little family had passports..." we would totally find a way to hitch a ride there.

 Sunburnt and hungover. But, look! RAINFOREST! I'm like "Go, Diego, Go!"

Now I have to get back to reality where skies are grey and there are tornado watch sirens going off periodically. At least I'm able to wear shorts while I clean with one ear trained on the sirens and a free arm to break up the constant fighting today. I've got two kids with cabin fever. Why can't it be beautiful outside and allergy season be over already? SIGH.

A day in the life...

Mama Kat's asking what a normal day is around these parts. Because I am currently covered in months of dust and just finished putting away Christmas stuff (I know... I KNOW...) we're going to do a hodgepodge of pictures from the past few weeks and compile them into "Mama's Average Day." You're welcome.

 Princess Leia will at some point call "C-P-P-O" on her phone and give him "diwections." Directions to what, there's never any telling.

 Logan will wrestle with Moose and inevitably wear the dog out before he wears himself out, which never actually happens.

 I will attempt to organize work stuff or work on orders. As you can tell, she's very helpful.

 Many sheets of printer paper will be stolen from the printer for masterpieces such as the one above. That's Boba Fett (sp?) and a bounty hunter in case you weren't up on your Star Wars dudes.

 I will attempt to play mind numbing games of "Swiped" and "Mahjong" on my phone and instead end up with 5,982 pictures on instagram. Upon sitting down with my phone the kids will immediately sense that I am not busy and climb me like little spider monkeys. "What are you playing?" "Will you sit with me?" "Can I sit with YOU?" "Can I have a snack?" "But I prooooomise to eat the entire cheese stick this time!" "Why is this door locked?" "Moooom, moooooom, MOOOOOOOOOM!"

Dinner will get made, kids will go to bed, and I will be lost for the rest of the night, because what was I doing in the first place? Helicopter?

Domo Arigato... Pt. 2

When we weren't flying into Haneda, we flew into Sendai. I only really remember the Sendai airport in winter and being pregnant. So of course my memories are full of food! I don't really remember what district we stayed in or the name of this hotel either, but I do remember the rooms being my size as those who aren't vertically challenged are pretty scarce there. I could touch the ceiling if I stretched my arms up and the seats on the shuttle bus didn't leave me with my feet dangling like the ones in Europe did. For the first time in my life since Elementary school, it was as if my surroundings were meant for me. I also discovered that the "Plum Juice" in the mini-fridge was not in fact juice but instead "Plum Wine."

 

 View from the hotel with the Buddha statue waaaaaaaay off in the distance.

Our hotel was located more out in the country than our Akasaka hotel, but you could see a giant Buddha statue on the side of a hill (mountain) about two miles off in the distance. I didn't explore much of the area during these trips as it was snowing and I'm pretty much ill prepared for cold weather as a whole. Apparently the Japanese people aren't friends of cold weather either.

  

Fields. As far as the eye could see with mountains just beyond that.

If I wasn't bumming around my room with my nose in a book or sleeping, I was at the buffet stuffing my face with lychee fruit and rice. I probably grained gained 20 pounds on rice alone during those stays.

Thus concludes my little taste of Japan. I wish I could say I visit Mt. Fuji or wandered through some bamboo forests, but alas, I did not. I still put on my "worry face" when I think of all the devastation the areas I stayed in must have sustained post earthquakes and the following tsunami, but I know they have overcome worse and judging by recent photos of the areas, have done amazing things in the wake of the destruction.

Domo Arigato...

Some of my most prized flights were into Japan, and yes, every. single. time. I would deboard the aircraft this song would pop into my head.

EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

Of course now, when I think back to my flights into Tokyo, all I can see is the flooding and the airport patrons and personnel standing on top of the building waving for help. During the flooding I had a sick fascination with the airport footage. Had I met any of those personnel? Did they have families lost to the flooding? When I think of Haneda, I think of those people.

 

Fancy hydrant cover, wonder if I can find one of these babies on Ebay...

 

We flew into both Haneda and Sendai occasionally through both our DOD flights and leisure flights to and from Tokyo to Honolulu. When we flew into Haneda, we often stayed near the Harajuku district which of course WOULD get me all hot and bothered because, UM HELLO, Gwen Stefani fan up in here! I can not remember the name of the hotel I stayed in there, but there was definitely a 7-11 right next door which is always helpful! It was in Japan of all places that I actually got adventurous and took a train. In a foreign location! All by myself! The earth must have tilted on it's axis just a little bit more that day because that's not something anyone would expect out of me as a traveler. Ok, well, I kind of lied. I talked another Flight Attendant into doing it with me because there was not a chance in Hell that I was going to get lost all by myself, plus I had to find a Starbucks! And getting lost alone in a foreign country is not one of those things I'd do for a latte.

 

If you think their multi-tiered interstate system is crazy, you should see their intersections.

 

We took the train from Akasaka to Asakusa to visit the Sensō-ji shrine. Let me tell you, it was like the Disney World of shrines. We got lost trying to find the entrance to the actual shrine because you had to walk through about 20 miles of vendors selling t-shirts, cheap plastic toys, bamboo products, anpan buns (think donuts with a sweetened red bean paste filling that I mistakenly took for chocolate... don't judge, I don't read Japanese) and pretty much everything else you can think of. It was well worth getting lost for though. The shrine itself was humongous and appeared to be a mecca of sorts for the faithful. It was definitely a humbling experience. Back in Akasaka, we had the Nogi Shrine in our figurative backyard. As in, it was within my "bubble" about a block away. The Nogi shrine was much less populated, meaning far more peaceful, and the architecture of the shrine was breath taking.

 

It was the caped monkey statues that really did it for me.

 I was also a big fan of the glasses of water they left for their monk statues. Hydration is everything, people!

 Saki drums labeled with neighboring cities names. I'm still unsure exactly what their purpose was, but I enjoyed spinning them. I probably committed some sort of sacrilege by doing so.

Since we were in more of a business district, there weren't many touristy things surrounding us so we entertained ourselves as well as we could knowing sub-minimal Japanese. Across the street from us was a McDonalds where I discovered the Japanese people loved them some egg on their burgers (HORK HORK TRIPLE HORK), there was a Sanrio type store a few blocks down that was never open, and the best little find was a tiny hole in the wall actual china shop. 

 

 Who's hungry for puffer fish? Anybody? Hello? Bueller?

If you know me, you know I am the literal bull in the literal china shop. To say I was nervous would have been an understatement. But I did find one thing (well, two technically) that took a little old man plus one translator over the phone to figure out. The Husband and I weren't yet married and I wasn't big on bringing home souvenirs from every place I visit, but I discovered in this shop these handcrafted china "Chinese Zodiac" animals. Of course, I didn't know my Husband's symbol and let's just say I'm horrible at charades. He held his finger up to me, picked up the phone and made a call. Through the help of the wonderful woman on the other line we discovered my Husband is a rabbit and of course, I am a dog. Figures, right? I asked him (through her) if the dog and rabbit were good for each other and he explained that it's good for rabbit that the dog keeps him on his toes. My Husband? He can give a big "Amen" to that one. I was sold. I had no idea how much money I paid the man, but I knew there were commas involved in the number and I was secretly holding my breath as he swiped my card that it would go through, because OMG what if that was my rent money I just paid for two little animals that barely fit in the palm of my hand!?!?? We still have those animals, and even if I'd discovered I'd used all our rent money on china figurines, I wouldn't have regret the purchase.

Love them. Now you know what to steal if you want to break into my fancy ass basement and break my heart at the same time. You can take the couches and the retro deep freeze, but don't touch my little animal friends!

Part 2 coming tomorrow! Let's fly to Sendai!

In between sand storms.

Kuwait City, Kuwait.
Sand storms, oven like heat, 5 star hotels.
Luxury like I'd never known.
A culture unlike any I'd ever experienced.

Kuwait Towers

The airport spits you out of customs and into arrivals where you walk down a pathway much like a catwalk. Eager faces awaiting family and friends, businessmen in suits standing in groups awaiting the rest of their own group come through. Money exchanges, corn and nut roasteries also surrounding the exits in an attempt for last minute purchases and monetary exchanges. It took two years before I became a "nut addict" like the rest of my coworkers. I would bring back pounds of pistachios and cashews roasted in lemon and herbs I could never quite put my finger on.

During my career with the company, we stayed at two different hotels, my favorite being The Palms. It had a stretch of sandy white beach looking out onto the gulf, the Al Hashemi rested up against the shore between the hotel and the famed Radisson next door. The rooms were literally "homes" away from home. Fruit baskets as big as my inflight bag awaited me on my dining table. In my dining room. DINING ROOM. Each room was as large as a comfortable one bedroom apartment. Some "rooms," due to occupancy issues, had multiple bedrooms. I seriously wanted to move in and never leave. So long as I had someone to foot my room service bills, of course! It was there that I fell in love with tahini rich hummus piled thick on fresh pita bread, it was there where I turned brown as a nut before my wedding (and will probably look back and curse the skin cancer once I'm diagnosed.) Even with Coppertone baby 75+ SPF, I'd have deep tan lines within 30 minutes of walking around the area.

My hotel room dining area.

 The spare bedroom in one of my hotel rooms at The Palms.

 The Al Hashemi

We were given strict rules not to leave the area without being covered or without a chaperone of sorts. After we switched hotels, I took one trip back to The Palms for Starbucks with one of my Flight Attendant friends and swore never again would I take another taxi. EVER. Emergency lanes are for EMERGENCIES, PEOPLE! Not for plowing around bumper to bumper traffic. Contrary to popular belief, I would not die for Starbucks.

 

I would do anything for a latte, but I won't do that...

 

I wish I could be there now, despite the fact that it's nearing the end of the rainy season there. I was pregnant with Lo during the last rainy season I flew, and stuck in Kuwait for a few weeks with a few hops back and forth to Germany in between. Somewhere in there I contracted food poisoning. I remember really feeling ill and knowing I had 4 or so hours before my next showtime in the lobby before my flight later that evening. Thinking maybe I was just having some nausea from the pregnancy, I lay down and woke up within an hour or so horking my ever loving brains out. For WHATEVER reasons (emergencies, perhaps?) there was a phone in the bathroom next to the toilet. For a good 24 hours I slept on the floor praying to God and everyone else that I survive long enough to get home. Room service brought me complimentary 7-Ups and chicken soup, flight attendants checked in on me and relaying messages to scheduling to let them know that yes, I was in fact alive.

It's funny that the bathrooms there stand out so prominently in my mind. Aside from the bizarre toilet room telephone, we had walk in showers as big as my own bathroom here in the basement. Unlike checking into my rooms in Germany, once my bags would arrive to my room in Kuwait I would draw a hot bath and wash the stink of airplane, sweat, sand and grime off of me. I originally started writing this post over a week ago before my kids got sick and the following day someone suggested I try taking long baths to relax. I can count on BOTH hands the amount of times I've taken baths in this house since I moved in all fat and pregnant 5 years ago. Tonight that changed. I took her advice and soaked for a bit and when I closed my eyes, immediately transported myself back to the Movenpick (our second Hotel) where I would soak until the water turned ice cold. There was something about this particular hotel that just seemed so cleansing and peaceful. Tonight's bath left me feeling the same way.

So what do I miss most about Kuwait? I miss the luxury and hospitality. I miss the plumeria trees blooming in droves around the pool at the Movenpick. I miss the early morning prayers filtering out through the minarets across the city shortly before the sun would rise. I miss the hours wasted in Starbucks, lazily eating my light dinner and just observing the vast cultural differences and surprising similarities. I miss my nuts. ((Take that one however you want it!!!))

Beware ye' plague!

So we thought everyone was getting better up in here, but alas, that is not true. Little Honey Badger did well for a few days after starting on the antibiotics, but then yesterday the fevers came back and she sounds much like her brother did a week ago when we were having quality family time in the steamy bathroom every few hours. I broke down and gave her a watered down treatment this morning, and it actually worked for a hot minute. So tomorrow? We're headed back to the doctor a week early for their re-check. Logan doesn't know he's going too yet. This should be super fun!

I too, was doing well on my meds for the past two months and then with the consignment sale this weekend, managed to forget to take the maintenance med for two days straight. Funny how quickly this stuff leaves your system because the panic? Was unbearable there for a minute. Having to take the emergency med in the middle of the grocery store is so much fun, you guys! Whenever my Dad would lose me, he said he could find me by the "WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" I was squealing a few aisles down. You guys... I *was* the Geico piggie.

Drugs are bad, mkay?

So now, I'm knee deep in laundry that needs to be folded, elbow deep in soapy dishes, and wondering what the hell happened to my desk... again. Too bad tomorrow's Messy Mom Monday and not today.

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Even God rested on Sunday.

Dear Mom,
I'm sorry that I promised to come clean tomorrow, to deep clean nonetheless. Unfortunately, due to sheer exhaustion from kicking ass for 3 straight days already, I am going to attempt to not only sleep in tomorrow, but also get some yoga in somewhere between snuggling with my baby girl (who is sick... AGAIN...) and doing 5,000 loads of laundry.
Love,
Me.

So, do you guys think this is going to fly? You think she's going to forgive me for taking a day off? If y'all have my back on this, please comment in my defense! Off to bed I go!

Hello!

This is your exhaustion speaking! For English, press 1! Para espanol, marque número dos!

I like to freak people out when they call me by answering in my Mr. Movie Phone voice. It especially bothers my Mother... which is kind of the whole point. It's funny to hear her confusion as to whether or not she should respond seriously or not. Considering my Grandfather answers his calls with church hymns and Christmas carols, I couldn't possibly tell you where I get this trait from. No clue at all!

Last night I set both alarms in the bedroom for 6 a.m., I fell asleep shortly after 1. Do you see where this is going yet? Sometime between 1 and 6, I ended up crawling into bed with Logan. At 6:15 I shot up out of bed, startled my sleeping child and made up an excuse that Mommy had to potty. Thank goodness it was still dark enough outside for him to take the bait as he insisted I sleep in my own bed. Thanks, kid. I don't snore THAT bad, do I???

I had to be at today's consignment sale to man my Scentsy booth no later than 7:45. This is normally the time I wake up, even on the kids school days. To sum up how I physically feel right now after waking an hour and a half early on maybe 5 hours of sleep and having worked on my feet for three sales in 8 hours as merely exhausted would be a terrible understatement. I physically feel as if I'm about to fall over should the wind blow just right.

Tomorrow I get to do it all over again. But! It's also half price day for the consignment portion of the sale, which means better chances of spreading the word about my Scentsy business and the School's fundraiser. There is a good deal of light at the end of my tunnel. Specifically since my booth is parked right next to the sweetest girl ever who just so happens to make Nutella cupcakes. Swoon.

Till tomorrow, my lovelies!

Love.

Today I worked for my Scentsy Fundraiser for the kids school at the school itself. The upside to this was that today was also their "lunch bunch" where once every few weeks they get to stay the entire full school day at the High School their Preschool is located in. During their lunch period they have "floating" student teachers, which are the High School students who volunteer to eat lunch with our children. I am grateful to these students who give up their little bit of social time to hang with my babies. Today I got to watch them in action, flitting about the kids, wiping faces and hands and random spills. Hugging the kids with joy in their eyes as they accomplished small tasks, sometimes tasks as Mom's we take for granted. I am so grateful for this program.

I took my little lunch box into their classroom today and nuked my Lean Cuisine and sat down next to my son on probably the smallest chair in the county. And might I add, I didn't even think for a second that my fat ass might break it. And it didn't even scream under the pressure. Sometimes it's good to be lighter, I take that back, it's great. My boy opened up his lunch box and cracked the lid off his apples and peanut butter and shared them with me. The little girl sitting next to him asked if she could have one too and one of his student teachers came swooping in and stopped him. In order to keep the spread of germs at bay, they don't allow sharing of snacks and meals. It is a simple act of precaution that I'm grateful for, but my boy still doesn't really understand why he's not allowed to share with his friends. He very bluntly said, "I want to give you an apple,(insert little girl's name here), but I can NOT and I am SORRY." His heart is so big and beautiful and giving. When I grow up, I want to be him.

After lunch he snuggled up in my lap and let me read to him while we did his post lunch breathing treatment in his Teacher's office. He never lets me sit and read to him. After his treatment I picked my Lillie Rae up and held her in my arms and snuggled her and kissed her soft baby neck until the Teacher caught me and smiled at the affection.

It is well known that I love my children down to their very core. I am not ashamed to melt into their tiny faces and slobber on their ribs as I eat them up. I will smell their stinky feet day after day and sometimes the gag that quickly follows is not faked when I realize their feet have been crammed into faux leather shoes without socks all day. When I tell her that they smell like moldy pickles and she whips her head back and laughs begging me to smell them again, I will gladly do it. Just as I'm willing to rip the bandaid off on "2" instead of "3" because we all know they'll keep counting past "3" in hopes you cave and don't yank it off at all. Seeing them morph before my eyes into these tiny individuals always takes my breath away and breaks my heart and it happens on a daily basis. Motherhood is filled with highs AND lows every single day of the week. We don't get nights off, we don't get to sleep in, we don't get to throw tantrums and make illogical demands. We have to bite our lips and do the right thing day after day after mother lovin' day. Even when we don't want to.

Being across the High School from them today and knowing they were in good, capable hands made it easier for me to be away from them. It didn't ease the anxiety of doing something out of my comfort level, but it did put my Mama heart at ease. Tomorrow and Saturday I will be away from them 90% of their day. I don't like it, I don't want to do it, but I know that it's good for all of us. It will be so good to come home to them and wrap myself up in their sweaty, sticky arms.

I'm VERSATILE!

Gina over at "Does Anyone Care What I Write?" sent me a cryptic comment on my last blog about a little nugget of treasure she'd left for me on her blog. I was skeptical and kind of scared, but after a lot of hand holding and klonopin, I clicked the link. SHE NOMINATED ME FOR "THE VERSATILE BLOGGER" AWARD!!! Is she the sweetest thing ever or WHAT?

I've been the blogger equivalent of "Facebook Stalking" Gina for a few months now. She happens to hang out on some of my favorite blogs, so this is going to be super difficult to nominate other fabulous Bloggers for! Thank you, Gina, ridiculously awesome. Because you've lived my life and survived, I have much to learn from you! First of all, how do you potty train an unstable, stubborn 3 year old Diva? I'll let you mull on that for a bit.

The Rules for The Versatile Blogger Award

1. Thank the award-giver and link back to them in your post.

2. Share 7 things about yourself.

3. Pass this award along to 15 recently discovered blogs you enjoy reading.

4. Contact your chosen bloggers to let them know about the award.

 
7 things about myself? I figured you'd all be tired of my antics by now! Let's see...

1. I stopped wearing acrylic nails sometime during my pregnancy with my first child when I came to the realization that, OMG, this thing inside of me is going to poop. A LOT. What happens if I get it under my nails and can't wash the smell out?!?!?? I haven't had my nails painted and have kept my nails almost too short for the past 5 years. When the peanut finally has that lightbulb moment that it is gross to have her own fecal matter plastered to her butt until she allows someone to change her, THAT'S when I'll get my nails back. I miss them.
2. My skinny pants are baggy. I shouldn't be complaining, but this whole weight loss thing is seriously killing my bank account.
3. I used to craft all the freaking time. I was a glue gun wielding MACHINE. But right now? My craft room is in a serious state. I can't even say it's disorganized. It's just... it just is. I miss the smell of a freshly opened bottle of Mod Podge.
4. I want to Homeschool my children... but right now it's just an idea that's been mulling around in my head for over a year. We have fabulous schools here and to say Lo loves being around people all day would be a serious understatement.
5. I don't like watching movies in the theater. I don't have any great reasons why I don't, I just don't.
6. I sell Scentsy and I'm currently doing a fundraiser for my kids preschool. I'm also spending the next three days working a booth for this fundraiser at a local consignment sale... where I'm also consigning and volunteering. I'm in a state of "WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP PANIC ALARM THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!!" So go buy something? Or don't? No pressure. Just remember, it's for the kids. Do you want to be that person who doesn't support the kids? Not just my kids, but all the kids in the best preschool on the planet? DO YOU??? Don't worry, that link goes directly to the fundraiser party page. You're welcome.
7. I'm so ready for summer. SO ready. But, I only have one request for Mother Nature. I just want it to snow ONCE. Just one snow day, please! My kids need a snow day gosh darnit!

As for the 15 Bloggers I just started publicly following? Outside of Gina, I just started following:

1. Beckie from "From Hello to Hooah."
2. Lindsey from "like a hamster on a wheel."
3. Emery Jo from "moms are for everyone!"
4. Namaste By Day
5. Not Just Another Mother Blogger!
6. Single Mom in the South
7. The (not always) Lazy W
8. Taradon from "The Six of Us: Stories from the Shields Family."
9. This Domestic Life
10. we are our sister's keeper
11. Whit from "whitticisms."
12. {rainy saturday}

I don't have 15. BUT! It's only because most of my favorite people have already been nominated. This means you, Arneyba and Miss M!!!

So go ahead, ladies! Grab the image and tell us a little about yourselves!!!

This post brought to you by Instagram.

 The kids stayed home from school again today. We had our own little Valentine's Party since they were missing out on the one at school. They were big helpers. I'm being both sarcastic and serious. Is that even possible?

 We learned about Jesus today too. He's our very special Valentine.

Husband took me to what was once my favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. We didn't even notice that the name had changed until I had to get my own damn menus and realized they cover stated a new name. They kept the same exact menu on the inside. The food? Not the same. I will never go back, it was the only Mexican place I trusted not to infuse everything with green chilies... of which I have bad reactions too. And no, as a matter of fact I'm not pregnant. I'm just severely bloated now thank you very MUCH. 

 The Husband made fun of me and my Instagram "problem." So I took his picture.

 And then I took mine. This is me not pleased. Not pleased at all.

 All of the unfortunate dinner memories were quickly erased by espresso and double dark chocolate frozen yogurt topped with Ghirardelli dark chocolate sauce at my favorite fro-yo joint. Dear Husband, IT DIDN'T EVEN ASK TO SPELL CHECK FRO-YO. SO THERE.

 The Husband captured me in action. I am Instagramming the SHIT out of my fro-yo. I am also very concerned? Angry? Frustrated? Definitely bloated. Stupid chilies.

And this is why you're not getting a "real" blog post filled with substance and meaning. That up there? Is tomorrow's schedule. MY schedule to be exact. FML all to Hell. Thursday through Sunday's schedules won't even fit on that board. I don't really want to talk about it. Four words, Kids Consignment Sale Volunteer. ((And I have a Scentsy booth at the event for all three days... and a Scentsy Fundraiser for the kids pre-school program Thursday morning. Why am I talking about this? I've already discussed the fact that I don't want to talk about it.))

Hope you ALL had a fabulous Valentine's Day!!! Here's to blog posts filled with substance and meaning again starting tomorrow!!!