Monday, June 30, 2008

On Children and Pets

The older child was a hellbeast all weekend. Hyper and whiny and refusing to do her schoolwork.

The little child was sick all weekend. Nose running like a faucet and screaming when we laid him down.

Now of course, I'm sick. Nose running like a faucet, head like a heater, feel like death served cold. If my weekly deadlines hadn't been pushed back a day due to the holiday, I would be home in bed today.

Why didn't I stick to a cat? I never got sick from my cat.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Completely Irrational

I really did not have much room to be more crazy, but I got pushed a little further today.

This morning, driving to work, a spider fell from the ceiling of my car onto my forehead. At first, I didn't know what it was, but then I brushed it down onto my shirt and saw that it was a spider. So I grabbed a Kleenex and tried to catch the spider so that I could kill it. I *think* I succeeded in knocking the spider down from my shirt onto my skirt. I say I think because I didn't actually see the spider fall and then I couldn't see the (small, brown) spider on my multiple-shades-of brown skirt. Then, I think I knocked the spider off my skirt and onto the floorboard of my car. Again, I didn't see it fall and didn't see it on the floorboard. But it was no longer on my shirt, I couldn't find it on my skirt, and I didn't see it on the floorboard of the car. I have not seen the spider since. Immediately, my skin began crawling and I have had the sensation of bugs crawling all over me all day. I want to go home and take a shower so bad I could scream! And of course, now I'm worried that the spider isn't gone, it's hiding in some crevice of my body like my belly button and will lay eggs and then I'll be that gross woman on the news with a million little spiders hatching out of her belly button. (Yes, you can tell your friends that you know me. No, you may not point and laugh.) And now, my right calf muscle is hurting for no reason at all, so clearly that is a sign of a poisonous spider bite, right?

ARGH!!!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Meme-licious!

I saw this meme at Michele's blog and loved it. I stole it totally without her permission.

1. You have 10 dollars and need to buy snacks at a gas station. What do you get?
Oh my God, 10 dollars is a fortune at a gas station! Let's see, there's zebra cakes and chocolate chip cookies, Swiss cake rolls and oatmeal cookie. Then, you gotta get the salty - Pringle's chips or Cheetos. And a coke, of course.
2. If you were reincarnated as a sea creature, what would you want to be?
A mermaid! (Aside - Supergirl told me the other day that she's been praying that God will turn her into a mermaid. Good luck with that one, honey!)
3. Who’s your favorite redhead?
My (former) self! Why won't my red hair come back to me?
4. What do you order when you’re at IHOP?
Ooh, Cinnastacks! Pancakes with cinnamon and creme.
5. Last book you read?
The Breakdown Lane by Jacqueline Mitchard. It was very good. It's about a woman whose husband abandons her with three children. After he leaves, she find out that she has multiple sclerosis. It's cheerful!
6. Describe your mood.
Happy/ bored
7. Describe the last time you were injured.
I really can't think of one. Guess it's been a while.
8. Of all your friends, who would you want to be stuck in a well with?
Stuck in a well, huh? That doesn't sound like fun, and if I have to have another person in there with me, there isn't going to be much space. But I'll say Kelly, because she's always a good time.
9. Rock concert or symphony?
Oh my God, rock concert, all the way. I hate the symphony.
10. What is the wallpaper of your cell phone?
Um...whatever it came with. I have no clue.
11. Favorite soda?
Coke
12. What type of shirt are you wearing?
Black and white striped button down. (I'm at work - what did you expect?)
13. If you could only use one form of transportation?
My beloved Honda Civic.
14. Most recent movie you have watched in theater?
Sex and the City - but I told you that on Monday. Before that, it was Iron Man. I loved both of them.
15. Name an actor/actress/singer you have had the hots for.
Johnny Depp
16. What’s your favorite kind of cake?
Red velvet with cream cheese icing.
17. What did you have for dinner last night?
Soup and crackers
18. Look to your left, what do you see?
The wall of my office with the white board I never use on it.
19. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
yes
20. Favorite toy as a child?
Barbies - wonder what I'll have to do to get them back from my mother?
21. Do you buy your own groceries?
Yes, we usually all go on a weekend afternoon
22. Do you think people talk about you behind your back?
No, I don't think I'm that memorable.
23. Gummy Worms or Hershey Kisses?
gummy worms- I used to love those things.
24. What’s your favorite fruit?
fresh peaches
25. Do you have a picture of yourself doing a cartwheel?
Oh, that brings back happy memories of gymnastics when I was a kid. No, no photos though.
26. Do you like running long distances?
I think I would like running if I ever got into it. I like the idea of running a lot. It's the actual, sweaty miserable reality of running that I can't deal with.
27. What is your secret trash food pleasure?
Cheetos
28. What color are your bedsheets?
green
29. What’s your favorite flower?
Roses - I know, so predictable, but they're gorgeous.
30. Do you do ballet?
*sigh* More happy memories. I took ballet from ages 3-11. Sometimes I wish I had never quit. (Aside - I totally need to find a dance class!)
31. Do you listen to classical music?
Urgh - never! There's nothing (music-wise) that I hate more.
32. What is the first TV Theme song that pops in your head?
"bum bum bum - Here comes Speed Racer"
33. Are you really worried about Global warming?
No. I think it's a normal climate change that our planet has gone through several times. I don't believe that cars caused it. They might make it slightly worse, but that's it.
34. What temperature is it outside right now?
I don't know exactly, but probably low 80's. Much, much better than the 100 degree days were having a couple weeks ago.
35. Do people consider you smart?
Yes - actually, people consider me "that weird smart girl" who talks about books and things they don't understand. I'm not that smart, though.
36. On what occasions do you lie?
Very few. I guess I occasionally lie to the children, but hell, who doesn't? That's a time-honored tradition, right?
37. Are you signed on [to] AIM?
nope
38. Have you ever tried gluing your fingers together?
No, but I sort of on purpose stapled my finger about a month ago. C'mon, I can't be the only one who feels tempted to stick their finger in the stapler and try to see how far you can push it down before it staples you, can I?
*crickets*
Well, maybe I can.
39. How do you feel about your family?
Conflicted, but you all know that. My dad and I are close, though.
40. Do you have an iPod?
No
41. What time do you go to bed?
Around ten, although I almost always mean to go to bed around 9.
42. What CD is currently in your CD player?
Houses of the Holy Led Zeppelin
43. What movie do you know every line to?
Steel Magnolias, baby! And National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.
44. What is your favorite salad dressing?
Honey mustard
45. What do you want for Christmas this year?
I have no idea. I *never* make a Christmas list. I never have. My parents used to sit me down on Christmas Eve and demand to know what I wanted. Then, they would run out and buy it.
46. What family member/friend lives the farthest from you? Where?
I have a cousin in California.
47. Do you like hugs?
Yes, as long as I know the person giving me a hug.
48. Last time you had butterflies in your stomach?
When I had to tell a co-worker that I like that he had to do better on something.
49. What’s the way people most often mispronounce any part of your name?
Shelly doesn't really get mispronounced, it gets misspelled.
50. Last person you hugged?
My sweet little daughter.

Bonus content: Here is a link for an awesome new book, written by lots and lots of bloggers. A large portion of the proceeds from the book will go to Warchild International, a network of independent organisations, working across the world to help children affected by war. My friend Hotfessional has an entry in the book! I can't wait to read it.
http://peacharse.blogspot.com/2008/06/youre-not-only-one-charity-book-for.html

Monday, June 16, 2008

My mother? I'll tell you about my mother.

Let's see...Friday I took the day off work and slept late, then in the afternoon had my teeth deep cleaned. The funny part was that before she started cleaning my teeth, the hygienist and her assistant were talking about a local bakery and highly recommended that I stop by there after my appointment. Way to promote good dental health, ladies! (Of course I went to the bakery afterwards - don't be silly. The cookies and things I got were fabulous.)

Saturday I went to see the Sex and the City movie with two girlfriends. One of them was a fan of the series. The other girl and I had never watched the series, but thought it would be a good girl movie to go see together. We all loved it. I cried several times, and I'm not a big "cry at movies" type. And there were parts that were hilarious! It was an uber-chick flick, and I would never ask my husband to watch it, but I'm really glad I went to see it. I totally enjoyed it.

Yesterday, the weirdest thing happened. I'll have to give you some backstory in order to explain it. When I moved into my own apartment after college, my mom gave me a few kitchen supplies to get me started. These were all hand-me-downs that she either didn't use or didn't like. One of them was a white ceramic mixing bowl. I used it for years, until Rock and I moved in together. Then, Rock's mother saw it and commented that it was Fire King brand, which is old and worth some money. Well, as soon as she heard that, my mother wanted it back. She offered to replace it with another one, but she wanted the one that was worth money. (This is completely typical of my mother's attitude.) I dug in my heels and never gave it back to her. This was about 7 years ago. We've used the Fire King bowl ever since then, and several times joked about taking it to her house and smashing it in her driveway. (What? I'm only 31 in chronological years - not maturity.) Yesterday, the Fire King bowl broke. But the weird part is that no one was using it. It was sitting in the cabinet with all the other dishes. And it split in half. Literally. I don't know if the kids' running around the island (where it was stored) created enough vibration to break it, or if it had another mixing bowl sitting inside it and then the vibration from the kids' running caused it to split, or what. (Yes, running around the kitchen island is a favorite game for my children.) Rock's comment was, "I wonder how your mother is doing." as he pointed to the two halves of the bowl. I seriously got a chill.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Mad Hatter

Swistle! Alert your mother-in-law!
Sometimes little boys with older sisters choose pink hats as their favorites. (But we love him anyway.)
Seriously, Wildman wears this hat around the house All. The. Time. And sometimes, he just carries it around like a security blanket.








And then occasionally, he'll pick a different hat and wear it sideways. (Although I think this is the only time he wore that hat.)









This is the hat we bought him last year on vacation, at Yellowstone. It was the smallest size they had and it swallowed his head completely. Now, he's grown into it.

(I don't know why the color is so wonky in that picture. Maybe I had a polaroid filter on the lens?)






This is how the hat fit when we bought it. Quite a change in almost a year, huh?

Monday, June 2, 2008

Happy Sigh~

Over the weekend, I went to Leif Enger's book signing in Pittsboro, NC. (Apparently, the book store in Fearrington Village is a big deal and gets lots of great authors to come there to do book signings - who knew?) It was absolutely awesome. I was a few minutes late, due to the fact that I knew where Fearrington Village was, but I didn't know where in Fearrington Village the book store was. So I snuck in late and sat in the back. Apparently, I missed him telling the story about the first time he came to Fearrington Village and how lost he and his wife got! So I was in good company on the getting lost. He read two selections from his new book, talked about his childhood a little, and took questions. He was very nice and personable and had a great reading style. Then, he moved to another room where a table was set up for him to sign books. I was second in line, due to the rest of the crowd being slow walking senior citizens! Score! As he was signing my books, I asked him my question. I knew from an interview that he and his wife had home schooled their children, so I asked if they had used a curriculum or knew of one that they would recommend. He told me I should ask his wife and that she was there. His description of his wife? "She's wearing a black sweater over a floral print shirt. Gorgeous. You'll find her." Is that not the sweetest description?! I did find his wife and she and I had a great discussion about home schooling and what books they had used. They were both just lovely people.