clean piggies

waiting for pink polish

owie

Meet Monkey...

This is the adorable handmade monkey I got myself for Christmas. It is by Skunkboy Creatures and I found it on the wonderful website http://www.etsy.com/. I really wanted to take a picture of the am amazing moon tonight. Just a crescent with a bright planet above. But I really have no clue how to operate my camera and I couldn't find the clip to get my camera on the tri-pod, so I gave up.

Is it wrong that I am counting down the minutes to the weekend allready? It has been a long week!

all alone

Jason took Justin to Eugene for the day. I came home from work to a quiet house, I was alone. It was/is weird. I always think I want a moment to myself, but I miss having my buddy around. I am using my free time to make an activity sheet for Ann (Justin's daycare provider). As much as enjoy having this moment, I am counting down the minutes until Justin comes home!

The almost snow day.

Woke up this morning and was totally shocked when Justin hollered "snow!" Found about 2 inches on the ground and the car - which of course is parked outside because I have not put the Christmas decorations away and they are piled in the garage where the car would be. I left and headed to daycare, I made a bad decision to take the usual route there - which involves a steep hill. I started to slide and choose to turn to the left and onto a side street to avoid sliding all the way down the hill and crashing. But I got stuck after crashing into the curb! After several failed attempts to get unstuck and a few swear words later, a guy who lives across the street from where I was stuck came to my rescue! I went home, called in late to work and daycare - collected myself and then headed back out, this time going the way around the big hills. The snow had completely melted by the afternoon.

Eh, it's Monday!

Weird Monday.
Running late.
Inpatient.
An I hate Mondays type of Monday!

A strange day - and I wasn't the only one that noticed it. All around weirdness
And then as I burnt dinner - Justin made this:

Piles of shredded paper strewn around the living room! And today, this weird off day, I don't care. I kind of want to disappear and not deal.

Big deals and more crafting!

I hit up the craftstore today and found a 7.5 foot prelit Christmas tree, regularly priced at $299.99, on sale for 90% off! {actually Scott found it - or maybe it was Jamie :) but it was great because th box was heavy and Scott could carry it and we had his truck, so transporting it was a breeze!} I could not pass it up, so it is in my garage awiating its glory in 10 months!

Jamie and I spent more time crafting cards today.

Crafty Saturday!

Jamie and Rachel came over today and we had a great dinner! Rachel brought over some pasta with the yummiest homemade pesto, Jamie brought the tirimisu she and I made Friday night, and I provided garlic bread. We made handmade valentine cards and had a great great time. Late in the evening Justin went into the kitchen to "make cookies," but first he told me he was making a mess! He scooped up his "cookies" and served them. It was very sweet!

I-Pod Baby

My baby rocking out to the tunes on the I-Pod.

Office visitor

Justin came by my work today for a lunch time visit. Justin was hanging with his daddy today and after getting the oil changed in the MDX they stopped by for lunch. I had fun showing Justin around the office and I think he loved all the attention.

Today was a long day. I had the best brow wax ever and that was a good way to start the day! But an evening meeting at work pushed my day to a little too long {good thing those meeting only happen once a month}. Plus Jason really pushed my buttons today, but I tried not to let it get me down.

The lady of the house

This is Lucy Kitty and she is one year old. She looks a little bitchy in this picture, but she is the most low maintaince cat ever. I just love her pink nose and sparkly green eyes. She really mothers Harlow, which is great and she picks on Paxil - not so great!

Right now Justin is out to dinner with Jason. I am always wanting a moment to myself, but honestly I have no idea what to do with myself! I need to fix myself dinner, but I am so used to preparing a meal in chaos that I can't bring myself to find something to eat yet. I don't have enough time to scrapbook - which is what I really need alone time for - so I thought I would get my photo of the day up. And oddly it feels weird to post my picture without my little buddy Justin by my side. Right now Paxil is on the desk purring in my ear and Harlow is exploring the desk. I guess I am not alone after all :)

Is there a reason they are hiding their faces?

Justin and Jimmy at Target {again!} - wearing pink and yellow {girls} rain boots. The boys actually spent a lot of time trying on little girl shoes! Jimmy seemed to prefer the glitter ones where Justin liked the strappy brown heels.

Morning Coffee

Ever since Justin could suck from a straw he has been stealing/taking sips of my coffee drinks - usually an iced carmel machiatto from Starbucks. Justin will also sip my plain coffee with vanilla carmel CoffeeMate that I make at home. Lately he has wanted his own cup of coffee in the morning. He gets milk with a splash of weak coffee and a splash of creamer.

Bi-Polar Sunday

On the agenda today:

• Laundry (currently on load 2), wash, fold, put away
• Sweep floor
• Update Justin's babysite.com website
• Go to Freddies
• Convince Justin to poop in the toilet (and not in a Pull-Up)
  

And if I am feeling ambitious:

• Mop the floor
• Vacuum
• Shower - wash hair, dry and straighten

Today like most days is filled with highs and lows. Moments of crazy and moments of calm.

This is Paxil.

Paxil is the 2nd male in this house {if you can call a neutered cat a male} - :) Sorry Paxil. Paxil takes a lot of crap from Justin and from Lucy. Paxil was born in the spring of 2006 and is going on 3 years old. He has no tail and has the loudest purr you've ever heard. He has litter box issues/poop issues {likely linked to having no tail}. I think Paxil is a wonderful cat. He wants lots of love and cuddles. He likes to sneak outside, which never lasts long, because he is a wimp, but I appreciate that as I don't want him outside. He is a good boy and I love him!

Baking Day

We spent Saturday with Jamie and Jimmy. The plan: bake ooey gooey cinnamon rolls {from scratch} and some "naughthy" brownies. I overcooked the brownies, although they were still "evil and dirty" - according to Scott. And the cinnamon rolls were not as ooey gooey and we wanted. Rachel came over and it was nice to catch up with her. We watched a movie. Justin and Jimmy danced and danced. I lost my keys and we spent a good 15 minutes hunting for them. We had a good Saturday! I love the weekend!

TGIF

Truly a happy Friday! We met Jamie and Jimmy at The Olive Garden and after an hour wait we enjoyed an awesome meal - and I took a White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake to go for after bath tonight. We followed up dinner with a trip to Target. The boys were wild and running thru the isles - but after being such troopers during the hour wait before dinner I didn't mind at all. Here they are doing a little browsing.

Lame picture today

This is Justin getting ready for computer time. Usually before or after bath we sit at the computer, he watches a video and I blog, blog read, lurk around facebook. So this is my messy desk with 2 pulled chairs up and my Justin playing with the webcam. Not exciting by any means, but today was a non-exciting today. Although I did manage to make it to the post office this morning to pick up my mail and new mailbox keys - and was able to check my mail for the first time since Christmas. I also got a package of some amazing prints I bought on etsy.com and plan to hang in my room. And I went to the bank... and my EC said hello and I fell into a trance - his eyes were extra blue today and I fell harder. But other than that, it was an uneventful Thursday and I am ready to go to bed.

Dinner of Champions

On the menu tonight:

• Kraft Macaroni Spirals
• Broccoli
• Apple Sauce Parfait (organic/unsweetened apples sauce served in a sundae cup)
• 1/2 of a Flintstones Chewable Vitamin
• 3 Cheddar Cheese Jalapeño Poppers (these were for me)
• Corn/Carrot/Asparagus Veggie Mix (also for me)
• Shredded Parmesan Cheese (to sprinkle on top of mac)

Yes, we ate dinner at the coffee table - which happens very frequently around here.

Yes the TV was on - Justin picked Dr. Seuss, "Cat in the Hat."

Yes, we eat this meal often. Real.Often.

As of late, Justin wants to eat his meals with a big spoon. A big spoon that is made for serving - and he prefers that it have "dots" [aka - holes or slots for straining]. This picture today cracks me up because you can see his parmesan cheese falling out of the holes in the spoon and onto his lap, the sofa, floor and table. He quickly traded in his big spoon for one more appropriate to ensure more cheese would make it into the intended place, his mouth and tummy.

My little man

After dinner I needed to take the trash out, Justin wanted to "help," but what he ended up doing was finding a stick in the garage and was waving it around like a sword and generally entertaining himself - which is always appreciated. I was in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner and listening to him play. A little while later I hear him say, "mom," I say "what?" and then poke my head around the corner to find this....He had previously popped into kitchen and asked for the bag of chips and then stole my dish towel and set himself up a little picnic for himself in the garage. The dirty, cold, disgusting, in dire need of cleaning and organizing garage! Allllllrighty then!

I had planned to post a picture I took of the counter above the junk drawer in my kitchen. The counter that holds my purse, the mail and all of the other stuff that comes into the house or needs to make its way out of the house. Then Justin gave me the little gem above which I think is much more interesting! I still felt motivated to clean my junk counter off and I have made {a little} progress. Yay!

Baby Kitty

This is Harlow {aka: Baby Kitty} She is 4 1/2 months old and came to join our family Thanksgiving weekend. She has the softest fur ever, is very playful and has the sweetest purr. She was very shy at first. She hid in my bathroom vanity, behind the kickplate in a place I couldn't reach her, for the first 24 hours she was here. I was afraid I would have a timid kitty on my hands, but by night 3, she was up in my bed snuggling my neck. She is very playful with Paxil and Lucy and she lets Justin pick her up and tote her around. Three cats is more than I wanted, but I couldn't leave her at the pet store that day and she is a welcome addition here. She has captured my heart.

We love bubbles

Some of my favorite pictures are the ones I have taken of Justin playing with bubbles. He was so happy and pleased today when a bubble would land on his hand.

Gettin' pretty

Justin got a little pedi last night. Jamie painted his toenails a beautiful pink color and here he is kickin' it up a notch by adding his favorite color, white, to his perfect pink toes. {yes, he made a mess} Jimmy, as you can see, is so not havin' it! He wanted his toes painted (he picked out blue polish) but he wouldn't let me paint his toes and I don't think he let his momma paint them either. But this shot is classic future blackmail material. I will be adding this to collection of photos I will be sharing with Justin's future wife!

Shining Star

I seized the moment today. I took a chance today.

I also need to take down my sparkling holiday lights before the HOA sends me a nasty gram. I am the only one left on the block still showing my Christmas pride. I never did photograph my lights. Here they are on their final night of glowing.

I am a dork

I thought it was time to post a picture of myself and today brought the perfect opportunity. In the mail today was a package from my brother and sister in law. In it was a t-shirt from their new bar. I wanted to take a picture of me wearing my new "Porter Beer Bar" shirt. Some people have mastered the self portrait, I am not one of those people. I was either blurry, had a stupid look on my face or was not in the frame whatsoever. But I have the shirt on, you can see the very top of it. I love my Porter shirt and am sporting happily!

Good words...

From my Starbucks Grande Vanilla Latte cup today:

The Way I See It #17

The world bursts at the seams

with people ready to tell you you're

not good enough. On occasion,

some may be correct. But do not do

their work for them. Seek any job;

ask anyone out; pursue any goal.

Don't take it personally when

they say "no" - they may not be

smart enough to say "yes."

--Keith Olbermann

I have gone to 'bucks everyday this week {must break this habit} and this message was on my cup the last 2 days in a row. Heck, it may have even been there Monday, but I didn't look.

This struck a cord with me on several levels. And that is all I am saying about that :)

picture taken with cell phone again, at work

A rare event...

...I made my bed. But only because I had too.
My house had to be spotless for the Broker's Open today. I busted my booty last night to get it ready - and this morning I over-slept. It was a hectic morning with all the last minute sprucing and bed making, but I made it to work on time, and was even able to stop at Starbucks on the way in.

I never make my bed, but... for Christmas I asked my mom for some throw pillows to girl-up my room. She got me some great pillows and I think I may be more motivated to make my bed on a more regular basis, just because it looks so great! I do love the brown and blue skeme! I want to add some more art to the walls and some new accessories as well, but I am very happy with the simple changes I have made to make it all mine ;)

2 minutes away from a chance encounter

It was back to work for me and daycare for Justin. Since it was impossible to take a picture of my almost chance encounter with my epic crush today at Starbucks, I had to document my day in some other way. I am in a mad rush to get the house ready for the broker's open tomorrow. When I went in to clean Justin's room I found this:

Justin's bus filled with little people passengers. I am not sure when he did this, I think it was when I was taking a bath yesterday when he and I each had like 2 minutes to ourselves. It made me laugh. And the mess behind it... not as cute... but all is picked up for now and my fingers are crossed that he will not destroy his room between now and tomorrow at 10:00 am. I just love finding things like this. Justin expressing himself and playing by himself is a wonderful thing to witness.

I feel like I am blabbing in an effort to avoid the rest of the cleaning that HAS.TO.BE.DONE!!!! Guess I better get on it!

The last day of winter vacation

Not sure what picture to post today. There is a picture of Justin dipping his nacho cheese Doritos in ranch. I took a picture of my big, I mean, huge pile of laundry. I could have taken a photo of the Christmas tree - I chopped it into pieces today and put it in the yard debris bin. Or what about a picture of my sparkling clean house... oh yeah... it's not clean. Not yet anyway. But I am working on it, I swear I am!


How about this picture for today.... a crummy cell phone picture of our spontaneous dinner of yummy fondue at Gustauv's with Jimmy, Jamie and Scott. It is back to routine, back to work, daycare, etc. for us tomorrow. It was a nice long vacation for me and I really enjoyed it - and one hand I don't want to go back to the rountine and on the other I am ready and appreciative of it.

Awwwww

Will write something here when I don't have the above precious child screaming at me :)

Before bed each night Justin and I watch a few minutes of Food Network or TLC - just to unwind. I always have to wear my glasses to see the TV while in bed and Justin has to as well... but not because he can't see. He wants to be like me, which I love. The glasses he has on are his sunglasses with the lenses popped out. He almost always falls asleep with them on because he doesn't take them off when it is time to turn the TV and lights off. Guess he doesn't always follow along with what I do - and me thinks that is A-Okay.

A 3 foot tall tornado

I am trying really hard to make the most of my full week off of work and get my house cleaned up. I have the added motivation in the form of a 'broker's open' that my Realtor will be having at my house on Tuesday. The house needs to be "show ready" and at present is far from it. The little tornado dancing isn't much help. His messes are present everywhere and when I pick up one mess he creates a new mess for me. I fold laundry he unfolds. I put toys away he drags new toys out. I love the little guy, but he is not helping my clean house cause at all.

Little Stylist

I haven't owned a blow-dryer since junior high. In an effort to be a master hair straightening goddess like my sister I bought and will learn to properly use a blow-dryer. Tonight Justin was using it and my new brush to make me "pretty" - he was just to precious and I love him more and more each day.

Let's do this thing!

I am going to go for it. I am going to commit to take one photo a day for the entire year of 2009! I was going to do this old school style in scrapbook format. There is an adorable kit for sale from creating keepsakes, but they are sold out - so... this blog was born, and truthfully I think that this will be easier to keep up with. Fingers crossed :) Plus, I believe there are some handy website programs that will print your blog in book like format so it can be forever preserved in paper. Sounds cool and it sounds like a lofty goal. I have so many pictures to organize, print and to scrap - why add another project?? Well, why not?! I am motivated AND I think this would be an AMAZING thing to look back on when complete. So here it goes....... I am optimistic and excited. How hard can this be, eh? Guess we will see...