I'm a little bit in awe of the people who are actually able to put their words out there for the rest of the world to see. It's a ballsy thing to be able to do.
I don't mean just blog posts - but even those, when they are deeply personal, or honest.
I mean people who package their words up between two covers and put them on a shelf for people to take home with them - or in this day and age, leave them out there to be downloaded into people's e-readers...

This is a pretty big month for me, this week especially.

Ten years ago today, this exact hour that I am writing this, I was getting ready to get into my packed car and take off for the other side of the country. I had said my goodbyes, and was ready to take the world by the horns, equipped with only some clothes, my computer and a check for $1200 that the company had advanced me to make the trip. The cell phone that my operations manager had given me, along with orders to check in frequently, was on the seat, and the little angel that one of the guys had given me with a little poem about safe travels hanging from my rearview mirror. 

At 7:45a.m. I would make my last Washington State coffee stop (at least as a resident of that State), and head toward the pass to start the four and a half day journey to Largo, Maryland where they had set me up to stay for my first 30 days.

I felt like I had the world in my hands at that moment. It might be the only time I ever truly felt that way.  

Happy Tuesday!

I lied...

Remember when I said that thing about being back?  That was hilarious, right?

It is terribly sad how long it has been since I've even looked at this thing, much less, written here.
I have been writing elsewhere though, so all is not lost, at least personally, haha!

I'm not very good at social media lately. I'm not really very good at anything lately. And "lately" has been going on for a very, very long time. Too long. I need "lately" to be over with now. To make that happen requires a lot of big things.

There are at least three very good blog posts that I have drafted on my iPad right now. I can't wait to roll them out. They actually SAY SOMETHING! No, they really do! It's exciting. I just can't decide if they are for here, or for something else I've been working on. We shall see.

It's embarrassing how long it has been since I've even read another person's blog. God, I'm terrible, y'all!

At any rate - just thought I would rear up and poke my head in for the moment, even if it is just to say absolutely nothing!

Happy Hump Day!

Today's post was supposed to include a bunch of pictures from my excursion with Darby to the Maryland Faerie Festival yesterday. We had a great time, I took a ton of great photos.
Photos of Darby making her own set of faerie wings, photos of Darby sitting on mushroom stools wearing said wings (croak!), photos of Darby with the festival unicorn, photos of Darby picking out and riding the largest pony at the pony rides like a boss.

Except... I forgot to put the memory card back into the camera after removing the photos from grandpa's visit.

So a ton of great photos is actually more like ZERO photos.

On top of that, I left the camera sitting on the back bumper of the car when I left. Thank GOD that there was a family sitting in the grass in the parking area having a picnic who saw the camera fall and ran to the exit to make sure it got back to me. Yep.

So instead I leave you with this photo of an exhausted Darby running around in the common area outside of the house when we got home.

Happy Monday!

Some Randoms

1. Sometimes I stop going to Trader Joe's. Not because I don't like it, but because there are other places that are more convenient, and frankly, I just forget. Then I'll randomly realize that I have been there in a while and I go, and I kick myself afterwards for letting it go so long between visits. I love Trader Joe's.

2. Scott Weiland actually showed up last night. I feel like that in and of itself was a success. He was a bit all over the place, but overall did a decent show. Was nice to hear some old STP favorites, and was kinda cool that it was in such a small atmosphere. There were probably only a few hundred people there.

3. I was going to post a hilarious video of Darby playing the Guitar Hero guitar, but I can't figure out how to upload a video without going through YouTube.

4. Clearly, I am still alive.

Happy Tuesday!
(except it isn't because I have to work. Coming soon: The post on why I need to just quit.)

A penny for... my bathroom floor.

"Set up a jar to collect pennies in for the penny tile floor" was supposed to be an item for my March goals list, but I couldn't stop thinking about it so I decided to just do it.

This has all been sitting in my closet for an age.

While surfing Pinterest one night I found a tile floor made with pennies. I have to have one. It will be perfect for the main floor powder room.

Here is how it looks when it is finished, if you didn't go to the link:

Love!

How awesome does that look with all the different shades of colors from the old and new pennies all mixed in together?!
I cannot wait to do this, so yesterday I decided to grab the change jar and spent a good half an hour (probably more...) separating the pennies out from the rest of the change. There is a lot of change in this house. Holy moly.

I realize that I could easily just go to the bank and buy pennies from them, but where is the fun in that?
Besides, it will be a little while before I am ready to turn that room back into a bathroom (it is currently a storage closet), so I have a little time and the collecting will be fun.

I did notice one commenter's concern over potentially valuable pennies being glued to the floor. We totally take pennies for granted, don't we? I seriously would never have considered it, but now that the thought is in my head I have to. Thankfully one of my favorite people in this world is a coin collector! Guess I'll have to get his opinion.

Anyway - Who knows when this will actually come to life. The powder room is going to be a "from the ground up" kind of project, but I will definitely be updating you with a blog when it happens. Particularly the floor!

Happy Tuesday everyone!
(and please send your positive thoughts that the plague will leave my house. Thanks!)

Is it Monday already? Holy moly.

Weekend Recap:

1. I did not make it through the weekend without buying Skylanders Giants. In fact, I went out and bought it on Friday night.

2. It was convenient timing because I also came down with the plague on Friday. I've logged in a fair amount of hours thanks to the fact that I haven't wanted to move for the last few days.

3. I feel as though I should clarify that not wanting to move and having to move are separate things entirely. I didn't want to move, but I did have to because I had to work, grocery shop, and, you know, take care of a household. But I did take full advantage of the times that I was able to lay around.

4. This brings me to the thing I've been cracking up about all weekend. People's reactions to a 35 year old mother of three who plays video games. Why is this weird? Do you watch television? What's the difference?

First of all, I don't spend that much time playing nintendo (though I did this weekend because I was laying around more than normal). Secondly... why is it that if you watch tv, movies or surf the internet it's okay, but saying that you play video games automatically makes you a sloth? Ha! It's comical!

I am the mother of a one year old, a two and a half year old and a seventeen year old. During the day I have an extra charge who is 9 months old. I rarely sit down during the day. At all. When the kids nap I may try to get a blog in, or at least read some blogs, but for the most part, there is no "sitting idly" during my day, or even my evenings, for that matter! - even on the weekends.
Contrary to what some believe, being a stay at home mom does not involve laying on the couch eating bon bons. Not if you are doing your job. Funny enough, there are people out there who get paid to take care of children, it's just not a valid job when you are taking care of your own, for free. I know, we got the memo (and for the record, I was a single working mother for a good 11 years, so I know what it is like to be a working mom, and I spent WAY more time playing video games then than I do now, just so you know).

I also work part time. I do laundry, cook, clean, work out, manage the finances, play taxi so that my older daughter can work... The list goes on. I'm not sitting around on my ass 24 hours a day. I have precious little down time just like everyone else.

So what is the difference if I choose to spend the same amount of time on a video game at the end of my day as someone else spends on television, movies and internet at the end of their day? I'm just curious!
Whatever makes you feel superior, I suppose. Hahaha!

I'm done. I just... It just cracks me up! "The ways that I waste my time are just, like, so much more valid than the ways that you waste yours."

People are funny creatures.

5. I feel like I should have something else to tell you about this weekend, but I can't think of it. It is all kind of a fog because I have been feeling so crappy.  Unfortunately, I think this is really all I have for you today. I'm going to spend the day sterilizing the house so that hopefully we can get rid of this crud (the kids all have it too, boo hiss).

Happy Monday!