scrambled words with a side of kevin bacon...

(Q & simon...lunchtime movie)

so i know most of you read my friend ali's blog
& that is why i haven't mentioned this earlier
but for those of you who aren't on the ali edwards train
(departures at 7, 10 & 3
to eugene, anywhere scrapbokking is taking place
& corners of your brain that hold creativity, memories & good fun)
i want to mention
at the total last minute
that she is part of this awesome fundraising effort...
six degrees
(http://www.sixdegrees.org/Top.aspx)
it's headed up by none other than kevin bacon
& it's way cool...
people choose a cause
& encourage others to donate to it
ali's is autism speaks
her son simon has autism
ali is passionate about finding the cause
& the cure & ways to help people living with it
& to help people who live with the people who are diagnosed...
you can donate as little as $10
which is what i have done
twice:)
& in the end kevin himself matches up to $10,000
of what is earned...
stinking cool!
so check out the site
& check out ali's site
& see if you might like to help out
it's a great cause
& a great kid
& a great mom...
plus kevin bacon
& who can say no to extra bacon?

:)

ps it ends saturday night
so if you want to donate
get movin'...
:)

it's official!

she is one!
we had a fun little party for miss m on sunday
& let me tell you
she destroyed that cake...
i was so proud:)

i love this picture
love how you can tell that she was waving:)

happy birthday miss m
you have added so much joy to our family
i love how you wave to me & say 'hi'
even if it has only been 2 seconds since you saw me...
i love how you have figured out
that if you point at something & yell loud enough you will get it
(fyi: this will not always work, my dear:)...
i love how you love your blankie
& don't want anyone (epecially Q) to hold it...
i love your bottom teeth
& that when you smile you open your mouth wide to show them...
i love that when you are hurt you look for me & say
'mamamamama'...
i love how Q makes you laugh the most of anyone...
i love how when we are in the car
& you want a snack
you just lift your open hand up over your head
so that when i look in the mirror
i just see your sweet little hand stricking up over your seat...
(fyi: your seat will be turned around now so i get to see your sweet face:)
i love how you love your daddy
& how when you give him hugs he gets tears in his eyes
almost every time...
i just love you miss m
you are the sweetest girlie girl i know...

:)

101 & counting...

oh you thought i had cursed myself didn't you?
that re running that post about starting a blog
& then not actually starting it until 6 months later
had come back to haunt me!
but no!
i am stronger than that!
i can not be held down by something that happened 2 years ago!
& now i will stop talking about it
so as not to invite bad luck...
:)


texties....
okay so i am a text messager
i am.
& to tell you the truth
i think that brian & i having cel phones has improved our marriage
really.
i could never call him at work
like other wives can
(whether their husbands like it or not
so i hear:)
because i would be interupting math or earth science
or something 'important' like that...
but with the text...
he texts me during his break
& i text back at my leisure
(you know i have oodles of leisure time...)
& we just do that all day
it is fab
it really is...
so anyway
for you non texters
when you do it
you use the letters on each number
to spell your words
& you hit the number 1,2,3 or 4 times depending on what letter you want
okay everybody get out your phones...
so for a c you hit 2 three times
for m you hit 6 one time
& so on
so as i have been doing it so much
(by the way my whole family is so into it
my step kmom tam texts everyone on every leg of her flights
'in honalulu i love you'
'just landed in chicago. i love you'
'plane just rerouted because there is a crazy woman on board. i love you'
that last one is true by the way...)
anyway
i have taken to noticing when a word is spelled by hitting different buttons
the same amount of times
for example
the word FOR
you hit 3-6 & 7 each 3 times to spell it...
i call them texties
also BE 2&3 two times each
the best one i figured out so far is COLOR
26567 three times each
yes.
this is a real blog
i have just spent 32 lines explaining this.
life is good:)



Q&M...

i love this age for both of them together
they can play
& they laugh at each other so much
oh i love it!
this sin't the best picture
but i love how you can tell they are interacting
(& yes they are playing with a piece of curly ribbon
that they found on a gym floor
not the most educational toy i agree
but they were playing with it together
& if it had wrapped around one of their fingers & cut off the circulation
yes that would have been sad
but they would have done it TOGETHER:)
(that last bit was a little too doocish, wasn't it rach?)

saving you some money...
my friend tiffany has this great blog
where she tells you all about which coupons to clip
& how to save jillions of dollars
really
she was telling me about this one coupon where you buy 2 bottles of gasX
& then you get free salad in a bag & free dressing
who would know this?
tiffany knows!
so go check it out...
http://momsequipped.blogspot.com/
i for one am very excited to buy 2, 4 or 6 bottles of gasX
you just can't ever get too many strange looks from a grocery checker...

have a lovely day...
:)

i am 100 going on 101....

today is my 100th post!
crazy!
although i'm feeling like it's cheating a little
considering that my very first post was:

yo VIP let's kick it...
that's what i say sometimes when we are getting ready to go
(it's from "ice ice baby" for you non vanilla ice fans)
& oh boy! brian hates it
so he says
"let's hit it, run"
from a run DMC song
oh the romantic utterings going on at our house:)

so this is pretty much a trial run
(again with the run)
& i think i may be crazy because life is pretty full right now
but what the hey
let's give it a try...

~~~~~~~~~~~~
that was september 13, 2005...
my next post was april 26, 2006

yeah. let's give it a try...
:)

i can think of no better way to celebrate this birthday
than by introducing you to the birth of a new blog
& what is sure to become
my favorite blog to read
(& i won't be surprised if it becomes yours too)
without further ado....
http://darlinggrandma-thisandthat.blogspot.com/
authored by none other than my darling grandma!

right now she is solliciting subject matter
& let me tell you
she knows about just about anything you can think of
so go on over there
& giver her an idea...

& to all of you my sweet readers
commenters & noncommenters alike
i just want to say thanks for hanging around
& ignoring my many typos
(except the booby pins
thanks for pointing that one out, jmb mommy:)

i love the whole blog thing
how else would i know
what my dear idahoian, kel thinks about hair products
or that the famous jamie from CT
had been thinking the same song lyrics i was on the same day?
these are not things you discuss
when you talk on the phone once every 2 years
okay, jamie once every 8 years
(i still want to talk, jamie, really i do!)
that is what i love
& on that same note
how would i know what any of you think about those booby pins?
for some reason that subject doesn't come up
even with rach who i see at least 2 times a week...
who would have ever thought that typing alone in my room during nap time
(& occassionally at 3am)
would bring me closer to my friends?
it really is too cool...

so
happy birthday to me
& happy BIRTHday to grandma
oh heck
happy blogday to us all......

:)

The Luckiest
Ben Folds

I don't get many things right the first time
In fact, I am told that a lot
Now I know all the wrong turns, the stumbles and falls
Brought me here

And where was I before the day
That I first saw your lovely face?
Now I see it everyday
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

What if I'd been born fifty years before you
In a house on a street where you lived?
Maybe I'd be outside as you passed on your bike
Would I know?

And in a white sea of eyes
I see one pair that I recognize
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

I love you more than I have ever found a way to say to you

Next door there's an old man who lived to his nineties
And one day passed away in his sleep
And his wife; she stayed for a couple of days
And passed away

I'm sorry, I know that's a strange way to tell you that I know we belong
That I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
no occasion
no date
no reason
except
happy.
just happy....

:)

for the love of booby pins...

if you already read the hair product post from wednesday
then this will be fun for you...
if you haven't, go read it (or at least the bobby pins part, scroll down it's in there)
& the comments & come back...

an email from grandma...

Regardless of what your friends say, they really are booby pins.
When I was a teenager and a few years beyond, we put our hair
up in pin curls (have you heard of them?) anchored with 2 booby
pins to make our hair pretty.
Then we put a net over them and slept with the things. Talk about
being poked and stuck in the head. Now you can't be more of a
booby than to do that.
So let's hear it for the booby pin women's helper in times of need.
Have a good day,
Love, Grandma

okay friends
these are the kinds of great emails i get from my grandma
she reads all of my blogs
& all of the comments
& emails me
her comments...
& i say
'grandma you should post in the comments'
& she says
'oh no one wants to read what i have to say'
so...
let's take a survey...
do you want to read what my darling grandma has to say?

:)

things i could live without...but don't really ever want to...

hair products edition...

as the title suggests i could live without these
& in fact i did live without them before i found them
because unfortunately they did not give them
to my mom at the hospital when i was born...
'oh mrs. b, this one looks like she'll have thick curly hair
here's a lifetime supply of frizz reducing serum & a hat...
she will definitaly need both'

anyway
here are the hair products
that bring me joy...

Burt's Bees...Feelin' Flaky? Herbal Treatment Shampoo
i have dandruff, okay?
i feel it's best just to admit it
& not have to explain
to the ever changing array of people roaming through my bathroom
that i just 'like the smell of it'.
though i do just like the smell of it too.
but what i like most
is that it keeps the 'snow' from my shoulders...
i tried lots of things before dr. burt
lots of things that shall remain nameless
lots of things that claim to work
lots of things that start with 'head &.....'
lots of things that still caused my sister
the only girl taller than me who would look closely at my head
to say 'hmmmm, yeah....we need to find you some thing'
so i'm feelin' flakey but because of it
i am NOT feelin' flaky
& that feels good...

John Frieda...Curl Around Style Starting Conditioner
again with my sister
but seriously
those who know her know
she is in the know
she knows the best stuff for hair & face & make-up tips
& she is just a fount of knowledge on all things above the neck...
anyway
this stuff is just the thickest most luxerious stuff to put on your hair
& it smells good
& it's like a gillion little elves are in it powering through your tangles
you put it in your hair
& then it only takes a few swipes through with your fingers
or a brush if you're into that sort of thing
& all of the tangles are out!
this is amazing for me
usually i'm yanking out chunks as i try to get my fingers through just once
that may be because before this i would buy 99cent suave coconut conditioner
it smelled good too...
bonus testimonial:
my dear friend since the 8th grade, angie,
is the only person i know who has thicker & curlier hair than i do
& she used it when we went to the coast in january
& she used it
& she liked it too...
i have no idea if she would rave about it as i do...
let's see....oh angie! do tell....
(i was rereading this & how i wrote that last bit sounded almost like
angie & i went to the coast to wash our hair in the ocean...
that's funny though it would not actually be fun or good for our hair...)

Bath & Body Works....Hair Towel
yes i realize that you do not have to have a 'hair towel'
that a body towel will suffice
that some people enjoy wrapping it around their head
& yelling 'toga'
not that i know anyone like that...
but i have to tell you
that when you have thick long hair
it is not fun
(cue the violins)
it is uncomfortable
& balancing a giant towel filled with hair
while you are trying to put lotion on your legs
is just painful & not something anyone wants to see
but with this towel...
*sigh*
it is a dream to have wet hair...
you want to run in circles singing
'i am sixteen going on seventeen'
you want to jump & groove like elaine on seinfeld
('a full body dry heave set to music')
it is shaped kind-of funny
like a strange little hat
you put your hair in it
& then twist
& twist
& twist
& THEN
(picture this with me)
there is a loop on the twisty end
& a button on the part of the towel above your forward
& you put the button in the loop
& you are secure
& safe
& happy
& naked...get dressed!

Goody...ouchless hair ties
remember those hair ties that had the metal piece in them?
& how when you took them out of your hair
you would pull out chunks of hair?
i can afford to lose the hair
but there are some people who can not
& the sweet people at goody are looking out for us all
it's just one piece sewn together i guess
whatever it is i am happy
no more ouch...
plus i love that name
goody
& i wish i would remember to say that everytime i used them...
'goody goody!'

Bobby...pins
i don't know the brand but let's give bobby the credit
she's a good lady...
so i use these far more often than i should.
i should
(in my own brain)
do my bangs every morning
using many products & appliances
but often the first time i look at my hair
is after i get the kiddos in the car
& look in the rearview mirror...
(i'm sure that this is a fun thing
for my neighbors to see each morning
wondering exactly where i am going
that let's me in with my mop in all directions)
so out come the pins...
i try to make it look stylish
& that is such an easy thing to do as i am stopped at every stop sign & light
because i would never try to do my hair while the car is in motion
never.
i am telling the truth.
yes i am grandma & angie...
anyway
i like booby pins
PLUS!
when my hair expert sister got married
she hired her hair lady to come & do hair for the bridesmaids
& when she did my hair
she used 53 pins
yes i counted them.
so now i have 53 professional hold hair pins
okay i only have 38 now
but i did have 53...

various brands...headbands
i like head bands
i just do
they are cute
& you can wear them with your hair up or down
clean or dirty
curly or straight
long or short
they are equal opportunity hair helpers
i like them
plus
though i would not take any life advice from nicole richie
(sorry i like to eat & drive the right way on the freeway)
she looks so cute in them
especially the big thick ones...
love them...

Johnson's Buddies...easy comb conditioner
so neither of my children look like me
my mother in law was here the last two days
& she commented on how miss m looks like brian did as a baby
this makes me happy
but only because she did get my hair
'hooray' i thought as during the last 6 months
as it has grown like one of those dolls where you just pull on the hair
& it gets longer & longer
but that was before i started trying to brush it after her bath
oh my goodness
tangle city!
maybe i wish she had brian's hair too:)
but this stuff is great
cuts right through
hopefully we will not have daily crying sessions because of brushing...
i remember those
ugh.
i'm sure my mom wanted to shave my head more than once.
all that said
i am so glad to pass on this hair
it is a good thing.
(i'm reading martha's book right now)

so there you go
my hair happiness...

watch soon for
'things i could live without...but don't really ever want to...'
dinner fork edition
nail clipper edition
vacuum cleaner edition
(oh who am i kidding
i don't use any of those things...)

so ends this edition...
who knew i could write that much on hair stuff...
(i know, kate, you knew)

:)

ps
thank you so so so much
for the sweet comments about go-mom-go
i am really excited!
it is something i've been thinking about for a while
& brian kept syaing 'do it! do it!'
(thanks bri:)
thanks, friends
you are awesome!

& i am so happy to have heard from quite a few people interested in doing it in their city
(7 so far!)
so spread it around...
i'm going to be expanding to other cities soon
if you know any moms who would like to make some extra money
have them email me...

have a great day!
:)