Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

On Santa…

December 22nd, 2009

 

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I read of more and more families not doing Santa for the kids, in hopes to keep their Christmas more Christ-centered.  And, you know what?  I SO get it.  But for us, Santa just seems to fit.  You can read more of my thoughts on Santa over at Impress Your Kids.

Santa & The Skeptic

December 11th, 2009

My girl is something else.  She’s a ham.  She’s a foodie.  She’s an adrenaline-junkie. 

Looks like we can add “skeptic” to the list, too:

Ain’t He Something!

November 18th, 2009

In case you missed it on Facebook & Twitter last week, a photographer from the New York Times came to my [parents'] house to take some pics of HH, who’d been interviewed for an article about reading books on his iPhone.

Though my mom and I fluffed and straightened and Febreezed for what seemed like forever, I thought it would be a quick come in, snap a couple poses of HH reading on the couch and then it would be done.  My parents would be gone to Bible study, so I could easily keep the kids entertained with some play-doh and/or coloring books.

Wrong.

The photographer stayed almost two hours.  He was very pleasant and didn’t seem bothered that my 15 month-old stood staring at him the whole time.  (She’s a little intense.  And judgemental.) And he seemed quite interested in Wog’s Halloween candy and guitar playing skills.  He even invited Bug into a couple of shots.

I don’t think  he was prepared for the slingshot.  Or the massive gas-passing from my parent’s geriatric, not-so-miniature dachshund.  But, hey,  he works for the New York Times while living in Alabama.  I’m sure “Rollwithit” is his middle name.

The article turned out really good.  Surprisingly, it didn’t have the whole Look, folks in Alabama CAN read! slant, as I’d jokingly anticipated.

Click on over to see the article and feast your eyes upon the handsomeness that is my hubby.  It appears that Bug has made it to the big time as well.

The Cowboy & The Chiducken

November 9th, 2009

For Now, We’ll Just Call It Sticker Day

September 11th, 2009

This morning, I woke up in a pretty good mood.  Wog only woke up once, I crawled into bed with him and then we slept away until after 7:30.  That’s pretty huge!  After he and HH left, I turned on the TV and it kind of hit me like a ton of bricks… it was September 11th.  My good mood quickly faded.

Despite the overcast weather, it was easy to go along with my usual Friday morning activities: dishes, the grocery store, picking Wog up from preschool.  He was especially proud of a sticker that was on his shirt.  He chattered about it all the way to the gas station.  He kept trying to show it to me, but all I could manage was an “Uh huh” and “That’s great” since I really couldn’t very well turn around while I was driving.

After pulling up to the pump, I stepped out into the mist and proceeded to chat with the kids through the rolled-down window while the gas pumped.  It was then that Wog pulled his sticker off of his shirt and held it out for me to see.

It was a flag.  The American flag.  I began to cry.  (Thank goodness for the misty weather.)

Today he’s clueless.  It’s a cool day because he got a sticker.

Bloggy Ketchup

June 16th, 2009

…or catch up, if you must.  Ketchup just kind of seemed to have a little more zing.  And I like zing.  And something on this blog should have some zing, since the design is about as far from zingy as a blog design could get.  **Cough cough… hint hint…  Mr Blog Designer, do you even read this anymore?!**

Lots of things going on at the Shoe house right now, but I have so very little bloggy mojo.  (Could it be the design bringing me down?  **cough**)  Lack of mojo demands a list, right?!

1.  Wog’s birthday party was a success.  If you count success as paying $50 to rent a park pavillion, then having to share it with another group who didn’t pay and  took up 4 of the 6 tables.  The city did refund our money, but scolded us for not calling security to have them removed.  Wog and his little friends had a blast though.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get a single picture of the birthday boy that didn’t have his friends in it and editing them has proven me completely Photoshop deficient.

2.  I’m about to dip my toe into the world of cloth diapering.  I’m a little nervous.  It could save us a ton of dough (like a ton), but what if it’s hard?  I don’t do hard very well.

3.  Wog is still doing great with the potty.  The only problem is now he’s figured out that he doesn’t have to actually ring the potty.  It’s just gross.  If you’re looking for a stock tip, buy Clorox now!

4.  I’m currently reading In Defense of Food:  An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan.  It’s totally changing the way I grocery shop.  The premise is Eat Food.  Not Too Much.  Mostly Plants.  I’m not finished with it (non fiction is such slow-going for me), but I would recommend it.  Unfortunately, it’s making it harder for me to plan menus each week.  A lifetime of consuming preservatives and relying on commercials to tell me what’s healthy, well that is a hard habit to break.

5.  I usually rely on the library for all my fiction reading needs, but it’s also a GREAT place to test out a cookbook.  If there’s a cookbook that I think I want, I check it out and take it home for a test drive.  The most recent one I had to peek at was Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.   It did not disappoint!  I’ll be purchasing it in the very near future.  And I hope to be sharing stories of all my homemade bread with all of Bloggyland.

I’m reading back over this post and wondering who is this girl who speaketh of cloth diapers, making her own bread and buying fresh vegetables?!

My mom might have me committed.

That might not be a bad idea.

This Title Is Most Likely Longer Than The Post And, Sadly, Way More Interesting.

April 28th, 2009

I have found that my quest for self-improvement is seriously cutting into my internet time.

Yeah, I could should have tweeted that instead.

But then what would I have posted here?

Eye Candy

April 16th, 2009

Well, it’s official.  I should’ve delayed the Great Bloggy Revival of 2009 until I had the ok from my technical director (aka. HH).  My comments are still beyond jacked.  And, yet, here I am again posting, knowing full well that old comments are going to show up on this post in the next few days (if not immediately).  But a revival is a revival and I’m going to post, darn it to heck.  So, if you do stop by, don’t be too freaked out by the wierd comments to leave a comment yourself.  I’ll delete the stray comments soon enough!

Now that I got the uncomfortable bloggy business out of the way…

I am still eating my way through leftover pound cake, potato salad, jellybeans of the Starburst variety, and my mama’s Chocolate- Covered Matzah bread (no, we’re not Jewish, but I believe the love of a starch knows no religious boundary).  I do hope that you haven’t eaten through all of your Easter candy yet, but just in case you have, here’s a fix or two of Easter weekend sweetness for you.  Enjoy!

wogbasket

 

bugears

I Blinked

December 11th, 2008

Wow!  You wake up one morning to realize that you just poured the last of the three gallons of milk you bought on the last grocery trip.  Where did the time go?  What all have I done in the EIGHT days since I posted last?!  Glad you asked.  I love a list.

1.  I went to a wedding.  Some good friends got married on Saturday and HH was a groomsman.  The rehearsal dinner was at a fancy house where, it is rumored, the upstairs bathroom was bigger than most apartments.  Of course I cannot verify that.  I refused to look.  Big fancy bathrooms in big fancy houses make me cry.  But the fajitas were AWE-wait for it-SOME!!
2.  Having a late-evening rehearsal dinner followed by an afternoon wedding meant that both kids spent the night at my folks’ house.  Which meant that I had all of Saturday morning to treasure hunt at TJ Maxx and Ross.  TJ Maxx was a bust, but I found two dresses at Ross.  One was only $12.99.  The other – marked down to $16.99 with an original retail of $174.  I know.  I even saved the tags.  (I have a weird thing about keeping tags of the really great bargains I find.  I still have a tag for a $345 DKNY blazer that I got at a sample sale for $7.) 
3.  We decorated our Christmas tree.  I scaled back on the ornaments this year.  Why create more opportunities for yelling at Woggie?  We hung his ornaments low and he’s allowed to get those off and play with those as he pleases… which equals very little tree drama. 

I also haven’t forgotten that I still have a giveaway for which am supposed to be choosing a winner.  I haven’t forgotten (ok, maybe I forgot a little) but the whole hacker, bloggy move thing has caused my comments to drift into some sort of black hole.  I am currently fishing in my Gmail for all of them, so I can properly choose a winner.  And to make up for the debacle, I’m tossing around the idea of “Bee’s Botched Blog-giveaway Bonanza” or something like that… maybe after the new year.