Mirror, Mirror On The Wall

Dear Diary,

I have a few things on my mind this morning as the girls and I have headed down to the playroom. They are as follows:

Phones
I get made fun of a lot for my less than thrilling cell phone. With no Internet and a slide out keyboard it is definitely a blast from the past. I have never been into cell phones and quite frankly could care less what it looks like as long as it makes phone calls and texts. Garrett thinks I am crazy and can't believe picking out the coolest new cell phone doesn't hold a special place in my heart, but it is just not important to me.

It is that time again for me to get a new cell phone and after seeing my non-smart phone options, I am pretty disappointed. Basically my best choice will be the newer version of the phone I have now, which will be the 3rd one of these phones I have gotten. I was kind of hoping for at least a change but I guess T-Mobile doesn't cater to those weirdos who don't want Internet on their phone. I am weighing my options and MAY switch to the dark side, but I really don't want to. I don't need Internet on my phone and to be honest, I think I just like the dare of going 2 more years without it.

Alone Time
I plan on going to the movies by myself this week because 1.) I really want to see the movie, and 2.) the thought of going alone sounds fantastic. If I would look back at my teenage self, I would see someone who would be MORTIFIED to do anything alone. Now, although still probably lame and pathetic, I am jumping at the chance to spend a couple of hours all by myself. The real trick will be getting me there, as we are already 3 days into this week and it hasn't happened yet. The last movie I saw in the theatre was Beauty and the Beast in 3D if that tells you anything. Oh the life of a Mom...

Hallway
I recently repainted, rearranged and revamped my upstairs hallway. I don't have before pictures but just imagine walls the color of blah from when we moved in, a hodgepodge of pictures that didn't go together and a chest that was neat, but I wanted in a different space in my house.

I went for simple and I amd pleased with the outcome. What better way to decorate a hallway than with the people I love? =)

Sincerely Yours,

"Have A Muffin Jessica"

Dear Diary,

The past two days have been slightly irregular for me, meaning I have spent them in somewhat of a grumpy mood. Mother's Day was a great day spent in Pittsburg with my in-laws, but by the time we headed home in the car I could feel a headache starting that came on full force as we pulled in the driveway and remained there until bedtime.

Yesterday I couldn't quite shake my grumpy mood and felt irritated at every false move anyone in this house made, which is a feeling I don't like to have. The typical daily "problems" the girls find themselves in seemed to frustrate me more than usual and by the time I made it home from my late night grocery run (the store is NOT a place to go when you're in a bad mood) I was definitely ready to end this no good, very bad day and go to bed.

As I sat in bed trying to fall asleep I started to think about the past couple of days and began feeling sorry for myself as one tends to do until all of a sudden it hit me like a ton of bricks. What in the world do I have to complain about? I could hardly pinpoint my reasons for being grumpy (although I have a pretty good idea) and here I have let it ruin an entire day. So many people are going through much, much worse problems, if you even want to call my mood a problem, and I am on the verge of tears feeling sorry for myself over nothing!

Needless to say I gave myself a quick kick in the butt and told my sour mood to take a hike. My life is fantastic and I should spend every day being thankful for what I have, not dwelling on the little things that won't even matter come next week. I think humans thrive for a conflict. We enjoy making something out of nothing and we like to be the martyr for whatever reason, but I am through with that. Life is too great to spend time seeking out reasons to be upset.

Everyone deserves a grumpy day, and yesterday was definitely mine. Today is a new day and I am moving on and being thankful for this wonderful life God has given me. The girls are eating breakfast (muffins I whipped up this morning because today WILL be a good day) and then we will spend the afternoon being happy and having fun, because what is there to be sad about?

There is an episode of The Electric Company (one of Addy's shows) that seems to be our favorite in this house. It is all about the "unmuffin," an unbelievably delicious muffin that turns you into the "unversion" of yourself if you take a bite. If you are normally happy, you become sad. If you are normally nice, you become mean. Everyone is trying to get everyone else to "have a muffin" in order to either change into the bad or good version of themselves and the target is a character named Jessica - "Have a muffin Jessica." We tend to use the phrase a lot around this house and today I think it seems appropriate for me to take a second bite of my "unmuffin" so I can turn back into the regular version of myself. Have a muffin Lindsey, have a muffin...

Sincerely Yours,

The Hunger Games

Dear Diary,

I plan on writing a Mother's Day post, I just haven't quite gotten around to it due to some traveling this weekend and the attachment I have had to my Kindle. Which is why I am skipping the Mother's Day post to write about something else entirely.

On our drive to Pittsburg on Saturday I was surprised to find out that I had much less of my book to finish than I thought I did, leaving me book less before we even left Kansas City. I was torn between searching for a new one or starting the book that for some reason I have steered clear of for such a long time, The Hunger Games.

I had several reasons for not wanting to read the first book of this trilogy: 1.) Because everyone else was, 2.) The storyline did not sound like something I would get into and 3.) I already knew the premise and I hate knowing what is going to happen before it actually happens in anything.

I got an email awhile back saying the Kindle version of The Hunger Games was on sale for $5 so I went ahead and bought it, thinking some day I'd probably read it and why not get it on sale? It sat, unread for several weeks watching other books get picked on my team first before finally, with my back to the wall and nothing else to read, I decided to see what all the fuss was about. And I am glad I did.

I read on the way down to Pittsburg, on the way home from Pittsburg and then this morning in between chores and I am finished with it. It was excellent to say the least and nothing like a book I would normally read, which made me like it even more. I can't even tell you who my favorite character was because there were so many - Katniss, Rue, Cinna, Peeta, Gale, (even a soft spot for Thresh) - which is rare in a book and even more rare was the fact that at no point did I get bored with the dialogue or the pace at which the story was moving.

I have high hopes of getting to the movie this week (maybe even tonight as a "Happy Mother's Day" gift to myself) and I am in no way ashamed that I will be going to a movie alone because I am THAT excited to see it (I have watched the trailer twice this morning). The only real issue I can already foresee me having is with Peeta and Gale. For some reason I pictured Peeta as the dark haired, tall character and I pictured Gale as the shorter, blonde "kid-next-door" type, even though the book clearly stated the opposite. I will have a hard time overcoming that switch while watching the movie, so we'll see how that goes.

I do plan on reading the next two in the series, although I hear the first is the best. I am however torn on when to do so because as much as I'd love to start Catching Fire now, I have to say, the satisfaction of reading the book and immediately being able to see the movie will be nice. I may wait it out and start the second right before the movie comes out, whenever that will be.

The Hungers Games get an A+ from me!

(Oh, and the other book I finished first, Barabra Feethy's Some Kind of Wonderful, gets a B-. Slightly disappointed but wasn't a horrible read.)

Sincerely Yours,

A Day On The Job

Dear Diary,

This morning I tackled my "To-Do" list of putting Olivia down for a nap, getting a few orders done and starting dinner with my best friend, the crockpot.

Sleepy Baby

Paint, Glue, Scissors, Oh My!

Slow Cooker Champ

I got everything done just in time to get a headache and spend the afternoon being lazy on the couch while watching the girls do what the girls do.

Build Towers

Get Laptop Work Done

Earn Their AR Points

Enjoy The Afternoon Matinee

& Terrorize Philly

Here's to hoping they can stay entertained so I can baby this headache right here on the couch all afternoon. At least while my head is pounding I can watch these two hooligans and laugh.

Sincerely Yours,



That's What She Said

Dear Diary,

My kids have said/done some pretty funny/sweet things lately so I figured I better document it now so when they are 14-18 years old I can remember how much I used to like them =)

I told Addalyn I had a headache. The next thing I know, she is grabbing a pretend something out of a pretend bowl and patting my head. I said, "Addy, what are you doing?" And she said, "I jus fixing you ... I give you a band aid."

Olivia's new word is "danK," emphasis on the 'K,' which means "drink."

Addalyn thinks everything is new. I think it started because we were calling her panties her "new panties," so now she adds the word "new" before everything. "I want my new drink." "Where is my new book?" "I got a boo boo on my new leg...."

Olivia waves at everyone, however she doesn't know the word "hi", just the word "bye." She even waved to Ellen Degeneres on her show the other day when Ellen waved at the crowd.

Both girls are OBSESSED with dancing. They love music and they bust a move anytime a song comes on. One of our new favorite activities (there I am using "new" in front of a word) is watching Dancing with the Stars on Monday nights and the girls and I dance like crazy (looking totally awesome I might add).

We went out to eat at the Cheesecake Factory and Addy decided she wasn't hungry. It took a lot of convincing to get her to eat ONE bite of chicken so she could have some cake for dessert, proving to be a very poor dinner for her. That night I lied down in bed with her and before she fell asleep she rolled over to me and said, "Great dinner today. So fun. I eat cake."

Olivia gives complete open mouth kisses that are highly inappropriate but equally sweet.

Addy spent at least 20 minutes the other night walking around the living room with a dress tied around her neck as a cape, going from door to door telling us, "I gotta go. My friends are in the car."

There are a bazillion more one liners from "Addy The Great" that I wish I could remember but this will have to do for now.

Sincerely Yours,

Paint, Pictures & Projects

Dear Diary,

I spent my weekend giving my hallway a makeover. I have wanted to paint it for awhile and just never have gotten around to it, so Saturday I bit the bullet and got some work done.

I painted, rearranged pictures, decided on a table and made myself a little something to tie it all together. I couldn't be more happy with the outcome, which is good because I am sick of working on it.

There is always a project, always an idea and always a slow process due to lack of extra cash lying around or more accurately, less time to get anything done. It does feel nice to finish something and be pleased with the result, but a finished big project has just led to more smaller projects, as it always seem to do.

I have come to the conclusion that I tend to decorate my house with pictures. Some people buy artwork for their walls or neat decorative pieces, which I have my fair share, but for the most part my walls and shelves are lined with pictures.

And why not? My girls are cute, our family is important, my photographer is amazing and my house needs decorating so it only makes sense. And lets be honest, does anyone stop to look at that framed sailboat you have hanging in your entryway? No. But EVERYONE stops to look at framed photographs.

Once I get a couple more pictures ordered and put in the frames that are hung and waiting for them, my hallway will be complete. However, if a 3rd child ever happens in this family, we will need more wall space.

Sincerely Yours,

"I Gotta Go Potty!"

Dear Diary,

Well dinner is in the oven (one of those made up meals that I am hoping turns out okay), Addy is resting on the couch (a mandatory rest on gymnastic days), Olivia is exploring without her "other Mother" bossing her around (she always enjoys her alone time) and I am taking a breather before the whirlwind starts back up again for the rest of the evening (my break is conveniently during back-to-back episodes of Friends).

We had a typical morning followed by an afternoon of errands, which always proves to be interesting.

We made our first stop at Hobby Lobby and as soon as we walked to the very back of the store Addy says, "Mommy I gotta go potty." Greeeaaattt. A million trips in that store and I don't even know if Hobby Lobby has bathrooms and even if they did Olivia was asleep in her car seat so there was no way I was going haul everyone into a public bathroom. So I told her to hold it and we would go as soon as we left the store. She dances through the aisles and grabs herself about a million times while we stand in line behind a lady who decided she needed to buy EVERYTHING IN HOBBY LOBBY. Finally we make it outside just in time for Addy to relieve herself just enough that she felt better.

So back to the house we go to finish her pee and change panties and shorts.

Our second stop was at Price Chopper so I could grab a couple items I needed to finish up dinner. I lucked out and got my boyfriend cashier today so I put a check mark in the "Good Day" box. I am pretty sure he is college age and he may have a little bit of acne, but that doesn't stop me from hoping one of these days he'll ask me to the formal (It's okay, Garrett doesn't read this and besides, he knows all about my Price Chopper Boyfriend who has no idea who I am).

After loading up we headed to our third destination, Walgreens. I had to pick up some pictures so I was hoping for a quick "in and out" trip. With one child on my hip and the other holding my hand we headed in. The Walgreens employee behind the counter was moving awfully slow and by the time she finally gave me my total and took my money she gave me one of those, "You look like you have your hands full" comments. I wanted to say, "Yes I have my hands full and while we are making observations, you seem to be moving at a snail's pace and I would like to pay and get out of here," but what I really said was, "Yes, I usually do (fake smile)."

We got home with just enough time for the girls to chase each other around and climb on all the furniture while I started dinner.

And now we are all relaxing and gearing up for the fast past evening ahead of us!

Sincerely Yours,