Black Out

photo via

Call me crazy (no, I know you already do. But this time you have my permission.) but I really think there should be a mandatory power outage at least once a month.

Benefits:

• Provides an excuse to avoid vacuuming, doing dishes, and other such activities
• Who doesn't love candles?
• You can eat something that isn't cooked by radiation. (you know, like Peanut butter sandwiches?)
• Good reminder of how a four-way stop works
• Entertaining kids with real-life activities like the park, and books, and coloring in lieu of spending 4 hours trying to save up enough Studs to buy the Dumbledore character you just unlocked. (oh that was me. sorry.)
• (unintentional bonus) Your husband might just use up all his cell phone battery reading twitter, and with no electricity to charge it will be forced to listen to you ramble about really exciting things like visiting teaching and how many people were at Zumba class instead of tuning you out.
  
• The first movie your kids watch after 7 hours of being denied due to no power will be the most entertaining movie they've ever seen.

Ten Thi... oh look, shiny!

Hey! It's ten things for today!!

1. Remember Trent from Daria? He was totally the hottest cartoon. However, I think he's in for a replacement.


Megamind. Yeah, he's blue, what of it?


I took Elliot and Astoria to see Megamind over the weekend. The weirdest part? The fact that I have 2 kids who are old enough to sit through an entire movie at the theater without any running around, playing with the chairs, kicking the lady's head sitting in front of us... They were totally on their best behavior. I don't care what you say, it's a milestone for me.

2. Bacon and I are on a trial separation. We've decided to see other people/breakfast meats.
Sorry Bacon, you know I love you, but I think I love you a little too much, and that's really not beneficial for any successful relationship.

3. I fear that the winners of my book giveaway are going to realize very soon just how totally nerdy I am. Sorry about that.

4. In Sunday school this week, I kept wanting to bring up examples from Scott Pilgrim to illustrate points from our lesson. (I restrained myself though)

5. Cars are the lamest things ever. Blair's needs a new alternator, a serpentine belt, and a headlight. Mine needs brakes, a tie rod, windshield wipers, and an inspection+renewal. yay. Oh i'm not complaining or anything. oh no, i'm just so excited because taking cars to get fixed is like my favorite thing ever. meh. If it wasn't for the fact that I have quite possibly the greatest Dad on the face of the earth i'd be tacking new tire, oil change and car wash on there too... but like I said, my Dad is the business.

6. I have been reading this book for what feels like the last ten years. Thanks Susanna Clarke for totally messing with my Fifteen Books by the End of the Year Thingy...

7. Basketball season for PHS officially started yesterday. See ya in 4 months, Blair.

8. Trying to come up with ten things for this post has made me realize how completely boring and uninteresting my life is right now

9. Sorry about that.

10. Um, I like stuff.

wow. that was astonishingly anti-climactic.

Candy Coma

Wanna know how I topped off my Halloween sugar rush? Oh with a POUND of fancy See's Chocolates.

Seriously?

What? I had a gift certificate, and I was in town. I wasn't going to let it go to WASTE was I? So much for sexy Zumba arms (a girl can dream...)

Obligatory Halloween pictures:







The sorting is my favorite part. This is where I steal all the Almond Joys and Butterfingers. I'm not that mean. They don't like those ones anyway. (Almonds and coconut for the pickiest 4 year old in the universe? Right.)


One of these things is not like the other...




Here I am dressed as, you know, myself.

Well, I had every intention of being the White Queen, and I was going to wear my wedding dress (not like it's being used for anything else) but the dress in in storage at my in-law's house and I couldn't get to it in time. Wanna know what's weird though? That Tinker Bell-ish dress? I wore that to a Halloween party when I was 17. What the WHAT? I'm sure I was drowning in it back then though. You don't get much size selection when you buy from the D.I.

Also I haven't done ten things in a while. Next time, next time.

Another also, Enter Gregory's contest, and look for my next book giveaway in a couple weeks.

Chicken Dinner

So who wants a book? How about this kid?



Ruth!

(My blog BFF who i've never met. She actually won both times. :) Since we are friends on Goodreads, this one should be pretty easy. Yay!!!)


Or maybe this kid?


Carrie Rosalind

(Yay for new friends! I do love a good challenge.)

Congrats friends! (y'all need to e-mail me with your addresses. Okay? mary_gola(at)live(dot)com )

The next step is my favorite. Picking out the books. Oooooh I can't wait!

"And Otho?" (as Elliot would say) don't be too bummed if you didn't win this time. Because I just decided I'm going to do this every month. Back in March I decided that I was going to "Give a good friend a good book" every month. I followed through with it for about 3 months. So not only is it high-time for a comeback, this way i'll have friends to bug me about it if I forget.

OH and If you didn't win mine... You might just win Gregory's. Go there and enter now! Do it!


The next post will contain Halloween costume pictures. Ye have been warned.

"Off With Their Hats!"

A little preview for this weekend.

Elliot:

Queens always have perfect penmanship.




I am exhausted. I stayed up WAY too late finishing Astoria's costume

Apparently I'm not the only one.




Also, don't Forget to enter my little BOOK GIVEAWAY

You have 'till Monday to enter.


Happy Hallowe'en Kids!

Sweet 100 (and a present for you)

This is my 100th post.

That deserves a celebration don't you think?

I think so too.

SO in celebration of 100 posts I want to give you a book. Because we all know how much Miss Maryposa likes books right? I'll pick two winners and send them a book (a secret surprise book! hee hee!!)





Then of course Neil Gaiman has to go and steal my thunder. Ok Mr. Newberry-Award-winning-61-weeks-on-the-bestseller-list Gaiman, but i've had this idea for months, then you swoop in with your Hallowe'en give a book idea and make me sound all unoriginal? huh. Touche...

You've won this round Mr. Gaiman!!!

Moving on...

Here's what you can do to win a book:

1. Follow this blog
2. Leave me some comments or other love-type notes (make sure you leave at least one on this post so I know you'd like to be part of the giveaway)
3. Tell someone else about this blog (it's all about sharing the love)

extra credit: Post a reading list on your blog (for any season or occasion) and send me a link and picture of you peeking over a book.



Already done all these things you say? Well then consider yourself entered 4 times. (so yes, you get an entry for each one.)

I shall select a winner on November 1st. That's one week kids.

There you go, I hope you win!

2 Very Important Things

(this one is going to be long. you may want to get a snack.)



I'm not the only one that just can't seem to get a handle on October, right? It is always busy, and yet I'm always surprised when it gets here and running around like an insane asylum escapee screaming out nonsensical things like "JAM SANDWICHES!" or "RAFER ALSTON!" while attempting to shove a bacon and peanut butter casserole into the dishwasher because my brain has stopped functioning and I no longer remember how to prepare food.



Last weekend Blair and I had a party. A no-kids-all-day-awesome-sauce-happy-6-years-of-marriage kind of party.





Do you see how hot this man is? No wonder I said "Ok i'll marry you"... after 2 weeks of knowing him.





I made him a scavenger hunt. And with the help of some very very dear to my heart friends, was able to pull it all off. (Brittni and Joe, y'all are my heroes!)






That was last week.

***

TODAY...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ASTORIA!

(adorable, even when she's stealing my hot chocolate)

This kid is 3. and she is amazing.
At risk of sounding like one of those annoying braggy-pants moms... you have never met a kid as awesome as this.





Fun Facts:

• She can read. No seriously, like whole books. (her first one was I Love My New Toy (an Elephant and Piggie book) by Mo Willems) And she's been doing it for the last 4 or 5 months. I would love to take credit for this, but in all honesty, I didn't do anything. She is OBSESSED with the ABCs, and has a redonkulous photographic memory. (now if only she would use that memory to find our lost hard drive remote...)
• She tells people at church that she is "Cinderlella"
• She attempts to sweep my floor while pretending to be Cinderlella or Snow White. This could turn out to be awesome...
• Last night after I told her she looked lovely she said "Right?!"
• Gives the BEST smooches. No battle. (sorry kids #1 and #3)

But unfortunately she has the terrible burden of not only being the middle child, but also having her birthday fall one week after her parents anniversary, and one week before Halloween. And therefore pretty much gets the shaft when it comes to birthday parties.

I'll let you know how it goes.

OH one last thing... The next post will be EPIC AWESOME. So prepare yourself.

(Thanks to Joe and his camera for the pictures!)