I Like His Name....

(It's really not a political post - I promise!!)

This weekend we were talking to Girl about the upcoming elections. Where Shitface is very open about his support for McCain, I on the other hand am still undecided. (I know, I know - I don't have much time left!)

Now growing up as a kid, my father NEVER told us who he voted for and we knew not to ask. I'm still not very sure the reason for this but I do know that I'm not feeling very open to telling people who I'm voting for - not that I even know at this point!

Anyway the topic came up this weekend and Girl was saying that she's "voting" for Obama. Of course she then wanted to know who both of us were voting for. Of course she wasn't happy that I wouldn't tell her who I was voting for so to change the subject, I started asking her questions as to why she was "voting" for him and her response:

Girl: I think his name is cool!

Girl: Harek. Obamo.

You mean: Barack Obama?

Girl: Yea, that's it.

I guess that's all that matters when you're 8! Wish I could still vote for those reasons! It sure would make things easier.

The Last of the Treasures

Monday I went on my last field trip of the season, this time with Boy 1. Of course it was also to another pumpkin patch but this time to a different one. (You can see pictures from the trip with Girl here and the trip with Boy 2 here.) This time we went here.

Would you like to see the newest treasures?


Can you tell from the picture alone that this trip was by far the best one. Not only did we not get a teeny tiny pumpkin but we got a whole crap load of apples that we got to pick ourselves. The rule with the pumpkin was if you could carry it you could have it. And Boy 1 loved it! Of course it took him several attempts to find the largest pumpkin he could possibly carry but he finally settled on the one above.

Of course we now have more pumpkins and apples (minus the few that the kids have already gotten their hands on) than I know what to do with!


Anyone have any suggestions on what to do with all of them?

And we've already carved a big one this weekend and I'm (well Shitface is) all carved out!

It's Definitely Fall

So do you remember that post about that awful tree in my neighbor's front yard? This one.

Well there is one nice thing about it. During this time of the year - the leaves are beautiful!

Here see for yourself:

(I realize the first and last one look the same but if you click on them to enlarge them you can see they are in fact different.)

This was my lame attempt at photography but maybe Santa will bring me a new camera for Christmas (***HINT, HINT - Shitface, that's for you!!) and I'll be able to take cool pictures in the future.

If you really want to see some great fall shots, you should check out this site! And if you're really into photography or just like cool pictures in general, I recommend you also go here to see the rest of her pics.

Bloggy Giveaway

Giveaway has been closed. Please check here for the winner!

It's that time again...For the Bloggy Giveaway Carnival!

I participated in the last one and it was a lot of fun and I got to "meet" a ton of new people. I deemed it a success and so I'm doing it again.

This time one lucky commenter will win a $10 Target Gift Card.

(Me giving away a Wal-Mart gift card the last time and then expressing how I disliked Wal-Mart didn't go over so well with some people. I think someone actually called me a snob too!)

Anyway, the rules are the same but I'll post them again for any newbies:

1. You must leave a comment here on this post.
2. You must also take a look around my site and leave a comment on another post as well. (And if you're already a regular commenter here than you of course only need to leave a comment here on this post.)
3. You must have a US or Canadian mailing address.
4. You do not need to be a blogger to win but you must supply a valid email address so I can contact you if you win.

Winner will be chosen Saturday, November 1st by random.org. Winner will be given 2 days to respond or a new winner will be selected.

[Added Note: And remember - the requirement to win is that you leave a comment here and on another post. I have several people who don't qualify right now because they haven't followed the directions!]

That's it! Let the fun begin. And don't forget to check out More giveaways at the Bloggy Giveaways Quarterly Carnival!

Being Lost - But It's Not Me This Time

You see this wonderful piece of technology:


It's a NEW phone charger. Do you know how hard it is not to have one?

Well after our move home from Virginia (yes, I know that was forever ago) my charger was missing, even though I put it where I knew it couldn't get lost!

I figured it would show up eventually though and went on my daily business. Luckily, I had my car charger still so my phone was limited to being charged only during the the morning in the car while I was at the gym.

This really wasn't working out too bad - except on those days that I would forget to plug it in or wasn't able to make it to the gym. After several of those occasions and several months later I gave up on my charger ever showing up. I figured the moving goblins had gotten a hold of it and it was gone forever.

So I went out and bought a new one. And then 2 days later I found this:


Go figure! The goblins must of dropped it off since they are in the area for Halloween!

**On a side note - maybe I am lost and going crazy - I'm posting pictures of wires!

More Tresures

So these are my newest "treasures" that we got today.



They look familiar you say?

Well that's because today I went to the same exact farm with Boy 2. We rode the same exact same tractor around the exact same farm, went to the same patch of pumpkins and then went to the same exact barn for cider and apples.....only this time with a different bunch of kids.

Oh wait - what's that you say? That half eaten green apple wasn't in the last photo....

Well that's because Boy 2 got a hold of it. As we were leaving the farm he was carrying his apple back to the truck.


The thought never even crossed my mind that he would be able to take a bite of it. But as you can see - he clearly did! (Mind you - he's only 15 months.) He actually took many, many bites of it and then screamed his head off when I took it away from him when we got back to the daycare center.

Here are a few other pictures from the day:

Hmmmm...so many to pick. Which one do to I want?

I think this one looks good.

Ok, Mom. Got my pumpkin. I'm ready.

***And in case you're wondering - I don't purposely take faceless pictures for blogging purposes - it just seems to happen that way.

Picture #6

In order to buy myself some more time with an actual post I figured I would do this meme.

I originally thought I wouldn't be able to do it since I can't post pictures of the kids but I tried it anyway and I lucked out. Here is how it works:

Go to your 6th picture folder and pick your 6th picture and post it. Pretty simple. Here is mine:



This was this time last year when I went down to Ft Rucker, AL for Shitface's graduation from WOC School. In the picture above I was pinning him. You may notice that he is the only one kneeling. Yea, he thought he would be a smart ass (what's new) since I'm so short and get down on one knee so that I would be able to see the pin holes.

You can check out Michelle's from Big Blueberry Eyes here and Wendy's from An Iowa Mom here. If you want to participate go ahead. Leave me a comment though so I can come check you out!

I'm Lost - But You Get Some Deals

Ok, I know I keep doing this. I start getting comments and then poof - I disappear! I don't know what my problem is!

Of course I started this post about 1 1/2 hours ago before I got distracted and you can clearly see that I didn't get very far! While I have plenty I could be writing about, I'm at a loss for words and being able to put them together all in one coherent post.

While I'm creating my good excuse for not blogging and trying to find my words in order to do so, you can do some shopping with these promo codes. (See I do think about you guys even when I'm not blogging....)

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or

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Company Kids
Use promo code KIDSTUFF09 for 20% off one item.

Expires 12/31/09

And you read all of the above correctly. All of these codes are good until 2009!

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow a little less distracted by this crazy life I live.

Where's the Innocence

So as I mentioned yesterday I went on a field trip to the pumpkin patch with Girl.

At some point in time during the trip a little boy walked up to Girl and said:

LB: Can you read?

Girl: Yea.

LB: Can you write?

Girl: Yea.

LB: Can you do it all night?

Girl: Yea.

LB: Ewww. That's disgusting!! Hahahaha!!

I couldn't belive it! I was floored!! Lucky for that little boy me, it all went right over Girl's head and she hadn't a clue as to what he was talking about.

I wonder if he even knew what he was talking about? I'm kind of hoping that he heard it from an older sibling and was just repeating it - because come on - they're in SECOND grade!

Maybe it's time to start looking into an all girl private school!

Get Ready

It's almost that time again - For the BloggyGiveaway!

I participated last time and met a lot of new people in the blogosphere, so I'm going to do it again this time. Of course this time I have no idea what I'm going to be giving away but I have until the 27th to figure it out. (Nothing like procrastination!)

If you have any suggestions or have something you would like to donate to the giveaway just let me know. I'm open to suggestions!

Better Late Than Never

First and foremost I need to say:

Happy 5th Birthday Boy 1.

**And no I didn't forget but with having Shitface home for the long weekend, and me not posting on weekends as it is and still not being able to get back on track - it's a little late.

Boy 1 is five! What a big age for such a little boy. Since he is now five he can do everything! (At least in his eyes.) He no longer needs to stand on a stool at the sink - because he's five. He no longer needs to sit in a booster at the table - because he's five. He no longer needs help in deciding his clothes - because he's five. He no longer needs to be cuddled - because he's five. He no longer needs me to tell him to brush his teeth - oh no wait, yes he does!

So the point is my oldest boy is growing up to be an independent little man... well as independent as five will allow anyway. It seems like just yesterday he was learning to walk and talk. And looking back at pictures the other day (trying to find one I was allowed to post) I found this.

He wasn't even two here and was chasing ducks around the park.
He has since learned to leave the ducks alone.

But in keeping with my regular Tuesday From the Mouth of... I have a guest today.

For Boy 1's party we took him and a few friends bowling. At some point during the night Shitface and I had kissed in front of the boys and we got this from a friend, we'll call D.

D: Ewww... that's disgusting!

Me: What? Why?

D: Because you kissed and that's disgusting.

Me: So your Mommy and Daddy are disgusting too when they kiss?

D: No. My Daddy is disgusting because he married my Mommy!

And there you have it!

I'm Still Here

I'm still around. Things have just been hectic.

Boy boys were home yesterday so I got very little work done.

Then today I went on a field trip with Girl to the pumpkin patch. Again - not much work has been completed yet.

Look for something else from me tonight (hopefully) but in the mean time you can see our treasures from the farm below:

Nothing

Sorry I got nothing today. Shitface is coming home early for a 4 day weekend so I'm trying to get my work done before he gets home in a couple hours.

You can go check out some of my favorite posts of the week though if you need something to do:

I Now Know Where I Stand by An Iowa Mom

Pure Sweet Bliss by The Girl Next Door

The Jerk Goes to Target by HappyHourSue

Sex Talk by Bad Mom

Snack Mishap by Antique Mommy

Have a great weekend. And remember it's a 4-day weekend so there is no guarantee that you'll see me on Monday either!

It's Still October....

So you know how I said I don't like Halloween? I think I found my reason. Looking through some old pictures, I found this:



Yup, that's me! I think this would be enough to terrify any child, let alone one that wasn't even one yet! I think my hatred of Halloween started at a really early age!

See Dad - I think I can blame this one on you!

Or maybe it's because one year several of us dressed up like the 101 Dalmatians. Except there were only 4 or 5 of us and people thought we were cows! Unfortunately, no pictures of this can be found - which is probably a good thing after all.

This picture was found though. And this is probably just as scaring:



So you see. My hatred of Halloween really is legit. I have real reasons!

Who Did I Piss Off?

So it's only Wednesday morning and already I've had a week from hell! So what has been happening?

1. Girl came home with her progress report on Monday. Which stated that she is STILL calling out in class even though we have had this discussion several times since school started a month ago. Her punishment - she must raise her hand when she wishes to speak at home. We'll see how this works out.

2. Boy 1 tried to climb the shower curtain. Which resulted in a HUGE rip in the cloth curtain. (And don't ask why he was doing it, I still can't get an answer out of him. I chalk it up to being almost 5)

3. Boy 2 has become Houdini. He managed to escape out the back door the other night. I found him with the broom sweeping the deck. I'm still not sure how he got out there but I'm just grateful he didn't leave the deck!

4. Girl came home with a note from the teacher yesterday. She was given several warnings and continued to "speak during inappropriate times". I'm suppose to have a conversation with her about being respectful.

5. And the best one. On Boy 1's way home from school (a.k.a. daycare where they provide transportation) yesterday the van ran out of gas. And NO, I wasn't driving! So what did the driver do? Instead of calling for help he walked my son down the super busy street in rush hour traffic to the gas station and back! I couldn't effing believe it! Needless to say that driver is no longer employed!!

Seriously, I don't know who I pissed off this week but give me a break already! What can I do to get back in good graces?? Cause I really don't know how much more I can take this week.

From the Mouth of....

Boy 1 has been in too much trouble this week to actually say too much of anything funny, so this is an old one. It's from earlier this year - April to be exact.




Preface: Boy 1's first season of T-ball. We've had several practices but this is the first scrimmage of the season. Boy 1 is playing 3rd base. A player from the other team runs to third base.

As I look up, Boy 1 is running back into the dugout as this other boy gets to 3rd base.

Me: Boy 1, where are you going?

Boy 1: There's someone else on third base, I don't need to be there anymore!

Good thing it was only the beginning of the season - as he apprently had much more to learn.

A Step Back in Time

Jenny on the Spot is always finding these cool sites or knows of someone who finds cool sites and then I end up wasting entirely too much time playing on them. This one came from her too!

So here is another site that is sure to waste your time if you're looking to kill some!

Yearbook Yourself

Would you like to see what I would of looked like in 1952? No? Then stop reading. Otherwise, continue:



Pretty scarey - huh? Good thing I wasn't around then! How about 1956?


Wow! Even scarier! Let's skip ahead 10 years. 1966:


Wow! I think my body is a little too small in this one for my hair! Did people really have hair like that?

Alright, skip forward a few years, to a year in which I was actually alive. 1984:


Don't think I would've fit in there too well either!

Moving along. 1998:


Sadly enough - I think this one could of passed for me! See this is my actual senior picture:

Not too far off!

So have some fun! It's Monday - who's really suppose to be working anyway!

Funny Stuff

After our last TTT I was forced to play a joke on Shitface. (Yes! Shitface don't listen to anyone else - I really was forced!) (TTT gals - we know the truth!)

Anyway, I told Shitface that after we had had a few drinks ToadMama thought it would be a great idea to dye our white dog pink. And yes, I mean bright pink!

See for yourself:




And the best one. Where they are drying him off after dying him:



These are the pics I sent to him via text message on his phone as he was out on a boat in the Atlantic Ocean.

I didn't even get a text back. With in seconds (literally seconds) my phone was ringing and it was him. At first he didn't believe me. He kept saying, "that's not our dog." After ensuring him that yes, that was indeed our dog and our kitchen, he was furious! I think he even threatened to cancel all future TTT's because we obviously couldn't handle our alcohol. And I'm sure something like, "why would you ever think of doing something this stupid!" probably left his lips too.

The plan was to have him believing this until he got home 2 weeks later. However, I definitely didn't anticipate him being this mad and I definitely didn't want him to be THIS mad at me for the next 2 weeks. So I cracked.

I finally gave in and told him it was a joke and let my laughter out. BWAHHAHAH! Toadmama photo shopped the pictures!! Don't they look great!!! BWAHAHAHAHA!

Yet, he still didn't think it was very funny. Not even a little.

So he comes home tonight - I wonder if he'll be able to get a laugh out of it now?

[Editor's Note: Sorry for all of you early readers - I temporarily forgot how to use spellcheck]

Everyday Math Sucks

So Girl's school for the past 3 years has been using this Everyday Math program. The logic of it makes sense - for the most part. You essentially learn a topic and come back to it continuously throughout the year. It's not like other programs where you learn it, test it and then never touch it again. That part makes sense. But the way they teach them to do things just seems ridiculous!

Take this problem for example:

Partial-Sums Algorithm	2 6 8 + 4 8 3 ________ 6 0 0 1 4 0 1 1 ________ 7 5 1
Add 100s Add 10s Add 1s Add partial sums

Really - you have to go through all that work to get that answer!?! You can't just teach them to carry the number like we learned. (I thought it worked pretty well that way.)

And this one:

I really don't think this makes ANY sense! Why make them go through all the extra work?

And then there is the issue of money. The way they have been teaching money is like this:

Whereas:

P = penny
D = dime
N = nickle
Q = quarter

DUH!

But the problem now lies in that my child can't look at coins and tell what they are because they don't have a P,D,N or Q on it and their not all the same size! They rarely use actual money or pictures of actual money.

So when this problem on her most recent math test came home wrong I couldn't get upset with her. They never actually use coins or pictures of coins for anything - except of course on this test!


She looked at it and figured it was the biggest coin so it had to be a quarter. (And to make it worse the coins really aren't even to scale.)

I'm really struggling with the fact that she isn't learning the basics that everyone has always used. Could you imagine an adult standing in line at the bank trying to add up a deposit slip and have to go through all of this to get an answer?

Does anyone elses kids use this format? Does it make sense to anyone else? If your kids use it, do you and your kids understand it?

Is October Over Yet?

It's the first day of October! CRAP!! That means that the stupid holiday called Halloween is now on my children's minds.

Am I one of the only ones out there that loathes this holiday?

First of all you get dressed up in some stupid costume and then go around and beg for candy. Who doesn't love free candy? Well for me - I don't have much of a sweet tooth and the whole thought just bothers me!

And if you had my Girl, you would probably see one of the many reasons I can't stand it. Take last year. I take her to Target to pick out a costume. The first one she wants is upwards of $45. I refuse to spend that kind of money on a costume said child will only wear once.

I pick out a costume I think she will like and she rolls her eyes at me. I guess that ones a no go.

She then picks out another costume appropriate for a 22 year old - not a 6 year old! I tell her no way in hell!

I pick out another costume to be met with those same glaring eyes of "are you kidding me". That's too babyish. I'm not wearing that.

She picks out another costume - decent until I look at the $50 price tag. I tell her that's too much money and she proceeds to whine and cry that this is the ONLY one she likes and why can't she have it!

I pick out a similar costume that doesn't have all the "bells and whistles". No way she exclaims, that one doesn't have the cool shoes! ( I didn't know we were buying it for the shoes!)

This proceeds to go on for about 45 minutes when I give up and tell her to pick a costume in the next 5 minutes or she isn't going at all.

And what do we end up with? The first costume that I picked out!

And this goes on every year! I think I'm just going to spare myself the pain this year and get her costume online. That way I only have to listen to her whine at home and not at the store that she doesn't like it and then ends up loving!