Your So Vain...

(sing it with me)..."you probly think this song is about you...your so vain (your so VAIN) you probly think this song is about you, don't you, DON'T YOU!" :)

So apparently Mr. JD got a hold of my camera the other day and learned himself how to take pictures. I say this because I plugged in my SD card today and up pops what you shall see below. The funny thing is there were about 40 total of he, himself and him! These are just the ones that you could see his pretty face! Kind of a fun surprise for mommy!

Also fun that he didn't break the camera while it was in his little curious hands! And pretty great that he didn't lose said camera while it was in his possession. Never underestimate the power of his creepiness! :)

Happy Friday!

Oh and sorry about the boogies in his nose...we are fighting something and as much as we try to keep on top of them, they are coming back faster than we can grab him and wipe him up. And remember, he was apparently roaming the house and MIA during this "photo shoot." (insert mom of the year award HERE).

Powerful

Yesterday was one of those days where you realize that life is fragile and God is in control. Yesterday was one of those days that makes you realize how much love runs through family. Yesterday was one of those days that makes you realize how powerful prayer can be.
Yesterday was one of those days that reminded me of how GOOD people can be.

Let me go back a few days actually...because its not just about yesterday...

About a week ago P-Daddy and I packed up the family truckster to brave the grocery store on a weekend morning. We had been playing with JD outside for most of the morning and our arms were really tired from swinging him so we decided this would be a good idea. I had laid my cell phone on my back bumper for play time and noticed it before we packed up, making a mental note I needed to grab it before we left. But I forgot. And we went on our merry way to the store and back home again. The store by the way is about 10 miles away. So we get home and I remember that I had left my cell on the bumper and forgot and we had driven off with it there. CRAP!!! But my optimistic self got back in the car with P-Daddy's cell phone and thought I would slowly drive down our street and down the main road of our hood on the off chance it was still out there and still in one piece. I did have a pretty sinking feeling in my gut that I was wrong though. Well...I drove down our street calling my phone and get to the stop sign at the end of our road and there I hear it. In the MIDDLE of the main road in our neighborhood, ringing. I get out of my car, walk over to my untouched phone, laugh, shake my head and say (out loud)"God I have NO idea why you are so good to me because I don't deserve it."

To you this may be silly because it is just a cell phone, and believe me when I say I completely realize this. It was just one of those rare moments where it was kind of a miracle that it was still in one piece based on where it was laying and it was going to be a real pain to have to get a new phone (and expensive) and I really felt God was saying "see I am in your life, even for the small things." (insert chills)

Flip back to the present...

It has truly been a powerful couple of days. We have been battling (made up) monsters in JD's room, lots of allergies turned into sickness (for me, JD, and Granbeck), lots of family in town, some days off of work for both me and P-Daddy, a dear loved ones surgery, lots of worrying, lots of praying, lots of laughter to break through the fear, and a huge blessing.

The surgery went well, better than well actually. And we are blessed. May we all see God's blessings through the good and tough times in our lives...the small and the big ways he shows us he is there.

B.O.

B.O. is not something a woman should deal with (even if she does sweat like a man in the armpit region)

B.O. may be a result of the fact that I have an obscene amount of hair under my pits (TMI?)

B.O. means I can't wear satin, even in the winter, unless I want to show off serious sweaty pit stains.

B.O. knows no boundaries and has ripped through every antiperspirant on the market (normal and "clinical") and one prescription deo too.

So as you can see I have a problem. And its of the smelly variety. I mean, don't get me wrong...I don't smell like a 7th grader who just went through puberty and doesn't yet realize they need some deodorant but by the end of every day I don't smell so hot. In fact, every night when P-Daddy gets home from work we hug it out and typically he gives me a smell check. Most days the verdict is: "you've smelled worse." Which is kind of gross. And I really hate it.

Right now I have a stick of deo in the center console of my ride, just in case. I used to have it there AND in my desk drawer at work. Yep peeps, its THAT bad.

Currently I start the day with a little SECRET and end with applying some Mitchum (for women). Always, ALWAYS of the powder fresh scent as it smells a little LESS bad when it is wearing of! Its working for me, for now. I think I need botox in the pits. I hear it works. And at the ripe age of 29 I am thinking this is a problem that won't go away without a serious intervention.

The deo's currently in my bathroom...

Aren't you glad you stopped by this here blog and read about Body Odor today? I'm sure glad you did. Now don't go off and forget your deodorant today! :)

Priceless

As a parent you find yourself doing things you never thought you would do. A few examples shall we?


Allowing your baby to take naps in their swing (guilty)
Sometimes having a potty mouth in front of your child (guilty)
Allowing your child to watch more than the recommended half an hour a day of television (very guilty)
Opening a box of cookies in a store just so he will stop screaming and disrupting the public (guilty)


Believe me when I say these are LIGHT examples, there are many, many more. The bottom line is you do these things mostly out of desperation, which doesn't make it OKAY and as a parent you know this....but it does help you survive the early days of parenting.


One of the things that P-Daddy and I were pretty convicted about not getting was a swing set for our yard. Mainly because they are VERY expensive, we don't have a lot of flat yard space and we have a neighborhood park that we can practically spit on (oh and selfishly they can be sort of an eye sore). Insert=eating your own words.



One of our neighbors has grown children, had one of these said swing sets and was looking to get rid of it. We actually looked into this for one of our friends who were interested in a swing set, not for us. But when he told us the price (umm think deal of the century), P-Daddy perked up and said "maybe we should buy it." I was all "WHAT?" Of course JD had walked down with us to our neighbors house and had already gone down the slide about a million times. He's a good salesman to his dear old dad.

So we made the big purchase. And after a much needed face lift we have the happiest boy on the block. To say that this purchase was priceless is an understatement.

This is the "after face lift" pic...sorry about the fuzziness...don't know what happened.

Sometimes its nice to eat your words.



Next up: Teaching JD how to SWING himself! My arms are tired. :)

I Love Technology...Always and Forever

If you don't know the movie my title is from, well, you just haven't lived. HA! (its from Napoleon Dynamite-go watch it and prepare to LYAO).

I haven't really mentioned the big J-O-B on here at all and since I spent half of my week away from the fam and on the job this past week I thought it might be a great time to enlighten.

I do work for a technology company in their financial services department. I have personally never worked in the financial services industry but my hubby does so I feel very comfortable talking that language...and I did help peeps with their mortgage process in my former life. But anyway, my job doesn't have much to do with actual financial services. Its just a nice thing that I kind of know it.

As I mentioned above I just spent a few days away from home in the windy city for my job. Its been a while for me to be that involved with work. Meaning I work from home and attend all my meetings via webcam all day (again I heart technology) and IM to get the rest done etc. This was my first time meeting anyone from my company in person. It was two hard core days of intense rah rah for the company's next fiscal year, which kicks off August 1st.

So here is what I observed (being out of this game for approximately 3 years and all...)

• I am so lucky to be working for a company that is so positive on their outlook and honestly feels that the recession is behind them.
• I attended meetings in 7 different cities over two days, well, kind of. 75 people overall attended these meetings but we used our handy dandy technology so that very little travel was required for anyone. I am a nerd but I think this is cool.
• I realized one of the reasons I loved my former life is because when I was in it things were booming and it was thrilling to be a part of it. Insert I really don't like down turns.
• I forgot how much I missed listening and learning from others. I can't believe how many quotes I wrote down from my peers who spoke. Personal Favorite: "we have to have ambition greater than ourselves."
• I have always worked for mostly men but in this situation the main boss is a woman. Its an interesting change.
• I love working with other people who have passion for what they do
• I don't think I will ever be a traditional working woman. That many days away from home on a regular basis for work isn't the mom I want to be. But interestingly enough, it is a LOT of the women I work with. And I once thought I would be just like them. Its funny to look through a window at them up close and realize how much I love my life exactly how it is.
• I do still want to dabble in my former life and (eventually) flip at least one house. Although I think this technology gig is really cool, I love homes.
• I think its fun to know things before the rest of the world knows it. And I do. HEHE!
• No matter what the demographic, everyone loves a little reality TV. Especially the "Real Housewives" series. Which is funny because I consider myself a TV junkie and that is the ONE reality series I don't watch. Well that and the Bachelor.
• I think eventually my company will help the likes of others get out of this recession and we will all work in a way that no one thought feasible 10 years ago. And that my friends is cool.

I have always thought it was very important to love what you do if you are going to work. I know not everyone is afforded this luxury but I pray someday we all will be. There is nothing better than spending your days doing something you believe in and are passionate about. Some days I still think for me, eventually this is just being a mom. I do miss my playgroup, going to the gym every morning, raising my son. But for now, I do believe this is what God has planned for our family. And while I am on it, I am going to enjoy the ride...

Bible Beater

Mamalouise's definition of a BB: a "Christian" who knows more about the Bible than anyone else (so they claim) and beats that said Bible in anyone and everyone's face that they can. Very Christian like eh?

I have some family that I would categorize as BB's (nothing like the pot calling the kettle black though...you know this being such a "christian" like and un-judgemental statement and all!)...one member of the good old fam even sent out Christmas cards to everyone that said that all of us were going to go to hell because we didn't follow God's ways. Now isn't that a way to encourage people to go to church?! Laughable.

So our fam went to church with GranBeck and Fwank this weekend. They are of the Lutheran type and we wanted to check out their churchy digs. There was a band (if your understanding of a band is a synthesizer a guitar and a few middle aged woman on the mics rocking it out) which had great music but the clapping thing is a bit too much for P-Daddy. Its the Catholic in him, so he just stands there as we tease him. JD on the other hand dances his little heart out just like he dances to the rap music I allow him to listen to...apparently he is a non bias' music lover just like his mommy. Can I get an AMEN! :)

The gospel verse this week was Luke 10:25-37 which is the parable of the "Good Samaritan." This jist of this story is that a man is talking to Jesus and tells him that he thinks being a good christian means to "love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus is all like-duh-yes but asks him what that means? Then tells the story of a man getting robbed and left for dead. Three men pass him...a priest, a levite (don't ask me what this kind of man is, I am assuming a rich man?), and, you guessed it-the good samaritan...who is the only one that stops and then helps this poor man who was just robbed. The moral is that the man who stopped was truly living out God's love...not that the other's weren't Christians but that they didn't show God's love to the robbed man.

Lots of good modern day parallels were drawn, including personal stories that the pastor told of walking away from people who he now looks back and realizes he could have helped...but at the time it seemed too much to deal with. I love it when pastors are honest about being real people and not holier than thou types.

One of the best things that I think were said out of the whole thing was this:
"It is far easier to be GOOD than it is to be COMPASSIONATE."

First of all, I think there are a lot of good people who don't love themselves enough to be able to love and be compassionate towards their neighbors...

Second...I think being good is easier to pull off as we were taught good/bad, right/wrong from birth. Compassion is so much harder to come by because if you weren't shown compassion by any growing up then how are you to know how to be compassionate towards others? Also I think a lot of us were raised (including children today) with expectations set higher than can be achieved with little compassion or leeway if those expectations are not met. Insert here why a lot of people have trouble loving themselves...vicious circle I tell ya!

Third...I realized (especially after looking at point #4 below) that I am pretty darn compassionate. My therapist may beg to differ as she would say I am more of a "rescuer" because it makes me feel good to help everyone else with their problems and not focus on my own (see point one about loving yourself first-ha-you following me...Bueller?)

Finally...the definition of Compassion is: Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.

Anyway its always a good reminder...to pray for those around you...to open your eyes to the way you can affect people. To realize that everyone suffers a bit in their own way. To understand little old me or you can have an impact on those around us just by reaching out. Even if it is rescuing. :)

I was always taught in Baptist like church digs to lead by example. To radiate God's love in your life so that others will want to learn more about God just by the way you live. Not by beating the bible over their heads. I am not always good at leading by example. Oh lets be serious, I pretty much suck at it. Which is why I seriously pray every day to be a good influence on those around me. As much as I know God knows my heart and yours, I am still a believer in the Good Samaritan and the impact that being compassionate can have on someones life. It may not lead them to have a relationship with God, but it will allow them to believe that there is good in this world.

And the Bible Beater thing...well I probably just beat down the Bible a bit too much for some right here...I will pray that everyone can read this with an open heart. I have said it before and I sure will say it again...I am by NO means a perfect Christian and my relatives are very correct in saying I would be going straight to hell on a turbo jet rocket if God wasn't a forgiving God. Thank God! :)

A Little Bit of Chicken Fried...

...Cold beer on a Friday night, pair of jeans that fit just right, and the radio uuuuuuuuP! Oh yes, I heart this Zac Brown Band tune. And I didn't want to. Too twangy. But I heart it. Especially the part about a pair of jeans fitting just right...cause there is NOTHING better now is there?!





Last weekend we headed to northernish Indiana where my in-laws live (ahem, excuse me...where Grandma Principal and Grandpa Menard reside) for some Independence Day fun. Although we did NOT have Chicken Fried, we did have a LOT of food (breakdown below...yes it was THAT noteable) and it was really too hot for beer to stay cold so instead we consumed other forms of alcoholic beverages. :) P-Daddy has 2 brothers (ahem, Uncle Badgeman and Uncle Stinky) and they came along with Aunt Ricky and Rae Rae for a whole family affair of fun in the sun!

FOOD CONSUMED:
Grilled chicken tacos
fresh guac
a whole turkey was cooked for lunch meat
hot dogs and bratwurst purchased from a fancy butcher shop (only reason I mention this is that a. it was the best hot dog I have ever had and b. apparently this is due to the fact that it was a "no filler" real dog..hmmm, oh and...mmmmmm).
the biggest Cowboy Ribeye Steaks I have ever seen
Cheesy Potatoes
Baked Mushrooms
Salad (of 2 different varieties)
Brownies
grilled garlic bread
Cherry Pie
Apple Pie
Peanut Buster Bar Dessert (JD was not present)
Ribs
Green Beans
and a whole pork shoulder was also slow cooked but it really was not consumed...



...Needless to say I came home really full.



Oh but I did manage to throw on workout clothes and walg (walk/jog) with Rae Rae one day and walk the city of Rennsy with Aunt Ricky one day. As if it made a difference...



We did manage to squeeze into our swim gear and utilize their pool for some sun and fun. JD discovered that jumping off a diving board is a blast, and that lounging rafts are actually "boats" used for jumping off of, forward and backward somersaults (duh).

Us gals (and JD) also hit up the local farmer's market and a garage sale. No we didn't buy MORE food at the FM, but I totally would have if it hadn't been mostly closed up.

We did not manage to sleep well because it was a slumber part of fun with P-Daddy, JD, and me....in separate beds...in the same room. Oh I haven't told you before? Well, P-Daddy's old room in his 'rents home has twin beds and typically we choose to sleep in there. Call it nostalgic for my hubs or call it that we enjoy falling asleep like the people in the 50's did every once in a while (or that there is a tv in this room and we heart falling asleep to tv)...its our room of choice. So we squeezed in another twin bed on the floor this time, which somehow I got the pleasure of getting...and there you have it. Our family slumber party. I wish I could have gotten this shit show on camera somehow because (and I kid you not)...every night of our three night stay I was awakened in the wee hours of the morning to my son grabbing me and getting right in my face saying "I need to go pee." And then he was up at 5am because he heard Grandpa Menard (who chooses to get up that early) and wanted to go play with him.



...so I also came home exhausted...actually, we all did.

But it was a whole lot of fun. Kind of like a mini family vacation. Filled with lots of love and dysfunction.