Day 29 & 30

Day 29

1. lipgloss. Really, I like just about any type of lipgloss, but I am particularly partial to the kind with the little wand with the spongy end. I'm not really sure why.

2. the skinny markers from Crayola.

3. decorating my classroom.

4. seeing the American flag blowing in the breeze. As a child, I was really partial to the one above the local Hardee's that was almost bigger than the restaurant, but I've come to respect the quiet dignity of the smaller flag as well.

5. hugging Toad. My head fits right in beneath his chins and his shoulder, and he always smells good and clean. Many a problem in my life have been solved with a hug from that man.





Day 30

1. monkeys. So cute. Always wanted one but my mom always said they were nasty and carried diseases. So do a lot of people I come in contact with on a daily basis, but we don't put them in cages... well, at least, not all of them.

2. Fridays at 3:41. It's such a rush to know the full weekend lies ahead. You'd think it'd get old, but it doesn't... not so much.

3. Any kind of covered dish dinner. At church...at school...doesn't matter. I'm all about a good grub.

4. riding 4-wheelers. We don't have one for big people (both of the kids have youth-sized ones), so I don't get to ride that often... but I do love to tear off across a field at full speed. Brings out the country/'neck girl in me.

5. finding out the story. I like for things to have meaning -- objects, names, events, whatever -- as often as possible. And I like to know what those things mean. Laney, for example, was named after my dad, whose middle name is Lane. People always ask where her name came from or if she was named after the Hawaiian name, and I always have a story to tell.

Day 28

1. running on the beach early in the morning.
2. seeing things through my kids' eyes.
3. Cocoa Puffs.
4. breakfasts in "the room" off of the KHS cafeteria with my boys.
5. The Citadel's Dog Days.

Day 27

1. The song "Elvira."
2. The unpredictability of my job.
3. Good leftovers.
4. A good run on a crisp morning when the air is just cold enough to make your lungs kinda pop as you take that first deep breath.
5. Being comfortable in my skin. Finally.

Day 26

1. filling our flowerbeds and planters in the spring.
2. Girls Night Out.
3. riding horses. I hardly ever get to ride, but it's still a rush for me. One day, I'll have a horse. Of course, I'll also have to have a stable boy because I'm not much on cleaning out stalls...
4. getting a surprise package or card or letter. It just makes my day sooooo much better!
5. freshly sharpened pencils with really, really sharp points. The kind that you aren't supposed to throw because they could put your eye out. I especially like a bunch of them together. I'm not really sure why -- just makes me feel like I'm about to embark on some really big, important task that requires a lot of sharp pencils.

So, this Days of Grace thing... I really like blogging about it, and it does me a world of good to sit and think about the positive things in my life when I am usually so sarcastic. Apparently, though, I'm getting more out of it than warm fuzzies. I posted yesterday that finding money in my pockets is one of the things that brightens my life. This morning, I found $11 in the pocket of one of my winter coats. $11.50, to be exact. Woo-hoo! I mean, I didn't hit the lottery or anything, but that's $11.50 that I didn't have yesterday. I was sending the jacket with K to the dry-cleaners, and it might even pay for the dry-cleaning... or K's lunch... either is an option since I gave him the $10 and kept the $1.50 for myself. Generous spirit, I know. I kinda like being his Sugar Mama. :-)

Days 22, 23, 24, & 25

Soooo.... I'm behind. Try to hide your shock and amazement.



Day 22

1. bookshelves overflowing with books. They're like aisles in a candy store for me. If only I had time to read them all...
2. finding THE perfect gift for someone. The excitement is almost unbearable... I've been known to call people and tell them because I can't wait. My mom, for example, doesn't mind. In fact, she used to know most things my dad bought for her because he'd tell me, and well... I wasn't so good at keeping a good secret...
3. Laney in a swimsuit. Girlfriend works that round belly and ghetto booty like nobody's business. And dares anyone to tell her any different.
4. Ethan's bat face. When he gets really tickled, he crinkles up his nose and shows his teeth when he laughs... and he looks like a baby bat. Makes me laugh.
5. pineapples. Symbolic of southern hospitality.



Day 23

1. Speaking of hospitality -- I love to entertain. Sometimes it's a little overwhelming when I'm preparing dinner for 25 or trying to plan a party, but I love nothing more than having a house full of the people I love.
2. cookbooks. I never understood how my mom could collect cookbooks until I began to truly love cooking. Now, I'm a cookbook freak. I also never thought I'd spend more time reading cookbooks than real books, but as it turns out, that happens, too.
3. matching scarves and gloves and hats. I don't get to wear them as much here because winter weather in SC can be a 60 degree day, but I love them regardless.
4. "Dirty Dancing" and its soundtrack. I remember that my friend Kelley's mom wouldn't let us watch the movie (we were in, like, 6th grade), but we watched it while she was out running errands. Ever since then, I've had a crazy affinity for Patrick Swayze's "She's Like the Wind." I know most people rank it up there as one of the worst songs ever, but it makes my heart skip a beat.
5. tiaras. I'd wear one every day if I could. I feel that maybe I was accidentally switched at birth and that my kingdom is waiting for me to return and be their ruler.



Day 24

1. new running shoes.
2. finding money in my pockets that I didn't realize was there.
3. hotels. I love hotels. Would live in one if I could.
4. long lunches with my girls from school. We once went out for breakfast and were still at the same restaurant come lunchtime. I think, given enough time and good food, we could solve the world's problems.
5. getting dressed up for dinner. I have come to appreciate what was once a frequent occurrence in my life: dinner at a good restaurant. Now that we have to find a sitter and make plans 20 months in advance, good dinners are few and far between, but I love sitting down to a meal at a table with a real tablecloth, a real place setting, and no plastic place mats adorned with Dora and Diego. Makes me feel like a grown-up.



Day 25

1. Sam falling asleep in my arms. Knowing that this is the last baby I'm going to have, I find myself marveling at the wonders of motherhood like it's my first time.
2. Laney's new haircut. I finally tired of battling the unruliness that is Laney's hair when long, and I had it cut into a bob. So cute on her, and she is so proud of her new 'do. It frames her precious little face, and I can barely keep from pinching her little cherubic cheeks.
3. Ethan's baby curls. Y'all, he was a 30-lb. monster baby at age 1, but his hair was beautiful. All kinds of soft curls around his little chubby face. Sigh.
5. My stand-mixer. It was a birthday gift from K, and I will say, it ranks right up there as one of my best gifts ever. Instead of buying it for me, he allowed me the bliss of being able to select it myself. As if I hadn't visited the stand-mixers in Williams-Sonoma at least once a week for years, I stood there for almost an hour, just admiring them in all of their shiny, lacquered glory. I mean, I already knew I was going to get the black one, but I considered the stainless (fingerprints), the red (might not go in every kitchen -- good thing since I changed kitchen decor that next year, and there's not a stitch of red anywhere in my kitchen now), the yellow (too 70s), and the white (would've blended into the wall at our old house; I wanted my stand-mixer to have presence!). After making enough of 3 types of cookies to serve 100+ people at K's work by using a hand-mixer while 7 months pregnant with Ethan, I felt that I deserved the stand-mixer, but still... pulling up to W-S's back door and letting them load it into my car was one of the most blissful moments of my life.

Day 20 & 21

I know, I know. I'm slack this week... Sorry! :-)

Day 20:
1. Pleasant surprises.
2. Peyton Manning. Peyton? Payton? Whatever. He makes me laugh.
3. Waking up early and not feeling like I need to sleep another 12 hours.
4. The incredible maturity with which my students handled watching the inauguration. They make me so proud!
5. Being loved. :-)

Day 21:
1. Seeing Sam's head raise up out of his bassinett. He reminds me of a little turtle when his little head (and I mean that literally since his head is probably 1/3 the size of Ethan's and Laney's) starts bobbing around as he takes in his surroundings.
2. Target. I lllooooovvvvvveeeee Target. It is one of my happy places.
3. My new Wonder Woman READ poster. I'm a superfly English nerd, and I know it. Don't care. It will be going up in my room behind my desk where no one can touch it. If I could enshrine it in a bulletproof, airless case, I would. It should be preserved for all future generations to enjoy.
4. Old people who are still in love. My grandparents were still crazy in love after 60+ years of marriage, and it was the sweetest thing in the world to observe how my grandfather's face -- even when his dementia transported him to his own little world -- would just light up when my grandmother walked in the room.
5. K's little boy habits... like dunking his Oreos and eating Cookie Crisp and being beyond ridiculous to wake up in the mornings. I mean, most mornings, that whole ridiculousness of waking up routine makes me want to say curse words in 74 languages, but for the first minute, he really is cute.

Day 19 of 365

1. daffodils blooming at the first sign of spring weather
2. finding a great bag -- and then finding that it's on sale! :-)
3. flip-flops. Specifically my brown leather Reefs as well as my black Reefs. Both are worn out, but try as I may to replace them with other pairs/brands... none can compare. I will probably wear these until they wear out...
4. sundresses
5. downtown Clemson... especially on a fall Saturday night after a big win

Day 18

1. Lazy days with the fam.
2. The funny things that my kids ask. Ethan just asked me if I was going to carry K to bed like I carry him to bed when he falls asleep on the couch. Heck no, kid. I'm not asking for a hernia.
3. Chicken gnocchi soup from Olive Garden. Sigh. Contentment in a bowl.
4. The feeling of relief knowing that I don't have school tomorrow.
5. A warm drink on a cold night.

Day... Something

I forgot to follow my fool-proof protocol, so I don't know what day it is... although I know that it's the same as whatever day in January it is... although I don't know that, either, because I didn't have school today and write it at the top of my board. Boo.



1. Snufflupagas. We went to see Sesame Street Live today, and it was actually rather enjoyable. I was sorely disappointed that Snuffie wasn't there, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that both Cookie Monster and Elmo can dance -- for real. Like, I'd go clubbing with them.
2. fitting back into pre-pregnancy skinny jeans. Now, it wasn't like they just slid on, and I'm sure they don't look exactly as good as they did when I wore them and wasn't 3 months post-partum... but you know what? I don't care. All I care about is that these jeans are on my body 9 months ahead of when I got them on last time.
3. a milk chocolate Symphony bars. We're supposedly starting our big shape-up on Monday, so I bought 2 to enjoy this weekend. I fully intend to ingest every bit of both bars... 900 calories apiece. I just looked. I probably shouldn't eat anything else.... but I will... and I'll enjoy it all. Every last calorie.
4. Laney's "sneaking." On her tiptoes, hands extended above her head with her thumbs sticking out, she attempts -- at least once per evening -- to sneak up on us. She isn't quiet, so she is never successful... in fact, she looks like a ballerina skittering along on toe shoes... and she sounds like a small water buffalo. I'm guessing she'll never make a good ninja or spy, but that's ok because she makes me laugh.
5. learning new things. Today, I learned how to select and peel an avocado. I also learned that I do indeed like cotton candy, although the smell of it often makes my gag reflex kick in (long story -- cotton candy overdose at the circus when I was 5). I learned that there is a Hispanic monster on Sesame Street, that Ethan wants to be a police officer like his Uncle Jay, and that The Beacon's sweet tea is offensive to my taste buds but I am too scared of the people who work there (because they are serious about their business) to ask if I can get something else.

Day 16 of 365

1. Darius Rucker's voice. I love a man with a nice voice, and I could listen to his all day. Plus, he's hot.
2. Tom Jones' voice. Ok, so he's not hot... but he is sexy. His voice rocks.
3. The lead singer from Nickelback's voice. Wow. Not into the long-haired, alternative rocker look, but dang... his voice is incredible. I almost added the lead singer from Hinder's voice as #4, but I can't stand watching him sing because he reminds me of a bad Steven Tyler impersonator... so even though I love his voice, I have to think about other things while he sings. :-(
4. My dad singing. He has a lovely voice, but it's below bass. Cracks me up.
5. The Statler Brothers. Specifically, the little guy with the high voice and the big guy who looks kinda like a Saint Bernard with the really deep voice. Favorite songs: "Flowers on the Wall" and "Elizabeth." Tried to get somebody to go with me to see them in concert a few years ago, but I couldn't find any takers. Don't understand it. :-(

Day 15 of 365

Let me just say that today was an early release day for my students, so I've been slaving away over grades and whatnot for most of the day. I finally got my grades exported and started chipping away at my school TO DO list. I've got my iTunes pumping, and I felt like I was sort of being productive because I cleared off the surfaces on my computer desk.

As of this moment, though, I am being attacked by some atrocious fumes from the janitor's cleaning products. Our school is impressively clean, and I am super grateful for the awesome team that cleans our school, but this woman (not my regular janitor) is seriously about to run me out of my own room. Now, it's spotless in here, but I may pass out from hazardous chemical inhalation.

Anyway.

I just wanted to post that, along with my list for today, in case I don't make it home. If there's no post tomorrow, please send someone to look for me.

I'll be the unconscious body on the floor in "my" corner of my classroom, foaming at the mouth and convulsing from overdose of cleaning chemical fumes.

Gah.



Now on to happy thoughts...

1. Friday Night Lights. I'm really not much of a TV watcher (seriously -- even though I keep posting about shows I watch. Grey's. FNL. American Idol. That's all. Well, except Heroes on occasion.), but once a show catches my attention, I am faithful. I love football. I love high school. I love The South. It makes sense that a show about a southern high school football team would be a favorite, but I seriously am semi-obsessed with the show in a way I am not about most. I watch it religiously. I talk about it with my fellow super-crazy-fans (well, at least with Teri. She's the only one.). I actually check the website for info and updates. I know. I'm a little embarrassed, but y'all. Coach Taylor is hot. And I want to be hot like Tammy when I'm older. And I love a hot football coach. Have I mentioned that I love Coach Taylor?
2. Unexpected free time with no kids. Yes, I could probably be productive but I'd rather wander aimlessly through Target.
3. The quote "Well-behaved women rarely make history." I don't know off the top of my head who said it -- I think I'm doing great to remember the quote, given my typical mental jumble. I don't know that I'll make history, but I like to think that I will... and I think this quote justifies me acting afool.
4. 3-ring binders. I've mentioned my affinity for organization... and this includes my school stuff. Seriously -- going into an office supply store makes my heart beat faster. I ask for school supplies as gifts on a regular basis, but I rarely get them because people think I'm kidding. I asked K for an electric pencil sharpener for Christmas, but he didn't get me one because he thought I was just trying to be practical. Negative. Just want a new electric pencil sharpener to replace the one my sub broke while I was out on maternity leave, and I never think to buy one. Anyway, 3-ring binders with the plastic sleeves on the outside covers -- they are third only to Flair pens and index cards in my book. I love them.
5. Billy Graham. He is one of my heroes -- probably #1 on my list of people I want to meet before I die. I'm probably one of the few people my age who have actually been to a Billy Graham crusade. It was amazing, by the way -- music by George Beverly Shea, a little preaching from Billy, a guest appearance by Franklin Graham. Rev. Graham's voice, his message delivery, his example as a man of God -- I am just amazed by all of it. I've actually considered driving to his home in NC, but you know, I don't want to scare the man. Maybe I'll take Hazel. People have a hard time turning her down.

Day 14 of 365

This new strategy is working like a charm. :-)

A couple of side notes:

1 -- Ethan is hilarious. He often just kind of calls people whatever he wants their names to be... but this morning, I was looking through the faculty list at his school, searching for an email contact. I happened to notice that there are two PE coaches. This surprised me because I've only heard him talk about one -- Coach Rissom (or Rizzom or something like that). He LOVES Coach Rissom, and every Monday and Thursday, he reminds me RELIGIOUSLY that he has to wear tennis shoes because they have gym that day, and if he doesn't wear tennis shoes, he can't play, and he doesn't want to disappoint Coach Rissom. I mean, I get that entire speech every Monday and Thursday. So. Anyway. I'm looking through the list, and I notice the two PE teachers. Then I notice that neither of them is named Coach Rissom.

I'm shocked.

And then, I'm concerned. Who is this person Ethan talks about non-stop?

And then I notice that one of them is named Coach Whittam... which I could see how, if Ethan thought that the name was too hard to say, he might just transform it into something a little easier... like Rissom.

I laughed out loud. I imagine that this man has given up trying to get Ethan to say his name correctly, but I also imagine that he is keenly aware that Ethan calls him by the wrong name because Ethan is 1) slightly obsessed with Coach Rissom, which means he probably talks the poor man's ear off and 2) Ethan (like me) is a name caller... as in, he calls people by their names all the time during conversation.

Personally, I prefer to call people by their first and last names... as in Bob Jones or Sally Singleton. I don't know why, but I just do. It makes me feel better.

Anyway, tonight's mission is going to be to teach Ethan how to say Coach Whittam/Rissom's name correctly.

2 -- Laney is just about too big for her britches. She totally called me out the other day for making a mess.
Laney: "Oooooooooh. Mommmy. Come 'ere." (She, for some reason, always says this in a very monotone voice with a very serious face. This is ALWAYS her preface for showing me something that is going to get someone in trouble.)
Me: "What is it, honey?"
Laney: "Oooooooooh. Mommy. Wook at dis..." (Part 2 of her "I'm about to get somebody in trouble" speech. Also said in monotone with straight face.)
Me: "What is it?!"
Laney: "Wook at dis mess!" (Pointing at a pile of stuff on the floor that I had just put down.)
Me: "What mess?"
Laney: "Dis mess!"
Me: "That's not a mess. I'm putting that stuff away."
Laney: "Mommy. You better cwean up dis mess! Wight now, missy!"

I won't continue the conversation, but let me just tell you -- there commenced to being a whole lot of finger-wagging and head-bobbing in my house at that point. I learn something new every day, and on that day, I learned that I do not take directions well from a two-year old.

Now, onto happier thoughts...

1. American Idol! It is my guilty pleasure, but I so love it and will tell anyone who will listen. I secretly have a little crush on Simon, although I think it's because he has a British accent and a lovely smile more so than his looks.
2. Pearls. Now, don't get me wrong... I haven't met many gemstones that I don't like... but I am especially fond of pearls. Maybe because I have a grandmother named Pearle. Maybe because my mom always wore pearls when I was little. I don't know. I just like them.
3. Loading new music to my i-pod. Love it when I'm running and a new song shuffles into my running playlist. On Saturday morning, I was running along when "Poison" by BelBivDevoe popped into my earbuds. All of a sudden, mile 2 was a little more fun...
4. Talking to Sam. He laughs at all my jokes and comments in all the right places, even though I can't understand his baby gibberish. I'm trying to teach him to say "I love you" because I think that his first tries will sound like "Wy wuff rou" -- like that dog on the old Little Caesar's commercials -- but so far, we haven't had much luck. I kind of think he's like the babies on "Baby Geniuses," so I imagine that he has great conversation with his nursery buddies about his crazy mama. "You shoulda seen her yesterday! She's still trying to get me to say 'I love you!'" I half expect him to just bust out with "I love you" in a Barry White voice to freak me out.
5. Word Girl. ETV has come a long way since I was a kid watching funky independent cartoons. Not only does Word Girl rock, but she also has a pet monkey, fights vocabulary ignorance, and gets to wear a relatively cute superhero costume. Not bad for a day's work...

Day 13 of 365

I think I've figured out the snafu. Before I put the date, I usually go about finding the "365 Days of Grace" seal... and therein lies the problem. Since it takes practically nothing to distract me, I forget what day it is before I get back to my blog to post the seal and day. SO. I'm going to get the seal first, and THEN open the new post window.

Anyway...

1. realizing that people do read my blog. I wondered if, when I started this 365 thing, people would be like, "Omg. We already have one Oprah! There isn't enough room for two!" but I've had several people let me know that they are still reading and like it. (Thanks, Lindsey & Laura!) And that makes me happy.
2. my children when they sleep. Not for the obvious reason that they are significantly less noisy when unconscious BUT instead because they are so peaceful and beautiful. It amazes me on a daily basis that those ginormous beings were once growing inside my belly. I don't really know how to explain it, but when I watch them sleeping so peacefully... when I can study the details of their little faces... it almost takes my breath away. For a woman who swore up and down for the first 24 years of her life that she didn't really want kids, it is beyond my realm of understanding how it is possible to love three creatures so much, so equally, so completely... but I do. They make me a better person every day that I share with them.
3. planning and organization. I L.O.V.E. a good plan. Why do I volunteer to do so much? Because I am addicted to planning. And listmaking. And organizing. It feeds the OCD monster in me.
4. a clean desk. Doesn't happen often, but when it does... man! It is beautiful! Sometimes, when it's clean, I just sit back at my computer and admire the beauty of my clean desk. *Sigh* I will add that it is not clean now, but I am anticipating cleanness shortly... like by the end of the week... and I can barely contain my excitement!
5. running pants. Specifically, my gray and black running pants that K bought me for Christmas last year. I would wear them every day, all day, if I could. With my robe. They are the most comfortable pieces of clothing I own, besides my robe(s) and my hand-dandy orange Clemson tshirts. PLUS -- they actually make my rear look like it exists instead of being just an extension of my back. :-)

Day... 12?

I think that, eventually (like, this week), I am going to blow the count on the days... bear with me.

1. Law & Order marathons. Lucky for me, they come on practically every other day.
2. James Bond movie marathons. I always notice something new... like last night. There were two belly-dancing women who got into a catfight. I must've fallen asleep during that part of the movie every time.
3. my white robe. Heck, any of my robes, really. I have two heavier ones -- the white one being my favorite -- and a summer weight robe. K was really glad when I started back to school because he didn't have to look at me wearing them all. the. time.
4. my stiletto collection. I L.O.V.E. shoes, specifically eye-catching shoes with eye-catching heel heights. Yes, I sometimes wobble and toddle like I just learned how to walk... and more than once, I've caught a heel in a crack or a hole and busted my face in public, but dang... not much makes me happier than finding a beautiful pair of shoes in my size that perfectly complements my wardrobe... or one item in my wardrobe... or one item I might one day buy for my wardrobe.
5. holding hands... with K or the kids or my grandma or whoever. While I have serious personal space issues (as in, don't invade it or I will freak), I do so love holding hands. It's almost therapeutic.

Day 11

1. "I Will Survive," "Grease Medley," and other songs that immediately make my college girlfriends and I break out into our nicely choreographed dances (hey -- don't laugh! We cleared many a dance floor with our impressive moves) while simultaneously making all of our husbands break for the door. I'm still not sure why it embarrasses them so to be married to such masterful dancers...
2. monograms. On anything.
3. Wonder Woman.
4. cow field campouts with my Ville friends in the old days. There's nothing like a bonfire and sleeping bags to draw a bovine crowd. I'm still not sure why any of our parents let us have co-ed slumber parties in the middle of a cow field -- or even in their houses -- but holy cow! (no pun intended) -- what incredible memories we made! The houses we rolled... the neighbors we annoyed... the things we did that weren't bad but that I won't mention because my parents still might ground me for them...
5. the awesome feeling of slight rebelliousness I felt after getting tattoos/my belly button pierced/cartilage piercings... which is addictive for someone who was always a very good girl... HOWEVER (as a disclaimer), it too quickly dissolved into a feeling of "I am so going to get ripped apart when my parents figure out what I've done." That feeling lasted much longer... :-)

Curses!!!

I knew I'd flub it up.

*Sigh.*

I'm please that I posted 8 days in a row, but by the time I remembered last night, it was after midnight... which technically counts as a Saturday post. Pbbbbllllllllttttttt.

I'm not giving up, though, because I am determined to make it through all year... so I'll just post two separate lists of 5 today.


Friday's List:
1. Laney's Flying Monkey hat
2. Ethan in his old man pajamas
3. Sam's crazy hair mohawk
4. Jennifer's imitation of my dog Zelda. This probably isn't funny to anyone else, but if you could just see her do it.. So funny! Make me laugh until I cry every time!
5. Boudreaux the Miracle Gift dog. Came to us house-broken and kid-friendly. Has terrible gas and a really gross tendency to vomit foam because he eats too much too fast... but he is such a gentle, sweet beast. Even though he smells.



Saturday's List:
1. my students. Sometimes, they make me want to say bad words, but y'all... I love them. A lot. I hate getting up early, and I hate grading papers, and I hate when they are surly and nasty and mean... but I love them like nobody's business. I'd love to stay home with my flesh-and-blood kids, but I just can't seem to give up my school kids.
2. early dismissal days. I mean, I do love my students, but I also love a little free time...
3. my ELMO. After 74 years of using a prehistoric overhead, my ELMO is amazing. Plus, I love how everybody feels the irresistible need to stick his/her hand under the light to see if it really will show up looking like their hand on the screen. Makes me laugh every time.
4. making a dent in my mountain o' papers to grade.
5. getting my grades exported on time. :-)

Day 8

1. Chocolate-dipped strawberries from Godiva. I'd kill for one right now, by the way.
2. Diet Coke floats when the Diet Coke is cold and makes the ice cream kinda ice-y
3. Homemade banana pudding
4. Almost any kind of ice cream on a sugar cone*
5. My friend Lindsay's red velvet cupcakes that make me want to hide in a locked closet until I am able to eat them all myself.

*Disclaimer on the ice cream -- nothing with nuts (except Praline Pecan), marshmallows (no Rocky Road, no thank you), coconut, mint or chocolate chips (mint chocolate chip is of the devil and makes me want to vomit. I don't like Butter Pecan or any kind of fruit ice cream with chunks, like strawberry or peach, although I do like strawberries as well as peaches in their natural states. I love sherbets, too, specifically orange and raspberry and mango... but not so much lime. Overall, I prefer smooth ice cream with no major chunks (unless you're talking Sweet Cream from Marble Slab mixed with Heath Bar Chunks) in a sugar cone. It REALLY makes me happy.

Day 7?

1. Tiger Rag
2. Watching my Tigers run down the hill... gives me chills thinking about it :-)
3. Saturday afternoons in Death Valley with Toad
4. C-L-E-M in Cadence Count!
5. The old scoreboard where the tiger tail moved when points were scored...

Day 6 of 365

1. making lists
2. the way Sam often stops crying immediately when I pick him up so that he can nuzzle into my neck
3. the way my Uncle Jimmy cracks himself up
4. Page-A-Day calendars
5. Flair pens in bright, happy colors

Day 5

I have terrible number memory, so unless I start remembering to look before I start typing these, I'm afraid this "DayX" thing is going to go by the wayside pretty quickly. I think it's Day 5... but I'm not really sure.

1. little blue boxes from Tiffany
2. NYC at night with all the lights and the buzz
3. taking the cheesy red bus just to hear all the cool, fascinating facts that the tour guides know
4. seeing my college roommate running on the streets of New York -- random but TOTALLY made my trip
5. getting to go inside a NYPD station... nevermind that someone lifted my driver's license and there are probably 50 of me running around the streets of NYC, committing crimes... it was awesome to go in and see that Law & Order isn't really made up...

Laney the Ladybug Killer

An odd recent occurrence in our house:

Ethan comes flying down the stairs, screeching like a hoot owl being chased by a coyote. I hear Laney's evil laugh (yes, she has an evil laugh... very deep and scary compared to her normal loud belly-laugh) following behind... and then the tha-thump-tha-thump-tha-thump of her sliding down the stairs.

*I've got to figure out how to post a video to this thing so that I can show you what I mean. Laney comes down the stairs at break-neck speed on her rump... and I'm pretty sure she's set a new world record. It's absolutely hilarious!

Anyway, they are running from room to room, with Ethan screaming like a girl and Laney laughing like a mad scientist. I figure they're just being silly, playing some game until FINALLY Ethan screeches, "MOMMY! MAKE HER STOP!"

I put my arm out and hook Laney, who is still laughing like a maniac and looks like Charles Manson with her stringy hair all in her face.

I ask what the problem is, and Ethan (trying to milk the situation for sympathy and get his sister in trouble) says in his best pitiful voice, "Laney's chasing me!"

Really. Hadn't noticed.

Me: "Why is she chasing you?"

Ethan: "Because she has the ladybug."

Me: "The ladybug?"

Ethan: "Yes. The one she squooshed."

About this time, Laney/Charles sticks her chubby little arm out, and I notice something pinched between her fingers.

Can you see that?

Yep. It's a ladybug.

I'm not sure which is more disturbing... that my oldest son was screaming like a girl because he was being chased with a tee-niny ladybug... or that my sweet, precious daughter is a notorious ladybug killer.

I may need to revisit my parenting philosophies...

Day 4...

1. getting into a nicely made-up bed
2. waking up and looking out over the beach
3. tomatoes
4. Christmas breakfast at my aunt's
5. laughing until my sides hurt and my eyes water

Day 3...

1. The first warm day of spring.
2. Fresh flowers.
3. Curling up with a good book and a blanket and plenty of uninterrupted time to read.
4. New stationery.
5. Driving into Charleston.

The Brighter Side of Motherhood...

Ok, so while I'm waxing poetic about what I love about my kids, let me give you a brief run-down of one of the not-so-beautiful moments of motherhood.

We've been sick at our house for, like, the past 12.4 years, ok? That means Mommy & Daddy, and we haven't felt like doing much other than the basics. Now, we're starting to recover, so today we decided to have a little family time tonight.

It starts with pizza for dinner -- the nightly request of the older 2 kids (since Sam doesn't have any teeth and has yet to discover the incredible delight called Chocolate Chip Pizza).

That, of course, is a hit. They'd eat pizza every day if I'd let them and didn't insist on them trying and eating new things.

*Side note: I do think I might be up for Mom-O'-The-Year because I got every teeth-carrying member of my family to eat collard greens yesterday. Granted, I made grits-stuffed greens instead of traditional collards, but hey -- collard greens are collard greens, regardless of whether they're stewed in broth or wrapped around cheese grits.

Anyway, next on the docket: Movie Night.

Like their father, our kids are movie freaks, and we haven't watched all of the new movies they got for Christmas. K picks "Ironman."

Now, I could've told him that maybe an adult version of a comic book hero might not be the best choice for a 5-year old and a 2-year old, but my subtle attempt at bringing that up was dismissed with a "It's 'Ironman.' He'll love it!"

Yeah.

Five minutes into it, Ethan and Laney are running around, shrieking and demanding drinks and doing their best to tear up the place while K bellows at them to be quiet so he can hear the movie.

Hm.

Maybe Movie Night wasn't really about family time as much as about getting to watch a movie that I'd probably never agree to watch on free time.

Anyway, back to it.

So... Movie Night's a bust, but we decide to play CandyLand. Works for me because I still love CandyLand. K isn't quite as enthusiastic, but he gets down on the floor with us, and we complete the game in record time with optimal results (meaning Ethan won fair-and-square so we wouldn't have to witness the phenomenal meltdown that occurs when he loses).

Bedtime!

The kids, of course, start coming up with 72 fool-proof plans to NOT go to bed, but we send them upstairs, regardless. Ethan asks me to read a bedtime story, and being a bad mom, I tell him I'll read to him in the morning because my eyes are tired.

Seriously, they really are. I read an entire book -- 447 pages -- between 3 pm & 9 pm, with breaks for dinner, CandyLand, and various feedings/changings/tendings to kids. Lots of reading in a little time = tired eyes.

Anyway, after I send them upstairs, I start to feel bad because I sort of decided early on in motherhood that I want my kids to be literacy freaks... and part of that decision means not turning down an opportunity to read with them unless absolutely, positively necessary.

BUT -- my eyes are tired.

So... I decide to compromise. I go upstairs and snuggle Laney and Ethan up in Ethan's bed and announce that I am going to tell them a bedtime story.

Now, Ethan loves my stories. He used to beg me every night to tell him about how he kept the pumas from attacking our family. (He went through a crazy animal stage when he was obsessed with Diego.) Laney doesn't have much patience for any kind of story, but she loves to be a part of things... so I figured she'd bite.

I start crafting this master tale of a prince named Ethan and a princess named Laney, weaving in threads of our everyday life so that they would identify with their namesake characters. I draw them in by bringing in their superhero capes and masks, which give the prince and princess superhero powers.

I even let each choose his/her own superhero power.

Right as I'm getting ready to describe in vivid, breathtaking detail the first battle against the evil villain, Ethan pipes in.

"Um, Mommy. Can you stop there and unblock the TV? "The PowerPuff Girls" are about to come on and I don't want to miss them."

Shocked silence.

"Mommy?"

My reaction is a little less than mature. "Wait. I'm telling you this awesome story, and you want me to shut it so you can watch 'PowerPuff Girls'?!?!"

I am incredulous.

This is a dang good story I'm whipping out here!

"Yeah. You can tell me the story later, but 'PowerPuff Girls' won't be on all night."

I contemplate a biting retort like, "I'll remember that next time you want me to answer 54 questions while my favorite song is on the radio!" but I realize that 1 -- I am the Mommy, 2 -- it is in my job description to be the bigger person, and 3 -- he totally won't care and/or remember.

Sighing, I slide off the bed to enter the code to unblock the TV... just about the time that Laney pipes in:

"Mommy? Can I get off of Efan's bed now? I weally don't wike being up he-ah."

You know... I love my kids more than my own life. I really do. I never thought I could love anything -- let alone three things -- the way I love my children... but I think Sam just moved to the top of the list in my will...

Day 2...

1. 30 years with my granddad. I miss him so much, but I am so thankful that I had him for so long... that he was able to marry us (sort of -- that's another hilarious story in itself)... see two of my children born... let me tell him every chance I got that I loved him... and always said it back... you know... that kind of stuff.

2. My grandma Pearle's sassiness which I inherited and sometimes gets me in trouble... her zest for life that spills over into everything she does and lights up our family... her generous spirit that always let me have the last choc-o-gel (or 6, if I wanted) and taught me so much a giving with a cheerful heart.

3. My grandma Hazel's willingness to spend hours in the kitchen, teaching me to cook even though I made huge messes... her fostering of my love to read with trips to the bookmobile and lazy afternoons reading... her love of gardening that caused me much misery as a child (I hated watering those dang plants!) but now I wish I had inherited her green thumb (and patience).

4. Afternoon naps with the windows open in the spring.

5. The funny little bodies that kids have. I love Laney's round tummy and Ethan's long giraffe legs and Sam's little round bean head. *Sigh*

Happy New Year!

I can't believe it's already 2009! I mean, it seems like just yesterday that it was The Millenium, and everyone was freaking out about Y2K...

Much like this year for New Year's, I was sick for that one, too. Can't wait to tell that story later...

"What was I doing when the turn of the century came about, kids? Well, let me tell you. I had a nasty case of the flu. Your father and I weren't married, so I was still living at home with Nana and Papa. I spent the afternoon curled up in my mother's lap in the urgent care clinic (no lie -- I was 22. People stared.), and your dad came over that night. We rang in the New Year in style -- laid out in my bed amongst boxes of Kleenex and magazines, watching the Dick Clark Rockin' New Year's Eve special on Toad's -7-inch television that I only got to put in my room on special occasions like being sick on New Year's, with the door cracked because my parents didn't want me to contaminate their party but were completely opposed to having visitors of the opposite sex secluded in a room alone with me, even if I was on my death bed."

They'll be so excited and grossed out, all at once. :-)

Anyway, I haven't made any resolutions, but as I was logging in tonight, I noticed an update from one of my favorite blogs, http://www.whoorl.com, and I was intrigued, so I had to read it. Apparently, this person (not Whoorl, but another person's blog she reads) is launching this gratitude journal, of sorts, on her blog. I like the idea, so I think I'm going to do it, too.

The point is to post 5 things for which I am grateful every day for a year.

Now, we all know that daily postings aren't my forte. I'm a little scatterbrained at times... Let me give you a recent example.

I ordered a book from Overstock.com for myself for Christmas because 1) I hadn't read it, 2) it was written by Dorothea Benton Frank, one of my favorite authors, and 3) it was on sale, cheap. I was sooo excited when it arrived... and soooo anticipating a good holiday read-fest.

Until I opened it up, two days after Christmas. As I started reading it, I started having a serious sense of deja-vu... it all seemed so familiar... oh wait!

I already read it.

Merry Christmas to me.

Anyway, I think I'm going to try this 365 Days of Grace in Small Things. I might miss a day here or there due to the craziness that is my life, but I'm really going to try. I think it's so easy to get wrapped up in what isn't going right or the latest drama, but I am constantly thinking -- especially with my kids -- how blessed I am.

I also love lists... like, obsessively. I am one of probably 100 listmakers who actually buy and read books like "1,000 Things To Be Happy About" or "500 Questions" (K's personal favorite... he keeps hiding it so I'll stop asking him questions...).

So... here it goes:
1- Laney's great love of jumping out from behind furniture or walls and yelling, "Thu-pwize!" or (my personal favorite) "Happy Birt-day!" when there is no thupwize or birtday to be had...
2- My funny friends. Reading their comments and/or emails make me laugh out loud, which makes me happy...
3- A cold Diet Coke first thing in the morning...
4- Sam's lopsided smile...
5- Ethan's obsessions... like locking the car doors immediately and trying to be sneaky like a ninja...

Here's to all the possibilities of a new year, including me blogging daily... :-)

If you're interested in reading more about this movement, check out http://www.schmutzie.com/2008/11/grace-in-small-things.html. Never mind the odd ad on the sidebar about the suicide note -- it's just an ad... but I wasn't sure what was going on, at first. Just wanted to warn you ahead of time.