Happy Halloween!

The leaves are swirling above, the warm Summer air has been replaced with the crisp, cool winds of Fall. The pumpkins and gourds are ripe, the decorations are out and everything is in its place waiting for the little ghosts and goblins who will be crowding the streets tonight playing their tricks in search of treats.

Wishing Everyone a Safe and Happy Halloween!

Are You Annoyed?

This scene plays out at our home so often that I just had to find out if anyone else is wondering why there are some habits that you just can't change in your partner.

It usually happens between 8:00 am and 8:15 am.  I'm downstairs getting things ready for my daughter who usually gets up around 8:30.  I'm puttering around in the kitchen getting her breakfast ready and at some point notice that there are a few crumbs on the counter where my husband prepared his breakfast earlier.  I glance over at the divider between my double sinks to locate the dish cloth and it isn't there where I left it.

That's when you will hear that moan of dread from me.  Over to the sink I will go and there in the bottom, usually poking out from under a dirty bowl or plate is my dish cloth.  It's always rolled up in a ball and soaking wet.  Ewwwwww!!! Just touching this cold, sopping wet cloth will make my stomach turn and most days when this happens, I haven't even had the chance to drink my morning coffee.

It doesn't matter how many times I ask or plead with my husband not to throw that dish cloth across the room and into the sink, I can count on finding it there at least twice a week.  What's even more scary is wondering what he has used it for.  Maybe the floor or his shoes (why don't SOME men know that there is a BIG difference between the cloth that washes the dishes we eat off of and the rag that should be used to wipe up the floor we walk on?!).  I guess I should be thankful knowing that when I find it in the sink, it's obvious he's used it to wipe something (you can use your imagination here) and it's time to dig out a clean one.

The good news?  He is slowly learning that he has to put his dirty clothes in the hamper if he wants them to reappear freshly cleaned and folded, he doesn't leave the cap off of the toothpaste and he doesn't leave the toilet seats up.  Truth is, around here I'm the one who leaves the toilet seats up on a regular basis, after all, I'm the only one who cleans them!!

Blogging for Dummies!

First, let me say how impressed I am by some of your blog pages.  The custom icons, the bright colors, the fancy patterns, the snazzy buttons in the margins, the cool clip art, the flashing lights and some of you have even added music.

Half of this stuff I didn't even know was possible. I just signed into Blogger, set up an account, selected a template and let loose whatever was on my mind.  I nearly had a stroke trying to get a counter downloaded and to this day, my analytic reports are totally screwed up.  It was only recently that I was able to take down my post-it note with the copy/cut/past directions for my computer.

Fancy clip art? I haven't a clue, I just look around the house for something that relates to my post, take a photo and download it, otherwise no pretty pictures to look at here. (I think that's pretty obvious today!)  If it hadn't been for the kindness of Kimi at So Many Kids So Little Time  (BTW, she has a great blog and I'll fall over if this link I just added actually works!), I would not be able to proudly display the two awards in my blog margin.

Just so you know, I admire your personalized icons, I see your links to this and that, sharing info and just shake my head wondering how you guys have figured all this stuff out.

Please don't think I'm a snob if I don't hook up to your links or download your clever icons in my margin.  It's not that I don't want to or that I'm ignoring you, dislike you or can't stand you, I just don't know what I'm doing half the time.  If it wasn't for the "Follow" button I wouldn't even be able to do that!

Just wanted to put that out there so now with that being said, I guess I should jump into our truck and head to the nearest bookstore to see if they have the latest edition of "Blogging for Dummies" on Apple!

I've Got Me a Girly Girl!

While I was pregnant, I really, really, really wanted a girl. Being 44 at the time, I knew that my chances of having another baby were pretty slim so I had better get my girl the first time.  As it turned out, I was right, less than two years later and I was in full-blown menopause.

Getting back to the pregnancy,  the minute I saw that plus sign on the stick, I started picking out girl's names, buying pretty pink sleepers and outfits, dreaming about baking cookies together, taking her shopping, painting her nails and styling her hair.  Lucky for me, she was born right on time (actually a week early) and was all girl, just what I'd hoped for.

As much as I had been daydreaming about the things we would be doing together, it had never crossed my mind that I would have to figure out how to get her a bra when she was only 3 1/2.

For the last month, she has become obsessed with my bra. She can't wait to look under my shirt to see which one I'm wearing and sometimes has complete meltdowns if I don't put one of mine on her over her shirt. I found that by crossing the shoulder straps in the back before putting her arms through worked fairly well. Of course, I was always worried someone would show up at the door unannounced and wonder what was going on once they saw her playing quietly while sporting my 36B.

I thought this would be a short phase and she would lose interest but two weeks into it, I had to figure out a solution before she started screaming to wear it outside.  Great timing since it was the beginning of Fall and all the clearance racks were full of bathing suits left over from Summer. Figured I had better buy her a couple of two-piece ones and she loves them!  So now when she insists on wearing a bra, I put one of these bathing suit tops under her shirt and that keeps her quiet.

In the meantime, every now and then she still pulls up my shirt or pulls down the zipper on my top to see which bra I'm wearing.  Only thing to worry about now is where we are when she does it!

Potty Training, Puddles and Pampers

What am I doing wrong? My daughter is 3 1/2 years old and I can't get her potty trained. Oh sure, she will at least tell me when she has to do #2 so we have that conquered but wetting her pants? I'm ready to scream!

I suppose I should take some of the blame considering I jump and change her the minute I notice she's wet. I probably should just let her slosh around for a while and risk the leaks on the carpet, but I don't.

I had a friend suggest that I put her into panties. Her own daughter was horrified the first time she wet herself while wearing panties and never missed a trip to the bathroom again.  So I put cotton panties on her, within 5 minutes she had wet them and didn't even notice. So I  take her to the toilet, make her sit there, clean her up and then put on a fresh pair. Within half an hour, they were soaked. Two hours later, I was putting on the sixth and last pair of panties and gave up.

I watched a segment on Dr. Phil about dragging them to the bathroom 9 times every time they wet their pants. Well by time number six, my daughter is freaking out and I'm so exhausted, I need to lay down.

So I bought her the pull-ups with the "Cool Alert".  No Luck! She didn't even notice the icy-cold crotch and actually prefers this brand now, go figure.

At this rate, I guess I will just keep her in the size 4T pull-ups and hope they continue to make them right up to adult sizes.

In the meantime, if any of you have figured out a way to convince your kids that peeing in the toilet is a lot more fun than wetting their pants, I'm all ears!

Getting the Kinks Out in High Heels!

What a relief to be over my cold and back to yoga class.  I have already signed up for the next 8-week term even though I'm only half way through my first 8-week session.

So now with that out of the way,  it's time to fess up and talk about my weight.

Yes, the yoga is great for flexibility and posture but I don't know anyone who has been able to lose their motor gut by practicing yoga. If I was serious about getting rid of a few pounds, I would be out running marathons trying to stay one step ahead of my butt.

But I don't own any sneakers or flat shoes for that matter. One thing you learn when you are a few pounds overweight is that the more height you can gain from heels, the more balanced YOU think you look. Truth be known, people are probably wondering why a stay-at-home mom is wearing high heels around the house and out in the yard.

So now with the cooler weather here, I just might go out and do a bit of walking, maybe even a power walk. If it gets cold enough, I just might work my way up to a slow trot.

Time to jump back up on the healthy lifestyle bandwagon, heels and all!

Who Needed That Break?

Hurray!  After weeks of sick days, field trips and an Inservice, I finally had my 2 1/2 hour break today from my 3 1/2 year old.  Waited patiently all morning watching the clock slowly tic down to 12:30 so I could bundle her up and drop her off at her Early Learning School.  I had time to run a few errands, just hang around the house by myself, read some great blogs and even made time for a little shopping. Love having a couple of hours to myself!

Funny thing is, when I dropped her off and turned to leave, I could feel her little hands on my behind as she struggled to push me out the door.  All I could hear was "Bye Bye Mommy".  Guess I wasn't the only one looking forward to a break!