After the Bubbly

After The Bubbly Has a New Home

2009-06-14T11:17:00.000-05:00

We have moved to www.afterthebubbly.com.Please come by and subscribe so you never miss another post.

Are You Still Here?

2009-06-13T11:17:00.000-05:00

We have moved to www.afterthebubbly.com.Please come by and subscribe so you never miss another post.

Pass the Bubbly: Will You Survive Summer Vacation?

2009-06-12T08:22:00.002-05:00

I'm totally ready for summer vacation. In the words of a wise woman - I will survive. I think. But when I get stuck, I'll know I'm not alone.Denae's real life was backordered, so she's enjoying this one. I'm linking to her summer vacation quiz *mostly* because I really like Mormons (and Baptists) who talk about drinking tequila and popping Valium. That's funny.Need out? Lesley Stern helps us all

The Latest in Childcare

2009-06-09T07:01:00.001-05:00

Here's the latest in childcare. Save money. Enjoy life.Thanks to the friend and reader who sent me this, and thanks to the Onion for twisted humor.NOTE: This post is also available on my NEW blog: www.afterthebubbly.com. Please go over there and subscribe right now!

New Blog is Live!

2009-06-03T11:16:00.002-05:00

There are still a few kinks to work out, but the new blog is live at: www.afterthebubbly.comFeel free to pop on over and subscribe to the new and improved bubbliness!

Sucky Parenting Advice

2009-06-02T08:27:00.001-05:00

Last weekend we put a wood floor in the office. (And by we, I mean my husband and children because I had really important other things to do such as swoop up some new Yellow Box flip flops on sale.) But anyway....My role was organizing and rebuilding the office, better, stronger than it was before. In the process of clearing out everything and starting over from scratch, I decided to go through

Pass the Bubbly: What do Kate Gosselin, Gene Rayburn, and Metallica Have in Common?

2009-05-30T06:16:00.000-05:00

Okay - Kate Gosselin, Gene Rayburn, and Metallica have nothing in common other than being included in this edition of Pass the Bubbly. That's what we're calling these link posts from now on. So if you know of any funny people who need some bubbly links, let me know.Wendi Aarons totally agrees with me on the whole Kate Gosselin hair thing. And she's having six more kids to get hotter. Plus, she

Top 5 Reasons Swine Flu is More Fun to Follow Than Sports

2009-05-28T06:38:00.000-05:00

I'm having a lot more fun tracking the spread of the swine flu than I ever have following sports. Maybe it's because I've never actually been any good at sports, but I'm okay at getting sick once in a while. Or maybe it's because H1N1 crushes sports for pure entertainment value.I submit to you the Top 5 Reasons:1. Swine Flu is EasyUnlike following sports, you don't really need to know what's

How to Crate Train a Child

2009-05-24T17:26:00.005-05:00

Crate training children: wacky new parenting philosophy or a helpful and overdue tool in the war against spoiled rotten children? It's not hard to think of the many good reasons to crate train a child. Potty training comes to mind, as well as making travel easier. In addition, it's much easier to manage teenagers who have been crate trained.What are the Benefits of Crate Training?Our parents'

Early Evidence That I Would Prefer Adam Lambert to Kris Allen

2009-05-21T12:57:00.011-05:00

At the risk of severely pissing off everyone in my adopted homeland of Arkansas, I have to say that in the few episodes of American Idol I caught, I preferred Adam Lambert to Kris Allen. Kris was great. He's the kind of guy you want living next door, but Adam is the rockstar. Okay maybe not *rock* rockstar, but he's a star for sure. Something about that look of his... Spring Tolo, 1986 Prom,

Begging Kate Gosselin to Resist the Reverse Mullet

2009-05-19T08:26:00.002-05:00

Let me start out by saying I've only caught a few moments of Jon and Kate Plus 8 here and there. Watching two people try to corral a classroom's worth of children just isn't my idea of a relaxing way to spend an evening. I don't watch Biggest Loser or The Amazing Race either. Who needs to witness all that back breaking labor?All this to say I don't know anything about these people, the way they

They Like Me, They Really Like Me!

2009-05-14T08:08:00.001-05:00

I didn't make a fool of myself ala Sally Field, but I would have if they'd let me.The print version of After the Bubbly won first place in the Mazie Cox Reid Column award at the Oklahoma Writer's Federation Conference! This was a serious accomplishment considering the judging audience isn't exactly my target demographic, as evidenced by the honorable mention, Campus Codger and the 2nd place

Get Busted, aka Parents Gone Wild

2009-05-12T07:50:00.000-05:00

This is the June edition of the print version of After the Bubbly, an award winning family humor column. If you'd like to see it in a local publication, let me know and I'll do my best to get it there!Get BustedWhen my kids were little, their doctor busted me.“Anyone in the house smoke?” she asked.“No,” I said, totally telling the truth.“Mom!” My five-year-old daughter looked at me wide-eyed, as

An Inheritance From My Mother

2009-05-08T09:50:00.008-05:00

When I visited my mother this year she reminded me for the zillionth time how important it was that when she died that I not overlook the gems that fill her house and comprise my inheritance. She knows me, knows I'd sooner level the place with dozer than pick through her life's collection of multi-sized clothing, dishes too good to use, and books about decreasing clutter.The material things I

New and Improved Mother's Day

2009-05-06T07:42:00.006-05:00

I just now finished addressing the Mother's Day cards. If I'm lucky I'll get them into the mailbox today. (Yeah, I know - who am I kidding?) So I can rest assured that they'll arrive cross country approximately next Tuesday.Mother's Day: another opportunity for me to feel guilty. Even though I AM a mother. Aren't I supposed to be celebrated? Trouble is I'm also a daughter, a daughter-in-law, a

Tween Girls Beware of Deadly Build-a-Bear Flu

2009-04-28T22:01:00.008-05:00

U.S. health officials expressed concern today that a Build-a-Bear flu virus that has infected several tweens in the New York suburb of Scarsdale matches samples of a virus that has killed at least 52 different Build-a-Bears in a Fresno shopping mall.Public health experts also are concerned because more than 1,000 girls have fallen ill after taking a new Build-a-Bear to bed."This situation has

Confessions of a Dirty Housewife

2009-04-24T06:54:00.001-05:00

A couple of years ago I started enlisting the kids in a weekly ritual I like to call The Hour in Which My House No Longer Smells Like Dog and Used Kleenex. I followed up throughout the week with nag-the-children-to-pick-up-their-things-until-mommy's-saliva-dries-up. But somehow it's not working. Somehow I am still slightly fearful that I'll pick up a staff infection from my own bathroom.I feel

Spring Cleaning the Children's Suite - It's No Earth Day Up There

2009-04-20T11:35:00.006-05:00

My kids have the entire upstairs of our house to themselves. Two bedrooms, and adjoining bathroom, and a bonus room big enough to store all their toys, craft supplies, video games, fish, and apparently a landfill's worth of garbage. Yes, four bags to be precise. And that last bag - the chock full bursting at the seams bag? That's the one I filled after the kids both assured me that there was NO

Easter, Therapy, and Deadly Legumes

2009-04-15T11:18:00.004-05:00

Here are some of the things that amused me this week. Wendi Aarons threw down the new rules for Easter Egg hunts.Jessica Bern reminds us to think twice before asking for the credit card customer service manager.Sugar Jones implores us to resist the draw of the sexy Peekaroo. Munchausen by Peanut - Laura Bennet and the rant I wish I'd written.Who else should we be reading?

Every Five Years or So I Look Back on My Life

2009-04-13T06:25:00.001-05:00

No, this is not going to be some deep Deepak-Oprahesque post. Don't worry. It's just that I was dinking around on Technorati today and found some old memes I'd been tagged in that I never responded to. Now, if you've ever sent me one of those emails where you're supposed to fill in the answers and something really cool happens and I'm supposed to send it back to you and yada-yada-yada, then

7 Surefire Ways to Get Yourself Blacklisted from the PTA

2009-04-08T13:17:00.008-05:00

You hate the PTA. Admit it. You don't like volunteering to help with field day or baking muffins for all those ungrateful teachers. But someone's got to do it, right? Much as you cannot stand the thought of one more silent auction committee, you also don't want to be that mom. You know, the slacker who doesn't care about the social and educational future of her children.Instead of actually having

Welcome to My iPhone World

2009-04-06T06:34:00.000-05:00

It is quite amazing how quickly one can be sucked up into the iPhone and wonder how on Earth she ever survived without it. Honestly, I don't know how I managed to wake up in the morning without my handy custom alarms. And I can't tell you how much food has not been burned thanks to the timer. And now there are apps! Oh the joy of apps!I wrote about how I decided to get the iPhone, and more ways I

iPhones, Gifted Kids, and Homeschooling - New on Hubpages

2009-04-04T07:32:00.000-05:00

Here's a sampling of what I've been writing about lately on Hubpages.How I Love My iPhone, Let Me Count the Ways - Ever since I got my iPhone six months ago people have been asking, “How do you like it?” I am here to tell you all the reasons why I LOVE it, and all the ways it has made my life easier.When a Gifted Child Flounders in School: One Mother's Story - Sometimes it’s difficult to know

The Case of the Easter Bunny

2009-04-01T07:16:00.000-05:00

I admit it: I can’t wait until the days when the Easter Bunny no longer hops by our house. It’s not that I don’t like holidays, I just can’t take the pressure of having to be responsible for making them happen. And the trouble with children is that you can’t pull much over on them, especially when they seem to be on the elementary school track for pre-pre-law.This is the story of one Easter Eve a

Online Education: Is This the Way of the Future?

2009-03-30T07:52:00.002-05:00

I've been reading lately about a number of online education programs for middle school and high school students. I'm wondering if this could be the perfect answer for all kinds of kids who, for whatever reason, need access to education outside the traditional model.In Wisconsin, iQ Academy is setting up a student center where students of the online school can socialize and study. The online