Recently, there have been commercials for a new program, which looks like a combination of “Dancing With the Stars” and “The Biggest Loser.” It’s called “Dance Your Ass Off,” and the promos feature big people in little costumes, wiggling and jiggling to the music.

These people appear energetic, enthusiastic, and uninhibited. They look like they’re having fun.

My son watched the commercial, and thought for a moment. Then, he spoke:

My son: Mommy, I think that’s a program for people who want to get in shape, because they have big bellies. Like balloon bellies.

Me: Yes, that’s right.

My son: I think you might be one of them.

Lucky for him, he’s cute and sincere and sweet and kind. If you haven’t seen the trailer for the show, here it is. And by the way, I’m not as big as the girls on the show. But I do have a squishy belly.

space invaders ice cube tray

This is the Summer of Hot for me. Last November, we moved into a beautiful home with hardwood floors and granite countertops. However, the house did not come with air conditioning. Well, it wasn’t so important back in November…

Fast forward to today, in the middle of June, with a forecast high temp of 92F. Yes, I know it’s hotter in Phoenix, and there are millions of people all over the world who live in hotter, more humid, less comfortable locations. I know I’m spoiled. Sorry. The fact is, I like cool air in the house. I’m not a fan of sweating for no good reason. Call me pampered or whatever.

pi ice cube tray

And did you know you can hardly find ice cube trays at the store anymore?! I had to ask a clerk at Target (my second home) where I could find them, and when I got to the shelf, there was only one kind there. Not a choice to be made of tray color or cube shape.

tetris ice cube tray

Now… Which cubes should I choose?

I don’t get out much, but Hubby and I are celebrating 13 years of marriage today, and we went out to dinner and a movie on Saturday night. The kids asked “What’s a date and why can’t we come?” I explained that we were celebrating the anniversary of our wedding, which happened before any of the three kids were here, and we wanted to remember what it was like without them! LOL

I’m not really a Trekkie. I saw one of the earlier Star Trek movies when I was a kid. It was on an airplane, so I didn’t have a choice, and it was the one with that nasty bug that went into the guy’s ear. Well, it made me sleep with my pillow wrapped around my head to prevent any such bugs from getting in at night, and perhaps turned me off of Star Trek for a while.

We were really planning on seeing Night at the Museum, but we missed it, so Star Trek was Plan B. I’m so glad we saw it, because it was AWESOME!

First of all, I’m kind of a J.J. Abrams fan. I loved ALIAS and some of his other television projects. Also, I love Heroes, and Zachary Quinto (a.k.a. super-villian Sylar) played young Spock. I’ve been known to enjoy a space story (crazy for Battlestar Galactica and Star Wars), and finally, I grew up in Iowa, so I have that in common with James Tiberius Kirk. I figured I’d probably like the movie. I was surprised by how immensely entertaining it was for me! Here’s the trailer: (more after the video clip…)

Without getting into lots of detail about the story, let me highlight a few things that made it so much fun. There were plenty of amazing special effects, including black holes and big explosions. I love it when you see an explosion and then hear and feel it a moment later as the shock wave blasts through the theater. There was lots of humor to keep it moving along happily, a little romance, some old-fashioned hand-to-hand combat, and enough of the well-known Star Trek character bits and trademark lines to appeal to even the casual Trek fan.

Since I’m not a Trek scholar, I can’t address how this film fits into the existing Star Trek canon. But as a geek who enjoys quite a bit of space and sci-fi stuff, I give it two thumbs up! Even at $10 per ticket, plus another $20 for a popcorn and two sodas (outrageous!!) it was worth it to see it in a real theater with a huge screen and monster speakers.

So if you’re looking for a fun, fast, fantastic flick, I recommend Star Trek! Bonus: Watch for appearances by a well-disguised Winona Ryder, the icy planet Hoth, either Harold or Kumar, and a Rambaldi sphere. I’ll be impressed if you find them all.

photo from the official Star Trek movie site (which is really a cool site)

Greetings, geeklings! I’ve been a member of Club Pogo for quite a few months now, and I recently made the acquaintance of a fellow Twilight fan on Twitter, who happens to work for Pogo. We did a fun little goodie exchange, and I sent her a Twilight shirt from Bella Twilight Shop. She surprised me with two cards for a free month of membership at Club Pogo!

Since I’m already a Club Pogo subscriber, I decided to share the fun and offer these two cards to you, my fabulous blog friends! Here’s how to enter the drawing:

Write something kind (it doesn’t have to be long or poetic) about my new Bella Twilight Shop (link to: http://bellatwilightshop.com). You might remember that I am a Twilight fanatic, and I design and make Bella’s Bracelet and other Twilight jewelry. I recently moved the shop from GeekMomMashup to its own domain, and I’d like your help in getting the word out.

Once you’ve posted a link to Bella Twilight Shop somewhere (on your blog, MySpace profile, StumbleUpon or other site), come back here and leave a comment with the location of the link. I’ll check your post and put your name in the hat. I’ll draw, notify, and announce two winners on or around June 15. If you win, I’ll e-mail you for your mailing address to send you the Club Pogo one month free membership card.

That’s it! Oh, if you aren’t familiar with Club Pogo, it’s the ad-free version of Pogo, with extra games and membership-only features. Check out the free version at Pogo.com.

I’ve been awarded Mother of the Year! It must be true, because I saw it on the internet… Well, okay. I’m not really that great of a mother. How bad is it that my idea of a nice Mother’s Day would be to spend it alone, without my kids? (I’m half-serious.)

Okay, that sounds terrible. But before you judge me, I dare you to walk a mile in my flip flops, wearing my baggy “yoga pants” (mom code for “it’s too hot for sweatpants, but I have to cover up my unshaven legs”), a faded and spit-up stained maternity shirt (even though you haven’t been pregnant in years), and bad bed head, with three kids pulling on your collar and hanging onto your arms and repeating an unsynchronized and dissonant chorus of “mom mom mom” in your ears until you can’t hear yourself think… Whoa! Deep breaths.

I know I’m not the only one out there who could stand a little quiet time.

One of my real Supermom friends sent me a link to a personalized Mother of the Year video, and I had to share it with my fellow moms, geeks, and everybody out there who has a mom. Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there, Super and less-than-super. Someday, we’ll miss the “mom mom mom” noise, and all the other messy, fun, unpredictable stuff that comes with motherhood. And just for the record, I love my kids more than life. I’d just like to have the bathroom to myself for a few minutes.

Click this image for a larger view.

No, I didn’t make this awesome Star Wars poster. I found it here: My[confined]Space

I know I’m not the only geeky mom out there, and now there’s proof! HP has teamed with Olympic champion swimmer Dara Torres in the Moms for Simplicity project.

It’s an opportunity to submit a short essay to the Moms for Simplicity site, have your photo included in the Moms for Simplicity mosaic, and a chance to win one of three grand prize $5000 technology makeover packages. I love my MacBook and iPod, but I sure wouldn’t turn down $5000 worth of tech and gadgets, even if it’s not from Apple, would you?! Plus, the winners will get to meet swimming Supermom Dara Torres!

If you’re interested in entering the essay contest or just want to see the photo mosaic, visit HP Dara Torres Moms for Simplicity and check it out. Share your story about how technology helps you simplify your life, or just read what some other busy moms are saying. Cheers!

If you haven’t already discovered Orisinal, you should go check it out. I’ve enjoyed playing games there for a couple of years. Unlike the arcade-style video games you might be familiar with, most of these are simple, soft, pastel-colored games with cute characters and soothing music and sound effects. Think bubbles popping, bunnies hopping, flowers floating, and snowflakes falling.

And even though these are light, cheerful games, they’re still fun to play and even a bit addictive. Here’s a beautiful example, called High Delivery, in which you use a little fan to maneuver a rising balloon to catch falling blossoms. It’s relaxing and pretty. Enjoy!

Update (later on the same evening): Whoa!!! I just watched it, and it’s very exciting! Half Blood Prince looks quite action-packed, and I’m looking forward to seeing more of Ginny Weasley! It will also be fun to watch Draco’s character develop beyond schoolyard bully into something more significant. Woo-hoo! Now I have to watch it again.

I saw these Star Wars kites at Target last week, and I really really really hope they still have them when I go back tomorrow! How awesome would it be to fly the Millennium Falcon in an imaginary Kessel Run over the local park on a bright, windy day?!

This image is from ThinkGeek.com, but they’re out of stock right now. I imagine these are quite popular with Star Wars geeks of all ages, throughout the galaxy. Cheers!