Or not.

Regardless, in just a few days, the hubs and I will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary.

Fifteen years together, three college graduations, a cross country move, three babies, two dogs , a bird (yes, a bloody bird), 70 pounds (gained and lost more than one time), and two bad kidneys (never mind, make that 4 bad kidneys, gotta count Dude #3’s too) and we’re still happily-ish together.

Sure I have my days where I want to sweep his leg because he didn’t do HIS ONE AND ONLY CHORE put the trash out and it smells like we’ve stuffed a human body in it.  And, sure, he probably has days where he, um, he doesn’t have bad days with me because I’m perfect.

But, overall, I am lucky and he is luckier.

The funny thing is that probably no one expected us to last this long.  We got together young (I met him at 18, my very first week of college), we had a baby young AND unmarried (#1 slept through our wedding at 18 months old), and we’re not even the same race (This is still considered a challenge. Thank you haters).  Add to that the fact that I went back to college after we had the baby, we spent some time being unemployed simultaneously (shiver, that sucked), we moved across the country, away from his family and all of our friends, his heartburn used to wake me AND the baby up nearly every night, and he never even got a chance to live alone in his life (he went from parents, to roommates in college, to parents again, then to me).

We were total marriage success underdogs.

I’ve always rooted for the underdogs.

While most of our friends have gotten divorced around us (we actually take bets now), we’ve stayed together.  Today I feel like our union is stronger now than it ever was.  Or I’m too tired to really examine it.  Either way, things are working for us.

To celebrate I’m not planning to give him tin or diamonds (although, by all means, he’s welcome to give me some).  Instead I am giving him something more personal (and the iPad mini I bought him a few weeks ago totally counted toward this too).  A gift that will hopefully translate into something we actually need: a date!

Using a newly discovered site called Datevitation I made him this book…

Yeah, yeah, I know, I rhyme like a boss snuck The Dudes on our movie date, but they’d never forgive us for going to see Superman without them.  I promise we’ll sit next to each other.  As long as no one cries, barfs, fights, or falls asleep.

Still not sure what Datevitation is about?  Basically, Datevitation is the first and only custom love coupon book platform living on the Internet.  They have like 350 dates to choose from including some sexy ones that had me laughing like the 12 year old boy I am on the inside when I was looking at them.  Seriously “Lap Dance” so, so funny.

Honestly, this video explains it best…

I’d love to give a discount code to create a book of your own. Maybe for Father’s Day, or your anniversary, or some other entirely random occasion you’ve determined is just begging for a coupon book.  Use code ‘DUDEMOM‘  for $10 off your purchase in May or June.

Not ready to buy just yet?  How about win?!

It’s always a good time to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*This post was sponsored by Datevitation.  My marriage, my husband, my ability to create sick poetry, and my opinion are all my own.

The post My Marriage Is Better Than Yours Is. appeared first on dude mom.

He charges $.25 for a cup.

For $.50 you get free refills and a gumball from the machine.

To enhance his profits over last year’s lemonade stand, this season, my budding entrepreneur changed his uniform (apparently the bowtie will be saved for special occasion stands only, and he will serve most of his customers while wearing a hand designed apron).  He also requested a new booth (he said last year’s cardboard model was silly because it got all soggy in the rain, didn’t have good sun coverage, and tipped over when he brought out his better treats later in the season).

So, I built him one.  Natch.

I started with a plan…

A, um, master plan.  That is completely useless and totally uncopyable.  So don’t bother.  If you want to make one for your crew, just eyeball it.  It’s pretty intuitive.

Plus, building it took me less than two hours and it only set me back about $20 (some of that was to replace screws I’d depleted in previous projects and for the set of wheels I absolutely had to have).  I could’ve painted it for added awesome, but I got hungry and I had to pee, so I decided not to.  He doesn’t care anyway and neither do his customers.

I added the sun shade for him and the wheels for me (I hate hauling it out to the street for him; this way he can roll it himself).

He added the tablecloth and the flowers (because customers like pretty shops best).

Seems like he was on to something: he made $15 on his first shop of the season!

He’s got a last day of school popsicle stand planned.

Now, if I can get him to stop eating all of his inventory…

What’s got you feeling Wordful this week?  Link it on up and then go visit my co-host at Seven Clown Circus and our lovely features from last week where we found us Prom Prep at Better in Bulk, the best pictures of “hatching spring” over at Stacy Uncorked, a fish that makes you say, “hey” at Life, Darling!, and A Walk in the Park (with the best curls) at Jack’s Paper Moon.

The post Wordful Wednesday. The Lemonade Stand is Open! appeared first on dude mom.

Tackle football.

It set me back $400.

And, as hard as it is to believe (for me too!), it is totally worth it because since my middle son got involved in the sport last season, his life has changed dramatically.

When he begged me to join the team the first two years he was old enough I convinced him he wasn’t ready.  In reality, I just didn’t want to keep up with the practice schedule while I had a still napping two year old at home. Plus, the thought of sitting in the sun during summer training sounded like torture.  And, $200?  Really?  Two.  Hundred.  Dollars?!

And then there was fear.  Fear of him suffering an injury, to brain or body, was a real concern.  Everyone knows about the controversy surrounding football safety and concussions.

Last season, I officially ran out of excuses when my then 4 year old kicked his nap to the curb, I decided that the sun is probably not going to kill me, my parents offered to pay for his playing fee, and I joined the NFL for an instructional meeting about football health and safety.

I am so glad I did.

For my son, his involvement in football has literally changed his life. Formerly so shy and socially anxious that he wouldn’t even ask to use the restroom at school (yup, he pooped himself, and yeah, it was baaaaaad). His involvement in our local football program, unlike any other sport we tried previously, has literally changed his life. He has blossomed into a successful athlete, a reliable teammate, a school leader, and an overall confident dude.

I can only thank his football coaches and his teammates for the role they have played in creating this…

No more rock-kicking-creepy-playground-loner junk for him!

For that I say, thank you football.  Thank you!

Because of my new found passion for the sport that has done so much for him, I recently became a member of the NFL’s Heads Up Football Advisory Committee designed to assist the NFL in making football a better, safer sport for players.  As I get more educated about the dangers of the game as it is currently being played, and how we as parents can collaborate with coaches to realistically make it safer for our boys, I am optimistic and less fearful about the potential of my Dudes to have long, healthy, SAFE experiences with youth football.

And, I’m not the only mom who feels this way.

Last week I had the opportunity to talk to Charlotte Jones Anderson, daughter of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, current chair of the NFL Foundation (“a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the health and safety of sports, youth football and the communities in which we live”), and mom to three, two of whom are tackle football players.

Clearly football has always been a part of her life, but like so many other concerned mothers, even she has faced trepidation about having her boys on the field.

How does she combat that?

Education (along with helmets and mouth guards and shin guards and the like).

According to Charlotte, it is education and gaining insight and knowledge about the game and how to be safe that is going to help parents and coaches of youth players become advocates for their children’s safety on the field (or the court, or the slopes, or wherever your kids get their play on).

As the leader of the NFL Foundation, she’s working to make sure that education happens by supporting Heads Up Football, and helping coaches and players access needed training, and better resources.

Said to be “the most powerful woman in the NFL”, I think she’s in a good position to pull it off.

With my help of course. Insert maniacal-yeah-baby-I’m-going-to-take-over-the-world-laugh for emphasis.

*PS. This is NOT a sponsored post.  The NFL does not pay me (although probably they should start) to spread their message.  They don’t pay me to provide insight into what it’s like to be on the ground floor of a youth football organization working tirelessly to make the coach hate me keep my boys safe.  They don’t pay me to be passionate about this issue.  I just am.  Because my Dudes and their brains are worth it.

The post Just Dude It! Football Safety with HeadsUp Football. appeared first on dude mom.

This week I even got dressed up fancy for the What NOT to Wear series finale/reunion party and wore work-ish clothing to a meeting…

And, I went shopping.

For ages I’ve been dying to try printed jeans.

Two things have continuously gotten in my way: cost (I don’t want to pay for jeans that are so distinct that I can’t really wear more than a couple of times per month) and style (I haven’t been able to find any in my nonexistent price range that fit the way I like).

I tried on this pair at Kohl’s…

They’re oooookay.

But, oooookay isn’t really enough to make me drop $29 of my hard earned cash to bring them home with me.

So, in order to flex my frugal living muscles AND ensure that I’d have a pair of jeans in a fit I like with a print I’m crazy about, I decided to make my own!

This was my first attempt at greatness making my own printed jeans…

After trying them on and looking back at the bazillion photos I forced my children to snap of me in the yard, I decided that the flowers were too big for my liking.

And, they desperately needed some additional sparkle (because a girl needs a little sparkle from time to time).

So, I grabbed another pair of jeans from my closet and went to work.

They came out so much better and I am very much in love with them!

Want to make some for yourself?

Ohmygoshseriously.  So.  Easy!

Supplies:

• Pair of jeans that make your booty look bangin’.
• Fabric paint in your desired color.
• A sponge brush.
• A stencil of the design you want on your pants.  You can get high end ones or ones made especially for fabric that have sticky backs and everything, but I just went with a standard  $1.99 one from Michael’s.

Steps:

1. Wash your jeans.  Don’t be gross y’all, start with a clean pair of pants.
2. Lay your completely dry jeans out on your work surface and figure out your pattern.  You can go all willy nilly with it, but be careful not to make the design too clumpy looking.  You can always go back and fill in blank spaces, but once you paint you can’t erase it.
3. Lay your stencil down on the desired spot and hold it TIGHTLY in place.  If you allow movement your design will bleed and it will look like your 4 year old painted on your pants.  That sounds kinda cute, but it isn’t, believe me.
4. Paint.  Apply your paint to your stencil lightly.  Don’t over do it.  Just use enough paint to fill in the stencil.  Think dab, not brush, and certainly not smear, slather, or mop.
5. Immediately remove stencil.  Be gentle but swift.  Like removing a Bandaid.  Lift directly up from your pants so you don’t smear your creation.
6. Smile at your artistry.  Unless you jacked it up.  Then scowl, sigh, and/or verbally chastise yourself before figuring out a solution that will make it look like you meant to do that (maybe paint another color of flower right over top of the screwed up one).
7. Repeat entire process.  Over and over and over again until your pants are sufficiently covered. Don’t forget the back and the sides.  I hear it’s easy to do both of those things.
8. Wait a couple of hours for pants to dry before modeling them so your followers on Instagram can see.
9. Wait a day before you wash them so you can see how things set. Probably they will look even better when you do.
10. Wear those bad boys someplace fancy.  Like soccer practice or the grocery store.

Are you feeling fashion-y this week?  Share your Mom Awesome style post with me this week so I can clap at my computer screen on your behalf!

The post Mom Pretty Monday. DIY Fashion: Printed Denim. appeared first on dude mom.

Traveling to Vegas where I absolutely just had to eat delicious food at celebrity owned restaurants and Instagramming photos of said meals to all of my diet-faithful friends is no way to encourage people to stay the getting in shape girl course!  Plus, it meant I clearly didn’t stick to my diet.

And, as easy as Revolt is to do in a hotel room, I will admit that walking the Vegas strip for hours and standing-walking-standing-dancing-standing for 6 hours at the What NOT to Wear finale event had me entirely too tired to use my feet each night for additional exercise when I went back to my room.

I distinctly recall my feet hurting so badly at one point that I actually crawled from the elevator to my room.  It’s Vegas, no one was suspicious.

So, yeah.  Not much fitness going on here this Friday.

Lucky for all of you, I instead have some diet & fitness related tidbits to help you be way more awesome than me at this whole thing.  No reason for all of us to fall of the fitness wagon!

• Fave blog for looking at food photos of food that actually probably won’t clog my arteries before it has time to work through my system and back out into the world: 101 Cookbooks
• Fave overall fitness blog: Fit Bottomed Girls
• Fave healthy snack: Zone Perfect & dried edamame (I get mine from Target)
• Fave workout wear sites: Ellie for clothing & Enell for the girls
• Free online fitness classes: Gymagogo
• Fave make at home diet recipes: My Getting in Shape Girl Healthy Food Pin Board
• Perfect overall at home fitness program: Revolt Now Fitness (includes workout and meal plans)
• Best guilt free sweet treat: Brookside Chocolate.  Seriously you will die smiling.
• Fave fitness blog post this week:  A recipe for Revolt’s healthy Breakfast Burritos that makes you actually want to grub on something healthy from the blog, Mostly Food and Crafts.
• Most inspiring running mom: MCM Mama Runs. She’s made it her goal to run races in all 50 states before she’s 50 and she’s actually doing it (she’s run in 26 states so far)!

DudeMom Disclaimer: I have received a free membership to Revolt Now Fitness.  All opinions and any inability to stay committed to the program while getting my party on in Vegas are my own.

The post Fitness Friday. Fitness & Weight Loss Sites for Women. appeared first on dude mom.

The dressed up sexy and ready to party with my What NOT to Wear buds version of 35 anyway.

This is my for-real-life 35.

No make-up.  No filters.  Just face.  And weird hotel lighting.

Tomorrow I will celebrate another 29Again birthday.

Thirty-five.

Thirty five years of being.

Being present. Being awesome. Being me.

I wanted to write something profound.  You know, a moving post about aging gracefully, living purposefully, and rocking your life, no matter your age.

But, yeah, no.

As I sit in my hotel room in Vegas after celebrating a whirlwind two days of filming the final episode of What NOT to Wear (which I’m pretty sure I will get cut from thanks to my inability to be flamboyant, over zealous, and/or dressed like a showgirl), I only have the energy to be sure of a few things.

5 Things You Know When You’re 35

1.  Standing in heels for more than 90 minutes is at least as torturous as stage 2 of labor.  Only, no baby when you’re done.  Just a wicked blister or five and swollen Marshmallow man feet only suitable for Crocs. Humans can do without all of that ugly.  Particularly the Crocs.

2.  Thirty-five may be remarkably smarter than 25, but dang it if 25 wasn’t way faster.  I’d give a little in the wiseness department to have the speedy metabolism I possessed at 25.  Then maybe I wouldn’t still be feeling the delicious meal I snagged at Gordon Ramsay’s BURGR.  I don’t need to know everything anyway, ask my husband.

3.  Acne isn’t a problem solely reserved for pubescent teens.  That junk can wreck your face at any age it seems.

4.  Having high confidence is sexier than having high boobs.  However, having high boobs can make you more confident.  Invest in a good bra and you’ll be unstoppable.

5.  Gelato is delicious.  Skeevy people are everywhere, but especially in Vegas.  White is my color.  And Stacey and Clinton are two of the sweetest celebrities I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.  And, that’s saying a lot actually because I’ve met tons.

As for the What NOT to Wear appearance, I may share more details about my trip to Vegas.  Or, I may decide to keep it to myself and hope everyone forgets I was even there when they cut me at the end for not being interesting enough.  Only time will tell, but after seeing what I saw there, I’m feeling like relateable isn’t the stuff high rating are made of.  And, I’m really quite regular.

Have something to be Wordful about this week?  My co-host, Angie at Seven Clown Circus and I would love to get all up in that!  Plus we truly enjoy reading your posts (seriously, we visit even if I don’t always comment because I’m on my phone and that’s annoying) and selecting our weekly features!

This week we’re featuring a post with some beautiful Ethiopian children one blogger met when she went to adopt her own little girl, a little charmer we’ve been watching grow up on her mama’s blog, a fun post that chronicles the day in the life of a 27 month old before her sibling makes an appearance, and a little first haircut fun!

The post Wordful Wednesday. THIS is 35 and What NOT to Wear. appeared first on dude mom.

I popped up to NYC with a couple of fellow Chevy lovers (@dipaolomomma & @whatnowandwhy) to hang out with dope shoe designers and hip hop heroes meet the new Chevy Impala and party with the car and its creators. That’s not a party you can crash in jeans and a white t-shirt no matter how put together you feel.  So, I rolled out my deuces, got dressed up and mingled with the locals for that one…

*Photo top right corner featuring @whatnowandwhy and I courtesy of The Digital Latina.

So glad I did because everyone looked so fabulous at the event, even the car was sexy!

*Photo courtesy of Mommy Factor.

The newly designed Chevy Impala just has this sexy feel to it.  Not like going-to-the-club-to-get-my-freak-on-sexy, but like yeah-I-have-kids-but-I’m-still-fly sexy.  I sat in that car and thought, now this is something I could drive and NOT feel all mom jeans in.

Exactly how I feel about my Chevy Traverse.

The styling of the interior, the roominess, the captain chairs in the middle row that make it so my children don’t have to moan about someone touching them and I can avoid going insane from the drama of it all, the exterior sleekness, the double moon roof, some random engine tidbits my husband and the guy at the dealership gushed about; it all comes together to make it the perfect Mom Awesome ride for The Dudes and me.

Want to talk Chevy a little more?

Feel free to pop over to the Traveling Mom Twitter party I’ll be cohosting tomorrow night.  They’re giving away a handbag!

RSVP here: #ChevyUrbanStyle

I’d also love to see what you wore this week!  If you have a #RealMomStyle post to share, feel free to link it up so I can visit!

The post Mom Pretty Monday. New York, Chevy, & Real Mom Style. appeared first on dude mom.

Best wishes from all of us to all of you this Mother’s Day…

The post Happy Mother’s Day from Us Mama Bloggers. appeared first on dude mom.

Like, when I go to the gym, game face on (see above), shoes double knotted, head band on, mouth guard in, ok, no mouth guard, but you get the picture; I am there to get my sweat on.  Seriously.

Oh, and have a good time.

A really good time.

That’s why I love going to Zumba: I sweat and I have fun.

And sometimes, I embarrass myself.

Recently, my wonderful instructor decided to introduce 4 new songs in one of our hour long class sessions.

That got the old heart and brain pumping.

I was putting in work in that gym: salsaing, lifting, sambaing, tripping over my own feet periodically, dropping it like it’s hot.  All of that.

And then, outta nowhere, I punched myself in the face.  Literally.  My very own fist, jammed directly into my very own face.  Uppercut style.

Head snapped back, glasses went careening through the air, and I hit the floor in search of them like Velma in Scooby Doo.

Luckily no one stepped on them.  And I only missed a few beats of the Pitbull jam we were rocking to.

There was a point in my life recently where, after punching myself in the face in front of a room full of people, I would’ve made that my last appearance in Zumba class. Probably even in the gym actually.

I would’ve run to my car and cried after barfing alongside it from the humiliation of crawling across the floor, chasing after my spectacles, in a puddle of my own sweat, while women got jiggy wit it all around me.

But, that chick is dead.  Or at least entirely suppressed by the healthy energy coursing through my body.  I didn’t get that energy by running, screaming away from the gym every time I punched myself in the face.

I got that by being serious about my fitness, going to 5 Zumba classes a week, eating better, and adding Revolt Now Fitness workouts to my weekly regimen.  But, mostly from Zumba.  And, enduring a face punch every now and then.

So, I can’t quit.  No matter how many times I punch my own face, send my glasses into the workout pathway of another club member, or miss a few beats because I’m busy going after them.

The post Fitness Friday: How to Burn Fat & Look Silly in Zumba. appeared first on dude mom.

They fill up my recycling box after keeping The Dudes busy in ways things like, um toys I purchased for their pleasure, just can’t.

Every now and then I get a box shaped perfectly for a fun project and it gets the creative juices flowing.

Meet Pepsi Next…

The box (sure, the drink is tasty too thanks in part to your ability to drink it with less guilt because it has fewer calories than the original Pepsi).

But, it is the box that has been bringing joy to the heart of one little Dude for the past week.

Thanks to me and my ever improving ability to craft my face off.

We’ve been pretty obsessed with outer space as of late.  For that I’d like to thank Thor and the Avengers, Iron Man 3, Star Wars, Superman (the originals which we’ve been watching lately), and this book: National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Space (First Big Books)

In an effort to make #3’s independent play time more exciting (he’s alone in the daytime while the others are at school, and I think that’s why I’ve gotten so crafty; he needs entertainment I’m otherwise incapable of providing) I decided to build him a rocket ship.  I hope one day he actually goes to the moon.

So simple to construct, the wings and tail were cut from inserts in the box.  The only time consuming part was waiting for the wing paint to dry.  Once that was done, I cut a hole in the top and bottom of the box for his body, cut slits down the sides and on the top back for the wings and the tail.  Then, I stapled the ribbon to the top of the box for straps so he could enjoy hands free “space” travel.

Spiderman wishes he had a rocket ship to take out bad guys with, and cardboard crafts are so what’s up!

Have something Wordful in your life this week?  Go ahead an link it on up then visit my co-host at Seven Clown Circus and last week’s awesome linkers who brought us Sunshine and Happiness, the view from a brand new camera, manual mode photography isn’t easy, but it’s lovely when done correctly, and lovely shots and words on renewal!

The post Wordful Wednesday. Cardboard Crafts: Rocket Ship. appeared first on dude mom.