crazyland

Bucket Filler

2009-11-12T06:05:00.001-07:00

Today, greet the day with "It's a wonderful day!" Then watch it morph into so much more! I'm convinced it's all about attitude!

Bucket Filler

2009-11-11T06:03:00.001-07:00

Count your many blessings name them one by one...

Today realize how blessed you are.
(We have internet for Google's Sake!)
Take the time to write down your blessings--
either in your fancy-schmancy notebook or on your blog.

Open Letter

2009-11-11T05:14:00.001-07:00

Dear Library Mother:

I think its awesome that your sweet five year old knows how to spell. Really I do. I'm a mother after all and I'm also Pro Education. Not only can he spell, but he can spell really hard words. Like M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E. Over and over and over again, he spells it. At the top of his lungs.

I know you think this is cute because I heard you say it nine-hundred times. Nine-hundred times! I heard you say "Aww that's so cute! You can spell Mickey Mouse".

Rinse and repeat. Over and over again.

I never thought I would say this, but seriously? If I have to hear your kid spell M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E one more time, in the library that is supposed to be quiet, I'm going to m-i-c-k-e-y-m-o-u-s-e your kid. For reals. This is a library after all. Not a spelling bee.

kthx,
~motherboard

Tuesday Trailer

2009-11-10T14:37:00.003-07:00

I want to see this!

I know it's totally nerdy, but I want to see this movie and dance in the aisles. It's the closest I'll ever get now to seeing MJ live. Nerdy? Umm, yeah. Do I care? Nope. Not one little bit.

Note To Self:

2009-11-10T13:54:00.002-07:00

Dear Self:

Are you sick of all the sick-O's at your house? Yeah. I thought so. It's been a long 8 weeks. I know you must be sick of the sick-O's because of the mad disinfecting you were doing this weekend.

Totally killer, by the way.

The only problem I would like to point out is the dishwasher. And, really? It's not the dishwasher's fault, it's the Dish Washer's fault. That's you, Motherboard.

You probably should have stopped when you were ahead-- the 9 loads of laundry, 3 clean bathrooms, all the banisters and railings bleached, sheets changed and the entire house Lysoled - kind of ahead. But, you didn't. You decided you should wash all the dishes and glasses. Just to be sure.

Only problem? You ran out of dishwasher soap.

You figured that it would be no big deal to use Dawn Liquid Dish soap in the dishwasher, because hey! They both do the same thing, right?

Basically, yes that is true. Both soaps do clean dishes, but you should have listened to that inner crazylady. Remember that nagging feeling you had? Yeah. It was reminding you about that email forward you got with the photo of bubbles coming out of the dishwasher. But, you didn't listen. You shrugged it off as an urban legend.

It's so totally not an urban legend.

Filling up the entire dishwasher-soap-holder-do-hicky-thing-a-ma-bobber with dish soap was a bad idea. A very bad idea. Every thing you have ever seen or heard about bubbles exploding out of your dishwasher when you use Dawn Liquid Dish soap is true. Oh so very true.

Next time, for the love all things holy, do not put the Dawn Liquid Dish soap in the dishwasher. There will in fact be bubbles everywhere and you will be really mad when you have to run the dishes through three more cycles-- sans soap-- just to get them bubble free.

Please, Motherboard, the next time you realize you are out of dishwasher soap, but want to finish your weird cleaning frenzy just go to the store. Step away from the Dawn Liquid Dish soap and go to the store.

You will be glad you did.

kthx,

~motherboard

Bucket Filler

2009-11-10T06:01:00.000-07:00

Today you are going to stop, sit and just BE. Take 1 hour today and find a peaceful spot to just meditate. Get a good book, or that magazine you have been wanting to read and do it. For 1 hour. No blogging. No telephone (turn the ringers off). Just you and your thoughts. See what your true self is trying to speak to you.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-09T06:33:00.001-07:00

My Mom has a Gratitude journal that she pulls out every November. Everyone that comes to her home, she has them write 1 thing that they are grateful for inside this book. She has done this for years! It is always fun to read back when my sisters were little, and see their handwriting evolve and read the simple things they are grateful for. Like getting a blizzard and eating it for breakfast.

It's also fun to see all of our friends handwriting in that journal and read the things our friends are grateful for as well.

Today, pull out a notebook, and have everyone that comes to the house, especially
the kids friends, write one thing they are grateful for.

I promise you, this book will become a treasure for you as the years go by!

Sunday Devotional

2009-11-08T06:37:00.001-07:00

Bucket Filler

2009-11-08T05:52:00.001-07:00

Today, our challenge is to pray only in gratitude. How many times do we pray for "stuff"? Meaning stuff we need, or stuff we want, or stuff we want to happen? I would venture to say we all do it. A lot.

I wrote a post about this several years ago. The part I want you read is the 2nd Red Paragraph. (aren't I nice to color coordinate your reading material?)

Then today, let us pray only in gratitude and not for things.

Well Hello There.

2009-11-07T06:39:00.000-07:00

*pulled from the archives*

Recently I was stopped at a stoplight waiting for it to change. It was an eternal stoplight meant it seemed to make my life just a titch more miserable. My heart was heavy with what seemed to be the weight of the world.

As I sat there at the eternal stoplight I wondered what master mind was conspiring against me, and why it seemed that God had forgotten all about me.

Then I looked out my window.

Pressed right up next to my window was the biggest dragon fly I have ever seen. It was so large I could see it's eyes blinking. It sat there buzzing next to the window looking right at me.

I looked at it, and it looked at me when I finally said "Well, Hello there friend." He landed on my mirror, and while he watched me he scratched his nose.

That dragon fly? He saw me. He noticed me.

We chatted for a moment, that dragon fly and I. He flew up closer to the window when I bore my soul to it during those few short minutes we had together. When I was done he landed back on my mirror, watching me again. And you know what? I know he heard me.

When the light changed I wondered if my friend was going to ride along with me on my mirror, but when I looked down he was gone.

My new friend reminded me of Him. Perhaps it was a tender mercy from The Lord, reminding me that He see's me. He hears my pleas and further He notices that I'm having a hard time.

Such a silly thing to have a dragon fly meet your needs. But on that day? He did.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-07T06:19:00.000-07:00

"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

We all have that "Secret Dream"...
Today write yours down.
That is the first step to making your dream a reality.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-06T06:17:00.001-07:00

Are you scrambled or fried?
As women, we are pulled in a hundred directions--
daily and sometimes even hourly.
We can forget to take the time for ourselves to fill our own bucket.

Today, take the time to find 1 hour that you
can give yourself that is your own.
Then do something that you have not done in a while.

(Besides Blogging!)

Random randomness and then some tunes

2009-11-06T05:01:00.000-07:00

The face of child says it all, especially the mouth part of the face - Jack Handy

At my kids Elementary School, I'm in charge of the newsletter. Most of the time its pretty fun; however last night? I got bored. As I was finishing up the November newsletter (yes. Its totally late. don't judge!), I started putting random stuff that makes me laugh into the newsletter, like that Jack Handy quote. I put little snippets of funnies, photos or craft projects. Craft projects is hysterical, because if you know me at all, you know motherboard and crafts is an oxymoron.

I was laughing my head off when I emailed it off to the school secretary.

And then.

{dun dun dun dun}

I started panicking. And fretting. What if no one gets the humor? Seriously. What if they. don't. get. it?

Bummer for them, cause Jack Handy? He's funny.

*****
I spoke too soon about us all being on the mends from sick-O land. Thing 1 has Croup. Someone shoot me now, please. I didn't even know that teenagers could get the croup. My kid, the anomaly.

My personal opinion is that teenagers are WORSE than babies being sick. Babies just cry. Teenagers? They whine and moan and talk. They think you should cuddle them like the baby.

Oye vay.

*****
We are having an Indian Summer around here. I think that is my very favorite thing. Ever.

It doesn't happen often, but when it does? I savor every blasted second of every blasted day. All too soon we are going to be in the throes of the winter of our discontent and the depths of snow. I don't do snow very well. Or the cold.

I would be happy if it snowed from December 1 to January 2. Then if the snow would kindly melt and be 55-70 degrees again, I would appreciate it.

kthanx.

*****
I heard the funniest interview the other day. They were talking about the New York Times and how they had teamed up with T-Mobile to do some research on texting. They talked about all the silly text lingo and what was used in texts vs real life.

Then they said that MEN were the ones who were statistically higher with using "signatures" like <3,> or my personal favorite x, Then they gave us the name for this new phenomenon.

Ready?

Metro-textual.

Serious as a heart attack. Metro-textual. I laughed like a mad-man.

I went around all the live long day trying to come up with ways to use Metro-textual in my conversations. It's such a great word, don't you think?

Metro-textual.

*****
I have a pet peeve. Ready. Set. Go. It's when people write ha ha ha or LOL. In the middle of their posts. It's irritating. And, its distracting when you read it. If you write well enough, you won't have to prompt people to laugh. It's like those stupid laugh tracks from the 80's.

Just write the way you talk. Your tone and ability to tell a story is what prompts people to laugh. Not the LOL or ha ha ha. If you do it right, and write the way you talk . . . people will hear your voice and know exactly when to laugh.

DeNae is the Jedi master of this and I am her Padawan. I read her posts and I can actually HEAR her telling me the story. It helps to know that the way she writes is also the exact way she talks... Hilariously.

I'll say it again: If you write well, you will not need to use the tacky laugh tracks.

Amen.

{this is me stepping off my soap box}

*****
Now people are going to be emailing me. Last time I posted one of my blogging pet peeves, I got tons of emails telling me that people were now afraid to comment on my blog because I expected too much.

I don't expect that much. Do I?

(don't answer that)

*****
I have watched the U2 Rose Bowl concert no less than 5 times. I kid you not. I turn that youtube video on and then do my work while I listen. I can't believe the technology we have available now to allow something that amazing. It's not as good as being there, of course. But, I'm a cheap-skate and refuse to pay $250 for the tickets.

When I was in high school, I wanted to marry Bono. I did, its true. I would tell my friends that I was going to get him to divorce his wife, convert to Mormonism and marry me. A girl can dream.

One of my dearest high school friends actually met him when she was working in DC for some Senate Committee. She laughed about how she thought of me and my high hopes. My only question for her? Did she kiss him. Cause I totally would have.

I still have visions of Bono dancing in my head. With a side of Adam.

Yum.

*****
Have a great weekend! It's dang nice around here. What are you up to? I hope its more fun than me. I have an appointment with a can of disinfectant. Again.

Catch ya on the flip side!

1. What's Been Going On? - Amos Lee

2. Maybelle - Ida
3. I Will Follow You Into The Dark - Death Cab For Cutie
4. See The World - Gomez
5. I Taught Myself How To Grow - Ryan Adams
6. Just Like Heaven - The Watson Twins
7. Something Good This Way Comes - Jakob Dylan
8. Lose That Girl - Saint Etienne
9. Save It For Later - The English Beat
10. Where The Streets Have No Name - U2

Bonus: Have Your Way - Britt Nicole

Actual Conversation

2009-11-05T10:02:00.000-07:00

Since we have all been sick around here, there has been WAY too much TV watching. We don't watch cool stuff like Leverage or CSI or even 30 Rock. Nope. We watch I-Carly.

I-Carly. {said with extreme horror}

Have you ever wondered about I-Carly? I have.

Thing 3: I love this show.

Me: Where are her parents?

Thing 1: she lives with her brother.

Me: But, where are her parents? Where are her parents?!

Thing 3: She lives with her brother, Mom. He's like twenty.

Me: Her brother is weird. Seriously. Where. Are. Her. Parent's?

Thing 1: They're on a permanent vacation and she gets to live with her weird but cool older brother.

Me: Who does that?

Thing 1: I wish my parents did that.

Me: Uhhh... Gee. Thanks.

Just a normal day at the office (?)

2009-11-05T06:21:00.004-07:00

I want to work here! I don't even know where here is, but I know I want that job. Whatever it is. Work would be a blast!

Testing . . . Testing . . . 1,2,3 . . .

2009-11-05T05:35:00.003-07:00

We've been a bunch of sick-O's over here in Crazyland. Not that kind of sicko. Just sick. I'm sick of us all being sick. We have buckets of boogers, fevers and Lysol.

Oh my.

Because of the piggie-poo-poo-flu my writing fingers have atrophied. I haven't written anything worthwhile in months. I have instead been disinfecting, Lysoling and cuddling a sick Moxie. And trying not to die myself.

OK. So that's a little dramatic. But, as my Dad said "Jeeze Motherboard, I must have died cause you look like hell."

Uhhh. Thanks?

When I get sick I like to go whole hog. I mean if you're going to be sick you might as well hit a home run. Right? I had a triple whammy -- strep throat, swine flu and pneumonia. At the same time. I'm an over achiever like that.

If you're looking for a quick way to drop 15 lbs just follow my lead. You'll be begging your Dr. to admit you to the hospital (and he won't) because you're so sick. You'll want to sleep for weeks, but you can't because you have kids. And dishes. And laundry. And dinner to make.

When I finally got my last round of anti-biotics (and four other prescriptions) I bought enough junk-food to feed an army. I told the kids "You're on your own. Don't go outside. Feed yourselves and no fighting. I'm sleeping."

And I did. For 2 days straight.

Seriously, I have never been that sick in all my life. I think somehow during my hiatus in sickland, my MoJo was misplaced. Or lost. Who know's really. I just can't seem to find it.

If you see my MoJo, lemmeno. I sort of miss it.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-05T05:15:00.000-07:00

In the final analysis, the only thing that really matters
is the relationships we have with others.
Today, reconnect with someone that you haven't talked to in a while.
Make the phone call or send the email and reconnect.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-04T06:11:00.003-07:00

Writing notes is becoming a lost art.
A note of thanks or encouragement, love or forgiveness...
Today, take the time to write that note and send it. It will make someones day.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-03T22:42:00.000-07:00

Tuesday's Trailers

2009-11-03T11:59:00.001-07:00

What a fantastic cast! I can't wait to see this one!

Bucket Filler

2009-11-03T06:03:00.000-07:00

Clutter in the home makes clutter in the mind!
Today, set your buzzer for 10 minutes and go through your house
with a garbage bag and pick up stuff to throw away.
You will find the act of purging cleansing.
It will also make room in your life for new adventures.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-02T05:01:00.002-07:00

Remember that for every YES there must be a NO.
You can not do it all, nor should you try.
Today, be honest with yourself and be willing to let something go.

Bucket Filler

2009-11-01T05:59:00.000-07:00

Today, take a walk and notice the beauty of the world around you.
There is much to be grateful for.

Bucket Filler

2009-10-31T06:09:00.002-06:00

What are you doing to be a friend to others?
You will only have friends if you are friendly.

Today, go out of your way to be friendly to someone new.

Random randomness and then some tunes

2009-10-30T06:21:00.004-06:00

16 Horror Movie Quotes sound bite Scary sound bites

I was trying to find a good Halloween quote for today's random 10, but all I could find were silly poems. Then I ran across this 16 scariest lines from movies. I have to be honest here... I recognize one line... the Sixth Sense one. I ~~don't like~~ ~~hate~~ ~~despise~~ LOATHE scary movies. I'm serious. Even Disney's Something Wicked This Way Comes (based on Ray Bradbury's book) gives me nightmares and scares the ba-jeezus out of me. I hate being scared. HATE IT.

Which I think really puts a kink in Jefe's style. He loves scary movies and haunted houses. I hate them. I've only been to a haunted house once and I got so scared that I literally laid down on the floor in the middle of the haunted house--in the fetal position-- and cried. They had to get a manager type person to help walk me out. With my date. Yeah. Can you say Good times? (and no second date)

*****
I do enjoy, however, trick or treating with the kids and the consumption of candy. It really is the beginning of the end for me. I am the one pushing my kids to go to "just one more house", cause I mean, who doesn't like free candy? Umm... me.

I loves me some candy.

At my house we have this nifty little thing called the "mommy tax". I get to rifle through their bags and pick out my favorites. Then they can eat whatever they want for two days. Then everything goes into a jumbo bowl for the entire family to enjoy (this stops the fighting of he/she is eating my candy) and that lasts for another week, and then I toss it all. If I don't, I will eat it all. And, we all know that Halloween is just the beginning of the food festivals.

I find Halloween a fun holiday. I LOVE to dress up in crazy costumes. But, I also find it an interesting study on people. People who are willing to dress up are willing to look silly, or have fun. People, IMO, that don't want to dress up are ones that take themselves just a little to serious. Life is meant to be enjoyed and to have fun.

Really, Halloween is the only day of the year where we as parents not only allow, but strongly encourage wearing strange clothes (sometimes what would be inappropriate in normal situations), talking to strangers and taking candy from people we don't know. It's quite the juxtaposition, don't you think?

*****
We have the pig flu over here. Thing 1 and Moxie are quite sick. It's been a little disconcerting for me. I have done absolutely nothing except hold Moxie and listen to Thing 1 moan for the last week. When I'm not participating in the moan fest and pacing with Moxie, I'm furiously trying to clean where ever they have been--lysoling like a mad man-- to keep the pigs at bay.

Yes. It's a version of hell. This is the first time Moxie has been sick. I'm pretty lucky in that regard. She isn't all that bad of a patient either. I just can't be out of her line of sight or she freaks out. So I have a new appendage. I hope she will amputate from me once she is feeling better. Cause this totally blows.

Luckily, I've already had it. I know how craptastic they are feeling. Death certainly would feel better than this horrid flu. So, I am more sympathetic than I would be if I hadn't had the pig flu. Does that make a bad Mother? Probably.

*****
Last week, Thing 1 and I were driving somewhere and I had the radio set to a station that was playing 80's ballads. It was a blast driving around singing at the top of my lungs all those tacky love songs from the 80's. The best one? Richard Marx's "I'll be Right here waiting for you". I started doing the sign language to the song. Yup. I know how to sign the entire song in sign language.

Why?

Because when I was a cheesy seventeen year old, I had a boyfriend that was leaving on a Mormon mission. I wasn't going to get to see or talk to him for 2 years. My friend had a boyfriend leaving at the same time too so we decided we wanted to be able to sing/sign them a message that was "profound".

We took a sign language class and learned how to sign this entire song and we sang/signed it to our boyfriends.

I was telling this story to Thing 1, completely lost in the memory of it all when she said: "You took a class to learn how to sign this stupid song to your boyfriend that was leaving on a mission? Holy Crap Mom. You were a dork-wad. That's HOURS of your life you are never. getting. back."

{screeching sound}

And I was immediately brought back to reality by a fourteen year old pointing out how utterly ridiculous my friend and I looked to the rest of the world.

I guess I'm glad I didn't show her what the sign for my name was.

(me giving myself a shot in the arm with a letter D. As in Diet Coke)

*****
In my various Internet surfing I have seen "Ad's" for Mormon's in weird places. Yahoo email Banner Ad's. Site meter Banner Ads. Project play list chat window Ads. It's sort of exciting to see the church being so progressive rather than how they were 15 years ago. When Jefe and I were first married I remember our Bishop getting up in our university ward telling the congregation to "STAY OFF THE INTERNET!" It's evil and of the devil.

I love seeing the churches Banner Ad's all over the place. It is exciting and I'm glad they are embracing technology rather than trying to teach us all to be afraid of it.

*****

Thing 2 and I put together a little Halloween play list for you. Our criteria for making the cut to our list? It had to make Moxie dance. If she danced, then we added it to our play list. We stopped at 15 songs because that's when Moxie decided she was bored and went to find "Ya-ya" (thing3).

This is our version of Random 10 today. Even though its not all that random, play it away and dance with your peeps today! Link up if you post your random thoughts today, or your random 1o songs from ANY play list (including your computer!)

Have a great Halloween and get lots of candy! Keep an eye out for us.. We'll be the FBI agent, Elephant, Cowgirl and Dragon. If you see us, we expect 2 handfuls of candy.

Ummkaythanx.

Catch ya on the flip side!