Fly on the Wall March 2015: The Headache Edition

Fly on the Wall is a series of snippets from my life that won’t really make up a whole blog post by themselves, but certainly together make up a fun little bit of reading!  What’s unique about this is that participating bloggers all write their posts and they are put up simultaneously for your reading pleasure.  Except mine, because mine was late (see the next paragraph for an explanation below).  Anyhoo, the links to the other blogs are at the bottom of the post.  Please take some time to visit them all, they are wonderful (and funny) people!

So I took a month off from writing, I can’t say that a lot of interesting things happened…  And seriously my computer crashed when I was writing this.  Blue screen of death!  I panicked big time!  Fortunately after shutting it down and letting it sit for awhile, it seems to be okay.  Anyhoo…

Look who got an American Girl doll. Yep. She named her Lizzie.

One night I had a dream that I was at work and it snowed only it snowed inside and I was trapped at work because I couldn’t drive my car through the snow inside the BUILDING I WORK IN. I need help. Seriously.  I think I just needed Spring.

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The Professor saw a commercial for what he thinks will be his new favorite thing: Bacon wrapped deep dish pizza.  Ew.

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My evening spent with my husband ended with conversations about how agricultural sprayers would be advantageous in a zombie apocalypse (as opposed to a combine) and how it would feel to be kicked by a kangaroo.

All of that was just in time for Valentine’s Week. We’re so romantic.

My Valentine lovies. Aren’t they cute?

So The Princess is in that stage where she is losing lots of teeth. Two teeth were lost in a short period of time at our house. This is a lot for a tooth fairy to keep up with.

Lost tooth one went three days without payment. Finally a pink bag with magical confetti hearts and four shiny quarters in it appeared on the fourth day, along with a letter of explanation. Apparently the tooth fairy had a tooth convention in Toothiana Texas.

Lost tooth two also went three days sans money. Finally a dollar miraculously appeared under Mommy’s pillow this morning. We’re thinking the tooth fairy was playing tricks. Or maybe got confused…

I’d like the record to show that the tooth fairy does not have a drinking problem. Also, my daughter is a very light sleeper.

The kids got Beanie Boos. They’re cute but a little creepy with their big eyes. They love them.

After supper I swear I heard my husband said “Great, now I can crap. I’ve been waiting and gathering things all day to do it.”

What he actually said was that he can “craft”. On Guild Wars, the online game that he plays. I’m still not sure which one actually makes more sense to me…

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The Professor:  “What movie is this?”
Evil Genius: “Facing the Giants. Ever seen it?”
The Professor: Maybe I have. Unless I didn’t then I haven’t.

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The Headache Diaries-Facebook entries made by me during the month of the headache:

Hi I’m Sarah, and this is my headache. Maybe I should name it? What is a good name for a headache that won’t go away?
And Coming soon, Headache, the Musical…

Relief…

Evil Genius’s cheesecake: Now with divine healing powers.

I mean, yeah it’s always been heavenly and all, but tonight it made my migraine go away, and that was just the batter!

Eat his cheesecake tomorrow, gain superpowers. It could make a pretty good Friday, huh?

Help…

I give up. I surrender. Please just go away and let me be! You have made me into a completely worthless individual today!

Finally…

Just to share what a super kid I have: In an attempt to combat these terrible headaches I’m having, I quit drinking diet pop. I really gave up caffeine for the most part. I can’t say it’s really helping, but I’m trying. I’ve hardly had any caffeine other than the occasional coke in the last week.

Yesterday was hard because I had to work in the evening. I gave in and gave my son a dollar to run down to Casey’s to get me a can of Coke. He happily complied and it did help.

This morning I got up and came downstairs. He was sitting on the couch with a dollar in his hand. “What’s that for?” I asked him.

“Oh, it’s mine. I thought I’d bring it just in case you need something today mom.”

He’s my favorite today.

In conclusion…

So I am off of caffeine for the most part.  I’m still getting headaches, but not as bad.  So we’ll see.

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Graceful thing that I am, I dropped and broke my glasses.  Fortunately it was time to make an appointment anyway.  I got the indestructable flexon glasses, and they are PURPLE!!!!!

New glasses!

I just watched my cat flip a vhs tape across the floor and proceed to attack it… That’s right, make sure it’s dead.

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Newsflash: Frozen hashbrowns are not a ready to eat food (says on the package).

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The following is me online trying to find a new weight workout now that I’m running. Keep in mind I’m not a beginner, I’ve been lifting for many years:

Oh… I don’t want to watch a video…
That girl looks too happy, I can’t do that workout. Seriously, she’s enjoying that swiss ball waaaaay too much.
Our gym doesn’t have kettlebells.
I really don’t care what Reese Witherspoon does, thank you.
Last time I checked I’m not a man.

Yeah, still haven’t found a new workout…

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Evil Genius:  “How much snow do we have? 3 inches under the dog. Is that a standard measuring system?”

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Bad things to use as a bookmark for your library book #6: Your birth certificate.  True story… Not me, fortunately, but some other poor soul that is probably wondering where it went.  I sent it back to the library it came from.

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So upcoming things… The Professor starts baseball on Sunday.  This will be interesting for him, having to deal with other people in a team situation.  I may drink a lot the next two months.

In the next few months I will be running three 5Ks and a half marathon.  Am I crazy?  Pretty much.  I’m finally starting to see results.  Next month may very well be the running edition!

Now… don’t run away, check out these amazing people below.  You know you wanna…(My apologies to Karen, I really didn’t want to be late with this.  I still love you and will be ON TIME next month!  XOXO)

 http://www.BakingInATornado.com                          Baking In A Tornado

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/                          Spatulas on Parade

http://followmehome.shellybean.com                          Follow me home

http://www.menopausalmom.com/                          Menopausal Mother

http://stacysewsandschools.blogspot.com/                        Stacy Sews and Schools

http://batteredhope.blogspot.com                                   Battered Hope

http://www.justalittlenutty.com/                                  Just A Little Nutty

http://themomisodes.com                                        The Momisodes

http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com                            Someone Else’s Genius

http://dinoheromommy.com/                            Dinosaur Superhero Mommy

http://gndisney.wordpress.com                                Disneyland in Kentucky

http://www.juiceboxconfession.com                            Juicebox Confession

http://singlemumplusone.blogspot.com                      Searching for Sanity

http://www.gomamao.com                                      Go Mama O

Use Your Words: Color Me BAD!

Do you remember when you were little and your mother told you to stop throwing that tantrum and USE YOUR WORDS?

This is nothing like that.

Welcome to the August edition of the Use Your Words blogging challenge, hosted by the lovely and ever so wordy queen of the baking universe Karen of Baking in a Tornado.  Today’s participants have carefully chosen 4-6 words that are then assigned to another blogger to weave into one entertaining post!  Check out the links below this post to see how other bloggers are using their words!

My words were:  Humidity ~ Frizz ~ smurf ~ Walk Like an Egyptian

They were submitted by the delightful and not really so villainous Joy of Evil Joy Speaks!

This year in an attempt to be physically fit I made a decision that I was going to run a 5K.  After all, my husband was training for a half marathon, and it only made sense that I would subject myself to bodily torture by signing up for something that I might actually have to do some running in.

After months of making excuses, I finally gave in and signed up for one.  Not just any 5K, The Color Run, otherwise known as the Happiest 5K on the Planet.  Not only did I sign up, I created a team.  And people even signed up to be on this team.

And then my husband said I needed to run it.  In July.  When it’s hot.  The good feeling?  Definitely gone, replaced by panic and fear.

Keep in mind that I don’t run, I walk.  And though I understand that many people that sign up to do these things actually do walk the whole thing, it really made sense that maybe I should push myself a little.  No I wasn’t going to Walk Like An Egyptian, I was going to try to run the damn thing.

This Spring I prepared by doing the 5K right here in town.  I literally had to open the door and walk a couple of blocks to be there.  I also had to take my children with me.  It turned out ok, don’t get me wrong, but I think it would have been better to have done it alone.  Kids think you are tormenting them when you make them do any physical activity, let alone walk 3.1 miles.  I chronicled the event here if you care to take a gander.

Time flew and before I knew it the weekend of the Color Run was upon us.  I had been home all summer with my kids, and let’s face it, physical fitness and training and all that stuff was not really happening. Because that would be active, and being active is silly.

And my team? Most of them chickened out.  They had excuses, but they still chickened out.  Luckily, my husband rose to the occasion and filled in.  After all, he ran a half marathon, this would be like the buzzing of flies to him, right?

Let me explain a little more about this race.  When you run the Color Run, you start out wearing all white, like below.

BEFORE… see? White.

Then you walk or run and they throw colored powder at you at several places along he way.  That’s right, they THROW STUFF AT YOU!

What was I thinking?

But you know what?  I ran about half of it.  That’s a huge accomplishment for me.  Considering I didn’t really get to train, that’s pretty darn good.  And I didn’t die.

Luckily, we got done before it got too hot and the humidity caused my hair to frizz too badly.  I was pretty colorful when we got done, luckily I didn’t end up looking like a smurf like so many pictures I’ve seen from this race!

… And after. This is okay because purple is my favorite color.  I even had color in my teeth!

I had color in my hair, in my teeth, in my snot, and in places all over my body that I am not even going to begin to mention.  But it was fun. And you know what?  I’m definitely going to do it again next year!

Next 5K is the Glow Run in October.  That will be fun.  And maybe, just maybe, I might get to train for this one with the kids back in school!

What words are my peeps using today on their blogs?  Check it out by clicking on the links below!!!!!

http://Bakinginatornado.com                                       Baking In A Tornado

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/                          Spatulas on Parade

http://themomisodes.com                                      The Momisodes

http://thethreegerbers.blogspot.ch/               Confessions of a part-time working mom

http://www.JuiceboxConfession.com                             Juicebox Confession

http://www.eviljoyspeaks.wordpress.com                 Evil Joy Speaks

http://followmehome.shellybean.com                   Follow me home . . .

http://www.someoneelsesgenius.com                       Someone Else’s Genius

http://www.crumpetsandbollocks.com                       Crumpets and Bollocks

http://berghamchronicles.blogspot.com              The Bergham’s Life Chronicles

Fabulous 5Ks With Kids and Other Far-Fetched Fiction

Once upon a time I had a notion that I would simply let my children come with me while I ran a 5K.

It will be fun.  We will be active AND spend time together.  After all, I’ve seen the pictures of smiling, happy families exercising together.

At this point everyone was still smiling.

Guess what?  As it turns out, my family is NOT one of those families!

I should have seen the signs.  After all, getting my kids to venture outdoors is something I liken to having teeth pulled.  Getting outdoors AND doing something active is even worse.  A prime example:  I forcibly signed my children up for soccer this Spring.  I bribed the younger one with pink shin guards, the older one with shin guards that you can insert different colors into.  Hopefully the shin guards will provide wonderful attitudes too!  Right?

For the last few years our little town has held a 5K in March.  It literally starts two blocks from our house and goes past our house.  How convenient.  We only had to walk out the front door to participate.

Evil Genius is training for a marathon.  Since he is actually one who runs the whole way, he decided to run the race as training.  I also wanted to do the race, since I am doing one in July and need the experience.  Therefore this meant I got to walk with the kids.  We used up our babysitter points the weekend before (remember the wine bar?)

There were serious runners too, like Evil Genius.

So no big deal, right?  HA!

To help you envision what exactly my race was like, I have painstakingly prepared this little visual for you so you can see just what happened where!  As you can see, I have very advanced skills when it comes to this stuff.  Go ahead, offer me a job…

As you can see, once dad took the kids it was a breeze…

Afterwards we met up for pancakes.  They were delicious.

She has her pancakes. She is now happy.  Mission accomplished.

And there was sausage too.  Now happiness abounded.

To the victors go the spoils, and in this case, the sausage.

Great… huh?  Below I model my cool free t-shirt.  Sexy, huh?

The Princess took this picture for me. Her horrified reaction after she took it and saw it on my computer: “Mommy, where are your FEET????”

So yes, I did a 5K.  So I didn’t run it the whole time but I did make it to the the end.  I beat nine people.  I think there should be a handicap for bringing two children with you during a race!

Have you ever run a 5K?  Walked a 5K?  Dragged one or two or more children along with you?

I Got The (Insert Really Long Phrase Here) Blues

Oh yeahhhh… play those blues…

I got me a blog
Ain’t wrote in awhile
This thing called life
It cramps my style

Should I just give it up?
Should I stop for awhile?
Should I eat that bowl of frosting
And then go walk seventeen miles?

Don’t mind me I got the I’m-a-mom-who-works-outside-of-the-home-and-has-a-house-to-clean-and-is-trying-to exercise-and-sleep-occasionally-and-maintain-a-blog-that-I-don’t-get-paid-anything-for blues

I’ve been writing a teensy bit, but sure not much.  I don’t just have the blahs, I have the blogging blues.  And maybe a bit of it’s just too damn cold blues.  I’ve been doing something besides just sitting on my couch.  Just what exactly have I been doing?  Pardon me while I do a sort of rant…

Damn you FACEBUTT!!!!

I’ve spent plenty of time being frustrated.  Like with Facebook, they keep changing the rules.  Yet that’s the only place I really see any interaction with the exception of a couple of private groups I’m in.  I love posting something and only getting 11 views out of 777 people that like my status.  I can share something that someone else posted and sometimes get lots of views, but it’s so inconsistent.  What a bummer!

Speaking of frustrated, I seem to get pretty much the same number of pageviews regardless of what I’m doing.  I’d like to thank the pervs looking for pictures of women peeing their pants.

The workplace: Where paper cutters roam and attack without warning.

There is work.  The PAID JOB.  While my job is interesting and flexible and all of that jazz, it does take a lot of my time.  AND some weeks I like it better than others.  This week, not so much (mostly due to the fact that it has been too cold for kids to go outside=loud noisy kids!)  I spend way too much time analyzing what I could have done differently or better after each session, while I should just jot down a little note and move the heck on!  So the brains?  Nowhere to be found!

To some of you this may not be that impressive.  But to me this is a new start.  I have a condition where my muscles get knots in them as well as having chronic back pain.  Exercising this past year has been very difficult.  Add to that the fact that I literally try to hibernate in the winter.  This getting out and to the gym when the weather is so darn cold is really a challenge.  So far, so good!  I’m sure it will get easier come spring because I really hate walking indoors.  Having a motivating playlist on my Iphone has helped make it easier, but I still want to be outside!

Magnum ran a 5K. I looked at pictures of him running a 5K…

Also, as you can see Evil Genius has been running.  He’s actually been training for a marathon.  His first 5K was the last day of January.  While I’m not moved to run any sort of marathon, I would like to at least compete in a 5K!  He has been doing really well with his training, and that is motivating me too!  While I’m still just walking, I’m walking further than I have in a long time and that is what counts.

And of course, kids.

And I’ve been trying to find the stuff in my kitchen.  I’ve been both blessed and cursed by this pantry.  The pantry is wonderful because not only does it give us space that we otherwise didn’t have to store our food, it also is the entrance to our “secret passage”.  However, the shelves are pretty deep and not very much space between them.  The containers I had would fall off the shelves and we’d be ankle deep in the mess!  So new containers that are long and skinny, new labels, and it’s looking pretty snazzy! It is close to completion now, at least that phase.  There are other things going on with the organizing too…

Behold the nicely organized spices!

So if you wonder why a) I haven’t been blogging my little heart out b) I haven’t been reading your blog b) I haven’t been sharing your blog c) on Facebook but don’t seem to do anything but post a bunch of silly Valentines that I have spent way too much time trying to find (like you see it, HA!), then hopefully this will give you an idea of why I’ve been so… bleh.

(I’m sure you probably haven’t even noticed… but I’ve got this thing called anxiety so I do…)

Have you had the blogging blues?  Have you had things that have been taking precedence over writing?  What is your kryptonite when it comes to blogging?

Twisted Mixtape Tuesday: Music That Makes Me Move For More Than Ten Seconds

Demetri Martin on exercise:  I go the gym and I try to run on the treadmill and I listen to music but it doesn’t motivate me enough. So I’m going to get a recording of a pack of wolves gaining on me. People would be like, ‘Why is that guy crying on that treadmill over there?’ ‘I don’t know, but he’s been yelling, ‘help’ for like 20 minutes. He’s getting a good workout.’

In case the previous quote didn’t cue you in, this week’s theme is a mix to get motivated to do, well, anything.

Trust me, I need all the motivation I can get these days, especially in the exercise area.  While I haven’t gained any weight according to the scale, I am certainly gaining what is known as the middle age spread.  I am not planning on subsisting on ten calories a day or eating nothing but cabbage for six months, so instead I am simply trying to spend more time at the gym.  I already lift, but I hate cardio.  My schedule doesn’t allow me to attend fitness classes like I used to, so I’m just trying to walk whenever I can.

So here is a sampling of the songs on my Iphone that motivate me to get moving.  And I behaved myself this week and stayed as close to five as possible.  Are they working?  Ummmm… sort of.

Did I mention I saw these guys LIVE in CONCERT?  What?  I did?  A few too many times?

Let’s Get Rocked-Def Leppard

Blame Percy Jackson…

My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark-Fall Out Boy

Fun to sing, especially in the shower.

As If-Sara Evans

I really don’t think I need buns of steel. I’d be happier with buns of cinnamon.-Ellen Degeneres

The video to this song is probably going to cause me to lose my “family-friendly” rating here.  So do me a favor, if you watch it a)  Don’t be offended-because trust me, this particular group has made waaaay more offensive stuff than this.  b)  DO NOT watch it with children in the room, unless you want to field some uncomfortable questions.  “Mommy, why is that guy’s crotch like a light bulb?”

Now, forget all of that and please listen to this very motivating song.

Danger! High Voltage-Electric Six

Moving on…

Viva La Vida-Coldplay

I’m not a huge Britney Spears fan, but good lord that girl sings some catchy stuff that makes you want to move!

Til The World Ends-Britney Spears

I should work out. It’s hard to find time to work out when you really don’t want to.-Jim Gaffigan

I love this song.  I don’t know why…

DJ Got Us Falling In Love Again-Usher

Hell yeah Josh Turner, I’d go with you.

Would You Go With Me?-Josh Turner

What songs motivate you to do stuff?  Check out the links over at My Skewed View to see what gets other people motivated!

If I Had A Million Dollars…

If I had a million dollars I would…

Before I begin we must have background music… (I love this song AND this group, I hope you do too!)

This is only for fun, so no I’m not going to pay for world peace or an end to hunger or a cure for cancer.  So yes, I’m going to be downright selfish.  I’m still having palpitations over buying workout clothes on clearance with a coupon at Target today-it would be nice to not have to worry so much about things like that.

So if you were expecting all of that crap… Sorry people, it’s MY fantasy.

First of all I would sell my current house for a song (literally!) and find a house closer to where my husband works.  Nothing fancy, just one that is big enough.  With a fake fireplace.  And a tub that I can actually submerge my body in. And of course a man cave in the basement where Evil Genius and The Professor can plan to take over the world. And the Princess could have the dream bedroom she’s been lobbying for with a castle in it.  With a castle and a slide and a trampoline.   I could have my secret passage to my secret room where I hide and write.  Or where I could just take a nap without small people staring at me.

I’d invest enough of that money so my children might actually be able to go to college. Because even though I’d have a million dollars college is super duper expensive, especially by the time they are old enough. Oh and for that matter, I would go back to school too.  Heck I could even start my own school, like in one of my favorite movies Accepted.

I’d buy a car that isn’t starting to fall apart. Purple Prius here I come!  Maybe I’d even have a lava lamp installed in it.  You can run one of those from the cigarette lighter, right?

I would name her Violet…

Invest in an indestructable yoga mat, that way my dog won’t be able to eat it.  A purple one.  Oh and perhaps a personal trainer.  A nice personal trainer that would not yell at me, but secretly coerce me into working out without me even realizing it.  And I’d get those meals that are delivered to your door so I’d quit eating so much crap.  Or better yet have my own greenhouse, and chickens, and a cow.  Or maybe not a cow, because I’m lactose intolerant.  How about a Sodastream instead?  Yeah, now we’re talking!

What I just did a million sit-ups? How did you make me do that???  Oh.

Evil Genius and I would finally get to take our honeymoon.  It’s only 14 years overdue.  We’d go somewhere.  Anywhere.  Heck right now I’d take just getting out of IOWA!

Last but not least I would finally purchase that elusive self hosted blog and all of the perks and write for a living.  And I would host my own blogging party conference.  It would be The Sadder But Wiser conference.  And like in my recent Secret Swap post it would only cost $1.99 to attend!  There would be chocolate fountains and wine fountains and nothing would actually have calories.  It would be held at a water park next to the hotel, because that would be really, really fun.  Lazy river here I come!

Oh yes, a million dollars could be so much fun-I couldn’t resist fantasizing about that!  But now back to reality.  Sigh…

Yep back to reality. Hey I found a QUARTER! Woo-hoo!

This post has been a part of Finish The Sentence Friday, hosted by these witty and wonderful ladies:

Kristi of Finding Ninee

Kate of Can I Get Another Bottle of Whine With My Morning Quiet Time?

Stephanie of Mommy, For Real

Janine of Janine’s Confessions of a Mommyholic

Check out their blogs to see what other people would do with a million dollars!

September 2013 Fly on the Wall: The Frozen Thumb Edition

Welcome to this month’s Fly on the Wall group post.  Today 14 bloggers are letting you in to their homes to see what a fly might see…  After you’re done reading my post, check out some of the links below to see what goes on in their houses!

As you can see, he’s conflicted about his big brother status.

Mommy guess what’s on the radio in my room?  It’s Tar-ZAN!”
Me:  “TAR-zan?”
Princess:  “YES!  Tar-ZAN!”

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Now that the dog and cat have accepted each other, they play together.  Unfortunately Neo is about 17 times bigger than Tiberius, and although he’s pretty careful he gets carried away.  The words uttered most in our house:  “DO NOT EAT THE CAT!!!!!!!”

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The Professor decided to try his luck after not winning any prizes during library club.
“Hey Mom, can I have a prize out of the prize box because I’m your kid?”

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Even though I’m getting a paycheck now, the way things line up it’s still easier for me to get our groceries for two weeks instead of one. We’ve had some potlucks and other various events happen lately where we’ve been challenged to make something out of whatever ingredients we have in the house when it gets close to but it’s not quite payday.  For example, two days before grocery day Evil Genius texted me and asked me what we had ingredients for, since he had been invited to a potluck in another department.

I started to text back “Nothing” when it dawned on me that we had the ingredients for No-Bake cookies.  As it turned out though, we didn’t quite have the right ingredients, and he was forced to make some substitutions.  By all rights it should have been awful, but as most Evil Genius concoctions go, they turned out just fine.

So to be sure, as I prepared to go to the store this week I remembered to ask Evil Genius this all important question: “Are there any emergency potlucks I need to prepare for this shopping trip?”

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The Princess wanted to help cook the chicken tenders for supper.  I asked her to count me out nine from the bag and arrange them on the sheet for the toaster oven.  I ran up to use the bathroom.  When I came back, she had stacked them into a pyramid shape.
“That’s nice,”  I said “But you need to put them on there so they’re not touching.”
“OK.” She responded, and as she complied she said “They look like thumbs.”

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My hair is an enigma.  It’s not as cool as it sounds.

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Me to The Princess:  “You need to wear a light jacket to school today.”
The Princess (looking very puzzled):  “Why do I have to wear a life jacket?”

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I went in to wake The Princess up the other morning.
“Mommy please get me some socks.”  she said sadly.
Me:  “Why are you acting so sad?”
The Princess:  “My teacher said no fancy shoes on PE days.”
Yup, it’s rough being a kindergartener…

The black shoes from Target. Sigh… I bought them on sale so she could have something to wear with dresses, but she doesn’t EVER want to take them off!

The Princess:  “I need you to send Grandma an email.”
Me:  “Why?”
The Princess:  “Remember you told me that Grandma used to make you things for your dolls when you were a little girl like me?”
Me:  “Yes.”
The Princess:  “Well, I need a salon.”

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Evil Genius was watching football.  I just happened to glance up and I SWEAR that one of the teams was called Unicorns.  If only, wouldn’t that be the most awesome team ever?  They could have big pointy horns on their helmets.  Sadly, it was only UConn…

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Since I have two children, we have fights in our household.  Oh my do we have fights!  A couple of examples:

The Princess is singing the song “BINGO”.  The Professor almost can’t take it.  We’re playing BINGO at the library this week and he feels that she should know the truth about it.
The Professor:  “That’s not the right BINGO. BINGO is actually a game played with numbers and…”
The Princess: “Mommy!  Make him stop!  Make him stop telling me about the BINGO! I just want to SING!”

The Princess came running out of her brother’s bedroom, crying.
Me:  “What’s wrong?  Are you hurt?”
The Princess:  “Noooooooooo!  The Professor called me a Hawkeye fan!”
(For those of you not from or living in Iowa, the Hawkeyes and our team, the Cyclones, are rivals.  In our house that’s a major insult!)

Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na BATBRELLA!!!!!!

Here are the other flies buzzing around these parts today.  Go see what it’s like to be in their houses!

http://BakingInATornado.com                                     Baking In A Tornado

http://www.justalittlenutty.com/                                Just a Little Nutty

http://followmehome.shellybean.com                          Follow me home . . .

http://stacysewsandschools.wordpress.com/               Stacy Sews and Schools

http://thesadderbutwisergirl.com                              The Sadder But Wiser Girl

http://menopausalmother.blogspot.com/                   Menopausal Mother

http://mooreorganizedmayhem.blogspot.com/            Moore Organized Mayhem

http://hypnoticbard.blogspot.com/                            The Insomniac’s Dream 

http://themomisodes.com/                                      The Momisodes

http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/                      Spatulas on Parade

http://singlemumplusone.blogspot.com                     Searching for Sanity

http://www.therowdybaker.com                                 The Rowdy Baker

http://www.bethteliho.wordpress.com/                        Writer B is Me

http://sorrykidblog.com/                Sorry kid, Your Mom Doesn’t Play Well With Others

May Secret Subject Swap: My Life Without Kids

Welcome to Take One of May’s Secret Subject Swaps. This week, 12 brave bloggers picked a secret subject for someone else and were assigned a secret subject to interpret in their own style. Today we are all simultaneously divulging our topics and submitting our posts.

My prompt is this:  Imagine yourself with no children, where would you be and what would you be doing? If you have no children, imagine yourself with children, how do you think life would be different?

It was submitted by: http://aworkingmomswhoas.blogspot.com/

If I had no children:

Eating would be much different.  I could eat grown up foods when I wanted, and no one would complain about it.  Or wear it.

I would travel, and no one would be fighting in the backseat or complaining about the destination.  Or wearing Wal-Mart bags on their heads.

I would be fabulously in shape, since I would be able to work out and do things like take walks, take long bike rides, and do yoga without anyone protesting.

My house would be clean.
(Though I must say my house, however messy that it is, doesn’t look like a drunken Barbie orgy took place. Oh poor Flynn Ryder-it must hurt to be passed out in that pose…)

I would sleep, perchance to dream and not be awakened by a little one at 6 am on a Saturday “Mommy you need to GET UP!”  (Some people are just too perky that early…)

But I would NOT have:

Original artwork for free.  Like this, um thing.

The experience of seeing the world as a child sees it.

Free comedic entertainment (I think he’s trying to read someone’s shirt while running those bases).

Infinite love.

The truth is, although there are times when I would like to just be able to have a day away, I was a very boring person before my kids came along.  I really don’t want to imagine a life without them.

This post is written for all the Moms out there.  Happy Mother’s Day ladies!

Here are links to all the sites now featuring Secret Subject Swap posts.  Sit back, grab a cup, and check them all out. See you there:

http://www.BakingInATornado.com

http://chewylicious.wordpress.com/

http://www.justalittlenutty.com/

http://followmehome.shellybean.com

http://stacysewsandschools.wordpress.com/

http://aworkingmomswhoas.blogspot.com/

https://sadderbutwiser.wordpress.com/

http://menopausalmother.blogspot.com/

dates2diapers2.blogspot.com

www.akashicwindow.blogspot.com

http://theycallmemummy.com

www.eviljoyspeaks.wordpress.com

Wordless Wednesday: Life In Iowa

I love this picture.  It is so representative of rural life in Iowa.  Wide open spaces, railroad tracks, a wind turbine in the distance.  Home.

Tales From the Gym

We have another winter storm. Sigh…

Working out at the gym has been no less than awesome.  On the weekend I even left the comfort and warmth of my house and drove into town just so that I could go in and work out.  This was because another winter storm is on the way, and I wanted to be sure that I “got er done”, sort of speak.  Here we go again.  This damn winter weather is trying to interfere with my working out and I won’t let it!

There are definite perks to this deal.  This particular chain of gyms has three different locations.  When I’m working I can just drive a few blocks over to use it. When I’m coming in on the weekends, I can go to the one on the other side of town, which is way closer to my house. It’s quite nice to have options.

The clientele of each location seems to be different.  The one by work has the guys who lift 2,000 pounds and have no neck.  The one close to home has a more normal population, mainly older folks like me who are trying to get back in shape.  It’s also much more crowded.  The one stinky downside to going over there-I have to wait to use machines.

So the gym workouts are going really well.  I’m so excited about this.  So much so that I’m currently hatching a plan.  I’m trying to figure out how to keep this going when this work deal is over.  Yesterday I called the fitness center near where we live and asked about how much it cost to join.  Thirty-some dollars a month, and a one time orientation fee of $50.  Honestly it isn’t really one time, considering I’ve paid it once before.  This would make it a two time fee, right?  I tried to convince them that they should be nice to a former member and not charge me that fee, which at least is less than it used to be.  The lady on the phone told me they waive the fee for people who pay the first six months up front.  Yeah, that’s not gonna happen.

Maybe my boss would just let me pay another month so I can keep going to this fitness center?  Come on, I’m a great person.

I have bad knees. I won’t be doing this.

Isn’t it funny that those little things don’t seem so important until you don’t get to do them anymore?  I got rid of my gym membership to save money and because I couldn’t get there often enough to justify paying the monthly membership fees.  Now that I have it back, I’m not giving it up easily!

Then of course there is the problem of once I’m no longer working I will also no longer have that coveted lunch break to work out.  The fitness center where we live does not have hours that jive well with mine.  It works for most people, but not for me, because Evil Genius leaves for work around the time it opens.  He then returns home about the time it closes.  I wonder if he’d be willing to work different hours so I can stay in shape?  HA HA.  I want so little.

I haven’t been going long enough to notice any changes in my body.  My jeans fit much better, but that had already happened before I started.  It’s amazing how going from being inactive to active can make positive changes!  I do feel much better about myself, more confident, and maybe look just a little leaner in the mirror.  That last one is probably in my head until I actually stand in front of a mirror.  That muffin top is definitely still there.

Just the way I feel should be motivation enough to keep doing it.  That and the scantily clad female Mortal Kombat characters that Evil Genius insists on using as his laptop’s wallpaper.  I’m not the jealous type, but it does make me want to not eat for awhile and work out more.  But I’m not doing it because of that, or necessarily for him, although I think he’ll like the results.  He’s trying to get in shape too!

Now if I would only stop eating everything in sight, eat healthy things, stop drinking diet pop, and a million other things…

Have you done something for yourself recently?  Something that you can’t believe you stopped doing previously?

LOL!