Tuesday, September 28, 2010

The Happiness Project :: Getting the Order Wrong

A drive-thru Starbucks recently opened right down the road from my house.  Now, I'm not a huge Starbucks fan, but it's nice to be able to drive thru and pick up a coffee when I'm in the mood.  So, I was pretty happy to see one so close to home.  Problem is, they keep getting my order wrong.
Me:  "Tall, one-pump, decaf mocha frappuccino -- no whip, please."
Barista:  "Tall, one-pump, decaf mocha frappuccino -- no whip.  $3.84 at the next window please."
Me:  "Geeze Louise!  They always forget the 'no whip' part."
Ladybug:  "I can help with that, Mommy."

And that makes my heart smile.  Keep up the bad work, Starbucks at Custer & 121. Really.  It's fine with us.

What makes you smile?  I know it's late in the day, but there still time to join the fun at Leigh vs. Laundry.

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Thursday, September 23, 2010

The Fine Art of the Love Note - or - The Making of a Monster

It started simply enough. A quickly scribbled note tucked into Buddy Boy's snack pack.  It was his first day of kindergarten.  Mine too, for that matter.  He was a little freaked out.  Me too, actually.  Writing the note made me feel a little better, and I hoped it would make him smile when he found it.

It did the trick.  When I picked him up at the end of the day he smiled & whispered to me, "I found your note Mommy."  And my heart exploded.  So, I decided to do it again the next day.  This one was a little fancier - a quick picture of our big orange kitty, Willie.  Then it was a picture of our teeny tiny old lady cat, Slinky.  Next up, Buddy Boy on a skateboard, followed by a Pittsburgh Steelers helmet.  A sketch a day for the first week of school. 

I know.  You're in total awe of me now, aren't you.  Because I'm such an incredible mom.  So creative. So in love with her kid.  Doing such wonderful little things to make him feel loved & secure.  You wish you'd had a great idea like this.  You wish you were an awesome mom like me. 

That or else you're saying to yourself, "Oh what a stupid, stupid girl!  What a colossal rookie mistake.  She's really dug herself in deep.  Boy-oh-boy does it suck to be her!"

Now I'll admit, I'm a creative person.  I've got a BA in fine art to prove it.  But let me tell you what I'm not.  I am NOT a sketch artist.  I am NOT a cartoonist.  I can not draw for $#!+.  I can push paint around pretty well, but do not expect me to do anything amazing with a pencil or a marker.  And definitely don't get any bright ideas about being my partner for Pictionary. 


These little notes have turned into the bane of my existence!  I love my kid, but a line has got to be drawn -- and I'm NOT the gal to draw it. 

~sigh~

So, every night now, instead of catching up with my reader or blogging, I slave over a 4" square piece of paper trying to come up with something that...well...looks like something.  He wants one every day for the whole school year!  All I wanted to do was write a little love note, but it seems I've created quite a monster.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

The Happiness Project :: Pink Shoelaces


Need I say more??


So?  What's making you happy today?
Join the fun, why don't ya?

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Thursday, September 16, 2010

Happy Birthday to The Man - or - Girls' Night Out


Tuesday was The Man's birthday.  Tuesday is also the craziest day of our week.  Here's the day in a nutshell:
7:30 - ride Buddy Boy to school (yes, we ride bikes to school.  Go green!  Save the planet!  Burn a calorie!)
8:45 - drive Ladybug to school (it's OK, I drive a hybrid.  Go green!  Save the planet! Get to sit down for 10 minutes!)
2:00 - drive Ladybug home from school
3:00 - ride Buddy Boy home from school
4:00 - Ladybug's gymnastics practice
5:30 - Buddy Boy's soccer practice (close to home)
6:00 - Ladybug's soccer practice (on the other side of the moon)
7:30 - feed kids while they're taking a bath so we can make it to bed on time
8:00 - stories (read to your kids, it'll keep 'em off drugs.  Hey that's what the commercials say, isn't it?)
8:30 - goodnight kisses
8:45 - clean up bath mess, do dishes, pack lunches, blah blah blah

Yep.  Tuesday's are hectic.  I try really hard to have Tuesdays all mapped out by Sunday.  Last Sunday I was going over the drill at the dinner table.  I told everyone we'd be having leftovers on Tuesday since we were so tightly booked.  The man gave me a look.  You know the look I'm talking about.  The kind that animals at the shelter give you so you'll take them home with you.  When I ask if there's a problem, The Man sheepishly states, "I'd like to have a fresh cooked meal for my birthday."  OH CRAP!!  But there's no need for me to stress about it.  He's got it all worked out for me.  If I start cooking in the morning, I can have it all lined up and ready to pop in the oven as soon as we get home from practice.  And if the kids stay up a little late on Daddy's birthday, so be it.  OK...ok...have it your way, Birthday Boy.

So, that's what I did.  I spent all morning frantically running around to various grocery stores (because I can never manage to remember to get everything in one trip), cooking, cleaning, doing dishes, etc.  Oh!  And slaving over The Man's birthday bacon.  (Seriously, am I a rockin' wife, or what?!  Birthday bacon!!)

I dashed off to get Ladybug from school - only to remember I'd volunteered to take a little friend home with us that afternoon for a playdate.  Then another little friend was sad because she wasn't coming, so I took her home with me too.  Hey, what's one more little girl, right?  By the time I got all 3 girls home, it was time to go collect BuddyBoy - who got mad at me because I came in the car, not on my bike.  What is it with the men in this family, do they not understand there are only so many minutes in a day?!

By the time I got home with BuddyBoy, it was time to load the 3 girlies back into the car for gymnastics practice.  On the way to the gym, I realized I didn't have any ice cream, so I dropped them off and made another trip the the grocery store.  Then it was back to the gym to supervise BuddyBoy's homework activities while Ladybug trained, then back home to get everyone changed and cleated up for soccer practice.  Then it was home to pop dinner in the oven and get the kiddos bathed.  Then it was out to the table to eat the fresh, slightly over cooked ok, burnt dinner, followed by birthday pie and presents.
This year's presents were OK.  Nothing super great, although I do really like the Seasoned Old Crab t-shirt I picked up for him while we were on vacation in Maryland.  The Man can be a bit crabby, so it suits him well. But the piece de resistance had to be the card he got from his mom:

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

The Happiness Project :: Time Off Well Spent

MIA?  Who, me?  Yeah, I know.  I haven't been around lately.  Hey, every now a girl just needs a little time off.  After I got the family home from vacation, unpacked & did all the laundry, I packed a small bag for myself containing nothing but a toothbrush, a bottle of sunscreen & a bathing suit.  I informed The Man that I was taking off for a deserted tropical location to 'recharge my battery', and that I'd be back in...oh...I dunno...a while.

Well, he put the kibosh on that pretty much right away.  So, I decided to take a blogging break instead.  What'd I do with all that extra time?  I played with my kids.  I slept.  I back-to-school shopped.  I got the family into the new OMG-kindergarten-starts-at-WHAT-TIME?!?!? routine.   And I'm happy I did.  I feel well rested.   We've got a decent routine going on in the house.  Things are running about as smoothly as they can run in this family.  So all in all, while I've missed out on a little blogging fun, I'd have to say, it was time off well spent.  And that makes me very happy.

And you?  What's making you happy today?  Join the fun, wont ya?

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