The Happiness Project :: Kindness and a Cup of Tea

My favorite Yogi Tea is back! Mmmm…the Berry Detox blend. It’s good for your liver and your kidneys. (And sometimes I need to think about my liver and my kidneys, because…well…as you know, I overdo things every now and then.) It wasn’t that big a deal when they dropped my flavor – I’m not a huge tea drinker. There are other varieties that’ll do just fine in a pinch, but I’m happy to see it on the shelf again.

If you’re unfamiliar with Yogi Tea, every packet has a happy little affirmation printed on the hangy-tag. Some of the sayings don’t say that much to me. Some do. Like this one. “Kindness is the only tool you need.” That’s a very nice sentiment, isn’t it? And it might fly in a place like…I dunno, someplace else. But down here in Texas...? Well, any good Texan’ll tell ya the only tool you really need is a reliable gun…and maybe a pitcher of margaritas. Everybody’s pretty kind down here and I’m pretty sure it’s because everybody knows everybody’s packin’. Except, of course, when they’re in the bar drinking margaritas. Because you can’t bring your gun to the bar. You can bring it to church. You can bring it to the grocery store. But you can’t bring it to the bar.

So cheers! And Happy Tuesday! And go join Leigh vs. Laundry’s Happiness Project or I’ll shoot! (just kidding...maybe) Or maybe I’ll pour ya a nice cold margarita on the rocks, because that’s how they’re supposed to be served. (much more likely) And then I’ll brew you some tea to help restore the health of your liver. Because I’m kind like that.

Double Dipping & A Reality Check

I've got another blog.  A teeny, tiny neglected blog.  A happy blog.  An optomistic blog. I started it last summer after a string of bad news.. It was supposed to be a celebration and a reminder of all the great stuff that happens to me on a regular basis.  Yeah, well, great stuff never happens to me. 

OK, that's not true. 

Great stuff happens in such abundance that I don't have time to write aboutit. 

OK, that's not true either.

It's just more fun being snarky.

That's true.

Anyway, if you want to find out what woke me up in a cold sweat this morning, you can go check it out.  And if you don't want to know, well...then you don't get the happy little message at the end.  Oh yeah, and I'll my tricycle riding dragon on you in my next nightmare.

Happy New Year!!

What? You’re kidding! I missed it? No $h!+, Sherlock. I know I missed it, but hey, it’s never too late to start fresh, right? And ‘Happy New Year’ sounds a lot better (and a lot more optimistic) than Happy Second Quarter!!

I spent the better part of the 1st quarter of 2010 sick – which has put me a tad behind. And I had such good intentions…such high expectations. So, in the spirit of better late then never, I’ve decided to start my year over today.

I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions…but I do set them occasionally. When I set them, I usually set them on my birthday – you know, the beginning of my own personal new year. As you might guess, I did set one resolution on my birthday this year…or should I say, the day after my birthday celebration – and so far so good for that one, I’m happy to say. (OK, so maybe I haven’t stopped completely, but I’ve cut back significantly.)

So, here they are, in no particular order…the things I’m going to try desperately to remember to do (or not to do) for the remainder of 2010:

1. I will not rush my children. After 5 ½ years (yeah, I’m a quick study, eh?), I’m finally figuring out that rushing my kids is counter productive. Especially with Ladybug. The more I try to hurry her along, the more she grows roots.
2. I will prepare for tomorrow today. Hey, teaching this old dog new tricks is…well…tricky. I’m actually pretty good at preparing for myself, but I absolutely suck at preparing for the rest of the family. Lunches packed, clothes laid out, kid activities lined up, dinner planned, shopping lists prepared…that sort of stuff needs to be all worked out before I go to bed. Ugh! This will be hard for me. I’m really too spontaneous for this Mom gig, but I’m going to try to plan better.
3. I will be a little sweeter to The Man. Not that I’m mean or anything, but I’m not an especially sweet person. I’m more…bitter…in a good way…like a nice hoppy beer. But The Man’s got a sweet tooth, so I’m gonna be a little sweeter.
4. I will sleep. I will go to bed before it’s ‘officially tomorrow’, and when I wake up at 4:30 am, I will roll over, close my eyes and try to catch a few more Zzzzzs. And if that doesn’t work, I will do a little reading…in a book…not on the computer. Reading books makes me sleepy. Reading blogs wires me.
5. I will treat my business like a business and stop pussy-footing around with it. Yeah, this means I have to hit the pavement and beg the brick & mortar world of retail to start pushing my products for me. Ugh…again.
6. I will stop complaining. Yeah, right! Like that’s gonna happen.

There they are. Five things to do with the 3 quarters I’ve got left in 2010. (And yeah, yeah, I know there’re 6 on the list, but I’ve already bailed on the last one. I like building a little failure into my goals.) So, how about y’all? Did you set resolutions this year? Are you meeting them? Anybody want to start over fresh with me?

The Happiness Project :: Going Topless

Oh yeah, this makes me REALLY happy. Happier than that, even. Now c'mon...you didn't think I meant shirtless, did you?!  Sorry to disappoint.  That kind of topless ain't my style -- I burn too easily.  But driving around with the top down working up a good case of convertible hair is definitely my style.   It's not going to be a convertible day today. T-storm's a comin' - but tomorrow's another day.

So? How 'bout you? What makes you happy?  Visit Leigh vs. Laundry and join the fun.

For the Love of Ladybug

It’s crazy days around here. We’ve got houseguests – which is always fun, but it’s especially fun for Buddy Boy because one of our houseguests is a 5yo boy. And boy-howdy, those boys are having fun. And Ladybug…is NOT having fun. And when Ladybug isn’t having fun, nobody's having fun…except the two 5yo boys who are oblivious to everything.

It’s Good-for-whom Friday Good Friday, which means the schools are closed. And since it was supposed to be a horrible stormy day, we decided to take in a movie. To cheer Ladybug up, I let her pick out my movie-going ensemble. Hey, 2 hours in the dark – who was going to notice? The Hot Dad who stopped Ladybug on her way out of the theater and whispered, “Your Mommy’s socks don’t match.” That’s who! In a sea of well-coordinated, over accessorized N. Dallasites, I guess I did stick out like a sore thumb. Ah, the the things I do for love. This ought to put me in the running for Mom of the Year, don't you think?  Oh well. At least someone got a laugh at my expense today. And my little girly was pretty tickled too.

So, what'd you do for love today?

Oh, and it's Follow Friday - just click the button to play along.

The Happiness Project :: Ugly Drapes

I have so many reasons to be happy today it’s hard know where to start. Ha! I’m such a liar. I know exactly where to start. I’m starting with these awful curtains. I’m so freaking’ happy these hideous drapes are out of my house!! I’m so happy my face hurts. I’m also happy that my best friend and his family are visiting. And that I got those ugly drapes out of the guest room just in time. And not only that, I managed to hang some simple drapes, make a new valance, oh yeah, and make a new bedskirt…all just in the nick of time.

I suppose my guests would have been happy if I’d managed to squeeze in a shower. Oh well…maybe next visit.

So? What’s got you smiling today?  Visit Leigh vs. Laundry and join the fun.

He's Hot, I'm Lost...

...but some people don’t care. More specifically, WendiWinn doesn’t care. She’s gonna follow me anyway…even if she’s lost…and presumably even if I’M lost…which I am a lot of the time some of the time occasionally. I’m especially lost when I’m watching Lost. (Geeze Louise I’m glad this is the last season for that show! Watching it makes me crazy. But like the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815, I just can’t get away from The Island.)

Wendi made this absolutely fab award just for me. I’m assuming because she likes my blog. Or maybe it’s because she follows my blog, but has a hard time actually following what I’m talking about half the time. Hmmmm….what does that say about me? What does that say about her? Maybe she felt obligated to make me an award…since I made her one. I dunno, and I don’t care. I like my award, so I’m taking it! Maybe I’ll share it around, maybe I wont. Either way, check out her blog sometime. She’ll make you laugh, and she might get you lost.

As for Jack…is he hot? Of course he is, he's stranded on a tropical island.  He's so hot he's...he's...sweaty. But is he “Hey baby, come on over to my lean-to and let’s get sandy” hot?