My New Toy

 

I received a kindle from Jay and the kids for my birthday. When I'm having a flare that is bad enough to put me in bed for a few days, I like to read when I'm up to it. Have you ever tried laying down on your side, or even on your back, and read a book? Not very comfortable. 

I have to tell you that I am loving my new kindle. I have downloaded 4 books in different categories: Biographies, Fibromyalgia, Christian, and humor. I figure that will give a good start on a variety of things to read depending on my mood. 

Even today, as I'm in the middle of a nasty flare, I am in bed, and I have read for a few hours. The extra nice part is that I got a book cover for it, and if you fold the front cover back, it makes a stand, so the kindle stands up. That way I can lay on my side and read hands free. It's awesome!

We're kind of considered being in the sticks in comparison to other parts of the country. We don't have wi-fi locations on every block, and even if we did, I still wouldn't benefit from it because we live 5 miles away from town.

For that reason, I LOVE having my kindle be the 3G version. That way, no matter where I am, I can download a book, easy peasy!

Ok, back to reading! :)

Dress Shopping

When Ashley and Lance decided to quickly get married before he deployed, I remember Lance feeling so guilty for taking away her dream of a big church wedding, with the dress, and reception. Jay told him he wasn't taking anything away, and he was giving her a future. He also said we'd give her that wedding, only it will be a vow renewal instead.

Traditional? No, but their entire romance hasn't been traditional. Their tiny private marriage ceremony wasn't traditional. But they were still blessed by God, and this ceremony will be blessed as well, we firmly believe that.

The church has been reserved, the reception hall has been reserved, the photographer has been reserved. She has also talked to someone about invitations, and talked to her hair stylist. Now the fun stuff starts.

A week or so ago, Ashley, Chelsea (who is her maid of honor) and I went shopping for her dress, and the attendants dresses. We had so much fun, and I did really good. I didn't cry, although I felt my eyes welling up a couple of times, because she looked so beautiful.

Ashley has always been a girl who knows what she likes and what she wants. She looked on the bridal shop's website and found a dress she liked. As new dresses were added to the site, she found she kept going back to the first dress. The same thing happened with the attendants dresses.

We went out for supper and then drove to the Bridal shop. We had a few minutes before her appointment, so she started looking at Mother-Of-The-Bride dresses, which of course had me laughing. I have not worn a dress in over 17 years...since Austin's baptism. I had fully intended to wear one of the beautiful chiffon pantsuits you see women sometimes wear. A dress? No. According Ashley, Yes. We'll see who wins that battle.

Ashley tried on the dress she liked online first. It was beautiful, and Ashley's face told us she thought so too. As I told Ashley when she asked what I thought of it: "It makes you look beautiful and sexy, in an elegant way". Her comment was "that works". LOL

She tried on several dresses after that, but her face never lit up as much as it did with the first dress. The lady helping her, said dresses look much different when your hair is up, but we had no hair ties, so she pinned it. Ashley has very thick, fine hair, and we laughed as the lady put pin after pin in her hair to try to get it to stay up. As you can see in the 2nd picture, it was up, sort of, with the help of over 20 bobby pins. haha

After she tried on dresses, they helped her try on different head pieces. First she tried on the tiara, and when she made the funny face you see in the picture, she said "Do I look like a princess Daddy?" She's such a nut. LOL


She had Chelsea try on the attendants dress that she saw on line, and when Chelsea came out of the dressing room, Ashley's face had the same smile she had when she tried on her first dress. Chelsea tried on others that were suggested, but again, Ashley's face was not the same.

In the end, she selected the first dress she tried on, and the first dress she had Chelsea try on. I told you, this is a girl who knows what she likes. :) Three words describe both dresses: simple, elegant, and feminine. All words that describe Ashley.

They were going to have her try on shoes, but in the words her Father would have loved to have heard, she said "I'm not going to get shoes here, we can get them cheaper someplace else."

In the end, the night really was all about the dress. In the picture on the right she has on "her" dress, and as you can see by her smile, she loved it and was genuinely happy, which made me genuinely happy (that and the fact that it was on sale hehehe). 

Miss Independent

I used to pride myself on being independent. I didn't rely on anyone for anything.

One thing my illness has taught me is that asking for and receiving help is not a sign of weakness. People don't think less of you if you need help. While I get that, I'll be honest - I still missed my independence.

For the past 2 yrs I could go to a grocery store or Wal-Mart/Target by myself on my good days, because I could lean on a cart. But to go to a mall, or to go anywhere on my not-so-good days, required someone going along to either push me in a wheel chair, or later, lifting my scooter out of the back of the Vue.

We recently purchased a lift that goes on the back of the Vue and it has a ramp so I can drive the scooter on and off by myself.

It was a chance to have my indepence back and I was so excited!

Yesterday my chance finally arrived for me to go to a mall all by myself. The night before I was like a child on Christmas Eve.

But once the morning came, and it was time for me to go, I got so nervous. My face got red, my hands were shaking and my stomach was all in knots. The "What Ifs" hit me and thinking of all the things that could go wrong and having no one there to help me started to freak me out.

Fear of the "What Ifs" has stopped me for so long and I knew I had to push through. Honestly, I had tears in my eyes as I rode my scooter up to the entrance of the mall. I said a little prayer asking for courage, and the doors to the mall opened.

Within minutes all my fears dissipated. I spent over an hour in just one store looking, browsing, trying things on. Things I hadn't done since 2008. Oh sure, I had looked in malls and tried things on, but Jay was always along, and even though he never said a single word, I knew it was pure torture for him. lol For that reason, I would look for a short while and try one or two things on and we'd move on.

I tried on so many clothes yesterday, it was awesome! I went into so many stores and I was really proud of myself.

One of my biggest fears was the food court. Trying to maneuver through all those people and to try to get my scooter through to a table worried me. When I ordered my food, I asked that it be put in a "to go" bag so I could put that in the basket of my scooter instead of trying to balance a tray (yea, that would have been total disaster!). I went around to the outside of the food court and found a table that I could park my scooter right against, and it went well.

I was exhausted when I left the mall, but it felt so good to have my indepence back. I have learned that it's ok to ask for help, but it's also so nice to be able to do somethings on my own again.

And when I look in my closet and see new jackets, pants and shirts in with some of my other items, I can't help but smile to know that I was able to do it all by myself. :)

A Moment Of Silence Please

Look at the picture. That is an empty salsa jar that has been filled with something. Can you tell what it is? Any guesses? Here's a hint...Remember the picture of our hot tub that I posted a couple of weeks ago? This is the same thing only in our kitchen.

Yep, it's water...from our well. Our well has died.

We have black water throughout the house...In our sinks, in our toilets, and in our showers & tubs...everywhere.

We've talked to the well service companies about getting a new well dug, but they are really busy at the moment and are guesstimating it'll be about 2 weeks before they can get to us - which means possibly 3-4 weeks before its done! ACK!

Think about going up to a month with no water in your house. Yes, we can still use the toilets, but no showering. No washing your face or hands. No brushing your teeth. No doing laundry or dishes (wait...maybe this isn't all bad lol). No cleaning the floors. No water for us or the dogs to safely drink.

Thankfully my wonderful in-laws are allowing us to invade their shower. While it's not convenient, it IS greatly appreciated. I'll go to a laundromat to do our laundry. Fun times huh?

So, I'm off to the dollar store for paper plates and cups. I'll also get bottled water for us to drink and jugs of bottled water (for the dogs and for brushing our teeth). I'll get an electric razor for the guys, plus some hand wipes to keep in the kitchen. Oh, and I'll need to stock up on Swiffer thingys for cleaning the floors.

Anything else I have forgotten?

Oy.

Christmas Miracles

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year.....a special time when everyone believes miracles can happen.

I've seen lots Christmas miracles recently:

1. I took Tucker & Molly to be groomed. I can do the other 2, but these guys aren't the easiest to groom, so I let someone else deal with them, I mean, delight in their uniqueness.

Honestly I was in a grumpy mood before I left. Not sure why, but I didn't want to feel that way all day, so when I was driving I asked God to help me get in a better mood. When I got the grooming salon, the girl at the counter was beyond excited. "Oh my gosh! Hi!" and she proceeded to give me a hug. Wow...I thought....friendly place, but they're kinda freakin' me out.

Way back before any of my kids were in school, I coached junior high and high school cheerleaders, and it turns out this girl was one of my junior high girls. Her next comment is where the miracle comes in... "Coach. O.M.G. can I just say that you don't look any different than you did all those years ago. I knew you right away when you came in because you look just as young as you did back then! How do you do that?" She might have just been bucking for a fat tip, but I was instantly in a great mood, so it was a miracle none the less.

2. I went to 4 different stores while the dogs were being groomed, and as I left the grooming salon, I said "Lord, I know we're not supposed to pray for material things, but with my back and foot issues, scoring a parking spot close to the entrance of these stores would be so awesome. Can you help me out with that?"

No lie.....every store I went to, I pulled into an open parking spot right by the front door. That doesn't happen to me even when it's not busy, but that's unheard of at Christmastime! And no Jodi, I didn't park in any handicap spots. :-P

3. The woman at Wendy's said she gave me the biggest baked potato they had because I was one of the few rare customers who had smiled and been friendly to her so far.

4. A young man held the door open for me, instead of just walking in ahead of me and letting the door fling back in my face.

5. People have hummed, smiled and said "Merry Christmas" as they walked by.

6. I was in Pier One Imports and I knocked a vase off the shelf as I was reaching for something else....I actually caught it before it hit the floor and broke. A lady nearby said "Whoa...now that was lucky." I said "Nope, just another Christmas miracle."

It's the most wonderful time......of the year.

The Difference

Here's a good example of the difference between boys and girls:

Yesterday Austin asked if we could go to the mall to get him some new shorts because his were too short (darn growth spurts) and he starts basketball workouts soon.

We drive 30 minutes to the mall. We walk into the first store and go to the mens dept., where he sees the racks of shorts. He knows what size he wears so he grabs 4 pair of shorts (1 gray, 1 black, 1 navy blue, and 1 red) and says "Is this ok? I have one pair at home that aren't too short, so this'll give me enough to last all week."

We were out of the mall and back in the Vue in 20 minutes. It took us longer to drive to the mall than we actally spent in the mall.

If that had been even one of my girls it would have been so different. I would have stood there while they tried on every pair of shorts in the store, in case any of them made their butt look big (insert sarcasm here, because it can't look big if you wear a size 1 for goodness sakes!).

Then, since I have set a limit on how many they can buy, they are worried there might be a better pair at a different store that they want. That means we have to go to every store in the mall, try on every pair of shorts in every store, and then end up back at the first store to buy the first couple of pairs we tried on.

It would have taken them 2 hours at least.

20 minutes versus 2 hours. Yep, this is one of those times when boys are definitely easier. :)

I Could Use This

See this picture? How handy of an invention is that? And it's one I could be needing after yesterday.

I went to Wally World yesterday and I was excited when I scanned the check out lanes when I saw one that had just become free. I walked as quickly as I could and put my paper towels, dish soap and the few other items I had in my cart up on the belt.

The checkout clerk, I'll call her "Nary", appeared to be in her 50's. She smiled and said hello, and I returned the smile and greeting.

And then it happened.... Nary coughed. And it wasn't a cough that said she had a tickle in her throat. It was the kind of cough that said she was coughing up a lung. I froze as I noticed that Nary didn't even cover her mouth!

Seriously Nary? You are old enough to know better.

Then she coughed again...and again. I kid you not, Nary coughed no less than a dozen times while I was in her lane and never once did she cover her mouth. And they were nasty, deep, gross sounding coughs.

I kept looking away from her as much as possible...but what do you do? I wanted to thump her upside the head and say "Uh, hello--unless that's a hairball you're coughing up, PLEASE cover your mouth." But just couldn't do it.

A week ago I lost my debit card, so I'm having to write checks again while waiting for the new one that's been issued. Nary said she needed to see my license.

Oh my goodness...she is going to touch something of mine. I felt I was going in slow motion as I took my license out of my wallet and slid it across the counter to her. She grabbed it in her hands, swiped it and handed it back to me. I actually hesitated picking it up, but decided leaving it there wouldn't be a good idea either.

Then I had a good thought...since she never covered her mouth when coughing, maybe her hands are a germ free part on her. I can dream anyhow. :)

As I walked away to leave the store, I shuddered as I heard Nary sneeze twice.

So, the way I figure it, I most likely will end up with either H1N1, or TB.....or a really nasty hairball - whichever is the most contagious.

Chelsea's New Apartment

On Monday we moved Chelsea to her new apartment, which was the exact same day that all other 3,852,087 students decided to move into the same building...at the exact same time....including Chelsea's new roommate "M".

Ok, I kid, there really weren't 3 million there, but when you have trailers, pickups, u-hauls, and cars filled to the brim covering every square inch of the street, parking lots and grass, it feels like the entire planet is crammed right there.

Our daughters are very social and through 4-H, FFA, and the past year of college, they have gotten to know kids from all over. I lost count of how many times Chelsea would let out a squeal or a loud "Oh my gosh!" and she'd take off running because she spotted someone she knew and just had to give them a hug immediately. I finally told her to just point the people out, I'll squeal and give them hugs and that way she can continue carrying boxes. :)

It was a beautiful day and no rain, which made the time go smoother. Plus, they have a ground floor apartment, so we were able to bring things in through the patio doors, which was nice.

Speaking of patio doors - did you have those in your first apartment? I know I sure didn't! Apartments are so much nicer now than they used to be. My entire first apartment was the size of Chelsea's living room. I could eat at my table, put my feet up on my couch, watch tv, and shave my legs in the shower all from the same spot in the 4' square room. Chelsea and M each have their own bedroom and their own bathroom as well. They each have a huge closet in their room, as well as having a utility closet (for vacuum, broom, etc), a big linen closet with floor to ceiling shelves, and a big coat closet right by their front door.

They even have a dishwasher and central air conditioning! Seriously, what college student NEEDS to have a dishwasher. Isn't part of the fun of learning is finding out what you can actually eat off paper plates, and what you can't? And isn't sweating to death in your room part of the growing up process? And don't get me started on the included cable and wireless internet.

We were concerned about the cost of the apartment and whether she could handle that much responsibility, but because it's on the edge of town and away from campus, it's up to 50% for rent and utilities than it is closer to campus, which is why she and her roommate chose this part of town. The city bus route that goes to every part of campus stops right at the end of her street, so they've been checking out the bus routes to find the best way to get to and from their classes. hhhmmm...guess she really has grown up and checked out everything.

When we were done moving the boxes in, Jay & Austin went back home, and I took Chelsea and M shopping for cleaning supplies and a few other odds and ends they were in need of (extension cords, those sticky things that hold up pictures without putting holes in the walls, etc). I watched moms with their sons or daughters who were obviously new Freshmen and they were going through these unchartered waters of the home furnishings department, and I remembered so vividly feeling the knots that were mostly likely in their stomachs right then.

I listened to moms tell their sons "Ok, we need to get you this item or that item, and the sons would be saying "for what?" and then mom proceeded to explain what a certain kitchen item was. The students had the "deer in the headlights" look, while the moms stayed focused on the list, so they wouldn't have to think about what was happening.

I couldn't help but smile as I watched them all zip back and forth through the maze of aisles trying to remember everything they knew they would probably forget. I can't believe that this was me a year ago. Feeling so overwhelmed at the task of getting two ready for college the first time. Wondering if my budget and my heart could take it all. Wondering if we'd all survive the transition, and wondering if the distance would pull us apart, which I now know did the opposite.

So if you were one of those moms I saw yesterday, hang in there. Trust me when I say I know how hard it is, and I have to admit, it's going to get harder. But if I can make it through, anyone can, and then next year you will find yourself standing in the rubbermaid section at Target with a grin as you watch the next batch of newbies come through.

Mother Hubbard No More

Before we left for the county fair I used up as much food in the house as I could so nothing would spoil while we were gone. Great idea, however, we've been back almost a week now and I hadn't restocked.

This "Mother Hubbard's" cupboards were bare! And so was the fridge (notice I only have one diet coke left...that's when I knew this was getting serious!!):

Today I finally went shopping, much to the delight of my family. Ahhh, much better.

We're cutting up the watermelon tonight after supper and I can't wait! I love seedless watermelon.

Ode To Spanx Bras

Once upon a time I wrote about Spanx Undergarments and how wonderful the were. You can read about that here. Well, now I have finally purchased my first Spanx bra and "my girls" are singing the praises of their newfound perkiness. So it is with sincere apologies to Joe Cocker, that I do this tribute to the tune of "Love Lift Us Up".



Who knows what maternity brings

In that world, few breasts survive.

All I know is the way I feel.

And it's hard to make them look alive.



They hang so low,

there is drooping along the way,

But put on some Spanx now every day.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Where the young chests fly

They don't even have to try.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Far from the waist below,

Even above the elbows.



Some hang on to "used to be,"

Yearning for a chest that is firm.

But, put on a bra that doesn't quite fit

And all it will do is make you squirm.



They hang so low,

There is drooping along the way,

But put on some Spanx now every day.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Where the young chests fly

They don't even have to try.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Far from the waist below,

Up above the elbows.



Time goes by, no time to cry,

Sagging belongs to you and I.

Every-da-ay.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Where the young chests fly

They don't even have to try.



Spanx lifts us up where we belong,

Far from the waist below,

Up above the elbows.

How Old Am I?

I went shopping for some new shorts and came away confused and frustrated. I appear to have gotten to the age that is lost and ignored for the most part by the designers of the world.

For the most part, I found my choices ranged between these:

While I have never understood the thrill of showing everyone my vertical smile on my backend everytime I bend down to tie my shoe, I also haven't reached the age where I wish to tuck the waistband of my shorts into the bottom strap of my bra and to tuck a tissue in my sleeve.

Besides, if I tried to wear those first shorts, I would look like this:

only, not nearly as cute.

For now, I'll stick with my older ones, until I can find a happy medium between the above two styles. So tell me ladies, where do you find "normal" shorts?

Top 10 Things Overheard On Trip"

These are things I oveheard during our recent Spring Break shopping trip. Most of them left me sitting there tipping my head to the side while thinking "What?":

10. Hey guys look, I bought a shirt that's ugly cute.

9. I almost choked on my pringle.

8. Drugs are only good if you use them to get off other drugs.

7. Stop! Don't flick the ceiling. Someone could get hurt.

6. Ya know....most of the time recycled water tastes pretty good. Even if it's been recycled from the toilet.

5. Hey....close your teeth, I'm takin' a picture.

4. We're not going to bed until I find my donut!

3. These Depends totally make me look like I have an actual crotch.

2. What's the time difference between Minnesota and Missouri?

And the #1 thing overheard.....

Ok, so I'm not sure how we're all related, so can someone draw me a family tree? But, don't make it like a real tree though, cuz I'll get all confused.

Happy Trails To You

Well, I'm off for a few days. Ashley & Chelsea both had Spring break plans that fell through, and both were super disappointed. So, as a last minute plan, we surprised them with a mini-trip. We are taking them and some of their friends to Minnesota for a couple of days. We have 3 hotel rooms booked. Two for all the girls, and yes, I got myself my OWN quiet room. I figure I'll need it after days filled with the noise of 8 girls. Pah-leeeeese...I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. I know I'll be ready for some down time each night.

I booked rooms at a hotel with a large indoor waterpark, and they are all beyond thrilled. It cracks me up that my girls asked if we could stay there, and I love that while they are growing up, they aren't afraid of still having simple fun, know what I mean?

We will spend one day at the Mall of America and one day at an outlet mall. Not a long trip (only 3 hrs from home), and nothing as exciting as Cancun or South Padre might have been, but I know it'll be fun nonetheless. It's a fun group that's going too - besides my girls, we have a couple of cousins going, a couple of new college friends, and 2 girls who have been friends with my girls since preschool. All are fun-loving, so I know laughter will be plentiful!

Today we will finish up our packing and loading up of the 2 vehicles we'll take. Then we'll wait for Ashley & one other girl to get off work, and we'll head out this evening around suppertime-ish.

It'll be a lot of fun, and I think I'm almost as excited as they all are, but I'm also sure I'll be ready for my bed when we get back late Saturday night. We'll see you all when we get back!

Project 365 - Week 10

Another week has gone by - wow do they seem to be going fast!

3-1

Sunday is always my day off from cooking. It's either "fend for yourself night" or ... Pizza!

3-2

The team Jay coaches played in the state tournaments. Sadly they lost by 2 points, but what an exciting game!

3-3

A beautiful sunshine filled day. I headed into the big city and did some shopping and other errands.

3-4

Bath day. As you can tell, Ringo just LOVES bath day. ha!

3-5

Finally! A warmer Spring-like day. Even the farm cats enjoyed the sunshine!

3-6

All the teams that play in the state tournaments are introduced as they walk onto the court, parade style during the final game of the night. We went down to arena and cheered on the team Jay helps coach as they marched across.

3-7

My nephew Jacob played in a basketball tournament at our local elementary school today and we went to watch and cheer him on.


Be sure to click on the link in the side bar to check out all the 365 participants at Sara's.

Springtime Bathroom

I changed out our guest bathroom yesterday (which is also my bathroom). Out with the Winter snowman decorations, and in with Spring flowers and bright colors. I've been bargain hunting for a while, and here's what I came up with as inexpensively as possible...

This shower curtain is something I picked up at Target. I wanted one with colorful flowers on it, but wasn't having any luck finding one like that (at least not in the price range I was willing to spend).

So instead, I bought some mixed color bouquets at Wal-Mart. I pulled them apart and used the hot glue gun to attach some to the curtain. I placed the remaining flowers in different spots in the room. For the rugs, hand towels, etc I just did a mix and match of different colors.

This shot below shows the close up of the flowers I attached. Just a word of warning. The thin vinyl is not a good buffer for the hot glue when you push on the back to help attach the flower. This is a lesson you will only need once and then you will grab a washcloth to protect your fingers.

In the little wall boxes I put some small bouquets that I had found, as well as other "Spring" related items (including the sign by the lights).

This picture actually shows the inspiration for the room. See the colorful garden gloves? They are actually little childrens gloves and I bought three different colors. They reminded me of when my kids were little. Each Spring we'd go to the garden center at Wal-Mart and I'd let the kids get a new pair of 50 cent gloves and they'd always be so excited. They would use them when we'd be cleaning up any mess outside left behind by Winter. For us, getting their new gloves meant Winter was finally over!

I took down our wooden ring-style towel holders and put up these instead. I found these at Hobby Lobby and thought they were fun and colorful as well.

Not including the shower curtain, I got by decorating the entire room for less than $30 and I was super excited by that! Of course, it's also given me a terrible case of Spring fever, so the nice weather better get here...and stay!

Friday Fill-In #112

1. Give me Spring and I'll happily tolerate my allergies to be able to enjoy the sunshine and warmth.

2. Whenever I'm in a grumpy mood, Michael Buble's "Feeling Good" always makes me feel better.

3. I wish there was more time in each day to do the things you wish you had time for.

4. I don't eat many exciting things, so I honestly can't remember what was the last thing I ate that was utterly delicious.

5. To live in this world requires great faith that there is more to look forward to than all the negative that we have to deal with right now.

6. Other than this one, OCD-ism is the last blog I commented on.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to cheering on the girls basketball team that hubby helps coach, tomorrow my plans include taking hubby and son shopping for new clothes to take on their upcoming Spring Break golf trip, and Sunday, I want to meet with our daughters to get their tax papers.

Click on the button above to join in the fun!

Me And My Ugly Mug

Ok, I admit that I don't have a wonderful history to the mug I am entering in Linda's Ugly Mug contest today. As a matter of fact, I don't even have a coffee maker at home. But, I do enjoy a yummy Vanilla Latte when I go out as much as the next lady, so yea, I'm all about entering this contest.

Since we don't have a coffee maker at home, we only have mugs for when the kids (or hubby)make hot chocolate. I looked through our cabinet and didn't see anything I thought would qualify as "ugly". Most are the cute snowman mugs that I bought several years ago. There is one with hubby's name on it that says "Worlds Greatest Golfer", and I have a mug that says it's the "Left-Handers Mug" with all kinds of quotes and info regarding being left-handed.

Then there is the tacky mug, and I'm not sure why we even still have it. It's way in the back of the cabinet and could have a family of spiders living in it for all we know, since it never gets used. Back when we first found out we were expecting multiples, someone gave Jay a mug that says "Ask me about my stud fee". Tacky yes. Ugly, not so much.

BUT I REALLY WANT TO PARTICPATE!

So I did what any reasonable adult would do...I hit up every Goodwill and thrift store I could find. In the 3rd store I went to, I found my mug. I actually laughed out loud when I saw it for the first time. I have to think that whoever created it, was forced into making it, due to a lost bet or something. I can't wrap my mind around the thought that someone made this because they actually thought it was a good idea or something.

Here's some close up shots of my mug:

I'm not sure if this is supposed to represent some sort of Hansel & Gretel fascination or what, with the cherries on top of the trees, as if luring children to the door, but it kind of creeps me out.

Be sure to check out all the chips in the paint. I did not do those. They came free with the mug. I stopped counting them when I got to 25, including the ones along the inner rim. There are 6 just in this shot...can you find them all?

Top 10 reasons why I should win Linda's contest:

10. You gotta admit..it IS ugly. It's colorful...but it's ugly.

9. I didn't have a coupon, so I paid the entire $1.50 out of my own pocket for this mug.

8. I have never won anything, honest. Ask anyone who knows me.

7. It will help my husband realize that I haven't lost my mind, I did buy the mug for a reason.

6. I had strange people looking at me as I stood in line waiting to buy my mug. I'm pretty sure the check-out clerk felt sorry for me, as she tried to make me feel good about buying the mug.

5. Gas prices still aren't cheap, but I was willing to make the sacrifice by driving a half hour to the city, all over the city, and the half hour back home.

4. I have no life. Winning this would be the highlight of the year for me (so what if it's only January).

3. It was 1/2 price day at the Goodwill I bought this at. People were everywhere, and I saw a few that I'm pretty sure where eyeing this mug. I was willing to rumble to get my mug.

2. I already have my acceptance speech written, copied in triplicate, notarized, and memorized.

1. It was below zero degrees outside on the day I went shopping. Now THAT's commitment and dedication!

Head on over to Linda's to vote for me!!!

Oh, and if I win, you're invited to come over and I'll buy you a latte to celebrate with me!

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Note Added : Someone asked me what I planned to do with the mug after the contest since I only drink coffee when I'm out. I have the mug on my desk right next to my computer screen. It makes me smile everytime I see it. I think of the fun I had looking for it, I think of the fun I have because of it (by going to Linda's to see all the other ugly mugs) and I think of how it's helped me to not be so serious. In the past I would have never participated in something that seemed "silly and pointless". But, win or lose, I am so glad I did! Seeing the mug reminds me of all that, so the mug will stay right here on my desk and who knows, maybe in 30 years or so, Linda might do another ugly mug contest and I'll enter it again. :)

Project 365 - Week 4

Week 4 - Here we go!!

Jan 18

My shopping list for that day. The ugly mug I was looking for is for Linda's contest. With the other items, do you notice a PMS related theme? Well, all except for the dog food. I do have some standards....unless they start making the dog food covered in chocolate, then all bets are off.

Jan 19

Yes, I am still very much on a "Mamma Mia" kick. I love it and can't get enough of it. I even wake up in the middle of the night hearing the songs in my head. If loving it is wrong, I don't wanna be right goshdarnit.

Also on Jan 19

This was during the chorus of "Take A Chance On Me" from, you guessed it, Mamma Mia. I promise this was taken in the Target parking lot, not while I was driving down the interstate. Make no mistake about it...I was definitely singing while driving, I just didn't take any pictures of me doing it then.

Jan 20

I am complying with the doctors recommendation that I wear this lovely fashion statement to keep the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome from getting worse. I must wear it until I see the specialist, and as slow as they are about getting you in to see someone, I think my appointment will be set for sometime in 2014. In the meantime I am considering dying it a lovely shade of neon pink, or maybe tie-dye, just to see the reaction I get from the doctors. I am such a rebel.

Jan 21

We hate it when mom decides to scrub the floors, 'cuz we get put in "doggie jail".

Jan 22

Migraine Day. I was in bed most of the day. This picture was taken by my son last Fall when I laid in the back seat with a killer migraine on the way home after one of his cross country meets. I'm sure that today I looked just as lovely. I did resurrect myself enough to be able to go to Austin's basketball game this evening, which was my goal.

Jan 23

I made 3 loaves of bread in the bread machine today...1 white, 1 wheat & 1 banana. I love the smell of freshly baked bread. mmmmm!

Jan 24

Today I picked up my daughters (1 at her apartment & 1 at her dorm) and we did some shopping and went out for lunch. Our last stop was at Sam's Club which has been a favorite of theirs (since they were little) on Saturdays because of all the free samples they give out. Both girls enjoyed their samples of Swiss Miss hot chocolate, although by this time in the day, Chelsea was saying "Mom, seriously, put your camera away already. People are staring". Ashley of course said "It's ok. They're all staring at me, because I'm just too adorable." I love these girls. LOL

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