Daily Archives: August 14, 2008

ANOTHER post, Jen? Yes, but see, I was tagged…

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Patrice over at Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman tagged me in this great little meme where all I have to do is tell you seven random facts about myself – really no other rules at all – except that afterwards I have to tag 7 other people to do the meme as well – that shouldn’t be terribly hard, right? Hopefully I’ll still have time to play with Facebook applications afterwards and maybe even finish reading Lost in a Good Book before MM wakes up from his nap? Please?

So here we go, 7 totally random things about me:

  1. I have a decorative fake spider thingy hanging on our kitchen light thingy in well our kitchen. We hung it up for Halloween but as I’m short I kept forgetting it was there and never took it down. Now when dh or I notice it’s still there we kind of think it’s funny and we’re talking about “dressing” the spider up in little hats and whatnot for other holidays – think Santa Spider, Cupid Spider, trapped in a snowball Spider… See, its fun?
  2. My mother lives on the opposite side of the country as me. And pretty much always has. I was raised by my father since I was 2 or 3 years old and didn’t have a relationship with her to speak of until just before I started college. And even then it was, justifiably I think, rocky. I think right now our relationship is the best it’s ever been, but that doesn’t mean it’s good at all. Just… better. I’ve accepted some things and that’s good. But I still get upset at the drop of a hat all the time, not that she knows that, all far away and over there with her other six children… Anyhoo, moving on…
  3. When I was about thirteen or fourteen my father and I rode in our Jeep in the middle of a “tornado” – I use quotation marks because I don’t believe the tornado was actually blowing around us – but it was very wet, rainy and windy, and we eventually stopped in a Wendy’s until the storm passed, and I did see what looked like a tornado funnel thing way far off in the distance at one point while we were in Wendy’s, but that’s about as bad as it got. I still was fairly certain my dad was a bad ass after that though.
  4. I was born on Christmas Eve. Some of my relatives have “gipped me” so to speak every year giving me just one present or like two very small presents and trying to make out like it was twice as awesome but really I was like, “oh great, thanks…” But my father would go as all out as he could afford (which wasn’t terribly far but you could always see the effort) and always wanted to have a big family party, and always got upset when people were busy and complained like, “It’s not like you haven’t known when her birthday was her whole life!” and yadda yadda yadda but really I didn’t like the parties after awhile anyway, like it just got kind of weird. And I stopped really paying it any attention and now my birthday can kind of whisper past me without much notice. And of course now I wish I celebrated it more and got to have my own “day” like normal people do – one that’s just mine and we all celebrate how great I am – I guess having a kid, you feel yourself slipping away all the time – the relatives really just want to see your kids, their needs come before yours, you make sacrafices etc. The least I deserve is my own birthday, right? Maybe next year…
  5. I usually have no idea what I’m talking about – but even when I do, I rarely feel I know all the right things to say to support my argument so to make up for it, I say the three things I do know over and over again to sort of make it all seem bigger. I aught to do my homework on some of these subjects but really who has the time and my interests are so varied it could get exhausting. So when I argue with my husband he gets pretty upset because I just drill my 2 or 3 points home like there’s no tomorrow, even when I don’t know I’m doing it. I think it’s because growing up, I never got to win any arguments. So I really want to win a couple now!
  6. I love cats – like love them. I’ve had them my whole life. And apparently I’ve also been allergic to cats my whole life – who knew? Everyone kept saying, “Jen go blow your nose” when they should have just gotten rid of the darn cat – not that I’d have let them. But I must admit, now having lived without cats for awhile, I don’t miss the constant “flu” – but I do miss the cute wittle kitties!!!
  7. So now I really want a dog – because dh won’t let me get a cat. But I’ve never owned a dog and I’m not certain I’ll like them and I’m very particular about what kinds of dogs I do and don’t want, and yet totally unknowledgeable about them in general – I’ll see a cute dog and say, “oh honey what kind of dog is that?” and then usually he’ll tell me what the dog is and why I wouldn’t want it. But trust me when I say – he wants a dog, too. His family is like dog trainers and stuff, they are crazy for puppies, and MM has recently developed a love for Lady and the Tramp so I suspect the to have a dog or not debate is pretty much set in stone at this point…

Hmm I guess that’s 7 and I can go ahead and start tagging some people now before I go play on Facebook!

Okay, the lucky victims are:

  1. Susie @ Raising the Boys
  2. Shelley @ I Miss My Sanity
  3. Jen @ Stuff Jen Says
  4. Dana @ Supernanny Where Are You?
  5. Jill @ The Diaper Diaries
  6. Karen @ Write From Karen
  7. Jen @ Daily Mish Mash

Things I Love Thursday: My Imagination

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After thoroughly enjoying The Dark Knight last weekend my husband and I decided we should make it a point to see all the Batman movies made thus far. This week we watched the Batman movie from 1966, expecting great things indeed.

So here’s the thing – the Batman of the 60′s? Pure cheese. And that’s cool, we could appreciate that and we even liked Adam West as Batman at least in voice and appearance. But call us crazy, we like our gruesome, dark, conflicted Batman movies better. Heath Ledger sealed that in stone if it wasn’t already set.

And the villains in this fluff tale? I mean, yeah they are all great and hilarious and so clearly THEM, but they can’t hold a candle to the likes of Heath Ledger. You know Cesar Romero was great, but I just can’t picture him a nurse’s uniform. I just can’t.

So okay, how is any of this relevant to a Things I Love Thursday, the masterful creation of Jill @ The Diaper Diaries? Well I love that what my imagination created with this movie, based on the tv show of the same era and cast, is the perfect brainstorm of an idea for a Kid’s Show which I think would most appropriately have to air on Nick Junior (since the Batman shows are sometimes on Nick at Night according to DH).

Cause here’s the thing – watching these people jump up and down with joy, prance around, and have cute pathetic little fist fights while saying very funny things if you happen to be a 5th grader… Well it made me realize – this would be just as funny, if not funnier, if the entire movie were acted out by toddlers – can’t you just see it? Picture it with me in your mind if you will – the costumes shouldn’t be hard to come by – we see them all every year at Halloween – and getting kids to fight, bicker, giggle and jump around? Heck they are doing that anyway. And why stop at just a movie? Make it a tv show and cash in on the awesome all year round!

And I noticed in the movie that Adam West likes to give little bits of a “moral lesson” in between gags. In this movie we learned:

  • That you should never mess with mother nature, as in dehydrating and rehydrating people
  • And never drink to excess, thus causing you to see things which may or may not be there – but that even if people are drinkers, they are still human beings!! If there was ever any doubt…
  • Never have “relations” with people you are not married to unless they are really hot, Russian and purr a lot
  • Always support the local police and government, but never tell the truth to the press
  • Never drive without your license – he actually asks Alfred if he has a license before letting Alfred drive – no joke people. Cause you never know, right?
  • Never dispose of a pre-atomic submarines to persons who don’t even leave their full addresses

There were more but this is all I can remember off the top of my head. Can’t you see this being the perfect kids show though? Imagine being able to put super villains in a time out? How great would that be? And they can give little right and wrong lessons in the middle of all the fun Batty chaos – and the merchandising opportunities would be endless – there could be action figures, lunch boxes, halloween costumes… oh wait. Well. Still – they might sell MORE of them! It could be awesome!

Nickelodeon, I’ll be waiting for your call. Or you can have your people email my people at mommablogsalot at gmail dot com.

Thirteen Exciting Things About Our Upcoming Vacation…

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As you all probably know we’re taking a family vacation this September to the White Mountains? Oh you haven’t heard? This must be your first time reading my blog. Anyhow, here are 13 Reasons why I’m excited, in particular, about the time we’ll be spending at Story Land in Glen, NH (The Children’s Theme Park Where Fantasy Lives!) – making this quite obviously my Thursday Thirteen post, no?

  1. Shopping With Little Miss Muffet: Miss Muffet’s Market is the original Story Land gift shop -as in, it was The Shop before the other shops (there are four now)- making it like stellar, am i right? They apparently have a “huge selection of toys, keepsakes & clothing priced with families in mind” – that means cheap right? Even more awesome.
  2. Continuing with the shopping theme, can I get a “hell yeah” for the Storybook Corner Gifts & Candy Shoppe: Like an excuse to buy books? What? Did I hear that right? And candy? Are you freaking serious?
  3. Another cool shop? The Let’s Pretend Imagination Shop, which claims to be a place where we can all “be a pirate or a princess or anything in between… from wands to swords, from crowns to badges, from hats to socks, the selection at the Let’s Pretend shop is sure to please just about everyone.” (I would make an excellent PR agent, don’t you think?)
  4. Okay but enough about shopping, let’s talk about food! First up will obviously be breakfast at Pixie Treats (if we get there that early; every morning from 9am until 10:30am they serve French Toast Sticks, Bagels, Muffins, and Hash Brown Potatoes, AND breakfast sandwiches (dh’s favorite) featuring Egg with Bacon & Cheese or Sausage & Cheese on a Bagel or a Muffin. During the rest of the day, Pixie Treats serves Soft Serve Ice Cream, in a cone or a dish, with or without jimmies; Root Beer Floats; Cotton Candy; and Cookies. Just so you know  they are all about the multi-tasking.
  5. They even serve mexican food at Storyland – all about world loving, one of their many ethnic friendly options is Senor Munchero’s, inspired by menus found “south of the border” they serve Quesadillas; Tacos; Corn Dogs; Nachos; Chicken Fingers; Hot Dogs and Chili Dogs; Criss Cut French Fries; Fritos, Doritos, and Potato Chips. And as long as Taco Bell isn’t their sponsor, there’s a chance hubby will take me there! ::fist pumping like there’s no tomorrow::
  6. Storyland, by the way, is totally pro-breastfeeding. Mama’s House makes me wish I was still nursing: Each Mama’s House is “designed to provide peace, quiet, and privacy for nursing mothers and their babies. Each Mama’s House has rocking chairs and diaper changing stations in shaded comfort.” They have four Mama’s Houses throughout the park.
  7. Tree Sculptures: How cool is this? “Every tree is a work of art in itself. We’ve taken some whose limbs had to be trimmed for safety, and turned them into one-of-a-kind sculptures. Our largest tree sculpture (pictured on the right) is located right in the front of the park; it was the original Spider Tree for our Little Miss Muffet setting, and it’s been a central feature of Story Land from our first day.” This is just so cool I am weirdly excited about seeing it in person. Whose vacation is this again? Oh right, totally mine.
  8. Little Dreamers Nursery Rhymes: All the classic nursery rhymes come to life at the Little Dreamers Nursery Rhyme area: “Rock-a-bye Baby rocks gently in a secure tree-top cradle; children can count one, two and buckle some shoes, or pop out of a pie; Mary’s Little Lamb rests in the schoolhouse yard; explore Peter Pumpkineater’s House. It’s familiar, it’s fun, and it’s fantastic for even the youngest of visitors. The Little Dreamers area is located to the right of the park entrance, just beyond Humpty Dumpty and the Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe.”
  9. Okay now for the RIDES – Here’s what their website has to say about the rides, which I will list next the ones in particuar I’m freaking out excited about: “A ride in a pumpkin coach, an antique car, or a pirate ship can turn into a lifelong memory for a young child. Story Land’s 21 rides generally are designed for parents and children to enjoy together. We encourage parents to join their children wherever possible to help ensure that everyone rides safely.” I think it was this paragraph that initially got my excited about the trip – like, “Seriously? I get to go on the rides, too????” So cool. Anyhow…
  10. Okay so anyone who really knows me (as in-non-cyber land, knows like my last name and serial number kinda knows me) will know why the Eggs-traordinary Farm Tractors is like the best reason ever for marrying into my husband’s family. We’ll be like celebrities people. Celebrities touring “one of the most unique farms you can imagine. These Eggs-traordinary Tractors arrived new in 2003 for a relaxing ride through the fields and barns of our one-of-a-kind farm, featuring both real and animated crops.” Yeah it’s unique because they were named after my son. Just saying… But seriously, how cute do they look with their blue and yellow and their sleepy eyes and have I mentioned my love for cars that look like humans? That Pixar movie was incredible. It shall have nothing on this.
  11. Then, there’s the Cuckoo Clockenspiel: which apparently takes riders through what just may be the world’s largest cuckoo clock. And my son will have a great time learning a new word. Which could leads to loads of hilarious miscommunications… Oh my imagination is running rampant right now as I dream of “Spin[ning my] tub at [my]own speed as [I] wind [my] way through this unique timepiece.” Yes, yes I am.
  12. oh and people – they have SWAN BOATS – I have never ever been on a swan boat, but I’ve always assumed it was The Thing To Do and this year, I am riding on a swan boat. And it’s going to be awesome. It will look something like this:

    Notice how happy we will look as we “pilot [our] own Swan Boat on a leisurely tour of a serene pool in the shadow of Cinderella’s Castle”… oh yes we will.

  13. But that’s just the start people – the biggest reason I’m excited about Story Land and our entire vacation to the White Mountains, is that I’ve never been and thus really have no idea what to expect. It will be one of many “firsts” that my son and I will likely experience together during his life. Things like flying a kite, taking a picnic, and being the mother of a 3 year old are just the start of a beautiful life ahead of us, and this trip next month will be no exception.

I think that next week I will do a Thursday Thirteen on Santa’s Village, and then the week after that on the Campground we are staying at – the Thursday after that we’ll be packing our bags to leave the next morning – we’ll see if I get around to posting that day but I will try and also hope to do a small bit of blogging during the vacation while the boys are passed out from all the excitement. :) Can you tell how much I seriously cannot wait?

Oh and for more T13 Fun, head here, as always!

update on Germany trip

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My dad arrived in Germany safe and sound this morning (or well at least this morning there, whenever that is… I think?). He also, I just found, went with his uncle, my grandfather’s brother – somehow this is comforting to me. Regardless, they are all together now and doing well so I am momentarily breathing a bit easier…

Soon I can just be excited to see my grandpa again! ::cheers::