Embrace The Venus

I don't want to sound like a commercial or anything, but I believe in giving credit where credit is due. Ladies, I have found the goddess of all razors! It is Gillette's Venus Embrace and you must run out right now and purchase it. I got it after reading about it in a magazine. An editor who had tried it out claimed that she didn't have to shave her legs for three days after using it. That right there had me jetting off to Target in search of it. I ended up getting the promotional package Target was featuring - it came with lotion, shaving cream, razor, replacement blade and a pod like thing to house it in the shower. All for a little over $9. While the replacement blades do seem a little pricey, I will attest that I think it will be worth every penny. My legs are sparkling with smoothness in the sunshine!!

RSVP Please....

Respondez s'il vous plait translated in English is "Reply, if you please." I've always understood it to be customary to reply to an RSVP request whether you are confirming or declining an invite. It simply means that the invited guest must tell the host whether or not they plan to attend the party. It doesn't mean to respond only if you're coming, and it doesn't mean to respond only if you're not coming - it would say "regrets only" for that. It means the host needs a definite head count for the planned event, and it needs to be by the date specified on the invitation!

So, what do I do with these 60+ family members who have not done this simple task a week after the specified date?? Planning a family reunion that involves 96 people is no small task, and this is the part that I thought would be the easiest! What else is in store?

New Member Of The Geek Squad

It is safe to say that electronics and I just do not get along. I won't admit to the length of time or how many trips to Radio Shack it took to get my DVR working properly....I'm telling you, anything involving electronics usually ends with me completely pissed off, beat red, swearing like a truck driver and most likely crying. But today, there was success!
The blessed iPod broke a little over three weeks ago. Mind you, it was just before I had to spend close to 20 hours on a train. Oh joy! I got the replacement iPod last Thursday and have been since dreading the next step - getting all my music from the old iPod onto the new one. The box has been sitting on my desk for 6 days just staring at me. Today I took a deep breath, a few sips of Jose Cuervo, and dove in. Sweet mother of pearl, the little machine did everything all by itself in less than three minutes!!!!!!!!! Why can't everything be this easy???

Tribute To E Squared

Earlier this month I had the privilege of watching my friend's two children for five days while she and her hubby went to the sunshine state for a little R&R. I did my fair share of babysitting throughout high school and college, so I volunteered to do this without a second thought. Surprisingly though, there were a few people out there who were quite taken aback and questioned my ability to take on the task. Apparently being 38, single and without children doesn't make me qualified to be around kids...someone better tell my principal!
I'm here now to report that the three of us survived without a scratch! No one cried or had to be carted off to the ER. We ended each day fed, clean and with homework done. I'm not saying it was easy because I've never been one to say that parenthood is a piece of cake. I see what my friends go through, it's a job and it's hard! It was a learning experience for me and I definitely came away from it with a better appreciation for all parents out there.
Here's just a few of the lessons learned:

* You are exhausted at the end of the day! I thought I'd have trouble sleeping at night because I'd be worried about not hearing someone getting up, etc. That went right out the window after the first night. Sleep was definitely not a problem. In fact, I think those 5 nights were the best sleep I've had in quite awhile....
* Kid's clothes have the ability to multiply right before your eyes. No matter how many times you put something in the hamper, you can turn around and there will be three more shirts on the floor. I don't know how it happened because they only wore one outfit a day, but the clothes seemed to be taking over the house....
* Peanut butter jars are recycable, but a bitch to clean out before you can put it in the blue bin....
* Kids will do the sweetest things - like make your bed for you while you're in the shower....
* Kids sleepwalk! They'll come downstairs and have an entire conversation with you and not remember it the next morning....
* Apparently standing in the shower causes children to have to poop....
* The drop-off line at school is one-way for a reason and everyone should follow that rule! Now rest assured, I was not the one that went in the wrong way. Some other lady did and she got some pretty hefty glares thrown her way by the people trying to go the right way....
* Kids can learn the words to a song faster than you can blink and will sing it incessantly for days....
* Going for a scooter ride and a walk on the bike path is a great idea. Just keep in mind that you have to double back the distance you go in one direction in order to get back to the car. Little legs get tired....

Thanks to E Squared for being the awesome kids that they are. I think of you every time I hear a certain song on the radio. Thanks also to their parents for trusting me enough to leave them in my care. I had a blast and would do it again anytime! :)

Jose Cuervo Take Me Away.....

On my drive into work this morning, I mentally reviewed the list of things I needed to do this afternoon once being freed from the confines of the circus. I had thought about writing a list last night before going to bed, but decided instead that I had it all under control. It really wasn't much: 1. stop and pick up curtains at Ann & Hope before the sale ends 2. swing by Linens-n-Things to use the 25% off entire purchase coupon I found in my mailbox at work yesterday, and 3. rent some movies. My weekend glee was quickly crushed as I walked to my car after all my 3rd graders were in the clutches of their guardians. One of my kids was yelling at me that I had my vest on backwards. Indeed I did, and that probably explains why I was having such difficulty finding my car keys. A bit later, while walking by the curtain area of Linens-n-Things, it hit me that I had completely forgotten to make stop #1 at Ann & Hope. Oh I'm off to a good start! Some not so nice words were muttered under my breath, because that stop was now 20 minutes in the opposite direction. I proceeded to a LNT register with my assortment of things I really don't need - but hey, I have a coupon! The cashier politely informs me that my special Manager's coupon can't be used until next Friday. Yup, the coupon does say March 13-16. It is at this point that I begin to question the possibility that I just may be losing it. I quietly walked away from the counter and left all my things there.....I head back towards Ann & Hope where (fill in more unpleasant words) the curtains are not on sale anymore! I buy them anyway and head to the movie store before coming in for a landing at home. I don't dare hang the curtains tonight for fear of what could happen. As soon as this is posted I will be getting in my pajamas and pouring a glass of Jose Cuervo. I'll heat up last night's leftovers because I probably shouldn't be operating heavy machinery at this point....

Signs

Yes, it may have snowed two nights ago and there are still piles of it out there on the ground. But alas, I have signs of spring in my basement!

This is a hydrangea plan my parents bought me the first summer I had my condo. I've never planted it in the ground due to too many deer, rabbits and chipmunks that could wreak havoc with it. Instead it lives on my deck from about May until the end of October. Once the leaves drop, I lug it to the basement and leave it by the sliding doors. I throw some water at it a few times over the winter and pretty much just let it be. Usually by mid-February it starts to go crazy with new green shoots and by the end of this month it will have flowers starting! Spring is on its way...

A Morning Without MY Coffee

I don't drink coffee. I have in fact never even tried it! So how do I jumpstart my day? It's with music. I have it going pretty much all the time. There's even a little radio in my bathroom that I play while showering! However, it's especially important in the car. I need it to psych myself up for the circus act I perform each day in Room 208.
This morning I was racing up Interstate 95 towards the innards of the ghetto where I teach. Imagine my despair when all of sudden a horrifying sound came out of the passenger door speaker. It actually resembled the sound of nails on a chalkboard, and yes - I shivered. The car is just over a year old, this should not be happening! I quickly turned the radio off praying that when I turned it back on the sound would miraculously have fixed itself. I'm panicking because I don't know how I will ever be able to counsel, teach and referee without my daily fix of John Mayer. Power back on...same horrific sound, possibly even worse. I am forced to shut the damn thing off and gulp, leave it off. Do you know how excruciating the sound of silence is in the car? Needless to say, today's circus act was not one of my best. I'm toying with the idea of signing up for Dunkin Donuts coffee club....