Not Me Monday - Gonna be in trouble when my son sees this

Is it Monday again?


I've got a complete Not Me Monday list all prepared... NOT!


I am sitting at my computer eating breakfast right now. (Eggs, in case you were wondering.) And I did not cook them in the microwave again. I know it's quick, but they always end up exploding and leaving me with a big mess to clean up, thus not making it so "quick."


Since I have a horrible time remembering some of the details of each week, when Monday rolls around I have to refer to my digital photo albums to jog my memory.


Oh here's one....

I would never take an embarrassing picture of one of my kids and then use Picnik to doodle on it and then post it on the Internet!! What a horrible mom!!

MckMama makes me do horrible things!

Ok people, yet again I am inviting you to play along tomorrow with the FABULOUS
Toot Your Horn Tuesday blog carnival.
I have one faithful participant, but would be happy if I had a few hundred more.
Whether you've won the Nobel Peace Prize or potty trained your daughter. This is where you can share your accomplishments. You won't receive a prize,
but you will receive some well deserved recognition.
If you're a mommy, you know this is hard to come by.

~Proverbs 31:10, 25-30
Who can find a virtuous woman? She is far more precious than jewels...Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and loving instruction is on her tongue.
She watches over the activities of her household and is never idle.Her sons rise up and call her blessed.He husband also praises her:Many women are capable, but you surpass them all! Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.

Not Me Monday - Socks

I thought today would be an appropriate day to join back in with the Not Me Monday Blog Carnival along with MckMama. She's such a hoot, isn't she? And I've definitely got some good stuff this week. Here I go....

I did not take a fidgety, sleepy toddler into Walmart in the middle of the day on the 1st of the month. Do you know how horrendous the lines are at that time? I should mention also, that I did not forget to bring a list too! You've seen those poor women before, the one standing in line with a loaded down shopping cart, child screaming, onlookers rolling their eyes with disgust. Yeah, it was that kind of day! I've been in this same predicament before. You'd think I'd learn my lesson. Maybe I should get it tattooed to my hand so I'll remember. NO SHOPPING WITH TIRED TODDLER!

How about those toddlers? The second year can be very trying, don't you know? My daughter got 2 little scratches on her face over a month ago. Well, they just won't heal because she can't keep her cute little fingers away from them! What's a mom to do? I've tried everything!No way, I did not tape socks onto her arms! And of course I did not take her out in public like that. And by the way, this picture was taken several weeks ago. And her face is still not healed! Any suggestions?

Enough of these Not Me's. Even after 4 children, I still haven't perfected this mothering thing!

Have you come by my blog on a Tuesday?! Well, if you haven't, then you are missing a great opportunity! I host a super follow up to MckMama's Not Me Monday. It's called Toot Your Horn Tuesday. After serving up all of our embarrassing moments, we finally get to brag about what we actually got right! I hope you'll play along! Same as MckMama, just grab the button from my sidebar, write your post and then link back to me tomorrow. I promise you'll have fun. We all need a pat on the back now and then.

Not Me Monday - Dead Crab

I love MckMama's new Not Me Monday logo, don't you?!

Here's another short post for you. It's Monday for goodness sakes. I'm sure you don't have time to read about all of my stupid antics! Just make sure you're back here tomorrow for Toot Your Horn Tuesday!! And this time, play along!!


I did not let Chandler bring home this adorable, yet dead, crab from the beach. Who knew he would take it to church with him?

I did not make 5lbs of mac & cheese for our small (3 family) July 4th gathering. That's a ridiculous amount don't you think? My teenagers decided at the last minute to skip our party and attend another one. I was totally relying on them to eat it all up. Now it sits in the fridge taking up a whole shelf! I suppose it'll be gone soon enough, but it's not helping my diet any.

I did not smash my head on the door when I found a dead cockroach lying on the floor. I swear I don't know how I did it. Bugs don't frighten me at all, especially dead ones. And even so, how could I do that? (Don't worry friends, it's just a small bump.)

I did not get up this morning at 6am! Last week I stayed in bed every day until well after 7. Why would I bother getting up so early? Isn't it summer?

Not Me Monday - Summer has begun

It's summer time and I'm raring to have some fun. The kids and I are going swimming again today. And with 4 kids around the house all day, I've got to be on my toes. I do not want them sitting in front of the tv all summer. Many activities planned. By the way, did you see this website? Participating AMF bowling alleys around the country are offering free bowling for kids. We signed up and have already gone 2 times. Check it out!

Since I'm so busy, I've got another short Not Me List. MckMama, the host of this carnival, is still dealing with a sick baby. Not sure whether she will be playing along today or not, but either way, go check on her blog to get an update on Stellan. He was just in the hospital again this past week.

Here goes:
I did not start yet another diet this past week. You've all watched me, you know how I've failed miserably trying to get this excess 10lbs. off. But come back tomorrow and I'll go into more details about that.

The other day while I was preparing to marinate some steaks, I did not put them in a container and then proceed to shake that container without securing the lid properly. Can you picture that? There are no pictures, because this time the mess was all over ME and I only take pictures of other's messes.

I did not slack off on the potty training the last couple of days. Glynis has actually made more progress so why would I slack off?! She's urinated in the toilet 2 times now!! That's a start I figure.

I did not add more advertisements to my blog. This blog is for your enjoyment and profiting from that on my part, would be so self-serving, wouldn't it? Did you notice that I have 4 children of various ages and that I'm a stay at home mom? That we're a one income family? That next year my oldest son will be graduating high school and entering college? That my youngest isn't even 2 yet and I have many many more years of child rearing ahead of me? Did you notice that I'm going to be 40 this summer which makes me OLD? And can't we all use a little extra cash?! I promise it won't be spent on Starbucks or massages!

So there you go. I'm so happy that you're here today for a visit! Make sure you visit again tomorrow when we share life's joyful moments and give ourselves a little credit. Tomorrow is Toot Your Horn Tuesday and I'm hoping you'll all play along. Click here for rules.

Double Triple Blessings to you today!

Monday musings and another birthday

2 out of my 3 boys jumped out of bed this morning, eager to get this week over with. The last day of school is Thursday. (It seems like the rest of the country's kids have already gotten out of school.) But then there is Carson. He has had trouble all year with getting up in the morning. His alarm will ring and ring and he won't even budge. After the alarm goes off, my husband will go speak with him, then his brother will try and lastly, I'll run into his room yelling..."Carson! you have to leave in 15 minutes!" He always makes it. =)

The sweet hostess of the Not Me Monday carnival is having a rough day with her son Stellan. Please say a prayer for her family. In the meantime, I've only got one "Not Me"

I most certainly did not have to pick up Glynis' poop off the floor on her first day of potty training. She only got out of bed one hour ago and she had been on the toilet just 10 minutes earlier! I know we can do better than that! Wish us luck and I'll keep you posted as the day goes on. Watch my twitter.

Ok, the real news for the day is that it is

June 15th!!

Yep, another birthday! My cutie for a husband is turning 42. Born in 1967, he's a child of the 80s. Here's a few pics of him through the years.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTOPHER!

Don't forget to toot your horn tomorrow! Come by my blog every Tuesday for a big pat on the back!

Not Me Monday - A little girl's memories

In case you didn't read my last post, my Grandfather died last week. He was 95 years old! Tomorrow is his funeral and I'm running rampant trying to clean my house to accommodate family for a gathering afterwards. So this will have to be quick.
As a little girl, Grandpa Al was my protector. He was tall and lean and extremely smart! I'm dedicating this Not Me Monday post to my memories of Grandpa Al.

As a little girl, I did not spend hours worrying over the ghost that lived in my Grandparents basement. Little kids don't believe in such things. But whether I did or not, my Grandpa Al came up with a great scheme to rid the house of that pesky ghost. He grabbed it by the throat and threw it right down the toilet and with one *FLUSH* that little girl never feared ghosts again!

Also as a little girl, I did not stand guard of a fig tree! What a preposterous thing to do! Can you picture a little blond headed 7 year old running around a fig tree shoeing all the birds away? I'm guessing the only reason that a little girl might do that was to please her Grandfather who always complained of the birds eating his figs.

And have you heard the story of Brer Rabbit? Well, I did not beg my Grandpa to tell it to me more than 5 hundred times over the years. Wouldn't a Grandfather get tired of telling it over and over again? I suppose he loved me. =)

Drop by MckMama's site to read more Not Me's. And come by here tomorrow for another Toot Your Horn Tuesday!

Not Me Monday - Memorial Day Week

Click MckMama to join the insanity.

Here goes my "Not Me" Monday list:

I did not buy a cake from the market, decorate it with fresh strawberries and try to pass it off as home-made at my neighbor's house on Memorial Day.

I did not let my toddler get into the neighbor's pool totally naked on Memorial Day, knowing the water was only 72 degrees. I hadn't planned on letting her get in and I absolutely do not give in to her after I've already said no. That would be poor parenting.

I did not miss going to school last week to volunteer, because I got my days mixed up. Those Monday holidays always get me off track.

I did not pull 6 boxes of baby clothes out of the attic and stack them in the hallway, thinking that I would list them on Craigslist. I may have gotten them listed, but have yet to get an interested caller. I wonder how long I'll let them sit there before I take them down to Goodwill.

I have not smashed my foot on those baby clothes boxes about 500 times now. It's not like they're in the way. We have plenty of room in our house.

As I write this, it is after 10pm on Sunday night and today is one of my longest friend's birthday. There is no way I could have forgotten to call her on her 40th! I'm sure I sent her a card, or did I?

And I am not totally jazzed that tomorrow is Toot Your Horn Tuesday. I mean, I love writing all these self-desparaging things about myself. It's much fun revealing all of my crazies for the whole world to see.

Make sure you come by tomorrow to play!!

Not Me Monday - Stop Complaining

I did not spend 2 days last week doing absolutely nothing except for making sure that Glynis stayed alive and the boys ate dinner. Because Mom's don't get sick days! Even when we absolutely cannot function, we still have to be functional!

I didn't tell my family over and over again how horrible I felt. I'm not a complainer.

I did not ever get irritable or short with my family. I'm always sugar sweet with everyone. You know, like a Disney Princess. That's me!


Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I'd like to offer up a reprieve from all of this deceit. Don't get me wrong, I love MckMama's Not Me Mondays! But how about trying this out tomorrow...Write a truthful list! And instead of fessing up to all of your faults, tell us about what you did right this past week! Tomorrow is "Toot Your Horn Tuesday!" So pat yourself on the back. Tell us how wonderful you are. Be your own best fan. Join the fun! I'll have a Mr. Linky ready for you every Tuesday. Can't wait to get this ball rolling. See you tomorrow!

Not Me Monday - Mother's Day

It's been forever since MckMama's been able to host a "Not Me Monday." In case you weren't aware, her youngest child was in the hospital for almost 2 months! Check out her site and read Stellan's harrowing story.

As for my "Not Me's," yesterday was so beautiful! Just take a look!

I did not have breakfast waiting for me when I got out of the shower. I'm always the first one in the kitchen preparing food.

At church, I did not have to work in the pre-k department for Mother's Day while all the other Moms were honored in the sanctuary with special music and a special sermon. But, I sure felt special when they brought in a beautiful carnation as a thank you for being there with those crazy little 4 year olds.

I couldn't have received this awesome new all-in-one printer from my family. They're not always so in tune with my likes and dislikes, but this time they hit it right on! I can't wait to hook it up!

There's just no way that I could have had all of my favorite foods on one plate! But I did! My family let me pick the entire menu. Shrimp, scallops, asparagus, a little salad and corn on the cob. And by the way, I ate every bite, plus a slice of New York Cheescake.

I did not then spend a beautiful, leisure afternoon with my family. And my kids can't possibly be the best kids in the world and I'm not blessed beyond measure. *smirk* Yeah Right! ;)

Happy Monday

Just wanted to wish all my friends a Happy Monday. I look at the newspaper today and see the turmoil all across our country and beyond. Chances are, if you're reading this today, than you are not in flooded Fargo, North Dakota. My prayers go out to that area and all those families who are facing a life altering event. I was just telling my son yesterday that we are so blessed to have not had to live through a horrible natural disaster of any sort. The worst hurricane to hit my area was the weekend that my husband and I married in 2003. My neighbors may have had a tree on their roof, but our house was spared of any damage. Sure, we lost electricity for days, but our blessings have been numerous ever since.
I'm working on my next Spontaneous Thought Explosion. I've chosen to write about the economy this time. Please pick any of my topics and link up with my post this week. Can't wait to hear what you have to say.
Still praying for dear Stellan. His mother, MckMama, normally hosts the Not Me Monday blog carnival. Her son is very sick. This sweet little 5 month old angel has been on a rocky road. Pray for his heart.

Now for your viewing enjoyment. My mother just sent me this 2 minute video from youtube. What?! It's crazy. It's amazing. It's weird. It's worth a look. :P

Not Me Monday - The rain

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did not have the laziest weekend ever just because it was raining.

I did not jump for joy when I got the call that all soccer activities were cancelled due to the rain.

I did not skip Sunday school just because I was lazy and it was raining. Although a few of us from my household did go to service, but only because there was a meeting we couldn't miss directly afterward.

I did not allow my toddler to stay in the same outfit all weekend just because I was being lasy because it was raining.

I myself, did not stay in the same clothes all weekend also, just because I was being lazy because it was raining. I should mention that I did briefly wear some nice pants and shirt to church, but immediatly change when I came home.

I did not make my family eat roast beef all weekend because I had made a huge crockpot full and I didn't want to cook anything else because I was being lazy because it was raining.

I did not ignore laundry piled to the ceiling just because it was a rainy weekend.

I did not just start this Not Me Monday list today at 10:50am. I ususally have this done in advance, but well....it's raining!

Not Me Monday - Me on the small screen

I'm starting my Not Me post Friday night, in hopes that by Monday I will have finished it. You know that MckMama girl who started all this fun, right? Shoot over to her site if you're interest in reading more Not Me's. Life is so busy, you know. Especially when you've just gotten a brand new laptop! Yeah Me! I can't stop playing with it! I think I had already written about my trouble trying to buy a refurbished laptop from the Dell Outlet online. Dell is a great company and even though there were troubles with my order, they ended up making my trouble worth it with an upgrade. I paid for a Studio 1536 (a Toyota), but now have a XPS 1530 (a Lexus.) Go Dell!

So now to my Not Me's...

I did not totally let my blogging buddies down and forget to tell you all about the airing of the news story that my family participated in. See my original post to refresh your memory.
It actually aired on The 700 Club this past Thursday. I wonder how many of you are actually familiar with The 700 Club. It's a live t.v. show starring christian Pat Robertson who heads up CBN, Christian Broadcasting Network. Dr. Robertson is a great man, although somewhat controversial at times. He is a respected business man, philanthropist and he lives just up the street from me. I mean, his headquarters and home are nearby.

So, even though you missed seeing me on t.v., you can still see the story on the Internet! I'm not able to post the video directly on my site :(
Here's the link - "Getting Through to Generation Text" I think you'll enjoy the content of the story just as well as seeing my cute little self. It's about technology and our kids.

And here's the rest of my Not Me's (pertaining to the news story)

I did not look and sound like a total dweeb when I said "I love technology" in the interview! You would have thought that I was the silly teenager they were interviewing. Except that I look like I'm 40 years old!

I don't ever want to be on t.v. again. It's such a drag having to get in front of that camera and be all famous for a few minutes.

And seeing my teenage son be so handsome and charming doesn't make me the least bit proud. I'm not one of those bragging mothers, otherwise I would be pointing out how cute my other 2 boys were as they sat at the computer.

And I did not almost cry when at the end of the segment, Arlo, Glynis and her Daddy were shown playing on the computer. It's just about the cutest thing I could have imagined.
So go see....Here's the link again :)

Stay tuned to more of me on video...My new computer has a little webcam and I think it'd be kind of fun to experiment with some video posts. What do you think? Leave me a comment.

UPDATE: I found the embedding code so I've post the news story at the bottom of my page. Scroll on down and take a look.

Not Me Monday - Boot to the head and reboot

It's another Monday. Here's my Not Me list plus the weekly link to MckMama's Site where the Not Me fun began.

1. I did not have to perform surgery on my new laptop. Although I'm somewhat computer savvy, I know absolutely nothing about the insides of a computer. I bought a refurbished Dell and even though I'd still recommend the Dell Outlet to everyone, I had several problems with this particular order. The first computer had some flaws so they sent me another. The second one was worse than the first! My computer whiz brother talked me through the surgery that we thought might solve my problems, (but did not.) Fortunately for me, because I was inconvenienced, Dell is sending me an upgraded system. Yipee!

2. I did not sustain yet another injury! Why is everyone after my face?!Remember, just a few weeks ago, my middle son tried to break my nose and gave me a fat lip. This week, my cat pounced on my face (my nose, to be more specific) while I was sleeping. Now my husband calls me Scarface.

4. I did not lie in bed lazily and ignore that same da*n cat yesterday morning while he scratched and meowed for me to open the door to my bedroom. I knew that he had been closed in my room all night and would probably need to get to his litter box. I heard him, but just didn't want to get out from under my warm cozy blanket. So it's no surprise that he left me a little doody on my closet floor.

8. I am not writing anymore Not Me's today because quite frankly, I think all these knocks to the head have given me a bit of memory loss and mental impairment. At least that's the excuse I'm going to use the rest of this week when I do something flaky.

Hope you all have a great Monday and I hope you smile today.

Not Me Monday - Traveling to Texas

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

As you know, I'm in Texas, but actually flying home today. Here's my Not Me List from Virginia to Texas and back again.

1. Even though the stomach bug ran through my house prior to my trip, I was able to clean the entire house, do all the laundry, pack, and make several meals for the family so they wouldn't starve while I was away... Yeah Right!!!

2. I did not have to pack my suitcase 3 times because each bag I packed ended up having a hole or broken zipper. (I'm shopping for luggage when I get home!)

3. I did not waste my chance to get a nap while Glynis was sleeping on the plane. Why wouldn't I take advantage of the quiet? All mothers know to save their energy when they can.

4. I did not wait until the last minute to use the airplane restroom before we landed. Because that's when everyone else goes, meaning I would for sure have to wait in a line and 'bout wet myself.

5. I did not give my daughter the whole bowl of spicy salsa at the trendy Tex Mex restaurant with the cloth napkins and tablecloth. Surely a 1 year old would make a mess.

6. My brother had a beautiful guest room ready for Glynis and me, but we had to share the bed. I did not sleep each night with her little butt in my face!

7. I did not stay up till midnight playing on my new laptop each night. Again, mothers know about saving their energy and getting the proper amount of sleep.

8. I'm not at all angry at Dell for sending me a less than perfect laptop. Luckily my little brother will help me to get the problems corrected. I'll be sending this one back this week and have to wait for another.

9. We drove to Dallas to visit another family member and decided to stop by Dealey Plaza to see the historic street where Kennedy was assassinated. There were street vendors trying to sell books and dvds and giving little history lessons about the conspiracy theories. I did not stop to look at the gruesome pictures that they had on display of Kennedy's autopsy. I think that is totally irreverent and voyeuristic.

10. I did not wake up Sunday morning missing my family so much that I was ready to call the airlines to see if I could get a flight one day early. I've only been gone 4 days.

11. I am not posting a funny picture of my mother using my web cam on the laptop. It has some pretty silly special effects! She doesn't really look this weird.

I'll be home this afternoon!!

Not Me Monday-Seeing Stars

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I'll start off with my superb memory and multi-tasking skills.

I did not forget about a slice of pizza that I had microwaved 2 hours earlier because I thought I had already eaten it.

I never forget where I'm going! Because if I did miss a turn or go the wrong direction, it would make my whole schedule out of whack and possibly make my children late for their appointments.

I did not leave a basket of clean clothes unfolded for 2 days to get all wrinkled. If I did that, I would probably want to throw them back in the dryer to fluff them up, which would be simple enough. But I can't imagine then, accidentally throwing them back in the washer with soap because I was totally on auto-pilot and wasn't thinking straight. What a waste of water! soap! and time!

Now, how about those celebrity moms. Aren't they ridiculous? I would never pay hundreds of dollars to get lip collagen injections just so my mouth would look fuller and more pretty...



GOTCHA'!! I really truly did not get lip injections! Last night, my 14 year old was running through the house right as I was walking the opposite direction. You guessed it, Wham! My face slammed right into his shoulder and back I fell. Instant plump lips! I can't wait to go show it off.
Have a great week!!

Not Me Monday - The Little Sparrow Sings

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I would never join the church choir!

First of all, as much as I love to sing, I'm one who would be laughed off American Idol. I can imagine Simon rolling his eyes as soon as I opened my mouth. Secondly, the church choir is a big committment. Wednesday night rehearsals and every Sunday morning! Not to mention the evening services. Don't I already have plenty to do? Thirdly, our church has a humongous choir. Could there possibly be enough room for my big bottom up there in the choir loft?

And if I was to join this group of song birds, what a waste it would be to bring all the books home to learn my parts and then not open any of those books all week. Lugging them around would be such a hassel.

And I can only imagine my first Sunday up there. I'd be so embarressed if my friends and family all stood in the pews and waved to me. I imagine I'd feel like a little girl again, performing in her first recital. I'm almost 40 years old for goodness sake.