Now, this isn't one of those signs where you change the stickers out to change the times. It's a laminated piece of printed paper. Tell me. Why doesn't it just say Mon-Sat 10:00-9:00?
It's a real thinker, I tell ya.
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Things That Make Ya Go "Hmmmm"!
Sometimes, as you walk around this great, big world, you see a real puzzler and feel the need to share.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
I'm In a 12-Step Program For It...
... well, it's really more of a 12-letter program. ;)
Here's the thing. We all have neurosis - little weird things about us that we know are a little (or a lot) crazy. We all have certain habits that we can't break or routines we do without knowing why. And in our society, we're taught to hide them... pretend they don't exist and be embarassed by them.
I, on the other hand, like to wear mine on my sleeve. I figure if I didn't have my quirks, I wouldn't be me. ('Cause if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm basically one big ol' pile of quirkiness.)
Last night, I fessed up to yet another crazy-town invitation - both to my husband and to myself. You see, he was playing "Words With Friends" on his iPhone. I'm guessing most of you either play it or have seen others play it, but in case you haven't, it's like Scrabble on your phone. You start a game with another person, a friend or a random computer-selected person. Then you make a move, send it, and wait for them to send their move. Yep, just fancy, delayed-gratification Scrabble.
Drew loves it. Since the first day he discovered the game, I would venture to say he's never had fewer than 5 games going at a time. He plays it so much that I've added words to the ditties it plays when you win or lose ("You-oo-oo-oo WIN!" and "You-oo-oo-oo SUCK!").
So last night, as we were climbing into bed, settling in (somehow I can't say "settling in" without thinking "for a long winter's nap" - another neurosis - Name that reference!), his phone binged with a "Words With Friends" move. He looked over at me and said, "You don't play this anymore, do you?"
The simple answer is "No." But here's the neurosis. I TRIED playing the game. I was an avid player two different times (meaning 5 or 6 games at once for months at a time in each effort). I quit both times. Here's why.
I'm not a seriously competitive person usually. I mean, we all have our moments, but for the most part, I don't mind losing a game or two here and there. In fact, when it comes to Monopoly, I always lose... usually because I got bored and moved on halfway through. Seriously. Dullest.Game.EVER!
But I digress...
You see, when playing "Words With Friends", I like to come up with a word that will BLOW THE MIND of my competition. I want a the highest point word possible with the hand I've been dealt. I can't just play the first word I see for whatever points I can get. Even after two days of looking for a high-point word, I won't play a teensie word for next-to-no points. It's not within me. But I don't have the time to spend 30 minutes regularly trying to come up with a high point word. So instead of just playing whatever word comes to mind for whatever points I get and having fun with it, I let my games sit for so long that they time out and I inadvertently forfeit.
Yep, for me, in word games, it's be awesome or go home. I'd rather lose because I stalled-out than lose by 2 points because I played a stupid word.
Ridiculous. I know.
What are YOUR crazy-town invitations? You KNOW you have them!
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Here's the thing. We all have neurosis - little weird things about us that we know are a little (or a lot) crazy. We all have certain habits that we can't break or routines we do without knowing why. And in our society, we're taught to hide them... pretend they don't exist and be embarassed by them.
I, on the other hand, like to wear mine on my sleeve. I figure if I didn't have my quirks, I wouldn't be me. ('Cause if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm basically one big ol' pile of quirkiness.)
Last night, I fessed up to yet another crazy-town invitation - both to my husband and to myself. You see, he was playing "Words With Friends" on his iPhone. I'm guessing most of you either play it or have seen others play it, but in case you haven't, it's like Scrabble on your phone. You start a game with another person, a friend or a random computer-selected person. Then you make a move, send it, and wait for them to send their move. Yep, just fancy, delayed-gratification Scrabble.
Drew loves it. Since the first day he discovered the game, I would venture to say he's never had fewer than 5 games going at a time. He plays it so much that I've added words to the ditties it plays when you win or lose ("You-oo-oo-oo WIN!" and "You-oo-oo-oo SUCK!").
So last night, as we were climbing into bed, settling in (somehow I can't say "settling in" without thinking "for a long winter's nap" - another neurosis - Name that reference!), his phone binged with a "Words With Friends" move. He looked over at me and said, "You don't play this anymore, do you?"
The simple answer is "No." But here's the neurosis. I TRIED playing the game. I was an avid player two different times (meaning 5 or 6 games at once for months at a time in each effort). I quit both times. Here's why.
I'm not a seriously competitive person usually. I mean, we all have our moments, but for the most part, I don't mind losing a game or two here and there. In fact, when it comes to Monopoly, I always lose... usually because I got bored and moved on halfway through. Seriously. Dullest.Game.EVER!
But I digress...
You see, when playing "Words With Friends", I like to come up with a word that will BLOW THE MIND of my competition. I want a the highest point word possible with the hand I've been dealt. I can't just play the first word I see for whatever points I can get. Even after two days of looking for a high-point word, I won't play a teensie word for next-to-no points. It's not within me. But I don't have the time to spend 30 minutes regularly trying to come up with a high point word. So instead of just playing whatever word comes to mind for whatever points I get and having fun with it, I let my games sit for so long that they time out and I inadvertently forfeit.
Yep, for me, in word games, it's be awesome or go home. I'd rather lose because I stalled-out than lose by 2 points because I played a stupid word.
Ridiculous. I know.
What are YOUR crazy-town invitations? You KNOW you have them!
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Sunday, February 13, 2011
All You Need Is Love
About a week ago, I discovered my sweet, little baby is old enough to be swapping Valentine's at daycare. I'll be honest. I'm not 100% sure how I feel about that... but I do know that if we're going to swap Valentine's, I want them to be C.U.T.E.!!! ;)
I'll be honest again. I didn't originate either of these ideas. I'm a big, fat copier. ;-p
These flowers are for the mailboxes of each of her classmates.
These wax paper hearts full of candy are for her teachers and I got the idea from Kelli @ Random Thoughts of a Supermom.
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Wordless Wednesdays - Gifts from Japan
Granna just got back from Japan, where she went for the birth of our sweet niece, Kensi. She brought us back lots of cool presents, but I think this is my favorite. (If you look closely, you can see it even came with the cute wooden shoes. Adorable!)
"Tucker, look at Mommy and smile."
"No, look AT Mommy, not past her."
"There we go... sort of." ;)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Monday, February 07, 2011
Monday Morning Wrap-Up
I know you're all DYING to know my responses to all that aired last night.
Football? I think I heard something about a football game being on maybe? I didn't watch a minute of it... all season. Pro anyway.
But the rest of it was fabulous!!!
Well, that's not true, but it was at least blog-worthy.
To begin with, the commercial load wasn't nearly as jam-packed with fabulousness as usual. I mean, there were some gems (and I'll get to that), but way too many "reruns" as my friend Will kept calling them. :)
Now, Christina, honey, I GET the pressure when it comes to remembering the words to the National Anthem. When you're singing in front of a crowd, your thoughts are more concerned with the HORROR of messing up the words than actually trying to remember the words. Seriously. Try it one day, folks. But Christina, you are worth somewhere around 5 katrillion dollars. You employ probably near-abouts 4,000 people. Get one of them to stand somewhere in your line of vision with giant posters containing the words OR get a friggin teleprompter. WAY better than flubbing the words to the National Anthem during the SUPER BOWL!!!
You'll be surprised to know, however, that her word flub is NOT my biggest bone to pick with her (and about 3/4 of the rest of National Anthem singers everywhere). WHY? Why, why, why, why, WHY do you feel it necessary to quadrouple the number of notes in the song? WHY do you think it makes you awesome to add so many flourishes and runs and weird additions to the tune that it becomes almost entirely unrecognizible? I think that's more of a faux pas than the flubbing of the words. At least the words thing was a mistake. You did the rest of the song-ruining intentionally. I have a rule when it comes to singing (and incidentally, her version of "Silent Night" is my PRIME example I use when sharing this rule... well, her and Mariah Carey ANYTHING). "Just because you CAN doesn't mean you SHOULD."
"Halftime Show?" you ask. I liked all the white catsuits. I liked all the lit-up people with power sources for belly buttons. I liked the cool things the catsuit-people did (except for all of the crooked lines and people half-dancing during close-ups). The staging was pretty awesome.
The Peas, however? BLECH! They sounded awful!! Everytime I hear them live, I think, "They should really lip-synch in live performances because they use too much post-production touch ups on their cds." Their live performances are always a disappointment to me. And "Good night"? "Boom Boom Pow"? REALLY?!? Pick a new song to perform. I've never bought an album, but you MUST have more than just those 2 songs. They were good the first 4 million times I heard them, but they play on the radio almost every third song, and you've sung them at every major event in America for the past 2 years or so. Geesh! Oh, and Fergie, WHO were you holding the mic out to? In an auditorium for a concert, there are fans a few feet from you and their voices MIGHT pick up on the mic. But in a football stadium where you have 2,000 dancers and half a football field plus some peanut vendors between you and the next fan singing along, what did you think that mic was going to pick up? Just wondering.
Now, onto my favorite commercials for the night. (in no particular order)
Football? I think I heard something about a football game being on maybe? I didn't watch a minute of it... all season. Pro anyway.
But the rest of it was fabulous!!!
Well, that's not true, but it was at least blog-worthy.
To begin with, the commercial load wasn't nearly as jam-packed with fabulousness as usual. I mean, there were some gems (and I'll get to that), but way too many "reruns" as my friend Will kept calling them. :)
Now, Christina, honey, I GET the pressure when it comes to remembering the words to the National Anthem. When you're singing in front of a crowd, your thoughts are more concerned with the HORROR of messing up the words than actually trying to remember the words. Seriously. Try it one day, folks. But Christina, you are worth somewhere around 5 katrillion dollars. You employ probably near-abouts 4,000 people. Get one of them to stand somewhere in your line of vision with giant posters containing the words OR get a friggin teleprompter. WAY better than flubbing the words to the National Anthem during the SUPER BOWL!!!
You'll be surprised to know, however, that her word flub is NOT my biggest bone to pick with her (and about 3/4 of the rest of National Anthem singers everywhere). WHY? Why, why, why, why, WHY do you feel it necessary to quadrouple the number of notes in the song? WHY do you think it makes you awesome to add so many flourishes and runs and weird additions to the tune that it becomes almost entirely unrecognizible? I think that's more of a faux pas than the flubbing of the words. At least the words thing was a mistake. You did the rest of the song-ruining intentionally. I have a rule when it comes to singing (and incidentally, her version of "Silent Night" is my PRIME example I use when sharing this rule... well, her and Mariah Carey ANYTHING). "Just because you CAN doesn't mean you SHOULD."
"Halftime Show?" you ask. I liked all the white catsuits. I liked all the lit-up people with power sources for belly buttons. I liked the cool things the catsuit-people did (except for all of the crooked lines and people half-dancing during close-ups). The staging was pretty awesome.
The Peas, however? BLECH! They sounded awful!! Everytime I hear them live, I think, "They should really lip-synch in live performances because they use too much post-production touch ups on their cds." Their live performances are always a disappointment to me. And "Good night"? "Boom Boom Pow"? REALLY?!? Pick a new song to perform. I've never bought an album, but you MUST have more than just those 2 songs. They were good the first 4 million times I heard them, but they play on the radio almost every third song, and you've sung them at every major event in America for the past 2 years or so. Geesh! Oh, and Fergie, WHO were you holding the mic out to? In an auditorium for a concert, there are fans a few feet from you and their voices MIGHT pick up on the mic. But in a football stadium where you have 2,000 dancers and half a football field plus some peanut vendors between you and the next fan singing along, what did you think that mic was going to pick up? Just wondering.
Now, onto my favorite commercials for the night. (in no particular order)
- Chevy's "Best First Date Ever" got an extended "Awwwwww" from our living room - well, the female half, anyway.
- Darth Vader starting the car with his mind? I think that was Chevy as well. Seriously?!? SO CUTE!!!
- Audi's "Release the hounds!" with Kenny G - pretty fabulous. The "hounds" were my favorite part.
- Motorola's _1984_ type commercial with the drones in white coats and the guy with the flowers? Very cute and unique
- Bridgestone with the beaver? Almost (that's a big distinction) as good as my favorite Pep Boys commercial with the Moose ("You get them brakes at Pep Boys? Preciate it.")
And the award for the commercial you were MOST ashamed you did a spit-take for?
Timothy Hutton for Groupon. With the crisis in Tibet? And the Groupon for the Tibetan restaurant? Seriously - I almost spit my drink across the living room. Such a spot-on mockery of the American attitude towards serious issues in our world. (If you assume a Valley Girl accent and twirl your hair, maybe smack some pretend gum, it'll really clinch this one for you.) "The problems in Tibet? Absolutely horrible. I'm in total support of us helping them. That's why I eat their awesome chicken at this Tibetan place at least once a week. It HAS to help them, right?" LOVED IT! (Posted it as my FB status and then immediately saw one of my high school friends saying how offended he was by it. Oops!)
It WAS tacky, but isn't MOST of our culture's favorite humor at the moment mocking how insensitive and selfish and ridiculous we can all be? Anyone seen "The Office" or "Modern Family"?
Loved it!
And Glee, you ask? I'll sum up quickly. Love Puck. Love Blaine. Think I actually like the Warblers better than New Directions.
I hope you all had a great weekend! Oh, and hey, how'd that football-thingy turn out? ;)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Friday, February 04, 2011
Possibly the cutest thing you've ever seen, no?Yep, she's precious... especially when she sleeps.
But we've been fighting off something on and off since around Thanksgiving. We have a fever and cough that we just can NOT shake. And on nights when that fever spikes up, it usually equals a wide-awake two-year-old at around 4:30am, which happened this morning.
Now, we're not usually kid-in-the-bed kind of people. But when the option is get UP at 4:30am on a work day with no nap in sight or put the kid in our bed, she comes into our bed. She'll usually go back to sleep in a relatively short period of time.
The drawback?
That's my pillow and the amount of room generally left for me. Actually, that's a generous portion of matress compared to the norm when she joins us. Yikes!
I hope you all have a great weekend!
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Monday, January 31, 2011
The Drivey-Drive
Tucker hasn't quite figured out how to steer her car. I mean, she can. She just doesn't seem to care at all. She just drives in circles until either you turn her steering wheel or she hits something. I can't help but laugh... hysterically... every.single.time. Enjoy!
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Wordless... Thursdays?
*Riding the train at the mall for the first time*
"Choo Choo!!!"
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Too Much Fun
*Do you love this "Flashdance" outfit she's rocking? It's of her own choosing - from the tutu to the extra headband. A fashionista in our midst, folks.*I'm so sorry for my lack of blogging lately. I'll be honest. My life is nuts. There's work, the two-year-old, getting ready for Scrapbook camp, and about 5 million other things that I won't mention here. My brain is just otherwise-occupied, so that even when I find time to blog (which is rare), I can't come up with anything I can blog about. All my thoughts are either dull, topics I'm not ready to share (no, I'm not pregnant), or topics that are just not blog-worthy - ie NOT funny or inspiring.
While we wait on my real brain to return, I thought I'd share with you the conversations filling my days these days.
To the doctor at the end of a visit: "Thank you for seeing me today."
While I was going potty and right after she went potty: "Good job, Mommy! You get your M&Ms?"
After almost every single activity for weeks now: "Mommy, we had TOO MUCH FUN today!"
After another doctor visit today: "Mommy, I had TOO MUCH FUN at the doctor today!"
After putting on her new shoes and while modeling them for me: "Mommy, thank you for getting my new shoes!" (Man, I hope this politeness sticks around for a while!)
While already driving down the road on the way to church: "Daddy, can you crank the car? It's cold!"
And my favorite:
Yelled from upstairs where napping is supposed to be happening:
"Mommy? MOMMY?!? Mommy, what's tomorrow? It's Saturday?"
Me: "No, tomorrow is Wednesday."
"Oh, ok. Just making sure."
Hahaha!!! Seriously, we stay in giggles around our house.
I hope this finds you all well!
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Genetics - Part Deux - A Translation
For those of you who don't know the actual words to "Do Your Ears Hang Low"
Do your ears hang low?
Do they wobble to and fro?
Can you tie them in a knot?
Can you tie them in a bow?
Can you throw them over your shoulder like a Continental soldier?
Do your ears hang low?
You're welcome. ;)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Do your ears hang low?
Do they wobble to and fro?
Can you tie them in a knot?
Can you tie them in a bow?
Can you throw them over your shoulder like a Continental soldier?
Do your ears hang low?
You're welcome. ;)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Genetics
Do you remember a few months back (here) when I discussed my love of making up what song lyrics sound like when I can't figure out what they actually are?
Turns out, it's genetic.
And I don't want to build this up too much, but I'm pretty sure, this is the greatest re-write in the history of all lyric-making-up-dom. (I'm pretty sure that's the perfect amount of build-up.)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Turns out, it's genetic.
And I don't want to build this up too much, but I'm pretty sure, this is the greatest re-write in the history of all lyric-making-up-dom. (I'm pretty sure that's the perfect amount of build-up.)
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Friday, January 14, 2011
Snow M. G.!!!
For those of you who don't know, we got snow in the South - lots of it - and it stayed...
and stayed...
and stayed!
Tucker is very into rainbows (aka - anything with a semicircle anywhere in or on it).
"Mommy, it's a rainbow!!!"
The average depth in our yard.
Last time I saw snow this deep in the South was in '93.
This is the layer of ice on top of all that snow that developed when it sleeted the day after the snow and stayed cold enough to freeze it all.
Can you tell where the curb is? Our cul de sac was almost completely filled with snow!!!
This was possibly the craziest part to me. I took this picture at 11pm without a flash. It was snowing so hard that it looked like daylight outside. CRAZY!
Our besties - Ashie and Will
Hands down - Cutest Picture Ever!!!
It was HARD WORK for T to walk in all that snow!
It was HARD WORK for T to walk in all that snow!
That's some seriously deep snow!
Snow cream chilling outside while we ate dinner
Tucker thought Daddy shoveling was a RIOT! :)
Do you see the lump of snow under her hand? That's the snowwoman's heart that Tucker made and placed. (I <3 her.)
Snow cream chilling outside while we ate dinner
Tucker thought Daddy shoveling was a RIOT! :)
Do you see the lump of snow under her hand? That's the snowwoman's heart that Tucker made and placed. (I <3 her.)
Love & Shipoopies (and a yard still full of snow a full week later),
Leslie
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...
...how droopy are your branches!!!
Confession time.
See this picture of our house in the snow?
It snowed on the night of January 9th. And it caught me with my wreaths up.
And my tree...
and my other zillion Christmas decorations.
That's right, folks! I'm a complete procrastinator when it comes to taking down my Christmas decorations. It's party because I LOVE THEM!!!! And it's partly because I'm Methodist, so I actually like having the tree up until Epiphany (Jan 6th). But it's mostly for two reasons:
1.) I really enjoy my short break that I get and want to spend it doing other things and
2.) My house seems so empty without them.
I was raised in a house with conflicting views on when to remove the decorations. My father was raised Catholic (and also doesn't actually put up or take down Christmas decorations - Sorry, Dad, but the truth hurts sometimes - haha!), so he always thinks the tree should stay up until January 6th. My mom knows that taking the decorations down takes time and energy, so she wants to get them down quickly so she can have it done and still have a little time to rest before starting back to school. Usually there was a compromise that ended in the tree coming down on New Year's Day.
I talked to my Aunt Nan, and she was in a rush to get hers down as soon after Christmas as she could. Her reasoning? "My house seems so CLEAN once they're all boxed up!"
Isn't it funny how perspective can change anything? For her, it seems clean. For me, it makes everything else in my house seem small, boring, and insignificant.
We did, during one of our snow-trapped evenings, get everything down and boxed up but the tree and the outdoor wreaths. Nowhere to put the tree (garbage pick-up was snowed-out this week) and no WAY I'm letting the hubs climb on the roof or a ladder in the ice that is covering everything to get those wreaths down! But, to be honest, I will cherish any last days I can squeeze out of the decorations.
One last thought. In church the Sunday between Christmas and Epiphany, our preacher talked about taking down the decorations and how some people love to "put Christmas away". She warned us all that we can pack up the glitz and sparkle of Christmas, but to be sure we don't pack Christ away like he's seasonal. Nice. :)
What's your style on getting Christmas decorations up and taking them down?
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Friday, January 07, 2011
Randomness: A Trilogy, in 4 Parts*
1.) When picking out a blanket, be it for cuddling on the couch or to cover my bed while I sleep, I find the most important factor is weight. The thickest, warmest blanket out there will still leave me feeling cold unless it's heavy enough to really weigh on my body as it covers me.
*Seriously random, I know.
2.) Have you ever:
a. Had someone say something so rude, self-absorbed, and nasty that you
b. Laid-out a sharp-tongued, well-planned line of sarcasm beginning with the classic "Well, I'm just SOOOOO sorry for...."
c.) Gotten NO response
d.) And wondered, "Was my biting and amazingly brilliant sarcasm so cutting that they realized the error of their selfish, rude, horrid ways OR are they SOOO self-absorbed that they ACTUALLY thought I was apologizing?!?"
3.) I've sent something out there in the world and just the act of beginning the process has me all giddy inside and nervous. Those of you who are prayers, please pray that God fulfills his plan with it, even if it's not what MY plan for it is. :) (Vague enough for you?!?)
4.) Yesterday, our sweet niece, Kensi Elisabeth made her debut to the world! She was born in Japan to the hubs's brother, Matthew and his wife, Shawna. She's quite adorable and looks much like her big brother, Eli, did upon his arrival. We are so happy for them and can't wait to meet her in person (months and months away :( boo).
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
*If you've never read a trilogy in 4 parts, I highly recommend you go find the book _In Our Humble Opinion_ written by Click and Clack (from NPR's "Car Talk"). It's a riot and totally from wence I stole my title and to what I am paying homage. :)
*Seriously random, I know.
2.) Have you ever:
a. Had someone say something so rude, self-absorbed, and nasty that you
b. Laid-out a sharp-tongued, well-planned line of sarcasm beginning with the classic "Well, I'm just SOOOOO sorry for...."
c.) Gotten NO response
d.) And wondered, "Was my biting and amazingly brilliant sarcasm so cutting that they realized the error of their selfish, rude, horrid ways OR are they SOOO self-absorbed that they ACTUALLY thought I was apologizing?!?"
3.) I've sent something out there in the world and just the act of beginning the process has me all giddy inside and nervous. Those of you who are prayers, please pray that God fulfills his plan with it, even if it's not what MY plan for it is. :) (Vague enough for you?!?)
4.) Yesterday, our sweet niece, Kensi Elisabeth made her debut to the world! She was born in Japan to the hubs's brother, Matthew and his wife, Shawna. She's quite adorable and looks much like her big brother, Eli, did upon his arrival. We are so happy for them and can't wait to meet her in person (months and months away :( boo).
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
*If you've never read a trilogy in 4 parts, I highly recommend you go find the book _In Our Humble Opinion_ written by Click and Clack (from NPR's "Car Talk"). It's a riot and totally from wence I stole my title and to what I am paying homage. :)
Thursday, January 06, 2011
Hot Dog!!!
If you don't watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse everyday, you may not recognize this song.
But you'll still recognize the goober dancing to it. :)
*I love how she's singing so boldly and then remembers I'm filming and stops, smiling shyly at me. That's why I started the video from behind. If she saw the camera from the start, she never would've danced for me.*
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
But you'll still recognize the goober dancing to it. :)
*I love how she's singing so boldly and then remembers I'm filming and stops, smiling shyly at me. That's why I started the video from behind. If she saw the camera from the start, she never would've danced for me.*
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Didn't we pass that tree an hour ago?
This is my two-year-old. (2.5 to be precise.) She is a goober. As my cousin Paige says, "She comes by that naturally."
True story, my friends. True story.
Here's another thing you may or may not know about her. She has a BIG head. I don't just mean kind of big. I mean off the charts (literally off the charts the doctors use with "percentiles" and such), grew so much so fast at one point, they watched its growth for a month and threatened a scan to make sure she didn't have fluid around her brain kind of big. She comes by this naturally as well. We're a family full of big-noggins!
One consequence of her large head is that, well, sometimes her clothes don't really want to go over her head. Sometimes, even the ones WITH buttons or snaps at the neck won't go over her head. And you can just about FORGET trying a shirt without some sort of closure to make the opening get bigger while trying to cram a head through. It rarely happens. In fact, every Alabama cheerleading outfit she's had (read as BOTH, as she's only had two), we've had to kind of clip along the shoulder seams to make the head hole big enough, and even after doing that, I pretty much made her cry because it took me so long to pull her head through it. (No pain no gain, right?)
She used to get really upset anytime we had to REALLY pull to get a shirt on. To be honest, she still does sometimes. But I've tried to make a joke out of it. You know how when your kid falls down and you have that one moment where you can kind of laugh it off and they'll follow your lead instead of melting into a puddle of sadness? I have tried to do that with the whole cramming her head into too small head holes thing.
I'll say, "Shooo, you've got a BIG OL' NOGGIN, girl!!!" She thinks it's funny. It helps.
Even funnier? The time I crammed her head through a neck hole and she said, "Mommy, I got a big ol' noggin!"
Yep. Precious.
It's so cute, in fact, that last night, while at a visitation for a family funeral (where everyone knew/loved Tucker and welcomed the joyful, childish distraction she offered), I asked her, "Tucker, why is it so hard to put shirts on?"
"I got a BIG OL' NOGGIN!!!" *Said while patting her forehead*
Laughter. Preciousness. Mommy beaming at just how adorable her child is.
*Yes, I realize I'm ridiculous. I came to grips with it ages and ages ago.*
Then we get in the car to drive home.
"Mommy, why is it hard to put shirts on?"
"You tell me."
" 'Cause the shirts and I had a big ol' noggin' and 'cause girls not need shirts."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
.
.
.
"Mommy, why is it hard to put shirts on?"
"I don't know. Why?"
"'Cause I got a big ol' noggin and girls don't need shirts."
"Well, girls DO need shirts sometimes. They either wear shirts and pants or dresses."
*We had a discussion the day before about why Daddy didn't wear dresses like Tucker and Mommy, and instead wore shirt and pants. I'm sure that's where this part came from.*
"Oh. "
.
.
.
"Mommy, why is it hard to put shirts on?"
Didn't we pass this tree an hour ago? I SWEAR we're driving in circles here.
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
Monday, December 27, 2010
Snow Lost, Puddles Gained, and a Scot
I love Christmas. I love the decorations. I love the trees (as you probably already discovered). I love the presents (most especially the finding of perfect presents to give people). I love the vacation time. I love the family time.
I'll be honest. I did NOT love loading my car and driving away during my first Christmas day snow at my home in my entire life to drive for 3 hours to central Alabama where it was merely cold and raining. Even my love for spending Christmas day with my parents, Munner, aunts, uncles, and multitude of cousins just BARELY overcame my desire to enjoy my first White Christmas (excluding our honeymoon in NYC which happened to be Christmas, as the hubs reminds me each time I make this statement). It didn't help that less than half of my large family made it to my grandmother's that night, so even though I left 4 inches in my yard and drove through a driving snow (or rather Drew did), I only got to see a small portion of my enormous, boisterous family. (Though I assure you I thoroughly enjoyed my visit with those that were there.)
Then there's the Scot... from Alabama. My cousin (second cousin, to be precise) Jake, who was born in Alabama, alumned at the University of Alabama, and Seminaried (yes, I know this isn't really a word) in Birmingham, is now officially a Scot - delightfully so. We were great friends as children and occassional friends as teenagers and through college. We decided the last time we saw each other was at his wedding (8 years ago). He's now been living in Scotland with his lovely wife, Chris, for almost 6 years. He was in town for the holidays, so we got together for a visit.
He's enjoying himself. He's become a doctor (PhD, that is... in Theology, none the less). But his most important accomplishment? He's developed a lovely Scoh-ish accent. I think we'd all agree his perceived intellect at least doubled with this development. Even I, an open grammar freak, found myself watching my sentence formation and Southern twang as we talked. :) (What is it about an accent from England, Ireland, or Scotland that makes one seem so much more intelligent than the rest of us?!?) I've decided I'm taking my 2 year old and we're moving in with them for a while so she and I can both develop a bit of that brilliance that comes with the accent.
It's an important goal of mine.
I kid... sort of.
(In brutal honesty, when I was pregnant, I told Drew that I wanted to take dialect classes to learn a British accent just so our child would speak with one because I think little ones who sound like Brits are delightful.)
All this to say Christmas is being enjoyed thoroughly by the Bowers family. We do it the whole week after Christmas (since we have so many cities to hit and don't get to start until Christmas day). I'll try to blog at least sporadically while we celebrate.
Oh, and Jake, I know you say you feel like an outsider on my blog and are, thus, disinclined to comment (see how much my vocabulary improves when speaking to the Scot?!?). You have now officially been introduced to my small audience. You've earned your membership card. Join the club. :)
Love, Shipoopies, & Merry Christmas,
Leslie
I'll be honest. I did NOT love loading my car and driving away during my first Christmas day snow at my home in my entire life to drive for 3 hours to central Alabama where it was merely cold and raining. Even my love for spending Christmas day with my parents, Munner, aunts, uncles, and multitude of cousins just BARELY overcame my desire to enjoy my first White Christmas (excluding our honeymoon in NYC which happened to be Christmas, as the hubs reminds me each time I make this statement). It didn't help that less than half of my large family made it to my grandmother's that night, so even though I left 4 inches in my yard and drove through a driving snow (or rather Drew did), I only got to see a small portion of my enormous, boisterous family. (Though I assure you I thoroughly enjoyed my visit with those that were there.)
Then there's the Scot... from Alabama. My cousin (second cousin, to be precise) Jake, who was born in Alabama, alumned at the University of Alabama, and Seminaried (yes, I know this isn't really a word) in Birmingham, is now officially a Scot - delightfully so. We were great friends as children and occassional friends as teenagers and through college. We decided the last time we saw each other was at his wedding (8 years ago). He's now been living in Scotland with his lovely wife, Chris, for almost 6 years. He was in town for the holidays, so we got together for a visit.
He's enjoying himself. He's become a doctor (PhD, that is... in Theology, none the less). But his most important accomplishment? He's developed a lovely Scoh-ish accent. I think we'd all agree his perceived intellect at least doubled with this development. Even I, an open grammar freak, found myself watching my sentence formation and Southern twang as we talked. :) (What is it about an accent from England, Ireland, or Scotland that makes one seem so much more intelligent than the rest of us?!?) I've decided I'm taking my 2 year old and we're moving in with them for a while so she and I can both develop a bit of that brilliance that comes with the accent.
It's an important goal of mine.
I kid... sort of.
(In brutal honesty, when I was pregnant, I told Drew that I wanted to take dialect classes to learn a British accent just so our child would speak with one because I think little ones who sound like Brits are delightful.)
All this to say Christmas is being enjoyed thoroughly by the Bowers family. We do it the whole week after Christmas (since we have so many cities to hit and don't get to start until Christmas day). I'll try to blog at least sporadically while we celebrate.
Oh, and Jake, I know you say you feel like an outsider on my blog and are, thus, disinclined to comment (see how much my vocabulary improves when speaking to the Scot?!?). You have now officially been introduced to my small audience. You've earned your membership card. Join the club. :)
Love, Shipoopies, & Merry Christmas,
Leslie
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
I Just Don't Know!!
Those of you who know me (or read me regularly) know I can sometimes get worked-up over the misuse of our language. That's not to say I speak (or type) perfectly or that I judge everything I read or hear.
BUT...
Some mistakes are just so blatant and inexplicable that they must be called-out. For instance:
I must admit, I've never actually set foot in a Bojangles. I think maybe once my in-laws brought me a biscuit from there, but that's the extent of my experience with the chain.
But I do sit at a red light right beside one every single time I come home from anywhere. Each time, as I sit there, I look at this sign and am FLABERGASTED... well, maybe flumoxed? Befuddled? Irritated... yes that's it. Irritated!!!
WHAT is with that apostrophe?!? It's not in the right place to make it an establishment owned by a guy named Bojangle (Bojangle's), NOR is it in the right place to make it a place owned by a group of people with the last name Bojangle (Bojangles'). The only other option for its purpose is as an accent (think fiance'), but I can't, for the life of me, figure out how the heck one stresses an "S" at the very end of a word.
Try it. It can't be done.
I am baffled. Is it for decor? Is it meant to be a hat for the letter s? Perhaps a feather, making the S either Native American or a Las Vegas showgirl?
I wish I knew Bojangle Smith OR a member of the family Bojangle.
This mystery is right up there with Amelia Earhardt (did anyone read that article this week?) and Area 51.
Puzzling.
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
BUT...
Some mistakes are just so blatant and inexplicable that they must be called-out. For instance:
I must admit, I've never actually set foot in a Bojangles. I think maybe once my in-laws brought me a biscuit from there, but that's the extent of my experience with the chain.
But I do sit at a red light right beside one every single time I come home from anywhere. Each time, as I sit there, I look at this sign and am FLABERGASTED... well, maybe flumoxed? Befuddled? Irritated... yes that's it. Irritated!!!
WHAT is with that apostrophe?!? It's not in the right place to make it an establishment owned by a guy named Bojangle (Bojangle's), NOR is it in the right place to make it a place owned by a group of people with the last name Bojangle (Bojangles'). The only other option for its purpose is as an accent (think fiance'), but I can't, for the life of me, figure out how the heck one stresses an "S" at the very end of a word.
Try it. It can't be done.
I am baffled. Is it for decor? Is it meant to be a hat for the letter s? Perhaps a feather, making the S either Native American or a Las Vegas showgirl?
I wish I knew Bojangle Smith OR a member of the family Bojangle.
This mystery is right up there with Amelia Earhardt (did anyone read that article this week?) and Area 51.
Puzzling.
Love & Shipoopies,
Leslie
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