Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Actress Christina Applegate was on Oprah today talking about her breast cancer and double mastectomy. If you missed it, see part of the clip here. And schedule your mammogram TODAY!

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

I love Dancing with the Stars. Period.

Maybe I need therapy. Maybe it's the sight of celebs out of their comfort zone on the verge of looking goofy. For whatever reason, I love this show! This season of DWTS looks pretty decent. I LOVE Cloris Leachman (I hope I'm that brazen and mobile when I'm 82). And local hero Maurice Green is holding his own. Don't forget to vote for him! We have a KC Idol, now we need a KC Dancing Champ!

Any predictions on who'll be the next to bite the dust?

Friday, September 19, 2008

Holiday gifts made easy

I can't believe I'm thinking of the holidays already, but I am. With four kids and a fairly big extended family, if I don't get a head start it gets crazy! And I've learned the hard way how expensive last-minute impulse shopping can be (ugh). We've reached that "really, truly, we don't NEED anything" stage, and have asked that relatives simply spend time with us. It's better than cheap, it's priceless! Fortunately, no one has said "well, we'd rather do a gift certificate" - ha
For the kids, we suggest memberships to places like the KC Zoo, the pool, or even movie tickets. Last year my BIL (genius!) gave them pool passes and Sonic gift cards and they loved it! Though, I thought they would explode before the pool opened (December to May is a very long time if you are eight). The best part - they can use the gift again and again and there are no pieces to assemble or things to outgrow.

How have you changed your holiday gift-giving routine?

Most Dangerous Celebs in Cyberspace

Watch out who you Google! Brad Pitt has overtaken Paris Hilton as the most dangerous celebrity to search for in cyberspace, according to McAfee. Fans searching for Brad Pitt, Brad Pitt downloads, and Brad Pitt wallpaper, screen savers and pictures have an 18% chance of having their PCs infected with online threats, such as spyware, spam, phishing, adware, viruses and other malware. Paris Hilton, who topped 2007's most dangerous celebrities, is noticeably absent from this year's list. Also absent is Britney Spears, who was ranked No. 4 in 2007.
The most dangerous celebs in cyberspace:
1. Brad Pitt
2. Beyoncé
3. Justin Timberlake
4. Heidi Montag
5. Mariah Carey
6. Jessica Alba
7. Lindsay Lohan
8. Cameron Diaz
9. (Tie) George Clooney
9. (Tie) Rihanna
11. Angelina Jolie
12. Fergie
13. (Tie) David Beckham
13. (Tie) Katie Holmes
15. Katherine Heigl

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Clean out those closets!

How many Shrek Chia pets does one woman need? And outgrown jammies? And Tupperware without seals? Did I really buy that pair of suede plaid pumps? Yikes - it's time for a serious closet overhaul at my house. I'm in that weird autumn "nesting" mode - must be the fall-ish weather. No matter. By week's end I'm hoping to have a pile of boxes stuffed with charitable donations. And it looks like the timing is perfect! Thrift Shops Thriving But Running Low on Stock

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Start Thinking Holidays!

Need to freshen up that Christmas tree decor? Check out Bronner's Christmas Favorites catalog. I think I'm gonna get the Tut for Dan.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

More Garden Goodies

Well, I planted my carrots too close together and my cukes are curvy, but at least something is growing! Could it be my black thumb is turning over a new leaf? Guess Chloe thinks so - she ate the carrots right after this picture was taken! Yum!

Radio Yoga

Monday, September 8, 2008

Pay attention!

This article from AOL is right on the money. Whatever you are doing can wait until you get where you are going!!!

Friday, September 5, 2008

Happy Birthday, Trenton!!

WOW! 10 years ago today I gave birth to my son, the only boy in a nest of chicks. He arrived shortly after a 6-hour road trip to Oklahoma - but for the grace of God he could have been born on the side of I-35 on a Labor Day weekend Friday! He's a super cool awesome kid and we love him very much!!! Here's a pic of his "cake". Happy Birthday, T!

Thursday, September 4, 2008

It's Picture Day!

School Picture Day was always one of the most traumatizing, dreaded, stress-inducing events of my school years. My shirt never seemed quite right, my smile always turned out goofy, and it was a major challenge to keep from bumping my feathered and Spritzed bangs before the photo session. And heaven forbid it would rain!

Well, the "new" hasn't yet worn off of the kids' haircuts, and here it is Picture Day again. So, last night I spent an hour coordinating shirts (making sure that each was wearing a favorite, of course). Then I realized that we have 5-6 background colors from which to choose. Do I need this much choice? Gray has always worked well, but who can turn a cold shoulder to the opportunity to have a purple background on their school picture? We just got a new couch, so now I'm thinking the background has to coordinate with the new couch, so purple is out. What about the red? Sassy and vibrant...but it would clash with one of the shirts. Scratch red. Maybe if we put the pictures in the dining room this year instead of the living room, we could do the blue....or maybe the hall since the green would set off the background chair cushion....


We went with gray.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Crunch Time

Yikes! Going to the grocery store is getting scary! Trying to keep good, healthy snacks in the house without draining the bank account is a challenge. I used to spend a lot of time checking the circulars and flyers and running around town to grab the best deals. But with gas so high now, I'm eating up my savings in fuel.

What are you doing to cut costs at your house?

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Success!

See, Dan? I CAN grow more than one vegetable at a time :)

Somewhere between the wheat fields...


Just got back from a trip to the barren wilds of Norwich, KS. Where is that? Somewhere between two wheat fields in the middle of way-out-there Kansas. Visiting my in-laws and sister-in-law. We ate BBQ and hung out at Suppesville for breakfast. I've not been in many restaurants where the waitstaff knows each patron by name...very interesting. And check out this Kansas Katydid!

19 days until boot season begins!!!