Expounding

I'm not sure if the words will flow any more freely today, but I feel the need to expound upon the thoughts in my last post.

You see it all started with a little trip down memory lane prompted by this whole Facebook thing. I have been connecting a lot with old friends, mainly from college (Go Buffs!). So in my reminiscing I thought it would be fun to pull out our old yearbooks and refresh my memory on days long past.

I may have misrepresented my thoughts last evening. I guess that is the danger in posting something when words are not flowing freely. I was not unhappy at that time of my life, some of my best memories are from my college days. Rich and I had plenty of chuckles over the photographs. Wish I had a scanner, I'd post some of them for you! After all, I met Rich, and fell in love, and was blessed with some of the best friends a girl could ever hope for (you know who you are!). And we are still friends to this day.

However, amidst the reminiscing and the silly pictures, there was one that really caught my eye. It grabbed me. And it got me thinking about the girl I was then. A young girl. An inexperienced girl. A girl who was unsure of her possibilities and potential. And I had this longing to sit down with her and share all that I know now. A desire to impart a little of the wisdom I have gained since then. Of course, as some of you indicated in your comments, that wisdom cannot be told, it can only be lived. And I get that. I really do. But I still kind of wished that for her.

I suppose there is a part of me who would like to go back to those carefree, younger days (and Jamie, don't think that losing 30 lbs in a matter of seconds doesn't play a part in that wish ;-), but I like who I am now. I like who I have become. I'm more comfortable in my own skin, even if it isn't quite as luminescent as it once was.

And I have a feeling that in another ten years I'll look back on the posts and pictures in this blog and wonder again who the girl was who wrote them and long to sit down and impart the wisdom to her from another decade of living. And even though I will know even more so that such wisdom cannot be told, only lived. I think I'll still wish that for her.

Sigh

I can't seem to put my thoughts into any sort of cohesive structure. Such as those little things we call sentences and paragraphs? I've attempted to write on a couple of different subjects and where sometimes the words just flow, tonight they need to be plucked, one by one.

And it's painful.

And I'm getting nowhere.

And I don't know why.

And I'm frustrated.

Because I have so much I want to tell.

Nothing earth shattering, mind you, just thoughts that I'd like to set free. Thoughts I'd like to formulate. Because when I do that, I seem to understand them better myself.

I'd like to explore how in looking at a picture of myself from 10 years ago this evening, I couldn't help but wonder who that person even was? How I not only didn't look the same, my very being was not the same. How I'd love to impart to that girl the wisdom I have attained in the years since that day. How I wish I could tell her that she was good enough, and pretty enough, and smart enough, and talented enough. And that even if she wasn't it would really be okay.

Sigh. If the words were flowing freely, I'd write about that, and more...

Flip Flop Roll Call

~Okay, guys. You should have purchased and shipped your flops by now! Many of you should have received them as well. Let me know where you are at in the process. Have you shipped? Have you received? Also, don't forget to take a picture for the Bloggy Flip Flop Carnival coming up this week! Please answer the roll call via comment or email. Once most of you have received I will start the carnival so we can see all the cute flops!~

Four Years Ago Today...

Our family changed forever...













And I wouldn't have it any other way!

Happy Birthday, sweet William!

Items Removed from my Purse

So. I cleaned out my purse today and this is what I found...

2 Mike and Ike candy pieces, green, slightly smushed

1 M&M, yellow, in tact

1 Thank You Card, nicely written

1 bag of 100 calorie Wheat Thins, half eaten

1 bag of 100 calorie Ritz Snack Mix, completely eaten, with gum inside

Church Bulletin, with no gum inside...surprising

1 baggie of chocolate chip cookies left over from Kindermusik party, smashed to smithereens

1 Snow cone spoon, sans snow cone

3 grocery lists, of shopping past

1 CD of Beethoven's 5th Symphony, gift from Richie's music teacher

Various and sundry other items of trash, including, but not limited to...gum wrappers, used handi wipes, most likely used kleenexes, etc.

Crumbs, plethora of

And now I leave you with my purse cleaning tip of the day: Dustbusters work quite nicely for removing crumbs from the bottom of one's purse.

Thank you.

And now if you feel so motivated to clean your own purse, please feel free to share your discarded items with me as well. After all, you just lost several minutes of your life reading this completely useless information, it's only fair you return the favor.

Did You Know?

Did you know that Picasa Web Albums from Google are linked to Blogger and all of the photos you post on your blog are automatically uploaded to Picasa?

VERY COOL.

Check it out for yourself.

Mommy's Day Tea

This year there was a tea at William's preschool for "Mommy's Day". It was so WONDERFUL!

Will and Mommy

Even the chairs were decorated!

The Placemat
(you must read what it says...see below for a closer look)

It says, "This is to certify that my Mom is the greatest! Because: She is a girl!

A little present for Mommy. Don't you just love his little signature?

Look who else was there!
See Janelle, the grocery bag lady was WRONG. You look beautiful!

Preschool Buddies!

(Loulabelle, Tessa, and Will)

All About My Mom - Mother's Day 2008 - By Richie

Richie's answers in bold. My responses in itallic.

My Mom is _____ years old. "33" (true)

She weighs _______ pounds. "That is a question I cannot answer" (phew)

Her favorite TV show is _______. "A show that they talk to people about new houses and things that they can get for their house and kids." (I think he means Extreme Home Makeover which I rarely watch, but he is not usually awake when I watch TV.)

Her favorite song is _______. Worship Songs. (this makes my heart happy)

She loves it when I _________________. Get caught with good character. (Of course)

She gets mad when I ______________. Get sent to the principal's office. (long story, but it was at the beginning of the year and we haven't had any more visits since...and yes, I was mad!)

I know that she loves me because __________. She takes care of me. (sniff)

The things that make her happy are: ________________. When I give her presents and Dad gives her Easter eggs. (Wha? Apparently I must have been a little too animated when Rich gave me those Reese's Eggs for Easter this year. They do make me happy, though.)

For Our Mothers

Happy Mother's Day!

We love you!!

Last Call on the Flop Swap

If you would like to participate in the Bloggy Flip Flop Swap email me your info ASAP. I'm about assign flop partners! Read all the details HERE!

Bloggy Flip Flop Swap

The Bloggy Flip Flop Swap is a GO!!!!

And there was much rejoicing!!

Here are the rules and regulations, don't forget to sign the waiver at the bottom of this post with your first, middle, and last name...oh I'm kidding. Just read the instructions below and have fun doing it (that is have fun participating in the swap, not reading the instructions, because we all know that reading instructions is not fun...which is why I should just get on with this so that we can get to the fun part). Feel free to let me know if you think of anything I have forgotten or if you have questions, comments, or snide remarks regarding the swap. Um, actually I'm just kidding about the snide remarks...if you send those I might cry.

1) Send me your email, flop size, and the address where you would like to receive your flops. I will randomly match people up and let you know via email who you are buying flops for. It should be a secret who you are buying for, so don't tell! It will be more fun for everyone if it is a surprise. If you want an idea of the kind of flops your partner might like you can covertly drop by their blog and do a little research ;-)

2) Purchase the flip flops for your bloggy friend and send them to her (I know, I know this is very complicated stuff, but you can do it!). The price limit with shipping should be about $15. Does that sound reasonable? Let's shoot for purchasing and mailing within a week after you find out the identity of your flop partner.

3) After you have mailed the flops, let me know so I know that everyone who has given has also received.

4) Once I'm sure everyone has received their flops I will invite everyone back here (to the blog) for a Bloggy Flip Flop Swap Carnival. In other words you will post a picture of your flops on your blog, then come here and put a link up so that everyone can travel around and see all of the cute flops! Is that fun or what?

Here is my email...

rwc_artist_mfa@hotmail.com

...you may send all "official swap correspondence" to that address.

Once I have everyone's info I'll match up flop partners and we'll get this party started!

Anybody Need An Excuse to Shop?

Well then. Ahem. Now that I have your attention. I have an announcement to make!

Here Ye! Here Ye!
Today is my Blogoversary!

And with the help of a few friends, I came up with a little something to do in celebration of this blessed event!

Are you ready?

ARE YOU EXCITED?

TA DA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


So, what do you think? Anyone game?

I had so much fun when I did this with my real-life friends, that I thought I would spread the joy to my blog-life friends!

If you are interested leave a comment or send an email. If I have enough interest I will post in couple of days with more details!

Feel free to spread the word!

Many thanks to Carissa (for the original idea), Bethanne (who thought if bringing this idea to the blog), and to the coolest graphic designer and husband on the planet (for the cute graphic)!

The Effects of Nyquil?

It may be a result of all the Nyquil I have ingested in the last few days, but when I saw this commercial on television today I had to find it on You Tube because I couldn't stop laughing.



Or maybe it is because I feel exactly like this poor guy whenever I try to replace my favorite snacks with a healthier version. I've tried replacing Coke with Diet Coke, ranch dressing with hummus, and milk with soy milk. All to no avail. I guess, in all fairness, I do occasionally find an exception or two. But still. I mean, come on...these taste buds have been around the block a time or two and they are having NONE OF IT.

What about you guys, have you found any "healthy substitutes" that actually PASSED the taste test? Oh, and while you are at it, go ahead and share any snacks that didn't pass so we can be sure to steer clear of those. My taste buds will surely thank you.

Love at First Sight

(Photo posted as an entry for this contest.)