Loving on Leap Day

So I couldn't let today go by without some sort of blogging. I mean, I won't have another chance to blog on February 29th for FOUR WHOLE YEARS. Who knows where my life will take me by then?

In celebration of Leap Day, I decided to share some things I'm "Loving on Leap Day":

1. TurboTax

Yay! They're done (our taxes, that is) and we ARE getting a refund. Now, I know the fine folks who do this financial thing for a living will tell me that I shouldn't be letting the government "borrow" my money for a whole year, only to return it to me without any interest paid, but seriously? Getting a refund makes the whole income tax filing thing a bit easier to swallow.

2. Winter Clearance Sales

Yesterday the zipper on SS#1's (yes, he's over the Mr. Poopyfacepants stage--for now) winter jacket broke. I can't complain, as the jacket has lasted two winters. However, we in the Windy City area are still getting snow, so the boy had to have a winter jacket. I decided to purchase one in "next year's" size and found great deals on clearance, so now BOTH boys have new winter jackets--for less than $20 for both! I was wearing the Bargain Diva tiara yesterday!

3. Spring Break Camp

Our park district runs a day camp for elementary-aged students during the school district spring break. Bonus for us work-away-from-home parents who would otherwise be tearing our hair out to find alternative care for our munchkins. Bonus is that my workplace is closed on Easter Monday as well, so I get a REAL free day! :)

4. The Dripping Sound Outside My Window

Because it means the snow is MELTING. Of course, I can't get too excited since the snow that is currently melting just fell last night, and it's only the end of February. We've been known to get that occasional freak snowstorm in April. But for today, Leap Day, the snow is melting!

5. My Hair Salon

Where I will be on Thursday, taking care of my scary greys (Seriously people, I'm not 40 yet. My mom finally gave up the battle and has the most beautiful silver-grey hair. I'm just not ready yet to completely turn into my Mom.) before my hair turns on me. I love this salon and my stylist, because she can take care of my scary greys without completely breaking the bank.

6. Spring Forward

Daylight Savings Time begins on Sunday, March 9th. Losing that hour is oh-so-worth-it to me. Why? The first fall that I was in Chicago, none of my Ohio friends believed me when I told them it was DARK at 4:30 in the afternoon. As we inch toward March 9th, there is more daylight in the afternoon. Thank goodness!

7. Easter

Because I am so excited to celebrate the Risen Lord, but also because my baby, Sweet Son #1, will be taking Communion for the first time that day. No big ceremony like in the Catholic Church, but the kids get to take Communion with their parents. He's not nearly as excited about this as I am, but it is bittersweet, since it is another milestone, reminding me that he's not really my baby anymore, but my big boy.

8. Vegas, Baby!

I'll be headed out west for a Conference in March. By myself! Grandma and Grandpa are coming to stay with my boys and the dog-who-thinks-she's-a-human. I'll be gone for five whole days. In a hotel. Alone. Bliss.

9. Great Blogging Friends

Like Libby, who posted just the right thing, at just the right time. I feel your pain about the cold, dearie. Beantown and Chi-Town both seem to be unable to escape the white stuff. Take heart, though, the sun shines brightly today, and I'm willing it your way!

10. Bloggy Babies

Cheers to soon-to-be girlie moms, Cloggsy and TulipMom. Hope both of your deliveries are blessedly uneventful and quick! The Preppy blogworld can't wait to meet both of the little ladies. :)

That's all on this Leap Day. Kiss a frog today and have fun!

A Bird in the Hand is...

Our dog-who-thinks-she's-just-a-four-legged-human LOVES the snow. She loves sitting in it. She loves romping in it in that way puppies-at-heart are wont to do. She loves rubbing her nose in it. She loves eating it, even the disgusting yellow stuff. If it's falling from the sky, she loves barking at it. She loves digging in it.

That last one never bothered me until the other night.

I'd let her out after dinner (for about the millionth time since we got home. She loves the snow.) and heard the familiar scratching. I let her in and caught a glimpse of a slightly snow-covered wad of sticks in her mouth.

Only, one of the sticks had small claws. Bird-shaped claws.

She knew she wasn't supposed to have it in the house, because as soon as she came in, she bolted. For the family room. The carpeted family room. Where my children were playing. On the floor. She looked liked the cat that swallowed the canary. Or the dog who nearly had.

And when I called "PRINCESS!" and chased her, she dropped it. Right on the carpet. Then she took refuge in her cage, with her tail between her legs and ears flat against her head.

And there it was. I'll save you from the gross details, but yes, it was a bird. Or at least it was at one time. I couldn't get to the paper towel and bags fast enough. She wanted her treasure back. Fortunately, I was able to get it before she returned a third time.

Most.Disgusting.Thing.Ever.

I don't think rottweilers or chows are bird dogs by nature, so maybe it's some weird result of combining the breeds. This is the second time she's gotten a bird. The first time it was alive when she brought her trophy into the house. At least this one was still when I cleaned it up.

So the adage "A bird in the hand..."? Better than a bird the mouth, I suppose.

I Needed a Good Laugh Today

Before you watch this, make sure you don't have to pee. And I would also recommend not trying to eat or drink while watching it. Because if you aren't cracking up right alongside the little guy, you just might be dead.

No School

When I was a single teacher, I loved those days off of school. Not the teacher workdays, but you know, President's Day, MLK Day, Memorial Day. Snow days were even better because you got them totally out of the blue.

Now I am a parent who works outside of the home. I hate those days off. They generally mean either taking a vacation day or scrambling to find care for Sweet Son #1 (temporarily renamed Mr. Snottyfacepants) and sometimes even for The Manimal. This messes with my routine, which God knows, puts me over the edge.

The normal holidays (President's Day, MLK Day, Memorial Day) are bad enough. Snow days are the worst, because I not only have to scramble to figure out what to do with the kiddies, but I have to battle the elements to get to work.

At least with the normal holidays, I know they're coming. When I moved to the Land of Lincoln, however, I had no idea that residency brought with it yet another holiday.

Enter Casimir Pulaski Day.

Celebrated the first Monday in March, this "holiday" celebrates one Casimir Pulaski, a Polish-born General in the Continental Army during the American Revolution who, according to Wikipedia, has been called "the Father of the American Cavalry".

Now, I'm all for cultural heroes, and I understand that the Windy City has the largest Polish population outside of Poland. But why exactly does my child get a day off of school? Keep him there, teach him about Casimir, feed him paczki and kielbasa, but please, keep him in school when he's supposed to be in school.

Sorry all you teachers out there. I'm a firm believer in higher pay for deserving teachers and goodness knows, most of you deserve every day off you get. But have pity on a working parent who expects that her child be educated from 9-3 every weekday and not given random days off.

Mr. Snottyfacepants and the Pig

As I alluded to in a previous post, Sweet Son #1 has been temporarily renamed "Mr. Snottyfacepants".

Why, you ask? Well, if I tell you that he's 7 1/2 years old, those of you who have children who've reached or surpassed that age will completely understand. For those of you who don't have the slightest clue about the situtation, one adage says it all.

"Never try to teach a pig to dance. You just get dirty and it annoys the pig."

Simply put, seven year old boys are always right. They know everything. Moms are never right and they know nothing. They are the ultimate contrarians. If I told him we were going out after dinner to get ice cream, he would whine and say he wanted a milkshake instead.

And oh, the whining! His bedtime is 8:30. I generally start the warnings around 8:00:

8:00--"Bedtime in a half-hour, buddy."

8:15--"You've got about 15 minutes left, big guy."

8:25--"OK, why don't you go upstairs and brush your teeth."

This last one usually gets the first response.

Him: "WHAT?! Why do I have to go brush my teeth?"

Me: "Because you only have five minutes until bed."

Him: "WHAT?! You didn't tell me that!"

Me: "Right. The previous warnings and the fact that 8:30 is ALWAYS your bedtime didn't give you a clue."

Him: "But WHY do I have to go to bed in five minutes."

Me: "Well, now it's really three minutes because you've wasted two minutes arguing."

Him: "But I'm not tired."

Me: "Go brush your teeth."

Him: (sounds of stomping up the stairs, slamming the bathroom door, etc.)

I consider it a victory if he makes it to bed by 8:45.

Unfortunately, as I understand it, this stage of child development can last anywhere from a few months to ten years.

But by gosh, that pig will know how to dance by then.

I'm Running Away to Join the Circus!

Hah! Gotcha there, didn't I? Actually, my life is a bit of circus of its own right now with The Manimal, Sweet Son #1 (temporarily renamed "Mr. Snottyfacepants"), Princess (the Wonder Dog Who Thinks She's a Human), and The Husband.

I would, however, like to run away to the Ranch. And become a Pioneer Woman-in-Training. If you haven't ever visited Ree, you absolutely must. She's absolutely amazing, and she cooks too! Maybe she'll take boarders. Just me, of course, because it wouldn't be running away if I had to take the circus performers with me!

I've been feeling the cooking bug the last few days. Mostly it's been making the normal dinners, cooking in advance to save time, etc. But I really went out on a limb and decided to make beef tamales. From scratch. By myself.

A bit of history.

The Husband's family is Mexican. I have learned how to make many Mexican dishes, which have, over the years, improved (which is a good thing for all concerned). I do a mean red rice, make refried beans, regular frijoles (the precursor to a good refried bean dish), chile reallnos, tacos, flan. You get the idea. I have made tamales only once before and it was with his mother.

The concept is pretty easy. Take a corn husk, soak it in water for about 20 minutes, pat it dry, smear some masa (pre-mixed corn meal, salt, shortening)into it, add some meat, roll that puppy up and steam the heck out of it. Unfortunately, there are some nuances in the rolling, and, oh, did I mention that you have to steam them for about 40 minutes or so?

Lesson learned? Don't start steaming tamales at 8:30 pm when you have to get up for work the next morning.

The upside of being awake steaming tamales until almost midnight? They didn't turn out half bad! AND I don't have to cook dinner tonight. Just heat up some tamales!

Because this was the maiden solo tamales voyage, I didn't take pictures. Because, quite frankly, while they taste yummy, they're not quite ready to be Tamales en Fotografias. And I'm not really a neat cook. When I was done, my kitchen looked like Mexico City, post-earthquake.

A bit of trivia. Did you know that a single of a group of tamales is called a "tamal"? Not a "tamale" as I (and most of the other gringos) call it! Who knew?

And don't think I've forgotten about my MouseLand postings. I haven't. I promise. They'll just take a bit longer. And show up when you least expect them. In between posting about tamales and Webkinz (don't even ask...).

The Best (Belated) Valentine's Gift EVER

As I've mentioned before, The Manimal's language skills are developing at light-speed. He repeats EVERYTHING he hears (bad), but can usually make his desires known (good).

This morning we were cuddling before we got out of bed and he turned his sweet little snot-crusted nose (we ALL have head colds) to me and said "I love you Mommy."

I think that makes up for the "oh sh*t" from earlier this week...

Say a Prayer

This one hit close to home. Prayers for the Northern Illinois University and DeKalb Communities. Everyone hold your loved ones a bit closer, and call your parents.

The Manimal and His Twin

You know those commercials where the photos live in digital cameras for years? I promise to try and NOT be one of those camera owners, but the vacay photos are indeed still in my camera!

So I decided to share a story for which I have no pictures. Of course, it was one incident where we SHOULD have taken photos, so amazing was the resemblance.

On Day 2 of our Disney Excursion, we ventured to Animal Kingdom with our VIP Guide, Matthew (more on the VIP program later, but Tiny and Matthew? They ROCK!). We made a quick pit stop at the potties before we headed into the wild. Nana kept an eye on The Manimal while I powdered my nose, and when I came out, I saw double.

Standing next to my red-striped shirt and tan shorts clad child was his doppelganger. Dressed in an identical outfit, right down to his monkey backpack (but, shh, it's really a harness!) and curly brown hair! Manimal #2's family was wildly snapping pictures, but the Diva family? We all just stared, mouths agape. A quick conversation with Manimal #2's mom confirmed that we frequented the same stores for kids' clothes, and believe it or not, the twin was only about 10 days The Manimal's senior!

The boys, of course, didn't seem to be as in awe of the resemblance as did the families. They both just stood there, eyes glazed over, wondering why everyone was taking pictures and pointing. Put some mouse ears on them and people would've thought they were part of the park attraction.

If you're headed to Animal Kingdom, I highly recommend the "Festival of the Lion King" show. A.Ma.Zing. Fabulous show, enjoyed by all. "It's Hard to Be a Bug" was a big hit as well, as was "Expedition Everest". We did some of the kiddie rides too, but they're, well, kiddie rides. The safari was nice, but I can't imagine waiting in a long line for it. All in all, a "Hakuna Matata" kind of day!

Right Now

I'm enjoying some Wheat Thins with Nutella (If you haven't tried it, don't ask. Something about the sweet and salty together is just, well, right.).

Wishing I had wine too.

It's just been one of those kind of days.

Out of the Loop

Wow, going away for six days really wreaks havoc on one's routine! I was doing so well posting every day, and now we've been home for five days and I've posted one measley little update. I have got to do better.

No pics yet, because I've been working every day since we got home. MouseLand was fabulous.
Of course, now we're all laid low with the mother of all head colds, but I guess that's the penalty we pay for enjoying the MOST GORGEOUS weather while our fellow Chicagoans dug themselves out of one of the worst winters ever.

We stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort in Animal Kingdom. Nice place, if not a little bizarrely decorated. My mom wondered if they were in the process of redecorating the bathrooms or if the decorator was just drunk. Picture, if you will, an orange, red and blue striped shower curtain, weird geometric Aztec-print border in same colors, and a wallpaper in a black and white stairstep geometric pattern. I, however, thought it was the most beautiful place in the world, since the Manimal chose that very toilet to pee in FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER! Don't get too excited, though. He's really not ready for the full potty training yet, but he does sit on the toilet, flush, wash his hands and get really excited. Peeing in the pot was a fluke, but boy did we go crazy!

As previously mentioned, the weather was spectacular. Every day, the temperature hovered right around 85 degrees, with sunshine and beautiful blue skies. We were in Heaven! Sweet Son #1 decided that he'd like to move to Florida, especially if it meant we'd not have to deal with snow. I reminded him that Central Florida was prone to some nasty rainstorms and had to deal with the occasional hurricane residue, but that didn't seem to sway his seven-year-old mind. Of course, he might've been under the influence of a mouse and his friends.

More to come, I promise. I'll regale you with tales such as The Manimal and His Twin, Meltdown of a Five-Year-Old, Meal-Sharing With Donald, VIP Tours: The Only Way to Meet the Mouse, Why Not to Eat at the Rainforest Cafe, Attack of the Chicken Nuggets, The Fastest Three Seconds EVER, and more!

Home Sweet Home

Just a quick note to say that we're finally home. I'll be posting more later (with photos, of course!), but suffice it to say, the kids were thrilled, the trip was wonderful, the weather was fabulous, and Chicago got snow.

So Long, Farewell!

Well, it just occurred to me that this visit to MouseLand will likely throw my Blog365 commitment into a tailspin. Ah, well. Mickey's worth it! :)

So here's the weather prediction for tomorrow here at home:

SatFeb 2
Cloudy
32°/19°
20% chance for precipitation (SNOW)

And tomorrow for MouseLand:

SatFeb 2
Sunny
79°/61°
10% chance for precipitation (RAIN)

Where would YOU rather be?! With any luck, the Winter Storm Warning that is STILL in effect for Chicagoland (hello, I woke up to about EIGHT INCHES of the white stuff) won't affect our flight plans for tomorrow.

I'll do my best to post this week, but rest assured, I'll have pictures when we return! :)

"M-I-C See ya real soon! K-E-Y Why? Because we like you! M-O-U-S-E!"