Random Holiday

Every year I swear that I will NOT find a reason to go to the store on December 24th. And every year it seems I end up at the store. This year it was Walmart.

We needed sprinkles and frosting for Santa's cookies. Because it wouldn't be good enough to leave Santa brownies. Made with the brownie mix that was ALREADY in my pantry. No siree. Santa had to have Christmas cookies. Meaning we had to go to Walmart.

Did I mention that we also needed to hit the photo department to print some pics for Diva Nana & Diva Papa's Christmas gift?

While I braved the retail world on Christmas Eve, I did manage to avoid it today until after church. The Tweenager got a couple of gift cards for Christmas and they were burning a hole in his pocket. It wasn't horrible, as all of the bargain-hunters were presumably home sleeping after hitting the stores at oh-dawn-thirty.

For our Christmas Eve dinner, we had homemade tamales and pulled barbecue chicken sandwiches. We had leftovers for Christmas dinner. I'm making a more traditional Christmas dinner tomorrow night. Diva Nana & Diva Papa are coming for a visit. I was very excited to find Butterball Turkeys on sale earlier this week at Target for 50 cents a pound. SCORE!

I'm glad DN & DP are coming for a visit. We missed being together for Christmas this year. Mom commented that it was the first Christmas since she and my dad got married that they weren't with family.

Did I mention they celebrated their FORTY-SECOND wedding anniversary on the 21st?

The boys seemed really happy with their Christmas gifts. DH was so thoughtful in his gift giving to me. I got a gift card to buy books for my Kindle and a big digital picture frame for my office. He loaded it with dozens of pictures from throughout the years.

We'll do gifts again tomorrow with the Grands. My favorite gift, though, is coming at the end of the week. My brother and his family, who have lived in Texas for almost ten years, are moving to the Windy City this week. They'll be living in a suburb not terribly far from us, and I'm so looking forward to having The Lawyer, Diva SIL, Tex, Sir Falls-A-Lot and The Bean close by!

I managed to get a decent picture of the three boys this Christmas. If I'd gotten around to sending Christmas cards, they would've had this on it. Hope you all had a very Merry Merry!

If Only In My Dreams

"I'm dreaming tonight

of a place I love
even more than I usually do
and although I know
it's a long road back
I promise you..."

Family has always been important to me. Growing up as an Air Force brat, we rarely lived near family. Driving 300 miles or more for the holidays was commonplace.

As I've grown older, I've come to value my family relationships more and more. I understand what my parent sacrificed to make sure that we knew our extended family and spent as much time with them as possible.

"I'll be home for Christmas.
You can count on me."

If you've been around here for a while, you know of my enormous respect for the men and women in uniform and their families. All of them sacrifice so much to help protect the gift of our freedoms. Families who "keep the home fires burning" while their loved ones are deployed, either domestically or internationally, hold a special place in my heart, because my mom had to do just that. While my dad never had to fight in a war, he served two remote deployments, each for a year, where he had to be away from us. He served several smaller temporary duty assignments through the years as well.

"Please have snow and mistletoe
and presents under the tree."

It's never easy to be away from family, but the holidays are exceptionally difficult. Whether the loved ones are serving across the country or halfway around the world, it's hard to be merry when someone is missing. E-mail, Skype and cell phones can help, but nothing takes the place of a real-time hug.

"Christmas Eve will find me
where the love light gleams."

So if you are of the belief that has you celebrating this season, hold your loved ones a little closer. Hug them a little tighter.

And if your loved ones are serving our country and can't share the holidays with you, know that many hearts are with you.

"I'll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams."

The Road to...

Greetings from the Diva Household where Things 1, 2, and 3 (with a little help from Princess the Wonder Dog) have turned our normally semi-chaotic home into complete, utter madness.

While we were all still adjusting to the arrival of Little Darth (uhm, yeah, back in OCTOBER), the holidays decided to creep up on us and land firmly in our home, trampling our precious routines to bits.

I had every intention of blogging daily weekly semi-regularly while on my leisurely maternity leave. As you can tell by my PLETHORA of postings since October 1st, when Little Darth arrived, I have FAILED miserably at that!

I had every intention of organizing my closet while on my leisurely maternity leave. I am SO not showing you pictures of my closet. Let's just call that a big fat FAIL as well. The good news, however, for when I actually get around to doing that particular task, is that I've lost all of my baby weight and am down 10+ pounds from my pre-baby weight, which means I'll be ditching quite a bit of clothing weight as well. Woo-hoo!

I had every intention of taking lots of pictures of Little Darth and his big brothers while on my leisurely maternity leave. You know that theory about having progressively fewer pictures of the children as your family grows. True statement, that. And the whole taking more pics thing? FAIL. So much so that Diva Nana asked if she was EVER going to get a new picture of Little Darth.

So this mass chaos in the Diva Household? I'm blaming it on the big plans I had for my leisurely maternity leave. As the saying goes, "The road to you-know-where is paved with good intentions."

My advice for all of you new moms and soon-to-be new moms? Make no plans, large or small for your "leisurely maternity leave". Just watch your kiddo(s) grow, and enjoy the quiet.

Hopefully your road will end in a far less chaotic place! :)

My Three Sons

Well, it's an announcement that is two weeks overdue, but since Mr. Baby graced us with his presence a few days early (albeit with a bit of encouragement), I suppose I'm okay with the ANNOUNCEMENT being overdue instead of the baby! :)

Yes, it's true, I'm now outnumbered four to one in the Diva Household. Well, if you count Princess the Wonder Dog, I suppose it's only four to two, but as a former charge from my babysitting days commented, "We had her fixed and now we're not sure if she's a boy or a girl".

In light of my "advanced maternal age", my doctor recommended an induction a few days before my due date, so Mr. Baby made his appearance on 10/1/10. Pretty cool, huh? The brothers met for the first time on the 2nd.


The Tweenager is taking a very grown-up approach to his new baby brother. He's a huge help, being a very mature ten years old, and he loves holding Mr. Baby as long as he doesn't have to change diapers or deal with crying.


The Manimal feels the same way about crying babies, but he has been amazingly wonderful with his new "big brother" status. As an additional bonus, he's not called Mr. Baby "Darth Vader" even once!

Wait. Do you know about Darth Vader? I can't remember if I shared our naming dilemma with my bloggy friends. A few months ago, The Manimal, having a SERIOUS Star Wars obsession, decided that our baby should bear the name "Darth Vader". A few weeks before the birth, he even decided on middle names, and Mr. Baby was christened "Darth Vader Clonetrooper Stormtrooper Divalastname". He wouldn't even DISCUSS the name we'd chosen, simply dismissing us with a "I don't want to talk about that name, Mommy".

At any rate, our big/little brother seems to have forgotten that he ever wanted to name the little guy for the Dark Lord (AmenandthankyouJesus). The name may make a reappearance as Mr. Baby's blog moniker, but we'll see.

The force did seem to be with our little man, as he exhibited incredible head control only 36 hours after his birth.


I'm fortunate to be able to take maternity leave from my job until after Christmas. I'm fairly certain it's going to take me that long to get used to having three children: The Tweenager, The Manimal and Little Darth.

Hopefully the force will be with me!

Music Monday: I Will Survive

Yeah, just when you think things can't get any crazier, they usually do. :) Nothing big to report in the Diva Household, just trying to wrap up my work world so I can go on maternity leave with a clear conscience and trying (with my wonderful DH doing most of the home work) to prepare our house for the impending arrival of Mr. Baby.

I'm always amazed how such a small little creature can create so much havoc without even being present in the world yet!

After three weeks of "nothing yet" from the doctor, I spent the weekend squirming and waddling through contractions and backache pain, which leads me to believe that tomorrow's doctor's appointment will be different.

Of course, as I reminded DH, at this stage, I could have contractions for a week or two with no visible (or invisible, as the case may be) progress.

The Manimal has FINALLY relented (sort of) in his quest to name Mr. Baby "Darth Vader". More accurately, he wants to call him "Darth Vader Clonetrooper Stormtrooper DivaLastName".

He's nothing if not persistent. He "earned" a new Storm Trooper helmet by (FINALLY) sleeping in his own bed. Then he requested that I call him "Rex" (the name of the Storm Trooper in question). When I explained that Rex wasn't his name, he said "just call me that, Mommy." To which I replied that he could "just call" the baby Darth Vader, but Mommy & Daddy would call him by his given name. After a brief pause, he ACTUALLY agreed to that.

Then he said "But I don't want to hear anything more about that other name."

The Tweenager is probably ready for the Mr. Baby, but, being ten, he's too cool to really talk about it. Plus, he's ten.

Did I mention he's ten? Really, if I would've known that my sweet nine year-old would've turned into a moody, attitude-driven pre-teen, I'd've requested a skip right to 18.

Which would likely bring its own problems, I know.

Which brings me to today's Music Monday. Love the song and the video cracks me up every.freaking.time I see it.

State of Confusion

It's no secret to any woman who's been pregnant that babies steal your brain.

Yes, it's true. I don't care what Discovery Health says, with ALL THREE of my pregnancies, I've been "dumbed down". I forget things, process thoughts way more slowly, the whole nine yards.

Unfortunately, in my experience, it often takes up to a year AFTER the baby comes to regain full mental capacity. I also figure there's some sort of direct correlation between the number of children a woman has and the number of brain cells lost to "baby brain".

As crazy as baby brain makes me, though, I do know that I've not completely lost my common sense.

One of the (many) things we had to replace for Mr. Baby was his crib mattress. While we hadn't yet gotten rid of the crib itself (AmenandthankyouJesus!), the mattress was reincarnated as a bed for Princess the Wonder Dog, and, while I'm all about recycling, there's just no way that it was going back into the crib.

So I went online to one of my new favorite shopping sites, Amazon.com. Yeah, yeah, yeah, so I'm late to the party. I've had baby brain for the past nine months.

Anyway, I discovered that there are about as many different types of crib mattresses as there are babies. And while I love my children, and want the best I can afford for them, I'm pretty confident that Mr. Baby doesn't need a $299.00 crib mattress.

So off to Walmart.com for me. Now, I'm not a big fan of the Evil Empire, but sadly, for us frugal moms, it works. I found a lovely, highly rated Kolcraft brand crib mattress for a mere $36 in their "Site to Store" program. I called my local Walmart to see if they had that particular model in stock. The associate was gone for a minute to check.

WM Associate: "Yes ma'am, we have that model in stock. It's $57."

Me: "FIFTY SEVEN DOLLARS?! For that model?"

WMA: "Yes ma'am."

Me: "Uhm...it's available on the Walmart.com website for $36. That's a $21 difference!"

WMA: "Yes ma'am. I understand that some things are priced differently on the website."

I don't know if you've used the Site to Store feature of Walmart.com, but it's pretty simple. You place your order and pay for it online, and they ship it directly to the store at no additional charge. We've purchased a few things through the site, and while we've noticed the occasional minor price difference, we've never purchased anything that is marked up more than 50%.

Here are the options as my baby-affected brain worked it out:

a) I can walk into Walmart today and pay $57 plus tax for the mattress.
b) I can order the mattress through Site to Store, pay $36 plus tax, and they will ship the mattress from the warehouse (even though they have them in-stock). In 1-2 weeks, pick it up at the store.
c) I can order the mattress through Site to Store, pay $36 plus tax, plus $3.97 shipping (all STILL $17 cheaper than option a), and they will deliver it TO MY DOOR in 1 week.

Can you guess which one I chose?

I realize that we, as a society, are more into immediate gratification than thinking through things and saving money, but I'm really confused as to the price difference in this situation.

And that's not my baby brain talking!

Random Dancing!

If you're the parent of a tweenager (or in my case The Tweenager), it's likely you'll know exactly WHO does random dancing. This post doesn't really have anything to do with her, but it was the first thing that popped into my head when I thought of creating a random blog post.

So here they are, in random order, the random thoughts that have been dancing through my head lately.

• Mr. Baby is perfectly content to stay where he is. Since his lease isn't technically up for another three weeks, that's just fine with me. I would, however, prefer if he would stop trying to dislocate my ribs.

• I'm pretty sure that if moms were in charge of the school district budget, we wouldn't have nearly the financial woes we do now.

• I'm fairly certain if The Tweenager was a girl, I'd've killed him by now.

• I clearly was mistaken when I assumed that boys don't develop "the attitude" as early as girls do.

• Diva Nana & Diva Papa are on a fabulous road trip with my globetrotting Diva Godmother. They were recently in NY State and stopped at Ft. Ticonderoga. I asked if they were bringing us back some pencils. They didn't get it.

• Diva Nana is very concerned that Mr. Baby might make his appearance early, ie: before they return. She was happy to hear my first random thought.

• The Manimal is quite taken by the small stash of teeny-tiny diapers that we have. He had to try one on for size, even though it would barely cover one of his preschool-sized butt cheeks. He was a bit upset when I told him that the baby could no longer use that diaper since the tape closure was torn from its side and attached somewhere else on the diaper.

• I just used the phrase "butt cheek" in my blog. I'm pretty sure it's the first time I ever used such a phrase, and the fact that it tickles me a bit only reinforces my "Oh Lord help me" thought that in less than a month I'll be the mother of THREE BOY CHILDREN.

And now, just in case you're not the parent of a tweenager and are still wondering about the title, I leave you with this:

Works for Me Wednesday

They seem like such a normal, simple thing to me. Some even taste better the second time around. But apparently not everyone grew up with them. When we were first married, Diva Husband really didn't want anything to do with them.

Fortunately, he came to his senses when he realized that I have a problem "cooking for two".

Yes, my friends, I'm talking about LEFTOVERS.

Those delicious morsels that are, well, left over after the meal's done. The ones that make great lunches the next day, or if you're really lucky, dinner later in the week.

Now that we have human garbage disposals 2 boys and one on the way, I often cook so I have intentional leftovers. It's just as easy to cook twice as many chicken breasts as I need for a meal, then use the leftovers for chicken tacos the next night.

Of course that's assuming my oldest garbage disposal The Tweenager doesn't get hungry after dinner.

Intentional leftovers. It's what Works for Me!

For more WFMW posts, go see Kristen at We Are THAT Family.

The Early Bird

After two children, it shouldn't surprise me, and yet somehow, it does.

I don't like to do housework. I'm not a very good housekeeper. My Diva Grandma used to have a sign in her house that pretty much summed things up.

"My house is clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy."

I don't like to do laundry, primarily because it seems like it NEVER FREAKING ENDS. Just when I think I've conquered Mt. Laundry, I realize that my family is still clothed, meaning there's STILL laundry to be done.

I despise doing dishes for much the same reason as laundry, but I think that hatred is more deep-seeded, going back to my childhood, as it was my job growing up. I had a tendency to rush through my job and, well, let's just say that I didn't always get ALL of the food off the dishes. My punishment, which I remember having to do only twice, was to wash ALL of the dishes in the cupboard.

All of them.

In one sitting. Or standing, as it were.

But I digress.

One of the known side effects of late pregnancy is the nesting instinct. At 36 weeks, I shouldn't be surprised by my recent burning desires to wash all of those tiny clothes and seemingly endless supply of burp cloths.

And yet, much like this pregnancy itself, it was an enormous surprise when I spent the better part of an afternoon this past weekend doing just that. I went through all of The Manimal's clothes, packing away what no longer fit him, and organizing and arranging his closet and dresser in order to make room for the array of tiny things.

And then I cleaned the powder room downstairs.

And conquered Mt. Laundry and Mt. Dishes.

And cleaned the kitchen sink.

And made brownies.

And marinated steak.

And then sat down and explained to my family that, while this behavior might please them immensely, it was, most emphatically, a temporary, 36 weeks pregnant, situation.

Men (and Women) at Work (or not)

Labor Day has become one of those holidays that nobody really understands. Frankly, I don't think I was ever really TAUGHT the origins or history of the holiday. For most Americans, it's simply become a date that marks the symbolic end of summer, the time to close up summer homes, close down swimming pools, and pack the white shoes away for the winter.

I guess it's good that we have a long weekend to allow us to do all that, even though for those of us in the midwest, we're as likely to have an 85 degree day throughout September as we are to have 60 and 70 degree days.

Kids get a day off school, parents get a day off work. The federal government shuts down and the US Postal Service doesn't deliver or pick up mail.

I suppose if I'd grown up in a union family, I may have a better appreciation for the meaning of the holiday, but then again, who knows.

Clearly they're still not teaching kids the reason for the school holiday.

Yesterday The Tweenager asked if he had to empty the dishwasher on Monday, since it was Labor Day and nobody had to work.

Diva Nana told him "Sure! But then your mom doesn't have to work at all either. No cooking, no laundry, no cleaning."

I think I'd like a Labor Day like that.

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something....Green

By now most Americans know that Chelsea Clinton got married this past weekend. The media glommed on for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which being the secrecy that surrounded the preparations and event itself.

It was reported that the secrecy was due not to requests from her slightly famous parents, but from the bride herself. And really, who can blame her? It's not like the media have a history of being civil kind to her. She clearly wanted this day to be about celebration, friends and family, not about her dress, the guest list, the locale, the money that was spent, or any of those other things that bridezillas the press seem to lap up like heavy cream.

Oh, but the money. Yes, the money. THAT is what had people's tongues wagging even before the happy couple said "I do."

The Clintons were rumored to have spent anywhere from $1M to $5M on their only child's wedding. Yeah. $11K just for a cake.

A cake. A consumable good. People EAT it, for Pete's sake.

Now, I don't know anyone in MY social circle who is financially secure enough to spend THAT much on a cake, let alone the wedding. And yes, frankly I think it's more than absurd to spend that much money on ONE SINGLE DAY in your life. Apparently in 2010, the "average American wedding" (whatever that is) costs upwards of $28K. As an event planner, I can certainly understand HOW one could spend $28K on a wedding event.

Notice I said understand HOW. That is very different than understanding WHY. That logic escapes me.

But I digress.

The Clintons are rumored to have spent $1M to $5M on the wedding of their only child. And people are livid. The economy is in the toilet. People everywhere are suffering. Children are starving. Dogs and cats, LIVING TOGETHER.

Okay, so maybe I exaggerate.

It's THEIR money, people. THEIR daughter. Sure, I personally think it's an IN.SANE. amount, but hey, if they can afford it, more power to them. As far as the economy goes, when was the last time YOU gave the economy a boost like that? Seriously, all those Benjamins went to a multitude of caterers, servers, bakers, tailors, valets, bus drivers, housekeepers, musicians, photographers, makeup artists, hairdressers, airlines, travel agents, retailers...

Need I go on? That money was poured into the economy in Rhinebeck, NY and many other locations. Talk about a stimulus!

But of course, the naysayers will still talk. "If they have that much money, they should do something worthwhile with it!"

What about people, with a far smaller net worth, spend a few thousand dollars on, say, a really upscale television? Nobody questions them, right?

"But two thousand dollars can do SO much good for ____________________!"

What about people who spend $200 on a pair of gym shoes for their kid?

"But two hundred dollars could buy food for a family of four for a few weeks, maybe a MONTH!"

Uh-huh.

The bottom line is simple. You may not like what people spend their money on, but in the end, it's THEIR money. All we can really do is toast the happy couple and be grateful for people like the Clintons who have that kind of money to pour into the economy.

In Flanders Fields...

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty." --John F. Kennedy

Each Memorial Day weekend, for more than ten years, we've traveled to Northern Wisconsin to visit my Gram. Each year, the time we spend with her is more and more precious. While we're up there, we try to go to the cemetery to visit the graves of my Grandpa (Papa) and Uncle, as well as other family members. It's always a sobering sight, because, being Memorial Day Weekend the local Boy and Girl Scouts typically place flags at the graves of all who have served their country.

Someone once asked if I would be upset if one of my boys wants to join the military when they are of age. Certainly, my mother's heart would be terrified. But upset? No. I would be proud if they choose to serve their country in such an honorable way.

I'm very open about growing up in a military family. While we are especially blessed that my father never had to serve in a combat zone, I nonetheless am extremely proud that my parents raised me to respect military men and women. I'm proud to be an American, proud of our military and our soldiers who serve, and deeply humbled that so many have given their lives to defend our way of life.

And so today, the Diva Family honors and thanks our fallen heroes. Rest in peace, loyal soldiers.

"Memorial Day"

The bugle echoes shrill and sweet,
But not of war it sings to-day.
The road is rhythmic with the feet
Of men-at-arms who come to pray.

The roses blossom white and red
On tombs where weary soldiers lie;
Flags wave above the honored dead
And martial music cleaves the sky.

Above their wreath-strewn graves we kneel,
They kept the faith and fought the fight.
Through flying lead and crimson steel
They plunged for Freedom and the Right.

May we, their grateful children, learn
Their strength, who lie beneath this sod,
Who went through fire and death to earn
At last the accolade of God.

In shining rank on rank arrayed
They march, the legions of the Lord;
He is their Captain unafraid,
The Prince of Peace...Who brought a sword.

--Joyce Kilmer

No More Pencils, No More Books...

Well, not officially yet.

The Tweenager's last day of school is June 3. This is the first year since he's been in the district that they've not extended the school year due to snow days. Strange, really. I mean, the district calendar actually lists it as "tentative last day".

Crazy.

Growing up in Southwest Ohio, we had five snow days built into the calendar. Meaning if we actually got through the year without any snow days, we went to school for 185 days. And we didn't really think anything of it.

Clearly the teachers' unions and administrative interference have gotten stronger in the past 25 or 30 years.

We always had a few days at the end of the year that were pretty much wasted. Field Days, picnics, clean-up days. You get the idea.

Before I go any further with my rant (because you know there's gotta be a rant coming, right?), a couple of small disclaimers.

We are blessed that The Tweenager is at a school with a wonderful staff who cares deeply about the kids. He has benefited immensely this year from their attention and instruction.

Also, let me say that I'm definitely not against a fun day here and there. The teachers and kids work hard, and it's always nice to celebrate with a "non-work" day.

What irritates me is that although the last day of school is June 3, there will be precious little instruction going on during that entire week. The law says students need 180 instructional days each year. And while I do see value in co-curricular activities, it irks me more than a little to know that nearly an entire week of "instructional time" is simply tossed aside.

I can't even take him out of school that week in protest without being grilled as to why he's missing "school". Absences on Field Day are treated the same way as absences during the ISAT's (Illinois' standardized testing).

While our district's test scores and academic results aren't terrible, they certainly aren't tops in the state. My property taxes continue to rise (even though my property value continues to decline), so I expect that my schools should be well-funded. Unfortunately, I live in a state that owes its school districts and public universities ridiculous amounts of money. Chicago Public Schools alone are owed more than $200 million by the Great State of Illinois. Our district is nowhere near the size of CPS, and the state owes us nearly $10 million.

All of this makes me wonder if the district really thinks that the educational benefits of four days of "fun" are really equivalent to "instructional days".

Oh, wait. He's only in school for 90 minutes on the last day. Did I forget to mention that? As a working parent, THOSE days make me see red. We are fortunate that Diva Husband is able to be home so we don't have to make sitter arrangements, but I know a lot of working parents who have to change their work schedules so the District can have one last "instructional" day.

As I said earlier, I have the utmost respect for teachers. I was in the trenches for five years. Teachers really do touch the future. Unfortunately, they have to work under the watchful eye of district and state administrators who apparently find a Field Day or End-of-the-Year Kickball Tournament on par with regular instructional days.

"School's out, school's out!
No more pencils, no more books,
No more PARENTS' dirty looks!"

Friday Fragments

Yes, I'm still alive. Turns out, growing a baby takes WAY more energy than I remember! Or maybe it was the week I spent in Kentucky for a conference for work. Or perhaps the fact that work is insanely busy during March and April. At any rate, I'm exhausted more often than not, and when I'm not, I'm probably working!

Sweet Son #1 has a new name. Starting today, he'll be known to the interwebz as The Tweenager. While he will always be my Sweet Son #1, I felt it time to give him a name more appropriate to his stage in life. He'll be 10 this summer, and has already begun the behavioral leap into his pre-teen years.

Speaking of The Tweenager, he has spent the past week with Diva Nana and Diva Papa. It was a huge surprise trip for him, as my folks were here for Easter, then we packed his suitcase and told him Monday morning that he was riding back with them. He's had a blast and flies back tomorrow, wrapping up his spring break with a birthday party tomorrow night and the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby on Sunday afternoon.

The Manimal has been spending his brother-less Spring Break week (who knew that preschoolers got a Spring Break?!) playing Lego Star Wars on the Wii, playing with real legos with Daddy, going to the park, torturing Princess the Wonder Dog and wreaking general havoc whenever he feels his home life is going too smoothly.

The Manimal is also fascinated with the fact that Mommy is "gonna poop out a baby". This was the conclusion he reached after I explained that the baby wasn't coming out my mouth or my belly button, and the doctor wasn't going to cut me to get it out (hopefully!). He looked at me with those big brown eyes and after a moment said "You gonna POOP dat baby out?!"

Uhm. Well. Yeah, sort of.

So that's my life in a nutshell. And how've you been? :)

Works for Me Wednesday: Angel Food Ministries

Our regular WFMW host is on her way to Kenya with Compassion, Int'l. Bloggers. This week, visit Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW posts!

In this economy it seems like everyone is trying to be a bit more responsible with their money. Budgets are cool. Couponing is the latest rage.

Frugal is the new black!

I suspect, that if our family and many of our friends are any indication, one of the largest parts of most household budgets is groceries. Fortunately, stores like Aldi are becoming more widespread, and help reign in the grocery budget without sacrificing quality.

Another option is a program called Angel Food Ministries. From their website:

Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit, non-denominational organization dedicated to providing food relief and financial support to communities throughout the United States. The program began in 1994 with 34 families in Monroe, Georgia (between Atlanta and Athens), and has grown to serve hundreds of thousands of families every month across 44 states.

For $30, you get a box of food designed to assist in feeding a family of four for a week. For example, the March 2010 Signature Box looks like this:




The items in the monthly box vary, but the food is always of high quality, no seconds or dented cans. In addition to the "Signature Box", a variety of special boxes are available. These packages range in price from $20-$35. You can find the full March menu offerings on their site.

We've been doing Angel Food for the past several months, using it in conjunction with our local Aldi and Walmart. We've seen significant savings in our monthly grocery bill, and my family actually looks forward to "Angel Food meals".

There is no income requirement to participate, and AFM accepts food stamps (LINK cards in Illinois) in addition to the traditional methods of payment. You can order online in most locations.

Angel Food Ministries has been a huge help to our family budget, and that really Works for Me!

Post-It Note Tuesday

For more Post-It Note Tuesdays, visit Supah Mommy!

Music Monday: No Worries!

Oh, I so need this today!

Six Word Saturday

God says surprise, restocking baby supplies.

Just Do It

My friend Suzette is doing an American Cancer Society Relay for Life this weekend. She needs to raise $50 more to reach her goal. I think it would be cool if she could raise even more than that! How about going to her RFL site and donating? Even $10 can make a huge difference.

Giving up St*rbucks for Lent? Go see Suzette and donate two day's worth of drinks to her team. Giving up fast food? Go donate the price of two McD's Value Meals! Not giving anything up? Prayerfully and thoughtfully donate $10 to Suzette's team.

Do it for a teenager from my church who survived childhood cancer and is going for her annual "cancer checkup" today. Do it for my grandpa and uncle, both of whom died from cancer. Do it for your mom, sister, dad, brother, child, friend.

Do it for you.

Just do it.

Make No Small Plans

It's going to take more than a bit of putting this


Into this


So we can put these


Onto them.


Yep. We're planning a trip a little over a year from now. I'm really excited for many reasons. First, it's Disney for Pete's (Dragon) sake...it's the Happiest Place on Earth (just for you, NJ!)!

Second, both boys will be old enough to ride and enjoy everything and young enough to not be too cool for a pair of mouse ears.

Third, we're hopefully meeting up with family friends, which promises to be lots of fun!

Finally, this time, I have the most fabulous of all of the Disney Princesses herself helping with the planning. She's not Cinderella, Princess Aurora, Mulan or Jasmine. She's not Pocahontas or Princess Tiana.

She is my favorite princess ever, HRH Princess Frugal-Ears herself!

Princess Frugal-Ears has been to WDW more times than I can count and she knows how to stretch a dollar like Mrs. Incredible. She knows the best places to stay on property, which restaurants are a hit with kiddos and what attractions are "ears up".

I'll be sharing my planning with you over the next twelve or so months and, with Princess Frugal-Ears' permission, will share her tips with you as well!

Sing it with me kids!

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