Things that make me happy:

Ducky

Fighting with Ducky for control of the vcfdkeybboacrd.

Making sweet potaotoes for my cousin’s husband.

Organized closets.
Helping a friend Bust Clutter in her bedroom.

Planning birthday parties.

That Guy I Married

Walking The Dog down Santa Monica Blvd.
Spending time training The Dog to be a welcome member of the family.

Being able to keep The Dog in our two-bedroom appartment.

Dog Beach

Steamed Milk

Reading Bible stories to Ducky

Reading Bible stories to myself (for the first time).

Little Me, Little Me
Jesus loves Little Me.
My hands, my feet, my smile so sweet.
Jesus loves Little Me.

Making baby food.
Dream Dinners dot com

Making Christmas French Toast on December 25.
Shopping for myself on Boxing Day (American’s have got to get into Boxing Day)!

Wondering which spiritual gifts God has given to Ducky.
Wondering what Love Language he has.

Old Photographs.
Finding an old camera with old pictures of our first apartment.

Missing our perfectly imperfect first home together.

Listening to my tone-deaf mother sing lullabies to my son.

Finally getting some answers.

Watching kids grow up.

Where have I been for two months? Well… here’s a microblogging review:

Bloggymommer…i
thinks that her husband should pack his own “blankety-blank” Blanket-Free Diaper Bag.

is looking forward to bagels and the Getty museum.
11:39 AM Jan 31st from Ping.fm
is trying to figure out how to hold the baby and wash both hands in a really filthy bathroom.
5:33 PM Jan 30th from Ping.fm
is laughing. gramsie’s new license plate: GFU
2:39 PM Jan 16th from Ping.fm
mmm hot n sour soup!
1:19 PM Jan 14th from Ping.fm
is living!!!
2:11 PM Jan 11th from Ping.fm
loves watching Flight of the Navigator!
3:51 PM Dec 26th, 2008 from Ping.fm
has a FUSSY baby.
2:52 PM Dec 23rd, 2008 from Ping.fm
mmm… garlicy garlic with a side of garlic.
3:58 PM Dec 21st, 2008 from Ping.fm
just ONE more gift!
11:13 AM Dec 21st, 2008 from Ping.fm
melting. listening to ian sing The Rainbow Connection.
1:44 AM Dec 21st, 2008 from Ping.fm
text message cherry! yay for early christmas gifts!
7:09 PM Dec 20th, 2008 from Ping.fm
can’t believe her husband took The Dog inside Bed Bath & Beyond today!

got a new cell phone .

is trying to lure her husband home with Chicken Marsala.

went on a date!
is typing a resume and application with one hand.
should sleep when the baby sleeps.
is in love with Osh Kosh baby overalls, and wants a pair in every size!
would like to sleep until dawn for Christmas.
doesn’t know the first thing about tulips!
needs to get the video camera fixed! AAACK!
is proud of herself.
is itching to go out tonight – Want to babysit?
is trying to upload photos for the 4th time in 2 days.
is enjoying the adrenaline from her 5 mille walk.
will hand over her entire savings account to anyone who can put the baby down without him crying again.
is the Queen of Laundry
is a little bit sad.
is laughing. The baby fell asleep on the changing table while I was pulling his arms through a shir
is over-excited about wearing pants!
is not sure what to do with a free minute of quiet time
is singing the praises of the Moby Wrap! 2 free hands and a snug baby!! Can I shower with this thing on?
is wondering if Curry Chicken is really such a good idea after all?
wishes there was something she could do about Ducky’s hiccups
IT’S A BOY!

1. I’ve got the babysitter here for another 13 minutes, I really should be writing the grocery list.

2. I am having a horrible time staying on task since Ducky was born. I’m not sure if it’s related to stress or hormones.

3. I got a blog called Bloggymommer, and then promptly stopped blogging after Ducky was born. Writers block sucks, especially when I can’t sit still to finish a thought (see #2).

4. I usually get to about number four, before I run out of things to list on these things.

5. Only Eleven minutes left until the babysitter leaves… I’m so distracted by this thought that I can’t think of what else to type.

6. I’m trying to teach myself to knit. I’m getting the hang of the stitches finally, but I never get more than a few stitches in before the timer beeps for the laundry.

7. The timer for the laundry is beeping, it’s driving me nuts, excuse me for a minute…

8. Ok, the laundry is fine now, but the babysitter is only here for 6 more minutes.

9. I’m looking for a good Marsala recipe? Anybody got one? That Guy I Married will thank you for it.

10. Ducky gets a lot of hand-me-down clothes and toys from his second-cousin Brady. The bouncer plays a catchy little tune that is stuck in my head.

11. Doot do do do Doot do, Doot do do do Doot do, Doot do do do Doot do DOOT DOOT DOOT

12. Sometimes, I’m ashamed that there isn’t something more deep going on in my mind.

13. I’m usually thinking about three stupid things at once, like right now, IN THIS VERY MINUTE, I’ve got to go pay the babysitter, fold the clean towels, finish this me-me, oh, and the baby is hungry AGAIN! Excuse me while I go nurse.

14. I prefer to nurse on the left, so i can type with my right hand. Like this…

15. Ducky’s growth spurts drive me nuts, he’s hungry every hour, and only nurses for 5 minutes. Grrrr.

16. The inside of Ducky’s ears smell like fertilizer. I love the smell.

17. I miss Franny. And the sunshine, fresh air, seasons, birds and trees I used to see every day with her.

18. When I was in college, I decided I’d have horses of my own if for some reason I couldn’t have children. Horses take up just as much free time as children.

19. I just added a childhood neighbor who has been able to manage having a husband, children, and horses. It makes me wonder if I could have managed the same.

20. I’ve been unusually tired this week. I’m not sure why. It might be the carb cravings… speaking of which, I’m not done with the grocery list yet. Forget horses.

21. Ducky is practicing screaming, he’s having fun. I wish he would stick to practicing baby-push-ups and rolling over. Even Dakota thinks he’s too loud, she just got up and moved 6 feet away from him.

22. I am hard of hearing. I’m debating getting a hearing aid. I wonder how much it would help. I wonder if I’d be able to carry a tune. I’ve been ashamed to sing in public for a long time.

23. I can’t believe I made it all the way to #23, although I’m pretty sure that some of these don’t really count.

24. Pork roast, Beef Stew, Chicken Marsala, what else should I cook for dinner this week?

25. I want to go home. I don’t know where that is.

Google search terms that landed here at Bloggymommer.
Shamelessly swiped from Goon Squad Sarah:

I don’t get as much blog traffic since I switched domain names. Most of the traffic I do get is sent to me by Google. Some of the search terms 1) make sense and 2) point people here logically.

Search terms I understand:

“so now I’m back from outer space” – That was a post title a few months back.
“real simple wardrobe staple ” – I did mention that in a a NaBloPoMo post.
“I need a new hobby” – I got a whole category on that, because, HEY, ME TOO! But, um… “I can’t figure out a new hobby. What is wrong with me?” Can’t help ya!
“how do deal with a bridezilla blog” – Well, this was a bridezilla blog once upon a time (hides sheepish grin), but I dont know if I can help you deal.

Creative Grammar and Spelling:

“so now I’m back from out of space” Cute!
“disney’s peppy la poo” – Pepe Le Pu! Get it right, and WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

BlogHer
Lots of BlogHer Slamming, which I don’t get. I had a kinda okay time at Blogher 06, but that’s because I’m a socially awkward boob (yes, yes, HELLO again, Google).

“blogher issues” – Yes I have issues, Yes I went to BlogHer when I could afford it. These are correlated somehow?
“blogher hate blog” – Please tell me there is not such a thing?
“blogher high school” – Ladies! Grow up!
“blogher packing list” – What? Like 3rd grade summer camp?

Burning questions:

“put concealer mustache area” – I wouldn’t. Unless you wax first.
“scientific name for infertility” – Is Infertility. There are several different kinds, depending on which part of the anatomy isn’t cooperating.

What the Heck?:

“lurkey -turkey -game -family -genealogy”
“hash cakes pregant” – I suggest you stick with pickles and ice cream.
“pantyliner infertility” – Ummmmm? Wha? This person stayed on the site longer than anyone else this month. I’m glad you found what you were looking for???
“pink dog dinky happy horse” Seperately, it makes sense that search landed here. All of those together? HAAAAAA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! I think that is going to have to be The Dog’s new nickname. Um, wait? Is that some slang for male anatomy? I’m a little slow. Or a little warped, your choice.

How lame is it to start a story with the line; I got a Fisher Price cassette player for my 8th birthday? Someone had given us a briefcase full of Disney songs and Disney read-a-long cassette tapes, but Dad kept them locked in the trunk of his car, I think they annoyed him. When he was around, we listened to some form of Dueling Banjos or another.

I asked for a Paula Abdul cassette tape for Christmas (is anyone else going to fess up to liking Forever Your Girl?). I had to hear about the cost of the fifteen-dollar cassette for six months. “That ain’t no five-dollar tape!”

It was easier to swipe a tape from my mother’s premarital stash, than it was to ask for any more cassettes. In her car, we listened to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, as those where the two bands that my little brother could stand. My mother kept a sewing machine full of cassette tapes. Mostly variations on pop mixes called “Songs from the 60’s,” Peter, Paul & Mary, Jim Croche, Linda Ronstandt and Billy Joel. I was a kid, and the Fisher Price tape player was a piece of junk, so I broke a few of my mother’s cassettes.

Years later, my mother confessed that she would only give me the tapes that she was sick of, and then she always regretted it because I played them over and over and over.

But, I love Billy Joel songs. Really. If I’m honest, I’ll admit that Uptown Girl is a horrifically cheesy song. But, I’m a Horrifically Cheesy girl. It was upbeat, and peppy, and I ate it up. It fit right in with my penchant for musicals.

I wish I could paint a picture of how broken our family was, I wish I could reach out and make somebody understand how that brokenness makes me who I am. American Beauty opened in theaters right before my parents divorced. Two hours of heaven; somebody out there, some screenplay writer gets me! I day dream about writing an auto-biographical dinner scene for a dark comedy on television. But that is not just my story to tell, and too many people would get hurt or misunderstand, so I’ll skip to the part after dinner.

Every night after dinner, I ran away went for a three mile jog. I wore my running shoes to the dinner table, and I couldn’t wash the dishes fast enough. There was nothing better than looking forward to drowning in the too-loud headphones and the cover of the cool night air. I’ve ruined my hearing, and my neighbors all thought I was weird; jogging up and down the hill while singing and talking to myself.

Nothing defines Angsty Teenage Years better than listening to a Reba McIntire cassette tape. On loop. For two years straight. I listened to it until I broke it. I’m not sure if that was more or less destructive than the year I spent listening to Pearl Jam and Nirvana.

I still do that. I’ve become so picky about music that I’ll miss an entire year of radio hits, because I’m stuck listening to Alanis Morrisette’s 10-year remake of Jagged Little Pill, or I Wish We All Could Win by The Afters every time I get in the car for a full year straight. I think I’m the only person I know who can survive a 3-day road trip without a 6-disc changer or an Ipod in the car.

Today, I finally, officially got sick of Billy Joel albums. Now what?

What albums tell your history?

-Today I dug up No One Cares What You Had For Lunch by Margaret Mason, this was taken from #77: “Show us your B-Side.”

Phony Photo Booth

This is the funniest Candid Camera I’ve seen in a long time.

I am not a sleeper.

Last night I was up at 4 am looking at sleep websites. They all say avoid television, computer, reading, and “do something relaxing” before bed.

I need ideas! What on earth can I do at 4 am to go back to sleep? I love to crochet but I get obsessive about finishing just one more row so I don’t get to sleep.

What else?