Spontaneous

Last week I received an email from my friend Steph about a contest on her local radio station. She had entered and would I mind sending an email to help her win? The contest was for moms who needed to "cut the cord," or let go of their children. Uh, yeah, Steph is the poster child for this.

[In a nutshell, Steph's daughter just started college and she followed her to campus on the first day. Being one of my best bloggy friends I hope that she doesn't mind me spreading that around. You know I love you girl!]

On Thursday she found out that she had won, and with my help, as they had read part of my email on the air! Each winner was allowed to invite a friend to go out for a night on the town, complete with a limo ride, dinner, and club-hopping in downtown Boise.

Yep, Boise, Idaho.

Anyway, after some phone calls, planning, and pleading it was settled that I would be the one to go with her. So off to the airport I went early on Saturday morning to fly through Denver and get to Boise by mid afternoon. Only to get on a plane less than 24 hours later to make it back home the next day. But I'll get back to that part.

Aside: As you know, Headless Dad doesn't get the whole blogging thing. Getting him to get on board with me going to a city that I've never been to before, to meet someone that I've never met before, to party with people that I don't know, and somehow make it home in under 24 hours was a MAJOR feat all on it's own. You know, all you internet people are murders, right? This is no blogging conference with 1000+ people in a city where I can take care of myself. No, this was relying on strangers. To say that he was skeptical is putting it mildly.

Meeting Stephanie was like getting together with an old friend. We picked up where the emails and blog posts have left off, and fell into a comfortable conversation. After a few hours of catching up it was time to get ready to head off in the limo.

A pre-limo cocktail!

We were carried around town in a Hummer Limo. Complete with champagne! Niiice!

Yes, there were shots involved. The other winners and their friends were a lot of fun!

You know you're close to Utah when: (Excuse the grammar. Seriously. I can't help them.)


Thanks to Kate and Mix 106 radio for giving me a great excuse go to Boise and meet my pal for the first time. (More of Kate's pics here.) It was so fun to meet you, Steph. Thanks to you and G for the great hospitality, and for helping me cut the cord, if only for a day!

Oh! And for those of you keeping track, my trip home started out scary. My flight out of Boise was delayed for an hour, making me scared that I wouldn't make my connection in San Fransisco. All was ok after making a mad dash from gate 70 to gate 85 with little time to spare. (Good thing I've been getting in shape. I ran all the way and thought, "Wow! This would have been much harder if I hadn't been running lately.") Then, on the approach to LAX I was greeted by this:

The Station fire in the Angeles National Forest. As of today it has burned more than 85,000 acres, with no containment to speak of, and more hot dry days to come. It is about 40 miles from us so all we have is the smoke, but it's awful. Welcome home! *cough, cough* Add to that another fire burning about 40 miles east of us and it makes for quite a smoky morning. I don't think anyone would say I was wrong to skip my walk this morning, do you?

Fitness Friday #4

Do you walk/run on a track? I usually hate it because it's so monotonous but I figured out how to make it more interesting. It goes something like this:

• walk the first lap
• stretch
• run the second lap
• do a set of push-ups
• walk/run one lap
• set of tricept pushups
• walk/run one lap
• {sit ups, push ups, etc.}
• repeat
  

Doing this on Tuesday night helped me go OVER 3 MILES without flinching. I stretched my arms while I was walking each lap. Make sure to stretch out gooood at the end or you'll pay for the next couple of days.

Of course I'm still sitting on my same number on the scale. It won't budge, but I'm noticing a little extra room in my pants and shorts, so I guess that's good.

*****

The football weigh in went great! He made weight; with some to spare, I think. The weight limit for his age is 90lb. and the morning of he weighed 85 or so. The whole saga of watching his/our food intake is a story in and of itself, so I'll do that later. So much football, so little time.

*****

I have to run...I'm super busy today. Some important phone calls, helping at the school, working on the room, swimming after school, Target. Gah! If the stars align right I'm going to have a killer weekend to tell you about so stay tuned!

Doin' The Ipod Shuffle

Although I've had an ipod for over a year, I just recently loaded it up with all of my favorite songs from my old cd collection. I pulled them all out, loaded them into my computer and Voila! all of my old favorite music is at my finger tips. You know, without having to listen to only one at a time and change the disc when it's over? Yeah, I know. Welcome to the 20th century, Headless. I'm really having fun revisiting all of my 80's and 90's music, mostly on my morning walks. There is some cool (to me) stuff in there!

Well, I'm starting a meme of sorts. No tags, just do it if you want and let me know so I can come check out all of your music, and find out what I'm missing.

Put your ipod on shuffle, and list the first 10 songs that come up, but don't repeat an artist. Easy, right? OK, here's mine:

• The Wind Knows My Name by Fairground Attraction
• Too Busy Being In Love by Doug Stone (This is a great song, especially for us 'writers'.)
• Time by Hootie and the Blowfish (I heart me some Darius Rucker!)
  
• Let Me Love You by Third Day (Auds, you should go listen to this song. I think you'll like it.)
• Mr. Brownstone by Guns and Roses
• Miss You in a Heartbeat by Def Leppard (Yes, I love some big hair, big rock in my collection.)
  
• The Main Thing by Roxy Music (Avalon is the sexiest album of all.time., in my opinion.)
• She's In Love With The Boy by Trisha Yearwood (I love to belt her songs out!)
• Don't Go by Yaz (Nothing says 80's to me like Yaz.)
• Woman Behind The Man by Toby Keith. (Swoon.)

Some Wonderfully Fabulous Links For Wednesday

There are some posts that you must know about this week, so here we go!

• Schmutzie turned 6 yesterday and is giving away a 4gb ipod. Go enter! Happy Day, Schmutzie, and thanks for sharing your brilliance with us. (I'm not sure how long this will be open so hurry if you're interested.)
  
• Kelly said the nicest things about me when she accepted her award. I love that we're still friends after all these years and after all the crap that we've been through. Oh, and I wouldn't change a thing! I miss you, friend!
  
• Darren at ProBlogger has the coolest post up today. It's about a secret blog alliance that is helping one another through comments, links, guest blogs, etc., and I love the concept.
• Michelle got me thinking about allowances for kids. I'm actually thinking that I need to re-think my philosophy on this. My kids won't like it, but I sure will!
• Do you need to write an anonymous post? Chris over at 3Giraffes has a great idea for you. go quick before time runs out! If I had the time, I totally would do it! (It might be too late. If so maybe we'll do a round over here? Let me know what you think.)
• And there are about 89 truths in this list. (No matter that there are only 59,) Auds knows how to make me laugh!

OK, now. On with your day!

Tuesday Shots

These are some of the other shots that I took on vacation in Colorado. As much as thistles suck if they are in your yard, they make awesome subjects for pictures.

Below is a shot I took of the grasses that grow between my parent's house and the golf course. The out of bounds area. The first is the raw picture, the second is me playing with the color settings, saturation, etc.

I probably could have done a better job, but I like the effect that I got. I'm trying to learn how to use iphoto. Think it's about time?

What do you think of the B&W?

When Is It OK To Disagree?

A friend recently left a link on Facebook that I have kept open for several days. I've read it and re-read it. I've wondered if I should post it here and talk about it, but in the end I feel that I can't NOT share it. (Uh, double negative. Impressive. not)

This article, from The Denver Post.com, by Mike Rosen, tells an interesting story about how Democrats whined and complained about being "heard" before the election in November, but now that they have a voice in Obama that dissenting opinions are being pooh-poohed and purposely left out of the debate on health care. (Go read it before I comment.)

Back? OK.

I know I don't often get into political debates here, and I don't necessarily want to now, but I can't see how packaging this health care 'debate' with only supporters can help anyone. According to the article "busloads of Democratic activists bused in from the Front Range passed them [Republican ticket holders] by." Really?

According to what I've heard from places like whitehouse.gov, the President wants to hear from all sides of the dabate. Even Loralee and her husband were able to weigh in on healthcare with an audience from the White House. That's fantastic, given all that they've been through. I'm glad that they both had the opportunity to speak their minds. What I don't understand is not allowing people (Republicans) to even see the speech. (I'm guessing that the Republicans in question didn't agree with the president on this one.) An event to which they actually had tickets for. I'm certain that this is not an isolated incident.

It seems that giving lip-service to "other views" and actually allowing them a voice on the same stage don't go hand in hand.

This is not about health care. It's not about what your views are, (or my views, for that matter,) but it has everything to do with the transparency that we are not getting from the Obama White House-that we were promised, or from the left-wing media that hails him as some kind of teflon leader.

I wonder what happened to "Free Speech"? When did it become a reportable offense to disagree with the President? I would hope that more people would disagree and stand up for what they think is right-or at least be able to join the conversation, then we might actually be able to get somewhere with some of these issues, versus only having a one-sided debate. Where I come from that's called rhetoric and propaganda, and unless we have actual debates and voices for all sides of an issue, it's not America, either.

PS- It seems as though I'm not the only one that sees this in the Obamacare campaign. You can read what I mean in Erin's post on BlogHer, and don't forget to read the comments! This one gets me the most... "...We're going to get this done. One way, or another." Wow. Last I heard president's don't make laws....

Just So You Know...

I'm not being a slacker...
But seriously? This much painting and taping and painting is just taking it out of me. Surely you can understand....

We're off to pull tape. Please let it look good. We'll show some real results later!

Oh, and for Fitness Friday? Same exercise, same diet, no more results. So, no post. Next week I'll be able to talk about football weigh in, and my own. Wish us luck!

Thanks, Kyooty!

*blushing* Look what I got last week!
Kyooty. Talk about a great blog pal. She is so supportive and loyal. May you all have a pal like her!

For this award we have to list 5 obsessions. OK, here they are...

1) Jesus. I'm proud to say that my thoughts are often on Him.
2) Blogging.
3) Football. If you're new around here, you'll know soon enough.
4)My family. (Oops. Should this one be second?)
5) Red wine. I'm sipping some as we speak!

And for the obligatory 5 tags:

Just Breathe-My friend IRL, she has mad a huge impact on the blogging world in the short time she's been blogging.
Serenity Now!- Because she doesn't post enough, and I'm hoping she takes this as a helpful nudge! ;-) And because I big-pink-puffy-heart her tag line. Go see for yourself.
Something Funny Happened Today-Kelly is getting back to posting...go check out her last two posts about women's health. You'll laugh, then want to go buy some Ben Wa Balls. You'll see.
Drama for Mama-Becca has been only blogging since May, but she's great. You should be reading her. Seriously.

And finally, I don't know if she takes these, or does anything with them, but I cannot tell you the awesomeness that is Schmutzie. Not only is she beautiful in person, she can write, she can photo, and she can make a mean crocheted doll. She is also the creator of the 'Grace in Small Things' ning group. (And her husband is pretty cute, too.)

Thanks Kyooty!
(Award is also listed on my Bling and Links page.)

Wordless Wednesday

Alternate title:
Are you ready for some football?

Oh my goodness. I'm finally a football mom! Stay tuned, though. Drama seems to be imminent....

Hey!

Wanna see me quoted AND win $100 gas card? Head on over to BlogHer to see how to win!

What are you waiting for? GO!

Some Things That Are Making Me Happy This Week

In the interest of fair and balanced reporting, I give you the good stuff:

• Lovely cool weather for the past several days.
• My kids getting great teachers this year.
• Hearing my husband say "We really need a night out-just the two of us."
• Having help around the house when I'm really busy.
• Helping a friend with her kids when they had a scheduling snafu. (The kids were thrilled!)
• The smell of fresh paint.
• A Saturday afternoon nap.
• Finally getting information that you need.
• Quick and easy dinners that are nutritional, too.
  
• Football season. 'Nuff said.
  

Fitness Friday #3

So it's Monday. Wanna make something of it? (Actually, last week just plain kicked my butt. I've spent the last few days recovering and getting ready for this week.)

Workouts: Walking the kids to school and then setting off in our hilly neighborhood has been great for my butt! I've been clocking at least 2 miles each day. I also added sit-ups and push-ups to my routine this week. (No specific program just yet, just doing a few sets of each.)

Food: Since we're still watching what we eat for football weigh in, we had a week of very low carbs. Tacos in a bowl one night, (thanks for the suggestion, Amy!), meatloaf (made with half beef, half turkey,) and broccoli (no mashed potatoes!), and Asian lettuce wraps. We've eaten grilled chicken this weekend, lots of fresh veggies, and even had fish on Sunday evening.

Verdict? Well, if I had posted this on Friday like I was supposed to, I would have said "not one bloody pound" again. However, since it's Monday, I'm happy to report that as of Sunday, I'm down 3 pounds! Yay! See what procrastination can get you sometimes?

And, in celebration of those 3 pounds, I give thee my recipe for Stuffed Zucchini. (Modified from better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, edition 1997 (?). Yes, that one!

4 med. zucchini ( Or one giant one, like I got out of my garden, with an extra, just in case.)
3/4 lb. ground turkey
1/3 cup chopped onion (I used considerably more)
1 can Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilis)
1/3 cup rice
1 Tbsp. Worstershire sauce
1/2 tsp. basil or oregano (I used oregano)
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar (I used more, obviously.)

Boil water in pot large enough for zucchini. Cut a thin slice off of the top, lengthwise, so you can scoop out the seedy part. Immerse in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. (My pot wasn't large enough for the whole zucchini so I had to do each end on it's own. Worked!)

Cook meat and onion in skillet until brown. Drain. Add can of Rotel, uncooked rice, Worsteshire sauce, basil, 1/2 cup water, and a little salt and pepper, (if desired. I didn't.) Cook until boiling, then cover and simmer for 15-18 minutes, until rice is cooked. Mix in half of the shredded cheese and spoon into the prepared zucchini. Put into large baking dish (like a pyrex)(if not all of the mixture fits you can add it to the bottom of your baking pan,) and bake in 350 oven until heated through, about 15-20 minutes. Add the last of the cheese for the last 2-3 minutes to melt.

This fed four of us perfectly! You could also use bell peppers if you like them, but zucchini out of the garden is way better. One of my kids loved the whole thing, the other one only liked the stuffing. It's worth a shot-pretty quick and easy for a weeknight, and with rice and cheese? Most kids will like it. Let me know what you think!

How did you do this week? Any successes?

A Few Things That Are Annoying Me Today

• Uncleared easment/horsetrails. As I was walking this morning I was super paranoid about critters running around on the horsetrail. When some people don't clear the weeds I get extra special paranoid that a snake will appear out of a hole and, I don't know, eat me or something. Kinda hard to walk thinking about that stuff.
• Asking for volunteers without giving a clear picture of what that job will detail.
• Small jobs that turn out to be big. And shouldn't be.
  
• Some stupid show on Discovery (or something) that was about rats. Can I not get away from them?
  
• The school 'springing' Back-to-School Night on me. (OK. So I should remember that it is on the Thursday after school starts, but with everything I have going on I always forget.)
• Jobs, responsibilities, or just stuff that has slowly shifted from other peoples' 'list' to my own.
• The damn heat. (I know it could be worse, and I'm thankful that it's not, but still. HOT!)
• The cost of all of the extra football equipment that we 'need'. And the lack of customer service at a sporting goods store with a name that can also double as part of a man's anatomy. Seriously. I'm dropping good money here, someone should be able to answer my questions.
• Martha Stewart. Everything she does is an advertisement for HER. Tired of it, already.
• Exercising and watching what I'm eating and still not losing a single, stinking pound.
  

So. What's annoying you today?

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

I often get questions regarding the "heart in hand" logo that I use here on my blog. It is a common folk art symbol that my mother and I have been collecting for years. If you've ever been to my house, you might recognize the following as parts of my decor!

Made by my niece, of my children's hand prints:

Crystal, from my mom:
Carved wooden box from my aunt, this year for my birthday: (with red tissue to show detail)
A lapel pin on a heart pillow, above my desk:
A gift from an old friend, "When this you see, remember me!":
An old key chain:
Gingerbread style:

So my tattoo isn't just for the blog, it really is something that means a lot to me!

Teen Movie Perfection

Sam The Butcher sent me this article over the weekend and I absolutely loved it. It is an interview with John Hughes, by Roger Ebert, back in 1984. The true heyday of the teen movie. Many of you are around my age and have huge memories of John Hughes films. Who among us can't recite every word of at least 2 of his films? OK, 3. Or more.

I think that this quote from the article is great:

"Look at what this movie doesn’t have," said Ally Sheedy. "No high school dance. No chase scene. No naked shower scene. No beer blast. No rumble. It’s about kids who are learning about themselves. It’s like doing a play. It’s an actor’s dream. And it’s an ambitious picture. With a lot of teenage movies, you get the feeling the filmmakers are remembering their own youth. This movie is about right now."

And you know what? It still resonates. The Breakfast Club is still one of my all-time favorite movies. I could watch it over and over, (and have. Ahem.)

So, tell me. What is your favorite quote from a John Hughes film? Or, if you can't narrow it down to just one, how about your top 3?

And, goodnight, Mr. Hughes. Your films will live on in us, a generation that came of age alongside your characters and found out that we all have flaws and insecurities, and can be understood anyway.

Headless Dad Doesn't Get It

HD has never gotten the whole blogging thing. He indulges me, yes, and nor does he have a cow when the bathrooms haven't been cleaned in, um, weeks.

He readily admits that email is a "necessary evil," for work alone.

This evening I decided to share one of the Community Keynote posts with him. It was one by one of the men that had particularly touched me during the reading. HD isn't a big reader, so I even offered to play the video for him. He chose to read it.

O-kaaayyy.

I was hoping that this particular post would resonate with him. I was hoping for the lightbulb to go off. The recognition of "Wow! I get it now!"

Yeah, not so much.

Blogging has become such a huge part of my life; the people, all of you, that 'live' in my computer, are part of my daily thoughts and actions. I wish that he would 'get it.'

He scoffs when I say that you are my friends. He doesn't understand that my heart breaks when you get ill, or you had a bad day. Or worse. He wants to know if the friends I talk about are 'real' friends, or if you live somewhere else, connected only by the interwebs.

Only you're not connected to me only by the interwebs. We're connected by fingers, and flesh, and ((hugs)). We're connected by daily or weekly posts that make us laugh, or cry, or nod our heads in agreement. We give and take advice. We connect through common experiences and shared tears; through recognition.

I love the friends that I've found here. I blog for the community that I have found. I blog for me; for my (free!) therapy. I blog for connection. I blog to expand my heart.

I wish that he could get that.

Church Shopping

Today begins our quest for a new church.

It has become evident, through a vast series of events, that we should find a new church to attend. The reasons are varied, the emotions kinda raw, but the end result is the same.

We, I! think that we need to find a new church.

Yes, there are people and things that I love about our current church home, but it is quite evident that God has been pushing us in another direction.

So, today we are going to another church. To see if it is good for us.

To see if our kids are welcomed, to see if we 'fit.'

We'll see.....

We'll see if we 'fit.' We'll see if we are going to be a 'part,' or just 'one of.' We'll see if God places us in new hands, or gently directs us back to the home we've known for 11 years.

We'll see.

The Lovely Women (and Men) That I Met at the OC Bloggers Ball

Debbie- Peace, Love and Momminess
Kelly- Just-Spotted
Sondra and Loren- The Land Of Gracious Living
Mom of the Month
Michele- Fun Orange County Parks
Carrie- This is Me Journals
StacyRae- FitnessMama and Body-Techniques
Jan Horton, Yorba Linda City Council Member
Ciaran- Momfluential, Popshopology, SocialLuxe, Francie-Pants.
Nik- Prose&Converse
Tami- ICan'tBelieveAnyoneWouldReadThis

And, of course, our lovely and glamorous hostess, Marcy. Without whom none of it would have been possible!

I wish I had gotten cards from the others that I met. I had a truly lovely time and can't wait for the next meet-up! (That means you, Suz!)

Hey BFL Peeps-

Or anyone else that might be interested....

Sarah, GoonSquadSarah, is starting a Fantasy league over on Draft Day Suit. There may still be spots available if you're interested. Go quick!

Fitness Friday #2

Is it Friday already? These weeks are barreling by. Before we know it, it will be Christmas! (Don't throw any tomatoes this way. *ducking*)

So, for this week, I walked M-Th. (anywhere from 2 miles-3 1/4 miles). I've run parts of that.

I've started back on my granola and yogurt breakfast. (Granola cereal, vanilla yogurt, and berries if we have them.) I have been making my homemade refried beans, so burritos (with a tortilla, or 'in a bowl') have been eaten. Fiber, protein, and great for the budget! We have been cutting out carbs, and eating lots more fruits and veggies. Nothing exciting, but we're doing it.

And not a damn pound lost to show for it

What about you?

(I have a great recipe to share next week-with bounty from the garden!)

What are all of these fabulous OC bloggers doing? Go to my review blog to find out!

Schedules

Why do schedules cause me so much panic?

See, HB#2 started football LAST Monday. As in waaaay back in July. They practice each evening from 6-8. So he won't puke, he eats a big lunch around 2, then we're all stuck eating dinner around 8:30, if we're lucky. (Like last night? Yeah. Major fail. I ended up going out for take-out and we didn't eat until 9:30.)

The boys start school next Monday. As in August 10th. They will practice Mon-Thurs next week, then Tues-Fri. the following week. Can you see where this is going?

This totally screws dinner and bed times. And I mean bad.

We are THAT family that has dinner during the week between 6 and 6:30 every.night. All together. All of us. Always have.

Add to that, for next week anyway, I was just informed tonight that our team is in charge of the snack bar. Starting on Monday. Um, yeah. The youngest team, none of us have been in this league before, and it's the first week of the school year.

Can you see my head exploding?

Last year I wrote a post about being prepared for the first week of school.

Uh, did I mention that as one of 4 team moms I volunteered to go to Costco to shop for this whole snack bar shenanigains?

So, yeah, I think I need to be getting prepared like, last week. Anyone have a time machine?

PS-Any dinner ideas that I can make for my kid to eat at 4pm would be great. That will also be good at 6 when normal people eat: i.e. the rest of the family. (Did I mention the heat and the puking?)

PPS-Oh! and for the record, we've cut out bread, pasta, rice, etc., because he needs to make weight.

PPPS-Is it any wonder we're Headless? Really? Or maybe that's just me....

See, it's all about the scheduling.

I'm Not Here, I'm There

Want to know What's New at Ford? Head to Reviews and Giveaways to find out!

BlogHer 09-The People

The best part of BlogHer are the people that you meet. Let me introduce you to some fabulous men and women that happened to be in Chicago last weekend (in no particular order):

Blondie
Jenny on the Spot
Michelle
Rachel
Schmutzie
Leigh
Amazing Greis
Jodifur
Roxane
Secondhand Karl
Rita Arens
Mommy from the Midwest
Brandi
Angela
Anissa 
and Hope4Peyton
Java Jenn
Jyl
Kirsten
SleepyNewMommy
TippyToes
Diana
Mommy's Martini
Foodie Reflections
Motherbumper
Rachel
Christine
Janelle
Christy
Karianna
MamaPop
ButWhyMommy
Gina/TechieDiva
3giraffes
CrazedMommy
PopandIce
The Well Rounded Woman aka Cara
Andrea
Kari
Tracey
Liz
Linda
Nanny Goats in Panties
Karen and Sam from Craftastrophe
Miss Britt
Avitable
Neilochka
Tanis
BackpackingDad
Palinode
Shannon/Mom, Reinvented

This is by all means not a fully exhaustive list, but since I've been working on this for 2 days, I'm exhausted. And done. If I missed listing you here, sorry. Let me know and I'll add you. Or not. Your choice.