Unreliable Sources

Yup. I did, er do, embezzle money from my family.

Occassionally, I will not share information on a sale with my family. So I may make a sale and then take a few bucks off the top (some husbands may call it skimming) and deposit it into my own personal account. At another bank. Then, when I have a lot, like $15, I might take that debit card from said "extra" account and go to Hobby Lobby and go crazy. By crazy I mean I might buy something and not even think about whether or not I should be buying it. I just buy it, like a crazy mad woman who doesn't have to think about what she is buying because she stole the money.

Last weekend I went online to buy some digital goodies with the embezzled money. So I clicked the Buy Now button and then I realized that I had a coupon to use. So I cancelelled the purchase and bought it again with the coupon. Well, won't you know that it took the bank 7 full days to release that pre authorization. Which means that it debited that amount from my account twice? Meanwhile I still had more stuff to buy. So I had to make an emergency trip to the bank to deposit a few extra dollars (oh yeah, which I had to "skim" from Cole's piggy bank) to make my extra purchase and cover me until the pre-auth was released.

So I thought that if I told Cole we were going to the bank before school it might put a little pep in his step. He was excited and off we went. Then I dropped him off, bought the goods and went on with the rest of the day.

Will gets home and they talk and play as I am on the computer. I had forgotten about the whole money thing by the afternoon. Cole however had not. I overhear the conversation and it goes a little like this:

"What did you do today?"

"I went to the bank."

"You didn't go the bank. Pause. Who did you go to the bank with?"

"Mommy and me go to the bank."

"Honey, did you go to the bank?"

Crap! "Um, no. What business would I have at the bank?"

"Cole, did you go to the bank today with Mommy?"

"Yup!"

"Honey, Cole is convinced you went to the bank."

Now I'm in too deep. "Seriously Will, he's 2. They probably learned about the bank at school. I did not go to the bank."

The highlight of his day must have been the bank because that turd talked about how we went to the bank all damn evening! Telling Daddy over and over again how we went to the bank. Urgh!

So the night finally ended and we went to bed. I woke up and the pre auth had cleared and I needed to go back and withdraw Cole's money to return it into his piggy bank before it was discovered that it was gone.

"Cole, let's go."

"Where we going Mommy?"

Ha! I am not telling you. You little rat! "We're going to take a ride in mommy's car. C'mon!"

"Where?"

By this time I know he's not gonna let it go and then even if I don't tell him he's going to figure it out when we pull up to the drive through he seemed to enjoy so much yesterday. So I debate calling Will and just confessing the whole thing. It is eating me alive and I can't keep coming up with lies to cover the other lies. It's getting out of control.

But then it occurs to me that I have created an unreliable source. And I like that. I can see it already. In 3 years Cole and I might go to the mall and when he snitches that I bought a lot of stuff I can always say, "Honey, he's a story teller. Remember when he was 2 and he told that story how we went to the bank and we never did? It's just like that."

Confession #1

It's Sunday and fitting for a Catholic (who attends a Baptist church) to confess today.

I swallow my gum. I don't know why, but I do. I can't pop a gum in my mouth without swallowing it. It's like a reflex. Usually I don't even know I have done it until my husband asks me what happened to my gum.

Yeah, I like gum.

What else?

Our conversation as we drive home from picking Cole up from school:

"What did you eat at school today?"

"I eat banana."

"And what else?"

"I eat chocolate milk"

"and what else?"

"I eat fruit roll up."

"and what else?"

"I eat sandwich."

Then, when I am satisfied that he has checked off everything I packed him, I stop asking what else. It's like a rigid test, some may call it a torture test, to see what my 2 year old can remember because I know exactly what he ate. I packed it remember?

So I picked up Cole from school on Tuesday and was inundated with work so my mind was somewhere else. I forgot to ask him what he had for lunch.

"Mommy, I play with Play Doh today."

"That's wonderful Cole. You know what, maybe we can play with Play Doh when we get home."

"I already did play with Play Doh."

"Oh, ok."

"Mommy, I ate Play Doh today. What else?"

Me Wants a Gypsy!!!!

Tomorrow will be a big day for me. and I mean B-I-G! Guess what the brown truck will be delivering to my house? A Cricut machine. I am so excited. Yay for me! My friend, Angela, introduced me to a whole new world of cardmaking. So soon my card making will go 3d. Oh yes it will. But first I have to get my Cricut.

Now, a perfect Cricut accessory might be the Gypsy. No, it IS the Gypsy! Me wants a Gypsy and in order to have a chance to win it I needed to share this with you on my blog. Now, the chances of me winning are much better than me winning the lotto, considering especially that I don't play. So this time, I'm gonna play. I am in it to win it!

Cutting Above, a brand new scrapbooking blog has received 2 to give away. So head over there and try for your chance to win one and read about all the spiffy stuff the Cricut and it's companion, Gypsy are capable of. Now, if you win one and aren't sure what in the world you would do with it let me help you (because I love helping people). Just give it to me. You're welcome for the help;)

Through Fresh Eyes

Last week I had a friend come over. She was stopping by early in the morning and the house was a wreck. The night before I was tired and decided that instead of staying up outragously late cleaning, I would just wake up early and do it.

I woke up and did a cleaning spree. When she arrived, I opened the door, all flustered from just having put the last toy away and she says, "Your house is so clean and tidy."

I jumped back and said, er yelled, "You're kidding me right?" Now keep in mind that I confess, everything. So I was about to and then she said, "There are toys strewn everywhere in my house." I probably should've have said something to her right then and there, something like, "oh no dear, the doors are all closed because toys will fall on your head". Or "don't look under that rug because that is where Cole's dinner from 3 weeks ago probably is". Or don't turn over the couch cushions, this is the guest side. As soon as you leave I will turn them over back to the "family" side". But I didn't. I basked in the glory of her words, "Your house is clean" and I felt a little better about myself.

I'm not sure what she said after that. I just kept looking around my house wondering what she saw. Because all I saw was the floors that hadn't been mopped in a while, the rug that had food and drink stains on it, the curtain that had coke splatter on it, the dust on the entrance table, the smears on the glass study doors. I was shocked and in disbeleif because my vision of clean was so far from reality. It was nice to see things through fresh eyes. I was finally able to relax that day and feel that for once, I had done enough. So I sat down and I played with my child. Thanks D;)

New Look for Chic Farm Designs?

So I have been working, little by little, on my new look for Chic Farm Designs. The current look was designed by someone else but it's not a one of a kind and I am a one of a kind girl. So I thought it would be fitting to design one myself, considering I am a designer. But as I realize things look and sound better in my head, I thought I'd have my blog readers "check me at the door" so to speak.

So do you like my current one, found here, or the new look below? I LOVE comments and stalkers so don't be shy about leaving one or being one.

Some good news and some bad news.

I was sooo tired last night but the stupid computer kept me up late - I feel a letter coming on:

Dear Computer,

You are not at all stupid. I am stupid for calling you stupid. I love you. I love you very much. You are my obsession. Please don't be mad, and crash, or slow down.

Love always (please, please, please),

Vannessa

So it was late when I got in bed. I was exhausted and I quickly fell asleep. About 45 min later, at exactly 1:13 am, I heard someone call my name. Like really clear and really near and in my ear. (I know that sounds like a Dr. Seuss rhyme but that was not intentional-just naturally brilliant I suppose). It sounded like my dad. I jolted up and looked around in the dark. Cole and Will were out, I mean O-U-T, snoring, both of them. Yay for me! So I got out of bed and I peed. I pee a lot at night. But luckily in the toilet, not in my bed sillies!

But seriously I was freaking out. I called Sissy. I was all emo and nervous as the phone rang. Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, blood pressure problems all run rampant in my family. So all the things that could have happened are running through my head and I am getting more and more paranoid. Sissy answers all groggy "Hello." So I tell her about my little episode and she says she's not home, she's spending the night at a friend's house. Shit! Here we go again.

I call my mom-who has 2 freakin' phones and NEVER answers any one of them. On the third ring she answers. I tell her about my dream or whatever and I ask her to go check on dad. They sleep in separate rooms because my mom is all menopausal and she needs the fans one minute and then she's all hot the next. That and she is wacko, much like me. So she says "He's snoring."

Thank God! The good news is, my dad was fine.

The bad news is, I don't have ESP.

That's my dad in the picture below. What a handsome feller! That ugly guy in the background and to the left is my cousin Ray. I would have cropped him out but it would have taken too long.

Confessaholics Annonymous

It's no secret that I can be a little obsessive compulsive about certain things. We all are, I think. All you have to do is plant a seed of doubt in my head and I am all over that! You know, I am the one that a salesperson can convince to buy that sweater in 7 different colors because "it's all the rage and you never know which color you might need". But my shopping confessions are a a whole other story for a whole other post. (Stop smirking MOPS moms!)

When Will and I decided to put Cole in a preschool program, we asked around. We were sold on one school and I asked my friends and they were all very happy with their (and their children) experience. One mother called and reminded me about registration and casually said that last year, a mother had stayed the night just to secure her child a spot.

This is the absolute last thing you need to tell me! Because you know what I have to do now right? That's right! I have to camp out at the school! So I did and I even managed to convince my mom to join in the "fun" with me. Here's the proof:
I kow what you must be asking yourself. No, I am not proud. I did it because nobody was supposed to know. But other parents kept showing up at all hours of the night to check on the status of the line (wish I had thought if that) and went home and were comforted by the fact that I was THE ONLY NEUROTIC MOM IN LINE!

A few parent's did keep coming back to check on us ladies and one even brought us an extension cord and candles. Aww! How sweet was that? Nobody else showed up until 5 am. Silver lining: we had pick of the litter-we got the first available spot of 3 (and then we changed the schdule to full week and there were a lot of those available)! So yay!

I thought I had lived the moment down. People had forgotten. Then I walked into a neighbor at HEB and she asked me where Cole was going to school. So I tld her and she says "That's a great school!" I smiled and said, "oh, we love it there! Absolutely love it!" Then she says, " It must be great because there are parents that spend the night the night before registration opens to get in line-it's that great."

I froze. I am no longer a shopaholic but I am a confessaholic. {Please, just smile and walk away. Shut up Vannessa. Shut up!}

It has come up a few more times but mostly, people know, or guess that I am the mom that spent the night at school, especially when they see me peeking through the classroom window-all gung ho.

Dear Cole,

There will be moments in your life that you will think Mommy is phsycho. She is. So brush your teeth and eat your veggies or this will become a tradition!

P.S. Mommy loves you very much.

Love,
Mommy


You are very welcome Cole's school-I have upped the ante for you. I made you great.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

Ev'rywhere you go;
Take a look in the closet and den, glistening once again
With fancy games and silver cars aglow...

Before I get into that, let me just say that Christmas is 3 months away and just this week I looked up at our roof and got upset that 2 months ago we took the partially hung Christmas lights down. We had never finished hanging them and I suppose it would not have hurt to just leave them up a few months longer. Ghetto, yes. Laughed at by every single friend that visited, yes. Will they ever be hung again, sadly, no!

So anyway, enough sidetracking A-D-D girl, focus. FOCUUSSSS! and I'm back...

We had another unfinished project in our bedroom. We got an armoire a few months back (probably around the time we took the lights down...) and it sat in our bedroom. We never quite made the whole tv, dvd switch. So Sunday, when Cole was away with Mimi, we tackled it. We quickly hit a snag. I was ready to throw the towel in, until next summer at least but Will wanted to plow on. {What a slave driver!} We had to relocate last years Christmas and birthday gifts that we never actually gifted Cole. He just has so many toys that frankly, I just don't have the energy to give them to him so that he can dump Mr. Potato Head and his 3 million parts in his wagon and then sprinkle them around the house. Seriously, where would I find the time? During blogging sessions. {I don't think so Mr!}
So we decided to just relocate them to the play room. They are gifts from friends and family and I feel guilty selling them on Ebay and they are some pretty fantastic gifts. So then I had this brilliant idea to wrap 'em up and give them to him for Christmas from Santa, or us. (You so know we'll take the credit.) Then I thought how totally wrong that would be. So I stuffed them into the closet... and under the bed... and in Max's big ass crate.

I think this year we are feeling very generous. Friends and family, this is a tasting of what you'll find under your tree from The Egglestons (because though we have found a church we have yet to be saved):
Mickey Mouse bowling set
Leap Frog Magnetic Letters
Leap Frog Alphabet-IN SPANISH-can I get a WOOHOO!
Mr. Potato Head (and his 3 million pieces-yay for you!)
Handy Manny Transforming Tool Table

and some other nice little surprises. You lucky dogs you. In return for your wonderful gifts, you could come help me hang our lights. We promise we'll never take them down:(

Just for the record, we will eventually give the gifts to Cole. If you are a dear friend who happened to gift one of these to Cole, we love them, we are thankful, but we need to give them to him little by little. Sorry, you won't be getting them back under your tree:(

The Hunt is Over - We found a church!

I might just be saved after all. In a post some time back I posted about my church shopping. Hadn't had any luck and the whole time the right church was right under my nose! A few months back I joined MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers). So what is MOPS you ask?

MOPS helps moms through relationships established in the context of local groups that provide a caring atmosphere for today's mother of young children.

Well, I joined because I concerned that Cole was not getting any social interaction at home with just me. Not to mention the days were getting long and my husband was growing tired of me calling him at 10 in the morning just to "talk" - COMPLAIN.

Anyway, I met so many women whose faith inspired me and I was surprised to learn that though they were very faith based now, they weren't always so. I just kinda thought that all women who were strong in their faith were probably raised in very religious households. It was hard to imagine that they grew closer to Him as they grew older. But most of all, I wanted to bve like them. I wanted to have the relationship with God that they had. So my search began.

I mentioned before that I was raised Catholic and my mom is a very devout Catholic. I had hunted for Catholic churches and to be quite frank, I wasn't liking any of them. This is pretty much how every church visit would go:

arrive with toddler in tow
go to nursery
stay in nursery
chase toddler around so he doesn't run a muck everywhere
move toddler from all candles and plants
walk outside with screaming toddler who wants to play with candles and plants
give toddler lollipop to quiet him down
walk inside with sticky happy toddler
listen to other toddlers screaming and crying

So, Catholic churches have nurseries, but you have to stay in there with them and watch the sermon through a glass window. So not really any fun and we actually leave swearing. Not good. Not good at all.

So then I found out that other churches (religions) have nurseries. What???? And nobody shared this with me? So the hunt began.

When I parked at Baptist Temple (BT) an 8 seater golf cart drove up and asked if we needed a ride. Uh, like no but we'd like one. Yippee! They drove us 10 feet to the Children's Building. THEY HAVE A WHOLE CHILDREN'S BUILDING! We walked in and there were 4 kiosks with computers and little printers and then they gave us a pager number. "Uh, what's this for?" It is so that if there is a problem or concern with your tike, they flash the number on the wallls of the church so you can go attend to them. Sold. I'm like, sign me up. Take my kid! His name is Cole.

When I picked him up, they had given him snacks. Goldfish and milk. He'd also made a little picture for me. I think it was Noah's ark, supposed to be Noah's ark.

Oh yeah, the sermon was fantastic. I actually listened. The music is upbeat and they have words for people who like to sing but can't sing worth a crap so in an audience full of people you sound fantastic and I was able to sing my little lungs out. Aside from that, everytime I have gone (3 times baby) I have had a tear or two start running down my cheek. I get it! I finally get it! It's not at all intimidating to go. So, I am excited about this new chapter in our lives.

Our MOPS meetings are held at Baptist Temple. There are many women in MOPS that are members of BT but most practice other religions. I was surprised to learn that a very large percentage of the members at Baptist Temple were actually Catholics. Are actually Catholics. We don't tend to completely switch over-our parents would kill us and our forefathers would turn over in their graves.

But for now, my search for a church has come to an end. Now if only I could get hubby to go with us....

If you are at all interested in Baptist Temple, and can't make the times or are not from McAllen, you can always watch the sermon on the BT website here.

Check me at the door please!

Someone seriously needs to check me at the door. I was out shopping with some gal friends and I wore a pair of my tighter pants. So when you wear tight fittin' jeans, it's only fitting that your underwear line does not show. I know this. Everyone does. It totally sucks when you walk out of the house and you think you look decent. It sucks even more when you think you look pretty darn good. Now I know I sound like I am full of myself, but when I dress up enough to wear make up, fix my hair in anything other than a ponytail, and wear clothes that actually have to be ironed, I am looking pretty good. Feeling it at least. Again, it's all in my head....

So out we went, with my tight jeans and some thongs. I got home and one of the first things I did was sit at my computer (surprise surprise!). My husband walks by and says, "Did you wear that out?" Immediately I'm all like {how did I know he was going to want to hanky panky with me in my tight jeans?} So, slightly annoyed, I look up at him and reply "Yes, I did."

"Those thongs need to be torn up!" {Dirty old man! Wouldn't you just like to tear them up, er off?} and then just like that, I stop in my tracks because I get it. It just dawned on me that I am wearing the ones that are made for slightly taller people, you know, the Victoria's Secret models. So they ride up quite a bit, um, like a lot. I thought I was safe because the jeans I was wearing were not low rise, but apparently neither were the thongs. So, this is what I looked like at the party:
Only, I'm not that hot and they weren't that low. That's not me, I took the image from here.
Needless to say, I don't need a bottle of Tylenol by the nightstand anymore. Not as long as I have my thongs nearby, or on.

Insatiable Appetite

Cole's appetite has been voracious. V-O-R-A-C-I-O-U-S I tell you! I told Will that maybe we should withhold food from him because I am not a fan of creating creatures of habit. That's why I never smoked pot, because it is habit forming and besides, if you don't know what you're missing, you have nothing to want. Seriously, Will and I had all these rules. Cole will never, under any circumstances sleep in our bed. Because once they do it once, they are ruint. That was what we used to say. We let him in one night about a year ago and he hasn't not slept in our bed since then. Now the only thing that is ruint is our sex life,...well in our own bed that is. HEE HEE {smirk-be careful where you sit....}.
Shopping carts too can be source of ruin. We never let him sit in the back and then one day his Nana took him to the store and guess what she did? That's right! She let him sit in the basket. What do you think happens now everytime we go to a grocery store? Ding! Ding! Ding! You are the winner! That's right... He screams and I have to walk around the store for a few minutes pretending everything is ok because if I don't hear or see him no one else can. Just act calm and collected when things are anything but! Fools everyone, right? Maybe? I sure hope so.
Point being that if we give in to his every demand for food, he will grow up eating like that and then weigh 500 pounds. But still, the voice of reason (Daddy) says he's probably going through a growth spurt and to be frank, I am happy he's eating. So we indulge him. This morning alone he ate:
3 hard boiled eggs
2 pancakes
yogurt
fruit
cereal

Last night he ate:
2 hard boiled eggs
steak
fruit
cheese stick
mac and cheese
Goldfish

So that isn't our only concern: I am running out of food to give him. He is eating me out of house and home. I thought that wasn't supposed to happen till they were in college....

You have to go potty first...

I will be the first to admit that sometimes, in order to get what I want from my toddler, I will hold things and/or people over his head.
I suppose it's not always fun to have to perform the morning routines. Heck, sometimes, er most times {hee hee} I have to skip straight to making pancakes (and totally checking emails) before I get to brush my teeth.
Without fail, the first words out of Tweetie Pie's mouth every morning are "I want a cheese stick". All before his eyes are even open! If I fail to redirect within the next 2 seconds of this request, he's jetted off the bed and he's at the refrigerator door - just waiting for me to hand him that little stick of white glory.
So I have to be quicker, quicker than a 2 year old and do you realize how much freakin' energy they have at 9 am? (Yes, he can and will sleep until 9, I 'm lucky, I know, and I am thankful for it). So I have to wipe off the Sleepyhead Mommy face and put on that stupid fake "I'm super happy to be up" face and then I smile and say "Cole, you have to pee before you get a cheese stick".
To which he replies, "ok, ok, ok."
He pees. "I want cheese stick now."
$uC*! What else can I pony up?
"We're going to go over to Emma's house to play but before you eat your cheese stick, you have to wash your hands."
So he washes his hands and then I jump in and say "Good job Cole. Now, we have to brush our teeth ok?"
He whines, his tummy growls, and I just know I'm about to lose him so I say "If you brush your teeth now, you can eat your breakfast in front of the tv."
Sold.
That is until I need him to walk away from the tv so I can get him dressed.
Finally, after a mini meltdown, I pry him into the bathroom with me so he can comb his own hair and as I am brushing my own teeth, he says to me "Mommy, you want this?"
I turn to him, and see that he is holding one of my lady napkins. You know the kind...
He holds it up and asks "Mommy, you want this?"
"Yes dear, give it to mommy. Please don't open that."
He says "You have to go potty and then I give it to you."
Just like that. My toddler showed me how much it sucked to have something held over your head.

Mama said there'd be days like this

I flutter around all day getting dressed, feeding Cole, running errands, walking the dogs, checking my email, and all the while all I can think about is work. I can't wait to get to my computer and start designing. These days it's visions of sugar plums, candy canes, and Christmas trees. But as soon as my little fingers hit the computer, the first thing that I do is reply to emails and then from there, I get lost on the world wide web. The time comes to pick Cole up from school and then it's lunch time, nap time (for him-not me), relax time, honey gets home time, family time, and then before I know it the day has come and gone. And I have nothing to show for it. NOTHING AT ALL!

So I sit at my computer, again, in the wee hours of the morning and decide to attempt to put my minds work into action. It is the moment I have been waiting for. Not a creature is stirring - well quite possibly a mouse-and that damn dog that barks at the cat up in the tree - and NOTHING! I GET NOTHING!

I stare at the screen and fidget and design stuff that takes me forever and is crap! Pure crap! I somehow managed to veer from the design layout I had drawn up and I have sped off a cliff into crapdom!

These have been my days lately. I just can't sit and concentrate for the life of me. Anyone having days like these lately?

"Mama said there's be days like this, there'd be days like this, my Mama said...."

I did manage, finally, after many many revisions, to come up with a design, FINALLY! Sadly, it was not what I had in mind, but somehow it came to be what it came to be: a Merry Mint Christmas Card.

In my head

Tweetie Pie has been going to pre-school since June. He cried for the first week or so and then after that he was fine. Just peachy. Don't misunderstand me, he never wanted to go, but he went and then shrugged his shoulders at me saying goodbye, kinda like "I don't want to he here but I know you'll leave me here anyway and I'm still kinda asleep so I'll skip the cry fest till nap time".

The crazy school closes for like 2 weeks in the summer and Cole enjoyed sleeping in late, - oh, who am I kidding...so did I. When school started up again I strolled in there like I owned the place. After all, Cole had been going there for like 6 weeks straight. I walked up to his classroom and I saw all the new parents peeking in the window and I gave them that "been there, it gets easier, call me if you need advice" nod and opened the door to his classroom. The minute we stepped inside, he started balling and grabbing for me. He clamped down on my leg and all I could think was "Cole, you are making a scene. You are embarrassing Mommy." Because this wasn't how it had happened in my head this morning.

Gosh, sometimes I think things should just stay in my head because everything works out so much better there. It's this crazy outside of my head world that throws me for a loop.

So I left him crying in the arms of Miss J, his beloved teacher and I perched myself on the window and peeked in. I was the only one. All the new parents had come and left their little brave warriors and here I was, just like days 1-5, stalking my little one through the window.

That was 2 weeks ago and not much has changed. He still cries (for like 5 seconds) when I drop him off and I still peek through the window when I walk out. Sometimes, I get the nod from other parents. I have to find comfort in the thought that their day will come, perhaps after the Thanksgiving break. In my head, Cole walks in, smiles, and turns and says "See ya later alligator". I wave back and reply "in a while crocodile". Then I stroll out, nod to the other parents with the toddlers clinging to dear life on their legs, and walk all the way to my car. Never looking back.

Yeah, I like my head.

Make your Blog into a Book!!!

Now seriously, if I didn't surf the web all dang day, I'd never have anything to share with you. So, you're welcome. Even if it has all been information that was either not at all interesting to you, or irrelevant. But without further adieu, let me present to you my newest find:

You fellow bloggers can now make your blog into a book, all in one easy click of a button. Oh my Gawd!!!! Do you know what this means? How many of you out there started blogging just to document the lives of you children and family? Now you can have it all printed without having to save and back up the blog and do who knows what else. Some genius out in the web outer space has figured out how to do the hard work for us.

Sorry, I know you've been waiting for me to get to the goodies. But The Cutest Blog on the Block has the cutest free backgrounds for your blog (and now complete blog sites!) and as I went onto their site (to change the winter birds from last winter-oops) I stumbled upon the big button on their homepage that says "It's Time to Make your Blog into a Book". So I clicked on it and it did it all for me within a matter of seconds and then, get this people,....

I was even able to preview the entire book!

I am in blog heaven, all over again (since last night, you know?)

White Prohibition

So it's Labor Day and I had been in a mad dash the last month or so to "wear out" my white so that I can pack 'em up until next Easter. I was curious about the prohibition of white after Labor Day so in my spare time I decided to Google it (did I mention I LOVE Google!?)

Two theories I found on how the "white after Labor Day prohibition" might have come about:

"The only logical reasoning we could find cited temperature. Image consultant Nancy Penn suggests that because white reflects light and heat, wearing white would make you cooler in winter, and thus should be avoided.

But others suggest the rule stems from a class issue. Acting Director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology Valerie Steele notes that in the late 19th century and the 1950s, more people were entering the middle classes. These nouveau-riche folks were often unaware of the standards of high society, so they were given specific codified rules to follow in order to fit in."

Note: My research may have been much more extensive but an emergency midnight design call came in and I had to abandon my search for my client. However, below are some of my notes:

• White in all of the 2009 Fall fashion collections looked fantabulous!
  
• Put the linens and light wight cottons away (not just the whites), they are never acceptable in the Winter or Fall.
• White jeans are a hot item in winter - you can pair them with some high black boots, or "Hooker Boots" as I like to call mine.
• White tennis shoes are exempt.

I don't know about you but I still will not wear white but it may have more to do with the fact that a week or so ago I wore this awesome flow-y long white summer dress out as I had done many many times before. I thought I looked awesome in it so I was confident when I wore it to drop Cole off and pick him up. I even made sure to go ahead and run the extra errands that day because it's not often I dress up.
I stroll up to Sissy's work with my little tyke in tow expecting her to be all thumbs up about my dress. Well, first she asked what underwear I was wearing because she could make out the outline. Then she kindly asked what was up with "the puppies". First of all, what are puppies? Secondly, crap!!!! Are you kidding me???? I flaunted this dress in my son's preschool! Should have had my black high boots on and that surely would've completed the look. I packed that sucker up and I am horrified of white now-any time of the year.

In case you're wondering which dress I mean, it is this one. and yes, it was pg in this picture...

(Oh by the by, Sissy says I should wear red bottoms. Maybe next year I'll have recovered from my expose to try that out.)

Welcome to 2009 Vannessa! : Google Reader Rocks!

Not sure how many blogs you read and if you follow any. I have long long been a huge Google fan, hence Gmail, Blogger, Google Chrome (the newest browser), the Gmail calendar (which texts you your appts!!!), and now Google Reader. Now, I just started playing with it so I may miss some really neat features.

Even a bigger Google fan because Google sends me so many people to my site from searches. I LOVE YOU Google!

So, anyways, I was at my friend Angela's house, you know, playing with her scrapper toys and she was like all organizing her blogs in this thing called Reader. So I asked her why she didn't just bookmark them (like Hello!, Welcome to 2009!). Then she schooled me about Google Reader, which is a way to save and organize your bookmarks right in your Google email account. Hello World of blogging meets email!!! Check me in baby!

Sign in to your email account like you normally would. Then at the top right there are tabs such as Calendar, Documents, Photo, Reader, Sites, Web, etc. Click on Reader and on the right side there is a box that says Add A Subscription. You can click on that and it expands to ask you to type in the web address or search term for the blog you would like to subscribe to or follow. Now type in www.TheEggspressNews.com. Yay for you, now you are subscribed to my blog!

So what happens is that everytime there is a new post in any blog you follow, it will let you know (just like in your email account) with the number of unread posts by it. So instead of having to be checking every blog you follow daily and be dissapointed that you did all that for nothing, Gmail Reader lets you know and read it straight from your email! Now how fantastic is that?

You can also go to Manage Subscription and lets you organize them by categories. Like I follow funny blogs, sewing blogs, designer's blogs, friend's blogs, and scrapper's blogs and I have them all organized like that. So it's easy peasy to see if there is anything in a particular blog or category that is new and unread.

I know you're all as stoked about this Reader thingy as I was right? What's that? You didn't understand a thing I said? Well then you must not have Gmail and you are missing out! Go get you some here!

Being the visual person that I am, I thought it might be helpful for you to see it in action so I saved a screenshot of my Reader below. Naturally, I was reading my own blog because I didn't want to miss anything myself! I am all caught up!

A Reorganization

I was reorganizing my blogs (yes, forget that the house is a complete mess-if my computer files are organized all is peaceful...in my head; and that's where I have to live) and somewhere along the way (blog #2) I got sidetracked. I started reading each blog just to make sure I could put it in the right folder. You know, is it a friend's blog, a card blog, a scrapbooking blog, a sewing blog, a totally hilarious blog,...you get the idea.

So I was reading Amanda's blog, Nanny Deprived and she is such a great writer. Aside from that she has a shop (Nanny Deprived) that has some pretty spiffy stuff. I was reading and I was getting lost in the mess that is her life and I was inspired to be a better blogger and writer. She is funny, witty, and honest and I challenged myself to be half as great as her in blog writing and to try to be more diligent in my posts. After all, my faithful readers expect me to blog everyday. So honey, aka faithful reader, I will attempt to blog daily so you can have a heads up about what I will talk talk about all night:).

So here it is:

I am going to have to combine my two blogs, my personal one (this one) and my stationary one (Chic Farm Designs) because it is just too demanding to write one, nonetheless two.

And every now and then, I will try to be funny or witty or even intelligent, but never too honest! I am working on the whole discretion thing, but dang it's just so hard! I will try to refrain from being completely honest because our dear friend Blaine seems to think I have a poop fetish, as I talk about it a lot and have been known to take the occasional picture of my toddler's poop. (In my own defense: sometimes you need proof to show the Doctor why the poop warranted a doctor's visit, for the fourth time!~that or you want to scrapbook about it and scare the girlies away so he's always your little boy;)

But really, doesn't every mom talk about poop... like, a lot?

Containing my Excitement

I had a super fantastic day today! Thank you Angela for letting me into your "world" of scrapbooking. Angela is a traditional paper scrapper and she owns a Cuttlebug and a Cricut; both of which are now on my never-ending wish list. Angela has graciously allowed me to play with her toys and even took me out on the town to a secret little piece of scrapper heaven called The Memory Garden. It is a Scrapbook Shoppe and from what I understand you can of there and have scrappers parties and use her accessories and machines as long as you buy the paper and some other products there. I know what you're thinking but her paper is actually cheaper than some of the larger chain stores-Go figure! It is owned by Yolanda Garza and she was kind enough to show me around her store. I think that's the jist of it aside from all the scraboooking tools, gadgets, embellishments, and papers you can get there. I was waay too excited to stop fidgeting and take a good look around. It was a card makers dream in there. So inspirational that I will be rolling out with a few new items soon! Yolanda is be having a Scrappin' Pink card making session later this month and I will be sure to post the details of it here as soon as I get more information. Naturally, proceeds go to breast cancer research...If you are in the market for scrapbook supplies, please visit Yolanda's store in Pharr, Texas (right of the expressway). Her info is:

The Memory Garden Scrapbook Shoppe
Yolanda Garza
600 E. Ferguson (495), Suite D
Pharr, Texas 78577
(956) 782-7776

It's Unofficially Official

A week ago today we saw a breakthrough in potty training. I think that I can now say that Cole is officially potty trained, unofficially. Now, there are the occasional accidents, and for whatever reason, every time he visits his Nana, he comes back peeing all over the place. Not like a skiddish chihuahua, but like an "I don't really care that my pants are wet cuz I'm having too much fun" toddler.
So Tuesday (a week ago) Cole and his cousin K were watching tv in the bed. I hear Cole call out that he went pee pee and then K yells "Tia, Cole went pee pee". "Fantastic", I think to myslef as I walk into the room to have the "pee pee goes in the potty not your chones" talk for the millionth time and I see Cole walking around holding his chones (aka underwear).
I look all around and ask the boys "where is the pee?". I can't find it anywhere. I get on my hands and knees and start feeling around the floor. Cole calls me from the bathroom because somewhere in the middle of my search for "wetted bliss" he snuck away. I get up, walk into the bathroom and Cole is standing in front of the toilet, still holding his chones. "Right there, pee pee right there" he says as he points into the toilet. He runs out towards me and asks "Mommy, you not mad at me?"
My poor poor Tweetie Pie! I had him and K all scared and the whole time he had actually taken it upon himself to go to the potty on his own, pull down his chones, pee, wipe, flush, get down, get his chones and call out to me.
So since Tuesday I have not been able to help go potty. He now goes completely on his own. In fact, I must leave the room and "go to your computer".
The only thing we need to work on is what is the proper amount of toilet paper to use. Because usually, he walks out with this much
Disclaimer: I do realize that as soon as this post goes live (in about 30 seconds), we will take about 30 steps back in the potty training saga because it never fails-as soon as I say how well he is doing, he pees his pants for the next week straight. But really, I don't care. Pee and I have become quite close as we've been through a lot lately;)