Whew....Thousand Word Thursday

Everything is A-Ok guys. Super long story short...Hurricane hit us (and all we lost was power/gas/water/internet) and we blew dodge a couple of days afterwards. We came up to my parents home in North Carolina. I have meaning to update y'all (and I apppreciate immensely those of you who have inquired about us) but I have a gazillion pictures that I wanted to show y'all. I will start to blog again once I return home. I miss all of my bloggy friends and reading up on your lives too!!!!! *See you soon, Bar-b

Now, without further adieu......Game. Every thursday (unless we don't have power again ;) I will post a picture and you can add what thoughts or comments you think the character(s) is(are) saying.

Hurricane Yikes

I just wanted to quickly blog and let all of you who are out of the proverbial loop that Hurricane Ike is coming to town. I have not been able to blog today b/c well, we've been sorta preparing for the storm. Everyone in the city (I think I am generalizing) was let out early from work and the streets were packed. We decided to go to the store and it was pandemonium. It was not nearly as bad as my Miami days, but, kooky nonetheless. The queuing systems are better here and the people are more calm and organized. We bought.....

• water
• batteries (C, AA, AAA, D, 9V)
  
• a battery operated radio
  
• canned foods (soup, beans, fruit, etc)
  
• almonds, and other nuts
  
• boxed milk
  
• flashlights
  
• candles
• toilet paper
• board games
• matches
• chips, cookies, bread, salsa, you know, essentials :)
• diapers and wipees
  
• new crayons, crafts, markers, and cardboard for the toddler without tv
  
• martini fixins for the adults with a toddler without tv
  
• fueled up the car
  
• got cash (shhhh, don't tell anyone)

We will surely have power outtages and be without our beloved computer and possibly our cell phones due to busy towers and all of that. This will all begin tomorro win the early AM but we are already feeling it in teh air. Gasoline stations are out of gas, restaurants are closed (Old McDonalds as Athena calls it was closed), retail stores are closed, Home Depot, Lowe's, home away from home (yes, Target) is closed.

We are ready though. We have some pretty cool neighbors and we'll all just help where need be come Saturday. In the meantime, I made buttons for all of us to wear and they look like this....

Love,
Tina Turner

Thousand Word Thursday

GAME- Every thursday I will post a picture up on my blah blah blahg and let you all comment on what you think the subjects are saying/thinking. I cannot promise that this will be the only entry for the day, but, it will be the minimum. If I forget, someone remind me, stat

Here's a story, of a lovely baby (sung in brady bunch theme song)...

Saylor has been wanting to eat solids for a while now. She detests (unlike her big sis) baby food , mushed up stuff, purees, expensive organic vegetables steamed, or boiled and then put in a blender. Wasteful little bugger she is. As you can see here she is attempting to eat the coffee table as Athena is none the wiser.

Saylor has taken it upon herself to send me a message. She researched and researched and basically told me (in her own way that only I understand) "listen lady, I want your food. What you eat, I want. I don't care how big, how crunchy, how hard, and how completely inappropriate for me it is. I want it. Now." I told her I was nonplussed, but, somewhat understood and would oblige.

Here she is waiting for her food while she has puff appetizers. She looks like she is humoring me. What a cheeky girl.

Here she is eating...ready for this.....curried chicken and rice noodles. She could not get enough of this. Happier than a clam in high tide. And yes, Nan Nan and Mimi, she is eating right on the table not on a plate ;)

Here she is attempting to kick up her heels in happiness whilst still in her high chair thingee ma jig.

So, the moral of the story is that babies want suggestion boxes placed throughout the house so that they can share with management (aka, mum and dad) how they can improve their stay.

Tutu Cute!

Saylor Sloane's friend, Sydney Blythe sent her this adorable!!!!!!!!! tutu just cuz. SS decided to try it on today and pose? for the camera. This shoot was not easy folks...where is Shannon when you need her (and for those of you keeping track...yes, I just learned how to link!!!! thanks carrie, nancy, and andrea...yep, it took three people).

Athena in a few years.......

Thousand Word Thursday

Every thursday I will post a picture up on my blah blah blahg and let you all comment on what you think the subjects are saying/thinking. I cannot promise that this will be the only entry for the day, but, it will be the minimum. If I forget, someone remind me, stat

Unknown (maybe) Barbie Love/Hates

I.................

1. hate to abbreviate words. I can't do OJ, AC, PB and J, veggies, margies, or PJ's.

2. love to save money. I love a smart bargain, I love to haggle, and I love to get a deal. I will (without real need) research and investigate something until I know I have gotten the best price anyone could get. I love to return stuff too.

3. love driving stick shift, can't imagine why people don't.

4. never ever answer my phone (home or cell). You want me, text me or email me. And yes, this is how I roll.

5. loved the show 24. Michael and I watched the whole show on Netflix. I am convinced this show is where Obama got the idea to run for president.

6. love to use curse words. Yes, I have other more sophisticated adjectives to use but I enjoy cursing.....what can I say?

7. love pick up trucks. Texas is a haven for these. The bigger the better.

8. break out in song whenever apropos, and especially when not.

9. have to mention that my all time favorite class to participate in has been a course I took in West African Dance in Philadelphia. You cannot imagine how grrrreat this class was and how much fun.

10.am obsessed with spelling. I have a dictionary with me in the car, in my bedroom and in my home office. The catch is, I rarely use spell check. In fact, I don't remember the last time I did.



This is a super random list of my love/hates. I have many more (as we all do) but I tried to limit it to ten.

I would love to hear yours. Yes, yours.

Potty Training coming to a Toilet near you........

So, it's Monday, Sept. 1st......mighty fine day to begin...dun dun dun dun.....Potty Training! Athena is about 3 months shy of being 3 years old, so we thought it was a good time to start. So we (Michael and I) woke up super gung ho about the idea.

We had 1. the potty


2. the rewards (aka...the stickers)


3. the pull ups
No, not these. These.

4. the panties (you'll need to read further to find out why these).



and thanks to Abu Mimi 5. The potty time Elmo movie.


Athena and I had the talk. "Baby, we are not going to use diapers anymore. You will use the potty like momma and daddy". She looked very serious but seemed to get it........so I thought. She said, "momma has black panties, and daddy has white panties". I said "yes, daddy has white panties" :)

We ran out of panties (which Abu Mimi also got her) and decided to go and get some at the store. There were so many options for panties. So many cute and frilly ones to choose from. Athena was looking at the ones with Care Bears, Ariel, Disney Princesses, Hello Kitty, and she seemed to be liking them. Well then she saw the Cars one. You know, that Pixar movie about the cars that are personified. Great flick. Well, Athena wanted the Cars panties....but the problem lied in the fact that these weren't Cars panties, but, actually Cars Boys Briefs. We watch our words carefully around the girls, never limiting them with what they can and cannot like or play with. So when I saw these and saw that they were briefs...with the slit and all, I didn't want to say to Athena "no, not these. these are for boys." She wouldn't understand about the front slit even if I tried to explain it. Well, it was going to be simple in my head-offer her two choices at a time and eventually b/c of the law of large numbers, we'd go home with a princess or a "my little pony" because SHE wanted it. Plan, Flawless. Execution, notsomuch. It went a little something like this....

me- ok Athena, do you want Ariel or Cars?
aba- ummm, I want Cars.
me- ok. Do you want Princess or Cars.
aba- umm Princess (me all excited...) no, Cars.
me- ok. Look at this Dora panty.
aba- how cute.
me- Dora, or Cars?
aba- Cars.

Cars it was.

So I have given zero stickers out today and have already cleaned the floor once and the sofa another time. It is only her (our) first day. I do have hope in the Blaze and hope that we get it soon. After all, if Elmo can get it so can my daughter ;)