Mom to the Screaming Masses

Today Was a RIDICULOUSLY Aggravating Day

Do you ever have a day that is just so Ahhhhh!!! and URGH! along with a side of grrrrrrrr?

No. Hmm. Mebee it's just me.

Let me illustrate. I'll use bullet points. Because I'm too TIRED of being AGGRAVATED.

All About the Commercial Shoot

Because we were compensated for the commercial shot - in contact lenses! - I can't write about the commercial shoot on this blog. 

Per my ad network regulations.

So I wrote about it, even with pictures! - and set it on my review blog. I'd be really pleased if you'd go over there and read it.

While you are there, you might want to enter this giveaway, for a $100 Visa Giftcard.

Or maybe this giveaway, for a $100 Walgreens Giftcard.

Whichever you prefer.

If You Want to Stay Married - Avoid Painting

Forward with Ford - Part 3

When I was growing up, my mom painted rooms all the time. She decided it needed to be a different color, and so she just painted it. No question, no discussion - she just painted.

I happen to be married to a man who is just a bit of a control freak and he's also just a bit of a neat freak and he wants things done in just the right way. Most of the time, I'm cool with this - if we do any kind of home improvement, he takes charge and it ends up being perfectly done. It might be a bit of a cranky time between the two of us, because I'm maybe not so detail oriented, but it all works out well in the end.

Except for those times that I decide to do it all by myself.

The Greatest Loss of This Year (Thus Far)

I'm SO not into tempting fate. But I *desperately* hope that this is, indeed, the worst thing I lose all year.

Because this was indeed really awful for me.

I am not a photographer. I recognize that. But I love to take pictures with my camera, a Canon Rebel XTi. I have a good eye, I think, and I've learned a few tricks to help the image on the photo to match the one in my head. Every single blogging conference I've attended has had a photography session, and I've attended them and bugged the photographers incessantly. The yearly trips with my husband are also taken with professional photographers, and I pick their brains as well. I take notes. I have read the books. I've skulked around on Youtube and gotten to know my camera so well that I probably owe it dinner.

Haircut at Home Gone Awry

Forward with Ford - Part 1

Forward with Ford - Part 2

My younger son has worn his hair in a buzz cut for close to, I dunno, 5 years. He has beautiful hair, but he has several cowlicks and he despises wearing what he terms hair goo to help the cowlicks lay down and so he just asked us to get rid of all his hair. In fact, both of my boys wear their hair closely cut for the same reasons.

For about three years, my husband has cut my younger son's hair at home. Last year, he taught me to do it.

I was wildy unsure and nervous, but his reassurance that it's really not that hard combined with the fact that a ton of my friends cut their boys hair - and I ponied up my guts and did it.

And it was easy. So I've cut his hair - number 2, square around, neat on the sides - for a while now.

But my son decided to let his hair grow out over the summer.

Oy.

So.

I have about a zillion and one stories to tell, but absolutely no idea with which one to start. I am going to give you the bare bones and let you tell me which one is the most appealing.

Because I'm RIDICULOUSLY exhausted.

A) Don't let Daddy cut your hair

B) The loss of my Canon Rebel XTI and the best.macro.lens.ever.

C) Test driving - which involes off road driving, drag racing and the most fun ever but will need to be on the review blog cuz it was sponsored

D) An allergic reaction that no one expected that lead to an anxiety attack

E) The scare of my life with my mom

F) How Mackenzie gets to be in a commercial - also on the review blog

G) The redecoration of the kids' bathroom and how it almost led to divorce

H) PINTEREST

I) Insomnia, ftw!

J) Upcoming road trip of amazingness

There. I think that's enough to get started, don't you?

For Your Reading Pleasure

I'm not here today. I flew to Detroit to attend a Ford event. I'll be back with details on all of the coolest new product lines that are on the horizon. (And maybe enjoying the solitary hotel room a little tooooo much.)

In the meantime....

I'd love for you to chime in on the discussion I've got going over at The Parenting Connection - we are talking granola this week.

Come chat with me about Making Outdoor Workouts Fun at CafeMom.

And how do you build up your child's self confidence?

Unique, and That's Just The Way I Like It

Chance #1 to win a $100 Visa Gift Card here!

Chance #2 to win a $100 Visa Gift Card here!

There was a terrific post on Blogher this weekend in the section called Own Your Beauty.

I have a large problem with the concept of Owning My Beauty. That seems vain and self centered to me - how DARE I say I'm beautiful, who am *I* to think I'm beautiful, what gives me the RIGHT to say these things?

Don't you wish you were in my mind.

I've done these meme type things in the past, and while I typically do them in time of no topic about which to write or there's absolutely nothing going on that I can write about  - for nothing could be farther from the truth and I just need to figure out how to write about what happened -

I can do this.

The Great Clothing Swap

Everyone has clothing in their closet, attic, dresser, what have you - clothes that we just don't wear. Maybe it doesn't fit correctly. Maybe you've gained weight. (oops!) Maybe you've lost weight (hurray!) Maybe you had a baby or two or ten and your body, she just isn't shaped the same ever since that last one.

Or maybe you have a shoe habit. You buy shoes, wear them once, and never again.They lay in sad, lonely solitude scattered around your closet.

Or you love to buy pocketbooks, and never carry the same one twice.(Psst - I'll bet if you check one of them, you might find your missing lipstick.)

Or jewelry. Earrings. Bracelets. Necklaces. Gauges.

Sorry. No gauges. Euw.

Why not host a clothing swap? I've done it twice and loved it beyond all rhyme or reason, and I'm planning a third for August.

Cuz You've Got - Personality!

Sometimes I write stuff and stash it in the draft folder. I often spew stuff out, decide that maybe I should wait to post it until I calm down and get a fresh perspective - and then I forget about it, which is quite often a good thing. Sometimes I'll go back into the draft folder and delete 15 or 20 half finished posts of whining and crying and carrying on. For whatever reason, I've had my hand on the delete button on this post three times - I wrote it in Feb - and I've not been able to delete it. I wonder if maybe one of you needs to read this or maybe needs to leave a comment that someone else needs to read - I'm a big believer in that. I'm not struggling with this issue, per se, although I always have it in the back of my mind.

So, last night, my husband took me out to eat. But he was a little bit irritable with me when he did so.

Allow me to esplain.