Yes, that's me. Lame. Sorry I have been so non existant lately. I am struggling to keep my head afloat. Travelling just puts me under. And no, I am not going to complain, "oh poor me, got to go to the Keys for Thanksgiving" - yes the two tons of laundry I am still doing was worth the trip. But. I do not think I am cut out for going away for Thanksgiving. Because you come home and it is Christmas. CHRISTMAS. Like everyone has their tree up and their outside lights up and you are still doing laundry. And there is stuff to buy, things to bake, trees to decorate, pointsettas to try not to kill, events to go to, eggnog to drink, cookies to eat - you get the picture. And I am doing all of this in a FILTHY house covered in CLEAN laundry.

Yes, I know. Whine, whine, whine.

But I did order my Christmas cards from Shutterfly and I love them. LOVE THEM. Can not believe this is my third Florida themed Christmas card. Did I not just move down her to this land of perpetual sun? Have I mentioned how bizarro it is that it is 85 degrees out, everything is bright green, and we have Christmas lights up (well my neighbors do, we'll have them once M returns). Snow and cold seem like they exist only in some alternate universe. Not so for my dear M though, he flew his butt up north tday for a meeting and it was 17 degrees. Nice. Hah.

More from the Christmas trenches later this week.

Stole this from Mingaling. These are the various subway lines I have had the fortune or misfortune to ride in my life.

Wow, can not believe that is has been 2 weeks since I last blogged. I blame it on the frenzy of pre-vacation packing and then of course the actual vacation! We are back from 5 wonderful days in the Florida Keys. Or as wonderful as 5 days can be with a 4 year old and 2 year old. Lets just say I never, no not ever, want to play I Spy or do Knock Knock jokes again.

So right now I am procrastinating dealing with the massive piles of laundry and the utter chaos that is my house. I hate unpacking. So I am blogging and simultaneously trying to order Christmas cards. But the problem is, all of my pictures suck! Suck! So frustrating. SO FRUSTRATING! Why? Because my kids are cute in real life. But in photos? Not so much. Perhaps it is A's squinty camera smile, or O's obstinate stance of never, no not ever, looking at the camera. Or perhaps it is the strange hand gestures, the contorted bodies, the squirming, the closed eyes, the bad lighting, the stupid tourists who would not get out of my shot! Argh. I thought that vacation would be the perfect chance for a holiday card picture. I was thinking at the Southernmost Point marker in Key West. But no, that is where the lighting was bad and the tourists were evil. We did get some good waterfront shots, but that would be where the not looking at the camera and weird hand gestures come in. I am thinking I have to go with a family shot of the four of us from Thanksgiving dinner where we are more dressed up than the Turkey. Usually I go fun and casual, but this is what I have to work with, so be it. We are all looking at the camera, miracle of miracles. I'll post photos soon, but the oppressiveness of my messy house is starting to get to me. So I leave you with this - the card I really want to send but can not afford (over $200 for what I need - I think not!) And no, that is not my family in the picture, just the demo card.

When life gets tough, the tough go shopping right? I am all about the mass retailer, see my Wal-Mart love last week, well this week I am lovin' me some Target. For $138.35 I got the following -

$1.99 - Gushers fruit snacks
$1.77 - Target brand fruit snacks
$1.33 - Pretzel Goldfish
$2.99 - 2 pack Xmas hand towels (with cute penguins!)
$3.98 - 2 vinyl Xmas placemats with Santa and same penguins ($1.99 each)
$6.99 - Dora Chutes and Ladders (Xmas present)
$14.79 - Rock 'em Sock'em Robots (Xmas present for my husband!)
$1.47 - Target brand Capri Suns
$1.47 - Target brand Capri Suns
$12.99 - Black dress shoes for A in his Thanksgiving play
$3.98 - sandals for me
$6.48 - sandals for me in black
$6.48 - sandals for me
$1.00 - magnetic notepad for fridge
$1.67 - Spiderman bubble bath
$2.99 - Dora Xmas gift wrap roll
$49.00 - Monkey Boy Quilt for O's room
$3.74 - shirt for me
$5.58 - shirt for me

I think that was pretty damn good - 4 pairs of shoes, 2 shirts, new bedding, 2 Xmas gifts, and misc food/home items. Not bad. Would have been better if I didn't leave the freaking gift cards I had in the car. Bah. Not that there won't be a next time, so....

I took this from Mommy, are the Toys on Sale (who I read religiously but never seem to have posted yet). The ones in bold are ones I have done.

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa.
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk.
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe.
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured an ancient site
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played Dungeons & Dragons for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently well enough to have a decent conversation
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life
151. Finished a marathon

I just bought this dress. For $16.94 (its full price!) at Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart. Uh-huh. And it is pretty, and lined, and swingy, and fun. The neckline is beyond flattering. Dare I say it looks even better on me than on the model. Perhaps because I have a head? Anyway, I love it.

And I got freaking adorable Nutcracker placecard holders for $0.97 each. I bought the last nine. I hope they get some more in b/c I hate odd numbers. But there will be nine people at my Christmas table this year so, oddly, that worked out well too.

I am full of Wal-Mart love today. Rounding out my purchases yesterday were the FP digital camera for the kids for Christmas (at $54.88 - the best price around), two Magic Treehouse books for A (a Pilgrim one and a Native American one - he is all about the Native American love right now. And part of me chuckles everytime he says Native American, my son at 4 is so politically correct.), and a fun plastic collapsable 3 tier server for Christmas cookies. Seriously, I love me some Wal-Mart Christmas department. I am a baking fiend and they always have great tin designs. Too bad I stocked up last year on the clearance so don't need to buy any this year :)

Yes that's me. Whining away again. A has the stomach bug AGAIN! Argh. In the last month or so he has had the stomach bug 2X and a major nasty sinus infection. That is way too much for one little 4 year old. He is so sad and mopey about the "Throwey-ups" that I want to cry for him. I miss those baby days when a cuddle and a nursing would make everything bad go away. And I want to cry for me too - I really can't deal with another sick household and the laundry and mess and other crap that goes with it.

And tonight was my much looked forward to "moms night in" at my neighbor's house. No kids, yummy take out, wine and dessert with good friends. And I'll miss it b/c of the evil sickness.

Bah.

And did I mention tomorrow is my birthday?

And I am feeling less than great again. But I am just going to go with it for a bit and see. My guess is that it's b/c I got my period Saturday. Getting my period last month coincided with the timing of my mental breakdown, so I think hormones are a big player in my anxiety issues right now. So this too shall pass right? I am just so sick of the doctor's office.

And then my mom called and she has to cut their Christmas visit short by 2 days b/c of her job. That sucks. Haven't seen them since July. Hate missing my family, hate not seeing them more. Sucks. Sucks. Sucks.

But at least I did manage to vote today. Perhaps the Democrats will regain some control of our mismanaged country and there will be some light on this dreary day.