A Quirky Tag...

Michelle at they outnumber us now tagged me for this fun little meme about our own quirks. The difficult part is limiting my quirks to only 6. So, here are the rules...

1. Link to the person that tagged you.


2. Post the rules on your blog.


3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself


4. Tag at least 3 people at the end of your post and link to their blogs


5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


6. Let the fun begin!

Well... here goes...

1. I love a great salad loaded with lots of romaine, green leaf lettuce, or mixed greens, but I don't care for lettuce on a sandwich. Additionally, on all but very rare occasions, I can't stand iceberg lettuce.


2. I love white dishware. I know it's plain, but the decorating possibilities are endless... and with my tiny little kitchen, I do not have the luxury of keeping around multiple coordinating sets of dinnerware.


3. I always plan my week and my day horizontally and vertically on little 4x6 cards that I print off every week. The idea is from some book I once read, but I never can remember which book. Horizontally means I list the major tasks that I want to do each day for the entire week, and vertically means I schedule my intended tasks for that particular day by the half hour. Weird and tedious, I know... but I don't think I would ever get much done without this system!


4. Whenever I go to a restaurant, I love to try their lemonade. The criteria: It must be fresh lemonade (no Minute Maid stuff). I prefer a sparkling, bubbling concoction, and I would rather it not be pink lemonade. The best I've ever had is from a little Italian restaurant on the west side of Houston called Carmelo's Ristorante, but Giant Eagle carries a rather wonderful Sparkling Sicilian Lemonade that I can enjoy right at home!


5. I record Leave It To Beaver episodes throughout the week and sometimes I sit down briefly during the kids' naptime to catch an episode. There's just nothing on TV during the day, and this show feeds my fascination with the late 50s/early 60s.


6. I absolutely have to read... At all times, I need to have at least one book that I'm in the process of reading, but I usually have 3-4 going at the same time... And I have to read before I fall asleep, regardless of what time I go to bed.

So... I tag Sarah at from afar park, Tallie at my little corner of the planet, and Lisa at ...and everything, although I can't imagine you'll post something, sis!

An Unusual Christmas Wish List...

Yesterday while we were driving to the grocery store, Dylan started talking about music. The conversation went a bit like this...

Dylan: I want to learn to play music, Mom.

Me: Oh yeah? Which instrument do you want to learn to play?

Dylan: The drums. But I need a lot of instruments for Christmas to learn to play.

Me: Which ones?

Dylan: Well, first --- you know --- I need a stage. It doesn't have to be a big stage. I only need a little stage. And then I need 2 guitars, one piano, a drum set. I think I need some microphones and amp-uh-friers, too. May I please have that for Christmas?

Me: That's a lot to ask for. What are you going to do with all that stuff?

Dylan: I need it to play the "Oh No Song" and "O Praise the One".

Me (silently to myself): I guess I need to ask for a sound proof room for Christmas!

Photo of David Crowder Band found here.

Direct Quote...

"Mom... When I'm an architect, I'm going to need some white wood and some brown wood... to build a tower for the hospital. Can we go get some? But not right now, Mom, because I'm not an architect yet."

~ Dylan, following a visit to Children's Hospital where he saw a very detailed architectural model of the hospital complex. Obviously, it was lacking a tower, and who knows, maybe someday he'll design and build them one.

Song --- 'Cause I am the Mom

Hey Moms... check out this video to get your day off to a laughing start.

Comedian Anita Renfroe has come up with the many things a mom says in a 24 hour period and set it to the tune of the William Tell Overture!




Hat tip to Carolyn McCulley at Solo Feminity for the drop dead funny find!

An ER kind of morning...

It's Monday, and as of this morning, my schedule was full of things to do to get ready for our friend Andrew who is coming up from Houston to visit this weekend. He took us up on our offer to enjoy fall in Ohio, and we're really excited to see him again.

But back to Monday... now those of you who have known me for a while may somewhat recall that prior to becoming a mother and homemaker, I was an engineer. I love math and science... there I admit it!! That is important to know because you will understand my reaction when Brian came down to the basement this morning and said "I think Brooklyn might have eaten a battery!"

My first thought was "You've got to be kidding me... how in the world did she get hold of a battery?"

Brian said something like "She was playing with this light thing, and I'm pretty sure there were 3 batteries in it. I pulled one out of her mouth, and I have one in my hand, but I can't find the third one. I think she ate it." Immediately, I went into Mommy/former-Chemical Engineer mode and thought of all the problems that might result from eating a battery. In the base case, water and electricity just never mix... and that includes a battery inside your throat!

So... we searched the house and couldn't find the 3rd battery. Not wanting to waste too much time, I loaded the kids in the car and drove off to Children's Hospital. We checked in and the nurses at the front desk seemed rather concerned, expressing their need to get us back to triage as soon as possible. We waited maybe only 45 seconds before they took us back. They got her vitals, ordered an x-ray, and sent us across the very short hall to Radiology.

In Radiology, we sat... and sat... and sat... and sat. Obviously, they were not as concerned as the folks in the ER. Eventually, they got us to the x-ray room and we pinned Brooklyn down. This took only 6 adults --- one to operate the x-ray, three to hold down Brooklyn, and two to occupy Dylan.

That done... we were told to wait out in the hallway for the results. Meanwhile, the ER nurses found us in the hallway and were freaked out by why this x-ray was taking so long. They rushed us back to one of the ER rooms and did a few more evaluations of Brooklyn.

By this time, the kids were way past done with the whole ER/Hospital thing, and they were starting to get really restless. So... we read a book about Madeline going to Texas... and sang some hymns... and Dylan prayed for Brooklyn... and we read some book about a pig... and then one about a tree... and then the resident came in.

"Mam... we've looked over the x-rays, and we can't find a battery inside your daughter. I think she's going to be just fine." Brooklyn looked up at him, reached up for him, and jumped in his lap. He picked her up and she hugged him... it was really precious. He asked me how she got a hold of a battery, and I recounted the story (again!). He said, "You know, I've heard about this happening before, but had never seen it up until last week. I had another baby come in who swallowed the same kind of battery, and it's giving him a lot of serious problems."

As it turns out, those ChE instincts were not entirely inaccurate. A battery is among one of the most dangerous things a child can swallow. The saliva in their mouth and esophagus can react with the battery, causing it to short. When this happens, it can actually heat up and burn through the esophagus. So... beware of the gadgets around your home and be thankful that you have to get the screwdriver out every time the batteries go out on one of your kid's toys!

Now... they're all down for a nap, and I'm on a mission to find that 3rd battery!

"Like a shepherd He tends His flock,

In His arm He will gather the lambs

And carry them in His bosom;

He will gently lead those that have young."

Isaiah 40:11

A New Pet Peeve...

when you discover the most delightful new blog and there is no feed detected! The use of subscriptions makes keeping up with several blogs much easier, so everyone should be obligated to provide one to their readers, right?!?

The Combo Kids...

There's a fun website that you can use to see who your child looks most like... Mom or Dad. So here are our results...

Dylan... looks like Mom by 5%



Brooklyn... looks like Mom by 4%

Guess that Sanders gene is running only slightly stronger... I do find i a bit funny since I've been asked on more than one occasion if I am their nanny. Something just doesn't fit when you see me carrying a fair-skinned, blue-eyed, blond hair baby girl...

I just did something I've never done before...

I just went through my planner and marked off every Saturday between tomorrow and November 17th so that I would know when and where the Buckeyes are playing!

Oh my... am I catching Buckeye fever??

Cell Phone Test...

I just got a new cell phone, so I've been testing it out! Check these out... camera phones have come a long way since our first one 4 years ago, haven't they?

Dylan and Brian are practicing their snorkeling techniques

in preparation for our Hawaii trip!

Aggie War Hymn or LA Tech Fight Song...

So... Brian and I were talking about how to post sound files to my blog the other day. Well, I figured it out (really easy too!), and I decided to post an appropriate mp3 file (Aggie War Hymn) for Brian --- only because I love the man more than ever and married into this spirited university. Turn down the volume if you're not a fan...

It's so good to hear a little familiar music up here in this land of crazy nuts --- aka the Buckeyes! No, they're not crazy, but their mascot is a nut.

Tune in later for my fight song!

Sudoku-aholics Anonymous...

I've decided... I simply must start a Central Ohio chapter of Sudoku-aholics Anonymous! I am completely addicted to this silly little numbers game. I think if I just let myself go unchecked I could spend hours trying to improve my time, and I certainly don't have even a few minutes to spare doing that. I don't even know how I learned about it or who got me interested in it, but now I'm hooked. I've already found a few Sudoku books to take with me while I sit back on the beaches of the north shore of Oahu, eating my Matsumoto's, scrubbing down my quarter-flip kids with sunscreen, and hanging out with my family.

If you haven't caught on to the Sudoku fun, play it now --- if you like silly puzzles, you'll be hooked!

Oh Praise Him...

Check out this SI article about Olympic Snowboarder, Kelly Clark. As she competed last week, she listened to David Crowder's Oh Praise Him. She didn't medal this year, but it looks like she knows what's really important in this life!