Summertime means ......

camping, swimming, lakes, friends, BBQs, and more shit to clean up!! I'm so thankful that we're leaving for vacation tomorrow!! It's not a long vacation, but it still means that for 2 nights I can make a mess and there will be someone else to clean it all up!! Yay me!! I love summers!! I always think of all these things I want to do but half the time money or time falls short so this summer I'm going to try to do at least one biggish things with the kiddos a month inbetween working on my tan!! I hope everyone has a fantastic summer ..... I know I will!!

The Dreaded SAHM Question ..... What DO You Do?

The age old question I've been asked for the last few years is simple, yet annoying ...... what do you do with your time as a Stay-at-home mom? When I first became a SAHM I thought this was going to be fabulous!! My house would always be clean, the kids would have the best meals ever, I would become hyper-organized, and I would always have everything done in timely fashion ...... wrong! OK, not just wrong, but WRONG!!

I'll set the record straight and this isn't for every SAHM, this is just me. I did all that the first 6 months. I cleaned every day, I cooked big meals, I knew where almost everything in my house was at all times, and I did it all with a smile (for the first couple of months anyway)! Then reality set in!! Cleaning every day, all day gets old. My kids really just wanted quick meals so they could get back to what they were doing. I was not happy which wasn't good for any of us! I went on a strike. I only did what I had to do. Now on any given day you can stop by and you may hit a good day where everything is clean. However, right now if you come by you won't be so lucky and it's been that way for a couple of months. But times are a changin'!! Before it was crafting stuff everywhere, right now it's big Spring cleaning stuff that's overrunning my house. But I am no longer depressed about it. I no longer apologize profusely for my mess. My house is what it is ...... it's mine! I don't like the mess, but I don't like being judged for it either. I have teenagers ...... my house will never look like a picture in a magazine unless I hog-tie the kids up and give them feeding tubes, catheters, and colostomy bags! It might help if I'd win the lottery too!

I guess the truth is that it's usually no elses business what I do with my time. Some days I nap, some days I read all day, some days I do laundry, some days I worry, some days I even do housework! Although it's probably the exact same housework I might have done the day before! So think real hard the next time you ask a SAHM what it is that she does with ALL her time ....... because she just might answer you!!!!

Hello, my name is Angie and I'm .....

That's such an open-ended statement isn't it? It's one that makes you take a deep, hard look at yourself. Every once in awhile I do believe that we ask ourselves that question looking for an answer to find perspective on what and who we really are. So, here it goes ......

I'm a mother, a daughter, a sister ..... a go-getter, sometimes lazy, a great friend, beautiful, creative, annoying, loving, abuse survivor, perfectionist, and so many other things! It's sometimes hard to look at the good things that we are and do, but I truly think that to be the best person we can be we have to embrace the good with the bad. It took me years to realize that I was pretty. After hearing it from friends or from people I'd just met I finally realized that they may be right! I don't think I'm gorgeous, or spectacular looking, but I do believe that some of my inner beauty transforms and shows through!

So, if you do nothing else today, take a few minutes to really search out WHO you are and what you're capable of and try to embrace it all ...... the good with the bad!

Could Someone Please Invent ......

a contraption that will make the damn bed?? Of all the things I have to do around the house this is one of the things I dislike the most! It ranks right up there with putting away the laundry! I don't mind doing the laundry, but I dispise putting it away!! Several times we've had to dig clean clothes out of baskets to get dressed! If someone would just invent a small robot that would come out and put the laundry away and make the beds I, for one, would be a happy camper!! So, that being said I guess I'll get off my sorry ass and go make the beds and put the laundry away!! =)

Pinterest Could Possibly Be The Devil's Work!

I'm usually all about trying out new things, even if it's just to see what other people are talking about. Friends of mine were talking about Pinterest so I had to check it out! It's a wonderful place to find new ideas ...... especially if you love to cook, are crafty, or just want to save a few bucks!! I've gotten some wonderful ideas from there, but when in the world am I going find the time to make these wonderful things?? Lord help me!! I tend to run myself ragged most of the time then crash and burn for a few days, so finding time to do more things means I have to build up my stamina so that I can just go 100% of the time right?? Wrong!! I would be a hot mess if I never got any "down time"!! My children would hate me and the rest of my family would disown me ..... not to mention my friends!! Half the people on my facebook already think I'm a nut and have way too much time and energy on my hands! Time, maybe, energy, most days, but the truth is that I love trying new things and hate sitting still unless I'm reading! Even then I tend to speed read and still get things done! So, I'm off to pin more things I'd like to do and will probably never find the time for!! =)

I'm In Deep Shit; Deep Shit, Arkansas

So, today I find out that the Granada Theater in Emporia is playing one of my all time favorite movies on February 18th and I'm so excited!! Last year I was blessed enough to get to see Gone With The Wind on the big screen ..... which I must say is a must do if it's at all possible ..... so I'm definitely looking forward to seeing Thelma & Louise on the big screen!! One of my best friends and I lovingly call each other Thelma and Louise!! Being the eldest, I, of course, am Louise!! Actually I have several friends that I've had adventures with, but none will ever compare to the few that she and I have been in together!! So, on February 18th her and I will probably don our matching denim jackets, old rocker t-shirts, and funky sunglasses and hit the movies!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!

When Minds Race, Bodies Get Tired!!

I do believe I have adult ADHD, which makes my mind race ..... which makes my body tired! I know we've all had those nights when our brains won't shut down, but can you imagine that on a nightly basis? Sometimes I envy my daughter ...... she pops some pills, it shuts her brain down and she sleeps!! I however lay there, sometimes for hours, praying for sleep to come! I think about the laundry I need to do the next day, go over the grocery list over and over, think about the bills, wonder if my kids are happy, and the list goes on and on!! Seems like the only times I crawl into bed and go straight to sleep are when I'm sick or completely exhausted! I've found a few little tricks that seem to work for me and make my brain shutdown faster, but I'm still insanely jealous of those people that can fall asleep anywhere, anytime! So here's to all of you that can crawl into bed and sleep ..... you can go to bed tonight knowing there's one chica out there very, very jealous of you!!! =)

There's More Shit Hiding In The Corners

Lord help me!! I was just downstairs working on the monstrosity of a project that I decided would be my latest project. I really don't know what's possessed me to do this ..... other than the fact that the basement hasn't really been cleaned out since I moved back in 7 years ago! I figured it couldn't hurt to dig through the last 2 boxes in the laundry room so that I could get it all in order next week ..... right? So after unpiling a laundry basket full of out-grown clothes I discovered that the top box is full of toys that I haven't seen in years! Why in the world did I put it down there? What possessed me to not just get rid of it? I know that in one of the bigger rooms there's tons of toys to be gone through but I really did not expect to find them in the laundry room!! I just keep wondering where all this shit came from!! I think it's been secretly breeding in the basement and multiplying just to make my job a little harder! So I guess my new advice to myself is to put a date on the box and get rid of it if we don't open it in a month! Out with the old is the best way to go ..... right!! Welcome to the new me ...... with less "baggage"!!

In A Couple Hours There Will Be Some People Talking Shit ...... Just Who WIll It Be???

Tonight's the big night here in Kansas! The first KU vs KSU game of the basketball season! Lord help us all! I myself am a KU fan ...... I was born with it in my blood!! Some of my best friends are KSU fans and we've learned to just let that part go! We chose not to give each other too much crap and not rub wins/losses in each others faces! But man oh man!! Some people out there are just brutal! I have a girlfriend that I won't talk sports at all with because she's just down right violent about her team! If you don't root for her Wildcats you're just trash ..... and the mouth she has on her!! Lord help us all if she lets loose! I have a mouth, but truth be known to me it's all just a game! I'm not heading to faceboook after this game is over to brag that my team won ...... or run down the other team if we lose! I also tend to love those that blame everyone but their team for a loss! I do understand when the refs are just horrid, but I've seen teams overcome bad refs and win the damn game! So just remember that it's all a game ...... that you are NOT playing and enjoy! ive each other a little easy ribbing, maybe a little trash talk, but don't get nasty! Don't talk about these people like you know them personally! Just enjoy watching two teams play their hearts out and try to give their fans the best they've got!!

ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK!! GO KU!! =)

Learning What's Important

Six years ago last month I became a stay-at-home Mom and one of the first things I had to learn was ..... what is really important! To each and every one of us things at the top of our important list are usually pretty similar! When my friends and I talk about these things the first things I usually hear are family, friends, God, money ...... but is money really important? I mean, I know we have to have it to get by, but do we really need as much money as we're ingrained to believe we do? I'm going to try to spend less on things that aren't important this year and focus more on making our lives better! I guess maybe I'll be giving the Joneses a lot to talk about because I'm not keeping up with them ...... I never have, but I'm going to care a lot less about how it looks to everyone else and more about how it looks to me and my family! I'm going to stop trying to buy my way outta my down times and start improving what I have! Who people think we are does NOT have to define who we really are does it? Why do we put so much value on how people look at us? If I were to believe everything I've ever heard about myself I'd never come out of the depression it would cause!! Just remember folks ...... if you can get up every day and look yourself in the eyes in the mirror then you're a step ahead of a lot of people!

It's A Brand New Year ...... Time To Get Rid Of Shit!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I'm so excited about the beginning of the year!! I feel like a kid on Christmas morning! A chance to wipe the slate clean, to mentally start over, to change your lifestyle, to make amends, to give fresh starts, to end an annoying habit ..... the possibilities are endless!!!

My goals for this year are nothing short of ambitious, but most of my friends would say that if anyone could work their way through this monstrocity of goals it's me!! I tend to take on each task and work like a bloodhound on a trail! I just don't quit until it's finished!! I really can't wait to get started!! Thankfully the kiddos go back to school on Tuesday so I'll wait til then to get started! I'll start with cleaning the house and the laundry room in the basement! Some projects will take longer than others, some I'm not as excited about and really wish I didn't have to do, but I will because I think that taking on these things ..... even the things I hate ..... build character and give me a complete sense of accomplishment!

The first, most hated thing on my list is to sort through everything in my basement! I'm sure I've talked about this enormous project before, but I don't think you understand just how long this might take me! There is roughly 1100 square feet of open space that is packed with boxes and tubs! There isn't much extra walking space, but we sure the hell are going to get through each and every bit of it! Then comes the problem of ..... what the hell do I do with the stuff we don't really want or need anymore? Give it away? Have a sale? Craigslist? I just might have to turn it over to my friend the Garage Sale Queen and see what she can do with it! Nothing like giving someone else complete control and getting money back in return right? I'll just have to see!!

I hope you have a fantastic 2012!!