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My weenie has a first name, it's B-U-S-Y-M-O-M
2008-07-08 00:24:00
July 7th, really? Seems that the globe-hopping lifestyle I lead cuts down on time to write at this here collection of pixels. Returned home from back to back trips, first to the beach and then to St. Louis for the Fourth of July. Oh, and I had a lovely dinner with the Linsdsay and my new friend, Tori in between trips. We made plans to paint San Francisco chartreuse during BlogHer next week. Next week? Um, yeah. Pack. Buy something to pack... Anyway, our annual visit to (sometimes reader) Fourladsnme's St.Louis home was a blast, as always. We went to a parade and party-hopped on Friday, eating more than our share of, well, everything. Saturday brought hurling (the game, not a consequence of Friday, silly) and a trip to Six Flags. More flags. More fun. More slaps to that guy in the commercial. The kids rode themselves silly on Batman, Mr. Freeze and the Ninja. The adults partook in a few rides, and I was very grateful that there were younger, less puke prone adults (...
More About: Vacation

Not a digital camera abuser, really.
2008-07-01 16:55:00
Knock on whatever, but our appliances have resisted their annual summer failures. There's every possibility that it's due to the fact we've had to replace darn nearly everything, but we'll take what we can get. However, the latest twist on busted stuff is that we've killed 3 digital cameras since last week. Seriously. No real explanation for any of them other than digital camera rapture. It was just their time to go, I suppose. I gots to have a point and shoot-ish digital camera before BlogHer. I have my lovely Canon Digital Rebel, but I'm not sure I want to carry that with me every day and I always keep a camera in my purse. I've taken to entering online contests to win a camera, but what is up with all of them being open to UK residents only? I don't live in the UK, but I take lots of pictures. Where for art the "Win a camera!" contests in the US? We didn't mean to kill them, honest. Great, now the digital SLR camera police are probably going to invest...
More About: Photography , Digital Camera , Camera

Scene from a long car ride
2008-06-30 21:21:00
Busy Boy: (Insert some injustice of life here, I don't remember what the problem was.) Busy D.: "Busy Boy, stop whining. You sound like me."
More About: Parenting , Ride , Scene , Long

Home again, home again
2008-06-30 02:27:00
Home from the beach. Yay. Despite a few missteps, a good time was had by all. One of the secrets of grown ups is that a vacation really isn't one when you're the parent, and double that when you're the Sandwich Generation poster child. The fun doesn't end, though, as the house is crawling with non-native children. Summer is exhausting for those of us who aren't teachers or students. Back to work tomorrow, as they are funny about wanting me to you know, be there.
More About: Home , Vacation

Vacation?
2008-06-21 22:28:00
Vacation. Our family, my dad AND my MIL. Started out with a flat tire on the Interstate. Beach house sort of not as expected. Send help alcohol.
More About: Parenting , Vacation

Need your help
2008-06-20 18:26:00
Hey, I need your help. I have to write a description of what my blog is about, and it dawned on me that I have no idea. How would you describe it? A little something for your trouble: Tiny Prints Discount Coupon Code: BUSYMOMREADER gets you 10% off your order Wedding Paper Divas Discount Coupon Code: BUSYMOM gets you 10% off your order
More About: Parenting

Can we get a napkin, please?
2008-06-19 13:29:00
I love Improv Everywhere. That's what I want to be when I grow up.
More About: Videos

What's the vector, Victor?
2008-06-18 12:32:00
I love flying, even though I don't get to do it too often. But, really, do you ever wonder why we put up with the stuff we do in the name of air travel? Herded about like cattle, walking around barefoot with our shoes clutched in our hands, looking for a place to get dressed again, the huddled masses crowding each gate waiting to be told that they're not really leaving at 7:13 after all? I did my part to ensure national see-cure-it-ee by dutifully placing my liquids in a quart sized Zip-loc bag. But, do you ever wonder if we are going to look back at this practice and laugh loud and long one day that we thought this would prevent whatever it's supposed to prevent? Then there's the whole baggage issue. Airlines charging for the first checked bag, geez. I was worried that it would cause even more idiots to try to bring all their luggage onto the plane with them, but I was glad to see that the carry-on limit was enforced pretty strictly at American. I also have to wonder a...
More About: Travel , Vector , Victor

Wrapped up like a deuce
2008-06-17 00:15:00
Hidee ho from Chicagoland. No, no, I'm not calling you a "ho". However? You over there? If the shoe fits... Apologies to any Heidi out there who's offended by the making of this post. I'm sure you are a very nice girl, it's just a saying. Anyway... I'm here in Naperville and I'll tell you more about why later, but, for the moment let it suffice to say that I just enjoyed a delicious dinner at Rosebud with my new friends Wisconsin Mommy and The Bachelor Guy and Patrick. Ooh, weird, I'm having a deja vu here. No, not Deja Vu the strip club, the deja vu that means I feel like I've done this before. Actually, it may just be the Chocolate Diabetes Bomb cake we had for dessert getting to me. We laughed, we spoke of Chuck E. Cheese, NASCAR, Dennis Rodman and song lyrics. (Confidential to Patrick's bosses: we talked business stuff, too.) Now I can't think of anything to write because The Bachelor Guy's room is right next to mine and I'm distracted by wonder...
More About: Blogging , Wrapped

And Leon is getting laaaaarrrrrger
2008-06-14 11:24:00
I was watching The Weather Channel (MTV for old people. Yes, I'll be eating dinner at 4pm before you know it.) and a young, very animated anchor was gesturing wildly about the possibility of a hurricane somewhere in the Atlantic. She was sitting at the anchor desk and the background behind her was open, showing the hustle and bustle of the busy news room. She was getting ready to go to break and excitedly said, "What are the possibilities?! Will there be a hurricane?!" At that moment, a guy was walking across the background behind her, looked at the camera with an exaggerated skeptical look, shook his head "no" and walked on, a la Johnny the Office Boy.
More About: Television , Leon

Tim Russert's death
2008-06-13 22:51:00
I am all kinds of broken up watching the coverage of (American journalist) Tim Russert's death, I'm not even sure why. One reason, is that I simply cannot imagine what it's like for these NBC people to have to immediately begin national television coverage of your friend's death right after it happened in front of you. From what I read, NBC let themselves get scooped by other networks in order to make sure that his family was contacted first. Tom Brokaw is killing me. I just can't stop watching it, though. I'm not a very political person, but if there was something I needed to know, I could understand what Tim Russert was talking about. But, man the things I've learned about him today. While people generally don't speak ill of the dead, today you can just feel that everyone who had come forward from all over the world really means what they say about him. I know a little about him because he spoke at an organization I'm involved with (I didn't get to see hi...
More About: News , Death

In which summer sneaks up on me
2008-06-10 22:34:00
Note to self: you're going to BlogHer next month. As in, in just a few weeks. It seems you've forgotten to either lose 100 lbs. or grow 2 feet taller. It wouldn't kill you to get a pedicure and do something about your hair, either. We won't even discuss the flip flops, but it'd be OK if you got some real summer shoes. And, by the way...about that money that you so blithely said, "Meh, I'll think of something..."
More About: Parenting , Summer

Spam of the Day
2008-06-09 19:31:00
Today's spam winner: "Update your penis". Yes, there is help out there for those with Penis 1.0. Not sure if you can move up from Penis Beta, though, without paying a fee.
More About: Spam

Lost weekend
2008-06-09 08:27:00
I'd love to tell you what I did over the weekend, but I can't really explain it, myself. I have no idea where the time went. On Saturday, I went to a luncheon with my dad and had my life flash before me, and later in the day, I came down with the Club Penguin Sleeping Sickness. I sat down on the guest room floor to (yet again) watch Busy play Club Penguin, and the next thing I knew Busy Dad was waking me up from said floor. I dragged my ass upstairs and slept 4 more hours. I NEVER nap during the day, it just makes me feel gross. I have no idea what that was about. Sunday was spent serving the pissy minions in the manner to which they've become accustomed, but I may have had a part in that. The day was all fun and games until Busy Boy thought it was a good idea to pour canned cat food over Busy Girl's head. Then the real games began. Otherwise, I can't explain what happened the past 48 hours or so. Man, the definition of a "lost" weekend sure has changed with...
More About: Lost , Parenting , Weekend

He's fun when the car breaks down, too!
2008-06-03 17:49:00
Last night, I was minding my own business in Sears, looking for a lawn mower blade. Because, God forbid, all the parts on the damn mower should work at the same time. As I was bemoaning the fact that the Super Duper Diamond Encrusted Extra Special Lawn Tractor Blades were the only kind they had in the size I needed, I looked up and noticed an acquaintance I hadn't seen in years, and we began to chat. He's nice enough, but he's also one of those over-eager social types. You know the ones, they seem (warning: adverb and punctuation abuse ahead) overly sincerely. interested. in. everything. you. have. to. say. yet, at the same time, you're pretty sure they don't hear anything you're saying. Now, I'm not knocking people who take the time to listen, and he's a really nice guy, but my suspicions were confirmed: Guy: "Blah, blah, blah, blah...Hey, what's Busy Dad up to?" Me: "Not much, I think he's at home throwing things, actually." (see lawnmower blade above) Guy: "H...
More About: Parenting , Breaks

Driving Miss Busy Girl
2008-06-02 18:23:00
I took Busy Girl to practice driving yesterday. Yes, yes, I know she's only 13, I was there when she was born. I may have gotten on my driving soapbox here before, I don't remember, so excuse me if I'm repeating myself. I firmly believe that a new driver should have as many hours behind the wheel as possible, and those hours need to start long before a permit is issued. My mother didn't drive, so I got a hardship license when I was 15 years old, but my dad taught me to drive long before that. I remember him taking me to the mall parking lot, back roads in the country, and eventually around town when I was about Busy Girl's age. Relax, back then there were still dinosaurs to dodge on the street, so I couldn't go very fast or anything. However, by the time I was issued a license I was a very, very good driver with a lot of experience. But, the one thing that sealed my belief in teaching kids to drive was an experience I had as a young teen. I was born in September...
More About: Parenting , Driving , Miss

Filed under: Poetic Justice
2008-05-31 23:39:00
So, guess who it turns out: a. has a kid in the same grade as Busy D. at our school (there are 3 classes of each grade, I had no idea they were there) b. lives right around the corner from us. (see also: bites, karma)
More About: Justice

Nice Marmot
2008-05-31 20:35:00
This morning: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck...
More About: Parenting , Nice , Marmot

Spam of the Day
2008-05-28 17:49:00
Spam subject line: "what a stupid face you have, busymom" My privacy has been invaded by the Internets. This blogging thing really is putting me at risk. What if someone photographed me? What if they know where I live? Oh, noes!
More About: Spam

Supportive or wimpy? Depends on your perspective
2008-05-28 07:50:00
One of my children plays a sport for a somewhat controversial coach. We like the coach a lot, and have had no problems. However, some other parents disagree and have treated the coach pretty badly, and I am embarrassed because I'm associated with them, but, I do not share their opinion. After assuring the coach that we would remain on the team this upcoming season, we looked at our schedule and realized that we'd probably be too busy to play. I was dreading, (dreading, I tell you) giving this news because I thought the coach would think we were doing what these other parents are doing and that isn't it AT ALL. I was all set to send an e-mail, when an e-mail from the coach arrived telling us how wonderful our player is and thanking us for supporting the team when others didn't. Dammit. Guess we're still gonna play, although on a limited schedule. I'm either a wimp, or it's the right thing to do. Or both. Not sure. ADDED: Jay reminded me that in my effort to...
More About: Parenting , Perspective

Summer's here, I'm for that
2008-05-26 17:04:00
Happy opening day of Towel Consumption Season! I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend as the U.S. celebrates Memorial Day. With a teen out of school and free for the summer, my days are mostly spent waiting to see where I can take her next and how much money I can give her. Thank goodness for work, it's free and I get to stay in one place. I may have told you before that we enrolled her in a summer class figuring the tuition would be cheaper than her social life and we're guaranteed to not have to drive from place to place to place for at least 10 weekdays. The class is a half credit and getting it out of the way this summer will give her a study hall this fall when she goes to high school which will be a good thing because her classes are going to be pretty tough. As my Twitter peeps are painfully aware, we spent Saturday at a basketball tournament across town where our games were oh so conveniently spaced at 10am, 3pm and 7pm and then there was a dance at school that e...
More About: Parenting

American Idol 2008 Finale videos
2008-05-23 02:28:00
This video from the American Idol finale last night with Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller is still cracking me up: as well as the Ronaldo Lapuz "I Am Your Brother" video: No reason, I'm just easily entertained.
More About: Videos , Television , Finale

Spam of the Day
2008-05-23 00:38:00
I think this may be porn spam, not sure (from spam comment left here): "As i began to enema with him, it became obedient that aaron wanted to skeletal his shaven prairie and he had a otherworldly sizzle in graphic design, which wedged his recession pattern." Doesn't that make you all hot and bothered?
More About: Spam

The brink of summer
2008-05-20 06:00:00
Busy Girl is 8th grade banqueted and graduated, and I contained myself at all events. Though I do admit to having to listen to that damn (has sound, it's a song, and well, songs have sound...) Graduation (Friends Forever) song by Vitamin C a few times before both events to desensitize myself to it. Anyway, both events were very nice, and all the kids looked so grown up. Her diploma was misspelled (wouldn't that be funny if I misspelled "misspell"?), though. Oddly enough, it wasn't even our last name that was the problem. I'm assuming the diploma was good and she didn't botch her exams, but we're getting a new one, anyway. The girls had a gathering graduation night, and the whole class had a party last night where you may have been able to hear the sound of new relationships being formed all the way from your house. The litany of "who's going out" increased forty-fold or something during those 3 hours. Now, it's just weird that she doesn't have to go to school. I...
More About: Parenting , Summer

Ch-ch-ch changes
2008-05-15 19:54:00
Why yes, you must continue to put up with me pondering Busy Girl's 8th grade graduation for another week or so. In the midst of handing out money right and left during this graduation season and driving her from place, to place, to place, to place, the significance of the whole thing is dawning on me. This past Tuesday, she walked out of her last exam and was done with grade school forever. To put it in perspective, she started this school in 1999 and it's the only place she's known (save for a few random preschool memories). She has been with the same kids for nine years, and just like that, it's over. Part of my retrospection is that the school has had a very, very difficult year and it's overshadowed what was supposed to be the 8th graders' big moment. They are an exceptional class and there's very few people around who even care, and that kind of sucks. The other part of my retrospection is that she's my first born, and how did this happen? Seriously, (Warnin...
More About: Parenting

Watch Me! Service Request System
2008-05-10 15:31:00
MEMORANDUM To: Employees under 5 feet tall From: Management Date: May 10. 2008 Re: Watch Service Request System Due to the excessive volume of requests to "watch": a. "me" b. "this" It is necessary that we implement a Watch Service Request System (WSRS) in order to serve you better. This new, online system, accessible from the Club Penguin home page for your utmost convenience, will streamline your "watch me and/or this" requests and allow us to fulfill them in a more efficient manner and track them to determine trends. It's easy to use: 1. From the link on the Club Penguin home page, just click "Watch!" 2. Next, you will be asked to prioritize your request: a. If your request involves blood, fire or traffic, select "1" b. If your request needs to be fulfilled "before time runs out" or "before he falls", select "2" c. Select "3" for all other requests. Please allow adequate lead time if management presence is requested upstairs or outside. After hours,...
More About: Parenting

Kid in the Meatloaf Go-Phone commercial
2008-05-10 06:20:00
Whoa, you guys are busy little Googlers. The kid in the Meatloaf Go-Phone commercial isn't his son, he's an actor named Adam Cagley. From the "Why Does She Know This?" Department, Meatloaf has two daughters, one of whom is musician, Pearl Aday. Pearl used to tour with him and now she's married to a guy from Anthrax (Scott Ian?) has her own band, Mother Pearl.
More About: Parenting , Commercial

Kathie Lee Gifford gave me pinkeye
2008-05-08 17:43:00
Hi, I'm a [airquotes] Mommy Blogger[/airquotes]. I thought my face was going to pop off when I watched the big Today Show interview with Kathie Lee Gifford and the lovely bloggers, Mir, Jill, Kristen and Heather. But, then I realized that it was actually a sinus infection and pink eye. Oh, yes, I'm really a five year old. However, now that I think about it, I'm not sure which came first, my illness or that segment.
More About: Parenting

The era keeps ending
2008-05-06 22:22:00
Busy. Blah, blah, blah-biddy blah. Am boring even myself with the litany of things that could be the answer to, "What have I been doing?" Those of you without kids would be pondering how you'd get these few minutes of your life back if I wrote about it. Those of you with young kids would be thinking, "Wow, I'm glad I'm not that old", and, "I just can't relate", with a side of, "My kids won't ever have that much to do because I don't believe in organized activities." To the above: Think what you will, but, insane scheduling happens anyway as they get older, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. Those of you with grown kids would be all, "Buck up, it's only grade school", or, "HA! Better you than me." With that, we are still buried in end of the year school activities and sports interspersed with the handing out of $20 bills here and there for "thank you gifts" for teachers, coaches, janitors, crossing guards, baristas, dog-walkers, cashiers, ice-cream scoopers, the l...
More About: Parenting , Ending

Kentucky Derby heartbreak
2008-05-04 04:58:00
I didn't see the Kentucky Derby today, but I just saw the news about them having to put down second place winner Fifty Eight Belles, and it's just completely heart-breaking.
More About: Parenting , Heartbreak