I am a girl of 100 lists..

#1: 8th grade #2: Wedding Reception #3: with 3-week-old Kiddo

See items #35 and #52

On some other people’s blogs, I’ve seen a TAG where they’ve shared 100 things about themselves. Even though no one’s ever tagged me with that one, I’m sure you’re all just dying to know another 100 useless things about me. Since this is my 100^th post, I will inflict them upon you. HA! However, I do realize that you may be outclicking by now. Anyway, here goes:

1. I love to make lists. I’ve considered filling a notebook with 100 Lists, just so I could really call myself a “Girl of 100 Lists.”
2. At least once a week, I dream that I am a senior in High School again, but I’ve skipped most of the last semester and now I have to take finals.
3. In those dreams, I dream about a few of the teachers I liked, but rarely are any of my actual classmates there. One notable exception is sometimes I still have dreams with the boy I liked all through H.S. in them. How sad.
4. Here’s a big surprise: I was named Biggest Bookworm of my senior class. At the time, I was a little disappointed, but now I think it’s cool. They knew who I was! I actual don’t know if I won it outright or if the real winner turned it down. I know the boy who actually won turned it down, so they gave the title to another person with a lot of votes.
5. When I was in H.S., I wrote an opinion column that angered a teacher so much that he wrote a full page Letter to the Editor in response. I thought that was really cool.
6. The only people who invited me to sit with them at Lunch in H.S. were mostly potheads, but they never offered me drugs or used them in front of me. However, one of the guys thought I was a Narc.
7. I’m the only person I know who honestly doesn’t think she knows what marijuana smells like.
8. I always imagine that it smells like patchouli because most of the potheads I knew also wore Patchouli.
9. I hate the smell of Patchouli.
10. I don’t think my feet are that big, but children are always tripping over them.
11. When I was a teenager, my feet seemed bigger because my legs were so skinny.
12. The bottoms of my feet are exceedingly dry, especially on my baby toes. My husband says I could use those killer baby toes if anyone ever attacks me.
13. I like to do the New York Times Sunday crossword, but rarely do I finish it without looking things up in the dictionary.
14. I had to go online to Dictionary.com and imdb.com to solve the last Sunday puzzle I did.
15. I cannot solve a Sudoku, however. I guess I do better with words than numbers.
16. In 11^th grade, I was the only one in my Alg II class who solved a logic problem we had for homework, so my teacher asked me to show the class how I did it.
17. For about a week after that, I wanted to be a math teacher. I think it’s just because I loved Mr. Richey so much. He was the BEST math teacher a kid could have.
18. In 6^th grade, I got really mad at my best friend because she and another kid wrote class predictions, and they decided I would be a Lawyer when I grew up because I liked “to argue so much.” She knew I wanted to be a famed author, and when I reminded her of that, she said, “See, you’re arguing now!”
19. That friend is the only one from growing up that I still keep in contact with. She works for the Supreme Court of Ohio.
20. I like big words. When I was in Elem. School, I decided to call people who picked on me “dilapidated dugongs” because, although it didn’t make sense, they wouldn’t know that. And it sounded really bad to me.
21. Most people usually spell my name wrong.
22. It used to bother me A LOT, but now I usually ignore it.
23. It does irk me when my relatives spell my husband’s name right, but not mine. Who’s been part of the family longer, folks?!?!
24. I still remember the exact date I got my ears pierced (30 December 1982) and the day I got my first period (you don’t want to know that one, I’m sure).
25. My family laughs at me because I also remember what I was wearing on the second of those two dates.
26. I often associated when specific events took place with what I was wearing or how I wore my hair.
27. Now that I’m older, my hairstyle doesn’t change that much. But I can tell you what Daddy-O and I were wearing on our first date.
28. I have donated hair to Locks of Love twice. I wish I’d known about it when I was younger because I like to grow my hair out and then chop it off.
29. When I was in 8^th grade, a boy I admired from afar found out. He told the guy who ratted me out that he knew who I was, and that I wasn’t very good-looking and I talked about my hair a lot.
30. Even now I’m self-conscious about how much I talk about my hair.
31. In H.S., my best guy friend told another of our friends I was the perfect girl because I was smart, watched basketball and Beavis & Butthead. Interesting criteria, eh?
32. Every now and then, the phrase, “Breakin’ the Law! Breakin’ the Law!” comes into my head and I still think of B&B.
33. I am sure my mother had no idea that I watched B&B. She might not even know what it was.
34. I used to like to do celebrity impersonations for my family. I am not that good at them anymore.
35. Some of my favorites were: Michael Jackson, Ronald Reagan, Pat!, Momma from Throw Momma from the Train, Rudy Galindo, and Molly from Days of Our Lives.
36. In college, I watched almost every soap opera on TV when I could. I never watch them now.
37. I think this is because I was suffering untreated depression, and it was a way to self-medicate.
38. The main reason I never tried drugs was because when I like something, I tend to be over the top about it. And then I joined the Church.
39. For instance, I ate bologna sandwiches for lunch for almost an entire year.
40. I now get creeped out by the thought of bologna.
41. I still hold grudges against 2 of the guys I dated in college. I’m glad I didn’t marry them for so many reasons, but I still don’t like them.
42. Number 41 embarrasses me and I know I need to get over it.
43. In general, I think I’m pretty forgiving.
44. Sometimes I dream my own movies or nonexistent episodes of my favorite TV shows. I still dream about Gilmore Girls.
45. I have also had dreams lately in which I am attempting to do math problems, but it’s hard for me to solve them because I can’t write them down.
46. I never dreamed about Math when I was in school.
47. The most embarrassing things that have ever happened to me involved either bathroom issues or my clothes.
48. When we were just buddies, Daddy-O came to visit me and my roommate. When I shifted in my chair, the back of my jeans split and my roommate had to rush me out of the room to tell me.
49. I never thought he had noticed until he told me AFTER we were married.
50. I wish I had my husband’s metabolism.
51. I also wish he was the one who could get pregnant and have the babies. I think we’d have LOTS of kids if that were the case.
52. I really would like to adopt children someday, and not just because my PPD was so severe. I just can’t stand that there are MILLIONS of kids throughout the world who don’t have homes and parents.
53. I would really like to adopt a child from Lesotho because there are so many orphans there.
54. I really miss my grandparents and think of them almost every day, even though it’s been more than a decade since they passed away. I also dream about their house all the time.
55. When I was pregnant for Kiddo, I was terrified he would be born on 06-06-06 and people would make fun.
56. Since I was about 14, I have also been afraid of having a hermaphrodite baby.
57. And then I found out about parasitic twins….
58. I have always had a lot of strange fears.
59. When I was little I was afraid I’d find a snake in the toilet, and that a plane would fall out of the sky and crush me.
60. I LOVE to watch the Olympics.
61. I still remember watching the 1984 Olympics. I was 7 years old.
62. When we lived in I.C., I met Bart Conner (1984 Gold Medalist) at an NCAA Gymnastics event. I was so excited, but none of my friends knew who he was-- except Kevin, who was suitably impressed.
63. I have also met the pop group, The Jets, after a concert at the Ohio State Fair.
64. One of their cousins was a missionary in our ward in Ohio the summer I got baptized.
65. A friend of mine got free tickets and backstage passes to a Weird Al concert and took me. We got to meet Weird Al.
66. I still regret that I didn’t ask Al if his hair was real.
67. I love Dean’s Brown Cow ice cream. I think it is heavenly, except that it’s making me fat.
68. So I’m trying to indulge my other current craving instead: apples with Peanut Butter. However, I’m not sure the PB isn’t also making me fat.
69. Can you tell I feel really fat right now? I need to see someone who’s actually REALLY fat to put it into perspective. That sounds horrible, but do you know what I mean?
70. The medicine I take to keep myself relatively sane also makes me feel VERY hot—not in a good way!
71. You know the scene in Napoleon Dynamite when Pedro decides his hair is making him hot so he shaves it all off? I was tempted to do that last week.
72. I didn’t cut off all my hair because I was afraid of scaring Kiddo and the Primary kids. There I go, talking about my hair again…
73. Here’s another hair item, though: I’ve never colored my hair, but sometimes I wish I’d done something crazy like put blue streaks in it when I was younger. Now I think I’m too old, and I’d just look sad.
74. I also have never played a Nintendo, PlayStation, or Wii.
75. When I was REALLY young, we had a primitive Texas Instruments computer and we used to play “Hunt the Wumpus.”
76. Sometimes I think I hallucinated my childhood because none of my friends can recall a lot of the stuff I remember. Can you remember any of the following shows or toys: Herself the Elf, Schmoo (sp?), Galaxy High, Gingham Girls, SeaWees, The Snorks, Rose Petal, Kidd Video, Hot! (an early music video show), ShirtTails, Pound Puppies? Thank heavens for the Internet. I’ve found evidence of almost all of these things on YouTube alone.
77. The first cassette I ever bought was Belinda Carlisle.
78. I wanted to be Belinda Carlisle, even though my sister Heather said she sang like Barbie and the Rockers. Heather tried desperately to shape my musical tastes, but only partially succeeded.
79. I was a HUGE NKOTB fan, and I kept the tapes, buttons, t-shirts, shoestrings, books, because I thought they might be worth something someday (at least a laugh with my kids).
80. However, when I heard that NKOTB was getting back together I thought, don’t they have anything better to do? Who’s going to go to their concerts? Imagine my surprise…
81. I have inexplicable celebrity crushes on Hugh Grant, The Rock, Denzel Washington, Benjamin Bratt and the guy who played Squanto. Maybe you can understand some of them... maybe?
82. When I was little, my first celebrity crushes were Michael J. Fox and Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz). Seriously. I also liked the guys from a-ha. In high school, I loved Daniel Day-Lewis and Harry Connick, Jr. In college, it was Grant Hill and Alexei Nemov. In my twenties, I adored Shane Battier and the very handsome, but also very dead, Gary Cooper. Major points if you know who all of those guys are!
83. One reason I have so much time to read is that I haven’t been cleaning house much. Oh, and I have no social life here.
84. I don’t clean much because the only people who come over are my Mom (who will love me anyway) and the missionaries (for dinner, once a month).
85. I wish I liked to clean, but I can’t do it much with Kiddo awake, and I have to have loud music to do it well. Thus, that rules out cleaning when he’s asleep.
86. I also don’t like to cook, because it seems silly to spend huge amounts of time to create something that will be devoured and gone in 5 minutes or less.
87. I do like to eat, though.
88. I think it is my daddy’s fault that I like Dr. Pepper so much, so I am not letting Kiddo have any pop.
89. I think if you are a Midwesterner, you must call it “Pop” – none of this “soda” business. That’s what East Coasters say. I have been told that Southerners call it all “Coke.” What do people out West call it?
90. I am usually very healthy, but I have been to the ER 6 times. I was only admitted once, though.
91. As clumsy as I am, I can’t believe I’ve never broken a bone.
92. One of my friends told me I shouldn’t call myself clumsy because I was putting myself down. I don’t think “clumsy” is a put-down; it’s a statement of fact. Some people are clumsy. Some aren’t. No big deal.
93. I do, however, have a bad tendency to put myself down a lot.
94. I don’t like to look at our Wedding pictures because I think I look terrible in them, my dress didn’t fit right, and the stupid florists messed up the flowers.
95. I do appreciate compliments, but I have a really hard time believing them and responding appropriately.
96. I think the main reason I don’t go back to work, even though financially I probably should, is because I’m so crazy about my little boy that I would be jealous of whoever got to spend their days with him—even when he’s crabby.
97. I also hate interviews. It seems unnatural to spend so much time boasting about yourself.
98. I always think I want to be a Humanitarian and go teach children in developing countries, but I don’t know if I could handle not living near a Library or not having DSL. Isn’t that pathetic?
99. If I were a teacher, I would want to teach Kindergarten. My best job ever was working with Kindergartners. I always felt needed, and I got to laugh nearly every day.
100. I love to see movies in the discount theater, by myself, in the middle of the day, with snacks I brought from home. I feel like they’re running the show just for me. Unfortunately, I’ve only gotten to do that twice since Kiddo was born.

So there you go. If you stuck with it to the end, you deserve a medal of some sort—or at least some Dean’s Brown Cow. The sad thing is, I could do another 100 now that I’m on a roll. But I will spare you! If you’ve never done this before, I TAG YOU! And I promise, I will read every item. REALLY!

He's a Keeper

I think poor Kiddo's been getting a bum rap here lately, him bein' 2 and all. But in between the tantrums and the crazy food refusals, there have been some wonderful moments when I have just felt so glad he's "mine." So I felt I should post some things about him that I've really enjoyed lately.

• His way of speaking is so funny sometimes: One night he'd been crying, and as he stopped, he said, "hang up your teardrop." And some time I've got to write about all the grown up things he's heard and then used later, such as "How great is that?" or "Hmmm.... let me think."
• He's been listening to an old CD from the Library by folksinger Ella Jenkins. There are some environmentalist songs for kids on it which I didn't notice him paying much attention to. However, last night when Daddy-O was throwing away some plastic bread bags, I reminded Daddy-O that they could be reused. From out in the Living Room, Kiddo called out, "Don't throw it away!" (a line that is then followed by, "Recycle it!")
• He's been attempting to draw lots of letters and numbers lately. He actually does a good 'W' and a '1/I/l', can usually make a decent 'O/0', and passable 'U' or 'J.' He makes some letters and numbers sideways: '7', 'N/Z' and lots of 'P/p' He has even made a few 2s. I'm not sure how often this is purposeful, except for 'P' and 'W.' Those I know he's drawing on purpose, because he'll announce it before he starts.
• It's really easy to crack him up these days. I can just say "hairball" and he'll burst into laughter. Other things that have the same effect are commenting that he likes to sleep with "his bum up in the air" or reading him, The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog.
• On Sunday afternoon, he belted out the first verse and chorus of "Scripture Power," with two other people from Church in the car! It's also fun to watch him dance. He's added some new moves to his repertoire.
• Yesterday I asked him if he was my sweet little baby, and he answered, "I'm a GUY!"
• Sometimes, when I'm getting him down from his high chair, he'll grab my face and give me a big kiss. When he's trying to avoid going to sleep, he totally manipulates me by looking at me with those big, brown eyes and requesting, "Mama cuddle with you?" He knows the way to Mama's heart!
• Yesterday, he told me, "Mama's cool." So there, blogthings quiz! Of course, we all know this will change soon enough. :(
  
• Oh, and do you see what he's "reading" in that picture? My Very First Dictionary! When I came to see if he was really awake or not yesterday morning (it was quiet in his room far longer than usual), he said, "I'm reading, Mama" and he held up his Dictionary. Is he my kid or what?!?!

So, yeah, he may also be stubborn and loud, but we'll keep him!

Sweet Dreams

When Daddy-O went to get Chief Kiddo yesterday morning, our little guy cheerfully announced, "I had a dream!"

"You had a dream?! What did you dream about?" Daddy-O asked.

"COOKIES!!!"

So, I've been wondering, do you think he honestly dreamed about cookies or he was just trying to convince us that he really, really needed some cookies?

brief update

Not much is going on here.

• Kiddo is still smart, still cute, still stubbornly independent.
• Daddy-O finished his summer class.
• It's been, as I like to say, too hot for humans this month, so we've been staying hidden in our house and I am still perhaps the palest person you've ever seen.
• I'm at least trying to not say cr*p in front of Kiddo, even though I still don't think it's a bad word. I'm relieved that 50% of you agree with me on this issue and will do my best to not offend the 20% who vehemently disagree. I've been trying to find a better word. Daddy-O favors "crikey," and it's hilarious to hear Kiddo say that. However, the origins of that expression are questionable, so I'm sort of leaning toward fiddly-wah-diddly. I'm actually not sure how you spell that.
• I have completed 1,777 pages of my library books, so that leaves a mere 2,298 to go. I have been good and not checked out any new books for myself, but I have not been so good about Kiddo's books and CDs. Thus, I still have 47 items checked out from the Library. Don't judge me.
• Speaking of the Library, we've completed their Summer Reading goal by having read to Kiddo for 24 hours-- not all at once, of course. ;) It's starting to show, as he is now memorizing his favorite books ("A told B and B told C..." "...he was sent to bed without eating anything..." "and those were the first words Trixie ever said..."). Tomorrow he should get his little certificate of completion or whatever other lame prize they're handing out. And trust me, their prizes are almost all really, really lame.
  
• Our town built another new Wal-Mart, the fanciest I've ever seen. It's gorgeous inside and out, for a Walmart, anyway, and yet... still full of Rednecks. We have a very large contingency of Rednecks here.
• I have decided to wait until August 1st to change my profile photo (*see post entitled "Any suggestions?"). Add your opinion now or forever hold your peace.
• When asked to predict the winner of the 2008 Presidential election based solely on their photos, Kiddo informed us that while he "likes" McCain, our next Commander-in-Chief will be Barack Obama. My guess is that he just likes the sound of Barack Obama, and it sure sounds cute when he says it. You heard it here first, folks.

My husband says I'm bugging him with all this typing noise, so I guess that's all for now. We hope you're having a great summer!

Sound familiar, bloggers?

I don't know that it's legal for me to copy and paste this comic strip, so I'll just give you the link here so you can read it yourself. When I saw this in the paper, it seemed like it could have been a conversation between my husband and me and I had to laugh.

Enjoy!

Pearls Before Swine

Things you might not know about me...

There's a 28% Chance You've Been Abducted By Aliens

Even though you have a few alien abduction signs, you're almost certainly in the clear. However, if aliens ever do come to your neck of the woods... they'll probably be coming for you!

What Are the Chances that You've Been Abducted by Aliens?

Well, that's reassuring!

You Are 76% Tortured Genius

You are smart. Brilliant in fact. And while it's a blessing, it's also a curse. Your head is filled with everything - grand ideas, insufferable worries, and a good deal of angst.

Are You a Tortured Genius?

76%, huh? Who knew?

You Will Not Be a Cool Parent

And that's pretty okay. While your kids may not think of you as a friend, they will respect you. You know that kids need discipline and structure, and you're not afraid to give it to them. Just be careful that your strictness doesn't lead to rebellion. It's good to have standards and rules, but you don't need to have an iron fist when enforcing them.

Would You Be a Cool Parent?

Poor, poor Kiddo! However, this is really not a surprise!

If you're looking for a fun way to waste your time, these quizzes can be pretty silly. Unfortunately, they're not all so G-rated!

I also found out that I have great spelling, I'm a citizen of the world, my personality is unique, that I worry too much (surprise, surprise), I am most like a pet bird, I would ace 8th grade math but fail 8th grade Spanish and Geography (so Kiddo's not getting his skills from me, I guess!), and I am a PMS disaster. You learn something new every day!

Something to think about...

It's no secret that I'm a raging perfectionist, at least when it comes to myself. When it comes to others, I usually think they're way cooler, more beautiful, funnier, smarter, more spiritual, more talented, more creative.... and on and on. I've been this way for most, if not all, of my life. Just recently, I read part of a book about the trap of perfectionism, and one thing it pointed out was how we American women are bombarded with images of what it means to be "perfect" all day long. I started thinking about what it would mean to me to be perfect-- as a mother, wife, Primary leader, daughter, sister, neighbor, friend, scholar, worker, homemaker, crafter, etc., etc., etc. (not to mention being a size 4 who never indulges in junk food and exercises 6 times a week)-- and I realized that this perfect lady I'm always feeling bad that I can't be probably doesn't exist. She would have to live happily on less than 4 hours of sleep EVERY day and have 12 or so conveniently retractable arms and legs.

Having this V-8 moment has certainly not ended my feelings of inadequacy, but I find if I can remember to challenge my negative thought processes, I can also spend less time feeling bad about myself. And that's good for everyone.

I just saw the following article on www.time.com, and found it correlates with what I'm trying to teach myself now, after many years being stuck in the perfectionist trap. I think it's an excellent idea, and worth incorporating in our own lives in some small way. Click on the link below to read more. In the meantime, be kind to yourself, 'cuz after all, you rock.... especially if you leave a comment on my blog. :)

Taking On the Thin Ideal - Fit Nation - TIME

In case you need a laugh...

As an actual crazy person, I have to say, it's pretty true to life! :) Although I haven't actually ever had a therapist with pillows. Don't they get paid enough?!?!

BBC NEWS | UK | Prince Harry helps African school

BBC NEWS | UK | Prince Harry helps African school

This is pretty cool. For more info, check out www.sentebale.org

I know, I know....

What you all really want is an update on Chief Kiddo. And since he is cuter and more interesting than I am, I suppose I'll have to oblige. Generally, I'd say he's still his same brilliant but stubborn little self. I told Daddy-O this morning that we have to pray Mr. Smarty-Pants uses his powers for good and not evil as he grows. Here are some highlights of the past few weeks:

• He's loving all the Little Quack books, the Gerald and Piggie books, and a book called The Napping House.
• He's suddenly requesting Arthur videos, which seem a bit grown up for him, yet he cracks up every time he watches them.
• He is still having fits about getting his way. When I tell him, "No tantrums!" he says, "Tantrums, yes!" >:(
• Last night when we told him to eat his veggies, he refused, then said, "GOING DOWN!" and catapulted his plate off the side of his high chair. Lovely. But you know he picked up every one of those blasted little peas and carrots!
• He still gets a big thrill out of going to the gas station and getting a "cookie treat" ( 59 cent pkg. of Grandma's Oatmeal Raisin cookies)
  
• After a brief monochromatic stage, he's back to drawing from the whole rainbow again. I think he was wanting to be like Harold and the Purple Crayon for a while there.
• He is memorizing the play lists of his favorite CDs. For example, "What's song number 3? 'Peggy Sue!' Song number eleven is.... 'Think it Over!'" He wants to apply this to the hymnbook, too, but Peggy Sue et. al. just aren't in there.
• He now recognizes all numbers up to 100. Don't ask me how. I don't know. I just have seen him point out 47, 35, 77, 82, 83, and so on and so on in a variety of situations. On Sunday he evidently started at Hymn # 50 and read the numbers up to 100. I started paying attention at 82 and just about fell out of the pew.
• He has spent the last two Sundays in Nursery BY HIMSELF. FINALLY! YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!
• His favorite color is still red, his favorite number is still 8, he still loves his maps, and he still requests Pizza nearly every day .
• On Saturday at the Library, we asked him if he wanted to go do the Storytime craft since he had left the actual story part early (for being TOO LOUD!). I reminded him that he'd get to use stickers. His response? "Stickers? He knows stickers!" and then toddling off to the Story room. (I believe this is a paraphrase from I am Invited to a Party by our favorite, Mo Willems.)
• He loves Chap-Stik. See picture above.
  
• Without my really noticing, he learned the Second Article of Faith (Basic beliefs of our church). I finally got it recorded yesterday-- you'll notice, he prefers to do the 1st, then the 2nd. Don't you just love that face?!

Any suggestions?

So I'm thinking I should change the picture that appears with my profile and/or comments. In many ways, Lucy is a great fit for my personality, but I'm not sure it's entirely "legal" for me to use her image. I thought I should forewarn those of you whose blogs I frequent, so that if you see a new image next to my name, you won't think it's some other crazy Rachael stalking you. It's just the same old weird Rachael.

And since I have all these fun scanned photos, and I was actually a cute little munchkin, I'm debating between the following:

Baby Rachael rocking out to some groovy tunes.

Kindergarten Rachael being told she has to take a rest period. Boy, have my feelings about that changed!


Toddler Rachael with her Koala.


Rachael and Henry dog enjoying an Iowa summer.


Toddler Rachael in her cool hat.

So far, I'm leaning towards the Henry dog photo, because you can see a little of my beloved Iowa in the background. But I do get a laugh out of Kindergarten Rachael every time I see that photo. I'm also using an edited version of that on GoodReads, so would consistency be a good thing? Let me know what you think... you know, with a COMMENT!!!!!

For Wendy

I haven't posted any fun old photos in a few days, and my cousin Wendy asked if I had any with our grandma, Inga. Unfortunately, I haven't scanned many yet, but here are a few:


Great-grandmother Julia with Baby Inga


Ole and Julia Olson Family


The Bill and Inga Martin family at Karen's High School Graduation (My dad is holding the baby, my oldest sis, and my Mom is the gorgeous brunette. Wendy's mom is the beautiful blonde).


And, as an added bonus, here's Wendy's mom, my Aunt Karen, with one amazing hairdo!

Hope you enjoyed these glimpses into our family's past!

Progress Report...

So, I read and returned both of the books checked out on the Daddy-O's card-- that's 450 pages read. And little by little, I'm making it through The Green Glass Sea; so far I've read about 150 pages of that. So that SHOULD put me at 600 pages down, 2,097 to go...

EXCEPT that

"OOPS! I did it again!"

Yep, when we went to the Library on Saturday, I picked up another five books:
321 pages + 377 pages + 264 pages + 136 pages + 280 pages = another 1378 pages

Therefore, out of 4,075 pages, I've read 600. Just 3,495 more pages to go!

EXCEPT that

I've got to take Chief Smarty-Pants to Storytime tomorrow. Do you think I can make it out of the building without checking out more?

It's an illness, I tell you, a real sickness.

By the way, a friend invited me to join GoodReads last week, so I see no hope of the insanity ending any time soon. Check out my widget on the left side of the blog if you want to find out more.

New Favorite

Or, Kids' Music That Isn't Annoying, Part Three

Several months back, I was listening to music on www.pandora.com which, if you're poor and cheap, er, frugal like me, is an awesome thing. Any-hoo, on one of my stations, a song came on by Elizabeth Mitchell. I can't remember what it was, but I liked it a lot, so I looked up some info about her and found that she has recorded at least 3 CDs for children. We checked out You Are My Little Bird from the Library back in December and liked it, but then went to Lesotho and sort of forgot about it for a while. To take a break from Raffi and Buddy Holly, I checked it out again and now my little "Old Man" likes to hear it every day. He calls it "Wiza Jane," referencing the first song, "Little Liza Jane." Then I discovered that another library in our system had her CD You are my Sunshine, so we checked that out 2 weeks ago and have listened to it on all our recent trips to Gobby's house. Because "Old Man" doesn't like to bother to say Elizabeth Mitchell, we call this CD, "New Wiza Jane."

If you like the folkie kind of kids' music, which I obviously do (must have been all the Peter, Paul, & Mary, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and Simon & Garfunkel I heard as a kid), you should definitely love her music. Even the Daddy-O seems to like it, and I don't even think it sounds exclusively like children's music, although her husband, daughter, and nieces and nephews join in on some of the songs.

If you read reviews of her work, the critics refer to it as "kid's music that's actually cool." When I first read that, I thought, "Well, of course, 'cuz I AM a trendsetter, after all." Then, the more I thought about it, I worried that you all might think I just like her because she's supposed to be cool. Au contraire! That's just not "how I roll." I can't tell you how many unpopular things I've liked; the number of TV shows I've liked that have been cancelled in the first season is quite remarkable. And Elizabeth Mitchell just has a wonderful, pure voice. Some of her songs may be quite "old," but they have a fun, fresh quality. It's just not "overdone" or ridiculous, like so much of kids' entertainment. And my kid loves it. I can't tell you how much I enjoy listening to him sing along with "Peace Like A River," "Three Little Birds," or "Ooby Dooby." And did I mention that she covers "The Ladybug Picnic?" How could I not like her?!?!

A Very Fine Mess

I have a problem, an addiction of sorts. Until recently, I've reassured my husband that it's a healthy addiction because it keeps my mind active, relaxes me, gives me something to talk about other than our kiddo-- and it's free. Well, now that only 2 of those 4 statements are true, I realize that maybe I need to work on this addiction. Have you guessed what it is yet?

I check out WAY, WAY, WAY too many library books at one time. I don't know why, except that there's definitely too many books to read and too little time in which to do it. I think I'd need a whole lifetime just to read everything I'm interested in-- not to mention that I rarely take time to reread my favorites! And I just can't admit I've bitten off more than I can chew. I just keep renewing them and renewing them until I can't any more. Then, if I still haven't finished something, I try to get it again the next time, or even put it on hold again if I know it's a popular item. I don't even care if they're kids books and I'm depriving an actual child of the joy of reading them first. It's sick, I know!

I've done this since childhood, and usually I do a good job of keeping track of all of my materials, even the DVDs, CDs, and books for Kiddo... (who currently prefers being called "Chief" or "Man," or even "Old Man!") Well, now I'm losing it, I guess. I left 3 Signing Time DVDs at my Mom's last weekend, and she had to mail them to me so they won't be overdue. Now I'm even checking out items on my husband's card when I've forgotten my own or when I've wanted more than the whopping 5 movies they allow you to check out. Today I realized that I've now accrued over $6 in fines on his card because I'd forgotten to renew those items, not to mention the fine I just paid off on my own card yesterday... So now he can't check anything else out until I pay for "his."

Meanwhile, my house is a mess, I still have to make a birthday cake and card for my husband, I owe several emails, I'm exhausted, and I still have the following to read for MYSELF:

• Digging to America, 277 pages, due 7/21, already renewed 2x
• The Green Glass Sea, 323 pages, due 7/21, renewed 1x
• The Heart is A Lonely Hunter, 359 pages, due 7/22, renewed 2x
• The Host, 619 pages (WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?!?!), due 7/23, doubt I'll be able to renew it
• Hungry Planet, 285 pages, due 7/23, doubt I'll be able to renew it
• These Is My Words, 384 pages, due 7/22, renewed 2x

+plus, on Daddy-O's card:

• Keeping Score, 202 pages, due JULY 1ST, can't be renewed because of fines
• Shug, 248 pages, was due JULY 1st, but now renewed until 7/24, 1st renewal

So far, I've completed 42 pages of Keeping Score. So, out of 2697 pages, I've got 42 down, 2655 to go. YEAH. Wish me luck... Anyone wanna come and baby-sit or clean my house? :) I'll be your best friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought not. See you next month or something...

Trendsetters?!?!?!

December 1991: The VERY stylish Rachael, Mom, and Heather
I also like to think of this photo as, "Proof that I really was skinny once upon a time!"

We actually got lots of compliments regarding our hair back then!

I'm not sure how it started, but sometime during my teenage years, my sister Heather and I began jokingly calling ourselves, "TRENDSETTERS." I guess we must have seen someone doing something we'd done years before and pretended they got the idea from us. Occasionally the joke still comes up, but I'd mostly forgotten about it until recently.

I'm sure everyone in the USA has seen ample footage of the removal of hundreds of FLDS children from their compound out in Texas. And, no doubt, you've seen several pictures depicting the interesting style their mommies/ladies are sporting. When I saw them, I have to admit that I thought of these 1991 photos of Heather and me almost immediately-- although our abundance of patterns seemed more like a Hutterite "trend." But I just assumed these FLDS ladies had been dressing and grooming themselves this way for oh, a century or so. Not exactly, according to a Salt Lake Tribune Article I stumbled upon online. In a 30 June 2008 article by Brooke Adams, I read the following:

Often described as a "prairie-style" way of dressing in the media, the uniform FLDS fashion has been targeted by critics and cult experts who considered it an example of brainwashing within the sect.
The style became widely followed under current prophet Warren S. Jeffs. But sect members defend it as an outward reflection of their values that actually began roughly a decade ago.
The transition was gradual, Jessop said.
Women wore out dresses that featured floral and gingham prints, flounces and frills, and replaced them with the plain, simple styles seen today.
Jessop said the clothing preference is based on... scriptural references and a desire to apply those dictates more deeply to their lives.
"I really like wearing plain clothes," she said, because it is part of being able to "focus on doing things for others rather than on seeing how darling I can look."

So perhaps Heather and I really are trendsetters, since we were rocking their style way back in 1991. But how they found out about our awesome looks all the way out west, I'll never know!!!

P.S. I hope this doesn't offend anyone. It's just my weird sense of humor manifesting itself once again! Man, I love that scanner!

Classic Photo Quiz

Sr. High Swim Team, circa 1958

Just at a glance, can you tell which one of these handsome fellas from the 1950s is my Daddy? If you know me very well, it should be easy to tell just by one distinguishing feature. I guess I'm not the only one who stands/stood out in a crowd! For that reason, this one of our most favorite family photos.

SCANNER FUN!

1982: My fifth birthday, with Mom, Grandma Kinney, Heather, and my Daddy

You may have noticed that I somewhat frequently bemoan my lack of a scanner. No, that situation hasn't changed, but I finally had a V-8 moment and realized that, thanks to my cousin Steve, my Mom does have a scanner and that-- hold on to your seats, folks-- I could use it when I'm visiting her (Well, if the toddler is sleeping or being entertained by his Gobby). So since we went to visit her the last two weekends, I have been able to scan a few things, although each time I think about it, the stack gets higher and higher and higher....

Being the weirdo that I am, a lot of what I've scanned so far are:

• goofy pictures that just amuse me for one reason or another.
• cards I've been holding on to (from card exchanges, CTMH parties and such) because they were too cute to mail. Now I will hopefully get back to sending cards. In a somewhat related note, I have added a few posts to my Card Blog this month, if you're interested.
  
• I'm also going through and adding photos to posts in which I previously whined about not having the right photo available.

So don't be surprised if you see some "interesting" photos popping up in the next several weeks. However, I was good and haven't scanned any wild and crazy photos of my husband, who would be mortified to see himself looking less than dignified on the internet. Well, not yet anyway....

1983: Me on my Sixth Birthday. Am I a child of the '80s or what?!?!

Fun with Our Library Guy

See, I'm not kidding about this library thing? He LOVES it!