Wordless Wednesday - I Wanna Be Like You

I Wanna Be Like You - Day 107

I have to explain this Wordless Wednesday post somewhere. This boy is always into something. He didn't get the nickname "Tornado Toddler" for nothing. Lately with our new baby around he wants to get into all of her stuff. He climbs in her crib, if I'm not looking and as you can see from the photos, he sneaks into her swing and her little chair too. This little guy keeps me on my toes for sure!

It's been an exhausting day! I had a close call today when I came out of our bedroom and the house was smokey. The only appliances on were the washer and dryer. We are a family of 5 here, there is always washing to do. Turns out some belt was rubbing against something else and the short story is it's broke. We are all safe though and that's what is important. ;)

Another New Gadget!

If you read my blog then you know how much I love to try out new gadgets. I find that Twitter is a very useful site and I can get tons of information there. Thanks to our Tuesday Toot meme Farrah came by to tell me about Twitterfeeds! Have you seen it? Go check it out. I'm sure everyone will be signing up soon. It allows your blog posts to be automatically sent to Twitter. How cool is that? No more cutting and pasting from one account to the other. Who doesn't love an automated system? Let's see if it works. You should be able to see this post pretty soon on Twitter. Ready, Go!

Tuesday Toot Meme - #11

It's that time again! It's time for Tuesday Toot. What have I done this week? Well on the business side I have started a Twitter account for HappyPanda. I could be following you! I actually managed to put on mascara yesterday and lip gloss today. Now if I could just combine the two I could be well on my way back to fixing my face again. YES!

Big news for me today. I went to my first room mom meeting this morning. This is my first time as room mom and I did it because my son asked me to. These ladies have it together! I had a lot of time to reflect while I was sitting in on this meeting. This is where the moms are and I need to be hanging out with them more that is for sure. Most of the former room moms have this stuff down to a science so it's pretty easy to go with the flow. Also, this is an open door for me to be able to spend some alone time with my son. Today made me miss how he use to be my main little person to care for. I was so involved in everything he did. I think we both miss that time. It made me a little sad because I just don't have that kind of time any more. I have two other little people at home waiting for me. Balance - I need to find more of it. If you have any tips just leave them here for me.

Pretty Baby - Day 108

Could I become a morning person? Hmmm. We are going on week 6 and Baby P. finally slept through the night and by slept through, I mean from 9pm to 4am. That is the best sleep I've had in months!
Instead of staying up like I normally do after the kids go to bed I went to bed with them. When she woke up at 4am we took care of her needs and she went back to sleep. I decided to stay up. The house was quiet and I was energized and I was moving quicker and thinking better. I just wondered if I would crash and burn during the day. I didn't. It's nearly 10pm and I really need to get to sleep now because I'm tired. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this isn't a fluke and she will sleep through the night again. I will keep you posted! Oh these new baby daze are tough.

My boys decided they wanted to dress the same this morning. You know I had to get a quick picture! I call this one "Mini Me."

Cool New Gadgets

Just wanted to let you know about a couple of fun little gadgets I've run into on the net over the last couple of days.

1.) Ustream - Have you seen this? It's pretty neat. Alejandro from Successfool was on the other night brainstorming about his new comedy idea. How did I hear about it? Katja on Twitter. If you're not on Twitter yet you should be!
Katja is the owner of Skimbaco.com. Her store is going out of business so look for a giant sale going on now!

2.) Gtalk Chat - I use gtalk chat a lot but I had not seen it in a blog until I visited JessicaKnows. You can import your chat to your blog. How cool is that?

3.) 12 Seconds.TV - Oh this is a fun one if you aren't afraid to put yourself on camera. Jessica isn't afraid she's pretty silly. I suggest you flip through her videos until you find her rendition of Cold Hearted Snake by Paula Abdul. Encore! Encore! There on the bottom right hand corner of her blog.

Have fun with these latest gadgets! Let me know how they work for you.

This weeks line up - Day 109

My goodness who isn't ready for all the season premieres this week? There are many of us waiting to see the new Desperate Housewives 5 years ahead. This is going to be so fun to destress by watching some silly drama. Hey, any escape from the zoo is good even if it is only television. That's why it's called entertainment. lol - Get ready.

Australia - Day 109

I'm super excited! I've been trying to get an order ready to ship to Australia. Happy Panda is going to be sold in Australia. How cool is that? Amid all the chaos there always seems to be some good news right around the corner. ;)

I'm so glad that you guys are signing up to win the TinyPrints.com and ListPlanIt.com contests!

Contest Promotion Blog Roll - Update!

Mommy Bloggers - Do you need a one stop contest promotion blog roll? I know I do! I keep forgetting which sites will help you spread the word about your current contest for free. I tracked down the ones that I knew about and created this handy dandy blog roll. If you know any others please let me know and I will add them!

Many have been added since I first posted this and here are few notes. If you see an M*** in front of the link it means you must have a membership to post there. If you see Mr. Linky and a day of the week, that means Mr. Linky is refreshed on that particular day. Also if you will right click on the hyperlink and select open in a new tab that will keep your from having to reopen the blog roll page. I hope these tips help. I use this blog roll myself so I try to catch any glitches before you do. If you want to add more please contact me. Also if you like to twitter, stumble, digg, mommybar, facebook, etc. your posts those links are in this blog roll too.

Post My Contest

3am - Day 110

I'm having a great day! My dh had his minor surgery and that all went well. I got to bed at 9:30pm this evening. I woke up with a sore throat but I had enough energy to do the dishes, take out the garbage, change out the laundry, take a shower and catch up on Flash Back Friday and Aloha Friday. It's harder and harder to carve out time but I'm managing. I'm trying to make the most of my time. I'm hoping the baby will start sleeping through the night soon. Oh we got the cutest hat from MyPrincessCloset.com. Photos will be coming and don't forget about that ListPlanIt.com schwag I've got going! Just click on the links on the left side bar. It's worth a look I promise! $50 to Tiny Prints is still up for grabs too. Song of the day 3am by Matchbox 20 and that's dedicated to that baby of mine.

Oh and if you are a blogger follower - I've added the new blogger gadget on the left side bar at the bottom. I've got one - Sheila! She ROCKS and deserves an award. I think I have some to give out too. I will work on that this coming week.

Aloha Friday #5

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
If money was not an issue and you could go any where in the world right this minute, where would you go?

Flash Back Friday #7 - Mr. Roger's Neighborhood

Oh yes, every morning as a child I would wake up and watch Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. I had a little black and white tv in my room and I could watch Casper The Friendly Ghost and Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood. I didn't get to watch the whole thing because I had to get to school but I remember this morning ritual. I really liked that trolly! Those were good memories for me.

Are You Your Own Best Friend? - Day 111

Are you your own best friend? I know that I am. I can talk myself into or out of just about anything. Today I had a bit of a quandary. It was 2 something this afternoon and I'm so sleep deprived that I just want to close my eyes and pass out. I'm laying in my bed and my baby is on my belly sleeping and my toddler is on my right with heavy eyelids. I know we could all sleep really well but it's almost time to pick up our soccer star from school. If I pass out I might not wake up and he would be left up at school very angry with me.

I went ahead and got everyone ready to leave. I really wanted to pile them in the car and just drive over. I'm exhausted! My toddler says, "wagon!, wagon!" Clearly he wants to ride in the wagon while I pull. Mind you the school is a block away but I'm so tired. I don't want to walk. Then it occurs to me - (insert Dr. Phil here and his explanation of those tapes that we play ourselves). Mine went something like this,

me: I don't want to walk, I'm so tired.
toddler: wagon! wagon!
inside head: it would be easier to walk, your going to have to get them all out of the car any way.
me: I don't care, I'm going to fall over! I'm tired I don't want to walk, it's hot, I'm tired!
toddler: ride mommy! wagon!
inside head: Didn't you just write that Thursday Thirteen post with all your "goals!?" Isn't this exercise?
me: Grrrrrrrr, yes - I remember! yes - I need to get moving and no time like the present. FINE! Let's do it. Maybe I will catch a second wind and if not maybe I can nap when I get back if the kids let me.

It's hot, I'm sweating, I'm catching that second wind. Thank you God! My soccer star says, "why didn't you bring the van? it's hot!" I explain that it costs less to walk than drive and gas is expensive. Besides, I need to get my own tummy back I tell him. He begins to make all these jokes about my protruding belly button and how he can't describe it but he can draw it! Oh he's funny! The next thing I know I we are home and what do I see?

Thursday Thirteen #46 - Personal Goals

After reviewing this site I'm inspired to come up with a list of personal goals. I thought I would be able to sort it out if I put it in a Thursday Thirteen post! So here we go, my list of things that I would like to work on. Lucky for me ListPlanIt.com has many lists that are going to help me make this happen.
1.) I'm ready to get back into exercising. I'm going to start putting more exercises into my day until I'm up to a full routine. It's not so much about weight loss as it is to be physically fit.
2.) I don't want to wear any more of my hubby's shirts! Not even to sleep in. I have to get my wardrobe under control.
3.) I would like to go through my make-up and figure out how to fix my face again. My toddler gets more use out of it these days than I do.
4.) I'm going to start filling out a list day by day until I get things straightened out in all the areas of my life. It's chaos and I'm done!
5.) I'm going to get my accounting finished before my inlaws get here in 2 weeks. That includes filing all these papers too.
6.) I need to work on business goals. I feel like I'm losing site of what it is that I'm trying to accomplish.
7.) I want to figure out a way to make every room in the house more "efficient" yes that would be nice.
8.) Meal planning - I want to give this a try! Actually make the grocery list with the meals in mind.
9.) I would like to try more recipes. I know how to cook but only what my mom taught me and I'm pretty sure it's not all that healthy. Besides I've been eating the same meals for 30+ years and I'm bored!
10.) Make it a point to leave my house! The zoo was a refreshing change of pace. It didn't end well but it was good overall.
11.) I have to get together with my friends. I do have them and we should be eating and drinking together real soon!
12.) I want to figure out a way that my dh and I can go out by ourselves. We might get to do that once or twice a year. There's something really wrong with that!
13.) I want to start taking pictures of myself. I don't think I realize what I look like because I don't spend a lot of time in front of a mirror. That's a recipe for letting yourself go.

Mr. Sandman - Day 112

Oh bring me a dream! My dh comes home tomorrow from his business trip. The kids would really like to see him. I would like to see him too but I would also like to sleep. Lucky for me my darling eldest has come for a sleep over. Isn't that nice? I'm so thankful for that. Song of the day - Mr. Sandman by The Andrew Sisters

Wordless Wednesday - Silly Belly

Say My Name - Day 113

Song of the day - Say My Name by Destiny's Child. I don't think I have heard anyone say my name today. I've pretty much just heard the generic term of Mom, Mommy, Mama or Momma. The kids are finally down and I would like to just crawl under the covers and sleep for hours. But no, not this evening! I will soldier on. Oh and if you want a laugh you can get a giggle from this video I found on You Tube. God love her!

ListPlanIt.com - Win It Here!

Meet Jennifer Tankersley! If you haven't heard of her yet don't worry you will. She's the creator of ListPlanIt.com. Right now her company is all the buzz around the blogosphere. She has created a service that no business owner, blogger, parent or student should be without. ListPlanIt.com can simplify your life in a matter of a few clicks. Who wouldn't want that? She could give Franklin Covey a few ideas.

What makes Jennifer Tankersley's service so great is that she has already done the work for you. I had a great time using her service and checked through every single list available and even submitted a few suggestions of my own. Many companies allow you to fill out pdf forms online but your not allowed to save the data once you type it in. That to me is very frustrating. I like to work smart not hard! What's great is that you can type inside of a list, save it and print it straight from your computer. If you need to share it with a coworker or spouse you could email it too. Allow me to highlight some of my favorite lists.

For bloggers or business owners these are awesome!

• Promotion Tracker - keep track of your products/giveaways and the Alexa Ranking is a very cool feature.
• NEWSLETTER PLANNER -- It is usually easier to see a newsletter laid out before you begin to create the final copy. Use this page as a preliminary worksheet.

For those who are new to Mommybid this would be great!

• # ONLINE AUCTION LISTINGS (Buy) -- A Wish List for items you'd like to purchase through an online auction webiste.
  # ONLINE AUCTION LISTINGS (Sell) -- Use this page to help you get your items for sale on an online auction. Instead of scratching information about your lots on a piece of scratch paper, use this form and put it in a binder for your records.

• ADVERTISING TRACKER -- Be sure to keep a record of every place that you use paid or free advertising. In the long run, it will help you decide where to concentrate your efforts.
• GOALS AND ACHIEVEMENTS -- Ever feel like you're tires are spinning but you're not getting anywhere? Write down just what you want to push yourself to do during a week and then be sure to record your accomplishments.
  

For personal or family

• DAILY REMINDERS -- This planning page helps everyone remember what they need to grab, pack, or prepare before they leave the house today. Fill in the date under each day of the week, then just scan across to quickly be reminded that today is library day for Sue, P.E. day for Henry, and Daddy needs to pick up his dry cleaning. Hang on a cork tile located right next to the door.
• THOUGHTFUL THURSDAYS -- Plan out a month's worth of ways of being thoughtful to those around you. PERFECT for the family.
• HOME FIRE SAFETY PLANNING -- Now has never been a better time to discuss your family's plan for evacuation in the case of a fire. Use thispage to arm yourself with the confidence that you and your loved ones will be ready should the unthinkable happen.Perfect for hubby.
• RESPONSIBILITY LIST (Infant/Toddler) -- Suggested list of tasks for even the littlest ones. Train a child early on to believe that they are an essential member of the family.
• POTTY TRAINING -- Steps to keep in mind during this intense and trying, but eventually liberating, time.
• CAUGHT YA! (BEING GOOD) -- Remember the good stuff, too! Reward kind actions and obedient behavior.
• COOPERATION ACTIVITIES -- If you find yourself constantly sending embattled siblings off to their room to "separate", next time try one of these activities to promote cooperation and teamwork.
• DIVISION OF LABOR -- Stop battling it out with your spouse over whose job it is to take out the trash or do the laundry. Assign responsibilities here and know that everyone is pulling his/her weight.
  

For our recent natural disaster that we just experienced.

• EMERGENCY EVACUATION INVENTORY -- If ever the unfortunate event of needing to evacuate your home at a moment's notice should arise, be prepared with this list. Keep a completed page in both you and your spouse's nightstand or in the hall bureau so it can be located in a jiffy. There be very little time to spare. Don't spend it trying to think about what you need. Just grab the list and get going!

I could go on and on about all the great lists that are useful to me but I would love for you to go visit ListPlanIt.com yourself. Please take a look around because Jennifer Tankersley has graciously allow me to give away a 3 month membership to one winner her on my blog!

How can you win? Easy! Visit ListPlanIt.com and come back here and tell me which list would be most useful in your life.

Extra Entries!

List Plan It SCHWAG
Ends 9/30<center style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://babyandtoddlerproductreviews.blogspot.com/2008/09/listplanitcom-win-it-here.html">List Plan It SCHWAG</a></center><br /><center><a href="http://babyandtoddlerproductreviews.blogspot.com/2008/09/listplanitcom-win-it-here.html" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="Photobucket" src="http://www.listplanit.com/custom/listplanit125125button1%281%29.gif" /></a><center style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">Ends 9/30</center></center>

• For bloggers - Show ListPlanIt.com some bloggy love. Grab the contest button code and write a post on your blog about this giveaway and include any list that would be most useful to you!
  
• For nonbloggers - Subscribe to Jennifer's newsletter.
  
  Don't forget to leave me another comment if you have participated in extra entries. The winner will be announced by 9am cst. 10/1 on this post. Good Luck!

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

3 

Timestamp: 2008-10-01 15:31:09 UTC

Jenna is our winner!

Tuesday Toot Meme - #10

I really like this meme because it reminds me that even amongst the chaos of it all I'm still kicking some ABS! I wish there was more participation because I think a lot of women would find it just as therapeutic as I do. What was so great this week? I finally found all of my bills and got them paid! That might not sound like much but I'm talking about personal and business expenses that were due all right before the hurricane hit. There wasn't any way to get them paid during that time. My buddy came by to check on me. I'm flying solo this week with 3 kids, 3 dogs and no fence. The dh is in Scotland training to become a better leader for his company. I took the opportunity to just jump on it! I tried calling some places but it was taking entirely too long. I just started writing checks like crazy. I've got a small manageable stack left. Toot Toot!

It's All a Blur - Day 114

Did today even happen? It's all a blur at this point. I've had maybe four hours of sleep. I remember the zoo and my boys having a great time. I remember screaming baby all the way home because she was hungry. In my sleep deprived state I forgot the necessary tools to get her fed easily at the zoo and we had to leave. I remember stressing out so badly about needing to pay bills. My friend showed up! She said she had a bad feeling and came to check on me. Thank you God for small miracles. I NEEDED her to come! That brings me to my Tuesday Toot post!

Ping.Fm

Testing ping.fm - Looking for a way to keep up with your status on your social media sites? I've been playing around with Ping.Fm. I really like FriendFeed.com too. Ping.Fm reminds me of a giant rocket launcher. If you have something you want to launch to all your groups it's a great one stop shop. FriendFeed is great because it feeds everything you are doing into one place. It's a lot to keep up with when you join several social media groups and the more links with one stop sources the easier it is to keep up with!

If God Will Send His Angels - Day 115

Hello Mr. Boss Man,
We have a slight problem. You see, when I took this job I thought I would be in a position where I would progress. I really thought moving up the ladder would be filled with pats on the back and maybe even a "that a girl!" I hoped I might get a high five every now and then or even a quarterly review so we could discuss how I've done and how to improve. We could even talk about maybe a raise. I really didn't see anything in the job description that said I would be catching puke in my hands on any given day. I don't recall reading anything about being a laundry goddess, dog catcher or even a medical technician. No, that wasn't any where in the job description. I really thought I would be able to get up each day and dress up for my big job and fix my hair and maybe even apply a bit of make up! You know, putting my best foot forward and all. There wasn't any mention of staying up at all hours of the night and passing out in my clothes and never seeing my hair in anything other than a pony tail. I thought maybe I would have some lunch dates or something rather than grazing off the plates of my coworkers. I don't think I saw anything about needing a daily supply of headache medicine and caffeine either. This job is beginning to be sort of a health hazard and I'm really tired. Mr. Boss Man, you didn't tell me that you would be leaving me for periods at a time to fend for myself with all these responsibilities. Is it possible that maybe we could trade? I'm not opposed to the idea of cross training at all. In fact I think that would be very beneficial to our company. I hate to sound like a weak link but it nearly took an act of God to keep me from leaving the office running and screaming today. I sucked it up though. After all that's why you hired me right? I'm a survivor. I found some inspiration - song of the day, If God Will Send His Angels by U2.

Go It Alone - Day 116

I'm on my own for the next 5 days with 3 dogs, 3 kids and ZERO fence. I made it through the first day. Song of the day Go It Alone by Beck. Thank goodness my son decided to invite my mother and grandmother over for hamburgers, fries and cheesecake. Sound good? It was pretty good!

I'm glad they came over because they needed to eat. They both own houses in San Leon where Hurricane Ike left it's mark all over their homes. The insurance company is giving them a hard time. They are in a very tough spot. They lost everything in their garages and partially in their houses from the flooded waters. The whole thing is a mess. There are people being found after the storm. I've been told that dogs are being used to search for those who didn't make it. I've been told that some of our relatives in Kentucky just got their power on today. I'm in awe of the destruction and the far reach it has had. It's going to be a long recover effort. I'm feeling pretty blessed right now.

3:10 To Yuma: A Movie Review

Oh my goodness! I would give this movie 4 super shining stars. I haven't seen a good western movie since the days of Unforgiven or Tombstone. In fact I was so in love with this movie I watched it twice! I don't normally make time to watch a movie twice but this was an exception to the rule. I might even buy this one. Russell Crowe was so fantastic in this film. You couldn't help but like his character Ben Wade. His side kick Charlie Prince played by Ben Foster was hilarious. He was incredibly loyal to his "boss." I'm not really a fan of Christian Bale but he did a nice job playing the part of Dan Evans the injured war hero. This film was packed with lots of action and adventure. It's packed with lots of foul language and violence too but it's still a great western film. Wait till you see the end! I won't spoil it for you just put it in your netflix queue!

Details provided by Netflix -

For violence and some language

PARENTS: for 15+ (more)

Length:

122 minutes

Director:

James Mangold

Cast:

Christian Bale			Russell Crowe
Ben Foster			Alan Tudyk
Peter Fonda			Vinessa Shaw
Kevin Durand			Logan Lerman
Gretchen Mol			Dallas Roberts
Johnny Whitworth

Potty Training 101 - Day Not Sure!

A couple days before Hurricane Ike hit we were working on potty training. He was frustrated enough to begin throwing his potty chair. I took that as a sign to back off a bit. Since then he has been coming to me and telling me when he's gone in his diaper and I praise him like crazy! I've found some resources since then that I will begin sharing with you. Here is one I just found if your little person likes Elmo.

I'm on Fire - Day 117

Yep, sick again and I have no idea why. My hubby has been sick with fever, my kids have runny noses and my throat is on fire! Just when we were starting to get things back on track. Am I stuck in a country song or what? I'm really hoping to get some rest and try again tomorrow. I have a baby to take care of and she isn't sleeping through the night yet. Wish me luck - song of the day I'm on Fire by Bruce Springsteen.

Aloha Friday #4

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:
If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?

Dancing Queen - Flash Back Friday #6

Ok so I was four when this song was released but I remember it very well when I was about 8? My friends and I loved everything ABBA. I guess it was just their music. It was just so cool back then and I still like it now. I've enjoyed some of the ways their music has been remixed. I was listening long before Mama Mia! I still haven't seen that movie. I don't know if it will ruin ABBA for me or not. LOL - Let me know if you would recommend it. Join us for Flash Back Friday!

I'll Stand By You - Day 118

The changes that are taking place with Baby P are fast and furious. She is so big now. It's been 4 weeks and she is lifting her head, pushing the top half of her body up with her hands, she's trying to scoot with her feet and she mimics sounds. She seems so advanced to me but I'm pretty sure I'm biased. I can't remember when they are suppose to complete each milestone. I would have to research it again. She is out of all the newborn clothes and on to 0-3 months. At her 2 week check up she had gained a pound and grew 1/2 an inch. She's eating 6 ounces every 3 hours. Her eyes are bigger and her face is really filling out. I'm going to have to get some video footage of her to post. She is amazing and we are lucky to have her here with us. Everyone here adores her. Song of the day I'll Stand By You by The Pretenders.

Areas Still Without Power

My 1st Baby Meme

My 1st baby....

A different kind of meme...it's all about you and your first baby...make sure to comment here after you complete. Thanks Margie!

1. Were you married at the time? Yes

2. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant? Surprised

3. How old were you? 17

4. How did you find out you were pregnant? Home pregnancy test.

5. Who did you tell first? My best friend.

6. Did you want to find out the sex? No

7. Due date? July 17th

8. Did you deliver early or late? Early

9. Did you have morning sickness? Oh YES

10. What did you crave? Anything spicy. Mexican or Italian food.

11. Who irritated you the most? The baby's father.

12. What was your first child's sex? Girl

13. How many pounds did you gain throughout the pregnancy? 49

14. Did you have any complications during your pregnancy? No

15. Where did you give birth? Bayshore Hospital

16. How many hours were you in labor? 8 hours

17. Who drove you to the hospital? My husband

18. Who watched? My husband, mother, Doctor, and some nurses.

19. Was it vaginal or c-section? Vaginal

20. Did you take medicine to ease the pain? An Epidural

21. How much did your child weigh? 6lb. 15oz.

22. What did you name him/her? Suzzann Stephy

23. How old is your first born today? 19 yrs. old

So now I am going to tag five mommies:

Sheila
Kristin
Laura
Amanda
Toni

Thursday Thirteen #45 - Lessons Learned

Here is a list of lessons that I learned during Hurricane Ike.

1.) Technology is a double edged sword. It's great when it works but when it doesn't you find out just how much of your life is wrapped up in it.

2.) I enjoyed how much I was able to get organized in my home during our days without electricity.

3.) Just because your life comes to a screeching halt doesn't mean the rest of the world stops, it's going to move on without you.

4.) Heat makes people very irritable which increases stress.

5.) My eldest son went through television withdraw even though we normally limit his tv time.

6.) Music helps me get through the worst of times.

7.) I will not sit through another hurricane with my children If I can help it.

8.) My teenage nephew is a good kid. He has a close relationship with my brother and it's really cool to see that first hand.

9.) Price gouging is alive and well during times of crisis.

10.) My routine is slowly slipping back to what it was. I'm not sure if I want that routine back.

11.) There are many different aspects of my life that need to be changed rather than ignored.

12.) My baby girl and my toddler rock! They handled this week of natural disaster better than any of us. There is nothing like seeing a baby smile in their sleep.

13.) Insurance adjusters are very thorough when compiling their reports.

Groove Is In The Heart - Day 119

I'm really trying to get my groove back. I'm hoping to begin working tomorrow. I have orders to fill and accounting to catch up on. There is so much going on here in the city. My mother just got power back in her home in Pasadena. My oldest brother got his power back last night on the North side of Houston. I've learned a lot about myself during this hurricane. I've learned about my family too. Sounds like a Thursday Thirteen post! Song of the day - Groove Is In The Heart by Deeee Lite.

Under The Boardwalk - Day 120

My brother and nephew have been helping out our family in San Leon. My nephew took these photos on the way there which includes the Kemah area. We have power in our home but much of the area has still yet to resume normalcy. There are still so many people without electricity, power, food or gas. I had a Dr. appt. on the west side of Houston. The nurses told me that I could try the stores there and that they were well stocked with food and there weren't any lines. Well, by the time I got there they must have been bought out again. The only sort of meals I could buy were in a box or bag. I'm NOT complaining and happy to have it. We are very fortunate. Some gas stations are out of gas and the ones that do have gas have lines that go on for hours. There are some real horror stories about people fighting over gas and price gouging over gas and ice ($6 for a bag). It's hard to believe at a time like this that any business would take advantage of people. It's hard to believe that any looting would be going on in Texas. For the most part citizens are helping our their neighbor and we are all doing the best we can under the circumstances. The cell phones are still not working correctly. We tried to get a hold of family members for days and they were leaving messages but it took a while for us to get those messages. We are all coping the best that we can. It's going to take time, a lot of time.

Wordless Wednesday - Baby Duck Feet

Tuesday Toot Meme - #9

What a week it has been! First we survived Hurricane Ike - Toot Toot! That should be enough but here is what I accomplished without power.
I cleaned out my entire kitchen, fridge, freezer, my bedroom closet, bathroom closet, game room closet, desk, and a few flat surfaces with piles of papers and stuff on it. I know I'm late on bills too but I hope everyone will be understanding. I still have a Tiny Prints contest going on for a $50 gift card. There's only one entry so far. Seems like you have a good chance of winning if you enter.

Lean on Me - Day 121

Shake-The-Salt, I don't know how you found me but thank you! What a great online community we have. Our phone towers are working on and off still. Our messages and voice mails are all delayed. I'm just happy to be home with power.

The Aftermath - Day 122

So what happened? Madness that's what. After I said goodbye to my tweets on 9/12 the power went out. We sat through the storm and it was scary to say the least. Once the sun rose we could see the damage and all of our neighbors and their neighbors too. We lost a few shingles here and there. Mostly we lost our entire fence that holds our three dogs. Luckily we had running water, luckily we shop in bulk, luckily we forget to put those Ozarka water bottles out every now and then and they just leave 5-6 at a time so we had 16 bottles stored. The cell phones worked on and off and it was hard to be reached or reach anyone. My brother lives 10 minutes down the road and he had a generator. He and my mother and my grandmother came over this morning with bags of ice, lanterns, a radio and flash lights. It was so hot and the baby was sweating the night before. I have no idea why but my brother's was blessed with electricity in his home Saturday at 11pm. They tried to call but they couldn't reach us and there was curfew in our area. He housed over 20 people in his home comfortably. We stayed with him Sunday evening and the kids were happy not to be in the heat. The cold front hit which was another blessing. We had no access to any information for 2 days. Our radio didn't work, there was no tv, no internet and no phones.

It is amazing what you can do with your time without all of those luxuries and if you don't believe they are luxuries try and go without power for a few days. I'm really proud of my state and the city that I live in. The people here pulled together to help each other out and the clean up began immediately. What was scary at this point is that even if we had power we would run out of food if the electricity didn't work for 3-4 weeks. Can you imagine? The news footage was annoying because of all the finger pointing. On the radio people would say we are Texans we will take care of each other and that is what I have seen so far.

Ike - Day 123

Whip It - Day 124

Amazing what nervous energy can be used to do. My kitchen is so organized it's scary. I think you would be proud if you saw it. I conquered it all. From the top of the fridge to every cabinet. My kids can easily reach their stuff and the dishes that they use without having to climb counters or use chairs. I cleaned my desk off too. Everything is in about 3-4 boxes but at least I know where it's located. I've got all the dishes and laundry done too. I'm a bit of a multi-tasking freak. If you've been on Twitter then you have seen all those music links that helped me get it done.

Meanwhile we were able to have a small party for the boy with cake, pints of ice cream and presents. My mom, grandma, daughter and nephew came over to celebrate. He was really happy! That was all before the wind came. Right now the rain has finally come. My whole family has touched base so we know where we all are and that's good. Thanks to all of you who stopped by to give me tips on how to make this day special for him even during the waiting period of a hurricane. I did try to make him his favorite breakfast but it didn't work out so well. I tried....

Song of the day - Whip It by Devo.

Waiting With The Wind

Happy 8th dlk

Aloha Friday #3

Kailani at An Island Life has created this really fun idea. If you are interested in joining in, please visit her site for more details.

Today's question is:

If your child's birthday fell on the day of a natural disaster say - a hurricane. Obviously there isn't a party and everyone has either left town or is hunkering down. How could you still make it special for them?

Flash Back Friday #5 - Magic

Oh yes, I went all Olivia Newton-John on you today! We loved her and use to sing all her songs. The hurricane is coming and the one that I sat through as a kid was Alicia. During that time Olivia was a huge hit! I just read the report on Hurricane Alicia and I'm very surprised we sat through it as a family. It was pretty scary but we made it through and no one left. I remember people in canoes paddling down the street. Yes, I'm serious. We went without electricity but I can't remember for how long. We are here and staying for Ike. I hope our family is ok. I'm not a fan of hurricane season.

Rock You Like A Hurricane - Day 125

Um Ike, about that wish list below...if you could take care of some of that for me I would really appreciate it. What? Mother nature could help me get a new roof, gutters, fence, house painted, etc. I'm seriously seeing the good in 100 mph winds or have I lost my mind? We are staying here and sitting it out this time. We left for Katrina but we are staying for Ike. Here's to all of us who have decided to stay and wait it out. Song of the day - Rock You Like A Hurricane by The Scorpions.

Thursday Thirteen #44 - Wish List

1.) A referee shirt accompanied with a game whistle.
2.) A fort or playground set in my backyard for my kids to play on.
3.) The remaining broken pieces of wood from the shed to be removed from our backyard.
4.) One room in our house that isn't filled with dog hair, toys, computers or piles of paper.
5.) A new dining room set that doesn't have fabric on the chairs.
6.) I would like a new roof, gutters, garage door and the rotted wood replaced.
7.) I want to be able to walk in my garage safely.
8.) I would like to get rid of everything in my house that hasn't been used in 2 years.
9.) I want a new wardrobe with shoes and makeup.
10.) I want to not be embarrassed when people come over to my house.
11.) I want a total upgrade for my computer, keyboard and phones.
12.) I want to decorate every room in my house and paint it inside and out.
13.) I want to be a non yelling family again.
What? I can dream!

Too Much - Day 126

They canceled school for Friday which is also my son's 8th birthday. His party is Saturday. Will it be ruined by a Hurricane? I have no idea! I've researched postpartum depression but I don't have it. I've researched the baby blues and I have a few symptoms but I had all those before I had a baby. I'm chalking it up to just sleep deprivation and being overwhelmed. I wish my hubby and I could get on the same page. I wish my kids would hear me the first time. This is bringing me to a Thursday Thirteen post! Sweet....oh and Song of the day is Too Much by Dave Matthews

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