Going Crazy - Know the Way?

I have a good family...

Sun, 05 Apr 2009 13:42:28 GMT

I told D this morning that the vacuum isn't working well...

Me: Because vacuum maintenance is your job description.
Him: Right, because vacuum destruction is yours.
Me: And that is why we work so well together!

And yesterday, when A watched me put a patch on a pair of jeans that had ripped...
"When I get bigger and I am a mommy I am going to sew a patch on my pants, too."

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:47:15 GMT

Hi everyone,

I have decided to walk in the March of Dimes March for Babies with my Mothers of Multiples Club for the second time. The walk is on April 26th in Newark, DE. As many of you know, twins have a much higher likelihood of being born prematurely than singletons. C and A were born at 36 weeks, 6 days, which is not considered premature for twins, so we were lucky. Also, I was a preemie, born a month early. So March of Dimes is near and dear to my heart.

Please consider helping out by sponsoring me in my walk. Thanks! Here is more information, for anyone who is curious:

The March of Dimes has changed the name of its biggest event to March for Babies. It's a great change because it makes it very clear exactly who I am walking for -- all babies. I am very excited to be a part of the “first” March for Babies; please support my participation.

Although the name of this signature event changed, the mission did not. The March of Dimes champions the needs of moms and babies in our community and across the nation. The money we raise for March for Babies will support lifesaving research, services, education and advocacy that help babies get a healthy start.

Please help by donating today!

The mission of March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality.

A new dream?

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:08:56 GMT

My obsession with the Twilight novels has made me wish I was a better writer. Well, actually, I have always enjoyed writing... I just have never felt creative enough to write fiction. I think I can write a good story, if given characters, world, etc... The part I stumble on is creating the characters and the world.

So, since many of you are good writers, can you give me any advice on learning to develop ideas? It may just not be a learnable skill, and I may be out of luck, and if that is the case, feel free to tell me...

I know I will probably never do anything except write for fun. Watching fencerm2 's struggles, I am not sure I am up for that situation... But I would love to try writing for fun.

Any advice?

Twilight

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 21:04:31 GMT

So, I was shopping Sunday with a good friend, and picked up Twilight. Another friend had been asking me to read it for awhile, because she thought I would like it and wanted to have someone to see the movie with. I started reading it when the friend and her family had gone home, and didn't put it down until it was done. At 4am.

Yesterday, I ordered the rest of the series through Amazon. They were scheduled to arrive tomorrow. I spent yesterday re-reading Twilight, and reading the unfinished one that is online (it got released before all the editing was done, and now may never be finished.) I had planned to actually get stuff done today, since I expected productivity to drop tomorrow with the arrival of the rest of the books. But, darn Amazon, was too good, and they came today.

And partway through New Moon, I am bawling my eyes out and terribly depressed. I flipped forward to see when this part would be over with... and it isn't for awhile. I do not want to keep reading it, but I can't stop. I am now just reading to get through this part.

I hope I still manage to have my act together at Birka this weekend, and that these books don't toss me into a depression. I want to write more, but I need to read more instead....

I am drooling...

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 17:27:44 GMT

Choffy sounds like my personal heaven.

Have you ever...

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 05:01:25 GMT

really needed to go to bed, but didn't know where to get the energy to get off the couch (and stop watching the dumbness on TV this late), do the pre-bed chores (feed the rabbit, let the dog out, etc.) and get all the way up the stairs... And at the top of the stairs, there is more work to do - PJ's to put on, teeth to brush, etc.

And then tomorrow just comes another day of taking care of the Little Darlings, so this is my only me time, too... That doesn't help.

Although King of the Hill just came on, and that might just be a motivator for me....

Hey Look, I am a Professional Costumer!

Sat, 17 Jan 2009 16:56:27 GMT

Picking brains...

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 13:55:10 GMT

OK, so we have decided we may need more space. (Those of you who have seen my house, stop laughing!) I mean, even aside from the fact that I am a pack rat (I am working on it, really), our house is not really laid out well. It is log and skinny, with only a living room and kitchen on the lower floor. Thus, the living room is the space we do all our living in, so the bunny, dog crate, both desks, entertainment center, and kids stuff is all crammed into that room. The kitchen is really poorly designed, with the oven in the corner (who puts an oven in the corner??), making cabinet space less than it should be. We can't really have people over with this layout, and that makes us sad. Then, upstairs, there are three bedrooms, but two of them are huge, and the third is tiny (and doesn't even have a closet). So, what do we do when the kids get old enough to need their own rooms? What if we want another child someday?

So, there are more issues with this house than the fact that I have too much stuff. I am not saying my stuff does not contribute to the problem! But it only makes worse an existing problem.

Plus, we have already been talking about refinancing to take advantage of some of these great mortgage rates right now.

What to do? Obviously, our two options are to move, or to build an addition onto the house.

Moving pros:
We could move somewhere with lower taxes.
We would be able to take the money from the equity we have in this home and apply it to a new home.
We have often wondered if the work done to renovate this house before we bought it was really all done correctly. We occasionally refer to the house as the money pit, and mutter things like, "I hate this house."
Perhaps moving (again) would help with the culling of stuff, forcing us to really re-evaluate each thing we own and decide if it is really worth keeping or not.

Moving cons:
I hate moving. (Plus, we already owe our friends many moving favors.)
This house, with its current dumb layout, in the current market, will be difficult, if not impossible, to sell. (Cutting into the equity mentioned above.)
House hunting (which we did do a couple of years ago, BTW) was difficult with infants... It will be impossible with twin three year olds.
Finding a house with large rooms like this one is also pretty tough to do.
I love this neighborhood - I love being able to walk to a historical battlefield park.
I love that I will be able to walk to the kids school, and that they will start school next year instead of when they are 5.
I love that we can get on 295 within a couple of minutes and, from there, we can get to Philly, Delaware, North Jersey, anywhere really.
I love the fact that our house is on a double lot; giving us a huge yard, which is fenced in.
The timing of coordinating a sale of one house and purchase of another can be problematic.

Addition pros:
We could keep this great location.
We could design the new part of the house ourselves, getting just what we want.
We wouldn't have to move.
We would have to re-evaluate at least part of our stuff even with an addition, as I am sure we would have to make room for the work.
We could do something like rent a POD to store stuff we needed to get out of the way during the work, and it would be for a defined period of time (my fear is, that if we tried that while house hunting, we would end up needing it for years while the house hunt went on.)
Actually, the whole project of an addition would have a defined time frame, and while it might be delayed, at least we would have an idea of the time frame. Moving could take years, especially trying to sell this house in this economy.
Hopefully an addition might uncover some of the existing issues with this house. (For example, our current basement is just shy of being able to ever be finished, as it is short. It might be wise, if we added an addition, to get a basement added on with it (they have to dig out a foundation, anyway, so they may as well just dig out enough for a basement), and maybe close off the old, less than functional, basement.)

Addition cons:
Can our neighborhood support the new value of the house after we build an addition?
Would the uncovering of flaws in the current house put us way over budget to fix them?

I am really leaning toward the addition right now. Even if the neighborhood couldn't support the higher value of this house after an addition, I am hoping that the addition would make this our forever home, and we wouldn't really have to deal with that. But what if that doesn't work out? Will building an addition be a really stupid move financially?

I know some of you have experience with this - I would love some input. We are considering hiring a financial planner for a consultation about all of this, but I am concerned about the cost of that. Also, that a financial planner wouldn't necessarily have the information we need about real estate, but would just try to get us to invest money... So, what do you all think??

Well, this might pose problems...

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 03:14:56 GMT

OK, so I just read an article tonight about the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. I am pretty worried about it, on several levels, and would love input from anyone who knows anything about it. Otherwise, I will use this post to organize my thoughts on it...

Basically, what the CPSIA will do, is require mandatory testing for lead and phthalates (whatever they are), on all items sold for children under the age of 12. Now, for the big manufacturers of clothing and toys, I think this act is a Good Thing (TM). However, it seems they will apply this law across the board, including on the sale of used items, and items manufactured by small businesses.

The first problem I have with this is that it will ruin the resale run by my Mothers of Multiples group, as well as all the other resales run by other Moms groups, and the sale of children's stuff at thrift stores and even on Craigslist and Ebay (because none of these places have the funds necessary to cover the testing required). So first of all, my mothers of multiples group will now have no income, and our events may have to start to cost money. And secondly, I can no longer clothe my children for a reasonable cost (since they are going to grow out of stuff before they wear it out, anyway.) I admit I have become quite spoiled by clothing my children at resales. Even checking out rock bottom clearance prices at some of the mall and online kids stores, I turn up my noses at the prices, knowing I can find something cheaper and still in pretty good shape at the resale.

On another level, it bothers me that thrift stores will be tossing out all kids clothes and toys as of February 10th, and perfectly useable stuff is going to end up cluttering up the landfills. Not to mention the fact that many, many families rely on the thrift stores to save money clothing their kids, and they are going to be out of luck.

The other problem is that this is also going to put small manufacturers of toys and children's items out of business. All those etsy sellers with kid's clothes and toys, all the shops at craft fairs that sell quilts and blankets, etc., all gone. (As an aside, in some ways I feel some vindication that the company who makes those dumb Taggie blankets will be subjected to this cost, because that is totally an idea I should have come up with and become a millionaire from, but that is a digression.)

Anyway... I just wanted to sort through my thoughts here. I really should be sewing... But this is really bugging me. How can they do something so dumb like this, and not even tell anyone about it? I guess I will do some serious hitting of the thrift stores over the next month, in case I lose that source of clothing my kids after that.

Need a screen shot...

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:22:03 GMT

So, I am sitting here watching Robin Hood with the kids (Disney version) and there is a shot of the Sheriff of Nottingham sitting at a desk with a sign in front of it that says something like "Keeper of the Royal Treasury." How do I get a screen shot of that for an icon???

Sound bites

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 19:25:57 GMT

Thanks for the hugs last night. Sleep makes things happier.

So, notable quotes from recent memory...

A: "Rudolph is sick. We need to call Dr. Polo." (Rudolph does, indeed, have a small tear in his side that I need to sew; and Dr. Polo is, in fact, our veterinarian. Smart kid.)

A: Don't kiss me!
C: I have to kiss you because I am Prince Phillip and you are the Princess and I am gonna rescue you!
A: Oh, OK.

A: (to the tune of Jingle Bells) "Tinkerbell, tinkerbell, tinker all the way!"

Me: Connor, what are you doing?
C: I am not Connor, I am Prince Phillip.

Oh, and A is, of late, occasionally Incrediboy (yes, I have introduced them to the Incredibles. I am not going to tell her that Incrediboy grows up to be the bad guy, either.)

OK, I am off to put them down for nap, and then get back to work on Canada reporting. Yay fun. *end sarcasm*

Yeah... for the Moms I know...

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:36:01 GMT

Beautiful - thanks for sharing

On Wed, Dec 17, 2008 at 4:09 PM, susan bicknell <susan.bicknell@gmail.com> wrote:

Twas The Night Before Christmas...Mom Style
>
> 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the abode
> Only one creature was stirring & she was cleaning the commode.
> The children were finally sleeping, all snug in their beds,
> while visions of X-Box & Barbie flipped through their heads.
>
> Yes, and dad was snoring in front of the TV,
> with a half constructed bicycle propped on his knee.
> So only the mom heard the reindeer hooves clatter,
> which made her sigh, "Now what is the matter?"
>
> With toilet bowl brush still clutched in her hand,
> She descended the stairs, and saw the old man.
> He was covered with ashes & soot, which fell with a shrug,
> "Oh great," muttered the mom, "Now I have to clean the rug."
>
> "Ho Ho Ho!" cried Santa, I'm glad you're awake."
> "your gift was especially difficult to make."
> "Thanks, Santa, but all I want is time alone."
> "Exactly!" he chuckled, "So, I've made you a clone."
>
> "A clone?" she muttered, "What good is that?"
>
> "Run along, Santa, I've no time for chit chat."
> Then out walked the clone - The mother's twin,
> Same hair, same eyes, same double chin.
>
> "She'll cook, she'll dust, she'll mop every mess.
> You'll relax, take it easy, watch TV and rest.
> "Fantastic!" the mom cheered. "My dream has come true!"
> "I'll shop, I'll read, I'll sleep a night through!"
>
> From the room a bove, the youngest did fret.
> "Mommy?! Come quickly, I'm scared and I'm wet."
> The clone replied, "I'm coming, sweetheart."
> "Hey," the mom smiled, "She sure knows her part."
>
> The clone changed the child and hummed her a tune,
> as she bundled the small one in a blanket cocoon.
> "You're the best mommy ever. I really love you."
> The clone smiled and sighed, "And I love you too."
>
> The mom frowned and said, "Sorry, Santa, no deal.
> That's my child's LOVE she is going to steal."
> Smiling wisely, Santa said: "To me it is clear,
> Only one loving mother is needed here."
>
> The mom kissed her child and tucked her in bed.
> "Thank You, Santa, for clearing my head.
> Sometimes I forget, it won't be very long,
> before they'll be too old for my cradle and song."
>
> The clock on the mantle began to chime.
> Santa whispered to the clone, "It works every time."
>
> With the clone by his side, Santa said: "Goodnight.
> Merry Christmas, dear Mom, you'll be all right."
>
> Sometimes we need reminding of what life is all about.
> Especially at times when the Holiday season shouts,
> and all we do is clean, bake, and procure.
> You get the picture -- I'm sure.
>
> So stop for a moment and hug that little one so dear,
> whether he/she is 2 or 22, or even older this year.
> For they are the gift that God gave us from Heaven above,
>
> and what a special gift to be treasured, with endless LOVE!

>May The Real Meaning Of Christmas Be With You All Year

__._,_.__

Eleventh Hour

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:43:40 GMT

Has anyone else been watching this show?

The premise looked pretty cool - a special scientific advisor to the FBI solves mysterious cases... And the first couple of episodes were somewhat entertaining (and the appearance of Riley from Buffy in the first episode was very nostalgic). But now, I am just disgusted!

First of all, the whole Hood and Rachel love interest thing -can you say been there, done that?? Secondly,. I had some issues with the episode about the smallpox outbreak - how the smallpox was only contagious when it was convenient to the plot. But I figured it was just an oddity. But the latest episode - weezeld had mentioned to me there was a dumb "hacker" scene that was unbelievable, but I didn't realize how bad it was. If it wasn't bad enough that the guy opened his laptop and was magically connected to the girls' laptop without her knowing it, it got worse when he "unsent" her email message. UNSEND? How do you unsend an email? I could have forgiven the writers if he had canceled the sending of the message (and still had to get over the fact that he was able to magically delete it without her ever knowing about it), but unsend???

At least this is one less show I have to DVR. I am far enough behind...

How?

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 04:56:25 GMT

How could I possibly yell at her for pulling off the bottom of the rocking horse ornament when she was riding it around the living room saying, "Giddyup Horsey, hurry - we need to get to the North Pole!"? Besides, it's nothing a little hot glue won't fix...

Help

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:10:25 GMT

OK, so i am nothing if not a procrastinator. Tomorrow at Mistletoe Revel I am teaching two classes - Fun with Fabrics and Garbing Kids. But, I haven't really put anything together for either class.

I am thinking Fun with Fabrics will be a very basic class - what are acceptable fabrics to use for SCA garb, how to identify them and find them without breaking the bank, stuff like that... Anyone have favorite websites they use?

And in Garb for Kids I would like to present enlargeable T-tunic patterns and Viking Dresses, plus tips (like putting darts in) to make them last longer on a growing child.

Anyone else have any guidance for me before I fly through these classes by the seat of my pants?

I would especially love some sources for period colors, as that is something I have not much background in...

Ladies Night Again

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:01:37 GMT

So, have any of you maybes thought more about coming to Ladies Night next Tuesday?? I would email you to nag, but something is wrong with my email right now, and my tech advisor is unavailable. LOL.

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:34:26 GMT

Your rainbow is strongly shaded yellow.

What is says about you: You are a joyful person. You appreciate optimism. You're good at getting people to like you.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Tee-hee

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:17:57 GMT

Dear Santa...

Dear Santa,

This year I've been busy!

In February I ruled Canada as a kind and benevolent dictator (700 points). In January I helped doodlecrumb hide a body (-173 points). In April I set lord_strider's puppy on fire (-66 points). In July I put money in beckishadow's expired parking meter (14 points). In May I stole justinian_t's purse (-30 points).

Overall, I've been nice (445 points). For Christmas I deserve a Pony Slaystation 3!

Sincerely,
ownedbytwins

Ladies Night

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:58:51 GMT

If anyone is interested, a friend and I are putting together a Ladies Night at Family Clay Time in Turnersville on the night of Tuesday, December 9th. If we get 10 people, they stay open late, just for us. We can bring in food, drink, wine, whatever we want, and paint the night away. There is a $3 fee for paints and firing, but that is very reasonable considering All Fired Up in Collingswood charges $8. Then, the prices of the pieces are reasonable as well. Is anyone interested??

Not surprised, here...

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:28:40 GMT

You Are Christmas

More than most people, you are able to find magic in life's small moments.

Traditions mean a lot to you, and you tend to be quite nostalgic.

You are a giving, kind person who really understands the true meaning of holidays.

You inspire others to be as altruistic and caring as you are.

What makes you celebrate: Tradition and a generous spirit

At holiday get togethers, you do best as: The storyteller. You like to recount memories with everyone.

On a holiday, you're the one most likely to: Give a gift to everyone you know

What Holiday Are You?

This was a great day.

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 06:04:47 GMT

We were up somewhat too early this morning, but the day got better from there!

First, we went to see Rumplestiltskin at the Pitman Theatre. It was a cute show, and the kids enjoyed it. Granted, they were easier to keep sitting still and watching while they were eating, but they made it through. C even went up on stage to be a monster! I am thinking of getting my playgroup together to go see Rudolph in December.

Then, we came home, and I made lunch, and then passed out on the couch. I slept for 3 hours, the first part of which I had two three year olds bouncing on me, and I barely even noticed. (I have been pretty tired lately, and am going to ask the doc to up my meds when I see him on Thursday.)

Finally, at 6pm, I woke up and got ready to go out. The playgroup had a Moms night out dinner, and I had an absolute blast! We don't always get to chat much when our kids are around, but tonight we had a ton of fun discussions!

I left from there to go to the theatre to help strike Music Man. Even that was fun! We just chatted and gossiped and laughed so much while we were working! I cannot wait to keep working with those folks, as they are a lot of fun!

Tomorrow I may have the kids all day, as weezeld is planning to go shopping for his new job. I am hoping, though, to get into the sewing room and starting to organize, so that I can clear out some of the Pampered Chef stuff that is filling up the kitchen right now. The MIL and hubby are coming for a visit Tuesday, and it is always good to have a somewhat clean kitchen for that. Then, tomorrow night is the first read through of Annie Get Your Gun. I am hoping to watch the movie before I go... Plus, I still have Exchequer stuff to get caught up on. There is just no rest for the weary / wicked / whatever me... But hopefully the charge I got from a good day today will carry through!

My baby wants to be a star.

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 02:27:58 GMT

My little movie star / ham on the news tonight

ETA: her first appearance is around 50 seconds, but she is just off to the right... Her main appearance is at around 1:14... she kept walking right up to the camera like that. :)

And the lady who leaves bran cookies for Santa is in our playgroup... The little girl she is holding is one of C's girlfriends.

Monsters, Inc.

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:06:18 GMT

So I am sitting here watching my favorite part of Monsters, Inc. with the kids, (when Boo fights back against Randall) and realized I never posted their idea for next Halloween. They have decided that C will be Randall, and A will be Sully. Then, in conversation, and I SWEAR I did not prompt this, C says, "And Daddy will be Boo." I, apparently, get to be Mikey. Interesting. I wonder if I can get a wig with pigtails in weezeld 's size... Hm, I do have theatrical costuming connections now...

It worked!

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 16:43:53 GMT

The room move is complete... The back half of the bigger bedroom has been partitioned off with cubicle walls, blocked by a Super Yard, and has fabric covering the opening. And filled with crap that is later to be sorted and culled. The front half of the room has been set up with the kids toddler beds, dresser, desk, and bookshelf with lots of books. My original thought was to put some toys up there, too, but I kind of like having just books up there, so that if nap time crashes and burns, their only option is to sit up there and read. They slept well last night, not getting up once. This may change on a night or afternoon when they are not so exhausted, but we shall see.

The sewing stuff is in the smaller room, in quite a disarray, but with lots of empty shelves ready to be filled as I sort stuff. I cannot wait to get that set up.

But for now, while the twins are awake, I an getting caught up on Exchequer stuff... I have some filing to do, my third quarter reports to put together, and have already caught up on emails. Oh, and I need to run some stuff by the Financial Committee.... travel budgets are SO out of date it is not funny. Plus, I need to re-write Financial Policy and start to think about next year's budget. I need more hours in the day.

The Big Move

Sun, 09 Nov 2008 04:19:01 GMT

So, the room move is happening this weekend. So far, cribs have been dis-assembled, mattresses set up in Mommy and Daddy's room for a sleepover tonight, and much furniture has been moved into the new sewing room and/or junk area at the back of the new kids room. Still up, getting the cubicle wall upstairs and screwed into the wall, figuring out how to complete the block off of the junk area so the Little Darlings stay out of there, getting what will be my sewing table (which is HUGE ) into the sewing room, getting the new kids room set up, complete with beds, and finishing up moving stuff. Then I can get my sewing room together.

In other news, C has been doing fantastic on the potty. He walks over by himself now and takes care of business. He did have a poop accident while ianraven and annyswolf were babysitting last night but, experienced parentals that they are, it was taken care of. :)

Oh, and tomorrow is the first rehearsal for Annie. After the changes that were made to the Music Man costumes, without the consent of the costumers, I cannot wait to work on a show with a professional director.

I hear my husband stirring. This means the kids are asleep, and we are back to work.

Does anyone want a Body by Jake weight machine? I have a VHS video and workout guide which tells how to use it, but I have never looked at it, and cannot even promise all the pieces are there...