For my birthday my husband got me these, because I may have begged mentioned it once or hundred times twice that I actually NEEDED them. When the weather turns cold in Southern California (ya, know like below 60 degrees), and the flip flops are no longer working for you, the only other option is a good pair of Uggs. Uggs have been worn by surfers and snow boarders for close to 30 years now. And are the footwear of choice for the winter in the OC. And these slouchy Uggs are the latest and greatest for the season…and well, I not only NEEDED them, I wanted them. BADLY. Since I got them (thank you Black Friday) I have all but slept in them. (I did take them off before I went to chur
ch this weekend, since even though I am pretty sure Jesus, they make for men too, would be sporting a pair of mind blowing comfortable shearling lined Uggs if he could, they might be seen as inappropriate to the church elders. I went with a small ballet flat. Everyone seemed pleased with that choice.) I have not been able to get over how FAMILIAR they look and feel. Until it occurred to me that I spent a very good portion of my early life as a dancer and pretty much lived in LEG WARMERS…and well these new slouchy Uggs are basically leg warmers attached to a slipper. And you know what? I couldn’t be happier. Maybe I will wear them to church next week….maybe start a trend. We will call it ‘the Jesus Boot Movement’. Maybe Uggs could sponsor me with pairs for the Elders. This could be big people.
*As usual, The Association was not paid to promote or endorse this product in anyway. Because I can’t be bought. But I can be thanked. So Uggs, if you are reading- how bought sending me a pair or 10 to make my day give away ? Come on. Do it for Jesus.
Last night The Husband and me (and I?) went to a game of broom ball. We were invited by a group of people who we barely know, who have been getting together for this event for eight years. What is broom ball you ask? Well it is pretty much hockey without the ice skates, and without the hockey sticks and without the hockey puck…okay it isn’t pretty much hockey I guess. I guess it is sorta ice-soccer with sticks. Sticks with little scooper ends. The husband played hockey very seriously in his younger years (sorta requisite activity for a man from Chicago/Michigan I think) so I knew he would be totally awesome at this game. And I was right. He was.
What we weren’t prepared for was the hardcoreness of it all. These people were serious. They came equipped with pads and gloves and a kill-all attitude. The Husband and I came equipped with a slight buzz after stopping for a cocktail before the game. Hey man, we finally had a babysitter and I wanted to get the most out of it. Men and women played together and I am fairly certain there were some ringer player chicks from the OC roller derby. I am talking insane AGGRESSIVE. The game lasted for 2 solid fast past hours. And The Husband definitely showed his skills…assisting, making passes and goals. It was awesome. I am planning on next year’s game already. When I will bring a thermos of cocktails with me. Ya know, to keep me happy warm.
So yes, Broom Ball is glamorous. Get used to it.
We were feeling INSANE and decided to go to the mall on Black Friday. We never dreamed we would be able to get even near the big guy. We were certain the line was going to be far too long. But guess what? Turns out most people don’t even bring their kids with them to shop on Black Friday, so we walked right up to Santa. No line at all. NONE. And the boys could sit and chat with him for as long as they wanted. Jack goes along with it for Tucker’s sake…and my little Tucker? He believes with all his heart. Which shocks me. All Tucker could think of to ask for was a ‘bucket of baseballs’. To which Santa asked “what about a bat?” and Tucker said “nope I am good there. I will e-mail you if I can think of anything else okay?”, and Santa gave his classic ‘ho ho ho’ belly laugh. It was awesome.
I have been a strangely drawn to anything antique or vintage from a very early age. When I was 15 years old my grandmother moved out of her home and into a skilled nursing home. I helped my parents clean out her house for a garage sale. I remember being, well a bit overcome and distraught about the items they were selling. SO MANY GREAT OLD THINGS. I wanted to take it all home. When I found an old Smith & Corona typewriter in near mint condition on the bottom shelf of the garage,I simply put my foot down, and insisted it come home with me. So I carried that thing (it weighs a TON) to our car. I had no place for it, so until I moved out of my parents home it lived in my closet. It was the first thing I moved into my first apartment, and it has had a place of prominence in each of my homes for 20 years. I have had to explain to more than one small child just exactly what it was. I have had to explain to modern loving friends why on earth I would have such a thing in my home. I have dusted it, photographed it and smiled every time I walk by it. It has also gained in importance and symbolism for me since I found
my writers voice.
Because of my connection to this inanimate object, I have coveted the jewelry being made from typewriter keys for years. It would break my heart to take a hack saw to my typewriter, but somehow I still wanted a piece of jewelry made from someone else’s. But I never bought one for myself. And yesterday, I opened the mail to find an early birthday gift sent from a dear friend. And I bet you can guess what it was. Yup. This typewriter key necklace. Now I have mentioned wanting one of these to lots of different people over the years. But this friend listened. And that is the best gift of all.
Thank you friend. You rock.
Old Betty died today.
Many attempts were made for a revival…but all failed. I knew she wasn’t feeling well for the last year or so. Actually that was when I moved her upstairs for the kids to spend more time with her playing games and getting help on their homework. Meanwhile Dellia came, who stays in my downstairs office. She is so up to date and quick with the facts! She really has been wonderful, and since I started blogging I spend most of my waking hours with Dellia. Talk about entertaining! That Dellia can keep me busy and happy all day long.
But today, I heard the kids scream from upstairs…"MOM! Come do something! She doesn’t look right. Just blank!"….I ran. I tried lots of things, but nothing seemed to bring the old girl back the way she was. She was gone. And I had to accept it.
Goodbye Old Betty. You were so awesome when we first met. You gave me everything I ever wanted…..so thank you.You were a wonderful desktop computer and lived a good life. (And I really hope the kids didn’t kill you in some ploy to get Santa to bring them another laptop. Just sayin. They are kinda crafty-those two)
I hope you like your final resting place. Dellia helped me pick it out….
As you know I recently was an unwilling participant in the Wildfires of Orange County. My brother wrote a little something too… I thought I would share;
The one thing November fires brought, was it brought us closer together. I own a local gardening business in Yorba Linda, and I certainly felt empathy for others, many of whom I worried might even be my customers and my friends.
We stood around with neighbors we may have never spoken with before, discussing evacuation and our plans….it brought us together.
A neighbor watering down another’s roof to fight the burning embers…it brought us together.
As a homeowner brought bottled drinks to the fireman on the line…it brought us together.
And in my own family, my sister insisted that we stay at her house while we were on mandatory evacuation…….it brought us together.
As we all cleaned up the amazing amounts of ash in our driveways in the days after…it brought us together.
The only positive thing to come out of this local tragedy; it brought us together.
I can’t say I am happy about the fire. I am not. Tremendous loss was had by many. But I am glad to see that in times of crisis our town comes together and rallies to the cause….
Steve McClelland (that is me on the roof!)
In case you were wondering if I am one of those OCD, Type-A, over achievers who removes every sign of Thanksgiving and has the Christmas tree up by the time everyone is passed out in a tryptophan coma….well, here is proof.
And do not attempt to adjust your monitor…my Christmas decor is entirely orange and lime.Because I am a rebel at heart. And with few other outlets for rebellion these days I decided to go crazy and banish red and green from my decorations. I know insanium in the cranium.
(I am not totally heartless; we have another tree upstairs with all the hand-made kiddie ornaments. I even allow them to be red and green. I know. I am so nice right? And totally not controlling AT ALL.)
We made our Thankful Turkeys this morning. Sorta a tradition for us (if doing something more than once qualifies it as a tradition). Every year I am always interested in what my boys are thankful for…and in Tucker’s case I am only slightly disturbed by the inner fashionista showing.
His list that he is Thank-FULL for:
1.Grandma
2.Grandpa (um, dead) and Dad
3.Mom and Jack (which was a late add after Jack said, "how come you are not thankful for ME?I totally teach you stuff"
4.God, Birth, Life and Shelter (He really covered a lot of ground with this one feather)
5.Pants, Shoes (whaa?)
6.Shirts (This gets its own feather?)
7.Hats (really? Hats?)
Jack’s was more normal with Shelter, School, Food, Mom, Dad and Life.
And for me…I am just so insanely thankful to be the mom of these two boys.
I am thankful for (wrote the blogger):
1. Reliable Internet connection (thank you Time Warner)
2. Husband who believed me when I said we needed the fastest Internet connection available (for the kids to play Webkins. Yeah, that’s it)
3. Kids old enough to pee/eat/play by themselves so that I can squeeze in MORE time to write.
4. Kids that let me photograph even their embarrassing moments. And then post them on the Internet.
5. Sitemeter so I can obsess on how few readers I see. And rejoice in the ones I do have.
6. Google Reader so I can keep up with 75 other blogs I love.
7. Advil to help keep carpal-tunnel-like pain away
8. Al Gore for inventing the Internet in the first place. (yes, this is a joke people)
9. Spell check. I can not function without my spell check.
10. And mostly? I am thankful for finally finding a place where I can be authentic, real and honest.(And finding out that people STILL like me!)
I am so thankful I found blogging. Or it found me. It has empowered me, and changed me, and in many ways added a dimension of meaning to my life I never could have imagined. So thank you. For reading and laughing at with me. Now go baste your Turkey. No, not the one you married. The one in the oven.
Sometimes I wonder if the rest of the world works with the same dictionary that I do. For instance, this lovely sign advertising that these ‘Fur-Real’ pets ‘Actually BREATHE’. Really? They breathe? Do they take air, oxygen, etc., into the lungs and expel it; inhale and exhale; and respire?(dictionary.com) WELL, I DON’T THINK SO. You know I have a thing for animatronic dogs (remember THIS?), so I considered bringing one of these home to freak out the husband who is heartless anti-pet of any kind. But alas, I did not. I am holding out for the real thing. The kind of cat that is alive and well, the kind that actually breathes.
For my birthday my husband got me these, because I may have begged mentioned it once or hundred times twice that I actually NEEDED them. When the weather turns cold in Southern California (ya, know like below 60 degrees), and the flip flops are no longer working for you, the only other option is a good pair of Uggs. Uggs have been worn by surfers and snow boarders for close to 30 years now. And are the footwear of choice for the winter in the OC. And these slouchy Uggs are the latest and greatest for the season…and well, I not only NEEDED them, I wanted them. BADLY. Since I got them (thank you Black Friday) I have all but slept in them. (I did take them off before I went to chur
ch this weekend, since even though I am pretty sure Jesus, they make for men too, would be sporting a pair of mind blowing comfortable shearling lined Uggs if he could, they might be seen as inappropriate to the church elders. I went with a small ballet flat. Everyone seemed pleased with that choice.) I have not been able to get over how FAMILIAR they look and feel. Until it occurred to me that I spent a very good portion of my early life as a dancer and pretty much lived in LEG WARMERS…and well these new slouchy Uggs are basically leg warmers attached to a slipper. And you know what? I couldn’t be happier. Maybe I will wear them to church next week….maybe start a trend. We will call it ‘the Jesus Boot Movement’. Maybe Uggs could sponsor me with pairs for the Elders. This could be big people.
