I like to organize. I like to compartmentalize. Call me what you will. Whatever. It makes me feel calm and comfortable. I'm going on a trip. A three week trip. With my two year old son. Staying at seven different places. SEVEN. This makes me anxious. Don't get me wrong. I'm glad to be visiting everyone. I'm choosing to visit everyone. I love everyone I'm visiting. And, in actuality, it really will be nice being in charge of nothing but the clothes in our suitcases and my son. But living out of a suitcase and uprooting Jackson every few days isn't fun. So, I'm doing what I can to make it as organized as possible. Here is typically what happens when I pack for a trip:1) About a month out, I'll start thinking about things I might want to take. I'll take extra precaution not to spill spaghetti sauce on those items that I really want to bring.2) About a week out I'll start organizing the clothes and doing laundry. This week before traveling is typically not my prettiest week, as I am saving all of my "good clothes" for the trip.3) If Jackson is traveling with me, I'll start to organize his clothes a couple days out, making sure everything is clean and fits. This trip, when organizing his clothes, I realized that he has no pants that fit. (Poor guy is so thin that in order for his pants to fit him in the waist, they are high waters on him......thank God for adjustable waistbands!) It's still warm here, and he has been in shorts up until now, but he will need pants for the trip, so I hit up the clearance section of Babies-R-Us and stocked up on some winter pants.4) The day before the trip is when my plan starts to crumble. All of the organizing that I have gone through goes out the window when I actually start to pack. Now that all of my laundry is actually clean I find random shirts that I really like and throw them in the suitcase as well. Never mind the fact that it doesn't actually go with anything else I'm bringing. It's my third favorite cardigan, so I'm sure I'll find some use for it....right?Well, that's not going to happen this time! In comes the closet app on my phone! 
Why didn't I think of this? It is an app to organize your clothes. You take pictures, put them in categories, and can even make outfits and assign those outfits to a calendar day! This is extra great for the kind of packer I am. If it's not included in one of my outfits and assigned to a calendar day, it doesn't go in the suitcase. I even did one for Jackson!
I won't assign his little outfits to the calendar. (Probably. Maybe. Well, if I don't get too bored on the plane) But what I have done in the past and am doing this time (and have already done, actually) is take all of his premade outfits and put them each in an individual ziplock baggie, socks included...those are the hardest to track down when you travel. That way, each morning, we just grab a little bag. This is especially helpful when visiting grandmas. "Here Gramma, these are his clothes for the day. I'm gonna go get in the shower" And besides, I'll squeeze the air out of the bags and save room in his suitcase! Now, you'd think that we should be all set, as far as packing goes. And we pretty much are, when it comes to clothes, but I still have to fit Jackson's pillow, his blanket, and his stuffed bear that's bigger than him (all three of those things he can't sleep without.....trust me, we've tried!), my pillow (my only requirement for me while traveling) 30 future funker shirts, a tivo system that I bought for my mom, some Melaleuca products and some Smart Mom jewelry for my mother in law, and a plethora of baby hats I'm returning to a friend. Two words: SPACE BAGS........ Sigh.....
Here we go again! I came across an idea tonight. "Project 365". This is where you take a picture a day, for a year. I thought this was a great idea! I have an excellent camera that takes excellent pictures and I'm only a mediocre photographer. I would love to be a great photographer, and the best way to do this is to practice. So, for the next year, I'm going to do my best to take a picture a day. It might be of something I'm doing, someone I'm with, or just represent my mood or thoughts. I'll post them to my flicker account here.
I like to create. Some might call it crafting. I feel a little young to call myself a "crafter" but I guess, in reality, that's what I am. I knit. I sew. I screen print. I paint. And now I can add "Silver Smith" to my arsenal of crafts. People always tell me that I'm creative. I guess they are right. I can be creative, but usually it's just that I'm really good at seeing other people's ideas and running with it, adding my own personal touches. The other day, I stumbled on a jewelry website. I saw some pieces of silver jewelry that really caught my eye. They had a very rugged and organic look to them, (and a very high price tag) and they were personalized, which is something I always like to include in my crafts. I thought "I wonder if I could do that". So, I asked Google how to make silver jewelry. I found out that there this new stuff out there called silver clay. You mold it, like clay, let it dry, then fire it in a kiln. Sounds easy enough. I mean, I've never ever used clay before, unless you count Play Dough, and I don't actually have a kiln, but how hard could it be? I'm crafty, right? So I did a ton of research and found out exactly what I do and don't need to make my own silver jewelry, and I placed my order. I found out that you don't need very many tools. Mostly just your hands and a few household items will do. The kiln was a little trickier. I found an even newer kind of clay that can be fired at very low heat (relatively speaking) and can be done in a mini kiln, of sorts. It's mostly just a fancy ceramic pot that you put ethanol in the bottom and your jewelry on the top and let the sucker burn. I placed my order and impatiently waited 5-7 days for it to come in the mail. In the mean time, I did a ton of research.When I came back from running errands on Friday, my package was waiting for me! The first chance I got, which was Saturday night, I got started. I knew that the clay would dry extremely fast and I would need to work quickly, so I set up my silver command center at the kitchen table and got to work. I was feeling pretty good and hopeful, until I opened up the container of clay and found an amount of clay about the size of a quarter in there. Hmmmmmm......I know silver is expensive, but jeesh! Disappointing, yes, but I wasn't going to let that ruin my new craft experience. So, I got the clay out and started working with it. Perhaps I should have practiced on some ceramic clay first? This was not as easy as I had hoped, but I did, finally, get something similar to what I was hoping for. I let the piece dry, with the help of my hair dryer and then got out my sand paper to do some last minute adjustments to the piece before firing it. Once the sand paper came out, it really started looking good! By now, it's late and Eric is already in bed. I asked him to stay awake while I fired the silver, because, according to the directions, I should have a responsible adult do it. But the responsible adult in our house was upstairs snoring away, so I was on my own. I fired up the mini kiln and patiently waited. It took about 15 minutes for all of the ethanol to burn off. By now, my house smelled like a keg party, because of all of the ethanol. Once the silver cooled enough to touch it, I took it out and started buffing it clean. (One of the more gratifying steps of the process, I must say) After making it perfectly shiny and clean, I noticed that the letters I had stamped in the pendant weren't really standing out. They were the same silvery color as the rest of the piece. I found the others online that I liked and realized that their letters were tarnished on the inside, while the outside of the piece was shiny. SO, I went back to google and ask it how to tarnish silver. I did all of the work, just to drop it in a cup of bleach and watch it turn black!! Really really black. And my little silver polishing cloth wasn't getting the tarnish off at all. So, I went back to google again and asked it how to polish silver with household items, since I don't have any silver polish. (Google knows everything) Lots of buffing and baking soda later, plus making some charms with beads, I had a piece that looked really close to the original one I found on the internet a couple weeks back!
I made another piece last night with the leftover clay from the first pendant. It turns out that you really don't need that much silver clay per project.
Oh, by the way, I'm selling these on my etsy site, if you want me to make you one too!
www.mibestboutique.etsy.com
As a rental property owner/manager, I've seen lots of interesting people come through perspective rental homes. We own everything from a 60K condo to a 450K single family home, and I've gotta say, stupidity crosses all socioeconomic boundaries. Stupid people never cease to amaze me. So, speaking from personal experience, I have written a "how to" (so to speak) for renters.Dear Perspective Renter of ANY RENTAL PROPERTY EVER,The following is a list of dos and donts when viewing a property/interviewing with a landlord:* DON'T comment on how clean the house is compared to the one you are currently living in. Owner: "Sorry about the mess in the office, we are going through some paperwork before moving." Perspective renter: "Oh, this is nothing! You should see my place.".....yeah.....don't do that.*DO keep control of your kids for the very short period of time you are viewing the property.*DON'T show up late*If you are going to show up late, DO call first*If there is a "no pet" policy, DON'T ask if the landlord can make an exception for your great dane.*DO shop in your price range. You are just wasting everybody's time by looking at a house you can't afford.*DON'T waste people's time. It pisses them off.*DO follow up after a showing. If the owner/manager took time to show you the property, the least you can do is let them know when you've found something else.*DON'T be ambivalent. Seriously. It's a rental. For one year of your life. JUST MAKE A DECISION OH MY GOD!*DO be honest and upfront.*DON'T over share. Your perspective landlord really doesn't want to hear about your prostate cancer and how everything is in "working order" now.*DO be polite.*DON'T be the creepy guy that hits on random property managers.*If you are viewing the property for the second time, DO make sure the house is in your price range. I know I already said this one, but seriously....you are just wasting everyone's time twice by seeing a house out of your price range...twice.* DON'T show up to a showing in Denver wearing a Charger's jersey. That is grounds for immediate ejection from the house.*If you DON'T speak English, DO stop talking in Spanish after I've told you I don't speak Spanish. I can't tell you how many times people have asked me if I speak Spanish, I say no, and then they continue on talking in Spanish. Isn't the word "no" the same in both languages?
When I found out I was pregnant, I went into the doctor's office and they ordered up a full set of blood work, like they do for every expecting mom. By the time the results came back, I was about 7 weeks along. The results came back showing that I had severe hypothyroidism. The doctor had me retested, just to be sure, since I wasn't showing any of the signs of most hypothyroid people, and by the time I went in, got the blood work done again, waiting for the results to come back (which had the same results), went back to the doctor for a consultation and got my prescription filled, I was about 8 weeks along. By this time, I had done plenty of research on the internet about the effects of having untreated hypothyroidism during pregnancy. The things I read ranged from kids being practically brain dead, to having a slightly lower IQ than they would have had otherwise. I also read that after the first trimester, the baby has it's own thyroid and produces it's own hormones. But, until then, the baby is solely relying on Mommy's thyroid hormones. Well, that's good. I was only 8 weeks along and I had already started taking my medicine. The problem was, it takes 4 weeks for the medicine to start working the way it should. After doing some basic math (that can be pretty difficult for pregnancy brain) I calculated that my baby would get one week of the hormones he needed, instead of twelve. I really didn't stress about this too much. I knew that, no matter what, my baby would be great, and I really wasn't worried about his IQ being a few points lower. I mean, his daddy is a freakin' rocket scientist! I'm sure he can spare a few points.So, now I have this amazing two year old, that is, in no way, brain dead. I doubt that his IQ is even lower. But I can't help but compare him to his little friends. I know. I know. I should never compare my kid to other kids, and I really don't make a habit of it. But sometimes, in a moment of weakness, I'll find myself doing it. Jackson had his little neighbor friend over today, who is, essentially the same age as him. His friend was playing with a toy that sang the ABC song, and he was singing right along! I couldn't believe it! Jackson calls them the BBB's and only knows the ending phrase letters. The rest are just B's. "B B B B B B GEEEEE, B B B B B B B B PEEEEEE, B B ESSSSSSS, B B VEEEEEE, B EXXXXXX, B AND ZEEEEE!" It's absolutely adorable, and I have no doubt that he will learn the actual letters sooner rather than later. But, when I see a little boy his age, and he knows all of the letters, I can't help but feel like it's my fault that Jackson doesn't know all of the letters too. I even told Eric at dinner tonight that I thought we should be working on the alphabet more with Jackson. So, after dinner, we all sang the alphabet song about twenty times. Yesterday, we hosted a neighborhood party at our house. Another neighbor said that she heard her son (who is also the same age as Jackson) count, by himself, all the way to 13. Another mom said that her son can only count to 10. Jackson? He can only count to 5....on a good day. Usually he just says 1,2,3 GO! (It's so darn cute when he does it though) Looks like I've failed as a mom again. Potty training? Nope! Not even close. In fact, I think he rather enjoys crapping in his diaper. But here is where MY son stands above the rest. He is the sweetest, kindest, most gentle two year old boy I know. He happily shares his toys. He always says please and thank you. He plays nice with his friends. He has an excellent jump shot. And he is the best hugger on the face of the earth....seriously.....he even makes the grunty/squeezy noise when he hugs you.He is so perfectly perfect, I couldn't ask for a better son. And he will learn to count, and say his ABCs and know his colors, and start to read, and do math, and go to school. And before I know it he won't be my little boy anymore, and I'll wish he still said his BBBs. So, whenever I see a little one his age, who is doing something that he doesn't know how to do yet, I'll stop myself, and get an extra long hug from the best hugger on the face of the earth.....seriously.....
you should see my two year old. My son came out of the womb flipping the bird.
He has always favored his middle finger. Even ultrasound pictures show him with his middle finger up. Here he is, just two weeks old. Isn't he adorable?
It didn't stop at 2 weeks though. It continued even after his first birthday
And his second birthday
He points with his middle finger.He pushes buttons with his middle finger.He even dances with his middle finger!
It's not just his bird flipping that is offensive though, it's his derogatory language too! Eric and I never use the terms that he uses, and he doesn't know that he is saying things wrong, but he regularly does. For starters, he can't say his "L" sound. So, his cousin Lily is "Yiyi". He "yoves" us, and Big Bird is the color "yeyyow". It's super cute until he shouts out that he sees a flag, with his middle finger up in the air, in public, and says "fag!" The other night, before bed, he was looking out the open window and shouts out the window "goodnight fag!" to a neighbor's house with a flag in front. We've tried to tell him that it's not a nice word, but without being able to say his "L"s he just doesn't understand why he can't say "flag". I must admit, though, it was pretty damn funny when I was watching this video and he saw it and started pointing to the OSU band and cheerleaders and saying "fags! fags!". "Yes, honey. That's right" is all I can say.He also has a hard time with the "R" sound. Forks are "fucks". Which really sticks out when he says it in a restaurant. He also tends to say the dominant sound in a word first. A waffle is a "fadda". Pizza is "zippa", and for some reason the word basement he says as "midget". Sigh.....
Okay, I need your help. I'm in another predicament and I'm not sure what to do. A few years ago I started getting emails from a guy named "Red". Now, you should know, I don't know anyone named Red. I figured it was spam, and tried to block it over and over. The emails were all silly forwards. Stupid old people jokes, but they were addressed to ME. Like he knew me. It wasn't causing too much trouble, even though I was getting about 10 of them a day, I'd just delete them and go on checking my email. Every once in a while, I'd get a terrible forward. Making fun of gay people, or blacks, or Mexicans, or Obama (I get LOTS of those). It would piss me off, but that's what the delete button is for. Well, now I'm starting to get personal emails from him. Ones directed to his close family and friends about how he is battling lung cancer and he and his wife are selling their house because her health is bad too. I keep getting these updates. (There house went under contract in about two weeks and he's having surgery the beginning of November, then they will move into an assisted living facility.) Here's my problem. I've been getting these emails for so long, it would be so awkward to tell him that I'm not who he thinks I am. Almost like I've been eavesdropping on his life for the last three years. But if I don't tell him he must think the Michele Best that he thinks he is emailing is a total bitch to not respond to his ailment and troubles. What should I do?
