Okay, so Peeler and I went to the mall today to do a Godiva shop, among other things, and every other person I saw was wearing mini skirts, leggings, and big belts. I feel like I've just stepped out of the 80s. There are some fashions that should just NOT come back. I'll admit that Peeler has a pair of leg warmers, but they were just too darn cute to pass up. I dunno, I guess Santa's gift of choice this year was 80s duds.

On another note, I'm totally loving Freecycle. In the past few weeks, I've gotten rid of so much clutter - the crib, ExerSaucer, old stroller, other random baby stuff....I love it! A lady is supposed to be coming tonight to pick up some more stuff. I really thought I'd be sad about seeing all the baby stuff go, but I'm not. I'm so ready to be past the baby stage.

Speaking of baby stuff - how exactly does one go about entertaining an almost-one-year old for long periods of time? Maybe this is bad - but I get so bored trying to entertain her all the time. Well, not all the time, because she's pretty good about playing by herself, but of course I need to play with her sometimes. After we do the ball rolling thing, ring stacking, reading a book or two, playing with the cat....I'm just out of ideas. I tried giving her markers today, but she was more into eating them than drawing with them. Any suggestions?

How Lauren became Peeler

Donald is big on nicknames. I can't tell you the last time he called me "Katie". Our cats, officially Sammie and Zowie, and known as "Choopie" and "Co-pee". I guess he has a thing for p's. So, it should come as no suprise that our little girl was called "Lauren" for all of about an hour. He first started calling her "Lilo", then that gave way to "Pilo" which eventually became "Peeler". And Peeler has stuck. Sometimes we just call her "P"; I usually call her Peanut, monkey, roo, or rooster. The poor kid probably doesn't know her real name. I'm sure she'll hate us someday for all these weird nicknames, but oh well. Every kid hates their parents for something. Heh.

Where do you Splurge?

Everyone has things they like to splurge on. Most of the time I buy the cheapest thing I can find, but there are somethings that only one brand will do. Here are the things we like to spend the extra money on in our house. What things are worth the money to you?

~Thomas Bagels. They cost twice as much as other bagels, but they're huge and yummy and soft and oh yeah, yummy.

~The fastest cable internet connection I can find. Yeah, I know you can get dial-up for 10 bucks a month. I'm impatient. I like it fast. Plus I don't have a land line.

~New Balance Tennis Shoes. They're comfy. They last. They go with almost anything. 'Nuff said.

~Pamper's Swaddlers Diapers. They're the only ones I've found that don't leak. Plus I like the velcro tabs.

~Hair cuts/colors. Yeah, I spend $150 getting my hair done once in a while. But I feel soooo nice afterwards.

~DVR Service. Not home to watch Desperate Housewives? Baby crying in the middle of the Kentuky Derby? Pause. Rewind. Play. Awesome.

~Dyson Vacuum. You have not vacuumed your house till you've used one of these. Seriously. You'll be grossed out about how much stuff was actually in your carpet the first time you use it. If you have a pet, it's totally worth every penny.

~Britax Carseat. Mainly because I iked the color, but it's supposedly the safest one on the market. Because safety matters.

And then there are things I'm a cheap ass about. Where do you go cheap-o?

~My cell phone. I always get the free phone that comes with the plan. Because, really, do I need a camera when I'm on the phone?

~My car. I drive a cheap car and I probably always will. I would like to upgrade to something a little bigger in the future, but nothing expensive.

~ Bread. I buy the 88-cent-a-loaf white bread that will probably kill me someday.

~My silverware. Literally every piece of silverware we own has been stolen from a restaurant. I didn't do it. But someone I know very well, did, and he was kind enough to provide.

~Books. I used to buy books all time. Then I realized you can get the for free at the library. And yes, of course I take them back. What are you going to do with them after you read them, anyway?

So, what do you spend money on? What are you a cheap-o on?

Guess Jeans

I'm thinking of putting together a collection of short stories from my life, basically just so I have them written down. I was shopping the other day, and was reminded of an incident that took place was I was 12 or 13, and decided to start there. Here's the first installment:


When I was in middle school, all I wanted was a pair of Guess jeans. All of the cool kids had them, and even some of the not-so-cool kids. I begged my mom nearly every day. The only answer I got was, "We can't afford them."

My mom finally reached her breaking point one day while we were doing our annual fall school shopping. I think it was right before the start of 7th grade. We were at Sears, buying sensible clothing that she could afford, when I started in on the Guess jeans routine. Right in the middle of the store, she grabbed me by the arm, led me to Bergner's (the expensive store), and made me pick out a pair of Guess jeans. I didn't know what was going on, but I picked out my jeans and mom paid for them. I don't remember how much they cost, but I'm sure it was more than mom was planning on spending at Sears. After that, we went back to Sears to continue our shopping. Mom picked out some clothes for my brother and sister, and went to check out. I was confused. What about me? I asked mom when we were going to go buy the rest of my clothes for the year. She just looked at me, and then she said, "I could have bought you three pairs of jeans here for what I paid for the one pair that you so desperately needed. So this year, instead of having three pairs of jeans to wear to school, you'll have one. But I'm sure that's fine with you since they are the coolest pants around, right?" Suddenly my jeans weren't so cool.

The reality of having one nice pair of pants to wear to school finally set in around the second week of school, when kids were starting to notice that I kept wearing the same pants every day. I finally caved, and began wearing some of my too-short jeans from the previous year. My mom never said anything to me about it, but I'm sure inside she was shaking her head and saying, "I told you so."

I went to a big, suburban middle school in the best part of the city. We lived in a duplex right in the heart of the good part of town. In our backyard, literally, was the Saxer Mansion. I remember longingly looking out the window and wishing I lived there. Our house wasn't bad, but it wasnt ours. The duplex was the only rental unit on the block. Many of the kids I was so envious of lived just a block away, where the new subdivisions began. They would often ride their bikes past our house and I would wish that I could follow them home. It was as if I was always on the brink of something good, but couldn't quite reach it.

Grrrr.....

There's this commercial here for some ghetto cell phone company that annoys the crap out of me. Picture this: a blue screen with a cell phone in the middle and the only sound the comercial has is the most annoying factory ringtone that exists. That's all there is, a cell phone, some text, and the ringing. This goes on for a full 30 seconds. Everytime the commerical comes on, it wakes up Lilo. Grrrr.....

30 second commercial spots are expensive. I don't know who thought this commercial was worth that much money, but whoever it was must have been on crack.

My Favorite Easter Memory

During Spring Break my freshman year of high school, my dad and I went to Mississippi to visit my great Aunt Sandy. Aunt Sandy lived way out in the sticks, and going to her house was always fun for me because I had always lived in the city. I looked forward to visiting her because it seemed like there were always people around and other kids for me to play with. Spring Break was of course over Easter, which is why I happened to remember this particular incident today. It is my favorite Easter memory, however twisted that may be.



Aunt Sandy lived in what I would call a shack. It was what my dad calls a shotgun house: if you shot through the front door, the shot would go straight out the back door. Id never heard of such a thing; Im convinced it is a *southern thing*. I think there were about ten people staying in her little house for the week. Three of Aunt Sandys kids had come to visit: Mitch, along with his two daughters, Connie, with her two sons, and Merlene, a daughter she had given up for adoption and had recently been reunited with, as well as Merlenes daughter, Candy. Gary, another of Aunt Sandys kids lived across the road. All of us kids slept in one room, camped out on the bunk beds and the floor. The adults got the living room. It was a whole lot of fun with everyone being together.



Easter morning I woke up early. I could hear the adults all talking at the dining room table, and being the curious teenager that I was, I listened in. At the dining room table was Aunt Sandy, her four kids (Gary, Merlene, Connie, and Mitch) and my dad. The next thing I hear coming from Garys mouth is, I want to tell you all something. Im in love with my sister (Merlene).



Ooookay. Yeah. I wish you could have heard everyones reaction. Ill sure never forget it. There was a whole lot of swearing and a whole lot of drinking to follow (yes, on Easter morning). I guess its not completely as bad as it sounds. The first time Gary had met Merlene was, in fact, earlier that week, so its not like they grew up together. And, they did have different dads. But still. Yuck.



Gary and Merlene actually ended up getting married in Gatlinburg a year or so later. They were together until Gary died of a cocaine overdose in 2002. Merlene went on and married a preacher and lives in Tupelo now, I think. Yeah, I get the irony.



I tell this story much better in person. Its a great story to tell at a bar; somehow its even funnier when alcohol is involved. I dont remember what we did the rest of that Easter, but I will never forget that morning. It is my favorite Easter memory.

Nothing too much

Donald finally got a full-time job *whew*. I was starting to panic...the balance in our savings account was getting sadly low. So he's working at Dyatech
doing some accounting crap that goes WAY over my head. Whatever...it pays the bills :o) He's going to keep working at his beloved bowling alley, too...plus he's looking for a third shift job. You'd think he *likes* working or something. Nah, we're just trying to pay off some bills so we can buy a house.

Why didn't anyone tell me that Sonic's limeades were so freakin' good? I've been going to Sonic for years and years and had never tried a limeade till the other day. And now I'm hooked. Lilo and I go the park everyday, and on our way home we stop at Sonic. Evil I tell you.

Speaking of Lilo, she has a doctor's appointment tomorrow for her shots. *tear* I think it will be more traumatic for me than her. Her pediatrician is in Hattiesburg, and Donald wants to go for Mexican when we're done at the doc, but I have a feeling lil Lilo is going to be too cranky to hush in a restaraunt. We shall see.

Have You Ever...

Place an X by all the things you've done, or remove the x from the ones you have not. This is for your entire life:

(X) Smoked a cigarette
(X) Drank so much you threw up
( ) Crashed a friend's car
( ) Stolen a car
(X) Been in love
(X) Been dumped.
( ) Been laid off/fired
(X) Quit your job!
( ) Been in a fist fight
(X) Snuck out of your parent's house
(X) Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back
( ) Been arrested?
( ) Gone on a blind date
(X) Lied to a friend
(X) Skipped school
(X) Seen someone die
( ) Been to Canada
( ) Been to Mexico
(X) Been on a plane
(X) Been lost
(X) Been on the opposite side of the country
(X) Gone to Washington, DC
(X) Swam in the ocean
(X) Felt like dying
(X) Cried yourself to sleep
( ) Played cops and robbers
(X) Recently colored with crayons
(X) Sang karaoke
(X) Paid for a meal with only coins...
(X) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't?
(X) Made prank phone calls...
(X) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose
(X) Caught a snowflake on your tongue.
(X) Danced in the rain
(X) Written a letter to Santa Claus
( ) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(X) Watched the sun rise with someone you care about
(X) Blown bubbles
(X) Made a bonfire on the beach
( ) Crashed a party
(X) Gone roller-skating
(X) Ice-skating....