taking a page from sabrina again, how come you all weren't watching "justice" last night!!!! it was AWESOME! a new series by jerry bruckhiemer about defense attorneys, where at the end of the show, whether they win or lose their case, you get to see the crime as it actually happened! it was soooo well done! curtis and i were both captivated! it has victor garbo (is it just me, or does he have one huge ear?), and the guy (kerr smith?) who played 'jack' on dawsons creek...who is super cute, if you ask me. anyways, wednesday at 9 (after bones, another of my fav's) you should all be watching justice!!
raise your hand if your happy to have it be raining and less that 90 degrees! hooray!
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
i'm melting!
you know me - i love the weather here is sunny NC - but i am DYING for fall! breezy 70's to sit in, stroll through, open my windows at night...i am feeling stifled in this heat! ack!
that's all. today is a slow mental day. i think i may go shopping for new jeans...always tricky. you leave the mall either feeling slim and fabulous, or fat and lumpy, depending on whether or not you fit into anything. as far as i'm concerned, buying jeans is right up there with buying swimsuits! it requires nerves of steel! :)
oh! i heard through the grapevine that my baby brother, vincent, has found a studio apartment, and is going to move out from above my parents garage! hooray, vinny! now my girls have somewhere to sleep when we go to gramma's house! (cause no matter what, it's all about us!) any recommendations on an apartment warming gift i can send?
that's all. today is a slow mental day. i think i may go shopping for new jeans...always tricky. you leave the mall either feeling slim and fabulous, or fat and lumpy, depending on whether or not you fit into anything. as far as i'm concerned, buying jeans is right up there with buying swimsuits! it requires nerves of steel! :)
oh! i heard through the grapevine that my baby brother, vincent, has found a studio apartment, and is going to move out from above my parents garage! hooray, vinny! now my girls have somewhere to sleep when we go to gramma's house! (cause no matter what, it's all about us!) any recommendations on an apartment warming gift i can send?
Sunday, August 27, 2006
rachel's recommendations
i must say, i always enjoy it when sabrina posts her annual television review for us each fall - and i know she has the knowledge (read: "she watches a lot of TV") to back it up. so i was wondering what kind of thing i could do like that..and i remembered a comment my mom made to me once. 'if i ever see something at the drugstore i want to try out, i just wait til i come to your house'. she has a point. (she also said i am the "shallowest deep person she knows". it's a paradox i can live with!) i am a self-diagnosed product whore. if it's a cosmetic even remotely within my price range, i've tried it. if it isn't within my budget, i have read about in magazines and online and stood infront of the counter with it in my hand wondering about it. i have a pantry sized closet in my bathroom full of stuff i bought and didn't like! so, i have decided to post my beauty recommendations! hooray! here we go!
1. Almay's 1-2-3 skincare line! i don't care what kind of skin you have, choose the 1-2-3 line that's appropriate, and dig in! i have tried everything from dove to vichy to proactive (off tv) to make my skin happy, but nothing has ever worked like this does! and at around $8, you can't go wrong! it is LOVELY STUFF!
2. C.O. Bigelow Purifying Mask(available at bath and body works). in the same line of trying to make my skin happy, i have gone through literally dozens of masks in search of the perfect balance...and i have finally ended my search! this is a miracle - a clay mask that leaves my skin soft, clean and hydrated, without any redness or inflammation. gold stars all around!
3. Loreal Paris 'Volume Shocking'mascara. this is as good as fake lashes for drama and glamour! not an everyday mascara, but it does what it promises! and it doesn't flake or smudge! hooray! (i DO NOT RECOMMEND the loreal h.i.p mascara - you will look like a racoon after 3 blinks - the pigment may be intense, but it sure doesn't stay where it's meant to stay!!)
that's all for today - but if you leave comments or questions about a product or anything else, i'll definately give you my opinion, and maybe even facts! :)
1. Almay's 1-2-3 skincare line! i don't care what kind of skin you have, choose the 1-2-3 line that's appropriate, and dig in! i have tried everything from dove to vichy to proactive (off tv) to make my skin happy, but nothing has ever worked like this does! and at around $8, you can't go wrong! it is LOVELY STUFF!
2. C.O. Bigelow Purifying Mask(available at bath and body works). in the same line of trying to make my skin happy, i have gone through literally dozens of masks in search of the perfect balance...and i have finally ended my search! this is a miracle - a clay mask that leaves my skin soft, clean and hydrated, without any redness or inflammation. gold stars all around!
3. Loreal Paris 'Volume Shocking'mascara. this is as good as fake lashes for drama and glamour! not an everyday mascara, but it does what it promises! and it doesn't flake or smudge! hooray! (i DO NOT RECOMMEND the loreal h.i.p mascara - you will look like a racoon after 3 blinks - the pigment may be intense, but it sure doesn't stay where it's meant to stay!!)
that's all for today - but if you leave comments or questions about a product or anything else, i'll definately give you my opinion, and maybe even facts! :)
Friday, August 25, 2006
friday night...
it was even better than i hoped!! oh my! i got hit on (i think - a man offered to buy my lunch) at lunch, got 2 of my favorite magazines in the mail AND had time to read them before i had to get the girls! who, by the way, had marvellous days themselves! and got to listen to them while i gave them back to school manicures! it has been a flawless day!!!
happy friday!
happy friday!
the most wonderful time of the year
the first day back at school after a long summer.... does it get any better? for one day in the school year, kids and parents are on the same page. everyone is excited, everyone is happy... new clothes, new backpack, old friends, white sneakers, the smell of fresh pencils and white paper. and for me... freedom! as i have mentioned in this blog before, i love having my girls home for the summer, but as school draws closer, everyone gets antsy, ready to get back to the rythm of the school year...myself included. i know "what am i going to do today" will hit me somewhere down the line, but not today!
today, as i sat on my front porch revelling in my freedom after taking the girls to school, my friend lisa walked by and asked if i wanted to join her on her walk... and i jumped up from my chair, without wrangling the girls, and off we went. then we added coffee at her place...ahhhhh. i am having lunch with sabrina, without having to ask curtis to come home over his noon hour to watch the girls. i may go for a run this afternoon, or i may have a nap! the point is, today is a good day! :) and when my girls come home from school, full of stories about their first day, i will have space in my soul to hear them, to listen, to engage and laugh and we will eat grapes and drink juice at the kitchen table while they pull treasures out of their backpacks to show me. and then it will have been a great day.
until monday, when the homework begins...
today, as i sat on my front porch revelling in my freedom after taking the girls to school, my friend lisa walked by and asked if i wanted to join her on her walk... and i jumped up from my chair, without wrangling the girls, and off we went. then we added coffee at her place...ahhhhh. i am having lunch with sabrina, without having to ask curtis to come home over his noon hour to watch the girls. i may go for a run this afternoon, or i may have a nap! the point is, today is a good day! :) and when my girls come home from school, full of stories about their first day, i will have space in my soul to hear them, to listen, to engage and laugh and we will eat grapes and drink juice at the kitchen table while they pull treasures out of their backpacks to show me. and then it will have been a great day.
until monday, when the homework begins...
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
peer pressure
i have succumbed to the pressure of loving life, and replaced, rather than surrendered, in the goldfish department. welcome, "chubby-pants", so named by meg. and i have to say, it's a fat-assed fish. there is no way the picture i have posted here (from the web, not my bowl) can show you how truly obese he is) he's a pearlscale goldfish, named for the white pearlecent dots on it's scales. we are keeping our fingers crossed for chubbypants.
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
what the hell!
THAT IS IT!! i have had it up to HERE!! this morning, snow white (the other fish) is severely listing to one side when she tries to swim! and you know what!? I AM TIRED OF TRYING TO MAKE EVERY LIVING THING AROUND ME A HAPPY, SUCCESSFUL, THRIVING BEING! IT SIMPLY CANNOT BE DONE! AND MORE OVER, NONE OF THEM APPRECIATE IT! if these fish die, that's it. i'm done.
Monday, August 21, 2006
monday, monday
4 sleeps til school... HOORAY! at the end of the school year i am always ready for The Girls to be home, but by the time fall rolls around i am equally ready for them to go away...um, i mean, to school. really, though, it's not just me. they have stopped having fun and have started the daily bicker...it's exhausting! i used to feel guilty about that, but as i have thought it over i think it's quite a healthy sign -they are smart and growing and ready to learn, and i am not overly attached. but we are down to 4 sleeps... did i mention that we only have 4 sleeps to go til school?!
on a different note, i am in a funk. not a deep blue funk, just a regular old funk. can't seem to get my feet under me. certainly, i could pray more, read more... but i don't feel like it. of course, to live life according to how we feel is to court disaster, but in the moment it's hard to shake. so in the fervor of back-to-school-ness, i have started (again) to be more disciplined in feeding my heart. it can only help.
again on a different note, colonel reverend doctor captain chips (the only fish we've had that has lived for any length of time...since christmas), has red spots (only 2, but still!) like chicken pox on his fan tail... poor baby. so i put rid*ick in the water, and we are hoping for the best. other fish have come and gone, but chips is our baby! that would be a tragedy! keep your fingers crossed for him.
that about does it. i'm going to have a shower. when you feel crummy about life, being clean is the first step, don't you think?
(jordan, did you see angela's comment about your book?)
on a different note, i am in a funk. not a deep blue funk, just a regular old funk. can't seem to get my feet under me. certainly, i could pray more, read more... but i don't feel like it. of course, to live life according to how we feel is to court disaster, but in the moment it's hard to shake. so in the fervor of back-to-school-ness, i have started (again) to be more disciplined in feeding my heart. it can only help.
again on a different note, colonel reverend doctor captain chips (the only fish we've had that has lived for any length of time...since christmas), has red spots (only 2, but still!) like chicken pox on his fan tail... poor baby. so i put rid*ick in the water, and we are hoping for the best. other fish have come and gone, but chips is our baby! that would be a tragedy! keep your fingers crossed for him.
that about does it. i'm going to have a shower. when you feel crummy about life, being clean is the first step, don't you think?
(jordan, did you see angela's comment about your book?)
Thursday, August 17, 2006
how could i forget!!
as promised! the cover of the new children's book by j. vincent elliott... you'd better all leave comments so he feels encouraged! :)
freedom!
if the mulders' have set you free, you are free indeed! at least, if you are a tadpole, you are! last night, with a well-placed pond suggestion from our friend andi the artist, we scooped all the tadpoles (there were hundreds, i'm sure!) and drove them out to the pond on our churches new land! hooray! they will live! we saw them swim up to the surface after they were (rather unceremoniously) dumped into the pond, and we saw several large frogs in and around the weeds and grasses, so i have high hopes! and best of all, they are in God's hands now. i no longer feel responsible for their survival...phew! it was killing me to see their little white bellies bobbing around the surface of our pool!
now the pool is bleached and clean, and the girls can spend the last days before school splashing and playing in the beautiful outdoors!
now the pool is bleached and clean, and the girls can spend the last days before school splashing and playing in the beautiful outdoors!
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
a soapbox moment
after the sorrowful death of 2 more froglets yesterday, i called my naturalist brother, vinny, and asked him what was going on with my tadpoles! needless to say, small dead frogs is not the reason i have lovingly spoken to, fed and watched these tadpoles grow for the last 2 months! so, vinny's advice? more sticks.
do you think that is enough sticks? there were no new footed frogs this morning to test it out on...but how could they possibly miss these?
on other fronts, the leadership conference was great great great! i really took 2 things from it that (i hope!) will filter through the rest of my life. the first is that it really has to be Jesus - i cannot form new life in the women/people i lead, only Jesus can do that. our Church doesn't seem talk about Jesus much - not my little church here in NC, but the big Church. No wonder we have a hard time encouraging our people to have a real friendship with him - he's not part of our everyday conversations of faith. and how weird is that?
secondly, i live a rich life. whether or not we dip into our overdraft, our life is loaded with luxury. and i cannot just sit here and let the good times roll - there is a starving world, a dying world, and i don't have to save it, but i have to do what i can. in our small group last night, the phrase came up (ironically, in relation to sex) 'give what you can', and it's true in the global sense, too. so i am thinking about what i can do. sponsor fieldtrips for underprivileged kids in my daughters schools, continue to sponsor children overseas, keep granola bars for homeless people in my truck, wisely give my resources where i can by parterning with organizations already doing good in the world, whether it be world vision or the one campaign or the red cross. if i want to hear 'well done', i can't just live an insular life.
do you think that is enough sticks? there were no new footed frogs this morning to test it out on...but how could they possibly miss these?
on other fronts, the leadership conference was great great great! i really took 2 things from it that (i hope!) will filter through the rest of my life. the first is that it really has to be Jesus - i cannot form new life in the women/people i lead, only Jesus can do that. our Church doesn't seem talk about Jesus much - not my little church here in NC, but the big Church. No wonder we have a hard time encouraging our people to have a real friendship with him - he's not part of our everyday conversations of faith. and how weird is that?
secondly, i live a rich life. whether or not we dip into our overdraft, our life is loaded with luxury. and i cannot just sit here and let the good times roll - there is a starving world, a dying world, and i don't have to save it, but i have to do what i can. in our small group last night, the phrase came up (ironically, in relation to sex) 'give what you can', and it's true in the global sense, too. so i am thinking about what i can do. sponsor fieldtrips for underprivileged kids in my daughters schools, continue to sponsor children overseas, keep granola bars for homeless people in my truck, wisely give my resources where i can by parterning with organizations already doing good in the world, whether it be world vision or the one campaign or the red cross. if i want to hear 'well done', i can't just live an insular life.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
oh no!
i am horrified! the froglets are starting to develop, but rather than grab onto the logs/buckets in the pool, i find them floating belly up in the pool in the mornings! this is not what i wanted! i am taking any and all suggestions.... help me!
Monday, August 07, 2006
i'm a grown up now
i don't care what the critics say - i loved miami vice! we went to see it last night, and both curtis and i really liked it!! it is smart, complicated, sexy and not full of foul language or breasts...although, when someone gets shot (even that is not too often) you definately know whether or not they were hit! i think if you like movies, you'll like this one! one thing the critics got right, this is not your adolecent miami vice - this is grown up, sexy real miami vice. not a pastel in sight - mercifully if you ask me!
ok - i am heading to the willow creek leadership conference this week, so don't expect much by way of posting... i will have many insights to share when i come home, though, i'm sure! :)
happy week!
ok - i am heading to the willow creek leadership conference this week, so don't expect much by way of posting... i will have many insights to share when i come home, though, i'm sure! :)
happy week!
Sunday, August 06, 2006
happy anniversary!
happy anniversary to me! today is our 12th anniversary, and in typical mulder fashion, it's off to a slow start - no presents, no plans! but, we do have a babysitter for tonight (not sure what we're going to do), and in the long run, having been married 12 years, i can testify (since it's sunday) that the truth of the matter is it's not the anniversaries that make or break a marriage. it's your husband finding a friend to help him haul up your new washing machine, sitting on the front porch together watching the girls ride their bikes, road trips together with satisfying or silly conversation, coffee made before i roll out of bed... the fuel of marriage is the little things. and every once in a while, a grand gesture gets thrown in, and the whole thing sparkles again! :)
Friday, August 04, 2006
a whole new attitude
ok - i have almost had it with these demented tadpoles! are they not, at some time, supposed to grow LEGS and HOP AWAY? there does not seem to be a lot of movement toward that in my pool, and you all know how patient i am!! grrr!
and it's so hot that The Girls cannot play outside, and they are driving one another, and me, completely bonkers. BONKERS I TELL YOU!
and today was school supply day - nothing like trying to get The Girls to decide on upon which pair of white sneakers they prefer... it's enough to make a grown woman cry!
this is the point in my life where my dad would usually say that i needed an "attitude adjustment". so... um... what can i focus on? healthy kids that are growing and get to go to school, food in the pantry (generic though it may be), a new bra (funny how much better life looks when your "lifted and seperated"), and a night at home with nothing to do and nowhere to go and (hopefully) peace and quiet. with wine. lovely, sparkling, wine! :)
also, my brother - heretofore known as "Vinny", not "Jordan" - has written and illustrated a lovely book called "The Story of Rufus Newt and Potato Knob". it's very interesting, and educational... i loved it! i would show you a picture, but i can't separate it - i'll have to get curtis to help me with that one.
and it's so hot that The Girls cannot play outside, and they are driving one another, and me, completely bonkers. BONKERS I TELL YOU!
and today was school supply day - nothing like trying to get The Girls to decide on upon which pair of white sneakers they prefer... it's enough to make a grown woman cry!
this is the point in my life where my dad would usually say that i needed an "attitude adjustment". so... um... what can i focus on? healthy kids that are growing and get to go to school, food in the pantry (generic though it may be), a new bra (funny how much better life looks when your "lifted and seperated"), and a night at home with nothing to do and nowhere to go and (hopefully) peace and quiet. with wine. lovely, sparkling, wine! :)
also, my brother - heretofore known as "Vinny", not "Jordan" - has written and illustrated a lovely book called "The Story of Rufus Newt and Potato Knob". it's very interesting, and educational... i loved it! i would show you a picture, but i can't separate it - i'll have to get curtis to help me with that one.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
eating crow
i owe curtis a public apology... he is a marvellous husband and all around human being. he did, infact, have the house clean and dinner ready when we got home. he may have forgotten to scoop the tadpole eggs, but he is practically perfect (like mary poppins) in every other way! i am sorry i doubted you, curtis!
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