Adventures in BabySitting

The hubby and I had an opportunity to have a romantic weekend while attending the wedding of a dear friend in New Orleans. A chance to be easy in the Big Easy! I was all over that - plus it would be wonderful to see this couple unite in marriage because they are perfect for each other.

I asked (begged, pleaded, then promised $$$) the oldest, College Boy, if he would come home and babysit his younger brothers.

On Friday as we made our drive to NOLA, college boy calls.

"I'm going to take the boys and go back up to my house (near college campus) on Saturday because its my roommates birthday and we are having a party for him."

Alarm bells begin sounding quietly in my mind. Frown lines begging for botox form on my brow.

"Is this going to be a Girls Gone Wild type of party?" I asked.
"No, mom!"
"You do realize that you are an example for your little brothers? And, how impressionable they are??" to which he assured me that yes, he took his role as the Keeper of the Children serious.

We arrived home on Sunday. I asked the youngest son how the trip to his brother's house was. He said it was fun and he played video games, oh and two girls got drunk. One had to sleep at the house and the other was driven home safely.

College boy then called. I told him what his little brother had told me and he assured me it was all good. Just some silly girls who showed up but they were taken care of, then he said that his 15 year old brother had "owned" at beer pong AND NEVER EVEN HAD TO DRINK because he was so good.

"Not that I would have let him drink more than a sip, mom!"

Good Lord, isn't THAT a relief?????? I believe this is when I blacked out.

Just Because....

I've been in a foul mood lately. Sometimes I need something brainless and pretty.

Well, lookie what I found!

When I saw these ads in a magazine I had to wipe the drool off my chin several times. Not many people have that effect on me. All things Clooney of course, but thats about it.

I don't care that Victoria has to tell him when to breathe (no, love, not through your mouth!). If I had 10 minutes alone with him - it would not be to chat.

My Fellow Americans

Call me naive. Call me ignorant. But, something I have discovered in the last few weeks has shocked me.

I have had several different people tell me that they voted for Hillary Clinton just so Barack Obama would NOT win.

They then would follow up with a dumbass comment like, "He's a Muslim, you know."

At this point, I feel like I should be like the comedian and "hand them their sign." The other day the comment was "he refused to say the pledge of allegiance!"

Both of these pieces of misinformation are easy enough to look up on the internet and see if they are true or not. THEY ARE NOT TRUE. Obama has never been a Muslim - he just happened to live in a largely Muslim country when he was young. And, the pledge incident was not the pledge. It was the playing of the National Anthem. One sings the national anthem - you don't necessarily put your hand over your heart.

I was shocked and well, frankly, disappointed in my fellow man to hear that people used their vote that way. I have had at least three people tell me they voted that way. These are all Republicans too. Republicans who do not want their man to have to run against Obama.

I'm really not a super political person. This just saddened me. Honestly, the people I have met, I believe their fear/dislike comes down to race. I thought we were way past that. I know I am certainly not color blind and my mind tends to sort by differences. Once I get to know someone and find they are kind and honest - I don't really care if they are purple. I don't see that anymore.

I find it quite insulting to a man who has graduated from Harvard, lives a good, honest life and is someone that I think if I ever met, I would like, still is being judged this way.

No News is Good News

I am not a big morning television watcher. Mostly because I have three boys who when they were growing up always wanted to watch cartoons in the morning while they ate breakfast. I am usually too busy being super creative with peanut butter, grape jelly (and ONLY GRAPE) and bread anyway as I try to pack lunches. In between I am a short order cook slinging eggs, eggo waffles, cereal or whatever each child wants that day.

Lately though, my kids have not been turning on the t.v. so I thought, "Wow, I wonder what the big people watch in the mornings? I have always heard of The Today Show, The Morning Show and what about this Good Morning, America???"

So, feeling all grown up, I turned on a news show as I worked in the kitchen. The 10 year old was sitting at the table, eating his breakfast.

"Spitzer spends thousands of dollars on prostitutes! He paid for sex many times!!"

"Ten year old mauled by mountain lion!"

"Co-ed murdered! Found shot and dead in the street!!"

I look at him, he looks at me - both of us with eyes wide. Where's the remote????

The List

The last two weeks have been...tumultuous. To say the least. It seems that everything in my life is falling into a Love it or Hate it kind of column.

Hate it: When the doors to Wal-mart are guarded by people seeking money. The other day I answered this question with a resounding and very irritated "No!" The question? "Would you like to help starving children?"

Yesterday, I got chased by a woman holding out a Girl Scout Cookie as I tried to leave the grocery store peacefully. I cannot stand this type of guerilla fund-raising.

Love it: I got to go skiing in Colorado with 7 other girlfriends. What a great weekend! The weather was perfect - sunny and nice, then it even snowed one day. I also discovered that Bailey's comes in little plastic "to go" bottles! They fit perfectly in one's pocket and provide a delicious bit of warmth!

Hate it: My company is closing its doors. Which means they obviously didn't think about me and how they were going to mess up my life. I LOVED my job. It was perfect. Unfortunately, due to things beyond my control, the business is now defunct.

Don't act like I can just go out and GET ANOTHER JOB. It's not that simple. I got to office from home, I set my own schedule and no one micromanaged me. See what I mean???? Those kind of jobs don't fall off the turnip truck everyday.

Love it: Starbucks Chai Tea Misto - Yum!