My very own acronym!

S	Shocking
P	Primitive
A	Appreciative
R	Rounded
K	Kinky
L	Lively
E	Edgy
F	Fun
L	Loud
U	Unforgettable
F	Furious
F	Famous

Name / Username:

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

M	Mysterious
E	Emotional
G	Great
A	Appealing
N	Neat

Name / Username:

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

In the pink

I want some pink hair. It's something I've been wanting to do for a long time...and it seems like now is the right time. It's summer after all, and summer is for doing crazy things. Luckily my hubby is supportive of my wanting to be pink. Now is also a good time because my hair stylist is going on vacation for a month, so she can't bump into me around town and scold me for my pinkness. LOL.

The question is, how pink should I go? I created a survey for you to vote and help me decide.
Click here to take survey

Here's a before picture for you.

Today my baby sis graduated!

My sister graduated from Elmhurst College (http://public.elmhurst.edu) today with honors. I'm so proud! She is the first woman in our family to do it.

Congratulations class of 2005!

Ok, so Ligers are real?

And here I thought that Napolean Dynamite made them up.....


"Long ago, outside the old city of Singapore, which was considered to be the city of Lions, there was reported to be giant brown beasts. This was before the Asiatic lion was reduced to such low numbers that their are now less than 200 left in the Gir forest. This huge animal might just be an explanation for this myth, for he is neither a lion nor a tiger, but he is about the size of both of them combined. The liger is the world's largest big cat. An average male liger weighs over 900 pounds and standing almost 12 feet tall.

The reason that they are called a liger is because the father was a lion and the mother was a tiger. If the situation was reversed and the mother was a lion and the father was a tiger, he would be called a tigon, and would be a dwarf instead of a giant. A fully grown tigon is usually less that 350lbs. Ligers are not sterile, and they can reproduce. If a liger were to reproduce with a tiger, it would be called a titi, and if it were to reproduce with a lion, it would be call a lili."
www.tigers-animal-actors.com/about/liger/liger.html

A relationship is bigger than 2 people

When I first heard the expression that "marriage is bigger than two people", I didn't agree. After all isn't it the couple who had to put all the love and effort into the relationship?

But now I see things differently. Not only is marriage bigger than two people, but relationships are bigger than two people too. This really become clear to me today.

My sis had dated the same guy for 7 years. Over that time, he became more than just Cassandra's boyfriend. He became part of the family. He was like a brother to me. An uncle to my two kids. We loved him.

And when they started having problems, it hurt more than just my sister. It hurt all of us to see the two people we cared about so much in pain. Then they split up. Something we doubted would ever happen. And then we started to realize the truth of their relationship. We realized how disillusioned we were about this person we had welcomed into our fold. And it hurt. It's hard to let go of someone you care about. It's harder when you find out that they weren't you thought they were or who you wanted them to be.

But time passes and hurt feelings heal. And I find myself ready to open up my heart to the new guy. The new guy is actually fantastic. It wasn't until she started dating J. that I realized how long it had been since I'd seen my sister happy. I mean really happy. J. just fits with my sister. He also fits in with the rest of us. Which is important...because a relationship is bigger than two people after all.

What's in a name?

My good friend Alycia sent me this link to see what my name means. I was suprised that mine was mostly accurate. The part about me not making decisions with my emotions isn't right, but mostly it is otherwise, for good or bad.

Check it out: What Your Name Means (Numerology)

Here's what it said about me when I put in my maiden name:

There are 13 letters in your name. Those 13 letters total to 50. There are 4 vowels and 9 consonants in your name.
Your number is: 5
The characteristics of #5 are: Expansiveness, visionary, adventure, the constructive use of freedom.

The expression or destiny for #5: The number 5 Expression endows with the wonderful characteristic of multi-talents and versatility. You can do so many things well. The tone of the number 5 is constructive freedom, and in your drive to attain this freedom, you will likely be the master of adaptability and change. You are good at presenting ideas and knowing how to approach people to get what you want. Naturally, this gives you an edge in any sort of selling game and spells easy success when it comes to working with people in most jobs. Your popularity may lead you toward some form of entertainment or amusement. Whatever you do, you are clever, analytical, and a very quick thinker.

If there is too much of the 5 energy in your makeup, you may express some the negative attitudes of the number. Your restless and impatient attitude may keep you from staying with any project for too long. Sometimes you can be rather erratic and scatter yourself and your energies. You have a hard time keeping regular office hours and maintaining any sort of a routine. You tend to react strongly if you sense that your freedom of speech or action is being impaired or restricted in any way. As clever as you are, you may have a tendency to make the same mistakes over and over again because much of your response is glib reaction rather that thoughtful application. You are in a continuous state of flux brought by constantly changing interests.

Your Soul Urge number is: 8

A Soul Urge number of 8 means: With an 8 soul urge, you have a natural flare for big business and the challenges imposed by the commercial world. Power, status and success are very important to you. You have strong urges to supervise, organize and lead. Material desires are also very pronounced. You have good executive abilities, and with these, confidence, energy and ambition.
Your mind is analytical and judgment sound; you're a good judge of material values and also human character. Self-controlled, you rarely let emotions cloud judgment. You are somewhat of an organizer at heart, and you like to keep those beneath you organized and on a proper track. This is a personality that wants to lead, not follow. You want to be known for your planning ability and solid judgment.
The negative aspects of the 8 soul urge are the often dominating and exacting attitude. You may have a tendency to be very rigid, sometimes stubborn.

Your Inner Dream number is: 6

A Inner Dream number of 6 means: You dream of guiding and fostering the perfect family in the perfect home. You crave the devotion from offspring and a loving spouse. You picture yourself in the center of a successful domestic unit.

I think I have narcolepsy

I can't stay awake for anything. I fell asleep while Abby and I were playing tea party. I fell asleep while we were readig. And I fell asleep during Dora the Explorer. Ugh. What is WRONG WITH ME?!?!?

Nicknames

Ever wonder where mobsters get their nicknames? Find out here: http://slate.com/id/2118326/?GT1=6443

Done with Spring Semester!

I am done with school until August. Woooohooooo!

More things to ponder

From Buddha:

"Foolish, ignorant people indulge in careless lives, whereas a clever man guards his attention as his most precious possession"

"A fool who recognises his own ignorance is thereby in fact a wise man, but a fool who considers himself wise -- that is what one really calls a fool."

"Better than a thousand pointless words is one saying to the point on hearing which one finds peace."

Something to ponder

From H.H. The 14th Dalai Lama:

"Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something,and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent."

"Through violence, you may 'solve' one problem, but you sow the seeds for another.'

"One has to try to develop one's inner feelings, which can be done simply by training one's mind. This is a priceless human asset and one you don't have to pay income tax on!"

"First one must change. I first watch myself, check myself, then expect changes from others."

"Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive."

Meat

First of all, I got an A!!!! on my Anthropology project!

Second of all....Last night my mom, my sis and I went to Torrid. As usual Cassandra and I shared a dressing room (people must talk...) and had fun trying on a bunch of things. While Cassandra was out showing a dress to my mom, and I was hanging up her discarded dresses I heard:

Mother and daughter also in the fitting room....
Mother: "Do you think I could sell meat in this?"
Daughter: "It looks good"
Mother: "I think it's too sexy to sell meat in. I need something cute to sell meat in."

And on and on the mother went about selling meat. I think she wanted everyone to know she sells meat. And apparently the standards for a cute outfit are whether or not you would look good selling meat in it. I am thinking though to a non vegatarian man, you'd look good in whatever you were wearing so long as you were holding a steak. Let's face it...men love meat.

Eh...it's almost over

I took my Anthropology final today. Eh..... I ran out of time! It was a 75 minute test, but I had to stop and put Abby down for a nap because she was so crabby she decided it was a good idea to hit Mommy with a roll of wrapping paper! "Wrap Daddy's presents!" *WHACK* Eh....

And this afternoon I will take my 4 Geology tests. And then I'm done. I feel oddly sick because of nerves, but also relieved because it will be one huge thing off of my shoulders.

On the upside...my Abby is such a girly girl! I took her shoe shopping (because of the mud incident the other day) and she LOVED it! She wanted to try on all the shoes and by them all. She is my baby alright! I love it that she's a girly girl.

Got my 1st grade back!

I got an A in Political Science without taking the final! So I'm not going to take the final...I don't have to. Woohoo!

Is it still Monday?

It sure feels like it.

The hot water heater had a loose hose so we had to have the plumber come fix it. I got super muddy (so did Abby) getting to the car because we were supposed to have our driveway done today and had to park on the street. Ugh!

I think all this wore me out because while I was studying for finals, I dozed off. And Abby had stopped playing tea party and started using Mommy as a jungle gym.

Is it Friday yet?

Girlfriend Wanted

I miss having a close girlfriend. I miss having someone to talk to every day and meet up with a few times a week. Not that I don't have girlfriends... But they all live 1/2 an hour away at least.

They have husbands, jobs, children, etc... I guess that one of the downsides of "growing up" is that you don't have as much time for your friends as you used to. You become to busy to really stay in touch. You don't have time for the daily phone calls anymore. You don't have time to take a shower sometimes, let alone time to hang out with a friend. The marathon gab sessions eventually become weekly emails. And you realize that you don't really know your girlfriends anymore. You don't know their favorite food anymore or what they think of Brad Pitt dating Angelina Jolie. You just know that they are busy at work, etc.

Being a stay at home mom can be really lonely sometimes. Sure I have my children with me and they are a lot of fun to be with. But I crave adult interaction. And not just any adult....the kind of company only a close friend can provide. *sigh*

There is something different about a close a friendship between women. You can definitely talk to other women about things you'd never dare bring up to your husband or your mother. A girlfriend understands how crucial it is that you find time for a pedicure. She understands when you ask if those pants make your ass look too big. And she understands when you are worried because you haven't had sex in 2 weeks.

But the less we talk to each other, the harder it becomes to broach these subjects. There is an awkardness that comes with not talking enough. How do you wade through the small talk to find your way back to being best friends again?


"The connections between and among women are…the most potentially transforming force on the planet."
— Adrienne Rich

My projects are done! Woohoo!

Well I was up until 1 last night finishing my Anthropology research project. It felt so good to turn it in though. It's a big weight off of my shoulders knowing that all I have left is tests. Well, like 7 tests....but in a week it will all be over with.

Hopefully I will maintain my membership in Phi Theta Kappa. This semester has been so tough...I'm really not sure how my grades will turn out. It's not that the classes were hard. It's that life has been hard and I haven't had hardly any time to devote to school.

Happy Mother's Day!

Some quotes on mothering:

"Sometimes the laughter in mothering is the recognition of the ironies and absurdities. Sometimes, though, it's just pure, unthinking delight."
— Barbara Schapiro, writer


"All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That is his."
— Oscar Wilde

"The most important thing she'd learned over the years was that there was no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one."
— Jill Churchill, writer

"The world can only value mothering to the extent that women everywhere stand and declare that it must be so."
— Oprah Winfrey

Did you have a nice Mother's Day? I did for the most part. I think I woke up today with same silly expectations I have every Mother's Day...today just let the kids act perfect. But the beauty of my children is that they aren't perfect. It's easy to forget that when my son is whining about helping out around the house or my daughter is throwing a tantrum. I definitely could have done withouth Abby saying "shut up"(her new favorite phrase...ugh!) or throwing her Magna*Doodle at me. Goodness...

But it was a nice lazy day. My hubby made me breakfast, complete with mimosas! I got to read the paper, take a nap, and generally be lazy. We all sat and watched "Return of the Jedi" on tv. We talked to the Grandmas. Even my brother in law was sweet enough to call and wish me a happy mom's day!

Unfortunately I have my Anthropology project due tomorrow..ehhh. So I'm sitting here now and listening to gangsta rap typing it out. I've decided the only way to study is with gangsta rap in the background...I can thank my sis for that. She got me hooked.

Speaking of my sis...she's in love. It's so awesome to see two people who have just fallen in love. I really really like this new guy too. I think maybe just maybe, well...I'm afraid to say it...but he could be the one. I've NEVER seen her so happy before. And that makes me really happy.

Third time is a charm, right?

We sold our condo again today. This is the third time, so hopefully it sticks!

Why does the universe hate me?

Today has sucked. Our realtor called to notify us of some odd onion smell in the kitchen of the condo and also a possible gas leak. SOOO......there wasn't an onion smell, but there was a gas leak...possibly two of them.

So we had Nicor out to investigate the gas leak. Apparently the gas leak had something to do with my father *ahem* and his novice plumbing skills. So we have to get that fixed.

I also discovered that my hubby hasn't really cleaned out the condo. Grr!

And then I came home and there was a giant dump truck in my driveway.

Results of my Anthropology survey

I'm taking a break from my Political Science paper (which I'm doing on North Korea BTW), so I thought I'd share the progress of my other research paper for Anthropology. Here is a survey that I had for the Castoffs that I'm observing. Pretty interesting I thought. It is anyonymous by the way.

My baby's in the double digits!

Today my oldest, Evan turned 10! It's hard to believe that he's that old already. Seems just yesterday that he was a little one in diapers with that pacifier always in his mouth. Now he's glued to the T.V. and obsessed with video games.

Too sick to shimmy :-(

I think I have the flu...ick. I noticed that Sunday I started feeling icky. Yesterday Abby and I both felt bad. She seems better today, but I feel awful. Worse than yesterday. Unfortunately Mommies don't get sick days so I'm plugging on. I was supposed to go to belly dancing tonight with my sis, but I just can't imagine getting my groove with this bug in my system.

I'm an Auntie again!

My sister in law had a baby girl on Friday! I wish they didn't live so far away because I am so anxious to meet my new niece!

Oh, I am WAY underpaid!

Finally someone puts out a figure for what stay at home mom's deserve to be paid. According to salary.com:

"Based on a 100-hour work week, Salary.com has estimated that a fair wage for the typical stay-at-home mom would be $131,471 for executing all of her daily tasks."

http://www.salary.com/careers/layoutscripts/crel_display.asp?tab=cre&cat=Cat10&ser=Ser253&part=Par358

Isn't it Ironic?

For my anthropology project, I decided to study an online community I belong to. I decided to focus on how the internet affects people's ability to make friends. The funny thing is that while I was studying this, I learned that people I thought were my "friends" weren't.

What I learned was more than I expected. I learned that sometimes people hide behind their computer and forget that the person/people reading their messages have feelings. Feelings that are easily hurt. I learned that I'm naive, that I trust too easily and care too much.

This is not to say that all people in my group are like that. There are a handful of people that I count as true friends. Those people have enriched my life. The others have taught me not to trust so easily.

Up all night....

....or most of it anyway. Poor little Abby couldn't sleep. I think she was having nightmares. Today is a day that I wish I wasn't too broke to stop at Caribou after I drop Evan off at school. Maybe I'll have to settle for regular coffee (ick) so that I can get through the day.

Even though being mother requires alot of sacrifice (like sleep for instance), I wouldn't change it for the world.

"The world is full of women blindsided by the unceasing demands of motherhood, still flabbergasted by how a job can be terrific and torturous."
....Anna Quindlen