Traveling Teddy

We had a special visitor this weekend. Traveling Teddy is a little stuffed bear that goes home with a different Yellow Room student each weekend. The parents and student take Teddy everywhere they go for the weekend and then journal about the events. Photos are encouraged.

In other words- blog it!

Here’s our entry- simulated here for your viewing pleasure:

TRAVELING TEDDY VISITS TEAGAN

1/23 – 1/24

We were so excited for Teddy’s visit! Teagan found a special place for Teddy to sleep- her dollhouse!

First, we gave Teddy a bath. We followed the instructions on the tag on his leg. It was fun to give Teddy a bath!

We played at home- doing puzzles and then we both put on headbands. It’s Pumpkinhead Teddy!

CONNER PRAIRIE

Daddy and Teagan took Teddy to Conner Prairie to play! He enjoyed the dollhouse, gardening, and he even milked a cow!

Teagan brought Teddy to her cousin Corbin’s basketball game. Our team won! Yay!

On Sunday, Teddy sang at church with Teagan’s Mommy. We also took Teddy to the grocery store and he loved seeing so much honey by the peanut butter!

We also watched the COLTS GAME! Can you tell who my new friends are?

Teagan Elmo Teddy Touchdown Monkey

********

2 pictures somehow got missed when I placed the print order- one of Teddy singing at church…

And Teddy at the grocery store…

That last picture should have tipped us off.

There are the… other pictures…

See, Friday night, we kept hearing strange noises. I woke up and swore I’d heard the fridge door open and close but… nothing. Jeff thought he heard something rustling around on the couch.

So we set up a motion detector camera and were shocked at what we found out about Traveling Teddy! I think he’s earned his name because he really gets around!! Fair warning- these images are NOT safe for children! Oh, the shame!

Teddy! A fight club? Really? Oh… Teddy…

And I am far too embarrassed to tell you about what I found on my laptop’s history… oh… Teddy…

And that fridge noise? He drank my wine! I don’t know what the legal age is for stuffed bears but I have to imagine this is NOT legal! Oh… Teddy…

And then… most horrifying… his wild night culminated into a brazen evening with a sweet honey… oh…. Teddy… For SHAME!

Fair warning to other parents who welcome Traveling Teddy into their home. Lock up your honey bears!! They aren’t safe with this party animal around!

Happy Birthday...

to ME!!!

Could It Be?

Ever since I started following the adventures of Garret and Jim... I've been mildly obsessed with RV's. I See them for sale, for rent. I see them driving down the highway. I see my neighbor's pop-up camper being aired out for a weekend trip. I keep seeing these reminders. I keep my eyes peeled. Garret and Jim are supposedly back home in Florida. Trying to decide which life path to choose next. I have a theory. I don't think they are in Florida at all. I think they are traveling the US still. Truly. You know all those complaints about the condition of the RV? How much they've had to fix and repair and replace? I think they've been lying all along about the condition of the RV. I'm totally impressed with their skills at continuing to find fake RV photos to make it look like they have this nice RV when the reality is told by the stories of all the problems with their mobile home. I finally figured it out. Wanna know how? I saw them yesterday! On 465 right here in Indy! I swear! First, proof given below. I saw what had to be their RV. Had to be! Second, Garret just posted about going to "Cheeseburger in Paradise." He's making it sound like they went to eat at the restaurant. But I'm a smarter cookie than that! Jimmy Buffett was just in town and played Indy. Garret is TOTALLY dropping hints that they were here. Totally. It had to be them, right? And here's what gave it away. I didn't get a good picture. Garret and Jim supposedly have this SUV they do their little touristy trips with. Nope. Turns out they are BIKERS. They have their own motorcycles that they cart around everywhere. Wanna know how I can tell these are theirs? If you look closely at the cream colored bike... leather fringe. Seriously? Yup. Look closely. Leather fringe. Somehow, that just screams Garret.

Shame, shame. You were here in Indy, went to a Buffett concert (near my house, btw), and didn't even drop me an e-mail to say hello. My heart is broken.

It's Like I Was There!

I entered a contest over at Half Past Kissin' Time. Mrs4444 was willing to part with some of the swag she'd picked up at BlogHer recently... she also wanted to promote a group of young women she met there- women with an important message that I came and shared here with you. Well, I won that contest! And my very full box arrived today... chock full of good stuff! It's almost like I went to BlogHer and picked up this swag myself!

I know you can't possibly see everything that's there. So here goes...

A copy of The Shack (one of my favorite books of all time and my copy was recently given away- that's what I do with books that are really important to me). Bag of Hershey's Bliss. Really pretty pinkish-orangey-purple-gold scarf. Blue reusable cloth shopping bag. 2 suckers (Teagan and Zach say a big old thank you on that one). Water bottle. McCafe coupon. Starbucks ice cream coupons. Red Box DVD rental coupon. Perfume sample (Ageless). Blemish serum sample. Lotion sample. Eye makeup remover sample. 3 little bottles of All (thoughtfully double ziploc bagged). Makeup brush. Mary Kay zipped travel thingee with a lip gloss inside. Another lip glass. A minty lip balm. Shampoo and conditioner samples. A chewy cranberry granola bar. And a Go-Girl (google it. seriously).

And one more thing... at the bottom of the lovely leopard print bag from BowlHer... what was it...

Oh yeah! A clown nose!

THANK YOU to Mrs4444 for spreading an important message from Be Bright Pink and for being so generous with your BlogHer swag!! I needed a pick-me-up today and this certainly did it!!

Shoes

I know I've got your attention now! Shoes! I have to admit a certain weakness for shoes. And yet, I can't stand to wear uncomfortable shoes, heels, or even particularly "fun" shoes. I tend to buy really inexpensive shoes and wear the hell out of them before tossing them because there are holes and such. In the fall and winter, I wear loafers. In the spring and summer, I wear flip flops. Year round, I wear ballet flats. I am 5'8"-ish. Sometimes 5'9"-ish on a good posture day. In my shoe past, I've struggled with baaaad toes. Ingrown toenails, infections. It got bad back when I was in a community theatre production of "Secret Garden" and had to wear these pointy toed, heeled boots for several hours every night. Ingrown issues that lasted for years with all kinds of nasty infection problems. Eventually got a podiatrist who took care of it once and for all. And I swore off any kind of uncomfortable footwear for the rest of my life. Or at least minimizing discomfort to really small doses.

I wear ballet flats- a lot. In fact, I wear ballet flats to work almost every day. I only recently expanded to a moc type flat that I bought on clearance at Target for $5. On weekends, I have a pair of Lands End walking shoes that are, again, ballet style and slip on and off easily. I wear flip flops- have about 3 pair. And I have a pair of mary jane style Crocs. Scoff if you will but those are some handy shoes to have around.

So you get the idea, right? Liz + shoes = comfortable. Only equation that works.

I enjoyed a Sunday afternoon trip to Target with a friend this past weekend. While we chatted, we had a blast in the clearance shoe section.

How can large, clompy, hot pink sandals with rhinestone turtles be on clearance for 75% off? I mean- how did these not sell out the minute they hit the shelf?

Or maybe you've got a boating excursion planned and just can't bear the thought of not having stylish, themed shoes to go along with the trip? Maybe these rope-y sandals are more what you are looking for? Perfect for rock climbing, I bet!

Then I found some insanely high heels. I have no clue just how high these suckers were. 4" maybe? But I just HAD to try them on just to see if I could stand up in them.

And they turned me into an Amazon Woman from the Moon. I towered over my friend like a... well, a tower. I could barely walk!

And another pair in a similar style. Huge high heels, thick sole. I got a shot in the mirror to get a better idea of how they looked.

I have to admit... as much as I love my sensible, cute, comfortable, homey shoes... these insanely high heeled, completely impractical shoes were kind of tempting.

Reasons for buying them? They make my feet look cute and my legs look hawt!

The reasons for NOT buying them? The reasons were many, actually. Feeling like I was a giant was part of it. Barely being able to walk in them was part of it. The pain in my feet and legs after wearing them for 2.7 seconds was part of it.

It was fun to play in them. It was fun to pretend to be an Amazonian Moon Creature. It was fun to pretend I was Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

But in the end... comfort is queen!

Is Your Life G?

I think I shared a link to fmylife.com once before. Now there is also My Life Is Average. And my new fave site to visit when I need some smiles... My Life is G People submit, anonymously, little snippets- like Tweets, really- about something in their day that made them see how life is good or great. Little things, big things. Some of my favorites: Today, someone confessed to me that his father abuses him,and he had at one point in his life attempted suicide. I told him how much I love him, that I will always be here for him, made him his favorite cookies, and also wrote him a letter with all of my favorite memories with him that wouldn't have happened if he hadn't been there. He lit up and said he's never felt so loved. MLIG. Today, I went out to brunch with my dad. For the first time ever, I was able to treat him with money I earned myself instead of the other way around. MLIG. Today, I was that told I am now cancer free. MLIG Today began with my girlfriend and me fighting. Today ended with my girlfriend and me talking and laughing like nothing had ever happened and my very religious mother holding me as I came out to her. MyLifeIsG. One day, I was working as a cashier and a lady came with her groceries and a bouquet of flowers. I rang in all her groceries and when she had paid, she told me that the flowers were for me. She said that God had put it in her heart to do something nice. I don't even know this woman, she made my day. MLIG. What are some ways that your life is good these days?

Have You Got The Cajones?

A fun little challenge... that may be hard for some, easy for others. From Lisa @ Adventures in Motherhood Post a picture of yourself right now. As you are right now. As you read this. No running to get dressed or put on make up or fix your hair or whatever. Just YOU. I'm generally not afraid to share what I look like at any given time. I like to change my profile picture to match my mood, for example. Or spontaneously decide to post about eating Peeps or record my own rap video.

So- here's me at work. No makeup, hair in a ponytail. Yep- I'm high fashion. See my lovely phone and files and my iced tea cup? Big excitement! Ah- the head phones. I listen to music on my phone a lot. But right now, I'm listening to a sermon from Pastor Sam of Dwell & Cultivate. He's C. Beth's dad, in case you didn't know.

So there you have it. Me. As I am. As everyone sees me. And as you guys have seen me oodles of times.

Anyone brave enough to play along? Ready... Set... CLICK!

Just a little FYI...

Isabella and ShankRabbit totally rock and I am glad to have met them out here in the blogosphere. I hope no one took all my belly aching seriously- I've just been having oodles of fun with the whole thing!! And Mr Code Shank Rabbit Daddy has a little sumpin sumpin planned for lil old "fascinating" me! Yahoo!

Harumph. Bah Humbug. Blah.

Perhaps it's harder because I started my friggin' period this morning. I'm not feeling particularly moody- got that out of my system this weekend (Jeff can confirm). I lost that friggin' contest. After my wonderful friends came forward and voted for me... I ended up with 27 entries. Code Daddy then randomized the numbers, assigning everyone a series as broad as their number of entries. And a dude with 2 entries won it. Seriously. And can I tell you that I'm actually seriously bummed? You guys know how annoying I was about this! What a cool freakin' contest! What a cool prize! This guy PROPOSED to his wife by singing to her after hiking up a mountain or something. So now I'll just hide in my little corner of the blog-o-sphere and cry into my keyboard. The upside... and, yes, there is always an upside... my friend Nancy is now commenting! And my friend M.E. and Joanie and Garret and Alix and Amy and Lynn (who tried) and my husband Jeff and my friend Christy and... all showed their loyalty and love for me. And that's one hell of a silver lining.

An Important Message on This Easter Sunday

The title probably scared off any readers who are fearful of overwhelming Christian messages. Or those who are tired of the sappy, happy greetings. I wanted to do something a little different. I want to share something personal and important with you. Something that could change your life. Or at least improve your enjoyment of this sugary holiday. How to eat a Peep Doesn't matter if you like Peeps or not. How to eat them is an important life skill. There is the nibble the side method... Bite off the head and then work your way down the body... Or stuff it all in your mouth at once!

Happy Easter, everyone!

The Easter Bunny is God

So we didn't plan to "do" the whole Easter Bunny thing this year. Teagan never asked about the Bunny, we don't go to malls so she hasn't seen the giant Bunny, and no one has really brought it up.

We decided we would just have Easter baskets be a gift from Mom and Dad.

This morning, she asked. "Is the Easter Bunny coming to our house?"

Hm.

"No, honey. Mommy and Daddy will have baskets for you and Zach. The Easter Bunny will take care of the kids who have parents who can't afford to fill their baskets for them."

Sounded good to me!

"Oh! The Easter Bunny helps people?!"

"Yes, honey."

"Oh! Just like God! God helps people!"

"Yes, honey!"

"The Easter Bunny is GOD!!"

Hm.

Hadn't planned to take it there. But I understood her logic. And we were trying to get out the door to head to church for the big Easter Egg hung and Christian Carnival (all the preschool/Sunday School rooms have different crafts and games). So I let it go.

I'm not sure how many people at church learned from Teagan about the Easter Bunny's secret identity... hopefully he doesn't stop by our house and leave a paper bag of bunny turds on the front porch as retribution for blowing his cover.

REMINDER

Garret, you are excused from reading this post. No point preaching to the choir! Hello? Ya'll have been pretty great on voting for me so far. I had 18 "points" as of this morning. But I NEED MORE. You do know I'm going to SHARE my song with you, right? Heck, I could even play my regular voters up and bribe ole Code Daddy to put you guys in my song, too. Garret voted for me today. Where's the love of my other adoring fans? Hello? We've only got until Monday, people! And this is a HOLIDAY weekend so I know it will be DIFFICULT to jump online and go comment on his post of the day and drop my name... but you can do it! I have faith! So please don't bail on me now! Hop over and comment! If you are confused about where to go... I've provided oodles of link opportunities in this post. Thank you for your time, consideration, and COMMENTS.

Did You Not Get the Memo?

Seriously. I want a song about me. I want to be interrogated about details of my life. I want to win this contest. So I am fully relying on you, gentle readers, to pop over to Code Daddy's site and leave a comment and name drop for me. Cuz if you go over and drop my name as being your reason for visiting, I get an extra entry. Did I mention I want this? Cuz I do. I want this. Bad. Might get extreme... Help me. Please. Pretty please. Don't make me use my puppy eyes...

You Want Him To Write a Song About Me!

Go to CodeDaddy's blog. Comment and totally name drop for me. Because no one has EVER written a song about me and I think it would be HILARIOUS!

A Date With Myself

Jeff is out of town until tomorrow night. It's remarkable how difficult it is doing things on my own- realizing where he fits in regularly. I miss him. Teagan misses him. Zach... doesn't notice. Teagan has been calmed by doing activities or eating meals we wouldn't do with Daddy home. Or things we haven't done in a long time. Tonight, once we get Zach to bed, Teagan and I are going to make cookies. We had dinner out with Aunt Christy Thursday. My friend Latifa spent the morning with us today. And tonight... I am taking myself on a date. An at home date, of course. But I'm feeling the need to indulge a bit. Work had me pretty darn stressed this week. Zach is cutting a molar so he's cranky. And Teagan is 4. Enough said, right? So I bought some brownie mix. And some mini bottles of wine. And I might even order an on demand movie- if anything strikes my fancy. I will put in laundry (that's hot, I know). And I might do dishes. And then I will put my feet up, enjoy some much needed chocolate, and imbibe. I might even put out!

My Alfabet Krew...

Here's a list of all my Peeps who are playing along in the Alphabet Game! The Letter F by Jim and Garret (RVing) The Letter B by Mim (Mim's Muddles) The Letter T by Alix (CASA HICE) And not yet posted... but coming soon... Another Letter F by Amy (Bitchin' Wives Club) The Letter L by Mel (I Got Something More) The Letter I by Michael (Michael Here and There) The Letter J by Joanie (Joanie's Random Ramblings) And adding... The Letter P by KPCL Girl (I'm Better In Writing) The Letter D by The Courteous Chihuahua

That Missing R

The Alphabet Game! Warning- Silliness Ahead!

Lisa at Adventures in Motherhood is playing an alphabet game and I'm playing, too!

I honestly considered being very serious with my answers but... being silly was just too tempting! (And I feel the need to tell you that the pic quality is bad because most of these pictures were taken with my cell phone, here in my office. Yes, I'm uber-productive.)

She assigned me a letter and I have to list 10 things I like that start with the letter...

Reading - I love to read. I can't say that I read everything like I used to. There simply isn't enough time for it. But I do love to get sucked into a good book. Heck, I even enjoy suffering through a not-so-good book! I'm almost done with "New Moon" (second book in the Twilight series) and then plan to tackle "Wicked." I'm generally a fast reader and can tear through a really good book in a couple of days. In my youth, I'd read 2-3 books in a day! Even created a reading nook in my closet- pillows and blankets and a lamp and a stack of books.

Radio (NPR) - I do listen to tunes but I've really gotten hooked on listening to National Public Radio. Wait Wait, Prairie Home Companion, Diane Rehm, Fresh Air... and many more... all shows I love to hear! All shows I learn a lot from or just find myself smiling while listening. I don't get to listen as much as I'd like to anymore. But it is the station I generally turn to when I'm alone. With the kids, we listen to a lot of 70's and 80's music. That's dad's influence. There is a station here that plays old broadcasts from the 80's of America's Top 40 Countdown every Sunday.

Raspberry... Specifically Graeter's Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. This stuff is sent to Cincinnati directly from heaven, I think. It's really that good.

Or maybe I just like blowing raspberries? I know it is one the cutest milestones for my babies... they are way cuter blowing raspberries than I am.

Roses. My favorite flowers are actually gerbera daisies or tulips. But who doesn't love roses, too? I'd be perfectly happy if Jeff swooped into the front door with a bouquet of roses... or had some delivered to my office. Heck, even the edible made-from-fruit kind are good! Running - I never thought I'd be at a point in my life that I could say that I even remotely imagine myself running, let alone actually enjoying it. I don't like it while I'm doing it... but I like it before and after. If that makes any sense. Relaxing - Yeah, this pic was taken at work... feet up on the desk... and that never really happens. But I do enjoy getting even a few minutes of relaxation each day. Honestly, one method of relaxation and centering that I've been enjoying lately is on my Wii Fit, of all things. One of the "balance games" is "Lotus Focus." You sit on the board, don't talk, don't move. The screen is mostly dark, save for a lit candle that emits a ring of light around it, illuminating a hard wood floor. You hear various nature sounds, the floor creaking, a throat clearing. And your job is to sit still on the balance board, good posture, legs crossed. For 3 minutes. I love it. It's 3 minutes that I can claim with no interruptions, no talking, no responding. 3 solid minutes.

Rooibos Tea- I discovered these red teas a couple of years ago and the flavor is dreamy. This Celestial Seasonings Madagascar Vanilla Red is one of my faves for a cup of hot tea! RV'ing - One of my favorite blogs. Not so much for the adventures that Jim and Garret take on but more just to get to know these guys. Jim only shares a story from time to time so most of the perspective comes from Garret. But he's become a great friend. He reads this blog daily, always has a funny comment to share. He has also linked around to other blogs that I follow so I get to enjoy his humor on other blogs as well. And, someday, Jeff and I plan to actually do the RV thing so it's interesting to read about the ins and outs of this kind of travel!

Rapping. Yep, it's true. I love to rap. I walk around the office, throwing down my rhymes. I have no idea if that link will work. I am beyond frustrated with the video taken on my cell phone that I cannot possibly retrieve or get to work in any way, shape, or form. So click it and hopefully you get to see and hear me really make a fool out of myself!! (Edited: We are experiencing technical difficulty. Once we work out our video issues, I will have to do a separate post for my crowning glory!)

Responsibility. An odd thing to claim to like. But it's actually what I love. I became a mom and not only did I learn levels of love, joy, anger, frustration, fear that I had never imagined before, but I discovered the weight and fulfillment of true responsibility.

So I hope I at least made you smile. Or roll your eyes. Or groan. At least I didn't tell pirate jokes (Arrrrrr)...

And if you'd like your own turn at the alphabet game (and please don't feel that you need to be as crazy as me to play), leave a comment letting me know that you want to play and I will pick a letter for you!

Make Me Laugh, Please

I am feeling silly and need some good laughs today. Feel free to share some good jokes or links!!

Movies of 2008

Caught some special this afternoon while putting Zach down for a nap that covered the top 10 movies of 2008 for these 2 reviewers (no clue who they were). Jeff and I used to see movies all the time. Now... not so much. Now we have to sneak out to see a movie, it seems. So I'm making a list of movies that I want to see when they hit the DVD shelves. In no particular order... Doubt The Reader Marley & Me Fireproof Iron Man Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian The Lovely Bones (EDIT- I'm soooo out of touch... per IMDB, this movie isn't due to be released until Dec 2009. So I guess I can still catch it in theatres. Ha!) WALL-E Milk Twilight The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Class Rachel Getting Married Slumdog Millionaire In Bruges The Wrestler Wendy and Lucy To be honest, I hadn't heard of many of these movies. But they do sound interesting. So I've got a list. Maybe I should make a 4 day late resolution for the New Year... to see as many of these films as possible!