the part with the floods

So my dad has a really short commute.  Like less than 10 minutes.  When the hurricane hit on Thursday (the 8th) it took him over an hour and a half to get home.  There were so many roads blocked off, people would drive down one, only to be turned away because of flooding and roads washed out.  it was CRAZY!  here are my photos to prove it:

because I missed the memo of taking BEFORE pictures I don't have any.  But where my sister is standing is the beginning of where you can hop across the stream river and make it safely to the other side.  Not so now!  There was a little boy her same age (same town too) who lost his life in the flood.  A word to the wise: don't get in past your ankles because A. you don't know where the end is and B. the current might be just strong enough to sweep you downstream....a bad thing indeed.

This little bridge was once over a VERY TINY trickle of water and as you can see, the water moved the bridge and is a trickle no more....

So there you have it.  flooding.  

The part when I was actually in VA

*side note -- my hubby keeps point out to me that I call it V.A. lately instead of Virginia.  Do you ever do something like that??*

     The whole reason for my impromptu excursion was that my family was in desperate need of fresh meat for their move.  (They moved to a new town 3 hours away.)  This in and of itself isn't so terrible.  What IS terrible is when out of 5 kids, (I'm numero uno--that means the best, most awesome one EVER in case you didn't know)  my bro-ha is in college and who really brings ALL their childhood memories to college?  thus not only unable to assist, but also with baggage.  Then we have my sister, (Hermana Lauren -- currently serving the good people of Spokane, WA and bringing them closer to God) who again, for obvious reasons isn't going to bring all HER childhood memories to Spokane.  Missionaries travel light, and this girl packs it in.  Yes, many memories will be her job to sift through upon her return next fall.  Then we have the second sister, who, you guessed it, is in the dorms and obviously can't be bothered with nostalgia and the crap stuff that comes with it.  :)  Then finally, you have the baby, the 11 year old.  Who, although totally helpful and very eager to serve, (she's not a teenager....yet..) is tired from moving all summer.  Plus the padres who are also very tired and like I said, in need of fresh meat.
     Thats where I came in.  ta-da!  your fairy god mother, to make all your wishes and dreams come true! and not to put salsa on my tacos (this is a Mexican phrase meaning that you're giving yourself airs or credit where it is probably deserved, but maybe not....but mine totally is.) So vansy-pansy and I hop on the little tiny 747 and make the house shine.  Okay maybe not really, but ya know.
     The whole point to telling you about the family line-up is that if you know that you can understand how many other people's stuff we're dealing with and how much space all of that stuff takes up.  Yes, you could say, well Cam DUH get a storage unit.  But first you have to FIND all the stuff that the movers haphazardly put everywhere.  Second problem: one box might contain things belonging in 3+ areas of the home.  So you're CONSTANTLY bringing things up the stairs, or down the stairs all. day. long.  yes, the back massages were many and in the end my knots had knots!

tomorrow I'll tell you all about the flooding and hurricane that happened while I was there!!!

Sorry everyone...

I know, I know, I've been a terrible blogger.  But I have some pictures to make up for it and some great stories to share.  First up, my trip to VA with a 10 month old. (did I mention she was/is teething??)

  So our departure went like this: I handed the guy checking id's ours (yes, I brought her picture pool pass, totally not worth it as the guy didn't even crack a smile.  "WHAT?!!  she's flying, she has a picture id, what gives?!"  And they made her take off her shoes.  The leather bottom type that is practically nothing.  Yes, because she could possibly have an explosive in that size two shoe.  It's cool, I'm in a good mood, we're having fun, so off come the shoesies.  I had her in the Bjorn the whole time at the 'port because I'm that mom.  whatever that means.  But obviously, they wanted her out at security.  (FYI this isn't law if you look at the standards on the TSA website.) So when we make it through the metal detector I set her on the carry-on bag to suit back up.  "BABY ON BELT!"  *all action comes to a screeching halt.* 'cuz she was there all of 3 seconds too.  Honestly, I thought it was nice, way to have my kid's safety first.  I can handle that.  :)  


Then we get on the plane, mind you, I was PREPARED.  I had sippy cups filled, in the little pocket in front of me for easy access, books, toys and every other needful item within hands reach and I KNEW where they were before anyone else even boarded.  Once everyone is seated and patiently waiting we have a 'flap' issue.  Whatever that is......so they let people deplane or wait for 45 to an hour.  This is not okay.  I had timed her nursing and napping PERFECTLY with the plane ride.  Now she's mad, hungry and I have no choice but to do the necessary right there.  I am not that type of mom.  So she fell asleep before we'd even left the ground.  (See above)  And slept for about 20 minutes after we'd achieved the necessary altitude.  
Then I was left to entertain my child (who had NO interest in ANY of her stuff) with my stuff.  (See below)

We made it only a few minutes late and had no other problems on the plane.

more to come....from that mom....

I'm a vocab snob

You may or may not know this about me, but I'm a word snob.

*Hi, Word Snob*

Allow me to explain...

I don't profess to know anything about punctuation.  In fact it's a sad truth.  Much like the fact that I can copy you when you play a song on the piano, but don't ask me to sight read anything.  It will not happen.  Even if you hold a gun to my head.  So, like my love of music and dislike for sight reading, I love words and don't like the periods, semi-colons, commas, etc.  I tell you this so you know that it is out of ignorance that I  over-comma and under-hyphen or whatever.  

BUT, the real reason for this post.  

SINCE.

it was originally a word used for time.  

Merriam Webster defines 'since' as

: from a definite past time until now <has stayed there eversince>

                                         : before the present time : ago <long since dead>

: after a time in the past : subsequently <has since become rich>

(these are just the adverbs.)  

So, when you start a sentence with;

"Since I felt like sharing this with you..." and making it synonymous with "because" it's not correct English.  It drives me crazy!!!!  So please, next time you use "since", use it correctly, use it wisely.

"You can look like the smartest person in the room until you open your mouth."~Anonymous 

MGM asks;

what have you done lately to simplify your life?

The cloth diaper sale

 

These were taken a few months ago when AppleCheeks had a contest involving ways to use your diapers without being diapers.  We didn't win, but I still had fun taking them!

In case you're interested there's some exciting stuff happening in the world of cloth diapering this month.

APPLECHEEKS (my personal favorite brand) is having 10% off sale until Sept. 16th.  

FUZZIBUNZ (the Handsome Husband's favorite) is having a buy 6 get two free sale until Sept. 30th.

BUMGENIUS (another popular brand) is having a buy 5 get one free sale, but this one ends Aug 31.

So, there you have it!  Some great brands and great sales.  

BTW, all of them can be found at Happy Cotton Tails in case you're wondering.

Simplifying: making people happy

Guest Post by Alicia from Pearls Hey, I’m Alicia from Pearls! Being the mother of three boys ages four and under,  having two, teenage brothers-in-law living with me, and being the wife of an  adoring, rock star of a husband - things around here can get a little hectic and our general schedule seems full.  My life is pretty good though. I’m generally easy going and  calm, though it definitely wouldn’t look that way if you were watching from the side lines (which you would be). I maintain my “inner peace” by keeping my life simple.  Simplicity keeps me balanced, and when I’m balanced I’m happier. When I’m happy, it’s easier for everyone else to be content, and the bumps and blocks along the way are easier to deal with because I’m in a pretty good place. When my kids fight or things  get crazy (and they do!), I like to quote Kevin Flynn from TRON: Legacy, “You’re  messing with my Zen thing, man!” (Yes, I really say that). I also want my children to  realize that they don’t need the biggest or the best to be happy. Things do not bring  happiness. I’ve thought about some ways I keep my life simple and avoid excessiveness and thought  I’d share them in hopes that they will inspire you to look at your own lives and find areas  that you can simplify by avoiding unnecessary headache and over-spending. If mama ain't  happy, ain't nobody happy. =) 1. Toys. My three and four year olds have a million toy cars in all shapes and sizes, at least  100 toy dinosaurs and 20 gazillion knick knacks. Star Wars costumes and weapons are  scattered in every room of our home (yes, we have real light sabers lying around). I hate  blocks (including Legos and our Jenga game). Personally, I love that they have such a  great collection of children’s books… but I don’t love that they pull every.single.one of them  out to decide which one to read before bed. I might despise you if you buy another card game  for them, and who knew that little boys would have so many stuffed animals? Why did  my husband think it would be a good idea to buy them a bench and plastic tools? Is it  just me or do toys somehow reproduce? Where did they all come from!? My four year old is a pretty good picker-upper. My three year old is an even better  dumper-outer. My four year old sometimes asks me to kick the three year old out of the  family because he is always making huge messes in their room. My absolute least favorite  part of parenting is getting them to pick up those toys. Simplify: We now have three or four  bins full of toys that we rotate. Now, the mess is tolerable, and it’s less traumatic for  everyone. When they get to the point that they are no longer willing to clean up their  toys, I threaten to take them into the basement… dun dun dun! If they won’t clean them  up, I will load ‘em up and off they go into the basement. They are then toyless until they  somehow earn a bin of toys back. It’s like Christmas every time they do, but I didn’t even  spend a penny. 2. I love to read. Once upon a time, before we had any children and I had all the time in  the world, I had an incredible library of books that I read once (maybe twice) and put up for  display… or in a pile. We have moved 12 times since we’ve been married (6 ½ years)  and by move #5 my husband refused to haul another box of books (at least 4 boxes were  never even opened for 3 of the moves). I didn’t blame him. Simplify: I kept a few and got  rid of the rest. I still love to read, but before I go out and buy the book, I borrow it from the  library or a friend. If I love it enough to own it, I’ll first look into buying it used. If you  really wanted to “go green”, you could even get a Kindle or something like it, but I’m  pretty sure it still costs $$$. There’s something about holding the book that I love –  especially when I didn’t spend a penny! 3. I love fresh produce. I want my family to eat healthy and sometimes I go grocery  shopping and come home with 90% fresh stuff that I intent to cook with or simply enjoy  over the next few days. 90% of the time it doesn’t happen and I end up with rotting lettuce,  broccoli, tomatoes and celery in my refrigerator. I like to savor my strawberries and not eat  them all at once, but sometimes I wait too long to savor them and next thing I know their  nasty fuzz balls! We keep forgetting to cut open the cantaloupe for breakfast and now it’s  mushy. You get the picture. Simplify: Now, I get freeze dried produce whenever I can. It  maintains the nutrition and I only reconstitute when I need it and only as much as I  need. Obviously, not everything comes freeze-dried, and I still get fresh produce, but this  way I avoid some last minute trips to the super market (hate those!) and am much less  wasteful (goodbye soft celery!) 4. I really do want to be healthy. I can’t afford the elliptical I want and even if I could, I have  no where to put it. I hate running along streets and trying to exercise with my kids around  totally messes with my Zen thing. Simplify: We got a family Recreation Center Pass. It may  not be free, but I get to exercise in peace (in a variety of ways), there are classes for the  kids, stuff for the teenagers and my husband, not to mention a daycare if I need it! We swim  there as a family in the summers and with all of us on the pass, it makes it worth it. It also  supports our city. So, take that for what it’s worth. You have to give and take in different areas, “pick your  battles” so to speak. There are so many ways to minimize the excess, stress, and  over-spending, but do what works best for you and your family! Alicia is the mother of three adorable little boys and enjoys blogging about  things that make her happy, photography and motherhood.