Looky What I Got!

My sweet friend GiBee was so generous. She sent me a wonderful birthday gift too! (To be honest, I received it about a week and a half ago, but I couldn't find my camera. But now that I've found it, I'm finally posting a blog thank you. However, I did have the wherewithal to thank her when I did receive it. Not to worry, Mom; I'm watching my p's and q's!)

So look at this sweet purse! My purse right now screams "SPRING!" When GiBee saw this little beauty, she said it yelled, "I need a cute cabana boy to bring me a drink with a yummy drink with an umbrella on the top!" And then she immediately thought of me.

I see a connection her... Shalee = lush Hmmm... not exactly the image I was going for, but hey, I can live with it. Heck, I'll even live up to the reputation if I have to.

I love it! What a cute strap! The stripes are fun and summery, the size is small, yet roomy enough for all my junk and it has great pockets. I have a feeling that this purse and I are going to have a wonderful relationship...

And to go with the "cabana boy" theme to the purse, GiBee sent me these perfect notepads. Look at how fun they are. And the best part is that they have beautiful scriptures on them relating to feet. I think I'll leave these at work to remind myself that my feet are for God's service no matter where I am.

So THANK YOU, GiBee for your sweet heart and your kindness to me. I'm undeserving of it, but I'll treasure it. And each time I carry my new bag, I'll remember the friendship that I'm carrying with it.

Oh, and as a side note, Mr. Right is sick. I think it serves him right for having a fling and such a great time with her...

Memorial Day 2007

The day started off beautifully. We slept until 8 AM (a rare occasion!), had sausage gravy and biscuits with great coffee and the family was all in a great mood. Can't get much better than that...

We decided to run to the store because the girl received a $30 gift certificate to Walmart from a friend for her birthday. Oh, and we were having company and I had nothing to make the lunch. There was that too.

We hit the clothes section because the girl discovered that she has no shorts or dresses that fit her now. She just keeps growing, and she is delighted that she's only a couple of inches shorter than me. So believe it or not, we walked out with 3 shorts, 1 skirt and 2 new shirts. I do believe my girl was in tweener heaven. New clothes and they weren't hand-me-downs. Bonus.

I, on the other hand, walked out spending money on fun things like potatoes, eggs, milk, mustard... But it was well worth it for the potato salad I was going to fix up, let me tell you. Mmmm mmmm.

We hurried home since our friends were going to show up in half an hour. I find it best to actually, you know, be at home when you invite others to your house. It just seems like the right thing to do...

When we got home, Mr. Right remembered that these are actually beer-drinking friends, so he headed out to get it, and some Smirnoff Raspberry for me, since I'm not the beer-guzzling kind. Oh, and corn on the cob and half and half since we forgot those too. Yes, it would have been easier to make a list, but I like to live on the wild side of life.

Our friends arrived, and we had a blast with them. Mr. Right even got to use his grill. He cooked up a fine batch of hamburgers and brats. And I do believe he avoided burning them, always a good thing.

The weather, which has been rainy of late, decided to take a break from its down-pouring, so we actually were able to enjoy the back deck. We ate outside, and the kids were thrilled to jump on the trampoline. I was really happy about the easy cleanup, since we're still trying to sell the house and all.

We played hearts, whereby Mr. Right proceeded to tar and feather us. I'd say he cheated, but I was keeping score. My only consolation is that we actually had to stop the game early due to our friends needing to leave so that their kids could take naps, so he didn't win to the end... Next time, Mr. Right - next time you're going down!

After the fun, we decided that we should give the house a quick once over so that if anyone decided to look at the house, they would actually see the house and not all the crumbs on the floor or dust on the furniture. (For those who are wondering, we've not had a lot of lookers in the past three weeks; we chalk it up to a flood of houses entering the market and really rainy weather. We're not worried at all about it though. We know that God will sell it in his own time, so we're just going to wait on him. We'd be delighted if you would continue to pray for us to hold to this wonderful peace, though. Thanks!)

Anyway, Mr. Right pulled out our vacuum cleaner and started to vacuum our bedroom, only to smell the stench of rubber burning. Arrg! We just fixed this piece of crud vacuum cleaner... again! And really when you're selling a house, nothing says "Welcome to your new home" like burning rubber.

What to do... We had to clean the carpets, but should we try to fix it again? Would any store be open with the right belts? Plus it was almost 5 PM, so if it were open for Memorial Day, would they be open when we could get there?

So we did what any normal couple who where trying not to curse the vacuum to the depths of Hades would do. We grabbed our Bed, Bath and Beyond 20% off coupon and went and bought this:




I only had a slight heart attack. It's a good thing that puppy was 20% off because for the love of all that is frugal in me, I had to talk myself into this purchase. Gah! I could by a small country for the price of that cleaning machine. Well, not a small country, but I could certainly go visit the country and bring home some souvenirs on the same amount. I'm just thankful to the Lord Almighty that we had the money to buy it outright.

However, the good thing about this purchase was that 4 totally separate individuals stopped to tell us that this Dyson is the best vacuum cleaner on earth. They each went on and on about how they would never go back to any other cleaner after owning a Dyson. One man went so far as to say it's a manly man's cleaner, causing Mr. Right to smile. I like having total strangers give two thumbs up to our cleaning purchase.

Oh. My. Lands... Mr. Right has a new love, baby. Has a new love... Yea yea yea yeah.

(The compromise in our house is that I'll clean the bathrooms if Mr. Right will vacuum. It makes us both very happy people. However, I would rather have the compromise be that he does it all, but I've not been able to talk him into that one for some reason...)

After vacuuming our carpet upstairs, we were shocked to find that we actually have beige carpet... BEIGE, I TELL YOU! And here we thought we had a sort of neutral dirty brown... which we did, in a way. And I can't tell you how much cat hair we removed from our floor. Seriously, I can't tell you. It was kind of disgusting in a I-can't-help-but-look-and-marvel-over the-fact-that-we-had-enough-hair-to-make-a-small-rug sort of way.

He couldn't wait to vacuum the first level! It didn't matter that the kids were trying to sleep or that I wanted to sit and to enjoy time with him. Noooooo. He was off to vacuuming everything!

When he finally came to bed, he said with a smile on his face, "I'm going to be dreaming of using that wonderful vacuum cleaner again and again."

It's a good thing that machine doesn't have any eyes. I'm pretty sure I'd scratch them out when he wasn't looking...

I Need Another Holiday

There was just too much stuff going on this weekend. So lucky you, I'm going to break it all down into bite-size pieces.

My daughter was part of a "Congressional Hearing" at school. They broke up items about government and had to explain it well to the audience (parents). Then they had judges ask them off the cuff questions and they had to answer well as part of their grade. My girl was part of the "rights" of citizens: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, rights for all people - no matter age, color or ability.

The first question out of the shoot was "Do you think prayer should be allowed in school?" Three students answered in the negative, but then my daughter answered thusly, "Well, I disagree with them. I think prayer should be allowed in school, but it shouldn't be a teacher-led prayer. I think others should be allowed to pray, that time should be set aside so that if anyone wanted to pray, they could. They could even go to a separate room to do it. But I think telling someone that they can't pray is going against their right to freedom."

I sat there awed... and smiling.

Another question asked was "Do you think that we as a country do a good job with respect to those with disabilities?" Again, most of the panel agreed that those with any kind of disability was treated well. But my daughter spoke out in the negative. "I think we don't do a good job with those with disabilities. For example, the deaf have a very hard time communicating when they go out. If they went to McDonald's, they could not order very well unless someone who knew how to sign went with them and communicated to the employee what they wanted. I think if we really wanted to be fair to those with disabilities, we would learn their language to help them feel more a part of the community. If we all had to learn some sign, then they could communicate better with those who could hear. I think we should have a choice to learn signing, maybe in 6th grade when we get to choose our classes. But as a whole, I don't think we do a good job including everyone in the community."

I'm telling you, I was a very proud momma at that point! She gets what so many adults still have yet to learn. Just because we're different doesn't mean that we're not all important... I went back to work feeling so glad that I was able to go to hear my girl.

Do you remember when I lamented about not ever doing birthday parties on time? Well, I decided that I wasn't going to do that this time, at least with my daughter. Her birthday is in July, but with summer vacations for her friends, traveling for us and the general laziness on my part, I thought I would have her birthday party before the end of school. So on Friday, we had our very first multi-girl slumber party for the girl's almost 11th birthday party.

All I can say is that Mr. Right and I are still very, very tired... How is it that tweeners can stay up so late? I was tired just watching them have all that fun!

Dinner was at the girl's request: chicken tenders, KFC coleslaw, homemade mashed potatoes and corn. Everything else was chocolate- chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, chocolate snacks, and for breakfast she requested chocolate chocolate chip muffins. Even I was sick of chocolate at that point, so I had blueberry muffins. Oh so much better for me... Anyway, the girls all had a fun time talking, watching movies, talking, listening to music, talking, doing their nails, talking, dancing, talking... I think you get the gist of it. By 11 AM, they where heading home with instructions from us that they weren't allowed to be grumpy. I bet there were several girls who had naps that day.

Even though we were tired, we went to a free outdoor concert, which was sponsored by a Christian college around here. Although it was overcast and sprinkling every so often, we had a good picnic and we were able to enjoy the music of Brandon Heath and Bebo Norman. It was so relaxing (probably because we had no energy to do anything other than to relax...) The kids even managed to have a good time. And yes, the kids went to bed VERY early without much of a fuss. You know they were tired.

That's it for now. I'll post about our Memorial Day tomorrow, but you probably already know how some of it went.

BBQ Rules

We are about to enter the summer and BBQ season. Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity, as it's the only type of cooking a 'real' man will do, probably because there is an element of danger involved.

When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion:

Routine...

1. The woman buys the food.


2. The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.


3. The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand.


4. Here comes the important part: THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.
   
   More routine....
   



5. The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.


6. The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he deals with the situation.


7. Important again: THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.
   
   More routine....
   



8. The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.


9. After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.


10. And most important of all: Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts.


11. The man asks the woman how she enjoyed "her night off." And, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women....

A Rebuttal to Jeana

Jeana came up with a very well-thought, "logical" reason as to why she should get half of the winnings to the winning lottery ticket that I should be holding since I'm on a streak this week.

1. The getting paid to shop for my boss
2. The free lunch
3. The Brooks and Dunn tickets
4. And now I found out that I won Holymama's prize for feeling myself up.

Jeana especially thinks that she deserves that last prize and my imaginary lottery winnings. I'd like to address Jeana's appeals:

If I had been thinking about getting together with another girl, I really would have asked you to come and join me for the concert. However, I was mostly thinking about how fun it would be to make out with Mr. Right - before, during and after the concert because, really there's nothing like sitting outside on a warm night, listening to country and love songs to make you want to drive off into the country and make out. But trust me, if I didn't have visions of epic dating proportions in my head, I'd have so asked you. And (!) I wouldn't even have tried to hold your hand...

"With the streak you're on, you really should think about buying a lottery ticket. And of course half the winnings should go to me because it was my idea."

If I should choose to buy a lottery ticket, I would love to share it with the person who first suggested that I should see if my streak would hold. That sounds quite reasonable. But the said winnings would go to Oopsy Daisy, as she in fact made that same suggestion on May 22nd, 2007, the day I first posted. Two days before your suggestion... She even made the suggestion at my diner, rather than at her own blog. So she has a little closer to the source.

"It's totally obvious that the second prize should go to me, anyone can see that."

Don't you realize that you already won the second prize? I mean, you were able to cop a feel on yourself... How much better if you had gotten Scott in on the job! That's such a (booby) prize in and of itself.

And I'd like to thank you for reminding me about It Could Happen To You. I think I should rent that one again. Bridget Fonda is so cute in that movie... I only like her in Lake Placid a little better. She was stinkin' funny in that one. And she really kicked buttocks in The Point of No Return...

The Oooo and Ahhh Post

Love is in the air... There have been weddings left and right around here. And the one of which we've really been waiting finally arrived past weekend. Our past babysitter, Laura, found herself a sweet boy from Texas when she was in college and they finally got hitched. All of us were delighted when Laura asked both the Girl and the Boy to be in the wedding.

They've never been to a wedding, let alone in one before now. (I don't like to mix happy wedding bliss with kids who may or may not cause disruptions. Okay, I meant to say I don't want to mix others' wedding bliss with my kids... at least until they were old enough not to cause a ruckus. We've finally arrived...)

Anyway, we've been talking a lot about how to behave at a wedding, what it means to the bride and groom, what they'll have to do as the flowergirl and ringbearer and how this day was all about Laura and Blake and if they do anything to ruin the wedding they will rue the day they had been born and they'll never see the light of day again and no wedding cake will pass their lips if they didn't behave... or something like along those lines.

Never fear, they did just fine.

At the last moment, I assigned myself the task of staying with the kids until they walked down the aisle. I mainly wanted to make sure that the Girl didn't bean the Boy with the flower basket and the Boy didn't mess up the Girl's $45 dollar trip to the salon. ($45! for a 10 year-old girl! Sheesh! But, I have to say, she looked adorable. And yes, I watched that lady like a hawk because I could so do what that lady did to the girl's hair.)

Since I didn't want to walk down the aisle after Laura, I just sneaked in the back to watch it all. The kids behaved wonderfully, although the Boy kept looking back at Mr. Right and doing a little smile and wave. Mr. Right would smile and wave and then sign (ASL) to him, by making a "two" with his fingers and then pointing at his own eyes and twisting his wrist so that the "two" pointed to the wedding. The Boy completely understood the sign, nodded his head and then watched the wedding. Of course he would repeat the look back to his dad and his dad would repeat the "watch the wedding" sign. This happened enough that the boy when looking back at his dad and seeing his father do the sign, he nodded his head and then signed what he was supposed to do to his dad. Imagine a little boy flicking a two from his eyes to the wedding couple and smiling. Quite the snuffled tittering occurred from the audience... Well, that was the worst of his lack of attention. Really, I imagined him tossing the pillow into the air and doing huge twirls on one foot...

Anyway, here is where I give you the opportunity to oooo and ahhh over our really cute kids. And why yes, I am smiling a mother's smile right now... We did have pictures taken by the photographer, but I think it will be a while before we get to see those. So here are a few of ours.

I Am SO Lost

Unbeknownst to us, we watched the season finale to Lost: the second season. (Unbeknownst because I saw that there was a 7th disc and thought we had 4 more episodes to go. Needless to say, we were up entirely too late because we were only going to watch "one more," but the one more turned out to be the finale and you just can't stop in the middle of a finale, even if it is 11 PM and you have to be up at 5 AM. Just not possible...)

So I'm tired this morning. But it was so worth it.

Anyway, I want to say to all you Lost watchers, I'm so hooked! Questions, questions, questions galore about everyone and everything. And I have to say that I've guessed a lot of the things that have been revealed lately, thank you very much. I said to Mr. Right in the first season that I think it is all a set up, an experiment, that someone has been jury-rigging the situation. So far it's been true. (Personally, I think that the flight didn't crash but was set to appear that it did. I'll know in a few years if I'm right about that one.)

Anyway, on top of being really busy at work, I get to be really tired and have my brain pulled in 25 different directions regarding Lost: the second season. Bonus.

And can I just tell you how much I cried over the murder of Libby! I kept thinking that something would have been in the blanket to keep her from being injured, but noooo - they killed off the girl that liked Hurley. Bummer, man... bummer. Shannon, not a tear, but Libby and Boone - yeah.

Michael just made me mad. That Big Dummy.

Still wondering about Locke and Mr. Eko... what happened to them? Charlie made it out alive... (And I totally cheered him when he threw the virgin Mary's into the ocean. Way to grow up, Charlie.)

And Mr. Right is all disgusted with Sawyer. He keeps shaking his head as to why Kate (or anyone else) would be attracted to him. I've never been a lover of "bad boys", so I have to admit that I don't see the attraction either.

He's also bothered by all the stupidity that runs rampant. He gets annoyed that no one offers information or asks questions when something quizzical happens. It's three shows later when someone thinks to ask or share.

And yay for Sun and Jin. That's a couple I would love to see grow more and more in love and in their marriage. I was really worried when they showed Sun with Mr. Hotel Owner, but thankfully it didn't detour in that direction.

There's so many other characters that I have rattling around in my mind... I can't get them all down.

All I can say is that it's going to be so worth the overdue charges at the library. I don't think I could have waited another few months to get back on the list to finish this season...

So, now all I have to do is to get caught up on season 3 this summer, and I'll be ready to join Shannon and the gang for their Lost Recaps instead of covering my eyes and singing "La la laaaa" really loudly when I see a Lost post. Whew. I can't wait to join that club.

Comment all you want about Lost, but please, don't give anything away about Season 3. I'd like the mysteries to stay mysteries until I can see them with my own eyes and hear it with my own ears.

Sweet 16th

I know I said I'm swamped... and I am. I love having too much to do and wondering how on earth I'm going to get it all done. It kind of helps me to actually do it than to wait until the last possible moment to just throw everything together. I know, I know... I'm weird. (Thanks for the reminder, Kelli.) But after 36 years, I've come to accept certain things about me. You may as well too.

However, being swamped doesn't mean that I don't find times to play. And sometimes playing pays off in the long run.

For example, yesterday my boss came into work sick again (Really go back and read that one... it's stinkin' funny, if I do say so myself.) with the a good cold. After preaching the gospel of Airborne to him, he enclosed himself into his office. Ten minutes later he yells out, "I think I'll have you go get Airborne for me," as if he came up with this brilliant on his own... Men! So the payout for me was to get out into that beautiful sunshine while picking up Airborne (and Claritin, yet another think I've been trying to convince him to try since he thinks he has allergies, and Delsym - hey, I'm nothing if not persuasive) for him. Getting paid to shop with someone else's money is a definite bonus, even if it was just for cold medicines.

Or later that day when I noticed that my boss wouldn't have time to break for lunch, I offered to run and get him something - soup, his favorite salad, a sandwich from his favorite place, whatever he felt like eating with a cold. He said, "I really want a tuna sandwich. Go grab us some lunch." So I had the pleasure of more sunshine and a Subway BLO (Bacon, Lettuce Onion - with mayo, vinegar, salt and pepper) on the house. Mmmm, mmmm!

Or when I was back at the office eating my sandwich, working on meetings planning and listening to country music (yes, Jeana, I listen to I'd Like To Check You For Ticks with a happy heart), and the DJ announced that the 16th caller would win tickets to Alan Jackson and Brooks and Dunn. I thought, well why not?

So I called. And called. And called. And called. And called. And... hey it's ringing!

And I won.

(Thank you God for this sweet surprise.)

I'm thinking I should goof off a little more in the future. It's really improved my attitude, and I have high hopes it will improve my dating life with Mr. Right.

Now, if only I could win some cowboy boots for this concert... Anyone know of a contest for size 6 boots?

Out of Office

I think it will be a while before I can even get out of the office as I'm swamped. Oh the joys of being really busy. (Not complaining as I really do love it. It makes me feel slightly needed here.)

However, these are the "Out of Office" e-mail messages that I would want to leave if I were given the opportunity to run away again. But really, I value my job too much...

1. I am currently out at a job interview and will reply to you if I fail to get the position. Be prepared for my mood.


2. You are receiving this automatic notification because I am out of the office. If I was in, chances are you wouldn't have received anything at all.


3. Sorry to have missed you, but I am at the doctor's having my brain and heart removed so I can be promoted to our management team.


4. I will be unable to delete all the unread, worthless emails you send me until I return from vacation. Please be patient, and your mail will be deleted in the order it was received. (My favorite!)


5. Thank you for your email. Your credit card has been charged $5.99 for the first 10 words and $1.99 for each additional word in your message.


6. The e-mail server is unable to verify your server connection and is unable to deliver this message. Please restart your computer and try sending again. (The beauty of this is that when you return, you can see how many in-duh-viduals did this over and over.)


7. Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system. You are currently in 352nd place, and can expect to receive a reply in approximately 19 weeks. (Second favorite)


8. Hi, I'm thinking about what you've just sent me. Please wait by your PC for my response.
   
   
9. I've run away to join a different circus.


10. I will be out of the office for the next 2 weeks for medical reasons. When I return, please refer to me as 'Sean' instead of Shalee.

Oh, and if you don't see as much of me in your comment sections, please don't think I'm ignoring you. I'll be keeping up with my reading in my ever-vanishing breaks at work, but not talking back as much - only if time will allow. I'm not worried though. This too shall pass, and I'll be back to my old commenting, blogging self soon.

Happy Monday y'all. Make it count.

There Goes My Dream of World Domination...

How evil are you?

I love the word "rarely" in that last sentence of the description. Because unfortunately, there are moments when I certainly choose to do wrong...

However, it could be worse... I could have gotten THIS:

How evil are you?

Sooo... how do YOU rate?

Edited to add: To be honest, I got Angelic the first time too, but I thought about how wrong that really is, so I went back and made myself a little more 'realistic'. Yeah, I'm nothing if not honest...

Rants and Raves

First my rants:

• What is wrong with people?! I cannot believe that Melinda Doolittle was dismissed from American Idol. She is astonishingly talented, accurate and consistent with each of her songs and presentations, she had great stage presence - often being the only one who facially and bodily sang her song - and she titillated my ears with her ever-so-flexible range and pleasing sounds. It's my hope that she is offered a contract and will blow everyone else out of the water when it comes to sales and longevity. I like Jordin and Blake, but I can't see them as a lasting icon in the music world. Plus, I cannot see myself purchasing either of their future CDs. Melinda's music, however, will be on my IPod the moment it's available on ITunes. Mr. Right says that I need to let this go now...

Thus ends my rant.

(See? That wasn't so bad, now was it? Not anything earth-shattering or life-changing, but I just had to get that off my chest... well what there is of it.)

Now my raves:

• I loved this book on my Spring Reading Challenge List: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. It's a brilliant book concerning the importance and power of love written in such a way that children and adults will enjoy reading it, although the intended audience are children in 3rd to 6th grade. After reading it, I could see why it was named one of the Top 50 Books in 2006 by Amazon. The writing was superb, the characters were memorable and the illustrations were beautifully rendered. This book would make an excellent gift.
• I reread Jane Eyre recently. I absolutely forgot how much I love that book. You should read it again if it's been a while, and if you haven't ever read it, I highly suggest you find out what you are missing. And after you read the book, I recommend the Jane Eyre DVD as a terrific, faithful onscreen production of the book. (My girl asked to watch it over and over again, it was that clean and that good.)

• It seems that my reputation is preceeding me... at least in the business world. I have a fellow assistant with whom I talk every so often and who reads my blog more often than we talk. It seems that I've encouraged her to take my IT route in attempting to get things done because she usually waits forever to get a response from IT. Here is her submission that she left right before leaving work last night:

Submit: Searching in the dark or the epic of trying to find server drives & save files

Problem Description: Taking inspiration from the fabulous Ms. Shalee for which her IT requests are famous (or is it infamous?), I figure that everyone can use some humor in their day and nothing is funnier than going to either my personal file drive or the shared network file drive to open a file and get the searching icon of the flashlight. Now I know I'm off in the dark but this adding insult to injury. Geez... When finally being able to get to the correct drive which can take up to 30 seconds and opening a file (that I can go get a cup of coffee for), I have no problem working. When it comes to the saving portion of the show, well, let's say, I can visit certain facilities with no problem & still be back in time to witness the file being saved to the folder I'm working from. Now I'm all for a leisurely work pace being able to nap while waiting for files to open & save I'm sure will get me fired. So any light besides the flashlight you can shed on the situation is GREATLY APPRECIATED. Thank you! :)

I opened my Outlook this morning to read this message from her:

That has to be the fastest turn time ever for IT response! I was called this morning. I spoke with Dave and he was chuckling and said, “How in the world do you know Shalee?” rock on sista! I bow before you.

It's the little things I tell you, the little things that make me smile. Go make someone smile today. They probably need it after last night's American Idol...

WFMW - Personal Mailboxes

I don't know about you, but I LOVE getting real mail. But with the convenience of email and postage being outrageous, we don't receive much in the way of real mail - only credit card applications, mailers and other stuff. Oh yeah... and bills. Going to the mailbox isn't any fun anymore.

Years ago, my mother-in-awe sent a valentine present to my daughter. It was candy in a metal Snoopy mailbox. It even has a flag on the side. My daughter loved that candy and the container too. Have I mentioned that she also can be a bit of a packrat too? Well, she can be.

One day, I left her a note in her mailbox, flipped up the flag and waited to see how long it would take her to discover it when she came home from school.

Not long. That's all I can tell you.

She walked right into her room, saw the flag was up and ran to it. She loved the note. She loved the communication. She loved that it was for her and her alone. She checked that box every day for a week and then some...

I think I'm onto something here.

You know how kids go beserk when they get a letter from someone? It works the same even if it doesn't comes in the "real" mail too. A letter is a letter is a letter to them.

Over the years, I've placed little notes, little gifts, whatever I wanted to put into that box. Sometimes it takes her a while to discover it; other times she finds it right away. She always loves the attention and little nods of love going her way.

My son wants a box of his own too, so I'll have to figure out something that will work for him as well.

So I guess leaving mail for my kids works for me. And so do the hugs and kisses that I get for taking the time to do it in the first place.

Head on over to Shannon's for some other great tips.

Rainy Day

Today is a beautiful, warm, rainy day. As I'm sitting here at work, I'm thinking of all the lovely things I'd rather be doing.

• Playing in the rain with my family



• Watching the rain come down on the trees in my backyard



• Reading next to an open window



• Baking chocolate chip cookies



• Watching a mystery



• Playing a game with my kids



• Having a lazy day in bed

What would you like to be doing right now but you can't?

10 Things I Love About Mother's Day

1. Tender wake-up kisses from two sweet kids
2. Sausage Cheese Biscuits
3. Breakfast in bed
4. Homemade Mother's Day cards
5. Gleam of excitement in kids' eyes and seeing their smiles as I exclaim how much I LOVE their thoughtful presents that they asked to get for me (eyeglasses holder, cedar planks for cooking salmon and a handmade picture frame)
6. Present from Mr. Right (Jim Brickman tickets! A DATE for later... Woo hoo!)
7. Not having to do dishes/permission to not show the house for a day if anyone called - no one did, thank goodness
8. Picking out the restaurant for lunch (favorite Chinese restaurant)
9. Knowing over and over again in my heart how blessed I am to be with family who loves me
10. Realizing that I wouldn't change a single thing in my life because it's perfectly satisfying

(Old picture, but I love it!)

Moms Know Best

GiBee hosted a really wonderful Mother's Day Contest where you could submit a 1500 character explanation of "the one most special piece of advice your mother or mother figure ever told you."

Have y'all noticed how I seem to misconstrue things or how the facts get altered in my mind? (No comment, Mr. Right...) Especially when I'm stinkin' busy at work? Because when I read the directions, I totally read 1500 words. Not characters... So when I sent my entry to GiBee, she immediately wrote back to tell me something along the lines, "Can't you follow directions?! This is a novel, girl! But I really like it, so I'll let it in."

And that is why GiBee and I are friends. She called me on it, teased me lovingly and then put it on the pile anyway. That's friendship, y'all. Knowing how to make fun of someone and still make that person feel good is an art, y'all. It's an art.

So here's my submission which is slightly over the 1500 character count... oooooh, about 3500 too many.

But does that really matter amongst friends? Evidently not. (Hey, I thought I was doing great because it was only 955 words...)


I can't peg down a single woman who gave me the best advice on being a mom. That's like trying to pick out your favorite child. If you have only one child, then of course that's easy... I wouldn't think that you would pick somebody else's kid... But if like me, you have more than one mom because everyone's mom became "Mom" to you, then you know you can't make that choice. It's the same for me with deciding who influenced me. I grew up with so many moms that I can't pick one who helped me the most; however, what I can do is describe how I have become the mom that I am from all the great examples that God set before me at just the right time.

From my mother I've learned that relying on God in the good and the bad is always the best choice. No matter what the world throws at you, having hope that God will take care of it gives you the strength to endure. She taught me that mothering is a tireless job that requires energy and patience for the multitude of activities - and I mean a multitude: plays, swing choir, concert choir, gospel choir (one of three white faces in the group, but boy that was fun, lively music!), youth group, dances, social activities… The woman was on the run my entire high school career and never once did she let on that she resented giving up her time for me.

She also taught me the art of giving from what you have happily and that if your husband invites someone over after church for a meal, it's okay to tell your kid to not eat as much (and make something for her later) so that everything would go smoothly and the guests would be satisfied. My mom opened her home to anybody, making it a safe haven for any other teen who needed it. She never knew how many kids she would find on her floor Saturday morning since often all my friends would congregate at our house for movies or games the night before. She's also taught me that a mother and a daughter can be good friends, even though they live hundreds of miles apart.

My mother-in-awe has taught me that you're never too old to get on the floor to play with children, that children are gifts from God and that everyone has a part to play in the Christian walk of a child. She's able to see Christ and God in ANY circumstance, item or person. She's also shown me that scriptures are to be a source of disciplining and a source of fun for all family members. She's also revealed to me that it is possible to love your in-laws with an open heart and to make them feel special to be a member of their family. She's also shown me that I can save a trunk load of money when it comes to Christmas because she spoils everyone.

From my "many other moms" I’ve discovered the art and importance of loving other children. Having extra patience for them, a hug at any given moment, a smile or encouraging word or even showing up to their high school plays or concerts will give those children memories to recall as they are in the midst of parenting too.

From all my mothers in the South I've learned that respect should be given at all times, please/thank you or yes ma'am/no ma'am should be ingrained into everyone and if a child misses that area of manners, calling her on it is a good thing. I've also found that hospitality to others, be it a party or someone who needed it on a whim, is fun not only for the guest(s) but for the host as well. Also I've discovered that when another set of parents take on another couple's children so that they can get away, it's really cool to give them all the sugar cereals that she never got at home. Boy do I remember loving to go to my other mother's house because she would ALWAYS have a special treat like that for my brother and me. Recently I told this "second mom" that I loved going to her house, knowing that I would have a treat, and she replied, "Shalee, we didn't do that with our kids. We only had that treat around for when you came." Now that's love, I tell you!

And from a host of great mothers, I've learned that saying sorry to your children is not something that will undermine your parenting; it is the one way to show children that we're all able to make mistakes and to still grow as people. I've also learned from them that no matter how much time you have with your children, it's never enough. So I try to love on my children, play with my children, sing with my children, get to know with my children, BE with my children as much as possible. I'm not their best friend, but I am someone that I want them to love and trust. Maybe later the best friends idea will come into play…

I've learned through experience that I'll never know everything there is to know about parenting; it's always an adventure of life-learning that I hope will never stop. And I've learned that you can love more deeply than you ever thought possible, even for a self-centered person like me, and hope is always new each morning in the smile of a waking child.

And I have hope that I can be the mom that my children and other children remember fondly on Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day to ALL the many moms out there. May you really get to relax on Sunday, and may the "I love you"s never stop at the end of the day.

Oh, and I love you, Mom.

Boy, I've Got To Start Working Out...

I ran, but not fast enough. I've been tagged by Trista (whose new profile picture is adorable!), Kimberly and Susanne for a meme of 7 random things about me. Herein lies the problem... I'm pretty sure that I've told you almost everything about me, so I'm going to see what I can come up with in the next few minutes...

1. I haven't read as much as I normally do. (And the internet world suddenly went still...) I'm having a more difficult time sticking with it lately. I don't know if it's the books that I've chosen for the Spring Reading Challenge or if it's just that I'm in a funk, but my books read per week average has taken a huge dive. Don't worry. I'll get my groove back soon, and I'll finish my Challenge by the end of the deadline. But in the meantime, if you have any day-stopping suggestions, then please share! I'll work them into the list too.




2. I'm not a veggie lover, so I pray that God will help me to enjoy them so that I can attempt to stick to the items that would help to lower cholesterol. (I refuse to go on cholesterol meds until it becomes imperative.) And as I suspected, God's coming through for me.




3. When I get off work, my favorite thing to do is to get into my hot car and drive with the windows up and the air off for as long as possible. I love to get that slight glistening on my skin.




4. When I plan a luncheon for the office, I always pick something I want to eat. (Plus, I get to take home all the leftovers. Bonus! A no-cook night for me! Lately I've had the world's best salad (Don't believe me? Come to KC and I'll prove it to you!), Southern style BBQ and tasty fajitas. (No, I don't get to eat like this all the time... We've just had a ration of meetings of late.)




5. A friend just gave me a bottle of Chocolate Amore (chocolate wine). I looked at it quite skeptically and asked if she had tried it. She replied, "Oh my gosh, yes Shalee. It's so good you're going to want to pour it all over someone and lick it off!" Alllllrighty then... I'll see if Mr. Right will be free soon. I didn't realize that "lickability" was the new gauge for goodness...




6. I just used all my paycheck from BizRate to purchase the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. Those first books were boogers to get (still missing #8 because I ran out of money - always next month!). They're worth all the trouble though because I love holding those books, waiting to read them because I know I'm going to be laughing from start to finish again. Maybe if I start in on them I'll get out of this funk...




7. I am turning the corner on my age. Those reading glasses I mentioned on the Purse Meme are new to me. I've only had them about four weeks and I've already managed to lose them once last Saturday. (I did some great praying without ceasing to find them. Yesterday, I just said, "God, I can't find them. Please give us (family who was helping to look for them) the vision to see them." And when we went outside to eat our dinner, Mr. Right set his plate on the table, sat down and said, "Well, Shalee. There are your glasses." It was such an answered prayer, I just had to tell them all about how God answered this one. Anyway, here they are in all their glory...

Now I'm to tag seven other innocent bystanders... hmmm, who's even slower than me and will get tagged? I'm thinking that AggieJenn and Stacey are easy target because they're pregnant. I tag Jeana and Addie because (no they're not pregnant - although we could start some rumors...) they actually like to drink coffee with me. I'm getting Kelli, aka Theodore, because she calls me Alvin from the Chip Monks post - but not because she's sick y'all because that would be wrong. And lastly I pick Mamarose (because! She! is! So! ExCiTeD! aBoUT LIFE!) and Melody because she had the last comment yesterday.

Praying For The Little Boys

It's been brought to my attention that two little ones are in need of our prayers.

Ethan Powell, just a baby, has had a relapse of luekemia. His parents are begging for prayers because they know that PRAYER WORKS! And if you want to go a step further, you can send this letter to Oprah in hopes that she will encourage her audience to become blood marrow donors to help Ethan and others in his predicament.

Barb's sweet grandson Cameron is showing classic symptons for juvenile diabetes. He's going to the doctors tomorrow for testing.

Please pray for them both and their families as they are facing different illnesses. We all know the anguish felt when your little one is sick or has a life changing/threatening condition. But we know better that God is bigger than the boogieman and any illness that comes our way.

Rooooo- xio....

It's been too long since I've needed IT help which means it's been too long since you've been exposed to my witty sense of humor with all things concerning IT.

Oh okay, I know it's not witty per se. It's more like retarded, but I tell you this bloggers: it's working! And this time, I had someone besides the IT employee call me to tell me that the office was laughing over this IT submission. I will get that coveted "Ticketer most likely to make us laugh" award. It's mine... all mine. (This last bit was written solely for Kent who thinks he has the wherewithal to win such an honor should it ever exist. I laugh at his audacity and his meager attempts at humor. HA! Bring it on Kent. Bring it on... You shall bow in reverence to my ticket request skills!)

Not that I'm competitive or anything. Ahem.

Now for your viewing pleasure...

Submit : Rooooo- xio... You don't have to wear the dress tonight!

Problem Description: Apparently my Roxio is wearing NOTHING on any night because ever since the last installation, it seems to have lost its shirt... or dress... or access to my computer. And the message buttons WILL. NOT. GO. AWAY. I'm sure I'm breaking every rule about how to shut down the computer. I thought I'd fess up to it now rather than have you chastize me later. But a girl's gotta do what a girls gotta do when she's really busy... or rather when she's ready to go home and yet she's forgot to submit the ticket. Ahem.

Would some kind soul please install my Roxio (again)? Because in real life, the little messages that state that I'm not cool enough to install it are making me see red lights. And you seriously don't want me to go all Police on you and make a Sting about it! Or sing to you when you answer my call. I'm just sayin'... It's for your safety IT peeps. It's for your safety.

Shalee

And guess what? It's already fixed. I guess laughter really is the best medicine. (Yeah, the IT employee did ask me to sing about my Roxio, which I did with heart and gumption and flair. Too bad for him; his bad for daring me.)

Safety Tip #1

Yesterday we were driving home from church, and Mr. Right spotted an ambulance with its lights running in his rearview mirror.

Knowing that our kids have been very curious about road signs, traffic laws and what lines mean on the road, I took the ambulance behind us as an opportunity to test their knowledge of road safety. As we were pulling off, I turned to them and asked, "When you see an emergency vehicle - a police car, a fire truck or an ambulance - behind you and they have their lights on, what should you always do?" I fully expected them to say, "Pull over so that they can get to the emergency faster."

In unison, they both yelled out, "Say a prayer for them!"** And so we did.

I guess they've learned the best road safety tip that was never in any handbook.



**I've always asked one of the kids to say a prayer for the rescue workers, the people who need them and for the families. It's a small way to teach us to think of others that we don't know who need help. Plus it shows them that God cares for everyone. It's also part of that "pray without ceasing" idea that I'm trying to get them to understand.

The Day After

And no, this post has nothing to do with nuclear war...

First of all, let me thank each and every one of you for your birthday wishes. When we checked it out this morning, the girl was delighted to see so many comments. Now that I mention it, so was I! Thank you for sharing the birthday wishes, and thanks to those of you who sent me e-cards. I was smiling all throughout the day as I thought about them. Hoops and Yoyo were playing a lot in the office y'all. It's a good thing my boss had a flight to catch. I think I would have driven him nuts... well, more than usual anyway.

Here are some more highlights from my special day:

• I talked with GiBee and Jeana.
• My mom and dad called and also received her gift subscription to "Taste of Home Simple and Delicious"... And can I tell you what I think of it? Oddly enough, the recipes look simple... and delicious. Who'd of thunk?
  
  
  
• My in-laws sent me a cute change purse that wasn't empty, and yet - it wasn't full of change either. Nice!
• Mr. Right planned a surprise birthday dinner at one of my favorite restaurants (it's a mongolian grill) where he invited people who I might expect to come and others that I wouldn't. He stole my phone and called some people who were more "my" friends to invite them. And Addie, all I can say is that you should tell your relatives to plan their visits to be a little more Shalee-centered and not show up on my birthday... I would have loved to have you and Ben there as well.
• My friends are too generous, but I thank you for the gifts and gift cards. They will be spent quickly I'm sure. As a matter of fact, Panera just got their first swipe from that card... And I had to laugh at my friend John's gift.
  
  
  
  He said he found it three months ago and he's waited all this time to give it too me... It cracks me up! "I blog, therefore I am." Hmph... "Comments (0)"... not with you people around the internet.
• The girl really surprised me. She found a cookbook called bills food that she really liked and bought it for me with her own money. She was worried as to whether or not I would like it (which I really do!), but knowing that she really invested a lot of thought and spent her own money on it, I would keep it no matter what... Fortunately, I'm not put into an awkward position of wanting to take it back but not being able to do so. It's a delicious-looking keeper with some simple, tasty and fresh recipes. And to give you a teaser, the first one we're going to try is the chocolate self-saucing cake.
  
  
  
  Mmmm mmmm is all I can say... And if you show up, I'll share.
• And just look at this card from Mr. Right.
  
  
  
  He's such a romantic man. I don't deserve him at all, but I'll just hold tightly onto him, because there's no way I'm letting any other girl have him! (And Shannon, I'm glad I didn't try to think BIG as you suggested with the Admin Gift... Mr. Right had it all along.) And to top it off, on the back of the iPod he engraved:

Proverbs 31:10-29

Shalee

Before going to bed, he read those scriptures to me. Sigh... My life is so blessed. And I well know it.

Lastly, Mr. Right left this comment for me on yesterday's post, but I had to share it front page and center. It was too good not to highlight, in my opinion, and since it's my blog, I guess mine's the only one that ultimately counts.

36 Great Memories of Shalee in a Nut-Shell by Mr. Right

1. Reading James and the Giant Peach aloud to you on the bluff at Wildwood
2. Not enough garlic in the spaghetti sauce (defining moment!)
3. “Doubly Good”
4. Playing in the rain (Harding)
5. Fire alarm at the ski resort (Colorado)
6. Monet in Chicago
7. Tubing down the Platte (and the walk back)
8. Dancing on roller skates
9. Posing for drawings
10. Kissing in the Rain Forest (Omaha Zoo)
11. Crab ambush (Galveston)
12. 4th of July on the Peabody, Memphis
13. The ultimate Battleship finish (Brocks) (cheater)
14. Gravy balls
15. Ice cubes for Thanksgiving, 1999
16. Moo Juice (Jamaica)
17. Castor oil + long bumpy ride = baby
18. Reading Sense and Sensibility to each other (York)
19. Breakfast at Chances R
20. French Quarters (Memphis)
21. Hot tub in the rain (Eureka Springs)
22. Riding horses in the rain through the forest (Eureka Springs)
23. 4-wheeling to the access road around traffic jam
24. Long walks holding hands
25. Halloween at the Colts-Chiefs game
26. Stogies and a Mango Martini (J Gilberts)
27. Jumping in the pool fully clothed after a long walk on a hot day (convincing the kids that it’s ok)
28. Dancing all night in Memphis
29. The “Nerd Dance”
30. Your love letters on flowery paper (and perfume!)
31. Seeing you, your son and your daughter sitting up on our big bed reading books
32. Tying a cherry stem with your tongue in ten seconds
33. Mashed Potato fight (NYCamp)
34. Halloween in footy pajamas (no, not the kids)
35. Throwing Mystery Dinners (all out)
36. Being in my arms

36

I'm one of those women who loves birthdays. Love the attention. Love the parties. Love the hoopla. It doesn't bother me at all that I'm older, that I have a few more silver hairs than I used to have, that I just got my first reading glasses, that my body doesn't look much like the day I married... Okay, that last one doesn't bother me much.

I love the celebration of life, the idea of being recognized by friends and loved ones, the way that they tell me, "You matter to me, Shalee. I'm glad you're alive." That, for some reason, is what matters to me the most: someone saying, "I see you, and I'm glad you're here." I don't know why that resonates with me so much; it just does.

This morning, I received the best birthday wake-up call from Mr. Right. After sweet kisses, he brought me breakfast in bed (coffee and croissant and cinnamon roll - I don't know where he thought I'd put it all, but I loved that he was covering my breakfast tastebuds. He told me he tried to get pain du chocolat, but the french bakery ran out after a busload of kids came into the store. Oh what a beautiful man for even trying to get that for me!)

My daughter awoke really early, and she was excited to give me her card.





I know you can't see it, but the sticker on the bottom of the card says, "Thou shalt indulge." It's sitting on a picture of a huge sundae. That girl knows me too well.




I love her sense of humor...

She also gave me an adorable coupon book full of cards for help with making dinner, help with making my bed, free snuggles, a movie night with her, a night to read with her and her making one of my favorite foods. I love the thought and energy she put into it.

The boy remembered to tell me happy birthday, and then he kept talking about birthday stuff... he was trying to say more than he should, but I just told him to go brush his teeth in hopes of distracting him. I don't think he's learned the fine art of "not giving away a surprise" yet. (Don't worry, Mr. Right. The distraction worked. I know "nuhsink"!)

And looky here... I've been blessed even from bloggityville, too.

(Click on the picture to see the details.)

The adorable bag is a Chilihead original. I absolutely love it. It's perfect for carrying everything... books, papers, food into the movie theaters. Thank you Chili; I really wanted one of your bags!

The coffee, scrub and candles are from Jeana. I was so excited when I opened this gift. The scrub smells yummy and it's sitting by my sink so that I can use it often. The coffee is deee-licious, Jeana, and I think you've just made a new best friend with Mr. Right. He loves it as much as I do. (I had to share. He gets up before me plus he makes the coffee. I couldn't keep it from him even if I tried... which I won't do because I love that he makes the coffee. So thank you for your generosity, Jeana. I'm thinking of you with each sip.

The gorgeous bracelet is from Shannon. It's so me! It's fun. It's light. It's sassy. Shannon, with this sweet piece, you've brought my fashion status up quite a few notches. And believe me, that's saying a lot. Thank you.

And at the bottom you will notice the gift from Antique Mommy - dark chocolate and a loaded Starbucks card. Oh my lands. In case you can't tell, the candy bar has been opened already... And this morning, I used that wonderfully handy card to order the most fabulous (non-alcoholic) drink in the world of coffee - a Brevé Mocha - in celebration of life and all things coffee and chocolate in cup. Mmmm mmmm! Thank you Antique Mommy for the high-energy gifts! My boss, on the other hand, may have different words for you as I bounce off the wall...

So thanks to my ever-so-sweet bloggity friends. You've totally helped to start this year off right.
All you other bloggers/lurkers, would you mind doing me a birthday favor? I'll consider it my gift from you. My daughter said that it would be neat to have at least as many comments as number of years that I am. Would you mind giving a shoutout so that she can see what neat really is?!

Poor Service To Kirstie

I've been up thinking about this event most of the night. I gave really poor unChrist-like service to a commenter yesterday. An insult was left in my comments, and I let my flesh have the better of me. Instead of turning the other cheek or just ignoring it, I retaliated. Unfortunately for me, I am really good with a comeback. Sometimes my brain or mouth kicks in before my heart has a chance to listen.

So Kirstie, I want to apologize for not letting God have the floor and for being such a poor example of grace and love to you. I've been on this earth 36 years, yet it seems that some lessons I will never learn fully. Please forgive my lack of grace and patience and my ugliness to you.

Although you may not want to ever come back to my diner, I've got a special table reserved for you, and I'd love to sit and to talk with you. I know I can't change your first impression of me, but I'd love to show you that there is a better side to me than what you saw yesterday - the side where God is leading and I'm just along for the ride. And I'd love to turn back the clock to have a do-over with you.

What's In Your Wallet? (Use the viking accent.)

Kelly at Love Well tagged me for this cute little purse meme, and I thought hey, "Hey, that's better than the drivel I was going to offer so let's do that."

Lucky you.

It just so happens that I'm a "one purse" woman, so what you see is what you get. I'm pretty faithful to it until I have the need to replace or exchange it. I don't mean that I don't have other purses. I mean that I'm not a purse exchanger who has a new purse for each outfit. That's so fashion-conscious that it makes my head hurt. I'm lucky to get out the door with my pants zipped and my shoes tied.

On the flip side, I just bought my new purse and I couldn't be happier. I found it at Bath and Body Works (Used your gc, Nate - Thanks!) It really came with the Sweet Pea collection inside (which I love), but to be honest, I bought the whole thing for the purse. It was that cute to me.

Doesn't it just scream, "Spring! Summer! Fun! Not a care in the world! Let's go play!"

Ummm, so I don't show the inside too often...

Look at all that stuff! How did I get all that in there?

Now normally I don't carry a CD in my purse, but I want my boss to listen to it. I think it's right up his alley. By the way, it's Norah Jones' latest CD Not Too Late and it's fabulous. I love her sultry voice and the way that she blends pop, soul, folk, and country with a seasoning of jazz. She writes her own music with her boyfriend Lee Alexander who is also the bass player; the songs are real, lively and sticky - I mean that the songs stick with you after you've listened to them. I've been singing the second song on the CD for the last day and I only listened to it a few times. Can you tell that I love it? And sadly, no. I wasn't given the CD as a review...

I've got all the essentials of a mom - keys - one set for cars and one set for work; checkbook; wallet (with little money); tissues; shopping lists; papers with notes written on them; lipstick; reading glasses - they're the new addition to my ever increasing age, but I only have to use them when my eyes are tired; checks that need to be deposited in the bank; a necklace that Mr. Right made for my birthday 3 years ago; the pink cell phone that I didn't want because it's pink (but I like it now); ibuprofen in an expensive container; toenail clippers (I don't know how those got in there!); a drycleaning ticket that I kept forgetting to use until I called Mr. Right and he finally went to go pick the stuff up and my little pen. However, my favorite discover upon unloading my purse is the little spoon... Hey, you never know when you're going to need to taste some ice cream or some other equally yummy dish that will require a tasting spoon. Always be prepared, I say. Always be prepared for any emergency.

Well that's it. I hearby tag Jeana, Antique Mommy, Shannon and Chilihead. I'd love to see what's in their wallets too.