Women's Broadcast

Oh my gosh! I have been wanting to post about last nights broadcast all day. I had a small problem, though.

Gremlins. In my head.

But they are gone. So on to important topics.

First... We were served a catered meal before the broadcast. Yum. We gathered at our stake center, which luckily is only about 5 minutes from my house. We had 220 women. That is a remarkably HUGE number. Let me explain to those of you out in Utah. Our Stake covers 7 counties.

Yes, 7.

Some women have to drive over 70 miles to get to our stake center. It was very exiting to see so many make the journey. Especially when we still have gas stations here in the Southeast that have not had gas since before the hurricane. Imagine how much we are paying!!!

Anyway. I loved hearing from our stake president first. He rocks. And then IO got to sit with him and discuss the camping trip that our Scouts took Friday night.

And totally gross him out. Good times!

Then we watched the broadcast. So great!

I was so stoked that Elder Uchtdorf spoke. Is it okay to have favorite apostles? Well I hope not cause he is totally my favorite! Have I included enough exclamation points yet? So I know you want to know my favorite part.

Elder Uchtdorf's purple tie. Inspiring....

Scariest part of the broadcast: It was when he told us to be more creative. I think he was trying to inspire us to decorate our houses.

I don't decorate. Really. It has taken me 11 years in this house to hang curtains in my bedroom. The other bedrooms still do not have any. Bare walls. No coffee tables. I just got a couple of end tables. And two matching lamps.

My mother about passed out when she was here in September. She noticed the lamps right away.

So basically I am inspired to dress my husband and sons in purple ties and to fret about my undecorated house.

It was a great broadcast!!!!!

Freud, I need a diagnosis please

Am I the only person that doesn't really enjoy looking at photographs? And of course the ones that I might be in are totally off limits. But I really have this bizarre aversion to looking at photos. Honestly, I like my kids a lot but I see them everyday. I don't need to sit next to them looking at pictures of them. Even baby pictures. I was there.

And then there are home movies. I am like the scrooge of home movies. The kids beg and plead. Mom, Puleeeeze come and see how funny it is when we are throwing the ball, playing in the sand, picking our noses, well, you get the idea. They love it. They could sit and watch themselves for hours. And they do. I actually get uncomfortable when they are watching home movies. I have to move to another room.

So all of my 3 readers, what psychological problem do I have? Is it a phobia? Please, give it a name. I like to take pictures sometimes. And then post them here. I even enjoy doing the posts. But once I am done, I am done. I don't go back and look at old posts. I like looking at everyone Else's pictures and seeing what you are up to.

I am a strange person, I know.

This is really only the tip of the iceberg. I will probably not share the really bizarre stuff. My husband should have a blog and he could just tell my craziness. He could call it, "My psycho non pioneer wife."

Kinda catchy. Okay, not really at all. I am kind of a little giddy tonight. I spent way too much time outside tonight watching the kids kayak.

I will post pics soon.

Because I took lots of pictures. Why did I take lots of pictures? I have no idea, I will post 3 or 4 of them and delete the rest.

Random...

Two quick things before I go to bed tonight.


1) I got a box in the mail today. My totally awesome sassy apron swap partner, Megan sent me a way cool apron plu other cool stuff. Pics coming later.

2) I got Bandit fixed last Thursday. He still acts like a crazed male dog. He is staying out all night. Will this ever go away? I know he is harmless now, but he is still whining and driving us crazy!

Name ideas from the slogan generator

Look below at the slogan generator. It is really fun. I entered Tennessee first and let it give me about 15 slogans before I switched to inputting "Mom". Here are a couple of my favorites.

That's handy, Harry! Stick it in Tennessee


It's that Tennessee feeling


I can't believe I ate the whole Tennessee


I am no closer to making a decision about my name. Now I have more names I like rather than narrowing it down. Most of the advice I have gotten has been to pick something personal. I would like to think of something that we say around the house a lot. Maybe an insider joke. I guess we are not that funny Oh, I am having an epiphany. I always feel Catholic when I say epiphany. Anyway, I think I should somehow draw into my name my greatest daily struggle. It isn't actually great it is awful. Dinner. Not really dinner but the act of convincing certain people in the house that I am not trying to poison them. Maybe I should call this thing Eat Your Dinner! If I have it written at the top of my blog then maybe I wouldn't have to say it so often.

Or maybe some kind of alliteration with Cynthia. All you great poets and writers and middle school teachers think of something that goes with Cynthia.

Cynthia's Snapshots of Life

Succinctly Cynthia

So Cynthia

Oh, if I was a sewing blog I could be Sew Cynthia

****(Head hitting desk... Cynthia going crazy...why am I even worrying about this?)

memes are in the air

Yesterday I was tagged by 2 different people. I was wanting to feel spring in the air, but instead I feel memes in the air. Hey, wait a minute, did someone stick a tag me sign on my back?????



Linda said she would like me to share with you six inconsequential habits, quirks, or things about me that you wouldn't otherwise know. Here are the rules. I will probably break them. I may not even realize I have broken them. I just get a little distracted sometimes.

Link to the person that tagged you
Post the rules on your blog
Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself
Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs
Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website

1.My fingernails curl upward. They have never really been longer than the end of my fingers because they are bizarre and disgusting. Don't even ask me about my toenails. They are the fodder of many jokes at our house. Yes, my family makes fun of me!
2. I still get nervous that there is something under my bed. I am not at all scared to be alone, in fact I love it but rarely get to enjoy it. But the bed just gives me the willies. I won't stand right next to it at night if I am alone. Sometimes I even do a bit of a jump from a few feet away.
3. I think root beer is the most disgusting thing on the planet. even when the kids eat root beer candy the smell makes me gag. But I love caffeine free Dr. Pepper.
4. We had to disconnect the little safety latch on the lid to our washer over ten years ago because it malfunctioned. I now have the opportunity to stand and watch the laundry swish around. And I really like to just stand there and watch it. How excited would I be to have a front loader? Very, cause I could be across the room and see the laundry swishing!
5.I like the grey hairs that I am getting and have no plans to color my hair.
6. I am going to go and make myself a bowl of Cream of Wheat in a minute. I love Cream of Wheat!

I tag:
1. Gretchen
2. Heather
3. Michelle
4. Haley
5. Ben and Mandy
6. Chrys

Whew**wipes sweat from brow*** That was hard. Gulp. Now I have another one!

Allie Bear at FridayNightAmbulance tagged me for this one.

Here are the rules:-Link to the person who tagged you.-Leave a comment on their blog so that their readers can visit yours.-Post the rules on your blog.-Share the seven (7) most famous or infamous people you have met. Or go with the original 7 weird things about yourself.-Tag 7 random people at the end of your post.-Include links to their blogs.-Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Umm... these seem slightly similar, but I will do my best.

1. When I was in high school I was in a Benetton commercial. I don't even know if Benetton is still around. In the days before Starbucks leased every corner property in NYC there used to be a Benetton on every corner.
2. I can peel a shrimp in my mouth.
3. I have had a baby elephant run up to me in the wild and stick his trunk down my shirt. They are friendly little buggers!
4. I have walked on the Great Wall of China.
5. I have landed in an International airport that had chickens running through it. And the windows were busted out. They have since built a new airport in Kathmandu, but I am just giving you a heads up.
6. Also want to let you know that the strip search at the airport in Kathmandu is a scam. You DO NOT have to consent to it.
7. I have ridden an elephant. Not at the zoo. We actually rode them for several hours over several days. It is not all it is cracked up to be. But I liked them better than the camels!

I tag:
1. Nekked Lizzards
2. RDH Mom
3. April Showers
4. Swampy (I know you won't follow the rules!)
5. Country Doctors Wife
6. I'm So Funny
7. Wan Family Adventures

My tags have a theme. The first six are people that I actually, physically know. The next 7 are blogging friends.

I am exhausted. And I still have my Friday Feast to do. That may have to wait until tonight!

a pair of pear eaters

Tonight before I came to bed I ate a pear. It was juicy and tasty. I was very happy. It didn't stop me from wanting an entire pan of Gooey Butter Cake Bars, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

When I finished the pear I started to throw it away. I had eaten it to the center. Not through the center. My husband and I started to have a conversation about pears. He says you should eat a pear like a banana. All the way through. I leave the very center. It has a hard line through it. Of course neither of us eats the very ends (the stem end and the booty end).

Okay, I want everyone to tell me how you eat a pear.

Weather I do not like* *edit at bottom of post**

It is raining. No. It is absolutely pouring. The wind is blowing. Lightning and Thunder are fighting with each other. I have a constant desire to go and turn the radio down. Or the television. They aren't turned on. Mother nature, however, is turned up to 10. To quote This Is Spinal Tap. She has drawn an 11 on her volume button, so she is even louder. I get to sit here and worry about my 15 year old who is driving about 60 miles to come home right now. Through the storm. I checked the radar. He will have this storm the whole way. He will be riding with a (hopefully) experienced driver on a *GULP* school bus. I am not in a happy place right now. No one else in my family ever finds a situation like this one even mildly alarming. I am about to have a full fledged panic attack. I hate bad weather when you have to be out in it. i love rain when I am inside. When we are all inside.

He called at 8:45 to say that the game had just ended. And to ask if we were at the game. He really is a kid who plays just for himself. He never knows if we have made the drive to watch the games. He never even looks at the stands. Some of my kids have a hard time playing sports because they spend so much of the time watching us to see if we are watching! This attitude is good and bad. He has no desire to please anyone else. So he is driven, as long as it interests him. That makes school hard. He is an A or F guy. 100s and 0s are usually what are on his report cards.

Eek more thunder and lightning.

*EDIT* He called me at 10:30 to tell me that they were leaving the resturaunt and would be back to school about 11:20. I picked him up at 11:25. We got home about 11:35. THat gave him 6 hours and 35 minutes to shower, sleep, brush teeth, etc, before he had to be back in the car to start the next day. How long can he keep up this pace?

Manic er, umm... I mean FUN Monday

Okay, so today is fun Monday.our assignment was to pick our favorite post. I had a hard time deciding. I finally picked one last night. Did I put it up ? No. And now half of the fun Monday people have come for a looksee and have seen nuttin'.

Arghhh... I have had so much stuff to do today. It is sinful that I am even typing this and not doing one of the 29 billion others things on todays list. At least this actually was onteh list, so I can cross it off. Maybe I should start adding 'sit on couch and stare into space for hours' to my list some days and then I won't feel guilty when that is all I do. I can cross it off the list!
I was torn between the first date stories posts, because they are about Adrian and I, and the gay car dealership.

Gay car dealership won. It still makes me laugh and Adrian and I still think of other silly embellishments to the whole concept. Most of them are too crass for my children to read and since they read this thing everyday, I will just have to keep the rest of it to myself. Sorry!

So here it is:

Friday, November 9, 2007

Funny Ads
On the side bar to the left my Google ads are running. They read my blog and put up ads that are appropriate to the blog content. I have seen cooking, whole grain, baby, lunch box, Halloween costume ideas, etc. They have seemed really relevant to my content.

Until today.

Can anyone explain to me what I said that made them decide that my readers were looking for GAY FRIENDLY CAR DEALERS ? Of course now they will read it in my blog...Do gay people really feel discriminated at heterosexual car dealerships?

Gay guy: ummm... I really want a pretty car. A pink car that has soft interior and a good lighted mirror so I can see to apply my lip gloss. Don't you have something with a cute tushie???

Homo phobic car salesman: Boy, you need a truck. Here is an F150 with a lift kit and mud tires. Get in it , now!!!

Gay guy: NOOOOOOOOOO!Now the gay guy starts whining and crying and stomping his feet and throwing a hissy fit. Truly, he throws a very good hissy fit.The gay guy goes home crying to his boyfriend: they just don't understand me... I wish there was a gay friendly car dealer

And now for your gay shopping pleasure...

SUPER GAY MOTORS AND REPAIR SHOP
c'mon in boys and feel our engines purr
rear end alignments our specialty

I can't believe I just typed that. I am going to go and scrub my bath tub as punishment!
I could go on forever but my kids read this. Can you tell I ate cookies for breakfast? I am super hyper!!!!!!!!
Have I alienated you all now? Please don't run away screaming and renting your clothes... I made muffins. Really yummy good for you muffins. I will post them later today!!
I shall redeem myself!!!
Posted by Cynthia at 11/09/2007 08:42:00 AM
Labels: my crazy thoughts

Office Talk

Rumor has it that people that work in office buildings gather around the water cooler and gossip. I know this to be true because I read the Blondie comic strip and I see Dagwood involved in this kind of activity. I think Mr. Dithers doesn't approve. They talk about dates they had the night before or their MIL. Maybe they gripe about the boss. Any kind of mindless gossip. Now, I know that gossiping is a sin. Lucky for me I do not work in an office, so I do not have to try to avoid these gossipy office situations.



Stay at home moms have a different cooler to gather around. It doesn't have water in it.





It has milk in it.



I hang out and talk with my co-workers at the Wal-Mart milk cooler. We exchange parenting tips and recipes. I only involve myself in wholesome conversations. You do believe me, right? It was at the milk cooler a few weeks ago that I ran into a friend. I spent a few minutes teasing her son who was int the buggy when I noticed this next to him: Actually he had one that had the product in the container, I forgot to take a pic before I had it out.

I have a little problem that I really don't want to admit too. Oh, you really really want to know? Alright then. Since I started having kids my hair has started falling out in clumps. Massive amounts of hair. My husband used to plunge the shower drain and pull up nasty, giant hairballs.
My kids all liked to watch this. And talk about how disgusting I am. Like I do it on purpose. Remember we don't have broadcast TV, so the kids take their entertainment where they can get it.

So I bought a drain cover. It so did not work. I would watch the hair slide right under it as I showered.

But then I saw this one:

See the way that it fits down into the drain. Wonderful. No sneaky hairs escaping down that drain. And those little hairy things. Perfect. This thing catches EVERY HAIR. We are one happy family, now.

Now that we don't have giant hairballs to plunge and discuss the kids are going to have to start watching my husband trim his nose hairs!

smothered in love

Tonight my absolutely amazing, handsome, talented, smart, funny, irreplaceable husband had an idea. You may be thinking: Wow, I bet this guy had a great idea! Well, all of you are sooo smart, also. It was a great idea. It was a fabulous idea. You see, today I did what any anal retentive, always have to do everything herself, self proclaimed martyr hostess does the day before Thanksgiving. I cooked ALL DAY LONG. And I wouldn't have had it any other way. I love to be the hostess and cook. I don't really care about decorating the house, which is weird, they usually go hand in hand. Oh, but cook. I am a slave to my stove.

Now, as you know, all serious chefs are tyrants in the kitchen. My prep cooks have felt my sting today. They have taken it in stride, even when I decided that we had to abandon the edible turkey place cards because they just looked to untidy at the hands of the 6 year old artist. Yes, holidays really are about me, not the children. They are just along for their ride. And to be scullery maids. No, I am kidding. I had a pecan pie made by Ella. A pumpkin pie by Harrison. Rachel made the cranberry sauce. Molly cubed the bread for the stuffing. Rachel cubed the cornbread. Ella and Molly peeled the potatoes for the mashed potatoes. Ella also made the sweet potato casserole.

hey wait, I think all I did was brine the turkey. And clean out places in the fridge for the stuff. Oh wait! I made the mashed potatoes. I don't even like mashed potatoes. tomorrow I will be the only chef, except for the corn casserole that I am leaving to Lucy.

Uh Oh, William didn't cook anything. But, he did clean the bathroom. I am sure we can put him on eating duty tomorrow and he will do just fine. I would say I would put him on clean up, but I *gulp* bought *gulp* paper plates! I know! i don't do paper plates! And I have done them twice in a month. I also did them for a baby shower in the beginning of November. I am not sure what this means. Next thing you know I will be throwing water bottles away like they are disposable. Or not reusing my plastic silverware. I shudder to think of the financial and environmental consequences of my wanton actions. I am living on the edge, baby.

So anyway, my point was to share with you my husband's great idea. Since I was busy cooking, he thought it would be fun to go out to eat for dinner. SMART MAN! We have this tricky thing we do. Applebees has happy hour from 3 until 7 Monday thru Thursday. Appetizers are half price. We go and only order appetizers. Yummy and economical. We ordered 8 appetizers and one regular meal that was around $12. ( a little blonde moment on Lucy and Rachel's part. Apparently we needed to explain a little more to them how a restaurant menu works, i.e. the appetizers are the items listed under the section marked "appetizers". We will work on that skill next time, baby steps, you know.) Anyway, we ordered all that and it was $38 before tax. Pretty cool, huh? Tuesday nights kids eat free, also.

So William decided to order the Nachos Huevos. I think that is what it was called, the name isn't as important as the ingredients. Here was the description:

Tortilla chips smothered in love

Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but we were pretty darn curious what love tasted like. so when the waitress came to take our order, William asked," What exactly is on the nachos?"

Her response,"Ground beef, beans, cheese sauce, jalapenos, tomatoes, lettuce, and sour cream."

Wow, Adrian was so excited. So many deep questions answered in one trip to Applebees. Love tastes just like a taco salad.

Any more questions? Just ask the Applebees Oracles. They pretend to be a copywriter in their menu department!

Funny Ads

On the side bar to the left my Google ads are running. They read my blog and put up ads that are appropriate to the blog content. I have seen cooking, whole grain, baby, lunch box, Halloween costume ideas, etc. They have seemed really relevant to my content. Until today. Can anyone explain to me what I said that made them decide that my readers were looking for GAY FRIENDLY CAR DEALERS ? Of course now they will read it in my blog...

Do gay people really feel discriminated at heterosexual car dealerships?

Gay guy: ummm... I really want a pretty car. A pink car that has soft interior and a good lighted mirror so I can see to apply my lip gloss. Don't you have something with a cute tushie???

Homo phobic car salesman: Boy, you need a truck. Here is an F150 with a lift kit and mud tires. Get in it , now!!!

Gay guy: NOOOOOOOOOO!

Now the gay guy starts whining and crying and stomping his feet and throwing a hissy fit. Truly, he throws a very good hissy fit.

The gay guy goes home crying to his boyfriend: they just don't understand me... I wish there was a gay friendly car dealer

And now for your gay shopping pleasure...

SUPER GAY MOTORS AND REPAIR SHOP

c'mon in boys and feel our engines purr

rear end alignments our specialty

I can't believe I just typed that. I am going to go and scrub my bath tub as punishment!

I could go on forever but my kids read this. Can you tell I ate cookies for breakfast? I am super hyper!!!!!!!!

Have I alienated you all now? Please don't run away screaming and renting your clothes... I made muffins. Really yummy good for you muffins. I will post them later today!!

I shall redeem myself!!!

Are YOUR trick or treat bags full?

So, we are now really starting to feel like it is fall. The weather feels cooler, the Dogwoods have turned red. Life is good, I was pretty happy. Until today.

I went to do a little grocery shopping this morning. I put about 30 items into the buggy. Milk, pumpkin, OJ, green leaf lettuce, hamburger, corn...you get the picture. What do I not need to buy on November 1? what do NONE of us need more of on November 1????? Those #@* after holiday sales. Those people at Wal-Mart had the nerve to put big bins of CANDY in the center aisle at 50% off. They should all be strung up by their toe nails!! Candy should cost MORE after a holiday so I won't buy anymore. SHAME, GUILT, EMBARRASSMENT, MORE SHAME. I will have to flog myself with a wet noodle later. Not only did I buy 4 (yes, that says 4!!!) bags of candy today, NONE of it is left. We ate it all after a dinner that everyone liked and ate plenty at. I was stuffed when we got done. I how am going to PUKE all over this blasted computer. I am a complete food idiot. I ate candy that I don't even like that much. Save me from myself......

My dear friends, do NOT go into a store until the Halloween candy is gone. Save yourselves. The Christmas candy is there already, but that is safe because it is full price. We can say no to it!

I would post a picture...of empty wrappers and me doubled over clutching my stomach but I know you are hoping that I don't!! I guess I will just have to sleep off this agony...

hmmm do I dare say only healthy food tomorrow?