Archive for September, 2010
-image-Insecurity Resurfacing in the Form of…
JEGGINGS.
OH MY DEAR LORD I just purchased leggings…made of denim…with cargo pockets…and ZIPPERS AT THE ANKLES.
I completely blame my insecure high school self — it has to be her. Who else would be mourning the donation of her old Benetton and Esprit sweaters at a time like this? And my light pink hightops? At least I can find some thick black eyeliner in any solid drugstore, RIGHT? Good.
And if the fullblown Panic Shopping isn’t enough self-imposed drama for ya, how ‘bought my sophomore year boyfriend poking me on Facebook?! Out of the blue!? POKING ME. Not requesting to be my friend, but just POKING ME! That’s soooo him. BAH!
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
1:13 pm |
-image-If I Had a Hammer…
As we all know and love, Halloween is the next important kidcentric holiday. It’s not even October, and the boys and I have already:
1. visited the Halloween section of Target numerous times to get scared by the creeping witch and spooky ghost.
2. purchased Halloween decorations for the house and dug up the stored Halloween decorations in the basement.
3. decorated the house.
3a. decorated the outside of the house (thank you, Mr. Squirrel!).
4. bought the kids’ Halloween costumes.
5. bought waaaayyyy too much candy.
6. discovered my stash of Halloween-themed kids books and read all seven of them.
7. bought and baked Halloween cookies.
8. painted pumpkins.
9. carved pumpkins.
10. threw away rotten carved pumpkins.
11. visited the local (awesome) costume store to check out other costumes and decorations.
12. glued & glittered an awesome Martha Stewart Halloween craft bought after Halloween last year.
13. watched the Go Diego Go Halloween DVD.
14. readied all six of our Halloween candy carriers/bags for candy collection.
15. poured over every Costume and/or Halloween-related catalog that has been delivered to us.
16. worn the Halloween costumes and practiced saying “Trick or treat!!!”
So, who here thinks I shot my proverbial Halloween wad?
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
5:32 pm |
-image-High School (Reunion) Musical
My 20 year high school reunion is this weekend. I am going. Commence freak out about what to wear.
Yeah, I should have probably planned ahead for this.
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
9:30 pm |
-image-The Trauma Continues
We took a vacation last month. I could comb through the 2.3 zillion pictures of my boys digging on the beach, or I could post a picture of THIS THING:
which somehow came to be ON MY OWN PERSONAL BODY and which I flicked off faster than I’ve possibly ever moved in my entire life.
I sort of screamed, but my first words to Mr. Squirrel were “get the bug cage and the camera!” Because I knew, in the split second I saw and flicked, that this creature was unlike any other nasty spider I’d ever seen. Let alone found ON MY OWN PERSONAL BODY.
Did I mention that it was ON MY BODY? MY OWN PERSONAL NON-SPIDER-LIKING BODY? Yeah, on my hand.
And YES, Best Friend Whose Parents’ Cottage I Was At, it came INTO THE COTTAGE and came from somewhere NEAR YOUR BELOVED COTTAGE. You’ve been warned.
SO. There it was. Captured and Photographed. In one of my rare moments of smart quick thinking, I moved the bug cage outside since, HELLO, I purchased two of these pieces of crap from CVS a day or two before, and one was completely busted. I saw the spider escape on the wall.
Needless to say, the spider escaped through some crappily non-quality-controlled hole in the netting I’d missed spotting (not that I would have woven it closed with The Thing That Touched My Own Personal Body), but then, I don’t know why…maybe the spider loved that crappy plastic abode, but he returned.
He (or she) made a little nasty web (of death) inside, and then before we left the cottage, one of my kids (yeah, I’ll admit, I forgot which) decided we HAD to take the $3 piece of crap bug house, so Mr. Squirrel being the awesome father he is, scooped Death Spider out with a stick and LET IT GO.
Yes, Best Friend Whose Parents Own This Cottage/Death Spider Retreat, the spider is alive.
And I’m not so sure we’ll return next summer. Because did you see that thing? Seriously.
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
6:00 pm |
-image-And I’m Bringing My Own Model
September 10, 2010 | "project!"
Hello, Tim. I’m ready to show my collection, although it’s only a skirt, a valance and two simple blankets.
Yes, m’dears, I’m taking sewing lessons. I’ve been wanting to for years, and finally, I found the perfect teacher in my next door neighbor’s girlfriend. It’s worked out so well for both of us. She loves to teach, and I finally have an excuse to buy fun fabrics.
It will be absolutely perfect if they don’t break up. Seriously. It’s a concern.
Below you will see my models showing off their travel blankets, sided with fleece on the non-map side.
One of my two beloved muses, Jojo, requested a skirt as soon as he found out I was undertaking this hobby. He wanted a fabric that had “rainbows, flowers and other things that girls like.”
Unfortunately, I hit the least cool fabric store in the area and had the saddest assortment of dated choices (and not in a cool, vintage way). I was desperate and settled on this hideous pattern below, which, of course, Jojo LOVED.
The skirt was worn two days straight, then I think the constant harping of “keep your legs together” and “you have to wear underwear” finally made skirt-wearing not so fun. Who knows if the neighbor girl recovered from the Basic Instinct moment on the front porch.
I’m also finishing up a dress (do not be impressed– I could not do 1/10th of it without my teacher’s help) and beginning on curtains for our basement remodel and hopefully a book sling!
Do any of you (besides Britt) sew? Any websites or books you can recommend?
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
12:42 pm |
-image-My BabyLove(s)
This is The Nugget last summer with my beloved Baby Love, my own, personal obviously well cared for doll from my childhood.
I found Baby Love in a trunk in my parents’ basement last summer. Like all babies! Kidding.
But I was noticing how many unpublished drafts I have, so I thought I’d see what I was thinking, and this adorable photo popped up with a little note about The Nugget, my first doll, and this self-described awesome category of posts — Things I Found in My Parents’ Basement.
How did I let that fall by the wayside?! If only this blog thing had a smell feature, I could also share with you the sewage smell discovered this year whenever the my parents’ washer kicked on. So sad you have to miss out on that!
So last summer, the Nugget discovered BabyLove and fell in love, and we couldn’t leave for home without taking BL with us. He carried her around just like I had (by her hair, naturally). He dressed her just like I did (no clothes, but of course).
It’s a match made in heaven.
Except that he’s already so over her. I don’t even know where Baby Love is.
The Nugget has moved onto real babies. The boy LOOOOOVES him some baby. Today was a big day for the Nug because we had two playdates involving THREE babies under age one. The kid was in heaven. And I was in hoverdom because he always wanted to pet or hug or kiss or sit with the babies. I even found him muttering “baby mine all mine” to himself.
My one mommy friend thinks it’s a sign that we need to provide him with a baby brother or sister. Ha. No.
Stay tuned for more awesomeness found in my parents’ basement.
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
7:34 pm |
-image-The Bed That Satan Built
I’m back. Happy September! August tore me a new one with its traveling and playdates and hotness and everything — I think this was my least blogged month ever. But we’re back from our long trip to the Say Yes! State.
For the most part, it was awesome, but then again, I did have to sleep five nights on the aforementioned Bed That Satan Built (and then sold to Ethan Allen to then sell to my mom who then placed it in the guest room and continues to ignore my subtle comments about its pain-inducing qualities).
Seriously, for being quite the people pleaser (and no, she’s not a prostitute), she will not relent on this bed. Yes, in theory, the bed is from a fine furniture store and appears both comfortable and inviting. BUT. BIG BUT(s):
1. It’s a full. That could really end the discussion right there, but let me just add: two adults should not have to sleep in a full bed especially when I have sub-points. Even worse than subpoints? My inability to indent them to be all subpointy. Sigh. DAMN THAT BED and its associated issues.
1a. The bed has a footboard which makes the squarish full mattress even stubbier and you feel all boxed in.
1a1. So then I can’t even stretch my feet off the bed, which I normally would never do because of this and that (Kevin Bacon + sleeping on back + knife-wielding maniac under bed = lifetime of stomach sleeping/not hanging limbs off of bed).
2. The sheets continually pull off the bed. Sure, mom, the sheets come from yet another fine store, I’m sure, but the elastic went buh-bye around the turn of the century. Waking up with your face planted on the mattress every. single. morning. gets old.
3. The mattress was stuffed by Satan with pain-inflicting Evil. Pure and simple. It honestly makes NO sense why it wouldn’t be comfortable. Box Spring? Check. Well-made mattress? Check. WTF? I don’t know, it must be something inside…something that undulates and pokes and prods and generally does not allow rest. We’re constantly tossing, turning and grumbling.
3a. At one point during this trip, after Mr. Squirrel left to return to work, I decided to try sleeping in different directions. One can’t sleep sideways, as it’s too narrow — so I did a sort of diagonal, which was not too bad. The next night I slept with my head at the opposite end, on top of the folded comforter and extra blanket in sort of a lumpy/head-raised uncovered by sheets (which I do not like because I can’t cover my neck from these. I have Post Horror Movie Traumatic Sleep Disorder. That’s PHMTSD to you.). Jojo came in to wake me and the wacky position threw him for a pre-breakfast cryfest. I think he thought the bed killed me. It might have tried; luckily, I persevered.
We’re thinking of buying my parents a new guestroom bed for Christmas. Is that selfish?
Hugs to you for sticking with me.
Posted by Mrs. Squirrel @
1:39 pm |
