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Friday, March 20th, 2009
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12:46 pm - Friday Five
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1. I updated the What's New portion of my website with an entry about the parks we've camped at over the years. My mom just emailed to tell me how much she liked it. I could have a second career as a reviewer, she said. Aw, thanks, Mom! If that second career pays as well as my first career... watch out dollar store!
2. I'm sick with a sore throat, aching everything, and laryngitis. With the kids at the tail-end of their week off school and me without a voice, I've had to resort to the wide-eyed "Zip it, pronto" and the narrow-eyed "That's enough, knock it off" looks in public more than normal.
3. We've lived in our house for ten years and my husband and I are finally getting around to renovating the '70s out of our bedroom. I believe the previous owners of our house must have used a substance similar to Krazy Glue to attach a wallpaper border around the room. I now dislike the previous owners of our house.
4. We've baked two products from our cross-border shopping trip loot. Duncan Hines Peanut Butter Cup brownies and the Toll House Easter Swirled Choco Chip Cookies. Both were delicious, but I give the edge to the brownies.
5. Now that it's officially Spring, I only have two months to try and fit myself into Summer clothes. That's a scary epiphany.
current mood:  slug-like
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| Friday, March 13th, 2009
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12:11 pm - Friday Five
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1. Next week, kids are out of school for March Break. My girls and I took a trip across the border to buy all the amazing Pilsbury, Duncan Hines, and Toll House products we can't get here (ohhhh, the choices you guys have in the States--when the doors open at Meijer, my girls and I feel like we're stepping into a food paradise! lol). We're going to bake like crazy next week.
2. My daughter had a headache at lunch, so I gave her a ride back to school. Kids were filing out the doors and we suspected a fire alarm. A group started to gather at the edge of the property and I got the feeling everything wasn't all smiles and rainbows. I drove home, but now I feel guilty that I didn't call and give the school a head's up. Do you let high school kids work those kinds of things out for themselves when violence *might* occur, or do you intervene? I have a hard time removing my Safety Mom hat.
3. I read about Jenny McCarthy singing the praises of botox. It's her saviour. I thought she must be, what, forty-two, maybe forty-three? She's thirty-six, for crying out loud! Younger than me by five months. Thanks for making me feel like I need botox, Jenny McCarthy.
4. I no longer feel hopeful that my WWII novel will sell, so I'm depressed about that.
5. The sun is shining and the snow is gone. 'Nuff said. :)
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| Friday, February 6th, 2009
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10:13 am - The nephews are here
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The week-long vacation with my little nephews is underway. I am the mom of older kids--twelve and up. I had no idea how easy my life has gotten. Now I know. :)
Time to get out the Play-Doh...
current mood:  tired but having fun!
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| Thursday, February 5th, 2009
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8:22 am - The Mom Meme
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Snagged from ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) jemacleod. How much *do* I remember about my first baby?
1. WAS YOUR PREGNANCY PLANNED? Ahhhh, noooo...
2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME? Test? No. When she was born? Yes.
3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS? Shock, but surprisingly happy, too.
4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU? No
5. HOW OLD WERE YOU? 20
6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT? A weird old-school test with a little ball that changed from blue to green if positive. It turned green!
7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST? My now husband. In the college cafeteria.
8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX? Nope, not with my first.
9. DUE DATE? August 6th
10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? I felt nauseous pretty much every waking moment for three months, but I never actually threw up
11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? I'm not sure...
12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST? Leg cramps and sore hips while sleeping
13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX? Girl! :)
14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING? No
15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY? 25
16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER? Yes, a small one
17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW? I knew
18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? Not really. But she flipped over to breech at 39 1/2 weeks!
19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? Toronto, ON
20 HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR? None! (For that baby...)
21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL? Husband. Very early morning. We drove past a guy jogging in a bright pink and purple spandex outfit and had a laugh.
22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH? The regular hospital folks who watch C-sections. And my husband.
23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION? C-section
24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN? Well, yes. Major surgery hurts.
25. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH? 7 lbs 14 oz
28. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN? About 5 pm
29. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER? Katherine Elizabeth
30. HOW IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY? She's a great kid who loves to bake and play guitar. I LOVE her.
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| Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009
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3:25 pm - Teaser Tuesday
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I'm doing a quick read-thru of my historical fiction, Violins of Autumn. Here's the end of Chapter 21:
Within one of the rotting logs that littered the forest floor, a Deathwatch Beetle banged his head against the wood in search of a mate. Superstitious people like my aunt believed the noise, which sounded remarkably like the ticking of a watch, foretold an impending death. Her sister had passed away one night when they were children, only minutes after the family heard a Deathwatch quietly ticking in the bedroom rafters.
I thought bad omens were a load of hooey.
The rumbling of a train grew louder, drowning out the beetle. I fought the urge to stir up some action too soon.
Then, as if from a magical door in the forest, a uniformed German soldier appeared on the field, not ten feet from me. I held my breath and watched him, the man who rivaled my invisibility, with a certain amount of curiosity mixed with fear.
He cocked his head, considering a point in the distance. Noiselessly, I leaned forward.
Spying between two trees, I caught sight of a dark form, that of a woman on a bicycle, gliding alongside the tracks.
The soldier knelt to one knee. He brought out his weapon. Nestled the buttstock into the crook of his shoulder.
I had killed a man before, though purely by accident.
My hands did not need light to see. They went to their places, as if the gun were an extension of my body. The silenced barrel of my Sten rose in front of me.
I did not miss.
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| Friday, January 30th, 2009
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10:45 am - Friday Five
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1. Today is a PD Day. I had insomnia the other night until 5 a.m., so I really wanted to catch up on sleep this morning. My husband, who is out of town, called me at 8:15. He let the phone ring five times, suddenly remembered that today is a day off school, and hung up at the same time I picked up.
2. I have the chattiest cat ever. She could never survive in the wild. Predators would hear her coming for miles. "HerrrOOO. Herroo?? MerrooooOO!" She can sound very whiny and sad when nobody pays attention to her at six a.m. At least she's no longer tipping over cups of water on the nightstand or turning on the clock radio to get my attention.
3. I enjoyed the return of Hell's Kitchen. Finally, they have some chefs on there that can actually cook. And, of course, some that can't. Chef Ramsay needs to scream at somebody.
4. Because my husband is out of town I've been writing a lot more to stave off boredom.
5. As much as I like historical fiction, I am so glad to be writing contemporary YA again. So glad.
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| Friday, January 23rd, 2009
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1:18 pm - Friday Five
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1. My horoscope said today would be my luckiest day of the year. I got a rejection.
2. A very nice young man installed our home security system yesterday. I feel safer already.
3. I'm back into a semi-regular treadmill routine again. It is much needed. But my mp3 player has a headphone jack issue and plays sound through only one earbud. I can't run without music!
4. I am very glad it's Friday.
5. In early February, my adorable nephews--10 months and 3 1/2--are coming over for a one week vacation. I love talking to three-year-olds. They crack me up.
current mood:  cold
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| Monday, January 19th, 2009
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4:07 pm - Ha! If only...
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| Wednesday, January 7th, 2009
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9:33 am - 2009 can only get better
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My year got off to a rocky start, unfortunately. While we were out of town to celebrate New Year's Eve with my husband's family, our house was broken into. This is the first time we've ever been robbed and it was a frightening experience for all of us.
New Year's Eve was so much fun that my brother-in-law suggested we stay over another night. We love his family's new home and we always have fun together, so we decided to stay. But around ten o'clock that night, our oldest daughter got an instant message from her boyfriend. While walking home, he and a friend had noticed that the lights were on at our house. He knew my daughter wasn't home, because he'd talked to her earlier. So, they came up to the house to have a look. When they saw that the front door had been kicked off it's hinges and was on the hallway floor, and that the phone had been knocked off and was also on the floor, they ran the rest of the way home to call the police.
At first, we thought maybe he was pulling a prank on us. We couldn't imagine that our front door had really been kicked down. So, I called friends who live in our neighbourhood. After what felt like an eternity, the couple called back to say that our door had definitely been kicked down. Within minutes we were packed up and on on the highway. We drove home as fast as we could. That hour-long drive, not knowing what had been stolen or if our cat was safe, was very stressful and sad. My kids were so upset about the cat that my oldest decided to call a friend on my husband's cell phone. Immediately, the friend said, "My dad and I will go check!" Although the police wouldn't let them into the house, they did pass along the news that our cat was fine.
An officer was still at our home when we arrived, but we spent the first few minutes in shock, racing throughout the house to see what was missing. Dresser drawers were dumped. My oldest daughter started to cry when she saw that her room had been ransacked. I held myself together pretty well, until I saw that my pink sapphire necklace--a gift from my husband--was gone. I broke down in front of the police officer when I told him that it was stolen (which embarrassed me afterward). The necklace was worth only a few hundred dollars, but it was the only really nice piece of jewelry I've ever owned. It was so pretty. After checking with jewelry stores we now know that the exact necklace can't be replaced.
I won't go into details about what was taken... but many of my kids' Christmas presents were stolen, in addition to birthday and Christmas gifts they've received over the last few years. What kind of person breaks into a home shortly after Christmas and steals things that obviously belong to children?? That's one of the things about all this that just blows my mind. And my kids were so shaken up the night we returned home that they insisted I stay awake with them all night. We took up places in the family room on the pull-out sofa, cushions on the floor, and a recliner. None of us got more than a few hours of sleep.
I keep reminding myself that my family and pets are okay. Doors can be fixed and, for the most part, objects can be replaced. But I'm having a hard time shaking the feeling that we need to move away, out of the city. No matter where we live, I will never be without a security system in my home again.
** In a bit of good luck, I took my laptop, which contains all my writing work and family photos, out of town with me at New Year's, so my kids could watch movies on it at their grandpa's. Just imagine if I'd left it at home! And my oldest realized that if we hadn't taken my laptop, she wouldn't have been able to receive the IM from her boyfriend.
** A big "thank-you!" to everyone who helped us out that night and in the following days.
current mood:  slowly getting back to normal
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| Thursday, December 4th, 2008
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7:54 am - My driving risk level is...
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| Wednesday, October 29th, 2008
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8:36 am - Snow in October is not cool
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This is the view from my front window this morning.
A thunderstorm brought this last night. It's still snowing now. And trees are heavy with snow-covered leaves, so fallen branches, some of them huge, are all over yards, roads and sidewalks (and in my pool, I see, but they didn't push the cover in, thank goodness). It took my husband forever to get to work this morning, because a branch about thirty feet long had fallen across one lane of traffic at the end of our street. The giant Maple in my backyard is looking very droopy and sad, and I hope it hangs in there.
And as soon as I woke up, my first thought was: Ohmigod, I donated the kids' Winter boots! My oldest went off to school in running shoes and a hoodie, like today's just a regular Fall day, so she didn't care about the lack of boots. And, luckily, my middle kid had her boots stuffed into the back of her closet. But I feel badly that my little guy had to walk to school in his running shoes. Who knew Winter would visit out of the blue like this? Not me, apparently.
current mood:  unprepared!
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| Thursday, October 16th, 2008
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2:55 pm - Procrastinating with a meme
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"Getting to know you"
1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:30
2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds. I don't have any, but I'd like some!
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Brokeback Mountain, with my SIL
4. What is your favorite TV show? The Office, 30 Rock, and I'm loving True Blood
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Fibre 1 cereal with blueberries
6. What is your middle name? Chanda
7. What food do you dislike? cucumbers and celery
8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Death Magnetic, Metallica
9. What kind of car do you drive? Dodge Caravan
10. Favorite sandwich? Ham and swiss with tomatoes
11. What characteristic do you despise? selfishness
12. Favorite item of clothing? Hoodies
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Italy
14. What is your favorite way to pass the time of day? Watching TV with the family
15. Where would you retire to? Someplace on the lake in Kincardine.
16. What was your most memorable birthday? 16th-friends took me on a blind-folded scavenger hunt that ended up at the beach
17. Furthest place you are sending this ? hmmmm, doesn't apply?
18. Person you expect to send it back first? someone who's bored or procrastinating
19. When is your birthday? June 13
20. Day or night person? NIGHT!
21. What is your shoe size? 8
22. How tall are you? 5'2"
23. ?
24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? Unfortunately, no.
25. What did you want to be when you were little? Children's book author
26. How are you today? All over the place
27. What is your favorite flower? Tulips, preferably pink
28. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? November 13-a visit from my very cute nephews
29. What are you listening to right now? My daughter eating an after-school snack.
30. What was the last thing you ate? Leftover lasagna.
31. Do you wish on stars? Yes, sometimes.
32. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Turquoise
33. How is the weather right now? Cool and cloudy
34. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Steve
35. What is your favorite soft drink? Diet Pepsi
36. Favorite restaurant? I don't really have one
37. Hair color? Dark brown
38. What was your favorite toy as a child? Dolls
39. Summer or winter? Summer
40. Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate
41. Do you want your friends to email you back? Of course
42. When was the last time you cried? Who knows. I'm a cyborg. Though I did get a little teary over True Blood the other night.
43. What is under your bed? boxes of excess laminate flooring
44. What did you do last night? Watched a bit of TV and went to bed early
45. Are you afraid of Death? Yes, very.
46. Salty or sweet? Sweet
47. How many keys on your key ring? 3
48. How many years at your current job? Some people might say I don't have a job... But I'll say 9 1/2.
49. Favorite day of the week? Sunday--I usually get to just chill out.
50. Do you make friends easily? Sort of, but I don't go out of my way to do that.
51. How many people will you send this to? LJ users
52. How many will respond? Not sure.
53. Do you like finding out all this stuff about your friends? I do!
current mood:  blah
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| Friday, September 26th, 2008
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9:29 am - Survivor's back! Yay!
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Two hours of Survivor last night. Didn't it look amazing in HD? Well, except now everybody's bad skin is practically exploding off the screen. Ick. But the scenery sure was gorgeous. Like Marcus, for instance. Gotta love a hot doc.
Jeff Probst is blogging about this season of Survivor on Entertainment Weekly. He's very candid and funny, so if anybody would like to read his thoughts on last night, you can find them HERE.
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| Thursday, September 18th, 2008
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12:29 pm
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I give you yet another meme, this one courtesy of jbknowles. And it ain't pretty!
Take a picture of yourself right now.
Don't change your clothes, don’t fix your hair...just take a picture.
Post that picture with NO editing.
Post these instructions with your picture.
At 7:50 a.m. Pre-coffee. I am so not a morning person. Can you tell?
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| Monday, September 8th, 2008
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1:53 pm - Another meme
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d_michiko_f has tagged me for a meme. And I'm a sucker for memes. Here goes:
1.How many songs are on your iPod?
778. And my oldest daughter is constantly sneaking her favorite music onto my mp3 player. I hate it when I'm out for a walk and all of the sudden I'm listening to Brad Paisley or Emerson Drive.
2. What do you do before bedtime?
Watch TV. Sometimes I finish cleaning up the kitchen.
3.What magazines do you have subscriptions to?
None. I used to have a subscription to People, but I let it run out.
4. What is your favorite scent?
Cookies baking
5. If you had been born the opposite sex, what would your parents have named you?
I honestly don't know. This has never been brought up.
6. What is your theme song?
Probably the theme song for Deadwood.
7. Do you trust easily?
No.
8. Do you generally think before you act, or act before you think?
I usually overthink before I act.
9.Is there anything that has made you unhappy these days?
Yes.
10. Do you have a good body-image?
Yes, when I'm working out regularly on the treadmill. If I feel out of shape, like everything isn't holding together all that well, then no.
11. Is being tagged fun?
Yes. It gives me a reason to write something in my blog.
12. What websites do you visit daily?
I have too many to list. People.com, ew.com, canoe.ca, cnn.com, facebook.com to name a few.
13. What have you been seriously addicted to lately?
Diet Pepsi
14. What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is?
Kind, thoughtful, and a lover of good food
15. What's the last song that got stuck in your head?
I'm not too sure, but I usually have a song stuck in my head
16.What's your favorite item of clothing?
My red hoodie from Mark's Work Warehouse. And my Kenneth Cole jeans that were a huge bargain-buy at Costco.
17. Do you think Rice Crispies are yummy?
Not anymore, unless they have sugar and strawberries on them.
18. What would you do if you see saw $100 lying on the ground?
I'd probably try to locate the person who'd lost it.
19. What items could you not go without during the day?
The computer. And the vacuum.
20. What should you be doing right now?
Writing. And vacuuming.
I haven't been keeping up with this meme, so I don't know who to tag. Feel free to consider yourself tagged!
Edited to add: I tag jemacleod! :)
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| Tuesday, June 17th, 2008
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3:27 pm - A meme
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Snagged from d_michiko_f. I have about a million and one things to do today. So... it makes perfect sense to instead do a meme!
Answer with one word only!
1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Where is your significant other? downtown
3. Your hair? ponytail
4. Your mother? visiting
5. Your father? distant
6. Your favorite thing? bike
7. Your dream last night? unremarkable
8. Your favorite drink? pop
9. Your dream? travel
10. The room you're in? cluttered
11. Your hobby? jogging
12. Your fear? sharks
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? here
14. Where were you last night? home
15. What you're not? skinny
16. Muffins? nope
17. One of your wish list items? RV
18. Where you grew up? Kincardine
19. The last thing you did? mop
20. What are you wearing? jeans
21. Your TV? on
22. Your pets? loved
23. Your computer? gift
24. Your life? hectic
25. Your mood? okay
26. Missing someone? nephews
27. Your car? van
28. Something you're not wearing? jewelry
29. Favorite store? costco
30. Your summer? jam-packed
31. Like someone? Jake
32. Your favorite color? pink
33. When is the last time you laughed? today
34. Last time you cried? dunno
35. Who will resend this? huh?
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| Wednesday, June 11th, 2008
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1:16 pm - Cop vs. Robber
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Here's a quick Lego movie my son uploaded to Youtube today. It's a little jumpy. And ZOOMED. But I think it's cute.
current mood:  busy
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| Wednesday, May 14th, 2008
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2:18 pm - Meme
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I've been tagged by melissawyatt for this meme:
1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer. What were you doing ten years ago?
Living in Orangeville. Working part-time at a crappy but socially fulfilling job at Hockley Valley Resort. Like Melissa, I was also changing diapers.
What are five things on your to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
1. Stress about the massive, dead Poplar in my backyard.
2. Go to the grocery store to pick up dishwasher tabs.
3. Run dishwasher
4. Clean the upstairs bathroom
5. Take out the vacuum. Look at it. Probably use it. What are some snacks you enjoy?
Potato chips--dill pickle, salt and vinegar, roast chicken
Doritos
Popcorn
Chocolate-covered popcorn
Almonds
Cookies What would you do if you were a billionaire?
Travel to Italy, Australia, and the UK
Get in amazing shape
Buy the RV of my dreams to tour Canada and the US (dream big, redneck, dream big!)
Buy a waterfront cottage in Kincardine
Rescue lots of kittens and puppies
Adopt two or three kids
Move to my dream home in the country What are three of your bad habits?
Interrupting people when I'm excited
I love a good glass of wine or three
Watching way too much TV
What are five places where you have lived?
Kincardine, ON
Sarnia, ON
Toronto, ON
Orangeville, ON
London, ON What are five jobs you have had?
Maid at a hotel
Housekeeping assistant at a women's shelter
Maid at a resort
Worked nights doing laundry and cleaning common areas at a resort (seeing a pattern here?)
Writer What six people do you want to tag?
I'll tag four...
faerie_writer
aprilhenry
haworth_attard
jemacleod
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| Monday, May 12th, 2008
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9:13 am - Mother's Day
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Conversation between me and oldest daughter yesterday:
Me: This is the nicest Mother's Day ever.
Her: Why?
Me: Well, Dad and B. got me pretty pink tulips, then Dad got me a pretty pink drink while I watched Little People, Big World, and Dad's going to make my favorite dinner.
Her: ...
Me: That's all a mom needs to be happy.
Her: So... all moms want is flowers, booze, and dinner?
Me: Yup. That sounds about right.
The whole day was relaxing and wonderful. Suspiciously so. Until they announced the winner of Survivor. That, I didn't enjoy.
LJ moms, I hope your Mother's Day was as close to a day off as it could get!
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| Friday, April 25th, 2008
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8:42 am - Bogged down
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Last night, daughter #2 and I went out to look for a grad dress (an ARGH-post unto itself). And while I was out, my husband thought it would be hilarious to answer the phone with, "City Morgue. You stab em, we slab em." He thought the caller was a friend of daughter #1. It was her high school math teacher.
Is anybody else finding it difficult to squeeze writing time into their lives right now? This time of year brings on such an onslaught of yard work, added on to all the housework, and exercise-time, and the demands of kids and pets. I'm feeling very crunched for time, like if I slow down for even a few minutes everything will go to hell in a hand-basket. Subsequently, I've shoved writing to the bottom of my priority list, and I feel guilty about it. Do I really have less time, or am I avoiding writing because it's the hardest thing on my to-do list? It takes far more mental effort to move a plot forward than it does to rake a yard or mop a floor.
It's raining this morning, so I'm going to open my manuscript and see what happens. Fingers crossed that I don't go clean out the fridge...
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about to hit the malls
