Aubrey's Antics: Mud

So, um...Aubrey and The Boy Next Door played in the mud this afternoon. I guess this is the downside to having a river in my backyard?

Spring Break 2010- BEACH OR BUST!

Spring Break AIN'T what is used to be. It's 9am on a Thursday morning and I already have sweat trickling down my back from cleaning, climbing in the attic to find swim suits, and packing. It's very different from "Gulf Shores or Bust 1995", (and HOLY crap that was 15 years ago!) but I'm looking forward to it all the same. Even though it means there is a road trip involved and one of my kids will inevitably throw up in the car.

Me and my girls will be spending the week with my Momma, Shuggie at the beach. I'm really looking forward to seeing my sister, my nephew and just the blessing of being able to spend time with my Mom without anything on the agenda other than playing with the kids.

How about you? I'm just wondering what all my Chicks will be up to for Spring Break this year..

Robin's Chicks- Weekly Article

Click HERE to read about why I decided to give up on being "perfect."

Momma Said: Sweep-A-Meal-Later

I've decided to start a new housekeeping trend...still working on a name for it, maybe...Sweep-A-Meal-Later.

See here's my problem- after my kids eat one meal it is impossible, impossible, to sweep the food up off the floor. For dinner tonight we had grilled chicken, broccoli and rice and all the little spilled and far-flung tidbits just balled up and got stuck to my socks, but did NOT end up where I wanted them...in the dust pan.

After much research (read: slackassery) I have discovered the same is true for Cheerios. Wet Cheerios simply refuse to be swept or vacuumed up, and I'm not bending over a bazillion times a day to get all those little pieces. For several reasons:
1) If I wanted to bend over I would go to the gym,
2) When I DO go to the gym the backs of my legs are sore and I DON'T want to bend over and pick up all that crap
3) I'm pretty sure I would eventually black out from the sudden and extreme changes in my blood pressure...it's a health risk, y'all. AND
4) Why should I worry about it when I can simply Sweep-A-Meal-Later and vacuum them up in 5 seconds flat with my handy-dandy cordless vacuum, like it's my job? (I mean, I get that it IS "my job", but you feel me right?)

All that to say this, if you come to my house in the morning and there is still rice and broccoli on my floor, or you come by at lunch time and there are Cheerios plastered about, it isn't mere slackassery you are witnessing, my friends.

No.

It's a genius with a plan.


PS Sadie published this post before I had finished it, so if you read it and broccoli was misspelled or whatever, Sadie says, "Oops, sorry."

Emma Sings Grand Ole Flag

Once again, ladies and gentlemen, the vocal stylings of Emma O'Bryant...this one goes out to her Grammie Plum, who is absolutely nuts over any and everything patriotic.

Super (Silly) Mom: Andrea Goto

It’s time again to introduce you to one of my favorite Super (Silly) Moms. I met Andrea Goto at the Savannah, Georgia YMCA in a Spin class. She is a mother, a writer, an athlete and a terrible cook (so she says.) Andrea writes a column for Paula Deen.com, called The Culinary Coward where she documents her haphazard kitchen experiences and is also accompanied by a comic strip her uber-talented, artist husband illustrates and writes, along with a blog that never fails to make me laugh out loud. Chicks, meet my friend Andrea.

Tell us a little about your writing background.

I taught first-year composition classes at Georgia Southern University until I became pregnant. After my daughter’s birth, I stayed home for about 11 months. Once my brain began to atrophy, I decided to go back to school. I just finished up my coursework for the MFA in writing program at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Now I have 10 weeks to write a thesis. Piece of cake. *sigh*

How did you get hooked up with Paula Deen?

The Culinary Coward is a monthly column I write for PaulaDeen.com. It details my usually failed attempts to cook an otherwise awesome Paula recipe. My friend and neighbor, Libbie Summers, is an uber-talented stylist/chef/girl-you-love-to-hate, who also happens to be the food editor for Paula’s website. Libbie asked me to pitch her some ideas for the site. I can write, but I can’t cook. So I took my proverbial lemons and made lemonade. Because, how do you write for a woman like Paula Deen if you don’t know what cheese grits are? Humorously.

Why do you blog?

Because it forces me to write. Instead of just keeping a mental list of things I’d like to write one day—and never get around to doing—I blog. I’ve never been good at journaling, because no one holds me accountable. If I know people will read my writing, then I’m going to do it. It’s also an opportunity to be mostly candid, though my husband says that he’ll divorce me if I divulge anything too personal. I have no shame, so it’s good to have a censor.

What is the worst meal you’ve ever prepared?

I once served a very raw pork loin to dinner guests. And in case you don’t know, rare pork loin is just another word for trichinellosis. As a rule, I avoid meat reformed into shapes—bricks, balls or logs—but I was trying to impress a foodie friend. She wasn’t.

What are your aspirations for your writing?

I’m really enjoying the freedom that writing online gives me and I’m curious to see where the technology is headed. I’m gearing up to get on the Twitter wagon. But I have a big place in my heart for print media. I want to write a memoir, hold it in my hands, and dog-ear the pages.

If Paula asked you to cook with her, would you do it?

Who wouldn’t? The thing some people don’t realize about Paula is that she’s very irreverent and funny—which I appreciate. They could never put us together on Paula’s Home Cookin’ because they’d be bleeping every other word.

What would be your biggest fear about cooking with her?

Setting her on fire.

What would you like to learn how to make?

A soufflé. If I could figure that out, I’d be set. You want breakfast? Spinach and bacon soufflé. Dessert? Chocolate soufflé. Anything with a Frenchy name impresses and paralyzes me.

How do you feel that twitter and social media have affected you as a mom?

As a writer?

As a mom, I have this network of people who get what I’m experiencing and want to share in it. You’re not as isolated. And reading about the misadventures of other parents makes me feel like I suck less.

As a writer, social media provides a number of platforms to get my voice “out there.” If you write well, you’ll find an audience and opportunities will follow. Before, you had to have someone to believe in you, like an editor or agent, and then you’d have to prove your worth by building an audience. Social media has significantly revised the process for writers and publishers.

If you had one week childfree with no responsibilities, what would you do?

I would do the AIDS Lifecycle, a seven-day, 600-mile bike ride from San Francisco to L.A. The first time I did it I was about three weeks pregnant (I thought the Gatorade was making me sick). After my daughter was born, I flew out and did it a second time with my sister-in-law. Next to parenting, it’s the hardest yet most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. Cruising along the coast in the sun, it’s just you, your pain, and your thoughts. It’s very centering. (I told you she was an athlete, no mere mortal could do that!)

Who are your favorite writers?

I can’t get enough of creative nonfiction writers, especially memoirists. Annie Dillard, Joan Didion, Rick Bragg and Adrienne Rich are among my favorites. If they write it, I read it.

Favorite books?

Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried is my all-time favorite. I also keep a copy of Dillard’s The Writing Life next to me when I write. When I get discouraged, I read a few sentences to remember that writing isn’t easy for anyone.

What surprised you most about motherhood?

How patient I am—when it comes to my daughter. I curse at red lights and bite my tongue in line at the grocery store. But when I’m dragging my daughter to the gym and she has to change her socks four times, go to the bathroom twice more and grab an army of superheroes to entertain her on the way, I channel Buddha.

Bonus Question:

If your in-laws called and were going to be at your house in 5 minutes to eat dinner, how would you spend those 5 minutes?

On hold with Papa John’s delivery.

Visit Andrea on her blog, Mom without Makeup,(for the record, this picture is the only time I've ever seen Andrea WITH makeup and she's just as cute without it!) and at The Culinary Coward, on PaulaDeen.com.

Photograph courtesy of Blu Owl Photography, Savannah, Ga.

Aubrey Said: Flowers for Mommy

This afternoon Aubrey and Emma were playing outside with the little girl next door. I was sitting on a blanket in the sunshine just listening to them pretend, which when these three are together means Aubrey is The Momma, Anne G. is The Daddy and Emma is The Baby, and they all speak about 3 octaves higher than they normally do.

They were just playing away when Anne G said, "Hey! Let's pick some flowers for your Mommy! She will love it!"

To which Aubrey responded in her best falsetto, "Oh yesth! And then she will care for us!"

Good thing they brought me those "flowers."