TiP fOr TuEsDaY (post 138)

 
                                                 The past is behind you for a reason.
This tip for Tuesday post is going along with my quote I shared on my fan page today:

‎"The past is never there when you try to go back. It exists, but only in memory. To pretend otherwise invites a mess." ~ Chris Cobbs

 

I swear that blogger's "improved" publishing tools are going to be the death of me as well, but besides that, I was trying to figure out how old I was when this picture was taken. My guess is about 15. Freckled face, very large eyebrows, giant t-shirt and pre-giant framed glasses I started sporting at 16. I'm sparing myself from the pic of those, not necessarily the rest of you...just a FYI! 

Recently there has been sort of a buzz on Twitter, not that I follow the trends on Twitter (yes, I'm stealing this from the blog of someone else, don't judge me!) this is the reason I know about it! (Ha, and you thought that following 40 blogs was a waste of time!) Anyway, I'm done talking to myself here (don't hold your breath on that!) and I'm getting to the point....finally! The Twitter buzz is letters to your 16 year-old self...you know, giving yourself advice and what not. As I mentioned before, I am unwilling to torture myself with the image of my 16 year-old self but, this does not mean I can't remember that age with vivid detail. I am certainly not without loads of advice I could have used as well...so here goes.

Eyebrows. Yep, girl they make two of them for a reason...perhaps you should take a few minutes to separate them for good...and to think I didn't break them up for good until after high school. Why...why...why?

Glasses. For reasons I cannot explain when I got my braces off the year before, it didn't occur to me that I should not get the most giant pair of frames possible and commit beauty suicide. I mean for Pete's sake, when they suggested a smaller frame size why didn't you say yes? I looked like an owl with those giant frames dwarfing my petite features...

Hair. I chopped it short at 14, and that was pretty cute...ringlets and all. I chopped again at 15 and 16 too. I have it short now as well, but I actually fix it fashionably. That and I wear make-up daily and no longer raid my Dad's clothes for flannels and worn out jeans for cut-offs...tsk, tsk. I looked ridiculous constantly until my senior year!

Date someone else too. I dated the same guy from 16 on and now that we are grown and his wife is fat and hates me and I no longer get to be his friend, I wish I had broadened my horizons. It's a shame. 

Okay, so this whole post is making me very glad that the past is behind me! Of course I will always wish that I had done some things differently, but I really am glad the past is passed. Yes, chopped short hair, giant glasses, giant eyebrows and all!  The past IS behind you for a reason, me at 16 could have stayed there too! Here's your tip for Tuesday!

tHiS iS wHaT i LiKe (post 137)

Remington trimmers!

                                       *A quick warning, this segment may get a little hairy! ;0)*
Well, howdy... hows yer Monday treatin' ya? I've been going non-stop for a about 4 days now and I am seriously grateful for the chance to sit a moment and share one of my favorite products with you!
It would be the Remington pen trimmer! I use mine daily for a little deforestation on the facial area. (Say what?!)
              *Serious T.M.I. coming up, feel free to avert your eyes if you are a little squeamish*
Hey, I am convinced that most women have a little too much hair on their faces, but hey this is the modern age and they make stuff for that and it isn't that expensive either! What I love about the pen trimmer is it's easy to use, completely painless, and makes hair go bye-bye in a snap! I was blessed with monstrous eyebrows, genetics...gotta love them! I have spent forever tweazing them into submission and it is a losing battle, if I use my Remington pen trimmer daily (along with a little wax-strip action, that's for next week) though they stay in line! Of course if you are a dude, these handy pen trimmers work great for vanquishing too long nose hair, unruly 'stashes and brows as well!
The link I provided advertises them at 9.99, but I picked up mine for 7.99 at TJ Maxx, SCORE! Oh yeah, and one more thing...these trimmers just use AAA batteries too! CONVENIENT! Try one out today and make that hair just go away! ;0) This is what I like! ;0)

ThOuGhT fOr ThE dAy (post 134)

                                                          photo J. Lamb 2010

 "Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal" ~Martin Luther King, Jr.


Being at peace isn't easy when being parent, but it is doable. When I think back to growing up and observing my friends' parents, the one's I admired had this concept down. Worrying about what we can't change is counterproductive and in direct contrast to the concept of peace within. Peace runs hand in hand with acceptance as well. Acceptance of ourselves will help bring about peace. Just a thought...;0)

Excuses, excuses...

Fall full moon...

I had a boss once who would tell us when we fed him excuses for screwing up, "Excuses are like butt-holes, everybody has one." Perhaps I could have put up more appropriate imagery to make my point, I'm letting you use use your imagination instead...your welcome.;0) Anyway, to my point------>

I missed my blog post yesterday, I don't know how it happened...well, yeah I really do, but now I need a better excuse than "I forgot"? 

How about...I was in an auto accident, and spent the evening in the hospital in traction and couldn't quite reach my keyboard to apologize in advance...

Nope, not believable.

Perhaps I could guilt everyone into feeling bad for not reading this silly blog anyway, sheesh! Even my sister had been busy this week and hasn't been making her obligatory comments to boost my ego...

Scratch that. Seriously, I'm good at writing irregardless if anyone is actually reading...that wouldn't be viable either.

I've decided that I really am inherently truthful, making up excuses and fibs and half-truths takes more effort than I'm willing to put forth. So here goes...

The truth? I finished up a mountain of laundry that I had been working on since Sunday while I divided my regular computer time between farming, researching a subject, applying for another job, reading about 5 other blogs, and completing a preliminary phone interview with a company I applied too. I then made a batch of gluten-free pancakes (psst...if you haven't tried gluten-free Bisquick, then you're missing out!) and cleaned a disgusting bathroom. I called my sister, tried to think of a good blog-subject, took a shower, fixed a snack for one kid, had a long conversation with a friend, who really needed a listening ear, and picked up two more kids. I then had another conversation with another friend who the first friend needed to talk to, got another kid going on his homework and convinced my daughter to go to Wal-Mart with me. I drove the 20 minutes to Wal-Mart, told my daughter "no" at least 20 times before we even got to the grocery section and finally left over an hour later. On the way home my daughter called their snowbird Grandma who just got back in to  town with no answer as we drove past the restaurant that their car was in front of. We stopped and my daughter ran into the squealing arms of her Grandparents and we stood and talked to them for at least 20 minutes before I convinced them to come over to our house and left to go home, make dinner, and put away groceries. 20 minutes later I arrived home, hauled in all the groceries, and started dinner while putting away groceries. I made sure someone finished their homework and was schooled on Pokemon as their Grandparents arrived. My man and I ate dinner while the kids ran around with Grandma and convinced the kids to eat too, while Grandma sat and talked with them. My son practiced his violin for his Grandparents, they all ate the cookies and candy Grandma brought and my daughter dressed and brushed two dollies' hair from Grandma. I shooed everyone of to the shower and eventually Grandma and Grandpa went home and after getting out school bags and clothes for the morning, we ushered all resident short people to bed. And then.....? Yep, you're right! I forgot! Please forgive me! ;0)

TiP fOr TuEsDaY (post 132)

Don't be a sheep.

Yes, you are reading the pic right. I didn't vote, I don't vote, I am purposely not registered to vote. I said it, I am not ashamed about it either. I am an intelligent person, perhaps that is what makes the whole "voting" process so unappealing. Watching political ads with nothing but made up facts and twisted to fit propaganda, could very well be the main reason I rarely watch TV as well. I can't make myself go out and help elect these sleazy politicians (yes, they are ALL sleazy) that are only interested in having their pockets lined by special interests and have no real intention for the good of the people, only in the narrow-minded interests of he who yells loudest. You have no choice, but to elect the lesser of two evils at any time thank you to the two party system this country embraces.
Don't get me wrong, I am patriotic. I love the fact that I can call myself an American, that I have the freedom to choose to do or not to do as I please without the fear of retribution...for the most part that is. this poor woman was not given a choice as she was attacked while attending a Rand Paul rally, here. Behavior such as this boils my blood, how anyone could be motivated to violence over a party difference is beyond me.
You want to make a difference in the world? Insist upon change in the system entirely or watch as we all go to hell in a hand-basket. You decide, but as for me, I'll not be a sheep. Feel free to comment away if you disagree!

tHiS iS wHaT i LiKe (post 131)

As promised I have pics of everyone dressed up for Halloween, alas I am to lazy to post them right here, Never fear my friends I did provide a handy link to where the pics are posted. And you thought I wasn't thinking of you, ha! ;0)

OxiClean!

How is it that I neglected to feature this fabulous product on my tHiS iS wHaT i LiKe segment? I mean what is the world coming too? Never fear, I shall give it the focus this awesome product deserves! SHAZAAM!
You probably would have had to live on Neptune the last decade to not have heard of the fabulous OxiClean "it cleans without the damaging effects of bleach" and it's versatile as well. Not only does it clean out stains and spots and freshens every load of laundry, it does a fabulous job on carpet, pet stains, tile grout and more!
I use a scoop full of OxiClean in every wash load I wash. It catches the dirt I might have missed and keeps my laundry smelling great. I love OxiClean as a presoak and stain lifter as well. At least a couple of nights a week you will find a tub with water and OxiClean soaking someone's uniform shirt they spilled something on during school. It always saves the day! OxiClean you have successfully saved my carpet and rug in front of my couch from a careless drink spiller on several occasions. You do a fabulous job scrubbing grout clean too! OxiClean what can't you do?
It's safe to say that I love you OxiClean! You DO make my life easier daily and this is (definitely) what I like, you should try it out, I'll bet you like it too! ;0)

ThOuGhT fOr ThE dAy (post 130)

                                                                photo J.Lamb 2010

"I adore simple pleasures. They are the last refuge of the complex." ~Oscar Wilde

No one said that everything in life needs to be complicated with things, and places, and people, wants, desires, noise and waste. I find in my life the things that make me happy and that my children enjoy are the simplest of things. Spending time together, enjoying and activity as a family, all piling on the couch with popcorn and a movie, things that are not complicated in the first place. Take this weekend to enjoy it with your loved ones and enjoy the simple pleasures of a simple holiday. Halloween may have been based largely on Pagan beliefs at one point, but has evolved into a holiday for no specific significance other than to have a little fun and to be someone or something else for the day. So, do just that! Enjoy Halloween for you and your children alone and be safe! Just a thought...;0)