Obsessed

In no particular order, a few things that I'm currently obsessed with:

Our Neti Pot. Kevin and I have been using it twice a day lately, what with all of the bloomin' and such going on in our yard. I'm slowly getting over that yucky sensation of "drinking the pool" every time I use it and am enjoying the feeling of being really flushed out.

The Eastern Screech Owl, who's currently nesting in one of our trees in the backyard. Anna has declared that her (?) name shall be "Suit".

Quinoa. Yum. The first time I made it, Anna said that it was, "the best rice I've ever, ever eaten!". Since then, however, she won't touch it. Jack will shovel it in by the fistful though and it makes for a very interesting and exfoliative diaper change the next morning.

These cardigans from Target. They're perfect for this time of year, when it's a smidgen chilly in the mornings and warm in the afternoons. They're also good to wear over sundresses or tank tops--especially when going to a restaurant or somewhere that's likely to be cold inside. (Yes, I'm one of those annoying people who freezes in August, while sitting in an air conditioned building. It's a good thing for me to have something to throw over my shoulders, so that I don't drive people crazy with my whining and blue-lipped teeth-chattering.)

What are you currently obsessed with? Do share.

Anna-ism of the Day

On the way to the grocery store the other day, Anna gave me a little lecture in the car. Here's what she said:

"Now, Mommy, when we get to the grocery store, please do not be upset if they don't have balloons or pineapples."

The balloon part makes perfect sense. The store that we shop at sometimes has balloons to hand out to the kids, but it's not a sure-thing. Every time that I take Anna with me, we have to have the "balloon talk" on the way there, just to circumvent a balloon-related meltdown, in the event that they don't have balloons to give out that day. The pineapple part? Your guess is as good as mine.

Crawfish Fest

Yes, that's a crawfish head that he grabbed off of the table

And yes, we probably shouldn't have let him suck on the head, but he is 1/4 Cajun, so it wouldn't have been right to take it away from the boy

Ouch! Poor little Cajun bebe.

There was running-amok-edness with our best friend

A first roller coaster ride

And a super-fun slide which hereby ruins the neighborhood park slide for good

*Edited to add: I also had the pleasure of helping two toddler girls during their (respective) inaugural "port-a-let" runs. Admittedly, I'm probably not the best person to show others how to use a port-a-let but my first and most important rule to them was, "Whatever you do, DO NOT touch anything in here!".

Things Other People Love, But I Just Don't Get

• Chocolate. Yes, I know. This is not to say that I don't like a good Hersey's bar (no nuts, please) on occasion, but on the whole, I'll pass on the chocolate dessert. Dark chocolate is extra-yuck, in my opinion. The only redeeming qualities that milk chocolate has is it's creamy texture and milky flavor. Dark chocolate effectively does away with those attributes, so I have no use for it.

• American Idol: I do get a mild kick out of those first audition shows though.

• Those weird bootie-shoes that were in style this past winter.

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I understand that fashion doesn't have to be practical, but the whole boot-concept, matched with peep toes? Does not compute, in my book.

• The Twilight movies* I watched the first movie and laughed out loud several times--and not because it was a comedy. The soundtrack is good though.

• Those giant bow-headbands for babies. Maybe it's just because my kids were both anti-head decoration of any sort when they were tiny.

• Farmville, Mafia Wars and all of the other useless applications on Facebook.
  

(Snatched from Kate's blog)

• Dropping tens of thousands of dollars on a fancy, status-symbol vehicle. Sorry, having graduated from Dave Ramsey's bootcamp, I just can't tolerate that kind of behavior.

*(Twilight disclaimer) I did not read the books, so I know that makes a difference in how I perceived the one movie that I saw. Also, I'm an old lady. The Twilight saga is aimed toward a younger, more hip audience than myself. Please do not come to my house in your skinny jeans** and hipster t-shirts, to vandalize my house.

**I really, really hate skinny jeans too. They're not flattering on anyone. ANYONE. (Especially boys).