tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61424979516214662762024-03-07T08:51:34.031-05:00Brain SwizzleDo you ever feel like someone has put a swizzle stick into the top of your head and just stirred things around a little? This blog exists as an outlet for me and my random thoughts about motherhood and life that keep bumping around in my head.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.comBlogger184125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-59466472650615928372013-06-24T18:10:00.000-05:002013-06-24T18:10:16.174-05:00What, What, What Could It Be??Do I know what it is and I'm afraid to say it? Let's have a heart to heart. But what if my heart isn't in it? My heart seems to be lost. Not sure where it is. I think it's been trampled. It feels like it's in my stomach.<br />
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I know I should have something to say, but what I say sounds weak and isn't what you want to hear. I don't know why I am the way I am. I just am. I'm me. I'm sorry I can't explain it. "I'm tired", "I'm stressed", "I'm worn down" are repetitive and annoying and unhelpful and useless. But they're all true. They're too true. I don't know why. I can't explain it. I know if I can't explain it no one can. <br />
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I have butterflies in my chest and in my arm. This is how anxiety starts. I'm anxious because I can't do everything. I know my "everything" isn't nearly as much as everyone else's "everything", but mine overwhelms me. I'm not lazy. Feeling overwhelmed leads to anxiety and that leads to feeling powerless and that leads to being frozen and unable to do anything. I know it needs doing. It's not that I don't know.<br />
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But that's not your concern is it? Your concern is how it affects you. Most people's concern. My inability to be all leads to being nothing. My being nothing leaves you with nothing. I'm sorry I have nothing for you. I blame myself...cause that's healthy and leads to more anxiety.<br />
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But you want yours. Everyone gets a little piece and yours is the smallest. Well, it's the smallest next to what's left for me. I know it's not fair that you're at the bottom of the totem pole. I know where you think you should be. But you're not. I'm sorry you're not. So I'll be anxious about that too. Cause that's healthy.<br />
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So you come to me and you want to know what's inside and I can't tell you what's inside because I'm not sure I know myself. I know the surface. I don't know what's the cause. But your being disappointed with what I come up with is less than helpful. Oh to be you. Don't concern yourself with the little things. It's fine to leave wrappers on the bar, or socks on the floor or all the other nit picky things that build up and bug me and make me feel unappreciated. No, not unappreciated, disrespected.<br />
<br />
I know everything you do is more important than what I do. Believe me. You pay no attention when I'm talking but expect my immediate, undivided attention when you inhale to speak. And you wonder why I don't speak very much. Why can't we have a conversation? Because you're pretty good at having one without me.<br />
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So what does any of this have to do with anything? Everything. Nothing. It's small. It's insignificant. It's so trivial.<br />
<br />
It's me. Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-70194957826013248302013-05-25T08:00:00.000-05:002013-05-25T15:20:51.710-05:00Wounded to the CoreA knife to the chest. The world spinning the wrong direction. As if I didn't need happy pills already. I may need to up my dosage. Look me dead in the eye and lie to me. Dead in the eye. Dead inside. I'll never believe another thing you say. How can I? You want me to believe you over my own eyes. Don't tell me the sky is green. <u>I CAN SEE IT!</u> With my OWN eyes.<br />
<br />
So now what? I can't NOT deal with you. You're in my life. You ARE my life. You were my life. Now what? I want to scream and punch and return the pain. I can't. It would do no good. I'm not that person. So do I go on the way YOU are, since you seem to believe that I believe your lie? I can't show these feelings in front of others.<br />
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I blame myself. But it's not my fucking fault. I WILL not blame myself. It would be arrogant to believe that I control another's actions.<br />
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Arrogant like believing that someone will take what you say as truth when they can see the opposite with their own eyes. <br />
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<br />Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-16487211293593913802013-04-20T11:22:00.000-05:002013-04-20T11:22:04.999-05:00GIVE ME PERFECTION!<span style="font-size: large;">What a world. This morning I'm pondering the need for perfection in the world around us, and I'm not even thinking about topics like body type or parenting abilities. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Judging another person begins the milli-second our interaction with him begins. We have moved away from being friendly with a person even if his beliefs don't perfectly mirror our own. I feel it around me. Instead of being kind and considerate to anyone and everyone, it has become, "She seems nice, but then I saw the bumper stickers she has on her car" or "I can't believe someone who has kids my age disagrees with me on gun control. What is he thinking?!"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This morning on facebook, I came across this picture on Humans of New York. (By the way, it's a great page. Brandon doesn't just take pictures, he interacts with the subject and usually captions his photos with a question and response exchanged between himself and the subject of the photo. You should definitely check it out.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/914057_452731948134244_1113167364_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/914057_452731948134244_1113167364_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The caption on this particular photo is as follows:<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" data-ft="{"type":45}" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" data-ft="{"type":45}" id="fbPhotoSnowliftCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption">"It
was a much easier decision to join the order when I was growing up.
Everyone supported the church and supported your decision. It's a much
tougher choice to make today."</span></span><span class="fbPhotoTagList" id="fbPhotoSnowliftTagList"><span class="fcg"> — at <span class="fbPhotoTagListTag withTagItem tagItem"><span class="textTagHovercardLink taggee">Boston, MA</span></span>.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> I saw this picture and thought, "Wow, what a beautiful shot. The framing, the subject matter, the focus, it's all perfect." I was, however, saddened by the comments. Most of them focused on the caption. People began to go back and forth over why a person would or would not "join the order". </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"There is no God." "Why join a church that hides pedophiles?" "The Vatican could solve world hunger with all of the money it has." And so on.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I've struggled with these points in the past and continue to do so. What this stream of comments got me to thinking, though, was that these commenters brought so much of their own baggage and need for perfection to this picture, that they couldn't enjoy the pure beauty of it. They couldn't even see it for all the imperfections covering their eyes. Beyond not being able to appreciate the beauty of the picture, the comments were also belittling this particular man's life choices. They seemed to be saying that if it was a choice that wasn't right for them, it wasn't right for anyone and further, that anyone who would make that choice was sub-human or at the very least, an idiot. I would hazard a guess that these same individuals would also come down hard on anyone else doing the same to them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These thoughts led me to thoughts about the gun control measure that was defeated earlier this week in the Senate. The argument that "this measure won't stop all criminals from getting guns", regardless of my beliefs on the subject, seem to me to be another case of needing perfection. An argument for all or nothing. If this one law wouldn't stop all illegal behavior, it's useless. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I think this need for everything, be it person or idea, to conform perfectly to one's own personality or beliefs is the leading cause of divisiveness in the world. People seem to believe that any type of compromise means they are compromising all of their principles, therefore any small amount of compromise is bad. This, of course, leads to a stalemate. NOTHING can be done. NOTHING is accomplished. NOTHING that could bring people closer together will happen. People seem to be happy in their division and if the "other" really wanted things better, he would just come over to the "right" side. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So how do we improve on this? It's so easy to tell someone else what they need to do to make the world better. Clearly it's all them, I've done my part. I have figured out what the perfect world would be and for it to be in place, the rest of you need to come around to my way of thinking. Why should I compromise for the greater good if "they" won't?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Now that that is out of the way, what do we need to do as individuals and as a society to work away from this division? You can't wait for everyone else to do it because they are waiting for you. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, what are you going to do?</span>Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-66286470869772449362009-08-20T17:50:00.001-05:002009-08-20T18:03:19.366-05:00# 367When your three year old requests a haircut, take her to get the f'n haircut, like immediately.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-47302787721106522002009-08-06T13:02:00.002-05:002009-08-06T13:05:23.450-05:00What I've Learned from Sparkle #350Self-adhesive postage stamps may be the most expensive "stickers" ever.<br /><br />Note to self: Buy stamps that have to be licked until Sparkle gets past the sticker obsession.<br /><br />When you stop learning, you stop living.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-9310792209382379392009-07-16T14:07:00.001-05:002009-07-16T14:08:25.443-05:00#305It's never a good sign when you walk into a room and your 2 year old starts yelling, "Do not see!! Do not see!!"Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-48086900305348822242009-07-09T18:44:00.002-05:002009-07-09T18:46:59.343-05:00#292...No Need to Thank MeWhen your two year old decides during "nap" time (when she doesn't sleep) to trade her pants for tights, make sure she still has on her diaper.<br /><br />Hmmmm. I think I could come up with a daily tip - The things I've learned the second time around.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-81039538826069798932009-07-09T12:03:00.002-05:002009-07-09T12:05:36.074-05:00Tidbit #291 That I've Learned from SparkleDid you know that all of the stickers on Rubik's Cube squares are white? Yeah. The colors are actually translucent stickers on top of white stickers.<br /><br />Sparkle's nickname may become "Destructo".Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-63404088711673503302009-06-12T12:23:00.000-05:002009-06-12T12:24:58.759-05:00Trusting...Trusting...Trusting...OK. Pictures of samples sent. Quotes sent.<br /><br />Breathing....Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-47741307900886454132009-06-10T09:03:00.004-05:002009-06-10T09:46:32.108-05:00Two In a Row, Huh?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.amazon.com/Redeeming-Love-Francine-Rivers/dp/1601420617/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244645105&sr=8-1"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 132px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfeLEUXZjEzUuhQTJFAsAli9cGelnAM4PtyaWn6HfiRD_y0nB2EZjemx1kFO7CW8Ptkdc58kwqYXxkuSpq7GOBbWC6fjLqHrw0yuNhYPcpNKHAH9pFnGlPUBQDTA0lQzHP_XSAI7OiPUo/s320/Redeeminglove_coverj.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345701371315974642" border="0" /></a><br />After I finished reading <span style="font-style: italic;">The Shack</span>, I read another book that my mom had. This book is called <span style="font-style: italic;">Redeeming Love</span>. It's the story of the book of Hosea set during the California gold rush.<br /><br />My first reaction was, That's nice. What's the book of Hosea about? As you may or may not know, in the book of Hosea, Hosea is led by God to marry a prostitute. Hilarity ensues. Just kidding.<br /><br />In <span style="font-style: italic;">Redeeming Love</span>, Michael Hosea is in the same predicament. The girl doesn't feel worthy of his unconditional love and Michael has several conversations with God along the lines of "Are you nuts?" and "Why are you doing this to me?" She leaves, he goes back and gets her. More than once. It's a pretty interesting read (I read it in 3 days). But what struck me most was that it's another "trust God and stop worrying; you aren't in control anyway" book.<br /><br />Internal monolog: "Hm. Two in a row. I don't feel like I have many situations in my life that I try to wrest control from God. My life is pretty calm and uncomplicated. I'll try to remember these books should the situation ever present itself. Now, I need to figure out what I'm going to do about that request I received for a quote on tags."<br /><br />You see, a week ago I received an email. It was from a person who has a shop on etsy who makes clothes and accessories. In the email she tells me that she works at a boutique in Houston that wholesales to over 80 stores across the US. She would like me to give a quote for making 1000 - 3000 small aluminum tags for them.<br /><br />"Gulp. Not possible. I can't cut that much aluminum. Where do I get that much aluminum. Can I stamp that much? No way. Great opportunity. Scary opportunity."<br /><br />I have been searching high and low on the internet to find aluminum that can be cut, pre cut tags the size they want. It's driving me nuts. Mr Swizzle helps me realize that they expect me to be the one to tell them what will look good, if it can be done, etc.<br /><br />I seem to go straight into freak out mode when presented with things like this. Hey wait, could this be one of those "trust God" moments? Duh.<br /><br />So last night I emailed her a couple of options since the size tag they want doesn't exist and the letters wouldn't fit on that size anyway.<br /><br />We shall see. If she likes the option that I hope she likes, I'll then have to boldly come up with a quote without selling myself short. Putting a number out there and hoping they don't balk. I think. Do I want to do it? AAAAAH. <br /><br />Oh, wait. Trust God. Right.....Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-48271880445574992712009-06-07T19:54:00.003-05:002009-06-07T20:14:43.286-05:00The Shack<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://theshackbook.com/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidPwnYpVyxTssaAU82fgt9zncWIbtNoB3Gri-fqfUvh-HZ9pw4S-pn-7o2dKF9VDraqSWM_Q5yCWabqnHiUtNXE2qTwcvxb3f5-yJewH7KJNGOGSwHqEiwKl19T9-hbuoOnLqiLzCv-OYe/s320/the+shack.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344754864897245122" border="0" /></a><br />Have you read it?<br /><br />If you have, what did you think?<br /><br />If you haven't, check it out.<br /><br />I don't usually flock to the books that "everyone is talking about". I happened into a store with a prominent display of the book, and decided to go ahead and give it a read. I'm visiting my parents, so I have a little bit more time to read than usual.<br /><br />I think this book has life changing potential. I like it when authors present a different way of looking at something you've seen all your life. C. S. Lewis has always been a favorite. I may have mentioned before that his version of the salvation story seems to stir me more than the one in the Bible. I don't know what that says about me. Maybe I'll figure that out one day. His description of heaven in The Great Divorce is fascinating.<br /><br />This book struck me the same way. I finished it yesterday and I'm hungry for more. Hungry for ways to apply some of the ideas to my own life. I think I'm going to read it again when I don't have as many distractions.<br /><br />I can see this book becoming well worn and creased from reading over and over.<br /><br />Tell me what you think if you've read it too. I'm curious.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-35889192368570344042009-05-12T08:04:00.003-05:002009-05-12T08:15:53.743-05:00Thoughts?This just kinda hit me as...odd? funny? disturbing?<br /><br />Regarding Miss California and her same sex marriage beliefs and her nudie pics online:<br /><p> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">The pageant would "never want to take away a girl's beliefs or her voice," he said. "We try to make these women capable of being free thinkers."</span></p><p style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> "But when you wear the title that says 'I represent everyone,' you can't then polarize the people you represent," he said.</p>"Girls"? "MAKE theses women CAPABLE of being free thinkers"? That little phrase just muddles my brain.<br /><br />Does anyone really feel "represented" by their respective Miss USA contestant?<br /><br />How odd is this whole "incident"?Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-39480515342661517342009-05-09T20:52:00.003-05:002009-05-09T21:08:42.144-05:00Reading and ReadingI'm pretty proud of the amount of reading I've been able to do this year. When Mr. S and I went on our anniversary trip in January, I read 3 books. I've been reading almost every day. Of course, most of that reading takes place between 9pm and midnight, so I guess you could say my sleep patterns have been affected.<br /><br />I've read a couple Grisham books. I'm reading Angels and Demons now. I read all four of the books in the Twilight Series. Ah, to be a teenage girl again.<br /><br />Now, I've picked up the books on Twinkle's summer reading list. Here's what she'll (we'll) be reading: <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlotte's Web, The Wind in the Willows, The Railway Children and Augustus Caesar's World</span>.<br /><br />The only one of these that I've read is <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlotte's Web</span> and...it's been a while, though I do remember bawling at the end. Twinkle has seen the movie, so she won't be surprised when we get to the end.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Railway Children</span> was written by a woman who was a socialist and apparently quite a rabble rouser, so that ought to be fun. I think I'm actually going to read the page at the beginning that tells about the author's life to Twinkle.<br /><br />One of the books (gasp) has the word "ass" in it several times (my neighbor across the street said that the year her kids read it, one of the other moms was in quite a state the first day of school).<br /><br />The Caesar book seems like it could be pretty dry reading, BUT looking through it, it does look like there are some interesting parts tying together several things going on at a particular time.<br /><br />So, any tips? Have you read any of these and liked or disliked them? I'm trying to figure out if we start with Caesar, or if we start with one that's more story-like.<br /><br />Twinkle's last day of school is Monday. We'll be starting reading (and math review) on Tuesday. Lots of pages to digest this summer.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-2620428454381409482009-03-24T16:08:00.003-06:002009-03-24T16:42:45.148-06:00Hey! I'm Alive!!!Yeah. I just haven't been motivated to post lately. I have people asking for pics from our trip on my other blog. That was only 3 months ago.<br /><br />Bullet points for now? ('cept I don't know how to make actual bullet points)<br />- Twinkle is still ever so Twinkly...which includes sweetness and arguing and silliness and tenderness.<br /><br />- Sparkle is sparkling more and more every day. She's really blossoming. More people than just myself can understand her. She's such a happy little child. AND she's trying to give up naps - not so wonderful.<br /><br />- I'm feeling constantly worn down by both of them. I know that I do in fact LOVE love to be called "mom" in all its forms, BUT OMG!!!! the sound of "mom" and "mommy" REALLY grate on my nerves sometimes because they are never ending.<br /><br />- Hey, guess what! I became a stereotypical soon to be 40 year old and went in for a tune up. I never thought I would do such a thing. BUT here I am with boobs that may not be able to hold a pencil under them once they're healed. They're probably a little bit better size for my small frame, too. I also got rid of a pooch of fat under my belly button that I've had since I started developing, so...Jr. High? Not gonna miss it. I was feeling quite secretive pre-op, but now that I have bruising from swelling on my arms and legs I've come out. I REALLY wanted to come up with a good story to explain the bruises...fought a bear? fell down the Grand Canyon and survived? fell down some stairs? I'm 2 weeks post op and have been told not to go nuts buying clothes or anything for about 10 more weeks.<br /><br />- I've been feeling closer to my friends and family lately. The other day, I actually called my mother - gasp. Don't get me wrong, we have a wonderful relationship, we just usually email or talk on birthdays, etc. I think I'll start calling my mom more often. I've been willing to do normal ol' friend stuff with more people. Playdates, just hanging out doing nothing. I think I'm most comfortable with others when they expect nothing from me. Is that odd? I would much rather sit with friends and chat while our kids play than plan some big outing or do anything that involves a schedule.<br /><br />- And finally, today while IM'ing with Mr. S about random things, he asked if I was OK. Not because of anything negative I'd said. He asked BEFORE I told him that I was going to start dinner without him by going ahead and eating some chips and queso and drinking some whiskey. Strangely, even though we've been married 20 years (or maybe because we've been married 20 years) it was the sweetest thing I'd "heard" all day. Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure it sounded so wonderful because MOST of the time, I'm wondering if anyone can hear the words coming out of my mouth.<br /><br />OK. I think bullet points are not supposed to be long paragraphs, but these weren't real bullet points anyway. They were little dashes. And now I feel so much better because I've posted on my blog, I've gotten the therapy that I started this blog for in the first place, and I'm a little more relaxed....until the basketball that Sparkle is playing with hits the piano anyway.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-13516229980515005992009-02-17T16:20:00.002-06:002009-02-17T16:45:05.833-06:00You're Never Too Old To LearnIt's not even 4:30 pm. Boy am I tired.<br /><br />Really?<br /><br />I've learned two things today. One of them I already knew, but chose to not pay attention to my instincts. The other is not something that should surprise me.<br /><br />The first - If it seems like your two year old is too quiet, run, don't walk, to where she is. Don't think, "Hey, it seems too quiet. I'll check on that in a minute."<br /><br />My girly girl, Sparkle, decided this morning that she needed to open some lotion and put it on. (Thanks, pre-school, for perfecting those fine motor skills) Not a big deal. BUT given the amount of time she had, it wasn't pretty. She came to where I was. She smelled oh so good. She had lotion on her hands, arms and face, but not a ton. It just wasn't rubbed in. The office smells good too. That'd be because Sparkle decided that the panes on the french doors were a bit dry and needed a nice coating of lotion as well. So did the desk. I'm hoping that the dog was able to steer clear, though she could stand to smell a little better.<br /><br />The second is ALMOST exactly the same thing. Almost. Sparkle has been fighting naps lately. Every now and then she'll take a great nap in the afternoon. I am not one to give up, so she gets an opportunity every day to take a nap. USUALLY, it's a good thing when she finally stops playing/singing and gets quiet in her room. USUALLY, it means she's gone to sleep.<br /><br />Not today. Today, she started knocking on her bedroom door after a small stretch of silence. One in which I thought she was asleep. I went upstairs to get her, opened her door and thought...actually said, "WHAT's that smell?" Not a normal stinky baby smell. Just an odd smell. I looked over and saw a bottle of lotion. Not sure how she got it. The bottle was covered with white. I thought she'd had another lotion party, but the smell wasn't right. And the texture/consistency wasn't quite right. I started wondering if large quantities of lavender lotion would smell that way. At the same time, I also wondered where she would have gotten a tube of white acrylic paint, because that is what it felt and smelled like.<br /><br />Luckily, I suppose, it was not paint. It was zinc oxide paste. The heavy duty kind. Paint may have been better. She had zinc oxide on her face and hands, in her hair, on shelves in her room, and any number of other places I haven't found.<br /><br />Currently Sparkle and Twinkle are in the bath tub. Sparkle because she needed it and Twinkle because she can't pass up a potential bath. You know, zinc oxide is made to not wash off easily. I can't WAIT to wash her face. It will be so enjoyable.<br /><br />I guess the upside is she shouldn't get any moisture related rashes anywhere AND she should be protected from the sun.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-49523378899617435222009-01-26T14:45:00.003-06:002009-01-26T15:10:09.623-06:00Healthier KidsI need mom advice.<br /><br />Whenever Twinkle's behavior is off, my gut reaction is, "she needs to eat healthier food." I'm working on having healthier snacks available at home. Now I need help with school food.<br /><br />I've fallen into a pattern with school lunches of picking various prepackaged foods and dropping them into her lunch box. Some of them "seem" healthy, or at least not unhealthy, but I do wonder about what has been done to that food and how healthy it really is.<br /><br />We are vegetarians, so I can't send a turkey and cheese sandwich to school with her. I send milk and cheese to school, but I'd like to send more protein with her. The girl doesn't really like peanut butter/jelly sandwiches. I used to send a boiled egg, which she likes, but I need more variety.<br /><br />Help! How do you keep you kids healthy?Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-48650199611011566222009-01-12T11:11:00.003-06:002009-01-12T11:50:57.836-06:00What Do They DO When We Aren't Here??Mr. S and I just returned from a week in paradise to celebrate our 20th anniversary. It was wonderful. Very relaxing and quiet and ... aaaahhhhh. [Name that movie: "And we're off....to Haiti!" "Not Haiti!...Tahiti!]<br /><br />While we were gone, the 2 sets of grandparents split the time staying with the girls. I find interesting all the things we find in our house after they leave.<br /><br />For example, light butter. Not something the Swizzles buy. Why? The ingredients on our butter? Sweet cream, salt. The end. Light butter has 11 ingredients that are marked with an asterisk that says, "ingredients not found in regular butter" like water and modified food starch and tapioca maltodextrin. It felt wasteful, but I threw it away. I couldn't feed it to the family (although they apparently ate it while I was gone). The other oddity about the butter? I bought a pound of "regular" butter a couple of days before we left. No idea how it was all used in less than a week.<br /><br />Another oddity? A brand new, used once, jar of peanut butter. In the refrigerator. With 2 other jars of peanut butter already in the pantry. Alright.<br /><br />2 loaves of bread, one with about 6 slices left and one about half gone. Despite the fresh loaf in the bread box in the pantry that we left. K.<br /><br />TONS of leftovers in the fridge no matter how small. A washed empty sherbet container. (Mr. S's comment was "what kind of storage container-less lives do they live?")<br /><br />Interestingly, we can tell who bought what. Mr. S's mom shopped at Kroger. Mine shopped at Target. All the Kroger store brand stuff - his mom. All the Target store brand stuff - my mom. All the things that make us say, "huh?" - his mom, but we would have known that anyway.<br /><br />The thing is, this time before we left I went to the store and shopped for food to leave here. LAST time Mr. S's mom watched Twinkle while we were in China getting Sparkle, one of her many complaints was "there was nothing to eat." Pantry full. Fridge full, though not by her standards. I specifically went shopping simply because she complained last time, even though I knew we'd left her food. Problem solver that she is, she complained instead of...shopping for food.<br /><br />This time, I guess she thought we did not have things that we did, though she did not complain about it. I can't help but think she left here thinking that WE are odd for not having various items of food that we did, a stocked diaper bag (we did, but she grabbed a big shopping bag and put all the essentials and then some into it), bath wash for Sparkle (she couldn't see it) and all sorts of other things.<br /><br />I can't help but think that she is so unfamiliar with our house, where things are, etc. because she visits so rarely. But there's also the probability that she wouldn't know even if she lived here. We always leave instructions for everything from what days the girls go to school to how to operate the television, but she doesn't look at those or listen when Mr. S tries to explain a few things while we're still here. No matter how easy we try to make it, we just can't cover everything.<br /><br />After being married 20 years, I'm used to this. They are merely slight annoyances and kind of amusing at this point. Mr. S's mom is a rare bird. She has lots and lots (and lots) of quirks, but she is the most giving person you'll ever meet. Whether it's actually something you want or not. You'll take it and you'll like it.<br /><br />So, what's up with you?Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-53487797157254258262008-12-12T17:24:00.003-06:002008-12-12T17:34:17.483-06:00It's a Good Thing They're CuteIt's been quite a week.<br /><br />Sparkle is being 2 and testing to make sure that I mean everything I say. If I say, "NO, don't touch that." She smiles and looks at me and slowly inches her hand toward whatever it is. Guess what! She found out that the glass on the fireplace gets hot! Just like mom and dad said. Luckily, she has super quick reflexes and didn't get much of a burn.<br /><br />Twinkle on the other hand isn't testing everything I say. She, apparently, is totally deaf to the pitch and tone of my voice. Can't hear me at all. This is as annoying as Sparkle testing me. They both aren't listening. Sometimes I wonder why I even speak at all.<br /><br />About half an hour ago, Sparkle asked for some chocolate milk ("cha mip" with a heavy emphasis on the p). I gave her a little bit of chocolate milk, which she thoroughly enjoyed.<br /><br />Then she asked for more. I told her (without yelling) that I was not giving her any chocolate milk and not to bother throwing a fit about it and scream and cry that she wanted milk because I was NOT giving her any chocolate milk.<br /><br />When I was finished, she looked at her cup and looked at me (the crazy lady) and said, "How 'bout zhoosh?" I smiled at her, told her that she asked very nicely, and poured her some orange juice.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-55581761100495216062008-12-01T17:26:00.000-06:002008-12-01T17:27:15.460-06:00Cheers!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUJ7iAC8ZKzTuI25M4XyK9DO2nDXaQ9IcE6lKFNR5X5NWksBmBcaek4DnHD0PhUPhw-seLhJXCv6ECBz-782VMdiTb3Aj_ZMm_PqrJY_zCASPhsIIaoIOrA50Okv6ZVVuO2wPxI0Lw38i/s1600-h/jolie.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUJ7iAC8ZKzTuI25M4XyK9DO2nDXaQ9IcE6lKFNR5X5NWksBmBcaek4DnHD0PhUPhw-seLhJXCv6ECBz-782VMdiTb3Aj_ZMm_PqrJY_zCASPhsIIaoIOrA50Okv6ZVVuO2wPxI0Lw38i/s320/jolie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274967159872439010" border="0" /></a>HOW long ago did she birth twins??Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-37295668686837532442008-11-27T23:21:00.002-06:002008-11-27T23:31:10.763-06:00Happy Thanksgiving!We have traveled to the East and are celebrating Thanksgiving with both families.<br /><br />Kind of...Mr. S's sister is holding some kind of grudge over some imagined grievance at the end of September and is "punishing" us by going to Atlanta with a friend for a week. ODDLY, she actually took her son with her instead of dropping him at the grandparents' house and traveling on.<br /><br />It's been lovely.<br /><br />Twinkle is spending the night tonight with my parents. My brother and SIL and their kids are there, so Twinkle is in heaven.<br /><br />Sparkle is with us at Mr. S's parents' house. She is sleeping rather well on a cot in the same room as Mr. S and I.<br /><br />I made a tasty mince meat pie an a decadent dark chocolate pie. My dad and brother both love the mince meat pie. My nephew does too. He just discovered today that it has BRANDY in it. It was really kind of funny seeing his face when I poured the brandy in with the dried fruit.<br /><br />We will not be shopping tomorrow. We don't usually, but this year we are awaiting replacement credit cards because of fraudulent charges on the old ones. It's been an interesting experience needing cash to buy things like pie ingredients.<br /><br />Now, I think I'm off to bed. Sparkle is sleeping well, but will no doubt wake me earlier than I'd like tomorrow.<br /><br />Happy Thanksgiving!!Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-46706086879115771662008-11-10T12:47:00.002-06:002008-11-10T12:52:54.680-06:00Gift a Gift?When did "gift" become a verb?<br /><br />Was it before or after "office" became a verb?<br /><br />Is Martha Stewart responsible?<br /><br />Why not use "give"?<br /><br />Just wondering.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-71880249511446134412008-11-05T22:34:00.003-06:002008-11-05T22:48:32.140-06:00Things That Made Me Go Hmmmmm TodayStill feeling giddy and hopeful.<br /><br />These are a few things that made me shake my head today...in different ways.<br /><br />Heard on NPR:<br />"I'm terrified. I think he's going to appoint people that blow things up."<br /><br />"I didn't vote for him...that whole not putting his hand over his heart during the National Anthem just really bothers me." (um...never mind)<br /><br />And something that I can't say I've ever seen before:<br />After dropping off Twinkle at school, I was driving Sparkle to school. Something caught my eye. I saw a hawk flying about 5 feet off the ground, like a line drive...carrying a squirrel in its claws (but somehow parallel to it's body). This was not a small squirrel. It looked almost like the hawk was second guessing its ability to fly away with it. Preferring not to think about what awaited the squirrel, I couldn't help imagining the squirrel thinking, "What the....I'm a flying squirrel!! Look at me!!!!"<br /><br />Do all of these things tie together? I might need some tequila to see the connection.<br /><br />What will tomorrow bring?Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-51381798880050649282008-11-04T23:34:00.001-06:002008-11-04T23:34:56.975-06:00BelievingAwestruck. Excited. Hopeful.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-65981763405309375212008-10-23T17:11:00.003-05:002008-10-23T17:29:44.521-05:00Call Me CrazyOK kids, I need some advice or insight or random ramblings off the top of your head.<br /><br />To say I don't know where the idea came from would not be true, I am just not sure I can believe that I got onto this train of thought.<br /><br />Mr. Swizzle's mom left a message last week asking for some help. A friend's grandson's girlfriend (why not?) is in need of baby things. Pregnant. Due in January. Absolutely no support except for boyfriend's grandmother. MIL was calling to see if we had anything we were finished with that we'd be willing to give. I told her that I'm pretty sure we still have Twinkle's stroller/infant seat combo, if the baby's a girl we can outfit her for a year, and that if Sparkle wasn't still using the crib, she could have that too.<br /><br />THIS is what got me thinking. I guess we COULD go ahead and get Sparkle a big girl bed. It's not like she's confined to her crib anyway. When we got Twinkle's big girl bed, she was old enough to voice an opinion about what she wanted and Sparkle is not there. Yet.<br /><br />Here's the crazy part. I started wondering about getting bunk beds and putting the girls in one room. We don't need to do this for the space, that's not an issue. I DID put in a lot of time painting Sparkle's room before she came along and I'd hate to lose that.<br /><br />All that said, I do remember feeling "lonely" at night when I was a kid. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense for those who are afraid of the dark to be sleeping alone, when the adults, who theorhetically aren't afraid of the dark, get to have someone else in the room with them.<br /><br />Twinkle is constantly saying that she doesn't like sleeping alone and wishes there was someone there with her. I don't think Sparkle has gotten to the stage to notice yet. I've told Twinkle what I'm thinking about and she didn't go gaga one way or the other. Maybe because I REALLY watered it down to a very low possibility and I didn't mention the whole "have someone with you in your room at night" part.<br /><br />So, am I crazy? I have no experience with this as a child or as an adult. I only had an older brother growing up and we had our own rooms. Would it be nice for them to have each other in the middle of the night? Would it be bad for them to have each other in the middle of the night? I know it isn't long term and that Twinkle would probably be ready for her own room again in about 6 years. Could this be a nice little bonding experience for the girls?<br /><br />Help.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6142497951621466276.post-26352602684930147722008-10-02T12:15:00.003-05:002008-10-02T12:19:17.550-05:00Or Perhaps Three?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwesdMt8zfUdo48xNjbL9XyEz3IuKjsnMXyrvVOWTCR_Rm0hiF7apq3f9WkGulx2BHe42nsdORbc29LfypgWoSwWWpfvXcunIDf5GjX01JGZJ_oDw7Nj6F7y9FnuYrDgN4BAkIVnT4edXW/s1600-h/3disc2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwesdMt8zfUdo48xNjbL9XyEz3IuKjsnMXyrvVOWTCR_Rm0hiF7apq3f9WkGulx2BHe42nsdORbc29LfypgWoSwWWpfvXcunIDf5GjX01JGZJ_oDw7Nj6F7y9FnuYrDgN4BAkIVnT4edXW/s320/3disc2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252606510052154194" border="0" /></a><br />There are so many brave souls with more than two kids, I just had to make this. (AND I've already had 2 orders for them). I also bought smaller letters so that more than one name will fit on a disc.<br /><br />I have more things on order. The possibilities are becoming endless.<br /><br />Here's my <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5307033">store</a>.Mrs. Swizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05671239724194377875noreply@blogger.com4