Ready for the Holidays?

It sounds like  most everyone is feeling that they aren't ready for the holidays this year.  Being an over-achiever, in the past I was able to keep up with stuff like that and wasn't able to commiserate with the non-stay at home moms with the balance they weren't achieving (mind you, I wasn't judging though... I tried to never be one of those moms and attempted to always be supportive - if that's not the case I really wish someone would have told me if I was being intolerable!!!).  Now that I'm back at work (and even 2 1/2 years past going back to work, it still seems like a new thing!), I find that balance is not so easy to attain and totally get how hard it is not having a bunch of daytime hours to manage my time with.  So, I thought I would make everyone who's feeling behind get a glimpse at how horribly I'm doing so that they might not feel so bad about their own list.  Doesn't that always work... "I'm doing awful, but hey Susie Que over there is doing so much worse so it doesn't seem so bad..."

So...  let's get real about how the holiday's are panning out in Happyville...

Chanukah started on Saturday December 8th.  In the middle of a meeting on Thursday, December 6th where the speaker had a heavy accent that no one could understand (you don't even want to start me on this rant... I know we need to be pc about cultural diversity, but when you are so insistent on not even attempting to be understood it seems like a really bad career choice to go into public speaking.  Okay... I said it.  Go ahead and rant back at me about how totally un-politically correct that statement was!) my mind started to wander and it suddenly hit me... holy menorah batman!...  Chanukah was due to start on Saturday.  A day and a half away Saturday.  Oy vey... a day and a half away SATURDAY!

• Chanukah Presents:  Thanks to Mr. Happy being in town, his total obsession with CostCo and my love of Barnes and Nobles... we got presents cranked out in a few hours that evening.
• Chanukah Candles: On Friday Mr. Happy counted the candles for my and Little Miss Sassy Pants' menorahs and found that we had enough leftovers from previous years to hodge podge our way through most of Chanukah.  He then stopped by the temple and picked up a couple boxes for us on Saturday since he was on that side of town at a xcSki Coaches training.

At that point I was thinking... WOW! We pulled that off without a hitch and the kid's will never know how unorganized I've become since going back to work (again... at 2 1/2 years is this allowed to be considered a growing pain?).  And then last night... Mr. Chatterbox asks 'when are we going to eat the Chanukah food?'.  

• Chanukah Food: Holy Blintzes Batman!  I forgot about our tradition of eating potato latkes with apple sauce, blintzes with sour cream and cherries, sufganoit (jelly-filled donuts) - all of which are fried in OIL! - and flourless chocolate cake that we have on the first night of Chanukah.  And then, let's not forget... the homemade challah bread that Mr. Happy started making when we couldn't find it anywhere without annatto (Mr. Cheerful's first anaphylactic allergy (we have a new one... the pepper family (as in bell, chili, banana, jalepeno, etc. - but I'm not ready to talk about that yet!)) that we use for french toast the following morning (as in first morning of Chanukah).  I've obviously strayed far, far away from my Jewish heritage to have forgotten about the FOOD!  So.. Mr. Happy to the rescue (again!!! - and he's not got a lick of Judaism in him!!!)... he's back in town today and is going to call around to see if there are any Jewish deli's or bakeries that have gluten-free, annatto-free, pepper family-free (*bleh to that mouthful, from this point forward in this post we shall refer to it as GF, AF, PF (not to be confused with MF... which I really feel like spewing right now, but I'm a lady so I won't say it!  Yea... just run with the idea of me not having a horrid potty mouth, okay?) blintzes, latkes, challah, etc. as a save for tonight.  Mostly likely, the reality is that we are either not going to do the food this year or I'm going to spend significant time Saturday (last day of Chanukah) attempting to turn all my from-scratch recipes into Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Flour recipes!  I'm sure that I will manage this on the first pass and it will all turn out amazingly yummy.  *snort*  

Side note:  This Chanukah I'm beginning to wonder if Mr. Happy is paying people to distract me so that he can keep save the day.  He has been AMAZING.  You should want for a husband as awesome as this.  But I still wonder if he's paying people so I will appreciate him more! *grin*

And then there are the GF, AF, PF* @ School Holiday items that I need to purchase or order.  There is the pizza party followed by an ice cream sundae bar on Thursday and the gingerbread houses making on Friday.  My list includes:

• Ordering a GF, AF Pizza from Dominos to be delivered at the same time as the rest of the 4th grades order.  I thought I was ahead of the game in knowing that Dominos already has a GF, AF option.  Now I have to go back and check the ingredients in the sauce to make sure that none of the pepper  family (again... of the bell, jalapeno, banana, etc. variety, not black) is making it spicy!  So... uncheck that one...
• For the Sundae Bar we need Oreos and Vanilla Ice Cream.  I've got the GF Oreos by Kinnikinnick (one of our favs!) and have the AF Vanilla Ice Cream from Izzy's on the list for this weekend's errands.
• I'm started on the GF, AF (and now PF) gingerbread (which are really graham cracker) houses, in that I've already purchased the Kinnikinnick (need to buy stock in them and in Udi's!) Graham Crackers, I know where I can get the GF, AF Pretzel Rods and we have a can of AF White Frosting as a backup in case I can't find white in the whipped variety without it having the generic 'color added' in the ingredients (3 brands so far are a bust so far).  I'm going to take a look at the GF food store where I'm getting the pretzel rods this weekend.  Beyond that, I'm not sure how much energy I will put into this before e-mailing the teacher my dilemma about my child having the wrong kind of frosting - but they had whipped underlined on the letter that came home, so I need to give it a bit more of a try before admitting defeat! 

All said and done though, I'm thinking the school food issue isn't all that behind... but... 

Did anyone remember that I have two kids with Birthdays on December 23rd?  Except... we are celebrating my, Little Miss Sassy Pants and Mr. Cool's birthday's this weekend!  Yikes!  Okay... actually, that was just dramatic effect.  We already have birthday presents.  Our only 're-org' is that I now have to work on a restaurant option that is also PF, I already had GF, AF options.  I'm thinking I will call tomorrow (Saturday) morning since we are planning to go out Saturday night.  That doesn't seem procrastinated at all, does it?

There are many staple Holiday Traditions that we have...

• Holiday lights are Mr. Happy's passion and in true Griswald fashion, he's already got stuff on the house, in the front yard, and back yard, and on the deck, possibly in the neighbors yard (okay, well, not really, but it sounded funny, didn't it?).  Again with Mr. Happy being on the ball and me not.  Pisses me off, you know?  (Ha, ha and HA... there comes that potty mouth).
• Big 4 and ABC Family Holiday shows... we've watched Blake Shelton sing, Michael Buble sing, Frosty get married, Kris Kringle get married, Kevin McAllister get left home alone and Buddy find out he isn't really an elf.  DVR'd and waiting for us are several more of the classic animatronic (? is that right, I don't think it's claymation, but maybe?) the Year w/o Santa, Miser Brothers, etc.  So I think we are in good shape on this one.  Yes, let's not discuss that I don't have any of the things I need to do on my errands list done but we've watched lots of TV.  I already know I suck as a real mom, I just play a good one on TV!
• We've been trying to get to Holidazzle and the Macy's animatronics show (this time I know I'm using the right word) since the first weekend in December but just haven't been able to make it work with schedules yet (really... why can't they do it EVERY night instead of just the weekends?).  Might end up not going AGAIN this year.  Makes it not much of a tradition, eh?  Poor Mr. Cheerful, he's getting really ripped off when you compare his childhood to his older siblings who had me as a stay-at-home mom that made everything happen without a hitch!
• Homemade Martha Stewart quality family time crafts.  'nuf said.  That's just not going to happen!  (It didn't happen at Halloween or Thanksgiving either... for the past 2 1/2 years, ya know?)
• Holiday Card.  We probably just shouldn't talk about this.  We haven't even taken a family photo yet.  We are planning to this weekend when Mr. Cool is here, but seriously... no photo yet totally translates then to the ordering of cards and mailing not done either.  What waas that?  Holiday letter?  Well... last year I did a Wordle because I ran so late.  Tacky to do that two years in a row?  And I feel bad about this because cards have been trickling in since Thanksgiving and my friends all have such amazing photos and letters.  I used to love this!  You know, back when I was stay-at-home and had an hour or so to work on stuff.  (Wait, what is that - how long did it take me to write this blog instead of doing something useful?  *feigns innocence* I don't know) 
• Conversation about the Christian aspects of Christmas... done!  Thanks to the lovely conversation Mr. Cheerful and I had about Santa (see said conversation here)
• Tree... Not yet cut, let alone placed or decorated.  On this weekend's list.  Seriously, who needs tinsel  and broken bulbs this early?
• Presents... Thanks to Mr. Happy making me go to Black Friday sales Thursday night (!?! Can it still be called black Friday when it's Thursday night?) we are mostly done.  (I.can't.believe.he.has.made.me.go.to.Black.Friday.on.Thursday.Night.two.years.in.a.row - Ugh!)  So really, now it's just the last minute pull it all out and see if we short-changed anyone then dash out to balance the loot.
• Except then there are the presents for the extended family... a few years ago we did a homemade gift that went over well.  I thought we'd do it again.  Mr. Happy (darn him!) has already bought the ingredients, errr... I mean components if you are one of my extended family reading this - components gives nothing away! *grin*... but they are sitting on the table waiting to be, um... assembled.  Yep, that's it... assembled is what we are doing to the components this weekend.  And then since Mr. Happy is off for the next 2 1/2 weeks (double darn him) he can mail it all on Monday.

Whew... anyone else tired just thinking about this?  Sounds like I have a lot to do this weekend, eh?  Are you feeling better about how much you've already got done yet?  If not, I could make some more ridiculous holiday tasks for myself ensuring a mental breakdown before I turn 43 (which would actually solve my holiday problem since my birthday is 3 days BEFORE Christmas!)...

Put the boy in a bubble?

I've decided that it is time to home school.  That way my children will never, ever, ever have contact with any other child ever again!*  At school, some other mother's child felt the need to tell Mr. Cheerful that Santa is not real**.  So, like any predatory creature, he chose to come to the weakest member of the herd.  Me.  As he knows that if he asked Mr. Happy, Mr. Happy would lie to him (a fact which I think Mr. Happy is actually proud of!  Yeah, yeah... all you dad's unite on that being a good trait...).  The conversation started like this "You know how you've promised to never lie to me?".  Seriously... I knew right in that moment that whatever was to come next was NOT going to be good for me and that I was totally screwed!  He then followed with so-and-so told me that Santa isn't real and he wanted to know the truth.  I did the 'what do you think's' and 'I believe in Santa' (keyword being believe - which is not a lie!).  He saw the subterfuge of my attempts to divert and not answer, so he persisted with his own 'really, squeezes into a tube?', 'hits a gazillion houses on one night', 'has reindeer that fly', etc..  Ultimately, after wearing me down (a trait he has learned well from Mr. Happy.  Yeah, yeah... dad's uniting again on this being a good thing...), I finally answered that no, not really.  As the tears welled up in his eyes I was crushed - I'd just taken the magic away from my child.  I apologized for telling him the truth and that I wished I could have lied to him but felt a little trapped because he's started the conversation with making me promise I wouldn't.  To this, he got really, really mad at me and said that he wasn't crying because the magic was gone, he was crying because I've been lying to him for YEARS.  Years.  Yikes!  I think I would have preferred the loss of magic!  The conversation then progressed to the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, Elves, Fairies, Rudolph and Reindeer.  Thinking that was a segue to redeeming myself I pounced on the reindeer aspect - as I was able to point out several zoos in which he has seen reindeer with his own eyes.  Unfortunately, he saw through that one too and somewhat condescendingly said 'yes mom, but they don't fly'.  Ugh!

Which leaves me with our Christmas traditions being based on a lie, instead of magical.  He might not believe anymore, but I think I need to.  I need for there to still be gifts from Santa.  I need us to put sparkly oats on the lawn so that the flying reindeer will see them from the sky and land on our lawn to eat them.  And then Santa can squeeze through the dryer vent to get in our house since we don't have a fireplace and we needed an orifice from the outside to the inside for Santa to squeeze into!  Laugh all you want, but how did you explain, on the spot, to a toddler how Santa gets in the house?  I need us to sprinkle reindeer food on the lawn, darn it!  Because if we don't, the realities of having a high schooler, middle schooler and upper elementary child are going to come crashing in really, really hard!  And seriously,  Mr. Cool isn't married yet and Little Miss Sassy Pants is WAY too young, so it's not like any grandchildren are coming along any time soon for me to lie to!  Wow... I'm now looking forward to lying to little children! What is next in the degradation of my life?

So, while I'm not actually serious about homeschooling my children (I mean seriously - they are in AP courses, Advanced Courses and the Gifted and Talented program - you think that would, or could, have happened if I was homeschooling them?***),  this would, in part, be a public service for all other mom's as my kid is now that 'other mother's child' that is probably telling all his friends the truth about their parents lying to them for years on end since birth.  Ugh again!

Notes:

* Homeschooling Moms:Don't get your knickers in a bunch!  NO!  I do not think that you shelter your children from other kids.  Frankly, I personally think you probably do a better job of social interactions for your kids than I do for mine.  This is meant to be humorous, not a personal attack, so take the chip off your shoulder and look for the humor because I think you guys are great and admirable in what you are doing!!!

** For all my fanatic Christian friends (you know you are but I still love you anyways...), Christmas for us IS about Christ's birth.  Same as Chanukah is a Festival of Lights and in no way goes against Christ or my now being Christian so we still celebrate it to honor the traditions by which I was raised.  And while Mr. Happy (who is a borderline fanatic Christian! *grin*) and I do make sure that our kids know that Christmas is about Christ, we do also still have the magic of Santa (which story has it was acting in honor of Christ's birth), Rudolph, Reindeer and other elements of 'mainstream' Christmas infused into our Holidays.  To say it's about Christ's birth period is wonderful for your family, but it doesn't make my family any less Christian just because we choose to have the magic woven in as well.

***This is a reflection on my abilities, not an attack on homeschooling.  From what I hear, your kids score much higher than district kids on standardized tests, ACT and SAT's.  Again, meant to be humorous and totally about me stunting my children's intellectual capacity if they were reliant on me as the sole source of brain nutrition!

Additional Note: I find it very sad what society has done to women in that I feel that I have to do these disclaimers as everyone is so incredibly hyper-sensitive.  What happened to women  bringing each other up, supporting the personal choices we make and not taking everything personal as it most likely wasn't intended that way.  I think there should be no more finger-pointing, no more misconstruing of comments and all women should be confident in their choices and supportive of each other!!!  But... that is a whole different rant!!!

BUSTED!

I was so busted tonight...

So... I have this amazing new (used) car.  We call it The Dolphin, because it's color is Dolphin Grey.  It seemed more fitting than Flipper, so just go with it!  It's got this AMAZING sound system.  After years and years of the old crickety (but I still love you and miss you ol' buddy, ol' pal) Saab that didn't get overly loud and seemed to only emanate sound from the dashboard (even though there were speakers all around...) - the volume of the Dolphin's sound and how the surround totally envelopes me in noise from every angle is just so wickedly cool.  I, admittedly, crank that baby up when I'm driving alone with the top down going (limiting myself to -- that is a whole different blog about how much power this car has and the overwhelming urge daily to just let it go to its full potential but because of my stupid black and white, rule obeying mentality can't...) 70 on the freeway.  Tonight, however, I'm driving into the garage and my (right-now) favorite song Madness by Muse comes on.  Seriously?  How could I NOT crank that up to see how amazing IT would sound in my new (used) car!?!  So... I did.  

So here is your mental picture, 42 year old MOM of 2-4 kids (2 affected my body, all 4 affect my heart) with the tunes blaring, eyes closed, dancing my heart out (while still strapped in the seatbelt - I mean, REALLY, you would think that I could have at least unbuckled!) and 'singing' (we will call it that anyways...) at the top of my lungs.  

And then I opened my eyes.  And there he was.  Mr. Cheerful.  Standing in the open doorway between the house and the garage staring at me.  My eyes met his eyes... his eyes met my eyes.. and I'm not sure which one of us was more embarrassed.  He, with flippin' amazing speed that I never see when there is a chore to be done, did an about-face and hauled arse back into the house.  I, promptly, turned off my car and slowly came inside to witness him giving a pretty accurate, but horrifying to realize he'd seen me jamming in my driver's seat for that long, demo to Mr. Happy of my car dancing.

Joy!

Buy Local, Buy Artisan, Buy Small, Buy Independent

There is a lot of 'buy' this way phrases being thrown around as the holiday season starts (which seriously?  lights already?  We haven't even had Thanksgiving!  Just stop it already and wait until Black Friday to put up your flippin' lights!!!) which puts me into one of my regular rants.  I'm with buy local as it helps the financial status of your local community.  I'm with buy artisan as I would far rather have a product produced by an individual than mass manufactured in China.  When feasible, I'm with buy small and buy independent   But here's the deal... the moment you couple that with not the big box stores or chains you've lost me.  The reason being... the majority of those big box stores and chains started as the little guy.  They started small.  If you personally have a ban on all things imported and are only buying American - then I'm right back with you.  But if you are just against the guy that marketed his idea and grew, then you are forgetting that it started with one guy with a great idea.  Add to that that he wouldn't have made it big if we, as consumers, hadn't supported the idea and helped it come to fruition.  The dilemma also comes from a 'buy now' mentality.  I admit... I tend to be guilty of this one.  I go to my local, independent bookseller to pick up a book that my kids needs for extra credit at school and they don't have it.  They could order it for me but it will be a week before it gets in.  I go to Barnes and Noble and they not only have it, but I had the option of reserving it online first so noone else got to it before me.  Add to that a nice Starbuck's drink and I'm kinda in heaven.  I have no doubt that  the vein at Mr. Grumble's temple just started to throb.  He loves the independent bookseller.  Here's my thing though... Barnes and Noble started as one guy who thought he could do it better:

"Leonard Riggio, the company's chairman, began his bookselling career while attending New York University in the early 1960s.  Working as a clerk in the university bookstore, he became convinced that he could do a better job serving students, and he opened a competing store of his own.  With a small investment, Mr. Riggio established the Student Book Exchange (SBX) in Manhattan's Greenwich Village in 1965.  The store quickly became one of New York’s finest bookstores, known for its knowledgeable staff, wide selection and great service.

By the 1970s, Mr. Riggio’s thriving business, which included six other college bookstores, acquired the flagship Barnes & Noble trade name and flagship bookstore in Manhattan, which had fallen into decline. Within a few years, Mr. Riggio transformed the Fifth Avenue store into "The World’s Largest Bookstore," with 150,000 textbook and trade titles." (http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/our_company/history/bn_history.html)  

This creates the dilemma... am I not allowed to buy from Barnes and Noble because Riggio did a better job, such a better job that Barnes and Noble is now the largest bookseller?  Or is it okay because at one point he was the independent guy with a stellar customer service credo and by having an entrepreneurial spirit he now employs ALOT of people thereby doing good for the local community through gainful employment and its benefits.  You don't even want to start me on the community service projects and donations this company does.  It is one of many big box or chain retailers that started as one guy.  McDonalds and Walmart are a couple more examples of US Companies that hire thousands of workers.  Often times having a much better, longer term career than they would have had elsewise.

Walmart, as one example, is an American company, hiring American, usually local, employees, is on the NY Stock Exchange that allows American individuals to own and profit from it's success.  And again... another story of a local guy, Sam Walton, who thought he could do better.  Chains like McDonalds, Wendy's, Dairy Queen, Chipotle and Subway allows the local guy franchisee ability of a company with a formula that's already a proven success and brand name recognition.

That said, yes... Walmart imports and sells a whole of of cheap 'Made in NOT America'... crap.  So... if you have the principles of only buying American (or are anti-import, anti-China, anti-Child Labor, etc.) - then don't shop there.  My only caveat to that is to ask... does that local merchant you are buying from based on your anti-import stance stand on the same principles.  While you are feeling good about yourself for buying American, or buying local, or buying independent - if you went into that merchants backroom or home will you find nothing but local, independent and America? And, if you are championing the local merchant loudly - then don't show up at IKEA and then attempt to defend or justify it somehow.

Plus, another reality is that alot of people can't afford to buy elsewhere, so as well as providing stable employment, they provide a price range that allows lower economic brackets to survive.  Would far rather that they thrive, but that's a different rant...

And yes, because we can get it cheaper and faster than the same product that the local, independent guy is making, it does hurt the local guy.  I recognize that.  That's why I said 'when feasible' I do try to buy from the local guy.  It isn't always feasible and it doesn't make me unAmerican or maliciously against the local guy.  It also, by default, shows that I'm not in the lower economic bracket because when feasible I do.

Principles are great, just remember there is more to the picture than just buy local, buy artisan, buy small, buy independent.  So, please, have your principles, attempt to help the little guy thrive but don't make the person standing next to you feel bad for where they choose to shop.

Whether you blame them or thank them... the plankton are responsible!

A friend posted a post-election link on Facebook that caught my eye... the gist of it is  that you can either thank the plankton for Obama's re-election or blame them for Romney not winning.  It's actually doing a comparison of the past two elections, so McCain can be thrown in the pot too.  It's an interesting concept (follow along with me in If You Give A Mouse A Cookie style):

• If you had a plankton bed that follows a line through the deep South (which we do), it would result in richer soil;
• If the soil was richer soil along this line, it would make for better cotton growing; 
• If the cotton grew better along this line, there would have been more slaves; 
• If there are more slaves, it would result in a predominately black population running across that line still today, 
• If there is a predominantly black population running across the 'plankton' line, it would put the vote to President Obama.
• If it put the vote to President Obama, then you should be thanking or blaming the Plankton for the past two election results. 

It's an interesting concept that I'm sure SpongeBob Square Pants villian Sheldon J. Plankton revels in!

Another recent Facebook link was one tying free states and slavery states during the Civil War to the election results (picture to the right, credit goes to Michelle Lawrence on Facebook whom I do not know but was re-posted by a friend with Lawrence giving credit for the second picture to an online reference).

This all makes me sad to think that the division between races is still such a predominant issue.  Both articles lean toward a mentality that we, as a Nation, have not made much progress forward since the Civil War or Civil Rights movements - which I do not think is true.  Unfortunately though, it frankly makes me wonder if underneath some of my Republican friends might also unknowingly still be racist and if some of my black friends only voted for Obama because he is black.  Broad generalizations based on who won/lost the election and the correlation these two posts evoked, so don't get your panties in bunch - I'm just sharing what they caused me to think.

That line of thought though, of course, then led me to the current discrimination that is prevailing against the gay community.  Is doesn't seem all that different to me.  It is discrimination toward a select group of people because they are different (first by race, now by sexual orientation).  It seems to me that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment should protect us from this but realize that actually there has been a great history of different interpretations of it's intent.  Although this last election with the same-sex marriage victories in Maine and Maryland, the state of Minnesota not enacting legislation that would define marriage as one man and one woman, and the election of an openly gay Senator do speak to the growth of our country and provide hope for a less judgmental and condemning populous.  I find it interesting that the Republican party, who is very much so about not wanting government involvement are also the faction that is predominantly bringing forth legislation to discrimination against the gay community.  Here of late there has been a huge push by the Republican party to 'educate' the public that they were on the right side of the Civil Rights Movement while the Democrats were on the discriminating side - yet at the same time as yelling out how pro-Black they are, they are anti-Gay.  Seems a tad bit hypocritical.  While I don't agree with them, my friends who are against Gay Marriage do so because of their religious organization's interpretation of the bible and are, and should, be allow to have their opinions.  My issue is when that religious opinion is used to enact laws that are a civil discrimination - as the good majority of these religious factions are in alignment with the Republican party that has put forth the anti-Gay actions.  Please note: I purposely say 'their religious organization because not ALL Christians interpret God's Will as anti-Gay, I also generalize in regards to the Republican party based on the majority as they also are not ALL anti-Gay either.  Bottom line is that while I respect your different of opinion and right to voice it or vote based on it, I have a fundamental issue with a civil discrimination being on a ballot.  The law, in my mind, should encompass all regardless of race, religion or sexual orientation. The flip side of that though is that while, in my opinion the law should stay out of if, the religion institutions should also then have the right, without penalty, to make their decisions regarding what they will or will not allow.  Meaning, the law should not define or limit 2 parties, regardless of gender, to engage in a civil union that allows them the financial and societal benefits it brings but religious entities should have the right to not perform the marriage, or recognize the marriage, if it goes against their doctrine.  Some religions wouldn't, some would.  Either way, it would be a foundation on their beliefs and separate from the government rights.  Two things that I see as very different.

Just food for thought this morning...

And for the record... I'm neither Republican or Democrat so don't try to dispel what I think as being with the 'other' party.  I vote based on the individual and the issue and will never be a party-liner.

It is time to stop the drama!!!

Everyone needs to just stop now... I am all for expressing your excitement or disappointment over last night's results, but stop with the asinine statements attached... Our country is neither saved nor going to hell. It is seeing a man (just a man, not an angel or satan) in office for 4 years, or in the senate or house. There is a shift in political agenda every time we vote-we just see/feel it more when it is a presidential race. 4 years ago many of you posted similar comments. Just stop. Take a breath and come back to reality. This is the change and in 4 years our country will still be here. We are not done or undone by one man during one term and the shift back and forth that the senate and house undergoes happened before and will happen again. This continued drama on Facebook is ridiculous though and speaks higher to what will 'destroy' our country than one man or a group of politicians could ever do.  

As for what one could do vs. the other... every single time a President is elected, he is full of what he is going to do then gets in the White House and finds out the difference between what he wants and what he is actually capable of doing and has to pick his battle.  This dynamic is not going to change so grow a flippin' brain America and stop believing the hopeful statements and start looking at what is actually feasible and realistic.

Anyways, back on task... hoping that all take a step back and stop the madness.  

As for me, I'm disappointed that Gary Johnson (or Jill Stein or any other 3rd party candidate) did not achieve the 5% as that would have been a step toward change.  Unfortunately, even people that I thought would be the change they say they wanted to see, ended up voting for one of the two major parties instead.  Honestly, this disheartens me and I am finally feeling defeated in believing that change will ever happen.  When I was in elementary school (5th grade if I'm remembering right) we had mock elections and I ran the campaign for the Independent.  That's the foundation I started with and duration in which I've believed in someday seeing change.  I no longer see it.  Mr. Grumble (my dad - welcome to your life in blogs *grin*) recently stated to me 'unfortunately a vote outside of the two established parties is a waste. I have watched surges from libertarians, greens, Naders, etc since the early 60s and none of them can mount a legitimate effort, they just become spoilers.'  When he said it, I still believed. Unfortunately today's result have made me realize that it really might be impossible.  I am disappointed, disheartened, feeling a little crushed, not greatly full of hope any longer and have a slight tinge of despair.  That's all about me personally and what I wish I'd seen happen - it does not however reflect on President Obama or Governor Romney though.  It doesn't mean our country is going to hell... it means that I've finally realized that the dynamic of our country staying in a two-party system most likely will not change in my lifetime and probably not in my children's either.

You are joking, right?

I'm not quite sure where to even start with this one... Chicago schools are going to give parents $25 Walgreen's gift card for attending parent-teacher conferences.  Do I see the innovation in trying to increase parental involvement... yes.  I see it.  But... seriously?  We are bribing parents to show up and talk about their child's schooling?  Do we really think that bribing them is in any way going to make them more engaged in their child's life?  No... they are just there to get the free gift card. If they weren't coming because of the desire to be involved, to know what's going on and be responsible for raising empowered children that can excel in life... why would a gift card change that?  It won't.  It may up attendance at parent-teacher conferences which will look good on a chart or graph, but showing up isn't the same as actually being there.  I do agree that we need parental involvement to help children succeed.  It's essential.  But showing up to pick up a gift card is not the same as showing up to be involved.   This just seems so incredibly short-sighted.  If bribing is the only way to go (and it's not like I have any brilliant ideas myself...) Wouldn't a better method be to provide the incentive of a free gift card if they come, and stay, for a parenting seminar?  I don't know -but this is definitely one news story I will be watching to see how it pans out.

Local Spots are Gluten Free and Ingredient Ready

With our life now drastically changed thanks to the gluten free modification to Mr. Cheerful's diet, we have mostly been eating at home which tends to be a much easier environment to control.  That said...  it is also fun to go out sometimes.  We'd heard that Pizza Luce had a vast selection of gluten free options.  Since Pizza Luce is a must when traveling to Duluth, we decided to check it out locally in St. Paul to see how they did.  All I can say is WOW!  They are now one of my favorites as an ingredient friendly place to eat as well! They have gluten free options in both the pasta and the pizza and when I needed to check on Annatto - they had a 3 ring binder with ingredients for all the components in the meal selection printed up.  It was fabulous!  Mr. Cheerful got a gluten-free pasta dish with an annatto-free roll that he absolutely loved.  

Another favorite, and since we were in the neighborhood (sort of - 10-15 minutes away is still the same neighborhood, right?), we had to stop at our favorite local ice cream place.  From the beginning of finding out about the annatto allergy, Izzy's has been incredibly helpful with ingredients - including a call from the owner to talk through with me what he would or wouldn't do (they do some ice creams with other local products incorporated in - and that was his don't... as he can't guarantee me their ingredients).  To our excitement, Mr. Cheerful did not have to get his ice cream in a cup, as I'd pre-warned him was going to have to happen because... as well as being incredibly helpful regarding ingredients - they have gluten free cones!  Woot Woot!  Gotta love my Izzy's!

Learn the Zipper Merge

Learn the Zipper Merge.  It is not rocket science.  Mr. Happy and I have been taking dance lessons for over a year now and I guarantee you that the Rumba, Foxtrot and Hustle are much, much harder.  Seriously...  It's really quite simple... both lanes of traffic go up to the merge point and then alternate lanes to become one.  Like a... wait for it... like a... LIKE A ZIPPER.  (yes, I DO know that ALLCAPS means I'm yelling)

Does it mean as soon as you see the sign slow down and get over into the next lane right then?  NO.

Does it mean go around people on the berm? NO.

Does it mean slam on your brakes? NO

Does it justify road rage for the idiots around you who apparently don't know the zipper merge? YES.  Whoops... I mean NO.

Don't believe me?  Check it out here... http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/

But whether you believe me or not, whether you check it out or not... please, oh dear lord please, start doing the zipper merge and stop pissing off all the other drivers that do know how to merge!!!

Marriage Amendment Misinformation

This is a rant regarding the upcoming vote on the Minnesota Marriage Amendment.  If you don't want to hear my opinions or are sick of politics, wait for my next post - I promise to attempt light and fluffy there!

Today I heard a radio ad that just completely irritated me as it is total misinformation.  The ad targeted parents claiming that in other states - particularly Massachusetts - that allowed marriage to be redefined allowing same sex marriage led to children in schools being taught about same sex marriage and that parents would have no rights to have their children not be exposed to it then urging to not let marriage get redefined here.  This is so incredibly misleading... This amendment is not about allowing gay couples to get married.  The redefinement that is happening in this proposed amendment is to define marriage as one man-one woman.  So the people who are talking about the bad in redefinement of marriage are actually the one's attempting to make the actual definement of it in the amendment.  The question on the ballot is not should we allow same sex couples to marry - the question on the ballot is "Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman. Yes or No" and if passed would add a section to Article XIII of the Minnesota Constitution to state "Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in Minnesota.".  So... the only redefinement going on is the one that would define marriage as a man and a woman.  This amendment is not asking to allow same sex marriage.  It is not about gay rights.  It is about fundamental religious factions wanting to limit marriage and write that constraint into our State Constitution.  The State Constitution.  I'll say that one more time - this amendment is not about a law - it is about a modification to our State Constitution.  The State Constitution is intended to be the foundation of our laws and 'non-changeable'.  If you want something changed, the correct course of action is by law - not an amendment to the State Constitution.  Not that I want a law defining marriage either, but that would at least be the correct course of action for this.  The bottom line is that it is promoting government intrusion in personal lives, depriving a specific set of people their freedoms (this is pretty subterfuge for the word DISCRIMINATION!) and it is mixing religion and politics in our Constitution.

That all said... here's the kicker in the whole targeting parents strategy... writing a definition of marriage being one man and one woman is not going to suddenly change the reality of our society.  There are still going to be gay couples, there are still going to be books about same sex couples and your kids are going to meet other kids that have two mommies or two daddies regardless of whether this amendment passes or not.  This amendment is not going to 'save' your children from exposure to the dynamic of what our community is made up of.  They will, if they have not already, come into contact at some point in their lives with someone who is gay or related to someone who is gay.  Considering the population ratio - I'd be shocked if it is only one person.  

And here is my religion attack... how very UN-Christian to be passing judgement based on your churches interpretation of the Bible.  By promoting this amendment based on your religious principles you are saying that you have the right to stand in judgment of other people.  You don't.  You are merely a (wo)man.  Only God has that right.  How does the relationship of two strangers affect you personally? How is that an affront to your religious views? How does it change what you believe, how you believe or where you believe?  How does it affect your marriage?  It doesn't.  All of these things can remain strong and in tact because of your faith - irregardless of how another couple chooses to live their lives.

And here is the biggest kicker in this all that I hope people are asking themselves before they checkmark a box... if at some future date my child or grandchild, niece or nephew, cousin or sibling were to come to me and tell me they are gay how will I reconcile that with myself that I personally made certain that they were never able to marry the person they love.

You might be surprised by who in your life is gay and just unable to tell you.

Let's talk politics...

First... politics on Facebook... I've been disheartened by what I've been seeing on Facebook lately.  By the articles and news stories it seems that most of America is afflicted, not just my circle of connections.  A friend recently posted that she couldn't take all the negative, hateful words anymore and was going offline from Facebook until after the elections.  I was bummed by the thought of not having any regular interactions, as she is one of my daily peeps, but totally empathized with how she was feeling.  Rather than abiding by proper manners and etiquette, Facebook has empowered users to put at big 6 ft. sign in their front yard by means of cover/banner photos, profile photos and no pause to censor oneself on status updates.  Don't get me wrong, I have, and will continue to, post my political opinions, Like pages of specific politicians or causes, and RSVP for events for said politicians or causes that I believe in.  I'm an open book and not embarrassed by anyone knowing my views.  I will also readily engage in politic discussions.  The thing is, I do so in a respectful  manner that appreciates that everyone is entitled to their own opinions.  What has become of issue is the diatribes people are posting in which they accuse the party they aren't supporting as being evil, against our country, un-American, etc. and then go on to personally attack anyone that disagrees with them.  I've had friends threatening to unfriend other friends because they just can't believe the viewpoints said person has.  When did we become a society that values only one viewpoint.  I grew up believing that all people are different and each has a right to their own opinions.  I have many friends, and in-laws even, that have very, very different stances on some of the issues we are faced with voting on this year.  While I don't agree with them, I totally respect that they come to the booth with their own personal history, values and conscience.  That makes it okay.  We can disagree without it ending our relationship.  Seems to no longer be the case on FB.  I also believe that passion behind your beliefs is awesome, as long as you still respect that not everyone is the same and not vilify them for it.

Now let's talk about those actual 6 ft. signs.  Well, no...not really.  I have no issue with the 6 ft. signs.  A  friend actually has several in her front yard.  I completely disagree with a couple of them (particularly one that is an issue up for State Constitutional Amendment) but think she is a great location for it to be placed as it is in full view of the freeway.  I only hope she charged all the political parties that saw the amazing possibility her yard presents!  Little Miss Sassy Pants and I got into a heated discussion of this when she made the mistake of saying to me that the person was wrong.  I emphatically explained to her that it is absolutely ok to say that an issue is wrong, but not the person.  Every person has a right to their own view - no matter how warped and twisted we think it is.

And then there is the nastiness that surrounds the normal sized yard signs.  At a cross section where I get off the freeway after work daily, the political advocates have been placing signs.  Good location, well thought out.  Except then the shenanigans started up... it started with a Vote No sign being placed there.  Shortly after the Vote Yes sign was up and the Vote No was gone.  That didn't sit well with me.  Next day, Vote No was back up and Vote Yes had not been touched.  Then the Vote No sign was gone again.  This kinda ticked me off as it was obvious that Vote Yes was removing Vote No's sign.  Next day the Vote No was back and the Vote Yes was gone.  I was no longer ticked, I was now livid - the Vote No people had sunk to the Vote Yes people's underhanded dirty tricks.  Seriously... why can't we all have our viewpoints without the nastiness?  After several back and forth now it appears that both are gone.  I'm thinking it would be nice if it stays that way!

Finally, let's circle back around to the Facebook your party vs. my party issue that is going on.  This is really flippin' simple.  Stop thinking in a mentality of a two-party system.   As long as you think in that mentality, your only option is this guy or that guy.  Ugghh!  How sickening is that?  There are not only two parties.  There are not only two candidates.  There ARE other options.  I personally have been more aligned with the Libertarian party the past several voting spells.  And that is how I've voted - based on how I actually believe - not on the 'lesser of two evils' mentality.  That is so frickin' bogus.  And I've heard a thousand times over that I'm just throwing away my vote,  But here's the thing, I would rather vote by what I believe in and stand for, than align myself with someone that I don't.  Plus, we are never going to see the change in our system if we keep that mentality - that there are only two choices.  There will continue to only be 2 choices until America wakes up and says they are done with it by voting for candidates that are not Democrat or Republican.  Does that mean you/your guy may not win this election or even the next - yes, probably.  But by taking a stand and making the change, over time we WILL see a difference.  Our children will then be able to vote based on candidate, not based on a 2 'major' party system.  The Mahatma Gandhi quote "Be the change you want to see in the world" is splayed all over the place and it totally fits - BE the change you want to see in this world.  It is only if we change that then the system will also change - and our system IS broken.  Stop saying the quote and start living it.

I'm done... but Little Miss Sassy Pants has something to say on this too...

My Point

on Politics

Imagine a painting, that while standing several feet away is an expansive, beautiful landscape but when you step in a few steps becomes a jumble of different colored dots. This is the concept of pointillism, in which thousands or more small points come together to make the picture that people admire from afar.

America is that landscape painting that people are admiring; people from within and outside its borders. From a distance they, like the art critic, will see the overall picture, and like pointillism, when they look closer can see each individual person, or dot each a specific color and shade that add to the overall piece. Lately though, more and more of these dots are all the same two colors: red and blue, Republican and Democrat.

Without the many shades and hues of all the colors, a pointillist painting will never come together to look like anything other than dots jumbled together, and in the same way, America will never be a beautiful country without the many colors of people. If we accept the constraints of two parties, our views will never be correctly expressed by our leaders, and for the “land of the free”  and the “home of the brave”  that isn’t a good enough option.

We can make a better painting of America, but first, we must vary our colors, and branch out to the edge of our horizons till we find a better fit for our own opinions, because without the first step towards changing our color scheme from red and blue to the expanse of a rainbow we will never make it to that point. So, dig through the crayon box, look at all the colors this time...Slate, Tangerine, Magenta, Green, Libertarian, Independent, Constitution.., and together we can paint a better picture.

Dehydrate Me Please!

Mr. Happy has a new obsession.   It's my fault... I told him to do it!  It all started with my desire to have edible trees and bushes.  We started with planting 2 apple trees and a plum tree when we moved in 5 years ago.  That grew to a salsa garden (Mr. Happy makes the BEST salsa) of tomatoes, onions, jalapenos and cilantro the following summer.  Then the next summer we added blackberry, blueberry and raspberry bushes, several strawberry plants and numerous rhubarb plants.  Now we have all that and an herb garden.  I guess I just love edible greenery and thankfully Mr. Happy can make it all grow (I have no green thumb... mine is orange - the dead shade of orange that signifies you don't have a green thumb!)!  Yes... all this in a very suburban neighborhood.  Can you imagine what I'd have done if we'd stayed in Northern (rural) Minnesota with acreage?  Mr. Happy'd be a farmer by now - overalls and all!  Though that image isn't quite as sexy as the lumberjack one I have for him - all burly, stubbly and flannel like... Okay, okay... back to the story... So far, the apple trees and plum tree have only yielded enough fruit for our family to enjoy each fall.  Until this year... the plum tree and Sweet Sixteen remained contained in a size fit for our family (*sob* if something was going to explode it should have been the Sweet Sixteen - I LOVE that apple variety).  The Haralson apple tree, however, exploded.  Like really, really exploded.  The top picture is with over half of it's harvest already plucked from branches.  Which leads to Mr. Happy's new obsession.  After a visit to Mills Fleet Farm (you can take the boy to the city, but you can't take the rural out of the boy...), Mr. Happy was talking dehydration and vacuum sealers.  So, I innocently said that I thought it was a great idea as we will not be able to eat all those apples before they start rotting and the kids LOVE dehydrated fruits.  Silly, silly me for thinking it would stop at apples.  So far, we have skin off apples pre-treated with lime, skin on apples, skin off apples pre-treated with Fresh Fruit Produce Protector with and without cinnamon added - and this is for about 1/3 of what we picked off the tree when we harvested it about 10 minutes after I took the picture above.  There are 5 boxes of apples still sitting in my garage (next to all the cub scout popcorn which is making it really hard to park in there... doesn't Mr. Happy understand that the garage is for my car?) waiting to be stored or dehydrated.  Even so... Mr. Happy moved onto dehydrating his herb garden (I believe he froze half and dehydrated half).  Then started the big stuff... rather than buy dehydrated meals in the pretty tin foil-esque packs from REI that just need boiling water added to produce a spectacular camping meal... Mr. Happy is making us dehydrated meals for our upcoming Boundary Waters trip.  Item one is Sweet and Sour Chicken which requires dehydration of cooked chicken, pineapple, various vegetables (peppers, onion and I'm not even sure what else - it was just tray after tray after tray of items being dehydrated) and the sweet and sour sauce; item two is chili which is dehydration of meat, beans (ummm... we are dehydrating already hydrated beans?), tomatoes, and the tomato paste.  (bottom picture is cinnamon apple rings, chicken, onion, orange and red peppers and the sweet and sour sauce)  Hoping it is as tasty as those ones be buy at REI or the kids may revolt!  I'd hate to deal with mutiny in a canoe as there really is nowhere for Mr. Happy to escape to! It did not end here though... the pièce de résistance is when he used my Pampered Chef Cookie Press to make jerky. That is the point when my eye began to twitch!  Sorry dear loved ones, I will not be sending cookies this year!  I will never be using my Pampered Chef Cookie Press again... but we will have jerky in pumpkin shapes and christmas tree shapes... JOY!  All griping aside about... a great by-product of this month's 'Mr. Happy obsession' is that our home continually smells like a home-cooked meal (of which we've had none since Football and Cross Country season started!)!  Not quite sure if the dehydrator has negative effects on us like a microwave does... but it does seem like my skin is dryer and my sinuses are suffering.  But then... I'm a total hypochondriac, so I could just be imagining it!

Me, blogging? Really?

I've been told that I should blog.  I apparently have many opinions and provide others with much entertainment   Not sure if that's meant in a good way or not!  So, here we are... Life in the Shades of Orange universe.  Shades of Orange you say, why such a title?  Well... orange happens to be my favorite color, but then as life would have it... I have a kid with an anaphylactic allergy to Annatto - a natural colorant that changes cheese (among many (oh so many) other things) from white to orange.  So, rather than have his face swell up and the traumatic (for me) administering of epi-pens... we pretty much eat nothing orange any more.  Except for Doritos and Cheetos - as they are artificially colored.  Who'd have thought that 'all natural and organic' girl would suddenly be happy when she saw the word artificial!   My kid may end up with an extra limb... but he'll be alive!  Anyways... Annatto can also be the slight tinge of yellow in vanilla ice cream and butter or for a full on red (though Paprika is more commonly used for that).  There you have it... Shades of Orange (you know... yellow<-orange->red... get it yet?).  Thankfully I love to cook - which makes our house much, much safer!  Apparently, this allergy has also made me an incredibly bevy of information regarding the crap that is put in the foods we buy and how to look up ingredients online.  My husband wants me to write an app for the ingredients thing.  I think he believes in my ability to prosper a tad to much.  He's the dreamer, leader and entrepreneur   I'm the little worker bee that prefers someone else be in charge!  I had my stint in management and loved the mentoring side of it - hated the politics of it.  Office politics suck.  Political conversations about our government/candidates engage me.  Hmm...

So... for the intros... I've already established that I'm a mom who likes orange but can't eat it (except orange peppers (the bell variety not the habanero kind (although they are awfully cute) anymore - I was a spice aficionado in my youth (even had that awesomely cool poster of various kinds of chili peppers with spice rating) - as a mature adult... spice and zantac are always together)); I'm a mid-level worker bee (in the IT industry); I'm apparently very fond of run-on sentences (bite me you grammar police); I'm incredibly Type-A and my heroes are the likes of intelligence or rants - think Einstein meets Dennis Miller and Dennis Leary.  Yeah... I know... they really shouldn't go together in the same sentence; and I'm HORRIBLE at phrases (had the nickname Ace for years because I replaced 'my' for 'the' in the phrase Ace in THE hole).  For some period of time (during my haitus from the IT world to be a stay-at-home mom (sort of... I took part-time tele-commuting programming jobs a good portion of the time)), I wrote a local 'family friendly events' column for Examiner - but then I realized that making pennies wasn't worth it and it wasn't going to get me a career at a newspaper or in a Social Media or Blogging gig... so I got a real job, back in the IT world, and now punch a clock again. What else... I love to read and I love words - my favorite books, in fact, are the dictionary and thesaurus.  'nuf about me though... let's meet the family...

In the left corner, weighing in at... no, no, no.  My husband is in no way a fighter.  He has told me (and anyone who will listen (and watch) his (gregarious) storytelling, the story that he was once in a bar fight with friends in which they pre-decided who had what guy.  My dh ('dear husband' for you internet challenged folk) took his guy to the bar for a beer while everyone else duked it out!  So, I think we will call him Mr. Happy (yes... yes...  I am totally stealing from the Roger Hargreaves book series!).  I suppose I could have picked Mr. Perfect, but then we'd have to deal with his Mr. Ego other self.  So, Mr. Happy is a higher level sales/marketing guy for a vaccine company.  NO... I will not tell you which vaccine company.  He's athletic, sometimes in an obsessive way, having competed in triathlons and now avidly playing lacrosse while still cross-training (but not competing).  He loves to do things for our kids - he coaches their sports teams (football, basketball, lacrosse), is a Cubscout Master and volunteers for Boy Scout outings.  He also loves to torture them with his love of outdoors and sports by regularly making our weekends active and full (the man can not rest... he absolutely, positively has to be doing something always - me, notsomuch... the kids and I are more than happy to plop in front of the tube and watch something stupid!).  He eternally believes in positivism (glass half full... ugh...) and even has stupid voicemail messages like 'Smile and you will make someone else smile'.  Gag!  Makes me wanna punch him right in the grinning... no, not really - that would come across like I support domestic violence.  And I don't.  Mr. Happy is awesome (when he's not annoyingly happy), intelligent, funny (in a goofy way and sometimes annoying ham-like way), good around the house and sexy.  Simply put, a keeper - so... you can't have him!

Our oldest, Little Miss Sassy Pants (yes... I know that isn't really a Little Miss book, but she fits the title so I'm keeping it!), is technically my step-daughter (Ack! That would make me the evil step-mother... a fact that her real mom has tried to manufacture for years but keeps failing at... epic-ly).  I met Mr. Happy and Little Miss Sassy Pants when she was two and from the very beginning we just connected.  She's now a teen and in high school and I think we are even better now than we were when she was little.  That, or she has me very snowed!  Seriously though, she is amazing and made me believe that I was a really, really good parent (then her brother's came along and all illusions have been destroyed) because of how amazing she is.  She's also beautiful - inside and out.  Just like the Bruno Mars song - she's perfect just the way she is.

 4 years younger than Little Miss Sassy Pants, Mr. Chatterbox came along and dominated our world.  We used to fight about who's baby he was - mine or Little Miss Sassy Pants.  He's hyper and witty and funny talented.  He's our middle-child and a middle-schooler, but never middle of the road.  Much like his mama (that'd be me) he is one extreme or another.  He's a groovy saxaphone player, a runner and an xc skier and has played lacrosse since first grade (I blame him for Mr. Happy's current monetary and time obsession).  He's my mini-me, which is really cool but also at times incredibly frustrating as we can be the best of friends or worst of enemies.  Fortunately Mr. Happy's around for tag-team parenting when Mr. Chatterbox and I start to verbally spar!  Recently he introduced me as a freak (because I like comic books) and a geek (because I work in computers).  Nice, eh?  He is definitely the child that is going to break me... but I look forward to every single moment of it!

And then came Mr. Cheerful.  He's smarter than the rest of us (and we are afraid, very very afraid), incredibly articulate and a total charmer (a chip of the old man's block) - he is Mr. Happy's mini-me.  He's the kid with the allergy (ironic that Mr. Cheerful is orange, is it not?) and the most mature of us all in handling it (mama's a wreck... Mr. Cheerful's got it all under control).  He's finding his way in the world trying to not be compared to his sister or his brother.  He is still at the elementary, but not for long.  He plays football, basketball and lacrosse.  He's still my cuddle-bug, but won't admit it to anyone.  He is a thinker, and when he speaks you know that it's been well-thought out and deliberate in his approach.  He is incredibly empathetic and reminds us to be civil and loving when the rest of us are acting poorly.  Which we are, acting poorly, often - we are a family of talkers, and interrupters, and sometimes quite obnoxious.  

While he hasn't ever lived with us, I can't introduce the family without introducing Mr. Cool (yes... I know blue is not a shade of orange, but just run with it, okay? Brown would have been just too drab for Mr. Cool!).  He's my adult step-son who I also claim as mine.  Thankfully his real mom thinks that's a good thing.  I totally adore and love his real mom and think that if I'm even a fraction like her then I'm in a good place.  Mr. Cool hangs out with us about once a month - he's clear on the other side of the metro and in his early 20's - so he's busy being 20-something which translates to working then hanging out and being cool with his friends.  We love when he hangs out with us and have come to figure out what bait to dangle to peak his interest - boating, camping, disc golf playing, bonfires and seems to be okay with board game nights too.  And... he appears to love my cooking.  Either that or he's figured out how to dangle bait in front of me too! *grin*

And there we have it... welcome to Shades of Orange.  Don't expect anything spectacular... I'll focus on allergies, our lives in a blender (get it... blended family - lives in a blender?), ranting about this then ranting about that and then some more ranting!   Mostly this will just be a place to share more about our lives with our extended family because they just don't get enough of it on Facebook. Enjoy!