Simply Seleta

silver tray, please

I don't know about you, but summer has hit me right in between the eyes.  This weekend was mommy mania.  I was wondering why I was so tired so I did a little experiment and added up our awake playtime hours with our crew.  Guess how many it was? 45 [if you add the hours between Friday and the time we put them to bed tonight].  That's a work week for some people.  Husband and I haven't yet figured out what tires these suckers out.  They seem to just keep on going and going.  They don't drink soft drinks or consume any caffeine at all.  And they eat very little refined sugar. Are they too healthy?  Are they energizer bunnies disguised as small humans?  More importantly, am I going to survive this summer?

So I am currently soothing myself with a bag [or two] of those 100 calorie ruffles baked potato chips.  Why do they make them taste so darn good???  I can't stop.  I think I could easily eat five bags.   Okay, no more than six.

If your'e going to eat pure junk, I wonder....is it more fun to put it on a silver tray?  Perhaps more civilized than tearing through an entire bag leaving only those tiny crumbs at the bottom?  I'm going to have to try that sometime.  Maybe I'll eat less if I do it that way? 

THE QUESTION:

What snack do you turn to when you're in need of a guilty pleasure?  Do share.  And yes, wine and cocktails count! 

wordless wednesday...

[photo by james merrell]

things that make us happy...

Love these toy bins.  They're good looking, well-made and reasonably priced.  But what I like most is they help keep me sane.  If you need pretty and easily accessible toy storage, these are the ones.  We have them in two out of four of our kid rooms.

Funny, mine came with small people inside.

Look a little closer and you'll see.

In other news, offspring were home from school today.  Painting was part of our morning routine. [the eldest was on his mac]

If you see a large white bulky object crammed on the bottom of my small corner shelves in the above pic and happen to be wondering, "is that a Brinkman 2,000,000 watt glare free rechargeable flashlight?"  Then the answer is yes. 

This is what husband requested for his Christmas gift.  So I bought it.  Now I see it laying around our house in different spots each week and I'm still not sure what it's used for.  Blinding innocent animals at night?  Communicating with other light houses across the ocean?  Sending secret messages to our nearest Air Force Base?

Whatever it is, it seems to be something my husband really loves.  And I really love our toy bins.  Either way, we're happy and I'm thankful for that.

happy new year!

my husband's a playa'

May I be random for just one moment? 

I thought I was "dragging" the husband to a holiday par-tay last night, as the womenfolk were gathering in a certain store for cocktails and convo and the men were supposed to drink too much and play poker around the corner at the wine bar. 

After the girl stuff slowed down, me and one of my peeps wondered down the cobblestone street to check in on the menfolk.  They were having a blast.  Loud voices, laughing, hootin' and hollerin'.  Let me paint the picture:  their table was halfway outside, so many of them were sitting in on-and-off drizzling rain and 55 degree weather.  But they were happy.  Men.  They're pretty easy to please.  The women were very catlike, however, turning our noses up at the cold, wet, metal chairs and desiring a much more comfy place to hang out.

What surprised me is my guy seemed to have a lot of chips.  That's him stacking.  I had no idea he could play poker.  I knew he was pretty skilled at the roulette tables in Vegas.  But poker?  Hmmm, maybe this corporate attorney has an alternative career option if we hit a nationwide depression.  But would that mean I would have to stand behind him while wearing tacky outfits, chomping on gum all while learning how to drink scotch and soda?  Blech.

But this story has a happy ending.  Husband ditched the table [with a smile] and took me and my friend to a spot where we could eat, visit more friends all while staying warm and dry.  I'm highly suspicious there will be paybacks for this.

Took these pics with my phone.  I think they're groovy.

our cat in a box...

Before the offspring left for school on this very chilly Florida morning, they made sure to take care of their cat.  First, let me tell you that we have a very unusual cat.  He's friendly, loves to go for walks with us, feed the turtles at our nearby pond, ride in the car and ride in this plastic box.  Yes, I said he loves to ride in a plastic box.  He loves to be pushed at the speed of lightening in this very box.  Details shortly. 

Anyway, it seems the children gave him everything they thought he would need while they were away for a few hours.

1. A warm spot by the fire [blanket included]
2. Furryy friends [no one wants to be lonely]
3. Bottle of milk
4. A phone 

So there you have it.  Such little care takers.  Life is never dull here. 

Getting back to the plastic box.  You may be asking yourself, "how did they figure out that Pom Pom the cat likes to ride in a box?"  Well, please remember I have a two-year old.  And this is one game he's found that works for both he and Pom Pom.

This is a Saturday morning for us.  Watch and laugh.

On your mark....

Get set...

Go!!!

I kept waiting for our poor cat to jump out, but he just sat there.  At one point he started casually grooming himself.  Maybe this is the best compromise for playing with his youngest owner.  He loves his children so much, it's amazing.  

Pom Pom, thanks for completing our family.

rev it up....

I just love these random emails I get from my husband.  Like today's.  I received an email from him that simply said, "time for new car" with a link to a FOX news story [right here] saying this:

"Recent studies show that loud noises, such as the revving of an engine, are likely to have an arousing effect on an individual's physiology...by measuring levels of testosterone, a hormone which indicates arousal, the study was able to measure the car's stimulating effects...the results showed 100% of female participants had a significant increase in testosterone secretion after listening to the Maserati - compared to only half for the men."

My first thought was, "oh, the lengths a man will go to." 

My second thought was, "interesting opportunity."  Forget the SUV's and mini vans, maybe we sista's deserve a sweet ride... 

So if your husband walked in the door and said you could have a fast car, which would you choose?

A)   Porsche 911 Cabriolet

B)   Ferrari

C)   Astin Martin

D)   None of the above, just get me a killer sofa

If you answered "D" I can see your point.  And isn't it interesting that most performance cars also boast beautiful lines and curves much like any well designed sofa [as demonstrated by Windsor Smith's Gwen pictured above].  Maybe that's why I love the Porsche.  But a great sofa is far less expensive and will never need new tires. 

Personally, I would choose "A".  I've always enjoyed driving fast cars and hope to have one at some point in my life.  Perhaps it's because my father spent so much time teaching me how to drive from the time I was only 14 years old.  He made me first learn on a stick shift [an old Fiat we had] and explained the mechanics of a car to me in great detail.  I can tell you all about RPMs and tachometers.  I'll never forget the summer before I left for college.  My dad drove me to an abandoned parking lot and took the wheels off one side of my car.  He handed me a jack and told me to put the tires back on.  I cried.  He did end up helping me.  But he said he wanted me to know how to take care of myself if I ever had a flat tire.  He was a tough cookie. 

But I digress.

Be sure to tell me your answer.

pop quiz...

I had a second and took this out-of-nowhere quiz to see which Jane Austen character I was most like. 

Take the quiz too and report your results to me here.  

Take the Quiz here!

making lemonade out of lemons...

It's only Tuesday but it feels like the end of the week.  Our youngest two little ones have been sick with high fevers.  Last week was the two year old and all weekend and yesterday was the four year old.  Yesterday I was up by 5:48am taking care of her since she was too sick to sleep in the wee hours of the morning.  Brutal.  Especially when you went to bed at midnight.  You see, I'm so not the morning person, even after cranking out four offspring and enduring three years of early morning school schedules.  I still cannot adapt.  You should see my fellow night-owl husband and I stumbling around in the mornings before school starts.  Our eyes are usually glazed over as we watch in amazement four energizer bunnies bounce in excitement to start their day.  Sometimes we look at eachother and say, "How?"

Among many other things going haywire, we've had a crazy few days and we're pretty wiped.  Example:  our dishwasher broke [again] and busted out in song and started playing the National Anthem when I pressed "start".  I kid you not.

When you have a pile of lemons, there's always a chance to make lemonade.

So I did.

Last night for dinner I cooked a big pot of black-eyed peas and pork in the crock pot.  Yum.  I noticed a bowl full of lemons next to the sink.  I gathered all the offspring in the kitchen and gave them each a task to make fresh lemonade.  I got a kick out of watching one stir the pot of sugar and water, one measure and pour, and another juice the lemons with our electric juicer.  And of course one running around like a maniac.  It was cool seeing them all work as a team.   

Since we had a patch of sunlight in between the rain showers we decided to eat on the front porch.

But the fun part was whipping out this new glass dispenser I bought half price at last week's sale with my friend Michelle.  It worked like a charm for our front porch picnic.  I told you I could justify any purchase.

I have never seen my children so interested in drinking liquid.  They went crazy I tell you.  When we started it was half full.  The picture below is only five minutes into dinner. 

The two year old was suddenly whipping out refills for everyone.  If I didn't know better, I would have suspected that he had taken some crash bar-tending course by the speediness of his service.  Honestly, I'm surprised that his bladder didn't bust because he drank so much himself.

Love these polka dot glasses above.  Found them somewhere in Atlanta, they were dirt cheap.  I wish I had the brain cells to remember where I got them because we need more since several have broken.  They don't make enough stylish and small glass cups for little hands.  I like for our children to work with glass, it seems so much more civilized.   Plus, it's so cute to watch them try to be delicate in handling them.  I'm all about giving kids responsibilities.  It builds their confidence.

So please pardon my light or non existent posts this week.  This momma needs some downtime to recover from a whirlwind week. 

For a smile, I leave you with this thought from the Texas comedian, Ron White:

        "I believe that if life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade... And try to find somebody whose life has given them vodka, and have a party."

  

rub a dub dub dub, three heads in a tub...

Please allow me to share with you what it's like when husband is in charge of baths in our house.  Last night I heard lots of giggles coming from our youngest's bathroom.  I walked in and found this.

How does he get so many bubbles in there?  Do I really want to know? 

This explains why they always squeal in delight when he says "okay kids, time for baths."  I never get that reaction.  Now I know why. 

The good news is we have super clean offspring.