the lady on the other end

UPDATED: Just for the record, I still do NOT like my hair. I was as hopeful as some of you were. And I assumed I was blowing things out of proportion when I proclaimed my haircut to be an inexperienced version of the Posh Spice cut caught in an electrical outlet. I hoped by letting a few days pass I'd allow myself to settle into my new 'do. Now, I've accepted that the only thing I can do is double my morning vitamin dose for the next month.

Sigh.

ORIGINAL POST:
I twittered about my hair today.

And first, let me set this straight, I have never been one to get all worked up about my hair. In fact, during my freshman year in college a friend on my wing wanted to color my product free hair in our wing's bathroom. When it turned out a sparkling shade of platinum, there were no tears shed by me. "It's no biggy," I assured her. "Better luck next time, right?!" And during the rest of my college years, my friends and I preferred going to the Aveda Institute students for haircuts. I kind of liked the idea of not knowing what the scissors had in store for me. Besides, hey had instructors right next to them. I knew it would always end up appropriate.

And because I have an extremely hard time paying normal salon prices for cuts and colors--especially when the majority of the last 6 years I've had short hair that required a cut once a month--I have stuck with the drive thru salons, and have had pretty good luck with the stylists I've found.

Until today.

But, like I said, this all happened because I'm so laxed about my hair. Let me show you what I mean.



Me: "Hi, I'm calling because I'd like to try to get in for a trim today and I'd like to see if my stylist is in.

Lady on the other end: "Ok, let me see, who is your stylist?

Me: "Well, I'm embarrassed to say it, but I don't remember her name. Can you look me up and see who's cut my hair the last few times?"

Lady on the other end: "Um, I. Don't. Know. Let me see. I guess..I'm not sure how to do that here."

Me: "Welllll, can't you just type my name in and see what comes up?"

Lady on the other end: "Hmm. Well, what did she look like?"

Me: "Oh, ok! She had dark hair. Really long dark hair."

Lady on the other end: "What else does she look like? Was she super skinny?"
Me: "Well. (hmm) No. (pause) She was a little heavier set, and she is quite the comedi..."

Lady on the other end: "Oh, wait! I found it here. It looks like that was me! Yep, I cut your hair the last time you were here."

Me: (Thinking back. If she was super skinny, that's an easy question to answer. Right? If she's not...not so easy.) "Ok. (what did I just say?) Well. (pause) Great! Then you're working today. Can I come in right now?

Lady on the other end: "Sure. I'll put your name down."

----Hold it right there. Embarrassing? Yes! End of story? No!----

So, I get to the salon and the Lady on the other end and I realized that we had never seen eachother before. She then apologized for the mistake and I assured her that was ok and I'd have her cut my hair anyways. She convinced me she knew exactly how to do an entire haircut with a razor, and she promised me it'd be "so cute" for the wedding we're attending tomorrow. The one where Mr. Marvelous and I will see all our high school friends at...that we haven't seen in ages.

Wrong. Wrong. She was most definitely wrong.

End of story? Yes.

how to pierce your nose. and possibly your cheek.

I woke this morning and totally forgot that I was no longer a virgin to the nostril pierce. Then I rolled over, arrived at clear conciousness, and remembered the big endeavor that took place last night. That's when I ran the entire experience over again in my head.

First, Mr. Marvelous and I walked into the tatoo and body piercing shop and met my piercing artist--shoot, I don't even know his name. But by the looks of it, I'm sure his name is an unnecessary piece of info. If ever there was a need to reach him in the future, I could just ask for the guy who appears to be made of metal and ink. Therefore, I'll refer to him as just that. MetalInk Man.


Here, MetalInk Man has already suggested a spot for my new piece of metal, marked it with some ink, and is explaining the procedure involving the hollow needle. He--and the man next to us who was tatooing some young lad's arm--promised me that unless we adopted all 4 of our children, I've already experienced more intense pain than what I was about to.

I still wasn't convinced. Regardless of our stouty, big headed son's delivery.




Here, ouch. I haven't quite felt the pain yet. But I was sure nervous and halted the procedure twice with an, "Ok, hold on one second...(breathe)..alright." And then a, "Wait! Ahhh. Ok. Go."

Apparently it was amusing.

But, I was beginning to feel the same way I did as an 8 year old at the top of the highdive board for the first time, with a bazillion other children waiting behind me in line.

Here he placed the metal tube that's holding the needle inside my nostril . Milliseconds after was when he did it. Ouch!! It did hurt like the dickens for about 43 milliseconds. Maybe not even that long. Then, really, I couldn't even feel it.

Here is the needle awaiting it's curly nose ring. It still hurts here. Do you see it, just hanging there? If any of our children even think about doing this, I'll...

And despite the relaxed, cool and collected composure that appears on my face here, it wasn't really the situation. I was merely finding my happy place until it was all over.

And then the tiny, little, clear and flat gem made it's home. Ow.

And because I was so excited, surprised, distracted with the whole ordeal, I walked away with one piece of info about taking care of it. Disinfect it 3-5 times a day. So, all you nose piercees, what is it that I should remember? You know, so my nose doesn't fall off in a couple of months.

And that, my friends, is how you get a nostril piercing, AND how you create a great conversation starter with your 4 year old daughter. Leaving her excited to get her "cheek pierced someday."

The finished product

Sorry about that last post.

Something must have been wrong with my keyboard. (Tongue-in-cheek.)

But, here! I'll post a picture of tonight's finished product--the product being my nose, and the finished being the post put in it.

That's right! I got my nose pierced!! Who seriously thought that's what we were doing?

Can you see it? I've got a few more pictures that I'll try to post tomorrow. Mr. Marvelous did a good job getting souvenir pictures while this all went down.

And boy, do I have a lot to say about this whole ordeal and my Piercing Artist. But I'm tired, and I have a series of steps to go through--very carefully--for washing my face before bed. So it'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Good night! And don't let the bed bugs bite. Or pinch. Or stab you with a hollow needle.

We got a WINNER!! And, let's uncover the anomalous activity.

The contest is over.

Phew!

And really, the intensity of withholding this pertinent information from you all is too much to handle. I can't take it anymore. Thanks for all your great attempts in guessing the anomalous activity that I'll be taking part in this week. Ah! I mean tonight! My heart beat is beginning to race, right as I type this. After the children are in bed, and while my SIL sits at our house, Mr. Marvelous and I will go engage in a harebrained idea to...well, let's get this out of the way first.

Random.org picked our contest winner, and I'm excited to announce that:

Here are your random numbers: 11
Timestamp: 2008-10-14 19:58:22 UTC

This means that Jessie's Girls (And quite the cute girls they are. And close in age, the way we like it too.), you are the champions, my friends. Congratulations!! Please email me your snail mail address so I can send out a package full of fun as your prize.

And before I go on, I feel I must address some creative comments.

l e a h's creative response was enough to double me over in laughter. While I love to "go against the grain," I most certainly don't "thrive under pressure." I wish I did.

and,

joyful1's thankful response was what made my night. Besides, who doesn't like to add a little fun to someone's night?!

and,

I appreciate Melody's honesty. My brain tends to hurt when I play Scrabble too. But, I did find that playing by yourself and making up your own board is very entertaining. "Hi!" to you too.

Now moving on.

It's official--and I'm glad our parents won't be reading this until tomorrow morning--We're $%&#*$%&@)#$*. Call it an early, early midlife crisis decision. Or call it, this-is-the-longest-stint-of-not-being-pregnant-since-being-married, and we're-spicin'-things-up-a-bit-here-at-the-household-of-4[children in]under3[years].

Call it what you want. Because I'm calling it: $%&#*$%&@)#$*.

And believe me, I'll try to get a few photos of the whole thing as it unfolds. I promise, you'll all hear about it soon.

Aren't you so excited?!

Not Me! and the contest follows

The other night--near the end of our sewing party at a friend's house--I did not give directions to the new girl in town to go in the complete opposite direction as her house. Not me! I know my East and West, and I've lived here for almost 2 years. Goodness! And besides, that would have sent her on an extra 40 minute countryside drive..at 11 o'clock at night. And it would most definitely have been the cherry on top of her night, being that she had just backed into a tree trying to get out of our friend's driveway.



And the other day, I did not try to pray away the circles under my eyes. Nope. Not me! I'm actually starting to like them right where they are. After all, I find they make me look mature and experienced. I feel like a full-fledged adult who is established in life. In fact, I think purple brings a little color to my face.



And Saturday night, as we were loading everyone into the car and attempting to leave the wedding reception, I most certainly did not have to pee so badly that I squatted right down in front of the car--in the dark--to relieve myself. For heaves sakes! Are you kidding me? Not me! It didn't matter the height of my heels, or the distance back into the reception hall, I most certainly marched myself right back to the ladies room and behaved...like a lady.

For more Not Me! fun, party on over to My Charming Kids. But don't forget to play along in 4under3's Scrabble contest below.

contest begins a little early.

Yesterday's wedding was wonderful.

I'm happy to say that our first wedding as a FF* went much smoother than imagined. Fortunately, there was no crawling under the pews--if you don't count Luke diving for fallen Cheerios--the acapella choir's volume height was at a superb sound level, muting Norah's one-ended conversation with the lady seated in front of her, and for a few moments there, I found my lap childless because of the help from grandmas and aunties.

In the end, sitting 2 rows behind the FIB and MIB didn't seem as paralyzing as first anticipated.


*Full Family


And as quickly as our leaves are changing, so is our choice of daily activities. We've packed up our pool and lifejackets, and pulled out our rakes and fall jackets--and vests. And while the children are excited for fallish type events this week, I'm eager for an out of the ordinary event of my own.

Here is where 4under3's very first contest comes in.
I'm kicking off the contest a day early, simply because tomorrow holds a lot for this household, and I'm just too excited to wait another day to tell you what's going on.

This week I am going to [do] [something]. And it's hidden below in the scrabble board.
To be part of this contest, you can do one of a few things. You can leave a comment--admittingly delurking or completely anonymous--about what you think my anomalous activity might be (and anything else you'd like to say about it). Or, you can leave a comment about a past anomalous activity you've taken part in. Or, you can just say hi. OR, you can do all of the above.

The winner will be picked at random sometime on Tuesday or Wednesday, then sent a splendid surprise package via snail mail.

Now get searching Scrabble challengers. First time joiners or daily visitors, Hunt it out. Rummage through. Go on your mission. Just don't bump the board, please.

contest secret. final thoughts.

Give me a F-R-I-D-A-Y! What's it spell?

Ahh! I daknow. F-R-what? Can you spell it again?

That's usually the way it is around our house. Whenever I try to secretize--oh, I like that word--something for Mr. Marvelous while in front of the children, I spell it out. But 99% of the time he ends up saying it outloud himself or not getting it and having me respell, then respell it again thus leading me to just saying it outloud.

But it's Friday, ya'll! And we had a great week.

Some final thoughts for Friday are as follows:

We went to a fabulous fun filled Apple Orchard today. Near the end of our visit, I seated the children down with some apples. It appears as though the apples had a little kick to them, so the little girls thought. And if I hadn't reserved this afternoon for scrubbing the double stroller for our excursion tomorrow, we'd head right back there for more afternoon fun.

Tomorrow, we're all traveling 2 hours to the much missed and loved big city that we moved from just 2 years ago next month. Mr. Marvelous' cousin is getting married and we'll all be attending the wedding and reception after.

The children and I have been going over how to act when seated for an hour in a pew. They understand there will be no background noise to drown out their squeals, pleads, and disputes. They've all accepted the idea of sitting still instead of crawling under the seated guests around us. The little girls are well aware that they are expected to leave their black patent leather shoes and their bows alone the entire day. And they all seem to be in agreement that they'll help make this a fun and memorable day for us. I sure hope they help make this a fun and memorable day for us.

-----

And then, I'm excited to announce that I'm kicking off next week with 4under3's very first contest on Monday. That's right. With prizes, and pictures, and fun...oh my!

I figured: that's the 13th, which is the day before the 14th, which is my dad's birthday, which he'll probably not be celebrating because, well, it's harvest time, and a combine is a farmer's best friend during harvest. So, I'm sure my mom will surprise him by taking out a treat, or something, then ride a few rounds with with him, and then he'll be back at it. I'm just sayin.

What was I sayin?

I digress.

-----

And before I sign off, please someone tell me how much you love puffy vests! Because, as I was getting dressed this morning, I reached for my hot pink vest to put on over my short sleeved Peace, Love, and Rock & Roll shirt that was over my long sleeved black shirt, and it got me thinking. In the last 5 days, I have wore a vest every day. And I know I'd be wearing one tomorrow if vests were considered wedding attire. There's the burnt orange, the black, and today's hot pink. For me, vests in the fall are like flip flops in the summer.

You think there's a support group out there for conditions like these?



Now, remember...

Wedding tomorrow. Pray for us.

Kickoff Contest. M-o-n-d-a-y.

And, that's all I got folks. (Ok, I got way more, but I'll save it.)

he's so brave

We had a surprise visit from my mom, grandpa, and aunt this morning. And while everyone was enjoying the beautiful fall day out on our deck, I was setting up the children's lunch on our deck table. Here's one conversation that took place between Julia and her grandma.


Hey Grandma! I really like bats. (She'll never forget this day, I'm sure.)


You do?


Yes. I'm not afraid of them at all.


Well that's good.


Yea. And my daddy, he's so brave at bats. (Notice she didn't include her mommy.)


(misunderstanding Julia's comment) Oh, he shouldn't be afraid of bats.


No, Grandma. He's SO.BRAVE at them. And he's so brave at everything, like lions and bears too.




...That's their some kind of wonderful that I was talking about. I won't mention to this awestruck daughter that her daddy has admitted to having a fear of heights. An obviously fading fear of heights, since he did climb Mount Kenya, has flown in more airplanes then I can keep track of, and has no problem walking around atop our house while bug zapping wasps nests.

Second thought, maybe he does it because he's so brave.

Sometimes we whistle while we...bathe in the kitchen

Sometimes we do this:

after a really messy supper.

It works really great. The little girls get clean at the same time as the kitchen. And for some odd reason, they find no purpose in climbing out. They just sit, splash, and throw their measuring spoons over the edge, all the while I'm wiping up milk puddles from dropped sippy cups, sweeping crumbs, and loading the dishwasher.

And then sometimes we skip pajamas on bath nights like these. Ok, we always skip pajamas on bath night, and slip them right into their next day outfits.

......And then there are sometimes when I wonder if the sweet old man who loads my groceries--at my favorite store in town--would think I was part of the loony bin if I gave him a big squeeze.

Happy Birthday, Julia!

To the apple of our eye and our little Ms. Pumpkin Pie, Happy 4th Birthday Juj!

I wonder if any of these things will change for you in this next year...
Your love for:

• your dolls
• downhill skiing with your daddy
• your new vtech camera
• rocking before your nap
• runny "eggies" and toast
• church camp songs in the car
• climbing across the monkey bars
• hanging upside down from the monkey bars
• playing with the little girls in their crib when they wake
• boots
• bats
• swimming and
• eating out at restaurants

Your disgust in:

• Asian Beetle Bugs
• mashed potatoes
• having your hair brushed
• supper
• being held down during Tickle Time and
• Aspartame

You've blessed us tremendously and we love you very much! -Mom & Dad

daddy melts mama's heart.

The way I see it, Julia and her daddy sure have some kind of wonderful love for eachother.

I fancy watching these two do their thing. And I'm not afraid to share their secret either. Daddy is wrapped around her finger. Whether he admits it or not.

Like when Julia was between 2 1/2 and 3 years of age she went through a stage of coming down to our room in the middle of the night to "snuggle for a minute." It happened once or twice a week, and it really ended up only being a minute. She always obliged when she was told her time was up. But, I always walked her back up to her room if she came to my side of the bed, since I only sleep soundly when there are no children in it. Now her daddy, he always gave in. She ended up catching on quickly as to which side to crawl in on.

And now she's turning 4 years old tomorrow!

I'm not going to say, "I can't believe it." Because I can. I just don't want to.

And her daddy.

While he's excited to continue with new, bigger girl things with Julia--like downhill skiing and fishing--I think he's a little sensitive to this growing up business. He confessed on our date the other night that he thinks he's going to miss Julia's little girlyness that seems to be "slipping away."

Ohh. That just melts a Mama's heart.

sigh.

Not Me! Monday

I did not squeal with joy after finding my lost bottle of Pat on Black fingernail polish in a purse from last fall. Not me! It'd be ridiculous to have 4under3 in the house and still find time to paint nails anyway? And really, I find joy in surprises like diapers with hefty waste and leglines anyways. Not fingernail polish.

And this morning--before anyone was up--I did not run to the coffee shop to buy whole beans and a ginormous monster Cinnamon roll for only MYself! Not me! And then, once I was back in the drive way, I didn't slouch down in the car until I finished it completely, licking my fingertips clean and disposing of the box in our dumpster. Come on, I teach my children how to share here.

And last week, after unknowingly leaving my husband's bank card at a home design store, I surely did not bite his head off the next morning when he asked me if he could have it back..yet I couldn't find it. I'd never! Regardless of having dug through every purse, pocket, and nook in the car, and regardless of the fact that my heart rate had hit the ceiling, I'm cool under pressure! I never get worked up over those kind of things.


For more Not Me! fun, head over to My Charming Kids.

Hazel. And a Catch 22.

You all got me thinking.

While some of you guessed correctly--that Hazel is the more laid back little one--others guessed incorrectly but still nailed it on the head when deciphering between the girls' distinct personality traits.

So thanks to dictionary.com, I'm able to explain this catch 22.

Evidently, laid back is defined as:

1. relaxed or unhurried and


2. free from stress; easygoing; carefree

As of right now--I say that because the girls have been known to do a little switcheroo in temperments since they were born--this fits Hazel, the little carefree sister of the bunch, to a T. While Hazel is much more energetic, she is still the more laid back babe.

She is relaxed and unhurried when she needs to be (ie. carseat, highchair, stroller), she is carefree with a side of spunk when playing:

and she is easygoing when she's met with a confrontational situation. She must take after her daddy.

Bravo, Hazel guessers! Well done.

One of these girls is not like the other. For now.

If you had to guess, which of these two would you say might be the more laid back of our darling duo? Norah on the left? Or Hazel on the right? Because there is one that is far more laid back than her sister.


Furthermore, which of these two do you think:

-has decided she doesn't mind her carseat after all (praise Jesus. one down, one to go), and often time finds it quite comfortable to snooze in as we're headed home for her afternoon nap?

-is fairly content with just watching all the action while sitting in her highchair after her tummy is full?

-is okay with the idea of exploring by herself, leaving the room Without.Her.Mommy, and playing unaccompanied?

-comes over and sits down in front of me holding her little foot in the air when I tell her, "Come, little little, let me put your shoes on."

-usually says no more than a, "Nooo nooo," when someone--say her big brother--takes a toy from her hand?

-sometimes goes beyond "the line" in the driveway, but turns her little stroller around when told, "That's too far."

Now.

Which of these two do you think is the EXACT OPPOSITE?

EXACT. OPPOSITE.