Susie Homemaker and the Poisonous Cake

Ahhh, nothing better than a perfect spring day in Minnesota. Especially when the weekend is kicked off hanging out on the patio with your peeps after recording another podcast and enjoying some homemade coconut lemon cake that you've slaved away for and your friends actually like. Success! Don't ask me why, but the weather was completely amazing yesterday afternoon so I felt compelled to stay in the house and bake a cake. huh?! However, being the paranoid that I am, I was fretting about leaving it out, as the lemon filling in the center was made with egg. Stephanie kept insisting that it was fine...even so, I still put the cake in the fridge over night.

This morning I found 2 emails from my ever-lovin' peeps, both saying they were sick last night!!!!! Of course my first thought was The Cake--even though Coreman and I had both had some and were absolutely fine. Just when I was wondering if I should throw the rest of it away, I get another email from Stephanie saying, "GOTCHA!" Maven of Mischief cooked up a little plan to freak me out into thinking I poisoned my friends. nice. They got me, all right! Too hilarious. You just can't let your guard down around that friend of mine. Too bad I'm so damn gullible, and am never able to retaliate. You guys will have to help me think of something for revenge....

It must have been the 'drilles. That's my new name for my espadrilles, thanks to Kim. It sounds much more metal, don't you think? With them on I am about 4 inches taller than Kim, which she wasn't too happy about. :-)

Sully's Flying Box

My little inventor. Sullivan's school had it's annual "Imagination and Inventor's Fair" last night. The cutest. The kids can enter anything their little brains can dream up--and of course every year there are at least 2 erupting volcanos. (Vivian had one of those in the past!) Sullivan came up with the idea of The Flying Box, a box that can fly anywhere in the world. With a *little* help from his dad, he had transformed a simple dog kennel into quite the contraption for he and Digby to travel the world in--complete with switches, maps, food dishes and of course a plunger to steer. He had a list of places he wanted to go...of course most kids probably would have said Disneyland, Grandma's house...not my Sully. His list included Algeria (to see the Sahara Desert, of course!), Italy, Oman, (?!) and even McDonald island, which I learned is not a place full of cheeseburgers, but a teeny island near Antarctica. huh. Who knew?! Sullivan also wrote a story to tell a bit about his adventures, so people could get a good idea of what it really was. I just have to share--Sullivan told me the story, and I just typed up what he said:
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SULLY AND DIGBY IN A FLYING BOX

One time Sully and Digby went in a box to fly to somewhere. The box was very special because it could fly anywhere they wanted.

Digby looked around the box. He sniffed, too. Then Sully turned on all of his switches. Engine One, Engine Two, Engine Three, and he turned on the switch with the rockets. With the rockets burning and the lights on, Here we come around the world!

Digby was very excited to look out the window, and he did. Digby saw mountains down there. They were flying over the whole arctic. Sullivan said, “Hold on, Digby, we’re coming into a landing!”

“Let’s look around”, said Sullivan. So they looked around the arctic. They saw penguins and polar bears. One fierce looking polar bear headed straight toward them! “Ahh, quick! To our flying box!” said Sullivan. “Come on, Digby!” So they rushed in the flying box as fast as they could. They rushed away from the arctic. “Let’s go to a desert,” Sullivan said.

So they went to the Sahara desert in Algeria. They saw big rocks of sand. So the two little mountain climbers climbed up one of those rocks. They slid down the other side. “Weeee! What fun!”, said Sullivan.

When they got back to Minnesota they landed right in front of a sewer. “Let’s go inside!” said Sullivan. So the two went inside the sewer. “Yuck,” said Sullivan when some squishy mold dropped on his hand. They saw tarantulas in there, Huntsman spiders, and wolf spiders. “Let’s get out of here!” So they rushed back to their box. “Let’s go home.” So they went back home with their Mom.
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(he just HAD to put the spiders in there! ug!) Is my boy clever, or what?! It was quite the hit, although of course kids were looking all over for Digby himself who was quite pooped out from all of his adventuring and stayed at home. A big thanks to his loving Daddy who spent so much time and energy working with Sullivan on this project. You gotta love it when the man says, "let me do this one". ahhhh.

Maybe next year I should enter my flying box...*gasp*! Did I say that?! ;-)

Metal Mommy Gone Muffy

OK, I know many of you have your own image of me, and with this post it may be shattered. I couldn't help myself, I have succumbed to the fickle fashion-of-the-moment. I never thought I would be saying this, but it's true...I bought a pair of espadrilles. Espadrilles! Not only have I always hated the word itself, but in the past I always thought they were just plain butt-ugly, only something someone named Muffy would wear. Certainly not a Heavy Metal Mommy. But then Stephanie showed up last summer in some very sexy ones...between that and much In Style magazine brainwashing, I have decided that some espadrilles are pretty darn cool. So there it is. I still don't like the word, but I do love my espadrilles. And I will still make them metal, mark my words.

THE Funniest Thing Ever

...well, at least for today. Or maybe the week. Possibly the year?? Google Current did a schtick on the whole Susle Flynn thing. In case you don't know what I'm talking about, a certain young girl is 'running for president', with the hopes of getting health insurance for the 9 million children in America that don't have it. It's a very worthy cause, and if you go to electsusie.com, you'll see that the whole campaign is nothing to laugh about. But anyone has to admit that this Current thing is just the best--check it out:

Susie Smear!

Ah yes, this girl is near and dear to my heart...;-)

The Road Goes Ever On...!

Now this is news...a new Tolkien book is being published!!! I'm so excited! No, the man has not risen from the dead to pick up pencil and paper again--ghost writer, indeed!--but his son Christopher has pieced together more of his writings that were never previously published. This was the case with "The Silmarillion", which quite honestly was a bear to read...it was more of a history book than anything else, giving the reader background to the peoples of Middle Earth and how it all began. Supposedly The Children of Hurin is written more 'story-like', as the Rings trilogy is. Now if only someone would find some lost Chaucer that would solve the mystery...which story WAS the winner of the Canterbury Tales??

Today this post could have also been titled "Metal Mommy Goes to School"...as I went into Sullivan's school this morning to help out in the classroom. As it turns out I helped outside of the classroom, in the hallway covering at least 30 tagboards with construction paper. Ah well, it was good tedious daydreaming work, and I know it was a big help to the teachers--so that felt good. Plus I always get a dose of My Friend Kim to brighten the old day.

The Peeps, the Zoo and some Spew

Friday night at Stephanie's...now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about!!! Steph invited Kim and I over for some delicious apps, lovely wine, and amazing laughs and conversation. Woo! I honestly can't think of a better way to spend an evening. Thank you thank you, Steph! You always treat us like queens!!!

A spring-like weekend, ahhh. We Minnesotans are especially thankful for it, after the tease we had only to be slapped in the face with yet another snowstorm. But then again, what would we have to talk about if it weren't the weather?! Yesterday the kids and I graced the Minnesota Zoo with our presence. It was the perfect day for it...and apparently everyone agreed, as it was so darn crowded. Ah well, it didn't keep us from enjoying the tiger that is literally on the other side of the glass right in front of you, or the new farm babies which included THE CUTEST little black baby lambs.

Today, an uneventful one. Sullivan did grace the sanctuary of the church with his stomach contents. Cory got the pleasure of taking him home and dealing with it, (bless him!) but when I arrived in the house he was eating his lunch happily and it must have indeed been the effects of the Sit and Spin he partook in whilst he played in the nursery before church. Lovely. Just another day in the life of a Metal Mommy.

Happy Easter!

Or, if you don't celebrate the holiday, Happy Just Another Sunday. Of course to most of us the holiday seems to celebrate spring and candy more than anything else, with just a little dash-o' Jesus sprinkled in there for good measure. I have my own personal struggles with the whole thing, (or stuggles, I should say...gotta listen to the podcast to get that one) being the Jewthran that I am, but any way you look at it the message of hope is a good thing. I've been in a bit of a funk lately, and watching Blood Diamond last night before bed didn't help the situation. When you think about the horrible things that so many people feel justified to do to others, it's enough to take your breath away. This world is full of them. But, it is also filled with many wonderful people as well. Many of them kind people like you! People who take time out of your busy days to read this blog, giving a rip about me and my life, sometimes leaving comments that totally brighten my day. It's the little things, people, and I'm appreciative! Maybe someday, someday, someday, we can all feel the love and there can be peace on earth. It's hard to even imagine, but I'm not going to give up hope!!!

All Jupiter's Fault

Oh, of course! Jupiter entered Sagittarius, that's why I'm feeling the way I am! I was going to say that, actually, but I didn't want to make you all feel too stupid. Check out part of this email I got from astrology.com today:


Restless? Feeling the need to seek greener pastures? You're not alone. Ever since Jupiter entered Sagittarius, the sign of the traveler and the explorer, on November 23, 2006, we've all been itching to get away. You most likely have pals who've recently fled to some exotic locale or taken serious steps to find a more fulfilling career. If you're been deliberating your own move -- whether it's taking that trip to Mexico or getting an MBA -- it's crucial that you take notice of the next big astrological event: From April 5 to August 6, Jupiter is going retrograde into Sagittarius, the sign of the Archer.


Well then! No wonder I've been dying to start something new for myself and one of my best pals has been having so many darn vacations lately. It's all because of that crazy Jupiter. It's a good thing Jupiter wasn't entering Uranus, who knows what kind of shenanigans would be going on.

Happy Birthday Vivian!!

How is it possible that I have an 11 year old daughter?! Good grief, an official 'tween'. Right about this time 11 years ago I was heading to the hospital for my scheduled birth. I was about a week late, and the doctor was worried that the baby would get too big! I was 3 centimeters dilated and 80% effaced for 2 weeks, I kid you not. (I know this means nothing to people who have never had children, but bear with me. no pun intended.) Believe you me, I was ready. I wasn't thrilled about the idea that it wasn't going to happen as nature intended, but, there it is. For a person who thrives on being over-prepared, it was kind of nice to try to make myself get a good night's sleep the night before, and get up to eat a healthy light breakfast like a good pregnant-lady-getting-ready-to-give-birth should.

As it is as I stood in the kitchen my water broke on its own. Nothing dramatic, thank goodness...no amniotic fluid gushing all over the floor. But I was quite happy knowing that that day and time was meant to be after all. And speaking of amniotic fluid gushing, one of the funniest memories I have of that day is that very thing happening after I got to the hospital. I had my lovely hospital gown on, had been poked and prodded and told that yes indeed, my water had broken and I was having mild contractions, when I decided to again be a good pregnant-lady-getting-ready-to-give-birth and get up to use the bathroom. As I started to walk across the floor, GUSH. Coreman stood there horrified, saying, "Gross!!!!!" Of course that made me laugh and laugh, and I slipped and slid my way to the bathroom. What a sight that must have been.

About 6 1/2 hours later, our little daughter was part of this world. A HUGE part of this world, at over 9 pounds. I remember upon delivery the nurses couldn't wait to weigh her, saying, "This could be a 10 pounder!" Like I gave birth to a fish or something. Vivian was born with a huge thatch of black hair--what a cutie!

And now, 11 years later, that little baby has grown into an amazing girl. Loving, smart, clever, witty, talented, beautiful. Am I lucky or what?! Remind me of all of this when she turns 14.