Saturday, February 27, 2010

Striptease at the Dinner Table

Not me, you naughty readers!

Christopher has become rather adept at removing articles of clothing, be they bibs, shirts (that aren't onesies), or diapers.

The other night he managed to get his shirt off and proceeded to wave it around rather coyly, and a striptease of sorts came to mind:
 
I don't want this on anymore!

 
Peek-a-boo!

 
Here I am - did ya miss me?

 
Hmm...is that a cheerio I see?

 
Show's over folks! I'm done! GET ME OUT!!!!




© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Because I Can't Rearrange My Furniture as Often as I'd Like

I like to change things up.

Often.

I used to be a person who rearranged her furniture fairly frequently just to keep things "new;" however, the dimensions of the rooms in our home prevent me from doing this ever frequently.

So....I rearrange the next best thing VERY frequently:

My blog!

Why not, right?

In December I switched over to WordPress because of some features that looked attractive to me.

But truthfully, I didn't blog nearly as often because I.  Just.  Couldn't.  Figure.  It.  Out!!  Different nuances in text appearance, how to color up my blog with a template I loved, and other such things kept me from feeling completely at home there.

And I couldn't have my Blogher ads on my blog there (am working on getting them reinstated - got motivated after just recently getting another check from them) either.

But most of all, after 4 years of blogging (aack!) I just love Blogger and am happy to be using their platform again - with one major change, though!  I finally bought my own domain! 

www.ramblinred.com
Bookmark it and come back to visit often!



© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Boy's Got Radar

Christopher is intent on keeping me fixed on him and him alone.

Usually his radar will awaken him from sleep the instant Seth tries to touch me, intimately or otherwise, at night.

Today it has been any time I try to sit down and sort my thoughts out - once while doing a Bible Study and now, when he'd just gotten down for a nap, I thought I'd take a stab at blogging, but the siren wails upstairs instead.

Soon....



© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Snippets

  • This week was the Busiest. Week. EVAH! We had something going EVERY day (largely dominated by the girl scouts and cub scouts with a smidge of school music program thrown in for good measure - ahh, the schedule strains joys of being parents to schoolagers!) and by today after church, Seth and I were ZONKED out. God granted us one of His oh so tender mercies and we were blessed with a Sunday Nap this afternoon - which has not happened in a LONG time. (Note: Sunday Nap is not the same as the also popular, air quoted "Sunday Nap." :giggle: This was pure, unadulterated SLEEP.)
  • Re: the bridesmaid dress, we had some drama....you see, David's Bridal told us they could get me any of the dresses I liked in the peridot color of my sisters choosing, IN 12 WEEKS! AAcck - people the wedding is one month from today! So my sister did some online searching and had a little wedding miracle. See, she found on craigslist, the boatneck dress, in peridot plus a white peakaboo skirt and white sash, in my size, in the same state as she lives in! For a reasonable price, too. So that is decided.
  • I have a million, jillion things I wished I could have gotten written this week, but see above reference to busiest week ever, add one cranky lil guy who is currently cutting 4 horrible teeth (that are taking their sweet time torturing my sweet baby as well as the rest of casa del Meyer) and well I haven't gotten much of anything accomplished this week given I have been a sleep-deprived zombie in harried deadline mode.
  • Well, that's not entirely true as I did stick to my running training and I did totally run my heart out at the Sweetheart Classic yesterday. 4 Miles, in 51 minutes and change, which is none too shabby given a few things: 1.) I ran my first 5k in October in 43 mins 10 secs 2.) this course was much hillier and 3.) a good half or more of the race was in a very strong headwind (which coincided with the inclines - oof!) - so I did accomplish something pretty big, if you factor that baby in! God is so good, and I am continually amazed at the ways in which He meets me when I'm running. Bolder Boulder is looking quite feasible now - bring it on!
  • We got our federal return on Friday and I promptly began paying off medical bills. Got some big monkeys off the back with that and I am so grateful to have our heads above water again.
Hoping to pound the keys with more meaningful words this week - intention and actuality often differ - but for now I'm gonna go to sleep since the tortured little soul baby is asleep.

Peace!



© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved

Friday, February 5, 2010

Of Satin, Chiffon, and Oh - Lack of a 5'11" Frame?

So... I have this theory....

There is a reason why bridesmaids and brides are indeed supposed to be fair maidens and virginal; such distinctive traits insure that they have not gained The Honeymoon's Over 30+ (forget the Freshman 15, kids) nor will they have endured the expansion, contraction and subsequent sagging due to the bearing of offspring.

In other words, wedding dresses and bridesmaids dresses are for people who still look good! I'm telling you the truth on this one - I mean just look at how many of these dresses are strapless! Not to mention that so many of the fabrics, ahem satin, tend to hug every lump and bump a girl's got, particularly when paired with a shade from the family known as pastel.

So I went dress shopping for my MOH dress for my sister's wedding today. Because I love my sister and will do anything I can to make her day great, I opted to, you know, actually try dresses on versus risking an on-line order fiasco. This was a humbling experience. Yet one I now know to have been completely necessary.

First off, they didn't have any of the dress styles in my size that were of the same color my sister has chosen. So some dresses were hard to imagine the right way, as the colors were all quite wrong.

Secondly, I should have realized that all the models in the catalog are GIANTESSES with legs that never end, and thus all the styles I eschewed as being too short, actually were about right. And the ones that I thought were a nice modest length, made me look as if I had nubs for legs.

Proof, you ask? You want proof that it really was. That. Bad. Well look no further.

Pardon the bra straps in this picture – it was the first I tried on. I ditched the bra later. I really do like this one – it is simple, modest neckline, and flattering fit, too. But that thing I mentioned about satin hugging all the lumps and bumps? It is kind of doing this in a bright color, and I'm leary about what the lighter sage green (peridot, if you will) might do on my body's hardly level topography.

This one fit ok in the skirt and with the length, but the halter would need to be trimmed so that the bust would come up – too low and much boobage is viewable.

This one was ok – my arm/boob junction chub kind of overlaps the top seam of the dress which made me somewhat self-conscious, and the length was a lot longer than it appeared to be in the catalog – so I think would look better shorter.

This one is a no go – if you look at my back reflection, my back fat is scooshed such that it looks like I have a butt crack in the middle of my back. Also – too short on the leg and low on the bust – made me look smooshed down and wide a la a funhouse mirror. That's a great look. Not.

My friend and I really liked this one (particularly that it was chocolate which is a color totally owned by me). In fact my friend made the remark, "That's a dress that I'm afraid would have Seth itching to take you into a back room!" LOL. Concern: it is cotton sateen and they had no peridot anything in sateen with which we could compare and get a read on what the fabric/color combo might actually look like WORN. Reason: like satin, sometimes a light cotton fabric will “cling” to lumps and bumps on a woman’s figure - think heavy girl in khaki pants, 'nuf said, right? Also....about this point I began to hate on my shoulders - I am really broad in the shoulders in proportion to the rest of my body and feel as if the length from my shoulders to my chest is kind of long, leaving me feeling quite exposed in a strapless fashion. If I were to go with this I would probably order a wrap to wear on my shoulders.

This dress is ok too...it’s not my favorite but my friend thought it looked really nice. It too is the cotton sateen, but flares away from my tummy troubles so it could work well. Holy cow was that blue friggin’ electric – Debbie Gibson and visions of blue mascara began playing in my gotta-connect-everything-to-pop-culture mind.

In one of the worst color picks of the day, was this palest pink dress - which again was a deceptively LONG dress. Other than the need for a length alteration, it wasn't such a bad dress.

There were others - the mod 60's TANGERINE (I mean who chooses TANGERINE, neon orange, for their wedding color?) that was so NOT flattering to my bod, a few sweetheart necklines in which I felt like Kirstie Alley trying to model Victoria's Secret (:shudders:) and a few others that were just meh.

On a positive note - my calves have totally deffed up with all the running. I put those heels on and was like, "Wowza, who's the chick with the supa hot legs there?" So the dress might suck [on me], but my legs will totally be rocking the high heels - all is not lost.

Thoughts on any of these dresses? Make your vote count!



© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved

Turning "To Do" into "Done"

Some people are list-makers, claiming they love the feeling of accomplishment as they cross each "to-do" off.

I love accomplishment. I love feeling like I've done something worthwhile, meaningful, and done them well, no less.

There's the rub, though. That last part - that part about doing something well - it often paralyzes my progress, and usually before any progress has actually been made.

So I might make a list, but when I review it I begin to think, "Oh wow, that is a lot - there's no way it can all get done [perfectly] today." And instead of breaking it down into chunks that are achievable I just spin my wheels in overwhelm - going nowhere. And with that thought the voice of Dr. Phil is cued: "So, uh, how's that workin' for ya?"

It's not. At. All.

My list is so big right now:
  • Spend more time in Scripture/prayer
  • Fix the finances
  • Organize the house and keep it clean
  • Set some exercise goals and attain them
  • Spend more time writing
Among other things.

I've been focusing less on making the lists and more on just doing them. And things are getting done. Please bear with me as things adjust and I acclimate to a more purposeful, regimented routine.

© 2006-present Ramblings of a Red-Headed Step-Child. All Rights Reserved