Preppy Girl's Guide

This weekend I found myself surfing ebay for old toys. Damn that "I Love Toys" on VH1! I was on a mission to revisit my youth. I searched all the items on my top 10 list. I was actually amazed how tough it was to find some of this stuff (there were plenty of batons, but not a vintage one among them). No hula hoops, no fuzzy pumper (though I did notice recently that there is a new version out in stores). No pics of my old bike the "Thunder Rose" could be found. I really wanted to find that old "Greeting Card Plates" but I could find nothing... at first.

A million searches using different words and descriptions brought me to the Hasbro website which actually has copies of old instruction sheets for games and toys. I was able to find the instructions for - "Great Greetings!" - I was so excited. I plugged that title into ebay, and there it was. My beloved greeting card maker. But wait - it was only $12.99! Oh yes, I had to have it.

A few clicks later and I was the proud owner of the greatest greeting card maker in the world (at least that's how I remember it). Now I'm just waiting for it to arrive in my mail box. And will I let my kids play with it? No way. This baby is mine (at least for now). I am smiling just thinking about it!

Today at work we had a "presentation" from a customer service speaker. She was a great speaker, very natural and knowledgeable. However, there were a couple of things I couldn't get past:

A) Her grammar - For someone who was so seemingly intelligent and well spoken, she used words like "anyways" and "eckspecially" - Arrrgh!

B) Her Power Point - There were a couple of misspellings and her slides didn't match her handouts. Don't even get me started on the sentences containing spontaneously capitalized words. Double arrrgh!

I left her a note on the anonymous comment sheet about the mistakes in her power point - then I felt bad. But hey - if it were me, I'd want to know. Does that make me a horrible freak? Conan the grammarian strikes again.

Although it's getting warmer, (should hit a wopping 50 today!) there was still frost on a few windshields this morning. I noticed one or two cars this morning on my daily commute. I'm guessing they had frost in the rural areas outside our "city," (it's small, but techinically, it's a city). Anyhoo, as I drove by one of these frosty vehicles I noticed that the back window was only half scraped off (driver's side). I instantly started to calculate in my mind how long it could possibly take to scrape off the other side... 5, 10 seconds? How freaking ridiculous! I don't understand how people can be so lazy that they'd risk getting in an accident rather than take an extra 5 seconds to scrape off the back window?!?!

Rant for the day, over.

PreppyGirl out.

Well folks, it seems my husband has found my blog. It's not like it was a big secret (I had suspected that he may have possibly been reading it all along), but now I know for sure, he has found it. Oh well, now at least I can be sure that when I rant about his bad habits- he might actually read it (and do something about it? - hey, I can dream). I just hope he didn't read that stuff I wrote about his mom... just kidding honey!

I am still laughing about something that happened at lunch today. My very conservative, Baptist, 62 year old assistant used the term "va-jay-jay" (turns out she was re-counting a scene from Grey's Anatomy). I can't even think about it without chuckling. I was also reading guinness girl's blog yesterday where she used the same term, along with hoo-hah (another favorite of mine) to describe her nether regions. It's got me to thinkin' about all the terms people have for their "privates." Here's a few I have used before:

1. Coochie (which my 4 year old pronounces "chookie")
2. Hoo-hah (sounds like a rodeo expletive)
3. Cooter (like the guy on Duke's of Hazzard - ewww!)
4. Va-gheena (German pronunciation as I recall)

and a couple of others I won't use here...

So my question to the blog reading world today is - what term do you use?

Why is it that men can't seem to follow directions? I shouldn't generalize so much, there must be SOME guy out there who reads 'em, but my husband surely does not.

Saturday night my husband "catered" a dinner to another couple's house. He had actually auctioned off his services at a fundraiser a couple of months ago (full Irish dinner for 10) and, appropriately, the purchasers decided to cash in on St. Pat's. From the word go, this sounded scary to me. I mean, I love my husband's cooking but he tends to A)not follow directions and B)serve it chunky... It seems that somewhere along the way, my husband never really learned the defintion of "finely chopped" or "minced" or "mashed." And as far as following directions, he seems to skip to the end and ignore all the details.

He was up pretty late making dinner (I vowed NOT to help) and I could hear him banging around. Saturday morning I woke up to him yelling from the shower. "Come here! Come in here NOW!" - I was thinking he had some crazy mole or growth he wanted me to check out. I rush in and he says, "I forgot to turn off the crock pot last night - go check it please!!!" Good Lord. I ran downstairs to find the Guinness stew almost bone dry. I quickly added some beef broth and another can of Guinness and it was saved. At this point I start to dig through the fridge to see what else he's made. Corned beef looks okay (kinda hard to mess up boiling meat), spicy corn bread actually looks wonderful, shepherd's pie looks - uh oh - this does not look good. It is supposed to be topped with mashed potatoes, not scalloped potatoes. Why can't he just take the time to use the electric mixer? I take a bite and my worst fears are confirmed - the potatoes are not even fully cooked! They are crunchy! Jesus, Mary & Joseph! He is so impatient that he couldn't wait for the potatoes to boil? My dilemma sets in.

All day I wondered what to do. Should I scrape off the potatoes and start over? I was afraid he'd be able to tell and get upset with me. I decided to leave it and hoped the potatoes would soften when he cooked the dishes before the dinner. When he got home later that day(he was working on Saturday, of course), I made sure he realized the potatoes were hardly cooked and that he'd need to bake them for a LONG time before dinner. He cooked up a couple more dishes and started the dessert - Irish cookies - which incidentally we couldn't make because the dough needed to sit in the fridge OVERNIGHT before baking. Another brilliant example of NOT reading the directions. We loaded up the car and off we went.

Everything was great, the dinner was going well and there was more than enough food. The salvaged stew was a big hit (if they only knew) and the corned beef was amazing. Luckily, by the time the shepherd's pie came out, most people were too full to try it - Thank God, because even after baking each pie for over an hour those damn potatoes were still crunchy. Ugh. At the end of the night, the hostess tried to get us to take home some leftover shepherd's pie. I very kindly declined and I'm sure she very quickly pitched it after we walked out the door.

You are now saying... who's pot on what? Every year on St. Patty's day, my mother's VERY Irish family spends the whole day trying to say this phrase to family members before they can say it to them. Sound confusing? If my mom can say that phrase to me today, before I can say it to her, I owe her a green beer. And not only will I owe her a beer but I will be reminded almost daily until next St. Patty's day that she "potted" me first. I can only assume this is some sort of Chicago Irish thing that has been carried on through the years. My mom even called me yesterday and screamed "Patty's Pat on Ya!" just to practice for today.

Everyone in the family will now spend the rest of the day answering their phone with "Patty's Pot on Ya!" or will call answering machines and send e-mails (even though that doesn't supposedly count) just to aggravate one another. No one's gotten me yet, but the day is still young. So to you all, I send out a cyber "Patty's Pot on Ya!" and remind you that you now owe me a cyber beer!

MySpace Layouts

I kinda stole this from Princess who (inspired by VH1's "I Love Toys") decided to list her top ten toys. Feel free to blogiarise it for your very own.

My Top Ten Toys:

10. Hula Hoop - I know Princess thinks these were for kids in the 50's but I had a sweet red, white & blue one that I used incessantly for 2 or 3 summers.

9. Baton - I was SOOOOO that kid in the neighborhood who would stand outside for hours twirling and twirling.

8. Flip n' Fold Fashions - LOVED making outfits with this. My daughter now has a Barbie version with updated fabrics and accessories.

7. Greeting Card Plates - this was the "cousin" of fashion plates but it made greeting cards. - good for a "suck up" kid like me.

6. Little People - back in the day we had the doll house, airport, sesame street, castle and our neighbors had the A-frame. We'd make a whole village - decent.

5. Fuzzy Pumper - play-doh barber shop complete with molds for "perms" and plastic scissors. Sweet.

4. Huffy Thunder Rose bike - Loved it, loved it, loved it. White, banana seat, white basket. Awesome.

3. Chinese Jump Rope - played everyday at school during recess - do they even HAVE recess anymore?

2. Barbies - I had the whole village going on in my basement.

1. My Friend Mandy - I LOVED this doll. She had lots of different outfits and would come with patterns to make more clothes. I still have it (and most of the clothes) and my daughter loves it!

Here he might look a little less like a stuffed animal...

Well, here he is. Saturday I went to "visit" the litter to see which pup I might want to take home. The owner pointed out two pups, Franklin and Asa, which she'd named after her grandfathers. Coincidentally, my husband's grandfather was also named Asa - it seemed like a sign. I set my sights on Asa and planned to return the next day to pick him up. The rest of the day was spent puppy shopping and I realized I didn't really even know what to buy - so, I played it by ear and picked up everything that seemed important (food, chew toy, kennel).

We picked him up on Sunday and he's adorable, of course. Now if I can just get him housetrained...

Let me just tell y'all about the dog since everyone has a piece of advice (which I greatly appreciate - seriously!)

For some time, we have been contemplating a dog - however... there is always some reason to NOT get one. Time, money, allergies, etc. I have thought about going to the Humane Society MANY times, but I always chicken out. So... enter Robin, my friend (whom I see at all 4 year old "functions" - day care, dance class, birthday parties, etc.) Her boss is trying to find homes for puppies. I do not immediately respond (one more thing to deal with) but, for some reason, the thought never really leaves me.

Robin tells me about the pups on Saturday and by Monday I e-mail her to get more info. You see... they are cinnamon colored poodles. My first thought is "prissy dog with pom pons on its butt." But - then my husband points out that they do not shed (one of the biggest issues for me as far as clean up). This would also be great for my son who has allergies (although we really don't know to what). And so, I get a little more sucked in.

My husband e-mailed everyone in his school to see what they thought (hey, we are trying to be thorough here) and got several responses from poodle owners who all agree poodles, if trained properly, are good with kids and excellent pets. So, after much deliberation, we decide to take the plunge.

Now, we have been "approved" by the puppies' current owner (yes there was a screening process to make sure we'd provide a good home) and I think we're ready to go. I am supposed to pick it up this weekend. Any suggestions for the new puppy (supplies, names, etc.) are appreciated (even if you are making fun of me).
Pics by Monday if it works out.

I am racking my brain trying to think of something to blog about. There is nothing. I was trying to think of anything I've done in the last 24 hours that was interesting enough to talk about. Here's a short list:

1. Did a lot of laundry
2. Worked
3. Read Blogs
4. Talked to my brother
5. Drank a beer with dinner
6. Grocery shopped on my lunch hour
7. IM'd Princess
8. Thought about getting a dog
9. Did some yoga
10. Put new shower rings on my shower curtain

Ya, that's about it. Now you know why I haven't blogged for two days. I hope something fun happens by tomorrow.

Oh wait - I did watch that "I Love Toys" on VH1 last night. I highly recommend!

I'm tired. Here's how my morning went (disclaimer: not for those with a weak stomach):

2:30 am - awakened by pukey toddler
2:31 am - run to the bathroom with pukey toddler
2:32 am - yell to my husband to check the sheets for puke
2:34 am - peel pukey clothes off my son and myself
2:35 am - rinse my head off in the shower
2:36 am - run a bath for the kid
2:37 am - back to my bedroom, husband still asleep
2:38 am - attempt to move husband to get sheets off the bed
(there was just a very small spot on them and he wanted to wait until morning - of course he did, the spot was right where I sleep, not him).
2:40 am - toddler asks me to jump in the tub, for some reason, I do
2:41 am - after the shortest most cramped bath ever, I get out
2:48 am - take the toddler downstairs to sleep on the couch

This was both gross and comical - but at least I get a day off out of the deal (which I need to do all the pukey laundry).

An old friend posted a picture of my brother and me from... I'll say about 1990 on her new blog yesterday (see Cyndi's Blog). You'll also see it on Princess's blog. Anyhoo, people used to think we were twins (we're only about 18 months apart and look a little alike - so Cyndi switched our faces for effect). This "doctored" photo became kinda infamous in our small circle of friends. When I saw it yesterday, I LOST IT! Too funny.

I told Cindy I had a similar photo that my brother doctored of my husband and me from 1999 (our engagement pic). I'll apologize now for the poor picture quality, but as promised, here are the two photos:

Here's something fun to do. Check it out.


I love filling out surveys that tell me about myself. If nothing else, the little questionnaire is fun to complete. Enjoy!

So all us Catholics head to mass today for our yearly smudge on the forehead. As luck would have it, an old friend of mine stopped by my office today - his visit was lucky because he is a retired Catholic priest. We are pretty chummy so I thought I'd ask for some special treatement.

Prep: "Hi Dan! Did you make it to mass yet today?" (I mean, I'll admit, I sometimes struggle for a subject when I see him because he is afterall, a priest)
Father Dan: "Oh not yet" (I suddenly realize this was a stupid question because if he HAD been to church, he'd have black ashes smeared on his forehead)
Prep: (again, struggling for something) "Well, we must fulfill our holy days of obligation" (a.k.a. days we HAFTA go to church)
Father Dan: "Actually, it is NOT techinically a holy day of obligation"
Prep: "Really? Oh..." (suddenly it seemed okay to mock the whole idea of receiving ashes)"Well hey Dan, maybe you could whip up some ashes and just do me right now?" (did I actually just ask a priest to do me?)
Father Dan:(nervous laughter)"Well, actually we'd need some burned up palm fronds"
Prep: (feeling particularly randy) "Here's a sharpie, let's just use this!"
Father Dan: "Sounds good to me!"

After he left, I felt kinda weird. Oops. But it made for intersting blogging so no harm done right? Plus, he played along. Ya gotta love Catholics.