Happy Birthday to Me!

It's my birthday today and despite how much I don't want to keep adding the numbers, I wouldn't want to give any of it all up, so I guess I'll keep moving forward!

I ate ice cream today - twice. So that was good.
I don't think it counts on your birthday.

I will be back soon with tales of what we did in Maine (which was AWESOME).

But for now...this is what we found when we got back...and it was AWESOME, too!

That whole "growing food from a seed" thing is TRUE!

Hope you had a great day, even if it wasn't a double-ice-cream type for you!

But I'm Not Even Irish...

I am not a prankster. Not a big fan of the practical joke.

Oh, I am funny. One of my friends tells me all the time that I should be a stand-up comedian (comedienne?) but I think she just might like the idea of seeing people laughing at me. Possibly throwing things.

I do have a sense of humor. I enjoy a touch of sarcasm here and there...

But, I am not much for the April Fools' joke - the freezing of underwear, the Saran-wrapping of toilets, the swapping of sugar and salt - not my thing.

And I forget every year about the whole Leprechaun myth that has somehow been introduced to my children.

This must be a new thing. I don't remember this from my childhood. April Fools? Yes. Green beer? Sure. (Not as a CHILD...work with me here...) Pink hearts, yellow moons, orange stars, green clovers? Check. Shamrock Shakes? Haven't had the pleasure, but surely I am aware of their existence.

But, mysterious mischievous little critters running around secretly messing things up? Um...nope, doesn't ring a bell.

In pre-school, my kids were introduced to the Leprechaun and his shenanigans. Green footprints all around the classroom. Frequent spottings of glitter left behind here and there. Hidden toys. All kinds of fun stuff.

I was under the impression that the Leprechauns only pulled their pranks in school. And really possibly only at the Kindercare. Never heard of it anywhere else.

And then Tater came home from school on Tuesday and asked if anything "weird" had happened while he was at school. And when I said no, he seemed unconvinced. Was I SURE that there wasn't anything wrecked? Or missing? Or, perhaps, GREEN???

Nope. None of that.

As we walked home from the bus stop he told me that, while his class was at recess, the Leprechaun had come into the classroom and left glitter and stickers on the desks. So apparently, the "wee folk" have made their way into the elementary school! Who knew?

And he was sure that if we looked around the house enough there was sure to be some sign of elfin (fairyish?) foul play.

I quickly debated slipping some green food coloring into the milk. But, not completely on board with the idea of drinking green milk for the rest of the week, I decided against it.

I told him that the "little green men" probably hung around the schools since that's where all of the kids are during the day. And of course they know it is more fun to play tricks when there are kids around to enjoy it.

I think he was disappointed that there were no signs of prankitude around the house. I guess I could consider altering my "no pranks" policy if there is continuing interest next year. Although keeping all of the magical characters hanging out around here straight is getting a little exhausting.

But maybe if I had a big pot of gold for inspiration, I would change my tune!
Maybe just a little one?

Green and Clean

Things are tough all over. I know lots of people out there are tightening their belts, and we are no exception over here. As part of our "fiscal adjustment" we have decided to reduce (and possibly eliminate - sob) visits from our cleaning service.

This makes me very sad. One of my happiest moments is coming home to a clean house that just happened with no intervention on my part. But, since I am currently unemployed, I really have no excuse for not getting myself in gear to do at least some of the cleaning.

So I armed myself with a plan, courtesy of my new friend at Motivated Moms. For my very small (under $10) investment, I have a list of what chores should be done each day to stay on top of housework before things get out of hand.

I must admit that I have opted out of some of the tasks (I am not cleaning the outdoor trash cans - not gonna happen). But overall, I am digging the breakdown into manageable pieces. I may even start to delegate some things to the kids.

My other tactic was to put cleaning wipes in strategic locations throughout the house. In each bathroom and in the kitchen. Thanks to my other friends at Mom Central I had the chance to try these great wipes from the new GreenWorks line made by Clorox.

I was kind of telling myself that using wipes isn't any worse, environmentally speaking, than spray cleaner and a paper towel. And goodness knows I am a heavy consumer of paper towels! But these GreenWorks wipes make me feel like I am doing less damage to the world, since they are biodegradable, 99% natural, and don't leave a chemical residue on things. They even have a nice smell. And they actually work!

I have been using these to wipe drips of of the toilets (yuck), hairspray and toothpaste off of the counters (double yuck) and spills in the kitchen (less yuck...) I also prefer to use a throw-away wipe to clean the bathroom because I seriously cannot stand using a sponge with hair stuck on it (ultimate yuck). So I like the "dispose and start over again" nature of wipes.

The cleaners came today, for the first time in a month, and I seriously wasn't sure I needed them to come (gasp!) Things were actually fairly under control. If I am able to hold it together through February, I think I am going to cancel them completely.

And then I will cry. And go look for a job :)