Mommin' It Up!

March 2, 2011March 1, 2011

Calgon, take me away! Before the Looney Bin does.

Yesterday about 4:30 in the p-m, my house became a living, breathing, not-made-for-tv Calgon commercial. I was *trying* to make dinner for my family and also my friend E’s family (you know, E, of GimmE Five fame, YES.YOU.CAN still give $5 to help her beat cancer! Plug Plug.) and all h-e-double-hockeysticks flippin’ broke loose.

I’m in the kitchen with two steaming pots on the stove, and Jonah is in his swing in the living room, snoozing peacefully, while the big kids are playing legos.

Until the big kids start screaming at each other over who can touch which legos when, and the baby wakes up and then also starts screaming, because REALLY, apparently that is the thing to do at this moment if you are the spawn of Jenny and Bobby Rapson.

So then I of course, scream at the big kids to JUST.BE.NICE! All I’m asking you to do here is play, people. PLAY. Is that so bad???

Then I pick Jonah up and get him calmed down.

Finally, I return to my steaming pots and fortunately neither of them have boiled over or caught fire. Yay! And the dinner turned out pretty good I thought! (It was a recipe I am reviewing for ReadySetEat. Cheesy Chili Mac – yum!)

I got dinner together and the kids and I ran it over to E’s. Which is really no problem at all, as she lives really close. *BUT* Sophie was heartbroken when told that we were only dropping dinner off and weren’t going in to play with Olivia, E’s daughter. (Olivia, could you be less fun and charming, please? Geez! Your allure is really inconveniencing me here.) As soon as I pulled away from their house, she yelled “Wait! Go back! You have to go back!” and proceeded to SOB all the way home. Dra-MA! I assured her we’d have Olivia over soon but since it wasn’t right-this-second, it was not good enough. I dragged her into the house and mopped the tears and snot from her face.

Then I pleaded aloud for the Calgon people to come take me away and plunge me into a warm, idyllic bubble bath.

No one showed up.

But, no one showed up with a straitjacket, either.

So there’s that.

March 2, 2011March 2, 2011

Staples and Windows 7

Ok so Windows 7 wasn’t my idea, but I sure wish I had thought of it! Designed to simplify everyday tasks (and who couldn’t use that?), the new version of Windows has a ton of new features, including live task bar previews so you can preview open files (I currently have 19 Word docs open, so I am a prime candidate for this feature!), jump lists that take you right to your most used files/websites, and much much more.

I haven’t tried out Windows 7 for myself yet, but I am about to because last night I had the opportunity to buy a new laptop at Staples. Making big purchases like this can be stressful, and while I did a little research on their website before going in the store, mostly I was counting on the salesperson to point me in the right direction – which I realize is always a gamble. Fortunately, the Staples guy couldn’t have been more helpful (shout out to Jarrod at store 1677!) and I felt confident going with his recommendation. He made sure I got a computer that would fit my needs, but also made sure I got a great deal, which I really appreciated. And, he made sure my computer was going to come fully loaded with Windows 7, thanks to their free PC set up!

Here’s the best part (I mean, other than the sweet new computer) – I took my old, piece of junk desktop into Staples with me last night. They are not only going to transfer all my files, pictures and music to my new computer, but they’re going to run a tune-up on my old one, free of charge (so now I might keep it instead of putting it in the recycle bin). Honestly the only reason I’ve kept that computer around is because I hadn’t yet transferred the files to my laptop… the one I bought three years ago. But now, the lovely people at Staples are going to do it for me. I’m marking that off my to-do list.

Additionally, Staples offers a free Windows and Office online training to go along with the purchase of a new PC. I’m sure this comes as a great surprise (not), but I loooooove Excel spreadsheets. Love them. I can’t wait to check out the training on the new features and see what kind of other fun stuff I can now do with my spreadsheets. (Yes, I know I’m a nerd.)

So, if you’re in the market for a new PC, now’s a great time to buy one at Staples. They’ve even got a price-match guarantee, so you can rest assured you’re getting the best price – and just like the commercials say, Staples really does make it easy.

Stay tuned for my next post, after I’ve given Window 7 a go. I’ll tell you what I think about the new system, and I’ll have a fun giveaway for all of you!

March 1, 2011

Rise and Shine?

I have a very serious problem. It’s called not-able-to-get-out-of-bed-itis.

I cannot get up in the mornings, and I don’t know what to do about it. I have good intentions – I set the alarm for when I need to get up. And then I proceed to hit snooze two or three times until I finally manage to stumble to the shower.

I know that mornings go so much more smoothly when I get up nice and early (I’ve done it once or twice)… the kids do better with out me running around snapping at them to get ready to go (imagine that). I am less stressed and grumpy (imagine that) (yeah I can’t imagine it either).

Yet I cannot seem to get out of bed.

That, combined with lengthy Sam drop-offs, is not a recipe for success.

So if you’re one of those people who gets up at the crack of dawn, runs three miles and makes homemade waffles before work – please, give me your secrets. I need help!