Monday, April 8, 2013

The ADD Housewife of Rural Iowa

Hiya Whipper Snappers! Today we have my blogging buddy Miss Sarah at The Sadder But Wiser Girl , featured as my guest blogger of the day! She keeps me in stitches on a regular basis, and her post today will have you cracking up! Luvya Miss Sarah!

Awhile back I was DESPERATE!  Desperate for some time away from blogging while I wrapped up a long term substitute teaching job.  Ginger came rushing to my aid and wrote me a great post that made a lot of people a little nostalgic for their high school prom.  Now I'm repaying the favor by writing a guest post for her.  I hope you enjoy it!


The ADD Housewife of Rural Iowa

He even has a Superman t-shirt.  He might as well wear it every day to work…
 
My husband, aka Evil Genius, works 4000 hours a week saving  the day pretty much every day.  He is an engineer for an agricultural company in Iowa, and apparently that's what they do.   Since he’s been on a couple of major projects at work, he gets up in the wee hours of the morning, drives an hour to and from work, and sleeps occasionally.  It makes sense that he’s a wee bit tired/grumpy/off his rocker these days. 
Meanwhile I’ve been a SAHM for a while other than a brief subbing job that I just finished.  Just because I stay at home does not mean 1) I have tons of time on my hands and 2) My house is neat and tidy.  This is because I am a horrible manager of my time.  I’m not a big fan of housework either, but I know when I just have to do it.  Time gets away from me and the next thing I know it’s after five and it’s time to get supper going.  Things get left undone and I feel horrible about this.
Yet I think that Evil Genius wonders what I really do all day while he’s gone, especially when he comes home to me not having done the things I SHOULD do.  I certainly don’t play video games like he does to pass the time.  He knows this.  But I wonder what HE thinks I do all day while he’s gone.  So naturally I wrote about, because that’s what I do.
(Keep in mind that no actual husbands were consulted for this post.  It’s all based upon a very scientific system that I use to surmise just what he’s thinking, called guessing.)

Wheeee!  Look at me!  This is what I do ALL DAY LONG…
 
*My day as I think Evil Genius probably sees it
I get The Professor up for school, then go back to sleep for the rest of the time he’s getting ready.
The Princess practices world domination while I doze on the couch.
The Professor heads off to school, I fall back to sleep.
I eat a well balanced breakfast of bon bons.
I play on the computer for 9 hours, telling everyone near and far about personal stuff I shouldn’t share.
I eat a snack-more bon bons.
I miss seventeen phone calls because I forgot to turn the ringer on my phone.
I laugh maniacally at the dishes piling up in the sink.
Lunch is whole grain pasta with cheese (no one eats bon bons for EVERY meal).
Whoah, I’m eating again-even more bon bons.
I play My Little Ponies and Hello Kitty legos with The Princess until the **cows come home.
I go diving in the mountain of laundry now residing in the living room.
I allow The Princess to run around like a wolverine all day, hair unbrushed, wearing only her underwear.
When The Professor arrives home, I give both kids large quantities of food so they won’t eat supper.
I plot the easiest and least exciting dinner ever, five minutes before Evil Genius arrives home.


Iron Maiden?  There are some strange things going on in my house…
 
How my day really goes
In the early, early, early morning I Iisten to Evil Genius's alarm go off 57 times.  I have dreams about smashing the alarm clock.
The Princess gets up at 6 am.  I tell her to go back to bed.  She comes in every five minutes wanting to know if it’s time to get up. I finally give in.
At 7 am I wake The Professor up for school.
I play a rousing game of “Please hurry up and eat” with The Professor.  He eats even slower.
I shove The Professor out the door and tell him to run so he won’t miss the bus.
I work on my blog, check social media, and look for a job.
I try to keep my eyes open as the same episode of Abby’s Flying Fairy School that has aired 5613 times   comes on.  AGAIN.
I put laundry in the washer, see the dishes in the sink and make a mental note to wash them later.
Macaroni and cheese is requested for lunch AGAIN.  Ok.
I conclude that Caillou really would be better off dead.
I work on my blog for a few minutes and check all my social media.
Once again I kick myself for not going to bed on time the night before, fall onto the couch and doze off. 
I make a foolish attempt to drag The Princess out for a walk. I remind her that when she’s five there will be no more stroller.  She's not buying it at all.
The Professor arrives home-healthy snacks are distributed.  This is when I realize that I never put the clothes in the dryer.
I work on all online stuff a little more.
I make a mad attempt at folding clothes.  They may or may not be put away.
I realize how close it is to suppertime and I finally start on the dishes.  I also try to figure out what we want/have ingredients on hand for supper. 
Evil Genius arrives home and I greet him with a smile and ask him how his day was.  There is incoherent grumbling and then he almost falls asleep in the chair with his laptop.  And here I thought love was dead…
So that’s what REALLY happens… Do you ever feel like you never get anything accomplished during the day?  Do you think your husband thinks you lay around all day eating bon bons?  Do you even know what a bon bon is?
*Remember my highly scientific system… guessing.
** Cows don’t actually come to your house in Iowa.  That only happens in Missouri.

Sarah The Sadder But Wiser Girl lays around the house in her pajamas and eats bon bons all day. She also writes a blog, which severely cuts into her bon bon eating time.  Visit her blog at http://sadderbutwiser.wordpress.com and maybe stage an intervention on the whole bon bon eating thing.  She’ll thank you later.

Oh, she’s also a pretty pretty princess…


Thanks a bunch Miss Sarah! Be sure to give her some love, and follow her at


The Sadder But Wiser Girl
<div align="center"><a href="http://sadderbutwiser.wordpress.com" title="The Sadder But Wiser Girl"><img src="http://sadderbutwiser.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/tiedyeblog1.jpg" alt="The Sadder But Wiser Girl" style="border:none;" /></a></div>



 

Saturday, April 6, 2013

My Love/Hate Relationship With Breastfeeding


Welcome to my celebration week of guest bloggers! I wanted to celebrate, and what better way to celebrate than to share some of my favorite voices with you! There are 7 ladies that will be writing for your reading enjoyment! There will be one lovely lady featured each day for the next week! I am so excited to share some of my favorite ladies with you! I hope you enjoy! These lovely ladies took a day away from their own awesome blogs to guest post for me here at W3G, so Please stop by their blogs and show them some lovin'!
 
Today we have Risa at Counting My Blessings, writing for you! She and I met when she nominated me for a Liebster Award! For those non-bloggers following along, a Liebster Award is a prestigious, peer recognition award that is awarded to up and coming bloggers! We have been bloggy buds ever since! Risa is married with two kids. She started a blog when she was on maternity leave with her baby who is now almost 5 months old. Along with blogging, working full time, and taking care of her two kids (ages 6 years old and 5 months old), Risa is also going to school to get her Master's degree in Clinical Counseling. Risa hopes that her blog will help other mothers, provide some topics for discussion, and entertain others with her writing.
She is a doll! Go check her out! NOW! GO! Well, after you read her post below! Wink! Happy reading! And don't forget to tune in tomorrow!
 
 


 
My love/hate relationship with breastfeeding.

I tried to breast feed my first child. It didn't work out so well. Not only did I have an overactive letdown, which if you've never experienced it is pure craziness, my daughter also seemed to have some kind of milk protein intolerance. She would cry non stop for at least 2 hours, every single night. I managed to breast feed her for about 2 months before I simply gave up. She was a happier baby for it.
When my son came along, I was ready to have the same troubles. After all, my daughter inherited her milk protein intolerance from her dad. I thought that my milk may come in the same way too. Alas, things have turned out much better this time around and I am breast feeding my son going on 5 months!
That being said, breastfeeding is great, but sometimes I HATE it! It's a love/hate relationship.

So why do I love breastfeeding?
-It's a way to bond with my child. I think I love that “skin-to-skin” as much as he does and it makes him so happy to see me after I've been gone all day!
-It saves a TON of money! It's great to not have to buy formula all the time!
-It's very convenient. Baby needs to eat, the food source is right there. I just have to find a comfortable, discreet place to feed him if I'm in public. I will breastfeed in public, I just try not to do it right in the middle of everything.
-It helped me lose weight and has helped me to keep it off. When I couldn't breastfeed my daughter, I gained back all the weight I lost from giving birth and then some! With my son, I lost 20 pounds just giving birth and another 15 since then.
-It's great for the baby! He was 5 pounds 13 ounces when he was born and he weighed 13 pounds by the time he was four months old. A lot of people who see him say they can tell he's breastfed because he's got those chubby cheeks! I love it!

Why do I hate breastfeeding?
-I'm the only source. I have to get up at all hours of the night and feed the baby, while my husband snores away in the bed. It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have to work, but I have to be to work at 7 am so sometimes it is really tough.
-I hate pumping. I feel like a cow. Some days, it's tolerable. Some days, I wish I could just skip it. But I know I have to do it to keep up my supply.
-Sometimes, I wonder if my baby only loves me so much because I have the food. Then I think about it for a minute...nah he'd love me either way!!

So, if you are a breastfeeding mom or you are a soon-to-be mom thinking about breastfeeding, remember this. There may be some things you absolutely hate about breastfeeding, but when I weigh the pros and the cons, the things I love versus the things I hate, the things I love definitely win out. Don't let the tough times discourage you. Power through and you'll see that the benefits far outweigh the inconveniences.
 
Hope you all enjoyed!
 
 
 

Friday, April 5, 2013

Hop Libs Blog Hop #2

Hiya! Welcome back Snappers! It's the 2nd Hop Libs Blog Hop! Fill out your form, copy and paste into a post or on your FB, and Link up with us so we can giggle with you! Happy Hoppin'!
WELCOME!
(Because CHill Thoughts is participating in the A to Z Challenge , this week's HOP Libs will be themed on the letter F.)

To grab the button code, click once in the box above,
press ctrl+A (select all), then press ctrl+C (copy).

This HOP is intended to be FUN and EASY!  Based on the Mad Libs™ word games - each week I create a story, you provide key words for the story in the HOP Libs Generator and with one click of the button, through the magic of the internet and programming provided by Mad:)Takes, you are provided your personal HOP Lib!


I'll be including my HOP Lib at the very end of this post, below the link-up, so that the surprise isn't ruined for you.


This week's hostesses are:


FACEBOOK / BLOGLOVIN' / PINTEREST / TWITTER

AND 

The Wild and Wonderful World of Gingerssnaps

HOP Lib Generator:

HOP Libs Blog Hop

A Foolish Fox and Five Wishes

MAN’S NAME
ANIMAL
MAN’S NAME



NOUN










VERB ENDING IN S
BODY PART
EXCLAMATION

ADJECTIVE




FOOD
VERB



NOUN





FOOD











ADJECTIVE ENDING IN LY




LINK Your Post HERE:



Check out my Hop Lib!


A Foolish Fox and Five Wishes Mad:)Take
A Fox named Colin is chasing a Opossum named Jack through a forest.
Suddenly, Colin Fox and Jack Opossum found an old ball and decided to rub it.
A genie pops up and says: I will grant you each of you wishes; three for you, Jack Opossum, and five for you, Colin Fox.
Jack Opossum was angry with the Genies offer of extra wishes to Colin Fox and decided to have the last laugh. Jack Opossum says to Fox: Colin, you go ahead and make 3 of your wishes first, while I decide what I will use my wishes for.
Colin Fox thinks that it is only natural for him to make his wishes first and begins: For my first wish, I wish all the foxes in the forest were female.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Then Colin says: For my second wish, make me the most pretty fox in the world.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Next, Colin Fox says: Third, give me all the hot buttered rolls in the world to swinging.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
Then the Genie says: OK, Opossum, it is your turn to make your first wish.
Opossum says: I wish for a boot.
*oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Colin Fox says: I wish all the foxes in this country were females.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
Jack Opossum then says: I wish for a life time supply of carrots at the back of my house.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Fox says: For my last wish, make all the other foxes in this entire world female.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.

Jack Opossum then says with a smile: I wish Colin Fox to be FEMALE!
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
And Jack Opossum drives away on the boot

My Hop Libs Entry #2; A Foolish Fox and Five Wishes Mad:)Take

A Foolish Fox and Five Wishes Mad:)Take
A Fox named Colin is chasing a Opossum named Jack through a forest.
Suddenly, Colin Fox and Jack Opossum found an old ball and decided to rub it.
A genie pops up and says: I will grant you each of you wishes; three for you, Jack Opossum, and five for you, Colin Fox.
Jack Opossum was angry with the Genies offer of extra wishes to Colin Fox and decided to have the last laugh. Jack Opossum says to Fox: Colin, you go ahead and make 3 of your wishes first, while I decide what I will use my wishes for.
Colin Fox thinks that it is only natural for him to make his wishes first and begins: For my first wish, I wish all the foxes in the forest were female.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Then Colin says: For my second wish, make me the most pretty fox in the world.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Next, Colin Fox says: Third, give me all the hot buttered rolls in the world to swinging.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
Then the Genie says: OK, Opossum, it is your turn to make your first wish.
Opossum says: I wish for a boot.
*oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Colin Fox says: I wish all the foxes in this country were females.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
Jack Opossum then says: I wish for a life time supply of carrots at the back of my house.
The Genie jumps his ear and *oh whipper snappers!* it is done.
Fox says: For my last wish, make all the other foxes in this entire world female.
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.

Jack Opossum then says with a smile: I wish Colin Fox to be FEMALE!
*oh whipper snappers!* It is done.
And Jack Opossum drives away on the boot


 

Liebster #3 goes to...ME!

Hi whipper snappers! I am happy to announce that lots of people like me! Awesome! I have been nominated for a third Liebster Award by Miss Tara over at Blessed Double Time .  Thanks so much for nominating me, and thinking I am Liebster-Worthy! I am honored! Go check out this adorably sweet lil Carolina girl! Awards make me happy, happy, happy! Time for a happy dance! * Warm fuzzies*!





Now you ask, "What exactly is a Liebster Award?"  Well dear readers, it is a nomination from another blogger, that means your blog is an up and coming blog!  It is for bloggers that have less than 200 followers, that deserve some recognition and support. We all need a little support to keep on blogging, right?  Well, the award is passed on to other bloggers that fit the criteria, to help spread the word!  It is also a fabulous way to get to know your fellow bloggers!




 My predecessors  have researched the word liebster.  Liebster is a German word meaning; sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.  I am honored to be called all of those things.  Especially cute.  I can rock cute!



The Rules are Simple

1. Each blogger should post 11 random facts about themselves.
2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you, then create 11 new questions for the bloggers you pass the award to.
3. Choose 11 new bloggers (with less than 200 followers) to pass the award to and link them in your post.
4. Go back to their page and tell them about the award.
5. No tag backs.



 11 Random Facts About Little Old Me

1. I still have lunch and play dates with my high school girlfriends.


2. I am a Harley chic. Our youngest daughter's middle name is Harley.


3. I love to read, but I currently cannot find my Nook cord, so that gift card I got for Christmas, is ya know, just hangin' out!!(we recently moved!)
4. I have 3 tattoos, and want two more.
5. I lost my mother, my best friend, a little over a year ago and started a blog to deal with my grief, The Grief Chronicles .  Go check it out! Bloggy Therapy!
6. I am a cry baby! I cry at sad commercials! Which my family thinks is hilarious!
7. My tongue is pierced, and has been since the 90's man!
8. My favorite quality about my best friends is that they remind me who I am when I get lost in the vortex of mommyhood and housewifedom! And they are an obscene amount of fun, and are all great listeners. And they would do anything for me, just like I would do for them!
9. Photography is my passion! I have a FB site, Gingerssnaps Photography , go check it out! NOW!(Never hurts to self promote, eh? HeeHee)


10. I have the biggest heart. I love fiercely, and forever.  I am a care-taker.  I love to take care of and love people. And  I am a smarty pants! And a southern lady...and...and..ok wait, got a little carried away there on the crazy, oops I mean me train! Hah!



11. I am lucky enough to be married to my soul mate!  I found him, conked him over the head with a frying pan, and drug him to the altar!  Just kidding! A little WV humor for you!



And Now for the Nominees...

1. Sugar Aunts
2. Nada Nada Limonada
3. Home, Home on Deranged
4. Degree of Difficulty
5. The Squishable Baby
6. My Imperfect Life
7. Even Sweeter Dreams
8. The First Year Blog

 9. A Geek In Glasses
10. Life With RA is a Pain



I have 10.  I have a babysitter all lined up, and ten will have to do! Love these little ladies!
Check them all out!
 

 





 

11 Questions For My Nominees/Recipients

1. Where were you born?
2. What is your most favorite thing from childhood?
3. Why did you start blogging and why do you blog now? Is it the same reason you started blogging?
4. What is your favorite silly made up word?
5. Who is your favorite leading man/woman?
6. Who is your favorite heroine /hero from any book and why?
7. Have you gotten to know any of your fellow bloggers personally?
8.  What is your favorite holiday?
9.  Who is your role model and why?
10. What did you want to be when you grew up? Are you there yet, and are you what you wanted to be as a child?
11. What is your favorite quote?




Tara's Questions for me...

1. What is your favorite color? Purple, Green and Red
2. What is your favorite meal? Chicken Tikka Massala
3. What is your ideal romantic date?  Anything that involves a babysitter! Dinner and Karoake with my best guy singing to me!
4. What book are you curently reading? The Cider House Rules, It was my mothers and looked interesting, so I borrowed from my daddy's house. In hardback. It's my bubble-bath book.  I have a 4.5 yr old, and not much time to read right now, even though I love to read! I have misplaced my Nook cord....
5. Beach or Mountains? Both.  I am a beach baby, love, love , love the beach! I love my mountains.  I live in WV, which is all mountain-y.  When I recently moved away, I desperately missed my mountains! But I am back!
6. Which is your favorite Disney character/princess? Probably Cinderella
7. What do you want to be when you grow up? A mommy, after that, I don't know yet!(I quit Corporate America 2 yrs ago to live the dream people! I am a SAHM)
8. If money was not an problem, where would you want to live. My own Bahamian Island! No seriously.
9. If you won the lottery, what would you do with the money? Set up my entire family for life, and retire to my own, newly purchased Bahamian Island!
10. What is your favorite piece of clothing?Right now I would have to say my Black sweater, and my blue and white striped/polka dotted jammies! Most sentimental would be a purple scarf that was my mother's.
11. What is one makeup item you can't live without? One? Are you kidding me? Chapstick, Burt's Bees preferably in Pomegranite or Graprfruit flavor.  And my foundation/powder compact, because I cannot stand to have a shiny nose!




Hope you all enjoyed!



Thursday, April 4, 2013

Tattler Thursday #15

 
Hi guys and gals! It's Tattler Thursday here at W3G again! Welcome back! Got your funny kid stories ready for me? Awesome! But today we are also sharing funny kid photos and the stories behind them! Today is the day where parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, babysitters, friends, cousins, or anyone with an awesome kid story can let down their hair and share! ...I love kids and I love kid stories and pictures! I created this event so that we could all take a minute out of our busy days and share a story or picture, and giggle at a few others! There is no purpose other than to have fun sharing war stories  and pictures from in the trenches parenthood! Life is too rough and crappy some days, that we just all need a little place to go and read something to make us smile, or see a cute baby picture to make us giggle! This is my attempt to brighten your day and mine! Anything goes, gross, gooey, sticky, funny, scary, crazy, pull your hair out wild kid stories! Pull out those busted kid pictures! The ones you are saving for when they are 16, to show their first date! Even funny stories and photos from when YOU! Time to tattle tell! Happy tattling! I cannot wait to read all of your hilarious stories, and see all of the funny photos you guys come up with!
 
 
 
* We will be skipping Tattler Thursday next week, due to my week of featured guest bloggers! Please tune in starting on Sunday, for 7 days of awesome ladies who are writing for your entertainment!  I also have 3 awards blogs in the works(Thank you!), 3 other posts I am working on, the second edition of the Hop Libs Blog Hop tomorrow with CHill Thoughts ,  I am also starting product reviews, and two weeks from today the first ever Tattler Thursday Blog Hop! Yes! Yes I am turning Tattler Thursdays into a hop event! I am also looking for bloggers who want to exchange buttons! So if you are interested in swapping buttons, or co-hosting(no charge) the first ever Tattler Thursday Blog Hop on 4/18/13, please leave me a message or send me a quick  note @ gingerssnaps32@gmail.com! So get ready for the big and exciting things coming your way from gingersnaps in the next several weeks!*
 
 

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

RIP Kansas City Mickey

Kansas City Mickey

Unknown-3/29/13.  He was a brave little field mouse.  His activities included scavenging for food, playing hide and seek with the Big family he recently moved in with, and exploring the unknown. He was a connoisseur of fine foods.  He was not your average peanut butter mouse, he appreciated and preferred Colby cheese.  It was his exceptional taste for good cheese, that led to his untimely demise. He led a full life right up until the end.  He reveled in putting the scare on Mrs. Big, driving Mr. Big crazy with his ability to avoid capture, participating in photo shoots, and led a good game of cat and  mouse, managing to sidestep 9 out of 10 mousetraps, set out to capture him.  It was the 10th trap that Grandpa Big caught him with. He was able to maintain his anonymity right up until  the end, hiding in the Big's house like a pro.  He was trapped you see.  He just could not dig through the steel wool, that Mr. Big had placed around his entryway, the bathroom pipes. He passed away just like a visitor in the night.  It was a quick death, he did not suffer. Death was kind to him, taking into account all of the havoc he wreaked on others before his death.  He has no known surviving family members.

RIP Kansas City Mickey


P.S. Don't forget to check out all the fun stuff coming soon! 2 sets of blogger awards, the 2nd weekly Hop Libs Blog Hop-a Mad Libs Hop, and my week of featured guest bloggers 4/7-4/13!