M&Ms

Ask anyone if they've ever had M&Ms and you'll get the same answer.  Everyone has a favorite, right?  They come in fun colors and are available in the original version, with peanuts or peanut butter, in dark chocolate, coconut, with almonds...  There are even new mint versions, minis, and pretzels!

Some people don't care what version they eat--they like them all.  Others have a favorite color.  Some people have even attributed meaning to certain colors...  Green, anyone?  I even know people who decorate with M&Ms.  Did you know that you can buy entire bags of custom colors?  Or, for the truly vain, you can have your name or picture printed on each little candy.

But here's my little secret...  I hate M&Ms...  I don't enjoy eating them (I prefer Reese's Pieces).  And I don't even like people around me to eat them (ahem...  Mister!).  There is something about the crunch they make when you bite them.  It's just wrong, chocolate shouldn't crunch!

We've always been chocolate snobs at our house.  HRH, who doesn't eat candy, will eat a chocolate on occasion.  When she was about 4 years old, someone offered her a garden-variety chocolate.  It was probably something from the grocery store.  She indignantly informed them that she only eats Cummings!  I guess I tipped my hand there--we love Cummings Studio Chocolates!  Anyway--thanks to a certain new friend of mine (who has graciously instilled in me an appreciation of authentic Belgian chocolate) I have now confirmed my previous conclusion...  Chocolate should not crunch.

So, although I don't plan to down a bag of the little favorites anytime soon, I do enjoy a good marketing idea.  I've gotten quite a kick out of the new "naked" M&M commercials...  I guess the only question for me is this...  Do the new Ms Brown and Green get along?  I can't image that they do.

Some Days

Sometimes you have days where nothing seems to go right...

And then there are fantastic days full of smiles and congratulations...

Today was neither.

Today was one of those days just happen to be amazing for no apparent reason.  And the funny thing is, today had just about everything working against it!  Freezing weather.  Blustery winds.  An early wake-up time.  A long drive to the middle of nowhere (sorry Millard County--you know I love ya!).  A dentist appointment.  A quick lunch in the car.  Phone calls, business stops, meetings and to-dos. 

But I'm going to bed tonight with a smile.  It's been a good day.
  

A Day in the Life

I was recently asked what my life is like as a mother of a busy household.  This was my response...

My day starts with approving HRH's outfit and hair style--yes, she wakes me every morning for this chore. lol

Get breakfast for the little boys. No, Max--you cannot survive on Wheat Thins. JJ you need more than 10 calories. Zeke--27 bowls of cereal is quite enough.

Let the dog out.

Let the dog in.  Feed the dog.

Get the boys ready for school, including telling M that his shirt is on backward, making J re-brush his teeth (this time with toothpaste), and telling Z that neither a pajama top nor a short sleeved shirt are recommended for the dead of winter.

Let the dog out.

Comb the boys hair, threaten to shave their heads.

Decide their teeth are still gross and re-brush them all myself.

Drive the boys to school--in my jammies, quite a sight...

Come home, let the dog in.

Do dishes, fold a load of laundry. Toss wash into the dryer.

Take a shower. Hair, makeup, clothes--not in that order...

Let the dog out.

Collect 47 items of laundry from bedroom and bathroom floors and start another load of laundry.

 Let the dog in.

Work on computer to fulfill customer orders.

Make phone calls to place new orders and locate new vendors and price lists.

Crate the dog.

Run to office and then panic when I realize that HRH is ready for a ride home from school and I'm still in SLC.

Pick up HRH from school.

Let the dog out.

Figure out something for lunch.

Let the dog in.

Help HRH with homework.
 
Do more laundry.

Talk to a friend.

Wash any remaining dishes, which is usually in the form of pots and pans for things I didn't even cook...

Finish up a little computer work.  Send emails.

 Let the dog out.

 Let the dog in. Crate the dog.

Drive to the school to pick up Sarah for our carpool. Drive HRH and Sarah to dance.

Get stuck in traffic on the way back from dance.  Make frantic calls to get someone prepared to do a rescue pick-up in case I don't get to the elementary school on time for the boys.

Dash home to get boys dressed in whatever uniform or outfit is necessary. Grab suitable snacks and deliver the boys to dance, tumbling, scouts, karate, or whatever oddity that they might be doing.

Let the dog out.

Let the dog in. Crate the dog.

Watch odd class in which boys participate in case of accidental injury causing an unforeseen stop by the ER.

Run to moms to save her from data-loss disaster.

Drive to Provo to pick up HRH. Stopping on the way to pick up print orders for work.

Drop Sarah off in Cedar Hills--dash home.

Let the dog out.

Get home in time to make ravioli and meatballs (from a can) for whomever will eat it. Scrounge for the rest of us... (I've been known to dine on Cheetos and Diet Coke.)

Let the dog in. Feed the dog.

Work on homework with the boys--once they graduate to Fourth grade, I will have successfully passed Third grade a grand total of 6 times...

Dump all three boys in the tub and threaten them with their lives if they don't use soap and shampoo.

Help HRH with more homework.

Let the dog out.

Let the dog in.

Talk to The Mister: this might equal a grand total of 3 sentences--especially if he's out of town and I am still struggling to get everyone off to bed.

Send everyone to bed--after brushing teeth (again, with toothpaste) for all the boys.

Do a little more computer work.

Watch The Big Bang Theory (I have 4 complete seasons on DVD).

Find anything that will pass as pajamas.

Read a book in bed.

Let the dog out.

Let the dog in. Crate the dog.

Pass out. Repeat.

Notice that I did not get all the laundry into the dryer, nor did I cook an appropriately nutritious meal. I didn't buy any groceries, nor did I pay the bills.  I neglected to clean the toilets. I didn't go shopping at the mall. I did not get a Smash Burger (tragic!). I didn't pick up the dry cleaning nor did I get the oil changed in my car.  I hope to do some of these things tomorrow... Or the next day... Or maybe next week......  We'll see.
 

ORB

The Mister informed me that there is a saying--something about a man who has a hammer thinks that everything he sees is a nail...

I've never actually heard that saying before, and I'm sure I just did it a terrible injustice...  But, whatever...

The Mister proceeded to tell me that I have my very own version of a hammer.  And I have to admit that he may be right!

I've recently become acquainted with the merits of Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint.  I can't believe the transformation that a little ORB can achieve!  It can update, improve, camouflage, transform and create...  Truly miraculous!  But I do concede that maybe I am finding a little too much love in a bottle.  I actually told my dad not to stand in my entryway too long unless he wanted to be bronzed...  He thought I was kidding!

So, here are some examples of what I can do (have done) with my little bit of magic in a can.

First off, our new home came with brushed nickle everything.  And, while it's fine for some styles, it's not my style.  So--I bronzed all my light fixtures.

That went so well that I moved onto the bathroom.  Did you know you can create your own ORB Dixie Cup dispenser?  Yep, you can!  Here's proof!

I've also bronzed some ugly, old, wooden candle sticks, and I made a beautiful ORB lamp out of a really grungy brass lamp.  Oh, the possibilities!  ORB, I love you!