Special Agent Oso Annoying

So, there I was, mindlessly bumming around the internet from one post to another. On this occasion, I had no particular purpose in mind other than rotting brain cells.

I stumbled upon this post from McMommy and could barely read past the first paragraph. It's not McMommy, it's me.

Check it out. She started her post like this.

"I'm standing here in the kitchen, making eggs and toast, and listening to Special Agent Oso. I've got zero makeup on and look like scary Oprah."

I read three little words and completely lost my focus. Like a certifiable nutjob, my mind went whirling through time and space. It was nearly an out-of-body experience. I was floating in my den at home, growling on the inside as the sounds of Special Agent Oso gnawing at my ears.

Forgive me, folks, but this show is CRAP. Its songs are RIDICULOUSLY ANNOYING. The structure of the show is exactly like Dora - and we do NOT need another repetitive three-step "adventure mission" show. We already have Diego. (And, I have to give Diego credit. His "Rescue Pack" song is like the coolest song on cartoons today.) What's more, Oso is not very bright. At least Dora and Diego have interesting missions like rescuing a beached baby humpback whale, waking Boots from a magical forever slumber, climbing to the top of the tallest mountain to get back Dora's lost necklace, or fixing some poor iguana's pink-eye. Oso? He does *REALLY COOL* stuff like making a salad, watering a plant, or brushing teeth.

I can hear Oso Supporters now, "Well, don't you think these are more realistic things to be teaching your child?" NO! I'm sorry, but don't you think a job like brushing teeth is better taught in person? Especially when the three steps Oso works so hard to memorize are to (1) get the brush, (2) put toothpaste on it, and (3) brush. Brilliant, Disney! Just brilliant! And, as for watering plants and making a salad, I'm sorry. If you need your preschooler to learn how to do these things without adult assistance or supervision, perhaps there is a bigger problem we need to be discussing.

As for me, I'd totally rather my girlies watch Phineas and Ferb and dream big, baby.

"Sure girls, you can build a time machine today..."

P.S. If you've never read The McMommy Chronicles before, she's worth checking out. I've enjoyed lots of laughs in the months I've been reading her blog. Enjoy!

P. P. S. If you've never heard the Rescue Pack song before, here you go. I think everyone deserves to see how totally rockin' it is. Rescue Pack is da bomb.

Monday Mentions 3

Welcome to this week's Monday Mentions: Quasi-Diet Edition.

• I just NOW (as in right before I started this post) discovered this site. The pictures are GORGEOUS and make me drool. One day, my home will be beautiful like these pictures.
• In keeping with my weight loss theme of late, this is a podcast series I discovered this summer. I (ahem) am a "little" behind in my listening, but I've really loved what I have heard so far. It's a very peaceful, relaxing podcast to enjoy and I suggest you keep a journal with you while you listen.
• I also stumbled upon this site (thanks to the Over the Top Meme...link, to link, to another link, and LOVED these pictures). For those of you crafty ladies out there (I'm crafty in my mind...), you will love some of these projects. And, it appears for those of us NONcrafty folks, we can purchase some special items here, too.
• Also inspired by my current diet, I'm eating a lot of cottage cheese. Mmmmm...yummy. While, this week, I'm not enjoying this particular variety, one of my favorite cottage cheese products is Rachel's Cucumber Dill Cottage Cheese. It also comes in other flavors and, apparently, she makes yogurt, too. Try them!
• This morning, I really enjoyed this post by WeaselMomma. It's a little sad, a lot sweet, and is hanging out in my heart with me today.
• I cannot wait to make this recipe this week! And, I am still so proud of the great price I got on wild caught Alaskan salmon fillets this weekend at SuperTarget! Sometimes, it pays to shop around.
• Some of my readers have wondered where I find my photos to illustrate my posts. A while back, Melanie tweeted this site out. It is easily the easiest way to search for Creative Commons photos. I LOVE it and use it all the time now.

Psst! Remember - for more mentionable links, head over to the Daily Mish Mash for the motherload of links. :)

The Morning After

I SURVIVED DAY ONE!

Whew! I have to admit, this is a little more like rehab than I ever expected.

Yesterday, after my mid-afternoon sugar (and alcohol) cravings subsided, and I thought the worst of the day was over, I came close to falling off the wagon.

You see, I watched the Gator game.

The stress was overwhelming.

...PLUS, someone kept tweeting about ice cream.

But, I held fast to my conviction and

stayed away from the kitchen. I nursed my sweet glass of Crystal Light for all it was worth. I ate a piece (or two) of Colby Jack cheese. (a treat I rarely enjoyed on Weight Watchers) And, I texted profanities to FireDaddy at the station after every stressful play.

Today, I've actually felt good. After a slow and thoughtful trip to the store, I am now stocked with plenty of plan-approved foods, snacks, beverages, and even some sugar-free candies that taste darn good.

And let me know if I'm the only one who's ever felt this way, but on Day Two of a new diet, don't you feel you deserve a little reward? No...I'm not talking about cheating. Really. I'm talking about progress. Don't you half expect the scale to drop two pounds or so? You're so proud of yourself, shouldn't your favorite pair of pants acknowledge your accomplishment by loosening up around your waist a little? I could SWEAR that I lost weight yesterday. I could SWEAR I look thinner today.

No? You don't think so??

Darn.

Photo credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kurafire/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

Simple Saturday Sweets

I've had enough. I can't take it anymore.

Over the past two and a half years I've watched myself (and I suppose I've contributed a little, too...) gain back the entire 30 pounds I lost on Weight Watchers (after GAINING twenty pounds after losing all my baby weight from Baby Girl...Yeah. Do that math!)

Last weekend, on a lovely simple Saturday at the local arts market with my parents and girlies, a wave of nausea nearly swept me off my feet. I was hungry. Somehow, thankfully, I was able to NOT barf all over my own flip flops. We made it to our usual Chili's and I was able to survive to see my next meal. This, however, is a pattern I've noticed recently. I go from intense hunger/nausea to bloated, yucky tummy.

I've decided to take this bull(sh!t) by the horns and reclaim control over my body.

I was expecting to find myself in a Weight Watchers establishment for the first time ever. (I actually did it all at home on my own with the Weight Watchers At Home kit the first time.) I knew I needed something more drastic to help me break these horrible habits I've created for myself. I knew I needed more accountability.

However, as I meandered into school one day this week and approached an old WW buddy, I changed my plan. Recently, she's had great success with South Beach. She swears by it. I, skeptic of any diet that rules out entire food groups, expressed my concerns and skepticism about this plan. She explained the diet in more detail to me and, as it turns out, this diet seems far more mainstream that I had previously assumed it to be. Actually, it ultimately preaches (in Phase 2 - and Phase 1 is only 2 weeks long) things I already do.

So, I dropped the South Beach book in my Amazon cart and here I am. Day one is upon me.

However, my darling lovies have been a wee bit oppositional today (ha!)...which has made me want two things: alcohol and sugar. Any form of sugar. Anything from Wheat Thins to ice cream! Oh, and CHOCOLATE!!!

So, I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel to come up with something "in the plan" that will help me through this day. (Especially since I really need to go to the grocery store.)

Here's what I came up with...

1/2 cup ricotta (part-skim)

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 package Sweet'N Low (I prefer Splenda, but this is what FireDaddy had in the pantry.)

a dash or so of Starbucks Via (the Columbian brew)

This is actually the South Beach recipe for Vanilla Ricotta Creme, with my own addition of the Via. It tastes A LOT like coffee ice cream! The texture is quite different though, as you can imagine. And, in fact, it's VERY sweet. I never thought I'd say this about anything...but it's almost TOO sweet. If I make this again, I may reduce the vanilla extract. Good news is, a little goes a long way. I'm feeling much better.

In fact, I think I'll head into the kitchen and use the rest of my Via packet in some cold skim milk for an iced coffee treat.

**By the way, my goal right now is to just make it through the first two weeks. I'm hoping this will help my blood sugar - or whatever it is that's causing this crazy nausea crap - level out and help me kick some cravings in the bootie. Then, I'll reassess...We'll see how this goes.

Photo credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/santos/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Over the Top

My best bloggy friend tagged me to share in this lovely little meme. And, I'm a sucker. This one was easy, except for having to bite my tongue...er, tape my fingers together to keep it down to the one word limit. Here we go...

There are only 3 tiny little baby rules to this posting… Answer the questions below using only one word. Thank the blogger who gave it to you. Pass it on to 6 of your favorite bloggers.

Now the questions:

Where is your cell phone? purse

Your hair? ponytail

Your mother? loving

Your father? loyal

Your favorite food? dessert

Your dream last night? none

Your favorite drink? tea

Your dream/goal? happiness

What room are you in? office

Your hobby? writing

Your fear? pain

Where do you want to be in 6 years? bliss

Where were you last night? couch

Something you aren’t? mundane

Muffins? delicious

Wish list item? money?

Where did you grow up? Texas

Last thing you did? changed

What are you wearing? blue

Your TV? Disney

Your pets? dogs

Your friends? diverse

Your life? busy

Your mood? cranky

Missing someone? always

Vehicle? Pacifica

Something you’re not wearing? shoes

Your favorite store? Target?

Your favorite color? pink

When was the last time you laughed? yesterday

Last time you cried? yesterday?

Your best friend? sweet

One place that I go over and over? Publix

One person who emails me regularly? STORES

Favorite place to eat? bed? ha!

Now, here's my tags...

Melanie

Betsy

Susan

Mommy Melee (a new favorite of mine)

Jennifer (usually a photo-blogger)

Jen (because I love your Fridays...)

Thanks, Cheryl! I'm running behind this week...but I'll catch up someday!

Monday Mentions 2

Whew! Back in the saddle again? It's amazing how quickly time flies when you're NOT in the middle of NaBloPoMo. No offense, but it has been a nice break.

Now, for a few

• This weekend, as I graded from atop my bed, I had the opportunity to watch two fantastic movies that I STILL had not seen. If you, too, have not yet watched these movies - YOU MUST! Nights in Rodanthe with Diane Lane and Richard Gere (two actors I really like) and 17 Again with Matthew Perry and Zac Efron (one actor and one hottie I really like). I laughed and I cried. They are both worth seeing or seeing again.
• A few weeks ago a parent at school and I were talking about a book she was studying in a book group. She loaned it to me last week and I dove in this weekend. It's called Have A New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Leman. So far it is a super quick read (plus, it really isn't as long as it seems since much of the book is a reference section to use as needed) and I'm LOVING his attitude and balanced approach to parenting. If you are a parent (or a teacher) you must check it out.
• Have you checked out Remindeo yet? If you, like me, are a bit absent-minded at times, and need someone breathing down your neck saying, "Stop everything and do this NOW," you need this! Set up a free account, plug in your reminders, and decide if you'd like text messages or emails or both! Love it!
• Products I'm falling in love with...Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day. These Earth Friendly and Cruelty Free products come in a variety of scents (only a few available at Target, though). What I love, too, is that you can actually layer the scents in your home the way you would on your body! Clean your floors, dishes, countertops, and even your toilets all with Lemon Verbena, Basil, Lavender and more. (Yes, this, too, is a sickness of mine. My first job was at Bath & Body Works where I was trained to layer scents. This illness spread throughout my life. What can I say?)
• I couldn't resist purchasing one of these recently. I love this blog and when I saw this t-shirt, it spoke to me. Especially since my mother-in-law is currently fighting lung cancer, I couldn't resist. My only regret is that I cannot wear it to school...I don't think.

If you'd like to check out more Monday Mentions, be sure to stop by Jen's place (Daily Mish Mash) for more links!

THIS JUST IN!!! I just found out that Dr. Kevin Leman has a second book - it's called Have a New Husband by Friday! And, no, I'M NOT KIDDING! (Guess what just found it's way to my Amazon cart?)