TGIF - and I'm not being sarcastic.

You all know the world would be a better place if more people consulted me before making decisions, right? Well, I agree.

Early this morning, I was making (another) statement to that effect about some decision made by some unnamed person with which I, apparently, did not agree. BigGirl overheard me speaking about their "brilliant decision" and interjected.

"Doesn't sound like they were brilliant to me," she corrected me.

"I know. I was being sarcastic," I explained.

Throughout the day, I became increasingly aware of how much I must use sarcasm...at least on a Friday. (I'm hoping that I just tend to be more sarcastic when I'm tired. Surely that's it, right?) Everytime I said something sarcastic, BigGirl picked up on it. "Was that sarcasm?" "Are you being sarcastic?"

I don't usually describe myself as sarcastic, but from where I'm sitting right now, wow. I need to cut back! I feel like the smoker who finally opened their eyes and realized how many packs they were smoking each day. And, to think, I have wondered from where my darling daughter gets her flippant replies and tart little remarks??

I'm reminded daily how much work I've cut out for myself...just imagine her as a teenager!

On a happy (unsarcastic) note...

Congratulations, Cheryl! You won the free poster from digitalroom.com! I'm sure the picture of your neices will look FABULOUS - and what a great gift idea! :)

TGIF, everyone! May your Saturday be super and your Sunday be simple!

It's Friday...

I think I'm starting a new tradition.

Friday = Day of Celebration

It started with exhaustion. Three Fridays in a row, the girlies and I (mostly I) drug ourselves home after a long week, too tired to consider the prospects for dinner. Enter online pizza ordering. Quickly, punctuating a streak of school days with a pizza dinner has become a tradition my girls adore. (And, thanks to weekly emails from takeout pizza places, I'm feeding the family "out" for under $20, tip included.)

Of course, being the wannabe overachiever that I am, I couldn't leave it at that. Last week, the girls and I baked a triple chocolate cake for no reason other than (a) gluttony, and (b) it was Friday. Fortunately for us, we were still able to find a reason to celebrate Saturday and Sunday...and even Monday night! (We, conveniently, ran out of reasons to celebrate as soon as the cake was gone.)

This weekend, I've wondered, how am I going to follow that act?

Well, with pizza (and bread sticks - the other part of this week's special) in my belly, I've decided upon a giveaway.

Yes! You read that right!

DO YOU FEEL LUCKY TONIGHT??? (If not, don't worry...you've got a week.)

I am SO excited to announce my first Friday Freebie!!!

Here's the deal:

Thanks to the kind folks over at DigitalRoom.com, one super-duper lucky reader (residing within the US only....sorry. I know I'm really big overseas and all...) will receive a FREE 18x24" rolled poster print.

BUT, WAIT! THERE'S MORE!!! I know some of you (MyMama) might be thinking, "Do I have to pay shipping?" HECK, NO!!! Because included in this fabulous prize is FREE shipping via UPS Ground service. (I'll do my best to pull some strings and dig up the hottie customer service representative that used to deliver to my place of business a few years back. He was SOOO cute professional!)

Now, if you're like me, you're probably in the process of sizing this giveaway up. "What do I need a 18x24" poster print for? Do I really need this? What are my chances of winnng? What do I have to do?"

First of all, I can think of lots of different things to do with this poster.

Ever watched HGTV? Have you seen how they take your own family photos and blow them up in black and white, find a frame, and **presto** you've got very expensive-looking and chic wall hanging?

Expecting a baby? Working on a nursery? Take close-up photos of baby items or realia centered around the nursery's theme (i.e. off center photo of teddy's face, a great picture of fresh flowers or a butterfly, an extreme close-up of a toy firetruck, etc.).

Are you a teacher? Perhaps you've been looking for a reward for a special child or special goal. Classroom decoration? Or maybe you would like to enlarge an image to create your own classroom reference poster?

Finally, perhaps you might be interested in a little PhotoShop fun...Would you like a poster of yourself with someone from YOUR "List of Five"? Want a souvenir from that trip to Europe you never took? Get creative and have fun with this fun Friday Freebie!!!

Now, here's how you can enter to win:

1. Leave a comment explaining how you would use your poster if you win.

But that's not all!!! THERE'S MORE! Want to improve your odds? You can also...

2. Tweet about this giveaway using the tag #giveaway and link back to this post. (Leave a separate comment here to increase your chances of winning after you've done this .)

3. Share this post as a link on Facebook. (Leave a separate comment here after you've done this.)

4. Are you a blogger, too? Blog about this giveaway! (Leave a separate comment here after you've done this.)

The deadline to enter to win is Friday, September 25th, at 8PM EST.

This is so exciting! I can't wait to play!

Good luck, everyone! Don't forget to stop back in next weekend to see who won!