Happy Halloween

Meet Anakin Skywalker from Star Wars the Clone Wars:

He's come to visit our house until after Halloween.

I hope everyone enjoys their time Trick or Treating...or whatever it is you are doing this weekend...I know we'll freeze our butts off here...snow is in the forecast today and tomorrow...

Oh and don't forget you get an extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning (thank you daylight savings).

In other news...blogger has been acting up for me...it won't load most of your pages...very irritating. I hope to be back reading very soon.

Oh no he didn't...

But sadly...yes he did.

Those of you that are friends with me on FB know just what my little bugger of a child did to me last night.

Let me back up just slightly...the boy has been asking and asking me to have friends over from school. Sure, why not...sounds awesome! My only concern was that during the week there isn't alot of time...by the time we get dinner done with it's nearing 7:00 and the boy starts to get himself into the shower and doing his home reading by 8:00. So I had implemented the rule that if a kid from a few blocks away (ie. had to be walked or driven to our house as opposed to the neighbour kids down the street) that we'd plan those sort of playdates for on the weekend. WELL, my boy decided that regardless of this rule he was going to make plans for a Monday night play date...and not tell me his plans...Because (in his words) "he knew I'd say no".

So yesterday, I was having a really crummy day...no one thing happened that put me in a grumpy mood...but I was most definitely on edge and even told a senior partner here at work to "shut the hell up"...lol...whole other post which I promise to share with you later this week.

Clearly my child didn't realize that he was going to feel my wrath when he chose this particular day to decide that the consequences were worth his defiant behaviour. A trait I figured I'd have at least a few more years of living without...

In the end I let the kid stay and play...but the boy has earned himself early bed time for at least a week...possibly two...and if this behaviour keeps up...let me tell ya...Halloween will be cancelled this year...try me kid...just try me.

Oh the stress!

So where have I been this week??? Because I know you all were wondering! lol.

Well I was at the shopping mall every lunch hour this week (the time I usually spend reading blogs and posting on mine)....urgh. But I must say I finally found success today...

K, let me back up a bit...we are going to a "celebration of marriage" on Saturday (the boyfriend's bestie from way back got married a month ago and it was very small so they are having a reception of sorts for friends)...anyway...there will be few people there that I know...something that stresses me out beyond belief, first impressions mean alot and these ppl were all very close to the boyfriend at one time or another...he hopes to actually use this opportunity to rekindle some friendships that he lost during a few dramatic years (pre-me of course lol)...and really I'm a fashion girl at heart...and I want that to show...stupid I know!

Anyway, I got into my head that I'd love a 'sweater dress' (they are all the rage right now) to wear with tights...but those things do not suit every body type...this I learnt very quickly. So the hour and 15 minutes I get daily for lunch I spent trying on dress after dress after dress...and then I decided maybe I'd just go with black pants and a shirt...so then I started trying on different shirts...and then eventually skirts...let me tell you I did not have much success...in fact I've bought a total of 3 different shirts...2 of which I will return (one was final sale)...but finally today...I found a flattering sweater dress and I love the look I put together...

You see this event is casual but denim is not allowed as the first part of the festivities include drinks and dainties at a country club...but after that the real 'party' begins and we are heading back to the bride and grooms for some rock band and beer! So I wanted to be comfy and yet look cute...so I think I've finally got it. Yay me!

The boyfriend might hate it since it doesn't show off my curves and 'sweet ass' lmao...but it's what I like that counts.

I so hate shopping for clothes to fit a body I feel like I don't even know anymore...must get back into a regular exercise routine...must must must!

School Days

Oh how my boy has changed in the FOUR years he's been in school...time sure flies, doesn't it?

I thought it might be fun to share with you the pictures he's produced on picture day through the years...seeing as we just got back his 3rd grade pictures...which I agonized for about 2 days over whether we'd keep them or not...my boy just isn't a smiley kid when it comes to these professional portraits...drives me batty. He says he was nervous and I can tell he's getting shy as the years progress (well with strangers anyway).

Kindergarten - 2006

This is where I should have a 1st grade picture...but sadly they sit in a box in my basement...the boy wouldn't let me hand them out because he didn't like them. I think they looked good but agreed to allow him to get retakes since he hated them so much...in the end he was sick on retake day and so I kept them...they will surface someday and I promise to share it here when that happens.

So on to 2nd grade - 2008





And lastly - 3rd grade - taken just over a week ago.

Writers Workshop - What's in a name?

It's Thursday and I'm linking up with Mama kat's Writer's Workshop.

This week's prompts:

1.) Interview you mom...questions might include, How has motherhood changed you? What ages were your favorites? Do you miss having having kids in the house? What was the most difficult part of being a mom for you? What was the most rewarding part? etc... I think I'll ask my Mom if I'm her favorite child and when she dodges the question (again) I'll scream, "DAMMIT WOMAN! Answer the QUESTION!!" Feel free to steal my idea.

2.) Tell us the story of your birth.

3.) How did you parents choose your name? What does it mean? What would you change your name to if you could?

4.) Describe a moment when you realized your mom was more than just a mom.

5.) Write a poem for your Mama.

This week I've decided to go with #3. I've always thought my name was just 'okay'...until I hit middle school and it was like the most popular name...I swear there were 5 of us in my grade 6 class (at that point I hated it). Ridiculous! If you talk to my mom she'll tell you she chose my name because it was original...well I guess 1980 was the year that name made it big cause it sure ain't original...

Today it's a name I can live with...at least I don't work with 5 other Melissas...now Karens and Audreys we've got quite a few of those in my profession lol.

Anyhoo...my parents decided that my mother would have the final say on any girl names and my father on any boy names...and when my mom was pregnant she was certain I was a girl (how she knew she still can't really describe) and so they never even considered any boys names.

She says she loved the song "Don't Cry Out Loud" by Melissa Manchester while she was pregnant with me....and so one day singing along to it in her car she said out loud "Melissa Mae"...and so it was. Mae is a family tradition on my dad's side and one I hope to have a hand in carrying on someday...all first born girls dating back at least 3 generations prior to me have the middle name Mae.

And now for the meaning (thank you Wikipedia):

Melissa is a given name for a female child. The origin of Melissa comes from the ancient Hittite word Melita which means honey. The meaning of the word has shifted into honey bee in Greek. Moreover, the pronunciation has changed to Melissa (Ionic Greek: Mέλισσα).

So uh...yeah...Honey bee...not anything cool like brave or beautiful one...but again I guess I can live with it.

Growing up I was dying to be a Samantha...I loved Sami's character on Days of our Lives. Actually a friend from elementary school found me on Facebook a little while back and asked if I remembered her changing her name to "Sarah" briefly while I changed mine to "Samantha"....oh yeah I remember! lol.

So there you have it...what about you? Do you love your name or hate it?

A little of this and a little of that...

Yay life is finally getting back to normal and I don't feel like we are constantly on the go...and the best part...things have slowed down at work so now I can catch up with all of YOU.

First off, this past weekend was Canadian Thanksgiving...so to all my fellow Canadians:

H*A*P*P*Y T*H*A*N*K*S*G*I*V*I*N*G!!!!

We spent ours having a relatively quiet long weekend. Friday it was like a blizzard outside and we ended up with quite a bit of snow...thankfully since then it's mostly melted...the boy isn't all that impressed about that...he pretends he hates winter but this morning he was a little miffed that even more of the snow had melted.

So Saturday morning I forced the boyfriend out into the cold and we dug out our patio furniture and fire pit to put into the shed until Spring. It was my goal to get it all put away before the snow came...I guess next year I'll have to remember to get it away by the end of September lol.

Sunday we did some shopping...I was on the hunt for winter boots for the boy that he now won't need for likely a few more weeks...but I'm still glad we got them so that the next time he wants to play out in the snow he won't come home with frozen toesies!!!

Yesterday we celebrated thanksgiving with the boyfriend's side of the family (my family will celebrate next weekend). It was okay...but I gotta say coming from a family full of chefs (my side) it's hard to eat really bland food lol. Even the boyfriend was like...man she didn't season a single thing!!! Thankfully the boy was on his best behaviour and ate every last bite of his dinner. And I'm also thankful that the boyfriend doesn't take after his mother when it comes to cooking...he made one of the best pot roasts I've ever had Saturday night.

So that was our holiday weekend in a nutshell...

And now I leave you with something I've been meaning to blog about for ages and just haven't had the time...but I don't want to forget it so I must document it somewhere (and quick before I forget).

About 2 weeks ago I woke the boy up in the morning and we had the following exchange:

Me: Hey buddy time to get up and get dressed.
Boy: Is he still there?
Me: Is who still there?
Boy: Chewy.
Me: Chewy, who is Chewy?
Boy: *wipes his eyes and looks at me very confused* Oh...I must have been dreaming.
Me: So what was the dream about?
Boy: It was so awesome! There was this giant cheeseburger and his name was Chewy and you couldn't eat him or anything but he was like a real person that I was playing with and he lived at McDonalds.
Me: Wow that's quite the interesting dream...*giggling like crazy*
Boy: Yeah I wonder if I'll ever have that dream again cause it was awesome!

I laughed about it all that day...and even still recounting it for you makes me giggle a little. My boy sure does have an active imagination. I'm quite certain this dream had a little something to do with the fact that my mom (who was in town visiting at the time) took the boy and I to Burger King at about 8:00 the night before so he went to bed just after eating a double cheeseburger lol.

Awards

First, Anne @ Mommy has to work sent me these lovely awards!
Thanks so much Anne.


Then second Melissa @ Outnumbered 3 to 1 gave me this awesome award!!! Thanks Melissa!

And last but most definitely not least - Staci at Playing House gave me the Over the Top Award! Thanks Staci.

Here are the rules for the Over the Top Award:

USE ONLY ONE WORD! It’s not as easy as you might think. Copy and change the answers to suit you and pass it on. It’s quite tricky to use only one-word answers! Once you have filled it out, be sure to pass it on to 6 of your favorite bloggers and alert them that they have been awarded!

*****
1. Where is your cell phone? Purse
2. Your hair? Blah
3. Your mother? Far
4. Your father? Farther
5. Your favorite food? Pasta
6. Your dream last night? Nadda
7. Your favorite drink? Coke
8. Your dream/goal? live life to the fullest (yeah I cheated)

9. What room are you in? work
10. Your hobby? reading
11. Your fear? heights
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Married
13. Where were you last night? home
14. Something that you aren’t? catty
15. Muffins? YUM
16. Wish list item? blender :)
17. Where did you grow up? Ontario
18. Last thing you did? eat
19. What are you wearing? black
20. Your TV? off
21. Your pets? cats
22. Friends? laughter
23. Your life? CRAZY
24. Your mood? good

25. Missing someone? always
26. Vehicle? pontiac
27. Something you’re not wearing? socks
28. Your favorite store? Walmart
29. Your favorite color? Purple
30. When was the last time you laughed? earlier
31. Last time you cried? forget...
32. Your best friend? FUN
33. One place that I go to over and over? work
34. One person who emails me regularly? E
35. Favorite place to eat? Olive Garden (not fair their name is 2 words).

I pass these awards on to (well, if you haven't received it/them already):

Melissa @ Outnumbered 3 to 1

Anne @ Mommy Has to Work

Jenn @ Another Online Mom

Supah @ Adventures of a Wanna be Supahmommy

Yaya @ Yaya Stuff

Liz @ Sugarplum Creations

Post it Note Tuesdays - kthankssomuch edition

This weekly meme is hosted by the lovely Supah Mommy and this week I finally have a minute to participate! YAY! No more guilt trips...bwahahaha.

So here goes (oh and if you want to know how to play along head over to her blog):

Writers Workshop (a day late)

I was going to skip Mama Kat's writers workshop this week because I was too busy to blog all week long...but then I saw the prompts and in particular this photo:

And I laughed and laughed and laughed...

Because well...this is me and the boyfriend...absolutely...no doubt about it. In fact you may remember this post where I fell and hurt my behind last winter...it was then that the boyfriend realized just how obsessed he was with my @ss...I knew it all along but it was made even more apparent to me when everytime he touched it I winced in pain.

He's a very touchy feely kind of guy and even in Safeway will take a quick look around and if no one is watching will cop a feel of my behind.

I hear it's a guy thing...and that most men like @sses...but I can honestly say that no other guy I've been with has felt the constant need to touch it in every moment he can get away with it. I'm sooooooo NOT touchy feely...so I'm usually swatting him away...especially in public! How embarrassing if we were caught by another customer or employee of said Safeway...

I know I was supposed to make up a conversation with the parties in the picture...and it would really just go something like this:

The boyfriend copping a feel...

Me: What are you doing pervert...people can totally see us...stop it.

Him: Oh come on, I love you...and besides no one is really paying attention.

Me: I don't care, stop it now...*swatting his hands away and then running to the next aisle*.

He of course chases me and once again tries to cop a feel...I can say that he's gotten a little better in public places because he can't stand the dirty looks I give him...and then I may or may not refuse to speak to him until he apologizes and promises to never do it again (though I know in his head 'never' really means 'until next time we go for groceries'.