Control Freak

My mom always had/has everything "put together". Our house was always clean, laundry was always done, she never missed a single event that Jon or I did and supper was on the table every.single.night. (I have no clue how she did it!). She's a planner. My mom is DEFINITELY Type A.

When I was younger, there were lots of words I used to describe my personality: bubbly, hyper, fun, silly, out-going. But, Type A, was NOT one of them.

Wikipedia uses the following words to describe someone with a Type A Personality:

Type A individual as ambitious, aggressive, business-like, controlling, highly competitive, impatient, preoccupied with his or her status, time-conscious, and tightly-wound. People with Type A personalities are often high-achieving "workaholics" who multi-task, push themselves with deadlines, and hate both delays and ambivalence.

As I've gotten older (read: had three kids), I've realized I am just.like.my.mom! I have this compelling need for a plan. At night, I lay in bed going over a list in my head of the things I need to do:

Emma picture day. Hannah field trip. (Did I sign permission slip?) Remind Travis to make Hannah's lunch. Make beds. Catherine needs diapers. Emma dance. Travis wants pinto beans for dinner. Pay car insurance. Blog. Work on Christmas lists. Find desert for party this weekend. Emma and Hannah need footless tights. Pick up cornbread mix. Pick up dry cleaning. Pinterest. Transfer pics from external drive to storage website. Print new pics for frames in house. Twitter. Rotate laundry. Unload dishwasher. Pick paint color for kitchen wall.

At times, it's daunting. I have kept myself up at night for far too long making my lists and going through them again to make sure I haven't forgotten anything.

Our house is on the market (and has been for a YEAR), so that just adds a whole additional layer to the expectations that I have for myself on a daily basis.

(Don't get my wrong...most of these "things I need to do" are extra and have been brought on by myself)

Throw in working full-time and it's enough to make any one's head spin! (I will probably do another post about being a working mom sometime...but not to down play how difficult it must be to be a SAHM)

Let's face it people: I'm Type A. I'm a control freak!

Then, the heavens opened and angels sang.

I was reading a blog (I think it was Blue-Eyed Bride...but I can't remember) and she was talking about her home organizational binder and her Erin Condren Planner.

I thought, "Man, I should do that." But, I never followed through. Then, at lunch one day, Rachel whips out this gorgeous planner and binder. She explained to me how much it had helped her keep her head on straight and basically, why I needed to invest.

I was sold. I went back to the office, ordered my planner and built my binder that night. Let me tell you...I could not be happier or more organized! My binder is used mostly for work, meal planning and lists. I love lists. (I have even made a list titles "Lists I need to make".) The problem was I would make them and lose them.

The planner! OMG! It came in the mail and I spent two hours looking through it and filling in birthdays/important dates. It has tabs for each month. Behind the month tabs, each week is broken out by day with three sections "Morning, Day, Evening". PLUS, there are A.MAZ.ING stickers/labels that fit those sections perfectly.

(Of course...I'm crazy, so each person in my family has a different color sticker. Helps me keep them all straight. Plus...it's pretty.)

Take a gander at this, ya'll. Seriously. Amazing! I LOVE IT! (My inner-control freak 'bout passed out when I got it!) And...it works. Very little late night stressing. No more lost lists.

Click here to order yours!

Caution: Icy Floor

I stopped by a gas station on my way to the office to get a fountain Dr. Pepper (SO much better than a can or bottle!).

It was one of "those" mornings. I had a list a mile long of things I needed to do at work and the list for home...ha! It was twice as long.

 I was inside with my cup and knew this place had the good "sonic" ice. As I was planning my day in my head (going over my lists and allotting time to everything), I didn't pay much attention to what kind of ice I was getting. But, when I finally glanced down, it was cubed ice. Since my cup was only half full, I decided to step over and get the crushed ice in the rest of my cup.

(BTW, these ice machines were clearly marked. Big signs. Neon letters.)

I pulled my cup away from the crushed ice dispenser handle. But, the ice kept coming out. So, I thought it was stuck back and I grabbed it and pulled it forward. IT FELL OFF IN MY HAND!

Ice was going everywhere. It had filled up the over flow spot and was now slipping off onto the floor. I didn't know what to do. I was panicked at the mess that would not stop! As I turned to find a worker to help me make it stop, I slipped in the ice and fell down.

Cue me hysterically laughing. I couldn't stop. I laughed until I was crying. My booty hurt and the ice was still pouring out. What else was I going to do?

So, I got up off the floor, found a worker and handed him the handle to the ice machine. I explained to him that it broke and ice was going everywhere. (This was between cry-laughing.) The guy said HUH a million times and finally I just pointed.

The only thing that was funnier than me falling down in the icy mess was this guy's face when he saw what I was pointing at.

Happy Wednesday!

Wet Weekend

Saturday morning, we met Aunt Bev, Uncle Michael, Eva and Travis P. at the BEST breakfast place in town. (No...no my house.) Susan's!

We had so much fun drinking coffee with butter creamer, eating a big greasy breakfast and chatting away on the cold rainy morning. I did not take a single picture. Oops!

Mid-day Saturday, it was STILL raining. I was pretty bummed because we were supposed to tailgate and go to the game with our friends. Tara to the rescue!

Tara opened up her home, decorated and cooked for a rain-free tailgate. It was perfect! We laughed and ate (and took pictures...duh!).  After fun at Tara's, we headed to the game.

It was pretty chilly, but the rain finally stopped in time for kick-off. During the game, I had to go to the bathroom. I had my phone in my pocket and OOPS! It fell out into the toilet. I grabbed it out and started drying it off as quickly as I could and put it in a bag of rice when I got home. Works like a dream now! :)

(yes...I put my hand in the potty. I don't have insurance on my phone.)

What were the girls doing, you ask? Why, playing Apples to Apples with Miss Sabrina, of course!

Not Created by Moms

There are those ideas that I kick myself for not inventing.

• Color Wonder Markers - Can't write on anything but the special paper. Such a "duh" invention.
• Yogurt Tubes - Yogurt in a popsicle tube. HELLO!?
• Jean Pull Tabs - Your kid is tall and skinny (or short and chubby)? No worries, you can tighten/expand the waist with a mere pull of the elastic tabs.
• Chalkboard Paint - Um...hello...chalkboards everywhere? YES PLEASE!
• Passy Animals - Who doesn't get tired of looking for an itsy-bitsy passy in a big crib in the dark? Now, attach a cute animal to the end and there's no losing that puppy...or giraffe.
• Spray paint - Enough said.

However, there is one new product that I am willing to bet was not invented or tested by Moms:

COLORED BUBBLES. In theory, this is a great idea. The first time I saw these, I added them to my "wish I would have thought of that" list.

After an evening with Hannah, Catherine and two bottles of colored bubbles....

...I'm willing to admit that something are better when they aren't "new and improved". We will stick to the "old-fashioned" clear bubbles from now on.

"Tailgating" with the Brown's

Saturday, the Razorbacks played in Little Rock. We didn't have any plans to go to the game, but of course, we were going to watch them play on ESPN.

So, Saturday evening, we got decked out in our Razorback gear and headed over to the Brown's for a little "tailgating". The girls were napping when it was time to go, so we had to wake them up. Hannah and Emma were happy to indulge me with a couple of pictures.

Catherine was not. We called this her "game face".

When we got to the Browns, we were greeted with yummy BBQ sandwiches, baked beans and homemade dessert. I brought corn dip, chips and drinks. The kids spent most of the evening outside playing, while we sat and watch the game.

Once it got dark, all the kids came in and went to the playroom. Catherine decided that she liked Shane. She kept grinning at him and trying to sit in his lap. She even gave him a "Hello, Friend". Bree was having NO part in that. She would giggle and at the same time move Catherine away from her daddy. It was hilarious!

By the end of the night, we had full tummies, lots of laughs and ready for bed. It was such a fun night! Thanks, Rachel! (BTW, Travis didn't make any pictures, but he was there cheering on the Hogs with us!)