New, Not Borrowed, and Not too Blue ;)

I have something for you, the... five... six?... people who come here. I am making you a playlist. To know me, you have to KNOW me. And I warn you- I am a contradiction on every front, which some of you know, and some of you need to know, if you want to "GET IT". Isn't that everyone's deal? "GETTING IT"? Whatever "IT" is? So, I'll let you in on the deep, dark secrets, piece by piece, song by song, thought by thought, as we go. It may be offensive- my tunes are not censored, and some are absolutely not kid friendly. Same as my thoughts :) Same as some pieces of me. But to really have the inner workings of the mismatched, up and down, back and forths of me, it is what it is. I don't listen to, read, watch, take part in, anything that doesn't speak to me on some level. and it's deep, if you look past the damns, hells and others that make up some of it. If you don't, if it offends... well, I'm not you. You aren't me. And maybe you aren't meant to piece my story together. I am open minded and liberal to the point of painting a damn rainbow on my walls to prove a point. i believe in love and freedom and have no tolerance for pushing belief, and am good with what I know and have faith in regarding my relationship with God. He loves everyone, you know? He made us all, after all. But I digress- shockingly, LOL. So, for now, where words are truly failing (and focusing on new novels) I give you this instead....

Girls

We've been snowed in here in our neck of the woods for what feels like.. forever, lol... and it's gotten my creative juices flowing in a lot of interesting ways. I'm writing a lot... and a lot I'm keeping to myself. But it's therapeutic, getting it all out. It makes a difference, having this outlet where I can be me, plain and simple. I can write for myself, get my emotions clear.. or I can write something else, with characters and scenarios I make up as I go. Either way, it's been a definite lifesaver the last few weeks.

But I've noticed myself drifting toward the “friendship” theme more and more again in my writing, and this leads me to thinking about all the women in my life. Since I'm obviously someone who thinks (thinks, thinks, thinks some more....) a lot about everything, I guess it's only natural to have come away from the last few weeks with even more to ponder. Good, bad, in between? Probably all the above, but it did give me an idea.

I am blessed to have a terrific circle of women in my life- all unique, all bringing something to my life I wouldn't have without them.... hopefully I do the same for them. We raise our kids together, if we have them, and love each others' kids like our own. We talk late into the night, early in the morning... without these women, I simply wouldn't be who I am.

So, this week, instead of the usual, I thought I'd take some time to really talk about, and honor, women. Valentine's Day is coming, and rather than think about hearts and flowers, let's think about chick flicks and best friends, chocolate and glasses of wine. The laughs, the tears, the inside jokes... and the way we simply have to have our girlfriends.

You may be related, by blood or marriage. You may have been friends since you were kids (and you are oh so lucky if you are... believe me!). You may be old friends, new friends, close friends.... think about it. Who do you call for a quick laugh or a long cry? The women in your life... they are a different kind of family altogether, a mismatched patchwork quilt that is one of the most precious things you will ever have. In a lot of cases, some of the pieces should never fit, and yet they do... in some, the patches are seamless. But as you get older, you realize that while only some of them are seamless, they are all timeless. They all give you a different perspective, a different piece of yourself, and that's pretty amazing. I honestly don't know where I would be without my girls.... from the smallest to the tallest :)

Don't get me wrong... we all love our guys, too. But it's different with our girlfriends... we get each other in a way most men can't. We're on the same level- we know each other... and we know what drives us crazy about these guys we love so much. Lol We vent to each other, get angry together, and counsel one another... we laugh and talk about what the kids are doing.. we cry over the losses and hard times, and we just get it. And we know that when it really gets down to it, when it seems it can't get any harder, we have one another's backs.. and that counts for just about everything, doesn't it?

So, this one is for the girls- from the smallest to the tallest :) I honestly am thankful, every day, for each and every one of you.

Blog Award Time! Again : )

I got this today from my new buddy, Jaime @ Just Add Laughter. You really should check her out if you haven't- she's funny, smart and loves her kiddos. All in all, it makes for a great read. So, head over there!


I love getting bloggie bling- it means somewhere out there, somebody's reading, and appreciating, the stuff i have to say. I can never ever pick just a few I want to pass things onto, so I usually say that everyone on my blogroll can nab the bling, because i love every blog on there, and those are my daily - weekly reads.

BUT, today, I especially want this to be passed onto all of you over there in my 'roll. Reading is taking me away from some things, just like posting is doing (or can be doing). So take it, add it, link back, and we'll give each other a bunch of comment and linky love to pass around. :)

Thanks, Jaime!!!!

Weekend Wrap Up

The kids and I had some fun this weekend. We were rolling solo on Saturday, so my oldest friend and her little one came over. The kids played, we took some pictures, and had a lot of laughs. A good time was had by all, and it was nice to sit outside and watch the monsters all getting along, running and screeching off that energy.

It was a good day before and after company, too. We had fried green tomatoes (batter fried tomatoes with Parmesan and provolone cheeses) and noodles for a quick dinner and Popsicles for dessert. I let them fill up the baby's bathtub and play Superstar Swimming Pool with Alyssa's every growing circus of Barbie, and Barbie-type dolls. Most of them are rich, live in California, are originally from Paris or Italy, and are superstars, in some way shape of form. There is also a Ken doll who wears women's clothing, for no real reason. Should that worry me???

Sunday I had some much needed time to myself, sans children. I love my kids, but there are some times i need to be away and have a chance to recharge. Just some me time, some grown up conversation (which, between moms, usually involves the kids anyway, LOL) and a few deep breaths before returning home to the sounds of who touched who's toys, which one shoved first.... Have I mentioned I'm ready for school to start again??? If I haven't, I AM.

So, all in all a decent weekend. It's been nice to just putter around, even though it seems a lot of thinking much, doing little. Stages, I suppose.

I do have some pics of the weekend to post later, which I will probably promptly forget about as soon as I hit "publish." If I do, remind me- I'm even more scatterbrained lately, with all the fall has to offer this year. Between back to school, birthdays, holidays and October 3rd (!!!!!!), fal and winter are already pushing their way into my head. That and the odd, fall like weather we're having here. Craziness all 'round, people.

What about you guys? How was your weekend?