An Iowa Mom

Time To Make Some Changes

For those of you who subscribe to my blog via a feed reader (bloglines, google reader, etc ...) will you please update your link to:

www.aniowamom.com

And for those of you who are reading and don't subscribe to my blog, you SHOULD by adding the following link to your feed reader:

www.aniowamom.com

I dropped the typepad and want to make sure everyone gets changed over so you don't miss anything exciting.  Yeah ... like my life is THAT exciting, right?  Hey, kids are in school now ... you never know what I might come up with.

Thanks everyone!

Can Someone Let Me In?

"Everyone has them!!" is all I heard from my kids.  "I want some!".

I personally always thought they looked kinda goofy.  Never a big fan.  However, because my girls whined enough and I was going to pull all the hair out of my head, or theirs, I gave in and purchased two pairs of pink crocs.  Typing that ... I still can't believe I was weak enough to cave.  Dear heaven, help me!

Do you know how many times I've heard, "They are so ugly, BUT, they are the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn." ?  Okay, 3 years later you finally got my attention.

Beyond thrilled, the girls slid them on their feet before we even left the store.  They skipped and squealed with delight out into the parking lot and all the way home. 

Within 2 hours, both girls were crying and limping in these silly things.  "BAND-AID" was all they could muster as they witnessed the huge sores on their feet with blood pouring from them.

Assuming as with any new shoes, blisters would have to form and their feet would eventually become accustomed to wearing them, I left them in the shoe cubby.  Everyday, pain or no pain ... blood or no blood ... they happily take them from their little home and place them on their little feet.

Okay people, we are OUT OF BAND-AIDES.  It's been almost 3 weeks and these shoes are tearing up my little girls feet!!!  Is this what we call comfort now?  Blisters the size of Mars?

Is there some secret I should know about?  Is there a "how to" manual that the sales clerk forgot to include in my bag?  Do the thousands of people I see daily running around in these things know something I don't?

Or ... maybe my girls just have messed up feet!   Which could be entirely possible.  Just sayin'.

Enough Already!!

Dear Mother Nature,

Okay.  You can stop!  The grass and trees have had plenty to drink.  Even my flowers are saying they're done sipping the fresh rain water you provide ... and that's like a miracle.

The streets are flooding, the creek is rising, and I'm tired.  Why does this matter?  Because when you rain so hard and throw thunder and lightening into the mix ... Molly doesn't sleep!  She wants to be with me.  While that's fine, I love to cuddle ... I also enjoy the television so I can catch up on the news and what not, while she drifts in and out of dreamland.  Ya know, when you pour the drops down on us so hard, our satellite dish goes out, so Fox News is not an option for me right now.

Neither is sleep.

Please stop!  Soon!

Thanks in Advance! 
Good Night,
An Iowa Mom

Iowa Geek Says "Something's A Foot"

Jodi, over at Iowa Geek is holding her monthly contest.  Hop on over to her place to enter.  If you are the one to win these adornment stickers, magnet and mini-album, it will be worth your while.

Even if you don't win ... you'll enjoy reading through Jodi's blog (if you don't already).  She's become a favorite of mine to read and I'm honored to be able to share her with you.

Enough procrastinating already ... get over there!

Wordless Wednesday: Leaving Mom In The Dust ... And In Tears!

WFMW: Birthday Party Bribery

Now I know some of you will immediately think I'm the meanest mother on the planet when I explain this to you, however, given my circumstances at the moment, with all I have on my plate to do, this works for me.

Drew will be turning 7 next week.  SEVEN!  I just can't believe it.  Hoping I could get away from having a party for each of the four kids every single year, I was willing him away from that answer when I asked what he wanted to do for his birthday.  To no avail.  He replied without hesitation, "I want a party at Chuck E Cheese!!" 

Okay.  Drew is very young for his grade, so most of the kids from his class he wants to invite are or almost are 8 years old, and I can pretty much guess from experience, that they won't want to go to Chuck E Cheese.  Sparing my little boy a lot of ridiculing, I offered ... okay ... I BRIBED him to go in another direction.

Me:  Drew, if you give up a big party at Chuck E Cheese for your birthday ... I'll make a special deal with you.

Drew:  No way.  I'm going to Chuck E Cheese.  I want to ride the Jet Ski game.

Me:  How about you pick 2 friends to go to Chuck E Cheese?

Drew:  No.  I want a big party.

Me:  How about you pick 2 friends to go to Chuck E Cheese AND I'll buy you a Nintendo Wii.

Drew:  A WII???  A WII??  I'm getting a Wii???  You've got a deal.  I'm getting a Wii?  Really!

I'm actually getting off cheaper than a party ... Plus, no planning, no invites, no 10 kids running wild through Chuck E Cheese ... next time you are sitting in the middle of several kids, screaming and running around, with cake and ice cream all over their faces ... think of me and this post.

Bribery!

Works For Me!

At least this year.  Next year will be a whole other story, I'm sure!

For some great tips and hints (I'm sure more informational that this one) head on over to Rocks In My Dryer!

Bunch of Lazy Asses!

In a society where we all claim to be fit and health conscious and many people who make regular visits to the gym to exercise ... I couldn't believe what I witnessed the other day at Target.

Emily and Molly were behaved so well as I shopped, looked, strolled, gawked, drooled, and gazed through Target.  What?  Isn't that what everyone does when they visit the super store of all super stores???

Anyway, the girls trailed behind me, keeping their little fingers to themselves so perfectly that I decided to reward them.  When they get "treated" at the store, that translates to "splitting a Peppermint Patty".  So, after we paid our bill, for several things we didn't need, and waved goodbye to the checker we've come to know by name ... we took a seat on a bench next to the doors, so I could people watch and the girls could enjoy their well deserved candy.  Call us crazy, but the kids aren't allowed to eat and drink in the car, so any food they have has to be eaten before they climb into the Suburban.

So, I'm sitting there while the girls take the tiniest bites to make their peppermint treat last as long as possible, causing their hands to become a huge chocolate disaster, and I start to notice how lazy people are. 

At our Target store, there are two doors.  One is an automatic opening door and the other one, right beside it, has a handle so you have to manually open it.  As I sat for at least 10 minutes, I didn't see one person go through the manual door.  Heaven forbid they have to use their freakin' arms and push the door open to enter the store.  I watched the majority of the people coming from the right side of the parking lot walk PAST the manual door, taking an additional 10 steps or so, just to go through the automatic doors.

I understand using the automatic doors when you are leaving and have a cart full of things.  But entering the store ... I don't get it.

Don't you find that a bit disturbing?  10 minutes and about 50 to 60 people and every single stinkin' one of them went out of their way to go through the automatic doors.  I was baffled.  I really was.  I know it's not that big of a deal, but it really bothered me.

We left, and went through the manual door, just to make sure it still worked.  And from now on, that's the only one we'll use when we enter our favorite super store.