Mommy Brain

After the last depressing post, I wanted to do something light and meaningless - and I found this at CarrieF’s blog.

Rock Star Name (first pet & current car):
Fluffy Windstar

Gangsta Name (fave ice cream flavor & fave cookie):
Chubby Hubby Milano

Fly guy/girl name (first initial of first name & first three letters of last name):
Ckit

Detective name (favorite color & favorite animal):
Purple Flamingo

Soap Opera Name (middle name & city where you were born):
Eileen Bellingham

Star Wars Name (first three letters of last name & first two of first name):
Kitca

Superhero Name (”The” + second favorite color + favorite drink):
The Green Colorado Bulldog

Nascar Name (first names of both grandfathers):
Rocky Robert

Witness Protection Name (mother’s and father’s middle names):
Kay Blair

TV Weatherperson/Anchorperson Name (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name & a major city that starts with the same letter):
Lane Laredo

Spy Name/Bond Girl (favorite season/holiday & favorite flower):
Autumn Iris

Cartoon Name (favorite fruit & article of clothing you’re wearing plus “y” or “ie”):
Nectarine Shirtie

Hippy Name (what you ate for breakfast & your favorite tree):
Waffles Willow

Rockstar Tour Name (”The” + your favorite hobby/craft, favorite weather element + “tour”):
The Reading Lightning Tour

Please, please let me know if you play along so I can read yours!

Another Friday - another list of links. How was your week?

Monday, I took Josiah to the doctor to get his five-year-old booster shots. Three of them, poor guy. Funny thing is, his brothers and sister were more scared of seeing the shots than Josiah was of actually getting them. He’s the only one of my kids who doesn’t freak out ahead of time. He even watched her put the needle in on each shot, didn’t flinch, and his only response was, “That kinda hurt.” He’s one tough little guy. Last time I take a kid in for 5-year-old boosters - that’s a milestone right?

I took the kids to the pool after the doctor, and that’s when I started reading Deathly Hallows. That book pretty much accounts for the rest of Monday, and most of Tuesday. I finished Tuesday afternoon right before I had to make an early dinner and take the kids to Tae Kwon Do.

Wednesday we met some friends at the park for the morning. In the afternoon, we went to the library, where they were having a presentation on Egyptology. The kids heard some crocodile stories. learned about the Rosetta Stone, wrote their names in heiroglyphs and played some rowdy mummy-race and pyramid-building games. I read Mansfield Park through most of it.

Yesterday we went grocery shopping and I finally got around to some freelance work I had waiting for me. Last night was Tae Kwon Do and then we headed to the pool. It’s amazing how good that pool feels when it’s over 100 degrees outside!

This morning Natalie has an orthodontist appointment and then this afternoon we’ll head to our weekly play date with Michelle and her boys. Hopefully everyone will get along - hotter weather seems to make it harder for the kids.

Tonight I’ll head back to Michelle’s - by myself - to watch Keeping Mum and have some gab time with no kid interruptions.

Tomorrow we’ll all pile in the vans and go to the lake for the day. Kevin was able to barter some computer work for a kneeboard, so Noah is anxious to try it out. I’m hoping our ancient, falling-apart boat can actually pull hard enough to get him up on it! The boat is older than I am.

I’ve also been spending some time working on our school schedule for the end of August. Noah actually asked me yesterday if we could start school! I wish we had our books, but they won’t be here for a couple more weeks.

So that’s what my week was like. Here are some links you might find interesting:

~I loved this slideshow. A photographer went on a pilgrimage to Ireland and shot pictures of many Irish religious sites. (Scroll down to the end of the article for the link to the slideshow.)

~Here’s another writing contest - this one for a children’s story.

~This is a must read for Austen fans.

~I can’t remember where I found this, but this clip of Jay Leno inhaling the “anti-helium” is hilarious!

~Here’s a fun Tetris-style game that will help your kids (or you) learn the states.

~In this interview, J.K. Rowling goes into more detail about the futures of Harry, Ron, and Hermione - including what their professions are!

~Here’s another Rowling interview, where she talks about who dies in book 7.

I still get many Google hits from people searching for “Taylor, the Latte Boy.” There are many versions on YouTube, but you can find the one I originally posted here. Enjoy!

…not really. But I would like to thank Lisa, who has nominated me for a Rockin’ Girl Blogger Award.

Now I’m supposed to nominate five more “Rockin’ Girls.” Let’s see…

~ Andrea - who is so rockin’ she managed to move Homeschool Journal to a new server, all while moving to a new town and recovering from surgery. Plus she’s downright hilarious.

~ Karen - fellow movie fanatic. Her blog also has a great title: “Praise the Lord and Pass the Prozac.”

~ Lawanda - who has four beautiful daughters and a husband with a great name. Her blog has a cheerfulness about it that I find refreshing!

~ Gem, who is so cool that she brings her latest vampire and werewolf novel to read during break time at VBS.

~ Carol - who has brilliant taste in books - and celebrates her 29th wedding anniversary today.

Of course, there are many great ladies - and guys - linked on my sidebar. Thanks, Lisa - that was fun!

I received an e-mail today about a product from Brighter Minds, and I realized I’d never posted follow-up on the products we received before! My apologies to the Brighter Minds folks.

Here are our favorite products of the ones we were sent:

Diner Dash CD-Rom

This game is truly addicting! The kids can testify to the fact that I became a mad-woman when I had only one level to go to beat the whole darn thing. The kids all love playing it - and so do I. I’m very tempted to purchase Diner Dash 2 - but I’m worried about how much time I’ll spend on the computer!

This game is great for all ages and teaches quick thinking and problem solving. I like the fact that my kids enjoy playing a game that doesn’t involve Pokemon battles or shooting things.

Extreme Monsters #1: The Blue Moon Effect

Extreme Monsters #2: What’s With Wulf?

Extreme Monsters #3: Meet Mr. Hydeous

Noah is enjoying this chapter-book series about young monsters who engage in extreme sports competitions. He has finished the first one and is halfway through the second. These books would be great for any boy readers in your life. The stories are action-packed and perfect for reluctant readers.

Another week has flown by - how did that happen? I know I didn’t post any links last week; I didn’t have much to share and had a very busy weekend. My sister came up from the Coeur d’Alene area to practice for our upcoming Mother’s Day concert. We practiced all Thursday afternoon and for several hours on Friday, and we’re ready - as long as I can get my monologue memorized in time! It’s been a while since I’ve done any performing, and I’m partly looking forward to it and partly scared to death.

We are having a testosterone-filled game-blowout weekend. Michelle and Don are taking a weekend away and their two boys, Nicholas and Jacob are coming over tomorrow morning and staying until Sunday afternoon sometime. (Natalie had me call Grandmama and Papa and beg for a sleepover to get her out of the house. Too many boys for her.) I imagine I will get lots of reading time in - and time for memorization, since once the boys are involved in their games, they’re pretty much set. Michelle and I both (try to) limit how much time our boys get to play, so a whole weekend of endless game playing is like heaven to them.

~I found this article very interesting. We just finished studying Ancient Greece for history.

~Drew Bledsoe is retiring from football. He has special significance for me, since he took my Washington State Cougars to the Rose Bowl my junior year. Good luck with whatever’s next, Drew! It was a great run.

~I can’t even remember how I found the chicken story - just clicking through various blogs - but it is the funniest thing I’ve read in a long time.

~5 Minutes for Mom is holding another contest - this one for a Phillips Digital Photo Frame. Head over and sign the Mr. Linky.

~Melanie Lynne Hauser is offering her first novel as an e-book - for free! This is a limited time offer, so don’t hesitate. I’ve already started reading my copy. Melanie is the author of Confessions of Super Mom and Super Mom Saves the World.

Have a great weekend!

I have so many links to share this week! Lots of good stuff on the web, and since we were on Spring Break, I actually had time to find some of it!

~Writing and Living is one of the first blogs I ever read, and one of the blogs that inspired me to start my own. Staci has a dry, slightly sarcastic sense of humor that I can completely relate to. Evidence: this post.

~Newsweek has a great article called We Protect Kids From Everything But Fear. I can’t remember where I saw it linked first, so I don’t know who to give credit to. But read it anyway - it’s good.

~If you, like most bloggers, have the Great American Novel inside you dying to get out - take heart. It’s never too late.

~Kev at The Bayer Family Blog posted this great article about why English is so difficult to learn.

~This editorial about the upcoming presidential election might get me in trouble, but I’m posting it anyway.

~Christianity Today has posted a slide show of some modern art pieces inspired by Jesus’ death and resurrection.

~Brant at Letters From Kamp Krusty is posting again, and had some great posts this week. Check out this one and this one.

~April is National Poetry Month, and Poetry.org will e-mail you a poem a day every day this month.

~Who wouldn’t want to be woken up by this?

~How well do you know the 50 states? Can you name all 50 in less than 10 minutes - no peeking allowed? Try it. Hat tip to Throwing Marshmallows. I missed two: Oklahoma and Delaware. I had the other 48 in about 4 minutes, and I spent the last 6 minutes driving myself crazy to figure out what I’d missed.

~For all you Losties out there, check out this incredible video of a Photoshop painting of John Locke.

Whew! I told you there were a lot!

Do you have wonderful plans for Easter weekend? I hope so. After dying Easter Eggs with the kidlings, I will be having a Girls’ Night with Michelle tonight. If her DVD player isn’t on the fritz, we’ll be watching Stranger Than Fiction. If it isn’t working, we’ll watch Much Ado About Nothing, which I own on VHS. Hey, I just remembered, Dr. Wilson from House is in that one!

Saturday, Kevin will be taking a trip to the dump to clean up the backyard, and I will clean up the house in preparation for Sunday. I’m thinking about renting the new Charlotte’s Web to watch with the kids Saturday night.

Sunday, Mom and Dad and Don and Michelle and their boys will be coming over after church for Easter dinner. No traditional ham for us - Kevin will be grilling hamburgers and hot dogs and I’m making a huge potato salad. Dad’s bringing a yummy desert that has “mud pie” somewhere in the title. We’ll have an egg hunt after dinner for the kids. Lots of fun to be had all around!

I will be posting something more serious later on in honor of Good Friday. I hope your Resurrection weekend is a blessed one!

Want one? Get it here.

Hat tip: Moomin Light

For April Fool’s Day, a list of great media hoaxes.

Lapaz Farm Home Learning has an egg-straordinary post full of egg-related activities. Just in time for Spring Break and Easter!

I had to tell you all about this one! The gals at 5 Minutes for Mom are giving away a Dyson Vacuum! I’m not kidding - check it out.

Since my husband and I are leaving tomorrow for a weekend get-away without the rugrats, I’m posting early. We won’t have access to a computer while we’re gone - nor would we use it if we did - so I won’t be posting again until Sunday evening or Monday.

We will be staying here, shopping here, eating here, talking without interruption, sleeping in as late as we want, reading, seeing a movie (possibly this or this) - and doing anything else that occurs to us.

You gotta love a man who says, “Don’t forget to pack the Scrabble game!” and who knows that the hours spent in Barnes & Noble are one of the things I’m most looking forward to and doesn’t care in the least. And also said, “I don’t want to go to Circuit City this time - I’m afraid I’ll buy something!”

Natalie will be staying with my parents, and the boys - all three of them! - will be staying with Michelle and her husband, Don. Did I mention how blessed I am by her friendship? (And not just because she’s watching my kids!) I need to tell her husband that they can never move away from here.

So here are some links for the weekend:

~Christianity Today posted their list of the 10 Most Redeeming Films of 2006. What do you think? Did they miss any? Are there any on the list that have you scratching your head?

~I’ve never thought of juggling as an art form until I saw this video at Author Intrusion. This guy is incredible!

What about you - any interesting finds on the ‘net this week? Any great plans for the weekend?