Weekend Highlights & More Bloggy Bling--Oh My!

With pressure-inducing politics, the fab football game (and commercials--hmmm), the weirdly warming weather, the PACKED Walmart, the dirty diapers (woo hoo, rice cereal!), the itty bitty baby, the spilled BERRY yogurt, and a soon-to-be farewell, it has been a pretty good weekend. I actually did my hair twice!!! I got out of my pajamas both days--before noon! Seriously, someone needs to create an award for that alone.

Highlights . . .
Super Tuesday is almost here. Should be interesting. I feel like we are overwhelmed with political talk right about now (unless you aren't one who pays much attention). Regardless, tomorrow it'll be hard to avoid it!

The football game was WOW! I'm not a big fan, but I LOVE underdog stories and of course, I was touched by the whole brother thing. T laughed at me as I started my whole teary-eyed "He must be so proud of his little brother . . . "

OK, Walmart was insane yesterday. We don't have Target or Meijer and our Super KMart isn't so super. So, Walmart it is. It was an obstacle course trying to navigate through the cereal aisle--and don't even mention the CHIP aisle. BUT, on a nice note, people were really nice about it considering they probably in a mad rush to get home to their marinating hot wings and BBQ mini weenies. It was like we were all in this together--striving to survive the melee that is Walmart. Carts were crashing into each other and no one really got upset . . . they just laughed it off. Oh, if we could always be that way.

I am in awe of life's precious balance. Of how in a moment we can be overcome with grief over the loss of love and in another moment be in pure bliss with the birth of a new life. We found out we were pregnant with J only weeks after T's father passed away. J was born only a matter of hours after T's grandmother passed away. A little miracle baby. The life we all needed to help us understand and bear the loss. This weekend I went to visit a friend who has just given birth to a beautiful baby girl. Seeing her sweet little face, the tiny curled body, the tufts of dark hair made me feel somewhat calmed as I found out that T is due for even more loss. His uncle, diagnosed with cancer several months before his dad's diagnosis, is in the last stages of his life. As this little baby girl begins her journey, he is finishing his . . . bittersweet, good/bad, happy/sad . . . a balance.

And to show balance . . . how about those Superbowl commercials??? I don't know if I saw any standouts, but there were some pretty good ones. I liked the Rocky-themed Budweiser ad with the dog training the Clydesdale--cute. The Tide interview with the talking stain tickled me . . . simple, but really funny. Oh, and the E-Trade trading baby that spits up, funny! Maybe because I can relate. If you are interested in watching more or to learn how your favorites were rated, check out USA Today's Ad Meter. The Bud ad with the Rocky theme is in first place followed by the FedEx/Carrier Pigeon ad (which was pretty funny as well). All in all, not bad--but I have to say, for once I think the ads weren't the only big thing going on--the game was pretty darned good as well! OH! I just realized that I missed one! There was a great Coke ad with Charlie Brown--the underdog gets his Coke! Very cute . . . and positive (currently #7 on USA Today's list).

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You Like Me . . . You Really, Really Like Me! More Bloggy Bling!

First off, can I just say WOW and THANKS! Thanks to everyone who drops by to read about my life, my thoughts, my ideas . . . I get so excited to see your comments. I have found so many amazing people. From celebrating your successes and feeling your pain to learning about your life to sharing your heartache--it is an amazing connection that we all share.

So, without further adieu, I am honored to have received two awards. First, flowers from Kathryn at Seeking Sanity. She is adorable and so, so funny. I find that we have more and more in common every time I read her blog. Plus, she gets a kick out of my American Idol reviews, which helps to justify the time I put into them (I'm so OCD).


I love getting flowers, but I am going to love giving them!

I pass these on to . . .
Angela at Memoirs of a Chaotic Mommy--she is so sweet and I love visiting her blog. Like many of you, she is a "do-it-all" mommy and is AMAZING.

Allie at Allie's Musings--she is a fab writer and is PUBLISHED, I might add. She writes about all sorts of fun stuff and she was one of the first blogs I visited. I have to add, she runs CONTESTS on her site--hint, hint--go check her out. I just won an autographed novel! Yeah for me!

Misty at Starting from Scratch--she is AWESOME. She is so real, so sweet, so wise. I love reading her blog and staring at her adorable children.

RJTrue at What a Girl's Got To Do--a young blogger who writes about the single life and relationships has really stolen my heart with her words. She is so intuitive and self-aware--which is RARE.

Sandy at Momisodes--what can I say about she who has probably received a zillion bouquets from admiring readers? She is bright, fun, humorous, and I (along with a ton of other people) love reading her blog. She writes from the heart about her life and she really connects with her readers--each of us. If you haven't checked out her blog . . . you should.

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I have had the honor of receiving another award. Yeah, me!!! Can you believe it?! This award is from beautiful Angela at Memoirs of a Chaotic Mommy (seriously, she really is beautiful . . .).

There are no rules with this award . . . all that Angela asks is that I pass it on to someone who has warmed my heart. AWWWEEE.

So, here goes:

Kathryn at Seeking Sanity--how can I not!? Her posts make me smile and SCRAMBLE to comment because I can SO relate.

Girly Mom at The Red Door--she is incredibly sweet, positive and loving mom who really, really warms my little heart. She recently started the 100 Things Challenge to encourage us all to enjoy life. How awesome is that?! Note to Girly Mom--I'm downloading my pics soon!

Pam at Random Thoughts--she is so much fun! I love her "random thoughts" about mommyhood and life in general.

Melissa at Such Simple Pleasures--has been showered with bloggy love and if you visit her blog, you'll see why. She's a doll--and gutsy, mind you! I spent forever on her blog when I first found her.

Tracy is NOT Just Another Mommy Blog--however, she is another FUN, Fantastic mom who I have just recently found. I love reading about her adventures and misadventures and you will as well!

And last, but certainly not least . . . Painted Maypole! After seeing her mentioned at other blogs and lurking around on my own, I can see why she's so loved. What an awesome blog--positive, fun, and wonderfully written.

I love these awards because not only do you recognize some wonderful blogs, but you also get a chance to share with others some cool details about blogs you think are awesome.

Can you feel the love?? Can you?

Beautiful baby boy is awake . . . time to play!