I Am Super (Cleaning) Mommy

Ever get those days when you're just on a roll and you don't even know where the energy comes from? Well yesterday was that day for me.

To begin, I thought for sure I was working my usual 4-hour closing shift but when I look at the family calendar I realized Mommy was off that day. We have this lovely calendar that a good friend of mine, Therese, gave me (along with many other things) for Christmas last year. It has five columns with tabs for every member of the family so we could all see everybody's schedule. The kids also get to customize their own tabs ("Mommy" is built in!) and some months they go crazy, some months they're just boring. So already I felt I could do so much more... like someone magical and powerful just added 6 hours to my day (if you count travel and getting ready time).

So now the big question is, what to do with my 30-hour day today?!

My husband made it easy by nagging me about our piling dirty clothes-- he's out of socks! Before you judge me please bear in mind that we live in a condo and we actually need quarters to activate the washer. Me, lazy? Nooooh, just out of quarters!!! But no such luck, because yesterday we actually had enough quarters for two loads. So wet those clothes went.

Next thing I knew I was pulling meat from the freezer, veggies from the fridge, and spices from the cabinet. I was cooking, scrubbing, dusting, spritzing, oh and don't you forget-- I have clothes in the washer!

By 10:45 the place looked amazingly decent. In my standards, at least. Let's just say it's good enough to let close friends and family in because they know and understand what a slob I am.

It's barely 11:00 and they kids don't get out of school until 3:00. It's time for my favorite past time-- MY Internet time!!! So I sneak back in my room to turn the computer on.... AND WAKE UP MY 2-YR OLD!!! In an instant chaos begins and then it dawned on me: THAT'S EXACTLY WHY. Silly me, and I thought I had a visit from a magic dust-sprinkling cleaning fairy godmother!!!

photo grabbed from www.parentingissues.net

Facebook, Anyone?

It's been 9 days since my last entry and I feel so bad that I haven't written for that long! The culprit? FACEBOOK!!!

I learned, just a few days ago, that there is a certain group of friends of mine that I could only find here-- people I've been searching for for years via Friendster and MySpace but failed. They're the rich kids of Brent International School of Baguio, Philippines otherwise known as my high school classmates. And I am only saying that as-a-matter-of-factly. They're the golden kids and this is where they hide. But I sure am glad to be reconnecting with them.

But there's so much more! I know I may sound like a dork for discovering Facebook just now when it's been around for a while, when members have hundreds of friends and I have 32. I've been declining invitations from friends thinking it would, just like these other sites, take more time away from me performing the duties of a good mom and wife. Evidently, it also took time away from me performing the duties of a good blogger. But how can you not love Facebook, which, quoting my friend Les, is like a toy!

So what made me decide to join? Aside from my young 20-something-year old coworkers reminding me on a daily basis, I think I got especially curious when one of them asked the other, "Have you opened the Louis Vuitton gift that I sent you on Facebook? Did you like it?" I thought to myself, you could do that on Facebook?!

So here I am, telling everyone, Twitter style, how I'm doing right now. I've also been abusing the wall-to-wall feature, importing my blogs, became a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal, and sending Filipino food (with balut being my favorite) along with my personal messages. The first day I saw my coworkers after joining I asked them, "So did you get my Hermes gifts?" Which of course, was overheard by another coworker, and judging from the reaction on his face, we could also now call him another Facebook addict waiting to happen.

A Perfect World

"In a perfect world," Jake Gyllenhaal says, "I would love to do one play for every three movies." In a perfect world I would be sitting right next to him, telling him I'd support him all the way. But who lives in a perfect world?

On Thursday Origins was giving away free samples of the skin care line of your choice simply by listening to their spiel, and letting them try the Modern Friction exfoliant on you. And what do I pick? A Perfect World, of course! I'm a sucker for citrus scents, just like my perfume Sugar by Fresh. To quote the Origins website, the "aromatic orange, bergamot and spearmint fortify the feel-good factor" and believe it or not it actually is very uplifting! The little sample box included a deep cleanser, liquid moisture (toner), antioxidant moisturizer, and a body cream. I'd say they would last you about two weeks.

Anyone who knows me well enough would say I hate regimens-- diet, exercise, skin care, make up, etc. I'm just not high maintenance or systematic enough when it comes to these things. But since receiving these samples I've been looking forward to prepping up my skin! It's my me time in the morning and at night before going to bed.

So if you feel like giving yourself a treat, that you so deserve, one of these days visit Origins as through September 28 they are giving free 1-on-1 consultation. They will also be sampling a new product called Plantidote which is a face mask so prepare looking silly in front of other customers as well. If you live in the Oak Brook area I would recommend seeing Greg Coleman at the Origins counter within Macy's. He's very knowledgeable about his products and makes the whole experience a real treat. If I could get past my self-consciousness I might stop too and have him cover my face up with a mask. I guess no one could really recognize me once I have that on! Haha.

So don't forget your own treat! You may call Greg Coleman at (630) 684 2171 for more details.

So until I have Jake by my side I may not live in a perfect world, but at least my skin does!

Men and Their Cars Part II

This is a follow up to my previous post Men and Their Cars. If you haven't already, you might want to read it before continuing. Beware as this may be the first rant in my blog and it may not be good.

The other night I got to meet my husband's new (which is not by any means new!) purchase that day: a really old beat up Geo Prizm. Because our condo allows us just one assigned parking in the garage, which obviously belongs to his baby, the Land Cruiser, the Camry and this poor looking fellow will always be found parked on North Avenue (as seen on photo).

This purchase, just like the Land Cruiser, was not approved by me. Actually I did semi-approve of the Land Cruiser in the condition that I will never ever hear him complain about bills. Before we bought it we had a Toyota Sienna in excellent condition that was, just like the Camry, paid for. Did I hear complaints? Of course I did. A lot actually.

(Just a side note: Notice what big Toyota fans we are? 4Runner, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sienna, Geo Prizm (rebadged version of the Toyota Sprinter), and an MR2 that we donated about 2 years ago. They're the most reliable cars out there!)

So why did he insist on getting this old car? Because of his new big boy job, remember? In fairness, this little one is a real gas-saver. He filled it up at less than $50 two days ago and as of last night it's run 290 miles and the empty light still hasn't turned on. I just feel that it's too soon to be making this decision considering that he hasn't even been doing this for over a month. But does my opinion count? Last time I checked it doesn't.

Anyway, after meeting the car the other night I got to ride it yesterday. I took advantage of my day off to see a Filipino movie, which is a rare phenomenon here in Chicago. Kai and I had gone to Macy's to get a present for Megan's 2nd birthday and my husband and I agreed that we will leave for the movie (that starts at 1:30pm) as soon as I was done shopping. All he had to do was get out and we'd be waiting outside, with the kid already strapped on his car seat, the engine running, and myself waiting on the passenger's seat so he could drive.

I don't exactly know what happened between the time I had left the mall and arriving home but he wants me to get out of the car because we're using the other car. I insisted we use the Camry since we're all set and ready to go but all I heard was him yelling, "Park your car!" So I move the car, move the baby and move the shopping bags just so he could give me a peek of his ugly car with exposed insulation on the entire ceiling. To make matters worse when we get to the movie theater I asked him to pop the trunk open so I could stow my bags away and he hands me the key. Oh. I have to manually do it. And as I walked away from the car he again yells at me, "Lock your door!" Oh, no power locks either.

And just when you think the day could not get any more horrifying, he points at the ticket booth and commands me to pay for our tickets-- a ripoff at $15 each. If you've been to the Pickwick Theater at Park Ridge you'll know what I'm talking about. The seats do not have cupholders and the upholstery is so worn they might as well strip it entirely. The floors are sticky and the unkept heavy Victorian interior adds to its misery. At this point it was hard to decide which was more saddening-- being in this depressing theater or being on a date with The Grouch. Wait, did I just say it was hard? I'd pick the theater any given day!

So if your boyfriend tries to impress you with his car, enjoy the days because as soon as you say I do nothing's too ugly for you. You think men are jerks? Try husbands!

Eli Stone: The Complete First Season DVD is Out!!!

Eli Stone: The Complete First Season on DVD is out as of yesterday (I heard it on the radio)! List price is around $40 but here are the best prices (from reliable websites) I've seen so far:
tower.com $26.99
overstock.com $27.91
buy.com $27.89

Sometimes I get those 40% off DVD sets coupons at Borders so that actually is a pretty good deal too. Their list price is $41.99 so it's $25.19 + tax.

I love Eli Stone because it's a smart, touching, sensitive, funny and entertaining all at once. It's also pretty much the only show on prime time that I could actually enjoy with my kids. If you were into Ally McBeal like myself you'll fall in love with this character as well. I have yet to meet other fans, so if you love the show please drop me a note! :)

Men and Their Cars

My husband finally found his big boy dream job. For now. We'll see how long this phase lasts. He works for a company that mostly delivers medical supplies from pharmacies to hospitals, nursing homes, and the like. Sometimes he also finds himself running around downtown like a madman delivering documents-- a disaster. The one time I came with him to help him with directions (since GPS won't work downtown) and watch the car too, in case a tow truck comes, he came this close to losing it and dumping people's paychecks on Lake Michigan. The good side of it though is that I get to drive the good car, and he gets to drive the okay one. Why with the high gas prices it only makes perfect sense!

Last night after coming home from work he asks, "How's the Land Cruiser?" I say it's fine. Then he goes, "You know when I bought that truck it was really you I had in mind. I remember when I first saw you in my 4runner (this was 7 years ago)-- you really looked good driving that truck. So now that you've put on some weight I thought I'd get you something bigger!" LOL! So I say, "So if I put on more weight what are you buying me, a dump truck?" He answers, "Why do you think we bought that dump truck in the Philippines?!" Men, oh men! And in case you were wondering what this picture to the right is for, this is where he wants me to park whenever I use it-- away from other cars, people and traffic! Now I'm not too sure if this really is a good thing!