Dang Distractions

Today I visited sparknotes.com to get a better handle on a Shakespeare play that I need to write a huge paper on in a few weeks. The content of the website was pretty helpful, I must say.

Want to know what wasn't helpful? All of the tantalizing links up and down the side of the page that were begging me to click on them instead of remaining studious and focused.

"The 5 All-Time grossest Bug Stories"
"What's Your English Gentry Name?"
"2 Pairs of shoes for the Price of 1"
"Top 5 Most Bad-A Presidents"

I mean, seriously, how is a girl supposed to get any work done around here?

I know, I know, websites like this have to use advertising to off-set the costs of providing free information to students who can't get through Shakespeare without a quick little cheat sheet....a.k.a. Me. But really? Is tempting someone with a quick way to find out their English Gentry name really the way to get people to concentrate on their homework?

The answer is no.

And it's Lady Guinevere Wood of Longford, in case you were wondering.

Invisible Me

Have you noticed that I like to disappear completely from the blogosphere every few weeks, and then show back up, rattle off some excuses, post a few times and then go back into hiding? Well, even if you haven't noticed, now you know. It's my M.O.

Last time, my excuse was that I was totally stressed about  life-changing events: moving, in particular. (Which is only one word, but really stands for so many handfuls of stress and exhaustion that they don't even all fit into the largest Uhaul box you can buy.)

This time, I am still stressed out (though slightly less so since most of our stuff is already packed) because we are supposed to be moving (again). And I'm still tired from the last time. (Don't worry, this is veryveryvery good news. If everything goes as planned, it will resolve more than many concerns that I have had since we started this grand adventure. But sometimes good news makes my head spin, too).

Oh, and also because of a little something called English 450: Shakespeare. (The closest thing to the Achilles heel of my college career since the much dreaded grammar class.) So much Shakespeare, in fact, that my head hurts from the mere task of having to read and understand a Shakespeare play in approximately 3 days (in order to answer the discussion questions) and then write a comprehensive paper on said play by day 7. All told, we are reading and/or watching 11 Shakespeare plays and writing 10 substantial papers in 8 weeks. Does that sound excessive to you? It sure does to me. I think even William himself might think so. Maybe I should ask him to talk to the curriculum development folks at GCU.

So, there you have it: my July 2012 Justification for Not Blogging. I know that this, too, shall pass, but by then I will have come up with a whole new reason for not blogging to take its place. In the meantime, I am still lurking in blog space and keeping up with everyone else's blogs while lamenting the fact that I have neither the time nor the brain power to post anything of substance...besides my monthly excuse, of course.

{Exeunt}.

Starving Child

In an effort to get Savanna to eat a little bit more at meals, I am trying something new today. Instead of giving her a snack 15 minutes after lunch (which is pretty much the norm because she never eats enough at mealtime) I am having her wait a couple hours.

So far, it's gone this well:

"Mommy when can I eat?"
"Can I eat yet because I'm so starving!"
"My mouth is so super dry because I need something to eat!"
"Is it time for me to eat yet?"

...accompanied by lots and lots (and lots) of whining.

I figure two things will come of this.

1. She'll remember, in the future, that she needs to eat more at meals because she won't get a snack right away afterwards anymore.

2. She'll remember how mean I am.

Not to be a pessimist, but I'm banking on number 2.

Monday Meanderings

Summertime has been a time of toast. And cereal. Basically the only two things the girls have been eating since May.

Savanna has decided that she wants toast with plain cinnamon instead of the traditional cinnamon and sugar. Problem is, she doesn't actually eat it.

I used to clean bathrooms and do laundry on Mondays. Now I am down to just laundry, leaving the bathrooms to fend for themselves. Results as expected.

Stayed up until past 3 to finish a Wilkie Collins mystery before my Shakespeare class started today. Loved the book. Paying the price.

Moving expenses have been a nightmare. Wasn't the point of all this to SAVE money?

Haven't had to spend too much on gas lately. Turns out, not getting dressed quickly stifles my desire to want to go anywhere besides the pool, which we can walk to.

I think I broke my mom's exercise bike. Turns out, consoling myself over the loss with handfuls of peanut  m & m's has not been the wisest of decisions.

Time to Say "So Long"

Craig and I had this gem done many moons ago in the beginning stages of our domestic bliss. We had it up in our first apartment, and never have displayed it again since, so we decided it was time to part with our sexy caricature once and for all...though not without photographing it first for posterity's sake. Now you (and posterity) know what we would look like if we were cartoons.

Pretty accurate, don't you think? Except I am not convinced that he actually got my eyes small enough.