Thursday Ten: Marrow Is SO Pretty Edition

1. Several months ago, I signed up for the National Marrow Donor Program. This week, I received a preliminary call telling me I might be a match. The next steps are to fill out a questionnaire about my health (done) and then they’ll decide if they need to do further blood screening to see if I’m similar enough with the recipient to be a donor. And so, I’m waiting to see right now – even though the thought of having a needle poked into my bones doesn’t sound so fun, I’ll be thrilled if I can give some of my marrow (which I’m sure is VERY ATTRACTIVE) to someone who needs it. Joining the registry is EASY, and if you feel so inclined – please take the time to sign up. The first steps include a super easy cheek swab – you can do it.

2. It’s apparently National Dog Day. My dog is howling outside my window as I type this. We shelled out the bucks to fence in our yard so that he has a secure place to run around. He doesn’t run around though. He basically hovers under the deck. That’s alright though. His splint is off and his puny little chicken leg is on the mend. He’s still VERY high energy – so that fresh outside air will do him some good.

3. My friends from P & G sent me a bottle of their NEW Downy to try and I’m gearing up to try Clean Sheet Week. My favorite part of laundry is having clean sheets – but that clean sheet feeling is gone too soon. Bums me out. So, I’ve got a bottle of April Fresh Downy that was given to me so that I could try this out. I’ll change my sheets and start my test in the next couple of days. I’ll keep you posted.

4. New music this week… I’ve been listening to Chris Blake – who I’ve stumbled over on Twitter. His new EP, “Girl” is available on iTunes – and I bought it this week (He doesn’t love me enough to send me free music, which is okay – because it’s totally worth the dinero to just buy it). I also love the YouTube vid he posted below – though the song in this vid is not from the new EP (but it IS on iTunes, so… y’know… clickety click). I love some of the regrets listed – especially the person who should have gotten their ingrown toenail fixed. Yeah.

5. Last night, my friend and I went to a nearish middle school to photograph her daughter’s cheer squad for their team pictures. It’s been (ahem) a few years since we donned the polyester skirts (GO FIGHT WIN!), and it was a bit of a slap in the (wrinkly) face that it’s been 16 years (ugh) since we were in high school. What a huge difference in teens today from teens back in OUR day (get off my lawn). I still think my mom should count her blessings I was a teen in the age of grunge: big flannel shirts and baggy jeans. Certainly not a fashion trend that did me any favors – but it probably eased many a mother’s mind.

6. Yesterday, The Princess made sugar cookies while the Mother’s Helper was here. Don’t tell her I told you this but… they are like giant white hockey pucks. Hubs told me later that she was pretty disappointed with herself that she doesn’t make cookies “as good as mommy’s”. He told her it would take practice – and that I probably didn’t start out being able to make phenomenal cookies (Which is kind of untrue – my cookies? They’ve always been good. It’s just a curse. I make good cookies).

7. Netflix has an iPhone app? BRING IT ON. Our Wii has been acting very weird lately (as in, it just won’t turn on. At all. No power, no nuffin’). We thought the sucker was a goner. Nope – just a very cranky power cord, AC adapter thingamabobber. Til we get that replaced though, it’s nice to know that I can livestream Season One Prison Break on my phone (oh Wentworth Miller, I have missed you).

8. Started doing the Shred with a large group of virtual friends this week. This is Day 4. I think (they’re all starting to run together). I still love the Shred, though. Can’t deny – the stuff works. And it’s funny – because when working with personal trainers, I respond more to the Bob Harper type (encouraging, nice, tell me about your feelings) – not the drill sergeant type. But she’s not that way in the DVD, and my abs already look nicer, so YAY JILLIAN. I’ll ignore your overuse of the word “buddy” if you keep making my muscles look nice.

9. Speaking of muscles – the 100 Pushup Program is still in effect. I have NOT given up yet. I did a test the other day and can do 50 pushups without stopping. I eked out those last few reps, just to hit 50 – and then sat in the middle of the room in complete awe. I really have no idea how I’m going to get to 100 though. That just seems like a lot. But, I’m DETERMINED to do it.

10. Gearing up to get these kids back in school – just when I thought I had ALL the school supplies I needed…. I get another list. The Princess’s teacher has requested specific colored two-pocket folders. I guess the dude is going to be the persnickety type. Back to the store I go.

Thursday Ten: Am I A Mother or a Cabbie Edition

1. With The Princess pretty much occupied with gymnastics and gymnastics practices, we figured it might be a good time to re-enroll Pumpkin in swimming classes. This means running one kid to one class, killing a bit of time before running the other kid to the other class. I hang out at the pool during lessons – and it’s painfully warm by the pool. Get done with swimming to kill a smidge more time before picking up the second kid. Far too much time in my car and it shows – it’s filthy. And when I opened the door this morning, it smelled like yesterday’s cheeseburgers. Not sure which kid left her Happy Meal in there, but… ew.

2. Before heading to swim lessons today, I picked up a copy of US Weekly at the grocery store. I know, I know – it’s hardly rocket surgery, but it’s too hard to read “real” books by the pool because the noise makes it hard for me to focus (Also: bleacher butt pain). I’d rather flip through a magazine. Well… speaking of “rocket surgery” – I forgot to bag said trashy magazine. Fail. Total and complete fail (I ended up reading an issue of Wired. I’d rather have read the trash).

3. Last week, I won a necklace from Studio Jewel, and it arrived yesterday. It’s gorgeous. You’ll want to check Lisa’s stuff out – I think it’s fabulous. I’m eye-ing these stacking rings next. I love silver jewelry.

4. New music, new music. Well, I’ve been listening to some acoustic Jason Mraz (nah, it’s not new, but I finally picked up a few downloads because I love), and Chris Mann’s newest EP, several mixes of a cover of George Michael’s “I Want Your Sex” and a song called “Phone Phone”.  All good stuff, and worthy of a listen.

5. Yeah, I  am giving even further serious thought to picking up an e-reader. I jokingly said something a few weeks ago and now they are ON MY BRAIN. I still love books – can’t replace the paper and the smell and the whole sensory experience of reading an ACTUAL book. However? Shelf space is limited, and unless a book is really rotten, I don’t get rid of books. So, Kindle versus Nook is the question, I suppose.

6. We finally signed up for Netflix. I realize, everyone else in the planet has already been using Netflix for the last eighty years, but yeah. Anyway. The Princess is IN LOVE with it though: “Hey mom! Did you know that Cake Boss is on streaming Netflix?” Our queue is filled with multiple episodes of Cake Boss.

7. I expressed last week that I was iffy on the “200 Situp” app – it was being glitchy then. Since I wrote about it in last week’s Thursday Ten, I’ve gotten it to work. It’s still a tiny bit on the glitchy side – but the program is a good one. If you aren’t ready to invest in the app, I believe they have a website as well.

8. ONE MORE WEEK until the new season of PROJECT RUNWAY starts on Lifetime. But, y’know… who’s counting?

9. I’m tremendously conflicted about the “Beezus and Ramona” movie. In a sense, I kind of feel my childhood is getting squashed all over – Selena Gomez as Beezus? That’s not really how I pictured her. I pictured Beezus as kind of plain jane, pales in comparison next to her whacky little sister. The previews seem to focus more on Beezus than Ramona, and seriously? I don’t think so. Will you go see this movie?

10. I need a photo project. This crazy schedule of mine has made me so much less likely to pick up my camera. I don’t know what to take pictures of. I feel like taking pictures but feel like there are only so many pictures of my steering wheel I could take. Shall we do a photo project?