MMMMMmmmmmmm......

It's 11:00pm. The kid's asleep. The husband's gone. I'm tired but don't feel like going to sleep. I've been gaining weight like nobody's business and I'm hungry (or am I?)! So I'm looking through pictures to get inspired about something to blog or scrap tomorrow and I see this one from my "Week in the Life" pictures. Silver Diner Fresh Wild Maine Blueberry pancakes...oh, sweet Bessie...Mark has some Challah bread french toast smothered with strawberries...God, grant me the strength...I could do some damage right now. C'mon, what's your favorite breakfast food? It's my favorite meal of the day, or night. Not worth being fat again but maybe a nice reward for kicking a few pounds. I know you're not supposed to reward yourself with food but why the heck not? I'll feel miserable after I eat it and it will be so worth it. Have I mentioned their shakes????? I'm brushing my teeth now. Sweet dreams!

Props and a Shout OUT...

to Christine Revels 'cause she turned me on (hey now) to Joss Stone. Eons ago Christine posted something on her blog about getting the Joss Stone CD and how great it was, blah, blah, blah...something about listening to it in the tub with a glass of wine and I thought, "Hey, I really need some new music." So, I tossed that on my Christmas list and lo and behold I love that CD! I have worn that thing out. Just love it. I am always in the mood to listen to it. So, I know that I've been the world's worst blogger and every once in awhile I'll have to throw in something I've missed along the way and this is one of them. Thanks, Christine, it is one of life's great pleasures to find new music! I also got Kelly Clarkson's CD with it (not on my list) but Santa gets props too 'cause Miss Clarkson really can rock it out even though she's been dissin' the idol. I think I just am digging the chicks that rock and wish I was one of them!

Mark is away tonight (hmmm....could that be why there's actually a blog happening here? Coincidence? I think not.) and I am going to spend some quality time with Cathy Z. I think if she wrote a book just filled with old grocery lists I'd read it. I would end up more inspired to grocery shop. She rocks. See, another chick that rocks! Love that!

Go, Nudie, it's yo BIRFDAY!

OK - So I started this blog on Friday, April7th, which was my husband's birthday. I ran out of time and thought I'd cancelled it but lo and behold the title still showed up. Go figure. However, I'm happy to have some intrigue in my sparse blog! Nudie, obviously, is my husband. And he turned the big 39 which is totally freaking me out. I've known him since he was 18 (yet another reason to freak out) and I just don't feel like I'm married to a 39 year old - let alone almost being that myself!

So - when we were in college Mark was in the Kappa Sigma fraternity and they gave him the nickname "Menudo." To really appreciate the nickname I will have to dig up a photo and post it. Yes, he looked like a member of Menudo. Long, feathered back hair, two-toned jeans, shark tooth necklace, comb in the back pocket, high top sneaks with his jeans tucked in...I can't begin to tell you how NOT my type he was. And you can quit laughing now! I reallynhave to find a picture. So, his name was Menudo and literally everyone called him Menudo - even me! Over the course of many years I called him Nudo and eventually Nudie. I think I called him that for 5 years before I realized it was "Nude"-e. Oh well, too late by then and he doesn't care so Nudie it is!

So it was Nudie's BIRFDAY! Turning 39 must rock because he got a smokin' new iPod (I've cheesed out on gifts the last few years so he was do for something awesome) and I'm cracking up everytime it's someone's birthday because thanks to Fifty Cent (or as we like to call him - Fitty) I can't say birTHday anymore - It's BIRFDAY! And we gotta party like it's yo birfday...gonna sip Bacardi like it's yo birfday...so sad, the most WASPish girl you could hope to meet gettin' her groove on to Fitty. So anyway that was the blog more or less - all about my man's birfday.

And while I'm here let me just say that Chris was AWESOME on American Idol last night. Like, stopped what I was doing and just stared at the TV AWESOME. Oh my. My jury was still out on who I was routing for. Now I know. Just like when Constantine sang "My Funny Valentine" last season. Oh my. Love the idol.

CKU ROCKS!

I am still getting over CKU-Chicago. What a whirlwind! I have to say that after a little doubt (ok, a lot) I totally dig albums and want to do it again. I came home with a huge 12 x 12 "A Week in the Life" album, a 6 x 6 album that's essentially an "All About Me" album that we completed at the make-n-takes, and 5 mini albums from my classes. How stinkin' cool is that?! The doubt came from the fact that the "energy" at albums is a little different than at regular CKU. The Campus Crop was nowhere near as awesome as Minneapolis. Christine, Tricia and I were looking at each other like, what is this all about? I asked Ali about it in my album track and she said there is definitely a difference. CKU-A is really all about the albums and getting them done and the regular CKU is more about the "Woo Hoo CKU" (Ali's words). So anyway, the picture above is me in my album track with my loot. And here is an up close look at the loot. Let me tell ya, it was a little hairy getting packed up to go home! I think Ali Edwards is one of the coolest, most grounded, most real people I have ever met. She talked about being a "life artist" since she doesn't think the term "scrapbooker" really does it. She has some "Life Artist" merchandise on Cafe Press. Very cool. She has a manifesto she lives by (that may be a whole other blog entry) but the very first thing on it is "It is OK." Tear your paper? It is OK. Stick something in the wrong place? It is OK. Doesn't that just apply to life? It's amazing how you sometimes need the simplest thing affirmed for you. It's nice to have someone say to you "It's OK." Whether it's scrapbooking or life in general. Burnt dinner? It is OK. Not as far ahead getting the house decluttered? It is OK. Didn't get everything done on my list today? It is OK.
Love that.

I am nowhere near done with my album. As soon as I have a few pages completely done I will post some pics 'cause it really is awesome. Part of it was very labor intensive and her style is so different than mine that it took me awhile. It really blows my mind to see what she does. That she just sits down and designs pages and albums like this is astounding. Never in a million years would I come up with the designs she does. Really inspiring.

Also tried a few new things this time: like the Rolodex swap, for example. Twenty members of my album track made rolodex cards to swap. Very cool! I used up my Making Memories paper from last year's CKU (very appropriate!) I really needed something to get me out of my scrappin' funk. Between the rolodex cards, the classes, Ali and the make-n-takes - plus just being around some seriously talented women - I think I'll be coming out of that funk! I'd love to add some more cards to my rolodex. (Hint, hint)

Of course, the best thing about CKU is doing it with some awesome women! How cool that Christine, Tricia and Mandy let me crash with them. I was hoping to get a little spooning action from Christine but she wouldn't touch me. (: I really had a great time with them and they were really kind to put up with the sick girl. I'm seriously considering going to CKU at a different time of year because it would be so much more enjoyable without antibiotics! And check out how awesome Tricia looks. She's got the glow going on. She really looks fantastic.

We also met some awesome women in our Croppin' Commandos dorm. Christine has the best pics, I somehow managed not to get a single pic of the whole group but here are Julie and Katie. We lucked out, again, on coming together with a cool, diverse, talented and all around awesome group of chicks.

Now, I have to say that as awesome as it was, there was something missing. Hmmm.....what could it be? Lisa Bearnson? Yeah, she was missing, but no, that's not it. Hmmm....Stacy Julian? Nope that's not it either. Hmmmm.....what could it be? OK, you get one guess. Yeah, YOU! We really missed you guys - Mel, Chris and Ruth! We gotta work on getting together at another CKU - and, of course, Wilbur too!

Recovering

Still....trying....to....recover.........from.......CKU........zzzzzzzzz........