Doings & a Not-Doing.

Wrote an awesome post at Work It Mom.
So, if you want to send a parcel to your family/friends in time for Christmanukahnzaa, you need to read my post for some DOs, DON'Ts, and valuable tips.  And leave a comment while you're there!

Finished an herbal detox/cleanse on November 18.  
My naturopath encouraged me to do one to help flush out the excess estrogen I have in my system.  I didn't want to blog about it until I had something worth reporting.  And now I do: I gained 5 pounds.
Yup, we have a winner, folks!  I'm probably the only person in the history of 'people-doing-detoxes' who put on weight instead of losing it, because I used the detox as license to eat too many of these...

grilled ementhal cheese sandwich with way too much butter... yum
But that was then.  THIS is now...

Had a REAL 100% Primal Day.
No grain and no sugar, lots of natural movement -- if you can in fact call what those weird glowing people on Just Dance 3 make us do "natural movement".  It's dance, so it's all good, I guess.
Bonus:  I've already lost a couple of pounds since I started early this week!

Put the finishing touches on a scarf I promised to knit a very funny friend last year.
It was actually done, um, last year, but I decided to open the box and add some unique touches that are perfectly HIM.

Did not grow a mo.
That was Roomie's job.  His team will be taking a group Mo-Bro pic.  Maybe they'll let me share it here.
Meanwhile, here he is on Day 17 to tide you over.  It had already moved from 70s pron mo to almost the awesomeness that it is today.

He's so HAWT!

underneath the cat-mas tree.

Guest post by Mittens the Cat.

November 12.  It was that time of year again.  Yup, the time of year when I order my humans to put up the Cat-mas tree.  My mommy (you all know her as "Mini") asked Gramma (you all know her as "Nenette") if she could "please, please, PLEASE" put up the tree that day because some dude named Santa was having a parade. 

Apparently, this Santa guy was important -- well, duh, he had his own parade, right? -- and people go ape-sh*t every time he comes to town.  Yah, they even wrote a song about it.  A song with no mention of cats.  So it's lame.  Obviously.

Okay, so it all started when I got Gramma to put the red carpet on the floor.  This is key.  I need a nice place to nap.  Regal, non?


Then Mommy started to put on the branches. She's very awesome and good at that sort of thing... with my supervision, of course.


Because these monkeys are silly sometimes, I checked the box to make sure Mommy didn't forget any branches.


While my mommy finished her task, I made sure to test my little resting spot under the tree. Quality control is essential.


Soon after, Grampa (you all know him as "Roomie") and Uncle (you all know him as "Lam") joined my little workforce by adding sparkly things I can bat around onto the tree. They are good workers, but they didn't stop often enough to scratch me on the head like they're supposed to.


This year, I gave Uncle the honour of putting the star on the tree. Grampa had to lift him up, much like he does when he lifts me up so I can sniff high-up things.

Apparently, the star is important.  I think it's so this Santa guy can know where my house is and bring me cool stuff.


My people did an adequate job. Mommy and Uncle loved it. Gramma and Grampa said it looked beautiful. I praised my humans for their adequat-ulence by hopping on their laps, rubbing against them, and allowing them to scratch my head.

Very soon after, I took a much deserved snoozeroonie, because, you know, managing these apes is such hard work!


Cat-mas, we're ready for ya!

movember: that moustache feelin'.

I was going to share a picture of Roomie and his 70s pron-esque Movember Mo, but the conversation went something like this...

Me: "Come on, I'll take your picture."

Roomie: "Not with my hair looking like this."

Me: "It's not bad! It looks fine."

Roomie, looking in mirror: (sarcastically) "Oh, no, I don't look like I've got an animal living on my head."

So, no picture yet.  Instead...

To all of you doing Movember this year (including Roomie):  You Rock!  Turn your speakers up to 11 and dance.  This one's for you...



~*~


Also, today's the last day to vote for me for the Top 25 Canadian Mom Blogs for Circle of Moms.  No need to be in Canada, and no need to log in.  If you enjoy my blog from time to time, please vote for me.

Thank you all who've supported me over the past few weeks by voting!   #iloveyou

consequences of being powerfree.

Did you know that it's Day 11 of my life without a laptop?  Oh yes, totally true.  Can you imagine me without my laptop?  I look sad... and bored... like this dude...


The laptop itself is fine, but the power adapter is fried, and apparently, it's easier to get chlamydia from a muskrat than it is to get a replacement power adapter.  (No, I do not have chlamydia, nor do I have a muskrat, much less one with chlamydia.)  And so I wait until Roomie works his hot-nerd magic to repair my old one.  Yay, Roomie!

Fortunately, the aforementioned magical Roomie has this awesome animal called "work laptop" that he graciously allows me to use to write my blog posts at night.  Like I am right now.  You know, as long as I'm not looking at pron and stuff. Ahem.

But it's when Roomie takes this animal to work that I really feel the loss.  I always have so much to do online during the day!

Take today for instance.  If I'd had power, I would've...
  • told you about my guest post today over at my lovely friend Toni's Wifely Steps blog where I write about my own Wifely Steps.  Please hit that link to Toni's, check my post and her whole blog, and leave a comment or two (or three).

  • thanked you all profusely for all the votes you've been giving me for the Top 25 Canadian Mom Blogs for Circle of Moms.  It means so much. 'Thank you' really doesn't capture my gratitude. The 17th is coming up fast, so you won't have me pestering you for votes much longer. :) #iloveyou

  • shared this SUPER AWESOME stop motion animation made entirely by Mini! All Roomie did was put all the individual shots together, add the credits, and upload it. Not too shabby for a 7-year-old, eh?! (view it here on youtube)



    So, awesome, right?
  • stuff I've recently learned.


  • After years of shamelessly begging encouraging all and sundry to read my blog, I'm still weirded out when I find out that RL friends actually do.  The other day, a school-mom girlfriend said, "Hey, I read your blog."  And my reaction?  "Uh-oh", followed by nervous laughter.  Yup, total facepalm moment right there.  I really should've said "That's awesome! I hope you enjoyed it."  But, nope, I had to be a spaz.
    It's not like I've got major secrets I divulge here.  I'm pretty much what you see is what you get both online and off.  Okay, granted, here you get to see my messy house, find out about my various neuroses, read about my ridiculous hair experiments, discover how weird (and wonderful!) my kids really are, learn the intricacies of my menstrual cycle--  Oh, there we go.  That's it, isn't it?
    But you know, I doubt I'll ever stop TMI'ing my face off anytime soon, so I really should get over it.  And when you tell me you read my blog, I really am grateful and very flattered.

  • Sometimes all I have to do is ask. The whole Top 25 Canadian Mom Blogs from Circle of Moms proved that to me. I just asked if you would vote for me, and you did!  I had to have faith in the fact that you love me as much as I love you all, that I would do it for you if our roles were reversed... and that you will continue to vote for me until voting closes on the 17th.  Please.

  • I'm too in love with the Starbucks Caramel Brulee Latte. I blame the yummy burnt sugar sprinkles on top.  They're killer.   I ask for extra.  I am crazy.  I am also 5 pounds heavier.


  • Like me, my city is a Scorpio.  Today is 'Peg City's birthday, incorporated in 1873.  Just thought it was an interesting fact to share.

  • Just when I think "This is too effing much! I can't do it!!!", I power through and manage to pull something awesome out of my ass. I sent Roomie off on Guys' Weekend with Mr.LRM, Max, and he-who-belongs-to-Sio the weekend before Halloween, only to realize that I had to take Lam to hip-hop class, Mini to ballet class, then they both had swim classes at different times. Then I had to shop for more Halloween costume materials, and then I had to actually assemble the costumes and spray paint one of them.  Wait, Mini had to wear hear costume TO dance class that day!  Had to finish her costume first.  Oh, and do her hair and wig.  Grrr.  Oh, somewhere around there, I had to feed them -- more than once! Oh, CRAP!!!
    Yet I still managed to turn all of this into Bender & Leela.  Plus, I have even more respect for single parents.

    not the near-empty bowl of chips... that did not go into the costume
  • birthday morning.

    As a special birthday treat, we all went to The Forks Market for Mini's ballet class together as a family. I wanted everyone with me EVERYWHERE I WENT. Yes, I temporarily go nuts one day a year; it's my birthday -- I'm allowed.

    We chilled out, relaxed, and enjoyed just being together. And along the way, I saw some of my favourite dance people.

    So who did I see on Birthday Morning on Saturday?  (While I type this, "Who are the people in your neighbourhood?" is going through my head.)


    When we first got there, I got one of these.  A Vietnamese Coffee.  Okay, it's not really people, but it made me happy.  I would've taken the picture while the coffee was still dripping into the condensed milk, but I wasn't fully awake enough until AFTER I'd had the drink.


    Isn't my little Lam adorable?  Yes, he is.  Here, he is surprisingly calm considering that he'd just had a pepsi/rootbeer drink that was as big as his head.  "Thanks, Dad -- why didn't you buy the big one?"


    Oh, my darling Roomie, with his Movember Mo. Yes, he's doing it again this year!  Here, he's writing his feelings in his book -- his feelings about math and free will vs. determinism.


    Then I went up to pick up Mini from class. Here is Ms. TK McHotster, the office manager, and my old buddy from high school. Love this girl -- she's as crazy as me.


    One of these lovely dancers is one of Ms. TKMcH's daughters. The other lovely dancer is her partner in crime. They're always giggling like they're up to something. Awesome, ain't it?!


    Mini's bff is also in her ballet class! So, of course, I get to see her mom, Tonya Kung-Fu Grip* (who is one of my school-mom girlfriends), every Saturday. Here, I got an extra special birthday treat because not only did I see Tonya, but I also got to see another of my school-mom girlfriends, Jenna Slickbooty*, who is Tonya's sis-in-law. Yay!


    After dance class, Mini has a crepe. Smothered in Nutella. In order for her to not be covered in Nutella as well, I cover her with my sarong/scarf. Yes, she's a spilly pants like her mom, but oh, she's ever so cute!

    That was my birthday morning.  I was going to continue to take pics the rest of the day, but I forgot.  It was my birthday!  I was too excited!

    And yes, my friends, it was awesome.  Happy Birthday to me!  xo

    * Names have been changed to protect the guilty. Yes, guilty.

    only one.

    It's birthday week for Roomie and me. Mine's tomorrow! I'll be turning 42, which is, as many of you know, the answer to the ultimate question about life, the universe, and everything.  Yup, a lot of pressure on such a small number.  Yes, it's a small number.  Really.

    So, since it's almost my birthday, my brain's all fogged up with Halloween candy and Roomie Birthday cake sugar floating all around in it, and it's Friday, I declare that we should have some Nenette-no-think-much fun!  Yay!  Okay.

    Marilyn decided to start a meme, and as you know, I love a good meme.  And this one totally is.
    It has some minimalist leanings, so I was piqued.  What if we could have only one?  Imagine the lack of clutter in our lives.  See?  Don't you love it already?  Anyway, let's begin.

    If you could only have one_______ for life, what would it be?

    1. Condiment:  Soy sauce.  You know, for item #10.  And the fact that I'm Southeast Asian.  We put that s---- on everything.
    2. City to live in:  I want to live in Canada, but since we haven't annexed Turks and Caicos yet, I'm stuck with 4 seasons.  Toronto is too big, and Vancouver is too cloudy and depressing in the winter.  I've never been to the Maritime Provinces, so I can't say whether I like them or not.  So, gotta say Winnipeg which is where I'm currently writing this awesome post.
    3. Place to vacation to:  London.  Because I've never been.  And because people say it's nice.  I love the accent, and the shopping, and the history.  Totally the history.
    4. Colour to wear:  White.  Weird, eh?  Because if you know me in real life, I'm always wearing black.  Thing is, I'd be wearing white if I weren't such a spilly spaz.
    5. Celebrity/Character crush:  Okay, this may be a bit of a shocker...  Gerard Butler.  I know, I know, hard to believe because I rarely ever talk about him.  I even consider him my, get this, pretend boyfriend.  I KNOW, RIGHT?!
    6. Dessert to eat:  It used to be pavlova, but I think it's creme brulee.  Know what it's like to creme brulee your face off?  I do.
    7. Book to read:  Hitchhiker's Guide Trilogy by Douglas Adams.  Okay, I may have cheated with that one because it's a trilogy of 4 stories all in one big book.  But really, it's the best.
    8. Television series to watch:  You all know it's 'Allo 'Allo, right?   It's just too funny!  The French "hero" has the courage of a hamster, the Resistance is always coming up with cockamamie schemes to help a couple of blundering British airmen escape back to England, no one understands English, the Nazis and Gestapo are each scheming to get The Portrait of the Fallen Madonna with the big boobies to sell after the war, and everyone is hiding in broom cupboards getting it on.  Perfection, really.
    9. Cartoon character as a roomate:  I'd choose Leela from Futurama.  She's got money (from her job at Planet Express), I can borrow her clothes (remember, I like to wear white), and she's always away for work.
    10. Type of food to eat (assuming that we can sustain ourselves easily off of one thing): This one is so easy - sushi.  And I would use the soy sauce from #1.

    Wow, my apartment/house would be so spartan, and I'd have nothing to clean! Wish I could live like that now. Seriously. I'm looking at my kids' crap all over my floor and want to scream.

    Okay, now I'm tagging Toni, Harmzie, JennyLoukia, and Adam to do this too.  And you.  Do it, and let me know!

    fives.

    I missed Blissdom Canada.  This year.  Again.  Yes, I was sad.  Very.

    Then my gorgeous bloggy friend Loukia wrote a post in response to a prompt in the opening keynote speech delivered at the conference by the lovely and talented Catherine

    I thought I'd do it too as a part of my bloggy re-birth and my way of introducing myself to the many who are new to my blog and me.  Also so I can pretend that I went to feel like I somehow learned from Blissdom.

    Some of my regular/past readers probably know many of these things about me already, so if you fall into that category, (a) please bear with me, (b) thank you for sticking by me and all of my crazy all these years, and (c) I wish I could send each of you some of my favourite salmon sashimi. Because nothing says "I love you" like a piece of dead fish. Yeah, that's weird.

    Anyway...

    Five things you don't know about me:

    1.  I have a birthmark on my upper left arm.  Unless you know me in real life and have seen me wearing a short-sleeved or sleeve-less top, you wouldn't know this.  It's about the size of a 50 cent piece.  And people either think it's a bruise or a tattoo.

    2.  My left hand is stronger than my right hand.  Even though I am right-handed.

    3.  I get my hair cut once a year.  It's not because my hair grows slowly.  I probably have the fastest growing hair of anyone I know.  I grew out my chin-length bob down to my armpits in less than 2 years.  It's because Jane, my hair stylist, gives me such great cuts that my hair still looks gorgeous 9-12 months later.

    4.  I love to wear jeans because of the pockets.  I don't like slacks, skirts, or dresses because there's no place to put my wallet and keys.  I carry a purse but my wallet and keys stay as close to my person at all times.  Namely, in the pockets of my jeans.  It's a security thing.

    5.  I am an introverted extrovert.  My Myers-Briggs type is E/INFJ.  I'm seriously right on the border.  I have lots of acquaintances from many walks of life, but I have a few very close friends who I consider family.  I can organize and schmooze with the best of them, but I tire quickly in crowds and recharge the best when I'm alone.  Roomie claims I hate people.  That's not entirely true.  I like all of you.   :)

    Five things I am knowledgeable about:

    1.  Knitting/crocheting.  I've made blankets, throws, scarves, sweaters, hats, etc.  I've followed patterns and made stuff freestyle.  It gives my hands something to do in front of the tv... instead of just vegging.

    2.  Breastfeeding.  I breastfed my babies for just over 2 years each.  I've had countless plugged ducts and breast infections, and I know how to deal with them.  I'm not Canada's foremost expert, but I have first-hand knowledge, which is better than many who claim to know but have never even had breasts.

    3.  Programming.  I'm a computer nerd.  Give me some code, a decaf venti latte, and a large carpet to sprawl on, and I'll figure out what that piece of software will do before you know it.

    4.  Primal/Paleo.  It's pretty straightforward... no grains, no dairy, no sugar, no bad fat, lots of veggies, lots of fruit (but only after desired weightloss), quality protein, good functional exercise in an interval fashion, resistance training.  Now, whether I will actually do it consistently, well, that's another kettle of fish... which is, by the way, also good paleo eats.

    5.  Small talk.  That's the ENFJ coming out.  I can very easily talk to anyone anywhere.  At Starbucks. At a checkout line.  At the kids' swim class.  But of course, I also at time choose not to, which is very INFJ-y.

    Five things I know nothing about:

    1.  The Philippines.  I'm 100% Filipina, and I understand, read, and speak Tagalog.  I was even born in the Philippines.  But ask me who the president is and I'll just look at you blankly.  It's Benigno Aquino III by the way.  I had to google it.

    2.  Investing in the stock market.  Add to that the fact that I have the courage of a mouse when it comes to gambling, and you have us still living in our little leaky house in winterville instead of vacationing at a villa in the tropics with the hammock by the beach.

    3.  Sewing.  Okay, so I sewed my livingroom curtains.  But that was pure luck and a bunch of straight lines.  Mrs. Cordner, if she were no longer alive, would be rolling in her grave.

    4.  How to teach my kids to get rid of the crap they don't use or play with.  Does anyone know?  I find it easy to get rid of junk.  My kids don't have that ability, and I'm really scared I'll be seeing them on an episode of Hoarders one day.

    5.  Keeping my family organized.  We've got a calendar.  We make it to every appointment.  Permission slips are signed and submitted way in advance.  Kids are fed, clothed, and well-rested.  But just how do we do it?  I have no flippin' clue!  I always feel like we're riding a rollercoaster everyday, and if we make just one false move, we're off the track.

    Five things I believe:

    1.  Karma.  If you do good, good will come to you.  If you do evil, evil will come to you.  Balance must be maintained.

    2.  Humans were never meant to live in -30C climates.  As an island girl, I'm totally with Loukia on this.  This is why humans were by nature nomadic and migrated south when it would start to get cold.  Stupid agricultural revolution.

    3.  Canada is the best country to live in.  Granted I've never lived in Europe, but I've lived in Hawai'i, and though I loved it there, I simply couldn't wait to come back to Canada.  It's home.  Now if we could only annex some tropical island...

    4.  Stay-at-home Moms should be paid.  It's awful that some women are forced to choose between staying at home to care for their young children at a time when they are needed the most but going hungry versus going to work to put food on the table but leaving their little ones to be cared for by strangers.

    5.  With hard work and determination, you can accomplish anything.  Really.  Everything great in my life I got not by sitting on my bum but by making the effort to bring it to reality.

    Okay, now you.  What are your fives?

    Halloween 2011: Futurama Style.

    Bender, Leela, & Nibbler

    I'd write something about this, but I'm exhausted.  And still covered in duct tape, spray paint, and glue gun crap.  Maybe tomorrow.  Enjoy!