A halting return. . . .

Crashed hard drive over a year ago--ack!, raising monkeys, pregnant with another. . . there are so many POOR! reasons why I have not made the time to be in this space.  But I miss it.

So, I'm coming back, baby.

Stay tuned.  

In the meantime, check out this blog I like.  Beauty that Moves.  Heather, the author, has a seemingly idyllic life that's fun and dreamy to step into every once in awhile.  Thanks to Kara for sharing!

A Thanksgiving Motto

Did you hear. . .

. . . he's coming to town?  Which makes me say a resounding

OH CRAP. 

I'm so not ready for this.

I'm going to follow Kate's list from Rants from Mommyland to see me through!

The Anti-Texas Brownie

Look what lives at my house!

The fabulous fall cakelet pan has arrived at my house just in time for Thanksgiving!  Pumpkin bread, mini-spice cakes, teeny-tiny little corn breads. . . all in the festive fall shapes of acorns, walnuts, miniature pumpkins, and squash, oh my!  I am weak in the knees with baking anticipation!

Wise Woman is blowing into town for the quickest visit in the history of the world next week. . . perhaps a mini acorn or two will be awaiting her and her little chickens. . .

A Texas brownie is NOT on the menu. 

One Sentence Wednesday: Vision Board

A beginning---still have more to add!

I am participating in Organicsyes's online vision board workshop today---join us!

A Walking Contradiction

Last night 'round the ole dinner table, the family decided to each describe ourselves in three words.  The first word I blurted out was

ORGANIZED

and Big and HM promptly started to laugh.  Loudly. 

Offended, I retorted that I WAS very organized.  The laughing turned to guffaws.

Big said, "This house?  It can be a MESS."

Yes, it can.  I argue that I am both organized AND messy.  A seeming contradiction, but, you can be both.  Everything may have a place. . . one just might not choose to put it there at a given time.  Ergo, mess.  Which can easily be remedied because I am so ORGANIZED.  

I long time ago, in a state far, far away, I was team-teaching with Organicsyes.  We had a reputation. . . .she was the creative one, and I was the organized one.  This used to make me bristle.  I was creative too! not really  But now, it looks like I have lost my organized rep altogether, despite my tireless not to mention successful! efforts at organizing CheekyMonkeydom.  Ah, well.  A prophet is never believed. . . or appreciated. . .in her hometown.  Or in her home, for that matter.

Sigh.  Off to organize a reading binder for Big and work on cleaning and organizing HM's office.  Just call me Rodney Dangerfield.  I mean, the Wrangler. 

A Noble Pursuit

Collecting words is a very, very noble pursuit.  I love words (evidenced here) and fervently wish my vocabulary was as big as a house.  My most prized possession?  The most romantic gift I have ever received from Head Monkey?

That's right.  The Oxford English Dictionary.

It sits proudly in my family room on. . . you guessed it. . . the dictionary table.  I have a piece of furniture for the dictionary.  I don't have a guest bed, but my dictionary has a place all its own.

Our own Tutcibachi has shared a website that showcases words that GASP! might be omitted from the venerable OED due to lack of use.  Logophiles, please do your part!  Go to the website and adopt a word today!

www.savethewords.org

Ode to My Nemesis

 
She hurts me.
And is a mean lady.
And makes me say

ow ow ow ow ow.  

We are CRYING. . .

. . .we are laughing so hard.  Wise Woman called.  Went to website.  Can write no more.  Am laughing too hard.

 

Click here to laugh your monkey head off!

One Sentence Wednesday

Today was Biography Day at school and BIG's most dramatic, emphatic line in his speech was. . . . .

I AM Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Balls

Which monkey has no balls?

We are a house that has balls.  LOTS AND LOTS of balls.  Literal and metaphorical AND anatomical.  Balls GALORE.  When I picked up Big's bedroom once, I found ELEVEN balls.  You heard me.  ELEVEN.

The other day I mentioned to Middle that our  Little, who is nearly one, had no balls to call his own.  I suggested that maybe Middle could buy some for Little for his birthday.  Middle, a sporting fellow, was very pleased by this idea and promptly agreed to the plan.  He sprinted over to Head Monkey and whispered in his ear.  I thought he was sharing the plan.

NOPE.

Head Monkey's eyes grew wide, then he broke into a big smile.

What did Middle say?

Dad!  Little has no balls!

The. End.

I have an unnatural attachment. . . .

. . . to my crock pot.  
Oh, I love it so.  

The crock pot has changed my life.  When Little arrived, I had NO IDEA how I was ever going to feed my family EVER AGAIN.  I relied on the kindness of friends to feed us for two months, but then I realized that I needed to get back in the game.  And my ace in the hole?  The tool that would see me through?

YE OLD CROCK POT.  OR TWO.

Tandem crock pots.  Bliss!

I have a good friend, we'll call him Mr. Pleased as Punch,  who derides crock pot cooking.  He even has a crock pot vocabulary---beef in the crock pot is BARF.  Chicken---CHARF.  He is certainly NOT Pleased as Punch when he is served food from these vessels of joy, claiming it all tastes the same.  I am here to proclaim. . . . NOT SO!  NOT SO!!  This is not your mother's crock pot cooking!

This changed everything.

This book, and Stephanie's fabulous blog, allowed me to get dinner on the table again.  And, due to the variety, spices, and inventive ingredients, not a  

CHARF 

or  

BARF 

has been had.

Come to my house sometime!  I will make you something hot, delicious, and slow-cooked, baby. 

Family Field Trip

 Pine Forest II by Gustav Klimt

A few weeks ago, Middle took a field trip to a local art museum.  Ever since, he has been asking to take the whole family.  Proud as a peacock, he gave us a guided tour of "his museum"--- he was strutting through those galleries to show his brothers the mosaics from Antioch, the Matisse room that had fourteen paintings and sculptures all by Matisse---we counted, and the miniature gallery.  Little gave a running commentary through the entire place, Big and HM debated over whether or not pieces were actually ART, and, despite an overzealous security guard's attempt to rain on our parade, we had a fabulous time.   Our first real field trip since the arrival of Little, eleven months to the day that he joined our family.

Enjoy Pine Forest II.  I want to go there. 

Texas Brownies

Tonight as I was tucking in Big when he revealed that a boy in his class (we'll call him Kid to protect the guilty), was teasing him at school. Whenever Big makes a comment, Kid says.....

Add it to Big's Stupid List.

Well, with the Big I did the right thing. Told him to tell Kid to stop it and if he didn't, to ask his teacher for some help. Big begged me to intervene, but I told him that he had to try to handle it himself first.

I was steaming mad. I wanted to call the teacher, the mother, the grandmother, the neighbor, anybody who would listen to me rail on Kid and would help me get some freaking JUSTICE. But, that would be wrong. He is only a KID, after all. Instead, I took the high road---I started texting Wise Woman.

Here's how we handle stuff like this in Cheekymonkeydom:

Wrangler: Remember when what kids did didn't bother me? Those days are over.

I've had to sit on my hands all night to keep from calling the teacher. Big is being picked on by a kid named Kid. I wish I could square up on that Kid and kick straight him in the batteries but that would be unladylike.

Wise Woman: I don't remember you ever not caring what kids did to your kids. Errrr.

Wrangler: All fired up and have to let him handle it. Grrrr.

WW: Maybe the phantom Wise Woman can send him poop in a bag...

Wrangler: Yes. Texas poop is the best kind. Here is the line I'm going to encourage him to use...

You know what's stupid, Kid? Calling people stupid. Please stop.

WW: Perfect. And then tell him you have a brownie. Only it's poop.

Beware the brownie, Kid.
It's coming for you.
From TEXAS.

One Sentence Wednesday

I spend too much time. . . . .

reading blogs--grading papers--wiping noses--planning class--posting to Blackboard--scheduling chimney repairs--finding babysitters--making dinner--checking homework--
cleaning up dog vomit--
watching reality TV

to post on my own blog.

One Sentence Wednesday

A quote from me, one minute ago. . .

"It's one sentence Wednesday---oh crap."

Funniest Facebook Post EVER.

Courtesy of my husband's cousin. . . . .

I can't stop thinking and laughing about what my daughter said the other day. She quietly called the cat "stupid" and when she was confronted about it and asked to repeat what she said, she yelled out, "I love Jesus! I love Jesus!"

Proust Questionnaire, Interactive Edition, The Sequel

Here's our buddy, Proust. And he has more questions.

Read my responses here. I can't wait to hear yours!

One Sentence Wednesday

I have been down in the dumps for quite some time now, due to coping with the practically nomadic existence of the Head Monkey whilst trying to properly care for Big, Middle, and Little, but after reading this and this, I have gained some perspective and launched a plan.

Thanks to Kate and Lydia from Rants from Mommyland and Gretchen Rubin's Happiness Project.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Proust Questionnaire--Interactive Edition. Part One

All right. Our numbers now have reached a critical mass of 10! Can I get a WOOT?

I am ignoring the fact that Tutcibachi is registered twice and proudly declaring that I have 10 followers!
Thanks to Soccer Mom for being proud #10!

Since we have reached the double digit milestone, I now believe it is time to launch. . . .

The Proust Questionnaire---Interactive Edition

For those of you that don't know, or have never read the back page of Vanity Fair magazine, the Proust Questionnaire is a series of questions first answered and published by Marcel Proust. These questions are fun, thought-provoking, and insightful for both the one answering the questions and the ones enjoying the responses.

Which brings me to the INTERACTIVE part of the program.

Each week I will be posting a few of Proust's questions along with my responses here. Your job? To read and answer the questions for yourself. Comments needed to play. If you don't choose to participate, I may send the cheeky monkeys to your house during homework and dinnertime. That means you, all you reluctant commenters. I am currently too polite to name names. But don't push your luck. Fun, yes?

And one more thing.

I think I'm ready to go a bit more public. So feel free to share the link with friends that you think would enjoy visiting Cheeky Monkeydom now and again.

Here's to the first ten! You are strong, fabulous women (and one man) with fantastic web aliases.

Love,
The Wrangler