It occurred to me that some of you saw my post last Tuesday (which has since been taken down). For those of you who did, and then reached out expressing concern, thank you. You will never know how much it lifted me up.

For those of you who didn't, just know it was, to say the least, a rough day. 

And in the end, in a way, it was a day that needed to happen.  It needed to happen in order to get me headed in the right direction.  For as blessed as I am, there was a battle I was - and am- and always will be-  fighting everyday. A battle I was fighting with myself, one I didn't understand. A battle that just didn't feel right but also wouldn't stop. 

A week and a day later, there have been some changes. I have spent time with people who know how to help me get back to ME.  I already knew I had an amazing husband, and today that fact is simply more solid. I will never be able to put into words how much I love that man. Which I guess is part of the point - not saying it but showing it, right? 

I already knew I had a supportive family, and today that fact, also, is simply more solid.  I knew I had some good friends, but I didn't realize just how good they are and just how much they care about me. And as for a support system from my employer, wow. I will never be able to convey to my readers how amazing some of my colleagues are; there is simply no better place to work.

From here I move forward. Which is not to say I won't remember the past, for that is what has made me me, for that is what I take and make better, for that is what teaches us lessons.  But from here I move forward.  I have an army with me keeping me in the right direction, and for that, I will be eternally grateful. 

Stay strong, stay positive.

And I promise next time you come back, I'll have some goofy story to share about me or Mini. 

And, of course, Happy Halloween. :)

diary of Mini Comments.

Since we call this awesome blog "Mini Me Says" ... it occurs to me I should be better about posting Mini's more-hilarious-every-day-comments...

on the drive home from school yesterday.. me asking questions about her day.. her telling me some whacked out story about why she made a mask in spanish class..

me: oh really? 
eileen: yep. thats how it went down Mommy. 

Eileen. That gangsta in tights and the plaid uniform. Thats how it goes down in Kindergarten Land. 

Streams of Consciousness...

I took this photo a couple of weeks ago... not really much to say about it other than I giggle when I see it. 

I went to bed at 8:45 last night. I mean really! Apparently I needed the sleep, bc I slept solid until this morning. It wasn't intentional. I mean that early bedtime.  I laid down with Eileen when I'd put HER to bed. And it seems I passed out cold. Bill came up to get me around 9:15, and I was in a dead sleep.

That happens now and again, that I fall asleep up there with her. But usually then I come back downstairs and read or watch TV or play on the iPad. Last night though I came down and crawled straight into bed. I'm old. 

Speaking of old.. spend a minute on the iTunes home page. If you have heard of any of the featured bands, you are not old. If, like me, you stare dumbfounded at the screen, you are old. 

<-- Eileen. Mammoth Bunny. Waving hi to Grandpa & Beanie. That bunny used to sit on their front walk during Easter. At some point it made it's way across the state. Eileen loves to carry it around and hang out with it. It's at least a head taller than her. 

---> k. see this one here of my legs. Does anyone else do this? It was some morning last week. Bill had already left for work, Eileen was at school. I had this boot conundrum. Which one to wear?!  Gracie was no help. So yes. I took a picture of my feet and sent it to a small group of fashionably smart and brutally honest people to please choose my footwear for the day. All responded almost immediately. I'm not telling you which one they picked. Lets see how many of you are reading my ramblings. YOU pick. Which one do you prefer? 

This one I posted on FB late last week. It got lots of action. I posted it asking if other people's dining room tables looked as lovely as mine. Buried deep under the mail and computers and homework is a table runner. Solid evidence at an attempt at decorating. But more often than not it looks more like this picture than a spread from Real Simple. But - despite the clutter- a major pet peeve of mine- this picture makes me happy. It's a table in a home, where people sit and talk and eat and do work and play and just gather. It's my little Mini doing her homework while I get some work done. It's Mommy getting to hang out with kiddo even tho we're both  busy. And, based on the comments and 'likes' on FB.. a lot of other people's dining room tables look like this more often than not. YAY! 

---> Do you know these people?? I am fairly certain it is my sister and brother-in-law.  People. This is a case where life is just TOO BUSY.  Sissy and I live in the same town. WE WORK AT THE SAME PLACE. We have seen each other one time in a month - and that was for five minutes at the gym. Between David being in school, me and Sissy with alternating travel schedules, social commitments and stuff with Eileen - I realized last night that it is a very real possibility we may not be in town at the same time until December. Not even for Thanksgiving!  Seems crazy doesn't it? We'll always have texting. :)

Ok. I daresay this post matches it's title. Welcome to my rambling constantly running brain. Scary in here? Fun? Bizarre? Yes. All of the above.

Cheers!

SHE LIVES...

I can't believe how fast time is going. 

Today is October 1. That is insanity!

<-- this is Central Park, as seen from the top of the Hearst Building.  I hadn't been to NYC in three years.. went back a couple of weeks ago for work. It was a short trip, and I didn't get to wander my old haunts or see many friends.. but wow. It was great to be there. Great to come back home too. 

Sooo many things I am sure I meant to blog about but have left my head. I do remember I briefly blogged about Mini turning SIX and the Birthday Fairy. Fun times at home and at her party. She finally has the Barbie Convertible she's wanted since LAST year.. the one she can actually drive.. and now she's scared to death of it.  really???

Went to Atlanta last week for work. Went to a Braves game. Where yes, duh, I wore my Sox cap. There was virtually no one at that game. HELLO?? You have a MLB team in your backyard and you don't go to the games? Of course, Turner Field is a ridiculously large stadium, but still.  And it was the playoffs clinching game! and still hardly any fans...

This is me and Janet in Atlanta ---->
at the Viking Test Kitchen. Yes, they did let us have knives. They even let us cook.  Ok, well, SOME of us cooked.  I did attempt to help with chopping and dicing. One of the assist chefs was apparently beyond annoyed at my method of scooping out avacodo.  He stomped on over and lightning fast did all these slices and dices and bam! all good avocado.  In my head I was saying in a not so pleasant tone: look dude. i have had a glass of wine or two so i seriously don't need to be flinging that sharp butcher knife around. PLUS, i am TERRIFIED of avocados ever since my friend nearly amputated her own thumb trying to cut one. So NYAH.   yeah, but ya know, I just smiled at him and said thank you. At which point my team mates (did I mention this was a cooking COMPETITION?) gently told me perhaps i should go join the spirit squad.. which was comprised of those of us with limited cooking ability.

That may or may not have been the point when I impressed the rest of the spirit squad with my stellar playground clapping skills - rembering the words AND motions to... wait for it...
BigMacFiletaFishQuarterPounderFrenchFryIcyCokeBigShakeSundayandApplePIE!

You're singing it in your head and you know it. 

The picture of Mini up there - thats her sporting her new Barbie Headphones. And while you think SHE may be excited about them (a bday gift from her friend Katie)... really that expression on her face? that's how excited I am that she likes them. Now we don't have to be tortured by the Barbie Movie and Makeup Game that Mini has on the iPad.  (wait, what? educational apps? )

 Hannah came to spend the night this weekend. It is as much fun for Eileen as it is for us.  A) we love that she plays and plays while we watch football and B)it is absolutely fascinating to listen to them and watch them. (for once I am NOT being cynical).  They're just so funny, happy. They're blunt and tell it like it is. They have imaginations for which adults would pay ridiculous amounts of cash. I want to capture every single moment on film (or smartphone..) and tell her to just stay as much this way forever as she can...sigh.

<--- this pic? taken with my phone. not too shabby eh?


Yesterday was the first day in weeks that we had NO PLANS. I did get our butts to church. That's something.  Then I came home and made a red sauce. Mainly bc I wanted to make Baked Spaghetti Squash recipe I'd seen on Pinterest.  And I refuse to use jarred sauce. Once that was going, I sat down. And stayed that way for quite a while. And went through roughly seven magazines (all Food Network and Real Simple).. pulling out any and all recipes and/or decor tips that I think I may even come close to making. I have, for years, kept my own binder with such clippings (SHIT. It's like REAL LIFE pinterest. WHY didn't I invent that site????)

Anyway. After spending the day like that, I want to have hours and hours to now make all these yummy looking things. Or at least one a week? 

I'd like to say "yes! that's my goal!" .. but right now.. well I'm content I found a moment to blog!

Cheers friends. Happy Fall!