Sunday, September 27, 2009

Musical Monday


My first concert was The Blues Brothers! John Belushi as Joliet Jake & Dan Akroyd as Elwood Blues. I was about 12 years old & I begged my parents to take me to the concert for my birthday. We sat on the grass lawn of the Pine Knob Music theater & I couldn't figure out why everyone kept trying to pass my parents funny smelling cigarettes, lol!

I cannot even begin to describe the energy of John Belushi. He would cartwheel and backflip all the way back & forth across the stage. He had an oxygen tank at either end. Now I'm sure he was probably rocket-fueled by heavens only know what kind of drug.

The only video I can find to embed is the trailer from The Blues Brothers movie. If you watch to about a minute and a half in and keep watching, you'll seem them in action. I feel really lucky to have seen them live, they were great performers.


This is where I curse & say bad words because NOTHING will imbed from YouTube for me today. Here's the link if you're interested. Sorry!
For more Musical Monday, go visit Diane or Jori.

Friday, September 25, 2009

My Favorite New Cooking Blog

MarvelousRecipes

My new friend Emily at Marvelous Recipes has the most amazing blog full of really, really good, mom friendly recipes that I have ever seen.

I have tried several of her recipes and they have all been plate-lickers. Check this out:

Tender chicken in a delightful sauce served over hot cooked rice. A marvelously easy and delicious dinner!

2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups hot cooked rice

In a heavy skillet, over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the cubed chicken, chopped onion and garlic; cook until the meat is no longer pink.

Stir in the remaining ingredients, except the rice; cover and cook over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve over hot cooked rice. Makes 4 servings.

Chris & I made this on a night when the boys weren't here. It's a good thing because the 2 of us snarfed this up like little piggies!

Check out Emily's blog, Marvelous Recipes and tell her Mimi sent ya!

My First Baby

Hi guys! Still getting over the swine flu. Make sure you get flu shots for your family, this flu has been the worst I have ever had in my 42 years!

I thought I would share a few of John David's senior pics. He's 17 & a senior in high school this year. He had friend from the yearbook take these pics. They did over 400 pics for $100 dollars. Way better than the $1,000 through a studio. They haven't done the formal ones yet, but here are some of my favorite casual shots.













How the heck did he get this big??? I know I'm waaayyy to young to have a child this old!

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

The Pigs Got Me!

I think in today's world we are all too politically correct. While it not cool to call African Americans, overweight people, mentally ill people or any other minority by rude and insulting names, I refuse to bow down so that I don't offend pigs.

I have the Swine flu. It seems we are now supposed to call it H1N1 because the pig farmers were offended, but pigs wallow is heavens-only-knows what and eat anything put in front of them. Any pigs reading this blog can contact me directly if they are offended.

Anyway, this post was not meant to be about possible porcine repercussions, but only as an explanation to why I haven't been around too much lately. I have stopped eating bacon and hope to be back to posting regularly soon.


Thursday, September 17, 2009

Invisible Illness Awareness Week

My friend Denise at Sunflower, Chocolate and Little Boys did a post about National Invisible Illness Awareness Week. I thought that I would bring back most of an older post, so that I could discuss my invisible illnesses again.

Hopefully I can educate a few folks in the world about the types of Bipolar disorder. The first type of Bipolar disorder is the one which really makes sense with the term bipolar. Here are some of the signs & symptoms (from the National Institute of Mental Health):

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person’s mood, energy, and ability to function. Different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through, the symptoms of bipolar disorder are severe. They can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide.

About 5.7 million American adults or about 2.6 percent of the population age 18 and older in any given year,1 have bipolar disorder. It is often not recognized as an illness, and people may suffer for years before it is properly diagnosed and treated. Like diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully managed throughout a person’s life.

Bipolar disorder causes dramatic mood swings—from overly “high” and/or irritable to sad and hopeless, and then back again, often with periods of normal mood in between. Severe changes in energy and behavior go along with these changes in mood. The periods of highs and lows are called episodes of mania and depression.

Signs and symptoms of mania (or a manic episode) include:
Increased energy, activity, and restlessness Excessively “high,” overly good, euphoric mood Extreme irritability
Racing thoughts and talking very fast, jumping from one idea to another
Distractibility, can’t concentrate well
Little sleep needed
Unrealistic beliefs in one’s abilities and powers
Poor judgment
Spending sprees
A lasting period of behavior that is different from usual
Increased sexual drive Abuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol, and sleeping medications Provocative, intrusive, or aggressive behavior
Denial that anything is wrong

A manic episode is diagnosed if elevated mood occurs with three or more of the other symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for 1 week or longer. If the mood is irritable, four additional symptoms must be present.

Signs and symptoms of depression (or a depressive episode) include:
Lasting sad, anxious, or empty mood
Feelings of hopelessness or pessimism
Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or helplessness
Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed, including sex
Decreased energy, a feeling of fatigue or of being “slowed down”
Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
Restlessness or irritability
Sleeping too much, or can’t sleep
Change in appetite and/or unintended weight loss or gain
Chronic pain or other persistent bodily symptoms that are not caused by physical illness or injury
Thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts

A depressive episode is diagnosed if five or more of these symptoms last most of the day, nearly every day, for a period of 2 weeks or longer.

Bipolar type 2, which is what I suffer from, means you have the manic, or "up" times very infrequently. It's just kind of a continual depressive episode, with very occasional break. If I got to choose, I would pick Bipolar type 1 because at least sometimes you feel fantastic. People with Bipolar type 1 can often achieve dynamic things during their manic phases.
Anxiety disorders are very common with people who are bipolar. I suffer from Social Anxiety disorder as well.

This has a huge impact on the people around me. My children see me down most all of the time. My husband works 60 hours a week & has to do much of the work around the house & take care of me. My parents just don't get it. They really think I should just "suck it up." It's just that they don't get it. I tried to relate bipolar to diabetes, but they think diabetes is a "real disease" and bipolar is just feeling sad.

I'm really not sure why I'm sharing this. Maybe so people will see mental illness as an illness, just like any other. A few more prayers sent my way never hurt. I'm not looking for pity or sympathy (or nasty comments, please), I'm just putting my life out there. Maybe it just helps to write about it.

I'm currently working with my psychiatrist, to find the correct drug combination that works with my brain chemistry.

If you're still reading this really long post, thanks. I have found wonderful friends in the blogging community, & the support I have received helps & means a lot to me.



Wednesday, September 16, 2009

The Blogging County Fair


My friend Carey over at Life In The Carpool Lane introduced me to the Bloggy County Fair going on over at Art's Chili.

To quote the fair posts at Art's Chili:

"I have seen so much creativity in blog world! Photography, knitting, crafting, sewing, canning, drawing, painting, poetry, carpentry, decorating, furniture refinishing, cross stitching, building, table setting, flower arranging, gardening, embroidery, pickling, baking and the list goes on and on. Now is your chance to showcase your talents!"

You can submit your entry to the fair by posting it on your blog and then linking up.

I have been busy putting up tomatoes & cutting, scraping & freezing corn. My mom is one of 9 children & my uncle and grandpa have a huge farm that they plant every year. Then come the end of summer we have more tomatoes than you can imagine and we spend a couple of weeks canning them. By mid September we are so sick of tomatoes & corn we can't stand it, but it's all worth it when we get fresh tomato taste for all of our soups, stews & pasta sauces all winter long.

So here's my canning entry.



If you've never just sat down in the winter and had stewed tomatoes & toast for dinner, then you're really missing out!

I also thought I'd enter a couple shots in the photography category. Some of you may have seen a couple of these shots before, but that was before they were fair entries!

A happy sunflower face.




Here's my version of Van Gough's Sunflowers.



And last, but not least, Inchie the inchworm.



Make your own fair entry & post it here!

MckLinky Blog Hop


Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Summer Sickness Sucks!

Being sick in the end of summer is not fair. I will therefore proceed to whine about it. Of course I'm lucky, as this is just a little bit of flu, but there should be a law that we can only be sick when it's wintery & yucky outside. Not when it's sunny and nice out.

I'll be around to say hello to all of my bloggy friends tonight.

And for all of us teenage girls who swooned over him and then swooned again when he faced cancer with courage...

Rest In Peace, Patrick Swayze.

Patrick Swayze Pictures, Images and Photos

I hope he's in heaven having a dance off with Chris Farley. (Sorry for the poor quality video, it was the only one I could embed.)



Friday, September 11, 2009

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Random Thoughts From People Our Age

An e-mail that really did make me LOL! My comments are in red.

Random thoughts from people our age...

-Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.


-Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

-I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

-Is it just me, or are 80% of the people in the "people you may know" feature on Facebook people that I do know, but I deliberately choose not to be friends with?

-There is a great need for a sarcasm font!

-How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

-I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

-I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

-The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

-Was learning cursive really necessary? (I'm thinking no since my they didn't teach it to my 14 year old son!)

-LOL has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

-I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

-How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

-I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a dick from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

-Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm...Goonies"

-MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

-Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

-I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water. (Why would you do this?)

-I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

-Bad decisions make good stories

-Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted.. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

-Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year? (My son is a high school senior, I can verify that this is true!)

-Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....


- You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

-Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

-There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

-I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

-"Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

-I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on?

-I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Dammit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

-I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

-Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

-It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

-Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...

-I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

-I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

-The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like a fat bastard before dinner. (My personal favorite!)

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Yes, Another Blog



Well I officially have lost my mind and started another blog. I didn't want to bog this blog down with my weight loss journey, so I've started a new blog, Mimi's Losin' It!.

If anyone is interested in following my weight loss, the foods that I eat, some pics & recipes, you can check it out!

Monday, September 7, 2009

Musical Monday



This weeks theme is "Makes Ya Wanna Dance". This goofy song fromt he 80's does it to me every time. I defy you to listen & not start chair dancing.

Wham ~ Wake Me Up Before You Go Go



Go see Diane or Jori for more Musical Monday!


If I Don't Win, I Hope You Do!

Julie at Julie's Open Window is having an amazing giveaway of stamping and scrapping supplies!

Click here to check it out & tell her Mimi sent ya!

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Mimi's Year In Books

Hey guys, I finally got off my duff and got my book blog, Mimi's Year In Books back on track. I've got lots of great posts scheduled, and I'm going to throw in a contest over there later in the week, so stop by and show me some book love!

Saturday, September 5, 2009

A Bumble!

Camera Critters

Now I know that when I say a Bumble, some of you may think of one of these. At least if you were lucky enough to grow up in the 70's!

bumble Pictures, Images and Photos



But my Camera Critter is the other kind of bumble.



They're always hovering around my brown-eyed Susans. Poor Oskar even tried to eat one! I don't have any pictures of that because I was busy wrestling the bee out of his mouth!

Check out more Camera Critters.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

What To Write When You Have Nothing To Say...

As some of you who read my blog may know, I suffer from bi-polar type II and social anxiety disorders. It brings a lot of ups and downs. Well, that's not really true. In my case it's mostly downs & then even more downs.

That's where I'm at right now. Way down. Bi-polar has a way of taking many things away from you, the ability to work, the ability to feel useful & worst of all the ability to hope. I am just going through a long, dark period of hopeless right now.

And my brain says "don't post, nobody wants to hear you being Debbie Downer", but I want people to understand how debilitating things like bi-polar can be.

My second reason to post is my selfishness. I know that by writing this post, many of my bloggy friends will leave words of encouragement and love & I could use some extra encouragement right now.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Our Little Get Away!

Hi guys!

It seems like I've been gone forever. Chris & I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversay and took a mini vacation to Frankenmuth Michigan. It's Michigan's "Little Bavaria" and has lots of charm & character. My husband is 100% German and one of the main hotels even has a room named after his family.

We stopped by to visit one of his relatives.



Here we are in front a pig. I'm not sure why he's there, but he must be German.



We alway have to go to Wily's Sausage shop so my husband can get an assortment of "wurst" or German sausage. This is only about 1/3 of the kinds of sausages they had in that store. They also sell frozen buffalo hearts, so let me know if you need me to send you some *shudder*



Here are some pics of some of the cute buildings around town.





Frankenmuth is world famous for their fried chicken & I love this old sign that still stands in front of my favorite restaurant in town.



There's lots more pics that I wanted to share with you, but Photobucket isn't cooperating AT ALL!

Well, as often happens, when we got home on Sunday life handed us a big slice of sh!t pie, so I was just feeling sorry for myself the last couple of days & did feel like posting.

I do have lots more pics to share with you from the 2 acre Christmas store & the cool old cemetary, so you'll get to see more of our adventure.