Friday, December 22, 2006

ahhh, the calm before the storm...

Its nice to wake up knowing that you can do whatever you want to that day. This doesn't happen often to me. I have caught up on all of my freelance work, most of the laundry and now its just me and Henry and some wrapping to do (which I actually enjoy)...

ALSO- (big news for me).... JK Rowling has announced the title for her last Harry Potter book... "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows", This won't come out until next summer, but of course I've already ordered my copy on Amazon.com.

off to wrap.

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

On Tuesday's episode of Corie...

Tuesday's Agenda:
6:45 Wake up & shower... [while Greg gets the kids up (bless him)]
8:15 Take Henry to Daycare
8:30-11:15 work furiously on vinyl siding brochure
11:20 Drive to Grand Rapids at lunch to sign about 85 mortgage papers
12:30 Celebrate the new hefty-mortgage at lunch with Greg at The Dog Pit
1:15 Drive back home to color-correct vinyl siding house photos
3:15 Prepare last minute items for Maddie's Brownie meeting. (chop lemons, find appropriate-color crayons, sharpen pencils)
3:30 Drive to school to pick-up Maddie and friends, and then drive them to community center for Brownie meeting
4:00-5:30 Lead 16 screaming girls in a TryIt badge on the 5 Senses... watch in amusement as they taste baker's chocolate. This is somehow satisfying and might be the highlight of the day.
5:30-5:50 Wait for all the moms to come get their girls.
6:00 Pick-up Henry from daycare
6:15 Go home, find 3 messages on the answering machine from 1 co-dependent freelance client
6:45 Feed family supper (which is really breakfast since we had eggs and sausages)
7:00 Clean up
7:15 Bathe children (convince Henry to wear only clean pair of PJs he has... this part took 20 min. "I NO LIKE THEM!")
7:45 Bedtime stories, songs, cuddles...
8:50 Sit at desk, call client #1
9:00 Call client #2, spend 50 min. on the phone trying not to snigger at her. (why yes, I can adjust the color on your Foam Crab Head Visor, we wouldn't want it to look ridiculous would we?)
9:55 Work until 1:15am on a Foam-finger Product Catalog (I did take a cat-nap for 10 min. on my keyboard at about 11:45)
1:25am go to bed...

Wednesday: REPEAT

dear santa...

Here are my Christmas wishes:

I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache and arms that don't hurt or flap in the breeze; but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store. I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy.

If you're hauling big ticket items this year I'd like fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music; a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals; and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.

On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says," Yes, Mommy" to boost my parental confidence, along with two kids who don't fight and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools.

I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting "Don't eat in the living room" and "Take your hands off your brother," because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog.

If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container.

If you don't mind, I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely.

It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family.

Well, Santa, have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the door and come in and dry off so you don't catch cold. Help yourself to cookies on the table but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet.

Yours always,
mom.

(I did not write this, but it made me smile at 1:10am...)

Sunday, December 17, 2006

Can I see some ID please?



Okay, for all those who are commenting on my posts... please leave a name or initials after your 2-cents so I know who you are!!! You know who I am, isn't it fair to ID yourself???

Saturday, December 16, 2006

x-mas house


Here is what our new house looks like decorated for Christmas. Of course, this was taken two weeks ago when we actually had snow. There are lights on our front porch railing too....

Maybe by the time Christmas gets here we'll have some snow again.

Friday, December 15, 2006

she's baaack...


My little elf here was missing for about three years,
(lost in a box-within-a-box in my basement after the move before last.)
I was so sad when I couldn't find her (along with many other old ornaments that were my grandmother's).
They now all have a place back on my tree.

And needless to say, Christmas can now begin. ;-)

so. very. tired.

On this episode of Corie:
Corie avoids freelance work while attempting to fold gratuitous mountains of clothes. Dog is barking, child sleeping. This combination won't last long.

a sidebar:
I've got all the @!#?!*(%#% work I need. Which is a blessing and a very tiresome curse. I have a family, two kids, a dog, a 3-day-a week part-time job, and about 6 very needy freelance clients.

Agghh, I might as well have a full-time job for all the hours I put in freelancing. But, can I say "no"?

No. I can't.

This will be my new job, saying "no".

"Can I have that done tomorrow?" No.
"We'd like to see twenty more photo choices." Um, no.
"Can you Photoshop the man out of the picture, and make our product look better." Probably not.
"We take 60 days to pay our bills, that's just our procedure." Oh, then your layout won't be ready anytime soon... AND you can cram it with walnuts, mister.

I think the word "blog" is Pig Latin for "to complain" or "to vent".

Thursday, December 14, 2006

grrr.



Kirby is wandering around the house, obviously bothered by something "out there". I wonder what he's really saying.
grrr... "there is an ax murderer at the door"
woof.. "I like to eat rabbit turds, let me out."
bark woof bark..."is Greg home? he can pet me."

it boggles the mind. he's a good dog.

the pilot

I've often viewed my life as a TV show.

Why? Maybe its because i grew up eating, breathing, practically sucking-in television. We were the first ones on our block to have cable (with that cool cable box with the flip-switches on top) HBO, Nickelodeon, WGN, MTV...I was the rerun/gameshow/cartoon queen. Now, I hum tv theme songs from the 80s (the facts of life are all about youuu...) and still get excited to watch The Breakfast Club for the 67th time.

My mom used to say I'd get "TV Eyes", she was right.

In an ironic twist, I don't have time to watch tv anymore. Just an episode of The Office, or Alias reruns... so now, I pretty much just watch my own show.

I guess its about taking a step back and look at what's going on around you... they are so many things you just couldn't make up. Funny, strange, sad, amazing things. Little things. So, besides starring in my own show, I guest star on other people's shows... sometimes I'm just an extra. I also produce, but directing is impossible (the actors in my household are beyond directing). There are times I'd like to turn down the sound, or just TiVo some parts. Not gonna happen.

I have to go back to the episode where "Corie designs a Vinyl Siding Brochure". Stay tuned.