I Can Write This Because I am Totally Secure with Myself

Soooo...I finished my class last night. I was so excited to go home and be lazy. However, I don't have cable (not even basic cable), netflix, apple tv, or any of that. I tend to watch shows on my computer. I was already caught up on The Office, 30 Rock, and Modern Family, so I headed over to ABCfamily.com to catch the latest episode of what we "insiders" call MIOBI. Yup, "Make It or Break It." It's kind of a "Gossip Girl" meets "Secret Life" meets gymnastics. I totally love this show, which is surprising because they get the gymnastics ALL WRONG. Teen show + gymnastics = Jackie watches. Anyway, I was so tired, but couldn't sleep (shocking!). I decided that I needed rest so I'd only watch a 30-minute (aka 20-min) show. So, I watched "Melissa and Joey." Yes, that's Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence's new sitcom. I've always kind of liked MJH for her zeal, although I know it probably annoys the hell out of most people. Anyway, I'm totally hooked. I watched three eps. Seriously, it's not that bad. Pretty funny actually. Below is the trailer, but the actual show is 10x funnier.

Say What?

So, I'll try to keep my "my kid is so cute" posts to a minimum, but I still gotta do 'em.

Audrey is about 70-80% there when it comes to talking. What cracks me up is that she'll say a couple coherent sentences followed by several jibberish sentences (la to yop lar kem quo vin goot xi wa). When she's saying the jibberish sentences, she's very animated. It's so cute because she is clearly proud of herself for having a WHOLE conversation like other humans do, which she's not really capable of just yet. To me, it's the equivalent of an adult talking too loud on the street or in a restaurant because he/she thinks everyone around him/her is interested/impressed/paying attention. It's annoying when an adult does that. Jibberish conversations by a 2-yr-old: adorbs!

Also, check this out. I have me a girly girl. This is her being modest. And, dresses only!

Cushman, J. N. (2011). Teenage Pregnancy and Television. Unpublished.

The night before the 5,000 page paper is due:

Yes, those are diet coke cups in my 1950s sink. Also, I can't move my neck. Lastly, I can't WAIT to play with the little peanut tomorrow.

Hipster Animals

Ok, so my blog exists basically to point out everyone else's brilliance.

Love this one! From Hipster Animals

My Lunch

Cheese gritz and asparagus from The Happy Pig, a local slow food stand that uses only local ingredients. Awesome.

The Happy Pig Streetfood

Thanks Indiana Senate: Healthcare for Women and Families Close to Being Defunded

First of all, I really don't want this blog to be a political blog. However, there are some issues that I just have to comment on, especially the rights of women and children.

Saw this headline in the Indy Star this morning: "Senate approves bill that cuts off funds to Planned Parenthood." I am trying really hard not to let this ruin my day. This bill is just so hard to understand. So many women (and men!) use Planned Parenthood for their reproductive health. When I couldn't afford doctors' visits due to my "major medical only" insurance plan, I went to Planned Parenthood, as did most of my friends, for my annual exams. I am now one of the priviledged who has a good benefits due to my job. What are the women who don't have another option going to do? Mostly likely... they will have undiagnosed, and thus untreated, STDs, cervical cancer, breast cancer, and many other reproductive problems. They are also going to have less healthy pregnancies. This bill is not about abortion, although it is called "Abortion Matters"; federal and state dollars don't pay for this service. Why are we pulling money from the everyday services that women depend on? This is the bulk of Planned Parenthood's work; only 3% of their work is related to abortions. In fact, PP probably helps DECREASE abortions due to their counseling services. Here are the people (30 men and 5 women) who voted to defund healthcare for low-income men, women, UNBORN babies, and young children:

Alting - Grooms - Merritt - Tomes - Banks - Head - Miller - Walker - Bray - Hershman - Mishler -Waltz - Buck - Holdman - Nugent - Waterman - Charbonneau - Hume - Paul - Yoder - Delph - Kruse - Schneider - Young, M - Eckerty  - Lawson - Skinner - Young, R - Gard - Leising - Smith - Zakas - Glick - Long - Steele

Image via The Week

Shut Up, Jacqueline!

paper procrastination + no cable + no working DVD player = 500 posts in one night

Don't Do It!!

Trust me, you are not going to be able to defend having worn these in five years. There is such a thing as "too trendy." Oh, and UGLY.

All images via shoes.com

Because I am Free to Do What I Want

So, I am toddler free tonight, as Auds is with her daddy visiting Grandma. My plan was to wander aimlessly around Target for three hours with a coffee in my hand (and ignore my 25-page paper due next week). Instead I decided to cram in as many visits to friends as I could. The latter was definitely the better decision. I got some quality time with Sarah, Mike & George, AND Ben and Sarah. AND...wine on a Monday- whoa!

True Love

I had a most lovely weekend visiting two of my dearest friends, Wendy and Amy, and meeting my new niece, Abby. We visited new mama Wendy in Columbus, OH and had such a wonderful girls' weekend (sans Jen and Seja sadly). We were able to get out for an Italian dinner (which is especially great for me since Bloomington's best Italian is Fazoli's). We also got to enjoy Wendy's yummy cooking and binge on her desserts. My diet on Saturday night: homemade stromboli, five brownies, a "big" Reese's cup, a cookie and, my fav, an Ambien! 

BTW, the title refers to Wendy and her little one (below), but also to my friendships with these gals. 

A little note: Seja's surgery went well and she is recovering. She should be back in action with me before the week is over.

What Kids Think Happens After They Are Tucked In

Another great post via Cracked

Have I Peaked?

So my cousin Emily has this theory that everyone peaks in life and then they continue to wear whatever was in fashion when they peaked. One summer when I lived in OKC, Emily and I hung out a lot. We often sat in the mall and guessed when the shoppers "peaked" based on what they were wearing. Yes, mean, but also really fun!

So here's my worry: the other day I received a Garnett Hill catalog. Three things suprised me:

1. That I even RECEIVED it (how did I get on their mailing list? I must be on the "about to turn 35" mailing list)
2. That I then OPENED it
3. And lastly, that I actually LIKE some of the clothes

Uh oh. I think I have peaked. Please, please, please, someone confirm that this is a cute dress:

One other thing: I bought some shorts at Old Navy and I opted for the 7-inchers instead of the 5-inchers. Double uh oh.

Ewwww

Ok, there is one bad side to Little 500: the horrible annual t-shirt from BBC. Bloomington Bagel Company is where I buy my bagel and diet coke every morning. It's a great local business and the fountain coke machine is calibrated perfectly. But...this is this year's Little 500 t-shirt:

Can't read it because it's out of focus? Well, consider yourself lucky and don't read the next sentence. This is what it says: FRONT "Sorry for partying" BACK "in your mouth."

Worst College Weekend Ever?

So, this weekend is what many refer to as "The Best College Weekend Ever." It's the Little 500 bicycle race. Of course, locals often disagree. They get quite annoyed with the influx of rowdy people who come and leave their beer bottles in our yards. Many people try to leave for the weekend. But...I refuse to be one of these people. First of all, Little 500 is really cool. Have you ever been to bike race like this? It's fast, drama-filled, and usually under a lovely sun. It's something I hope to bring Audrey to when she's a little older. I just can't hate any event that helps make my town be so kickass.

Turns out though, I AM going out of town. And I am GLAD I am. I get to meet my new little niece, Abby. Ok, here's more of the cast: Amy, Jen, Seja and Wendy. These girls are basically my sisters. We've been a tight crew for years and years. We all have little ones now...so lots of nieces and nephews. These girls have gotten me through some rough times and they've been there for all of the best times. I trust these girls (+ my dad and real sis) more than anyone in the world. They are my family.

This weekend, Amy and I are are visiting Wendy and her new little one. We're bummed that the whole crew can't make it, but we'll make up for that this summer!

Here we are a couple years ago (ps three of us are preggers in this pic).

And This is Why I Love the Internet...

A whole website dedicated to:
Chicks with Steve Buscemi Eyes

The ladies of "Glee"

Princess Kate

The always-lovely Scarlett

This is for Seja (because she loves all things cute + this song!)

Spring is for Flowers and Fountains

It's a BEAUTIFUL day in Bloomington today. One of my favorite things to do in spring is take Audrey for a walk around campus to see the tullips (thousands of them!) and the fountains. IU does an amazing job with the landscape of the campus. To me, it rivals most parks in the world.

I call this one "Audrey with Tullips" (circa spring 2009)

Bloomington has two awesome fountains: Showalter Fountain and the Jacobs School of Music Fountain. How many towns this size have two awesome fountains? By the way, these pics don't do these justice (especially the latter).

Showalter

School of Music

I LOVE FOUNTAINS! Here are some others I want to visit!

Banpo Bridge - Korea

Dubai Fountain

Swarovski Fountain - Austria

Grand Cascade - Russia

The Floating Fountains - Japan

Can you imagie the beautiful noise of these fountains?

BUT... the very best fountain in the world is....

Photos here, here, here, here, and here

Say What?

• Men like blonde bombshells (and women want to look like them)
• Humans are naturally polygamous (which is better for women than it is for men)
• Most suicide bombers are Muslim
• Having sons reduces the likelihood of divorce
• Beautiful people have more daughters

This "Psychology Today" article explains why the above statements are true. I read this article years ago and I keep telling people I will forward it to them...but never do. So here it is.

ps I have a daughter. Hee hee.

Now That I Know What to Read (Thanks Oprah!)...

I just COULD NOT figure out what to wear to work this morning, so I called Rachel Zoe.

I asked, "Rachel, what should I wear to work today? My black turtleneck sweater, my other black turtleneck sweater, my gray turtleneck sweater, my camel turtleneck sweater, my white cardigan, my black cardigan, my light gray cartigan, my dark gray cardigan, my camel cardigan, or my cream cardigan?" I think she tried to shoot me through the phone.

Photo credit

By the way, I actually went with my gray v-neck sweater (and no make up- oops!)

What's in a Name?

I've had many people ask me what "turbeillun" means. It is "whirlwind" in Anglo-French.

whirlwind=my life + everything sounds better in French!

Photo by Jeff Notti

An Oldie, but a Goodie

My favorite Barney Stinson quote ("How I Met Your Mother"). How this show isn't more popular is beyond me.

Image from Google Images.