It's Early Voting Time!

And I can't wait to get to the courthouse and fill out that ballot. The only thing holding me back is that I haven't researched everything else that's on the ballot apart from the presidential portion. I've been so obsessed with this election that I've tuned out the other issues that are up in my state.

Someone asked me earlier today if I was going to vote yes or no for the lottery, and I just said, "Huh?"

I had no idea the darn thing was even up for discussion. Now that I know that it is, all I can say is, bring it on! I don't think it's up for me to say that someone shouldn't get to play the lottery, and if proceeds go to local schools, so much the better. And heck, even if they don't, at least that money won't go to neighboring states with lotteries.

I feel the same way about dry counties in this state, but don't tell my dad. :)

I know that there are some state rep seats up for bid this time as well. I know who I liked when they were voted in the first time, but now I need to research what they've done since they've been in office. An initial term vote does not automatically get you another term from me.

In any case, as soon as I get all of those other issues worked out, I will be fast tracking it to the courthouse. You can count on that. While I'm researching, I'll be wearing all of the Obama swag that I can find! And I'll keep putting my Obama magnet on my dad's van too. :)

By the way- I don't care who you vote for. Just vote, and educate yourself beforehand!



BARACK 2008 CRACKED Shirt
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Obama Mama Butterfly Tee
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Yes We Can
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Red, White, And Blue
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Arkansas Democrat Party T-shirts
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Find more great election and Obama t-shirts, buttons, and stickers at UnionEight.

Holy cow, they're back!

Anybody remember wearing Keds when they were kids? I wore the heck out of those suckers in sixth grade. I honestly didn't even know they were still being made. Turns out, they are, and there's even a twist. They make them in customizable designs!

You can order some (right now they have women and kid's sizes) premade, or change the designs that are already available.

I think I was drawn to these ones because the kiddo got to dress like a pirate and say "Arrr" a bunch of times in dance class yesterday. :)



Skull and Crossbones Shoes White
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They Say It's Your Birthday!

Ok, so I know that I only recently blogged about the munchkin's third birthday. There seems to be some confusion, however, on the part of the little darling about when exactly her birthday is.

I can only imagine that three birthday parties in one week will do that to a kid. She now believes that every day is her birthday. I can't seem to convince her otherwise, so I've just given in. I now sing "Happy Birthday" to her every morning, and we pretend to blow out candles. Why not, right? She's only little once, and one of these days birthdays aren't going to be nearly as exciting.

In honor of her turning three every single day, I found this cute toddler t-shirt with a birthday cake on it:



3rd Birthday T-shirt
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Here's to many more, my love!

In a Past Life...

So, despite any preconceptions you might have about my writing abilities, I have an English degree. Clearly, I don't always use it, but I have it. It's in a box in Chris' office right now. It should be in the safe, but I think there's this little part of me that's ok with not keeping it protected from fire.

I have a love-hate relationship with it because I used it to teach high school for three years before I had my baby. And, to use a popular quote from literature, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

There were so many amazing things that happened during that period in my life. One student that I taught is actually still a big part of my life, as both my friend and the munchkin's babysitter. More than a babysitter, actually- I pay her to play with the kiddo while I work. She's part of the family now, so I am very grateful for that.

As for the worst of times, I worked under an administration that was at times disrespectful to teachers and very difficult to work with on a regular basis. I had a few students who were difficult (to say the least- you may have read about Brody Laswell when blogs all over the world picked up on his story!), and I was really ready for a change when the time came.

I have the deepest respect for those who choose to teach- it doesn't pay enough (I don't care what anyone says!), and it's a job that consumes you. I raise my glass to teachers this fine morning. And may I say, it's fine because I didn't get up at six, and I'm working in pajamas!



English Teacher,new black shirts2
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Politics for Tots

I just picked my dad up from the airport. He was visiting his sister in Colorado, so his car was at our house. He's a fervent McCain supporter, so I decided to leave him a little gift.

Imagine my surprise when he threw my "Obama/Biden in '08" car magnet back at me like a frisbee. It sure gave the munchkin the giggles. It was dark outside, so he didn't even see it at first. She had to tell him that he "sure had a cool magnet on his van" so that he'd notice it.

I wouldn't have had her mention it, but I knew what his reaction would be and I wanted to make sure he didn't toss it in the trash before I could use it on my own car.

It would have been loads of fun to see how long he would've driven around endorsing my favorite candidate. :) Maybe I'll take it down next time I go for a visit. Life's small joys.



Barack Obama Joe Biden I Believe
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TeeShirtsTShirts

Mice- We haz 'em.

Trust me to not realize that the incessant squeaking I've been hearing in the kiddo's playroom was of the rodent variety. Not sure what made me think that chirping was birds outside at eleven o'clock at night!

Last night I saw a mouse run across the room in front of me. In my brand new house. A mouse. In my brand new house. Did I mention the fact that it's a brand new house? It was a mouse. Brand new house. *sigh* Just call me Dr. Seuss.

Don't get mad, but I'm afraid Chris and I had to go on a bit of a hunting trip. I think mice are adorable (see? I even like this cute onesie:),



Kids Mouse Cartoon Onesie
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but I will be danged if I'm going to have them enjoying the fruits of my hard-earned messiness.

Yes, I leave out dirty dishes sometimes, but I really try my best to keep the place cleaned up. Granted, that's not easy with a wild three year old! By the way- please don't tell her we got rid of the mouse. She would be heartbroken.

We called our exterminator. He made me feel a (little) better by explaining that the little critters come in this time of year, and since there's lots of new construction around us they're getting jostled around a bit. We'll see what happens now.

I'm just praying that the brown nugget in the corner is a raisin or an M&M...

It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas...

Chris likes fire. I think they're pretty and all, but I don't really care to have them in my house. I'm a realist. Fire burns things. Duh. Not always the best idea. This time, I was vetoed.

The fireplace that was built in this house isn't really a functioning one. The inspector told us that one good fire could take the whole place down. We don't really want that to happen, so I figured we'd just heat the place with, you know, the HEATER. I'm not interested in lugging logs of firewood into the house anyway, and I am not exactly a world champion fire starter.

Chris got the bright idea of buying a fireplace insert. Oh boy. Fine, whatever, he's going to be responsible for lighting the fires. That sucker cost about five or six years worth of heating bills, so we'll see if it can manage to pay for itself.

It's only the first part of October, but the whole fireplace thing made me think about Christmas. The kiddo is to the point where she really enjoys any holidays now, so it's going to be a blast this year.

In honor of my newly festive spirit, I started looking at Christmas t-shirts for her online. This was my absolute favorite:



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October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

If you haven't already been made aware by the swirling world of pink around you, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You can find pink all over the place, from the candy aisle (gotta love those pink M&M's), to florist shops peddling pink in honor of the cause, to pink t-shirts one can wear in support of breast cancer awareness.

My aunt is a survivor, so this cause is very important to me. I donate a portion of the sales of pink ribbon t-shirts that I sell to local breast cancer research, and I do my best to search out merchants willing to do the same before I purchase from them.

This year, I want to include my munchkin in the fight against breast cancer. I wanted to find something appropriate for her age (I can't really picture three year olds stressing the importance of mammograms!).

I was thrilled to find this lovely BCA pink ribbon t-shirt. It's girly, simple, and perfect for all ages.



T-Shirt - Breast Cancer Ribbon
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Polar Bears and Parenting

I really enjoy politics. This election year has been especially exciting for me, and I think it's even rubbed off on the kiddo a bit. We recently moved, so I had to visit the county clerk's office to be sure and update my voter registration. Chris didn't think it was a big deal, but I'd have been in tears if I showed up to vote and was turned away.

Baby Girl made the trip to the courthouse with me after her dance class (still dressed in her leotard and tap shoes). Those darn shoes set off the metal detector, but the guards thought she was too cute to worry about. I'm inclined to agree with them. :)

I'm trying to teach her how important voting is, and although she's only three, she's starting to understand that this crazy political stuff is interesting to me. She's normally allowed to watch her cartoons on television, but I had to watch the vice presidential debate the other night. Needless to say, she was not pleased! She'll get it some day though, when the consequences of this election play out in her tap-dancin' future.

I found this Polar Bear extinction t-shirt while surfing online today, and it made me think of what's at stake. Kiddo adores polar bears; they're one of our first stops during zoo visits. After all of the Palin Polar Bear and oil drilling comments, I found this tee to be especially appropriate. Long live the polar bears! As long as they stay in their neck of the woods, that is. I care, but I ain't stupid. :)




Save The Polar Bears
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She's Three!

Whew. Two birthday parties, two birthday cakes, tons of ice cream, and lots of sleep later, and the kiddo's three! Since there was two of everything, she's decided that she's four now instead.

She likes to watch me work (and shop!) online, so I thought it would be funny to let her pick out a few things with me. I visited some kid friendly shops and let her point out her favorite things. She is rapidly learning to share Mommy's shopping addiction. I couldn't be prouder, and Daddy couldn't be more horrified. :)

Here's the list:

This one's a given. As soon as she saw the number "3" on it, along with balloons and cute new friend to pet, she was sold.



I'm 3!
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She immediately pointed to this funny little wrestling t-shirt when she saw it. She said the man looked like "Grandpa". I'm sure Grandpa will feel really good about that. I bet it'll help him get started on that diet he keeps talking about.

Munchkin's also a sucker for pirate stuff, so the skull and crossbones caught her attention immediately. She and her dad spend tons of time wrestling (she wins), so it's perfect for her.




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Oh my. I'm going to pretend it's the phrasing that drew her to this one instead of the fact that it's a sparkly chain with bold colors. Her dance classmates keep showing up in those dang tutus, and she is wearing a sequined princess dress my traitor sister bought her for her birthday right now.

Between that and the wand she keeps waving around (and the fact that she keeps referring to herself as the princess of the universe), this "Opinionated Feminist" keychain gives me hope. She may be girly, but she's tough as nails too!




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Um...No. I think she likes the model's bald head (just click the picture, and you'll see what I'm talking about), but this just ain't happenin' any time soon! While I think this, "Future Dad" t-shirt is adorable, I'm glad she can't read! Kid's bugging me for a sibling now, and we're still thinking it over. Besides, her father is already a dad, right?

I do love this though, and maybe if we do add another munchkin to our collection I'll pick this one up. But I will not ask her daddy to shave his head.




Future Daddy
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The Birthday Girl!

Yes I am a Big Deal
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It's funny how kids really do think they're the center of the universe. Doting parents, (looks down guiltily) don't help the situation much. Not that I'd know anything about that, my kid is soooo not spoiled. Just ask the stack of birthday gifts setting on the kitchen table waiting for her 3rd birthday tomorrow.

There's one less than there should be right now because I totally caved and let her open one. The toddler sized golf clubs for lefties. Little munchkin will be out on the course looking a fool just like her daddy in no time.

Here's to another fun year of childhood!

Only Child?

*sigh*

I never imagined that I'd just have one child. Chris and I always planned on having two, but then we had our little munchkin.

Turns out, raising kids is hard! Who knew? Our girl is rambunctious, insane, and all around nuts. We're coming to the point, however, where we need to make a final decision about our future family size. Kiddo has started showing signs of wanting to be a big sister, and we're still not sure what to tell her. Even if we do decide to have another one, she's going to have to wait close to a year to start tormenting a sibling. Last I checked, two year olds aren't particularly patient...

Butterflies Big Sis
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Life with a Toddler Prima Ballerina

My two year old little girl has discovered dance. She's been begging me for quite some time to allow her to take classes. I recently relented, and my goodness, it's a whole other world!

The first day of class, I was shocked to see four other little girls there. Wasn't shocked to see them, just shocked to see what they were wearing. Two had on tutus, and three of the four had curled hair. I swear I caught a glimpse of some sparkly lip gloss. Ugh. I'm so not that mom. I'm not a pink or frilly person, and letting my munchkin step into that world terrifies me. If she asks about pageants next I'm going to immediately enroll her in karate.

In any case, she had a great time, seems to be quite good at it, and hasn't asked to have a tutu of her own yet. So far so good!

I've been on a search for cute dancing t-shirts for her that don't emphasize the fluffy frill that is sometimes associated (ok, pretty much always associated with) ballet. I found this cute little tee, and it suits her perfectly:

Dance Wear T-shirts
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Now we'll see how her tap classes go! Oh boy...