Who’s driving this thing?

This past weekend the fam and I took a little road trip, and our first stop was at a ski resort to try a little snow tubing.  Yep, this transplanted southern California girl had never been. Haven’t even skied since college, and even then I was still snow plowing (hey, I was a beach girl, not a mountain girl).

The Husband took LittleDude down the first couple of times while I hung with Babygirl.  And I was having fun, playing with the camera, watching Babygirl eat dirty snow and doing some major people-watching.  But truly I was DYING for my turn.  It was like the water park this past summer…since I was totally deprived of such an experience as a kid (not completely the ‘rents fault…I had terrible ear issues), I was the proverbial kid in the candy shop.  They couldn’t keep me off of those slides!  That tube was permanently attached to my ass for 8 hours.  And I had a feeling that this snow tubing business would be the same way.

Finally it’s my turn, and LittleDude was not loving it.  They’d had a bad run the last go-round, and he was a little worried.  Having not done it myself, I was like ‘What’s the big deal?!  We’re going…LET’S GO!’  And all Husband says is ‘You’re going to be surprised…it’s faster than  you think’.  I thought he was surely pulling my leg, because the runs look like these nice, easy-going little slopes…nothing much to build any momentum on.

Ah, the comfort of ignorance.

Who's driving this thing?

Needless to say, Husband was right.  I about peed myself the first few times.  You start out fine, then all of a sudden your going faster than you imagined a big ole tube of air could go, said tube of air is turning without your permission, and you experience a few moments of  ‘Oh &%$#, I’m SO not in control of this.’  Which is one thing if you’re on your own, but a whole ‘nother thing if your child is along for the ride. Eventually those moments turn to pure exhilaration, but even then, you know you’re not in control, but it feels GREAT.

Now why isn’t every day like that?  We try to control so much in life…what our kids eat, how our kids act, what we look like, what people think of us….  What if we just lost a little bit of control?  Just a little bit?  Might it not feel a little bit…good?  Maybe even a little bit great?  If we didn’t worry so much about some of the things that really, in the grand scheme of things, don’t mean a whole helluva lot, and stopped trying to be so ‘in control’, I think that might be a good thing.

Yeah, I’ll let you know how that goes.  Not that I’m a control freak by any means, but I do have my…things.  And I’m trying to step back and take deep breaths and let those things go a bit.  Like when LittleDude refuses to remember to flush the freaking toilet.  Or when Husband can’t seem to find the dishwasher.  Or when I can’t get everything done in a day that I feel ’should’ be done.

By the way, the picture…that’s right BEFORE the ‘Oh &%$#’ moment.  Luckily Husband didn’t know how to zoom it in to capture that one.

Too buried to play!

So here I’m all fired up to be a-bloggin’ away, and I get buried this week.  Ye olde ‘when it rains it pours’.  But here’s my week #8 pic…it was actually part of an assignment for my local photog group.  We were given a list of emotions and were to capture as many of those as we could in portraits.  This was my entry for ‘tenderness’.  Man will I miss these days when she’ll snuggle with me on demand (either my demand or hers!)….

Week #8 :: Caught a snuggle

The meaning of wrong

I am so, so, SO angry.  And so incredibly sad.

www.laylagrace.org

I came across this business today on Facebook that is helping to raise funds for this sweet little girls’ family (that’s her in the picture, sweet, sweet girl…).  I mean, REALLY?  It makes me want to rail against so many things.  How in the hell can we not have a cure for cancer yet?  It seems ludicrous to me.

But so many things about our ’system’ are ludicrous.  We pay an exorbitant amount to professional athletes, actors, etc., and what they do is so SMALL.  Imagine if all of the gamillions of dollars we’ve paid these people had gone to things like cancer research?  Truly take a second to even begin to add up what’s been paid to our beloved celebs over even just the past 20 years.  THINK about how much money that is.

And sure, some of them give to charity.  Great.  But the fact is they shouldn’t be getting that money in the first place.  I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m as entertained by these folks as the next mama…I’ve got my fave shows/movies/etc.  But there’s no way they deserve the money they get.  They ain’t curing cancer, or finding an alternative fuel source, or TEACHING (don’t get me started on how poorly we treat our teachers).

I physically hurt for Layla and her family.  I squished my poor babygirl after I read that post and told her she isn’t allowed to get sick (too which she replied “I not sick, silly Mommy!”), crying all over her.  No parent should have to go through that, and no child should suffer that way. It’s just not right.  It’s the absolute meaning of WRONG.

And if there’s really someone watching over us, he/she’s doing a really lousy job.

Project 52 (or the post that’s NOT about Tiger Woods)

So I know you’re supposed to really kick off your blog with a BIG post.  Something that will send ye olde SEO through the roof.  And I suppose I can spend this space ranting about Tiger Woods (but since I refuse to give Tiger Woods any more attention than that shmuck Tiger Woods deserves, I’m not going to talk about Tiger Woods), or Lady Gaga, or the Olympics, or Miley Cyrus…. Yeah, see, I just made myself a little ill.  I just can’t do it.

What I will share is my Project52 (I know…SO much more exciting).  For those that aren’t photophreaks, the point of a project 52 is to take, process and share 1 photo every week for a year (52 weeks).  Many choose a theme or a subject for their project, or even a particular lens that they’re going to shoot each picture with.  Me, I’m not so structured.  Whatever’s going on that week, or whatever the ’shiny object’ of my week is, that’s what I’m going with.  For me, this project is a way to chart my growth this year as a photographer.  I’m finally taking classes, joining groups, making the plans to really KNOW photography.  Photography’s always been a kind of secret crush for me…I’ve lusted after it for years, casually played around with it, fantasized about it in my head, but never truly went after it.  I don’t really do New Year’s resolutions, but this year I definitely have a focus.

Since last week was all about the 100th day of school, it was an easy choice:

And because you’re late to the party (my fault, not yours), here’s a few from previous weeks:

So what are you working on this year?

I’m ba-aaaaaaaaack!

Yup, the Mama Log is back!  Though (for previous followers) with a new look and a new plan.

I previously used this bit o’ webspace as a site to review wonderful products crafted by tremendously talented WAHM’s.  I loved spreading the word about these artisans and sharing my good finds.  But somewhere along the way it became W. O. R. K.  And between family and my ‘real’ job, I just couldn’t devote the time needed to keep up with it.  It surely was a blast for those 2 years, and I met some truly amazing women in the process!

While I didn’t think I’d ever be a personal blogger, I have really missed the writing.  So the new Mama Log will be a personal adventure!  A place to share everything from the hilarious things my crazy rugrats say, to great recipes, to photography (one of my passions), to crazy a$$ things we come across in everyday life that bring a giggle.  There will also be those great finds, too, so I hope if you were a fan before, you’ll grab your bevie of choice and hang with me a while in this new space.  I think we’ll have fun.

About

I’m so glad you’re here! I’m a WAHM to 2 fantastic rugrats and wife to one pretty cool husband. Love me some photography, laughing, traveling, cooking, making fun cocktails and staring at previously mentioned rugrats (um, not necessarily at the same time). But being a WAHM means I could use some ADULT interaction.

That’s where you come in.