Celebrate The Small Things -- July 25

It's Friday and I'm Celebrating The Small Things!  Celebrate The Small Things is a weekly celebration where some bloggers have decided to post about something worth celebrating...no matter how big or small it is.

Apologies to everyone for being MIA this past week.  I was away last weekend and I've been having a hard time with my arthritis all week, so my blog has not been on my mind.  I plan on catching up with my blog reading this weekend. 

Anyway...on with the celebrations...

This week I'm celebrating my new smartphone!  Yes, I've moved into the 21st century.  I still have a pay-as-you-go plan because I'm a total cheapskate... but now, in public, I'll look a little less ghetto :)  Thank goodness for my teenage daughter who helped activate and set it up.  Both the phone, and my daughter, are smarter than me!

For the nosy peeps like me...here's the phone I got:  LG Optimus Dynamic II (here is a review on it).  I call it Optimus Prime (from Transformers fame) because I can't remember anything after the optimus part...I'm bad with names!  And I switched over to Tracfone because my brother was raving about his new service with them.  Actually, he's the one who convinced me to get an android phone...he has one and thought I should be as cool as him.  I'm not quite sure that goal was achieved ;)

Also, I purchased my smartphone from ebay and saved a bit of money.  Because I had such a great transaction I figure I'll give the seller I bought if from a little recognition...his username is:  shopcelldeals...and I received Optimus Prime the day after I ordered it...best shipping experience ever!

What are you celebrating?

If you'd like to Celebrate The Small Things, visit our wonderful host, VikLit @ Scribblings of an Aspiring Author for more information.  And don't forget to check out her co-hosts:  Diana Wilder, LG Keltner @ Writing Off the Edge, Katie @ TheCyborgMom, and CaffeMaggieato @ mscoffeehouse

 

Celebrate The Small Things 7/18 and Kids Update

It's Friday and I'm Celebrating The Small Things!  Celebrate The Small Things is a weekly celebration where some bloggers have decided to post about something worth celebrating...no matter how big or small it is.

This week I'm celebrating that both my kiddos are on the mend!  My daughter's sprained shoulder is almost completely healed since hurting it a few weeks ago.  Her acupuncture treatment last week allowed her to play in her softball tournament last weekend...and according to the other softball moms (I couldn't make the games), she played well and didn't seem at all injured.  Thank God!

And my son, while he still has a bit of a sore throat today (it's Thursday afternoon as I write this), he is currently at his friend's house playing.  His spirits are much improved and he has had no fever for two days now.  I'll continue to have him take the Chinese herbs until his throat is completely healed.

I'm also celebrating rainbow cookies.  These are my favorite cookies and I finally found a recipe that is very close to the Italian pastry shop in Brooklyn that my grandparents used to get them from. When I was in high school, my grandparents would visit us every Monday because my grandpa's doctor was close to where we lived.  And every week they'd bring Italian pastry cookies for us, with a load of rainbow cookies for me.  I love you grandma and grandpa!  I hope they have cookies in heaven that are just as delicious as in Brooklyn!

 

For the rainbow cookie recipe, click here.  Changes I made to the original recipe:  I omitted the raspberry jam and substituted almond pie filling for almond paste.  Then I made a ganache out of the chocolate so it wouldn't crack when I cut the cookies.

What are you celebrating?

If you'd like to Celebrate The Small Things, visit our wonderful host, VikLit @ Scribblings of an Aspiring Author for more information.  And don't forget to check out her co-hosts:  Diana Wilder, LG Keltner @ Writing Off the Edge, Katie @ TheCyborgMom, and CaffeMaggieato @ mscoffeehouse

 

My New Socks And My OCD

How OCD Am I?

This is how OCD I am...

I got these new socks, which I quite like, but for whatever reason Nike has decided to label them with an “L” and an “R”.  These socks have some fancy seaming on them, which is very comfy, but is this the reason for the left/right labeling?  I mean, are the seams made in such a way that it makes a difference which sock I put on which foot?  I have looked at both and can't seem to find a difference...pun intended!

But I just cannot put these socks on the wrong feet.  If I accidentally put them on wrong, I have to take them off and switch!  Mentally, it bothers me!

I know, I have issues.

But it can't be just me.  The other day on facebook I came across this pic:

This dishwasher thing is so me!  And I was surprised at how many people responded that they do this too!  But rearranging the dishwasher has an actual purpose...making more room than your kids think is possible.  Wearing my socks on the correct feet is taking the crazy to a whole other level :) 

At least I'm aware of my mental quirks...so that's better, right?

What little quirks do you have?

The Sore Throat Bug Has Gotten My Son

My son is on day three of a sore throat and yesterday he was running a low grade fever in the afternoon.  This morning I was able to convince him to come to acupuncture with me for a treatment, and we were given some very specific instructions by my acupuncturist:

• Make him lemonade...the homemade kind with real lemons.  Add a little raw sugar or honey to sweeten it, but keep it on the sour side.  Of everything that he drinks today, this should constitute 80% of his intake.  The lemondade should help his throat and help get his gut moving things along.

• He needs to take three of the Yin Chiao herbs, three times a day until he is all better.  Both my son and I have taken these herbs in the past and have had good results with them. 

• No ice cold drinks or cold foods until he is all better.  Supposedly, cold foods affect the immune system.  As a little side note...my son only had a low grade fever for a few hours yesterday afternoon...about two hours after I let him have a milkshake.  Coincidence?  You decide.

Well, I had him take his first dose of herbs before we left the office, and after eating lunch, he is already complaining that he is bored...which is a good sign!

Do your kids do that?  Start complaining of boredom once they start to feel better?  I guess it's because they can't have friends over, and can't go out and play just yet...so they are stuck in the house for the rest of the day while mom makes sure that whatever bug they caught is really gone and not just faking us all out.

So, we wait today.  And tomorrow, if he is still complaining of boredom more than he is of his sore throat then I'll know to let him out into the wild again :)

iPads + Potty Training = iPotty

So I casually go over to Amazon today, just to...you know...window shop...and this is a lightening deal...

From the product description:  

"Parents can give children a comfortable and fun place to learn to use the potty with the child-friendly iPotty from CTA Digital. This potty training seat features a special stand to securely hold the iPad and safely entertain kids while they play with apps... So, take a step ahead in potty training, delight children and make the learning experience easy and fun with CTA Digital's iPotty for iPad."

Wow.  Has our world really come to this?

The customer questions were pretty entertaining...

And the reviewers don't disappoint:

"By Mark Twain on January 13, 2014
I was really struggling to find a way to rot my child's brain more comprehensively. DVD player at the dinner table, Movies in the car, iPad on our flight, but I never could figure out how to fill the bathroom time with mindless distraction. Thanks iPotty. Now I don't have to talk to my kids at all!”

"By Kristen Lowery TOP 1000 REVIEWER on December 3, 2013 
I really thought it worked great until I handed little Pavlov the iPad to keep him quiet in church. Yikes!"

But it was this reviewer that pretty much summed up how I felt...

“By dead tired on December 17, 2013
Upon realizing that this product was not a joke, I was disheartened by the state of our society. Yet, the reviews of this product have restored my faith in humanity. Bless you good reviewers.”

 

I gave my son a book about potty training when he was potty training.  And my daughter responded very well to the glittery stickers and ice cream as bribery.  How far we have come...or how far we have fallen...into a hole of darkness...a hole filled with iPads...where the only light is from a touchscreen.

For the full product description and reviews, click here:  CTA Digital 2-in-1 iPotty with Activity Seat for iPad