Sisters Saturday

Sisters weekend 2008 is well underway. I braved a Hitchcock experience as I tried grilling the meat. Unfortunately some birds have made a nest beside H.B. door and my presence cooking was NOT welcome. I may have pictures of the Robins trying to take me out, dive bombing my head, me duck walking from the house the grill to the shrieks and laughter of my sisters. I wasn't scared. ...ok, just a little. Saint Seester's mom screaming "West Nile" kept playing in my head.

We had great music, someone won a gift card, everyone probably snored, I didn't shave so i slept alone downstairs and no one woke up hung over. But no one really got drunk either. I'm thinking that might come tonight.

If the boys ask, we're just talking about our periods. And we sort of did, we talked about the Annuale Sketch from SNL. FUNNY!


Today is canoing, take some bets on who will tip.
Happy Saturday!
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Sometimes you need a little "Come to Jesus"

We celebrated all weekend. We ate, drank, laughed, smoked candy cigarettes and played WII until the early hours. We were massaged, facial-ed, manicured and catered to. And the entire time I was unable to relax and enjoy my time with my sisters the way I wanted.

I had that constant, anxious feeling in my stomach. You know the one I'm talking about. It just gnaws and depresses and fills you with a big ol ugly ball of dread and worry. You try to pretend it's not there, put on a happy face and go through the motions.

And if you're lucky like I am, you have someone like Sister Big who has a "come to Jesus" with you before you get in your car to drive home.

Big said "Honey Bunch, I want you to take the next month and focus on getting a new job. This one is sucking the life right out of you." It seems that she found my behavior a tad bit worrisome. I've lost my mojo and instead of partying like a rock star (Who am I kidding? Partying like a rock star's boring older sister) I sat back and watched everyone else have fun.

We discussed how different I've been since I had Logan. How my postpartum depression threw me off balance and I lost my self-confidence. I continually sell myself short. I Accept jobs that are not a good fit or below my level of qualifications. I get bored or stressed and look for something new, which means constant change and little peace. (Ya'll wish you had your own Sister Big, don't you? She's good at the little "sit-downs".)

It has become a vicious cycle that needs to stop. Now. Because I am ready to enjoy my life. Experience the moment and not feel unsettled and worried. I'm ready for change.

So, today I will begin networking. I will assume I will get a position where I can make a difference. Today I will believe that I will find the best job where I can have the biggest impact. Where I can build a fulfilling career for a long time to come.

I believe positive thinking makes a huge difference. I believe in the power of prayer. Who's with me?


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Wii Heart Paris...Kalamazoo

The sister girls know how to get together. What I always know best about our family gatherings, is that it will involve lots of amazing food, a fair amount of alcohol and a really great time of sharing, laughing and having fun. I'm lucky that way.

First, lets look at the oh so wonderful food provided to us by Big and Red (who, if you put them together, you get a stick of gum).

The spread Friday night. The Gnocchi Big made was Fabo!

Breakfast was yummy, fresh and full of pretty color. Just look. I'm getting Big to give us the recipes so we can post them.

Dinner on Saturday was lovely steak and fries.

And, my favorite, the chocolate spread. Brownies, ice cream, truffles, Dove candy and thick, rich chocolate cake.

And check out this great drink set up at Sister Redd's house. Stoli Vanilla Vodka and Diet Coke is one beverage of choice. There were many beverages of choice that night.
So many in fact that one unidentified sister challenged me to a race while discussing whether or not she'd be able to play soccer or kick ball in her...slightly compromised state.

We sucked on Candy Cigarettes and passed around..a candy cigarette. Really, that's what it is.

A Happy Mary Elephant

A Happy Aquanetta

A Happy Big Mama

And of course we know how to unwind. We spent a good part of Saturday lounging at a spa, getting massages, facials, pedicures and manicures and taking a shower in a shower with 7 shower heads. HEAVEN. Then, of course, they provided us with lunch. Pampering is a MUST when you're a woman in the Sister family.

Here we all are smiling happily at the Spa. Unfortunately we were missing Sunshine and 7, since they live much further away :( but we were sure to call them throughout the fun so they could hear what they were missing.

And now for more fun! Sister Redd has a Wii and here you see Sister Big and Sister Honey Bunch boxing each other.

Sassy and Mary Elephant Boxing.

Here I am rocking out with Guitar Hero. Barracuda was a kick ass song! Mary Elephant was the Bassist and I was Lead Guitar and we managed to actually play the whole song without getting booed off the stage. We're Rock Stars!

And of course, we blogged. We wanted as many of you as possible to experience the fun of the Sisters as if you were there.

We're lucky to have each other and I don't know what I'd do without my sisters. They're there to help clean my messy house when I'm overwhelmed with two kids, to advice H.B. when she needs advising, and to have amazing parties to take the sting out of turning 30, 40, and now 50! They are amazing and I love them all.

Friends Don't Let Friends Blog Drunk

Ya'll remember Sister Mary Elephant? She's our sister-in-law who turned 50 in January. Our brother Billy wanted to take her to Paris to celebrate, but since they are paying tuition for a couple kids they decided to put the trip off for a couple years.
To the rescue come Sisters Big, Red, Honey Bunch and Sassy. All in order of age. Sister Big being the oldest, by the way.

Anyway, we are having our own Paris in Kalamazoo, MI. We ate French Bread, au jous, cheeses, marinated French veggies and other foods I can't spell. Our drinks may or not be French.
We'll be blogging this weekend so you can enjoy along with us. Here's what we learned, thus far.
Some of us may be gay for Angelina Jolie. Some of us may have tried to smoke candy cigarettes from her cleavage. This biggest lesson...don't blog after three cosmopolitans. We'll let you know if we have any regrets in the morning. C'est le vis



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So, Who the Heck Are We? Our 100th Post.

Welcome to our 100th post! (Really, it's our 101st. but Sistah HB can't count.) Just a few short months ago Honey Bunch and I were having a sad little New Years Party and I said, "Lets start a blog" and she said, "I was thinking the same thing." The next day we had a blog set up on blogger, two heads on nuns bodies and our very first post of Butt Crack at the Library. And oddly...people started reading.

All along I've said we started blogging by the seat of our pants, me more so than her. But we've done it and we've done it 100 times today! When we realized we were 100 posts old we also realized we've never really introduced ourselves. We just started blogging and let you figure out things as you went. So now we'd like to take a moment to talk about each other.

My Thoughts on Sister Sassy
For six delightful years I was the baby of our family. And then... Then came Sister Seven followed by Sister Sassy. And they ruined it all for me.

Where I once was doted upon, now I was tripping over their stupid toys, feeling a little bit ignored and helping my dad change Sassy's nasty diapers. He couldn't bear the smell and would run out of the room leaving me there to handle the next step all by myself. And that was the beginning of my relationship with Sassy.

While she was a cute little girl, she never stopped talking. Which got on my nerves when I was trying to read my favorite Judy Blume books. Apparently she didn't care if God was there for Margaret or not. She wanted me to watch her twirl around the room on her tippy toes. I'm sure if I had been older, this would have been adorable. But I wasn't older and found the constant "Look at me, look at me" annoying.

As Sassy grew older our differences became more pronounced. She was so full of confidence that it threw me off balance. I wasn't like that. It made me jealous and I tended to smack her upside the head with the telephone when it got to me. (Actually that only happened once and I really don't remember. But she does and I'm pretty sure our mother does.)

But we also had fun. Some of my favorite memories involve laying on our parents bed on Friday nights singing songs like Faithfully by Journey. Because it was the 80's. And I was "forever yours, faithfully".

Later, I moved to Petoskey and Sassy went away to college and got married. She and Jimmy would come surprise me on weekends when I was feeling lonely. We would show off our musical talents for poor Jim and belt out our favorite girl-angst songs by Natalie Merchant and Sarah McLachlan. Because it was the 90's. And "your love is better than ice cream". (Which was really Sassy and Jim's song, but she and I did all the singing.) (And we sounded fab. ) (Here, why don't you listen to Sarah while you read the rest.) (I apologize for the extreme us of parentheses.)

Sassy is a fixer and can't stand to see someone hurting. When I was lonely, she signed me up on match.com. When I was on bed rest during my pregnancy, she came and watched movies with me. When I was dealing with postpartum depression, she encouraged me to get to a doctor and fast. She gave my son (the only child) cousins who will be his buddies for life. And she is constantly harping at me to exercise so that I will live a long and healthy life.

Sometimes having someone want to "fix" your problem can be frustrating, but the intention is always good. And it's the beauty of who Sassy is.

We have always been very different. I like vanilla, she likes chocolate. I'm a republican, she's a democrat. She's short, I'm not as short. But we have moved past those differences to acceptance. Sassy realized that a conservative republican can also care for and serve others. And I learned that a do-gooder democrat just wants peace and happiness for all.

It was a tough mountain for us to climb at times, but well worth it.

And now, 5 random things about Sister Sassy, because K Spin asked:
1. She rarely shaves her legs. Or her pits.
2. She's an extremely patient mom in the house of crazy.
3. She forgets something at my house every. single. time. she comes over.
4. She thinks she is the boss of me. And I usually do her bidding. Which drives Tom nuts.
5. She is a good singer.

Honey Bunch According to Sassy:

HB and I are 9 years apart. 9 years is a lot. When I was 7 she was 16, big difference in a lot of things there. But you wouldn't know she was 9 years older from the way we'd interact. For instance, when she was a teenager I'd find pictures of Teen Dream boys and offer them to her along with my art work to decorate her room. But the minute I'd get mad at her for something I'd go in her room and reclaim them, ripping them from her walls. Not long after, HB would stoop down to my 7 year old level and come into my room to take back whatever trinkets she'd given me. We'd fight like cats and dogs one minute then you'd find us harmonizing the Star Trek theme and talking like Scooby Doo the next.

And when my parents would leave us in her care, poor Sister 7 and I knew we were in for it. As soon as the door closed HB would be come a slave master, telling us to pick up this, do that, clean up this and so on. And if you gave her lip, watch out, she wasn't past getting physical. Apparently she didn't like the clutter and it didn't help that she didn't like us much either, lol. To get back at her we'd lock her in the basement (there was no lock on the door though) and throw down fake rubber spiders and snakes because they scared the crap out of her. I remember opening the door to find her at the bottom of the stairs, chopping up a rubber spider. Poor Charlotte.

One thing about her I always remember is how she was kind of a freak at night. She'd be laying scared in the dark not being able to sleep, so she'd come in to my room and switch beds with me, and be able to sleep unafraid. I'd wake up in her room, she'd be in mine, and I'd have no idea how I got there. She'd remind me that she asked me to switch in the middle of the night and I'd just nod sleepily. This is something odd that we shared because for some reason I'd do the same thing to her. Somehow I guess we both believed if you switched beds the fears wouldn't be able to find you. Seems like fear is a continual theme in our life.

But then Honey Bunch moved out and started living her life and I had to stay in my own bed. She and I didn't have much to do with each other during those years, we absolutely didn't see eye to eye on much of anything. We had very different ways of looking at things, especially while she was in her 20s. She was sort of a deep in to the cult at that point and spouted out much of the self righteous bull spit that was spoon fed to our congregation. I was more of a free thinker and lover of all men. My best friend was agnostic and my goal in life was to be happy, I have very different cult baggage than she does.

It wasn't until after my marriage, while she was living alone in Petoskey, that we grew into the Svengalis we are now. HB's husband likes to refer to us as each other's Svengali, which is a person who, with evil intent, manipulates another into doing what is desired. I have to say we don't often have evil intent, although try telling my mother-in-law otherwise. That's a whole different story I'm saving for another time.

Honey Bunch is always there to help in a jam to offer assistance. And because she made the magic suggestion during out marriage meltdown that kept my family intact, she gets to choose the middle name of our next child. I'm fully expecting a Grace HoneyBunch Wojdyla (which isn't my last name but almost was lol!). She always wants the best for those she loves and will tell them so, adamantly, even if they don't want to hear it. She's passionate about her beliefs and will defend them even if she's uncomfortable with it, she pretty much will stand up to anyone in my mind. Even though she says she's a push over/doormat when it comes to standing up for herself, In my eyes she seems to have always stood when it mattered. I'm not so good at that, I'm busy recovering on the floor from being wacked in the head with a phone, figuring if I played dead I'll be better off.

Sometimes I think she puts up her own roadblocks that keeps her from succeeding in the things she wants to achieve, but who doesn't sabotage. Geez, every other weekend was a battle with her when she was first Dating Tommy. She'd call me constantly telling me she didn't like him, but when it came down to it, she was just afraid.

What's important is that she frequently will sit down with herself and have a "Come To Jesus" discussion to try to kick her butt in gear or reaches out to the family and friends she trusts to do it for her. Mostly she doesn't listen to me, but she will listen to Big, and that is what matters. Being willing to look at yourself and become the person you want to be and she's always searching for that person rather than sitting and around twiddling her thumbs. Although she is a good thumb twiddler...didn't we thumb wrestle?

So what sums up Honey Bunch? Here is a story about HB that I think sums up who she is in my mind. I had this friend from 5-7th grade. She was my best friend. But suddenly we had a falling out at the end of the 7th grade school year and she made 8th grade pure hell. Oh well, I moved past it eventually. Well one day while I was in high school HB ran into that old friend and totally gave her spit about being such a mean spirited hater. And that is something I always know about her, she's fiercely protective of the ones she loves. You ought not mess with HB and her peeps or she'll give you what for, you know HB has always got your back. I will tend to try to make you see things from the other person's shoes, she will be in there with verbal fists flying. Its another way we are different but its good because sometimes I think we might balance each other out. And if we don't we just keep telling the other person what to do and leave it at that. After all, I only do what I'm told.

And now for some random things about Honey Bunch

1. shaves every day. Can't stand hair on her legs and pits at all.
2. Always has hated feet. Could NOT stand being touched by them. Except for Tommy's feet, which she will rub and kiss his.
3. Thought it was funny to hold my head under water, throw me out of the house and lock the door with my pants off, telling me I was adopted, taking smack about our dog Frisco and doesn't think its funny that she was once arrested (in her youth).
4. Is excellent at stalking (IRL and online)
5. Loves her diet coke and was the first thing she had after giving birth to Bologna.

So there we are in a nutshell. I don't know if this helped you to know us better but I think it was time to introduce ourselves. Hi, I'm Sister Sassy, this is my Sister Honey Bunch. We like to write and to pretend people want to hear what we have to say. Its been a pleasure meeting y'all.

Now, for the next 100 posts, what are some topics you'd like us to blog about? Any burning questions??

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A Day in the Life of Sister Aquanetta

Sister Aquanetta is the fourth of eight children in our family. When Sassy and I asked her what she would like her sister name to be on our blog, things got all convoluted (as often happens in our family) and we sort of screwed up.

See, our family plays a really lousy game of Telephone/ Operator/Post Office/ whatever that game is called. You know the one, where one person whispers a secret into another's ear. Then that person leans over and whispers to the one sitting beside her and on and on it goes around the circle until it gets back to the original whisperer.

Anyway, Sister IV originally said she wanted to be Sister "Aquafina". Since she was once a professional hair stylist., Sassy and I assumed we heard "Aquanetta". #4 thought it was funny that we were such idiots, so she went with it. She's very easy that way.


Aquanetta has three children and a really scary-big husband who reminds me of Toby Keith. Sister Aquanetta's not scary though. She has the world's biggest heart, which shows in this post where she describes a day in her life at the nursing home.

Speaking of Sisters..

I work at Borgess Nursing Home where many retired Sisters (nuns) live. They are so very interesting. Some of them have dementia. Some don't. Its intriguing to me that they have lived their lives to serve...remain celibate..teach.. etc.

One of my favorites is a Sister from England. She is itty-bitty and I love her. She always knows me but never seems to remember my name. Her favorite thing to do is solve problems. It's her hobby.

One day she got on the subject about another lady's hat. She just kept playing with it and asking questions about it. I tuned her out for a moment or two until she began clapping her hands at me and proceeded to say (remember to use an English accent when she is quoted.)

"Sista? Sista?" I replied "Yes?"

"If this wasn't a hat, what would it be?" She continued asking me the same question all the way to the Lavy (lavatory).

"Sista.?..sista..? If the hat wasn't here..where would it be?"

Oh my goodness gracious. I tuned her out after about an hour of her constant chattering. She was washing up and getting ready for bed. Of course, she was still carrying on about that God-forsaken hat. I must have zoned out (but only for a moment) when suddenly she slapped me in the face with her wet washcloth! GROSS. Luckily it had only been used on her hands. But still.

Finally I was able to get her into bed but it was too late for me. She had already taken me there. You don't want to go there. It takes a long time to get out. I had entered her world where you find yourself forgetting how to have a normal conversation and you sound just plain dumb.

I was trying to get my marbles back in order when Sister One in the next room yelled to her roommate (Sister Two) who happened to be an amputee, "Hey someone cut your leg off last night!" Sister Two's stump appeared to be sticking out from under her blanket and it was causing a commotion.

Sister Two replied "Oh they did? I better call the police!" Then sister #1 said "You better hurry up! They might get it back for you".

I busted out laughing so hard I just couldn't contain myself. They both looked at me as though I was the crazy one. I finally had to leave the room.

Everyone at the nurses station stared at me until someone asked if I had spent the day with Sister Johnine ( the one obsessed with the hat.) Yep, she was the one to drive me over the edge.

Not every day is the same. People are unpredictable and you never know what to expect but they are always entertaining and endearing.

If I sound off the wall sisters, its one of the hazards of my job. But I wouldn't give it up. Not everyone likes to go to work. I'm lucky because I do!

Sister Aquanetta

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Tune Tag and I WAS a Hairy Mo Fo

Ashlee tagged us but since we had a heavy week of posts planned we haven't had a chance to get to it till now. The tag is all about music, your five favorite songs and why...so here we go!

Beautiful Day by U2: (HB's choice) Tom and I had been dating for about five months when I went to Jamaica with my friend Joy. I had a great time, but really looked forward to seeing him when I got home. I had butterflies in my tummy on the entire four hour drive from the airport to Traverse City because I was so excited to see him again. The song Beautiful Day kept playing during the drive back-and it was a beautiful day. Sunny, beginning of spring and I was going to be seeing Tom again. Now whenever I hear that song I think of him and the beginning of our relationship. (Now everybody say it with me: "Awwwwww")

No Shoes No Shirt No Service (HB's choice) When Logan was about two, Tom bought a Kenny Chesney CD and Logan proceeded to fall in love with this song. He would SHOUT out the words "No shoes! No shirt! No problem!" as loud as he could dancing as close to the speaker as he could get. A-dor-able and he still loves the song.

Kind and Generous (Sassy and HB's pick) This song always reminds me of my sisters. My sisters and I falling in love as Natalie Merchant sang on stage at Lillith Faire and then later all of us dancing in a circle with knocked up HB at her wedding. Good memories great song!

Sugar High: (Sassy's pick) This song reminds me of my recent discovery (not re-discovery) of my love for my husband. We were both just so happy and excited about this newness that this song just really captured our excitement for each other. This may seem somewhat confusing since i say recent yet I've been married for over 10 years, but I'll be writing about this for Valentines Day. Since you've probably never heard it or of it I'm going to post a Youtube video since Pandora doesn't have it :(

And

Dust in the Wind: (Sassy's song) If you don't know this song then wow... go find it and listen to it. This song I heard for the first time as a frightened little girl. I was prone to reoccuring nightmares (still am) and was terrified of night. Terrified. I laid awake and finally I decided to turn on my clock radio and this song came on. Something about this song made the cold heaviness melt away and I could suddenly breath again.

So there you have it! We're not going to tag anyone specifically so anyone who reads this can play along, but be sure to comment here so we can come read yours!

Thanks for the fun game Ashlee!!

...speaking of Ashlee...

Ashlee challenged us to blog about a part of our body that we hate and since I can't just take a picture of my entire body (how sad is that) I decided to pick my legs/knees.

My knees are ugly and look knobby and more like boy knees. But while contemplating this challenge I thought about how I hadn't shaved my legs for about 2 months or more....well, thats not entirely true, I shaved one leg about a month ago then gave up when the razor died.

But I wondered...could I really see my legs through all the hair? Maybe while my hair was growing my legs mysteriously became beautiful? I wasn't sure so I decided I better shave them to find out, just in case they weren't ugly anymore.

As much as I say I don't shave for the extra insulation from the Northern Michigan cold, I really don't like hairy legs that much. I'm just lazy. And it actually causes a problem like on days when I don't have clean pants yet can't wear a skrit becasue my braidable leg hair will poke through...or when Sister HB's male friend tried to gallantly help me get my boot on while I was holding my sleeping baby. I suddenly became shrew-ish, insisting I had it covered because I was afraid he'd see my leg hair and throw up in his mouth. They were that bad....see below.

NO that is NOT a man's leg, it is my very hairy knobby knee with that lumpy fleshness above it (or below it because the picture is kind of upside down)

I got three razors just in case. My favorite of the disposables is the middle one but the other two are there for the first go round. Like using scissors before you use the clippers.

To shave, which I am by no means an expert at because I only tend to do it a few months out of the year, I like to use soap, don't know why- just always have. My soap is Dove Cucumber something and I love the smell of it. You should check it out!

I decided to try to go with my fav razor, you can see it's cutting a nice little patch through the hair, but will it last for both legs?

EW! Sorry to subject you with all this hairiness!

Finally after about a good 15 minutes I am clean shaven. Lets check out and see if I still hate my knee.

Aw, Shucks...still there. Oh well...

My Jimmy Eats World still loves them and after 10 years had no clue about what I was talking about when I was describing what I don't like my knees.

It's time for your Lent Family Devotional,

brought to you by Sister H.B.



GOD GIVES YOU CONFIDENCE!

I John 5:13-15

All of you have faith in the Son of God, and I have written to let you know that you have eternal life. We are certain that God will hear our prayers when we ask for what pleases him. And if we know that God listens when we pray, we are sure that our prayers have already been answered.

The Mommy Wars

I am a minority. Not because of my race, gender, disability or sexual preference. Nor due to my nationality, my age or my religion. But I am treated differently and discriminated against just the same.

I am a Working Mom who is also a Christian. To top it off, I am a Catholic mom with only one child. (Stop staring, it's rude.)

I grew up in a very large family of eight children. My mom was always working. Whether she was picking blueberries (with us working right along beside her), working in our garden (Which was the size of half a football field. Seriously.), canning vegetables, running a daycare, operating a fabric store, managing my dad's business or going to college. She worked a lot. It was her nature, her make-up, The way she was created. When Sassy was nine, our mom finished college and began her new career. She retired two years ago.

I have chosen to work outside my home as well. My parents, siblings and most of my friends support my decision, but many people do not. Often, I will hear acquaintances comment that they have chosen to make sacrifices so that are able stay home and raise their children. Sister Seven wrote that she is "called by God to be home with her girls and homeschool them". I think the choice to work or to stay home is a very personal one. But staying home is often considered more honorable, more noble. The option that God would approve of the most. I disagree.

When I first started blurfing (blog surfing for you newbies), it was with the intention of finding a site for women who had a strong faith, loved their family and enjoyed their careers. I couldn't find one. I was surprised and dismayed to find many articles chastising women for "abandoning their children to daycare and public schools".

I emailed Big Mama, Boo Mama (I am their biggest stalker) and other popular bloggers asking for some direction and they were stumped. There are many sites devoted to moms who work from home, but I couldn't find any with moms who are open about their ambitions, career goals and faith.

So, I'll start. My name is Sister Honey Bunch. I am Christian and I love to work. It fulfills me. It makes me happy. It keeps me sane. It provides for my family. It gives us opportunities we wouldn't otherwise have.

When we had Logan, I was 34 and Tom was 39. Because we started our family a bit later than most, we aren't just saving money for Logan's college education. We also are saving for our retirement. And the assisted living facility. So, not only do I want to work, but I really need to work in order for us to achieve our goals.

I often hear the argument that it isn't biblical to work outside the home if you have children. Again, I disagree. If you look at the Proverbs 31 woman, what was she doing?

• She was being called "blessed" by her children. (I get called in to search for a missing Power Ranger, but whatever.)


• She was a true partner with her husband. (That's what I'm talkin' 'bout.)


• She wore beautiful clothing and cared about how she looked. (I am sure she would be a fan of What Not to Wear)


• She managed her household. (She had servants. Me? I clean my own toilets. And by "me", I mean "Tom".)


• She volunteered in her community and helped the needy.


• She was an entrepreneur. The Proverbs 31 woman bought real estate (a field), re-invested her profits, produced goods and sold them.

Please don't think for a second that I'm implying that stay-at-home-moms are just hanging out watching Oprah and munching on cheese and crackers (my activity and snack of choice when I'm home). Most of my sisters stayed home with their kids. I was able to see first-hand just how hard they worked day-in and day-out. And late into the night. Because "a woman's work..."

My issue is with those who think that it is better in God's eyes for the mother to stay home with her children than to have a job.

While having a career is fulfilling for me, it also carries its own challenges. I often suffer from Working Mother's Guilt. My husband and I have to juggle the household duties. I work to make sure my time with my kid is spent wisely. And I also work to make sure he doesn't think that my life should revolve around him when I am home. That's a tough one to balance.

I know from talking with my sisters and girlfriends that staying home has its own concerns. My hope is that we can all accept the choices we each make and recognize that there is not one "right" choice. There is a great article here that discusses this very thing: Women supporting women.

I intend to explore this topic more here at Sisters of a Different Order and would love your feed back. Please email me or leave me a comment about your thoughts on this subject.

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Dream Job: Sassy Wants to be a Head Case

This is what I made for Sister Honey's 40th birthday. It's a 16x20 photograph made up of heads of all the girls who came to her party placed expertly on the wrong body.

Now first, I have to make a disclaimer that some of the ladies were less than helpful (or tech savvy) in providing me with a decent headshot, so I had to make due with really bad ones.
If I could I'd sit around all day putting heads on bodies they don't belong on, I really would. That and taking pictures. I love photography.

This obession with "heads" started when my best friend had to do a High School French project and we made a nice poster. It included one measly French phrase, but had hours of work putting heads on other peoples bodies.

And not just ANY heads. This was the 1990's and it was the presidential election between Bush Sr, Bill Clinton and Ross Perot. Dessert Storm was around the same time (if I wasn't so lazy I'd do a tad bit of research and get the actual dates right. But I have two kids and I'm surprised they've let me type this long. Peanut butter crackers...what can't they do?).

So this poster was made up of our beloved political fodder of the day on bodies from fashion magazines.

My favorite was a blushing Bill Clinton looking bashfully down at his/her exposed knees while Bush Sr. offered him a flower.

There was also a group photo of them chatting in a manner that made us call the picture "Do you ever get that not-so-fresh feeling?"

After our intial project I realized I could make all our dreams come true simply by opening our high school year book. Now I had access to heads of all the boys we had crushes on! We married them, had families, beach houses, rode horses, kissed on the beach... it was the closest we'd ever get to them. Pathetic!

This head game was made possible by my dad's stack of Newsweeks, our stacks of Sassy magazine and the fact my dad owned a copier business that allowed me to copy and enlarge the heads to the correct size. Now with the advanced computers I can use my photo software to accomplish the same thing with less mess, effort. And no gluing.

Because I couldn't think of a way to earn money making heads I decided to play with heads in the only way I could think of, I got a degree in Psychology! lol! But seriously, wouldn't you pay for something like this? I think Bossy could use my talents, don't you? Just look at her John Cusack video...I could give her the life of her dreams.

Or Mrs. Fussypants, who I know likes doing adventerous things with other peoples bodies (ok, that sounded really wrong lol!)

Jimmy Eat World wants me to throw it out there that you too can hire me to create wonderfully funny gifts for your recent High School Graduate or 40 year old sister. So sure, if you really want something like this just let me know ;)

What's that? You want to comment? Just click on the itty-bitty words below that say "Gimme Some Sugar". Can you see them? Good. We can't wait to chat with you.

Winter Fun

Saturday afternoon in Northern Michigan can be slightly stark since some could say there isn't a lot to do here. However as long as you're willing to slap on enough outerwear there is fun to be had all over the place. Just look at what we did yesterday and for FREE! Thats right, free people!

Sassy and Honey Bunch in their .50 cent hats!

Hey! Outta My Way! Bumper Cones!

Honey and her kid Logan

Smiling Boogs

(that's Sassy's Sweet Pea)

Weeeeeee!

"Mama, that GIRL is in my class!" Sippin' some Cocoa

(Sassy's boys Sawyer and Kindred and Sister HB's kid Logan)

We have drinking problems

I think I drank too much...

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books