Our day

Today was a good day. This morning there was an alliance between the Polly Pocket dolls and the good clones from Star Wars. I'm not sure who the enemy was, but they were in it together to fight forces of evil.

Then came the testing out of BOY's birthday vehicle, a remote control car. Local cats were wise and stayed in the bushes as the vehicle careened around corners and up driveways on our street. GIRL worked on her project that is due next week - meticulously decorating the outside of the box in streamers and beads.

Later we headed out to the Y where GIRL swam laps for several minutes, on her own, and then joined BOY to play in the water. BOY managed to tell every life guard and swimming teacher...and a teenage boy whom he had never met before that he had turned 7. When I took BOY aside to remind him not to talk to strangers, he stated that the boy he was talking to worked for the FBI.

Then while BOY had his swimming lesson, GIRL and I went out on a quick shopping jaunt. It was fun to browse with her, noticing all the pretty things. She helped me pick out some new linen napkins. I love spending time like this with GIRL, and we don't do it often enough...

Tonight after baths, E read BOY and GIRL stories while I made pie dough. Right now I sit here taking in the delicious smell of chocolate pecan pie as I type. More cooking tomorrow....

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JCK is participating in NaBloPoMo, (30 posts in 30 days), for the month of November.

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JCK is desperate for household organizational tips...so fess up!

JCK appears a bit confused in this picture, doesn't she? She's got her feather duster off the shoulder...like a boa. And, of course The Fishnets...but, gee whiz... they are on her hand. Poor JCK is a bit bamboozled by life. Can't You help her?

JCK is tired of going to the grocery store, and later that day drawing a blank on what she's preparing for dinner. She has the lowest amount of energy at the end of the day, and yet she keeps setting herself up for making it more stressful than it needs to be. There are only so many Jack O'clocks that can make it better...

And then it starts all over again. JCK's very own Ground Hog Day. A few years ago she wrote a post asking for tips from people on how to save money with grocery shopping. It was really helpful and sparked a whole community discussion. This time JCK would like to ask everyone how they organize their household. Tips on time management are what she's looking for.

Here are some questions to get the discussion started:

Do you plan your menus weekly? When? How?

What are your favorite cookbooks for creating quick meals?

When do you grocery shop? How often? Do you use a list?

What's in your pantry?

Do you buy in bulk & freeze?

What are your tips on preparing dinner ahead of time? That day? A few days earlier?

Do you schedule different days for different tasks: clean house, grocery shop, paying bills, laundry, etc.?

Please jump in with any extra tips that you'd like to share. JCK appreciates you saving her from a mental breakdown.

JCK will now kick back and sip a bit o'whiskey while your wisdom unfolds.


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JCK is participating in NaBloPoMo, (30 posts in 30 days), for the month of November.

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Organization is SEXY. Who KNEW?

JCK is exuberant! JCK is ECSTATIC! JCK is feeling fiiiine. In fact, JCK may be a wee bit...high. Is it the chocolate, you ask? Well, there's that. Is it perhaps a bit of CAFFEINE? Well, yeees... JCK insists that both are needed to stoke the fires. But... why is she feeling like a frisky filly? Because... JCK is floating in her own bubble of an Organizational Orgasm. And, it's not even Jack O'clock. Damn, girl!


**SQUEEL!!!**

You see, JCK started getting overwhelmed several years ago. Really, ever since she happened to have two babies in 10 months. JCK had this fantasy that being a SAHM would enable her to have time to work on home projects. JCK will now pause while you try to contain yourselves....

BAWHAHAHAHA...

Indeed, JCK wishes that someone had told her that not only would she not have time, but that she would be lucky to enter the bathroom alone...for a few years.

But, JCK digresses. JCK is FEELING SO RIGHTEOUS, BABY! Yes, she IS. AhhhHUH! Because, her office is now organized!! Whoohoo!! She has spent the last two days, over 8 hours - heaving, sorting, shredding, and filing. Because. She. Can.

JCK is feeling a sense of accomplishment. A little RANDY. Yoohoo...RanDY!! Organization is SEXY. Who KNEW? In fact, JCK might ....pull out the ol' fishnets tonight.

After she organizes her email inbox which is currently sporting 3,344 messages....


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JCK is working on getting her writing groove back. She is participating in NaBloPoMo, (30 posts in 30 days), for the month of November.

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From our house to yours...Merry Christmas!

It's finally beginning to feel a bit like Christmas... GIRL has been wrapping presents for days. These are her masterpieces under the tree. She has taken things around the house, wrapped them up with love, and designated them for each of us. BOY got in on the action, too. They just slay me sometimes.

Yesterday, BOY, GIRL and I made gingerbread cookies. As you can see, the sprinkles were a bit heavy handed. The cookies perhaps, inedible. Yet, we all had fun. A couple have been left out for Santa tonight.

E and I have a tradition with our Christmas tree topper. We don't use a star or an angel. No, we use...the joker. Somehow, a little tomfoolery seems apropos.

My very favorite ornaments belonged to my grandparents. Some have broken, but I still use them. Arranging them in this crystal bowl. I love the splashes of color. And... even broken, I just can't bear to part with them.

I always smile when I unwrap this gingerbread man. He's from my childhood - made out of socks and bits and pieces.

From our house to yours....Merry Christmas!

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Scarecrows and pumpkins and politics, OH MY!

There are some scary shenanigans going on at Casa de Motherscribe. Oh, yes...BOY HOWDY! Scarecrows and pumpkins and politics, OH MY!

BOY has decided he wants to be a robot for Halloween. So...I've been working on my paper bag and aluminum foil skills. With a few loose screws.

Oh, THOSE were hard to find...

GIRL wants to be a nice witch. She's a minimalist this year. A witch's hat, black leggings and top. Perhaps some black crepe paper wrapped around her broom handle will do. Thank GOD, as last year she was an owl. Yes. And as for my owl costuming skills? Well...let's just say that everyone called her "a cute kitty" and she glared at them. As all good owls should.

My children have been SO pumped full of candy this week that their poop is coming out wrapped. I know. I know. What's a mom to do? They've had more candy in the last week than in their entire lives. Oh well... Today I stuffed them with apple slices and cold milk. We hope to be balanced by morning.

On Thursday there will be much carving of pumpkins. By me. It is truly a blessing to be so involved in these special home projects with the kids, because they distract me from the riveting little snippets of political news that manage to unnerve me at every turn.

Could it really be true that many people in our country think that Barack Obama is a terrorist?


Or that Sarah Palin could be a Presidential contender for 2012?

It boggles the mind. These are scary times.

SCREAM! There's McCain!

He's SO pale. Must have been all that time he spent indoors while suspending his campaign... Wait! Wait! Is that Palin's head off to the side?

SHRIEK! No, no, there she is!! There's Palin!

Definitely $150,000 worth of Neiman's. Just look at those colors. Oh what a tangled web we weave...

Note: The children who created the above ghost and spiders wish to reserve their right to be an independent. They cannot take responsibility for the gross mishandling of their art projects perpetuated by their left wing mother. They wonder why we all can't just get along. They remain...undecided. Although they can be bribed with candy corn...

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The Motherscribe office makeover...an unveiling

Waaay back in early July WE took on a major project here at Casa de Motherscribe. It was scary. It was intimidating in its vastness. The feather boa and fishnets were ABSOLUTELY required to get the job done. You may recall that the challenge of taking on this project caused my nostrils to FLARE and my pinkish lips to PURSE. Indeed. There was no succinct way to describe this job. It was called...PROJECT: Annilation & Creative Reconfiguration.

However, there was excitement in the air because...a task that had long been avoided was being tackled. ...

It is only fitting that I show before and after photos so that you may get the ultimate sense of satisfaction and yes, JOY, that I now feel when I sit in here. Although the chairs could be improved...Not all of us have le bottom OH lushness like E. A fanny able to perch, shall we say...for long periods without apparent continual flattening...as is the case for Madam Motherscribe. Alas, it is not to be in this lifetime. Perhaps in my next life my fanny will be not only roundISH, but colorful - as in a BABOON. But, I digress...

Previously...upon entering the Motherscribe office, once your buttocks had stopped clenching rhythmically in horror, THIS is what greeted you...

And let's not forget this... Now you look into the office and see this... And this...
E made the desk above with his own HANDS. Good GOLLY MISS MOLLY...I LOVE those HANDS.

This corner of former bedlam... Has become... a reading nook.This used to be JCK's work area.
Her husband E thought it was his as well. And it was...

Now JCK has her own work space. And E has his...This corner was a mish mash of things.

We now have books organized in sections. This is the theater & film section.

We also have various other sections in our library. We will never be bored...

And so...there you have the...Motherscribe Office REDO...

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Please note that no fishnets were harmed in the making of this project. However the use of "WE" was used irresponsibly. The HE did all the work as the SHE fanned herself continually with her feather boa, barricaded BOY & GIRL from entering, and kept herself upright only with the help of paint fumes.

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All this talk of interconnection has my knees weak

I am sitting in a room that is red. A red called Caliente. Just feel the sound of that roll over your tongue. RRRAAAWRRR... or MEOW for some of you. The color is luscious and naughty. Will I ever get any writing done in here or will I spend hours just rolling around the floor with my tongue hanging out? And does it matter? The color is THAT good.

The desk in in, the book shelves up, the computers and wireless router and printer...all interconnected. The sound? Mmmm...still working on that.

All this talk of interconnection has my knees weak. And I'm beginning to feel hot...the BIG O...my FRIGGIN' GOD, it's perimenopause. My G-spot? Or maybe it's the red walls... I need to go lie down. On something soft. My bed. And the color of my sheets? Red, as in Caliente. Now if I could just find those fishnets...

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My intellectual sanctuary...currently in transition

Manager Mom has asked us to reveal our intellectual sanctuary for her Open Your Office idea. Where we go for deep contemplation, brilliant ideas and such. It just so happens that my personal refuge, my creative corner, is in my office. And it also happens to be that my office is undergoing Project: Office Annihilation & Creative Reconfiguration. So, above is a picture of what it looks like now...soon to be the updated, much better, dreamier version.

What I love about the office space is all the books. As you can see there are a lot of them... My maternal grandparents always had a library in their home. And we have decided to go for that look in here. On Friday we picked out the color! It is Benjamin Moore's Caliente. I finally have my red room! I've been negotiating this for years. You just have NO idea...

I've been blogging just over a year now. My goal was to write regularly, preferably every day. I had always talked about writing, but had yet to really do it. It is difficult to tell from the photos, but believe it or not, I actually enjoy neat, organized spaces. It comforts me. I used this as an excuse for myself for a long time - once I get the office organized, I'll start writing. I can't write in this chaotic space - was my mantra. One day I started a blog and I've been writing ever since. I am THRILLED that my husband and I are going to create a work space that we love here in the office, but it feels good to know that I started writing despite the mess.

My ideas come to me most often when I'm driving or doing household tasks - preparing food in the kitchen or folding laundry. I have little post-it notes everywhere with notes jotted down. Usually I hear a sentence in my head and it goes from there. With my poetry, it is the same. The important piece for me is listening.

Please go over to Manager Mom to check out how others are opening up their offices. Great idea, Manager Mom!

And feel free to check back here for the unveiling of my new creative space... err not exactly sure when that will be.

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JCK was a good little blogger and always very curious

This is JCK. She lives in a house that has an ambitious office project. JCK was a good little blogger and always very curious. All bloggers are curious, but no bloggers are as curious as JCK.

JCK was especially curious as to whether she could do it all...

She wondered how it was that it was already 5am on Friday morning and her project: Office Annihilation & Creative Reconfiguration was not nearly ready for tomorrow's plan to empty the office of all objects so that the man with the yellow hat could paint. The plan also calls for disconnecting the computer...GASP, SHUDDER, SHAKE. So, she will be offline for a couple of days. And she has several posts to write in advance, as well as living her life. Perhaps the painting should be reconsidered? Hang Tough, JCK! Be STRONG.

JCK knows that living her life with two children aged 3 and 4 and her husband, doing the office project, leaving on Thursday of next week for the BlogHer conference, and possibly going through perimenopause are all possible. JCK just doesn't know if they are possible in 1 week.

All JCK knows is that hopefully when she is back and functioning again, this will happen...

I am so happy to have you back, JCK, said her loyal readers.

I was scared. And you must have been scared, too.

I know you will not want to do Project: Office Annihilation & Creative Reconfiguration, leave for a BlogHer conference, possibly be going through perimenopause, and disconnect your one computer all in one week again for a long, long time.

You must give your common sense back to your self.

Especially when your daughter is currently terrorized in her own mind by Pinocchio, your husband feels he never sees you, and your son is sure to create his own search and destroy project when you are not looking.

Perhaps all of this was not wise, Curious JCK.


**JCK would like to acknowledge much admiration for H.A. Rey, the Creator of Curious George.

***Superhero Mom Picture courtesy of Google Images

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PROJECT: Office Annihilation & Creative Reconfiguration

I am SO excited. The time has finally come to...makeover our home office! It is something we've been talking about...well, ever since we moved in this house 8 years ago. We plan to add on at some point and the walls of the office will go down for the future addition, but ...you know what? Sometimes, it is good to enjoy the space that you do have and make it yours - rather than sitting around when the HELL is that DAY coming??!!!dreaming of "someday...someday." Kind of like when you gain weight and you punish yourself by not buying any new, fun clothes in your larger size because you tell yourself you'll fit back into your "skinny" clothes. And so you go around feeling like crapola never treating yourself to clothes that fit well and look good. Viva la Zaftig!! So, in the spirit of embracing what you DO have instead of thinking about what you don't have, I am ATTACKING the office. E and I both dream of a desk space that we can each call our very own. He is building us a desk and my job is to get the office CLEARED.

I am sure that you think I'm EXAGGERATING, per my usual, when I use the words "attack" and "clear." Unfortunately, NO. What I'm about to reveal to you is intensely personal. More difficult than putting myself in a bathing suit on the internets. Yes, what I am about to show you is like flipping my skirt up to reveal...that I'm not really a woman? No, not that. But... the no good, terrible, horrible, terrible truth is that I have let our office go. It's beyond SLOB. X 2 billion, trillion. Or is that 2 trillion, billion? Mommy Brain. Yeah...

And so...without further ado... please sit down, pour yourself a stiff one, and prepare to be SHOCKED, APPALLED, and INCREDULOUS. And I'm not just speaking of Jenn. Or, that Bad Mom revealing her deliciously clean tub in the interview by our dear, very own Mrs. G. I'm all of these ...shocked, appalled, and incredulous, but I drink. And eat chocolate. It helps. Usually.

OK, here is the desk space with books to the ceiling. We've got a few books. I adore being surrounded by books. My maternal grandparents always had a library and someday I hope we'll have one, too. A library....oooh, gets me all hot and bothered.

Another view revealing the printer and hinting of things under the shelves. Oh, yes...MUCH is below the shelves. The walls of the office are very WHITE. If we are up to the task, we will paint the office a color. I'm lusting for red.

This is a closer look at our shared computer area space. Lovely, I know. Just makes you want to CREATE. Doesn't it?

Then we have the file cabinet and a small bulletin board propped up. This is where my first rejection "letter" is posted, as well as other things related to Motherscribe. That pile on the chair? No idea.

Then just past the file cabinet we have boxes and bags full of paper to be shredded (from 1999.) As well as the infamous feather duster that I use as a boa. It looks a bit sad lying there all alone - hasn't been used in a while. We plan to turn this corner into a small reading nook. We'll put a comfy chair here to face the window, with a view of the backyard. This way we can see firsthand what trouble BOY & GIRL are attempting. Like a live video!Behind my chair are more book shelves and things that have run riot. Including the large bin of children's artwork. There is also my old easel (took up acrylic painting when I was going through IVF), which is covered in years of dust. To the right of that corner is a deep closet that we he will do and do and DO!...oops, I'm getting confused with Project: Fishnets redo. We plan to put the file cabinet in the closet and do shelves around it- giving us more floor space for the reading nook.

So, while I take on this monumental task...CAN SHE DO IT? YES! SHE CAN! So glad the Bob the Builder stage was quick and relatively painless...

E is building us a desk!

Here are the legs: just cut & shaped

...and after the stain. Notice the sweet curves. God, I wish I had gams like that! They might be a little distracting in the office...

And then here are the table tops. He is still doing the coats of stain, which is quite laborious. Perhaps most exciting of all, we will no longer be sharing a computer. No more ..."I need the computer" ,"No, I need the computer" ,"No, I really need the computer" ,"No, I really, really need the computer." It is done. No more Whaaaa WHaaaa, because...I am waiting for her to arrive. She of the red sheath, with cool keys and slim lines. My lovAH...

So, this is it...

Project: Office Annihilation & Creative Reconfiguration.

I could have called it Project: Office Redo, but why??

P.S. Now that you've seen my true underbelly, I'm sure you feel better about yourself. As you should.

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