a smart guy said this

"If you will call your troubles experiences, and remember that every experience develops some latent force within you, you will grow vigorous and happy, however adverse your circumstances may seem to be."

-John Heywood

another day in paradise... or in my case, Loleta

kids are back in school, soccer season is in full swing, the weather is turning to fall... life is pretty good. I'm looking forward to hanging out with friends tonight and playing bunco... (or is it bunko?). can't beat an evening of dinner, drinks and throwing dice with a bunch of rowdy chicks, and all for a $10 buy-in! woo-hooo!  :D

still here

it's been a fun summer filled with visits to the river, reconnecting with family and old friends, learning lots about myself and figuring out what my expectations are and the direction I want to take my life. lots of changes are taking place around here and while some are difficult, the outcome, so far, has been mostly positive for me.... but more on that some other time.

the girl and I just got home from a trip down south to see some friends and do some back to school shopping. other than that we're busy wrapping up summer, kicking off soccer season ...pun intended :) and getting ready to head back to school... just two kidlets going back to school this year -still weirds me out that I'm old enough to have a kid who's graduated. the big kid is busy working odd jobs around the ranches, cutting firewood and enjoying a bit of 'freedom' before (hopefully) taking some college classes next spring. (xx fingers crossed xx)

guess that's enough of an update for now, duty calls... the theme around here this week is post-summer spruce up... today, the girl and I are cleaning out and re-organizing her room and closet in preparation for an even bigger 'makeover' in the, hopefully, not too distant future. wish me luck...  -leaf mcbirdie... OUT!

Important Margarita Health Issue

this info has recently been brought to my attention (just in time for Cinco de Mayo -thanks Deb!) ...thought a few of you might also benefit from this. I understand that you can get this treatment at several local places -without a prescription, if you know who to ask.
-Leaf ;)

Important women's health issue: Do you have feelings of inadequacy? Do you suffer from shyness? Do you sometimes wish you were more assertive? If you answered yes to any of these questions, ask your doctor or pharmacist (or bartender?!) about Margaritas. Margaritas are the safe, natural way to feel better and more confident about yourself and your actions. Margaritas can help ease you out of your shyness and let you tell the world that you're ready and willing to do just about anything. You will notice the benefits of Margaritas almost immediately and with a regimen of regular doses you can overcome any obstacles that prevent you from living the life you want to live. Shyness and awkwardness will be a thing of the past and you will discover many talents you never knew you had. Stop hiding and start living, with Margaritas.
Margaritas may not be right for everyone. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use Margaritas. However, women who wouldn't mind nursing or becoming pregnant are encouraged to try it. Side effects may include: dizziness, nausea, vomiting, incarceration, erotic lustfulness, loss of motor control, loss of clothing, loss of money, loss of virginity, attraction to the same sex, table dancing, headache, dehydration, dry mouth, and a desire to sing Karaoke.

WARNING:
The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you are whispering when you are not.

WARNING:
The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to tell your friends; over and over again that you love them.

WARNING:
The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to think you can sing.

WARNING:
The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.




Be sure to check out MissCharming.com your ultimate one-stop bar & cocktail source! for tons of Margarita/Tequila tips & facts. CHEERS!

cruel?

maybe, but it's cheap entertainment. Since I filled all the feeders out back, Tom & Chester spend hours staring out at all the birds -I think they're wearing a path between the window and the doors! They both do this crazy chattering-meow thing when the birds get close or perch near the windows... it's kinda funny. The birds must think it's funny too, they seem to have figured out that there's some sort of invisible safety zone; they can get as close as they want and these dumb cats don't ever chase them -hahahaaaa... or maybe the birds think I just have lazy cats??



Tom is especially interested, but Chester... eh, not so much -I think he knows that to catch a bird it would require stealth and speed, neither of which he possesses, bless his lardy little soul.



This is Tom's "keep teasing me like this and one day I'm gonna eat your face off while you're sleeping" look.



I'm sure the day is coming that someone's gonna leave a door open and those birds are gonna get one helluva surprise when thier safety zone is breached by a puddy-tat who's been jonsin for a taste of some tweety bird.

...ain't it the truth?!

Foundation for a Better Life -daily quote April 13, 2009:

“Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”
—Joshua J. Marine

...although, right at this moment, I think I could go for a little less 'interesting' and a lot more 'meaningful'. I'm just sayin'.

in a nut shell...

wow -this is exactly it ...my philosophy about life these days!

“Live life fully while you're here. Experience everything. Take care of yourself and your friends. Have fun, be crazy, be weird. Go out and screw up! You're going to anyway, so you might as well enjoy the process. Take the opportunity to learn from your mistakes: find the cause of your problem and eliminate it. Don't try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human.”
—Anthony Robbins (b. 1960); self-help writer, speaker


...another goodie from The Foundation for a Better Life -I LOVE finding these little nuggets of wisdom in my in box each day! :)

advice from my sister

my sister sent me this gem in an e-mail today... (she say's she thinks she's already reached that status! heh heh heh... LOOK OUT!)

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor each morning the devil says

"Oh Crap, She's up!"

Real Simple Daily Thought Wednesday | April 8, 2009

from the Real Simple website:

To be happy, it first takes being comfortable in your own shoes. The rest can work up from there.
―Sophia Bush

whoa... pretty much dead on

my horoscope for today:

March 22, 2009
Taurus (4/20-5/20)
Today is a good day to evaluate some recent developments in your life -- your mind is clear and your attitude is positive. More than ever before, you are ready to learn from past mistakes! So take stock of the wins and the losses you've had and get perspective on where you really are in life -- you are a lot further along than you had thought. You can sense the momentum building, can't you? Some exciting transformations are going to start happening soon.


kinda freaks me out how these things can parallel with what's going on in "real" life ...just a fluke??

yeah, THAT just happened

so, last night, I'm out and about, running errands, and decide to swing into the grocery store to grab a few things before rushing home to feed my family a delicious meal prepared by the good folks over at Taco-hell... it's not my fave grocery store but wth, I'm just cruising thru for a few necessities... milk, fruit, beer, margarine, beer...


I get up to the checkouts and there's only one lane open... no biggie, it's pretty quiet in there, only one custie in front of me in line. I unload my goods and step up to swipe my debit card when a dentally challenged custie, holding a bud vase with 3 red roses, cruises up and quietly asks the pimply, pubescent clerk a question:

custie: hey, are you the only one working?
clerk: what do you need?
custie: I'm looking for something but I can't find anyone to ask, are you the only one working?
clerk: no problem, I'll have someone come up and assist you.
(clerk uses intercom to ask for custie assistance at checkstand 1)
(unseen clerk uses intercom to ask clerk 1 to repeat the page)
in the meantime...
clerk: (rolls his eyes) ...so, what are you looking for?
custie: (quietly) where do you guys keep the condoms?
*me: (to myself) omg... did he just say what I thought he said?!
clerk: (apparently echoing my thoughts) I'm sorry, ....what?
custie: (voice rising) CONDOMS... where do you keep the C-O-N-D-O-M-S?
*me: (cringing and thinking:) yeah, THAT just happened
clerk: (blushing) oh, uh... they're up here (indicates a locked case in the lobby).
previously unseen clerk strolls up and asks who needs help... clerk 1 shakes his head and tells him to nevermind (his eyes throwing daggers at the dickweed who waits till now to show up). by now, the line behind me, includes at least 3 other custies...
*me: throwing my shit in my cart, ready to haul ass and trying not to bust into nervous laughter*
clerk: (not making eye contact, hands me my reciept) thank you, come again... uh, have a nice evening.
*me: (smiling and thinking to myself:) oh, hell yes, I will...


omg ...totally made my night. I'm just hoping all the trouble that whack-job custie went thru to get his condoms, paid off for him. giggity-giggity-gig-iiiiiii-ty

just a sampling

...of some of the great quotes I've come across this week. If you haven't checked it out, be sure to visit VALUES.COM -the foundation for a better life -it's loaded with good stuff.


“Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them”every day begin the task anew.”
—Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622), Roman Catholic saint


“You never lose by loving. You always lose by holding back.”
—Barbara DeAngelis

“I believe life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It's seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. It's seeing what other people don't see. And pursuing that vision.”
—Howard Schultz

“Our real blessings often appear to us in the shape of pains, losses and disappointments; but let us have patience and we soon shall see them in their proper figures.”
—Joseph Addison (1672-1719), essayist, dramatist

“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”
—Dolly Parton (b. 1946), country music singer, author, actor

friday five

five notable things from my week:

1. getting up early (5:30am) and starting my days without mayhem & chaos: it gives me the opportunity to spend time with my hubs and I'm blown away by how much more I accomplish with that extra 90 minutes added to each day.

2. keeping up with my excersize regime: woo-hoo -it's paying off!

3. dedicating time out of each day specifically for myself: sticking with my morning workouts and ending the day with a soak in the tub just before bedtime have been awesome.

4. finally getting things done that I've been putting off forEVER: weeding crap out, cleaning/organizing -even making long overdue dr. appointments; it's good to be back on top of my game!

5. working on improving relationships and renewing friendships: working on being happy and ending my self-imposed exile from all the good things life has to offer.

catharsis

it's amazing how having your life thrown into a tailspin will make you stop and take inventory of what really matters. priorities come into sharp focus and trivial things that once seemed like such a big deal suddenly disappear from the radar. my mind has been working nonstop the past week or so, thinking about why I am the way I am and why I do the things I do.

I started a blog a couple of years ago, with the idea that it might be someplace to share the real me; my quirky, often immature, SOH, my true opinions on things -something "in real life" I often hold in check because I fear not being liked if my perspective doesn't jive with the popular kids. I wanted a place to bitch about things that annoy me, a place to share seemingly mundane things that, for whatever reason, make me stop and take notice - a place to post trivial accomplishments. I wanted my cyber-friends to nod at their screen saying "omg... ME TOO!". in hindsight I guess I was reaching out for the friendships and support I crave but lack the ability to manifest "in real life". actually, if I'm to be completely honest, I've never had a single relationship in my life, that's been 100% no holds barred -not that they couldn't have been that way, but I've never been willing or able to let go and open myself up to that -so, I started a blog.

nothing sinister in any of that except that once again, I stopped short at sharing the real me. I began posting right around the time my mom died. I was able to pour out my emotions -which was great but, soon after all of that, I retreated back behind my mask of worry and self doubt. the realization that the annonymity of the 'net is really a farce brought to the forefront my sense of obligation to always be nice, not rock the boat and always, above all else, avoid conflict and confrontation -because what if something I said was misinterpreted or hurt someone's feelings?! what if someone didn't like me? I was back at square one; I'd pour my thoughts out: typetypetype. read, then almost always: backspacebackspacebackspace. rewrite. think about my 'nice' factor and then either post or delete entirely. I have become a master at filtering. how the heck is it that, even with the relative annonymity of the 'net, I still can't be comfortable being me?

Good day...

As I young child, maybe around 6 years old, I met a man with a warm disposition and the sweetest grandfatherly voice. My mom and I enjoyed him very much and made it a point to get together with him at about the same time every morning. Together we'd listen as he'd share anecdotes and interesting little bits of this and that, usually relating to current events or special people he'd learned about. His sparkling wit was always a high point in our mornings.

Through the years my visits with him became somewhat sporadic but I would check in with him every so often and just like a time machine his voice would take me back to early mornings spent with my mom, each of us watching the time, waiting for him to arrive and then each of us shushing the other so we wouldn't miss the news he was about to share with us. And then, as he was leaving, the three of us, in unison, would wish each other "Good day" ...mom and I giggling at our goofy morning ritual.

Eventually my friend and I lost touch and several years went by before I ran into him again. I had missed his familiar voice and matter of fact chatter so much, I once again made it a part of my routine to hook up with him each morning and occasionally we even got together in the afternoons. It was during those afternoon visits I learned about some fascinating people and events. Some people had risen from bleak beginnings others came from privileged backgrounds -some events were cataclysmic and others more everyday moments but each of them had their own interesting story and in some way were part of our culture and/or history.

I was so sad today to learn that my friend has died. At 90 years old, I think it's safe to assume that he lived a rich life and had many friends all over the world. Although we never actually met, I call him my friend because after hearing his distinctive voice for so many years and all the fond memories I have associated with it, that's just how I think of him. I will miss his familiar greeting of "Hello Americans" and his upbeat delivery of the not so main-stream news and I'll miss our afternoons together with him telling me "the rest of the story". That said, I think most of all, I'll miss his trademark sign-off, wishing me "Good day!"

Goodbye, Paul Harvey.

a few things...

jeez, talk about a klepto! I found all NINE of these in my purse today when I cleaned it out. seriously wouldn't surprise me if these businesses start frisking me at the door!

cuties (and I'm not talking about Dermot Mulroney... although he's definitely a hottie) are my addiction right now ...they're super sweet, easy to peel and no seeds! quite possibly the perfect food!

my fuzzy Woolrich jackets have become my adult equivalent of a security blanket. they're so soft and warm -so, so, soooo cozy...I'm almost always wearing either my red or my black one. I need more!

my name is Leafa McBirdie and I'm a Wii-tard. we don't have many games yet but I'm totally diggin on the bowling (my high score is 242... so far.) tennis, golf... omg, I can't believe what a workout these *virtual* sports are... my body aches in places you don't even want to know about.

my entire adult life, I've resisted naps. napping left me cranky rather than refreshed so it wasn't worth the trade off -tired is better than cranky any day! recently though, I've been hitting a wall in the afternoons, can't focus on what I'm doing ...I'm just a zombie. one day last week I decided I'd just lay down and rest... not nap... rest. well, I fell asleep and the coolest thing happened... I didn't wake up in a pissy mood! naturally, the next day, I had to test it out and I was fine, so the day after that I figured I should try it again, you know, just to make sure it wasn't a fluke ...you see where this is going, right? I've discovered that it wasn't the nap that was the problem it was the length of time I was sleeping... heaven help me, I have become a napper!

tru dat

I came across a quote today that really hit home:

"Your future happiness may well depend on your ability to leave the past behind." -unknown

...if only it were that easy to dump our baggage and move on.

one little word: MANAGE

With the arrival of another new year, inevitably, comes a rush of resolutions; ideas involving things I want to accomplish/change/aspire to within my life... and so, in my quest for change and instant gratification I (also inevitably) end up setting unrealistic goals for myself, biting off more than I can chew and, before I know it, those resoloutions are nothing but a teeeny tiny dot in the rear view of my daily grind. That said, I've decided that all that resolution crap is for the birds. I've adopted a new approach to making changes in my life and it's all based on a shockingly simple concept by uber creative scrapbooker Ali Edwards.

Within her *One Little Word* project AE explains how, by examining and identifying what we really want, we can enrich many aspects of our lives; about simplifying the thought process and finding a single word that sums up our ultimate goal, and then using that word to reflect upon and use as a guide to help us tackle our challenges.

My word for 2009 is: Manage.

• I want to learn how to manage all the different aspects of my life so that I don't always feel so overwhelmed and scattered.

• I want to manage my family life better and make a concentrated effort for each of them to know how important they are to me and how much I value my time with them. I hope to encourage stronger bonds between them and nurture their sense of family.

• I want to manage my finances better so I can get rid of the stress of wondering if there's enough in my checking account to cover our expenses on a month to month basis. I don't want to pay overdraft charges or late fees any more.

• I want to manage my home better so that my family feels proud of what they come home to and we can welcome friends graciously and without trepidation.

• I want to manage my time better so that I don't always feel like I'm playing catch up. I need to learn how to pace myself and plan accordingly. With better time management, I'm hoping to be able to dedicate some of the *bonus* time I'm left with, to doing things to enrich myself.

My ultimate goal at this point is to manage from day to day with a sense of accomplishment and to look forward to the future without feeling like I'm lacking in so many areas of my life. Granted, we're only a couple of weeks into the new year but I can definitely say that the changes I've made so far have made a big difference and I feel a much better sense of balance... I'm managing. :)

...so, what's your one little word??

funny kid quote

"If I had a house made out of cheddar cheese, I'd be homeless -especially if I had a shed made out of crackers." ~Matt McBride

...is it any wonder I love this kid?!

booklist: 2008

I didn't fall into love with reading until I was in my late teens but, since then, it's been a genuine love affair. Settling in with a good book relaxes me and helps me unwind; lets me get away from the demands of reality -there's nothing like escaping into a good story. Somewhere, over the course of the past several years I got away from my reading habit -3 kiddos and family life can do that to ya I guess -lol... Anywho, I missed my books so during 2008 I decided to really give my library card a workout. I finally got back on the reading bandwagon and, once I got started, it was just like old times, one book right after another...

~The Story of Edgar Sawtelle -David Wroblewski
~The Front -Patricia Cornwell
~No Time for Goodbye -Linwood Barclay
~Sundays at Tiffany's -James Patterson
~Marley & Me -John Grogan
~Memoirs of a Geisha -Arthur Golden
~love walked in -Marisa De Los Santos
~ Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea -Chelsea Handler
~Shoot the Moon -Billie Letts
~hello, darkness -Sandra Brown
~The Secret Life of Bees -Sue Monk Kidd
~Before the Storm - Diane Chamberlain
~The Faraday Girls -Monica McInerney
~The Last Coyote -Michael Connelly
~The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes -Diane Chamberlain
~Driving Sideways -Jess Riley
~Strip Tease -Carl Hiaasen
~Savannah Breeze -Mary Kay Andrews
~Good in Bed -Jennifer Weiner
~You've Been Warned -James Patterson & Howard Roughan
~Lifeguard -James Patterson & Andrew Gross
~The Friday Night Knitting Club -Kate Jacobs
~Bitter Is the New Black -Jen Lancaster
~the bright side of disaster -Katherine Center
~The Last Lecture -Randy Pausch, Professor, Carnegie Mellon w/Jeffrey Zaslow
~The Next Thing on My List -Jill Smolinski
~The Sweet Potato Queens' 1st Big-Ass Novel -Jill Conner Browne w/Karin Gillespie
~there's a (slight) chance i might be going to hell -Laurie Notaro
~Book of the Dead -Patricia Cornwell
~Beach Road -James Patterson/Richard DeJonge
~Double Cross -James Patterson