An epiphany for $5. I'll take two, please

I just saw my life flash before my eyes. On the big screen. When i say my life, i use that in the broadest sense of the word. Meaning way, way less glamorous, less fashionable, sans cute male object of affection and minus one fabulous Sex and the City wardrobe consultant. OK, you need it in English: I just saw Confessions of a Shopaholic. Aside from its cinematic lack of value and almost embarassing predictability, it struck a chord (and made me chuckle a couple of times).

You see, as Married Georgia can eagerly attest, I too have a little, tiny bit of a problem in that department. I'm the first to admit I like shiny, sparkly new things. A lot. Just like the gorgeous Isla says: they make me feel special and happy and warm and fuzzy inside.

For about 20 seconds. And then guilt sets in. Ah, the guilt! Proof that i am indeed my mother's daughter. Allow me to explain: my Mom - the total, complete and utter opposite of a shopaholic. All her life her mantra has been: save, save, save. And because the universe needed to find its balance again, I came into the world with the occasionally unique purpose to? You got it: spend, spend, spend.

Now I'm not saying that seeing this on a huge theater screen will make a difference. I'm just saying it got me thinking about it. Again. Shut up. Baby steps, okay?

Unthriftilly yours,

SC

Home improvement

Let me start by saying that my husband, a.k.a Mr Handsome, does not usually enjoy removing himself from the couch, unless dinner is ready. In that case, he will tackle any unlucky bastard who happens to be in his way. He does however love a "project". So this past week he decided to paint the living room/family room. We did not stay in his way, we let him express his talents and he actually did most of the work by himself! I was a little afraid that his exuberance would only last until he realized that he needed to tape every inch of that damn room, and I was left to finish everything for him, but I was pleasantly surprised..He gained a few red dots in my book.

And then the aftermath of painting came, stuff was everywhere and mom and I were left to put it all back. It took us an entire day but now it looks clean and a little more put together. Of course, that will only last until my son gets up from his nap, but for a couple hours we remembered what it felt like to know where everything is. Before we know it, the books will be put back in the fridge and the ketchup will end up in one of my dresser drawers.

Oh..the joys a toddler can bring!

A more organized,

Married Georgia

When Mom comes to town..

Since my son was born, I've been a stay at home mom and I do everything around here, from laundry to cooking and cleaning and everything in between. Aww, did you just pat my back? Thanks!

Around Christmas my mom came here to stay with us for a few months and help a little. I couldn't be happier! Thing is though, that for almost 2 months now I barely do anything anymore. She cooks, does laundry, cleans and even babysits Luke. All I do now is move from one couch to the other to watch TV or play spider solitaire and surf the internet. I've become so lazy! You'd think that by resting all the time, I would actually have lots of energy and desire to do stuff, but negative..No energy here. What is going on? I should be loving this situation, right? Next week she will go see my dad for a month so I am very curious to see how hard will it be for me to get back in the game.

Maybe I also need a vacation! Aly, can I please come along with you? Right..like I need more time sitting on my butt doing nothing. That should help.

I'm going to get myself out of this funk..you'll see! But now, excuse me while I go finish my game of solitaire..I've got to keep my percentage numbers up. It's what I live for right now.

A lazier than ever,
Married Georgia

¡Vamos a la playa!

I finally did it... yes, i did! I booked my vacation.. and I am doing a little happy dance as we speak!

Look, I'm a summer person.. Always have been, always will be. But since i've made the transition to the great white North, where winter lasts 10 months and you can pretty much narrow down summer to a Thursday in July (my personal twist on a literal translation from "vara intr-o joi".. and that's how we do it), my longing for sunny summer days has grown exponentially. Please don't ask me what posessed me to willingly move to this country..

All i know is that tomorrow when the snowstorm that they keep threatening us with will hit, i will be daydreaming of palmtrees, sand and sun and thanking the Almighty for inspiring what I suspect was the laziest man ever to come up with THE most awesomest idea of all time: having a bar IN the pool.

A beach-bound Single Canada

More than lab reactions..

Such funny creatures we are... how is it that we can react like giggly school girls when faced with guys that are neither nice, nor particularly desirable, but can't quite find that undefinable "je ne sais quoi" when a genuinely decent, warm guy comes along...

I think you know where this is going..

Don't get me wrong, the date was great, the conversation flowed, there were some laughs, no awkward pauses, no minor or major incidents.. I even managed not to spill coffee on my white shirt (no small feat for me) and he didn't ask me if I was Chinese (which believe me, HAS happened before)...it was in many ways better than I could have hoped. And yet for a little more than 2 hours there was no flirting to speak of. Nope... none whatsoever. For those keeping score: Friendship potential 10 out of 10, Chemistry level 1 ouf ot 100...

Which is so infuriating.. Watching too many bad movies and reading too many lame self help books might lead you to believe that if you try hard enough, maybe you could just create "the magic" using one simple ingredient that all of us have plenty of: wishful thinking. But what if that's the advice coming from people who haven't found it either?..

So i'm torn.. In the meantime i haven't heard anything more from him either. Which i'm thinking should kinda give me a bit of a hint..`

A chemistry challenged,

Single Canada

Love me today. It says so on the calendar.

As a married couple, we almost feel obligated to celebrate the big V day. Oh my, it's Valentine's day! We should do something, right? So we tried to do something. But being from Romania where we didn't really celebrate it, it wouldn't have mattered much to me if we went out on the 14th or on the 21st.."
Here are a few reasons why we'll consider going out for Valentine's Day on a different day:
*You won't be late to your dinner reservation because of traffic
*You don't need to sit so close to the other table so you can actually reach over and taste their bacon wrapped scallops
*You don't look like you're part of a group sitting at one big table, because you are ALL sitting so close to each other
*You won't need to pay double for everything on the menu - hellooo? we've been here before! we know what your regular prices are!
*Chances are you will find a parking spot
*You can have a coffee somewhere else after dinner without needing a reservation
*You can plan this evening around your period.

What's always nice to get though, Valentine's Day or not, is a card saying "You are the most beautiful woman I know". Even though I know that's sooo not true!
And also, having a cute little boy hand you a rose and a card, signed, Your little LOVE bug.
AWWWWW..how cute is that!?

In love in Georgia,
Married Georgia

Hopes and cookies..

I'm very excited for you my dear friend! I hope things will start going the right way for a change! I can't wait to hear the stories that will come out from these dates..because let me tell you people, there are always stories, but maybe this time they'll be less "he brought his mom and sister to meet me" and more "he picked me up in a helicopter and we had cheesecake on top of the world!".

I spent my day baking cookies with my son. We want to offer them tomorrow to Mr.Handsome as a Valentine's Day present. He's on a diet so a cookie will fit the spot. Of course I'll expect diamonds and pearls from him in exchange for my cookie. It's only fair.

OH, and the chocolate is gone. What will i do now?

Sending all good vibes,
Married Georgia

Anticipation

So the photo that launched a dozen hits achieved a minor miracle yesterday.. Now, it may not mean much (if anything) for the average person, it won't solve the financial crisis and it definitely won't cure any fatal disease.. But it already managed to give me something i have been missing in a good long while: a tiny bit of hope that there may be better days to come.

The suspense must be killing you, so i'll just go ahead and say it: I got asked out on a date. No, no, the end of the world isn't next, for you cynicals out there! Although you never know..

The irony of the fact that my first date in centuries will be on Valentine's day is not lost on me... i can't quite decide if that's kinda romantic or very cheesy..

For now i'm just enjoying the feeling of knowing i have something to look forward to for a change. And that's more than enough. Until tomorrow.

A kind-of-enjoying-her-status Single Canada

Boys, boys, boys, I'm ready for the good times..

Ah, boys... don't we just love them, straight ladies? i sure know i do.. Love their teasing, love their sense of humor and yes, even their almost ever-present cluelessneess. There's nothing quite like seeing yourself through the eyes of a guy that finds you interesting.

So as I said, I'm on these dating sites.. And recently i've changed my profile picture and noticed that all of a sudden I started getting more hits from interesting guys than a week ago, when i still had a perfectly presentable photo.

Mind you, I'm painfully aware of my place in the food chain.. far from me the thought that I might be God's gift to men. And i totally understand how much somebody's picture can make a difference in your desire to get to know them better or not. But i still find it absolutely fascinating how visually driven guys are.. I'm not saying girls aren't, but we definitely put less emphasis on it. As Ellen D would say: Am i right, ladies?

All of this to say: Boy, am i ever glad i posted that new picture...:)) Yup, that's how shallow I am.

So obviously Single Canada

Catching ZZZs

I had such a good night's sleep last night! I feel so rested! NOT! My son, Luke, who's 2, woke up crying at 4 in the morning, probably from a bad dream..I get him back in bed and sleeping quickly but it doesn't last long until he's crying again. But this time, he doesn't want to go back to his crib. So I bring him in bed with me and my husband. He doesn't want his name revealed so I will call him Mr.Handsome. For some reason I think he will be OK with that. So, we get in bed with Mr.Handsome and Luke gets very cozy and starts dozing off. I knew exactly what was going to happen next but since I enjoy torturing myself I still brought the baby in bed with us. Right then, Mr.Handsome starts his louder than 2 trains colliding snore..and of course, Luke wakes up, I'm still up and all the neighbors are up. I know it's not necessarily his fault, but in times like that, all I want to do it rip his tongue out and feed it to the cat. It's that annoying! So, all I'm left to do is just sit there and try to predict the next loud snore so I can kick him before that happens. Meanwhile, my poor baby is tossing and turning, and can't fall asleep either. Only his father seems to have the best sleep! Nothing gets to him. Not even my kicks.
Towards 5.30, I couldn't take this anymore and we go in the living room and put Luke on the couch. I try to fit in there too, my butt half way hanging off and it's cold but I don't care. It's finally quiet and we can sleep. Just then, my cat starts scratching at her food jar. Meow? Meow? Stopppp!!! Can I feed her to my snoring husband now?
I throw the cat outside, find my way back on the couch again and it's happening. I'm falling asleep..
Mr.Handsome wakes us up at 8, all innocent looking..What's the matter guys? Why are you here??
If only I weren't so tired..you'd see what we're doing here..
So see Mitz, kids or no kids, married or single, a good night's sleep doesn't come by often.

Yours truly tired,
Married Georgia

When you have waaay too many options

This morning, after i convinced myself that the alarm didn't go off in the middle of the night, yes it's really that late, fed the cat, took my shower and laughed out loud listening to snippets of David on painkillers (it's even better when you see it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-bNunsWkIw - poor kid, he's SO out of it and so funny), i was getting dressed and thinking to myself: "See, Aly.. isn't it great when you think about what you'd like to wear the night before and you save so much time in the morning. You should do that ALL the time!". And i'm done getting dressed, look in the mirror and you guessed it: it doesn't work. Might as well accept it, it's just always gonna happen.

So, 5 outfits later i'm running kinda late and i start fixing my hair, which I had let air dry last night while temporarily insane, and of course that takes me ANOTHER 10 minutes, by which time I am officially horribly, horribly late and still look like i spent the night shooting heroine in my eyeballs and then got ready for work in the dark - i tried to adapt the "dormit pe trepte" in English, but wasn't so sure of the outcome: "spent the night in the stairwell"? yeah, still needs some work..

As does my morning routine.

Messy Single Canada

Oh, fudge..

So..I like chocolate. I like chocolate A Lot! And the other day I decided that the 35 blocks of chocolate in my pantry weren't enough anymore so it was time to make some fudge. And while I like chocolate a lot..I looove homemade fudge. 20 mins later, the fudge was DONE. I put it in the freezer and sat down on the couch. 1 min later, I'm thinking.."I wonder if it's done yet" And I go check and by check I mean eat a spoonful. "Hmm..not quite done yet. But still good" I go sit back down on the couch. This time, I wait 2 mins and back to the freezer for another spoonful. "mmm...so delicious..but still kind of soft". I could not focus on anything, but that damn fudge! Why?? Why did I make it???
A quarter of soft fudge later..I start feeling nauseous. I refuse to think that it's because of the fudge. So, on my way to the bathroom, I stop in front of the freezer. "Yay! It's done! I can finally eat a piece!" But no, I was interrupted by my growling stomach..Where is the bathrooommm??
It's been 2 days since I made the fudge. I eat the fudge everyday. I think of the fudge every minute. I am nauseous everyday. I behave like an addict around it. I can't let anyone see that I visit the fridge every 5 mins. I'm afraid they will link my eating fudge to my being nauseous and take it away. I can't let that happen!
Oh, and did I mention that I'm on a diet??

The always nauseous,
Married Georgia

Blogger baby, u so cute..

Welcome to the world, little blog baby! You'll see, it's not such a bad place once you get used to it..

So last night I went on that dating site for my daily dose of rejection.. this time it was from a guy that decided after 2 sets of questions that there wasn't enough chemistry between us. Why do i do this to myself, people? Oh yeah, probably because i've been single since longer than i care to remember.

But as they say, what doesn't kill you.. scars you for life.:)

Anyhoo, the good news today weatherwise: no -170 degrees temperatures to report. The bad news: freezing rain in the forecast, which should make for a fun walk/slide home from the metro this afternoon.

Feel better, Mitzishor! Here's to the beginning of a beautiful bloggership...

Pitifully yours,
Single Canada

The first One

It's finally here...our little blogger baby is about to be born! I hope he or she(we still haven't decided which one it is yet) will bring us lots of joy! We can call this LABOR..until we have a defined idea for this.

I woke up this morning with a big "guguloi" in my throat..That's what I get after 2 days of sore throat. But it's ok, the sun is shinning and another warm day is on the way! How's weather in Canada these days? Still 800 billion degrees below? Oh..so sorry to hear that.

I'm looking forward to finding little dark secrets in here..as they will probably be mostly mine :)

Let's kick this off by saying..Happy Blogging my dear friend!

Your's truly,
Married Georgia