Thursday Thirteen # 8

I told my sister that I would write a Thursday Thirteen about her, but I am a big, fat liar. No, actually there is so much to rat on such a wealth of information about her that I need more time to consider which Julia highlights will make it to the TT. So for this week, I am doing the thirteen things will try to do (or try not to do) for 2007. Right here is where Rob would quote Yoda, and say Do or do not. There is no try. To which I might say, "The only real losers are the people who never try." Either that or "Go suck an egg."

**And yes, it is not lost on me how *ahem* someone, who has been so snarky about resolutions, has been making an awful lot of declarations of change for the New Year. But I'm still not calling them resolutions.

Thirteen Things I will Try To Do (or Try NOT to do) in 2007 1. Floss. Every. Single. Night. I take fairly good care of my teeth, if only because I've had so many years of dental appliances, but flossing, well, that's another story. I actually get kind of panicky when I show up for my 6 month cleaning, because I wonder if the dentist will notice that I haven't been as diligent about flossing as I should have been. News flash: There is no way to fool a dentist into believing that you floss every night when you don't. They go to school for that. 2. Exercise and try to eat better. If you've read my blog recently, you already know about all my big plans, so I won't beat a dead horse. Unless, of course, that counts as exercise. 3. Date my husband. Yep, I want to date Rob all over again. You know, restaurants (with no chicken nuggets on the menu), movies (with little or no animation), plays (live theater!). My brother's girlfriend gave us babysitting vouchers for Christmas, and she insists that we use them only for fun outings, not work functions. So get your fancy pants ready, Rob, we're goin' courtin' (and a great, big, sloppy mmmmwah! to Johanna for the gift) 4. Watch my spending habits. And I don't mean like "hey, watch me go nuts in The Children's Place." I'm not a big spender by any means, but I have noticed that, in the past couple of months, I've been a little looser with the purse strings than I need to be. I'll see something so cute (on sale, of course) for Baby Girl and I'll buy it, even though I know that a) she has more clothes than all the people in this house put together, or b) it might be too snug to get good use out of it. All of the clothes she outgrows go to good homes, but I could save myself the money and the time spent sorting if I don't buy it at all. 5. Get back into the menu-planning saddle. Not only will this help me with #2 and #4, I won't have to deal with the cold sweats that go along with the three upturned, hungry faces that start crowding me at 5 pm. I know the kids like "breakfast for dinner," but I'm pretty sure that frozen waffles for 2 out of 3 meals do not make the kids well-rounded in the nutrition department. 6. Play with the kids. I don't, as a general rule, completely ignore the kids. My kids know that I am not here to be their entertainment center, and they are very imaginative and play well together, but sometimes they just want me to drop the laundry and join in a rousing game of Wild Pony Babies Camping Out (an Older Girl creation, I believe). And if I can't join in right away, then I will at least let them use the really big blanket for their fort (even though I have to dig it out of the upstairs closet). 7. Put the laundry away. That means I will actually finish the job, and once I bring the basket upstairs, I will get the clothes to their proper homes. The kids are better than me with this job. I put their clothes on their beds and they put them away. Rob and I just pull clean, folded clothes from the basket until the basket is empty and we take it back to the laundry room full of dirty clothes. 8. I will not buy a new pen, unless every pen I own simultaneously runs out of ink and I am on the verge of biting my finger and writing in blood. This one is hard for me, because I have a serious pen addiction. Luckily, Rob brings home tons of pens that he gets from the drug reps at work, so I won't have to go completely cold turkey. That would not be pretty. 9. Keep the van clean. Well, at least keep it clean-ish so that the kids can climb in and out without demanding hazard pay, and I no longer have to look in the rear view mirror and see Older Girl holding up a sports bottle I haven't seen in months asking, "Mom, do you think this is still good to drink?" 10. Recycle more. I recycle now, but more can't hurt. Especially all those mayonnaise jars that I am too lazy to wash. (shhh, don't tell Rob . . . he is Mr. GreenJeans around these parts) 11. Ease up on the nagging. Nobody wants a harpy for a mother. I need to trust the kids, because 8.5 times out of 10 they do what they need to do without me anyway. 12. Plant and maintain a garden. To those of you who know me, I say "stop laughing. now." I am not known for my gardening skills, but I am convinced that it stems (hah!) from a lack of knowledge. So I will learn some basics during the barren winter months, and then try to keep the carnage down to a minimum. 13. I will NOT stop kissing the faces off of my children on a daily basis. I can't help it, it's a compulsion; and if you could see their faces when I check on them at night, you would understand. Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. mav writter 2. momtoanangel 3. oliviadiane 4. amy 5. le laquet 6. janie hickok siess, esq. 7. chupieandj'smama 8. el-e-e 9. 4andcounting 10. raggedy 11. suburban mum 12. huberama 13. carrie

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