The Happiness Project :: Week 37

So I know that it seems like Halloween

happened one-hundred-years ago

but it makes me happy

so I'm talking about it now.

The boys dressed up for a 

little parade at their school.

Griffin was a viscous dragon

and Koen was a sneaky ninja.

When it was time to get dressed up

for trick or treating,

Koen suddenly abandoned his ninja costume 

and found a Spiderman costume in our dress up box
that was a size too small and had a hole in the back.

I couldn't convince him otherwise.

I was a Whoopie Cushion.

My mom bought the costume

at the flea market for $2.00.

I had a little bit too much fun

making toot noises with my mouth

when people hugged me.

This was the first year that Griffin

wanted to be something scary.

He was a toxic wasteland insane person.

We met up with friends for trick or treating.

Roger put the fear of God in the boys

and told them that they couldn't run ahead

in the dark streets like they always try to.

If they did, they would have to hold our hand

and if they cried then they had to go home.

It worked. I've never seen Griffin walk so fast.

So there ya have it,

our Halloween 2013.

   

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

An Oldie But a Goodie :: This is a True Story

Originally posted 10/29/10

image found here

It was a balmy night in San Antonio, Texas

and as my car barrelled through the night,
all of the passengers in the car sat in silence.
We were all building up our courage to visit the Ghost Tracks.

The story is the stuff of urban legend...
the tale of an intersection of roadway and railroad track that is haunted.
In the 1930s a school bus full of children
stalled on the railroad tracks and a train crashed into the bus.
10 children died as well as the bus driver on that day.

Legend says that the spirit of the children linger
near the tracks and if a car stops in front of the tracks
that they will push your car over the tracks to safety.
To add to the spookiness of this paranormal phenomena,
folks say that if you cover the back of the car
and rear bumper with baby powder that you will see tiny fingerprints.
No doubt, prints from the dead children.

My friends and I were just crazy enough
to put this urban legend to the test.
We pulled the car up to the intersection
that was seemingly on an upward slant.
The car was put into neutral 30 yards from the railroad tracks.

We sat in silence until one of us would giggle
then we would all shoosh and smack each other to be quiet.
A few of us jumped out of the car
and braved the silent darkness
to put the baby powder on the back of the car
and then ran back in the car squealing.

Then we sat idling before the tracks.
I turned off the engine and put the car in neutral.
As I took my foot off of the gas,
I could feel my heart beating in my neck
I was so scared.

Suddenly, the car started to move forward.
We all gasped as we gained momentum
and went steadily over the bump,
then over the tracks,
and down on the other side.

Once the car stopped,
we all took turns screaming and freaking out.
Did we dare get out of the car to see if the fingerprints were there?
We made a pact to all get of the car together to look.

Armed with a flashlight,
I shined the light on the bumper to find
tiny fingerprints all over the back of my car.
No lie, there were little bitty hand prints all over the place.

We all screamed again and bumped into one another
as we scrambled to get back in the car.
I drove like a bat out of hell
and never looked back.

Don't believe me?
Watch this...

 
Have a Happy Halloween!!!

The trophy that proved me wrong...

Soccer season is over and it's bitter sweet

because it was Koen's first time playing on a team.

The Attack made for a good little group.

Koen mostly ran circles around everyone.

Literally, he would run an orbit around everyone

as they kicked the ball down the field.

That kid can run fast, too.

I hold so many memories in my heart from the season.

Like how Koen would stand up if he fell down

and just look at me with a quivering lip to see if he was okay.

 I would nod and yell "You're alright!!" from the sidelines

then he'd dust himself off and start running again. 

I'll never forget the high fives and

squeals that unfolded when he scored a goal.

I'll always remember the tender hugs of comfort

that I gave him when his team lost.

It's all really great "life" stuff.

They had a little celebration after the last game

where they handed out cupcakes and trophies.

It reminded me of this article that I wrote

a while back where I blasted participation trophies

because I felt like they were empty praise.

You know what, though?

I'm not too proud to admit when I change my mind

because Koen is so flippin' proud of his little trophy.

He says goodnight to it every single night.

He pulls it down from the shelf and carries it around the house.

It actually rode to school with us the other day.

He loves it and I'm glad that he has it.
I see how much it means to him
and I wish that I could take back
many of those words that I wrote
and make myself a little trophy that says
"You're a winner."

Because sometimes recognition feels good.

The Happiness Project :: Week 36

Roger and I escaped for the weekend 

and went to my Father-in-law's hunting preserve,

just the two of us.

I had the mornings to myself

while Roger left early to go hunting

and had the best view to look at

while I did some much needed writing.

Later in the day, we hopped on

4 wheelers and played in the dirt.

It's just so fun to feel the air 

rushing over me as I speed down dirt roads.

We hiked in the woods and searched for arrowheads.

We may have stopped to smooch

here and there beneath the shade of the trees.

I even did some target practice, just for fun.

It was my first time shooting a rifle 

and I'm not going to lie,

it was pretty exciting. 

I did pretty good, for a first timer.

There's a little country girl living in me

that just feels so happy when I play in South Georgia.
 

   

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

Want to join me in my quest
to scout out happiness for a whole year?
Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
Then, steal my button and include it in your post.
Don't forget to link up to Mr. Linky.

An Oldie but a Goodie :: My stupid dumb next to last baby toe.

Originally posted 3/9/12

I was grumpy and tired
as I walked through the kitchen
with an armful of dirty laundry.
It had been a long day.

I stumbled over a toy cash register
that was beneath my clumsy feet on the kitchen floor.
My toes collided with the misplaced toy
as I caught my balance.

It did me in.
I dropped the dirty clothes onto the ground,
ran to the hallway, and cursed as I spilled
myself onto the carpet.

Then I laid there in the hallway
and cried for ten minutes.

My second to last baby toe was bleeding.

{The stupid culprit}

Roger took pity on me and dressed my small wound.
Then, he lovingly left me laying in the hallway to mope.
It felt good just to lay there on my back and cry.

He even offered to take a picture of me
looking pitiful on the floor for a blog post
but I decided not to document that moment with a photo.

My mom called just as I was peeling my
sad bones off  the carpet.
I told her all about my bad day
and my stupid next to last baby toe getting stubbed
on that stupid dumb cash register.

"You need some TLC." was her response.

So, she offered to take Koen the next morning

and treated me to a much needed pedicure.
She was totally right, I take care of everyone else
but I rarely take care of myself.

It felt so nice to get pampered for a change.

I sat in the spa chair and read People Magazine.
The massage chair rolled across my tired back
and I thought about how much I neglect myself.

Long ago, when I was a teenager
and feeling a bit down,
I would take extra special care of myself.
I remember how I used to wake up early before school to take a hot bath
or to sit and read a book with a mud mask on my face.
It always made me feel better.

This mama needs to be kinder to her body.

In the end, the pedicure was just what my soul needed.

My stupid dumb second to last big toe
felt fancy and pampered.

I made a promise to myself to
shut the bathroom door tight
and ignore the little boys
that throw themselves against the door.

It's time for me to start taking care of me too.

I'm having a crummy morning...

 

I have a stupid ear infection.

This means that my left ear is muffled

to outside noises but vibrating like a mad drum inside my head.

My other ear hears everything amplified,

so I feel like a crazy person.

It doesn't help that my kids won't stop singing

that stupid song

What Does the Fox Say?

at the top of their lungs.

It doesn't help that when Koen's happy

he just walks around the house singing 

about things that he loves in bravado.

"I loOOve to eAtt  iCe crEaM!"

"I lOOvE to wAtCH woRd gIRL!"

It doesn't help that the boys 

like to bicker over nothing 

early in the morning.

Their constant yipping

resounds in my good ear

and beats my brain in the bad ear.

To add insult to injury,

I went to Urgent Care last night

and they gave me a stupid dumb steroid shot

where the sun don't shine.

Now my bum is tender

and even my thigh is sore.

While I'm getting things off my chest,

my husband is the loudest snorer on the planet

and in trying to fall asleep last night 

I felt like going all Joe Peschi

in My Cousin Vinny,

when he runs out in his underwear

and shoots a gun in the air to shut up a screeching owl.

 Hold me.

The Happiness Project :: Week 35

What could be better than a day

spent at a local carnival?

I love the excitement of walking 

in and seeing all of the brilliant colors.
 

Watching the sweet expressions

on the faces of my boys as they 

float up and down on the rides

is worth the trip alone.

 I love watching tender childhood moments unfold.

Like spinning hand in hand on a ride...
 

or skipping through the grounds in

anticipation of what thrill will come next.

Griffin built up all of his nerve

and rode this crazy ride with me.

It was super intense and when

I looked over at him as I shouted with glee,

his little eyes looked terrified

and I screamed "STOP THE RIDE!"

as we soared back and forth. 

The nice man let us off.

I've never seen Griffin so happy

to feel his feet on solid ground.

The laughter that echoes off the walls

of the fun house while the kids play in the mirrors

is the best sound to be heard.

My little guys couldn't resist the call

from the Carnival workers

"Hey kid, come pop a balloon and win a teddy bear!"

You can't escape their calls.

The carnival is just about the best place on earth!

   

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

Want to join me in my quest
to scout out happiness for a whole year?
Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
Then, steal my button and include it in your post.
Don't forget to link up to Mr. Linky.