It’s a new phrase I’ve coined.

I used to love reading and talking politics. But Facebook has changed that for me.

I used to be very strong in voicing my political opinions.  But Facebook has changed that for me.

I used to love debating anything politically related.  But Facebook has changed that for me.  I can continue.  But I won’t.

All of a sudden, everyone’s a political analyst. Thank you, Facebook.

All of a sudden, everyone can give me 9.2 million reasons I should vote for a 75 year old man for President of the United States.  Thank you, Facebook.

All of a sudden, people I used to like are on my “people I need to block” and “people I need to hide” list.  Thank you, Facebook.

All of a sudden, politics are politicannoying.  Thank you, Facebook.

It’s a new year.  And with it comes promises of organization, fitness, less procrastination, eating healthy, ridding your life of certain vices. Not my promises, but the usual stuff you see blasted in headlines, in commercials, on the internet.  You get the picture.

I’m not a real big resolution maker.  Mainly because I procrastinate, and also because I don’t really have anything I truly want to change about myself.  I might tweak things, but change?  No thanks.

The only thing I really and truly want to do differently this year is to get back to blogging.  I’ve been trying for years now, and my posts have become less and less frequent with each year.  It just happened.  I always have things to say, always have things to talk about.  I’ve thought about picking a theme, but I never stick to any one interest long enough to keep a theme going.  I’m not worried about readers.  I’m not worried about using my blog to get a television show (Can’t stand you Prairie Lady or whatever that blog is called).   I don’t worry about offending people.  What I do worry about is BORING PEOPLE TO DEATH with details of my life.  But then I go back to my earlier thoughts about not caring if anyone reads, and have decided to just return to blogging as a means of  jotting down my thoughts without the unnecessary pain of writer’s cramp.

As I’ve mentioned numerous times before, I’m a procrastinator and I’m a little late to the party as far as making my re-debut to the blogging world. Yes, I should have began the process on January 1, but instead I will stick to my true personality and start a couple of days later.

And without further ado, I return to the world of online journals.  Laughter, tears, nonsense, politics, celebrities, friends, family…whatever strikes my fancy when  I log in.

Kind of the same thing, isn’t it?  Time for me to get it in gear.  Next week will be the start of my new blogging cycle.  I have weddings and weddings and weddings and birthdays and school and things and people to discuss and yet I don’t do it.  And I have absolutely no excuse!

Last night, during our wonderful cookout at our friend Heidi’s (and Jesse’s) house, Justin asked me how I felt about him asking Cristin to get married. Once I told him I was thrilled with the idea, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring he’d gotten for her earlier in the day. After pressuring him to ask her before we went home for the night, he took her on a little walk and they returned with a ring on the finger. Many hugs, lots of tears and tons of congrats later and Cristin and Justin are officially engaged…just weeks before the head out for their move to San Diego.

I can’t believe my little girl is engaged!

Summer has officially begun, and I have absolutely no idea how that happened.  Lately it seems as though I blink my eyes and some huge milestone occurs.  A child getting ready to enter the double digits.  Yes, Ethan will be 10!  A daughter making a move.  Yikes, Cristin is moving to San Diego for FIVE years!  A son getting married.  Stephen is really getting married.  Shouldn’t he still be 14?!?

And with life moving at such a rapid pace, it’s hard to keep up with everything, everyone, every moment.  I want it to just slow down.  I take deep breaths, I slow down, I enjoy the moments, but life won’t slow down with me and so I keep moving.  Keep watching children grow up, keep noticing the big changes that are taking over the small segments of life, keep wondering how it happened.  Yes, how did I turn into this adult with adult children living adult lives in adult worlds.  I am trying to savor the seconds, meander through the moments, enjoy every element, but it’s hard.  Shouldn’t summer be a time of leisurely days and relaxed evening?  I do take an easy approach to life, but even that doesn’t keep time from ticking at a much too rapid pace.

It may technically be winter, but I’ve got Spring Fever in a bad way.

This morning I walked out, and noticed certain perennials beginning to poke out of the mulch. Even better, is the appearance of buds on the pear trees that grace the front of our neighborhood. Nothing is more beautiful and more welcome than that site every spring. It’s so stunning and pretty much announces “SPRING IS HERE” to the neighborhood.

People who know me, know how I love my flowers and particularly picking new stuff out and getting my fingernails filled with rich, black soil. I love picking, pulling and playing in the garden all summer long. What makes this year particularly exciting is that I am working again, and am the Office Manager for a Landscape Design Company. This means, I get access to the wholesale nurseries and get to buy all my new stuff at wholesale prices. Seriously, what could be better for a garden lover?

Now, the only thing I need is three days in my weekend so I can get all of this accomplished!

I officially removed every single pair of capri pants from my wardrobe this week.  In fact, I never put a pair on my body last year, so I have not worn capris for over two years now.  I am happy about that fashion change, especially since I consider capris to be the mom jean of the 2000′s.  For one thing, they look like shit on people, and apparently others agree.  Like here and here and here.

Besides knowing how amazingly unflattering capri pants are, Adam also hates them.  I mean H-A-T-E-S them!  So, in a huge, and not all that common, effort to please him, I have extinguished capris from my wardrobe.  I have no idea what took me so long to determine that capris cut your body in half, do nothing for your ass, make your legs look short and are really just plain ugly.

Now the fun part begins.  Rebuilding a wardrobe!  Although I did a fair job of that last summer, I am even more excited to expand my wardrobe this spring and summer.  I’ve already bought a couple of really cute dresses, but certainly need more.  I have never been a fan of skirts and tops because they also cut you in half.  I guess I’ll just buy LOTS of cute dresses and a ton of cute new shoes!

I hate the ridiculous things that the schools come up with the idea of them being fun.  Take the Dr. Seuss Birthday Celebration Week that I am supposed to have my child participate in.  Here’s the fun chore that was supposed to be our life this week:

We hope to see everyone wearing these colors on these days:

Monday         Black and White           Mr. Brown Can Moo!  Can You?

Tuesday       Yellow                          Scrambled Eggs Super!

Wednesday   Red, white and black     Cat in the Hat  ” Dr. Suess birthday!

Thursday        Green                                Yertle the Turtle

Friday            Red and Blue               One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish

Now, keep in mind that this was exactly how the note came home.  Dr. Seuss was spelled S-U-E-S-S!  What the fuck?    They spelled it S-U-E-S-S ! ! !  ”Dr. Seuss” was in the letter two more times.  Once spelled incorrectly AGAIN, and one time spelled correctly.  This is what they sent home to EVERY PARENT in the school.

And that is why we won’t be participating.  We don’t know who Dr. Suess is!

…and then I fell asleep.

Yes, the Oscars were a snooze fest for me.  I tried.  I really did.  The Red Carpet always pulls me in, but ABC even failed in that department last night.  I ended up watching the Red Carpet on E!  Ryan Seacrest did the interviews, while Giuliana and Kelly peaked out of a split screen and gave their fashion “thumbs up” and thumbs down” commentary.  Speaking of fashion, Giuliana got my vote by wearing a gorgeous Christian Siriano gown.

Other fashion winners (for me) were Gwyneth Paltrow, Halle Barry, Natalie Portman, and Mila Kunis.  Misses for me were Reece Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.

Was there any one defining moment during the awards that saved it for me?  Ummm…NO!  Well Kirk Douglas was kind of cute and James Franco’s grandmother was quite the little addition, too.  Yes, the seniors definitely ruled the show.

So, my question of the day is:  Who do you think should host the Oscars next year?  And what did you think of James Franco and Anne Hathaway?