Fitting Room Phobia

**This is a re-post from my archive/old blog**

Feeling the need for some groovy new summer duds, I decided to go out and pick out a few new tops. I was on a mission though as I wanted something special to match hubby. Yeah, I know...we are one of those creepy couples that actually LIKE to dress alike...or at least in colors/shirts that are complementary.

We were that couple in college that had matching shirts and wore the same colors...all. the. time. LOL A few babies later and my clothes don't really fit and well, my fashion tastes (and his) have changed somewhat. But, occasionally we still like to indulge in that fun fashion statement that says, very definitively, we are a couple...of fashionistas.

So, back to my mission. I have heard so many great things about TARGET and their flair for fashion. And lucky for us, we just got a bright shiny new Target here in our little corner of the world. So with no children in tow, I headed off to find just the right top to match my man...at Target.

I have to say, I was a little disappointed in my choices, maybe because we are a small town, maybe because everyone else in town had the same idea and they were cleaned out. Never-the-less, I was on a QUEST. I needed to find a shirt. It was for a date night...and we don't get to many of those. Time was short, so I found a couple shirts and headed to the fitting room.

Checked in at the desk, got my little tag and headed around the corner. Safe in my little mirrored room, I started changing. I am used to overhearing conversations in the fitting room. You know, us gals like to do things like use the potty and shop in pairs. But when I am stripped down to my skivvies, the voices I hear in the room next to mine should definitely be of the female persuasion!!

Immediately, I rewind to the signage in my mind...did I go the wrong way? Am I on the wrong side? Did she point me in the wrong direction? Is that a man's voice?! I am not a quick dresser, more of a prissy preener, but I set a world record in those moments. I would have made my mother proud. How many mornings did she complain about my lack of speed? But I digress...

I whipped open the flimsy fitting room door to see the backside of a male form leaving the fitting area. Now I don't know about you, but that is NOT what I want to see when I am trying on clothes. I hurried out behind him, anxious to ask the woman at the desk which one of us was in the wrong area.

Her answer, "This is a uni-sex fitting room. Anyone can try things on back there."

We've come a long way, baby. I gave her back my selections and left in a daze. While I can state with some certainly that I will not be purchasing (or at least trying on) clothes there, I have to wonder is this the direction all places are headed? What would make them choose to go this route. Are there that many folks confused about their gender that we need to make it easy for them and hard on the rest of us? Or am I just a prude? Would it have shaken YOU up to hear a man on the other side of your wall?

Anyone...

There may still be hope for the technologically challenged...

Musings of a Housewife is hosting a bloggy carnival this week that I just had to join. What I've learned this week. Because I have something of value to share with you all.

I am hopelessy technologically inept. In addition, I am somewhat resistant to change. So although I heard about the FLOCK browser, I was already happy with my personalized Firefox browser. Remember, the technology learning curve is, for me, pretty steep. So learning about Firefox additions and extensions and finding and adding what I liked, bookmarking my special hangouts on the web and setting up my iGoogle page took a LOT of work. When somethings not broke, why fix it?

My husband installed the FLOCK browser on his computer and urged me to look at it. "I think you'll like it." He knows me so well. But I was resistant.

At a friends house the other night though, we were having what was supposed to be a scrapping get-together, but since I don't scrap, I brought my laptop and we had a wireless Facebook signup party instead. It was way fun. I noticed my girlfriend had the FLOCK browser on her computer so I asked her about it. After she showed me some of the features, I decided to download it.

Oh friends, what this browser can do!! All the social networks I am a part of are aggregated right in my people bar. That's right. Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Digg (which I joined, but never really fully used) and more, all accessible, all at the same time. Media streams are integrated as well. Flicker, YouTube, Picasa, Photbucket all searchable from a little button always available on your toolbar. All my feeds, both blogs I MUST read and my favorite RSS news feeds are instantly available in the MY WORLD tab.

Have a look at the social capabilities.

Getting Social with the Flock 1.2 Browser:

Blogging with Blogger can be such a chore in the blogger editor, especially trying o place/embed media. With FLOCK, it is SOOO easy. I LOVE the clipboard and drag and drop feature.

Blogging with the Flock 1.2 Browser:

But wait! There's MORE!! Do I sound like a late night infomercial? A very cool feature to me is that FLOCK is built on the Firefox platform, so all those apps and extensions that I had been using previously that I so didn't want to part with? They can all by used with FLOCK too!!

Are you ready? Wondering if it will work for you? Here's how to get started. Have a look. I have a feeling you will see the potential right away.

Getting Started with the Flock Browser:

Let me know if you decided to give it a try. The more I use it, the better I like it. That's sayin something for the technologically challenged gal that I am. =)

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Phyllis Needs...

Looking for a silly activity to pass the time and give you a good giggle?  Google seems to have all the answers.  While poking around the internet, I found this goofy activity.  Plug in your first name and then the word 'needs.'  Since I share my first name with a prominent character on a soap opera, my results were somewhat skewed by the actions of said character.  Still, it was a fun activity  (and that silly girl has some serious issues.) (also of note: there are a lot of soap opera discussion boards online!) 

Here is what google listed as my top ten needs.

Phyllis needs...to forgive already.  Evidently, I hold a grudge for a very long time.

Phyllis needs...to cut the apron strings. Seems that google knows that **maybe** I am not willing to let my boys grow up.  I have threatened to make them walk around with bricks on their heads and to arrange their marriages.  To no avail...

Phyllis needs...a hug.  Awww.  Doesn't everyone?

Phyllis needs...to make up her mind.  I didn't know I was so undecisive.  Or maybe I did, then again...Hmmm, I bet my husband could chime in on this.  Honey?

Phyllis needs...a new maid.  This is the first one that I completely agree with.  Not because we are dirty people (if you dropped by today, shh), but just because I really hate to 'deep clean.'  I can manage to keep things moderately straight (sometimes),  but that whole elbow grease thing...yeah, not so much.

Phyllis needs...to stop talking about the election.  This will be difficult to do since America just voted in someone whose policies, stances and administration I disagree with on so *many* different levels.

Phyllis needs...some Psychology 101 courses.  This made me laugh out loud.  Psych was my major in college and I TOOK Psych 101.  More than once *ahem*.

Phyllis needs...help.  This could be interpreted so MANY different ways.  I'm going to go with the most obvious need for me, laundry and dishes help.  If someone wants to take those daily monotonous jobs off my plate, I'd be ever so grateful.

Phyllis needs...more hours in my day!  Amen to that.  Of course, I could just turn off the computer and do a better job with the hours I already have.

Phyllis needs...a lifestyle that allows her to be spontaneous.  LOL  That is actually pretty true.  Anything that even remotely suggests rules, boundaries, schedules, budgets...Any of the above seem entirely too restrictive to me.  If I had been born in a different era, I could easily have been a free-spirited hippie.

What do YOU need?  Try it out for yourself and leave me a comment.  I'll pop over and we can laugh together, cause I guarantee this will be fun.  I started plugging in my sisters names, my husbands, my parents, friends, etc...

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Ugly Mug Contest

Well, voting closes at midnight and I had other things to get to today like, oh feed the family and take a shower, and I did not pre-schedule this post because I love the last minute pressure. It's exhilarating to squeeze in just before a deadline...just ask my college professors or my homeschool co-op leaders or just about anyone who know me well. So, although I am at a disadvantage, I had to enter because I can't imagine anyone else is drinking from as ugly a mug as mine. And if they are, they are not brave enough to take theirs out in PUBLIC!

Yes, it's true.

A little back story. When I first read of this special contest I was discouraged. Having recently relocated, I purged our cabinets and blessed the local thrift stores with all manner of accumulated household junk. To open my cabinets today, you would see all kinds of pretty cups and mugs, mostly matching. You can see how I would be at a disadvantage.

Yet, this morning, while perusing my blog reader waiting for the children to finish the chores so we could begin our school day, I thought again about this contest when I saw Linda's post. (BTW~This contest represents her 1000th entry!) As I brought my coffee to my lips, my despair vanished. Because THIS is what I have my coffee in...every single day.




This used to have the name of the coffee shop in FL I would frequent (boy howdy do I miss them), but over time and a few hundred runs through the dishwasher, it has worn off.




You know how they recommend that these kind of mugs not go through a dishwasher? They aren't kidding! The paint is peeling and the name is pretty much gone, but I like to sip my coffee over time and an insulated mug is the only thing that keeps it hot enough for me to enjoy all morning. I love the light pink color and the curvy shape, but I guess it may be time to purchase a new one, eh? Here it is in better days.



On the upside, it's very easy to find if I set it down while I am out somewhere. There's really no mistaking the description...Pink/Stainless steel/peeling paint.

Won't you consider voting for me? You know, that Starbucks card would be just the thing to get me a new pretty mug to have my morning joe in.

**T0 place your vote, go here and leave her a comment saying that you liked mine the best.

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Children & Proverbs

A first grade teacher collected well known proverbs. She gave each child
in her class the first half of a proverb and asked them to come up with
the remainder of the proverb. Their insight may surprise you.

Better to be safe than....................Punch a 5th grader

Strike while the .........................Bug is close

It's always darkest before............... Daylight Savings Time

Never underestimate the power of..........Termites

You can lead a horse to water but........how?

Don't bite the hand that................. looks dirty

No news is................................impossible

A miss is as good as a...................Mr.

You can't teach an old dog new............math

If you lie down with dogs, you'll.........stink in the morning

Love all, trust..........................me

The pen is mightier than the..............pigs

An idle mind is..........................The best way to relax

Where there's smoke there's...............pollution

Happy the bride who.......................gets all the presents

A penny saved is..........................not much

Two's company, three's....................the Musketeers

Don't put off till tomorrow what..........you put on to go to bed

Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and.......you have to blow your nose.

None are so blind as......................Stevie Wonder

Children should be seen and not...........spanked or grounded

If at first you don't succeed.............get new batteries

You get out of something what you.........see pictured on the box

When the blind leadeth the blind..........get out of the way

And the favorite:

Better late than.........................pregnant.

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I See What You're Saying

The lovely Linda at 2nd Cup of Coffee is hosting "I See What you're Saying" today. Since I am the procrastinator extrordinaire, I did not do a video ahead of time, (and today I don't feel so hot..or look it). Instead, I was inspired to put up a snippit of my darling 3 yr old.

Let me explain, Linda blogged about her dislike for musicals sometime back (I know!) and introduced my family to the Food Court Musical by Improv Everywhere. I laugh every single time I see it...with out fail. All my children know all the words and sing them at odd and random times, which also causes me to laugh. But the best is my daughters anti-napkin song...



Maybe next time I'll put myself in the video. But for today, just trust me, she's way cuter. =)

A Christmas Miracle...alternatively titled, God always provides.

It was December, 2004. I'm sure of the date because I was pregnant with our fourth child. I tend to categorize major life events around where we lived or which children were/were not born yet. I'll have to amend this dating system, because barring a miracle, we are done having kids. Regardless, I will always remember this moment in time with crystal clarity.

We lived in Central Florida, a part of Florida that had scoffed at hurricanes because "we're so far inland." Perhaps those scoffers needed to study a map a bit closer as the state isn't really all that wide and is surrounded by water! This year, all of Florida got a wake up call to the destruction and far reaching effects of hurricanes...even to inland counties. Four storms crossed the state that year, all of them crossing with in miles of one another and with in the short time frame of 2 months. It was the only time in history that four storms affected the same state.

The finances at the small church we were serving at were greatly effected. In order to give them the stability they needed, my husband volunteered to work gratis for a time until the financial footing of the congregation could be restored. We were serving in a support role (Family Pastors) and the Senior Pastor gratefully agreed to this arrangement. Two months later, we had burned through what little saving we had and my husbands free-lance design work was not enough to feed the family and pay the bills and we still were not back on payroll. Clearly, something had to give. Either he needed to be released from the position so that he could pursue full-time free lance or he needed to be paid for his time at the church.

After meeting with the pastor, we found the finances just were not there for us to continue in full-time ministry at the church. He agreed to a severance package of what we understood to be two months of pay (Nov/Dec) and we set a date for our last Sunday sometime in November.

The first week of December rolled around and I pulled into the parking lot to pick up what would be the third of four checks (two months, paid twice monthly). I walked into the office of the book-keeper and she tearfully told me that she made out the check, but the pastor told her that we had agreed to TWO PAY PERIODS severance pay, not TWO MONTHS and would not sign the check. I assured her that this misunderstanding did not take God by surprise and we would be fine. I walked out to my van and bawled my eyes out.

Knowing that the church was indeed dire financial shape, my husband chose not to push the issue or seek clarification, rather to trust God to provide. Easy for him, he did not manage the money every month!! I knew the mortgage payment was already past due by a few days, we had no groceries and only $60 in the bank. It was the first week of DECEMBER and I had three little boys to make Christmas happen for. Although we only purchase three gifts for them anyways, it still wouldn't happen at all without some money from somewhere.

On top of the stress and pressure this would naturally put upon a mama, I was 5 months pregnant. Talk about weepy and emotional! I remembered all the phrases and verses about how God provides and sustains and tried very hard to meditate on them, but circumstances kept choking out what little hope I could scrape together. I shared our situation with a few friends in our homeschool support group, not hoping they could take up an offering, rather sincerely desiring prayer for my doubting spirit.

A few days went by and although we'd received a few bags of groceries, the mortgage was still unpaid and there didn't seem to be any hope that my husband would pick up enough work on such short notice to make ends meet. I was desperately trying to hold myself together in spite of our bank account. Peace eluded me, I couldn't sleep, I was nervous, restless and irritable. With a deep need to find some solace, I picked up a book I had purchased over the summer and headed to the bathroom (the only room in the house that little boys can NOT follow their momma into). The book, "Praying God's Word" by the lovely Beth Moore.

It fell open to the chapter on Unbelief and as I read her devotional opening to the chapter, I identified with her story. She talked about how when God wants to get your attention, it seems that you will hear the same message in several different ways. The Sunday morning sermon, the scripture reading on the radio station, an encouraging card from a friend...I have had that happen several times to me. She shared a particular time in her own life when the message seemed to be on "Believing God" and how she was offended that God would continually prompt her spirit with such a message. After all, she had grown up in church! Of course she believed in God! I understood her indignation, as I grew up in church myself. The Holy Spirit checked her and said, "I didn't ask if you believed IN me, I wonder if you BELIEVE ME. Do you believe I will do what I say I will do? Am I able to deliver on the promises found in the word?"

Wow. Immediately upon reading those words, I was deeply convicted. I had such familiarity with God and his promises that I was cavalier about how much he truly cared for my little family! I found as I reflected on where I placed my trust, I was very dependent on those paychecks for provision instead of realizing who was ultimately in charge of making sure my husband got paid!

In Beth's story, she too was convicted and prayed the prayer of the man in Mark 9:24, "Lord I believe, Help my unbelief!" I began to weep and seek repentance for not trusting God to take care of us and our needs. But then in an impatient moment of humanity, I said, "I want to trust you, I do! I know you will take care of us, I do! But could you just give me little sign right NOW, that would help me know it so much better."

God is so sweet with us and our childish ways. Speaking of children, mine were clamoring outside the bathroom door with important, life altering questions like, "Mom, can you come out and fix us some lunch?" "I hear you crying in there, are you hurt?" "Can you make him give me back that toy!?" Reality crept in on my stolen moments with the Lord and I began to close the book to come out and take care of thier little crises when a small, yet thick and heavy, business sized envelope slipped out of the book into my lap. On the front was scrawled our family's name in blue ink. While I wondered what this was, I also was trying to think when I might have slipped it in the book. You know...when someone hands you something and you slip it in your Bible or purse to open later? I couldn't remember ever being anywhere with that book, in fact, I hadn't even looked at that book almost since I first had purchased it. It had been on a bookcase in my bedroom. I hadn't loaned it out, so it was a real mystery where the envelope came from.

While I pondered the questions of where did this come from, who had my book, and what was inside, I opened the envelope.

Oh my friends, God is so sweet. Remember my asking for a sign? Inside that envelope was a STACK. OF. CASH. As I counted it out, I began to simultaneously weep with greater repentance and yelp with shock and surprise. I remember getting to $300 and thinking, "There's still more in my other hand!!" It was $500 in cash. We have never figured out the earthly person that placed it there, for all I know, it could have been supernaturally planted there by angels at my point of need. What I do know is that God provided for us the most miraculous month ever.

I love how the Body of Christ responds to needs. God began to prompt friends and acquaintances to minister to us in ways as simple as bags of groceries and as marvelous as money in Christmas cards. Black garbage bags showed up on our doorstep full of gifts for the boys. We came home one evening and there was a tree propped in the corner of the porch. Over the course of the month, we received over $2500 in cash, gift cards, and checks. About $1700 of that was anonymously given, including that first very miraculous $500.

God seriously showed up and helped me overcome my doubts and unbelief in the area of provision that year. What is truly astounding to me is how patient God is with me. Would you believe I STILL struggle sometimes with trusting God to supply our needs?! When this happens, I not only take the time to reflect on scriptures and promises to the contrary, but I take the time to remember how incredibly he met our need in December of 2004. It always builds my faith and blesses me to remember. I pray that it has blessed you too. Merry Christmas!