The First and Probably Only Ever MITC Giveaway Sweepstakes Thingamabob

Sooo, Big Sissy has been busy trying to set up her very own Etsy. Of course, we're thrilled for her though we wish she spent a little more of her free time driving to see us instead of painting. Since Big Sissy is new to this whole online self-publicity thing, and since she's never really shown her art to the public, she's feeling a bit self-conscious and nervous about all of this. Let's help her out by flooding her Etsy page with visitors. You can find her at Kokoro Watercolor.

So, go! Go and give her some encouragement. Become her follower. Ask your friends to check out her stuff. Buy things. And then, after you've looked at her stuff, come back here and tell me in the comments section which watercolor you liked the best and why you think you need it in your life. The giveaway part comes when I put your name in a hat and then Big Sissy chooses a winner at random. The winner gets....drum roll please...Yes, that's right. The winner gets a free watercolor painting of his/her choosing.

Is this too convoluted? Probably. This is why I stink at blogging and should probably never have another giveaway.  Of course, I stink at a lot of things, but that's never stopped me before! So, see you in the comments section.

Score Card

Since moving a month ago, I have managed to do the following:

• get the kids registered for school
• find the best place to buy gluten-free food
• put up window treatments
• oversee the completion of a basement remodel
• get Stow signed up for Early Intervention
• figure out the trash schedule
• unpack my books
• make a new, heavier weighted vest

• 

  You may remember the old vest: not bad for a tricked-out backyard safari vest from Wal-mart. The black part is an adjustable ankle weight sewed to the outside of the vest for added weight and balance. This vest certainly did the trick for a couple of years, but it's oh so second grade.

  
  

  

  Now that Sky's in third grade, he's too cool (actually, too self-conscious) for all that kid stuff.  Plus, the old vest was too small and not heavy enough.

  
  

  

  So this is a Gander Mountain youth tackle vest (being worn by an extremely unwilling model) with the weights from an adjustable ankle weight in all of the pockets. The best part? Ren figured out how the sew the ankle weight pouch into the back of the vest, so you can't see it. 

• find another spine specialist who wants to do yet another spine surgery on Ren
• do approximately 60 loads of laundry
• take one child to the ER due to a head injury (Q: What do you get when a kindergartner wields a real-life stethoscope like nunchucks? A: Lots and lots of blood--think Dan Akroyd's Julia Childs skit from SNL.)
• explain the whole Santa thing to Sky who promised not to tell but seems incapable of keeping such fascinating news to himself

(those last two happened in the same 24-hour period, making that a particularly epic day)

I have not managed to do any of the following:

• find a pediatrician
• figure out therapies for Sky
• find a gymnastics class, swim class, dance class or piano teacher
• figure out our new health insurance
• get through a single night without being awakened by one or more of my children
• get the light in our bedroom to work with any consistency
• teach Sky how to mow the lawn effectively

  

  Top graphic: what Sky's mowing looked like before I figured out he was just connecting the dots, going from one giant weed to another. Bottom graphic: what it looked like after I told him to overlap his wheel tracks. Who knew a kid with such great spatial reasoning could be so bad at pushing a mower?

• kick my nacho cheese habit
• workout
• post consistently to my blog