8:30 am Mondays are beginning to become a time of dread for me.  Sure, that’s the typical “kick-off” to the work week, but that isn’t my issue.

Every Monday morning around 8:30 or 9:00, Barry McKay and/or Don London joyfully, slide into the studio (Kramer from Seinfeld style) and with the a big grin and genuine interest ask: “Hey Jenna!  How was you weekend?”  I always reply with: “Fantastic!” to which they always reply “That’s great.  What did you do?”

Here is where I need to start lying.  Seriously. 

The sad truth is that a really fantastic weekend to me is when I come to work knowing that I actually found the time to get that stuff off the kitchen floor that was there for four days…so long in fact that it stopped being sticky.  Know what I mean?   A great weekend to me is when the laundry was washed, folded and actually made it to the room where it belongs…now if it has actually been PUT AWAY within 24 hours of being folded, well THAT would make it a STUPENDOUS weekend!

This was a fantastic weekend in MY world because I finally pulled all of my daughters dress up clothes and accessories out of the dress up bin…and spent about 2 hours detangling all of the giant, costume necklaces and bracelets that have been in one giant ball for the last 6 weeks.  Then I spent another two hours disinfecting our “lego room” and it’s 8000 lego pieces so my son (who’s been sick as a dog) doesn’t reinfect himself or all the neighborhood kids who frequent said room.

Soooooo…that’s why I feel the urge about my fantastic weekends!  Why do they ask Monday after Monday?  Next week I’ll have a spectacular lie all prepared!!!

My baby boy has been sick all week, so he’s been hanging in the studio and in my office for the last few days!  He’s been playing “Danger Cat’s” on the iPad, jamming Tom Petty on his iPod, calling my family from my iPhone and now he’s watching “The Sandlot” on his iTouch.  iThank you, Steve Jobs, for providing a means for me to keep my sick baby entertained in my office on a sick day

I love home improvements.  HOWEVER (LOWE’S!) … I experienced a bit of trauma while picking up some home improvement “things”.  All retailers bust out the Christmas decor just after Labor Day…I get it…BUT (LOWE’S!) are the BIG, PINK, SPARKLING, TWINKLING, GLITTERY, LIGHT UP REINDEER WITH MOVING PARTS necessary? C’mon!  I sure would have appreciated a sign out front that warned: “If you’re just here to buy a few brackets to hang shelves, and you have your 4 year old daughter with you, TURN AROUND IMMEDIATELY AND LEAVE.”  ‘Cause if I saw that, I would have turned around and left.

…But Nooooooooo…

Her loud, shocking GASP was in tandum with her frozen step.  Her tiny little body began to shake as she realized:

THERE WERE NO WORDS TO DESCRIBE WHAT STOOD BEFORE HER!!!

She stared in disbelief for a few moments…then walked up to them and just looked…didn’t say a word…didn’t make a move. 

Realizing her vocabulary was far too inferior to describe this new, overwhelming feeling in her tiny body… SHE BEGAN TO CLAP!    Just clapped at the sheer magnificence of these  “things”  that she NEEDED.  NEEDED! 

She pleaded..she begged..she bargained..she promised..she cried..she lost.