Life in the Slow Lane

I've been asked a few times over the last few days why I'm not writing. Truth is... Sorry. Instead, here's a clip that reminds me of how I feel these days. Sorry folks, park's closed . Moose out front should've told ya!

I check my Facebook first thing in the morning like it's the newspaper. Sure, I'm highly addicted, and do enjoy it, but I know it comes with a price. It starts with friending just the people you already know are on there, the ones that have been bugging you to join. Then, as you sniff around their friend lists, you get a little more wild and start friending there friends. In time, you start to dig into a 3rd/4th/5th parties' list, have no idea how you got there, yet are amazed to see even more people you know. Then you move on to searching for and friending people you used to go to school with. You find that half you've been truly curious how they are doing, and the other half you are just being totally nosey and want to see what kind of life they have(or don't!).  Once you have an ample list of friends, it's time to move on to your profile editing. Just the right picture, and just enough but not too much personal info. Give them what sounds awesome about you...

I'm always, always looking for easy, healthy snacks for my kids. Well, whole meals too, but we all know impossible that is. But the other days I whipped something up that even had me pleasantly surprised. It's cheap, it's quick, it's healthy, and it's delish! I'm a big fan of the Christmas Tree Shop, but don't usually go into their food section. Last week I did though, and found these 'toast' crackers, almost like melba toast. They had a few different flavors, 32 in a pack, just $1! I bought a few packs and knew I'd find something great to use them for. I had just purchased some yummy on the vine tomatoes that day too, so I decided to use them. I diced the tomatoes, and added a hint of onion, basil, salt, parmesan, and some balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Tossed it together and created a little tomato salad . That's it folks! After that, I simply placed a few toasts on a plate and put some of the tomato mixture on top. No cooking. No effort....

My dad has a habit of buying a new car every year(used to be every six months!) and I think I got that habit. I've tried to stretch it to every 2-3 years at this point in life, but I'm thinking if I get back into a comfy place in life money-wise, I'll be right back to it. Here's a look back at some of my cars.... My first car was a 1979 VW Rabbit in poo brown. My dad and I sanded it down and took it for a $99 Maaco paint job. I chose turquoise. Horrid. We called it the blue dot special after that. I loved that car. My next baby was a 1987 Mercury Lynx. I liked this car, had much more room than the VW. I had an accident on the way to school one morning(rear ended my friend's mom!) and my punishment was to pay off the damage repair. I came home from work one day and the car was gone, dad sold it. Apparently when you go to college you don't need a car. :/ My 1993 Geo Tracker, by far my favorite to that point, and my friends will all tell you it was fun...

Today, April 1st, is the beginning of Autism Awareness Month, and tomorrow is World Autism Day. You may see many buildings or homes with blue lights on over the next few days to commemorate it. I'm not one to over-blog about Autism. I advocate when families need me, or am always a phone call away to answer questions. But it's something I care to keep on my homefront.  But today I need you to read the current statistics, and I'll keep it quick and simple. In 2004, 1 in 166 children were diagnosed with Autism. When my son was diagnosed in 2007, it was 1 in 150. Today, 1 in 110 children are diagnosed with Autism . That's a 600% increase in the last 20 years. 1 in 70 is the rate in boys. There is no known medical detection or cure for Autism. Support.  Educate.  Advocate.