Last Friday my mom came over to watch the kids so that my husband and I could go on our tempo run together before our cocktail party date later that evening. We had just walked in the door with runner's high from our awesome run and excited to have something to get dressed up for. I was buzzing around the house making smoothies, saying hi to my kids, checking new blog comments at an already busy time, and then posting a facebook status to express my amusement that my daughter had just told my husband that she loved his smile "so damn much". The chaos in my house combined with the sweet comments from strangers telling me how awesome I am and how organized I appear to be from my Goal Setting With Kids Post was quite the contradiction. My mom couldn't stop laughing at someone calling me neat and organized and couldn't resist taking my camera to snap a few shots of the current state of my house. She insisted that I share some REAL DEALIO SHOTs of the Hood at Runninghood. Yes Mom, here they are! She also took a video of my exaggerated clean up dance. I'm sharing that with you too!
Note: I do put towels on my chairs for a normal day when we are not expecting company. This saves my chairs from being ruined with stains of all kinds in a matter of hours.
I think there are a few noodles stuck to the floor here.
Ah yes, and here I am posting a facebook status and ignoring my messy house. I know you love those mismatched socks too! Ha! Matching socks are a luxury.
And finally, I thought you might get a kick out the video that my mom took of me demonstrating my MAD and Speedy Clean UP Skillz YO!
A few notes about the video:
* Yes, I did pick up a container of wax that I then threw into the hallway and announced that "I wax my mustache with that".
* I had just posted this as my facebook status when she started the video:
"crap! E just told her Daddy :"I love your smile so damn much!" crap crap crap! Now there's some "real" Amanda Motherhood for you. Now my mom is taking pictures of my messy "disorganized" house and cracking herself up after I received an e-mail from a blog reader telling me that I'm so "organized"! Glad you get a kick out of yourself mom..now stop taking pictures!"
* If I am honest with myself, when I post a facebook status is is always nice to get at least a "like" or a comment or two. Especially when posting a status that admits to everyone that my kid just said damn. There is an underlying vulnerability that comes with "putting yourself out there" sometimes.
* I totally exaggerate this fact in my video and demonstrate how easy it is to get compulsive about checking FB right after posting a status. Is it just me?
* If you can't tell, I'm humming the tune to William Tell Overture (Lone Ranger Theme), a go-to "in a hurry" tune I start singing or humming since I had to learn this song on the flute in sixth grade.
* I'm not quite sure why I keep saying "Check it!"
* I'm also not sure why I talk as if my husband isn't home even though he is obviously there in my messy kitchen.
* No, I really don't spend all day reading Jane Eyre and using the computer...this was a joke people...life really does get busy around here with three kids! Despite the misconceptions about SAHM's, we do work too. Ha! I like to say that FB is my "staff room" though...when I was a teacher, I could just pop in the staff room, office or my friends' classrooms and talk to adults, make some jokes, and unload. Now, my adult interaction seems to be more of a virtual connection.
Keep it real peeps!
1. Do you have a go-to tune that you hum or sing at times when you are in a hurry, excited, or happy?
2. Do you keep your house picked up most of the time?
I try! But sometimes I feel like if I worry too much about it then I spend my entire day cleaning and picking things up when really, I might as well just wait until the end of the day to do it all. But I like a tidy house. I also do a lot of art and messy stuff with my kids so this doesn't always lend to a clean house 24-7!
3. Any of you Oregon people out there planning on being there for the Race for the Roses 5k, 10k, or half-marathon this weekend?
Amanda
LOL, that's awesome! You must have had a great run because you are so high in that video!
ReplyDeletetoo funny...I posted about your daughters comment about her daddy under the wrong post!! :) Loved the video...so glad I'm not the only one that does the "quick, let's clean for 10 minutes before daddy gets home house run through" I look the same way! :) Decided to not do race for the roses this year... going to do cinco de mayo 10k, instead. did you see that there is going to be a new rock n roll portland half next May? If you register on may 2nd ( i think it is) it is only 55 dollars.
ReplyDeleteExcellent...you are human, after all! Since both my kids are in school all day, my favorite thing to do once I have walked them there is come in the house and pick up. Then I feel at peace and can start the day!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely awesome!! I feel so much better about my parenting/cleaning skills now. When my oldest daughter was 4 she spurted out "where the hell are we going?"
ReplyDeleteI live for the "10-15 minutes before daddy will be home" quick clean and if I'm extra hyper usually some sort of words to the tune of jingle bells.
Won't be there this weekend but if you end up doing the 10K good luck! :) And also, since I'm playing catchup in leaving comments, I must say when your legs are looking that smoking in a dress/shirt it is perfectly acceptable for it to be short!
I love that you aren't afraid to show the human side of yourself! Stuck noodles to the ground are a great site! I have really relaxed as a mom as the years have gone by. I know there will come a time when I miss those fingerprints on the glass and legos under the couch. And I love that you got a running date with your hubs!
ReplyDeleteI love this! lol
ReplyDeleteMy house is a mess... not disgusting. It is like yours... kid-stuff kind of everywhere, noddles on the floor, unfolded laundry in a heap... happy family kind of stuff :)
I love it when our kids teach us a little about our language... lol.
Amanda, I still think you're organized! I have no kids or hubby and my house is a mess with just me in it. Books and mail are everywhere, and I hate doing dishes, so the kitchen always is a bit messy. So considering you're running, have three kids, and doing all sorts of other stuff, you've got it together. So there. :)
ReplyDeleteDo you have a go-to tune that you hum or sing at times when you are in a hurry, excited, or happy? I sing as I clean to Colin "We are picking up the laundry as we go" in the tune of she'll be coming round the mountain
ReplyDelete2. Do you keep your house picked up most of the time? I try too..I get dishes and kitchen clean but living room is such a mess due to the toys, but I do a mad dash before Tony comes home LOL
i try to do what i can with my house when the three older kids go to school but all my 21 month old wants me to do lately is play in her room:) it's cute until i've been in there for hours and have nothing done! at least she lets me take my laptop sometimes :) i'll be doing the half this weekend, longest run since portland marathon, yikes!
ReplyDeleteokay... I love this post.
ReplyDeleteI do the same mad clean up dance.
ONLY, I am super gross and I sweep everything up into a pile FIRST.
Ha!
Love your blog Amanda.
http://rebeccavavic.typepad.com/fitmumma/
Bx
Love it! I try to keep my house neat, but sometimes it is a losing battle. It is usally the cleanest every other Wednesday after my cleaning lady leaves. Thank God for Karen.
ReplyDeleteHow was the cocktail party?? I love getting dressed up and going out with my husband. So fun.
ReplyDeleteI always seem to clean my house after a run... something just feels right about cleaning in my sweaty running clothes.
I try to keep our house clean... but with both of us working full-time jobs, things tend to pile up. Eventually I get to it all, though!
HILARIOUS! LOL
ReplyDeletethis made me smile.
ReplyDeleteMy house is a mess. Not dirty but a mess. I have 2 boys 5 and 6 and a Golden Retriever. I refuse to spend all my awake time cleaning! So there's stuff out of place in every room. Oh well. When people come over and I know they will come, I go into panic mode and I clean like mad woman. I always think I am crazy for doing this, cleaning more for others then for myself!
Song: usually the french cancan music..dont ask me why!!!!
Ahh! What would I do without my daily dose of laughter from Amanda!!! I'm starting to count on it:)
ReplyDeleteYou NEED a smartphone! Status updates at your finger tips everywhere!! Yeah-if nobody AT LEAST likes my status I just delete it-ha!
You are seriously a little dark haired Kelly Ripa! You even sound like her! Stache wax and William Tell! Your hubby just smiles in the background-love it! You really just seem like such a FUN person to be around!!
I used to be SUCH a clean freak. I've really let that go. I like my kitchen and my living room spotless, the rest is a jungle of crap. We have open suitcases in the family room at all times, hockey equipment in the dining room, completely disorganized closets and drawers! I'm still a freak if we have company but life is short and I prefer to spend my downtime after the kids are in bed on FB or blogging than tidying my house:)
Of course you like to get a like or a comment to any of your Facebook updates. Why else would you update if not to get a comment or two. Sometimes I like to put up stuff just to see if the boys in my running group will bite and that can provide hours of entertainment. That can make a quiet day at work go quicker.
ReplyDeleteI WISH i could be there!!!! I'd love to meet you! =D
ReplyDeleteThe house....yes...well....you have not seen mine yet and I am NOT posting a video of it, hahaha.
You are just too cute though. Hope your party was fun! =D Best wishes this weekend!!!
well, i had to watch the video w/o sounds since i'm sitting in the hallway outside my kids' rooms but, in my head, i was putting it to the the tune of "The Lone Ranger". i LOVE speed cleaning!! i can make the bathroom on our main floor SPOTLESS in 3 minutes flat. i'm pretty obsessive about our kitchen/living room area, and get cranky if i have to go downstairs w/o having all the beds made in the morning, but i let things like dusting and vacuuming go most of the time. i'm more of a neat-freak than a clean-freak.
ReplyDeletegotta get me some of that stache wax...but i'll be using it on my chin, thank you. getting older sucks.
I like the sound effects.
ReplyDeleteAnd............I am going to start saying, "Check it." Because I want to be cool too.
Speed cleaning is the ONLY cleaning that gets done around here.
I hate that my house is 10 times messier than yours and I don't have kids. Girl, you are ADORABLE and you do have mad skills. I LOVE that your five-year old said that ha!!!! A tempo run and cocktail party= best date ever.
ReplyDeleteThis was great! I loved it! Hilarious quote from your daughter. My husband and I are speed cleaning pros and we don't even have kids yet.
ReplyDeleteLOVE IT! That is how I clean at my house. Love that Phineas and Ferb was on in the background.
ReplyDeleteI always find myself humming old school hymns whenever I'm cooking or cleaning. Which is odd because I go to a contemporary church service and rarely sing hymns in church.
ReplyDeleteI usually pick up at the end of the day. I'm not a SAHM but its amazing how messy my house can get even in the few hours I have in the evening each night. I usually do actual cleaning on saturday mornings.
Not in oregon :(
Cute video!!! I think her comment is cute! I do the quick pick-up too, but for some reason there are still always clothes around my room. They just appear our of nowhere!
ReplyDeleteHILARIOUS!!!! Lovin’ the William Tell Overture…the self made sound track makes the movie.
ReplyDeleteOr maybe the wax comment.
I love the fact that your "home" is lived in! A lot of people are so clean you feel like you can't walk in with shoes on. My house is lived in and we straighten or pick it up when there is time, but I would much rather spend that time with my daughter and wonderful husband!
ReplyDeleteNo need to apologize for having different priorities! It makes you you!
Quinton, do you have a blog??? If so, I can't find a way to respond to you on your profile.
ReplyDeleteHilarious!!!! Thanks for keeping it real :)
ReplyDeleteLOL!! Umm my house is a mess all the time and I don't have kids / responsibilities taking up my time!! I will sit on anything so that I don't get my post-run funk on the furniture... :)
ReplyDeleteI love it! You are human too! :)
ReplyDeleteHa ha..that video was awesome! With 2 boys (3 and 5) I know all about how messy the house gets. It's like you clean it, and 3 minutes later it's a mess again! Ugh! I try to keep it as clean as I can, but there's just so much you can do!
ReplyDeleteJust read your blog for the first time, and I like it! (I would like to point out that I didn't get here by googling 'camel toe' or 'naked lady pens').
ReplyDeleteThe video made me laugh!! reminds me of how I clean...I hurry and get it done fast! I try to keep it clean because if I don't stay on top of it then it gets out of control. Before I go to bed each night I make sure that the living room and kitchen are presentable and everything is put away. Love the tune you were humming and funny that you kept saying "Check it".
ReplyDeleteThis whole post is so much fun. I swear we are so much alike. Except my kid would never say damn. Hahahahahaha. JUST KIDDING. :) :)
ReplyDeletehaha love it!!
ReplyDeleteThe video is awesome! I don't clean quite that fast, but when I do clean, I take breaks every five minutes to check my email or facebook (even though I could realistically go a day without, and not miss anything!)
ReplyDeleteHilarious! I just found your blog some how by pure chance and I can't remember how, but that being said, you are too funny. I can relate as I too have 3 kiddos and trying to get back into work outs after back surgery 8 weeks ago. Yeah, who ruptures a disc in their back while training for a marathon? Me. I love that you are training for "fun" right now. I need to learn how to do that! Thanks for the great posts!
ReplyDelete1. I set the timer for 5, 7, 10 minutes...whatever I'm in the mood for and hum Batman as I do a mad dash cleaning. :)
ReplyDelete2. Heck no...I'd like to, but just don't have the energy or motivation. Luckily Todd is way more anal than me and will pick up when it gets too bad!!
I'm a little behind on blog reading but I am trying to catch up now. I LOVE that your kiddo said that. Too funny. You probably don't love it nearly as much but what a wonderful story. I try to keep our place picked up, but it's much easier with two people, no kids!
ReplyDeleteCatching up on reading blogs and your video made me laugh!! Good stuff there. I actually do sit around all day and then just clean up 5 minutes before the husband gets home and he travels all week so the five minutes I clean are just at the end of the week :) lol. Sweet.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the info. I found the details very helpful.
ReplyDeletepaxil