Click the picture and see for yourself!

This post by Lori is lovely. Well worth your time.

Today is Diane‘s one-year blogiversary…stop by her place and wish her well if you get a chance. Diane was the first person who read my blog outside of my real-life friends and family – and I’m pretty sure that she was the first person who listed me in a blogroll. There’s not a nicer, more genuine person in all of blogland, and this post of hers is one of my favorite things I’ve ever read in my life. Sister and I have been known to read the list together when we’re on the phone and subsequently cackle like crazy.

My friend Sarah writes with such transparent tenderness that I sometimes find myself holding my breath as I read. This particular post is one of her very best yet.

Shannon has some great encouragement this morning – especially if you find yourself thinking there is no way you can possibly survive another day of motherhood.

This post of Antique Mommy’s cracked me up. And the comments are just as funny.

Have a great day, everybody!

If you haven’t noticed that I have a bit of the writer’s block, I give you this:

My last post was about a trip that I took six years ago. SIX YEARS AGO.

I actually have the blahs on several levels, none of which I’ll bore you with at this juncture. But I have talked to a couple of friends who share in my blah-ness, which leads me to think that part of the problem is that winter has finally gotten the best of us all.

Spring? OH, SPRI-ING? WHERE ARRRRE YOU?

We’re headed to Mississippi this weekend for a special family celebration, so hopefully I’ll regain my bloggy wits after I have a chance to listen to some stories, snap some pictures and last but not least see “Martie” and Sissie in action.

In the meantime, check out these fine bloggity people:

1) Jen at Lots of Scotts always has great perspective and wisdom, in addition to the cutest triplets you’ve ever seen (by the way, my real-life friends Emma Kate and Traci are OBSESSED with Jen’s blog. OBSESSED, I tell you).

2) Jennifer at Mississippi Girl always makes me smile with that sweet outlook of hers; as an added bonus, she just so happens to live in my home state.

3) Kathryn at Daring Young Mom is probably a bloggy standby for lots of y’all, but I’ve only recently started making my way through her archives. So much fun.

4) Overwhelmed! is hosting a Super Bowl Edition of her fab Favorite Ingredients Friday. Be sure to check it out.

5) Here’s something fun that I saw at Stacey‘s…and I feel it’s only fair to let you know that from this day forward, I will be known as:

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Her Eminence the Very Viscountess Boomama the Convincing of Porton Down Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

That kind of title will make any girl shake off the winter blahs.

See y’all tomorrow.

I think it’s pretty much a universal sign that you’re in for a humdinger of a day when you pour the water in the coffee pot, turn on the coffee pot, then return from the shower to find that you eliminated the critical step of actually placing the pot back on the burner, thereby christening your countertops with all manner of caffeinated goodness, which is no good, no good at all because it just means that the countertops are going to be totally wired all morning and really, who wants to deal with that?

Prior to this morning, I was under the impression that even without the actual pot, the coffee maker would preserve my hot coffee in some sort of holding chamber, that it would not in fact spew and splatter coffee onto surfaces in my kitchen that heretofore have been unexamined and lo, even undiscovered.

But I was wrong.

Apparently the “pause and pour” feature is only applicable in the presence of a coffee pot that is actually functioning as a receptacle for the hot coffee, and sadly, this was not the case all, being that the coffee pot was sitting on an adjacent counter, nestled in the folds of a lovely red dishcloth.

Anyhoo. Three things:

1) My sweet friend Shannon has been homebound for about four days now because of unusually icy weather where she lives. And she has four children. So she’s come up with a little project for them to do today, and you can help. Go see her.

2) There’s a great new contest for “undiscovered” blogs over at Everyday Mommy. Click here to see the details about how you can recognize some hidden bloggy treasure…it’s a great opportunity to recognize some of those excellent blogs that don’t have much traffic yet. Be sure to check it out.

3) Janice and Susan are having a party. And you’re all invited.

Okay. I’m off in search of caffeine.

Perhaps in the form of an IV.

Two actual conversations that I’ve had today:

D. sees that I’m on the phone and raises his eyebrows, wondering if it’s an important call.

Me: “This is Shannon.”

D.: “From Rocks In My Dryer?”

Me: “You got it.”

D. [laughing]: “Well, I guess since you’re not on the computer right now, it’s only fitting that you’re talking to one of your computer friends.”

Alex answers the phone, then passes it to me.

Me: “Hello?”

Mama: “Did you call earlier?”

Me: “I did – we were just wondering if everything was okay since we haven’t talked to you in almost a week.”

Mama: “Oh. Well, since I read your blog every day, I’m all caught up.”

Me [thinking to myself]: “Well, it’s good to know that my real-life presence is no longer required.”