What I'm Listening To Tonight

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, baby. "Maybe We Should Fall in Love" from No More Beautiful World.

I love this band - they're mostly straight up rock n' roll with a Southwest flavor, though on different songs you'll hear echoes of country and reggae. They were in Atlanta last night - I'm so bummed I missed them. Their live shows are great, as are their fans.

I must now go have a drink with tequila in their honor.

We're BA-ack!

We returned home from our trip to Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Francisco last night, and boy, what a trip it was! We had such a great time!

Once I get my pictures downloaded from the ol' digital camera, I'll post a detailed trip log, and I think I may make my very first scrapbook ever to chronicle the trip. I'm quite sure both will be dominated by descriptions of meals we had and places we ate!

The CoasterKids had a great time visiting their grandparents, and CoasterGuy (trying it on for size...) and I enjoyed ourselves immensely in San Francisco. Getting up this morning for work was so hard to do! When does my next vacation start?

High Anxiety

I mentioned in an earlier post that W and I -- yes, "W" - I haven't come up with a witty pseudonym for Mr. ChelleBelle as yet, and I refuse to use his suggested alternatives on general principle. At any rate, I posted earlier that we will be taking a trip via airplane later this month. Well, what I neglected to mention is that I get nervous flying. Actually, that's an understatement. I am phobic about flying. And now that the scheduled flight is a mere 3 days away, I'm having trouble eating and sleeping, and my stomach is full of butterflies.

It wasn't always this way. I used to love to fly. I loved the acceleration as the plane sped down the runway on takeoff, I loved the spectacular views from cruise altitude, and I loved settling in with a good book and a soda.

So what happened? I'm not sure. I've read that many people develop this fear in their 20s or 30s, as they become more aware of the fragility of life and begin forming their new family units. I was in my early 20s when my phobia began, and traveling frequently (by air) for work. I did have a few rough flights which were weather-related, but I can't really pinpoint when exactly it started. But start it did, and now days (and sometimes weeks) before a scheduled flight, I begin worrying about it. I'm not even sure "worrying" is the right word - I'm not really consciously thinking of flying at all - I just feel anxious. "Dreading" might be more accurate.

Logically, I know that I'm safer on the airplane than I am on the drive to the airport. I know the statistics. But somehow, logic just doesn't seem to work on this particular part of my psyche. The logical part of my brain says "get a grip!" but the other part is screaming "Danger! Danger!" and marveling at how calm everyone else seems to be while it takes a massive effort of will for me to board the plane.

So before most flights, I retake an online Fear of Flying Self-Help Course. It seems to help some.

The most annoying part of all this is the general anxiety level in the days before a flight - it scrambles my brain enough that I find it difficult to concentrate on anything, including planning what to pack and preparing my workload for my upcoming absence. Also, I'm ridiculously irritable and short of patience. Grrr.

Feedback

So, after reading the first few entries of this blog, Mr. ChelleBelle has a few corrections he'd like me to issue.

Correction 1: He is not merely an "auditor for a university" - he is an audit manager.

Duly noted.

Correction 2: He is not a "foodie"; he is a "gourmand".

Ok.

Correction 3: He prefers not to be called "Mr. ChelleBelle". Suggested alternatives include "His Almightiness", "Sir" and/or "Master".

Errrr....hmmmm. For some strange reason, none of those suggestions really grabbed me. Gee...I wonder why?

Henceforth, Mr. ChelleBelle shall be known as...well...any ideas?

And So Ends Another Long Weekend...

Ahhh....long holiday weekends. Gotta love 'em. Time to sit back, relax and enjoy the family.

Or, if you're Mr. and Mrs. ChelleBelle, time to finish a redecorating project, host a party, and listen to the CoasterKids fight about whether they should be watching The Wiggles or Spongebob Squarepants. Or whether CoasterBoy is allowed to touch CoasterGirl's dolls. Or whether CoasterBoy will be messing up CoasterGirl's puzzle. Or...well, you get the idea.

CoasterBoy will be two in a few weeks, and the Terrible Twos have arrived a bit early and with a vengeance. His favorite word is already "No!" and his stubborn streak has become his most prominent personality trait, eclipsing his innate sweetness with astonishing speed. I think the highlight of the weekend was CoasterBoy crying hysterically because his cereal puffs were in a plastic baggie instead of in a bowl like his big sister's. Or maybe it was when he insisted on watching The Wiggles in Big Red Car for the bajillionth time ("Car! Big Car!! Car, Mommy!! Car, Car!!").

So now the kids are in bed at last, and the house is quiet. The dishes are washed, the living room is straightened up, and we're planning for the week ahead and the vacation that starts on Saturday. And as this long weekend finally comes to an end, I raise my glass to all my friends who are stay-at-home moms: Here's to you. You're my hero.

July: Month o' Craziness

July is going to be a very, very busy month for us.

My brother is turning 30 this month; I'm planning a party for him in conjunction with the 4th of July for Friday. CoasterGirl and CoasterBoy both have birthdays at the end of this month, and in between? Well, Mr. ChelleBelle and I are celebrating our 10th anniversary a month early with a trip to San Francisco by way of Las Vegas and Phoenix. The CoasterKids will be with us for the first 2 legs of the trip, but we're headed to San Francisco by ourselves after that for the longest trip we've taken sans kids since before CoasterGirl was born. Just writing that is making me tired!

Sometime in the next week or so, I need a haircut and a manicure, CoasterGirl needs to see the eye doctor and get new glasses, CoasterBoy needs an immunization that was out of stock at his 18 month well baby visit, and I need to order a new set of contacts. Oh, and Mr. ChelleBelle is having some dental work done. Also? I need to make sure my current wardrobe is sufficient for our trip out west, plus plan what to pack to keep a 2-year-old occupied on a cross-country flight.

Oh, and did I mention that we're in the middle of a kitchen remodel?

Ack!

The Obligatory "All About Me" Post

Hello, my name is ChelleBelle, and this is my blog. For an explanation of the name and why I'm blogging, see my previous post, "Riding the Life Coaster".

I'm a 30-something working mom living in the Southeastern United States. I telecommute full time for a large financial services firm. Mr. ChelleBelle is an auditor for a university. We have two children: CoasterGirl will be 6 years old later this month, and CoasterBoy will be 2. We also have 2 cats whom we rescued from an animal shelter - they've been with us through 9 years, 3 moves, multiple jobs and 2 kids. Mr. ChelleBelle often tells CoasterGirl that she must be nice to the cats because they were here first.

I am an avid reader, a newbie runner, a tentative gardener, a word game enthusiast and a terrible housekeeper. I love music, baseball, movies, and food.

No, seriously - I love food. Mr. ChelleBelle and I are self-proclaimed foodies. Over the years, we've learned to cook ever-more ambitious recipes, primarily in an effort to avoid crushing debt from our dining budget.

So that's the scoop on me. And as this is my second post, no one can call me a one-post wonder. Ha!