Once Upon a Time

I'm going to Disney World.
I'm going to find Prince Charming.
I'm going to give him a kick in his charming lil...
Oh Hello Amber...
What am I doing?  I'm just writing a modern day fairy tale...
What is it about? Well, I'll let you read it after you start dating.  Go back to bed.
Now...where was I?
Oh Yeah, Prince Charming and all of his charming, ummm,  assetts?
Somewhere along the path of life, I have realized that I've been duped.  Which is sad.  But what is sadder still, is that I am not the only one.  Now I can't claim to have the official numbers, nor have I done any poll.  But I dare say the majority of women have been duped as well.  Somehow, we have been taught to think that there is a Prince Charming that will come in and know exactly what to do and say plus how to smell and look.  And we want him to know all of this, all by himself.  We can't tell him what to do or it takes the meaning away.  Somehow, we have listened to enough songs, watched enough movies, and read enough books to believe that some perfect form of a man (well at least perfect for us, as we tell ourselves is reasonable to believe exists) will walk up to us with our hair a mess, no make up on, while we are trying to decide whether our car needs 10w40 or 5w30 or that new Valvoline stuff that is suppose to be Eco Friendly and smells like a cool summer breeze, offer to change the oil in our car and fall madly, deeply, truly, never even look at another woman blinded by our natural and inner beauty kind of love.  Though many will read this and pretend I have lost my mind - in all honestly we have some sort of a fantasy like this.  Why wouldn't we?  We started out with the stories of Snow White and Cinderella, matured to the likes of Romeo and Juliet, moved on to the Titanic and now have settled with The Notebook to guide as to what true love is.  So yes, I blame Prince Charming, Leonardo DiCaprio, and even that cute blonde dude in The Notebook.  They set a standard, and most of the average Joes I have met, fall quite below that standard.  Hence, my decision to meet Prince Charming and explain that he could have a few flaws for us to see.

UPDATE!

I went to Disney World.
Saw Prince Charming.
Walked up to him, however, he was too busy chatting up some cute 21 yr old blonde who clearly has yet to see the effects of gravity or children upon her body.  Dang it, Blondes really do have all the fun!  (Sarah, maybe instead of red, next time we do blonde????)
I realized though that the movies make him look taller (seriously, he is probably only 5'4) and he has the attention span of a squirrel, considering every time a princess walked by he was winking and sharing the mischevious grin (apparently Blondes aren't his only cup of tea).  Funny enough, I found him to not be that charming afterall.  How did that happen?  Perhaps - flaws are part of the package and they just left that out of the stories???
Lesson learned - we all have our once upon a times, and we all will have our happily ever afters.  However, there is a lot of mess, covered with a whole lot of flaws in between the two of those, and perhaps, just maybe that is the way it is suppose to be. 

My Waldon

Once upon a time a man ventured out to the edge of town to live in a modest cottage in order to learn. He had several points he wished to make as he set off on this goal. One was to live a life of self-sufficiency which equated to him living minimally.
At the beginning of this year, I set out with a goal for the month of January. I was to become vegan. This decision was only made to see if I had the will power and determination to do something most considered impossible. I didn't know what to expect as I set off on this adventure but I what I found was a profound lesson of minimalism. I learned that there is indeed a difference in what I NEED to have to survive and what I WANT. Often times those lines are blurred. I need protein and complex carbs. I want steak and and potatoes covered in butter. I need fluids such as water. I want a chocolate milkshake.
As the month came to an end, I looked back upon my experience and contemplated how I could take this approach in other areas of my life. Never fear, I will not be throwing away the 50 some odd pairs of shoes I have in exchange for a pair of old Birks. I will however further my pursuit to cleanse my home, body and spirit as I find the right balance of need and want because in the end we will always have a little of both!

What is love? Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me...no more.

I wrote this about 2 or 3 yrs ago however feel the sentiment still rings true.

In fairy tales, we read of poor unfortunate women beginning whisked
away by Prince Charming to a life of love, pleasure and ease. In
movies we see men overcoming all odds to find the woman they are meant
to be with and loving them at first sight or first spoken word. This
is not romance nor love to me.

People joke because I don't accept gifts from guys – they tell me "hey
it's just a shirt why not take it?" or even better "but how cool
would it be to have a new tv?" I live a life full of theories. I
believe a gift has to be proportional to the amount of time spent with
the person (1 month does not constitute a new TV) and how much the
person cares for you. If those to factors aren't right, something is
wrong. Yes, I love receiving gifts but not because of the gift but
because of the emotion and thought put into it.

Moving on – Romance and love are not instant. It can not be
manufactured nor manipulated. It takes time. Patience. Knowledge.
To me, romance comes from love that is brewed over time. Yes, there
are romantic moments from the beginning of all relationships. But in
the end what I am looking for is someone who knows me…inside out – my
little quirks. What do I do when I am thinking? Or when I am
nervous? What are my goals…do you plan on helping me achieve them as
I plan on helping you? Can you tell when I am uncomfortable and try
to get me out of those situations? Are you willing to put yourself on
the back burner when needs be because heaven knows I will.

Romance isn't about big grand gestures – it's the little, tedious, day
in and day out activities that show love. Anyone can buy clothes,
flowers, electronics, jewelry – but it takes someone who loves with a
true love that is willing accept my flaws – someone who knows that I
love food from road side vendors and is willing to take the risk to
enjoy it with me – someone who when I am sick is there still doing all
of his responsibilities but also taking on some of mine – someone who
loves my smile and is willing to do anything to see it. And that, my
friends, is your challenge – make me smile and I am yours.

Meandering Musings

With a lifetime of lessons bearing upon my shoulders, I woke up this morning with an intense desire to write. As many may know, I write on a regular basis, but rarely ever share those intimate thoughts. Why not start? Or should I say start again? Back to the lessons - this past year has been interesting, as my life has taken a course of its own and though I am in control, I found it intensely satisfying to let go of the reins and see where I was led. In doing such, I have learned much. Some of those lessons I will freely share however there are some poignant thoughts that will remain solely mine.
Be patient as I ramble through thoughts and hope it finds some sort of direction and meaning.
About a month ago I had the pleasure of going to dinner with a friend, we spoke of writing and he mentioned a few lines he had jotted down recently. One stuck out to me and left me with such an impression that I pondered it and really took in the imagery it left me with. I hope he forgives me for making reference to it however without the quote you will not understand the lessons I gleaned from it.
"Time exacts no returns, and opportunity remains a premium of the ticking clock" A. Wood
As he uttered those words to me I automatically was struck with awe as all I could envision was an old Grandfather clock, the pendulum swinging to mark the seconds and the gong to mark the hour. For the week after, my thoughts enclosed upon that clock and how it represented my life. The pendulum being the day in and day out tedium of our lives, what there is to be done with no question - we move back and forth to accomplish the needs of our day. What struck me most though was the gong - I picture that gong to either be the death toll of another day in my life wasted to meaningless actions and motions of nothingness or that of a celebrating chorus reminding me to come out and appreciate that I took full advantage of all the opportunities presented to me within any given time. Fortunately, my life has held both actions and for that I know there are still much more I must learn.
I look forward to this upcoming year to do such.

My, oh my, how the time does fly!

Should I apologize or just start writing?

How about an apology with an explanation - First off, I've been busy. Second - my home was broken into and my camera was stolen. Didn't know if ya'll would enjoy the blogs nearly as much without my goodlooking mug posted all over them! OK, I know you really want to see the babies, and for that I can't blame you but that intermixed with being busy is why I have not written in a while.

GOOD NEWS! I bought a new camera a little over a week ago. I am still in the process of learning how to operate the beast but will in time figure it out and get ya'll updated on our family!

So check back over the next week or so to see what's been happening in our world.

SPEED STREET!

Ahh...Speed Street. One of the things I love most about Charlotte. Really how can one not? Only one of the biggest gatherings of country folk and rednecks...woohoo. (And yes I am being serious)
This year, Speed Street was kicked off with a concert by Sara Evans on Thursday Night.
I went out with Michelle and Lisa and we caught up with Ben, Anna, Sheldon, and Clay.
Here's Michelle and I looking like the hot ladies we are or at least I pretend to be!


Just Cheesin'


Michelle cheesin (if I am not mistaken (with the name) Michelle is actually wearing some blue Chuck T's)


This here is Ben - is he looking a bit Top Gunish?


Part of the Group - Ben, Anna, Lisa, Michelle, and I


Rest of the Group - Lisa, Sheldon, Clay, Michelle and I


We finished out the evening at the Starbucks (well one of them) in uptown. We actually met some awesome guys playing Chess and had great fun chatting with them!

How many catch up's can a girl do?

One day I will have life down to an art and will master the virtue of time management perfect...yeah right! With that being said here is yet another "catch up"! At least this one is just about my family and time spent down in GA!
As the majority of ya'll know - I have spent quite some time down in GA with the family. What do we do in GA? Well we go to Ikea, hit the Barbie (grill out), spend some time on the Hooch, Karaoke, Go Carts, well, the list goes on but we do have fun.

Yes, even Amber gets in on the Karaoke Action - I do believe she was the star of the show that night!
Easter 2007 - we had fun, of course - here are some pictures of our infamous Silly String battles - sure to happen every year.

This is Nanner - slightly covered in silly string with Cassie (Cyrus's girlfriend in the background)
Noone was safe - not even Danny (mom's boyfriend)
Is it just or does the silly string match Amber's dress? (I made that one!)

And of course, we have Tubs cheesin it with the can in his hand - probably ready to shoot me.

I have even braved Deedee's driving...crazy I know!


Our last trip to GA!
We went to Sharkies - sang some more Karaoke. As well as other fun things such as...
poking out our tongues (is that fun...who knows? It was to me.)
And clearly it's contagious!!!


And don't let the cute smile fool you, I had to bribe him with a trip to the park!


Mmmmhhh, perhaps a cute lady...in pink???


The Osmonds, The Partridge Family, Jackson Five - or perhaps just THE FAMILY!



On to our trip to the Chattahoochee - Cyrus decided to go for a ride though he was not properly dressed!



Lastly - Sister Barnes helped my children roast marshmallows. I don't think they were happier the whole evening than when they eating those marshmallows!

Why Can Bath Time Be So Crazy?


A few nights ago when giving the kids a bath I noticed Amber had a big white dot stuck to her forehead. Odd, I know. I ask her about it and she tells me that she saw some woman wearing a red one and she liked it. Knowing that the red dot on women has some importance, I went to the computer to learn that they are in fact called bindi, and for most signify that the lady is married. I come back and tell Amber about it. She tells me she is pretending but, of course, being Amber then proceeds to ask me when I will get married so that I can wear one as well. I won't bore ya'll with the conversation that followed.


After Amber was James' turn in the tub and to put me in my place. Why do they always do that? Well he found a little "shaving kit" and went to town shaving his face. Yet again, I am reminded that he is growing up and that he will in fact become a man. Something that I know nothing about! What am I doing? Heaven knows, I'm gonna be needing some help!

Cookin with Tubs

Just wanted to share the fun times.

This past friday, Tubs and I hit the mean streets of our kitchen to make yummilicious brownies and cookies for a bake sale at Ambers school. Though the food did not turn out the greatest - I still thought you would getting a glimpse of tubs cooking away!
Here's the crazy fella' modeling his new Lightening McQueen apron and his bulging biceps!
Tubs with the KitchenAid - ok so I do realize that no explanation is really needed for the pics but I will still entertain myself by giving them!
Now, we see him delicately holding the egg before it is cracked!
And the best part of all - licking up the leftover batter! Looks like he had fun!

Brief Catch Up

Where to start? Heck I don't know. So I will just make it short with a few pics to get ya'll up to date!

Tubs turned three on February 24, 2007. We went down to GA and had a blast.

I found out that my office is closing. My company flew me out to UT to see if I would like to work out there. It was wonderful. I absolutely love it, however, at this time I have decided that going to UT is not the right decision but staying here in Charlotte and going back to school is in my immediate future.

March 10, 2007 - The family, a friend and his children, and I went to the Atlanta aquarium. Fun times were had by all as we looked at and actually touched many different forms of marine life. (yeah I even got in on the touching action)

The rest of the month of March was spent with me looking for a place to reside within a very low (extremely low) budget. Last minute, I found a place however not up to the same standards I am use. In the words of Gloria Gaynor, "I will survive" hopefully my kids will as well!

Bringing us to a close, the last weekend in April we spent moving in and I can say with a breath of relief that I am ALL MOVED IN! No more boxes, or bags, or anything else. I do have a few pictures that I need to get some frames for and I would like a few live plants but all in good time.

Be on the watch out because either tonight or in the next few days I do plan on posting my events in GA this past week!

PRESS RELEASE – April 9, 2007

After a brief hiatus, the Preslar family will be returning shortly with more fun times to share!

Perversion of Justice, but whose justice?

One of the most fundamental principles learned in science is Newton’s Third law which states “for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction.” I cannot help but feel this is applicable to every aspect of our lives. For everything we do there are consequences and rewards. This, my friends, is what can be and is considered Choice and Accountability. Everyday we are faced with choices. Whether it is to buckle up, what food we eat, do we follow the law and so forth – we make these choices and with that we must be accountable for what happens afterwards – for the equal and opposite reaction.

With all that being said let me now explain the purpose of it. This past Friday night I went out with some friends to see a documentary called “Perversion of Justice”. Short and to the skewed and overtly biased point, the documentary told the story of Hamedah Hasan, a single mom currently serving time in prison for assisting a cousin who sold drugs. 27 years. That is what Ms. Hasan was given due to mandatory minimum sentencing. She willingly with complete knowledge broke the law. And with that choice, came a consequence. Should I feel sorry for her? Should I be saddened for her family? Perhaps, and to be honest truly I was. It breaks my heart that a woman chose her cousin over her three daughters. It breaks my heart that three children were forced to raise themselves. However, it also breaks my heart to know that there are millions of families who are torn apart because of drugs.

For a background I must say this is somewhat personal for me. My brother. who I love with all my heart, was once addicted to drugs. Marijuana and crystal meth to be exact. Is he innocent in this, heck no? I believe that he will have to take full responsibility for his actions. The actions, which have hurt every person in my family. Throughout the film and during the question and answer panel that followed many times it was suggested that Ms. Hasan was convicted of a nonviolent crime. On the surface, I could see how people would agree with that. Really, she just wired some money and held on to some drugs. How did that hurt anyone? But I can tell you. I know the many late night phone calls I receive from my brother in his drug induced paranoia, I can recount the year that followed after I finally persuaded him to move up here to come clean off of drugs, the many times I woke up to screaming or the times he thought people were out to get him. It hurt so bad to see him cry with pain, physical pain. I was there when he had teeth pulled out because the drugs ruined them. It was violent on every level imaginable. And to this very day we still have to worry for him and pray for him to be made whole. But, to say that having a hand in distributing drugs is not violent would be incorrect if not a complete lie.

Moving on, I am actually not writing this because I think we have a perfect system. I cannot say that I absolutely agree with the federal minimum sentencing mandates – I am actually reading up on them now so I can make an informed decision. However, I do have a problem with anyone who says something is wrong without a solution. We have a terrible drug epidemic in this country. The minimum sentencing, as well as a few other consequences were created to help fight that. I will not say it is working. But, just as when your toilet is broken you don’t just get rid of it, you fix the silly pot or replace it we should do the same with our laws. We live in a beautiful country. A land, “choice above all others” A country that gives us more power then we choose to believe we have. We can make changes. So when I asked in front of over a hundred people who were championing the cause presented to them that night what the suggested solution was, can I tell you how blown away I was when I found out they didn’t have one. Not only was I not given a proposed solution, one member of the panel, Eric E. Sterling actually became irate with me. The more I heard, the more something just didn’t feel right. I couldn’t put my finger on it but I can tell you without a doubt that something was amiss.

When I made it home I actually started doing research. I know, only I would be one to start looking up information on what many would call a seemingly insignificant documentary at 1 in the morning but there I was doing it. And I must say what I found shocked me. Eric E Sterling – let me pause to reference the scriptures which warn us of the “evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men.” In my opinion Mr. Sterling would fit the bill. To shorten my story here I will give you links to what he supports and you will see that why he wasn’t’ able to give me a solution is because the solution he has would make the majority of Americans run and hide. From what I can piece together, it appears as though his agenda is to remove all consequences to those who break any of our drug laws without placing new laws in. And why would he want to do this, you might ask? Well to legalize drugs. To have those drugs, that destroy people and their families, produced, distributed and taxed in this country. And to this purpose I started writing. It is wrong, drugs destroy the lives of those who use them, the lives of those who care for those who use them, and even the random bystanders that get caught in the cross fire. I am sickened to think of the higher amount of people who would be hurt by this. What scares me even more are the many people who are championing the little causes without realizing the whole picture. I cannot just sit idly by and watch it happen. I do not expect everyone to agree with me or even believe but I do recommend doing your research and following through as you see necessary. Here are the links to help you do that

http://www.cjpf.org/about/ericbio.html

http://www.ssdp.org/

http://www.leap.cc/

http://stopthedrugwar.org/home

I can’t help but feel that these sites really do show what Eric Sterling is truly wanting. Whether you agree or disagree you can always contact your local representative of congress to let them know where you stand and what you want!

http://www.house.gov/

from this site you can locate your local member of the house of representatives

http://www.senate.gov/

from this site you can locate your local senator

WINTER STORM 2007

SNOW HITS THE SOUTH!

Febuary 1, 2007 Snow came to Charlotte NC. Though it is quickly melting away why not enjoy it while we can. Amber didn't have to go to school and I played hooky! Woohoo. We colored, played games, dance, sang, went outside and played with the snow as well as made brownies. What could be better? If ya'll could have joined us.

Once Upon a Time

in land far far away...or least what some would call Uptown (Charlotte NC) A mother and her children ventured out to see what they could see. What did they see? Where did they go, you may ask? Well, sit on down and let me tell you the story.

We went to Imaginon. An interactive library for children of varying ages to learn about and love books. Last Saturday we went to see the Once upon a time exhibit where we were able to explore popular fairy tales, how they originated, and the original versions of tales such as Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Jack and the Bean Stalk, and Little Red Riding hood.

The first one we saw was Beauty and the Beast. In this picture you will see Amber and James sitting at a keyboard. We read that in the original version of Beauty and the Beast, the Beast actually played the organ. (Kind of makes you think of The Phantom of the Opera, huh?)

They also got to play dress up as a young squire and pretty maiden.























After playing kings and queens, they went and climbed Jack's Bean Stalk. Where we were also able to learn different versions of Jack and the Bean stalk. Good times, I tell ya!




























We then dressed up as animals...ALL OF US! Amber was an ostrich, James, an elephant, and yes I was the turtle. You cant see the costumes very well but I will say we did enjoy dressing up and having fun.

Towards the end we changed the tables and guess who got to act like the wicked (step) mom - well for once it twas not I.


Of course we cannot forget - how my little worker bees turned into some shoe making elves. (Sweat shop here we come!)


Now, it is time to say Farewell to our sweet royalty. I ya'll have enjoyed this, hopefully next time it won't take me close to a week to figure out to do this!