Constructive SideWalk Chalk


I’m happy to announce there have been some exciting developments in the Blogher Tuition contest. The winner (or winners, I’m not telling) will be announced on Friday. Let’s just say we’re skipping the 1st runner up thing. It is good to be Queen.

2nd Runner up in the free blogher tuition contest

(from left to right, Sarah, Tammy, Queen of Spain)

by Sarah of Sarah and the Goon Squad

Do you want to hear what pisses me off about Weight Watchers?
The answer is probably no, but I am going to tell you anyway because this is my guest post dammit.
First I would like to say that I think overall Weight Watchers is a wonderful program. It is a nice healthy way to lose weight and it can lead to a healthy life style if you have more willpower than I do. Having someone else weight you every week is a brilliant way to shame people into eating better and the program teaches you to be aware of what and how much you are eating and how bad for you some things really are. But I digress.
I go to the meetings, which are sometimes quite helpful. But the crowd (and I am not basing this on a single WW experience. I have been to different meetings in different cities) generally seems to focus on eating alternates to candy. Or how much and what kind of ice cream is low in points. Or cookies.
Holy fuck people. Sweets aren’t my problem. If your only problem is eating too much candy then you really don’t need Weight Watchers do you? No. Just eat less candy, and weigh yourself in front of a friend each week.
My problem is manyfold. I like french fries and fried chicken and bacon and cheeseburgers and mashed potatoes and biscuits… you get my point. Let’s have a meeting about how the best method for not eating every french fry on the plate. Let’s talk about how to stop after two pieces of pizza. Let’s discuss -� Wait – Ian just walked by with no pants or diaper on. I’ll be right back…
Okay. What was I saying? Ah yes. Let’s discuss how a person can make chicken nuggets for their children and not consume the uneaten ones after the kids are done with dinner. I also have a problem not finishing everything on my plate. I blame my mother.
And let’s not forget the most important one. Beer. And wine. And tequila, specifically in margaritas (which I think is five points for a small one – not the El Presidente). Can I get a meeting a month on low point drinks. Or great ideas like “I don’t open a beer until two minutes into the second quarter and it really seems to help”.
Maybe Weight Watchers needs separate meetings, one for the chocoholics and one with an expert bartender with great tip on low point drinks.
Speaking of great tips. A Becks Light is only one point (wink) I’ve got your back.

To top it all off…

Princess Peanut ripped her wound open today. So we trudged to the pediatrician where everything was closed again…it took her 1 hour to get this new cast off…which Mom reapplied with Princess tattoos…


…and on the way home we got in two (minor) fender benders in 5 minutes.

I’ll be locked in my down-covered house with the children in bubble wrap for the remainder of the week.

If my computer let’s me, I’ll be over at blogher eventually.

A Royal Decree

Henceforth my children will be encased in bubble wrap.

The Queen’s Palace shall be covered in down.

Anyone entering will relinquish all scissors, knives, keys, nail files, q-tips, makeup brushes, chapstick, and pointy hats. It will be much like LAX, except more strict. And with better food after you pass through security.


During my umpteenth trimming of my evergrowing vines, Princess Peanut Punk as Fuck, Heiress to the House of Noodle, grabbed the gardening shears (which had slid from my “secure” and “safe” location of the minivan hood to the ground) and nearly cut her cute, little, delicate, wedding ring finger to the bone. Just shy of bone, really.

An ER trip, a firefighter issued Teddy Bear, and enough Mommy Guilt to fill my pool- later, we’ve got one delicate little finger glued together, one traumatized 3-year-old, a relieved Daddy (who braved rush hour to get to the hospital, thinking the whole time his daughter would go through life minus one finger), a criticizing Uncle, a shell-shocked mother, and a 1-year-old who seems to be no worse for the wear.

So forgive me if all of your Blogher entries have not been read. The top three entries will be posted, starting tomorrow. The winner’s post will be published on Friday.

Kicking things off tomorrow in the #3 spot (would that be the 2nd runner up? like if the winner AND 1st runner up dies, she wins???) is Sarah and the Goon Squad. She could have won, but really couldn’t have won.

I’m off to kiss my daughter more.

A hippo diet update

**win free blogher tuition. You only have a few more hours left!

I’m walking. Nevermind the construction on my paseo path (that’s sidewalk for you nonValencia folk).

Easter candy for a week not helping my hippo ass-Today starts anew with the diet. But I have one, very serious question…

How many Weight Watcher points in ejaculation?

Easter brings the bird flu and sugar comas

****QofS note: you have until Monday, April 17th at 11:59pm Pacific to submit your entry for free Blogher tuition. Some hints: you are guest posting on my blog. So it should fit in with the tone of this blog. It should be original to the Queen of Spain site-not something you’ve posted already. It needs to be unique and QofS-centric. You can enter as many posts as you like. Offer is good for tuition only. Tuition can not be refunded for cash and cash will not be awarded. If you can not attend blogher, your registration will be forfitted and you will not recieve any compensation. Stop making me be all PriceWaterhouseCooper-y and just email me your entry. Friends, family, pets, children, and their mothers are all eligible. It’s my contest. queenofspainblog@yahoo.com

Happy freaking Easter. We spent it at the Aquarium. What??? Like you thought we’d be a church???

Birds like to shit on my head.

Rumor has it this is good luck…but I think that was made up by the same people who claim rain on your wedding day is good luck. I know, let’s take something that SUCKS and pretend it’s good luck. Then it won’t seem so bad.

I got pooped on (oh, dear God the search hits I’m inviting here) at the Santa Barbara Zoo a few weeks ago.

I got pooped on at the Aquarium of the Pacific this weekend. The Lorakeet exhibit seemed like a great idea at the time. You can sort of see the crunch on my head.

Shortly after the pooping incident, I asked the Kaiser “Hey…do I have poop on me? I think I got pooped on?”

His response? “Uh…no…no poop.”

He later explained he *thought* I would freak out and it would ruin our day if I knew I had bird shit on my head and back. Whatever. Like I freak out. Ever. I’m so calm and cool and collected. He’s just a liar.

We’re going to ride on Thomas (jeez, that sounded dirty) in a few weeks. I’m taking bets on making it 3 for 3 on the bird shit thing. I’m offering 3-1 odds. Any takers?

Anyway. The Easter Bunny came. The Easter Bunny was only going to show up with some very small treats, and then Mrs. Easter Bunny felt guilty around 1130pm and hit the store where she found all Easter items already half off. Dear God I love me some Peeps. Left open for a few days so they get all hard. Looks like my daughter has inherited my Peep-lovin’ gene.


I’d like to clearly state that I have been trying very hard as of late to not go overboard. It’s really hard. The kids get so damn excited and happy. And when you watch them get excited and happy it just makes you want to make them even more excited and happy.


My brother and I got things like waterbeds for Easter. Along with baskets filled with solid chocolate bunnies and plastic eggs with hockey tickets and $50 bills inside. My parents were never more than middle class…but they literally gave us everything they had. The Kaiser, meanwhile…got some eggs and whatever bunny was generic and on sale. So you can imagine the fun he and I have when it comes to buying things for our children.

They don’t need that.
Yes they do.
They don’t even know any better.
So…
We don’t need to spend any more money.
Too bad.

I’ll let you guess who says what up there.

I’m off to cook a feast of pierogies and potatoes and jello. Don’t ask. Let’s just say I meant to order a ham and forgot and now feel obligated to make something unique. And somehow I think it’s the chocolate bunnies and jelly beans that will have everyone full, not the feast.

Happy Bunny Day. Try not to get pooped on.

BlogHer ’06 is closing in. And I want YOU to go. So much so…that I’m GIVING AWAY FREE TUITION

I’m really, really, really excited. And I can’t help but share my excitement.

I’m sending YOU to Blogher.

The Queen is the Queen, afterall. And she can make things happen.

Get yourself a hotel room and airfare. And I’ll pay one reader’s tuition. But we need to act fast, because Day One only has 100 spots left and registration is going quick.

So take the weekend to write a guest post for the Queen of Spain. You read the site. You know what kind of snark flies around here. Write about anything you want. Your life. Your kids. Your vagina. Whatever. Get it to me no later than Monday, April 17th, 2006. 11:59pm Pacific is the cutoff. It’s just like this year’s tax deadline…but so much better.

I will pick a winner for whatever reason, for whatever mood I’m in. Everyone and anyone can enter.

Email me your entry at queenofspainblog@yahoo.com.

I will post the winner’s guest column along with a bio. And we’ll meet in San Jose, CA in July! And then you can proudly put this button on your blog:

It’s Raining, It’s Pouring and Mommy is very Boring

Yesterday I was forgetting to sunscreen the kids and baking my prodigies as we ran through our favorite park.

Today…the wettest Spring in Southern California has once again emerged. Just when you thought it was safe to break out the sidewalk chalk, the heavens opened and I am again at a loss with what to do with these children.

I’m tapped out. I’m not the creative/crafty Mom type anyway. So give me my usual handful of bad weather days around here and I will run the gamete of “movie marathon,” “color/finger paint/stamp fun,” “clean, cook, and do laundry with Mommy,” or the really popular “here, have this toy while Mommy blogs” game.

The good news is our garden and plants are loving this mild weather. Normally it’s nothing but scorching heat and wind. I’m having to trim my vines weekly they are growing so fast with all this rain.


We’ve been to the mall. We’ve hit the stores, grocery and otherwise. And the Count has taken to impaling an apple with a garlic press for entertainment. That’s where we are at people. Fruit is being mutilated.

Oh, the humanity.

I’m open to rainy weather suggestions…but if anyone says “Chuck E… ” or suggests a craft-I’m banishing you from my blogroll.