About rkpaulus

Writer. Mom. Wife. Basketball coach. Lover or all things chocolate. Winner of bubble gum jar! Grace is my oxygen.

Window Of Opportunity

Posted on October 23, 2011 by rkpaulus

Friday Night! Everything’s all right! We’re packed. Kids dropped off. We’re heading out of town! Going on a weekend long date with Prince Sunshine.

I married the ultra Romeo, I must admit. He signed us up for a Marriage Enrichment Conference in Boston. And two very reliable friends generously agreed to watch the girls. Thanks Netflix and NickJr. Just kiddin’ Mom. Real people are taking care of our kids at this moment. You can put the cuffs away, Officer. Continue reading →

Pink Boxing Gloves

Posted on October 20, 2011 by rkpaulus

[Knowing many families have lost a loved one to Breast Cancer, I humbly share a snippet of my sister’s story. Even as I publish this post, I pray for a dear friend’s mother whose fight is not over. Each story is different. This is just one.]

October 2009

Looked down at my cell phone buzzing. My sister Sandi, A.K.A. Sippy, calling me on her way home from work. Nothing unusual about that. She once said that I’m like her morning cup of coffee. Can’t live without it! So we talk every day. Pretty much.

“I felt something under my left armpit a few days ago.”

Silence. Continue reading →

44 Reasons Why My Parents Still “Do!”

Posted on October 16, 2011 by rkpaulus

Mom loves Dad.
Dad Loves Mom.
Mom cooks.
Dad eats.
Mom loads the stockings.
Dad loads the dishwasher.
Dad grows veggies in his garden for Mom.
Mom cuts up the veggies from Dad’s garden.
Mom likes tiramisu.
Dad buys Mom tiramisu. Continue reading →

Gimme One Smore Squat!

Posted on October 12, 2011 by rkpaulus

In preparation for a weekend with teenagers, I did the essentials:

Read The Hunger Games trilogy, the Twilight series, and watched all eight Harry Potter movies. So wrong. I know. But time was a tickin’.
Next, I rented Glee, Lord of the Rings, Transformers, and X-Men.
Before beginning my movie marathon, I picked up ten bags of potato chips, five cheese pizzas, and three bowls of extra-buttery popcorn. Washed it all down with several bottles of Jones’ Soda and one Super-sized Oreo McFlurry all while bopping to iTunes on my iPod and Oovooing sixteen friends. Continue reading →

BUSTED!…In a Good Way!

Posted on October 7, 2011 by rkpaulus

If you’ve been reading my Bloggity Blog, you know some basics about me. You know I’m —

and I completely botched up the Tooth Fairy Gig!

My whole life I’ve been getting caught. Messing up. In school, my report card always read, “Straight A Student, BUT…. Continue reading →

The Dangers of Distraction

Posted on October 6, 2011 by rkpaulus

Hit the writer’s ultimate jackpot today. A wall outlet. In the Lady’s Room! Just when my laptop died.

I had to wait for Beara to take care of business so I decide to rest my tush, cuz us writers don’t sit on it nearly enough, on a couch in the lounge area around the corner from the stalls. And the treasure of all treasure’s is waiting for me. A power source. My laptop exhaled its last breath as I was formulating my top ten list of ways you know you’re a distracted person.

Not to be confused with the top ten ways you know you’re a distraction. Surely a Bloggity Blog for another day.

Here you have it…my own personal FIRST EVER Top Ten List:

You know you’re distracted… Continue reading →

Tooth Fairy Blues

Posted on October 5, 2011 by rkpaulus

Six years, two months, and thirteen days ago, I should have been fired. From the Tooth Fairy Corporation. In a nutshell, the Teeth business should have done their homework and checked my references before plunging me into the field. Or mouth. Of it all.

My rapid decline began one winter morning when the sun rose after the rooster. For the record, we don’t live on a farm. At the time, my girls’ alarm clock woke them up with a goofy voice yelling, “Get up! Time to get up! Get out of bed already!” and this particular voice sounded roosterish with his trill on every vowel. You had to hear it to believe it.

Anyway, this particular morning marked the first dawn of our first lost tooth. My firstborn had carefully tucked her tiny little white tooth under her pillow the night before. Mom of the year forgot. When tear-filled Bubbles knocked on my bedroom door, I knew before she told me. I forgot the money.…
Continue reading →

Writer’s Block

Posted on October 4, 2011 by rkpaulus

The End.

Just kidding.

Woke up this morning with first lines instead of ‘Good Morning’ rolling off my tongue. Went to the docta and the docta said, “No more sleepin’ with books in yur head!” When you live with a physician, he’s always trying to diagnose you.

“I’ve seen this before. Classic case of Writer’s Block,” Dr. Hubby says.

“Is it bad? Can it be cured? Will I have to be quarantined?” Continue reading →

Confessions of a Kindergarten Mom

Posted on October 3, 2011 by rkpaulus

[Winter 2006]

Forgot to put my daughter’s snack in her book bag. Got a call from Mrs. Stone who politely asked, “Hi Mrs. Paulus. How are you? Just wanted to know what you were thinking you wanted to do for Hannah’s snack today?”

Found myself falling…down, down, down from the height of “Hard-working Mom” to the depths of “Irresponsible Parent”. I hate this fall. If you’re anything like me, you’re a lot harder on yourself than the person you’ve bumped in this crowded line of life. I feel myself taking a nose-dive into disappointment with taunting words poking me on the decline: “I can’t believe I forgot my daughter’s snack? What kind of mom am I anyway? She was probably so stressed out when she opened up her backpack and turned it up-side-down looking for her snack. Sheesh.”

When Hannah gets off the bus, I ask her vaguely, “How was your day Bubbles?”

“Goooood.”

I pry a little, “Anything hard? Anything go wrong today?”

She looks at me with a “I wonder if you know this already” look, and says, “Well, one thing. I couldn’t find my snack when I got to school.” Continue reading →