Honestly? Honestly.

... Some people, like Kate, think I deserve another award! And I truly, truly appreciate that. I've been praised for being "honest" and "candid" and you know what? That means SO much to me, thank you! I try. I don't hold much back... I'm just kinda... me - liberal use of the F-bomb included *wink*... And while all of you, my precious readers, use kind words like "honest" and "real" and whatnot, my husband tells me, "Melis, you have NO filter." He is less amused by me than you guys are and for that, I love you.

So this award really means so much to me because it's my way of (in the most mature manner possible) sticking my tongue out at him and stamping my feet and saying, "Toldya!"

AND the cool part is, I can give thanks to some of the many other ladies in my new-found circle of bloggy friends out there who inspire me to, you know, let loose with it.

Here's how the award works:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link to their blog.

2. Share 10 honest things about yourself.

3. Present this award to 7 other whose blogs you find brilliant in design or content.

4. Tell those 7 people they have been awarded.

Now about this "Ten Honest Things" part... Yikes. I've been totally swamped this week and have been meaning to do a post that shares some things about who I am, so this works out just perfectly. Here we go:

1) I used to be kinda slutty. STOP LAUGHING. Seriously. I had a TON of boyfriends. I especially liked older guys (you know, in high-school, I was the one dating college guys) and I never stayed with anyone very long. Until I met my husband. Well, he wasn't my husband when I met him, obviously - how weird would that be? - but you know what I mean. I dumped 3... yes, THREE, guys on the off-chance that Justin would ask me to a dance. Absurd. I think I had really skewed perceptions in my teen years of my worth as a woman, but that's a whole can of worms I need a licensed psychologist to be present for the opening of...

2) ANYWAY... I am totally freaked out by cancer. I'm continually worried that my kids will get cancer and die and I can't squash my nightmares. It is truly, truly horrible. Consequently, I spend a TON of time being so SO grateful for our health and begging and pleading and wheeling and dealing with God to let me keep them. I am a total spaz about it and can send myself into a fit of choking sobs in about 30 seconds flat if I let my imagination run away from me.

3) I really, really, really want another baby. Not yet. Good grief, not yet. But my uterus is aching for another little one like crazy. You know how you sometimes wake up in the morning SUPER hungry after you've eaten a gigantic dinner because your stomach stretches out and you feel hungrier than you normally would later on? I wonder if having twins does the same thing to a uterus... Like, it stretched out so much from having two babies in there that it's now hungrier than it should be? I don't know. All I know is that dear hubby watches me take my Pill every night with a skeptical look on his face because I know he's not convinced it's a good idea. Yet. I'm still working on him.

4) I don't mind doing housework, mostly. I enjoy the feeling of accomplishment that comes from sitting on my couch and seeing order and organization and shiny floors. But there are a few things I hate doing. Hanging up clothes, emptying the dishwasher and refilling the coffee canister. Those three things infuriate me and I will put them off until I cannot stand to not any longer.

5) I love to be creative. I love to paint and draw and take photos and do crafts and cook... I'm just not very good at any of them and don't have time to practice and it drives me nuts. I want to write books and poems and paint pictures and have a photo gallery and scrapbooks galore and I dream of interior decorating... but I never get the chance to do any of it. I don't really mind because eventually I will and I'll be glad to have the time but I get absurdly antsy sometimes wanting to do something creative.

6) Fast cars. Sexy, purring, masterfully engineered cars give me goosebumps and I get excited like Jack with Legos. I drive a minivan (which I love, believe it or not) but one of these days... Sometimes I give my van a little more gas a little sooner than I need to at a red light and leave some townie in his crappy Mustang staring agape at my tail lights and I smile and think, "Wow, I just burned you in my mini, you douche" before I grow up and realize that I just consumed a gallon of gas right there. So I go back to fantasizing about my Nissan Skyline GT-R and press "Play" on the van's DVD player and heat up my seat and be glad I can fit 3 car seats in the beast.

7) I like going to the bathroom. You know... going to the bathroom. As in... you know. I love it. (That's disgusting, I realize, but I'm being honest here.) Sometimes I think about interior decorating and fast cars WHILE I go to the bathroom and that makes it even better.

8) My mom used to let me taste raw hamburger meat that she'd mixed seasonings for meatloaf or hamburgers or meatballs into. In fact, I used to really like it. I used to actually ASK for it. Now, the very thought of it makes me barf a little in my mouth and you know what? I'm pretty sure the barf in my mouth tastes better than the raw meat would. Mom, I love you, but I'm not going to feed raw animal products to my kids. Things must have been safer in the 80's right?

9) I have stuff I want to be able to write about but don't have the guts.

10) I can't watch scary movies. What the heck is wrong with me? I used to be able to. I have no idea when I became a weenie but I can't do it. Humor, suspense, drama, action, whatever, but not horror. Blech. Getting me to watch a scary movie now is probably about like getting me to sit in a dentist chair, except I know I need to go to the dentist once a year and can't figure out a single way horror movies might enrich my life. So I just avoid them. I think my Mom just died a little inside if she read this because she raised me on Stephen King and eats up gory, spooky horror flicks like candy. (Sorry, Mom!)

Okay so that was a little about me. Pretty random, but totally honest. So 7 other ladies who have the cajones to be honest and real (in no particular order):

1. Tamara who cracks me up CONSTANTLY

2. Amber my IRL friend!

3. Candice who has a gorgeous family and thrilling adventures I can only DREAM of

4. Mama M. who inspires me to have hot mom hair one day

5. Misty who got me started blogging

6. Elizabeth who keeps it as real as any blog I've ever read, and...

7. Katie for her absolutely incredible strength!

There are tons more that I could have posted, but I really REALLY need to go start making my chicken parmesan for dinner!