Hi, remember me? I used to blog. I’ll get back into the groove eventually. Maybe. I got together with some friends last weekend, all of whom are bloggers, and we joked that we should start calling ourselves the Ladies Who Sometimes Blog. Kids and responsibilities just seem to be take up all our time lately.

Instead of blogging, we’ve been really busy ’round these parts. Back by mild wild demand, here’s another installment of Inside My Brain.

1. Last weekend I decided I couldn’t deal with E’s messy and chaotic playroom for one more second.

It’s been unorganized since we handed down her old kitchen, baby doll crib and play rug to our favorite baby bug Audrey. And we hear through the grapevine that it’s been a big hit with both Audrey and her BFF Daphne.

And because I can’t help myself, here’s baby E the first weekend we got the kitchen.

We had several good years with that kitchen. It was time for it to go, but I can’t help but look at those pictures of A and D and (of course) get choked up. It’s the circle of toys life.

So what to do with the space? Eventually, we want that room to be a multipurpose room. We’ve discussed putting a desk in there, a new couch or returning it to its former role as a music room.

For now, though, the room desperately needs storage. E.’s toy days are definitely winding down but she still has a lot of stuff, like games, puzzles, coloring books and Legos. Hey, know what would be a great idea? Getting a storage unit at Ikea. What could go wrong? Apparently I don’t read my own blog. Let us never forget Ikeageddon 2011.

Everything was starting out OK. We got all the pieces laid out and organized.

Hey, this one’s going to be a snap, I may have stupidly said.

And then this happened.

Well, hell. We debated adding some wood glue to it. But that would have required delaying the project to allow it to dry, and our patience doesn’t run that deep for Ikea projects. We decided it wasn’t intended for a crucial part and pressed ahead. And only 472 curse words later, it was done!

 I’m in the process of moving everything from E’s old toybox to that new wicker trunk. And at least it’s done … for now. But next time I tweet from Ikea, please send in reinforcements to slap some sense into me.

2. Our Disney passes are good again!

Two weeks ago, our summer blackout finally ended, and within 48 hours, we’d made our first trip back to Disney. We went the day before the first day of school, so decided to take it easy with a quick trip to Epcot. We chose that park because the crowds tend to be smaller there and E’s usually up for trying anything as long as she gets to ride Test Track (she did).

We had another reason for going there. This summer, we watched Mulan for the first time and E. is OBSESSED. Move over Merida. E has a new favorite “princess” (which is false description for Mulan since royalty has nothing to do with her excellent story). E keeps talking about how brave Mulan is and how she’s like Princess Leia. That’s my girl.

Since the China Pavillon at Epcot is the only place to see Mulan, that’s where we headed. You can tell E is nervous by the way she’s balancing on one foot.

She was over the moon about meeting Mulan and about their conversation about Mushu and how brave Mulan is.

I just wish she was dressed in her Ping outfit, rather than the clothes she so fiercely rejected in the movie. What are the chances of that ever happening? I know, I know.

At least it made one little girl really happy and inspired her to be brave before her own adventure the next day — starting kindergarten.

She’s already asking when we can go back and see Mulan.

3. “Wait, I have to wear my uniform EVERY day?”

E is still wrapping her brain around the idea of wearing a uniform to school every day. I freaking love them. Mornings have never been so easy. She has two choices — maroon top or blue top and blue skirt or khaki skirt. It’s just been fanfreakingtastic. E keeps asking, though, when she can wear something different to school. It’s slowly dawning on her that there will be no other option.

Next week is picture day and she got all excited, “Oh, I don’t have to wear a uniform that day!” “Sorry, sweetie, but yeah, you do.” “UGH! But I don’t WANT TO!”

Speaking of pictures, this was an option on her school picture order form.

Are you kidding me? We’re offering airtouching as an option, beginning in kindergarten, to our children? Really?

I have a whole rant bubbling up inside me over this … but I’m too tired. I’m just exhausted by it all. From Miley humping a foam finger to encouraging our elementary school kids to retouch their school pictures, it’s just all too much. Having a daughter ain’t easy.

But back to the uniforms. Since she’s feeling constrained in her day-to-day clothes, she’s been going a little wild (OK, fine, slightly wilder than usual) with her fashion choices. Fly that uncoordinated, fun fashion flag my dear.

4. I’ve been shamed by my babysitter

The last time our normal sitter watched E., she asked if they could make dinner together. I figured it’d be mac and cheese or something. Nope, she showed up with a bag of Publix pizza dough and they made heart-shaped pizzas, forever shaming my usual go-to Boboli pizza shells.

Rude.

Tonight, I finally conquered my fear of the Publix mounds of dough when I discovered that they were a) half the price of Boboli and b) they’re currently BOGO at Publix.

And my friends, I’m never going back.

So easy and so good. What was I so scared of? I even got to use my grandmother’s rolling pin, which always brings back nice memories of her.

5. If you need me, I’ll be in the 15th century.

Know what I’ve been doing at night instead of blogging? Reading, reading and more reading. I decided I needed a new series to get lost in and Michelle thought I might like Phillipa Gregory’s The Cousins’ War series. As usual, she was right.

Since I haven’t read any of them, I’m able to read them in historical chronological order, rather than in the order they were released. I started with The Lady of the Rivers.

This book is about Jacquetta (a very cool variation on my name that I’ve never heard) of Luxemborg, a major player in the court of Henry VI and his wife, Margaret of Anjou. It starts with her befriending Joan of Arc during Joan’s imprisonment and goes through the overthrow of her friends Henry and Margaret and the rise of the House of York during the War of the Roses.

It predates Gregory’s Tudor books by a couple hundred years, and if you like those books, you’ll like these. Frankly, I was most interested in The Lady of the Rivers because of Jacquetta’s rumored psychic (or Seeing) capabilities and how women in that era had to hide such gifts or risk being persecuted as witches. Also? If they sought any sort of power or independence they were also accused of being witches.

Good times.

I think I was supposed to read The Red Queen next but The White Queen picks right up where The Lady of the Rivers leaves off so I skipped ahead to that one, which I’m about halfway through right now.

And apparently there’s a show called The White Queen on Starz. Maybe I’ll discover my next period piece love to replace my lost Henry Cavill.

But first, I have some wars to get through.

And that’s what’s going on with me. What’s up with you? When was the last time you cooked something that scared you?