PRINCSSIS SPEAKS...you may listen

4 THINGS

2006-09-27T23:51:00.001-05:00

I got this from GranDee. I decided it would be fun to fill in my answers:

Things you may not have known about me.....
A. Four jobs I have had in my life: 1. Crew leader at Wendy's
2. Bank teller
3. Late night DJ for an easy listening radio station
4. bartender

B. Four movies I could watch over and over:
1. Mrs. Doubtfire
2. Shawshank Redemption
3. Any of the Star Wars movies
4. Forrest Gump

C. Four places I have lived:
1. San Diego, CA
2. Bondville, IL
3. Tolono, IL
4. Normal, IL

D. Four TV shows I love to watch
1. Extreme Makeover Home Edition
2. Cold Case
3. What Not to Wear
4. Food Network (many shows)

E. Four places I've been on vacation 1. Tucson, Arizona
2. Sarasota, Florida
3. Hawaii
4. Wyoming

F. Websites I visit daily/often: 1. My e-mail
2. Ebay
3. Rants, Raves, and Revelations of the Blond Girl ( http://blondgirlrants.blogspot.com/ )
4. www.foodnetwork.com or www.recipezaar.com

G. Four of my favorite foods:
1. LOBSTER
2. Prime Rib (yes, I have expensive taste)
3. Chocolate
4. BLT's with fresh garden tomatoes

H. Four places I would rather be right now:
1. In Australia
2. On a cruise (Alaskan or Carribean)
3. Sitting by the fire at a campsite in Canada where there are no phones, TV, or other electronic devices. Just my family and me spending time together.
4. In bed, sleeping

4 THINGS

2006-09-27T23:51:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Blogger's Anonymous

2006-08-21T08:15:00.000-05:00

My name is Princssis and it's been nearly 4 months since my last blog. I don't know exactly why, but I got out of the habit of blogging on a regular basis. I will try to improve my record as I've received encouragement from Blond Girl and Champs.

Actually, Champs informed me that his feelings were hurt when he saw that the last entry on my blog was about Tank coming home from Iraq and nothing about him and his family moving back home from Minnesota. Well, Champs, here it is:

CHAMPS, BLOND GIRL,

AND SWEET GIRL ARE HERE!
(Oh, and Gus, too!)
WELCOME HOME!

I know it's been a difficult time for all of you. Blond Girl has left her beloved metropolitan for a much smaller, orange-clad, college town with only ONE Sears! (She has left her friends and family, too!) Gus, the cat, had to be drugged for the 15 hour trip that should have been 10 hours. Champs had to drive the gimpy truck on the extra long trip. Then dealing with the "blessing in disguise" /occupied house into which they were to move. Click here to read more about the chaos. I just hope they find in the end that it has all been worth the trouble.

TANK IS COMING HOME!

2006-04-27T22:52:00.000-05:00

Tank has been, for the last 18 months, serving in the Army National Guard deployment to Iraq. He started the deployment in the states but away from home in training. He has been in Iraq for the last year. HE IS NOW BACK ON US SOIL! He called GranNee this morning to say he is in Georgia! YIPPEE! In just a few days, he'll be back home in our arms! I can't wait to see him! We are all soooooo proud of his dedication and courage.

I know the Lord has watched over him and kept Tank safe. Better yet, Tank knows it, too! Thank you, Lord for your protection!!

I'm trying to think of something to do to welcome him home. There is a "welcome home" committee with the National Guard family support group. They have planned a celebration to welcome the troops home. They will be asking the public to line the streets along the route the troops will take from the airport to the armory. They have made and placed over 1600 yellow ribbons along the route. Fire engines will be hoisting large flags in the air and fire personnel will be saluting the troops along the route. I wish I could be a bird to see the whole thing. I want to see what the soldiers see as they come home. You see, we (family) will all be waiting at the armory for their arrival. I hope they come home to a warm welcome from the community!

THANK YOU, TANK!

Civic Duty

2006-04-03T23:32:00.000-05:00

Well, the next two weeks ought to be interesting. You see, this princess has been summoned to jury duty! I have actually served before, 10 years ago. I had just found out I was pregnant with CJ! Anyway, I went to orientation today. Then, within 90 minutes, we were dismissed for the day. I have checked in at the website and we all have to report tomorrow morning at 8:30. That means an early start for CJ and Belle. CJ will go to a friend's house across the street from school at 7:45am. Then, I will take Belle to GranMum's and go on to the courthouse. Then, I anticipate a long time waiting. Who knows, maybe I'll be picked right away?

Last time, I was actually an alternate juror for a murder case. The trial and evidence were interesting. I did feel kinda left out though, after hearing all the testimony and evidence then just being excused and not allowed to deliberate with the rest of the jury. They ended up convicting him of involuntary manslaughter. I don' t quite understand how the only two guilty options were murder 1 or INvoluntary manslaughter. It just doesn't seem right.

Since my schedule will be unknown for the next two weeks, I may not be around here much. (Not that I've been a daily presence anyway.) However, I hope to come back with some interesting stories!

BTW - Having served on jury duty before, I do feel it is an important part of our judicial system, however flawed it may be. Anyone who has the opportunity to serve, should do so with an open mind. I know its a disruption in our lives, but it is necessary. As one of the judges that spoke to us today said, we may not have a perfect system, but it's a system that others in this world are willing to die for.

Let sleeping children sleep?

2006-04-01T22:47:00.000-06:00

OK. I have a dilemma. Belle did not sleep well last night. She's been battling nasal congestion so bad that she coughs when she tries to swallow. Anyway, she woke up at about 4am requesting a drink of water. I happily obliged, as I do every so often. Typically, she will take a SIP and then go back to bed with no problems. This morning was different. She took huge GULPS of water and wouldn't let me put down the glass until she had her fill. She refused to go back to bed. So, we were snoozing in the recliner and all of a sudden, around 4:45am, up came the water! I thought maybe she was getting the flu I had over the weekend. Nope. After that, she was fine.

We had a Cub Scout outing today. We had to be at the Scout Leader's house at 8:30am. Belle and I actually made it there ON TIME! That is quite the accomplishment for me! CJ had spent the night there. We went on to the local college's veterinary medicine open house. There were all kinds of animal exhibits. The kids even milked a cow and felt inside a fistulated cow!! We finally left there at about 2pm. I was amazed that Belle, who usually goes down for a nap around 11am when she's had a good night's sleep, was still awake and in a good mood! She didn't even fall asleep on the 30 minute ride home! However, I did put her down as soon as we arrived back home, at about 2:30 or 2:45pm. It is now nearly 11pm and she is STILL ASLEEP! I have checked on her several times and she is sleeping soundly. Yes, she is breathing!

There have been other times when she hasn't gone down at her usual nap time and slept from 5 or 6pm to 7am. But she's never slept all night from before 3pm! Of course, this has to be a short night with time "springing forward" one hour tonight!

What would have you done? Would you be like me and let her sleep and pray she doesn't get up at 2 or 3am raring to go? Or would you have woke her up earlier and tried to get her back to bed at her normal bedtime?

So proud..

2006-03-17T21:08:00.000-06:00

CJ's birthday party with his friends was tonight. He decided he wanted to go see "The Shaggy Dog" movie and wanted a shaggy dog cake. I was a bit perplexed by the notion of making this cake. As you can see, I did my homework at the Wilton website and it turned out pretty "doggone" good, if I do say so myself!

It's funny. All through the movie I was looking at the dog thinking about how I could've done the cake differently.

We had an early dinner (pizza) and then had cake (I hated to cut it!) and CJ opened gifts. We then went to an early movie to take advantage of special pricing. I had another mother help drive since I don' t have a van. The kids were all very well behaved throughout the movie. Now, a couple of the boys are spending the night. They have popcorn and a movie. Hopefully soon, they will be settling down a bit.

This was a great theme for a party. I found ideas for decorations, treat bags and such at http://www.birthdaypartyideas.com. There were great ideas for watching movies at home, too. Some suggestions indicated the theatre did special things for parties. I wished our theatre was a little more accommodating and allowed the kids to see how the film is projected onto the screen. Oh, well. We all still had fun.

Is there a doggy heaven?

2006-03-14T22:40:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was a sad day here at the castle. One of the royal pets was very ill and we had to let her go to doggy heaven. It all happened so fast. Within just a couple weeks, she lost so much weight and at the end couldn't stay standing for long. She would've been 10 years old in June. She was a great pet and mother to many pups. She had a great disposition - wonderful around kids.

CJ took it pretty hard, but he was able to give her "a proper goodbye" with treats and a hug. As I tucked him into bed last night, he said, "Mom, I feel like I didn't tend to her the way I should've. Tell Dad I'll start taking care of the kennel." We still have one of the pups, now nearly 5 years old and the sire, who is in the house. Today after school, CJ went straight to the kennel and cleaned it out. We'll see how long this lasts. Don't get me wrong, he has good intentions on keeping with it, but knowing CJ, once the weather gets better and there's more fun things to do.... well, like I said, we'll see. I commend him for taking the initiative to take responsibility for this job.

9 years ago....

2006-03-09T22:00:00.000-06:00

...I was sitting in my recliner, feeling bigger than a barn, pregnant with my first child. The due date was 10 days away, but by that Sunday evening, I was getting frustrated. I had taken Friday off work feeling like something was about to happen. All weekend long, I was waiting for that moment when a pregnant woman says, "Honey, it's time to go."

As my hubby (AR) was getting ready for bed, he asked me if I thought I would be going into work the next day. I remember exactly our next words. "I might as well, cuz I guess this baby's never coming out!" He replied, "You won't have to worry about that. You're having the baby tomorrow." And off to bed he went.

I sat in the chair, wondering what in the world he thought. Why did he say such a thing? What does he know? For all my luck, the baby would be 2 weeks overdue!

Now, by the end of my pregnancy, I required numerous pillows to support my back, belly, knees, oh, and head! I was sleeping in the guest room, where I could have all the space I wanted. That Sunday night, at Midnight, I awoke.

I had the feeling my water had broke, but I wasn't sure. I called the hospital and they told me to walk around for 30 minutes to see if I had any leakage. I woke AR and he got in the shower. I called back to the hospital with my symptoms and was told to come on in. I'll spare you all the details, but it took me a while to get dressed, and call GranDee and GraNee. I remember the 30 minute ride into town. It seemed as though AR was driving our Chevy pick-up truck over every single bump in the road! Why did we have to take the truck?

I arrived at the hospital at about 2am. I was leaving my pain relief options open, but wanted to try to avoid an epidural. I did submit to a dose of Nubain in my IV. I had never had any kind of drug intraveneously and I remember the room spun for a couple minutes. WOW! Pretty soon, my contractions stopped. That was wierd. I was given pitocin, I think, to start the contractions again. At 6:36am, my first child, my son, was born. AR was right! It was so exciting! Little did we know how our lives would change!

CJ's 9th birthday is tomorrow. I usually don't work on a Friday, but I was asked to work tomorrow as two of my co-workers will be out of the country at a seminar. I agreed to work as long as I could leave by 3pm. CJ's grandparents will come to our home for a spaghetti dinner (AR's homemade sauce is simmering now - sorry, BG, there is a difference in spaghetti sauce) and an Illini basketball cake. Then, we have to root on the ILLINI in the Big Ten tourney.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CJ!

"Safe" place!

2006-03-02T23:49:00.000-06:00

I found it! The CD disk I was looking for was definatley in a "safe" place - in the safe at the tavern!!! Geez, I don't know if I left it there purposely or if I didn't pick it up when I originally saw it (it was left there for me by my business partner when he got the mail) and someone put it there. Oh, well. I have it and making progress on getting caught up entering the information into the computer for the accountant.

I don't know why I do this to myself. I always wait till the last minute and then I'm rushing to get something done. If I would only do a little at a time, I would stay caught up through the year and there wouldn't be so much to do at the beginning of the calendar year (when things are still hectic from the holidays). UGH.

Oh, well. It gave me something to blog about. I know I'm not the only one, anyway.

Where to start?

2006-02-27T09:10:00.000-06:00

I have so much to blog about, I don't know where to start.

I am sore - aching all over! I'm not sick, thank God! I helped GranDee move yesterday. She had help getting packed and coming here, three hours from her previous home. Actually, the buyers of her home helped her! What a blessing they are. I helped on this end unloading and putting things away. I should've gone to help her pack, I think!

She lived in a two bedroom home with a basement. Now, she's in a 12' x 12' room! She decided she wanted to move to a retirement community that provides three meals a day and housekeeping. I kept reminding her over the phone that she was coming to a 12' x 12' room. (She had visisted the facility over Christmas.) I recommended that she use graph paper to plan the furniture arrangement. She made a diagram, to scale, so we knew exactly where each piece of furniture would go. She listened to me, but I don' t think she really understood how much stuff she would need to get rid of! We had boxes lining the hallway and the room was pretty full.

The unloading of the truck didn't go quite as planned. She had wanted the big items (bed, dressers, bookcases, desk) unloaded first so we would have room to maneuver them into place. Well, the people helping was trying to get stuff off the truck as quickly as possible and started bringing in boxes first. GranDee had the bed partially assembled in such a way that it shoud've fit into the elevator (she's on the third floor). Well, it didn't fit, so we had to fully disassemble it. While I was helping disassemble the bed, the others continued taking boxes up to her room. When we got up there with the bed, there wasn't much room to move, but we managed to get the bed into place. After all her things were unloaded from the truck, the furniture put in it's new arrangement, I was left with her and all the boxes! Oh, and the comments from other residents and visitors in the hallway. "My she has a lot of stuff!"

My goal for the evening was to get all the boxes out of the hallway. First, any box labeled "books" I unpacked and put in the bookcases. That helped a lot. I shoved things under her bed, for now. She has a set of drawers that go under the bed, but by the time they arrived to the room, there wasn't enough space to put them in place. They are now leaning against the wall. Her shower is full of boxes, which I guess is okay for now since the water was going to be off today from 7am to 10am for repairs. There are six boxes of files. You know, like the papers you would put in a file cabinet. I told GranDee that I was going to do like "Clean Sweep" and give her homework to go through the files and pare down to ONE box! She didn't like that too well, but that's the way it is. I'm not going to make this easy for her. Once I managed to get all the boxes either unpacked or loaded into her room, I left. She had a small path to the bed. She was surrounded by stacks of boxes. I want her to realize she really needs to look at all her STUFF and decide what is important to keep. She had medical supplies that she doesn't use anymore. They are new, but not appropriate for her now. There's boxes of pictures. She brought one of those wrapping paper storage containers full of Christmas wrap. I told her she doesn't have room to store that and she will have to buy wrap as she needs it. Blond Girl suggested we ask if we could put a few things in an empty room, but I said that was too easy. We'll see how the next few days go. Hopefully, she will realize what needs to go and what needs to stay.

I know it must be hard to pare down from a two+ bedroom HOUSE to a one room apartment. I just don' t want to see her living in clutter. She wants her grandkids to come over for visits. She needs to keep that in mind. Also, she has a Jack Russell terrier dog with her. She shook the whole time, poor thing. She just didn't' t know quite what to think.

I love my Mom. I want the best for her. But, I am sore, Mom!

A safe place?

2006-02-16T21:42:00.000-06:00

I've lost it. I got a CD disk with important information on it so I can get our business taxes done. I'm sure I put it in one of those "safe places" so that I didn't loose it. Now, I can't remember where the "safe place" is! I do this all the time - put something somewhere so it won't get lost and then I can't find it when I need it! I typically will find it once I've replaced it or done something different.

I also will enter a room only to forget what I was going to do there. Or, I go to the wrong room, or go UPstairs instead of DOWNstairs!! What is wrong with me! I bought some DHA and St. John's Wort, hoping that would help. But I can't remember to take it regularly! The directions say to take in between meals. Well, I remember when I'm getting ready to eat! What's wrong with me! (Oh, I already said that. UGH. I can't even write a short post without forgetting what I'm doing!)

Anywho, I've been looking for the disk for like a week now. I NEED THIS DISK!

What next?

2006-02-08T21:04:00.000-06:00

I will try to make this short as I am exhausted yet I have so many things on my "to do" list rushing through my head. Within the last month, I have visited the ER with Belle, thinking she surely had meningitis (she's fine); sat in the hospital two hours away from home with GranDee as she had a scheduled tracheostomy only to meet GranMum with Belle at the doc's office on the way home. She had an ear infection that turned into three nights of holding her as she wouldn't sleep and another visit to the doc. Then, just days after GranDee comes home from surgery, she's transported by ambulance with pneumonia and complications with her stoma. Even though I wasn't physically at the hospital until she had more surgery, I was mentally, spiritually, and emotionally there. Two days ago, she had the surgery to stablize her stoma by inserting a trache tube. I left home at 6:30am and returned at 8:00pm. Yesterday, I battled the dog at the vet, but not much else. Today, I had to work (left home at 7:15am and returned at 6:30pm). I'm pooped.

So, now I find out the accountant wants the yearly reports for our tavern so he can file taxes. Our partner called today and spoke to AR. I'm to have everything ready by Monday. There's no way I could have everything caught up in the computer by Monday. The house is a mess, with clean clothes once folded still on the couch. There are a few dirty dishes that had to soak still in the sink from last night. The dining room table, visible to anyone at the front door, is piled with Christmas decorations that haven't been put away yet (along with my endless stack of paper/mail.) CJ has had two wet nights in a row - he'd been doing so well- and doesn't have clean sheets for the bed (thank goodness for blankets and sleeping bags). The dog wants out, then back in, then he cries to go back out again. UGH! Does it ever end? I'm not complaining, just listing everything I have to do. And that's not everything.

Something needs to change. I need to go to sleep.

The teacher called...

2006-01-24T22:30:00.000-06:00

CJ is in the third grade. Since Kindergarten, his teachers have been saying he has difficulty staying focused and on task. When he was in 1st grade, I took him to see a psychologist and he was tested for ADD and giftedness. At that time, he was a little young for the testing, but he was considered below threshold for ADD. There were some suggestions the doctor gave us that we tried. Some seemed to help - for a while. In the second grade, the teacher was personally very close to the first grade teacher, so they had discussed CJ's problems. She continued to voice concern and we followed up with the doctor. We filled out some surveys about his behavior and problems. This time, the doctor said CJ was borderline ADHD - inattention. I guess they use ADHD with a qualifier now. There is no ADD term used. However, she stated she felt he is "gifted" in reading, as his comprehension is several grades above his current grade. I have been concerned that maybe he's just been bored with the work.

Now you have to understand, that academically, CJ was doing great. He also has a very small class size. There's been anywhere from 8 to 12 kids in his class. We have some migrant worker families that come at the beginning of the year, so there are more kids then. We live in a small school district - about 100 kids total for K-8th grade. WE are fortunate enough to still have the school open. If it were to close, the kids would go to the neighboring town where they go for high school (CJ will NEVER go there). We have been very pleased with the individualized attention he gets. This year, being third grade, is the first where he has actually received letter grades for his work. For the first two quarters so far this year, he has earned high honor roll - straight A's.

This has made it difficult to warrant putting him on medication. Although, his teacher recently told me that she felt it was time somthing more be done. She was constantly having to direct his attention back to the work at hand. His handwritting was atrocious! His sentances looked like a string of ill-formed letters with no spaces between the words. He could write legibly, but it took a LOT of effort and time. He was always the last one done - if he completed the work. He rarely got to do the fun things others were doing after they finished thier work. His teacher was concerned it was affecting CJ emotionally.

Now, AR and I have been reluctant to medicate our son, especially given his good grades. We have also recently decided to eat and use healthier foods and products. We are buying more organic items and have started juicing. It was going against all we were trying to do for the health of our family to give our CJ medication for this condition. I was searching for a natural alternative when I asked the nutritionist at our chiropractor's office. She suggested we try a DHA (omega-3 fatty acids) supplement. She encouraged me to research the internet using "DHA" and "ADD" for my search. I came across this article as well as others:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/T040400.asp#T040408

An exerpt of this article is: "DHA is the primary structural component of brain tissue, so it stands to reason that a deficiency of DHA in the diet could translate into a deficiency in brain function. In fact, research is increasingly recognizing the possibility that DHA has a crucial influence on neurotransmitters in the brain, helping brain cells better communicate with each other. Asian cultures have long appreciated the brain-building effects of DHA. In Japan, DHA is considered such an important "health food" that it is used as a nutritional supplement to enrich some foods, and students frequently take DHA pills before examinations."

Anyway, CJ started taking DHA supplements less than two weeks ago. I was told we may not see much change for up to four weeks. CJ's teacher called me today, asking if I'd come in to see her. We had discussed scheduling an Occupational Therapy consultation to investigate a reason for his handwriting. The teacher told me she spoke with the OT person and she suggested it sounded more like a cognitive issue. Then, she showed me samples of his handwriting. Even from just last week, the words are now appropriately spaced and it is legible!!! She told me she has seen a marked change in CJ since starting the supplement. She doesn't have to "keep on CJ" as much. He is getting his work done in the time allowed and having time left to do fun things. Imagine the joy I feel right now!

Thank you, God for giving us the wisdom to try this! We will continue CJ on the supplement and see if some of the issues at home start to change.

TUB UGLY

2006-01-23T22:29:00.000-06:00

I just got out of the tub. I usually take showers, but tonight my legs were aching, so i decided to take a luxiourios soak. First of all, my tub is not your ordinary tub. It is a sunken concrete squared hand-made (i think) tub that is covered in one-inch tiles. It is mostly teal with single tiles of tan, yellow, black and grey scattered throughout. It's not the prettiest thing to look at. My bathroom walls are assorted shades of pink tile half-way up the wall. Then there's pink floral wallpaper. ICK! Around the toilet (which is pink), the tile are the same style, but baby blue. There is a custom one-inch teal tile counter surrounding the pink sink. One word describes this bathroom. UGLY!

The tub is very deep (did i mention it is sunken?) and very square. It's nice to sit in, as you can literally empty the water heater and nearly have water to your armpits. However, you can't really lean back and relax due to it's squareness. There's no support for your back and no where to lay your head.

Tonight, I used like a third of a bottle of skin milk to make lots and lots of bubbles. I imagined those movie shots with the woman so relaxed in the tub full of bubbles. Well, I had the tub full of bubbles, but I was not relaxing. I could feel my shoulders slump forward so much that I feared I'd look like I had a hump. My neck is so tight and I'm yearning to lay back. Ugh. The water started to feel cool coming out of the tap, so I turned it off. I had given Belle a bath a little earlier, so I probably didn't get a full water heater to start with. My tub was filled no where near my pits. Anyway, shortly after turning off the water, it seemed the water level was lowering. I bet the drain isn't holding. It's time to remodel the bathroom.

AR has been working seven days a week and is exhausted when he gets home at 2:30pm. He's in bed by 8pm most nights. He has absolutely no energy to do anything. So, I don't foresee my bathroom getting remodeled any time soon. Besides, he still has to do the inside finish work around the upstairs windows he replaced this fall. Do I continue waiting (we've been in the house 12 years and it was the first thing on my list), or........
What do you suggest?

Where have all the bloggers gone?

2006-01-19T20:38:00.000-06:00

At least I'm not the only one slacking off on blogging. Although, Blond Girl has a fairly legitimate excuse - moving. I'm just glad I'm not the one packing up everything I own to move to a smaller, temporary home until summer - only to move again. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they are moving here. My kids need to be around their cousins more.

We went to Motor's house on Monday so he could help me with my computer. Spark and Belle were so cute playing together! And CJ was "supervising." There was one incident were Spark squealed and Belle came running to me saying, "Mommy, mommy! Spark dlakjg lhfljhld;hgjah" I have no idea what the jibberish was, but I could tell she was tattling. I've noticed her doing that at home as well. As a matter of fact, a couple nights ago, she was in her high chair coloring while we were preparing dinner. She started her squalling (for no reason but attention) and AR hollered, "HEY!" I swear Belle looked straight at me and said, "Mommy, mommy, mommy! Daddy want bl*w j*b!" Now, before you criticize my language in front of my kids, we never use those words, especially around the kids. I just thought it was sooo funny that whatever she said turned out to sound the way it did!

Belle is really starting to have quite an array of facial expressions. I can't believe how much she reminds me of CJ when he was that age. They are so much alike. They both started talking early, are very dramatic in their expressions, and have such tender hearts. They love each other so much. I know there will come a day when they will say, "I hate you!" to each other, and I dread that day! It is so nice to see Belle run to the door when CJ comes home from school yelling "Bubba!" and giving him a big hug. He likes to love on her just as much. I look at the two of them and it's hard to remember just having CJ.

He was the only one for 7 years and he has adjusted quite well. Oh, he's had his moments of jealosy, but really, he's done remarkable. I remember when he would tell me, "All you have to do, Mommy, is pray for a baby. It's up to you if you have a girl or a boy. I just want to be a big brother!" Pretty soon, it wasn't good enough for me to pray and he started the praying. Up to the very time Belle was born, he said it didn't matter to him whether he had a brother or sister, as long as the baby was healthy. I was sure I was having another boy. I was so surprised when they announced I had just given birth to a daughter. I feel so blessed to have them both, and so thankful they love each other the way they do.

HO, HO Hack and Happy New Year!

2006-01-06T22:11:00.000-06:00

Well, just as I said in my last post, what gets done, gets done. The upstairs bathroom sink drain didn't get fixed, family pics weren't taken, and I didn't get Christmas cards sent out. I think I'll do more of a New Year's letter this year. I still want to send one out - after we have the family portrait done. We have friends that always send out their family letter after the holidays. I always look forward to it after all the hub-bub. I don't know if I'll make it a tradition, but for this year, anyway.

I'm so thankful that Tank was able to get in earlier than expected, so he was here along with everyone else! He showed some video/pics from Iraq - anything from scenery, weapons they found, the destruction of the elimination of the weapons they found, sweet children, and the soldiers horsing around! It was fun. He says our troops need to be there. There's so much good going on that we don't hear about on the news! He goes back on Monday! :'-(

We survived Christmas Eve. Everyone had a great time. Apologies go out to Blond Girl about the chili! And I don't think I even got to try your cookies! (DARN!) Anyway, there were some things that didn't get done, but it was all good anyway. Then, Christmas night, AR got sick. I think it was the flu that's going around here. I was so tired from the short nights prior to Christmas. I fell ill on New Year's Eve, so we didn't do anything except rent Star Wars III and go to bed by 10:30pm. Oh, well. It's just another year.

Over the course of the holidays, AR and I started talking about eating healthier. We didn't really make New Year's resolutions, just a decision to do better. AR's cousin is big into organic food and AR's been reading up on it. We've decided our health is important, so we will buy more organic food and try making our own juices (after we buy a juicer). I asked for and received a blender for Christmas to make smoothies. I've tried one recipe so far, but I need to get more fruit. We also will be more dedicated to our large garden in respect to pesticides and such, and not letting as much go to waste. Now that Belle is older, it will be easier for me to do more canning this next year. Our garden this last year mostly went to waste. I just didn't have time to harvest and can. We also had some late summer storms that damaged some of the crop and made it difficult to control the weeds. CJ is old enough to help as well. That could be a Boy Scout activity. He loves helping his dad plant the garden, but his interest is suppressed when it comes time to harvest.

Back to the sickies, last night, Belle had a fever and was VERY clingy - she would not let me put her down for anything! So, I held her all night and all morning. I had been giving her Tylenol through the night and day and decided to try ibuprofen tonight. She's like a new little girl! She did go to bed a little later than usual, but I'm hoping she sleeps through the night tonight. I better get to bed soon so I'll be better rested.

Good night and belated Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-24T00:20:00.000-06:00

I'm here, thinking about all the gifts I have yet to wrap. I have spent the last couple nights busy getting ready for the 25 people that will be here tomorrow. Or, should I say, later tonight! I've decide what gets done, gets done and what doesn't, oh, well. The most important thing is we have a big family with whom to share the holidays! Oh, and Blond Girl and her family are here in Hometown City in Another State!! I haven't seen them yet, but they will be here, at my home, tomorrow!

Tank is on his way home! The only thing is, his flight schedule was changed, so he will get in Saturday night. We are praying, somehow, in God's mysterious way, Tank will arrive earlier so he can spend some time with the other 24 people here. I'm sure he will be functioning on pure adrenaline. I know I am now. He has such a long itinerary. I wish he didn't have to bounce around the Midwest before he actually gets home! I know God has his timing and there's a reason he's been delayed. I have had several lessons lately in patience. I'm trying, Lord, but, I wanna see my Tank! It's too bad he has to go back to Iraq in just a couple weeks. It will be very hard to see him leave again!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

oh, and check this out: Is there a "W" is Christmas?

Santa's reindeer?

2005-12-17T20:25:00.000-06:00

I first saw this on Blond Girl's site and now I've done it, too!

You Are Rudolph

Sweet and shy, you tend to be happiest when you're making someone else happy.

Why You're Naughty: You sometimes stick that nose where it doesn't belong

Why You're Nice: Christmas would be a sad affair without you!

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

THE BUCK STOPS HERE

2005-12-16T08:44:00.000-06:00

WOW! I know I haven't posted in a while but I hadn't realized it's been over a month! We've had so much going on here that I got out of the habit. My dog, Casey, told Russ' dog, Sunny, that I would post, so here it goes:

I usually go deer hunting with AR during our second season. He always goes first season, the weekend before Thanksgiving, with his best friend. When I go, I use the friend's permanent deer stand. Over the years, they've made changes to it to make it easier to get into and such. This year, the friend decided to hunt second season as well. So, I sat in AR's portable stand, the friend was in his own stand, and AR would set up somewhere on the ground or walk to try to stir something up.

My stand was set up just inside the timber, near a field. There were deer tracks everywhere along the edge of the field. There were tree rubs very near my stand in the timber. I was expecting to see a lot of deer. I haven't ever killed a deer before, but I have shot at a couple. I use a shotgun. This year, I used an automatic. Before, I had used a pump action and when I shot, my glove got caught and I couldn't get off a second shot!

Anyway, we use walkie talkies to communicate between us. Early on the first day, the friend radioed me to let me know a 4-point buck was headed my way. Within about 10 minutes or so, he was right under my stand! He was small and as I aimed my shotgun on him, I was thinking about such an easy shot, but wondering if I should wait to see if there was something bigger to come along. I decided to let him go. Now, don't get me wrong, I didn't let him go cuz I didn't want to shoot. I've been teasing AR that this was the year I was going to get a deer bigger than the two on our wall.

By that afternoon, I had heard shots, but not seen any more deer. I was getting tired and soon I could tell that the friend fired a couple shots. Boy, that woke me up! I thought maybe he missed and the deer would come toward me. Nope, he went the other direction. I decided to say a little prayer. I know that sounds weird, but...
So I look out in the timber, and very near my stand, I realize there's two small trees that had fallen over to form an "X". I laughed to myself and thought, "X marks the spot"! Then, these words came to mind, "Be patient, I'm bringing him to you." Now, you probably think I'm crazy, but you just have to read on.

I was starting to get impatient when dusk was approaching. I was also getting quite cold. I kept thinking about those words "Be patient, I'm bringing him to you." Just as AR radioed me to tell me it was time to get out of my stand, I thought I just had to wait until the next day. As I was unloading my gun to get out of the stand, I looked at the "X" and saw an opossum right there on the "X"! I thought this was an indication that something was coming the next day. When I told AR, he said it sounded like my prayer wasn't specific enough!

The next morning, I kept saying little prayers like "OK, Lord, I'm ready. I will be patient for him to come." I waited and waited. Nothing. I decided to take a break and go to the truck to warm up. The truck was parked at the other end of the kidney shaped field. As I was there, the friend radioed to say he was getting out of his stand. Then, he said there were two or three deer heading straight for the truck! I got out, made sure the gun was loaded, and looked in the timber nearby. I saw two little heads right at the corner of the timber. They saw me and turned back into the timber and started heading toward AR. I went to radio him and then they darted out across the field. I don't feel very comfortable shooting a running deer, so I didn't shoot. Besides, I wasn't really ready since I had the radio in one hand. There were three small does (females). Oh, well, I thought. I went back to my stand. A couple hours later, I went back to the truck for another break. AR was there and we discussed my options to continue hunting. He reminded me that we would need to disassemble the portable stand I had been hunting in and he really didn't want to do it in the dark. We decided, since the friend had left, we would take down the stand and I would hunt in the friend's stand. It was about 1:30 in the afternoon. I took one last look at the "X" and shook my head, wondering if we were doing the right thing.

As time went by in the friend's stand, I was getting more and more frustrated that I hadn't seen anything. The colder I got, the more I wanted to get out of the stand. Then, at 3:20pm, AR called me and asked what my plans were - if I was going to hunt until dusk. I took it to mean he was ready to go. I told him I would hunt a little longer then come down. I was getting quite frigid by now. I only waited about 10 minutes then got out of the stand.

I arrived back at the truck, unloaded my gun, and AR turned to look at the other end of the field. "Look at THAT!" It was a monster buck! Right at the edge of the field near where that portable stand had been! UGGH! AR got the binoculars out and said he was a 12-14 pointer! I quickly loaded up my gun and went around to the next point and waited. AR walked toward the deer to try to scare him up to me. No luck. We didn't see him again. AR said the tracks were as big as my foot!

So, I guess I learned that you should listen to those little words in your head. It has happened to me in other situations, as well. Maybe next year?

Inner Child

2005-11-14T09:00:00.000-06:00

I haven't felt much like blogging lately and I was out of town for the weekend, so here's a little something I got from Blond Girl to let you know I'm still around. I'm working on my 24 hour meme from Blond Girl, as well.

Your Inner Child Is Surprised

You see many things through the eyes of a child.
Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded.
You cherish all of the details in life.
Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.

How Is Your Inner Child?

It's November!

2005-11-02T22:07:00.000-06:00

I just can't believe it is November! It's been in the 60's here and unbelievable. October was pretty crazy and I realize now that the holiday season is upon us! Here we go!

I had a list of things to do last week:

1. I finished my CE's and planned on renewing my audiology license via internet and a credit card. I swear this was how I renewed last time. However, much to my dismay, I discovered I could not. The only form of payment accepted was check or money order. That meant, in order to renew on time and have verification so I could work today, I had to make a 4 hour round-trip drive to hand deliver a check and receive verification.

2. Despite my unexpected trip Monday, I actually returned home in enough time to complete forms, write checks and get them to the post office by 4:45pm. I then prepared payroll and delivered it to the tavern during our Halloween trick-or-treating!

3. AR is making a lot of progress on the siding project. He has 2/3 of one side complete. The soffetts/eves are all replaced and stained. The trim is up. There is good weather, but not much sunlight now that time has fallen back! Hopefully, he'll be able to complete this project soon. At least the exterior part of it. There's still internal trim around the new windows to install. But, first, we must touch up the paint around the window as the new trim will not cover the entire area the old trim covered!

4. I have to see my attorney tomorrow about the decision I need to make. I just need the Lord's guidance and wisdom whether to let a situation go or pursue it further. Sorry so vague.

5. AR's resume has been submitted for a new job! YIPEE! Not the one we were originally looking for, but this one seems to fit AR well! And, he can also apply to the other one if it is posted (the two jobs are with the same organization). We should find out in 2-4 weeks whether he will go on to the next step and "test" for the position.

6. CJ had his follow-up appointment Tuesday and is healing well.

7. I didn't get the kids to see GranDee, but I think I had enough on my plate last weekend! She understands (or at least she says she does)!

8. Halloween was rainy here. Belle had a cold and wasn't feeling well. I drove the kids to a few houses here in town and then to GranMum's, and Nanny's (AR's grandmother). They were the Mad Scientist (Belle) that created Frankenstien (CJ). CJ's makeup turned out better on Friday when he went to the PTO Halloween party.

Belle wasn't in the mood for pics at the beginning of the evening, but livened up a bit by the time we got to GranMum's house. She took the little basket that GranMum had her goodies in and took each item and put in her bucket! Then, Belle had an empty animal cracker box (from earlier) and she put it in CJ's bucket! It was so funny!

NOOOOO!

2005-10-30T23:50:00.000-06:00

UGH! I have too much confidence in the internet sometimes! I have finished all my continuing ed requirements and I just went to the site to renew my professional license (which I KNOW I did last time) and my profession is not "allowed" to update online! I looked over my renewal form more closely and realize it says it has to be mailed with a check or money order (no debit or credit cards) and received by TOMORROW (nearly today)! I guess I'll call in the morning and will probably have to make a nearly two hour road trip to hand deliver the renewal. I have to have verification of renewal by Wednesday morning so I can go to work!

Why do I procrastinate and put myself in these positions? I don't get it! I hate it, yet here I am again! I NEED to do something about the procrastination. I'm not lazy, I just always wait to the last minute to do things.

I said, "Thank God for the internet." right?

2005-10-27T23:16:00.000-05:00

GEEZ. I finally sat down to do some of those continuing ed hours and wouldn't you know, there's a problem when I try to place my order. I get an error message that says to call them. So, of course, I call at this late hour (I think they have 24 hour customer service) and I get the recording "...we are either on another phone line or away from our desk. Please leave your name and number...." Well, I don't want to leave a number and have them call at 3am or something. Even if they call back right away, it'll wake up someone, I'm sure.

For those of you who believe in the power of prayer, please pray for our siding project. We keep running into snags. Expensive ones. One praise, though - ALL THE WINDOWS ARE IN! Now we have to replace the soffett, siding and trim. Or, I should say AR needs to do that. I have enough of my own work to do! Hee-hee. Actually, I'd probably rather be out there helping him - just as long as it doesn't get too cold outside.

I'm down here....

2005-10-26T22:12:00.000-05:00

Russ asked where I've been.

I guess I could say I'm just depressed cuz the Cardinals lost to the Astros and missed going to the World Series. But that's not totally true. I've been very busy and actually tried to blog last night, but I was nearly done and my internet connection failed. I don't understand why, but it did.

Anyway, I'm here. I've actually made a few comments on other blogs. I wanted to do more, but I was having trouble getting the comment box to open. So, I've been lurking about. I just have so much to do before Monday!

1. My professional license will expire Monday and I still need like 10 hours of continuing education. Thank God for internet courses! I would like to try to get this done by Friday. I need to have verification from the state (which I can get on the internet) that my license is renewed before Wednesday next week so I can work that day.

2. Third quarter paperwork/reports/taxes are due for the tavern Monday. I haven't even started. The good news is, once I get started on it, I don't take long to complete it. Again, Thank God for the internet!

3. AR has been working on replacing the upstairs windows before the cold hits and replace the siding, too. I've had to do some cleaning before and after he's been in each room! He ran into a problem with the soffets today, so it looks like we have to replace those, too!

4. I have a situation for which I've been waiting on a decision. I got that yesterday and it's mixed news. I'm not sure about sharing details here.

5. Thanks to Blond Girl for re-working AR's resume. There's a job that should be opening that would be a great change for him. THe change itself I'm sure would be stressful, but a different kind of stress than what he's dealing with at work now. Now, we are just waiting for the job to be posted. Then we play the waiting game - again!

6. CJ had a frenectomy yesterday. His was for the upper lip frenulum that attaches to the gums. He had it clipped and some tissue removed to allow his front teeth to come together and allow other teeth to come in. He's doing very well.

7. I told GranDee that I would try to bring the kids over for a visit since she hasn't seen them since like Easter, I think. She lives 3 hours away, so its hard to do in one day. With the other deadlines I have, I better concentrate on those, but I feel guilty. She says she understands.

8. Oh, and don't forget Halloween is Monday! But, we actually need to have costumes ready by Friday evening since the PTO is having the Halloween party then!

AAAAAACCKKKK! Slow down. Deep breath. Re-group. It will get done. It almost always does. Maybe not on time, but it does.

Sorry for the ramblings. The post I started yesterday was better, but I can't remember how I did it. Oh, well. Thanks for asking, Russ. I'm sure you got more than you bargained for. :-)

Dynamic David and Amazing Albert!

2005-10-17T23:13:00.000-05:00

WOW! What a game tonight! I'm talking Cardinals baseball, yall! Down by 2 runs, with 2 outs in the 9th inning, and the Astros' Lidge pitching, David Eckstein didn't give up! He got a base hit. Then, my man Jimmy Edmonds was walked. Two men on base, two outs and who's at the plate? ALBERT PUJOLS! Woo-hoo! He rocketed that ball out of the stadium! Or, at least he would have it was open. A three run homer to go ahead, 5-4! We were jumping up and down and yelling! You have to have faith, I reminded AR when the Astros had gone ahead 4-2 off Berkman's three run homer. Just before that homer, AR said, "the Cardinals are beat". I said, "Go ahead and give up on 'em, honey." Then, just as he proclaimed, it appeared the season would come to an end. But no. With Eckstein's heart and determination, and Pujols' faith and desire, they pulled it off. I love that Pujols gave credit to God. Amen!

I feel a little bad that CJ missed this comeback. We made him go to bed at the middle of the 5th inning. That was probably too late as it was. I did go up and half-way wake him to tell him the Cardinals won, just as he asked before going to bed.

HERE WE COME TO ST. LOUIS! Well, we personally won't be in attendance but you can be sure we will be there in spirit!

RED MEANS GO......
GO CARDINALS!

World Series Fever!

2005-10-14T21:11:00.000-05:00

So, we're down to four teams in the race to be named the World Series Champs! Our family, if you couldn't tell from previous posts (like Take me out to the ballgame!), are die hard Cardinal fans! (Well, my dad is probably rolling over in his grave when I say that - I grew up in a Cub fan household and married a Cardinal fan.) My favorite player is Jim Edmonds, AR's is Scott Rolen, and CJ's is Albert Pujols. Our team is currently 1-1 in their series with the Astros. We think it would be cool if the Cards and White Sox play for the World Series Championship. CJ would "have a cow" IF we were able to get tickets to a game. We probably won't, anyway. Although, AR has had some luck this year finding tickets - and good seats, too! CJ was even on TV!

Anyway, are you following the World Series playoffs? If so, which team are you rooting for? Who are your favorite players? Who do you think will be playing in the World Series Championship?

You might be a redneck if....

2005-10-11T21:52:00.000-05:00

You hit two deer at once with your car.
WARNING: This post includes the unfortunate demise of animals and may not be suitable for some readers.

As I posted in my true/false meme, I was driving home from work (an hour commute on a country two-lane route) in my 1987 Olds Delta 88 when I saw a deer cross the road in front of me. I was thankful I missed it. Ooops. There were two more following the first. They were side-by-side. I ran right into them. The one closest to me was killed instantly, but the other was injured. I ended up going through a fence and into the field. If I remember correctly, I was able to turn the car around to try to get back to the road. For some reason, I wasn't able to get back on the road. I don't know if it was because the ditch was too deep or the car wasn't running well. Probably both. Anyway, I had a cell phone and called someone, I think my mother-in-law, GranMum. Suddenly, a lady was at my window, grabbing my cell phone from me. She was an EMT and used my phone to call for help. She evaluated me and determined I was ok. Thank God for the tank I was driving!

Soon, the county police were there along with other EMT's. Some were helping to hold down the injured deer so it wouldn't run back into the road and get hit again. I was seated in someone's pickup and continued my calls home. All of a sudden, I heard a bang and realized the sheriff had shot the wounded deer. I remember wishing someone had warned me. I was a little jumpy. The officer then took me to his car. We went over the incident and went up to the farm house to see if they wanted me to pay for the damaged fence. They didn't, as they would be replacing it anyway. We then sat on the side of the road in the squad car near the accident to wait for AR to arrive. I was about half-way home, so it would be at least 30 mins. before he could get there. While we sat, a pickup truck pulled up and three overall wearin' men hopped out. They seemed like they would approach the squad car, but they started loading the deer into the truck! You see, the officer had asked me if I wanted to keep the deer. They weren't any trophies or anything, but my family hunts and eats the meat. I told him we would take them to be butchered. So, the officer had to get out of the car and stop the fellows from taking my deer. I believe they gave him a little flack, but they put down the deer and left.

Once AR arrived, he loaded the deer into OUR pickup and we headed home. He had called a buddy of his and arranged for him to meet us at the house. I went inside while the guys took the deer out to the country to "dress" them. I guess the one was too messed up to salvage. The other, remember, had a bullet hole in it's head from the sheriff. This was not deer hunting season, and it was about 10:30pm by that time. When AR got back home, he said he was glad the game warden hadn't come by while they were dressing the deer! He didn't have a police report or anything with him to prove he hadn't shot the deer illegally. WHEW!

How'd you do?

2005-10-10T07:36:00.000-05:00

My last post was a True/False meme by way of Blond Girl. This was actually fun to watch those who don't even regularly read my post to make some guesses.
Are you ready for this? Here we go:

1. I took golf as an elective in college to impress my boyfriend. TRUE. My now hubby is a golfer - when he gets the chance. I thought I'd surprise him by learning to play. He told me I needed to go to the driving range to practice. Now, here I sit in the blogworld.

2. I am a neat freak. FALSE. I would like to be, though. Clutter seems to be my big downfall.

3. I am 15 years older than my youngest brother. TRUE. Tank is now 21 and in Iraq. He was 5 or 6 when he met my now hubby and Tank greeted him with a karate chop you-know-where!

4. I’ve recently been carded to buy glue. TRUE. I understand there's a problem with kids sniffing glue, but do I really look like I'm 18? I'm twice that age!

5. I spent 6 hours in labor with my first child and 36 hours with my second. Oh, so TRUE! I certainly wasn't expecting to be in labor that long the second time when my first was so easy!

6. I’ve built a motorcycle out of spare parts. TRUE. I never said this was working motorcyclele. I made a shadow box filled with my dad's favorite things one year for either his birthday or Father's Day. He loved motorcycles. I found some junk around the house and put one together. I remember I used an old nightlight bulb for the gas tank and a large hair clip (like the ones that have the long "bills") for exhaust pipes. I painted the lightbulb maroon like my dad's bike.

7. My husband and I were the third generation married on the same date. TRUE. It was even AR's idea! It's probably the most romantic thing he's done. We put off the wedding a year so the date would be on a Saturday. Well, I guess so I could finish my bachelor's degree, too.

8. I graduated high school in the lower 50%ile rank, therefore, nearly wasn’t accepted into junior college. TRUE. There were 6 in my high school class. I was #3. The local junior college had difficulty understanding how I could be in percentile rank I was. Finally, they got the picture.

9. I have been skinny dipping. FALSE. I consider skinny dipping as going for a swim or in a hot tub naked. For fun. After talking with Blond Girl, some may consider this true. The only time I've been naked in a body of water outside my bathtub was on our trip to Canada in a lake to bathe. Believe me, the water was so cold, I was in and out as fast as possible! NO fun there!

10. I don’t remember Kindergarten through the 3rd grade. TRUE. Unfortunately, I don't. I believe there was so much going on in my life then, I blocked it out. I have only one memory of a playground incident. I don't even remember my teachers!

11. I married when I was 19. FALSE. I was 22.

12. My prom date got stopped for speeding after he picked me up and the cop asked if we just got married. TRUE. I was wearing a yellow dress. Who gets married in a yellow dress?

13. I’ve been stranded on a lake for a week with no contact to the rest of the world. TRUE. I've been TWICE to Canada on one of those lakes where they drop you off and come back in a week to pick you up. No phones, news, electricity or anything. It is so relaxing!

14. I’m always punctual. Anyone who knows me is LOL now. Definately FALSE! GranDee says the only time I've been early was when I was born!

15. My mother-in-law is dating a convicted murderer out on parole. Sad, but TRUE. The story would probably make a good post.

16. I have a Master’s degree. TRUE. Graduated in 1994.

17. I co-own a tavern. TRUE. Anyone want to buy it? I'm tired of dealing with the partners. We just don't see things the same. A lot of you thought this one was a lie! Hee-hee.

18. I am 14 years younger than my “second mom” TRUE. My dad remarried a lovely lady 11 years his junior when I was 8. I told her "you will not replace my mom!" She is now a wonderful mom, grandma, friend and confidant. I grew up with her and my dad and visited my mom every summer.

19. While driving, I hit two deer at once. TRUE. I missed one and then following, there were two more walking across the road, side by side. The one farthest away was not instantly killed and the sheriff had to shoot it. The rest of the story would probably make another good post.

20. We experienced a tornado on our 13th anniversary, July 13th. TRUE. Sounds to good to not be made up, but it's true. Last year, our community was in the path of a tornado and it became aloft as it came across our town. Our tavern lost a roof and the grain elevator lost two storage bins. We lost many trees. Thankfully, no one was hurt! AR actually bought me flowers! They were delivered before the storm hit. I probably won't ever get flowers again!

Now, who to tag? Since Blond Girl already tagged most of the bloggers I know, I think I'll tag a couple new friends. (I hope you won't now consider me an enemy!)

Russ

mama m

FuzzBuck Fuzz

Thanks for participating and remember to have fun!

Let me know when your True/False meme is up on your site!

True/False meme

2005-10-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Blond Girl for tagging me for this meme. I saved it for the weekend when I ususally play Michele's meet-n-greet. Otherwise, it wouldn't be much fun. I know you guys probably don't know me too well, so I guess you'll learn a little sumpthin' about me, huh?

Here are 20 things about me that could be true. In the comments section, just tell me which ones you think are false. Sound fun? Good!

1. I took golf as an elective in college to impress my boyfriend.

2. I am a neat freak.

3. I am 15 years older than my youngest brother.

4. I’ve recently been carded to buy glue.

5. I spent 6 hours in labor with my first child and 36 hours with my second.

6. I’ve built a motorcycle out of spare parts.

7. My husband and I were the third generation married on the same date.

8. I graduated high school in the lower 50%ile rank, therefore, nearly wasn’t accepted into junior college.

9. I have been skinny dipping.

10. I don’t remember Kindergarten through the 3rd grade.

11. I married when I was 19.

12. My prom date got stopped for speeding after he picked me up and the cop asked if we just got married.

13. I’ve been stranded on a lake for a week with no contact to the rest of the world.

14. I’m always punctual.

15. My mother-in-law is dating a convicted murderer out on parole.

16. I have a Master’s degree.

17. I co-own a tavern.

18. I am 14 years younger than my “second mom”

19. While driving, I hit two deer at once.

20. We experienced a tornado on our 13th anniversary, July 13th.

Blond Girl, you ought to wait till the others have a chance before posting your picks! Thanks.

Make sure to check back later to find out what's true and what's false!

UGH! TECHNOLOGY!

2005-10-02T21:35:00.000-05:00

Our cable company asked us about 4 months ago, to be a beta tester for their new phone service. We would receive the service for free for three months and just had to complete surveys and call them with any problems. The cable company has Sprint working with them providing the service. We agreed but kept our regular land line during the trial. Since there were virtually no problems, we decided to change our service to the cable phone after the three months. Long distance calls are included in the price and since we also have the cable TV and internet service, we got a discount. Good deal, right? Wrong!

It seems there's a problem that has arisen since so many subscribers have joined in. In the evening, when the system gets bogged down, we can't hear the person on the other end! They can hear us ok, but to us, it sounds like a cell phone that is cutting out! Then, on Friday, the service was down for like 3 hours for repair without any warning! At least the voice mail still picked up while the system was down so we could still get messages (by calling from a different phone line like a cell phone.) I thought the problem would be fixed, but it's not! It is very frustrating and they better hurry up and fix it, or I'm sure they will lose a lot of customers!

September birthdays

2005-09-30T21:13:00.000-05:00

Our family has several birthdays in September. My nephew's is on the 10th; another nephew's is on the 19th, along with my aunt; my youngest brother's is on the 21st, AR's is the 25th, and today, is my sis-in-law's (Blond Girl) 40th birthday! I know several other people, not in the family, that have birthdays this month.

This year was my brother's Golden Birthday, as he turned 21 on the 21st. He is currently in the Army in Iraq. He's actually in the Army National Guard, and was sent to Iraq in May. He should be coming home for a visit in December. Anyway, we, his family, wanted to do something special for his 21st birthday- away from home. Blond Girl and I were brainstorming and came up with "21 reasons we love Tank" video. We had different family members give a reason they love him and some even went on to tell a story. Of course, mom (GranNee) and Tank's fiancee took the longest. Blond Girl and Champs e-mailed video clips of them and Sweet Girl. We even got a video clip from our cousins, aunt and uncle in Arizona. Tank's future father-in-law actually put it all together and burned the CD. BG and I wrote an introduction and I formatted it similar to the "Star Wars" movies, where it scrolls and fades at the top. We included "deleted scenes" and out takes. It was fun to put together. And a lot of work.

My biggest concern was getting it to him in time. As you can imagine, sometimes the mail can take 2-3 weeks for a package to get there. I mailed it 13 days before his birthday and it made it a couple days ahead of time! He loved it! He said the out takes made him laugh! I'm so happy it turned out so well.

So, Blond Girl, I'm sorry, but we did not make a "40 reasons we love you" video. Although, I suppose we could come up with a list. Thank you, though, for all your input into Tank's. I know he (as I) appreciated it! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Visitors, you can wish Blond Girl a Happy Birthday, too! Just click on her name!

Take me out to the ballgame!

2005-09-26T22:18:00.000-05:00

AR was given 4 tickets for yesterday's (his birthday) Milwaukee Brewers and Cardinals game in Milwaukee. AR is a die hard Cardinal fan. He's wanted for a long time to take CJ to Miller Park. When he was given this opportunity, it just so happened the game day was AR's 41st birthday. These were no ordinary tickets. They were in the front row on the third base line, just feet from the Cardinal (visiting team) dugout. I grew up in a Cub household, but I LOVE JIM EDMONDS!!! AR looks a little like him (or visa versa) except Jimmy has a butt! (fanning myself)

Anyway, AR, CJ and I went to Milwaukee on Friday and a friend of CJ's went along. Belle was shuffled between GranNee and GranMum. After going to buy a new digital camera, we spent Saturday dodging raindrops at the Milwaukee County Zoo. It was very nice and we were ready to leave at about the time the raindrops turned to an out and out downpour! We found a Greek restaurant, ate only 1/2 of our food (the portions were HUGE), and went back to the hotel and went swimming. AR found the sauna - twice that day.

AR woke up in the night with a headache. He gets migraines, and he was pretty upset he woke up with one on his birthday. He finally figured out he had probably gotten dehydrated from the time he spent in the sauna! So, he took his medicine, drank a bunch of water and started feeling better by the time we were to leave to go to the game. We had reservations at The .300 Club - an elite restaurant at Miller Park. We arrived in time to get to near the front of the line to gain entrance into the stadium. In The .300 Club, we were seated at a table right at the windows were we could watch the Cardinals batting practice. The boys were a little disappointed that this would be a good time to be down at our seats to get autographs. Anyway, we ate an elegant Sunday brunch. The boys were especially impressed with the chocolate fondue fountain. CJ ate rather well, trying some different foods. His friend, however, is quite a picky eater, so I don't think he appreciated the smorgasboard as much as the rest of us.

We arrived at our seats about 10 minutes before game time. It was awesome to be that close to the players! Soon, the national anthem was played. I was so proud of CJ for taking off his hat and holding it over his heart without being told. Later, we found out there was a close up of him on TV during that time! I was able to purchase the broadcast of the game off the internet ( only $3.95) since GranMum missed that part when she taped the game. So, now, we have a record of it! Is that awesome, or what? I haven't looked through the rest of the game to see if we can be spotted any other time. There were thunderstorms during the game, but thanks to the retractable roof, we were dry. It did leak, though, at the center seam, but we were not affected. We were able to hear David Eckstein yell, "I got it! I got it!" and the balls skirt across the grass in front of us! I just tried to take it all in. I also took quite a few pics - especially of Jimmy! Thanks to his triple, after which he scored a run, and a homer, the Cardinals won 2-0. (sigh)

Oh, and I had a surprise for AR at the end of the 2nd inning. His name was up in lights at the stadium! I had his name put on the Happy Birthday list! Of course, they had to put an ad that read, "For only $15, you can have your name in lights" or something like that. AR turned to me and laughed, "It cost you $15?" Later, I told him that when I ordered it, I used his debit card, since I don't have one and the attendant got a kick out of it when I told him I was using the birthday boy's card. I was actually surprised the attendant let me use it.

After the game, there was a guy next to us that seemed to know the Cardinal catcher for the bull pen. The player threw him a ball, and he promptly turned to CJ and gave it to him. CJ then promptly thanked him and gave it to his friend, who had never been to a pro game before. Throughout the whole game, the friend was saying all he wanted was a ball. Almost made me cry that CJ would do something like that. Later, he told GranNee, "I already have one. What do I need another one for?" I am so proud.

So, we had an awesome weekend. I'm glad we were able to go and take a friend that may never have that kind of opportunity again. Even though it started out rough, I think AR had a pretty good birthday, too.

Football Frenzy!

2005-09-16T22:15:00.000-05:00

Friday night football! We typically don't attend the area high school football games. We do have season tickets to our local college season, however. CJ has really been getting into football lately and even wanted to play this year (he's in 3rd grade). He didn't get to play partly because we found out too late to register him. I, personally, am glad of it. He's a scrawny boy that is light as a feather. AR thinks he'd be a good kicker, but CJ wants to play QB like his dad, uncle, and grandpa.

Tonight, AR wanted to go to the big high-school rivalry game. CJ misunderstood and thought we were going to the college game. He was upset that he didn't know any of the players or anything! AR spoke to him about the rivalry and how he, his brother and dad had all played QB for the team we were going to watch. Then, CJ calmed down and agreed to go.

The game started off well. "Our" team scored a touchdown on the first possession. Then came the four turnovers resulting in scores by the other (home) team. Yes, we traveled 20 miles to the game. At half-time, the score was 20 (them) to 7 (us). AR told me the game was over and we ought to just go home. We started for the gate and CJ got upset again, only this time he didn't want to leave! AR was walking up ahead of us talking to an old buddy. I told CJ to talk about it with his dad. He just got more upset and started stomping off. As we exited, I told AR about CJ being upset for leaving. He said if CJ wanted to stay, we could. So, by this time, we are out of the gate and CJ was stomping off ahead of us as if he had a mission. He didn't realize we could go back in. I yelled his name, not once, but three times. Each time, CJ turned around, stomped his feet, turned back and walked on. I finally caught up with him and told him if he hadn't acted that way, we would be going back in. But, since he had such a bad attitude, we would leave. We did.

The whole way home, CJ cried and wailed about it being the worst day of his life (a common phrase when he doesn't get his way). AR quieted him down several times by telling him "enough". Once we arrived home, the stomping, crying, and wailing continued. This time, it was accompanied by door slamming. We continued to talk about the evening's events. We explained to CJ if he had only told AR calmly that he wanted to stay, we probably would have. Maybe he'll consider that next time instead of throwing a tantrum! The night ended with apologies and hugs. CJ even got something to eat, probably to fill the currently hollow leg.

I'm glad we stuck to our guns. I did not like the feeling when CJ acted that way, so rude and disrespectful. The game wouldn't have been very exciting. The score ended up 28-7. Oh, well. Sometimes life's lessons are more important than football. (Sorry, fellas.)

How about you? What would/do you do in this situation?

Sorry, folks!

2005-09-13T22:07:00.000-05:00

I dunno what happened. We had a scheduled power outage and afterward, I couldn't get logged in here to post a new message. Now, miraculously, I can get in. UGH. This blog world thing sometimes gets me.

I'm too tired right now, but I'll post more prolly Thursday.

See you then!

I'm spent!

2005-08-25T10:03:00.000-05:00

This week has been an emotional one. First, CJ had strep throat and already missed two days of school. He's doing much better and is on a 10 day course of antibiotics. Today, I took him to an orthodontist consult due to an impacted tooth. His left lateral incisor baby tooth was lost in November and the permanent tooth still has not erupted. His dentist recommended he see an orthodontist. Good news! The orthodontist doesn't want to do anything at this point in time. I was so worried he would give me a list of things he would want to do ranging from pulling teeth to jaw expansion. Nope. He thinks the central incisor came in a little off center and prematurely pushed out the baby lateral incisor. On the x-ray, it is very apparent that the lateral incisor is turned sideways. But, since it has not erupted, there's nothing to do at this point. After it has come in, then we can work on getting it turned. The doctor did refer him to a periodontist, however. The upper frenulum (that muscle attachment on the upper gum) seems to be in the way of the front central incisors coming together, so there is a big gap, causing the left one to be in the way of the "impacted" tooth. So, CJ may need a frenectomy. We shall see.

On another note, AR has been having a terrible time at work. He is in general maintenance for a major food manufacturer. He works on anything from unclogging a toilet to major fabrication and overhauling hydraulic equipment. When he first took the job, there were four men in the department. Since then, two have retired and one attempted suicide at home and is on medical leave. (His job cannot legally be posted for bid for a year.) That leaves AR to do four men's worth of work. The other two positions have never been posted to fill. AR believes that his boss can say he saved the company $X by not filling these positions. His (the boss') bonus is based on this number. Why shouldn't he fill the positions?

The company management had at one time agreed to hire a friend of AR's to help him temporarily. This guy has worked at the company before and knows his stuff! He would be a wonderful person to help. However, the manager has never actually gone through with the hire, so AR is buried in work. For instance, there is a piece of equipment vital to the distribution department of the plant that needs some major overhaul. The company's management says there's no money to pay for it. (A contractor would have to come in to do part of the work.) A few days after AR told his boss this needed to be done, the equipment failed. Then, AR had all kind of management personnel breathing down his neck wanting it fixed because "we have 400 trucks to load today! We need this running! When can you have it fixed?" AR is getting so frustrated and burned out. "I'm spent!" he told me the other day.

We had a discussion after that about him looking for another job. He has 19 years in at this company. He's concerned if he leaves, he won't have enough in retirement to retire when he wants (55-60). If he stays, he's confident he will meet those goals. BUT, that is 15-20 years away! I know he will not last at this company that long. He's letting them work himself to death! I literally told him this. His reply was,"well, you and the kids will be taken care of." I was drawn to tears telling him that money doesn't matter. I want him here with us. I don't care how much money I would have if he's not here to enjoy it with me and the kids. Besides, in the meantime, when he's stressed from work, it stresses the rest of the family.

He comes home in a bad mood but doesn't want to talk about it because he'll get upset and then won't sleep. Meanwhile, I'm not sleeping well, worried about him. I hate seeing him like this. I'm glad he has the sense of responsibility to work, even though he hates it, to provide for his family and allow me to stay home most of the time with the kids. Is it worth it, though? If I went to work full time, I could make as much, if not more, than he does now. But, he feels (as do I) it is important that I be home with the kids.

I just don't know how to help him see there could be a place for him somewhere else and still meet his retirement goals. Heck, maybe even surpass them! He's just stuck. He feels he has too much time in at this company to make a change. I say the time is now. Otherwise, he may not be with us at retirement age.

Update to "Mooooom.."

2005-08-22T09:30:00.000-05:00

Well, CJ came home early from school Friday with a sore throat. His glands were swollen and tender and the back of his throat was a bit red. His temp was 99.7 degrees. I decided to take CJ in for a strep culture. The rapid result was negative. After some ibuprofen, he was feeling better. As I stated in the post below, we went to Indianapolis with his Cub Scout pack. I figured since he was feeling better and the rapid test was negative, it'd be ok.

Last night, CJ was complaining of an earache. So, this morning I decided I better check on the strep culture results (they grow it for a couple days if the rapid test is negative). You guessed it! It's POSITIVE. So, I let CJ sleep in and we'll go soon to pick up the prescription. I've called the parents of the other kids that went on the trip so they would all know, even though they knew I had the strep test done and the original result.

The moral of the story is listen to your kids when they say they feel sick. I've talked with CJ about the new boy in class and he gives me no indication there's a problem at this time.

And behind door number 3.....

2005-08-21T22:27:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Saturday, I went on a trip with CJ's cub scout pack to the Indianapolis Children's Museum. I decided to take Belle with us - she's such a good traveler. Anyway, in order to be sure we could get the group rate, other friends and siblings went along. There were 13 children and 10 adults. Everyone got along well. To my surprise, there really wasn't much whining or arguing or tempers.

We drove in four vehicles, one of which I drove. I hadn't gotten much sleep the night before because Belle has been teething and was up twice in the night. She usually sleeps all night. Since I was so tired, I didn't get AR up in time to go to work (again). However, this isn't as much of a problem on the weekend. He elected not to go to work. (I didn't know this until later in the day.) I had hoped maybe he'd done the dishes I left in the sink.

As I said, we had a great time at the museum. We were there from open to close (10 am to 5 pm). We all stopped for pizza on the way home. I made a wrong turn (kinda) on the way home and thought I was lost. I used the skills my AR has taught me about our flat land here. Look for lights and drive toward them. I did. I found out I hadn't gone out of my way at all. I knew where I was and made it home safely at about 9 pm. The dishes were still in the sink.

After getting the kids to bed, AR started with his occasional list of things he wants to see done. I have a bad habit of piling papers on the dining table. He's always after me about it, especially since you can see it from the front door. He had told me some relatives will be stopping by sometime soon and he would like it cleared off. I hadn't done it yet.

He proceeded to show me why. He opened the back door. It was dark and all I could see was some dark patches in the grass. I thought the septic tank was overflowing. I never seen one overflow, but it looked as though it had. He said, "Well, you can't really see it that well." and started walking toward the garage. I kept asking, "Is it the septic?" all the while wondering how much it was going to cost to have pumped and repaired. Our town is in the planning phases of installing a sewer system.

We entered the garage and he turned on the light. There were piles of wood planks filling the garage floor. "Did it come in?" I asked, referring to the cedar siding we have on order for the house. Then, I suddenly realized what AR was trying to show me. The back yard had been excavated and there were a lot of wood planks in the garage. "Is that a deck? You didn't even discuss it with me!"

He was so disappointed. He thought he would surprise me. We had discussed putting a deck in about 2 years ago, but hadn't gotten around to it yet. We recently had a conversation about discussing big things with each other. As I mentioned, we are soon going to be siding the house (just the upper portion of the tri-level as the rest is brick). I've also been wanting to remodel the kitchen and upstairs bath. More importantly and urgently, the bathroom sink plumbing is leaking and needs to be fixed. AR told me he'd rather wait until the siding was done before tackling the kitchen. "Let's just keep one in the fire right now." I fugured we wouldn't be doing anything else.

I tried to apologize, but my initial reaction was of frustration that he hadn't discussed it with me. There are also some other financial obligations I feel are more important. I do love, though, that he wanted to surprise me. I'm just sorry it didn't happen that way.

"Moooom...."

2005-08-19T09:37:00.000-05:00

With that intonation that you know what's coming next - "...I don't feel good." or "...my throat hurts." It's still the first week of school and I've already heard it. This morning, CJ woke up with a "sore throat". I looked with a flashlight, but didn't see any warning signs of strep or a significant illness. He didn't feel warm, but I took his temp anyway. 97.8 degrees. No fever. I looked through the school handbook to see what, if any, guidelines they had for illness. Nothing, so I called the school. I was told if there is no fever or vomiting, it's ok to send the child to school. So, CJ was instructed to finish dressing and go to school. "But my eyes are starting to feel hot." (He always says this when he's getting a legitimate fever.) "You don't have a fever, so try to tough it out and if your throat gets too bad, tell your teacher."

CJ's not one to "fake" an illness to stay home from school. He loves school. However, there is a new kid in the class this year, next to whom he is sitting. We have had experience with this boy during the summer on CJ's baseball team. He was always the one causing trouble. There's also another boy that was in CJ's Kindergarten and first grade classes that ended up going to another program during the first grade. He had been very disruptive in class and bullied the other kids (he's a year older than the rest since he had pneumonia during the first year he was to be in Kindergarten.) This year, I've been informed by this boy's mother, that he will be transitioned back into the regular classroom. UGH. He will spend a short time each day in the classroom, gradually increasing the time for a while.

Could CJ be having difficulties with the new boy? Does he legitimately have a sore throat? Only time will tell, I suppose.
What guidelines do you use when your child says s/he is sick and doesn't want to go to school?

HEY, HEY!

2005-08-18T14:23:00.000-05:00

I finally figured out how to add the images from those personality tests and stuff! WOOO HOOO!

See below!

Personality Test

2005-08-18T14:08:00.000-05:00

I got this from Blond Girl. She was right! It describes me to a "T". ("Where did that saying come from anyway?)

Here's mine:

You are nurturing, kind, and lucky.
Like mother nature, you want to help everyone.
You are good at keeping secrets and tend to be secretive.

A seeker of harmony, you are a natural peacemaker.
You are good natured and people enjoy your company.
You put people at ease and make them feel at home with you.

The World's Shortest Personality Test

THOSE are your brand new shoes???

2005-08-15T23:10:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it! Just yesterday, I bought CJ two new pairs of tennis shoes for school, which started today. We spent about an hour picking out/trying on shoes and fighting over which ones to buy. CJ wanted three pair! I knew he would outgrow them fairly quickly. Little did I know....

He wore one pair, a white and blue pair of New Balance, today. He had school for two hours. Afterwards, he went to a friend's house. This friend is a good kid - he just comes from a poor home. His mother, Rhonda, lets her kids go barefoot outside. I don't approve of that for our son. He knows this. Rhonda also lets her kids play in the dirt and get filthy from head to toe. CJ knows I prefer he not get THAT dirty. I have discussed with CJ that Rhonda allows her kids to do things of which I don't approve. He knows my rules and preferences. I feel like if he can't remember my rules while he's there, maybe he shouldn't go over there. He's also lost countless socks there.

I know kids, especially boys, like to play in the dirt and get dirty, but there's a limit in my book. CJ came home briefly today to get his rollerblades. I told him to take his shoes so he would have them to wear after he's done skating. He did. His brand new shoes. I didn't think much of it. I guess I should have. I just now noticed his shoes. The bright white shoes strings are now black and it appears he stomped in mud. We've had a little rain, but the ground is so dry there aren't mud puddles or anything. The shoes are a wreck! He's lucky he's in bed right now. I think I will get him up early to clean off his shoes. It is just ridiculous that he wears the shoes ONE DAY and they already look like they've been through hell! I'm not one to get angry easily, but........!!!! He needs a lesson in taking care of his things. Granted, I got the shoes 1/2 off after buying the other $40 pair, but they are still brand new! I can't wait till he gets to the age that he wants the $120 pair of shoes - he better have learned his lesson by then! (The same shoes will probably be $160 by that time!)

What would you do? Punish him from going to the friend's house? Make him clean the shoes? Make him earn the money it costs to buy the shoes? (He's wanting to start helping our paper lady deliver papers for $2 a day.) Any other ideas?

What a way to start the day!

2005-08-15T05:49:00.000-05:00

It happened again. AR slept through the blaring alarm - two of them. He claims he told me he took a muscle relaxer last night. I don't remember him saying boo. How do I get him to take the responsibility of waking up in the morning? Anyway, he woke up asking if the alarm had been set. I told him it had already gone off. "What time is it?" It was time for him to be leaving. He works 30 mins. away. He flies out of bed and starts yelling (it's a wonder the kids don't wake up). He asked me to get him a clean shirt. The laundry, you see, is a battle of mine. I looked in his drawer and no shirts. I knew they were clean, but were did I put them? I don't really have a place to fold laundry except for the living room couch. I remembered I had thrown them in a basket and put them out of sight in Belle's room. I retrieve one for him. Then he starts complaining that it is wrinkled. This man's uniform has been a sore spot between us. He won't go through the trouble of ordering some more pants (he has three pair) or shirts (most have holes from welding - one even has a arm cuff literally hanging by a thread - he tore it on something). And he's worried about wrinkles??? I told him to be happy it was clean. (That was the best I could do at the moment.) So, he's off to work and will get a frequency (it's the company's form of punishment - they have a no fault policy on being even a minute late) - you get 10 and you're fired (supposedly-they have a history of bending the rules for some, depending on ???). So now I'm up and ought to be doing something else, like packing CJ's backpack - it's the first day of school today, or bookwork for my business, or cleaning the house (folding laundry?) or _________ or _______. I did take a shower, so I feel a little better. Oh, well. He'll get over it. I suppose I'll catch hell for going to a Tupperware party tonight. That's life in this castle.

Tagged. Hum.

2005-08-13T23:02:00.000-05:00

Thanks so much to Blond Girl for tagging me for this meme thing. (I don't even know what meme is.) Here it goes:
I really new to the area and don't get around much, so I don't have 5 people to introduce you to. I get most my info from Blond Girl. I will include Tongue Tyed , as requested.

When did you move to the neighborhood?
I wrote my first blog on July 1, 2005. So, I'm very new to the blogging neighborhood and I'm still trying to figure out some of the idiosyncrasies going on here, like searching for blogs. I barely have the time to check out Blond Girl's site, and I find myself commenting more on hers than writing my own blogs!

What region of the neighborhood are you from?
I could say I'm a California girl, since I was born in San Diego, but six weeks later, I was transplanted to Illinois, were I grew up and still live.

What is your favorite part of our neighborhood?
I would have to say learning more about my sis-in-law, Blond Girl. We really haven't communicated much in the past, but since she's started her blog and I know ONE DAY, she, Champs and Sweet Girl will be relocating to be closer to us (Champs' family), it's been a fun way to get to know her better.

What is your favorite place to visit 'round these parts?
Blond Girl , and Heather are the main one's I visit for now.

Since I just moved into a new house, I might want to take a short trip to a local place or area. Where would you suggest in your region?
Well, as Blond Girl will soon find out, there's not much here but corn and beans! Actually, I'm still finding little places to go for quick weekend trips, or even for the day. There's a Railroad Museum that I've been meaning to take CJ to and just haven't gotten there yet. I've heard very good things about it. St. Louis is very nice. Make sure you go to the Arch - there's nothing like it. There's also the Budweiser Brewery, Grant's Farm, and the Science Museum. Of course, I can't forget to tell you to catch a ball game at Busch Stadium - Go Cardinals!
RockHome Gardens has been a local favorite, but it has recently obtained new owners, so I'm not sure what it is like now. The Lincoln Museum just opened in Springfield, but I've not been there yet, either. Good things heard about it through the grapevine, though.

UNKY MOOD????

2005-08-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

The many times I've visited Blond Girl, I've noticed her Unky Mood in the sidebar. I decided to sign up and include it in my blog. I actually figured out how to do it! The very next day, I noticed my "mood" was blank. I figured it was because I hadn't selected a mood for the day, so I tried to access "UnkyMood" and it was not found! Was this a coincidence? I went on over to Blond Girl's blog and nope, not there, either! Huh. I figures that I sign up for something and then it is immediately "cancelled". What the heck? I'm just trying to get my way around this thing called blogging and my confidence is crushed! (Maybe not so much, but you know..)

Now, Blond Girl has "tagged" me and I have to answer some questions. I will in my next post.
Thanks alot! No, really, I love you.

How do you live your life?

2005-08-09T23:05:00.000-05:00

I got this from Blond Girl. I guess it's fairly accurate, especially avoiding confrontation.

P.S. Forget it. I can't get it up on this post. UGH!
Frustrated!

Glad someone was thinking!

2005-07-31T22:39:00.000-05:00

Last night, I decided to take a luxurious bath, instead of a shower. My tub is quite unique. It is a handmade sunken concrete tub with one inch tiles. It is very deep - nearly to my shoulders when sitting. It is also squared on the sides, so it's very uncomfortable. The back is perfectly straight, so there's no support for your back or neck. Since it is so deep, it takes a long time to fill. I turned on the water, poured in the "skin milk" bubble bath I received as a gift and decided I could "quick" check my e-mail. Of course, I forgot about the bath water running. My age is starting to show. When I remembered, I ran upstairs, expecting to find water everywhere! However, I discovered the "flipper" for the drain has three slits in it for overflow control. I never knew that was there in the twelve years we've lived here!

I've been contemplating what to do with the tub if we ever remodel that bathroom (it's horrendous!). At least I know now one feature I will include!

Best Friends - anyone?

2005-07-28T23:49:00.000-05:00

I was just over at Heather's and she got me to thinking about some of the insecurities I feel. The biggest one lately has been about friends. I have, in the last 10-12 years had two best friends. With one, we had a falling out. Enough said. With the other, I really don't know what happened. If it was just life going our separate ways or not enough effort on my part? We went to graduate school together. She was from South Africa. For some reason, we hit it off from the beginning. We spent a lot of time together studying not only our classes, but our lives, too. She helped me through some tough things. We were close. After graduation, she worked on her "apprenticeship" for a year a couple hours away. She was determined to return to South Africa and have a family (she was already married when we met, as was I.) She did just that. Her daughter was born just days away from my birthday and the way I understand it, she was named after me. Her name isn't the same as mine, but it means the same thing in the Indian culture. I was honored for it. We communicated frequently. The internet was quite new then. She then called and informed me she was miserable there and decided to come back and complete her doctorate, just 30 minutes from where I live. I was ecstatic! Our kids would grow up together.

Fast forward 6 years. We have had very limited contact since she's been back. I feel I have initiated most, if not all, of it. There was a time I decided not to call her and see if she would initiate some contact. Nothing. Now, she's completed her doctorate and moving like 12-15 hours away. At her going away/graduation party, we barely talked. I didn't know any of her many friends. She promised me, as I said my tearful goodbye, we would see each other again before she left. Again, nothing. I'm wondering if she will give me her new address, phone and /or e-mail address. I have contacts where I could probably obtain that information, but I refuse to be the initiator again. Am I wrong in feeling this way?

It just seems I have to initiate most contact with any of my friends. None are my age - either older or younger. I just want to have someone I can "compare notes" to on marriage, child rearing, life. I get lonely for that. I've tried to be more outgoing and it just doesn't seem to be working. Any suggestions?

Changes

2005-07-22T07:14:00.000-05:00

OK. I've become ambitious and finally getting some things added to the sidebar so you guys know who I'm talking about. I would like to change the way it looks, but at least you can read it (unless you are like Blond Girl and try this without your glasses on!).

Please bear with me as I figure out this new language!

What's your first memory?

2005-07-22T06:06:00.001-05:00

This is in response to Blond Girl's post.
I'm not sure which would be my first memory as my time line is confused. My parents divorced when I was 6 and Champs, my brother, was 3. I don't remember much about my childhood, probably blocking a lot out due to the divorce. I remember stepping on a bee in the backyard; a fight my parents had where my mom threw Dad's keys on the roof or in the street; a playground incident; missing the bus in the snow; and singing "D-I-V-O-R-C-E", not realizing what it spelled until my mom asked why I was singing that song. I don't remember anything about school until the 4th grade except the bus ride there and the one playground incident. I don't remember my teachers or friends. I do remember a neighborhood friend, Elizabeth, and going to her house a couple blocks from our house. She had red hair, like Champs! I wonder where she is now?

My mom told me I had been sexually assaulted by a babysitter when I was young, but don't know what age. I don't remember anything about it. Maybe this has something to do with the blocked memories, also? I don't know if I would want to try to remember these things. It makes me sad when people talk about their Kindergarten teacher and I have absolutely no recollection of mine. A lot of my memories aren't really memories, just a flashback to pictures I've seen. There's one of me in Champs' crib with him. I don't remember anything about him being born or brought home. I must've loved having him cuz my nickname was "Momma ____". I guess I thought he was my baby!

Sorry to ramble on. Just don't have a particular FIRST memory.
What's your first memory?

WE'RE BAAAACK!

2005-07-18T21:13:00.000-05:00

Well, I just read my last post to see exactly where I left off. Shortly after posting, CJ's friend's mom called to say CJ was crying and had a headache. He gets them frequently and they usually hit him hard and fast! This time, he woke up with it. I went down the street and brought him home. Before he even got in the car, I gave him some ibuprofen. It usually works for him. He laid on the couch with a cool washcloth on his head. We said a prayer. Shortly thereafter, he calmed down and fell off to sleep. I hurried around the house to get things ready to go. I wasn't sure if we'd get to go that day or not. Once he woke up, CJ was feeling much better. I fed Belle and left her in the high chair while I continued to pack the car. She fell asleep. Head down on the tray. So cute! Once everything was packed, I gently lifted Belle and put her in the car seat. Of course, she woke up. We left town right at 1:00pm, which was the "no later than" deadline.

Just as we left town I decided we needed to say a prayer. Murphy wasn't going to get his nose into this trip! I thanked God for the beautiful day for travel, for healing CJ's headache, and asked for a safe and easy trip. I asked that Belle would cooperate so we could arrive in a timely manner. I might have even asked that she finish her nap. Much to my surprise, Belle did not fall back to sleep. Not one wink for the full 3 1/2 hour trip! It did take us a little longer cuz I had to take a different route when leaving so I could pick up something at my mother-in-law's house. Belle and CJ both traveled well. Or at least, until the last 20 minutes. CJ and I had to sing multiple rounds of "Itsy bitsy spider" while Belle did a couple hand motions and said "down" when we got to the rain part. We arrived at our destination at 4:30pm.

Sunday, we all drove another hour to Bible Camp. CJ was so excited, he could hardly stand it! He hardly said goodbye! :-( I know he most likely won't be homesick. The only thing I'm concerned about is if he gets a headache or hurt and Mom's not there. I came back home today as I have to work Tues. And Wednesday. My brother-in-law and his family live an hour away, so someone could get there in an emergency, but I just pray he has a great time at camp and meets some good friends. Come to find out, three of his cabin mates, besides his cousin, were in his cabin last year. CJ recognized them right away.

Today, Belle and I returned home. She slept most of the way this time. I think she knew CJ wasn't there to entertain her! Now I have to get ready for the whirl-wind week!

Here we go....

2005-07-16T06:18:00.000-05:00

I still have nothing packed and plan to leave at noon. Plan is the key word. It seems I always plan a time to leave and end up leaving an hour or more later than that. I don't know what it is about me that causes it, maybe procrastination. I always have good intentions, but just don't get the job done. I'm hoping if I leave close to on time, Belle will sleep most of the way. She didn't get much of a nap yesterday, so she ought to be good and tired today. CJ spent the night last night at a friend's house since he'll be gone for a whole week and won't see his friend. I may need him to come back early this morning to help entertain his sister. Sometimes he likes that responsibility and sometimes he responds with "Aw, Mom! Why do I have to?" He's actually very good at keeping her in giggles.

Once we are on the road, I just pray for safe travel and cooperation from the kids. Both are pretty good travelers. Belle is just such a happy girl! She's pretty easy going, until she decides to make her presence known by a loud scream. In a car, it can send shivers up your spine. We will have a three hour trip, if all goes well.

I suppose I ought to get off this computer and round up the monstrous load so I can make my deadline. Feel free to share tips for next time on how you prepare for a trip, especially with kids.

Can you say "expect the unexpected"?

2005-07-14T23:59:00.000-05:00

That should be GranDee's (my mom) slogan. Although, I probably ought not confess that.

My, what a long day. I just got home after spending 10 hours at a hospital. No, it's not AR's relative. GranDee (my mom) had surgery today. The hospital is nearly 2 hours from where I live. She's had many surgeries and one in particular gave me quite a scare. In 2000, GranDee was to have a "simple outpatient surgery that shouldn't be any big deal" and I was told my attendance wasn't necessary (by GranDee). Needless to say, things didn't go so well - she ended up with an emergency tracheostomy because they couldn't get her intubated. So, she didn't have the intended surgery and now had a hole in her neck. Since she has sleep apnea, and that's what the intended surgery was for, she elected to keep the trache. When I called the hospital that time to check on her, I was told the doc wanted to speak to me. YIKES!

It's been a long road, with many twists and bends, but now today she was to have a stent removed from her trachea. It was placed there to help keep her trachea from collapsing while wearing the trache tube (she had many problems with it). She had the tracheostomy reversed some time ago (I can't keep it all straight.)

Today, the doc (different than the one that placed the stent) said if everything went well, the surgery should last 30-45 mins. She was in there for 4 hours! You see, the stent is made to come out in one piece. It didn't. When the doc tried to pull it out, it essentially shattered. She had to tediously remove each piece. (I sure hope she got them all!) For GranDee's safety, it was decided she would be left on the ventilator to make sure her airway was maintained. Since they had to do so much in there, they didn't want it to swell shut. So, she is now in ICU, but doing okay. She was awake when I left (she wanted me to go home), but was to be getting some sedation soon. I'm going to call after posting this to make sure. I'm very tired and still have to pack for Belle and I to take CJ to Bible Camp (supposed to leave Saturday).

Maybe I'll post more tomorrow. After that, I'll be gone a few days.

ANNIVERSARY = CARD? FLOWERS?

2005-07-13T22:21:00.000-05:00

Fourteen years ago today, I said "I do" to hubby, AR. He's never been much of a romantic. Except, it was his idea to be married on July 13th. His parents and granparents were married on that day. We are the third generation.

Last year, on our 13th anniversary on the 13th of July, I actually received flowers! AND a card! Too bad the rest of the day went all wrong!

We live in tornado alley. This time of year, pop-up thunderstorms can appear at any time. Last year, there was a storm brewing as I shopped with our 3 month old daughter, "Belle". Our son, "CJ" was swimming at a friend's house. I was trying to get back home before AR returned from work, about 2:30 in the afternoon. Once he arrived, he called on my cell - "you need to get home fast - there's a storm coming." Knowing how over-reactive he usually is, I waited in line at he store to complete my purchase. Once I got in the car, he called again, more insistent this time. OK. The sky is looking pretty dark. Keep in mind we live in a small town 5 miles from the nearest shopping. I couldn't believe my eyes as I drove INTO this storm! I got home just in time, parked the car halfway into the garage so I could get Belle out with her car seat (the car barely fits in the garage - trying to get a car seat in and out is nearly impossible). About that time, AR asked where CJ was. I thought I had told him he was down the street at a friend's house. He informed me I hadn't. By now, the storm is too bad to go get him. The sky is green and hail begins to fall. TO THE BASEMENT!

Belle and I head to the basement while AR is pacing from window to window, watching the storm. At one point, the howling was just as I had heard described - like a train! About that time, AR yells, "you better pray CJ is okay! That house may be gone in this!" CJ's friend lives in a double wide trailer on a foundation. We live in a double-brick walled tri-level with very sturdy construction - quite possibly the sturdiest house in town! As I hold Belle close, saying a prayer and crying, I just can't believe this is happening.

Once the storm let up enough for AR to go down the street to get CJ, he left in the 4x4 pick-up. He returned shortly with a scrawny boy in only underwear! (You see, he had been swimming up until right before the storm hit. He only got as far as getting his underwear on before he hid in their closet.) He was scared and crying. So was I. He was fine and no homes were lost. No lives, either. The official word is we had 90mph straight line winds. There were a lot of trees down, homes damaged, a church's chimney collapsed into the sanctuary, our downtown business lost a roof and 32 power poles were down between here and the next town, from which our electricity is supplied.

It was something I never want to experience again.

This year, AR grilled a very nice dinner. NO CARD, NO FLOWERS. He said it was because of what happened last year when he took the time to pick up those things.

I know he loves me. It's just nice when he takes that extra step.

Update

2005-07-12T17:11:00.000-05:00

AR's relative called last night for a ride to the hospital. He was admitted. They are doing more tests to see what is wrong. He had been passing blood and vommiting. Upon arrival at the ER, his blood pressure was 50/70, I think. Once IV's were started, his pressure returned to normal. He was given 3 units of blood. We don't really know much more than that. Just didn't want to leave you hanging.

Sorry if TMI.

Now What?

2005-07-12T00:33:00.000-05:00

Well, I haven't posted in almost a week - now this is the third one tonight!

The family member of AR's just called asking for AR to take him to the hospital. He's elderly and lives here in town. So, I woke up AR and out the door he went. AR said, walking out the door, "I may have to bring him back here after we go to the hospital, so get ready!" Now I get to stay up and wonder what is going on and tidy things up. Not that they're too bad, but AR gets pretty nervous about it. Here it goes. Lord, help me!

About me

2005-07-11T23:10:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a combination of two other posts I've seen and making one of my own. Instead of 101 things about me, let's start with 26, using the alphabet as a guide:
A is for Age: 36
B is for Booze: Captain Morgan and Coke
C is for Career: Audiologist ("what?")
D is for Dog's name: Casey, Shotzie and Hershey
E is for Essential Item to bring to a Party: Camera
F is for Favorite Songs at the Moment:"Red-neck Woman" by Gretchen Wilson - I just think it's fun!
G is for Goof off thing to do: internet! I would do more scrapbooking, but don't have the time
H is for Housekeeping: Awful at it, but getting better!
I is for Instrument you play: I played the flute and saxophone (I switched to sax so I could be near the boy I had a crush on!)
J is for Jam or Jelly you like: Good 'ole Grape!
K is for Kids: CJ (court jester), my 8 year old son; Belle (our little beauty), my 15 month old daughter
L is for Living arrangement: Me, husband (AR), CJ and Belle along with our three dogs.
M is for Mom's name: I have two: Donetta and Jeanie
N is for Names of best friends: don't really have one. :-(
O is for overnight hospital stays: Two nights when each child was born (actually, three with Belle - she was born after the first night). I also stayed with CJ one night while he was in for observation with stomach cramps. I was sure it was appendicitis- he was fine in the morning!
P is for Phobias: storms, especially after the 90mph straight line winds we experienced a year ago on our 13th anniversary on July 13th!
Q is for Quote you like: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
R is for Relationship that lasted longest: My wonderful husband- 14th anniversary is Wednesday!
S is for Siblings: I'm the oldest of four. My brothers are Champs (soon moving near me with Blond Girl and Sweet Girl), Motor (living near me with a wife and 9 mo son), and Tank (currently serving in Iraq, engaged)
T is for Texas , Ever been? YEP! The last time was with AR for a birthday party for his 80 yo great uncle. Much fun!
U is for Unique trait: ??? I'm quiet and have been told that comes across as being "stuck up"
V if for Vegetable you love: sweet potatoes
W is for Water: don't drink enough of it.
X - is for XRays you've had: neck, back, knee, finger (dropped a bowling ball on it!) and sonograms, if those count.
Y is for Yummy food you make: chocolate marble chip cheesecake YUM!
Z is for Zodiac sign: Gemini. I don't follow it, though.

SOOOO MUCH TO DO!

2005-07-11T22:57:00.000-05:00

This week will be my big test - how much can I cram in one week? Or should I say 5 days? Tomorrow, I need to do some tidying as a family member (AR's) is coming to talk about something important. I know there's been some things going on with him lately, but he called tonight and AR was obviously upset. So much so he didn't want to talk about it with me after the conversation.

I also co-own a business and have to get things ready for when I'm gone this weekend.
I'm taking CJ to Bible Camp. He'll be there a week. Not only do I need to get him packed, I have to pack for Belle (our little beauty) and I to stay at my brother-in-law's for a couple days. We go to his house first on Saturday and Sunday take CJ and nephew to camp. I return home Monday, work Tuesday and Wednesday then go back Thursday or Friday to pick him up on Saturday morning.

I have to work this Wednesday, 1 1/2 hours away, so that day is shot.

My mother is having surgery Thursday afternoon, 2 hours away. Not much time there.

So, I have tomorrow and Friday to get us packed and ready to go. I think I'll try to have CJ get his clothes together and start checking things off the list. That probably means laundry needs to be done. One more thing on the list.

WITH GOD'S HELP, I CAN DO IT!

Please give me your vote of confidence.

Ahhh, Freedom!

2005-07-05T00:09:00.000-05:00

Well, the Fourth of July is now over. CJ was better today - no fever! However, I did not let him ride the fire truck in the parade with the cub scout pack. I figured we didn't need to push it! It was just too hot. Our friends came over this evening and we served pulled pork sandwiches, cole slaw, smoked ranch beans, mac-n-cheese, and fruit. One of the friends brought "Dirt dessert" made with instant chocolate pudding, cool-whip and oreo cookies. YUM!

One of the other mom's and I took the kids to see fireworks, just as it started to rain. We went to the next town, 5 miles south. It rained even harder there and the display was postponed to tomorrow night. Anyone know where Murphy is? (See blondgirlraves.blogspot.com) On our way back home, we saw the town's fireworks that is 5 miles north of ours, so we started driving toward them. We parked in the country and watched. It was actually a pretty awesome display for such a small town. Did I hear Murphy groan?

Just remember what independence Day is all about. While driving home from the postponed fireworks, one of the kids piped,"I wish I was on the other side of the world so I could see the fireworks there." The other mom and I started to explain that independence Day is ....
then one of the other kids (CJ) spoke up and said "that is where the Star Spangled Banner came from. From the war that we won our freedom." From the mouths of babes.

Plans for Fourth

2005-07-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

Well, sometimes I wonder why I even make plans - it seems they always change. We had a fairly busy weekend planned for the Fourth, but all so far have been nixed! CJ (our 8 yo "court jester") has had a fever since Wednesday! I took him in to the doc yesterday and did a strep culture - negative! Not too surprised, though, since he really doesn't have much of a sore throat. I thought he was doing better, then his temp spiked to 104 degrees yesterday. So much for the Cub Scout Picnic/Potluck that was already postponed a day in hopes CJ would be well.
Last night, his temp went down to 98.9, so I figured if he had a good night, he would be well today.

WE had planned on attending church this am, but again, his temp is starting to spike - so far up to 100.8 degrees. He's had another bout of diarrhea (he had one on Friday, I think - sorry if TMI) and starting to look a little pekid. Poor fella - he told the doc yesterday that he just HAS to be better for the Fourth - it's his favorite holiday! (Of course, each holiday is his fav as it comes around!) I cringed when the doc assured him he would be better - "we have three days" he says.

Today, we've planned on going to my Uncle's house for the celebration. Maybe Belle (our 1yo little beauty) and I will go and leave CJ with AR (my hubby thinks he's the ABSOLUTE RULER).

Tomorrow, CJ's cub scout pack is scheduled to ride on our small town's fire trucks in the next biggest town's parade. Later in the day, we have friends/neighbors coming for a cookout. There's three couples in our "group" and it's about time we had them at our house. Of course, AR is planning to make pulled pork sandwiches that require the meat marinade for one day, then cook the meat today so that "he's" not having to pull the pork while our guests are here tomorrow. So, what are we to do with all this food if we have to cancel because CJ isn't better? No matter how he feels, we'll probably at least go see fireworks!

Let's see what happens with today and tomorrow's plans!

Grilling by Flashlight!

2005-07-01T00:06:00.000-05:00

This evening, after my husband grilled our steaks, he recommended we put an arm roast on the hot coals. He had thawed it a couple days ago but our schedule changed, as it often does, and it had not been cooked. I knew I would still be awake, so I agreed to watch it. As I checked on it, I had to take the flashlight out to the grill so I could read the thermometer. I pulled it off at 11:20pm. I will put it in the fridge soon and we'll eat it tomorrow, in some form or another.

Shortly after my husband put the roast on the grill, he read this to me from our local paper:

"Barbecuing is the only type of cooking a real man will do. When a man volunteers to do the barbecue for the Fourth of July, this could be what happens:
1) The woman goes to the store and picks up all the necessary items.
2) the woman makes the salad, vegetables, and dessert.
3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man, who is lounging beside the grill, beer in hand.
4) The man places the meat on the grill.
5) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.
6) The woman comes out to tell the man that he meat is burning. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he deals with the situation.
7) The man takes the meat off the grill and hands it to the woman.
8) The woman prepares the plates and brings them to the table.
9) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.
10) Everyone praises the man and thanks him for his cooking efforts.
11) The mans asks the woman how she enjoyed her night off."

This is in no way a slam on men. This just sounds very familiar. Although, my hubby is a little more involved than this example. Just a little something for the funny bone!

Tell me if this is like what happens at your house!