Today started out like any 'ol Monday. I woke up, read my (almost 200) blogs for the morning while Monkey was in the shower and eating breakfast, walked to the bus stop, make Sams lunch, woke Buggy up, had breakfast, walked to the bus stop again, came home, tweeted a bit, went to my Monday afternoon meeting with Beachbody... you know, normal stuff!
Then I started talking to a guy from my past. Not a bad guy, just a guy. One of my very best friends cousins. It just so happens that I once dated this guy for a brief amount of time. But, this is normal in a small town like I grew up in. Everybody knows everybody. So, we started talking, and we're talking about just old times and it got me thinking about my "first love" Gregg. I'd been enamored with this guy since the moment I laid eyes on him. He went to my best friends school. But I seen him at a dance (Yeah, I went to their dances because I didn't like my own school.) and I INSTANTLY had to know who he was. Now, being the ugly duckling that I was, I hadn't blossomed into a swan yet. I was too shy to even talk to him. So, I did what every young girl does when she has a crush on a guy but is too shy to tell him. I stalked him. LOL My best friends school was much larger than my own, it was the county seat and all, so, anything "super cool and exciting" happened at her school. She was part of the drama dept. I thought that was the coolest thing since sliced bread, so I tagged along. And wouldn't you know it, HE was there!! So.... being the stalker self that I was, I send him TWELVE DOZEN red carnations for opening night of their play. Every single one of them said "From: Your Secret Admirer" (Aw! How stalkerish!)
The next night was the cast party. Now, I never went to this school, but, usually where you found my best friend, you found me, and vice versa. So, we're at this cast party, and a bunch of us decide that it's time to go outside and smoke (Don't judge... I was young and stupid. At least I lost the young part! ;-P) and Gregg was out there as well. Since basically it was me, Amy, and Gregg standing outside in the ally being the bad teenagers that we were, she decided to tell him that *I* was the person that sent him all the SA flowers. Booooy was I ever mad at her, at least for a split second. Gregg said thank you and kissed my cheek. I don't think I washed my cheek for a week!
Gregg and I always had a back and forth type of relationship. He walked, I followed. It didn't matter that he was dating someone, I loved him anyways. I would go on "class trips" with their drama dept. I went with them to see a play. I can't remember which play, but I remember going. I remember sitting with Gregg on the way home talking about when his foreign exchange student girlfriend left how we were going to start dating. It didn't matter that he was in love with her, I loved him anyways.
After Gregg graduated high school, I still had a year left. He stuck around town for a while, we would hang out, laugh, have a good time, and be generally terrible teenagers. Then one day he just disappeared. I moved on with my life, but always thought about My Superman. (That was my nickname for him.)
We found each other again in 2004 and quickly decided that we were meant to be together. We started planning a future together for when he got out of the Navy. He would call me every night, and most mornings and we would talk. In the evenings we would talk for hours on end, sometimes until the early morning sun was peeking thru the trees on my coast, which left him with just a few hours sleep before he needed to be back on base at Camp Pendleton. He was slowly losing grip of reality. PTSD was stripping away the man that I loved so very much. In early 2005 he decided that it wasn't fair to me and the kiddos to make us go thru everything that was happening to him with the PTSD and broke things off. It (PTSD) didn't matter tho, because I loved him anyways.
A couple of years ago, we found each other yet again, but this time on MySpace. He was too hurt to talk to me for a very long time. He knew he had broken my heart yet again, and he was in a relationship. He didn't want to bring up all the old memories and feelings from our past. It hurt too much to think about. We finally talked about everything. I told him that while I would ALWAYS love him, I had grown to love what we had and not yearn for it like I used to. We talked more and more, and then again, he was gone without notice, until we find each other again on Facebook.
This time it's different tho. This time we don't talk as much. We don't have that same connection that we did. He's more fragile but yet tougher. It's hard to explain. We exchange a few words here and there. Some heys, how are yas, glad to see yas, but nothing super life changing.
Today was a hard day for me after Bryce and I talked. After I decided to go to Greggs Facebook page to drop a little hey how are ya. I notice that he'd posted new pictures. One of which said "Now I must say good-bye" and the first thought to my mind was "Oh no! Not again!" I started reading more of his posts. My Gregg, my Superman, the man that had my heart for nearly 10 years had passed away. From what I was told, he died of a heart attack. Gregg would have been 32 years old 04Nov. I've cried almost non stop since I found out. I cried thru making dinner, thru trying to actually eat dinner (which didn't go so well), thru calling some of our old friends to make sure that they knew, thru welcoming my husband home... and now here I sit at almost 11:30pm. I can't sleep. When I close my eyes, I see his face. I hear his voice "Lets lose some el-bees today!" What am I supposed to do? I don't know why this is hitting me so hard. I don't know why I'm just not saying "Wow! He was only 31. That sucks!" and letting it not effect me like it has. Why can't I just lay my head down and go to sleep? Why does it feel like a tiny part of my heart died today when I found out? Why can't I just find solace in the fact that he will never have terrible nightmares of war again? That he will never feel claustrophobic in large crowds any more? That he's finally at peace and doesn't hurt the way he used to? Maybe because he never has another chance to do any of those things any more?
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Monday, October 25, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Day 21: A recipe
Oh wow... okay.. lets see. One recipe?! I found this one somewhere, printed out, made it, and it became an instant family favorite.
Beef Burgundy
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds beef round steak or beef stew meat
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup red wine (I use beef broth instead)
1 can (4oz) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 package (1oz) dry onion soup mix
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Directions
Combine all ingredients into a (at least) 4 1/2 quart crock pot, Cover, cook on low for 6-8 hours or until beef is tender.
Let me tell you! This is a FANTASTIC recipe! It feeds us 4 with maybe a little tiny bit of left overs. Basically it's enough juice to put on some rice for lunch the next day. I made a double batch of this for when my parents came to visit, with some potatoes, and there were a few left overs, but not many! This can be served with mashed potatoes, rice, or noodles. We like it with potatoes! I like the left over juice with rice.
This is worth the hassle of making it. (C'mon, how much easier can it get than throwing everything in a crock pot, turning it on, and throwing a lid on it be?!)
Beef Burgundy
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds beef round steak or beef stew meat
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup red wine (I use beef broth instead)
1 can (4oz) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 package (1oz) dry onion soup mix
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Directions
Combine all ingredients into a (at least) 4 1/2 quart crock pot, Cover, cook on low for 6-8 hours or until beef is tender.
Let me tell you! This is a FANTASTIC recipe! It feeds us 4 with maybe a little tiny bit of left overs. Basically it's enough juice to put on some rice for lunch the next day. I made a double batch of this for when my parents came to visit, with some potatoes, and there were a few left overs, but not many! This can be served with mashed potatoes, rice, or noodles. We like it with potatoes! I like the left over juice with rice.
This is worth the hassle of making it. (C'mon, how much easier can it get than throwing everything in a crock pot, turning it on, and throwing a lid on it be?!)
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Day 19: A talent of yours
Well, I don't really consider myself a very talented person, but, I guess to some I might seem so.
From the time I was young, I always wanted a horse. I remember the first moment that I decided that I wanted one. We lived out in the country, and one of the neighbors horses had gotten lose and made it's way to our house. My sister caught it and had it in the front yard. I remember seeing her out there with the horse, and how beautiful that it looked. I was in awe. Some time later, after growing up my tomboy self and always wanting to play with horse figurines instead of any Barbie or other doll, my wonderful Mom decided that maybe I should take some lessons. I took lessons on a wonderful little horse named Rags. I loved that horse to DEATH! She was bombproof! I also took lessons with another girl named Holly. She had Dusty. I always had my eye on other horses tho. Mom decided that it would be a nice thing to get me my very own horse. I did this for several years, and if we could afford it, I would still have them now. I think it's a fantastic idea for a kid to have responsibilities like that. I guess I was a pretty good rider. I never did horrible at shows or anything.
Another talent I have is musical instruments. I'm not the only person in my family that has this talent, tho I'm not near as talented as my cousin Robin is! He's an instrumental genius! I started in 5th grade playing the Flute. I pretty much played the Flute until about Sophomore year of high school. My Junior year, we had a new band instructor. So, when we all showed up to meet the "new guy" and learn about different things that we would be doing and whatnot, he asked me if I would be willing to switch instruments. Why not! I was already the best Flute player in our school, not that it was a big accomplishment to be better than 5 or 6 other flute players that haven't been playing as long as you in a band of approximately 23, which included flags! So, I started to learn the Tenor Saxophone. I played that for Marching Band, and then for Concert Band I would play the Baritone Saxophone. I like the Baritone a WHOLE lot better than the Tenor! It was HUGE!!! I didn't even need a neck strap! I could just put my foot on it's side and set it on there. Boy did that make my instructor mad! "Jacque! That's not proper form! Where's your neck strap!?!" Of course, it's hard to take a guy serious when he's only a few years older than you are. When I graduated high school, I kept my gorgeous Gemeinhardt Flute because I wanted to be able to give it to MY little girl when she was old enough to learn. Alas, it was not meant to be. (That, in and of itself, is another story.) I picked it back up a few years later when I played the flute for the church band. I also picked up the Clarinet then as well.
A talent that I'm just recently starting to cultivate is home domestication. I've started to be more creative and crafty. I've picked up sewing! I haven't really made a lot yet, but I'm hoping that very soon I will be able to pick up some more fabric and make some more things. I've already planned on making my own Ball gown. We will see how that goes!! I can also crochet a little bit. I can honestly say I'm not very good at that. Anything other that "stitch, stitch, turn and go again" I can't do! So, if you want a fancy scarf or something made, don't ask me!! ;-) Cross stitch! I used to LOVE to cross stitch. It's been a while since I've done it, but I'm sure I could pick it back up and do okay. I used to do cross stitch to help me with my concentration. It worked pretty well... I just never managed to FINISH anything! Cooking is coming along quite nicely. I can say that I've always been a decent cook, but I'm getting better! I find recipes that look good, change them a bit to make them how we like them. It works for us. Of course, there are still some of my family favorites that Sam can't stand. Like, soup beans, corn bread, and fried taters! C'mon! How can you not LOVE that?! I guess it's just a Southern thing. (Yes yes, I know I'm from Ohio, but my Momma grew up in the South, so we ate Southern food a lot!)
Other than that, I think I'm pretty untalented. I'm not a great Mathematician, I can't do simple math in my head, a trait that I've, unfortunately, passed on to Monkey. I'm not a History Buff, tho I do find history interesting, I just have never been able to remember when this important battle happened, or that important treaty was signed. So, I just like to go and learn things and even though I will probably not remember who was involved, what made it significant, or why it happened, doesn't mean that I don't enjoy going!
From the time I was young, I always wanted a horse. I remember the first moment that I decided that I wanted one. We lived out in the country, and one of the neighbors horses had gotten lose and made it's way to our house. My sister caught it and had it in the front yard. I remember seeing her out there with the horse, and how beautiful that it looked. I was in awe. Some time later, after growing up my tomboy self and always wanting to play with horse figurines instead of any Barbie or other doll, my wonderful Mom decided that maybe I should take some lessons. I took lessons on a wonderful little horse named Rags. I loved that horse to DEATH! She was bombproof! I also took lessons with another girl named Holly. She had Dusty. I always had my eye on other horses tho. Mom decided that it would be a nice thing to get me my very own horse. I did this for several years, and if we could afford it, I would still have them now. I think it's a fantastic idea for a kid to have responsibilities like that. I guess I was a pretty good rider. I never did horrible at shows or anything.
Another talent I have is musical instruments. I'm not the only person in my family that has this talent, tho I'm not near as talented as my cousin Robin is! He's an instrumental genius! I started in 5th grade playing the Flute. I pretty much played the Flute until about Sophomore year of high school. My Junior year, we had a new band instructor. So, when we all showed up to meet the "new guy" and learn about different things that we would be doing and whatnot, he asked me if I would be willing to switch instruments. Why not! I was already the best Flute player in our school, not that it was a big accomplishment to be better than 5 or 6 other flute players that haven't been playing as long as you in a band of approximately 23, which included flags! So, I started to learn the Tenor Saxophone. I played that for Marching Band, and then for Concert Band I would play the Baritone Saxophone. I like the Baritone a WHOLE lot better than the Tenor! It was HUGE!!! I didn't even need a neck strap! I could just put my foot on it's side and set it on there. Boy did that make my instructor mad! "Jacque! That's not proper form! Where's your neck strap!?!" Of course, it's hard to take a guy serious when he's only a few years older than you are. When I graduated high school, I kept my gorgeous Gemeinhardt Flute because I wanted to be able to give it to MY little girl when she was old enough to learn. Alas, it was not meant to be. (That, in and of itself, is another story.) I picked it back up a few years later when I played the flute for the church band. I also picked up the Clarinet then as well.
A talent that I'm just recently starting to cultivate is home domestication. I've started to be more creative and crafty. I've picked up sewing! I haven't really made a lot yet, but I'm hoping that very soon I will be able to pick up some more fabric and make some more things. I've already planned on making my own Ball gown. We will see how that goes!! I can also crochet a little bit. I can honestly say I'm not very good at that. Anything other that "stitch, stitch, turn and go again" I can't do! So, if you want a fancy scarf or something made, don't ask me!! ;-) Cross stitch! I used to LOVE to cross stitch. It's been a while since I've done it, but I'm sure I could pick it back up and do okay. I used to do cross stitch to help me with my concentration. It worked pretty well... I just never managed to FINISH anything! Cooking is coming along quite nicely. I can say that I've always been a decent cook, but I'm getting better! I find recipes that look good, change them a bit to make them how we like them. It works for us. Of course, there are still some of my family favorites that Sam can't stand. Like, soup beans, corn bread, and fried taters! C'mon! How can you not LOVE that?! I guess it's just a Southern thing. (Yes yes, I know I'm from Ohio, but my Momma grew up in the South, so we ate Southern food a lot!)
Other than that, I think I'm pretty untalented. I'm not a great Mathematician, I can't do simple math in my head, a trait that I've, unfortunately, passed on to Monkey. I'm not a History Buff, tho I do find history interesting, I just have never been able to remember when this important battle happened, or that important treaty was signed. So, I just like to go and learn things and even though I will probably not remember who was involved, what made it significant, or why it happened, doesn't mean that I don't enjoy going!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Day 16: A song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Sam first told me about this song that he heard on the radio. (We both listen to KLove most of the time.) He told me how this song was powerful and moving, and he really liked this song, and that he wanted me to hear it. I believe we were headed to base for some reason or another. It's quite a drive out to Court House Bay from our house, so we normally go through the back gate. It takes 45 minutes or so depending on traffic and such. While we were driving, the song came on, and he was right. It's a strong, emotional, moving song! The first time I heard it, I teared up, and just about every time I have heard it since, I tear up as well. Monkey doesn't much pay attention to music, but Bug and I do, and she is humming this song now because I just played it for the video that I'm attaching. I couldn't find an "official" video, but this one has some beautiful pictures and the lyrics as well. I'm also including the lyrics for those of you who don't want to watch the vid. You really should tho. It's AMAZINGLY moving when paired with the music.
Lead Me
Sanctus Real
I look around and see my wonderful life
Almost perfect from the outside
In picture frames I see my beautiful wife
Always smiling
But on the inside, I can hear her saying...
“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, what about us?
Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”
I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes
They're just children from the outside
I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine
They're in independent
But on the inside, I can hear them saying...
“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, but what about us?
Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”
So Father, give me the strength
To be everything I'm called to be
Oh, Father, show me the way
To lead them
Won't You lead me?
To lead them with strong hands
To stand up when they can't
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,
Chasing things that I could give up
I'll show them I'm willing to fight
And give them the best of my life
So we can call this our home
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone
Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone
Lead Me
Sanctus Real
I look around and see my wonderful life
Almost perfect from the outside
In picture frames I see my beautiful wife
Always smiling
But on the inside, I can hear her saying...
“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, what about us?
Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”
I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes
They're just children from the outside
I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine
They're in independent
But on the inside, I can hear them saying...
“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, but what about us?
Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”
So Father, give me the strength
To be everything I'm called to be
Oh, Father, show me the way
To lead them
Won't You lead me?
To lead them with strong hands
To stand up when they can't
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,
Chasing things that I could give up
I'll show them I'm willing to fight
And give them the best of my life
So we can call this our home
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone
Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Day 12: Whatever tickles your fancy
Shew!! I've been trying to keep things on topic with the 30 days of me, which has turned into a whole lot more than 30 days, but, that's okay! LOL
Today! I get to write about whatever I want! SO! I'm going to write about me working out again, and the dress I want to make for me to wear to the Marine Corps Ball. (Hopefully Sam is still in at that point in time!)
I can't lie. I'm fat. At least for me. When I first started this exercising adventure, I was 195 pounds. I don't think I have EVER been that heavy in my life, including when I was prego with Bug!! So, I made up my mind that it was time to go on a diet!! I started a while back, I lost some weight. But, I got busy and exercise didn't fit into my busy schedule, so, I stopped. Well, I decided after I quit smoking (3 weeks and 3 days ago! Wewt!) that I need to lost weight and get back into shape. Well, my friend Britt also wanted to lose some weight and get in shape, so, we started working out together. A week ago today I was 3 pounds heavier than I am right now. I know it doesn't seem like much, but, I'm proud of myself! Sam said he can already notice a difference in my shape. I can get into some pants that I haven't worn in a while. I feel good!! I'm hoping to get down to about 140, maybe 135. I'm not worried so much with the weight, I just want to look good again!!
Anyways! The dresses! As some of you know, Sam bought me a sewing machine for our Anniversary. I've always wanted to learn to sew. I do okay now. It's not like I could make anything very extravagant, but, this year I want to try! I want to try and MAKE my Ball gown this year. Of course, I'm not sure of how wonderful it will look. so, I'm going to make one first with a cheap cloth, and THEN do one, so that way I will know if I need help with anything and seek that help before I make the real one.
So, without further ado, here's the dress that I want to make for the ball
I figured that for the "practice" I can make the short one. Make it out of something that might hang. Besides, it's a practice run anyways, so if it doesn't hang, I won't be horribly tore up about it. I haven't decided if I'm going to make the middle one,l or the right one. The only difference is that the middle one has a contrasting bodice and straps, the right one doesn't. I'm leaning towards the one on the right for now. I don't know tho.
What do you guys think?
Today! I get to write about whatever I want! SO! I'm going to write about me working out again, and the dress I want to make for me to wear to the Marine Corps Ball. (Hopefully Sam is still in at that point in time!)
I can't lie. I'm fat. At least for me. When I first started this exercising adventure, I was 195 pounds. I don't think I have EVER been that heavy in my life, including when I was prego with Bug!! So, I made up my mind that it was time to go on a diet!! I started a while back, I lost some weight. But, I got busy and exercise didn't fit into my busy schedule, so, I stopped. Well, I decided after I quit smoking (3 weeks and 3 days ago! Wewt!) that I need to lost weight and get back into shape. Well, my friend Britt also wanted to lose some weight and get in shape, so, we started working out together. A week ago today I was 3 pounds heavier than I am right now. I know it doesn't seem like much, but, I'm proud of myself! Sam said he can already notice a difference in my shape. I can get into some pants that I haven't worn in a while. I feel good!! I'm hoping to get down to about 140, maybe 135. I'm not worried so much with the weight, I just want to look good again!!
Anyways! The dresses! As some of you know, Sam bought me a sewing machine for our Anniversary. I've always wanted to learn to sew. I do okay now. It's not like I could make anything very extravagant, but, this year I want to try! I want to try and MAKE my Ball gown this year. Of course, I'm not sure of how wonderful it will look. so, I'm going to make one first with a cheap cloth, and THEN do one, so that way I will know if I need help with anything and seek that help before I make the real one.
So, without further ado, here's the dress that I want to make for the ball
I figured that for the "practice" I can make the short one. Make it out of something that might hang. Besides, it's a practice run anyways, so if it doesn't hang, I won't be horribly tore up about it. I haven't decided if I'm going to make the middle one,l or the right one. The only difference is that the middle one has a contrasting bodice and straps, the right one doesn't. I'm leaning towards the one on the right for now. I don't know tho.
What do you guys think?
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Day 5: Your favorite quote
Hmm.. I think that my favorite quote for life would have to be:
"Well behaved women seldom make history." Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
I don't know why it's my favorite, other than I used to cause a lot of trouble when I was younger. I know that's not exactly what it means, but, that's still my take on it.
I can honestly say that when I was younger, I was quite the trouble maker. I just never actually got *caught*! My Mom always knew though. She always knew that I had done something I shouldn't have done, and somehow she would make me feel bad about doing it, without every saying a word. Maybe it was just my subconscious doing it for her. How about that? Never even knowing that your kid has done something that might be illegal in several states, and they punish themselves for it?! LOL
Also, today is my 30th birthday. Shocking, I know! I want to thank my Momma for always being there for me, no matter how old I was, no matter how much you wanted to smack me in the head with a frying pan, and no matter how many HORRIBLE choices I made. If it wasn't for my wonderfully sweet Momma, I wouldn't be here, nor be the person I am today. I also want to thank my Step-dad Kevin. He's been a very positive influence in my life since I was about 17 years old. I know he's had a few times when he just wanted to pop me, but, he always tried to give me the benefit of the doubt. My sisters Angie and Kris, what would I do without you guys? And Jamey, well, I wouldn't have been as well looked after as I was in high school if it wasn't for Jamey! My wonderful hubby, Sam, for always loving me, no matter how grumpy, cross, or bitchy I get. And my fantastic children, who never cease to amaze me at how much of a kid I can still be at my "old age" and how much things have changed since I was their age.
"Well behaved women seldom make history." Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
I don't know why it's my favorite, other than I used to cause a lot of trouble when I was younger. I know that's not exactly what it means, but, that's still my take on it.
I can honestly say that when I was younger, I was quite the trouble maker. I just never actually got *caught*! My Mom always knew though. She always knew that I had done something I shouldn't have done, and somehow she would make me feel bad about doing it, without every saying a word. Maybe it was just my subconscious doing it for her. How about that? Never even knowing that your kid has done something that might be illegal in several states, and they punish themselves for it?! LOL
Also, today is my 30th birthday. Shocking, I know! I want to thank my Momma for always being there for me, no matter how old I was, no matter how much you wanted to smack me in the head with a frying pan, and no matter how many HORRIBLE choices I made. If it wasn't for my wonderfully sweet Momma, I wouldn't be here, nor be the person I am today. I also want to thank my Step-dad Kevin. He's been a very positive influence in my life since I was about 17 years old. I know he's had a few times when he just wanted to pop me, but, he always tried to give me the benefit of the doubt. My sisters Angie and Kris, what would I do without you guys? And Jamey, well, I wouldn't have been as well looked after as I was in high school if it wasn't for Jamey! My wonderful hubby, Sam, for always loving me, no matter how grumpy, cross, or bitchy I get. And my fantastic children, who never cease to amaze me at how much of a kid I can still be at my "old age" and how much things have changed since I was their age.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Day 4: Your favorite book
My favorite book. Wow.. I've never thought about my favorite book. I look around my house, and I see books everywhere. Kids books, adult books, dog books, dictionaries, military books, borrowed books, books to give away, books to keep, spiral bound books, hard cover books, soft cover books, books on tape!
I grew up with a mom that read all the time. I think some of my earliest memories involve my mom, sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and a cigarette, and her book. When I was 14, my mom quit smoking (about the time I *started* smoking) and so from then on it was just the coffee and the book at the kitchen table! My mom instilled a deep love for reading in me, which I HOPE that I can instill in my children. (Worked for Bug, Monkey, not so much!)
I think my favorite book for this past week would actually not be a book at all, it's a pamphlet that I picked up from my doctors office quite a while back. It's about what happens to your body when you quit smoking. Seven days ago today, I quit smoking. Actually, I had my last smoke around 5pm, but, yano! I am halfway to increasing my circulation today! I feel a whole lot better physically! Now I just need to "relearn" how to calm myself from an agitated state without smoking. I don't think I ever really learned how to do this without the aid of smoking, so, my poor husband gets to endure me learning! All I can say is it's a good thing that he loves me! Here is a poster of basically what my pamphlet says, but much cooler!
I grew up with a mom that read all the time. I think some of my earliest memories involve my mom, sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and a cigarette, and her book. When I was 14, my mom quit smoking (about the time I *started* smoking) and so from then on it was just the coffee and the book at the kitchen table! My mom instilled a deep love for reading in me, which I HOPE that I can instill in my children. (Worked for Bug, Monkey, not so much!)
I think my favorite book for this past week would actually not be a book at all, it's a pamphlet that I picked up from my doctors office quite a while back. It's about what happens to your body when you quit smoking. Seven days ago today, I quit smoking. Actually, I had my last smoke around 5pm, but, yano! I am halfway to increasing my circulation today! I feel a whole lot better physically! Now I just need to "relearn" how to calm myself from an agitated state without smoking. I don't think I ever really learned how to do this without the aid of smoking, so, my poor husband gets to endure me learning! All I can say is it's a good thing that he loves me! Here is a poster of basically what my pamphlet says, but much cooler!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Day 3: Your favorite television program
Hands down
Sam got me started on this show when we started dating. Sam always wanted to be a doctor, and even went to pre-med school! (He has a BS in Biology) So, Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, ER, he watched them all. I watched ER way back when before Dr. Green kicked the bucket. (I BAWLED that episode btw...) I don't know what it is about Grey's Anatomy. I absolutely LOVE this show! I know that it's not exactly accurate (tho they try to be), and that, basically, it's a prime time soap opera (but who cares!), but I love it! If they ever get rid of this show, I will never watch TV again! (Okay, maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but you know what I mean!)
I think that they have some pretty good plot lines, really hot men (C'mon Dr Averys' eyes!! YOW!), and I get a tear going at least every 3 episodes, if not more! And if Shondra Rhimes happens to read this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let Lexie and Mark get back together, and keep Owen and Christina together! Bring in someone new for Jackson! And why can't Izzie and Alex be together?! Okay... sorry... back to why I love Grey's!
Grey's for me is just a great release! To be able to watch this show is relaxing, tho the season finale this year had me on the edge of my seat the ENTIRE 2 hours! My friend Keona and I would text during the breaks and I think almost all of mine consisted of : "OMG!!" and "HOLY SH*T!" Yes, I love it that much.
Sam gets really mad at me when I "go Meredith" and get all "dark and twisty." I use "Seriously?!" A LOT! and it drives Sam crazy sometimes. He created a monster, and now he's paying for it. :-)
Sam got me started on this show when we started dating. Sam always wanted to be a doctor, and even went to pre-med school! (He has a BS in Biology) So, Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, ER, he watched them all. I watched ER way back when before Dr. Green kicked the bucket. (I BAWLED that episode btw...) I don't know what it is about Grey's Anatomy. I absolutely LOVE this show! I know that it's not exactly accurate (tho they try to be), and that, basically, it's a prime time soap opera (but who cares!), but I love it! If they ever get rid of this show, I will never watch TV again! (Okay, maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but you know what I mean!)
I think that they have some pretty good plot lines, really hot men (C'mon Dr Averys' eyes!! YOW!), and I get a tear going at least every 3 episodes, if not more! And if Shondra Rhimes happens to read this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let Lexie and Mark get back together, and keep Owen and Christina together! Bring in someone new for Jackson! And why can't Izzie and Alex be together?! Okay... sorry... back to why I love Grey's!
Grey's for me is just a great release! To be able to watch this show is relaxing, tho the season finale this year had me on the edge of my seat the ENTIRE 2 hours! My friend Keona and I would text during the breaks and I think almost all of mine consisted of : "OMG!!" and "HOLY SH*T!" Yes, I love it that much.
Sam gets really mad at me when I "go Meredith" and get all "dark and twisty." I use "Seriously?!" A LOT! and it drives Sam crazy sometimes. He created a monster, and now he's paying for it. :-)
Friday, May 7, 2010
Bugs tooth!!
So, Bug had a couple of her adult teeth come in behind her teeth on the bottom because she absolutely refuses to wiggle, or try to pull her teeth at all. When we were at the Dentist a few weeks ago, they told her that she needed to pull them out and that if she hadn't pulled them by the next time she came in that they were going to have to pull them out for her. This sort of scared her a bit. It just so happened that she had Poison Ivy at that time and they weren't able to do her cleaning. So, we went back on Wednesday for her cleaning and she was SO worried that they were going to pull her teeth! I told her that they weren't going to pull them and that they would give her a little more time. She was still a bit worried though. Well yesterday Sam picked the kids up from school because I had a little more running around to do, and when I got home she runs up to me with a little baggy and says "Mom! I pulled my tooth at school today!" We then had dinner while we watched The Tooth Fairy with Dwayne Johnson in it. It was a really cute movie! Then the Tooth Fairy gave her $2 for her tooth and she was very happy that he didn't just leave $1 like in the movie!
Yesterday was an okay day. I went to Sams therapist with him. He gave us some good ideas for communicating better and whatnot. We, of course, started talking while we were in bed, and I told him that I didn't completely trust him yet. I KNOW that he's not going to do anything, but, to have been treated the same way that I was in just about every previous relationship really has me flummoxed. I never thought that my wonderful husband would be capable of anything like that. He has such strong ethics and values, which is one of the things that I love so much about him, and to just blatantly disregard them is just mind boggling! He ended up pretty upset because I can't completely trust him right now. I told him that it would take some time and effort on his part to regain that trust. He completely disagreed. He thinks trust is something that I have to work towards on my own, like forgiveness. I told him that wasn't the case. He was the one that did the damage, and he needed to make efforts to repair it. I guess maybe I should have asked him if I set a wooden bridge on fire, but put it out voluntarily, if I should expect it to repair itself. Sam ended up sleeping on the couch last night because he was upset. We didn't fight, or argue, he was just upset that I told him that I couldn't trust him completely yet.
Today, I'm watching my friend Keonas' lil boy! He's such a little cutie!! Every time he sees me he gets all excited and squishes up his little face. Keona is going to her little girls class tea party. Who was I to come in between a mother-daughter tea party?! Besides, I really like watching lil man. It gives me enough "baby time" to not want another one, which is something I'm sure my mother is thankful for! I've started to think that I'm just getting to "old" to have more kids. Monkey is 11, and Bug is almost 7. They're both in school all day, can feed themselves, no bottles or dirty diapers to deal with. I don't think I want to start all over again! I'll be 30 in just over a month. I really didn't want kids in the first place, but I'm glad that I do have them and I'm glad that I had them young. I don't know how my Dad stayed sane when he found out Mom was having me. He was getting ready to turn 50 when I was born! Sheesh!
Today is also Military Spouse Appreciation Day! I can still claim this title for that time being. If you are a Military Spouse I want to thank you for "standing by your man (or woman)", and if you know one, make sure they know that you appreciate them today.
Yesterday was an okay day. I went to Sams therapist with him. He gave us some good ideas for communicating better and whatnot. We, of course, started talking while we were in bed, and I told him that I didn't completely trust him yet. I KNOW that he's not going to do anything, but, to have been treated the same way that I was in just about every previous relationship really has me flummoxed. I never thought that my wonderful husband would be capable of anything like that. He has such strong ethics and values, which is one of the things that I love so much about him, and to just blatantly disregard them is just mind boggling! He ended up pretty upset because I can't completely trust him right now. I told him that it would take some time and effort on his part to regain that trust. He completely disagreed. He thinks trust is something that I have to work towards on my own, like forgiveness. I told him that wasn't the case. He was the one that did the damage, and he needed to make efforts to repair it. I guess maybe I should have asked him if I set a wooden bridge on fire, but put it out voluntarily, if I should expect it to repair itself. Sam ended up sleeping on the couch last night because he was upset. We didn't fight, or argue, he was just upset that I told him that I couldn't trust him completely yet.
Today, I'm watching my friend Keonas' lil boy! He's such a little cutie!! Every time he sees me he gets all excited and squishes up his little face. Keona is going to her little girls class tea party. Who was I to come in between a mother-daughter tea party?! Besides, I really like watching lil man. It gives me enough "baby time" to not want another one, which is something I'm sure my mother is thankful for! I've started to think that I'm just getting to "old" to have more kids. Monkey is 11, and Bug is almost 7. They're both in school all day, can feed themselves, no bottles or dirty diapers to deal with. I don't think I want to start all over again! I'll be 30 in just over a month. I really didn't want kids in the first place, but I'm glad that I do have them and I'm glad that I had them young. I don't know how my Dad stayed sane when he found out Mom was having me. He was getting ready to turn 50 when I was born! Sheesh!
Today is also Military Spouse Appreciation Day! I can still claim this title for that time being. If you are a Military Spouse I want to thank you for "standing by your man (or woman)", and if you know one, make sure they know that you appreciate them today.
Monday, April 26, 2010
New friends!
So, as some of you know (mom), I have blogged for a very very long time. THIS blog only started recently, but I've been keeping blogs since Bug was just a wee little thing. My Mommy got me started back in 2004. That blog is long gone now, tho I still have it archived for my personal entertainment. Recently, I decided that I needed to reach out, and get to know, more military spouses blogs. Some of them I've been following for a while, some I just found. I've added a lot of people to my blog roll. I think the best thing about my blog roll is that all I need to do is look at it and I can see who's posted a new blog! Of course, that means that I have to come to my own blog to see who's posted a new one, but that's fine! :-)
Some of these women are braver and stronger than I could ever imagine being. My hats off to you, and I commend you for your strength. I cannot imagine what these women are going through, but my heart aches for you none the less.
I've found more things to do in my quest to make the house look mom-ready! All 3 dogs need baths, and Lilly needs her nails trimmed!! *She's got Velociraptor talons, I swear it!* That will get done later in the week (dogs seem to get dirty quickly,especially the white one!), except for Lilly'stalons nails, they need done ASAP. She HATES to have her nails trimmed. Of course, I think that sort of stems from the fact that ONE time, I accidentally quicked her. (Sorry puppy!) Sam wants to get a picture of the 3 dogs all together, just them, to put on our mantle. His thinking is "They're part of the family too!" which is true. I just have NO idea how we are going to get 2 Greyhounds and an American Eskimo to all sit still and stay in the same place long enough to get a good picture of them for the mantle! I do have one picture of them that is really cute tho. Our dogs, just like us, are very strange characters. They LOVE fruits and veggies! They will all sit in front of Sam and patiently wait for him to drop some apple or banana their way. While I'm making dinner, they're always waiting for me to throw an errant potato or slice of celery at them. Well, one day, Sam was eating and apple with PB. They were all standing right in front of him just staring. You know the kind of staring that makes you feel like you've got a pork chop tied around your neck, that was it. Well, I stood on a chair and took a picture of them, and it's actually a very cute shot.
Okay. I've got laundry in, waiting for it to dry so I can fold it and put MORE laundry in. Sam's still sleeping (I wanna sleep like him! *pout*) so I have to wait until he gets up to run the vacuum and carpet cleaner. I guess that means that I can make acomplete bit of a mess of my kitchen and throw some Amish bread in the bread machine and clean the fish tank as well. Man oh MAN! Today is going to be busy busy busy!
Some of these women are braver and stronger than I could ever imagine being. My hats off to you, and I commend you for your strength. I cannot imagine what these women are going through, but my heart aches for you none the less.
I've found more things to do in my quest to make the house look mom-ready! All 3 dogs need baths, and Lilly needs her nails trimmed!! *She's got Velociraptor talons, I swear it!* That will get done later in the week (dogs seem to get dirty quickly,especially the white one!), except for Lilly's
Okay. I've got laundry in, waiting for it to dry so I can fold it and put MORE laundry in. Sam's still sleeping (I wanna sleep like him! *pout*) so I have to wait until he gets up to run the vacuum and carpet cleaner. I guess that means that I can make a
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Julie and Julia
So, as of late, I have become a little bit of a Domestic Diva. I've learned how to make Amish bread (partly in the bread machine, of course), I've learned to cook more than roasts and soup beans in my crock pot, and I've (sorta) learned how to sew. I've kept the house fairly clean, been shopping and recipe swapping, and have even gone out to brunch! I've learned the best way to get stains out of clothes, and the quickest ways to iron a shirt, and which fabric softner works, and smells, the best!
Tonight we watched Julie & Julia. It was a pretty good movie. I love food, and apparently it really loves me, it likes to stick around. (Bah duh duh!) I did some laundry while watching it as well. Monkey had an accident again, despite going to the bathroom right before he went to bed. It happens every now and again, but I try not to dwell on it and just wash the sheets. I never ridicule or make fun of him. It's not his fault that the muscle just hasn't developed yet and there's honestly nothing that the doctors can do about it. (We've been to one... said it's normal.) Monkey and I made his bed, I grabbed him a comforter since his hadn't made it's journey through the washer and dryer yet. Both of the kiddos are now sleeping peacefully in their beds while visions of sugar-plums dance through their heads. *Yes, I know it's not Christmas* While all of this is wonderful, I have a rather busy week ahead of me.
First on the agenda, deep cleaning the dinning room carpets! You guessed it! I never got to it on Friday with all of the commotion of going to appointments and whatnot. So, I said I wanted it done by Monday, so it will be done by tomorrow! Then, I need to finish up the laundry. I've also got to go to the grocery store and figure out something for dinner, and make another loaf of bread. I think that will keep me busy for the majority of the day. I've also got to slip in a workout as well!
Tuesday brings another day of busy-ness. I want to wash all of the windows, at least on the inside and clean the curtains. (What curtains that we do have!) Then I want to clean out the cabinets and rearrange every thing, and also clean the cabinet doors as well. (That means upper AND lower cabinets.) Also fit in a work-out and made dinner as well.
Wednesday, I believe I will wash the sheets (for my parents), and the blankets in the dogs crates as well. (No, not together Mom...) More than likely the blankets that go in the living room as well. I will more than likely vacuum and dust as well. (Hopefully) Also, clean both bathrooms, sweep and mop. Did I mention work out in there at all? Oh... and Girl Scouts!
Thursday, I and going to sweep and mop the kitchen. Since the kitchen gets used so much, the floor can get rather icky, and even with mopping it, sometimes there is still some gunk left on the floor, so I'm going to scrub it with a scrubby sponge. I haven't done that in a while! (Oh yeah... and work out!)
Friday is pay day! (Hooray!!) So, I would like to pick up some sheer material and a curtain rod for the dinning room and make a curtain for the sliding glass door, get Bug a new set of blinds, and maybe even make some curtains for her room as well. Also, I will more than likely pre-make the apple pie that I want to have for dessert for Saturday, which is when my parents will be here! Shew!!
Saturday morning, I'll throw the beef Burgundy in the crock pot for dinner, and relax a bit before I have to pick up my parents at the local airport at 11! Shew!!! I have a VERY busy week ahead of me! Here's to accomplishing it all! Now it's off to bed to read a bit and slip off to Never-Never Land in the arms of my wonderful husband!
By the way, I forgot to mention that Friday was my FANTASTIC step-dads' (That's you Kevin) birthday! Hope you had a good one, and glad you liked the cards! :-D*
Tonight we watched Julie & Julia. It was a pretty good movie. I love food, and apparently it really loves me, it likes to stick around. (Bah duh duh!) I did some laundry while watching it as well. Monkey had an accident again, despite going to the bathroom right before he went to bed. It happens every now and again, but I try not to dwell on it and just wash the sheets. I never ridicule or make fun of him. It's not his fault that the muscle just hasn't developed yet and there's honestly nothing that the doctors can do about it. (We've been to one... said it's normal.) Monkey and I made his bed, I grabbed him a comforter since his hadn't made it's journey through the washer and dryer yet. Both of the kiddos are now sleeping peacefully in their beds while visions of sugar-plums dance through their heads. *Yes, I know it's not Christmas* While all of this is wonderful, I have a rather busy week ahead of me.
First on the agenda, deep cleaning the dinning room carpets! You guessed it! I never got to it on Friday with all of the commotion of going to appointments and whatnot. So, I said I wanted it done by Monday, so it will be done by tomorrow! Then, I need to finish up the laundry. I've also got to go to the grocery store and figure out something for dinner, and make another loaf of bread. I think that will keep me busy for the majority of the day. I've also got to slip in a workout as well!
Tuesday brings another day of busy-ness. I want to wash all of the windows, at least on the inside and clean the curtains. (What curtains that we do have!) Then I want to clean out the cabinets and rearrange every thing, and also clean the cabinet doors as well. (That means upper AND lower cabinets.) Also fit in a work-out and made dinner as well.
Wednesday, I believe I will wash the sheets (for my parents), and the blankets in the dogs crates as well. (No, not together Mom...) More than likely the blankets that go in the living room as well. I will more than likely vacuum and dust as well. (Hopefully) Also, clean both bathrooms, sweep and mop. Did I mention work out in there at all? Oh... and Girl Scouts!
Thursday, I and going to sweep and mop the kitchen. Since the kitchen gets used so much, the floor can get rather icky, and even with mopping it, sometimes there is still some gunk left on the floor, so I'm going to scrub it with a scrubby sponge. I haven't done that in a while! (Oh yeah... and work out!)
Friday is pay day! (Hooray!!) So, I would like to pick up some sheer material and a curtain rod for the dinning room and make a curtain for the sliding glass door, get Bug a new set of blinds, and maybe even make some curtains for her room as well. Also, I will more than likely pre-make the apple pie that I want to have for dessert for Saturday, which is when my parents will be here! Shew!!
Saturday morning, I'll throw the beef Burgundy in the crock pot for dinner, and relax a bit before I have to pick up my parents at the local airport at 11! Shew!!! I have a VERY busy week ahead of me! Here's to accomplishing it all! Now it's off to bed to read a bit and slip off to Never-Never Land in the arms of my wonderful husband!
By the way, I forgot to mention that Friday was my FANTASTIC step-dads' (That's you Kevin) birthday! Hope you had a good one, and glad you liked the cards! :-D*
Friday, April 23, 2010
Chilly morning
So, today started off not so good. I couldn't fall asleep last night, so I ended up reading The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson until almost midnight. I was then riddled with a recurring dream that I just cannot seem to remember. I woke up dazed and a bit confused, and 5 minutes after I should have already been up. I get out of bed to find BOTH of my children in Monkeys bed. For anyone that knows me, my kids, or knows a 11 year old brother and 6 year old sister, knows that these two get along about as well as gas and fire. I was sort of shocked that they were both in there giggling and playing at 7:05am. I hurried them both out of there and on with medications. Bug has Poison Ivy (again) and this time we had to give her antibiotics to calm the rash. It seems that there was a touch of infection and the Cortisone shot that they had given her, which worked last time she had it, made the infection explode all over her upper torso. Monkey takes his usual morning medications, tho he is slowly being weened from the Risperidone. It's a good thing.
I went with Sam to his cognitive therapy this morning. It went well. I have realized from the few times that I am a cornucopia of knowledge that I never thought I knew. Sam and his therapist were talking about proverbs. Everyone knows at least one proverb. One of the most common ones is: Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Well, Sam had to break them down and tell his therapist what they meant. Of course, I knew what this meant, and where it actually came from. I explained it came from the actual horses mouth, that if you look in a horses mouth you can find out all kinds of information on it. It's approximate age, and some heath issues also stem from the mouth, and how well the horse had been treated. So, looking at a horse's mouth, that was a gift, would be just like telling someone that has just given you a baby grand piano that it has a scratch on the top. Going to these things with Sam is always good for me, because I learn about what he's learning, where he is struggling, and how I can help, or at least try. Sam got a headache while he was in therapy, so she stopped and told him that he did a good job. I'm really proud of Sam for everything that he has been doing, to try and regain some memory, some shred of his former life.
Today on the agenda is, again, cleaning the living room, and the kitchen. I'm HOPING that I can get the dinning room carpet cleaned today, but by the latest Monday. It's not that it's overly dirty, but, I'm sure it could use some TLC. I've already got the kitchen clean, but will be doing it again next Friday right before Mom and Kevin come for their visit. Also, I'm going to start the laundry today. Most of the time it takes me a couple of days to actually get all of the laundry done, and I would like for it all to be completed by Saturday. Next Friday, not only will I have to do ALL of the normal laundry, but I want to wash the sheets and comforter that my parents will be using on the blow up mattress that we will set up for them. They've been in storage since the last time they came for a visit! All in all, not a horribly busy day, but enough to keep me busy for the day, and part of the weekend.
I think next Saturday, I will put some beef burgundy in the crock pot for the family. It's one of our new favorite meals, and we normally serve it with mashed potatoes and corn. Kevin normally isn't the real potato type of guy. Sam and I have been trying to make most everything we can from scratch to try and cut down on the processed food that our family eats. (Thanks Jamie Oliver!) So I'm hoping that he doesn't much mind that for one night, he has to eat potatoes that were in the ground. We also normally eat corn from a can, but I think next Saturday, we'll have corn on the cob. I will probably make a fresh loaf of bread as well. Maybe I'll even make an apple pie for dessert and have some vanilla ice cream! *Don't I just sound like the little domestic Goddess!* I think that would beat my sister and her grilled tenderloin steaks any day of the week! ;-)
On that note, I think I should go have some lunch. All the food talk really made me hungry, and I forgot to eat breakfast with all of the hustle and bustle of getting the kids around to go to school and going to therapy with Sam!
I went with Sam to his cognitive therapy this morning. It went well. I have realized from the few times that I am a cornucopia of knowledge that I never thought I knew. Sam and his therapist were talking about proverbs. Everyone knows at least one proverb. One of the most common ones is: Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Well, Sam had to break them down and tell his therapist what they meant. Of course, I knew what this meant, and where it actually came from. I explained it came from the actual horses mouth, that if you look in a horses mouth you can find out all kinds of information on it. It's approximate age, and some heath issues also stem from the mouth, and how well the horse had been treated. So, looking at a horse's mouth, that was a gift, would be just like telling someone that has just given you a baby grand piano that it has a scratch on the top. Going to these things with Sam is always good for me, because I learn about what he's learning, where he is struggling, and how I can help, or at least try. Sam got a headache while he was in therapy, so she stopped and told him that he did a good job. I'm really proud of Sam for everything that he has been doing, to try and regain some memory, some shred of his former life.
Today on the agenda is, again, cleaning the living room, and the kitchen. I'm HOPING that I can get the dinning room carpet cleaned today, but by the latest Monday. It's not that it's overly dirty, but, I'm sure it could use some TLC. I've already got the kitchen clean, but will be doing it again next Friday right before Mom and Kevin come for their visit. Also, I'm going to start the laundry today. Most of the time it takes me a couple of days to actually get all of the laundry done, and I would like for it all to be completed by Saturday. Next Friday, not only will I have to do ALL of the normal laundry, but I want to wash the sheets and comforter that my parents will be using on the blow up mattress that we will set up for them. They've been in storage since the last time they came for a visit! All in all, not a horribly busy day, but enough to keep me busy for the day, and part of the weekend.
I think next Saturday, I will put some beef burgundy in the crock pot for the family. It's one of our new favorite meals, and we normally serve it with mashed potatoes and corn. Kevin normally isn't the real potato type of guy. Sam and I have been trying to make most everything we can from scratch to try and cut down on the processed food that our family eats. (Thanks Jamie Oliver!) So I'm hoping that he doesn't much mind that for one night, he has to eat potatoes that were in the ground. We also normally eat corn from a can, but I think next Saturday, we'll have corn on the cob. I will probably make a fresh loaf of bread as well. Maybe I'll even make an apple pie for dessert and have some vanilla ice cream! *Don't I just sound like the little domestic Goddess!* I think that would beat my sister and her grilled tenderloin steaks any day of the week! ;-)
On that note, I think I should go have some lunch. All the food talk really made me hungry, and I forgot to eat breakfast with all of the hustle and bustle of getting the kids around to go to school and going to therapy with Sam!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Time Delays!
So, yes, I know I've been gone a very long time. *bad me!* BUT! I'm back to write again. *I'm such a terrible blogger these days!*
Things over the past couple of weeks has been pretty hectic. I decided that I want to put a porch on the front of the house. One of the houses up the street has on, and it looks very nice, so, Sam and I decided that hopefully by next spring we will be able to afford to put a nice porch on the front of the house, following the peak of the roof. It won't be an overly large porch, just enough for a swing and maybe a little bit more, but, it will help keep the living room cooler, which will lower our energy bill, thus it's a good investment and in time will pay for itself! We also want to rip out thehorrendous horrible stinky not so pleasant shrubs that are currently in the front of the house and replace them with some Lilac trees. Both Sam and I grew up with Lilac trees all around, and LOVE the smell (Current candles on the dinning room table: Yankee Candle Lilac Blossoms and Yankee Candle Sweet Honeysuckle) of them and when we were first married Sam promised me that when we bought a house that we would put a Lilac tree outside of our bedroom window so when it bloomed we could have the smell in our room. It's one of the only things that Sam has ever promised me. I also dug up about a 3 foot circle around the Crepe Myrtle and planted some flowers around that as well. Let me tell you! That was an all day project! It started at around 9, I worked for half an hour, went to the dentist, came home, had lunch while my mouth was still numb (I'll save that story for a different day....) and went back to work. I finally finished and got the plants in the ground about 4:30pm. I even broke the hoe trying to loosen the dirt!
On the flip side of the house, I would like to redo the fence and put in a 6' privacy fence. Not so much because we need the privacy, but because the neighbors have a dog that they don't do a very good job of containing, and the neighborhood kids are always running by, and we have 3 dogs. One of those dogs likes to bark at anything that moves, one of the others likes to bark just because the first one is barking at times, and the other just looks at them all like they've got a screw loose, but will bark at a few things now and again. We also have a pear tree and 2 apple trees that are currently on the other side of our chain link fence that only covers the property immediately behind the house. I would like to try and protect them a bit from all of said neighborhood kids that wander through our yard so we can at least have some of the fruit! Also, I want to knock out the wall to the kitchen and add a sun room of sorts that would serve as our dinning room. The dinning room we have would be turned into a den/office for Sam with a section for books and also my crafts. If course, I think the sun room idea might also generate more heat, which would negate the cost savings that the porch would save us, but, at least we would add more square footage to the house!
The new tank is looking very good! We have some live plants in there that are doing really well that we got when we bought the 1.5 gallon. One of my friends and I were at WalMart and she was getting some of these really neat GloFish, (They glow in a black light!) and I spotted this poor little ivory snail in a little tub. There was no food or anything, and Lord knows how long it had been stuck on the bottom shelf amongst all of the Betta fish! I felt really bad for it, and so my friend bought it for me as a Thank You for helping her set up her tank and pick out her fish. Her name is Lucky. So now we have Blueberry (Betta), Gary (blue-green snail), Squidward (blue snail), and Lucky (ivory snail) in the big tank, and Spongebob in the little 1.5 gallon tank. The only reason he's in the small tank is because I found out that he can breed himself! :-O I don't need a huge infestation of these tiny pest snails in my tank, so he can't go in there.
On that note, I need to go get my car inspected! *sigh* Sometimes this state is SO backwards!!
Things over the past couple of weeks has been pretty hectic. I decided that I want to put a porch on the front of the house. One of the houses up the street has on, and it looks very nice, so, Sam and I decided that hopefully by next spring we will be able to afford to put a nice porch on the front of the house, following the peak of the roof. It won't be an overly large porch, just enough for a swing and maybe a little bit more, but, it will help keep the living room cooler, which will lower our energy bill, thus it's a good investment and in time will pay for itself! We also want to rip out the
On the flip side of the house, I would like to redo the fence and put in a 6' privacy fence. Not so much because we need the privacy, but because the neighbors have a dog that they don't do a very good job of containing, and the neighborhood kids are always running by, and we have 3 dogs. One of those dogs likes to bark at anything that moves, one of the others likes to bark just because the first one is barking at times, and the other just looks at them all like they've got a screw loose, but will bark at a few things now and again. We also have a pear tree and 2 apple trees that are currently on the other side of our chain link fence that only covers the property immediately behind the house. I would like to try and protect them a bit from all of said neighborhood kids that wander through our yard so we can at least have some of the fruit! Also, I want to knock out the wall to the kitchen and add a sun room of sorts that would serve as our dinning room. The dinning room we have would be turned into a den/office for Sam with a section for books and also my crafts. If course, I think the sun room idea might also generate more heat, which would negate the cost savings that the porch would save us, but, at least we would add more square footage to the house!
The new tank is looking very good! We have some live plants in there that are doing really well that we got when we bought the 1.5 gallon. One of my friends and I were at WalMart and she was getting some of these really neat GloFish, (They glow in a black light!) and I spotted this poor little ivory snail in a little tub. There was no food or anything, and Lord knows how long it had been stuck on the bottom shelf amongst all of the Betta fish! I felt really bad for it, and so my friend bought it for me as a Thank You for helping her set up her tank and pick out her fish. Her name is Lucky. So now we have Blueberry (Betta), Gary (blue-green snail), Squidward (blue snail), and Lucky (ivory snail) in the big tank, and Spongebob in the little 1.5 gallon tank. The only reason he's in the small tank is because I found out that he can breed himself! :-O I don't need a huge infestation of these tiny pest snails in my tank, so he can't go in there.
On that note, I need to go get my car inspected! *sigh* Sometimes this state is SO backwards!!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Random Rant Saturday
So, I know this will blow over, but, I'm just REALLY tired of feeling like I'm the only person who does a freakin thing in this house! I cook, I clean, I do laundry, I get the kids off to school, I'm a taxi, I do the shopping, and it is all wearing me a bit thin! The kids help me more than Sam does. For the past 3 or 4 days, Sam has spent more time in bed, than he has awake. I know that he has PTSD, DVT, and TBI. I know that while you are doing therapy for TBI, you can be very mentally drained and just want to sleep more, but, and it is a very big but, I don't see why he would need to sleep for about 16 hours in one day, when he's not had therapy for more than 3 days! He's been saying since Thursday that he was going to mow the lawn. It is now 6:40 and he is in bed again. The lawn is still now mowed. I'm more than likely going to have to mow it tomorrow because it's getting too long, and I don't want to have the lawn mower die every 4 steps because there's too much junk stuck in there! Yesterday I cleaned the entire kitchen, did some laundry, took Monkey to get new shoes, did some grocery shopping, made pizza from scratch, cleaned the kitchen again, put dinner away, folded laundry, and Sam finally got out of bed around 7 or so. Last night, Sam was making comments to the dogs like "oh, mommy starves you!" and "You poor thing, I know you must be hungry!", so I told him to go feed the dogs then. He actually says to me "It's your turn, I did it this morning." SERIOUSLY?! Well, it's your turn to clean the kitchen, your turn to do the dishes and put them away, your turn to do laundry, fold it, and make sure it gets put up, your turn to vacuum, your turn to trim the hedges and trees, it's your turn to get the kids up, feed them breakfast, and get them to school on time! I seriously want to SCREAM at him!I just feel like I have SO much to do, and not enough time to do it. Every time I get one section of the house cleaned, they ALL destroy another section. I'm not just talking about the kids either. I'm talking about Sam as well. Sam brings home all this CRAP from all over the place and sets it on the table. I get dinner done, and want the table cleaned off, it goes to the bar. I want to clean the bar off and Sam yells at me because he hasn't read a newspaper he got in the mail 2 weeks ago and I want to throw it away. I forgot to remind Sam to take out the trash to the curb and the recycling, so, we have 2 weeks of recycling in the kitchen now, and probably 2 weeks of trash in the bin. We don't generate alot of trash these days, but the recycling REALLY needed to go out this week. When I said "Oh, we forgot to take the recycling out last night" he blew up saying that it could wait another week and that there was nothing he could do about it now anyways.
All I want is to get a little help around here. The kids clean their rooms, and their bathroom, and will help me with the dishes when I ask. But I ask my husband, and it's like I'm asking him to undergo surgery with no pain meds for him to give me his kidney or liver! Seriously, it should not be this hard! I know that I stay home and I shouldn't complain as much as I do, but I work hard to try to keep the house clean and the yard presentable, and it's not too much to ask to help out with a few things here and there.
I seriously sometimes feel like I'm alone in this marriage. I love my husband more than just about anything in the world, but, I can feel the tension rising every day. I can feel this mountain on my back. I can feel that I'm almost at a breaking point and nothing that I do or say to him will come out like I'm just asking him to help. He thinks that I'm bitching at him, or that I just want to yell at him, or start a fight. He thinks that I just don't understand anything about TBI or PTSD or DVT. That's not true. I do understand. I just don't think that 16 hours of sleep in a day has ANYTHING to do with any of those issues. He tells me that he has trouble sleeping at night and that's the reason that he sleeps so much during the day. Well, if you didn't sleep so much during the day, you might be tired enough to sleep at night! But if I say that, I'm being a bitch. I just don't know what to do any more!
All I want is to get a little help around here. The kids clean their rooms, and their bathroom, and will help me with the dishes when I ask. But I ask my husband, and it's like I'm asking him to undergo surgery with no pain meds for him to give me his kidney or liver! Seriously, it should not be this hard! I know that I stay home and I shouldn't complain as much as I do, but I work hard to try to keep the house clean and the yard presentable, and it's not too much to ask to help out with a few things here and there.
I seriously sometimes feel like I'm alone in this marriage. I love my husband more than just about anything in the world, but, I can feel the tension rising every day. I can feel this mountain on my back. I can feel that I'm almost at a breaking point and nothing that I do or say to him will come out like I'm just asking him to help. He thinks that I'm bitching at him, or that I just want to yell at him, or start a fight. He thinks that I just don't understand anything about TBI or PTSD or DVT. That's not true. I do understand. I just don't think that 16 hours of sleep in a day has ANYTHING to do with any of those issues. He tells me that he has trouble sleeping at night and that's the reason that he sleeps so much during the day. Well, if you didn't sleep so much during the day, you might be tired enough to sleep at night! But if I say that, I'm being a bitch. I just don't know what to do any more!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Thinking back
So, any of you that really know me, know that Sam is pending medical discharge from the military. We're hoping that they will medically retire him, not just discharge him. It's been a very long road to get to this point, and there still isn't a real end in site. He will be 2 years past his EAS date on 1 June. That's 2 years of fighting to get the medical assistance that he needs and should rightfully have because of an injury that the Marine Corps caused, well, at least part of it. The other part we figured out after all of this started. He was also diagnosed with TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) which was caused by a car accident right after he started a long weekend. He wasn't drinking, he had his seat belt on, they were pulling out from a light, and a guy ran a red light and t-boned them on my husbands side doing about 60mph. He was knocked unconscious for a while and was life flighted to the hospital. The insurance company was very surprised that Sam even lived. We figured out that all of the migraines and memory problems were from that, not "failing health." He also has PTSD from being in the worlds two most dangerous cities (at the time). I know other people from the same unit as the one he went out with last. I know some of the things that went on, I don't even have to ask. He does talk about it every now and again, and I just listen. I don't interject, I don't try to tell him that I know how hard it is, because I don't. I've never put my life on the line for the freedoms of our country, couldn't even fathom doing it for another nation a million miles away that I had only heard of in passing before 9/11!
I'm trying to be more understanding, have more patience. This is one of the hardest things for me. I am not a very patient person. I abhor waiting in line. I have the attention span of a gnat, and most of the times I forget why I'm even standing in line, which pisses me off to no end! I know that sometimes I can be very short with Sam and the kids, and that is one of the biggest things that I am trying to change. So far, I have made small baby steps towards my goal of not exploding when something isn't completed in exactly the way I want it to be done, but, any step forward is better than a step back or no step at all! Looking back, 5 years ago I couldn't really say that. Five years ago, I was nowhere near where I am now. I was still sort of small, quite young, even for being 25! I feel more like an adult now, more like I should at the age of 30. (Well, okay, 30 in June, but close enough!) I've come to accept more of my shortcomings, and realize that some of them I can overcome, some of them it's going to be a very long time before I can even scratch the surface.
On a happier note, Bug learned to ride her bike without training wheels this weekend! She did really well! She yelled at me because she didn't think I was supporting her enough when she was doing just great even without me holding her up. Sometimes I feel like I've robbed myself of my children, but really it was for their own good. Bug learning to ride a 2 wheeler is just one more step to her becoming independent and not needing me any more. I can't say that any child really ever grows to the point that they don't need their Mom. I know I still need my Mom! I wouldn't know what to do without mymany frequent phone calls to her! "Mom, how do you do this?" "Mom, how do I make this?" "Mom, can you tell me where I can find this?" My Mom is a cornucopia of knowledge that if I could master half of, I will be doing great! I think that is enough for tonight dear readers. Sam is ready to go to bed, and I can't say that I blame him. The past two nights I have been up and down frequently during the night, and up before my alarm with the dogs. Any of you who know me, me without sleep is almost as bad as being stuck in a confined space with a starving bear.
I'm trying to be more understanding, have more patience. This is one of the hardest things for me. I am not a very patient person. I abhor waiting in line. I have the attention span of a gnat, and most of the times I forget why I'm even standing in line, which pisses me off to no end! I know that sometimes I can be very short with Sam and the kids, and that is one of the biggest things that I am trying to change. So far, I have made small baby steps towards my goal of not exploding when something isn't completed in exactly the way I want it to be done, but, any step forward is better than a step back or no step at all! Looking back, 5 years ago I couldn't really say that. Five years ago, I was nowhere near where I am now. I was still sort of small, quite young, even for being 25! I feel more like an adult now, more like I should at the age of 30. (Well, okay, 30 in June, but close enough!) I've come to accept more of my shortcomings, and realize that some of them I can overcome, some of them it's going to be a very long time before I can even scratch the surface.
On a happier note, Bug learned to ride her bike without training wheels this weekend! She did really well! She yelled at me because she didn't think I was supporting her enough when she was doing just great even without me holding her up. Sometimes I feel like I've robbed myself of my children, but really it was for their own good. Bug learning to ride a 2 wheeler is just one more step to her becoming independent and not needing me any more. I can't say that any child really ever grows to the point that they don't need their Mom. I know I still need my Mom! I wouldn't know what to do without my
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Life, and other things
So, I came upon one of the other blogs that had written "back in the day." It was before I had moved to North Carolina, and it was basically about my day to day life as I tried to piece it back together from a bad break up that I had with a man that I was very much in love with. Back then I wrote a whole lot more. (Maybe because I had more time?) I wrote about things that had meaning to me, and to others. I'm not exactly sure what happened to that old me, but, I think it's high time I got back to it (at least the writing part!)!! So.... here we go!
Monkey was put on a new medication on Monday. It's called Intuniv. So far, so good!! I went to pick them up from Boys & Girls club last night and the director said that they were on the playground (his problem area) and that he sat in the sand with 2 other kids and made sandcastles. He was then playing with some dinosaurs that he had gotten from the school store and she asked if she could have them because he wasn't supposed to have toys. He gladly gave them to her, and even volunteered the ones in his pocket she didn't know about, and asked politely if he could have them back when they got inside so he could put them in his back pack. I was really surprised! I asked him if he thought the new medication was working, and he said yes, he thought it was. I just hope that since we have found another medication that works so well, that it doesn't have the same side effects as the last medication that worked so well. I don't think I could handle another round of high blood pressure readings like the last time! He is normally a very polite child anyways, but last night he was extraordinarily so. He offered to help me make dinner, which is normal, and help set the table, which is normal, but he also offered to carry all the plates to the table (even his sisters!) which is not normal! Normally, I get all the plates lined up on the counter, take them to the table, get everyones' drink requests, pour them, set them on the table, and by this time I get requests from both Monkey and Bug to start eating, and when everybody gets everything that they need, I finally sit down and everyone eats.
Bug got her room redecorated. We're still working on the paint tho. She got her butterfly net hung around the head of her bed, hopefully this time it stays up! She also got her name spelled out on the wall with big foam letters in blue, green, and pink! I still need to make her some curtains, and apparently replace her blinds, as they are slowly but surely getting broken. She's been doing a pretty good job of keeping her room clean! We had to move the bed to the other wall so she had more room to maneuver around and pick things up. I really think she likes this layout a little better, I know I do! I believe that we have made plans to paint her room a light pink color. It pretty much matches everything that she has. My wonderful mother bought her a bedroom suite that is just absolutely adorable! It was all painted an antique white, and decorated with pastel pink, blue, green, and yellow. It came with a headboard, dresser, and a chest! She keeps all of her bedclothes in the chest currently. She has cute little rugs in her room too. She has a butterfly that stays in front of her dirty clothes hamper, a pink oblong one that is on one side of her bed, and a pink and purple flower with a bug on it on the other side. She's just too cute when you peek in there and she's dressed up in one of her princess dresses talking to her dolls.
I had come up with an idea for the rest of the house as well. For our bedroom, I would like to paint the walls and off white color and repaint our dressers a distressed off white as well. I want to get new bedding that is black and tan. We really like the color combo of the two in there. I also want to build an addition to the kitchen, and make it a dinning room. Maybe more like a sun room/dinning room with some big windows to let in light. Then I would like to take what is currently the dinning room, and turn it into a den/office type spot, take out the sliding glass door, and put that in the new dinning room. From there I would like to put a big corner desk in the "den" with some bookshelves for all of the books that we have lying about, and possibly a spot for me to do my sewing. Off of the new dinning room, I would like to build a deck that would go to the corner of the house and out into the back yard. Now I know that this isn't something that we are going to be able to do right away, but it would be nice! I also want to replace the front door and the storm door with something a little bit nicer, or at least something that won't fly open if a stiff wind hits it! I also want to put a bigger front porch on the house as well, and cover it. It will help keep the heat from beaming inside the living room windows in the summer time and making the house hotter. Sam and I have settle the color dispute for the living room as well. Instead of the horrible red and brown that it currently is (which doesn't match our style, nor our furniture) we want to paint the walls a cream color. We already have the black couches and the sage-green accents!
Oh yes! My sewing! I had forgot to mention that Sam bought me a new sewing machine for our anniversary! It's something that I have been wanting for a while. I remember, growing up, my mom making this beautiful creations on her sewing machine! I thought that she was magic and the best "sewer" in the world! One Halloween, I think I was 9, she made me a pilgrim costume, complete with a white apron and bonnet! I will never forget that costume! I think it was my favorite, looking back at all the Halloween costumes I had growing up. I wanted to be able to make beautiful garments like my mom, and had expressed this to Sam a few times. He went to Wal-Mart and got me a pretty nice sewing machine. Granted, it's not the best sewing machine, but it works, and I'm thankful. I am just a beginner, and I think if I had some complicated, expensive machine with more gadgets and do-dads that I might be overwhelmed and not be inclined to want to even try it! I did make a dog coat already. It was quite the experience! I learned alot more than I thought I would! I have plans on making Bug some summer clothes, and I would like to make her a dress, me a top, and the boys a polo shirt for us to have some spring pictures done. (We still haven't redeemed our Christmas present from J!) I found a really cute fabric online that I want to order, and some coordinating fabric on the same site. Now I just need to find some patterns to make them! I wish that I was more creative, so I could make my own patterns. Never know, someday I might just be the next Alexander McQueen, without the whole hanging myself thing.
Anyways! I should probably go. I have laundry to do, dishes to put away, dishwasher to load, and I have to take back the pants that I bought Sam and Monkey! Monkey's new pants were too big, and Sam hated the color of his new pants!
Monkey was put on a new medication on Monday. It's called Intuniv. So far, so good!! I went to pick them up from Boys & Girls club last night and the director said that they were on the playground (his problem area) and that he sat in the sand with 2 other kids and made sandcastles. He was then playing with some dinosaurs that he had gotten from the school store and she asked if she could have them because he wasn't supposed to have toys. He gladly gave them to her, and even volunteered the ones in his pocket she didn't know about, and asked politely if he could have them back when they got inside so he could put them in his back pack. I was really surprised! I asked him if he thought the new medication was working, and he said yes, he thought it was. I just hope that since we have found another medication that works so well, that it doesn't have the same side effects as the last medication that worked so well. I don't think I could handle another round of high blood pressure readings like the last time! He is normally a very polite child anyways, but last night he was extraordinarily so. He offered to help me make dinner, which is normal, and help set the table, which is normal, but he also offered to carry all the plates to the table (even his sisters!) which is not normal! Normally, I get all the plates lined up on the counter, take them to the table, get everyones' drink requests, pour them, set them on the table, and by this time I get requests from both Monkey and Bug to start eating, and when everybody gets everything that they need, I finally sit down and everyone eats.
Bug got her room redecorated. We're still working on the paint tho. She got her butterfly net hung around the head of her bed, hopefully this time it stays up! She also got her name spelled out on the wall with big foam letters in blue, green, and pink! I still need to make her some curtains, and apparently replace her blinds, as they are slowly but surely getting broken. She's been doing a pretty good job of keeping her room clean! We had to move the bed to the other wall so she had more room to maneuver around and pick things up. I really think she likes this layout a little better, I know I do! I believe that we have made plans to paint her room a light pink color. It pretty much matches everything that she has. My wonderful mother bought her a bedroom suite that is just absolutely adorable! It was all painted an antique white, and decorated with pastel pink, blue, green, and yellow. It came with a headboard, dresser, and a chest! She keeps all of her bedclothes in the chest currently. She has cute little rugs in her room too. She has a butterfly that stays in front of her dirty clothes hamper, a pink oblong one that is on one side of her bed, and a pink and purple flower with a bug on it on the other side. She's just too cute when you peek in there and she's dressed up in one of her princess dresses talking to her dolls.
I had come up with an idea for the rest of the house as well. For our bedroom, I would like to paint the walls and off white color and repaint our dressers a distressed off white as well. I want to get new bedding that is black and tan. We really like the color combo of the two in there. I also want to build an addition to the kitchen, and make it a dinning room. Maybe more like a sun room/dinning room with some big windows to let in light. Then I would like to take what is currently the dinning room, and turn it into a den/office type spot, take out the sliding glass door, and put that in the new dinning room. From there I would like to put a big corner desk in the "den" with some bookshelves for all of the books that we have lying about, and possibly a spot for me to do my sewing. Off of the new dinning room, I would like to build a deck that would go to the corner of the house and out into the back yard. Now I know that this isn't something that we are going to be able to do right away, but it would be nice! I also want to replace the front door and the storm door with something a little bit nicer, or at least something that won't fly open if a stiff wind hits it! I also want to put a bigger front porch on the house as well, and cover it. It will help keep the heat from beaming inside the living room windows in the summer time and making the house hotter. Sam and I have settle the color dispute for the living room as well. Instead of the horrible red and brown that it currently is (which doesn't match our style, nor our furniture) we want to paint the walls a cream color. We already have the black couches and the sage-green accents!
Oh yes! My sewing! I had forgot to mention that Sam bought me a new sewing machine for our anniversary! It's something that I have been wanting for a while. I remember, growing up, my mom making this beautiful creations on her sewing machine! I thought that she was magic and the best "sewer" in the world! One Halloween, I think I was 9, she made me a pilgrim costume, complete with a white apron and bonnet! I will never forget that costume! I think it was my favorite, looking back at all the Halloween costumes I had growing up. I wanted to be able to make beautiful garments like my mom, and had expressed this to Sam a few times. He went to Wal-Mart and got me a pretty nice sewing machine. Granted, it's not the best sewing machine, but it works, and I'm thankful. I am just a beginner, and I think if I had some complicated, expensive machine with more gadgets and do-dads that I might be overwhelmed and not be inclined to want to even try it! I did make a dog coat already. It was quite the experience! I learned alot more than I thought I would! I have plans on making Bug some summer clothes, and I would like to make her a dress, me a top, and the boys a polo shirt for us to have some spring pictures done. (We still haven't redeemed our Christmas present from J!) I found a really cute fabric online that I want to order, and some coordinating fabric on the same site. Now I just need to find some patterns to make them! I wish that I was more creative, so I could make my own patterns. Never know, someday I might just be the next Alexander McQueen, without the whole hanging myself thing.
Anyways! I should probably go. I have laundry to do, dishes to put away, dishwasher to load, and I have to take back the pants that I bought Sam and Monkey! Monkey's new pants were too big, and Sam hated the color of his new pants!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Happy Birthday!
Today is my baby boy's 11th birthday!!
He's growing up SO fast! I remember when he was just born. Tiny, bald, naked, and screamin his head off! :lol My first baby, mom caught the red-eye and flew out to Colorado (Which is where we were living at the time) from Ohio (which was probably REALLY expensive being that it was a red-eye AND New Years Eve!) and was there the day he was born. He was just a perfect lil baby, and from there, it went downhill! (Just kidding Monkey!)
Happy Birthday Monkey Man! I love you so very very much!
He's growing up SO fast! I remember when he was just born. Tiny, bald, naked, and screamin his head off! :lol My first baby, mom caught the red-eye and flew out to Colorado (Which is where we were living at the time) from Ohio (which was probably REALLY expensive being that it was a red-eye AND New Years Eve!) and was there the day he was born. He was just a perfect lil baby, and from there, it went downhill! (Just kidding Monkey!)
Happy Birthday Monkey Man! I love you so very very much!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Merry Christmas... and all that happy jazz.
So, Christmas was here and gone. We had a pretty good Christmas. Living with only one income in the house has been kind of hard! I did find a new job, and I start on the 29th! (Hooray!) We set a pretty strict budget this year, and came in just barely over! I achieved that by using online coupons whenever possible. Sams' birthday was on the 18th, we had Christmas on the 25th, our anniversary is on the 29th, and Monkey's birthday is on the 31st! We have a pretty busy December!
The kids were really pleased with their Christmas bounty. They both got DSi's. If you don't know anything about Nintendo DSi's, oh man! I would suggest getting one! They have 2 cameras on them, so you can take pictures of yourself, or outside your DSi. The ones that the kids got came preloaded with a few games and such. Now that we have 4 Nintendo DS/DSi's in the house, we can all play our own games, or, we can use the chat feature and chat with each other. (Yes, I know this is the lazy mans way! *hehe*) They also got some new clothes and some toys. They also got a gift card each, which was promptly spent getting toys and other various things that they deemed as necessities after the holidays. My best friend got us a portrait package from Sears. We're pretty happy about that, the kids would rather have the presents tho.
Sam got himself a very nice guitar for his birthday/Christmas/anniversary present. It's black Fender and it's an acoustic/electric guitar. Maybe next year I will get him an amp! For my Christmas/anniversary present, I got a sewing machine! It's been a very long time since I've used one, and so we just simply bought an inexpensive one. Hopefully, someday, I can be as good as my mom. She used to make things for us all the time. I remember her making me a pilgrim costume for Halloween one time, complete with the white bonnet and apron! More recently, she made a clown costume (which is REALLY awesome, by the way) and a vampire cape! I'm sure she has made other things as well, but, I just don't know about them.
I have already found some really neat things that I want to try to make. Hopefully, I don't screw them up. I have my eye on a couple books that I would like to get. Both the kids would like to learn how to sew as well. This gave me quite the surprise from Monkey. He is begging to have a Sock Monkey kit for his birthday. I would say that we may just have to oblige him that request. My mom made him a Sock Monkey a very long time ago, but, Lilly, his dog, tore it up.
Other than that, things have been going pretty well here. Sam is still working on getting out of the Marine Corps. That seems like a never ending project itself! It seems like it has taken forever for things to work themselves out, but, we have been assured that we're close to the end. We're figuring that it will be at least another 6 months before he gets out. In a way, that's the hardest part, not knowing. We don't know when he's going to get out, so he can't look for a job. Nobody will even consider him unless he's 90 days from getting out. We're in the process of trying to save up a years worth of expenses right now. We refinanced the house and his car, both with a better payment. Unfortunately, we didn't win the Powerball last night either. Congrats to the lucky winner in KY. We sure could have used that $128,600,000! I'm sure alot of people could have.
Anyways, It's Sunday Funday here, and I'm behind on laundry and dishes, so it's time to get back to that! I hope that everyone had a great Christmas, and from my family to yours, Happy New Year!
The kids were really pleased with their Christmas bounty. They both got DSi's. If you don't know anything about Nintendo DSi's, oh man! I would suggest getting one! They have 2 cameras on them, so you can take pictures of yourself, or outside your DSi. The ones that the kids got came preloaded with a few games and such. Now that we have 4 Nintendo DS/DSi's in the house, we can all play our own games, or, we can use the chat feature and chat with each other. (Yes, I know this is the lazy mans way! *hehe*) They also got some new clothes and some toys. They also got a gift card each, which was promptly spent getting toys and other various things that they deemed as necessities after the holidays. My best friend got us a portrait package from Sears. We're pretty happy about that, the kids would rather have the presents tho.
Sam got himself a very nice guitar for his birthday/Christmas/anniversary present. It's black Fender and it's an acoustic/electric guitar. Maybe next year I will get him an amp! For my Christmas/anniversary present, I got a sewing machine! It's been a very long time since I've used one, and so we just simply bought an inexpensive one. Hopefully, someday, I can be as good as my mom. She used to make things for us all the time. I remember her making me a pilgrim costume for Halloween one time, complete with the white bonnet and apron! More recently, she made a clown costume (which is REALLY awesome, by the way) and a vampire cape! I'm sure she has made other things as well, but, I just don't know about them.
I have already found some really neat things that I want to try to make. Hopefully, I don't screw them up. I have my eye on a couple books that I would like to get. Both the kids would like to learn how to sew as well. This gave me quite the surprise from Monkey. He is begging to have a Sock Monkey kit for his birthday. I would say that we may just have to oblige him that request. My mom made him a Sock Monkey a very long time ago, but, Lilly, his dog, tore it up.
Other than that, things have been going pretty well here. Sam is still working on getting out of the Marine Corps. That seems like a never ending project itself! It seems like it has taken forever for things to work themselves out, but, we have been assured that we're close to the end. We're figuring that it will be at least another 6 months before he gets out. In a way, that's the hardest part, not knowing. We don't know when he's going to get out, so he can't look for a job. Nobody will even consider him unless he's 90 days from getting out. We're in the process of trying to save up a years worth of expenses right now. We refinanced the house and his car, both with a better payment. Unfortunately, we didn't win the Powerball last night either. Congrats to the lucky winner in KY. We sure could have used that $128,600,000! I'm sure alot of people could have.
Anyways, It's Sunday Funday here, and I'm behind on laundry and dishes, so it's time to get back to that! I hope that everyone had a great Christmas, and from my family to yours, Happy New Year!
Friday, December 18, 2009
ThriftyGrl Giveaway Take 2!
So, the last time I posted, I posted about a a $50 off of a $100 at Old Navy. Well, she found another one, and I'm trying to win it. Go visit her blog for a chance to win!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Black Friday
So, yesterday was Thanksgiving. We stayed at home, just Sam, the kids and I. It was strange actually. This is the first Thanksgiving with all of us together, with no traveling. I cooked a turkey breast because there was really no reason for us to cook an entire bird. It would have been too much for the four of us to eat in a reasonable amount of time. I also made sweet potatoes for the very first time! I know that seems like such a strange thing to have never made for Thanksgiving, but, in all honesty, I've never actually made a Thanksgiving dinner by myself! We've always gone to my moms house. This year my mom is in Texas, my one sister is moving to Tennessee, my other sister and brother are the only two left in Ohio. We did get a call from my sister-in-law and brother. They wanted to talk to the kids and say hello. They missed them. I miss my family too. I'm not sure if we will be able to go to Ohio for Christmas or not.
Sam is out shopping for Black Friday. He ran into his first snag. We were going to get another crate for the Greyhound that we would eventually like to adopt. PetSmart advertising stated that they had wire crates on sale for 50% off. Great deal! Sam gets there this morning, and it's the crates that are a size down from what we would need that are on sale! Ugh! So, he is leaving there to do some other shopping. I guess we will see how it works out!
Sam is out shopping for Black Friday. He ran into his first snag. We were going to get another crate for the Greyhound that we would eventually like to adopt. PetSmart advertising stated that they had wire crates on sale for 50% off. Great deal! Sam gets there this morning, and it's the crates that are a size down from what we would need that are on sale! Ugh! So, he is leaving there to do some other shopping. I guess we will see how it works out!
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