December 27, 2008

Someone Is 12 ?!?!?!






Wow! I can't believe T2 is 12 today! 12? Really? When did THAT happen?

The poor thing had a rough night last night with a sore throat and stomachache and didn't get to bed until after 3am, so I decided to let him sleep a little this morning and not try to make it to church so early.

We did go to Muncie later. T2 wanted to have his birthday lunch at Cheeseburger In Paradise, so we met my parents there at noon. Afterwards, they took T2 back to their house and T1 and I went to pick up the cake and headed to Old Navy. T2 requested clothes from me, so I loaded up on sweats, long sleeved tees and socks. (He loves comfy clothes.) Of course I also put $12 in his card. Tradition.

We went back to my parents' and let him open his gifts. We had cake and sat around and talked for awhile. On our way home he wanted to stop by Best Buy. He got a WWE wrestling game and T1 got a dvd.

We came home and the house was freezing... it was almost 70 yesterday and today it's back down in the 30's. Crazy! No wonder I've had a headache most of the day.

Well, I need to get my laundry out and clean the kitchen up. Mr. R is coming over tonight and we're getting pizza and will watch a couple of movies.

December 23, 2008

Ice Ice Baby

Our second ice storm of the season. I'm thinking I do not like ice. However, as long as it just stays around for a few hours, warms up and melts, I guess it's better than a ton of snow.

Mr. R and I went to start (yep, start) our Christmas shopping this morning. By about 2:00pm we came out of Kohls and it was just starting to sleet. The roads were getting bad and everyone was going slow.

We thought we'd try to beat the horrible Walmart crowd and go late tonight instead of tomorrow... I just looked outside and everything (including my car) is solid ice. I checked the weather online and the freezing rain is suppose to stop around 1:00 am. Hmmm... guess who may be going shopping around 1:00 am?!

December 16, 2008

Weather!

I woke up this morning to a phone call that my little daycare boy was sick so they would not be coming today. It was nice news not to have to get up (because I was tired and cold and didn't want to get out from under my cozy blankets) but sad that my little guy is sick! I'm so thankful that the mom didn't bring him though. I'm trying to stay away from any and all people who are ill. I ended up not getting a flu shot (yet) so I'm trying to stay as healthy and germ free as I can.

So... since I had the day off I decided I'd use my time wisely. I cleaned up the kitchen, dusted and vacuumed, cleaned my room and did some laundry. Oh, and I got my baby chain made. :)

Mr. R called and asked if I was having a good day with the daycare kids and when I told him they weren't here, we decided we'd take the boys and go see a movie. We were going to see "Four Christmases". He really wanted to see "Australia", but it was my turn to pick the movie.

Anyway... it had snowed earlier but didn't stick to the grass, just the sidewalks and roads. It looked like it was pretty much just a light dusting of powder, but we soon found out it was super slick and icy out.

When Mr. R tried to get on the highway to head over to my house around 3:30, it was at a standstill, so he turned around and went back home. We figured we could go to a later movie and he'd just wait it out until they salted the roads better and all the going-home-from-work traffic died down.

Then we started watching the news and decided the movie could wait until another day and he probably should stay put at his house. (He's lives 45 minutes away.) There were accidents everywhere, people sliding off all over the place, parts of the highway actually closed down and it was taking people 45 minutes to get places that normally took them 15.

So, no movie and no Mr. R tonight. So what's the next best thing to do... eat, of course. I made bow tie pasta with alfredo sauce and garlic bread sticks. We have cookies that my mom sent home and brownies I made a few days ago, so we can snack on those later. Hopefully there's a good Christmas movie on tonight and we can cuddle up on the couch and watch it. (Although I doubt my teenager will go for it. Oh well, I try.)

I do not have ONE thing bought for Christmas yet. That's scarier than the roads!

December 13, 2008

How Long Til June?

Wonder how many time you'll see that as a title?

I have a feeling this winter and spring are going to go very slow. Ahhh, I want this baby now! And I have a long way to go. 15 weeks down... 25 more to go... I'm thinking of maybe making a chain, like the "25 days til Christmas" kind, only it will be a "25 weeks til baby" chain. I'll make it pink and blue and every week we can tear off a link.

I have to admit I wasn't sure how I felt in the beginning and pretty much cried about every other day over it, but now since I've seen it and felt it, I really am glad it's coming. How can you be too disappointed about a new baby?! I'm pretty sure I had these same feeling with both my boys but I wouldn't trade them for anything now!

I know my life will be different. I haven't gotten up in the middle of the night for years, haven't had to pack a diaper bag or carry a car seat to and from the car each time we go somewhere, and sleeping in... well I guess I can kiss that good bye for a few years. I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to all that, but I'm sure when I see its little face for the first time, all the dreaded things that I haven't been use to doing, won't matter anymore. Plus it's nice to know that this baby will have a father who will actually be around and will help me out if I get too tired or stressed. And then of course there's always grandma and grandpa... right, grandma?

Anyway, we do still have lives and most of the time it doesn't revolve around the baby-to-come... tonight we are going to my parents'. We haven't seen them since Dec.2 when we got back from my grandpa's funeral. My dad was very sick and I'm trying to stay away from any and all illnesses right now. We are going to a zoo over by where they live for a drive-through Christmas light show. Then we'll probably find a Christmas movie on tv. They just got new cable so I'm sure the boys will need to check out all the new channels. Tomorrow we'll go to church, have lunch and then I'm going shopping. I'll try and talk my mom into going, but she's not too excited about all the Christmas crowds right now. Well, neither am I but I haven't started my Christmas shopping yet and there's not too many shopping days left so I pretty much have to deal with the crowds.

Mr. R is off hunting again. He left yesterday and will be back on Sunday. This is the last weekend he's going. I hope he gets a big buck. I don't get to talk to him very much when he's gone because they are way down south and he doesn't get very good reception on his crappy Sprint phone. I keep telling him he needs to switch over to AT&T... maybe one day he'll listen. Can you hear me now?!

That's about all we're up to this weekend. I have laundry going and I need to do some dishes. Then I'll get us all packed up and we'll head off to Muncie. The dogs will be excited to go. They haven't left the house in awhile. All we have to say is "Wanna go to grandma's house?" and they start jumping all over the place.

Oh, one more bit of baby news... the nurse practitioner called from my OB's office yesterday and all my tests didn't come back ok. They want me to have a colposcopy done on the 31st but I'm thinking that I'm not going to do that. My pap came back abnormal and they want to take a look at my cervix with a microscope and perhaps take some biopsies. (I've had this done before and had severe cramping after the biopsies.) This happened with my other two pregnancies and cleared up on its own afterwards and I've continued to have normal paps ever since. The NP said it is most likely from the pregnancy hormones and that it's NOT cancer so I don't need to worry. Well, ok, if it could just be hormones, lets just wait until after the baby is born, do another pap and go from there. I'm not excited about getting my cervix messed with at this point. That's just too close to the baby and if it's not absolutely necessary, I say we wait. I'm going to call this week and see if I can talk to the doctor sometime before the appointment. I hope he agrees and says we can wait.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

December 8, 2008

First Ultrasound

Today was our ultrasound. This was scheduled early because they thought I was further along or there was more than one baby. Well, I'm not further along (darn!) and there's only one baby. This, after I spent all weekend convincing myself that twins would really be ok and it might just even be fun. I'm thinking just one will be good though!

So I'm 14 weeks and 3 days, my due date is still June 6 (although I'm sure that will change in the months to come - it always does) and so far everything looks good - I think. The technician said my placenta was on the bottom (instead of on top where it normally should be) and I asked if that was a problem. She said only if it's covering the cervix. And that was all she said. Great... give me something more to worry about.

More pics - compliments of Mr. R:


In the last pic he or she was trying really hard to get his or her thumb in its mouth. Awww! Too cute! When we first started the US he/she was on its belly but flipped around to his/her back about 10 minutes into it. We saw a very active baby today. My next US will be in about 6 weeks. We should know if its a boy or a girl then. Yay!

First OB Appointment - 12/3/08

We saw the nurse practioner. We talked about nutrition, what vitamins I'm taking (and how 2 Flintstones are just as good as those huge prenatal things that I could never swallow), how I need more calcium, how I can't go tanning and how I can only go out for fast food once per week. Most of the things we talked about were because of questions Mr. R had to ask. Most of the stuff I already knew since I've had two kiddos before, but it was nice to have a refresher course. I got a TB test and about 5 vials of blood drawn, had the normal exam and got an early ultrasound set up.

Here's just a couple of the MANY pic Mr. R took:

December 6, 2008

Baby Bump Alert

Surprise! Mr. R and I are having a baby (or two?). We had our first OB appointment last Wednesday. They thought I was 13 weeks but after the exam they think I'm either further along or there's more than one baby. Let's hope I'm just further along!! We will find out Monday at the ultrasound.

We're all adjusting to this big change. Mr. R is thrilled! I think he took about 50 pictures at the doctor's office. I'm getting use to the idea. I haven't been sick at all. Mostly I'm just getting headaches. At night my stomach has been bothering me, but it's more a stretching feeling than a hurting feeling. The boys are undecided. T1 isn't too thrilled and T2 is making sure mama is taking her vitamins each day.

The baby's heart rate was 160 bpm.

December 3, 2008

If I Believed In Bumper Stickers

I will keep my freedom, my guns, my religion and my money,
you can keep
"THE CHANGE"

November 29, 2008

Death and Holidays

Death sucks at just about any time, but when it hits during the holidays it seems worse.

My grandfather died Tuesday. It's bittersweet. He was ready to go and needed to go. So, there is sadness and yet relief at the same time.

We went to be with everyone on Thursday. There were some tears from time to time but I think everyone is doing really good. I can't say it was one of my best Thanksgivings, actually it didn't seem like Thanksgiving at all. I was in a cloud most of the day. I drove 3 hours up, had a headache and just felt out of it, but it was really great to be there.

The drive back was horrible. My head hurt worse, my back hurt from driving and it was dark and I couldn't see much. I was so scared a deer would jump in front of me while we were going 80 mph, but we made it home safe and sound.

We're going up again tomorrow and the funeral will be on Monday. We sent a plant arrangement from FTD to my grandma and she got it today. My mom (who is staying up there) said it's really nice. I hope my grandma likes it.

I need to start on laundry. I had everything done earlier this week but of course it's all sitting there needing to be done again. Such is life. And it's better than the alternative.

~Rest In Peace Grandpa Cliff!~

November 19, 2008

Cause 2 People Are Reading

I have to keep up on my bloggin'.

This week is going fast. I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving.

Mr. R informed me he's going hunting again this weekend. I was a little irritated (maybe that's too strong of a word) ok, perhaps I was a little shocked because he was just gone for 5 days... little did I know, there is a time limit on hunting. Hmmm, I thought it was like all winter long, guess not. Anyway, yippeee... another weekend to myself. (And he thinks I don't like it when he leaves. Shh!)

BTW... he goes for an MRI this Friday. He's still throwing up many times a day. The boy has a problem and I hope they can find it. The sad thing is, I know exactly when he's about to get sick or not feeling good because he gets this sad tone in his voice or gets really quiet.

Another friend of mine is getting an MRI. She's having bad headaches and hopefully they'll find something too. (See how I added you into the mix of aliments... I wouldn't forget you, my BFF!!) She's got a lot on her plate and this is just another thing she doesn't need to deal with.

My grandpa is not doing good. His stroke has really done him in. My parents, aunt and T2 just went to visit him yesterday. They went to the doctor to see if he needed surgery and the good news is, he doesn't. At least not for now. The bad news is some idiot thinks he needs a feeding tube. UGH!

So anyway, if you pray, say a prayer for those 3 people I love dearly! Thanks!

Anyhoo... not much is going on here. I'm making the trip to Muncie tonight to get T2. I miss him. I miss my kids when they're gone. I don't know what I'm going to do when they move out or go off to college.

Right now I'm getting ready to go run errands. Gotta go to the bank, get a car wash (I got tons of salt on it coming home yesterday morning.) and then I need to go somewhere and get kleenex, fabric softener and aluminum foil. Sounds fun, huh?!

(LOL- side note: Do you know anyone who can't say "aluminum". I do... my children's "father". Oh gosh it use to crack me up.)

Yeah... about my trip home yesterday morning. Let's just say Muncie gets much more precipitation than where I live. It could be bright and sunny here and Muncie could have 3 feet of snow. Long story short, I had to work yesterday and so I got up to come home, got to 69 south and traffic was at a standstill. Well, if you know my anxiety about traffic, you'd know there was no way I was gonna get on that highway. So, I went back to my parents and waited about 45 minutes, tried it again and it was all clear. Amazing what a little morning sun can do.

T2 is starting Upwards again. He goes for his "evaluation" this Saturday. He didn't have to do that last year. Of course we'll be in Michigan the day he has his first practice. That is usually what happens every year because we do our family Christmas late. I hope they get his name right this year! They called him by his last name almost every week last year. Oh well, we knew who he was. :) This will be his last year unless they extend the grades. I thought some went to 8th but this one ends at 6th. I'll be sad. It's really fun to go watch the games every Saturday. Let's hope he plays at a later time again!

We watched Tropic Thunder last night. Unless you can rent it at Redbox for a dollar, save yourself the money. There were some funny parts and seeing Jack Black with blonde hair was interesting. OHHHHH... I'll tell you who is hilarious in that movie... Tom Cruise!! Ok, so for a dollar it would be worth it.


Have a wonderful day!

November 14, 2008

Hey Good Lookin'

whatcha got cookin'...

I have been quite the cook lately. Mainly because we are SO broke that eating out just isn't an option right now, but that's ok because we need to eat at home more.

In the last week I've made pork chops, a roast, chicken... Yep, I can make more than just spaghetti and mac n cheese.

Tonight I made honey bbq chicken wings, fried potatoes and a salad with cucumbers, green peppers and croutons. A little later I'll either be making brownies or oatmeal cookies for dessert. Or maybe both.

I already made a big batch of brownies and peanut butter cookies this morning, but they're all gone. They left this afternoon with Mr. R on a 5 day hunting trip. It's been raining all week (with no end in sight) and we're suppose to get snow tomorrow. What men will put up with to hunt. Of course I'm sure they think we're crazy when we spend hours at crowded malls and stand in long check out lines. Mars/Venus.

Oh snap! The Wizard Of Oz is on. I wish we were at my parents' house so my kids and I could watch it with my mom. We're planning on going over tomorrow night to spend the night and we're going to be making some kind of dessert thing with some new gadget my mom just got. I guess you can fill these little pastries with pudding or icing or some kind of stuff? Anyway, hopefully there will be another good movie on. I'm ready for some good Christmas movies. Of course National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is one of my favs. And of course you can't have Christmas without A Christmas Story! The part where they're at the Chinese restaurant is the best.

My aunt is coming up again next week. My grandpa has to have surgery on Tuesday so her and my mom will go up again for the day. We'll go over and spend the night Tuesday night so we can see her. It's fun to see her so much, but unfortunately it's not under good circumstances.

Oh, before I forget... T2 had an appointment with his allergy/asthma doctor on Wednesday and he blew a 100% on his breathing test. YAY! He's doing real good and all his meds are working great. Plus, we didn't have to deal with the NP that we don't care for, instead we got to see the one we LOVE!!! She's just the sweetest woman and it was great to see and talk to her. She just got back from visiting her son, daughter-in-law and grandkids in Australia and from the sounds of it, she had a great visit. We talk about homeschooling with her because her grandkids are homeschooled. She said she got to teach them when she was there and really enjoyed it. We found out she's only working part-time now on Wednesdays and Thursdays, so we made sure to make our 6 month check up on a Wednesday!

Well, I'm off to clean up the kitchen and then relax. I just realized that I don't have to make dessert. Mr. R brought over doughnuts and brownies from an awesome place called Long's Bakery... so, we can just have that. Yippeee!

Have a great weekend!

November 11, 2008

"Obama Nation" or "Abomination"?

Abomination - abom·i·na·tion
Pronunciation: \ə-ˌ-mə-ˈ-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : something abominable

2 : extreme disgust and hatred

Yep! Sounds about the same to me.

It's taken me a long time to post about the election because although the outcome does not surprise me, it is very unfortunate and it's been a bitter pill to swallow. It's unfortunate that long ago Dr. Martin Luther King (a black man), had a dream and that dream was that people would no longer look at the color of a man's skin. And yet they did on Tuesday, November 4, 2008.

And they have NO idea what they have done.

The point is, what's done is done and what will be will be, but you watch and watch closely. He will fail you. His promises... HA! So he wants to extend unemployment, that only means that people won't feel the need to work, but sit and collect what is theirs because really, aren't they entitled? Isn't this the promise Obama is making, that everyone is entitled and they deserve to have what they want. Isn't that the kind of mentality that Dr. King was trying to fight against. You know, you may think that voting for a "black" man (and let's remember, he's only 1/2 black) just made world history... but really, you just set us back decades.

As for your entitlement... my wise father has this little saying and it goes something like this... "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch."

Oh well, enjoy all your entitled to and enjoy it now. But in the meantime, keep a close eye on Israel and Iran. It will be interesting to see what they feel we, as Americans, are entitled to.

October 29, 2008

They'll Be Turned Into Pumpkins At Midnight

I woke up today and my migraine was gone, thank the Lord! I'm not sure if I could have handled another day of that. Today has actually been a decent day. So far, I haven't had any bad news. It seems that lately, bad news of some sort has been a daily thing. Everything I think is going to work out, seems to be heading the other direction.

So about a month ago we lost CBS on our cable system. They had some sort of contract and one side wouldn't agree on the contract and the other side didn't agree on the money and so CBS pulled their station. Well, you'd think that wouldn't be a big deal but there are only a handful of shows that I actually remind myself to watch at a certain time. One is The Young and the Restless (daily) and the other is CSI (Thursday nights). Both of those show are on CBS.

Luckily we have rabbit ears in our kitchen, so we just took them out to the living room and used them as needed. Except that got annoying because every day at 12:28, I'd have to remember to unplug the cable and hook up the rabbit ears so I could watch Y&R. Then, after that was over, I'd have to unhook the rabbit ears and hook up the cable back up. No, it was not the end of the world, but it was a nasty reminder each time I did it that I do NOT clean behind my tv often enough.

Anyhoo... I'm laying in bed this morning flipping through channels and I stopped on Rachael Ray. I haven't ever really cared for her, but she was making some sort of turkey sandwiches that were suppose to taste like sour cream and onion potato chips, so yeah, it caught my eye... anyway, I'm sitting there and it struck me, HEY... this is a CBS show!! Oh my gosh, we have CBS again.

I knew at that moment my day was off to a great start. (Nope, I don't have much of a life, but thanks for caring.)

T2 is having a friend spend the night tonight. On a night that I need to be in bed at a decent hour because I have to work in the morning. What was I thinking?! I guess I was thinking that I've probably given my kids so many other things to put them into therapy when they grown up, that I didn't want to add "We never got to have friends over, that's why we're serial killers!" to the list.

I've already given them strict orders that all the wrestling and running around will cease at 9pm and at that time they can watch movies, play video games or TP the neighbor's house - just as long as it's quiet. (And how much noise does toilet paper make?!)

They also know that they are to be in bed, lights out and mouths shuts no later than midnight. This time was of some debate before the actual sleepover was set, but I'm thinking if Cinderella had a time frame at the ball, this princess has a time frame to be in bed.

Wouldn't want anyone to turn into a pumpkin...

October 28, 2008

Migraine

Yesterday was busy. Normally my Mondays are low key. I missed that. I had to be up early for an appointment in another town, then that appointment led to another appointment at another office and I got back home a lot later than I wanted to.

My parents were here to stay with the boys and my mom cleaned up the whole kitchen for me. Awww, how nice, huh? Don't you wish she was your mom.

Last night I started getting cold, because the weather started getting cold. When I start getting cold, I start feeling sick. Before bed I had a headache and a stomachache. Of course I did what I always do (and always regret) and thought, "oh, I don't need to take anything, I'll just go to bed and when I wake up my headache will be gone". You'd think I would have learned my lesson by now, but noooo. So, I went to bed and by 6am my headache had turned into a migraine and hurt so bad the pain woke me up. I got up and took some Tylenol and had to prop myself up on pillows to try and get back to sleep.

I got up at 8am for work... and the Tylenol hadn't done jack.

I am miserable. I'm not sure I can tolerate the last two hours of my work day. And on top of it all, my sweet little daycare girl ran and fell straight into the corner of the wall and got a scrape and huge goose egg. I felt SO bad! She cried for about a minute and then was running around, but it had to hurt! Since her mom works real close to my house, I called her and asked if she'd come down and take a look at it. By the time she got here, the little girl was running all over, going down the slide and laughing. We both agreed she was ok, but her bump looks horrible. She ate her lunch fine, so I think she's going to be ok. I hate it when kids get hurt at my house.

My Tuesday feels like a continuance of my Monday. :(

October 21, 2008

Working Together

Homeschooling is back in session. Well, more regularly anyway. We took a short break to work on the house. And yes, I DO call that schooling.

T2 got his own room and I moved back into the master bedroom and we all helped each other move dressers, beds and junk we don't need and grandma came over and helped paint (because she is so good she doesn't even have to use tape!).

Meanwhile, the boys learned responsibility, what it means to help each other and creativeness. T2 got his room painted and then the boys decided to repaint their bathroom. They worked together, decided on a color together and painted it all on their own.

Now before you think it was all sweet candy sprinkles, oozing love and big hugs over here, it wasn't. But that wouldn't be learning now, would it?!

Nonetheless my crap is still all over one side of my room and about every 3 days or so Mr. R asks me when I'm going to put that stuff away. I have a nice little path going through it, I don't know what he's worried about.

When Mr. R was in Texas last week, he bought me some sweat pants at Aeropostale that are quite possibly the most comfortable pants I've ever worn. Lucky for me, when I was in Muncie over the weekend, I just happened to go into another Aeropostale store and they had the same pants AND they were on sale for $9.99. Mr. R got mine for $19.99 which proves that things are bigger in Texas - including their prices.

(That had nothing to do with the subject at hand, but it was important anyway.)

Carry on.

October 18, 2008

Ben

Last Friday my grandpa was taken to the hospital by ambulance because my grandma found him to be unresponsive. My mom left immediately. Saturday morning sometime between 7 and 9 am he had a stroke. (Or possible a few strokes?) My cousin Jer drove up to my house on Saturday and we left Sunday morning to go to Michigan to the hospital. His mom had left Friday to go too, but since we didn't know how bad it was (or was going to be), everyone else just waited.

Walking into the hospital room I was not prepared to see what I saw. My grandpa was laying there like a fragile little hurt bird. I'm not sure why I thought of a bird, but I did. I immediately began to cry and couldn't even go over to his bed until we got back from lunch. Then I just tried to tell him who I was, that I loved him and just rubbed his forehead. The boys didn't want to get close and I didn't make them.

There ended up being 10 family members in the room that day. Each one took their turn at different times going to his side and talking to him. Sometimes he would laugh or answer with something that didn't make much sense, but just to see him make the effort was nice.

We all fell apart at different times (and perhaps for different reasons) but there was always someone else to hold the other up, to give a hug, or make them laugh.

We left later that afternoon and said our good byes. Maybe just for that visit, maybe for the last time. The boys did end up hugging him good bye. On their own.

Besides the stroke that will never let him walk again, he also has Alzheimer's. Not a good combo. He's out of the hospital and in a rehab nursing home, but he will never go back to his own home. I can't imagine what my grandma is going through.

The truth is, we lost him a few years ago. Watching his mind go was very hard, but watching his body go is just as sad.

He's my grandpa and I love him, but I can't fathom what my mom and aunts are going through. This is their father. Their only living parent. They lost their mom at a very young age. I'm sure it hurts just as bad now as it did then. I don't think it matters how old you are when you lose (or are losing) a parent. You'll always feel like a child inside.

My grandma calls him Ben. His name is Cliff.

Here's to you Ben... this song has always made me think of you. I know you'll get to where you're going.

September 16, 2008

I Need Warm Sun

I can't believe it's been almost a year since we went to Florida. I really want to go back. I think I'd enjoy it more. Not that I didn't enjoy it immensely the first time, but you know, when you take your kids to Disney for the first time ever, you spend more time watching THEM than anything else.

I'd also like warmer weather and SUN. Sun makes things warm and I'm having issues with cold air. I'm pretty sure I have a nasty little thing called Cold Urticaria. Really, it's a horrible thing. Anytime I'm in cold air lately, any skin that is exposed, it turns to hives and itching. When we were up in Michigan on vacation, I went down to the beach one evening and it was rather cold. Well, by the time I got back to our room I was covered in hives. So bad that my mom went down to the desk to find out where the closest hospital was. I used Benedryl cream and tried to get warm and after about 30 minutes they started going away. I was really hoping that it was just a fluke and perhaps something that was in the lake air/sand/etc. But no... I got home only to leave the A/C on too high one night and the next morning I was sitting at the computer freezing and my ankles and feet and hands started to break out. Yesterday was a little chilly in the morning and I was out in the backyard looking at the mess left by the winds from Ike and when I came in, the itching started. I had shorts on, so my knees were covered in hives and were red and swollen. So, I started researching it online and found out I'm not crazy, it's a real condition AND I could die. Seriously, from what I've read, if it gets bad enough, it could lead to Anaphylactic Shock. Not cool. When I read about cold water and swimming pools, T1 reminded me that a couple of years ago when I went swimming in our pool I got out and was covered in hives. It was cold. I remembered showing my mom all the red welts and asking her what it was and we figured it was from the chemicals. I took a hot shower and they seemed to go away and I never thought about it again. But now... it's happening all the time. I'm wondering how people make it through the winter with this. I guess time will tell. All I know is, I'll be covering up when I go out. And I think I may want to go get an Epi pen... just in case.

It also stinks because fall is my favorite season... not now. I dread the colder weather. Plus, I just can't get into the spirit of fall. It doesn't seem like it should be here yet. I'm not over summer yet.

In other news... I guess I'm going back into the daycare business. I have a couple of ideas and I think I'll be doing things differently so hopefully that will make the transition back into working full-time a little easier. I'm not really looking forward to it, but you deal with what life hands you and you get over it.

I guess we'll see what happens.

September 5, 2008

Yes, I AM Still Here (with pics)






















It's not like I'm busy... but I feel like I am. I have nothing to do, I'm not working much and yet I really cannot find two seconds to sit and post on this blog anymore. Maybe I'm just over the whole "blog" thing. But OH the stories I could tell if I had the time. And if I knew you were over 21. (Just kidding.) (Sort of.)

Anyhoo... we went to Mackinaw Island and instead of typing out a play by play... I hope you enjoyed the pics.
And for those who care, YES, Mr. R and I are still together. YES, we are still getting married. YES, I'm the one who is now bugging him about it.

C-ya!

August 14, 2008

Oh Where Have I Been?

I just am not into this whole blogging thing anymore... but I'll try to update everything the best I can.

1. I did not get married on the 8th. We had some issues arise and we postponed it. (Ok, I postponed it.) It may happen, it may not. I just don't take marrying someone lightly and I really need to be sure it's right and that it's the right person. I don't know what the deal is. Maybe I'm just too scared of commitment?

2. I'm still working, but only part-time. Which is NOT good when you have things called bills. I know it will work out. I'm just praying and being patient.

3. My aunt and cousin still came up last weekend and we had a lot of fun. We went to the zoo, went out to eat a few times, got icees, sat by the fire pit a couple of nights, my cousin painted the star on the front of my house so it matches the shutters and front door, we got the pond cleaned out, played games and just hung out. It's always fun when they visit.

4. We're waiting until after Labor Day to start our homeschooling.

5. We're going to Mackinaw City and Island soon. That will be fun.

Well, that's about it for me. Not super exciting but we're all happy and healthy so we can't complain!

God is good all the time, All the time God is good!

July 28, 2008

Weekend Recap

Our weekend went way too fast. I got to see Mr.R for about 4 hours on Saturday, then me and the kids left to go to my parents' house. I had to go there because I had to pick up my ring. We went to church Sunday morning and then had Applebees for lunch. Then me, my mom and the boys went to get my ring. I took it home so I could have it for a day, then we went back this morning so it could get sized. It will be back by next Sunday.

We decided since Mr. R had to go back to Chicago, we'd stay at my parents' last night. My grandma is visiting for another week so it's nice to spend some time with her. She's 91 so I like to try to see her when I get the chance.

So the kids were bored last night and asked if we could go for a drive. We did and it was not fun! I made the mistake of going over the river and into the downtown area.

Well, I thought if I stayed on the same road, all I'd have to do is turn around and it would lead us back out. OH NO! Somehow it turned into a different street and all the streets turned into ONE-WAY streets. And yes, at one point I was driving the WRONG WAY down one of them. And a nice man in a huge truck coming straight at me, YELLED at me for it.

Well, to make a long story short, I tried to be a big girl and say a silent prayer and make it out of there myself, but after getting MORE lost and not having any clue where we were, I decided to call my mom.

Well, neither my mom or dad know the downtown area and had no idea what to tell me to do. At that point I started having some anxiety. Ok, a LOT of anxiety. I was very close to a panic attack and I knew that wasn't going to help anything and would only scare my poor kids more, so I finally told my mom that I had to let her go and I was going to pull over and call the police.

So, I pulled over and called and by this time I was almost crying because we were SO lost and it was so dark and it was just a terrible feeling. I called 911 and when the lady came on, I told her it wasn't an emergency, but I didn't know who else to call. She asked why I was calling and I said "Well, I'm downtown and I'm lost." She told me to hold on for a second and she'd get me some help and then a REALLY nice lady got on and helped me find my way out. I told her I was really sorry to call 911 for just getting lost and she told me that they get many calls from people getting lost downtown and have to help people find their way back to where they came from all the time. I told her they have WAY to many one-way streets and she said that's one of the reason why people get lost so easily. She gave me a few simple directions and we were back on the main road in no time. I thanked her over and over.

OH MY GOSH, I was never so glad to see my parents' house!!! Of course this all happened at 10:30 at NIGHT so that made it even worse because I could really see. I don't know WHAT we were thinking!?!

When I told Mr. R about it I was still shaking and he said he'd get me a GPS when he comes back. He has one to get him around Chicago and he said he doesn't know what he'd do without it.

Yeah, I don't think we'll be going on anymore "joy" rides for awhile!

July 25, 2008

Colds In July?

I've heard summer colds are the worst... ugh! My mom is sick, my dad is sick, T2 is sick and I really, REALLY don't want to be sick. T1 had a sore throat last night but is better today. T2 had a temp, was sneezing, coughing, and was real tired last night.

Today... T1 seems ok and T2's temp is gone and he just has an earache, so that is a good sign. I used our homeopathic ear drops on him and I'm hoping they work. I know one of my dc kids has an ear infection and I'm hoping that wasn't passed along.

I'm still good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and will continue to suck on my Halls ProHealth Defense drops. I got the Blueberry Blend and they're not too bad. They've got Zinc and Echinacea in them, so hopefully they'll work and make my immune system nice and strong.

My neighbor lady came over last night and we walked around the neighborhood and talked with people. I think we're going to start getting together with some of them and just sit out in our lawn chairs with a good drink and just shoot the breeze some night. We're all bored. :)

Today I haven't done much. Got up, went tanning, was going to take the kids to McDonald's for french fries but the line was way out in the road. They had $1 Happy Meals today and there were a LOT of cheap people! I wasn't about to sit in that line so I just went into Subway instead. The lady who was doing my order asked if I had a hard time getting in the parking lot and I told her we always come in the back way but that the line was crazy in the front. She said that was too much wasted gas for a dollar Happy Meal. I agreed and said Subway was healthier anyway. On our way back home I stopped at the gas station and got T2 some Gatorade. He was worried about getting dehydrated. I think it's because there's a man in our church who ended up in the hospital last week from it. Oh well, whatever helps make T2 feel better! :)

Now I am working on laundry and thinking about what to make for dinner. Mr. R may be coming home this weekend because he doesn't have to work on Saturday and won't have to go in on Sunday until real late. I think that's a lot of traveling and gas, but it's his time and money! I can't say I'll be too disappointed if he comes back. :)

Only 2 more weeks...




July 23, 2008

I'm Good

Posting two days in a row... I'm so good. Except for the fact that this post will not have much excitement in it. We did nothing today. I woke up late because I couldn't sleep at all. First, I couldn't even get to sleep, then when I did, Mr. R kept texting me. He's working 3rd shift now, so he gets bored. Well, at 4:30 in the morning, I'm not bored... I'm trying to sleep.

Anyway, I got no sleep last night but I did have a funny dream. I dreamt that we were having our second wedding and I had already had a baby. It was a boy. All our close friends and family were staying at the hotel together and I kept telling Mr. R he had to stay with us. He said he didn't like most of the people there and that he was going to a Pirates game instead. HUH?? Pirates game? That makes absolutely no sense because he's never even mentioned the Pirates or even much about sports in general. But it was funny anyway. And no, we're not having a baby any time soon.

So I got up late, went tanning, came home, made lunch and watched Y&R. Then I went outside and sat on the patio and listened to some music while T2 and his friend "M" went swimming.

I made dinner for everyone and then finally got to talk to Mr. R on the phone. Since he's working nights, he sleeps all day and we don't get to talk that much. Right now he's working 9:30pm - 10:00am. He usually gets done with work, gets a shower, goes tanning, gets something to drink and heads for bed. (And I thought my days were boring.)

After dinner I mowed the front yard. Then I decided that I deserved a hot fudge sundae, so the kids and I ran out and got ice cream and now we're home.

I think I'm going to go to bed early tonight. I'm tired. And bored.

July 22, 2008

It's Hard To Say Good-Bye

Today I gave the last dc parent notice that I was quitting. It was rather sad because I just adore her son. Well, her daughter too, but her son is just like my own because I've had him for almost 4 years. He's been with me through half my daycare journey and watching him grow from 5 months to 4 years has been an honor for me.

This morning I woke up, got ready and went downstairs around 9:30. My little dc girl was acting tired and little grouchy so I picked her up to cuddle her a bit and she was burning up. Took her temp and it was high. Her mom came and took her to the doctor and it looks like she's got an ear infection. Poor thing. Then, after nap, her brother woke up and wouldn't eat snack. VERY unlike him, so I took his temp and it was a little high too. However, he was acting fine (other than not eating) so hopefully he'll be ok.

My mom is sick... she's got a horrible cold, congestion, cough, fever.... UGH I do not need this right now. Not that SHE does, poor mom, but ohmygosh I have so much to do. Sickness just cannot invade my life right now.

I picked out my ring on Sunday. It's from the Beverly Hills collection at Zales and it is beautiful!!! The main diamond is pear-shaped, and I've never been fond of the pear-shaped diamond, but this one just jumped out at me. I can't wait to have it on my finger!!! I love it!! It is almost 2 carats, white gold, tons of smaller diamonds on the ring and band and it's very vintage looking.

I still haven't figured out what I want to do about a dress... I have a couple that I've never worn that would be ok. I'm not getting the big dress until the November wedding, so I'm wondering if I don't do an "all white" dress for the August wedding, if that would be ok. The August wedding is very casual so I may just wear one of the new dresses I haven't worn yet.

Tonight we went to Subway for dinner because I didn't feel like cooking. Right as I was taking my last bite my neighbor came over and wanted to talk, so I sat outside with her for awhile. Then she had a computer question so we got T1 and went over to her house to see if he could help her. He's a computer whiz and got the program that she needed all figured out. Then we sat in her house and chatted for probably an hour. She's a fun lady and I really like talking to her! Last week my mom and I went over and played Euchre with her. I hadn't played in a VERY long time but I think I started getting the hang of it towards the end. She is in a Euchre group and wants me to join. I may, it sounds like fun. Besides, I'm going to need stuff to keep me busy if I'm going to be a lonely housewife. :)

I have so many things to do and so little time to do them. But, I always work better under pressure so I'm sure this will be no exception. I have been good about tanning so at least I haven't left that for the last minute.

Tomorrow I'm not working and I don't really have anything planned. I know I need to go tanning and I need to make a trip to downtown Indy. Other than that, it doesn't look like it will be a very busy day.

On a side note... I was so sad to see the news on Yahoo that Estelle Getty had passed away. If you know me, you know how much I love The Golden Girls! Sophia is just hilarious! RIP!


"Thank You For Being A Friend"

July 14, 2008

Updating... Just For Jer

I have been busy... I'm going to update in bullets, so here ya go:

*I am only working part time and loving that. I don't think I'll ever go back to full-time, unless I absolutely have to.

*The kids are doing great. Loving the pool and hanging out with friends.

*My dad is officially retired. And so is my mom, sort of. Of course my dad still is pastoring his church and this will give him more time to focus on that.

*My parents no longer live with me, but rather 40 miles away.

*My grandma (dad's mom) is living with them for 3 weeks... kind of a trial run while my aunt and uncle are on vacation, but it may be a permanent thing soon.

*A couple weeks ago my aunt Gail and cousin Jer came up and we went to Michigan to visit my grandparents. We took them on a picnic and it was nice.

And let's see...

*OH! I'm getting married. Yep, married. To Mr. R, of course. I guess after 8 years of him asking, I finally had to say yes. August 8. Very small wedding at a cute little chapel with just a few close relatives. Then a bigger wedding and reception in November so everyone can be there. Yippeee... I get two weddings! Which means two dresses!! Oh, and maybe two honeymoons? But yeah, two dresses!! lol :)

So, that's about it... a lot is going on. Mostly all fun. I'm nervous but excited. I have lots of pics, but I'll save that for another day.

TaTa For Now...

June 23, 2008

Just Breathe

Quick update:

Today was T2's allergist appointment... PTL he is breathing at a 97%!!! The nurse practitioner was more than happy and I was very excited! I think we will be sticking to the meds he's on for now, because they're definitely working!!

Good meds and lots of prayer... great combination! I'm so happy my son can breathe like a normal person again!

After the appointment, T2 and I stopped at Steak N Shake for milkshakes. I think we deserved them. :)

June 22, 2008

Shopping Spree

Did you like the "important" message? I figured you all needed to be "Rick Rolled" because I had no idea what it even was until Friday. I'm slow. I know.

I don't really have any big news. It's just the same, normal stuff going on around here. I'm still only working 3 days a week and I love it! I think I'm going to start advertising for only those days. I could be happy working 3 days and having 4 days off. It's pretty nice.

The boys got their pool up but have only been in it a couple of time this week. The water's been too cold or we've been out doing other things.

Mr. R is working in Chicago now. He's gone pretty much for two weeks at time and is working 12-16 hours a day, 7 days a week. He was suppose to come home next weekend but he told me on Friday that he was going to have to wait another week. This means he'll have been gone for 3 weeks straight since the last time he's been home. I think he felt bad because he gave me $300 to go shopping. So, guess what we did after church today... :)

T1 got: a multi picture frame for his room, new trashcan, 2 new valances, new sheets and a new lampshade. (He's redoing his room.)

T2 got: legos, a big plastic container for all the legos he already has, a big remote control Mustang and some candy.

I got: a new mat for the front porch, new sunglasses, season 4 of 'The Golden Girls' (now I have the complete set), a picture frame and some other stuff we needed like: vitamins, sunscreen, batteries, pool toys, pool filters and 2 new beach towels.

It was a good day... but then any day spent shopping is usually good. :)

I'll be working this week and off the next. My aunt, uncle and cousin are coming and we're going to Michigan. I can't wait! We always have so much fun together!

Tomorrow T2 has his follow up appointment with the allergist. I'm going to be SO happy to report that since he's been on his new meds, he hasn't had to use his inhaler AT ALL!!! Praise the Lord!!! I'm so happy my little man can breathe again!

Well, here's to a great new week... live it up!

June 20, 2008

Important Update

Click Here For Important Update

June 11, 2008

Our Outting For The Day

It gets boring when you don't work much. We're trying to find little things to do every day. Friday we went to a small town close to us and went through all their little stores. They have a real nice antique store, a few craft stores and stores that sell a bunch of different kinds of things. We also got both dogs groomed - they needed it and with this hot weather, are much more comfortable I'm sure. Monday we didn't do much, I got caught up on laundry. Yesterday we went grocery shopping. Today I was going to get the oil changed in my SUV but never got around to it. Instead I had an extra older kiddo in daycare and while my mom was watching the younger ones, I took him and T2 to the park. It was hot and I don't know why I thought I could just sit in the car and read? Now we're getting ready to make steaks on the grill and relax in the A/C.


I'm not sure what kind of animal these bones are from, but T2 found them:


T2 (in red) and daycare boy:

I found this to go over my kitchen window at one of the craft stores:

June 5, 2008

We No Longer Have A Turtle

T2 letting him go:

The turtle running towards the water:

He really booked it to the water:

His nice new home:

June 4, 2008

We Have A Turtle

T1 and I found a turtle today on the side of the road. We have found a home for him so he'll spend the night tonight in our garage in a big plastic container with rocks, water, leaves and pea pods (cause we read they like those) and be off to his new home tomorrow. He was obviously out of his environment when we found him and since T2 was not with me and T1 and I are huge wimps, some very nice guys helped me get him. They stopped thinking I needed gas (how nice!) and happened to be in their work van which happened to have a little cardboard box and tape. That was a good thing because I'm not sure how I would have gotten him home.



June 2, 2008

Busy Day

I got up this morning and was ready by 9:00. I didn't have any kids coming until 10:00, so I thought I'd go tanning and go to the post office to get stamps and mail a couple of bills. Then I decided I'd rather have some time on the computer and actually be able to sit and eat my breakfast for once, so I did that instead.

I worked from 10:00-11:00... whoohoo... don't hurt yourself, Mama T! :)

As soon as I was done, the boys and I left to run errands. We went to the post office, got stamps, mailed the bills, then headed to Walmart.

We got back around 1:00 and had lunch. Then I made the BLT dip that we got at Shipshewana.

After lunch I needed to mail a birthday card and an anniversary card so I asked T2 if he wanted to take a bike ride to the post office. His eyes got huge and he said "YES!". So, we got the bikes out and off on our journey we went. About half way there I said "T2, did you happen to bring your inhaler?" and he said "No, I thought about it but I'm doing so good I knew I wouldn't need it." He was right, he did fine the whole way there and back. I was burning up and out of breath, but he did great. He told grandpa and grandma at dinner that we helped out 4 ways by riding our bikes to the post office... 1. we got exercise, 2. we saved gas, 3. by not using our car we helped the environment, and 4. we got some sun.

After I cooled down and had a "bomb pop" (you know, those awesome red, white and blue popsicles), I worked on some daycare stuff and then got ready to grill out for dinner. I bought some steaks and I thought I'd be nice and grill them for the family. Yeah... I'm not a good griller. That is what dads are for, so I called him outside and told him if he wanted decent meat tonight he better take over. They ended up turning out really good, although I put a tad too much tenderizer on them. We had salads and baked potatoes with our steak. It was a good dinner!

After dinner I was standing in the kitchen and noticed our neighbor lady (who just lost her husband in December) was getting ready to mow her lawn. It was still so hot, so I asked T2 if he wanted to help her so she could get it done quicker. Of course he wanted to, the kid LOVES to work. So T2, me and my dad went and helped her out. We did her back yard while she was working on the front. My dad helped her cut down some branches on a tree that was getting really low and I used the weed whacker around the areas that needed it.

Then she and a little neighbor girl came over to our house and T2 and I sat outside on the front lawn with them and talked. I'm so happy that I have nice neighbors!

After we came in I tried my BLT dip and now I'm getting ready for bed. I have to be up by 7:00 tomorrow morning and I am tired!

It was a very nice Monday! :)

PS- Don't forget to click the "Quickie" button on the side! Let's conserve water this summer by joining the Crunchy Domestic Goddess for a quick shower!

May 31, 2008

Shipshewana - Our Mini Vacation


My aunt Gail and cousin Jer came in on Memorial Day. We cooked out and made homemade ice cream. My cousin and the boys went on a bike ride and we made a last minute trip to Target to get a couple of things for our trip.

We got up early on Tuesday and left at 8am. We stopped at McDonald's for a quick breakfast and then took the 2 hour drive to Amish country.

My parents and aunt went in my parent's suv and my cousin, me and the boys went in mine. We had fun on the way. We listened to cds and passed a lot of beautiful scenery. Only half of it is highway, the rest is back roads so we got to see a lot of Amish homes and farms. We knew we were getting close when we started seeing horses and buggies and laundry hanging outside.

We got there around 11am and since it was too early to check in to our hotel, we headed straight HERE to the Flea Market. It was a little chilly but we survived. As soon as we walked through the gate I saw a "hair" booth. A Chinese lady was putting hair extensions in a ladies hair and I stopped to watched. She told me to come in and sit down and asked if I wanted her to do my hair. I loved the lady's hair she was doing, so I told her I wanted something exactly like "that". She was awesome at matching the hair color with her pieces and did a really good job with mine. And the good thing is, it's really easy to do, so anytime I want a cute hairstyle but are in a rush, I can do that. We walked around and looked at everything, got a quick lunch there and then walked around again until about 4:00. Right before we left we walked by a jumping thing... anyway, no one would do it but my cousin. I would have, but I didn't want my hair to go flying out.

After that we went to our hotel (Farmstead Inn), unpacked, got ready and went out to get an early dinner. We ate HERE and it was very yummy. Everything was home cooked and it was family style, so they just kept bringing out bowls or plates of whatever we needed. We got chicken, baked steak, corn, mashed potatoes, stuffing, noodles, a salad and bread. It was all so good!

After we ate we went back to the hotel and went swimming, sat in the hot tub, played basketball and ping pong. Then we went back to our rooms, sat and talked and decided we needed a late night snack, so we ordered Pizza Hut. Then we went to bed.

We all met down in the lobby at 8:15 am for breakfast. Our plans for Wednesday was to leave right after breakfast and go through all the little Amish shops in town. However, I had looked at a super cute Coach knockoff at the flea market the day before and decided I didn't need it. Well, after sleeping on it, I decided I needed it. So, me, my cousin, and the boys went back to the flea market. We got right by the gate where the purse vendor was and I went in and picked up the purse in less than 5 minutes. However, T2 saw an alligator he had his eye on the day before, so he got that and T1 bought a picture for his room that he had looked at the day before. I also found a Louis Vuitton headband so I picked that up also. It's a good thing we went back! :)

After that we headed for the little shops, found my mom and aunt and walked around with them. We went in one shop and there was a little Amish woman who walked by and told us to make sure we came upstairs and visited her, and that she had some things for us to try. So we walked upstairs and way in the back of the room she had a table set up of all these dips. We tried a bunch and they were all very good. I bought 3 of the mixes... a spinach dip mix, a BLT dip mix and I also got a strawberries and cream dessert dip mix. They're all real easy to make, you just add the mix to either sour cream or cream cheese.

Next, we went HERE and went through all the little shops and rode their restored 1906 carousel. Then we started getting hungry so we ate at a little Amish ran restaurant called Daily Bread. Then we rode the carousel again, went to Aunt Millies to pick up some candy and left. But not before we almost got stuck in the elevator. But we won't talk about that.

After that, we made one last stop at Antique Gallery. T2 collects old cars and he got an old Greyhound bus. I got two old Presidential spoons.

Then we were on our way home. We got home, went out to eat, sat and talked, then went to bed. My aunt and cousin left early the next morning at 7am and 2 hours later it was back to work for me.

It was fun and relaxing and we spent most of the time bent over laughing so hard our stomachs hurt. We had a great time!

Enjoy the pics below...

Shipshewana Pics - Where We Stayed






Shipshewana Pics - The Fun We Had