Dreary Drizzle

Ick. I hate mornings like this when I have to go to work. I just cannot seem to get motivated. It doesn't help that half of my yard is under water from all the rain we have gotten. Blech.

I did well yesterday - 10 smokes. Today, I will do it again. Tomorrow, when I am home alone, I will begin my attempt to cut that in half. I'm on my way! Yay!

So, help me think of inexpensive projects I can start to do to keep myself occupied. Or recommend something I can do to keep busy. I'm getting bored with my computer games.

What happened here?

My cute little Texas flag and pink cowboy hat avatar disappeared yesterday. It just showed a box with a red x. So I tried to upload it again. And again. And I couldn't make it work. *pout* So now I'm avatar-less.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

In other news, today's goal is the same as yesterday. Keep it under 10 cigarettes. I smoked 11 yesterday :(

Today's Challenge

So, as part of my baby steps to quitting, I signed up for a daily newsletter that is part of a online stop smoking support group thingie. The newsletter usually has a "Quit Tip" that is supposed to encourage the quitting thought process. Many of the ones I've read have been "old news" or very few that have made me just roll my eyes. The thing I like about them is they aren't too hokey. And the celebrate your milestones. Today's email has had me thinking, though. It asked you to make a list of your fears related to quitting smoking (ie. not hanging out with your friends, loss of your "image", etc).

The more I think about it, the more of a list I've actually compiled. At first glance, I was kinda like "Oh what a moronic excersize", but....well.....

5. Not remembering to take the dog outside to do her business
4. Losing 30-45 mins a day at work to bullshit with my smoker friends
3. Nothing to replace the cigarette in my hand
2. Lack of stress relief
1. Boredom/Nothing to do when I need a moment of peace

Hey Ya'll...you're invited!

We're going to ring in the New Year in style around here....

We've got Tostitos Scoops, salsa, popcorn (butter and white cheddar), cheese puffs, lasagna and brownies. On hand for your entertainment will be Rotten1, his friend Troublemaker, Rotten2, Princess Belle the kitten and Trouble the yellow lab. Rotten2's friend PrissyPants may be able to clear her schedule to join us.

Happy New Year!!!

Back to reality....

And boy, does it bite!

Merry Christmas!

Hope you all have a wonderful, safe, joyous, and stress-free holiday weekend with your family and friends!

Winter Solstice

Today is the first day of Winter, actually...it will be at 6:22pm.

Did you know that today will only have 10 hours of sunshine?

Did you know your shadow will be at it's longest today? Even Breezy and I will look tall! *grin*

*happy dance*

The news was announced today at work. Our plant manager, by "mutual decision" *snort*, is leaving the company. His replacement will be in on January 2. He will be gone no later than January 31.

Yay! Yay! Yay fucking hooray! This is such a huge relief for me. I'm not stopping the job search, but....this makes leaving a little less worth doing, if that makes sense.

Baby Steps Part 2 and an Update

First, an update on the baby steps to quitting. I've hit a roadblock. Temporary, but a bit of a roadblock, nonetheless. I dropped off my prescription yesterday. Went to pick it up today, with the intention of starting it tomorrow morning. However, my insurance denied the prescription because apparently this is too new of a drug and our plan doesn't cover smoking cessation products. And I don't have $113 to drop on the CVS counter 9 days before Christmas. I'll be calling the insurance company and the doctor's office first thing in the AM though.

As for the update...I am finished with Christmas shopping, except for three gift cards that need to be purchased before Saturday. I thought I was finished. But apparently not. *shrug* Gift cards are easy. Rotten2 came down with a stomach bug Friday night and was okay by Saturday. As Rotten1 and I were finishing up the Christmas shopping tonight, DH called. He now has the stomach bug. It hit right as he and Rotten2 were sitting down to eat. So...Rotten1 and I picked up dinner for Rotten2 and hauled ass home. DH is quite miserable. And I have never seen him this sick. He's not even pulling the typical male death from sickness routine. The rest of life is becoming slightly boring, yet a bit hectic. Nothing too out of the ordinary though.

Now, if you didn't see your Christmas present, go down to the last post.

Feeling a bit Christmas-y

Went to a Christmas party last night. Holy.shit. I haven't been that drunk in a loooooooooong time. I'm still feeling it this AM. Should have listened to DH and his partner and called in sick.

Ah well.

And now, my Christmas present to blogland....click here.

Baby Steps

It's all about the baby steps right now. I've been thinking about, talking about quitting. And yesterday, I made my first official step. I went to the doctor. I now have a prescription. I haven't filled it yet, as that's another step. However, I don't expect to make this change quickly. This is something I have to accomplish in my own time and with minimal expectations.

I smoked my first cigarette at the age of 14. I wasn't a consistent smoker until 16. I'm 29. I quit twice - with each pregnancy. This time, I'm going to do it for me. I hate spending the money. I hate the smell and the taste. I'm ready.

I'm scared.

'Tis the season

for Coughs and Colds,
Bronchitis and Pneumonia
Fa la la la la
la la la laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

It's official. 20 days to Christmas and Rotten2 has a nasty cough and snot. Yay. Happens every year. Someone has to be sick on Christmas. If the timing plays out, it will likely be all of us.

Bah Humbug.

Wasn't Glowie's 1st wedding anni not too long ago? Did I miss it?

Hmm....

My brother is planning a visit. My 24 year old baby brother, the only sibling I have. He hasn't been up here in six years. Not since Rotten2 was 6 weeks old. His mother (my ex stepmother) doesn't know he's planning this. I'm not totally sure she knows we are even speaking. He wants to spend time with the kids before Christmas. He's also talking about finally moving out of his mother's house by spring. He has a real job.

I'm thoroughly confused/amazed/befuddled by this. I knew the day would come when he'd start to grow up and realize that life isn't like his mother thinks it is. I just didn't realize that day would be so soon.

Where am I?

It was 77 yesterday. We wore shorts and flip flops.

Tonight, it's 26, hasn't gotten above freezing since 2am and this is what I see outside. Never in my life do I recall seeing white frozen sleet, snow and rain in one day in November.

Dinner?

What's for dinner?

I think we're having breakfast for dinner.

Last Day of Freedom

The kids will be home from their weeklong Thanksgiving vacation tomorrow. DH will be back from work tomorrow. So, it's my last day of freedom.

I've been to the book store, the fabric store, Wal-Mart, and I've dug out the Christmas crap. The poor kitten doesn't know what to think. I haven't told her no this many times since we got her in August *grin*

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's going to be a very quiet, very small affair here. Very unlike any Thanksgiving in the past 10 years. We had two invites, where we'd do minimal preparation with some driving. But, driving 2 hours up to the farm for dinner and then driving 2 hours back didn't seem necessary. And I wasn't too thrilled about driving an hour to spend the day with my aunts and uncles at my grandma's house. This is going to be a very emotional holiday for them (and me, too), and I just can't bring myself to deal with in her house. The Rottens left Saturday for the lake with the ex-in-laws and won't be home until Sunday.

So. DH gets off at 6 am. I bought a honey and brown sugar glazed ham. I have some stuffing and other veggies and rolls. I'm making a cheesecake. If I get out of my pajamas, I'll be surprised.

And I will enjoy sitting on my ass, eating, watching movies and football and the Macy's Turkey Day parade.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

What does it mean.....

When a bird poops on you?

As in, walking down a sidewalk in the downtown area under a tree and a bird just shits right on your arm.

I'm just a happy little stressball!

I've come to that realization today.

How are you?

My new version?!?!

I don't recall ordering a new version of Blogger, but apparently it's ready for me to pick up. According to the blurb I just read, it's "the same" features and content, with new easy to use features.

I don't waaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaa change! I don't want a new blog. I like it just like it is.

Why must they do this to me on a Monday?

Random Momma Questions....

*Is it wrong to buy the Rottens iPods for Christmas, when I don't own one?

*Why do I really, really want Gretchen Wilson's book Redneck Woman, Stories from My Life? And should I go buy it?

*Why does my knee ache?

*Why is my ex-husband such a frigging moron who now wants to cheat his kids out of the back child support he owes them?

*Why does my kitten insist upon climbing any available screen, including the sliding glass screen door?

*What is the next downloadable game that I should buy?

*Most importantly, why did it take 6 weeks for my new radio to come in from Rockford Fosgate? And where am I going to find 2 hours to take my car to the dealership to have it installed?

Wow!

Tonight was the monthly PTO meeting at the kids' elementary school. Rotten1 was in the program, so we made sure to attend. I usually do anyway, but it was extra important tonight. So, we get there and the PTO is having a drawing. Buy a ticket for $1 and get a shot at a bike, metal lunchboxes, candles, bath & body stuff, a CD boombox, etc. So the kids' dad bought 8 tickets (which was about 8 shocks in itself) and gave the kids 4 a piece.

Rotten1 won a Dale Jr lunchbox. Rotten2 won the bike!

Of course, Rotten2 is quite thrilled and has been dancing and bouncing and singing as often as she can get away with. Rotten1, not so much.

Politics 'round these here parts...

Or Why I'm about thisclose to voting Kinky for Governor.....

Governor Rick Perry, Republican - Currently touring the state with his wife on a "Take No Vote for Granted" trip. He sent Texas Guard troops to the Mexico-Texas border six whole months before Bush recommended it (and is proud of this during numerous radio spots). Chuck Norris, the NRA, and the Texas Christian Coalition endorse Rick Perry, unfortunatly so does the State Firefighter's Association. He has refused almost every single television and radio ad during his reelection campaign - most notably, the DFW area NBC station's repeated request. Why? "No comment." But the most confoundedly stupid statement I've heard lately is this: "Having a job means security for the family, hope for their children's future and a chance at the American Dream."

Chris Bell, Democrat - Currently touring the state on a "Bell on Wheels" trip. Most of his campaign has focused on the things Perry hasn't done or did wrong. Never mind what he plans to do about it. Bill Clinton endorses Chris Bell. He will be racing in Austin's Komen Race for the Cure tomorrow. And my favorite quote from his website is this: "By winning the New Texas Revolution, we can have the best schools. We will cure disease and heal the sick. We will restore ethics to our government, and take moral stands based on religious convictions of what is right and what is wrong."

And then we have "One Tough Grandma", Carole Keeton Strayhorn - Currently running on the "Let's Shake Austin Up" ticket. WTFever that means, but apparently it involves making the government more open and honest. Major endorsements for her campaign include several mid-size town newspapers and the largest Houston newspaper. She and Perry have been in a pissing match for months. She has continually torn him a new ass, handed him his head on a platter AND figured out solutions to problems. Okay, so the solutions aren't exactly feasible, workable or halfway imaginable most of the time, but...it's better than a sharp stick in the eye.

Finally, the one who will never win, Kinky Friedman - Currently touring Texas with cowboy hat planted firmly on his head and cigar in hand. This man has become the poster boy for the Anti-Partisan Political Campaign. It's funny, he's last in the polls, he has the college age group support (no one in Texas has managed that in .... forever), he's got the support of many farmers and ranchers, he's drawn national attention to the governor's race, hell the man has been on Letterman! "And if Jesse Ventura and Arnold Schwarzenegger can be governor, why the hell not Kinky?" *snort* Scary part of his whole campaign? He's saying things that most Texans have said in private for years about the state of our government. And funding part of his campaign with an online store of tshirts, biker gear, cds, action figures etc. Best tshirt I've found - "May the God of your choice bless you. Kinky in 2006"

And if you missed it, Halloween pics are still below.......

Halloween in Texas!

It was mid-70s on Saturday when we carved our pumpkins - a funny face for Rotten2 and a bat flying in front of the moon for Rotten1.

And then it was a whopping 45 degrees on Halloween with north winds blowing 15-20 mph. Brrrrrrrr!

Well.

Doesn't that suck? Blogger let me upload 2 of the 4 Rotten Halloween pics with no problems. Then it decided to error out 4 times. So, to add to my craptastic day, I'll just count that as to be expected.

I woke up in a great mood, slept well last night, and then at 7:09 it started. The moron boss called me on my cell phone to ask me for info that was at work on my computer. It went downhill from there. *sigh*

The only real "up" to my day is that I have the house to myself, so I can be in a shitty bitchy mood without worrying about how it's upsetting/angering/bothering others.

And Carey and Breezy? I'm really not mad at you two. I'm just giving you a hard time. I could have called you two, right? *smoooooooooch*

*yaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwn*

I hate Daylight Savings Time. I really, really do. BC (Before Children) it didn't phase me. Now, it's a pain in my ass.

Is it bed time yet?

Impressive Kiddos

All right. For all the crap I've given Rotten1 over the last week between his progress report and getting in trouble at school twice, he showed me he's not a total fruit loop all of the time today.

Today was DH's normal day to work. Normally, the kids go to the neighbor's house behind us with their friends that ride the bus. Today, for some reason, the neighbors didn't ride the bus and their mom wasn't home. So they walked to our house, made sure DH wasn't home, wrote me a note and stuck it under a "rock" on the porch and carefully crossed the street to another neighbor's that they knew was home.

I am quite proud of the two of them, especially with the note they wrote. Rotten2 told me that Rotten1 was the "boss of her" when they crossed the street and he made sure no cars were coming. Now, the "rock" they put the note under? Had a house key hidden in it. *snort* They could have walked in the house, looked on the wall at my work phone number, cell phone number, and DH's cell number and called us. However, they knew they weren't supposed to be home alone.

Maybe they will turn out okay after all.

I'm gonna KILL that child!

So the Rottens get home from school this afternoon. And I ask how their day went. Rotten2 had fun. They read about skeletons in a book and talked about what would happen to you if you didn't have a skeleton. You'd be flat, just in case you were wondering. Rotten1, however, got in trouble. And not just a wee bit of trouble that might cause me to have to talk to him about behavior. Oh no. He got sent to the office. Why? Well, you see, there was a group of boys talking and at some point, he looked at one of his friends and said "I didn't know you sucked a cow." Several other "innocent" comments were turned "ugly" by my 8 year old son, as well. And the boys weren't smart about this "dirty" conversation, either. They conversed with a teacher nearby. So, about 3-4 boys were sent to the office.

Now. First of all, I had to ask what the hell "sucking a cow" was about. DH and I were thinking maybe we're a bit behind the times with the kids' slang. Nope. He was referring to sucking a cow's wiener. No, I didn't go into the anatomy of a cow vs a bull, although I was tempted. And I didn't laugh, although I wanted to. What I did ask, in much nicer terms, was what the hell he was thinking when he said what he did. Naturally, his response was "I dunno."

He is now grounded - no TV, no Playstation, no playing with friends, no telephone - and more chores as I think of them. Of course, this comes on the heels of his progress report that I got last week where I discovered that he had an F in Reading (which has now been brought up considerably).

The child is gonna die. Or hate me. Or something.

My list.....

Jumping on the list bandwagon of a million things to do this week/weekend....

Finish laying linoleum in Rotten2's closet - this required a trip to buy more lineoleum tiles because I didn't buy quite enough. Which then prompted a trip to buy paint, because the interior of the closet looks pretty dingy now with new flooring. And now the painting project is on hold because I can't find any ONE of the 35 paint brushes I own.
Clean new window in living room
Get heater fixed "first thing Saturday AM" - done!
Bathe dog and cat - cat is bathed. She gets a bath every few weeks, just because. And yes, she does have her claws.
Find and borrow power washer - I've decided to postpone this one.
Winterize flower beds - nope. First I have to pick the glass out of the flower bed in front of the house where the old window was. See clean new window above.
Go to Hanger Texas Hold Em Party Saturday night
Go to Sonya's Home & Garden Party Sunday afternoon
Buy nails for trim in living room
Pay a bazillion bills
I've also swept the kitchen, watched DH mow the yard, done a couple loads of laundry, helped DH replace the dryer vent hose thingie, bought the cat a new litter box which provided many moments of my amusement when she discovered it, and watered my plants.

*sigh* Being a grown up and a homeowner sucks sometimes.

Trouble and Princess Belle

Epiphany updated...

So I went on the job interview...it's an insurance agency in town about 7 minutes from the house. It started as a one man company 30 months ago and is now a 55+ person agency with plans in the next six months to expand to a 150+ employee company. The job would be a combo PR/marketing/website content editor and possibly scheduler position - all of which I've done. I emailed the owner tonight and told him I am definitely interested and to contact me early next week when he returns so we can discuss particulars. That's what he said to do if I wanted the job, so....I'm going for it.

In other job related news, a friend called me today. He has another friend who is the Chief Maintenance Engineer for the DFW area Marriott hotels and they need a Maintenance Scheduler/Contractor liaison for one of the area hotels. Would I be interested? Umm...gee...what do you think? *snort* THEN I got a call from the local town paper, where I'd sent in my resume for a editing/proofreading job and she wants me to come in for an interview.

YIKES. It might really work out this time! Please, please, please continue to think good, happy thoughts for me on the job front. PLEASE!

In other news, Rotten1 and I finished his 3 part project tonight and it all turned out great! Rotten2 is now chock full of "project" ideas she wants to do just because we have leftover material. Something tells me it's going to be arts and crafts weekend at my house with paints, glue, construction paper and all the magazines. *grin*

I also have the cutest picture to post of the dog and cat, but I have to find my camera cable. I know it's around here somewhere.

I've had an epiphany

After the stress of last week, a few enlightening moments about life and loved ones, and a grand total of 6 days off in a row...I've had a "Coming to Jesus" moment. I cannot continue to work where I do and retain any semblance of a normal life. I did not realize how stressed out that place made me. I did not realize how much of a bitch I had become in the evenings. I did not realize that I was taking so very much around my house for granted. It's no longer a want to find a new job type of search. It is a must happen fast type of search.

I just cannot continue to live life at that price. Even if it does pay the bills well. I may have to give up a few things - dinner out a few times a week, less driving, something. But my mental health and my family are entirely too important. I like myself more than that.

So I'm going to an impromptu job interview. Now. As in, I talked to the guy 15 minutes ago after emailing my resume this morning. And now I'm going to discuss a job. Eeeeek.

Whew

What a week. Grandma's visitation was Friday night, the funeral was yesterday morning. All in all, it was a very emotional, slightly stressful, and extremely thought provoking week. We did spend quite a bit of time with my family, which is always good for a laugh and a cry - sometimes at the same time. Ever spent time just sitting and watching one side of the family for a while? Did it ever make you realize just how normal you really are?

End is near

And so it goes.....I went to the hospital Saturday, where Grandma was having a pretty decent day. It's been very much downhill since. Yesterday evening, the doctors thought she was slipping into a coma. Turns out, she was unable to be woken up for about 5 hours, but then came to on her own quite disoriented. Today, she's been in and out of conciousness and lucidity.

Keep her in your thoughts and prayers. At this point, all we can hope for is minimal pain.

ETA: About 20 minutes after typing out this post, Grandma passed away.

Quizzes

Because after today's funeral and a day at the hospital looming on the horizon, I'm in desperate need of silly funny stupid shit.

You Are An ISFJ

The Nurturer You have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal.A good listener, you excell at helping others in practical ways.In your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music.You find it easy to be devoted to one person, who you do special things for. You would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist.

What's Your Personality Type?

You Are As Cool As They Come

Rational and relaxed, no one could accuse you of being dramatic.You roll with the punches, and nothing ever gets you too worked up.You are able to maintain perspective and see the big picture. And even if you're emotional inside, you don't let it show.You're great at keeping it together, and you're rewarded for that.People see you as an ideal friend, employee, and partner.

<

Your IQ Is 105

Your Logical Intelligence is Below Average Your Verbal Intelligence is Exceptional Your Mathematical Intelligence is Average Your General Knowledge is Exceptional

You Are Mud Pie

You're the perfect combo of flavor and depthThose who like you give into their impulses

If you didn't heed yesterday's warning, please do it now. No really. Right.Now.

My aunt called this afternoon on my way home. Grandma, my last living grandparent, is in the hospital and it's not looking good. What started as a simple sinus infection with pain in her left side from coughing has turned out to be a horribly enlarged liver with at least one tumor and several troubling spots. No one knows when, or if, she'll be home. The prognosis and her attitude aren't exactly great right now. We'll see.

*sigh*

For all that is good...

And right and normal, hug those you love and tell them. Call your parents, siblings (even if you'd prefer not to speak to them), kids, friends, aunts, uncles, cousins...whoever and tell them they mean the world to you.

A friend of mine passed away yesterday morning after a very short, extremely agressive bout with bone/brain cancer she didn't know she had. Thirty-five with a husband and two boys. She was given 14 months to two years two weeks ago. Thursday she was given two months. Yesterday, with her husband at her side, she passed away.

I love you guys!

First Day of Fall

For those of you who guessed Shave Augie's Head Day, I'm sorry. You failed the test. For the rest who guessed that yesterday was the last day of Summer, you win! What? You want a prize? Umm...uh.... *looks around sheepishly* umm...So, uh... *insert attempt to change the subject* What's the weather like in your area for the first day of Fall?

Guess what today is!

Really. Guess. Today is something that Augie will hate.

Survivor ???s

Who's watching? Who cares? Who found it boring? Who do you like? Who do you already hate? Do you see the race card as a big deal? What about the re-run of Exile Island with the race card thrown in?

Yay! Rain! Gas Prices! Lazy Sundays!

It's the best of all worlds.

It's been raining steadily for about hours now, plus off and on for a few hours before that. With our lakes at least 15 feet below normal and major drought conditions, these couple of inches of rain are a huge blessing. It also gave me the opportunity to coerce the Rottens into doing some major cleaning of their rooms. Six hours, a quick lunch, and a short break = very clean kiddo rooms.

Gas prices around here are dropping steadily. I filled up this morning for $2.21 a gallon! Yay! In my nice, new fuel efficient car that equalled a whopping $26 for a full tank of gas.

And tonight, DH is at work, the Rottens are camped out with the Disney Channel and it's almost peaceful around here. Almost.

Unused Kitchen Gadgets

Blame it on Carey. She made me think of this blog entry.

So.....what kitchen gadgets do you have that were "must owns" that you've used once or twice, if that, and never thought about again?

I have an air popcorn popper, a teensy crockpot for queso, a Slurpee machine, and about 18 different cutting boards.

I want a wok, a quesadilla maker, a bread machine, an ice cream maker and a sandwich maker. I also need a new griddle.

Then there are the gadgets I couldn't live without...but that's a post for another day.

Blog Spam

It's that time of year...yay. Kids' school fundraisers. So...if you want to see what the kids are selling, let me know and I'll spam you. Otherwise, I shall sit here in misery staring at several things I wouldn't mind owning.

Random News

...Or at least, what passes for random news in my world.

*Rotten2 made a "delicious meal" for us tonight with my help. Tacos and burritos. Mmm...*rolls eyes* She's become insistent that she "help" with dinner.

*Rotten1 is going thru a major attitude phase right now. I'm ready to ship him off. Who knew 8 year old boys were so moody?!

*DH and I have started walking almost every night with the kids. Roughly a mile to a mile and a half. Not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

*My bruises have started to appear this weekend. First a faint yellow now turned to a yellow-green color. Quite lovely. *snort* Wonder what color they will be next?

*squinty eyes*

Who ate all of my cheese sticks? And when did you take them out of the freezer, cook and eat them without my knowledge? I've been home all freaking week!

Damn. I wanted those cheese sticks tonight. Do I drive 7 miles one way to the grocery store or do I settle for something less desirable?

*looks around*

*waves*

I don't wanna go back to work tomorrow. I don't think I'm going to. I still can't much move my left arm without my shoulder and side of my boob hurting.

In other news, Rotten2 got in trouble at school today for talking. Oops. Rotten1 is in third grade. His spelling list this week, among other words, includes miraculous, phenomenon, anxiety, exertion and commotion. Yikes.

I'm home.

It wasn't too terribly awful. The cysts were perfectly round and surgery went well. Got home around 2:30ish, after a stop at CVS and the post office *waves to Breezy* I've slept off and on all evening with some discomfort, but hey, that's what the pain pills are for :)

DH has been quite wonderful and pretty much waited on me, as needed. The kids' dad even came through and picked them up after school and is keeping them tonight.

Thanks for thinking of me today.

*nervous*

Remember those three "friends" I have living in my left oobie? They are being evicted on Tuesday by unanimous vote. Sequester shall be a lab somewhere far, far away from my oobies.

Wish me luck, say a prayer, hope like hell I get good drugs because I'm going to have to wear a bra 24-7 for ten days after this.

Stupid Villagers!

So Sunday I got a bit bored after doing all my chores and errands and such. So I went to my new favorite game download site and found a trial that looked semi entertaining. It's called Virtual Villagers. Basically, your people shipwreck on an island and have to survive and learn skills and such.

I'm addicted to these stupid little people. Breeding them is hilarious. Hoping like hell that they learn to farm before the berry bush runs out of berries is a bit stressful. Watching them research is boring, but it rewards you with points so you can buy more categories for them to advance in.

*sigh*

Off to check on the breeding, eating, farming goobers.

It's Sunday!

Yay! Today is my favorite day of the week. Or, this week, at least. It means that I have the house all to myself for at least 8 hours. DH is at work, the kids are at their dad's...Yay! Of course, it also means I have a list of stuff to accomplish at some point today....Blah.

In other news, we've decided that Princess Belle (the new kitten) is a spaz. She runs through the house faster than lightening, she stalks and torments the Lab, she's discovered a "fishing pole" with a hairy mouse thing attached that has become her favorite toy and will spend hours flipping, stalking, pouncing and jumping this thing. She's such a trip to watch.

The kids are loving school and their teachers. It seems they've started a contest between the two of them to see who makes more friends first. *rolls eyes* Rotten2 is claiming the lead at the moment because "Ashley has six brothers and sisters and they are all my friends". Seven kids, one house. Can you imagine?!?

*smooches* to all.

Bad, Good, Better...Maybe.

The bad: The cat electrocuted herself.
The good: We now have Princess Belle.
The better: She's so freaking loveable!

The bad: My truck's transmission exploded.
The good: I now am the happy owner of a brand new car.
The better: Gas mileage is awesome!

The bad: The air conditioner in the house caught fire and tried to burn down the house.
The good: DH was home while I was at work, so the house did not catch fire, just the A/C. And the smoke was able to be cleared out of the house in three and a half hours.
The better: We only went for 38 hours without A/C and a "cold front" came in dropping the highs from 106 to 102.

The bad: The septic system aerator pump went out.
The good: It can be fixed.
The better: Well...I'll let you know on that one.

I thought bad shit was only supposed to happen in threes. In the last two weeks I've had four. Five, if you count truck transmission actually crapping out twice. *sigh* I'm trying really hard to find the bright side to all of this shit before I go absolutely fucking loco and am committed to a mental hospital due to a nervous breakdown. Did I mention I'm absolutely effin' broke right now?

OMG OMG OMG....

I'm driving home last night and I lost overdrive. Again. Got it home in "Limp Home Mode" where DH was able to "fix" it again. This morning, I called into work and told them I had to deal with my truck issues or who knows when I'd be back.

Well, I dealt with them from 8:30 am until 4:30 this afternoon.... Meet my brand new 2006 Nissan Sentra in Radium (?) with a whopping 52 miles on it.

We went to look at used cars - an 03 Diamante and an 05 Elantra to be exact. This is what we came home with. It goes back in next Friday for tint. Yay!

Meet the Kitten

11 weeks old

Yay me!

Anyone else stuck watching The Suite Life of Zach and Cody all.the.time? Anyway.

I went out yesterday AM and ran a bunch of errands in my truck, keeping a close eye on everything. I didn't even blast the radio like normal, so I could hear any strange noises or whatever. It's a bit sluggish, but....for the moment, my truck is working semi-properly! Yay! DH is going to check out the transmission and fluid again today and we'll go from there.

So on my errand list yesterday was a stop at Kohl's for their early bird sale. I found Rotten1 a pair of Nikes for school for $21 in a size three. I found Rotten2 a pair of Skechers loafer style shoes with the chunky heel for her skirts and dresses for $14.99 in a size one. Holy shit! When did my kids get that big?! Then it was on to TJMaxx, Ross, and Walmart - where I finally found Rotten2 a pair of tennis shoes on clearance for $9! In case you're wondering, that's $80 worth of shoes for $44. Yay me! Now we'll just have to see if the Rottens like their new school shoes.

In other news, we're thinking about a kitten. The house just doesn't feel right without a cat to torment the dog *grin* I also woke up with a fever blister this AM. Stupid stress.

%^*&*(#(**&#$@

So I'm on my way back to work yesterday after my doctor's appointment to discuss surgery to remove the friends living in my boobs...driving 65-70 on the highway...when my truck's RPMs surge momentarily, I sense a transmission shift and this little light on my dash starts flashing at me out of nowhere telling me that my overdrive is off. WTF?!?! So I push the little button to turn overdrive back on. Nope. Nothing. I push it again. And again. And again. Still nothing. Still a little blinky light taunting me saying "Here I am". So I pull of at the next exit and cruise into a gas station parking lot. I turn the truck off. I get out. I get in. I turn the truck on. The little light is still blinking and taunting. I'm waiting for the little fucker to start calling me names. Called DH, who, thankfully was home yesterday. He, in not so many words, said to get the truck home the shortest route possible. NOW! Crap. That can't be good.

So I get the truck home. It seems that my transmission has decided to up and die. Just.like.that.

Six hours, some nasty little burns on DH's arms, and $80 later we've decided that the truck will live. The light is gone, overdrive is back. We just don't know how long it will last. I could lose it again today. Or the truck may go for another 150K miles. *sigh*

Got any suggestions for cars?

And...School is about to start!

Tonight was Meet the Teacher night at the kids' new school. Both teachers seem very nice. Rotten1's teacher seems a bit strict and has a special certification in reading and places big emphasis on reading. Yay! Rotten2's teacher is cute, friendly, bubbly and very enthusiastic. Rotten2 is going to have a new best friend *grin*

And now? We have three days until school starts!

*pout*

Gizmo not only escaped from the bathroom last night under the door, but made a beeline for the front door as I was leaving this morning. :( She's no where to be found. She doesn't go outside! She's only escaped twice before and then got so scared by the great wilderness that she returned to the porch within 2 minutes.

DH and the kids have been searching the neighborhood off and on all day. I spent 20 minutes this morning calling her and looking for her.

*sigh*

*wipes tear*

And Swami, she was living in our bathroom because we didn't want any infection to spread to the dog or kids from the wound sight.

ETA: One of my most favoritest pictures of Rotten1 and Gizmo in June of 2004, when we got her.

Lookie!

In an effort to keep my mind off the stupid, poor baby living in my bathroom, I made myself a purse today!

Electrocuting the Cat...

Not smart, peeps. Not smart at all. Please inform your kittens and cat children that this is not fun.

Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, apparently, my two year old cat felt the need to chew through a lamp wire behind the couch. I didn't realize it until Wednesday night.

Wednesday morning, I got up and took my shower. Normally, by the time I get out of the shower, she's winding around my legs whining for her breakfast. She wasn't. I looked at her food bowl and saw she still had food. Odd, but whatever. I finished dressing and whatnot and went to work. DH was home yesterday, so I figured he'd feed her when she got hungry again. He didn't see her all day. I got home last night and the cat wasn't in her usual welcoming spot. Odd, but again...she's a cat and cats can be bizarre at times. About 15 mins after I got home, she comes creeping out of Rotten2's room, crouched down low. I picked her up and the smell hit me. It was like super magnified bad morning breath after a massive drunk. I looked at her and saw puss just oozing off her mouth and chin. What.the.fuck. DH and I cleaned her up and started examining her and realized that both sides of her mouth (but not the middle of the mouth) were oozing. We pried her mouth open and there is a diagonal line across her tongue and the entire tip of her tongue is whitish and oozing a bit. At this point, DH and I both started freaking out and I nearly cried. We cleaned her a bit more and rinsed her mouth with mouthwash. Amazingly enough, she barely flinched.

After 2 hours of research on the internet and a call to the vet, we couldn't figure out what the hell she'd gotten into. She's an indoor only cat. DH and I were both feeling very helpless and not sure what to do. I went to the store and bought her some canned cat food, unsure of whether or not she'd eat it. Got home and she more or less licked the juice...but it was something. She was also meowing and walking around...so she was feeling better.

As it got dark, DH turned on a couple of lamps in the living room. Or tried to. The one by the couch and his desk wouldn't come on, so he pulled out the couch to make sure it was still plugged in. That's when he found the cord...chewed clean in half.

*sigh*

My poor kitty. Stupid cat.

Monsty's meme

What curse word do you use the most?
It's a toss up between Shit, dammit and WTF?

Do you own an I Pod?
Nope.

What time is your alarm clock set for?
6:30 am. Although that will be changing shortly when school begins.

What color is your room?It's a whitish wall paper with light colored stripes. I hate it, but DH has forbidden anymore painting in the house for a while.

Flip flops or sneakers?Flip flops.

Would you rather take the picture or be in the picture?Take it.

What was the last movie you watched?
I have no idea. None.

Do any of your friends have children?I'll just echo Monsty's sentiments.

Morning bird or night owl?Both, depending on the day, my mood, and the sun's rotation or something.

Do you ever take medication to help you sleep better?Very rarely.

What CD is currently in your CD player? I think it's a mix I made of mostly female country singers.

What kind of milk do you drink? Whole milk, if and when I drink it. Am I the only one who drinks whole milk?

Who was the last person to call you on the phone? My boss

Are you nosey? Kinda. I love to hear gossip and talk about life, but I rarely if ever seek it.

Are you shy around the opposite sex? Nope. Not at all.

Do you own any band tshirts? Not anymore.

What is your favorite salad dressing? Probably Italian.

Do you cry a lot?No.

Who was the last person to text you a message?Probably my DH a few months ago.

Desk top or lap top? Desktop.

Do you have any tatoos or unique peircings? No.

Would you ever date someone with tatoos? Seeing how DH has a tribal band from Cancun on his arm....

Is sex before marriage wrong?No, no, no.

When was the last time you slept on the floor? No idea.

How old will you be at your next birthday? I just turned 29 last week. You do the math.

Do you like cottage cheese? Yes, but I haven't had it in forever.

What will be your next big purchase? Does the A/C for DH's hot rod count?

Last wicked fun thing you did? Went to the farm this weekend. I had a pretty good time.

Friday Night Dinner

So it's Friday night. The kids are at their dad's for the weekend. DH is at work. And I am eating the bestest dinner! A Subway Ham sammich with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, salt, pepper and honey mustard, a huge peanut butter brownie, and a Coke.

What'd you have for dinner?

It's all about ME!

I woke up this morning, the one day a year that is all about me. Spoiled, rotten, ME!

I've had two kinds of brownies, a ginormous chocolate chip cookie, some new Bath & Body Works stuff, a candle, a book, a sweet heart necklace, half a dozen pieces of mail, a hot cowboy, and a dozen homemade cards given to me. I've also had several phone calls! Yay!

Guess why!

China and Crystal

Here's part of the reason for going over to my aunt's house this weekend - my mom and dad's crystal and china from their wedding in April 1973. My aunt (and grandma) kept it all and even added to the collection over the years since my mom's passing in 1980. Up until this past week, I had no idea that anyone still had this stuff.

Segovia #2216 by Noritake

Fostoria - Debutante Gray

I haven't even begun to take inventory of it all. All I know is there are three huge Rubbermaid containers filled to the brim, several pages of order forms from 1990 and handwritten inventory that gives me a 12 place setting of china and almost 12 of each of about 8 different sizes of the crystal. Plus tea cups, saucers, salt and pepper shakers, creamers, sugar bowl and who knows what else.

Now I have to find a place to put all of it...

Boring Day

That is what today has been. I have had very little motivation to do anything lately, and I can't figure out why. I'm just freaking exhausted all the time. So today, the kids and I hung out, washed my truck, watched tons of cartoons, and took a three hour nap.

Tomorrow should be more interesting, to say the least. We're going to my aunt's house, which is a hour or two away. I haven't seen her in a year and a half - since my grandpa died. I miss seeing her. We were pretty close as I was growing up. Then life got in the way and I don't see her as often as I should.

Handwriting Sample

So Jen started it and a few others have followed suit....

The Countdown Begins......

31 more days until the Rottens go back to school! Yay!

Another growing up moment...

So this past week, the kids were at the lake with the ex-in-laws....And Paw and Daddy decided to take Rotten1's training wheels off her bike. She rode it a bit with lots and lots of help then decided to wait until she got home to have me teach her because they were boys. Or something.

Monday night, we started around 7:15 or so. Several (and by several, I'm talking 40-50) trips across the yard later, she had managed to go about 50 feet by herself plus a running start of about 10 feet with me holding one handlebar. By 8:30, she was going an average of 75-90 feet at a time with about a 5 foot hold from me. And then it happened. The big crash. Not only did she manage to jam one handlebar into her chest, but she knocked the chain completely off the bicycle. Of course, this was better than running into the pool. Or so she said after she stopped crying. Then she was madder than hell because I couldn't get the chain back on her bike and it was starting to get dark. *grin* Of course, this resulted in a phone call to DH immediately to ensure that he would fix her bike chain as soon as he got home from work in the morning.

Tuesday night, we did much of the same as Monday. Rotten2 was riding further and stopping better, but still not starting off on her own. Then the Rottens went to play next door and took their bikes. Well, all of a sudden, Rotten2 realizes we aren't there to help her get started. Instead of pushing her bike home, she takes off! On her own! Yay!

Here it is Thursday and you can't keep her off the thing. She's doing great!

Underwear talk

Blame it on Carey.

Do you wear underwear?

Do you know what size you wear?

Do you purchase it or does your Mr/Mrs?

Do you have a favorite pair of underwear?

Eeeeeek! Mouse!

I think we have a mouse. Either that or the cat is stalking dust bunnies under the fridge. She's been parked there for about 4 hours now.

Oh, and I posted pajama pics below.

I'm a sewing fool!

It's official - I've got a new addiction. My sewing machine. So far I've made pajama pants for me and Rotten2 and pajama shorts for Rotten1. Tonight I made a new attempt - boxer shorts for DH. And after a minor confusion with the whole fly/flap thing, I did it! Yay! I even deviated from the pattern and put on a pocket for Mr. Pumpie (DH's insulin pump, so named by Rotten2). Double Yay! Now Rotten1 wants boxer shorts made, too. And Rotten2 is putting in requests for girl boxers and a nightgown.

I think I've created some monsters!

ETA Pictures. First is my pajama capris and DH's boxers. Second is Rotten2's pajama capris and Rotten1's pajama shorts.

4th of July

As previously noted, republishing brings your blog back from the gray screen of death. In celebration, I have these...taken Tuesday night at a nearby small town's First Annual 4th Fest and Parade. The first picture cracked us all up - they had many of the town's children in the parade on their decorated bicycles. This boy took it a step further.

Sorry for the blurriness, but he was riding/walking as I took the picture.

Hello?

Am I here?

I'm going to try something.....

My mom was an awesome seamstress. She could make anything. Seriously. I've seen the pictures, I still have some of the clothes, and my grandma swears it. I've been feeling slightly unproductive lately ... creative juices want to flow and do something .... so this weekend I pulled out my mom's sewing machine. Poor thing had a layer of dust on the case that had to be 1/2" thick. Mom would have killed me!

So last night, on my way home from work, I bought these:


Pajama pants patterns! So...if this works and I can do this, I've found my new addiction. So many patterns, so many fabrics!!! I could have a whole new wardrobe!

Weekend Update

It's Day 3 without the Rottens. And DH is working. Yay! A whole 24 hours to myself! So far today, I've...

*Gone to a job fair. There were 5 pretty good prospective employers there. Cross your fingers!
*Gone to the outlet mall. I only spent $70 in Old Navy - 2 pairs of shorts for DH, 2 pairs of shorts for Rotten1, 2 skirts and 3 shirts for Rotten2, and a tshirt and a tank top for me. Could someone please tell me how, in the process of buying some new shorts for me, which I didn't even buy, I ended up with tons of stuff for everyone else?! Ah well. I'm putting the Rottens' stuff up for school clothes.
*Gone to Walmart and found a baby nursery for the dollhouse, some conditioner, Cokes and Diet Dr Peppers, curtains for Rotten1's room, and some new thread and bobbins for my sewing machine.

And tonight? I plan to watch a couple movies, see if my sewing machine still works, and just veg out. Tomorrow, I will probably do a whole lot of nothing.

*smooches*

Happy 4th of July weekend! Or Canada Day weekend, whichever applies.

Claim to fame

See this? This is literally at the corner of the street where our offices and plant are. You couldn't turn right out of the street! Unfortunately, the police department had it so restricted, we couldn't see anything but the trains. :(

They were here filming on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.

Seven Things Mememe

This is all Boo's fault. And like my original twin, I can always think of this stuff until I actually sit down to type it.

Seven things to do before I die:
1. Watch my children grow up
2. Go to Disney World
3. Go to Hawaii
4. Build my dream house
5. Own some horses and cattle
6. Finish college
7. Win the lottery

Seven things I cannot do:
1. Whistle
2. Stand on my head
3. Stay focused lately
4. Control my temper with my ex
5.
6.
7. Win the lottery

Seven things that attract me to my mate:
1. His ass
2. His sense of humor
3. His Wranglers
4. His cowboy hat
5. His dog
6. His love of old cars
7. His smile

Seven things I say:
1. What the hell?
2. Why me?
3. What in the blue hell....
4. STOP touching/kicking/hitting your brother/sister!
5. NO!
6. How many times have I told you....
7. WHAT!?!?!

Seven books I love:
1. The Earth Children series
2. The Little House on the Prairie series
3. Stephanie Plum series
4. Harry Potter series
5. The Little Prince
6. Little Men/Little Women
7. I can't think of anything else right now....

Seven movies that I've loved:
1. Most anything Disney
2. Dirty Dancing
3. Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood
4. Stepmom
5. Pretty Woman
6. ET
7. Shrek

Seven People I Tag:
Is there anyone left who hasn't done this?

In a nutshell...

The Rottens....they haven't seen their grandparents in almost a month. The ex-inlaws are quite agonized over this, as they usually see the kids every couple of days. They haven't been over to their dad's in over 6 weeks. They don't want to go and I refuse to force them. Throw in the nearly weekly sleepovers, birthday parties, and a trip to the farm and the ex-family is a bit upset with me right now. The way DH and I figure it, the kids are growing up, they have several friends and are having fun. *shrug* If the ex and his family want to see the kids, they need to make an effort to make it happen. Since they haven't tried (up until this past weekend), then they have no reason to complain. And speaking of their "efforts," the Rottens are leaving tomorrow evening to spend 10 days at the lake with their grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins.

Me.....I called the company on Friday and told them that regretfully I could not take the position they offered me due to the money they offered. I asked HR to keep me in mind should another position open up. We'll see.

My oobie cysts....I go in tomorrow afternoon for my first ever mammogram. I am dreading this. I'm scared shitless. I will survive and once again, they will tell me that I have fibrocystic oobies. This time, however, they will probably recommend removal.

Breezy.....there is a new Keith Anderson song on the radio with vocals by Steven Tyler. It's called 3 Quart Country and American Rock & Roll. They played it this morning at 7:40 for the first time and I thought of you. I would have called, but...well...there's no Breezy in my cell phone.

Augie....*hugs* Your Keith needs to have his head examined. That is all.

Carey...I'm not speaking to you. Or Jen. Or Glowie. Or mm. Or mtw. Or Catt. Or .... any other person you had meet up with you in SF this weekend. Meanie.

Life in general....dealable. The kids are having fun so far this summer. DH has been in a pretty good mood. And I'm hanging in there. Stressed out, but hey - that's become a normal thing for me again.

Gah!

I just wrote a huge, long post about the Rottens having a life and those adults in their life being jealous and blogger ate it.

Waaaaaaaaaah!

More job news...

I was offered a job this morning. It's for a medical management company, doing accounts receivables and dealing with the insurance companies. I really would like to take this job. BUT...it's a $400/month pay cut and that's $400 we "need."

What to do...what to do...the state of my current job is bad enough that I'm about ready to take the job and figure out our finances later. Yikes.

Update on yesterday and today

Thanks for the Anni wishes. Boo's right, it does seem like we've been married longer than a year. However, that's a good thing!

Rotten2 and I had a brainstorm! Instead of buying her something, I gave her my wooden handmade doll house. She'd never seen it before, as it's been in storage at her Nana's for the last 9 years. We bought new doll people and have decided to fix it up over the next few weeks together.

Rotten1 has been glued to his Playstation2 and 4 new games with breaks to go swimming and play with his friends.

As for the doctor's appointment....*sigh* It's something I've been dreading for a few months now. ***TMI ALERT*** A few fluidy cysts appeared a few years ago. They've been monitored but there was no reason to do anything with them because they were just hanging out. Well, a few months ago, I noticed a slight change in one of them. Thus, today's appointment. So, I now have a sonogram scheduled in two weeks and a follow up appointment to decide what to do in a month. Doc says there's nothing to worry about...so I'm trying not to worry.

Anni, Musings, and a Question

Today is our 1 year anniversary. We aren't doing anything special, just another day for the most part. DH is getting a nearly new riding lawn mower though. It's also Father's Day and Larry's neice's 16th birthday. The kids opted to stay with us for the weekend, even though, once again, they should be at their dad's. *shrug*

DH just called me from Walmart. Apparently Rotten2 has found a tank top that I need, but they weren't sure what size to get. I can't help but laugh.

Tomorrow, I have a doctor's appointment. Wish me luck and good thoughts.

Now, for the question....I'm debating on buying Rotten1 a new Playstation2. He's been in the Dark Ages with his Playstation1 for years. But...if I do this without it being a birthday or special occasion, I feel like I should do something similar for Rotten2, especially since she'd be the only one (DH, her brother, her) that doesn't get something new. But what the hell does a 6 year old girl need? She's got more toys than effing Toys R Us.

Momma needs a meme

So Catt's done it. Dweeze did it. What the hell, right?

Momma needs sleep
Momma needs a bath now!
Momma needs a girls' night out
Momma needs your help right this minute
Momma needs a new pair of shoes
Momma needs some inspiration
Momma needs a new roof (WTF???)
Momma needs her cocktail
Momma needs more smilies
Momma needs a haircut
Momma needs a cigarette
Momma needs plane tickets
Momma needs to pay her credit card bills

How the hell do these folks know me so well?!

Of course, entering my real name brings some effing hilarious results...

(Real Name) needs a visit to The Bunny Planet (How odd that Google seems to link together those in blogland just when they need it most)
(Real Name) needs to shear all her sheep in a matter of days
(Real Name) needs a food we are happy to leave smeared on our faces
(Real Name) needs private support

Shhhh!

Be vewy, vewy quiet.

No. We're not hunting wabbits. But it's quite peaceful in my house. The kids stayed at the farm for the week, DH is at work, and the animals are sleeping. Yay!

Maybe I should throw a party. What are you going to bring?

Vacation Day!

Hooray! *hops* I was quite worried that I would end up having to go in to work today and tomorrow. Seems that every time I take a day or two off, something major goes wrong. So far, I only have one parts shortage to concern myself with and it can be worked around. Let's just hope that this time, no one quits or gets fired.

In related news, DH was supposed to be off work at 7 am. He's still at work. His relief quit yesterday. So who knows when he'll get off work. I'm just hoping he doesn't have to pull a second 24 hour shift, because that makes for a very unhappy and grumpy DH.

We are supposed to be heading to the farm this weekend for the annual car show. The kids will be staying there all next week. Rotten1 has a baseball game tonight, that he's probably going to miss - if DH gets off work. He's a bit upset, but quite ready to get out of town for 10 days. We may head up there later whether or not DH gets off work. He can drive up later or tomorrow.

And now? My right eye is twitching. That can't be good.

What day is it?

Not sure if I'm suffering from wanna-be-summer-vacay or what, but I've had a hell of a time remembering what day of the week it is lately. And this week has really thrown me off, as I'm taking Thursday and Friday off. Which meant I spent all day today convinced it was Wednesday. Ah well.

So.....what's up with you? What day do you want it to be?

Ut Oh

This has been the strangest weekend I've had in a long time. A weekend of firsts, if you will.

It started with DH keeping the kids on their first day of summer vacation. He has been known to keep the Rottens for bits and pieces, but never a whole day. He has gained a new understanding and appreciation for (step)parenting, I do believe. And I'm enjoying the hell out of it.

It progressed to the ex not picking up the kids Friday night. Come to find out, after dinner and ice cream, they didn't want to go with him anyway. How did I find this out? I sure as shit didn't ask them! They told their dad when Rotten2 called him at 9-something to ask him why he wasn't picking them up.

Saturday dawned hot and slightly humid. We took the kids to Rotten1's baseball game, where the ex and his girlfriend showed up. Nothing too odd there, except the ex actually pretended he gives a shit and helped out in the dugout for the first time all season. Of course, it's the second to last game. Then, standing in the parking lot after the game, the kids inform their dad and me that they want me to take them to a friend's birthday party at 4 and that they are going home with me and DH. This is at noon. I had no idea this was coming, so I was a bit surprised but told the kids if that's what they wanted to do they'd best load their butts in my truck. The ex was not happy but blew it off. We went to the party, had a good time, and the kids decided to veer off to spend the night with friends, knowing they were supposed to be meeting up with their dad after the party. Of course, who's left to call the ex and let him know? Me. Yeah. He was slightly pissed and started to get an attitude, which I quickly shut down with something along the lines of "Hey, I'm not going to force them to go to your house when they don't want to."

So, this morning.....I pick the kids up around noon and we call their dad. At this point, they are kind of resigned to the idea that it's the end of dad's weekend and they haven't gone over there. They called. He "requested" their presence immediately. And they started to refuse. Again. Then I guess they figured it'd be okay. Of course, all the way over there, I had to listen to them complaining about the girlfriend's three kids, the girlfriend, their dad, etc.

And now....I've vegged out and napped for the better part of the day. I feel like a truck ran over me and I'm running a low grade fever. No real complaints other than a nagging headache that doesn't want to go away. Joy. I do not want to get sick. I have plans for this week, dammit. I do not need to get sick. I haven't been sick with a fever in almost a year! For the moment, I have a bit of energy, so I'm trying to clean this pigsty I live in. It's absolutely looking like a train wreck.

Off to dust a bit! Then I'll try to catch up a bit more on the blogworld. *smooch*

Quote of the Day

Courtesy of Rotten1 on the way home from his last day of school today:

"You know, Mom...it really sucks that grown-ups don't get a summer vacation."

*sigh* Tell me about it. *sigh*

In other news, Larry started using his insulin pump yesterday. I'm still sending out resumes regularly, although I haven't had any callbacks recently. The dog and cat seem to have some type of skin thing going on with itchy spots that turn into an open sore over time. It appears this will result in quite the interesting trip to the vet's office.

*smooches*

And School is almost over.

Yesterday was Rotten1's award ceremony for 2nd grade, where he was given certificates for A-B Honor Roll, DEAR reading, and the Determination Award by his teacher. The Determination Award was voted on by his classmates - and he was the only one who received it - for always finishing what he starts, no matter what. Here is Rotten1 with his teacher after the ceremony.

Rotten2 also had her Kindergarten graduation last night, complete with caps and gowns and little diplomas. They sang several songs for the parents and showed a movie with pictures taken throughout the year. I know they all grew up this year, but wow. Looking at those first of the year pictures compared to the kids sitting in front of us....Truly unbelievable. And here is Rotten2 with her teacher after graduation.

I have to hand it to this year's teachers. They were both truly amazing, very caring, on top of things, and just all around wonderful teachers for the kids. Very special, wonderful ladies who made this year a joy, a great learning experience, and were easy to communicate with and work with. So, to all teachers, thank you. Without wonderful people like you to influence, teach and enrich, my kids would probably hate school.

ABC's mememememe

A is for Age - 28, almost 29
B is for Booze - Margaritas, Jack & Coke, Rum & Coke
C is for Career - I'm supposed to have a career? This deadend job does not qualify.
D is for Dad’s name - Lawrence
E is for Essential Item to bring to a Party - Drinks, chips and dip
F is for Favorite Songs at the Moment - Gotta be Something More, by Sugarland
G is for Goof off thing to do - Blogging, altho there hasn't been much time for that lately.
H is for Hometown - Of all the places I've lived in Texas, the East Texas area will always be home.
I is for Instrument you play - I played the piano for a few months, does that count?
J is for Jam or Jelly you like - Strawberry jam, peach jelly, blueberry jelly
K is for Kids - As if we don't all know about the Rottens by now?!
L is for Living arrangement - House with DH and the Rottens
M is for Mom’s name - Jeannette
N is for Names of best friends - Tracey, Crysta, and all of you!
O is for overnight hospital stays - 2 - the birth of each child
P is for Phobias - Death before my kids grow up, Mice
Q is for Quote you like - "I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seemstoday, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow." OR "I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back." - Maya Angelou
R is for Relationship that lasted longest - This is a tie - 4 years each
S is for Siblings - one half brother, three stepbrothers, and one stepsister - altho the only one that counts and is a permanent addition to my life over the years is my half brother. The steps have come and gone.
T is for Texas, Ever been? - Do I really have to answer this one?
U is for Unique trait - Very little is unique about me, altho these days, honesty seems to be almost a unique trait.
V if for Vegetable you love - Corn on the cob, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, fried okra, squash....
W is for Worst traits - Stubborness, Hardheadedness, and Defiance
X - is for XRays you’ve had - chest, wrist, ankle, knee, and many dental xrays
Y is for Yummy food you make - Rotten1 loves my tacos, Rotten2 loves my spaghetti, and DH loves my meatloaf.
Z is for Zodiac sign - Leo

Saturday Musings

Rotten2 had a wonderful birthday and says thank you to momma's 'puter friends. She was thrilled about the entire day - so cute.

Now. Who in the world decided that mid-May was the time to bring on mid-90 degree temps? It's freaking HOT outside. I think its already 80 degrees and it's not even 9am. Gah. And I have to go sit at a baseball game at 11:30.

And now for my weekly chore list. Let's place bets on how much of this gets accomplished with no kids and no DH today. Dusting, vacuuming, bathroom scrubbing, mopping, cleaning my poor nasty truck (again!), grocery shopping, bill paying, and....it's my turn to clean the litter box. I need to figure out where the leak in the pool is. It's one of those above ground blue ones at Walmart and it's slowly losing air around the top. We've patched a few holes and apparently have missed one. I also need to drive 45 minutes to the jewelers to have my wedding ring inspected. Holy shit. That means DH and I have been married almost a year. Wow. Where does the time go?!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Update: I was in the shower after cruising the blogs and the dog went Nutz. I mean, insanely cuckoo. So I get out, wrap a towel around me and peek outside. The mailwoman came by and was on the porch because I had a package! A package! Yay! Wait. I didn't order anything. Hm. So I sneak onto the porch in my towel, grab my package and quickly get back in the house. It's a box from Monsty!!! And inside, just in time to head out to Rotten1's game - a Red Sox hat! Hooray! So I finished my shower, got dressed and wore my brand new Red Sox hat to the game.

Also, I got absolutely nothing on my list accomplished. Instead, I went to the game, window shopped, went to the bookstore, got my hair trimmed, window shopped some more, went to Walmart and then Petsmart. Then I came home and took an evening nap.

Happy Birthday to my baby girl

My baby girl is 6 today. I can't believe how time flies. It seems like only yesterday I was in the hospital, fully coherent (which was a complete change from Rotten1's birth) and scared to death that something was wrong. She had been taken straight from the OR to the nursery, before I could hold her because she still had amniotic fluid in her lungs due to the CSection. I was in recovery for only a couple of hours ... so afraid for her and wanting to see her and hold her that I forced myself to walk before I was really ready. In fact, I couldn't feel my feet yet but I managed to walk around the room so they'd let me up to go to the nursery. To this day, I have no idea how I managed that.

Today, she is a confident, outgoing, spirited child. So very girly and prissy, yet has her moments where she will play in mud puddles. Of course, those moments are usually followed by a check of her clothes and shoes and a desire for a bath. She's grown so much this past year - it's amazing how much she has learned and how much more of her personality has developed. She is entirely too much like her momma, that's for sure.

At 1 year...

And today....

Wednesday, already?

Where the hell has this week gone? Oh yeah....baseball, a church school program, and hell/work. Tonight is Lost, cake baking, present wrapping and laundry. Tomorrow is Rotten2's birthday and Friday is baseball. Whew.

Someone please tell me what it's like to have a life. Please?

Weekend Update

After baseball practice last night, Rotten1 & Rotten2 ended up going home with one of Rotten1's teammates and his sister. An unexpected night with DH! So what did we do? Went to sleep at like 9pm. *rolls eyes* It really has been a bizarre week.

This morning, we headed to pick up the kids and stopped at a garage sale on the way. Found a Gateway Pentium II for $15 that needed some memory...so we bought it! Stopped at a local computer repair shop and picked up two memory sticks for $10. Then spent the better part of 6 hours trying to get around the Administrator password on Windows XP Professional. And no, the folks we bought the computer tower from had no idea what the password was. *sigh* Redneck Techie Momma finally ... um ... managed to get it working for DH after he found a little program on the Internet *grin* Then we got the free Compaq working, too. So now I'm in search of two decent used monitors, a keyboard and a set of speakers so both kids will have their own computers again! Yay! In the midst of all of this, we picked up the kids and ended up bringing Rotten1's teammate home with us, too. The boys played and swam all day, Rotten2 left them alone for the most part, and we all had fun. Rotten1's teammate ended up spending the night tonight, too.

Tomorrow? Hopefully I'll get that long list of chores accomplished from below. At least DH got my truck washed today, and the kitchen and living room are clean. I think most of the laundry is done too. Hm...may not be so bad after all.

*smooch*

TGIF

No, really...Thank God it's Friday! I am so glad this week is over. It's just been a bizarre week all the way around. I'm trying desperately to forget that Monday will be here shortly.

The kids ended up spending the night with some friends tonight, so DH and I got an unexpected evening to ourselves. Of course, he crashed early since he was up all night at work and I'm tired, but not sleepy.

This weekend's excitement is geared toward finishing shopping for Rotten2's birthday, yard work, cleaning the house, watching the kids swim and not much else. Yay! What fun will you be having this weekend?

*smooch*

So.

I'm sitting here tonight playing on my computer and it hits me.

It's quiet. Entirely too quiet. DH is at work. Rotten1 is spending the night at his grandma's. Rotten2 is here, though and she usually makes enough noise for seven children. Where is she and what has she gotten into? Last I'd seen her, she was off to color in her room. So I go in there. And at 6pm, she's fast asleep at her desk coloring a My Little Pony page.

So cute, so sweet, so quiet. I didn't want to move her for fear that she'd wake up. But it didn't look comfortable. And besides, if I didn't wake her up, she'd never go to sleep tonight. But she must have been tired since she had a long, late weekend at her dad's AND she'd been there last night.

So I moved her to her bed. She didn't wake up immediately. About 5 minutes later, she came in the living room with me and asked to go to "that new website" her teacher told her about. Turns out, it is one we've been to many, many times - just not to this part of the site. pbskids. *snort*

She has entirely too much fun when it's just me and her. And so do I.

Randomness...

Have you ever bit your lip or the inside of your cheek when trying to keep your mouth shut around a problem employee, stupid manager, the in-laws, or some other annoying individual you are stuck with so often that you've actually caused a sore? I have. Today. And it hurts like hell every time my cheek rubs my teeth.

********

Kim (aka Weltek) is a goddess. Really. These brownies are absolutely wonderful!

*******

Rotten1 pulled his other top front tooth last night. All by himself. Sort of. I'd been helping wiggle and turn it, then he decided he wanted to do it. The look on his face was priceless when it popped out in his hand. I'll try to get the pictures of the former Snaggletooth off my camera soon.

Long, long day

After a nice, relaxing weekend...I went back to work. Argh. It's insane. Orders are up, production is up, you'd think all would be well, right? No. One employee is out with a family emergency and we don't know when she'll be back. Another employee is on light duty due to cataract surgery. Did you know that for a week after eye surgery, you cannot lift anything over 7lbs because you might strain your eye? No shit. I have the doctor's note to prove it. So, what does that leave? One employee who is fairly new and working her way through the year long learning curve. And me. Yay. /sarcasm

Rotten1 had a ball game tonight - a make up game from last Saturday's rain out game. They played very well. Rotten1 scored two runs and had 3 hits! Two of our worst players, and they are bad, even swung well. One actually got a hit! His first all season! Unfortunately, a couple of fielding errors cost us the game :( Ah well....they played very well over all.

Rotten2 is still cranky and crabby from her weekend with their father. I swear, I'm putting her to bed at 6pm tomorrow if this shit doesn't stop!

And on the job front, well. No news. No return phone call. So..no big deal. It was a good practice process for the next run. I sent out a couple more resumes yesterday. We'll see. Oh, and according to some news report? Unemployment is down and the job market is booming. According to Jay Leno, the White House Cabinet has enough job openings to cover all unemployed people. *snicker*

I give up.

I called the HR lady today, she was out sick. I left a message inquiring whether they had filled the position. We'll see. I still am giving up though. If they call, it will be a nice surprise.

The Tooth Fairy left a $2 bill + 2 $1 bills. Rotten1 was extremely excited about this because his best buddy also gets $2 bills from the Tooth Fairy, which I did not know. He's never, ever going to spend the $2 bill because it's very special to him. Color me impressed.

In other news, I went shopping tonight. I bought a new watch, a pair of very casual capris, a skort, two shirts and two pairs of flip flops. I will be taking back another skort and shirt that do not fit properly. I also bought new foundation - I'm trying this creme to powder stuff...we'll see. And, I bought some lotion, a few new hair scrunchy thingies, some Benadryl for Rotten1, dog shampoo, kid shampoo and body wash, and a new toy for the cat. No, they were not all purchased at the same place. I actually went to two different stores! Yay for me!

Now, I'm off to make the blog rounds and watch Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone for the first time.

*smooches and hugs to all my wonderfully supportive friends*

Hi.

As noted below, I still have not heard anything about the job. I'll give it til Friday afternoon and then call them to verify my thoughts. I don't think I got it :( But...what is meant to happen, will happen.

Other than that, not too much exciting is going on. I think we're getting Carey/Catt/mm's weather...it started raining Tuesday and has barely let up and isn't supposed to stop til Saturday. Blah.

ETA: It's mtw's weather too. Men. Sheesh.

And as for the lack of excitement? That went out the window as the evening drew to a close. I pulled Rotten1's very loose tooth, which made for some excitement and little boy happiness. This is his 3rd one - this time the top left (if you're looking at him). Then Rotten2's allergies went haywire and she had a minor nose bleed. Of course, it's just my luck that we're out of Children's liquid Benadryl. Crap. So I go digging in the medicine cabinets and all I can find are Benadryl capsules. Ages 6-12 and 12 & up. Well, she's close enough to 6, so she actually swallowed her first medicine pill!

Damn. My life is entirely too interesting.

Job Interview

So today was my job interview at the hospital. I called in sick to work because I just couldn't schedule another vacation day right now. I got there about 30 minutes early and was able to start some of the pre-interview testing. Did fairly well, if I do say so myself. Then I met one of the HR ladies. She was very nice, discussed benefits, the company, and other details with me and asked a lot of background questions of me. I hate "Tell Me Three Things about Yourself ..." questions. She seemed okay with my answers there, though. We talked a bit about her daughter, who is the same age as Rotten2 and her two older sons - one of them is in the Marines. She walked me over to the main building and introduced me to the guy who would be my manager if I am hired. He and I talked for a long time about the job, qualifications, experiences and personalities. The funniest question of all came after he told me the previous hire lasted for 3 weeks and a day. Mind you, I've walked through 80% of this department and seen the layout of it all on the way to his office. Would an open air environment bother me? I was dumbfounded. Totally stupefied for a minute, until I realized he was serious. Of course, the next question was almost as good...does certain "language" bother me when used in the context of a sentence on rare occasions, whether directed to me or another person or thing. I almost laughed at that too. Instead, I expanded on our slight humor we had going at this point and threw my hands up and said forget it, I just cannot handle that type of stress. He laughed, I laughed.

This job sounds wonderful. The lady I would be replacing, if offered the job, left her position to move up the ladder a bit. So she's there, would be my trainer and seems very nice. I really, really want this job. I was the last interview and it's between me and one other person, who is as different from me as night and day. Yep, that was the manager's exact phrase. I'm not sure what exactly that means, but we are both qualified candidates who are causing him extreme stress over which would be best for the job.

Wow.

I will know something tomorrow.

Double wow.