i am not a writer

Christmas Memories

2011-12-23T21:09:00.000-06:00

Some of my fondest memories of growing up are from Christmastime at my maternal grandparent's house.

All my young life my grandparents lived 3 1/2 miles from us. We saw them often. We spent a lot of time at their house. Sometime each December my grandparent's house would make a transition. Christmas decorations went up. I never saw it happen or ever helped to make it happen. It just did.

The first thing you would see upon pulling up in front of the house were the lawn ornaments. A large painted plywood Santa Claus and some characters from Peanuts. I know there were other things but I can't remember everything. But I remember those. Seeing those meant that great things were about to happen. Christmas!

Inside the house was always decorated wonderfully. My grandfather always wore his very colorful Christmas vest. It was awesome. I'm not sure where he got it but he always wore it. There were decorations galore. Elves and old plush Santas. Red ribbons entwined in the lace of my grandmother's white milk glass pieces. My grandmother had handmade all of our stockings that were hung at her house. All with very personal items attached to them. Old charms, a penny from our birth year, an old Brownie pin that was my mother's. White rabbit fur trim on the top. I have mine still and it hangs now on the front door. It's one of my most cherished keepsakes because my grandmother, Mammaw Edie, made it just for me.

As a grandmother I'm sure I will NEVER compare to my own grandparents. I do hope that in 30 years my grandkids will think back with good memories of us and our home. Maybe they will remember the silly large inflatable snowman in the yard or Poppa's lights with the star on the fireplace. Maybe they will remember the long mantle of stockings in the living room.

Maybe, just maybe, they'll remember the decorations we bought just this past weekend. We just couldn't pass them up. A small Charlie Brown, Snoopy and Charlie Brown's famous Christmas tree. They are about 2 feet tall. They immedietly reminded me of the Peanuts characters in my grandparents yard. Maybe my grandkids will remember them the most. Like I did.

STOP IT

2011-12-06T13:55:00.000-06:00

STOP IT

Lazy With No Dreams

2011-11-30T07:09:00.000-06:00

That was me. I've been lazy with no dreams for quite a while. Years even.

I used to wake up, take the kids to school and then fall asleep in my chair around 10am. In the evening after dinner I would try to fall asleep in my chair while we were watching television. Twice I dozed off while talking on the phone to my daughter. If given the opportunity I'm sure I could have slept around the clock. I'm not sure when the dreams stopped. I'm pretty sure it was a gradual thing. No happy dreams, weird dreams or even nightmares.

Why? Obstructive Sleep Apnea

I snored. Evidently it was pretty loud because family members could hear me no matter their location in the house. Michael said he could even still hear me during his morning shower! I also would wake up several times in the middle of the night.

So, two sleep studies later and I have a magical machine next to my bed. It's not pretty. It has a long tube and a full face mask. But now I don't stop breathing during the night. Michael said I used to snore, gasp and struggle to breathe during the night. Now he says it's nice and quiet.

So, now I'm sleeping during the night and I haven't wanted/needed to take a nap at all during the day! And because I'm finally falling into a deeper sleep, I'm dreaming again. Weird.

WOW, it all makes sense now.

2011-11-11T22:01:00.000-06:00

I wish I knew whose masterpiece this is. It's awesome!!!!

Heather does it again!

2011-11-06T12:58:00.001-06:00

If you were lucky enough to read my Whack-a-Mole post you know that my 26 year old daughter has no trouble getting dirty.

So, we had some sort of clog in one of the main drains. We spent 5 hours on Friday trying to snake it out from every plumbing orifice in this house. I could not use the dishwasher, the kitchen sink, or the clothes washer! I really NEEDED all of those things since every towel in the house was wet and gross from all the flooding....and when this happened the dishwasher was full of dirty dishes ready to be washed....ugh ugh.

After so many hours on Friday I asked Michael if we could just quit for the day. So this morning Michael is sure that the clog is part of the plumbing that he replaced, so he knows what needs to be done. All of this is in my crawl space.....and MY crawlspace is the reason they named that area under the house a CRAWLspace....Although it wouldn't have hurt to name them Army Crawlspaces. Seriously.

So, I call Heather(she's supposed to be here in 2 hours so I can babysit for her) and I ask what she's doing. She says getting the kids dressed. I say "Can you just throw them in the car and go down in the crawlspace with your dad?". Her exact reply was "yes, be there in a minute".
So, Heather crawls under the house over to the big line that must have the clog. Luckily it was attached with a rubber connector with clamps....we have super old and nasty pipes. She was able to open the pipe, and with the help of a long coat hanger, pull out a clog that was VERY large....mind you there was disgusting water behind that clog. She came up soaking wet. Michael supervised her because there's not a lot of room down there and if you can get one skinny person in there you've got it made.
At least this time the plumbing didn't involve used toilet water...if you get my drift.

So, the score goes like this.
Old house with really crappy plumbing - 0
Heather - 2

WHACK A MOLE

TODAY

NOOK Color

2011-07-14T20:42:00.001-05:00

First things first. My hubby spoils me. Almost 30 years of marriage and he can still surprise me. For my birthday this year Michael and the little kids surprised me with 3 different gifts on 3 different days. Gift 1 was a signed photo of my fave hockey player- Mason Raymond. Gift 2 was a NOOK Color! Gift 3 was an authentic Vancouver Canucks jersey with of course Raymond and 21 on the back. ALL wonderful presents on their own. Michael went a little overboard.

The NOOK Color is unbelievable! I had a regular NOOK but this new one is amazing. Besides it holding all 76 of my ebooks it does everything. Email, web browser, Facebook, Twitter etc etc etc. It's fast too. Just as fast as my macbook. I am seriously in awe. Forgot to mention I can load pictures and music on it. And there are apps......games....yes even Angry Birds. Now I have no clue what the Kindle can do because I've never held one. No way it can compare though.

I am obviously the NOOK Color's biggest fan.

What's going on with my TV shows.

2011-05-11T07:33:00.000-05:00

Last night FOX Broadcasting canceled 2 more of my fave shows. That makes 3 in the last year. The 3 shows were Terriers, Lie To Me, and The Chicago Code.

I think it's just a coincidence that all 3 shows were created by Shawn Ryan. Seriously, the man makes great TV. The Shield did wonderful as did his show The Unit.

Each of the shows were really great. Those kind of shows where you look forward to each new episode.

So, what are people watching if they aren't watching the "good" shows? I understand that the canceled shows didn't have good enough "numbers".....not enough viewers. So, where are the viewers? Are they watching more cable than network shows? I remember once thinking "How can Jersey Shore be so popular and all the good shows have minimal viewers?!"

Last of my rant. Soap Operas. I don't watch them anymore but there was a time I loved every show that ABC had on. They started at noon with All My Children, then One Life To Live at 1pm, and finally General Hospital at 2pm. I did turn them on a couple of times in the last month. You can go a few years without watching one then jump back in and not miss too much. And there are always nice familiar faces. ABC has lost their minds by canceling the first two mentioned above. There's talk about General Hospital being dumped eventually as well.

I guess I'm just stuck watching mediocre television. :-(

Vancouver Canucks!

2011-04-05T20:41:00.002-05:00

Wow! It's been a little over a year since I fell in love with hockey. After that local game back in January, I looked at NHL teams, read a little about some of them and picked the lucky winner of my devotion. The Vancouver Canucks. The Washington Capitals were a close 2nd but I could only have one fave team.

It's been an awesome year. The end of that first season (09-10) ended in the 2nd round of playoffs in early May. I was thrilled to see the new team I had started to follow did well enough to go to the playoffs. Fast forward a bit to Oct. 2010 and the new season starts. I could not wait!! Michael even purchased NHL Center Ice from our cable company so we could watch every single NHL game if we wanted to. 79 games down and I haven't missed one of them!

I have learned SO much about hockey this season. I understand the rules, the game, the players and their positions. I keep up with the standings of ALL teams. I read pre-game and post-game reports. I check out the opposition before each game. I read about game day morning practice sessions. I've become seriously addicted and I love it!!

So, where are we now? We've won the coveted President's Trophy. This is given to the team that finishes with the most points in the league during the regular season. We have 3 games left in the regular season and we are off to the playoffs. Oh yeah, we are #1 in the NHL. Did I pick a great team to follow or what???!!!

I still have no desire to watch football, soccer, baseball etc on tv. I do understand now my husband's behavior during his beloved Dallas Cowboy & Texas Rangers games.

It's true.
If you holler loud enough at the television, the players, coaches, refs......yeah, they can all hear you!

Go Canucks and thank you for introducing me to the awesome game of hockey!

boring

2011-03-30T17:22:00.002-05:00

I am the most boring person in the world. I bore myself which is sad since I'm the person I'm with most of the time.

Can a person sleep too much?

Grandkids

2011-03-23T21:42:00.000-05:00

Well, some of my babies are gone. They've headed back to Kentucky.

All my kids & grandkids live here in Wichita except for my daughter, son-in-law and 3 little ones. They were here for 2 wonderful weeks. It was noisy, the house was dirty, there was major chaos but I don't mind so much really. Told Brayden, he's 3, that I'd miss him and he said "I miss you too Gramma". What a sweetie.

A few things about each of my grandkids.

Jacob 6 - The first grandkid. He's active, loves Ben10 stuff, his DS, and has had a mad obsession with dinosaurs his entire life. Loves his Gramma.

Ellie 6 - The first granddaughter.. She's loves all things princess. She can be "all girl" or a "all tomboy" depending on the time and place. AKA EllieGirl. Loves her Gramma.

Caedmon - 4 The first of the 3 boy cousins all born within 5 months of each other. He's smart, funny, has his own opinions about things. Loves all things Batman. Loves his Gwamma, aka Gramma.

Gabriel - 4 A sweetie of a boy! Gabe love to play. He would make a perfect only child because he's happy either on his own or in a group. Very cuddly. AKA GabyBaby. Loves his Gramma.

Malachi - 4 Very cuddly. A definite introvert. LOVES computers, cell phones, video games. Is going to be a supersmart brainy nerd. aka Kai Kai. Loves his Kai Kai, aka Gramma.

Brayden - 3 Super active boy! Loves matchbox cars & trains. He jumps, darts, rolls and is totally fearless. aka Mijo. Loves his Mija, aka Gramma.

Kylie -2 Adorable little girl. Loves elmo. Happy all the time. Likes to sing and loves her Daddy.
Loves Gramma

Abigail -1 The baby(so far). She's funny & huggable. Like her Mommy she has 3 older brothers and can hold her own among them. They best not mess with her or endure her wrath. aka Abbi or BooBoo. Loves her Gramma.

I could write for hours about each of these kiddos. All different in so many ways. I love to have them here all at the same time. Holidays when everyone can be here are the best. Right now I'll just enjoy the quiet for a time and look forward to grandkids coming over.

Spring Break

2011-03-21T13:13:00.000-05:00

I'm tired and need a nap. My house is 3/4 way to being a total disaster. I'm so far behind on laundry. Glad the kids don't have school because it doesn't matter what they wear.

It's beautiful outside. I have at least a full day's work that needs done to clean the garage. About the same amount of time for each yard, front & back.

*sigh*

WORST game of Whack-A-Mole. ever.

2011-03-21T00:52:00.001-05:00

Let me first say. I ABHOR basketball. I don't care who is playing or why they are playing. I don' t care to watch 8+ games a day.

Saturday. One of the kids notices there is water in the backyard. Upon inspection by Heather it is determined that sewage is backing up out of the clear-out pipe. So, the clear-out pipe is what you snake when you have a clog......but what do you snake when the clear-out pipe is clogged??

Where are the men?

My clear-out pipe did not have a cap on it because one of our dogs ate it about 10 years ago. I mention this because this is a WONDERFUL thing. Had I had a cap on there the sewage would have had no where else to go but back up into the house. Oh wouldn't that have been a pleasure! Yeah, NO.

Where are the men?

First plan of attack was to send the hose down with a high-pressure nozzle on it to see if we could dislodge the clog. No such luck. Some things came up......this is where the title to the post came from. My oldest son was outside watching. Yes, watching. It was dark and he turned on his cell phone flashlight. At one point I told him to point it back on Heather as she was having to grab "things" coming up out of the pipe so they did not go back down. That's when Jarrett said, " Worst game of whack-a-mole ever!". I should probably mention now the protective rubber gloves Heather is wearing.

Where are the men?

So, dark, raining, still clogged. We gave up for the night.

Sunday. I make a trip to Home Depot. Mike, the son-in-law, goes grocery shopping. Husband cooks his famous french toast and bacon for breakfast. I then run to another son's house to pick up a small hand auger that he has. Try the auger in both toilets. Nothing. Put a cap on the clear-out pipe thinking maybe just a little back pressure will flush out the clog. Nope. This is getting serious. We are nearing "call the plumber" stage.
I go to Home Depot, again, and rent a very large electric 100 foot sewer snake. Heather and I wrestle it into the back yard and get started. God bless her. She's the one standing in the muck feeding the snake into the pipe. I'm standing on dry ground about 4 feet away working the power on the snake machine. I did occasionally have to do the following things for her....pull her pants up for her. Push her hair out of her face. Get a piece of hair out of her mouth. Let her scratch her face against my shoulder. etc.

Where are the men?

We did get a bit of supervision (from the men) after a few attempts to snake the pipe. After about 30 minutes or so, and 50 feet of snake, Heather finally broke through the clog.

I won't describe it. Trust me and just be thankful for that.

So, total $ spent today to unclog the main drain from the house - $65. No clue what a plumber would have charged but I'm sure it would have been much more.

I'm very proud to have a daughter who takes after me and isn't afraid to fix things herself. I've learned a lot of stuff doing things like this as they came up. I've replaced thermostats on clothes dryers (easy). I've replaced spark plugs and wires on a Miata, I removed and replaced an alternator on my son's old truck. I can change a tire. I can change my oil & filter (if I wanted to). etc.

So you men can have your basketball March Madness or whatever, but don't holler at us if we don't put your tools up exactly how we found them. The toilets flush and that is what's important here.

We defeated the Whack-A-Mole!

Phlegm

2011-03-18T14:42:00.001-05:00

*SIGH* A conversation I had with Davis this morning.

Davis - You know that stuff that you cough up in your mouth? And you either spit it out or swallow it?
Me - Yes, what about it?
Davis - Mine is green. Here, I'll show you. (Sticking finger in his mouth)
Me - NO! I don't want to see it. Go spit it out. I believe you.
Davis - Sometimes when I'm in bed I swallow it. Or, I put it in your ear. (laughing).
Me - You're disgusting!

There is something seriously weird about my kids.

2011-03-15T17:22:00.001-05:00

What is wrong with my kids??!! Lots of name calling in the car on the way home from school!

Rylie: You're Benjamin Franklin!
Davis: No, you're Benjamin Franklin!
Davis: You're John Wilkes Booth!
Rylie: Well, if I'm John Wilkes Booth then you are Abe Lincoln! *pause* OH BURN!

My kids are nerds!!

Snow Days

2011-02-09T12:28:00.000-06:00

Snow Days.

What a load of crap.

My kids LOVE to hear that school is canceled because of snow. The worst thing is I think they enjoy it because they now have a whole day at home with me to make my life a living.......um difficult, let's just say difficult.

Come on! It's Kansas people. It snows. Quit canceling school. My kids go to a private school which means no bussing so it's not like there are kids waiting out in the -10 waiting on a bus. I have to drive them to school every day. I don't mind at all driving in ice or snow. BOTH of my vehicles are 4X4.

PLEASE let me bring my kids to school!

Terriers :-(

2010-12-06T17:13:00.000-06:00

My favorite show was canceled today after one short season. 13 episodes of some of the most fantastic acting I have ever seen. So few people watched and now are clueless as to what they missed.
I'm pretty sure Terriers will remain my most favorite. show. ever. Seriously, I don't really get hyped up about shows. Up until Terriers started, Lie To Me was probably my most-liked show. Honestly I would have thrown it under the bus had that been possible to save Terriers. Not that that was ever an option I'm just saying if one of my personal fave shows had to go I would have given up any......past and present.

Do yourself a favor. When that single season DVD comes out of Terriers, buy it and watch it. You won't regret it......well, maybe you will regret not watching it originally because that might have saved it.

RIP Terriers

Thanksgiving

2010-11-27T14:01:00.000-06:00

Well we survived yet another Thanksgiving with a house full of people. Missed Joe and Kylie though. Also Pam but she stopped by later in the day. As usual my favorite adopted son Andrew came by for a visit as he has every Thanksgiving Day for as long as I can remember.
No Thanksgiving Karaoke this year. Hmmmm Maybe we'll need to have some Christmas Karaoke in a few weeks.

I hate when Thanksgiving is over and I haven't started Christmas shopping. I always feel like I'm running behind. I suppose I'll just need to make a list and get moving.

In the last 4 weeks we have had our dishwasher break and now the washing machine. I only had to go a few days without the dishwasher but I'm going to be about a month before my washing machine can be delivered. DANG all those Black Friday shoppers for buying appliances and taking all the earlier delivery dates.
It's not like anyone gives a new washer and dryer as a Christmas gift. geez! So, will take inventory of the laundry and hit the laundromat to get caught up. Luckily the dryer is working fine so I'll just bring home the wet clothes and dry them here. Daughter-in-law has graciously offered to help me out. She actually has a load of towels at her house right now.

As usual nothing interesting to write about. I've finished a few good books and am starting a new one today......just can't decide which one. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE my Nook? Yeah, I do.

Ciao

Totally Fitting Title

2010-10-05T22:25:00.001-05:00

Yep, when I titled this blog I was dead-on! I wish I could write. I really do. It just isn't going to happen.

I'd much rather read. I have 66 books on my NOOK now just waiting to be read. Wait, scratch that...maybe about 10 less since I have been reading them and saving them.

Last book read- Love in the Time of Cholera. Had to buy the paperback though because that book and the author's other book, One Hundred Years of Solitude, were not available in ebook format. Was a very good book. I'm currently reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I am shocked that this is the author's first novel. I can not seem to put it down.

So yes, reading a lot. Writing, not at all (unless you count Twitter).

Not exercising at all either. The knee is messing with me. My doctor has discovered I have high blood pressure so there's one more medication to take....well two if you count the low dose aspirin too. Felt kind of crappy the last few weeks what with changes in medications and such but am feeling better.

Pretty sure that 46 is too young to feel THIS old. LOL

Blessings.

To exercise or not to exercise...

2010-07-28T23:42:00.001-05:00

The only thing I love more than pencils is....

new tennis shoes. Or whatever you want to call them. I don't play tennis but that's how we've always referred to athletic shoes. Weird. Anyway. In the past I've always bought cross trainers. Now, before I get too deep here I should mention that I don't play tennis AND I don't cross train.

Only once have I bought shoes to use for their exact purpose. That was 2 years ago. I bought a pair of running shoes because I had started a running program. It seems like SO long ago and yet I still miss it. No matter how far I ran in our neighborhood I always ended my run and started my cool down in almost the same spot. It was right on the corner by our fire station. I originally started running near the fire station so I could joke that if I keeled over during a run at least I'd be near some guys who might help. I digress.

Every time I drive that little stretch to the north of the fire station I still can feel that sense of accomplishment that I always felt when I hit that part of my run. I was finished, I had accomplished something really cool, I was proud of myself and I felt great.

I want to feel that way again. Not sure if I'll be able to actually run with my knee still being wonky since my surgery. I think I've been using that as an excuse to not even try. So, the new running shoes I ordered arrived today. Yes, I'm being optimistic because I bought running shoes and not walking shoes. I can walk in running shoes if I have to but I don't think I can really run in walking shoes.
So, the plan is to just start walking. I also need to get to the Y because there are some weight machines that my physical therapist told me would be helpful to increase the strength in my knee again. I know if I get into a good rhythm the running will probably happen eventually.

So yeah, we'll see how all this goes.

I Love Pencils

2010-07-25T11:06:00.000-05:00

I love this time of year. I love school supplies. At what other time can you get boxes of Crayola Crayons for .25 and spiral notebooks for .15? I love to stock up on school/office supplies. I don't "stock up" on much of anything but I do love to have extra crayons, pencils, notebooks etc.

Pencils. I'd rather write with a nice sharp pencil than anything else in the world. I can't stand mechanical pencils. I also have a HUGE problem with ugly/missing erasers on pencils. When the kids were younger, and still sometimes now, they would bite the eraser off of my pencils. I CANNOT use a pencil with no eraser. I CANNOT use a pencil where the metal piece that holds the eraser has been chewed on. That's disgusting. I like plain pencils. I like black pencils. I like zebra print pencils.

The husband obviously loves me. Yesterday he bought me a really nice new electric pencil sharpener.

I love pencils!

The same ol' thing.

2010-07-23T00:50:00.000-05:00

WOW, so much going on right about now. Between now and August 13th we have to buy new school uniforms, 2 pairs of tennis shoes each, backpacks, supplies. We also need to get school physicals. One kid needs an eye appointment and both need a dental appt.

Somewhere in there I have to convince myself that tuition isn't going to kill us this year.
I get 3 emails from school in 2 days.
1st email tells me what our tuition will be and wants to know which payment plan we want.
2nd email tells me that Rylie has been recommended for the accelerated Language program....that's another 1200. 00 in tuition.
3rd email tells me our school has had something like 100K worth of requests for tuition assistance and can I help?
um yeah.....not really.

A couple of minor funny things. Kids and I were in the dr's office last week. One of them asked about injections and I was trying to explain the difference between subcutaneous and intramuscular. Somewhere in that explanation I used the term "fatty tissue". Those two words for some reason send 7 & 9 yr olds into the major giggles. Not sure why.
Other minor funny thing was something my dear mother-in-law said. Bless her heart. She's a couple of years short of 80 and has never had a colonoscopy. I was talking to her about them and how the prep is actually worse than the test. Her main fear is that they might puncture one of her lungs. I did assure her that they don't go "that high" and they aren't near the lungs....poor thing..no wonder she's been putting off getting one.

No excitement here. Same thing day in and day out.

Chris

Opossum Wrangling

2010-07-13T15:22:00.001-05:00

Yeah, sounds like something that would happen in KS doesn't it!

I went to bed about 12:45 last night. 5 minutes later my little girls (2 mini-daschunds) start barking like crazy. I get up to let them out. They run out the back door barking like there is obviously something in the yard that doesn't belong there.

I use a flashlight to look out all the windows on that side of the house. I can't see anything but I hear sounds that tell me they, and our golden retriever, are cornering some sort of animal.

So, what do you do in these circumstances? Do you wake up the husband who has a business trip in the morning and needs his sleep? No, you wake up your 24 yr old daughter and tell her to grab a flashlight. Why? Cause she loves crap like this just like I do. haha

So we go out the back door. Heather is about 4 feet in front of me. I tell her to slow down, she doesn't know what's out there. Could be rabid. Right about that time our golden retriever comes happily running (FAST) out of the dark towards us with a very large live, but playing opossum, opossum in her mouth. I'm closest to the door so I run inside. I hold the door cracked. Heather, stuck outside now, jumps fast and high right up on top of the hot tub. At this point she and I are both alternately screaming and laughing hysterically. Screaming for the golden to drop the opossum and screaming at the little dogs to get in the house.

Mollie does drop the offending creature. Right on the patio. I still have the back door cracked, Heather is still on top of the hot tub. I'm still trying to get both of the little dogs in. Emmie actually dragged the opossum a foot across the patio. The creature was bigger than she was. So, finally we get both little dogs in. I've got Mollie by the collar and Heather is going to try to get the opossum out of the backyard. Mind you, it IS alive. It's only playing dead. It was breathing and it moved several times.

So, Heather grabs a small plastic dustpan and tries to scoop up the opossum......doesn't' work.....So then she tries....wait. I should mention that I'm laughing my ass off right about now....So then she's crouched over this opossum who is half in her dustpan and proceeds to try to push it farther into the dustpan with the TINY flashlight she is holding....she stops, looks up at me and says "they don't bite do they?". OMG I seriously thought I was going to pee my pants. It was all I could do to get out a squeeky "yes" without laughing too hard at her.
Heather gets it in the dustpan and asks me what to do with it. I tell her to toss it over the fence. We'll deal with it on the side of the house in the morning. Well she goes to toss it over and the handle on the plastic dustpan breaks and the opossum and the dustpan fall at her feet. Mind you, I'm laughing more because I can't really see what happened and I'm imagining that she didn't get it high enough to go over the fence but just smacked it INTO the fence. In that half second I had flashbacks of Peter from Family Guy trying to get a dead frog out of a window with a shoe box.....something you'd have to have seen to understand.

Ok, opossum is on the opposite side of the yard which is fine because Mollie, the golden, can't go to that side because of an invisible fence. We'll deal with it in the morning.

This morning I take a gander (that's what we say in KS) around the backyard. He's gone. I'm sure once he realized he was safe from the dogs and the chick poking him with the flashlight, he hightailed it back over the fence from whence he came. or something like that.

OK so this was about 20-30 minutes going on. The screaming, the laughing hysterically, more of both....we come in the back door and here comes the husband wanting to know what's going on. Heather and I were laughing like loons. Most fun I've had at almost 2 a.m. in a VERY long time!!

Chris

I'm a year younger! again!

2010-07-05T15:59:00.000-05:00

Today's my birthday. I was sure I was turning 47 today. Have been thinking that for at least 6months or more. I've been telling everyone I'm 46 for quite a while. Anyway, this isn't the first year I've done this. I think when I turned 43 I did the same thing.....was sure I was turning 44.

Is this something I should be happy about? I mean I'm pleased as punch because that's two years now that I have haven't aged! haha. OR, is this something that should frighten the crap out of me?? The fact that I can't even remember my age......is that a memory problem? dementia? old age? haha

Maybe this is just more proof that the number really isn't that important to me. Maybe this has to do with me having 3 kids in my early 20's and then 2 more in my late late 30's. I think it is true that kids keep you young. Whatever is I guess I like it.

So, today I'm 46! woot!

Peace to all, Chris

New TV addictions

2010-06-19T12:45:00.000-05:00

Oh my gosh! Thanks to Sarah Fain and her talk about Friday Night Lights, I'm totally addicted. I have 2 shows left in Season 1 to watch. LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton are so "real". A lot of times I watch shows and think "Ok yeah, that's nice but people don't act that way in real life" etc. These two do. Friday Night Lights is going to end up being one of my favorite shows ever.

I've also been watching Bones and Sons of Anarchy thanks to Netflix and their instantly available shows.. Both shows are great. SOA is a bit "dark" but I like it. Great actors.

Ok so this is my short post because well.......I'm behind in my housework and laundry. LOL
Can you guess why?

Peace, Chris

Television

2010-05-30T00:20:00.000-05:00

I'm not a TV addict but when I find a show I like I'm a pretty loyal fan. In the last week two of my fave shows have had their finales. Show finales, not season finales.

First was the LOST finale. I enjoyed LOST every single week through the first 3-4 seasons. After that I did watch because hubby still watched. I prefer my shows to not be too complicated. I want to watch, enjoy but NOT try to figure out what the heck is going on. It was a great series though. The actors all marvelous at making us love (or hate) the characters they portrayed. In the end for me it was the people that was most important. Let's face it, most everyone had a "happily ever after" and that's my favorite kind of ending. My husband doesn't like things left unanswered. Why did that happen? What did that mean? etc...I don't get too caught up in that especially when it's a show like LOST where I just can't keep up with that stuff anyway. I had tears of joy several times during the finale and to me that is a great finale.

24. 24 has probably been my favorite show ever. I will truly miss having the 24 people come in to my living room every Monday evening. So many talented actors and actresses worked on that series. A lot of great characters got killed off. No one was safe on 24. Except maybe Jack. My favorite character, Bill Buchannon, was killed off in Season 7. Jack was going to do something suicidal to save the President but Bill jumped up and saved the day first. That was a sad episode for me. I was very pleased with 24's finale. Jack lived! Chloe lived! Chloe DID shoot Jack but she had to. In the end though Jack acknowledged to Chloe that when he first met her he had no idea that she would be the one who would have this back always. Chloe teared up watching Jack leave so of course I did as well. There is talk of a movie but we don't really know if that is something that will really happen. Could just be speculation, who knows?? I'd say there is always hope since they let Jack live.

I watch a couple of shows that my husband does not watch. I actually just record them on the DVR and watch them whenever I get a chance. With 24 gone now it looks like Lie To Me will become my favorite show. I will be looking forward to it the most! Also, two other shows that I recently started watching got picked up for another season. One is Life Unexpected and the other is Parenthood. Both VERY good series. I also would like to watch Friday Night Lights but have missed it from the start so need to get caught up by buying the DVD sets.

I don't think that I watch a lot of tv, buy I do love what I watch.

Blessings, Chris

Not a Blogger

2010-05-10T07:45:00.001-05:00

Ok, so I'm not a blogger really. Actually, I totally suck at blogging.

I didn't realize until after I started reading blogs that there are people who are referred to as "mommy bloggers". These are some serious bloggers! I think a lot of them make a lucrative income from ads, reviews and endorsements of various products. I don't have a problem with that but I don't want a blog to sound like a mini-commericial for things that moms should purchase.

I wouldn't mind something I could do at home to bring in a little extra cash. Matter of fact I NEED something like that but there are really not any opportunities for that stuff anymore. Something is going to have to give in the next year or so if I want to keep my kids in their private school. That's the most important thing to me right now. That they continue on with the great education they are getting now.

When my adult kids were little I actually did have a "work at home" job. It wasn't a scam either. I worked for FoxMeyer Drug Company entering pharmacy claims into their database and reconciling them. It paid well, I could work my own hours, and only went into the office maybe once a week to pick up work. I would KILL for a job like that now. *sigh* Anyway, a work at home job would be wonderful. It's not that I don't want to go out and find a "real" job it's just that I'd like to have something that would work around my kids' school schedule. I enjoy the volunteer work I do at their school, I love being available to drive for field trips, I love being the one to drop them off at school and the same one who picks them up and takes them home afterwards. I love after-school snacks and hearing about their day etc etc . In a perfect world I guess.

That doesn't exist now or in the near future.

Well it's time to take these kiddos to school. Maybe I'll post to my blog again soon....? I can't make any promises.

-C

Hmmmmmm Not sure what that was.

2010-03-29T12:25:00.001-05:00

I think I may be working myself out of my funk. Things were frustrating/overwhelming but I guess it's better now. I think I need a mega dose of sunshine.

I REALLY need to get my house clean and have it stay that way for more than 12 hours. I think that's what's been getting me down lately. If the house is in order I don't feel like I'm neglecting something if I do something for myself.....BUT that pretty much means if the house is a disaster day after day then I do NOTHING for myself.

So, I'm working on it. Working on the house, working on my attitude etc.

Blessings to anyone who might read, C

Another Busy Day

2010-03-25T07:08:00.000-05:00

I'm watching 3 of my grandkids today so their mom can go on a field trip with their older brother. She never really has a chance to do that. So, will have to take my two to school first which means me and 5 kids getting out and back into the car. LOL Then I have to take the 3yr old to his morning preschool class at a different school. Pick 3yr old up around noonish(will get exact time from his mom this morning), then pick my kids up just before 4....again carting the 3 grandkids inside with me.

Wow, I've done this before......lived it actually with our 4 adult children, but it sure sounds more daunting now.

Frustrated and Pissy

2010-03-21T15:43:00.000-05:00

I'm really feeling frustrated and pissy lately. My knee is still not back to 100%. It's stiff a lot and I cannot kneel down on it. I usually kneel a lot during the day while cleaning or doing stuff with kids. I'm just not seeing how I'm going to be able to run again. The surgeon assured me right after the surgery that running again would happen.

So, what do I do if I'm not smoking and not running? Yep, I'm eating....and continuing to put on MORE extra lbs. I think it really really REALLY sucks that I quit smoking over a year ago and it's still running my life. I have cravings every day still. What's up with that??? Anyway, I'm see myself sinking into a slump here that I feel like I won't be able to climb back out of.

Kids Coming Out of My Ears

2010-03-14T17:33:00.000-05:00

Busy weekend with my little kids, my big kids, and grandkids.

Friday night was fun. I watched my 24 yr old daughter teach her little brother and sister how to dance. I think it was called the Cupid Slide? It was super funny. They sure do love seeing their big sister every day now.

Last night was more kids and more kids. We have a problem with Davis, my youngest son, & Jacob my youngest grandson. Davis is almost 7. Jacob is 5 1/2. Davis is the uncle & Jacob is the nephew. They always beg to play with each other and then each time they get together they fight like cats and dogs! They're so close that I think their relationship resembles one of siblings than just friends.
We are constantly separating them etc.

So, it's now Spring Break and I guess I'll need to find fun stuff to do with the kids this coming week. By this time next week I may have lost all of my sanity so this could possibly be my last post ever. LOL

I wish I had something more interesting to write about but I don't. :-(

Blessings to anyone that might read, C

The Family Bed aka Why am I Sleeping on the Couch!

2010-03-09T07:26:00.000-06:00

When our adult kids were born all in the early 1980's you didn't hear much about the "Family Bed". I don't think I even knew what it was back then. I remember that it was considered bad, wrong, and frowned upon to let your children sleep with you. So, all of our adult children slept in their own room, in a crib then graduated to a twin bed when they were big enough. I think we may have kept a bassinet in our room the first few weeks as it made breastfeeding in the middle of the night a lot easier.

I remember one our sons, then 2, laying on the stairway landing crying......because he wanted to come get in bed with us. We didn't let him. I DO regret that much now. That may be because he's an adult now with kids of his own and you always wish you could relive those lost times. I wish I had dropped to the floor and played every single time he asked me to play legos with him.

So, those kids grew up. All fairly well-adjusted with good relationships with their dad and me. I see no lasting ill effects from them not getting to sleep in our bed.

Enter the early 2000s. After sending our first kid to college, and me always pining for more babies in the house, we reversed our 16yr old vasectomy. Twice, because the first surgery didn't work. Along came a baby girl. She had a beautiful nursery ready for her. It was right next door to our bedroom AND it had a baby monitor. She never slept an hour in that brand new crib. It was just "too far away" and she was just "so tiny". I had to have her near me at night.....had to. Hubby was the same. There really is nothing like falling asleep with a teeny tiny newborn hand grasped around your finger. When she was almost a year old or so she slept cuddled up to me against my chest.

When she started getting bigger we bought a toddler size bed and shoved it up against our king-size bed. I would then sleep with my arm draped over the side of our bed, patting her or just touching her hair etc. By around 3 yrs old she did have her own room with her toys, dolls, a really cute twin bed. It was an adorable bedroom. I'll never forget the one evening when she said she wanted to sleep in HER room in her big girl bed. We read her a story, tucked her in, and she was asleep. I laid in bed and cried that night. At that point we still had our then 1 yr old son in our bed.

Kids are now almost 9 and almost 7. Both go to sleep in their own bedrooms/beds every night. All seems normal. During the night for some reason, at least one, if not both, climb into our bed. There's not enough room in the bed for 4 people now so I usually hit the couch with the recliner on both ends.
It never fails that on the nights the kid's DON'T get in our bed, I get run out by hubby because I'm snoring. I understand that. He has to sleep so he can get up for work the next day. I do not.
But, I've started to find that there really is no comfortable spot in this house to sleep. One kids' bed is too soft, the other is too firm. The couch is getting old.

Did I mention how I seem to be tired all the time lately?

Would I do the "family bed" again if given the choice? hmmmm?

Not sure. Can I get back to you after my nap???

Blessings, C

Abbi

2010-03-04T07:01:00.003-06:00

Here is a picture of my youngest grandchild. She is 5 months old. The big bow is supposed to take the attention away from her bald head I think.

She's a good baby and she and her brothers are living 5 minutes away from me while their dad is deployed to Afghanistan.

I need to find a picture of her sharing her sweet smile.

Wasn't sure what to blog today so figured a baby picture was always a safe bet.

Blessings, C

*Edit*

Ok there she is smiling. That's just a few hours ago. Yeah, I know, the bow. It's just a tad on the large side. haha

This is what happens when you have 3 boys before finally getting that little girl. I had 3 boys before having her mommy so I know how it is. EVERYTHING must be pink and girly.

A Good Week, so far.

2010-03-03T00:08:00.000-06:00

Wow, this has been a good week so far. I've gotten so much done and it feels good.

I did my 40 minute library duty on Monday at school and will do another on Friday. I brought home some computer work I'm doing for one of the kindergarten classes. I don't mind that sort of stuff at all. It's easy and quick for me but saves the teacher from having to take work home with her.

I've been cleaning like crazy and both bathrooms got emptied, cleaned and then reorganized. Yeah, did the cat litter too. That's a whole other blog. I love my cat but the litter thing is getting OLD. Let's see, what else. There is no dirty laundry. It's being done a load a day now and that will keep it caught up forever. ;-)

My knee is healing wonderfully. It's been 19 days since the surgery and I'm barely even limping on it now. It still has a lot of inflammation in it so am taking Motrin for that. I did have a "cankle" twice now! I've had 5 full -term pregnancies and NEVER did I have swollen ankles while pregnant! I have to admit I freaked a bit when I saw the ankle swollen the first time. Cankles are never pretty. haha

I've been spending a lot of time with my grown daughter, Heather. Her husband was recently deployed to Afghanistan and she moved back to our hometown with her kids. It's been a lot of fun. We haven't had a baby around in a while...not since the 3 little 3yr old boys were babies. Abigail is a sweetheart. She's 5 months old now and love to interact with everyone. The little boys are hilarious. Malachi, at 3, is quiet, subdued, and a huge cuddler. Brayden, at 2, is a monster! If he starts to touch something and I tell him no, he looks at me while sticking his index finger out very slowly to touch the object....all the while smiling. He's sneaky as can be. Reminds me of the movie Kramer vs Kramer when the Billy gets the ice cream from the freezer and dad is telling him "no". Except Brayden would smile a little devilish grin at you while he took the first bite!.

Midnight and I should get to bed. I'm hoping tomorrow will be just as productive as the last two days.

Blessings, C

Welcome March, Please Be Kind!

2010-03-01T07:49:00.000-06:00

March 1st. There is something about March 1st that kind of makes me giddy. I'm not sure what it is. It could be because, to me, March signals that Spring is near. I LOVE Spring. I love everything about Spring. I even love spring-cleaning!

I'm always a bit happier when the sun shines more. Gray winter days can really get old after awhile.

I'm behind on my housecleaning but I'm so pumped to get caught up. I'm ready to be back to the place where I am doing one load of laundry each morning and cleaning an uncluttered house. Yep, it is possible, just check out Flylady.net. :-)

So, I'm off to take the kids to school on this 1st day of March. I'll come home, maybe have 1 more cup of coffee and then look around and find a place to start. I may need to make a list. ahhhh I LOVE lists.

Blessings, C

February Hates Me

2010-02-25T21:29:00.000-06:00

Starting Monday things are going to change around here. I'm so off-kilter right now. Knee Surgery went very well. No reason why it shouldn't heal back to 100%. Michael went above and beyond taking care of me. He was constantly catering to all of my needs while I was recuperating. My knee was always elevated and iced. If I needed a drink, it was right there. The man seriously pampered me!

So, tomorrow is the big chapel program put on by my son's 1st grade class. His teacher asked me in January if I'd help her with this. Let's just say that what could go wrong, has gone wrong. The kids have many speaking parts and each kid has about 6 still pictures that go along with their parts. I've put it together several times only to have one thing or another go wrong. The teacher has been having massive problems with the kid side of the program. It's just been weird. So, this morning we spoke knowing that a few hours later we'd be doing the final rehearsal. The teacher even mentioned she was prepared for more mishaps but we are sure the final program will go off without a hitch. So, I had some errands to run this morning, had to add a few last minute things to the video etc. I'd talked to a kid at the church who offered to meet me in the chapel and show me how to hook into the sound system and the projector screen that comes out of the high ceiling.
So, on my way to the church(school) I slammed head on into a man in a mini-van. Ok that sounded a bit more dramatic than it was I guess. I've never been in a car accident so the "slammed" part seemed a lot harder than the damage indicated. Lucky for me the guy's van already looked like it may have just come from a demolition derby. My Expedition is a tank so it any damage was minimal. Anyway, it was just ONE MORE THING to deal with.
Tomorrow at 2:50 I'll be screaming with relief I think after the program is done.

Next week and for many weeks in the future I'm sticking to my twice weekly 30 minute helper job in the library. Yep, that's it. For now. Until I recover.

So, here's to March!

Busy Busy Busy

2010-02-09T20:00:00.000-06:00

Well, I think this is the first time in my entire life where I have looked forward to a surgery. I've been walking on this torn meniscus for over 3 weeks now and it sucks!

I can't think of any other time I've felt like such an unattractive slug. 45 years old and hormones are causing acne, quitting smoking gained me healthy lungs but also 50 extra pounds, and now to top it all off....I'm limping horribly. I feel like I'm 90.

OK on a totally different note. Heather, my daughter, is now living 5 minutes away instead of 12 hours! Her husband is deployed in Afghanistan for the next year. I am LOVING having Heather here and also her kids. I have never really had the chance to bond with them because every time we've visited with them it would take the little ones a day to warm up to us. They are LOVING their Gramma now! Even little Abbi at 4 months looks happy to see Gramma!

Finally. My NOOK finally came and I am seriously in love with it. I'm loving a lot lately aren't I!? lol I don't know how it compares to the Kindle because I don't know everything the Kindle does. I know that I can buy and download books over the 3G network in a matter seconds. I like that ebooks are cheaper than paperback...I read so much and so quickly that I can go broke buying books.

Ok so, no more news from me for a while. Surgery on Friday.

Fun Things

2010-02-01T23:42:00.000-06:00

Just a few quickies. I survived the 13 hour drive from TN to Wichita with the 3 grandkids.....all by myself. It went fine but the bathroom breaks were um...I'll just say "difficult" and leave it at that.

My NOOK arrived about 3 hours AFTER my plane took off from the KC airport. Poor poor timing B&N. Today I had just a few seconds to look it over and hope to read the manual and dive in to it later this week. I still have grandkids now and tomorrow I have to help Heather unload her moving truck. Anyway, it's really awesome. I named it Sally.

Wednesday night is going to ROCK! TEARS will be shed. I'm seriously betting that my 28 yr old son will be sitting next to me sobbing....like he did when we saw Les Miserables together. So, what is Wednesday night? Jesus Christ Superstar.....and WHO is playing that lead part you ask? Why, the man himself. Ted Neeley! Yes, he's old. 67 yrs to be exact but I wouldn't have it any other way. It just wouldn't be the same! So, after years and years and years and years of watching the movie, and listening to the vinyl(my folks were hippies and my mom had the album....along with HAIR and many others) I'm going to get to see it. We introduced our eldest son to JCS when he was really little(as we did with Les Mis.) and I know he's going to love it too.

So, a few days of some busy stuff and hopefully next week I'll get back on track with my blog. Oh, and somewhere in the next few weeks I'll be having knee surgery. Oh joy.

Peace to all!

Chris

A Busy Week and Bittersweet

2010-01-25T07:25:00.000-06:00

Yikes! So much to do this week. I'm going to have that silly meniscus looked at on Wednesday by an orthopedic surgeon. Will be interesting to see what he he says.

Friday morning my oldest son will be driving me to Kansas City so I can get a flight out of there to Nashville.
Why?

Tomorrow morning my son in law will be deploying to Afghanistan. He'll be leaving behind my daughter and 4 kids. This is his 3rd deployment. His first two were to Iraq. Heather stayed in KY during his last deployment. She did come to Wichita to have baby #3 so I could help her a bit but she hasn't lived in Wichita in over 3 years. We've missed a lot of milestones with those grandkids and it will be so great to have them nearby for the next year!!

So, Friday I fly to Nashville where Heather will pick me up. Friday evening and Saturday we will spend finishing packing and loading up a U-Haul truck. Sunday morning I will drive her car and the 3 littlest grandkids back to Wichita. A 12 hour drive. LOL this should be interesting! The grandsons are 3 & 2 and grandaughter is only 4 months. Heather has to wait for base housing to give her clearance on Monday morning and then she and her 5 yr old will drive the U-Haul to Wichita.

So, starting next week all of my kids and grandkids will be living here. I'm excited to spend time with Heather but also to bond a bunch with her kids. It's hard to be the long distance Gramma. They don't know me like the rest of the grandkids. Each time we see them we have to wait for them to warm up to us etc.

So, that's it. A very busy week. Bittersweet because I am very happy that Heather and the kids will be here but sad that her husband has to deploy to a dangerous place for that to happen.
Please keep him in your prayers.

Meniscus?

2010-01-24T10:59:00.000-06:00

Seriously, who makes up these medical terms? LOL

Ok so after 11 days of trying to "power through" the pain in my knee, I went to see my family Dr. She suspects a torn meniscus and I have an appointment on the 27th with an orthopedic surgeon. Fun Fun. I'm not worried about surgery if I have to have it. Surgery has never really bothered me too much. I think I'm missing half of my organs already. Ok that was a bit of an exaggeration. Missing my tonsils, gallbladder, and half my thyroid. And it's funny but seems like I had one other thing removed LOL but I don't recall what it was. Good grief, for all my memory is worth it might have been my frontal lobe! LOL I'll have to ask Michael.

Anyway, I'm more worried about recovery. I am SO ready to start running again. I've been anxious to run with my new lungs (no, not surgery...I just quit smoking 9mths ago). I'm just curious how long the recovery will be and when my knee will be back to 100%.

I guess I'll find out Wednesday.

Hockey! Who knew?

2010-01-24T10:51:00.000-06:00

Wow, who would have known that I would love hockey? We went to a Wichita Thunder game last night with Davis' cub scout pack. They are a minor league team and they were playing for the first time in our new big arena (bring on the bigger artists now Wichita!).

We were sitting up in the nosebleed section and I can't wait to go again and get some really good seats. My favorite part? I loved it when I saw gloves and helmets start to fly.....that meant a fight. I asked Michael why the refs weren't breaking it up and he said they don't until one of the guys hit the ice.

I enjoyed everything about the game though. I liked the way the periods are with the breaks in between. I loved the enthusiasm of the crowd and how it draws you in. I LOVED watching Davis stand up and dance everytime the music came on. He was quite the entertainment for our section I'm afraid. Thankfully we let him sit 2 rows down from us with some friends of ours. haha No one knew who he belonged to.

So, we had a really really great time. I've never really watched hockey on tv but definitely want to give it try. I'm sure nothing beats it live but I'd really like to learn the rules etc of the game.

Go Thunder!

Daughters!

2010-01-06T13:15:00.001-06:00

OMGosh! I was a total tomboy when I was little and somehow my daughters are girly girl drama queens! *sigh* Sometimes it tires me out, sometimes I can't quit laughing. I strongly suggest the laughing be done when you are out of earshot of a drama queen. Otherwise, they scream and slam a lot of doors.

So, there are 16 years between drama queen #1, Heather and drama queen #2, Rylie.

#1 lives in KY with her Army Sgt husband and their 3 kids.(yes, one of her kids is a girl..payback's a b*tch bwwhahaha). #1's husband is getting ready to deploy to Afghanistan for a year and I was able to talk her in to moving back to KS while he is gone. We can see her and get to know the grandkids more. We saw her Thanksgiving and we saw her Christmas. Ahh Christmas. #1 gives #2 a shirt that she got that was too small. #2 loves it and wants to wear it all the time.
Last night #2 puts on the shirt and starts tearing up, "I miss #1". arghhh here we go with the waterworks. I'm not heartless, I'm really not. This just happens OFTEN and it happened OFTEN when #1 was 8yrs old like #2 is now. Keeping up?

I calmly and nicely remind #2 that in just a few weeks #1 will be living nearby and they will spend lots of time together. #2 can spend the night at #1's house and help with the little kids etc. #1 is really a great big sister and does #2's hair and nails etc. All that girly-girl stuff. I remind #2 that #1 will be here for a year.

What reaction do I get? MORE TEARS and then "But mom, when #1 leaves again it will just be that much harder because I will be more attached to her". OMG! Ok so I calmly and nicely(I'm trying) explain to her that you can't worry about things in the future or you won't enjoy the present as much as you should. I'm thinking this is a great explanation and she should calm down. Nope. I get the "You just don't understand! You don't understand what it's like to have a sister and she's so far away!!". SIGH And this is about where my patience ran out. I don't deal with the doom and gloom drama queen stuff. The "other" drama queen stuff is fine..the exasperation, the rolling of the eyes, the goofiness, even the slamming doors.
So, my reply this time is "That's MY little girl you're talking about and you don't know what it's like having a little girl and she's so far away." Silence for just a second and BAM, there it is. Door slamming.

OK the door slamming ending didn't actually happen THIS time but it will.....omgosh you can bet it will!

Runner's Knee??!!

2010-01-05T07:06:00.000-06:00

How can my Runner's Knee be killing me when I haven't been running in well over a year??!! Yesterday was supposed to be the day I started my daily 30 minutes of exercise routine and now this. Last night I could barely put any weight on it. It's a little better this morning but imagine in a few hours after walking on it it's going to be hurting pretty good. ouch!

This is so discouraging. I really want/need to start running again. I've got to lose this extra weight plus I can't wait to see how much easier I can breathe since quitting smoking almost a year ago.

Just going to think of this as a minor setback and remind myself that being a few days past my start date doesn't mean I've failed. NO reason to lose my motivation.

Off to start the day.

Back to Normal. Well, Our Version of Normal

2010-01-04T07:02:00.000-06:00

After 17 days off the kids go back to school today and Michael has already left for the office. We all do so much better on a set schedule. Going to bed and getting up at the same time every day keeps us all on an even keel. I know Michael really enjoys his days off and I enjoy having him home.........for a little while. LOL I joke and tell him he is not ever allowed to retire. He'll just have to find more college classes to teach or a good time-consuming hobby.

For the last couple of years, since Davis has been in school full time, I've gotten into a routine at home. After taking the kids to school I come home and turn on the Apple TV. I don't watch tv but I use the Apple TV to listen to my itunes library that's on my desktop back in my office. I do it through the tv so I can take advantage of Michael's really nice sound system. Michael and the kids love to have the tv on every waking moment. There is NOTHING on during the daytime.

So, today we're back to normal and in just a few minutes time I'll go drag the kiddos out of bed so they can get their school uniforms on and have some breakfast. I imagine I'm literally going to have to drag them too. really

So, will take them to school and come home. Apple TV, some laundry, some cleaning, eating healthy today, and at some point 30 minutes of exercise. I'll feel sane again just getting back into our regular "normal" schedule.

Goodbye 2009

2009-12-31T00:35:00.000-06:00

Goodbye 2009. You will hardly be missed.

2009 was an OK year for me but no real highlights. I quit smoking in April and I am glad I did but it's been a really sucky time since. I still have random cravings throughout the day, I've gained 40lbs at least, and I turned 45. argh.

I have BIG HUGE GREAT plans for 2010. I want to get my eating totally under control. I want to commit to some kind of exercise at least 30 minutes every single day. Honestly, I know I have plenty of free time in a day to do this. I want to start taking better care of myself. I love being a wife, a mom, a gramma but it's time to take care of ME now. I'm always last on my list.

2010 will be my "selfish year". I won't be blogging about my exercise or my eating etc here. I am making my own personal blog diary which will not be public but where I can really just keep track of how I'm doing etc. Maybe that's selfish but.......yep. This is my selfish year.

See you all next year!

NOOK!!!!

2009-12-26T16:26:00.001-06:00

Hubby ordered me a Nook!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A White Christmas

2009-12-24T23:39:00.001-06:00

A nice day inside as the snow came down. Jarrett & Daniel came over with their families and we opened gifts. The kids and grandkids enjoyed everything I think.

We may be delayed a day in our trip to Dallas because of the continuing snow here and also in Oklahoma. No problem there. No one has to be back to work or school until January 4th so we are on no time table.

We are letting the kids stay up late tonight and they are on the couch(with their new snuggies) watching Return of the Jedi with Michael. This was our first year without any believers in Santa Claus. It's actually made things a bit less hectic. I still will be stuffing the kids' stockings later with candy and small gifts. How can I give that up? It's such a fun little thing to do.

I wish for all of my friends and family to have a Merry Christmas and many happy blessings in the new year.! :-)

The Usual Silliness

2009-12-21T22:02:00.000-06:00

The kids are out of school and go back on the 4th. It always throws me off a bit when my schedule changes. Yeah life is rough as a stay-at-home-mom.

Today after Michael came home from work we were all standing in the kitchen. Rylie was showing us a picture she had drawn recently. We looked at it and then Michael and I continued talking. I looked up to see Rylie sticking her picture on the wall. Knowing I didn't have tape or sticky-tak in the kitchen I asked her what she was doing. She said she was putting it up on the wall with the sticky stuff from the island countertop. That's when I remember that Davis spilled a few drops of MAPLE SYRUP that I missed wiping up. OOPS

Around dinnertime Michael said the funniest thing to me. This proves how much he loves me. He asked me to defrost some hamburger meat in the microwave because he was going to make some cheeseburgers. So, I did. And he said "HOW CAN ANYBODY SCREW UP DEFROSTING MEAT!!??". I busted up laughing and said "Wait! I have to write that down. It's a great blog topic!". He laughed with me then.....or AT me, but it's all the same. The man is a Saint!

In my defense I don't really think because the hamburger meat was a bit cooked on the edges that it was "screwed up". He ought to have been happy that I actually COOKED something even a little bit!

Ok so my life isn't crazy interesting but we do love to entertain ourselves here.

25 Things About Chris

2009-12-20T20:08:00.002-06:00

I stole this from my Facebook page. It says a lot about me. I'm desperate for topics to blog about..

1. I was born and raised in Texas but you couldn't pay me enough money to move back there.

2. I have horrible social anxiety and can't stand meeting new people and feel uncomfortable and awkward unless I'm talking to family or a really close friend.

3. My maternal grandmother died over 20 years ago but she will always be the woman I most admire. She never had a bad word to say about anyone and loved her family unconditionally.

4. There is a 22 year difference between my oldest son and my youngest son.

5. I would love to find at least one hobby that I am good at instead of a bunch that I'm barely mediocre doing.

6. My dad looks like Sean Connery. If we could only get him to talk with an accent he'd be perfect.

7. Having kids when you are young(early 20's) has a few perks. Abundant energy being one.

8. Having kids when you are mature?(early 40's) also has a few perks. Patience and experience.

9. Being overweight has always depressed me.....I'm ALWAYS overweight! haha

10. I wish I had read with my older kids every night like I do with my younger kids.

11. I absolutely love it that my big kids think my mom is the coolest grandmother in the world. She is, but she was also the coolest mom.

12. My husband and my kids are the most important things in the world to me. Family is SO important.

13. My first name is Erica....middle name Christine. When I was little, and not so little, my own grandmother called me Chrissy Baby. Can't believe I typed that. If anyone calls me that now it had better be my grandmother speaking to me from Heaven otherwise someone will get hurt.

14. I have THE most adorable grandkids.

15. It's embarrassing when the girl at Starbucks knows your name and also knows when you've fallen off the Atkins Diet.
ME- "I'll have a Quad Grande White Mocha stirred well, please".
BARISTA- "Hi Chris. Not doing your Atkins?"
or
ME-"I'll have a Grande Pike's Place Roast with room"
BARISTA- "Hi Chris. Back on Atkins eh?"

16. I have a serious phobia of dentists. I can get light-headed, queasy AND have a panic attack just making an appointment for myself. I can make an appointment for my kids AND take them to the dentist with NO trouble at all. It's only when it concerns MY mouth that it's a problem.

17. I got anxious and queasy just typing that last one! I got anxious and queasy AGAIN while proofreading it before finally posting.

18. I learned to ride a motorcycle when I was about 5. I have a bike now and hope to be riding it while the kids are in school when the weather warms up.

19. I HATE to cook. I'd rather be poked in the eye with a stick. I don't mind baking cookies or cakes but can't stand cooking meals. lol My poor family.

20. I'm only at 20?? OMGosh...what more can I write?

21. I love my iPhone and can't go anywhere without it. It reminds me to do just about everything.

22. I'm pretty handy. I can replace a thermostat on a clothes dryer all by myself. I can take an alternator off of a car, can replace spark plugs and spark plug wires, change oil(if I wanted to! ha) etc etc Oh, in my younger years I helped my dad rebuild my 68 VW bug after it caught fire(fuel pump leak).

23. I love it that my youngest son has my maiden name for his first name. Although, he still doesn't quite understand why his grandparents are Davis' too. Ha!

24. Ok let me say something nice about each of my kids. Jarrett and Rylie are identical.....both very tender-hearted souls. Daniel and Davis are also identical.....both quirky, funny, momma's boys. Heather is Heather. She's independent and her own person. I think she got that from being the youngest and only girl growing up. She could boss those older brothers around like nothing else!

25. Man! I'm hungry. What shall I eat?
"I'll have a Quad Grande White Mocha, stirred well please".
Yeah, no Atkins for me today!

Mixing+Measuring+Baking=Cookies

2009-12-17T10:30:00.000-06:00

So I decided I would do some baking today. Anyone who knows me knows I hate to cook. I actually like to use the word ABHOR because hate is not strong enough. So, I abhor cooking.

I don't like the prep work, I don't like the actual cooking part and I despise the clean-up. If I were single I would probably be eating out a lot, bringing home stuff or ordering in. Alas, I have a husband and two kids so sometimes cooking has to be done. It has to be done on the days that I can't get my dear hubby to do it. Ok so the family does get 3 meals a day somehow, so no worries there.

What I don't mind doing occasionally is baking. I suppose I should be clear here....baking as in boxed cake and cookie mixes etc. I very much like the Toll House cookies that are frozen that you just break apart and throw in the oven. It really doesn't get any easier than that! Anything more than that and it's usually a disaster.

I've tried to make homemade rolled and cut-out Christmas cookies. They burn on the edges and I'm not talented enough to decorate them to look like something Martha could do in the blink of an eye. I have a beautiful book called Cookie Craft that has pictures of some of the most amazingly decorated cookies. If I could make cookies that looked like that I'd be happy to get in the kitchen and sweat over them. But I can't. I've tried royal icing and it never hardened. I've tried the pipe and flood technique. The pipes broke, the flood flooded the countertop.

So, last year at a cookie exchange with a bunch of girlfriends I found a cookie that I really like and when I tried to make it it was a total hit! They go by several names but the most widely-used was Mexican Wedding Cookies. They are light as air, not too sweet on the inside but rolled in powdered sugar, twice!
Very easy to make as well. I guess last year I gave M some to take to work and yesterday he said that a lady at work asked if I'd be making the cookies again.

So yesterday I made 4 batches of the dough. I did not bake them yet. I wanted to split the job into two days so today I'll be baking them. It's so much nicer to do all of the measuring, mixing, dirtying bowls etc all in one day and then bake with a clean kitchen the next day. Maybe it's just me but it makes it more do-able. I tend to lose interest if any baking process takes too long. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one that when making cookies as a young girl, the last batch was one big cookie because I didn't have the patience to see the baking through to the end any other way.

So, the oven is preheated and I'm off to bake. I bought some plastic Christmasy containers too so M can take some to his friend at his office. I'm hoping I'll make plenty to share because I'm only doing this once!

A Non-Snow Snow Day

2009-12-09T00:12:00.001-06:00

This morning all at the exact same time, my home phone rang, my cell phone rang, my cell phone received a text, and I received an email. All of these to tell me that the kids' school was cancelled today. They're nothing if not thorough in their effort to contact parents!

Oh well. We were running late anyway. Davis decided to get back in the shower/tub to play and Rylie watched tv. I climbed back in to bed for a few minutes even though I had had coffee. I got a new CD and I thought that was a good time to check it out. Why is it the most vivid dreams we have are those when we are catnapping etc? weird.

Today was the second time that David Crowder was in my dreams. It was exactly the same scenario as before. I've taken the kids to school and am turning in to my neighborhood....David Crowder is turning out of my neighborhood in a Jeep that matches mine perfectly except he has his logo on the back window AND he's pulling a boat. What is up with that? Twice like a week apart.

So, no school, weird dreams and no snow. Well ok a little snow fell but nothing stuck. No reason the kiddos couldn't have gone to school. My opinion of course but mine is the one that counts since it isn't their headmaster who has to stay home with them!
They were loud and they fought. Rylie decided to clean a little. All three of us danced and sang with Miley Cyrus singing Party in the USA. I'm sorry, but that song is pretty dang upbeat and easy to clean to!

I let the kids go out and play in the freezing sleet. I replied "NO!" when one of them popped their head in the door and asked "Does purple fingers mean I have a frost bite?". I love it that my kids are tough Kansas kids who deal fine with a little cold!
Maybe tomorrow there will be real snow. If not, kids are off to school and I'm still hoping to get in to the dr. for my bp. joy

Blessings!

Time Out

2009-12-06T18:20:00.001-06:00

Not that anyone reads my blog but I'm going to take a few days off from it. My blood pressure is really high, my hands are retaining water like the Hoover Dam and they are going numb all the time. Looks like I'll be heading to the dr's office tomorrow. This along with that high cholesterol I haven't done anything about is going to get me a major lecture from my doctor.

This is just more proof that I've gained NOTHING tangible by quitting smoking. OH, except for the 50 extra pounds I've gained and the lovely self-loathing that comes with that.

My Girls

2009-12-02T17:58:00.000-06:00

Two years ago my grown daughter and I saw an ad for daschund puppies for sale. Mini doxies, golden brown with semi-long hair. They were adorable.

There were two to chose from and I immediately fell in love with one. Thank goodness my daughter told me to pick. About a month later my daughter had to return(with her puppy) to KY where she lived on the Army base while her husband was in Iraq.

My little doxie's name is Emmie. She is a sweet and gentle girl.

Fast-forward a year and a half later. My daughter was having trouble with her doxie(Missy) and housetraining. Because my daughter had 3 little boys and was expecting again, I took Missy in. What else could I do for my Emmie's twin sister?

Both of "the girls"(which is how we refer to them) look very much alike. Emmie is a tiny bit longer with a longer nose. Missy's hair is a little softer. What I love most about the girls is that their personalities are like night and day. Missy is hyper and a real people person...er dog. Emmie is calm and reserved.
While Missy will jump quickly into a lap, roll over and want her belly rubbed. Emmie will give gentle hugs by laying her head in the crook of our necks. Emmie would NEVER be so undignified as to roll over and bare her stomach. Not for anyone. She's a lady through and through. Missy is a tomboy, all rough and tumble. My husband only learned to tell them apart by their actions and not their looks.

My girls are both sweet and loveable and wouldn't it be boring if they both acted exactly the same!?

Of all the pets we've had, these two have stolen my heart.

Adorable Video and yes, I'm a bit biased.

2009-11-28T23:01:00.000-06:00

Is it cheating to post a video when you are too tired to blog?

"Swordfish" from Jarrett Green on Vimeo.

Thanksgiving Karaoke

2009-11-26T22:33:00.000-06:00

Here's a new tradition. Karaoke after Thanksgiving dinner. The big boys(mid-late 20's) are a hoot and have zero inhibitions.

Watching my daughters sing together was interesting. Heather is 23 and Rylie is 8 but they both moved the exact same way and both sang well. It was sweet and you could tell that Rylie was SO HAPPY to have her big sister home if only for a few days.

So yeah it's 10:30 so I imagine this will be going on for hours and hours.

Last night I finally went to bed at 3am! Hubby woke me up in the most wonderful way though.....not what you're thinking. He laid my 2 month old grandaughter down right in front of me and her little face was the first thing I saw. What a thing to wake up to.

I hope all of my online friends and their families are having a wonderful time together.

Blessings to all.

Giving Thanks

2009-11-25T23:05:00.001-06:00

Recently I was re-reading a couple of my posts here on my blog and was a little disappointed that they sounded somewhat whiney. If it sounds like I complain about my life a lot it's because most of it is in jest.

I say a lot of things about living in Wichita Kansas....nothing happens here, no cool entertainment, no great concerts etc. I am VERY thankful that I live here. There is no other place I'd rather raise my kids. I grew up in the Dallas/Ft Worth area and I am so thankful we got transferred here when our adult kids were really little. This city is home.

I also say a lot about my kids. That's because I have so MANY of them. I am SO thankful for my kids. They are my life. Each one is special in so many ways. I'm thankful for the "first family" kids. They call themselves that even though they have the exact same parents the "second family" kids do. They were all mostly grown when we decided to have the last two. They are all funny adults, great parents and good friends. I'm very thankful for them......ask me in 30 yrs or so when they're putting me in a nursing home and I might say differently.

I'm not sure I can express how thankful I am for the little kids. I never imagined(I had hoped) that I'd get the chance to experience the joys of parenthood all over again. Never in a million years would I have thought we'd be doing this again...and I love it. I'm VERY thankful for doctors who do vasectomy reversals! Doing parenthood a 2nd time is different. I have so much more patience now but not near as much energy. I know how to pick my battles and when to let things go. I truly appreciate children now and realize how quickly they are grown up and gone.

Last, but definitely not least. I am thankful for my husband Michael. The man is a saint to have put up with me for over 25 years. I'm thankful for his unfailing love and support of everything I do. I'm thankful that he doesn't mind cooking because I abhor anything in the kitchen. I am thankful that he understood my desire and agreed with me when I chose to be a stay-at-home mom.

I am so very thankful for my life.

Procrastination

2009-11-24T14:27:00.000-06:00

Yep, I've procrastinated. House is a wreck. Company coming tomorrow. I work WONDERFULLY under pressure but I can tell that hubby is getting really worried.

I love procrastinating because I've discovered it's one of those things that I'm really VERY good at.

I've picked up a new Jason Mraz CD and I'll have everything in tip top shape before it has to be.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

I'm trying to try.

2009-11-22T21:02:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note. Last year hubby moved his old big screen tv into the front room to make room for his flat panel. Up until now the kids have just been playing their wii on the old one. It has no cable hooked to it or anything. Well, this weekend I hooked up a DVD player to it. My treadmill sits in front.

Previously I've just never been able to stick with the treadmill because it's SO BORING. All I had was my music to listen to. Well now I'm going to try to watch stuff. I'd rather watch the news or The View or something but the DVD player will suffice. Now, what to watch?

I thought about watching my 24 DVD's from season one. But I've seen all of those so I feel like I need something new to really hold my attention. I have the first season of Seinfeld on DVDs......no, I never ever watched the show but always wanted to. So, that might be good. I totally missed the first season of Lie To Me and if I can talk one of my kids into getting it for me for Christmas....hehe..I'll watch that. So, after Thanksgiving guests are all gone at the end of this coming week I hope to get on that darn treadmill. I'll start out walking and just go from there.

Wish me luck!

Pre-Thanksgiving Panic

2009-11-19T14:28:00.001-06:00

I am starting to get totally panicked about Thanksgiving. It's a week away and I'm already stressed.
I have 11 people descending on my house next Wednesday......3 bedrooms isn't going to hold us all! LOL And those are just the folks coming from out of town. Thursday will include all 6 of my kids with 4 of them having spouses, 8 grandkids, a niece and her boyfriend, and a really good friend. I think that's like 25...of course 10 of them are under 8yrs old. OMG.

Ages of children in my house at one time. 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1, and 6 weeks. I have a very small house!

So, on top of the people, now I have to feed them all. Mind you that wouldn't be such a problem but I ABHOR cooking. I try to do as little cooking as possible on a normal day.

Hubby has informed me that he has taken Tue & Wed off so he can help me. You should read that last sentence as "hubby can cook".
WAIT, just realized. On top of the people, kids, and all of the cooking....my house is a wreck right now. LOL there is so much to do I keep sitting down at my computer in frustration. Where to start, where to start?

I think I need a big bottle of cold water and a list. A list will make it all better. shhhhhh I'll believe it for a little while.

Cool Cars, Tough Decisions

2009-11-17T10:02:00.003-06:00

When my adult kids were little I drove mini-vans. Then I drove a Ford Expedition. After the kids were grown and driving their own cars my husband bought me a Miata. Woohoo! Only two seats. I'd tell the big kids there was only enough room for me and my purse. Oh, and of course having a convertible rocked! When we decided to have more kids hubby and I traded and I went back to driving the Expedition.

So, three years ago we traded the Miata for a Jeep. Not just any Jeep but a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (4 doors) in Rescue Green. It's the coolest vehicle ever.

The day we bought the Jeep was the only day I can remember in my life where I did "the girl thing". The dealership only had two Unlimiteds that day. The Rescue Green, bare bones, and a black one loaded with power and all sorts of good stuff. I chose by color that day and have kicked myself in the ass MANY times since then. It's 2009 Chris! Who rolls their windows up manually? Who has to unlock and lock their doors with a flipping key??? I do. Yes, I have the coolest color car. Yes, it looks totally awesome with the whole top and all 4 doors off. Yes, I love my personalized license plate that says JEEPERS and also my Life Is Good spare tire cover. I DO love the Jeep.

I want power. We always assumed that next Spring we would trade in Rocco. I forgot to mention that my Jeep had a name didn't I? Rocco after Rocco DeLuca and the Burden because they are my all time favorite band and their first CD was the same rescue green color as the Jeep. So, we assumed we'd trade Rocco for another Jeep with power and every other option available. I don't care AT ALL what color it is.

BUT, and here is the tough part. Last night I started thinking about all the things that I don't like about the Jeep. The back seat is cramped. It seats two kids ok but you put that third one in the middle and it's sardine city. The kids in the back seat seem like they are breathing right down your neck too. So, here is what I'm thinking.

I know, it's a depressing thought but something that must be considered. I like the extra room a mini-van would give us. I love the thought of getting kids in and out quickly. The Jeep is hard for the kids to climb in to and Davis at 6 yrs still needs a push on the tush to get up and in. I like the idea of being able to drive for the kids field trips and carry more than one extra kid. I'm sure hubby would like more room as the driver's seat IS a bit cramped.

Well, I have until Spring to think about it. Maybe I'll go have a look at mini-vans to see what's new with them. It's probably time though.

Do mini-van drivers have a "wave" like Jeep owners do? Do they wave at the other drivers of mini-vans? NO? Dang, one more cool thing to lose.

*sigh*

Christmas Joy or Drudgery?

2009-11-15T10:42:00.000-06:00

Wow, just the title of this post screams SCROOGE! I really do like Christmas. I always have. It's just now that I'm a mom and a gramma there are so many people to buy for that it makes shopping almost too impersonal.

I have six kids, four of them with spouses. So, there's ten people right there. Then there are eight grandkids, parents, inlaws etc etc to buy for. Even if I make a long list I feel like I'm not putting a lot of thought into each person's gifts. In years past I would ask the kids(not grandkids) for lists. But just buying from a list makes me feel like I really didn't "pick" a gift for them. Does that make sense?

Three of my grandsons were all born within four months of each other. I refer to those three boys as "the little boys" even though there is another little grandson a year behind them. Last year they were all two years old at Christmastime. So, I pretty much just shopped for them by age and not by personality or tastes. Yes, two year olds do have different tastes. I need to stop shopping for them as a unit, buying three of the same thing and calling it good.

Last, but not least. Money. Yep, it's the root of all evils that makes the world go around but does NOT grow on trees. I have enough to buy decent gifts for everyone. The tricky part is making sure that everyone gets about the same amount spent on them. In the past we've always gone by how much we spent on each person but that does not work well when I find a great item for 75% off of it's normal price. Not that my kids are nasty and compare their gifts to what others get but I definitely don't want any hurt feelings. So, I'm stressing already about shopping. In the next couple of days I hope to make a list of ideas for each person. I need to do something so the shopping part is enjoyable. Let's face it, shopping should NEVER EVER feel like drudgery.

With all that said I must say this- Christmas at our house is wonderful. It's loud and busy, kids laughing, kids crying, music playing, christmas wrapping ripping. We almost lost "the little boys" last year in the 3ft foot tall pile of discarded wrapping paper. It doesn't get any better.

I'll post my shopping experiences soon. Is anyone done with their shopping?

Lists? I make lists.

2009-11-10T14:11:00.002-06:00

Recently on a blog I read there was talk about lists. "Bucket Lists"....things people would like to do in their lifetime. I LOVE lists. I make lists for all types of things. Grocery lists, to do lists, Christmas lists, menu lists, lists for housework, lists for kids' homework, lists of important numbers etc.

Never in my life have a made a list of things I've wanted to accomplish in my life. Yeah, don't get your hopes up because I seriously doubt that I'm going to scratch one out now. At 45, isn't it a bit too late to do that? I've accomplished a few things that would have been on a list I'm sure.

1. Married a wonderful man
2. Became a mom (twice really but that's a long story)
3. Was able to be a stay-at-home mom for my kids
4. Be a grandmother (ok, not sure if that would have made it onto a list when I was younger but there it is)

That's about it.

I didn't go to college, I don't have any skills really, not sure I ever actually picked what I wanted "to be when I grow up". Too late for that? I honestly don't have any desire to go back to school. I would love to get a job where I was still available for my kids before & after school. Not a lot of those out there. I'd love to help with our family finances because private school is expensive but I can't figure out how. If there are real and valid work-at-home jobs there's no way of weeding through the scams etc to find them.
What to do?

Maybe I should make a list but then I'm afraid if I did make one that it would only be a list of things I wish could happen that never would. And wouldn't that be more depressing than just not having a list at all??

I'll have to think more on this. At this point in my life I'm not even sure what a list like that would contain.

pondering.................

I'm not a writer

2009-11-08T10:31:00.000-06:00

I'm not a writer. I recently told a friend that I cannot even write a good grocery list and that's the God's honest truth. Was I not paying attention somewhere in my schooling and missed the "How to Write" lessons? Or maybe, just maybe, writing is one more talent I do not possess. Because it IS talent. I recognize this when I get caught up in someone else's blog and forget what I was doing there.

I use my status as SAHM as an excuse to say that I really don't have anything interesting to blog about. Not everyone who blogs talks about themselves though. As a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, sister, member of the human race there must be something I can try to put in to words that might interest people.

So, I'm going to give it my best shot. Please just remember. I am NOT a writer. I am a reader who would love to learn to write.

What do you think makes a good writer?

Twitter.......

2009-10-07T09:26:00.000-05:00

Twitter has taken over my life. Not that I like to tweet a lot but I love reading interesting people's tweets. Honestly though, when you live in Wichita KS and your jobs include mom, grandma, PTA volunteer and permanent kindergarten volunteer, there's not too much to tweet about. Maybe I'll give the blogging thing a try later.

Blessings!