Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Merry Christmas

We are traveling this week....so blogging will be sparse, but then again I'm not usually real consistent, however I did want to check in this morning while I'm waiting for That Kid to take a shower and say MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

We will be crazy busy, driving all over the place, but we're already having fun....stopped at dh's step-mom's yesterday and took her to lunch and had a great visit, then drove another couple of hours to dh's mom's house. We are on our way back to her house to celebrate Christmas with her tonight with dh's sister and family, and father-in-law's son and his family! The house will be full of loud children and teenagers and even louder adults.....but we'll have a ton of fun!!

Tomorrow we'll drive to Kansas to be with my family. This will be even more loud and more obnoxious, but just as much fun!

Hope ya'll have a great Christmas....and don't forget the Reason for the Season is Jesus!

Friday, December 19, 2008

The Best Day Ever~~!!!

That's what That Other Kid told me numerous times today. Today was his 5th birthday.....omg I cannot believe he is 5 years old! I remember vividly the hours before he was born, the day we brought him home from the hospital, and the Christmas that we celebrated just days after he was born!

But...today was the best day EVER!!

He woke up bright and early and came in to my room....at 7:25 a.m. and declared to me that "today is my birthday! Tell me happy birthday!!" So I did...and then I told him it was too early to get up so get in bed with me and daddy. He proceeded to talk, wiggle, and squirm till 8 a.m. when I told him to get up...so we don't wake daddy. I went to the couch and curled up with my blanket and pillow and snuggled with him till about 8:30 when he decided he had waited long enough to open presents! He went in and woke daddy and That Kid so he could open his presents. Daddy said he needed to take a shower and dress then he could open presents. After waiting FOREVER (actually about 30 minutes) he got to start opening presents! He had guessed 3 of the 5 presents, but still professed that the gifts were AWESOME!!

Then we went to Chuck-E-Cheese with his bff and That Kid, bff's brother and his girlfriend. They had a TON O'FUN and came out with more junk than they both knew what to do with!

After Chuck-E-Cheese we went home for a little while, then went to dinner at his favorite restuarant, Red Robin. We had to drive through a ton of traffic and he fell asleep in his car seat! He hasn't done that forever!! Then he woke up and was grumpy!!! After he had time to wake up more and eat some dinner, he was his normal happy self! We rushed out of Red Robin, and went to his HOCKEY GAME!! The last of this session...he walked in and proceeded to tell every boy and parent in the locker room that he is NOW 5 years old!! How proud he was!! They played their game and WON.... 7 - 1!! Then we went upstairs and had a little party. We handed out goody bags with cookies, brownies, a pencil and a ball! Everyone sang "happy birthday" to him and he was surprisingly shy...

After goodies some of the boys were playing tag and he got pushed down and bruised his elbow and got a rug burn....so now he doesn't like one of the little boys! Of course, just a few minutes before he was one of his best friends! He is ok, but apparently a bruised elbow nearly ruined the BESTEST DAY EVER!!

He was soooooooo tired I managed to get him to sleep only about 30 minutes later than his normal time, and we didn't even get home till 8:30 p.m.

Now I'm sitting here thinking how my baby is growing up....and thinking that his birth day was one of my 2 bestest days ever!


Chuck E Cheese ... and present from best friend!


His new Star Wars Light Saber...one of the presents he guessed!


Blowing out Number 5 candle after hockey game!

Saturday, December 13, 2008

College Campus' Are Not for Old Mommies

Yesterday I took That Kid up to the community college that he is doing dual credits at so he could get all signed up for classes that start in January. It "HAD" to happen yesterday, even though classes don't start till January 20 and I had tons of other things going on....including a college tour at a private university that he is interested in. He didn't want classes to fill up and he wanted to get it done so he wouldn't have to think about it till the middle of January when he would need to go buy books. I can understand and totally relate....but it made for a hectic day for me.

Things were progressing smoothly, till I was leaving the campus to go home and deal with That Other Kid, before going to the University tour. I had put my phone on silent when we went into the admissions office at the community college so if I got a call from home it wouldn't disrupt the administration. I'm all about courtesy, ya know??!! While walking out to the car I'm turning the volume back up on my phone and I trip in a hole in the yard....and HEAR MY ANKLE POP!!! Yes, I did!! It hurt soooo bad, I just wanted to lay down and cry right there in the yard of the school. I managed not to cry and walk down 2 flights of stairs, and on out to the parking lot. I stood and talked to That Kid's girlfriend and her mom, then went home. My ankle is STILL KILLING ME, but I have stuff to do...ya know??!!

I take That Other Kid to babysitter/friends house, go get That Kid at community college and drive to university! Where I see massive buildings....with LOTS OF STAIRS to climb. He LOVES this campus and the university....and was very excited when we left. While driving back to pick up That Other Kid, I realize my ankle is so sore I CANNOT put ANY WEIGHT on it~~and I'm hurting soooo bad I just wanna cry! By the time I actually get back home about 3:45 my ankle is swollen up and cannot be touched! I decide to ice it, and elevate it which is what I should have done at 10:30 ...but ya know, got stuff to do!! By 4:10 dh is telling me we need to go to the urgent care facility. I do their web check-in and they call me to come right in. By the time we arrive a little before 5 my ankle is about a 9 on the 1 to 10 scale. I just know it is broken, which would really ruin my plans for the next couple of weeks, ya know?!

After waiting for about 30 minutes they decide they need to x-ray my ankle, after waiting another 30 minutes the doctor comes in and says that my ankle IS NOT BROKEN....just 2nd degree sprain! Which means my ankle hurts like heck, but I won't be needing a cast and I will be good as new within 2 weeks. He said to follow the RICE plan -- REST, ICE, COMPRESS, and ELEVATE. So...my plans have been altered but I am getting lots of rest and the pain is already starting to go down...at least while I'm sitting here!

Hope you get some rest this Christmas season...but I pray you don't hurt yourself to get it!! It ain't worth it, no 'mam, it ain't!!

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Laughing is Good Medicine

My friend me this and I just sat on my couch and laughed so hard I needed to go to the bathroom, if ya know what I mean!!

If you need a good laugh today, cuz the kids are drivin' you over to the "dark side" take a couple of minutes and watch this!! You won't be sorry.....

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Some Perspective on Needs/Wants




I saw this video today while I was at the All Access site. It is a site put together for women by the people of Lifeway Ministries. If you have never been over there you just have to make it a part of your daily reads. It helps to give me a little more perspective sometimes and it is always fun!

Anywhoooo, this video really spoke to me and helped me remember that we don't "NEED" nearly what we think we do....and there are people out there that really do "NEED" some things, like clean water, food, a warm clothes and shelter!

This just made me appreciate the things in my life a whole lot more....maybe it will affect you the same way.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Family

Happy Birthday to my "little" brother! Of course, he is now OVER 40, and has a wife and 3 kids, a wonderful job....but he is still my little brother. As a kid he was annoying, as a teenager he was a nerd, as a young adult he was a MARINE (best decision he ever made, btw). After leaving the military he became a husband, a father, a college student, now with a MASTERS DEGREE...can ya believe it??? I'm sooooo proud!! But hey, I was supposed to be the one with a college degree....what happened here??

Now he is working at the job he has wanted for years only 2 miles from his home in a small town in Kansas, raising a family and doing what he wants....what a man he has become!! I'm oh sooo proud....
Happy Birthday, little brother!!!

Christmas Meme



Jolynne from Musings of a Housewife posted this great meme about Christmas. It sounded fun and I haven't done a meme in forever!! So here goes:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper unless I'm in a hurry!

2. Real tree or Artificial? Real unless I'm just beyond rushed!! I LOVE the smell of a real tree!

3. When do you put up the tree? The first weekend of December!

4. When do you take the tree down? Right after the first of January, usually the first weekend.

5. Do you like eggnog? YUCK!!!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? The Christmas I was 11 my mom bought me a gift certificate to get my ears pierced!! I was sooo happy!

7. Hardest person to buy for? My parents and dh's mom and step-dad! They have everything they need! and never tell me what they want!

8. Easiest person to buy for? That Other Kid....he's going on 5 and wants EVERYTHING!!

9. Do you have a nativity scene? No, dh is an architect and is very picky about decorations and I've never found one he likes so we don't have one. I keep looking and hoping, though!

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? USPS when I get them done in time!! I bought them right before Thanksgiving and haven't started on them yet....what is my problem???

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't really think of anything just awful...

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It's A Wonderful Life

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I got started this year BEFORE Thanksgiving....can ya believe it??? Normally it's the second or third week in December!!

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No, unless you count the White Elephant gift exchange we did at dh's Christmas party a few years ago!!

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Mother-in-Law's Pumpkin Pie and my grandma's banana bread!

16. Lights on the tree? Yes, what is a tree without lights??? I like white ones that blink!

17. Favorite Christmas song? That too hard to narrow down to 1, how about 3 favorites??? Silent Night, Away in a Manger and Mary, Did You Know?

18.Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travel!! It isn't Christmas if we aren't with other family members and they all live everywhere but here!

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixon! Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen! But do you recall… the most famous reindeer of aaaaaaaaaall… Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer! I copied from Jolynne, sorry!! I'm not sure I could do or not....

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star....we had an angel for a while but it kept falling over so we got a star instead!

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One per person on Christmas Eve, the rest Christmas morning!!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Christmas decorations put out too early. And all the bickering about whether you can say Merry Christmas or not!!??? Come on it's Christmas!! The time of Christ's birth...it's not a holiday it's a HOLY DAY!!

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? I love my Victorian Ornaments...but they don't really go with the "family" traditional ornaments, so we usually alternate throughout the years. We have lots of variety....Seseme Street, hockey guys, and your traditional glass balls!

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Getting the family together!! Of course that may be a given!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I've told my dh that I want a Wii Fit Complete set...I have to lose this weight and anything that will help, I want it!!

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Some Stuff in My Life....

I've been pretty vague on this here blog o'mine for the past few weeks. Things have been a little stressful in our family and I have just been a little too out of sorts to really talk about it, but then this afternoon as I'm sitting here wasting a lovely fall/winter afternoon doing nothing in particular I decided it's time to spill it... Soooo if you don't want to know what's been REALLY happening in my life, just move on. This may take a while, too so feel free to come back when you have more time or just skip it. Few people will really care...and that's ok. This blog is really so I can have a place to rant, ramble, and document stuff.

So....moving on.


The Friday before Thanksgiving I took our 11 1/2 year old Sheltie to the vet. He had all of a sudden decided that That Other Kid's room was the ideal place to pee. Even though he went outside constantly and hasn't done such a thing since he was about 6 months old. At first we didn't think much about it...just deviant behavior from our old-out-of-sorts dog. But, after cleaning up pee in That Other Kid's bedroom for about 3 weeks, I decided he needed to go see the vet....maybe he had something wrong with him that needed to be taken care of.

Boy....was I sadly shocked! The vet couldn't find anything initially wrong with him, but decided to run some blood work on him. His liver counts were out of this world....turns out he was a VERY SICK PUPPY. She gave me some anti-biotics and told me to give them to him and she would call me Monday with the final results from those blood tests. I took him home with me and fed him his lunch, putting the pill in the food. Now keep in mind that this is a dog who BEGS to be fed, every chance he gets. He didn't touch the food and wanted to be outside ALL.THE.TIME! i let him stay outside, giving him water. That night he came in and STILL HE DID NOT EAT!! ALL WEEKEND LONG!! NO FOOD!!! I called the vet Monday, told her he didn't eat, refused meds, etc. She said bring him back the blood work is not good. I bring him back to the vet...and LONG STORY SHORT....Tuesday morning we took him to the vet to be put to sleep. It was a VERY SAD Thanksgiving for our family...

Now that we've had a couple of weeks to adapt the house seems lonely with only our snobby cat. Both boys want a new puppy, but I know I will be the one to potty-train, walk, feed, etc. this new puppy so I said not till spring! I can't deal with all that and cold weather, too...

Moving on...I haven't been feeling all that great, which is hindering my exercise routine, that I had gotten into. I went to the doctor last weekend, because I'm having problems hearing and my ears hurt ALOT!! Not to mention, scratchy throat and sinus headaches. She basically said I have a cold; rest, drink plenty of fluids, and call back if I don't get better....then she charged me $142 because it was the weekend, and they couldn't verify my health insurance benefits. Never mind that they have all my info on file....UGHH...All this while I am trying to lose weight, just doesn't fly well with me. I have to exercise, eat right and feel good....in order to make it happen. This week on Wednesday I have an appointment to see the ENT, maybe he can make me right again.

On the bright side....I have been sleeping BEAUTIFULLY with my CPAP sleep mask! I put it on right before I go to sleep, and I sleep all night long unless someone wakes me!! No getting up to go to the bathroom, no listening to dh snore....just peaceful, deep sleep!! Ah...Now I just need to go to bed earlier...oh well, one step at a time!

Ok...well this is long enough and probably bored everybody to death, but I feel better and it is finally documented....

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

A Little Disappointed


Well today is the first day to check in for the little WeightLoss thang I'm doing with a bunch of other lovely ladies and men. And I'm sad to say I haven't lost weight in 6 lousy weeks!!! Although on the bright side of this I haven't gained any either...whatever. I can't lose weight if the numbers on the scales never go down.

On the bright side, I went to the gym today with my friend and did 20 minutes on the Stairmaster, which I absolutely HATE!! But I heart her so I did it with her so we don't end up working out together but alone, ya know?? And I watched my food intake VERY closely. I am just under 1800 calories for the day, which is what the doctor has told me to do. So hopefully, next week's weigh in will be better....

How did you do????

Monday, December 1, 2008

No Pain, No Gain

Well good news, bad news! I haven't gained any weight in the past 6 weeks, but I also haven't lost any either....that of course is the BAD NEWS. How am I gonna be in my skinny jeans by Christmas if i haven't lost weight in 6 whole weeks???!! What is my problem??? I'll tell you what my problem is.....I can't stay away from COKES and I'm eating more than the 1800 calories that my doctor told me to eat. Well today I'm going to make an effort at doing better. So far, I'm not doing too great though. I've already had a coke from Sonic and a large order of Popcorn Chicken. Did you know there is VERY LITTLE Chicken in the popcorn chicken??? Who'd a guess, huh???
I started my morning off right with a whole wheat english muffin, with peanut butter, yogurt and some juice. I've figured it at about 500 calories. Lunch was my Sonic splurge...I've yet to look those calories up...but need to before I start on dinner. Which is what I should be doing right now....thinking about cooking a wholesome, healthy dinner. Instead, I'm sitting here on my computer wasting time!! I'm wanting to go to the gym tonight, too. We'll see if I make it...