Forgiveness

I have a problem. I bought a fun gift for a friend of mine WAY before Christmas, but it's an odd shape, and I can't find a box that it will fit in so that I can send it to her. I tried to find a box before the shipping deadline, but that didn't happen, because it just barely didn't fit into the diaper box that I was SURE it would fit into. Dangit.
Then the shipping deadline to make it there before Christmas came and went, and I figured I would just wait until Christmas because then maybe someone would give or get a gift in just the right box and then I could send it to her today. That didn't happen, either.
So, I'm taking it into town tomorrow so that I can find a box somewhere else and get this gift into the mail. Even though it's going to be late, at least she'll know that I thought about her. Better late than never, right? I just hope she knows me well enough to know that just because it's late doesn't mean that I bought it in haste.

Our Christmas here was great! It's still not over yet for us, either, because my parents have been in New York all week and are coming back tomorrow. When they're ready to visit, then we'll see them, too, and it will be Christmas all over again! So, I guess I'm technically not late, right?

I just today got my Christmas cards in the mail. I know... they're late too. My husband laughs at me when I say Christmas cards. So, I've renamed them Holiday cards. They'll get there before New Year's... it's all good.

Cleaning Mood

My husband likes to clean more than I do. Now, that doesn’t mean that he does all the cleaning in the house, he is just a little more passionate about it when he does it than I am. I just want to get it done so that I can move on to something else. My husband would rather get it done so that he doesn’t have to do it again for a long time. Doesn’t always work that way when you’re dealing with toilets and showers and such.

Today my husband decided to get into one of his “cleaning moods.” He decided to attack our bedroom with a vengeance. He cleaned up all the clothes that he had tossed in different corners of the room, went through each item in the closet, both hanging and on the floor. Then he vacuumed the closet and our bedroom. Then he cleaned every inch of the bathroom floor and shower.

Why do I bring this up? I am applauding the works of my husband, yes, but I also have a secret gripe that I would never tell him, for fear of the argument that would ensue because he thinks he’s a “better cleaner” than I am, and the fact that he would never clean again.

My secret gripe is that the more that my husband thinks he is cleaning, the messier the area around him becomes. I can’t see the countertop in my bedroom right now because everything that was in the shower (shampoo, conditioner, facial soap, other soaps and cleaners) is now on my countertop. And in my bedroom, everything that he picked up off the floor to get out of the way of the vacuum cleaner is now sitting on top of my bed, making it impossible for me to get into. Do I dare move any of this stuff? Of course! Because one thing I know about my husband is that he can’t finish a job. The funny part is that I usually can’t either. So, one of us starts and one of us finishes. That’s why we work so well together.

Annoyance

I have this nagging annoyance, where I will lay in bed and think of my day and have plenty of things that I remember that I could blog about, except that I don't write them down, which means that I don't remember them in the morning. And if I don't remember them in the morning, I can't blog about them. And if I can't blog about them, then I don't have anything to blog about, and then my friends give me a hard time for not blogging more often. Oh well, the circle continues...

So, while sitting here thinking about what I could remember from last night's unwritten drafts, I hear a honking. I know I've said it before, but we don't live in a neighborhood or anything where other people are close to us. We like being in a place where you have to want to be there. So, today I had to have two teeth pulled and two fillings put in, so I'm curled up on the couch still pretty numb from the eye down half of my neck on one side. A honk outside is the last thing I wanted to hear. So, I go to the door and see our mailperson, waiting on me to come out to the car to get my mail. I don't have shoes on, so I had to take off my socks so that I could walk in the wet grass to get the package and mail that she couldn't get out of the car to give me. And the dogs weren't anywhere around, either! Anyway. Done ranting about people that do good things for me.

Hope that your holiday season is full of happiness and laughter! I'll post more when Micheal gives me more fodder for the fire! :)

Love and Hate

On our way out for a quick road trip this morning, my hubby and I started out the morning getting a quick bite to eat on the road. While sitting there, I watched a man pull up in his car, smoking his cigarette. Instead of finishing his cigarette in the car and then putting it in his ashtray, he got out of the car, puffed a little more, and then threw it on the ground and stamped it out. Even though there was also an ashtray right in front of the door that he was about to go in through. Frustrating. I can't stand that. Why dirty my world just because you're too lazy to dispose of your own trash?
Now, I'm not a smoker, never have been, and never will be. Maybe that's why that kind of thing really gets under my skin so easily. Anyway, not the moral of the story today.

So, hubby and I met up with family friends at their house to share a Christmas dinner a little early, two hours away from our house, minus one child. He was already at Grandma's house and was going to meet us there, so it was a fun drive for just the two of us. It's neat how sometimes you forget what you have to talk about without your child around. And then when you have two hours alone together in a confined space, without the TV or child, or telephone or anything else to interrupt you, you can fall in love with the man you know as the father of your child, or the love of your life and somehow forget that he isn't just another child or a roommate. I'm so glad that today we had the chance to reconnect once again on an adult level, not just a connection of what the week holds in store for you and your child. If you haven't talked to your spouse lately, and I mean really talk, then you should do that very soon. Everyone likes to feel loved.

I Saw the Sign

While in my puttering around town the past few days, I have seen a sign on several business and church signs saying the same thing. I am not saying that I don't agree with what the sign says, I am just stuck on the order of the words.

The signs all say, "Keep the Son in your Eyes" and I just don't know if I like the way it rolls off my tongue.

I know that the gist of it is supposed to remind people to really Remember the Reason for the Season, but I just wonder whether it should have said Keep your Eyes on the Son.

I also know that most signs on churches are just supposed to make you think... like the one at the church that says "Sign Broken... Message Inside" but this sign that is at the car wash, on a church sign, and somewhere else that I can't remember right now.

Either way, I just would rather see signs that didn't make me question my ability to understand English.

Now, back into the car to finish the last bits of shopping before all the holiday travelling starts tomorrow.

Good grief

I'm sitting here watching "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" with my child, wondering when the word "Stupid" was okay to use on a kids' cartoon show!
I remember watching Charlie Brown every Halloween waiting for the Great Pumpkin, and at Christmas, too, but I don't remember my mom sitting behind me reminding me that "we don't say that word" very often during one of their shows. But, here I sit, listening to words that I would rather my two-year old son not copy from the television show. What now? Am I only going to let him watch Little Einsteins and Wonder Pets forever and ever? I just don't know about this.

Today was an exciting day, though! We got our back sliding glass door replaced today, and it only took the guys six hours instead of about four. Our door was pretty hard to fit apparently. They kept trimming more and more off the frame, and taking more and more off the original hole in the wall to make the new door fit. Argh. But, six hours later, it is all done, and I am so excited to be able to see out my back door again!

What a great way to start off my break! I really needed a good thing to happen this week. Maybe tomorrow something good will happen, too!

Stress, Stress, and More Stress

To take the title from the pastor's sermon at church this morning, this could completely describe my life right now.
Thank God for the week-long vacation that we have been given this week for Thanksgiving. I am super excited that Micheal and I get to go home to my parents' house for a great meal and some quality time with family. I love this time of year! Not the fact that we eat way too much, but the time that we get to take off of work and share that time with each other. And right now, that's exactly what I need. A way to get away from my every day life and enjoy some time with my family. I just wish that my husband didn't have to work and could come with us, but that's the joys of having the job he has, no rest for the weary! :)
Here's to hoping that your week is just as restful and enjoyable, and that you take a little time to be thankful for the things you have and the people around you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

No joke...

On my way home tonight, I drove by a house with Christmas lights up around the edge of the roof and twinkling... along with a twinkling Christmas tree in the window. Is it time for that already?

I know that the stores already put out Christmas stuff even before Halloween was here, but that's going a little far for me.

We turn ours on about a week after Thanksgiving, whenever we can get a day off together to get outside.

What about you? Are you an early bird? Or do you just leave them up all year long and turn them on in December?

Frustrations

I have tried twice to put up the pictures from our picture-taking visit to the Pumpkin Patch this year. I hate dial-up.

Micheal starting coughing about two weeks ago, and after a couple different tries of medicines recommended by a call to the doctor's office, I think we're just going to have to wait the time it takes to sit in the office and get some real medicine.

I started having some congestion Wednesday night, and ended up losing my voice. Even though I shouldn't have, I went to school on Thursday, feeling crummy, but Friday was better, and I could talk better. I guess I shouldn't have done that, either, because today was worse than the two days combined. I have only a whisper left, and the coughing won't stop for me, either. And is there any medicine in the house? Of course not! Because when someone else is sick, it gets used without replacement, or even getting put on the list. I usually try to keep a little bit of everything we usually use on hand, becuase no one wants to have to make a late night run to Walmart for a medicine.

Then today, Micheal started running a fever, and at 5 announced that he needed to go to his bed and lay down. I tried to talk him out of it, but he did it anyway. And he's been out ever since. We'll see if we wake up really early because of it.

Yesterday I found out that a girl that I went to junior high with died on Wednesday. I know that sounds random, but she lived here in the same town that I do, even though I hadn't talked to her in over three years. Her best friend was also a friend of mine from junior high, and she also went to school here, followed by her younger brother, who happens to need some help with his College Algebra. And guess whose name his professor gave him for a tutor? Me! Strange world, huh?

Bad Equation

One juice box

PLUS

One quiet boy in the backseat

EQUALS

One big wet mess in the backseat of my car.

Random Musings

• A well-deserved weekend alone isn't always what you wanted by the end of the weekend. It starts getting a little lonely when you're used to noise all around you and for four days there is none.
• There is nothing better than painting a room. It feels great to get rid of someone else's smudges and blemishes, and put a new clean coat of paint over anything that once was theirs.
• It's a million times easier to paint a room without a two-year old running around and putting his little fingers into everything because he wants to "help."
• My house feels better now that I've got a room painted and curtains hanging!
• I miss talking to my friends because I'm too tired to pick up the phone.
• I miss my mom and sister because they live in the same house now and don't need to talk to me as much as they did when my sister lived here.
• I sound like a pity party all of a sudden.
• I'm tired.
• I have to be at school before 7am tomorrow. I've got to go to bed.

Sweetest Thing...

As of Tuesday, I am another year older and a few pounds heavier. My husband and son took me to dinner and we just had to have some ice cream afterward. And even though it was so good that I couldn't finish it all, that's not the sweet thing I'm talking about.

Tuesday morning, Micheal woke up to get ready to go to his first day of "school" at the new daycare, and he was all smiles. He talked about going to school to see his friend, and how he was excited to take his backpack with him and everything! It was great! Daddy dropped him off and picked him up, and when I got home from school, I opened the door and heard my beautiful child yelling, "Mommy's home!!" That has got to be the coolest feeling. Right next to the sound of my two and a half year old son singing Happy Birthday Mommy over and over again, without any prompting from Mommy or Daddy! :) He's so sweet!

Hope you've had a sweet thing happen, too, because October is a month full of candy related incidences, which means it HAS to be a month full of sweets!

Friends of All Ages

I have grown old enough now to know that friends come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and from all walks of life. There are the friends that see you every day and still don't mind talking to you. There are the friends that you see once or twice a week, and you tell them everything that happened in the days since you last met. There are the friends that you see maybe once a month, if that often, and you make sure that you hit the highlights of your month so that you can still feel like you're a part of their lives and vice versa. Then there are the friends that you may not talk to more than three or four times a year, but in those get togethers, the day to day junk isn't important, and the real conversation begins. These are the ones where the pleasantries get over with very early, and you get down to the business of really getting into the other person's head, and doing what friends do best, listening and helping them sort their thoughts, or whatever else they may need you for.
Today, I had such a visit. I got to have lunch today with a friend that I don't get to see very often, but when we do get together, it fills my heart with such a warmth that I know that it doesn't matter how long it is between visits, because as soon as I see her again, the warmth will return.
Then, on my way home, I ran into a former student at the gas station. This student is the one that I have always said that I would like my child to grow up to be most like. He is the most polite young man, and I am really excited to see what he does as he gets older, because whatever it is, he's going to be great at it. He's the kind of former student that I don't just see and wave as I walk by, he's the kind where I like to sit and talk and listen to how he's doing and what his accomplishments have been so far, and everytime I do, I know that I played a small part in his initial success in college, and that makes me feel so much better about the kind of teacher that I was for him and the group he was in.
So, was today a feel good kind of day? You betcha!
Hope you had a good one, too!

Spanish Lessons

My son started his first lessons in Spanish today. Not in a class, but at the home of three of my former students' mother's. She has seven children, one I never had, three more just graduated in the past two years, and the other three are in the 1st through 4th grades. She definitely has the capability to take care of one little two year old. At first I was worried about leaving him there, though, because she speaks no English, and he speaks no Spanish.
So, we got to her house this morning, and he didn't want to get out of the car, but I told him she would have all sorts of toys, and he immediately saw the bicycles and basketball goals outside, so he decided it would be okay. When we got up to her door, she was waiting for us, and he immediately told her that he needed to play with her toys! He didn't have shoes on, and she didn't want his feet to get cold, so she found his shoes in the bag and he knew to sit down and she put them on. Then, they stood up, and he said, "Come on! Let's go find your toys!" I asked for a kiss, and he hurridly gave me one, and I told him to have a good day, and he echoed me and then said, "Bye, Mommy!" No tears, no lingering, no yanking on my legs, no throwing a fit! It was WONDERFUL!
In the short two minutes that I was in the house, I was at first worried about their communication, but then I watched them, and they figured each other out pretty quickly! When I picked him up this afternoon, she said that they had a fun day, and Micheal was in a good mood, still! We talked about putting away toys, and I told him that he could play with them tomorrow if he wanted to come back, and he said that he did! What a difference a happy boy in the morning makes!
Micheal will have three days of Spanish lessons, and then he'll be home with me for the weekend. Then, next week, we start him at a daycare in town, which means I'll have to drive more every morning and afternoon, which I'm not excited about, but that's okay. It will also be my excuse to be in town and go work out after school when I go to pick him up. The best thing about the daycare is that his best friend Hannah will be there, too, in the same room, so that should make his transition a little easier!

My husband and I have been pretty stressed out about this for a week, and we kept telling each other and hearing from our friends and parents that God would take care of us if we put our trust in Him. Not that we didn't believe it before, but I just want to reaffirm the fact that the things that you think really don't need a lot of prayer can always be better with a little prayer.

I hope you take all or your concerns and dilemmas to Him in prayer, because no matter how small or big you think it is, God will take care of you, too! :)

Night and Day

It's amazing how my child's attitude is the difference between night and day now that I have taken him out of the situation at the babysitter's house that he didn't like. Do I have another babysitter lined up yet for this week? Nope. Am I worried? NO! Because I am enjoying the fact that my child doesn't go to bed in a bad mood and then wake up mad at me anymore.

So, long story short, my child didn't like the babysitter's house. I think he was ignored and didn't have anyone to play with, so it wasn't any fun. I also think that he got made the example for the younger boys, and being the one in trouble all the time just isn't any fun at all. So, we decided to take him out of that environment, and so far, I've had nothing but good feelings about it for three days. What lesson did I learn? Listen to my instinct, because apparently, I was right.

Wish

My sister had to visit our fair city the other day for a career fair at the college. Since she was in town, there was no way we were going to let her come to town and not go see her. So, we came home from school, packed up the things that I wanted to give her, and went into town. When we went to see her, she brought Micheal and I some fun things, mainly for Micheal, though.
She brought him some clothes for the winter, his Halloween costume, some books and a starfish Beanie Baby.
He really wasn't that interested in the starfish that night, but he was really interested in it the next morning. So interested, in fact, that he carries it with him everywhere now, and he named it. When I ask him where his starfish is, he tells me "No, Mommy! It's not a starfish, it's MY BABY!" The tag says that it's name is "Wish" after Wish Upon a Star, except that Micheal apparently doesn't like that name, so it's new name is My Baby.
At least it's not a boy playing with dolls, right?

Move Outta My Way!

Last weekend we got to take Micheal on a tour of the fire station downtown. Micheal thinks that Daddy's police car is just as cool as can be, so to be able to see a firetruck up close and personal was almost more than he could bear!






He got to get inside two of the firetrucks, and waved to us and talked about what sounds a firetruck made, and what they did. He was so happy! He asked the fireman about everything he saw, "What's that?" and even if he didn't understand, he'd say "That's cool!"




The whole way home all he could talk about was getting to drive the firetruck and how that fireman tickled him when he was leaving.


Does anyone else see a future profession in his mind?

BIG

Last weekend was a BIG weekend for my little Micheal.
We started out the weekend by switching his sleeping arrangements from his baby crib into the daybed we had in the guestroom.

Only now we don’t call it the guest bed, now we call it his BIG BOY bed. He absolutely LOVES it!

I’ve only had a problem with him getting out of it once, and that was because he didn’t feel good. But once I tucked him in right, then he fell asleep. He wakes up in the morning and asks to get up; he doesn’t just jump up, so that’s a good thing. But I think I’m having a harder time adjusting to this than he is. I just can’t get over the fact that he’s not my tiny baby anymore. He’s really getting bigger, and I get scared that the next time I blink, he’s going to be 18 and going off to college! AAAHHH!!!

Strike Me Blind, Or Learn How to Dress

I wish that part of growing up meant that there was a pass or fail class that taught everyone the basics of dressing.
If I have to see another girl wearing a white shirt with anything other than a white or nude colored bra underneath it, I think I'm going to scream! I don't understand why people walk out of the house intentionally wearing a white tank top and a black bra!
I also don't understand boys that walk around with their pants down around their ankles, because what's the point of wearing them at all?
Twice this week, I have gone somewhere and been embarrassed for them. Why can't they either be embarrassed for themselves or just not wear it to begin with? This drives me nuts!

Okay, rant over.

Busy Bees

If you haven't noticed, I have been sadly neglecting my duties as a blogger. I have gotten to the point where I had to push one or two things to the back burner so that I could get other things done during this busy time of the first couple weeks of school. So, instead of shucking a husband and kid, I haven't gotten online in a week.
The other reason for this is that my husband has had the computer so that he can get his homework done for the week-long class he was taking. The funny part is that it was an instructor course, teaching them how to make lesson plans and teach a lesson. So, needless to say, I helped a little on his homework and typing his lesson plans. Which then meant that I didn't get my stuff done before it was bedtime, so I didn't go to bed before 11 any night this week. I have been exhausted. Thank God for a Saturday with no plans. So, now I can catch up on all the housework that has been neglected as well.
So, I better get going on that, and have something done by the time my husband gets back home today.
I have another post in the making, so I'll get that done and update you all soon!

Phone Harrassment

I'm being harrassed over the phone, and there's nothing I can do about it.
More than seven years ago, I got my own apartment and phone number. Since then, this number has moved with me three times as I've gotten married, bought a house, and had a child. Not once in seven years has this phone number of mine been disconnected, been someone else's, or even been under a different name. But still, the phone calls come, and always for the same person. It is SO aggravating!! And even a little embarassing when company is over.

Somehow, the telephone company thought they would be funny and give me the old phone number of someone they must have taken it away from because she didn't pay her bills. And the phone company isn't the only company to which she owes money.

I've never met this woman, but I have a phone book, so anytime one of those wonderful collection companies actually puts a real person on the line, I pull it out, look her up and give them a more recent number. I think she knows that I hate getting these calls, so everytime that she borrows money or buys something on credit, I think she puts my phone number on the application ON PURPOSE!!

One day, we got six phone calls in the span of four hours, all from the same collection agency. Five times we told them the same thing I've been saying for seven years, "I'm sorry, I don't know that person, this has been MY phone number for the last seven years! Take this number out of her file and please stop calling me." And everytime, they promise they will but then we got that sixth phone call and all heck broke loose. My husband's face turns red, his eyes get big, his blood pressure starts rising and he starts using his "cop voice," (You know, the really authoritative one) and saying the phrase, "No, that's not enough. Here's what you're gonna do, or else I 'm gonna file phone harrassment charges on you and your company!" But when he says this, he knows he can't back that up because that's not how the law was written.

Anyway, these calls have been coming in spurts every couple of months for the past seven years, and I am just plain tired of it. We've even called this woman to tell her to quit using our number as a reference, and she swears she never even knew that number. LIAR!!

It's just so annoying! It's not always the same number, so I can't block the calls, and I ignore them all the time using my Caller ID, but they always call back, and it's ALWAYS at dinner time. Any other suggestions?

I just wish I had been cursed with someone else's old phone number, and not someone who owed the whole town money.

Is he right?

I wore a brand new skirt to work today. Like, cut the tags off and put it on.

When I got home, I told my husband that I got a lot of comments on my new skirt today, and he said, "Why, 'cause you didn't wash it first?"

I replied that I never wash skirts or shirts of this material before I wear them, because then they wouldn't fit the right way afterward, and you have to at least get one wearing out of it if it's new!

He didn't agree. Who do you agree with? Do you wash EVERYTHING before you wear it? What about for your kids? I used to wash it all, but now if I can get away with my husband not seeing the tags come off, then I can "fib" and tell him that it has been washed already. Am I wrong? Could he be right? Say it ain't so!

Never Too Early

It's never too early to train him to do the jobs that I don't like to do, is it?

Don't worry, I had already cleaned it before he put his hands on it...

Sure looks like he's having fun, huh?

Don't you wish you could think cleaning the toilets was fun again?

Back In Session

School's back in, kids started back yesterday, and already, I feel like I'm way behind. I feel like there is so much that I need to do, and I don't know when I'll find the time to do it all. I have a nice conference period right in the middle of the day, so you'd think that would be a good time to get things going, right? Wrong. I have no room during my conference period. There is another teacher that has a class in my room during that period. It's really frustrating. So, I have to pick up all my stuff and get out when the other teacher comes in, and then I have fifty minutes to hang out somewhere else. It's kind of hard to get myself into anything when I know that I only have a short amount of time before I need to pick up all my stuff again and go back to my room.
And the worst part? The computer censor on my school's server has blocked all my blog reads. So, I really do have to find work or something to do during that time. I used to use the last twenty minutes of my day when the kids have gone to catch up on my "reading" but now I can't. I guess I could use that time to do the things I didn't get to do during my conference period. Man! I don't like having to actually WORK at work!

Follower I Be

Today I had to drive to a different school district for a county-wide inservice thing. Ugh. Anyway. I live out in the middle of nowhere, and this district is in another part of the woods, with no road that just plain connects the two. So, my husband tells me to go the shorter way, along a few county roads, which would keep me away from having to go all the way into town and then back out into the woods again the other way.
This wasn't so bad, except that as I turned onto the road, another car turned in behind me, and then my stress began.
I didn't know the road very well, and then to have someone behind me, I felt pressured to go faster than I felt comfortable doing, I didn't know waht the heck I was doing, and I just wanted to pull over and let him go around me so that I didn't seem like that stupid woman driver that men always joke about. Luckily, he wasn't behind me on all the roads, just one of them, and then it wasn't so bad.
On the way home, I got to follow someone who knew the roads a little better, and I felt much more relaxed about it. I never really thought that I was a follower, but apparently, I am. Oh well.

So Lazy

I am so lazy that I would rather connect to the Internet on my slow dial-up connection and leave it connected all day just so that I don't have to get up and go stand by the counter to talk on the phone. Not that it rings off the wall or anything, I just hate having to get up from what I was doing to go and answer the phone. I miss my cordless phones. I guess I'll have to make a Walmart trip pretty soon. Ugh.

When it rains...

It pours.
My cup runneth over, and not in a good way today. Beware that this post may seem to be a little whiney, which I apologize for, but I just had to get it out before I whined to my husband and made his day even worse. If this bothers you, you are in no way required to stay and listen.

First, the day before we went away on vacation, our hot water heater went out and we had to fork over money to buy a newer, bigger one.

Second, while we were away, my husband decides that the tires on my car are so worn out that it would be dangerous to drive anymore on them at all, and we have to replace them now.

Third, we went away the next weekend for my reunion and came back to a heated house, to which we immediately called the AC repair guy to come fix it. The next day, it was fixed.

Fourth, my tooth starting hurting, so I went to the dentist and found out I needed a root canal. Yeah. After the root canal, they tell me that now I need a crown. One appointment after another, and now I have a temporary, with another appointment coming in about three weeks to put the crown on. Argh.

Fifth, last night I was on the phone with a friend who needed some advice and a little something to get her mind off of crying, when the lights all blinked, and suddenly, she couldn't hear me on the phone anymore. In fact, I can't dial out on that phone, either. It's not the phone line, just the phones. Argh. So, I pulled out the corded one that we keep for when the power goes out, and that's all we have now. Why did I sell the phone in the garage sale last week again?

Sixth, while my husband was installing door chains on all our doors, he also decided to put one on the sliding glass door at the back, and ended up finding out that the glass goes farther into the edge than he thought. So, the glass busted and now we look like hurricane expectees, with duct tape all over the window, waiting for it to all fall into my kitchen floor. While calling to find out how to replace the glass, I'm finding out that to only replace the double-paned glass will cost just as much as it would cost to replace the entire set of doors. So, what to do? For now, Micheal is banned from going in the kitchen, because the one minute he goes near the door is the minute that all the glass is going to fall out. It's hard to keep a two-year-old out of the kitchen and away from the door that he plays near the most. Double argh.

When it rains, it pours. I wish it would pour money instead of debt. This bites. And I have to go back to school and deal with a new batch of freshmen in four days. Well, the freshmen won't be there that soon, but it's still soon enough.
Anyway. Rant is over. Thanks for letting me vent.

New Business

I am not as good as my friend, Amanda Sue, when it comes to garage sales and earning good money off of them, so instead I decided to try to pick out one of the things that didn't sell at the garage sale and try my hand at an ebay auction. So, if you're in the market for a glass pitcher and six tall glasses with dancing Santas on them, then please, go here!

I wish...

I wish that I could blame this on my child.

Unfortunately, I can not.
I was walking into the kitchen (for some forgotten reason) while shaking my fingernail polish bottle so that I could paint my nails and decide whether I liked the color or not, when it slipped from my hand and broke into pieces on the floor, spreading pink spots all over the floor.

I guess I don't have to decide about the color anymore.

Already?

Has it already been ten years since I've graduated from high school?

Apparently so, since my ten year high school reunion is this weekend. Argh.

I want to go for purely evil reasons, and a couple curiosity issues, but we shall see which ones win out this weekend.

I will get to hang out with a few people that I don't usually get to hang out with, though, so maybe that will make up for the whole "showing-people-how-much-weight-I've-gained" thing.

Full Circle

In high school, I had a pretty good job at a kid-friendly place called Discovery Zone. I got that job because my best friend, Megan, worked there too. Eventually, we got our other friend to work there, too, and we had a grand old time, planning parties and bouncing with the kids in the tubes and balls and arcade games. It was loads of fun. Then we graduated and I went off to college. My friend, Megan went off, too, but she found another job that she could take with her when she went off. So, like the good friend she was, she got me to join her again. So, I started working for a company named Vector. They trained me to demo and sell Cutco cutlery. This was supposed to be the easiest job ever, because I could go off to school and take it with me, and build my own customer base in a different city. There was only one problem. You have to be a salesperson to sell things. I am not a good salesperson. If you didn’t want it, I didn’t make you want it, but Megan sure did. She was good at all of this selling stuff and really did a good job at recruiting other people to do it too. So, she was making much better money than I was. I just wasn’t motivated at all. So, I quit selling and moved on with my life, to more fun college related things of course, and the job that put me in the right place to meet my husband.

Ten years later, I get a phone call from a former student, telling me that he got a new job with Vector and he wants to know if he can come to my house and do a demo. I laugh and tell him that would be fine, but I leave out the part where I know have the same set of knives that he’s going to show me, and that I won’t be buying anything today. I will, however, get the address from him where I can send my wonderful set of cutlery to get re-sharpened, because ten years later, they’re just starting to show some wear, and they are under a lifetime guarantee! J

So, if anyone else needs a really good set of knives, I can set you up with a couple people that can line you out with the best in cutlery there is. Or, I can get you lined up with a summer job for a couple quick bucks.

Specificity

My son's latest "thing"/fascination/ultimate happiness is his cars. Everywhere he goes, he finds any vehicle with wheels and immediately wants to "hold it." In fact, any time we leave the house, he HAS TO bring a few cars with him, one for each hand to hold as he goes along for the ride. He knows to leave them in his seat when he gets out of the car, and he looks for them again when we get back in. This fascination has even been known to last at naptime and bedtime, when he wants to take one or two to bed with him. Luckily, it's not to play with them, only to hold them.

But, in all this car/truck holding, there's not a specific pattern to his wants. He knows EXACTLY which car or truck he wants for specific trips. Long trips need different vehicles than trips to the store, apparently. You can't just pick up two cars and hand them to him and expect that to appease his wants. No. You. Can't. They have to be the specific ones he's looking for. The white police car, the red race car, the yellow car, the green truck... you name it, he's got it, and the OTHER yellow car will not be good enough, because that's NOT the one he wants.

I knew that my child was opinionated, and I know that he likes things in certain orders, but MY GOODNESS! I had no idea he could be so specific in his needs/wants. Wow. We have a long way to go.

It's Not November

Due to financial constraints lately, our budget has been stretched pretty thin, even though there are still mouths to feed, and not a lot of money to go buy loads of food. So, I decided to get creative with what we had in the pantry and freezer.
Every year, our school gives us a certificate for a turkey for Christmas. So, we usually use it at the time they have the buy-a-turkey-get-a-ham sale. Then, the husband got a turkey given to him last year, too. So, now we have too many turkeys and not enough holidays to eat them.
So, this week I decided to cook one. My thought is that it will be a really good dinner, and then it will be really good leftovers for the rest of the week. I can think of lots of things to do with turkey... sandwiches, on top of bread, with rice... lots of things...

Anyone have any other ideas of what to do with my leftovers?

Figure It Out

About a week ago, I attended two different weddings. They were very different, and I noticed something very important about the difference as well. Let’s see if you can figure it out, too.

Wedding #1 vs. Wedding #2

Date:
Wednesday
Saturday

Place:
Outside locale, both weddings

Time:
6 p.m. summer heat, in the sun
7 p.m. summer evening, in the shade

Length of service:
3 minutes, tops
15 minutes

Friends and Family attending:
No more than 40
More than 150

Theme:
Renaissance
Summertime flowers

Bride Wore:
White Satin dress with black belt and rainbow fairy wings
White Satin dress cinched at the waist that made her look like an angel

Reception:
6 tables with no interaction, only traditional part was the cake that was white
Beautiful layout of food, friends and family all talking and dancing, and two beautiful cakes

Conversation overheard from guests:
Keeping the bag from her tummy tuck hidden, even though she (and her girlfriend) was telling everyone about it anyway, along with how drunk they were going to be that weekend.
How they knew the couple or anyone else in attendance… fun, family-friendly conversations.

When I left:
I felt sorry for them, wondering how they’re going to make it
I felt excited about their new beginning.

Can you tell the difference?

I can.

What a difference God makes.

End of an Era

I found out this morning that my babysitter is no longer my babysitter. She has decided to take a job with her uncle that will pay her a WHOLE lot more money, and she'll get to go to school at the same time. She needs to get some higher education, and she needs to see how life is after high school, while her child is off to Pre-K. She doesn't need to sit around and wonder what he's doing all day while sitting at home with other kiddos... even if one of them is mine. I'm happy for her, and at the same time, terrified. Now I have to find a replacement for the best thing that could have ever happened to my child. God directed us to her two years ago, and now I'm asking Him again for guidance in the right direction. We have one recommendation from the sitter, but I'm not completely sold on her yet... I guess tomorrow is an on-the-phone day, calling everyone I know to put some feelers out there. We'll see what I get.

In other news, the student of mine that is like my child had her baby last week, and I got to go see them yesterday. She is absolutely beautiful! The little baby girl looks just like her mom, and she is great! I'm so proud of them both!

Quick Clean

Know the fastest way to get your house clean?

Invite someone to come over that you've never met before. If you already know the person you invite over, you won't clean, because they know you're lazy anyway. But if you don't know the person coming over very well, then they don't know that you're lazy and don't like to clean. So, you have to make a feeble attempt to look like you're not.
Of course, I think the dishes in the sink that didn't make it into the dishwasher before they got here probably gave me away.

Accomplishments

Today I emptied the dishwasher, loaded all the dirty dishes into the once empty dishwasher, and put off doing everything else so that I could go swimming in the pool with Little Man. (Because after two weeks of being under repair, it is finally swimmable!) And today we had a first! He didn’t freak out when he got water in his mouth, and we’re working on kicking and paddling all together. He even let go of my hand and "swam" (with floaties) to the steps by himself! Three times! I’d say that was a full day.

What is a cebu anyway?

My mother warned me a few months ago that the little cute television shows that Little Man was watching then wouldn’t be what he wanted to watch pretty soon. I’m okay with that, except if it means that we start watching shows that I don’t really want him to watch yet, like Sponge Bob or other cartoons made for older children. We shall see. But for now, Little Man has decided that he has a new favorite movie. We have been infatuated with Finding Nemo for a little over a year now, and he still really like it, but now he wakes up asking to watch the space man and the Cowboy. What a boy. Now that it’s summertime, the television stations know that no one is home watching tv, so on Saturday nights, they have been playing Disney Movies. It’s been fun. So, we’ve been using our DVR and have been recording the movies, and for the past two weeks, the movies were Toy Story 1 & 2. Now that we have it recorded, I don’t even have to go and get the DVD out, all I have to do is push a button and the space man comes back. It’s fun. He gets so excited, and if you’re not in the room watching it with him, he’ll run around to find you so that he can tell you about what’s going on at that point in the movie. He also likes to be a space man himself. He’ll dump out all of the 30+ pieces in the Mr. Potato Head Family Bucket, and then put it on his head and tell me he’s a space man. "Wook at me, Mommy! I space man!" He’s funny.

He also likes to watch any of the Veggie Tales videos. His wonderful aunt bought him the Ultimate Silly Song Collection and now he has a few favorite songs that he asks to hear. Then his Grandmama bought him the CD so that he can listen to it in the car, and now all we hear about are hairbrushes, cheeseburgers and cebus. And what is a cebu anyway? According to Larry the Cucumber, it’s the cousin of a bull… like a cow. Just watch the multi-media event, then you’ll know. Cebu-moo-moo, achoo-moo-moo, boohoo-moo-moo, cebu-moo-moo, cebu-moo-moo , cebu-moo-moo-moo-moo.

Birthday Wishes

Just a quick note to tell you all to go to my little sister's page and wish her a very happy birthday! I won't tell you how old she is today, because that would then imply how old I am, and I try very hard to hide that... :)

Go see her! Wish for her great things!

Hurry Up and Wait

Yesterday was Little Man's 2 year-old well baby visit. He was also scheduled to get a shot as well, which is why I asked The Husband to go with me. This messed up his planned morning, and he had to adjust his schedule to accomodate ours... strike one.

Then we forgot about the shot record until we were pulling out of the driveway, and still couldn't find it when he went in to look for it, which then made us run a little later than we wanted to, so that's even more fun...

When we got there, The Husband sees the waiting room full of people and sets an hour time limit. If we're not out of the waiting room in an hour, we're gone. And then we have to set a time limit for sitting in the exam room, too.

We sit, and we wait, and we play with blocks and read books, and keep away from other kids that are actually sick, and then we wait some more. After about 45 minutes, we are finally called back to get weighed and measured. Which L.M. doesn't like, and Mommy and Daddy have to do it so that the nurse doesn't touch him, because that's what makes him scream. Strike two...

We are taken back to the Nemo room, thank God we were away from the Barney room... where we waited, and waited, and waited some more. While we waited, since it was now WAY past lunch time, we munched on pretzels and strawberries and animal crackers. All the while The Husband is staring at his watch. He says, "They have 19 minutes to get in here, and then we're gone." Nine minutes later, he says, "Put his shoes back on him, they're not going to make it, we'll just leave." And then she walks in the door. Thank God! But then she says, "Sorry you had to wait, I've had to wait before, and I don't like to make you wait." Strike three...

We really like this doctor, she's always been nice to us, and she's really good with Little Man, but I'm really tired of waiting two hours to see a doctor for seven minutes, and then the nurse to come in and give us a shot and we're out the door fifteen minutes after the doctor first walked in. Why does it have to take two hours for a fifteen minute appointment? For two years, we've been saying that she always makes up for the wait because she's always apologetic and nice and worth it. But now we're just plain fed up. When he was an infant, it was easy to wait with him, because he just slept, but now that he's older, a two hour wait for anything is RIDICULOUS!
So, I guess that puts us on the doctor hunt.

So here's what I need to know... I'm not a good interviewer, and I don't ask all the right questions. What questions do I need to ask a potential physician that I could take my two year old to see, and then later also take a newborn (when the time comes... don't jump ahead of me.)?

Wants VS. Needs

My child has learned how to get what he wants... and Daddy hasn't figured out that he knows this yet... should I tell him? Or should I just stand back and watch my child get away with it for a little while longer, only for the sheer humor of it all.

While at a pricey sporting goods store, we happened upon a huge display of John Deere toys and things. While still holding my hand like he was supposed to, my child leaned down and inspected every single little yellow and green toy, oohing and aahing each thing appropriately. And then he did it... "Daddy, I LIKE that blue tractor!" And then we walked away, because we were done looking at everything. A few moments later, Daddy met up with us, one hand behind his back, holding that blue tractor, with the comment that "every little boy needs a tractor... and it's a Ford like my dad's." I just laughed. And they say that little girls can wrap a daddy around a finger... It was priceless.

The Color of Envy

Yes, that is the color of my pool right now.
A week ago, there was no sound coming from my pool in the afternoon. That may be not so bad to some of you, except that no sound meant no pump. No pump means no moving water, which now means that the pool is "broken." So, I spent all day calling pool places, and then finally found what I needed cheaper online, so I ordered it, and am still waiting. A certain delivery service that has ground and air and other options is not as good at keeping up their website as a certain brown delivery service. So, I had to call. And now I find out that it won't be here until tomorrow. Argh.
So now, I am green with envy that other people can go outside and cool off, and I can't. Darn.
That's okay... I have a whole list of things that I want to get done this summer, even though one of them is getting a tan... I guess I can get the inside things done. Wish me luck, I'm going after all the spider webs first. Hope your summer is going better that mine so far!

My Angel

I never thought that I would have called my two-year old son that screams “No, Mommy! NO!!” an angel, but today he actually was. Not for me, mind you, but for a 63-year old woman that really needed him to be one today. It was very special.

We had some errands to run today, so we were in town when it came to be lunchtime. Seeing as it was noon, I knew that everywhere would be busy, and knowing that I have a finicky eater with me, we opted to Run for the Border, because it seemed to be less crowded than other “fast food” places. Unfortunately, there were plenty of other people that had that same idea… along with a church group of high school kids away at camp.

So, while we waited for our food, my son decided to strike up a “conversation” with a woman sitting all by herself. She was waiting for her food, too, so they had a little something in common. She was so sweet, asking him all the right questions that he knew how to answer, all the while looking at me to make sure it was okay to talk to her. Then he did it. He climbed up into the booth opposite her and just sat there, talking to her all the while. I tried to get out of her way, but she told me that he was just fine where he was, and I saw a look in her eyes that I knew she meant it. When she got her food, he continued to sit there, talking about the taco that he was going to eat for lunch. When our food was ready a few minutes later, I told him that we needed to go and eat our food, and she looked at me and said, “Please, just sit here with me.” It was sweet. There were plenty of places available for us by now, as the high school group had finally left, and here she was offering us a place to sit and eat together. So we did.

They talked, we ate, and there weren’t any awkward moments of two strangers sharing a table or anything like that. I asked at one point whether she ate lunch alone often, and she told me that her husband had been gone for 12 years, and being alone wasn’t always what it was cracked up to be. She said that she was just thinking about how nice it was to have someone to share lunch with today. It almost made me cry.

The entire lunch, he behaved as if he had never thrown a fit in his life, and she told me how sweet he was, and precious he was, and how much I need to enjoy the time now, because while you’re young, you don’t think you’ll ever get old, but then one morning, you wake up, and you’re 63, wishing you were still 23.

When she stood up to leave, she told us her name, and I told her mine, seeing as she had already asked Little Man what his was at the beginning of our lunch. She thanked us for sharing lunch with her, and she was on her way. When she left, Little Man told her to have a good day, and upon prompting, said “Tank you shawing wunch!”

In the last two years, I have had more emotions than I have ever known possible with my little man. And today, he added a moment of pride. I’m so proud to say that my little man has been an angel for someone else today, too.

Poor Mama

The poor mama's version of a day at the spa...

Right after reminding your two year old that we don't hit Mommy in the face, teach him to instead use those fists to beat Mommy on the back. And then get on Mommy's bed and walk on Mommy's back. Now that I could do again... and it wouldn't cost me $50! Anyone know how to teach him to do all the other things that I used to pay to have done to me?

Ahhh... summertime... when I don't have to get up early to go to school!

A little Giggle

This weekend, I sat through two high school graduations. One was on Friday night, for the seniors that I taught and sponsored for four years, where I got to give out a scholarship from the National Honor Society. Then I stayed up until 2 am with them at Project Graduation, watching them enjoy each other's company for a few more hours before embarking into the world of reality. After a few short hours of sleep, I packed up my child and got in the car and drove off to Houston. Then we sat and watched another graduation, this one for my brother, of whom I am very proud! The "funny" part is that the first one graduated 24 seniors, the second one graduated close to 600 seniors, and they both took the same amount of time.

While we sat and watched, Little Man sat with his Aunt Melinda almost the whole time, and when they watched for Uncle Matt, they would "practice" yelling for him. It was sooo cute! "UNCA MATT!!!"
While we waited for my brother to go across the stage (because he's near the end of the alphabet), I listened for other kids that I might know. And that's when I heard it. And then I couldn't stop laughing. I am praying that this girl's relatives were nowhere near me when I heard it, and if they were, let me apologize for my insensitivity, but seriously, who names their daughter My Ti Vo!!!
I'm not joking... there was another name in between the Ti and Vo that started with a K or something... but we just couldn't get past it...

It's not YOUR TiVo... It's MY TiVo!!

Ready, Set, Wash!

The other day, a friend and I were talking about how long a shower should be in order to get everything done. As a girl, I think it takes a little longer to shower in the summer than it does in the winter, but only because you have to shave daily as opposed to monthly as in the winter. She said that her husband takes a much longer shower than she does, and she doesn't see the need to be in the shower for more than ten minutes. That, in her opinion, should be enough time to get everything cleaned off from beginning to end.
I agree with her, but when I lived at home, I would pray for a ten minute shower. My parents thought that my sister and I used too much water, so they would tell us that we needed to take a five minute shower. That was it. Five minutes. And to make sure that we didn't take too long, when five minutes was up, they would turn on the kitchen sink below us or flush a toilet or start the dishwasher or washing machine... anything that disrupted the flow of perfectly tempered water flowing on my head. Once we screamed, they would turn off the faucet for only a moment, as though it was our warning to wash it all off and get out. If we took too long, they would do it again.
Looking back now, it's hilarious! I can' believe that we really took that much water! And there was plenty of hot water, not like at my house now, where two people can't shower within thirty minutes of each other, or else you will freeze like the ice outside if you do.
My friend laughed at me, thinking about her shower routine, wondering what she would have to cut out in order to make the five minute time restraint. It's a hard thing to do.
I still find myself looking at the clock when I get in and then again when I get out of the shower, just to make sure I didn't take too long...
But now that I pay for my own hot water, I like to take showers that are at least 9 minutes... give or take a child screaming at me to get out....

The Party's Over

Actually, all THREE parties are over!

Little Man's first 2nd birthday party was with his friends at the babysitter's house on Thursday. They had a basketball theme and everything! After every present, he said "Thank You!" and shared his basketball shaped birthday cupcake cake!

Little Man's second 2nd birthday party was here at home yesterday. All of our other friends were busy or out of town, but we still got to see the Pinckard clan and go swimming! We went down the slide and swang on the swings! Then we blew out birthday candles and ate cake, and then all the boys were worn out! After we put Daddy in bed, the birthday boy and I cleaned up and then we went to bed, too!

Little Man's third 2nd birthday party was today, on his actual birthday. My parents and sister and brother and Granny came up from Houston to bring him a train set and eat lunch and share some more cake and ice cream. Then, they had to leave, and Little Man needed a nap. I wouldn't be surprised if he slept for three hours. Except that then he'd stay up too late tonight.

All in all, we're very proud of him. He behaved very well for so much excitement spread out over four days, and he only threw a couple fits, which were easily re-directed into something else, or which led to a nap.

I just worry that my child is going to think that every weekend is a party weekend, so I'm really looking forward to the end of May. The end of school, the end of parties, and the end of every weekend planned out ahead of me. I can't wait until July! Vacation, here we come!

Hope everyone else had a great weekend, too! We're still on a sugar high, and we're not coming down anytime soon!

Back to bed....

You know how somedays you should have just gone back to bed after the first bad thing happened?
That was yesterday for me... but I didn't know it until right at the end of the day.

It started out as a pretty decent day, and then I had a "dream come true" moment, and then I decided that I needed to go talk to one of my superiors about a question I had about summer school. The minute that he closed the door, I should have backed out.

Sometimes it's hard to hear criticism about you that you didn't even know was a problem. You know what I mean? I knew that I had issues with one class, but I didn't know that he thought I had issues with other classes! Kinda hurt my feelings, made me want to run and hide in a dark room where I could cry alone. Oh well.

Then I went home, and my son decided to slap me in the face. So, of course, the tears came down then, because I just couldn't hold it in anymore.

He stopped, and stared at me, and touched the single tear falling down my face and asked, "Mommy, are you sad?"
I told him that I was upset that he had hit me in the face, and he got a little quiver-lipped, then took my face in his hands and kissed my cheek and said he was sorry.
Maybe he won't hit me again... I can hope.

Today, though,... today is a much better day. It's amazing how much better you feel after just a little sleep... and a whole new day to deal with issues that other people see that I didn't.
Wish me luck.

Can you see me?

My sister stood in the third row from the top and looked for me. She found me... can you?

Can I BE any more excited?

Tomorrow I get to walk across a stage and shake hands and take pictures and then in 4 - 6 weeks get my Master's degree in the mail! I am sooo excited it's not even funny!

My parents and sister and brother are coming, and I keep telling any of my kids that if they're bored they can come watch me walk, too! Then it's Mother's Day, and it will be fun!

Then next weekend, my Little Man turns TWO and we're having a birthday party for him, and then the weekend after that my brother is graduating from high school and my seniors are graduating and I get to give out a scholarship for our chapter of the National Honor Society.

The next weekend, we get to go to Dallas to see some family of my MIL's, and then we get a weekend break. Then it's wedding season, and everyone we know that isn't already married is getting married, and then I can only wait for July to get here so that we can take our much anticipated vacation, just the two of us.

Anyone else have really good news, because my cup runneth over! I am so blessed!

Invention Idea

There are cordless appliances everywhere. There are all sorts of things that have been improved by making them cordless. A drill is easier to use when it's cordless, a cordless phone is about all they sell anymore in the stores, the cordless screwdriver made it easier for women to get things done around the house without having a man around, and the list goes on and on. So, why doesn't it include a vaccuum cleaner? That stupid cord is so annoying! It gets in the way, and then the child wants to try to wear it like a necklace, and then it gets caught on the edge of the chair as you're trying to go around it... and I can't stand it!

And my husband wonders why I don't vaccuum more often... Argh.

CSI Question

Without going into too much gory detail, I have a question that I want an answer for.
When I had Little Man, my ecstatic-to-have-a-boy husband was the one to cut the cord. And when this happened, a couple tiny drops of blood got onto my pillow. My hubby thinks its oogie, but I think its a tiny little reminder that I helped create a tiny little life. When I was replacing the sheets I washed today, I saw it again, and immediately had this question:
If someone were to swab this tiny drop of blood and check it for DNA, who would it come back belonging to? Would it be mine because my blood is what helped sustain this little life? Or would it be Little Man's, because it was his life cord?

I now know that I watch WAY too much CSI. But I still want to know. What do you think? Whose is it?

I Seek, and Cannot Find...

I'm frustrated.
When I want to shop for something in particular, I can NEVER find it. But when I am just looking, aka have no money, I always find what I was looking for before. Or I'll see it one week, and then go back a couple weeks later for something similar, and it's too late!
ARGH!! SO FRUSTRATING!!
A couple examples: 1) It is wedding and baby season, and I have a shower, wedding or graduation coming up each weekend from last weekend through the end of June. A couple months ago, I started thinking about what I was going to wear to said events, but never had a chance to go look for something new. Two weeks ago, I started looking, only to find cute little outfits for teenage girls that showed off way more than I was interested in, or dresses that looked too old for even my mother. There was no in between. So, I opted to pray that something in my own closet fit me. We'll see if I can make that one dress fit for the entire season. Oh well.
2) Little Man's birthday is coming up next month. I have decided on a theme, but I can't find what I want. I can find individual sport themes, but I want them all, because my child is a fan of every kind of ball there is. It's getting annoying. I have searched every store in this town and in Houston, and I have been all over the Internet. I guess I'll just have to choose one, even if it does cost a little more than I am willing to spend for a two year old's birthday party.

I guess it doesn't get any better. It always happens this way. I guess I'll just get used to it.
Or does anyone know how to avoid this dilemma?

A Treat for Some, but not for others…

Today I tried to do something nice. I decided to be nice and help him out because he was whining, and he was starting to stink. It was nice outside today, so I gave him a bath, because I knew he wouldn’t be too cold. Plus, I knew that it would cool him off and make him feel better.
Or so I thought.
As soon as I was done washing him off, he ran away, without even a little thank you. He started whining some more, and then he went straight for the dirt. Why is that when you clean him off, he goes straight to getting dirty again? Just like a boy.

Stupid dog.

If someone gave me a bath, I wouldn't cry about it, and I for dang sure wouldn't go straight back to getting dirty again!

(And you thought I was talking about Little Man!)

True Friend

I have a very special true and honest friend who would do anything for me, and I would do anything for her as well.
My babysitter had to drop my child off at school with me yesterday at 12:30 because she had to go to the dentist and have a wisdom tooth pulled. Which means that she couldn't watch him today. And I still have to work.
I can't really bring him back to work with me today, so I had to find a new place for him to play today.
I called one friend that has a little girl the same age as my Little Man, but today is one of the two days she has to work this week. Argh.
And then, as much as I didn't want to impose on her, I had to call my other friend, who loves my child like her own, but I didn't want to mess with her school schedule either. But, she offered before I even had to ask, because she's just that good a person. Even though everyone at her house doesn't feel great, she still is willing to take on an almost two-year old along with her own baby. This is why she is so great.
I'm very thankful that today is a short day, so I don't have to impose on her for too long, just until after lunch. I just hope nothing gets broken that she is really attached to.
Who is this wonderful person?
As if you didn't already know, it's Amanda Sue!

THANK YOU AMANDA SUE!!!

Caller ID People

On my phone, we have Caller ID. In fact, it's on my cell phone as well. I really enjoy the fact that when the phone rings, I can know who it is before I pick it up. And if I don't know who it is, I don't have to pick it up, or I can pick it up and not give away any information that I don't have to. I really like to pick up the phone yelling and screaming when it is my mother-in-law calling, but that's because she thinks her grandson is perfect, and I like to remind her that he's not.
Either way, there are two types of people that have caller ID.
I am a person of the first type. I come home from being out and look at the phone just to see who, if anyone, called. If they called and didn't leave a message, then no big deal, they didn't want to really talk that bad. If they leave a message, then I'll call them back.
A person of the second type doesn't do that. If they miss a call, especially one on their cellphone, they will call the number back just to see who it was, even if no message was left. And, they'll call back no matter what time it is. It is interesting to find out which type of people your friends and co-workers are.
Last night, at about ten, the phone rang, and being that I knew the name that came up, I answered it, not very nicely.
Me : "Hello?"
Him: "Who's this?"
Like he has the right to ask me this... I'm not the one who dialed the number, buster.
Me: "Michelle." Very flat now, because, again, this is after my bed time!
Him: "Oh." Uncomfortable silence.
Me: "What?"
Him: "I'm trying to figure out who called me from this number."
Since I knew who it was, because I also have Caller ID, I pressed on.
Me: "It was probably my husband."
Him: "Umm... " More silence. "OHhhhhh!!!"
And then he figures it out. That he knows a Michelle and Husband, that it's okay that this number called his cellphone, and that he probably shouldn't have called a house with an infant at ten at night. I handed the phone to the hubby, who confirmed that it was his phone call, for work related reasons, and then they got off the phone.
To which I said, "Oh, so he's one of THOSE kind of people."

Pete, meet Re-Pete

My child is at the point where he likes to repeat everything we say. He also likes to sing with Mommy in the car on the way to and from school. He loves to read books and tell you what he thinks the pictures mean, and he likes to repeat his favorite parts of stories or songs or rhymes to himself when he thinks that no one is listening. This is also when I find him counting the most, when he thinks that no one can hear him. He’s also gotten pretty good at whispering. Especially if you ask him to tell someone else something, that’s when he’ll whisper. Twerp.

When Little Man was born, I went and bought some Veggie Tales Kid Songs cds so that I could listen to some of the songs from when I was a kid and remember them enough to sing with him. The problem is, most of the songs are either new to me, or a different version of the song I remember. It’s kind of frustrating.

Then at the sitter’s, they’ve been reading a lot of books that have old rhymes and such that I used to know, but now I can’t remember them all. It’s annoying. The one that we’re stuck on right now is the one about the monkeys jumping on the bed and calling the doctor. Little Man can tell you really well what the doctor said. We also know about the Wheels on the Bus and such, but I am now having a mental block.

What was your favorite nursery rhyme or just plain non-rhyming rhyme that you would “sing” when you were a kid or that you taught your kids? I know there are so many that I "know", but I can’t think about them right now. I knew so many in high school when I was babysitting and teaching two-year old Sunday School classes, but now my brain has replaced those memories with things it felt were more important. But, importance has become a relevance-based concept now, and this idea is more important to me now than names of educational psychologists and such from college classes.

So, a little help? Anyone?

Disclaimers

Have you ever listened to any of the radio commercials for a certain fast food chain's Dollar Menu? It's all about "lovin' " all the things that are just a buck. Then, at the end of each commercial, the disclaimer comes on and says, "Prices and participation may vary." What? You mean that the burger on the Dollar Menu could be a buck fifty? Is that what they mean? Because if that's going to be the case, and we can change the price, then I'd like it to be cheaper. I'd like mine to be a Quarter Menu, if we could. If not, then let the Dollar Menu be the Dollar Menu. Plain and simple.

Resourcefulness

My husband's definition of being resourceful is putting the remaining packets of ketchup from the dinner he brought home tonight into our ketchup bottle in the fridge. And then being proud of it because it filled it back up to the top.

My New Favorite Number

You know how you always have a favorite number? Mine has always been seven. I don't really know what started this tradition, but it's just always been that way. Until now.

My child sat down with his daddy the other night and just started counting out loud. He's been practicing with the babysitter on counting to five, but he usually just stops at three. Then it was six. When he sat down, he was at six, and then he kept going...
"seben.... ATE.... nien.....ten.....uhlebun..... tweff...... tertee..... YEAH!!!!"

All the way to thirteen! My Little Man is just two months shy of his second birthday and he already knows how to count to thirteen! Holy cow!
I heard him from the other room, and thinking it was a coincidence, didn't get my hopes up or anything...
But then he did it again, and again, and again over the next several days.
My hubby thought we might have a genius on our hands, but I had to remind him that it's great that he can memorize the order of the numbers, but the main thing is that he needs to connect it to a number of things, and be able to count objects, not just memorize the order.
As if my child is understanding exactly what I am saying to my husband at that exact moment, he starts counting the buttons on the edge of our sofa, touching one button for every number he says out loud. Once he hits thirteen again, though, there were still more buttons, and this messed him up so he just started naming off his favorite numbers, in no particular order anymore. Either way.... HOLY COW!!!
I guess I don't have to worry about his listening and memorizing skills! :)
So, I guess it's Lucky 13 for me for a while, until I can get him to keep going farther!

American Ugh

That's all I have to say.

I don't do the live commentary like I've enjoyed so much on Tracey's blog, so I'm hoping that she'll do this show the justice it deserves. Because it deserves to be erased from my memory and never revisited again.

Almost all of them sucked. A few of them did a few good things, but all the rest were not great. None of them were stand-out at all. I can't decide which one I want to go home first.

Ugh.

So, I think I'm going to go to this website and deal with my repulsions there.

Come and Gone

This weekend, my grandfather flew in from California to come and visit us.
As much as I was worried about how this trip would go, I have come to the decision that it could have gone a lot worse, and I am sooo thankful for the husband that I have, who can keep up a conversation about something he has no interest in by asking the right questions and making the right comments. This is something I cannot do, and I have no interest in learning how to do it, because I still have no interest in making conversation last about a topic that I have no knowledge base about, nor do I care to begin one.
But, the fears I had about the visit were never an issue, and everything went over very well. Little Man behaved himself, and really made me proud of him.
Grandpa would start coughing (cigars catching up to him, he says), and every time, Little Man would say, "Bless You, Papaw!" And I would have to tell him thank you, because it was so small and sweet that poor Grandpa couldn't hear it.
Papaw is what Little Man calls both of his grandfathers, but this weekend, I didn't really want him calling my grandpa that, because Mom and I were worried that Grandpa would start thinking that Little Man was his grandson, not his GREAT grandson. So, everytime we would talk about something Grandpa had or was doing, we would say, "Mommy's Grandpa" and Little Man would say "Mommy's Pompa." It was very sweet.
We got pictures of them outside, and playing cars together on the table, and a picture of Mommy and her "Pompa" and Little Man all together, so that years from now, he will have a face to put with a name, and know that Mommy's Pompa came all the way from California just to see him and his mommy and daddy.
I guess I have another scrapbook page in the making now, we'll just see if I can get the time to finish it!

Here He Comes...

To wreck the day!!!

Not really. But you know how you have a routine, especially when it comes to your nighttime getting-ready-for-bed routine. And every single night, I get started in the routine, and then always at the same time in my routine, he steps in the way, and starts HIS routine! What the heck? And no matter how much time I start my routine before he starts his, he is STILL in the bed and under the covers every single night before I am! How does this happen? Argh...

Maybe I should start getting ready for bed before dinner, and then I could have the bathroom all to myself!

What's the protocol?

We have family pictures tonight for the church photo directory. The last time we took pictures for this was about two years ago, because I was pretty pregnant at that point. Now, we have a third person in our picture, and I have to plan a wardrobe for three people.
Two years ago, I wore a nice blue maternity blouse and had my husband wear a blue plaid shirt. I should not have picked the plaid. It was too busy for the picture.
Every year, we do a Christmas family picture, but not in Christmas clothes. One year we wore white shirts with jeans, and then this year we wore blue shirts again.
Blue seems to be the only thing that we all look good in, and that we all have. I wish my husband would wear a red or a maroon or something like that, but then I don't think I have a shirt that color for my child. ARGH! I don't like this kind of planning.

Would it be bad if we all wore blue again?
I can't keep thinking about all of this because I have to find enough make-up to cover the scab that's still on my nose... I hate pictures. I like taking them of my child, just not me, too.

Any suggestions?

Murderous Intentions

They must have had a fight.

They probably argued about something stupid that she'll regret later.

But, she kicked him out, and made him leave the safety of their comfortable home. She shouldn't have done that. But she didn't know that I saw him, sitting just outside the entrance, waiting until she calmed down enough to let him back inside. And I have no sympathy. You get kicked out, you show your face, you become fair game.

So, I picked up a magazine and swatted that spider. And then wiped him off the wall to make sure that he was really dead. Then I went for her, because she stuck her head out to apologize and let him back in.

Too little, too late.

But, she was faster than I was, so I'll just have to get her later.
I hate spiders.

The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

The Good: I got an e-mail yesterday congratulating me on passing the written part of my comps test, and I even passed it well enough to be cleared to take the MMT test. YEAH!!!

The Bad: Yesterday in class, a student thought he was mad enough at me to throw square puzzle pieces at me, until one finally connected at the bridge of my nose, breaking skin, causing it to bleed and leave a big mark, so that every kid in school wants to know what happened and who did it. Unlucky for them, I don't bleed and tell, so they'll just have to wait for the rumor mill to come around their way.

The Ugly: My husband wanted me to press charges, but I won't, so instead I just wrote him up and he's being suspended for three days. Just moments ago, he came in to my room to apologize again and talk to me, and I know he's sorry, and that it won't happen again. But, if it does, he's not only out of my room, but out of school. That should be enough to keep him in line for the rest of the year. But, my tears are all gone, I have no more, and Lord have mercy on the pour soul who smarts off to me today. Hell hath no fury like a wounded teacher.

A Loss of Innocence

I was going to write about the innocence of my child’s first encounter with a lizard today, but instead I have something else to tell you about.
I officially “lost” my child today. We went to Layne’s birthday party today, and my child was actually a non-violent participant in the event. I was afraid that he wouldn’t be, considering he fell asleep four minutes into our ten-minute drive, but he pulled through and was not horrible. That does not mean I am saying that my child showed everyone what an angel he can be, but he also didn’t show his worst side.
But, I almost did.
I was sitting on the floor watching Layne open gifts, and watching my child wander around the edge of all the activity, finding other toys to play with since he couldn’t go outside again. I looked at the cute shirts that Reid and Layne got, each one blaming someone else for whatever was done. I looked back to my child, and then noticed that I didn’t see my child. Knowing that he was only moments ago four feet away from me at the opening of a hallway, I figured he went down the hallway to the bedrooms. So, I searched, each room, and in between each room, looking down the hallway. After I still didn’t find him, and he still wasn’t in the mix of kids opening gifts, then I got scared. Maybe he found something in the laundry room, but I didn’t hear him, so it must have been something “good.” It was good all right, because he found an open door that led him to the outside. The outside that is the front yard, not the safety of the fenced-in backyard. I have never had fear like the fear of an open door and a missing child with a highway on the other side of the trees. I turned the corner and found him, trying to climb into a little car outside. Tears of relief immediately filled my eyes, as I grabbed my child to me, telling him that he had scared me. Did he care? Heck no! He was more upset that I had picked him up and taken him away from the car! I brought him back inside and made sure that the door was shut, then let him go back to finding toys inside while I used the safety of the laundry room to learn how to breathe again and wipe away my tears.
The hardest part was telling my husband how the party went, because as I was telling him, I got all teary-eyed again, and all he could do was laugh and say, “You lost our son!”
Meanie.

Diarrhea of the Mouth

This phrase is totally disgusting, and yet it describes some things so perfectly well that I must use it.
For example, after school, I go to the sitter's and pick up Little Man. After watching him play with the other little boys for a minute, and talking to the sitter to see how his day went, we load up in the car for the ten minute trip home. Usually, I try to interact with him about what he sees, or who's house he was at, or what color the truck was that drove by, those kinds of things.
Yesterday, I didn't feel like talking because I had a headache. But, Little Man didn't see the need in being quiet. He talked and talked and talked.
About what?
I have no clue!
He went from red trucks, to Blake's truck, to Blake's sleeping, to making snoring sounds, to making cow, pig, chicken, duck and horse sounds. From there he talked about seeing horses and cows, and then colors that he knows, and then something about Daddy, and then he named every person he knows, and then he just started screaming, all because that's what came to his head.
It reminded me of being in college, and those English teachers that told us to just write down whatever was in our heads, whether it made sense or not. Stream of conscienceness exercise or something like that. Funny. My child is almost two and doing the things we did in college. I don't know whether to be impressed by my child, or depressed that in college that was a hard thing for me to do.

Carolina Ditzy

Okay, I usually don't blog about watching a TV show, but tonight I just can't help it. On AI tonight, little hillbilly girl Kellie Pickler tried to come out of her little country shell and sing something a little more "risque." Never mind that the girl shouldn't be singing in front of a live audience, let alone on TV, but she's cute, and giggly and the boys like to watch her bounce up and down when she gets giddy.
On a previous show, she talked about eating calamari, and Simon teased her about how she said it. Tonight, Simon called her "a naughty little minx." She promptly asked Simon what a "minx" was, who couldn't do anything but giggle. Then at the end, she told Ryan she was a "mink." To which Ryan asked her if she had anything interesting for lunch today, and she said she had a new fish, a "SAL-mon!" All Ryan could do was respond, "okay" and turn away to give the numbers to dial. I was cracking up! Here they are, making fun of this little girl and her little accent and big city ignorance, and all she does is stand there bouncing, giggling, and making little boy dreams come true. My husband responded by saying that "even though she can't sing, we should keep her around for the laughs!"
Thank God for live TV, and for TiVo!

Over. Done. Finito.

I am done.
There is nothing more I can do.
It is now all in the hands of the graders.
Let them be merciful.

I know I didn't make a perfect score, but all I am praying for is an 80. If I make an 80, then I will be allowed to take the Master Math Teacher test in order to add one more certificate to my resume.

But there is no feeling like the feeling of turning in the one test that sums up three years worth of work. Three years worth of one weekend a month, and six weeks each summer. Of leaving my two-week old son for eight hours a day for six weeks while I attempted and successfully conquered Calculus and College Geometry. Of sitting in a handicapped bathroom stall pumping every couple hours because I hurt every time I thought/talked about him. Of making friends with women and men that I never would have met if it hadn't been for this class, and that I wouldn't have made it through these past three years without.

None of this would have been possible without the ever-present, ever-helpful support of my husband, my mother, and my mother-in-law, who always took care of my child when I had class or a test, or needed to study, or anything else that I needed to do to get this done.

More to come when I find out what I made on the test. But until then... I'm done. It's over. No more classes, no more books, no more homework! YEAH!

* Edited*
Please let me also include in my thank you anyone else who lent a helping hand... including my sister, Amanda Sue and her hubby, and other wonderful people that kept my child while I was at school. Please accept all apologies of forgetfulness or omission of names as it was not my intention to leave anyone out. :)

Daddy's Boy

Here is the conversation that occurred between my child and I this afternoon... "M" is for Mommy, "L" is for Little Man.

L: Where's Daddy?
M: Daddy went to the doctor to fix his boo-boo.
L: Oh. Okay.

(Five minutes later): L: Where'd Daddy go?
M: Daddy's at the doctor.
L: Oh. Okay.

(Fifteen minutes later... I know... exciting)
L: Daddy doctor.
M: Yes, baby, Daddy's at the doctor.
L: Kiss?
M: Thank you for my kiss.
L: Bye - Bye. (waving)
M: Where are you going?
L: Doctor!

Who says that kids don't know when you're around and when you're not?
Too bad he doesn't ask for me like that when I leave.

Animals of All Kinds

I couldn't help it. I've been going through withdrawals, and so I decided to get my fix and then go back to studying, I promise. I've already taken a break, of sorts, from studying this morning, so I can't spend much time today doing much else.Plus, yoday has been an even more beautiful day than yesterday, with the highs supposed to be in the low 80's. I want to finish and then go sit outside!
Today, my hubby and I decided to take Little Man to the zoo. We decided to go to the smaller, closer one today, rather than the one more than an hour away and a little bigger. I've been to the bigger one several times already, with school trips and what-not, but I had never been to the closer one. So, we packed up and headed out. And yesterday, in conversation with his best friend, my hubby invited them along too. Unfortunately, my half of our friendship couldn't come along because she had class, but we got to take little Dillon instead. It was fun! The first time I took Little Man to the zoo, he was really too little to understand anything and for him, everything was a dog. So, this time was neat, because he knows that an owl hoots and a lion roars and then he could see a real live one, instead of the cartoon version. The cute part was that he called the turtles Franklin. HA! He did really well the whole time! He walked around and held our hands, he would ask to sit in the stroller when he got tired of walking, and he looked intently at the snakes and anything else that moved enough to catch his eye. It was sweet.
When we had seen it all and decided we were hungry for lunch, we got back into the car, where I was reminded that not all men have grown up, even when they have had kids. I prayed and prayed the whole way home for God to grant me temporary hearing loss, so that the things that my hubby and his best friend were discussing would not fall on ears that didn't want to hear such things. Why is it that men are so different from women in every possible aspect? On our way home, there was a car pulled off to the side, and a man/boy (we couldn't tell age) was standing next to his car relieving himself in broad daylight. No Joke. This then rendered up a whole slew of stories of when the two "men" in my car had done the same thing, either sharing personal stories, or reminding each other of "that time when..." Oh goodness. It was sad. I can't believe I had to sit and hear all of that. And I couldn't turn the radio up to tune them out because both little boys were asleep through the whole ride. Why did I have to say I'd drive?
Anyhow, we finally made it back home, so that Little Man could take a real nap, and that my husband could mope around wishing he was still hanging out with his friend and sharing stories. I, on the other hand, am back to studying that animal I call Math.

Keep You Busy

I have to take a short hiatus from posting for a few days. My Master's classes are finally over, as of December, but my Comps test is next Saturday, March 4th. By the time I get to the room where I'm supposed to take the test at 9am, I also have to have my portfolio completed. This portfolio is a compilation of three years worth of work and my commentary about the work that I have chosen to showcase. Now, the showing off my work part is not the problem. It's the choosing of which problems to showcase and then to explain why I picked them that is the hard part. So, I am banning myself from posting, and limiting myself to only reading posts and comments for fifteen minutes a day until I can get this thing done. Once it's done, then I need to study for the test on Saturday, so that I can make the 80 that is required to pass. Argh.

So, in all fairness, I didn't want you to have nothing to do while I was "on leave."
Here are the rules of the game:
- Only 2 persons on the raft at a time
- The father can not stay with any of the daughters without their mother's presence
- The mother can not stay with any of the sons without their father's presence
- The thief (striped shirt) can not stay with any family member if the Policeman is not there
- Only the Father, the Mother and the Policeman know how to operate the raft
- To start click on the big blue circle on the right.
- To move the people click on them.
- To move the raft click on the pole on the opposite side of the river.

This is possible, I've done it. Apparently it's some sort of IQ test used in Japan as an interview technique. Hmmm. Like I said, it'll keep you busy until I get back.

Mystery Meat

Can anyone answer me this question...

When I cut a hot dog into pieces and warm it for my child in the microwave, if it's in pieces and the pieces touch, WHY do the pieces spark where they're touching?

And for that matter... if pieces that are touching spark, then why does it not spark and burn up when it's the whole dog in one piece? What the heck?

Handicapped Hilarity

My house is hilarious right now. Or at least I think so.
My wonderful husband, (who had surgery on his elbow three weeks ago) has figured out which things he can do around the house that he doesn't mind doing, and then the parts that he doesn't want to do, he conveniently "can't" do that part. Let me give you a few examples.

- He can cook dinner, using every dish in the cabinet, and then eat and put his plate in the dishwasher, but the 48 pots and pans he used to make the dinner have to be handwashed, and he can't do that part with only one hand. It would put too much strain on his elbow.

- He can do laundry, separate it out, wash all the different loads, get it out of the dryer, but he can't fold it and put it away, because you need two hands to fold a shirt. So, we have a mountain of laundry waiting at home for me to fold and put away, because he's doing so much laundry you would have thought we were going on a week-long trip and every piece of clothing needed to be clean before we left.

- He can sweep the floor, picking up all the chairs and such off the floor before he does it, but he can't put it all back away when he's done.

- He can play with Little Man all afternoon while I go work out, but when I get home, I have to change the diaper, because he can't do it with only one hand.

-He can bathe himself, in the shower now, but he can't give Little Man a bath, because that causes the elbow to stretch out too much.

See what I mean?!? I have a hidden comedian at my house! This is only week three. He was told he'd be off work for twelve. How many more things is he going to decide that he can only do part-way?

I guess I should be thankful that he at least gets the job started for me, but the problem is that I don't have as much time as he does to get all the half-finished projects done before he's starting another one that I'm going to have to finish. I haven't been to bed before eleven all week long. Argh.

To add to the humor, my child has been waking up at 3 am, 2 am, and 1 am on three consecutive nights, standing up in bed ready to get up and play basketball or talk to Daddy or look for Papaw's truck, or anything else that pops in his little mind at hours that are not made for being awake. Last night he finally slept through the night, and by this, I mean he only cried out once at 3 am, looking for Daddy, and I shh'ed him and told him to sleep, and he rolled over and went to sleep.

I wonder what fun stuff I get to do when I get home today!?!
Whatever it is, it can wait while I go work out. A mom has GOT to have ME time. (M= Mommy E= Escape)

Coordination or Frustration?

I don't usually forward things to friends, unless they are really good or really funny. This time, though, I am so addicted, I had to know if I was the only one.

I got this in an email from one of those friends that sends you every forward she's ever been sent, like I could forget about her if she didn't bombard my mailbox with every useless piece of mail she's ever read.

Anyway... try this. It's supposed to test your hand/eye coordination, and I can't get past seven seconds. It says if you can get 18 seconds, you're doing good. The Air Force tests fighter pilots with it and wants them to do it for 2 minutes. Holy crud!

Enough talk. TRY IT!
And then tell me how you do.