OMG!! I can actually sign in!!

Whew!! I know that I can be a really slack blogger guys, but I have been trying to comment and sign in for over a week now with it being a "no go" every time. Talk about FRUSTRATING!!! I had written off any communication with the blogosphere for good until now. I thought maybe blogger had some sort of block or "strike" feature if you had gone too many days without signing in. Nice to see that I'm wrong!

Thanks Andria for checking on me...it gave me the push to try again and HALLELUJAH, I'm here! :)

Another thanks to you girl for my sweet note and gifts!! The cards were a HOOT and the picture frame was so cute! Landon fell in love with it and carried it around for days until I pried it from his sleeping hands. I have it safely stored in a drawer and I'm waiting for the perfect picture to put it in his room.

Things here have been fine, just really, REALLY, excruciatingly HOT. The humidity has been a bear too! Can it reach 600%, because oh my freaking LORD it is sticky out there!

The norm this week has been in the 100's, and today we hit a record 102. Needless to say, we've been hibernating and just trying to stay cool.

The boys are great, everyone is healthy. Landon has not gone on the potty for two days now for some unknown reason. I'm not worried though...he'll start again when he's ready. At least there's no question as to whether he knows what to do or not when the time comes. He DID try to handle a poop all by his lonesome the other day which, albeit noble and pretty damn cool (considering he'll be 2 on the 30th), it was a freakin' MESS when I discovered it. He took off his shorts and his poop-filled diaper and sat on the mini-potty all by his lonesome. I came up from the basement to find my bare-bottomed child running up to me yelling, "Mommy, Mommy!! Poopy!!" and he pointed me to the bathroom. That's one of those parenting moments when you just have to close your eyes, take a deep breath, and hope for the best, ya know?

I was good, I promise.

I praised him through my gritted teeth as I cleaned up the smudges all over the toilet(S) (after going, he of course tried to empty it in to the big potty), his butt, and the 3 brown stains I found on our living room carpet. (This must have been where he proudly plopped after doing his business.) Hopefully the, "Come to Mommy and I'll help you next time", message was received and stored in that constantly ticking brain of his.

Sooooo....that's pretty much it, my friends!! I have checked in on all of you during my absence, and commented numerous times, only to be kicked in the hiney by Blogger. Maybe it will be kinder in the future.

I hope everyone is staying cool and healthy!!! I'm now off to click on the "Publish Post" button...I'm praying this will work!!

Still going strong....

Landon had another successful trip to the potty this morning!! WHOO-HOO!

He is very much a "nudist" and was running around naked this morning like he usually does after a diaper change. He looked down to find that he was going with a loud, "UH-OH!" I said, "Run to the potty Landon...you can do it!"


Here is the result...a happy boy with a full potty, and a happy Mommy because this potty thing seems to be clicking for him.

We're still taking things at his pace. There's no need to put pressure on him since he's not even two yet. It's still exciting to see though!


A few interesting side notes to the potty training saga.

1. He must be totally naked to sit on the potty. (Is this a man thing?)

2. The hat is a requirement as well.

3. It sure helps to have your big brother cheering you on as you go!!

Animals are AMAZING!!!

Have you *seen* this article???

A chihuahua saved a baby from a rattlesnake in Colorado! (Not the one pictured.)

The dog survived...luckily, but, if she hadn't, I don't see how ANYONE would dispute that this little dog would not go to Heaven for saving that baby!

Sweet Pea

Why is it sooooo hard when a pet dies??

I feel like I've lost a member of the family.

My Mother's dog, Sweet Pea, died today. This dog was 18 years old, and was really...one of the sweetest animals that you will ever meet.

She came into our lives when I was 16 years old. I can't tell you how many times that little girl comforted me as I cried and hugged her. She helped me through so much of the "angst" of my teenage years......

So...if you're reading....send out a little prayer for our little black dog today please.

I know that some people don't believe that animals go to Heaven...but, I have to disagree. Something so full of love and loyalty and trust, can only be expected to go back to God.

Goodbye little girl...we'll miss you!!

Dare I post it???

Well...here goes.

Landon has been going to the bathroom on the potty.

I'm *not* saying that he's potty trained by ANY means, but this is a great start. Much better than Colin ever had (who, by the way, didn't potty train until he was 3 years and 1 month old.)

Landon is 22 months old. Not even two yet.

I'm trying not to put pressure on him, but he's very excited to go whenever he's given the chance. This morning, he went SO much that he filled up the bottom of the potty. I was SHOCKED! Until that point, it was only a few dribbles here and there.

He doesn't have the fore-thought needed to tell me that he *needs* to go, so we may have a long time before he's truly potty trained. But...I think there is something to this older brother being an example thing. Colin is just as excited when he goes on the potty as he is.

I'll keep you guys posted! He even ran around in training underwear for a while tonight without an accident.....wow!

Anyone want to join me for a margarita??

I am on my second though, so you may have to work to catch up.

Mine are going fast...

It was a rough day....I can't quite put my finger on *why*, but my current buzz sure is nice in comparison.

The kids are in bed, and the hubby is at a meeting. I should be working out, but the call of the treadmill was a little less convincing than the tequila.

I know this is a pretty lame post, but I thought I would at least write something to let you all know that I'm still around....buzzed (hehe), but still around.

I hope everyone had a great fourth!

Thanks for the birthday wishes and dealing with my pity party!

I especially liked the thought of going out and getting wasted...which I haven't done in a LOOOONG while. You know, just let go and let loose. Something to plan for huh? lol.

That's how life changes when you have a family. You have to "plan" to have fun. Kinda sucks, but it's just the way it goes when you're an adult.

I'm over my little pity party now, which is a good thing because those just bite. I did some self evaluation, and I think I've figured out the problem.

I need to go ahead and go to school.

I love my kids, I love being a stay at home Mom (most days!), but it's also time to invest a little into Lori.

I've always wanted to be a counselor, and I'm feeling the itch to make it happen. I visited a local school that is set up for us "adults" that are in the real world. They have a masters program for Licensed professional counselors/Marriage and Family therapists...and I'm going to go for it.

You're allowed 6 years to complete the program...hopefully I can do it in the time allotted!! With all of my other responsibilities, it's a valid worry at this point in time.

So....I want to be a shrink. I never really thought that would happen, but I'm looking forward to it!

I'll update later on the program and everything.

I must now go clean up my dirty children and restock the fridge...you know, those "other" responsibilities that I mentioned?

Happy Birthday To Me

Yeah right.

Just another day in my life where I feel pretty much forgotten.

I talked to my father last night when we got home from Fort Lauderdale and he had already forgotten about it. I guess he sent a card some time last week (I only know this b/c he had to call and get my address) and that's fulfilled any obligation to recognize the day. Pretty typical of my Father.

My Mom called this morning and made no mention of it until I asked her if she remembered what day it was. This, after spending a LOT of time and money on her surprise 60th party 2 weeks ago.

Did I mention that my birthday is only 3 days after her's? As a Mother, I think that would be pretty hard to forget...but she did.

Kelly did cook me breakfast in bed, which was sweet, but nothing else is going on. He's napping and we still don't know what we're doing for dinner, but one thing is for damn sure...I'm not cooking.

It sucks that *I* have to plan my own birthday dinner.

Oh..to top it off, my lovely "friend" came today.

That would probably explain why I've been quite bitchy lately...and my excuse for today as well.

Hopefully the rest of my 34th year shapes up to be a little better than today.

Sushi and compassion...an interesting mix

To sum up tonight....and excellent meal followed by a heart-heavy moment.

Dinner was good tonight, we went to an amazing restaurant that serves Japanese and Thai food. I had the BEST Tom Yum soup and the freshest sushi I've had in a while. Landon scarfed down some shrimp wonton soup ( YUMMMM!), veggies, wontons and all, and then almost another full plate of terriyaki chicken and rice. Colin was content with his broth and rice...UGH! If only the child would *try* something! He talks about how good things smell, but still refuses to try them...how frustrating is that? That's beside the point though.

After dinner, we headed down to Carvel to get some ice-cream, just a short walk away from where we had dinner. As we walked up, I noticed an older man standing right by the door in tattered, dirty, clothes. He wore glasses and had a full beard on his noticably dirty face. He was eating an ice-cream cone and silently watching the tv through the front window of the store. He stood next to a grocery cart full of plastic bottles and aluminum cans, and there was a tattered comforter folded neatly on top of it.

For some reason, my heart immediately went out to him. He never extended his hand to ask for anything or even looked my way, but my heart broke when I tried to imagine the circumstances that brought him to this place in his life.

We went in and bought our ice-cream cones and decided to go outside to eat them. The man was still there, standing by the window silently. Not one person spoke to him, and it seemed as if everyone just looked right through him. It seemed as if to others, and even to himself, that he wasn't "present".

A few minutes later, he walked into Carvel. I only noticed because a security guard ran past me to go in to the restaurant, obviously he was following the man. The homeless man walked to the counter and ordered a cone. A man outside commented to his wife, chuckling "Watch, this guy is going to be kicked out of here in 10 seconds...10, 9, 8.....". As he said that the homeless fellow walked to the counter and pulled out some money to pay for what he ordered. Then he walked out to the same spot to eat it and watch tv again.

Colin and Kelly finished their cones, and the one that Landon and I were sharing was just a melted mess, so we were done. I headed to the trash can with it, which just so happened to be right behind the homeless man. As I carried it by him, he looked at it like a dog might watch scraps that someone is about to throw away. I asked him, "Would you like this?" and he said, "yes...please." I handed it to him to finish eating it.

Yeah...maybe it's a little gross to some, but my heart broke even more when I handed it over to him. How could he end up here? He had to be sick....lost....something had to have happened that was beyond his control.

Before we left, I walked up to him and asked him if he minded if I gave him something, and I handed him the $5 that I had in my wallet. I said, "God bless you..." and he said the same to me. He seemed shocked beyond belief that someone spoke to him...much less gave him any money. I only wish that I had more.

We walked back to the car and past the security guard who was still watching him very carefully. I asked him if he was a threat to anyone. The security guard went into a tirade about how he was a public nuisance and that he had already gotten 20 calls from people who didn't want him "hanging around" and, what if he had hepatitis and he breathed on me or one of my kids and we "got" it too. I told him that the man seemed sick, and he said, "oh yes...I'm sure he is...he needs to be in a hospital or something". So I said, "Well, then is there someone that we can call that might be able to help him?" "Nah....here's the police, I'm sure that they're here to pick him up".

For what? Buying some ice-cream and trying to enjoy it outside like the rest of us?

What an A$$hole!!

I just don't understand how people can see someone like that who is in NEED...true need, and just pass them by....on top of that...COMPLAIN about him! He has to be someone's son, brother, uncle, or friend. Maybe even someone's FATHER! What if he's lost and he's doing all that he can just to survive day to day? What if he has dementia or alzheimers and has no idea who he is, or where he belongs? What if people are looking for him, missing him, and he has no idea that they are even out there?

It made me sick, and I cried when we left. I wish I could have done so much more to help him.

I don't think that I'll ever forget his crystal blue eyes behind those dirty lenses.

They reminded me so much of Colin's.

God forbid he's ever in that place one day......

I hope that if he ever is that *someone* would extend a helping hand or a gesture of compassion instead of looking down their noses and laughing at his misfortune.

Never thought I'd say this....

....but, I need to work out......regularly.

I hadn't done so in a week and a half due to our traveling, and boy...I was bitchy the last two days.

I guess it could be just plain 'ole pms too.

I decided to take advantage of the treadmill here at the hotel, and I feel SOOOooooo much better.

I'm sure my family will appreciate me taking the time to work out as well. *I* didn't even want to be around me today.

Pools + Footballs = HUH??

WTF is it with kids that want to throw hail marys in the freakin' pool??

I thought this was just an issue at our neighborhood pool and that we would be safe to swim at our leisure here in Fort Lauderdale.

Alas, I was sadly mistaken.

I went through the swimming ritual with the boys yesterday so we could head downstairs and cool off.

Sunscreen on Colin.

Chasing Landon and pinning him down with two handfuls of suncsreen, and then praying that I got most of him covered.

Getting the swimsuits on the boys, and then *finally* getting my suit on and spraying myself down with sunscreen.

It only takes about 45 minutes, so you know I was hoping for at least a *little* longer of an outing after all of that work.

We got downstairs and got Colin's swimmies on. (He thinks that he can swim, by the way, which scares the living hell out of me. He can stand on his tippy toes at our neighborhood pool, and he assumed that he could here. It only took him a few seconds to realize that he *can't* swim after all.)

So, once Colin has on his flotation devices, Landon and I plopped in the pool as well. We like to stay by the stairs so that Landon can walk around and splash at will.

Within a matter of 20 minutes, 5 or 6 boys showed up.....with their damn football.

Within 5 minutes of *that*, they had taken over either end of the pool and were tossing it back and forth.

Now...have any of you been *hit* with a football? They are not soft. Do these kids give a shit about that? Not in the least. Are there any parents around that might remind them of that fact? Nope.

So...me being the kind, nice, lady that I am (snort!), I stepped up and asked them to please be careful. I tagged that phrase with, " I will be very upset if me or one of my boys gets hit."

Within 10 minutes of that statement, I felt a huge ***SPLASH*** right by my head. I turned slowly to see all of the boys pointing to one kid at the far end of the pool.

I calmly stated to all of them, " I don't really care who threw it, you guys are monopolizing the pool. Everyone who would like to swim cannot because they are scared they are going get hit in the head!"

Needless to say, the throwing stopped...for at least the next 15 minutes.

As we walked back up to our room, I watched as a 20'something walked into the pool area.

Towel and, you guessed it, football in arm

WTF???

Knock, knock, knock....HellooooOOOOoooooo??

Anyone there??

Probably not.

Well, I did fall off the face of the earth for a while there. Sorry about that to anyone who may still be reading/checking.

I haven't had much to write about, so I figure it wasn't worth taking the time to start something that I knew I wouldn't finish.

Currently....life is pretty good. We are vacationing in Fort Lauderdale, Florida as we speak. It's quite interesting. I can tell that this town is geared for the younger/drinking crowd. There are loads of families, don't get me wrong, but the restaurants are hysterical. Three for one drink specials were on the menu where we ate last night. Your choice of a long list of martinis, house liquors, and wine. I felt like a little drinky-poo after our long day of travel, so I decided to go for it. Of course, we read the fine print later and found that there was no "sharing"....that meant it was SIX drinks for the two adults at the table. Hmmmmmm. Have I mentioned before that I'm a lightweight?

Needless to say, I was relaxed and loads of fun after dinner. The boys all went swimming in the ocean while the thunder and lighting acted up in the distance. I'm sure the sober Mommy would have put up more of a fight upon seeing that, but drunk Mommy just let the boys have their fun.

Luckily...no one was electrocuted.

Don't get me started on some of the people here...my GOSH!!! Loads of PDA goin' on and it's not necessarily of the hetero variety. Not that I care or mind what other people do, but with two small children, one of which is VERY observant and extremely curious, I will have some "splainin" to do soon.

Won't that be fun.

This morning, Kelly left for a CPE class around 8:15. Guess who had some quality alone time for one full hour PLUS fifteen minutes??!! MEEEEE!!!

Colin woke up around 9:30, and Landon, well, THAT boy slept until 10:00!!!!!!

WHOOOOOO-HOOOOOOOOO!!!

The boy has discovered the luxury of sleeping in. I think my life is taking a positive turn from here on out.

We're in a hotel that overlooks the ocean and the intracoastal waterway. The boys and I had a great time eating breakfast and watching all of the boats. I now need to head to the shower and get ready for dinner.

Hey, a week of no cooking, sleeping late, and lounging at the beach??

I can handle that!

Maybe in my new-found relaxed state, I will be able to post more.

We can only hope!

Andria....

Email me where to send the Hotsling to at: another_sweet_day@yahoo.com

I'll get it out some time this week. Probably not tomorrow b/c I have strep throat and I need to do a little more recovering.

Hope you guys are doing well!!!

To my blogosphere friends...

I'm really sick of blogger right now.

Every time I try to comment on one of your blogs, I get booted off for some reason.

I'm still here, trying to *finish* a post, but having difficulty. Can you tell the last one was supposed to be about my allergies. I have no idea how I managed to get the ONE sentence up on the blog!

It sucks to type 280 words only to lose what you've done.

ANDRIA....you're little girl is absolutely ADORABLE, and, I have a hotsling that I would be glad to send you if you'd like it. You just need to go to the website: www.hotslings.com and see what you're size would be. Mine is a 4, and if that's what you need...it's yours.

I'm still reading everyone, I just can't comment for some reason. SORRY!

My eyes are on FIRE!

Hobby Lobby

Have any of you ever been to this place?

Oh. My. Gosh!

Being in a new house that is in DESPERATE need of decorating and finding Hobby Lobby is pretty much the definition of bankruptcy!

This place has everything you could imagine to decorate your home. From mirrors to artwork, fake plants to furniture. To top it off, it feels like you're in the bargain basement because everything is marked 30% off!! 50% off!! It makes you feel like you're saving a TON even though you might not be. (It's all about how it makes you feel right?).

Every type of crafty neccesity is in the back from crayola to proffessional paints to markers and crayons.

The boys and I were all in HEAVEN!

So, about $100 lighter, we're home after our shopping spree. Colin is painting MONSTER trucks and I am about to break out my paints to create some "buggy" masterpieces for the boys' bathroom.

I'll have to post some pics when we're done.

Too bad Kelly came across a 40% off coupon TODAY.

I guess we'll just have to use it next time.

BWA ha ha ha ha!!!

Nope, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth

Sorry, to those few, few people who may still visit!

I'm still here...only a little sick myself these days. Whatever amazing Mommy immunity I managed to build up has failed me with the most recent wave of germs in our home. It's just a cold, but enough to make me feel like crap.

Landon is a runny-nosed mess, albeit a VERY CUTE one, and Colin is now following suit as well. My home now smells of vicks as I have every available outlet taken up with a Sudacare vapor plug. These, folks, are a miracle of modern medicine. If you've never tried them, do. Sleeping while congested is miserable, and these make it bearable.

I'm just sayin'.

**********************************

I haven't walked on the treadmill for two days now, and I'm starting to feel like a slug. Being sick is my excuse, but that's over with as of tomorrow. I'm not giving up on myself just yet. This just means that I don't get the weekend off from working out, but I can handle it.

I've been consistently working out 5-6 days a week for a month now, and I'm really starting to notice a difference in my body. The scale says that I've lost about 4 pounds, but my clothes are fitting a LOT looser. I've even had a few people comment that they can see a difference. It's so nice to finally be seeing results!! I don't know if I'll get back to 109 pounds, but I'm definitely giving it my best shot!

**********************************

So...that's the hole that I've been in lately.

My next post will probably involve my crazy ass idea of going to grad school some time in the near future. As if I don't have enough going on in my life. I'm still in the research stages of it, but I'm really hoping that it might become a reality. I'm ready to start investing some time and energy into Lori.....

Novel idea huh??

Strep

as in strep throat.

It seems like it never ends.

Weren't the boys sick just last week??

Colin is on his third antibiotic in about 3 weeks.

Nice.

Luckily, we caught this early. I thought it was his ears because he had an infection at the beginning of April and maybe it just didn't get cleared up.

I just pray that no one else in the house gets it. That would be best case scenario, but it's not usually how things play out in this household.

I'm going to go buy some stock in Lysol tomorrow morning.

Catch you guys on the flip side!

No, no, NO!

Ahhhh....the terrible two's.

Has anyone told you that they don't wait until exactly 24 months to begin?

My littlest man. He's officially 20 months today. That's T-W-E-N-T-Y months.

That would be a mere FOUR months away from the big TWO.

His baby-ness is slipping away. The little boy who used to only want Mamma, now chases after his Daddy with his own lawn mower and adores his brother so much that he's Colin's little shadow. *I* feel lost in the shadows a bit.

I know, in the utlimate scheme of things, this is really what I want. I want him to grow up...but it doesn't stop me from missing that little fella who used to be my mommy's boy.

The good news is...he's growing. You may remember that at one of his last well-baby checks, he was only in the fifth percentile for his weight. Well...I think/hope, that he's been putting on a good bit since then. I have a hard time picking him up lately. I'm thinking he's packing on the pounds. Of course, it could be that he wiggles and squiggles like a crazed animal each time I reach for him now.

He has another check-up on Wednesday, so I'll be happy to report back the results then.

He's still talking up a storm. LOADS of words. The most amazing thing is that he's so polite. "taint-too" (thank you), "pees" (please), and "cooz meee" (excuse me) are some of the words he uses most often. NOT as often, however, as "NO!"

That's what I mean by the terrible two's hitting early. Even if he really means "yes"...the answer is currently a strong "no" at first.



That streak of independence. I love it and hate it all at the same time.

Bye-bye my baby, and get ready world!! This guy is going to be one tough cookie...but a heck of a lot of fun!




Is that not one of the cutest little tushies you've ever seen??

Where oh where....

Where oh where is my contact lens,

Where oh where could it be????

I went to sleep and left it in,

woke up and now I can't see!

.................................................................


I know what you're thinking. Shut up.

The fact that I had two beers last night and I'm a lightweight have absolutely nothing to do with this.

I have been wearing contacts for 19 years and this has never happened. Yes, I've lost one when I was rubbing my eye or something, but go to sleep with it in and then wake up and it's gone....never.

I keep rubbing my eye to see if it rolled back somewhere, and it's still not appearing.

I guess it's lost for good.

Oh well.

That's an interesting way to start the day.

Snakebite...mmmmm

Anyone ever had one?

The drink, not the actual experience.

It's a mixture of a draft lager (Harp) and cider (woodchuck)...and it's heavenly!!!

Kelly and I got a babysitter tonight (2nd time this week....this is getting expensive!) and went out. There's a new pub called "Sixpence" and it's such a nice place to go. Roof-top seating in the 65 degree weather...a nice breeze blowing and a snake-bite in hand.

This, is my new favorite place.

Ahhhhh....I'm lost in the haze of two of them, and about ready to lay my head on my soft pillow for the night.

I just had to share with the blogosphere...go out and try a snakebite tonight...you won't regret it!

These....are the days of our lives

All of the sudden, life seems a hell of a lot better. Why is that?

Maybe it's the fact that we're all relatively healthy, maybe my walking/running 2 miles a day is really paying off as far as my mood and energy level. I'm sure a large part of it is the fact that Kelly's work has eased up a bit and he's actually "here".

What do I mean by "here"? Well, when he's home...he's actually participating in the family, talking to us, enjoying us. I wonder if he even knows how removed he becomes when work is weighing on him like it has been?

We went out sans children Saturday night. It was nice. We discussed how difficult the last few months have been for both of us, and I think we're on the same page for now. We both realize how close things came to falling apart...and that's pretty damn scary.

My biggest issue is that 20 years from now, I don't want to look back and wish I had done things differently. Of course, I'm sure there will be things that I wish I could change, but I want us to *live* our life...not just wish it away.

I want to create memories for our boys. Happy, fun, times that they can look back on and and talk about long after we're gone.

I want to create memories for Kelly and me. I mean, shit, we got married first because we loved each other, and had fun together. We didn't say, "yeah, let's get married, have kids and work our asses off so that we can grow apart and never see each other." I can't imagine anyone that wants that.

Part of making those things happen, is planning. This may sound stupid, but we are going to create a family calendar. We're going to plan our days, weeks, months...even YEARS ahead just like Kelly plans at work. THAT way, when it's on the calendar...time is made for that event, and it's a priority.

This is really more for Kelly's benefit than for mine. He's a planning/calendar type of guy. I've realized that, for him to make us part of his, well life...he's got to actually see us there on paper (or the computer screen), scheduled and blocked as something that happens at a certain time and a certain place.

Now...let me just say, this probably makes him sound like a total and complete ass, and that's not what I mean. Kelly is a really good guy, who just has an AMAZING work ethic...almost too good. I know that he loves me, and that he loves the boys. He just gets so totally and completely focused on work during his busy season, that we tend to fall by the wayside. In fact, he's just like his father. He's a much better Dad than his father was...but, he works just as hard as his Dad did.

SOOooooo....hopefully things are on the upswing here. Thanks for bearing with the pity party for a while. I was getting pretty tired of the whiny me too.

So. On the agenda to write about in the next few days:

• T-ball is FUN!! There is nothing like watching 20 little guys running around that ball field. Half of them have no idea what they are doing, but they have a damn good time doing it. Pictures to come as well.
• My littlest fella is really growing up. Landon's new favorite word is, "no-no!". "Can Mommy have a kiss?" "NO!" "Can Mommy have a hug?"...."No-NOOOO!" Sigh. I can see how people move on to have more babies, even though that first year is hell. I think my days of hugs and snuggles are dwindling, and I miss my snuggly little guy. OH...and have you SEEN Andria's BEAUTIFUL little girl??? Oh. My. Gosh. It makes my ovaries ache!
• What is it with my boy and shoes? One of Landon's favorite past-times is going through all of my shoes and wearing them around the house. His favorite pair are blue, pointy-toed heels. Should I be worried??

I'm back, and feeling a little better

Thanks to those of you who posted after my pitiful little rant the other day.

I'm feeling a little better. Nothing like a stomach virus to *really* knock you on your a$$ so you can truly see how awful life can be.

Wednesday morning, I started puking around 12:30 am, and I was out for the count the rest of the day. Kelly had absolutely no choice but to stay home and take care of the kids because I was totally worthless. All I could do was lie in bed and moan and every now and again pray to the porcelain goddess.

ICK.

I wasn't able to eat anything until around 9:00 pm last night, so hey, on the bright side...this has at least helped to jump-start my weight loss program right?

I feel ONE THOUSAND times better today and my outlook is MUCH brighter after having survived the previous night's puke-fest.

Isn't life funny that way?

CONGRATULATIONS ANDRIA!!!!

My "Boy Crazy" friend, is now the proud Momma of a precious little GIRL!!!!

I can only imagine the shock she is feeling as her walls of Hotwheel cars come tumbling down and their "blue" world is slowly inundated with pink.

Enjoy every moment of it! She's going to steal your heart, just like she's going to steal the heart of those big brothers of hers!

I'm so happy for you dear friend!

I can't wait to see pictures and hear her NAME!

If you're in a good mood, you probably want to skip this post

Life sucks.

I hate to be a downer, but this is where I've been for a little while now and just getting it out has to be better than trying to act like everything is okay.

My Husband has been working non-stop for what feels like months now. I feel like a single parent to two wonderful boys...the only good thing in my life as it stands right now.

Eventually, they are going to hate me, because I have been just a raging bitch for the last few weeks. I'm just praying that I don't screw them up too badly because they really are some of the sweetest kids that you'll ever meet.

Kelly and I have gone through this every year of our marriage, but for some reason this year feels so much worse. I don't see him anymore. A "goodbye" in the morning is pretty much all we have anymore. We're not even roommates...roommates see each other more than we do.

I still love him, but I just don't know him anymore. I've tried to be supportive, but all I feel is anger, resentment, and overwhelmingly.....lonely.

It's 10:37pm, and he's still at work. At least I figure he is. I haven't talked to him since around 4:30 when he informed me that he couldn't make it to Colin's t-ball game. Just another let-down in a long list of let-downs.

My effing toe is hurting again, badly. I think I re-injured it the other day when I stubbed it on something. Forget having some time off to take care of myself though...all I do is take care of everyone else.

Yeah. My life sucks.

I guess it'll bounce back eventually. Normally it does, but God knows it sure doesn't feel like it will right now.

I'm off to take a vicodin and drink a beer. At least I can forget about everything for a little while that way.

I'm never letting my boys out of the house without me

I can't believe this.

It seems like every time I turn around, something awful like this is happening.

I can't believe the world that I brought my kids in to.

Footnote....

It's 1:08 am.

Why am I not asleep?

HILARIOUS new show!!

You all need to check it out...Ladies and Gents alike!

There's a little something for everyone in the new ABC show, "Notes From the Underbelly". It previewed tonight at 10pm, and I couldn't stop laughing the enitre hour. If you've even just contemplated procreation, you'll be able to relate.

Here are a few previews. Check it out, you won't be dissapointed!

The joy of post-breastfeeding b00bs:



Faking tequila shots:

Warning...whining ahead

Why does life have to filled with so many ups and downs? Sometimes I wish that there was just a happy medium that I could set "repeat" to and play it over and over again.

This week is Spring Break..and it has been rough. Both Colin and Landon are sick and on top of that...GRUMPY! In turn, that makes me pretty damn grumpy myself.

Yesterday was pretty much pure hell. It was raining and freaking COLD outside. It reflected my mood to a T though. Landon woke up and ate some breakfast which he proceeded to then throw up all over himself.

Tuesday, I had a Doctor's appointment to x-ray my broken toe again. The joint has healed nicely, but the part underneath that is still broken. I could have told you that by the way it feels. At least I know I won't be stuck with this pain for the rest of my life. It should be healed in about a month or so.

Colin went to the Doc on Friday night and they started treating him for bronchitis, then he still wasn't "right" on Tuesday. I took him back to Urgent Care and now he's on different meds for an ear infection. I took Landon yesterday due to his coughing and vomiting episode, and they seem to think it's just a cold. Too bad we found out that the little girl the boys were talking to was diagnosed with the flu.

See what I mean? It just doesn't get any better.

At least the weather is nicer today. I just don't feel like fighting the kids to get them dressed to go anywhere. It's probably much easier to just stay here and let them beat on each other.

(okay, okay...I'm only HALF kidding!)

Maybe my problem is that I haven't had any caffeine today. Guess I'd better go get some.

Diet Mountian Dew...here I come!

"Hey guys!! Free FOOD!!"

I don't think I've ever mentioned the fact that we have tons of stray cats in our neighborhood. I don't know the full story, but I think it goes something like this:

Some woman decided to feed a stray that then had kittens and they have continued a little colony in our neck of the woods (literally). They live in the woods behind our house that our quiet little creek runs through. They would be the ones that have left us our various gifts of dead mice around the yard and driveway.

Try explaining the idea of mouse death, heaven, and eternity to your 4 year old as you toss it's tiny little carcass into the creek.

"Mommy, will he go to heaven?"

"Yes honey"

"But Mommy, the creek doesn't go to heaven, I thought it was way up in the sky...why are you throwing him in there?"

"He's just going to go for a little ride first honey, Jesus will pick him up around that little bend in the creek there."

Huh?

Yep. I'll probably go to hell for that, but otherwise I would have been stuck answering questions all day and all I wanted to do was get it OUT of the yard before Landon tried to "pet" it.

Oh well.

Kelly has accused me of feeding these stray cats numerous times, but alas, until today, I had never given in to those sweet little meows and sad looks through our side lights at the front door. They even come to the basement door and scratch like they want to come in...the boys kill me when they go and talk to them through the glass. How much more guilty can I feel?

It's torn at my conscience for a while now. I guess maybe because today was Easter Sunday, I must have been in a giving sort of mood. There was a small, skinny, little calico cat sitting on our front stoop and looking in the window. Colin came running to me to let me know about our visitor and then ran back to talk to her through the glass.

My heart broke just a little, so I snuck upstairs and grabbed a cup of cat-food to put outside. (shhhhhh...don't tell my cats because they would FREAK!) I even stuck a little dish of water out there for her and told Colin that it was, "our secret".

Have you ever wondered if cats communicate with each other? Well, I'm here to tell ya that they do.

Little Miss Calico happily gobbled up her dinner and then she went dancing down the street telling all of her buddies that the neighbors had a free buffet goin' on. Before I knew it there was an orange tabby, a snow white cat, and another calico begging on my front stoop. One even went around to the basement door to see if he'd have better luck there.

I guess the secret got out eh?

I wonder if Kelly will suspect that I've fed them?

I think he might.

It's either the buffet line winding around the house or the fact that Colin is running around the house saying, "Mommy, I didn't tell Daddy about our secret", that just might give it away.

Low cost miracle worker

Remember this?

Can you believe that this picture was taken a mere TWO days after that happened?

When they were sitting for the shots, the photographer asked me if I wanted her to try and edit out all of his scratches and I said sure. (These are school pictures people, so my hopes were not all that high!)

THIS is how it turned out. Pretty good I have to say.

There is one picture where his nose looks just a tad "off", but hey, for the cost of, oh..just about *nothing*, I'd say she did an amazing job!

I can't believe these little fellas are mine.

Pretty darn cute I must admit!

Workout update

Do you want the good news or the bad news?

I guess I'll start with the good.

I have walked 4 miles this week on my treadmill (over a 4 day period). One mile Tuesday which was alternating between walking briskly and running, and then power-walking 1.5 miles both Thursday and Today.

The bad news?

My broken toe is not liking my new excercise routine.....not ONE bit.

After my workout on Tuesday, the right side of my foot was aching terribly. I have managed to get around by putting my weight on that side of my foot since I broke my poor toe. I thought that I was pretty much healed, until I did that little trek on the treadmill.

So....I gave myself a day to recover and in the meantime, tested out how much pressure and weight I could comfortably put on my injured appendage. I figured walking quickly would be the way to go.

Nope.

My toe is now swollen and hurting. Much more so than before I started working out.

GAH!

This stupid thing better heal quickly. The Doc said 3-4 weeks and today is 4 weeks exactly. I go back in for more x-rays on Tuesday, so I'll see where I stand then. I guess I better hold off on the excercise until then.

I hope this isn't that way it's going to feel for the rest of my life, because that would pretty much suck. I don't need any more excuses NOT to work out.

Mother nature has a sense of humor doesn't she?

Here's the forecast for both Saturday and Sunday:

A few clouds. Highs in the low 50s and lows in the low 30s.

Nice. I guess I get to put away those cute, SHORT-sleeve, polo shirts that I bought for the boys for Easter Sunday. I can look at the bright side and assume that I'm lucky that I don't have a girl and I didn't sink a chunk of change into some cute dress that probably cost three times what it took to make it.

I've been so excited that Spring is here and things are blooming! Hopefully they survive the low temps. I've been wanting to do some landscaping and planting at the new house, but this is a good excuse to wait just a little longer.

Sorry for the lack of posts as of late, but I have not been all that inspired to write. It seems like it's a "bug" that's been going around lately (along with the virus that kept Colin home from school yesterday.).

I hope all of you survive the temperature drop and have a great Easter! Stay warm and remember....

"The sun'll come OUT...TOmorrow! Bet your bottom dollar that toMORRow...they'll be sun!"

One step forward two puddles back?

I am a boy-mom, just like my friend Andria. (If you have a second, check out her post from today...another JOY of being a boy mom. Sorry girl, I don't know how to get vaporub out of hair..wish I could help!)

I love it. My boys are LOADS of fun. We love to play cars and get dirty. To run around like mad-people and tackle each other with tickles and kisses. It can scare the heck out of me every now and then (take a look at Colin's picture in the previous post for exhibit 1A), but I know that I am, and was always meant to be, a Mom of boys.

There is ONE little side-note to being a boy-mom that really is getting on my nerves lately though.

Landon, of course, is still in diapers. Colin, has been potty trained for over a year now, and I have to say, it's been nice. Pee-pee diapers are no big deal, but boy...when they get to be 18 months and older...those poops are just NA-STY!! ( I have the smell of one of Landon's beckoning me as I type, so I'd better hurry.)

YUCK!

Colin has been self-sufficient for a while now, and it's been great....BUT. (Yes, here comes the but.) Why is it that lately when I go in to the bathroom, I am finding a puddle on the floor in front of the toilet?

Why?

Is it all of the sudden out of control? Is there a reason why the floor seems a more appropriate place for your urine verses the perfectly placed toilet that is one inch from where you are standing?

I don't know what to do. I keep reminding him to "PAY ATTENTION!!" when he goes. I make *him* get down on the floor and clean it up thinking that eventually, he will get sick of it....but to no avail. I keep stepping in, or finding puddles at least once a day on my bathroom floor.

So. I am beseeching my fellow boy-moms and boy-dads to HELP me.

How do I RE-teach my 4 year old to pee IN the potty?

A cute face covered in road rash

We skipped school on Monday (shhhh...don't tell!)

Colin decided that he didn't want to go today either, so he took a nose-dive on the pavement on his way into his class......

OUCH!

Thank goodness for Neosporin with pain relief...that, and chocolate. I didn't think I was ever going to get him to calm down.

School pictures are going to be just LOV-E-LY on Friday!

Game on baby!

We took the plunge.

We bought a treadmill today.

I'm so excited!!! I'm ready to start my workout plan and get RID of the extra "me" that's been hanging around for the last couple of years.

The only issue to overcome is my stupid BROKEN toe! I can't very well walk and run now, but from what the Orthopedic Doc said, I'll be good to go in 3 more weeks. **Edited to add: We would have waited to buy it, but it was on sale for $300 off and the last day to buy it was Saturday. Lest we sound like idiots for buying a treadmill while I'm a cripple.**

Wish me luck. I'll take my inspiration from my friend Onehung who has been shrinking his waistline for a while now.

I know that I won't necessarily make it back to a size 2 and my lowest weight of 109 (I'm only 5" 1' if I'm lucky), but I'll be happy to get back to 125.

I'll keep you guys posted...hehe! (posted...get it?? I crack myself up!)

"Excuse you"

I can't get over how much Landon is talking. I love it because of course, it makes life SO much easier when he can communicate his wants and needs.

The latest in his ever expanding vocabulary is "excuse me". This term applies to any burp, fart, or bodily function that erupts unexpectedly and also to moving past people who may be in his way.

In trying to teach him this, and remind him to use it in these situations, every now and then I would say, "Excuse you Landon". Colin picked up on it and started reminding him every now and then with "Excuse you!".

Landon has now picked up on this and applies, "Excuse you" to the above situations.

He's only a year and a half and he's already blaming his farts on other people.

Nice.

Tagged

This is a really interesting meme (is that what you would call it? Hey...I don't even know what the heck "meme" stands for anyway. Yep, I'm a dork).

I was tagged by my friend OneHung, so here goes.....

Instructions are as follows:

1. Go to Wikipedia and type your birth month and day (not year).
2. List three events from that day.
3. List two important births and one death.
4. List one holiday or observance.
5. Tag five others.

Let's see if anything interesting happened on my birthday.

Events from that day:
1. 1906 Congress passes the Meat Inspection Act (THANK God!).
2. 1936 Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell is published.
3. 1997 The first book in the award winning Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling is published.

Two important births:
1. 1960 Murray Cook, Wiggles singer.
2. 1984 Fantasia Barrino of American Idol fame.

I don't know if I'd consider those "important", but hey, they were names that stood out to me.

One Death:
1966 Giuseppi Farina, an Italian race car driver. I didn't know him, but I LOVE the name Giuseppi. Maybe if we go for another baby and it's a boy, that's what we'll name him.

Yeah, I can see Kelly going for that. Can't you?

One holiday observance:
Independence Day in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

........................................................

Hmmm. That was pretty boring.

I guess the best thing about June 30th is....ME! lol! At least my family thinks so.

Most days anyway.

I'll tag anyone who reads my blog and wants to try it out. I can pretty much guarrantee that you guys all have a much more interesting birthday than me.

What a difference a week makes!

I return to the blogosphere a broken woman.....

A woman with a broken TOE that is.

I know, I know, the first question that comes to your mind is, "Lori..., now did you *really* break your toe?" The answer to that question (which my Husband DID have the nerve to ask as I writhed and screamed in pain Friday night), is yes. I have x-rays to prove it.

Wanna hear how it happened? I certainly hope so, because I'm going to tell you anyway.

Would you expect anything less??

I was coming downstairs (to get some ice cream no less...guess that wasn't meant to be!) and not paying attention to where I was walking (hmmm, nothing strange there). I thought that I was at the bottom of the steps, but unfortunately, I still had 2 more to go. I fell forward and all of my weight was caught on the ball of my right foot with my big toe planted on the hardwood floor. I continued to fall forward and my big toe just snapped ( I HEARD IT!!!).

Can you just say, "OOOOWWWWWWIIIEEEEEEE!!!!???"

I cried and cussed, and cried and prayed, and cussed some more waiting for the pain to stop but it just never did. I had to hobble BACK upstairs to wake Kelly and inform him that I had broken my stupid toe! I don't think he really believed me (maybe it was the previously mentioned comment that gave me that impression?). He did his best to calm me down, but have any of you ever broken a bone before? Oh. My. Gosh. The pain is pretty unbelievable.

Eventually, I did calm down and at that point we had to figure out how the hell I was going to get to the Doctor. We have no family in town, the boys were sound asleep, and there was no way in HELL I was going to be able to drive myself anywhere. We had to call our babysitter at 11:30 pm and luckily, she came right over. (Can I tell you how *sick* I am that this girl is moving away for Grad school next year?? She's amazing!)

We went to a 24 hour urgent care center that's about 15 minutes away and were in and out in about an hour. Thank God we didn't have to brave the ER...oh the nightmares I've heard about that place!

It turns out I broke my toe right at the top joint. The x-rays actually look like I took a hammer to it because there are cracks all throughout the bone. yikes!!! The Doctor was afraid that I might need surgery b/c of the joint involment, but luckily I didn't (whew!!). I saw an Orthopedic Doctor on Saturday morning, and he said b/c of the way it was broken, there was no way he could do anything. I don't know if that's good or bad, but I'm thankful that I avoided surgery. I have to go back in three weeks for more x-rays, and he said hopefully, I'll be healed in about four.
.
So, I'm hobbling around in an orthopedic boot (there's no way to cast a big toe and let me tell you how Be-A-UUUUtiful it is!) and my toe/foot is turning some very interesting shades of blue and purple that I've never really seen before. They also gave me crutches, which is laughable being the mother of two small children.

The Orthopedic Doctor asked if he could give me a note for work, but I had to explain to him that my bosses can't read yet, so it would be pointless.

So...that's been my exciting weekend. I'm doing pretty well now. My toe doesn't really hurt unless I put pressure on it, or knock it into a chair leg like I did about 20 minutes ago. The Aleve and Vicodin are helping...a LOT! Especially the Vicodin, gotta love that stuff!

A different child

It's amazing to me how different Colin and Landon are. You would think that being children of the same two parents, growing up in the same household, that they would be very similar. I am shocked every day at how unique and special each of them are.

I don't remember Colin getting in to stuff as a child (I'm sure he did, but I've have 3 years to forget...just call me mother of the year). He was curious, of course, but he wasn't a climber, and if I stepped out of the room for a second, I never really had to worry about what I would find when I returned.

Landon, on the other hand, is VERY much the mischief maker! He climbs on any chair that he can find and if he can reach any of my bags, he will rummage through them, until he finds something that he wants.

Thursday, it was a fortune cookie that I brought home with us from dinner the night before. I was washing some dishes and hear him running up to me saying, "bite! bite! bubble!" (translated: "I want to eat this cookie!!")

Saturday was a different story. I was upstairs trying to finish getting ready while Kelly, Colin, and Landon were in the family room. I hear Colin start yelling, and then the ever infamous words, "Landon...NO SIR!". I ran downstairs thinking maybe Landon had done something to hurt Colin, or had managed to color something that he wasn't supposed to (he ALWAYS manages to get to the crayons. I guess I need to find a better hiding place.).

What I found was pretty surprising.

My beautiful ,18 month old child turned to look up at me with a lovely smile covered in........ ........LIPSTICK!!!

Somehow, he had managed to rummage through my bag and find the tube, take off the top, and create almost the perfect "clown" smile on his face (a little bigger on one side, but hey, for a one year old, I thought that took some talent!).

If ONLY I had thought to get out the camera so I could document this!!!!

Alas, you only get to imagine it. I promise, the reality was a THOUSAND times cuter!

I'm just glad that we discovered it before he managed to make it to the walls!

Aaaaahhhhhh...

I am lying here, comfortably typing this from the cushy-cushionness of my NEW SOFA!!!! I cannot express how truly excited I am!

Since we have been in the new house, we have been using our K*mart brand, $119.99 special, futon as the main seating for our family room. Can you just say, "ouch?" If you weigh more than the 38 pounds of my four year old, it is really one of the most uncomfortable things to sit on, other than a bed of nails maybe. You basicly have your choice of one of the metal bars either going up your butt*crack, or two of them painfully pressing on either cheek. Neither of which makes for a relaxing evening of television. So, a few weeks ago, we set out on our adventure of sofa/family room furniture shopping.

Both Kelly and I agreed that we wanted leather this time around. The shredded carcasses of our last couch and love seat are currently in the basement (I would have preferred tossing them to the curb, but the hubby wanted to keep them for some reason.) along with the upholstered chairs that go with our new dining room set that we aquired along with the house.

Yep. You guessed it. We have two cats who insist that anything that is over one foot tall and wrapped in cloth is a scratching post purchased solely for their use. I know, I know. We could have them de-clawed. We had that conversation years ago when we first bought that set, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Needless to say, the poor couch and love seat payed for that decision...tenfold.

So...back to the reason we bought leather. We're hoping...yes HOPING, that the cats will find the leather furniture less to their liking as far as sharpening their claws. We have had one leather rocker/recliner for four years now that they haven't touched, so this is what we're basing our decision on. Hopefully it's not a $1000+ mistake. I guess we'll see in a couple of weeks huh?

The boys and I had a pretty rough day today, besides getting our luscious furniture, of course. Part of the reason was the waiting, and waiting, and even more waiting for the damn delivery truck to show up. I don't know why they even bother to call and give you a four hour window for delivery. We were told between 9am and 1pm. They showed up at 1:10pm, which I guess in the grand scheme of things is pretty damn good, but shit, I could have gotten a LOT done with all of that time we sat around waiting. Oh well. The pay off is well worth it. My cushy, tushy is very thankful at the moment.

To make up for the crappy morning, the boys and I went out to dinner and had a good time, which was a turn-around for all of our moods. Afterwards, we indulged. Ohhh...did we! I figured since we had the luscious, cushiness of the new furniture awaiting us at home, we may as well add to the yumminess of our evening. We went by Olive Garde*n and purchased a piece (okay, you got me! Make that TWO pieces) of tiramisu and shared it when we came home. Mmmmmmmmmm......

My waist line will pay for that later, but I can say that I don't do that often. I'll just run up and down the stairs a couple more times, and hopefully that will help. (I wish!)

So, I'm still lying here typing, full of the cinnamony, creamy, goodness of my tiramisu, and it's time for Colin to go to bed. Kelly is once again working late (damn financial statements that will never go out!) and I don't know if I will be able to peel my as$ off of this couch to get Colin up to his room. Ahhhh....the smell of new leather. You can't beat it! I'll be here for a little while longer.....Colin will make it up there eventually!

Check out this picture from 2006 Summer Preschool

Take just ONE guess at which one of these kids is my child.

Come on...can you figure it out?

If I haven't told you, my child is very set in his ways, and if he doesn't want to do something, he just flat out won't.

I wonder where he picked up that stubborn streak?

Certainly not from his mother..hehe!

Lovin' life

I just can't express how *much* I love the age that Landon is right now (18 months)! He is talking non-stop, picking up new words every day, and really becoming, well.....Landon.

He's so sweet. He loves to give kisses and is determined that he can do anything and everything that his big brother can do. We put up our new swingset last weekend, and he's already climbing up to the top and sliding down...on his butt! He was hesitant at first and only went down feet first, on his belly, but now he's determined to slide down just like his big brother.

He can point to many of his body parts and is hysterical when he burps. He laughs and looks around to see if anyone heard him. I guess that's just a by-product of growing up in this house...poor kid.

He's turning in to a little neat freak too. (I can assure you that he received those genes from his father.) Any loose piece of paper or trash, he will pick up and walk over to the trash can and throw away. We have a shoe rack in our coat closet downstairs, and as soon as we come home, he takes off his shoes and insists on putting them away. He'll even put mine away for me if I ask! Hopefully this will pay off when he becomes a teenager.

We shall see.

Things that Landon can say are:

Hi
Bye
Thank you (used in appropriate situations)
Uh-Oh
Bite (which means anything that he might want to eat)
Bubble (which means candy or something that he *really, REALLY* wants to eat. He learned this from Colin's begging for bubble gum at restaurants and stores from the gum-ball machines.)
Please
juice
Mommy
Daddy
Grammy
Nose (which he LOVES to point to and of course stick his finger IN)
Eye
Ear
Flower
Hot dog
Baby
Poopie (nice huh?)
Pee pee
Boobie (which actually means OOBI from the show on Noggin...I'll have loads of fun explaining that one!)

Of course, about half of these words are not necessarily understood by anyone outside of our family. Boobie and poopie are VERY clear, but thank you sounds more like, "tane too" and nose is a bit more like, "nooooo". Translation isn't really a problem when you find his finger halfway up yours, so at least he knows how to get his point across right?

Are you smarter than a 5th grader?

Did anyone happen to catch this show last night on Fox?

At first I pshaww'ed it too, but, can I please tell you HOW hysterical it was? Hysterical because these kids are SMARTER than the adults on the show!

They have a panel of six 5th graders that answer the same questions given to the adults. The contestants are able to get help from the kids (similar to the life-lines on Millionare) if they need to.

The first contestant was a man with a Bachelors, Masters, AND LAW degree, and he did not answer one question on his own. The questions that he earned money for were answered by the student helpers (I certainly hope that they get a percentage, if not, they're getting ripped off!).

You can visit the website and take a test to see if *you* are smarter than a fifth grader.

I took it.

I will not reveal the results...although, I will reveal that I at least scored higher than the first and second grade level.

(D'ohhh!)

I guess I'd better study up before I start helping Colin and Landon with their homework.

What about you?? Are you brave enough to take the test?

If not, at least check out the show. You'll be shocked at how stupid the contestants can look and you can feel.

Random bits of nothing....

Woo-HOO! We closed on the old house yesterday. It's now official. We are the owners of only ONE home.It was a strange mixture of emotions to sign that little house over to someone else. Happy, because who the hell wants TWO house payments, and just a little sad.



Both of our boys were brought home from the hospital to that house. I still remember the blue balloons and streamers all over when we arrived home with Colin. When Landon came home, Kelly and Colin had decorated the driveway for us. I cried when I saw it, but of course that could have been the post pregnancy, raging hormones.(Don't ask about the socks up to his knees. I didn't dress him that day. I think it was my stepmother.)




The couple who purchased it were a good bit older. For some reason, I pictured a younger couple like ourselves...getting ready to start their family like we had. In fact, they are retirees moving down from New York to get away from the ice and snow. Of course, as you can see, every NOW and then, we get a good snow here. Maybe once every ten years anyway. It's normally melted in 2 or 3 days, even after 17 inches covering the ground. I'm sure they can handle it with all the experience they've had though.


She was a hoot. As soon as she confirmed that we were the sellers, she asked if she could give me a hug, and then she smooched me on the cheek. She reminded me a little of my late Grandmother, so I guess it was alright. She couldn't stop gushing about how much they loved the house and how they couldn't wait to move in. She even pulled out pictures they had taken a month or so ago that she's been carrying around in her purse. She wants us to stop by some time and even come over for a visit. I don't know about that. It might be a little weird, especially considering that she has an affinity for wallpaper...ick! We'll see. We still have friends in the neighborhood, so we'll at least ride by. I'm just glad someone is there who will love it as much as we did. Goodbye little house!

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Landon just got his third haircut. It was about time. The poor kid had hair all over the place. She actually used the clippers and really trimmed up the top. My little baby is gone. In his place is a little boy. I know that's really a good thing, but I just can't get over how quickly they grow up. It makes me want another one....ALMOST! Those ten months that Landon didn't sleep through the night even once aren't that far gone for me.

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Instead of singing in church this past Sunday, I worked the pre-school room for a girl who hadn't gone to a service for the past 4 weeks. I'm glad she was able to go, but Oh. MY. Gosh. I was about to DIE in there. One of the worst kids was MINE!!! I'm sure he behaves better when I'm not there, but good Lord! I'm just not cut out to be a pre-school teacher. I think they should all be granted saint-hood, because I was ready to strangle a few after about ten minutes in the room. When we got out, a few people mentioned that they missed seeing me up on stage singing. It was a pretty good feeling. I'll be back this Sunday gettin' my groove on..yippee!! If you're wondering, it's not your normal church choir. It's a praise team, and we sing a lot of mainstream music in addition to contemporay Christian. I love it.

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Both boys have been really sick over the last week and a half. Landon ended up with strep throat, and Colin had one nasty virus. It lasted NINE days people. NINE frickin' days. I had the worst cabin fever I think I've ever had. Colin will finally be going back to school for the first time in a while tomorrow morning. I know that both of us are looking forward to it.

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I think Kelly has strep now too. He's off to the Doctor after work tonight. God forbid I get it because you know, Mommies aren't allowed to get sick. So far so good (fingers crossed, knocking on wood.)

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We have a really cool creek that runs through our new backyard. Saturday, we were outside and we met one of our neighbors. Nice guy with two girls and a SWIMMING pool! Gotta love that. He informed us that he has killed two, large, cottonmouth snakes in the time that they have lived here. Ask me how I feel about us playing in the backyard now. He did say that supposedly mothballs keep them away. I think I just may invest in a large quantity of them once Spring arrives. I wonder if the smell will keep the neighbor-kids away too after I coat the backyard with them?

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The laptop has officially been given to someone else, so I'm back to the desktop computer which is in the basement. That means that I won't be on as often as before, which in all honesty, is probably a good thing.

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I'm off to start on dinner. I have cooked a LOT in the last two weeks. YEAH for me! I can actually still do it! We've been turning on the 80's music while I cook and while we eat. It sure makes for a fun evening, although, my four year old now insists on making the family room into a mosh pit with his little brother. I keep telling him that was a 90's thing, but I just don't think he believes me.

70 Degrees Today!!

I am SO excited!

I don't care HOW sick these boys are...we are getting out for some fresh, WARM, air! I'll truck them around the neighborhood in the double stroller if I need to.

Oh, and by the way. One of the saddest things I have ever heard is a one year old who has lost his voice. Poor little guy.

He's still running around with a smile on his face and laughing his husky little laugh. You'd never know he was sick if you couldn't hear him.

Big brother, on the other hand, is the biggest grump in the house.

Let's hope this mess passes soon!

Bored, bored, bored

So, I'm bored with my template. I'm looking to liven things up a bit and maybe that will change my mood in the blogosphere.

If you notice something strange, then I'm probably playing with my template. So far, no luck in finding one that suits me, or one that I can make work correctly.

Any suggestions??

Gracias in advance!

Landon has been asleep for FOUR HOURS straight....

Anyone think I should go wake him up?

I'm thinking yes.

Yep, we've got the crud in this house.

Colin has had a fever every night since Sunday, and Landon came down with one this morning. I'm just praying I'm not the next victim to fall to these nasty germs.

I'm going to go walk around armed with Lysol for the rest of the week.

Out, OUT, damn, GERMS!!!

A Toddler's version of pick up sticks

I must not be challenging Landon enough.

His latest "thing" is to open the pantry door and rifle through all of the items that he can reach. Luckily, he started this at the old house, so when we moved I decided to put all of the canned goods up a little higher (can you say OUCH!?).

Tonight, I was sitting here reading an email, and he was doing his regular search of the pantry. All of the sudden I heard a noise that did not bode well for Mama.

Somehow, he had managed to open a box of linguini pasta and dumped the entire *pound* of it on the floor. Fun, fun, fun!!

For the last 10 minutes we've been picking it all up and throwing it away.

On top of it, my 4 year old is turning in to a comedian.

As we're cleaning up, he looks at me and says, "Now this party is really starting to pick up"....get it?? Hahaha!!

Some days you just have to laugh your way through it!

What a sick world

This makes me want to vomit.

In a world where there are families that are desperate to have a child.....

Why?

Starting to wonder...

You know, the whole Anna Nicole thing has me thinking.

She just had a baby 5 months ago. Her son died 3 days after the baby was born. There is a very real thing called post partem deppression and I'm SURE that she was dealing with it.

Poor Britney (and I actually mean that sincerely) just had a baby....a few months ago I guess? I'm not sure of the exact date, but only a few days or weeks later, she filed for divorce from her husband (probably a wise decision, but a hard one nonetheless).

I think this girl needs help, and she needs it fast.

I hope everyone stops gawking (and I readily admit...I was a gawker) and intervenes before she does something to hurt herself, or her kids.

It's so sad that fame and money can destroy someone so easily.

Can someone please tell me what is wrong with this girl?

I guess it's a personal choice, you know, how you want to wear your hair, but WHAT in the world were you thinking??

I hear you on Dateline complaining about the paparazzi and all of the unwanted attention, which, as a mother, I can understand because I wouldn't want my kids exposed to all of the hype either, but your actions totally show the world that you *want* all of this nonsense following you.

Are you upset because Anna Nicole's death has totally overtaken the tabloids and E-news shows? Are you mad because your panty-less portraits are no longer the talk of the town?

Honey.

You're a mother.

Please reign it in.

I'm all about having fun, but if you don't get your shit straight, those boys of yours are going to end up with an idiot who calls himself "K-fed"....and I don't know which is worse right now, you...or him.

Just my unsolicited advice because I *know* everyone cares what I think.

Question

Do you believe that Heaven can exist without a God?

I'll explain the reason for the question later...I don't want to sway your answers and I want to thoughtfully write out *why* I'm asking....

Have at!

Colin is officially signed up for T-ball!!!

He will start playing on March 13th.

Wow, it's so hard to believe that my "baby" is going to play a team sport!

I opted for t-ball because a good friend of his has signed up to be on this team as well. Colin is a sweet little man, but not the most outgoing or social creature. He likes to be in familiar places with familiar people, if not...he retreats into his shell. I thought playing on a team with someone he knew, would help it to be a more positive experience. I don't want to be one of those mothers that *forces* their child to play something they don't want to...but I also don't want to pay a $55 registration fee only to have him back out at the last minute.

We'll see how it goes. There are no points scored or outs in these games (and they still call it t-ball huh??). I think for now it just helps sponsor a team atmosphere, foster working together, and hopefully just a joy for playing sports.

This may not necessarily be his thing, but I'm glad we're going to try it. He may end up being a music geek like his Momma (the boy can sing, AND he writes his own lyrics, already! You should hear his very own version of twinkle twinkle...it's rockin'!)

I just can't wait to see who he's going to become and all of the things he's going to enjoy!

Welcome the the world Alayna Rose!!!!

Please join me in congratulating Melissa and Victor on the birth of their precious little girl...just a tad earlier than expected!!!

They are all healthy and happy and enjoying their baby-moon.

I can't wait to see pictures!!

Presidential News Conference

For one thing, this always pisses me off because the 10 minutes of tv time I get where I'm not watching Jack's Big Music Show or Maggie and the Ferocious Beast is very precious to me.

The other reason that he pissed me off today is this:

Why is it that he kept reffering to decisions that HE has made? Why HE decided to do a certain thing (all of this referencing sending more of our troops to Iraq)?

I also want to add that I totally support our military personnel, but hearing about death after death gets a little tiring...and I haven't even lost a friend or a family member.

I don't follow politics normally (look at paragraph # 1 in this entry...most of what I read I see on the Yahoo short list of news for the day), but did I misunderstand things when I thought that we were not ruled by ONE person? Don't we have a Democratic process where things are supposed to be voted on by different groups of elected officials who are supposed to be the voice for the general public??

When did our country turn into a Dictatorship and ONE person was making decisions for all of us??

Was I giving birth at the time, because I guess I don't remember much after that.....?

What the hell is wrong with our world?

This makes me absolutely sick.

Who the hell does this stupid kid think he is that he has any right to take human lives? How f*cked up can you be to go out and do something like this?? It takes me back to Columbine...I was actually teaching Spanish at a High School in Greenville at the time. Talk about a wake up call. I felt pretty safe up until that day.

I wonder about his parents too, not judging them, but wondering about the guilt that they are going to be left with after this tragedy. I bet they will ask themselves a million times over *what* they could have done differently.

I'm doing the best job I can to raise my boys, but whose to say that they would never do anything like this? I can only hope and pray that they won't, that they see and appreciate the value of life and the respect that we should have for it. I hope that I can instill that in them.

I pray for those families, and that community as they try to heal after this.

These are the things that almost make me feel guilty for bringing my children into the world.....

My next big adventure

The other day, my hubby asked me what I would like for Valentine's Day.

My response.

"A tattoo."

Yep...I'm headin' to the dark side people.

I'm not going to get anything big or where it will be readily available for the *world* to see, just something on my lower back. Something to add a little excitement to life (wink,wink!)

Hopefully I won't chicken out.

Update to follow soon.

The funk

and I don't mean a kind of music.

Colin is sick as a dog, and Landon just recovered from something he had over the weekend. I tried the denial tactic and *insisted* that Landon was only teething and that was causing his fever....but it didn't work.

I picked Colin up from school today and his teacher said he started out the day wired, and then slowly disintigrated in to a puddle of mush. Walking to the car, he could barely keep his eyes open and he absolutely INSISTED that he was not tired, and that he felt fine. We went out to lunch and he proceeded to lie down in the booth with his head on his jacket and pass out. If you know my child, you know that this is unheard of.

Yep...you feel just fine kid.

So, we're home. He's upstairs in bed with a big 'ole dose of motrin in his system and he's watching the Cars movie. Translated into Mommy language, that means he's taking a nap.

I guess I'd better get the clorox out and start wiping everything down. Hopefully this funk will by-pass the grown ups in this house.

Ya...right.

80's Night at our House

So...I've been a good wife the last two nights, and I have actually COOKED dinner! I'm so proud of myself that I could bust!

While I was being so creative and all"home-makey", I decided to take some inspiration from my friend OneHung and turn on our 80's music channel to keep my energy up.

I think I'm going to keep this practice going, because oh how the memories started coming! This turned the most mundane task into one that was pretty fun, and oh....my kids think I'm nuts now because of my dancing and singing.

I guess they would have figured that out eventually anyway right?

So, here's my blast from the past!! The Bangles and, "Hazy Shade of Winter".

Enjoy!

A Mini Superman....

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers for my friend and her son Colin!! This little guy is bouncing back so quickly, you are going to be amazed!! Here are the latest updates on my new hero from Anita!

2.7.07 at 10:18am

Alrighty, where are we... Colin is doing wonderfully! They extubated him last night around midnight. He had to have some oxygen but that isn't unexpected. He is off of blood pressure medicine and hasn't had any problems with irregular heartbeats. They took all of his lines out this morning. All he has now is his chest tube and the I.V.s He's started taking liquids and just a bit ago had a popsicle. He is complaining about the tube and lines which is good. :-) The nurses say a complaining kid is a healthy kid. :-) They will be moving him to the general care floor later this morning. They plan to have him up walking tonight or in the morning if he is feeling up to it. The nurse seems to think if he continues improving like he is we will be home in five days. Its just a matter of when his chest stops draining and he feels better. They started him on a "water pill". The bypass machine causes inflammation of all the organs and make the body retain water. They are giving him that to help get rid of it. They orginally thought he may go home on it, but that doesn't seem to be the case. :-)
All those prayers are being answered. :-)
hugs,
Anita

2.7.07 at 3:44pm

We are in our own room! Colin is still doing wonderfully. He still is on some oxygen, but we are going to try and take him off when he wakes up. They set him up some in the bed, but haven't had him out of it yet. As soon as he wakes up I'm going to get the nurse and we are going to put him in the chair. By tomorrow he'll be running the halls. :-) He's been sick to his stomach some, so he's not eaten since the popsicle, but that's okay. I've got some Jello for when he gets up. So hopefully he will eat that and feel better. He REALLY wants chocolate milk and donuts. :-) I can't wait to give them to him. Oh!! THere's a computer right next to his bed, so I can update the carepage while Colin is napping. This is wonderful! I was beginning to have computer withdrawl. Guess that is it.
I'll update when there is anything new.
Anita

Today at 7:56 am

Colin had a pretty good night. He was up once during the night and climbed in and out of bed by himself. His chest tube is still draining pretty good. It has to drain less than 50 for 24 hours before they will take it out. He is currently draining around 110. But that's okay. He is doing way better than we thought. He is still having tummy pains. We don't know if its from the morphine or from hunger. He hasn't eaten anything since Monday night, so I would think he'd be hungrey. I ordered him a ton of stuff for breakfast just to see if any of it would strike his fancy. The nurse is also going to see if we can switch him to a different drug. They are going to get him and walking some today. Colin wasn't interested in it earlier, but I think once he sees the playroom he will want to get up more. They've got a lot of really neat stuff in there. :-)
I guess that's all for now. :-)
Anita

Since we're talkin' recipes

Onehung posted a few recipes that he tried out over the weekend. They all sounded great, so I thought I'd share what we..ahem...*I* had tonight. It was easy, and very tasty! Not from scratch, but hey, I'm the mother of two small boys with a husband who works round the clock...cooking anything other than a waffle in the toaster oven is an accomplishment! What sucks is the clean-up afterwards..especially because I'm the only one who eats it. The boys enjoyed their plain noodles and apples...a pretty typical meal for them. I've just given up fighting that fight.

Here goes!

Penne Pasta with Chicken and Vodka Sauce
(Vodka sauce is a creamy tomato sauce w/vodka in it..you can't taste the vodka, but it does have a unique flavor with a little "kick" to it)

Ingredients:
1 bottle Barilla Vodka Sauce (availabe near the spaghetti sauces in any grocery store)
1 pound of penne pasta
1 bag of Steamfresh garlic peas and mushrooms
about 10 frozen chicken tenderloins


Place frozen chicken in a deep sided fry pan with olive oil and season with salt and garlic pepper seasoning. Saute until cooked through and then remove from the pan and slice into small pieces. While cooking the chicken, cook pasta according to instructions, drain, and set aside. Cook the peas and mushrooms according the instructions in the microwave. Pour the vodka sauce in the saute pan and heat on low heat. Add the peas and mushrooms, chicken, and pasta.

ENJOY!

He's doing great!

I talked to Anita about 30 minutes ago and he is already trying to wake up!! She said that they are encouraging it, *but* he still needs to be on the ventilator. He's having a hard time with his carbon monoxide levels being a little high, and his blood pressure needs to come up. As soon as that happens, he will be off the the vent. He's connected to several tubes for various things such as drainage, and also is connected to a defibrulator (sp??) in case they need to shock his heart for any reason (let's hope they dont!).

Anita also told me that instead of using a human valve for the replacement, they used one from a COW!!! Huh?? It's not FDA approved, but obviously, they've done this many times before. The Doctor said that there is a far less chance of rejection with the bovine valve versus the human one. Crazy stuff!

She said he knows that they are there with him, and his color looks really great.

Awesome news to hear!!

They still need prayer, because the first 48 hours after the surgery are the most dangerous. Le'ts just hope he stays strong, and continues to improve as he has been!!!

Colin is out of surgery and doing well!

Anita posted to Colin's care page that he was out of surgery at 12:30 today and that everything went well. He came off of the bypass machine with no problems (that was the scariest part), WHOOO-HOO! :)

They were going to be able to see him around 2:00. Still no updates after this one, so I'm guessing that no news is good news.

Thanks everyone! I'll let you know how he's doing when I find out!

Many prayers needed for a friend and her son

Blog friends.

A good friend of mine, Anita, and her family are going through a difficult time right now. They are currently in Michigan, awaiting surgery for their four year old son, Colin. (Our son's have the same name...one of the many things that drew us together and that we have in common.)

Here is the procedure that Colin is having in the morning, and the description of his heart problem in Anita's own words:


He is having a procedure called the Konno-Ross procedure.

Colin has a congenital heart defect called aortic stenosis. His aorta valve is really narrow. This causes his heart to have work harder to pump blood.

He had a heart cath in May, unfortunately is was not very successful.

In the Konno-Ross procedure they take Colin's healthy pulmonary valve and replace his diseased aorta valve. They will then replace the pulmonary valve with a cadaver valve. They also have to replace the part of Colin's heart where the valve connects. I'll see if I can find a link that explains it better.

I copied and pasted this from the U of M website. This is exactly what Colin will be undergoing.

"Valve replacements alone are not always enough to relieve the narrowing out the ventricle. Sometimes the whole area leading out of the ventricle to the aorta is too small. The supporting structure of the valve, called the valve annulus, may be too narrow even if the leaflets are opened up as far as possible. In these cases the valve replacement is performed with a procedure called a Konno procedure. This involves enlarging the left ventricular outflow tract and the valve ring. It is done through an incision into the outflow tract of the right ventricle and the septum or wall between the right and left ventricles. A patch is placed in this area that enlarges it. The Konno procedure can be done with any type of aortic valve replacement.Ross procedure: This is one type of valve replacement operation. The surgeon makes an incision down the center of the breastbone. The heart is stopped for a brief period of time while a heart lung bypass machine supports the body.The coronary arteries are removed from the aortic valve and the diseased aortic valve is removed. The person's own pulmonary valve is then removed from its position in the right ventricular outflow tract and sewn into place as the new aortic valve. The coronary arteries are then reattached to the new valve. A tissue valve, called a homograft or an allograft, is then sewn in the place where the person's own pulmonary valve was removed. This valve is from a human donor and is not live tissue so it will not be rejected by the person's own immune system. It is expected that the tissue valves will need to be replaced in five to ten years but since this is a fairly new procedure the actual frequency of valve replacements is not yet known."

So...as you can see, this is a very scary situation for them. I can not imagine one of my boys having to undergo such a serious surgery.

please pray for them. They need all they can get.

His surgery is scheduled for 7:15 tomorrow morning, and will last anywhere from 3-6 hours. He will be on a ventilator for a few days and then in PICU for at least a week being heavily sedated so that they can manage his pain. Once they wean him from the vent, he will be moved to a regular floor. Hopefully they will be home in three to four weeks.

I'll update as soon as I hear how he is doing.

Thanks.