Life in My Crazy World!

Things could be better

2011-01-26T10:43:00.002-05:00

I am so stressed out right now. I am dealing with two things going on. First, my husband has decided in his infinite wisdom to bring his mother back from Pittsburgh to come live with us since her health was failing. He has changed his hours at work so he can be with her during the day and guess who gets her every evening? Yep, that would be ME! Now I'm not trying to sound selfish, because I genuinely love this woman and she is like another mother to me, but I really can't be expected to give up every single evening for who knows how long. I am more than willing to help out, but not to that extreme. Our niece has offered to come sit with her during the day for the same price we would have had to pay an adult day care service, so today she is doing a trial run to make sure it's not too much for her. I would rather have her with family and my niece needed a job so hopefully it will all work out well. We shall see.

My other dilemma is my brother who lives out in Washington state. His wife has left him recently and moved back to NC and he went into a deep depression. He called me Saturday night crying and saying he just wanted to kill himself. I got him a number for a suicide hot line out there so he could talk with someone. He seems to be doing better, but he needs to seek professional help, and I don't know if he will. It's hard being thousands of miles away.

So far 2011 has been a sucky year for me. I hope it turns around soon.

Finally got my new tattoo yesterday

2011-01-23T08:42:00.005-05:00

It's been a long time in the making. I knew I wanted to get something that reflected my Irish/English heritage to make it more personal to me. I think the tattoo artist came up with a very unique custom design that I am very happy with.

I'm not going to lie. There were some parts of it that were uncomfortable to say the least, but I assured him that if I could have two natural childbirths, I could handle this. I only flinched a little when he was doing the white, which is one of the more painful colors to do. Luckily there wasn't a lot of that. Overall I am extremely happy with the results and can't wait to show it off by the poolside in Vegas in April :)

The great artist Harry Aron and I after he was finished. He is awesome!

Blue skies finally

2011-01-15T12:14:00.003-05:00

We are actually having some warmer temps today, around 50. I am so sick of all the snow and ice. I hate driving in it. My work didn't close at all this past week either, so had to brave the slick roads. I normally have a 20 minute ride into work and one day it took almost 45 minutes! I can't believe how many pregnant women come out in this stuff. Well, actually I can because so many of our patients are STUPID! Let me risk my life, and the life of my unborn child to come see what I'm having! I must know! The world will end if I don't!!! Crazy asses!

Kim had her interview Thursday for Wake Forest and it went extremely well. I am so proud of her. They paired her with an admissions counselor that had the same interest as her, so she said he was very easy to talk to. They talked about poetry and one of her favorite books, 1984, which was also a favorite of the counselors. She showed him some of poetry (Mom's idea to bring it, score one for me, lol) and he was really impressed. He was a bit surprised that she was a black belt in taekwondo. (Remember, she is only 95 pounds and 5'2") He asked if she ever had to use her use her skills on the street? That made her giggle as she replied "Not yet." She had the biggest grin on her face as she walked out from it. It's a smile that I would love to catch on film one of these days. It's infectious. It makes everyone around her smile. They receive about 10,000 applications to sort through, so it's pretty competitive. She wants this so bad, so I want it for her as well. She will be so heartbroken if she doesn't get in. We won't find out until April though. Going to be a long 3 months.

Kim all dressed up for her interview.

My laptop died the other day. I knew it was coming by how it was acting. It finally had a blue screen that said something about a fatal error. Ken called it the "blue screen of death." I'm probably going to get a new one this weekend. I have been using Ken's Mac and I don't like it very much. I hate where you rest your hands to type. It has sharp edges and it makes my left wrist hurt and turn red unless I type with my hand suspended, which is just plain uncomfortable. Sorry Mac users, I like my Dell PC. :)

Enjoy your weekend everyone :)

Hubby's movie ;)

2011-01-11T20:49:00.001-05:00

Slumber Party???

2011-01-11T17:29:00.003-05:00

Ok so I got an invite on my facebook from a girl I know from where my sister works (the vet I take my animals to) and it's for a "Slumber Party" party. I have heard of "Adult" parties, but have never been to one before. Is it going to be like a jewelry party or tupperware party where the "goods" are laid out on a table for everyone's perusal? LOL I'm assuming there will be different shapes, sizes, and colors of the items for sale.

So, should I go or not? It might be fun. Let's get a group of women together, get them drunk, and sell them sex toys! ;)

I will let you know if I end up going.

Back to school and back to 3

2011-01-08T10:11:00.002-05:00

This is Stephanie's last weekend home before she has to go back to school for the new term. :( Each time gets a little bit easier, but not much. We are a family of four, so when she is gone, it's a little strange to say the least. We seem to go about and adapt while she is gone I suppose. Go about our routines and such. It's still comforting to know that she still calls this place "Home" even though she has her own apartment and takes care of herself now. She still needs her mom and dad and sister though, so no worries there. Her and dad get on Skype to go over chemistry problems and she gets advice on cooking and cleaning from me and her baby sister well, she gets that advice only a sibling can give.

The holiday break is always the toughest since she has been home for almost a month now. You start to get really used to the idea that she is home and we are back to that magic number of four. The house is much more lively when she is here. She has the louder personality of the two. That's for sure. I don't know Kim is home half the time, she is so quiet.

The house is starting to stir, and I will have some children who want a good hot breakfast, so I shall go for now. It's actually snowing AGAIN!!! Nice to look at, but I wish it would go away.

Enjoy your weekend everyone :)

A little bragging rights please

2011-01-03T16:42:00.004-05:00

Ok. So I figured I needed to post a little note since I haven't been on since I've been back from Europe. I know. I'm a bad blogger. (Smacking my hand) ;)

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I enjoyed being away from the hell hole, I mean work. It was hard to come back today. I really loved my time away with my family just relaxing and doing much of nothing. The start of the new year was uneventful. I had to take a quick cat nap just to stay awake until the ball dropped. I'm getting too old I guess.

This would be the time to catch you up on my girls. Some of you who are on facebook already know since I get on there almost everyday. I really need to make better use of my downtime I suppose, lol!

Stephanie transferred to a new college for the start of this school year. She is now at Western Carolina University in the middle of B.F.E.! She loves it there and is doing much better with her grades and made the Dean's List for the first time :) I am super proud of how much she has accomplished. She has even decided to double major in Biology and Forensic Anthropology. She is turning 21 in a few short weeks, which is utterly depressing :(

My baby girl was in a bad accident a few weeks ago where her car flipped twice, but thankfully she came out of it unharmed. The car was totaled and we are in the process of finding a new one for her. She is also applying to colleges. Boo! Her number one choice is Wake Forest, and she received an email from them saying that her application "caught their eye" and they were looking forward to her interview. She is so nervous and excited all at the same time. My little girl is growing up too fast.

I am so proud of the both of them. They are my whole world and I love them so much!

Just got back from the UK :)

2010-07-19T19:49:00.003-04:00

And I soooo wish I was still there. It was everything I thought it would be and more. If you are on FB, I have posted tons of pics on there. It would take forever to put them on here. And Orion, Glencoe was simply spiritual. Pictures cannot do it justice. I understand how you loved it so much. It's breathtaking.

Glencoe

London was fabulous. I could never live there, but it was a great city to visit. Paris was pretty, but everyone is so freakin' rude there. Everyone in the UK was super nice and courteous. I had a wonderful conversation with a Welshman who taught at the local university while playing some pool.

And the highlight of the trip was getting to see Diane again. She is a truly remarkable person that not only took so much of her own time helping me plan this trip, something I could never have done on my own, but showed me London and Peterborough her hometown. It was wonderful spending time with her and her lovely family.

Scott, Heather, Lara, Shannon, Stephanie, and Kim

Of course I had to get into a real red phone box :)

The kids getting acquainted at the pub

In front of Buckingham Palace

It was a wonderful trip and I am so glad we did it :)

Another Dumb Ass

2010-06-25T21:34:00.001-04:00

Perhaps this U.S. American can get help from Miss South Carolina on her geography. YAY! This is a Democrat County Supervisor.

Prom 2010

2010-04-25T18:25:00.004-04:00

Another prom season has come and gone. This may be Kim's last one too since she is graduating early. :(

Just for you O :)

2010-03-25T17:46:00.002-04:00

Steph shooting the Kimber .45 :)

She was so proud of her bullseye :) Like mother like daughter :)

My girls :)

2010-03-24T18:31:00.004-04:00

Last Saturday we had the most beautiful weather so what does the Comito family decide to do? Take a picnic? Nope. Hang out at the park? Not this family. We go shooting! lol

Their damage :)

Not bad for their first time ever shooting.

Steph had a bullseye with her second shot from the 9mm. I was very proud of them. We took them to teach them how to shoot and they were naturals.

You can't tell from the video, but Kim had the biggest smile on her face after she fired. It was priceless!

Poem Contest

2010-02-01T20:29:00.003-05:00

You remember I told you that my youngest Kim had written a poem for a "Reflections" contest at school. This year's theme was "Beauty is...."

She had forgot about the assignment and wrote this in less than five minutes. I am a mother, and I brag about my children all the time, but this was an extraordinary poem and so poignant. I am so proud of her for placing 2nd in the whole county.

This is the poem:

Beauty is....
Forever.

To be beautiful is
Having love for others,
Not caring about what others
Think of you.
Being yourself
And true.

Everyone has their own unique beauty,
No one is better than anyone.
We all shine in the light.
We are made of beauty and grace,
The bright eyes upon your face
Will fill this warm embrace.

Beauty is...
Forever.

This poem speaks volumes about what kind of child that I have raised and I couldn't be more proud of the young woman she has become.

Full Wolf Moon

2010-01-30T11:18:00.005-05:00

Did anyone see the wolf moon last night? It was supposed to be the brightest full moon we will have this year. We had a major snow storm hit so we had absolutely no view of it :(

My favorite moon when I was growing up was the "blood moon." (Also known as the Hunter's moon).

I love reading the Native American stories about how the full moons got their names and the folklore behind them.

Yesterday afternoon we didn't have a drop of snow on the ground and this morning we woke up to this:

The high today is only 20, so it's even too cold and windy to go out and play in it. Maybe tomorrow. Hope everyone enjoys their weekend :)

Found an image

2010-01-28T12:47:00.002-05:00

I want to build a blogger template around? Anyone know how I can do that?

S.C. Lt. Governor likens benefits to feeding stray animals

2010-01-27T10:32:00.003-05:00

Yet another politician has opened mouth, inserted foot.

“My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals. You know why? Because they breed. You’re facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply. They will reproduce, especially ones that don’t think too much further than that. And so what you’ve got to do is you’ve got to curtail that type of behavior. They don’t know any better.”

Even I think that this metaphor was uncalled for and way out of line. I think somewhere deep down in the recesses of his feeble mind, he feels like he has the right idea. Mr. Bauer is my age, so I'm not going to chalk it up to being young and naive. Yes something needs to be done about our current welfare system, no argument there, but for a public official to speak in such a manner is appalling and disrespectful. There are ways to talk about this ongoing problem and this is not it. Do I believe there are people on welfare that don't need to be? Absolutely. Is the system getting abused? Daily. Would I ever compare any of these human beings to stray cats? Never. He said he didn't care about being politically correct, he just wanted to be honest. I think there is middle ground between being "PC" and being an ass. I would like to think I am one of those people who speak from a middle ground perspective. I don't like to sugar coat things, but I am above being malicious. He later said he regretted using that metaphor. You think?? One problem with his speech is that he is not going to be taken seriously about a very serious issue that is sucking this country dry! He did make some very good points in each speech though like:

"We are a compassionate people, and we will always take care of those who are truly needy, as we should. But there are also those who are NOT truly needy, merely lazy or greedy, who are taking advantage of the system. And, unfortunately, the system is actually designed to encourage them to take advantage of it."

and:

"Spending is out of control. When we waste tax dollars on those who are just lazy or taking advantage of the generosity of the American people, we have fewer dollars available for the truly needy or the hard working families who find themselves in hard times."

I'm afraid the message was lost in his opening remarks.

He announced plans to run for governor and he stated he will not always be politically correct in his campaign, but he will always be honest.

We shall see how that works out for him.

Status going around facebook

2010-01-24T20:37:00.002-05:00

is really pissing me off!! I try to be open minded and allow freedom of speech and all that, but this status is just too much.

"Shame on you America: the only country where we have homeless without shelter, children going to bed without eating, elderly going without needed meds, and mentally ill without treatment - yet we have a benefit for the people of Haiti on 12 TV stations. 99% of people won't have the guts to copy and repost this."

It doesn't take guts to repost this for one thing. It takes stupidity! It's one of the most erroneous statements I have ever read!! The "only" country? Really?? Are you a complete moron? Have you been living under a rock?

People just repost things without even reading them because they are just following the idiot train. They think it's the "right thing to do." Wake up you brainless drones!

My daughters are so talented!

2010-01-22T10:34:00.004-05:00

Kim won second place in a county wide poem contest! It was a poem that only took her 5 minutes to write is the thing, lol!

A local college called upon the creative writing class she was in to write a short play and the only criteria was that it had to be controversial. She teamed up with her boyfriend Tyler and their play was picked, and it will be performed tomorrow by the college drama department!

I am so proud of her :)

My oldest is in Pittsburgh this weekend. She just landed a few minutes ago and she said it was cold and there was snow on the ground! Her cousin is getting married and she is in the wedding. She is having her bridal shower this weekend, so I know she will have fun. She made all the bridesmaids decorative glasses for her and they turned out so pretty. She has started an online business selling these as well as some other things. Check out her site :)

Pink Scribbles

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend :)

Cultural Crisis perhaps?

2010-01-20T10:27:00.004-05:00

I was sent this email today by my sister in law. Whether this particular story is true, this person is actually a physician, or this letter was ever actually written to the White House is irrelevant to me considering the fact that this occurs daily around this wonderful country of ours.

Dear Mr. President:
During my shift in the Emergency Room last night, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient whose smile revealed an expensive shiny gold tooth, whose body was adorned with a wide assortment of elaborate and costly tattoos, who wore a very expensive brand of tennis shoes and who chatted on a new cellular telephone equipped with a popular R&B ringtone.
While glancing over her patient chart, I happened to notice that her payer status was listed as "Medicaid"! During my examination of her, the patient informed me that she smokes more than one costly pack of cigarettes every day and somehow still has money to buy pretzels and beer.
And, you and our Congress expect me to pay for this woman's health care? I contend that our nation's "health care crisis" is not the result of a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses. Rather, it is the result of a "crisis of culture", a culture in which it is perfectly acceptable to spend money on luxuries and vices while refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid, purchase health insurance. It is a culture based in the irresponsible credo that "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of me".
Once you fix this "culture crisis" that rewards irresponsibility and dependency, you'll be amazed at how quickly our nation's health care difficulties will disappear.
Respectfully,
STARNER JONES,MD

Working in the medical field, I deal with this on a DAILY basis. Don't even get me started on what types of cars they drive (nicer than mine I assure you). This problem is nothing new to the current administration so I am not going to point fingers, but if the current administration allows this to continue and worsen, than it IS their problem! I am so tired of having to be politically correct about EVERYTHING!!! That is what is wrong with this country right now. No one wants to tell these people to go out a get a damn job! I don't want to hear about the current employment rates or any other bullshit either. When employment rates were fine, they still didn't work. They rely on me and all the other tax payers to give them what they need. We have made it far too easy for them to milk and abuse the system. The welfare system was put in to place during the Great Depression by FDR for "emergency purposes." Even then the "New Deal focused predominantly on a program of providing work and stimulating the economy through public spending on projects, rather than on cash payments." What the fuck happened? I'll tell you what happened. The current welfare system offers no incentives for the people getting welfare to EVER come off of it! Why the hell would they ever want to come off welfare? Let's see, I don't have to work and can sit on my lazy ass all day and I can collect money? Sign me up! My grandmother became widowed at a very young age with two small children to support. Did she get any kind of assistance? Hell no! She worked. I didn't have maternity coverage when I was pregnant with my first child. Did I go apply for Medicaid to pay for it? Hell no. I set up a payment plan. I know that's a foreign thought process to some people, but it can be done. The people that need to be on welfare for various reasons get declined right and left. We have a patient who wants to terminate her pregnancy because the fetus has several MAJOR problems and is not going to survive after birth and they will not pay for it, yet this same government run "insurance company" will let another patient spit out as many babies as she is capable of doing (thus supporting them when they are born). They are so stupid to realize that her hospital charges when she delivers are going to cost us the tax payers far more than a termination. Complete idiots!! If we weren't dumping so much money into this "program" we may be able to afford to send more help to Haiti where it is much needed. Another quake (6.1) hit them.

By all means, let's continue this downward spiral into hell!

One of the best bumper stickers I have ever read:

That about sums that up!

Our children

2010-01-14T13:01:00.002-05:00

worry us to extremes at times. I got a call last night from Diane while she was headed back to her daughter who was in hospital and very sick. My heart jumped from my chest. It's the worse feeling in the world when your child needs you and you feel like you can't get to them fast enough. She ventured out on icy, slick roads, trying to keep up the posted speed limits, all the while scared out of her mind. I knew exactly how she felt. Stephanie got very sick in her first year of school and she is 1.5 hours away from us, closer than Lara is to Diane, but it still feels hundreds of miles away when you are trying to get there as fast as you can. The feeble voice on the phone telling you "I need you mommy." She was 18 at the time, but she sounded like the frightened little girl I nursed back to health tons of times. I felt so useless on the other end of that phone. My heart sank and I cried. I felt the same after talking to Diane last night. I wanted so much to be there for her and comfort her and drive her so she didn't have to. I'm tearing up now just writing this. I am too emotional for my own good I guess. I have triggers that will set me off and my children and friends are definite ones. I blubber like a baby. I took Stephanie home with me and nursed her back to health just like I've always done. She just needed her mommy after all ;) And Lara needed hers. We get the call and we come running, swords drawn, yelling like a warrior, daring anyone to get in our way. I'm so relieved to hear that Lara is doing better, and will feel so much better once she is out of the woods and home safe and sound. Our children grow up right before our eyes and make this magical transformation into adults, but they still have that small child within that continues to reach out to us. And I for one will ALWAYS be there to grab their hand, place it in mine, and make all the bad things go away. In a blink of an eye, our worlds can come crashing down around us. Life is sacred, my children are my world and I would die for them, literally, no hesitation, because I love them unconditionally. I am their mother, their protector, their teacher, their guide in this crazy world.

Playing around on youtube

2010-01-12T16:18:00.002-05:00

today and I was watching some Tim Minchin stuff. I don't know who here has seen or heard of him. I imagine you have Diane since he is in the U.K. I have seen some of his songs before, but I have never heard this little rendition called "Storm." Even if you have heard this, it's worth another listen. I loved it. I could so picture this dinner party in my head very vividly. I just wish it showed him, since his facial expressions are priceless.

According to my workout regime schedule, I am due for some upper body workout tonight. Yeah, push ups and such ;) I just want to be careful with this because I really DON'T want to end up with man arms or as they call them here in the south, farmer girl arms. I have lost 3 pounds so far so only 10 to go :)

On my day off from working out

2010-01-10T20:25:00.007-05:00

I did some other form of exercise. Shooting! Ken and I went over to our friends house and we annihilated some targets Comito style ;)

I do love my head shots, lol! My target is on the right and my friends is on the left. Her hubby decided to try some head shots on mine, not too much luck since he left the open shots to the left of the head.

Ken had to break out the 12 gauge so now we owe them some wood, lol!

New workout regimen

2010-01-09T17:26:00.003-05:00

is kicking my ass, but as I told Orion it will be well worth it in the end. I'm glad tomorrow is Sunday and I get to take a break from it, lol!

Stephanie went back to school today and I miss her terribly :( It will take me awhile to get used to her being back in Raleigh since she was home for almost a month. I'm sure our cat Lou does not miss her dog Chloe though.

I'm sure Chloe is very thankful Lou no longer has her front claws.

Enjoy your weekend everyone and stay safe and warm :)

I've decided that I may not hate children

2010-01-08T11:32:00.002-05:00

I hate their STUPID parents!!!! I really have a problem with this generation of parents and their parenting skills (or lack thereof). Now let me go on the record by saying I DO NOT believe in spanking. I grew up in a household with an alcoholic father who was quite mean at times. I am one of six children so by the time my sister and I (the youngest) came along he had mellowed quite a bit. My 3 older brothers took the brunt of his parenting skills (or lack thereof). My father grew up in an extremely abusive household where his mother escaped in the only way she thought she could, suicide. My father never really learned how to love, not in the way he should anyway. That is why I cannot and will not spank, because I fear turning into my father and going overboard. Now my are older almost 20 and 16 and they are the most well behaved brilliant children. I would like to think I had a tiny bit to do with that and the fact I have much better parenting skills than my father. He managed to teach me one thing in that respect (how NOT to parent). I learned that if I did the complete opposite of what he would have done, I got a much better response. We all grew up fearing my father. I did NOT want my children to fear me.

Having said that, I don't know if this new bunch of parents fear the same or what, but they are a too lax in my opinion. They never want to tell their children the word "no." It's like it's not even in their vocabulary! And they do this at the expense of everyone around them!!! They let their children run around and scream like banshees, tear stuff up, and just act completely crazy all the while saying things like "don't do that honey" in a soft spoken voice no doubt!!! They don't seem to care that they are disrupting everyone around them. Their child is and angel. You're child is a DEMON!!!

Don't get me wrong I do love children. I love MY children. I tolerate everyone elses.

Had to get that off my chest today. I have so many pet peeves, but this is a big one!

New Work out regimen

2010-01-06T18:32:00.002-05:00

Okay So I'm starting a new work out regimen tomorrow thanks to my blogger buddy Orion. He's devised a pretty good workout plan that I am going to follow and blog about as I go along. My goal is to lose 13 pounds and tone up my muscle by the first weekend in April. I am going on a trip to Seattle then to meet up with a bunch of people including some from the UK!!! I am super excited about it and I will finally get to meet the infamous O and go to a shooting range with him, something I have been wanting to do for a long time. (Shoot with him, not go to the range, lol)

We are going to keep each other motivated which should be loads of fun. (insert evil grin here)

Wish me luck :)

Also a big warm blog welcome to my friend Diane who lives in the UK. Her name is on my blog list on the side tab. Go check her out and say hello :)

I never get on here anymore!

2009-11-22T18:19:00.002-05:00

I am on Facebook all the time (sorry Jude). I guess I'm just not that into blogging anymore. I have been thinking about writing again though. I have two unfinished stories and many more in my head just screaming to be put on paper. I'm also interested in doing a collaboration with someone as well. I just don't know.

In the present, I am busy planning a trip to the UK for next summer. Hubby and I are taking the girls on a trip to England, Scotland, and Ireland. I am sooooo super excited about it I can hardly stand it. Once I get there, it's going to be hard to make me come back to the states.

Seeing Orion's pictures have really made me jealous. I commented on his facebook status the other day and his tour guide friend Diane commented me back. We have been chatting ever since and she is such a great person. I feel like we have known each other our whole lives. She has volunteered herself to us next summer to show us around. Wasn't that sweet? I am looking forward to meeting her and her wonderful family.

Well I will try not to let 6 months go by before I am on here again. Orion has said I could blog on his site anytime I felt the need as well.

Hope all is well with everyone :)

Gracious it has been a while

2009-05-30T12:18:00.008-04:00

I am still absorbing the email from Jude and reading Miss J's post from everything that she has been going through. Just having experienced that scare so recently, I know exactly how she felt. I sooooo wish her outcome would have been the same as mine though, but I know in my heart of hearts everything will be just fine. I am thinking about you girl and wishing you all the best and sending you lots of hugs :)

A few things have happened since my last post so I will update you. We spent spring break in Florida visiting family. It was very hot and we didn't enjoy ourselves very much. It was one of those instances where family invites you to come for a visit when you can, but deep down they are thinking you will never in a million years take them up on it, so when you do, they are a little taken aback. We didn't feel very welcome which is a shame really. We ended up cutting it short and spending the rest of the week here at home chilling.

I had a great 40th birthday this year. A did an 80's themed party and dressed up like Madonna from that era. It was great. I loved my "Sixteen Candles" birthday cake. One of my favorite movies from to 80's :)

My birthday present from hubby was a surprise trip to California! We spent a week there visiting San Fransisco, Yosemite, Napa Valley, San Jose, and Carmel by the Sea. The views are spectacular and I could so be talked into moving to the west coast. We sampled some great wine, saw some wonderful sites and even got "locked up" in Alcatraz. Pictures do not do it justice that's for sure. We took hundreds, but here is random sample.

Stephanie is home from school. It's so hard to believe she finished up her first year of college already. :(

Kim attended her first prom. She looked so pretty and grown up (way older than 15!)

Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you want to look at it, her and Tyler broke up 2 days later after dating over a year. She recovered pretty quickly though and is talking to a new boy named Randall. We haven't met him yet, but we hear that he is nice. Stephanie said that "he was hot!" He's a year older and goes to a different school. He's also like 6'3" which is funny since Kim is only a like 5'1 and a half. Ha ha. She is also going to be celebrating her Sweet 16 next month if you can believe it. I can't :( She didn't want the big party her sister had. She wanted to take a trip so we are going to Tybee Island near Savannah, GA for the 4th of July and staying a week so that should be fun. We are going with a family we used to vacation with a few years ago before they moved to Florida. It will be great to see them again and they have a son Stephanie's age (they used to date actually). Wonder of the sparks will rekindle (lol) Kim also got a new car. It's a 2007 silver Chevy Equinox. She loves it. She looks so tiny driving it. I'll have to get a picture of her in it and post it for you to see. Some people at work think we are spoiling her, but I tell them that's how we reward our children for doing well in school and being such a great kid and not giving us any grief.

Ken is finally doing one of his life long dreams and filming a movie with real actors and a big film crew and everything. We worked on shooting the trailer last weekend so we can generate some money to shoot the full length feature. It was long days, but fun. It is interesting to see how it all comes together. If you remember, Kim was an extra a few years ago so we got to see a little bit then. I will update you on how that progresses.

I am on facebook more than I am on here. I am still addicted, ha ha. Like all fads, I'm sure that will fade as well.

Well, that pretty much sums up what's been going on. Sorry this post was so long, but a lot more happened than I realized. I will try not to be gone so long next time, but no promises ;)

Have a great week everyone and even though I'm not on here much, I still think about you guys all the time and wish you well.

Good news!!!

2009-03-30T21:47:00.001-04:00

My biopsy came back a benign fibroadenoma. I am sooooo relieved. The doctor said that she recommends I leave it alone unless it gets bigger or starts bothering me. I just have to go back same time next year for my yearly mammo.

Thank you to everyone who was saying a little prayer or two for me. It is greatly appreciated. I love you guys!

Have a great week :)

Update

2009-03-22T19:34:00.002-04:00

The radiologist didn't think it looked like the dreaded "C" word. In fact, it didn't even show up on the mammogram, only the ultrasound. Kinda scary if you ask me. She said the only way to be sure was to do a biopsy, so I go for that this Wednesday morning. I don't know when I will find out the results. It would be nice if they could do a quick stain and tell me while I was there, but I'm thinking it might be 24 hours.

Hubby wasn't too mad for not telling him. He understood why I didn't, but he made me promise to tell him next time something comes up no matter where he is.

I will let you know as soon as I hear something.

Have a great week everyone ;)

I found a lump

2009-03-14T09:12:00.002-04:00

in my right breast Thursday night while I was taking a shower. I had one of the doctors feel it yesterday at work and she scanned it with the ultrasound machine. The whole time I am hoping it's going to be a cyst, but it wasn't. It looks solid, and one view she got looked like it had irregular borders. Of course the ultrasound tech in me is screaming out in my head, SHIT SHIT SHIT!!! This is when I wish I was the clueless , naive patient that didn't know the difference.

I have to go Monday morning and get an official ultrasound and probably some diagnostic views with the mammogram. I was scheduled to get a mammogram this May for my 40th birthday. My last mammogram looked good, but it was done a year and a half ago.

Hubby is in Los Angeles visiting his nephew until Tuesday. I haven't told him anything yet. I figured there was no use in ruining his trip when I didn't know anything. He's going to get mad at me for that, but he'll get over it. I know him and he will fly home today if I tell him. He never does anything just for himself, so he deserves to have a good time.

So keep your fingers crossed for me and say a little prayer or two if that's your inclination. I'll let you know what they say. In the meantime I am going to enjoy my weekend with my beautiful girls since Stephanie is home from school.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Let it snow.....

2009-03-08T21:41:00.004-04:00

We got a heck of a snow storm this past Monday. We got about 6 inches, the most we've had since about 2001.

Then by Friday we were seeing temps in the 70's and we were close to 80 today. Crazy NC weather. We had snow thunder Sunday night before the big storm, so supposedly that's means more snow in 10 days. I really hope that doesn't happen. The thunder was weird too. The lightning woke me up from a dead sleep. I don't think I've ever experienced snow thunder.

Our office wasn't closed so I drove in all the mess. Only 2 other people showed up and 2 doctors. It was a fun day let me tell you. So we had a lab tech, the check in lady and me, the ultrasound tech. All to answer the phones, check the patients in (because yes some were crazy enough to keep their appointments), work the patients up, chaperone the doctors in the rooms, and I still had to do my scheduled scans. Fun fun!!!

I just hope we are done with snow for a long time. I wouldn't care if it never snowed again.

Have a great week everyone!

Of course this is what my cat was doing during the snow day, the same thing she does any other day, be lazy, lol!

Okay, so it's been more than a week

2009-02-23T18:22:00.002-05:00

Since I've been on here. Where the hell does all the time go? I've become addicted to too much tv lately. They go forever without any decent shows on, then they put some new ones one and force me to watch, okay so maybe I'm not forced, but now I'm addicted and have to watch again. Damn!!!

I can't blame myspace since I'm hardly on there anymore, and I'm seriously thinking about deleting it, but facebook is a different story. I do get on there way too much. Oh well. What can I do? :)

Ken and I went to our all day class this past Saturday for our concealed permits. Now we just have to make an appointment down at the county sheriffs for our background check and finger printing. Then there is at least a 90 day wait til we actually have the permit in hand. Apparently there is a long list of applicants right now and I can't imagine why, insert sarcastic look here.

My baby turned 19 last week. Growing up way too fast. My youngest will be sweet 16 this June. Depressing.

Well, I'm off to check on your blogs. Have a great week everyone!

I'm baaaaaccckkkk

2009-01-21T21:22:00.002-05:00

No I didn't fall off the face of the earth. I just haven't been on blogger in a long time. I got an email from Miss Janna the other day saying she got back on here and I needed to as well. So here I am.

Not too much has happened since I've been on. Nothing earth shattering anyway. We had a great Christmas and a good new year so far. Stephanie is enjoying college. She survived her first semester. Kim is doing great in high school. We are starting to dress hunt for her very first prom. Ahhh.

We have had some unusually cold weather lately and I hate it. I like the warmer weather better. We are already planning a trip to Florida for Spring Break. I can't wait.

My team is going to the Super Bowl so I'm pretty stoked about that. We are having a big party and everything.

I guess that's all the updating for now. I promise to return at least once a week.

A pic my friend posted on facebook.

2008-08-24T12:56:00.004-04:00

My friend Suzanne posted this pic of Joe on her facebook. Her son goes to NC State with Stephanie and she is a huge DL fan as well. I can't believe he is wearing a NC State hat. How funny! It was taken with Billy Bob Thornton in Grand Rapids, MI when they went bowling together. I guess she cut him out of the pic. Sorry Billy. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far. Stephanie came home Friday so it was great to see her. She had a great first week at school and is adjusting well.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

We moved my baby into her college room today

2008-08-16T21:03:00.001-04:00

and I am depressed. Actually, I am better than I thought I would be. She is going to have such a great experience. She is so excited. Another milestone slipping by....

Why I love softball

2008-08-12T10:33:00.003-04:00

I just had to share a Nike commercial that I saw when I was watching Team USA defeat Venezuela 11-0 in their first game. Go ladies!! I am upset with the Olympic committee for taking softball out of the 2012 Olympic games in London just because USA dominates the sport. That is not fair to these great athletes. When you watch this commercial, you realize that the ladies of this team used to be the young girls in this commercial. They play with their hearts and they truly love this game.

Check it out.

I am on vacation this week so I can spend time with Stephanie before we take her to school this weekend. :(

Have a great week everyone!

Guess what I got to ride in at lunch today?

2008-07-24T19:55:00.002-04:00

Yeah, that's right. A Lamborghini. It was the coolest ride I've ever had.

First let me say

2008-07-15T16:23:00.002-04:00

Wow! I can't believe how long it's been since I have been on here. I thought my life would wind down after my oldest one's graduation, but it didn't. We just got back from NC State today after a 2 day Parent Orientation. Lots of info was thrown at us.

We survived prom and graduation. The cruise was fantastic. I have some pics, but I am having trouble downloading them right now, so I will try to get those posted soon. I am actually proud of some scenery shots I got in St John. I am so ready to go on another one. The kids had a blast, and of course they had their entourage of boys following them around like lovesick puppies. LOL! We did some snorkeling in St John, yes I actually did some as well. I put aside my huge fear of sharks and went out into the deep water and everything. It was worth it. The water was gorgeous and you could see all the way down to the bottom.

I have been doing very well with my diet and exercise since May 1st and dropped 12 pounds! I am actually fitting into some clothes I haven't seen in a while. I feel better and have much more energy.

Well, I am off to get some stuff done around the house.

Sorry for the long absence. I will be checking some blogs here soon!

Happy Birthday Jude!

2008-04-26T19:54:00.001-04:00

I want to wish my dear Canadian friend Jude a very Happy Birthday. This video is just for you. Enjoy!

Kitchen pics

2008-04-24T21:07:00.003-04:00

Before

Sanding down the original stain

On the left, before I cleaned the original hardware, then on the right, after a good scrubbing

The finished product!

Hubby's mom standing next to her new cabinets. She is so happy!

We have been very busy around here as usual. My oldest has the lead role in "Our Town" which we are excited about. The show is May 29. I will post some pics of course. Prom is May 10th and graduation is June 8th. So many events coming up. Then we leave for our cruise June 14th. I am very stoked about that!!

Many of you may recall we had a foreign exchange student last summer from France. Her name is Eva. Well, we have been keeping in touch since and she called the other day and asked if she could come back and visit us again this summer. We told her of course!! She is coming in July for 3 weeks and we are extremely excited about that. She is flying in from Guadaloupe, a French west indies island that her and her family have been living on since last August. She is originally from Toulouse France. She is not going through the exchange program this time. It's great that she wants to come see us again. We are invited to come down and spend the holidays with them this December. I really hope we can afford to go.

Hubby and I went to see Wicked a couple of weekends ago. It was one of my Christmas presents. I loved it. The book was better, but I still enjoyed it very much. It was my first Broadway musical, so that was exciting.

Well, I'm off to catch up on some blogs. Sorry for my absence, btw. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

I'm back and ready to show some pics

2008-04-03T21:29:00.005-04:00

This post I will show some pics from the concert. Remember I said I am a terrible photographer so be forewarned. Plus the band was moving like crazy so a lot of my pics blurred. I am showing you the best ones. I had to sneak in the camera since they had big signs posted "No Cameras or Audio Equipment." That's a first for a DL show, but whatever. I didn't take any of Styx. Long story short I had gargantuan

man in front of me when they were on. Needless to say I moved to get a better view. So I am starting with a couple that I took of Reo Speedwagon.

Bruce Hall (bass guitar) and lead singer Kevin Cronin

close up of Kevin Cronin

The boys doing an acoustic set

This is my favorite of Sav

A little blurry, but it shows off Phil's physique so well!

Sav in black

Viv

This pic is dark, but true fans will recognize the little Welsh man that walked up beside us to check out the sound. None other than Malvin Mortimer, tour band manager

Well, that's all for now. I will post some before and after pics of the kitchen next. Have a great weekend everyone. And I will catch up on some blogs this weekend as well.

I am fine

2008-03-21T21:17:00.003-04:00

Sorry for the long absence. I have been busy with many projects. We have been remodeling my in laws kitchen for one. I took some before and after pics that I will post soon. I am heading to Pittsburgh for a few days so I will check back in when I return.

Have a great Easter everyone!

I am feeling bad

2008-02-16T10:03:00.004-05:00

with a head cold right now, but I am getting psyched up for the show next month. A friend posted this on a bulletin on myspace and it really got me in the mood. Check it out:

I wonder what Sav is going to where on this leg of the tour Jude? I will try to get you some good pics, no promises though!

We are celebrating Steph's bday with the family today. I have to get the house cleaned up and head to Wal-Mart to pick up a cake. I also have to go down to the ball field and sign up the girls for softball. Busy, busy day. Then Steph and 7 of her friends are staying at a local hotel for fun and swimming and such. I stayed with them last year, but I am passing this year. Most of them are 18 now, so I am giving them some space. Besides, with my cold, I am just not up to it. They will have a great time I am sure of it.

Well, I better get busy. Have a great weekend everyone!

P.S. Leave me comments at the beginning of the posts so I can respond on my haloscan. I haven't figured out how to take the other ones off yet. :)

My oldest is turning 18!

2008-02-09T17:26:00.001-05:00

I am dedicating this post to my oldest child who will turn 18 on the 18th of this month. Her father and I are so proud of her, and she is the best daughter anyone could ask for. I am posting a slide show of her to commemorate this special occasion. I love you Steph!!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!

Winter Court pics

2008-01-30T20:28:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the long absence. I am just making a quick post to let you all know I didn't die. Most of my evenings are being spent working out so I can look good when we go on our cruise. I've lost 5 1/2 pounds so far in a little under 3 weeks. Not much I know, but I am okay as long as the number keeps going down. I don't have a goal weight. I don't believe in setting one for myself. I will know when I am happy then I will try very hard to maintain it.

Stephanie and I are preparing to go to a special Open House that NC State has for future woman students next Friday. I hope the weather is going to be good since most of it will be outside walking from place to place. We are going to look at different options for accommodations, dorm vs apartment and such while we are there. She went there with her friends back in the fall to check out the campus and this is what she ended up doing:

I really hope we avoid that room at all costs since that would be one of my bigget fears. YIKES! I still can't believe she held that thing.

Hubby and I have been busy. We put in a new light above the kitchen table, I think I've mentioned that in an earlier post. We also put in a new kitchen sink, stainless steel and I love it! We had a stainless steel one in our previous house and I missed it. We finally bought a new flat screen tv. 46". Of course hubby loves to play his XBox on it. Go figure. We are breaking it in proper this Sunday for the Super Bowel. Go GIANTS!! I hate the Patriots and Tom Brady so I have to go for Eli and his team.

Also we had Winter Court which Kim participated in. Here's a pic:

Kim and Tyler

I call him Mouse since he is so quiet you never know he's there. All the girls friends have nicknames. It's much more fun that way.

Well, I'm off to get some treadmill time in. Have a great week everyone!

Good news and bad news

2008-01-09T12:10:00.000-05:00

Well, I have some good news and bad news. Let's start with the bad.....

We woke up this morning to no water. We have a well and apparantly the pump broke. Yeah!!! Ken stayed home from work and had someone come out to fix it. $1200 down the drain. So that pretty much puts my home improvement plans on the back burner. NUTS!!! At least we will have water when I get home, (hopefully!)

My good news is I was able to secure 2 tickets on the floor, 18th row to see the boys at the end of March. A nice perk for fan club members. It's the first time they have played in Greensboro since 1987. I usually have to drive to Charlotte or Raleigh to see them. I didn't go last year, so I have to get my fix this year.

Connie, I hope you are able to see them dear, and NOT go into labor at the show, lol!

Well, that is pretty much what is going on. I need to get back to work, so I will say goodbye and have a great week!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T12:43:00.000-05:00

Welcome to 2008. I don't have a New Year's resolution. I don't keep them, so what's the point? I do have a very busy, fun year ahead of me. We are planning some home improvement projects which we started New Year's Day with a new light fixture above my kitchen table. I love it. It's so pretty. We are planning to put in a new kitchen sink, stainless steel and replace all the hardware on my kitchen cabinets to a brushed nickel to match my new light. :) Then my bathroom needs some updating. It's early 90's "Solid Gold". All the gold fixtures are being changed out to nickel and I am replacing the hideous vanity style lights above my mirror. We are either buying a new entertainment center or having one built for the family room. We are getting a bigger tv and it won't fit in our current one. That's about it for house stuff.

Of course we are already busy getting ready for Stephanie to start the big "C" in the fall. :( We are making plans to tour the campus and look at dorms vs. apartments and such. Of course there is the planning of the graduation party and getting all that organized. I started planning her Sweet 16 almost a year ahead of time. I'm OCD that way. So I better get busy!!

We are going on our cruise in June for Steph's graduation present!! I am very excited about that. All in all, a very busy time ahead.

Well, I better go. I'm supposed to be working. Shhhh....

Christmas tree crisis!

2007-12-24T17:29:00.000-05:00

I woke up Saturday morning and discovered tiny black bugs all over my carpet near my tree. Upon looking at the trunk closer, we discovered bigger ones feeding on the sap. Gross!!! Hubby said they were aphids. We quickly took off all the ornaments and lights and disposed of the tree. So here I was 3 days before Christmas with no Christmas tree. My oldest started freaking out that she wasn't going to have a tree her last Christmas home before she went to college. (That depresses me to think about so I'm not going to get into any details about that)

Her and I went on a hunt to find a tree. We had to visit a few different places, but finally found a 9 foot pre-lit artificial one (not taking any chances!) at Home Depot, and it was half off, score! We brought it home and put the decorations on it. It looks fabulous. Much better than the last one. Crisis averted.

I wrapped all the girls presents last night so now we just have to wait for tomorrow morning for them to open them. I actually have hubby stumped this year. He always manages to figure out what I got him. It's killing him that he can't guess. He he.

Well, I'm off to cook some dinner. The natives are getting restless. I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

My Christmas Cards

2007-12-15T17:53:00.000-05:00

We finally got around to taking the picture of the girls for the Christmas cards today. It's so hard to find one that they both agree on and we can use. They narrowed it done to these two. I liked the first one better, but they liked the second one so that's the one I ordered. They should be ready to pick up in a couple of days.

I like sending out cards, I just don't like addressing and licking all the envelopes. Ewwww!!! I refuse to lick them. That's just gross to me.

I have all my shopping done except for one gift for my mom. I know what I'm getting, I just have to go to the store and get it. I will probably go one day next week.

Oh, and we heard from NC State yesterday and Stephanie got in!!! She said she was going to accept no matter what Chapel Hill told her. We shall see if that's true next month when Chapel Hill sends out their letters.

We have had the weirdest weather here lately. It's been 80 degrees most of this past week and today it was cold. They are actually calling for snow tonight. That's so strange. I wish it would make up it's mind. Don't get me wrong, I am loving the warmer temps. I don't care if I ever see snow again.

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. Stay safe and warm.

My tree

2007-12-04T22:29:00.001-05:00

Our Tree

This is the job Steph and Will did to the outside of the house. Sorry it's blurry. It was cold and I was in a hurry!!

Also, it was Will's 18th birthday Monday and we had a cake for him.

My busy week went well

2007-12-02T11:38:00.000-05:00

We had our wine tasting Thursday night and it was fun. We learned some new things about wine that we didn't know before. We sampled 12 different wines from all around the world. My favorite from the states is still Washington state. They produce some awesome wines. New Zealand is the best for Rieslings so far. I tasted a really good red wine from Argentina as well. All in all, it was a great night.

Our Christmas party was last night and we had some fun. My friends and I danced the night away. It's nice to let loose and act silly every now and then.

Hubby and I. Do you like me new auburn hair? I love it.

My crazy co-workers. Amy, Me, Shannon (she did my hair), and Stacy. These girls keep me laughing every day.

We are going to get our tree today, hopefully. We haven't done the first bit of decorating for Christmas. I am such a slacker this year!!

Have a great week everybody!

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth

2007-11-28T22:09:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the absence. I have several things going on right now to keep me away from the computer. My Christmas work party is this Saturday and we give gag gifts to each of the doctors and they have assigned me to write the poems to go with them. It's really fun and they have to stand up and read them in front of everyone.

We also have a wine tasting social for the neighborhood that we are hosting tomorrow night so I have been getting ready for that as well. I am also hosting a purse party next Friday and we have our monthly Bunko the following Friday. Busy, busy.

My sister's birthday is tomorrow so we all went out to eat tonight at PF Changs. I love that place. I saw my younger sister, the one who is having problems with her son and she didn't take my advice. He skipped school today actually. I don't know what to say about that. She asked me if I would trade one of my girls for him for a month. I told her that he would be praying for military school by the end of the month. I'm not willing to give up my kid to find out.

I am going to finish my Christmas shopping this weekend. I am usually done by now. I hate the crowds. Oh, and I am also getting my hair done on Saturday. I haven't had it cut since July. I am in desperate need!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!

P.S. Aren't you proud of me Jude? I managed to change my layout all by myself, lol!

Just a little update

2007-11-14T12:32:00.001-05:00

Tyler's mom is healing. She broke her bone under her one eye. The guy was her crack head neighbor just trying to start some trouble. He's in jail, thank goodness.

The holidays are creeping up on me. I am going to do some more shopping this weekend. I have decided to get hubby the XBox 360. He loves his video games. Men and their toys, lol!

My sister has come to ask for advice about her 15 year old son. He's failing all of his classes (he's in the 9th grade for a second year), mainly because he's skipping school. She takes him every morning to make sure he goes, but at some point, he leaves the school grounds. Obviously, this is easy to do. His father is out of the picture for some time. She has remarried 7 years ago and new hubby is no help. He has a 16 year old daughter from his first marriage that can do no wrong, and he doesn't discipline her for anything. She wants to send him to military school, but can't afford it. I told her what I would do if this happened to me. I told her to set up tutoring sessions after school that are mandatory for him to go to try to bring his grades up. Then I would take everything out of his room except for his bed and his clothes. No tv, no video games, no guitar until he brought his grades back up. I would also have him do some chores around the house. He doesn't do any now. She thought that was being strict, but I think she is way too lenient with him. What do you guys think? Any suggestions for my sis? She could use all the help she can get.

Hope everyone is enjoying their week so far!

Finally some good news!

2007-11-08T19:56:00.000-05:00

Stephanie heard back from East Carolina University today and SHE GOT IN!!! I am so proud of her. She is still waiting to hear back from NC State and Chapel Hill. ECU is her 3rd choice. It's 3 hours away, so it's my third choice as well, lol!

Connie left me a not so cryptic message the other day that I am still on cloud nine about. I am anxiously awaiting some details on that girl!!

We have started Christmas shopping. The girls wanted docks for their iPods so we got those and we got them Guitar Hero 3 for the PS2. Kim also wanted the soundtrack to Across the Universe, so I picked that up. She is a huge Beatle's fan. She appreciates music the way I do. She has very eclectic taste like me. She also has a love for reading like me. She's joined a book club at school. She has a love for writing like me and writes short stories too. She really is my mini me.

I am really enjoying my new car. The girls at work call it my British Mobile since I have the union jack on the front. They love to ride in it at lunch time and we blast some 80's music and act silly. I will post some pics. Every time I go to find my digital, one of the girls are using it.

Kim brought home a baby hamster the other day. His name is Todd. He's pretty cute. He has this elaborate cage with a wheel and stuff. One more animal to feed!

Have a great weekend everyone!

What in the heck is the world coming to?

2007-11-05T12:43:00.000-05:00

Last night Kim's boyfriend's mom was attacked in her own back yard while she was feeding her dogs, then they robbed her house. She is okay, physically anyway. Kim didn't get the full story, but they did find out that the person(s)responsible lives down the street from them. Am I going to have to carry a weapon walking out into my back yard now?!! WTF!!

I am tired of bad news, let me tell you. It's time for a break!!! Hubby went to the doctor today because he felt something in one of his testicles yesterday. He stopped by afterward to tell me that it was just a cyst and everything was fine. I really don't think I could have handled anymore bad news right now. I am at my limit.

Softball is over for another season. It will start back up again with sign ups in February. Kim will have to move up to play with the bigger girls since she is 14. The good thing is she will get to play with her big sister. They haven't played on the same team together in probably 4 or 5 years, so that will be nice.

Nothing else is going on, thank goodness!! Too much drama right now. I feel like I am on a soap opera or some kind of reality tv show. My fellow blogger Dick just came from Hawaii and posted some really great pics on his blog you should check out. It makes me want to go so bad. I know it makes you want to go back Jude, since it is one of your favorite places. Hawaii is definitely on my list of places to see. My other blogger friend Susan posted a blog recently about 50 things that you would like to do before you die. I don't think I could come up with 50. Most of mine would be places to visit, not so much things to do. I have a long list of places to see. For now I will have to live vicariously through fellow bloggers to see pictures until it is my turn.

I thought it would be fun and interesting to see what are some things you want to do?

Another day, another dolllar

2007-11-01T12:58:00.000-04:00

That's how I feel sometimes about work. I need to work, but I don't want to work. I think today all the crazy people are coming to our office. There are some days I just can't handle another person and I just want to poke my eyes out! I get sick of all the dumb questions, and I'm not talking about questions that the average non-medical person wouldn't know the answer to in a million years. I am talking about stuff that people should know if you have half a brain cell in your head!!!

This morning I had a patient's mother ask me if ultrasound was safe for her grandchild. That is a perfectly reasonable question. I told her that it has been around for a very long time and there were no known bio-effects from it. She was still very skeptical. I then proceeded to tell her that she was surrounded by sound waves all the time, and they didn't seem to be affecting her. Her response is what gained her a free membership into my stupid question hall of fame. She said and I quote "But I'm not surrounded by water." WTF!!! I ended the conversation because the smart ass in me was dying to come out. That is just one of many dumb questions I get on a daily basis. I am going to start keeping track of them and sharing them with you all. It will give you a chuckle if nothing else.

My co-worker hasn't returned back to work yet. She posted a bulletin on myspace that made me cry. She was very close to her brother and thought of him as her own child in a lot of ways, since she is a few years older. It really breaks my heart. And we got bad news #2 out of the comes in 3 thing. Our neighbor's 26 year old son died Tuesday of an apparent heart attack. He was a brittle diabetic who was not under the care of a physician because he refused to see one. He had been complaining about not feeling well for a few days and came to stay with them. They said he usually would do this. By the time his mom dragged him to the ER it was too late. He died soon after they arrived. The sad thing is they may have been able to help him if he wouldn't have been so stubborn about going. I would have dragged him kicking and screaming when he first felt bad. They are feeling a lot of guilt now because of this. All we can do is be there for them now and comfort them as best as we can. As parents we aren't supposed to bury our children.

On a brighter note, Halloween was uneventful. The kids had fun trick or treating with their friends. We didn't get many kids this year, just a handful. It's dwindling down every year which is a shame. We used to have such a blast growing up on Halloween. Nobody wants to participate in it anymore. So many people think it's evil. It's only evil if you make it that way!!! Okay, I won't stay on that soap box long.

We are enjoying some nice temps in the 70's. Very nice for the fall. I hope everyone is enjoying their week and has a nice relaxing weekend ahead of them.

And I want to wish my dear friend Janna a Happy Birthday. Rock on sista!

We are getting so much rain now

2007-10-25T12:36:00.000-04:00

I am so glad. It's a shame though that just when we get all the rain we need, California sure could use some about now to help with all those fires. What an utter tragedy. I would gladly give up some of ours to help them out right now. Since it has been raining so much, I haven't had a chance to take any pics of the new car. I guess I could take some while it's inside my garage, but I don't think you want to see the inside of the garage. It needs some cleaning. We have too much crap in there! Everything and anything is stored in my garage. We are thinking about getting some of those pulley systems to hang the bikes on just to get them off the ground. We are going to give it a good once over now that the weather is getting cooler.

I got some bad news when I got to work today. One of the medical assistants that I work with called in today. Her brother was killed in a car wreck last night. It must have been bad because they were asked to go identify the body. I don't know any details. We have had so many wrecks with all the rain we have been getting. It's been dry for so long that people have forgotten how to drive apparently. My heart really goes out to her and her family. She is such a sweet person. I hate that this had to happen to her.

On a lighter note, we are attending a wedding this Saturday out of town. Well, not too far out of town, less than two hours away. My best friend's son is getting married. It's supposed to stop raining by then, so that should be good. We were supposed to have a softball game tonight, but I don't see that happening with all the rain. It will be the first one we would have to reschedule due to weather. I would much rather go home and relax tonight anyway. We have had a busy week, as usual.

Enjoy your weekend everyone and stay safe!

I actually picked up my new car today!

2007-10-21T21:47:00.000-04:00

Finally! I will post some pics soon. Of course the first thing I did was put my union jack license plate on the front. It looks good on it. I love it and On Star rocks!

The fake baby is a pain in the ass. It cries too damn much. I'll be so glad when she turns it back in tomorrow. We are getting our carpets cleaned tomorrow and I am so happy about that. They desperately need it. One of neighbors has a carpet cleaning business so he is giving us a great deal to do the whole house. There are things on my kid's bedroom floors that I have no idea what they are and probably don't want to.

Well, I'm off to read a little and get to bed. I just wanted everyone to know that I got my new ride!

Have a great week!

We finally got some rain!

2007-10-19T12:40:00.000-04:00

It started last night and just stopped at lunch time today. We need so much more though. It really needs to rain for a solid week or more to make up for the drought. We are having our neighborhood fall festival tomorrow so I do hope we have some nice weather for it. Since I am the social director for the association, I will be busy, busy tomorrow starting at the butt crack of dawn! I have tents and tables to set up and I am in charge of making the iced tea, an essential for any southern get together. I will have help, so it's not like it's all on me or anything. Also, if I get to pick up the tags for my new car, I will try to pick that up tomorrow morning as well. So much going on!!! That's my life though. Never a dull moment. I guess they will come when the kids leave the nest. For now, I will just enjoy them.

Kim is bringing home a fake baby today for the weekend. Some of you may remember, my oldest brought one home two years ago, right around the time I started this blog. She is going shoppping after school with some friends with baby in tow. That should be interesting. I wish I could be a fly on the wall for that.

Stephanie is leaving for Raleigh tonight to spend the night and get up early for NC State's Open House. Then they are off to the state fair. I hope the weather holds out for them as well. I know we need the rain, but I want it to rain at night when we don't have softball games and other things going on.

We won our softball game last night which was great! Last Tuesday they came back from a score of 12-3 to tie it up as well. Two great games in a row. Kim made it all the way to 3rd base on a dropped 3rd strike. They kept over throwing the ball and she kept going. That's my girl!

Hubby and I are visiting with my nephew and his wife tonight. He has every game system imaginable so I know what hubby will be doing. LOL! Boys and their toys.

Well, I hope everyone has a great weekend wherever you may be on the map.

I still don't have my new car!

2007-10-16T20:31:00.000-04:00

Now I have to wait for the company that's handling the sale to send the title to the place we got the loan from. Then I have to pick that up to get the tags. I have no idea how long that is going to take. It's coming from Illinois. Hubby is off work Monday, so hopefully we will be able to do it then. I really wanted it by this weekend, but oh well.

The dinosaur show rocked! It was incredible. The girls loved it. I highly recommend it. It's a show for all ages. Trust me.

I big thank you to Jude who helped me pick out my new blogskin and fixed my haloscan for me. I am sooo computer challenged!

I am coming up on two years on Blogger. It's hard to believe. I have made some new friends as well as kept in touch with others. It's been great talking with everyone and getting a glimpse into their worlds. I have been given great advice and hopefully returned the favor on occasion.

We have Steph's tennis banquet dinner tomorrow night. We are eating at a local steakhouse. That should be good.

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying their week!

Not too much going on

2007-10-13T20:44:00.000-04:00

We went to the post office and officially applied for our passports. They said it should take 6-8 weeks to get them. The only thing I didn't like is they took our birth certificates and we won't get them back until we get our passports. I hope we won't need them in the mean time. I will have to pay to get another copy if we do. That would be just my luck.

The weather here is finally getting a little cooler. We had some hot temps for October. Highs in the 90's! It felt great today. It's dipping down into the 40's at night. Perfect sleeping weather. We still haven't had any rain and have tight water restrictions. Of course there are dumb asses that think that the restrictions don't apply to them. That somehow, miraculously, our water reserve levels will rise on their own without any rain. They are still watering their lawns and washing their cars like it's no big deal. Idiots! We have a well at our house. No city water for us, so we are being especially careful conserving whenever we can. Hopefully, we will have a monsoon or something soon. Even if we do, it will still be awhile before the restrictions are lifted.

We are going to the dinosaur show tomorrow. The girls are really looking forward to it. I am excited just seeing them so excited about it.

Stephanie is visiting one of her college choices next weekend. They are having an open house. Then she is going to the State Fair when they are done. It's been years since I've been to the state fair. Ah, the deep fried food! She is going up with 3 friends so I know they will have a good time. She has officially applied to one of her college choices the other night. This school is 3 hours away, so I'm kinda hoping she goes to her first or second choices since they are less than 2 hours away. The time is slipping by way too fast. Her senior year is definitely going by quicker than her previous years. At least it feels that way.

We got an update about my car. It should be ready Monday or Tuesday! Yeah!! I will keep you posted.

Enjoy your Sunday everyone!

I don't have my new car yet dammit!

2007-10-09T20:51:00.000-04:00

They haven't released it yet, and I am getting frustrated! I want my car. I guess I just have to be more patient, not one of my strong suits!

Stephanie had her tennis conference today. She played doubles and they lost their first match and it was single elimination. They put up a good fight though. I am very proud of them. I took a couple of pics, but they didn't turn out very well since I had to take them through a fence. Not worth posting. Sorry guys. I am just not a very good photographer.

We got a bill today for yearbooks. Yeah, yet more money to spend. Two high school yearbooks cost about $160.

We are going to see a cool show this weekend called Walking with Dinosaurs. I wish they would have had this when Stephanie was little. She has always been an avid lover of them and has most of the Carnegie collection. She was able to tell you their scientific names at around 3 years old.

Check out this youtube link.

Pretty neat, huh?

Ta ta for now.

Another busy week coming up

2007-10-07T10:45:00.000-04:00

as usual. Hopefully I will be picking up my new car tomorrow or Tuesday. I can't wait!!! Stephanie has a tennis conference Tuesday. She is playing doubles. I will try to take some pics. Of course we have a softball game and practice. I am hosting Bunko this month on Friday. Of course I am doing a Halloween theme. I have to get out my Halloween decorations still. I am being a slacker.

My glasses broke the other day so I just got contacts. I've worn them before, but it's been a few years. I like getting up in the morning and putting on glasses. It's so much quicker and easier. I am going to get my glasses fixed so I have them for when I get up on the weekends, I can just put them on. I hate having to put contacts in first thing every day just so I can see. I don't like taking a shower with them in either. I guess I just have to get used to them.

Well, I am off to do some shopping for my Bunko prizes. Have a great week everyone!

Homecoming 2007

2007-10-03T18:13:00.000-04:00

Here are a couple of pics from Homecoming. We won 31-15!! Stephanie was a Senior Representative for Will, so that's why she is dressed up and is wearing that sash.

Stephanie and Will

Stephanie and Kim

It was College Night at the Coliseum last night and Stephanie and I went to check out perspective colleges. She got information from about 5 or 6. She found out that she more than meets the requirements for UNC-Chapel Hill and that is her first choice, so she was very happy about that. The lady told her that she just has to turn in good essay answers with her application and she should be set. Hopefully I will be buying that bumper sticker next year that says my daughter and my money go to Chapel Hill, lol! We are ordering cap and gowns tomorrow night as well as graduation announcements. Senior year is taking me broke!!!

I am so proud of my girls, as always. They are doing exceptionally well in school and sports and are just great kids. I find myself bragging about them all the time. I am so lucky to have good kids when there are so many teenagers out there drinking and doing drugs. I feel so fortunate and count my blessings for them every day.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week. And for those of you getting a lot of rain, send some my way. We are in desperate need!

Just a quick post

2007-09-26T20:43:00.001-04:00

to say that I am back home and absolutely loved the game!!!! We had a blast. I forgot how much fun it is to watch my team on their home turf surrounded by 60 some thousand screaming Steeler fans whipping their terrible towels into a frenzy. Like a dumb ass I forgot my camera, but my sister did manage to snag a few pics she will be sharing with me soon so I can share them with you. I managed to get a sunburn on just the right side of my face and neck. Now that looks ridiculous to say the least. It was all worth it though. It was a gorgeous day for a football game. Tailgating was fun. Met some great people and ate some wonderful Pittsburgh food. Yummy!!! I wish I could bring it home with me. I would probably weigh 300 pounds if I did though. LOL!

Dick- I was happy to see your Seahawks win as well this past weekend. Congrats!

Well, I am off to catch up on some tv shows that I have in the DVR. I will post some pics soon. We have Homecoming Friday night as well and Stephanie will be dressed up since her boyfriend is on the team so they will be having a big ceremony and such. So I will post some pics of that as well, probably this weekend.

So long for now!

Since some of you were dying to see this

2007-09-20T13:02:00.001-04:00

Here is the pic of my daughter Kim feeding me baby food.

She was really shoveling it in.

I am so looking forward to this weekend. My sister and my mom and I are heading up to Pittsburgh for the Steeler game!!! I can't wait. We are driving up Saturday and having dinner with hubby's family, then the game is on Sunday then we will drive back home on Monday. Seems a lot for two days, but it's well worth it.

Karen- I am breaking out my terrible towel girl!!!

I will post some pics later.

We are taking a girl at my work out tomorrow night for her bachelorette party. She thinks we are only going out to dinner, but we are taking her to the local comedy club as well as maybe to a dance club after that. I can't stay up too late since I have to leave early the next day for Pittsburgh, but I am sure I will have a great time.

Have a great weekend everyone!!

Finally some pics from the winery

2007-09-16T20:51:00.000-04:00

that we visited for hubby's bday.

Entrance into Shelton Winery

The main building that houses the gift shop and where you start your tour

An antique way of making wine

Shelton's insignia. The two owners (brothers) have 5 children between them and the insignia is made up of 5 S's.

This is from the Ragapple Lassie Winery. It's another much smaller scaled operation, so we got a private, personal tour from the owner's wife. These containers were very cold to the touch.

This a authentic Bavarian styled Bakery on the way back to the Bed and Breakfast that was recommended to us. Very good stuff in here!!

I will post some of Mt Airy (AKA Mayberry next)

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Opening Day for ball is this weekend

2007-09-11T12:59:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's almost here. It feels like we just finished spring ball. We had a scrimage game the other day and won. YEAH!! The girls are doing a great job of coming together as a team and they are having fun as well. I had them doing some fun drills the other day that left them laughing. It's always fun to see them enjoying themselves and learning something in the mean time.

My awful summer cold is winding down. I can breathe out of my nose again thank goodness. The weekend of activities went great. The baby shower was fun. Kim and I won a game where she had to feed me baby food. I may post a pic of that later. Not very flattering, but funny. The wedding was nice. It took place on the rooftop of a building downtown. Very pretty. My mother in laws surprise party went great. Tons of fun and good food were had by all, and we did manage to surprise her. Not an easy thing to do.

The new fall season is almost upon us for tv shows. I am getting tired of watching reruns. I am bummed about having to wait til January to watch Lost again. By then, I have forgotten most of what happened last season.

Well, I better get back to work. Have a great week everyone!

Busy weekend ahead

2007-09-07T13:08:00.000-04:00

This weekend is going to be very busy from the time I get off work today until Sunday night. As soon as I get off work I am meeting up with hubby's mom and sister so we can shop for a baby shower for tomorrow and I have to pick up a wedding gift as well. Then we are meeting up with the rest of hubby's family to go out to eat. Tomorrow morning we have softball practice at 10:30, a baby shower at 2, then a wedding to go to at 5. Sunday is more softball practice and a surprise 80th birthday party for my mother in law. Geesh!!! Do I over extend myself much??!! I thought the weekend was supposed to be for relaxing after a long week at work. Apparently not this weekend. Most of my weekends are crazy. I would like to say it's my kids who do it to me, but it's me. That is usually the only time I can get anything done.

Oh well, I guess I should look on the bright side. I won't be doing any cooking this weekend. Score!!

Have a great weekend everyone and be safe.

Personality test

2007-09-05T12:39:00.000-04:00

My niece sent me this link in an email and I took the test. Normally, I disregard these things, but this one was dead on to my answers. It was kind of cool. I don't buy into the whole send this to so many people and you will get your wish crap, but try it for fun.

Personality Quiz

Hope everyone is enjoying their week so far.

We had our first softball practice yesterday

2007-09-02T10:40:00.000-04:00

and the head coach didn't show up. First let me preface this by saying that I got a call from one of the players dads whom I coached last season and he asked when our first practice was because no one had called him yet. Now Tracey, the head coach, got our practice schedule last Monday, so he had all that time to call people and tell them about yesterday. I didn't have any of the girls numbers except 3, and I only had those because they were on my team in the spring, so I couldn't call anyone about yesterday's practice. I had tried to call Tracey on his home and cell phone with no avail. I called the commissioner and luckily he had them, so I began calling at 12:30 yesterday for a 3:00 practice. Not the ideal thing to do. I did manage to get 8 out of the 11 girls to show up, thankfully. Tracey called me at 2:00 and said he wasn't going to call a practice since it was Labor Day weekend. Opening Day is in mid October and he wants to procrastinate on getting these girls ready to play as a team. Thankfully one of the dad's helped me out. I was just glad that I had ran many a practices before yesterday, or I would have been lost.

I think overall we have a good team this season, a great group of girls. We have another one today at 2. Hopefully Tracey shows up for this one. I took on assistant coach so I would have less stress. It's not working out that way so far.

**UPDATE** He actually showed up and we had a great practice. YEAH!

A quiz I got from Tracey's blog

2007-08-30T12:39:00.000-04:00

"FIRST REACTIONS QUIZ".

You have to type the 1ST thing that comes to mind whenever you hear these 40 words. You can't think and go back and change your answers. Here we go:

1. Beer: tastes great with pizza
2. Anorexic: low self esteem
3. Super Hero: Spiderman
4. Your Last Ex: too long ago to care
5. Power Rangers: can't believe they are still around
6. Plastic Surgery: no thanks
7. Steroids: pathetic
8. Cartoons: are not just for kids
9. The President: is it 2008 yet?!!
10. Tupperware: have too much of it
11. Florida: Disney World
12. Santa Claus: childhood
13. Halloween: costumes
14. Bon Jovi: still looking good
15. Grammar: yes please
16. Myspace: becoming annoying
17. Worst fear: spiders
18. Marriage: give and take
19. Paris Hilton: go play in traffic
20. Brunettes: have more fun ;)
21. Redheads: feisty
22. Blondes: stereotyped
23. Pass the time: reading a good book
24. One night stands: dangerous
25. Donald Trump: icky
26. Neverland: Peter Pan
27. Pixie Stix: not good when they get wet
28. Vanilla ice cream: not as good as chocolate
29. Port-a-Potties: germ pools
30. High school: was a long time ago
31. Pajamas: comfy
32. Wood: fireplace
33. Wet Sock: sweaty feet
34. Alcohol: socially
35. Love: can be the best feeling
36. The Bible: stories
37. Heartache: hurts
38. Time: precious
39. Life: live it to the fullest
40. Blood: red

Thanks Tracey!

Hubby put the downpayment on my car today

2007-08-27T17:34:00.000-04:00

YEAH!!!!

I am supposed to get a new car

2007-08-26T11:37:00.000-04:00

Hubby's work sells their sales cars every year and gets new ones, and they offer them to their employees first at really good prices. We bought hubby one 2 years ago and it's been a great car. Here's what we are looking at:

2006 Chevy HHR

It doesn't hold as much as my van, but it is nice. The kids never want to go camping anymore so I guess we don't need as much room. I am excited about the prospect of getting a new car. they won't be ready for delivery until the first week of October, but I can wait. I've waited this long.

I am headed off to the softball field today to meet with the head coach and pick the rest of our team. It's such a long drawn out process. It's all so political. The same coaches always end up with the best players, miraculously. I dread going in a way. Kim is coming with me to help with the selection. She has a pretty good eye for these things.

We lost our football game Friday night 13-10. Our team put up a good fight. It was scary watching Will play. Some of you may remember he had back surgery last year and couldn't play all last season. Every time he makes a tackle, I cringe. I am so worried that he is going to hurt his back. I'm glad he's not my son. That would make it ten times worse. Stephanie and I sat next to his parents and you could tell his mom was very nervous. One of the highlights of the night came after the game. The marching band does this thing called "Blacktop." Basically, they head over to the basketball courts and have a little drum off. All the kids circle them and really get into it. I recorded some of it on my phone, but the sound quality is horrible. I may try to take the video camera next time so I can post it on here. These kids are pretty talented.

School starts back this Tuesday. Bummer for the kids. It's back to signing tons of papers that are brought home, writing notes, packing lunches or giving out lunch money, and all the other crap. We have open house tomorrow night where Kim will be able to do a walk through of her new school. She will be low man on the totem pole this year where her sister will be on the top. It will be a new challenge for her. They do this stupid thing called Freshman Academy at our high school. Basically, they separate the freshman into a different hallway and everything. Steph and Kim will never see each other during the school day. I don't know how they expect them to adjust to high school while being segregated. This is the second year they are doing it. I was hoping they would see how stupid it was after the first year and never do it again. I didn't get my wish.

Well, I'm off to the softball field. Take care.

I am soooo glad it's Friday!

2007-08-24T18:19:00.000-04:00

I had the week from hell after getting back from a nice vacation. Why does that always have to happen???!!! It's like I didn't get a vacation at all when that happens. First my schedule is slammed and they keep wanting to add more patients to it. One person here people with one set of hands!!! Then yesterday one of the doctors was trying to hook up a printer to my machine to print the reports on and he screwed something up. I had to call tech support, but first I had to go through the automated line which has to be in India or something since everyone I talked to sounded like that kind of accent. The connection was horrible and they couldn't understand me well and vice versa. Finally someone from the States called, an actual American, thank the gods. He managed to walk me through fixing it. The printer is still not hooked up and I could care less if it ever gets hooked up. I put it back in the damn box it came in and said "Good riddance!" I should just bring it home since it is a whole lot better than the one I have and it's a scanner and copier and fax machine too. Fancy piece of shit is what it is. Oh, I almost forgot the lovely comment the aforementioned doctor said to me when I couldn't put the damn paper trays into the printer. He said "Women are so incompetent when it comes to computer stuff." Of course the smart ass that I am answered "I can shoot you between the eyes at 100 feet with one shot. I think that skill will come in more handy than being able to put a stupid tray in a printer, don't you?" Needless to say, he had no answer to that.

Okay, I'm done ranting about my week. Hubby is speaking to me again. I knew he wouldn't last the week. I'm glad though. I do hate it when we are fighting.

I don't know how many of you watch the series "Dexter" on Showtime, but Season 1 just came out on DVD and I went to Best Buy last night and purchased it. Hubby and I got hooked on it when we had a free weekend of Showtime a while back, but could never finish the episodes because we won't pay for Showtime for just that one show. We watched two episodes last night and will finish the rest over the next week or so. I'm trying to make it last since it will be awhile before Season 2 comes out on DVD since it hasn't even started on Showtime yet. I also bought Photoshop for us so we can mess around with our pictures. It's a really neat program. Now I just have to get the kids to teach me how to use it. (Remember, I'm Annie Oakley, not Bill Gates).

We have our first home football game tonight and we are all going to cheer Stephanie's boyfriend Will on. Steph won her tennis match yesterday. She is ranked number 2 on the team. Not bad for only playing a year. That's my girl!

Well, I need to go get ready to leave for the game. Have a great weekend everyone!

Hubby is still giving me the silent treatment

2007-08-22T13:01:00.001-04:00

What he doesn't seem to realize is that I am okay with it. It's like a vacation of some sorts. He is acting so childish. Grow up already!

Def Leppard was in Raleigh last night, and I didn't go. It was tempting though. They did do an interview with Sav on the radio on my way home. I thought about you Jude when I heard it.

We finally got some rain yesterday. Not a lot, but a good bit. My grass and flowers were screaming for joy I'm sure. I think I lost most of my azaleas. I don't think they will be back next spring. I just don't have a green thumb at all. Don't give me a plant unless you want it to die.

Softball starts back this weekend. We are picking our teams. I am playing the role of assistant coach this season. My IBS and GERD will be better off without the stress of head coach. These kids get to me sometimes.

I can't wait for Friday to come. Work this week has been crazy. Busy, busy, busy. I guess I can't complain too much. It's paying my mortgage. Well, my lunch is over over, so I better head off for now.

Happy Hump Day!

**UPDATE** I just found out that the DL show last night was canceled due to bad weather. Bummer!

Eva called

2007-08-20T22:31:00.000-04:00

and she is safely back on French soil. My oldest talked with her on MSN today. She wants to come back. I told her to hop back on a plane right now missy!! I would adopt that kid right now, no questions asked. I hope we all get to see her again. My youngest wants me to buy the perfume that she wears. I would, but it costs way too much moolah. An ounce is like $70.

We are no further in solving the bike problem in the neighborhood. We may set out a bike as bait to try and catch who is doing it. Too bad we couldn't rig something on it that would shock the hell out of whoever nabs it.

Bike- $50
electrical wiring- $30
watching the butt hole taking a kids bike scream like a girl- priceless

Kim and I went to see "No Reservations" tonight. It was cute. A little tear jerky though, just to warn you.

We had a bridal shower for a girl at work today. Another sucker is born. Just kidding. Hubby and I are not speaking to each other right now, so I had to throw that in. He's mad at me because I told him he was driving like a maniac on the way to the airport yesterday. Then it was my fault he made a wrong turn and blah, blah, blah. He is so childish. When I am mad, I want to discuss it and get over it. He wants to be stubborn and not speak to me for days. Whatever. Get over it!

Stephanie had her first tennis match today for school and school hasn't even started yet. She said two girls passed out on the courts. I guess so since it was like 100 freakin' degrees outside. She won her match, so I am proud of her.

My first day back at work today was a nightmare. It was so busy. They tried to fit more patients on my schedule than there was room for. I had to get a little attitude with them and say "what part of no don't you understand?" They will never learn. That is what made me leave my last job, so they need to wakey wakey. I plan on winning the Powerball for 285 million, so I won't have to worry about working because let me tell you I won't be one of those people they interview on tv that says "I'm not going to quit work just because I won millions of dollars." I just have one word for those people, "DUMBASS!" You keep right on working while I sit on some remote island with a fruity drink in my hand thinking of ways to spend my millions on frivolous things.

Okay, I guess I have ranted enough for one night. I am getting pretty good at posting frequently. Aren't you proud of me?

Eva is gone

2007-08-19T18:39:00.000-04:00

and I am sad. :( I never thought it would be so hard to say goodbye to her. My house feels so different now. I know I will get over it eventually. As I am typing this, she is on her way to Germany, then to France. Because of the time change, she will be wide awake when her parents are wanting to go to bed. I would definitely host again though. It was a great experience, one that I will never forget and cherish always. I have my desktop back now so I am going to try and post some pics from the mountains, then I will finish up my winery pics some time this week. I haven't forgotten about them.

We took more, but Blogger takes so long to upload them. Well, I guess I am back to work tomorrow. Sucky!!!

Have a great week everyone. Au revoir!

Weird stuff going on in the neighborhood

2007-08-18T15:18:00.000-04:00

Our neighborhood has been experiencing a rash of bike thefts. Although, I guess the correct term would be "borrowing" as we have recovered all of them in ditches around the neighborhood. We think it might be kids, but we can't be sure. We are hoping it is and they are just demonstrating some type of stupid teenage behavior. I would hate to think adults were doing it. First bikes, then they move on to something bigger and better in our garages like our cars!

Hubby is the president of the neighborhood association so we are trying to keep on top of the situation. So far about 8 bikes have been discarded, all kids bikes. The bad thing is they are mostly little kids bikes, some with training wheels for pete's sake. We got an email from a neighbor that both his kids bikes were missing since this past Wednesday. We recovered both of them and returned them to their rightful owners. The kids were happy.

These kids have some balls just walking into people's garages in the middle of the night and taking things. It does bring up the issue of leaving your garage door open all night. Yes, we should be able to, but it's not a smart thing to do in today's world. We wouldn't be able to sleep a wink if ours was open, but we have noticed that several people do it. I guess we are just not as trusting as some people. We would like to be, but can't.

We are going to enjoy our last full day with Eva today. She is at the mall with the girls doing some last minute shopping. She had to buy another suitcase to take all of her new stuff home. Ken is cooking us a wonderful dinner. It smells heavenly.

Til' next time.

Back from the beach

2007-08-17T19:07:00.000-04:00

and missing it already! I am catching up on some blogs that I haven't visited in a while. I figured I can't complain about the number of comments I receive if I am not giving them out very well. (Smacks self on hand!) I have made some new friends though, so my efforts haven't gone unnoticed. I will continue to visit more blogs to make more friends. I am taking the suggestion I was given and posting more. Sometimes I guess I feel like if I don't have anything exciting to post about, I shouldn't post. I guess I have lost sight of the meaning of a blog. It's an online diary, which can be whatever I make of it. Some days it's an online confessional, some days it's a way to brag about my kids, some days I just need to get something off my chest. It's also a great way to meet some new and exciting people, which I have done over the last 2 years. I get some great ideas from other bloggers and I enjoy reading about other people's lives.

So bare with me while I adjust and maybe make some changes. I have changed the title to my blog. I may change it to something else after I have thought about it some more. My creative side needs to come out and think of something. Something that incorporates the different aspects of my life. I may try out some different titles over the next few weeks.

I have also realized that I need to get back to writing. Especially since I have my lap top back up and running. (All my stories are on it) I also have another idea for a story that I have been messing with on paper. I need to finish the one I started first though. I will probably never publish any of them, and I am okay with that. I enjoy writing just for the sake of writing. If others read it and enjoy it, that's enough for me.

Stephanie's boyfriend Will got some free tickets to a show tomorrow night. Quiet Riot, Vince Neil, and Slaughter. 80's music here we come! I don't know whether we will go or not. It's our last night with Eva before she leaves on Sunday. :( We ate at Red Robbin on the way home today and we told the waiter it was Eva's birthday so they would bring her a sundae and balloons and sing to her. She got a big kick out of it. Her birthday isn't until December, but since she won't be here then, we celebrated it early. I just hope we keep in touch and see each other again in the future.

Well, I'm off to do some laundry. Have a great weekend everyone!

I actually went into the ocean yesterday!

2007-08-14T11:52:00.000-04:00

Now, anyone that knows me well enough knows that I am deathly afraid of sharks, hence I stay out of the ocean. The water felt so good yesterday that I couldn't resist. I haven't done that in years. Probably since I was a teenager. I was still nervous and the waves knocked me over more than once. My family thought that was hilarious. Laugh at mom's expense, hah hah.

We had a great time. Then we went to the pier after dinner and saw three stingrays very close to the shore. One was very big. Huge in fact. Of course they were about the same distance from shore as we were earlier that day, so I probably won't go back in that deep today. I tried to get some pics of them, but they were too deep in the water to see through the camera.

My mom and my sisters are almost here. They are spending the rest of the week with us. We haven't all gone away together in a year, so it will be nice.

Well, I am off to greet my family. Talk with you soon!

Did anyone see the meteor showers last night?

2007-08-13T12:34:00.000-04:00

They were amazing. It was particularly great getting to watch them from the beach. The sky was so clear. It was so relaxing to sit out on the deck and watch them. Even the kids got into it which surprised me a little since they are teenagers and so busy with their lives. Kim even said she wanted to be a scientist. Her career choice changes on a daily basis. It's kind of fun to see what she comes up with next.

Well, I am off to sunscreen it up and head to the beach.

Have a great Monday everyone!

P.S. Jude, you would have loved the sunset here yesterday. Absolutely gorgeous!

Yeah!!! It's finally raining!!!

2007-08-10T15:19:00.000-04:00

I just looked out my window at work and it is pouring down rain. We soooo desperately needed it. It is still 101 degrees though. My plants will be happy. We have been watering them so they won't die. Pa and Ohio got too much rain it seems. My sister in law sent me some pics from the tornadoes and flooding. What a mess. I am posting the link. The pic of the microburst/tornadoes is particularly scary.

Pittsburgh Storm

I have been officially inducted into the mammogram society today. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I had a great tech and she was very nice. If everything goes well, I won't have to have another one for 2 years when I hit the big 4-0. Then it's once a year.

I am on a mission to find some new bloggers on here. I don't get a lot of traffic through here and I would like to change that. I want to meet some new interesting people. After all, that's what I am here for. We'll see what happens.

Well, I am off to the beach in the morning. I will chat with everyone when I get back or sooner if I take my laptop.

Have a great week everyone!

This was just too good not to share

2007-08-05T12:14:00.000-04:00

A fellow Lep fan, Rebecca, posted this as a bulletin on Myspace. I laughed so hard, I just had to share it with my fellow Lep fans on here:

We went to the mountains for a picnic yesterday and had a great time. It was hot as hell, but we enjoyed ourselves anyway. I will post some pics later.

Have a great week everyone!

Not too much going on

2007-07-31T12:49:00.000-04:00

Just chilling out and getting to know our exchange student better. She is such a delight. We got so lucky picking her. She fits into our family so nicely. Ken wants her to come back for the school year to stay longer. I wish she could as well, but I'm sure her parents are anxious to get her back. She wanted to go to an American beach so we are taking off for Topsail for a week for some fun in the sun. We weren't planning on taking any more vacation this year, but we couldn't tell her no and we love Topsail. It's so relaxing. My two sisters and their children are coming with us as well as my mom. We got a big house to fit everyone. I am so excited about going and getting away from work even though I just did a few weeks ago, but who's counting??? LOL!

I still have some pics to post from our winert trip, but they are on the computer in the bedroom Eva is staying in so I will post them after she goes home. I don't feel right about going in there now that she is staying in there with all of her stuff. I want to give her privacy.

I bought some cd's to teach us French while we are driving in the car. I must look a sight "talking" to myself as I'm driving. Oh well. Whatever works. I want to get fluent in it again before we go to Europe in 2009.

Eva and her family are moving from France back to Guadeloupe next August. She has invited us to come and stay with them. I hope we get to do that sometime. It is a beautiful island in the Carribean.

Oh well, I guess I will get back to work. Bummer! I will just keep daydreaming about sipping margaritas on the beach :)

Our exchange student has arrived!

2007-07-22T09:53:00.000-04:00

Eva is here and I have discovered that my French is appalling!! I haven't had to use it in years. Hubby and I used to talk to each other all the time in French and we have even played scrabble using only French before. We should have kept it up. Now I am resorting to using a French-English dictionary. Her English is pretty good though. She only gets hung up on a few words. She is a sweet girl. I won't be posting any pics of her as I don't know exactly how to ask permission from her to do that and I haven't spoken to her parents either, so I don't feel comfortable doing it. She went to an amusement park with my girls today so they could get to know each other better.

My squirrel problem is getting worse. They have figured out how to get into the rabbit cage to eat her food and they are chasing her. While Kim is away today, hubby and I are going to take care of them once and for all. It's getting ridiculous.

Well I am going to leave everyone with something a friend of mine in Australia sent to me. I thought it was nice.

Natural Highs
Think about them one at a time before going on to the next one. It Does Make You Feel Good, especially the thought at the end of #44.

1. Falling in love.
2. Laughing so hard your face hurts.
3. A hot shower.
4. No lines at the supermarket.
5. A special glance.
6. Getting mail.
7. Taking a drive on a pretty road.
8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio.
9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside.
10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.
11. Chocolate milkshake (vanilla or strawberry ).
12. A bubble bath.
13. Giggling.
14. A good conversation.
15. The beach.
16. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.
17. Laughing at yourself.
18. Looking into their eyes and knowing they Love you
19. Midnight phone calls that last for hours.
20. Running through sprinklers.
21. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.
22. Having someone tell you that you're beautiful.
23. Laughing at an inside joke with FRIENDS
24. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.
25. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to
sleep.
26. Your first kiss (the very first).
27. Making new friends or spending time with old ones.
28. Playing with a new puppy.
29. Having someone play with your hair.
30. Sweet dreams.
31. Hot chocolate.
32. Road trips with friends.
33. Swinging on swings.
34. Making eye contact with a cute stranger.
35. Making chocolate chip cookies.
36. Having your friends send you homemade cookies.
37. Holding hands with someone you care about.
38. Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good
or bad) never change.
39. Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much
desired present from you.
40. Watching the sunrise.
41. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another
beautiful day.
42. Knowing that somebody misses you.
43. Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply.
44. Knowing you've done the right thing, no matter what other
people think.

Have a great week everyone!!

Some pics

2007-07-17T21:57:00.001-04:00

I am going to break this up into more than one posting. I will start with some winery shots.

This first set is at Round Peak Winery. We loved all their wines.

These are the Merlot grapes:

These are Cabernet Franc:

Each of these barrels actually produce 300 bottles of wine, believe it or not

It was so pretty up there. It's hard to imagine that this is only a little over an hour away from me.

I will post some from another winery in my next post.

Until then.....

We are getting our foreign exchange student

2007-07-17T12:58:00.000-04:00

She arrives this Saturday from France. We are very excited about it. She will be staying with us for a month. She is 16 and her name is Eva. Ken and Kim will be picking her up at the Charlotte airport because Stephanie and I already reservations at a spa for massages. I am really looking forward to that. I haven't had a massage in ages.

I have some pics to share from my romantic weekend getaway to the B&B and wineries. We had a very relaxing time and it was neat to visit Mt Airy, home of Andy Griffith so I guess I should call it Mayberry, lol!

I will share the photos as soon as I download them from my camera. You know it takes me a while sometimes. :)

Hope everyone is enjoying their week and that my Canadian friend Jude is feeling much better.

Talk with you soon.

A few pics from my trip to the burgh

2007-07-09T17:46:00.000-04:00

My sister in law works for US Steel so she got us up to the 61st floor for a view from way up high.

PNC Park where the Pittsburgh Pirates play:

Heinz Field (Home of the Steelers!!)

If you look really close you can see some big white boats. They are part of a clipper fleet that you can get on to tour the rivers.

Of course, no Pittsburgh trip would be complete without a little shopping, right ladies? My girls went right to the Prada purses that cost a couple of thousand dollars. Stephanie took her picture with one. I told the sales lady that was the closest she was getting to one, lol!

We went to the quaint town of Harmony for dinner one evening and had dinner at The Harmony Inn, which was built in 1856. The original owners sold it and it was turned into a saloon/hotel for a while. Eventually it became a restaurant. There are stories that it is haunted.

This was an example of one of the many original, small homes that are still there.

We had a great trip. I love visiting my hometown, but I love getting back to NC where we belong.

Off to Pittsburgh

2007-07-02T12:32:00.000-04:00

tomorrow for a week to visit family. I was supposed to see DL this Saturday, but my niece couldn't get tickets, so I am bummed. It would have been nice to meet Connie since she is going to that show. Oh well, maybe another time. There are still tickets left, but I can't justify spending the money right now.

My backyard is being taken over by squirrels. We have managed to coexist pretty nicely since we moved in 9 years ago, but they are becoming a pain in the ass. They are eating the dog food, trying to chew their way into our shed, and they are terrorizing my dachshund and rabbit. Hubby was going to take some out with the .22 rifle, but my youngest went berserk and insisted he couldn't kill any of them. We settled on using the BB gun for now to see if they can be frightened off. I swear these squirrels are on steroids. They are the biggest damn things I have ever seen. I guess we will work on it more when we get back.

Well, I am off to get some work done. I hope everyone has a fun filled safe 4th and Connie, get some good pics for us to drool over, lol!

My weather pixie is a tramp...

2007-06-19T13:05:00.000-04:00

I couldn't help notice that my pixie on my sidebar is dressing more scantily these days. She is such a harlot, lol! Our temps have been in the 90's and I have yet to step into a pool this year. I haven't had time to really. My oldest had her wisdom teeth out Friday and has recovered quite nicely. It appears she is a lightweight like her mom when it comes to being put under. He said he only had to give her a baby dose. She was crying when she came out of the anesthesia, which broke my heart. She slept most of the day Friday thanks to some lovely pain pills. She didn't have any swelling or any of the other nasty side effects.

Softball is over for my team. We didn't do too bad. My oldest is still playing though and we have a game Thursday night. I have been going to see a lot of movies in the last couple of weeks. It's been the time for trilogies I suppose. We saw Spidey 3, Pirates 3, and Shrek the 3rd. They were all okay. I liked their other installments better. Spidey 3 was cheesy in some parts.

We are just preparing for our vacation up north for a few days then hubby and I have our weekend getaway. He thinks we are going to NY city. That was his guess anyway. My response was "only if the Yankees are playing." That would be one thing I would definitely have to do if we visited NY.

Well, I better get back to work. Have a great week everyone!

I got a post card in the mail yesterday

2007-06-03T21:08:00.001-04:00

from the UK looking for sonographers. They said I could have 25 days of holiday. I want to work somewhere where they call vacation holiday and say quirky things like "godsmacked" Hubby says I should reply to it. He thinks they will send me over for an interview. I told them they probably have representatives here in the states. It would be cool though. It's very tempting. I wouldn't have to learn a new language and I am pretty familiar with most of the slang. I know I wouldn't get tired of hearing that accent. Never in a million years. If the kids were grown and out of the house, I would be sorely tempted to email them. We will move eventually, but it will be out west, probably Oregon. That's where hubby wants to go. It won't be for a long while though. Not until we retire or win the lottery, whichever comes first.

It looks like we will be spending the 4th in Pittsburgh to see family and my boys on the 7th!! I figured since I was going to be up there anyway, why not? I am hoping to meet up with Connie since she will be going to that show. We will have to exchange mobile numbers (see I am talking brit already, lol!)

I have also planned a romantic weekend getaway for hubby's birthday to a nice B&B in the Yadkin Valley region of NC. We will be touring about 6 wineries. His birthday is June 21st, but we are not going away until July 13. We have softball going until then. It's a surprise too!!! I hope he likes it.

We were supposed to go shooting today, but it rained all day. We needed it desperately. My lawn looks all brown. I was going to teach one of the docs I work with how to shoot. She was bummed that we didn't go, but I told her we would reschedule for another day.

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

Finally posting some Prom pics of Stephanie and Will

2007-05-28T17:40:00.000-04:00

It took me a week, but I'm finally getting around to loading up these pics on my computer to share them with you. I am still getting used to my new digital, so some of them may be a little blurry. Too many buttons!!!

I will start with Steph getting ready for the prom.

Before they did her hair:

After:

Before her make-up:

After:

The lovely couple!

All the couples that went together:

Just the ladies: (and yes two of them are twins!)

Just the guys:

They had a great time. Many wonderful memories to last a life time. I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend and didn't have to work. I took tomorrow off as well. Hubby and I have a date day. We are going to lunch and to see Spidey 3. I am looking forward to it. We have had some hot weather lately and not enough rain. My grass is dying, and my yard looks awful. I don't think we have any rain in the forecast until this coming weekend either.

Oh well, have a great week everyone!!

8th grade prom

2007-05-16T20:19:00.000-04:00

was last Friday. Kim had a good time. She looked so pretty, didn't she? She went with an ex-boyfriend as "just friends" since neither one of them is dating anyone. They looked so cute together.

Stephanie's prom is this Saturday. She exchanged her dress for a different one. It's about 100 dollars cheaper, so I'm not complaining. I will post some pics that I will take with my new digital camera that I got for my birthday!!! I didn't get the Mini Cooper, but that's okay. I'm still going to keep my eyes open in case I see one for a good price.

My sisters and I are planning a surprise birthday party for our mom for her 70th next month. My brother is supposed to come down from Pittsburgh as well for it. Everyone else lives here. I think she will love it. I hope so anyway.

Well, I am going to enjoy some brownies that my daughter made me for my birthday. Enjoy the rest of your week!

Ken booked our cruise

2007-05-02T22:49:00.000-04:00

for Stephanie's graduation present. We will be going to the Carribean for 7 days aboard this ship:

I am very excited about it. We will leave out of Miami next June. I have a whole year to wait, but it will be worth it. My anniversary is in 5 days. 19 years!! I am making hubby a mixed cd of music that reflects over the years we have been together. Sounds sappy I know, but he will like it. Sometimes the gifts that don't cost anything are the best ones.

Have a great weekend!

Good News X 3

2007-04-26T22:29:00.000-04:00

today. First Kimberly won her school softball game, yeah Kim!! She made a triple off of a bunt. It was a pretty bunt too. Then we went over to the high school because Steph was being inducted into the National Honor Society. My smart girl. Here are some pics from it.

Stephanie holding her certificate and wearing her gold tassle around her neck that she will eventually wear over her cap and gown this time next year.

Steph and Will.

Then the third thing was that we won our rec softball game 8-6!!! I was sooo proud of my girls. They did so well.

Oh, and Steph found a prom dress. It is gorgeous. I will wait to post pics of it when she is wearing it on prom night. Kim has 8th grade prom so we are continuing our search for a dress for her this weekend.

On Saturday we are going to a college softball game, a double header. It will be UNC-Chapel Hill against Florida State I think. Go Heels!!!

Hope everyone is having a great week and I want to wish my dear friend Jude a very Happy Birthday!! Many more to you dear. Muah!

Softball season has started once again

2007-04-15T10:54:00.000-04:00

yesterday and we lost our first game, but won the second one!! Not too bad of a start. We had opening ceremonies Friday night and I worked the pitching station where they tell you how fast you can pitch a ball. It was so much fun watching all the little ones do this. They looked so cute in their little uniforms. Stephanie dressed up in the San Diego chicken costume. She had so much fun wearing it and entertaining the little kids. I will try and post a pic of it. Will took some on his phone, but he hasn't emailed them to me yet.

I have recently registered myself on a high school alumni site. It is specifically for my high school, so I don't have to pay to get other people's emails and stuff. It's been great catching up with people I haven't talked to in a long time. I am trying to arrange lunch with some of the girls. That should be fun. We have our 20 year reunion this fall. I don't know if I am going or not. Time will tell.

It's a rainy, cold day here. I told the girls I would take them shopping and maybe a movie. My other option is to clean and do laundry. Hmmm... I think I'll opt for shopping.

Have a great week everyone!

I'm putting together my birthday wish list

2007-04-10T21:46:00.001-04:00

a little early. Well just a month early. I usually don't have a clue as to what I want, but this year I know exactly what I want. Naturally, I will list these from most wanted to least wanted.

1. Mini Cooper (just like this one)

2. A new digital camera (this one would be good)

3. And last, but not least this:

Oh, I guess I should add a "fantasy wish" right? Something along the lines of this maybe:

A girl can dream, right? LOL!

I'm back from the beach!

2007-04-08T22:05:00.000-04:00

And came back to colder weather, yikes!! I want to go back to the beach where we had temps in the low 80's and no humidity. It actually snowed here Friday night. WTF!!! Don't get me wrong. I don't particularly like how hot it gets here in the summer, mainly because of the humidity, but snow in April??!! Give me a break.

We did have a very relaxing time at the beach. Topsail is known for 2 things:

These rocks that are just as abundant as shells on the beach:

And these:

Pretty cool, huh? Ken and I spent most mornings walking the beach and collecting these. It became a contest to see who could find the biggest one. Our daughter Stephanie won.

The first evening we were there, we were greeted by this view off our back deck:

This is overlooking the sound. Gorgeous view. It was very nice just to sit out on the deck and watch the sun set each evening.

Kim wouldn't let us take her picture, but we managed to capture a great one of Steph:

All in all, we had a great time. I just hate to have to go back to work tomorrow. Boo!!!

Hope everyone had a great weekend and Happy Easter!

Off to the beach

2007-03-30T21:52:00.000-04:00

for the week!!! We are headed to Topsail for some fun in the sun and the weather is supposed to be sunny, yippee!!

I am so looking forward to some much needed time off from work.

Have a great week everyone and I will catch up with you next week!