Goin Ons

Thanks & Update...

2006-05-17T09:03:00.000-05:00

First I want to thank you all for your comments, your thoughts, your prayers, hugs, emails, e-cards and so on. They are very much appreciated. Between the Yahoo Group I belong to and all you wonderful bloggers, its such a wonderful feeling to know that I have so many wonderful caring internet friends.

Sorry I have left you all hanging but I haven't been in any mood to come online and then had my daughter check my emails and blog and she was reading all of your caring comments to me. She said she couldn't believe how many blogger friends I had. So I figured I would try to update some tonight and then the rest in the morning though still not up to sitting here for long periods of time, because if the foot hangs too long the pain starts. So please forgive me for not checking in on all of you. I truly miss reading all of your blogs and hope to try and catch up on them soon.

Ok now the answer to the most asked question "How did you break your leg/ankle?" It was a freak accident. I was on my way out my front door going to the store. We have 3 cement type steps outside the door. One minute I was walking out the door and the next I was laying at the bottom of the steps in severe pain. I looked down at my right foot and it was swelling up and turning blue really fast (later found out it was just badly bruised) but the worst was when I looked at my left foot, the foot was all cut up, turned completely on its side and the ankle bone was facing upward. When I went to move I also noticed a bump sticking out of the same leg. I screamed for hubby who was all the way over on the other side of the 2 acre property cutting grass and couldn't hear me. Since I was on my way out I had my purse with me and in it was my cell phone, knowing hubby always has his glued to his side, I called him. He came running and when he saw me he said there was no way he could move me. So he called 911, and an ambulance came and confirmed that I definitely broke the ankle and possibly a bone in my calf. I was rushed to the hospital and they took xrays and found that I had broke 2 bones in and tore ligaments in my left ankle, broke a bone on one side of the left calf and tore ligaments and the other side of my left calf. Nobody could believe what a mess I had made of my poor leg. They had to put the bone and ankle back in place and OH MY GOSH I never screamed so loud in my life. That night I had emergency surgery done and had 2 screws about 2.5 inches long placed across my ankle and a small plate in my calf. To this day I still don't know how the heck I fell, one minute I was walking out the door and the next I was on the ground. They think I have so many breaks because of the Lupus and my arthritis.

Its been a rough 4 weeks. Iam healing but its a slow process and still have to take pain killers which I really hate doing but also cant deal with the pain at times. Iam in a boot type cast up to my knee to give both my calf and my ankle support. I start therapy tomorrow to learn how to use my ankle all over again. Something iam and am not looking forward to. Iam not looking forward to the pain I will have to go through but Iam looking forward to getting my ankle back and getting on with my lives. Not being able to do things for myself is driving me NUTS and I hate asking for help! The doctor says it will take atleast 8 weeks for it to heal possibly longer because of the seriousness of my injuries. For now I get around the house with a walker and use crutches (which I hate) when I have to leave the house. Oh also because of the stress of this all and having to use the walker and crutches, my "Lupus" arthritis is acting up in my left wrist/hand and right shoulder area. Like I said I just want this all to be done with!

What really sucks about all of this is that I have missed a few of littleman's end of the year activities at school and you know me iam always involved with his school. I also had to miss his bowling 5th birthday party last month of which hubby, my daughter and 2 of her friends ran for me. One day soon I will have to post pics from it. Next week is the last week of school for all my kids. Connor will graduate from pre-k next Thursday, and will be wearing a cap & gown and you bet iam gonna be there some how some way!

My older 2 have also been very busy with finals and all, their last day is next Friday. Oh yea Shain did ended up going to the prom 2 weeks ago and boy did he look so handsome in his tux and his date looked beautiful in her gown. Will have to post those pics also when I can.

Well thats about it for me. Off to the couch I go :-( to get my darn leg/ankle up and try and relieve some pressure.

Again THANKS so much for all of your caring comments. They are so very much appreciated. I hope you and your families are all doing well.

Much Love & Big Hugs

1 ... 2 ... 3 BREAKS!

2006-04-25T11:12:00.000-05:00

Gotta make this really quick, in lots of pain!!! Sitting up hurts!

Last Wednesday 4/19, I broke/spilt my left ankle bone in 2 places and broke a bone in my calf area. Also badly bruised my right foot/ankle area. Was rushed by ambulance to the hospital. They did emergency surgery that night. Have a plate in my calf and 2 screws in my ankle.
Cant sit here anymore, dont know when I will be back. Will try to get someone to update ASAP.

HUGS

A Different Sign of Spring....

2006-04-19T07:08:00.000-05:00

Iam the kind of person who changes their purses with the seasons. This spring/summer I had a purse made for me by a lady who makes quilted purses. I found out about her through Littleman's bookfair at school. This lady and her sister were at a side table selling small quilts and quilted purses. I fell in love with one but when I went back the ladies was gone. I got their number and called them but came to find out the the lady that makes the purses lives in TN! So I called her there and she had sold the purse I like but was willing to send me swatches of material to pick out for a purse of my own of which I did. The finished product is below. I wish you could all see it in person, the pictures don't do it justice. Its has a pocket outside and 3 pockets inside. The inside is lined also with quilted material and has a frame type thing on the bottom of the inside to keep its shape.

I still cant believe the lady who made it went out of her way to do this all for me and the price was well worth it at $30.00. I Love This Purse! It adds some nice spring colors to me and actually makes me smile.

Its been a long week and its only Wednesday, Iam gonna need a long nap when this week is over, oh wait a second next week will be even more hectic, my father is coming to visit, Lord help me!

A Nice Easter Weekend

2006-04-17T06:58:00.000-05:00

This Easter weekend was a nice one. Saturday was spent at a egg hunt that Littleman's school hosted. The only problem with it was we all baked. It was a nice sunny day but very hot, getting into the mid 80's by 11am and so we all got a little sunburned because there was no shade to be found.

This was Littleman's first official egg hunt and he had a ball filling his bag with eggs. Below are some pics of the day.

Easter was a quiet one which was just fine with me. Hubby took Littleman fishing in the morning and then for some reason I decided to go out and buy one of those blowup pools and that's where Littleman spent the rest of the day. He was in that pool for 3.5 hours! His hands looked like prunes when he was done. I did get one pic of Easter morning but none of him in the pool yet. After pool time we had a spiral ham dinner which I made and one of my daughters friends had joined us and brought me flowers, awwww. Ended the day by the TV watching "Makeover Home Edition", "Desperate Housewives" & a new show "What About Brian".

And so a new week begins and its going to be another long one, its Littlemans birthday week, can't believe he is going to be 5 on Sunday. Cupcakes at school Thursday, bowling party Saturday and family birthday Sunday, like I said a long week!

Not sure how much I will be able to post or visit blogs this week, hubby is home atleast until Thursday and I don't like to be on the computer so much when he is home :-) Will catch up when I can.

My daughter and Littleman waiting for the hunt to start. In most of the pics Littleman's eyes were either shut or he was squinting because the sun was so bright.

Making sure that bag is nice and full!

Grabbing every egg he could!

Trying to carry his loot. They said each child would leave will atleast 12 eggs. Most left with a lot more then that.

Trying to get this pic was a joke. Littleman start about 3 feet away from the bunny, hesitating to even get close to her. I had to keep inching him closer so that I could get them both in the same pic, lol. I felt so sorry for this girl, she had to be baking in that costume!

don't be scared, its just my mug, messed up hair (also needs a dye job, decide to go dark again) and all. Actually Littleman took this pic. he loves using the camera and have to say is pretty good at it for his age.
The only pic I have of Easter morning. Littleman decided to dumb all his stuff all over the table to see what he got (Not a lot of candy, have learned from the past :-). My older 2 got up for about 10 minutes then went back to bed, lol

~Older I Get The Harder It Gets~

2006-04-14T07:32:00.000-05:00

Losing weight that is. I remember 14 years when I lost 75 pounds it seemed so much easier to get the weight off. I would watch what I ate but didn't have to watch everything that was put into my mouth and still do ok. I also only had to exercise 3 times a week and the weight would come off. These days now that Iam older its so much harder to get the weight off.

Back on Feb. 4th I joined an all female gym called "Fitness Divas", gotta love the name! Its a wonderful place runned by a wonderful lady with a very outgoing personality. The place is very inviting and makes me comfortable and makes me want to go there. Anyways, the month of Feb. was not a good one and I only ended up going there 1.5 weeks because of either myself or littleman being sick. Also for the month of Feb. I really wasn't watching what I was eating, I know bad on my part. When March came I decided to take charge and I moved forward. Through QVC I decided to join NutriSystem's over 40 program eating their foods Monday thru Friday and then off on weekends but still watching what I eat. In this program they also have you eat a lot of salad foods and veggies of which I have eaten so much of in the past month that my body had some major re-adjusting to do. Too much fiber can reak havoc on anyone's body :/, lol Because of how much it cost I may not be able to stay on it until I reach goal but I have been learning a lot from the program and taking lots of notes to know what foods I would need to buy if I had to go off and still wanted to lose. I do have to say there have been days when I have slipped off the program and had way to much sugar and have paid for it. It seems once your body is use to eating healthy the minute you invade it with "toxic" foods it rebels and mine did making me feel sick to my stomach and dizzy. So I try my hardest to stay ontrack. Weight Watchers has crossed my mind (lost 50 pounds on it once) and maybe if/when I cant afford NutriSystem anymore that will be my next step.

As for the exercise, I try to go 4 to 5 times a week (always trying for 5). I do circuit training, treadmill, elliptical, free weights, the ball, and leg weights ... switching off and on with different equipment on different days.

Iam happy to say since taking complete charge on March 4th my body fat and BMI have come down and on my last measurement/weigh-in I have lost 8.6 pounds and 9.25 inches! I still have a ways to go, but hey it's a start!

Wish me Luck people I know there are times Iam definitely going to need it!

After a very busy Thursday, today is more of a free day. Iam going to take littleman to the park this morning before it gets to dam hot, hit 80's yesterday, going into the 80's today and then run some errands.

Have a great holiday weekend all and Happy Easter!

The Picture Says It All....

2006-04-12T07:03:00.000-05:00

I think this picture pretty much says it all. It was taken on Monday by me of my Littleman and my hubby. Can you tell how proud and happy Littleman is to have daddy home? This was going to be my first "Wordless Wednesday" picture but then I added words oh well.

Not much else to say and sort of in a hurry to get Littleman off to school, me off to the gym and then errands and making cupcakes later and fill plastic eggs for Littleman's school Easter party tomorrow.

Oh yea and lets not forget that I have to come up with $147.85 balance by tomorrow because my daughter's class ring came in a month early grrrrrr!

~Teeth, Ice Age & Mother Nature~

2006-04-10T07:28:00.000-05:00

As I told you all last week was a very busy one having the kids home for spring break. We did a heck of a lot of running around. Today things are back to normal and the older 2 are already off to school and littleman will be gone soon also.

Hubby is home also. His away job ended last Friday, and while he was on his way home, his union called for him to report to another job close to home so no long travels for a few weeks. Its taking a bit getting use to, having him home after him being away since Sept. (only coming home "some" weekends).

Even though I would of liked to, we never did make it bowling on Friday. My dentist appointment was harder then I thought it would be and the root canal took more out of me then I thought it would, not to mention the Lortab for some reason this time around made me really sick (tooth is doing better but still sore some, takes me longer to heal because of the Lupus). So the movie outing had to be moved to Friday instead pushing out bowling for now.

So Friday, I took my oldest (who wanted to see it too) and my youngest (daughter had other plans) to go see Ice Age 2. I have to say I was a little disappointed. I liked the first one much better! Some parts of the movie were very funny but others were quite slow and sometimes boring. So much so that littleman was quite restless the last 30 minutes or so and could hear other kids getting restless also. Where as when he watches the first one he is glued to it. I guess there aren't much movies that are better then the first ones are.

Friday night/Saturday morning ended up being a very scary one. We were under tornado warnings Friday night and 4am Saturday morning the sirens went off and all electric went out right away. I wokeup to howling winds, hail and white lightening unlike I have ever seen before, have been through tornado warnings and sirens before in the past 5 years that I have been living here but nothing like this one, I have to say yes I was quite scared so much so that my oldest, littleman and myself spend 20 minutes in the bathroom waiting it out. Sitting in there we could hear all kinds of things banging around outside. Being 4am and dark we couldn't see much outside but the next morning there were huge branches and stuff from our patio all over the place. Apparently 4 small tornados did touch down 2 within 15 minutes from me, and 2 about an hour from me. 6 houses that are known of in my county were badly damaged , trees and powerlines were down everywhere. I never seen anything like it in person before only on TV. As far as I know from the news reports no one died and the injuries weren't bad thank the lord but a lot of damage was done around the area I live in and the N. GA area. We got our electric back early evening Saturday and spent Sunday cleaning up the yard. I hope we don't get anymore of those anytime soon.

This week will be another busy one, making cupcakes for littlemans school Easter party on Thursday and also helping out with the party. Saturday his school is having a Easter egg hunt that will go on all day and of course, I will be helping with that too. Add my older 2's activities to that and its going to be a long week!

~No Thursday Thirteen Today~

2006-04-06T08:13:00.000-05:00

With the kids on spring break this week, I have been running around so much that I haven't had time to come online nevermind even think about what to do for the Thursday Thirteen this week, so I have decided to skip it. Hopefully I will come up with something good for next week.

Iam off to the dentist, yes again! And then depending on how I feel I may take littleman to go see Ice Age 2. When the first Ice Age came out 4 years ago he was only a little over a year old. We took him to see it then but he fell asleep during the movie. These days the first Ice Age is one of his favorite movies that he watches all the time.

Tomorrow if I can get brave enough we may go bowling, that's where littleman's birthday party will be in a little over 2 weeks.

~The Price of Children~

2006-04-04T10:35:00.000-05:00

This was sent to me through an email....

~The Price Of Children~

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:

* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140?

* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to:

* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:

* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, and
* wishing on stars.
* You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:

* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat to history to witness the:

* first step,
* first word,
* first bra,
* first date, and
* first time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match. In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, So . . one day they will like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren!!!!!!!

~I Have Had No Desire...~

2006-04-03T11:59:00.000-05:00

Lately I have no desire to come online. Don't know what's with me but lately I could care less if I come online or not. Came on this morning to over tons of emails in the email I use the most and haven't kept my blog up since last Thursday. Haven't had the urge to surf the net or blog which is so unlike me.

Anyways below is how my last couple of days have been...

Saturday I took my older two to the airport to go to NY to see their father. We left here in plenty of time to be there atleast 2 hours before take off. We get there with no problem hardly any traffic but then the horror starts, the line to check raps around the airport, it was terrible! We stood 2 hours in line and had to make a mad dash through sercurity in order for them to make their flight but they did just in time. Littleman and I got home at 1pm and I felt so exhausted from the running around that we did nothing the rest of the day. I head back to the airport tomorrow to pick them up just in time to hit rush hour on the way home ARGH!

Sunday, Robert called me at 6am/7am, wanted to kill him for waking me up so early. He wanted to call before he went to bed to tell me that he wasn't feeling well, puking and such and didn't feel up to making the trip home. So I went on a cleaning spree yesterday and thoroughly scrubbed down my bathroom and kitchen. After I did that littleman and I went outside and I did a lot of weeding around my rose bushes and azela bushes which are beginning to bloom, Yay!

I also planted these in my flowerpots on my front steps. We shall see if they really work or not. They are suppose to start growing in 1 to 3 weeks. Iam very curious to see if they really work.

Oh yea, as I was outside with littleman gardening yesterday saved my new neighbors child from getting hit by a suv. It was while I was out gardening. New neighbors moved in about 2 weeks ago. They have 2 boys, 4 and 18 months and one on the way. Anyways these 2 boys are always escaping out of the house and wondering around the yard. The mom is always dragging them in by their arms kicking and screaming.

Well I look up to hear littleman talking to the 2 boys yelling across the street. I ask the boys if their parents know they are outside and they say no. I tell them they better get inside. I go to wipe my hands off and so that I can take them in and I look up to see the 18 month old standing in the middle of the street and a suv is coming down the street about 2 houses from mine straight for him. I never ran so fast in all my life swoop up the boy and ran like crazy. The driver of the suv slammed on his breaks and looked at me and shook his head and took off. I brought the boy to their front door and banged and got no answer so I open the door to find the father sleeping on the couch, so I yell in and the mom peaks out of the bedroom (look like she had been sleeping also), and says she will be right out. She comes out and I tell her what happened and she yells at the boys and tells me thanks and such for saving Jacob. Like I said these boys are constantly escaping from that house, iam so afraid something bad is gonna happen to one of them.

Also going through workout withdrawals, with the older two gone there is no one to watch littleman while I workout and they don't have daycare there. Going to have to whip out the excersise tapes and DVD's I have. I have also been walking with the dogs and littleman around the neighborhood the last few days but of course iam not getting the same workout as I would if I was at the gym.

Will try and do blog catchups later ... Hugs!

%%%% Thursday Thirteen # 11 %%%%

2006-03-30T08:08:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Random Things About Suz

1. Of all the flowers in the world, simple Daisies are my favorites. Coming in at a close second are Pink Roses with Yellow trim.

2. In the last 2 months I have formed a close unexpected bond with my dentist.

3. Which I much rather not have. I have been there so far 5 times to fix my messed up teeth and have another appointment next week. "Is thinking she should of become a dentist with the money they make!"

4. I have volunteered for so many thing at Littleman's school during the next 2 months that I might as well just become a student there.

5. Don't get me wrong I love to volunteer and help out in my kids schools. Its always nice to know what is going on but do you ever notice its always the same ones that volunteer?

6. Things I offered to help with ... Book Fair, Easter Party (supplying paper goods, making cupcakes), helping make field day T-shirts (have to bring in my iron and ironing board), Field Day itself and help to make sets for the play for Graduation.

7. Why do I always get suckered into these things ... Because I love my kids and like to see whets going on in their lives.

8. After 9 months of the "beloved" furniture saga I wrote about here, the saga has finally come to an end. I ended up getting the same style couch except in an olive green color. I went through so much with that furniture store and will never use them again.

9. I joined an all female gym on Feb. 3rd. Its similar to the chain Curves but a lot more personal and offers more equipment. The lady that opened it up 3 months ago wanted to give women a personalable place they can go to workout and that she has.

10. I try to go there atleast 4 times a week, sometimes 5, working on all parts of my body. I cant even begin to tell you how good I feel since I have been doing this and its been great for my arthritis in my joints from my Lupus. Clothes are loser but the owner only measures & weighs you once a month so I wont know until next week how iam actually doing.

11. I have also started NurtiSystem food program a little over 2 weeks ago. I do 5 days on, weekends off, but still eat healthy. I do enjoy this program a lot but not sure if its going to be affordable so I have been writing down stuff like how much calories, protein, fiber and so on are in each foods so that if I go off of the program know what kind of foods to buy.

12. I have to drive to the airport this weekend. Cant even tell you how much I hate this drive into this part of Atlanta. My older 2 are going to New York for 4 days to see their father. They so don't want to go, its a whole control thing on my ex's part, a very long story.

13. Yesterday I had fun digging in the dirt with my Littleman. He has to bring in "live" stuff from nature today for "Nature" show & tell. The teacher said they could bring in bugs, worms, seeds, flowers, grass and so on. Littleman has a nice collection of 2 worms in dirt (not sure how much longer they will make it), those boogers were fast and hard to catch, some moss, 2 purple flowers, rose leaves, a pinecone and of course the yucky dandelion. Atleast the weather has turned nice and it was 73 degrees and sunny and suppose to do the same today!

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~This & That~

2006-03-28T14:50:00.000-05:00

I cant believe I haven't updated since last Friday. These last few days have just been busy, doing things here and there.

Saturday was a day for my oldest & I, sort of a continuation of his birthday. He wanted to go shopping at the mall and then go to the movies. So off we went. We spent only about 30 minutes at the mall, we both knew what we wanted, went straight to those stores, got what we wanted and left. He bought a hat and a CD and I got this "candle" . Iam a candle collected and mostly have this brand in my home and light one every night. They have the best scents and they last forever!

After the mall, we went to see "V for Vendetta". Shain had been wanting to see this since it first came out so I decided to treat him to it, "a mommy and me time". From the previews I didn't think I was going to like it but I have to say except for the bloody scenes, I really enjoyed the movie and its storyline. I would of never have guessed how some things turned out. After the movie we both told each other that it was a nice day and I thought to myself "I need to make time for more times like this!".

Sunday, it was my daughter's turn to go shopping. She wanted to go to Target, one of my favorite stores. She needed some personal items and also a bathingsuit. She choose some great "undies" (recommended by "K" ) and I choose "these" (great fit & very comforty). After trying on several tankinis, that's what she wanted after losing a lot of weight over the last 2 years, she found 2 she really liked a lot. I only had enough money to buy 1 for now so she picked this" top", "bottom". A simple but cute tankini. Almost 2 hours later I had spent almost $100. I could go crazy shopping in that store.

I also spent some much needed time with my hubby who came home Sunday morning and left Monday afternoon around 2. With the time change, I may not be seeing him this weekend because he has to work Saturday.

The rest of the week will also be busy. Helping with Littleman's school's bookfair, dentist tomorrow (ARGH) and getting my older two ready for their trip to New York this weekend for the first half of spring break which is next week.

The next 2 months will be crazy ones for me. A lot going with the kids at the pre-school (Easter party, field day, graduation) and high school (getting classes set, finals and so on.. Its always a madhouse at the end of the year. I cant believe another school year is almost gone (May 26th is their last day).

Now time to try and play catch up on reading others blogs!

~Excuse This House~

2006-03-24T12:31:00.000-05:00

Below is a poem type thing that I have framed and hanging in my livingroom. I found this poem at a craft fair a few years ago. It caught my eye and hit a nerve and I just had to have it. I wanted to share it with all of you.

I have been reading lately on so many mommy blogs how they have so much trouble trying to get all their chores done and still have time to play and have fun with their children. As this poem sort of states in a round about way, spending time with our children is more precious then those chores could ever be. My house isn't a spotless one, is it a pigsty, no not by any means is it that either. Its your normal clean/messy child occupied house. Its a house my kids, their friends and my friends & family can feel comfortable in.

As I have come to realize in the past and yesterday as it hit me that my oldest turned 18, time is a very precious thing. Its something we need to grab on to, treasure. Time slips by so fast, in a blink of an eye our children go from babies to adults and it all seems to happen over night. I have also come to realize in the past 18 years that yes I like my house clean but that my time is much better spent with my children.

Can you tell that my oldest turning 18 yesterday has hit me rather hard? But then again "Mama" did warn me that the oldest, your first born, turning 18 would be the hardest and that it is!

Hugs To All You Moms & Future Moms Out There!

"Excuse This House"

Some houses try to hide the fact,
That children shelter there

Ours boasts of it quite openly,
The signs are everywhere

For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges on the door;

I should apologize, I guess
For the toys strewn on the floor

But I sat down with the children
And we played & laughed & read;

And if the doorbell doesn't shine,
Their eyes will shine instead!

For when at times I'm forced to choose
The one job or the other

I want to be a housewife
But first I'll be a mother!

~Thursday Thirteen # 10 Happy Birthday Shain~

2006-03-23T08:07:00.000-05:00

This Thursday 13 Is For My Son Shain Who Turns 18 Today!

1. Eighteen years ago today at 4:20pm, I became a mom for the first time and gave birth 5 weeks early to a tiny baby boy.

2. After 12 hours of labor, I'll never forget how I felt when they placed him on me so I could hold him. I never knew I could love someone so much.

3. At 5 weeks early, he still was a descent size at 5lbs 7ozs and 18 inches long.

4. Over night his weight dropped and he had severe jaundice. He was placed under the lights and had to stay in the hospital to be watched.

5. The hardest thing in the world was going home without him but after 6 days he was given the ok to come home.

6. I got the name Shain from one of my favorite "soaps", "Days Of Our Lives" except I wanted to be different and that's why his name is spelled the way it is.

7. When he was younger everyone said he looked like his father except with dark features. Today everyone says he looks like me.

8. His personality/attitude can change in the blink of an eye.

9. He has the most caring personality, will give the coat off his back if you ask, but rub him the wrong way or get him angry and watch out.

10. He has never liked school but in the last year has really worked hard to make sure he graduates with a "B" average overall in hopes for a "HOPE" scholarship.

11. At first he wanted a career in Culinary cooking, but has changed his mind and now wants to go into Radiology. He has been looking into school for this field of work. He graduates high school in 2007 (How time flies!)

12. He works at a Wendys partime and takes atleast $100 out of his paycheck to go towards a car. Iam so proud of him for doing this, it shows how much he has grown in the last year.

13. Happy 18th Birthday to my oldest baby. Wow, how the years have flown by. I have seen you grow from a tiny baby into a wonderful, loving strong young man who Iam very proud of and very proud to call my son! And even though we have butted heads more then I care to count, I love you more then you will ever know.

Shain such a cute baby, want to pinch those cheeks at 19 months

Shain a few months ago (He wouldn't let me take a resent one). He loves to play his Bass for fun. Never took any lessons, my hubby taught him how to play.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (Thanks to Uisce for helping me figure out the Linky thing!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

~Brother's Night Out~

2006-03-21T20:33:00.000-05:00

Last night Shain my oldest and Littleman went to Dad's Night out at Littleman's school. Shain went because hubby was away working. The school was great about Shain going and Littleman's teacher changed all of Connor's things to Brother when she found Shain was coming.

Besides the weather which was horrible to drive in pouring rain and storm and I couldn't see a thing, Shain & Littleman both said they had a great time. Littleman got to show Shain around, they made a paper tie with all kinds of stuff on it that Shain had to wear, they also made a frame of which their picture is in it and they played musical mats of which Shain &Littleman won a ribbon for. Oh yea and they also made their own icecream sundaes.

Shain was so glad he went and what a pleasure it was to hearLittleman's teacher say that she was so pleased on how Shain treated Littleman last night, that he was so good with him. I thought "Are we talking about the same kid?" They always fight at home, lol

It was so nice to hear that both had enjoyed themselves. They are so far apart in age that it is hard for them to find things in common to do together and even when they do, my oldest has very little patients for my littleman.

Below are some pics of the night.

Brothers, My oldest & my youngest sharing a fun evening together. My Shain said that Littleman didn't want to take his jacket off so he spent the whole night with it on.

This, Littleman made for Big Brother Shain during school time. It asks different questions about big brother that littleman had to answer.

I had to laugh at this picture. It reminds me of a silly looking police lineup.

~But I Don't Have This One...~

2006-03-20T15:59:00.000-05:00

This is what I heard come out of Littleman's mouth when we were in Wal-Mart over the weekend and he was talking about cars. Now the last thing this child needs is another hotwheel/matchbox car (see pics below, some his, some inherited from my oldest) and how he keeps track of them all is beyond me but he finds one and this is how the conversation goes....

Littleman: Can I have this Hummer?

Me: Littleman, the last thing you need is another car.

Littleman: But I don't have this one, please can I get it.

Me: You have so many already, How do you know you don't have that one.

Littleman: Because I know what cars I do have.

Me: Well Iam not paying for another car.

Littleman: Well I have money in my baseball bank.

Me: You are going to give me the money for it?

Littleman: Yes, I told you I have it in my baseball bank.

I buy the car reminding him that he has to pay for it and he agrees. So we get home and he asks for the car. I say to him, "Aren't you forgetting something?" To which he tells me, "Oh yeah" and goes to his bank and takes out a dollar. Then he takes out all his cars, goes over them very carefully and then in a smug voice says, "See I told you I don't have this one!" and goes off and plays. Not much else I could say, he was right on this one :-).

Right now he is running around the house all excited because its Dad's night out tonight at his school and since hubby is away working, my oldest is going to go with Littleman. Littleman just cant wait.

This all came from a single layer car hotwheels carcase. He also has another case that a double layer one.

Plus this rubbermaid container full of cars. Can you tell what one of his favorite things to play with is??? LOL

"Do You Think We Can Sell It"

2006-03-17T10:25:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Littleman decided he wanted to fingerpaint. So I took out the "Color Wonder Fingerpaints" by Crayola. You have to love this stuff. Even though the paper for it can cost a little more, the fact that your child cant paint on anything but the paper is GREAT!

I just love this stuff so much and we also have the "Color Wonder Marker" He used so much paint to do this "piece of art" that it took 2 days for it to dry. He was so proud of his work and ask if we could sell it. I told him that mommy will buy it from him because I loved it so much and wanted to keep it. So I ask him how much and he told me $1. Oh was like ok SOLD! What a bargain and yet priceless.

On another note, littleman went for his first dentist appointment yesterday and I have to say iam very proud of how well he did. You are talking about a child that cant stand brushing his teeth and hates putting anything unfamiliar in his mouth. But the dentist played a DVD for him about his first visit and was great with littleman. He also gave littleman yellow star glasses because littleman hates anything bright in his eyes, wish I had my camera, too cute. His teeth are fine and he will go back in about 6 months to a year.

If you ask littleman what he liked most about the dentist, he would say the playroom with some neat building things and megablocks. Oh yeah and the treasure chest of which he pick a pink (new favorite color) ring toss game.

Thursday Thirteen # 9

2006-03-16T08:21:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things Suz Would Like or Have Always Wanted To Do

1. Would like to lose atleast 67 pounds, yes you read that right. Weight has always been a problem with me that started in my teens. I know its possible ( have lost 75 pounds about 14 years ago) though also know as you get older it gets harder to lose. (Working on this now)

2. Live in a logcabin style house, not to big, 2 bedrooms upstairs and 2 bedrooms on main floor. Full finished basement and rap around porch outside. This is my dream house, nothing to fancy, just simple.

3. Get a tattoo of a crescent moon rapped around a sun. This I have wanted since my early 30's but never had the guts to do it and don't know if I ever will.

4. Take a dream trip to Australia. I have always wanted to go to Sidney and Melbourne and maybe even the wilder parts. If this happened it probably wouldn't be until the kids are grown and hubby retires.

5. Hawaii and Paris are other places I have always wanted to go but probably wont happen until later on in life if at all.

6. To visit all 50 states. This is something hubby sees us doing in a fully loaded mobile home. I think it would be neat to see the interesting places that each of "our" states have.

7. Skydive, This I have wanted to do since I was in my 20's but never had the guts to do and probably will never have the guts to do, lol!

8. Do the 3 day breast cancer walk. This I would probably do if I could find someone to do it with me. Its something that is close to my heart for a while now. A close friend lost her battle.

9. Learn how to crochet something else besides blankets. This I can definitely do just have to take the time to learn the stitches.

10. Learn how to ride a motorcycle. I have been on the back of plenty of time, love the feeling of riding on one but have never actually driven one. Maybe someday.

11. Own a black Pug. I have always liked this breed of dog but never had one and it doesn't look like its going to happen anytime soon because we already have 2 rescure dogs Jesse (MinPin) and Katie (Beagle).

12. You will probably think Iam crazy, but I have always wanted to visit a real haunted house. I have always believed in spirits and have to say, have had some strange experiences in my life. I know for one that my grandmother is around me constantly. Other things have also happened to me that were unexplained.

13. Get out of debt. For reasons I wont get into right now, this one can definitely happen but it probably wont for a few years.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

Robin, Ruth, Jackie, Jeni, UndercoverAngel, Lalas, DC, Laura, MamaB, FrogLegs, Kimmy, Katherine, Mar, Shash, Shelli, Me, Courtney,

New Meaning To "Keep Your Mouth Shut"

2006-03-14T22:51:00.000-05:00

I visited my favorite place today NOT! I swear if its the last thing I do I will NEVER neglect my teeth again! Today was "cleaning" day and boy did he ever clean my teeth and then went after my poor gums which were extremely sensitive. So much so that he had to give me 4 shots and numb my entire mouth and what a sight that was, I couldn't feel or move my bottom half of my face. I couldn't even talk, just make sounds, LOL and wouldn't you know it as Iam leaving my darn cellphone rings. So here Iam thinking to myself "You got to be kidding!". I look to see who it is and its my daughter calling from school. I try to answer it but nothing but sounds come out. She realizes why Iam just making sounds and asks me to pick her up because she isn't feeling good. She asks, I say "un huh" and hang up.

Thanks goodness I left the dentist at 11:00 and she didn't want to be picked up until 12:20. The school office would of had a nice laugh at me trying to sign her out. Thanks goodness by then I was able to feel some of my face and get her. She wasn't feeling good this morning, tried to get her to stay home but she didn't want to miss the first half of her classes.

Of course the first thing she does when she gets home, gets on the phone and calls someone else that was out sick today. Right now she is on that thing again, (were we always on the phone like that when we were teens?). Anyways she seems fine now, says she still has a small headache but otherwise ok. Oh and littleman & I (knock on wood) are doing better also.

On another note ... Anyone watch the new CBS show "The Unit" ? It's on Tuesdays at 9pm est and yes just what I don't need a another TV show to watch but I have to tell you all, I got hooked last week! Hey I need something to watch while I wait for "The Amazing Race" to come on.

Posting this then going to bed, will visit you all tomorrow :-)

Short & Sweet Or Maybe Not!

2006-03-13T15:10:00.000-05:00

Well Iam going to make this short. Friday afternoon I started feeling yucky and was like that all weekend. I feel a little bit better today but it looks like I caught whatever littleman had, he "knock on wood" seems to be doing better.

Not much else to type for now. Not sure if I will get around to the blogs today, though i do miss reading them all.

Hopefully tomorrow after dentist appointment (ARGH!), I can play catch up.

After The Storm, A Fun Day, Sick Again?

2006-03-10T10:26:00.000-05:00

Above is a picture my daughter took this morning as she was going out to school. I thought it was really neat looking. Its what our sky looked like this morning after a nasty storm (heavy rain, hail and strong winds) went through last night.

Right now its sunny and 61 already @ 10am, going into the low 70's today and 79 by Sunday. Cant wait to get outside.

Yesterday morning was littleman's kite/picnic as most of you know from yesterday's post. Don't look for pics cause I didn't take any was too busy with all the kids.

All the kids and the 5 parents that showed up had a great time. The pre-k teacher bought all the kids kites from the dollar store and there were 2 classes out side running around trying to fly these things. Because of storms that were coming last night, it was windy and therefore a wonderful kite flying day. One small problem ... trying to keep 24 kids from getting their kites tangled up in each others. Littleman had a ball and so did I. After we flew the kites, we all sat on blankets on the grass and ate the picnic lunches we had brought.

So after a long, fun morning we went to Wal-Mart to get a few things and littleman except for some coughing and nose yucky, he seemed fine. I was almost positive his nose and coughing was from allergies he has and drainage from taking the Claritin. So we get home and he tells me he is hungry again and wants cheese. I give him the cheese and 5 minutes later he tells me "MOMMY, I don't feel good" and pukes at my feet! What a lovely mess that was, NOT! So I get him cleaned up and go back to clean up the mess only to find it almost gone because my stupid Beagle is eating it ewwwwwwwwww! All I have to say is thank goodness for hardwood floors. Littleman didn't eat much of anything for the rest of the day and spent most of it in bed.

Littleman coughed off and on most of the night. This morning he still has a cough but doesn't seem as bad and the nose is still yucky. But thank goodness "knock on wood" no more puking! Still not sure if all of this is a yucky virus or those terrible allergies that he gets this time of year. So I will just have to watch him.

Thanks for all the nice comments on my TT post yesterday. I don't normally talk about my childhood but like they say its always easier to write/type things out then actually talk about them. HUGS!

Thursday Thirteen # 8

2006-03-08T20:09:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things about Suz's Childhood

1. I was born in The Bronx, NY. My mom went into labor while visiting my soon to be Godparents.

2. I lived in a town called Mahopac, NY until I graduated high school.

3. First house I lived in was what they called a Raised Ranch. It had a nice size front yard and a huge backyard. To this day I still have that house in my mind.

4. My first pet was a female collie named Ginger. After 4 years she disappeared and we never found her.

5. I use to play for hours in the treehouse that belonged to a neighbor but the tree was on the line and they never minded me playing there.

6. Yes I was a doll player but never really got into Barbies. Instead my favorites were "Dawn" dolls which were about half the size of Barbies. Also use to play a lot with Mrs. Beasley and a doll called Christy whose hair was red and you could make it long or short.

7. My parents divorced when I was 6 years old. I didn't find out till I was in my 20's that he left my mom for his then secretary who he is still married to today.

8. I remember the day he left. I wokeup to find him sleeping on the livingroom floor. That was the last moment he lived in the house. I remember being so heart broken and jealous of the other kids in the neighborhood who still had their dads.

9. I got my first 2 wheel bike at 7 years old. My grandfather got me this huge blue 3 speed bike. I got on and tried to ride it, of course it was too big and I ended up spraining my ankle to the point where I had to go to the hospital.

10. The next day my grandpa brought back the 3 speed and got me a purple banana seat bike with a white basket. Of course because of my ankle I couldn't ride it for 2 weeks.

11. My grandpa lived with us in an apartment downstairs. I found it strange that even after my dad left, my grandpa (his father) stayed with us.

12. I had 2 operations when I was a child. One was getting my tonsils out when I was 8 which was an easy one. The other was when I was 10. It was on my right eye to try and restore my sight because of an accident from a fork when I was 9. To this day Iam still legally blind in that eye.

13. My mom re-married when I was 9. The man she married had 5 kids, they all lived with him so we had to leave my first home and moved into a house that he and my mom had built. This house had 6 bedrooms and was huge and I hated it. This marriage lasted 5 years and its 5 years I much rather forget! The end of that marriage, was the start of my teens.

"Littleman has a kite picnic this morning so I will be by blogs later today :-)"

Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

Audrey, Wystful, MomSquad, Mommyof4, DC, Jeni, Courtney, Lala's, Katherine, Mar, Shelli, Kimmy, Shash, Laura, FrogLegs, Chris, Me,

"Need More Weekends Like This"

2006-03-06T07:49:00.000-05:00

My weekend started off with Robert coming home Saturday morning. It was really good to see him, seeing as he hasn't been home in two weeks. He had worked all night and then drove 3 hours home so needless to say he went off to sleep while I took the kids to Target. Gotta love that store, could just browse there for hours. Then of course Pet Smart is right next store so we had to visit the homeless animals and if it wasn't for having four pets already I probably would have brought another home :-)

The best part of the weekend was yet to come (besides being with Robert :-). I was invited to a Lingerie Party that night. Had never been to one of these before and with Robert gone a lot I don't get out much. Anyways since both older kids had plans Robert watched littleman while I went out.

Oh My Goodness ... What a wonderful time I had. Put a bunch of sexually frustrated, drunk women 20's-50's in one room with one heck of a salesperson and you get one noisy, loud fun party. My friend who gave the party was a wonderful hostest. She has all kinds of food and drinks there plus I think every body that came brought a bottle of wine so there was a lot of booze going around. I stayed with one drink all night a very delicious green apple wine, yummmm! I have to admit I was very shy at first. It was a very hands on party where we had to feel the "toys", taste lotions and so on, but hey stick some wine in me and well I was having so much fun and laughing so hard I was in tears. The salesperson said we would leave there in well a rather "hot" mood and most of us did. I have to say this if I had the money I would bought a heck of a lot more then the 3 things I did.

After the party I went home to Robert and well you can take it from there. :-) I definitely need to get out atleast once a month.

Sunday was a nice quiet day home. It was beautiful outside so that's where we were most of the day. I so enjoyed watching Robert and littleman doing things together cause they don't get much together time with hubby away a lot. Robert left late last night to go back to work. Now if littleman could just fight this cold I see coming on!

I am off to get littleman to school and me to the gym! Will catch up on blogs later!

~Addressing One Of My Worst Fears~

2006-03-03T10:34:00.000-05:00

THE DENTIST!

First I want to say that right now I am drugged on Lortab and have been since about 1:30pm yesterday afternoon, so forgive me if anything doesn't make sense :-)

Last week I made my way to a place I dread, the dentist. Yep its one of my worst fears I have (when I get into a dentist chair I tense up so much, my whole body tightens and both my arms and legs are crossed as to not let anybody in). Never the less I had to go because half a filling I had, had fallen out and I was in a lot of pain through my ear area and up the side of my face, plus I could feel a cavity in another tooth and I had put it off long enough. So I go in and after his assistant takes x-rays, I get this whole lecture from a very nice dentist on how most people me included wait to long to come in and get their teeth checked never mind don't go when they don't have insurance and then end up paying more in the long run.

He proceeded to tell me that I was going to need a rootcanal on the tooth that lost the filling. Then he more or less tells me that though some dental insurance pays some , most more or less are useless. That most will give you a limit of about $1,000 a person a year, when it should be updated to about $5,000. He told me what my options were and off I went.

I have to say I was very glad on how upfront he was with me about it all. When I left I got the impression that they didn't do payment plans except for something called CareCredit which I wasn't going to do so I thought my only option was to get the darn thing pulled and then replace the tooth later on. Sunday night I was in the worst pain, it was so bad that I was in tears and my older two wanted to take me to the ER, I declined. I called the dentist Monday morning and told him I wanted it pulled.

I couldn't believe my ears, he was doing all he could to talk me out of it, and to save the tooth which is what I really wanted and said he would work out a payment plan for me if I wanted to save the tooth. So yesterday I started what is going to be a long relationship with my dentist. I went in to begin treatment on the infected tooth and to get my other teeth into better health condition. He took out and medicated the infected area and put a temporary filling in there for now until it heals. Iam now high on Lortab for pain which doesn't completely take care of the pain!!!! Next week he will fill the other tooth and we will go from there.

I can say this I haven't found a dentist I liked this much since I left New York 6 years ago. I like his honesty and of course his willingness to work with me and my financial situation.

I have to say part of my teeth being in this condition is my own fault and some is hereditary, my mom has bad gums and dad has bad teeth and some is from the meds I have been on for the Lupus. What I wouldn't do to turn the clock back some and take better care of my teeth!

~Thursday Thirteen # 7 "California" ~

2006-03-02T07:40:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things About California & Suz

1. I lived there for 3 years, 1982 - 1985.

2. I moved there from New York because my high school sweetheart asked me to marry him and his family was re-locating. I was just out of Business school.

3. When I first arrived I lived with his sister who was already living there for a month. She was the secretary for the vice president of Warner Bros Records.

4. After I got a job there as an Assistant Department Manager of accessories, I moved into a studio apartment in North Hollywood, CA. While I worked there if we saw anyone famous, we weren't aloud to over react. Part of "Fast Time At Ridgemont High" was filmed there while I was working there.

5. Besides being assistant manager for the accessories department, later on I left that and was assistant manger for woman's sportswear.

6. I bought my first car in Ca., a Chevy Chevette. I paid 1,500 for it and my boyfriends mom had to co-sign for it.

7. I met 3 close friends whiling working there, one Iam still in contact with, she has since moved outside of San Fran, Ca.

8. Because my boyfriends sister worked at WB, my boyfriend and I got to be extras in two ZZ Top videos and meet ZZ Top and see their car. We had to sign agreement's that no cameras were aloud on the set. The two videos were "Shes Got Legs" and Well Dressed Man". You cant see me in the first one, but you can see me really quickly at the bar in the second one.

9. Also because of his sister we got to be fill ins at a American Music Awards, which was a lot of fun. We just had to fill in the empty seats.

10. We would also get up front seats at sports events and at one Kings hockey game I actually caught a puck while they were practicing, and lord did it hurt!

11. I have also seen Rod Stewart and Van Halen in concert, up front seats.

12. While there I also visited Disneyland 5 times, San Diego zoo twice, and San Fran twice (3 times if you count when I visited my friend in 1999.

13. After 3 years of living in CA., I moved back to New York. After 6 years of being with my high school sweetheart, we had grown apart, so I broke it off and was home sick for NY and moved back there.

Also two movies I remember the most seeing while living there were Ghost Busters & Purple rain.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

Elle, Shelli, Katherine, LingerieLady, MamaB, Jeni, DC, Lena, Laura, Courtney, Shelly, Kimmy, FrogLegs, Dariana, Mar, Chickadee, Karen, Norma, Chris,

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

"What's That I Feel????"

2006-03-01T13:14:00.000-05:00

ITS WARMTH!!!!

Its beautiful out today and sunny 68 right now going up into the low 70's, gotta love it! So iam taking a break from the blogging world today and right after littleman finishes his lunch, we are heading outside to play, Yipeee!

I love days like this, I wish it could be mid 70's and sunny all year round.

Maybe I will catch up on all your blogs later.

I hope You Are All Having A Wonderful Day!

Hugs!

Sucks To Have Your Heart Broken

2006-02-27T22:23:00.000-05:00

Just once in my life this was one time I wish I was wrong. Over the weekend my baby girl got my heart broken. The way things were going since V-day, I had a feeling something not good was going to happen.

She kinda kept her feelings close (not kissing him back and so on) while they were dating, before he asked her out. Then after it became official that they were "going" together she let some of the feelings go and placed her heart on her sleeve. He didn't talk to her the whole time he was away, but she found out he talked to other people. He called her Thursday night but she said it wasn't like their normal conversations they have had. They were suppose to spend Friday together and instead he tells her he is going to the aquarium with a friend that is a girl. He was suppose to call her Friday night and never did and then made the breakup call Saturday. He called here first looking for her and I told him he could contact her on her friends cell. About a half hour later she called me, said he had broken up with her. She said was ok but I could hear the hurt in her voice. She asked if she could stay at her friends another night and come home Sunday. I knew from my past relationships, its always good to have a best friend there for you so I said yes.

She came home Sunday and we talked some. She said she didn't cry at her friends house and she wasn't going to cry here because he wasn't worth her tears. After we talked she buried herself in her music which is what she usually does when angry or upset.

The reason he gave for breaking up: He cant just date one girl! GRRRRRRRRR And this from a guy who was the one who went after Sky, called her every night and wrote letters to her and once he actually got her he dumped her. I so felt this coming!

I cant tell you how mad iam. To see my daughter hurt like this, to see the pain in her eyes, in her voice. I so want to just smack this guy up the side of the head. Does he realize what he is letting go of, I know Iam her mother but still.

I know it is a part of life to get your heart broken, that this is just one in many life lessons she will learn from ..... If only we could protect out children from hurt, but we cant.

Its hurts more to see my children go through this then it did when I went through it.

"One Flaw In Women"

2006-02-26T12:05:00.000-05:00

I got this in a email from a internet friend and thought I would share with all my women friends in the blog world. Hugs!

One Flaw In Women

Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they w ant to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy

and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
when they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel

and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about
a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they are strong when they
think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss
can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what
makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideas.
They give moral support to their
family and friends.
Women have vital things to say
and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,
IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Please pass this along to all your women friends and relatives to remind them just
how amazing they are

Wow! 100th Post & Counting...

2006-02-24T10:06:00.000-05:00

Well really this one is 101. When typing up my Thursday Thirteen I realized that was also my 100th post written to my blog. Wow and to think back in September when I first started this blog I didn't know what to write about and "Mama" (so good to see you posting again!) suggested I post "100 Things About Me" and that I did. There are days that the words just seem to flow into my fingertips and onto my blog and there are times when I make nonsense posts but either way it all seems to just come together. Who would of thought I would be journaling online, not me!

Thanks to all of you who read and comment on my blog. I have met some amazing people through the internet.

Only fitting that I leave you with "Martha VS Maxine", Personally I'll take Maxine all the way ...
:-) Hugs!

Martha's Way:
Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar cone to prevent ice cream drips.

Maxine's Way:
Just suck the ice cream out of the bottom of the cone, for Pete's sake! You are probably lying on the couch with your feet up eating it, anyway!

Martha's Way:
To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

Maxine's Way:
Buy Hungry Jack mashed potato mix, keep it in the pantry for up to a year.

Martha's Way:
When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead and there won't be any white mess on the outside of the cake.

Maxine's Way:
Go to the bakery! They'll even decorate it for you.

Martha's Way:
If you accidentally oversalt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant "fix-me-up."

Maxine's Way:
If you oversalt a dish while you are cooking, that's too bad. Please recite with me the real woman's motto: "I made it and you will eat it and I don't care how bad it tastes!"

Martha's Way:
Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.

Maxine's Way:
Celery? Never heard of it!

Martha's Way:
Brush some beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.

Maxine's Way:
The Mrs. Smith frozen pie directions do not include brushing egg whites over the crust so I don't.

Martha's Way:
Cure for headaches: take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

Maxine's Way:
Take a lime, mix it with tequila, chill and drink!

Martha's Way:
If you have a problem opening jars, try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.

Maxine's Way:
Go ask that very cute neighbor if he can open it for you.

Martha's Way:
Don't throw out all that leftover wine. Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

Maxine's Way:
Leftover wine??????????? HELLO !!!!!!!

~Thursday Thirteen # 6~

2006-02-23T09:27:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things That Happened To Suz In The Last Few Weeks

1. Joined a women's only exercise place. Its similar to Curves but offers more for their clients. Its a fairly new place and the lady that owns it is wonderful and even called this week to ask where I have been. Also couldn't beat the price.

2. Bad thing I have belong to this place since Feb. 3rd and between littleman and myself being sick, I have only been there 7 times. I hope to go 5 to 6 times a week when feeling better.

3. Got my hair cut short, yes shorter then my profile picture. Also got copper highlights put into it. No I haven't taken a pic of the new cut.

4. My father is coming for a visit in April. I have not seen him since my sister's wedding in 1999. I wouldn't consider us that close. He just out of the blue called and ask if he could come for a visit and will be staying with us. Its going to be an interesting visit.

5. We may have found the reason why littleman & I keep getting sick. The house we rent seems to have mold/mildew in it. The reason it has hit myself & littleman the worst is because we spend the most time in the house.

6. I have fought and argued with the landlord about this. He is doing something about it but taking his time doing so. He says he will get it all fixed. Will post more about that in another post.

7. We really should get out of the house but have no where else to go, believe me I have looked. Just the thought of having to stay here for now makes me sick.

8. Its times like this that I wish my family lived close by. They are scattered throughout the US.

9. I still cant believe my baby girl has a boyfriend. She is growing up too fast. Time just goes by way to fast.

10. I got court papers from littlemans "sperm donor", yes that's what I call him cause that's all he has been. The papers were about child support. The state of GA went after him cause before Robert & I married littleman was on Medicaid. This whole thing is a mess, will have to post another time about this.

11. Robert is the only daddy littleman has ever known (met Robert back in Nov 2001), he would like to adopt littleman but "sperm donor" is going to make things difficult as always.

12. I realized bad things really do come in 3's or 4's or even 5's! And I know that God doesn't give you more then you can handle but come on already, I have had enough!

13. A plug for one of my blog buddies that I have been visiting for a few months now. Marv's blog is somewhere I like to go when I want to put a smile on my face just by looking at the amazing pictures she takes. I definitely think she should take them professionally and bet you would all agree, so please go by and take a look at her amazing pictures on her blog and her photography sites on her sidebar.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

(leave your link in comments, Ill add you here!)

Shelli, MamaB, PJ, Ivy, Laura, Norma, Katherine, Kimmy, DC, Jeni, Mommyof4, Mar, Courtney, Karen, Dariana, Lena, Uisce, Chickadee, Marv,

~It Just Won't Fight Back!~

2006-02-22T11:21:00.000-05:00

My immune system just doesn't want to fight back. Its been a hard past 2 days, spent most of them in bed which just isn't like me.

Monday mid-morning I started feeling terrible again, coughing a lot and by Monday night I was actually in tears from the pain in my ears and chest. Shain wanted to take me to the ER but I said no, I would weigh it out till morning. Wokeup yesterday, chest hurt, coughing up yuckies and felt off balance, light headed. Went back to Urgent care of which they said I was running a slight fever, and they could hear some wheezing in my lungs. Right away they said I needed a breathing treatment there. Never had one of those before, the first couple of doses I thought I was gonna cough up a lung. They said I need to be really careful I don't get pneumonia.

She put me on another antibiotic for 7 days called Avelox. Then she also put me on Biohist for cough and Tussi-Bid for drainage. She also gave me a Albuterol inhaler.

Robert's insurance isn't the greatest but atleast its something. Lord only knows how much the visit with that treatment is gonna be or how much his insurance will cover and the meds came out to $76!

Please pray these meds work and I start to feel better soon.

Below is a poem I thought i would share that hangs in my bathroom and I have been reading it a lot lately with all that is going on with me.

Look Ahead To Tomorrow

There is always the hope of tomorrow
to brighten the clouds of today,
There is always a corner for turning
no matter how weary the way...
So just look ahead to tomorrow
and trust that you'll find waiting there
The sunlight that seemed to be hidden
by yesterday's clouds of despair.

By Helen Steiner Rice

~Ahhh To Be Young Again...~

2006-02-19T13:01:00.000-05:00

As promised I will tell you all about my daughter's dinner date. They went out to Copelands for dinner. Sky was very nervous cause she wasn't sure what to expect. Thought maybe they were gonna go with his parents. He showed up about 5, they had reservations for 5:30. He was nicely dressed in a short sleeve button down shirt and dress pants. he showed up with 1 yellow rose that smelled so good, unlike the smell of roses that iam use to. He did give her a stuffed dog and a big box of candy and a really nice card when they were at school. I took 2 pictures of them and they both didn't come out that great.

When she came home she was all excited. They ate alone. his dad dropped them off. She said they had a good time and during dinner he finally made it official and asked her to be his girlfriend, awwwww.

She will probably be moping around the house this week because the kids here have no school (winter break) and her boyfriend and his family are going to NC to a cabin till Thursday which means she wont see him and no phone there. She will live, I'm sure, lol.

As for the sickies, knock on wood, littleman seems to be doing better, my older 2 are fighting it and trying to get better and as for me still hacking away and ear hurts like heck off and on. We did find out why we think littleman and i keep getting sick and will post about that maybe tonight or tomorrow. between this problem and me being sick is the reason I haven't been around.

Oh and who was the meanie who sent the freezing cold temps and all the ice yesterday??? It only hit 36 yesterday and its only 35 now, 20's this morning. What happened to last week when it was 70's and I was airing my house out?

~Feeling Like Shit & Valentines Pics~

2006-02-14T17:18:00.000-05:00

First thanks to those who email mailed me and posted on here wanting to know where I was. I have been pretty sick. Hacking all weekend, feeling like crap. Wokeup Monday with fever, hacking & bad pain in my ears. Went to the doctors and I have Bronchitis, fluid in ears and right ear infection. The doctor put me on a strong antibiotics and cough medicine gelcaps. So if you don't see me posting, this is why.

Below are some Valentines pictures. I was in charge of littleman's party so of course I went half out of it. I will post about my daughters date at the end of the week.

I will try and check blogs tomorrow ... Hugs!

Robert was home over the weekend and gave me these beautiful yellow roses and took me out to dinner Sunday to Outback. We probably should of waited till next weekend because I wasn't feeling well and didn't enjoyed myself as much as I should of.

This is a littleman in a shirt that has all the kids in his class handprints on them. His teachers did this with them ahead of time and then had them wear them for the Valentines Day party.

This is what littleman's class made at the party. Its a frame (magnet on back), a picture can slide in on the top.

~A Date For Valentines Day~

2006-02-10T09:43:00.000-05:00

Guess who has a date for Valentines Day and it isn't me (Robert will be away)? Its my baby girl.

About 4 weeks ago I blogged about my only daughter having her first date. Well since then she has gone to the movies with this guy 3 times. Last Sunday he came over here, spent 5 hours here and ate dinner with us. While he was here I got to know him a little bit better. He is very outgoing, fun to joke with and great with littleman. He is also very well mannered. The next day at school he told her he had a really good time at our house and that he wanted to come over again. Which is fine with me as long as he treats my daughter right.

Well all this week she has been saying that b/f keeps telling her not to make plans for Valentines Day because she already has plans. Then last night he tells her he made 5:30 dinner reservations for Valentines Day at a steak house. He has been confiding in one of her best friends (big mistake!). He told her friend that since wrestling was now over he was going to ask Sky to be his "official" girlfriend at dinner (g/f told Sky of course) and he also told g/f what he was getting Sky but she didn't tell her that, which Sky was glad because she wants it to be a surprise.

So there we have it my baby girl is no baby anymore though she will always be my little sweet pea (she hates that name, lol) Thanks goodness she has been confiding in me some and I Pray she always feels that she can.

To the left as you probably already figured out is the guy she has been dating. Not the best picture but still I think his personality definitely shows in it.

~Thursday Thirteen # 5~

2006-02-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Nightime TV Shows Suz Likes To Watch

(I tend to watch a lot of TV because hubby travels a lot)

1. Greys Anatomy: This is my favorite show. I love watching it and getting into the charaters story lines. Cant believe they left us hanging like that Sunday!

2. Desperate Housewives: Where else can you sit down and dream about what things you would like to do as a housewife but would never have the guts to do.

3. Extreme Makeover Home Edition: What can I say Iam a sucker for a happy ending.

4. 24: I have been addicted to this show from day one. Love Kiefer Sutherland, just something about him.

5. Commander & Chief: Geena Davis makes a great first lady. Ahhh the thought of a woman being president.

6. Gilmore Girls: Have watch this from day one. It a fun thing to watch with my kids.

7. CSI: Another favorite of mine. The other CSI's are ok but they cant out do the first CSI.

8. Lost: Been hooked to this day one since day one, how can you not be with all those good looking men on. What the heck is on the island with them?

9. In Justice: A great new show about proving that some people that are in jail are innocent.

10. Ghost Whisperer: Another favorite. You all are gonna think Iam crazy, but most of the time while watching this show i get chills going through me. Iam a big believer in spirits.

11. Invasion: Its on after Lost and I just got hooked, this is also one of my older son's favorites

12. Love Monkey: This is a fairly new show that was taken from a best seller book about a record executive. Its fun to watch and I have always liked Tom Cavanagh from when he was in the show "Ed".

13. Reality TV: Survivor, The Amazing Race, The Biggest Loser, Dancing With The Stars, The Bachelor, Supernanny(sometimes), Americas Next Top Model, Project Runway, American Idol, The_Apprentice

I also like to watch Lifetime movies & Family channel movies, and a lot of shows on TLC.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

(leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

RoughDraft, Shelli, Mommyof4, Jeni, Dariana, Snickerdoodle, KellyNelly, Mar, Courtney, Uisce, Karen, Chickadee, FrogLegs, Lala, PJ, Lena, Ruth, Virenda, Denise, Claire, Harmonia, WendyWings, Eric, Chris, Dawn,

~My A-B-C's~

2006-02-08T10:35:00.000-05:00

First an update on littleman ... I brought littleman to the doctors yesterday and the doctor did everything to convince me that littleman is a healthy little boy with a bad tummy/cold virus. Iam still not convinced. The doctor says it sounds like Iam doing everything right to try and keep him from getting sick, that he is probably getting it from school. Besides a really nasty cough & yucky nose, he does seem to be doing better. So we shall see what happens. I do have to say this, there was a time when my daughter was 4 I didn't believe the doctors and brought her to a specialist myself and he ended up taking out her tonsils and anoids.

Below is something I have seen on a few blogs and have decided to do it myself. Hugs!

My ABC's MeMe

A - Accent: Have been Told I still have my New York one.

B - Breakfast: Lately Vanilla Mini Wheat Cereal or Cinnamon Oatmeal

C - Chore you hate: Dusting

D - Dad's name: John

E - Essential everyday item: Water

F - Flavor ice cream: Butterpecan

G - Gold or silver?: I don't wear much jewelry but what I do wear is usually gold

H - Hometown: Mahopac, New York

I - Insomnia: As I get older I finder it a lot harder to get a good night sleep

J - Job title: Mom, Mommy, Wife, Taxi Driver, Cook, Maid, Referee, Coach, Teacher and so on

K - Kids: Boy almost 18, Girl 15, Boy almost 5 and 3 step kids ... Boy almost 18, Girl 16, Girl 10

L - Living arrangements: 4 Bedroom, 1 Kitchen, 1 Dining Area, 1 Livingroom, 1 Bathroom (which sucks!)

M - Mom's birthplace: Puerto Rico

N - Number of significant others: 1 ex hubby & 1 hubby

O - Overnight hospital stays: Eye surgery, Tonsils out, Tummy surgery, 3 births (1 was a c-section)

P - Phobia: Death

Q - Quote: "We May Not All Be Shining Stars But We Can Surely Twinkle!" (Jeanne Bice)

R - Religious affiliation: Raised Catholic, but having problems with it, mixed emotions

S - Siblings: 1 Brother, 1 Sister, 1 Halfbrother, 1 Halfsister

T - Time you wake up: During the week 6:30am, Weekends about 7:30am

U - Unnatural haircolors you've worn: Purple highlights when I lived in CA in the early 80's. Just got it cut short and got copper highlights put through it.

V - Vegetable you refuse to eat: Brussel Sprouts

W - Worst habit: Worrying

X - X-rays you've had: Ankle (upteen times), Kidneys (stones), Tummy (surgery), ultrasounds for all 3 pregnancies

Y - Yummy: Strawberries & Whipped Cream, Crab Legs, Stuffed Shrimp, Stuffed Mushrooms ... Mmmm getting hungry here

Z - Zodiac sign: Virgo

"Just One Month Without ... Please!"

2006-02-06T12:11:00.000-05:00

I would like just one month where Connor isn't sick! Yep he is sick again. It started Friday when he said he didn't feel well and didn't want dinner. He was up all Friday night complaining of his tummy hurting. He ran a fever till late Sunday afternoon and now has diarrhea, coughing and hoarse voice. He is home from school yet again (feel like I pay for him to stay home). Had to re-schedule the meeting with his teacher. I have gone through more Lysol then I care to say and I am constantly trying to get the germs out of this house!

Because of how he is sick all the time, I thought about asking the doctor to do blood work on him. A friend of mine suggested I might want to get him tested for Rotavirus. I had never heard of it before. Either way something has to give, my poor littleman is sick way to much!

On a lighter note, we actually got snow here this morning. No accumulation or anything, but huge flakes did come down for about an hour (a dusting on the grass) and littleman just watched in amazement through our frenchdoors. Then it changed to rain and littleman was sad, he wanted to play in it. One of these winters Iam gonna have to take him to where snow is so he can play in it just once like his siblings did when we lived in NY when they were younger.

Pictures of our dark, dreary, rainy/snowy morning. You have to look close to see the snow though the flakes at times were huge. The white spot in the first picture is a snowflake. First pic taken out my side doors, second one out my front door. Last Friday it was 70 degrees outside, this weather is nuts!

Haircuts ... Trains .... Numbers

2006-02-03T11:04:00.000-05:00

Today, a simple post with some pictures about littleman. My littleman amazes me everyday with what he knows. His mind takes things in like a sponge absorbs water. Lately he has been on a counting craze. Counting everything in sight and can now count to 100. Its amazing how much more he knows at his age then his sister and brother knew when they were at the same age. Definitely a sign of the changing times and how much more our littleones have to know at such a early age.

His school has been doing evaluations with the 4 years olds all week, seeing if they are ready to move on to Kindergarten. I have my appointment on Monday with littleman's teacher to see how my littleman is doing. We shall see how it goes.

Wednesday I took littleman to get his hair cut. It was getting to hard to handle, he has a nasty cowlick in the front so I had it cut really short. Yesterday he comes home and says "My friend asked me what happened to my hair?", "I told him I got it cut.", "He said its all gone!" I couldn't help but laugh and told my littleman he looks very handsome with his short hair and that his friend just wasn't use to it.

Below are some resent pictures of littleman with his new haircut and him in his train tent that he got for Christmas and has been so into playing with lately. The train ones were taken last weekend before the haircut.

Littleman with his new handsome haircut

Smiling nice for the camera. This train tent can be played with on the floor and also can be attatched to his bed to play with or sleep in.

Not too happy, telling me to leave him alone so he can play, lol

~Thursday Thirteen # 4~

2006-02-02T07:33:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things Suz Would Rather Not Do Without

1. Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat in Luminous. This stuff is wonderful for dark circles around the eyes and also anywhere on the face you want some light. Its also lasts forever.

2. Blowdryer to blow out my fine, curly hair

3. Lip Moisturizer Chapstick (the blue one), for those dry lips especially this time of the year.

4. My computer to keep in touch with all my internet friends and other things

5. Hope in a jar eye/lip cream by Philosophy for those nasty wrinkles

6. Anything Philosophy bath gel, so rich and thick in many flavors/scents, mmmmm

7. Mascara, currently using Covergirl black/brown 5X

8. A mircowave, iam always using one for something

9. TV ... Hey I need something to do while hubby is gone, plus I need to keep up on my reality tv

10. Birks, sneakers and flipflops, I need something comforty for my feet when I cant go barefoot which I much rather do

11. Yoplait Whips, I love this lowfat yogurt. So light & fluffy and tastes so good.

12. Spring water, its pretty much all I drink

13. My Sealy Posturepedic Support pillow. Nothing like a good pillow & It does help my insomnia some.

I could probably think of lots more!

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

(leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

1. Mommy of 4 2. Katherine 3. RoughDraft 4. Jeni 5. Lalas

6. MamaB. 7. Mar 8. Uisce 9. Shelli 10. Leanne

11. WendyWings 12. Dariana 13. Killired 14. Chickadee

15. Harmonia 16. Claire 17. Courtney 18. Karen 19. Caryn

20. Colleen 21. Laura 22. Jen 23. Eric 24. Marv 25. Chris

26. Snickerdoodle

~Four Kinds Of People (Carpool Talk)~

2006-01-31T22:46:00.000-05:00

I can always look forward to interesting chats with my littleman in the carpool line on the way to pre-school. Its amazing what comes out of the mouth of littleones.

While sitting there waiting this was how the conversation went:

Littleman: (Out of no where) "Mommy did you know there are 4 kinds of people?"

Me: "Four kinds? What are the fours kinds of people?"

Littleman: "Babies, which Iam not, kids ... That's me, teens like S & S and people like you and daddy."

Me: "People like me and daddy?" "You mean adults?"

Littleman: "Yes"

Me: "Who told you that those are the four kinds of people?"

Littleman: "No one told me, I told myself."

Me: "Hmmm, ok"

(Before I could say anything else)

Littleman: "Mommy, I don't like kid girls."

Me: "Why don't you like little girls?"

Littleman: "Because they scream a lot and when we stand in line to go out of the classroom and they stand in front of me their long hair gets in my face.

Me: "Laughs"

Littleman: "But I do like teens girls because they play with me."

Me: (Thinking) "He likes teen girls because his sister plays with him and so do her friends."

(Pulling up to the door)

Me: "Well over the years your likes and dislikes on girls will change."

Littleman: (In a angry voice) "No they wont."

(And out he goes)

"I Have The Worst Luck With...."

2006-01-30T22:13:00.000-05:00

I have the worst luck with new furniture. First it was my littleman's bedroom set 2 years ago with a very well known furniture company. The mess went on for 2 months. Now its with a local furniture company and has been going on since July 2005, yes I said July 2005! The set at the bottom is a couch and oversized chair that I fell in love with back in July when we were looking for a new set. I found this set after going to numerous furniture stores and hours of driving my hubby nuts because I didn't like anything we saw. I like plain furniture and then add colorful accessories, which I havent gotten yet because of the mess.

Then we decided to check a local store. Because they only keep the grey color in stock of the set I wanted, I had to special order mine which they said would take 6 weeks which I was fine with. They gave me a delivery date and said there should be no problem. So I found someone that was interested in my old set that was 15 years old on Freecycle but asked her if it was ok that we kept it till our new set came in. She was fine with that. This was about a week before the new stuff was to be delivered. So I call the beginning of the 6th week to confirm my delivery date and they were like sure no problem, will be there between 10 and 2 Friday. So I tell the lady she can come pick up the old set. The next day I get a call from the store saying they made a huge mistake. My order was never placed!

I was so pissed and boy did they ever get a mouth full from me. After hearing a lot of BS, they re-ordered the set, I got $100 credited back and demanded they give me a loaner couch for the next 6 weeks to sit on and they did. 6 weeks pass and the set arrives. The couch is perfect but the chair not only is a different color (lighter) and thinner material but also has 2 small rips in the back. I call the place, again very angry but so wanting that set. They apologize, blah blah blah and order another chair. To make this story a little shorter, 3 chairs ( they were either damaged or didn't match the couch(lighter color) and 7 months, yes I said 7 months later I am still fighting them. The last chair came 2 weekends ago, color lighter then the couch. The delivery men even tried their hardest to convince me otherwise and I kicked them out of my home and called the store yet again. This time we all decided that I should come in and talk with them and probably pick out a different set. So Robert and I went there Saturday afternoon. We spent 3.5 hours there. Me fighting with them saying I just wanted my money back. Them telling me it wasn't possible that they only give credits, me telling them it wasn't my fault I had to make the return and so on. They also tried their hardest to sell me sets that I really didn't want and when push came to shove I had, had enough and said I wanted the set I ordered but decided on a different color, olive green ( wasn't going to get the brown seeing as they couldn't match it). Again I pick a color that has to be ordered so it will be 6 weeks before I get my new set. I told them if that was the case then they weren't getting the brown set till I got my new set that was ordered and I also told them that I should get more for my troubles so I left with a $100 gift certificate that Iam going to spend on a wooden outdoor bench swing.

After we buy this swing and my new set comes in, I will never ever step foot in that store again and have been thinking about reporting them to the Better Business Bureau. I just cant believe that by the time I get my new set, it will be 8 months since I first placed my order.
Maybe I am just not destined to get new furniture!

The PITA oversized chair that was replaced 3 times for wrong color, wrong material or rips. The light in this picture makes the chair look a lot lighter. It is, but not that light.

The couch I love but they could never match it right!

2006-01-28T10:06:00.000-05:00

Gotta love Maxine, I know I do. Saw this cartoon and thought I would share. I wont be around much this weekend, hubby came home this morning and will be home till Monday morning. I haven't seen him in 3 weeks, so we have some catching up to do. Lets just hope I have the energy to do so. Still fighting a cold (glands hurts, scratchy throat, headache, nose) and if I am not feeling better by Monday morning, off to the doctors I will go!

Oh we also have to go fight with a furniture store later. Someday I'll post about that, its been going on since July!

Its suppose to be a nice weekend, sunny and high 50's. Maybe I can open some windows and air this house out.

Hugs

"You Almost Need To Take Out A Loan....

2006-01-27T09:52:00.000-05:00

Its that time of the year again, What time is that you ask ... school ring time. Last year at this time I went through the same thing, ordering a high school ring for my oldest son. Before we went through this procedure I must of asked him a 100 times "Are you sure you are going to wear this ring?", and all the time his answer was yes. I even threatened him that if he gave it to his then girlfriend to wear I would kill him. Iam sorry after spending $253.00 (yes you read right) on that ring there was no way in hell I was gonna let him put that ring on anything other then his finger. I do have to say he has stuck to his word and wears that ring almost every day.

Yesterday it was my daughter's turn to order hers. That's the downfall about having kids close together, trying to get the money to pay for everything. She like my son wanted the stone to be her birthstone (peridot). She picked the school mascot on one side and her name (top), Leo sign (middle) & 08 (bottom) on the other side. Again I asked numerous times if she was going to wear this thing, you are talking about a young lady who never wears rings, she wears earrings, necklaces & bracelets but never rings! Again she said yes and even if I don't I will still wear it on a chain. I was like no you wont if I order this ring you will wear it on your finger! I know mean aren't I? So she said "Yes I will wear it on my finger". So we ordered the darn thing, $227.00 later (Shain's cost more cause he got something extra that he paid for, plus it was bigger). All I have to say is thank goodness for payment plans and thank goodness it will be 13 years before I have to buy another high school ring.

The company the high school goes through is a well known company with a Full Warranty plan:

Repairs defects in workmanship free
Will replace stone if defective, broken or lost free
Resize ring at anytime free
Change your year on ring if your don't graduate at the age on ring free
Will change high school crest if you should change high schools before graduating
You can change your high school ring for credit towards a college ring

I gave my children the choice of getting the rings because I had gotten one (of course mine was only $70 something at the time) and wanted them to have one if they wanted. I still have my ring but I don't wear it, though I do carry it everywhere. I have always considered it a good luck sort of thing for me and keep it inside a zippered pocket in whatever handbag I have at the time.

Hope You All Have A Great Weekend ... Hugs

Thursday Thirteen # 3 ... What Bugs Me

2006-01-26T08:01:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things That Bug Suz ... (inspired by na uh)

1. Leaving the toilet seat up

2. Chewing food with your mouth open and talking with your mouth full.

3. Talking on cell phones while driving, also talking loud on cell phones in public.

4. People with no manners

5. Putting clothes in wash inside out, also add to that putting clothes in wash stuck together (like undies & socks stuck inside pants).

6. Extremely slow drivers, daydreaming while driving

7. Talking during a movie, kicking/tapping the back of my seat during a movie

8. Not washing hands after using bathroom and before eating.

9. The sticky labels on jeans and shirts, usually have to wash theses clothes before washing or little things stick to that spot.

10. Those darn plastic ties on toys, it takes forever to either cut or twist them off. And lets not forget those cars/trucks that have those tiny screws to keep the car on some plastic base. It takes too amount of time just to take these toys out of the package so your child can play with them.

11. People who judge people because of what is on the outside, instead of getting to know who they are as a person.

12. Mean sales people, you are in a job where you deal with people all day long, dont like people, quit your job!

13. Those dog owners who dont pick up after their dog's poop.

I could probably go on forever, but this is the "Thursday Thirteen"

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

(leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

1. Mar

2. Katherine

3. Jona

4. Karen

5. Rough Draft

6. Mama B

7. WendyWings

8. Renee

9. Dariana

10. Uisce

11. Jeni

12. Chris

13. Chickadee

14. Courtney

15. FrogLegs

16. Big

17. Lindsey

18. Nicole

19. Harmonia

20. Maman

21. Killired

22. YellowRose

23. Laura

24. Ivy

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

~I Remember It As If It Was Yesterday....

2006-01-24T07:53:00.000-05:00

It seems like only yesterday I was pregnant with her. It seems like only yesterday I gave birth to my baby girl and was holding her in my arms.

When did my babygirl become a 15 year old teenager and grow into a beautiful young lady? How the years just fly by, how times just seem to flash before our eyes.

As I watched my beautiful daughter leave our house Sunday on her first real date (his mom brought them there to the movies & back), tears ran down my face (and no she does not know this). The tears were both tears of sadness for I know now that even though she will always be my baby girl she is no longer a baby but instead a beautiful young lady.

What I treasured most about this day was the talk we had when she came home. As you know I have a very close relationship with all my children, something I never had with my mom, till my adult years and it is still not where I would like it to be and may never be. But anyways, my "baby" daughter told me how she was nervous at first. How while watching the movie he placed his arm around her and she laid her head on his shoulder. I got goosebumps listening to her, treasuring that she confided in me about her special moment in her life. You know I had to ask if he kissed her and she snapped at me and told me "You know I wouldn't kiss on the first date!". How proud I was of her that very moment as I know that sometimes she actually does listen to me and what I have to say even though it may not seem like it. Instead at our front door when he brought her home she gave him a hug and even that he had to ask for.

Of course she is in heaven, first real boyfriend. He calls her every night. They are the same age, he will be 16 in May, her 16 in Aug. He seems nice. A tall good looking guy, and when I mean tall to this 5'1 mom, 6'3 is a giant! Though a good height for her as she is a lot taller then me. He is on the wrestling team and takes ROTC in school. He also has good phone manners and Sky said he opened all the doors for her. and when she went to pay her way, he wouldn't let her. Sounds like he was brought up right.

As I have told her in the past, "to be careful with your heart". I know this will be hard as like her mom she wears hers on her sleeve. But as I have told her also to enjoy your high school years, just have fun the rest will come later.

My baby girl, how the years have blossomed you into a beautiful, full of personality, smart young lady, I cant be any prouder!

~The Cuckoo Clock ...

2006-01-22T09:32:00.000-05:00

Iam gonna leave you all with a joke I thought was funny and thought I would share. Nevermind a migrane has shown up and I can barely type. I'll try and catch up on blogs later.

The Cuckoo Clock:

The other night I was invited out for a night with "the girls." I told my husband that I would be home by midnight, "I promise!" Well, the hours passed and the margaritas went down way too easy. Around 3 a.m., a bitloaded, I headed for home. Just as I got in the door, the cuckoo clock in the hall started up and cuckooed 3 times. Quickly, realizing my husband would probably wake up, I cuckooed another 9 times. I was really proud of myself for coming up with such a quick-witted solution, in order to escape a possible conflict with him. (Even when totally smashed...3 cuckoos plus 9 cuckoos totals 12 cuckoos = MIDNITE!)

The next morning my husband asked me what time! I got in, and I told him "Midnight ". He didn't seem pissed off at all. Whew! Got away with that one! Then he said, "We need a new cuckoo clock." When I asked him why, he said, "Well, last night our clock cuckooed three times, then said, "Oh shit." cuckooed 4 more times, cleared its throat, cuckooed another 3 times, giggled, cuckooed twice more, and then tripped over the coffee table and farted."

Hope You All Are Having A Great Weekend! Hugs

"Can You Tell Which Animals Have Control...."

2006-01-20T08:46:00.000-05:00

Can you tell which animals have control in this house. A few days ago I bought Katie & Jesse the dogs new beds. They looked comfortable and the price was right. Well the minute I brought them home and laid them down, Simba my orange tabby decided it was his bed. Now all he wants to do is share the bed with Katie, who just sits there on one side and whimpers like a baby. Its funny cause she is the bigger of the two dogs and she is such a baby. If any of the cats try to go on Jesses bed who has plenty of room he growls at them, lol. But he will share with Katie. And lets not forget Milo who thought well if Simba can sleep

there so can I. It seems this isnt only common in my household as I found out when I read Katherine's blog the other day.

For those who asked, both Katie and Milo made it through their surgeries ok and both are doing well. Even with Milos paws rapped, he gets around just fine.

Also please stop by and say hello to Scooter the cat and his owner. His owner Shelly found me & my blog and is new to blogging.

~Thursday Thirteen # 2 & Maybe My Last~

2006-01-19T07:34:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things about Suz

1. I feel like shit

2. Have a horrible head cold and its totally drained me.

3. I have to take 2 of my animals to the vet this morning. My Beagle Katie needs to get spayed & my younger cat Milo is getting declawed. He is an indoor cat and destroying my furniture & curtains.

4. Iam the oldest of 5 kids. I have a sister in MD, a brother in FL, half sister in Alaska, half brother in CO.

5. I believe in angels & spirits. I feel my grandmother around me all the time.

6. Iam scared of death. It first started when I saw my great-grandmother die in front of me when I was 15. After it happened I went into shocked and then wouldnt talk to anyone for a week.

7. The only person outside of the internet that calls me Suz is my father. Everyone else calls me Susan, Dont EVER call me Sue!

8. I cant drive a stick shift/standard vehicle and have no desire to learn.

9. I love candles, my coffee table is covered in "Yankee" candles.

10. I hate coffee, any kind. Even the smell of it makes me sick. Though I like coffee icecream, figure that one out.

11. I love to crochet, but all I know how to make are blankets, scarves ... simple things.

12. My favorite flower is one of the simplest flowers on earth, a Daisy.

13. Always wanted a tattoo and to go sky diving but probably will never do either because , yes iam a chicken!

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!
(leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)

1. uisce

2. mar

3. Katherine

4. Courtney

5. Scooter Speaks

6. Busy Mom

7. Rough Draft

8. Karen

9. Jeni

10. snickerdoodle

11. yellowrose

12. Dariana

13. maman

14. chickadee

15. Laura

16. Chris

17. Killired

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

"Do You Remember Your First Job?"

2006-01-18T09:04:00.000-05:00

Recently my oldest got his first job at Wendys. Yep thats him to the left. He wouldnt be caught dead in his Wendys uniform unless at work and would only let me take a picture from the neck down , lol. As you can see he has to wear black pants & shoes supplied by me and then that ugly button down shirt (has really fine plaid like yellow & white pin stripes) and a black baseball type hat the has Wendys stitched across the front supplied by Wendys. He has been trying to get a job for over 2 months now so needless to say he was thrilled when they called.

I was pretty strict about him getting a job. His grades had to be A's & B's in order to get one and he also has to keep his grades up in order to keep the job and he knows this. To me school comes first. Whats good about most places around here is they asked about your school grades anyways before they hire you so that the job doesnt get in the way of your school work.

What sucks about him getting a job is he doesnt have his license yet (needs more practice on parallel parking) so I have to drive him there and back which i hate when he has to work till 9 or 10. Luckily so far he has only been working 3 days a week.

So this being said here are some questions for you all....

1. What was your first job? Did you like it?

As I said before my first real one was a sales person for Alexanders Dept stores. I loved going there but not for the job but thats where I met my high school sweetheart, lol. I did baby sit quite a bit before that.

2. How old were you when you got your drivers license?

I didnt get mine till I was 18 cause my parents were divorce and mom wouldnt teach me so I had to save up and go to driving school.

3. How old were you when you got your first car?

I was almost 19.

4. What kind of car was it?

Chevy Chevette ... Barf!

"You Are A Cool Mom For Getting Those..."

2006-01-16T22:26:00.000-05:00

This is what my daughter said to me a few weekends ago when I decided to buy these sneakers which I just fell in love with when i saw them. They are made by Skechers and since the spring stuff are coming in they were on sale, so with Christmas money ( the way I buy myself things is if I get gift money) I bought them. They are so comfortable almost as comfortable as my Birks. Oh yea I bought a new pair of those also (but thru QVC, I have my summer Birks and since I had gift money I decided to get clog Birks. My daughter says the sneakers & Birks are definitely something her or one of her friends would wear.

So YAY Iam a cool mom, LOL ... Curious what do you call "sneakers", a lot here in GA call them tennis shoes. I was always told they were sneakers.

And on the subject of littleman ... He still isnt himself so I took him to the doctors. He has a bad virus which I had already figured out but also has the beginnings of 2 ear infections. Of course I never would of known that cause he complained about everything but his ears! The last time he had a ear infections was when he was 2. So she put him on Amoxicillin for 10 days. Yippee, Now I have to force meds down his throat. She told me to wait a day before he goes back to school. And did you know that kids in daycare & young kids in pre-k and early elementary school get sick (cold & viruses) 10 to 12 times a year? I know this because I was worried on how much littleman has been getting sick ( every 2 to 3 weeks) and I dont remember my older 2 getting sick this much!

Anyways, Its was my daughters idea for the title of this post. I cant even think and so she suggested I write about the sneakers. Why cant I think, Iam now sick, thats right its mommy's turn, lucky me. Ears feels funny/terrible, sneezing like crazy, nose stuffed and glands on sides of neck hurt ... ahhh the joys! Off to bed I go, hoping I get some much needed sleep!

A picture of my new Birks. Some say these shoes are the ugliest shoes made, others wear nothing but. I love my summer Birks & just had to get a pair to wear now.

~4 Long Days/Nights & A List Of 4's~

2006-01-15T11:24:00.000-05:00

Littleman just started to feel better this morning. As of last night he was still puking and running a low fever. As of this morning he doesnt have a fever "knock on wood" and kept a pancake down so far but is still hacking like crazy and nose yucky now. So needless to say I havent slept in 4 days. Hopefully tonight will be better. Have to call the doctor tomorrow to let him know whats going on and see if they still want to see him. Thanks for all your comments on my post about him being sick.

So iam going to leave you with another list because iam too exhausted to post anything else. I got this list from "K" .

Oh and I cant believe that after a week of near 70 temps we only hit a high of 37 yesterday with a wind chill of in the 20's. Today its suppose to be in the low 50's. This weather is nuts! Hope you all are having a good weekend!

I will try and check blogs later ... HUGS

4 places you've been on vacation

Disney World
Disneyland
Colorado
Las Vegas

4 websites you visit daily

All the blogs in my blogroll
Yahoo SSAHM Group
Yahoo Mail ... My main email
QVC, yes I know bad

4 favorite foods

crab legs
strawberries & whipped cream
Mexican food
a good New York pizza & soft New York pretzels

4 places you'd rather be

In bed sleeping ... hey iam doing this after 4 very exhausting days/nights
Australia, Always wanted to go
Paris, Also always wanted to go
New York City, Love it there
Would love to go back to Las Vegas ... Ya I know thats 5

4 albums you can't live without

Grease soundtrack
Dirty Dancing soundtrack
U2 The Best Of 1980-1990 ... Showing my age here
Anything Sheryl Crow

4 vehicles you've owned

Chevy Chevette - First car
Dodge Caravan
Subaru Outback
Ponitac Transport

4 jobs you've had in your life

Sales person
Camp Counselor
Assistant Manager for Casual Corners
Special Ed Teachers Assistant

4 movies you could watch over and over

Grease
Dirty Dancing
Fools Rush In ... This never did well but I love it
Willie Wonka & The Chocolate Factory - Old version

4 places you've lived

New York - Most of my life
California - Lived with my high school sweetheart
Texas - Very difficult time in my life
Georgia - Where i live now

4 TV shows you love to watch ... Gonna list more then 4, when hubby is gone a lot I watch TV :-)

Desperate housewives
Greys Anatomy
Project Runway
Commander & Chief
Lost
CSI
24 ... Season starts tonight
Amazing Race & Survivor when on

Its Been Two Long Sleepless Nights

2006-01-13T11:17:00.000-05:00

Wednesday night at dinner littleman didnt eat much and was coughing so I knew he was coming down with something. About 9pm that night when he should of been sleeping he comes running out of his room, bright red, looking terrible and pukes all over my livingroom floor. There was a mess everywhere. I got him cleaned up, took his temperature and it read 102.8 so you can guess how Wednesday night went.

Yesterday morning after a very tough night, he was up at 5am for the day! During the day he was either moaning, hacking, puking or all 3, he also ran a fever all day, spending most of the day snuggled into my lap and wouldnt nap that is till about 4 when he wanted me to put his Batman dvd cartoons in and when I went to check on him at 4:15, he was out cold (thus the picture on the top)! He ate some crackers and toast for dinner and was out for the night by 7:00pm. I used a cough patch on him so I didnt hear hacking much during the night, until he awoke at 1am crying everything hurt, burning up and yes puking! He finally fell asleep again about 2 after the Tylenol had settled in and was up for the day this morning at 6.

Right now "knock on wood" no fever, but he still cant seem to keep food down. I talked to the doctor and he said there is a lot of viruses going around. He said just keep giving him dry food (crackers, toast, so on) and liquids which of course I knew and keep an on eye on his fever. Oh yea and make sure he is peeing.

We were doing so good here being healthy except for littlemans pinkeye and now this. I just hope he gets over it soon and it doesnt go around the house. Not to mention not sure if its my imagination from all the mess I have cleaned up the last 2 days but my tummy didnt feel too good either this morning and doesnt now :/

So no sleep, no AmbienCR cause I wanted to be there for littleman at night and stuck in the house for 2 days makes for a very exhausted, unhappy mommy ... But snuggling, hugging, I love yous and a sleeping littleman's picture ... Priceless!

~My First Thursday Thirteen~

2006-01-12T07:56:00.000-05:00

Thirteen Things about Suz ... Iam going to give this a try!

1. I will always be a New Yorker in my heart. Lived there 37 years well take out 3 years from 19 to 22 years old when i lived in CA for 3.

2. I have also lived in TX for a year. A town called "The Coloney" outside of Dallas, from 2000-2001.

3. Iam an extremely light sleeper so much so that I have to take sleep aids (AmbienCR) to sleep through the night and even that doesnt work all the time.

4. Met my husband of 7 months online in a chat room but we didnt get married till 4 years later.

5. There is a 13 year difference between my oldest soon to be 18 and my youngest soon to be 5.

6. I have thought about going back to being a Teacher's Assistant when my youngest goes to Kindergarten in Aug. Before my youngest was born, I was one in Special Ed classes when I lived in NY.

7. I was told I had Lupus at 18, its become apart of my life.

8. I have been researching "Curves" & "Slender Lady". I hope to have enough money saved to join one of these by the end of the month.

9. One of my closest friends is someone I met online. I wouldnt trade our friendship for anything, we have been through a lot together.

10. I have been thinking about cutting my hair really short. Yes it looks short in my profile picture but Iam just tired of doing the flippy style and want something different. My next appointment is Feb. 4th, we shall see what i decide.

11. 10 months ( not all at once) out of the year iam a semi-single parent. Thats how much my husband travels.

12. Iam not a hot or cold weather person. The perfect weather ... about the end of spring around the mid 70's.

13. And lastly, I LOVE blogging and to read others blogs. Would love to change the template on my blog but have no idea how to and scared I will lose everything.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!...

Uisce , Confessions , Katherine , Courtney , Dariana , Karen , Greekgoddess , Jeni , Maman , DCRoe ,

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It's easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

~What Happened To Winter?~

2006-01-10T22:28:00.000-05:00

It seems to me we have gone straight from fall into spring. The last two days here have been absolutely beautiful, yesterday hitting 70 & today 68. Norm here for this time of the year is high 40's to low 50's. Though they say it should be back to normal temperatures by this weekend and then back up again next week, it seems to me that the last few years the winters seem to be milder and milder. Not that iam complaining, Iam mostly an outside person and think the perfect temperature to be outside is the low 70's and this weather is great for me.

So the last two days I have been outside with littleman. I love watching him run around, taking in his energy and it seems to be never ending. Wouldnt it be great if they could bottle that energy for us older moms? I know I sure could use some. Yesterday we spent the afternoon going up and down the street on his bike. Lord I tell you this child would of stayed out there into the night if I had let him but after 2 hours I had, had enough. I still cant believe my baby is now on a 16 inch bike, now if we can just get him to try without the training wheels.

Today the afternoon was also spent outside. This time out of all his toys new and old he picks an old one to play with, a toy from Christmas 2004. "Shaking my head" Out of all the new things he got this past Christmas, we still go back to the favorite from last. A remote control vehicle, not really a car, not really a truck. Looks and acts like a caterpillar on wheels. Hard to explain, picture below. This thing does so many things, it flips from one side red to the other side blue and back again. Can run on either side, goes backwards, forwards and does wheelies and so on. Can you tell mommy plays with it also, LOL. I bet littleman sleeps good tonight, was gone by 7:30. He had me controlling it while he chased it all over our yard, and yes I even had it attacking him at times, him laughing up a storm.

The temperatures are suppose to be the same till Saturday so you know where I will be in the afternoons.

Something about this picture I just love.

Concentrating on making it go where he wants

The favorite remote control vehicle

P.S. I have been informed through other blogs that its "National De-lurking Week" So if you are a lurker, this time leave a comment if only to say hi.

~No Pierced Belly Bottons For Now~

2006-01-09T22:39:00.000-05:00

Friday afternoon Sky came up to me and told me she has decided that she doesnt want her belly botton pierced at this moment in time. That she wants to wait until maybe the summer when she turns 16. So instead she asked me to take her on Saturday to get second holes in her ears which I was more then fine with and atleast she was going to get it professionally done unlike her dummy mom who as I said in another post did them myself with needle and thread & ice. Sky's first holes were professionally done at 18 months, so she doesnt remember getting them done.

So off Sky, littleman & myself went to the mall to get them done. We decided to get them done at Icings. Littleman sat there in pure amazement that his sister was doing this to her ears, looking at her like she was crazy and Sky being who she is wanted to hold my hand while getting it done. The lady told her it would only be a pinch and a pinch is all Sky felt, though when littleman asked her "Does that hurt", she replied, "YES!". I told her she could pick any posts she wanted and she picked simple clear crystal ones.

So for now the belly ring will wait and when and if she decides to get it done, i will be there to take her.

My next thing to get thru with her... driving :/, She has been studying for her learners permit. Lord help me, one training for his license (my oldest son) and another one about to.

"Thought I Would Join In"

2006-01-08T10:49:00.000-05:00

Both "K" & Erin did this list on their blogs and I liked them so much I thought I would join in.

My name ... Susan

Childhood Ambition ... Teacher

Fondest Memory ... Getting my childhood dog, a Collie named Ginger

Soundtrack ... Grease & Dirty Dancing

Retreat ... My bedroom, alone & quiet

Wildest Dream ... To own a logcabin type house on a lot of property

Proudest Moment ... Becoming a mom/the birth of my children

Biggest Challenge ... Weight & Staying out of debt

Alarm Clock ... I set my radio alarm but the real thing that wakes me is my littleman

Perfect Day ... Outside with family at a park or lake

First Job ... Sales person at Alexanders

Indulgence ... Having my hair dyed by a professional

Last Purchase ... Small one, books at Barnes & Noble yesterday. Big one, a couch & over sized chair a few months ago

Favorite Movie ... There are so many favorites

Inspiration ... My children

My life ... Always going

My card is actually ... Only active card Target, trying to pay off the rest

What about you??

P.S. Talked with "mama/emme" yesterday. She wanted me to say hello to all of you and she misses you all & blogging!

~Been Tagged With 5 Weird Things About Me~

2006-01-06T22:10:00.000-05:00

Erin tagged me to list 5 weird things about myself.

List 5 weird things about myself then tag 5 people. Let those 5 people know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog. So here it goes:

1. Before I go to bed at night I check the locks atleast twice and also the knobs on our gas stove. Always scared someone will come in while Iam sleeping & with a gas stove always afraid it isnt off all the way.

2. I have one black eye and one brown eye. The black eye is legally blind. When I was 9 I was hit in the eye with a fork to cause this.

3. I love to talk online with friends, once I know you I can go on forever say in chat or on IM, but ask me to call you and I become very quiet. Just ask "mama", she wanted to talk to me on the phone, gave me her number and all and it took me 2 months to actually call her. Now we are the closest of friends.

4. If I ask you to do something for me and its not done right away, I will get upset and do it myself.

5. I have extremely flat feet. They are so flat that if Iam running barefoot you can hear my feet slap against the ground. My feet, ankles, hands & wrists are also very thin (wedding band 4.5). Wish my body would follow suit.

Now for the part we all hate. I tag Pieces , Marv , Double , Karen & Me

Let me know if/when you play.

~Jammies & Pancakes What A Combo~

2006-01-05T22:24:00.000-05:00

Today I got to wear my jammies and slippers out in public well really there isnt a pair of jammie pants that I own that I would even be caught dead in, in public so I borrowed one of Skys fleece black pants and wore a knit t-shirt with my red slippers.

Why you ask did i go out in public like this ... It was jammie pancake breakfast day at littlemans school. The teachers decided to change it this year and make a breakfast out of it. The kids were all asked to wear their jammies & slippers and bring their favorite stuffed toy & flashlights. Any mom that volunteered was asked to try and wear some kind of jammies. Of course out of 15 moms only 3 of us volunteered, the same 3 everytime. And guess what we had to do? The school has a kitchen area and no pancakes wasnt enough, we made pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage & bacon. Someone also sent in muffins. The teachers kept the kids busy while the moms cooked this stuff. Then we brought it into the classroom and served the kids. They also had orange juice or milk to drink and toppings such as whipped cream, chocolate & white chocolate chips, bananas and of course syrup.

Except for a few most of the kids ate pretty well because the paper sent home said "Dont Feed Your Child Breakfast!" Of course littleman was one of the few that didnt eat much, he had bacon and 2 muffins, but when he tasted the pancakes he said he liked the ones at home better. I just started laughing, the ones I make at home are usually the mirowave ones cause there is so little time in the mornings for anything else.

After they ate we went into another room with stuffed toys and flashlights & they watched Nemo all us of spread out on blankets. I have to say it was a fun morning and its times like these with my kids that I will treasure forever. Oh yea except for the nice temperfit littleman threw when he found out the movie was Nemo. he doesnt like nemo, but of course if I wasnt there he would of never complained :-)

A tired looking littleman eating bacon & he just had to wear his new car jammies

Littleman eating with his classmates

It was very interesting to watch all the kids try & fit inside that teepee in the background. The girls got very pushy.

"Carpool Talk"

2006-01-03T23:17:00.000-05:00

Well after 2 weeks of craziness its was back to school and some form of routine today, still crazy but still a routine! Littleman & I are morning people so trying to get us up isnt a problem but the older two forget about it. I had to yell at my older son a few times to get into the shower ( he will only take them in the morning, heavens to bit if his hair would get messed up) and I almost had to drag my daughter out of bed and threatened to a few times. Sky was walking out the door as the bus came and Shain was still getting his shoes on. Me screaming at him as he was getting ready " IF I HAVE TO DRIVE YOU TO SCHOOL YOU WILL PAY LATER!". I know such a nice mom Iam :-)

So off they went and then it was littlemans turn to get ready for school. Well of course he decides this is the morning he is not going to do anything I say and its a struggle from everything to getting food into him to getting him out the door as Dragon Tales was on. Oh though of course last night all he could talk about was going back to school.

Anyways we get to pre-k and into the carpool line which sometimes seems like it takes forever. I always use this time to chat with littleman. He has 2 books on planets & has been interested in the them lately and out of nowhere starts asking me questions:

Littleman: Mommy, Where are the planets?

Me: They are up in space far away.

Littleman: How do we get on them.

Me: Well you are living are one. Remember in your book we talked about how we live on the planet Earth?

Littleman: Oh yea, Well how do we get to the other planets?

Me: Remember when we watched the rocket go up into space with the Astronauts?

Littleman: Yea

Me: Well the the Astronauts take that spaceship to the moon and hopefully some day to other planets.

Littleman: Do people live on the other planets?

Me: Nobody is really sure of that.

Littleman: How did we get on Earth?

Me: "Thinking to myself, now Iam in trouble" God put us on Earth.

Littleman: But you told me I came from your tummy and love.

Me: Well God made Adam & Eve and then they had a child out of love and it went on from there.

"pulling up to the drop off"

Me: Littleman time to unbuckle your belt, we're here.

Littleman: but Iam not done asking you questions.

Me: You are for now, we can talk more later.

"Teacher open the slider and out he goes"

This conversation happened over a period of about 10 minutes. He never did bring it up again when I picked him up, instead we talked about what he did in school.

Only a 4 going on 5 year old can make a conversation about planets turn into a conversation about having babies!

~Sleepy, Dreary, Rainy, Day Here~

2006-01-02T12:06:00.000-05:00

I sit here at noon still in my jammies, I know terrible but its just that kind of day. I was awoken at 4am this morning by high winds and strong thunderstorms. It was like the skys had just opened up and just kept dumping the rain upon us. Its been raining & storming off & on ever since. The weather is expected to be like this all day and into the night. They say with the cooler weather coming in, there is a possibility of hail and tornados. Gotta love it, NOT!

Littleman is driving the older 2 nuts wanting to play with them and all and they just want to do their own thing on their last day of winter break before they all head back to school tomorrow. So it looks like mommy will be his play buddy for some of today. Just one thing I hope he doesnt ask to play Atari games again, Santa is starting regret getting it, it seems to be littlemans favorite thing ever since daddy got him playing the games over the weekend.

Anyways I wont bore you all with typing about nothing. To the left is a picture of my dogs, they definitely have the right idea. Definitely a day for laying around doing nothing though i do have to get some housework done. Dont you just love the dogs beds, neither like the normal dog beds so one sleeps on an old pillow and the other sleeps on one of Skys old comforters. Thus is the life, gotta love it!

~May 2006 Be Wonderful For You All~

2005-12-31T14:56:00.000-05:00

I saw this saying and decided that I just had to start my year off with I BELIEVE!

I have 2 main goals this year, The first is to spend even more time with my children. They will be 18, 16 & 5 in 2006 and it all just goes by way to fast. The second is that I need to become one with my new body and work with what I have. By this I mean that in the past year my body because of age and being a woman has been going thru alot. I need to work with and around that and do what i need to do to be in a healthier body for me. As I have been saying to myself lately, my kids only have one mom and they need me and I need me to be the best I can be!

I Believe I Can Make This Happen!

I Hope To Get To Know You All Little Bit Better In The Coming Year, Wishing You All A Happy Healthy New Year, May All Your Wishes & Dreams Come True!

HUGS

"YOU WANT TO DO WHAT WHERE?"

2005-12-29T23:23:00.000-05:00

Today as I was minding my own business playing on the computer and my daughter 15 had just gotten off the phone with her bestfriend, she approaches me...

Her: Mommy, mommy ( yes she still calls me that & I still call my mom that) (excited)

Me: What Sky?

Her: Guess what "bestfriend" got done today?

Me: What?

Her: "bestfriend" got her belly pierced.

Me: (Stops typing) ... and?

Her: She says it hurt a lot but is glad her mom let her have it done. She says that her mom (adores Sky & is like a second mom) said that if you say its ok they will bring me to get mine done if I want.

Me: (mouth drops open, thinking when all her friends got second holes in their ears last year, she wouldnt because of the pain) ... Oh really, Is that something you would want done?

Her: I may, I have thought about asking you before, just not sure if I want it now or want to wait.

Me: Oh really! Well I guess you can but I want you to think about it before you make a definite decision about it. I dont want you getting it done just because "bestfriend" had it done.

Her: You would really let me get it done?

Me: Yes, but only if you are sure and I would have to go with you!

Her: I want you to go with me if I have it done so I can squish your hand while in pain. (nice huh) But not sure if I want to, Iam also worried that when I have children it will stretch out.

Me: Where did that come from?

Her: Just thinking.

To most of you this may be a big deal and to others no big deal at all. I have a very open relationship with my kids. This day & age you have to! If she decides she wants it done, I will be going with her. Would never let her get something like this done without me present. I have given her the ok on it cause from my experience from my teen years and now raising 2 teens, if you say no to something they most likely will try or do it behind your back and I much rather her do it with me there.

Well atleast its her bellybotton and nothing else. Nevermind that the only piercings her highschool alouds are ear ones.

I do have to say this much, if she does go thru with it, she has more guts then her mom who has always wanted a tattoo but always too chicken to get one! Though I did do my second ear hole piercings myself in highschool ... Can you say OUCH!

Its funny this subject was brought up today, because earlier, before Sky had come to me, I was at Pieces and her post was her HNT picture of her new bellyring.

And so a few more grey hairs get added to the bunch already dyed!

"And I Thought Things Would Calm Down.....

2005-12-27T20:43:00.000-05:00

Well its 2 days after Christmas and I thought maybe just maybe things would calm down around here but nope things are still as hectic as ever but in a different sort of way. Connor wants to play with everything he got, one thing after the other and MUST have someone playing with him at all times. Needless to say when Robert was here we tooked turns. Now that Robert left this morning, it was just me, though now that the older 2 are home, he is bugging them like crazy! Its great to see him so trilled over his gifts but we defintely have to get some playmates over here for him to play with or I will never get anything done. The older 2 came home today safely and for that iam so thankful. I am always on edge when they fly back & forth to New York.

Our Christmas was quiet if you wanna call Christmas with a 4 year old quiet, yea right! Christmas Eve he was all excited. Running like a nut. He loved the new jammies he got and squealed with excitement when he saw they were hotwheels jammies and just ripped off his clothes right there in the livingroom, lol. When Robert told him that Santa wouldnt come unless he was sleeping, he made sure we put out Santas snack and the reindeers and was in bed by 7:30 but of course didnt actually fall asleep till 9, which is late for him.

The child then woke up at the horrible hour of 5am! My AmbienCR hadnt even worn off yet :/, I made him go back to bed of which he did till 6 then was up again and so he just stayed with us till 7. Finally at 7 we went out to open presents. The look on his face when he saw that hotwheels bike was priceless. What sucked is that it rained all day Christmas day so he had to wait till yesterday to ride it. He also loved and ripped thru his other gifts which included some Leapster games, Stop & Go racetrack, some dvds, batman stuff, bunch of hotwheels, small remote control truck and so on.

Some of his favorites seem to be the racetrack, remote control truck & a Artari 40 game system santa got for the whole family which I forgot how much fun the "old" games could be.

Sky and Shain opened some of their gifts before they left for NY last week and some today. Shain got games and a memory stick for his PSP and some other things. His father actually came thru and got him a laptop of which I was well um, we wont get into it there, I guess what matters is Shain is in his glory. Sky is so into dvds, cds & books that is mostly what she got. I was the only one aloud to get her clothes cause she is so picky in that department. So her father gave her a bank debt gift card.

Robert & I also did well, he got lots of things he wanted and he got me, a nice size gift certificate, a really cute candle topper (I love and collect candles), a stain glass hanging picture of a angel ( I also love & collect angels) and some other things.

I took lots of pictures of littleman like always but Shain & Sky wouldnt let me take many of them. Below are some of the pictures I took. I dont know if littleman was tired, excited or what but some of his expressions are strange, lol.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, I cant believe 2006 is next week. The days just just seem to fly by. Please take the time to enjoy, your families, loved ones & friends each day! Hugs!

Sky & 1 of her many dvds she got, Dirty Dancing, also a favorite of mine

Shain hiding behind the memory stick he got

Littleman putting milk, cookies & carrots out for Santa & his reindeer, & yes Santa ate everything including the carrots :-)
Oh this is another of his favorites, Its a buliding set that also runs on remote control
Showing off his gifts
I think the child looks drunk here, lol. This Shake & Go racetrack is really cool
My littleman on his bike and if it was up to him he would be outside all day everyday on it

I Leave You On This Holiday Weekend With Things Littleman Made....

2005-12-24T22:32:00.000-05:00

I Would Just Like To Say Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah To All My Blogger Friends & Their Families In Blogger World! May You All Have A Very Blessed Holiday!

Some Of The Closest Friends I Have, I Have Met Online & Will Treasure Their Friendships Always!

Also Mama/Emme Says Merry Christmas To You All!

Much Love & Big Hugs To All
Suz

This wall hanging is what littleman made in school this year as a gift to mom & dad. The teacher did the writing & the kids stamp painted the figures on it.
This was the ornament he made this year. They took a clear glass ball and opened the top and added a couple of different colored paints inside then carefully with the teachers help swirled the ornament around.
Another side to the ornament
This wall hanging was mom & dads gift last year from littleman. A hand print Christmas tree

"What Do You Want For Christmas" ... Shrugs Shoulders

2005-12-23T09:06:00.000-05:00

I'll start by first saying this is a copy of a picture taken by the mall which came out really nice. I dont have a scanner and so I re-took the picture with my digital. Sorry about the glare mark, no matter how i took the picture it was still there somewhere. Of course if dummy me would of remembered my digital when I went to the mall I could of had some better pictures to post.

We ventured out Tuesday morning to go see Santa Claus cause Connor of course reminded me that we had not yet done so. I made sure we got there nice & early 9am to be exact and were the 3rd people in line, Yay! He went right up and sat on Santa's lap, was fine but when it came to Santa asking him what he wanted for Christmas, Connor just shrugged his shoulders and didnt say a word, LOL. He got down, collected his bell necklace and candy and waved goodbye. Santa asked me how old he was and said he was a sweet boy. Thinking to myself "Connor sweet?, hmmmmm" This mall always has a great santa. His beard and such are real and he never wears a hat, the kids seem to warm up to him easier that way.

Iam finally all DONE wrapping! Finished it all last night. Its all hiding in Shain's room since he isnt here and Connor wont go in there if Shain isnt here. Connor wants to make some more cookies, I gave him "I'll think about it!" for an answer.

~A Long Day At The Airport & A Wreath Ornament~

2005-12-22T10:49:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was hard for me as it is every other year when my older 2 have to spend Christmas with their father in New York. They go to New York 3 times a year, every other Christmas seems to be the hardest when they arent with me for Christmas, especially since they are getting older and wont be living at home forever.

So our day started off @ 6am where I tried to get everyone up for our trip to the airport. Connor loves going to the airport to see the big planes and watch them take off. Even though I have tried to explain many times why Shain & Sky have to go to New York to see "their" father, I still dont think that he quite gets the grip of the whole thing and why him & them have different dads. Iam sure in time he will understand. Anyways, my darling daughter is a bear to get out of bed and therefore made us late, running around like chickens without heads. I was so worried that we would hit the morning traffic, I live about 45mintues from Atlanta, and the morning traffic can be a nightmare, but for some reason fate was on our side and we made it to the airport in 50 minutes, 2 hours 20 minutes before their flight was taking off. I was sure the line at the baggage check in was going to be extremely long because of the holidays and it was but to my surprise it went really fast. I was also quite surprised that when we got up there they asked me if I wanted to go with my kids to the gate. Of course I said yes! I was surprised because Shain had turned 17 last March and when he turned 17 the airlines said I could no longer go with them so I didnt go to the gate in the spring and summer when they went to see their father, instead had to wait in the main terminal till I knew the plane took off.

So to the gates the 4 of us went. Iam a big people watcher and totally enjoyed looking at all the different people walking by me. Of course probably because of the time of the year there were a lot of military men & woman also traveling. When it came for Sky & Shain to board Connor didnt want them to go and they didnt want to go (long story). Anyways they boarded and we stood by the windows watching the planes until theirs took off. They will be there till next Tuesday. They do call me every night.

So yes Iam a bit down, but must keep my spirits up for my littleman. Christmas Eve Santa will place the older twos gifts under the tree with Connors and they will open them when they get home. So for Christmas it will be me, Connor & Robert who will be home Saturday morning till Tuesday morning (Yay!). A small family Christmas, but Iam sure it wont be quiet with my littleman around.

Yesterday when we got home from the airport my littleman said "Now its just you and me till daddy comes home Saturday. Can we do something together like make the wreath ornament I got from school"? (he came home with the stuff from school, something they didnt have time to do in school) so after lunch we did.

Materials needed: 1 pipe cleaner in green, red or white & 16 beads each of red, green & white for a total of 48. Alternate the different color beads in a pattern on the pipe cleaner. Then form the pipe cleaner with beads on it into a circle. Take the ends and twist around into a bow. You can also make a candycane one with a white or red pipe cleaner and red & white beads.

~A Sunday Of Baking~

2005-12-19T22:55:00.000-05:00

Well after I posted Sunday morning I set off what I said I was going to do & that was BAKE! Of course littleman was right there ready & willing to help. It took us about 5 hours to bake 6 different batches of cookies but only 2 kinds for now. Sky helped off & on. I think, no I know littleman was driving her nuts off & on & thats why she didnt stay the how time. By the last hour littleman had given up on me and there I stood by myself baking the rest of the cookies. By the time I/we were done with everything, I was so exhausted that there was no way I was going to cook dinner and so we got take out!

You ever notice how much longer it takes to bake cookies when a 4 year old is helping ... twice as long! He had to do everything from measuring to pouring to mixing & rolling. Oh and lets not forget cut out every single sugar cookie himself! But atleast we did have lots of fun and those memories are the kind we will treasure forever.

Oh lets not forget the wonderful Gingerbread House kit Connor just had to have. After the cookies were done, just before dinner time, Connor reminds me, "Mommy you forgot the Gingerbread House" thinking to myself, "no honey I didnt, Iam just too tired to do it". But thats not what I said, instead I asked Sky to help him with it. so I put it together and they decorated it. At one point littleman put so much candy on one side of the roof that he slid off twice. He of course wouldnt listen to Sky when she asked him to stop, so I had to step in and tell him to wait on putting on more candy till we repaired the roof & got it to stay.

Do you know that after all the excitement & fuss he had over this Gingerbread House wanting to buy it, make it, eat it and such, just couldnt wait and so on. Today I gave him the ok to have some and the child tells me he doesnt like the icing because its hard now and he doesnt like the taste of the gingerbread. Kids gotta love them.

Below are some pics from the day ... And if you notice littleman's eyes are red thats because my poor littleman has pink eye, I know just want I didnt need. When I put drops in his eyes, he acts as if I was killing him. Hopefully his eyes will heal quickly!

And we're off...

So into his mixing
These are called Christmas Crescent Pecan Cookies, notice the shape isnt a crescent, lol. It was easier to for Connor to make them like this.

Here are the Sugar cookies. I also saved a batch of these to put icing on. Connor insisted on decorating these all himself.

Sky & Connor pretending to attack the house

And just a cute picture of the them & the Gingerbread House they decorated together.

Sharing Something A Friend Sent Me...

2005-12-18T10:21:00.000-05:00

A friend sent this to me in an email. After the day I had on Friday, its fits perfectly.

http://i.euniverse.com/funpages/cms_content/2529/4candles.swf

Iam about to sign off and attempt to do a Gingerbread House kit with Connor (Lord help me) & bake some cookies. Hope you all are having a great weekend.

Hugs!

"Which Superhero Are You?"

2005-12-18T09:13:00.001-05:00

I got this from Kristen's blog. For some reason I couldnt get the picture to show, but as you can see it says iam Superman, lol

Your results:
You are Superman

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Superman		50%
Spider-Man		50%
Robin		50%
Wonder Woman		40%
Supergirl		35%
Batman		25%
Hulk		25%
Green Lantern		15%
The Flash		10%
Catwoman		0%
Iron Man		0%

%20HREF="

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

~I Knew I Shouldn't Of Left The House....

2005-12-16T17:49:00.000-05:00

About a week ago grandma sent the kids each a Walmart gift card for Christmas. I decided not to tell littleman about his yet and instead put it away for a later day. Well I made the mistake of not telling my older kids to be quiet about it and next thing I know Tuesday Connor is bugging me to take him shopping knowing that Shain, my big mouth oldest one spent some of his already! After trying really hard to convince him that he should wait till after Christmas and failing, I told him I will take him on Friday when he has no school. When I wokeup this morning I was hoping he would forget & I could stay home except to get Shain from school at 10:30 after his mid-term was done. No such luck! When we went to get Shain the first thing out of Connor's mouth was "Are we going to Walmart?". My answer "maybe", his reply "no maybe, you promised!" Of course the word "promise" never came out of this mouth.

Anyways I pick up Shain & he asks me to drop him off at a friends house, well guess what store I have to pass on the way to the friends house? So I told Shain fine but I have to go to the bank first & two you have to come to Walmart with me to help with Connor.

So back to why I should of never left the house.... We get to the bank, the line for the drive thru was long and there were no cars in the parking lot so i decide to go in. I was in & out in less then 5 minutes. Coming out I almost get hit by some dam suv that comes flying into the parking lot on the wrong side of the road. I had to stop my feet short in order for her not to hit me. Then I get into my van and pull out. Iam leaving, at the entrance/exit of the parking lot there is a stop sign. As I come to the stop sign I have to slam on by breaks cause some idiot lady decides she is gonna come into the parking lot on the wrong side of the road, then the dam lady decides she is not gonna move and stays there! Shain was in the front with me and Connor was in his seat in the back behind me. So this lady proceeds to say thru her window that she isnt moving and calls me a F***ing bitch cause I wont get out of her way & she is on my side of the road (gotta love the crazies this time of the year brings out). I refuse to move for what seems to be an enternity pissing her off even more and then decided she isnt worth my time and made sure the other side was clear and took off, biting my tongue as I leave. I think if I was alone, even if i was just with Shain, I would stayed there longer or even gotten out of the van, but knowing I had Connor in the van I knew I had to just be the better person and leave, giving her the dirtiest look as I passed.

So we take off to Walmart, Connor finds a Sponge Bob computer game he likes and a jeep type truck (just what he doesnt need, another thing with wheels :/). I need to get milk and a few other things and next thing I know my free spirited Connor is driving his jeep all over everything and bumping into people. After asking Shain to watch him/control him several times, I decided to tell a tired Connor that if he doesnt stop Iam gonna take the new things away from him. He didnt stop, but instead decided to have one heck of a melt down (thank goodness we dont get many of these). We get to the van and Shain had to literally pick him up and place him in the van while I unloaded the cart and he threw a fit all the way home, then he had the nerve to ask for his new things of which i said "not till you know how to behave yourself, and that means no saying no, no screaming and no banging things". I proceeded to say if you can be good between now (was 4:00) & dinner time which is usually about 6, I will think about giving you your stuff. During those 2 hours he stayed in his room and played with his other things and only asked once for his new things. After dinner and bath I gave him back his jeep and game. He played with the jeep for a while and because he was tired (wonder why), he wasnt gonna play his game till tomorrow.

Below is my littleman who was so exhausted he fell asleep on my bed watching TV ... He went from having a huge meltdown this afternoon to a sleeping precious prince tonight. And yes I cropped the picture, he destroyed my bed before he fell asleep.

How come there is never a bottle of wine around when you need one......

"Do We Have To Wear Those Things?"

2005-12-15T10:11:00.000-05:00

Tuesday was Connor's Pre-K Christmas play and Christmas party. "Do we have to wear those things?" according to one of Connor's teachers is what he said when she went to put the shepherds head dressing on him. Of course all the parents thought all the kids looked adorable as always. The play went very well, except for the fact that when the angels were on the bleaches they covered up all the sheep & shepherds in the back with their halos. The angels did come down half way thru to sing to baby Jesus.

Afterwards they had a party in their classroom where of course they ate a ton of junk, decorated sugar cookies of which Connor made his a tye-dye type tree & snowman. After eating they exchange wrapped books that were sent in by the parents earlier. Below are some pictures of the day.

Iam so dreading going out this morning the trees are covered in ice (my butterfly tree has suddenly become quite flexible, along with my Playhut snowman whose hat is frozen solid and therefore top heavy and bending over :/), its been raining and icing all night but since the roads are just wet the kids still have school which means I have to take Connor out in this mess, YUCK!. A lot of schools east of us are closed because the ice over that way is a lot worse, and a lot of electric is out. I do somehow need to make my way to the postoffice today to mail out 5 packages, 1 of which is quite big. Anyway hopefully this mess will let up some so that I can do what I need to do. Oh and lets not forget i have to get Sky at 1:30 cause thats when her midterms end today ... ARGH!

Update sorta ... Didnt get to post this earlier, ran out of time to load the pictures. Bringing Connor to school (in my jammies wrapped up in a jacket) made me realize why I dont miss the ice. The roads were slick and it was so "NOT" nice to have ice falling from the trees onto the van while I was driving. Anyways never made it the postoffice, just came back home. Maybe I will try again later when I have to venture out 2 more times.

My littleman sorta dressed as a shepherd, getting ready for the play.

The class filing in on the bleaches. Notice Connor barely hanging on to the edge on the left. During the play they had to move him down a step or he would of ended up on the floor. The lady in red is his assistant teacher. His regular teacher cut her thumb bad on Thankgiving and have to have surgery this week to try and prepare damaged nerves.

There are 2 Pre-K classes. Both did the play together. This was taken during the play. Notice most of the kids in the back including Connor on the left are covered by the angels.

This is Connor's class. This picture definitely should of been taken before they ate all that sugar. Trying to get a decent picture of them all was near to impossible!

~Finally Pics Of My Tree & Traditions~

2005-12-13T06:58:00.000-05:00

Finally I have found the time to take and post pics of my Christmas tree. My tree is a fake one. The ornaments on the tree are all different kinds. Some that the children have made. Others are Hallmark ones of which I get atleast one of every year, I just loved them. Some belong to the kids and some were given to me in exchanges. My tree is always decorated in white lights, with all the different kinds of ornaments that I have on it, I think you can see the ornaments better with white lights then color ones. I always finish it off with gold bows & gold beads, topped off with a lighted angel. There is a tree skirt on the bottom that has trains on it.

Some of our family traditions include:

Ever since my kids were born I have gotten them each year their own ornaments and as they got older they would pick out their own. Therefore the explanation for the cars, trucks, superman, Disney charaters, Star Wars & Star Trek ships and so on my tree. I decided to do this so that when my children get older and leave our home, they will each have a box of ornaments & memories to take with them to start their own trees.

The tree is always topped with an angel. I do this 1, because I love angels and 2, because that is what was on my tree when I was a child.

Another one is they always got new jammies for Christmas of which they open Christmas Eve to wear that night.

And of course we always make cookies. Our favorites seem to be Powered Pecan Christmas Crescent Cookies, Butter Cookies in many shapes and Oatmeal Scotties. Santa Claus always gets cookies and milk waiting for him when he comes. Santa always leaves a tiny bit of milk and crumbs so that we know he enjoyed his cookies. Oh & we cant forget the reindeer who we leave carrots out for.

Also every year the Southern Stay At Home Mom Yahoo Group I belong to does a secret ornament exchange. I have 5 different ornaments on the tree from different southern moms.

Hope you all enjoy the pictures!

My Christmas tree of which my littleman & myself put up.

Every year Simba finds his way to the tree skirt and this spot is where he sleeps till we take the tree down. Where as our other cat Milo seems to find his way up the tree instead of under it. :-)

Yes there is 8 stockings hanging up. Robert, myself, my 3 kids and my 3 stepkids. Even though Robert's kids dont live with us, we still put their stockings up. It makes us feel their is a part of them with us during the holidays especially since they live in Ohio and we dont always get to see them at this time of the year.

This is our Advent Calendar. I saw it about 12 years ago when Shain was 5 on clearance at Sears, thought it was so cute and just had to have it. The string has a Santa attached to it and you place the Santa in each numbered pocket leading up to Christmas.

~A Noah's Ark Game & A Cute Joke~

2005-12-11T10:50:00.000-05:00

Today's post is gonna be simple. Robert came home this morning (he is sleeping) and will be here for about 24 hours and then gone for a week again, possibly more, till the 24th. When he awakes we will probably venture out to the mall (just when I think Iam done shopping, I think of someone else to buy for :/) and then out to dinner.

Below are 2 things that were sent to me. The first a Noah's Ark Match Game. It took me 11 tries before I could save all the animals, lol And the second is a cute joke.

Noah's Ark Match Game ... Can you save the animals?

Click here: Noah's Ark

Cute Joke:

You've got to love this little girl.
What a woman she'll make!

A teacher asked her class,
"What do you want out of life?"

A little girl in the back row raised her hand and said,
"All I want out of life is four little animals."

The teacher asked,
"Really and what four little animals
would that be sugar?"

The little girl said,
"A mink on my back,
a jaguar in the garage,
a tiger in the bed and
a jackass to pay for all of it."

The teacher fainted.

Welcome to the 2005 Holiday Edition of Getting to Know Your Friends!

2005-12-10T10:27:00.000-05:00

This morning Iam dancing around my house to upbeat Christmas cds, hey I have to get my excercise some how!

Have A Wonderful Weekend Everyone! Hugs!

I got this from Anne's Blog....

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot chocolate

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? wrapped of course

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I have colored on the outside, white on the tree inside

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No

5. When do you put your decorations up? the weekend after Thanksgiving

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Baked spiral honey ham

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? making cookies with mom

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I was 9 years old, from neighborhood friends. I was so upset, but till this day in my heart I still believe!

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? The kids all get new jammies that they open up & put on

10. What kind of cookies does Santa get set out for him? Christmas Cresent & Butter

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Have always loved it if I dont have to drive in it.

12. Can you ice skate? yes

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? when I was a kid, an Easy Baked Oven, As an adult, a full day at a day spa

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being with family and also giving to others

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Christmas Cresent cookies that I make, they are very addicting

6. What is your favorite holiday tradition? making cookies & getting my kids their 1 new ornament every year

17. What tops your tree? A lighted Angel, thats what we had on the tree when I was a child & I wanted the same

18. Which do you prefer Giving or Receiving? Defintely giving!

19. What is your favorite Christmas Carol? All I Want For Christmas Is You & Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Silent Night, Oh I love them all, lol

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? YUM

So now it is your turn.

"Never Would Eat This As A Child"

2005-12-09T10:30:00.000-05:00

Iam eating something that looks like this ... WHY? I never would eat oatmeal as a child. I always thought it was the nastiest tasting food on this earth nevermind the look & smell of it always made me sick. So Sunday I decided I have to really do something to try and get my weight under some kind of control. Between the Lupus, The Fibro & the dam body peri_menopausal changes my weight just seems to be going up & up & it just plain SUCKS!

So this week I decided that I was gonna try my hardest to eat healthier and get back on track with some kind of exercise. Of course the exercise part is difficult because of a messed up foot and arthritis, so Iam walking for now atleast every other day and doing some light weightlifting. I have also gotten out my Windsor Pilates cd for the legs and but area and doing that.

Anyway I decided to try Quaker Instant Oatmeal "Weight Control" in Banana Bread & Cinnamon. I have been eating this every other morning for breakfast this week. I have to say it took all I had to get the Banana Bread flavor one down my throat. I truly thought I was gonna be sick. I put the box up in the cabinet thinking maybe someone else in the house would eat it cause Iam sure am not gonna. Wednesday I decided I would punish myself again and made another bowl of oatmeal. This time I made the Cinnamon and to my surprise I actually liked this flavor a lot and have been eating it, though I still say the stuff looks nasty!

Why do you ask Iam have decided to try and eat healthy now during the worse time of the year when all the good, yummy foods are around???? Well one, lately Kristen & Michelle has been talking about what they have been doing to get healthier and such on their blogs and it has been getting me to thinking and two, I was gonna wait but decided that if I can try and control my eating now, not depriving myself but instead a treat here and there then maybe, just maybe it will be easier for me to go full force into it in January. I also keep No Pudge, Weight Watchers & Healthy Choice Ice Creams in the freezer for those sweet tooth fixes. My favorites: No Pudge Giant Strawberry Shortcake & also their icecream cones, WW's Chocolate Cookie Crumble icecream pop & also their icecream cones & Healthy Choices Caramel Swirl Sandwiches. I have to say all have helped with my sweet cravings.

Now if I can just keep my self control up while I make all those dam Christmas cookies, Oy Vey, gonna need help with that one.

Why do we torture ourselves like this????

Oh I almost forgot, roasted almonds have become my new best friend!

Never Knew There Could Be Love So Strong As...

2005-12-07T14:28:00.000-05:00

Before I had my children/became a mother I never new there could be love so strong as that for your children. Yes I have said in my last post there are times I don't want to hear the word "mommy" but I wouldnt give up being a mommy for anything in the world!

Each one of my kids brings their own special personality into my world. Below is one picture of each of them that I took last night. Connor the ham was more then willing to get his picture taken. Skylar had to have several taken before she would even consider letting me put it on the internet. And Shain my stubborn oldest gave me a hard time so I clicked this while he was playing his Bass. I do have to say they are all great kids and iam very proud of all of them!

Connor 4.5 & all boy! Yep he is laying on top of the bubbles. This picture definitely shows his playful side. As most of you know is a ham who loves to get his picture taken. My littleman has the most energy of all my kids. He is both outgoing & shy. I definitely call him my "free spirited" child. He says he would like to be a fireman when he grows up.

Skylar 15 & definitely not a girlie girl! I think this picture shows her femine side even though she would never admit it. Sky as most call her is more on the shy side except when it comes to hanging with her friends. Reading, writing poetry & listening to any kind of music (she has a huge collection) is what she loves to do. Oh dont let me forget the phone which is known to be glued to her ear. She would like to go to college for journalism.

Shain 17.5 & stubborn as they come! This definitely shows Shains artistic side. He did not want his picture taken at all so I tricked him and while he was showing me something he taught himself to play I took the pic :-) Shain & Connors personalities are very similar. Shain is into music, the kind that hurts your ears, lol. He is very outgoing. He loves to play the Bass which he taught himself how to do with the help of my hubby. He also loved to draw. He would like to go to Techical school to become a radiologist.

Call Me Anything But Mommy.....

2005-12-05T17:36:00.000-05:00

This is how I have been feeling lately until I got a email earlier (posted below) that remind me how much I love being a mommy.

Lately my nerves have been on edge and the stress of being a semi-single parent is getting to me. Dont get me wrong I love my 3 kids around the world and back again and back again and back again etc..... as i have always told them but lately everytime I hear that word "Mommy" i just want to run and hide or wish i could change my name. With the holidays here I feel like iam being pulled in so many different directions. My older two have a lot going on with school and such and mid-terms coming up next week, it seems everytime I turn around one of them wants something from me. And then there is poor Connor. I love my baby dearly, when he was born he was definitely a blessed gift, all my kids are but for some reason raising my 3rd seems to be the hardest or maybe I just had more patience when I was younger then I do now as I have said in other posts. When Connor isnt at school he is always at my feet. I feel like Iam always saying "NO" to him and I cant stand that word so I try really hard not to say it, but then I say dont do that or dont touch this and is that really that much better then NO? He is your typical 4 year old boy and boy do i mean BOY! If there is trouble to get into my littleman will definitely find it.

Anyways, lately whenever I hear the word "mommy" my response is mommy isnt here, my name isnt mommy. And then I get the email I told you about today. This isnt the first year that I have gotten this email but am glad that every year someone sends it to me and makes me think for a minute that even though I may say dont call me "mommy" at times I wouldnt want to be called anything else in the world. Being a mom may be the hardest job on this earth but its also the most rewarding and I wouldnt trade all those "HUGS" & I LOVE YOU'S" for anything in the world!

Shain, Skylar & Connor: If you should ever read this, always know that mommy loves you more then anything in this world ... I Love You Around The World & Back Again & Back Again.....

Shain just called me and I didnt answer him cause I was typing so he came over here and peaked and read the title to the post and started calling me ... Susan, Mrs. ___ and so on, lol

'Twas the Night Before Christmas...Mom-style

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the abode, Only one creature was stirring & she was cleaning the commode. The children were finally sleeping, all snug in their beds,while visions of Nintendo & Barbie flipped through their heads. Yes, and dad was snoring in front of the TV,with a half constructed bicycle propped on his knee. So only the mom heard the reindeer hooves clatter,which made her sigh, "Now what is the matter?" With toilet bowl brush still clutched in her hand, She descended the stairs, and saw the old man. He was covered with ashes & soot, which fell with a shrug, "Oh great," muttered the mom, "Now I have to clean the rug." "Ho Ho Ho!" cried Santa, I'm glad you're awake." "your gift was especially difficult to make." "Thanks, Santa, but all I want is time alone." "Exactly!" he chuckled, "So, I've made you a clone." "A clone?" she muttered, "What good is that?" "Run along, Santa, I've no time for chit chat." Then out walked the clone - The mother's twin, Same hair, same eyes, same double chin." She'll cook, she'll dust, she'll mop every mess. You'll relax, take it easy, watch TV and rest. "Fantastic!" the mom cheered. "My dream has come true!" "I'll shop, I'll read, I'll sleep a night through!" From the room above, the youngest did fret."Mommy?! Come quickly, I'm scared and I'm wet. "The clone replied, "I'm coming, sweetheart." "Hey," the mom smiled, "She sure knows her part. "The clone changed the child and hummed her a tune, as she bundled the small one in a blanket cocoon. "You're the best mommy ever. I really love you. "The clone smiled and sighed, "And I love you too. "The mom frowned and said, "Sorry, Santa, no deal. That's my child's LOVE she is going to steal. "Smiling wisely, Santa said: "To me it is clear, Only one loving mother is needed here. "The mom kissed her child and tucked her in bed. "Thank You, Santa, for clearing my head. Sometimes I forget, it won't be very long, before they'll be too old for my cradle and song. "The clock on the mantle began to chime. Santa whispered to the clone, "It works every time. "With the clone by his side, Santa said: "Goodnight. Merry Christmas, dear Mom, you'll be all right. "Sometimes we need reminding of what life is all about. Especially at times when the Holiday season shouts, and all we do is clean, bake, and procure. You get the picture -- I'm sure. So stop for a moment and hug that little one so dear, whether he/she is 2 or 22, or even older this year. For they are the gift that God gave us from Heaven above, and what a special gift to be treasured, with endless LOVE!

May The Real Meaning Of Christmas Be With You All Year.

~Dreary, Rainy & Cold & A Joke!~

2005-12-03T16:35:00.000-05:00

Its 4:30 in the afternoon and its dark outside, raining & only 39 degrees. It was suppose to hit the high 40's but never did. I was hoping to have pictures to show you of our day but that isnt gonna happen.

Our plans for today were to go to the Holiday craft festival in the town park and then off to the Christmas parade down Main St. Which should of been starting now! I dont know if the town was crazy enough to still have it, but I do know Iam not crazy enough to go out in that mess with us at the end of our colds. Yes littleman was quite upset that we werent going (he had been talking about it all week) but I got out all the Christmas show tapes we have (Grinch, Santa Claus Coming To Town & so on) & we have been watching those.

I did venture out with Shain earlier while Sky watch Connor. He has been looking for a job so we dropped applications off at Target, Wendys & Caribou Coffee. Hopefully someone calls him. He also wanted to go to Old Navy, 1- to see if they are hiring which they are but you have to apply online, a lot of places are like that now & 2- And this one I wasnt happy with but its his money. He got his EX-girlfriend a birthday gift. Ok yes I have taught my kids it feels great when you give gifts but come on. They have been broken up for over a month now and he is still pining over her really badly. Lord I just wish he would find another girl and get his mind off of her. She hurt him and he still cares so deeply for her ... ARGH!

Anyways below is a joke that was sent to me in my email and I thought it was cute and decided to share. I hope I dont offend anyone. :-)

HUGS

Onions & Christmas Trees

A family is at the dinner table. The son asks his father, "Dad, how many kinds of boobies are there? The father, surprised, answers, "Well, son, there's three kinds of breasts. In her twenties, a women's breasts are like melons, round and firm. In her thirties to forties, they are like pears, still nice but hanging a bit. After fifty, they are like onions."

"Onions?"

"Yes, you see them and they make you cry."

This infuriated his wife and daughter so the daughter said, "Mum, how many kinds of 'willies' are there?" The mother, surprised, smiles and answers, "Well dear, a man goes through three phases - each like a different type of tree. In his twenties, he is like an oak tree, mighty and hard. In his thirties and forties, it is a birch, flexible but reliable. After his fifties, it is like a Christmas tree."

"A Christmas s tree?"

"Yes, dead from the root up and the balls are for decoration!!!"

~Littleman's List To Santa~

2005-12-02T08:53:00.000-05:00

Today Iam feeling so drained. This going through the "changes" so early and my cycle being so messed up (2 times in one month and then not having it for 2 months) is driving me nuts and very exhausting. It seems that when it does come I cant seem to function & I have never been this way before. I have to say sometimes it just stinks to be a female!

So anyways today I will leave you with my littleman's letter or should I say list to Santa Claus, That he insisted on writing the whole thing himself which Iam very proud of him for doing so but oh my goodness this list took forever to do! He also wrote so big that we used both sides of the paper. Of course being 4, he wants everything he sees on TV, but he was told that Santa has to give to other little boys and girls also so we narrowed it down to these things on his list.

The 3rd pic is of him this morning, standing so proud with his letter. Notice the barefeet, its 30 degrees out and he wont put socks on. He is like his mom, if at all possible just let me go barefoot!

Have A Great Weekend All! HUGS

Ok, So Iam Flipping Channels....

2005-12-01T07:42:00.000-05:00

And come to TLC. They are showing 3 ladies on tables getting some kind of things put into their backs so i decide to keep it on and see what it is since TLC can have very interesting things on sometimes. I "come" (no pun intended) to find out the show is called "Electric Orgasm" (A North Carolina anesthesiologist induces orgasms in women using pain relief technology. Follow three women who have never experienced orgasm through a clinical trial that unlocks secrets to the human brain's pleasure zone.)

Of course I got even more interested and watched the whole program. Through surgery, these woman had electros placed into their bodies through their backs. In one lady the doctor seem to place it in the right place right away. In the other 2 he had troubles getting it in the right place. The electros were control by a hand held device that had different degrees of controls on it. After the surgeries the couples were put up in an hotel and watched, yes I said watched for a week on how the thing worked. One woman had great success. The other 2, it didnt work on.

I personally would never get something like this done, one because I wouldnt want some thing stuck in my back all the time and two because I have never had a problem having a orgasm before.

I know this is far from the norm of my regular blogging, but I found the show to be very interesting. That these poor woman would go thru this procedure, place this thing in their backs, just to go thru an orgasm atleast once. I did find it extremely interesting that our orgasms are brought on and controlled by parts of our brains.

~Yea, So What Are They For...~

2005-11-29T17:56:00.000-05:00

I was going thru Maxine cartoons (which I love) and came across this one which reminded me of something that happened to me about 7 years ago.

At the time I was having problems with my ears. They kepted ringing a lot and were always itchy. I went to my doctor who then told me I should see an Ear/Nose/Throat specialist. I made the appointment and went. I told the specialist what was going on and the first thing he ask me was "Do you use cotton swaps/Q-Tips?". When I told him yes, he said "then thats your problem". He said "Those things are the worst things made to man and should be banned!". He said "that they take out the wax in your ear that is meant to be there and that most people over use them". Then he told me that I had hardly no wax left and therefore that was the problem for the itching and ringing. He said "If you stop using those things, the ringing and itching will go away within a month, if not then make another appointment to come see me."

I never did have to make another appointment and to this day i rarely use any kind of cotton swaps.

"What's Your Blogging Personality?"

2005-11-28T13:23:00.000-05:00

I took the test and my results are on the bottom of the post. Some of this is true though the last part isnt cause I dont know how to make my blog all fancy, but if I did I would.

Not much new here. Its cool and rainy out, the kind of day you just want to crawl up in bed and go to sleep or even better snuggle. Iam still not feeling right but with Lupus my immune system usually takes longer then most to get rid of colds and such.

After 4 days of being home, Robert went back to work last night :-( Littleman defintely isnt happy about it. This was the longest Robert has been home since he went to this job in Sept. The first thing Connor asked for this morning was daddy. Thank goodness he had school and that got his mind distracted from the subject of daddy for now.

We did manage to decorate the house inside and out for Christmas and when I get a chance I will post pictures.

Your Blogging Type is Kind and Harmonious

You're an approachable blogger who tends to have many online friends.
People new to your blogging circle know they can count on you for support.
You tend to mediate fighting and drama. You set a cooperative tone.
You have a great eye for design - and your blog tends to be the best looking on the block!

What's Your Blogging Personality?

Cleaning/Playing In Leaves & Stuffed Up

2005-11-26T10:50:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving here was quiet but nice. Robert came home about 7:30 Thursday morning and slept some while I cooked. We had turkey, mashedpotatoes, stuffing, greenbeans, rolls, cranberry sauce, & gravy. Apple & Pumpkin pie for dessert. Way to much food and still leftovers in the fridge. It was just us which is nice since Robert had to work so late Wednesday night.

Yesterday I wokeup all stuffed up, nose and ears feeling really yucky and Connor & Sky both seem to have colds also, of course iam sure the weather being 70's one day and 40's next doesnt help. Robert dragged me to Target & NO I wasnt one of the nuts that got up at 5am, we didnt go till 11am and it really wasnt that bad. We had to get some things for one of my stepdaughters and also littleman and we wanted to get the things before the stores ran out. After Target we went to Hallmark where Iam really glad Robert was with me cause I can go crazy with their ornaments there. We went to get Connor this truck one I promised him and ended up walking out with 4, I know bad me! Robert starting putting Christmas lights up yesterday on the outside cause he has to go back to work tomorrow night and who knows when he will be home again to do it. Of course this made littleman all excited and he wants the tree up. We shall see if Iam feeling up to it later today or tomorrow.

Yesterday my oldest was raking leaves and littleman decides he wants to help or should I say play in them, lol. At first Shain wasnt to happy with Connor messing up the piles but soon he let loose and him and littleman had fun in the piles. Below are some pics of them in the leaves and one of me and littleman.

Gonna drown myself in cold meds today, boy I wish I could breathe!

Connor being a ham

Connor buried in leaves

Shain was throwing leaves on Connor
Shain (my oldest) & Connor

And a messy hair, no makeup me with Connor

~Happy Turkey Day To All You Bloggers~

2005-11-23T18:40:00.000-05:00

This was sent to me thru my yahoo group and I thought it was just too cute and funny. I hope you enjoy it also.

Happy Thanksgiving click link above & turn on sound

Stuffing all made to be cooked, pies all ready. Just finished getting the turkey ready to put in the oven for tomorrow morning. As I was cleaning "Bob" The Turkey (yes we name our turkeys, my mom always did it when I was growing up and I just continued it. Connor named it Bob, lol), anyways I was cleaning him and littleman saw the red popper and ask "Why does the turkey still have an eye in it". I tried really hard not to laugh and then explained to littleman what the red dot was. Then I stabbed the turkey with a knife like I always do and littleman was yelling at me to stop, that I was stabbing the turkeys head. I had to then explained that the turkeys head was already gone and he was like oh ok and walked away, ROFL. Kids are just way to funny. Today he made me buy cinnamon rolls for tomorrow morning. Said all he wants tomorrow are cinnamon rolls and mashed potatoes.

Robert will be home sometime in the morning, he will sleep some then spend the day with us as well as Friday, Saturday & Sunday, Yay! He will be going back to his job Sunday night :-( Well atleast he gets to spend that much time with us, its the most since he started the job in Sept.

Happy Thanksgiving To All My Blogger Friends & Your Families, Iam So Thankful You All Have Come Into My Life. Have A Wonderful Day! And For Those Of You Traveling, Have A Safe Trip!

Big Hugs To All

!i! Been Tagged Again !i!

2005-11-23T09:30:00.000-05:00

I have been tagged again by Erin this time, thanks Erin :-P

So here are the rules. Pay close attention because you may be the next to partake in all the fun!Remove the blog at #1 from the following list and bump everyone up one place; then add your blog to the #5 spot.

1. Breazy
2. Blither
3. Tammy
4. Erin
5. Suz

Next select 5 friends to piss off :

1. mama/emme
2. Angela
3. Claire
4. Sheri&SuZan
5. "Me"

What were you doing 10 years ago?

My ex & I had just bought our first house and we were in for a bad winter. (Had a huge snow storm that winter with over 2 feet of snow at once)

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Getting ready for the holidays, adopted Milo my second kitty this month a year ago.

5 snacks you enjoy:

1. WW icecream in freezer now
2. No Pudge icecream also in freezer now and cheaper then WW's
3. most kinds of nuts
4. popcorn
5. chocolate covered peanuts & raisins

5 songs to which you know all the lyrics: This is gonna take some thinking :/

1. The Sweest Thing ... U2
2. Right To Be Wrong ... Joss Stone
3. Landslide ... Fleetwood Mac/Dixie Chicks ... Loved this song ever since Fleetwood Mac first did it
4. Lady ... Lenny Kravitz
5. Listen To Your Heart ... D.H.T ... My daughter just got this & plays it constantly so the words are stuck in my head

5 things you would do if you were a millionare:

1. Pay of all my debts, wouldnt everyone?
2. Give some to charities
3. Share some with family members
4. Put my kids thru college
5. Buy a nice house
6. Invest ... I know thats 6 but hey you have to invest some

5 bad habits:

1. being over sensitive
2. always saying shit
3. Iam a worry wart
4. things have to be done right away or I will do them
5. between meals snacking

5 things you like doing:

1. Walking in the woods
2. swimming but never get to
3. Playing/spending time with my kids
4. Spending time with hubby which is rare
5. and why blogging of course

5 things you would never wear again:

1. Big glasses
2. Bikini ... stole this from Erin
3. leggings
4. blue eyeshadow
5. pigtails, lol

5 favorite toys:

1. computer
2. weights
3. Digital Camera
4. my pets, i have fun with them
5. movies on dvds

"Some Things Just Make Me Cry"

2005-11-21T10:28:00.000-05:00

My daughter 15, loves all kinds of music and I do mean all kinds, anything from pop, to rock, to rap to Christian to Jazz and so on. Over the weekend she brought out all of her Christmas music and we were listening to it all while cleaning and also singing and dancing to it, which I love to do, yea I know Iam a geek.

Well there is this one Christmas song that always gets to me and yes I just start bawling out of no where. Its called "The Christmas Shoes" (Lyrics Posted Below). Well Sunday Sky was playing this song and yes I just lost it, crying like a baby. Iam a very sensitive, passionate person and the littlest things can set me off.

Also over the weekend we were out getting things ready for Thanksgiving and among all the people rushing, pushing around, I noticed the decorations around town and I thought to myself, "so sad that all these people cant just stop for a minute, breathe, realize what they have in their lives and celebrate the holidays the way they were suppose to be celebrated with friends and family, with joy and happiness".

This year my daughter is in two clubs, The international Club and The Elves Club. Both clubs are giving clubs. The International Club does the shoe boxes for "Operation Christmas" and in The Elves Club each high school students gets "adopts" a child from the elementary school that doesn't have much and they have this child for the whole school year. They make the child a shoe box of things for Christmas, and do a party and they also do this for Easter and the end of a year picnic. Sky being in these clubs has opened her eyes up even more to what it is to give from your heart. She has her own online journal and wrote this in it the other day. She shared what she wrote with me and said I could share it with you all:

" i was just reading something and i had to mention this....i hate it when all people think is that Christmas is for the presents cuz it's not....argh!!......yeesh well sorry just had to say that.....maybe people who do think that should try and give to people who have nothing....maybe try and help them....and they should think about how Christmas actually came about...i dunno..."

I guess Iam doing something right as a mom.

Please this holiday season stop for a second and think about the things that make you happy, and let others see you smile!

The Christmas Shoes By Newsong

It was almost Christmas time, there I stood in another line
Tryin' to buy that last gift or two, not really in the Christmas mood
Standing right in front of me was a little boy waiting anxiously
Pacing 'round like little boys do
And in his hands he held a pair of shoes
His clothes were worn and old, he was dirty from head to toe
And when it came his time to pay
I couldn't believe what I heard him say

Chorus:

Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It's Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there's not much time
You see she's been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight
He counted pennies for what seemed like years
Then the cashier said, "Son, there's not enough here"
He searched his pockets frantically
Then he turned and he looked at me
He said Mama made Christmas good at our house
Though most years she just did without
Tell me Sir, what am I going to do,
Somehow I've got to buy her these Christmas shoes
So I laid the money down, I just had to help him out
I'll never forget the look on his face when he said
Mama's gonna look so great
Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It's Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there's not much time
You see she's been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight
Bridge:

I knew I'd caught a glimpse of heaven's love
As he thanked me and ran out
I knew that God had sent that little boy
To remind me just what Christmas is all about

~A Really Neat Picture & My Beginning Experience With AmBienCR~

2005-11-20T10:45:00.000-05:00

I took this picture while looking out my french doors the other night. It was taken a few hours before a cold front came in and we got really strong thunder storms. I thought it was really neat, the way the colors came thru in the background, the way the sun looked going down behind the trees.

On another note, I started the AmBienCr Thursday night. It comes in two doses, 6.25mg & 12.5mg. My doctor gave me some samples of both. I have been on the 6.25mg one for 3 nights now and not sure about it.

It is suppose to have less side affects and also you arent suppose to wake before your body is ready to but tell my 4 year old son that! The first night around 1am, I think what I heard was Connor calling me. I go to get up, feeling dizzy, I almost fall :/. The rest from there on was fuzzy, I wake in the morning sort of remembering some of it, but what I dont remember is putting him back to bed or me getting back to bed, but we were both in our own beds in the morning. So that is one thing I dont like about this stuff. The other thing is they say you should only take it if you know you can get atleast 7 to 8 hours of sleep, please tell me what mother KNOWS that their children wont interrupt their sleep during the night? Anyways the last 2 nights littleman has been hacking a lot, so taking the AmbienCR was useless cause I was awoken quite a bit.

Since all my kids are off this week, I have decided to possibly try the higher dose AmbienCR, this way if iam non-functional in the morning there is someone around to watch littleman. Please wish me luck, not getting sleep SUCKS, but so does taking meds to sleep!

Tonight I will stay away from the sleep meds cause I need to be functional for a 9am appointment to get a mammogram. Gotta love getting your breasts smashed ... NOT!

Which Peanuts Are You?

2005-11-18T11:03:00.000-05:00

I saw this on 2 other blogs Sheri&SuZan & Claire's and wanted to share it on mine to see who the posters here are. Not to mention I have Bloggers Block because of AmBienCr, lol.

Hope you like the music, I love Joss Stone, I think she has a fantastic voice!

Hope You All Have A Wonderful Weekend ... Big Hugs To All

Which Peanuts Are You?

Iam Marcie!

How To Make A Turkey By 4 year Olds

2005-11-17T06:46:00.000-05:00

This is the cover of the book. Each kid got to color their own cover. Looks like Connor started off with marker and then used crayons.

Like I said in my previous post, Connor's Pre-K teacher asked each child how do you cook a turkey and she put in into a book and this is what some of them said ..... Out of the mouths of babes and into our ears....

This was Connor's:

Mom buys our turkey at WalMart. She pays for the turkey then brings it home. Mom puts the turkey in the fridge. Mom puts the turkey on a plate straight out of the fridge and cold. We eat bologna with our turkey, cause I dont like turkey.

Here are some others:

We eat corn and turkey for Thanksgiving. We get the turkey from water. Mommy cooks the turkey in the oven for 20 seconds. The oven is very hot. We eat it at the table for dinner.

We eat turkey for thanksgiving. We get the turkey from the store. My mom gives the turkey a bath. Mom cooks the turkey a little bit on the stove, in a big pot with a lid on high for 2 hours. We put it on the Thanksgiving table and then eat it.

We get our turkey from a farm. We give it to my mom and dad. Mom cleans it up and puts it on the dining room table. Mom cooks the turkey on the stove in my room. Mom puts cheese and juice on the turkey so it can taste delicious. She puts it in a bowl with cereal and milk on my stove and cooks it for 30 minutes at 40 degrees. Then we eat it and its really good.

Dad goes to a turkey farm to get our turkey for Thanksgiving. He brings it home to mom. Mom puts it in the oven at 40 degrees for 5 hours. We eat the turkey when its done. You know its done when mom takes it out at 5:30. She always takes it out at 5:30.

Mom gets us a turkey from the grocery store. Then she cooks it in the oven at 70 degrees for 6 minutes. We put sugar in the turkey, Salt on the turkey. We play while mom is cooking. Mom says dinner is ready we eat.

My mom and dad dont love turkey. They love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. If we ate turkey we would cook it in a super-duper hot oven for 20 minutes. We put cheese on it but I would only eat the cheese because I dont love turkey, I love cheese.

We buy the turkey from the store and mom cooks it for 2 days in the oven. The oven is really really hot like 14 degrees. Mom puts yogurt and sprite on the turkey. Mom puts it on a plate with cookies. Then we cut it up and eat it.

Mommy buys the turkey from WalMart. She brings it home and puts sprinkles on it and celery and green pickles inside of it, so it will taste good. She cooks it in the oven for long. Then she takes it out and we eat it.

We make turkey for Thanksgiving. Mom goes to the store to buy the turkey. She brings it home and lets it take a bath. Then she puts it in the oven at 5 really hot degrees for 20 minutes. We put it on a plate and we eat it. We put butter in the turkey and its really good.

We make turkey for Thanksgiving. We make it by cooking it with the oven. We cooked the turkey by waiting for 5 to 6 minutes. You put salt, chopped up bread, fruit and corn on the turkey. We cooked the turkey till its really really hot. I like my turkey very juicy.

We eat turkey for Thanksgiving. We get the turkey from a farm. Mommy puts spices on it and cooks it in the oven for 11 minutes. The oven is super hot. When its done she puts it on a plate and we eat it. It tastes like chicken.

We have turkey for Thanksgiving. Mommy buys it at WalMart. We bring it home and put spices and strawberries on it. Then she puts it in the oven for 2 hours. The oven goes beep and mommy gets it out. She cooks it for a long time and the food gets burned but we still eat it.

We eat turkey from the grocery store. Mom and dad cook it in the oven with Vienna sausages on it. They add broccoli, carrots and then they cook it at 25 degrees for about 30 minutes. When the turkey is finished cooking its really warm. We put it on a plate and then eat it.

We eat turkey for Thanksgiving. We get the turkey from the store. We bring it home and cook it in the oven with pepper only. The oven is 10 degrees and it cooks for 5 minutes. When the turkey is done she fries the turkey for 30 minutes and then we are ready to eat it.

I hope you all enjoyed reading these as much as I did!

P.S. For those of you who know mama/emme, She says to say hello (I talk with her a few times a week). She has a lot going on right now and is unable to post. Her son Shane who was in the accident is doing better but still extremely sore. Please keep mama in your Thoughts & Prayers ... Thanks & Hugs

~An Early Thanksgiving Feast~

2005-11-15T22:57:00.000-05:00

Today was Connor's Pre-K singing/play type thing and family feast. One class was Pilgrims (wore customs they made) and Connor's class were the Indians and they wore head pieces they made with noodle necklaces and their outfit thingy was made by them with the help of me & another mom (the only 2 out of 15 moms that offered to help) last week.

Each child was given a food to bring in, we had to bring a dessert and Connor wanted to make brownies so we did that last night. The parents were told to be there at 10:30am. The children all looked so cute up on stage. They sang 2 songs and wouldnt you know it, my child decides he is gonna be the one who out of no where decides to sit down while all the others were standing, I had to laugh and be embarrassed at the same time!

After they sang their songs they got to join us at the tables. "Thanksgiving Feast" consisted of turkey made by the school, then different kinds of greenbeans, mashedpotatoes, macaroni & cheese, rolls and different desserts brought in by families. Drinks were also provided by the school, regular and pink lemonade, ice tea and soda. Eating this stuff at 11am wasnt the best, but it all turned out really good. I do have to say Connor ate better at this thing then he has in a long time.

Oh Also his teacher made a book up "Lets talk Turkey" "A Thanksgiving Cookbook". The pages consisted of each kids idea of how their family makes a turkey. They were so funny. I will have to post some of them tomorrow.

Next, looking forward to the Christmas play, this ought to be interesting. I give those teachers a lot of credit having to work with 15, 4 years olds ... Connors class consisting of 11 boys & 4 girls, that poor teacher, LOL.

Below are some pictures of today:

Connors as an Indian

Both classes up on stage.

Connor took this picture of his friend. He is always taking his sisters digital and taking pictures all over the house.

~As If Lupus Wasnt Bad Enough.....

2005-11-14T22:44:00.000-05:00

My day today started off pretty dam good. Robert came home yesterday around 9am and stayed till noon today and we caught up in more ways then one after not seeing him for 2 weeks. Then back to work he went and we wont see him again till sometime on Thanksgiving day of which he will be home for almost 4 days, YAY!.

Then came the rest of my wonderful day (yea right!) ....

No matter how hard I tried not to, I had to take a hacking Connor with me. So 2 mintues before I walk out the door Shain 17 calls from school and asks me if I could pick him up, that his stomach wasnt feeling well, I was like "what are you crazy" "Iam gonna be late as it is, unless your dying, you are staying in school!" I know mean mommy but hey I wasnt happy to have to take Connor with me as it is never mind being late. Anyways we make the 45 min trip down to Atlanta, hardly no traffic, yay! I get there and of course the doctor is running late. I come prepared with Leapster and activity book, animal cookies & Capri Suns. You should of seen the looks the people (mostly ederly) in that waiting room gave me everytime Connor coughed which must of been every 2 mintues and there is no way I was gonna reschedule the appt again after canceling on friday. Of course this waiting area is huge and I made sure we sat way back in a corner away from everyone. An hour later still in waiting room, Connor being very good but getting ancy I go to the front desk and ask how much longer, 10 mintues later they called me in.

Just my luck I get stuck with a new asstistant that knows nothing about me and Connor decides he is gonna go off the walls and that he did, touching everything in site, pulling open drawers, closets and so on while this poor doctor is trying to talk to me and examine me. I theathened Connor with everything under the sun and still he went nuts, (I guess I should be happy that he was good in the waiting room). He asked about my sleeping habits, I thought "sleeping habits, what sleeping habits?" ... I told this doctor that the Trazodone didnt help at all and that the Lunesta isnt worth a shit and yes I said that word, sorry by this time I had, had it! We talked some, he said we have to find someway to get you some sleep (well duh have been running on none for how long now?) because he didnt like the muscle chest pains iam having from lack of. We decided to try AmBien CR, the new one, he gave me samples of 6.25mg pills and 12.5mg pills to see which works the best for me and then if one works they will call in a prescription. Of course I cant try this stuff till Friday because thats when Connor has no school and I dont have to get up early and drive soemwhere. Then to top it all off I was also diagonosed (sp) with the beginnings of Fibromyalgia. which I know of atleast 2 others bloggers that have that. It isnt uncommon for people with Lupus to have this but hey I have had Lupus for 24 years, why now does this have to creep up on me too. Anyways Iam to call and let them know about that AmBienCR and go back in 6 months unless something else happens ( nothing else better happen, grrr)

So that was how my appt. went.

Oh and I told Shain & Sky "I DONT CARE WHAT YOU HAVE GOING ON IN SCHOOL, I AM NEVER EVER TAKING CONNOR WITH ME AGAIN!"

And of course a perfect ending to my hectic day ... my littleman informs me before he goes to bed that his right ear hurts, why of course it does, mommy probably jinxed him by saying everytime he sniffled those snots back up "you better blow that nose or you are gonna get a ear infection", but of course does any 4 year old listen when it comes to that, noooooo. How much you want a bet Iam back at the doctors within the next few days for Connor. The ups and downs of beening a mom ... GOTTA LUV IT!

"Mama told me there would be days like this .....

Just Some Info:

What are the Symptoms of Lupus? ... A site Iam very familiar with!

What is Fibromyalgia? ... A site I will defintely become more familiar with!

~Someone Take Me Away~

2005-11-11T20:05:00.000-05:00

Yes its just been that kind of day, the kind you just want so badly to escape from! All I got to say is thank goodness Connor is sleeping hopefully for the night.

It started last night about an hour after his bath, Connor just started whining that he was cold and everthing hurt. My first thought "oh no please dont let him be sick again", but he was/is. It seems since school started this poor kid has been sick every other week! He was up last night 3 times. Everytime that tylenol wore off he was up crying for me. So needless to say neither of us got any sleep. Of couse then it had to get worse this morning he got sick in his bed 3 times within 2 hours, I ended up doing 6 loads of clothes today and the last load is in the dryer as I type this. Between no sleep, taking care of my poor littleman and carrying him all over the house today cause he wanted to be with mommy, iam exhausted and would just like to escape somewhere thus the reason for my Maxine cartoon picture below.

We can also add to that, that a 6 month Lupus checkup I made 6 months ago, I had today I had to cancel cause of no one to watch sick Connor and I cant get a another appt with my actual doctor for 6 months so I had to take a squeeze in with his asstistant for Monday, hey I guess its better then nothing right? Lord I hope he can give me something to sleep cause the Trazodone & the Lunesta isnt worth a shit! Oh and also had to cancel Connor's appt for tomorrow for his flu shot cause they wont give it to him with a fever and being sick. ARGH!

The only good thing that happened today, after not seeing Robert for 2 weeks, he may be home Sunday morning, the bad thing ... It will only be for a little over 24 hours "sigh"

I hope you all have a great weekend and all of your family members stay healthy!

Hugs To All
Yep this fits me to a "T" today! Its exactly how I feel. I would love to just hit a button and escape somewhere. Oh and by the way I borrowed this from Sheri&SuZan, I love Maxine cartoons and couldnt resist.

~A Warm Fall Day~

2005-11-10T07:58:00.000-05:00

In the past week the weather has gotten warm again (a cold front came in last night) so Connor and I have been spending alot of time outside running around and playing. If it was up to him, he would be outside 24/7. I love to watch him run free in our yard playing on the swings and climbing trees just so carefree, I barely remember the days when I did things like that, it seems so long ago.

My favorite things to do outside when I was younger were: Riding that purple banana seat bike, playing with my dog, a Collie named Ginger and playing up in our treehouse dreaming of far away places. What were your favotrite things to do outside????

Below are some pics I took of my littleman the ham while outside and also one pic to prove that yes down here in the south we do have somewhat of a fall.

LOL, I have to laugh at this pic. He kept telling me to hurry up cause he was falling out.

My little monkey loves to climb and swing.

This on the top of a cage type thing to the top of his slide

And lastly I took this from our front yard. The red tree is at the edge of the yard. If you look close the tree behind it has no leaves. We have had hardly no rain here since "Katrina" so alot of leaves have died and fallen off and the grass has turned brown.

~I Have Been Tagged By "K"~

2005-11-08T14:05:00.000-05:00

Coming up with seven for each sure wasnt easy!

7 things to do before I die

not have Lupus anymore (I can hope they find a cure cant I)
sky dive
get a sun/moon tatoo
go to Australia, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Hawaii & back to Las Vegas
lose weight & maintain it
take a cruise
learn to speak Spanish

7 things I can not do

speak in front of people
drive a standard (stick) car
crochet clothes but can make blankets
lose weight & keep it off
eat sushi
drive in the back seat of a car
make that first phone call

7 things that attract me to the opposite sex

eyes
smile
sense of humor
romantic
tush
smart
doesnt mind doing so called "woman" chores

7 things I say most often

SHAIN!, SKYLAR!, CONNOR!
Shit
Get in your room!
Get off the phone!
sweet pea, littleman
whatever
FOOD ( the answer to "Whats to eat? or Whats for a meal?"

7 celebrity crushes

Keefer Sutterland
Patrick Dempsy
Peter Jennings ( who pasted away resently)
John Cusack
Matthew McConaughey
John Travolta
Nicholas Cage

I TAG MAMA/EMME ... ERIN ... ANGELA ... AFGUY ... DIANA!

Sorry the names arent linked to their blogs but I still cant figure the dam thing out!!!! ... Edited, I Figured it Out, Thankyou "K" & Karen!

"I Have Created A Monster!"

2005-11-07T07:45:00.000-05:00

On our latest trip to Target (one of my favorite stores) Saturday, I decided Connor could use some workboot type shoes and slippers. The child was actually excited about getting them. It seems everytime we go to a store, yes he asks for the normal kid stuff ... books, cars, toys etc..., but the boy also asks for clothes and shoes. He loves getting new shoes and clothes! And heavens to bid if I go to the store without him and buy myself something (which I rarely do), then I get "Did you get something for me, where is my shirt, shoes, clothes etc...?"

I have defintely created a monster when it comes to clothes and shoes/sneakers. My hands are full now, I cant imagine what he is gonna be like with clothes when he becomes a teen!

In most households its the daughters that are clothes crazy, in this household its my sons!

These are Connor's new slippers. The perfect slipper for the little boy who loves anything with wheels. He is convinced his feet are now cars (rolling eyes). Yes they are huge and I dont know how the heck he walks in them but he just had to have them and I did say he could have a pair of slippers (rolling eye again)!

"$30.00 Worth Of Art Supplies Gone!"

2005-11-04T18:23:00.000-05:00

Thats what I heard when my daughter Sky 15 came home from school yesterday, or more like "Mom, look at my art supply box, everything was stolen but the colored pencils." Boy was I ever pissed.

Let me back track a little here, Sky is in 10th grade. She took a half year drawing class as one of her electives. For this class they needed a bunch of drawing supplies that the student's family had to buy. By the time we were done buying all her supplies at the cheapest places possible it ended up costing a little over $30.00! This class started back in Aug when school started and the students were told to keep their supplies in a art box in the closet. Yesterday the teacher informs the students that a major project is coming up and that the students art supply boxes are gonna be graded on what they are suppose to have. Sky and 2 other students opened their boxes to find some or most of their supplies gone. The teacher told Sky he would look into it.

So back to me being pissed. I get online right away and email (the school has an email address for all of the teachers and head faculty) I email the principal and the art teacher. Here is my email:

"My daughter Skylar informed me today that almost all of the $30 worth of art supplies I bought her in the beginning of the year is missing. Some of these supplies missing she was told she needs to replace for a major project. We are a single income family and I dont have the money to replace supplies that were suppose to be safe at school in the art classroom, she was told to leave her supplies there in a box by "teacher's name". Some of the supplies missing are, paint brushes, pens, fine point sharpie, 2 packs of drawing pencils, eraser and sharpener. How is my daughter suppose to do this major project if her supplies were taken by other students."

The principal emailed me back right away, here is his email:

"Let me know the answer you receive from the teacher. I understand and appreciate your concern. Feel free to encourage Skylar to see me tomorrow."

I did tell Sky to go in and see him this morning. Here was my response to his email:

"Thankyou so much for responding so quickly. Skylar said that "teachers name" does know about this situation though I have not heard anything back from him about the email. Sky also said that she wasnt the only student who was missing things."

By mid- day today I still hadnt heard from the art teacher but did hear from the principal yet again:

"I saw your daughter this morning and we looked over the storage area in the art room. She is a very nice and polite young lady!"

About an hour later I get this from the art teacher:

"I understand how frustrating this is for you. The supplies were kept inside of a cabinet (not locked, unfortunately). Furthermore, I do secure the classroom when Iam not inside it. So, Iam wondering how or when this happened and it disappoints me as well. For starters, I spoke sternly about it with all of my drawing classes." (Sky says nothing was said to her class)

"I will work with Skylar on Monday from our supplies to replace her missing paint brushes, pens, fine-point Sharpie, drawing pencils, eraser, and sharpener. Again, she will not be penalized on her pen & ink assignment, which we are really just beginning anyway. She has plenty of time to complete her assignment. I will make sure that she has what she needs to complete her work next week. Please accept my apologies if my initial response to Skylar left her feeling that I had inadequately addressed her concerns."

"Thanks for following up with me,"

I guess I should be satified with the reply. But I know that since it took the art teacher so long to get back to me, that the principal must of talked to the art teacher and got him to email me.

I realize that this is a public high school with a lot of students in it and everything cant be watched every second of the day. But my feeling is if they ask the student to leave the supplies there and then they are stolen something should definitely be done about it. Its bad enough I pay taxes and still have to go out and buy extra supplies nevermind some inconsiderate student decides to steal art supplies that other parents worked hard to buy! All I know is the teacher better stick to his word and give my daughter the supplies she needs on Monday!

My daughter definitely will not be leaving any more of her supplies in school even if the teacher says they have to and if they have a problem with that, then they will have to deal with me yet again!

Have A Great Weekend Everyone

HUGS!

~As My 4 Year Old Would Say "WHY"~

2005-11-03T10:03:00.000-05:00

Dont ask me why I decided to write this post, it just came out of no where. Of course it could also be because my brain is on freeze mode from a huge lack of sleep on the phone with friends that needed me and I would do it all over again if needed!

I know the question "WHY" is usually asking by little ones but today its my turn! Some of these may make no sense. Others may make a lot of sense but whatever sense they make they are just things that came out of my tired head.

So here I go:

WHY is it that each year the Christmas stuff comes out earlier & earlier? That we dont get to enjoy one holiday without being forced to tink about the next? One store on Halloween had their Halloween candy pushed up front and the Christmas candy was now in its place.

WHY is it the weather cant seem to make up its mind? Last week we were freezing temps in the 30's to 60's and this week we are back to wearing t-shirts & shorts.

WHY is it my 4 year old could care less what pants I put out for him, but if I dare pick out his shirt, all hell breaks lose?

WHY is it that when I finally find a pair of dam jeans that fit my fat azz, I go back to get 2 more only to find when i get them home that they arent cut the same? ... The problem is they are the exact same style, number and all!

WHY is it my 4 year at dinner time takes all his food, mixes it up and covers it in ketchup and then actually eats it all? This wouldnt be so bad if I wasnt sitting right next to him trying to eat my dinner.

WHY is it that you, your spouse or whomever just gets paid and then you do the monthly bills and before you know it you are broke yet again?

WHY is it the inoccent are always the ones to suffer & the guilty are always the ones to get away?

WHY is it that we cant even let our kids go out and play and be kids without worrying someone may take them?

WHY is it that people always seem to be in a rush and not many stop to smell the "roses" sort of speak?

WHY is it my oldest son is obsessed with his looks and my teen daughter is more tomboyish and wont touch makeup?

WHY is it so hard to sit back and let your kids make their own mistakes even though you have to?

Why is it that people dwell on the past, worry about the future, but never live for today?

And lastly: As my litteman would say:

WHY is the grass green, the sky blue, the clouds white/gray, the light called day & the dark called night, Chewy had to die and cant I have more candy .... WHY WHY WHY mommmy?

And in closing Please stop by a friends of mine & mama/emme's ... Angela who just started a blog ... @ http://momaof2boys.blogspot.com/ AND ....

Sending Lots Of Prayers To "afguy"'s nephew and His Family!

~My Littleman Trick or Treating Night~

2005-11-02T07:44:00.000-05:00

It was just Connor and I trick or treating this year. Both Shain & Sky spent the night at friends houses because there was no school yesterday. We did finally make it to the park for the Fall Festival. They had the kids line up for a costume parade around the park. There were people giving out candy plus the town stores also gave out candy. There was also some games, vendors with food and 2 big blowup things, one with a slide that Connor spent most of his time at. We left there about 6:30 and then walked home and went Trick or Treating. We met up with a mom and 3 of her children whom I had never met before. The youngest is Connor's age. It ends up being she is a mom of 11, yes i said 11 kids and she home schools/schooled them all! God Bless Her! We walked around with them for a while. She gave me a card with her number on it and said maybe we could get the boys together sometime. Which will be nice cause we live in an older neighborhood with alot of older people and not much kids for Connor to play with. By the end of the night we were both tired of candy and Connor was whining for me to carry him home, nope wouldnt do it and therefore he toughed it out and we walked home. Oh and guess what, her hubby is also from West Virgina like Robert :-).

Below are pics of my little cowboy which everyone kepted calling him Woody from Toy Story which was fine with him cause he watches that movie alot, lol.

~Posting For "Mama"/Emme~

2005-11-02T07:19:00.000-05:00

I got a call from her last night. She is having electrical problems and therefore has no electricity. Not sure when it will be back on, could be today, could be days. Please just keep her in your Prayers.

Thanks & Hugs

Suz

~Someone Most Havent Met~

2005-10-31T14:25:00.000-05:00

I would like you all to meet my husband. Being with him yesterday made me realize yet again how much I really miss him when he is away working (hadnt seen him in 3 weeks). Our visit together was short (he left at 12:30 this afternoon) but it was nice and we actually got to go out to eat at Longhorns kid free last night. He played alot with Connor yesterday and Robert and I made up for lost time in more ways then one :-).

I met Robert on the internet of all places. It was in an Atlanta chat room. I was already dating someone also from online when Robert wouldnt give up till I gave him my number. He called and I could say the rest was history, but it wasnt cause it took a few more calls before I would decide to meet him. Our first meeting was at a Wendys where I had to bring Connor my 6 month old son with me. Robert and I hit it off right away and I decided to brake it off with the other guy. we have been together for 4 years next month. I have to say that the past 4 years havent all been a bed of roses, there were defintely alot of thorns to go thru to get where we are today. We defintely had our fights. Its wasnt easy for either of us to build a new relationship with each other after we both had gone thru 2 very tough divorces. We also had 6 kids to consider into this relationship (both having 3) and what they would think and do.

So after 8 months of getting to know each other we moved in together in July 2002 but still we werent ready to marry, finally this year June 21, 2005 we knew we didnt want a big wedding and all the kids were gonna be at the same place at the same time so we did it, we got marry at the court house.

Being married to a Boilermaker who travels alot is hard on me, us and our relationship. It makes me 10 months out of the year a "single" mom in a way. But hey I look at it this way 2 months out of the year he is off and home. Robert is a wonderful man and good to my kids. He is the only father Connor has ever known ( someday maybe I'll explain that one) and we have even talked about Robert adopting him if possbile. Robert has a very kind heart and loves his kids deeply also.

I know Robert would do anything for me as I would do anything for him.

Sometimes I wonder how I got to find love a second time this late in my life? But then again I just count my blessings everyday that I have this wonderful man and this wonderful family!

I did this post in green cause green is Roberts favorite color.

This was taken at the courthouse on our wedding day June 21, 2005. And yes the sun was in my eyes. I look more like my profile picture now, then I had highlights. "I love You Robert!"