Girls night out! So - my daughter has this wonderful idea about getting together with her best friends for girls night out. She books a two bedroom suite at the Marriott Grand Chateau in Las Vegas. Then she decides that she should use my Marriott Rewards points for one of the nights - which means that I get to go too - YAY! She sends out a text message letting the other girls know that I may be coming and gets back the response - 'That's terrific! Your mom is soooo cool!' Now I didn't think I was all that cool - but I do have my moments I guess. So plans are made and strategy is developed. One of the friends has just moved out of state and we are going to meet her there. We are taking my granddaughter with us to spend the weekend with her daughter who is her best friend also.
On the day of departure it was also decided that we would go in my van - I think I'm getting a clue as to why I was really invited. Has anyone ever tried to travel with a car full of women? I know that I always pack way too much whenever I go anywhere. But when I picked up my granddaughter and her bag was bigger than any of the others - including mine - I started to worry. I still have two more passengers and ensuing luggage to pick up. Where is it all going to fit? I have a 7 passenger van, but that leaves very little room for extras.
When I picked up the first passenger we noticed that my right rear tire was a little low. I had noticed it earlier in the day and it hadn't seemed to change much so I figured I would check it when we stopped for gas before heading out of town. Well, by the time I picked up my daughter we were running late and decided that we would just get on the freeway and try to get ahead of traffic and check the tire when we got to the next pickup spot. By that time my tire was totally flat! Dang! I hate it when that happens. We went around the corner and put air in the tire at the gas station. Then we decided it might be a good idea to stop somewhere and have the tire checked because none of us want to have to change it in the middle of the night - especially when we would have to unload 3 tons of luggage to even get to the spare tire! So we back track to the nearest Walmart. Just our luck - they automotive center closed about 3 minutes before we got there! I must have looked on the verge of hysteria at that point because the clerk suggested we ask the automotive manager if he would stay and check my tire. It was like a 'Les Schwab' commercial! I can only say that my attitude towards Walmart has improved a little! They were so nice and accommodating!
By the time we finally get on the road and headed towards Las Vegas - a 6 hour drive - we realize that it will probably be 2:00a.m. before we get there. Call the hotel and let them know that we will not only be a 'late arrival' - we will be a VERY late arrival. Good thing I'm not being charged actual money for this night!
So after stopping three times to get gas, go to the rest room, and refill the coffee mugs we finally hit Las Vegas. But do we get to go to the hotel? Noooooo. First we have to go pick up the out of state passenger. She is waiting for us at her sister-in-law's house in Henderson. And she's not waiting all that patiently - she has started the party without us!
Her daughter has no idea that we are bringing my granddaughter so we sneak her in to surprise Grace and get that all taken care of. There is a lot of screaming and laughing and hugging and crying and laughing and hugging and screaming - the girls are 11 years old. We also have to try and get Grace's mom moving in the right direction so that we can at least use the hotel room for a couple of hours!
We finally make it to the hotel and get the 3 tons of luggage out of the car and up to the room. I felt like Granny out of the 'Beverly Hillbillies.' Then we decided that we should go see what the rooftop pool looks like. Unfortunately by then we've had at least one shot of some kind of liquor. We managed to find the elevator and make it up to the 37th floor - but the pool is on the 38th floor! We spent two more rides on the elevator and another half hour trying to figure out how to get up there. Only to discover that the door to the pool area was locked for the night. And why wouldn't it be - and why wouldn't we have thought of that? Back down to our room and to finally get some sleep.
We had a lot of fun at the M&M and Coca Cola stores. We tasted several strange sodas from around the world - one of which tasted like carbonated mouthwash and got strange faces from all of us. I even found a very cute 'Sonic' fleece hat for my 4-year-old grandson at one of the kiosks. He will be thrilled. We sat and watched 'Kotton Kandy' annoy people on the sidewalk. BAM! What a hoot.
We ended up at the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. We had the coolest waiter. He really deserved a very large tip for having to deal with us! My girls are not exactly the quietest group when they get together - nor are they timid or reserved. But he was able to keep up with them. At least until they got me to laughing...
I have this annoying habit of being unable to stop laughing when I really get going. I have this hiccupping laugh that sounds like something between a chipmunk on steroids and a squeaky toy. I can't stop until everyone else stops - which they won't do because they think it's funny! And it's really hard to breathe - my ribs hurt, my eyes water - and it gets everyone's attention! When the waiter asked if I could breathe my daughter replied 'No' - and kept laughing. I will get even with her someday...
After dinner we decided to go to a bar for drinks. Two of the girls had attempted to ride the mechanical bull - not all the successfully, but they got great pictures! By the time we left we were all three sheets to the wind - so to speak. Not sure how we made it back to the hotel without being arrested for public intoxication - especially after one of the girls stumbled and did a face plant at the feet of a couple of Las Vegas' finest!
All in all the weekend was a success - we all had fun and now we know more about each than we did before. I love 'my girls' and am glad they feel comfortable dragging me along!
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Memories
You gotta love grandchildren...
Alex: 'Grandma, I love my Todd so much!'
Grandma: 'Yes, he's the best cousin ever.'
Alex: 'My Todd loves me so much he wants to marry me when we grow up.'
Grandma: 'Eeewwww! You can't marry Todd. He's your cousin. Cousins can't get married.'
Alex: 'Graaaaandma! I can't get married. I have to get a job. I have to do something!'
Silly Grandma - I thought it was because they were cousins!
Jacob: 'You're the BEST Grandma ever!'
Grandma: 'You're goofy.'
Alex: 'No, YOU'RE goofy.'
Grandma: 'No - you're goofy.'
Alex: 'No, YOU'RE goofy.'
Grandma: No, you're goofy.'
Alex: 'Well, you're Pluto!'
To be continued....
Alex: 'Grandma, I love my Todd so much!'
Grandma: 'Yes, he's the best cousin ever.'
Alex: 'My Todd loves me so much he wants to marry me when we grow up.'
Grandma: 'Eeewwww! You can't marry Todd. He's your cousin. Cousins can't get married.'
Alex: 'Graaaaandma! I can't get married. I have to get a job. I have to do something!'
Silly Grandma - I thought it was because they were cousins!
Jacob: 'You're the BEST Grandma ever!'
Grandma: 'You're goofy.'
Alex: 'No, YOU'RE goofy.'
Grandma: 'No - you're goofy.'
Alex: 'No, YOU'RE goofy.'
Grandma: No, you're goofy.'
Alex: 'Well, you're Pluto!'
To be continued....
Monday, November 14, 2011
Of Mice and Men
So - Stuart Little aside...I just have to say that I think mice are nasty little disease carrying vermin. They are not cute. They are not lovable. They are pests. They are destructive. They are dirty. And when your home is infested with them - they are just plain creepy!
Last week we noticed we had mice when we found droppings under the sink in the kitchen. Well, the first hint we had was when our old Sheltie, Autumn, started camping out in the kitchen - staring at the cupboard door. She hates the kitchen - unless we are cooking and she thinks we might drop something edible. Any other time she avoids it because of the Pergo flooring. She's an old dog and has great difficulty getting traction on the slick surface.
So we opened said door and discovered the mouse droppings. Being the total antithesis of calm and reasonable I flipped out and demanded that my husband set a mouse trap in the cupboard. Which, of course, he did. He pretty much would do anything to keep me from going into full nag mode.
The next morning we got up and were a trifle irritated to find that all the peanut butter was gone off the trap - but it had not been set off. My husband was especially irritated when he opened the door to check and the mouse was sitting there looking at him while it cleaned it's whiskers. So he put more peanut butter on the trap, reset it and closed the cupboard door again.
Autumn again took up vigil in the kitchen and this time we actually caught a mouse. My husband tried to convince me that we only had the one mouse and that we didn't have to do anything else. But since Autumn wouldn't leave the kitchen and was fixated on that cupboard, I convinced him to put out another trap. He won't re-use a mouse trap - he throws them away with the mice. This time when he checked there were two mice sitting there looking at him - and all the peanut butter was cleaned off the trap.
He took that as a challenge and decided he was going to catch the pesky little vermin. He set out five traps in a circle so that they couldn't get to the peanut butter without setting at least one of them off - he thought. They again cleaned off all the peanut butter and when he opened the cupboard door not only where they staring at him - they were actually sitting on the traps! At this point I think he was on the verge of wild-eyed crazy. So he went out and bought a different brand of mousetrap and placed them in the cupboard along with more of my all natural, organic peanut butter. That was certainly successful - he figured out that he could drop the traps on the floor and not have them go off!. But we did manage to catch one more mouse. However, Autumn still insisted on camping out in the kitchen guarding the cupboard.
I think it was at this point that I started thinking an exterminator might be warranted. But by now my husband was not going to admit defeat. Back to the store he went, and returned with some sticky glue traps. He set five of the wooden traps and a glue trap in the cupboard and managed to catch three of them all at once. He decided at that point that he had fixed the problem - after all he had caught five mice. I gave him 'The Look' and he decided that it would be a good idea to set more traps rather than have me go into full nag mode.
By now we are into day three of the 'War on Mice' and they are winning. But my husband is nothing if not stubborn - I mean determined. He continued to put out various combinations of traps - even went back to the store and bought a couple that look like giant binder clips. The mice continued to eat all of my organic peanut butter and then go back to tell all their friends where they could get a free meal. Autumn continued to be a speed bump in the doorway of my kitchen. But we slowly but surely gained ground in the battle. Through perserverence and sheer number of traps set in the cupboard we have managed to catch 13 mice so far. Have we won the war? Or are they only regrouping for another coup d'etat? I fear the latter - there are still mouse droppings in the cupboard. Autumn still haunts the kitchen. Peanut butter continues to disappear.
Mouse traps are the only thing I will let him use. My daughter's dog got into the Decon in her garage several years ago and had to be put down. With three dogs of my own I'm not willing to take the risk that they may get into any kind of poison - so we continue to set traps and keep a scoreboard.
And I am sure my mother continues to look down on me and laugh. She is so way past smiling - she is rolling on the clouds, can't catch her breath, tears running down her cheeks - laughing! She thinks it's the perfect revenge for me bringing home the white mice from biology lab when I was a freshman in high school - and then leaving for the summer. But that's another story - for another day.
Last week we noticed we had mice when we found droppings under the sink in the kitchen. Well, the first hint we had was when our old Sheltie, Autumn, started camping out in the kitchen - staring at the cupboard door. She hates the kitchen - unless we are cooking and she thinks we might drop something edible. Any other time she avoids it because of the Pergo flooring. She's an old dog and has great difficulty getting traction on the slick surface.
So we opened said door and discovered the mouse droppings. Being the total antithesis of calm and reasonable I flipped out and demanded that my husband set a mouse trap in the cupboard. Which, of course, he did. He pretty much would do anything to keep me from going into full nag mode.
The next morning we got up and were a trifle irritated to find that all the peanut butter was gone off the trap - but it had not been set off. My husband was especially irritated when he opened the door to check and the mouse was sitting there looking at him while it cleaned it's whiskers. So he put more peanut butter on the trap, reset it and closed the cupboard door again.
Autumn again took up vigil in the kitchen and this time we actually caught a mouse. My husband tried to convince me that we only had the one mouse and that we didn't have to do anything else. But since Autumn wouldn't leave the kitchen and was fixated on that cupboard, I convinced him to put out another trap. He won't re-use a mouse trap - he throws them away with the mice. This time when he checked there were two mice sitting there looking at him - and all the peanut butter was cleaned off the trap.
He took that as a challenge and decided he was going to catch the pesky little vermin. He set out five traps in a circle so that they couldn't get to the peanut butter without setting at least one of them off - he thought. They again cleaned off all the peanut butter and when he opened the cupboard door not only where they staring at him - they were actually sitting on the traps! At this point I think he was on the verge of wild-eyed crazy. So he went out and bought a different brand of mousetrap and placed them in the cupboard along with more of my all natural, organic peanut butter. That was certainly successful - he figured out that he could drop the traps on the floor and not have them go off!. But we did manage to catch one more mouse. However, Autumn still insisted on camping out in the kitchen guarding the cupboard.
I think it was at this point that I started thinking an exterminator might be warranted. But by now my husband was not going to admit defeat. Back to the store he went, and returned with some sticky glue traps. He set five of the wooden traps and a glue trap in the cupboard and managed to catch three of them all at once. He decided at that point that he had fixed the problem - after all he had caught five mice. I gave him 'The Look' and he decided that it would be a good idea to set more traps rather than have me go into full nag mode.
By now we are into day three of the 'War on Mice' and they are winning. But my husband is nothing if not stubborn - I mean determined. He continued to put out various combinations of traps - even went back to the store and bought a couple that look like giant binder clips. The mice continued to eat all of my organic peanut butter and then go back to tell all their friends where they could get a free meal. Autumn continued to be a speed bump in the doorway of my kitchen. But we slowly but surely gained ground in the battle. Through perserverence and sheer number of traps set in the cupboard we have managed to catch 13 mice so far. Have we won the war? Or are they only regrouping for another coup d'etat? I fear the latter - there are still mouse droppings in the cupboard. Autumn still haunts the kitchen. Peanut butter continues to disappear.
Mouse traps are the only thing I will let him use. My daughter's dog got into the Decon in her garage several years ago and had to be put down. With three dogs of my own I'm not willing to take the risk that they may get into any kind of poison - so we continue to set traps and keep a scoreboard.
And I am sure my mother continues to look down on me and laugh. She is so way past smiling - she is rolling on the clouds, can't catch her breath, tears running down her cheeks - laughing! She thinks it's the perfect revenge for me bringing home the white mice from biology lab when I was a freshman in high school - and then leaving for the summer. But that's another story - for another day.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Day One - One More Time
Well here we go - Day 1...again. I've decided to try blogging again. Tried a couple of years ago and couldn't get the hang of it. Not sure why - probably the logging in and adding something new each day confused me.
I'm naturally blonde - or was at one point in my life. Now my boss says I change hair color more often than I change clothes. He doesn't even look surprised when I leave the office one day as a blonde and return the next as a redhead. To his credit he didn't even bat an eye the day I showed up with DayGlo Royal Purple hair. That was not planned - it just happened. Fortunately it was just before Halloween.
Besides changing my hair color on a regular basis, I also do all kinds of needlework crafts, scrapbooking, grandkid tending and work full time. My needlework lately has consisted of going into my sewing room and turning on the sewing machine, going to my fabric stash to find a piece of fabric I want to make something out of and then realizing that the pattern I bought 5 years ago is not the correct dimensions for the body I have now. Turn off the sewing machine, put the fabric aside - and go watch trash TV (usually NCIS, Criminal Minds or Big Bang Theory). I think I may have to stick to making items that I do not have to starve myself for 4 weeks to actually zip or button. Like bags - I make absolutely terrific totes and bags. Some of my friends refer to me as the 'Bag Lady'.
I learned to sew by trial and error. My mother and my grandmother were both excellent seamstresses. Unfortunately, I was a terrible student and never wanted to sew when they wanted to teach me. But I must have soaked up some of their skills by osmosis. My first real attempt to make anything on a sewing machine was when I was in Home Ec in Junior High. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that they actually had electric sewing machines and that I didn't have to use both feet to run them! I made a jumper that year - and wore it once. My teacher made me take the zipper out and re-do it so many times the fabric shredded. I didn't try to sew again for many years. I kept the stand from my mother's sewing machine and am in the process of restoring it. I gave the actual sewing machine to my sister-in-law and bought a replacement. I am sure Mom would be happy to know that we shared! We both wanted it and this way we both get part of Mom's legacy of sewing.
Then I got married and started having kids. I made shirts, pants, jackets, pajamas, quilts...I even made them sleeping bags one year for Christmas. My best friend and I used to make T-shirts assembly line style. We would set up our sewing machines on the opposite sides of the kitchen table and I would sew a seam on a shirt, throw it to her and pick up the next shirt. She would do the same - sew her seam, throw it back to me and pick up the next one. We now live too far away from each other to get together for sewing sessions - I miss her...lots.
Now I have grandkids - way more fun because when they behave like brats I can send them home. Oh - and I can spoil them while I have them so that they behave like brats when they go home - LOL. My mother always told me 'What goes around, comes around.' I never gave her a fraction of the grief my kids gave me...but I do get to sit back and smile now that they are grown and have their own children to deal with.
I'm naturally blonde - or was at one point in my life. Now my boss says I change hair color more often than I change clothes. He doesn't even look surprised when I leave the office one day as a blonde and return the next as a redhead. To his credit he didn't even bat an eye the day I showed up with DayGlo Royal Purple hair. That was not planned - it just happened. Fortunately it was just before Halloween.
Besides changing my hair color on a regular basis, I also do all kinds of needlework crafts, scrapbooking, grandkid tending and work full time. My needlework lately has consisted of going into my sewing room and turning on the sewing machine, going to my fabric stash to find a piece of fabric I want to make something out of and then realizing that the pattern I bought 5 years ago is not the correct dimensions for the body I have now. Turn off the sewing machine, put the fabric aside - and go watch trash TV (usually NCIS, Criminal Minds or Big Bang Theory). I think I may have to stick to making items that I do not have to starve myself for 4 weeks to actually zip or button. Like bags - I make absolutely terrific totes and bags. Some of my friends refer to me as the 'Bag Lady'.
I learned to sew by trial and error. My mother and my grandmother were both excellent seamstresses. Unfortunately, I was a terrible student and never wanted to sew when they wanted to teach me. But I must have soaked up some of their skills by osmosis. My first real attempt to make anything on a sewing machine was when I was in Home Ec in Junior High. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that they actually had electric sewing machines and that I didn't have to use both feet to run them! I made a jumper that year - and wore it once. My teacher made me take the zipper out and re-do it so many times the fabric shredded. I didn't try to sew again for many years. I kept the stand from my mother's sewing machine and am in the process of restoring it. I gave the actual sewing machine to my sister-in-law and bought a replacement. I am sure Mom would be happy to know that we shared! We both wanted it and this way we both get part of Mom's legacy of sewing.
Then I got married and started having kids. I made shirts, pants, jackets, pajamas, quilts...I even made them sleeping bags one year for Christmas. My best friend and I used to make T-shirts assembly line style. We would set up our sewing machines on the opposite sides of the kitchen table and I would sew a seam on a shirt, throw it to her and pick up the next shirt. She would do the same - sew her seam, throw it back to me and pick up the next one. We now live too far away from each other to get together for sewing sessions - I miss her...lots.
Now I have grandkids - way more fun because when they behave like brats I can send them home. Oh - and I can spoil them while I have them so that they behave like brats when they go home - LOL. My mother always told me 'What goes around, comes around.' I never gave her a fraction of the grief my kids gave me...but I do get to sit back and smile now that they are grown and have their own children to deal with.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Beginning - again
I can't believe how time flies! I really need to sit down and try and figure out where the past 5 months went. Or more accurately - where I went during the last 5 months. I'm told that time passes at the same rate every day - but I'm seeing evidence of that not being true. Time is racing by me at an alarmingly ever increasing speed. I get up in the morning and go to work. I look at the clock and realize that it is almost time to go home - and I have no idea how that happened. I feel like I have not done anything - or at least not enough - and that I have only been here for a very short time. There is so much left to do...but not enough time to do it in. I long for the days when time went slower - when I could get up and go outside to play for hours and hours and then go inside only to find out that it wasn't even lunch time yet. I miss those days when I had time to spend with my children and visit with friends and still had plenty of time to get the essentials done - vacuuming, dishes, laundry, etc.
I did take time out for a weekend vacation with my family in July though. My entire family - LOL. It was our annual family reunion and we spent 3 days at Bear Lake in Utah. We played cards and board games, went boating and tubing on the lake, learned some history about our ancestors and ate more food than we usually do in a week - LOL.
I have also taken the time to reflect on who I am, why I'm here and where I want to be. I have learned that the perfect place to be is right where I am. I have a wonderful husband who is tolerant of my children and, most importantly, me. I have incredibly amazing children who have grown up to be hard working responsible adults for the most part. I have been fortunate enough to keep working in these increasingly difficult economic times. And I have good health. What more could I ask for? Life is good.
That's not to say that I don't still have days when I wonder - What Was I Thinking? But the truth is - I know what I was thinking. And I'm glad I went there.
I did take time out for a weekend vacation with my family in July though. My entire family - LOL. It was our annual family reunion and we spent 3 days at Bear Lake in Utah. We played cards and board games, went boating and tubing on the lake, learned some history about our ancestors and ate more food than we usually do in a week - LOL.
I have also taken the time to reflect on who I am, why I'm here and where I want to be. I have learned that the perfect place to be is right where I am. I have a wonderful husband who is tolerant of my children and, most importantly, me. I have incredibly amazing children who have grown up to be hard working responsible adults for the most part. I have been fortunate enough to keep working in these increasingly difficult economic times. And I have good health. What more could I ask for? Life is good.
That's not to say that I don't still have days when I wonder - What Was I Thinking? But the truth is - I know what I was thinking. And I'm glad I went there.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Time Flies
Well, gee! Doesn't time fly - even when you're not having fun! I'm even worse at the blogging thing than I thought I would be . I can't even make it monthly - much less weekly or daily - which is my real goal - LOL.
Not much has been happening in the way of life-changing crises - thank heavens. But working full time and having way too many hobbies - every needlecraft regime ever thought of, plus photography, plus reading, plus the grandkids, plus a high maintenance husband, plus grown children living at home....not much gets done either.
I have made new 'New Year's Resolutions.' Yes, it is way past the deadline, but I figure it is a new day and I can only go forward from here - and, besides, where is it written that we can only make resolutions on January 1.... OK - on to the resolution. I have resolved to only work on one project/hobby at a time - and to finish it before I start another one - LOL. I am the Queen of unfinished projects. I started making some flannel shirts for my husband one year for Christmas and then ran out of time so decided that I would give them to him the following Christmas. Then we got divorced and he never got them. I moved out of state and 15 years later I found the pieces in a box and decided to make them for my two boys. So each of them got a flannel shirt for Christmas that year. I still have the pieces for one more shirt that never got finished - and it's now been 26 years since I left my ex-husband - LOL. I also have an apron that I started for my girlfriend about the same era - except that I can't find it - LOL. It's in a box somewhere...all it needs is the ties put on it. I actually sent it to her for her birthday one year. I got it back the next year - so we started just sending it back and forth for a while - until I moved again and it is buried in a box somewhere.
Do you ever wonder why we make the choices we do - most times without the proper consideration or input of information (well, without paying attention to the input of information anyway). Most of my decisions and choices have been good ones - or at least worked out well. But other times I still ask myself "What was I thinking?" Like the time I decided to enroll in "Bootcamp With Jess" - my hell, I was 55 years old and hadn't done any exercise for 15+ years. But that one turned out good - I made it through "Hell Week" - much to the instructor's and owner's (and MY) surprise - made it through the remaining 5 weeks and then re-inlisted. I can now keep up with the grandkids and do yard work without feeling like I'm going to go into total cardiac arrest.
The other thing I wonder about is relationships. There is an old (very old) Paul Newman western (can't remember the name of it) where he is sitting at a campfire and talking to a younger man about something that happened that day. And the line that I remember the most from this movie was his reply to being asked if he was surprised about what someone had done that day....He said, "The only thing that surprises me is the people, some people marry." That's how I feel. What was I thinking when I got married? Was I thinking? Why did I do it? Can I get out of it? Probably not. Don't get me wrong - my current husband is a wonderful person. And he is a wonderful husband. He's been totally accepting of my rotten, ungrateful children. Which is really good of him considering that's how we got together to begin with - the children introduced us - LOL. But I can't help but think that I would have been better off (emotionally at least) staying single. And I'm positive that my poor husband did not get what he bargained for. I have learned to be at least content with my situation, if not totally ecstatic. Having friends to talk to that understand and don't mind listening to my constant whining and grumbling helps.
Well, I am off to get some work done - hopefully I will be back before another month goes by. But I'm not going to put money on it or hold my breath. I look good in blue - but not as a skin tone - LOL.
Not much has been happening in the way of life-changing crises - thank heavens. But working full time and having way too many hobbies - every needlecraft regime ever thought of, plus photography, plus reading, plus the grandkids, plus a high maintenance husband, plus grown children living at home....not much gets done either.
I have made new 'New Year's Resolutions.' Yes, it is way past the deadline, but I figure it is a new day and I can only go forward from here - and, besides, where is it written that we can only make resolutions on January 1.... OK - on to the resolution. I have resolved to only work on one project/hobby at a time - and to finish it before I start another one - LOL. I am the Queen of unfinished projects. I started making some flannel shirts for my husband one year for Christmas and then ran out of time so decided that I would give them to him the following Christmas. Then we got divorced and he never got them. I moved out of state and 15 years later I found the pieces in a box and decided to make them for my two boys. So each of them got a flannel shirt for Christmas that year. I still have the pieces for one more shirt that never got finished - and it's now been 26 years since I left my ex-husband - LOL. I also have an apron that I started for my girlfriend about the same era - except that I can't find it - LOL. It's in a box somewhere...all it needs is the ties put on it. I actually sent it to her for her birthday one year. I got it back the next year - so we started just sending it back and forth for a while - until I moved again and it is buried in a box somewhere.
Do you ever wonder why we make the choices we do - most times without the proper consideration or input of information (well, without paying attention to the input of information anyway). Most of my decisions and choices have been good ones - or at least worked out well. But other times I still ask myself "What was I thinking?" Like the time I decided to enroll in "Bootcamp With Jess" - my hell, I was 55 years old and hadn't done any exercise for 15+ years. But that one turned out good - I made it through "Hell Week" - much to the instructor's and owner's (and MY) surprise - made it through the remaining 5 weeks and then re-inlisted. I can now keep up with the grandkids and do yard work without feeling like I'm going to go into total cardiac arrest.
The other thing I wonder about is relationships. There is an old (very old) Paul Newman western (can't remember the name of it) where he is sitting at a campfire and talking to a younger man about something that happened that day. And the line that I remember the most from this movie was his reply to being asked if he was surprised about what someone had done that day....He said, "The only thing that surprises me is the people, some people marry." That's how I feel. What was I thinking when I got married? Was I thinking? Why did I do it? Can I get out of it? Probably not. Don't get me wrong - my current husband is a wonderful person. And he is a wonderful husband. He's been totally accepting of my rotten, ungrateful children. Which is really good of him considering that's how we got together to begin with - the children introduced us - LOL. But I can't help but think that I would have been better off (emotionally at least) staying single. And I'm positive that my poor husband did not get what he bargained for. I have learned to be at least content with my situation, if not totally ecstatic. Having friends to talk to that understand and don't mind listening to my constant whining and grumbling helps
Well, I am off to get some work done - hopefully I will be back before another month goes by. But I'm not going to put money on it or hold my breath. I look good in blue - but not as a skin tone - LOL.
Friday, February 13, 2009
February 13, 2009
Friday the 13th! I'm not normally a superstitious person - but my daughter got married on Friday the 13th. And they paid for the reception hall with check number 666. How bizarre is that? They are still married. They are still doing well. They have 4 children. And that's where the problem lies. They look like like Boticelli angels most of the time - innocent and sweet (well, at least when they are sleeping - LOL). I call the youngest one (2-yr-old) "Demolition Man." There isn't anything in my house that is safe - or sacred. If I want it then I remember to keep it put up high - very high as he has learned to climb like he has suction cups attached to his limbs! Now don't get me wrong - I love him to pieces (especially when he is sleeping) - but there are times.....like the times he finds the permanent markers that I have hidden away to the point I can't even find them! Like the times he decides that there's too much water in the water cooler bottle and it would look much better on the kitchen floor. Like the times he decides to take a bath in the dog's water dish. Like the times he decides he is big enough to feed the fish without adult supervision and/or help (I'm not sure 5 small fish need an entire bottle of fish food flakes). Like the time he and his older sister took a bath at my house and dissolved an entire bar of soap under the running water - we're talking some serious, foamy bubbles. Can you say soap scum boys and girls? Ah yes, the older sister - the Princess with a capital 'P' (5-yr-old). The Princess who is totally convinced that the world revolves around her. The Princess who so graciously deigns to acknowledge the rest of us mere peasants occasionally. The Princess who knows beyond a shadow of doubt that she is always right. The Princess who is emphatically certain that the rules pertain to her brothers and sister - but not to her. The Princess who will come up to you and spontaneously give you a hug and say "I love you." And then there is the older brother (8-yr-old) - the drama king. The older brother who is a whiz-kid with the X-Box and the Wii. The older brother who as a 4-yr-old had the vocabulary of a drunken sailor when playing the X-Box. The older brother who thought he wouldn't get hurt jumping off the roof of the house onto a pile of pillows (he didn't get hurt until his mother caught him - LOL). The older brother who never makes a mess and therefore shouldn't have to help clean up. The older brother who knows the world is coming to an end if he doesn't get to have a sleepover at grandma's. The older brother who is being picked on and abused when he is given chores to do (cleaning up the back lawn after my 3 dogs is not one of his favorites - not that I blame him). The older brother who never fails to hug his grandma and say "I love you" first thing when he comes in the house. And then there is my daughter's first born - the perfect daughter. The child who could talk non-stop for 10 hours when she was 4. The child who would argue about anything - literally. The child who was always ready to help - even when you preferred she didn't. The child who thinks her world is going to end if she can't use the computer. The child whose mother just asked if I knew anyone who wanted to buy a 13-year-old virgin.
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