I don't have a Lemon face

You're right sweetheart. You don't have a lemon face.

My Washer Died . . .

or at least that is what it smells like when you lift the lid. It smells like moldy old clothes that have been left in there for too long. Which does occasionally happen in my house. So if anyone has any tips on what to do to get rid of the stench let me know. It is killing me. I forget and then I open the lid and for some god awful reason breath in as I lean in to pull out clothes. Uhg. QUEEN OF CLEAN HELP!!

And with regards to the Miss South Carolina comments - Do we really need another reason to make someone feel like a complete idiot? She knows she messed up the answer. Why make it worse? I was listening to the radio yesterday and they just massacred her. He kept saying what a complete dumb ass she was and how she was given the question before hand. Why do we feel the need to do this? Has this radio DJ ever screwed up on air? Said the wrong thing?

Most of Americans are more afraid of public speaking than dying. And yes I understand that she has probably been given some training in public speaking, but people do occasionally have problems on stage. Even if she was given the question before and had prep time, it is possible to forget your lines or have a small anxiety attack. I just can't believe that we feel the need to completely obliterate this person because they messed up. I do not agree with her being a dumb blonde just because of one answer.

I really have to give her credit for getting up there and participating. I can't tell you how many times I have watched this happen, especially in pageant contests. Not to mention I would have a serious problem with just finding South Carolina on a map. I am definitely not the best when it comes to geography.

I actually can see where she was going with her answer as far as most people really suck at geography and we need to educate our children more in this area. And yes, she definitely goes off on a tangent with the South Africa and SUCH stuff. But seriously, there is no need to be an ass about it.

My Simpsons Character

So I mosied on over to Simpson's website to get myself a Simpson's character. I liked it so much I added the pic to my blog menu bar. I am actually pretty impressed at how close it looks like me. It was quite fun going through all the different eyes and noses. Whoever designed the site did a great job on making it very easy to work with and I love that you can see the changes to the characters as you are designing. Wish I could upload my voice and do some sort of skit now. I gave my character the name Isadora, not sure where that came from, but maybe in another life that was my name. Who knows? I don't wear glasses all the time, but as of late I seem to be wearing them more. I also don't wear lipstick, but I just couldn't pass up those lips. What a non-surgical, painless and fun way to have the lips you've always wanted. I love the hair and some days it looks just like that and some . . . well, y'know. If they had sneakers that would have just topped made my day.

I challenge you to take a moment and visit the Simpsons website. Come back and let me know. Feel free to upload your character.

New Song

Huge thanks to Lissete blog. While reading her blog I realized she had a song playing on her blog. I used the link to put one on my blog! YEah!! Enjoy or mute the damn thing. Whatever makes you happy.

Dinner

I am very proud of myself. I cooked a dinner. I didn't have a cookbook and it didn't end up burned or undercooked or worse. Which sadly is how many of my meals turn out. I think I tend to have this great idea that I can cook, but really I suck at it. My husband and son are so nice to me too. They actually eat the stuff and tell me they like it. I follow that up by, "Should I make this again?" This is a nice way of telling me how the meal really was.

More shocking, I cooked something we haven't ever eaten before. It was flounder. Holy Crap, I ate flounder and I really liked it! We also had asparagus and some vegetable pasta thing.

What cracks me up is I got a thumbs up from my son for the flounder and his review, "At first you think the asparagus has too much salt, then you taste it and it doesn't." Uhm, okay. Thanks! My husband, on the other hand, "liked the fish" and barely touched the other stuff. I think he later disappeared into the other room to vomit.

My Dream Home

While on the Creating Keepsakes website I happened to do a challenge of "Here is where I live" layout. I have posted the pic of my house. Now don't get me wrong I like my house. I just think we have outgrown it. It is about 1400 sq. ft. and has three rooms (used to be four). We have really built it up to be our house, the way we like it. We pulled out all the carpet and replaced it with wood flooring, which I absolutely love. We put in marble countertops - a total splurge, but well worth it. One day my husband broke through the living room wall and built a built-in entertainment center for our TV and then had the wood guys finish off the other side (his office) with a built in wood shelf unit. It is all dark wood and my favorite colors. I just about died when my husband said I could pick out the colors all by myself with absolutely no imput from him. I picked out this wonderful burgundy for our kitchen, an olive and cream for our living room, a light creamy brown for our hallway and bathrooms and then we had painted his office blue and grey, but had to repaint it cream when we put our house up for sale last year. Needless to say the market sucked at the time. We just don't seem to have enough space for all of us. There is perfect space for our bodies, just not our personalities. You can hear just about anyone talking in any rooms because of the vents. Or maybe it is just my mother ears. My hobby desk is in my husband's office and pretty soon he will have to move out into the garage because I need more space for scrapbooking. I would also love to have a tub that the water doesn't run out of before you step into the bath; not to mention I would love to turn the ater back on while in the tub and have it hot, not run cold for ten minutes, then hot. Yes, I am spoiled, get over it. I also would love to just turn on the sprinklers outside. Instead I have to wait til the sprinkler is spraying over past the front door and then run as fast as possible, stick my key in the lock and get in the door before it gets me wet. Just a couple of years ago, I did not know that houses were made without sprinklers. Swear. No I am not stupid. Quit laughing. Every house I have every lived in apparently had been one of the newer ones out there. Or maybe I am just totally wrapped up in my own world. Very possible. The next picture is a pic of my dream home. I was shopping for Christmas Cards one year here and saw this card and would have bought it had I not already vowed the do a family photo card. I love the way this card makes you want to walk inside that house and have hot chocolate by the fire. I love that I can picture building snowmen and igloos out front. I love that I can picture myself reading in one of the big rooms upstairs by one of the large windows. I love that I can picture my husband and I having more kids and growing into this house. I can see myself sitting in a porch swing drinking iced tea (during the summer that is). I just see a great dream world in this house. So if anyone out there happens to live here, please leave me your address I would be happy to purchase your house from you.

Blogs & Hyperlinks

I felt the need to comment on different blogs I like even if they are are not linked to my blog, yet that is. Also, trying to support my fellow bloggers. Truth be told I really just want to play with my hyperlink tool. And the bullets.

• Giving a shout out to Deanna with her incredibly funny blog posts, here, and her awesome photography. Totally jealous of her playlist too. Trying like hell to get mine to work right.
• A shout out to Kristina - first of all I LOVE her blog title photo, so crazy genius. And I love that her photos are also supposed to be vertical, but happen to be horizontal. Totally feel one with her on that matter here.
• And I want to thank Scrapbook Obssession for linking my blog to hers. So if you haven't already, go on a visit her challenges and creative scrapbooking blog here.
• I love this blog entry on Silcon Valley Mom Blog here. Anything that has a truly valid point and some back up information is great! Even if I don't agree with it. Even though in this case I do. What is worse I actually like John Edwards. But hey no one is perfect right. Except me of course. I can say that because this is my blog. Naner naner. Course add a comment and this could be your moment of perfection too.
• You could not possibly find a cuter or more perfect photo than those on Cathy's blog under Aug 24th entry Ending the Season with a Bang. Waiting for these to be on a movie screen someday. The commentary in my head for these photos is way too perfect. And you can totally respect a man who will dress like that for his kid. Doesn't her husband look like the guy on Entourage on HBO? Further down on her blog I really want this camera strap too. I spent most of the Ohio vacation fighting with my camera strap. This one would be worth it. Love color! Would be great in red and brown.
• Honestly though I haven't found a blog that tops Notes from the Trenches. This woman's sarcasm speaks to my soul. She is so funny I swear I will have an anerism someday.

And now I have to go revise my birthday gift list because I really like that camera strap.

Gossip, are there grey areas?

Or is gossip just gossip?

How do you define it? Do you do it? Do you refrain? Is gossip commenting on something someone else said or is it just a comment? Is gossip adding your own opinion or is it just an opinion?

Is there really a way to define anything since everyone has their own view on the entire world.

My husband and I had this discussion yesterday. Apparently someone told him I had said somethings to someone else that spoke badly of him. He didn't want to tell me who so I wouldn't be upset with them or start more drama. When it finally came down to it, he admitted this person didn't even have any specific things that I had said, just that I had said something bad about my husband to others.

When my parents got married the officiant said the most profound thing. I was only five, but for some reason this stuck with me. Or maybe in watching the wedding video before my own wedding it struck a cord with me. "When you go out in the world, do not speak badly of your mate because you are one; and speaking badly of your mate is speaking badly of yourself, your other half. You are joined and therefore you are equally affected by all that happens to your other half." If your mate is hurt, so are you. If your mate is depressed so are you. And so on.

I am saddened to realize I am not good at this at all. I wouldn't say I speak badly of my husband, but at the same time I don't always speak well of him either. Realizing this has brought me to a quick halt. It makes me stop and reevaluate how I speak of my family. When I do speak of the negitivity in my marriage it is either to hear another's view point because I am always looking for another point of view other than my own or to reach out to someone who is having similar problems with their marriage and I want them to know they are not alone; as I feel at times. I want them to know that someone else has been through or going through the same things they are. They are truly not alone. I don't think anyone should feel alone. Especially when you have so many people who are married and can give you a helping hand.

When my girlfriends and I get together to discuss our families and our issues it is for solace and understanding. It is for advice and comfort. And yes, sometimes it is just because we are so fucking pissed off at our families and that we just need to vent. A sounding board of sorts. We understand that you need an outlet, a place to pickup information and advice, a place where you can breath and re-energize. But we also understand that we love our families and do not say these things to be hurtful or cruel. We say them because we understand each other and we know each other and we trust each other.

I can be very trusting and take a good heartfelt conversation with someone I recently met and feel like it is okay to talk of these things. And some people may take them wrong.

Another thing my parent's officiant said to their guests, "You are all witnesses to this union. Do you promise to honor these two people and help them in their quest to love one another? Help them to not stray or speak ill will." And so many other wonderful questions to help their wedding guests realize it is part of their job to surround this couple with people who will help them grow together and stay together and be good to each other. They are there to remind them why they are married and help them through all the good times and bad times. To celebrate the good and understand in the bad.

My husband and I will be celebrating our 2nd anniversary come this New Years. I am very new to marriage; at least that is how it feels. Sometimes it feels like I woke up and suddenly had a husband and a son. I feel out of place and lost. I relate it to living in a foreign country sometimes. I didn't get to ease my way into things as most couples do. I married a ready made family; only no one was ready made. We are all different. We are human. I am definitely not perfect. My husband and I have had our problems. On the other hand, show me a couple who hasn't. I am just not shy about the fact that my marriage is not perfect. I have a hard time because I leave my heart on my shoulder for anyone to view. I reach out to people; for my sake and theirs. I have so much to learn and I try to be as honest as possible. I have even told my son that I am going to need his help in this whole mother thing. I am new to this and maybe together we can figure this out, but know in advance I am going to mess up and so is he. But together we will be okay.

So as my husband and I talked, I realized that to a passerby or someone who doesn't know me would or could think that I was speaking ill of him. I am probably guilty. I should have held my tongue knowing my words could be used wrongly. I am not stupid nor nieve. I guess I figured if this someone had felt I was wrong they would have come to me. I would have gladly explained that the person I was speaking to was also having problems and I felt the need to reach out. But at the same time that doesn't explain my actions. I was wrong in one sense and not in the other, but I will not be doing so in the future. After hearing my husband's side I can understand how he would feel hurt. To him it isn't just women talking; women exchanging information; helping each other; understanding each other. To him it is gossip. And the last thing I want to do is feed the fire. The last thing I want to do is betray my husband.

I will say this though -
My husband and I are not perfect. We do fight. We do argue. But I love my husband more than I have ever thought I could love someone. He is my soul mate. I can't imagine a life without him. I wouldn't want to. Sounds sappy, but he really does complete me. He makes me stop and smell the roses; to breath in life. He makes me love less conditionally. He is my peace and my calm when the world around me is in a storm. He is my opposite. And he may drive me nuts some times, but those things that make me crazy are the reasons I fell in love with him. I love him because he is different from me. There are so many grey areas in life. But whatever color it is - I love my husband.

So I step back and take this all in to perspective and realize this is a great learning experience for me. It made me remember those words my parent's officiant uttered -

"When you go out in the world, do not speak badly of your mate because you are one; and speaking badly of your mate is speaking badly of yourself, your other half. You are joined and therefore you are equally effected by all that happens to your other half."

Blogger help

Now that I wrote the title I am thinking "watch this won't work." But a girl can still hope right? I am going to edit my blog with color and sizing, fonts and a hyperlink. Here is a new blog I like.

• BULLETS!!
• another bullet (sorry couldn't help it)

quote marks that apparently don't do a damn thing

Add a video - which I don't have one

Also I was hoping for more options. Hmm, need to keep thinking...

Okay so it looks like the fonts aren't working, but this only the beginning. So here goes nothing.
Publish Post

Home Sweet Home

I absolutely love coming home after being away for a little while for one BIG reason. My cat runs to me like I have been away for a year. I was the last one in the door when we got home, I stopped to put down bags and pet Tuesday. Then I looked up and saw Izabel peeking around Bill and Nate. I stood up and said in my really annoying momma voice "There's my baby!" And Izabel ran around Bill and Nate so fast she skidded into my feet. She always has this incredibly shocked look on her face. Like "Oh wow, is it really you?" I love that. I wish I could bottle it and have it every day. She has done that every since I went away for a week and left her with a friend of mine. At the time, she was only about five months old. She was at the top of the second story staircase when I walked in. I looked up and she looked at me for a minute like she didn't recognize me. Then when I said, "There's my baby!" She came running down those steps so fast I thought she would fall. I just love the love. You just can't beat that kind of a home coming. Although I have to say coming home to a clean house sure does rank high on the list.

Okay so I am going to bore you with a lot of my favorite pics from the weekend. I know what you're thinking - "Oh Yeah, a family slide show!" Don't worry I won't show you all 1000+ pics. Just a few of my fav highlights. And let me tell you when I went through them quickly there are quite a few great shots. I can't wait to start scrapbooking! What a huge difference it makes when you invest in a really good camera.

We went to Ohio for a family reunion slash 75th Grandpa's birthday celebration. Come to find out though, the actual "real" family reunion took place two weeks ago. We got the invite on Saturday. Uh, whoops. Think they're telling us something?

So we took the extra long flight to Louisville, Kentucky then took a little drive over to Cincinnati, OH. (Can't remember what the abreviation for Kentucky is right now. Will have to look that up later). When I say extra long, I mean extra long. We left at Noon-ish and arrived in KY (good guess?) around midnight. Uhm, with a stop on the way. How is this possible, you ask? Well, as my husband would say "We got a good deal on our tickets." Thankfully the man has come to his senses and has reevaluated his statement saying now, "Nothing is that good of a deal." We blessedly got lucky, our 9 year old son was a dream on the way there. Honestly, you really didn't even know he was there he was so quiet. Course on the way home . . .

So we spent the first night at an aunt's house. I interrupt this post to thank a very sweet girl, who will remain unnamed, for giving up her bed at three o'clock in the morning for us. When I was a kid I absolutely HATED when people came to visit because being the youngest I was the first to VOLUNTEER my bedroom. So huge thanks for the accommodations!! The following morning we met at breakfast while the same aunt who boarded us brought Grandpa to breakfast for a little surprise. The surprise was us - all 12 of us. Now let me tell you how many people commented on the fact that he was in fact turning 75 and should we really be surprising him this way? My thoughts exactly. Thankfully not much upsets Grandpa as far as I have seen. God love this man. He is just the nicest man! I have only met him a few times, but for some reason I have grown very fond of him already. It could be that my husband has a profound amount of respect for him or the wonderful stories he tells. Who knows? Anyway, I can't remember what exactly we did after breakfast.

That evening we ended up at another house and that is where I met my competition. The woman we all fear is in our husband's life. She called him the minute she found out he was in town. She begged him to come see her right away. And of course he quickly promised it would be soon. She has brown hair and a stick figure. Her eyes twinkle whenever she looks at him. And she is ten years old and cute as a button. My husband's first cousin. He just dotes on her. Quite a cutie and a great kareoke singer!

The next morning the guys took off for a private breakfast with grandpa and the men. We girls met up and had a big breakfast as well. Then I told everyone I was going back to shower and get ready for the day. Instead I went back and went straight to bed. Got caught too! Everyone came home before I could get up and act like I had been in the shower for awhile. No guilt here though! I totally needed the rest. Nothing like jet lag and constant talking to make you tired. Then we took Grandpa to Walmart. Okay another small story -

Right before we left for Walmart Grandpa mentioned taking us to Wally World. I didn't realize the name until we were in the car. Then all of a sudden I jumped in my seat and yelled at my husband, "Grandpa wants to take us to Wally World???? Like in the Chevy Chase movie??" My husband looked at me for awhile, then said, "oh that is just what Grandpa calls Walmart." Uhm, oh. Damn. I am such a sucker for visiting anything I see in the movies. One day I will live in the movies. Now back to reality -

So Walmart ended up being a distraction while everyone else was setting up for the big 75th party at the Farm. Why am I capitalizing all these words??? Anyway, we totally led him in the back door. So we screwed it up, but I think we prevented a heart attack or at least that is my version. Ended up having a wonderful time. I am so shocked that I not only married a great guy and a sweet son, but I actually like my in-laws and the rest of the bunch. Let me tell you the freaks I have met when going with my friend' to meet their in-laws. So I know I got lucky when I not only like them, but don't want to leave. We also got a great tour of the farm that grandpa worked on back in the day. I saw the biggest pig I have ever seen ever, even in the movies. Seriously, I was shocked when I saw the size of this thing. I had no idea how big pigs really get. And you can imagine the bacon comments we had flying around. We also made a circle so we could pet the rabbits. Funny thing, the tour quide convinced us to all sit in a circle so the bunnies would not run away, yet when we were done petting the rabbits she told us to just get up and let them run away. Uhm, so what was the purpose of this circle thing? Apparently just trying to see what she could make us do in order to pet a rabbit. She could have challenged us and asked us to make an octagon or something really hard. I still would have done it. I love animals. Well, all but that pig. A little scary. Not to mention all the little gross me out germs on the kids hands. I kept thinking (and probably mumbling out loud like the crazy person that I am), "okay kids don't put your hands in your mouths."Uhg, horror the thought. [Doing the gross me out dance right now.]

We got a couple of really great photos I may use for our Christmas card photo this year. Have given up on trying to get the perfect pic every year with all the pets and the family. Too much work. And too much stress. And so not fun. This year I didn't want to do a photo at all, but on the other hand I do like having a great family photo. Bonus that I get to actually mail it to everyone else too.

Brings me to my favorite part of the whole trip. MY VISIT TO WHITE CASTLE. I have seen these burgers in movies and I have heard people talk about them since I was in highschool (guess how long that was). So when I heard we were going to be able to go to White Castle. I just about peed my pants. Seriously. Ask my husband. So I got a pic holding my take out bag. I really didn't order that many hamburgers. The server must have made a mistake. It just looks like a lot. We actually took them back to another fast food place and ate them with the rest of the bunch while they ate the food that that restaurant actually serves. Huh, imagine that. So here is my White Castle review -
seriously the nastiest burger i have ever tasted in my life. i barely was able to down a bite and yes i did eat a couple of bites just to make sure i wasn't being weird or losing my mind. the burger was soggy, the cheese was nasty and the pickles and onions and uhg, it was like eating mush. for fun. mush i have waited at least ten years for. so from me to you - skip the visit, just imagine how good it could be.

I did also try Skyline Chilli - chili on spaghetti; chili on a hot dog (uhm, chili dog). Not to excited about that one either. My in-laws are going to kill me for this comment though. They all really love this place. They would go straight from the airport to Skyline if they could.

Just to be fair and give one good review. I did really like Steak N Shake. But I didn't get to go there on this visit. So maybe next time.

The last night there, we ended up at another house. This one was really breath taking. It was backed up to forest. It had a garden, a barn, a garage with a really fucking cool race car in it. While everyone else was walking around looking at it. I jumped in and would have taken it for a spin (dreaming, I know), but the stearing wheel wasn't attached. They started it up and I jumped out of my skin. I didn't realize it would be quite so loud. I have been to Nascar, but this was unreal. Now I want to add drag racing to my list of things to do. www.50.com Anyway, this house was out in the middle of no where. They had a really great game room with pool table, bar and a couple of slot machines. It had a porch that went around most of the house - very cool. And then these really large rooms for entertaining. Add this house to the list of houses I would like to live in. Course I could live without the forrest behind it. I am freaky like that. I would be standing in the kitchen waiting for some alien from the movie Signs to pop up out of no where. Confused? [note title of blog] Again, I digress. We just had a really kick ass good time drinking and shootin' the shit.

Then we got up at 3 am this morning to fly back. Once again, my husband got a really good deal on the flights. Just kidding, actually I didn't mind the really early flight back. If it was a non-stop flight it would have been great. I slept most of the way. Which is good for everyone involved!

So . . . home sweet home.

Oh and one more thing. For anyone who cares to complain that my vertical photos are actually posting horizontally. Thanks. I know that. My computer is still winning, but I am not done yet. It may have won this battle, but not the war.

The Foot

This is how my son sleeps. How he breaths is beyond me.

Izabel VS the ribbon on the bookmark

Knitting

I received a beginners knitting kit from my Aunt and Uncle this past Christmas. My mother is a big knitter. I love the hand towels she has made for me and the scarves she has done for other people. She keeps showing me new sweater books and scarf patterns. They are so beautiful and I would love to make some of my own clothes. It is truly a dying art and I keep swearing I am going to learn. After looking at the scarf I am working on right now, I am wondering if this is such a good idea. I think the scraf I am knitting is dying right in front of my very eyes. Notice the intricate detailing - uhm the holes and the fact that the side I began on is much smaller than the side I am working on now. Maybe yarn just shrinks as you keep stitching. Not something I remember my mother mentioning. Also, I haven't noticed any of my mother's scarves looking like this. So if anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them. I don't plan to quit knitting and I fully plan on wearing this scarf - holes and all.

The Top 10 unintentionally worst company URLs

I found this incredibly funny. I remember when they put out the Nova car which in spanish means "no go." Seems to me people would take a moment to research the extent of their names, especially ones with money and people to do this kind of research. This was taken from www.independentsources.com and found on the bloggerfordummies.blogspot.com website.

The Top 10 unintenionally worst company URLs

Attn: Entrepreneurs
Everyone knows that if you are going to operate a business in today’s world you need a domain name. It is advisable to look at the domain name selected as other see it and not just as you think it looks. Failure to do this may result in situations such as the following (legitimate) companies who deal in everyday humdrum products and services but clearly didn’t give their domain names enough consideration:

1. A site called ‘Who Represents‘ where you can find the name of the agent that represents a celebrity. Their domain name… wait for it… is
www.whorepresents.com

2. Experts Exchange, a knowledge base where programmers can exchange advice and views at
www.expertsexchange.com

3. Looking for a pen? Look no further than Pen Island at
www.penisland.net

4. Need a therapist? Try Therapist Finder at
www.therapistfinder.com

5. Then of course, there’s the Italian Power Generator company…
www.powergenitalia.com

6. And now, we have the Mole Station Native Nursery, based in New South Wales:
www.molestationnursery.com

7. If you’re looking for computer software, there’s always
www.ipanywhere.com

8. Welcome to the First Cumming Methodist Church. Their website is
www.cummingfirst.com

9. Then, of course, there’s these brainless art designers, and their whacky website:
www.speedofart.com

10. Want to holiday in Lake Tahoe? Try their brochure website at
www.gotahoe.com

Thanks mom!

Here is a pic to show you the editing my mother likes to provide for me. She was kind enough to ask me if I really wanted her to edit it. Sure, I really don't mind. As long as she doesn't rewrite the thing. And in my family - we would. We are just nice like that.
Thanks mom!

I had the other day off from work and started my day in the doctor's office. Doesn't every person just love that annual physical - especially women? I swear I would kill for an appointment like I used to complain about when I was a kid - hit the knee with a thing-a-ma-bob, take my temp, give me a shot and I am on my way. And who decided to stop giving out lollipops? Instead, I waited a half hour in the waiting room, then another forty minutes freezing in a paper gown in what I call the "second waiting room." I do love my doctor though. She is incredibly nice and always a good listener. Going to the doctor is like therapy for me only much cheaper. A doctor that I can sit and talk to and cry to who can't go anywhere. She just sits and listens. Sadly my doctor's office is one of the only places I actually cry. Course that is how my mother ended up on perscribed drugs for 10 years. As my father would say and I quote, "quit complaining and they will stop giving you drugs." It was supposed to be a quick doctor appointment and then on to my fun stuff of the day. But after the appointment I was sent over to have a thyroid test. Walked into the waiting room there and took one look around and went right back out to my car to get my "waiting book." The book that sits in my car for when I know I will need something to do. By the time they called me in for the thyroid test I was totally sucked into my book, "More Than Friends" by Barbara Delinsky. I actually wanted to tell them to go ahead and take the next person. I was quite content to sit there and read all day. When I got out of the office, I then decided to skip my shopping trips and go directly to home (do not pass go, do not spend $200.) Somehow I ended up at the video store and somehow ended up with some really good movies too.

I rented "Premonition" with Sandra Bullock. I have been waiting to see this movie for awhile now and I wasn't disappointed. I LOVED IT! It was definitely one of those movies where you are on the edge of your seat the whole time. Although I was a little disappointed in the ending. I don't want to ruin it for anyone else, so when you see it then we'll talk. Also rented "I Think I Love My Wife" and I loved this one too! I think Chris Rock is incredibly funny. Could live without all the fuck this and fuck that, but I think he says the things people are thinking, but don't want to say. I feel like men could learn a few things his character learned in the movie. Then again, what do I know. "The Contract" with John Cusack was boring and slow.

My hubby and I planned a date night recently. We went to dinner AND a movie all in one. There is this wonderful local place where you eat a fabulous meal and watch a movie at the same time. Why is this important? Because one of my top favorite things to do is dinner and a movie. I am a big movie freak. And food is really important; expecially good mouth-watering food. The owners of this place used to own a catering business then they went into the movie business. You really can't go wrong here. My mother, my husband, our son and my niece and I went and saw "Kicking and Screaming" with Will Ferrell. We laughed so hard I thought we would lose our food. The kids thought this was the coolest idea. I have to agree.

So we went to see Die Harder with Bruce Willis who has been on my list of hot movie guys for years now. It was awesome except for the guy behind us who towards the end started to holler profanities about how unrealistic this movie was. I wanted to stand up and punch the guy. I mean it is a blockbuster. It is supposed to be entertaining. Who wants to watch boring home movies? We want action, even if it is hard to believe. What an ass! Otherwise the food was to die for and the atmosphere was perfect. My husband had steak and mashed potatoes - his favorite and I had a mouthwatering buger. Add in the shrimp appetizer, the creme brulee and raspberry strudel ala mode and you have yourself a very expensive and incredibly tasting dinner. Note there are two desserts listed because my husband said he would not share his creme brulee with me and I wasn't going to pass up a dessert at this place. I dressed up in my girly outfit and hopefully reminded my husband that I was still sexy. I have to say that my husband definitely passed for damn sexy. It was incredibly nice to see him dress up. Although I have to ask, do guys just not need to match? Is this a rule I missed? Either way I would have picked him up and taken him home. Luckily I already did. It could have been the recent haircut. It could have been the black shirt; black is definitely a good color on him. It could have been that I felt sexy for once. It could have been the glass of wine I had long before dinner. Who know? Who cares? I am totally looking forward to my next date with the sexiest husband out there!!

Love and Blogging

Can I just say that I love blogging! I just spent 45 minutes surfing the blogs I love to read and I am never disappointed. I laugh my ass off when reading them. I am inspired. I am renewed. I am perfectly happy wasting time doing this. Mission Accomplished.

And with those stupid sideways photos I have on an early blog that my eyes keep roaming to, I would just like to say I am renaming that blog entry as -
Tuesday Lisa (mona lisa)
or
Still Life of a Cat

Remember me?

So it has been quite the week for me. Apparently no time for blogging. I spilled coffee on my keyboard and sadly I had to bury it in the backyard - just kidding. But lo and behold the very next day the mac keyboard fairy left a brand new one on my desk. Thanks hubby!! I had a small issue with uploading photos to my blog - you'll notice the photos from the previous blog are sideways. Still haven't figured that one out. I would not clarify myself as a computer wizard, but I truly feel I can work my way around a computer. Lately I think my computer is winning. And that is why I finally decided just to post the damn thing after it sat in my draft box for the whole week. F*&%$# computer!!

I also woke up Monday and realized I needed a new life goal. Something big. Something that would make me focus; make me work long and hard for something. I need goals in my life. I crave goals. I like having something to look forward to even if it is only date night the following week. Still something on the horizon - a silver lining in life. Something that will brighten my day. Something that will spark some light when I am feeling blue.

And then it came to me from who knows where - A TRIATHLON.

I would train for a triathlon. When I mentioned this to my dad he replied, "You know you have to swim." And my husband, something something something - translation "You're fat and do you know how hard it is?" He swears he never said anything like that, but my womanly translation really knows what he said. Thanks for your support. Yes, that was dripping with sarcasm. I have spent the majority of the week contemplating the work; devising a plan; and basically trying to figure out if I had the will to actually commit to this. I have really great will power, but sometimes I have even more powerful excuses. What I keep coming back to is I love those days when I get to sleep in. I love that I get to eat what I want when I want. I don't want to feel guilty for eating a few cookies . . . every few hours for an entire day off. I don't want to feel guilty for hitting the snooze button and sleeping an extra hour. On the other hand most of my workouts happen long before I really truly wake up. For the traffic police, I wake up, drive and then go back to sleep while I workout. In any case, I would be losing weight and training in my sleep. Something I really could like. I could do this six days a week and then rest on Sunday. Couldn't I? I swear I could, but that inner fat person keeps saying how hard it will be. The inner lazy person keeps reminding me of all the couch time I will be missing and all the wonderful lazy mornings in bed. Ugh, the agony of knowing I will probably give in and train because otherwise what a complete loser I feel like. To myself that is. I could do this. I know I could. So what is stopping me? Sucks when reality sets in. I would really like to just give in to that lazy, fat person inside. Course then I would be lazy and fat - slight problem there. I don't want to be lazy or fat, well not 98% of the time anyway.

Tuesday and other odd happenings

I wanted to share with you some of the places my cat likes to go. She can get up on top of the fridge and cupboards. Now she can get up on top of the shelf above my desk in the office. I am waiting to find her in the vents. When I lived at my parent's house we caught her on the roof. She just stands up there and meows at us. Kind of a subtle "hey."

I also figured out the best way to view your house is to take a picture of it. I have since cleaned the top of my fridge off. I haven't been able to coax Tues back on top of the fridge to retake this photo. Of course, just like kids they have to prove you wrong. I had recently organized my desk area, but looking at that photo I will need to revisit how to better organize myself here too. And I thought my house was clean and decluttered. I have been throwing things away and giving things away by the garbage bag. Yet I look at these pictures and shudder. I am considering getting rid of everything, but then I wouldn't be able to scapbook, read, watch movies, listen to CDs . . . so being a little cluttered and a little messy isn't too bad. Is it?

Me

Couldn't figure out what to write about so I guess I will give you a little (more) on me.

I am one of those incredibly simple, yet insanely complex people. I love all things simple and I love all things complex and not much in the middle. I am a rule girl. I color inside the lines. When I encounter something and there are no rules for it, I am shocked and it takes a moment for me to compose my thoughts and find what I will do. I start by making up my own rules. Once they are defined my world starts moving again. I don't know why I am like this. Both my parents say I have always been like this - from day one. I am working on moving outside my comfort zone and trying new things. If you ever read "Who Moved My Cheese" by Spencer Johnson ( a family requisite) I am the mouse who is frozen by change and then, near death, just adjusts and makes a late, but slow recovery. Whether the change waits for me or not, over time I process it, sometimes quicker than others, then one day I wake up and I like that change. The change has become my new everyday. No problem. All of my ducks are in a row. Just don't stray from the new change. Just kidding. No really don't. Kidding. No. (Sorry couldn't help it - totally lol right now.) I am also a mover and a shaker. Depending on the event and whatnot I can move/adjust faster than most people. Figure that one out.

I love mac 'n cheese, pbj sandwiches and at the same time I love eating out at incrediby expensive restaurants. One of my favorite things to do is go out to dinner and a movie. Too bad now it is about a $75 date. Sadly, I remember when movies cost $3 and when the dollar movies really were $1. I remember when gas was 1.25 a gallon. I remember when stamps were only 37 cents - gotcha! That just happened about two months ago.

I love a pair of jeans after I have worn them a few times. They are broken in and fit like a glove. I love white t-shirts and white tank tops. I love flip flops and tennis shoes. I love my new car. Well it is still new to me even after a year. I actually got to go out and pick out any car I wanted. Okay, within reason. I had a spending limit. I have always had a used Honda. Now having used is not bad. It gets you from point A to point B, but there is nothing like a new car. Never been owned by anyone else. I can break it in (without the dents). I bought a VW Golf. And I love it. LOVE IT! It has a CD player, a rear windshield wiper, power everything, automatic defrost mirrors (haven't seen those work yet), a smaller steering wheel, a really cool remote key and oh so much more. I love going to the grocery store just to open my hatchback to put the groceries in it.

I love breakfast foods. Blueberry pancakes, bacon, eggs, chorizo, sausage, ham, quiche, waffles, cereal - I would eat cereal for every meal if I could get away with it. At least twice a week, I eat it for more than one meal. I eat from the biggest cereal bowl. And my milk is always spilling over. And I love the original cereal, not the imitation. I will pay $5 for a box of cereal although you can get it for $2 at Target. Even my cat loves cereal. My Izabel (long haired cat) loves to eat fruit loops. When she was just six weeks old she would perch on my shoulder as I leaned against the wall on the floor of my apartment. I didn't have money for a couch yet. So I sat on the floor. As I brought my spoon to my mouth she would lean forward on my shoulder and lick the milk from the spoon. Ewww, I know. Don't care. Yes, my cats can pass for my kids occasionally. I don't care how crazy anyone thinks I am. I love my cats.

I have three cat trees in my house, a window perch and about six other smaller cat condos. I baby talk to my cats. I tell stories, I sing, I make kissing noises. You name it. I embarrass myself and I don't care. My Izabel was dropped off at my apartment when I was in college. An aquaintance of mine found her in a grocery store parking lot and knew I wanted a pet. I had never owned a cat before. She is a Maine Coon. I grew up with Yorkshire Terriers. I fell instantly in love. She was so small she fit in my palm. She would take naps in my tennis shoes and gnaw on the heel. She would sleep in the crevice of my neck at night; as she got older she would drape herself across my neck like a shawl. She still does this. Can be painful as she weighs 13 lbs now. When she was a kitten, she would run around so fast she would hit the wall and do somersalts off it. Swear! It was a sight to see. She also talks to me. She will repeat the last syllable sound I make. (My favorite for her to mimic is - Huh? How's my baby, huh? Did she have a good day today, huh?) She also caterwauls at night in the hallway and trills (whistles) at you when she is really excited about something. She loves sitting in baskets. She loves cat treats. She will do anything for a treat. She is truly my baby. When I lived with my parents after college my mother would say if you find Izabel I will be right around the corner. She doesn't really like anyone else. I love this too. She is so beautiful though. She really pulls people in. She looks so sweet and loving. She trills at new people. They get closer and closer, if I am paying attention I always say "she bites." They stop and look at me while they process this information. They look back at her. I follow that up with "she pulls you in and then she will bite you." Nine times out of ten they don't believe me. She is that pretty. It isn't that she is mean. I think she doesn't realize until it is too late she doesn't want you to touch her. She just wants to smell your hand or face. Then she wants to be left alone. She likes things her way. She doesn't really care what anyone else thinks. When I first moved in with my husband, Izabel would lay in all of the doorways. My husband would try to sweep her to the side, out of the way. She would hiss and spit and try to bite him. I kept telling him to just leave her and step over her. He kept saying it was his house and he wouldn't step over her. I think he gave up because she still lays in the doorway.

Tuesday is my love bug. She is a British Shorthair. You can hang her by her feet and she will still lick your face. She loves people. I adopted her from my vet's office. I got Tuesday because I was moving into my apartment and I didn't want Izabel to be lonely during the day. Needless to say Izabel doesn't like her - jealous. Tuesday loves to drink out of your glass and keep an eye on your ham sandwich at all times. She loves ham and most other human food. She also loves dog food. She spends many mornings with one arm under the pantry door trying to get the dog food which fell on the floor when my son fed the dogs. She follows my husband around all day long. She jumps on his desk and lays on his laptop, rolls over for belly scratches sending anonymous emails to Tokyo I am sure. He works at home and I think after the first day with him Tues just fell in love. I keep saying I am going to put a camera on Tues then I will know exactly what my husband does all day. He actually has a space for her on his desk (he says he is really a dog person) and if he happens to put paper there she knocks it off and then lays down. Tuesday is beautiful to me too, but cute as in "she is so cute I want to pinch her cheeks and rub noses with her." She has this outline around her heart shaped nose and mouth that makes her look like she has professional makeup on. When she is hungry she meows really loud and quickly like it was too much to contain and it just burst from her. She is Houdini. She can get out of anywhere and go anywhere. She likes to hike her way to the top of our cabinets - up on the counter, to the fridge, to on top of the cabinets and she looks down on her "little people." DH and I have constant conversations about what she is thinking about up there. She is constantly watching the doors and she senses when someone is weak and won't close the door. I would go outside at night to throw something in the trash bin and she would come out from under the car and meow. How she got out I have no idea, especially when no one opened a door for hours. We try hard to keep her inside because the neighbor dogs would love to have her for dinner. I know she would rather be out cruisin the neighborhood, but I'd like to keep her around. I think it is part of the fun too just to see if she can get out. When I lived at my parent's house she would go out the dog door - no way around that one. To this day I still hear stories about random people in my parent's neighborhood who knew Tues. She touched so many lives.

I love that both of my cats expect respect. I love that they have such incredible personalities. I love that they love me. They greet me at the door everyday and meow at me when I wake up. They need me as much as I need them. That kind of love amazes me.

I love to read. I read all sorts of books, magazines, ezines, newspapers. I believe it is unamerican to not order the newspaper. Why, I have no idea, it just feels that way. I love books about people's lives. In no particular order - James Patterson, Jodi Picoult, Iris Johansen - wow I can't think of any other authors, but I have many. I tend to find a book I love and then read all the author's other books. I would love to have a book club some day. When I was little and would dream about being married (yes all women do that), I would picture myself reading in bed next to my husband. Odd, but my husband doesn't really like to read.

I love music. I think music is the key to one's soul. I listen to music all the time. I love the 80's and 90's. My favorite song is Landslide by Stevie Knicks. But I also love "Lady in Red" by Chris De Burgh, "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel and "Crazy" by Aerosmith (of course). My CDs are pretty eclectic I think - Evanescense, Jo Jo, Fergie, Anna Nalick, Dave Matthews Band, George Strait (love Pure Country), Plain White T's, Jessica Simpson and Ashley Simpson, Avril Lavigne, Guns N Roses. I think I favor all girl bands. I tend to listen to those most often. When I buy a CD I like to listen to my favorite songs over and over again until I know the words by heart. Then I listen to the rest of the CD.

Favorite TV shows right now are Big Love, Army Wives - I am fascinated by people's lives that are so different from mine - oh and Desperate Housewives - occasionally not too far off from my life.

I love movies too. I love to watch the same movie over and over and over again. This drives my husband nuts. He will come in, look at the TV and ask "Didn't you watch this yesterday?" I am thinking "Yes, didn't you ask me that yesterday." When I was in college I would lay in bed all day and watch old movies on channels like TNT because they would just play the same movie repeatedly. Worked for me.

My favorite question, I think, is WHY? I always like to know the reason for everything. I like to know why people do things. I like to know why things are done a certain way. If you want me to answer something I need background. I like a point of reference.

Okay so this is definitely more information than you anyone probably wants to know about me, but hey that's a perk. It is my blog.

I Won!

I won a free book from Creating Keepsakes!!! Yeah!! Can't believe it.

I swear the first thing that comes to mind when I win something is - I never win anything. Not really true. I mean I don't win stuff all the time, but I do win occasionally. Every once in awhile I do get a prize. I remember my dad telling me when I cold call in sales, for every 100 nos you will get 1 yes. Kind of like that in winning. That famous lottery saying "You can't win if you don't play." Well I play as often as possible. Well, actually I don't play the lottery, but I do enter as many contests as I can. I not only want to try to win, but by entering contests I can learn what types of things the winners do. I didn't win the book doing anything special. It was just a random drawing, but I have been participating in quite a few contests and events over there at Creating Keepsakes. Getting myself organized, planning and figuring out what works and doesn't work for my scrapbooking. Fake it til you make it, right? Boy, I have a lot of those.

You win some, you lose some

Surround yourself by those you would like to be like

I never see failure as failure, but only as the game I must play to win

Try, try and try again

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me

My nine year olds son's favorite - I can do anything I set my mind to (Or as my father would say - What the mind believes the body can achieve)

I am not judged by the number of times I fail, but by the number of times I succeed; and the number of times I succeed is in direct proportion to the number of times I fail and keep trying - Tom Hopkins

Think like a winner and you will be a winner

And there are oh so many more

Courtesy of my father, the positive attitude guru. I have read so many positive attitude books in my life and I still pick them up today. I think they are in my blood. Thanks dad! I love that! It keeps me happy, healthy and thinking good stuff. And there is nothing like good stuff you win.

Have a successful day!

Love and My Husband

I love my husband and not just in the "we dated, got married and have been together for years" so I should just love him. No, I really love him. He is the only man I have ever met or known who can fix anything. And I don't mean anything in the sense that he can stop a toilet from overflowing or fix a flat tire. I mean he can really fix ANYTHING. He has fixed our pool, not just the hose or cleaner, but the actual pool where the back flow and other controls are. He has taken apart our dishwasher and put it back together. He has broken a hole in our living room wall/office and built a built-in entertainment center that fits our TV like a glove. When we were dating and my car would act up he would tell me to bring it over and he would fix it. I have posted pictures of things he did on one occasion recently that came from his Honey-Do list. The first is the cat window seat for my Tuesday. Tuesday used to be an outdoor/indoor cat. When I moved in with my husband there were numerous dogs eating cats and other wildlife. So I put a stop to her going out. Now she sits at a door or window and waits. She is Houdini. She can make it out that door and you never knew she was there. So I try to curb this by providing open windows with screens for her to look out and window seats with a view and cat trees. Our house is very cat friendy. My husband is very patient with me. Anyway, the last one broke or I should say became a diving board. Every time she stepped on the window seat she was catapulted onto her cat tree right next to it. So my husabnd built this one from scratch. I will take this moment to also tell you, while we were dating I wanted to spend Christmas Eve with him. He wanted to be at his house because of his son. I didn't want to be without my cats - YES I AM ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE. So I finally gave in and threw my cats in the car. When I got to his house, he and his son were in the garage finishing a cat tree they had built by hand. A huge plus. Since we remodeled our bathrooms last year I have been waiting for him to put up a towel rack in our bathroom. PS: That cream wash cloth was handmade by my mother. Then he put a screw up in the linen closet doorway. There is this curtain rod that hangs in place of a door and every time I touch the curtain the rod falls down. Blessed be, that is one of the best things. A screw. That's all it took. I love that screw. I swear it is the little things that matter. Then just this morning our air conditioner started leaking through the hallway ceiling. It occasionally does this. We haven't figured out why. So for the first half of the day we had three really large bowls in our hallway. I just cleaned out my Tupperware cupboard the other day and I threw out all my bad Tupperware. So I had to donate some good Tupperware to the garage. On the upside around four o'clock this afternoon my husband got on the roof and fixed the ac. Now we have a ceiling to fix, but I can live with that. He fixed the ac so fast this time I can't help but be impressed and totally thankful. Without him I would be spending lots of money on guys who bullshit me and overcharge me. Then there is a picture of my hubby in the flesh. I took this photo a few days ago. I was sneaking around the house taking photos for a scrapbook challenge and he caught me. Wanted to know what I was doing. I told him I was taking pictures of my favorite things. So he posed. What do you do? I added him to the page. How could I not?

Scrapbooking and Murphy's Law

I did these layouts last night. I am pretty proud of them for two reasons. One - After scrapbooking for over a year and a half I think I finally found my scrapbooking style. Two - These are completely original layouts of mine. And since I think it is important to be proud of your accomplishments . . . Yeah me! Okay, uhm, moving on now. It has been quite the struggle for me. I have been seriously scrapbooking for about six months. Meaning just about every spare moment in my life is spent scrapbooking. When I finish a layout I spend days wondering what is wrong with it. Then finally put it in my book and never look at it again. I am not very patient with myself. I like to see results often or I get frustrated. Hmm, maybe that could be what I am doing wrong. I entered the Creating Keepsakes Scrapbooker of the Year 2007 contest. No I did not win or even become a finalist. When I look at the pages entered for the SOY finalists, I know why. Wow, their pages are absolutely amazing. Allison Davis is one of the finalists. You can look at her blog, see the link to the left. For the last two weeks I have been scraplifting. I have been browsing the CK Gallery - http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/gallery/ magazine articles, magazine ads, you name it and I have been looking for it. Then I have been picking out the layouts that speak to me and scrapping my own version of them. Lately I seem to be drawn to white and black backgrounds probably because I feel those are difficult for me. White pages can be hard to get a finished look because of all the white space. White space good. I try to fill it, this is bad. Hard for me to do. Black pages require doodling because very few things show up on black paper. I don't always like my handwriting and I tend to think faster than I write, so mess ups are inevitable. In the past, I have tried Creating Memories, Making Memories and then just doing my own things with whatever came to mind. This worked great for my baby book because I wanted that 70's/80's feel. Very retro. That really doesn't fit my everyday lifestyle I am trying to scrap now. Now I shop all the companies and pick out what fits me or something I was to try. Right now I am trying to figure out how I will feel most comfortable decorating chipboard. It takes me about one hour to finish a page. I used to spend two minutes with the layout and the rest with embellishments and add-ons. Now I spend a good twenty to thrity mintues moving the pieces around on the page and laying it out before I paste anything down. I work the rest of the time on journaling and doodling or very few small touches. I also tend to scrap one page layouts even when I have more than enough photos to go for six pages. I am also slowing down when I take photos. I am thinking about the page I will be scrapping later. Sometimes I even picture a layout or ad I have seen while I am taking the photo and then I can't wait to find time to scrap. But I continue to try new layouts and designs. I am going to venture into Digital Scrapbooking soon. Just a few issues with setting it up. We got a mac last year and I am still trying to figure out how to work it. I have Photoshop CS, but I am even having trouble with the tutorials. I would say I am pretty computer savy, but mac has given me a run for my money. I am looking into Photoshop Elements because I have heard it is easier to work with. Who knows? Challenges are good for me. I tend to challenge myself everyday in all aspects of my life. Probably one reason I married my husband - who is the complete and total opposite of me. But I digress. I am challenging myself to scrap two page layouts and I am carrying around a journal to write down anything that comes to mind. I actually pulled my car over yesterday while driving to write something down that came to mind. It was so good, I didn't want to forget it. It was the journaling for my son's page above. As my mother would say, your thoughts are in your butt. When you sit down you remember things. When you get up to go to the kitchen you foget why. I think it is the complete opposite when it comes to scrapbooking. I think best on my feet or when I can not possibly stop to journal or scrap. Murphy's Law strikes again. Or maybe it is just the ramblings of a crazy woman, again. Welcome to my world.

Pictures of Food

Okay I was just over at Notes From The Trenches and she made Blueberry Cobbler!! Oh boy, two of my favorites together. What a match made in heaven. Already I digress, she took pictures of her cobbler which she doesn't normally do. I don't know how to hyperlink a website yet, so you will have to click on her link to the right of this blog. Okay this is where my story comes in - wait for it - My husband and I always, yes always, take pictures of our food. Now I don't mean everyday, but quite often we pull out the camera and take pictures of our food. I don't know why and I don't know how this got started. The first time I remember doing this was the night Bill proposed. He took me to a really nice restaurant with incredible food. We were excited, having a great time and lots of wine and just decided the food was so good we would take a picture. The picture above is the latest picture of food when we rented a house on the beach. It was so much fun and so relaxing we were just in our element, so we took a picture to remember it. Just in case you can't tell, it is oh so incredible steak and potato Bill grilled on the BBQ. We used these really ugly plates, but hey we had plates to eat off of, I am not complaining. Notice the really romantic candle to the right of his plate. Notice it isn't lit. Oops. It seems like when we are totally relaxed and couldn't be happier is when we take photos of our food. Does anyone else do this? I was just talking to my mother about this a week or so ago and she thought it was weird. I actually cherish this more because it may be odd. I love that we do this. Hey and one more thing on the list of "Things We Agree On". I couldn't be happier.

Family & Blogging

So yesterday I casually mentioned to my mother that I started a blog. She said I should email it to all of my family and friends so they can keep up with what is going on in my life. I could link photos and talk about everyday happenings. I am thinking, isn't one of the main reasons to have a blog to bitch about those you love most to people you don't know? I mean seriously, what is the point of blogging if you can't talk about your husband being lazy, your son doing something crazy, your mother annoying you, the dogs eating the hose and so many other wonderful family issues? Not to mention if I do compain about my mother being annoying then she will comment back and being the oh so compelling letter writer I will be totally screwed on my own blog. How is that for a reason NOT to have a blog. Or I suppose one of the reason I shouldn't have told her I have a blog. Course I can't really keep any secrets of my own. Everytime someone askes me to keep a secret, I follow it up with - "If I have to keep it from my mother and/or my husband then don't tell me." She also took about 2 minutes to edit and critique my blog. Oh yes, I had a few misspellings on both of my first two posts. Thanks mom! I have tried since I was little to get a letter or paper past my mother without her grabbing the red pen. I would say, "hey can you sign this for me?" Sure honey, then not two seconds later she is telling me about some weird sentence or wrong capitalization or something. You would have thought she was a school teacher, but no. Everytime some horrible injustice happened to us at school my mother would say she was going to write a letter. We would beg her not to because her letters tended to scare people into doing things. Kidding aside, she really is a great letter writer! Not someone you want to get on her bad side. Heaven forbid she write you a letter.

I love my mother. I think I like having my parents in my life more than most people because whenever family is mentioned I hear about their horrible upbringing. I am thinking, wow mine wasn't half bad. We took sandwiches to the park, played board games, bbq'd, had really sweet Yorkshire Terrier dogs, always lived in the best neighborhood whether they had the money or not- maybe lived in the shit house on the block, but who complains about being the annoying neighbor? I remember my parents telling me they went to a football game party at a friends house. We were out of groceries and money, but they put down for the football pool. They won $75 that night and drove straight to the grocery store with their winnings. Things were not easy when I was little, but I never knew. And unlike Big Brother, I love PBJ sandwiches. We obviously didn't eat them that much. Mother tells me she swore when my sperm donor left that we would have home cooked hot meals. So she made pot roast and other Martha Stewart type meals. An hour after cooking dinner, we would walk in and take one look at the table and ask for PBJ. I bet she wanted to kill us. She would even put sandwiches in the hot grille, a kind of sandwich melt, in order to have a hot meal.

My father is a great guy. And I mean my real father. The one who married my mother when I was about five years old. The one who stayed and worked his ass off for us. The one who taught me to fight for what you want, to work smarter not harder, to think positive and be tolerant of others. The one who would come to my swim meets after a long work day and sit in the 120 degree sun in a suit and tie to cheer me on. The one who took us in and never looked back. The one man I could always count on. A man of his word. Someone to this day that I look up to. You don't find many people with the qualities he has. I heard a story once about my dad's cousin taking a school field trip through the projects and they drove right past my grandparent's house. My grandparents on my dad's side worked in factories. My grandfather sewed mattresses together and my grandmother did sewing as well. I would go with my grandfather to pick up my grandmother at the bus stop. My grandpa would give you the last bite of a candy bar and the last quarter in this pocket. My grandmother and I would watch her Novelas every afternoon and read the newspaper togther. Amazing people.

I got my love of religion from my dad's brother. As a child he would take my sister and I to all these different churches. I remember going to one where we danced, played the tamborines and flew stremers. I loved going to church with my uncle. He made it fun. It was a special time with him. He was the only one for me when I needed a sponsor for baptism. I remember meeting up with him when he was going to seminary school. I would have lunch with him and his roommates.
I have great memories of when I was growing up.

I don't know a lot about my grandparents on my mother's side, but I scrapbooked the first 4 years of my life recently and they were in every other picture. My grandmother is a master crafter. She has made dolls, done ceramics, knitted, crocheted, created cards on her computer and so many other things I can't remember. My grandfather was a newspaper editor and took wonderful pictures of everything. When my mother was growing up they would have a new word at dinner time; with the definition. My mother told me they would look forward to going out to eat once a week at the local burger place; five burgers for a dollar. I know my grandparents love me and I know I love them and for now, that is enough for me. It is hard because I wish we were closer. I wish I knew more about them. My mother says we spent a lot of time over at their house with my two aunts. My mother and her sisters are seperated by five years. The middle sister is the kindest, most gentle person in the world. She is the person you love with all your heart and soul. She would never do anything to hurt you and loves you like her own children. She home schooled her four children and if I could be half the mother she is, wow. We just got to really know her kids, our cousins just this year. It is great knowing I have family that I love and know I will get to grow up with. I can watch them get married and have kids and meet up for holidays. It feels like I have more sisters and brothers. I feel like a kid when I am around them. My mother's youngest sister is the fun one. I think I look like her, too. She writes horror novels, loves paranormal, visits cemeteries and was a vet technician. Both have reached a new stage in life; one will have an empty nest soon and the other recently got divorced. I know they will both find a life that is near and dear to their hearts.

That is what I am searching for right now. I am newly married to a man and his son, who lives with us full time. I love them terribly. We have had many a rough day and night. We are very different people. I had not realized how different we were until I moved in. I am very type A. I do things exactly the same way every time. I follow the rules. I make my own rules. I rarely digress from them. I like to write everything down. I love to read. I work outside the house. I have two cats that I cherish above all other things in life. I eat three square meals a day. My family grew up eating dinner together every night and I loved it and still do. When I go to dinner with my folks, Bill knows not to expect me home for 2 or even 3 hours. I have serious anxiety and worry about everything - the known and the unknown. When I am upset I yell, throw things and boy does it feel good to slam a door. My husband works at home on his own schedule which can go anywhere his cell phone and labtop go. He can't wait to get out of the house. I rarely see him pick up a book, let alone read a full one. He doesn't follow the rules and prides himself on doing exactly the opposite. He will not be defined or labeled. He loves the computer and keeps everything he knows in his head - he doesn't make lists. He rarely eats before 4pm and takes most of his desserts to bed. He knows nothing but relaxation. He doesn't stress over many things and few things bother him. Though when he is angry he is even quieter. A little like my father, when he is angry you can feel the electricity coming off him. A very good portrayal of the saying "the silence is deafening". He has grown up with pit bulls - huge dogs I refer to as our horses. I have started making lists of things we do agreee on because otherwise I would constantly wonder what the hell I was doing when I got married. Here is the list - blueberries, movies, root beer, pancakes, putting the syrup jar in the fridge, we love photographs, creamy peanut butter, cereal anytime, mexican food, one week vacation every year by ourselves. I am sure there is more. Wow lots of food on that list. People I talk to all the time say they are so happy. What? No. They must be lying. I remember after one of my mother's rantings, Bill turned to me and said quietly, boy I am so glad I am not married to your mother. What?!?!? I said, who do you think you married? I am my mother. At the time, we must have still been in our lovey dovey stage because he can't believe how much I am like my mother. What I am referring to is my mother's crazy moments. According to my mother, one moment lasted 10 years. Seriously, I love my mother and I know I am very much like her. We come from a long line of strong, independent women. We can be angry, sometimes vindictive and we speak our mind whether you want to hear it or not. I love and lothe that part of me. When Bill and I are arguing I lothe that part of me that just won't shut up. When I am being funny I love that part of me. The good comes from the bad. I am one of the few women my age who enjoys going to the movies by myself and having dinner on a Friday night at a really nice restaurant - by myself. When I am loud and in the moment, I call it being passionate (says the crazy woman). But honestly, my husband and I have our differences for a reason. When we are good, we are better than any other couple I have ever met. The bliss is so worth it. Now if we could just hone the good to be more than 50% of the time that would be a great start. I figure another couple of years of disagreeing and negotiating will turn a relatioinship into one that will last for ages. Hopefully we live through those couple of years. I purposely left my stepson out of this because he is just an innocent in all this. Yes he may be smarter than me most of the time, but still he doesn't know better - it is the environment he lives in. I am lucky that not only does my stepson like me, but he loves me too and vice versa. Because let me tell you I don't have to like him and he doesn't have to like me. I married my husband and he married me - our son is just on the sideline.

Wow I think I am going to end this post because at this point you have probably heard way more than you want to hear about me and my family. And if they are reading this - I meant all of this is a nice and loving manner. No really.

Hi mom!