Things I've Realized Today

1) more sour cream in party potatoes doesn't necessarily mean tastier party potatoes. "More isn't always better, Linus...sometimes it's just more."

2) my children don't know what "I didn't just fall off the turnip truck" means. I obviously don't say it enough.

3) my husband likes Hardee's hand breaded chicken tenders better than my homemade ones. I'm working on it though.

4) regular oil changes really, really do a car good.

5) we will NEVER use Geico for insurance, simply because of their commercials.

6) I really wish I would just sit down and learn to quilt (not just realized today, but reminded today).

Happy Monday everyone. Have a terrific week. My verse for today is from Ephesians:

I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace. ~Ephesians 4:1-3

:) :(

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY:

~leaves turning
~a chilly house felt from under the warmth of a quilt
~finishing a cross stitch project
~chicken noodle soup
~a free magazine subscription from my Coke points
~God's renewing grace every. single. day.

THINGS THAT MAKE ME SAD:

~raking aforementioned leaves
~potty training

Vacation!!

Do you know what happens when you have a vacation? Not necessarily a time when you travel away from home, but simply a time in which you are not required to go to work. I'll tell you what happens...

You get even further behind than you have been! How does that happen?? I guess things aren't that bad. The kids are out of school for the summer, so if I'm stuck in the throes of paperwork, it's my own, not theirs. They are begging every single day to have so-and-so over, or to go over to so-and-so's house to play, but that's no biggie, and not atypical for them (they would ask that after homework was done during the school year anyway).

I at least had a handle on laundry, sorta kinda, at the beginning of the vacation. Now it's backed up again, but I've started on it early this morning in the hopes that we might actually be getting out of here for a few days. Later today, I plan on going around the house with trash can in hand, to collect "stuff". How said stuff accumulates without actually going anywhere or doing anything is Beyond. Me.

So what have we done? Well, I've begged my older son to let me cut his hair (just a trim!), to no avail. I've watched Jacob get very angry at a V.I.D.E.O. G.A.M.E. because it won't move fast enough. I've seen GinaGina not only begin to actually *crawl*, but to pull up on her knees as well (sigh). I've gotten to watch my entire DVR collection of Burn Notice, or at least start watching it. I've got today to finish, as tonight is the season premiere for the third season. I told Patrick that's what I want for Christmas - seasons 1 and 2 on DVD.

Still haven't gotten the electricity wired to my sewing machine downstairs - that might be a later summer thing. My garden is in full swing as well! My corn has popped up, the tomatoes look terrific, and yesterday a friend brought over another plant for it - he said "It's either an eggplant or brussel sprouts, but I'm not sure which". Then he said he hoped it was eggplant because he doesn't like brussel sprouts. I said I'm the opposite - I was hoping for brussel sprouts because I don't like eggplant. This, of course, led to an entire discussion on how to prepare each veggie. I don't think I convinced him, but he didn't quite convince me either!

My dryer calls!

What's in a month?

Seriously. What's a month in a lifetime full of them? Let's delve into exactly what a month brings at Whirlwind Lodge.

A month is me going back to work. This past Monday was my first official day back at work. I opened...on a Monday...which is scary. Thankfully, it didn't go badly at all. I even left on time, which is very unusual for a Monday. Also thankfully, BBM was off work, so I didn't have to think about Angel Cake being at the sitter's house all day. However, everyone and their brother (and uncle, and sister, and mother, dog, fish, etc.) wanted to talk about Cakes, or see her picture, or ask how her birth went (they may not be family, but these people have been customers for life, and went through this pregnancy with me). This means I had to think about Cakes ALL. DAY. LONG. And it means I talked about her ALL. DAY. LONG. And it means I cried A. LOT. Thankfully (I promise that's the last time I use that word), I got through it, and it's become easier throughout the week.

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A month is The Boys and Angel Cake being christened. This happened last Sunday. It was a wonderful day, as we had multitudes of family in town for the event. My father-in-law and aunt-in-law joined us for 9:30 mass, we came home for a quick bite to eat, and then joined back up with them and the rest of the family for the christening. There were 2 other babies being christened, so lots of family and friends. Angel Cake wore a family gown made by a family friend from the wedding dress of BBM's aunt (a different aunt than the one that was here). The Boys were treated to special outfits by my dad (who was also in town). I think they're growing up just a little too quickly for my tastes.


The Boys all decked out.


During the christening.


Not that I'm biased, but those are some adorable children.


With the bonnet on...{sigh}

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A month is dropping Angel Cake off at a sitter's for the first time. That happened this past Wednesday, and then again on Friday. She's only there for a little over an hour one day, and then about 7 hours on the other day. Luckily, our sitter lives just behind and down a ways from our house (within walking distance), so it's not like I'm driving all over creation before I get to see Angel Cake after work. The sitter also called me the very first day, at work, and said that BBM told her I was going to call her because, well, I'm me, and I don't like being away from Cakes. So she called to check in.


Beanpole holding Angel Cake.

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A month is winning a contest over at Lisa's blog!!! She had a giveaway for one of her awesome little notebooks, and I won!! I got a "You're a weiner!" email (oh wait, well, nevermind) that said the package would make its way to me in Misery just as soon as her little fingers could package it up. A few days later, I spy a large white envelope in our mailbox, and I know that my prize has arrived! Inside, I find these: (and you're just going to have to excuse my pictures. I live for blurriness...really, I do.)



TWO packages?!?! How do I rate?!?

Inside the littler package:



Seriously, how nifty is that? She even included a pink pen, since I'm all about the pink now! What a fantastic prize. Then, she *really* got me, however, with this other thing I found in the envelope:

***I have to preface this picture with a short story. Ever since I've "known" Lisa, I've also known about her etsy shop. She makes rockin' things like stuffed weiners with really neato names (c'mon...Balle-Weiner? Cup-Pooch-ino? You just can't get any better than that!), log carriers (don't worry gals, she's got 'em in pink too!), and reuseable produce bags, among other things. Well she'd had something for sale for quite awhile, and I wanted it. I wanted it baaaaaad. But I couldn't swing it in ye ole budget, and I selfishly continued to hope that no one else would buy it so eventually I could get my hot little hands on it.***

So, story being told, here's what was inside the bigger package:



But wait, there's more!



Of course, I cried when I opened it, but then I promptly tried on the apron.



One side has the tea towel.



And the other? A pocket. A pocket fit for...a *notebook*!!!!



And the bag? The bag is lined in green gingham. I LOVE gingham.



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A month is celebrating another year of being married to my soul mate. Big Boss Man and I reached 5 years of marriage on October 11th. We didn't go out...we didn't wrangle Mom into watching The Kids so we could invade some stuffy restaurant filled with candles...oh no. We ordered in...Steak Out, I believe. So while the celebrations weren't large, our love is, and continues to grow each and every day.


On our wedding day.

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So, while my hiatus from blogging didn't leave me with oodles of extra time in which to get the house all spic and span, or reach the bottom of DirtyClothes Mountain, or to finally finish Angel Cake's room, or to put down newspaper on the grass that we want gone for next year's hopeful flower garden...it did make way for other things. It was the last portion of the last maternity leave I'll ever take. I had precious time to spend with The Boys and Angel Cake. I think BBM and I even got to go out to dinner once.

But it's good to be back. Here's to many more months!!

Ladies and Gents, I have an announcement...

*GRIN* Don't you love the catchy titles I'm finding that could mean I've given birth, but I'm not really using them that way??? I'm sure you love it that I'm doing that...I'm sure you do.

But I really do have news! As of this morning, barring any earlier baby-arrival, I'm scheduled to be induced on September 2nd!! Later than we'd hoped, as no one seemed to think I would even make it this far. But this baby is proving to be like every other child of mine, stubborn and on her schedule :) So...there are 4 morning slots on that day, and I've got the 4th one. I don't know how long it takes to have a baby by induction...God help me if I don't give birth until September 3rd (yikes)...but it looks like around that time is the time!

We'll be busy tonight, discussing whether or not to send the boys to school that day, then pick them up when we get the phone call from the hospital saying "time to come in". I went today and returned/exchanged all things newborn-like (or at least the smallish newborn ones), and ran a few other errands, hoping to walk this baby out of me. Nothing yet, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

As for the sewing, I've not gotten on the machine again. But I truly have good reason...I've got no material to work with!! I will go this weekend (again, barring any baby-arrivals) to goodwill and buy some cheap sheets to do some practicing with (thanks for the advice, Lisa!!!), that way any boredom I experience once we're home and settled can be thwarted by the machine. I'm sure the gentle hum will provide some white noise for the baby as well.

Oh, and I swear to either find my usb cord or to purchase another one by the time LMJM gets here...no way am I going to miss out on sharing her and the rest of the family!!!

**********AUTHOR'S EDIT: I *found* the usb cord!! I sincerely apologize for implying that I thought any one of you, my fine readers, had crept into my home and snatched it from my possession. Prepare for a barrage of pictures, since I can't even remember what's on that camera worth sharing.

**********AUTHOR'S EDIT #2: I got the most awesome stuff from a longtime friend, known to the blogworld as Falcor. She got LMJM some really awesome stuff, and although I thought the bassi sheet I received from her a few days ago was the last of the absolute *needs*, I was wrong...today I opened a box that included, among other wonders, hooded bath towels! And that's it folks...we're completely prepared. LMJM can make her long-awaited appearance ANY TIME NOW.

Alright, I give.

Whoever has come into my home and STOLEN my usb cord, speak now! Stop hiding! It can actually just be returned to me, no questions asked, anonymously...I won't press charges or anything!! All I want is my usb cord!! I want to share pictures with everyone! I want to share news in a visual way!

Since I can't do that, *sigh*, I'll have to share my news from yesterday in a ho-hum, ordinary way. So without further ado:

Yesterday...











I. SEWED. A. STRAIGHT. LINE.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Now people who've been reading here for awhile might know that although I've taken an interest in sewing (check out some of my awesome blahg links to the left, below the floating baby), and although I find myself in possession of a gifted-to-me sewing machine, I also found myself scared poopless of it, and of screwing anything up on it. There had been talk of taking it over to my mom's house one weekend and having her show me "the basics" (mainly threading the machine, since that's what everyone scared me with..."Threading the machine is the hardest part!"...or "If you can thread the machine without throwing it out the nearest window, you're good to go!"). But clearly, I'm 8½ months pregnant, and shouldn't be lifting anything near as heavy as a sewing machine.

But as luck would have it, mom came by yesterday anyway to help with some last minute preps for LMJM. I don't remember what made me think of the machine, sitting lonesome on the bunker floor in back of my chair, but I did...and I brought it out into the kitchen for her to view in all its glory. She asked if I had a manual, which I did, and we sat down together to at least thread the machine. Little did I realize that one has to, uhm, have THREAD to thread the machine (yeah, I'm a beginner). The spool that was on the machine was empty; there was material included with the machine, and lots of sweet little gadgets (including some kind of specialty foot that looks more like a torture device than anything else), but no spools of thread.

Thankfully, it wasn't too late in the day, so we took off to Michaels (which has a really bad selection of thread, by the way). After mingling around the Halloween and Christmas stuff that they already had on display, we found thread, oogled at the 44 dollar scissors (!!!!!!!!!!!), and headed back home. And what we figured out was this: Mom simply read the instructions and looked at the pictures, just like I did. :) Since all machines are different, that's what had to happen. And make it happen, we did. Once threaded, we also threaded a bobbin (I don't think that's what that's called, but I had no bobbins with white thread already on them, and she wanted to make sure I knew how to get thread from the spool to the bobbin, so that's what we did).

And to think...I had beautiful pictures of the straight line I sewed, and a zigzag I played around with as well...but since I can't post them, you'll have to believe me when I tell you how cool they looked, even on the little piece of scrap fabric I had! So now, I have a mission: I'll start going to the antique stores and thrift shops in the area in search of several things: fabric, preferably cheap fabric, since I'll just be playing around with it at first (practice, practice, practice), old patterns, preferably little girl dresses (I'm sure I could find little boy clothes too, but I've got a hunch that boy clothes are harder to sew, and I don't want to get frustrated), and any other little nifty sewing things I can find. I'll look for thread too, but I've heard you don't want to use "thrifted" thread for any serious projects, because who knows how old it might be, and old thread might be weak thread. But for jacking around, it'll be perfect.

So, I'm working my way up to become one of you special people...to join the ranks of those who create beautiful pieces, either for gifts, for your own enjoyment, or even to sell. And I promise...PROMISE that I will either find the usb cord or buy a new one in order to share pictures of anything I make, even if it's really bad (and there will be some really bad ones, trust me).

*****AUTHOR'S EDIT: I wanted to share this with you, as I'm sitting here listening to my younger son play in the bathtub. He yells over to me (I'm right across from the bathroom), "Mommy, did I tell you this joke before? What did the man say who was getting a Harley Davidson?"

"I don't know, what?"

"I can HARLEY wait."

I swear, he is his father's son.

Hi, How are ya?

You know, some smart person once said "A watched pot never boils". I'm fairly certain that person wasn't talking about an actual pot of water on a cooktop...they were really talking about a pregnant friend, wife, relative, take-your-pick. The last month is a KILLER.

Well, today marks 36 weeks, 4 days. At my last OB check, I hadn't made any kind of progress one hopes for at this stage of the game, but since it's not mandatory that LMJM actually show up early, I'm okay with that. (Alright, I was disappointed, but not too much). He did inform me, however, that he'll be out of town this weekend, and I have a habit of going into labor when my OB takes vacation...so ya know. I'm just sayin'.

I'm off work today, sick call, due to some fairly excessive swelling in my feet and ankles...having a hard time getting around. But I'm still moving, because if I lay down for too awful long, my hips/pelvic bone feel like they might actually pop out of my skin and start walking around on their own. I'm digging the acetaminophen though...I think going so long without any pain reliever at all has made the simple stuff more effective. Now if I take 2 before bed, I can sleep through until about 2am, and that's only to get up to pee...after that, the meds have worn off, I don't want to take any more, and peeing at night when you're pregnant is kind of like peeing when you've been drinking. You're fine until the first time (c'mon, everyone knows about "breaking the seal")...after that first potty break, you're going about every 5 minutes. Yeah, being pregnant is no different...except the whole alcohol part.

I got a WONDERFUL present from my mother-in-law a couple days ago. Actually, LMJM got a present from her...she handmade two exquisite blankets for the baby, one in pink and one in white...they are soft as can be, and I'm having a hard time not sleeping with them myself! I took pictures of them, but now I can't find the cord to the camera. I promise though, I'll post pics as soon as I find it.

The basement room (which will lead to LMJM's room eventually) looks to be started this weekend/next week. I think we're going to go buy some of the needed supplies this weekend, and then get Greg and his crew here next week to start construction. I can't believe that's finally happening! Given the time frame he gave me, as long as everything goes peachy, he said no more than two weeks, and that's if we were able to do all 3 rooms (which we won't be able to, but that's what the original bid was for). So short of a 37 week appearance, we'll be golden for LMJM's arrival!

I think the only things left are the bassinet (which we're getting from my mom's house this weekend, hopefully), bassi sheets, towels/wash cloths (I know, babies can use the same towels and wash cloths adults use, but every baby's got to have one of those hooded things!!), and a pack 'n play that my big brother offered me if we needed it. Other than that, we're just waiting...and waiting...and waiting. I know, we're SO exciting! I did find out today, however, that the hospital I'm delivering at (which has rooms that resemble hotel rooms, by the way) allows laptops and cell phones in the rooms! Yippee!!

In other news, The Boys are having a fantastical time in 4th and 2nd grades. Little Linebacker is loving his class...he was scared of not being able to do things (But Mommy, what if I don't know how to do a math problem?" "But what if I still don't know how to do it, even if I ask her to show me again??"), but I've heard nothing of the sort since the first day. Beanpole is also getting into his classes. Notice I said "classes". They are doing "switches" for the first time this year. Different teachers had different specialty workshops over the summer, so instead of doing everything in one classroom, they're switching rooms for writing, science, and I can't remember the third one...reading maybe? I think it's wonderful to have a teacher that's just a little more specialized in one area, plus it gets them ready for all the moving around they'll do in middle school.

Well, I heard my washer stop, so I need to hobble on down there to flip that to the dryer. I can also feel my fingers swelling just a tad, so I'd better stop typing!!

Can I single someone out?

Let me tell you a story. It's about a woman who'd been badgered by her husband for a few months about starting a blog, because he had started one recently, and it was fun to be able to "publish" your own stuff...to get out there and be heard, whether it was regarding politics, family, your dog, music, religion...whatever. You were getting out there and making yourself heard.

The woman listened to her husband, probably shaking her head a couple times, hoping he'd stop with the convincing already - she didn't need someone pushing her into yet another thing she didn't have time for! She had a full-time job, a few kids and her husband to care for, an extended family to keep track of, and a household to run. She didn't even have time to go out and get a cup of coffee! People like her didn't have hobbies...even hobbies with a purpose!

She finally gave in, for no reason in particular. Maybe just to get him off her back ;) But she created this blog, and then she got almost passionate about making it "just so"...the right look, the right feel, the right sidebars, etc. She may not have an OCD diagnosis, but it rears its ugly head sometimes, and if she was going to do this, she was going to do it her way!!

The blog took off. Not famously, mind you - but she had a few subscribers, and while exploring the world of blogs, she found others who shared the same interests, others she admired because they were living a life she was unable to at that point, but dreamed of having some day, others who had passion for something and it showed in their writing. She even had a BlogRoll of her favorites. She visited them every day, looking for an update, a photo, a "Hi, I'm here!". She even befriended a couple other bloggers, and although they were separated by distance, they were kept close via email.

Time went on, things got busy, life happened, as it often does. But these friends never forgot about each other. If a blog didn't get updated in awhile, an email was sent to make sure all was well. Sometimes, just a funny comment was left on the last blog post.








This story is about me. And while I've had the pleasure of meeting one of these people, Ness, there is another I have yet to meet. Her name is Lisa, and I know I've linked you to her blog on several different occassions. She grows the most amazing pink tomatoes, she sent me some seeds that she saved from her very own garden from last year, and she has an awesome Etsy shop (I'm in love with the Lemonade Coming Right Up set!!!).

Anyhoo...this special friend of mine has done something wonderful again, and this time it was completely unexpected!! She posted a few days back about a ginormous mulch pile in her yard, and how she dealt with that and then worked in her studio (she has a studio...how cool is that?!?!?). So she posted a couple pictures of the things she was working on, and I actually looked at one of them and thought "How cool! Those are LMJM's room colors!!".

Much to my surprise and delight, I walked into the house after work today, sat down at my desk to give my feet a rest, and noticed a package sitting in front of me, addressed to the baby!! Her very first piece of mail!! Miss Lisa sent LMJM something beautiful, handmade, and very special.



I realize the picture is a little blurry to do it justice. It's a gorgeous hand-crocheted sweater for our almost-here-newest-addition!! Isn't it gorgeous?!?! And it's a perfect size for this fall/winter, when LMJM will need the warmth against the Missouri weather. She also included a card, written to LMJM, which I promptly read aloud to her inside my belly. I'm glad I read the card before I opened the wrapping, because I teared up immediately, and for once I'm not going to blame the pregnancy hormones (okay, maybe a little, but not much).

So, this woman, someone I've never even met before, has not only given me the gift of friendship, but has given my unborn child a gift as well. I cannot wait to put this special something on LMJM and show it off!! Lisa is truly a blessing to have as a friend. Go visit her blog and read all about her life, and find the jewel of a friend that I've been lucky enough to find.

Lisa, I can't thank you enough...truly. Words don't even come to me.

As for Big Boss Man, I owe him a thank you too. Without him, I would've never created this blog, and consequently never "met" these women, whether or not I've met them in real life (yet!). I love you.

I've been a busy little bee!!

Well. Since I last posted, my mental state has improved, although I'm still not sleeping well. Thank you, everyone, for all the well wishes. I really appreciate your thoughts.

Now, onto my busy-ness. I haven't really done anything that needed to be done, but I've at least been productive today. First, I want to thank an old friend named Chad, for saving me from the computer disaster that is me. My security system trial ran out a couple days ago (I wonder if I should say that...hackers, beware!! There's nothing on my computer of interest, and as you're about to read, I'm up and running again), so I emailed Chad and asked him what he recommended for a cheap wannabe computer guru like me. He had several suggestions, all of which I took, and everything is peachy keen right now! And it was all F.R.E.E. So thank you thank you, Chad!!

Secondly, I went to Hancock Fabrics today and bought some fabric to fix something that's been bothering me (and The Boys) for quite awhile now. I actually thought I was going to have to break out the sewing machine (gasp!), but I ended up not needing to, thank God...I'm still scared of it.

Let me show you what I was up against (and no one is allowed to comment about the primed but unpainted walls behind the bed...my children were budding artists, you know):



This is the bottom of Beanpole's part of the bunk bed. The lining that covers all the nonsense and mayhem up there has been coming off...for quite some time now.



This is the other end. I guess it hasn't helped the Little Linebacker (who sleeps underneath all this hangy-downy-crap) has pulled and tugged, and pulled and tugged some more.



The middle. The whole thing was just horrifying. And today was the day I finally fixed it. I went to the fabric store and started looking for something, anything, that would replace this laughable piece of muslin or plastic or whatever the heck it was. I ended up buying some dark grey fleece. No special reason, other than it was on sale, and it was all one color, and because it's fleece and fleece is cool.



So I measured. And then I measured again to make sure. Then I cried because I had nowhere better to cut my fabric except on the floor. Then I dried my eyes and cut my fleece anyway, and laid it out over the wooden frame.



It actually looked wonderful, and like I'd imagined it, which was a shocker to me. I also bought some huge thumb tacks (quilter's solid head thumb tacks, to be exact). Now I'll have you know that I'd planned on stapling this fleece into place, since most of the edge is covered anyway. I'll also have you know that I have NO CLUE what a quilter's thumb tack is supposed to be used for, and I'm probably horribly misusing them. But I don't care.

I measured again to find center, and started hammering away, placing a quilter's thumb tack approximately every 9 inches. I folded the exposed edge of fleece under and stretched it just a teensy bit to keep it tight.



I also did some funky foldy edge thing at the corners, but please don't ask me what, because I can't describe it. All I know is that no edges of fleece are exposed, and that's all that matters to me.



See how nice the thumb tacks look? Nice and finished and neat-looking.



Now here's a picture of the finished product, back in the bed frame, me laying on the bed and camera-ing into the upper left corner. Purty.



And there's me in the same spot, but looking down towards the end. Look!! No hangy downy thing!!

And I'm not going to show you a picture of my reward for being so darned Mrs. Fix It today...a hoho and a bottle of caffeine free root beer are calling my name!

Spring has Sprung!!

...and yes, so has my belly! I'm 22 weeks pregnant now, and showing like a freaking bowling ball (or at least I feel like there's a bowling ball in there!) So so much has happened since I last blogged, I can't even fathom where to begin.

First, let me share with you the mother...MOTHER, I tell you, of all things chocolate chip. I found this website whilst Stumbling (imagine your surprise), and I think I've visited the site at least once a day since then, just to gaze upon this mound of chocolately, chippy, cookie-y goodness. And although you can order them for shipment, you can also feel free to pay a hefty price tag (uhm, like $65 worth of hefty), and my hips really don't need them that badly. So...as long as I don't absorb any calories from licking my screen (I'm sorry), then I'll be fine. And this website will have a daily visitor from now on.

The NY Levain Cookie

After viewing that website, I felt the need to make a cake (didn't have cookie stuff on hand). But I did, by God, have a cake mix and a couple cans of frosting in my pantry (hey, I'm not completely all natural and homemade...not yet anyway). So I prepare mentally for the task of mixing oil, water, and cake mix, and I open the frosting to help it achieve room tempurature status. Lo and behold, Big Boss Man has struck again. How one man could possibly eat as much frosting as mine does, I'll never know. (Although truth be told, I seem to remember sneaking frosting from my fridge when I was younger...ahem). Anyhoo.

So...now I have less chocolate icing than I originally thought I had, and the only other kind I've got is a white cream cheese frosting (oh, to die for!). BBM, however, doesn't like cream cheese frosting, and threatened to never take the trash out again if I used it on this cake. But I really didn't think we had enough chocolate left over from his frosting OD to ice the cake. So I convinced him to let me sprinkle chocolate chips into the top of the cake batter before baking it, then using the chocolate frosting on top of that. He agreed, although it turns out that I had plenty of chocolate frosting for the cake anyway. That cake has since been eaten.

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And now, on to the baby. Since discovering that our little Junior Mint has girlie parts instead of boy parts, there's been a whirlwind of clothes-cleaning mahem and foolishness going on around here. I first discovered a couple boxes of The Boys' older, smaller clothes, which I promptly washed and have taken to our local resale shop. I've not gotten the results of that outing yet, but I figure it'll give us a little cash, and what they don't take for resale I can either A) yard sale at my mom's ucoming sale, or B) use for beginning sewing expeditions. God only know what will become of those things, but if it comes down to it, I'll practice sewing a straight line on them!

Another thing Little Miss Junior Mint has done is made Mama Bear extraordinarily tired. T.I.R.E.D. I can't seem to sleep enough, and instead of being sort of sleepy at the end of the work day, I'm completely exhausted. I feel like doing nothing but falling into my bed when I walk in the door. I have a doctor's appointment this Thursday, and I'm going to ask them to do some bloodwork, just to make sure levels are as they should be. My mom, God love her, likes to tell me that "I'm not as young as I used to be" (raspberries to you, Mom!!!), and I understand that I'm supposed to be tired. But exhaustion is another animal completely. It's all I can do to cook dinner every night without having to take a break after operating the can opener. And that just ain't right!

Little Miss Junior Mint has decided that she likes to wake up early in the morning, just like The Boys do, and that my bladder makes for the best punching bag of all her surrounding choices. She likes orange juice and milk (thankfully, not mixed together), LaChoy chicken chow mein, and Twix bars. Luckily, she does enjoy other things too, and nothing that I don't usually like. I have had a few of those late night "Oooooooh, does that sound good" cravings, but I've either been shot down by a sleeping Big Boss Man, or kept them to myself to keep from being shot down by a sleeping Big Boss Man.

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Finally, my youngest son surprised us the other day when he came into the house, after a hard day's worth of playing, running around, digging, and other such boy stuff. He walked in, like nobody's business, and proudly held up a bone. Now this was no t-bone from last night's dinner, oh no. And it was no remnant of doggie bone that we sell at The Greens, 2 for $3. This was a huge, very real, very femur-looking BONE. Lookie, I've got pictures to prove it.


See? Ew.


Can I get another "Ew"?


Sorry about the blurriness.




In case you can't tell, that's a normal-sized paper towel that the bone is sitting on, corner to corner...that's how big this bone was. It was real enough to warrant a call to the non-emergency St. Louis County police line. The woman taking my phone call politely listened to the beginning of my story (because, you know, I can't tell someone something without leading up to it with a story), and when I got to the words "dug up bone", she interrupted and asked for my name and address. Let me tell you. A few days prior to this incident, a woman got hit by a car on my street, and I think the officer may have shown up quicker to our house than to that incident. He was a nice guy hailing from Hanover, Mass. He rather quickly decided (after chatting with Little Linebacker for a few minutes about where he'd found the bone, if there were any dug up or "fresh" looking areas near it, or any other bones that he'd left there for later) that this was probably a leg bone of a deer. We spent the rest of his time here small talking about his time in the Marines and where it took him around the world (many places where Big Boss Man had lived as well, so they had plenty to talk about), and how cops are distributed around this area, since we never seem to see any in Pleasant Ghetto unless they're called (and then it takes awhile to get them there). He then got called just around the corner for some unknown reason (dispatcher-speak, I suppose), and left, although he took his time and didn't use sirens when pulling out, so I guess it was muy importante. Methinks he'd much rather have stuck around and reminisced with BBM for awhile.

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And last, but definitely not least, we have the maiden voyage of Artorius Surveillance Drone. We've waited a long time for that moment, as the plane arrived way before our Florida Escape. BBM assembled it, and we finally took it out last night to watch it soar. Of course, we had an audience, albeit a small one consisting of a couple neighbor kids. God knows we couldn't do this with the comfort of just our family members there.



And that's about how that went. Now we didn't just leave it at that though...we obviously had to try it again. So we thought maybe we didn't have enough runway, and made a minor adjustment in takeoff direction, giving us approximately 25 more feet of play room.



And that was that. Obviously we hadn't notice some structural damage suffered in the first attempt, which caused the drone to taxi in one direction only...to the left. After Part Dos of our surveillance drone's flight, or lack thereof, we decided to give up the ghost for the time being. Of course, this had nothing to do with the fact that 2 of the props had been sheared off and 2 of the cowlings had detached. And let's not talk about the fuselage. Let's just thank the sweet Lord above that this was not a manned flight. The drone made its way back to the Hangar, however, and repairs are being made as I type this out. Rest assured, you'll see more of that thing.

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And now...I think I've touched upon all the things, important things, at least, that have happened in the past two weeks. I realize fully that I haven't posted pictures of our Florida Escape. You can sleep easy tonight, knowing that I still have plans for those. They were deleted, however, from the camera before I could get them onto my computer. And sending them from one computer to another proves much more difficult than just uploading them from the camera. Wait patiently, dears, they will come.

When is a waste of time not really a waste of time?

I completely blame Big Boss Man.

Completely.

He has introduced me to the world of StumbleUpon. Now for those of you that don't know what this is, it's basically a random search engine in which you choose your interests, and then you hit a button and it automatically goes to a website that has to do with one of your interests. It's really cool, and you can either thumbs up a site (which is about the same as saving it in your favorites), or thumbs down a site, and they won't show you any more like that.

Now...I've narrowed down my interests to a few (as opposed to many, like when I first started), because I kept getting websites that, although I was interested in the content, I'd never find myself sitting and reading.

Some of my interests? Pregnancy (obviously), children (double obviously), crafts, knitting/crocheting, gardening, home improvement, homemaking and cooking. I'm starting to feel much more Suzie Homemaker than I was 5 days ago.

Now comes the guilt...I've spent more time in front of this computer in the last few days than I ever have!! I mean it's been absolutely gorgeous outside, and I've been in here. Now granted, I've been going back and forth between the computer and my household chores, but still. So I get to blame BBM for it...for introducing me to the wonderful world of SU.

That being said, I've come across some really, really cool websites that have a lot of information about my current "hopeful hobbies", such as sewing and gardening, that I would have never come across if not for SU. And the result is even more interest in these things!! So hopeful hobbies? Look out!! I'll be mastering you in no time!

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In other news, we've got 8, count them, 8 days until our Florida trip. {sigh} I'm not sure I've ever looked so forward to a vacation in my adult life. My back hurts, my feet hurt, and I'm just tired (even with the copious amounts of sleep I've been getting). I've promised BBM that I won't nag him about anything concerning the readying of our home for Junior Mint until after we return from vacation...but after that, it's on, baby! I can't believe how quickly the 4½ months have gone by, so the rest of it is sure to follow suit!

And speaking of JM, could I have any more heartburn? I've recently started eating again (Burger King was my friend a few nights in a row, and right now I'd KILL for a Slurpie), but after feeling the effects those things have on my GI tract, I think I'll stick with cereal and milk, thankyouverymuch. Heartburn = lots of hair, right? I've also started feeling "flutters" or "quickening"...yippee!!! And in just a few short days, we'll be seeing JM on The Big Screen again, as the technician checks out his/her internal organs and spine and other such important stuff. Pictures will most definitely follow that appointment!!

Easter weekend.

So, everything is wonderful with our little Junior Mint. Of course, I don't go for the ultrasound until next month, but she listened to JM's heartbeat and felt around for the top of my uterus. Oddly enough, I'm carrying really high already, as she couldn't find JM's heartbeat at first...she was looking where it was supposed to be (down lower). You want to talk about a heart attack?? Then, oh sweet relief when she finally found it, about 2 inches higher than she said she would normally look for it at this stage. I don't remember hearing that with the boys, so chalk up another difference with this little one.

This weekend promises to be an eventful one. The Boys have been managing all sorts of nonsense and mayhem, and therefore will have to earn being able to go to my mom's house for Easter dinner. Tomorrow they will work their little fingers to the bone to get this fun day back. Fun for all.

And due to some happenings beyond our control, I'm not too sure that this will be the year that the garden starts. I am almost in tears as I write that, as I was very excited about finally getting something going, but these are pretty serious happenings. So I think I'll try to grow my tomatoes in containers, and I'm going to call on a newfound gardening buddy, Lisa to know if these seeds I just ordered will last until next year. If they won't, then I may have to figure out a way to do something with them. The last thing I want to do is start them and not be able to finish.

My sewing has been temporarily put on hold as well, as I just don't have the time to figure out how to learn what the heck I'm doing. Everything I read has more words I don't know the meaning of, and I don't want this to be an unhappy experience. So instead of diving right in (which I've been known to do in the past), I'm going to continue to read, read, read...taking it slow and really learning what's going on, then easing into it slowly as time allows.

There are so many things in my life that simply must be done now, and I'm truly the only one that can do them. These things must come before anything else, otherwise my home, house, and family will suffer. Hopefully it will not take too long to get a hold on these things, but I can't make any promises to anyone, and that's one of the things that bugs me the most about it...I like schedules...I like knowing what's going to happen and when it's happening. I've found that I must truly find some way to put some serious faith in God...faith I haven't given Him in a long time. I have trouble letting go of control of things, even if it is to the Big Man, but I have to. These things are making me crazy, and will continue to do so...something's got to give.

If you celebrate, may you have a very blessed Easter holiday. If you don't, I hope the weekend goes swimingly for you.

Been awhile, hasn't it?!?!?

Yes, quite awhile since I posted about...

A GIVEAWAY!!!!

So, without further ado, let me link you to a cool website with an even cooler giveaway. I'm going to make you click to see what the prize is, instead of telling you here. Give her traffic, people, give her traffic!!!

Old Red Barn Co.

So take a moment to go on over. Enter if you wish, or just take a gander around her site.

Someone be honest with me, please.

Is there an online site that's like, I don't know, sewing for dummies? I have a machine, I couldn't even tell you what kind it is. Someone gave it to me (which is odd since, I. don't. sew.), and I was going to either ebay it or donate it. However, I've recently become inspired by some blogs (namely Cynthia, Lisa, and Penny) that I'm actually considering lugging the old heavy thing out and trying to learn to do...something...on it (besides using it for a clothes rack, like the treadmill that we haven't gotten rid of yet). However, I don't have the time or money, really, to take a sewing class somewhere. My mom said she'd teach me, which will work, but I don't get over there as often as I'd like either.

So...I need a site...any site. I mean, one can find anything online, right? So maybe I should google "sewingfordummies.com" or something like that. I've found lots of sights that have patterns for stuff, but none that tell me actually {blush} how to thread a machine.

I guess that's my new purpose in life...to find a site that will make me go from a sewing-know-nothing to a sewing-know-it-all. And you're along for the ride! How exciting!


****Author's Edit: I actually hauled the thing out of my basement and dusted it off. It's a Singer Touch Tronic 2001 machine, and Singer wants $15 for a replacement manual!!! So I'd better sell something on ebay before I go spending money on this. Darn it!****

****Author's Edit #2: I'm a complete moron. I was downstairs flipping some laundry around, and discovered a box o' stuff that was gifted to me by the same woman that gave me the sewing machine. Lo and behold! The owner's manual, along with all kinds of stuff I didn't remember a sewing machine needed (like the speed controller...yeah, I'm a moron), plus a bunch of fabric that I'll have to go through tomorrow and wash and organize. Now I'm really excited!!****