Signs, signs, everywhere signs......

Not much to blog about really. It's been a slow day as far as entertainment goes, so I thought I'd put up some interesting signs I found on Goolge that made me laugh. Enjoy.......

I wonder how many of these were actually used....

Tax money spending at it's finest.

Because "BANANAS" is too hard to spell?

No truer words have ever been written......

Another reason I hate birds.

News at 10: Fish cancer at all time high due to littered cigarette butts, reaching epidemic numbers.....

I want to work here.

This one cracks me up. This person is a genius. He hung up many signs, this was one of my favorites.

*Giggle, giggle*

Probably the last thing many people saw before they plummeted to their  fiery deaths.

This is awesome.

On a church sign......That's class.

Doesn't this always seem to be true?!?

Really San Francisco?!? Putting forth your best efforts to stop bridge jumpers, I see....

It's only fair I put this up to. I admire how much our Country respects our former Presidents......

I have more, but those will wait for another slow news day. =) See you all tomorrow!

These are my confessions...

Any of you Usher fans out there, can sing along with that title.

Ok, so last night I was busy painting shirts and didn't finish doing that until some unholy hour, which I don't want to post here. =) Plus, the night before I posted 2 things, so technically my goal of posting daily is still untarnished.

I had a very boring day today so I thought I'd post 25 (embarrassing) things about me. I have seen a lot of the "25 things about me" Posts on blogs, and I want to tweak that because I'd have a hard time coming up with 25 interesting things, but embarrassing things? Easy! I'd also like anybody reading to comment, and leave at least one embarrassing thing you did. I'm interested to see how many of you actually will!

1. I taped Hannah Montana Forever "for the boys", and watched it myself when they were all asleep.
2. I laughed out loud too.
3. I actually bought Spice World.........on purpose.
4. A local guy grabbed my boobs in Russia when I wouldn't buy his janky postcards.
5. I dislocated my knee by stepping in a pothole during band camp.
6. I cried at least 3 times while watching High School Musical 3. 
7. My sister and I spied on our "River Phoenix look-alike" neighbor through a telescope, while we were standing in our front yard, and he was in his driveway-across the street. We were smooth.
8. I misspelled embarrassing 4 times already.....
9. I actually told Nick, "don't hit Nathan!", while smacking him upside the head. This has happened more than once-and I do get the irony.
10. I was mistaken for a boy by a substitute teacher, because of my really short-short haircut, my sophomore year in High School. (Thanks, Julie.) 
11. All my clothes were accidentally given to Goodwill when I was in 8th grade (yes, ALL) and I had to wear my older brothers' clothes until we could afford to get me more.
12. Years later, I stepped in a different pothole and broke my ankle.
13. I have turned my hair almost "basketball" orange while trying to do my own highlights. My hair has very definite "red-tendencies".
14. I almost set my friends hair on fire while dying it. It was actually smoking!
15. This same friend, let me touch her hair another time, and I put skunk white streaks in her really dark brown hair, a few days before her sisters/my friends wedding-and we were bridesmaids.
16. During an elementary school choir performance, when everybody else paused for a break in the song-I didn't.
17. I was pooped on by a seagull at the Pier 39 in San Fransisco, when I was on my way out to dinner with about 12 of my friends. 
18. I am absolutely terrified of birds, and being pooped on. 
19. I gag, and sometimes throw up from brushing my teeth. My gag reflex is kind of sensitive.=) 
20. I have backed my car into a pole, more than once. 
21. I have left my bag on my car...TWICE.......you knew this was coming
22. I dropped an old cell phone in the toilet, after I had peed. And had to retrieve it.
23. I puked all over myself-twice-in the car after Darby threw up in the back seat, on our way back from Portland. The sound/smell was too much for my pregnant self. I almost set off a barf-fest between Wendy and Mom.
24. I face planted hard into the sand when a rogue wave took me out in Santa Cruz.
25. The boys found some condoms Alan and I had, blew them up like balloons, and took them outside to some neighbor kids. (Thank goodness for tubal ligation! This will never happen again.)  

There are many more, I'm sure. I do stupid very well. Looking forward to reading your comments. Jason-you can put your Jason vs. the stairs from Russia. =)

"Garage Sale Chic"

Oh, by the way-I finally found a table and chairs! Yes, we did move in here during the first part of March. I have been scouring Craigslist & Freecycle ever since, and just happened on a sweet deal a couple days ago. $20 for 4 chairs, and 1 table that can seat 6! They match nothing, so of course they go with everything in my "Ode to Thrift Store" themed house. They are clean, and sturdy which is all I was looking for. One day I will have nice things, but with 4 small boys-why bother? They will just destroy everything as my siblings and I did growing up. Right now though, we have a place to sit and eat, and I am so happy!

Tuesday art class

Tuesday is Art Class day. A day that some of my friends from church, their kids, and I with my brood-get together and learn all things artsy! I love doing anything crafty, and my kids enjoy being out of the house for a few hours. Everyone is happy!

Today we painted T-shirts. We used the "freezer paper" method, and if you don't know what that is-you should have been there to learn! If you don't live near me, you are forgiven and can google it-Super Easy. All the kids picked out what they wanted to have on their shirts, stencils were drawn & cut (mom duty), then ironed onto the shirts (again, mom duty), and finally they were ready to be painted. This is what excited the kids the most, and was so much fun to watch. They all were so creative with how things were going to be painted, and really-that's what this class is all about. Getting the creative juices flowing. There were little kids painting camouflage! (You know I spell checked that word!) The shirts all turned out FABULOUS! I will have pictures once I get them e-mailed to me, because I'm a nerd who forgot her camera. 

I'm seriously considering painting the planets that Ben did on his shirt, and hanging it as a picture in his and Nick's room. It's very cute, and educational. I did outline and paint the faces, but he painted the planets and did a fantastic job. I adore this shirt. In fact, I liked all the shirts that were done, and I think everyone else did to. There were some ambitious things picked (military helicopters, guitar, eagle.......) but they all turned out great. I really love doing this class, and want to thank these mom's-you know who you are-for giving me the chance to do it. So much fun! Plus, I get to spend time with some completely awesome ladies for a few hours a week. I can't complain.

Side note: I need to say-I have to start going easier on my kids about their not remembering stuff day to day because I dropped myself to an all-time low in "stupid things I should remember, but don't" today. What, you ask did I forget? That would be my purse.........on top of the car........again. This time luckily, Alan was right there and ran to the car to grab it for me. He was even nice, and didn't say anything to me when he was handing it in to me. Sometimes there just are no words. I told him a quick, and quiet "Thank you", while hanging my head in shame. I mean, really.....

I think I just need to actually get some sleep. Then I would be able to have a clear head, and hold a thought together for more than 5 seconds. But then again, I could be wrong. There might actually be something to this "Mommy Brain" I seem to have going. I usually refer to it as "Pregnancy Brain", but that's not possible anymore. I think once my brain realized I had had a fourth kid, when it was already overworked trying to remember things for three, it took a permanent leave of absence. I just wish it gave me some notice. I will not be giving it a very good referral when called and asked about it's performance, while it's trying to take up residency with someone else-I'll tell you that!

He was supposed to be asleep, but since he wasn't he came in handy as a display board.

Six degrees of "driving me crazy..."

What do:

• Adventures in Babysitting
• Max and Ruby
• Home Alone
• Sharkboy and Lavagirl
• Goosebumps
• Classical Baby

all have in common? These will probably be the cause of my being institusionalized. These seem to be the only things the boys watch. Over, and over, and over. It's like the television version of Chinese water torture. I try to throw in some Disney Channel for a little variety. Wizards of Waverly Place, anyone? How about Phineas and Ferb? What about letting ME watch something, for a change?!? No?

Anybody who knows me, knows that I hate repetition. Hate. It. It's right up there with people chewing with their mouth open, and being late. If you ever want to be a jerk, and make me mad in 10 seconds or less, just keep saying the same thing over and over. It's like Dr. Jekyll has taken over my self control, and I just lose it. The kids find this out daily, because oddly enough-they don't seem to remember that I don't enjoy this.

They discovered a box of VCR tapes I had, and pulled them all out to watch them. I thought they'd like my Indiana Jones collection, I do. I thought they might even get into the 1st Star Wars trilogy, I mean-come on-It's Han Solo!! No. They watched Adventures in Babysitting, and have watched it about 3 times daily since. If I hear it on when I wake up, I groan, roll over and go back to sleep. I want to slowly pull out the tape-twisting it as I go, and then cut the ribbon up into tiny, unrepairable pieces in front of them, just so they can be in as much mental pain as I am. I liked the movie growing up, but Nick is on this "Chicago" fix lately, and since the movie took place there, he is compelled to watch it.

When I put my foot down, and absolutely refuse to let them watch that, then Home Alone goes in. Another Chicago movie.

Nathan is very much in love with Sharkboy and Lavagirl, and Max and Ruby. He will throw the biggest, most annoying tantrum if you delay putting it on any later than "Right Now!" I do make him wait, because really-no 3 year old is going to talk to me like that! I can be stubborn too, and my inner brat comes out when ever the tantrums do. Counterproductive, I know. But, I still do it. Thank goodness for multiple TV's. I'm waiting for this heat to go away so I can kick them out of the house to play. If they go outside now, all they do is come in every 2 minutes and ask for Popsicles, and complain about how hot it is. I can see the thermometer, that's why I'm inside. 

I have learned to block out the movies, to a point-but if I keep hearing these movies/shows every day, I may just drive myself to the crazy house. A break from kids might be nice.

Who knew this little Sharkboy, would grow up to have girls screaming for him? (Second time on my blog, Taylor. Very nice to see you again.)  

Martha Stewart I'm not.....

Today, I decided to pull out the crock pot and make apple butter, since I didn't really have plans for the day, and it's an 11 HOUR process making it. I did say 11 hours. The first 6, it just sits there. After you add the sugar, and spices you have to stir it every hour. I'm on hour 8, and the house smells wonderful. Sounds great, right? Could have been, if I had actually had the recipe printed out in front of me when doing it, instead of scribbled down notes. Miles was screaming his head off from wanting to be held, and Alan was on the computer so I was leaning over him, writing furiously as Miles clawed at me from Alan's lap. I got the ingredients right, measurements perfect, but after hour 6 when I went to stir it, I noticed something. It wasn't smooth like all the other apple butters I have seen. Know why? I forgot to peel the stupid apples! Now I get to cook it for all 11 hours, and then spend extra time sorting the peels out. Terrific.

For dinner I made homemade Mac & Cheese (that I got off Carmen's blog), and sauteed garlic zucchini. "Sauteed" makes me sound like a real Chef, like I know what I'm doing, huh? The M & C recipe is from The Pioneer Woman website, and It was sooo good! Definitely 5 stars. It is actually just like the one I make, but it adds an egg, which really holds the whole thing together. And it adds ground mustard, which I only use sometimes. This would have all been fabulous dinner too, if I didn't forget that I had turned the stove on with the pan sitting on it, while I was cutting up the zucchini. I put the butter in to start cooking them, and within seconds had completely smoked out the house! We have no vent system here other than opening windows, and turning the fan to blow it out so I pretty much almost killed us. I almost had everybody drop to the ground to get some oxygen-it was so bad!. After de-smoking the house, I put a new pan on with a little *EVOO so the butter wouldn't burn this time. I grabbed the zucchini, turned toward the stove and proceeded to knock Ben's water all over the floor, as well as the super sharp knife that I had cut the vegetable up with! Why the edge of the counter was a great place to put his ice water is beyond me. Like I state at the top of my blog-I really don't understand guys.

Besides my few "Rookie" mess-ups, dinner was really good. Seriously, I posted the link at the bottom so you can all try it. Ben said he wasn't going to eat it, because he doesn't like Mac & Cheese (which he doesn't, unless it's homemade, and even then he complains. He's a peach.) He ended up going back for seconds. I'll have to let you know about the apple butter after I fish the peels out. I feel like the girl Julie, from the movie "Julie & Julia." I love to try out new recipes, I really do. But getting from printed recipe, to finished product is not pretty. Hazardous, even. But it usually tastes pretty unbelievable.

Oh! Random news of the day: I pulled off on the side of the road, adjacent to my little incident, because I discovered that my friends e-mail address that has been lost for about 2 years, found a week ago, and shoved into my purse-was missing. I decided to just take a chance and see if the little paper had blown into the bushes lining the highway. I go around the car, and see-not the missing e-mail address-but my dollar bill that blew out of my wallet! Unfortunately, I think the e-mail is gone for good. Which sucks really, I miss Katie. But I did find something else I lost. Weird.

*EVOO = Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for those who don't know Rachel Ray.

The Pioneer Woman

Progress

Since I had the "mishap" with my phone, all of my downloaded songs and ringtones were lost. I have been on the website Mymyxer.com downloading new ones. It's a free website, where you can download ringtones, MP3's, wallpaper, videos, etc...but, I really only care about the ringtones. People upload music on, and you can just import what they have, or you can customize it to be on the part of the song you like. Also, you can put music from your computer on and make ringtones out of that, meanwhile also allowing others to make use of your song. Lots of fun.

This is wonderful, except that I have no cell service at home-wholly unreliable at best. So yes, I can download songs and send them to the phone via text message-but now I have about 18 messages that require me to have some sort of working service to get them off my phone. Right now, I'm just playing around and listening to music, more than actually downloading. Just testing the waters a bit to see if I really want the song on my phone.

Miles has also decided that he is going to tease us by taking a few steps. If he sees you looking-he'll drop down, and start crawling. If you clap for him, and show any hints of excitement-he loses focus and just drops down, clapping along with you. The boy is pretty much 14 months old! I am absolutely convinced he can walk, he's just trying to squeeze out a few more months of being carried everywhere. I hardly carry him around anymore partly because my jacked up back can't take it, and partly because I'm trying to give the boy the hint that "it's 2 feet from here on out, little Buddy." The older 3 were walking by 12 months, so this is something I'm not used to. The strong will I get, but why wouldn't he want to walk? Way more fun, I think.

Both are a work in progress, but we'll get there. So, tomorrow if you see me skipping out on the second class in church, bent over my phone-please ignore me. I'm working.....

Why do I see this snowman in my future........

Just thought I'd post this. I grew up reading Calvin and Hobbes, still have a few books right here next to me in fact. This one just made me laugh, so I thought I'd put it up to let you all reminisce. My favorite teacher, Mr. "Griz" Griswold (RIP) would write me notes when I T.A.'d for him that he said were "secret". When I'd open them, they would say:

To: Calvin

From: Hobbes

GOOCH!

He was freaking brilliant! He wore Hawaiian shirts, shorts and sandals to class, and always had sunglasses on, or tucked into his shirt pocket. He sang little sings to himself, and would start bellowing out lines from the movie that was playing, just to make sure people were paying attention. One time he yelled out, "ACHOO!!" really loudly, and scared the crap out of the class-in the middle of a test, just to do it. Then he looked over at me, winked, and just quietly said, "Oh, bless me", and went back to reading his paper.

He was the epitome of cool. I wish every kid had a teacher like that. My whole "TA" duties consisted of passing out folders at the beginning of class, and picking them up at the end. It took me maybe 2 minutes, and the rest of the time I hung out in the back of the class talking with him about the most random things. He certainly didn't need an assistant, unless you count running notes down the hall to his buddy that he loved to pull pranks on, Mr. Tellsworth, as vital to his job. But he was wonderful enough to let me do it because I had a free period, and my best friend was in his class. I did actually have him for another period, but he didn't care. Griz, you rocked. Thanks for the memories!

Dang it.

I hate to admit when I'm wrong, in fact I hardly ever do. I can always rationalize a way to make me be right, and it makes me feel better about almost making a mistake. Alan on the other hand, will easily apologize-dang him. Maybe it gives him a sense of "superiority" over me. Mostly, I think it's a means to an end. He just wants to move on from the argument, and get on with life. Secretly, I wish I could do this. I wish I could put aside my pride, and tell him flat out,

"Okay, Babe. You got me. I was completely wrong, you were in every way right. I'm sorry. So sorry!" Kiss, kiss.

I wish I could say it. I also wish I could mean it.

The times I do actually say the dreaded phrase, "I'm sorry," I'm usually really not. I too just want to end the fight sometimes. Like I said, I can always find ways that make me right. It's another fault of mine, that I'm making baby steps to fix.

I make the kids tell each other sorry when they hurt each other physically or emotionally. They get into trouble if they don't. Strangely enough, I find it easy to say it to people who I don't even know. I have no problem telling strangers in the store "I'm sorry", when one of my kids runs right in front of them and almost knocks them over. And, I totally mean it. Why is that?

Well, I am going to go out on a limb and say, today I did mess up. It is partly Alan's fault, but really the situation wouldn't have come up if I didn't make a few "poor" decisions. So, I am saying to everyone out there, that it is true, I was to blame for this mess. Alan if you are reading this-

I am sorry, and I really do mean it.

And, Alan-If you aren't reading this; well, what can I say? I tried.

Crock Pot Confessions......

I don't know why cooking in the crock pot intimidates me. Maybe it's because I think cooking something for 4-8 hours will burn the food. I cook everything on high-I don't have the patience to wait. Going on that-maybe it's more because I'd actually have to put thought into dinner before 5:30, when I look at the clock and think "Crap! Alan will be here anytime, what the heck am I going to make?!?". See, I have the art of procrastination down to a science. I will wait as long as humanly possible before I do stuff. Maybe I'm lazy, maybe it's the rebel in me that just wants to push the limits so I don't feel like I'm being told what to do. I'm a free thinker, an individual who does her best work under pressure. Worked in high school, and college. I never even thought of what I would do on projects/papers until the last minute (literally), and I always came out with A's. I'm sure it will smack me in the face one day, but it hasn't yet, so here I stand.

Although, I'm a procrastinator who hates to be late. Go figure.

Despite all this, I decided to look up some recipes online for ribs, because if it isn't ground beef, chicken breasts or canned chicken-I really don't know what to do with it. Alan and the boys love ribs, so every once in a while I have to step across that "comfort" line that I love living on this side of, and delve into Internet recipe sites, so I don't make a disaster of things. Plus it's been hot, so I don't feel like using the oven. I got brave yesterday and decided to dust off the crock pot and do the ribs in there. I found a site with like, one billion and 2 things to cook in the crock pot, and picked the best one to suit the tastes of the boys. I'm not worried about Alan-if it's dead, and cooked all the way-he'll eat it; the boys are slightly more picky. And when I say "the boys" I really mean Ben.

The kids love syrup, applesauce, ketchup, lemon juice, and meat; and this recipe had all of them! I threw everything into 2 crock pots (thanks mom for loaning me yours!) because I had 10 lbs of ribs, that wouldn't all fit into 1 pot. Plus, I am under the impression that I still have to cook for a huge family since I was 1 of 9 kids growing up. I never learned how to cook for a few. This will serve me well in the boys' teenage years, I'm sure. Regardless, I threw the stuff in, turned them on and left to run my errands. The house smelled wonderful when I came home. PLUS my replacement phone was here waiting for me! I threw together a fruit salad, and when Alan came home I took off. Yeah, didn't see that coming-did you?



Mom and Betty were going to see Eclipse, and I wanted to go (again). Alan agreed to watch and feed the boys, so I could get out for a bit. Now, I know what some of you are thinking-"But they're his kids! Why does he have to agree to watch them?" Normally I'd be thinking that with you, but he had a long, bad day at work, so this was really nice of him to do.

I love the whole "Twilight" franchise. I really do. Some people were disappointed with some of the movies, not me! I watch movies to be entertained, and if a movie puts me in a better mood than when I went in, AND offers a little "eyecandy" while doing it; I am SO there! Twilight, did that. New moon added the wolves so it really passed the test, and Eclipse-come on! It was freaking great!! Tan guys with tattoos?!? I could die! Couldn't get better. In case you were wondering, I'm totally "Team Jacob", but really "Team Paul". The guy is hot. I really can't wait until the Breaking Dawn 1 and 2 come out. I'm happy they will be in 2 films, because I'm greedy and don't want these movies to end. I enjoy my time with the Cullens, Swans, and Blacks. If you haven't read it, seriously-what are you waiting for? I'm asking you, Becky F. Read the G.D. books already!! (That's Gall Darn for all of you wondering.) I just speak in letters.

Ok, that was my day. I did finally eat the ribs when I came home, and they were totally yummy! I will do these again. Now I'm off to have some wonderful dreams, courtesy of Eclipse. Thank you, Stephanie Meyers!

Not sure why they are posting to the side. Whatever, enjoy the view. I am. =)

Let's file this away under, "I can't believe I actually did this......."

Yes, that was me. If you were driving East/West bound on Redwood Highway around 3:00 pm, that was in fact me that you saw scurrying around in the West bound fast lane, gathering up the contents of my purse/diaper bag.

Thank you to the "Good Samaritan" lady, who stopped in said fast lane so that the cars would go around me, and not hit me as I grabbed my wallet, diapers, kids medicine, and the broken pieces of my cell phone-which were spread all over the road. (The one and only casualty of my idiotic deed. Which was fine, since I have insurance on it, and I was having battery issues lately. Problem solved!) Also, a huge thanks to this same saintly lady who honked and pointed out my debit card, which was about to be blown away. You are Awesome!



I have been distracted lately, and have been rather forgetful. I've been misplacing my keys a lot-and by "misplacing" I mean leaving them in the ignition. 2 of these times were actually while I was at the store. I'm just glad there isn't a huge demand for raggedy, trash filled Toyota Camry's in Grants Pass right now. Now my distractions are apparently lending themselves to other parts of my ridiculously forgetful brain.

We were heading to my mom's house for some swimming because it is a pretty hot day today. So I put Miles in the car & handed him his bottle out of the purse. Normally-right here I would have grabbed the purse/diaper bag and put it on the floor at Miles' feet, but this time I turned to see if the boys had shut the front door. They had, so I just shut the car door and got in the drivers seat. The bag stayed on the trunk while I did a U-turn, drove up the driveway hill, and pulled out onto the road. It stayed on until we were about at the halfway mark between our driveway, and my mom's road (about 400 yards or so). Then I see in the rear view mirror what looked like the contents of a black trash bag being spread across the road. "Hmm, that's funny. I don't recall running over anything." Then it hit me-I screamed "My purse!!", and probably scared the life out of the boys. Flipped a fast u-turn, and parked on the side of the highway. I took off across the lanes, picked up my bag, and as fast as I possibly could-started shoving anything I could see into it. Thankfully this is when the lady came, and I was able to calm down a bit and search for things with an eagle eye so I didn't forget anything.

The only things missing are $1 I had just sitting in my wallet, the extra bottle of juice for Miles, and the memory card for my phone. The last one I am pretty mad about because needless to say, I need to get everybody's numbers again. Of course, as most people in this day in age-I didn't ever write any numbers down. Lesson learned. I will be buying an address book after this, as my "hard copy" back-up. All in all, It was a stupid thing to do, but I came out very lucky. Thank you, God. I know you had a huge part in that.

I'm still shaking a bit, but I think that it's from phone withdrawl. I keep reaching for my phone, to check my e-mail, Facebook and see what's new on Eonline. I have a problem, and maybe this will help me through it a bit. I've filed a claim, and my new phone will be here in a day or so. Hope I survive!

P.S. if you are reading this, you were in my phone, so I will be needing your number. Please e-mail it to me at matchgirl123@aol.com. Thanks!!!

Ouch, ouch, and more ouch....

I woke up at 4 this morning with a headache, but I didn't want to get out of bed to get medicine because then I would be "up" up, so I decided to just go back to sleep and hope the headache went away. Wrong choice. I woke up at 9 with a full blown, "I'm going to puke if I move", "why is the f-ing sun so f-ing bright?!?", "somebody just come and put a bullet in my head, and end this" type headache. This was top 5 of worst I have ever had. All I could do was lay there and think about how the boys all had dentist appointments that I couldn't cancel because it wasn't 24 hours before. Boo! I finally got out of bed because I was tired of hearing Nathan ask for food. I went in the kitchen to get him cereal, smelled it and "got sick" into the sink. Nick is so good sometimes....he saw this and told me he would get Nathan breakfast. I got the medicine and just sat over the sink, trying to talk myself into actually putting something in my mouth. "Got sick" again, at the thought. Shoved it down with as little water as possible, and climbed into bed. Wendy (my sister)texted to see if I could come by and cut her hair, and I told her I would-as soon as I could move. She had stayed home with a headache as well, so we were miserable together.

About an hour later, I could so we packed up and went off to Wendy's. I decided to bring the stuff to make the marshmallow fondant that I had been wanting to try today-since the art class we do on Tuesday's with some friends and their kids from church was postponed 'till next week. I googled the recipe, made the fondant and the kids had a ton of fun doing it. The taste was way too sweet if you ask me, though. After we did it and all gagged on the super sugar intake, I got some flavoring from the cupboard and added it in. I liked the Orange flavor, but really I only took a tiny bite. The winner with the kids was the root beer flavor. I'll definitely do that next time. I could see putting it over cake because it did roll out nice, and I think the cake would put the kibosh on the gag reflex. But when kids, who are sugar freaks, won't eat it cause it's too sweet, I have to figure out a better way. As I am writing this, I realize how stupid it is to feed your kids straight sugar and marshmallows mere hours before going to the dentist to get cavities filled, but I was in pain and therefore not making great judgement calls.

Most of the time at mom's is a blur. Medicine.......Cut Wendy's hair........Medicine.........computer, and then left for the dentist. Let me tell you-not a great place to be with a migraine. Brighter than bright lights, and the sound of the drill......almost lost my mind. Cavities were filled, and we went back to my mom's where I just layed around on my comfy brown chair. Finally around 8:30 we headed home.

I have had headaches since I was about 12. Migraines run in my family, and I was unlucky enough to inherit them. I have had to learn to deal, and just go on with my life even when I want to die from the pain of it. Some days are better than others, and I have learned that chances are-tomorrow will be a better day. Let's hope.....

Oh, when I went to my mom's house Darby (my niece) came out to greet us dressed like this. I had to put it on here-she was too cute!

Question of the day.....

So I have a question for all of you out there in blogland.

What do you do when you offer someone foot scrub for their dry feet, and they put their foot up on you and lean back-for you to do it like they were at a day spa?

This scenario just happened to me today, and I was at a loss for words. I sat there dumbfounded for a few seconds thinking, I could either:

• Shove her foot off me, and scream"what do you think you are doing?"
• Tell her there would be a $40 charge for my services.
• Tell her I'm not that kind of girl.
• Or, just grab the scrub and do her feet for her.

I can't believe it either. So I chose the best option for the awkward situation and just scrubbed her feet for her, since I don't have a problem with feet, and I didn't want to make her feel bad. I did feel kinda weird about it.

I should give you a little background on this girl though. I responded to an add on freecycle.com for some craft supplies. I talked to her mother about coming and getting them, but she would rather have had her daughter drop them off to me. I understand how some people are about their safety so I didn't think that was weird. I met the girl-"Chatty Cathy", at Blockbuster since I had to go shopping for dinner supplies. I met her and her little daughter, and she gave me the craft box, and sat there talking to me for a long time. I should have told her I have to go, but I didn't want to be rude, so I just listened to her rant on about her life, and needing a job, and her baby's daddy. She said something about art, and like a fool I told her I loved to make things. Stupid, I know, but it just slipped out. She coincidentally loves art too, and-get this-We should go into business together. Again, I know now, I should have run. Again, I didn't. I just laughed, and never said yes. She wouldn't let go of the idea of "our business", so I told her she could maybe show me her stuff sometime. She decided she would follow me home and show me. I figured, "fine, if it gets me out of here, there would be no harm in it." Looking back, I was wrong. Finally after almost an hour, I said I needed to go shopping, so she decided to follow me over to Albertsons and wait for me. When I came out, she asked me to watch her baby so she can go into Cellular One and make a phone call. Then she just walked off. Now, I know that I should have seen all the red flags that were presenting themselves. I was stupid. I don't like to hurt people's feelings, and figured it would be over soon enough. And secondly-I would never just ask a total stranger I barely know to watch my child, especially not walk off before they respond! After she came back, she followed me home. This was around 6pm. After hours of eating our food, playing on the computer, smoking and throwing the cigarette butts all over the porch, having me watch her kid while she just watched TV, and listening to her complain about her life, 2:30 am rolled around. I finally get her to go out to her car, and turn it on. She told me that it was so late she didn't think she was going to make it home, she was so tired, & "could she and her baby spend the night?" I just wanted to go to bed, so I said yes, and put her in Ben and Nick's room. I gave her some pajamas for her and the baby, and went to bed, just wondering how I got suckered into this. She left early the next morning, and I was just happy to have my house back.

Mind you this is our first meeting! She calls me when she needs stuff, asked for money-or a job (thankfully, I had neither to offer her) and even asked me to watch her daughter for 2 days (when the baby's dad lives in Central Point, and I had only met her the 1 time!!)-to which I said No, since I couldn't fit her in my car with my kids. I can't lie well, so at least that was true. I only gave her my cell number, because my phone doesn't work here so I can only text. Hee, hee. But if I don't answer her texts, then she will just show up. The girl is odd, and can't take a hint-but she is nice enough when she's around, and I really do like her ex-bf that she brings with her sometimes, so I feel bad being rude. She clearly didn't learn about boundaries growing up, and is "a few crayons short of a box". I think some of the crayons missing are common sense, and tact, but I'm just sayin....

By the way, her ex-boyfriend does have common sense and because of him, she hasn't spent the night again-not for her lack of trying. She stalls, and he gets her out. I like it better when he will be around. Plus he is a very interesting guy, & the kids love him.

I could write a book on my many "Chatty Cathy" adventures, but it's my fault she does this. I am a person who just can't say no, and my overwhelming sense of guilt if I offend someone outweighs my own common sense, and happiness. Complete "doormat syndrome". And because of these personal flaws, I am left scrubbing some random girl's crusty, dry feet, and wondering why I wasn't born with a backbone.

Sunday outing

Today we actually did the rarely seen thing is this house called "the family outing". This involves each and every one of us (and 2 cars) to actually perform this act, and again I tell you-Rare. It's usually me & the boys, or me & a few boys, or Alan and the boys-with me staying home with Miles. It's usually not worth the cost of gas for 2 cars, or someone doesn't want to go. If the place has crowds, I will not go. A crazy phobia I have had since I was a kid. I really can't deal with a crowd. In groups of more than 5 or 6, I can't breathe and feel queasy the whole time I'm there. And if for some reason I'm in charge, and people are looking at me-full blown panic attack. Seriously. This is pretty much the only reason I wouldn't be going. Alan volunteers to stay home with Miles a lot, due to his enormous love of relaxing at home watching the Lifetime channel. (You didn't hear that last part from me.....)

So, we went downtown to see the motorcycle bears and the boys had a ton of fun running around looking at them. They even had one you could sit on, and a painted background behind it so you could take pictures. Then we went to Riverside park where they had the whole playground to themselves! I don't know how we are finding the lucky spots lately, but really-it was a lot of fun to sit back and watch the kids run all over, and not worry about them getting lost or doing things they knew they shouldn't because I couldn't see them. Actually very relaxing. AND it wasn't too hot out. Good day all around.

Fabulous french toast for dinner and the kids (most of them) in bed right now. Ahhhhhhhh, so nice. Now, if only I could have the clean-up fairy come and take care of this neglected mess of a house, it would be perfect.

Library Day!

We signed up for the summer reading program at the local library 3 weeks ago. The boys just read 5 books a week, then they get a little prize and get to move to a new "Ocean" on the wall, that shows their progress. The boys love it. Granted we are usually reading all the book in a hurry either the night before, or the morning of the library trip, but they do read the books themselves and they are practicing their reading during summer. I don't even have to fight them to do it. Win/win. It's got 3 more weeks to go and the prizes are getting better, but it really all depends on who you get passing them out. For example-they had a grab bag today, where you reach in and pull out a toy without looking. Ben pulled out a little whale, which he liked until Nick & Nathan both pulled out little accordion fan things-like the little oriental fans we used to get as a kid. He asked the lady if he could switch and get a fan too, since it was very hot. She said no, because she "didn't want to set a precedent". Okay, understood. Except that-besides my kids, and me-the library was EMPTY! Like, totally empty. It could not have been less full of people if it tried! Who, I ask you, was looking?!? The little old ladies up front who check the books in? Doubtful. And even if they were, I don't think they would have called anyone and told on her-had she actually let him exchange the toy. She told him that his brothers could trade with him, but she couldn't do anything. So, the boys start walking away and she asks if Miles would like something. She goes into the bag and pulls out a little clapper toy. Again, okay. Thank you. Miles does enjoy those noisy toys, and he certainly didn't read any books, therefore we weren't expecting anything. But, that being said-she could have totally redeemed the situation, and given "Miles" a fan too, so that there would be another brother to trade with-because honestly, he would have been totally fine with the whale. Really lady? I don't want to be ungrateful, but really?!? Needless to say, it kinda bugged me. Am I being crazy? Probably, but I didn't see any toy police hiding behind the shelves, so I highly doubt there was really "nothing she could do."

Anyway.......they have these bears around the city that local artists get to decorate, and the boys LOVE them. The one out front of the library is called "Berry Potter" and is decorated to be like, yup-you guessed it-Harry Potter. There is a pirate one in the library, and a Charlotte's Web one, out another exit. The boys love looking at them, and talking to them like they are real. It's very cute. So today I brought my camera and got pictures with a few of them. Tomorrow we are going to be going downtown, to where they have a bunch of these bears on motorcycles in a parking lot. The boys go crazy when we go by, so we're taking a family trip to see them and get pictures with them too. I think we need to go around town and get pictures of all of the bears that we can find. "We're going on a bear hunt.... gonna catch a big one....."

That is one thing I do love about southern Oregon.....there are lots of artistic people here, so they do these big projects like the bears, eagles, Christmas signs-and let the locals get into it, and it makes the downtown area look really cool. Plus it satisfies my need for change. Again, win/win.

Hot, Hot and Hotter still....

It has been 95-105 here lately and I am going crazy. I don't have what you would call "shorts legs". I am so blindingly white, I could reflect sun off these babies and blind any passing vehicles. I don't think I even own a pair of shorts, so needless to say, This heat is going to kill me! The boys think anything above 70 is HOT and requires them to immediately remove all of their clothes. It's like a nudist colony around here, the boys all down to their underwear. If you are ever thinking of just stopping, by-you should probably call first, lest you see things you don't want to.
We have been trying to deal with the heat the best we can by pretty much camping out at my mom's house during the day, since the boys little pool is over there. Is it wrong for me to want to shove all the kids out of it, and claim it all for myself? If I am forced to sit outside in this unholy heat much longer, and watch them cooling off, I may do just that. Don't judge me too harshly-I don't take the heat well. It is so bad that I don't even want to cook. I would love the kids to eat popcorn and yogurt every night, just so I don't have to turn the blasted oven on. The A/C unit works great-in the front room. It doesn't even touch the kitchen where I am sweating like a blond at a spelling bee!
I am anxiously awaiting the return of fall with it's promises of cooler weather, and fantastic holidays! Please let this be the shortest, coolest summer in history! I don't think I can handle much more of this heat!

Introductions....

And last but, not by any means the least-ME! I grew up the middle of 9 kids, so I love family! I had one of the best, most fun families anyone could ask for. We are all still pretty close, which I LOVE! I hope to instill the sense that family is everything into my boys. If they love each other as much as I love my siblings, I couldn't ask for anything more. I have a quick temper, which I want to fix! I love Art, and I'm very excited that my boys love to do crafts with me, since I have to do stuff with my hands constantly. I love reading, travelling, daydreaming, doing crafts, painting, drawing, GLEE(tv show), making anything (shelves, sculptures, lists...), and taking pictures. I am rarely in them, but I take too many pictures of my kids-as you will see. I love capturing their lives. Anyone who knows me, knows that I have a semi-obsession with Ghosts-only real ones-and everything haunted. I say semi-obsession, because I am happily living in denial. Growing up in a haunted house did it to me, and I have a "fascination with/fear of" relationship with the paranormal. Hence my tattoo. =) I love cooking/baking, but hate cleaning up. I have an almost OCD compulsion for change. When something is the same for too long, I literally can't handle it. I am anal, and fun. Weird combo. Quiet, but open up over time. Definitely worth knowing-if I do say so myself. =)