Survival and Getting Through to Monday

So, in one small way, I am so ready for it to be Monday.  It was a long weekend.  Not necessarily fun, but definitely long.
I have come to one major conclusion.  I am not cut out to be a full time at home mom. I'd go nuts inside of about three days.  I love my boys, but oh man do I need a way to take a break form them.
The weekend started out on a high note for me.  Both boys were away at the grandparents' houses.  I had a quiet dinner, and then met a friend and we went out for a drink.  I got home and went to bed and woke up in a quiet house when I wanted to.  I Skyped with Nick and then went grocery shopping, all by myself.
I picked Bruiser up after I got all the groceries put away and Turbo came home a bit later.

Hard at work on his book.

I spent the rest of the weekend cleaning tubs, making an 8 year old finish the book he had to write and illustrate for school, and trying to make a 3 year old use the potty.  The book got finished, but the 3 year old pretty much defeated me.  It is totally two steps forward three steps back on the potty front.

Hard to be mad at that cuteness.

Nick returns on Wednesday and I truly will be oh so glad to see him.  It's been a long time to have him gone.   At least the weather has been nice and Turbo has been able to play outside.  That is until last night.  We got snow, yes snow, and it's snowing today.  Got to love spring in Wyoming.

And So It Starts...

Well, Nick made it to Austin, TX yesterday.  I am currently a singleish mom.  The next 10 days will be interesting to say the least.  I just hope I don't get sick.  I'm fighting it right now.
Our weekend was quiet, laundry, cleaning, more laundry.  I changed sheets, folded, ironed and did more laundry.  Yeah, there was lots of laundry done.
I did dishes too.  Domestic goddess, that's me.  Stop laughing, I can claim it of that's all I did all weekend.  I did all that domestic stuff, except clean the bathrooms.  I'm totally procrastinating on that one.  Oh, and I still need to take the vacuum for a spin.  It is pouting a bit after all the attention the washer and dryer got this weekend.
It really is challenging to feed a very picky three year old, and eight year old who doesn't eat lots and myself.  It's not worth it to make real meals, I end up with copious left overs.  Left overs are not really big with most of us.  My main left over consumer is in Texas.  I see us eating lots of chicken this week.  Chicken is one meat that is not objected to by most of the eaters in my house.
I did have a friend over and we played Pirate Farkle.  Turbo, my friend and myself.  I won two games and My friend won one game.  Turbo came close twice, but a lucky roll stole victory from him.  He took it well and is looking forward to playing again tonight.
So there you have it.  My not overly exciting weekend.  Was your weekend better?

Spring Break, Good and Gone

So.  It's Monday.  And the start of another long week.  The last week went by way too fast.  We started it off with a run up to Hot Springs, South Dakota.  I will be doing a post about the trip later this week.  I will say that trip was much needed and very much enjoyed.
After we got back, Nick and I got to work while Turbo enjoyed the rest of his spring break.  Both boys got a sleep over at Grandma's house, during which they had a good time watching movies and going to Burger King.
We had friends come into town on Saturday and a sitter was gotten for all the kids--six in total--and the adults went out for dinner and then to the local Irish pub to enjoy some St. Patrick's Day fun.  Much green beer was imbibed and a good time was had by all.  We got Budweiser swag: T shirts, necklaces, hats, and tiaras.  All very green and very cheesy, but oh so much fun.  I think that next year we will be doing something similar.  The going out sans kids, not so much the St. Patrick's silliness.
The only down side was that while out at the grocery store, I picked up Bruiser to put him in the car and my back said "Oh, no you don't" and promptly went out on me.  I now have lower back pain to keep me company. I hate getting old.
I also think I passed another kidney stone.  I've been feeling very similar to how I felt when I passed my first one.  Maybe a shade less pain, but very uncomfortable.  It finally passed yesterday morning.  I feel much better now.
So, now that you are all caught up on us, what's up with you?

Another Monday? Not Really...

This last weekend went by with it's ups and downs.  Really a lot more ups than downs really.
Saturday we got the grocery shopping done and then took the boys swimming at the rec center.  A good time was had by everyone.  Bruiser is getting brave about floating with a life vest one and not having a death grip on us.  Turbo loves to dive in and swim under water.  Swimming lessons have been so good for him.
Saturday afternoon Turbo had a birthday party to go to.  He ended up staying a lot longer than originally planned and had lots of fun.
Sunday was a lazy day.  A bit of cleaning, a bit of beer bottling, and lots of couch surfing.  I got a nap and it felt good.  Cabin fever is still pretty rampant in our house, but the ice outside is still not really letting us go outside.  It is melting, but more snow is predicted for tomorrow.  such is "spring" in Wyoming.
We have had a bit of a situation here since Thanksgiving.  Nick's dad usually watches Bruiser on Mondays and Fridays.  Just after Thanksgiving he had surgery on his right wrist and a week later he had surgery on his left foot.  This put him out of commission as far as Bruiser sitting.  My mom took up the slack, expecting Papa to be able to watch Bruiser again after a couple of months.
Well, Papa's foot did not heal right (he walked on it far too soon) and he had to go back to surgery in January.  My mom was facing five days a week and wasn't really happy or physically prepared to do that.  So nick and I went to our boss and negotiated a temporary fix.  I am working from home on Mondays and Nick is working from home on Fridays.  My mom will watch Bruiser on Tuesday through Thursday, like she was used to.  hopefully Papa will be back on his feet (both of them) in another month or so.
this whole issue of who is watching Bruiser has been weighing heavy on me.  he about half way potty trained and I didn't really want a major change to his schedule to disrupt that.  As soon as he is trained I have no trouble finding a daycare to put him in if necessary, but I would like to avoid that as long as possible.  I want his potty trained.
So, today I am home.  Working, chasing a little boy, getting a big boy to school.  you know, imitating super mom.  Not sure I can really pull it off, but I think I can fake it.
so how was your weekend?

Almost Good to See Monday

This last weekend had it's ups and downs.
First the ups:

• Nick got home Friday evening, safe and sound.  He had a successful trip to Dallas.
• Bruiser had a successful solo over night at Grandma's house.
• Nick and Turbo had fun hunting--they didn't get one this trip but they plan on going next weekend so hopefully they can get an antelope then.
• I got some cleaning done--vacuuming, dishes, random laundry.  
• I also made pumpkin pie bread, and granola.  Both turned out pretty good.

And for the downs.  Well really only one major down.  We had drama with the neighbors again.
They have a dog they got from the pound and this dog had puppies.  All the kids in the neoghborhood like to go see the puppies.  Things have been tense between the kids since another family moved in with kids.  It's like there has been an unspoken competition going on about who would get to play with these kids.  Turbo almost always lost out.
On Saturday, Turbo want to to play with the new kids in the neighborhood.  They told him they had to do homework before they could play.  Turbo passed the time by riding his bike around the block.  He cut through the alley on one of his trips and heard kids voices in the back yard of the neighbors with the puppies.  He went and knocked on the back door to see what was up.  One of the little girls who live there opened the door and the mother dog got out and chased Turbo up the alley and bit his knee, tearing his sweatpants in the process.
The mother came down to see what had happened and to tell us that we really needed to have Turbo call and he was not to open the door at all.  We had to get the story from Turbo on what had really happened because the girls down the street had tried to blame the whole thing on poor Turbo.  And the mother was really believing that her little "angels" could have done nothing wrong.
The up shot of the whole thing is that Turbo will not be playing with them for quite a while.  It really has been time to back off a bit any way.  The older girl there really doesn't get along with Turbo all that well.  She has learned how to push his buttons and reduce him to an angry, crying mess all the while looking like an innocent party.  So we are just not going to be doing as much with them.  I think it's better this way.
It is sad because they could have been and really have been friends.  But I'm not putting my kids in the line of fire because her kids don't want to get caught doing what they know they aren't supposed to.  It just takes more effort to get Turbo to friends' houses now.
So after that bit of drama Saturday night, I'm really glad that Sunday was pretty uneventful.  And I'm almost glad it's Monday.  Oh no, did I really just say that?  I may need more help that I thought.
How was your weekend?

One Mighty Random Weekend

This last weekend was productive, but really very random.  In the spirit of random I think I will just bullet out our activities.

• I took my mom and Turbo down to Colorado to go school shopping.  The second hand options are much better there than here in good old Wyoming.  The new store shopping is also better.
• We got everything he needed and didn't have to spend all that much.  It was awesome.  50% off sales at both of my favorite second hand stores, a gift card for Old Navy and then minor stuff at JC Penney.  Then off to Target for the actual school supplies.  He truly is growing up--he had to get his first spiral bound notebooks for Third grade this year.
• All in all it was a good day, hot and very muggy, but a good day.
• We then headed home and Turbo spent the night with Grandma.
• Nick and I took Bruiser out to a friend's house for a barbecue.
• Sunday I went grocery shopping, picked up Turbo and got the laundry done.
• Got Turbo's clothes rearranged in his drawers and everything ready for school to start (in about a week and a half--eep)
• The boys spent the day playing in the left over sand from the pathway project.

Turbo's sand fortress creation.

• We then had Nick's folks over for a barbecue and Nick spent the afternoon smoking fish on the grill.  Everything turned out tasting fabulous.
• And finally here are pictures of the walkway Nick put in our back yard.  He still needs to finish the steps onto the deck but otherwise things look great in the back yard.

Looking east

Looking west.

So that was our weekend.  It rushed by and while we accomplished a lot, it seems like we did nothing.  And I don't feel all that relaxed and refreshed.  Maybe next weekend.

Hope your weekend was relaxing and productive, one way or another.

Not Monday

We all get today off for the holiday.   So today is not Monday for us.  I will think of ll of you who are working today with fondness and revel in the fact that I get to stay home.
I will be finishing laundry, organizing and maybe cooking, after we go run errands.  Yeah, we know how to spend days like these, don't we?
Have a great day and See you all tomorrow.

All About ME Mondays

MommyBrain has asked for our numbers this week.

This week use NUMBERS to tell us about yourself ...

That's right, break it down to the number of ...

places you've lived--As a child-4 states, 7 houses
places you've lived--As an adult--1 state, 4 apartments and 1 house.

1-siblings you have

5-televisions in your house

4-cars you've owned

children / pets under your care-2 children, 1 dog, 2 cats and 8 fish

21-states visited
3-countries  visited
21-pairs of shoes in your closet
5-Pairs of shoes out of the closet
2-shampoo bottles in your shower
165-blog posts you've written
15-email messages in your inbox
41-friends on Facebook
13-favorite number
16-Meals cooked during the week
6000-average number of steps taken daily
3-number of books you're reading
22-Day of birth
657-times I say settle down to Turbo in an average day
7954-number of times I tell my family I love them in a week

What are your numbers?

All about ME Monday--Jealous much?

Mommybrain's promt this Monday is about jealousy--

Jealousy is not a pretty emotion.  

But I think it's fair to say that we all succumb 

to its power every now-and-then.  

We're only human, right?

Are you ... jealous much?

What makes you green with envy?

What makes your green-eyed monster break free 

and bare its teeth for all to see?

So things that make me jealous, hmmm, well it has changed over time.  When I was in high school, I was jealous of the clothes and stuff that the other girls had.  In college I was jealous of the kids with lots of money--I had to earn my spending, eating, utilities, etc.  Then I was jealous of the friends who got married, until I did--we waited a while.  Then when everyone started having babies, I was jealous of their kids.  Then I had my own. 

So far the things I was jealous of have resolved themselves.  These days I am jealous of different things.  Here's a list:

• Money--there is just never enough
• Time--to do the things I want to do like scrapbooking, reading, blogging.
• Privacy--they never tell you that you will never again go to the bathroom in peace again when you have kids.
• Being able to travel to fun and exotic locations.
• having stuff--like a net book computer, new pop-up camper, digital SLR camera, a bigger house, the list could go on and on.
• I will admit that I am jealous of the people who are on the make over shows.  Style stuff has never come easy to me.
• I am also jealous of those people who seem to make friends so effortlessly.  Being shy and mildly insecure in social situations sucks.

Then I stop to think about what I have and these things don't seem so important.  These guys make it all better.

Turbo and Bruiser make me feel less jealous of other people.  They're cute, no?  Are you just a bit jealous?

Monday Minute

It's time for those Monday Questions with Ian.  Here goes:

1 - Ever take a dump(shat, crap, etc.) in the woods?
      Yep, but not often.  The first time happened when I was about 11.  I had to find leaves to wipe with and every thing.  We were chokecherry picking and the urge hit and there was no denying it.  Since then, I've had to do it a couple of other times and my hubby is obsessive about having toilet paper with us--there are always about three rolls in the car when we take a road trip or go camping.

2 - If you won $1,000, what's the first thing you would do with it besides give me a cut?
     Well, after the cut, I think I would get a good digital SLR camera and a new netbook computer.  A thousand bucks really doesn't go that far any more.

3 - What's your favorite phrase?
       Fabulous--heavy on the sarcasm.


4 - Fill in the blank - the world would be a better place if ______ left the planet.
     Stupid people--they're everywhere.

5 - How do you take your coffee or tea?
     With lots of sugar and some creamer if I have it.

Mommy and Me Monday

Hosted by Krystyn

Krystyn over at Really, Are You Serious? has this little Meme about getting in the picture with your kids.  How often do you look back through the picture taken of some event and there is no picture of you, the mom, because you were behind the camera?  Krystyn has challenged us to take one picture a week with our kiddos.  I'm not sure I can do evry week but I do want to be in the picture more.

Here is my offering for the week:

Bruiser is a great snuggler and he gives wonderful hugs.  Nana snapped this picture at the urging of my mother at Easter Brunch.  It turned out pretty good.  Now I just have to catch Turbo for a picture soon.

Monday Minute

I was poking around the blogs I follow and saw Momma Fargo was playing a new to her(and me) meme.  Monday Minute hosted by Ian at The Daily Dose of Reality. He gives questions and you post your answers.  Sounded fun so here goes:

What's wrong with fake breasts?

They are just so round and perky.  I wasn't that perky when I was 16.  I always wondered how women with those fake boobs go up and down stairs comfortably.  They look nice, but the logistics escape me.

List your latest run-in with the carnival of Idiocy.

Hmmm-idiots.  They are just everywhere, but my latest run-in has to be the drivers who think they are safer when they drive 10 miles below the speed limit everywhere.  You are not safer-you are a hazard to those of us who drive the speed limit.  Also very annoying.


Name one thing you'd like to tell your ten year ago self.
Better times are coming and the hard work will pay off.  Keep on keeping on and I promise the light at the end of the tunnel is not the on coming train.  I was working crazy hours for a chiropractor, my husband was out of town all week working and the grind was getting us down.  It would have been nice to know where all the hard work would get us.



What's your favorite word that's not in the dictionary?
Mantard--thank you Momma Fargo!

Why do fools fall in love?
Why not?  Fools need love too, and they don't know any better.

MEme Monday--Home

with

MommyBrain

and

SupahMommy

What's your most favorite part of your home?

Is it a special reading nook?

Is it the broom closet you hide in ?

Is it your drawer pulls in the kitchen that took 34 years to re-do?

Is it your deck on a summer night?

Show us in a picture and tell us in words.

What's your most favorite part of your home.

My favorite part of my home...I like lots of the parts of my home.  We have wonderful gardens that look great in the summer, (now not so much).  We are halfway through a kitchen remodel (will be finished when the money comes available to do the other half of the cabinets).  I like the changes we have made in the kitchen and will love it when it is finished. 

I love our main bathroom--remodeled about four years ago and oh so much better than what we had before.  I love our basement, which has been remodeled completely since we moved in.  Our bedroom and Bruisers is down there.  It is cool in the summer, pleasent in the winter and feels really nice down there. 

But right now my favorite place is the master bathroom we put in a year and a half ago.  I had always wanted a master bathroom with two sinks.  We didn't put in a large master bath but we were able to get those two sinks, and a tub shower combo.  It is just the right size.  I really love have my private bath, especially with two small boys in the house.  The tub is deep and perfect for soaking and reading a book with a glass of wine and I have my sink and Nick has his.  His shaving debris stay on his side and I don't have to worry about stray hairs in my concact lenses.  It's marvelous. 

I'll post pictures later.  Promise.

OK, here are the promised pictures.  I also need to mention that I am so lucky because my marvelous husband is handy and can do most of the remodel work himself (with minor help from me).  The bathroom is not completely finished--trim and such-- but it is so usable.

Misc. Saturday Stuff

Jen at My Crazy Life made me a button.  It is so cute. Now I can play the share the button game.  Thanks to Jen and her talented creation skills.  I think the button looks great and shows how surrounded by boy stuff I really am.  Thanks again, Jen.  Now I just have to figure out how to get it posted.  I'll work on that on Monday I think.

In other news, I got another award from Momma Fargo over at The Boogie Man is My Friend. 

I am honored that she thought of me.  We Wyoming people have to stick together--there aren't that many of us.  She is a mom and police woman and she has the most interesting experiences at work and coins the best phrases--Mantard, and such.  Head on over and check her out, she's always fun.

Now the rules say you have to tell 7 things about yourself and then give it to 15 other bloggers.  I'm going to take the easy way out and give it to a couple of people but not 15, sorry.  And I just did a post about my self.  Go see it for more about me.

Jen at My Crazy Life, I give you the beautiful blogger award.  Treat it well.

OK so I can't think of anyone else to give it to that hasn't already got it.  So if someone who follows me wants it, go ahead and grab it.  I know, it's the lazy way out but hey it's Saturday.

MEme Monday--I had to have it

The theme this Monday is that one thing you begged and whined to get as a kid that you just had to have, and what you did to get one.  If you have a story about something you had to have link up with SupahMommy and MommyBrain and let us know all about it.

For me, I had a lot of wants but very few gets. I really wanted one of those ugly cabbage patch kids during the first craze, but what I got was a pretend-a-doll that was admittedly cuter but was definitely not one of those coveted dolls. I really wanted a pair of those jelly shoes but Mom said they were just cheap plastic so I didn't get those either.  I did get an Esprit book bag to carry my books to and from school when I was about a junior.  mine was black with colored lettering--so cool.


I was dressed in thrift store fashion way before second hand was shabby chic. I learned to shop for myself at those places so I did not look like a seventies reject in ruffles and lace (what my mom thought was cute on me) when those thing were so not cool.

But I did go and ask my mom if I could go shopping for new clothes when I was 13. I asked if I could shop for new clothes (with my own money) and she said sure. She wasn't totally keen on my style tastes but said if that was how I wanted to look she was OK with it. Of course my style was not like what you see today--I was totally covered in the late Eighties fashion I was sporting.

One of my greatest thrift store finds was a pair of acid washed jeans. Remember those? Well I really wanted a pair but no way was my mom paying for new ones. Second hand was all she would do. Well, I scanned the racks for months at the used stores and finally I found some. Mom was skeptical but bought them for me. Now this was the time of the pinch and roll pants, you know so they would taper and show off your multiple colored socks? The pants I found were straight legged and boy, would they wrap around my leg before I could roll them, but they would stay rolled all day so there was that.

I thought I was so cool cause I finally had my acid washed jeans. I wore them until the holes in the knees were so big they should have been shorts. However by then the acid washed trend was over—so was the pinch and roll thing.

Here is a shot of what the jeans looked like—sort of.

MEme Monday--Prom time

It's MEme Monday time again with Supah and MommyBrain.  This week they are dredging up those high school memories of Prom.

Whether your date was the man of your dreams

or just the guy who finally wore you down,

tell us about your Prom night.

Whether you were treated to surf-n-turf or Value Meal #5,

tell us about your Prom night.

Whether you put out or just wish you had,

tell us about your Prom night.

The good, the bad, and the ugly ... dress.

We want it all!

So, prom.

Well first, my home town is small. Like really small. Like there were only 300 people in our whole high school small. Because of this, we had junior/senior prom, not just senior prom.

And second, I was not very popular in high school. I was the nerdy bookworm and most definitely on the outside looking in most of the time. Therefore, the guys were not lined up to ask me to prom my junior year. I ended up asking a friend to go with me. He was a guy but he was shorter than me and most definitely a friend, nothing romantic at all. His sister (also in our class, not twins, don’t ask, it’s a small town) was going with her then boyfriend.

The guys got together and decided that instead of taking us out they would cook at the boyfriend’s house. We had steak and it was nice but nothing like going out for a fancy dinner. Granted the options were limited in our town and it being prom everywhere was packed. But still, isn’t going out to dinner part of the prom package?

Anywho, we made it to the high school and had prom in the auditorium, nicely decorated but the freshman. After the grand processional introducing each couple, we found a table and settled in for the evening. There was a DJ and rocking eighties/early nineties music. Danced a couple of dances and that was it.

We went to the after prom party—theme casino night at the senior citizens center—I know, I know small town remember—and had a good time fake gambling. Then at about 5:30am we went to the truck stop for breakfast. Then they took me home and I slept the rest of the morning away. Not exactly the prom of my dreams but at least I can say I went.

I do have pictures but I’m lazy and didn’t get the scanner, the computer it will talk to and the jump drive to transfer it over to the computer that talks to the internet. Believe me when I say that the poufy eighties hair, dress and date are so bad that I really want to forget the whole thing. And I didn’t even go to my senior prom.

Maybe, I'll get the dress out and take a picture of it.  Yes I still have the dress, shut up.  My mom never threw anything out.  I don't fit in to it anymore--thank God.  Just wait--I'll post the pic later today.


As Promised here is a picture of the dress:

And here I am in all my 1990's glory in the above mentioned dress.  The hair is not as poufy as I had thought.

Well there you have it, my one and only prom experience.

MEme Monday--Kiss and Tell

MEme Monday is all about your first kiss.  Gos see SupahMommy and Mommybrain to tell about your first kiss.

My first kiss was not really memorable.  I was a late bloomer and I was 16 before I got kissed by a guy.  It was nothing special.  I don't even remember the guy's name.  I know, but really it was nothing to write home about.  I do however remember the first time Nick kissed me.  It happened on our first date.  After we went to see Groung Hog Day we went to his place.  He lived in a trailer that was outside of the city limits.  It was redneck central very college guy decorating.  Oh, and the plumbing was hit and miss--the bushes outside.  Made a great impression on me. 

He and his roommate had a cat and a dog.  (Don't rush me, the cat and dog are important to the story.)  Anykisses, we were hanging out at his place until his friend got off work so we could go there and watch videos.  As we were talking, Nick sort of moved in and then the dog wanted out.  More talking and then the cat wanted in.  Again more talking and moving in and then the dog wanted in.  Finally Nick got frustrated enough to just say, "Man I want to kiss you but I keep getting interrupted."  So I went to stand in front of him and said, "Then just kiss me."  And we did.  Tingles down to my toes.  There was no awkward tongue wiggling, no sloppiness, no tonsil hockey.  It worked great and must have had some magic cause we are still together today.

I had had other first kisses with guys I had dated.  But Nick was endearing with his attempts to be smooth and then his frustrated request.  It was nice to have a guy not just assume that a kiss was a foregone conclusion.  Yeah I was in college and had dated my share of conceited 18 and 19 year olds.  Nick was genuinely nice.  I liked that.  Enough to stay with him for the next 17 years and 3 days.  But who's counting?

MEme Monday-As Seen On TV

SupahMommy and MommyBrain have smoething great fopr this week's All About MEme Monday. 
 

Everybody's seen them, you know, those products on late night that you can't live without?  The things that make life easier, faster, cleaner, more delicious, more nurtitious, or just more?

I will admit that I have not bought any of them from TV.  We like to laugh at the spokes people--Vince of Shamwow and Slapchop fame to name one.  I will say the worst of these commercials I ever saw was Vince's Slapchop pitch done to a rap.  Absolutely aweful.  So bad it was almost funny-almost.

My in-laws have gotten on the Snuggie bandwagon.  I saw some at their house before Christmas and Turbo proudly showed us the one he uses when he is there.  I warned Nick that one or possibly both of us would recieve one for Christmas. 

Nick was the lucky winner. 

It was leopard print. 

Turbo picked it out. 

Nick has used it exactly once. 

After all it came from Turbo. 


My mom keeps advocating for the Brownie pan that precuts the brownies before you cook them.  SHe thinks it would be a great present for my father-in-law.  He makes great brownies, but I'm not sure how the pan would go over. 

The only other As  Seen on TV product I have ever used was a hair do-hickey that would turn you pony tail over on itself and give it a great twisty effect.  This was back in the 90's ladies.  The end result looked something like this:

Image courtesy of Google Images.

You accomplished this look wiht the help of a green loopy thing that went around the hair and then you tucked the end of it back through the ponytail and than pulled the heck out of your hair.  If you got it even it looked nice but I fortn got it off center and it always looked strange. 

That was my one experience with As Seen on TV.    I get tempted every now and then but I resist--mostly because if it's a decent product it will show up on Walmarts shelves and then I don't have to pay shipping.

Quotable MEme Monday

All about MEme Monday with Mommybrain and SupahMommy.  This week is favorite quotes and why.

One of my favorite quotes is:
The average pencil is seven inches long, with just a half-inch eraser - in case you thought optimism was dead. ~Robert Brault
I try to be optimistic.  It's so much easier to be pessimistic about everything.  I have to remind my self that things aren't really that bad.  This quote makes me remember that optimisim is out there and it gives me a smile at the same time which helps with the whole pessimism thing.


Another that Nick and I try to keep in mind:
Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans!
Nick and I live by this quote (line from a song? whatever).  Sometimes we get so caught up in the day to day stuff we forget to enjoy the life we are living.  We have to step back and take a moment to see the life we have even if it is not exactly the plan we made.
 

Classified adds, MEme Monday

SupahMommy is once again hosting All about MEme Monday.  A newspaper is rumored to be in the works and there is a call for want adds.

Here are mine:
WANTED
Dishwasher for family of four.  Will need to scrape dishes, wash dishes and hunt for dishes all over house.  Much relieved mother will pay well for help.  No other perks.  Needed immediately.

WANTED
Plumbing that works.  Will require draining well and no backups.  So tired of needing plumber every two years. 

FOR SALE
One six year old.  Comes with toys and clothes.  Will take any offer.  Comes as is, no refunds or exchanges.  (Caution: do not add sugar or caffine.  Previous owners not responsible for child's actions if given these substances.)

FOR SALE
One slightly used bed.  Mother exploring the wide realm of not sleeping at night.  Children helping with this endeavor.  She no longer needs bed as she is constantly out of it and no longer remembers what it is like to sleep all night.  Any offers will be appreciated.  Funds needed to pay for therapist when children are gone. (Mother will need to be retrained how to sleep).