Time to get up!

It's only day two of the new school year and I am struggling to adjust to waking up to an alarm clock. 6:15 rolls around way too fast!

I had this ancient alarm clock from the 80's that was on it's final days. Luckily last week I attempted to practice waking up early. I wasn't very successful, but I tried. Hubby asked me why I didn't get up when the alarm went off. I told him that I must have set it wrong because it didn't go off. But he insisted it did and I just didn't hear it.

The next day I made sure it was set properly and sure enough, it did go off, but the alarm noise that's supposed to be loud and piercing was a muted, silent beckoning. My alarm clock was being polite. I'm all about being courteous, especially in the early morning hours, but in order for a clock to do it's job I need loud and abrasive.

So I went out and bought a new alarm clock yesterday. And it does the job. But the snooze button is a bit too convenient. I could place the clock across the room so that it would make me get out of bed to shut if off, but then I wouldn't be able to see it without putting my glasses on and that's just plain irritating. I'm as blind as a bat. If it's not in front of my face, it doesn't exist. Sad, but true.

The alarm went off this morning with it's loud and obnoxious beeping and smack dab in the middle is the largest button on the device - snooze. Yep, so I hit that bad boy about 3 times and each time I gently fell back asleep. What a lovely feeling, that is until the irritating beeping wakes me back up. At least it's doing it's job. And maybe some day I won't need it any longer, but until that day the clock and I will have a love hate relationship.

Best Laugh I've had in a Long Time!

I am sure this has been going around for awhile now, but I honestly felt like I had an intense ab workout after watching this video. I even had to wipe the tears from my eyes - it was that good.

It's the news anchors that make it even funnier.

Nothing's going to hold him back.

It's been almost three weeks since Carson fell and broke his arm.

And one would think a cast from the knuckles up to one's armpit would slow them down quite a bit - not my child.

I am so impressed with this boy's positive attitude and the ways he works around the cast. Some days I forget he even has one on and I think he does too. He is still adamant about keeping it "blue" meaning he does not want anyone to sign it. And occasionally he'll talk about when the time comes to have it taken off. He does express a bit of concern and thinks they are going to use a chain saw to remove it taking his arm along with it. I've assured him that his arm will remain attached to his body.

Wednesday we have an appointment to have it checked and get another x-ray to see how well the bone is mending. From there it may be 3 more weeks of the cast, unfortunately not in time for the first day of school.

Maybe by then he'll be ready for some autographs and artwork.

Times sure have changed.

Luke, being 4 years old, still has issues with keeping dry. He gets so wrapped up in what he's doing that he'll forget to take potty breaks unless I remind him to.

After the gym this evening we decided to meet up with some friends for dinner. After we were done eating I noticed Luke's pants were damp. We came home and I cleaned him up for the night, but was quite frustrated.

I asked Luke, "What is it going to take to get you to remember to stop and use the potty before it's too late?"

He replied, "I don't know."

So I said, "What if I buy you something? How about that?" Thinking he'd really go for that idea and ask for candy or a small toy, etc.

You know what my 4 year old boy said he wanted?

An ipod!

There's a birthday boy in da house!

T - thoughtful, thinker, tranquil, talented

A - affectionate, advanced, adventurous, accomplished

Y - youthful, yield to authority

L - leader, loving, loyal

O - organized, observant, outstanding, original

R - resourceful, respectful, reliable

Today we celebrate the special person you are Taylor, and wish you a fun filled 12th birthday.

You gave us the privilege of becoming parents for the first time and we've enjoyed all the firsts of parenthood that we have experienced with you. You have been such a joy in our lives.

You also have such a wonderful spirit about you and never miss an opportunity to pull a quick one on your parents. Your humor and zest for life are a breath of fresh air and bring a smile to our face.

I see a bright and promising future for you my son. The sky is the limit. Live out your dreams and don't settle for anything less because you deserve the best that life has to offer.

We love you and are so proud of everything you do. We feel honored to call you our son.

Hugs and kisses on your special day today!

Love,

Mom and Dad

Boy + Tree = ER

Summer just wouldn't be complete without a trip to the emergency room.

That is exactly where Carson and I spent 4 hours last night after he fell when swinging from a tree limb in our front yard. I was in the driveway vacuuming the van and didn't see it happen. Fortunately, Taylor was outside and walked him over to me. His arm was red in the crook of his elbow so I brought him inside, had him lay down on the couch and applied ice.

In the pit of my stomach I had a feeling that this accident would require a trip to the ER. And this would be the first trip for Carson. The last (and first) time we made a visit to the ER for one of our boys was when Taylor was 2 years old and had croup. So we had a nice quiet span of close to 10 years without any incidents. That is a pretty good record for a family with 3 crazy busy boys.

I sent the other 2 boys to the neighbors house and called Jason at work to tell him what was going on. He left work in the middle of a huge downpour that was going on in Cleveland, but made it home safely.

Carson was very nervous and in pain - not a fun combination. While we were waiting, an older lady who was on a bed was wheeled past us. Carson looked at her and back at me and asked, "Is that lady half dead?"

We finally got in for x-rays 2 1/2 hours later at which this point the pain my poor boy had to endure was really taking a toll on him. The technician asked if anyone had given him any pain meds, but of course not - that would be too practical of a thing to do. After 5 grueling x-rays they put us in a room, gave him a temporary cast/splint, and FINALLY gave him some pain meds. It did end up being a fracture in the area of his elbow joint, which they said was an odd location for a break to happen. After that we were sent on our way home.

The medication seemed to kick in right away and Carson turned into a little chatterbox. He asked me if I was happy that he didn't pass out and he also told me he liked how nice I was being to him. As if I'm not that nice all the time - come on!

I treated him to Burger King since he was starving and had not eaten since lunch. Then we came home to settle him in for the night. I went back out to try and find a pharmacy that was still open at 10:30 pm. I had no such luck and came back home after a half hour of driving around.

Carson slept fairly well as we had him set up on a mattress in our room so that I could keep an eye and ear on him. Every hour or so he would call my name and would want me to adjust his pillows, but for the most part he did very well.

We went to get his 'permanent' cast in place this morning along with filling his prescription and that was pretty much non-eventful, thankfully.

Now we wait 6 weeks - and try to keep an active boy at bay. Any suggestions on how to do that? And the itching in the cast has already begun. It's going to be a long countdown. I may need my own Rx.

These boys are something else!

Here is another installment of my on going series of kid sayings that my 3 boys supply me with. The majority of today's excerpts come from Luke who recently turned 4 years old. It's a great dose of humor that makes me smile. I hope it does the same for you.

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I asked Luke what he wanted for lunch and he said, "The crab macaroni." Not sure what he meant I asked him to explain it. He said, "the sea shell kind." Oh- you mean the Kraft Shells and Cheese? Yep.

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Luke and I were petting Fritz, my parent's dog during one of his rare quiet and calm moments. Luke laid his head on the dog's chest and said, "His heart is wiggling, no, it's bumping."

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While walking to the gym in the parking lot Carson spotted a cloth on the ground. He pointed at it and said, "Look someones hank chief."

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Luke was eating a popsicle and I look over at him and see him giving it kisses. He noticed me watching him and said, "Mom, this is Princess Leia."

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Luke being under 4 feet tall was standing between my dad and I as we were having a conversation. Luke interrupts us and bluntly states, "Papa, you have boogers in your nose."

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I had a hard work out at the gym and at home I was sitting at the table with my eyes closed. I told Luke that all I wanted to do was go to bed. Luke replied, "Well, walk upstairs! Are you old?"

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I yelled to Luke in the other room and asked him if he had his flip flops on. He replied, "No, I just have my feet on."

Entertaining may not be my thing.

Saturday night we invited a couple over to dinner at our house. This was the first time we had Kristin and Aaron over and I wanted to make sure we made a good first impression. In the past my attempt at first impressions did not go so well. I didn’t want to jinx myself again so I vowed to keep it simple.

I supplied the pasta and fruit salad along with corn on the cob and brownies for dessert. The other couple provided the beer and burgers. Easy enough, right?

Well, let’s just say the burgers did not want to cooperate. Aaron even made the comment before they came over saying, “You’re not going to bring that box of ghetto burgers, are you?”

Hubby put the ghetto burgers on the grill and it started off ok. They were sizzling and smoking away like normal burgers do. I glanced over and made a comment about the flame broiled burgers and the increasing size of the flames all the while our guests are witnessing the entire scene play out. Then, in an instant, the innocent B.K. smoke turned into a rolling black cloud of pollution. We had a grease fire on our hands.

Hubby’s yelling at me to grab the hose while he’s doing his best to keep the flames at bay. I ran over to the hose and turned it on, not realizing that the sprinkler was still attached. There was no time to unhook it, so I rush over to the grill with sprinkler in hand while being blinded by the thick dark smoke coming from the grill. During this process I realized I had accidentally sprayed Kristin’s jeans.

Luckily the water did the trick and the flames were diminished. But the burgers, let’s just say they could no longer be considered food - more like charcoal bricks. Kristin and I decided to go to the store and get some new burgers - the leanest one’s possible.

Thankfully there were no issues with the second batch of burgers and we finally got around to eating after 8 pm. It was about time for dessert so I put some chocolate frosting on the brownies and set one out for each of us. The kids were playing in the basement and I figured they would come up to get one when they were ready.

In the meantime, we were all sitting around the kitchen table and Luke walks up to me with a disgusted look on his face holding his hand out with frosting on it. I noticed he had not yet had his brownie. I grab his wrist and ask him what he did. He replies, “poop.” I freak out and say, “No way! Where did it come from?” And his simple response was, “my butt.”

I rush him upstairs to the bathroom and clean him up. Apparently what he assumed was a fart was a little more than what he expected. He 'sharted' in his underwear.

Once he was cleaned up, I came back down and see that Kristin is busting out laughing. “Oh no, now what?” I said. She replied, “I think I know where Luke was,” and walked me over to the main floor bathroom. I walked in and there was brown smears all over the bathroom. On the sink, on the toilet, on the wall, on the floor, on the light switch.

Are.You.Freaking.Kidding.Me?!?!

I yelled for Carson and Luke to get their rear-ends to me immediately and asked them who made this mess. Luke insisted it was not him and Carson had the guilty look on his face and confessed it was him. I was not happy and said, “Don’t you know how to wipe your butt by now?” And Carson replied, “It’s a brownie.”

Thank goodness! I had my share of crap for the night.

Needless to say the night was full of memorable first impressions, not quite how I expected it to go, but definitely eventful. Sure we know how to entertain, just not in your traditional way.

Oopsy!

Do you want to know how I celebrate becoming a fitness instructor?  

A pizza delivered to my house and a sale made on  Craigslist.  

Do I know how to party or what?!?!!

Holla!

This weekend I spent 16 hours in training classes in order to get some group exercise certifications.  Sunday morning I had to wake up at 4 AM in order to make the 2.5 hour drive to Columbus for a full day of training.  Back to back grueling training days have left me exhausted in addition to the other 5 days I worked out this week.  Intense doesn't even being to explain it, but I totally love what I am going to be doing and it is worth every ounce of effort and sweat that was poured out.  

So when I got home Sunday night, Jason left to go out to eat with his long time buddy who was in town visiting (prior band mates in high school) and of course I was too tired to make anything for dinner.  I did what any sensible half-awake zombie person would do and ordered an extra large New York style cheese pizza for dinner.  So much for the brutal work outs this weekend. 

I plopped down (literally) with my pizza and my 2nd glass of wine and checked my email.  To my surprise I had a request for an item I posted on Craigslist.  A few emails back and forth later, we made arrangements for them to stop by the house in the next 15 minutes to pick up their purchase.  

"Sweet!" I thought to myself - "I'm making $5!  That will pay for a fourth of the pizza I just bought."  

I look over a few more emails, check my facebook page, drink some more wine and double check the last email I sent to Mr. Craigslist Purchaser.    

As I blink through my bloodshot, dried-out eyeballs, I noticed that I mistyped my address.  

Seriously?

Luckily the dude left me his home phone number, so I quickly give it a ring, hoping he hadn't left his house yet.  No such luck.  I gave it a second try with no answer once again. 

I took the item outside and placed it at the end of my driveway and went back in side to check out Mapquest and look up the incorrect address I entered to see if I could intercept him on his way.  Well, Mapquest is retarded or maybe it's just me.  (Don't respond to that.)  It showed a house on the map right down the street from me.  I grab my slice of pizza and cell phone and start trotting down the street barefoot.  

Hillbilly central.

I got down the street to where Tardquest said the house was, but no such place existed.  So I merrily scampered back home and waited for the next vehicle to pass by.  

As I am standing there next to the item, still eating my slice of pizza, a car drives by.  I wave to them, point to the item, and shrug my shoulders.  I sort of looked like a ravenous, crazed, black market street dealer ready to make a sale.  The people just looked at me like I belonged in a mental institute and kept driving.  

A 2nd vehicle drove past and this one was going slower than usual, so I knew it was very probable that it was my buyer.  I did my wave and shrug and the guy looks at me at first with a puzzled look and then stops and rolls his window down.   

He mentions the incorrect address and I explain to him what a freak I am and that I've been up since 4 am and need to learn how to type correctly.  

We both got a good laugh out of it.  And that, my friends, is how I celebrated my demanding, yet rewarding weekend.     

A guest post

Today's post is brought to you by a special guest.  My dad.  He keeps a journal and writes in it every day recapping the day's events.  I guess you could technically call him a blogger, without actually posting it online for the world to see.  He's an underground blogger.  I'm trying to bring him over to the other side - muahahaha!  

I've had the pleasure of reading some of his material and really enjoy the way he writes.  He's got some good stories!

They just got back from a week long vacation to Rhode Island with a few other couples.  The story below is from one of the nights they were there.  And just to clarify: 

• Linda is my mom's best friend (since they were kids) 
  
• Janet is my mom
• This is written from my dad's perspective

Enjoy!

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Life after 60

Just when you think the day’s adventures are over, we can always count on Linda to bring on another one.  This one started with a number of federal agents escorting a naval admiral to a restaurant right across the driveway from our time share.  They were still there after several hours when we decided to walk over to our friends time share.  As we came out, the feds and the admiral were in the process of leaving.  The vehicles they were using had flashing lights which attracted the attention of passersby, not to mention the suited guys with the serious faces.  

After they pulled away, Linda, Janet and I were standing in front of the Red Parrot restaurant where the admiral had his dinner.   A coupe of young fellows came up and asked Linda what was going on and who the important person was.  As Linda was explaining to them what she knew, out of nowhere (as Linda put it afterwards) she let loose with a very harsh sounding shot of gas.  (That’s a fart for those of you who prefer bluntness.) I was standing a good 30 feet away and was surprised at the decibel level at which it was delivered.  The two fellows she was talking to said, “Whoa!” (one of them even jumped back) and quickly walked away not waiting to hear the rest of the story or anything else she might have stored up.  

I disappeared around the corner doubled over in laughter.  Janet was so impressed by the sheer power of it, all she could say was, “Awesome!”  And poor Linda was trying to understand how something that powerful could appear without warning. From then on for the next 10 minutes, all we could do was wheeze.  

Tourists... honestly!