10.28.2005 | 2:19 pm | Uncategorized, Daily Life
…we bought a big ole mega bag of Tootsie Rolls a while back. It was supposed to be for trick-or-treaters. Philip was supposed to hide it from me, because I have ZERO self-control where candy is concerned (this is why we NEVER have candy/junk food in the house. I just can’t stop myself). Well, I found the bag a few days ago. I opened it, telling myself, “I’ll just have a little handful.”
Out of 270 Tootsie Rolls, there are around 20 left.
What I’ve learned from this experience:
Never, ever eat more than 100 Tootsie Rolls in one day. You’d be better off to just unwrap 100 of them, throw them in the blender, add water, run it on puree for a minute or so, and go dump the liquid chocolate mixture straight into the toilet. It’ll save you a lot of cramping, nausea, & toilet paper, and it’ll leave your underwear a lot cleaner, too.
R O F L. (although last night it would’ve been more like ROFCramping!)
Share on Facebook
Comments (13)
10.27.2005 | 9:07 am | Uncategorized, Daily Life
Yesterday evening I “pulled a Jeepy”, the infamous act of absentmindedly backing into your OWN vehicle in your OWN driveway. Oh yes…I sure did.
Earlier in the afternoon, I’d run up to the nearby laundromat to put our comforter in the super-duper washer, because when it came out of storage it smelled stale, but it’s way too big to fit in our washer. I left it washing, came home, and we took our walk. When we were done, I was going to head back up to the laundromat to pick up the comforter. I was in a hurry because I knew it had been done washing for a while, and I didn’t want anyone to steal it.
So I hopped in the car, shifted in reverse, waved at Grayson who was standing in the front doorway waving at me, started backing, and WHAM! It was loud! My first thought was WTF was that!? And then I knew. Our truck––the same truck that has been parked behind our car every day for, ohhhh, the past 3.5 years––had been just a few yards behind me, and I’d forgotten. D’OH.
I hit it hard. I’d been reversing at full speed, and the force of the blow actually jarred my insides.
I looked up sheepishly and saw Philip & Gray standing on the front porch, Philip with his eyes wide and his mouth open in disbelief. Uh-oh. For a second I wondered if he’d be pissed off at me, but I knew he wouldn’t be…he’s incredibly easy-going and rarely gets mad at anyone, especially me (but who could get mad at ME anyway? ROFL). I shifted gears and pulled up beside the porch so we could inspect the damage. When I got out, Philip was already at the back of the car, saying,
“Oh great. All we need is another dent in the car.” (someone anonymously put a small dent in our driver-side door last year.) He was smiling, so I knew he wasn’t really mad. He’s so sweet. 
I was just sick when I saw the dent in the back of the car…along with lots of paint scraping there and also on the bumper. I’d hit the front license plate holder on the truck, and knocked it completely off. So I damaged the truck, too, although that plate holder so selfishly giving its life actually kept the bumper itself from being damaged.
Here’s the car:
And the truck:
Philip just kind of laughed and made fun of me for not paying attention. He joked that maybe he shouldn’t let me drive anymore, etc. But I could tell he was upset about the damage, though - or rather the cost it’s going to incur to have it repaired. I have no idea why I didn’t remember it was back there, being that it ALWAYS is parked behind the car. My mind was somewhere else, I guess, although I can’t remember what I was doing/thinking at the time. There’ve been two or three other occasions where I’ve backed up and at the last second, remembered the truck, but I’ve always remembered just in time to NOT hit it. The most memorable time was the day I went into labor with Grayson. I was actually IN labor at the time, I just didn’t realize it yet. I was driving, backing out, and Philip started kicking the floor and sputtering, “Cam! Cam! The truck!!!”, and I stopped just in time. At least that day, I could blame it on hormones and all the temporary insanity of pregnancy. Same as my friend Jeepy was able to do when she backed into her husband’s truck earlier in her pregnancy.
Last night, I was just plain stupid. I have no excuse except that I was being a total airhead. Our deductible is $500, which for some people is not a big deal, but to us, it’s a LOT. We pay everything in cash, which I’m proud of, but when things like this come up, it’s very hard to come up with the money. We technically have it, but it’s just that it’s needed for so many other things right now! *sigh* Like our new roof, which will have to be postponed (for the time being), as well as my Christmas. I told Philip getting the car fixed is going to be my Christmas present. He disagrees, but I told him anything he gets me, will be returned, and I’ll do it, too. :p
So much for getting ahead in life…it’s always one step forward, two steps back for us!
Ah, but I have to end on a positive note. Kind of like “the Island” on Lost…balance it out. Philip is amazing. As I said, I could see that he was upset & disappointed over the damage. But he said, “I’m not mad, okay? I want you to know that.” Wow, he’s as sweet to me now as he was the day we got married nearly eight years ago. I can’t say I’d be as nice to him if the roles had been reversed. In fact, I can say without doubt that I’d have been all over him if he’d done the same! But he’d never even think of being mad…he’s the best husband there ever was. That’s something to be happy about!
Share on Facebook
Comments (10)
10.25.2005 | 8:29 pm | Uncategorized, Gray Matters
It doesn’t get any better than this. This is giddy, over-the-top happiness at its best! I love you, Grayster!
(anyone wonder what I look like when I get up in the mornings? Yeah…that’s it. If the shot hadn’t turned out so perfect otherwise, NO ONE would be seeing this picture. LOL)
Share on Facebook
Comments (6)
10.25.2005 | 11:56 am | Uncategorized
“But not me…I’m to smart for those games.”
I was reading this guy’s blog this morning and had to chuckle at the irony of his shameful usage of the English language.
I refrained from posting a comment that said,
“Yes, your just to smart!”
(and yes, I made both of those errors on purpose. The sad thing is, way too many people won’t have a clue anything’s even wrong.)
Share on Facebook
Comments (8)
10.24.2005 | 3:03 pm | Ranting
does Target advertise clothes on sale, but then not have anything in stock in size 3T ?
Grrrr!
Share on Facebook
Comments (7)
10.22.2005 | 8:42 pm | Uncategorized, Infertility/Miscarriage
Today is a special day in my memory. Back in 2002 on this day, I was given word that I would “have a child next year”. I know most people think that’s crazy or they just don’t believe it. I respect that, but it doesn’t stop me from believing it or talking about it. I know, & God knows, and that’s all that matters.
I was thinking back on all of it today, and I couldn’t hold back the tears, thinking how blessed I was to have received that kind of miracle. I almost can’t believe it myself, that the God of the universe not only heard my prayers and cared about the hole in my heart, but also that he chose to reach down and take away what was wrong with me and give me the child that I was told I couldn’t have. From that day on, I believed that promise and never looked back. I just knew in my heart it was going to happen. I believed it, no matter what the doctor and the surgeon had told me to the contrary. I believed it, no matter how many times people asked me why I was not going forward with the treatments my doctors told me I had to have, IF I wanted any chance of ever conceiving.
I just never felt right about taking the treatments. I felt (and now I know) that God had a specific plan to heal me & give me a child by his hand. I’m so glad I was brave enough to take that first step out of my comfort zone and toward him, even when it seemed crazy to do so. Even when people - even my Christian friends & family - got all quiet and didn’t know what to say when I told them I was waiting for God to change things. To have simple child-like faith, and to believe for healing and miracles…well, it’s just not the Southern Baptist thing to do. In the Southern Baptists’ (and many other conservative Christian denominations’) mindset, IF you even ask for anything at all, you must do it meekly, always preclude it with an obligatory “If it’s your will…”, and then — most importantly — don’t have any real hope that it just might happen. God is way too busy doing important “God” stuff than to care about your personal anguish or your selfish request.
What a sad thing that many Christians have gotten away from the simple truth of what Jesus taught (in MANY ways actually, not just this issue). But when I read the stories of Jesus when he was on earth, it’s so clear that he LIVED for helping regular, everyday people who were willing to believe that he just might care about their needs…and yes, even about their desires. The Jesus I know and love cares deeply about the longings of his followers’ hearts, and he only asks that we believe not only that he CAN do whatever we ask, but that he actually WANTS to. He put that truth in my heart three years ago, and for the first time in my life, I got it. I had never doubted that he could help me. I’d just never been able to believe, due to the erroneous teaching of the church, that he actually WOULD help ME. If only I could get past the religious red tape that told me to not expect to get what I prayed for. (Oh, I should let it be known that I’m not one of the TBN-style Christians who go too far on the other end of the issue…they teach that God is a genie at our beck and call who should act anytime we ask for something — specifically large sums of money or a luxury car or home.)
Thank God (literally) I was able to leave the aforementioned religious red tape behind. I broke from the teachings I’d grown up with, and I took a step of faith and simply believed my prayers would be answered. Not long after is when I got the bold promise that a child would be born to me the next year. I got the word twice within a week’s time, which blew me away. At that point, I changed my daily prayers from just asking for a baby, to actually praying and thanking him for the child that I knew was to come. And it happened exactly as promised. Right on time, not a minute too soon. The last month of the next year, my little miracle arrived, perfect in every way (well…he could’ve slept longer than 2 hours at a time, but that doesn’t matter now! LOL)!
I thank God for all this every day, but today it’s been more than usual on my mind. I think I’ll always be amazed when I remember back to all that happened between me & God that summer/fall of 2002. I think he wants me to write about it. A book…that scares me! It would be something to not only testify what he did for me, but also - and maybe more importantly - something to change the thinking of conservative Christians on this issue. I shouldn’t have gotten the uncomfortable silences back then, when I told them what I was doing (expecting a miracle). I shouldn’t still be getting the “yeah…right” looks whenever I share with them what happened to me regarding my infertility. To me, when someone who knows even a part of my experience with infertility, later asks me casually when I’m going to have another baby…it’s like a slap in my face. I want to scream at them, “Don’t you believe what happened? Don’t you know this child was a miracle? I can’t just pop out another baby anytime I feel like one child isn’t enough.”
If I do have another child (which at this time, I don’t think I even want to do), it will be with God’s help once again, because I know…I KNOW with everything in me, that Grayson did NOT happen by coincidence. It frustrates me to no end that my fellow Christians, who know my story or even part of it, cant –or won’t– believe it. If I write it all out…all the amazing details of my journey to motherhood, maybe I can change those calloused hearts who refuse to believe in God’s amazing grace (I mean that literally…not the song LOL). I really feel like this is a main purpose in my life. Scary…
I hope none of said friends read this, either…oops. Thankfully, I don’t think any of them do.
Playlist: Ball & Chain - Social D
Well I sit and I pray
In my broken down Chevrolet
While I’m singin’ to myself
There’s got to be another way
Take away, take away
Take away this ball and chain
Share on Facebook
Comments (10)
10.20.2005 | 9:53 pm | Daily Life, Gray Matters
After a couple of years of meager once-yearly haircuts & highlights (due to our financial situation), I’m finally livin’ large. When I went in to get my yearly cut & highlight back in June, my stylist told me she was looking for a good professional designer to promote her launching of her own salon. I told her, what luck. I just happen to know one. :p
After the post-Dennis crap settled down, she & Philip met, she loved his portfolio, and he’s now her designer. She told him she’d happily trade some of his hourly rate for me to come in as often as I like and have a cut & highlight or whatever I want! WOO-HOO! I can finally take care of my hair again! It’s amazing what keeping yourself up often will do for your outlook on life. No more going around with an eternal ponytail. LOL. So, I just went in to see her for my first bartered visit, and I now have fresh highlights and a very cool new cut. Not too too different from before, but I did tell her I wanted those nifty side-swept bangs that all the hip chicks are wearing lately. I usually recoil at the mention of bangs–I haven’t had bangs since I grew out my horrible 80s bangs back in 1990, so it was a scary concept, but the times they are a’changin’, so I did it! I love this cut!
Here ’tis:
(with weird color since Philip thought he didn’t need a flash :p )
Side-ish view:
And here came my little critter, pointing out my belly button and saying “woo-WOO!” (his version of his Daddy’s wolf-whistle anytime I have a bit of skin showing…LOL…kinda) :
I thought I’d post that one because it showed the top really well since I was looking down at Gray.
I’m so happy with this cut and she also did really well on the highlights. Usually I have to get the cheapie version where they just highlight the very top only, but she did lots more this time. I’m so glad she needed a lot of work done! Philip’s doing a really good job on the salon’s website, too. She & her partner love it, so that’s a good sign for my hair’s future. LOL.
Speaking of hair. Nothing grosses me out more than loose hairs, especially in the shower. I can’t even begin to describe how bad my phobia is. Lets just say Philip has to do “hair patrol” each time I need to get in the shower or tub. Well today I’m doing some more clearing out stuff and was in the dining room. Grayson came in, apparently having just been in the bathroom because he was carrying the drain cover for the bathtub. He held it out to me and said “Huuh.” I thought he was wanting to know what it was, so I told him is was a “stopper”. He looked at it very serious-like, and said, “Huuh.” I said, “No, it’s a stopper, baby.” He remained serious, held it out further, pointed at it, and said, “Huuh.” I decided to take a closer look, and saw that he was pointing out a HAIR that was on the stopper (he was saying “hair” all that time)! ***faint!**** It was nasty! I gagged and freaked out and called for Philip to come help immediately! ROFL! Apparently I’ve passed on a bit of my hair anxiety to Grayson, because he was really serious about letting me know it was on there! Haha…
Hey, what’s up with LOST not being on for THREE weeks????? Does anyone know why? I’m so mad! I’ve already been missing Arrested Development for the past two weeks (and will for the next two) because of the stupid world series. Or playoffs, of whatever the crap they’re doing (I hate baseball, so I have no clue what’s going on!)! I want my AD back! And now I want my LOST back, too! Grrrr….
Well, it’s time for bed. I’ve got to get up early to go to my long-overdue dentist appointment. I know Kelly is thrilled and proud of herself for scaring me into going. I’m not having the acute pain anymore, but my jaw & neck & behind my ear on that side is constantly aching. I’m not sure if it’s related, but I know it needs to be checked out. We’ll see what the Dr. says tomorrow. I think dental surgery is in my very near future.
Playlist: “When the Angels Sing” - Social D…again.
Share on Facebook
Comments (9)
10.19.2005 | 8:28 pm | Daily Life, Gray Matters, Breastfeeding
Share on Facebook
Enter your password to view comments
10.16.2005 | 6:26 pm | Daily Life, Gray Matters
Someone help me. My computer’s being held hostage. Late last week Philip got handed a mega-project from the USACE, and he’s been working day & night (literally — last night he turned in at 2:30am) to make the deadline, which is in a couple of hours. I can only get online when he’s eating, showering, or um…pooping. LOL!
I had so much I needed to do around the house this weekend, but unfortunately I’m not getting very much done with a 22-month old who constantly says,
“Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
Mama
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
DaDoo
Mama
Mama
Mama…”
I’m sure you get the picture. When he’s not doing that, he’s crawling at my feet licking my toenails, which he’s been fascinated by ever since I changed my polish color. That’s when he’s not wrecking the house, of course. I haven’t had time to work out, to clean, or even to talk on the phone…and BTW, Saturday afternoon phone buddy, I missed clucking with you. 
I’m really not truly complaining, though (just venting some stress), since not only is this money…it’s reallllly good money. Since it’s a weekend and technically overtime, Philip’s upcharging his hourly rate to $75. Hello, new roof! Take that, Allstate! It looks like we’re gonna get a whole new roof after all (um, yeah, they only gave us a settlement for half a roof, since all our damage was on one side only)! Imagine that; roofing the entire roof at once!
Well I hear Philip burping in the kitchen so that means he’s done eating and I’m about to get the boot. Plus I hear “Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama, Mama…” behind me. *sigh* I do love him immensely, but I wish he’d stop the broken record routine! :p
I feel a little better now that I’ve told the world about it. Ha.
Share on Facebook
Comments (5)
10.10.2005 | 9:02 pm | Uncategorized, Daily Life, Gray Matters
Today Gray is 22 months old. *sigh* Every month I swear is my favorite age with him. But this is a particularly fun age, and I’m loving every minute of it. He’s so alive and full of energy and joy. The kind of days we have now are exactly what I dreamed of when I prayed for a child. I keep thinking it can’t get any better, but it still does. I just wish I’d have known how sucky it was to have a newborn beforehand, so I’d have been better prepared. LOL! I’d been under the mistaken impression that infants were fun, too, and I had a rude awakening. My SIL Jonna feels the same about babies, and she used to tell me over and over back then, if I could buck up and bear through the first six grueling months, it would get dramatically better. She was definitely right. I can’t help but feel sorry for her now (her third baby just turned 2 months, and she’s not enjoying it any more this time around. Oh well, only 4 more months to go! LOL).
So today was our very first gymnastics class at PJC. It’s for ages 20 mos thru 3 years, and there are four others in his class – all girls. Gray was in heaven. I was telling Kelly last night that I was nervous because I hate meeting other women, since I’m always the misfit. She said just be outgoing and talk to them anyway, even if they’re clique-y. Well I didn’t even have to worry about it – they were all nice and friendly to me first (although one of them wasn’t a mommy, but a daddy!). I was instantly comfortable, and so was Gray.
I think Gray had fun. He wasn’t wild about some parts, like stretching (required too much sitting still!) and doing a flip over the parallel bar. But he really seemed to like most of it, especially the balance beams and the tumble track. He also learned to raise both hands and say “ta-DAH!” when he jumps off the beam or the tumble track! Oh so adorable! I’m looking forward to the next class.
Afterwards, I decided to stop by Target since we were nearby – what with gas being so outrageously expensive right now (thanks environmentalists), we try to make every trip into town count. We’d just driven off the campus and onto 12th, and were stopped at a red light. Gray started climbing out of his car seat, and I realized that I HADN’T BUCKLED HIM IN! Omigosh…panic hit! I’m in bustling traffic with my kid climbing out of his carseat. I’ve never forgotten to buckle him in, but I guess I got distracted somehow when I put him in after class, and never thought about it again. I said to him in my most serious & stern voice, “Grayson, SIT. DOWN. NOW.” He did what I said and sat back into the seat, and when the light turned green, I made an immediate turn down a side street and into the parking lot of the nearest place, which just happened to be a funeral home. I got out to buckle him in and he said “Potty, potty!”, which is when I remembered that I’d not taken him to the potty before we left the gym. Batting a thousand, I was! I had his potty seat with me so I just took him out (not that hard, since he wasn’t buckled in!), undressed his little booty, and sat him on his seat. Amazingly, even though it had been two hours since we’d left the house and since he’d last visited the potty, he had held it! He was completely dry. We’re at 99% success the past week, BTW…I think we’ve pretty much got it down. He did a big ole’ pee in the potty, and I dumped it out in the parking lot (is that okay? Oh well!). Got him dressed and this time was sure to strap that boy in!
We went to Target and tried on the board shoes that I so badly want to get him for this winter. I was hoping they’d be on sale this week because in my book, $14 is outrageous for a baby’s shoe. They weren’t on sale…boohoo…but I expect they will be soon, so I know I’ll eventually get them. I just wanted to try them on while I had him with me, so I know what size he needs when they do go on sale. I was floored when he didn’t fit the 8, but he did fit the 8 1/2. His feet are HUGE. I guess he gets it from both of us; I wear a 9 and Philip wears 11’s. Poor kid.
When we got home he came in the house and immediately struck a pose to show Da-doo his “ta-DAH!” trick.
My thoughts today are full of questions, like why do people around here drive so freaking slow? Like, way below the speed limit? And in the left-hand lane? As well as the right? And usually, right beside each other, so that way NO ONE is able get through?
And has there ever been a punk band that outright rocks as exquisitely as Social Distortion does?
Does every town have a 70-year-old lady who has the aged-smoker emaciated look, wears garish makeup, teases her oh-so-natural golden-blonde hair, and wears MATCHING Bongo jeans & BONGO denim jacket circa 16 years ago, complete with high heeled pumps?
It’s been an interesting day in my neck of the woods.
Playlist: “Winners & Losers” - Social D
Share on Facebook
Comments (9)
« Previous Entries
Step away from the Tootsie Rolls!