Resolutions

Ahhh, it is New Year's Eve. Time for a few resolutions. I only have one.... I resolve to be a grown up in 2008. What does that mean? I will think about what I eat. I will think about when I move. I will think about what I do with my money. I will think about how I treat others. I will work on accepting Alec as he is... all in all, I will be a grown up! I can do this =-) HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008.

Santa Baby...

Kassie the pekingese dressed up for Christmas Day! She was Mrs. Claus. My sweet 8 year old one-eyed blind pekingese. Kassie follows me around, sleeps with me, and is my angel. What a loving little angel! =-)

Saturday!

This week off is already gone. Boo hoo! I have absolutely loved getting to sleep forever in the morning. I think I am still a teenager at heart. (Clearly not at body, but at heart.) Things are moving right along here. The boys are enjoying their games and new goodies from Christmas. In typical Alec style, he has already spend most of his Christmas $$$.

The funniest thing happened though. I bought "Memory Mixer" from QVC a couple of years ago. It is a digital scrapbooking program. On Thursday morning when Mike went to his surgery I decided to install it and play with it. OK, love it. I can't imagine becomming a full digital scrapbooker... but I do see visions of doing both. In fact, I think I can stay current much easier. Seems crazy. But, it is what it is I guess. I got some of my first pages done at Costco (12x12 page only $3 to print) and love them. Weird.

Not sure what is happening here this afteroon... maybe some more digi scrappin! LOL

Whew, we survived!

I love Christmas! I love the lights, the sounds, the smells. Christmas Eve is Mike's birthday though, so first things first.

He bought a new desk system for his office last weekend. He couldn't get his file drawer open and closed without tools, not a good thing. So, he has been looking at Ikea, and finally got something. He spent Saturday and Sunday putting it together and dragging the other stuff (with Alec's help) out of his office. Then on his birthday, he wanted to go to work! What a funny boy! The good news is that he got all of his stuff back in, and organized. He is thrilled with his new setup, and not having to go to the floor for a drawer.

He did get home in the late afternoon. We had planned on having New York steaks after our French Onion Soup. But, the soup was so yummy and so filling, we put off the steaks for a couple of days. I fry up 3 large onions in butter... maybe half a stick. I add some garlic cloves in too, maybe 2 or 3...depending on my mood. Then I put two heaping table spoons of flour and fry up some more, looking for some brown. Then I add 2 cans of beef broth and about a cup of good red wine (whatever we are drinking at the time). After it starts to thicken up some we scoop it into bowls for baking. I put two slices of sourdough baguette and two slices of swiss cheese on the top, broil until brown.... and YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY. So, there you have it!

After we cleaned up, we put some goodies out and opened our gifts. The boys seemed happy with a few gifts from gramma and granpa Donovan, some cash from gramma and granpa Strickland, and a gift card each from Tabitha & her new hubby Mark. They each got a few gifts from us too. I was happy with a body pillow from Casey, fuzzy socks and a big punch from Alec (OK I told him which one to buy), and some nice base makeup from Mike (Jane Iredale). Did I mention we had goodies?

It was pretty late when we started, and finished our gifts, so off to sleep! The boys get stocking stuffers from Santa in the morning... but they are too old to think that is worth waking up really early. So, about 10am they were both up checking their stockings. We enjoyed a few hours of peace and quiet. Then it was time to get to work! For Christmas dinner we had Danielle & Bill (our neighbors from the coast) and Danielle's sister Wanda over for dinner. We had lots of yummy cheese and crackers for appetizers. Then for dinner we had roasted red potatoes, veggies, and Cornish game hens with a raspberry red wine sauce. It was very good. Casey just would not eat the hen. He really could be a vegetarian some days. If he sees it raw, chances are pretty good he will not eat it! Dinner, complete with good wine, was followed by Mike's famous Banana's Foster. OMG it was wonderful! And of course, he lit it on fire for us too!

Wednesday morning was Mike's follow up to his cortisone shots. The good news is that he is not currently a good candidate for surgery. Yahoo! There are other procedures that they will try first. In the past the shots have worked, but not this time. So, today we went for another series of shots with both cortisone and numbing medication. Hopefully this will offer some relief. But, typical Donovan style, it can't be the simple answer. Figures, huh?

I am enjoying the week off from the pressures of school, well Alec school. I love sleeping in (well except for today when we were on the roads at 5:55 am). And, I am looking forward to another week of this.

We don't know what we are doing for New Year's Eve yet. But, I am sure something good will come up before Monday. Happy Kwanzaa to you. L

Christmas is coming! Ready or not...

I can not believe that tomorrow is Christmas Eve. But first in our house, tomorrow is Mike's birthday. I have his present wrapped, but nothing wrapped for Christmas. I guess I should be doing that instead of blogging. But, I did clean the house today (usually my Monday job) so that I wouldn't have to do it tomorrow. It feels good to be done.

Our tree looks a little sparse this year, and even with a few wrapped presents I don't think it is going to look too much better! LOL Mike keeps calling it the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. It doesn't really, but in comparison to OUR usual tree... maybe it does. It is only about 6 feet tall. Very pretty. Maybe I will take a photo before I take it down. It is really going to be a more simple Christmas. Too darn many medical bills this fall. Fortunately the boys get it. Well, Casey gets it for sure. I am not always sure about Alec, but I think he understands. We got the smaller tree because I knew that Mike would lift it onto the car top, bad back and all. And, of course, he did! Live trees are pretty cheap in Oregon. In fact Oregon is the number one Christmas Tree supplier in the nation.

Alec helped get it set up and we all decorated together. Surprisingly Kassie has not walked into it yet. In general I think she knows the layout of the house now. So, my blind in her one eye pekingese is getting around pretty darn well! Her hearing is getting better by the minute. I am not sure I love that, but it is what it is! She knows what is going on all of the time! She can hear someone getting food from a mile away! And, when I get up to go upstairs, she goes with me. She is a mama's girl alright.

We will be alone tomorrow night, and Bill & Danielle will come on Christmas day for Christmas dinner. Danielle's sister Wanda is here from New Jersey too. I plan to make Cornish Game Hens. Hope they are yummy! I think it will be fun! Oh, and New York steaks for Mike's birthday tomorrow night. YUM. Our program seems to be that Dec 24th is Mike's birthday until after dinner... then it is Christmas Eve. So we will do our usual thing and open our presents Christmas Eve after dinner.

It is going to be a peaceful Christmas here in Oregon, and probably wet too. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Holiday Prayer...

Heavenly Father, Help us remember that the jerk who cut us off in traffic last night is a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children.

Help us to remember that the pierced, tattooed, disinterested young man who can't make change correctly is a worried 19-year-old college student, balancing his apprehension over final exams with his fear of not getting his student loans for next semester.

Remind us, Lord, that the scary looking bum, begging for money in the same spot every day (who really ought to get a job!) is a slave to addictions that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares .

Help us to remember that the old couple walking annoyingly slow through the store aisles and blocking our shopping progress are savoring this moment, knowing that, based on the biopsy report she got back last week, this will be the last Christmas season that they go shopping together .

Heavenly Father, remind us each day that, of a ll the gifts you give us, the greatest gift is love. It is not enough to share that love with those we hold dear. Open our hearts not to just those who are close to us, but to all humanity. Let us be slow to judge and quick to forgive, show patience, empathy and love.

Crusin'

I am happy to report that my official Close To My Heart report shows that I have now earned the cruise to the Mediterranean next fall! I am so excited. I really pressured Mike in the beginning to beg borrow and steal to get the week off to go. So, he is taking 3 personal days, all he will have by then, and is doing an educational project for the other 2 days off in October. I *know* how guilty he feels about traveling in the middle of the school year. But, I pressured him hard to go on this once in a lifetime cruise. We are going to take the kids. I know it will still be expensive, adding two people to the free cruise. But, I am excited and ready for it!

We will have a mini suite with a balcony. I love Close To My Heart! It wasn't easy to earn this, but it was worth it! This is the first time I earned 2000 of my points for team sales. I am thrilled! It is amazing what can be done when you set a goal, post it, and work toward it! This will be my fourth cruise with CTMH. Maybe I will take next year off? I don't know, but I do know this.... I am ready for it to be October of 2008. Spain, Italy, France.... here we come!

Christmas Cards

LOL Oh brother, it is the 19th and I still don't have all of my cards out! But, I will get them done by the end of the week. I am glad the kids are in school through Friday. Here is the cute picture I am including for relatives far far away!

Those boys sure are growing into handsome young men! Alec is 13 and Casey is 11. How did that happen? Love you boys!

Surf Pines looks like a war zone!

So, out at the coast for a turn and burn on Saturday night, and WOW Surf Pines (our old neighborhood) looks like a bomb hit. I can not believe the devistation to all of the trees, and roofs too! We did run into (not literally!) the local herd of elk, over 30, that live in the area. They are so beautiful up close. This pic was in the neighbor across the street's from our old house yard.

Alec enjoyed his evening with his girl friend. I enjoyed my evening with my friends. It was all good... well, except for Mike's back! Even the drive home was pretty uneventful, except for the fog over the mountain pass. It is about 75 miles each way from our new house to our old neighborhood!

Alec is home again today. He went to school and then called after first period. Will he ever make it through the day again? Oy!

Vroom vroom vroom....

Driving a ton this week! Everywhere. On Wednesday I picked up Danielle at the airport after her week in Anchorage. We went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. YUM. I had the appetizer thai lettuce wraps.... I just absolutely love them. And, I bet you can guess what for dessert... cheesecake.... chocolate peanut butter cheesecake to be exact! After a few minutes in the mall I dropped her off at her son's house and came home..... that was many hours in the car!

On Thursday Mike had an appointment to get a cortisone shot in his back. It went out last weekend, and was the worst it has been in a lonnnnng time. So, I drove him over to the East side of Portland for his 2pm appointment. We got home at about 6pm, after a couple of hours in traffic. BOO TRAFFIC! I jumped on line and ordered Papa John's pizza (my fav!) and then flew out to the Target Pharmacy. He was soooo loopy, and still sore. Poor guy. The doc ended up giving him three shots this time.

Today I spent most of the day driving to and from schools.....Casey, Alec, Alec, Casey, Alec.... poor Alec fell off a chair today in Geometry and hit his head. Fortunately it was mostly Alec drama, but that can be a little scarey!

Tomorrow we are headed to the coast for dinner. YUM. I love it when Danielle cooks. She is like a rock star in the kitchen. I think she is the best cook I have ever known. Yahoo for us. Alec has invited his girl friend Marissa to join us. Hopefully he will have a good night. =-)

I am glad it is Friday. I look forward to sleeping in.... I still have not done our family cards. I want to get a picture of the boys. I was thinking tonight, but maybe tomorrow instead.

By the way, the seat warmer in my car is the BEST extra I ever got. It feels soooo good after a few hours in traffic (ok, even after a few minutes in traffic). I just love it!

I Miss My Friend....

Hard to believe that mom died 20 years ago today. Wow, I miss her so much. She wasn't there when I got engaged (although she seemed to know Mike was 'the one' wayyyy before I did). She wasn't there for our wedding, Alec or Casey's birth. She wasn't there when we decided Mike would get his admin certificate so that I could stay home. She wasn't there when I stayed home.... yet she made all of those decisions with me. Her influence, and personality, shows up in me every day of my life. I look like her, act like her, miss her terribly. I know that God (and my dad) needed her more than I did.... I am able to think like her, without her input. I guess the message was follow your heart, and don't worry about how others react to that. Times I have tried to not listen to my gut, I get burned. So, now I make every effort to follow my heart.

I know that my mother impacted me in so many ways. I am about 100% sure I would not have wanted to be a stay at home mom if she had not passed. I realized how important my 22 years with her were... and how short they were. I remember her listening to me through my teens and through college--yikes, that must have been hard! She was my best friend when she died. I just couldn't believe it. But, I had a life to live. It has only been in the past few years that I even THINK about Christmas before December 12th. It must be something inside that just felt until after the anniversary of her death, it couldn't be Christmas. So many hard Christmas times. When Alec was born I started forcing myself, but finally it comes naturally to actually get ready for Christmas.

I no longer remember the sound of her voice. I no longer remember the taste of her cooking. But, I do remember that she loved me. I do remember that she was always my number one cheerleader and biggest supporter. And, I always remember that she knew (from experience) that it was OK to march to the beat of your own drum. As the youngest of 12 from a small town in Virginia, it was hard to believe that she was the one that left! She moved to Washington DC to go to GW for college.... her father objected so she just had them send him the bill. He paid. She went to Chicago to work for the airlines.... then she became a club director in Japan during the Occupation of Japan. That is where my parents met, and were married, in 1949.

I am an only child, I guess I was a gift. They were married 16 years before I was born, I was appreciated. My mother was a strong woman. It must have been hard in those days to not have a small child. Now it is common to be forty something and have a baby, but not then. I think I did have a different upbringing because of that. But I learned honesty, and integrity, and love from both of my parents.

One thing is for sure though... on December 12th I remember the events of that day in 1987... my first year of teaching.... a million years ago.... and truly, truly, I miss my friend.....

Hot chocolate

Doesn't matter what you call it, cocoa, hot cocoa, hot chocolate, choc-o-latte... it is YUMMY on a cold day. We started today meeting with Alec's principal, counselor, and math teacher. I think they felt good about the meeting. Overall, I think we re-confirmed that he needs a lot of support to get the work done. He understands the work, but really struggles with the processes.

I have really been thinking about something Susan said recently. She compared me to her mother, who is an Alzheimer's caregiver. I am seeing my role with Alec as a care giver as well as parent. I think this is helping me to handle my own feelings about all of this better. I don't know why it can be so hard, but is sure is.... maybe 2008 will be the year I will take it less personally when he is upset with me. I know he doesn't mean to act difficult, and I need to keep this in mind.

Later today I got a little work done. So hard some days... just waiting for the call from Alec....

But the best part was after school, Casey and I got to sit and enjoy our hot cocoa together! Yum... fireplace is on (gotta love gas)... dog is barking (don't love her gas)... sitting quitely NOT and sipping our cocoa... LOL I love my crazy tragic, sometimes almost magic, awful beautiful life!

Lost or stolen?

Yesterday I came home, and my order was not on my doorstep! Of course, when you are expecting goodies to touch, that is very disappointing. I thought, OK weird, but maybe all of the flooding has made a difference here...... I logged on to discover that it was delivered at 1pm. OK, so where is my order? I asked my family, no. I checked with my neighbors, no. No one had seen my box o' goodies! So, I email Sheena.

At 7:30 am UPS calls me. (Great job Sheena!) No, no one else in my family has it. No, my neighbors don't have it. Yes, I get a lot of orders and it has never been a problem. OK they will research and get back to me, goodbye.

So, I have a thought, I had a box out for my USPS woman to pick up. Maybe she wanted my CTMH stuff too? Na... but, who else??? I did mention that to the UPS woman, who thought it could happen, but seemed doubtful...

Fast forward to 2:30 PM today. Knock, knock, knock. I open the door to see my box. I leaned out the door and said, "ah ha, so you stole my box" to my POSTAL CARRIER! What??? She is clueless and just thinks she is delivering a box with my address on it! LOL How funny is that! She walked back up to the door, apologized, giggled, and hugged me. Yep, she took the box without even looking at it. Brought it into the PO and then brought it back today. Clueless that she had taken my UPS delivery! If I hadn't been home I might have never known that it was indeed my postal carrier. I told her, "I know you knew there was good stuff in there, your conscience just got the best of you!" LOL

I just thought I would share my Christmas season story! Hope your USPS carrier doesn't try to steal any of your boxes!!!

Seaside

Well, we were able to talk to some friends out on the coast within the last day. They are now starting day 4 without any power or telephone. They didn't even have cell reception for the first day and a half. Then they were able to get calls, but not call out. Now, finally, just this afternoon, they have cell reception back.... not that it is ever great out there.

I understand that it looks like a war zone. Trees down everywhere, roofs torn up, signs blown over. I am sooo glad I am not out there, I feel AWFUL for those who are... tonight it is supposed to be down below freezing.... brrrr. Once when we lived at the coast (7 years) we went without power for about 23 hours. That was awful! I can not imagine 4 days or more.... there doesn't appear to be an end in sight. Residental is last on the line to get power and phone service back. I guess it is good that they have gas, at least. My heartfelt sympathy and prayers go out to all of those living through this.

Tis The Season

Wow, it is hard to believe that the kids have only 2 1/2 weeks of school left before winter break. This year is flying by in so many ways. I am feeling behind, as always! I am going to try to make my Christmas Cards today, we'll see. That would be huge. I also need to finish (ok start) shopping for our 'adopt a family.' Well, I do have one gift, but one is not enough. I don't love shopping for clothes, but that's OK, at least I don't have to try anything on! LOL

The hope for my day is that Alec makes it through the school day without having to call home. We realized last night that it has been over a month since that happened. Thank God I am able to be at home during the day so that I can be at his becon call.

I heard from CKC. Currently I got waitlisted for Portland (which I expected) and Phoenix (which I didn't expect). I did get the Seattle show in November though, so that is good. I did really enjoy that show last month. It is busy, so the time goes very fast!

Dirty Computer Monitor?

Clean it here..... http://home.versateladsl.be/bavertel/fun/swf_ani/monitor_cleaner.swf

Love them!

My dogs live here, they're here to stay.
you don't like pets, be on your way.
they share my home, my food, my space
this is their home, this is their place.
You will find dog hair on the floor,
they will alert you're at the door.
they may request a little pat,
a simple 'no' will settle that.
It gripes me when I hear you say
'just how is it you live this way?
they smell, they shed, they're in the way..'
WHO ASKED YOU? is all I can say..
They love me more than anyone,
my voice is like the rising sun,
they merely have to hear me say
'C'mon , time to go and play'
then tails wag and faces grin,
they bounce and hop and make a din.
They never say 'no time for you',
they're always there, to GO and DO.
and if I'm sad? They're by my side
and if I'm mad? they circle wide
and if I laugh, they laugh with me
they understand, they always see.
so once again, I say to you
come visit me, but know this too..
My dogs live here, they're here to stay.
you don't like pets, be on your way.
they share my home, my food, my space
this is their home, this is their place..
------------ Author Unknown

Elf Yourself!

Our family: http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9627525158 Need I say more? LOL

Parenting

Why is parenting sooooo hard? I so badly want to trust and believe Alec. He is 13 and in 8th grade, I 'should' be able to, right? But, over and over again we do not get ANY information from him. This Asperger's thing is making me nuts! He is honest, with his belief shared, and fun. He is indeed a wonderful child. Yet, he is like a small child who can not get the information from school to home. I just wish I knew what to do. We try things over and over and over and over again.... I guess I just wanted to get this out. Sign this frustrated...

Thanksgiving was to give thanks for! =-)

We had a wonderful Turkey Day out at the beach with Bill and Danielle. They also had their neighbors (and our old neighbors) Dennis, Jeff and his daughter Allison (Karma had to waitress). Bill & Danielle's youngest son Mark and his family were there too. The cutest award of the day goes to all of the kids running toward the front yard.. Alec in the lead, with Casey, Allison(10), Peyton (9) and Parker (6) to follow... followed by Aspen (our shepherd). It was sooo cute! I wish I could have gotten my camera fast enough. But kids and a dog having fun. Wonderful.

The food was nothing short of spectacular, as was the wine. Zerba might be my new favorite red wine. YUM. Jeff owns the local Wine Haus. He knows well what to pair with what and what we all like! It is good to have friends... of course, I might still be happy with wine in a box if it weren't for him, and that would be good on my b
budget. Hehehehehehehe.

We ate turkey & ham (which I brought), stuffing, wild rice, potatoes, cranberry sauce, rolls, and three yummy pies..... all of which was homemade (oh except my ham! LOL). Spirited pumpkin, summer berry, and chocolate pecan pie.... OH MY! Awesome.

Friday I made a turkey and we had turkey, stuffing and potatoes again. I had to have lots of leftovers you know... ok the truth is my turkey didn't fit in the freezer so I had to cook it! LOL

I can't believe it is now the holiday season. My shopping for Alec is done. All of the out of town peoples gifts are wrapped and ready to mail. Yahoo! I have one more gift to buy for Casey. I still have one more gift to buy for Mike. I am going to be DONE this week! Wahoo. Mike also got the lights up outside on Friday (while I was shopping). So, on to the next thing.... the inside of the house. It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas.... are you ready? I am getting there!

Blessings to you...

O God, when I have food, help me to remember the hungry; when I have work, help me to remember the jobless; when I have a home, help me to remember those who have no home at all; when I am without pain, help me to remember those who suffer, and remembering, help me to destroy my complacency; bestir my compassion, and be concerned enough to help; by word and deed, those who cry out for what we take for granted. -Samuel F. Pugh

Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers...

If you have listened to country music for long you remember this song. Thanksgiving week got me thinking about all of the things I am thankful for..... I found myself humming this song. I won't go into some of my personal unanswered prayers, but it is true... sometimes I do thank God for not answering them.... Here are a few things I am thankful for..... I am sure (like the CMA's) I will miss some important ones..... but some of things I am thankful to God for, not necessarily in order of importance, include:

1. My darling husband (usually the D in DH stands for darling)
2. My two very different and very dramatic boys.
3. Our pets, who remind me of unconditional love every day.
4. My DH's job, which allows me to do my job with CTMH. =-)
5. A new house, that doesn't need fixing up constantly! Wahoo... and a gardener, if only for the front yard! LOL
6. Good friends.
7. Friends who understand me =-) and love me anyway
8. Thanksgiving with the Wade's
9. A DH who is getting into cooking!

Bacon makes everything better....

Saw that on AOL this morning. I do like bacon, overcooked bacon. But I am not sure it makes everything better. Of course it does make breakfast better! Chocolate, now that might just make everything better! LOL

Ahhh what a yesterday.... Denise came in from the beach for lunch. We went to Applebees. We talked about some serious stuff. It was good though. I feel like I have known Denise forever, but it turns out it is only 3 years. WOW, how is that possible? LOL

Then we headed over to Scattered Pictures Scrapbook Store. But, alas, just before I we walked in the cell rang. It was Mike. Alec is having a very bad day at school, will I go get him. Well, yea, but I am on the other side of Portland, literally. I am east of the city, and we live west of the city... I said I could be there in an hour. Mike called back a few minutes later and said he needs to come home now, so Mike left his conference and went to get Alec. Turns out his math teacher told him that 12 assignments that he redid wouldn't give him any extra points. So, he was very very upset.... as an Aspergers Child would be! Why is it that adults are more frustrating than children. I am sure she didn't mean to upset him sooo, but this literally ruined his day.... he couldn't recover from the hurt and upset feelings. He had spent about 10 hours redoing the work.... That would be hard for any 8th grader.... add the Aspergers and forget it.

This parenting thing is hard. Maybe bacon can make it better? I didn't really focus on the store, that I had never been to. I just worried about Alec. Parenting is so hard. He is so bright and yet so sensitive. So, I spent the rest of the night wondering how to approach this whole situation with the teacher, the school. I KNOW they are doing the best they can. I KNOW we all talk before we remember that Alec has this problem. But, it hurts me to the core when he hurts.... which is most of the time. No wonder I am exhausted......

Today I am going to try to recreate a book I saw at the SB store. While Denise checked out, I sat and looked at how they created it..... very very cute, and it looked pretty easy! The paper layering makes all of the difference.

I hope Alec has a good day today. I hope for no phone calls. I hope that he can live in a bubble where everyone is kind and loving and helpful to him..... I guess these are the things every parent hopes for for their children. =-)

BIG stinky feet!

LOL OK, well, not always stinky,but BIG. Alec was complaining about his shoes being tight. So, we went to get him new ones. I must tell you, we passed a milestone. Alec's feet are bigger than Mike's feet. Yes, Alec is now in a SIZE 13!!! THIRTEEN at age THIRTEEN. Wow, big feet. We always knew he was going to be a big boy... we were right!

It was a good weekend. The boys went to the beach for poker and play dates. They all had fun with their little friends. I am starting to realize that next week is Thanksgiving. We are going to Danielle and Bills house. It will be fun, and YUMMY. I am looking forward to it.

I am working on moving our IRA's this morning. Time to be in Oregon 100%! LOL OK, maybe 75% anyway. Why is everything so hard? Ugh. I get it, with identity theft and all, but it is still hard!

So, I am off to the post office to get all my stuff mailed from CKC Seattle! It is going to be a great day! Yahoo.

7 Things About Me

From Denise's Challenge:
1. I am a scrapbooker at heart. I stamp and I make cards, but scrapbooking is my first paper craft love.
2. When Mike and I first got married, in 1989, we had 6 pekingese. I loved it!
3. I was the youngest department chair at the high school where I taught. There were 16 of us in the math department.
4. I used to go to the library at LEAST once a week with my good friend and teaching buddy Jim. He died several years ago of bone cancer. Oh, and the library was really code for out for drinks! LOL
5. When we got married I did NOT want to walk down the isle in front of all of those people. The man who gave me away, Al Anderson, told me, "you made this decision when you were much more sane than now, you are going," Then this 70 something man grabbed me and made me go! LOL
6. I am still friends with my girlfriend Carleen. We met when we were in pre-school in swimming lessons on Shelter Island.... circa de 1968. We were very close through middle school, until I moved to Tucson. We remaied friends through the years, even when distance separated us. I still feel like we pick up where we left off whenever we talk. She is my longest friend.
7. I love the fact that I have both my BS and my MA from the University of Arizona. Red, white, and blue is my favorite combo. So, being an alumni of a red and blue school is perfect! Sorry, just not a duck.....

Finally Friday

On the third day of having Alec home, I am tired! LOL Actually he doesn't have school today, it is a teacher inservice day. We have gotten lots of math homework done, and studying for vocab tests. Ahhh the life of an 8th grader. Since his favorite lunch, totino's pizza, mostly went in the trash...today we went with pizza rolls for him! Yikes. Maybe I should send him off to do some more PE makeup work (aka riding his bike).

All the boys are headed to the coast tonight. I really wanted to play Bunco (and was actually invited) but, I decided to do the right thing and stay home to rest. Maybe I will rent a movie at McDonalds! LOL Mike has poker and the boys are seeing their friends. So, it will be a quiet night for me. Yahoo!

I haven't changed my feelings much on Alec hitting the other kid. I still am OK with it. Mike pointed out that the kids parents could have called the police and gotten Alec for assault. I wonder how that would have played out. Oy.

I am working on my book for CKC and have attached the non-finished product above for your viewing pleasure! Enjoy. Happy Friday.

Life on the street....

CKC Seattle was a success! I felt very very fortunate to have help from Terry, Sandy, Paula, and Colleen. I don't know what I would have done without them. I tried very hard to not work hard. It isn't easy for me to ask people to get out idea books and re hang stamps. BUT, I did it. By Saturday night I was exhausted, and shaking! I was asleep before 8pm, even though I only got back to the hotel about 7pm. But, I slept well, got up and drove home. Then I slept on the couch for a few hours. I will say, I think I am back. I feel pretty good. The shingles are almost healed, and hardly hurt now. I am staying on my high sleep and high vitamin regimen! Hopefully in a week or so I will be NORMAL...whatever that means.

Yesterday brought some interesting things from Alec. He was suspended from school. I never could imagine that I would have a child be suspended. Ugh. He was being teased during PE. So, he walked over to the kid and punched him in the face. He hurt one of his knuckles on the kids braces. So, three days OUT. I am not really mad at him. I think that teasing and bullying finally got to him. Alec is a big kid, so if he was really mad, he definitely could hurt someone. Turns out, he hit the assistant principal's son. Oops. I guess I am blogging because I have such mixed feelings about all of this. I don't want to encourage him to hit anyone. On the other hand, there is only so much that one person should have to take. Mike is taking the typical principal stance, he shouldn't hit ever for any reason. He should try to talk it out. I think we are both right...I have such mixed feelings.

On my last note this morning Denise tagged me to type up 7 things. I'll do it, but later! K? Now, to find enough painful work to keep Alec busy for 3 days out of school, without making me completely insane!

TV Shows

What TV shows do you like? I like these....

1. Kid Nation
2. Criminal Minds
3. Numb3rs
4. Ugly Betty
5. Dirty Sexy Money
6. Boston Legal
7. Brothers & Sisters
8. Dr Phil
9. Grey's Anatomy
10. Cold Case
11. Journeyman
12. Beauty & The Geek
13. Criminal Minds
14. Biggest Loser


This is more TV than I have watched in years! LOL But, I guess with being sick at the beginning of the seasons, I got into some new ones! I was trying to decide which was my favorite... Boston Legal is up there. Numb3rs is up there. I also really like Criminal Minds. What are you watching this season? Do you have a favorite or two or three?

Greetings from Bellevue Washington!

I am in Washington, getting ready for CKC set up tomorrow. It seemed like a long drive, with how tired I am lately, but I got here! I ordered room service and got a yummy chicken caesar salad. It was wonderful. I talked to Mike and he said they have had a zillion trick-or-treaters. Poor dogs, they must be going nuts! I know it is so hard for Kassie when I am gone... and this is the first time I have been gone since she has been blind. =-( Off to bed, although it is not 8 o'clock yet! Nite nite.

Just life...

It is Monday night. I am due to leave on Wednesday for Seattle CKC. I am so excited, and want to go. Yet, I know I am not at 100%. Heck, I am not sure I am at 75%. But, I have talked to Terry and she is going to be a workhorse on Thursday. Thank God for her. I have drawn up way more than usual. Usually the layout is in my head, but not on paper. Now it is all on paper so if I need to just sit for a few, I can do that.

I went to Portland Fixtures today to pick up some more hooks. I knew I needed them after my last expo. Before I go I still have to go to Batteries Plus and see if they can hook me up with a 2nd battery for my credit card machine. Oh, and I need to turn ON my credit card machine too. Many things to remember to do, but I feel pretty good about being sort of ready to go. I rented a UHaul this time, instead of a van. I thought it would be easier to drive my own Pacifica, with cruise control! LOL

I got my box from CTMH today of goodies from the album retreat. I am not going to really have the time to go through it before CKC. But, that is OK, I know I will enjoy it Sunday
night or Monday! LOL There are a couple of new sets and papers in there that won't be availabe until January. SO, that is pretty cool. I sure do wish I could have gone.... but, I digress.

Maybe I need cherry pie? Doesn't that sound yummy. I wonder if I will be near a Marie Callendar's in Seattle? I am so going for pie if I am! LOL Hot cherry pie with vanilla ice cream... yummy...

Mike is making plans to go to New Orleans in March. He has a conference that he wants to go to, and it is there! LOL So, trying to figure out all the specifics. Sounds fun. Nite nite.

Who can help? LOL

I need to get a banner for my blog. I have no clue how to do that! Anyone got any EASY tips?

Thankful for....

I thought today would be a good time to think about a few things I am thankful for.... some are a little goofy, but they are all true! LOL

1. My family. They offer me the ability to have EVERY emotion known...sometimes within a few moments.
2. My pets. They are always expensive, but they sure do offer a lot of love as they follow me everywhere all day long. Kassie gets carried more than she used to, but if I don't pick her up she follows anyway, it is pretty darn cute.
3. The grocery game. Saving some money and I have way more food in the house than I ever did before.
4. Mike deciding to learn to cook. And, he is getting GOOD. I keep food in the house, he cooks it! Yahoo.
5. Our home in Hillsboro. It is way smaller than our beach house, but there is something cozy that I just love about it. I always feel warm and comfy here. It is just a great house in a central location.
6. Health care. I love knowing what is going on, rather than worrying and wondering.
7. Close To My Heart. Something I thought would just be a hobby, but has become so much more... friends, family, love...
8. Computers. I love being in the know, it is neat to just Google things!
9. The son of dad's college roommate: Steve. He is really a WWII buff and has shared SOOOO much about my dad and what he went through as a fighter pilot during the war. These are things I want to know, but am often too busy raising a family to research myself.
10. Blogs.... to see that I am not alone out there, others deal with many of the same issues!

Just a few things I really am thankful for.....

Oh brother...

At about 5pm I told the boys that their dad is going to outdoor school to eat with the 6th graders. I would either make breakfast, or pick up burgers or pizza for the three of us. One didn't want pizza, the other didn't want burgers. So, I explained that I was hungry and was not even going to make breakfast, but just have cereal. They both wanted to watch "Reaper" from last night so said OK. I went and got a bowl of shredded wheat. Now, about 40 minutes later, they are BOTH mad at me and each other! OY. They are old enough to make their own dinner... and HELLO I have been sick. It just irritates me that they don't ever want my first idea... which was omlettes and pancakes.... It isn't worth making it if they just whine. What is up anyway? Grrrrr.

I don't think I am really mad at them. I just don't feel great, and I don't want to deal with dinner issues. So, Alec stomped around for awhile and now is back sitting on the couch watching the show. I can't wait (NOT) until it is over to see what happens... maybe I will just sit here on the couch and type more... LOL

adding insult to injury.....

R U wondering why I am still not blogging? Well, to add to my issues, now I have shingles too. OMG does it ever end? Thank GOD I did not try to go to Utah and get this there. I feel worse and now I hurt too. I am not supposed to get shingles until I am over 50... and last I counted I was only 42! Yikes. But, it does come with a weakened immune system, which I certainly do have right now. It is very very bad on the left side of my back, and appears to now be on the front left of me too--although it is only supposed to be on one or the other. Mike says I am TAG (talented and gifted). Reminds me of that old far side cartoon. Anyway, I am supposed to be in Seattle in a week and a half for the Creating Keepsakes Convention..... I don't know what I will do if I am still sick, trying to not think about it now.

Turning point in my life?

I think maybe I just hit a turning point. I have had this stupid sickness for weeks now. The doctor today doesn't feel it is wisdom for me to travel. So, I lost the album retreat. =-( I feel really sad about that. But, maybe this is a turning point. I am feeling like it is time for me to revisit what is important, again. I think the past year has been mostly about Mike's new job and Alec's Asperger's diagnosis. I need to take back myself. How? I am not sure I know how to do that right now. But, I can feel that it is time. It is time for me to decide, again, what it is that I want & how to get it.

So, first in line is getting HEALTHY. I can do this. I need to start exercising again. Too bad I don't have Kim to kick my butt out at the beach. But, I do have a gym in the neighborhood... and I do have dogs that like to walk. Although Kassie is not as easy to walk anymore! I need to remember about planning time for myself. I need to go to the doctor when I get sick. I can do this. I really need to run my life like I run my business. What is the output I want? Once I decide what the outcome is I want... I can easily back that off to see the steps I need to do to make them happen. And, I already do some of those things, I just think I have forgotten my why.

So, this is me deciding to NOT be angry and disappointed and unhappy and mad and upset.... this is me living in the moment. I am going to let it go and look forward to the album retreat in 2008. I am going to move forward. I am woman, hear me roar!

Life & Stuff

Well, the good news of the week is that Susan's mother came through surgery with no problems. This is HUGE as she is only the 2nd person to have this surgery. Wow. Also, I just got news that Penny came through her back surgery. SO, I believe it has been a great week. Wahoo.

I am feeling better, not great, but better. I did spend a bunch of the day yesterday with Casey at the doctor. Seems he has something too. He gets to take these really cool looking hot pink pills! LOL

I am still planning on going to the Album Retreat in Utah next week. Hopefully I get a GO from my doctor on Monday. I am pretty tired, but that is OK, I will sleep when I have to.... nothing is perfect.

I am really struggling to blog lately. I have never been much of a writer, and this is no different than ever before. But, I will continue to work on it. For now I need to shower and get ready for my inlaws to be here tonight. Hopefully that won't take too much energy.

Sicky Sicky Sicky

Well, I went to the doc today to check on my cholesterol meds. I have been taking them for a month now. My cholosterol was at 178 when I 'gave blood' last! So, I have been feeling kinda crappy for awhile now. Turns out I have sinusitis, bronchitis, and pnemonia. Can you imagine? OMG no wonder I have been feeling icky. I have a bunch of new medications, yea. I have the album retreat next week, so I need to feel better. And, hopefully I will. I will write more tomorrow....

Happy Birthday Trina

Happy Birthday to my best friend from high school and maid of honor, Trina Dawn. Hard to believe you are 43 today! Wow, thankfully I have never caught up (6 months exactly behind). Our lives have gone in such different directions. But, I think overall we are both happy. That is the most I could hope for with either of us. Happy Birthday my dear friend.

Aspergers UGH

I am not sure that it is possible to understand this disorder. It is so frustrating to me! The bottom line is that Alec is not able to effectively communicate with his peers. It makes me CRAZY. He is always frustrated about something, and the glass is only ever half full. He is a wonderful loving child full of a good spirit and love of all things living.... Yet, he has such trouble with people. He has learned, mostlly from us, to let things go and tease back. But other adults see this as good hearted banter, and he finds it stressful and upsetting. If only I knew exactly WHAT to do with him.

Yet, I know the answer... remember we love him, all of him. His strengths (of which there are many) and his weaknesses. And pray that God has an awesome life planned for him, one which only he and God can imagine.

Saxaphone HELP!

Casey is playng the saxaphone, as we speak. This is the first night he is practicing. Tell me, does it get easier?

Crazy People

Often times Casey and I watch the Dr Phil show after school. Today is no exception. We LOVE it. We talk about watching the crazy people. It is so fun. It makes you realize that your life isn't so bad at all! LOL Gotta love watching the crazy people, I do love Dr Phil!

R U Kidding me?

OMG schools are looking at banning hugs? Can you say stoooopid. I watch the Today Show almost every morning. Watch may be over saying it.. but I do have it on the TV. I can not imagine that they are banning hugging. One school said it makes kids late to class? Um, ok, then punish them for being late. There are so many things I don't understand about our society. I am good with the no homemade snacks at school (I have seen some gross kitchens). But no hugging is really over the edge. Just my two cents.

It's The Weekend!

And we are getting closer and closer and closer to having EVERYTHING unpacked and organized. In fact we are so close that it is starting to scare me. If we haven't used it this year, it is going to goodwill. And, somethings are going that we have used! I have the last of the boys school work to go through and photograph for their school scrapbooks. I actually LOVE living in a smaller house where I feel FORCED to downsize. I needed to do this years ago, but didn't. I am cleansed.

On another note, I also put our tent trailer up on eBay. We are making plans to go on the Mediterranean Cruise (Close To My Heart) in a year, so we will be saving for tickets for the kids and lots of great excursions. I am SOOO ready to go. Just need to get the passport thing handled. The dogs better watch out, I will be selling them next... not that anyone would buy the bionic shepherd or the blind peke, but hey.

I am excited about watching all of the great stuff we have recorded this week, all of the new shows. Loved Boston Legal season opener. It is just such a quirky show, fun and different. I also enjoyed the season opener of Ugly Betty.

"Trailer for sale or rent, room to let 50 cents, no phone, no pool no pets, I ain't got no cigarettes..."

Voice

Ahhhh to be able to sing a song. Is laryngitis going around? What is up with this thing? I FEEL Ok, but I am hacking up stuff....still and I can't talk again AT ALL. OK, not that I was talking great.... but I had SOME voice for a little while. I'll sign this, wanting to SING.....

Bunco!

Bunco seems to be a northwest tradition. When I moved to the NW in 1999 I had never heard of it! But, I did some subbing in the Bunco group one of my neighbors had in Seaside. In July my friend Diane asked me to sub for her group. The group is formed from a group of 'metro croppers' Let me just say, what an awesome group of ladies this is! I think what I like about them the most is that they are all different. Different ages, different stages, different work life, different home lives. PLUS, and this is huge, they don't give me too bad of a time when I have a blonde moment (which seems to happen quite often). If you have ever played bunco you know that it is not as much about the game as it is about moving around and socializing. At the end of the night I was THE BIGGEST LOSER. That isn't really surprising for me. My luck tends to be BAD. But, the good news is I got my money back plus $3 more! So, I am saving up for a latte. j/k

Saturday night I was tired and went to bed early, Sunday I wasn't feeling great, and yesterday I had NO VOICE. What is up with that? Today I feel better, yahoo. What is up with the crap that I am hacking up out of my lungs? My DH was great last night and got the kitchen and house all straightened up. So, that sure helps!

I went to Albertson's this morning to pick up a few things from their sale. Casey had forgotten his lunch so I had to get dressed anyway ;-) I got a gallon of milk, 5 cereal's, 2 pancake syrup, 4 oatmeals, and 4 granola bars for $3! How awesome is that! I was so excited. I am definitely finding the grocery game worth it! LOL Plus, it is fun for me. And, it isn't too hard, because someone else figures out the deals! I just have to go do them.

I think today i am going to pay bills & rest so that I don't actually get sick sick sick. I do not want to deal with that! If only there was a way to get coupons for medical care--dental and eye docs would be my first choice here! Oy!

Geo Counter

Well, I loved it for free--but not for money! SO, it is gone. Guess I will never know who is reading my deepest darkest secrets. ;-) Oh, unless you comment. So, please feel free.

Tonight is Alec's open house. He doesn't want us to go. It is nice that he is embarrassed enough to not want us around. Even with the Aspergers the kid gets that parents are not to be seen! LOL Too bad though, I told him to save this breath, and four more years of it, becasue we are going EVERY time. I think it felt good to him, not that he will admit it.

Casey is going to join the band. He wants to play the sax right now. Could be interesting. I told him there is going to be a rule that he is only allowed to practice when his dad is home, that way we can both feel the LOVE. ROFLOL

I sent out my email to my potetial Junior Consultant's today. The bummer part for me is that they are still part of my downline, but basically they don't count for me . =-( Boohoo. I wish I understood, Oy! Mostly these ladies are scrapbookers and stampers, why aren't they using the products? Maybe they don't know how awesome it is to have stuff that coordinates? I just don't know... Ahhh such a long list of things I don't understand.

Anyway, off to Walgreens and Fred Meyer for eggs. Oh and I made corn cakes last night. Someone suggested these are awesome. I did it with one box of Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix and one box of yellow cake mix. Maybe it would be better with 2 boxes of corn muffin mix? But it was very hard to taste the muffin, just a yummy cupcake! LOL You just put everything called for in both mixes and mix it all together. They took about 17 minutes at 350 degrees for me. After we ate them with dinner I opened a chocolate frosting and they became dessert! LOL A 2 for 1 I guess!

TGIF

I can't believe we are now two weeks into the school year. Yep, it is officially fall. LOL It was 93 degrees here Monday, and only 63 degrees yesterday. So, it looks like the warm summer weather is over. I reallly like the fall weather, a little more gray. But, I want to get more done inside. So hopefully I can get some heritige scrapbooking done done done.

Kassie is adjusting to her life as a blind pekingese. She is getting much better at using her ears and nose. It is kinda funny when she is looking for food to watch her follow her nose! Aspen is enjoying the bark bark bark of her morning routine when the kids leave for school.

I got a bunch of stuff organized for my November CKC in Seattle. Now, I am organizing some paper.... that is always hard. I guess I should use more and buy less.

Thinking of going to the beach for the weekend. Just to relax! We'll see. Ahhh Friday, as Martha would say, 'its a good thing."

Back to School, yeehaw!

LOL Today is the day both boys are back to school. Casey has the same teacher as last year, which makes him very happy. Alec is in 8th grade, which means he 'rules the school!' Casey is excited about being in Pre-Algebra. Alec is nervous. I don't blame him. I am nervous for him too. School means lots and lots of other kids, that is hard for him. I hope and pray he has an awesome day... and year.

I got the information from Heirloom Productions for their shows next year. Portland in March, and Puyallup (WA) in May. Perfect! They are so awesome to work with. I am excited to do it again. I wish everyone were as nice!

Off to finish up (read start over) on the Christmas Card swap that I have to mail this week. Yikes!

In Another Life...

In another life I taught High School mathematics for 12 years. I really loved my job. I did it all. I wrote curriculum, was a mentor, was department chair for a 16 person department. Once my boss told me I was the biggest math nerd in the department. I think this speaks to my passion. When I do something I do it with all my heart.

Recently I fould out that my old school, Mountain View High School in Tucson, has a very sad place in US History. It has lost the most soldiers in the war of any high school in the nation. This makes me so sad. It is a wonderful middle class community in the Northwest of Tucson. I can't imagine the pain and sadness that overcomes the faculty, staff and students each and every time this happens. We lost many kids to car accidents while I was there, and each had a profound effect on all of us. It is just WRONG to have so many children die. =-(

As Alec prepares for Geometry, and Casey for Pre Algebra, I am reminded of my days as a teacher, a tutor, a friend of teens. It really was a different life time. Do I miss it, yes. And, I know that the boys need me here. I have a business that I love, I have a familly that I love, and although they drive me crazy some days, I wouldn't trade being with them for the world. But, some days I still think about my other life....

Getting it Handled

Ahhh, one of those errand days again. I am really wondering, how do people with a lot of children do it? I am crazy with only two! They feel like 20 most days. LOL Today we have an appointment with Alec's teachers. Hopefully this will be a good and successful year for him. If only expectations are clear and not changed, that would sure help. Then we have a follow up with Casey and his contacts. One of them went missing yesterday. I suppose it is in the land of unseen contacts, or contact heaven, or smushed in the dogs toes. I dunno. Plus, I am headed to the dentist for a cleaning. No big deal, but another thing to do.

Hopefully Mike will make that appointment with Alec's teachers. The big thing is saying, "I will be checking in on Thursday, and I do want to know if ANY work is not turned in by Friday.... not two weeks later like in 7th grade!" Yea, attitude. I know. But, heck, I could keep track when I was teaching 7 years ago, why can't they do it now! LOL

On the positive side, the house is clean and there are groceries in the house. So, maybe I can actually do some Close To My Heart work. What a concept! Off to get it all done.

Budget

OK I am embarrassed to say that I never kept a line by line budget before. I wanted to do it after all the money on Kassie this month and last month. So, I have been doing that. The truth is that I do know where the money goes. I guess I knew that and that is why I never wrote everything down. But, the surprise was that DH didn't know it! So, I think this has been a good thing for us! Funny how something so simple can be such an eye opener. How much do YOU spend on latte's? Heheheheheheh

I am supposed to be working on a Christmas Swap today. But, so far my card is dull and boring. I want a new set, but this is the one I committed to... and frankly the card on paper looks nothing like the card in my head. I hate that! LOL But, oh well.

Aspen is giving me that 'lets go for a walk' look. Maybe the fresh air will inspire me. Hopefully! It is a beautiful day, and that does make me want to lay in my hammock! The boys are off with their dad stamping text books at work. So, the house is quiet except for the lull of the washer and dryer. Although, this is the first time in months I have heard it when it is running.

If you have any extra inspiration, please send it my way!

Back To School

It should be an awesome week. You know, the week before back to school. Yet, somehow it only seems stressful. The kids have to start going to bed at their regular times. They hate that. Alarms start going in the morning, instead of that noon wake-up for Alec. Mike spends the weekend at the office getting ready for the teachers to come back tomorrow.

Sometimes it is hard to feel like the glue that holds the family together, and I feel like I am not that glue... everyone is just anxious. I know it has nothing to do with me. It is the time of year, far from this beautiful day in Cannon Beach. Everyone is stressed. What will this new school year bring? What are the hopes and joys of everyone involved? Will Casey cut his hair? Will Alec be happy in school in spite of having to overcome his Asperger's? Will Mike's new teachers be as successful as he knows they can be? Will everyone do their best? So right now I find myself looking forward to the anxiety and anticipation being over.... and school starting again. Then I will get back to my own regularly scheduled life. Until then...

My New Game

LOL The latest thing I am into is the grocery game. www.thegrocerygame.com For a small price they match up the local sales with newspaper coupons. I am finding that I am saving quite a bit, and am very happy about that. The more I save, the less I work! Oh that is too sad. If you want to try them out please use my ScrapnMomofBoys@aol.com address as a refferal. Thank you.

I am into the stockpiling of stuff right now. It is kinda neat. I have always liked not needing to buy stuff that often, so I was a big Costco shopper. But, I got tired of spending soooo much there. So, that is my new 'game.'

On a lighter note, Casey got contacts! Woohoo. He has been talking about them for awhile now. I think he is tired of dealing with glasses, and as a boy he is always tweaking them. So far he is doing really well with putting them in and getting them out. Today is day three, so hopefully it will be a success. He has beautiful eyes, so it is great to see them again!

I did work on a couple of cards for Susan's swap yesterday. I have been way more into scrabooking, and am actually caught up right now, which is weird. I have BOXES of stuff from my parents to deal with. I think that is my fall project. Overwhelming, but exciting. I think I get stuck on how to organize. But thankfully I use the post bound albums, so I can re order over and over instead of having to order before I scrapbook. I don't know what I will consider important and unimportant. But, I guess we will see as we go.

On a sad note my scanner is not working with my windows vista. So, I am going to hook it up to one of the kids computers and email it to myself for printing. Hopefully that will help with some of the chunky stuff. I really am looking forward to having less boxes of stuff.

Anyway, for those of you who check my blog (Hi Sue!) I am also going to try to post more often. No promise of pictures, but I can at least post what is going on and what projects I am working on.

Do you like my new counter? I LOVE it!

Summer Time

Maybe it is good that this summer is coming to a close. In two weeks the kids will be back in school and things will quiet down around the house. I took Kassie today to get the stitches out of her now gone eye. She is looking better. Sadly, she still can't see out of the other eye. And, it doesn't look as if she ever will again. Most days she seems to be doing better with the whole thing than I am. I guess that is to be expected.

Casey is going for an exam to get contacts. I am ready for that. He is constantly banging his glasses around, and with the Oregon rain, it will be so wonderful. We don't know who his teacher is yet, but that is OK. He will do great wherever he ends up for 6th grade.

Alec's assistant principal and I got Alec's schedule squared away. He is most excited about Geometry. This is great for an 8th grader, and he knows it. Of course his father reminded him that, "math does get harder." LOL So far, not for Alec. But, he did like learning a few new things last year. He hates the tedious stuff. Ahhh, his mother's son! He will also take art first semester. I hope he loves that too.

Mike is back full swing. He has no air conditioning at his school, so it is pretty hot. But, this month hasn't been awful, so that helps. It just seems as if it is crazy to expect him to work in such a hot office. But, whatever. I guess that he is truly a public servant.

Off to get something done.

My Princess

It has been a tough couple of weeks with my Pekingese, Kassie. Her eye popped out of the socket two weeks ago. I rushed her to the ER vet. They put the eye back and stitched her up. She was not eating well, and didn't seem like she was feeling well for a couple of days following them putting it back into the socket. One stitch pulled open and I rushed her back to the ER vet. (Of course none of this happens when our regular vet is open). Dove Lewis is a well known ER hospital though, so that is good.

The vet found it was very ulcerated (is that a word). She felt that the stitches were bothering her more and recommended we remove the eye. Which we did, after struggling with whether we should put her through all of the trying to save the eye when the percentage was well under 50%. When we were picking her up (at 2 am) they felt she wasn't seeing out of the other eye either. So, they kept her for a few more hours for observation. In the morning she still wasn't tracking with the right eye.

We then took her home (about 10 am Sunday morning) and took her to our regular vet. They started steroid drops and are watching her. We may have to take her to a specialist. It is not glaucoma, but ulcers that seemed to develop rather quickly (in my opinion). They do not feel she has any sight in the eye, but want to wait until the surgery is about 2 weeks out to refer her.

Kassie is doing great. I am wondering if she wasn't seeing that great to begin with, because she doesn't seem to be struggling at all. And, she is much happier, eating better etc, with the eye out. She isn't wild about the drops every 2 hours. Heck, it would bug me to be awakened for that too. I, on the other hand, am struggling with all of it. I am wondering why we didn't see sooner that there were problems. I know that you can't, and regular vet care is the best I could do, but somehow it still makes me feel crappy. I have heard that some pekes have their eyes pop out, but had never experienced it before. It was very scary, again I think more for me than for her.

When I get past the way I feel, I think that her life of sitting on the couch with me and running outside to go potty a few times a day, will not change much. She is still playful about once a day, as is standard for her.

I must be making progress, because I have been struggling talking about her. I really wanted to write about what happened with her though.

This morning, after Mike gave her the morning medicines, she jumped off the couch and came back upstairs to bed! Here is hoping that she is on the road to recovery.

The prank

LOL While my DH and boys were camping I came up with the perfect prank. You see, Mike loves "gracie lou." Who? Gracie Lou, his red mustang convertable. He loves this car. And they had my Pacifica to pull the tent trailer while camping.

Both of the license plate covers on Gracie Lou say "Pittsburgh Steelers." I am ok with this, I am a Steelers fan by default. LOL But, I KNEW that the cover on the back had to change. While they were on vacation I got a new license cover. "Scrap Lady" on the top. "Eat...Sleep...Scrap" on the bottom. PERFECT.

Unfortunately right before they came home was the event with Kassie's eye. So, I do believe it took away quite a lot of the shock factor! ;-)

When they drove up, Gracie Lou was sitting in the driveway with her rear toward the street. Our youngest wasn't out of the car 13 seconds before he said, "something is wrong." Immediately Mike looked at the car. What was wrong with his baby? Oh man. First, I saw the grin. Then, the next words out of his mouth were, "that has to go."

Everyone came inside to check on the pekingese. She seems to be feeling better, but she looks like she got hit by a truck, or maybe had a really rough night! LOL

Back outside, and looking over the car, Mike found two new scratches. He was so excited to drive his baby that he did actually take her out for a drive BEFORE he changed the plate. So, sadly there was no going to work. He got it fixed before that would happen. LOL But, I did get a drive out of him.

He was surprised that I thought of such a thing. AND, thankful that I didn't do something to hurt his car. LOL- I soooo know better. But, the look on his face when he said, "that has to go" was priceless.

What a day!

Oy! Yesterday was along one. The family is coming home from their camping trip today. I have done a ton of scrapbooking. It has been fantastic. I haven't scrapbooked in a long long time, too long. And, I definitely found my love of it again.

About 3pm I heard 'screaming.' I thought it was the bird, listened again, and discovered it was coming from Kassie downstairs. OMG, I went running. Her eye popped out. I was shaking and crying and panicing. I grabbed her and the car keys and called the vet. Who, even though they are open on Sunday, were closed. I guess it happened 10 minutes too late. ugh.

So, off to the emergency vet. That is in North Portland, which I do not know at all. I called and got directions. I drove the convertable into the grass in our yard as I pulled out of the garage. Did I mention I was a little upset? Freaked out might be more honest. I was so scared.

The vet's office gave me the wrong directions, so I drove almost to Washington, back to the zoo, and then connected with Mike and mapquest. Thank God he got me there. Did I mention I was pretty upset and scared? Anyway, they did surgery. It cost way less than the price quote. Yea. And I brought Kassie home about 10:30 last night. Between the eye drops and the pain killer, there are a lot of things going on. So, I didn't sleep too well. I am pretty sure Kassie didn't either though.

Anyway, it will be a few weeks before we know how her sight is... but thankfully the rest of her is OK. She looks like she has been through a war, but she will look normal again. Ahhh the joys of pets. They are like our kids, they make our hearts hurt.

Casey, age 9

This is the other picture!

Hadn't done this in over 20 years....

I discovered that while I had printed the two big 2005 vacations, I had never printed pictures from the other stuff... ya know, birthday, back to school, etc...

So, I uploaded 100 pictures to riteaid.com and headed over to pick them up. When I came out of the store, about 8:30 pm, the front passenger side tire was FLAT. So, I was annoyed (of course) but decided to walk down the strip mall to Target and get some fix-a-flat. Yea, I know it is bad for my tire.... but, it was dusk and I wanted to get home and scrapbook. It is so great when the DH and DS's are out of town!

Well, needless to say the fix a flat stuff oozed out at about the same speed it oozed in! Ugh. So, I was going to have to do it, change the tire. Now, this is not my car, it is my husband's baby. His red mustang convertible. He loves this car, and has her picture on his phone. (I won't go there!) Anyway, I was able to remember enough to actually change the tire. As I was mounting the spare two young men came by and volunteered to help. LOL So, I let them screw in the lug nuts. I turned down the jack, jumped in the car--very dirty-- and drove home.

Thankfully Les Schwab was able to fix me up this morning. So, I should still be able to go to the beach and crop this weekend. LOL

So, now I won't be able to say next time, "I haven't done this in over 20 years!" Yea me! Oh, and dh (from his cell phone) suggested I call someone. Yea, NOT patient enough to wait. I have pictures to scrapbook. I am adding two that I found that I love from the first day of school in 2005. Casey was 9 and Alec was 11.

Five Things

Here are five things that you may, or may not, know about me already.

1. When Mike and I got engaged (1988) I told him I had to ALWAYS have a pekingese in my life. As you could figure, he agreed. Kassie is the 11th pekingese I have had in my lifetime. Yes, I said 11th!

2. My father told me I could be anything, but warned against going into teaching. I taught high school math for 12 years! OOPS.

3. My father also told me, just before he died, that communication was the most important thing. Many people have laughed at that over the years. But, now I realize he was absolutely right. He died in 1985. I miss him everyday, but still agree that communication is critical.

4. I spent 3 weeks at Georgetown University at debate camp when I was 15. It was the experience of a lifetime. I actually was on the debate team for four years in high school.

5. Napping is my favorite hobby. I would like to say it is scrapbooking, or stamping.... but, the truth it I will always choose an afternoon nap first. There is nothing like it!

So, there are some things about me!

Zoom zoom zoom

Wow, this summer is zooming by! I can not believe July is almost over. I am getting ready to head to Puyallup WA in a couple of days for a stamp/scrapbook show. I really enjoy doing these shows. It is fun to meet new people and be a part of something big! =-)

The boys spent last week in OMSI camp, and we spent the week before in Seaside. The weather in Seaside over the 4th was amazing. I even got a sunburn. It was great to see our friends and spend the holiday on the beach. It is such a crazy place to be. Fireworks everywhere. Yet, once again we all made it out alive! Yikes.

OMSI camp (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) was a forensic science camp. Unfortunately it was not the most organized camp, but for the first time the boys got to go together (both middle school age). It really gave Casey an opportunity to see what Alec goes through daily. He got picked on a bunch, and sadly the 'teachers' didn't seem to know what to do. They did learn a bunch about forensic science though.

This week I am getting ready for my show in WA. Like I said, wow it is all going so fast. I do have three projects planned.

I am also getting my books in for our unit contest. I have a few people coming to judge. The entries are great, so I think it will be a hard decision!

A little behind....

I had soooo much fun in Florida! I got to meet my 2nd downline Leah and see my downline Sue and Penny. It was great to see all of these ladies. We got to spend some fun time together eating awesome food & laughing. It was wonderful. Seems like I get to Florida about every other year. I helped Susan with her Tampa expo. It was HOT, and really fun. I loved setting up someone elses booth and not having all of the responsibillity. Hehehehehe.

When I got home from Florida it was the last week of school. This year went so fast. It is hard to believe we have lived in Hillsboro for a year now. Wow, time flies.

Back from Alaska

Just back from my 3rd CTMH cruise I noticed a few things. First, about half of the cruisers were first time earners. There were 93 cruise earners this year, and 83 actually cruised. The other 10 took the money! LOL You can be a first time earner next year. I KNOW this for certain.

There is a BIG difference between the consultants on the BB who congratulate people on "winning" the cruise and the consultants on the ship who talk about how they "earned" the cruise. There is no one there by accident. Everyone talks about how they schedule time every day for CTMH. Different ladies talk about clubs, workshops, gatherings, and expos. Most do a mix of all of them. Usually one stands out as a money maker, and they try to do more.

Kristine Whidfeldt, VP of Sales and Marketing, talked about the proper life balance. I found it very interesting! She said that the happiest people (a study) spend 35% of their time sleeping (or resting), 50% of their time working (including housework and any kidwork), and 15% of their time playing. Playing would include creating scrapbook pages and cards. Now, don't forget....TV time counts in that 15%! It really reinforced to me how important it is to make a plan and work your plan. I wish I could tell you how much I believe this. If you want to work one event a week, put it on your calendar and then work to make it happen. I am in no way suggesting you bully your friends or family. But, ask them if they are interested, and if they say no ask them if they know someone who would be. Almost everyone can come up with ONE person to hook you up with.

We sailed from Seattle on a rainy Sunday afternoon. The evening started with a CTMH reception where we all enjoyed drinks and snacks compliments of CTMH. In our balcony stateroom was a plate of cheese and a bottle of wine with Bon Voyage wishes. At the reception each consultant introduced herself and her guest.

Monday was a cruising day, as we moved toward Juneau. The weather was a little yucky, but we still explored the ship. On Monday morning there was a informational meeting for all of the consultants and their guests. It concluded with a 1 vs 100 type game. My guest won $3 for me in select product credit! woohoo It was pretty funny.

Monday night we all met in the dining room for dinner. Jeanette and David brought their two daughters this year. They are 11 and 14, beautiful girls. It was neat to meet them. I got a picture that I would share, but I managed to lose the first half of the trip from my camera. So, right now the memory card is at the lab being restored-hopefully! We ended the day with a cool set of binoculars with the CTMH logo as our gift in our stateroom.

Tuesday we docked in Juneau. It was a BEAUTIFUL day. Danielle's friend Buck gave us the grand tour. Mendenhall Glacier was beautiful. We went to a few of her favorite spots from when she lived there and then to Buck's house for dinner. His home was unbelievable, looking over the water. A bald eagle sat in the tree for me all during dinner. WOW. We ended the day with a beautiful briefcase like bag as our gift in our stateroom.

Wednesday it was on to Skagway. Another beautiful day, I was only in jeans and a polo shirt. I did some shopping for the boys and later we took the White Pass Railway up the mountain. It goes up 3000 feet. This was a CTMH sponsored tour. Lovely, and a ton of fun. The pic I shared earlier was from that excursion. I spent a lot of time standing on the outside of the train car. Now, you warm weather gals would not have been with me on that, but it sure was lovely. We ended the day with a lovely gift in our stateroom.

Thursday was both Glacier Bay and our create and take day. The day started in Glacier Bay, where you see ice cubes floating in the water. I think I got a few good pictures that I will share eventually. We made 8 pages with the Majestic Blue Papers. We got three stamp sets, including an exclusive cruiser's set for Alaska. We also got some my accents and ribbons to use and then take home. At the end of the fun (and tiring) time we got a black polar fleece vest with Close To My Heart embroidered on it. Very nice.

Friday was our day in Ketchican. I met a customer that I have there for coffee and she took us around. I got some great eagle shots. WOW. Friday night was our second group dinner. It is always nice to visit, but there is not enough time to meet and spend time with everyone. We ended the day with Caps (Touque's say the Canadian's) and Thermos' with CTMH logo's for both the consultant and her guest.

Saturday it was hard to believe got there so fast. We had a closing reception where we revealed the secret sisters and got information on the Med cruise next year. We said goodbye and then docked in Victoria, BC for our last evening. We walked around downtown and in Beacon Hill Park. Wonderful and warm! We even stopped for some yummy food--although I just had a burger. LOL We ended the day with a charm to remind us of our great time in Alaska.

Sunday was a little more stressful. But, I did like the fact that Seattle is just a 3.5 hour drive home. So, not having to catch a airplane was wonderful.

I hope that you are ALL realizing that you can make your dreams come true with CTMH. I would love to have a group of us cruise the Mediterranean next year. And, I KNOW it can happen. But, it won't be an accident, you will have to work for it.

May Stamp of the Month Card

This card looks hard, but was pretty simple! Woohoo.

Progress

Two weeks from now I will be watching Alec perform in his dress rehearsal as the star of his middle school play. I am so excited, he will be awesome! The following morning Danielle and I will be headed to Seattle in the rented cargo van full of CTMH stuff! Friday will be set-up day and Saturday and Sunday the Heirloom Expo. Thanks to Mike this is do-able. He is coming up on Sunday to run the show, while we run over to the port and jump on the cruise ship. So, today I went through my 'dinner' clothes and got them in a big ole pile. Tomorrow I hope to do jammies and make a list of the daytime wear. Hopefully I can be packed and ready to go by the Sunday before I leave.... hopefully. That way I can focus on getting the van all loaded, packing my overnight bag for the two nights at the hotel during the expo, getting my demo stuff ready to go. OK, I can't make paragraphs tonight, so I am going to stop writing.... wonder what is up with that?

Panic sets in!

LOL Don't you hate it when you realize you have 6 weeks of work and 2 weeks to do it? I hate that! I am sure it will be fine. Just to make sure, however, today I am going to make some lists. I want to be sure I have big lists of what I need to do in May for my family, my home, my expo, and my cruise. Oh, and the day after I get back is Casey's 11th birthday. Oh boy!

So, need a packing list for the cruise. I know I need to buy some slacks for dinner. I haven't even considered looking at the excursions. Maybe my excursion will be sitting on the balcony everywhere. Hmmm, not a bad idea really.

I have been working hard on Aspen's growing barking problem. She was starting to make me crazy! I realized I better start working with her. And, yahoo it is working. She is so loud, I guess German Shepherds are that way. =-)

So, my goal now is to make a plan to get out of town, get downline trained, and get myself to feel READY to roll. Oh yea, and to make sure Mike knows the kids schedules. Motherhood is really keeping a calendar and a list.

It's 80's day! LOL

Well, one thing about not feeling very well (still) is getting to sit and watch movies all day. I am watching Footloose now, and was watching Breakfast Club earlier. I admit, I did watch the lifetime movie network (my fav) for awhile earlier today.

I don't know what is going on... it is the lung thing again. I am hacking up 'icky stuff.' So, I guess I have to go to Dr Doogie Howser again on Monday. What is up with me that I have had such trouble getting well this year? I guess the emotional stress with everything is taking a toll.... maybe.... or maybe it is just that kind of year for me. At first I was thinking it was allergies, but I don't think so anymore. Boohoo.

Well, beyond that, I have been compiling my downline surveys. I want to know how and when they want to talk with me! And, this is funny, most of them don't! ROFLOL OK, I am good by email. I think it is because it is easier for me to stay on task than on the phone. I get on the phone and get chatty. Not that it is bad to get chatty, but then it is much harder to get the questions answered and brainstorm. Now saying that, it many ways it is easier for me to brainstorm on the phone. Oh brother!

Alec continues to work on his story for his language arts class. Will this ever end? Oh yea, thankfully it is due on Monday so it will end.

OK, back to Footloose.

Naked Butt

Kassie got her summer haircut today. I always put her in the lion cut for the summer. She really does look like a little lion. I always forget how tiny she is until they shave her back 3/4! Then I remember again, every spring. She looks teriffic, and seems to feel great too.

Aspen and I worked on "no bark" some more today. It finally seems to be working to squirt her with some water. Now I just say "no bark" and pick up the bottle, and she is quiet! Woohoo. I sure hope this works, because she has been getting worse.

Discovered that Alec wasn't being truthful about working on his 'book' project in his Language Arts class (that is what they call English now). So, that took up the better part of the afternoon into evening. The bottom line is now he is working on it, without any help (except to keep him in his room) and doing a great job! He is such a funny boy. So talented, and so stubborn. Oh, maybe he gets that from me.... a little anyway.

Casey is studying for his FOUR tests tomorrow. LOL I have a feeling if 5th grade is like this, I am really in for it during high school. Oh well, he is trying. And, that is important too. Another so talented and so stubborn.... I feel a theme.

Less than a month till cruise time. Woohoo, I am looking forward to a week off! Nite nite!

What really bugs me!

I felt FINE all day today, FINE. All of a sudden this afternoon I couldn't get warm enough. I ran to Safeway to get stuff for French Dips for dinner. The next think I know I feel like I am getting sick. ACK! OK, I can not get sick right now. Although now is better than two weeks from now. LOL It feels like a sinus infection beginning. So, I took airborne (love that stuff) and some thera flu. It hurts to swallow! Did I mention I felt FINE a few hours ago. Weird weird weird.

I think yesterday was too tough! I took Alec to his therapist's. We talked about life, it was exhausting! LOL Alec is such a wonderful kid. And he just doesn't get the things the rest of us get. That is so hard, it makes me sad for him. Someday he will meet a woman who will love and appreciate his kind heart and love of all things living. But, until then we need to live through middle school.

Last night marked a landmark in his mathematics career. I bought him a graphing calculator at Target. (Boy do I love having Target 2 minutes away). It was neat to show him how to graph linear equations and now the newest thing for him... quadratics! I loved watching his eyes pop as he could see what changing the a, b, and c did to the parabola on his screen. I know it made a big difference for him, as his memory is a series of pictures. I do not understand why his school doesn't have them. I have been out of the classroom for 8 years, and we had them wayyy back then! Hehehehehehe.

Casey went to Bradley's house again today. It is funny to see him growing up and becoming his own person... well, Casey always was his own person. But, now there is no doubt! ;-) He sure does have his own ideas, even down to the eating a deli sandwich instead of a French Dip with the rest of us! I think he could be a Vegetarian someday. Time will tell!

All for now, off to see who gets voted off of American Idol tonight...

Love you

It seems impossible that my dad has been gone for 22 years
today. This is a wonderful photo taken during WWII when he was a fighter pilot. There are so many things I never asked him. So many things I didn't know that I would want to know! I was only 20 when he died. I remember him telling me that "communication is the most important thing." I thought that was so unusual. And many people I have told that story to over the years also thought it was different. Most people say love or compassion..... but ya know what. I think it is true. Over the years I have discovered that without communication, the others just don't work. Ahhh dad, I am so much like you. I miss you everyday. Thank God you were here for me through my childhood. You may be gone, but you will always live in my heart.