Unexplored Territory

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Nothing too witty today

and no Thursday Thirteen, either. I am getting ready to turn in for the night as I have to drive to Dayton OH tomorrow morning for a SCINTILLATING and BREATHTAKING presentation on why my company decided that reorganization was the way to go last week. You see, I originally missed this meeting in 2006. I am making it up now. After the reorganization announcement.

And that, my friends, is what we in the legal profession call "moot."

Wordless Wednesday

The Hunter and his Grandson. No ... it isn't too wordless, but I love this picture of my BIL, the hunter, and his new grandson. And notice the camo....

Labels: brother in law, hunter, Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Speaking of mind games

Thanks for your comments... I am glad to know that I am not the only one who likes to pull my kids' legs every once in a while.

When I was growing up, my sister (who is 5 1/2 years my senior) LOVED to do this one to me: cross her eyes and act like they were stuck.

Normally I didn't fall for her idiotic mind game. Well ok ... when I say "normally" I didn't fall for it after this one particular incident.

We were standing in our kitchen, and I suppose I was about 10 years old or so (maybe younger), and Mini Martha decided it was time to play the game. She crossed her eyes, and kept them that way. Then she started to panic, saying "oh my gosh! My eyes are stuck! Oh NO! Get Mom .... get her!!! My eyes are stuck! Mom was right!!!"

And my response? well, a blood-curdling scream, of course.

My Mom's response. She smacked ME in the face.

Me. Not my sister for teasing me.

Me.

But then, this is the woman who smacked my sister in the face when my sister came running into the house when she was 8 years old, screeching at the top of her lungs that she had fallen out of the tree. My mother had read somewhere that to bring a child out of hysterics was to smack them to shock the system.

It certainly shocked my sister's system. She fainted.

Because you see, my sister had broken her arm. And my mother has never lived that down, and she never will.

Labels: growing up, Mini Martha, the Mominator

Monday, February 26, 2007

Giving my kid a hard time

Sometimes I like to give my kids a hard time.

Queen Bee asked me last week if I remembered "the fair" that our local Catholic school puts on every summer. Of course I did. But I said I didn't. And that ticked her OFF!

Don't you remember it, Mommy?
Nope.
Mommy! Yes you do!
No I don't.
MOMMY! Door Man, do you remember it?
No.
You're just saying that because Mommy said no.
No I'm not. I don't remember it.
Ok... Monkey, do you remember the fair there?

Now, the Monkey is three. She doesn't remember anything beyond yesterday...

and she said she remembered the fair.

SEE Mommy! I told you! There IS a fair there.
Queen, you know that the Monkey will say yes to anything ... watch this...

Monkey, do you remember when they put that big Santa Claus up in that car dealership?
Yes.
Do you remember the Fort that used to be here?
Yes.
Do you remember when the bridge collapsed?
Yes.

Turning to the Queen, I told her that the Monkey is too little to remember things, and she will agree to anything you ask her (if she's in the mood, of course).

I finally let the Queen off the hook and told her that I did indeed remember the festival at the school.

About two minutes of silence goes by, and the Man looks at me and says....

What bridge?

Labels: kids

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Good morning, Onemanbandwidth!

Good morning to my new renter. Click on the thumbnail... this is an American professor in China.... Cool site, cooler entries! Good reading!

Thanks for renting with me this week! Hope you enjoy the stay.

Labels: rent my blog

Friday, February 23, 2007

Appetizer

Where on your body do you have a scar, and what caused it?

I have a 5-6 inch scar on my left hip where I had surgery when I was about 9 months old. My hip was dislocated at birth so I was in a cast. The cast was a major deal, with a hole ... yes, a HOLE ... in the bottom where they could put a diaper on. Needless to say, I guess I smelled awful sometimes. I remember getting the cast sawed off of me, so I guess I was in it for a while.

Soup

What is something that has happened to you that you would consider a miracle?

Hands down, it would have to be the "voice" I heard tell me that the Monkey was a person who I needed to have. I was sitting in church one Sunday, drifting in and out of the sermon. I was by myself as Ace was at work. I started thinking about whether we should have a third child because we had always been on the fence about it. Then a voice in my head said "Riley Kathleen (this was the name we were going to use ... we didn't) exists ... let her happen." I thought it was just a strange thing, so I dismissed it. The following Sunday, same scenario, not listening to the sermon, and I thought that we should have the two kids dedicated to the church. I imagined us up front, and the kids were standing beside us, and I had a baby in my arms. We conceived the Monkey the following night with no intention of doing so. Her due date was always a mystery to us because the dr's office kept putting it in July, which made no sense because that would have put us conceiving her AFTER I tested positive.

Salad

Name a television personality who really gets on your nerves.

Ok... just one? For movies, it is definitely Tom Cruise. Can't stand him. Used to love him. For television, it is Calista Flockhart. I LOVED her in Ally McBeal. Then she started dating Harrison Ford, and nobody moves in on MY man. B**ch.

Main Course

What was a funny word you said as a child (such as "pasketti" for "spaghetti")?

I have no idea what I mispronounced. My mother never told me "cute" stories, but I do know that my first word was "beer." My Dad must have been so proud.

Dessert

Fill in the blank: I have always thought ______ was ______.

I have always thought my hometown was a good place to raise kids (the reason we moved back here).

Labels: Friday Feast, meme

Thursday, February 22, 2007

TT # 29

Well it appears that the higher powers are discontinuing Thursday Thirteen, and no change of hands is in the works. So I guess this is my last TT until someone purchases the rights to it, and starts it up again. It has been a lot of fun.

Thirteen of My Favorite Thursday Thirteens

1. Thirteen Things I Learned from Napoleon Dynamite

2. Thirteen of My Favorite Cereals

3. I think this was my ultimate fave of all ... Thirteen Men I Find Very Yummy ... that was the week I was featured

4. Thirteen Reasons Why Working at Cedar Point was So Much Fun

5. Thirteen Reasons Why I Love the New Battlestar Galactica

6. Thirteen Reasons Why Knitting Rocks

7. Thirteen Things for Which I Am Most Thankful

8. Thirteen Things I Like About Myself

9. Thirteen Lines from Raising Arizona

10. Thirteen Songs That Hold Memories for Me

11. This one was a labor of love ... Thirteen Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon

12. Thirteen Nice Things About My Work Computer Crashing

13. Thirteen Jobs I Have Had

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Labels: final Thursday Thirteen, meme, the best of

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Do you think the Monkey needs this?

Yes. I said "needs." I know she doesn't "want" it because she doesn't even know it exists. But I think she will look smashing in this dress.

Isn't it the sweetest thing?

If you want to look at it more, here is the link: http://hyenacart.com/prod_details.php?id=15838&vid=749

This is the little world that I sell my knitted stuff in. It is a lot of fun, and terribly tempting when it comes to window shopping.

Thank you, Valentine

I have been meaning to tell my Bloggy Valentine THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for my Valentine's Day swap gift!!! I didn't snap a picture of it before we tore into the ALL of the chocolate ... BAGS and bags of chocolate ... dark, crispy, and caramel alike, all shaped in little yummy hearts (these are on the top shelf to keep them out of my hands but it comes down for a little treat every once in a while). Our fruit is displayed in the sweet heart basket on our counter, and I have a great idea for the use of that yarn!

Thank you SOOOOO much Renee!!!!!

and yet another delay this morning ... I don't know why. Fog? Icy roads? Who knows?

Labels: school delay, Valentine's Day Swap

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Remedial Email Reading 101

Apparently, there needs to be a class for me to take called "Remedial Email Reading." Because yesterday at 2 (it wasn't noon), I called in with my little passcode. The operator says "now is this for the 20th" and I confidently reply "Yes!"

And he said "well, today is the 19th."

So my conference calls is TODAY, not yesterday.

Mark me down in the Eager Beaver department, please. And increase my bonus to 150 percent, please.

Yesterday the kids went to a little craft store, spent their money, and then got haircuts. The Queen just got 1/2 inch taken off, so you can't really tell the difference. The Man got a trim and no longer has is Elvis sideburns, so he does look better.

The Monkey .... she had her first haircut ... her first "official" haircut.

And here is her new 'do.

It might not look like a lot, but it really is. There are layers and quite a bit was taken off in the back. And it did make the curls pop a bit. And it was MUCH needed.

Labels: haircuts, kids, work

Monday, February 19, 2007

Hurry Up, Abe ... George is having a Global Teleconference

What is your opinion:

Presidents Day. Bank holiday. Hallmark holiday. Teacher holiday.

My opinion: Bank holiday, which has been taken and run with by the school systems.

Some schools are having classes today because they have used up all of their calamity days and are over. Not our school system. I have lost count, but I think we have used our allotted five.

So ... yet another day home with the kidlets. And I am extremely fortunate (yes ... you heard me ... FORTUNATE) to have this job where I can stay home with them. Now, don't ask me WHY the president of our organization has chosen today, of all days, to speak to us in a global teleconference. At noon.

What will be discussed? Only the president knows. Honestly, I think it will be a waste of my time. But I need to learn to respect authority better. I don't do well with it, and I teach my kids the same thing by living that kind of life. So I guess I should pay the respect that things deserve...

But still ... two things happening today that I think are unnecessary. And those two things will meet in the middle at noon. Luckily my phone will be on mute so they won't have to listen to my kids. But then again ... maybe I should take it off of mute and someone can keep saying "whose kids are those? That poor person has to WORK with those kids at home? She needs a 100 percent raise to be applied retroactively for five years."

One can dream, can't they?

Oh yeah.... and my first weigh in .... lost 3.9 pounds!!!!!

Labels: President's Day, school, Weight Watchers, work

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Hey if you aren't doing anything on this Sunday afternoon

I know some of you are watching the Daytona. I know some of you are just chilling out. And some of you might even be reading this blog.

If you are doing the latter of the three, pop on over to see my renter's newest picture up today. I am telling you what ... I WILL make a trip to New York City sometime in the near future. I am loving all of these pictures. I have been dreaming of what it is like to live there, to be in the heart of it all...

Have fun looking around! It really is a cool site!

Labels: New York City, rent my blog

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Are you a fun person?

I like to think that I am a relatively fun person. On my own terms, though. If it doesn't appeal to me, I won't partake in it. Basic human nature, or a coping mechanism for those times when my mother would "force" me to do something, telling me all the while "just do it. It will make you a stronger person."

Case in point: I am known in these here parts (my house) as the "not fun" parent. Now, the kids won't outright say this to my face. But it is pretty much an unspoken sentiment.

WOO HOO!!! It's snowing outside!!! WOO HOO!!!!! Let's go get our snow pants and boots and let's.... oh yeah. Mommy's home. We'll have to wait until Daddy gets here.

Did I like to play outside when I was kid? Sure did. Loved to make snow forts and tunnels and all that stuff. We had an awesome next door neighbor who let me play in his backyard because our's ... well ... for lack of a better term ... it sucked. My Dad was into early American antiques. He was into the presentation of a house. He wasn't into the functional aspects of having a six year old at home. So our backyard consisted of a concrete patio (where there once was one of those aluminum-sided swimming pools that sat in the shade ALL DAY long, never to have its water warm up to anything swimmable, and it was directly underneath TWO large evergreen trees .... needless to say that pool was used very little, and it only survived one summer because when my father found the ring that the pool created on his concrete patio ... well that was all there was to the pool)...

Shew. Where was I?

Oh yeah. The backyard. A concrete patio and brick walkway that ended up at an urn at the end where my mother would sometimes plant geraniums. And weeds would grow. Our backyard was the place of eternal shadow because of the trees. It really was just a gloomy place, so I didn't spend too much time there.

I would go next door and build forts and tunnels and have all sorts of fun. Our neighbor didn't care at all ... he was a really easy-going dude ... and my first crush... I loved him. Maybe because he was around more than my mortician as a profession father, and was more accomodating... who knows.

Psychobabble aside, I did have a fun time in the snow. I didn't have any bad memories of going down a hill at breackneck speed, being thrown off of my sled and breaking my arm. I didn't get lost in those tunnels, only to be rescued by the paramedics. So really ... there is no psychological underpinning of why I no longer like to go out in the snow.

Now ... it is too cold. It is too wet. And I just don't like to play in it.

So that makes me the "not fun" parent. My kids are anxiously awaiting the return of their father who was called into work this morning to fix some switch that was making all of the cash registers go offline. Translation: nobody knows how to do the job but Ace. Job security? Maybe. Pain in the ass? Most certainly.

So ... how about you? Even if you are in an environment where you don't get a lot of snow *dudes... you know who you are* how are you on the meter of "fun parent"? Or "fun person"?

Maybe that will be New Years Resolution for next year. Not this one, though. I have all those books to read... and I can't switch Resolutions in the middle of the year.

So I will just keep being the stick in the snow. The others ... let them have all the fun.

Labels: playful parent, snow

Friday, February 16, 2007

My new renter

I have always loved all things New York City. When I was younger, I wanted to move there. I wanted to be in New York.

I have never made the trip, although I am sure that I will sometime in this lifetime.

So when I saw that my new renter wanted to share the blogosphere space this morning, I was thrilled! It is the next best thing to being there!

Check out New York Nitty Gritty ... you will ADORE it.

Labels: New York City, rent my blog

Friday Feast # 3

Appetizer
What sound, other than the normal ringing, would you like your telephone to make?

I would love for my home phone to be able to identify every single caller that comes in audibly, like a cell phone. We used to have a phone that would recognize phone numbers, and it would pop on and say who it was (in my voice, of course). I would like to have a phone with different ringtones for everyone. I would have to work out a list of carefully selected tunes, but I think I would choose Fat Bottomed Girls for my Mom's ringtone. And then when she would hear my phone ring, and hear the songs I had chosen for other people, she would always wonder what her ringtone was.

Soup
Describe your usual disposition in meteorological terms (partly cloudy, sunny, stormy, etc.).

Sunny with a 100 percent chance of being stormy at any given moment.

Salad
What specific subject do you feel you know better than any other subjects?

KNITTING, baby! Now, I am not an expert in knitting, but I feel that I have a pretty good grasp of it.

Main Course
Imagine you were given the ability to remember everything you read for one entire day. Which books/magazines/newspapers would you choose to read?

I would read every single knitting book and magazine that was out there, just so I could increase my knowledge base. Sure, I might throw in a child behavioral book in there for good measure.

Dessert
If a popular candy maker contacted you to create their next confection, what would it be like and what would you name it?

It would be a totally decadent chocolate concoction that was actually chocolate, but had no calories. And I would name it "Don't Worry, This Won't Go to Your Arse, Baby!"

Labels: Friday Feast, meme

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

TT # 28

Thirteen Things About Starting Weight Watchers Again

1. Water. Drink it. Do it or retain salt. End of sentence.

2. Those Asian Dumplings at Ruby Tuesday's ... really can't have the whole plate anymore, dork.

3. WW makes a yummy little lemon snack cake. That I could eat the whole box of. In one sitting. Note to self: don't buy those again.

4. Exercise... really need to do it.

5. My children ask me about EVERYthing that I am doing ... Mommy, are you on Weight Watchers? What are you eating? Where is your black case? Why aren't you writing anything down? There should be points given to a person when they have to deal with that many questions just the first day on program.

6. My body hasn't been miraculously replaced with Barbie's yet ... I was expecting that on my first day back OP.

7. Although I think the points I have are a lot, the things I like to eat consume a LOT of those points.

8. Really... no more bacon and egg breafasts for me anymore. No more. That is a splurge. Read that, Ace? NO more.

9. Afer a while, a tangerine looks like chocolate.

10. Never again will I start this program on Valentine's Day.

10. # 2 ... I almost didn't record the sheer amount of points I consumed tonight for dinner. Then I realized that I needed to... for my own sake.

11. No matter how many times I hear it, this isn't a DIET. I have to tell myself that it isn't a diet. It is a change of life. Right? Right. I think so.

12. 10 points should be given, per child, per day, who have been in my house due to school closings .. so that should give me ... oh... 80 points.

13. I WILL do this. I WILL do it. I WILL I WILL I WILL!!!

Labels: diet, Thursday Thirteen, Weight Watchers

Snow Emergency Etiquette

So here is my burning question for the day:

Certainly when the wind is whipping around all over the place and there is a blizzard warning, one would not venture out into such weather.

But when that weather subsides, the wind is no longer blowing, and it is no longer snowing, when is it a good idea to go out?

Our county, and surrounding counties, are under a Level 3 snow emergency. This means that only emergency situations should take people outside and on the roadways. Ace works in a county to the northeast of us, and they are also under a similar warning. He can't reach anyone at his store, but there have been no "don't come into work" phone calls from the boss, either.

So my statement is: if there are level threes in both counties, he shouldn't go to work, right?

He isn't arguing with me as he really can't get his little car out of our driveway onto the not plowed sidestreet that we live on. The main road out front is looking pretty good, but this little sidestreet... he will get stuck post-haste, and he isn't taking MY car to work.

So I think work is a wash for him. Of course, he said he is going to wait until they plow the sidestreet to get to work. I said "well you will be here until Friday."

Of course, he can't call in his absence when nobody is picking the phone up at work.

So I think this is just one of those days ...

But there has been a little bit of traffic on the street, but nothing horrendous. Maybe like ... one car. No plows that I have noticed. And if the Municipal court is closed, then EVERYthing should be.

And let me tell you this: if my church doesn't cancel the little bit of Wed. night activities tonight, I will run SCREAMING into the street!

Ok.... here is the update on the church situation:

As of Wednesday, 2/14/2007, at 7:42 a.m.
The StoneBridge Church of God office is closed.
Check back after 12:00 p.m. for the status of Wednesday evening ministry and activities.

Let me be the first to state: I will NOT come into church just to have the three year olds to Kindergartners watch the puppet show and then keep them there until seven. I won't. I don't have choir. I do have to practice tonight for Sunday morning, but that can be done Sunday morning. Seriously, I will go all ape over someone...

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Lest you think I kid....

Peter and Paul

Last night, the Man lost his second top tooth when he ran into the babysitter. We should have paid her extra for that because we have been trying to get that thing out for the past 3 weeks. Seriously.

So the Man puts his tooth in the TF container, and goes to sleep.

And so does the TF.

The Man woke up this morning, and Ace said he came out, asked for a tissue, and said he had to go back to bed. Ace asked why, and the Man said "because I have to give the Tooth Fairy some more time to come."

DOH!!!!!

So the TF had to come up with a little something extra in a matter of seconds, so she had to take the $ 5 bill from the windowsill that the Man's Nana had given him a few weekends ago in payment for his cleaning services.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul.

And we hope that Peter doesn't notice that his $ 5 is missing from the windowsill.

But then, does that adage really have any import when Peter and Paul are the same person, and the robbery occurred with the best of intentions?

Monday, February 12, 2007

The Master of My Domain

I'm gonna order me about 20 of these...

Snow snow go away

Ok. It isn't upstate New York, but we are under some snow watch ... meaning ... watch the snow as it falls down on us, leaving us with 6-8". And you know what that means...

I will be blessed with having all kids at home tomorrow. Or Wednesday. One or the other. Or both.

So the younger two and I are off to the grocery store right now to get MUCH needed groceries. I haven't had my coffee yet this morning, so I think I am going for the next best thing: a can of Pepsi. And this 12-pack is the last of the Pepsi that I am getting. I am getting off the stuff. I guess I need to pick up the Diet Pepsi habit now.

Because I am also starting WW Online. Today. No ifs, ands, or large butts about it ... gotta do it.

So ... wish me luck. I can't do things in baby steps, you know. It all has to be gangbusters. Start strong, end weak.

No. Don't say that.

Ok. Off I go.

Friday, February 09, 2007

My renter needs some help

She has been accepted as a channel blogger. Now, this I know nothing about ... but she is needing some advice on things to write about/topics. And she has asked for her readers' help.

So if anyone can think of things/topics for her to write about, pop on over and help her out, would you? I know some of you write for other blogs and other sites, so maybe you could lend her a hand.

Me ... I talk about my kids. And knitting. And scrapbooking.

And then that is all. Yeah, the occasional bitch about the inlaws. But that is all. I think. Oh yeah, and Anna Nicole Smith (which still saddens me).

Click on her thumbnail there to the left. Please.

Friday Feast # 2

Appetizer - Have you been sick yet this winter? If so, what did you come down with?

Ah yes ... I have been sick this winter. Came down with some sort of crap that ended up taking me to the dr. for some antibiotics. I think it was deemed a sinus infection.

Soup - What colors dominate your closet?

I will have to say that brown, black, white, and khaki dominate the old closet. I really would be a good subject of What Not To Wear. And not the watered-down American version... the good British version with Trinny and Susannah.

Salad - How would you describe your personal "comfort zone"?

Oh wow. I like to be "out there" "larger than life" and that is how I want people to know me. But I also need to be able to pull that in sometimes because I can't always live like that. So I would say that anything that I can control is all in my comfort zone. If it starts to go out of control, then I am not at all comfortable.

Main Course - On which reality show would you really like to be a contestant?

Seriously, I would LOVE to be on The Biggest Loser. I have weight to lose, and the drama queen in me wants to be on television.

Dessert - Which holiday would you consider to be your favorite?

Hands down, it would be Thanksgiving because that was the day I was born. Thanksgiving reminds me of home, it reminds me of fall, it reminds me of school programs, it reminds me of being with family. If I concentrate on all of those other things, I forget that I turn a year older! LOL!

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Knock me over with a feather

Anna Nicole Smith is dead.

I'm not a fan, but I am also not a fan of a baby losing her mother so soon after she is born, either.

How completely sad.

They are doing an autopsy ... but I am sure they already know the reason.

So sad.

TT # 27

After having had low temperatures here all week, I decided to make me feel a little warmer coming up with this Thursday Thirteen. So ... here are Thirteen Places That I Wouldn't Mind Teleporting to Right at This Instance1. Hawaii ... I get insanely jealous when I look at Local Girl's blog and see all the beautiful scenery, knowing that she isn't freezing her tootsies off when she walks out the door every day.

2. Asheville, NC. I watched a National Open House show on HGTV the other day, and they said that Asheville has an average of 212 sunny days a year, and only 12.5 snow days. Ahhh... the life.

3. London, England because really, they are probably having only 30 degree weather right now. I would just love to go to London right now just because...

4. Houston. It is 63 there right now. It is 1 here. 1. One. ONE!

5. San Diego. Not only would I get to visit a great online friend, but I could bask in their 64 degree weather today. And SUN!

6. Miami and not of Ohio. Those poor people are going to have 79 degree weather today. Poor saps.

7. Seattle. Sure, there's rain forecasted for today. But that isn't snow.

8. Portland, OR. I have always wanted to visit this area, and those 50 degree temps look pretty inviting.

9. Mamacita Tina's Suburb of Phoenix: she said they were in the 70s this week AND she went on a picnic. But she also pleaded that we don't hate her. Ok... I don't hate you ... too much. Of course, just kidding. Your my BSG buddy, man!

11. ChristieO's Tampa ... the poor thing is freezing down there.... but then, I wouldn't trade her when it comes to hurricane season.

11. Las Vegas seems to be a recurring theme here. I don't think I would mind being there right now. I've never been ... Sue is going on March 15... will she come home with a wedding band on that finger?

12-13 ... You tell me if you live somewhere where it is more than one degree, and I will add you here. Sue, sorry ... I KNOW you won't be able to add your location!

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

The picture of the Grammy bite

By request, here is the picture of the Grammy bite....

Now it is no longer there. I think she picked it off or something nasty like that.

She amended her story again this morning, letting me know that it is a green snake that bit her while she was sleeping in her bed. It scared her and said "ssssss" and then I came into the room and scared it away.

The modern day St. Patrick.

Hello to Sparks and Butterflies

My new renter, Sparks and Butterflies, has checked in for one week. Please take a moment to pop on over to her blog and say hello.

And it looks like we might be on the same cycle.

Welcome to Unexplored Territory.

You know what?

First of all ... listening to the delay list this morning (because we got some snow yesterday .... you know, it starts to warm up and then there's snow because it was just too damn cold for it to snow the other two calamity days) ... why does a "Digital Academy" have a two-hour delay? Isn't this the same thing as homeschooling through the public school system? I'm scratching my head at that one.

Oh yes ... and for my locals ... don't forget ... tomorrow is a TWO-HOUR IN SERVICE delay day. Yes it is, ladies.

Then there is this: the Monkey has the quite the imagination. The other day, I was helping her change her shirt and I noticed a really nasty looking scab on her back. She is constantly falling down off of things ... her sister's bunk bed ladder, her sister's dresser, her dresser, her brother's dresser (and lest you wonder, these are all attached to the walls, thank goodness), you name it, she climbs on it.

So I commented to her about this nasty boom boom on her back, and she felt back there and with the world's straightest face, she said "you know what" (she prefaces EVERYthing she says with this phrase and doesn't appreciate it when I respond with "I know a lot of things") "Grammy bit me!"

First of all, Grammy hasn't been here since the end of December/beginning of January, so I think she is out of running just for sheer geographical purposes.

Now, in times past if she has had some boom boom somewhere on her body, she will comment "a locust bit me" or "the dog bit me." We don't have any dogs, and by golly, if there is a locust in here, I would be screaming.

So yesterday when she felt her back again and felt the scab, she said "you know what... Grammy didn't bite me. A snake bit me."

Great. I'm thinking I need to call Critter Control.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Note to self

When we are experiencing balmier than normal conditions in the months of November and December, NEVER once say "boy I sure wish it would act like winter."

10 degree high today with a wind chill advisory of -11 to -21 below.

And this is Northwest Ohio. I have a friend in Canada who said it is supposed to be 50 some degrees up there.

Monday, February 05, 2007

Do you think I should be worried?

I fear for the future of my third child....

But there seems to be a future in impersonators... however, I don't think the Monkey could get that hair on her chest...

See the pattern here ...

Maybe she will make a good drag queen. There should be a future in that, right?

Sunday, February 04, 2007

The Big Game

So... anyone watching it tonight? Who's playing?

Can you guess my answer to the first question based on my second.

I watched last year when the Steelers won, only because of our hometown dude, Big Ben. Who has kind of faded off into the sunset this season. Hope next season is a better one for him and his team.

Me ... I'm going to see if I can sneak in a few Knitty Gritty episodes because DIY is running them all throughout the Super Bowl. I was wondering why Battlestar Galactica wasn't on tonight ... and now I remember why.

We just aren't huge football fans here. But give us NCAA basketball tourneys, and we are glued to the television. But only if the University of Kentucky is playing. And this year, it isn't looking so good for them, either.

Maybe I just need to stop declaring loyalty to a team because it only seems to give that team bad luck. Maybe that is why the whozits are playing the whatsits tonight.

Seriously .. who IS playing?

Friday, February 02, 2007

Could I please have the defintion of the word?

emetophobia
Part of Speech:
n
Definition:
a fear of vomiting

This is me. In a nutshell. I fear it. I loathe it. I abhor it. I lie awake next to children who are doing it, and get little to no sleep.

Queen Bee is trying to get me over that phobia. Tonight. And I am here. By myself. No reprieve. No husband to deal with it because, unlike me, he can wake up at the right time, and then fall back to sleep.

Me... I lie there. I listen. I anticipate every freaking move that is made. And then I start to get nervous around the time that I think another episode would be coming on.

The Queen has come down with a fever. Now, there have been times in the past when she does come down with one, she does get sick to her stomach. Once.

PLEASE DEAR GOD LET THIS BE ONE OF THOSE TIMES!!!!

Ace ... if you are reading this (which I doubt that you are), haul ass home tomorrow afternoon because .... ummm... yeah. Your ass needs to be here.

Friday Feast # 1

I am going to give the Friday's Feast a whirl this week since I missed TT yesterday. Just a little fun stuff ...

Appetizer

What was one of the fashion fads when you were a teenager?

Neon colors. I remember having a pair of pants that had a white background, and they had little neon splotches on them ... blue, that pink color that I adored, and some green. And you couldn't wear just ANY top with it ... it had to pick up some neon color, and I remember mine being YELLOW! You could see me coming from a mile away.

Soup

Name one thing people assume about you when they first meet you.

Wow. That I am loud and boisterous and larger than life. Which is a correct assumption.

Salad

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how hard do you work?

I had to ask Ace to see if I am overstating my work ethic... he said I should put 11. At least 10. I work VERY very hard at everything that I do. If I slack on something, I am afraid I am going to get caught and someone is going to say "did you REALLY give that your all?" It is a work ethic that was instilled in me by my father.

Main Course

If you were given a free 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl to sell anything you currently own, what would you advertise?

My knitting supplies and yarn. I want to teach the world to knit ... not a cheesy Coke commercial ... but close.

Dessert

Fill in the blank:

I love to knit when it is completely crazy around my house.

Thursday, February 01, 2007

here are those puppets

I think they turned out really cute.

And Ace made the big time. That is his hand.

The girls want their own, so I guess that will be next on the knitting agenda.

Oh yeah... one more thing...

VOTE FOR ME!!!! PLEASE!

Click the Share the Love thumbnail on the left there ... that one. Nope. Right THERE. Yeah. That one. Click it. Or you can click here and go vote. I am in the humor category ... very first one there listed.

Oh and Robin, Mamacita Tina, Local Girl, Sue (the Mind), and Kellie ... go check out your nominations!!!! And vote for them, too!!!!

Anyone do any dream interpretation

because I really need to have this one interpreted.

I was in the backseat of a car with a male friend of mine who I have known for a very long time. This man is not my husband. He was making some moves on me, and I told him he needed to stop and that I wasn't interested. This I attribute to the fact that I just spoke with him on the phone this week.

We were parked out in front of my church under the awning on the driveway. My son came running out to the car when I was getting out of it, and we went into the church together.

There was a buffet line and Ace and the girls were in it, getting food. The Man (who doesn't watch where he walks ALL the time) was heading straight for this hole in the floor and sure enough ... he fell in.

But this was no ordinary hole ... this hole was a large garbage chute and it was about 5 stories down. I immediately ran to the opening and started screaming for the Man, who was screaming all the way down. He ended up landing on a LOT of garbage, and he looked like he was trying to swim in it, which freaked him out and I could just hear his screams all the way up the chute.

I FORCED myself to wake up at this point. And this dream happened between 5:45 and 6 this morning. It was just awful... one of those paralyzing dreams that I wanted to bound out of bed and run into the Man's room and hold on to him for dear life.

Gah.. it just gives me the willies typing this out.

So .. is that a more interesting post?

To 13 or not to 13

Trying to decide if I wanted to 13 this morning. Guess I have decided that I don't. I just don't feel like it this am. I have work in my queue that needs tending to and Ace is taking off out of town tomorrow night, leaving me to be the sole caregiver and I STILL have a lot of work left to do. Plus .. I have a final to write for tonight ... and yeah. Too much stuff, too little time.

But I did get a hat knit for my nephew and it is darn cute. Sorry ... no picture of it yet. My sister called me a snot for getting it done in two hours. She started it and then didn't understand double-pointed needles. Oh well...

So now I am off to summarize a case or two. Or 20. And write a final.

Maybe there will be something more interesting later today. Maybe not.

I'm a mom of three peeps ... Queen Bee, The Door Man, and the Chandelier Monkey, and wife to Ace, the Helpful Hardware Man. I created this space to get away from the people known as my inlaws, and because life with three kids and a hubby is all Unexplored Territory.

The nine-year-old who seems to be growing older every minute, has an opinion and a comment for everything, and has a true servant's heart.

The seven-year-old who loves the organization of things, will someday be someone's therapist because of his kind soul, and will more than likely be living with us until he is 40 years old.

The five-year-old with the 13-year-old attitude, who has a dictator's personality, asks you to watch her all the time and say "hold on" to keep your attention, and will someday come home on the back of some dude's motorcycle with 10 tatts and a body piercing or two.

The man of the house, the fixer of things, the winner of prizes, and the only person in his family to escape the South.