Friday, September 30, 2011

My Good Friends

Good friends bring you pumpkin bread when your coffee date gets canceled and she sees on fb you are having a rough day.

Good friends don't mind when you are crying your eyes out over the phone.

Good friends are good listeners.

Good friends make you laugh and laugh with you.

Yes.  I got pumpkin bread today. 

Yes.  That is pretty much all I have eaten today. 

(Yum)

Yes.  I have amazing friends who make me laugh, check up on me, and bring me yummy food. 

Seriously.  What would I do without my friends? 

I wouldn't get pumpkin bread.

I would be crying all alone.

I probably would not be laughing.

Dan would get the brunt of the results of no friends to vent to. 

This would be so sad for both me and Dan.


Thank you Lord for my good friends!


Thursday, September 29, 2011

Good Vet, Bad Vet

I took Simon to the vet today.  He is my sick kitty.  I cried my eyes out.  Now I am home again, with my kitty.  He's snuggled up on my lap now purring.

I am with a new vet who is a good vet.  Let me tell you why.

She heard me out on all my questions, concerns, blubbering, and more questions.  I decided to do a round of blood work just to see where Simon's levels are and if it will show what else might be going on with him.  She said she would call me tomorrow.

Tomorrow?  Yes.  I was amazed, and I believe her when she says that she will call tomorrow.

Let me tell you a little about our previous vet.  I had bloodwork done back in the Spring for Simon.  I had to call to find out the results.  The vet then told me she would call when the rest of the bloodwork came in.  I never heard from her.

Two months later I was back at that same vet for Daisy and saw a different doc.  She asked about Simon then realized they never called me back with what was a simple diagnosis with a simple treatment.  It was two months later.  I had figured that the news was bad and they didn't want to break it to me and that I was going to have to have him put down.  It was awful.

Basically, a good vet will call you when they say they will and hear you out with all your concerns and answer honestly.

Today at the new vet the ladies at the front desk were putting multiple calls in to the previous vet to get Simon's paperwork.  They faxed the form over weeks ago and still haven't received it.  I told them today to not hold their breath.  They would probably never see that paperwork even though someone earlier told them that they would have it by 2 today.

See?  Good vets will follow through.  Bad vets don't do anything.

Either way my poor kitty is struggling.  His quality of life is still pretty good though so I just can't stomach the thought of putting him down yet.  He was my little 8 week old kitten not too long ago.  Okay, it was 14 years ago, but still!  He was my kitty, and when he looked up at me at the vet's office today with a look that said, "can we get out of here please?"  I knew today was not the day.  I know the kids would be really sad too if they didn't get a chance to say goodbye. 

So, we wait for the blood work and will go from there.  It's all just horrible horrible horrible. 

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Randomness

Sometimes you need 4 hour long therapy phone call sessions with a friend :)  That may have been a record.  Either way I got 3 loads of laundry folded and Madelyn's room cleaned.  Anyone who has seen Madelyn's room lately can vouch for me that cleaning her room is quite a feat.  Her closet awaits me, but it is nice to see all those nooks and crannies cleared of who knows what.  That girl loves her little "treasures."

.........................

Elijah didn't get a behavior sticker today.  Why?  His teacher writes a little blurb on the chart in his folder and it said that he came back from the bathroom with his head, shirt and pants wet.  Oh my.  He tried to tell me that he hadn't been playing around.  I admit I had to giggle when I read her note.  I explained to him that he is a big boy now and bathroom breaks are not for hanging around and picking things out of the toilet, etc.  But, oh my.  Elijah definitely keeps things interesting around here.

At dinner we found out that he put his hand over the faucet a couple times so the water sprayed everywhere.  He now knows he is not supposed to do that.  It still makes me giggle and shake my head though.

.........................

Madelyn wants her ears pierced for her birthday.  EEK!  So, tonight at dinner she was trying to convince Dan why it was a good idea.  He doesn't want her to grow up too quickly and told her she is still a little girl.  She replied, "I'm not a little girl" which is fine, but she said it in a kind of whiny baby voice.  That didn't help her cause very much, but we did all laugh.

I think it's fine, but when Dan found out I had to wait until I graduated from 6th grade until I got mine pierced he thought that was a better idea.  Madelyn is completely convinced this is what she wants to do so I have a feeling she will be angling for it for the next month until her birthday comes.  She secretly told me tonight that she almost prayed that papa would let her.

.........................

I dreamed about a girl whose blog I follow.  I dreamed she had a baby (she's not pregnant) and named her ... wait for it ... Chrystal France.  In my dream I thought it was the most amazing name and told her so while I fussed over the baby.  Then I woke up and had to laugh.  If she knew me better, I would e-mail her about it because I think she would find it funny, but since she doesn't really know me I think she would find it creepy.  I am still laughing about it though.

......................

Why does it continue to rain?  It was raining so hard this afternoon that I could feel it on the couch because the windows were open.  I realize my 5 readers haven't all been to my house, but that is a good distance.  Oh, I also realize that my 5 readers may not have been to my house since I rearranged my living room.  Well, just believe me when I say it was raining hard and that I don't normally feel rain coming in the window while I am sitting on the couch.

......................

And here ends my randomness for the night ... any randomness you would like to share?




Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Crazy Days and a Toilet Story

Well, it turns out insurance will NOT cover any of our stuff damaged by the water.  Grrrr.  They drove all the way out here to tell me that.  Double grrrrr. 

I was just glad I didn't cry in front of the guy.  (sniffle)

So frustrating, but these are the days of our lives right now, and honestly, Dan and I keep saying how glad we are that we really like each other because it would totally stink to go through all of this with someone that we didn't really care for, love, or even like.  That would just be terrible.

On a better note I am now taking a class.  A class on medical terminology.  I started tonight.  It's really fun.  That sounds weird I know.  I read that is was fun in one of the reviews and thought the same thing.  Then I started it and realized what they were talking about.  It's six weeks long with twelve lessons so I am sure it will get harder as it goes on, but for now it's fun.

Also, I applied for a job.  So crazy!!!  But, it was good to go through the process and get my resume together again.  It reminded me that I was once a professional.  ha!  It's been a while. 

The job would be every other weekend at the emergency room in one of our local hospitals.  I would be the person who comes to the room rolling my computer along and registering your information. 

Of course, I am sure I am one of hundreds applying for this position, but I plan to keep my eye out for other similar positions.  I actually would like to work at the hospital that is only ten minutes away rather than twenty (spoiled much?), but I will go where they will take me for a few hours and  let me be home the rest of the week.

My medical terminology class will help me get a foot in the door.  That's what I am hoping anyway.

On a side note, Elijah pulled a penny out of his pocket after school yesterday.  He then went on to tell me the story about how a boy tried to flush it.  It didn't go down so Elijah reached in and grabbed it.  He assured me he washed his hands really good afterward, and that the penny had been in his pocket ever since.

Madelyn asked if he washed the penny.  No.  He then went and washed the penny. 

He also told me that Mrs. Rinehart told him he could keep it.  How she knows about it I have no idea.  I did ask him to please not grab anymore things out of the toilet. 

Like I said ... crazy days ... but it's all good.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Our Night Away

It was so super nice to have a night away.  We went to the grand city of Reading and stayed at the Marriott next to Viva.  Yum.

We kept dinner simple by going to Panera, but not before deliberating over where to go and driving around Broadcasting Square 2 or 3 times because Dan took me seriously when I joked about going to IHOP.  ha ha!  Then we were going to go to the Peanut Bar.  Then we ended up at Panera.  We  were both too hungry to have any kind of wait at a restaurant and we wanted to have a yummy breakfast somewhere so we went to Panera.

And it was POURING down rain.  (just wanted to throw that in)

From Panera we went and rented a couple movies to watch at the hotel, got some ice cream at coldstone, then headed to the hotel.

Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhh.  What is it about landing in a hotel room, just the two of you and kicking back on a King Size bed that is just so darn relaxing?  Oh!  I know.  THERE IS NOTHING ELSE TO DO!!  No dishes.  No vacuuming.  No animals to take care of or clean up after.  No meals to prepare.  Nothing.  The bed takes up most of the room so you may as well lie down rather than sit on the too firm couch.  Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh.  Soooooooo niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.  And, it's a newer hotel so it's really modern and chic. 

We flicked on the tv and settled in.  When we decided to watch a movie Dan pulled out his laptop only to realize he forgot the cord.

Shoot!

That was the only way we were going to be able to watch the movies we rented!!  Since we were only about 15 minutes away from home I suggested going home to get it.  But, Dan was REALLY really tired so he thought we would have enough battery life to get through the movie so we went with it even though we only had batter power for an hour and 5 minutes.


So, when the battery died 3/4th of the way through guess what we did!?  We hopped into the car (we call it our limo now).  It was 11 pm.  By that time the rain had stopped and we made it a little adventure.  Plus, Dan also grabbed some pop tarts, granola bars and a couple apples while he was home.

The kids got a kick out of this the next day when my mom told them what we had to do.

Speaking of the next day, breakfast at Viva was super duper dee-lish.  Yum.  And, I convinced Dan that it was time to get him some new clothes and since we were directly across from the outlets he didn't have much of an argument to not.

I love shopping, even if it's not for me.  He had gotten some money from a writing gig so shopping is that much more fun when you don't have to feel badly about spending a little.  Yay!

Dan enjoyed it as well ... for about 30 minutes.

We then went to Barnes & Noble.  I bought the book A Thousand Gifts.  I read the first few pages in B&N and was crying.  I knew I had to buy that book.  I'll write more on this later though.

We topped off our alone time with burritos from Chipotle.  Yum and yum and yum.  I am addicted.  I truly believe I could eat a burrito a day.  They are so fresh and yummy.

Wow.  I've "yummed" over food a lot in this post.  

So, all in all, it was a super fun time.  We laughed a lot and cried a little.  Seriously.  Dan tickled me to the point I cried and while he was tickling me he was saying, "The kids aren't here to protect you!!"  Usually the kids come to my rescue.  It reminded me of when my sister would pin me down and tickle me to the point I cried. I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe enough to tell him to stop.  Oh my.  All this because I was giving him a hard time about exclaiming how much he loves king size beds and I thought he was going to say, "I love Kate!" as he fell onto the bed, but he didn't.    Two K words, see?

Oh, and then Dan and I cried at that darn car commercial with the little girl, the one I posted the other day.  So hard to imagine that at this point.  Whew.  

*For the record:  Dan didn't really "cry" per se, but he was really choked up.

Anyhoo, it was soon back to reality.  My mom said the kids were super sweet.  Madelyn told her after we left that she and Elijah do not like seeing both of us go and that it's not often that they have to.  My little girl who does not like change.  So sweet.

It's always nice to be back home, even if I do still get whiffs of mildew.  Blech.  More on that later ...




Sunday, September 25, 2011

Birthday Present ... or Not

My birthday is coming up and recently Elijah said that he had an idea to get me a cheerleading wii game that he saw.  Very cute.

Well, since our wii drowned in the flood, apparently he said he would just buy me a new wii for my birthday.  I didn't know this, but Madelyn brought it up today.

She and Dan just went out for a daddy/daughter date and while they are out they are going to buy the supplies she needs to make my gift.

So, while we were discussing this she asked Elijah if he was still going to get me a wii for my birthday.  He said, "No.  I decided I wouldn't waste all my money on that."

Ha ha ha ha ha ...

First of all, I am wondering how much money he thinks he has.  I know neither of the kids know about their savings accounts that I put their birthday money in every year.  They don't even know that check they get is money.  I just mail it away to our credit union.  And, I know that he doesn't have $200 worth of change in his little piggy bank.

Secondly, the fact that he used the word "waste" just cracks me up. 

Ahhhhh, birthdays with kids are so fun.  

Frozen Brain or Something

I don't know what the you call it, but Friday my brain was NOT working properly.

I thought I had started the dishwasher so later I started unloading it only to find that it was still dirty. 

I thought I hadn't done my makeup yet so I started putting on my powder foundation only to then see I had eyeliner and mascara on.  I most definitely had done my makeup already.

My mom came up because she stayed with the kids while Dan and I had a night away.  I made coffee for us only to realize I put 6 scoops of coffee in for 8 cups. 

Then I got into the car with Dan to leave and promptly told him "my wheel needed more tire."  What I was trying to say was "my tire needed more air."

We got to the hotel and when we were in the elevator I went to push the button for the 3rd floor, but instead of pushing the button I was pushing the spot that has the number 3 on it. 

What is wrong with me?  I think I needed that night away, especially since right before we left we found our sump pump pumping water right back into our basement. 

Oh dear Lord, please deliver us from so much rain.  Amen.

Saturday my brain seemed to be in better working order.  Shopping was involved though so I think there may be some connection there. 

Saturday, September 24, 2011

I Dare You ...

to not cry when you watch this ...



Dan and I both were all choked up.  We had a night away at a hotel last night which was super fun, but then this commercial came on and don't tell Dan, but I cam this close to suggesting we should go home.

I didn't though.  We came home today and our kids are still little for now.  For now ...

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Fighting the Grumpies

I would like to whine right now, but instead I will focus on the fun parts of today.

I had coffee with a friend.  Fun.

I had to get a boat load of groceries.  Not so fun.  Shoot!  I said I want't going to whine.  So, instead I will say I am thankful that my husband has a job that provides the money for us to get groceries.  And, I used coupons and saved $22.  You don't want to know how much I spent though.  Yeesh.

I have enough cereal to last us for a month.  Fun.

Chatted on the phone with a good friend and laughed a lot even though we only talked for a little.  Definitely the little boost I needed at the time.  Yay for good friends!

Since Dan is at dinner with a friend the kids watched the rest of their movie and I took a little nap on the couch.  Aaaaah.

I think the allergy medicine is making me tired.

Then another good friend called and we chatted for a while and I vented and now I am not so grumpy.  Yay again for good friends!  I'll add another yay for Dan because now he gets to come home to a wife who is happier.

And, this is just the icing on the cake for the happiness replacing grumpiness ...



Raise your hand if you want to squeeze that kitty.

And, Elijah just told me my arms were jiggly ...


Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Happiness with a Twist of Stupid

So, today I was not very smart.  It's okay though because I was happy, like really happy.  I found myself driving and thought, "Wow!  I feel really happy right now."  It kind of surprised me.  I think it has been a while since I just felt that kind of carefree happiness.

It was a good day.   Why?  Because I was with friends today.  I had my Bible Study ladies over for catch up time.  We haven't been together for weeks and weeks so we had a lot of catching up to do.  And, Michelle only has an hour and a half window before she has to head off to work so we are really limited with our time.

It was lovely.  I am SO ready to jump back into the Word.  I hate the murky feeling that develops after not enough time studying God. 

Okay, so after that I got lunch to take over to Cori's.  Cori used to live next door and now lives down the street.  People tend to do that around here.  They move out of our neighborhood into the brand new houses they are building right next to our development.

That was fun too.  Cori was such a nice neighbor.  Our girls are the same age and were really cute when they were 3 and would play together.  She is still a nice neighbor, just a farther away neighbor.  It was good to catch up.

So, I came home from that little visit feeling pretty good about today.  Then I went to let the dogs out and couldn't figure out why Molly wasn't coming.

This is the part where the stupid comes in.  Ready?

I had locked her and the 2 cats in my room for Bible Study time which is what I usually do.  But, also, what I usually do is let the animals out right after everyone leaves.  I didn't this time.  Instead I made a few phone calls, ordered lunch, wrote a thank you note, and left to have lunch.  By the time I got home from lunch it was ... 3 pm.

Yes.  That means they were in my room for ... (cringing) ... six hours. 

Keep in mind my one cat is sick.  And, let's just say that legos are really really really difficult to clean, what with all those little pieces and crevices.  Blech.

I won't give you all the gory details since I am currently trying to bleach them from my own mind, but it is hard to forget when many of the legos are still sitting on my bathroom sink waiting to be scrubbed/bleached/burned .... (trying not to gag).

So, that was my day. 

Overall I can't complain.  I have a coffee date with a friend tomorrow morning and a couple of others on tap for next week.  These things make me happy and a little more, dare I say, normal.

A little normalcy is all I've been asking for these last few weeks.  Thank you Lord!!

...........

I re-read part of this post and realized it might seem a little strange that we had legos in our bedroom so let me explain.  Dan has his legos from when he was a kid.  He introduced them to the kids a few years back and has always kept them under our bed since then.  That was their "special" spot because the kids knew they could only play with them with permission.

Now that Elijah is obsessed with legos he has taken to playing with Dan's legos a lot more and has joined some of his own in the mix.  Yet, they still stay in our room.  Dan plans to give Elijah his set, but wants to wait for Christmas or another special occasion. 

Alas, they now became victim of ... oh yeah, I said I wouldn't mention details.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Nutella

Uh oh. 

Nutella may just be the end of my healthy endeavor. 

It's just that 4 pm rolled around and I was STARVING!!  My stomach was growling and everything.  I knew Dan would be bummed if I went ahead and cooked up dinner and ate it before it was even 5.  He usually doesn't get home until 6.

So instead I pulled out the Nutella.  And the Saltines. 

Oh my.

Dan ate Nutella in France and really liked it so I bought it recently.  Really I could take it or leave it. 

Until today that is.  When you are hungry and feel as though you are depriving yourself of stuff I think anything could taste delicious.  It helps that Nutella is made with chocolate though.

But, reading the label there is nothing really nutritious about it.  There is a ton of sugar and 11 grams of fat in every 2 tbs. 

YUMMY!!! 

I kept going back for more.  I think I am good now until dinner though.  I think ... 

Biking

I went for a bike ride yesterday and today.  It is slowly dawning on me the things I can do when i have no kids in tow.  Biking is one of them. 

Of course I can go with the kids, but Elijah isn't quite there yet with his ability to be able to keep up.  And Madelyn still needs to stay on sidewalks. 

So, when I am by myself I can go however fast, however far, etc.  Good stuff.

I used to bike a lot when I was younger.  I would go anywhere I could on my bike.  I would even go along the trail that ran along the creek until I could no longer make it on a bike.  It was fun.

I am noticing a few differences between biking then and biking now. 

One.  I wear a helmet.  I know, I know.  It's not super attractive, but neither are head injuries. 

Two.  My bum hurts.  Ouch.  I think this is just a matter of getting used to being on a seat like that, but we'll see.

Other things I noticed are ... 

Dogs seemed to get more excited when you ride by on a bike rather than just running or walking.  Yikes.

Squirrels in the road can be quite daunting.  They don't know which way they want to run and I don't want to run over one in a car, much less a bike. 

I am a wuss.  I slow way down when I am going around a turn that has gravel on it. 

I still want to take my bike over to a trail that runs along the river one of these days though.  I am thinking that will be a good place to go as a family.  We got rid of our trailblazer though.  Hopefully we can fit the bikes in our Santa Fe.

Either way, it added some calories to my daily intake on livestrong.com so now I can eat dinner tonight :oP


Water

So, I am trying to be healthier, not drink so much coffee, tea, or any other yummy goodness that isn't water.

I love iced tea.  I love coffee.  But, this is my second day of trying to drink A LOT of water and it is true what they say.  Water fills you up, quenches your thirst, helps combat cravings.  It's true.  All of it.  I experienced it today.

I found myself wanting more coffee so I downed a bottle of water.  I no longer felt like I needed coffee. 

Of course, now it is almost 2 and I am getting the afternoon sleepies so I did just make coffee, but I also drank another bottle of water.  I keep refilling the same bottle in case you are worried about our environment as a result of my water consumption.

I am also trying to track my calories using livestrong.com and let me just say I have 36 calories left to consume for the day and I haven't even entered all of my calories yet. 

Um, I'd say that part isn't going so well.  It is surprising to me how many calories are in things.  I've really only eaten mini bagels, some crackers and some tuna on a roll.  This part is going to take a bit more effort.

In the meantime, drinking more and more water can't hurt.

Oh, and where is the sun?  Doesn't the sun know that I need him right now?  He needs to read my blog. 

Music: A Sampling

I like music.  It's very therapeutic for me.  When I had babies I stopped listening to a lot of music for a bit, mainly because of nap times and always having to keep an ear out for what your child is doing.  It wasn't until I started really listening to it again that I realized how much I missed it.

I am definitely one of those people who needs to listen to it loud and sing along to it even louder.  I also listen to songs over and over and over again.  It just does something for the soul.  My soul, anyway.


Anyway, here is a sampling of what you will find on my ipod ...



Mumford & Sons.  Oh my.  Why did I not buy this album sooner?  I had checked it out a few times, but I guess I wasn't ready for it.  Now I am so in love with their sound and all the different instruments they use.  They just rock out in such an honest "i'm giving it my all" way.  I love it.

Here's another ... these lyrics are powerful and sad.



I love that they look like they just stepped out of a pub and that they are all good friends.


Maroon 5.  Why did I not discover them sooner?  I was listening to a few songs from a previous album and was surprised that there are songs that I love all on the same album.  I may be getting that one next.

This is definitely a play over and over kind of album.



Adele.  Seriously. 





Adele rocks.  There are just no two ways about it.  You gotta love a girl who can just belt out songs like it's nobody's business.  And, she writes her own songs.  Double cool.

Another girl who can sing ...



Aw, Johny D ...



And, you can't have an ipod without a little S & G ...



Okay, one more.  Again.  You can't not have Indigo Girls on your ipod ...



That's such a cute little video :)

Okay, give me any music suggestions.  I especially need some good Christian music.  Why is good Christian music so hard to find? 




















Monday, September 19, 2011

Whine with a side of Whine

My throat is scratchy and I feel very sleepy.  Whine.

Our school needs money.  Our church needs money.  Whine.

I still smell mildew.  Whine.

In other news we have amazing people in our lives.  We got a check in the mail.  A friend heard about all of our issues and sent us some money.  That is super cool, and so very helpful.  Seriously.  It made my heart smile.

It's gestures like that, and Bob giving us the car, that remind us in the midst of craziness there is goodness, like the Spirit of God moving kind of goodness. 


Amen.




Saturday, September 17, 2011

Leesport Days 2011

We got to hang out with our friends tonight.  Seeing our friends from out of town just never lasts long enough.  There are always things you wished you had mentioned, talked about, been able to do together, etc.  Sad.

Anyway, we went to Leesport Days which is super expensive, but still fun, especially if you go with friends.  The kids always want to ride the rides which is where all your money goes.  It wasn't until we were leaving that we saw all the fun stands with all the cheap games and prizes.  Oh well.  The kids still got some fun items.

So, we had one ride ticket left.  One.  Easy right?  Just find someone to give it to so they can add it to their stash since the tickets cost roughly $1 each. 

I offered it to a few people and NO TAKERS!  What?! 

So, I met back up with everyone.  We are headed home and I am telling that I could NOT find someone to take our extra ticket.  Then a family comes by with a little kid.  They are heading to the festivities and I thought, "Perfect!"  I offer them the ticket and she says, "Oh, no thanks.  I already have a ton."

Um.  I offered her one ticket.  If she already has a ton, why not just one more?  Chris was shocked.  He said he thought I was exaggerating when I said no one would take it.  He said it was like me offering a dollar to someone and them saying, "Oh, no thank you!  I already have $5 in my pocket." 

It really was kind of crazy.  I couldn't think of what more I could do to make a ticket more appealing.  I guess I could have just forced it on someone.

So, the Warrens left and we got the kids settled into bed knowing that the fireworks from Leesport Days would be starting up any minute.  Even though you know it's coming it still scares the daylights out of you.  I thought our roof crashed in on our house.  It is so loud.  Last year I thought someone shot a gun through my kitchen window, but mostly it just sounds like you neighborhood is being bombed.  It is VERY loud.

I run upstairs and the kids joined me in the bathroom so we could watch them out the window.  I have to say,  watching fireworks from your house with the windows closed, etc. is the best way to watch them.  They aren't too loud.  It's warm, etc. 

So, we are watching and we're chatting.  We got to talking about best friends and friends who you say are friends, but only because you kind of have to because mostly they are just mean and, well, you get the picture.  I told the kids that you can have more than one best friend and I was telling them about mine and Madelyn adds her list.  She said, "I have Alli at school and Isabelle in a foreign land ... " 

Oh my.  It was so cute.  I started laughing and she laughed and Elijah said, "What does 'foreign land' mean?"

I explained that it means from another country, and Madelyn starts cracking up realizing her mistake.  It was so cute and so funny because even though some friends are only 2 hours away it really can seem like they are in a foreign land.

Friends truly are blessings, but when they move away it is such a huge bummer.  We will be thankful for all the time we have with them though, even the times when you blow all your money on rides and cheap trinkets.

Some Tidbits

Mildew.  Blech.  And more mildew.  This is all I smell anymore.  It comes in different flavors apparently too depending on your surface.  Musty Mildew.  Saturated Mildew.  Fuzzy Mildew.  Blech, blech, blech ...

............

Madelyn was so nervous/excited about her friend's slumber party tonight I finally told her she should do laps around the yard.  And she did.  She also told me that all she thought about today in school was the party since she was so excited about it.  But, she said she paid attention during math so that it would distract her.  She doesn't care much for math.  They are decorating cakes at the party Cake Boss style.  I have never seen the show, but they are all getting their own cake to decorate.  I'm excited to hear about it.

Elijah on the other hand is not happy that Madelyn gets to do ANOTHER fun thing because he NEVER gets to do sleepovers.  Apparently this was a prayer request at school today too, that Elijah wouldn't be too sad.  I kept telling him that he and I get to have special time together by going to Back to School night, etc. :P  Although tonight he told me we were NOT on a date because I am his mom.  So, it's okay if we get married, but we can't go on a date?  Wait. Maybe he doesn't want to marry me anymore??  That's sad.  Healthy, but sad.


...........

There was an article recently about women requesting hair like Michelle Bachman's.  I didn't think much of it until after my haircut yesterday and well, I think I had the same cut.  Thankfully, I do style it differently, but the way it was yesterday very well could have looked like I was going for her look.

Which, by the way, as long as we are on the subject, she doesn't have much of a "style."  Nothing against her hair, but it is pretty much medium length with some long layers.  There is nothing super distinctive about it.

And, I was going to post a pic of my hair, but our camera is dead.  Very sad.  I didn't think to use my webcam.

..............

Another picture that is probably worth taking is of a guest of ours who shows up at dinner time when we have mini raw carrots for our vegetable.  Her name is Hillbilly Vampire.  She has two orange fangs, sometimes only one, but she talks funny and cracks the kids (and Dan) up.  It is well worth the visit.  What's even better is when the kids (and/or Dan) try to imitate her.  They do their best, but Elijah ended up looking more like a werewolf which we cracked up at.

We definitely need a new camera.


..............


What nice trash people for taking a bunch of our flooded junk.  I set a bunch of stuff out hoping for the best and yay!! they came through. 


...............


Madelyn is so cute after big days like slumber parties, etc.  She comes home and MUST have some down time.  So now she is in her room reading.  She has another friend coming over around 3 so she's got to rest up for her next social event.  Thankfully that friend brings her family with her so we all have friends :oD


................


Elijah was dancing around like a maniac this morning.  No.  Not to music.  Just because he said he was some kind of man.  I don't remember now, but seeing his long skinny arms and legs flailing about is super cute.  I know he has to grow up, but I want these days to etched into my mind forever and ever and always.


...............


It is super cold today.  I like Fall.  I do.  But, we seemed to have leaped right from summer into the middle of Fall in less than a day.  Brrrrrr.  I have my fake Ugg boots on and went to bed in a sweater last night.


..............


Okay, I need to stop here because I am totally procrastinating at this point ... I'm off to clean up a bit.  Who's jealous? ;)


Friday, September 16, 2011

Picture Day

I love helping with picture day at the school.  The kids are so cute in their cute little outfits, hair all done up, and all the nervous energy that makes them do funny things before their pictures.

One little Kindergartner did NOT want to come into school today to have her picture taken.  Her mom even curled her hair all up.  I mean it was curly.  She is super cute and was fine by the time it was picture time though.

Another K4 student's mom helped with pictures and when her daughter came in for her picture she lost it.  She was crying for her mom and did NOT want her picture taken.  They eventually got a good shot though.

Then there were the boys who try to do goofy things, the girls who don't want help with their hair, but kind of need help with their hair.  There were some boys like that as well.  One kid was even helped by the photographer with his hair.  She took him to the sink to wet it for him.  He was a 9th grader I think. 

The moms and I agreed that having a female photographer makes a big difference since she notices things that men probably wouldn't.

Madelyn's turn came.  She wore a black and white dress she has and loves with a necklace that Cindy (from China) sent over for me.  It's a long necklace, but the photographer shortened it for her so it could be seen in the picture.  That was really nice.  But, she also put Madelyn's hair behind her ears which was not what I wanted, but I didn't want to get all "stage mom" on her so I let it go.  It's just that Madelyn has this cute bob cut and the way it just hung around her face was cute.

Oh, because Madelyn woke up with crazy hair this morning.  Most mornings her hair falls nicely on it's own, but today was picture day so there was no reason for that to happen today (note sarcasm).  So, I curled it.  It was super cute. 

A mom I know who now works at the school came in to have her picture taken and then asked if I was going to have mine taken.  "Um, no.  I don't work here" was pretty much my reply, but she still seemed to think we could find a reason to get my picture in the yearbook.  So, I suggested maybe a "headmistress" title, or "first lady" since Dan runs the place.  But, they didn't take my picture.

The older kids were funny because they were all camera shy.  No one wanted to go first.  A couple boys even did "Rock, Paper, Scissors" over it. 

Then there was the boy who didn't want to smile even though he was dressed so nice in a suit and tie because he wanted to look seriously presidential.  He wasn't sure what he was president of, but he still wanted to play the part.

Good times.  It's a fun day to volunteer at the school.  The only thing I can say about Elijah's day is 1) when I went to get first grade and he was in the nurse's room with a belly ache.  I think he was hungry.  I didn't think honey combs would hold him over for the morning.  2) He likes to button ALL the buttons on his polo shirts.  I unbuttoned the top one for his picture, but later in the day I noticed he had it buttoned again.  So, I guess I had more to say about his day than I thought.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Breaking News

This just in.

Dan drinks coffee now.

How many years have I been trying to convince him it is good?  I would add chocolate or any other yummy sugary substance to try to lure him, but he would always come back at me saying, "It's still coffee and that's the part I do not like."

Well, a week ago after church we were riding home and he tells me he had a cup of coffee at church.  Every Sunday one of us ends up taking Elijah downstairs to use the restroom so this time Dan was really tired and thought while he waited he would have a cup of coffee.

Needless to say I was shocked.

What shocked me more though is when he asked me to make some extra for him the next day when I made coffee.  What?!

THEN he liked my hazelnut creamer!  Well, that's no real shocker.  It's hard to resist that creamer.  Believe me.  I've tried.

It's actually funny because I am not used to Dan on caffeine so the one day he called me sounding all chipper so I finally said, "Wow.  I thought you must have gotten some good news today or something you sound so chipper."  He shot back, "I had coffee!"  In a happily caffeinated voice.

Really though, between you and me, I think he started because when we were with Vern recently we were joking about breaking into Robbie and Donna's house to make some coffee since Dan's mom doesn't have a coffee maker.  We told Dan he could wait in the getaway car while Vern and I kicked back, sipped our coffee, read the newspaper, etc.  I think Dan is just wanting to fit in a little better among the cool kids.

ha ha!  It's good Dan hasn't read my blog in a while :) 

Honestly, it's especially fun because since Dan gets up before me he now makes coffee.  It's very nice. I sure do like that guy.

Late Night Ramblings

I know writing stuff late at night is risky, but I can't sleep.  Well, I was half asleep and dreaming, but then started nodding my head in agreement with the person in my dream with whom I was conversing and I woke myself up.  Whew.  That was quite a sentence.

Have you ever noticed though how profound some late night thoughts can seem until you think of them the next morning and realize how ridiculous you were for thinking those were good ideas?

Part of why I can't stay asleep is because I have this huge task looming in front of me.  I am going to attempt to clean up the walls in my basement.  We have very porous paneling down there and the walls have that powdery looking mildew on them about six inches up the wall. 

It has to go. 

It's so hard to know exactly what to do with stuff without knowing what insurance will cover, or say.  What I want to do is gut most of the basement and start over, but I tend to be extreme with these things and end up regretting it because tasks like that always end up bigger than what you think they will be. 

So, I am going to start with a mask and some bleach.  I am also going to mark the walls where the mildew came up to with a marker.  The huge bummer is our camera stopped working.  Otherwise I would take pictures of everything.  That's when I thought to mark it. 

The doors need to come off the laundry room and the back where our bilco doors are.  I am going to be a full on handy man tomorrow.  Feel free to come over and help me check me out.

I have a haircut appt at 11 too which I am debating canceling.  Usually when I get into a project I want to keep working on it with no interruptions.  When I am interrupted my ADD kicks in and next thing it's bed time and I am remembering what I originally started doing in the day.  So, we'll see on that. 

Simon is getting sickly looking again.  The meds were helping, but he is back to looking really thin and lethargic again.  It's sad.  I need to get him into the vet again, but it's hard to find the time and the money when your house and cars all require major repairs.

The other reason I couldn't get to sleep is because I think I was hungry.  So, here's to hoping that bowl of honey nut cheerios I just ate will hold me over so I can get to sleep. 

G'night!

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Done Deal

I know I posted about our new (old) car already, but what I didn't post is that it wasn't official yet.  Dan and I had to drive up there today to finish the paperwork.

Now, I wanted to take this moment to share a little about our "car guy."  He is a Believer and has owned his dealership for almost 30 years.  They offer free soda, popcorn, and ice cream, computers if you need to go online, a tv area with books if you would rather read, a play room, and shelves of Christian books that are free for the taking with the intent of passing them on when you are done.  Oh, and they have cars.  But, Madelyn calls it the "ice cream car place."  I really think she just sees it as the place where she can eat popcorn, soda, and ice cream all in one sitting.

The best part is they are all about the people.  Customer service is their top priority.  Bob truly loves the Lord and runs his business in a way that allows him to "reinvest in people."

So, if you need a car, get yourself up to www.BobWeaverGM.com.

And, we found out that our new (old) car was owned by an elderly lady who took immaculate care of the car.  It was kept in a garage and was always serviced before it went a mile over when service was due.  It is obvious.  The interior is really nice considering the age of the car and so is the body.  We assured them that would all change soon once our kids were able to ride around in it for a bit :o)

But, yet again, we were blessed by Bob's business.  This is our third car from him and he and his people have always taken great care of us.

Here concludes my advert for Bob Weaver GM, Chevy, Jeep, Chrysler, etc.  

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

New (old) Car

We got a new (old) car today.  You know that goldish colored Buick sedan your grandparents used to drive, or still do?  Yeah.  That's what we have now, and Dan could not be happier.

It's a 2002 Buick LeSabre with only 50,000 miles on it.  It is actually a really nice car.  It's fully loaded.

Er, 2002 fully loaded.  I will definitely miss my satelite radio my trailblazer had that we didn't have to pay for, and the double connectors for the iPod and the GPS.  But, if I were still in the year 2002 I would be psyched for the cassette player AND cd player.

The best part about the car is that it can seat 3 up front.  But, if you don't need to have someone ride in the middle the seat fold down into a console with a cup holder. Double awesome.  It reminds me of a friend's car in college.  He was Dan's best man and when the 3 of us road around together I would sit up front in the middle.  So funny.  The good 'ol days.

So, if Shannon comes to visit with her kids she and I and our 4 kids can still all fit in our new hooptie.  How awesome is that?!   Or, we are able to take a couple extra friends around town.

Are you reading this Shannon?  Madelyn can't wait to take advantage of that front middle seat :)

Dan could not be happier to have a car to drive.  He doesn't like my SUV's.  I like big cars.  I like to be up high and feel powerful on the road.  Hmmm.  I wonder what that says about me.  I'll just say it's because my Pop-pop was a race car driver.  It's in the genes.

I am happy to let him drive it though.  I am actually really happy to see him so happy about it.  He was even saying on the way home that he is going to be waxing and detailing the car to keep it looking nice and he is not kidding.  ha ha!  Alright.  Maybe he is.

I, on the other hand, took our hyundai santa fe out today, got it all cleaned up and vacuumed out to make it my own again.  I do like that car.  It's aging, but it's a nice little SUV.  I even bought a cute steering wheel cover, but I was so sad to find it didn't fit the steering wheel.  Bummer.  It had flowers and peace signs on it.  (Sigh)  Oh well.  I still drove around with the windows down and my Maroon 5 blaring.  Happy day!


One More Natural Disaster

After picking up our one car and dropping of our other I spent a day at home with no place to go and no way to get there.  It's nice to have days like that sometimes, especially rainy ones where you can just stay inside and do what you need to do.  This was Wednesday and it had been raining since Sunday.  It turns out the remnant of Tropical Storm Lee was happy to settle his huge self over our region for quite a while and dump a whole lot of rain on us.  All in all, Wednesday was a good day.  I was starting to feel like things were getting caught up around my house.  I was doing laundry, cleaning, etc.

But, I needed groceries.  So, my plan was to get all my housework done so Thursday I could run all my errands, namely getting groceries. 

Well, Thursday morning comes.  The rain is ridiculous.  Roads are just covered in water.  We were up early because Dan picks up Barbara and takes her to work and the kids have to be ready to go by the time he is ready to go since we only have one car and I was riding with them today.

I dropped them off and came home because I figured I would wait out the rain so I, and my groceries, weren't full of water by the time I got home.

Well, I was waiting and waiting, and the rain was pouring and pouring.  At 10 a.m. Dan calls me and tells me I need to get to the school to pick up the kids before they close the bridges and we can't get home.

WHAT?!  Oh my.  The river was rising so high and small creeks were flooding roads.  I tried to take the back roads to avoid crossing the river, but the road was flooded out.  I drove through one of the areas, and then promptly swore I would not drive back through that spot since it felt like there was a big hole forming in the road under the water.  But, when I drove farther down the road there was another spot that was just completely flooded that looked like a pond.  There was NO way I was getting through it.

I turned around and took a dirt road to avoid the flooded spot I had just driven through and headed out to the main highway.  It turned out the southbound lanes on the highway were closed because the road was flooded out.  It was craziness.  Yards were flooding out into the roads, but I made it over the river on the way to the school.  The bridge was still open, but just past the bridge the road was covered in water and we had to take turns crossing in on the lower side of the flooded area.  I was shaking by the time I got to the school.  It was so nerve-wracking.

I stayed at the school for a bit trying to figure out the best way to get home and found out what back roads were closed at that point.  I didn't want to have to cross the bridge again and I didn't want to sit in traffic so I was hoping I could find a back way to Leesport.

I did, and I was grateful.  Meanwhile, Dan stayed at the school to make sure the remaining students and teachers got home okay.

The kids and I are settling in at home, eating lunch, etc.  I told Madelyn she could watch a movie and when she went downstairs she saw water all over our basement.

When I say all over.  I mean ALL OVER.  The kitty litter boxes were literally floating in our storage room  At that point we had 3 inches of water on the floor and I found out later it was continuing to rise.  Our basement NEVER got wet before.

I called Dan and he said he had the same thing going on at the school.  He said there were springs of water coming up from cracks in the floor in the cafeteria.  The poor guy.  We found out our neighbors had 3 feet of water in their basement along with some other neighbors too.  So sad.

I didn't want to get electrocuted by walking in the water so I went ahead and cleaned up the kitchen, showered, got online and waited for Dan to get home.

The first thing he did was climb across the furniture to get to the breaker box to turn off the power.  Smart man.  The second thing he did was pick up what he thought was an empty bag of cat food floating around and half a bag of cat food fell out into the water.  Up until that point the water was fairly clean.  It kind of makes me laugh even now as we continue to clean things up and I find a mushy piece of cat food on something.  It's amazing where all those little pieces ended up.

Make a note of this.  Firemen pump water out of basements.  Amazing!  I was so happy when I saw them pull up next door.  They pumped out as much water as they could.  Packed up their stuff, left, and the water promptly started filling up our basement again.  AAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!  Our sump pump just stopped working.

Then the Lord sent an angel.  A parent from the school got word that we needed a new pump.  He got here around 8:30 pm, helped Dan replace the pump, and even stayed to help him mop the water over to the pump.  So kind and generous and kind and even more kind.  He was here until almost midnight even though he had to work the next day.  He saved us so much trouble that night.

The one store that still had pumps was already closed for the night so our basement would have been filling up all night long until we would have been able to buy a new pump.  Ugh.  It could have been so much worse.  The sump pump was working all night long pumping the water out that kept trying to get in.

It's so strange to go downstairs and see NOTHING in our basement.  No couches, no chairs, no tv, etc.  The paint on the floor is all chipped up now.  Our washer and dryer seem to be working though.  That's a praise.  Our surge protector is all warped and funky looking, but our tv seems to be okay.  And, I was super glad I had had Wednesday to get caught up on stuff.  Our basement could have been so much worse had I not been caught up on laundry, or had I not just cleaned it all up for a get together I had the Friday before. 

So, little by little we are getting things figured out.  We have a contractor coming Monday and we are waiting to hear from the ins. adjuster.  Oh, and we are supposed to get more rain tomorrow.  Yippee.

Monday, September 12, 2011

I Try

I try to not be a complainer.  I really do, but I'm sorry.  I've had a long weekend ...

I went to bed last night around midnight only to be awakened by Daisy needing to go out.  Fine.  I know if she wakes me up she REALLY needs to go.  I let her out, lie down on the couch and wait.  And wait.  I look out and she is crossing the street on the OTHER side of the road!  Somehow her collar got loose and off she goes. 

Now, Daisy always comes home.  That's not what bothers me.  What bothers me is 1) it was around 1 a.m. and 2) she ALWAYS ends up rolling in some sort of stinkiness when she gets loose.  I was hopeful that maybe she wouldn't this time since it had just poured buckets of rain on us, but she did.  I was not going to give her a bath at 1 a.m. so I rubbed down the stinky area with a really soapy cloth and called it a night.  I figured if she was too stinky she was going to sleep in a bathroom.

Then I have Samson who has been acting weird for days now.  I have not been able to figure out his deal.  Yesterday I kept tripping over him.  When he wants something he gets under your feet, meows relentlessly, etc.  But, I kept making sure they had food, the kitty litter was fine, etc. 

I found that he peed on the bathroom rug yesterday so I was starting to think he was sick.  In the night he woke us up meowing and meowing in our faces.  I locked him out of the bedroom.  Then when I woke up this morning I found he had pooed on the rug in the living room.  ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!

Finally.  It occurred to me.  The cat is afraid to go in the basement.  We have fans running and our dehumidifier going and  he is completely freaked out.  I carried him down there to show him his food, etc.  He freaked out and ran back up the steps. 

Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Also, last night before bed when I opened the basement door to make sure the cats had food so Samson wouldn't be meowing I heard the basement window fall out and break.  Lovely.  And, when I got up in the night to lock Samson out I stepped in a wet spot on the carpet where Simon threw up.

I know what you are thinking right now.  You wish you were me right? 

I know I shouldn't have said this this morning with Elijah there, but I made the comment that I am ready to get rid of ALL of the animals.  Of course he got concerned and asked why for each one.  While I had a reasonable explanation for each one I assured him I was not going to get rid of the cats.  Now I can only imagine what his prayer request is going to be this morning in school.  His teacher told me that one day he prayed that Simon would not die.  Sweet boy.

Now Samson is sitting at the top of the basement stairs trying to muster up the courage to head down.  Oy.

I think I am done complaining now.  I told you I "try" to not complain, but I do feel better already just getting this off my chest.

Cars ... Ugh

So, the last post about Irene, and the funeral, and the lawyer deal was all leading into Labor Day weekend.  That was a looooonnnnnngggggg weekend because we thought we were going to hear back from the lawyer before the weekend, but didn't so we fretted all weekend about what that might mean.  Well, it turns out we didn't hear back simply because she was never able to touch base with the other lawyer.  I still don't know if they ever connected.  Now I see why these things take so long to settle.

So, things were a little stressful.  But, it was a new week, a new day, and God's mercies are new each day right?

Well, Tuesday morning Dan had a breakfast so since our cars both had issues at the time he took the one with the least amount of issues.  He had farther to go.  I just had to get the kids to school and home again.  No big deal right? 

I made it to school fine.  No noises, nothing.  Just a little ways down the road on my way home the car starts to over heat.  I took the back roads home since I would then be able to pull over next to a corn field rather than a busy highway.  I called Dan to let him know and then I waited.  I was hoping the car would just cool off and I could just get home. 

Nope.  I had to pull over again.  It turns out ALL the coolant had leaked out of the car.  Dan had just filled it up the Friday before.  Dan came with another bottle of coolant and 2 minutes down the road it overheats again.  That was some leakage going on.  At this point we were just trying to make it to the car place that was 5 minutes away.  Five minutes can seem like an eternity when your car has smoke pouring out of it. 

Oh, did I mention that when Dan finally got to me I got into his car to follow him to the car place and promptly backed into a tree?  I didn't even see it AFTER I hit it.  I could not figure out what I hit.  I think I was starting to lose it at that point.  Thankfully, there was no damage.

Anyway, we finally made it to the car place where we have a wonderful mechanic who loves the Lord and is just a good guy.  We drop the car off.  I take Dan to school and find out later we never gave the mechanic our key to the car.  He had to drive over to the school to get it from Dan.  See what I mean?  Great guy. 

I went home and promptly cried my eyes out for most of the day.  It's a good thing I did too because I had NO idea what awaited me later in the week. 


Saturday, September 10, 2011

Other Natural Disasters

Tropical Storm Irene blew through here not too long ago.  It was Saturday night when she started.  Sunday morning around 3 a.m. we lost power.  We didn't get power back until Monday afternoon. 

So, we missed church on Sunday.  We had no way of finding out if our church had power or not.  We didn't know about the condition of the roads or anything either.  Friends stopped by and took some of our cold foods since they had a generator, super, super nice of them.  What's funny is I loaded them up with 4 different kinds of milk, not unusual in our house.  Lactaid for Dan, regular for me and Madelyn, Almond milk for Elijah, and some leftover Soy milk from when he had his tonsils out.  He doesn't like to drink Almond milk.  And, I'm not quite sure why I felt I needed to capitalize the types of milk. 

Oh well.

So, we spent the day reading and playing.  Thankfully I was completely hooked into The Hunger Games trilogy so the time went by pretty quickly for me.  Later in the day we went to the park to kill time.  We kept expecting the power to come back on soon because we rarely lose power, especially for any extended amount of time.  The whole neighborhood seemed to be out walking or at the park that night.  There wasn't much else to do. 

While we were at the park we could hear all the generators in the neighborhood running so we told the kids when the generators stopped we would go home because that meant we had power. 

Well, they never stopped.  And, it was starting to get dark.  And, they had their first day of school the next day.  And, they needed showers.  And, we found out Dan's Uncle's funeral was on Tuesday and we were going to have to try to get to his parents' house by then.

So, we buckled down, got the kids to school Monday morning, realized neither of our cars were going to make the 4 hour drive to Western PA so we set up a rental.  I pulled clothes together from whatever we had clean.  Made arrangements for the dog.  Since it was only one night Megan was able to just drop in to let Daisy out.  The cats would be fine for one night.

And, the power came back on.  Yay!  It was so funny because as I was scrambling to get things together I walked through the kitchen and thought, "Oh, that light is blinking.  That light is blinking!!!"  We had power again.  I felt like Jimmy Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life because I was opening my fridge saying, "Hello fridge!  (like 'hello you old savings & loan!' or whatever that line is)  Hello coffee maker, and microwave, and phone and ..."  You get the picture. 

It was a good feeling, but I had to leave so I couldn't really take full advantage of my electricity.

The kids got home.  Dan got home, and we rushed out the door to get to the rental car before the place closed.  It was hectic, but we made it. 

Vern and Pam came up for the funeral as well.  Of course, poor Vern had literally flown in from Afghanistan that day, met up with Pam, flew to Dulles and drove from there to PA.  Oh, and he forgot his suit so they had to stop along the way to buy a new one.

So, Tuesday morning Vern says, "What do we have to do to get you to stay another night?"  We planned for just one night because the kids were just starting school, Dan runs said school, and we thought we should probably be there for the beginning of the school year.  Plus, we didn't know what everyone else had planned as far as how they were staying, etc.

Anyway, I said we just needed Daisy to be let out, but I figured if Megan couldn't do it another night she could at least get the key to a different neighbor.  Well, it was 7:15 pm by the time I got in touch with Megan.  She had an all day training class and never got my cell v-mail I left her.  Once I did reach her she informed me that she had locked the key in our house since she knew we were coming back that night. 

WHAT?!  I totally understood why she did it.  I just couldn't believe what I had to tell Dan when I walked back into the house where his whole family was gathered, namely his 2 brothers whom he so rarely gets to see at the same time.  But, I did.  Thankfully, Megan was willing to try to break back into our house so I was waiting to hear back from her on that.

It turns out she did.  She brought her six year old with her so the neighbors would think too much about it.  Now THAT is a good friend.  Oh my.  I was so relieved. 

We eventually made it home in the same clothes we had been wearing for almost 3 days straight since I only packed for one night.  And, one of us may or may not have come home with no underwear on, but that is a story for another day.

We pull in the driveway and I say, "Okay, let's all try to get into some kind of routine now ..."  That's when we found out our lawyer had been trying to reach Dan all day. 

Yeah.  We're being sued.  Remember that?  Ugh.


Earthquake

So, I was on the phone with Kerry when she says, "Wait a minute.  My house is shaking."  "What?"  "My house is shaking!!"  Then I heard one of her boys call for her and I could hear the rumbling.  We realize she is having an earthquake.  I started to feel kind of dizzy as I was trying to google some info on what might have happened.

Then Madelyn comes downstairs.  Kerry and I hang up so she can check on her people and I see on FB that people all over the east coast were talking about feeling an earthquake; my cousin in VA, Jess in Reading, people in NY.  It was nuts!

I then realize that I wasn't feeling dizzy.  I was feeling an earthquake too when I was talking to Kerry!

Madelyn walks back in the room and says, "Elijah didn't feel anything."  I said, "Did you?"  She said, "Yes.  That's why I came downstairs.  I heard things rattle on my wall and the floor shook."  She actually thought Dan had come home.

Meanwhile, Dan was at work and didn't feel a thing.  Elijah said he heard things rattle on the wall, but that isn't so unusual around here because that happens when the trains go by.

Either way, we are all now able to say that we survived the earthquake of 2011.  Amen.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

i think i got it ...

i have sat down so many times recently to write a blog post and then have completely blanked on what to write.  i have had so many things swimming around in my brain too, but when i went to write them down the words just would not come.

but, now i think i get it.  after elijah's tonsillectomy recovery which seemed to last forever and ever (poor boy) we had family come to visit which was really nice.  then we had an earthquake, a tropical storm, we lost power for a day and a half, our cars broke , uncle david died.  we needed to get to the funeral so we rented a car so we could get to dan's parents' house.  we stayed an extra day with his family then came home to find out dan's lawyer was trying to get in touch with him all day.  did i mention we are being sued?  our car broke down this week, the one we are trying to get rid of.  now our other car is getting fixed and our town is flooding from all the rain we have gotten this week.  madelyn went downstairs to watch a movie today and we found the basement had 4 inches of water throughout.  our basement which i have always been able to boast that it never gets wet.  what is that verse about boasting?  the nice firemen came to pump it out and soon after they left we realized it was flooding again.  huge bummer.

anyway, all that to say that at different times throughout all of these ordeals i have said that i am thankful that we are all healthy.  that is not something us tubbses are usually able to say, but lately it is and for that i am thankful. 

that's not all though.  tonight i realized that we have literally had almost all of our earthly possessions threatened in some way.over the last few weeks.  and you know what?  who cares?  seriously.  who cares?  it's just stuff. 


tonight before dan got home i was thinking about how he has to come home to deal with our basement after dealing with the school's flooded basement and all that we have been going through in the last few weeks and i thought, "i wouldn't want to go through all of this yuck with anyone but him."  we could  lose everything and be living in a box, but as long as we have each other and our kids are healthy we will be fine.  i think we are beginning to not even want all of this stuff.  ugh.  who needs it?  we have to throw so much stuff away from our basement now, but it almost feels freeing. 

the worst part is that the paneling on the wall has to come off and that is going to be a job and a half.  i'm not sure how that is going to go.  our basement is just going to be stripped bare.  that is craziness, but it's fine. 

so, all i am saying is, "God?  Are you there?  I get it now.  I know where my true treasures lie.  I am not clinging to my belongings or wishing/hoping for more stuff, more money, more car, or more house.  I'm done.  I am happy."  i really mean that too.  i have such a peace inside and it's a bit unsettling in some ways because it makes me wonder what God is preparing me for.  eek!  don't people say stuff like this before packing it all up and moving to china or something?  oh boy.  i better end it here.