Where does Barbie Live?

Mattel recently announced the release of limited-edition Barbie Dolls for the Greater Detroit market:

"Birmingham Barbie"

This princess Barbie is sold only at The Galleria. She comes with an
assortment of Kate Spade Handbags, a Lexus SUV, a long-haired foreign dog named Honey
and a cookie-cutter house. Available with or without tummy tuck and face
lift. Workaholic Ken sold only in conjunction with the augmented version.
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"Canton/Farmington Hills Barbie"

The modern day homemaker Barbie is available with Ford Wind star Minivan
and matching gym outfit. She gets lost easily and has no full-time occupation.
Traffic jamming cell phone sold separately.
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"Westland or Taylor Barbie"

This recently paroled Barbie comes with a 9mm handgun, a Ray Lewis knife,a
Chevy with dark tinted windows, and a Meth Lab Kit. This model is only
available after dark and must be paid for in cash (preferably small, untraceable
bills) ....unless you are a cop, then we don't know what you are talking about.
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"West Bloomfield or Bloomfield Hills Barbie"

This yuppie Barbie comes with your choice of BMW convertible or Hummer H2.
Included are her own Starbucks cup, credit card and country club membership. Also
available for this set are Shallow Ken and Private School Skipper. You won't be able to
afford any of them.
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"Waterford Barbie"

This pale model comes dressed in her own Wrangler jeans two sizes too
small, a NASCAR t-shirt and twe ety bird tattoo on her shoulder. She has a six-pack of Bud
light and a Hank Williams Jr. CD set. She can spit over 5 feet and kick mullet-haired Ken's
butt when she is drunk. Purchase her pickup truck separately and get a confederate flag
bumper sticker absolutely free.
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"Royal Oak Barbie"

This collagen injected, rhino plastic Barbie wears a leopard print outfit
and drinks cosmopolitans while entertaining friends. Percocet prescription available
as well as warehouse conversion condo.
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"Downriver Barbie"

This tobacco-chewing, brassy-haired Barbie has a pair of her own
high-heeled sandals with one broken heel from the time she chased beer-gutted Ken out of Butler
Barbie's house. Her ensemble includes low-rise acid-washed jeans, fake fingernails, and a
see-through halter-top. Also available with a mobile home.

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"Ferndale Barbie"

This doll is made of actual tofu. She has long straight brown hair,
arch-less feet, hairy armpits, no makeup and Birkenstocks with white socks. She prefers that you call her
Willow . She does not want or need a Ken doll, but if you purchase two Point Breeze Barbies
and the optional Subaru wagon , you get a rainbow flag bumper sticker for free.
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"8 Mile Barbie"

This Barbie now comes with a stroller and infant doll. Optional accessories
include a GED and bus pass. Gangsta Ken and his 1979 Caddy were available, but are now very
difficult to find since the addition of the infant.
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"Novi Barbie"

She's perfect in every way. We don't know where Ken is because he's always
out a-'huntin'.
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"Woodward Avenue Barbie/Ken"

This versatile doll can be easily converted from Barbie to Ken by simply
adding or subtracting the multiple snap-on parts.

Insert Depression "here".

Wow. I'm really getting the life sucked out of me here. I have a theory about women and school. I talked to one of our fellow bloggers today and this is what I said, "So a girl graduates high school, then goes on to college. She gets her degree and a great job. Then when she marries and has children, she becomes a stay at home mom. Then when it is time for her to return to the work force, she can't find anything in her field. In fact she finds she isn't qualified for half the jobs out there. Why did she go to college in the first place?"

I feel like such a loser. Literally. I can't find a job to save my life. I have NEVER had a hard time finding a job. I regret leaving my last job but I have theories that go along with the "find a neighbor to tuck your kids in at night" comment. I just couldn't work for people with that type of integrity. I LOVED that job. I took that job to a higher level than any other job before, because my doctor owned it. More than anything I wanted HIS company to be successful. While I had it up on a threshold, I was the company doormat. I just couldn't get past that. I regret that I cared that deeply about that job because it still bothers me.

Now... I am getting more and more depressed as time goes on. I can't find a job. I have even applied to the local coffee house. I drove by there today and there are NO signs of life as they haven't opened yet.

I keep trying to tell myself that it isn't me. It's the economy and the gazillion other people looking for the same jobs that I am. But still. I'm qualified. I can do all types of things. Maybe that is the problem. Even as I am known as "Queen Busta Chops" in this house, I had it thrown right in my face this weekend by a friend. The comment that she thought was so funny, cut me to the core. "You go from thing to thing". At this moment, I do feel wishy washy. I feel like such a loser. When YOU are the stay at home mom, you can't really have a career. Your job is to take care of the house and the kids. When you need to make some extra cash, you do what you can.

I'm debating on removing myself off Facebook. I need to find a job. I need to find something, and I am starting to become a bit paranoid about "what is out there" on me. How do I find it, and how do I remove it?

The good thing about my blog... when I search my name, the blog doesn't show up. So this... will stay.

Dear God...

Please don't let me ever get the brilliant idea to have another garage sale. It sucked the life right out of this weekend! Not to mention the amazing self control that you bestowed upon me when the woman in Versache sunglasses kept bartering for lower prices than we already had. I am thankful that I did not rip her head off, and bust up those glasses while still maintaining the pleasant smile that you have given me. I promise, I will not be doing this again anytime soon.

Amen.

Choices

So today I saw that my ex-sister in law is on facebook. She and my brother had a rocky and somewhat messy divorce. When my mom told me they were getting a divorce and thought I would be upset, my first words were, "It's about time". Not that I want any marriage to break up, but they NEVER got a long. Like EVER. I think they were probably even talking divorce before the ink on the marriage license dried.

Regardless, she is on facebook. And I am surprised by the number of family members that have become her friends. I really don't have anything against, her but I also am loyal to my brother. Which leads me to this...

Marks wife once told me (Mark is my other brother), that when she divorced her ex-husband for cheating on her, his family wrote her off. She LOVED that family and was devistated that they did this to her. I told her I could never do that and she disagreed. She said, "Blood is thicker than water. You will choose your family."

I never thought I would see that day where I would say, "She is right". While I don't have anything against my ex-sister in law, I also had nothing with her, aside from the fact that she was my brothers wife. I didn't marry her. He did.

I have been bugging my brother left and right to get on facebook. Now that I saw her on there, there is no way in hell he will get on there. And I might add, with the amount of family that have "become her friends" on there, if he were to get on there, it could become quite a mess.

I have been stalking my fbook all day. Sort of worrying that she will ask to be my friend. I have nothing against her, but really wish that she would move forward with her life. My loyalty is to my brother. I would do anything for him... again Mark's wife was right. What a sucky position to be in.

What is your spin on this my friends?

Because I am crazy...

I'm preparing for yet another... Garage Sale. Have I ever told you how much I HATE having Garage Sales? It is the drive for cold hard cash in this unemployed hand that moves me to do it. I have my TS business, but that is a side thing that I do. I wouldn't want to depend on that to make the rent. I have been applying for jobs that I am qualified for, but it is much harder than I ever thought it would be.

So until then... I'm taking my aggressions out on my house. I would love to get rid of 50% of the stuff in this house... before it suffocates me!

See Rock City!

I'm sure you've seen them! The "See Rock City" signs posted all over Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. After seeing about 600 of them on the way to Tennessee, we decided to...

SEE ROCK CITY!

Did you notice the bottom sign? lol, I did too. It totally jumped out at me!

Not only did we need to see Rock City, now we needed to find Starbucks! Please note that I was thinking about my blogger babes when I shot this photo.

Here comes a task... from now on... when you take a vacation, find a Starbucks, and take a photo of it. Post it in your blog. It will be interesting to see different ones!

Unless you know someone who has been there before, there is no way to know exactly what Rock City is. We had gone to Lookout Mountain and gone to the top. The view was captivating, and deserves it's own post. After doing that, we followed the signs to "See Rock City", just to "see" what the heck it was! After seeing the price, we had second thoughts! However after a few minutes of looking at the map, we decided to take the plunge. It was the best money we spent all weekend.

The scenic trip takes you through caverns, caves, and what appeared to be a rainforest. Could that be because it was raining the whole time we were there?

To the right in the photo is a waterfall. It is so big we could not get far enough away to capture it in a photo. The thunderous roar was incredible.

Dennis, Emily and Greg are much more brave than I am, by a landslide. They walked over... The Swinging Bridge without even thinking twice. I walked over the narrow stone bridge, with my hands and feet braced on both sides!

Rainbow Cave

Can you really see seven states? I think those states should put up flags saying "Here I am!"

This... should come with a warning. Clausterphobic people... go another route. I had the panic attack of a lifetime in this crack in the earth. When we started out, I turned around once only to have Dennis telling me, "You'll be fine". The second time I turned around, I wanted to run him over, however there were people behind him. By the time I got to the other side, I was hyperventilating, crying, trembling, and thought my heart would beat out of my chest. To say it freaked me out... is putting it lightly. He put his paramedic hat on, and got me calmed down quickly though, so we could enjoy the rest of the day.

After all was said and done, it was the best money and time we spent on Lookout Mountain. Plus after Fat Man's Squeeze, I didn't need a triple latte, for I had already reached my target heart rate for the day!

She couldn't have said that...

This weekend we are heading to Tennessee for a family reunion on my mom's side. We will be meeting relatives that I've heard stories about, but have never had the opportunity to meet. I don't know about your family, but it seems to me that families are falling apart. Cousins that we grew up seeing all the time, we barely know anymore. Some I haven't seen since 1986!

When you look at other cultures, many are VERY family oriented and some will not allow marriages outside of their own nationality. Can you blame them? This country has turned into a giant melting pot. Just throw everything into the mix, it will be ok. Well really? Cause it sure doesn't seem that way. People are busier than ever, and why is that? Why are we all working ourselves to death, just to live. Who wants to "just live"? I would rather be broke, living in a run down shack, and to have a life rich in family, and values, than to have all the money in the world.

One of my relatives recently said, "This will be the first and last family reunion. Our parents have maybe a year or two left".

"A YEAR OR TWO LEFT?" What the heck?! My parents are 66 years old! A year or two left?!
Then I started thinking about it.... she may actually be right.

How sad is it when people stop taking care of themselves. Is their outlook on life so bad that they can't wait to be 6 feet under? I look at my parents and think... they are a wreck. I won't go into details, because if you really know me, you already know the details. I'm just so sad that they don't veiw themselves the way their family does. They could easily have another 30 years, and healthy ones at that, if they only took care of themselves instead of throwing in the towel.

So this weekend, we are heading to Tennessee for a family reunion, I'm very excited about it, but her comment will be looming over my head for the next couple years. I just hope she isn't right.

And?

I changed it. Sorry. I LOVE FALL. I am so excited about it. The leaves turning and falling. The cooler temperatures (which I have not complained about this summer). College football...

I'm ready.

7,4,5,2 & Dr. Oz

Dr. Oz was on GMA the other morning talking about heart disease, and American's getting healthy.

One of the things he suggested is something I can do, but need input on.

Eat:

7 servings of whole grains (this is where you come in)

4 servings of fresh fruit

5 servings of vegetables

2 servings of nuts or healthy fats.

HELP! What suggestions can you give me for getting in 7 servings of whole grains in a day? I picture myself making whole grain rice constantly and obviously that isn't an accurate depiction.

What things do you eat or do you suggest I eat to help make that quota?

Guess Who?!

Yep.. 3 years now and Fuznut still comes to visit. Except now we have an understanding..

I give her peanuts, and she let's me get close for photos.

It's all good!

Nothing.

Today I got up, got ready and hit the pavement. I went looking for jobs. I went to the schools, thinking... Lunch room mom, crossing guard. Not hiring.

Then I went to the hospital where I worked (Starts with a Beau...)
Nothing. In fact the HR woman basically told me, without really telling me, that if there were any jobs in my category, they would be online. So I left and what do you know... I ran into my old supervisor. I handed him my resume, letter of recommendation, and again was told "nothing". There's a hiring freeze. Regardless, I asked him to keep me in mind for a contingent position if anything opens up.

Next I went to another hospital in Rochester. There were no ER tech positions available, but I did fill out an app for a full time medical assistant position. Now I'm weary. I HATE having my back to the wall, however I am married to a firefighter. You don't know odd scheduling until you've worked around a firefighter and two school age children. I was looking for a contingent/part time position, and ended up applying for the full monty. Now I'm worried. At the same time, I feel that I should still interview for it if given the opportunity, then see what happens. But with my luck... I'll get the position, then be freaking out about child care and getting frick & frack to their extra-curricular activities. UGH!

This economy effin' sucks. PERIOD.

Let's Go Camping!!

I'm with you gals. Fbook is a time suck. Plus I can't 'tell my story' like I do here. There is just too many people on there, and with my current status of "unemployed" I would like to keep some of my life semi-private. My friend Laura told me the other day that 85% of employers will not hire someone due to the information they have on the internet. With that, I went and made my fbook private. I searched for myself too to see what I could dig up. My blog... did not appear :)

As summer starts to wind down, I would like to make some of the next posts about what we did all summer. First off...

We bought a camper!

Most people would start off with a pop-up or a small camper. Apparently we aren't most people.

We settled for this 2002 Flagstaff 30' superlite.

The weight was under our limit and the price was nice too!

I will admit we were nervous wrecks at first, but now that we've taken it on a couple trips, it pulls so nice, you almost forget that it's there!

The door is to the right. That's Peepers doing what she does... she peeps. The front has a queen sized bed that you can walk around. It has tons of cabinet storage for clothes too. The bed lifts up for even more storage space. Here you see the kitchen. It is beautiful and has a lot of counter space.

This is the other view from the door. Notice Den's touch on the floor. The sofa and dinette both fold down into beds quite easily I might add. The cushions don't come off, they just roll, and roll until they fold down flat into the bed. Pretty nice!

These are the kids bunks. They are PERFECT. Although the bottom bunk is in a very odd place. I would totally have an anxiety attack down there, plus we still can't figure out how in the heck you would get in there. Back in feet first? Can you tell which one is Greg's bed?

THIS was a huge selling point. A BATHROOM. My only stipulation for buying ANY camper was that it HAD to have a bathroom. PERIOD. Ain't no way Jason is going to slice and dice me up on the way to a campground bathroom in the middle of the night! Now when you gotta go... you just go. :) On the right across from the commode (not shown) is the shower. At first I thought, no way. Then we went to Jellystone up in Silver Lake. Once we figured out how the hot water tank worked, I decided to give the shower a whirl. I LOVE IT. I showered in it every day, and didn't have to wear shoes!

I'm here!

I tried to post something last week, and spent a lot of time working on it. Then when I tried to "publish" it, an error message came up. So then I remembered that it saves "drafts". Well guess what it didn't do. It didn't save the draft either! After spending that amount of time working on the post, I just got mad and exited it without reposting. Now I can't even remember what it was about.

But... I have a new post to put up! That is coming up in just a bit. Let's hope it publishes!

Just Drive!

Jro's blog has been so funny lately. I know I get on my fellow bloggers to write something. The reason being, is I LOVE to read everyone's thoughts. You guys are so flippin funny sometimes, even if you are rambling about nothing. I would rather read what you write, than anything else out there.

Her stories of camping recently brought back a memory for me.

Mio, MI 1996 or 96

My sister and I worked together at Rock Financial. She had invited us up to Mio to camp and canoe on the Au Sable river. Den and I had odd schedules at the time, so we were the first to head up.

After arriving and seeing "Camp Runamuck", we decided to go look for a hotel. The place we were to set up camp was in the yard of a single wide trailer that looked like it could be the scene of a homicide. It was in the middle of the jungle, with an outhouse.

We made it all the way to Alpena. No Hilton, no Mariott... nothing. After deciding we would rather stay at the camp rather than the methlab hotels that we had seen, we went back. We pitched our tent, then headed off to find beer. Beer makes EVERYTHING better. An hour later, after passing a house on fire (with no fire department to be found), we located a party store. It was hot, cramped, and packed full of junk. The beer... hot, dusty, and a year past it's expiration date. After purchasing NOTHING, we left. Passed the burning house, and went back to camp.

My sister arrived with her "friends". I quote "friends" because I could not believe the people that were with her. My sister is sometimes a bit odd, but how in the world did she get hooked up with these dirt bags? Hillbilly USA! After throwing up their tents, a fire was built. Using anything and everything that they could torch, including gasoline. Which by the way went over like a lead balloon with the resident firefighter.

After a night of tent sleeping (which isn't really sleeping), we headed to the river. On the way, we again passed the burning house, which was now leveled to the ground and smoldering. We also found a grocery store on the way and picked up our beverages. We got in our canoes and headed down the river. A short distance later, someone came up with the brilliant idea that we should all tie up canoe's and "drift". It was a fairly decent time until one of them decided to spark up a fatty. THAT WAS IT. THAT was the last straw. Den and I untied our canoe, and told them we wanted to just go solo for a while.

6 HOURS! 6 HOURS of paddling like mad and we finally made the pick up spot. We all headed back to camp where Den and I proceeded to pack up ALL of our things after canoeing all day, and drove ALL THE WAY HOME. We had been awake for 36 hours, including the EXHAUSTING canoe trip. It was the worst trip I had EVER taken in my life. It wasn't even worth spending an extra minute there let alone 2 more days!!

After getting home, we had the best night sleep we have probably EVER had.

A Spin-off of Crazy & Loving It!

Jro & Gunny are in the midst of posting about their trip to the UP (Michigan's Upper Peninsula for you non-Michiganders). I have to laugh because she keeps giving us cliff hangers. At this moment, I dream that she is sitting at her computer waiting for midnight, so that she can post the day 3 of their humorous adventure.

Their trip so far has been about Whitefish Point, and Tahquamenon Falls.

Flash back to 1998. Den and I had been married for 1 year, and had no children. We decided to be adventurous and head up to the UP with Mike & Donna whom we commonly refer to as Ken & Barbie. I vividly remember driving up in our dark green Chevy Blazer, and jamming to music. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot - that song played about a gazillion times on the radio. So much so that I still can not listen to it without wanting to gouge my own eyes out with a fork! Then K.C. & The Sunshine Band came on. "Get down tonight!". Den and I were shimmying our shoulders as we barreled by Barbie & Ken, looking at them and dancing while we drove.

Jro talks about the area being desolate. She isn't kidding. When you see signs for Paradise, it isn't what you think. I refer to Paradise as palm trees, warm beaches and awesome drinks. This is trees, trees, and more trees, with a blacktop road running through them. At one point, we had the radio on and when we hit scan, it went in a complete circle without landing on a single channel! Cell phones? Forget it. Not even if you drove around with a 15' antenna on your car.

As we got closer to our campground, we saw a bunch of cars pulled over on the side of the road. Off in the distance, standing very tall and eating grass, was a Moose! We were so excited to see it, and thought "Cool! There are moose up here!". We should have taken note of the number of cars pulled over, with tourists shooting photos. This would be the LAST moose I would see! Even now, 11 years later, I still haven't seen a Moose in the wild since.

Barbie & Ken set up their pop-up while Den and I pitched our 3 bedroom tent. Lord knows why we needed such a monstrosity, but it sure was roomy! We put down tarps and fixed them "just so" with the hopes that no water would come in if it rained.

During our trip, we had the brilliant idea that we would hike from the lower falls to the upper falls. After all, it couldn't be that far. :-) A guide at the park said it was approximately 1 mile to the upper falls. Definitely manageable.

We made our way through the forest as happy little hikers. About a mile into the jaunt, Barbie trips and sprains her ankle. Did I mention we are about a mile into the forest? I also haven't told you that Mr. Park Guide was wrong. It wasn't exactly 1 mile to the upper falls. As we stood there in the wilderness, we are all 4 looking around thinking, OH CRAP, as we are watching Barbie's ankle swell up like a bowling ball. There is no way we can carry her out, and there is no way someone can come get her. This was up and down, turn here, turn there hiking on a very narrow dirt path that looked like it was made about an hour before we all decided to become stupid!

Barbie was a total trooper. She toughed it out and continued the hike. 3 fricken miles later, we were all worn out, pissed off, and no longer speaking to each other. Had we known it would be 4 miles, 1. we would have drove, and 2. we would have taken at least a water bottle or something to keep from dying of thirst!

We spent a total of 2 minutes looking at the stupid falls while seething that we were now FOUR miles from out campsite with an injured camper and NOTHING to drink! PLUS there was a very cute little gift shop with a plethora of beverages chilled to the point of almost being frozen, and yet we had not a dime between us. Being that the upper falls were only supposed to be ONE MILE from the lower falls, why would there be a gift shop there? Who would have thought of that?

We decided to take the road back. Tired, weary, dehydrated, injured, and PISSED, we all walked the 4 miles down the road to our campsites. No one said a word the entire time. We got back and all parted our ways. Everyone napped for about 2 hours, then got up and everything was fine. We were talking again, laughing and having fun... until we played UNO. The game that NEVER ends.

I don't remember a lot about the trip, but those things are as clear as the monitor in front of my face. After we arrived home, our phone rang and it was Barbie & Ken. They weren't ready to say goodbye yet, so we met them at a restaurant which is now called Tin Fish on Lake St. Clair. We had drinks on the deck as we watched the boats and the sunset. We laughed and laughed, and to this day are still GREAT FRIENDS.

I can't wait to see Jro's next installment!

Genius in the Room

For MONTHS I have been looking online, and reading as much as I could about hooking up an Mp3 player (or iPod in my case) to my car. I have one of those radio doohickeys that plug into the bottom of the ipod, and you tune it into your radio. It's like listening to your favorite jams on AM 950.

Some cars have a port to plug in your iPod, however mine does not. Then the other day, it hit me like a lightening bolt. We have a DVD player in my Envoy. Directly behind the screen, are A/V jacks. Hmmm.... A/V jacks. On a whim I searched on Bestbuy.com under iPod accessories, for an Audio cable. Sure enough. They make one! AND it's only $5!

Within 1 hour I was up at Bestbuy picking up my cord. Life is good, and now I can cancel XM radio! Yeeehawwww! I AM A GENIUS!! lol

Verklempt

I'm so sad. Well, not sad, but well... sad. I can't think of any other wording for it.

Today was Emily's last softball game on the Macomb Eagles (click this link). When you go to their website, you see the photo that was taken of the girls after the Plymouth Canton Pride Tournament, after they took Second Place. The coach on the left side of the photo is Coach Brian. He is the reason Emily was an Eagle this year. Last year she was on his recreational team, the CVGSL Falcons. They took second place in the playoffs, and then he encouraged her to try out for travel fastpitch softball. We took him up on that recommendation and before we knew it, Emily was soaring like an Eagle!

This year was the most fun we have EVER had watching her play sports. It all started last August...

Before we headed to Beaufort S.C. for my brothers retirement ceremony from the U.S. Navy, we attended the tryouts for the Eagles. We told the manager, Matt that we would be on vacation that he could call us via cell phone if need be. One night while in our hotel room, we got the call. Coach Matt asked if Emily would like to play on the Eagles. She was SO excited I thought she was going to rupture something. She was jumping up and down squealing.

That was just the beginning. Starting on Thursday nights, the girls met at a school gym to practice for an hour and a half. This went from September to February. Then in February, the girls started going to an indoor batting cage facility on Sundays, and an indoor soccer arena (for fielding practice) on Wednesdays. It was a lot of training, but the excitement was building, as we were looking forward to seeing all of this put together in competition.

And compete they did! The girls made it through most of their season undefeated. Then the ONE TIME Emily missed a game due to a fever, they lost a game. However the team they lost to, were also undefeated. Thanks to a double header, the Eagles lost the first game, and the Heaters lost the second game. Both undefeated teams were once again, tied for first place.

Mix all of these double header Wednesdays in with 5 tournaments, one being in Plymouth/Canton, and the other being in East Lansing, and it was one hell of a season. It was the most fun we have ever had.

The girls are all so much fun, and being that we spent so much time with these girls and their parents, we really got to know each other well. On every team Emily has played on before, we barely knew the parents. In fact, one of the girls on the Eagles, was with Emily on the Rec team "The Falcons" last year. Her mom and I have gotten fairly close this year, and yet last year, I didn't know her at all! In rec ball, people come, their kids play, and then you go home. It can be very clicky, and you really aren't there long enough to get close to one another.

In Federation (travel) ball, it is a totally different ball of wax. When we were "newbies" on this team I looked at the seasoned parents and how they seemed to know so many people on different teams. I then realized that even though you are so attached through out the year, the girls will eventually move on and their parents go too. THIS is why I am so sad.

It was our first time with a federation team, and it was the best time we've ever had. The coaches did a tremendous job of organizing everything, including fundraisers that helped out with the cost significantly. One of Emily's friends was on another team and when I heard they paid close to $1,000 for her to play, I just about fell over. There is no way I would be willing to let Emily play for that amount of money. The fundraisers were a HUGE help and a pretty good success, even with the current state of the economy.

We always knew where we were supposed to be, we always knew what hotels to stay at, and we never really had any questions. The coaches did a tremendous job and I am just so worried that the chemistry won't be there on another team.

With that, I found out that the Eagles Manager, Matt is moving up to the 14U team, Coach Brian is not taking over the 10U team (which is what we hoped for), and someone new will become the coach. Whatever happens, we really just hope that it is a great team like this year, and that things will run as smoothly as they have so far. Most importantly we are going to do what Emily wants to do. If she wants to try out for other teams, we will let her, although I will never forget this very short period of time we spent with the Macomb Eagles.

Kahonies

In the movie Home Alone, there is a scene in which Joe Pesci & Daniel Stern tell Kevin that they're going to cut off his kahonies and boil them in oil. Greg LOVES this scene.

Yesterday while on their 2 day stay at Nana & Papa's, Greg told Emily he was going to cut off her kahonies and boil them in oil. Emily told us about this in the car on the way home last night. After a really good laugh, I asked Emily, "Do you know what kahonies are?" In which she replied, "Yeah, fingers and toes". lol After an even more laughing I told her that kahonies are actually "boy" parts.

It was very cute.

Somebody Stop Me...

If you've read this one before.

Have you ever seen The Wedding Planner? I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the part where Mary goes to the park to watch that old classic movie. It actually happens twice during the movie. Once at the beginning and again at the end when she wins the smoking hot guy.

This is the part where I wish all of my blog readers lived near me...

I wish that I lived near a park that does something like this. However... I wouldn't want it to be dedicated to kids movies. PG movies fine. Nothing too scary, nothing pornographic... you get the picture.

I googled "Movies in the Park" and was very surprised at how many entries I came across. There were some right here in Michigan, however even though they were somewhat close... they weren't that close.

I wish my girlfriends lived near me, so that we could all get something like this rolling... together.

Movies in the park, a bottle of wine, and great friends. THAT would make for a GREAT summer.

Bliss

There is nothing better...

than kids sleeping in,

a cool, gentle morning breeze,

wind chimes in the distance,

and a great cup of coffee.

Life is good.

What I did

Yesterday was my official last day of class. I have to say that I had so much tension in my back and neck that I could actually feel my neck muscles wrapped around the base of my skull. It took me hours and hours to come down off the ceiling. I was just that amped up! Not that I was excited by any means, I was just that stressed out.

Today I woke up abruptly at 8:44 am. I couldn't believe that I was still sleeping that heavily at that time. I got up and got busy. The house looked like a tornado has been camped out here for the last 6 weeks. Den came home and took the camper for new tires. OMG... did I tell you we got a camper? lol OOPS. Ok, that will be another blog post coming shortly. Now that it is at it's "storage" area up in Armada, which is where I'll be celebrating the Fourth of July tomorrow, I will be sure to take photos inside and out! Our awesome friends Mike and Donna live on acreage up there and are letting us keep it there when we aren't using it.

Where was I? Oh! So the delimma for the day... where the hell are all of these tiny little ants coming from inside the house?! I have no idea what the heck happened, but we are getting these tiny little buggers in the laundry room and in the office. I've sprayed what I could, vacuumed regularly, but still... ants. I'm ready to tear my hair out.

Regardless, I got a lot done today, then we took the camper up to Armada. It was a breeze to drive it there, but I never thought of how narrow their drive way is... until we had to make that turn. lol. White knuckle moment for the Griswolds.

After that we went to the Putters House (my parents). I folded my hands, put a pout on my lips, and batted my eyelashes at my mom and asked her if she has anything I can pilfer for the camper, ie; towels, skillets, etc. I spent the next 2 hours going through the attic, the garage, the pantry, the linen closet. She is a gem, however she gave me a really nice mattress pad that I don't think she should have given me. It is too nice and I think I may return it to her.

Den, Greg and my Dad fished in the canal, and Emily earned a few bucks doing some things for Nana.

Finally we left and hit Kroger on the way home. Because tomorrow, I'm making THIS...

Barefoot Contessa's Caprese Salad

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients
12 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, seeds (not cores) removed
1/4 cup good olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
16 ounces fresh salted mozzarella
12 fresh basil leaves, julienned

Directions
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.
Arrange the tomatoes on a sheet pan, cut sides up, in a single layer. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of olive oil and the balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with the garlic, sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 2 hours until the tomatoes are concentrated and begin to caramelize. Allow the tomatoes to cool to room temperature.
Cut the mozzarella into slices slightly less than 1/2-inch thick. If the slices of mozzarella are larger than the tomatoes, cut the mozzarella slices in half. Layer the tomatoes alternately with the mozzarella on a platter and scatter the basil on top. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Serve at room temperature.

Trust me when I tell you that I CAN NOT cook. But this blows peoples socks off. It's my current, "Yep I made that!" dish! lol. It's worth EVERY effort my friends, so give it a whirl.

******Happy Fourth of July America!******

Time to Re-Group

Stick a fork in me, I'm done. I finished Microbiology today and am on pins and needles until I see my grade. Praying to the BioGods I say, "Please let me get an A, Please let me get an A." That was one whirlwind of a class. I mean really. I wrote a gazillion research papers... no wait, let me count them... I wrote 22 papers in 6 weeks, took 3 lecture tests, 2 lab tests, and had 7 other assignments that I completed. Stick a fork in me, I'm done! lol

As soon as I scrape myself off the ceiling and relax, I will write something more fun and creative. I promise.

Crossing Over

So it took a trip to Lansing, which is where I'm writing this, for me to realize something. We are here for the State Tournament for Emily's softball team. They didn't fare so well at this tournament, however these were heavy hitters as far as teams go. They did take out the Oakland Edge which the coaches were super proud of as I have heard there is a "history" between the two teams. I'm sure over a few beers, and a lot of laughs, I will hear this one.

After todays loss the manager of the team told everyone to meet at this restaurant for dinner. We chose to sit inside thankfully because apparently I didn't realize that I got major sun today. I never felt that one coming on. As we are there, I got up to use the restroom. As I was in there, the 12U team girls were in the mirror doing what 12 year olds do best... primp.

I entered the stall, only to hear the converstation ensuing outside about this girls dad snoring like a "choo-choo train". Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I have crossed over. When I had Emily I was a 27 year old kid that could not believe that the hospital would let me take this precious thing home without knowing if I knew how to take care of it or not. Somewhere in that 10 year span, I have crossed over into "the folks" role, and I'm not talking about taking care of a baby. That little baby that managed to survive two brand new parents that didn't know squat about raising a baby is now 10. Two years shy of being a 12 year old, that is talking about her dad snoring like a choo-choo train. I am no longer that cool chic that hung out with her friends. I am old, doddery, boring and parental, and I can't stop laughing about it. WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED and where was I???

I still... wouldn't change a thing.

Having an awesome time in Lansing... V

Hmmm.

I've sat here for quite a while now and have so much to tell you...

But I just don't know how to put my spin on it. It's been a long weekend... and it's only Saturday.

I'll get back with you.

Conversation...

I think this is so cute...

Little Girl on the Plane!

A stranger was seated next to a little girl on the airplane when the stranger turned to her and said, 'Let's talk. I've heard that flights go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger.'

The little girl, who had just opened her book, closed it slowly and said to the stranger, 'What would youlike to talk about?' 'Oh, I don't know,' said the stranger. 'How about nuclear power?' and he smiles.

'OK', she said. 'That could be an interesting topic. But let me ask you a question first. A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff - grass - . Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse produces clumps of dried grass. Why do you suppose that is?'

The stranger, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence, thinks about it and says, 'Hmmm, I have no idea.' To which the little girl replies, 'Do you really feel qualified to discuss nuclear power when you don't know shit?'

Here We Go Again...

I've said it before... I'm saying it again. I love and hate the last day of the kids school year. I am so excited for the summer but then get so depressed about another year having flown by.

I used to help in the school all the time when Emily was little. Now I'm rarely ever there. I remember her first day of nursery school. I have a photo that I took of her standing in front of the building with her cute little haircut, all of her baby teeth in place, and she is just beaming with excitement. The second day of school she threw up in the room because she was so scared to be there.

Her 4th grade year is over. My cute little nursery schooler is now a 5th grader.

When Greg was in preschool, we decided to put him in an early 5's class instead of kindergarten. It was called Begindergarten. It seems like it was just last week. Now... he's a 2nd grader. Another year flown by.

I always get so emotional at the end of the year. It is just another reminder of how big they are getting. Another reminder that Emily has 2 years left in this nurturing nest they call school, before she is off to Junior High. Another reminder that they are getting older, and growing out of the phases of childhoood. Another reminder that Den and I are getting older too.

I'm so sad.

I am Her, She is Me... I want to sleep, She has to pee...

lol, Ok so that has NOTHING to do with anything, but actually it sort of does. I'm sure all two of you readers have read Mel's blog. She talks a lot about having "ideas" for posts, but then forgets them, forgets how to word them, or just forgets she has a blog all together, lol.

I am SOOOOOO her. I'm sorry y'all. Fbook is like dead last on my list of things to do. While I never thought I would have anything to write about, truth be told, I LOVE blogging and LOVE reading blogs more than anything. I check out all of my favorites DAILY. Yep. You over there that hasn't blogged in over a month. I still read that every day. Everything IS going to be ok... as soon as you write something else for me to read! ;p

I have been a busy chickadeeta here. I am in Microbiology now. M - Th from 1 - 5 pm. We have lab for 2 hours, a short break then go to lecture for 2 hours. Words can not express how excited I am to go in there tomorrow to see if I have bacteria growing in my Petri dish. lol. I am hoping that there are BIG TIME colonies and that I did it right. I know, I know. I'm nuts. I never thought I would love this class as much as I do. I am learning SO much and it is amazing how much these things affect our every day life. Let me put it this way...

Last week, we learned how to make agar which is the gel substance in a petri dish. We made our agar, then put it into test tubes for autoclaving (sterilizing). Then we reboiled the sterilized agar to make it liquid. Then we poured it into the dish. If we were to stick it in the incubator, nothing should happen because it is sterile. HOWEVER... we took this tiny little loop, sterilized it, dipped it into a bottle of E Coli, then made smears on the Petri dish. If we did it right, the plate should have 4 quadrants on it, the first having heavy growth, and the last having individual colony's. I hope I have colony's! I swear I may jump up and down cheering right there in the lab! lol

It is hard to know if it actually worked as the loop looks clean even after dipping into the bottle of bacteria. It totally reconfirms that there are gazillions of bacteria on EVERYTHING we touch.... Look at your keyboard! lol

This is a rockin class. I knew I liked science, but didn't realize that I liked it this much.

Emergency!

Funny how he look's like Dr. Brackett from Rampart!

As Promised...

For Mother's Day, I was given this lovely book made by my dear child Greg. Enjoy faithful readers.

Apparently I am in desperate need of Oil of Olay, and I must quit smoking IMMEDIATELY as you can tell from the lines on my lips. (I have never smoked)

Notice how I like to wear my tennis racket around my neck. And those are stars above my head from being wacked with it.

I also must scream my name at my children so they remember it, lol. Apparently it must really make me mad when I have to do this!

I like to turn on fans FULL BLAST! So I am told.

Ah yes... the Hawk. We've had a problem with a hawk trying to use our bird feeders of a buffet. How sweet of Greg to remind me of the carnage!

Don't let him fool you. He LOVES it when I kiss his face! And No... we don't like to kiss. Not like that. That's just gross.

Apparently I am either hearing impared, I think my children are hearing impared, or I am blind. Something like that! Notice Emily's hair blowing back from me SCREAMING at her!

Here I am shown with a salivating problem. He tells me I'm drooling. :)

I guess I spit when I scream too! lol

Anyone who knows me, knows that THIS is not true. Emily inherited that gene from BOTH Grandma's!

Lovely depiction of my favorite color! LOL!

This one kills me. Apparently I have been watching too much wrestling on TV as I am now taking out my kids with folding metal chairs! POW! RIGHT IN THE KISSER! lol

Ah yes. This is me with a fire on the cake, flower in my hair and me squirting myself in the face with frosting. Such a clean baker I am.

Yeah, me throwing Greg into the pool. THAT will be the day!!

Maybe once he gets over his fear of water... hey wait. That gives me an idea for summer! lol

I haven't forgotten about posting Greg's book. Thing is... I can't remember where I put it! I set it aside so that I would remember to scan it in, and I think it got lost in the shuffle. I will look for it though.

I am a HUGE mental mess right now. I literally feel like a box of rocks. As I mentioned previously, our dear friend Chris is in the battle of his life. He was diagnosed with Leukemia and has been in the hospital since May 4th. I also can't remember if I told you that Chris & his wife Deanna are both Greg's godparents.

When I was younger, my dear friend got Leukemia. I now am thankful that ignorance is bliss. Had I realized the capacity of this, back then... I would have been a total nut case. Even more than I am right now! I just carried on with her as if it didn't even exist, and we had a GREAT time. I'm sure she will agree.

The funny thing is that I know full well that Chris is going to survive this with flying colors. There isn't a seed of doubt in my mind. I can't explain it, but there is NO doubt. This is just a "interruption" in the life of Chris. A crappy one at that. On the other hand, I feel like I'm wearing a straight jacket. We are totally climbing the walls here, and are just furious that he is going through this. It is starting to become very rough on his 3 children too. I'm worried about his wife, also my dear friend, and that she isn't taking proper care of herself to be there for him. She assures me that she is, but I am still worried.

I am happy to say now that fundraisers are being put into place to help with their medical expenses. He is a Sterling Heights Fire Fighter/Paramedic. On a patients darkest days and moments, Chris is there, fighting for their lives. And now we are going to help a brother out.

I will be sure to keep you posted on the fundraisers, in case you would like to contribute.

I Did It!

Algebra... the hardest class I have EVER taken. EVER. I'm talking.... like EVER!!

And I passed. I got a C... and I will take it!

Yeahhhhh ME!!!!!!

I actually started sobbing when I saw my grade. Never in the history of all my credit hours have I ever had a grade impact me the way that did.

Top that off with Emily's team being in FIRST PLACE after today's games! They took all 4 games, but I can't remember the scores. They are starting to run together, lol.

We are back in Richmond at 8:30 tomorrow morning to take on the First Place in the other division.

It's been a GREAT... but draining day. Good Night!

Stand by!

It's late, and we have to be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow for Emily's tournament. Greg made me a Mothers Day book at school, and let me tell you... it is a total treasure. I don't have time to scan it in right at this moment, but trust me, it's something you don't want to miss. It's funny to see how your kids REALLY think of you. I promise to do it as soon as I get a free moment. Be sure to check back!

Full Swing!

Softball and Baseball are both in full swing! This year Emily is on the Macomb Eagles Fast Pitch team. It is a SMAFF, travel team. She rocks at it. She can jack that ball out of the park, but then gets so excited she forgets to look at her coaches for signals! By the time she reaches her base, she is holding on to her helmet, jumping up and down!

Last weekend they had a tournament in New Haven in which they won all 3 games. The second game they killed the other team, 12 - 2... and I heard the coach of the other team had no business putting those girls in the tournament. They weren't prepared for it and just got annihilated. The down side is that because they were so easy to beat, the third team almost won, because our girls were slacking off. They weren't ready to really "play" again. Regardless, they pulled themselves together and won the tournament.

Emily had a lot of hits, but the best one that I saw was a double. That ball FLEW over the girls heads. The parents were going banana's, the team was cheering her on, and she was so excited, she only made it to second base! Her coach on third was yelling for her, but she didn't look over at him, lol. She'll get the hang of it soon enough. She's a slugger!!!

I LOVE this photo...

Then there is my little leaguer. He is so handsome in is little uniform. Greg expressed interest around the time the sign up form came home. Then it was down hill. We couldn't get him to play catch, he didn't want to do anything... Until he started practicing with the team. That's all she wrote. HE LOVES IT! Greg is a "Knight" on the Coach Pitch League. He is having a GREAT time and takes it soooo seriously!

While Mr. Green Shirt over there is playing in the dirt, some little sneaker looks like he's about to steal third!

We watched a total of 4 games last Saturday. 3 were her's and 1 was his. It was exhausting to say the least, especially with 40 mph winds.... but we figure that this is just temporary. The kids are having fun, and we LOVE watching them. However this is what Emily looked like by the time Greg's game was half over...

This weekend, the insanity continues. She has a tournament in Richmond on Saturday & Sunday. Den has an alumni game at his alma mater on Saturday, and Greg has a game on Saturday at 4.

Calgon... take me away, lol.

She is playing in a tournament in Lansing for you West Side readers.. it will be June 26th - 28th. We'd love to see you there.

Now Hiring

Ok, here it comes... if I haven't said it before, I LOVE Tastefully Simple. I LOVE this company, and love how they operate.

We had our team meeting here last night. We were talking about the economy and people losing their jobs. Oddly enough, our sales were up 57% in March. I have more parties booked than I ever thought possible, and the calls keep coming in. Everyone wants to book for June, however I'm starting to push them into July. It's CRAZY!

We sell food. Although there is a recession, we are not participating in it, because people are still eating. They are still eating dinner, entertaining friends, and having staycations. People NEED TO EAT! We have a recession proof product! I love home parties and have had quite a few of them here, however I really don't need another food storage container, or baking stone. I already have them. They last FOREVER! Beer Bread on the other hand... usually doesn't make it a week in the pantry. EVERYONE loves beer bread.

So! If you need a job. You are looking to make anywhere from $50 to $100 per week, Tastefully Simple is the company you are looking for. There are no pyramid schemes. You don't have to carry inventory. Reorders are plentiful. In fact, I didn't do any parties from last August to December, and still got loads of reorders. It is that easy.

For parties... You may think, "I can't stand up there and talk". Well let's put it this way... I failed speech in college because I was so afraid of speaking in public. Today... I pass a tray and talk. They aren't looking at me, and half the time they aren't even listening to me. They are eating, oohing and aahhhing, and having a GREAT time with their friends. It's an AWESOME job and this October it will be my 2 year anniversary. I LOVE IT!

Sparked your interest... click the link on the right and read up about it. If you want more information, contact me and we'll discuss it. Totally no pressure. I firmly believe people need to do what is right for themselves, and not for anyone else. But if you think the time is right for you... this may be exactly what you are looking for.

No lay-off's, no pay cuts, no one to schedule you, but yourself. Health Care benefits... This is ONE GREAT COMPANY. I'm loving the ride.

My mom...

My mom was 18 when she married my father, the day after her high school graduation. A few months later, my brother was born. 2 years later, another son, then a daughter, and finally me. My mom was very young, raising a large family. We grew up in the country for most of my life. Living there, I learned about hard work, the beauty of nature, how to handle family conflict, or more like how NOT to handle family conflict.

Through it all, we managed to stay together. While my parents had some rough years, my mom managed to keep the family together, and tried her best to raise her family. All of us kids turned out pretty well I think. We are all homeowners, happily married, and didn't turn out to be drug addicts, wife/husband beaters, or drunks.

Now I look at my parents in awe. There was a lot of turmoil in our lives, yet my mom still managed to provide a nurturing environment. In one case, she saved my brothers from being punished because one of them put their foot through a wall. She just moved her curio cabinet over in front of it, and shortly after the entire family went up north for a vacation. It wasn't until after we returned, that she confessed to my Dad, who still wasn't happy. She did this so that we could still enjoy a very much needed vacation.

Sometimes I think my mom's heart is so much bigger than her brain. She is way too generous to people, yet forgets that she and my Dad are now on a limited income. Today on Mother's Day I rushed out of there with my kids because she started giving them things. While I'm sure she was doing out of her own good nature, I personally don't need another thing in my house!

Yet on the way home, I started to realize how much I am like my mother. While we are just barely getting by, I'm thinking of teacher gifts for the end of the year, or of our dear friends, one of which was diagnosed with Leukemia this week. I'm so worried about their financial situation now that he will be off work for more than a year. While we are barely getting by, I am already pulling out everything in my pockets for them because I love them dearly and do not want to see them suffer.

My mom is an amazing woman who's heart may be bigger than her brain, but one thing is certain. When she leaves this earth, the number of people that she has touched, will be immeasurable.

There once was a time when I shuddered at the thought of being anything like her. Now I can only hope that I become half the woman that she is. I hope that my children will grow up to LOVE the Christmas season, and not for the gifts. I hope that I too will be as loving and giving as she is.

Happy Mothers Day.

Quest for Directions

Today I'm going to the Scrapbooking Megameet with my friends Kim & Michele. In order to avoid the freeway closure at I-275 & I-696, I was on mapquest plotting out map to get there from M-59. That's when I noticed it.... Did you know that on mapquest.com you can actually look up a route by Gas Prices? What the heck? That's... pretty bad.

Obligations

Tonight the first graders are having a musical at the school. Greg does not want to go. He has been telling us this since we first found out about it a while back.

I feel that we should not make him go if he does not want to. Emily on the other hand is very upset that he isn't going. She's carrying on as if the building will shut down because Greg is not there.

We have SO MANY obligations that we are always trying to meet. I do not consider this an obligation. The child REALLY does not want to go. He has already said that he isn't singing, and that he doesn't care for the song selection. He has sung in other musicals before and has been excited for them. This one, he's not so fond of.

I am not making him go. I do not wish to battle the parking lot (imagine about 25 parking spaces for about 700 families), forcing him to go, only to see him not sing. What's the point?

Am I wrong for not making him go?

I'm here

Just studying for a final test. Test scores are 60% of our grade, and I haven't done that well on them. I rocked on the quizzes though. Explain that one! 5/14 is the last day. I can't wait for this class to be over with. In the mean time, factor this...

2x+7y-10

Did I Ask?

When a woman announces her pregnancy, people seem to think that is the green light for them to go ahead and dump their pregnancy or delivery disasters on them. Everyone has had something bad happen, or they try to "out do" the others with their stories.

I didn't have the most wonderful pregnancies. There. I said it. I loved being pregnant, but my body seemed to think otherwise. I survived. So did my children. End of story. I believe that this kind of information shouldn't be "dumped" on to the newly expecting mother because there is no need for it. I mean, why would you do that to someone? "Congratulations! We are so excited for you! But...." I just don't understand that mentality.

That whole scenario brings me to this...

I've told you all that I've switched gears and am aiming for the Nursing program at Macomb. While every one of you have given me a HUGE kudos, there are a great many that have "shared" their major problems with me, even though I NEVER asked for the information.

"FORGET IT! You'll NEVER get in" I've heard. "My son has a 4.0 but didn't score that well on the HESI test, so he didn't get in. Good luck." Oh and then there's... "I've got a 4.0, and scored high on my HESI and I didn't get in"... blah, blah, blah.

I have found ONE consistancy in EVERY stories I've heard. Every single person that gave me their unsolicited advice... transferred their credits from other colleges. I've heard it through the grapevine (a few years back), that most schools will take most of their own students, before taking transfer students. While I'm not banking on this theory, it does sound that it could be a possiblity. Even still... What makes any one of those story telling people think that I am like all the rest of the candidates? Why would they say these things, trying to undermine my intentions and drive?

You know me. You know that my glass is almost always half full. Even with all of the negativity flying my way, I'm still looking PAST the obstacle at the goal. I can see it on the other side, plain as the nose on my face. The obstacle is "getting in". I am living proof that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. Paramedic school was relentless. It was hard, challenging, and extremely rewarding at the same time. I worked my butt off and received all A's. Before I ever got into EMT school, I totally thought it was a pipe dream. It wasn't. It was attainable just as anything else is if you work hard and focus on the finish line.

I am excited. I am so excited and just FULL of energy to complete this next chapter in my life. I LOVE to learn new things, and love to reach the goal. I just wish people would put a sock in it when it comes to their negative comments. I, appropriately named Queen Busta Chops am speechless when it comes to their negativity. I wish I knew the appropriate thing to say to put an end to their unsolicited comments, without sounding like a total jerk.

What would you do?

What the.... Where was I?

I was just looking at the newsletter from Emily's class. There are only 7, yes I said SEVEN more weeks of school left! WHAT THE HELL!! Where in the world has all the time gone?! I'm completely floored and stunned at the same time. They just opened up their Christmas gifts like last week!!!

I'm completely blown away.

Billy Ray Cyrus - Back To Tennessee - Official Music Video (HQ)

There I said it... I like country music too. I like all kinds of music, however Country has my vote right now. Enjoy the video from the Achey Breaky Heart guy. V

"The List"

Last week was pretty bad for Greg. It was spring break. They got out on Thursday, and by Friday night, he had a rip roaring fever. This wasn't so great considering the Easter Celebration was to be held at our house. Alas, we still had it here, but little boy blue was sick in my bed the whole time. By Monday, I had to take him to the Doctor.

Sinus Infection we were told. We were given an Rx and sent on our way. On Thursday, we had him back to the doctor as he was still running a 102 fever. Change and antibiotics, and VOILA! He was better by Friday night.

His little illness put the kabosh on every plan we had for that week. I felt HORRIBLE for him as he was the only one counting down days until his "break". What a break that was.

Emily and I went to see the Hannah Montana movie on Wednesday while Greg stayed home with Den. What a GREAT MOVIE. I totally loved it. Absolutely purchase worthy in our book. Regardless, we heard The Climb the other day in the car. I really like this song and the message that is sent. I asked Emily if she knew what the song was about.

We then started talking about life. I told her about my brother Mike and how he told me about "the dash" poem I posted earlier. She then said, "I love Uncle Mike, they should move up here". I then told her how he and Mary Ann plan to move to Tennessee in a couple of years. Of course, then Peepers pipes up and says, "Let's move to Tennessee! I love it there".

I never realized how unrealistic it is for us to relocate. Not that I'm seriously thinking of moving, but to put things into perspective, I explained that Dennis doesn't have a "normal" job by any sense of the word.

A huge amount of training and education goes into the preparation for the job. Then when a F.D. is hiring, you have to apply. Then you take a test. If you rank high on the test, you get on "the list". Then when your number is called, you have an interview, and a backround check, and an agility test. Then maybe, just maybe, they will hire you. Of course then you are on probation for like 6 months to a year.

I can honestly say in Dennis' 14 years on the department, I don't think I have EVER seen anyone quit. Can you blame them? I have, however, seen many people end up being #1 on "the list" only to have that list expire without them ever receiving a phone call.

Which brings me to this... I found out I have 3 classes to take before the end of Fall, to apply to the Nursing program at the college. Unfortunately I found this out AFTER my priority registration expired. So I ended up being waitlisted for a class I desperately needed to get into. #15 out of 15. Yuk. Then it happened...
#11 out of 15
#7 out of 15 (then they opened up another class, but I didn't need that one, but it made the waitlist smaller...
#6 out of 13
#4 out of 13...
#3 out of 12... and finally yesterday...
#1 out of 12
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.
.
.
.
.
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This morning... I got in. RELIEF! Now send good karma for an A, please.

Life Made Simple

A friend and I recently had an email conversation about simplifying and facebook.

Ok, I admit it. I'm pretty much done with Facebook. It was fun while it lasted, but honestly, I'm rarely ever on there any more. Plus I found yesterday that my friend posted photos of her little boy and I didn't even know about it, until I clicked on her name. To me, this is front page news! I want my friends stuff to be front and center the moment it hits the web! In all reality, Facebook sucks the time right out of my day and seems to take away from the things I really like to do. Plus, I don't really care to see what other people are doing, except for those that matter most to me.

I also just realized that the voicemail on our home phone had 4 messages on there that are relatively old, but hadn't been heard. I'm seriously thinking about shutting off the voicemail. It is yet just another time consumer, listening to people's "stories" on the voicemail. The people I REALLY want to talk to, know how to reach me.

I hate that I'm in this frame of mind, but in all reality, I feel like I'm trying to get back to the basics. Den and I were just talking today about the News. We rarely ever watch the news anymore because it is all sensationalized, and depressing. They use scare tactics on a regular basis and to tell you the truth, I really don't want my kids watching it at all. They don't need to know the graphic details about child preditors, or molesters. I will tell them what I think they should hear.

I guess I'm just sick of being pulled in so many different directions at once. I just want to have more time for the things I want to do, plus if all goes well, I will have my head buried in school books before we know it. I guess this is the perfect time to start simplifying my life.

I'm Not Ready...

I'm starting to feel like I'm the only blogger left on the planet. I would hate to think Facebook is taking over. While I do like facebook, there is something special about a blog that I love. It's random thoughts, requests for advice, memories of the past, hope for the future, hysterical moments, painfully sad moments, and virtual trips that we all take together.

Facebook is ok, but the novelty has worn off, and sometimes I just don't have the time and energy to keep up with the flow. With blogger, it's a once a day post. Like reading your favorite news article written by your favorite journalist. I feel like I'm the only one left here and I am so sad. I'm not ready to stop blogging yet, but it is painfully obvious that not many people are in to it any more. Rest assured my friends, I check your blogs daily. I understand you are busy. I just miss your different styles of writing, and fear that you've decided to be done with the blogger.... But I'm still here.

Hodge Podge

So yesterday, I was in the WORST mood. It is almost impossible to be happy about anything these days. Everything is always bad on the TV and in the newspapers.

I set off for the post office yesterday. While in the post office, this arrogant butt head starts spouting off to the people in line, including myself. He starts slamming Obama for this, and that. Then he proceeds to say that the democratic people are brainwashed, and if we all think this mess is Bush's fault, we need to learn a thing or two. He c0ntinued with his unsolicited opinion for quite a while.

Let's just say by this time, I was staring at the ceiling, literally biting my lip. I wanted to rip into this a-hole like you can't imagine. Not because of my political views, but more so for feeling the need to give everyone in line his opinion, whether we asked for it or not. This jerk had no idea what kind of day people were having, and just felt the need to voice his opinion.

After the post office, I went to Meijer for a few things. As I approached the check out, I remembered Melanie's rant o' rama about self check outs. You know what... The girl is dead on. Why are we paying MORE for our groceries, only to ring them up and bag them ourselves?! I'm taking a stand against this one. I got into a line with a cashier. I had time to burn and really didn't care how long it took. Come hell or high water, I am NOT ringing up my own groceries, and I am NOT going to bag them either.

Moments later, I hear a woman behind me. She works for the store. She tells me to go down a few aisles and another cashier would ring me up. So I go down there, and guess where the cashier is going to ring me up... Yep! At the self check out! So now I have this angry cashier that is running 8 self check out units, ringing up my groceries and bitching about her supervisor. Next thing I know, she has to STOP ringing up my groceries to go handle another customer's check. Here I am, at the self check out stuck waiting for about 5 minutes for the girl to come back. By this time I couldn't ring myself up because she did something to the screen that changed the view. I should have fooled with it enough to give myself 50% off all my groceries, lol.

I've decided that I am NO longer going to those self check outs. I'm going to do my part in putting people back to work, by making sure I go into the aisles with an actual human being ringing me up. Period.

On a different and happier note.... I passed my test! Not only did I pass it... I ACED IT! 100%!!!! WHEW!!

I take pride in being an optimistic person, however it is becoming more and more difficult as time goes on. Sometimes I find that I can't even stand myself because of the life sucking mood I am in. I can't tell you enough how much I would love to snap out of this funk.

Comfort and Joy

I love Walgreens. There I said it. I professed my love for a convenience store. We have a Walgreens about 1/4 mile from my driveway. I love that store. Whenever you are in a pinch, it's there. Last night we needed and ice cream fix... Walgreens was there. Gift card, greeting card, make up, shampoo, sugar, cold medicine... Walgreens is there.

Yesterday, Emily and I both finished Professor Layton and the Curious Village on her DS. She worked on her saved game, then I worked on mine. It took a while but we finished it.... and loved it. Emily actually cried when she finished her game. It works you through some crazy puzzles, but they are all so much fun, and sometimes the easiest answer is all you need, even though you've gone through quantum physics only to realize the answer didn't require all that much. (wow, huge run-on sentence there!).

While chilling with the family in sweats, a comfy cotton tee-shirt and my pretty pink and white socks that I just got, she and I decided to run to Walgreens. While I am the first one to rip on people that wear their pajaja's in public, I must say I did go in sweats... and sandals (with socks), lol. Because it's only Walgreens, it was at night, and we needed the fix! I LOVE that store.

The Dash

The Dashcopyright 1996 Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speakat the funeral of a friend.He referred to the dates on her tombstonefrom the beginning...to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birthand spoke of the following date with tears,but he said what mattered most of allwas the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the timethat she spent alive on earth...and now only those who loved herknow what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;the cars....the house...the cash.What matters is how we live and loveand how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard...are there things you'd like to change?For you never know how much time is leftthat can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enoughto consider what's true and real,and always try to understandthe way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger,and show appreciation moreand love the people in our liveslike we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,and more often wear a smile...remembering that this special dashmight only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being readwith your life's actions to rehash...would you be proud of the things theysay about how you spend your dash?

Uncle Joe

This week our family said good-bye to a very dear family friend. Uncle Joe and Aunt Norma lived next door to my Grandparents in Detroit. Their son Greg is my brothers godfather. I honestly can't remember a family function in which I didn't see them while growing up. We were part of their family, and they were our's. Uncle Joe was always radiant with positivity. He was a handsome man, and dearly loved his wife. They had an amazing marriage. You could see it when they were together, and you can see it from photo's past. They are both extremely special people, whom you would love to be around.

I learned a lot about Uncle Joe today. Things that I never had the opportunity to learn. For this I have regrets. He lived a very interesting life and his glass was always half full. Our hearts are broken, however we are glad he never suffered.

Good Bye Uncle Joe. You made the world a better place. I feel like a better person, just having known you. For that I am so lucky. You will be missed.

Joseph V. Bilpuch
Date:
May 1st, 1918 - March 28th, 2009
Obituary:
BILPUCH, JOSEPH V. March 28, 2009 age 90 of Lake Orion. Beloved husband of Norma M. of 62 years. Dear father of Greg(Sandra) Bilpuch of Lake Orion. Grandfather of Kristen (Kevin) Gretka, Wendy (Jeffrey) Edgett and Michael Nobar. Great-grandfather of Shelbie, Kaden, Tobias, Kendall and Garrett. Brother of John Bilpuch, Edward (Marilyn) Bilpuch and Betty McRoberts. Also survived by loving nieces and nephews. Mr. Bilpuch was an Environmental Engineer for Alpha Electric in Detroit. He was a Veteran of the United States Army serving during WWII where he was a Prisoner of War for 28 months. He was a member of the Lake Orion American Legion Post 233; a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church. Funeral service Wednesday 10:30 am from the Lake Orion Chapel of the Sparks-Griffin Funeral Home. Family will receive friends Tuesday 2-5 & 6-9 pm. Memorial contributions may be directed to the Orion War Memorial 312 S. Broadway, Lake Orion, MI 48362 A Guest Reflection can be made @ www.sparksgriffin.com