Happy Birthday, Alison!

Today is Alison's 7th birthday! I just can't believe she's so old already. I know it seems cliche' to say this, but it really does seem like just yesterday that she was born.

We were driving back from Patrick's baseball game last night and I had a terrible sinus headache. I had snapped at the girls to be quiet because they were being a bit rowdy in the van. Then, out of nowhere, Alison says, "I want to go to France." She always knows how to make me smile! :-)

Judy vs. Jimmy Buffet

Today I received a 6 page cease and desist order from Jimmy Buffet's lawyers. Seems they are a wee bit ticked off that my itty bitty little company had a scent named "Margarita-ville", and Jimmy owns the copywrite on that name. I was demanded to change the name or face a big penalty. Seriously 6 pages of scare tactics. Good grief...I changed the name....no big deal. They could've asked nicely. :-) It's now called Margarita Dreams. Now I'm developing a scent called "Parrot Head"....just kidding!

Summer musings

I stepped into the shower this morning and found 2 quarters lying on the floor. How did that happen? Were they stuck to someone's skin? I mean...you don't empty your pockets in the shower, right?

The other day I knocked over a whole box of Cheez-Its into my huge box of packing peanuts. Cheez-Its weigh more than packing peanuts, so they sunk down into the box. Can you imagine how hard it was trying to fish all the crackers out? So...if you get a package from me w/ a stray cheese cracker in it, now you know.

I think the kids and I are getting into a good routine finally. I still have to remind them that I *have* to work sometimes, but I also have been much better about dropping what I'm doing and watching the play or the dance they've made up or going swimming with them.

Rachel and I are going shopping later for Alison's birthday presents. She turns 7 on Sunday. It's hard to handle that my youngest child is that old. I sometimes miss having a really little one in the house. (and no, honey...if you're reading this...don't freak out....I don't want another baby!)

I've been loving watching the College World Series w/ Patrick. To me, this is pure baseball. The players are great, and they play w/ full-bore enthusiasm. They'll dive after foul balls that they have no chance of getting. It's great!

I admit....I used to watch Days of our Lives in college. Once I started working full time, I didn't watch anymore. But, now that I'm home, I often have it on while I'm working. Big mistake! Patrick was in the room the other day when the show was on. He looked quite bemused. I had no explanation as to why I was suckered into watching such a show...but yet...I can't stay away. It's a drug, I tell you!

Two chickies home now

I drove up to Bloomington to pick up Patrick from camp (a day early). His baseball team has an 11 a.m. game in St. Louis tomorrow morning, so we needed to get him a little early to have time to throw and hit today so he wouldn't pull a muscle or anything. It was amazing to see how close the kids get to each other in just a week at camp. Patrick talked the whole drive home about how amazing camp was. I love that he gets a week in the summer to be a complete kid. No pressures of baseball or anything. Just fun.

I saw Rachel while I was there, but she was very clear that she was NOT leaving w/ me (not that I was planning on taking her!). She was reveling in getting to stay at camp for the whole week this year, since she was finally old enough. So, back up to Bloomington tomorrow to pick her up. I could have someone else bring her home, but I just can't do that....I want to get her!

Then, I'll have all 3 chickies under my roof again. Well, unless Patrick's baseball team ends up seeded 2nd in the tournament and stays in a hotel in St. Louis tomorrow night (he'll have to stay w/ a teammate, since Thorn and I have to be in church on Sunday morning). But, I KNOW for sure that Sunday night I'll have all my chickies under my roof again.

Thornton has had a fever of 101 for the past 2 days. It seems like what Alison had...although he says that his whole body aches. He's feeling a little bit better now, but that might just be because the Motrin is working. I sure hope he feels better soon!

15 years

Today is Thornton and my 15th wedding anniversary. Just having him back from camp was present enough for me. So the card and flowers were a bonus! It's amazing how over the past 15 years, though good and bad times, our love has grown. I can't wait to grow old with him.

Missin' my honey

I miss Thornton. I don't know how wives do it if they have husbands that travel a lot. Thornton and I are rarely apart and that's just the way I like it. He's only been at camp since Monday morning and he'll be home tomorrow afternoon, but it just doesn't seem right in our house w/out him here. He did manage to break away this afternoon and called Alison and me. Ali was very happy to talk to her daddy! Funny...she hasn't mentioned missing her brother and sister at all. Whatever could that mean? :-)

Alison and I took our dog Mia for a walk tonight. Unfortunately, as I was walking out the door, I dropped her leash. She took off running, dragging her leash behind her. I expected to be in for a long chase, but some neighbors just a couple of streets over caught her and held onto her 'til Alison and I got there. We then continued our walk and the neighbors that live across the pond from us had their dog out front unleashed. Their dog jumped Mia (despite being less than 1/2 the size) and got a hold of her hind quarters. Thankfully, I didn't find any broken skin.

Alison is currently making Gobstopper dispensers out of paper. You attach the tube of paper to a box of Gobstoppers and then when you put the tube to your mouth, it dispenses Gobstoppers down the tube and into your mouth. She's quite pleased w/ herself, so who am I to stop her?

One more night w/out my honey.....I can make it....

Wanna buy a railroad tie?

Apparently my cell phone number was mistakenly listed in a classified ad selling railroad ties today. I've gotten 3 phone calls asking for information. One guy was really upset, seemingly with me, that I wasn't the correct person. Yeah, like I wanted people calling me and asking me questions that I haven't a clue the answer to.

Alison is a bit better today. Her temp was down to 100.5 with a sore throat. She's been laying low today, which is nice. I had a good reminder from a friend that when a child is sick, it's OK to slow down and just spend time taking care of them. So, I did.

We sent off a care package to Patrick and Rachel at camp. Sure hope they packed their toothbrushes, because they have lots of candy to share w/ their friends! I hope Thornton calls tonight, if he gets a chance, because Alison really misses her daddy and wants to talk to him. He doesn't have his cell phone w/ him, so I don't know if he'll get to call.

Been a LONG time!

I guess I can't really call this blog "A DAY in the life..." since I haven't posted in like a week. It's been an adjustment having the kids home all day and trying to get my work done.

Patrick was at baseball camp all last week in the morning. It was kind of humorous, actually. He's a tall kid for his age (13) and this camp was supposed to be for 11-14 year olds. The first day he and I were standing waiting for the camp to start and all these little kids...must've been 11 years old...but seriously they were little...were staring at Patrick with a glazed look on their faces. He towered over them! Turns out there weren't any 14 year olds there and Patrick was taller than anyone by quite a bit. It turned out to be a good camp in the end, and I think it didn't hurt his self esteem at all to be the "Star" camper.

Rachel and Patrick are leaving tomorrow morning for Camp in Bloomington, IL. They'll be gone 'til Saturday. Thornton is going as a counselor for the "first timers camp". He'll be at the same camp, but in a different area. He'll just be gone until Wednesday. It's been pure chaos trying to get everyone ready to go today. And expensive! I have had to purchase everything times 3. 3 bug sprays, 3 flashlights (why can they never find the ones I bought last year??). Then, there's the snacks.....the camp I went to didn't allow you to bring snacks. But, at this camp, you can, as long as they're sealed in a container. I'm so glad they're excited to go. Our kids have always been really secure about leaving us...and I guess that makes me proud that we've grown them to be secure, confident kids. But, it makes me a wee bit sad that they don't need me *that* much!

Alison came home from church today and took a 4 hour nap. I should've known she wasn't feeling well....but at church she seemed OK. She woke up from her nap literally screaming bloody murder. She said her head hurt. She was burning up, too. I took her temp and it was 103.5. Tylenol has brought her back to normal, but I'm worried about when it wears off. She doesn't quite understand that although she's feeling better now, she still needs to lay low.

My in-law's got back today from Georgia. We dog and cat sat for them while they were gone. Their German Shepherd must've pooped in our house 10 times! We'd take him for a walk, he'd poop, then he'd come home and poop again. Ugh...it was gross.

So, Alison and I will be on our own for a few days. She and I were supposed to go up to Chicago to visit w/ my parents tomorrow and Tuesday, but that's put on hold 'til she is feeling better. Unfortunately, her best little friend is going to Germany w/ her parents (who are from there) for a month. I hear lots of whining in my future!

Busier than usual

You can tell the kids are home, because I haven't updated my blog in a few days. I keep thinking about it, but then it just doesn't get done. Our pool will finally be up and running tomorrow. The girls spent all day swimming at a friend's house, so they are extra tired tonight. Alison is snuggled down in my bed and my guess is that when I go upstairs, she'll be asleep. Poor Rachel is at dance right now and I'm sure she's dragging.

Patrick had a baseball camp this morning, then he came home and mowed the lawn. Then he hugged me.....ewwww....stinky man-boy! I told him how stinky he was and he said, "OK...I'll go put deodorant on". As if that would help!

Patrick's baseball team won their tournament this past weekend. They played so well! Patrick pitched the game they needed to win to get to the Championship game. He did really well, but I could tell he was wiped out after 4 innings. It was hot!

We're going to be dog and cat sitting for my in-law's for the rest of the week. They have a German Shepherd. That will make 2 cats, a German Shepherd and a Siberian Huskey in our house. It works out fine until they all decide to play chase in the middle of the night. It sounds like a herd of cattle are barreling through the house. Their dog loves to swim, too....so we'll have to watch the pool.

Summer!

The kids are done with school (as of Wednesday morning). Of course, it rained all Wednesday and Thursday, so that kind of stunk for them. Today has been beautiful, but our pool isn't opened yet. Thornton has been crazy busy getting ready for the grand opening of our church's new sanctuary on Sunday, so he hasn't had time to finish getting it open. He thinks he'll have time tonight.

The kid's report cards were good. Rachel has been recommended for accelerated math and language arts for next year (5th grade). These are very hard classes, but she wants to give them a try. Patrick got his first C (language arts), so he's going to be reading a ton of books this summer. And, no, I don't feel sorry for him one bit! Alison was recommended for reading intervention next year, but I honestly feel that once we get her ADHD figured out, she's going to do just great.

It's cool again!

We ended up leaving town since our air conditioner couldn't get fixed until today and it was 90 in our house. My in-law's have a house on a private lake about an hour from here, so we headed over there after church on Sunday and got back today. It was wonderful! The kids swam, fished, lazed around...and I got a 2 hour nap! We got back this afternoon and our new air conditioner is now up and running.

Of course, now I'm feeling the pressure to get all these orders out, since I've gotten a bit too far behind, but I'm going to work hard on it now that it's cool. I just couldn't bear to work in my hot kitchen when I was dripping sweat.

The stupidest present ever

Two years ago on my birthday, Thornton forgot to get me a gift. Well, actually, he probably didn't forget, he probably just didn't get me one. He's not a big gift-giver (despite the fact that I love presents!). So, that night he and the kids happened to be at the grocery store and decided to get me a joke gift. I explained to them that usually a joke gift is followed by a real gift, but that was not to be the case. Anyway, they bought me a SpongeBob SquarePants ice pack. Well, let me tell you, that present has probably comforted 100 boo boos in the past 2 years. It's always in the freezer and whenever anyone gets hurt, they get to use SpongeBob. Well, last night, when I went to bed, it was 90 degrees in our house. I love my husband, but I was not sleeping next to anyone when it's that hot. So, he gladly slept downstairs. I laid in bed hot and miserable for a while. Then....a brilliant thought hit me....get SpongeBob! I grabbed the ice pack out of the freezer, climbed back in bed and put SpongeBob behind my neck. Wow...instant relief from the heat! So, SpongeBob slept with me last night....until he wasn't cool anymore and I threw him on the floor.

The air conditioning repair guy is going to "try" to make it today to fix the AC. Otherwise, it'll not be until Tuesday. And it's going to be in the 90's the next few days. Wonder where I can get more of those ice packs.....

It's always something

Recently our weather has turned much hotter, so we turned on the air conditioning for the first time this season. And, nothing. It didn't kick on. So, I called the repairman this morning. He just told me, very non-chalantly, that our compressor is shot and since the unit is so old, it wouldn't help to fix it. We have to replace it, to the tune of $1650. Ummm....yeah...sure, no problem. But, we have to do it. It's 85 degrees in the house right now.

Sometimes I hate being an adult.

Idol thoughts

Caught the finale of American Idol last night. I didn't really have any strong thoughts either way about who I wanted to win. Maybe that's because I didn't catch many of the episodes this season. In their last performance show on Tuesday, I had to cringe many times at how off key both of the singers got at times. Even Rachel (who actually has near perfect pitch) would turn around and look at me in the kitchen w/ this look on her face that said "ouch...that was a bad note".

The highlight of the show, however, was when they brought this guy onstage to sing who idolized Clay Aiken. He had auditioned for the show and was horrible. He even dressed like Clay. While he was singing (off key, of course), Clay walked out onstage singing. This guy freaked out. I mean FREAKED OUT! It was priceless. I am still chuckling over that image.

They had some famous artists on the show too. After Prince sang Rachel said to me, "so who decided this guy should be famous?" Touche.

Swoon

Monday night Patrick came w/ me to pick up Rachel from dance. He had just finished a baseball game. Rachel's face lit up when she saw him sitting out in the waiting area. One of the girls asked Rachel who that was. And Rachel proudly answered, "that's my brother." The girl said, "whoa...*that's* your brother??!!" Then that little girl (OK...she's 11...but to me she's a little girl...) proceeded to come out into the waiting area 4 times in 15 minutes to blow her nose....each time staring at Patrick. It was hysterical! Rachel just rolled her eyes.

Now, if any of Patrick's friends ever start thinking Rachel is cute...then we have trouble.

Who broke the recliner?

I just looked over at the recliner in the family room and the legrest part is up and at a very strange angle....kind of hanging there...definitely broken. No one is home to grill about who did it. But, my guess is that no one will confess. Of course, this chair is the dog's favorite sleeping spot, so maybe we should just blame her.

It so quiet here. Thornton and Patrick are at Patch's baseball practice. Rachel and Alison are both over at friend's houses. I'm not used to it being quiet!

Prayers for my mom

I just got off the phone w/ my mom. She was just admitted to the hospital w/ cellulitis (a very bad skin infection) and abscess in her arm. She has bad excema and thinks she must've scratched too hard and it got infected. She saw her doctor today and he apparently freaked out and sent her immediately to the hospital to be admitted. They have done cultures and are hooking her up to IV antibiotics. She sounded in pretty good spirits. I'm going to wait and see what the infectious disease doctor says and then decide on whether I'll head up there (they live near Chicago). My dad doesn't like to drive in rush hour and they live about a half hour away from the hospital, so I'm not sure how he'll manage. Having aging parents really stinks.....

One more week

After tomorrow, the kids only have one more week of school. I cannot believe that another school year is over. It seriously seems like it just started. Why does the year go by so quickly for my kids, but when I was a kid it dragged by so slowly? I'm going to have to get in summer mode now and motivate myself to work my usual hours even though the kids will be home now. These kids really are spoiled, because Thornton's schedule is so flexible and the church he works at is only 2 minutes from our house, so they really have both of their parents available this summer. Of course, that doesn't mean that we'll be at their beck and call, but I'm glad that if they need to be run over to a friend's house or whatever, I'll be able to do it. And then, I'll get right back to work! Promise.

My cuties!

Rise and Shine!

My alarm clocked stopped working recently. Actually, it still worked, but you couldn't reset the time the alarm was to go off. It was permanently stuck on 6:30 a.m. That's not a huge deal, since during the week we get up at 7:00, but it was getting to be a pain. So...yesterday the girls and I went shopping for a new clock. They picked out a clock for me that had various sounds that could wake you up. You can choose from: buzzer, rooster, birds, seagulls, waterfall, crickets or seashore. I thought it would be nice to wake up to the sound of waves crashing over rocks, so I bought it. When I actually stopped long enough to read the directions, I realized that the waterfall, crickets and seashore sounds were to fall asleep by...you couldn't choose them as alarm sounds. So, I was stuck w/ either the rooster, birds or seagulls. Or the annoying buzzer and really...I don't want to start my day listening to that. So, I choose the rooster. I figured it's the sound that's been waking up farmers for generations, so it should be good enough for me. Not quite as soothing as a waterfall, but it'd have to do. But...I'll have to wait 'til tomorrow morning because Patrick woke me up this morning about 15 minutes before it was to go off to tell me that he was awake. Why does a 13 year old have to wake his sleeping mother to tell her he's awake?? Apparently I've taught him nothing in his time here on earth.

Mother's Day champs!

We spent the weekend shivering at Patrick's baseball tounament. It was about 50 degrees, windy w/ periods of drizzle. I'm still not warm! But...they won the tournament!! Patrick pitched the game to get the team into the championship game and did awesome. Not that I saw it...we were still at church. We got there in time for the championship game, though. Here's a picture of the championship team. Patrick is in the front row on the left.

Sweet Wilma

I just found out that a sweet lady from our church passed away last night from a cerebral hemmorage. She was in her 80's and had recently won a battle w/ cancer. Everyone loved Wilma...she always had a hug and a smile for you. I know my kids will be sad when they get home from school and we tell them. But, thankfully, her passing was quiet and peaceful. And I know Jesus got a big hug last night at 5 p.m.

I love my mailman!

My mailman is the best! Obviously I have lots of packages going out and coming in every day. He told me that I didn't have to schedule pick up online anymore, because if I left them on the porch, he'll get them. Well, the other day, it was pouring rain, so when I saw him pull up out front I went outside to help load up his truck. He told me not to help him, because he didn't want me to get wet. How sweet is that? Then he got my mail and brought it to the door so I didn't have to go to the mail box.

I am beginning to wonder, however, if the fact that we live in a small town slows down mail delivery. Priority mail is supposed to take 2-3 days, but packages from me to customers hardly ever gets there that fast. It's frustrating, but what's a girl to do? At least I don't have to get wet!

Stupid Oprah

Yesterday's Oprah was about marriage. Except, it didn't put a positive spin on marriage at all. Lance Armstrong's ex-wife was a guest, along w/ that psychologist person that she has as a guest a lot. They both talked about how so many woman lose themselves when they get married. And Oprah says, with this superior look on her face, "Exactly! That's why I've never gotten married!" Good grief...I'm sorry if she's so selfish that she isn't willing to share herself unconditionally w/ a man. But I am! And, let me tell you, I've become more of a person, not less, since getting married almost 15 years ago. I think both Thornton and I have grown because of each other. So, there, Oprah...you don't know everything!

40!

Thornton turned 40 today! Hard to believe my sweet hubby is 40. I'm not sure how he's taking it, actually. He's so easy to tease about being old...actually he's easy to tease about anything. But, I kind of think maybe he really isn't all that thrilled with getting older. We didn't do too much for his birthday. He and I went out for breakfast this morning. The kids had a 1/2 day of school, so we all went out for lunch. He got his presents this afternoon....just a bunch of summer shirts. Tonight he's at the Hitting Center w/ Patrick. He refused to let me throw him a party. I can't wait for 40 years from now when he's 80 and I'm 78 and we've got the time to spend w/ each other. It's nice to know you've got a love to grow old w/!

Hopscotch candy

Alison had a sucker yesterday and she told me to try it because it tasted like hopscotch. Took me the longest time to realize she meant butterscotch. 'Cause hopscotch candy would taste like chalk and rocks, right? :-)

Rachel had her first ballet company Trainee class. It wasn't a "real" class, actually, because they did a reflexology class w/ the company dancers. It sounds pretty cool...she was telling me all about where to press on your foot to relieve whatever pains you have. I just found it funny, because dancer's feet are so ugly and here they had a whole class focusing on them.

Patrick had a double header yesterday, also. He pitched 3 innings of the first game. Of course, those were the innings that I wasn't there, because I wasn't back from Rachel's ballet yet. He did really well....struck out 8 in 3 innings!!

Today is another busy afternoon and evening. Alison has gymnastics at 4-5, then we'll catch something to eat. Drop Rachel off at dance at 6, and then race across town to Patrick's baseball game, which also starts at 6. Right when his game is over, I'll have to go back and pick Rachel up. Note to self: have Alison bring homework when we leave for gymnastics or she'll never get it done!

Naptime donation

Last Sunday I was exhausted after driving back from Ohio in the night. So, after church, I took a nap. Actually fell asleep this time too! At one point one of the kids came in and told me I had a phone call. I have no idea when they'll learn that when I'm napping, I don't take phone calls, but for some reason, I picked up the phone. It was the Special Olympics looking for a donation. After my nap I said to Thornton that I thought I had donated to the Special Olympics in my sleep. Honestly, I couldn't remember what I had said to the person on the phone! I figured it was OK, since we love the Special Olympics and have volunteered our time for them in the past. Today the donation form came in the mail. Thank goodness it was only $25 that I donated. Can you imagine if I'd donated a ton of money?? I would've had to call them and tell them that I donated in my sleep and I had to reduce the amount!

Day w/ a friend

I'm driving one of my very best friends to St. Louis today for a doctor's appointment. I'm thrilled that I get to spend the day w/ her. We are both busy and don't get to connect as often as we'd like, so this is going to be awesome. She's one of those people that I aspire to me more like.

I've decided that we have the neediest cat alive. He walks around the house whining until he finds us and then he'll rub up against us and head butt us until we give him an adequate amount of attention. Normally, it's cute, but every morning at 5 a.m. is getting a little old!

Mean Girls

Rachel got into the van after dance on Monday and said, "Mommy, you know how you said that if I ever need to talk to you about anything, that I can?" She then told me that she thought two girls in her dance class were making fun of her. They were giggling and looking at Rach and then came over to her and told her about this "girl" that they didn't like that had big, ugly glasses, wore a necklace, always had a sparkly hair tie in her hair and played on the jungle gym. Well...all of these things are true of Rachel (except of course, her glasses are cool!). Rachel had *just* been talking to them about how she still loves to climb on the jungle gym at recess sometimes. Rachel was really upset, because these girls have been her friends, since they've been dancing together for years. I told Rachel that she should've said, "I think you're talking about me, and if that's true, that makes me sad, because I thought we were friends. And if you're talking about someone else, I really don't want to talk about it, because it's not nice". Of course, I know that's easy for me to say...but not so easy for a 10 year old girl to say.

I'm pretty sure I know the root of this incidence. Another girl in Rachel's dance class told Rachel a week ago or so that one of the girls involved in the teasing thought Rachel was really pretty, was a great dancer and loved her glasses. I explained to Rachel that some kids think the best way to make themselves feel better is to put other kids down. It's been my crusade since the girls were babies that they not involve themselves in this kind of behavior. I remember how hurtful it is.

Of course, as a mother, I wanna punch those mean little girls...but I guess I'll let my daughter handle it herself. She's much more civilized than her mother!

The weekend report

We had a great couple of days in Columbus, OH for the wedding of the son of friends of ours. Thornton did all the music and it was wonderful! We had some free time on Saturday, so I took the girls to the Columbus Zoo. This is the zoo where Jack Hanna used to work. We try to get to as many zoos as possible with the kids, so we've seen tons of zoos. But, wow...this one was really impressive. We only had 3 hours there and we probably only saw 1/3 of what was there.

The wedding was at so beautiful. We've known Ryan since he was in 8th grade, so we've seen him grow into a fine young man (he's 24 now). It was a joy to see him find his love. We had to leave the reception early since we had to drive back to Illinois in order to be in church for Sunday morning (since Thornton works there!). We left at 8 p.m. and got home at 2 a.m. Thornton had napped while the girls and I were at the zoo, so he was rested. I, however, was not...but I couldn't fall asleep in the van. All the kids did, so that was good! We got home, got everyone settled and then I tried to sleep....but I couldn't! Finally around 3:30, I fell asleep. Thornton had to get up at 6 to get ready for church, so I was up then. Ugh...I was so tired in church. Thornton and I both took naps in the afternoon yesterday.

Now, it's back at it...Monday morning! Patrick has a track meet after school, assuming it doesn't rain. Alison had gymnastics at 4 and Rachel has dance at 6. Thornton has to work at The Hitting Center, so I'll be doing all the chaufering.

Motivate me!

We are leaving at 7 a.m. to drive to Ohio for a wedding. I haven't packed a single thing for any of us and I really have no desire to do so. I have got to be my behind in gear and get going. I don't want to be up 'til the wee hours of the morning packing!!

Alison funny

The other day Alison was with me in the van when I dropped Rachel off at dance. As Rachel got out of the car, Alison says, "Our little Rachel...she's going to be 11 soon. Where does the time go?" She's such a goober!

Yesterday Patrick had a track meet. Problem was...it was only 45 degrees and very windy out! I was SO cold sitting in the stands watching the meet. Then I started looking around and realized that I was like the only stupid parent who was sitting in the stands! No one else was brave enough to sit out there and freeze. I thought the kids would probably run really fast, just so they could put their sweats back on!!

We bought a car!

After only having one car for 3 months or so, we finally bought a car to replace my dead car. We bought a 2003 Mazda6 w/ 37,000 miles on it. It's in awesome shape!! Thornton and I did tons of research and drove through every car lot in town. This was the first car we saw, but we felt like we needed to see everything that was out there in our price range. We had heard that new Hyundais were in our price range, so we headed there this morning. We test drove their Accent, which is their smallest car. Hyundai has a 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty right now, so that was pretty appealing. BUT...in order to get a car in our price range, we couldn't get a car w/ air conditioning, power locks or power windows. Ummm...no. I don't have very high standards, but one of them is not driving around all summer w/ sweat dripping off me. So, despite the salesman's valiant efforts (personally, I'd be embarrassed to try to convince someone to buy a car w/ no AC), we walked. The Mazda6 was a wee bit out of our price range, but Thornton's parents said they would chip in $50 a month so we could get it. We've worked so hard to become responsible w/ our money, and we were not going to ruin it on a car. I love his parents! (for many, many reasons, besides the money)

To trick the kids, we printed up the following pictures and told them that this was our new car:


Alison loved the lime green Chevy Caprice and was actually disappointed when we told her that we were kidding! She's such a unique child. Rachel couldn't believe that her father and I had gone through all the trouble to track down a picture like that to trick them. She should know better than that! She's known us for 10 years...LOL!

Play Ball!

Today is Patrick's first baseball game of the season. He plays on a competetive team. This is his first year w/ this team, and most of the kids on the team are 14 (Patrick is 13). It's been a great experience for him to have to prove himself to be able to play w/ the older kids. He's a very talented player and works really hard, so hopefully today's game will have a good outcome. I think he's kind of nervous, because they're playing another local team of kids that are all in the grade ahead of Patrick.

I just love baseball! I love being outside on a beautiful day like today is going to be. Thankfully the game is at our local fields, so there is a great playground nearby for Alison to play at. Rachel will miss half the game because of her dance classes, but then Grandpa is going to bring her out to the field.

The girls and I saw a local youth theater production of Alladin last night. Rachel hadn't been able to audition for it because of our vacation. It was so well done! What a fun evening.

Kitty love

Our cat, Ozzie, loves to wake me up at 5 a.m. He will shove his little furry face into my face and rub. Then he head butts me. This continues until I wake up enough to start scratching his face. Of course, then, he wants me to continue loving him, despite the fact that I want to sleep. He won't leave my face alone! About this time, the birds start tweeting. We live in a small town, but it's not like we live out in the country. But, man, are the birds loud! So, the past 3 days, I've been up at 5 and unable to fall back to sleep. Until this morning, when I fell back asleep at approximately 6:45. My alarm goes off at 7. I was deep in the middle of a very bizarre dream at the time about a camping trip. There were all these completely unrelated people, including people from my past and people I hardly know camping along w/ our family. I have no idea what it meant. Of course, I can't ever figure out what my dreams mean. Ozzie is now sleeping in the window sill. I think I'll go wake HIM up!

Pa

I'll admit it...I adore watching reruns of Little House on the Prairie. They are on here from 2-4 p.m. I always have it on in the sunroom while I'm working in the kitchen. I loved LHOTP when I was little and I've not outgrown it. I think part of it is that I always have wanted a dad like "Pa Ingalls". He is caring, gentle, fun, not afraid to cry....what a guy! My dad...well...he's no Pa Ingalls. So, I guess I will have to live vicariously through Laura, eh?

Authenticity

I've been thinking a lot lately about being the person I'm meant to be. I feel very comfortable w/ myself...but that's been a long process. I wasn't a confident kid. My teen years were hell. I was so insecure. I met Thornton in my 20's, but it was still a time of figuring myself out. I honestly didn't know who I was or what I was meant to be. Now I'm 38 and while I certainly don't have it all figured out, I feel like I'm getting closer to knowing what's right for me. When I worked full time in the corporate world raising money, I was good at what I did, but I never felt all that comfortable doing it. I didn't like having to spend my time pretending to care about the lives of the wealthy in town just to garner donations. I felt like, although I enjoyed my job, I was just biding my time. When I lost my job in October, it opened the door for me to continue on the journey to figuring out what I am meant to do. Being home full time has been an adjustment. Financially, it can be challenging. But, I feel like it's right. I love being able to tell people that if they ever need anything during the day, I'm available. I think maybe that's why getting older doesn't bug me....each year has been such a time of growth that I can't wait to see what will unravel next.

Back to school!!

Yea! The kids went back to school today after having last week and yesterday off for Spring Break. I'll admit, I've got to get this all figured out before summer, because I really didn't get nearly what I needed to get accomplished when they were around all day. They have to understand I need to work w/out tons of interruptions and I need to realize that I have to buckle down!

We cleaned out the pool on Sunday evening. We didn't get it closed up real well at the end of the season, so it had tons of leaves and gunk in it. Thornton and Patrick got it all shop vac'ed out and then the girls helped scrub it all clean. It's filling up right now. Granted, it'll be COLD water for a while, but it's nice to have that task done w/.

Patrick had a track meet yesterday. He did well in his individual races, but he was really disappointed w/ the results of his relay. They had to race against 8th grade teams (they are 3 7th graders and a 6th grader), and Patrick runs the 2nd leg. After those first 2 legs, they weren't too far behind the 8th graders, but the 6th grader running the 3rd leg really had a bad race and they ended up coming in last. Patrick was not happy. I tried explaining to him that as long as he does his best, that's all he can do.

Rubber band war

First of all, we had a very nice Easter. The services at church were amazing. Thornton did an incredible job with the music. After services, we went to my in-law's house for lunch. It was also my MIL's birthday, so that was extra special.

Right now, Thornton and the kids are in the middle of a rubber band war. They are shooting rubber bands at each other and having a grand ol' time. Personally, I can't think of much I'd dislike more than participating. It hate getting shot w/ rubber bands! The kids have even built a fort to duck behind. So nice that Thornton is the perpetual child. Maybe.

Good Friday

I have always thought that Good Friday was such a misnomer. I mean...I know the end result is good, but let's face it...it seems strange to call the day Christ died on the cross "good". Sometimes the weight of the realization of what Christ did for me is too just so overwhelming.

Thornton and I just got back from picking up 61 Easter Lily plants to decorate the sanctuary at church. Can you say allergy attack?? Those plants are so fragrant, it's sickening. And, the yellow stuff from the middle of the plant (the stamen??...Joe, is that right?) gets all over your clothes. But, at least the sanctuary will look beautiful Sunday morning. And smell.

While Thornton and I got the flowers, we left the kids at home to clean Alison's room. Thornton said that there was no way the kids could all work together to accomplish that task w/out fighting. I said that if we expect little, we get little, but if we expect they can do it, they just might. Well....of course, I was wrong. Patrick called and said he threw up and had a very upset stomach. He actually does, but it still would've been nice if he could've sucked it up and cleaned, if for no other reason that to prove my point. Then Rachel called and said that she didn't want to clean anymore, because Alison was watching TV and Patrick was lying down, and she was doing everything. So, now, Alison wants to go outside and play (in the rain), but she has to finish cleaning her room first. It's never easy.

Another beautiful day!

I just can't believe our luck that the week the kids are off for Spring Break, the weather is beautiful! Usually the week is cold and rainy. Today it's supposed to be 85! Alison has already informed me that she will be spraying herself w/ a hose today.

Patrick is going to his girlfriend's house to watch movies this afternoon. I've checked and the mom will be there the whole time, along w/ other kids. Gotta check up on these kids, you know!

They have now dug the basement and poured the walls for my in-law's new house. Their house is going to be only 2 blocks from ours!! I'm so excited and can't wait for the house to be done. Having them so close will be awesome.

It's a beautiful day!

Yea! A sunny, warm day today!! That means children playing outside. I'll admit that it's been a difficult transition this week to having the kids home (spring break) while I'm trying to work. This is the first time I've been home when they are. Previously, I was slaving away in the corporate world...ick! Granted, money is tighter, but it's SO worth it. But, still....it's been hard for them to understand that I have to work during the day. We'll get it all worked out, I'm sure....before summer hits!

Speaking of summer, I've got to find some good day camps for Alison to go to. Patrick has his baseball stuff, plus a week long sleep-away camp. Rach has the same sleep away camp, plus a 2 week performing arts day camp. I don't have anything lined up for Alison yet. Maybe ecology camp. Patrick went to that once. It's right up Alison's alley, too.

A bit suspicious

Yesterday morning Alison was bugging me to take a bath. She loves to take baths....mostly for playtime. Actually, completely for play time. Normally, I don't mind, but we were in a hurry to get to an appointment, so we didn't have time. When we got home, she was already dressed for the day and I had to get working, so I told her she could take a bath at the end of the day. She continued to bug me to take a bath and I continued to deny her. Finally, she gave up and went to her friend Miriam's house. About a half hour later, she comes home drenched and muddy and says, "OK...I fell in the creek...NOW can I take a bath?" She won.

Ozzie came through his little surgery w/ flying colors. Although, apparently, anethesia doesn't bring out the best in him. The vet techs were sarcastically calling him "Mr. Congeniality". I felt bad, like they were criticizing my baby. He's really sweet, just maybe not when he's in pain! When we got him home it was like his hind legs were paralyzed. This led to him falling off the bed and landing flat on his back...twice. He's almost completely back to normal this morning.

Poor Ozzie

Ozzie, our cat, is being neutered today (or spade?...I can't ever remember which is for boys and which is for girls). He had to be at the vet in Springfield (20 minutes away) at 7 a.m. Normally, that wouldn't have been such a big deal, but today is the first day of Spring Break, and I could've potentially slept in. Ozzie did great on the car ride to the vet, but when I tried to get him in his cardboard carrying box (we haven't bought a real carrier yet), he flipped out. I could not get the handles closed. So, I'd pull him back onto my lap and he'd start purring....I'd try to put him back in the box, he'd flip out. And so on. Then I realized that nobody else was in the parking lot, so I probably could just carry him in.

I was talking to the vet assistant about Ozzie's embarrassing problem w/ gas and very loose, extremely stinky bowel movements. She said that they probably needed to de-worm him again. I said, "he never has been de-wormed". So, hopefully that is the problem, considering he had been living on the streets before we got him.

We get to pick him up around 3.

Nap time?

I really needed a nap this afternoon. I did get one....kind of. During my nap, Rachel called to see if she could have dinner at the friend's house she was at. Then Patrick came in and asked if he could go to a friend's house. Then Alison came in and asked if she could play at the back yard neighbors house. Then Alison came in again to ask if she could go to the house a few doors down to play with the boys that live there. Then Alison came in to ask if she could go to another friend's house. Then I gave up.

Who needs TV?

We got our cat this toy. It has a mouse that squeeks on a bungee cord. I can't even tell you how much fun we have had watching Ozzie play w/ this toy! We have it hanging on the French door between the dining room and the sun room. The cat will sit on the back of the love seat and then pounce on the mouse. Seriously, I'm going to have to stock up on these toys....they're brilliant!

Prayers for a friend

Please keep the daughter of a friend of ours in your prayers. Sarah is a sophomore in college and was diagnosed today w/ lymphoma. She will be having more tests soon to find our what kind of lymphoma it is, and what the treatment will be. Her family is so scared right now, as is expected.

Ready for slopping in the creek!

Alison loves to play in one of the creeks by our house (we live in a subdivision that has a series of ponds and creeks conntecting them). I have told her that I don't mind her getting dirty because I'd rather she was having safe fun outside than sitting inside watching TV. So, today I found the perfect boots for her to wear in the creek. Won't these be great?

Now I can't wait for her to get home from school...LOL!

New logo?

What do you think of this new logo? I can change the color...any thoughts??

She made it!!

We didn't get a letter today regarding Rachel's audition for the Ballet Company, so I kind of wondered if that wasn't bad news...but...I just checked the website and SHE MADE IT! I'm so proud of my little ballerina!

Take me out....

Ahhh...baseball season has started up once again! My favorite time of year. Good thing it lasts 6 months, eh? The St. Louis Cardinals played their first game yesterday (and won!) and all seems right with the world again. Patrick's first game w/ his travelling team is April 22. His season won't be done until the end of July, then school ball starts up 2 weeks later. Yeah...it's a good thing I like baseball, because I see a lot of it!!

Rachel should find out today if she made the trainee program for the ballet company. My gut reaction is that she had to have made it, but I don't want to get my (or her) hopes up.

Vacation

My best laid plans of blogging while on vacation were quickly thrown out the window. Sure, I *could've* blogged, but the reality was I didn't want to!

We had a great vacation! We went to Bradenton, FL, which is south of the Tampa/St. Pete area, on the Gulf. My in-laws rent a house down there for 6 weeks. The first part of the vacation, the weather was chilly in the low 60's. The pool at the house was supposed to be heated, but it didn't seem to be. The kids didn't seem to mind the cold water, though. I got in a couple of times when it was cold and it took a LONG time to get used to it. Our last 4 days there, the weather was in the 80's and beautiful. We went to the beach at Anna Maria Island twice and had a great time. It was perfect...not a ton of people, amazing sand and perfect weather. We even saw dolphins swimming out where we had been swimming just moments earlier.

I'll post vacation pictures later. I got some great ones!!

Now, it's back to reality. The kids are back in school this week, then have next week for Spring Break. We couldn't go on vacation then because Thornton has to be here for church, since it's Easter season.

Rachel auditioned for the trainee program w/ the Springfield Ballet Company. We'll find out tomorrow, I think, if she's made it. There are only 25 spots, so I hope she did. This is the first year she's been old enough to audition, so we'll just have to see.

SNOW!

School is cancelled today because we got about 6 inches of snow. It's still falling now, too. And blowing. Our huskey is in snow dog heaven!! She loves the snow!

Alison left last night for Florida w/ Thornton's brother and his family. They asked if Alison wanted to go down a few days early and she jumped at the chance. I miss her already! She would have loved this snow and would've been outside playing in it all day. Ah well...sunny Florida will be nice too, I'm sure! :-)

I guess Rachel didn't get a part in The King and I. They were supposed to call last night, but we didn't get a call. She's really cool about it. She knows she did awesome!

Sit Still!!

I took Rachel and Alison to see Springfield Ballet Company's "Cinderella". It was a great performance. But...Alison can not sit still to save her life. It is so frustrating to see all these little girls who are so well behaved, while I sit there saying, "sit still...stop kicking the seat...keep your legs still" the whole dang time. And after every show I take her to I tell her that I won't be taking her to any more shows, and yet I always do. I really want her to be exposed to the arts, but it's killing me...it really is!

At the call backs yesterday, they sang again, did a little scene w/ the King and then cut the group again down to 20 kids. Rachel made that cut! Then they lined the kids up by height and just stared at them for close to 20 minutes. It was so unnerving to have these directors just staring down these kids and then talking and whispering amongst themselves. Thornton said that at least Rach made it that far on talent. Beyond that, they are just looking for whatever "look" they want...and there's nothing you can do about that. She should hear tomorrow night if she got a part.

Callback

Rachel auditioned this morning for our local Summer outdoor theater. She did great! She got a callback for The King and I, so we go back at 2:30 for that. Thankfully she was in the first group of 50 kids to audition, because when we left at 10:30 (after getting there at 7:45), they were up to 288 kids who were wanting to audition!

Green

Well, it's St. Patrick's Day and I don't own anything green. Actually, I have a limish green shirt, but it's in the wash and I didn't feel like doing the load just so I could wear it. Alison, however, was absolutely not going to school today unless she had green on. So, she's wearing a green t-shirt with a green sweatshirt over it and jeans w/ green stitching. Patrick, had his St. Patrick's Day shirt on from Old Navy. I really want to make a shirt for him some year that says "St. Me Day", because that's what he used to call it when he was little. Rachel didn't care about wearing green, so I'm sure she'll get pinched.

Rachel is auditioning for our local summer outdoor theater (The Muni) tomorrow. Last year she got call backs for 2 shows, but didn't end up getting one of the few parts for children. This year they are doing 2 shows that have lots of girls in them (Annie Warbucks, the sequal to Annie, and The King and I), so I hope she has a shot of getting cast. She's got an awesome singing voice and can dance, so that seems promising. Keep her in your thoughts!

BLARGH!

Good grief...I typed out a whole post earlier this morning and just before I hit Publish Post, the power here flickered on and off. I lost the whole dang thing! Meanwhile, I ran to the store and I have completely forgotten what I even was typing about. I've wracked my brain and I cannot think of it. I thought I'd at least be able to remember the title, but, nope...I can't. I'm not that old...really I'm not. But, I sure can't remember stuff.

This morning I was confusing David Crowder (a Christian singer) with Dave Matthews (not a Christian singer...lol). Thornton thought I'd lost my mind.

Ah well...maybe I'll remember what I was going to say and I'll type it out again later.

Test anxiety

The kids are all taking their ISAT tests this week and next. These are the standardized tests all Illinois kids have to take. Apparently funding for the school is somehow based of of performance. Plus there's the whole "No child left behind" Act thing of the Presidents. Either way, all I know is that they really freak these poor kids out about these tests. We had to take standardized tests as a kid, but they didn't make such a big deal about them. Now the kids have sessions geared towards helping them learn how to be a better test taker. Patrick's school even had a pep rally of sorts about the tests. Rachel was in charge of bringing in plastic cups because her teacher read that studies show drinking a bit of apple juice before each test raises test scores by 10%. They let them chew gum during the tests because that has been shown to raise test scores. Thankfully all our kids do well on tests, but I really want my children to know that they are more than a test score. I worry that we're overly worrying these kids. Rachel has night terrors when she's stressed. I'm sure it's no coincidence that she's had 2 in the past few nights.

Rachel had her 10 year old check up yesterday. She grew 4 1/2 inches and gained 3 pounds since last year. She's now 4' 10" tall!! I told her I could gain 3 pounds in a day, let alone in a year!!

Amazingly lucky

We had terrible storms blow through the area last night. Springfield, which is just 5 miles north of us, sustained terrible wind damage. Lots of businesses and houses are completely destroyed. In our town, the sirens went off 3 separate times, yet we had absolutely no damage. We are so lucky. It's really scary to see the devastation in Springfield. We're still checking on many friends of ours. So far, some have some damage, but no one has been hurt.

School is cancelled for today, due to all the widespread damage.

5 inches??

Patrick had his yearly physical yesterday. He grew 5 inches since last year!! He'd grown 3 inches the year before, so that's 8 inches in 2 years!! The doctor said he's on track to be over 6 foot. He had to get the meningitis vaccination, which I honestly didn't even know about. I told him that he wouldn't get a shot. When the doctor told him he needed a shot, he looked at me like I had lied to him. Even the doctor explained to him that it was new and I didn't know about it. So, Patrick sat in the room all nervous for the 10 minutes it took for the nurse to come in with the shot. He *really* doesn't like shots. The nurse told him to look at me, count to 10 and it would be over. He didn't even get to 2, and the nurse said, "all done". Patrick said, "Really?? I didn't feel anything at all!!" He practically kissed the nurse, he was so happy! He told her that he was always going to ask for her to give him his shots.

Ducky love

There is a small pond across the street from our house. It seems like more and more ducks and geese make this pond home each year. Springtime is, of course, duck mating season. Normally there are far more male ducks than female. These ducks literally accost the poor female ducks...it's quite a violent scent. This year, however, I've noticed that there are many more female ducks. In fact, several of the males and females appear to be paired off. So, my hope is that all the ducks will find a mate on their own and won't have to resort to the violence of past springs. A girl can hope, right?

Rain

It's raining. That causes big problems in my life. You see, our dog doesn't like the rain. So, she doesn't want to go out to go to the bathroom. Of course, I'm not crazy about taking her out in the rain either, but since it's a necessity, I do it. We both better get used to it since it's supposed to rain the rest of the week and through the weekend. That also means the kids won't be able to go outside to play....blech.

Better go get to work!

Amazing Race

I love The Amazing Race, but I decided yesterday while watching what a joke it would be if Thornton and I were to go on that show. We'd laugh the whole say through it! We're pretty lame at navigating around places we're not familiar with. When we were in Boston w/ the kids, we got lost so many times that the minute we'd get in the van, while we were still in the parking lot, the kids would ask, "are we lost?" Funny kids. Then this morning, Thornton and I took our cars up to the gas station to fill up. I'm driving my FIL's car since we still haven't bought another car. I pulled up to the pump, got out, and realized that the little door (I'm sure it has a name...but I'm drawing a blank) was on the other side. I got back in the car and drove around to the other side of the pump, got out and realized that I hadn't accomplished anything...the little door was still on the other side. At this point, Thornton is laughing his head off at me. So, I get back in the car, finally pull up to the pump on the correct side, hop out, go to the pump, only to realize that you have to hit the lever inside the car to open the little door. I'm in a full on laugh by this point, too. I go back, hit the lever and am relieved that Thornton then took over and pumped my gas. So, yeah...can you imagine us on The Amazing Race? We'd be the first contestants ever to not arrive at the Pit Stop.

"Those children"

This morning I was rushing to get the kids out the door for school. Alison was ready, standing at the front door in her coat w/ her backpack on her back. Patrick then yells, "wait...I have to put my contacts in" and Rachel says, "I can't find my shoes!" Alison just looked at me and deadpanned, "those children". I about wet my pants laughing. She's so cute.

Of course, she's also such a handful. It was watch week at Rachel's dance school. Thornton had a meeting at church, so Alison and I were watching Rachel's pointe class. Alison could not sit still. Ugh...it ended up being such a long class trying to deal w/ her when I just wanted to watch Rach. I'm so pleased w/ Rachel's progress in dance. She's so beautiful!

I just heard about Dana Reeves passing away. That's so sad. Some families just seem to have to deal w/ far more than their share of tragedy and grief. I pray for comfort for her and Christopher's son and the rest of their family.

Carded!

I just got back from the grocery store. I had to buy a bottle of wine for a book signing event I'm going to tonight. I got carded! Ummm....I'm 38! Honestly, I don't know whether to be flattered or annoyed that I look like a kid. I'll go w/ flattered!

Our cat is obsessed w/ packing peanuts. Of course, I have a plethora of packing peanuts in my house due to all the shipping I do (and receive). It's so funny, because the peanuts stick to the cat's fur....he's so adorable!

Oscars

So, here were are again...the Oscars are tonight. And, yes, once again, I haven't seen any of the movies nominated. I'm just not a big movie buff. I do like watching the awards, though...and of course enjoy the red carpet stuff before hand. Gotta love the "what were they thinking?" dresses!

Went to church today. Two of the praise songs we sung were written by Thornton...that's SO cool!! He is such a talented man and I think more people need to hear his music. Hopefully he will get a CD recorded sometime soon. After church Patrick and Rachel each went to a friend's house, so Thornton and I had Alison to ourselves. We went to breakfast and then she said she wanted to go to the park. Ummmm....it's 35 degrees and raining out! So, no...we didn't go to the park! The rain stopped a little while ago, so she and her friend went out moss hunting again.

Her father's child

Alison had a book fair at school yesterday. I sent her w/ $15 and a written note that she was only to buy books, not posters or trinkets. She came home w/ 2 books. One of them was decent. The other was "101 things you can do to gross people out", subtitled "Things your parents will barely approve of". It came complete w/ a miniature (yet completely functional) whoopie cushion. Yes, she is most certainly Thornton's child through and through. Why the school had this book available for purchase by a 6 year old is beyond me. It is completely inappropriate and full of jokes that I would never let her repeat. So, sadly, the book is going back on Monday and she will get to pick something else. OK...I'll admit, you gotta smile at a kid who would pick that book...don't you?

Patrick had a sleep over last night for a friend's 13th birthday. Alison has a skating party today to go to. Birthday parties are expensive! Maybe I should wish for unpopular kids! HA!

TV for Dummies

This morning Thornton was laughing at this piece of paper on which Rachel had written the direction for how to work the On Demand portion of our cable remote. He said, "isn't that cute...Rachel wrote out directions for Alison". I said, "yeah, it's cute, but those directions were for me!" Technologically advanced I am not!

We went to pick up Patrick's new contact lenses today and to pay for Thornton and Rachel's new glasses, along w/ my new contacts. Grand total? $640. Cough.

What are the chances?

Yesterday I wrote about trying to remember the title of Aaron Copland's work "Appalacian Spring". Well, get this.....last night I went to pick up Rachel from ballet and they were working on their new recital piece. The music they are dancing to is "Tis a Gift to Be Simple", which is from "Appalacian Spring"! What are the chances of that? I sat in the lobby just smiling from ear to ear!

deep recesses of my brain

It's so strange how the brain works. I designed this great new scent that combines fresh fruit notes (apples, pears and grapefruit) with fresh air accords. I *knew* what I wanted to name it, but I couldn't think of what it was. Does that make any sense? I remember being on a High School church retreat at Camp Stronghold. I remember all of lying in the dark listening to a piece of music. We were supposed to listen to the music and come up with imagery that the music invoked. All I could remember was how much I loved that music. I was wracking my brain last night trying to come up with the name of the piece of music. Finally I remembered it was by Aaron Copeland (who I love...so I should've been able to remember the music!). My brain was just refusing to let me remember the title. I knew I could look it up on the internet, but I felt like I'd be failing myself and that memory if I did that. So, finally, I woke up this morning with the title: "Appalacian Spring"! And, it *is* the perfect name for this scent!!

Little friendships

Alison has a little friend named Miriam. These two are completely cut from the same cloth. Miriam is in kindergarten, and Alison is in 1st grade, but their birthdays are only months apart. They both love to be outside and both are really creative little kids. Their latest venture has been collecting moss. I'm not sure I have the story completely right, but from what Alison tells me, on Easter, the Easter Bunny leave eggs on the moss at Miriam's house. Miriam's family is from Germany, so maybe that's a tradition?? Anyway, Miriam has this adorable little wheelbarrow and she and Alison go to one of the ponds near our house and dig up clumps of moss, take it to Miriam's house and replant it. They are beyond adorable.

8 below

We took the kids to see Eight Below on Saturday night. I really enjoyed the movie. The scenery was beautiful!! Of course, as owners of a Siberian Huskey, the dogs in the movie, I think we enjoyed it all the more because we can really appreciate the behaviors shown by these dogs. They are awesome dogs! Mind you, the dogs in the movie survived winter in Antarctica, whereas Thornton gets nervous if Mia is outside and it's below 30 degrees...but that's just our pampered pooch!

It's supposed to be 55 degrees today and then even warmer the next couple of days. I would love to open up the house a little bit and air it out.

20 oz. soap

I was making a giant soap to cut up into samples to include w/ orders when Alison saw it. She fell in love w/ that giant soap and wanted one for herself. I promised her one, but kind of hoped she'd forget all about it. I was delusional, of course. So, last night I made her a 20 oz. strawberry scented soap. How long do you suppose this soap will last? And how long after Alison gets in the shower do you think it'll take before she drops it on her foot?

Blue citrus?

I just ran into the store to pick up a few things. I needed new glass cleaner and since I've found that they all pretty much work the same, I decided to get the cheapo generic kind. I grabbed the blue bottle and threw it into my cart. When I got to the check out I saw that on the bottle it said Citrus Scented. That's great...I love citrus scented stuff...but why is it blue?? Shouldn't it be orange?? Call me crazy, but I like my stuff to be the color of what they smell like (and no, I don't need any comments about why aren't my tarts colored, then...LOL!).

Gotta go pick Rachel up from dance.

Frustrated

I've been waiting on a shipment of an ingredient I add to the emollient for over 2 weeks now. I can't complete orders until I get this item. Normally this company is a little slow...but not this slow. I'm so frustrated and upset. I know that people hate long turn around times...so do I. I was about in tears yesterday when the UPS guy delivered a package, but not *the* package I was waiting on. Going to call the company again this morning, as soon as they open.

Watched Olympic figure skating last night. The right person won the gold. She really was the skater that skated the best. Sure, I wanted Sasha Cohen to pull it off, but she didn't. You could see in her eyes before she skated that she was questioning herself. I tried to be a bad mommy and let Rachel stay up and watch the performers, but she fell asleep. :-)

I'm so old!

This morning I was talking with Thornton about a new praise song he had written. The band and singers had rehearsed it last night and he said that it went over really well. He is trying to write enough songs to record a CD, so I asked him how many more songs he has to write to have enough. He said that he has 5 done, so he would need a minimum of 3 more songs. I said, "but that would only be 4 songs on each side." Thornton looked at me like I was an idiot and said, "ummm...honey...CDs don't have sides." Good grief....I bet my kids don't even know what cassette tapes or records are!

Forgot to brag!

Patrick got his midterm grades yesterday and he got all A's!!! Since his 2nd quarter grades, he's been under much stricter guidelines regarding studying. You should've seen him yesterday...he was almost crying he was so excited. He even took the printout to The Hitting Center to show everyone. How cute is that? And, he proved to himself that he can do it! So, while he will now be allowed more freedom, the stricter study guidelines will stay. Yea Patrick!

Critical spirit

Dr. Phil was on in the background yesterday as I was working. He had on a husband who was extremely critical of his wife. This guy had a list of 75 things he felt his wife should be able to accomplish regarding housework. If the wife didn't meet his expectations, he'd either verbally criticize her or he'd huff and stomp around, making it obvious to the wife that he disapproved. Dr. Phil tried to tell the guy that he had a critical spirit and that he needed to love his wife for who she was, and not try to hold her to an impossible standard.

Then, last night I watched the Ladies short program in figure skaing in the Olympics. Dick Button, one of the commentators, also has a critical spirit. I know he was Olympic Champion back in his day, but skating has come a long way since then. He continually commented on the skater's "ugly" positions. Good grief, these skaters couldn't look ugly if they tried. I should've muted the TV....he was making me so angry w/ his comments.

So, I'm going to try very hard today to have a loving and accepting spirit.

"I love cleaning bathrooms"

Yesterday the kids were off school because of President's Day, so of course, we put them to work. Alison cleaned the guest room (aka the girl's playroom) all by herself. She did an awesome job...right down to arranging a million pillows on the bed. She needed some help w/ vacuuming, but otherwise did a very admirable job for a 6 year old. Rachel cleaned the sunroom. When she really puts her mind to it, she is such a great cleaner. She loves to organize stuff. She even scrubbed the linoleum by the door to the deck which gets filthy because of the dog. Patrick was in charge of the family room. I wish I had a glowing review of his work, but it was less than inspired. Guess what he'll be doing after school?? Such a mean mom...I know!

Rachel and Alison said that today after school they want to clean the downstairs bathroom. And Rachel actually spoke the words, "I love cleaning bathrooms!" She is certainly not my child. But I'll keep her!

Monday, Monday

The birthday weekend is over...sniff...sniff. It was very nice. Last night we went out to dinner with my in-laws and brother-in-law and sister-in-law. No kids. That *never* happens. It was great. Nice dinner, nice conversation. But, now it's Monday and my birthday is over. And the kids are home for President's Day.

I have tons of orders to fill! That's a good thing, but I always panic because I know I can't possibly get them out as quickly as I'd like.

My sinuses are killing me. My right under eye sinus is so clogged and painful that my eye is watering. Off to find some meds...

Birthday musings

I've never been the kind of person to mind growing older. Some people throw such fits about their birthdays, but I love getting older. I turned 38 today. To me, each year is a chance to grow and become more of who you are meant to be. As I look towards turning 40 in a few years, I'm OK with it. Each passing decade has been much better than the one before. I feel like I'm figuring out who I am and getting more comfortable with myself. So, yeah...birthdays are good. Plus you get presents and you can say things like, "it's my birthday, you have to treat me nice today!" Surely I'm not the only person to do that, right? :-)

Birthday Sale!

I know I said I wasn't going to have more sales...and really after this, I won't be, but I just had to have a sale for my birthday! So, until Saturday at midnight all sales will be 18% off (since my birthday is on the 18th....not because I'm turning 18..LOL).

Another Alison funny: last night Alison, Rachel and I were lying in bed talking and Rachel commented that the Middle School performed part of "Annie" for them (they are performing this musical this weekend). She said that the dog barked while Annie sung "Tomorrow". I said, "really? Was it a real dog?" She said that it was a kid dressed up like a dog (which is funny enough as it is...). I told her that when the Springfield Muni Opera does "Annie Warbucks" this summer (which Rach is auditioning for) they will use a real dog. Alison looked at me wide eyed and said, "A dog that sings?" She's so darn cute!

Comic Relief

I am convinced that God blessed us with Alison to add comic relief to our family. Oftentimes she is an infuriating kid...she is a constant blur of motion and activity. She doesn't listen very well and she questions every decision you could ever make. But...she is hysterical! She brings so much joy to our lives. The other night we were driving home from McDonald's and she had one of the Strawberry Shortcake dolls that have the lipgloss in the hat. Alison says, "This smells so good I just want to rip her head off!" And then proceeded to laugh hysterically. One time Thornton and I were having a talk with Alison because she was misbehaving. It was a very serious talk...but in the middle of it, Alison looked at Thornton and me and said, "Meow, Meow, Meow!!" I just looked at Thornton and told him that he was going to have to be in charge of her punishment that day, because I had to go laugh.

Yep...God knew what he was doing when he added Alison to our family!

Jump Rope for Heart

Rachel is participating in the American Heart Association's Jump Rope for Heart. She's collecting donations and so far she has raised $60. Her goal is $200. If anyone might be interested in sponsoring her, here's her webpage:

https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=123051&lis=0&kntae123051=EADB702142AC4CB2A1B46AA6EDC468F6&supId=119007964

I'm so proud of her for taking on this cause!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I've never been a big Valentine's Day freak...maybe because my birthday is in a few days and I LOVE my birthday! I actually told Thornton not to get me anything for Valentine's Day. Crazy, huh? It's just that money is a little tight and I just don't see the point. He sent me the cutest e-card and that worked fine for me.

I do love how excited Alison gets over Valentine's Day. We printed out special cards on the computer for her friends that are each personalized. So much better than those store bought cards. Rachel is only in the 4th grade, but they already don't exchange Valentines or have a party in class. She's going to hand out a bunch at recess though...I hope that's OK. Patrick went to a school V-day dance yesterday, but he said it was boring. He doesn't dance and not many of his friends were there. He said he was actually thankful that Daddy had to pick him up early!

Tonight Thornton and Patrick go to the Hitting Center, so I'll take the girls to McDonald's playplace before my Bible Study.

Curling

I'm almost embarrased to admit it, but Thornton is a huge curling freak! Have you caught this Olympic sport? It's like shuffleboard on ice. Totally boring to watch, and yet, my husband adores it. I can think of a better way to spend my time!

I can't get warm today. I think I'm going to go turn up the heat...something I never do!

Snowbunnies

We got about 6 inches of snow yesterday...quite unexpected. Well, at least it surprised the weathermen! The kids have been having so much fun playing in the snow. Rachel and Alison literally have been outside for hours on end, until I make them come in and warm up. They especially had a good time frolicking in the snow with Mia, our Huskey. Mia found her inner snow dog this weekend. Normally when it's a little cold out, she acts like such a baby and doesn't want to be outside. With this snow, she's been in her glory. Patrick has been playing in the "Snow Bowl 2006", i.e. Snow Football. I'm just so thankful that they love to be outside, rather than sitting inside watching TV all the time.

Gotta go thaw some kids with hot chocolate and make dinner...I'm thinking soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.

Hug them close

I just found out that the 15 year old daughter of one of my past customers passed away yesterday following a horrific car accident. I can't even imagine the pain the family is going through. Please join me in covering the family of Courtney Wilson in prayer.

And today, hold those kids a little closer, a little tighter. They are so precious.

The lion shall lie down with the lamb

...or in our case...the kitty shall lie down with the dog. It's been slow progress with getting the new cat used to our dog, but for the past few days, they both have been sleeping together on the same bed (yes, we are well aware of how spoiled our animals are!). Mia, the Huskey, is still way more curious in Ozzie than Ozzie cares for, but I think they will be fast friends soon.

Last night Alison went to get her jammies on. She came upstairs in a pair of boxer shorts and a fleece winter pea coat that she outgrew last year. Poor child...I just couldn't stop laughing. She is such a free spirit!

Lunchtime with Alison

This morning before leaving for school, Alison begged Thornton and me to come eat lunch with her at school. We agreed, of course! It's such a joy to see her little face light up as she saw us walk down the hall towards her room. As she entered the cafeteria, she sniffed the air and said, "smells like breakfast". Sure enough...they had french toast sticks, sausage, potato smilies, fruit and milk. The teachers and visiting parents, however, get to eat the "good lunch". This fact has not passed by unnoticed by the little ones. Adults get a different lunch and it's so much better than what the kids eat. Today it was pork tenderloin, baked beans, veggies, mac and cheese and a salad bar. So, of course, being the good parents we are....we snuck Alison some of the good food!

I sure wish I could curl up with my snoring dog...but I gotta get back to work!

It's snowing!

It's snowing!! That makes me so happy! We haven't had much of a winter and I really like snow. Granted, it's only going to be an inch or two, but it should be enough to cover some of the ugliness of winter.

I'm so excited about the Olympics starting on Friday. I'm a huge Olympics freak!! Four years ago I had a hysterectomy and my recovery time was when the Winter Olympics were on. I must've watched every bit of coverage there was on TV. And, then after the Olympics, baseball Spring Training should be starting up!

She drives me nuts, yet...

OK...I've got to admit that when I started staying at home full time to run CYS I started watching more TV. My kitchen, where I work, is adjacent to the sunroom and there's a TV in there. At 10 a.m., I have been watching Martha Stewart. She absolutely drives me bonkers and yet...I continue to watch. She completely doesn't care about what the guest has to say, she's always thinking of what she's going to say next. And, then, when she says it, it sounds completely insincere. She is the expert on everything...if a guest loves something, she loves it too. If a guest talks about a restaurant or a food, Martha has been there and eaten it too. Completely not my kind of person. And yet...I watch. What the heck is wrong with me?

More tarts added

I just added tarts in the following scents:

Center of Peace
Path to Peace
Gracious Heart
Joyous Heart
Pure of Heart
Blackberry Lemonade
Coral Sugar
Marshmallow Cinnamon Grahams
White Doves
Marshmallow Ambrosia
Coconut Pear
Jamaican Rum Punch
Yuzu
Oatmeal Milk and Honey
Coconut Lime Verbena
Vanilla Wafers
Dixie
Cotton Blossom
Heavenly
Pink Brulee
Emerald Sea
Blueberry Cheesecake
French Vanilla Pear
Dream Big

I'm in love!

Ozzie kitty is the sweetest furball ever. Believe me...we've been through lots of cats, so I should know. Ozzie slept all night curled up in the crook of my neck, purring in my ear.

Patrick needed some extra loving last night so he took Mia (the dog) and shut her up in his room, so she'd sleep with him. That saved me from a hissing cat in the middle of the night!

I'll be adding more tarts later today to the site. I'm waiting on more VBN oil...should be here today...so I can make some tarts in some of the VBN blends.

Kitty has a name!

I announced today on the way home from church that we were not getting out of the van until the kitty had a name. We had discussed it some on the trip to Indy, but hadn't decided on anything. We knew it had to be a baseball related name, since the cat was found at The Hitting Center (and since we're a baseball crazy family). We finally decided on Ozzie, named after Ozzie Smith, the great St. Louis Cardinal shortstop. Somehow, it fits.

Our dog, Mia, is way too interested in Ozzie. Ozzie, needless to say, is not happy with her new "friend". Any suggestions on how to get them used to each other?

Whirlwind day & a new kitty

Yesterday we drove to Indianapolis (about 3 1/2 hours away) for the wedding of one of Thornton's 2nd cousins. It was a beautiful wedding and reception. But, ugh...I think I'm old. The music at the reception was so loud I had a mini panic attack. I can't handle loud noises very well...my throat feels like it's closing up and I feel like I'm having trouble breathing. I had to leave the room several times to get a hold of myself. I kept waiting for the nice slow songs to dance with Thornton, but they didn't play any. We left at 9 a.m. and got home at 12:30 p.m.....so it was a long day.

Friday night Thornton called me up from The Hitting Center (the indoor baseball facility Patrick works out at). He asked me if I wanted a cat. He knows I want a cat...it's him that doesn't want one! There was a stray outside the facility who was super friendly. I guess the stray had been there for a while. Anyway, the cat came right to him. He is such a sweetie! I'm going to take him to the vet tomorrow and have him scanned to see if he might be microchipped. We've checked the papers and haven't seen a Lost Cat ad. He has no name as of yet, but I've never met a nicer cat.

With love like this...

Alison keeps jumping on Patrick's back while he's lying on the floor. At first, he was OK with it, but finally he got fed up and asked her to stop. Of course, being the monkey that she is, she continued to jump on his back. I just asked her to knock it off and she said, "But I love him!"

With love like that, who needs enemies?

Little girl tights

OK...I've been shopping for tights for Alison. We have a wedding to go to tomorrow and she desperately needs tights that fit. Here's the thing: they come in sizes 4-6 and 7-11. Well, Alison is kind of between a 6 and a 7. The 4-6 tights are too short...she gets a major wedgie when wearing them. The 7-11 tights...well, obviously those are WAY too long and she gets elephant ankles. What's a little girl to do?

Gallons of shower gel

I have been buying Patrick generic men's shower gel. It comes in a 16 oz. bottle, costs about $1.99 and smells manly. The rest of us all us my products in the shower. But, seriously, I'm not sure I can compete with that kind of price considering how much shower gel this kid uses! I've tried explaining to him that a small amount on the shower pouf (don't tell his friends he uses a pouf, OK?) is plenty, but he insists he needs lots more. I've debated buying an extra gallon of shower gel base, blending the whole darn thing in a manly scent and sticking the whole thing in the shower, but I feared the screams if he happened to drop it on his foot.

And...what is it with the bath mat? Whenever Patrick takes a shower (and lets face it..he's at *that* age when he takes a lot, because he actually wants to smell nice), the bath mat gets soaked. I'm talking so wet that it seems like he must've taken it in the shower with him. I want to eavesdrop sometimes just to see what it is he's doing. Surely he shuts the shower door, right?

Good thing I love the kid!

Is it too much to ask?

I caught some of President Bush's State of the Union Speech last night, and then saw highlights this morning. What really bugged me was how blatantly rude each party was. If they showed a picture of Hillary Clinton's smug look one more time, I would've turned off the TV. Yeah, I get that the democrats and republicans have different idealogies, but come on...they all acted like children. It's kind of hard to expect my own kids to be gracious little people if adults act like that.