Aids

Well, today is March 30th, which means tomorrow is March 31st. Which means not only is tomorrow the last day of March (where the heck did March go, anyway?), but it's also the last day to file for financial aid.

Ahh, good times.

We're in a special sort of predicament when it comes to financial aid, I'm afraid. See, they, whoever they are, go off of last years tax information. Turns out, we had a pretty good thing going last year. Yeah, a job, a house, a nice 401(k), all things they consider when doling out the funds to poor college students.

Do I think there's any chance in Hell we're getting financial aid? Nope. Do I think there is a way Sean can work the system to prove hardship currently and score us some fundage for next semester? Absolutely.

So hopefully by April 1st, also Hesters wedding date, I believe, all things will be done and submitted and on their way to the proper funding authorities. I just never really thought I'd want aids, but now I need it! ;)

Ring Ring

I caught the end of Radio From Hell the other day, and they were talking about whether or not a man should go into debt for an engagement ring. This one particular man had a girlfriend who came from a wealthy family, and she wanted a ring that was $30,000. She said her boyfriend could put as much as he could down on it, and her dad would pick up the difference.

This got me thinking. What would you expect?

When we got engaged, we were young and broke, and clueless. Sean picked out my ring, and paid for it with some extra cash he had laying around. It isn't spectacular, and since then I've been treated to several nicer fancier versions of wedding rings that I wear more often.

But I have a lot of friends who demanded fancy schmancy huge diamonds for their engagement rings, and I've often wondered what exactly their thoughts are on that.

Does the size of the diamond or the cost of the ring determine the amount of love your sigoth has for you?

Doesn't the act of giving you a token of love of any size or cost signify enough love?

What is your ring story? Do you still love it? Hate it? Wear it? Upgraded it? Or have you ever even had one?

As for me, I keep my original in my jewelry box because A) it doesn't fit anymore, and B) It's not really my style. I wear a wedding set Sean bought me for our 5 year anniversary occasionally, a big 4 carat beauty I got for our 10 year anniversary once in a while, but lately I wear a simple Stainless Steel plain band every day that was my moms. All of them have a lot of meaning to me, but the plain band is my favorite, for obvious reasons.

I've never really asked Sean how he feels about me not wanting to wear my original ring, or if it bothers him that I prefer the plain band over the honker diamond. I don't know if he even notices, or cares.

Do most men?

What's your ring story?

Fun For Friday

There is some construction going on near my brothers house. Apparently when fire hydrants are not working, such as during construction projects, they need to be covered. Makes sense, I think.

I guess one of the neighbors has a pretty good sense of humor, because check out how they decided to cover their fire hydrant.




Sand people from Star Wars, if I'm not mistaken. I probably am, but I know it's from one of the Star Wars movies.

Happy Friday!

A Letter To Myself

I have such good friends and family. I don't think I could have made it through yesterday without all of you.

A few days ago, I got really honest with myself about a lot of things. You know, the kind of honesty that is scary to let out. I have a private blog (okay, a few of them, I'm a freak like that), and I wrote a great big honest letter to myself.

My brain responds particularly well to seeing words on paper, and when I can write them down in a semi-coherent manner, I can literally feel the stress departing with each written word.

This letter made me become aware of a lot of issues I had been keeping inside. Unfortunately, it came out in a way that was destructive not only to me, but to several other people, too. Sometimes hard decisions are what we have to make in order to see the correct perspective.

None of this will make much sense to most of you (who am I kidding, like this blog ever makes sense!), but it makes sense to me. I know in my heart that I am a better person for facing the demons that I had repressed for so many years. I know that without my friends and family, my life would be so empty.

There is no better feeling than facing a hard choice, faltering, and finally reveling in the triumph of doing the right thing. I know for me, I have to take the long way to the triumph part, but it's usually worth it.

And to cap it all off, last night I was able to lay in bed, cuddled up with hubby, and watch Blindside, until I fell asleep in his arms. That made the whole day worth it.

Going Green And Beyond

Saturday brought some much needed highlights to Meg, which I was glad to do, since she's my favorite baby sister and all. And in return, she taught my kids how to plant peas. I think it's a fair trade.

Please excuse the awesome quality of my cell phone camera. It's apparently been dropped a few too many times, and, well, I don't really have an excuse.


Getting the ground ready for the peas. The older kids were all about the worms, Gretta, not so much. She thinks they're snakes. If we were still in Illinois, she would be close, since we saw worms there reach nearly a foot in length. Gross.



Mags getting all up in it. She was quite intent on making sure the holes were deep enough. They were. This is a big step for Maggie. She hated nature and nature related things until, well, Saturday. Go Mags!



And the best shot of them all. Sorry Meg, I couldn't resist. But really, if my butt looked that cute from behind, I'd plaster it all over my blog, too, so you're welcome.

On a side note, all day Saturday Gretta would call Meg Nunny. That's what the kids called my mom. She knows Meg, she's always called her Meg, or Mimi, but this particular day she was intent on calling her Nunny. Maybe my mom was haunting us while we were highlighting hair.

Mom, if you were, keep it up.

Fun For Friday

I have to preface this by apologizing for my sporadic posting as of late. I have really lost my groove. But trust me, today's FFF will make up for it. Or at least I think so.


I had to practically stop traffic and brave the rain to capture these images, so you better laugh.



Here you go:

You know, Mike Rowe? From Dirty Jobs?


And Adam Lambert must have really pissed off Simon Cowell if he ended up here.


Just in case the fickle "fame" thing doesn't work out, you can always join the stable world of Utah real estate.

Happy Friday!

Disappointed

I was really sort of hoping to post a video of my Maggie screaming at the top of her lungs while the doctor attempted to cut off her cast. I had the vision in my head of snot running down her face, people at the other end of the building wondering who was slaughtering a poor sick animal, and Sean and I laughing as this all went down.

I was sorely disappointed.

We had really primed Mags for the saw situation. We told her it would be loud, and that it would press on her arm. We told her she'd have to show the doctor she can move her arm afterward, even if it hurt.

Apparently we did a great job.

She didn't even blink an eye at that saw. When the cast was finally off, she smiled and moved her arm joyfully. Even during the follow up X-Rays, she gladly provided the needed positioning with nary a grimace.

Man, now what am I supposed to post?

I'm proud of my little Mags. She is brave and strong, and now she is healed! Yay for disappointments.

No Kidneying Around

Oh boy, have I had it. Who knew that those two little organs just above your butt could cause so much trouble?

2 weeks ago, a couple of days before we headed to Vegas, I was overcome with horrendous pain in my right side, just along my back. I knew it was a kidney stone, I've had them before and it's a pain you're unable to forget. A day and a half later, I was feeling okay. But for most of the week following I was still having some issues, which I won't get into because it would totally be TMI.

This last Wednesday, as I sat waiting to pick up Emma from school, I felt that all too familiar twinge of pain in my back again. I got home, went straight to bed, and hoped it would feel better in a few hours. I woke up at 5 pm and knew something was not right.

My dear MIL had just passed her district testing, and was so relieved, so we had promised her a dinner out to celebrate. Not wanting to be a party pooper, I went along, probably as the worst company ever. But that night, as I was walking around moaning in pain, I gave in and told Sean to take me to the doctor.

This was a tough decision, because we don't have insurance. Yeah. I know. But it was that bad.

So we get there, and after a CT scan, which I'm sure will cost us dearly, they couldn't see a stone, but there was an obvious infection in my right kidney, probably from the stone a week before.

So I got some good pain meds, a couple of days of IV antibiotics, a catheter to help me pee (I know, TMI), and some Flomax (yes, like the old men have to take), and was sent on my merry way.

Here it is, Monday, and I am just now feeling better. Holy crap, I had no idea. No. Idea. I'm so grateful I had at least one working kidney through all of this, and I'm also thankful for pain meds. And my hubby, who is reluctant to leave my side. Ever. Even when I pee, because he's that interested in what my pee looks like. That's devotion.

So I'm all better today, thanks for asking. I had a shot of wheatgrass juice this morning, which will either kill me with the burps that come after, or wipe out what might be left of the infection. I'm hoping for the latter, for sure.

Kicking And Screaming

Maggie has issues. She takes after her mother. But man, oh, man, things have gotten bad around here.

Let me preface by saying that never have I had to deal with a horrible sleeper. My kids love to go to bed. They've all slept through the night (or I have) since they were a few weeks old.

Suddenly, Maggie has a huge fit every night before bed. I'm not talking a fit of just crying or screaming. It's a fit with hitting and swearing, oh wait, that's me, but she does her fair share of kicking and hitting.

She started this about the same time she broke her arm. It's her left arm, and she sucks her left thumb. Well, with the cast on, the thumb is gone. I think part of this problem is that she's having withdrawals. But it's been over a week now, and it's still going on. Last night was not pretty. There were threats of abuse, plenty of cussing and many times I threw my hands in the air in exasperation.

What do I do? How can I get her to bed each night without threatening to kill her?

(Don't bother calling DCFS, they would only have to see this sort of fit one time, and they'd give me a slap on the back, and wish me luck as they headed right back out the door).

Drama-Rama

Apparently Sean doesn't quite get my humor yet. You see, yesterday, I posted that if my next husband takes me to a buffet for our wedding dinner, I'd junk punch him and storm out, blah blah blah.

Sean was mad.

I thought it was funny.

He didn't.

So we had some middle of the night drama. I shouldn't blog about personal stuff, because you know me, and you know how discreet I am when it comes to what I say about my life, but I think I really hurt his feelings.

So I apologize, honey.

I wouldn't dare junk punch a man at a buffet, that would just be rude.

Crabtastic

We headed to Vegas this weekend. It was awesome. I was ready for some warm weather, and I was more than ready to see my sister, whom I haven't seen since I moved back! And now that she's knocked up again, it was especially nice to see her. ;)

Guess what? I didn't take even one picture, so this post will be vveeerrrry boring for those of you that weren't there. Feel free to skip to the end.

Friday night, a wienie roast was in order to enjoy the 70 degree weather. And the third grade humor was out in full force. Lots and lots of wienie jokes. Then Troy pulled out the choking jokes and it pretty much went down hill from there. That's why I love my family.

Saturday we all slept in ( and by slept in, I mean the kids were up at 6:30, because that's 7:30 their time, and they weren't properly notified that it was Saturday and they could have stayed in bed a few more hours). Then we just hung out for a few hours until my Aunt Sydney came to visit.

She drove all the way up from Kingman, AZ. just to see us! That is devotion! Then we took her to lunch, she tried to pay, we got in a fight, and she stormed out. Not really, but she did try to pay, and we weren't having any of that, so we made her a deal, and all was well. It is a true testament of the strength of families to see time pass, and yet the relationships we have with our families stay strong. I think she thought we were a little morbid because she has the same hands as our mom, and it was hard to not just grab them and fondle them. But we did plenty of laughing and just the right amount of crying, and I think it made the day that much more special. Thanks, Syd. We love you!

Then Saturday night, the pinnacle of the weekend, we hit the strip. Mandalay Bay to be specific. The Bayside Buffet, to be even more specific. It has crab legs. And it's a buffet. Do you see the joy on my face right now? I was in heaven. I sat next to my foodie brother, so he totally critiqued everything he ate, which was annoying as Hell, but I buckled down and ate through the pain. Okay, he didn't really do that, but I have to take a stab at him anyway, because I love him, and I'm awesome like that. We saw the buffest chick ev.er, and she had on a ginormous necklace. We saw a bride, a prom group, and a gazillion Japanese people. So totally random. And for future reference, if my next husband takes me to a buffet for our wedding night dinner, I'm pretty sure I'll junk punch him and storm out. After I eat my weight in crab legs, of course.

Sunday we went to church, (Ha! Don't you people know me at all?), and ate yummy french toast a la Kelli. Maggie had a huge fit and spent an hour locked in the car (don't worry, it was like 50 outside, she was fine) screaming her head off. That girl, I can't take it sometimes. Deep breaths, deep breaths.

We made it home last night, tired, ornery, and a few pounds heavier. I think that makes a vacation absolutely crabtastic! Thanks, Jill, for everything, and Aaron, too. Love you guys!

I Was Run-Ning

I've had this weird thing in my head for a while now. Some might call it a thought, some might call it a goal, I just call it craziness. But the craziness is telling me I want to be a runner. I know, right? If you've seen me, and most of you have, I don't look like a runner. There's a lot of jiggling going on just walking, so running just seems insane.

But still, every time I see a runner on the road, I examine the form they keep, the shirt they're wearing, and I always wonder what they're listening to on the iPod.

So yesterday was such a nice day, I decided it was time to take that first step. I donned my walking shoes, my golfing socks, my yoga shorts, my nylon hoodie, and Sean's giant iPod and headed out. I know, how could I not go wrong with the appropriate attire involved?

So I ran. And I kept running! And I didn't die! I actually enjoyed it. I'm a little sore this morning, nothing more than expected, and I feel pretty good.

I've been inspired by so many of my bloggy friends that run. Some are beginners, some are experienced racers, and most are in between. But what I get from each of them is that the trick to running is there is no trick. You just have to run. Even when you don't feel like it.

Maybe I can keep it up for a while and get the most of the beautiful Spring weather. Maybe one day I'll run a marathon. Or maybe I'll give up and just go back to wanting to be a runner. Either way, yesterday was a good day to go running.

March On

Well, February is over. Can I get a hallelujah for that?

It's March, and I'm all about getting my March on. Crocus' are popping their little heads up, the sun stays up until after 5:30, and I can definitely feel my spirits lifting a little. Funny how the season changes affect my mood. One of my personalities must be a Spring.

This morning I was greeted with an extra special way to start off the month. Even though it's nearly Spring, it still gets chilly here at night. Magically my windows were scraped this morning. And magically a load of laundry had been started before I had even rolled my happy butt out of bed. I hope Sean knows he has to keep up this new trend.

But seriously, one big thing that really lifted my spirits today was that my duty to speak in church is over. Yesterday was THE day, and holy crap, I'm so glad it's over. It's been 12 years since I last had to do that, so I really hope I can skim another 12 years without having to do it again.

So here's to March. Let's get it on.