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Saturday, June 30, 2012

I wasn't kidding...

Cheers!
(why do I already look drunk here?!)

Damn, this is yummy!!!
Just for the record, before any margaritas were blended, I took a LONG shower (which explains the dripping wet hair in these pictures), and washed away 4 hours worth of dirt, blood, sweat and tears. (Most of the tears were thanks to the crap in the post below.) Then I folded the load of whites left in the dryer by CSJ this morning, threw the wet clothes from the washer (that this morning I found he had left in the washer and never turned on!) in the dryer, and put another load in the washer. Then I emptied the dishwasher in the basement (yes, I'm still cleaning up from last week's Tastefully Simple party. Don't judge!) and reloaded it. Then I blended some mock-aritas for Stud and one of his besties who is visiting. THEN I made myself some Nectar of the Gods. =) Now I've really earned it, don't you think?

What the hell is wrong with some people?! (updated)

Does anyone else think this is outrageous?


Here's the link to the online article where I lifted this video. I can't believe this bully was put on PAID leave. That's unbelievable!! I don't care what happened before this BABY landed in time out. He's a THREE year-old, and she's supposed to be a responsible ADULT. Watching this just turned my stomach. This chick wouldn't have made it 5 minutes at the Hell-Hole if she can't deal with THIS. It just makes me so sad for this little boy. What did this "time out" teach him? To counter angry/upset feelings with more angry/upset feelings? That if you're bigger, you can push people around and taunt them? What the hell was she thinking?!

First of all, she should have placed him in time out, and walked away. It's time out!! If she really HAD to talk to him, it should have been after the 3 minutes was up, and it should have been about what he was thinking/feeling. She should have acknowledged his feelings (anger, sadness, whatever it was) and talked about how he could better deal with those feelings. (It's not ok to throw toys when we're angry, etc) It absolutely should NOT have been, "Come on, tough guy!" and all the other garbage that spewed from her big mouth.

I don't know why this has touched such a nerve with me, but I'm seriously pissed off and upset about this video. Maybe I've been away from the babies for too long, I don't know. What I DO know is this video makes my inner-three-year-old want to slap that bitch!

I saw this article last night, and it also had me upset. What had me most upset, I think, is that this poor baby is just about the same age as my Monkey. I can't even, for one second, imagine someone treating her like this.

I supposed I should just stop reading/watching the news, huh? I don't think my heart, or stomach, can take it anymore.

***UPDATE***
1:45Pm

Ok, I noticed that the above video said "Part 2" so I made the mistake of looking for Part 1. Oh my hell, now I REALLY want to smack the ever-livin' shit out of this psycho bitch!!!! See for yourself. Maybe YOU can figure out which one has the maturity of a three year old.

This broad has a serious problem. Who the hell thinks that's an appropriate way to talk to a child?! Hell, a BABY. HELLO, HE'S THREE!!! Why would she keep antagonizing him to point of screaming. The poor thing is completely frustrated! Um, yeah, kids that age sometimes throw toys. Get over it! Your job(and, yes, his parents' job, as well) is to teach him that it's not ok to do that, and show him how to channel his anger/frustration elsewhere. It's not to be the CAUSE of that anger/frustration!! This bitch is pure evil. There's a special place in hell for people like this.

Man, I wish I would have just left well-enough alone. Now my blood is boiling. I think I may need a drink. Time to fire up the margarita machine. (In all fairness, I spent the 4 hours between these two postings outside in the Hades-like heat, pulling weeds/trees, and FINALLY planting my tomatoes and basil. So, trust me, the margarita is well-deserved!!)

Friday, June 29, 2012

For my fellow ChiTown Girls...

I couldn't help but lift this from one of Stud's friend's Facebook pages.



For all my teacher friends...

One of my teacher friends just emailed this to me. I want to put it up on a billboard!!!

Fabulous Friday

I just stole this from M's blog. It literally made me laugh out loud.My day started out with a trip to the dentist's chair. Good times, good times... Stud and I actually had our bi-annual cleaning appointments yesterday, and I mentioned an issue I was having with a filling that was put in the last time I was there. Apparently, the filling chipped. Thank GOD it was an easy fix. No needles necessary!! Wahoo! I was in and out in about half an hour.

From there I picked up Stud, and then went to my mother's to hang out with my Monkey!! Yay! Oh, and yeah, my brother, too. (tee hee!) We spent a nice afternoon together. My brother, Stud and I went shopping for a Pack N Play for Monkey for my mom's house, and then went to lunch. We left Monkey with my mom, so she didn't mind not joining us for lunch. Plus, we brought her her favorite soup from the restaurant where we ate. (She's feeling LOTS better, by the way. Large doses of Monkey makes everything better!) Then we had a little more play time with Monkey before going home.

About 5 minutes after getting home, my neighbor called to see if I could drive her to get her prescription at the Jewel/Osco near our house. While we were there, I convinced her to do some light grocery shopping. She kept me entertained the whole time with some hilarious stories from her youth. Did I mention that she's 88? She's a hoot!

I came home and enjoyed a delightful bowl of Breyer's Cookie Dough ice cream (sorry, Mel!) It's only about a million degrees here today, so it really hit the spot. And now my honey just walked in the door, so I'm going to wrap this up so we can enjoy our Friday night. Stud's out on a date, so we're on our own. I hope we can find something to do.... Happy Friday!

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Random Internet Crap

My son saw this on Facebook today, and immediately said it reminded him of me. Nice!
(and, YES, it is humid today! It hit 105 at some point, according to both my car and the bank we drove past. But, I'm NOT gonna bitch about this weather today.)

The rest of these are all things (mostly eCards) that I've seen and liked, so I just kept copying them to my desktop. Now I can finally clean up my screen!!


I'm considering posting this permanently on the side of my blog.

I'm hoping this is me tomorrow.




I feel like this one should go out directly to Funny and Mel. And a couple more of you nutballs out there!





Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Guess who I got to spend the day with...

Yep! My little Monkey!! Good God, I love this baby!!

This was nap-time. I was cracking up about how big she is now. Her legs hang out of this swing now. I asked my brother earlier in the morning if he ever used the swing anymore, and he said no. But, someone didn't want to take a much-needed nap, so Auntie thought, "What the hell, let's give it a try!" Worked like a charm!!

This was her in her swing back around Halloween. What a difference! She just looks bigger because she's wearing those adorable Baby Uggs!Daddy's girlfriend bought her a ballpit for Christmas. Up until recently, it's mostly been used to corral her stuffed animals. She's starting to really like playing with the balls, and likes to throw them across the room to her daddy. I decided she needed to get right in the middle of it today, just to see what happens.


"Hey, Auntie, whatta ya doin' up there? Come play with me!"The reason I was lucky enough to have her all to myself today is that her daddy went to the Cubs game. Because he's such a jinx, they were massacred. 17-1 :( But, if THIS good luck charm had been there, I know they would have won!

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

The spinning is coming to a halt...

Just got home from my parents' house. Mom is doing MUCH better today. She actually made the appointment with her regular doctor for a follow-up. In the meantime, he prescribed some kind of medication (which of course, she couldn't remember the name of!) for the dizziness, and wants her to take it everyday for a week, then stop the next week, and see if it makes any difference. He said that she can then take it as needed.

Did I ever tell you about my parent's GP? Actually, he's also my mother & father-in-law's doctor, and my friend's parents also go to him. EVERYONE loves him. Well, Joe, their doctor, actually went to high school with me!!! How hilarious is that?! My parents were the last of this group to start seeing him. When I told my mom we went to high school together, she says, "Well, we can't go to this kid!" Um...yeah...mom? I'm OLD!! Trust me, he's a full-fledged doctor!!

She got over it pretty quickly. He's a VERY successful physician, and I'm really happy for him. He actually runs the rehab facility that my father-in-law is in right now. He's a big-wig in the Adult Medicine dept at the hospital. In a nutshell, he's done pretty damn well for himself!

Another one of my friends from high school became a neurosurgeon. Way to make me feel like a loser, guys!! The three of us had almost every class together for 4 years. I'm a disgrace to my fellow nerds. :(

This nerd is so ready for bed. CSJ has to work all night, so I'm going to curl up with a good book, and enjoy having my bed all to myself tonight. (Is that bad?)

Monday, June 25, 2012

Can I go to bed now?

I'll keep it short. Mom is home, after spending the night in the hospital. They did the MRI around 11, got the results around 5, everything looks great. So, that's a HUGE plus. However, the only diagnosis they could give her was vertigo. She's supposed to follow up with her regular doctor this week.

I only slept about an hour since Saturday night, so I'm off to bed. THANK YOU so much to all of you who sent well-wishes and prayers to my mom. The power of prayer never ceases to amaze me. Neither do my Bloggy Buddies.

It's 2:10 am...

...and I'm just getting home from the emergency room. I tell ya, there's never a dull moment around here.

I didn't mention in the last post that my mother wasn't feeling well when she left. When I said that my last guests just left, I was referring to my mom, sister and brother's girlfriend (SIL).

For a few months now, my mom's been experiencing these dizzy spells. Sometimes it's as quick as a head rush, sometimes it's a few seconds longer, but it always passes. At her last visit with her oncologist, she mentioned it to him. He wasn't too happy to hear about it, and immediately gave her orders for a CT scan of the brain. He had just finished telling her that even though she had passed the 5-year mark that usually indicated full remission, the type of tumor she had was a slow-growing tumor, and doesn't usually show itself again for 7 years. So, technically, she isn't in remission yet. Naturally, he was worried that perhaps the cancer had spread to the brain.

Ok, well, the scan came back clean, so no worries. But, my mom kept having these moments of dizziness. She mentioned that a while back, while cleaning her ears, she went in too far with her Q-tip (WTF?!) and hurt herself. There was some bleeding involved. So, she thought maybe that's what was causing this dizziness, or maybe some kind of inner-ear infection. Yet, she never made an appointment to see her GP and have it checked out.

Now, fast forward to today. When the party was winding down, my mom, sister and SIL went out to sit on my deck. I came out a little while later to join them. Apparently, my mother was feeling dizzy but never said anything. SIL made her some coffee, and we sat around chatting. When she said she was ready to go, she finally mentioned that she was feeling dizzy. But now, she was feeling REALLY dizzy. We thought maybe she was a bit dehydrated, between the margaritas and the coffee. I got her a bottle of water, and she took a few sips, but she said it wasn't helping. Every time she tried to stand, she had to immediately sit back down because she was so dizzy. She was also feeling nauseous at this point. We decided that I would just drive her home in her car, and CSJ agreed to follow us in his car, and drive me back home. My sister was pushing her to guzzle the water, since we were sure she needed the hydration.

I went out front to get my mother's car and pull it in my driveway so she wouldn't have to walk far, and CSJ left for my parents' house. When I walked back into my yard, I see my mother slumped over a bucket (actually, it was a big plastic party bucket, the kind you put drinks in). She had been puking her guts out. Well, we all know how I feel about puke! I went in to get her some ginger ale, while my sister and SIL tended to my mother. I guess she tried to stand up again, and almost fell. My sister put the puke bin in my trash can and we tried to get her in the car, but no such luck. She immediately started to heave. Thankfully, my sister got the bucket back in time!

A few minutes later, she thought she was ready to try getting to the car again. My sister and SIL each walked on either side of her, basically carrying her along. She got about 10 feet down the driveway, and had to stop. She then started projectile vomiting all over the side of my house. I ran to get her a chair, and she just sat and puked for a few more minutes. We went in and got her cool rags for her forehead and face, and an ice pack to put on the back of her neck. SIL swears it always helps her when she's pukey.

By now, about 25 minutes have passed, and I realize CSJ is sitting at my parents' house. I call him and tell him what's going on, and suggest he just bring my dad back to my house. I figured by the time they got there, we could get my mom in the car, and my dad could just drive home.

My mother was still sitting in the chair when the boys arrived. It was very slow going getting her in the car. Every time she moved, she felt like she wanted to puke. Every time she tried to stand up, she was overcome with dizziness. We finally got her in the car, but then my dad had to wait for a while for her to settle in before he could drive. I gave her a good, sturdy bag to puke in, if needed, and they finally were on their way. My dad told her that if she threw up any more, he was taking her to the hospital instead of home. While they were waiting around to leave, my brother called my dad, and said he was at my parents' house, so my dad told him to just go in, they were on their way. My sister and SIL were both going to head there, also. My SIL stopped on the way to get Pedialyte and Smartwater.

They all left, I came in, cleaned up a little, and called there about a half hour after they left to check on my mom. My sister said she seemed better, but she was still dizzy. I told her to call me if things changed. I went downstairs to finish cleaning up, but realized I was just too tired. I came back up, put on my jammies and got in bed. I then wrote that last post.

I watched some TV, and just as I was settling in for sleep, my SIL called. "Ok, so there's an ambulance here, they're taking your mom to Christ [that's our local hospital]. She had a really bad attack, and she's been puking her guts out for about a half hour." I tell her I'll meet them there, tear off my pajamas, throw on the first two things I find in my bedroom, and run out the door.

Wow, this is quite the saga, isn't it? Let me jump ahead a bit. They gave her an IV with saline to hydrate her, and something for her nausea. The first doctor that came in (intern?) took the whole history, did and exam, and basically said that given her history of cancer and her age, etc., she would like to do an MRI of the brain because even though the CT scan came back clean, there could be some abnormalities not picked up by the CT, but the MRI would see it. But, they don't do those in the ER, so she'd have to be admitted overnight, and have it done in the morning. Mom didn't like that a whole lot. The intern said she was going to discuss it with her supervising doctor, and the supervising doctor would be in soon.

Well, the supervising doctor completely agreed. They gave her some Valium in her IV, because he said that if it WAS an inner-ear thing, the Valium would help with that. (The intern had mentioned that she did see a scab in my mom's ear from the Q-tip incident, but that it wasn't far enough in the canal to have really caused a problem) If it isn't, it would still calm her down enough to maybe sleep. They also gave her more anti-nausea medication. They got her into a room in the CDU about an hour later, and that's where she is right now. I drove my daddy home, and here I am. I'm exhausted, yet I can't sleep. Holy crap, I just looked at the time! It's now 2:49! I've been sitting her typing for 40 minutes?!?! How could that be?

I have a killer migraine coming on, so I took a couple Advil before I started typing. Maybe they'll kick in enough for me to lie down now. I will, naturally, update tomorrow. In the meantime, feel free to send some good juju our way.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Silly Sunday

The last of my guests just left, after an awesome Tastefully Simple party (which started at 2!). Jen was amazing! She was just as terrific in person as I thought she'd be. I thought I loved her before, but now I absolutely ADORE her!! I just hope my friends and family didn't scare her. I've posted more than once about my Pampered Chef parties that inevitably turn into drunken bashes. Well, my gang did not disappoint. My stomach hurts from laughing.

I'm so happy about the turnout. There were more people than I thought, and the sales far surpassed my expectations. I'm thrilled for Jen. What a great way to jump start her new business!!

It's not too late for you to help her out if you're thinking about ordering something. I've had a few people ask me to add them to the online list, so thank you. I won't be closing the show for at least a week, so let me know if you're interested.

I'm absolutely exhausted, so I'm going to finish the clean up in the morning. I need to hit the sack. And, no, it has nothing to do with the 6 pitchers of margaritas I made. Thank you, Jen, for such a great afternoon!!

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Day 23

I just realized that I posted so late last night, it showed up with today's date. Oh, well. I guess I could go in and edit the post time...

We were at Stud's best friend's house last night, although the best friend wasn't there. He was at a concert with his girlfriend. We were there because it was his mom's birthday, and his grandpa's birthday. Grandpa turned 85! I felt bad for my girlfriend because neither one of her children were there. Like I said, Best Friend was at a concert, and her younger son is in France. Rough, right? He's there as part of an exchange program. Theirs was a true exchange program. Hugo came and visited here for two weeks a few months ago and stayed with our friends, and now Little Brother is there at Hugo's house for 2 weeks. So far, he's having a blast. He actually started a blog to chronicle his adventure.

I brought my margarita maker with me to the party, which may have been a mistake. At least that's what my tummy has been telling me all morning. It didn't help that I had to be up bright and early this morning because one of my sisters-in-law came over so Stud and I could help her with a project for school. She and her husband just left a few minutes ago, and I must say, I'm feeling much better now. The pastries they brought over seemed to have hit the spot!

Before they came over, I started preparing some dips and other yummies for the Tastefully Simple party I'm having tomorrow. I'm SO excited!! Believe it or not, I've never been to or hosted a Tastefully Simple party. I know some of you just fell off your chairs, but it's true. Oh, wait! I haven't told you the best part yet. My consultant is none other than the awesome Jen, from Laughing at Chaos! If you don't read her blog (why the hell not?! She's a hoot!) she recently moved back to the Chicago area. She also recently decided to start up her Tastefully Simple business again, after a few years away. I'm so excited to be her first party, and even MORE excited to finally be meeting her in person!!

It just occurred to me that some of you may want to help her jump start her new business. I think if you send me your email, I can add you to the online guest list, which will let you peruse the catalog and/or place an order online. Yay! Most people who have heard of TS, and have been to other shows, have all told me they LOVE it. As a matter of fact, last night at the birthday party, I got two orders from my friend's family members, who both said "Oh my God! I LOVE this stuff!!" I can't wait to sample the different products tomorrow.

I guess on that note, I'd better get back to preparing for tomorrow's show. We have invitations to two graduation parties today (Stud's "wife" and one of his besties) and I was invited to a baby shower. All three of these parties are scheduled to start at 3:00! WTF?! I'm not sure how the hell we're gonna pull this off, but what I do know is, I only have about an hour to finish making this food. Wish me luck!

Day 22

Friday, June 22, 2012
Do you like scary movies that make you jump?

In a word - no!

I don't do scary movies. I don't like them, I don't enjoy them, I don't want anything to do with them.

I haven't seen most of the "big" ones that the rest of the world has seen. Most of what I HAVE seen, I've seen on TV, which, thankfully, means they were edited a bit.

When I was younger, I liked to read scary books (lots of Stephen King when I was in junior high!) but then I wouldn't watch whatever movie was made later. I vividly remember reading Amityville Horror in Mr. McGurty's 6th grade classroom. I'd hurry and finish my work, then open my book behind my desk, on my lap, and read. When I got to the scene with the blood dripping down the walls of the bathroom, I LOUDLY gasped, scaring myself and all my friends! Dork!

Around that time, I also read all the Flowers in the Attic books. Creepy!!

So, to sum it up - scary movies = no, scary books = yes

Aren't you glad you know that now, so you can go on and enjoy your weekend?

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Day 21

Thursday, June 21, 2012
Have you ever "jumped out of your skin?"

Yes, but it was too hard to go on in life as a gelatinous, bloody, oozy, heap of organs, so I put the skin back on.

What the hell? I don't like this prompt. "Jumped out my skin" because I was scared? Or, because I was grossed out? I don't know.

Hmmm, scared...yes, there have been a couple of times I've been REALLY scared. OH!! It just hit me! I TOTALLY remember an incident where I "jumped out of my skin!"

When we were first married, we lived with my mother-in-law for a few months to save up a little money. At the time, she used to keep some bird feeders right on her kitchen window. The feeders had suction cups that kept them stuck to the window, so then you can conveniently watch the birds eat. Sounds great, right? You all know how much I love birds!

Ok, that's not what made me "jump out of my skin," though. The window that had these feeders was right over the kitchen sink, and faced the backyard. One day, I was walking toward the sink, when I a saw something move in the window. Not in front of the window, but IN the window, like between the outer and inner window. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, because it looked like a tail. While my brain was frantically trying to process what the hell it was I was seeing, A MOTHER-SCRATCHING MOUSE started to crawl into the window. A MOUSE!!!!! Oh, and did I mention that the window was OPEN?! Apparently, he was enjoying the all-you-can-eat buffet my mother-in-law set up for him.

That is the first time I was ever that scared. I was literally paralyzed with fear. I was trying to will my body to move, to run, anything, but I couldn't. I couldn't even breathe!

After what seemed like hours, but was probably seconds, the most blood-curdling scream I've ever heard came out of my mouth. At first, I didn't even realize it was happening, or coming from my own mouth. At least it scared the mouse enough to make it turn around and start back up the window.

CSJ came running out of the bedroom since I think he thought I was being murdered. I was still physically paralyzed, and could NOT move, and other than the screaming, I couldn't talk, so I couldn't tell him what was wrong. Thankfully, he must have realized my bugged-out eyes were aimed at the window. He saw the mouse, and slammed the window shut, so it couldn't come in the house.

Then he turned around and yelled at me to "SHUT UP, already!" I think he couldn't decide if he should laugh at me, or be pissed because I was screaming like a baby. But, then he saw how totally FREAKED out I was, and came over to put his arms around me. I was uncontrollably shaking, which then made him feel bad for yelling at me. He then went outside, took down the bird feeders, and who the hell knows WHAT he did to get rid of the mouse. All I know is, it took me forever to get anywhere near that sink again.

Wow, I haven't thought about that incident in a long time. Right now, my heart is pounding just from remembering the trauma of it all. Yikes!! Well, I think that counts as my cardio workout for today, don't you?

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

This just in....

I just opened an email from The Chicago Teachers' Union. It was about this:


If you feel compelled to sign, that would be awesome!

I know, I know, I'm so annoying...

...but I can't help it. Someone who was at the Father's Day picnic on Sunday took this picture, and sent it to my dad, who then sent it to us. How cute are they?!


**UPDATE** 10:35AM
Apparently, my sister took her own version of this photo. I just opened it on my phone. Monkey looks even cuter here, if that's even possible!!

This is what her adorable little feet looked like that day. Don't you just want to nom-nom-nom them?!

Day 20

Wednesday, June 20, 2012
What do you do to cope when you're nervous?

I guess I try to distract myself, if I can. I also try to do some deep breathing, which truthfully helps. I try to think "happy thoughts," again in an effort to distract myself.

Speaking of happy, here is the jewelry my sisters-in-law gifted me with the other day.
Ok, bitch alert---

I need some advice from my Bloggy Buddies. As pretty as it is, this stuff really just isn't my style. I actually might wear the ring (I don't hate it) but I know I'll never wear the earrings or pendant. How rude and wrong would it be for me to exchange it all for just a really nice ring that I know I would wear? I just feel like, no matter how rude it may be to exchange it, I think it would be worse to waste their money by never wearing any of it. What do you think?

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Day 19

Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Describe a time you felt jumpy and nervous.

Truthfully? Yesterday, when the full weight of my decision came crashing down on me. The logical side of my brain is SCREAMING at me that I definitely made the right decision, and that continuing to work for CPS would only mean the end of my health and sanity. I've been planning for the leave for years now, saving up money like crazy, specifically so I could go without working for a while.

However, when I started thinking about NOT getting that paycheck every two weeks, I started getting palpitations. "What the hell have I done? What was I thinking? Am I out of my God damned mind?!" Those thoughts just kept going through my head all day, and it was making me sick to my stomach. I finally had to leave the house and try and distract myself with some Monkey time. :)

I'm feeling MUCH better about everything today. I still get a little queasy if I let myself think too much about it. I try to keep reminding myself that I wasn't hasty in making this decision, and I planned and planned for this. I didn't jump into it lightly. I made thoughtful and mindful preparations for this. And, it was the BEST decision for my family, and my health. Both physically and mentally. I know all that. Now, if someone could just remind me of all that on an hourly basis for the next few weeks, that would be awesome.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Day 18

Monday, June 18, 2012
Which animals make you jumpy and nervous?

Well, I'm not a huge fan of snakes. Not so much the giant, slow moving one (like boa constrictors) because I feel like I could get away from them if I had to. (Yes, I realize that's probably not true, but please don't burst my bubble!)

It's those quick moving rattlesnakes, cobras, even garter snakes that I don't want to be anywhere around. They move like lightning!

Also, I want NOTHING to do with birds. I blame Alfred Hitchcock for this one. That movie scarred me for life. They just freak me the hell out! Obviously, I'm referring to the little flappy, flying, pecking kind of birds, not the beautiful, chubby swimming kind of birds ;-)

I just lifted this from Jenn Bates over at Finally in First. It's not new, so some of you may have seen it before like I have. But, it's still pretty interesting, nonetheless.




Ok, wish me luck. I'm off to do battle with the unemployment office. That's right, as of today I'm officially unemployed. Yippee! And, I hope I'm wrong about the battle part.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Day 17

Happy Father's Day! I hope you had a nice one with your dad/grandpa/husband, whoever.

We spend the day sweating our asses off at a picnic, but it's what my dad wanted so we sucked it up. At least Monkey was there to cheer us up. I'm too tired to upload any photos right now, so maybe tomorrow.

CSJ had to work (of course!) so he was gone all day, then went straight to the rehab facility to see his dad. Oh, yeah, I forgot to update you all on that. In a nutshell, they released him from the hospital on Thursday, but he's now in a rehab facility because the knee he just had surgery on needs to heal properly. Anyway, CSJ went from the rehab place to his mom's to hang out with his sisters for a while. He very conveniently missed the whole picnic. Stud and I didn't get home until about 9:30, so he really didn't spend any time with his dad today. They did spend quite a bit of time texting back and forth during the day.

CSJ came home from his mother's with a gift for ME. His crazy sisters all got together and got me a gift to thank me for all I do for my in-laws. They are so nuts!! I wish they'd realize I do what I do out of love for them, just like THEY do. As far as I'm concerned, they have been my "other" parents for 27 years now. Nonetheless, I really appreciate the gift. I will take a picture of it for you tomorrow.

Right now, I've gotta hit the sack. I'm exhausted. Far too much time in the heat today for this little penguin. :)

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Day 16

I knew my exit from CPS wasn't going to go smoothly. We got paid yesterday, and my check is short 3 days. After a series of phone calls, being put on hold for way too long, way too many times, and being transferred about 3 times, I finally think I know what happened. Unfortunately, no one I spoke to could really help me, they could only tell me who to try and contact. I shot of an email, so we'll see if she responds Monday. I have a feeling that my next check will also be screwed up for the same reason this last on was. Great. I'm already getting a headache thinking about having to deal with this for the next several weeks. :(

Friday, June 15, 2012

Day 15

Friday, June 15, 2012
Is the proverbial glass half empty or half full?

Wasn't this a prompt in May? Anyway, like I said then, I try to be a "half full" kinda girl. It's not always easy, but I try.

Today the glass was overflowing. It was the LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!! At 11:30 this afternoon, my (permanent?) summer vacation started. Woo-freakin'-hoo!!

And now....let the wild rumpus start!

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Day 14

Thursday, June 14, 2012
What food brings you intense joy to eat?

Well, I think the obvious answer would be CHOCOLATE. I love to eat it AND drink it! I may even choke it down even when there's a disgusting raisin in the middle of it. But, I prefer when there's a juicy strawberry covered in it. Or a banana. Or a marshmallow, peanut, popcorn, potato chip, you name it. I think the only line I'd draw when it comes to chocolate is no chocolate covered bugs, please.

Back when we were dating, CSJ would always pick me up from work or school or home with a Hostess ChocoBliss in the car waiting for me. (hmmm, why was I so fat at our wedding again?) I don't think Hostess makes those anymore, which is a shame. They were awesome!

Holy crap! I Googled ChocoBliss, in hopes of finding a picture to share with you. I did find a picture,
but I also found this!


I don't even remember this commercial, but man, do I remember that cake!

My new bestie, Funny, had the nerve to ask me who Monkey is today. Hmph. I can see she's missed a post or two. But, all is forgiven. I'm sentencing her to read back through ALL my archives, though. This is post #1356, so I see she's gonna be real busy this weekend. =)

Here, Funny, is my Monkey!!!


Isn't it too bad she doesn't like to swing? How dare my brother torture her like that! Those must have been screams of terror, don't you think?

I love you can see how freakishly long her legs are here. She's gonna be a heart-breaker, that one!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Day 13

Wednesday, June 13, 2012
What makes your heart leap?

Leap in a good way?
  • Spending time with my Monkey
  • Spending quality time with Stud Muffin, which is so rare these days, now that he's a college boy :(
  • Spending quality time with CSJ, which is on the increase these days :)
  • Spending quality time with the babies, without all the politics and bureaucratic bullshit getting in the way


Leap in a bad way?
  • Phone calls in the middle of the night
  • Not being able to find Stud, especially late at night, when he's out, and his damn phone is OFF
~~~~
FIL update of the day. They didn't end up doing the angiogram until this afternoon. Thankfully, they didn't find anything. Unfortunately, they didn't find anything. We're thrilled there aren't any blockages, but now we still don't know what is causing the problem. When CSJ got home from work we went to the hospital to visit, but FIL was still completely out of it. They plan to keep him drugged up the rest of the night, so he won't be in pain.

Part of why he's been in so much pain is that his arthritis makes it unbearable for him to lie flat on his back, yet with all the surgeries he's had lately, that's what's been happening. Not only is he flat on his back for the duration of these surgeries, the operating table is nothing more than a slab of hard steel. Not good.

Now that he's had the angiogram, he needs to remain flat on his back for whatever the requisite amount of time is (I know it used to be 24 hours, but now I think it might be 12?) and he couldn't do that if he was awake. He has very severe RA, so the pain is a big issue.

OK, enough about that. Thank you ALL so much for your kind thoughts, comments, prayers, etc.

Let me leave on a VERY happy note - I have one and a half days of school left!! Woo hoo!! Oh, and today is Monkey's 11 month birthday. I can't believe that in one short month, she'll be a year old!! How the HELL did that happen?!?

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Day 12

Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Where is your favourite place to be?

Short answer - home

Slightly longer answer - home, in/on my bed, with something good to read, my computer, my iPod (for playing games, reading eBooks) and something to drink, all surrounding me.

OR

Out on my deck, in my hammock, with most of those same things around me. =)

OR

Cuddling on my bed/couch with Stud Muffin or CSJ (or both, if I'm especially blessed!!) either watching a movie, or reading, or just talking.

A little update on my FIL:
We just got home from visiting him at the hospital. Yesterday, when he first got there, they thought maybe he had a blood clot somewhere, but by last night, they ruled that out. They figured it was just his nearly 80 year old heart being overworked by all that's been going on with him lately. While we were visiting, the nurse came in to let us know they would be taking him for an angiogram (sp?) tomorrow morning. Hopefully, they'll be able to take care of whatever blockages they find. The last time he had one done, the arteries that were blocked were too small to insert a stent, so they left them. We'll see what they say tomorrow. Thanks to all of you for your well-wishes for him. Keep the good thought and prayers coming. He can use all he can get!

Monday, June 11, 2012

Day 11

Monday, June 11, 2012
What makes you jump for joy?

These two are celebrating their 46th Anniversary today!
Just some random shots....











I know these are totally random shots, and not the best photos, but I'm very short on time tonight. My FIL was rushed by ambulance to the hospital today, so it's been a long day. He's had a really rough couple of months now, and it just seems to keep going down hill. I hope things start looking up soon.

Basically, what makes me jump for joy is my family!

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Day 10

If you been around here for any length of time, you already know how obsessed I am with my Keurig machine. (Ok, not nearly as obsessed as I am about my crock pots, but still...)

Last week, I received a special offer from the coffee club I belong to, Green Mountain Coffee. They're running a sale on their Brew Over Ice coffees. (The sale is running through June 19, if you're interested.)

I've always used their Nantucket Blend of Brew Over Ice, and love it. I thought I'd try something different this time, so I ordered the French Vanilla.

As an added bonus, if you order any box of Brew Over Ice coffee, Green Mountain will send a free Brew Over Ice tumbler.
Guess what I'm drinking my iced coffee out of right now? And, mmmmm, it's good!

(I was in no way compensated for this post. I just like to share with my friends. Although, if Green Mountain Coffee or Keurig want to pay me to write about how much I LOVE their products, I am looking for a job...just sayin'...)

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Day 9

Guess who tried out her new pool today? This time, WITH water. :)
(I had to cover her naughty bits, lest some nasty internet pervs found this picture!)

Her mommy painted her toenails. How cute are these little piggies?!
She's such a little fashion plate, isn't she? Ugh, and that face!!! I just want to eat it up!We had lots of fun with Monkey today, hanging out at my parents' house. I just can't get enough of this little cutie. The thing I'm looking forward to MOST about being out of school is getting to spend SO much time with her!!