Do you have a good brain?

My son and my husband are racing Mario Cart. Little Boy won, and DH came in second. We've been working with Little Boy to not brag, but to build up the other players.

"It's ok, Daddy. You came in second; you beat everyone else." And he tapped his own head. "Except for the one with the good brain."

So humble.

Father's Day

I hope my husband has a nice day. If it weren't for him and my kids this holiday would completely stink.
My dad has been gone for 24 years now. It gets easier in some respects, but I sure do miss him.

Have I ruined my son?

My son has a pair of shoes that we bought for him a long time ago. They are expensive shoes - StrideRite in XW. He wore them for church and going places. Later, we bought him another pair, same style, and the old ones became play shoes. At this point, his play shoes are very worn, but I'm sure they are comfy - broken in. I saw some shoes at WalMart that I think are made wide enough for his XW feet. I brought them home, had him try them on, and they are wide enough. He thinks they look cool.

I explained they are his new play shoes and he started crying. I asked what was wrong.

"I don't want you to take my shoes away. They remind me of things from when I was a 4 year old."

So I think I've passed on my emotional connection to things. Poor kid. And his poor wife some day.

I assured him he needed 2 pair of play shoes; a pair to wear when his shoes are wet. From playing in the drainage hole. We have the prettiest drainage hole on the hill.

Grrr.

So Little Boy dislocated Baby's arm AGAIN later in the morning. He was trying to get her to get in the house because I had called them in. Poor Baby.

After lunch, Little Boy told me, "Oh Mommy. My belly is so full of antelope!"

"It's not antelope, Sweetie. It's *C*anteloupe."

Funny.

Is it Monday, again?

I think I slept well last night. I don't remember my husband coming to bed or the alarm going off at 2 am. I don't remember the alarm going off this morning for my husband to get up, either. I vaguely remember my daughter getting up early, and my husband sending her back to bed.

Little Boy woke up before my husband left, and I had DH send him in to my bed. It wasn't long before Baby woke up, too, and the two were bumbling around the bed. I sent them both to the living room when I finally got up to go to the bathroom.

We were sitting in the living room, me with my laptop, Little Boy with his stinkin' green army guys, :0) and Baby flitting around being a cute little pest. And then she did something (I don't know what) that caused a reaction, and the next thing I knew, I was having to fix Baby's dislocated elbow. Again.

So, I'm wondering - is it Monday, again?

Booby traps

Little Boy has been playing with his little green army guys and all the paraphenalia that goes along with them - plastic barbed-wire fences, half logs and broken down buildings for the army guys to hide behind, tanks, jeeps, planes.

I had just picked up an airplane so it wouldn't get stepped on, when Baby hopped off the couch onto a tank. She howled, and I told Little Boy to pick up his stuff.

"Brother shouldn't leave his crap on the floor!"

Yikes! I guess I use that word more often than I thought. Oops.

Baby Baby Baby

So Baby has been waking up early. I usually send her back to her room, tell her to read some books in her bed, and then I lie in bed listening to her playing around.

This morning I needed to get up early so I wasn't as irritated as I usually am.

When I finally got up, she and I spent some time snuggling on the couch. We were talking about kittens; she loves everything kitten. She started telling me about her Sunday school teacher's kitty. She showed me the face the kitty makes when it meows, told me how it jumped at her, and made her "freak out". And she was talking about how she freaked out, and said "freaked out" another half dozen times.

I just laughed and kissed my little freaked out Baby.

Like Father, Like Daughter

Or is it the other way around?

Lately, when I tuck the kids into bed for naps or at nighttime, I have to check, recheck and check again to be sure Baby is in bed.

She waits til we walk away, climbs down, turns on her light, gets books and toys and climbs back into bed.

Well, I just had to "sneak" back into my room to put the dying phone on the charger and get the charged phone. I opened the door as carefully and quietly as I could, hoping to not disturb my husband. He's supposed to be sleeping after working all night. I opened the door, and he smiled sheepishly - iPod in hand.

Hope he can keep his eyes open for his meeting today and for our church directory pictures. Pfft.

Busy week

So last week my husband and I were looking at our calendars and comparing notes. We have to make sure we are on the same page or we get into trouble.

My week went from 2 appts. to crammed full. How on earth does that happen? And where am I going to fit in a visit to the printer for VBS stuff? Arrgghh!

My husband has a 3 oclock meeting, we have a 5:25 appt. for pictures for the church directory, he at least should make it to the funeral home tonight or tomorrow night for the visitation for our neighbor. Tomorrow I have a therapy appt. Wednesday is the funeral, and I have a VBS meeting before church. Thursday and Friday, my husband has union negotiations, and Saturday he will be working a double shift - day and 2nd.

So I need to concentrate on getting through today. I need to find/pick out clothes for us for our picture. I need to find something that will make me look thin.

HA HA HA HA HA HA.

Sunday Sickies

Little Boy has had a stuffy nose for a couple days now. And last night Baby started sneezing. I gave her some medicine, but about 1 am, she started coughing and crying. I gave her some more medicine and then laid there watching the clock until it was time to check Little Boy's blood sugar.

This morning Baby woke up crying. I checked on her, and ick. Runny, crusty, clogged up little nose.

So I decided to keep the kids home. Little Boy is going outside to play, Baby is watching TV and I'm getting ready to run to the pharmacy. They messed up his syringes and test strips, again. It's getting to be like our local McDs. I have to check everything before I leave.

But it's a beautiful day, so I'm going to enjoy the sunshine and the fresh air.

Another neighbor

died this morning. In the last couple years, 6 of our neighbors have died.

Our next-door neighbor, Lewis, passed away this morning. He's had problems with congestive heart failure for awhile now. My husband grew up here and was friends with the kids next door.

I think one of the hardest things is trying to explain it to my kids. They question me over and over about people who have died; especially my dad and our neighbor lady across the street. I know it is an abstract concept to them; their questioning doesn't make things easier on me, either. And not knowing their spiritual condition is the hardest part.

Two of his four kids have already died; two are left. And his wife seems frail; I don't know what they will do. It's just so sad.

My son is funny!

My son still says, "Lie. Lie. Lie. Lie," when he hears Obama talking.

I asked him the other day what he would say to the president if he had a chance to talk to him.

"I would tell him to stop spending people's money."

Out of the mouth of babes!

Little Boy's graduation

Here are some pictures from last Sunday.

Be sure your sin will find you out!

And be sure it will be Mommy who finds you!

So today I went out to get the mail; Baby was riding her bike. She had stopped at the bottom of our driveway and put her head on her hands on the middle of the handlebars. It was sweet, and a bit sad. I was wondering why. I asked her what she was doing, and she hopped off the bike and came up the driveway to "help" me get the mail. She was a little discouraged that she couldn't ride her bike up the driveway. I told her it was ok, b/c if she made it up the driveway, she would most definitely wipe out on the way down. She asked, "Would I cry?" "Yep."

Then I decided I should check on Little Boy. I walked around the back of the garage; he was sweeping dirt off the driveway. Ok. But he looked at me with a scared look. I asked him if he was in trouble. He said he was. I asked why he was in trouble. He pointed to the puddle on the driveway. Oh great; he pee'd on the driveway. I asked him what he did. He pointed to the old rickety buckets full of dried up tar that have been sitting in our driveway since I moved here in 2000. The lids are broken, and they fill up with water, which gets nasty from the icky tar. He wanted to see the tar, so he dumped out the water. UGGGHHH. I keep telling him to stay away from them.

I came back in the house to finish cleaning out the "linen" closet. It's a catch-all with very little room for linens. Soon it was time for a snack. I decided to take them out some freezer pops. As I rounded the corner, Little Boy was digging next to the playhouse porch with a shovel.

Ok. We have a rule here. NO TOOLS. I am seriously afraid one of these days someone is going to come running in with a huge gash from some tool.

I asked what he was doing. "Baby pooped and I'm covering it up!"

AAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!

"Both kids --- in the house ---- right now!"

He got in trouble for not telling us, covering her mess (sin), using a tool, and, OH YEAH, peeing in a bucket yesterday.

She got in trouble for her part in the episode.

Can we have a day without wet undies or poop in the yard?

Good grief.

Do I have to be outside?

HOW can two sweet, cute children get into so much trouble? I guess in perspective, it's not so bad. But Little Boy insists on getting tools out of the workbench, and Baby wet her undies again today. And I caught both of them up by the road picking up rocks.

I do NOT want to make them stay in the house unless there is an adult with them, but if I have to, I will. And they won't get as much time outside. Which means they'll be in the house driving me nuts.

I need to get back to being more organized with meal planning, so tonight my goal is to plan out the meals and snacks for the week. With Little Boy's special diet, it will take a little more planning, but I know it will save time and brain strain in the end.

DH is off tomorrow so I plan to make it my shopping day this week.

I guess I should go check on the little kids.

It was a very nice day

My husband didn't have to work a double last night. That was good. I woke up with the kids and let him sleep. I was glad he was able to sleep a couple more hours.

It was a nice day out, so as soon as the kids finished breakfast I took them outside. There was a baby deer in the neighbor's yard (Grandma & Granddad's). I told the kids they could play on the driveway, but not to go into the grass on that side of the house so the baby would not get scared.

I went into the house, walked into Baby's room, opened the shade, and saw Baby walk off the driveway into the grass. It took that long? I had to deal with her, and sent her back out.

Daddy woke up and went outside. Pretty soon, he called me. "Come look at your daughter." Great.

She was running up the driveway in just her little stripey undies. Wet undies.

So she came in, I put a plastic grocery bag on her (cut little slits for her legs), and she had to sit on a towel on the couch. I kept asking her if it felt nice or yucky. When we got her cleaned up and dry undies on, she had to stay in the house until she peed again.

We had a nice lunch - steak, grilled potatoes, green beans, ice cream. The kids were still up when Daddy left for work. I did some things on my computer until my head started bobbing.

I was lying on the couch, sleeping, and I kept thinking I could hear music. I half wondered if Little Boy was playing with the Nintendo game. He got up, came out, and - no music. A little while later, Baby got up, came out, and - sure enough. Music. Sometime while she was sleeping, Baby Pooh bear started playing music and never stopped. I guess the batteries were dying. At least I wasn't hearing music that wasn't there.

The kids went out to play, and soon they came back in. Little Boy thought he saw a bear crossing our road. I think he was looking for an excuse to come in that would make Baby come in, too. Eventually they went back out until supper.

We had a decent supper, Little Boy and I picked up toys, I cringed at the messy back garage, and we came in. Now we're just hanging out until bedtime. Not having schoolwork to do really makes a big change.

Beeeeautiful Day

It is a beautiful day here, again.

My kids woke up early, again.

I ran to Wal-Mart, again.

Tomorrow is Little Boy's "graduation". I want it to be a special thing for him. Not a blow-out extravaganza, but something he might be able to remember.

I got him a recordable picture frame, a cute Snoopy '09 stuffed animal, and a cute ball that talks when you throw it - it has a graduation cap with 2009 on it. I want to put up streamers and balloons after he goes to bed.

The pastor is going to give him his diploma. I bought a nice frame for it for his room.

I am even thinking of making him a graduation cap. I bought black foam board, and I have navy satin material from my wedding. I don't know. We'll see.

Undies Only

So I was at the store the other day buying Overnights for my kids. Little Boy could sleep through a hurricane; there's no way he'd wake up to pee. Baby is actually a little better, but not consistently.

I stood there looking for the right sizes, and then thought I should buy her a pack of regular pullups for during the day. And then I made a decision. I am not buying any more "daytime" pullups. She needs to wear undies, and be uncomfortable if she pees in them. And suffer consequences. DH wasn't so sure. We tried undies before and ended up with wet furniture. Ick.

So I bought her another pack of cute undies.

She did have an accident in them one of the first days. She wanted me to peel them off her right where she was. I made her walk to the bathroom and wait for me. By the time I cleaned up the wet spot and got in there, she was very unhappy.

I explained that next time, I will make her wear the wet clothing for a long time; she can sit on a plastic bag. I sound mean, but she wasn't worried about the consequences of wetting her pullups so I want her to think about how horrible it would be to wear wet clothes.

So far, so good.

My Grandparents

I've been homesick lately, but without a "home" to be sick for.

My mom's parents:

My Dad's parents:

It's time to teach them

how to read the clock!

Both of my children were awake before 7 am, going back and forth between their rooms, opening and closing doors, playing with jangling, bells-ie toys. My husband and I layed there for awhile, hoping it was a bad dream or that if I kept telling them to be quiet and stay in one room, we could get just a little more rest.

We must have been delusional.

I speak, you type

Husband got a new computer program that will type for him as he talks. He thinks it will help him with his papers, because he can just talk through things better than he can write it out. But it sounds funny.

"Business meeting notes colon tab key June 3rd comma 2009 period tab key."

You get the picture.

Baby is riding her stick horse this morning. She told us she's going to ride her horsie to the awstrant.

Wonder if she's going to order awfuls or a swindich with ovills.

The snarl joke

I mentioned in my last post that my dad might have called the curly little squiggle above the head of the player who missed the ball a snarl.

One day we heard my dad laughing, and of course, we all wanted to know what he was laughing about. When we found him, he was laughing so hard he couldn't talk. When he finally was able to tell us, he showed us a Peanuts cartoon book. Charlie Brown was fishing, or attempting to fish, and cast his line. The next frame showed a huge wad of fishing line at the end of his rod, which he described as a snarl.

I guess it just hit Dad funny - maybe he was thinking of all the times he had to fix our line when he took us kids fishing. Maybe he just needed a good laugh.



I miss hearing him laugh.

Cuteness

Baby was watching Little Boy play tennis on the Wii. When he missed the ball, she laughed. "He's got a scramble on his head!"

I had to laugh. My dad might have called it a snarl.

Family favorite

This is a recipe my grandmother made often. It's super easy, and it's yummy. I'm going to try a sugar-free/no sugar added version for my son. Thanks, Grandma.

Orange Jello Dessert

1 sm. Box orange jello
1 sm. Box vanilla pudding
1 sm. Box tapioca pudding

Add 2 c. boiling water. Let set until half done. Mix in 2 c. cool whip and 1 can drained mandarin oranges and 1 can drained crushed pineapple.

All I ask

is for ONE night of uninterrupted sleep where I wake to the sound of chirping birds or waves or silence.

Last night I took two Tylenol PMs at 9:30. I was wide awake at midnight. I could have slept until 10 am except for the two screaming banshees who were allowed to run wild until I dragged myself out of bed.

Grrr.

Funny

Yesterday, Baby was being silly at naptime. I jokingly showed her my fist, and asked her if she wanted a knuckle sandwich. My dad said that to us kids all the time. She plopped into bed and asked a question.

"Does it have pickles on it?"

Wish I could sleep

So, I'm sitting here at 4 am, wishing I could sleep. My legs and hips are hurting so badly that I can't get comfortable. I should have taken Ibuprofen HOURS ago. And I may be awake b/c I had Diet Coke yesterday. I know. I'm not supposed to even have it b/c of my acid reflux, but it is SO hard to not drink it every once in a great while. But now I'm paying for it.

Whoa. I just yawned - good sign.

I'll sign off here (another yawn!) and try to get some sleep after I get some Ibuprofen. I'd go climb back in bed, but my poor husband is snoring. He was up very late tonight finishing his schoolwork. He's so diligent; has a 4.0 grade average. I hope he gets some rest.

This is so yummy it hurts!

My husband does not like BBQ. I love it. So I found a recipe that satisfies us both. But "satisfies" isn't the word. I would eat this more often, but then it wouldn't be as special.

In the past, I've used country style ribs, but in an effort to reduce our fat intake, I've been using pork chops instead. It actually cuts out the baking step. But the taste is the same. I'm trying to not drool on my keyboard. I made this recipe a couple weeks ago, and froze half the chops. We're having them tonight for supper, and I almost cannot wait.

Marna's Killer Rib Rub

3/4 to 1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. paprika
1 T. onion powder
2 T. garlic powder
1 T. salt
1 T. black pepper
1 T. oregano
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne (more or less to taste)
1/4 c. apple juice & 1/4 c. grape juice

1. Mix all ingredients in a ziplock bag. Place pork in a shallow dish, add part of the spices, and rub generously into pork. (I put a bag over my hand as paprika will stain your hands!)

2. For ribs, I baked them for 2-3 hours at 250 covered with foil in the juice and 1/4 c. water.
Then we put them on the grill just long enough to crisp the surface a bit.

3. For chops, I put them in the fridge for an hour to let them marinate. Then they go onto the grill.

I can usually make two whole batches with this recipe. I double zip lock bag the remaining rub and save it for next time. Last time, I used brown sugar Splenda and it tasted just as good.

My daughter, who is almost a vegetarian by stubbornness, cannot get enough of this. It is just too yummy.

She cracks me up

Our neighbors recently bought a new TV. Today was garbage day, and they put their OLD set out at the road. The trash men were standing in their driveway on the phone. I'm sure they were calling to see what to do with the big set. Finally, they did put into the back of the truck.

Baby asked, "Are they going to crack it up?" She phrases things so cute.

Other Baby-isms -
Swindich - two pieces of bread with meat and cheese
Ovills - green condiment with pimento centers
Newsgit - noise that comes from instruments
Awfulls - breakfast food that she eats like a cookie (with a little butter)

I'll have to make sure to write down any more we come across. :0)

Memorial Day and the day after

Yesterday we made it to the lake before lunch. The kids' aunt and uncle took them for a boat ride. Granddad went with them. Grandma and I stayed back.

We ate a nice picnicky lunch, and I put the kids down for a nap. They thought they were going to both sleep in the little toddler bed in one bedroom. That was a good one. I got them settled into separate beds in separate rooms, and started working on dessert. I think I mixed the pudding too long, and it got a little rubbery. (Don't mix the pudding too long.)

It turned out ok, but I would like to try it again, and see if it's better. It definitely didn't look like the picture. I guess it was ok - everyone ate theirs and the kids and I had a second helping when we got home. It worked out to 10 grams of carbs per serving. I don't think that is bad for a dessert.

While I was fixing dessert, the four adults were in the living room trying to hook the VCR up to the new TV. Grandma was reading the directions and BIL and SIL were trying to follow her convoluted instructions. I told them, "Wait for my husband to get here; it will take him 2 minutes." They finally gave up.

Grandma, my SIL and BIL went to the plant nursery while the kids were napping, so I sat and read some magazines in the living room with Granddad who was watching Law and Order on his new flat screen tv. I love L&O - even reruns I've seen a zillion times.

DH came and I was right. It took him two minutes to hook up the DVD player. Grandma says, "I told you - I knew he could do it." Funny. I thought I was the one who said that.

We were eating supper - they were all watching me and asking about how I was measuring and weighing Little Boy's food and figuring his insulin shot. At the table I told my husband what Little Boy could eat; Grandma kept trying to sneak more onto his plate. She gave him a crescent roll (which was ok - I figured it in) but she kept pushing to give him apple butter on it. "He can have a little taste." Apple butter was not figured in b/c it was homemade and didn't have any sugar/carb info on the jar. I guess I gave her a look and then just refused to look at her. SIL must have seen my face, b/c she told Grandma not to give it to him. Maybe I don't have to be as picky as I am, but I am trying my best to keep Little Boy's sugar under control.

Later today I take Little Boy's notebook to the Homeschool review. I have a couple things I need to do before I go. Little Boy is very excited about finishing the book. No more excited than Mommy! He is such a smart little guy.

The rain held off yesterday, but this morning we woke up to steady rain showers, again. My peonies are blooming. I have one plant that opens before any other bush on the hill. I love it. I don't have any pic (b/c it's RAINING), but I will soon. I just love them. Every time I see them I think of my grandparents' house, but every time I smell them, I am there. We would stop there after church on Sunday's. I always wanted to bury my face in them, but I was seriously afraid an ant would go up my nose. I loved the smell of the lilacs, too, but the peonies were always my favorites.

Memorial Day

My thanks and admiration for all the military members who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, and for any who have served our country to keep us safe. I am especially thinking of my Grandfather, who served in WWII, my great uncle, who was at Pearl Harbor, my great uncle who served in WWII, my great uncle, who fought in the Korean War, my uncle John, who fought in Vietnam, and came home with multiple purple hearts.

Click click click click

click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click click

wooo-ooo wooo-ooo wooo-ooo wooo-ooo wooo-ooo wooo-ooo

click click click click click click click click click

AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!

Stop shooting the gun! Stop making siren sounds! Stop shooting the gun!

Little Boy and his repetitive noises can drive me NUTS!

I love that kid.

Sleep interrupted

I didn't take a nap yesterday. I was hoping it would be easier for me to fall asleep last night, but it was midnight before I felt sleepy. My husband was sleeping when I crawled into bed. He got up at 2 am to check Little Boy's blood sugar. He came into the room and woke me up. Did we give Little Boy his nighttime shot? No - we were going to do it when he finished brushing his teeth, and we all forgot. Great. His sugar was high.

So we had to wake him up (he never wakes up all the way) to give him his 24 hour shot. Now to get the shot back to 9:15, we have to step back an hour at a time. So "tonight" we'll have to give him his shot at 1, tomorrow at midnight, and so on, until we're back on schedule. This is the second time we've done this. We need to figure out a way to NOT forget.

It took me quite awhile to get back to sleep. Thankfully, DH went right back to sleep. And before I knew it, he was telling me good-bye. (I make him tell me or I wake up panicked that he overslept and didn't make it out the door on time.)

And I had barely fallen asleep when I hear two little Baby feet hit the floor in the next room. She crawled into my bed until Little Boy opened his door. The two of them went into the living room to play. How long until a fight erupted? Actually, they did well for about 15 minutes. And so I got up. 7 am on a Saturday. Oh well.

There's always naptime.

It was a nice day!

Today was a good day. My husband worked last shift and never went to bed when he got home. Instead, he worked on school work, mowed the lawn, trimmed, cooked hotdogs for lunch, cooked hamburgers for supper, "watched" the kids while I went to the store (they were napping). Today was his day "off" before he starts on day shift tomorrow. His work schedule would absolutely KILL me.

My Better Homes and Gardens magazine came the other day. I was flipping through the pages and saw a yummy recipe. With a little tweaking, it will make a great dessert for our carb-conscious menu. Here's my revised version:

Strawberry Cream Freeze
1 pkg. (8 oz.) Philly cream cheese
1 c. cold milk
1 pkg. sugar free vanilla pudding
1 1/2 c. thawed cool whip
mini vanilla wafers
1 c. sliced fresh strawberries

Beat cream cheese in a large bowl with mixer until creamy. Gradually beat in milk. Add dry pudding mix, beat 2 min. Stir in cool whip.

Place 2 broken-up mini vanilla wafers into each cup. Divide the sliced strawberries equally between the cups. Spoon the filling into the cups. Freeze for 4 hours and remove liners.

I'll have to figure out the carb count. It sounds so yummy.

Beautiful Day

It's just one of those completely beautiful days outside. Blue sky, fresh green trees and grass, sunshine and big shadows under the trees.

Too bad we have to do schoolwork.

We'll get done and get out there.

Today is going to be a better day. It has to be.

The Rest of the Story

Little by little, I learned everything that took place outside. And it is so horrible and disgusting that I will not share it all. Let's just say that Little Boy helped make the puddle, and apparently, Baby didn't make into the house before pooping.

So both of my children are grounded to the house unless a parent is outside with them.

Lucky me.

I have to get it together

My house is a disaster. If someone came to the front door, I'd be mortified.

I desperately need a shower. For me it's a necessity, not a luxury. I don't enjoy it - it's just another thing on the list of things that I HAVE to do.

My daughter is completely trying my patience. She changes her clothes all day long. She has emptied her little drawers, and started pulling things out of the closet. I'm too tired to fight it.

She has completely regressed in her potty training. She wets her pullups without remorse. Today when I dressed her, I gave her a stern warning about wetting her pullup. She did use the toilet this morning, and I tried to make a big deal about it. Maybe she was feeling like it wasn't exciting anymore. ? She came out a little while later wearing undies and a different shirt. I decided to let her try wearing the undies. I gave her another stern warning about not getting her clothes wet; if she needed to pee, she needed to come in and use the toilet.

I got their lunches ready and I went outside to call my kids in to eat. She was standing on the porch of the playhouse. Without undies or shorts - just her sweet little cheeks free in the breeze. As I got closer, I saw Little Boy with a roll of paper towels. He was soaking up a very large puddle. I told him to stop, and thankfully, one of my children is in a listening mood today.

She started hopping up and down, "I'm pooping! I'm pooping!" I put her undies back on her, and made her walk to the house. She was upset b/c she didn't have her shoes on, but one look at my face and she took off. She did make it to the house without making a mess; I cleaned her up and put on a clean pullup. I sat her in her chair and told her to eat. Not long after, Little Boy says, "She's throwing her meat at me!" I got her cleaned up, let her sit on the toilet, and took her to her room.

Oh my word. The window shade was all the way at the top, and her drawers were hanging open with clothes hanging out. Toys, blankets, pillows, clothes, shoes - everywhere. It will take me half a day to clean that bomb-blasted room.

Only a mommy could fully understand why it's a good thing my kids still take naps. My head hurts, I'm tired, I'd LOOOOOVE to take a nap, I should clean my unlivable living room, but I need to go out to the outhouse playhouse and clean up someone's pee.

Funny Boy

My kids have finished lunch. I told them they could go outside to play for half an hour, but Baby needs to put her pants back on. (She'd prefer to run about in just her pullup, but I'm mean.)

I told Little Boy to look in the kitchen; that is where she took them off before lunch.

I told him, "They are light blue pants."

He said, "So they are not heavy blue pants."

I think we need to work on some color descriptions or something. My head is feeling rather thick today - maybe it's me.

Another Baby-ism

Last night my children were a bit wild. Daddy and I were sitting on the couch; I was on the computer, Daddy was watching Glenn Beck.

We had to pause the TV several times to make the wild ones settle down. Baby was getting frustrated. I guess she had had enough.

"I want Daddy to go to work!"

I'm glad Daddy found it humorous.

Baby-ism today

Little Boy was in the bathroom before Baby. When she went in there, apparently it didn't smell very, well, shall we say, fresh.

She said, "Ewww. It smells like boy in there."

Optimistic

Husband is home for 3 days - hopefully I can get some things done today and tomorrow. Friday we go to Morgantown to see the endocrinologist for a check up.

We'll see.

Mother's Day

I had a very nice Mother's Day. I was given nice cards, a white impatiens plant, and a beautiful ring.

Baby must have told me "Happy Mother's Day!" about 100 times today. Little Boy started getting irritated, but I loved it. Each time she said it like it was the first time, and she gave me many smooches. Maybe I'm overly needy, but I don't think I could get ever get enough.

Here are my beautiful children this morning. They are why Mother's Day is special to me.

I think I'm "there"

You know how you can't lose weight until you've reached that point where you just cannot stand it? I think I'm there.

I had Daddy take pictures of Baby and me before we left for the Mother/Daughter program. I now have that picture as the background on my computer screen. I need to print about 50 of them and plaster them all over the house. Maybe I can quit eating so much if I am constantly nauseous.

Taco Salad Dip

Yummy, but not diet-friendly.

Taco Salad Dip

3 pkg. cream cheese
1 16 oz. container cottage cheese
1 packet taco seasoning

Using a blender, mix cream cheese and cottage cheese. Add taco seasoning and mix well.

Spread mix in bottom of 10 x 13 cake pan or a couple smaller pans.

Top with shredded cheese and whatever veggies you like. I used yellow bell pepper, tomato, cucumber, green onions, sliced black olives. Use chips to scoop the dip - I used Scoops and Nacho Doritos.

Sunshine

It looks like we started out with a beautiful day, but I really wouldn't know. I was in bed until 10 am! I was just so tired. I didn't sleep soundly; Baby came to visit me a couple times to snuggle and tickle me. I got up and the house was quiet and empty. I could have rolled over and slept soundly! Oh well. I'm up.

I may go to church to get all the utensils out of the drawers. The church has had mice lately, and I'm grossed out. The ladies' Mother/Daughter Banquet is tomorrow, and I cringe to think someone may use something dirty.

I need to get back out in the den and work. It's still a mess, and I have several boxes that need to be sorted. Guess I should get dressed.

Apparently, my son decided to open the trunk on the car. That means he opened the driver's side door, popped the trunk, got the stroller out for sister, and closed the trunk. I cringe to think about all the times he could have smashed his fingers.

Well, I have lots to do.

I never thought I would say,

"Get your pencil out of your underwear. And your eraser, too."

Where do they get these things?

Ugh

Today I started cleaning and sorting in the den. It's the place where I put/throw everything I don't know what to do with. I have so much left to tackle, but I started!

Scope

Monday I went to the hospital for a scope down my throat into my stomach to see if there was any damage from acid reflux. The prognosis is that I definitely have acid reflux, but there was not damage in my esophagus. Good stuff. The meds they gave me in my IV really made me tired. When I got home, I ate a small lunch and went to bed for about 3 hours.

So I'm supposed to keep taking Prevacid and avoiding caffeine and spicey foods.

Just glad it's over with ok results.

She said, "Please."

Baby is watching TV. Daddy is putting something on the top of the TV.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

So Daddy stood there longer, tormenting the "poor little girl."

I asked her how she should ask someone to move, and she tilted her head to the side, clasped her hands, and said, "Please!"

Please makes everything ok.

My Other Blog

So, I've started another blog where I vent about social, national and political events. It's a way for me to verbalize my opinions. You can read it, or not, and it's ok. :0)

Today's post is regarding Miss California's answer to the question she was given.

There is a link in the upper left hand corner of this blog page.

http://whatburnsmeup-tammy.blogspot.com/

Swine Flu

I am not discounting the seriousness of any contagious illness. However, I read a report that stated that 83 children were confirmed to have died of Influenza A and B during the winter of 2007-2008. Both my children had type A this winter, and I can tell you, it is difficult to sit by them as they fight high fever, extremely sore throats and horrible-sounding coughs.

My children did not get the flu vaccine. I didn't get the flu vaccine. The majority of people who contracted Influenza B were given the flu vaccine, and it had no effect.

I read a study from the Oxford Journal that estimates that in the United States, between the years 1979 and 2001, EACH YEAR 41,000 people died from Influenza A and B.

41,000 each year.

41,000.

How many U.S. citizens have died from Swine Flu? With this exaggerated, fear-generated report of a pandemic, is the White House trying to distract our attention? From what or whom?

Some pictures of my crazy kids

Exciting Day

So many things - little things, perhaps - but things to be thankful for. Monday, husband unclogged the drain in the basement floor. We can now run the dishwasher and run the sink in the kitchen. Yay!

Today, the part for the washing machine came, and I did a couple loads of wash. It's amazing how clean the clothes get when the agitator actually turns! LOL. I think we've been wearing dirty clean clothes for awhile now that I see what clean ones look like.

DH and children (and I) put up the new flagpole today. I'll add pictures after lunch. My rebel husband is so proud of his "Don't Tread On Me" flag. I had to laugh.


Before & After

It was late, but it was yummy!

Last night, supper was very late getting on the table. But I thought it was very yummy. We had grilled Italian chicken, grilled potatoes, and green beans.

Italian Chicken
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded flat
1/3 c. Zesty Italian dressing
1/4 c. olive oil
1/2 T. Italian seasoning

Combine dressing, oil and seasoning. Pour into large ziplock with chicken. Put in refrigerator to marinate.

Grilled Potatoes
3 large potatoes
4 T. butter, melted
Seasoning of your choice

Wash the potatoes, but leave the skin on. Slice the potatoes lengthwise, into thick slices (about 3/4 in.). Place in pot of water, bring to boil. Boil for 8 minutes. Drain.

Brush the melted butter on the potatoes, and sprinkle seasonings on both sides. I use McCormick's Roasted Garlic & Herb.

I put the chicken and the potatoes on the grill at the same time. Since the potatoes are basically cooked, I put them where the burners aren't as hot.

Plugged up and not turning

Saturday morning DH called: "Did you have any problems with the sink?" Of course, he called when I was checking Little Boy's blood sugar and Baby was sitting on the toilet calling for help. I wasn't having trouble with the sink, but he told me that it had backed up that morning while the dishwasher was running. Great. The valve in the pipe in the basement is surrounded buried by stuff. We've had this issue 2 or 3 times since I've lived here, and we've called a plumber to come snake the pipe.

So we are not using the kitchen sink or dishwasher. My usually messy/cluttered kitchen is quickly becoming a disaster area. DH and Little Boy ran to town to rent a snake - saving about $40. And since DH has 3 days off, he can afford a little trip.

And we are not using the washing machine, either. Seems we've been putting our dirty clothes in, running it and putting the "washed" clothes into the dryer. The washer has been making a loudish squeeking noise. I put clothes in the other night, and was doing some sorting when the washer turned on. It was squeeking again, but I could tell it wasn't agitating - the washer wasn't shaking enough. I let it finish and looked inside. All the clothes were in the same spot they started in - NOT a good sign. There were a couple stained things that were still folded after being stain treated. So I don't know how long we've been drying dirty clothes. Lovely.

There are plenty of things I could be doing, but Baby and I are watching a Winnie the Pooh movie for a little while.

Another visit from the Tooth Fairy

Last night Little Boy was wiggling his loose tooth - grosses me out. Just before he brushed his teeth, he and Daddy got all excited about something. He came out into the living room and showed me his little tooth. He was hopping all over, excited that the Tooth Fairy was coming to bring him money and a toy! Yeah. The "Tooth Fairy" started wondering where she was going to come up with a toy.

The Tooth Fairy gave him a dollar and a new sticker activity book on Jack and the Beanstalk. I think she's going to have to find a couple little toys at the store to put aside just for little boys in our house who lose teeth so she doesn't panic last minute.

Just a note on baby teeth. I think baby teeth are so beautiful. They are small, white, straight. Adult teeth are too big for little mouths, crooked, ugly. At least that's how I feel about my teeth compared to my baby teeth. And I look at Little Boy and KNOW the kid's going to need braces. Great.

Explanation

I am totally in love with CSI/Forensics type shows. Last night was a new episode of Bones.

Head is found in marsh.

Bug/Dirt guy identifies bird vomit on the skull that only comes from a bird in another part of the marsh.

Lady head of the lab asks guy why someone would put the head in one part of the marsh and then put the body in the other part of the marsh.

He says, "I rarely find motive in bird vomit," with a completely straight face.

Her facial reaction just cracked me up.

So now ya know. :0)

I guess maybe I was overly tired.

One liner

"I rarely find motive in bird vomit."

I saw this in a forensics show last night, and it totally cracks me up.

Baby and the bug

Baby is terrified of bugs. A common housefly makes her scream bloody murder. And it's funny, I can identify the scream. So, I was sitting here checking things out online, and she screamed. She's in the house, and there's a bug on the outside of the window. I told her to tap on the glass lightly, and it would fly away. She screamed. Then she backed up a foot or two and tossed her stuffed animal at the window. It flew away, and she laughed.

Then she was next to me on the couch. She saw a tiny piece of a cracker, and looked at it through the magnifying glass, "Crumb alert! Crumb alert!"

Where does she get this stuff?

After I finished the post, Baby ran to the bathroom. She sat in there and grunted and groaned. Finally, she called for help. She had pooped some itty bitty little poops. Daddy went and helped her. She came out and I told her how proud I was. She looked at me all sad. "I'm going to miss them." I asked her what she was going to miss. "My little poops." Now she's asking me, "Can I go outside?" followed by cute, begging puppy eyes and a smile. Love her.

Earth Day, Shmearth Day

So my husband was talking today about CFLs. There is only one company that he could find that even makes them in the US. Evidently, all other CFLs are made in China.

So, we've sold out the manufacturers to China. We are contributing to increased emissions in the long run. Think about it. China doesn't regulate emissions like the US, add to that the emissions of the trucks taking the bulbs to the port, the emissions of the ship that brings the bulbs to the US, the emissions of the planes and trucks that transport them here. And then add the emissions from your car when you attempt to find a disposal site.

CFLs contain mercury. I don't know if you've bought any, but you really need to know how to dispose of them if they break. Kinda discourages me from wanting to buy them. Especially the part in step 4 about throwing away bedding!

1. Before Clean-up: Air Out the Room
• Have people and pets leave the room, and don't let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out.
• Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
• Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.

2. Clean-Up Steps for Hard Surfaces
• Carefully scoop up glass fragments and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass pieces and powder.
• Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place towels in the glass jar or plastic bag.
• Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.

3. Clean-up Steps for Carpeting or Rug:
• Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
• If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken.
• Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.

4. Clean-up Steps for Clothing, Bedding, etc.:
• If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be THROWN AWAY. Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.
• You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you are wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.
• If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal.

5. Disposal of Clean-up Materials
• Immediately place all clean-up materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup.
• Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean-up materials.
• Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states do not allow such trash disposal. Instead, they require that broken and unbroken mercury-containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center.

6. Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Air Out the Room During and After Vacuuming
• The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window before vacuuming.
• Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.

When your CFL bulb burns out, you have to find a special hazardous waste site that will accept them. You have to ensure that the bulbs are not broken between the time you take the bulb out and the time you get it to the site. Good luck with that. Hope it doesn't break in your car.

Baby's dance

This morning DH let me sleep just a little while he got the kids their breakfast. But first he got Baby changed into her pull-up. She then posed in front of the mirror, wiggling her batushka, saying, "Undie butt, undie butt."

I called and made an appointment to see the doctor. I figure I can get something for the sinus infection and I can get my Wellbutrin refill. I really need it. Yesterday I was fixing supper and for no reason felt like crying.

My kids have been taking cold medicine, and it shows. Little Boy just cannot be still or quiet. It gets old quick. I try to be more patient with him, but it's hard when I don't feel good.

Last night the kids were up too late. I got supper on the table late and that pushes Little Boy's nighttime snack late. So they were up while I was watching American Idol. And dancing. All over the living room. Little Boy is funny, but Baby is hilarious. The one song had a Latin feel to it, and she was twisting her little hips to the beat. Seeing that it's been raining here for about 3 days, that was the most exercise they've had. And it made me laugh. The head-bob/bows at the end were funny, too.

What is going on!

It's quarter to two in the morning, and I *think* I took nighttime Tylenol sinus medicine. But I don't know why I'm still alive awake.

I just sat and watched a myriad of Britains Got Talent videos, and several interviews with Susan Boyle. Can't get enough.

Watched a video of Dawn Meehan - love her - talking about her book tour and her day in Atlanta today. Ahhh. A trip away from home without kids. I don't know that I'll ever get one of those.

Well. I think I'm going to check Little Boy's blood sugar a few minutes early, and get off to bed.

The weirdest thing; after watching BGT, I hear my thoughts with a British accent. I must have taken the nighttime meds. Now I'm not sleepy, but I sure am feeling a bit batty.

Baked Parmesan Potatoes

Last night I fixed a recipe I used to make frequently. Probably too frequently as I think my husband got a little tired of them.

Little Boy looked at them, and said he didn't think he liked them. But while we were waiting on Daddy to come to the table, he sneaked a tiny little taste of the crunchy, golden parmesan cheese. And I saw that look of discovery in his eyes that said, "I LIKE IT!"

Daddy came, we prayed, and he quickly gobbled the top, crusty part of the potato. I was worried he wouldn't eat the rest, but Daddy told him he'd have to eat the flesh, but not the skin. "WAIT! He DOES have to eat the skin! That's where all the vitamins and some of the carbs are!"

But it didn't really matter. During our conversation, he was devouring his potato. It didn't take him long, either. And poor little guy, he asked for more. I had to tell him that he couldn't, because I had already counted his carbs. He was disappointed, but he accepted it. So sad.

Here's the recipe:

Parmesan Baked Potatoes

6 T. butter or margarine, melted
3 T. grated Parmesan cheese
4 potatoes, halved (Leave on the skin)

Directions: Pour butter into a 9x13 baking pan. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the butter. Place potatoes cut side down over the cheese. Brush butter and cheese up over the skins. Bake uncovered at 400 for 40-45 min.

Awesome alternative to potatoes and gravy! We really love these!

Oh my aching head

I hate getting sick. It doesn't matter what kind of virus or bug is going around, it does the same thing as the last one. It goes right to my throat and sinuses and I have terrible headaches. You'd think one of them could get original, and like, attack my belly fat or something.

I stayed home from church this morning with the kids. I don't think people at church would appreciate Baby's open-mouth, projectile sneezing or Little Boy's finger that is magnetically drawn to his nose. And being that I feel horrible, too, I figured it was a good thing to stay home.

I have supper in the crock pot. A nice roast. Lunch will be McDs as usual. I'll load the little boogers into the car and zip down there. It's my once-a-week splurge.

My gastroenterologist appt. is Tuesday afternoon. Not looking forward to that, but I guess I have to go. It's just a consult, so I'm trying to not get too anxious about seeing yet another doctor I don't know. I think that's the worst part - finding the office and then having to meet with a stranger in a very personal setting.

I gave my kids cold medicine last night. Worked great! Both kids slept through the night, and I didn't hear any coughing or crying.

Baby is potty training. Basically, I think she's got it, but I don't trust her. She's wearing a pull-up, but I think she could do undies. She takes off all her clothes when she sits on the potty chair. And then we hear the obnoxious high-pitched digital rendition of "Old MacDonald". I try to make a huge deal of how great she's doing and how proud I am as I hurry to the bathroom to clean out the potty to get it to stop playing! It does nothing good for my headache.

Talk is Cheap - ask the VeeP

Proving once again, that our new administration is completely lacking in class. I think Biden needs to go into rehab asap.

-- On March 13, 2009, Biden addressed a former Senate colleague by saying, "An hour late, oh give me a f**king break," after he arrived on Amtrak at Union Station in Washington, D.C. The vice president's expletive was caught on a live microphone.

-- During a Feb. 25, 2009, interview on CBS' "Early Show," Biden encouraged viewers to visit a government-run Web site that tracks stimulus spending. When asked for the site's web address, Biden could not remember the site's "number."
"You know, I'm embarrassed. Do you know the Web site number?" he asked an aide standing out of view. "I should have it in front of me and I don't. I'm actually embarrassed."

-- At a Jan. 30, 2009, swearing-in ceremony of senior White House staff, Biden mocked Chief Justice John Roberts for his presidential oath blunder on Inauguration Day.
"Am I doing this again?" Biden said, after Obama asked him to administer the oath. When Biden was told the swearing-in was for senior staff -- and not cabinet members -- the vice president quipped, "My memory is not as good as Justice Roberts," prompting a stern nudge from Obama.

-- On Inauguration Day, Jan. 20 2009, Biden misspoke when he told a cheering crowd of supporters, "Jill and I had the great honor of standing on that stage, looking across at one of the great justices, Justice Stewart." Justice John Paul Stevens -- not Stewart -- swore Biden in as vice president.

-- When criticizing former GOP nominee John McCain in Athens, Ohio, on Oct. 15, 2008, Biden said, "Look, John's last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the number-one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S, jobs."

-- In a Sept. 22, 2008, CBS interview, Biden misspoke when he said Franklin D. Roosevelt was president when the stock market crashed in 1929.
"When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened," he said. Herbert Hoover -- not Roosevelt -- was president in 1929, and television had not yet been invented in 1929.

-- During a Sept. 12, 2008, speech in Columbia, Mo., Biden called for Missouri State Sen. Chuck Graham, who is wheelchair-bound, to "stand up."
"Oh, God love ya," Biden said, after realizing his mistake. "What am I talking about?"

-- At a Sept. 10, 2008, town hall meeting in Nashua, N.H., Biden said, "Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am to be vice president of the United States of America. Quite frankly, it might have been a better pick than me."

-- Biden mistakenly referred to Alaska governor Sarah Palin as the "lieutenant governor" of her state during a town hall meeting on Sept. 4, 2008 at George Mason University in Manassas, Va.
"I heard a very, by the way I mean this sincerely, a very strong and a very good political speech from a lieutenant governor of Alaska who I think is going to be very formidable, very formidable not only in the campaign but in the debate," Biden said.

-- Biden said he was running for president -- not vice president -- during a Sept. 1, 2008, roundtable discussion in Scranton, Pa.
"Today is the moment for me as a United States senator running for president to put aside the national politics and focus on what's happening down there," Biden said.

-- Biden referred to John McCain as "George" during his vice presidential acceptance speech on Aug. 27, 2008, at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Co. "Freudian slip, folks, Freudian slip," he explained.

-- Biden confused army brigades with battalions when speaking about Obama's plan for sending troops to Afghanistan.
"Or should we trust Barack Obama, who more than a year ago called for sending two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan?"

-- During his first campaign rally with Obama as his vice presidential running mate on Aug. 23, 2008, Biden introduced Obama by saying, "A man I'm proud to call my friend. A man who will be the next President of the United States -- Barack America!"

-- On Jan. 31, 2007 -- the day Biden announced his presidential bid -- the Delaware Senator was roundly criticized for calling Obama "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man."

Tis the Season for Sneezin'

Poor Little Boy - he's inherited my seasonal allergies, and right now he's pretty miserable. I bought him some children's Zyrtec today, so I'm hoping he'll find some relief.

Baby has been sitting on the potty chair more each day on her own. It plays "Old MacDonald" until you empty and dry it, which can be a bit irritating. I told her she couldn't use a sippy cup she dug out of the cupboard until she was done wearing didies. She seems pretty excited about it. Whatever works, I guess. The only thing DH and I roll our eyes at - she takes off ALL her clothes. Sigh.

It really is a pretty day. It's breezy and cool, but very pretty.

DH just got off the phone with our insurance company and the Eye clinic because they keep billing her appts wrong. Run around. Of course.

Looking forward to a little quiet now that the kids are in bed. :0)

TEA, anyone?

Today my husband went to a TEA party. I told my friend that on the phone, and she was a bit confused. LOL Even though he drinks tea all the time, I don't think he's "tea party" material.

The paper said there were a couple hundred people there. The way he feels about crowds made me proud he went. He stood for 2 hours in the rain holding his flag.

I hope everyone got their taxes turned in. My husband finished ours last month, and we've received our returns. Of course, we're not spending them because you never know what could happen when you work at a paper mill.

The mess has moved/Susan Boyle

So, I have reached THAT point. I just could not stand it any longer! My living room has been such a pit - a pile of toys, clothes, books and papers. We have the majority done, and my kids are taking a short OSO break. Then we'll finish and do some school work.

I and my helpful little people have been busy this morning. We have moved, and dumped, all the toys from the living room into Baby's room. I'll have to spend a couple hours sorting back there, but THANK THE LORD I don't have to look at it in the living room. Aaaarrrrgh.

I've moved the couches and the coffee table to sweep and vaccuum. You would NOT believe the pile of toys under them. I explained to my son, "Instead of stepping on your toys, I kicked them under the couches." He looked at me in horror/astonishment. "What? Would you rather I stepped on them?"

My sister posted a link on FB of this lady, Susan Boyle, singing for Britain's Got Talent. I have watched it about 20 times. Each time I get teary, and I get goosebumps. I think it's because I read her story from the UK Mirror:

"Britain's Got Talent sensation Susan Boyle has revealed the childhood bullying torment that spurred her bid for stardom.

Susan, 48, wowed judges and viewers with her version of hit West End show tune I Dreamed A Dream as the ITV1 series returned last night.

But she told how as a youngster she was ruthlessly mocked by other kids because being starved of oxygen at birth left her with learning difficulties.

Her ordeal saw her seek comfort in singing - a talent she discovered when she was five.
Spinster Susan - who has never had a boyfriend - said: "I was born with a disability and that made me a target for bullies. I was called names because of my fuzzy hair and because I struggled in class.

"I told the teachers, but because it was more verbal than physical I could never prove anything. But words often hurt more than cuts and bruises and the scars are still there."

However, Susan has proved such a smash hit on Britain's Got Talent that supremo Simon Cowell has held talks with her about signing for his Sony BMG record label.

The singer said: "I still see the kids I went to school with because we all live in the same area.

And she believes her TV success is the perfect answer to the childhood tormentors who made her life hell in Bathgate, West Lothian.They're all grown up with children of their own. But look at me now - I've got the last laugh."

Susan went on the talent contest to fulfil a fervent wish of her late mother Bridget, who died in 2007.

She revealed: "Mum loved the show and used to tell me I should put my name down and that I'd win it if I did.

"But I never thought I was good enough. It was only after she died that I plucked up the courage to enter.

"It was a very dark time and I suffered depression and anxiety. But out of the darkness came light. I realised I wanted to make her proud of me and the only way to do that was to take the risk and enter the show."

It is a gamble that has paid off, with her tear-jerking rendition of I Dreamed A Dream from Les Miserables getting an enthusiastic thumbs-up from judges Simon, Piers Morgan and Amanda Holden."

She really is unbelievable, and with some training, she will be even more incredible. Here's the video! It already has over 2 million views. I think I'm going to watch it again before we do some more cleaning. :0)

The angry pterodactyl is awake.

Everything I say or do is being followed by a deafening screeching sound. We call her the pterodactyl. If I look at her, she screeches. If I ask her to do something, it's worse. So, I have placed her in her nest, and I told her to come out into the world when she's ready to be nice.

We'll see.

Here's our Easter picture.

1 - MIL took the picture. Was laughing that she wasn't getting us in the frame, and that she was cutting off heads. I didn't find it funny. At all.

2 - I have to do something about my weight. I hate how heavy I have allowed myself to become, and this picture makes me disgusted. The kids and my husband look great.

3 - my hair is recently cut, and I like the cut, but it was windy yesterday and my hair looks poofier than it actually is.
4 - I had meant to wear my contacts, but ran out of getting-ready time.

It's been a couple days

and not a whole lot has happened. Friday morning we took the kids to get their hair cut. The lady cut it a bit shorter than we normally have done, but it's hair. It'll grow.

DH and I went today. Different lady, same "problem." My hair is SHORT! But she left me enough on top to curl and if I use a lot of hairspray, I can make it poofy enough to make it look longer. Actually, my hair curls much easier when it's short, so I think it looks nice.

DH is on second shift, and I was here with the kids tonight. I was brave. We colored Easter eggs. In the dining room. And there were NO accidents! Yay! I was pretty calm, too. That's the big surprise.

I put the kids' Easter baskets together. I'm a little short on stuff for Baby. I'll look around and see what I can find.

Little Boy seems unsure about getting to eat "real" candy. I keep assuring him that if I cover it with insulin and he brushes his teeth really well right away, I will make an exception for Easter.

My living room is a pit. I don't know what to do. I should be cleaning instead of posting. Ugh. I'd like to be able to take pictures. Oh well. I just have NO motivation right now.

I talked to the kids tonight about why Easter is so exciting. I don't know if they could hear me; their little minds are so excited about the eggs. I think Little Boy was listening, though. He's been very curious about salvation lately. I don't want to push; I want any decisions to be genuine and I want him to really understand.

I'm singing tomorrow - my "usual" Easter song - They Could Not by Sandi Patty. If I do as well tomorrow as my practice today, I'll be more than happy. We'll see.

Overnight Enchillada Bake

was not a hit. Little Boy asked if it could be a meal I only make one time. DH gave it less than a 5, and Baby ate everything but the chicken in it.

Oh well. I thought it was just ok myself. I don't know if it was just too much liquid, or if the whole wheat tortillas made that much of a difference.

Better luck next time.

I'm NOT happy

My alma mater has decided to change its name. It's no longer Northland Baptist Bible College. Now it's Northland International University. Pffft.

They clearly waited until AFTER the recent campaign to raise scholarship funds in Dr. O's name. How convenient.

I plan to write a letter, but need to take time to cool off first. Maybe I'll get to it next month.

Grrr.

The screaming has stopped

at least for now.

She decided she was not going to eat her PB&J "swindich". Fine. No mini cupcakes. Screaming ensued. I got her calmed down, and told her to eat the pieces with the least crust. Ok.

Little Boy informs me that she's spreading jelly all over the table. (Thankfully I use vinyl tablecloths!) So I very calmly wiped up the table and took her out of the chair and took her into the kitchen to clean her up. "Now I have my cakes?"

"HA HA HA HA HA!!!!! Yeah, right."

I wrestled them away from her. Trust me, she's going to be the one to get the smooshed package if she ever earns them.

I carried her to her room, changed her didie, put jammies on her, and told her to lie down so I could tuck her in. Screaming, again. Fine. Same rule as at nighttime: Lie down so I can tuck you in, or I am leaving and you can tuck yourself in. Screaming.

So I left the room, turned the TV to the channel so I could watch her on TV. I don't know how many times I went back in there, but Little Boy decided he was going to find something good to do as far away from me as possible.

Well, as you can see from the picture, she removed the jammies, kicked stuffed animals, blankets and pillows of her bed but one blankie - which she's not using.

Let's hope she wakes up sweet.

Keep your hands to yourself

Why is this such a difficult concept for little kids?

I don't get it.

Seriously.

Help.

Conversation in the car

You know something is funny when your husband says, “That’s good material for your blog!”

Tonight on the way to church, we got sucked into another nonsensical conversation with our kids. They were discussing the animals that live in the woods in our area. Baby’s interest is that she’s scared of them. Little Boy was curious which animals are “shootable” and edible. He then started into this: “Why do people want to live in the woods? Is it so they can just walk out of the house into the woods to go hunting? I wouldn’t want to live out here (on a very curvy road through the hills and woods) because they don’t have anywhere to ride a bike.

“/;”

/
Iiiom ;
;oI/Commercial break – as I’m writing this a little girl who lives in our house is standing on the./’90opppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp34]Odszrf;lpfpdfkljlr[y;r[jljljlkjftj.;y.t[jfj;ldfjl;f;j;.j;.f.j.j;.j.juuyd8j[\ stepstool, only wearing a didie, singing, “You’re my sweetheart, you’re my sweetheart, and I know it’s true!” loudly. And intermittently she climbs across the arm of the couch to plant a huge smooch on me. Ah. Comedy central.

And apparently, while I was helping Little Boy get ready for bed, Baby decided to add her two cents.

Ok. So going back to our conversation in the car. We were talking about shooting bears, deer, squirrels, etc., and DH said people don’t eat bear. I told him they do, too. “Ok, normal people don’t eat bear.” Hmmph. Little Boy wanted to know how many times you could shoot a bear. We explained if you were hunting bear, you shoot it until it falls down. “Why couldn’t I use a machine gun?!” DH and I were joking about that – b/c politicians have taken away that right, b/c there would be big holes in the meat, b/c there are easier ways to tenderize meat. You get the idea. I added that some people shoot turkeys, pheasants, geese, ducks, etc. to eat, too.

Little Boy said he didn’t want to shoot birds; he would shoot a deer. DH and I told him then he would have to cut it open, let all the blood out, clean out all the icky guts. He said he wouldn’t do that. We said if you shoot an animal to eat, you have to do that. Here’s the best part of the whole conversation:

“I would get my wife to do that.”

He could be a very lonely man.

Successful Recipe

I tried a new recipe last night, and I guess it was a big hit. Little Boy and Baby each wanted seconds, but we held them off with the promise we would eat leftovers today. As soon as we got in the car after church, Little Boy said he wanted the leftovers for lunch. I convinced him that it would be better for supper when I could warm it in the oven rather than in the microwave. Partially because it was true, but also partially because I didn't want to give up my McDs for lunch.

I don't know why this was so much better than my regular lasagna recipe, but everyone loved it. It is only written for 2 servings, so I doubled it. Also, instead of the jar of sauce, I used plain tomato sauce and added half a packet of spaghetti seasoning. I also used half ricotta, half cottage cheese, and I cooked my noodles from dry.

Ground Beef and Spinach Lasagna Rollups
Pillsbury

1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1/4 c. chopped onion
1 jar (14 oz.) tomato pasta sauce
1 egg
3/4 c. ricotta cheese
2 T grated parmesan cheese
2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/4 c. shredded mozzarella
4 (8x2 1/2") frozen precooked lasagna noodles, thawed
1 c. fresh baby spinach leaves, washed, stems removed (I tore mine into small pieces)

1. Heat oven to 350. In skillet, brown beef with onions. Stir in 1/2 c. of sauce. Remove from heat.
2. Spread 3 T of the pasta sauce in the bottom of ungreased 8 x 8 glass baking dish.
3. Beat egg in med. bowl. Add ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, oregano and 3/4 c. mozzarella cheese; mix well.
4. Spread 1/4 c. each of ricotta mix, spinach leaves and beef mixture over each lasagna noodle. Starting at the end, gently and loosely roll each noodle; place seam side down over sauce in baking dish. Top rollups with remaining sauce. Cover with foil.
5. Bake 30 to 40 min. or until bubbly and hot. Remove foil; sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella. Bake 2 to 4 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 min. before serving.

When little kids use big words

Little Boy and Baby went next door to G&Gs house tonight. It is extremely windy. When they came in the door riding on a gust of wind, Little Boy was all bright eyed. "I was afraid that wind was going to blow Baby to Timbuktuba!"

I did laugh. Out loud. So sweet.

I love the rain

I feel badly for anyone dealing with flooding issues. We don't have that here on our mountain. Our yard gets soaked, but the water runs off the hill. In the past, the water has washed out the road. The first year I was here, the rain made the black top peel back and curl like a hot wheels track. But it's raining here, and I can see the grass getting green.

I love the sound of the steady rain; I only wish it could drown out the sound of my children fighting. Sigh.