A gift for me

Well, today was....today.  Kevin's shoulder was improving with each visit to physical therapy.  Last week, it kind of started hurting again.  Then, it hurt some more.  Then, at his last therapy session of the week, it was popping at certain points.  The therapist seemed concerned, and instead of putting him through the paces, they did some electric treatments and some compresses, and told him they'd see him on Tuesday, but they were watchful.

He went in today.  Not only is the popping still there, it is now inflamed.  He has a Dr. appointment tomorrow, to evaluate if he's ready to return to work.  Hell, he's gone BACKWARDS in the past week.  He hurts like mad.  The therapist said something about the ligament maybe being "frayed" or "torn" instead of just "inflamed."  Sheesh.

I will think the worst for this one moment, and this moment only (remember, I'm an eternal optimist,) and think "what if he can't go back to work."  Well, we'd get rid of sattelite and internet, quit buying Diet Coke, and lots of other things that we could live without.  We WOULD get by. 

OK, back to optimistic:  He will be fine.  It's just taking longer than expected.  We will get by (we have so far, right?)  This isn't the worst situation we've been through in our 13 year relationship.  As long as he's off work, I'm coming home to a picked-up house, homework being done, and dinner on the table.  Who can complain about that?  Want to see tonight's dinner?  Yeah, who can complain about chicken enchiladas?

 

After all of this news (and stress) today, I came home to one depressed daughter (she can't enter a store or see anyone other than family, due to "the pox") and another daughter who had a good surprise for mom. 

Look what Monica brought to me tonight:

This poor hybisucs was clinging to one last day without a freeze.  It looks a bit worse for the wear, but it was for ME!  It looked tired, but still pretty, and I had to share.  Thanks, Monica, for cheering me up tonight.

Pox 'N Stuff

I asked Natalie if I could take her picture.  She said, "Dang it!  I don't want my picture on the WEB!  Looking like THIS!"  Yet, she dutifully came over and let me take the shots I wanted.  What a good daughter.

I feel bad for her.  Her headache is gone (she ALWAYS gets a bad headache when she has a fever,) and her fever is gone, but she itches so badly.  She also doesn't feel much like eating.  Those who know Natalie will know that this is WAY off for her.

She's eating a bit, though, and she's taking Aveeno baths and Benadryl and not complaining too much.  She's just so sad and mopey.  Is mopey a word?  If you're a mother, you'll agree that it is.  She just sits, with her head resting on her hand, looking so damn miserable.

The worst part is, she isn't done breaking out yet.  I still see new ones that weren't there this morning.  It's going to be a long week, my dearest baby girl.  A long week indeed.

My feverish, speckled daughter

When Natalie was small, she had a VERY light bout of chicken pox...or so we thought.  Today, upon reflection, I guess that isn't what she had.  By "reflection", I mean "her reflection in the mirror."  Yup, between the 3 days of headache, and the fever (which spiked at 103.3 yesterday) and the ever-spreading spots all over her face and torso, I guess that first malady wasn't chicken pox after all.

Yes, you CAN get them twice, but it's VERY, VERY rare, and it is usually a case of a smaller bout actually being something else alltogether.  That's what we're suspecting.  I guess Kevin may take her to the Dr. tomorrow, just to confirm that the child is going to miss a week of school.  Poor thing itches like crazy, so she's carrying around a bottle of calamine like a boozer carries a bottle in a brown paper bag.

I guess I'll go clean house, and be glad she was infected by someone at school (announced earlier this week) in elementary, instead of catching it as a teen or adult, when it would be much worse on her.

Poor speckled child.

Nice fingernail polish, too.

What else? Randomness!

Well, I can honestly say that I'm sick to DEATH of work this week.  I've put in too many hours.  I should go in tomorrow, but it's not MANDATORY for me this weekend, so I haven't decided.  I could get a jump on next week, but I SURE love to sleep in on Saturday.  Hmmm, what to do.....

Mom's hill is really getting pretty.  Later, or tomorrow, I'll do a comparison of the two shots.  It's amazing what happens after 10 days and a light frost.  I changed my mind.  See the comparison HERE.

I love it when I hear Dierks Bentley singing "Free and Easy" on my way home.  It is such a fun "going home" song.  I caught it as it started the other day, and shot a video of my ride.  It's the full song, so forget it if you're on dial-up.  It's boring to most, I'm sure, but Jim can get a taste of driving out here, and others can enjoy my country drive.  My window was down a couple of inches, and I should have rolled it up.  Sorry for the wind noise.

 

Happy Birthday, Brett!

October 24, 1988.  I had been in labor for 36 hours.  I was more than ready to be done with this crap.  I didn't have a CLUE about labor, babies, or marriage, for that matter.  I just knew that I needed to get this over with.  There was going to be a baby soon.  It would probably cry all the time anyway, right?

Wrong.  Brett was born and life was good.  I was no longer pregnant (remind me to tell you about how much of a miserable bitc* I am when pregnant) and I would get used to a screaming baby.  Only...

Only, Brett didn't scream.  Brett didn't cry without good reason.  Brett was content.  I could put him in a car seat and run as many errands as necessary.  Brett just laid there and made sweet little baby sounds.  Brett was a good boy.

His Grandma Wood told me how lucky I was.  She told me that HER son cried all the time, and that I should appreciate how good of a baby I had.  His Grandma Brady (God rest her soul) cried with joy over every sweet motion he made.  He was an angel.  A perfect child.  A doll, come to life.  He was Brett.

Bubba.  Son.  Sweetheart.  Man-child.  Bubba.  Yeah, I said "Bubba" twice.  Brett will always be "Bubba" to us.  Sweet, harmless Bubba.  Bubba to me and to Brett's dad.  Bubba to Brett's grandparents.  Bubba to Brett's sisters.  Yeah...Bubba.

Brett has made some poor decisions lately.  Do I write him off for those decisons?  HELL no!  I made worse decisions at, before, and after his age.  I count myself lucky to have this boy.  This wonderful boy.

I love you, Brett.  I love you, and I want to see you more.  Come and see your mother, OK? (guilt offered, free of charge.)  I miss you, and I love you, and I want...no, scratch that, I NEED to know *weekly* that you're OK.  I'm proud of you, and I love you.

Happy Birthday, Bubba.

Busy busy busy

Well, work is definitely picking up.  After a great weekend for everyone around here, I went in early yesterday, and stayed late, too.  After getting home, I had such a chill (I love the fall, because I like snuggling up under a blanket and sipping hot tea) that I climbed into bed to watch T. V.

Pretty soon, both girls had joined me (with their winter choice, hot chocolate) and we watched some mindless sitcoms from the warmth of my quilts.  It was nice to chill out, but I didn't get online at ALL.

I'm trying to catch up on the few "can't miss" journals this morning, before heading out.  It's nice to have Kevin at home.  I'm gonna really miss this when he goes back to work.  He makes coffee for me in the mornings, and has dinner ready when I get home.  The girls are both done with homework when I pull in the drive.  Yeah, I need a wife. LOL

Anyway, time to make the donuts.  See ya later!

A great Saturday

It was a good day.  I drove to Independence, got a couple boxes of contacts, got a haircut, and went to WalMart.  I came home and set off a couple of flea bombs, (yeah, I'm having trouble kicking the damn things.)  Then, I drove to Oak Grove, picked up my BFF Tammy, and went to grab some lunch.  We had a GREAT time, talking and eating, and we had a martini!  LOL

We cruised around and talked, then went to visit another friend.  Around 7, I took Tammy home, and headed to Mom's to pick up the dogs.  Since Arick was home, and Sadie was in the house with him, there was no need to bring her here (I'll sleep better without her telling me it's time for a walk,) I just grabbed Hawkeye and came home.

I haven't heard from the girls tonight.  I assume that all is well.  Kevin is good.  I heard from him a few times.  He hasn't heard from the girls either.  *sigh*  I wish I could just kick back and enjoy a night alone, but I miss my girlies, and they're having too much fun to call home.  That's a good thing, seriously.  I'm just lonely.

All-in-all, it was a great day.  Perfect weather (probably the last 80's day this year) and perfect company, make for a perfect day.  I got much accomplished, and tomorrow, I'll clean house...literally.  I hope that tomorrow night, at this time, I'll be surrounded by family, watching Desperate Housewives.

Time for bed.  See ya later, sweet patater!

Friday night in a quiet house

My husband is in SW MO, at the Maple Leaf festival.  My girls are in Branson, MO with my parents.  I am here.

I could have gone to either place.   I was invited to both.  The problem is, I can't afford a kennel for Hawkeye, and he can't go with us.  Plus, from now until Christmas, I am "on call" to work on Saturday, and I never know until Friday afternoon.  Anyway, here I am, dog sitting.

I picked up Sadie at Mom's house on the way home, and the dogs are having a blast, barking, running, and sniffing.  Pretty much what I do when I have a friend over.  Sadie will "speak" quicker than Hawkeye, but he will "shake hands" while she looks at me like I have worms crawling out of my eyes.

I'm glad for the company, really.  I'm lonely around here.  I have big plans for tomorrow, though. Yeah, tomorrow brings great plans.  Those plans will last a bit over an hour.  Then what?  Yeah, I'll be posting a lot this weekend.  I'm lonely.

*sniff sniff* Is anyone out there?

Even MORE random pictures

Here is even MORE random crap.  Aren't you excited?  I got some fun cloud pics (almost my favorite subject matter) on the way home today.  It rained and stormed a bit over the past few days.  I love it.

OK, gotta go watch Survivor.  Remind me to tell you about the Wednesday night Natalie story.  LOL

Random pictures

Well, AOL stole my entry from yesterday, but gave it back today, in a fit of guilt.  Here are some random, left-over pictures, the kind that I often feel the need to share, as I transfer to empty my memory card.  I understand how boring these things may be for you.  Sorry. LOL

Natalie, the Photographer

Kevin bought a low-end digital camera at a garage sale a bit over a week ago.  It has minimal settings, but it came with all software, cables, etc.  I still had the 16mb memory card that came with my camera, and rechargable batteries, so we got a great kids camera for a $10 investment.  I was just hoping that one of the girls would take an interest.

The first day, they were both interested, especially Natalie.  The second day, Natalie played with settings a bit, then went off to do something else.  A couple of days later, she asked some questions about it, and I helped her find certain settings, and suggested tips (leave the flash off if at ALL possible, go for a lower ISO, etc.  She wanted something to shoot, but didn't find much of interest.

Tonight, after a day of overcast, gloomy skies, I saw the sun trying to peek out as I drove toward the house, so I called home to tell Kevin that Natalie should get her camera ready for a great sunset.  When I got home, I grabbed my camera and joined her on the deck.  She took several pictures (that card won't hold many) and I brought her in to show her "what comes next."  I introduced her to Photoshop, and a few saturation and color settings to play with.  She went overboard on a couple, but she cropped out things that should be gone, and enjoyed herself.

Here are her pictures, and I'll let you guys decide if there is a little "photog in the making" in this house.  I think she shows promise, and she seems to have an eye for what she likes.  That's really all it takes.  You have to see what you like, and find a way to capture it.  After she gets a feel for Photoshop, I'll teach her to reign it in, and use it for small adjustments, not as a crutch for bad photography.

Sheesh, I've been working my job too long!

Regional businesses

I was talking on the phone with a friend from Texas.  He stated, "Yeah, I just got back from Kroger..."  I laughed out loud.  Kroger?  I hadn't heard that word in a long time.  It made me stop to think about regional differences in franchised businesses.  Those of you from other regions, weigh in on this one, will you?  Those of you who live nearby, what do you remember from other parts of the country, from visits or living there?

Kansas City Metro

Groceries- Price Chopper, HyVee, Hen House, Thriftway

Convenience/Gas-Quik Trip, Caseys (there are others, but those are the main ones.)

Fast Food-McD's, Hardees, Taco Bell, KFC, Sonic, Wendy's, Burger King, Arbys. (I'm sure I've missed a ton, but I know that some of these don't exist in other areas.)

What do you have in your area, and what part of the country are you in?  Do you miss something that you know from another region?

A much better day

I woke to the sounds of thunder and rain, and went to wake Natalie up for school.  Yup, I said "school."  She had to do a Saturday detention for not turning in a book report on time.  She does her work, but she's very unorganized, and frequently loses papers between getting to school, and the teacher asking for them.

I dropped her off at 8:50, as instructed, and new she'd be done at 12:00.  My phone rang at 11:30, and she told me to come get her.  There was an electrician working, and he needed to cut power to the school.  Only in this little town.

After that, the girls and I headed to WalMart.  We ate lunch at the deli (love those tator wedges!) while browsing.  Then, we bought some of our favorite junk foods, to have a rainy, girlie, party day.  We got Tostitos and spinach dip, Fritos and bean dip, different soda 2 liters, and ice cream.  I highly recommend Mocha Mudslide ice cream.  Yummy.

It finally stopped raining, but I think we'll see more before tomorrow.  Kevin said that the golf tournement is about done, and going well.  He's been cooking in the food stand all afternoon.  I'm glad that THEY have sunny skies and perfect temps.

Hawkeye is all better.  I threatened Kevin's life, if he ever gives him that kind of crap again.  Today, the poor dog can't even beg a tiny piece of bread crust.  I'm not chancing ANY trouble.

Well, off to watch Nascar pre-race stuff.  Later, I'll flip between the race and COPS for a while.  We also have free Cinemax this weekend.  Maybe I'll find a good movie. 

Have a fabo evening, my friends.

The best night ever???

Well, I was so happy when 5:00 came.  I had the weekend ahead of me, and it was time to get this party started!

I went to Mom's to pick up the girls, and Dad was home, so I visited a while.  We loaded into the car and headed this way.  Everyone was happy and chatting, listening to the radio.

When we got here, I found that Kevin (who left town today) had locked us out.  My house key was given to the girls, and is hidden in the shed, where it got dropped a couple of weeks ago.  It was behind a piece of drywall, which had tons of stuff piled in front of it.

I lifted the drywall, and had Natalie reach past the broken Christmas lights to retrieve it. (note to self: clean out the shed)  As she pulled it free, I dropped the drywall...on my foot!  OUCH! 

We got the door unlocked, and walked in to a horrid smell.  My dear, sweet, loving husband had given Hawkeye some hefty bites of week-old ham.  Yes, the dog was ill, and left proof of that on the floor.  Without getting too graphic, let me just say that it was VERY messy.

So, I started cleaning it up, gagging and heaving all the while, and Monica stepped onto the back porch, stepping barefoot on a board with a nail in it.  Do you think this is a sign of things to come this weekend?  Or maybe, we've hit our low, and things will be up from here.

I'm scared to find out.

Some beach/sunrise pictures

Here are a bunch of pictures from my trip.  It was a good trip, and a heavenly location.  I'm glad to be home, that's for sure.  Kevin made dinner and I'm chillin' out, just enjoying being home. 

I wish the family could go on these cool trips with me.  Everything I do, and everything I see, makes me wish I could share it with them.  The girls would have a ball on that beach.  Kevin would like to walk the pier with me.  Yeah, I need to get rich and take this family on some major vacations!

A Happy Bird

This little guy was hanging around on the pier at Springmaid Beach, near Myrtle Beach.  He was singing a "good morning" to anyone who would listen.  Boy, did I listen!

 

Good Morning!

I'm on my way home!  I got up early to watch the sun rise over the ocean.  What an incredible experience.  I'll post some pictures this evening, but I need to edit them down.  Can we say, "overkill"? 

 

notes from the road

This is Kevin , sitting in for Rachel. I feel like Leno sitting in for Johnny Carson all those years ago. Where to start. Rachel arrived safely in Myrtle Beach, but she left the directions to the hotel at home. 25 minutes on the phone and we got her to the hotel in one piece. She doesn't have a high speed connection in her room and saw no need to pay for dial-up. So no pictures until Monday. She said something about sitting on the balcony with all the lights off, sipping a beer and watching the ocean. Yeah, I'm jealous. I'll update y'all later if the boss tells me it's OK.

Some random left overs, 'n stuff.

I've posted some random, left-over pictures.  I've been working about 11 hours a day, and it's catching up...hard core.  Tomorrow, I'll have to get up around 3 to get out the door on time.  For a 7:15 flight, I need to be there around 5:45.  I am 1 1/2 hours from the airport, and I have to park, then catch the bus to the terminal.  Yeah, I'm leaving early.

Grammy came up to care for her boy for a couple of days.  They had a good time, playing cards and hitting garage sales like nobody's business.  She left today, but not before fixing a ham dinner.  Good Lord, I love that woman.  In the course of the garage sale expedition, Kevin became the owner of a .410 shot gun, and a .22 rifle.  I hope to confiscate the .22.  We don't hunt, but I like to shoot cans, you know?  Anyway, his Mom treated him well while she was here, so that was good.

Someone mentioned that he better heal fast, for the golf tournament.  He won't be "playing" golf, he'll just be working.  He'll run the concessions, deliver drinks, take raffle entries, etc.  He never gets to participate, but I'm sure Steve would appreciate what he does to keep the scholorship going.

The cats are blending in well.  When Hawkeye is outside, we let them come up to explore the upstairs.  They are cautious, but getting braver all the time.  I can't wait until they are comfortable here.

Well, I have to go fill the aquarium, which has been sad for the last few weeks.  I just can't bring myself to clean and fill it with the broken bucket, but until I buy a new bucket, I'm stuck, so off I go!

My next post will be from Myrtle Beach, so expect pictures!

Kevin, cats, and assorted nonsense

I knew I'd only get to work until 12:30 today, so I left home around 5 this morning, stopped for fuel, and got to work at 6:15.  At 12:30, I left work, hoping to see Kevin before they took him back to do the procedure.  I got there in time to wait for over an hour with him! LOL  They wheeled him away at 2:20, and I made a quick run down the street for my first food of the day.

I walked back into the surgery center at 2:29 and the lady said, "The Dr. was looking for you, they're all done."  WHAT?  ACK!  What a terrible wife.  LOL  Everything went fine, and I was able to go get him from recovery around 3:15.  He is sore, but no more so than usual, right now.  He's off work for 2 weeks, during which he'll be doing physical therapy.

Amy asked about Snowbelle.  Yes, we had cats before.  I got sick of being the one taking care of them, so two went to live with Mom, and one became the pampered pet of a neighbor.  The barn cats turned out to be good barn cats, and Snowbelle became the queen of the joint.  She pops out mouse chasing babies like there's no tomorrow, and lets Mom know when it's time to refill the food bowl.  You can see a picture here.

A few months ago, the girls took on a lot more responsibility around here.  It proved good for them, and things go rather smoothly.  We told them that we'd try cats again if they kept up the good work, and the right opportunity came along.  It came along this past weekend, so we have two new cats (fixed and front declawed and litter box trained) who the girls have named Simba and Nala.

He is orange, she is orange and white.  They don't look like lions, exactly, but he has a "mane" of hair around his head.  I'll post pictures later today, or tomorrow, when I can get some good ones.  They are still a bit skiddish about the new surroundings, and they've yet to be introduced to the dog.  We'll do that after they aremore comfortable here.  The basement is as big as the upstairs, so they are living down there, right now.  That way, they are with the girls while they sleep, getting used to being around them.

They're probably getting used to hearing snoring and farting and giggling, too, but that's a different matter.  Hopefully, the girls will keep up the good work, and take good care of them, so I don't resent them being here.  Or else, the cats better act like mine.  That's why Hawkeye gets to stay, with me doing most of the care.  He loves me.  That's all it takes.