Day one...

I'm not skinny yet!

DAMMIT!

The One I love...

Last night, we were back into our old routine. I have to say...it felt good.

However, after my bake-off yesterday...cleaning the kitchen was quite the chore. LITERALLY every single one of my pots and pans was dirty. I was elbow deep in dishwater and shouting the last "I love you's" over my shoulder as the kids were getting into bed. The One was helping...you know, booming, "Brush your teeth," "Get into bed," and "I'll be there in a minute," while watching the Fiesta Bowl on TV.

The kids were somewhat settled and I was in the zone as I scrubbed and washed and scraped the day's food off of a seemingly endless tower of dishes.

Then, I heard it...the silence. It's not something I hear very often, or ever. I immediately thought the worst...The One has suffered a seizure and during his uncontrollable convulsions, he struck the remote and turned the power off on the television. I slowly turned to look back and there he stood, television paused, just looking at me. Our eyes met and the corners of his lips turned up, just slightly, just looking...admiring me, if you will.

No words were spoken...for, after 10 years of marriage...very few are needed. His eyes speak volumes, to me. I felt warm and comfortable and thought about how loved and lucky I am to have a man like him.

My eyes spoke to him next...and they said, "If you know what's good for you, you'll get your ass over here and help!"

Better late than never...

The holidays kicked my ass this year...HARD!

It was all I could do to keep my head above water and not be swallowed up by the ravenous beast that is Christmas! I started the season with good intentions. Intentions of starting new traditions and honoring old ones...baking, painting ornaments and making candy. But, before I knew it...the holidays were upon me. Life moved quickly, as if in fast forward...then, with great force...they whizzed by...leaving me dizzy and confused.

I didn't get around to doing all the things I wanted to do. I told myself, "Maybe next year," and planned on forgetting all about it.

Until today! Today, I decided, screw it...I'm making Christmas candy even if the day is long gone.

As if the universe was applauding my determination...an ice storm blew through today. The colorful landscape gave way to the whites and grays of the wintry air. The branches of the trees hung heavy with the weight of the ice. The children were wrapped from head to toe in knitted hats and gloves, their breaths billowing as they pulled icicles off of ledges to lick. It was the perfect setting to stay home in my pajamas and houses slippers...and bake!



Today...it felt like Christmas!

In mourning...

My mood is more than melancholic.

There has been a death in the family.

We were close.

I can't imagine life without him.

Somehow...I will go on....

R.I.P.


Holy Fuck!!! Yesterday, I knew it was sick, so I started dumping pictures off of it as fast as I could. Then, sure enough, this morning...it gave up the ghost.

Worst part...it didn't die peacefully in it's sleep. It died an awful, humiliating death. I don't want to go into details...but, it wasn't pretty...in fact, it was ugly...and it kinda made me want to take a shower.

So, my posting may be sporadic as the only access I have now is The One Who Knows Everything's laptop. The internet connection is slow and I don't have much patience to spare these days.

Life Lessons of 2008: Number 3

Ain't nothing to it, but to do it.

Since 1998, I've been talking about going back to school "one day" and "hopefully" becoming a nurse. I was always careful to throw those "one days" and "hopefullys" in there...just in case I never got around to it.

After a year or so of procrastination, I started back to school in the summer of 2008. I was so intimidated by that first course...it was hard to make myself sign up for it. I kept coming up with excuses...I missed the early enrollment...The classes that I want are full...It's too expensive, let's just wait...It's summer, I should wait until the kids are back in school.

The One heard EVERY excuse under the sun as to why I hadn't enrolled. See this is another reason I love him so much. He listened to all that, day after day...most men would've said, "Forget it...do whatever you want to do." Not him. He lovingly told me, "Just do it, babe. Don't worry about the money or the kids...we'll work it out...I'll work it out." He's incredible.

So, I did it. I enrolled and have been taking classes for 3 semesters. I love it. It feels so good to be learning again. So good, in fact, that I now KNOW I will be a nurse...and I'm "hoping" that "one day" I'll be a PA or an MD.

One degree at a time!

Life Lessons of 2008: Number 2

AirSoft guns were not the best idea for my boys!

After being shot in the ass, torturing a poor mouse then bedazzling him with the air soft bullet...and a little incident a couple of days ago, the air soft guns are being put away until the boys are much older!

For the safety of our family, we typically keep the bullet cartridge on a high shelf and The One Who Gets Away With Murder is allowed to play with the unloaded gun. He plays with the empty gun often...no harm, no foul.

Well...we're still having problems with mice...and we go out in the garage to check our traps. Good news: We got the leader...this thing was giant. Bad news: the damn thing only got his back legs caught and he was dragging his half-trapped body and the trap across the garage! Soooo disturbing! So, we get the airsoft gun to bedazzle the beast and put him out of his misery. After the mouse was offed, The One makes the mistake of leaving one bullet in the cartridge in the gun and puts it back in The One Who Gets Away With Murder's room. His best friend, Joe...you remember him...he comes over to play. Long story short...it's too late for that isn't it...Jack shot Joe and I had to take this kid home to his parents with a gunshot wound.

I know, I know, I know...Ralphie's parents were right...he'll shoot his eye out with that thing. Don't worry, it's gone!

Life Lessons in 2008: Number 1

New antibiotic allergies discovered this year.

Always fun to discover those. You pop a pill...the same kinda pill that you've taken many times throughout your life and 15 minutes later, the itching starts. Seemingly from the inside out...it's noticed first in the ears. No finger, or Q-Tip can reach this itch. The itch, rather rapidly, spreads over your entire body, and just as you reach for the potato peeler to start peeling away the layers of your skin to find the itch...the hives pop up. Now you have superficial targets...a specific point to focus your itching attention on. This keeps you busy playing Whack-A-Mole...or Itch-A-Hive...and you hardly notice that your tongue is now itchy and your throat has begun to swell.

While still trying to find a way out of your own skin...you hear the sound. What is that whistling? You ask yourself...Has the itch fucked with my eardrums? Do I have a booger causing my nose to sing? Then you realize...that you don't have a booger...nothing that serious...no, it's your airway closing up, that's all! Once that sinks in...you panic just a little, wondering exactly how far this thing is going to go. Are we talking pop a benadryl or two, kick your feet up and relax?...Are we talking call an ambulance? Or, are we talking, "Honey, grab some epinephrine and go all Vincent Vega on my ass...and stab me in the sternum!"

Or, you can do what I did...and drive to the hospital and sit outside the emergency room and wait for things to get better or worse.

That was a fun day!