Unplugged

So, where have I been these looooooooooong months ?

I "unplugged" myself from my computer. I won't bore you with the details, but it was a much needed break from my computer.

I will be back here, just not daily, probably more like weekly. I think that was part of my problem- I was running out of stuff to write about and it was all sounding like a repeat from the day before.

Lots of stuff has happened these last few months, but the biggest one is that I turned 40. Yep, the BIG 40! A new chapter in my life has started and I embraced it with open arms. A friend told me that I was the only woman she knew that took turning 40 so gracefully, that she hopes when she turns 40 she can react the same way. I've never looked at big ( 20's 30's, 40's etc) birthdays as being scary. I've always looked at them as being new chapters in my life. My 20's were filled with getting married and having children. My 30's were filled with moves, job changes and uncertainty. While my 40's have just begun, I'm looking forward to seeing how the story unfolds.

So, here's to New Life Chapters and a New Year !

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Meet Scarlet

Meet Scarlet- She was a early ( by 2 months) 40th birthday present from Barry. We picked her up yesterday.

I've been wanting a scooter for sometime now, to do quick trips to the grocery store, etc. and I guess my 40th birthday was a good excuse to break down and buy me one. I really wanted a Vespa, but sadly no Vespa dealers in my part of the state. So, he did some research and really liked the specs on this Honda model. We checked it out in person yesterday and Barry gave her two thumbs up, so I signed on the line and she was mine.

50 MPH- so I can ride on the back roads without much problems

90 MPG- GREAT gas mileage !

Fully AUTOMATIC !

Plus storage under the seat. We ordered a top box ( trunk) so I'll have even more storage once that is installed.

Right now I'm a little ummmmm ..... balance challenged but I'll figure it all out I'm sure. The funny part is because it's over 50 cc ( whatever that means) I have to get my motorcycle permit/license in order to ride it LOL ! I also need to take a motorcycle safety class, which they now offer scooter classes, so I won't have to learn how to ride and shift lol.

Well, I'm off to replace the "No parking except for Dad " sign with a " No parking except for Mom" sign.

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Happy BooDay

Today is Daughter A's 16 birthday!!!!!!!!!

Yep she has the coolest birthday ever !!!!

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Happy 13 Birthday B

Today is B-Monkeys 13th birthday!

Happy Birthday little bud!!!!!!!!

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Why, Why, Why!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why is it when it comes to the celebration part of my birthday I always get the shaft!!!!!!!!

I bust my butt making sure that each of my kids & Barry's birthdays is special for them. I make or buy the cake ( depending on what they want). I make or we go out to dinner( depending on what they want). I do so much for them to make that day special for them.

Yet, when it comes to my birthday I'm the one doing all the f-ing work!

And this year is no different ! And to make matters worse I don't even have a car so I can go out and buy all the stuff. Oldest Son M's car is in the shop and he's been driving my car to and from school and work this week. And my " back up" car won't start today..... battery is dead I'm guessing. Yes, I could put the charger on it but it's so tightly against the garage wall that I can't reach the lever to open up the hood.

So now I have to wait until Oldest Son M gets home from work at 11:00 PM so I can go out and buy all the stuff I need to make my own f-ing birthday cake. Which means I will be baking/making a cake all night long when I could be making it now when I have nothing to do.

GRRRRRRR and I just got a text from Barry he will be getting home later then he thought..... they need him to make a part before he leaves. I swear to you if this part keeps him from coming home this weekend I will rent a f-ing car and hurt his boss and all the owners of the company.

Please tell me why does stuff like this ALWAYS happen around my birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Squeal

My birthday is this coming Saturday, I'll be 39.

For months now I have racked my brain with trying to come up with something I wanted for my birthday this year. I knew it was only a matter of time before Barry was asking me what I wanted and I just kept coming up with a blank.

That was until I was at the appliance store picking out the replacement cooktop for the one that broke. As I was looking at cooktops I kept eyeing all the refrigerators , I have drooled over them since the day we moved into this house.

I've hated the one that came with this house since day one. It is way to small for us, a full 4 inches smaller then the one we had in our old house. While that may not seam like a lot of space when your having to stock it for a family of 7 every inch counts.

On my way home I wondered if I could ask for a new fridge for my birthday? Would that be an odd thing to ask for? Would it really be my birthday present when it's really for the house? I decided that it was worth a shot and if getting a new one meant calling it my birthday present I was fine with it.

So, I sent Barry an email when I got home telling him I bought the new cooktop and saved us some money since the one I really wanted wouldn't be in stock until the end of August and I needed one now. Then I asked him if it would be weird for me to ask for a new fridge for my birthday this year. Pointing out how we both hated the fridge and how small it is. I hadn't heard anything from him about it and chalked it up as a lost cause. That was until he came home a few weeks ago and asked me what kind of fridge I was thinking about. I rambled off what I was thinking about and the next day we went shopping.

After looking at so many fridges and finding out that the one I really wanted wouldn't fit ( this darn house has nothing standard size!) I found one that I loved. A french door style in stainless steel. It was delivered yesterday and after the guys left I squealed like a little girl with delight.

Happy early birthday to me !

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Yesterday

Yesterday would have been my Moms 57 birthday.

She died 14 years ago from pancreatic cancer, she was just 42.

Happy Birthday Mom, you are deeply missed.

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Hello Blog

I know, I know I'm way behind with the update I promised this week. I got semi busy again and today is the first day I've had the time to collect my thoughts.

Lets see where to begin????

Our 4th of July was good, wet but good all the same. We hang out with the same friends every 4th of July, it's become tradition. We start out at our house and watch the parade, then head over to their house for lunch and swimming, then back to our house for dinner and firework watching, then back to their house to light our fireworks. It's a good thing we only live 3 minutes from each other......lol It's a lot of driving back and forth but I think that's half the fun.

The week after the 4th was filled with odds and ends , plus getting ready for Oldest Son M's 18 birthday party.

Barry & Daughter A, painted the railing of the front porch. I love having a huge porch but I hate painting it ! It looks so much better now and hopefully we will get a few years out of it before it needs to be painted again.

I got a new "Mac Daddy" grill that I'm just thrilled about. I've been wanting a larger grill for some time now and after enough whining ummmm asking Barry and I went out and bought one. I just wanted one a little larger then what we had, but Barry said if we're going to do this lets DO THIS. This baby is fully loaded with 6 burners, a smoker box, built in rotisserie , sear station and lights. So now when I have a taste for a grilled piece of meat at 10:00 at night I can see what I'm doing lol.

Moving on..... Oldest Son M's 18th birthday party was last Saturday. It turned out really good..... just the right amount of people were here. I even invited his Dad, his dad's girl friend and his grandma & great grandma. Hurt feelings are a thing of the past and I can be a big girl and deal with all of them for a few hours for Oldest Son M's sake. I know he was very happy they all came to his party.

It's so hard for me to believe that my "baby" is now 18, but at the same time I'm fine with it. It's weird but as he's hit every mile stone birthday it's never really bothered me. Yet, when Daughter A hits them I'm a total cry baby the entire day.

This week I've been busy cleaning out the garage and just relaxing.

Barry & Daughter K will be coming home again with weekend. Daughter K will be coming home to stay after being in Arkansas for 3 weeks with her dad. I'm not sure how I feel about it, 3 weeks with her dad does not make for a changed child. But I will just hope for the best and take each day as they come.

So, that's pretty much it for the update. I hope to have some photos posted soon on my photography blog, if not this week then early next week for sure.

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18

My "baby" is 18 today !

Today is Oldest Son M's birthday.

As everyone has been telling you ...... It all counts from here on out.

Pictures from his birthday party will be posted later today.

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Getting Older By The Second

What to know something scary?

Tomorrow Oldest Son M, my "baby" ,will be taking his SAT's !

How did that happen? It really does seem like yesterday that I put him on the school bus for the first time. And here he is getting ready to start the process of going off to college.

I'm getting older by the second !

What's even scarier is that in a little over a month he will turn 18.

18!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He wants a party, just a small one. But he wants his theme to be a walk down memory birthday lane of sorts.

He wants a picture of his first birthday on his cake. What soon to be 18 year old wants that? But he's getting it.

He wants chicken to eat, since for his 10th birthday we had chicken. He works at KFC why in the world he even wants anything to do with chicken on his birthday I will never know, but he's getting it.

He wants to watch all of his favorite childhood movies. Some of which are impossible to find on DVD !

The only birthday he wants nothing to do with are.... the two he spent traveling with his Dads family. Not that they were bad trips, he just spent his birthday in either a car or plane.

And he wants nothing to do with the two we spent moving, though I did offer to box up all his stuff.....lol He didn't like that idea.

I think I'm going to sneak all those birthdays into his party some way. Maybe with a toy car, plane and some boxes for the decorations.

Where did the time go?

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Happy Birthday Daddy

Today is my Dads 57 Birthday !

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Back in Arkansas

Well the husband is back in Arkansas. It's hard to believe that a week has gone by already. WE did manage to get a few things done while he was here. Like getting the car the daughter K drives fixed. And we ordered a new hot tub , since our old one broke a few months ago. So we did our far share of stimulating the economy this week. lol 

His surprise 50th birthday party was wonderful. The look on his face was priceless as all these people just kept coming in. I'm not sure what he thought was going on until someone finally said SURPRISE. He had a really great time, even more so since I invited his best friend ( his best man at our wedding) They hadn't seen each other since the beginning of last summer. After the party some very dear friends of our stayed and we watched movies and ordered pizza. The perfect ending to a perfect party and week.

But now he's 488 miles away for the next 3 weeks. So it's back to cell phone calls and e-mail.*sigh* 

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Almost busted

A really good friend of the husband just called to ask me a question. The husband was standing right there when the call came. All the friend got was simple yes or no answers, rude yes, but thankfully he did ask if the husband was standing there. 

I had to scramble to come up with a "lie" as to who I was talking to. 

T minus 19.5 hours and counting.

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Happy Birthday

The Husband Venice, Italy

Happy 50th Birthday! 

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Quiet

The husband is on his way to Illinois today for a meeting. The kids are at school. So except for the cat making her cat noises , all is quiet in the house today. 

While I do love having the husband home for the entire week, listening to his cell ring all day long, the one sided business calls, and his lap top going "Message for you sir" can drive you a little bonkers at times. Plus I get way behind on everything..... except for naps LOL. But no naps for this woman today. I have roughly 8 hours to catch up on all the stuff I need to catch up on, which includes finishing up his surprise birthday party this coming Saturday. 

Speaking of surprise parties I have a funny to share. We were on our way home last night from daughter A's choir concert. He says to me you should wash my van on Saturday since it's going to be warm. I said nope sorry not gonna happen, besides I have a cake to bake. He's like not on Saturday, remember my birthday is Friday. I said don't you remember M. & B are coming over on Saturday for cake since they have plans on friday? ( * This is my fake out story) He says I thought that wasn't happening anymore since you haven't said anything about it. I told him that's what I was talking to them about after the concert( their daughter is in choir too) .  Anyway a little while after we got home he says to me.... Since M & B are coming over Saturday for my b-day I want to make homemade ice cream. I'm turning 50 and if I want homemade ice cream I think I should be able to have it. ( We have a hand churn that has been in his family for years and make ice cream for the kids b-days ever year) . I said if you want homemade ice cream, you can have it dear. I'll run out and get the stuff to make it. OMGosh it took all I had in me to not bust a gut, because he's going to be making ice cream for his own surprise party. 

Funny, just way to funny! 

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