I made it...

Made it through today. I got my house clean, got a nice dinner cooked, and we had Gary's friend over. This was actually a nice guy. He's on active status with the Guard too and trying to get his family moved down here right now. I told him that he was more than welcome to come back whenever he felt like it, although I would not be cooking a big meal every time. I ended up doing homemade rolls, parmesan chicken, corn, and green beans. Everybody loved it too... Nicholas (Gary's friend) kept telling me that I was a great cook, so obviously the guy must have been eating crap for a while to think that I can cook!

The guys went running afterwards and I tried to put my bicycle trailer together. Trying here means that I took the parts out and waited for the guys to come back and do all the work for me. And, of course they did, because we know I'm absolutely helpless!

I'm uploading a picture of me... I haven't exactly kept up with what I promised, but I'm just going to try to do a little better from here on out... No promises being made.

So here's me at the end of my day, doing schoolwork and trying not to sleep...

I meant to take a picture of the table set up all nice and everything, but there was just no time. Oh, and I think I got the chicken parmesan down perfect now. Only problem was I decided to do a spicier spaghetti sauce with it and almost killed myself... I'm still burping it up hours later.

I'll try to take some pictures of my trees and shrubs tomorrow with all their pretty mulch and weeded. I did get it done today, surprisingly. Just don't make fun of me... I have two different kinds of mulch now... They actually had the cedar mulch I wanted to begin with, so now I just need to buy a few more bags to cover up the flower beds...

Well, I'm going to hit the sack now. Talk to you all tomorrow.

Forgot to post these...

I got everything done... I just was tired and forgot to post the photos as proof. Please excuse the weeds that I was too lazy to get up. I'll be getting them today when I put down mulch. I think I did pretty good. I had to post the only color that I currently have in my yard too! I can't wait for my flowers to start coming up. Speaking of that, has anyone ever had issues with their weed blocker blocking their flowers? I cut holes plenty big enough for them to come through, but they just don't seem to be doing it.

Well anyhow, here are the pictures:

    

Oh, and my little hams had to have their pictures taken too:

 

As you can tell, it's laundry day... That's my fresh mound that needs folding. Anyone want to come do that for me? :)

Well, I'm off... Talk to you all later. Got a ton of stuff to do today.

Dinner...

Gary wants to invite a friend from work over for dinner one night soon. His friend (I've forgotten his name) is away from his family and will be deploying to Iraq soon. That being said, I am preparing my house to have company over soon. The house is clean, but just not to my satisfaction to have someone over for dinner. I want to do some serious yard and house work before that happens. So it looks like that's what I'll be doing today. Yay me.

Now I can get the house ready, no problem. The question is, what to have for dinner? I want to fix something that tastes great, looks delicious, and will hopefully not have me stuck in the kitchen all day long. Any ideas out there??? Please, somebody help me.

I'm about to embark on this mission. Step one is to do what I've been saying for weeks: Go through my dishes. I'm not looking forward to it, but it's time. Step two is my yard. I'm going to get at least one tree, hopefully two and get them planted and finish my row of boxwoods. I also want some flowers for the front, seeing as how nothing is up and blooming yet. The good news is that I should get all of this done today and tomorrow, so I'll be ready whenever Gary invites this man over.

Oh, and we found out that Gary will for sure be deploying to Iraq next year. I'm not thrilled, but we'll make it through. The thing that sucks is that he'll be going away to school for four months more than likely here soon, so I'll get him back and then lose him again. Somebody please remind me why I signed up for this job. I love him, you've got to know that, but this is just a little depressing. I thought we were done with this when he got out of the Marine Corps.

Enough of my bitching, have a great day.... I'll post the finished pics this evening. That way I'll be forced to get just a little accomplished!

Blah...

Just need to make it through today at work and then I'll have two whole days to myself! I can't wait. One of our managers came back with an order for 52 20"x30" posters at 3:30 yesterday. He expected them to ready before 5:00! They'll still be printing today, those things take 20 minutes each and someone has to be there to press the button... This means that all I'll be doing today is printing posters!

I'm finally able to watch last week's House and in a few minutes, I'll watch this week's episode.

Not much else going on. Going through the dishes tomorrow and getting rid of some. I'm also going to try and get some yard work done. Maybe I'll go to Goodwill and hunt for a new table and some chairs that I can pain. I want one with a bench, but those are impossible to find second hand, so I'm going to have to work to get the set that I want... I'm willing to though.

Well, I need to go for now... Got some work to do.

Up and out...

Turns out he was supposed to be up at 5:30 this morning. I didn't know because he didn't tell me though. He doesn't even remember where he put my charger. Yay me. I have a car charger, so it's no big deal I guess. It just won't get the chance to fully charge the phone in the few minutes it takes to get the kids to daycare and from the daycare to work. Oh well...

I was about to pick up my house phone to call and check on my Walmart stock (seeing it's current value and if they've puchased more for me) but the house phone is dead too. Fan-freaking-tastic Gary. I wish the man could learn to put things back where they belong. Phones belong on their bases, chargers belong somewhere in the general area that they are often used... I don't think I ask for much. Sorry, this is just a morning for pet peeves.

I should be getting ready for work at this point and making sure that the kids clothes are picked out, but I don't wanna. No urge to. I suppose I should though, being the right thing to do and all.

Talk to you later...

Slept late...

Actually, I was laying there waiting for the alarm to go off when I finally decided to see what time it was... Yikes! My phone was off. I panicked and ran into the kitchen. 6:05 a.m., I slept an hour late. Gary has hidden my cell phone charger good this time, I haven't been able to find it in two days. I'm going to have to ask him, but that leads to a fight over me not leaving it out in the first place and I tell him that it wouldn't be a problem if he'd learn to put things where they belonged and where I could find them... So not fun.

On to the subject of yesterday... The guy who got the promotion. Everyone was very unhappy about that. Turns out that he takes credit for a lot of people's work and they let him so that he doesn't get in trouble. So now they're all ticked off and saying that they aren't going to help when he gets his department. I don't blame them. And I've pretty much decided the same thing. Too much of a pain to deal with.

Two more days... Today and tomorrow and then I have two days off. I can't wait. I think I'm going to get some shrubs and get them in the ground on Wednesday. I might try to get some trees next, don't know for sure though. I'll post pictures when it's all done.

Well, gotta run, time to ask where my charger is... Waking the big guy up.

I'm still steamed...

I went to work yesterday and ended up working by myself for a good portion of the day. That's not what I'm upset about, there was a very good reason why my co-worker had to leave and her and her family are in my prayers. I'm upset because this idiot, that has not been there as long as me, that does not know how to perform the basic functions of his job, got a promotion that he for sure does not deserve. Everyone in the store knows that he doesn't deserve it and the only reason that he got it is because he knows how to kiss some good behind... He brings in homemade cakes to the managers (he's 19 and lives at home still) and volunteers for work that others have to complete for him because he doesn't know how. The thing that just gets under my skin is that I have covered for this kid almost every time that he bites off more than he can chew, even yesterday. He works electronics and is supposed to be trained in both photo and cell phones, but honestly doesn't know jack about any of the three. He was supposed to cover my lunch yesterday and I came back to a lab that looked like it had blown up. It took me almost two hours to clean it up and get everything back running.

The crap that just kills me is that I can't get a promotion because I have two coachings on file. One for the crap back in December and the other for attendance. Neither was justified. The December one was just stupid and the attendance was for missing days that I didn't actually miss, but Jeremy refuses to fix it. I hate my job, I hate my job, I hate my job. I just can't wait to find something else. This is more reason for me to keep working hard on my schoolwork and get my degree. I have to get out of Walmart. A year of this is too long. At least in another year I should almost have my degree, I just don't know if I can last that long.

On to something better... Gary stayed home with the kids yesterday. I think they are all finally getting closer. The boys don't always start screaming and crying when I leave now, and when they do, Gary says it doesn't last as long now. Kyle has started giving kisses... Actually puckering up and giving you a peck (although a sloppy wet one) on the lips just out of nowhere, it's so sweet. He's a very happy little boy lately. Micheal is Micheal, he is having a hard time lately... I got his assessmant report in from the school and it made me cry. I still don't want to talk about that, it was awful. I'm going to go to the meeting, but I honestly don't know if I want him to have services with that school. They don't know him or anything about him with only spending 5 hours split between two days with him.

Well, I'm going get off here, but before I do: Happy Easter! I know I may be down today, but I am truly thankful for every minute of my life, stressful as it may sometimes be, and I am very thankful for the reason for this holiday. Have a great day everyone...

Ahhh... The weekend.

I don't know why the thought of the weekend seems relaxing right now, I don't have a day off until Wednesday. It does though. Thank God it's Friday! I get to sleep late tomorrow and Sunday, so I guess that's a plus, although I won't take advantage of it. I like getting up and doing my schoolwork, getting all of that stuff out of the way before I really start my day helps me out, I don't stress as much.

I'm trying right now to figure out how I can come up with money for a new dining room table without selling my stock. I bought the one I have as a get me by until I could get something else, but I'm really beginning to dislike it. I want something that can seat more people. Whenever someone comes over, we have to sit in the living room to eat and I just really hate that. I've already found the table that I want, I just need about $200 more... And then an excuse for why. Gary doesn't think it's a necessity, and granted, he's probably right. I just really want it.

Well, time to get the kiddos up... Yay.

Going in early today...

It's a Thursday, my early day... Yay me. Don't get me wrong, I love getting off at 4:00, but I hate going in at 7:00. Getting the kids out of the house by 6:30 is next to impossible.

Right now I'm watching Lie To Me. I love my DVR. I wasn't able to watch it last night because Gary had the news on. I've finished four out of 7 books on living green now. I'll have to let you know how they all are when I am finished with all of them.

I've decided that on my next day off I'm going through my dishes and clearing out my cabinets. Seriously, who needs 21 coffee cups? 16 plates? 14 bowls? The problem is I don't have a full set of any of them anymore, too many have been broken. Maybe I'll get rid of all of them and buy some new ones. It has been four years after all... Most peoples dishes last longer than that, but I'm shocked that mine have made it through both of the moves. I really want to get a new dining room table in there too, but that's going to have to wait for now.

Well, I need to go... I've killed enough time on here.

Doing some reading...

Read, read, read. I'm trying to research my final topic for my environmental science class and it's a pain in the butt. I have read so much that I don't think my head can hold much more information. The sad thing is that I haven't started on my other final yet. Luckily for me I have almost a month left.

Micheal's evaluation went great today. We have his case conference in two weeks and I get to hear their recommendations. He hasn't had a good day since though. He wanted his daddy for a good portion of the day, and then when daddy came home he didn't go straight to Micheal and it was the end of the world.

Kyle is being a sweetheart. I think he knows that I can't take two upset kids today. He is all grins and has had so much fun just playing.

I figured out what to get Micheal for his birthday. He's getting a basketball goal (one of the little ones of course), some new shoes, and a backpack for school. I'm going to have the backpack special made from the same place that I got my purse (www.designsbykeri.com). I just told Gary and he seemed to think it was a good idea.

Well, I'm getting off here for now, I've avoided my schoolwork for long enough.

Grumbly...

Gary deleted my House episode and Hulu.com hasn't uploaded it yet. I guess I'm a little irritated. I had to hunt for the remote this morning only to find that out 10 minutes later when I actually got the satellite turned on. I thought no big deal, I'll just find it online, but apparently it doesn't upload as fast as Grey's Anatomy or Private Practice does...

Micheal goes for the second half of his evaluation today. I'm a little nervous for him. He did good yesterday... Never cried once, just wanted to go straight for the basketball goal they had in the classroom (or so I'm told). It was torture for me, I got to see my kid go through two big metal doors to a classroom that I wasn't allowed to go to. Then I was told to leave. I walked around Hobby Lobby for two hours and waited out the remaining time in the waiting area of the school. Today I'm going to Once Upon A Child to sell some of the kids clothes and toys. I can't remember what time they open, but I'm hoping it's 9:00 instead of 10:00. Maybe I can just get everything over with and get back to the school.

We have the decision day on the 24th of this month. I keep wondering how that's going to go. There's a part of me that wants him to be just above that cutoff line for services. I know that sounds awful, but I just want to be done with speech therapy, I want him to start talking to me. And I really don't want to have to put him in that preschool.

Well, I need to go...

Baking Soda

I just cleaned my kitchen... with baking soda. The entire kitchen. Started with the sink, then the counters, moved on to the dinette, and finally the floor. I've got to say that it actually got up a lot lot more than I thought it would. I got a stain out of my counter that I thought was there for good. Who would've known? Baking soda. Can't believe it.

Now to try some more of the stuff I've been reading about...

Oh yeah, for those of you who were wondering, yes, I was on my hands and knees scrubbing the floor. Won't be doing that again any time soon. Nope, not I. I'm trying to convince Gary to get me another steam mop, seeing as how he broke the old one. I loved that thing... No chemicals, just good old fashioned steam. No work to it, no elbow grease at all, just push it along. That was the life.

I've got some ideas for Christmas presents too... Not telling, but letting you all know that they will definitely be environmentally friendly.

Well, I've got to get the boys to bed now...

Micheal's evaluation...

Micheal's evaluation is today and tomorrow. I'm a little nervous for him. He is picking up on a lot, but I just wonder how he'll do with strangers, and I won't be there with him... I just hope that he is okay. Poor kiddo, I don't think he can handle much more change. Last night I think it all caught up with him and he just fell apart and started crying when I asked him to help me clean his room...

On another note, we had the worst storm ever last night. It hailed and got so loud for a while that you couldn't hear anything over it. Micheal slept through it, but poor Kyle woke up and was really scared. It took almost an hour to get him back to sleep.

Other than that, not much going on... I've reading and crocheting like crazy. I'm finally getting some free time again since Kyle is getting more independent (he just needs to start walking!). I've gotten my hands on some pretty good books though. My favorite (thus far at least) of all of them is Simply Green: Easy, Money-Saving Tips for Eco-Friendly Families by Melissa & David Seligman. The Lazy Environmentalist: Your Guide to Easy, Stylish, Green Living by Josh Dorfman is a good reference, you can find any website for organic clothing or anything at all that you need, but I feel like it's poorly written. It just has too much information on one page that you don't actually care to know. That's just two out of seven... I'm not near done reading yet. I'm about halfway through It's Easy Being Green: A Handbook for Earth-Friendly Living by Crissy Trask, I'll let you know how it is as well as the others I'm working on.

Why, you may ask, am I reading all these books on living eco-friendly? I'm trying to make a better world for my children and one day my grandchildren... That's one reason. I also just feel like it's my responsibility to do everything I can to help. By the way, Earth day is coming, plant a tree. I was talking with my classmates about how the school system has changed in the last twenty years. All I can remember about Earth day is planting trees and endangered species. I don't remember being told about our part in it or how we could actually help, I just remember selling t-shirts for endangered species and planting a tree on Earth Day. Sad, isn't it? Luckily for us, our kids are growing up with this knowledge being forced into their heads and maybe, just maybe, they will teach us all a thing or two.

Well, I need to go... Coffee is calling my name.

Easter Egg Hunt...

I brought the boys yesterday to see the Easter Bunny at Walmart. Did not go as planned though... Micheal did okay, wasn't thrilled, but he did okay. Kyle, on the other hand screamed his head off. I didn't even take his picture, just grabbed him up and left. We left from there and went to the egg hunt in my in-laws' neighborhood. Micheal did really good. According to my sister-in-law all he was concerned with was getting the plastic eggs up and seeing what was inside them before moving on to another one. No prize eggs for either kid though, not that they cared...

We moved on from there and went to Costco so that Mary Kay could see them. I could tell it made her happy that I wanted to bring them up there... We were there for SOOOOOOOOO long though, I felt bad for the kids and myself. I can't spend that much time shopping (especially when I didn't bring any money). Big Gary though, I think he can shop longer than anybody I know...

We had dinner when Mary Kay got home from work. Faith brought some friends over. I can say one thing for sure, she has some very questionable judgement when it comes to friends. I hung out with some wierd people way back when, but these guys were beyond that... I'm generally the one that takes up for her and her choice of friends, but I can't continue to do that. I don't believe that I'll be asking her to watch the kids any time soon...

Here are a few pictures from yesterday.

Micheal with the Walmart Easter Bunny:

Micheal and the fire truck that was at the egg hunt:
 

Second try with the Easter Bunny:

The egg hunt:
 

Sorry...

No April Fools post for me... I was busy, and plus, nobody would have wanted to hear about yesterday anyhow. I'll just say it was the worst day that I have had at work so far and leave it at that. Maybe not as bad as when I got suspended, but that day was good until that, yesterday started off bad and got worse.

On a good note, a customer came in and asked who does all of their posters and stuff that he always sees hanging on the doors. He was sent to photo, but of course no one could tell him who it was, and Chris thought that someone was in trouble so of course she pointed her finger right at me. And I, of course, took credit and defend my work. He told me that he loves my poster and that I am wasting my talent working at Walmart. I was still reeling (picture me with steam coming out of my ears) from something that happened earlier, but I told him that I knew he was right. He told me about a graphics arts design company that it hiring in Indy and in Greenwood, both within minutes of my home, and with the possibility of some work from home projects. I'm going to check it out next time the boys are at daycare on one of my days off.

The boys are doing great. Micheal misses his daddy and Emily, and I'm sure he'll miss Kelly today. I buttered him up last night by letting him sleep in the top bunk of his beds. He does it all the time without my permission, so I decided that just maybe it would make him happy. It did too, he was out like a light... The rest of the time he's up and down, in and out of the bed... It's just a pain. Kyle has no idea what's going on, but I think he's happy to have more time with mommy and less with daddy. He is such a moma's boy, could care less about Gary 90% of the time.

Oh, goody for me. I had a weak point last night... Gary's dad called last night and invited me to come to a egg hunt in his neighborhood on Saturday. I don't know what I was thinking when I said yes. Gary even laughed and said he could tell I was off my game since I said yes. I'm always good a wriggling out of those things and just didn't even bother last night. Of course, one selling point is that Mary Kay will be at work, so I don't have to worry about any drama. She has calmed down so much lately though, I'm hoping that she stays this way... I need the calm.

Well, that's all I have for now... Time to clean house and get the trash out.

My body hurts...

It's that lovely time again, my body is attacking me. I feel like I should call in today, but I can't...

I'm trying to get as much coffee in me as possible right now. I'm not sleeping well at all with Gary gone. I know by the time that I adjust to him being gone he'll be back.

Well, I need to get ready... I'm going to have to work hard to get my routing squeezed down by 20 minutes today, going to take forever to get everything together and get over to Rae's. I love her to death, but why does she have to live so far away????

Bad trip so far...

Gary's layover was apparently a very long one today. It was supposed to be 40 minutes and instead it was about 4 1/2 hours. He called and was very unhappy about it, not that he could do anything. I told him he should have just driven from Atlanta to Ft. Gordon, but he wasn't allowed... Anyhow, he finally made it to Ft. Gordon and now he's just trying to find his hotel. He's supposed to call me when he's checked in. I keep waiting... Apparently his GPS isn't working so well in the area and he had to stop and ask for directions a few times already. Poor guy.

The boys and I have had some fun today. I think that Micheal thought I just left his daddy on the side of the road this morning. He screamed and cried and threw everything he could get his hands on at me while yelling "DADDY!!!!" very loudly. Everything we've done today he's fought me on. The only time he was really happy was when I let him talk to Gary on the phone. He has calmed down quite a bit since though, he ate his supper, brushed his teeth, and is now taking his bath and getting ready for bed.

Kyle has been unusually easy to get along with. I love him, but he is never as happy as he has been today. I have to admit I've been loving this.

Gary just called me. He checked into the hotel and is now going to get something to eat. He either hasn't seen the package yet or just hasn't mentioned it. I'll wait until later to ask.

Well, I need to get the boys ready for bed and get some schoolwork done.

Gary's leaving in just a bit...

I got up early this morning so that I could sneak a package in Gary's suitcase. I used to just sneak a letter or a card into his bag, but this time the package included a photo album with pictures from our day outside and a framed 5x7 photo card saying that we love him. I can't wait until he calls me to see if he loves it.

Well, time to wake him up and head to the airport. Talk to you all later...

Exhaustion.

I've reached that point now. I didn't sleep well, still. My body aches and I'm getting pretty miserable. I think I might buy some Tylenol PM. I just can't relax and get to sleep, or stay asleep for that matter...

I'm going to work at 8:00 this morning even though I'm scheduled at 12:00. I traded with a coworker and we didn't tell our boss because he's been telling everyone no whenever they ask.

Gary leaves tomorrow morning, bright and early. I get to drive him to the airport first thing in the morning. I'm not looking forward to it. At least it's only a week this time. That's the best part.

Not much else to talk about. I'm sure yesterday I had a lot to say, but right now I can't think of anything. Time to get to my schoolwork. Only one project left to do and I'm sure I can probably get it knocked out before the day's over, but it's not even due until tomorrow night. I have to make a PowerPoint presentation this time...

Talk at ya later...

So very, very tired...

I had to call AT&T yesterday to get the phone fixed... Yay, it's supposed to be fixed by Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Here's the problem: They did a test call when I called them. It was only supposed to be once. They started doing it again last night around 7:00, and it continued every half hour for the rest of the night. I woke up every time and so did Kyle... I finally decided at 4:30 this morning to get up and call AT&T again and give them a piece of my mind. They fixed it, somehow it accidentally got set to call every half hour to see if the line was working... INSANE!!!

So, anyhow, I'm exhausted. I have to go to work in just a bit just to work by myself, all day. I have the worst headache I've had in a long time and I just want to bang my head against the wall...

Well, I'm going to get off here and try to enjoy the rest of Private Practice.

A wonderful end to the day...

I kept playing around with the camera, which was nice... I was able to remember the excitement of learning something new, I love that.

Here's my self-portrait for today:

I took it with a 20 second shutter speed, let 10 seconds go by, then I went to sit down.

We were outside when Gary got home because Kelly (the speech therapist) never showed. Micheal would cry every time I would tell him we needed to go inside, so I just couldn't force him. I figured eventually he'd forget why we were out there, which he did.

Oh, and Kelly didn't show because the birth mom had the baby, so she's now on maternity leave... I'm sad that we may never see her again, but so very happy for her!

Here are our afternoon playtime pics:

         

Apparantly Kyle doesn't like the feel of the grass... He cried and tried to keep as much of his body as possible up off the ground! Micheal was enjoying just being able to be outside and play. I have to admit that I loved it.

Playing around...

I risked waking the baby to find the last mount that I have left... It was well worth it. I'm quite happy and excited to start playing some more...

This started yesterday when I was trying to explain to get the photos they wanted, they needed a faster shutter speed. Chris had no clue what I was talking about, so I showed her a little bit on my baby camera (I always have it with me). I had her sit very still, but notice the blur effect of the lights in the background. I gradually slowed the shutter speed each time.

The first thing I played with this morning on the Canon was faster shutter speeds. Now, with those, you need the best lighting conditions possible. With my lamp on in the living room, at the fastest shutter speed, you couldn't even see the coffee cup, but notice the difference as it slows down:

   

Now, I slowed the shutter speed down to 30 seconds:

These were photos taken in my backyard. Note how I always have Walmart to look at. Yay me...

The next photos are to get me back started on my 365 project... I've been slacking, I know. I just haven't been in the mood to do much of anything at all these past few weeks. Please excuse my need for a tan and the messy hair, I haven't really gotten to moving around yet, and the hair is the last thing to get fixed... The dress and the top are new. I just liked the top, and I'm thinking I'll wear the the dress when I pick Gary up from the airport... He hasn't seen it yet, and that way he won't fuss about wasting money on new clothes...

 Alright, I'm off for the day... Gotta get things done around here.

Grrr...

Sometimes I think of what it would be like to be single. I love Gary, but his massive cleaning sprees where he either throws things away or puts things where they do not belong really get under my skin. This morning, the object in question is my tripod mount. I finally found my tripod, but the mount has most likely permanently disappeared. I wanted to take a backyard photo and manipulate the shutter speed, but I can't do that without putting the camera on the tripod. I know he was the last one to use it and he used it for his video camera. I have one request, and that is to keep the tripod and all pieces together... That way, nothing gets lost. I learned that when I worked for Lifetouch. Someone used the tripod and put the mount in their camera bag. There was no shooting that day because I did not have a mount.

Anyhow, I guess I'm just a little aggravated. On to find a substitute...

Giant Baby Eats Hulk!

It's just his top half, so don't worry, he doesn't have a toy shoved down his throat, he barely has it in his mouth... I just thought it was so funny. He was crawling around and growling with it in his mouth!

Micheal still loves Thomas the Train. We're going through new batteries everyday for this train set.

Gaaahhh!!!!

I just want to scream! I was listening to a story that the daycare provider is telling me today and I had to bite the inside of my cheek and remind myself that she was not asking for my advice, she simply wanted me to listen. I know it helps just to talk things out, I do this a lot, but I really wanted to give my input here. Her husband cheated on her last year and had a baby with another woman, to make a long story short. He didn't tell her until after the baby was born. Well, their marraige has been on the rocks since then, but they're still together. They live in the same house, but they don't sleep in the same room and they barely talk. The new baby's mom moved away and he hasn't seen them since Christmas. He went on a business trip last week. Turns out he went to see her. His wife found out today and confessed to me that she wishes she had the guts to just go ahead and leave him. I had to stop myself when I wanted to say "Change the locks. Change the codes. Don't let him back in the house. Pack his stuff up and put it out on the curb!" I just don't understand why someone would put up with this.

Another person that I used to be very close to had a baby with someone other than her husband. She left him because she missed her family and was lonely. After this, she met another guy and apparently started sleeping with him. She got knocked up and immediately started rubbing it in her husband's face. She completely broke his heart. I can remember him begging her for another child and her saying that she never wanted another one, apparently just not with him. I know they never had the best relationship, but he deserved better than that. I can't tell her this either... Mostly because she simply doesn't listen.

Why is it that people cheat? I can't imagine cheating on Gary... Not that he's the greatest guy on earth, but I love him too much to hurt him. Now if he cheated on me, I'd probably fall to pieces for the first half hour, then my anger would probably take over and he'd be out the door or I'd be going back to Georgia.

I have several other examples from other relationships that I used to hope Gary and I could just love each other like they did but I don't want to even talk about it anymore...

Watching House

Gary deleted it from the DVR, so I'm having to watch it on Hulu.com. Great thing, Hulu, without it I'd miss a lot of shows that my husband seems to think don't matter to me.

Micheal and I went out to water the flowers last night. Of course, almost immediately after we came in, a storm rolled in and watered them again for us. He was upset that there were no "fowers" and just mulch. I had to explain to him that we were watering it so that the flowers would come, we just had to be patient. Of course, after this he decided to water the entire yard...

Kyle was being a happy boy last night. He's finally turning into a daddy's boy. At least a little. He is happy with him for just a little while, enough to give me a tiny break.

I'm trying to get back to working hard on schoolwork. I need at least a B in both classes, but I'd prefer an A. This isn't an impossible goal at all right now, so I'm hoping to continue in this way...

Well, it's time to get ready for work. I had something to ask, but now I don't remember what it was... Couldn't have been too important.

Doing Schoolwork...

I am currently trying to do my schoolwork... Power Point keeps freezing on me though and I guess I can't read my text any other way, so it's taking a while.

I'm trying hard to deal with Gary's bombshell. I still don't know how I'm going to do it, but I know I'll have to do it somehow.

The news is on... I was just watching that apparently China is about to have the largest automotive business in the world soon... Wonderful. They are at least waiting to start exporting cars over here until the find out how the "Big Three" are doing for sure. As you know, I'm paraphrasing, but still... This is awful. I'm worried about what our great country is coming to. Please people, buy American! Buy American and save jobs! I don't have anything against China, but we need to support our country, we need to support our people. Again, I don't have anything against these other countries, but if you want to send money to help starving children to these other countries, think of the children starving here. Donate to a soup kitchen. Volunteer your time. Do something for your country, and do it today!!!

That's all for now... Talk at ya soon! 

Good/Bad news...

Gary came home yesterday with some news that I didn't really know how to take. I still don't. He had to change his job with the Guard. It's seems good, Gary gets to do something he really loves and he'll probably be promoted to Sergeant. Here comes the bad part: He'll have to go to school for 21 weeks as a condition to getting this job. 21 weeks away from me and in Georgia.

This made me think of the simple fact that I have to find a new job. I'll need weekends off because I won't have a sitter on the weekends. I need a Monday through Friday job with normal hours. Preferably one that pays better...

I'm frustrated. I've gotten comfortable in the last year or two and just didn't think that this was a possibility anymore. 21 weeks isn't that long... I'm sure I can do it. The kids probably will have a much harder time than me, but better to do it now than when they're older I guess...

Sorry, I'm rambling and just trying to think right now...

Ahhh... A day off!

I'm so happy to have today off. The past week has been a little rough and I am in desperate need of a little rest and relaxation. I plan to bring the boys to daycare today and then get to work on my garden. I'm going to start around front first. I think I'll start with the smaller portion of the flower bed leading up to the door. Once I get done with everything there, I'll move to the larger portion in the front of the house. I'll go to the tree from there, then I'll mulch. After I get the front yard done, I'll get my vegetable garden going in the back. And, if I have any time left, I'll go buy the shrubs and trees that I want and get started on those. Who knows, maybe I'll get my table and chairs today...

I've been looking forward to this for a little while now, just in case you can't tell. There's something about getting all this planned and done and knowing that it's going to work out that I love. It's also something that I get to do for me... Just for me, not for anyone else.

Well, I need to get going... Long day ahead of me.

Forgot to post...

I forgot to post anything at all yesterday. The morning was rushed and I didn't know what to say, and by the time I returned home I just was exhausted and didn't want to even look at the computer.

I have at last finished the newest Nicholas Sparks book, The Lucky One. I'll tell you one thing, it is every bit as good as I had hoped for. I'm hoping that he eventually makes it to Indy on a book signing so that I can get this one signed and added to my collection. I should actually by a copy of the movies too and have him sign those as well... Maybe one day it would be worth something. For now, it's worth something to me simply because I think he's a fantastic writer.

I have tomorrow off work and I intend to finish my gardening. I want to get all of my flowers planted and get my mulch down. I have a drawing of exactly what I want to do and I think it will turn out beautifully. Maybe I'll even go ahead and buy some yucky pansies just so that I have something already in the yard and blooming. I'll have to shop around and see if there are any other flowers anywhere first though...

Gary switched us to Netflix... Not something that would typically be my main topic of thought, but I was looking on there this morning (he bookmarked it for me) and they have quite a selection... Plus, I really like the fact that we can just watch the movies directly from the internet now. I knew having the big computer hooked to the tv would come in handy one day!

Has anyone out there tried the Topsy Turvy for tomatoe plants? I'm thinking of buying it, but I'm just not sure if it is worth the money... We sell it at Walmart for $9.88, which seems a lot better than buying off the infomercial, but I still would like some input.

Well, gotta run. Busy morning...

I made it through the week...

It's finally Friday. I'm exhausted and so very glad the day is over...

I bought some mulch and a few more bulbs today. I'm hoping that Monday I can get everything planted and then cover it up with the mulch.

I'm working this weekend... I open tomorrow and close on Sunday. Can't wait...

Not a lot to say tonight. I'm just ready to get a hot bath and get in my bed.

They made it home...

I called Lennie shortly after 5:00 this morning and they were about 15 minutes from home. I'm so thankful they've made it there okay. I was terrified of anything happening on their way home in the middle of the night.

Here are some pictures from when they first arrived on St. Patrick's Day.

Baby Nicholas exploring the house:

Walter and Samuel playing with Micheal:

The babies getting to know each other:

Still getting to know each other:

"Hey Mom, he's not so bad after all":

Well, I'm waiting for more news about William. I'm hoping that things have calmed down today and that I can find out exactly what happened.

I've got to run... I need to catch up on some schoolwork today that I let slip in the last few days...

And now they're gone...

My sister made it here safely yesterday afternoon, and we had a great time yesterday and today, but unfortunately she had to leave early. My brother had an accident today. Somehow, we didn't get the whole story, he managed to get shot in the upper leg. I'm scared for him right now and waiting to hear from someone back home on how he's doing. I know he's going to make it, he was fine earlier, just in a lot of pain,  but I just want to be sure that he's actually okay.

We carried the boys to the dentist today. They both have very healthy teeth and gums. We did get some bad news though... The dentist says that Micheal has a very small mouth (although he makes up for it with a very loud voice!) and will inevitably need braces when he gets older. We already figured that because he takes so many features from Gary. Kyle on the other hand, has a large mouth, but will need surgery when he's around 7 or 8 to correct the muscle that is under his lip. Right now that muscle runs between his two front teeth and to the roof of his mouth and is causing a huge gap between his two front teeth.

Well, I wanted to post some pictures before I forget... With everything going on I figure I should give myself something really happy to do...

The whole family together... Gary got his head cut off and Baby Nicholas was pulling his brother Samuel's hair!

A slightly better version of the same photo:

Top Row: Lennie (Holding Baby Nicholas), Nick, Me (Holding Kyle), Gary

Second Row: Walter, Samuel, and Micheal (making sure nobody took his hat)

Kyle showing Mommy what a good boy he can be:

Micheal having fun at the Children's Museum:

Walter ("Driving") and Samuel ("Riding in a taxi!")

Well, I will update tomorrow....

She'll be here today!

My sister will be here today. She should be leaving out around now. She wants to make it up here before I get off work. I'm excited, but there's something knawing at me and I still can't figure it out. I just hope that everything goes okay.

I'm going to try to knock out as much schoolwork as I can this morning so that I can spend time with her and the kids. Speaking of school, I'm still doing pretty great in my classes. I'm excited. I just hope to continue to do so well.

Oh, I went last night and got my eyebrows done for the first time in a while... They look nice too, Tee always does a great job. She trimmed my hair too, said she couldn't let me walk out looking the way I did!

Nothing much else to talk about... I'm exhausted from staying up as late as I did last night and I'm just hoping to make it through the day...

Talk to you all later.

My sister surpirsed me...

I was out with my neighbor last night doing a little shopping and the phone rang. I was thinking to myself that Gary shouldn't be calling to fuss yet, we hadn't even been gone for half an hour. It was Lennie... She wanted to know what days I had off this week. I told her and she got excited. She has quit her job to try being a stay at home mom again, her husband has the week off from work, and the boys are out for Spring Break. She's coming up to visit for a few days. I'm excited because it's been forever since I've seen any of my family. I wish that Moma would come too, but nothing's been said about that yet. She called her late last night to let her know what her plan was, but I don't really know how that went. I was in the middle of working on the Environmental Science paper that I kept putting off.

Gary and I got into it because he thought she should have given us more notice. Which, in all honesty, she should have, but it's not really in her character to do so. She's more of a spur of the moment person, and I love that about her. I wish I could do things spur of the moment like that. Instead, I'm left sitting here with a knot in my stomach thinking of all the things that I need to get done... My house looks decent, and all the weeds are pulled from the flower bed, but there are so many little projects that I've been meaning to get to and just never have the chance. I'm going to be doing some serious work around here today since she'll likely be here tomorrow night...

Well, time for me to get ready for work. I'll keep you all posted on everything else....

Still couldn't sleep...

I had nightmares for most of the night. This is getting frustrating. I just wish I could get one good night's sleep. Everyone else in the house seems to be able to... I was up at 3:57 a.m. and finally gave up at 4:30 because I was wide awake and started thinking of things around the house I could be doing, as well as my paper that still needs to be finished. I've made some headway on it, but it's not finished yet. I just can't make my decision for my vote... It's a risk assessment paper on whether or not to use a certain pestacide. I'm leaning towards no, but I've got to find more evidence to back up my decision, otherwise it will appear to be founded on my opinion alone...

On to something else... Micheal is 100% better. So much so that he decided yesterday to go ride his train in his brother's room (which is basically the new play room) and try to run his brother over while he was in the process. Kyle survived with only a very small bruise on his arm. Micheal had train time taken away for a while. By the time night rolled around he was kissing up to me because he wanted to stay up and watch a movie with his daddy. I was trying to do my schoolwork, but I kept having this cute little boy come over and say "Love you..." and pucker his lips up at me! He is a sweetheart when he wants to be.

Gary decided to clean yesterday. I don't know what happened to him, but I like it. He got most of the weeds and leftover flowers out of the flower bed for me as well as cleaning up the living room and kitchen. Now I just need to get some soil to put down and I'll be ready to play in the dirt! I'm going to look today and see what soil I may be able to get... I'd like to surprise Gary by getting most of my garden planted this week. I'm also thinking if I have the money I'll get the bricks to go down around it instead of the plastic stuff we already have down...

Oh, and with the backyard, I still haven't decided what to do. I think I found a little bistro set that I can afford, so I may get that after all...

Well, I'm going to get back to my schoolwork...

Not sleeping well...

For whatever reason lately, I am just not sleeping well. I have cut out most of my afternoon caffiene, not because of that, but I figured later that it would help, and that doesn't help. I tried waiting until later to go to to bed, that really didn't help. It took forever to fall asleep, plus I was cranky because I was tired, and then I woke up every time Gary moved. I began to feel like he had some plot to keep me up all night... I'm hoping that my sleep returns soon, as I can't take much more of this.

I took Micheal to the doctor yesterday because I was starting to feel like his little body just couldn't take any more. Turns out he had rotavirus for the second time. The doctor was astonished, said that there was more than one strain, but the odds of catching it again were pretty slim. Most kids only ever catch it once... My kid is an overacheiver, of course. Thankfully, Kyle has had the vaccine, so hopefully I don't have to worry about him catching it. I just wish that they had that vaccine when Micheal was a baby.

I also have a very helpful tip for anyone whose kid refuses to drink Pedialyte: Get the unflavored kind, and the sugar free packets for mixing in bottled water... Micheal LOVES the raspberry lemonade from Crystal Light. It was Dr. Hoffman's idea, and I think he's a genius for it. I told him that the only thing I had been able to get in him was the flavored water from my water bottle at work and he said to give it a try, worked like a charm...

Hmmm... There was something else I was going to post. Trying to remember what it was... I can't exactly remember so I'll talk about school. It's going great. Turns out, if you're doing well, none of your counselors call to bug you or anything. I do kind of miss talking to them once a week though. Think I'll have to call and check on Donny next week. Plus, I need to find out what to do about my financial aid. I only have one assignment to work on this weekend, and although it's a decent sized paper, I'm confident that I can get it done this evening and tomorrow morning before work. I just have to pick my final topics for each class now so that I can start working on them...

Well, I've gotta run. Trying to get the dishes done before work today and other fun housework as well...

So nice to have my laundry room back...

I don't really remember if I posted or not, but we no longer have Snow. We gave her to someone who desperately wanted her, but then he turned around and gave her away. Anyhow, all is said and done, we no longer have our kitty cat. I have to say that I was quite happy for her to be gone. I miss her sometimes, but yesterday I was able to do something that I couldn't do when she was here... I planted seeds in their little greenhouses and put them in the laundry room! The laundry room used to be Snow's home, so I couldn't have done it if she were still here unless I wanted to wake up with my plants all over the floor.

So, here are my seeds:

I know it's crazy, but I'm all excited about it, as I said yesterday I'm planning my garden. I can't wait to get out in the dirt and play... I'm looking forward to relaxing. Of course, I actually mapped it out, so hopefully it will look a lot nicer than last year's gardenning experiment.

My banana boys:
That was the only thing that I was able to get Micheal to eat. Notice the chicken tender on the paper towel that had not been touched... Poor guy.

Kyle got his as a reward for cleaning all the food off his tray! We also made Micheal laugh for the first time since he got sick by wearing stickers on our foreheads all through the store and when we got home for dinner. I actually forgot about mine until I went to the bathroom and saw it...

Speaking of Micheal: He has a new thing for hats. We get ready to go somewhere and he says "My hat!" and whines until I find it for him. Then, he says "Mama, HAT!" and I have to put one on too... The kid makes me smile. He also got to talk on the phone yesterday, and actually talked! He talked to my mom. He said "Hi Grandma!" and "Love you!" and "Bye, bye." along with a lot of other words that I couldn't understand. Then when it was time to get off the phone, he started crying, so we called Big Gary. He got to talk to his "Pop Pop" and was thrilled. By the time he got off the phone with him, it was close to time for bed, so we got ready and he went straight to sleep, although he kept talking about "Mammaw" and "Pop Pop" until he finally closed his eyes...

Well, I need to go... Grey's Anatomy is done and I've now moved on to my recording of Private Practice, so I know I should be getting ready for work...

I got a 95!

My paper that I was agonizing over last week, I got a 95!!! I'm so excited, I must be doing something right! My goal is to get an A in both of these classes, so I'm ecstatic right now. I have a 100% average in Environmental Science, and with that 95, I have a 98% in Critical Thinking. I know I'm only in week two, but I have such high hopes now. I really believe that I can do it.

I am really slacking on pictures, but today I have a blast from the past, my Pre-K picture... I wasn't much older than Micheal here.

Well, I need to go for now... Talk to you all later!

Hammock or Swing?

I'm planning my garden right now and have brought myself to a very important question: Should I get a hammock or a swing for my backyard? I was going to get one of the little bistro sets, but couldn't find one that I liked for a price that I liked as well. I'm planting roses in my backyard outside of my bedroom window this year and I want somewhere that I can sit and enjoy them... I don't have a lot of space, so I don't know what I will do for sure. What do you guys think?

A hammock would be nice to be able to lay in the sun, but I could lay out on a swing too for a nice nap... The swing would be better to actually sit in, so I guess it would be the better choice. I could always get one of the hammock chairs instead. Decisions, decisions... Who knows, I may still spring for the bistro set after all. It's what I like, and it's not like I'll only use it this year...

Anywho... Today is trash day and my major cleaning day, so I guess I better get off here and get to work. Talk to you all later...