Thursday, December 25, 2008

Andrea Gold has some new products

Andrea has some great new products at GDS. First up is her Holiday Splash kit.
Holiday Splash
It's on sale right now for $3.20.
Next is the Add-On for Holiday Splash, on sale for $1.20:
HS add-on
Here's a page I did using both kits:
Photobucket
I love the deep, rich colors and elements! :)

She's also released her 2nd set of classic templates, in a set called Classic 50 pack Template Bundle #02. :)
51-100 templates
And here's a quick review of all the templates included:
51-100 templates flashy
That's less than 55¢ per template! :)

And her latest release is a grungy, purple-y kit called My Imperfect Life. I promise I'll have something done later this week, to show it off. :D
My Imperfect Life

And finally, Andrea is offering an awesome promotion!
dec promo
That's right: Spend $5 and get this great QP collection (see the bottom middle one? That's mine! :D)
Holiday Splash qps
and if you spend $10, you get $5 credit toward your next order in Andrea's shop!
Don't forget, when you spend $10 at GDS, you automatically qualify for the design team's collab kit. So basically, you're getting (at least) 3 kits, a QP collection, a HUGE collab kit, and $5 back, when you spend $10. woot!

Christmas wishes fulfilled!

We hope you are having a wonderful Christmas Day! Ours is just about over, and it was wonderful. So many things to be thankful for:
Nice weather
Not being in the hospital
Miaka is here! :)
P-chan didn't have to work today
The boys didn't get a case of the "gimmees"

Our day started just after 7am, when Krillin woke up for the bathroom, and stayed awake for the stockings. LOL He was considerate enough to wait (and even wake up) Kenshin before digging into the stockings. Since I never knew what they asked Santa for, I was a bit anxious that Santa brought something they would like. Santa won big points today! :D Krillin got the new Superman movie and some FunKeys, and Kenshin got the Walle movie and FunKeys.

Here's summary of our favorite gifts of the day:
What was the gift you were most excited about giving?
Dad: Flight of the Conchords DVD set, to Mom.
Mom: 6-Minute Stretching book, to Dad.
Krillin: the "Dad's Fix-it Shop" sign, to Dad.
Kenshin: The RC car, to Dad.
Miaka: I didn't give anything, I was just cute and pooted all day.

What is the gift you are most excited about receiving today?
Dad: 6-Minute Stretching book, from Mom. I've been looking for this book for months, ever since I lost the one I had, on the trip to FL.
Mom: Flight of the Conchords DVD set, from Dad. These guys are hiLARious!
Krillin: mini Transformers set, from Mom & Dad. (At least, Mom thinks this was his favorite....)
Kenshin: Ben 10 Omnitrix watch. "I've been wishing for this all DAY!" Really, he's been asking for this for months, but that's what he said today. He also hugged it, and for a few seconds, I thought he was going to cry.
Miaka: I got some very cute clothes from Auntie Emily.

Funniest quote of the day is brought to us by P-chan. A little background, first: We have had a certain frog candle for years (I think we got it when we got married); the frog is relaxing on an inner tube, with his legs hanging out. Over the years, between moving 5 times and having kids, it has gotten pretty beat up. Legs missing, elbows cracked, etc. Last week, P-chan decided he was going to burn it. We put it on a fire-safe plate and forgot about it. Today, he remembered his vow to burn the frog, and placed it in front of the tiny manger scene we have, and told the boys it would keep Jesus warm. About 45minutes later, I heard, "Look, the frog gave his eyes to warm baby Jesus!"
For the record, it was a good 15 minutes before I could stop laughing. Miaka was very upset at me. P-chan is now chagrined at his own comment, but I don't think it was sacrilegious, just irreverent. Thoughts?

Merry Christmas!

Have some fun with these brain-bending Christmas song titles! The answers will be in the comments. :D

1. The apartment of 2 psychiatrists.

2. The lad is a diminutive percussionist.

3. Decorate the entry-ways .

4. Sir Lancelot with laryngitis.

5. A B C D E F G H I J K M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.

6. Present me naught but dual incisors for this festive Yuletide.

7. The smog-less bewitching hour arrived.

8. Exuberation to this orb.

9. 288 Yuletide hours.

10. Do you perceive the same longitudinal pressure which stimulates my auditory sense organs.

11. The red-suited pa is due in this burg.

12. Stepping on the pad cover.

13. Uncouth dolt has his beezer in the booze and thinks he is a Dark Cloud's boyfriend.

14. Far back in a hay bin.

15. Leave and do an elevated broadcast.

16. That exiguous hamlet south of the holy city.

17. Behold! I envisioned a trio of nautical vessels.

18. Listen, the winged heavenly messengers are proclaiming tunefully.

19. A joyful song relative to hollow metallic vessels which vibrate and bring forth a ringing sound when struck.

20. As the guardians of little woolly animal's protected their charges in the shadows of the earth.

21. Frozen precipitation commence

22. Monarchial triad

23. Oh, member of the round table with missing areas

24. Boulder of the tinkling metal spheres

25. Vehicular homicide was committed on Dad's mom by a precipitous darling

26. Wanted in December: top forward incisors

27. We are Kong, Lear, and Nat Cole

28. Cup-shaped instruments fashioned of a whitish metallic element

29. Oh small Israel urban center

30. Our fervent hope is that you thoroughly enjoy your yuletide season

31. Parent was observed osculating a red-coated unshaven teamster

32. May the Deity bestow an absence of fatigue to mild male humans

33. Natal celebration devoid of color, rather albino, as a hallucinatory phenomenon for me.

34. Obese personification fabricated of compressed mounds of minute crystals.

35. Tranquiltiy upon the terrestrial sphere.

36. Have hitherward the entire assembly of those who are loyal in their belief

Saturday, December 20, 2008

baby Miaka is here! :)


Just a quick note to let you all know that I had my baby! :D
Miaka was born at 9:06am EST on December 19, 2008. The labor was short and easy. Well, in my eyes anyway! :) She weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces, and was 19 inches long. She has a full head of dark hair, and seems to have blue eyes...but you know that could change. :)
She looks a LOT like Krillin and Kenshin.

Thursday, December 04, 2008

It's been a long time, but I did it!

Yessirree, I locked myself out of the house. I had just gotten the boys on the bus, and remembered it's garbage day, so I went inside to get the garbage and outgoing mail. I put both of them in their proper spots, returned to the house, and that's when I found the door locked. I don't even remember locking the front door when I took out the trash. It's a good habit to have, I guess. I've caught myself doing it when the boys and I go for a walk. But this time I didn't catch myself. oops! Why not go in through the garage, you ask? Well, because I don't like the idea of someone getting into my house through the garage, so that door is deadbolted all the time. And the back door? We have our Christmas tree in front of the back door, so of course it's deadbolted, too.
I went down to Becca's house to borrow her phone and phonebook. After a few minutes, I realized that all of the listings are for greater Louisville, and...well, I don't really live "that" close to Louisville, and I would probably be charged extra. But then Becca's husband tried a spatula to unlock their door, and it worked. So we came back here, he tried it, and VOILA! It worked! I'm very thankful for that, but also a little freaked out that a plastic spatula can open my locked door.
So I am safely back at home. No harm done. Becca and her husband saw me in all my Morning Glory, of course, so maybe there was some harm. ;0 I'm in my jammies, with a fleece hoody, a fleece hat (to cover my bed-head), and no make-up. hurray for mornings!

Monday, December 01, 2008

Thanksgiving and more

December 1 already?? That means I'm down to 2 weeks until the baby's due date! As excited as I am, I really hope that she doesn't come this week. Why? Because P-chan AND Jessica are going to be out of town for their jobs. Jessica is my BFF here, and in the Original Plan, she would watch the boys while P-chan and I went to the hospital. In the Backup Plan (if P-chan was out of town) Jessica would take me to the hospital, and the boys would stay with Beverly. So for this week, we're down to a somewhat last-minute and spontaneous plan, going something like this:
If it's Tuesday, Wednesday, or early Friday, Beverly will drive me and Donna will watch the boys.
If it's Thursday, Donna will drive me and Amanda will watch the boys.
P-chan will be home by Friday afternoon, and Jessica will be back Friday evening.
I love plans, don't you?

Thanksgiving was spent with Amanda, April, and their families (and another friend, but I can't remember her name, oops!). The food was delicious, and it was nice to be around people we like. :) But on a homesick note, it just wasn't the same as being with Emily and her fam. I really miss you, Emily!

Black Friday, I did not venture out at 4am. Nope, it wasn't until about 10:30 that I left the house. My first stop was CVS, where they had some freebies and a few "better than free" items. Almost everything was still in stock, too. :) Of course I got rainchecks on the things I missed. Next, Jessica and I went to see Twilight. Without giving anything away, I liked it, but still thought parts could have been done better. If they make the 2nd book into a movie, I will probably see that as well. After that, I went to Meijer, and realized that the sale ended at noon (it was almost 3pm). Doh! So then I went to Lowe's to take advantage of their gift card offer, and also got the drill set that I've been oogling! :D And the final stop was Walgreens, where I got paid to take several tubes of Colgate Total toothpaste. LOL Then it was back home, where the boys and I spent a nice evening "at home" (usually I'm dragging them to several stores) while P-chan went to work.

Saturday I got a tank of gas, and paid $1.56 per gallon. :D

Saturday, November 29, 2008

All I want for Christmas

all i want for christmas
...is the name of one of Pretty Scrappy's newest kits, and I love it! Casey does an awesome job with all her designs, and this new kit is so sparkly, that I just have to have it! :D I "met" Casey through her blog several months ago, probably through a link from DigiFree, for her "Live, Laugh, Love" themed mega kit that she was (and still is!) giving away for free, pieces at a time. Then she offered some personalized snaps, and I ordered those. When Hurricane Ike hit Casey and her family, I wanted to help her out, but didn't know how. When her design team released the "New Beginnings" kit, I was very excited. :) Now I'm in the store every week, ooohing and aahhhing over everything. :) I am Casey's #1 stalker! (I've got the blinkie to prove it!)

note: the Pretty Scrappy store is down as of blog posting time, but they are working on it! I think Black Friday killed it. LOL

update: The new store is up and running, and the link is updated! yay! :)

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Happy Birthday to me!

Yesterday was the big 3-0 for me! I am officially no longer in my 20s. ROFL P-chan and the boys sprayed silly string all over the kitchen, and baked brownies. I opened up my presents: a little mind-buster game, a pair of earrings, and not 1 but 3 different watches. LMBO Now I can match them to different outfits, woot! :)
P-chan made me a special Birthday Potato. What made it so special? Why, he put exactly what I wanted on it, of course! :P Then we ate brownies; I had peanut butter on mine, and they all had frosting and ice cream with theirs. :D
Thanks, boys! :))

On the baby front, I am only 3 weeks out from the due date now. Things are very uncomfortable for me. I am just about ready for her to come out. I say "just about" because I still need to sew the diapers! LOL Miaka and I received many wonderful gifts at the baby shower, so she's pretty set for clothing. We also got several of the bedding set items from Target, woot! :)

Saturday, November 08, 2008

Great deal from ArtsCow!

Are you looking for a great deal on photobooks? Through November 25, 2008, ArtsCow is offering unlimited 8x8" photobooks (20 pages) for $6.99, and that includes shipping! Holy Cow! :D They have plenty of pre-done layouts, in case you don't have digi-scrap pages. If you haven't signed up for ArtsCow yet, feel free to use my referral code:
http://www.artscow.com/?Ref=464838
And then use this coupon code at checkout to get the books discounted:
PBSD699
Well, what are you waiting for? Go! :)

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

$1.98

that's what I paid for gas today. :D

How was the election process for you? Did your candidate win?

Thursday, October 30, 2008

brag book exchange with Andrea

Andrea Gold is hosting the Brag Book Exchange at GDS, and there are still a few more days to get in on this! I finally got my page done, here it is in all its glory! :D
click here for credits!
If you decide to buy the kit and participate, you'll get all the others submitted by forum members, and 2 exclusive pages designed by Andrea herself.
Photobucket
Get all the details at GDS: http://www.godigitalscrapbooking.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8610

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Happy Mogloween!

In the game DragonFable, it's Mogloween! I'm busily trick-or-treating to get the bad candy from the moglins so they don't turn into Moglinsters. whee!

Only 1 more Sunday to practice our Primary presentation. ack! I know April is freaking out, so I'm trying to stay calm...but the kids still barely know the songs. We don't know what else to do, but pray. So please pray for us! :D

Last night, Krillin turned in his popcorn sales for scouts. P-chan totally worked the "cute" angle to collect orders from the neighbors. He wrote out a "script" for Krillin to read at each house:
Hello, my name is Krillin. I am fundraising for my cub scout troop. Would you like to buy popcorn to help me?
They all thought it was adorable, and ordered from him. Not counting ours, he has 12 orders, including 1 from a certain sister in WA. Thanks! :D I have no idea whether he gets a prize for this, as we weren't part of the troop when everything was announced. But he feels really good, helping out his troop!

On Saturday night, we went to Walgreens for a last-minute trip to use expiring RR's. :D When we came outside, we saw that there had been an accident in the intersection. Kenshin knew that the police and firetrucks (his favorite!!) would soon be showing up, so we all decided to wait around and see what happened. The first trucks there were the ambulances. Then the firetrucks, and finally the police. (I didn't have my camera, or I would totally have taken pictures. How looky-loo of me.) We live in a small town (this is 1 of 4 traffic lights), so this was pretty exciting stuff for us looky-loo's and for the emergency services. It reminded me of when Kenshin had to go in the ambulance. LOL Anyway, there were 2 ambulances, 1 big firetruck, 2 small firetrucks, 4 police cars, and another EMS truck, but it was just an SUV. A green truck had hit a black SUV in the intersection. From what I heard people saying, one of the drivers was drunk, but I couldn't tell which. One person from each car had to go in an ambulance, but there was none of that "rush rush" stuff, so I don't think they were life-threatening injuries. Krillin remembered what the firefighter told them the other day, and asked Kenshin if he wanted to see them use the Jaws of Life, and of course Kenshin said yes. (For the rest of the night and all day Sunday, Kenshin kept talking about the Jobs of Life. I thought it was so cute, I didn't correct him!) The Jaws of Life were not necessary, as nothing was crushing anyone, or flipped over. When most of the vehicles cleared away and the tow-trucks showed up, we could see that the green truck's front was all smashed up, and the SUV's side was smashed (we could even see the airbags), and had a flat tire. Since all the vehicles were now gone, Kenshin announced it was time to go home. LOL I tried looking up info on the accident, but it didn't even make the news here.

Gas is now $2.43 here. If I use our grocery store discount, then it's $2.33. :D How low can it go?

Would you like some free printable Halloween treat boxes? Go to Gail's blog and pick them up, then head to KJoi for the instructions. :) They are so cute, and you don't even need a photo editor to use them, you could use them in Word even. Have fun!

Monday, October 13, 2008

I feel rich!

I paid $3.09/gallon for gas on Saturday. The full tank was less than $33. I haven't paid that little in a looooong time, and it felt good! How are the prices in your neck of the woods?

With all the Regisiter Rewards deals I did last week at Walgreens, I have over $100 to spend there in the next 2 weeks. I have NO idea what I'm going to use it on. Although, P-chan mentioned an exercise thing they sell...Christmas present, woot! I'll have to pore over the sales flyer again, too.

Do you need to buy toys for a bunch of kids (or maybe just spoil a few)? Amazon is doing several sales, most of which are stackable. The original Amazon prices came to over $250. For all the details, check out this thread at SlickDeals:
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=198420&t=954135
I did 2 orders, and paid $80 for over 17 toys (nice ones!!). I can't post what I bought, because people who read my blog will be receiving some of the toys for Christmas! LOL

Friday, October 10, 2008

almost forgot!

I almost forgot to tell y'all how the latest ultrasound went. (see? totally scatterbrained!)

The baby is fine! Her kidneys are still "enlarged" but not "as enlarged" as before. Just like the boys, so no worries. The doctor says she's measuring small, about 28 weeks (and I'm 30 weeks along), but since I'm a small person, it's okay. Again, just like the boys. Oh, and much to P-chan's dismay, she's still a girl. ROFL I'm glad for that, because I just bought some more clothes from the consignment shop. :D

ttfn!

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

long time!

Sorry for the lapse in posting. I've been very scatter-brained, exhausted, and busy. LOL

Krillin has started going to Cub Scouts; he's in the same pack as some friends that are a year older. Today was his third week going, and he loves it! I bought him a polo shirt (clearance! lol), book, and belt at the BSA store, since a friend is giving him a few supplies. We still need to get him the official shirt, but I had to check the finances first. LOL
The den leader, Andy, is great! He's former Army, but nobody's perfect. ;) Tonight he showed them some magic tricks, which the boys LOVED. That earns them something in their book. I still need to read up on what it all is. :)

P-chan brought me the latest book in the Inheritance Series, "Brisingr". I was very touched by the gesture, because 2 days before we decided I shouldn't buy it new, no matter how much I wanted to read it. LOL He had borrowed it from a co-worker ("I just took it."), who challenged me to read it in 1 day. If I had been able to concentrate for longer than an hour at a time, I could have done it. But I have not been able to concentrate, so it took me 4 days. Very good book! I highly recommend it (in fact, the whole series) to anyone who likes dragons and magic.

I've been reading the Charlie Bone books. Very light reading, kinda fluffy. Just what I need right now. :) The boys lost "By the Banks of Plum Creek" so I started where we left off in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". Oh my word, is the print TINY in that book. I felt like I needed bifocals.

General Conference was very good. I couldn't concentrate enough to take notes, so I will need to read the talks later. But I do remember the announcement of a new temple, in Rome. I thought the reaction was odd, until P-chan reminded me that the Vatican is in Rome. ooooohhhh! *smacks forehead* Yep, that is big news. Have I mentioned how scatter-brained I am lately?

I have been "couponing" a lot more than I had been the last few months. My favorite cashier at Walgreens told me that some of the other cashiers are afraid of my coupons. I find this funny, because coupons just aren't scary. She explained that they're afraid they'll mess up and then I'll be mad at them. I have been trying to figure out why I would elicit this response. I don't think I've ever yelled at a cashier there.... But maybe I have, and I've forgotten about it. There was one cashier who I got really frustrated with, when she kept calling the manager over to check if I could use a coupon. Finally, the manager got fed up and told her, "All of them are good. She knows what she's doing. Don't call me again unless the register beeps." And ya know what? The register never beeps! :D Now she's not exactly friendly, but she doesn't question everything anymore.
Last week I got 45 body washes for 50¢ each, 14 toothbrushes for free, and some cheap cookies. This week it's all about the Glade. So far, I have 9 Wisp flameless candles they paid me to take, and I plan to get more....just have to find them. LOL Also, 4 plug-ins, 5 candles, 1 scented oil holder, and 4 refills for free after rebates and coupons. Counting the Register Rewards from last week as "cash", this week I have spent $59, and I have $31.50 in new Register Rewards, and I'll get $23 in rebates, leaving a total of $4.50 out of pocket. Nice! It'll get better, too, since the toothbrushes are still generating RR, and I still have coupons for them. hahahahaha!

So what am I going to do with all these? I'm glad you asked! I'm putting together care packages for Military members serving overseas. Zappos.com has a store in town, and they are donating the shoe boxes. The most expensive part will be the shipping, but it's no more expensive than sending a box to family here, thanks to the APO/FPO rules. :)

I have started playing DragonFable, an online animated fantasy RPG. P-chan found it, and I kept questioning his actions, so he finally made me start my own account. LOL While P-chan has 3 different characters, I only have 1, a mage. Because it's all done online in the browser, I can logout when I'm bored and login when I'm ready to play again. Krillin has also gotten in on the action. He's got a warrior with bright yellow armor, white hair, and green eyes. :) My mage wears a yellow dress and has white skin and blue hair. You can change anything in the appearance just by visiting the barber, except for the clothing. You're stuck with that, once you choose it at the beginning. LOL

Okay, I'd better post this before it becomes a month since the last post...

Monday, September 15, 2008

I've been tagged!

DeDe tagged everyone who visited her blog to do this, so here goes! :)

List 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, and 3 random surprises about yourself.

JOYS
1. Family- I love my husband and boys, and am looking forward to the new wee one (girl!) in December.
2. my Church calling (teaching the kids 3-11 each week) There are usually only 6 kids total, but it's a challenge to meet each age group's need. And I love it!
3. Finding good deals on anything and everything. Knowing that I got a great deal makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

FEARS
1. something going wrong with my pregnancy/delivery
2. P-chan dying (morbid, I know)
3. random violence

GOALS
1. after the baby is born ~ lose 20 pounds
2. after the baby is born ~ follow a housekeeping schedule. I can't do it right now (chemicals, bending over, general pukiness, etc), but I will!!
3. Praying more (I'm working on that right now)

OBSESSIONS/COLLECTIONS
1. Computers! I can't stay away from the computer too long or I go crazy! Yesterday drove me nuts.
2. Books - I love reading! I have found that I really like young adult series, since there's no smut and not too much swearing. I am currently reading the Midnighters, Charlie Bone, Inheritance, and Artemis Fowl series.
3. I collect stamps! I have for over 20 years now. Used, new, old, foreign, US, doesn't matter. I will horde it.

SURPRISES (ummmm, what?)
1. I am not lactose-intolerant when I'm pregnant. cheap milk FTW!
2. I don't like milk chocolate.
3. I really like the Twilight books. I never thought I would get into them - I mean, really, vampires? - but I totally got into them. The last book was a bit strange, but I'm blaming my perception on my pregnancy. kwim?

so if you want to, do this on your blog, too!

Friday, September 12, 2008

fun Friday

Here are some pages I've done recently.
This is my friend Penny, along with a totally candid (and thus weird) picture of my family. This is my entry for round 2 of the Supreme Team contest at GoDigitalScrapbooking.
credits
Kenshin fell asleep in the suitcase!
credits
the boys having fun in the car
credits
baby Kenshin! This was my round 1 entry for the Supreme Team.
credits
after-birthday ice cream
credits

I've started doing most of my pages in a 8x6 size, so that I can cut them in half (4x6) for easier printing. I got the idea from Maryanne Curth.

LetteringDelights has a new free candy bar wrapper to celebrate the back-to-school season. You can find it in their newsletter here. It comes in PDF, so even if you don't digital scrapbook you can enjoy it! They are also having their Dollar Day sale!

Do you shop at Walgreens? Do you like to save money? Trust me, they're not mutually exclusive! I'm going to use this coupon to save $10 off $40 in 2 transactions, spend $67, and get $66 in rebates.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pnyiq2_9yqcr3TDwmQUT5Nw&hl=en
Don't forget about the Robitussin coupons for $3 off. Use them with the RR deal: buy 3 @ $3.99 each, pay $2.97 after coupons, and get $10 RR to use on your next purchase. Ahh, dang, Wyeth took that coupon down. sorry!

Thursday, September 11, 2008

I remember.

I was awakened by a phone call from my sister, Cyndie. I was surprised, because Cyndie knew that we worked late, and so a phone call at 7 am (MST) was more than a little odd.
"Turn on your TV."
"What? Why?" I thought maybe a funny commercial was on.
"A plane hit the World Trade Center in New York. Turn on your TV."
"Bull****."
"I'm not joking. Turn on the TV now!"
"Okay, okay. Hang on." I wandered to the living room and flipped on the TV. "What channel?"
"Doesn't matter. It's on all of them."
And then I saw it. The buildings full of flames. The clouds of smoke. The noise was awful. All those people! I just wanted the reporters to shut up. I don't remember hanging up the phone, but asked Cyndie to find out if Missy and her family was okay (Doug worked in NYC, and I wasn't sure where Missy's office was; they lived in Yonkers). For the next 2 hours, I could not move. I know I woke up P-chan.
And then the buildings collapsed. I could not stop crying. We just sat and watched. There were some phone calls to and from people we knew. Everyone was subdued.
Sometime after noon, I realized we still had to go to work, so we got ready. {We both worked for a call center for DirecTV; P-chan in HR, and I was a floor supervisor.}
I remember the meeting at work, where they told us about all the things this meant for customer service issues (there were a few movies that were replaced by "fluffier" movies), as well as things they were implementing for the employees (counseling, time off, etc). I was concerned about my team, as they'd only been on the phones for a few weeks, and most were fresh out of high school. But every single employee showed up, and every single one did a fine job.
I was surprised that so many customers didn't know anything about the attacks. I explained to one irate customer that the HBO feed was coming out of Los Angeles, because the New York feed was down.
"Why the **** is it down?"
"Because the World Trade Center was hit by two planes this morning and 2 buildings collapsed. Most communication from New York is solely news right now."
He paused, then asked, in a much nicer voice, "Would this be covered by CNN?"
"Yes, sir. I'm watching that coverage right now."
"Thank you. I'm sorry I was such an ***. I didn't know."

Other customers wanted to know why Passenger 57 wasn't playing. "The station decided to not show it, in light of the presumed terrorist attacks in New York this morning." Again, the pause, followed by the question of news coverage.

I remember one employee (under another supervisor) who broke down in tears. The customer on the phone was desperate to learn if their sister was in the towers, and thought we had some way of finding out. The supervisor had to take over the call, and explain we didn't have any way of knowing. The supervisor was crying. Everybody who heard the supervisor was crying. I wasn't even sure if my sister was okay, so I was sobbing.

I remember September 11, 2001. Where were you?

Saturday, September 06, 2008

there and back again...

We left 2 hours later than I had wanted to (on Sunday), but we still made pretty good time. Stayed overnight somewhere in Georgia, south of Atlanta. The first place we stopped at was a Motel 6. There was a cockroach running across the welcome mat of the office; I felt that did not bode well. Then the check-in guy was extremely rude and they didn't have any ground-floor rooms, so we decided to find someplace else. Just a block over was a Red Roof Inn, which looked nice. The rate was nice, too, and the lobby was new and clean. When we got up to the room, Kenshin asked, "When does Cooper get here?" I had to explain to the boys that Cooper does not appear every time we stay at a hotel, and that he's still in North Dakota. I'm certain Krillin knew that already, but Kenshin was really sad. After we read a book (P-chan was already asleep), we all hit the sack.


The next morning, I was awakened by Krillin, who wanted to watch TV. I asked him what time it was, and he told me it was 8:14am. WHAT?! Yep, the alarm clock said so. Then P-chan looked at his watch, and informed me it was actually just after 4am, so please go back to sleep. It took some convincing, but Krillin finally went back to sleep. At our wake-up call, the boys went with P-chan to get breakfast, while I got ready. Finding things to eat at the continental breakfasts is always a challenge (due to diabetes), but I had the same thing I usually have at home: 2 pieces of toast with butter. We were on the road by 9am, and the driving was good.


About an hour into Florida, we were pulled over by a cop. He informed us that the tinting on our front windows is too dark. What the? Keep in mind that we bought this car 2 years ago from a dealership, and the only other owner lived in Florida....where the tinting was done. No problem, officer, we can get that fixed! "Yes, you can!" was his cheerful reply. We got a warning, but no ticket. whew! I immediately called Penny to ask her to look up how to remove tinting.


Despite being "behind" in our time schedule, and the frequent stops (food, etc), we made excellent time. I think Google map's estimate was way off! We were "behind" by almost 2 hours due to starting late on Sunday, but still got to Penny's house by the time we intended. She is awesome! She had the tinting-removal instructions for us, helped us unpack the car, and then watched the kids while we went to the store to buy all the stuff we needed for the tinting-removal. When we got back, dinner was ready (lovely chicken pot pie) and the boys had settled in nicely. Kenshin wasn't even afraid of the Max the Chihuahua anymore! By 9pm, P-chan and I were both exhausted, and we had to be up early the next morning, so we all went to bed. Even Penny's family! I don't know what time they normally go to bed, but nobody complained. Thank you for letting us use your bedroom, Madison! Your bed is very comfortable.


We went to Florida because of the court hearing to end our guardianship over my sister. She hasn't lived with us for 2 years, and she's now living with dad. So we drove for 2 days and left our kids with Penny for most of the day while we went to the courthouse in Tampa. The end result? You would think that we've provided enough information and paperwork to show that we really are serious about not wanting the guardianship. That the judge would see that us taking the time and money to travel there would show our dedication to doing things the right way. That they would say, yes, this is good, you are free. NO! They want more paperwork. One is a "plan of person", which is basically a plan for my sister for the next year. This make no sense to me, because my sister doesn't even live with us! We have no information for it! The other thing they want is proof that a new guardianship is being filed by dad. That one shouldn't be a problem, since they've got their attorney working on it. But it has to be provided in 30 days.


So after the hearing, P-chan and I had to go to our attorney's office and fill out the Plan of Person. We also closed a bank account that had been dormant for 2 years. And I got to see my friend (and Mary Kay rep) Jeanette. It was so good to see her again! I could have talked with her for hours, but this wasn't a vacation; we had to get back to the kids, and still leave for home that evening. ugh!


We got back to Penny's in time to eat dinner with Madison before she left for dance with her grandma in the Pimped Out Truck. Penny is not exaggerating! That truck is Pimped Out! It has a bigger DVD screen that our first TV. Dinner was a delicious smoked ham (thanks, Michael! ), a spinach salad (with avocados and sunflower seeds), and yellow rice. Since the rest of the meal basically had no carbs, I had some rice. I know, I live dangerously! Then we packed the car....well, P-chan packed while I gabbed with Penny. We got some pictures, and then we were on the road by 6pm.

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We drove until almost midnight, and stayed at a Best Western. Not the most comfortable bed I've slept on, but at least nobody woke me up in the middle of the night. They had advertised a "hot breakfast", so when everyone was ready, we packed the car and headed over to that. Pretty much still a continental breakfast, but they also had boiled eggs, and you could make your own Belgian waffle. I still had toast with butter, but also had an egg and a glass of milk (that's 3 carb choices total, in case you wondered). P-chan and Krillin played a game of checkers, then we checked out.


I drove for most of the day, as being the passenger still makes me slightly nauseous. We got caught in some traffic on the northern side of Nashville (due to an accident), so we stopped for dinner at McD's. The boys got to play, we got some free mini cones, life was good. P-chan did, however, get upset about McD's flag hanging by one end.

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Kenshin started whining about being sleepy and wanting to stop at a hotel, but we told him we'd be home before it was time for a hotel. We were in the driveway at 9:30, and were all in bed by 10:30.

All in all, it was a good trip. I am still disappointed that that much time and money went into our trip, and the guardianship still hasn't been released. But it was also nice to see Penny and Jeanette again. And it was fun seeing how different Tampa is in just a short time. I give it a B+.