The best Mother's Day gifts

Hard to believe this photo was taken almost 8 years ago,




just after I became a mom of 2.





1. Jewelery. Not the kind that the TV commercials tell you I want. I want the kind that is slaved over by a kid that has mismatched beads and a string tied so loosely together that it will probably fall apart in first few minutes of ownership, and I'm not talking about the Wal-Mart jewelery. Gold and diamonds do not tell me Happy Mother's Day, it tells me we spent too much money to say those words.




2. Cards. Not the kind you buy and sign and then I set on my dresser for 3 weeks debating how long until I can throw it away or even if I should, and if not where do I keep it? I want one that requires thought, scissors, markers, glue, and maybe even a clever little poem. Those have a special place in my drawer and in my heart.




3. Housework. Not done by me, silly goose. Just one day a year I'd like someone else to do what I do. And by someone else, I mean those children that I created.




4. Breakfast in bed. No, I don't want you to bring me burned toast and undercooked eggs so I can make a mess in my bed and then have to re-wash my sheets and then go do the dishes you left. I mean YOU go make and eat your own breakfast in the kitchen while I stay in bed and sleep.




5. Listening. I want children to hear what I say and do it. I'm not silly enough to expect that the other 364 days of the year. Just one. It's not too much, I swear. Just try it.




6. Silence. I'd like to read a whole chapter of a book without being interrupted. Don't laugh at me.




7. A closed complaint box. For one day I want to hear NOBODY complain about a freaking thing. I don't want to hear that your socks are too tight or that you don't like pork chops or that something isn't fair or that you're bored. Shut it.




8. A spa day. By spa day, I mean a 15 minute hot shower with the door locked.




9. Flowers. No roses. Nothing fancy. A couple of handpicked wildflowers makes me just as happy. Actually, happier, because they're free.




10. Chocolate. Not a big box of chocolates I have to share with everyone. A simple bag of Pretzel M&M's, like I bought for myself and scarfed down in the car when no one was looking today was the best.




11. A simple thank you.

Lucky for me, I have the best husband and kids in the world who know all these things and provide them for me. Well, except maybe 3, 5, 6, and 7, but we can't expect perfection, now can we?

The Not So Great Sock Debate

If you know my Maddie, you know she's the queen of fads and phases. Lately we are dealing with socks. First of all, she hates them and would rather not wear them. Second, she will only wear her navy blue ones. Most of the reason is because she likes the way they "fit." She also just likes the color. I went to go buy more of that exact pair, but of course they only come in a variety pack of 10 and I am not paying $7 for a pack of socks that she's only going to wear one pair out of. I saw an open package and a pair missing. I had to laugh, because I can only assume someone else is having the same issue with their daughter. I won't lie, I considered piggybacking this idea for a half of a second and pulling out the blue pair, until I noticed the blue pair was the one that was missing. I am, however, trying to remember the last time I brought Maddie with me to Wal Mart and whether or not she was out of my sight at all. If I find another pair of navy blue socks hanging around somewhere, I'll know where they came from.

Ridiculous

Today two of my favorite shows have been cancelled - All My Children and One Life to Live. I've watched these shows since I was a little girl. They have been on the air for over 40 years. Gone. Well, not yet. The last episodes will air in September (AMC) and January (OLTL). I watch these every day, along with General Hospital. Most people think this is pathetic, but not any more pathetic than shows like Jersey Shore or Real Housewives of Uranus or whatever that trash is. All I can hope for is that the shows go out with style. They bring back some old characters and mix some of the great old story lines in. I will definitely miss these shows.

Baby, you can drive my car

Yesterday Dylan did his usual work at the wrecking yard. Only this week, my dad taught him how to drive the yard jeep. Now, Dylan is driving it all over the wrecking yard all.by.himself. Not only is this situation happening, he's become comfortable enough in it now that he's going crazy and doing donuts in it. Where's my Xanax? He's so excited about this. It will make working up there easier because he doesn't have to walk everywhere. Plus.....driving is fun when you are only 13, right? I wouldn't know.

I personally did not get to witness this crazy event, but I promised I'd come up and watch him this weekend when he works. He wants to give me a ride. There isn't enough Xanax for that yet.

Hiatus - DONE

I think a two month hiatus is plenty of time away from the blog, correct? Honestly, I didn't really miss it. It's stressful to try to come up with witty information to share all the time that isn't boring. I don't want everyone to know if I'm on my period or if I'm having marital problems. Those are personal things. I can share funny things about my kids, but sometimes they're just not that funny. Not to mention, they're getting to the age where they get embarrassed if I share too much. Oh well, too bad. That's what you get for doing things that entertain people.

So, to recap the last two months.....

Actually, no. It's been a really boring two months. The kids are doing great in school. Dylan always does, but he still is. He loves middle school, loves the 7th grade. He isn't playing baseball this year, he's doing track, which he loves.

Maddie has improved dramatically at school. She started 2nd grade way below grade level and now is above grade level. I'm so proud of her and so is her teacher. Her school is phenomenal. They have really used every resource they had to help her out and it has definitely paid off. Maddie is in girl scouts now. She just started last week. She seems to enjoy it.

About 4-1/2 weeks ago I made the decision to make a change in myself. I wasn't happy with the state of my body, which was starting to effect my mind and my kids and my home. So, I went out and joined the gym. Now, 4-1/2 weeks later I have gone to the gym every single day (minus one day where we were in Seattle all day). I have lost 11 pounds. I feel better. I probably look better, but who knows. My goal is not primarily to lose weight, it's to get into better shape, I just hoped and assumed the weight would fall off as I'm doing that and I was right.

My dad is doing great. He recovered remarkably and he's back to work, much to his dismay.

Anyway, I promise to get back on the blog horse, but I can't promise to be witty. I probably won't be giving you daily recaps either because if I wanted you all to know everything I do every minute of every day, I'd ask you to move in with me. Obviously, that's not happening.

Blog block

Today is my husband's birthday. He's 36 today. Joel is an amazing man. He does so much for our little family and I take him for granted all the time. I wish I could do more for him on his birthday, but he doesn't want nor expect much - he just wants a quiet evening with his family.

We had a great time yesterday. We had lots of friends over celebrating both his birthday and the Superbowl, as well as the birthday of other people who were celebrating within the next few days. It was a lot of fun. The kids, as always, had a blast.

My dad is doing great. He got a clean bill of health and much praise from the doctor today. I'm so proud of how well he's been doing. So much of it has to do with the fact that he was very healthy otherwise before having the surgery (besides his heart) and the fact that he is so determined to get the hell back to work and get out of that house, so he's willing to comply with everything. I think it's great and it's really showing my kids a great example of what a strong person he is and how you can overcome just about anything and come out stronger on the end.

I haven't been keeping up in my blog. It was one of my (actually my only) New Years Resolution. However, I am having a hard time with it. I come on here at least 3 times a week to say something and I come up blank. It's not that I don't have anything to say, if you spend enough time with my family you know we have plenty of action to report. Sometimes I actually get the whole thing typed out and then I delete it. I don't have a real reason for this. I'm having a hard time with the whole "oversharing" part of the internet. I feel like sometimes every single part of our lives is plastered all over the internet and everyone, even (especially) those you wish didn't, knows about it. I am guilty of this as well and I am trying to make myself more aware of it, but it's hard to not get sucked it. I am not one of those people who keeps track of who reads and doesn't read my blog. I have a tracker on it, but I forgot the password for the account and haven't checked it in years. I don't care who reads it, or even if anyone does at all. When I type a blog I try to invision NOBODY reading it and then I don't feel so bound in my communication, but that's becoming more and more difficult as of late. Maybe once I get over that I can post more often. Maybe I should see a therapist or something, but I don't think they have blogger block therapy sessions. Maybe I should start one.

Chasing the dream of sleep

Sleep has always been an interesting thing in our house, because it rarely happens. Joel is a chronic insomniac. He rarely ever gets a good night sleep. I can and always could fall asleep at the drop of a hat, anywhere and anytime. Both of my kids were horrible sleepers as babies - Maddie worse than Dylan. I don't honestly know how I survived on such little sleep. Dylan as a child has not had much trouble with sleeping, other than he likes to get up early, but I do too so I don't blame him. Maddie, as she has gotten older has become a much better sleeper - sleeping at times 11-12 hours a night.

Lately though she's caught a case of the insomnia from Joel (yes, I know it's not contagious, don't lecture me). Once she falls asleep, she's good for the rest of the night, it's just that 1.5-2 hours after she goes to bed that she just tosses and turns. Makes for fun times for everyone. She cries too, because she IS tired, she just can't seem to fall asleep. All the usual tricks aren't working for her. At first I blamed it on accidentally drinkiing some soda with caffeine, but that was DAYS ago. The effect of caffeine doesn't last THAT long, even I know that. Hopefully this will all go away in a day or two, because it's getting old super fast.

Rules

• Sleeping pills and laxatives are not a good combination.
• Don't worry about what people think, they don't do it very often.
• Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.
• The lesser of two evils is often the least fun.
• Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious.
• If you look like your passport picture, you probably need the trip.
• Bills travel faster than checks.
• Eat well, stay fit, die anyway.
• No man has ever been shot while doing the dishes.
• Opportunities always look bigger going than coming.
• Junk is something you keep for years until 3 weeks before you need it.
• There is always one more imbecile than you counted on.
• Experience is what enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.
• By the time you get to the point that you can make ends meet, the ends move.
• Thou shalt not weigh more than your refrigerator.
• The jeans do not make your butt look fat. The jeans are innocent.
• There is a fine line between hobby and mental illness.
• People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want to hear yours.
• Gossip is a more powerful tool than people realize.
• Does anyone truly understand Daylight Savings Time?
• The one thing that bad drivers and good drivers have in common is that they both think they're good drivers.

Just Breathe

Today was a great day. I went to visit my dad and he looked awesome. He was in his pajamas, not some crazy nightgown, and he wasn't hooked up to any pain pumps, or any IVs, or any tubes, or catheters, or anything. When I got there he was walking around the halls completely unassisted - no walker or anything. He was practically running. He said he felt great and was loving the walking. He was completely cleared to go home today. I'm so happy about that. I really enjoyed hanging out with my dad at the hospital, but I am so happy to see him go home. It's all easy breezy from here :)

Dad update

I should have done this days ago, but I've been pretty busy keeping the oil companies in business with my frequent trips to and from the hospital. Most everyone who is reading this probably already knows all this, so I'm pretty much being redundant, but what else do I have to do with my free time other than this? I couldn't even finish typing that without laughing. So many funny words, like free time.

Dad had his surgery Friday. It was a success with no complications. He has some inflammation around the heart after surgery, but it's not completely uncommon. He had a 4-vessel bypass. We expected a 2-vessel or a 3-vessel, but he needed 4. Once you're in there you might as well do as much as you can, right?

I got to see him right after surgery and he was awake, which I wasn't expecting. I was really happy to see that. He's recovering slowly but surely with only a few minor setbacks that one would expect. I've been spending all my time at the hospital, from the time I get up until Cheryll gets there. I'm trying to let my stepmom have as much time with him without me being there, and since she works during the day, it works out perfectly. It's been really nice spending all that time with him. He dozes off while I read my book. We watch TV together. We complain about the stupid physical therapist together. He hasn't been cranky at all other than when they forgot to plug in his pain pump and he was in serious pain. Amateurs.

I'm bringing the kids in to see him tomorrow. He wanted to wait until he was feeling a little better and we both felt tomorrow would be best. The kids are excited and he is really missing them. I had a talk with them tonight about what to expect. They saw their Papa in the hospital when he had his surgery, but this is a bit different. Grandpa is their superman. Heck, he's my superman. They're prepared for what they'll see tomorrow. I personally think he looks awesome, and they may think that too, but I wanted them prepared for something different. They're biggest concern was whether or not we will get to eat lunch in the hospital cafeteria. Sigh. I am so freaking sick of the hospital cafeteria food I could vomit.