Bad Homeschool Mom

New Blog Site!

2008-03-12T09:59:32.373-05:00

Ok everyone, I've taken your advice and I'm moving over to Hands Not Full.

I'm leaving everything here as it is for posterity :D

See ya'll on the other side.


-Meg

Name change?

2008-12-10T17:47:59.316-05:00

So I'm thinking about changing the name of this blog.
While I truly do feel I'm a bad homeschool mom, I do love my kids and I'm not a bad mom...and...perhaps, just perhaps, I wouldn't get so burnt out if I didnt think I was so bad??

Anyhow, a few options:

Milk Stains - Sometimes on my shirt, sometimes on the carpet, a few in the van...

The Last Jellybean - the one no one wants because it's black licorice flavor ;)

Hands Not Full - I'm already slowly transitioning my email handle to this, and after all, my hands are SO not full and ready for more!

Leave as is.

Vote below the gratuitous picture of Mister Giggles, aka mister perfect. Not sure where this pic came from, I think the Train swiped my camera last week. I'm assuming he's also the one behind the 15 minute clips of Diego on my camera ;)

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Douse me, would you please? (UPDATED)

2008-12-10T17:47:59.566-05:00

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I'm on fire, and not the good kind of "wow, you're hot!!" fire either, more like the "wow, I think that vein in your neck is going to blow!" fire.

Have I mentioned this book I'm writing lately (the bottom of the page)? Yeah, I hate it now. I'm so sick of....ME!!!!

My dear friend Terri, my mentor, a writer and a mom who managed to graduate 3 kids from homeschooling, told me I'm burnt out.

I managed 5 minutes alone in the tub last night to think (and 3 hours lying awake in bed, the insomnia bug has hit again) about burn out. What causes it?

1. Expecting too much from my kids. Expecting them to act like adults? Expecting the littles to act like the bigs? Expecting them to have the maturity of people twice their age? Expecting them to have the same standards of cleanliness that I want to have?

2. Expecting too much from myself? I'm already nurse, mom, shoe-finder, writer, daughter, wife, friend, chef, accountant, diaper changer, Heimlich manuverer, the person who cleans up the dog vomit, teacher, secretary, zookeeper....heck, if I can manage to stay regular without metamucil I'm having a good day. Perhaps it's not a crisis if we have to reuse our socks one day? The thought creeps me out but something's gotta give.

3. Expecting too much from my husband? As if it's not enough that he has a job that keeps him away 12 hours a day (2-3 of which is driving time), I expect him to be able to come home and pick up the pieces of myself that have spilled on the floor?

4. Comparing myself to everyone else? Letting others hold US to THEIR standards? Why does my house have to be spotless and my kid doing math 4 grade levels ahead just because yours is?

5. Letting the everyday stuff get to me? Sometimes I feel like I focus too much on the little stuff (clean house, skipping schoolwork for a few days, matching shoes) so I don't have as much time to think about the major stuff. A clean house I can somewhat control, I can't make my children NOT have a genetic defect. I can double up on the math lessons one day, I can't make my 16 month old not do that holding his hands over his ears and screaming thing.

Input? How do you deal with burn out? How do you pick up the pieces, get over yourself, and get back on track?

***************UPDATE*****************

new post over at Bad Housewifey re the Great Toothpaste Incident of 2008

Rockin' Out with Da Train!

2008-03-04T14:06:31.666-05:00

The Train's newest grunge version of Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star.

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So not a saint

2008-03-19T15:48:02.445-05:00

I was talking with my neighbor yesterday, the nice neighbor. I haven't talked to her since before Christmas, between my kids taking turns being sick and her kids doing the same we just haven't crossed paths.

I went over to talk to her about the neighbor who seems intent on getting us to move (FTR nice neighbor has had similar problems with her). As we cannot go to the annual homeowner's meeting (being renters and all) I wanted to get the scoop on what was going on and if the others who have been abused by her regarding the suspension of pool privledges were going to speak up, I've been told they are. I also found out that some board members are pushing for her removal from the hoa board and pool committee for such actions.

So anyhow...neighbor has two foster babes that are there full-time and they are attempting to adopt, one is 2 1/2 and the other just turned 1 (and they are so ridiculously cute!!!!) Last week they also had a one year old boy and another toddler boy with them. She asked me how I manage to homeschool with so many little kids running around. Then she said it:

"You must be a saint."

I hear this a lot. I hear it almost as much as I hear the old "your hands are full" line.

I am so not a saint. I'm not even close to sainthood. I have the patience of a rabid labrador retriever eyeing a raw t-bone. Literally.

Having 5 kids is easy. I mean the actual HAVING, as in making & birthing. Raising 5 kids isn't even that difficult, they do what they do despite the mistakes we make. Feeding 5 kids is more difficult by far ;)

I'm not a saint. I do what I have to do, some would call it responsible, others call is saintly. I call it necessary.

I guess I never really thought about it, it's just what I do because when I wake up in the morning and when I go to bed at night I have 5 kids. Five kids who get sick. Five kids who argue almost constantly, both with me and each other. Five kids who need bathed and fed and clothed. Five kids who need emotional attention more than physical. Five kids who need medicine and playmates and exercise. Five kids who need to be educated. It's not saintly, it's just what a mom does, isn't it?

Thursday Thirteen #38ish

2008-02-28T15:15:33.554-05:00

Thirteen Famous People/Groups from Orlando, FL

I was not born or raised in Orlando but I do consider it my hometown having spent most of my independent years there.

What follows is AN INCOMPLETE list of famous people & groups from Orlando, FL or who call/called Orlando home. This is not an inclusive list...I only have 13 spots ;)

1. Mickey Mouse (Actually, Disney isn't in Orlando, but I digress)

2. Wayne Brady

3. Delta Burke

4. Daunte Culpepper

5. Buddy Ebsen

6. Johnny Damon - hubby went to school with him and went to the same temple his family went to

7. Nsync

8. Jack Kerouac (anyone else singing "Hey Jack Kerouac"???)

9. Mandy Moore

10. Wesley Snipes

11. Cheryl Hines

12. Carrot Top

13. Tiger Woods

I got my baby back!

2008-02-28T12:37:29.853-05:00

Kudos to Dell :)

They picked up my baby Monday, fixed it Tuesday, shipped it back Wednesday and it arrived home good as new (BETTER than new with new keys!!!) Thursday.

Back into the land of the living!!!

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My Little Old Man

2008-12-10T17:48:00.285-05:00

Ok, so we've done reallllly well lately. We managed a whole 3 months without a hair incident. Train's hair was growing out nicely...and then Tornado decided to make magazine collages and Train got hold of the scissors.

I asked him if he wanted me to shave his head again and he said yes. I managed to clip 3/4 of his head before he decided that was enough, told me to stop and said daddy would do the rest ;)

He looks a bit like Terry Bradshaw now, no??

and yes, that is Miss Universe's swim suit. Train happened to be "'Merica's next top model" in Tornado's fashion show.

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Dead....dead.....d.e.a.d.

2008-02-21T10:46:52.443-05:00

My motherboard toasted itself last night.
A few too many of Kristy's Mai Tais I think.

Anyhow, Dell is coming tomorrow to pick it up, hopefully I'll be back within 2 wks.
I'll be sharing the PC with the kids until then and since there are more of them than me, and since they are louder, I'll be offline for the most part.

Later.

Comin' ow in d'warsh

2008-02-20T13:12:14.552-05:00

Holy crud. Revenge of the Piitsburghers.I rolled out of bed at 5:40 this morning, opened my laptop to work but instead of working I dealt with....angry comments from people who told me I forgot famous Pittsburghers on my list. My own sister and mother were among the complainers.And, btw, if I listed every single great sports hero from Pittsburgh it would take me ages. Course there isn't one to be found now, I have to go back to the 70s ;)So, to appease everyone...here are more famous people who lived/grew up/worked in-and-or around Pittsburgh, PA.Roberto Clemente was born in Puerto Rico but drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates, he played in Forbes Field and 3 Rivers Stadium. One of the best ball players EVER, died in an unfortunate plane incident. He was also a well known humanitarian, flying home frequently to help the families in his old village. Does anyone know if they moved the statue of him outside of 3 Rivers Stadium? Is it at the new field?Terry Bradshaw DID NOT GROW UP IN PITTSBURGH but he did play football there and he was very good at it.Dan Marino DID grow up in Pittsburgh but he had the sense to move to Florida ;) Of course, had he stayed in Pitt MAYBE he would have that ring. OH SNAP!Trent Reznor ROCK GOD of Nine Inch Nails grew up in Mercer, PA. My sister met his family once, they had taken all of his pictures away because he "went to live with the devil" or some such nonsense ;)Ron Paul was born in PA but didn't stay there long.Andrew Carnegie - but of course I would be REALLY surprised if public schools outside of the Pitt metro area taught our kids who Andrew Carnegie was.Perry Como was from Canonsburg, PAJoe Montana is from New Eagle, PA.Joe Namath is from Beaver Falls, PA**I'm getting tired with all the sports talk**Henry Mancini a musical god in his own right, was born in Cleveland, OH but grew up in Pittsburgh, PA (dang, that must have made for a rough childhood!)Ken Griffey SR is from Donora, PAKen Griffey JR was born 19 years after Griffey SR and also grew up in Donora, PALynn Swan not from PA but played for the Steelers for many years.**I feel like I'm stuck in a bad Adam Sandler song**Robert Fulton - you know, the steam engine guy. Lemme guess, they don't teach that in schools either.Donnie Iris is someone I've never heard of but I guess was big in the music scene in the 50s or something. I dunno.*UPDATE*Ok, apparently Donnie Iris was popular in the 80s and 90s. Seriously, I've never heard of him. I visited the Google Music page about him (the link right above) and I've never heard any of those songs. And anyhow, his band is "The Crusiers", tell me that's not a 50s name?!So there you have it. An INCOMPLETE listing of famous people who lived in/worked in/spent some time in Pittsburgh and/or surrounding areas.[...]

Famous People I Don't Know (TT#38ish)

2008-02-19T20:30:21.687-05:00

Here ya go...a way early Thursaday Thirteen.

This is proof that I am slowly recovering from my newly released repressed memories of growing up in cow country, PA. I'm still trying to stiffle the high school nightmares, 13 years and I'm still traumatized. It's sad.

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13 Famous People/Groups that are from where I grew up (or near there, let's face it, not very many people from Dixonville, PA are famous...if any..no, I don't think so...not until my book is published anyhow!)

1. The Clarks - Cool rock band, met where I went to college. Saw them perform once I think, I can't say I really remember...

2. Rusted Root - Kinda from where I grew up, not far anyhow. Saw them perform tons of times, was almost moshed to death during a particularly interesting concert near Penn State. I was dragged away by security before I could get too hurt. Michael Glabicki himself (ummmmmm...drooling) picked up my sunglasses and gave them to me and apologized for the outbreak of senseless violence (dude, I thought pot was supposed to chill people!)

3. Jimmy Stewart - My gramma would never forgive me if I didnt mention the famous actor, her absolute favorite (dripping with sarcasim, she can't stand him)

4. And who can forget Punxsutawney Phil. Punxsutawney (or Punxsy as we called it) was actually a spelling word each February.

5. Lindsay Vuolo - one of Playboy's finest. That one's just for you, Sparky! Enjoy.

um, ok this is getting hard, I'm gonna have to branch out some more.

6. Mister Rogers is from Latrobe, PA.

7. new baby momma Christina Aguilera grew up in Wexford, PA.

8. Charles Bronson born in a pittsburgh burb.

9. Stephen Foster - famous American composer lived in Lawrenceville, the Pittsburgh burb my mom grew up in.

10. Rush Limbaugh (barfing a little in my mouth) worked in Pittsburgh under the name Jeff Christie.

11. Demi Moore grew up in Perryopolis, PA

12. Miss Leg Crosser Sharon Stone is from Meadville, PA. Her husband was bitten by a komodo dragon a few years ago. In a zoo. Stupid, eh?

13. Let's hear it for the outcast!!! Andy Warhol lived in Pittsburgh.

TAG! I'm it :) and my other blogs

2008-02-19T18:24:15.247-05:00

ExPat Mom tagged me for a meme :)

The Fun Book Meme
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open it at page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence/phrase.
4. Blog the next four sentences/phrases together with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig your shelves for that very special or intellectual book.
6. Pass it forward to six friends.

*************
I am really gonna have to search for a book ;)
The closest book is a family cookbook but it doesn't have page numbers and as much as I love ExPatMom I am so not counting the pages.

OK...here we have it..

1. A Message of Ancient Time (my 11 yr old's history text)

2. ok, got it...

3. -The hunter-gathers searched the countryside, taking seeds from wild grain and other edible plants. Then they sowed these seeds and grew their own plants closer to home. They learned to save enough seeds so they could replant the next season. They also captured wild cattle, sheep, goats and pigs and tamed them.

4. Obviously I didnt. I almost picked my 9 yr old's science book.

5. I tag:

-Leigh@$$
-Amy - Dude, I just NOW figured out why you call yourself neloplyma, LMAO! Now I won't forget how to spell it!! HA HA. I'm such a dork.
-Heather
-SassyLucy
-Elizabethy
-really, I don't have a 6th.

Cookin' me up sumpin' good!

2008-12-10T17:48:01.676-05:00

a big ole batch of yummy baby soup!!

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Yeah, you want somma that cuppa giggles soup :)
Isn't he the sweetest??

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yeah, he knows it too!!

Miss Universe rediscovered the legos I had hidden in the garage.
She made a robot....but wait, there's more.

She made a robot on a SEGWAY (this one's just for you, mama flan!!)
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And she also made a bee costume for her Webkinz frog, Fergie:
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and the rare pic with me in it (thanks to some motorcycle dudes) can you make out the graffiti??

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Meg is sooooo in the closet

2008-02-18T08:50:13.815-05:00

Apparently we live in something called Dixie Alley which is somewhat more dangerous than living in Tornado Alley.

No one told me that before I agreed to move here. I move from the land of hiding in closets because of hurricanes to hiding in closets because of tornado sirens. Nice.

Better than snow? Me thinks so!

I don't want your stinkin' cookies

2008-12-10T17:48:01.861-05:00

No thanks.
I don't want your overpriced, delicious and addictive cookies.
No thanks.
I don't want the ensuing child-fights over who gets the last cookie.
No thanks.
I don't want the extra 7 lbs on my hips.
No thanks.
I DON'T WANT YER STINKIN' COOKIES!!

People call me a scrooge but seriously, I don't want to buy your cookies.

I don't want to be accosted by you and your friends in matching outfits outside of the grocery store. Man I hate that! As I walk toward the door a group of little girls in green outfits surround me, I feel like I'm at the Penn State Rusted Root concert of 1995 again, only without the calming effects of the purple haze coming from the group of hippies beside us...

I don't want your mother verbally abusing me because I am not buying cookies from you.

I don't want to pay $3.50 for a box of 20 cookies.

Please, don't knock on my door. Don't approach my vehicle. Don't block me from going into the store. And whatever you do, PLEASE, for the love of all things good, DO NOT INVITE MY CHILDREN TO JOIN YOUR ORGANIZATION!!!! My children are socialized well-enough despite not being forced to sit in neat little rows behind a desk and despite not being part of your organization. And frankly, unless you're willing to give me a vehicle to use and provide babysitting services at no cost, it ain't gonna happen!!!

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Get TESTED!! for Alpha-1

2008-02-13T07:58:53.328-05:00

Get tested for Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency for free!What's holding you back?Florida residents click here for info on the U of FL Alpha-1 program.Everyone else click hereAlpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency is:-a genetic condition-often misdiagnosed as asthma, especially in children-the #1 risk factor in emphysema and COPD-the #1 non-alcohol related risk factor for cirrhosis of the liver-found in each & every ethnicity-estimated to affect 1 in every 2500 Americans.The symptoms of Alpha-1 reflect those of other conditions. Unlike your common cold or the short-term effects of smoking, however, the symptoms of Alpha-1 will not go away. Many of these symptoms are also identified in asthma, COPD and other respiratory problems, thus easy to misdiagnos.These symtoms include:-shortness of breath-wheezing-chronic cough-chronic bronchitis & recurring chest colds-chronic coughing up of phlegm-unexplained jaundice (including infant and late onset infant)-swelling of the abdomen and/or legs-vomitting blood-exercise-induced asthma or shortness of breath-asthma that doesn't respond to medications-"allergies" that last all year-unexplained liver problems, elevated liver enzymes-panniculitis in infants & adults (inflammation of muscle & fatty tissues, causing skin nodules and tenderness, click here for more info)Possible Signs of Alpha-1 / Commonly misdiagnosed conditions-COPD diagnosis (especially if not a smoker)-Emphysema diagnosis (especially if not a smoker)-Bronchiectasis diagnosis-asthma diagnosis-chronic liver disease-cirrhosis of the liver diagnosis-unexplained liver conditions in infants & childrenThe above signs & symptoms are seen in infants, children, teens and adults. It is possible to show signs from birth and be misdiagnosed throughout your entire life. You cannot be treated correctly if you don't have the correct diagnosis.(infomation from The Alpha-1 Foundation and COPD International)My sons have Alpha-1. My 3 yr old son has the SZ type. SZ is considered a moderate deficiency.My 3 yr old son has experienced the misdiagnosis of chronic bronchitis and asthma. He suffers from respiratory symptoms year-round. When he wheezes the medications are of very little, and only temporary help. He is subject to random jaundicing and his abdomen swells so large that as a toddler & infant he would not fit in the largest size of diaper at times, yet he weighed well under 20 lbs.Perhaps the most serious issue my older son has dealt with was the failure to thrive, the weight loss as an infant that stifled his development. After months of losing an ounce here and there he hit rock bottom. I laid him on my bed and attempted to wake him from his sleep, he would not wake up. I could see his ribs and his spine protruding through his skin. Every breath was labored. My baby was going to die unless we did SOMETHING. I called his pediatrician and begged him to admit my son into the hospital.I don't want to recall those horrifying months, you can read them as I experienced them in my July 2005 archive.My son is now thriving, thanks to the care of some pretty wonderful doctors. I am now thriving, thanks to the care of some pretty wonderful friends. My younger son remains healthy despite being diagnosed shortly after birth. My younger son is benfitting from the horrible experiences my older son had to go through, a gift I hope Mister Giggles can truly appreciate one day.Thus far my family has been lucky, no transplants have been needed or are indicated at the moment, though our pediatrician & pulmologist remind me that it's not out of the question in the coming years. A lot of kids with Alpha-1 aren't as lucky. Would you please take a few seconds out o[...]

New Freebies Site

2008-02-12T13:20:44.004-05:00

I just started a freebies blog at Mama's Freebies.

I was spending so much time sharing the freebies I find via email, I figured it'll be more time-effective to just do it this way!

Go visit and get yourself some freebies!

Bad Neighbors??

2008-12-10T17:48:02.051-05:00

Look what I found today. Should be fun, no?? Just kidding, *I* didn't make any reports and don't plan to.

RottenNeighbor

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For Mister Giggles

2008-02-06T19:14:11.129-05:00

It only took my about 7 hours, but...

this is Garrett's virtual baby book since he doesn't have a real baby book!

Enjoy!

The word is...

2008-01-30T22:44:24.771-05:00

"great"

"personable"

"easy to read"

"a pleasure to read"

"very informative"

"a good fit for the market"

"a much needed resource"

and perhaps my favorite:

"Doesn't need a lot of changing"

:)

Yup, that's right...that's what my editor said to me today after finishing her first go over my manuscript. She also threw around phrases such as "[the head of the publishing company] and I are really pleased". And to think I almost ignored her phone call.

Sure, there are SOME changes that need to be made and I have to add another 100-150 pages (!! have ya'll ever known me to not have a ton to say??? Well, try paying me to talk and I just can't do it!) and she's already made plenty of changes to my grammar and punctuation (I did go to public school, after all) but all-in-all they are very pleased with my first draft and have decided to proceed, which means I don't have to pay them back my advance ;)

And she also said "let's work together and get this thing out by summer!"

And with that I am scared of my wits about finishing this thing (I'd be lying if I said I've looked at it since I turned it in and that was a LONG time ago) and balancing homeschooling. I'm already a pretty bad time balancer. I suppose I could spend less time blogging, eh?

Oh and my mom sprung the news on me that I might be related to Ron Paul, ha ha ha! Apparently my great grandmother's maiden name was Paul and my entire family hails from Pittsburgh and Ron Paul is from Pittsburgh (but I won't hold it against him)...who knows, it would be kinda nifty though, eh?

I never thought the day would come....

2008-01-30T14:24:15.267-05:00

the day Meg endorsed a republican.

Hey, times change ;)

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Now, we don't see eye-to-eye on everything BUT in general Ron Paul seems to be the most down-to-earth and reasonable candidate in my mind and we agree on a whole lot more than we disagree on (and not just homeschooling either!)

Have you read his comments on the only LEGAL way to go to war? No? Well, you should.

Ron Paul thinks The Federal Marriage Amendment is a Very Bad Idea

Ron Paul has a decent stand on health care

Ron Paul REALLY understands how crappy the system of government education is.

Ron Paul's views on homeschooling make me smile.

Go visit Ron Paul's Website and read about his views for yourself.

So, there ya have it. Meg endorses Ron Paul, a republican.

Meg is now going to wash her mouth out with soap, I feel so dirty ;)

Oh yeah...AND...(Part 2, part 1 is below)

2008-01-25T12:49:30.404-05:00

Why I want to be a witch (HA HA, seriously, it's not that funny) is at the bottom.I forgot...remember my neighbor? The pathetic and lonley lovely lady who called the police for our "bonfire" on new years eve, when what we really had was a legal campfire roasting weinies??? Last Sunday morning I was enjoying a few minutes to myself, in my room reading. The baby was still sleeping, Miss Death Ray Eyes was on the computer in her room and the others had all just left on their way to get breakfast and go to Home Depot.MDRE ran upstairs screaming "THERE IS A COP IN OUR BACKYARD! I want to go to Harvard, I cannot have a record!!"I didnt see anything when I looked out the window and asked her if she was smoking crack seeing things but she seemed pretty insistent and shaken up. I lugged my butt out of my warm bed and went downstairs and stepped onto the back porch, nobody. Walking into the kitchen whilst wondering why on earth MDRE would say she saw a cop in our yard I noticed there WAS a black & white police car parked right outside our house. There was a male officer inside filling out paperwork and then he pulled away.I immediately called the police station and demanded to know why there was an officer walking around my backyard and why he didn't tell me what he was doing or ask for permission to go back there.Turns out lovely neighbor called and said our dogs had been outside for 2 hours, alone, in the snow, barking that morning.Yeahbut our dogs hadn't even been outside yet that morning. Yeahbut none of us had even been awake 2 hours yet, and I could prove it with the two piles of dog crap in the basement hallway and the two puddles of dog pee on a kid coat (I keep telling them not to leave their coats on the floor!!) Besides, it was snowy which means it was wet and my prissy canines refuse to go out when it's wet, I have to literally push their butts off the porch and stay out with them so they don't get back up on the porch and claw the crap out of the door.So anyhow...I decided the time for keeping my mouth shut & rolling my eyes was over. I bundled up and went over for a visit.That got me nowhere.I asked her flat out why she called the police and lied to them about our dogs. Over the next 5 minutes I was:-Threatened with more calls to the police for having a firepit in our yard. I ignored her when she called the police but I couldn't anymore. I told her was legal, I even showed her the info I got from the fire marshall and offered to let her keep the paper. She said "well good for you, you know what you're doing" (what the heck sense does that make?)-She said she was "a good neighbor and a home owner" and we are "just renters" and "I don't like renters in the neighborhood, especially on my street."-She also said "I don't want to live next to a house full of kids" (mind you there is one house between us that is vacant most of the week as it's for sale and mind you my kids are rarely outside because they are as prissy as the dogs!) -I asked her when my kids ever bothered her and she said "I have had my house vandalized before, it was before you moved in." It was hard to bite my tongue and not say "Gee, I wonder why!" As I mentioned a second ago, she never said when my kids have bothered her. I don't let them walk or bike in front of her house because of the stink she caused this summer over the whole pool thing (she is chair of the pool committee and refuses to let us use the pool for a couple of reasons, the most ridiculus being that we have 5 kids and if we[...]

Anyone see Meg?

2008-01-25T09:41:12.559-05:00

Yeah, so I've been kind of out of it.

For a week or so there google services weren't working so I couldn't get into my email, blogspot, writely or anything else google-related. That's my excuse anyhow, I haven't had much time or want, preferring to sit on the couch and stare at the tele or stick my nose in a book that I've already read twice.

And I was sick. I went to the Minute Clinic last Thursday with a kinda sore throat, my face hurt and a really bad headache. Turns out I had a fever of 102, strep throat, a sinus infection and two ear infections. Who knew. I've been on antibiotics for a week, two more days to go, and my throat still kinda hurts, my ears are still stuffy and my head & face still hurt.

I haven't slept well in weeks and when I do sleep I keep having these really weird dreams. I dreamt about telling off people who went to my high school. I was current day Meg but they were high school age kids. I told R (the football star who really wasnt that good but was the best of the team, they lost a lot) that he grew up to be nothing and never left the hick town he grew up in and I told K (the snobby one who didnt really do anything except think she was better than everyone else) that she ends up getting married at 20, at 22 her husband leaves her for her "best friend" because she is such a bitch, and she manages to bloat to the size of an orca in the meantime.

Geez, repressed anger much???? High school was pretty much a miserable existance for me, but I guess that is how it's supposed to be, right???

Alright, I meant to go on and tell everyone why I wish I was a witch (HA HA, I already thought of that so don't bother leaving it in comments) but alas I have a 4 yr old on my left screaming about not being able to watch a mickey mouse movie and that I broke a promise to her and she hates me and never wants to see me again and I have a 3 yr old on my right screaming that his sister won't let him watch handy manny and he wants cereal and he peed in his pants. Of course neither can talk without screaming and crying these days.

Oh, one more thing..speaking of peeing...The Tornado has been toilet trained for a long time so the following are not accidents. SHe's recently taken to peeing on items when she is angry with someone. She peed on Train's stuffed monkey. She peed on my bed. This has been going on for weeks but I thought she was just having accidents a few times a week, as odd as that seemed. When she peed on the monkey she let it slip that she did it because she was angry at Train and allt he pieces came crashing together.

Advice? Anyone???

She always has to be different, doesnt she??

Laugh at me. It's snowing.

2008-12-10T17:48:03.401-05:00

I live just outside of Atlanta, the dirty south. It doesn't snow here often and when it does I hear tell that everything closes. This is our 2nd winter here. Last year we didnt experience falling snow, the closest we got were a few patches of snow that stuck to the dog pee on the back porch and froze ;)I don't do cold. I don't do snow. I moved to Florida when I was 20 and consider it my home. Guess what, it doesn't snow in Florida. OK, techinically I suppose it does once every 15 years or something like that. I can deal with hurricanes, snow I can do without.Around 4:30 this afternoon I walked outside to take the trash out and I saw something I haven't seen in 11 years...SNOW. There were very, very few flurries floating around the air. I called the kids out to see it, they've never seen falling snow.It's now 7pm and there is at least an inch of snow on the ground, perhaps more. There was even sleet for a half an hour or so. Parts of the interstate have already closed down because of ice. See, we southerners don't know how to drive in the ice and snow...even those of us who come from the north forget how ;)My back yard an hour before I sat down to blog about the snow.And this is my van experiencing snow for the first time.I can hear all of you north of the Mason Dixon Line and west of the Mississpi laughing at me now.This is the first snowflake the Train has ever had in his hair ;)This is my front yard about an hour ago...and finally, this is my favorite way to see snow:FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE!!!!![...]

Holy crapsticks it's cold outside!!!

2008-12-10T17:48:04.134-05:00

I.do.not.do.cold.

I took the kids up to Kennesaw Mountain today for something to do since we have the car most of this week as Jason is in Virigina (where it's even colder). We drove to the top of the mountain (which is quite harrowing, the trip down is even worse) and got out to take pics. The kids all got out and asked if they could get right back in, it was that cold. If it's too cold for my kids to get out of the van you know it's cold.

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I stayed out of the van long enough to snap 1 photo from the top.

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It was a bit warmer at the bottom where we played near the canons. By a bit I mean 15 degrees warmer.

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In case you're wondering this is Dragon, our flat visitor from the UK. He's been staying with us for a while. He went a little crazy with the cheez whiz at the gift shop today, bought lots of cool stuff to send home.

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