hCG Giveaway!

The random winner of the hCG giveaway was Carolee! Please send me an email at the_nielsens2000 at earthlink dot net to let me know where you'd like me to ship it!

Congratulations Carolee!

I've died

and gone to heaven.

It has an automatic needle threader! How cool is that?

Meet My New BFF

Betty Lou

(now that's what I'm talking about)

Happy Mothers Day to me!

Ruffle Shirt

It was so nice to have the day to sew! It took me about 1/ 2 the day, with a whole bunch of interruptions, to make the cutest top you've ever seen!

Thanks to Lesley who was kind enough to let me borrow this cute pattern, I managed to put together a great little shirt for Bugs. Thanks to ME and my meticulous obsession to making sure everything was perfect (not my typical sewing MO), it was a perfect fit.

That's it. I'm officially addicted.

It's only 10am and I get to spend the rest of the day sewing!

Forays Into Sewing & a Few Irisis

My weekend was a blur of fabric, thread and the clunk clunk of my sewing machine - intermixed with a small break out in the yard where I transplanted some old decrepit irises from a long forgotten corner in my backyard to my new winding flower beds that go up the side of my house. They'll be beautiful in two years!

As I've mentioned a few times here and there on this blog, I do not sew. I mean, I would LIKE to sew but so far, everything I've ever made has been a disastrous mess and I'm never sure if it will even make it through one washing cycle let alone the rigors of being worn by a child!

Enter blog sewing tutorials. Have you ever seen these? Until just a few days ago, I didn't know they existed! I thought that if you really wanted to sew, you absolutely had no choice but learn the complicated "pattern-reading" language. And to me, it's a complete foreign language. There always seems like there's something new to learn and the words they use to describe an assortment of procedures is so stupid. Like, can't they use normal words like "sew on ric-rac then flip it over and iron it!" What would be so hard about that! These tutorials DID use real language and it went so much better! Turns out, I CAN sew. What I can't do is read a pattern.

So I'm proud to show you a few of the things that I made. They were all originally intended for Bugs because she's the only one I absolutely have to shop for anymore. And she needed summer clothes so I thought I'd make a few of these cute outfits I'm seeing around on Etsy and stuff.

First off is the tank top that should have gone with the skirt - I don't love it but it'll be okay with jeans. I don't like it with the skirt and didn't even bother photo'ing them together. Perhaps you can envision how they just don't work together.
Next is the tank that was an afterthought. Bugs wanted this cat fabric and I just didn't know what I'd do with it. So I made this "tank" that turned out to be a size too small for her but fits Tink as a dress and is absolutely adorable I think. I'll make another a size or two bigger for Bugs and it was really easy to make so no biggie.
Last is my absolute fav. It took me about 1/2 the day to make it and I love how it came together. It was less than $10 to make and fits perfectly. I wish I had one for myself even if I'm a big old for it.

What is O.K. an abbreviation for anyway?

Weird Socks

I found a pair of socks in my laundry that fit me but I have no idea where they came from. Funny thing is they're the best socks I've ever worn and I wish I knew where to get more! Socks are funny things - how did these get here? Weird.

Surviving and Thriving In A Disaster

I'm reading a book right now that is definitely worth the time. It's fiction so it's fun to read but extremely enlightening to those of us concerned with emergency preparedness. It's called "Last Light" and it's about a community that is undergoing a world-wide power failure that is never anticipated to be corrected. This book goes into fantastic detail about what a particular family and neighborhood goes through day to day, and I was fascinated by some of the problems they have to face and the solutions that the author offers. I have never looked at a natural disaster this way and I am newly motivated to re-evaluate my emergency preparedness and add a few things to my list.

Today, I hit WalMart and ended up with an entire cart full of supplies. I've been putting this off for several years and I always cringe when I think about all the things I still needed. I felt nothing but relief when I brought it all home and put the items away, checking them off my list as I went. I only have about 3 or 4 things left that I need to buy for my emergency supplies and evacuation kit. Those things include sleeping bags for my kids, flares (I can't decide if I need road flares or aerial flares), kerosene, first aid supplies and I think that's about it. What an amazing feeling to know that we are set! Now I can focus on finishing up my year's food supply although I've got a good dent in that too.

But back to the book and the things I wanted to share with you. I know it's difficult to anticipate a disaster because each type of disaster brings its own share of challenges. But let's talk about an earthquake, the most likely type to occur in our area. It will probably cut out our electricity, most forms of transportation because of torn up roads and debris everywhere, heat/cooling and gas will probably be out and so will phones. Many of us might have damage to our homes. In many respects this disaster mirrors what these people in the book went through except they didn't have to deal with cleaning up and injuries.

So...have you thought about the easiest way to get around your community if you don't have a car? If you have a bicycle, there you go. But make sure you have a bike pump and maybe an extra tube or two because if you get a flat, there goes your transportation. Period. You'll also want to have a really good lock on it because you'll probably want to leave it outside if you go somewhere and bikes will be gold.

Despite all of the water you probably have stored in your basement, you will run out eventually. Where are you going to get it? I doubt it will be pumped to our faucets so we'll have to go get it. How are you going to carry it? Wouldn't it be easier to haul it in something with wheels? People in this book were carrying it in big, clean empty trashcans or installing wheels on storage containers. You could use a wagon. Think about it. You won't want to carry as much water as your family will need for a couple of days, especially if you need to do any clothes washing, hair washing, toilet flushing, etc. Also, think about purchasing one of those single person water purification systems that automatically purifies the water as you drink it. They're expensive but then you don't have to buy the tablets or boil all of your drinking water. Good idea. I personally also bought a collapsible water container (it was about $6) that has a handle, a funnel to get the water into it and I can throw it into my kids' wagon for easy transport.

Do you own a gun? You might need it. If word gets out about your fantastic food storage or all the emergency supplies you have, you'll be a target for robberies or burglaries. Don't think for a second they won't kill you for it. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Protect your family and your hard-earned supplies. If you're like me, you might own a weapon but never thought about the ammunition you might need. Duh. I bought two cases of shells today and feel a lot better now. Don't worry - everything is child safe.

Another thing. I have lots of oil lamps around my house. I've talked about them before; I collect them because they're pretty. So I was feeling pretty good about having them knowing that we'd have light! Hello! I don't own a drop of kerosene! All those lamps will be useless to me if I don't have fuel. Speaking of fuel - you might want to store some of that if you have 4-wheelers or plan to use anything that requires fuel (like your car). Make sure you check for safe storage methods for fuel though.

The last thing I have to say about this is food. A lot of us store food and it's no secret. But if something were to go really wrong and we needed to hunt, or we happen onto a larger cut of meat, it might be nice to know that we don't have to eat it all within 1-2 days before it goes bad. Especially if you have to suddenly use all of that meat in your large freezer. I know I have a lot of meat in there and would panic if my freezer all of the sudden lost power. People have been preserving meat for zillions of years and we can still do it today with a little bit of information. It's probably a stretch that we need to know this but wouldn't you hate yourself if someday you need to know it and you have no idea how to do it? Here's the instructions so just print out this post and stick it in your food storage and then you'll always have it.

Ingredients

• 200 lbs beef (freshly killed, rounds only)
• 1 pint salt
• 1 teaspoon saltpeter
• 1/4 lb brown sugar

Directions

1. Mix the last three ingredients well, rubbing out all lumps.
2. Divid mixture into three equal portions.
3. Place meat in a large bowl and rub thoroughly with one portion of the mixture
4. Let stand one day.
5. Follow same procedure on second and third days.
6. Turn meat several times a day.
7. Allow meat to remain in bowl for 7 more days, then hang up until meat stops dripping
8. When dripping has stopped, hang in a cool place about 6 weeks to dry thoroughly.
9. Wrap meat in clean muslin bags and keep in a cool place.
10. If in 6 months, meat becomes too hard, soak in cold water for 24 hours and wipe dry.
11. Wrap again in muslin and hang in a cool place.

You may also want to know how to do bottle/can preservation without a stove - like how to do it over a fire. Again, you never know what you'll need. This stuff is just information and it's free right now so it's stupid not to get it and sock it away for the "what if's" in the future. The more you know, the better off you'll be. Who knows: information may be as valuable as money is today.

I hope this gives you all some new things to think about and different ways of approaching your emergency preparedness. Try to think about the things you do now and how you would accomplish them later. And for all the supplies you have, make sure you have everything you'd need to make them work for you.

Kids Are Funny

I'm sitting here on my bed listening to Bugs who is in her room playing with her GameBoy. I just heard her say, "Don't mess with ME, guy!"

I let my hair air dry this morning and now whenever I see myself in a mirror I hate how I look! What would I do without electricity?

Teaching Kids a Good Work Ethic

If anyone was watching me during church today, I'm sure they thought I was sleeping. Well, I wasn't. I was TRYING but it didn't come. Bugs kept poking me in the side to help her decipher her coloring book (huh?) and the speaker during that particular segment was actually really engaging and so...I couldn't sleep. Shoot!

Ahh. Just kidding you guys. I admit I have fallen asleep in Sacrament before but today I wasn't actually trying to do so. My lids were very heavy though but the speaker WAS engaging and the message did get through. What I heard was about teaching children a good work ethic. I thought that was an excellent message and actually a very important idea!

So I got looking around today and found a website that had some really good ideas for how to do it and thought I'd share it. I've enlisted a few of these ideas before today of course but am going to do a few more of them on a more regular basis (like teach them to help out with everyday chores that would be easier to do myself). I remember working a lot as a kid and am grateful now that I was required to.

God Grant Me Serenity

I had a very excellent week. With a new time management system, a bunch of motivation and some really good kids, I was able to get quite a lot done and I'm feeling on top of the world.

Tonight I took Tinker out in the wagon and it was light sweater weather, my favorite, and as I walked I just felt complete serenity. It's fleeting, serenity. I've discovered that it's not a feeling one can have on an ongoing basis and that when you finally feel it surround you, take a breath and enjoy it while it's there. Because it's bliss.

All was right in my world in those few moments and I can only hope that heaven feels like that utter contentment I felt right then as I thought about my life.

I managed to "spring clean" my backyard flower beds today with the baby out there with me (it's a miracle), I paid bills without the stress of wondering how it was all going to come through, I am completely caught up on laundry, dinner was a success tonight, I'm caught up at work, my desk is clean, my children are bathed, fed and happy...and The Marshmallow is home building me a stringing system for my peas mostly because he loves me.

After last week, I did deserve that moment of serenity. Thank You Lord.

Don't Forget To Kill Yourself When You're 65

I received some sage advice from a patient today when asked to give her insight to someone my age about how to avoid being frail and sick when they get to be, how should I say, advanced in years. This question, of course, required every ounce of my tact and diplomacy as to not offend her. She took it well and told me, and I quote...

"Die young."

It's noon and my blood pressure is a-risin'.

Dead Rats Are Troublemakers

Okay, Remy's not dead but he's a rat so he fits. Just go with it.

Remember I live on a busy street? Sometimes it sucks (like when I get garbage thrown on my lawn) and sometimes it doesn't (when I get to see all my friends walking or driving down the street and they wave - that happens a lot).

Today, it brought surprising events to my world, some good and some bad. Let's start with The Rat.

Mr. Dead Rat has been clinging to the sidewalk a few houses down tucked up against a brick wall for going on 3 weeks now. I discovered him while taking a walk. I thought to call someone and then thought about something else *poof* - it was gone. Until a week later I saw The Rat again and Bugs and I discussed it at length. Again *poof* - gone the instant I hit my front door because well, I'm a mom and have a zillion things to attend to (make that screams to attend to).

I've seen The Rat several times since then and hate it. It makes me feel like I live somewhere very urban and dirty whereas I actually live in a rather clean, small suburb. But today as I drove home I noticed some people gathered around The Rat and it took me a minute to realize it was my friend Kelly and her son. So I pulled over and commenced a yelling conversation over 2 lanes of traffic with her. Ever tried it?

Behind us about 30 yards was a classroom full of kids out on what looked like a fieldtrip to the grocery store - this I know because Bugs has one tomorrow. Boy, gone are the days when going to the grocery store constitutes a field trip. I'm thinking to myself what a marvel The Rat will be when they get up to it when all of the sudden Kelly and I hear this huge squeal of tires and then a crash. Right in front of us, a little car smashed into the back of another little car turning left.

Turns out the smasher was too busy watching Kelly watching The Rat, me - who was pulled over to check out Kelly watching The Rat, and the kids who were about to watch The Rat. She never had a chance. A person not distracted by this zoo of activity would have to be dead.

Later when the cop came to investigate the smasharoo, Kelly and I are still engaged in conversation, this time on my sidewalk, when a couple of bicyclists come riding by and they're shouting at each other to be heard over the traffic. And they're shouting the "F" word to each other. So here are Kelly and my kids standing there at our feet and I'm like, "Hey!" gesturing wildly to our kids like - "have a little respect you "f'ing idiots!" Haha, just kidding. But the guy turns around and starts shouting back at us "F, F, F, F" but the whole word just to be a total doughhead! And having absolutely no respect for the fact that children are sitting there listing to him. Bugs was like, "what did he say?" and I told her he was talking about pucks and hockey. She had a skeptical and distrusting look on her face but what could she do?

So, if you see a dead rat on your street, please call the City Sanitation Department immediately to have it removed. If you don't, you will likely get in a crash and have to explain to your kids why bicyclists would rather discuss hockey while they're riding.

It's all just another day in the neighborhood.

I'm Going Down Fighting

The Marshmallow shaved off his facial hair today, and I seriously detest when he does this. I've known him for too long with it and he just looks like a different person to me! I humor him when he shaves it all off but look forward to when it will all grow back. And it will. It always does.

But I was making a comment about my gray hairs this evening and he mentioned that when he shaved this morning he noticed that many of the hairs in the sink were white! He's blonde, so of course he'll go white which irritates me to no end. Here's a man who has no care in the world about what color his hair will be in ten years and he gets to go gloriously white. It's about as unfair as men losing weight so much faster than women. Just another proverbial "bird finger" to the fairness of it all.

Me, on the other hand, will go that ghastly shade of gray. I'm already seeing it - sort of silverly and spikey with no desire to be tamed. If I pulled them all out at this point, like I've been doing for 5 years , 6 years, I wouldn't have enough hair to style anymore. But I'm not letting it take me down before I'm ready to go. My cute little 80-something grandma still bleaches her hair out blonde monthly. And I have no qualms whatsoever in following in her tiny little footsteps. I will be vain until the day I die. Gray just doesn't go with anything in my closet.

The Strangest Thing I've Seen Today Is GoGirl

Product Features

• Allows women the convenience of going to the bathroom standing up
• Reusable can be washed with soap and water
• Includes a reusable storage tube with a baggie and tissue
• Made from medical grade silicone that conforms to your body
• Pink tube with lavender GoGirl

Browsing around Amazon today looking for medical supplies for my work, I came across this actual item for sale and it's specifications. I'm intrigued...are people really going to buy this? And would it really work? I'm imagining the logistics of an actual visit to the ladies room out on a shopping trip. Do you take it to the sink and wash it up right in front of others? Do you really wash it in the sink? Or do you tuck it in its baggie and take it home with you? What if you need to use it again before you've gotten home to wash it?

I read the reviews, which there were 6, and they all gave 5 stars. Turns out, most of them are using it as a camping aid. Whodathunkit? Evidently some woman who hates it that men have it so easy in the woods!

If you happen to decide to use it in a public restroom, then it all comes down to...are you a sitter, or a squatter? You don't of course need to tell me, I'm just saying...

Some Days Are Like This

This was NOT an awesome day. I felt so frazzled, more frazzled than I have in months. I literally locked myself away 2x today from my kids. That's not a good sign.

Tink was so fussy and has been all week long but today was the grand finale. I could not set her down for even a second. I tried my throw back tactic of putting her in her crib each time she screamed until she calmed and then I'd bring her back to society and I did that repeatedly until I felt like a torturer instead of a nurturer and gave up on it. We went outside to the sandbox where she had a much better time. But this was after several hours of dealing with the crying. The Marshmallow says he thinks she's getting a cold on top of whatever else has been ailing her all week long (teeth? constipation? who the freak knows anyway).

And so my typical o-so-patient response is to completely freak out on Bugs who is an angel comparatively these days and treat her like she's the one causing my angst. She's so ultra-sensitive that she has a melt down if you look at her the wrong way. And so I ended up in my bedroom, door closed, in tears myself, on my knees asking the Lord to please just help me know what to do and to please help me be a more patient and kind mother today. It helped; it always does even if just for the moment I had peace. That is until Bugs was pounding on the door (crying) wanting to know why I had shut my door and what I was doing (she gets scared when she's alone). It took ALL MY WILLPOWER not to screech at her to leave me the heck alone for just a few minutes. But to my credit, I opened the door slowly and kindly brought her in and explained that mommy is a nervous wreck and is tearing out her hair with Tink's crying and that mommy is sorry to take it out on Bugs.

I hate that I have to work but I'm actually glad that I get to go to work tomorrow morning and leave The Marshmallow with my world.

Oh, and to top off my awesome day, The Marshmallow brought home a little mini excavator to rip out some bushes in the backyard (yay!) and as he was maneuvering through the carport and into the backyard with it, he tore a huge chunk out of my totally awesome, nearly antique dehydrator that my mother so generously let me borrow last year (ya, borrow) - and now what I am going to tell her? They don't make these things anymore and it's like a family heirloom of sorts. I was absolutely SICK but it was a total freak accident and The Marshmallow is a total wreck over it. What could I say? Well, I did say a few choice phrases but took them back later when I told him I wasn't mad at him, just at what had happened.

Ahhhh. And he wonders why I like escapism in my leisure time.

Kirkland Organic Animal Crackers: I couldn't
be more addicted to any food. Sad.

So it's my day off and it's also Spring Break and I have two sick children, has spent the las two days at the doctor for both children and we can't even go swimming or do anything fun because Bugs is contagious for a few more days. Good thing we didn plan a big vacation because THAT would totally suck.

hCG Giveaway!!!

I have decided to do a giveaway! It will be a 2oz bottle of hCG which will come along with the instructions to do the protocol. This is a $50 value!

All you have to do is visit my hCG website and tell me the "key words". You'll find them on the homepage. Then, leave me a comment on this post telling me what they are. That's it! The winner will be chosen on April 28th.

Talking About This House

Can I just tell you how much I love my house? If it were up to me, we would not move...ever. I know this house is very average, not new, has a lot of issues, has a really small master bedroom and an even smaller master bathroom with a tiny little shower, has the ugliest front porch you've ever seen, has absolutely no curb appeal, needs a new roof, new electrical, new plumbing, a new fence, new baseboards, new windows, and my storage room leaks like the sky in March, not to mention I only have a 1-car garage, a front door that looks like it's from the dark ages, and a number of other random problems. Haha, you think - there could possibly be more???? Ya, there's more.

But....I love it anyway. I'm not sure what it is about it but I do. It flows well for me, there's lots of room - plenty for everyone, the backyard is so huge and full of potential, I have a huge garden, a beautiful patio and it just feels like home to me. Truthfully I've lived longer in this house than any other home as an adult. We've been here for five years.

We always told each other that once our kids were in school we would try to stay put. I moved around a great deal as a kid and decided that's not good for children. We thought we'd be in our beautiful "new" home by the time Bugs started school. And then the economy hit us like a freight train and I mentioned to The Marshmallow last night that we'd probably be here for a long time. He signed (he does NOT like our house: his dreams are loftier) and agreed. And inwardly I smiled.

We were discussing the changes to this house we could make. It's a pastime we often engage in because it helps us feel like we're accomplishing things even if we're standing in the same place. We dream together and, I don't know, it brings us closer even if we never even do these things. Does that make sense?

We have this weird open space at the bottom of our stairs. Our stairs are at an angle through our house making the rooms around them more trapezoidal than square. Our kitchen is sort of a triangle, as is these rooms at the bottom of the stairs. I told The Marshmallow that it's the only thing about our house that is truly unique and has character and I don't want to change that. He hates that and disagrees. If it weren't for the fact that our floors are made of concrete, he'd have changed the layout long ago.

Anyway about the weird space: part of it I have converted to a kid's play area and I think it's a good utilization of space. And since my kids are playing in that space all of the time, I felt like the other half of the space would be best utilized by my office. And it works out pretty well. Except for the fact that both areas are constantly a huge mess. I have two desks in this area which are always cluttered with paperwork, random projects, my beads and any number of thing that is dumped here. The toy room is always a huge mess that anyone can see from my foyer as they glance down the stairs. Not good but functional.

So, the burning question is should I change this space? Both spaces look out to the east and get nice afternoon sun. There are huge windows and we have a slider that can replace one of the windows but we don't know which one. We can turn the office-type space into a kitchenette because it's plumbed for water. There's an atrocious door right in the middle of the wall that I'd prefer to remove. And we don't know if we should tile or carpet the whole space. I think tile especially because of the messy traffic in from outside (dirt, sand, leaves, snow etc.) and on carpet, it would be immediately destroyed.

Well, so that's what we're debating now. Besides the hallway bathroom upstairs, it's the last space that needs an overhaul. It's the only room that still has original carpet (like from when we moved in) and it's very industrial but really great for the kids' space.

Can you tell I'm thinking aloud?

For those of you who know this space, let me know what you think. Kitchenette or tidied up office? If you were a buyer, what would be more desirable to you - just in case we put it up for sale on a whim.

I almost forgot about the really cool plan we thought up too. Our house is really long and has a sort of flatter roof. The Marshmallow was talking about increasing the slope on our roof and in the process creating a bonus room space up there with some dormer windows on the front and back. I instantly thought of our old house which had this same thing. The attic was our master bedroom & bathroom. That house was much smaller but still we had a HUGE master bedroom. If we converted the entire attic to a master bedroom, it would be enormous and have a huge bathroom, even HUGER closet and even room for a sitting room with actual couches and maybe even a little library. I am all over that idea and just the thought of that makes me giddy! I know the process would be so painful but to have all of that space just for us would be so amazing. I'd never want to go downstairs!

My baby's sick with who knows what and has been for a few days and today I had to work. There's nothing in this world I hate more is to not be able to be with my kids when they're sick! it makes me feel like the worst mom ever!

For the record, I think it's rude to ask someone if they're on a diet. It's like asking someone if they're pregnant. Just don't go there! Play it safe, be polite and keep your thoughts to yourself.

Happy Easter

Well, Easter's now over but still Happy Easter anyway.

I'm still up, rather uncharacteristically for me lately because I've been at my computers all day finishing up my re-installs. They are never completely smooth. I finished my laptop nearly all the way but am being confounded by the installation of my primary printer. And now I'm waiting on the generosity of other HP forum readers to help me out. I'm staring impatiently at my in-box waiting for some blessed soul to give me the answer to my quest.

I also formatted my PC today and re-installed only very pertinent programs. This is my kids' computer and it only needs to be basic but it was loaded down with all sorts of my old crap since it used to be my primary computer. But it's done and it's wonderful. Like it's brand new all over again.

I made a real Easter dinner tonight. This is not my forte - cooking holiday meals. I just can't get in the groove. I usually completely miss the mark on big holidays like Christmas (we've had frozen burritos one year) and Thanksgiving (good thing we usually go to a relative's house or we'd be having shells & cheese and PB&J). I just forget that big detail in my preparations! Fortunately I had a ham in the freezer already so I plunked it in the roaster. I made some crescent rolls, buttered beans and the obligatory shells & cheese.

We were invited to my Grandma's for Easter dinner tonight and we planned to go until around 11am we realized that Tink was going to be a literal monster all day. I believe she was teething but it was murder around here all day and to take her anywhere would have been hell on wheels, and that's no lie. We thought we'd save our sanity and my mom and grandma's since they go crazy out of forgetting what it's like to have a teething munchkin.

Anyway, I AM going to bed now. Hopefully I'll get the email in the morning that solves my problems.

I hope YOU had a fun Easter. Nothing beats chasing your kids around the house with the video camera as they find eggs, candy, and baskets. I told The Marshmallow last night that this is my favorite part about being a parent. The holidays are the best!

My Two Front Teef

Bugs has officially lost both bottom and top teeth. Both top teeth were so loose they dangled there for days because she was too nervous to pull them. The top left actually fell out in her sleep but yesterday the top right started bleeding so The Marshmallow grabbed a piece of napkin to dab out out the blood and while he was at it, he grabbed the tooth too and pulled it out. She said she didn't even feel it and was so happy he did it. I can't believe she's lost all these teeth and she's not even 6 yet! I can't get over looking at that little face without baby teeth anymore.

Back Online

Wow! That was way easier than I anticipated. It went very smoothly getting my computer back working.

For future reference, and something I didn't know but when you re-install Vista and it tells you it's going to delete all of your data, it doesn't really. It throws it into a big folder called "windows.old" and it's all there, available for you to move around. It had me stumped for a while because I had hardly anything loaded on and yet it was taking up almost 100G! I couldn't figure out why I had LESS space than before I re-installed!

Fortunately I had stored the "set-up.exe" for all of my important programs on my external hard drive and could run them from there saving me a lot of time finding them on the internet or putting in CD's. Ahhh. It's nice to have a clean computer, it's almost brand new again!

Now onto the PC.

Status

OK. I'm back on-line with the laptop. Now I just need to find out if I saved all the necessary files AND if I have all the necessary CD's for re-installation of all my programs. I'm sure I forgot something.

Love/Hate Taxes

Are you an ostrich like me? If I am worried or scared about something money related, I stick my head in the sand and ignore it until it becomes a much bigger issue and demands my attention which usually, at that point, it is a huge mess and costs me considerably more angst (and money, lol).

At the beginning of 2009, I had to get my taxes done but I was so worried about some tax issues that we were having that I filed an extension and then shut it out of my brain. Yes, my mind would return again to it every now and then but the thoughts would be full of worry and anxiety.

I knew I'd have to get around to it eventually and so I did. I took it all to an accountant a few weeks back and started sorting through the mess. I have been so worried these past weeks about the penalties I'd have to pay for not getting them in before the extension ran out.

The accountant sent me the forms to sign today and I was absolutely blown away by the REFUND. I'm quite sure we've never received a refund that high before in our entire life. I'm totally freaking out because we need the money SO BAD and this is like a huge windfall.

I have high hopes now for 2009 because both The Marshmallow and I both only worked about 1/2 of the year, get to write off Tinkerpot and a whole host of other stuff that is good only in the world of taxes. I had to get Tink's social security number today and a few other business things and I'll be able to submit it all to the accountant this afternoon. I'm crossing my fingers for good luck!

Today is being allocated to deleting my laptop hard drive and doing a complete reinstall. I know I said I was to do it months ago but I chickened out. I'm ready. I'm sick of all of the problems I've been having. Wish me luck!

The Hurricanes I Bore

There has GOT to be a better way. GOT to be.

Every night it is the same old thing. The Marshmallow gets home from work (and this time always varies) and the whole house falls apart. Both of the kids' schedules self-implode and the world revolves around Dad. Which basically means that whatever messes have been created up until this point cease to become important to anyone, dinner begins and the evening routine starts. Everyone heads downstairs to decompress and chill and then another mess gets made in the family room.

So, a huge mess in Bug's room, a huge mess in the front room upstairs and then a huge mess downstairs. I've tried getting Bugs up early and chasing her around the house to clean them all up but that only stresses me out and she leaves for school crying.

I've tried making sure that all messes upstairs are clean before heading downstairs but often they slip through my fingers and are downstairs before the messes are cleaned up and The Marshmallow (being true to his gooey center) just says he'll come up and clean it up later. He also doesn't want to make Bugs clean up messes that perhaps Tink made so he'd rather clean them up himself than make Bugs do it. Cleaning upstairs before heading down is actually the most successful cleaning "rule" I've had but the downstairs is still a humongous problem.

Or, the time passes too quickly and before anyone is aware, it's time for bed and the mess wasn't cleaned up.

I'm totally sick of it. We all know who ends up cleaning up 60% of these messes! Seriously on Wednesday afternoon it took me 45 minutes to clean up the basement. It was disgusting and I was so sick of it that I honestly just walked around with a trash can and I threw away 25% of what was on the floor. I tied it all up in a garbage bag and threw it away while Bugs was gone. She'll never know the difference.

What am I supposed to do? What do other people do? I know I shouldn't allow cartoons right up to the point that she goes to bed but this is a routine between her and her dad where they get their snuggle time. It's family time down in the living room between 7 & 9 so it's not realistically the best time for cleaning but I don't know how to get around the horrible messes that get made in that time and I resent having to clean them myself. Usually if The Marshmallow says he'll clean, he doesn't because he forgets or it's just not as important to him as it is to me.

Sorry, I'm just complaining but I'm bugged and frustrated. Other people with kids can probably give me some tips?????