Product Review - Nivea Sun-Kissed Beautiful Legs

I am pale skinned - almost clear. I don't tan, I burn. With doing the water aerobics thing, the upper half of my body has gotten a LITTLE bit of color and because I am submerged from the waist down, my legs look whiter than white!

I saw an ad on TV for the Nivea Sun-Kissed Beautiful Legs with Shave Minimizing lotion and decided to give it a try. A couple of years ago I tried another self-tanning lotion and it made my legs look weird! But this Nivea stuff comes in two shades and the one for fair to medium skin it really quiet impressive. It was a little streaky at first but then balanced out after a few days.

The first time I used it was right after shaving my legs in the shower and while it definitely kept my legs smooth, I didn't see it as keeping me shave free for any great length of time. True, I am a bit obsessive about shaving my legs (I HATE stubble!) but I went for an extra day or two longer than I usually do between shavings. I guess it could be different for others.

The tanning action - which they call a gradual tan moisturizer - works nicely. Again, the color isn't freakish or orangy and really, I am pleased with the results. Frank said that he thought the color looked weird at first but once we got outside in the sun he realized it was just the lighting in the house that day.

You can find this for around $7.99 for a 6.7 fl. oz at Wal-Mart. I think it is totally worth it!

On the Road Again...

Because we are forever on a budge, when we travel as a family, we drive. We've been up and down the East Coast a LOT!

I consider us to be simple-folk (and not in a hillbilly kind of way!) but somehow when we travel we become very complex people. My children, who normally sit down and watch ANYTHING are suddenly movie critics about what they are willing to watch in the car! They have been discussing their selections for a month! When we get in the car to leave, they will already have a movie playing in the DVD player! For crying out loud, they don't even give themselves a chance to settle in on the road!

I have a very limited wardrobe and yet I look like some sort of Diva when I travel. I've got several outfit changes, multiple pairs of shoes, every beauty product known to man and everything in my medicine cabinet with me! It normally looks like I am going away for a month rather than a week!

In order to save money on food, we pack a cooler. Unfortunately, we are food snobs. No PB&J's for us! Oh no, I make fried chicken sandwiches that need to be made fresh on the morning of our departure, canned soda (the good stuff, Coke, not store brand), and snacks galore. Sometimes I even bake! Honestly, at this rate eating out might be the cheaper option!

This trip is 14 hours each way. We alternate driving every state. I'm unsure if Nick will get in to the rotation this time - he decided to wait on another road test until after we get back. I'm kind of relieve if truth be known. Stupid DMV!!

So off we go...car loaded to overflowing? Check. Too much food? Check. My sanity holding on by a thread? Check.

Michael Jackson Memorial - My Thoughts

Michael Jackson died. Did anyone else hear this?? Seriously, I think the last time we saw this kind of coverage was when Princess Diana died. I watched the memorial and actually saw MOST of it live, but I caught the rest of it in re-runs later that night.

I understand that this man was an extremely gifted entertainer. The way he could sing, even as a child, was just amazing. His dancing was awe inspiring. It is likely that we will never again see such talent in an entertainer. What bothered me most was the behavior of the fans. I thought it was pretty amazing for the fans to be invited to such an event. The Staples Center seemed full to capacity. But all intents and purposes, this was NOT a concert, it was a MEMORIAL. When they wheeled Michael Jackson's casket in to the spotlight and you were waiting for things to begin, there were fans screaming out his name. I'm sorry, but if you went to a memorial for your grandmother would you be screaming "WOO! GRANDMA, WE LOVE YOU!!" Of course you wouldn't! Why? Because it is inappropriate! For crying out loud, people! Show some restraint!

Berry Gordy seemed to be doing a promo for Motown more than a eulogy. We all know the history of Motown and the Jackson 5, that was really not the arena to toot your own horn about all of the amazing acts that came out of Motown. Poor taste. Mariah Carey? Her original rendition of "I'll Be There" which she first premiered on MTV Unplugged, I think, was was more tasteful. Yes, yes, we all know that you can reach those really obnoxiously high notes. It's a MEMORIAL! Sing the song tastefully, without showing off, and get off the stage. And we could have done with a little less cleavage, too, by the way.

For the most part, it was very touching. It was nice to see him remembered in such a way and his daughter's speech at the end just moves me to tears every time I see it. And I have a feeling, we'll be seeing it a LOT in times to come.

Mmmm...tasty snack review

I am a snacker. I am not picky about what I snack on, it just has to be yummy. The list is endless there, right? Sometimes I want chocolate - either in cake, candy or ice cream form, other times I might crave something crunchy like chips and dip or salsa (dips are a good thing!), and other times I go a little more bland with the need for a good cracker.

Well, while trying to lose weight, snacking options become hard to find. There are tons of low fat stuff out there but most of them don't taste very good. So I kind of felt like I lucked out when I found these Wheat Thin Toasted Chips in Garden Valley Veggie Flavor. OMG!!! I LOVE these things. They are crunchy and flavorful and well...just plain delicious.

After fighting Michael over the first bag, I had to go out for a second one and decided that I needed to do something to make these things last longer. What to do...what to do...DIP! I needed some sort of topping for them. I was thinking of some sort of cheese topping but couldn't find one that thrilled me. So I walked around the local supermarket in search of a topping and happened upon the cream cheese section and what do I find but Philadelphia cream cheese with Spinach and Artichokes!

O...
M...
G...

That's right, friends, snack perfection. Michael, of course, loves it too and so I've had to "monitor" his snack in take so that there is SOMETHING left for me. Man, can that boy eat!!

So if you're bored with your usual snacks, give these a try. And give me a call...I'll bring the beverage!

Fourth Grade Going on Forty!

Poor Michael. He went back to school today to start the fourth grade. For those of you who do not live in the area, you should know that Michael goes to year-round school and yes, it is just as annoying as it sounds. He had one week off between third and fourth grade. Now, granted, this eliminates the need for so much review at the beginning of each school year, but for the families, well, it means no summer vacation at all. Honestly, it sucks.

So being a newly crowned fourth grader, Michael came to us with a request. He is nine. Almost ten. He believes that his bed time should be later to compensate for his growth and wisdom. It really must be rough for him to be the youngest in the house. He so badly wants to be big. He wants the same privileges as his much older brother and when we try to explain to him that it is just not possible, well, you can imagine the response we get!

I tried to take him seriously tonight at the dinner table when he made his request. I listened intently as he plead his case and then I made a deal with him - if he wakes up on time for one full week without yelling or crying or whining or carrying on, then we will make his bedtime 30 minutes later. To him, this was sufficient but as his mother, I am well aware that there is NO chance of him accomplishing this goal. We finished eating and I thought we were done.

Now we tackle his homework. Yes, homework on the first day of school!! Honestly I think it is INSANE what is expected of kids in school today. He had eight pages of homework. EIGHT! I guess his bedtime will be increased because he'll be up all daggone night doing his homework! It's kind of my fault that he is working on it so late. I really did not believe that there would be homework tonight so when he got off the bus this afternoon, I took him swimming at a friend's house. We came home, had a snack, hung out and then I was like "Hey, did your teacher send home any paperwork for me today?" and out it all came! There were like a dozen forms for me to fill out and then at the very bottom of the pile was his homework. There has been much whining, crying and carrying on now - mostly from Frank!

My husband and I are from a different generation. When we were in elementary school (back in the 70's for crying out loud!), the work load was no where's near what it is now. Kindergarden was half day and that included nap time and play time! Grades one through three were fairly light and fourth grade, things did get a bit tougher but not eight pages worth of homework on the first night! So not only am I dealing with the nine year old being annoyed and upset over all of the homework, but I've got his dad carrying on too! I had to pull Frank aside and tell him to SHUT IT! I mean, the boy takes his cues from us and if dad is carrying on that the assignment is unfair, who do you think is going to take that attitude to school with him tomorrow and share it with the teacher? The same boy who once told his second grade teacher that she talked too much while giving a spelling test!!

I was sitting in my room watching the Michael Jackson Memorial - the condensed version - and Michael came walking in; clearly taking a break from the work. He sits down next to me and says "Mom, you know how you said that if I got up on time for five days that I'd get to go to bed a half hour later?" So I said yes and he's like "Well if I do it for ten days, can I stay up an hour later?"

Sure, when it comes to bedtime math he's like rain man, but fourth grade math and it takes him all daggone night to get it done!!

After Twenty Years, the Adventure Continues!!

Twenty years ago today, Frank and I had our first date. I KNOW! Wild, right? We met at his sister's college graduation party where he generously offered to pour me a drink.

Sigh.

We talked, we laughed, he invited me to go to a bar with him and his friends but alas, I was not of age and did not have proof, and so he left. Seriously, I think I was a little more interested that he was! So I did some investigating, got his phone number and two weeks later, called. We played phone tag for another couple of weeks and when we did finally have time to talk, we talked for hours! After several of these lengthy phone conversations, I was like "So are you EVER going to ask me out?" And he did.

And we've been together ever since. Romantic, right?

The Frank and Stacey of 1989 were: Frank was a machinist working twelve hour days living in a basement apartment, Stace worked in retail management at Foxmoor's (a Junior clothing store) and was renting a room at a friend's house. Somehow these two crazy kids found each other and fell in love. I moved in less than two months later and he hasn't been able to get rid of yet!

Happy Anniversary, Baby! I love you more each and every day!

Who Is This Boy??

Parenting is a weird thing. Some days you just have no clue where it all went wrong. Yesterday was one of those days.

Having a teen in the house means that we have to adjust to him NOT being in the house. He is very social. He has a job. We are uncool to be around. I GET these things. I remember being the exact same way at seventeen. Yesterday's drama unfolded in the form of what should have been a very easy conversation. He and his girlfriend have broken up. They started with a break but then decided to just break up. Okay. This is not a huge thing, teen couples break up all of the time. Well, the problem that we - the parents - have, is that the boy is still hanging out with the girl all the time. "We're best friends!", he tells us, and while that is ... well, that's weird! Plain and simple it's weird.

I think it's nice that they parted as friends. There was no drama, no one cheated, no one is angry, it seems that they just sort of outgrew one another. Okay, so then WHY be together all the time? Which is what we were asking him when he freaked out and basically told us to mind our own business because this was HIS life!

???

Um, excuse me...remember us, the people who GAVE you life? The people who put a roof over your head? Food on the table? Clothes on your back? Have taken COUNTLESS rides to the freakin DMV with you? Son, it is NOT your life yet. This started what turned in to a three-hour mini-series event. There was screaming, yelling, crying...you name it, we had it in spades. Somehow, though, the parents concerns got lost and suddenly we were no longer talking about the relationship with the ex-girlfriend but about how we, being scary people, have not allowed him to be his TRUE self.

Yes, you read that right. His TRUE self.

He is a man of God. He is a follower of Jesus Christ. He is a Godly man and he could not EXPRESS that because of US. For those of you who don't know me, let me introduce myself, "Hi, I'm Stace, and I became a believer in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior on February 4th, 1996." On top of that, we've gone to church for the last 14 years. The boy has been in church, Sunday school, youth groups and bible studies for 14 years. He tells us that we would have MOCKED him if he acted as his "true" self! Now, I will admit that Frank and I have some issues with some Christians who cannot talk about ANYTHING BUT the bible. I think being a Christian is great, but if you cannot talk about anything else, then I, personally have a problem. So we asked him "Can you talk about anything else but the bible as this Godly man?" and he's like "Yes" so where do we have a problem? Where do the scary, mocking parents come in?

Seriously, one a.m. is so NOT the time to be throwing this kind of discussion at me! I felt angered beyond belief at him for many, many reasons and not one of them involved him being a man of God. My main anger was that, once again, he took and issue that we had with him and turned it around to put the blame elsewhere. Secondly, I do not like people who then use the bible or their relationship with God to hide behind. And thirdly, I do not take kindly to liars. How is he a liar? Well, by his behavior and his actions. We have no idea who this child is because he never tells the truth. We think that it is great that he has a relationship with God, but you'd never know it by his actions in the home! He is nasty to his brother, he is disrespectful to us as his parents and honestly, you never get a straight answer out of him on anything! He wants us to accept him as he is (this newly formed Man of God) with no questions, no comments and just praise the heck out of him, but he is unwilling to accept US or anyone for that matter as they are! I have a HUGE issue with that one.

On and on and on it went. I'm still confused. After much talk I just laid it out for him - Okay, if this is what you are proclaiming then you better be prepared to be called on it when you are not doing it. Don't hold it over our head about how Godly and spriritual you are and then behave like a brat when you don't get your way. And you know what? I know that we all fall short. I get that, seriously. But as a Chistian, I know that I do things that I should not. I'm sure God would love it if I stopped cursing like a sailor when I'm angry. I'm sure that He'd also like it if I stopped getting angry! But I do not stand up and PROFESS my perfection. If you're going to profess it and want to shove it down everyone's throat, then be prepared to live it 24/7.

I'm still not happy with all of it but in the end I think we made headway on the original topic of not being a hanger-on with the ex. Pick your battles and baby steps seems to be the theme of the day.

My Roll Hit a Bump!

So I've been extremely active this week with the walking and the water aerobics and was feeling very proud of myself AND seeing some results. Yes, my arms do actually look a little more tones as do my legs. I will have very little shame walking on the beach next weekend!

Someone forgot to inform my uterus of my progress.

Seriously, I was all set for some fun Fourth of July swimming action and now...well, I can't. I am not one of those women who - during their period - run on the beach in a white bathing suit so that I can get to my horse faster so that I can ride. I know! Weird, right?? Oh, well, I guess there goes the dream of ever starring in a tampon commercial!

So, there I was on a roll with everything and now I am too busy popping Advil like Pez to do anything. Well not anything, I did manage to get through a two mile Walk Away the Pounds walk. Frank was outside changing the oil in the car while I did it and when he came in he saw me here at the computer but noticed that I was sweaty and he's like "How fast are you typing??" Gotta love that man!

So, I'll be pool-less for a few days. Dang it! I'll have to walk again. The beauty of the water aerobics is no sweating! I hate to sweat! But I'll have to deal with it for a few days. The cool thing is that even while in Florida, I will have access to a pool every day so I should be able to stay on track. The key is to not indulge in too much "home cooking" while with both sets of parents! Dad has already promised me homemade ravioli (although, after he promised them to ME alone, he then took it back and promised half of them to my Uncle!) and my mother in law has promised her world-famous meatballs! Are we noticing a trend here? Italian much?

I hope that all of you have a fabulous Fourth of July. Stay safe!

Social Graces - Friend or Foe?

Today Donna and I did a rather early water aerobics session. Note to self: 8:30 in the morning is a little early for my body to be submerged in cool pool water.

On the average, we've been doing this for five weeks and usually range from 90 minutes to two hours at a shot. We talk non-stop the entire time. Today the topic of guests in the home and hospitality came up. Her stepdaughter and the grandchildren were on their way here from out of state and they were driving through the night so that was why we needed to do an extra early workout. Her stepdaughter does not do well with coming in to their home after a long drive and have people she does not know there. I was 100% okay with that so I did my swimming and got out of there.

While we were swimming, another friend called and informed Donna that she was stopping by. Donna very nicely but sternly informed her that it was not a good time and told her about the stepdaughter's imminent arrival. Well, the friend did not seem to listen and was coming over anyway - but she said that she was coming over "right now" and would be out of her hair quickly.

I'm sorry, but what part of "now is not a good time" is hard to understand? This person had something that she wanted to drop off at my friends house BUT they were going to see each other later on in the day and it just would have been the polite thing to do to WAIT. Now, I was there for another twenty minutes after their phone conversation and they only live five minutes away and they never appeared. So what defines coming over "right now"?

Is Donna inhospitable? No. Far from it. I am an extremely hospitable person. I LOVE having people over. When it is convenient!! I've had people show up at my door and while I always let them in, I find it rude that they don't bother to call first. What's worse is that they stay for extended periods of time without bothering to ask if I am busy or if they were interrupting something! Yes, I am partially to blame because I should speak up more but again, I am hospitable and it is just natural for me to invite people in.

How long do you stay? Were you invited? Can you clearly see that someone is busy ? I mean, we all have to be aware of what's going on around us. Every home is different. My sister's home should have a revolving door on it - people come and go all the time. I, personally, am not comfortable with that. So when I stay with her, I have to deal with that because it is her home. If I made a stink about it, would she change it? Probably not and I think it would be kind of nervy of me to expect that. But some people are more considerate of their guests feelings (like Donna was of her stepdaughter's) and her decision should have been respected. I was invited over with the understanding that I needed to be gone by a certain time.

I don't know. Some people are just clueless. I love having people over but not for the ENTIRE day when I wasn't expecting it and not ...again, I don't know... I would NEVER just show up at someone's home just because their car was in the driveway. You have no idea what is going on inside or what kind of day they've had! In a cell phone society, CALL FIRST! And for the love of it, show some consideration of someone does say that now is NOT a good time.

This all reminds me of a line from the TV show "The Odd Couple" where Felix says "Never overstay your welcome or you will never be welcome to stay".

Wise words, Felix. Wise words...

I Found My Happy Place - and it Should Arrive in 5-7 Business Days...

After several hours of deep cleansing breaths yesterday, I have finally calmed down. Things are better today and we are once again feeling some peace in the home.

I have to admit to being just a wee-bit still bummed and so with everything else that has gone on in the last week I decided to do something about it and focus on something that always makes me smile.

The Jackson Five.

Hee-hee!

Yes, yes...I am serious. I ALWAYS smile when listening to the Jackson Five. I wasn't really a big Michael Jackson solo fan, but I loved me some Jackson Five - particularly early J5 and the J5 cartoon series.

Remember that???

So after surfing the net today (Yikes! when was the last time anyone really used THAT phrase??), I found all 23 episodes on DVD!! Words cannot describe how excited I am right now. I am singing the entire opening theme song in my head right now! You can catch it here on You Tube

Maybe next week while on the way to Florida, I will plant myself in the back seat and watch them all on the portable DVD player!! How fun will that be for the other NON-J5 fans in the car???

"Oh baby give me one more chance (to show you that I love you!)"

Seriously, I'm Done...

Okay, so FOURTH trip to the DMV for the third road test. I have NOTHING good to say and even wrote a nasty letter to the DMV because the officer who took him praised all of his driving and told me that he did great.

BUT...

On their way back to the DMV, after the three-point-turn, he told Nick to stop and drive in reverse up the block!!!

????

He made him drive something like over a hundred feet in reverse. They did not do that the other two times and so he swerved in to the middle of this ONE LANE EMPTY ROAD and he failed him.

Seriously, it is a good thing that I do not have a license to carry a weapon!

Monday Madness!

You know, I had such high hopes for the day. I really should stop doing that. Whenever I have high hopes, things go down hill fast.

It started out as a typical Monday - got Michael ready for school, sent him on his way. When Frank got back from driving the boy, we discovered that he had no work for the day. Sigh. I so HATE when that happens. So, okay, he's home. Wandering around. In my face everywhere that I am. I do love him; really I do. It's just that I have a...routine of sorts for my mornings and when someone is continually blocking your path or yammering at you, well, it gets a wee-bit annoying. I found him some "chores" to do while I did my 4-mile walk. Yea, me! A task that should have kept him occupied during my entire one-hour workout apparently needed to be broken up in to ten-minute intervals where he would have to walk right through the middle of the living room where I was walking away the pounds. I think at one point I hit him with a weight and while I did apologize, the snarky party of me was like "Well, that's what you get for walking through my workout!"

Really, I honestly DO love him!

I got through the workout and then had to deal with a series of e-mails from an acquaintance that just...well, I don't want to get in to it too deeply but...this person wanted to come over and talk to me at great length and I had to tell her no but she just would not give me the information that I apparently NEEDED and so we kept going back and forth on e-mail. Trust me, when I get a handle on what THAT is all about, I'll let you know. Let's just say that it just about had me losing my mind and pulling my hair out of my head for about an hour.

I finally get out of the house and head over to my friend Donna's house for our 2 hour water aerobics session and 45 minutes in to that I get a call from Michael's school saying that he has a very bad bloody nose and they will NOT put him on the bus (it was 15 minutes until dismissal) and I had to come and get him.

Sigh.

Now, I am about 25 minutes away from the school, in my bathing suit and now have to run to get him. Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is to have to go and pick your child up from school while wearing a Mickey Mouse bathing suit with a mesh cover-up over it??? Well, let me tell you, it's PRETTY DARN EMBARRASSING!! I walked in and was trying to hide behind potted plants and whatnot just to not be seen! Oh, and my boy? Completely FINE by the time I got there!

We get home, we relax and now Nick wants to go driving. For those of you keeping count, tomorrow will make road test number THREE! I told a friend earlier that if I were still a Catholic, I'd be lighting candles right now! So we go to the bank and to the supermarket to food shop, run home to unload the groceries and then headed back out to the SuperTarget to pick up my thyroid medicine. 99% of his driving was fine. The last minute and a half of the drive had me screaming at him - all the while he's looking at me like I've completely lost my mind!

I don't have high hopes for the morning, people. Honestly, I don't.

Once home again, we start up dinner and light the grill but two minutes in, it runs out of gas. Sigh. So Frank went and filled up the tank came back, hooked it all up again and within minutes we were back in business. That is until one of the lines on the far left side of the grill CRACKED and we had flames reaching up to the roof. I was grilling some sausages and I do like them a little crispy. Not ten-foot-high-flame, crispy! We got the fire put out and sometime around 7:30 we actually GOT to eat dinner.

Thank the LORD that the day is coming to an end. Think of us in the morning, everyone! Pray for an understanding DMV instructor who will take pity on us so that they can cancel the plaque that surely they are preparing to mark my own private parking spot and chair!

Movie Review: "The Proposal"

I just got back from a much needed girls night. It had been a month since the last one and we were over-due! We did dinner at the Outback and then went to see Sandra Bullock's new movie, "The Proposal".

We had seen the coming attractions for this movie the last time we went to the movies together and decided then and there that we were going to go and see this. You know the deal, the coming attractions always look great and sometimes you luck out and see a great movie, other times you see a bomb.

We lucked out tonight. "The Proposal" was a very good, very funny movie. I am a Sandra Bullock fan, all the way back from "Speed" but I truly enjoy her most in the romantic comedy role. She did not disappoint in this role.

Bullock plays uptight, publishing executive Margaret Tate. Ryan Reynolds was wonderful as her fairly dry-witted assistant, Andrew, who is sort of blackmailed in to marrying Sandra Bullock's character to save her from being deported back to Canada.

In order to pull off their farce of a relationship, they go to Alaska where Andrew's family has gathered for his grandmother's 90th birthday. "Gammy" is played by Betty White who I have loved since "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" way back when! The story-line is fairly predictable - the mismatched couple has to stumble through pretending to be a couple and find out that they truly do love each other. No big surprises but the secondary characters just bring so much laughter to this movie that you can almost forget that you know what is going to happen.

When we arrived at the theater, there were only women in there - clearly having girls nights of their own! This is a great, fairly clean, fun movie. If anyone is planning a night out with the girls, I highly recommend this one.

Oh, and incidentally, in the coming attractions tonight there was a preview for yet ANOTHER Sandra Bullock movie that is coming out in the Fall that we all agreed that we would go and see!

Oh! I Needed Some Good News!! Blog Awards!!

Crystal over at Simply Being Mommy blessed me with these tonight! I'm so excited!!
Okay gang, I know that you know the rules but I'll put them up again anyway!
You have to pass them on to 15 other blogs that you think are wonderful!
The rules for these awards are:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his/her blog link.

2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

These are the blogs that I am loving this week:

1. Melissa at The Erickson Looney Bin

2. ejcooksey at Losing It & Getting Fit

3. Stacie at Stacie's Madness

4. A Lil Enchanted

5. Anne at Small Town Mommy

6. My Virtual Diary

7. Enchie at Sweet Nothings

8. Christy at Motherhood Unscripted

9. Sylvia at Sylvia Basham

10. Nedekcir at In this Life of Ours

11. Juliana at Juliana's Lair

12. Jill at Creative Cafe

13. Lauri at LauriLiaw

14. Clara at Coming Back to Life

15. djtammy at Anything Under the Sun

These are all great blogs - most of which I found through using entrecard! They have all kept me entertained and informed and I think you'll enjoy them too!

And thank you once again, Crystal! You made my day!

Father/Son Camping

Yesterday Michael came up with the idea of camping out with Frank. They are the outdoorsy ones in the family. Last night there was a chance of thunderstorms so they put it off until tonight.

It has truly been sweet to watch.

They set up the tent in the yard. They dug up a small spot in the lawn and made a fire pit. They packed up all of the necessities: bug spray, blankets, pillows, marshmallows, drinks and double stuff Oreo's. Seriously, my son is just beside himself with joy at being able to do this with his dad.

Yet another reason why I love my husband...

Fantastic, Frantic, Frustrating Friday!

Okay, so right now I really want to be in my jammies and in my new bed, but I had to write first. True dedication, right?

The day was going to be crazy; I already knew that. Nick had to be to work by seven, Michael had field day, Frank wasn't working and I was expecting an aunt, uncle and cousin that I had not seen in over 20 years for lunch!! EEK!!! I was pretty psyched about that last one. BUT I am a procrastinator...meaning they were due here at noon and I really went in to prep mode at 10:30. Plus, I am a food snob (having grown up in the food/deli/catering business) and so wanted everything to be made fresh and yummy.

I stuck with the basics: tuna salad, egg salad, and chicken salad. I make an AWESOME chicken salad! I had fresh rolls, white and whole wheat bread. I made a tortellini salad, put out chips and salsa, cheese and crackers and grapes. I had a wide variety of beverages.

All this for four people.

I'm not well.

I was so nervous to see them again because I don't remember interacting much with them except as a child. Well, I worried for nothing because they were absolutely WONDERFUL! I hated that they had to leave! I already can't wait to see them again! Plus, thanks to them, my house is clean!

I didn't go and swim today because by the time everyone left, I was kind of wiped out from all of the cleaning and prepping and was kind of enjoying just lounging. Luckily, Miss Donna understood and so the boys and I will go and swim tomorrow. Nick came with me yesterday and I beat him in two relays! Score one for the old chick!

Now, on top of all of this, I'm in still in a Jackson 5 funk. I listened to one of their CD's while I cleaned and it just ...well, listening to the Jackson 5 always makes me smile. But I'm sad at the same time. THEN I went on to You Tube and found episodes of the old Jackson Five cartoon!!! I used to LOVE to watch that. Total trip down memory lane and totally worth it.

We had another issue that we learned about today and well, let's just say that I want to encourage ALL of you parents out there that it is OKAY to upset your children! Especially if it means saving their lives!! We have some friends that are just NOT engaging with their troubled child and I am fearing the worst. The situation is out of hand and again, I encourage you to GET INVOLVED!!!

Nick says that since I've become unemployed I'm around too much. I kind of feel like I've been on the go. I am blessed that, while he makes me crazy, he is a good kid. After seeing what our friends are going through, I just give all the glory to God for my boy.

Hug your kids, friends.

A Sad Day for Our Generation...

When I have quiet time, it's really not quiet. I like to put on my headphones and turn on my MP3 player and listen to music. I don't like any of the music that is popular now, I'm still an 80's rock girl with a little bit of Motown thrown in. The Jackson 5 were always a favorite. Whenever the kids would make fun of me for it, I would just say "You just have to smile when listening to the Jackson 5!"

Today the Jackson 5 were silenced.

I am just so, so sad...I cannot even believe that it happened. I mean, I KNOW that people die. Celebrities are no exception. It's just that fact that, well...it was so unexpected! Earlier in the day, Farrah Fawcett died. That was a horrible thing, too, but we've been watching her very public struggle with cancer. It was kind of devastating to watch someone who was so iconic in her beauty wither away so horribly. I think that she was very brave to let the public see such a private struggle. But when the news came out this morning, it was very upsetting but expected. I hate for her that the spotlight - even in death - was taken away by the news of Michael Jackson's death. While she was news all day, she is now a teeny-tiny by-line. Although in all fairness, both ABC News and NBC News are doing hour-long special reports on both of them tonight.

For my generation, both of these people were MAJOR celebrities - although for different things. I don't want to remember Michael Jackson as someone accused of child molestation. I want to remember him as the young child in the Jackson 5 who sang some of my all-time favorite songs. Farrah Fawcett will forever be emblazened in my mind as one of Charlie's Angels.

Rest in Peace to you both...

The New Bed is Coming! The New Bed is Coming!

Yeah, I know. I said that back in February but now it is really, really TRUE! I went to the mattress place today and paid the balance and set a delivery time up for tomorrow!! I'm so totally excited!!!

We thought that we were going to have to give up the dream of a new bed after we faced my unemployment and also, the feds just happened to give us $600 less in our refund - which was the exact amount of the bed. Go figure. So we huffed and we whined and we complained every morning with our sore back and all that and were resigned and defeated.

Brace yourselves for a little TMI...

Last night I am in bed and I start itching. Not just a little, but a lot. I get up, I turn on a light and I have welts up and down my arms! Now I'm freaked out. So I go out in to the living room, near tears, and show Frank. He goes in to the bedroom and what do we see?

A bedbug!

A little, creepy, crawly bedbug!!

I have no idea where it came from but I am telling you what, he was not long for this world! Needless to say I did NOT go back to sleep and today I practically RAN to the mattress store to put the order through. Tonight I have been cleaning, vacuuming, disinfecting, you name it, I'm doing it! I still don't want to sleep in the bed tonight but I've got mattress bags on the mattress and box spring and I have sprayed the whole thing with an insecticide. It did NOT smell good.

Hopefully tonight will be the last of it. First thing in the morning, we are tossing out the old mattresses and totally going wild with spraying and vacuuming the room again.

It's not easy being me, people. It really, really isn't.

Reality TV Blues...

A few weeks back, Nick came home all excited about the premier of "Jon & Kate Plus Eight". I'm like, really?? Granted, the show had been in the news a LOT at that point in time so I figured it was just curiosity.

Then last night...the big announcement. The boy tuned in. Frank and I kind of did too. I mean, you KNEW what was coming but couldn't help but watch. Seriously, it was very anticlimactic. "We're living apart..." No kidding. I'm sure that show had it's highest ratings to date.

Okay, now here's my gripe with the whole thing: Have we, as a society, learned NOTHING about couples who have their own reality TV show??? Nick and Jessica? Brittney and Kevin? Hulk and Linda Hogan? I'm sure there are more but now we can add Jon and Kate to the ever-growing list.

In the real world, marriage is hard enough without a daggone camera crew following your every move. Heck, sometimes it's annoying having the kids follow my every move! Sometimes we're stupid, sometimes we're lazy, sometimes we fight...all of this is normal. But what is NOT normal is the whole darn world witnessing it all! I get paranoid if Frank and I have a disagreement in front of our families, forget about how I'd feel if 8 million people were watching!

I guess to some people it's worth the risk. I mean, Kate got a tummy tuck, make-over, and a hair cut that is as talked about as the "Rachel" was back when Friends first came on TV. You know, I might consider a camera crew living with me if I got the Extreme Makeover: Stace Edition treatment. Then I would REMEMBER all of the marriages that have FAILED during such and endeavor and wake up! But I guess, if I had to defend them (and by them, I mean Jon and Kate), they have a LOT of kids. We have a hard time raising two kids, I can't even imagine the financial hardship of raising eight. So I guess at $75,000 and episode at an average of 20 episodes a season, they were able to maybe set up college funds for their kids and probably have been able to keep them clothes fashionably.

On the down side, these kids have NO IDEA what normal is! There was a skit on Saturday Night Live this season where Zac Ephron hosted. He was making fun of his High School Musical role and was addressing the graduating class of that fictional high school as an alumni. He had to break it to them all that people really don't go around breaking in to song and dance! It was pretty funny. But it makes me wonder if these kids are going to be able to understand when, sometime in the future, there are no cameramen stationed around their house catching their every move. I'd say "Do they go to other people's houses and wonder why nobody's filming it" but right now, they are being filmed everywhere they go! That would seriously grate on my nerves after a very short time.

I was chatting on line with a dear friend today and even she said that she was sad about this whole break-up. I think you can't help but feel bad for those kids. They did not CHOSE this lifestyle. As much as Jon and Kate say that they did this for the kids, they can't really say that for sure, can they? If given the opportunity, would the kids have preferred the bigger house or to have their parents stay together?

I never watched the show, to be honest. The most I ever saw of it was on the E! channel's show "The Soup". They would show clips of it every week and honestly, well...let's just say that Kate did not at all seem like a nice person. You can almost understand why Jon is leaving.

But what about the kids?

What about the kids....

I am a Horrible Mother...

Third times a charm, right? Apparently not in my world!! We went back to the DMV this morning. Both Nick and I were a little on edge but the boy really and truly seemed confident. We reviewed everything that he needed and when we went inside, I had peace.

Why? No one knows.

Ten minutes later he is back and the DMV officer calls me outside. I mean, OUTSIDE!! He didn't even want to cushion the blow in the A/C. So I go outside and he gives me the reasons why the boy FAILED the test again and I was just so darn angry!!!

Angry with the DMV?

No.

Angry with the boy?

Yes.

I mean, most people get BETTER with their driving, not worse! He went in to a ditch on the three point turn, he looked over BOTH shoulders when changing lanes which meant his eyes were off the road for too long...I mean COME ON!!! Clearly he is just not ready for this and it is pissing me off. When we are out driving around town, he is near perfect. Get him on a road test and freakin Mr. Magoo does better than him!

So we get in the car and I'm like "What happened?" and the boy had the nerve to blame the...wait for it...the CAR! It was the CAR'S fault! Seriously, hair is just falling out of my head even as I type. I'm like "Are you kidding me?" It is a small, four-cylinder car. You have to PRESS on the gas pedal. He claims that the car wouldn't move and when he pressed harder on the gas pedal, THAT is what caused him to go in to the ditch. Funny, in all of the years that Grandma drove the car, we never had to get her out of a ditch. On the 600 mile drive home when Frank drove the car, not once did he go in the ditch. But the car, acting of it's own free will, KNOWING that the boy was on his road test, decided to go in to a ditch.

It may only be 9:40 in the morning, but I am ready for a fistful of Advil PM and heading back to bed.

Seven more days until the next DMV encounter.

DMV Rant!

Okay, so Nick went for his road test last week and failed, remember? So when the drill sargent who drove with him sat us down after the test, he gave me a sheet of paper telling us WHY Nick failed and the date that he could come and take the test again.

Today.

June 22nd.

Anytime between 8 am and 11:30 am.

So, up we were at the crack of dawn, got ourselves ready and did the 23 mile trek to the DMV. The sun was shining. Birds were singing. We arrive, we sign in, we waited maybe ten minutes and were called. Different guy today so we were optimistic. We gave him our insurance form and both of our ID's and...

"You're a day early," he said.

???????

Excuse me? We so are NOT! I told him exactly what we were told and he just stared me down and said "Nope, you're a day early." He could not be swayed and unfortunately, I had not brought the piece of paper with me that had the date written on it. We leave, we come home, we are both majorly PISSED OFF and I find the paper with the date and CALL the DMV.

"Well I guess the officer just wrote the wrong date."

Gee, why is it okay for THEM to make a mistake that cost me time and money??? Why do they get a free pass for screwing up? There is something seriously wrong with our world today. I am just livid right now. Nick is devastated. I mean, it just...

AAAHHHH!!!!!!

If I had a punching bag right now, it would be extremely helpful!!! So tomorrow, once again, we will be up at the crack of dawn. We will do the twenty three mile trek and you can be DAMN SURE that I will bring that piece of paper with me and let each and every officer sitting in that DMV KNOW that their mistake is NOT acceptable!

Why So Difficult?

You know, I don't rant about my husband often. I love him dearly and after twenty years together, I well and truly understand him. There are just times when...

AAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!

That was me, screaming. Today I asked him to sit down with me to look at hotels in Florida by my dad's. We are paying for one night, dad is paying for the other two. I'm looking for deals to keep everything as inexpensive as possible and I thought that having a hotel to escape to was a big plus for this trip. One minute we were browsing pictures, the next the man is completely losing his mind screaming about this trip! It was all "I don't want to go!" "I'm not going to pretend that I like these people!" "I'm not going to go and make any effort for this party!" "I'm not wearing dress clothes for this!" On and on and on it went and I'm sitting here thinking "How did a picture of a fountain by a pool trigger this rage?"

No one knows.

Then...THEN...he wanted to throw at me how we did not go on his parents 50th anniversary cruise extravaganza so why should we go to my dad's 65th birthday party? Now I have to speak up. First off, you cannot compare a $5000 cruise to a $79 hotel bill. Sorry, you just can't. Secondly, I am busting my HUMP to keep him away from my family as much as humanly possible and he STILL is making a fuss. Thirdly, we are not only seeing my family on this trip, we are also going to see his parents - who everyone LOVES! Seriously, these people are just plain likable and we always have a good time with them.

So I am stumped. I mean, I gave him the option to just not go. I am not going to be tortured - YET AGAIN - over another trip that involves seeing people that I am related to. He did this on our last trip up to New York, even though, he spent most of the time visiting with his friends. It's like the man just CAN NOT unclench long enough to just relax. He is always tense before a trip. Any trip. Actually, any time we go ANY WHERE he seems to have issues. We are never on time to go to anyone's house. Why? Because HE has issues. He has an aunt and uncle that live 90 minutes away who no longer invite us over. Why? Because HE has issues. Seriously, they stopped inviting us over because they got tired of us declining. Why did we decline? Because HE has issues.

If it were up to Frank, we would not go anywhere. Ever. I make all of our vacation arrangements because if I didn't, we'd never leave home. And I'm sorry, but I just refuse to sit in this stupid teeny, tiny house for the rest of my natural born life! Not gonna happen!!

Should I be used to his travel tantrums by now? Yes. Am I? No. Like I said earlier, I gave him the option to just not go. It's a long, long drive but hopefully Nick will have his license and he can help. Coming home I will have Nick and my nephew to help with the driving. So really, I'm okay. But Frank does not want me driving alone. "It's too much driving," he tells me. No kidding, Einstein! I know that, but I would rather drive alone CROSS COUNTRY than deal with this nonsense.

Please be praying for me, friends. The trip is in three weeks and I just KNOW he is going to make each and every minute of it miserable and that's not including the 15 hours I'll be forced to listen to him while driving in the car!

Seriously, I look good in a hat!

Okay, okay...here it is...the infamous hat. Nick finally conceded today that I do look good in it, and not in a sarcastic "like Taylor Swift" tone. Frank thought it looked good too. Do you think it's easy fitting all of this 80's "big hair" under any kind of a hat?

Anyway, long story short, I like the hat, I'm going to continue to wear the hat, and y'all will just have to deal with it!

Customer? Cashier? Still Bored...

This afternoon I went to pick Nick up from work at his riveting job at the local supermarket. He comes out, hops in the car with a huff and I ask how his day was. Sometimes that is a loaded question but hey, concerned parent that I am, I always ask.

The morning was slow, the afternoon busy, blah, blah, blah. He then goes on to tell me that during the quiet time he was reading some of the magazines that were up at the register. Funny ,I do that too when I'm waiting in line! Weird! He gives me some random facts about Jon & Kate (I never watch the show but he seems to have a weird fascination with it). Okay, good info on to other topics.

I had several errands to run - had to pay the car tax, stop by the post office, go to the bank, go to DMV to renew my registration and then get the car inspected. Noticing a trend here? I ignored my car and now had to make up for it all. While we're driving around the boy is throwing out random entertainment news and finally I was like "How slow was it in there today?" Apparently, very slow. Needless to say, I do NOT have to watch Entertainment Tonight tonight. Thanks, son.

And the whole car thing? We have three cars. Mine is the newest. In the last week we have had all three of them inspected. Guess whose was the only one to fail.

MINE!!!

Un-freakin-believable!!! Now I have to figure out what the problem is (a sensor) and our dear friend, Joe, who is the mechanic who actually did the inspection, will help us get it taken care of. So not fair!!

Lazy Much?

Week three...unemployment...laziness has set in. Not by choice, mind you, but because...well...there just isn't much to do. Especially when it is raining all the daggone time!

Today I got up and got Michael ready for school. Once he and Frank were out the door, I literally crawled back into bed and slept for another THREE HOURS!!! How much of a slug am I? The answer? A HUGE ONE! I finally got mobile and dragged myself over to the computer to check e-mails and whatnot and eventually had some lunch and somewhere around 1:30 made it to the shower. Even that didn't quite revive me.

At around 3:30 we left the house and went to the library, grabbed about a half dozen books to read - I LOVE to read - and then headed over to the Super Target just to browse. This was not a good thing. I needed hair spray and blush and somehow ended up looking at clothes and purses and hats and well...I bought myself a hat. I have always wanted a cool, straw hat. Always. I don't know why but I just have. So I found one that I liked, it looked good on me, I used the logic of how I was going to NEED a hat while down in Florida because I am so fair-skinned and it will be July and so really, I have to protect myself and therefore NEED the hat! So I was pretty happy with myself and when we were checking out and I showed it to the boys, they mocked me! Totally, loudly, mocked me! Nick was like "Hey, Taylor Swift!" Now, in his 17 year-old mind, he is insulting me. But what my somewhat cluttered 40-year old brain heard was "Hey, mom looks like some hot, blonde, 19-year old!" There are worse things I could look like, right?

You know, had he said "Hey, Troll!" or maybe "Hey, Uggo", I would have been offended. I mean, I'm not a FAN of Taylor Swift, but she's adorable! So HA! my son, you thought you were insulting me but all you've managed to do it boost my ego!

And yet still all I want to do is take a nap!