The new Mr. and Mrs

I started to post this Sunday, and was going to do a slideshow...was in the middle of uploading to said slideshow, when kids needed me..i never got back in here and now must start all over. I will still do a slide, but not at this minute. So for now, i will just post a pic.

The wedding was beautiful and everything went well. The bride and groom weren't too pleased with the DJ as he didn't announce the bridal party coming in and he didn't announce the cake cutting properly. He screwed up a few things that way. But, other than that, it was good. It was a bit crowded...the brides family insisted on setting up for the exact number of ppl they invited, not willing to believe that 30% won't show. You can always count on that. So, we could have done without about 4 tables and it would have made it so much easier to maneuver in the reception hall. It was great to see everyone but I wasn't feeling like squeezing in btwn the tight tables/chairs to visit like I should have. Of course, I also had a bit of a bum attitude. We didn't get one professional pic of my sis and I with my brother for his wedding. that just adds insult to injury in a sense. Mom got a few of us, and that will have to do. I mostly am glad it's over, to be honest. I truly hope that nobody was made to feel the way I did when I was planning and going through with my wedding.

My mom and sister left today to take the kids camping. It was a last minute plan because my mom had promised the kids she would take them camping and well, we got through the wedding and realized, hey, it's one week til back to school, the summer has escaped us. So, she made plans for wednesday thru friday. The kids were excited and it looks like they are going to have some nice weather. Hooray. And Jeremy and I get some alone time. It's peaceful and nice.

I took my car into the shop yesterday, waiting for it to get finished. The guy said around 430 or so today. SO in the meantime, i am without a car, but it will be worth it when I have a car that drives right. I can't wait. The next thing is new tires.

Well, I am going to stop here and work on a slide show...ill post it when I am done!

Here's the slide show! Enjoy

I cheated

And used the glue on nails for tomorrow (my brother's wedding, in case you aren't to speed). i must say they look quite beautiful, though and only cost me $7. I am still trying to get used to typing with them though. That may take a bit, so bear with any typos.

We spent a whopping 6 hours decorating the hall. is that not insane? Unorganized. that's all I can say. well, i could say a lot more, but ill opt not to at this moment. We did get it done and it is beautiful. Crowded but beautiful. I really can't wait for it to be over. I do look forward to seeing everyone and being able to sit back and have a good time. Hopefully it will be a good time. I can honestly say though that this wedding was more stressful to me than my own. But we are mixin up some margaritas and i am going to indulge in one. Maybe two. ;)

My kids have been fantastic lately. I know I have mentioned it already in my last post or so, but the change in behavior, mostly for Makenneh, is a complete Godsend. I can actually enjoy her. I do thoroughly enjoy her. It's no longer just about getting from one outburst to the next. She seems to catch herself when her attitude starts to go south. I notice it, I praise her and make sure she knows how proud I am. I am always praising her. I hope we have made it over a hurdle and that the times ahead will be brighter. I took her with me to get pizza tonight and we just had a grand time sitting in the car chit chatting while we waiting for our pizza to be ready to pick up. Not one single outburst. None, Zip. Zero. All smiles and sunshine. I feel like I finally have my little girl. I have no idea how long it will last, but I am being sure to savor every last moment of it. I can now see the real absolute beauty of motherhood. I am able to enjoy my daughter's company rather than anticipate the next episode of attitude.

Have I mentioned lately how great God is? First of all, my sister had that fistula following the birth of Liberty. She went to Ann Arbor to see specialists, she saw a colo-rectal specialist, family doc, OB, etc and was playing a waiting game to see if it would heal or could be held off until a later date to have surgery. Her family doctor (who is also my doc, but anyway) checked her the other day and the hole has healed. He sees nothing..no build up of scar tissue or anything. She wants a 2nd opinion just because it's so hard to believe. Most of those tears do not heal on their own. Some aren't even corrected with surgeries. He does answer prayers. 2nd praise God is my dad was slated to be laid off again on Monday. His union rep, supervisor and a few other higher ups spent 4 hours in negotiations in order to keep my dad working. My dad told them that he wanted no special treatment and that if they couldn't rightfully keep him working due to the seniority rule, he would rather take the layoff (so honorable). They were able to find a rightful way, backed up by clauses or such, that allowed them to keep him there. The reason they were so willing to fight for him? He is a darn good worker, knows his stuff and does it, without complaint, without attitude, and does it well. It pays to do right. So, this week, we have some special answered prayers to be thankful for! Thank God for that.

Well, i am going to finish up on the computer and head to bed, i think. My mind is kinda whirling still so i don't know how well that's gonna work. Enjoy your weekends and let's hope for no rain tomorrow!

Hmmm..

So, I posted last night about Mr. Toad. I go outside later and guess what I see? A big huge, fat toad right in mr. toad's spot. So, either the toad that got squished wasn't mr. toad, or a replacement has already come along. Either way, makenneh should be happy now.

IN addition to the toad reappearing, the stray cat that I am sure got dumped off here by someone while we were on vacation at the cabin last month, gave birth to a litter of 4 cute little kittens last night. Wow, don't ever tell anyone I just wrote a sentence that horrible, incorrect, runon, nonsense. anyway, Yeah, so now we have a stray cat plus 4 kittens to find homes for. Joy. I don't have the heart to drop them at the animal shelter bc they will just make me sign a waiver allowing them to be euthenized. I can't do that.

I just realized today that I need to go get my books for fall semester. Actually, I shouild just try to order them online again.

I take my car in to the shop in the am to get an estimate. We need to know all that is wrong with it and Jeremy plans to do most of the repairs himself. THen, we will take it back to the shop for the alignment. And we need new tires. So, i will have a lot of money going out to get it fixed. i hope that this will be the end for awhile.

I have to make note that the kids have been very good the past couple days. Better than usual. I am enjoying every moment of it and praising them highly, often, for their good behavior! I hope this is a turning point, but I am sure I have said THAT before.

The rush

We are on the last week before my brother's wedding. It seems that everything is falling into place. It always does doesn't it? Funny how we stress so much about the details and usually for nothing.

I think I am done with school clothes shopping. Well, besides a few odds and ends. i want to get Makenneh a sweater and tights. I think Seb is all set now. Of course, I don't have a supply list from her teacher, so I don't know what she will need in that dept, but we already have crayons, colored pencils, markers, glue sticks. I can't imagine what else a 1st grader would need for school. the teachers usually list things like a box of kleenex, hand sanitizer, etc.

I had the most difficult time getting shoes for Makenneh. I tried Kmart, they had an awesome clearance sale on shoes...nope, they didn't fit. I took Makenneh with me to return them, had her try on several pair, going as high as 7 in womens. Nope, still don't feel good, she says. I went to walmart (their shoe selection has gone way down in the past year) and again, nothing felt right. ONe pair she was ok with, but they were 30.00 and well, if I am paying that much, I may as well go to JCPenney and get a good shoe. I was trying to avoid spending too much, because well, they grow out of them fast. But, after no luck at walmart, i decided I was headed to the mall. So, we went to JCPenney because they had quite a bit on sale. I received crappy service and was already frustrated. I was told the athletic shoes were upstairs, after hunting down an associate. I go upstairs, was greeted by a friendly, helpful associate. She measured Kenneh's foot, told me how certain brands are cut certain ways. Did you know Nike are cut narrow? Adidas are cut wider? Helpful info. Well, she said Makenneh would need about 5. The problem was, I couldn't find any wide widths, which she said we would need. Most of the shoes upstairs were Nike, none of them were really anything near younger looking. I didn't even care for most of the shoes up there. I asked about Sketchers. Bc I loved my Sketchers. She said those are cut short and that if i wanted those, I would have to go downstairs. Ugh, how come that first lady didn't tell me that? So, I head downstairs, round up an employee, ask for a couple shoes in couple sizes...and well,, nothing fit. I was on the floor, tears burning my eyes, with frustration. I go to checkout to purchase the shirts I did find for her. I asked the cashier if she had any suggestion of where I could purchase shoes. She suggested Payless...so I stopped in there. I was instantly greeted by a sales associate who offered to measure Makenneh's feet. I agreed and so it was decided that she needed a 3.5, no wide. Hmmm, I told the lady what they said at JCPenney and she said that Payless's shoes run wider. ANd sure enough. She showed us to the section and we found shoes. Makenneh tried them on and voila! They fit, they feel good. I wanted to hug that lady. And the best part is, i was able to get her a pair of dress/casual shoes as well, all for 25.00. Payless just made a customer for life or at least til my kids get older.

oh, guess what? Remember me talking about our toad that comes up every night to eat the bugs? I am sure I have mentioned Mr. Toad a time or two. Well, we found him the other day with the wheel of the chair over his back half (chair my sister brought over for yard sale)....and well, he is no longer with us. It was a sad moment. He has been coming around here for years. We could count on him hopping on up to the porch to dine under the porch light. Not anymore. There is, however, a smaller toad that had started to come around with Mr. Toad...perhaps an offspring? Maybe he (why are toads always "he"?) will begin dining under our porch light for years to come. Still sad though. Made me think of the part in Cheaper by the Dozen when "Fed-Ex" had to bury his pet frog....you remember? Pork and Beans? Yeah, this is what my life has become.

ANd I wanted this to have its own post, but damn if i can ever get to the computer nad then I was wanting to wait til the pics wer uploaded on computer. But, Makenneh has her first Harley ride the other day. My uncle took her for a 16.4 mile cruise on his harley. Makenneh absolutely loved it. She was all grins when she got back. I thought she would chicken out. Ok, honestly, I deep down hoped she would chicken out. But oh no. She donned that helmet, climbed up on that bike and rode off...as they turned out of the driveway, she let go with one hand and waved to us! There are pictures on my mom's camera, but I am too tired to fuss with it tonight..and don't usually feel the urge to battle for time on the computer. I will try to get them posted soon, though.

So, who's responsible for supplying the mixers and cups for the wedding reception? I know that the grooms family buys the liquor. For my wedding and my sister's, my mom paid for all that other stuff. The groom's family paid for the liquor. Am I correct? Just curious.

Well, my contacts are fuzzy and it's time to think about sleep. Oh by the way, we have finally talked mom into starting a wedding planning/floral business. AS soon as this wedding is out of the way, we will begin the process to get this thing going. It is long overdue and time she did it. I am excited to help and be a part of it.

Turned out to be a great day

I took Makenneh school clothes shopping. Just the two of us. Before leaving, she was a little snot, to the point, I nearly called the plans off because I certainly didn't want to be caught in public with her bad attitude. But, I was able to help her turn her mood around and we were able to go. She was soooo great while we were out. Even after 4 hours of shopping. She did start to get a bit mouthy at the end...she was tired and wanted to go. I still had a couple things to look at before leaving. But, we both enjoyed our day together and hopefully we can continue to do things like that without a scene. Tomorrow, I will take Sebastian. I mostly have his shopping done, but I still want to do a trip with just the two of us.

I am done with the summer semester. In fact, my grades should be posted today but I haven't even checked yet. It is so difficult for me to get a moment on here between my mom and Jeremy. I don't even try when they are on the computer. Just walk away, grab a book and dive in.

NOthing too exciting to post about, so I am going to stop here..b.ecause well, it's so difficult to get on here nad when i do, I feel like I have at least one internet vulture just waiting for me to hurry up and let them back on the darn thing. LOL. So, I will keep it short and sweet.

Nicki, Please Read

I didn't know any other quick way to write you. My old email address was hacked into and I can not longer access it. I have a new email address: masehow@yahoo.com. So, I never received your email. But, we did get your letter and glad to see that things are going well for you. I will keep this short, seems how it's a strange way to communicate, but I figured you would read this soon and discover that I have a new email address.

Love,
Christina

You Have GOT to be kidding me!

So, I mentioned on here how my uncle lost his house to foreclosure. Well, I probably haven't mentioned before that this particular uncle has a slight case of agoraphobia. Not documented per se, but he does not like to leave his house unless he has to. He even has his son do his banking. So, while foreclosure is a traumatic event for anyone to go through, it's more so for him because his home was his safe haven, his retreat, his shell. In addition, because he has a learning disability (trouble with reading/comprehension), he often asks me or my mom to assist with tasks that have to be done. One such task is the change of address. Well, he procrastinated on doing this. His "girlfriend" had picked up a form and filled it out, changing his address to her Post Office box, without consulting him first. She presented the filled in form to him telling him all he had to do was sign it. Well, he saw her PO box listed on there and said, Hell no. He shredded that and said he would get another one. Well, she had gone back in to get another one and now all you get is a sheet that tells you you have to go online or come in, in person to change your address. He gives me the paper, asking me to go online and do it for him. We figure he may need to enter his Driver's License number or something for verification. Well, I get this morning and not wanting to forget, I set out to change his address for him. I get the new addy entered and hit next. THEY WANT A FREAKIN CREDIT CARD NUMBER for verifcation. That isn't the worst of it. It says, "Your card will be charged $1.00". WHAT?! You are now going to charge me for changing my address? The amount isn't the issue, really it's not. What's a buck? WE all waste a buck here and there on silly stuff. But seriously, you take away the convenience of grabbing a post card, filling it in and dropping it in ANY postal box and tell me that this online change is "fast and accurate, safe/secure, environmentally friendly" and you want to charge me? YOu were just able to eliminate a lot of time spent on the paper process, thus saving you money, you were able to eliminate the need to provide all those papers that came in the moving packet and still, you want to charge me a buck to change my address?! It's ludicrous. And so, he will have to go in, in person, to change his address and hopefully they will allow him to change his son's at the same time (he is now 18) without needing him to go in as well. What a joke.

I know, I know, but it's cheaper to pay a buck than to waste the gas going to the post office. Doesn't matter, I think it's insane that they are even charging this buck. I know they have to charge something to verify the name/address and using a credit card serves that purpose. But, seriously, couldn't you ask for say, a driver's license #/State ID # or something? I mean, if someone stole your wallet adn wants to mess you up, they are going to have credit cards if they have your id, most likely. Silly.

/end rant

enjoy your day. It's supposed to be in the 90s here today, with high humidity. I don't really care because all I can think about is my hubby coming home tonight. He will be boarding the plane at 8pm. Please pray for his safe return!

What a sight!

So, not last night but the night before, a local business caught on fire. Not just any business, though....an oil business. So, it created thick dark smoke and it billowed like no other. We could see the smoke from our house, which is probably 12 or so miles away. They evacuated quite an area due to the chemical fumes in the air. They evacuated the south side of the road my sister lives on but she had already left to come here before that. She didn't want to stick around with a baby. Carrie, Ralph and Libby stayed the night here. We went for a drive to get some pics of the fire. This picture was taken from the plaza, still a mile or so away.

This next picture was taken from the street parallel to the street the business was one...so it's kinda behind the business. That was one of the many explosions from all the barrels of explosive materials.

When in the area, you could smell all kinds of stuff burning. it was awful.

Today I took both kids to the doc...makenneh got the all clear on her arm..it's healing well. Seb is all set for school. And me, I am counting days down until Jeremy gets home. I can't wait. I never realized how much I count on him for day to day stuff....I do now, though. He took his mom's camera with him and when he gets home we will have to upload the pics and I will share them. Who knows what ones he took bc he is a guy afterall. LOL. he did say that the only ones he took on the way down were of TN...go figure!

The kids have spent the days bickering and arguing. It is old news. Yesterday I was fit to be tied. I had had enough. I have repeatedly told them that if they have nothing nice to say, to say nothing at all. And they argue over the most piddly stuff....you know how it is. Makenneh wants to manage Sebastian, she is constantly mothering him. Gah!

So, bunco is on my bday this month. It kinda stinks. On one hand, I don't want to spend my bday night playing bunco, especially not after Jeremy has been gone 8 days. But, on the other hand, it's not like there is anything too exciting to do instead, as we are broke. I figure I will decide when the time comes.

Well, im babbling and killing time...gonna get off here and finish reading my book.

His Opportunity

We got to Jeremy's Aunt Teresa's today to help them finish the loading of their moving truck and then to pack up the stuff they were giving us. Well, as I worked with his Aunt in one of the bedrooms, she casually mentioned that "if Jeremy didn't have so much on his plate, Jeff was going to ask him to ride along with him and we would fly him back." I left it at that, because she talked as if it was already decided against. A little bit later, Jeremy asked me to come outside with him. He tells me that Jeff asked him to go to FlA with them....would I mind? I commend my husband because inside he felt like a little child, so excited for this opportunity. He has never flown on a plane nor has he ever been to Fla. I feigned a whine about how I would miss him...to which he says, "If you don't want me to go, I won't. It's up to you." And he said it with such sincerity. I mentioned that he has never been to fla or on a plane and his face just lit up. I told him I wouldn't mind but that I would miss him terribly. So, in a matter of moments, it was decided that Jeremy would take this opportunity to do something he has never done before. He is so excited. I am excited for him. The crummy part comes up....we go home so he can pack. When we return, the flight home has been booked. IT started out that he would be there til Thurs or Fri. THe flight home is booked for Sunday....He boards at 8pm and I pick him up at 130am with him having a layover on the way. I have school on Monday....bright and early, 8am. SO, I will have to pick him up from the airport at 130am, by myself, I am sure given the hour, and then, I will not be able to just come home and fall asleep after being apart from him for 8 days. That Monday is going to be rough. Oh well. The week is going to be rough...for me, and probably for the kids. But, we will get through and I will be busy helping my uncle Ken finish his packing and moving. Things ran much later today at his aunts that anticipated and so, you guessed it,t hey aren't leaving til about 4am, after they get a few winks of sleep. ALthough, where they will sleep is beyond me, because everything is packed. There are some pillows and such left and the furniture because it is staying, so they have a couch, loveseat and chair to sleep people in. There are 3 adults and one child. ANd hardwood floors. THe bedrooms do have carpet, so that might work for someone. AT any rate, please pray for a safe trip all the way around.

I have tons of stuff that they gave to us....more to unpack in the morning. That in itself will keep me busy, mix with school and I won't have much time for thinking. Speaking of school, I have to do a radio ad. JEremy was going to help me with this because I am not as electronics savvy. Typically, the teacher has us use the equipment at the school. However, we are at an extension campus, without audio equipment and the main campus bosses are being grumps about loaning it out to the extension site. Because time is running out, the teacher told us we could record them at home and bring them in...on any mechanism that would make it possible for him to listen to the commercial. I am trying to think of the best, simplest way to do this. I don't want to overcomplicate it. It is due Wed. The good news is, I have the script written, know which song I want to have as the lead in/out, background. ALl I have to do is get it either on a disc or something for him to listen to. Then, my next project is a tv ad...it will be for the same thing as the radio ad, just add in graphics. The semester is winding down, I have 4.0 in both classes, with points to spare.

Well, I am babbling and overtired, so I am going to get off here and finish uploading pics I emailed myself from my mother in law's computer (that I lost when my old pc crashed). I may share them one of these days...pics of my sweet babies, when they were babies!