Archive for the ‘Family’ Category
Since we are driving to Florida and I am under doctor’s orders for mandatory rest stops every 1 & 1/2 to 2 hours to get out and walk around,
we have been trying to make the most out of it.
We actually stopped at a scenic overlook in West Virginia that normally we would’ve driven by without a second thought.
Then a little ways down the road we came to New River Gorge National Park
Home to the longest bridge of it’s kind in the Western Hemisphere.
Really, how could we pass that up?
If I had known that it was 173 steps down and I would have to take them all back up,
believe me, I would’ve passed it up.
But it was a beautiful spot and we are glad we did it.
We were all amazed at the huge amount of butterflies we saw all over West Virginia.
It made for a beautiful drive and we all saw things we wouldn’t normally see.
The motel we ended up staying in was a completely different story.
More suited for What The Hell Wednesday.
Don’t forget to join us tomorrow, what the hell?
We’re on the second day of our 3 day drive to Florida. We didn’t make it as far as we planned yesterday, a late start and a carsick boy saw to that. After spending an hour at a rest area in Pennsylvannia we were able to get back on the road. So between that and the frequent stops we made it to West Virginia. Finding a hotel was a lot harder than we anticipated. As soon as we pulled in the lot of the first hotel I said “I am not staying here!” There were about 20 mini-vans and SUVs all decorated with things like “We are the Champs!” etc., and there were a bunch of boys running around. It only took me 2 seconds to size that up…lots of excited Little League boys racing around the hotel and taking over the pool……ummmm..no thanks. The next 2 places didn’t have what we needed. Then the next place was also an immediate NO. The grills and plants outside some of the doors suggested that quite a few of the residents were basically living there. We did manage to find a place and after all the troubles finding a room, nobody was complaining about the lack of a pool.
So last night when my husband proclaimed he wanted to get back on the road by 6am he wasn’t too happy at our lack of enthusiasm. Really? 6am dude? This morning the kids were still asleep at 8 and we’re hoping to get out of here by 9. We’ll see.
Here are a few things we all seem to agree on
The GPS would be more fun if it talked like Scooby Doo. You make a wrong turn and it says “Ruh-Roh” or a pirate, “Ahoy matey, heave to port!” or when a rest stop is needed “You scurvy dog! Time to swab the poopdeck.”
Krispy Kreme donuts are so good heated up in the microwave for 10 seconds!
Happy 51st Anniversary to the best parents ever!
J-Man turned 8 last week and I can hardly believe it.
He’s a big Yoshi fan and although I’d love to take credit for the decorations, I can’t.
Well, except for those lame green things that are supposed to be Yoshi eggs.
Thanks again to the self-proclaimed Scrabble Queen for the good decorations.
For more Wordless Wednesday fun join 5 Minutes for Mom
I finally got the results from my CT-scan from last week and lo and behold Dr. Hernia was wrong. I tried to tell them it wasn’t a hernia but he didn’t want to listen to me. I go back next month for a follow-up and I’m not holding out much hope or have much confidence in Dr. Hernia right now.
On the upside, spring break has been going well. Originally the weather report looked totally sucky, but it’s turned out to be a beautiful sunny week. I took Sissy to bingo at the VFW the other night. I think it’s really important to expose my kids to gambling at an early age. We had a deal that if one of us won we’d go to Friendly’s for ice cream. It turned out to be an ice cream free night but we still had a good time. Sissy was soooo close to winning the $300 game. She only needed one number, that damn I-18, but lady luck wasn’t on her side. She handled it well and we’ll be back gambling playing bingo again this summer.
J-Man and Sissy both had friends over yesterday and I made egg-free chocolate cupcakes that even contained wheat flour. Not for the obvious health benefits, nooooo, it was because I didn’t have enough of that non-healthy processed white flour. The kids never suspected a thing. Slap some yummy homemade vanilla frosting on a piece of egg-free cardboard and they’d be happy.
I went and got my weekly blood test this morning and Mumbles was there again to draw my blood. I was less than thrilled because I really like the other lady that does it. I never have to remind her of my latex allergy. In fact as we walked by her she told Mumbles that I had a latex allergy and to get the right gloves. She did an okay job and it wasn’t too painful, but when she took off her gloves there was dirt under her fingernails. Ewwwwwwwww ..it totally skeeved me out.
We watched the season finale of Project Runway this morning. Poor J-Man has been sitting through it with us. I’m starting to worry that he knows waaaaay too much about fashion for a 7 year old boy. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I’ll take him outside later and we’ll play catch and some other boyish activities, something to offset the fashion filled morning. Sissy loves Project Runway and has been carrying around a sketchpad full of her designs for weeks. Right now she’s planning on becoming a fashion designer. She’s going to need to learn how to sew and I’ve got some news for her, just because I own a sewing machine doesn’t mean I can sew. She’s out of luck having the most craft-challenged mother in the history of mothers. She told me that when she’s a famous fashion designer she’ll share her money with us and buy her little brother all the video games he wants. Which reminded me of her oldest sister and what she once told me when she was 4. She planned on being an architect and building a house big enough for all of us to live in. I told her that was sweet and her response “That way I can tell you what to do.” Ya, I won’t be living with miss bossy-pants when I’m old. I think I’ll be safer with Sissy. I know it’s been 22 years since she said it, but I’m not taking any chances. I still love you though honey!
Yesterday I swore up and down to almost everyone that J-Man would be in school today. Ya, umm…I was wrong, again. The only day he actually went to school this week was Wednesday. This is the third, I repeat, third day I’ve had to call work and say “I can’t come in.” Although, one of those days his sister was sick too, so it’s not all his fault. Fortunately I have very understanding people that I work with and I can go in tonight after my husband gets home. But 3 days in one week after being out for almost 2 weeks with the whole blood clot fiasco is a little excessive.
I tried so damn hard to get him to go this morning. I was determined that he was going to go to school on the bus so I wouldn’t have to drive him. I even bribed him with “If you make the bus this morning I’ll pick you up after school.”
He was in the bathroom and I told him we were out of Zyrtec and he burst into tears. WTH?? What did I say? I’m all “Don’t worry honey, I’ll buy more Zyrtec today. It’s okay.” Who cries over allergy meds? When he calmed down he finally told me that he cried because he feels so sick and he thinks the Zyrtec is the only thing helping him breathe. He does look and sound super horrible. He is paler than pale with big dark circles under his eyes and he’s so congested that he can’t even breathe through his nose.
After that I was still under the illusion that he would be going to school. Maybe we wouldn’t make the bus, but I could still drive him. I told him that he needed to try to go to school and if he didn’t feel well to let his teacher know and he could go to the nurse and she would call me and I could come and get him. He looked at me with his big sad eyes and said “The problem is I already feel like that.” oooh. Okay. Then I tried “If you stay home I’m taking you back to the doctor. Something else must be going on. I’m not saying this to scare you, (really) but they will probably do a blood test in your finger to check for other things making you sick.” He thought about it for a moment and said “Okay.” WTH? Okay? He hates blood tests in a very big crying, screaming kind of way. Oh crap, he must be really sick.
Then he said “When we go to the doctor just don’t say ‘I think Jeff needs a blood test’. They’re the doctor so they should think of that themselves. We’re not doctors, we don’t know what’s going on.” Okay, buddy. Unless they don’t think of it themselves.
So yes, we are going to the doctor this morning. It’s a big practice so we don’t always see the doctor we (meaning me) like. I was lucky to get an appointment with his doctor so I feel better about going. He’s been on antibiotics since Monday and I don’t think they’ve done a thing for him. We’ll see what happens. Wish us luck and if anyone has the hidden talent of curse removal, I could sure use it right about now.
I’m pretty sure that today is Whine Thursday although I haven’t been able to confirm it. Both kids were grumpy about going to school , as if it was a totally new and foreign concept and whined when I prodded them to hurry up (no, not the cattle prod, I save that for really special occasions). Sissy was working that whine, trying to stay home. Finally it came out that they were playing the recorder in music and she’s terrible at it and it counts in her grade! She doesn’t want her inability to play the recorder to affect her grade. I told her not to waste a day off because of the recorder and that in the next couple weeks we’ll take a mother/daughter day to go shopping and have lunch. Just don’t tell her teachers.
Our cats are finally making friends. Right now they are both curled up next to each other on the back of my chair. Snuffy still finds Kimmy incredibly annoying but he can escape down to the basement and she won’t follow him. She’s not brave enough yet to take on the dogs. Today we need to take her to the vet to get her stitches removed. I can’t wait. She keeps pulling at them and it just turns my stomach. It’s amazing she hasn’t pulled them out yet the way she tugs on them. She still needs to learn some manners. In her mind, any food is her food and more than a couple of times I’ve found J-Man standing up holding his bowl over his head so Kimmy doesn’t get it.
I’m heading out to the new Super Wal-Mart that opened yesterday. I know some of you think Wal-Mart is the portal to hell, blah, blah, blah, but where else will I be able to get my Slim Jims and pork rinds at super low prices?
Today is our Mom’s Birthday. So if you’re looking for our usual snarky sarcasm you’ll have to come back another day. We have a great Mom and we both usually talk to her at least once a day. She’s our number one fan. In fact every time I think our traffic is up, I look and then realize it’s Mom. When we first told her the name was going to be Blue Monkey Butt she told us she’d only be able to tell people to go to Blue Monkey Behind because she doesn’t say butt. I think she’s finally over that.
Happy Birthday Mom! Wish we didn’t live so far away!
This is what’s on tap for today.
Sending birthday wishes to our 21 year old daughter in Disney World
and to
our Dad!
Wish I could be there!
Yes, the Rosetta Stone project is done.
It was a little delayed due to a stomach virus, but we managed to finish it.
Were you expecting The Rosetta Stone Learning Language based software?
This is a replica of the actual Rosetta Stone.
It was created in 196 BC and was found in 1799.
The discovery aided in deciphering hieroglyphics.
See, I actually pay attention to these school projects.
We’re still waiting for a grade on the Benedict Arnold report.
Stumble it!
