Erika

So I have been debating whether or not to try Pilates. Ethan being the dutiful husband that he is, came home lastnight with a Pilates starter kit. It came with a ball, the stretch cords, and a dvd.

It is what I would call Pilates for Idiots. I don’t think that it is a good sign that it took me about 10min to figure out how to blow up the damned ball. Now I am fairly coordinated, but the balancing act on that ball was comical. Logan told me I looked like La-La.

For those of you who don’t have small children, La-La is the yellow Teletubbie that always carries around a huge rubber ball, and is usually breaking or spilling things because of it. Actually La-La taught me to start watching my language around Jarod when he was almost two. During one particularly riviting episode the voice over said, ‘ La-La’s ball is stuck in the tree’ and Jarod responded, ‘Aw, shit’  but I dirgress…. 

Anyway, I could very easily end up in traction within the next few days. So wish me luck Buddies as I am going to attempt to do the dvd after the kids are off to school. Do they make Pilates helmets? I’m just getting a visual of me sliding off that thing and going head first into the wall.

Good morning all, I totally lost my mind lastnight and had chinese. Holy water retention this morning BatMan!

We went to the mall to get our taxes done lastnight, we got there about an hour and a half before our appointment so we could suprise the kids with a trip to Chuck E Cheese for dinner. They all had pizza and soda, I had the salad bar and bottled water. I was doing really well until we took the kids into the food court to get ice cream, I really was hungry. So I got the chinese….never again.

I’m sure I didn’t do too much damage to my diet, considering I hardly ate anything all day.

I have to share though how proud I am of my boys. When it was time to leave Chuckie’s they had about 200 tickets between them to redeem. They talked it over and decided that since they didn’t have enough to get anything good that they would just give their tickets to a little boy that only had a few. Then as we were half way out the door they realized that they both still had tokens in their pockets, and ran back to that same little guy and gave them to him also.

Finally, I have to stay on the bragging front for just one more moment. My mother told me yesterday that over the weekend she and Logan go to talking about what ” pretty ” is. He was naming off all the women in his life that he thought was pretty. So she asked him about me, and Logan’s response was ” My Mommy is beautiful, she can really rock the room. “ 

My mother about died laughing, and asked him where he got that one from. He answered, ” Daddy told me .”

Good morning all, the kids have a 2 hour school delay and are currently running around my house like lunatics. Beating the crap out of each other with the balloons from my friends birthday party lastnight.

Speaking of the party, mid way through the evening one of my brothers apparently broke the upstairs toilet. We noticed it when all of a sudden it started raining in my dining room. We had water pouring out of the ceiling in 4 different places, it was even raining in the basement. I thought a pipe burst, thankfully it wasn’t that. We may have to replace some plaster and repaint, but it looks like the damage is minimal.

My eating was horrible this weekend, so back on track today. We will be having another round of parties next weekend as well. Friday is my mother’s 60th birthday, and then there is the Super Bowl. The gang informed me lastnight that they would like to watch it here again this year. ( big surprise ) They really don’t love spending that much time with me, they just like to eat here.

So that’s about all there is to report. I will spend the rest of the day cleaning up from the flood/party/weekend, and of course doing the traditional Monday Morning Laundry-a-Thon.

Hello all, and happy Saturday!

No word yet on the new job, Ethan said that it was the best interview he has ever had, and is feeling very confident about it. They said they would let him know either way by Friday of next week.

I have 2 birthday parties to deal with tomorrow. The first is for the little guy I babysit, he’s turning 2. The second is at my house for my adopt a kid, he’s now 19. He wants meatball hoagies, home made mac and cheese, and a variety of munchies. So today will be filled with shopping and cooking yet again.

Good news on the chorus front, the dircetor called me yesterday and told me that in addition to the choir I am already in, he is putting together a 12 voice group by audition only. He offered me one of the spots. So that’s pretty cool.

Well I’m off to fight the fight at the grocery store, and check in on you guys.

Lastnight was a late and long one…get your mind out of the gutter folks, I didn’t mean it that way.  Ethan and I stayed fairly late lastnight preparing him for the big interview today. Finally when we went to bed, we both just laid there hoping and wishing and praying that he will get this job. It seemed like the most important thing in the world.

As I have told you all before, I have very vivid dreams, so much so that it takes me a while to shake them when I wake up. Anyway, lastnight I drempt that Logan had to have his legs amputated.

 As I sit here right now, I can close my eyes and see him sitting on the couch bandaged and crying because he could no longer walk. It was so incredibly real, that as I got up and was brushing my teeth I had yet to fully realize that it was just a dream.

It wasn’t until there was a knock at the door, and it was Logan telling me to hurry up because he needed to use the bathroom, that it hit me it wasn’t real. I opened the door, saw him standing there, and burst into tears. I just grabbed him and hugged him…our moment was cut short because he really had to pee.

Suddenly, Ethan’s potential new job seemed really trivial.

We have what we need, and while the perks that would come with this new job would be nice, we have what we need. We have an incredibly strong marriage and two happy and healthy children. We have loving friends and family, who also are happy and healthy. We have a warm, safe home. We have enough ( sometimes too much ) to eat, the lights are on, and the only clothes that we wear with holes in them, we wear by choice because we don’t want to part with them.

How many people in this world would give anything to be able to say that?

I believe that we land where we are supposed to be. I believe that all things happen for a reason, and when they are supposed to. I believe that if you pay attentiion, and are ready for them, you will see the oppertunities that are supposed to come your way.

I heard it said once, ‘ That everything will be OK in the end…if it’s not OK, then it’s not the end. ‘

So today I challenge all of you to look at the good things in your life, and hold tight to the ones you love, and be grateful for everyway you are blessed. Be grateful for what you have, and be greatful for what you don’t have.

Be well Buddies.

Hello all, thankfully after a really rough day yesterday, I am finally starting to feel better.

I do have some potentially great news. Ethan has a job interview with a major corporation tomorrow. It would mean a lot more money, more benifits, and best of all…their headquarters are about 10 min from my house. Right now he has an 1 1/2 hour commute each way everyday. The money that we wouldn’t be spending on gas alone every month, would be a huge difference, not to mention the extra time at home. He would actually get to see the kids before he leaves for work in the morning.

So please keep your fingers and toes and any other flexible body parts crossed for us.

My eating was really bad yesterday, it’s hard to do low carb when the only thing you can hold down is toast. Hopefully today will be better.

It’s about 8 degrees here and snowing, so I need to go and bundle up the monsters and head out into the frozen Tundra to the bus stop.

Over the last few days I’ve seen the little goof balls eyeing up the metal street sign pole, and debating whether or not that scene in A Christmas Story is accurate. Believe me if one of them did it…it would be one of mine.

I can hear it now,  But Mom he triple dogged dared me!

Have a good one Buddies!

I don’t want to alarm all of you, but I think I may have Malaria, or possibly some rare form of an Egyptian disease that no one has ever heard of. Even my hair looks sick, perhaps that’s just the highlights that I am still not sure about.

Anyway, I am going to try and disinfect my house today. I have about enough energy to do one room and then rest for about an hour. Everything needs to be wiped down so the kids don’t get it, all the bedding stripped, ect…Do they make a disinfecting version of a bug bomb?

I managed to stay on my diet yesterday, so that’s a plus, and the dryer is fixed…finally. I can barely talk so it looks like I’m going to miss my chorus rehersal this Thursday. I thought about going to just listen, but I don’t want to infect the entire alto section. Being that Ethan has taken to calling me Typhoid Erika, it’s probably best that I stay home.

The good part about being sick, is that I have been able to just lay around and watch bad movies for the past few days. I was so excited yesterday when I was scrolling through the guide and saw that one of all time favorite bad movies was on….XANADU !

Be honest…you guys loved that one too.

Hey guys, still sick..feel like crap…not happy about it.

This morning was fun, both Jarod and Logan had quite a time of it getting dressed this morning. Ethan, trying to help me, did and put away the laundry this weekend. Well, to put it nicely…it’s all screwed up. Logan’s underwear was in Jarod’s drawer, Jarod’s sweaters are in Logan’s closet, and none of the socks are matched correctly. About the only thing that he put away correctly were my bras. Being that I’m the only female in the house…that was kind of a no brainer. He even got his own undershirts mixed up with Jarod’s.

The house is totally trashed, apparently my husband, who holds an MBA, has yet to figure out the complexities of Pledge and the finer points of a sponge mop.

I am ready to choke one of the women I babysit for, I called her all day yesterday to see if she could find someone else to take the kids today. I also told her that if she couldn’t I would still take them. She finally calls me back after 6pm lastnight and actually said to me, “Why couldn’t you be sick on a Wednesday?”  Did I mention that is was her son that got me sick in the first place?

I was stunned, when I took this gig almost 2 years ago, it was three days a week for about 6 to 7 hrs a day. Now because of schedule changes and job changes I have her kids for an average of 10 to 11 hrs a day, sometimes even longer. I have never asked her for any more money, never really complained when she is 2 hrs late, or when her husband brings the kids an hour early.

To be honest, what she pays me is less than half of what a daycare would charge her. Actually the ones around here fine you $10 for every 5 minutes you are late to pick up your kids. In an average week, she’d be paying over $200 in late fees alone. So once I’m feeling better, she and I are going to have a serious sit down.

OK, I’m done complaining now. I’m going to try and find the energy to straighten out the mess Ethan made ” helping ” over the weekend. I also have to clear a path to my dryer, the repair guy is supposed to come today and replace the timer. They were here to diagnose the fact that the timer was shot ( dryer is less than 7 mos old ). about a month and a half ago. Finally today they are supposed to come and fix it. I got the automated call lastnight saying that they would be here sometime between 8am and the 3rd Tuesday of next week.

OK now I’m done complaining. Be well Buddies!

Hello all, sorry I have been MIA all weekend. I have the cold/sinus infection from hell, and have barely gotten out of bed in the last few days.

It totally figures, I’ve been waiting for a good snow all winter, we finally get one and I’m too sick to play with the kids. My diet has been shot to hell as I have been living on chicken noodle soup, crackers, and Hawaiin Punch.

Anyway, I hope you are all well, hopefully I will be up and moving, and preferably not sneezing my head off in a couple of days.

Hello Buddies…I am coming to you live from ‘ New Fridge Land ‘. They were supposed to deliver the fridge between 9am and noon today, so I assumed that meant 3pm. Boy was I wrong, the phone rang at 6:30am, and they were 10 minutes away.

So here’s the good news/ bad news….

Good: The fridge is here.

Bad: It’s too about 1 1/2 inches too big and doesn’t fit in the alcove where the old one and my microwave cart sits. Actually I have a stainless steel baker’s rack for my microwave, with a bunch of shelves and hooks for coffee mugs. So I will be making a trip to Lowes to buy the smaller version of it this evening.

Also the new water line I bought for it isn’t compatable ( their mistake not mine ) so I need a different one…also on the list for Lowes tonight. My neighbor is a handy man, so I’ll ask him to install it. Ethan probably could do it, and then we would have ice again….or Ethan could do it and we could have a flood on my nice new floor.

I’m not quite sure about the new do, it’s a lot blonder than I had expected. Everyone loves it, I’ll give it a couple days to get used to it and then I’ll make the decision of whether to re-color or not. It’s a little ‘ Ginger Spice ’ for me. But hell, with a ton of make up, some platform stripper shoes and a dress made out of England’s flag and it just might work.

The chorus was a lot of fun lastnight. God, it has been so long since I have had to learn actual notes for harmony and not just done it by ear. There were 4 women in my row that were really funny, that I think I’ll get along with. But as usual there is that one woman singing louder and stronger than everyone else and 9 times out of 10, she was singing the wrong notes. Very cat caught in a blender, if you know what I mean.

One of the tenors was flirting with me, which is cute considering I’ve got about 13 years on him.

So that’s what is new with me, I’m off to finish Jarod’s art project. ( the one that he announced was due today….lastnight ) I have to hot glue gun the rubber band strings to his cardboard guitar, the fun never ends. Ethan desinged it lastnight, it’s a replica of Randy Rhodes’ Flying Vee.  Rock on Buddies!