Simple question

I forgot my grocery list when I left the house this morning. I called Joe to see if he wanted to go with me to the grocery store, or just give me the list over the phone so I can stop on my way home.

J: I don't care. It's up to you.
C: Well, do you want to go or not?
J: It really doesn't matter.
C: OK. Just read me the list.
J: (Read the list, talked about a couple of other things.)
C: OK...I'll stop on the way home then and get the groceries.
J: OooooKaaay.
C: Do you want to go?
J: Do you need me? I can meet you there if you want.
C: Joe, I don't care if you go or not. Do you want to go? Yes or no.
J: I don't know...if you need me I can be there...
C: That wasn't an option. Yes or no.
J: Well, if you want...
C: (cutting Joe off) Yes or No!
J: O.K. Yes I want to go.
C: O.K.
J: But no I don't want to go.
C: Argh!!!!!!! OK. I'm hanging up now.
J: Don't be mad at me!
C: I'm not mad at you. I'm going to go. I love you. Have a good afternoon.

This could have been such a simple conversation.

Hey. Wanna go to the store?
Sure! or, No thanks.

It doesn't have to be this hard, does it? HA!

You should have heard the conversation about where to meet for lunch...

Meet Maizy

This is Maizy, our "little" puppy. She'll be 11 weeks old tomorrow and already weighs 22 pounds. her mom was a boxer (65 pounds), and her dad was a mastiff (150 pounds, but only 1 year old so not full grown). That's not exactly what they were aiming for at Maizy's first home. They were looking for a boxer mom and a boxer dad. But this just goes to prove that unless you can watch a dog in heat 24/7, you may not get what you expected. A DNA test proved Daddy was the Mastiff. HAHAHA~

Day Three on the Job Hunt

Joe's company unexpectedly closed his store. I say unexpectedly, although there were some signs. Other stores in the chains have been closed, but only when their contract at the mall they were in expired. Corporate was telling Joe's store that they had nothing to worry about because Joe's store is consistently #1 or #2 top sales in the company. Joe's store's lease doesn't expire for more than a year.

But last Tuesday one of the mall managers came in asking for the general manager to discuss the lease renegotiation. Joe knew then he had to start looking for another job, even though everyone was telling him not to worry, everything is good. Wednesday, Joe learned the owners were scheduling a meeting for Thursday or Friday to discuss the fate of the remaining 5 stores in the chain. We updated Joe's resume that night. Thursday, his boss called and said the store was closed as of that day, come get anything you might have left at the store.

No severance pay, no warning, no compassion. They even told Joe they weren't going to pay him for his vacation time, or the commission he had earned since the last pay period. It would cost a lot more in attorney fees to go after them than it would be worth.

So, after a brief mourning period (like a couple of hours), Joe started to work on looking for a job. Yesterday he applied for other pet store jobs. He's going to take the tests you need to take to get into some of the factories around here. His resume is ready to go and he's applied for some jobs on-line.

I told him that he just has to realize that his full-time job now is to look for a job. I think he's pretty motivated. Especially when I made it really clear to him how much money we don't have without his job. =) And how, TV, cell phone, lots of running the kids around in the car (gas) and other "necessities" of daily life are going to come to a screeching halt if he doesn't get a job soon. You gotta get 'em where it means something. TV and cell phone are huge to Joe. For me, it's more like eating out, buying books on tape and Starbucks. HA!

Onward and upward! God has something in mind...

Exciting ride to work

It snowed last night, maybe an inch. I left home for work at about 7:10 am, and the road had been plowed, but was still snow covered. As I pulled out of the addition I live in, my car started to slide into the intersection. Thusly warned of road conditions, I began to slowly drive up the hilly road to get to the main highway. I was about 3/4 of the way to the top of the hill when my car decided it wasn't going to go that way. I began to s-l-i-d-e backwards. A pickup managed to get by me before my car turned broadside in the road, blocking both lanes. I put the car in neutral, stood on my brake, pulled up my parking brake and finally my car stopped sliding just before I went into the ditch which leads to a small pond. Whew! Then I realized I was still blocking both lanes and I started praying that no one would top the hill and hit me. I carefully put the car in reverse, and was able to back enough to turn to go back down the hill. But really, it just slid back down the hill. I had no control whatsoever.

I decided to go a different way, and had a difficult time with sliding on the road there, too. But once I made it to a main street, everything was good.

It was really sort of thrilling (except for when I thought I was going to drive into the pond...). Gosh. I don't know how we ever got anywhere on the farm when it snowed. The hills there are much worse. I think we had snow tires, though. If it wasn't almost March, I'd put snow tires on my car now.

It's snowing again now, and I go home in another 45 minutes. Once I'm home I think I'll stay there until tomorrow.

Yuck

I have a cold. Yuki got it first, and gave it to Sarah. Sarah happily passed it along to me. My nose is stopped up, I have a cough that's driving me crazy, my head hurts, and I'm a little grumpy. Thankfully I'm the only one home, so no one has to listen to me. The really sad thing is that every time I sneeze real hard or cough more than once, I pee. I blame it on my children. They did it to me while in the womb. Little brats. Even 20 years later they are still wreaking havoc on my body.

I'm trying to decide if I should stay home from work tomorrow or go buy some Depends... I'm thinking I'll work from home. Much safer that way.

Yay!

Our townhouse has been subletted out so we don't have to pay rent! Woo-hoo!

Now that we have a little extra money, we are going to buy an LCD tv. Looks like we can get a 42", but Joe really wants a 52" screen. Geez. Can we say, "The TV totally dominates the room?"

Anyone have any suggestions on brand?

The day draws nearer...

Only 6 days to closing! We needed to get Sarah's room painted and she was dragging her feet. So last night, after a dinner of bacon wrapped filets, onion rings and corn dip/fritos (gotta get the veggies in...), I casually say to Sarah,

"I'm going upstairs. And I'm going to do one of two things. Either I'm going to paint or I'm going to pack your closet. If you come help, I'll paint. If you don't, I'll pack your closet. If I see anything I don't like, I'm throwing it away."

The room got painted. It looks nice.

Amy's Famous Fritos Dip

At least, it's famous in our family. She made it this summer when Teresa and I were back to see Mom and we had "The Tornado That Shook The Beds And Tore Off The Garage". But I digress. On to more important matters of food.

Amy made this dip and here is my slightly modified recipe:

1 can original Rotel tomato (drained)
1 can Nibblets corn (drained)
1/2 cup (or a big handful) of shredded cheese-I usually use Monterrey Jack
1/2 cup (or a couple of big spoonfuls) of full-on Mayo (low fat? yuck!)
3 or 4 sliced green onions
salt and pepper

Mix it all together, put it in Grandma Crouse's speckled bowl covered with plastic wrap and let it chill for a while in the fridge. Serve with Frito's Scoops.

I'm telling you. At first, you kind of say to yourself, "What? Corn and tomatoes as a dip? With MAYO?" and you aren't sure you like it. But it's addictive. It grows on you real fast. Sometimes I eat it without the chips. It's probably the only way Joe and Sarah and I get any real veggies at all.

So last night, for supper, we had chicken and dumplings, and the "corn dip". Sarah got a phone call, and was gone for 14 minutes. She came back and the entire bowl was gone. She ate plenty before she got the call, but you snooze you lose when it comes to this dip. She was SO distressed, that Joe volunteered to go out in the freezing cold to get the ingredients to make more!!! That's how good it is!!!! Try it.

Join the dip revolution.

10 days to moving day

On the one hand, 10 days sounds like an eternity. We close on the 29th and we are very excited about the move and getting settled in to our new home. It can't come soon enough. On the other hand, OH MY GOSH WE ONLY HAVE 10 DAYS TILL MOVING DAY!! Yes, we have a lot packed. Yes, we have an idea where everything will go. Yes, we even decided to have a local moving company come move all our stuff. But we have SOOOOOOOOOOO much more to do.

Yesterday, Elizabeth came down with the kids. We had asked a kid to come over and paint Sarah's room here at the apartment so it would be back to it's original eggshell color. (Her room is a bright orange and bright green.) At the last moment, he called and had to cancel. So, Elizabeth and Sarah and I attempted to paint Sarah's room. We KNEW we were going to have to put on a coat of base to help cover the colors. What we didn't know was how many coats. AND, some of the paint "slid" on the wall. What a nightmare. By the time we were done with the first coat, the baby was hysterical, Yuki and Sofi were bored to tears, and I was ready for everyone to leave. So I told everyone I'd have to go buy another gallon of Kilz2 and we'd work on it again later. Which really means, Sarah will work on it again later. She's the one that wanted to paint the walls originally and I told her at that time that she would have to paint it back. I was just being nice yesterday. It's her baby now.

It is REALLY REALLY cold here. We've been so spoiled by temps that don't get below 30 degrees, and suddenly it's 0 degrees with an ungodly windchill factor and a winter advisory telling us it's cold outside, so be careful out there.

Time to get back to watching Bobby Flay make comfort food. I wish I wasn't the only one that loved meatloaf. It just sounds so good. So does Chili. Of course, making either one of those items would mean I'd have to go to the store. I wouldn't want to take the chance since the National Weather Channel tells me it's cold outside and my blood might freeze right in my veins if I venture out. So, I guess I'll just dream about the meatloaf and make chicken instead.

Yuki strikes again

Elizabeth is in the garage putting recylables into the bins.

Yuki walks out and says: "What the hell are you doing?"

Elizabeth, taken aback, says: "What did you say?"

Yuki: "What the hell..."

**********************

Elizabeth calls to tell me this, and I am cracking up. I ask her who says that. She said she doesn't know. I think it's the damn t.v.

Comments from outside...

Most of you know we have snakes. Lots of snakes. And some of them are BIG. They unfortunately reside in our living room right now. When the blinds are open you can see the snakes through the window if you are standing outside. So yesterday some kids were outside the window looking in at the snakes.

Kid 1: Whoa! Look at those snakes! They're HUGE.

Kid 2: Wow! I wonder what kind they are?

Kid 1: I know what kind they are...those are the kind of snakes that can kill a man!

Kid 2: That's creepy! Let's get out of here!

On the face of it, I really wouldn't want anyone to think that my snakes could kill anyone. They aren't poisonous. They probably could strangle a person (the bigger ones) but you'd have to be pretty weak to not be able to get them off your neck, and if you're dumb enough to put them around your neck in the first place perhaps you deserve your fate.

But on the other hand, if all the kids in the neighborhood are afraid of our house because of the snakes, maybe none of the little hoodlums will break in and try to steel anything. HAHA.

Happy New Year!

Well, here it is the New Year of 2008.

I have duly recorded my weight in a top secret place known only to me, lest someone stumble across it and realize that the number on my driver's license is not correct. But, it's not that far off either.

I'm drinking my vitamin-filled morning beverage that is supposed to give me 100% of all the vitamins and minerals I need for the day. Joe and I each got our own gender-correct canister at GNC last week. It's not supposed to be a meal replacement, but I'm thinking it can't be bad with milk and a frozen banana or some blueberries. That's more than I get for breakfast most of the time anyway.

So last night I was lying in bed thinking of New Years Resolutions and how they need to be do-able. Most of my thoughts centered around work. I didn't make any personal goals (other than work) because I know I won't keep them after about one and a half days. But the work one is really more for my sanity than anything else, and I'm going to try hard to keep that one.

"I will work my diaries every day and will not roll them to the next day(s)." There. It's in writing.

Happy New Year! Blessings to you!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Yay! It's snowing!

Today, Joe and Sarah and I went to look at the new house (Sarah hadn't seen it yet). Sarah likes it a lot. So do we. The only possible drawback is the drive from the house to the highway. It's a windy, narrow and hilly road. It was a little dicey getting to it with slippery roads this morning. I was driving. Joe was very frightened. Goodness knows why. HAHA.

My big goal for the weekend is to finish Christmas presents and send them out this week. I'm very very close to being done. Once that's done, I need to really concentrate on getting the stuff I don't need on a daily basis packed up. The very worst part about moving is the moving. I hate packing, and I hate unpacking just as much. But once it's all done, it will be so nice!!

I'm off to watch the snow....

Pictures of house (with their furniture)

See Joe and I in our own short film!!

Click below. Happy holidays!!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1295141616

House!!!

Joe and I are buying a house! We are very excited (scared) and happy (worried) and looking forward to having a place of our own together.

I'll let you all know the details once we have a closing date and all that. It's in Bloomington. Woo-hoo!!

Is it REALLY December?

We are having a good old THUNDERSTORM. In December. I love it. I wish it was snow, but I still love it. Wind. Rain. Thunder. Woo-hoo!

I went Christmas shopping today. I found the COOLEST toy for me - I mean Yuki. It's a

Fisher-Price® Imaginext™ Mega Spinosaurus see it.

It moves. It roars. The eyes flash. In fact, it was SO cool, that I got something similar
here for Jaisen. We'll leave it here for "safe keeping". They make cool noises and flap wings and stuff like that. I wish the pictures were better.

I've been listening to Christmas music by Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. Ah, the holidays.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

The stress! The stress! I'm paralyzed and can't do anything because I have too much to do! Too many things pulling at me! I wish I was an ostrich and could put my head in the sand and pretend nothing is out of sorts.

Sunday - last day of vacation

And I'm actually looking forward to going back to work.

Yesterday we (Joe & I and his two sons and his grandson) went to Kentucky for the Paulley Thanksgiving. It was nice until the trip home. Joe was exhausted from work, Jaisen (grandson) was tired (no nap), and Josh was in rare angry form. The closer we got to home the worse it was. Josh says mean, wicked things about Jaisen's mom, right in front of Jaisen, and despite Joe telling him to let it go, he didn't. Jaisen's mom says mean and spiteful things about Josh in front of Jaisen too. They are both wrong, and Jaisen's the one that will suffer the most.

Josh is frustrated with his roommates and didn't want to go home. He asked if he could stay at our house and I shook my head no because Joe was so tired he could barely stand up. This threw Josh into a rage, and for the last 30 miles all he did was cuss and be obnoxious. In the end, Joe took him in his car so he could talk to him and had Billy and I take Jaisen to our house. Apparently he came down pretty hard on Josh. Which Josh needed.

They ended up staying at our house anyway because Josh's roommates looked him out of their house. I just went to bed and let Joe deal with it. This morning he told Joe that he needed to move, but had no where to go. Joe told him he needed to figure it out.

I need to talk to Joe again and let him know there is no way Josh can live with us. He makes me feel all tight and angry and frustrated whenever I'm around him. He's lazy and won't do anything to help himself. Even worse than Sarah. Sarah is lazy too, but at least she'll work and is normally pretty nice.

Blended families certainly have their challenges, even when the kids are (mostly) grown up.

BLACK FRIDAY

Today is Black Friday. I was at the mall at 3 am. But not for the reason you might think. The pet care person where Joe works called in sick last night, and Joe had to go in at 3 am to clean the kennels, and all the other critter areas, as well as give shots and all that. The mall opened at 6 for most stores, but some were open at 5:00 (like Target). People are CRAZY. There were people at the mall waiting for stores to open at 3:00 when we got there!

So, Joe and I did all the pre-open stuff at the pet store, and about 6:30, we went to breakfast at Chick-fil-a. They have a killer breakfast burrito. Then Joe went back to work, and I thought, Well, I'm already here. I might as well go to Target and see what they have.

I remember now WHY I decided never to go shopping on Black Friday before afternoon. I did it one other time a few years ago. Apparently it's like having a baby. Eventually the pain of childbirth recedes from your mind and you believe it wasn't so bad, and you can do it again. Black Friday Early Morning is like that. You forget how bad it was and decide to try it again...

The mall itself wasn't all that bad. Kinda like a busy weekend. But Target was insane. I didn't even get a cart, not that there were any available. Even the days prior to school starting didn't touch how many people were in Target today. It took me 10 minutes just to get from the door opening into the mall to the doors to the outside. You know how it is. People stopping in the isle to look, blocking everyone else from moving through. One lady totally ran into me me with her cart from behind. She didn't "see" me because she had a box in her cart that was taller than both of us. When I did get to the isle leading to the outside I was confronted with the most amazing sight. Carts. Two rows of carts, going the entire length of the store and around the corner. It would take at least one & half hours just waiting in line to get to the cash register.

When I finally freed myself from the crush of humanity, I thought I was going to witness a massive accident between cars wanting my parking place. I had a primo parking spot since I was one of the very first people at the mall. I was so glad to get out of there! I was so traumatized I couldn't even bring myself to go shopping the rest of the day.

Hopefully the pain will fade and I'll be able to at least shop in the afternoon next Black Friday...

Let the Christmas Carols begin! Black Friday is here!