Demon Spawn and Angel Child

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have two sisters. Baby Sister is 10½ yrs younger than I am and just getting her feet on the ground in regards to life - a new (and serious!) boyfriend, a new apartment, a new job. I'm proud of her. My other sister, however, is a ditz. (Ditz Sister is 3 yrs younger than me.) My mom and I actually joke about her being a ditz - mom says something about 'one in every generation', and in my mom's it was her own older sister. LOL.

Well, to get to the point of my title - Ditz Sister has two kids: Demon Spawn and Angel Child. Demon Spawn is 6 yrs old. He can be the sweetest little thing on occasion, and then turn and be the spawn of the devil on another. (It's too fast of a turn for him to be bipolar. I'd liken him more to 'Jekyll and Hyde'.) He's rough and aggressive and Ditz Sister protects him no matter what. Even if he's in the wrong. He can pound on my kid for a full year, but as soon as Frodo takes a swing at Demon Spawn, mama is there to defend Demon Spawn. The whole family (including her inlaws) gets very irritated with him (and her). It's hilarious at family functions as we all cast *knowing glances* at each other and Ditz Sister is completely oblivious.

Then there's Angel Child. She's 2½ yrs old and she's an awesome little gal. The only time she acts up is when she's feeding off her brother's energy. And for whatever reason, Ditz Sister gets all irritated with Angel Child easily and often - all while casting a blind eye on Demon Spawn's actions. (Do I have to study up my Freud to understand this one?!?!?)

Angel Child and Frodo just adore each other. Frodo sometimes asks me to have Angel Child over but wants Demon Spawn to stay at home. Then I have to explain to Frodo that they are a package deal. Sometimes he takes them both just so he can see Angel Child. He's fine for about 30 minutes before Demon Spawn starts wearing on him. At least Frodo is getting better at telling Demon Spawn to 'knock it off' if Demon Spawn is misbehaving.

And Ditz Sister is due with a third child in March. I sure hope it's another angel....

Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Day is here! This is my favorite holiday - all the fun and food of christmastime without the gift part. ;)

I have two sisters, and they are usually at their in-laws for Thanksgiving. I used to go to my inlaws too, until mom-in-law passed away. (That was almost 7 yrs ago now.) Then the whole extended family get together stuff just sorta fell apart - pretty much for every holiday. Which is too bad, because my extended family inlaws are all really nice people and I actually enjoy time with them.

My sis-in law has her inlaws (or should I say *outlaws*, lol) at her house now. And years ago, I had a job where I worked evenings and weekends and some holidays, so sometimes I ended up working on Thanksgiving. Right before I left that job, hubby got his current job and often works holidays too. (There was one Christmas we BOTH worked... Ick.) We have friends that have those kinds of hours as well - sometimes working holidays (a paramedic and an RN). So a few years ago, we all decided to start having Thanksgiving together.

It started probably5 or 6 years ago - our best friends know another couple from out of state. They were chatting on the phone and complaining about the *inlaws house vs parents house* dilemma, and our friends said, "Come to our house instead!" So they did. They drove 18 hours to spend Thanksgiving weekend here. It was a blast! At that time, those of us that live here decided to do the *no blood relatives Thanksgiving* from now on, lol.

So the past 4 or 5 years, we've done it at my house. It includes myself, my dh, our ds, our best friends and their dd, and a co-worker of dh's who has no family nearby. Sometimes we add an extra person or two depending on if someone knows someone who needs a Turkey Day meal and some fun. Today's meal will be at 5pm so we can wait for our RN friend who has to work a day shift today. I'm really looking forward to it all.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Thanksgiving!!!

The Polar Express

I got to see the movie, "The Polar Express" today. I went with Frodo's class - actually, all the 1st and 2nd graders from his school saw it on a field trip and I got to chaperone. :) The teachers were reading the book to the kids last week, then letting them see the movie this week. Today and tomorrow they are going to compare the book and movie for similarities and differences. I was glad I got to chaperone and see the movie.

I really liked the movie overall. There were a few things I wasn't so crazy about - some of the animation was a bit *off* (I think it was just the technique that was used), and having Tom Hanks' voice for so many characters was sorta... well... irritating. Other than that, I loved this movie. I'm off tomorrow to buy a bell for our tree.

And tomorrow! Tomorrow I get to babysit my darling niece, Kate. She's 2½ yrs old and I think she's pretty darn cool. (Her big brother is a story for another day though. :-o ) So I'll take her shopping with me I think! Maybe she can give me some ideas of what to get her for a christmas gift....

Week One down...

I just finished my first week on Weight Watchers. It wasn't too bad. A couple times I was thinking "I'm starving!!!!". But I've survived. ;) And I'm 5 pounds lighter. Woo Hoo!!

It's interesting trying to get used to a new way of eating - especially after doing a low carb diet before this. I'm trying VERY hard to get lots of fruits and vegetables. Trouble is, I have a hubby and a son who think that eating a vegetable is the worst punishment one could dish out. My son's vegetables include pickles and ketchup. That's it. I did make a chicken dish this week with tomatoes and artichoke hearts and the little guy said he liked the artichoke hearts!! (Waaaahhh?!??!? How confusing!) My hubby's vegetables are french fries. He even eats a burger plain, with no ketchup. How boring.

So, I'm gonna keep trying to find new recipes and keep plugging away at healthier eating. And if the boys don't like it, then they can cook for themselves!!! ;)

I'm exhausted. A good exhausted.

I spent FOUR HOURS doing yard work today. I got the lawnmower out for it's last hurrah of the year and got the grass cut short and the leaves all up. I cleaned out my veggie garden. I cleaned the lawnmower and exchanged it's place with the snowblower. I placed all the branches at the curb for the recycle folks to come get them next week. After I was done, I took a long, hot shower and a couple Aleve.

I really enjoy that kind of work though. Give me a yard to mow or a driveway to shovel or leaves to rake and I'll pick that over housework ANY DAY. I hate housework. If you have a dust allergy, you'd best avoid my house, lol. I don't like doing laundry, I don't like dusting, I don't like vacuuming, I don't like doing dishes, I don't like any sort of cleaning at all. (I do not like them Sam I am!) Maybe I like the outdoor stuff because it can stay nice looking for a couple days unlike the housework that is all mussed up in 20 minutes flat.... That's part of it. I think I just like the outdoors better than the indoors most of the time.

Something I really need to do

I really want to lose some weight. To get to my ideal weight, I need to lose 45 pounds from where I am right now. Know what's weird? That seems totally doable to me!

A few years ago I did the eDiets thing and had to stop because I was so damn tired of salad twice a day!!! Years later, and I still don't want to eat salad!! I did the low carb thing a couple years ago and lost 20 pounds, then put 10 of it back on. But I didn't want to go that route again. I know quite a few people who have had good success with Weight Watchers, so I decided to take the plunge.

I signed up online last night. (Some folks shop late at night, I join diets, lol.) Today was my first day tracking points. I went over by 4 by the time supper was done, lol. It's a start towards forcing me to keep track of what I shovel into my mouth as opposed to just eating blindly. I completely had tons of exercise planned for today (I wanted to mow one last time this fall and get all the leaves and grass into my next garden project area as a compost starter), but had a wrench thrown into that plan - My mom has influenza and didn't want to drive herself to the doctor. Oh well. I'll just do it another day, but I'm bummed that I didn't get much exercise in today as I do like to move some.

So wish me luck on this new endeavor!!!! If I can lose 2 pounds a week, I'll have this weight off by mid-April! :)

Aaahhh.... A peaceful Tuesday morning

I like having a school age child. I get up, take him to school, and I get the rest of the day to myself. (At least on the days I don't work!) The sun is out today after quite a few cloudy days in a row so that is pleasant.

I'm doing some housework today, and if you know me, you know I HATE housework. I'd much rather be mowing or raking or gardening or hiking or something outside! I just feel all cooped up when I'm stuck inside. Besides, I hate how cleaning and laundry is such a short lived thing. It seems I clean and within 20 minutes there's dust and dirty clothes again. Grrrr.

I get to go see my *drug dealer* today. That's what I call the doctor that prescribes me my meds, lol. You see, I've had depression for almost as long as I can remember and only after becoming a mom did I finally do something about it! (It's surprising I even lived long enough to become a mom.) I don't do the therapy route - I tried, it just doesn't seem productive to me, lol. One therapist taught me about how depressed people "awfulize" things and that's about the only thing I learned to deal with. I HAVE had some hard times growing up, but they are part of what make me who I am today, and I'm pretty darn happy with who I am (most of the time at least, lol). I'm not a victim at all. Being a victim just puts one into a dangerous, neverending cycle. I just take my daily meds and I do fine. I feel like a normal human being when I take them. What a concept, eh?

Damn dryer buzzer. It's such a nag!!!! ;)

I went to THE COOLEST PLACE today

We drove out to Hwy 12 and head north of the river. Such beautiful landscape here, carved and molded by ancient glaciers. It's an absolutely stunning part of this beautiful state I live in.

As we get close to our destination, the most obvious feature is on the right side of the highway - a huge old military ammunition plant. It looks completely out of place among the hills and fields here. It's a site of over 7,000 acres and over 1,400 buildings. It was used during WW2, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War to make "propellant". (Oooooo-kaaaaayyyy....) Since 1997, it has been going through a *decommission* process. This isn't what we were headed for though.

Across the highway there is a MUCH more fascinating place: "The Land of Evermor". It's a park of sorts - filled with sculptures made by "Dr. Evermor". As you waander through the park, you feel like it's a Dr. Seuss book come to life. Or something from an H.G. Wells book. Or something Willy Wonka made. Or just a combination of all of those. It's beautiful, it's creative, and it's just amazing. I thought we'd be there an hour or so. We spent the whole afternoon there and the only reason we left is because we were getting hungry.

Dr. Evermor's original career was industrial wrecking. As we sat and chatted with him for awhile today, he tells us he hit a point where he didn't like destroying things anymore, he wanted to build things instead. So he makes sculptures from scrap metal items. Frodo totally loved this place and wants to make some scrap metal sculptures of his own. Only thing is, I don't think they make arc welding equipment for 2nd graders.... ;)

To really believe this place, you just have to see it. So if you're ever in my neck of the woods, I'll take you there! In the meantime, you can just enjoy some websites:

http://www.drevermor.com/index.html

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/WIBARforever.html

http://www.wired.com/news/roadtrip/riverroad/0,2704,65168,00.html?tw=wn_story_page_prev2

I feel ill.

Maybe it's the Halloween candy I've been eating. Maybe it's the crummy weather. Maybe I'm even coming down with something. But mostly, I feel ill over the presidential election.

Obviously, I am not a Bush supporter. I have my reasons and I won't bore you with them. But I am just frightened in regards to the direction our country may now be taking. I am frightened that other countries must think we are the dumbest lot on the planet for re-electing a bully. I am frightened that terrorists will take this as a *dare*. I am frightened for my economic future. I am frightened for Frodo's future. I am frightened in the same way that one is frightened when riding in a car with a driver who is inattentive, reckless, incompetent and/or drunk.

I know that not everyone agrees with me. At least half the country doesn't agree with me! But I also know that the other half of the country DOES agree with me. So I have a glimmer of hope. I hope for peace. I hope for safety. And I hope for better days to come.

What an insane day!!!

Got up, dressed, and got Frodo off to school. Then I went and voted. It was so AWESOME to see so many people out to vote! I only had to wait in line for 10 minutes, unlike other stories I hear of people waiting for HOURS. Wow.

Then I decided to go geocaching. I figured not only would I enjoy it, I would also get fresh air and exercise and I would be away from tvs, radios, computers.... No media to tell me any crap that might be going on today. Just me and the outdoors. Only downside - it rained yesterday. I found a deep puddle today. I think my left boot will be dry by January....

We had the fish funeral today. OMG, did that fish smell AWFUL. I almost yakked. We packaged Dexter the goldfish up in an empty check box lined with tissue paper and had some of his pretty fish tank rocks in the bottom. We buried him under the new pine tree we planted this fall. Frodo took this little statue (that used to be in the fish tank until the fish grew too big) and put that on top of the grave. It's a shark holding a sign that says "No Fishing". Frodo cried. And I cried for Frodo.

I am completely avoiding all election coverage until 10pm when I can watch the local news. Or maybe I'll just wait until tomorrow....

The damn fish finally kicked the bucket

I can't believe it finally happened. The goldfish finally bought the farm.

Frodo won him at the fair 3½ years ago and it just kept growing and thriving. It really was a pretty fish - a "comet" variety I found out. A few weeks ago, he developed some fin rot (sounds disgusting, and looks about that way too) then stopped eating. I bought some medicine for his tank and put it in. The weird stuff turned the water GREEN, it looked so bizzare! But it didn't work. We tried the medicine again. Still no success. He just kept getting sicker and sicker.

But damn if that fish didn't hold on a long time! Each night I'd keep thinking, "I bet the fish will die tonight.", and there he'd be, still making his fishy lips the next morning. I was the bad mommy and after Frodo went to school, I'd be in there saying "Just croak already!" to him. Seemed unfair to Frodo AND the fish to drag it out like that. I considered a mercy killing.... (for the fish) I just didn't know what exactly to put in the water....

Little Frodo is pretty heartbroken. I'm thinking "It's just a fucking goldfish!", but my heart breaks for Frodo. I don't like to see him in pain - it makes me cry too. But I suppose, as I teach him, life is a cycle. Every living thing eventually dies as well. A little *practice* with grief and a goldfish will only help him when he has to deal with it when a loved family member goes eventually.

Maybe I am an ok mom after all.