Tis the season . . .

Can you all believe September is gone? POOF! Just gone. And now it's October. And if you have a 9 year-old boy (or a 17-year-old-boy or two 16-year-old-boys) the conversation turns to Halloween. I'm in a fight for my life here, folks. I don't want bloody prop-things dropping from my roof on unsuspecting visitors, but the older boys think this is a great idea. I LOVE Andy, but I'm having a hard time keeping my eyes from rolling back in my head as he describes his Halloween costume which is something new each and every day . . . I LOVED Halloween when everyone was little and I could influence their costume choices. Now, eh, not so much.

We're planning our little neighborhood party and the anticipation of food someone else has made always makes me happy. In the meantime, I am pulling out all of my Happy Halloween vibes and bracing for the onslaught of grossness and stoopid-ness. (I mean that in the kindest way.)

What are your Halloween plans? I think I'm going to live large this year and give out BIG candy bars. We don't get tons of trick/treaters here and "fun-size" is just not a good thing for me. I read fun-size, I think, it's OK. And, I think it's OK about 50 more times. And then the bag is empty and it's only October 3. And, even I cannot drink enough Diet Coke to soak up all of that chocolate-nish-ish. So, full-size it is. Stay-tuned. It's easy to sneak the mini candy, a little trickier to scarf down a whole bar of candy. I wonder if I'll just give up sleep so I can eat chocolate in the dark or if I can maintain some level of control . . . Hmmmm!

Any great costume ideas? Fun plans?

Hmmm. . .

You know that song? Things That Make You Go Hmmm? It's old, but it's in my head tonight. I'm starting to think that my perspective on things is skewed, because no one else I know seems to have this kind of stuff going on in their lives. Maybe I am just over-thinking it all? Hmmm....

I called the neurologist's office this morning to ask about Dan's EEG results. The office has an automated menu that directs you to the answering machine you need for your situation. This kind of thing used to tick me off, but, honestly, I am so happy they don't use the horrible voice-recognition thing where you have to shout YES or NO into your phone, causing everyone else in the house to jump and stare. Hmmm...

I made it to the test results option and pushed the button. Mind you, I had my own kids AND, I think, an extra four here today (I agree, I should keep better track, but they all look the same!). It was noisy and I was continually distracted - even when I took the phone out to huddle by the washing machine. I reached my phone destination and was assaulted with a long list of things I MUST include in my message. I was warned that if I did not include these listed things my call would be bumped down on the priority list. Then the machine explained that my call would be returned within 24-48 hours. UNLESS I left more than one message. I was instructed that if I'd already left a message, to leave another message would only slow things down for me. Hmmmm...

Well, with 8-ish boys running through the house, crouching uncomfortably next to my dryer and trying to listen to the message (I wish I had thought to bring a pen and paper) I lost track of the list of info I needed to leave in my message. I left my message and gave them all but our bank account number. I hung up. Then I panicked. So, I called back, but then chickened out because I didn't want to leave two messages and reduce my chance of getting an answer. I hung up. Then I called again. I pushed the option to speak to the operator. I explained my dilemma. I thought it was kind of funny. She was perfectly polite, but didn't find it funny at all. Hmmmm. . .

However . . . a nurse returned my call around 5 pm. She, too, was very polite. She informed me that EEG's take at least two weeks to process (I think I watch too much HOUSE - he does all those tests really fast) and didn't we have an appointment with the neurologist in early October? I said my understanding was that the EEG would be read and, if it was warranted, we would keep the "temporary" appointment with the doctor. I stated I was just curious about the status of the test. Well, I'm a big dummy.

The nurse patiently and politely explained to me that even IF she did have the EEG results, as Dan had never actually seen the neurologist we weren't considered patients and she couldn't release the results to me. I thought about this for a full minute and told her that I didn't understand, that this made no sense. BUT, if that was the case, could the results be released to Danny's regular doctor and I could maybe talk to her about them? No go. So, we wait until October 7 to meet with the neurologist.

I KNOW this is a busy practice and I have no real complaint. BUT, even if Danny's issues are minor in their opinion, they're BIG and SCARY here. If nothing else, can't the people on the phone pretend a little empathy or concern? You've all done it - you've forced yourself to SMILE while you're talking on the phone to someone unpleasant or disinterested. And that fake SMILE works. It carries into your tone of voice.

I get having a job where you are dealing with the same questions over and over and the same comments over and over. Try working concession at a movie theater - think many people comment on the prices of popcorn and soda? In case you wonder, they do. And movie customers are vocal. And I agreed with them. But ... I was working at the concession stand in a big-chain movie theater. I wasn't setting the prices?? I was always taught to smile to the public and bitch in private. It's better for business. And, it isn't as satisfying as telling off customers, but it's much more effective. I can't imagine a doctor's office is any different.

I don't call for no reason. I'm not an (or is it "a") hysterical parent. I'm busy too. I don't want to waste my time or theirs. I'm calling because I'm anxious, not to make someone's job harder or to make someone unhappy. I'm on my guard to be polite, to smile when I talk and to be civil when I disagree. The only time I've ever veered from this was with the Chase-kitchen-debacle.

So, for now, we wait. Dan is being vigilant with his notebook and keeping track of his episodes. I don't think it's anything life-threatening, but it's VERY disheartening for Dan right now. He's frustrated and understandably stressed out. I'm trying to avoid hovering and being psycho, but mom's have limits.

Funny thing, after I talked to the doctor's office, I headed outside to do some laundry. I heard the phone ring. Ian answered. He was answering and coming out to give the phone to me. Suddenly, he said, "Oh, OK." and headed back into the house. When I caught up with him, he said it was the lady (Grace) from Home Depot again. She called me early last week, I returned her call, and nothing and I kind of forgot about it. Last week she asked for me. This week, she's asking for Mike. Good luck with that, Grace.

Mike actually came home a little early. He tried to return Grace's call. He had to key in our account number, was asked for his social security number and had to explain why Scout (the dog) has never had puppies before the person he was talking to could not locate ANY Grace (lol) in their system. Go figure.

I cannot imagine what The Home Depot wants. We paid our bill. They sent us a new bill for late fees and other charges. We'll bite our tongues, pay that and close our account. FOREVER.

I guess the whole "Whatever" attitude is everywhere - doctor's office, big retail, phone companies, and banks. I'm done with "Whatever" and I hope I'm not alone. It's not easy to switch accounts and demonstrate that you deserve better treatment, but if we don't do it, who will? ACK!

A couple of reviews . . .

Bing and I went to see Julie and Julia. Bing had already seen the movie, but liked it enough to see it again with me. What a fun movie! (Don't go to see it if you're hungry, though.) I'm still giggling hours later! It was fun, funny, touching and sweet. If nothing else, add it to your Netflix queue.

In my I-pod adventures, I've listened to a few books lately. I really enjoyed the The Secret Garden. I adored this book as a girl and it was fun to listen to it again while I painted the boys' bathroom.

Prior to The Secret Garden, I listened to One Second After. Well, who knew? This is not a book for the faint of heart - at all. The premise is what happens in the US after an EMP (nuclear bomb exploding HIGH in the atmosphere - my understanding at least) is deployed. Ummmm ... WOW! At the very least, the book was thought-provoking. I've googled since reading and it seems that something like this is a real possibility. And Google never lies. For now, I'm just choosing to ignore it all.

I'm currently reading The People of the Book and really liking it. The subject matter is kind of unusual and interesting. I'm not loving the main character thus far, but I feel compelled to keep reading.

What are you all reading and watching? I need suggestions! `

How long is football season again?

We're a one tv family (well one tv that gets actual channels, we have a second tv that plays dvds, unfortunately, it's located in a spot where it competes with the channel tv for sound, so unless you've memorized the movie you're watching in another life, you are kind of watching fancy mime - who doesn't hate mime? Nothing personal if you are a mime fan, but . . .

Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday AND Sunday are filled with "I just wanna check this game real quick." And the picture here gives you an idea of what's really happening. Ugh. Poor Mike. He can't win. He is up so early and so busy and when the game he really wants to watch finally comes on, he's too wiped out to watch. (But, God help you if you try to change the channel.)

And, if you read here regularly, can't you almost see the zipper?

Farewell.

Everyone play Taps in your head. My most favorite flip-flops of all time died this afternoon. They were everything you could want in a casual shoe. Great colors. Cushy for walking and a little bit of height (1" is kind of risque, right?). They died right in the middle of a parking lot this afternoon. Of course, no one makes them anymore. Farewell brave foot soldier.

Security systems?

For us, it's never really been something we have considered or given serious thought to for ourselves. There are just too many people in and out of the house on any given day in any given hour for it make sense. It's more likely that Mike would come home to find me using a sharp little knife to stab the little box telling me that yet another person had left/come into the house while ripping my hair out with my free hand. My current system of just ripping my hair out evenly by using both hands is really working out for us right now, I hate to mess with that.

Plus, Scout (the dog) might be old, but she HATES new people and, if Scout barks, we pay attention - she's never been a random barker. Plus, plus if we're not home and someone comes in and decides they want our stuff, they're welcome to it - they must really need stuff. We simply don't own anything that interesting or good. We like our stuff, but I can't think of anything inanimate we have that would devastate anyone of us if someone took it. NO, this is not an invitation to come to my house and steal my mediocre stuff.

Sooo .... today I was running errands and I heard a commercial on the radio for a home security company. Here is the basic dialog (I'm writing what I remember, not actually what the ad said.):

Mom: (driving noise in background) Hello?
Operator 22: Mrs. S? This is Operator 22 from "your home security system."
Mom: (sounding a bit panicked) Yes?
Operator 22: Well, ma'am, I'm on the line with Operator 39 from our company and he is on the line with your son, Bobby. It seems Bobby and his brother were rough-housing and now Bobby has hurt his arm.
Mom: Is it broken?
Operator 22: No, ma'am, it sounds more like he has a scrape. Would you like us to call 911?
Mom: No, it's ok, I'm only about 2 minutes from home. Thank you!

OK - blah, blah, blah commercial stuff about how you should buy their company's product. Ummm ... Hello, security company? Maybe pick an ad agency where the people writing your ads actually HAVE kids? Here's MY take on the ad - granted my boys are still a work in progress, but they're old enough that I think I can speak safely here.

Mom: (driving noise in background) Hello?
Operator 22: Mrs. S? This is Operator 22 from "your home security system."
Mom: (sounding a bit panicked) Yes? What's going on? Have they burnt the house down? Is there a SQUAT Team out front?
Operator 22: Well, ma'am, I'm on the line with Operator 39 from our company and he is on the line with your son, Bobby. It seems Bobby and his brother were rough-housing and now Bobby has hurt his arm.
Mom: Is it broken?
Operator 22: No, ma'am, it sounds more like he has a scrape. Would you like us to call 911?
Mom: He called you for a scrape on the arm? Are you kidding me? I'd like to talk to Agent 39 - is he hearing crashing or burning noises? *mumble, sputter, curse, mumble* Don't you DARE call 911. Tell Agent 39 to tell those two their butts are toast - I'm pulling into the driveway now. Tell Agent 39 to tell them that running is useless - I will find them *car door slamming, incoherent shouting ... dial tone*

Yep. That is the real mom response. You think, after years and years of dragging horrible children to the grocery store that they are old enough to leave at home on their own for 15 minutes. This is simply NOT true. They are just itching to fight and do everything they're never allowed to do in the 15 minutes you need to pick up that gallon of milk. When their fighting and anarchy goes all wrong, do you really want them to have access to the alarm system?

Think about it. They are documenting themselves behaving "responsibly." What loser kid calls the alarm system company for a scraped arm? I'll tell you. It's the loser kid who tried to hit his kid brother over the head with grandma's antique lamp. Lamp shatters on the floor. Kid brother gets a brush burn while skidding to safety on your carefully crafted floor pillows (curse that brocade!). They know they're in deep-doo-doo and hit on calling the Security Company as a distraction AND as a means of leaving evidence they DID in fact exist. Because, when Mom gets home, those boys know she's going to beat them senseless with the gallon of milk she just picked up. (Think Fight Club with moms in capri pants and totally cute shoes.)

Ingenious on the kids' part. Not so effective as a radio ad.

Why I'm not in demand as a valued consultant is beyond me. ;)

The Garden

Here is our garden three weeks into the actual planting. Kind of fun, huh? It's growing! I'm so excited. I'm also embarrassed to admit how sore I was after putting in the multitudes of tomato plants and pepper plants. I told Mike how many of each i needed (as he headed to Lowe's, NOT Home Depot) ... he came back with double++ because they were all on sale. IF everything grows, we're going to be drowning in tomatoes. Sign up now if you want extra sauce . . .

In the meantime, we have not heard back from the neurologist. I've called twice. At least they know who we are, right? Dan was not pleased as I read him the "grow up" riot act this evening. The doctors treat him as an adult and I think he needs to be able to talk about what's going on with him as an adult, with a little help from me - 'cuz he's not quite an adult. Ack. The kid who is falling down left and right is rolling his eyes at me when I handed him a spiral notebook to, you know, take notes? I KNOW something is off with him, but dang if I didn't want to knock him flat on his face a few hours ago. (LOL - like I could.) He's safely asleep so it's all good right now.

More news you hadn't thought about - Home Depot. I sent my noxious letter. Early in the week someone called here from Home Depot. They had the good fortune to speak with Ian. They gave Ian two numbers (neither good, though that could be Ian's fault - the boy has many skills, listening and details are not in the top ten), a name, an exstention and a ticket number(?) and a message for me to call back. Hmmm...

I debated, but I returned the call to "G" later in the day. She was busy Caring for other Customers when I called. Her message made her sound like a nice person so I'm sure the other customers felt much better after they spoke with her. I left a cheerful message letting "G" know I'd returned her call. Surprise. That was the end of it. "G" hasn't returned my call.

I have no EEG results, just a son a who is behaving weirdly and flopping around on my floor. I DO realize I'm not the center of the universe? In fact, with three teenage sons, that is a recurrent lesson around these parts. BUT ... wahhhhh!!!!!!! The Wah is about the EEG.

The Home Depot is not a priority here. But, I do want to keep you all posted.

In the meantime, isn't the garden cool? Things are actually growing out there! OK that's enough, don't look directly at the plants or they will get shy and wither up.

Wishing all of you a great weekend!

The "MAN" doesn't care if you're stressed out . . .

So we have Danny flopping on the floor on a regular basis like a big pale halibut. (Best Homer Simpson voice, Mmmmm halibut!) We are going to lots of medical places and getting lots of tests done and no one has a good answer. For me, that's stressful. But, I'm 44, not 17.

Life is funny, isn't it? It's kind of all or nothing.

Danny has a friend-that-is-a-girl. You've heard me mention her to you. She's been around for a LONG time. I don't mind, she's smart and funny and is her own person. Danny could do much worse. The friend-that-is-a-girl is a senior this year. Yes, she's the older woman. She invited Danny to attend her high school's Homecoming Dance.

(Sidebar: If you homeschool, the minute you announce to the world that you're going to homeschool, it takes only about five minutes until someone says "What about the prom?" It's true! I'm here to say that homeschool kids DO attend dances and tons of other social functions - without the benefit of attending "real" school everyday. The "prom" argument is beyond a non-issue.)

So, big deal, you say? I said the same thing. I asked Danny what he wanted to wear to the soiree and we discussed male fashion (him: pants/shirt/tie me:Does she have a dress yet? What color? What length? How do you feel about oxfords verses loafers? What are your opinions on jackets? Gah! Boys just don't appreciate it all.)

But, I was wrong, it's not about what Danny is going to wear. It's about if Danny can even GO to the dance. I thought Danny was kidding me when he hung up the phone the other night and said that his friend-that-is-a-girl would need a letter from me and a copy of Danny's transcript if he wanted to attend the dance. This isn't even a homeschool thing. It's about us being from a different county. Go figure. Had the friend-that-is-a-girl invited a boy from a private school, that would be fine. Had the friend-that-is-a-girl invited a friend from her own county, that would be fine. Apparently, we live in a rogue county. Am I alone in finding this bizarre? We are so un-rogue-ish here - really. Unless grilling on Sundays counts.

But, these are teenagers. On Sunday, Mike drove Dan over to meet up with the friend-that-is-a-girl's mom so he could fill out a form so Dan could go to the dance. Apparently, that wasn't enough. Dan and the ftiag talked today. Her school insisted on a letter and a transcript. Really? Has ANY of you ever had to provide a transcript to attend a Homecoming Dance? Do the mediocre students have to attend a sit-in-dance in the cafteria? "Heh, you're cute, here's a tater tot . . ."

Talk about piss-me-off. This is a power-trip gone wild. No other school in this county does this kind of thing. Are these folks so stoopid they don't remember being in high school? If I had a bad kid, I would know NOTHING about any of this. He would simply make his own transcript and forge a letter. D'oh! Who wouldn't?

But, my son really wanted to go and his ftiag really wants to celebrate her senior year . . . so I caved. I printed out a transcript. I struggled with the letter. Here is the first draft...

To Whom It May Concern:

My son, DB, is seeking to attend your upcoming Homecoming Dance with his FTIAG (who is an honor student, band member, member of the state symphony, black belt and outstanding member of her church). Per your request, I'm including a copy of DB's transcript.

DB is currently a dual-enrolled student at Seminole Community College and, as the semester has only recently begun, no records are available right now. He is currently maintaining a 93 average in his AP Macro Economics course through the Florida Virtual School. Additionally, DB will be completing his Eagle Scout badge in Boy Scouts in the next 90 days and holds a 2nd degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do.

In addition to the transcript, I'm including a few other things. First, there is a timeline of DB's developmental milestones since birth with dates and notes. Please excuse the blip in potty training in 1993. He recovered quickly and there's never been an issue since. As you can see on the timeline, DB is far ahead of most of his peers developmentally. Second, a dvd with candid shots of DB interacting with people of all ages/colors/creeds/socioeconomic levels.

If you need further assurance, please contact me, in one of the ways listed below (email/phone/cell phone/shouting) and we can arrange a home visit so you can see DB in his natural environment.

If all goes well, I hope my son will meet the standards of your high school and be allowed to attend the dance.

Cordially,

Me

How crazy is this? Here is the letter I REALLY sent, along with his transcript (I'm such a sell-out - how do you draw the line between stuff that ticks you off and keeping your kids happy? I hate that I gave that stoopid high school ANYTHING!)

To Whom It May Concern:

My son, DB is seeking to attend Olympia High School’s Homecoming Dance next month with CB, a senior attending Olympia. Enclosed please find his transcript. The transcript shows DB to be a solid student. This year he is a dual-enrolled student at Seminole Community College. As the first semester has only recently begun, no records are available for those courses. He currently is maintaining a 93 average in his AP Macro Economics course through the Florida Virtual School. Additionally, he will finish his Eagle Scout award in the near future. DB is also a 2nd degree Tae Kwon Do black belt.

DB has never had a problem with behaving well in public and I anticipate no problems at the dance. In the unlikely event something untoward were to occur at the dance, DB understands he will be held accountable for his actions.

I hope this letter and the transcript are sufficient enough to allow DB to attend the dance. If you need additional information, please contact me.

Sincerely,

Me


I printed both letters for Danny. He gave them both to his gtiaf. In turn she gave them to her parents. Her parents are leery of homeschooling, but warming up to it as they get to know Danny. They suggested I add blood samples and some fingerprints to both of my letters. Gotta love it.

Let's talk medical tests . . .

Dan had his EEG today. I was hoping we'd get results on the spot, but we have to wait for the doctor to review them. I REALLY hope he gets to them soon. Though we've ruled a lot of scary stuff out of the picture, Dan continues to faint and black out and freak me out on multiple occasions each and every day. I'd really like an explanation and a solution, if there is one. AND SOON! I miss sleeping.

The EEG was interesting. I think between Mike and the boys I've been a witness to nearly all of the major medical tests known to mankind. Lucky for them, I usually hold up well during the tests. As a rule, I'm not a small-talker. But, put me in a medical test situation and I'm all about stoopid questions and small talk. I'm sure it fools the medical professionals. It's only once it's all over that I tend to collapse and fall into a semi-coma for an hour or so. Hey, someone's gotta do the worrying, right?

We arrived on time. A sweet little girl (4-5?) who had limited language skills and the most amazing smile glommed onto Dan the minute we walked into the office. In her case, I am certain it was love at first sight. I was filling out paperwork while she held Dan's hand and showed him around the office, had him watch the movie on the waiting room tv from just about every pair of seats in the office and, every now and then, she'd glance back at me and smile triumphantly.

Dan, who had to arrive at the office in a sleep-deprived state, was more than happy to be led by this little girl. It was very sweet. The girl's mom initially kept apologizing, but relaxed when she saw Dan was happy to entertain her daughter for 20 minutes. Me? I thank the mom and the little girl for keeping Dan awake! I have no idea why that little girl was at the pediatric neurologist's office, but it obviously was not her first visit. I will have her and her family in my prayers for a long time, though. She was precious and her mom was really, really funny. More evidence that a sense of humor goes a long way when life gets weird and/or hard.

They eventually led Dan and me back through a maze of rooms to the EEG/Sleep Room. Gah! The bed he was supposed to sleep in was about 6" longer than a toddler bed. The woman administering the test and I laughed at the juxtaposition of Dan's 6' frame and the wee bed with it's race car comforter. The tech hooked Dan's head to about 30 wires - no small feat, Dan has a LOT of longish curly hair - and had him lay down. I cannot imagine having to do the same procedure on a squirmy wee person. The woman is a saint in my book.

I kind of thought the EEG would be like the MRI. I would sit in the waiting room and read and/or knit(badly) while the test was done. Nope. I was to sit in the room during the test. I pulled out my book just as the tech turned out the lights. First, she asked Dan to blink in a couple of different patterns. Then, she had him close his eyes while she ran a strobe light in varying degrees of time and intensity. Ummm ... this is where I flipped out.

So much for the Rock-of-Mom. The strobe lights made my skinny, too-big-for-the-bed kid look all horror-movie-ish. And they kept going and going. And THEN I noticed the wall mural of leaping dolphins. I love dolphins. These were not friendly dolphins!!!!! They were angry dolphins and the strobe lights didn't help. At this point I was in a cold sweat and doing deep-breathing things (damn, I wish I'd paid more attention at our childbirth classes!). I knew if I totally freaked out and had to leave the room the test would have to start over. Gah!

Danny? He was fine through all of it. In fact, when the strobe lights stopped and she'd had him do hyperventilating breathing for a bit, he immediately fell dead asleep. I huddled in my stoopid doctor-waiting-room chair and willed myself to stop sweating and be calm. By the time I had pulled myself together and stopped looking at the scary dolphins hovering over my son's sleeping body, the test was over, whew!

Now. We wait.

The ride home was funny. I was thirsty beyond belief, all that sweating and panic. Dan was dying for something with caffeine. I was so relieved when, as we filled up our Big Gulps at the hospital 7-11, Danny mentioned the scary dolphins! It's not all in my head. My brave boy KNEW the dolphins were scary and hostile and he still went to sleep.

What does this say about us as parents? 1) We're great at depriving our children of sleep and 2) Our kids will never be caught off-guard by a cute dolphin. So there.

Mmmmm . . . what's for dinner?

I made this recipe for dinner tonight. I get tired of trying to feed all the varying tastes here and I'm always happy when I find something that is relatively quick to make and that everyone will eat without complaint. This recipe fits the bill here. I also LOVE that it is easily adaptable to whatever you have on hand. Note, I totally, "ALL-RECIPED" this recipe! I substituted like crazy and have noted where I substituted in the recipe below.

Keep in mind the quantities in this recipe are for 8 people (and I'd probably double it next time for our family of six - starving teenage boys and all - so we'd have some leftovers for lunch - the pans were scraped clean here tonight). I'd probably 1/2 the recipe if I were feeding little kids and two adults or just two adults.

Mee Goreng (from Suh McCaw over at http://www.allrecipes.com)

" 'Mee' is noddles and 'goreng' means fry in Malay (Berhasa). This is a favourite dish of southeast Asians. The amount of tomato and chili sauce can be adjusted to your tastes. Bean sprouts, snowpeas, and even shrimp are slo great in this dish."

8 servings

Ingredients:

1/4 c. veg oil
4 red onions chopped
2 (I used 5) potatoes diced into cubes
1/4 c. soy sauce
2 c. water
2 skinless boneless chicken breasts (I used three) diced into bite-size pieces
4 tomatoes, cut into wedges
2 fresh red chili peppers (I used three dried)
1 c. peas
1 c. diced carrot
1 c. corn
1 c. tomato sauce (I used about 1 1/2 c.)
1/4 chili sauce
6 eggs, beaten
2 lb fresh egg noodles (I ended up using 6 packs of ramen noodles, minus the spice pack)

1. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet or wok over medium heat. Cook the onions in th hot oil until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the potato, soy sauce, and water. Simmer until the potatoes are nearly cooked through, about 15 minutes. Stir the chicken, tomatoes, chile pepper, peas, carrots, corn, tomato sauce, chili sauce and eggs into the mixture and toss to combine. Cook and stir until heated through, about 10 minutes. (Note because we have vegetarians here, I cooked the chicken in sesame oil in a separate skillet for people to add as they liked.)

2. Add noodles to sauce and continue cooking until noodles have softened, 2-5 minutes. Serve hot.

Your mileage may vary, but it was a hit here!

I think I need an intervention . . .

Really. I'm too old to be starting projects at midnight and then dragging my sorry ass out of bed at 6:30 am. And, yet ... here I am.

It started simply enough. I was going to make yogurt and bread and go to bed. But (there's always a but) while starting those two things, I noticed the leftover burrito stuff in the fridge. I figured, what the heck? I'm making dough anyway, I'll make us some Mexican runzas while I was at it. D'oh!

The runzas are delicious. But they are time-consuming and really not something to start past 10 pm. They are cooling now, as the bread bakes and the yogurt is happily sitting on the heating pad under the big pot. But I still have to wrap the runzas up and stick them in the freezer. Oh, and Dan, the boy who can't drive right now? I have to be on the road with him at 7:30 am.

I need a person who keeps normal-ish hours to come live with me for a week or so and teach me how it's done. This cannot continue!

Because I'm waiting for the bread to finish baking and the runzas to cool, I thought I'd share some pictures ... 9 are refried beans/cheese and the other 16 are beef/rice/sauce/peppers. See how I stuck a little bean on each of the bean ones so we can tell the difference? Now that they're baked, the bean ones remind me of a wee baby's belly . . . Gah! I really need some sleep, huh?

Is this familiar to anyone else?

I got nuthing ...

I wanted to type "nuthin" but I just couldn't do it. I heart my "g" endings.

Spent a bulk of the day planting tomatoes and pepper plants. I'm a spaz gardener so this took me much longer than it would a normal person. I wait until the sun is setting (sweat, sunburn and heatstroke being my top three reasons), I get my book on tape (The Secret Garden right now) lined up, I like to shine up and line up my gardening tools, then I have to put on my overalls ... it's kind of ridiculous, but I enjoy it. And, I think that will ultimately be shown in the quality of my fall vegetable garden. It's all about the overalls, right?

Thanks for the prayers and good thoughts . . .

Dan's been having seizures. Not big, full-blown things like you see in the movies, but scary enough . . . How many times do you need to see your child stand up, take a few steps and then land flat on his face and sit up not remembering anything?

Freaky stuff. I called the pediatrician and she squeezed us in right away. Last week, Dan had an MRI and a brain x-ray. Both normal. But the episodes were increasing and increasingly freaking me out. And, I'm a pretty hard person to freak out. Finally, after Dan crashed to the ground for the third time today, I called the pediatrician. She sent us to the Emergency Department.

Does anyone else feel guilty walking into an ED/ER if their kid isn't bleeding profusely? I do. I don't want to waste their time. A weird part of me wanted Dan to look less normal than he did walking in. You know, is a nose bleed too much to ask? A little drama??? Poor Dan, nothing like a date-night with mom at your friendly local hospital.

I have to say computers are amazing. They were able to access his bloodwork, MRI and x-ray data right away. Dan was horrified to have to spend time in the new Disney pediatric wing, but oh well. (If you're in Orlando, the pediatric ER at Florida Hospital is absolutely beautiful and very well-run.) Oddly, the nurse assigned to Dan was the same nurse who was assigned to him years ago when he had a piece of chicken lodged in his esophagus for nearly 3 days. He's a great big guy that is amazingly good at his job. Funny, this visit, Danny is now taller than "his" nurse.

The doctor on call and the nurse both witnessed one of Dan's episodes. The doctor immediately said it was a vaso-vagal thing - my understanding is that it is more about low blood pressure than brain issues. They gave him 2000 ml of fluid through an iv and talked to him about recognizing the episodes and simply sitting down before it got worse. The doctor was awesome. I'm so glad we went in. I'm weird about the ER and wasting people's time. But, tonight, I think taking him in was the right thing. Dan has been totally freaked out and so have I.

The ED doc wants Dan to have the EEG he was originally scheduled for on this coming Wednesday, but he was very confident it would not show signs of epilepsy or something else scary. He gave Dan a bunch of tips on how to handle this and how to minimize it. I loved that he talked more to Dan than to me. I feel like I might actually be able to sleep through the night tonight.

I hope everyone is looking at a good Sunday. We're planting tomatoes, peppers and a bunch of flowers tomorrow. I have to finish painting the boys' bathroom . . .6 of us sharing one bathroom is getting cluttered and messy. Mike has something marinating for the grill for dinner, so it's all good.

I'm up late because I'm starting to let go of the terror I've had for the past few weeks. Dan will be OK. Gah ... stoopid kids. Cross your fingers for good results on Wednesday, please.

The Bing is Back!

I picked my parents up from the airport this evening. They have returned from Paris and seem to be unscathed. My dad was not wearing a beret and didn't do anything more mime-like than using the imaginary brake and the Jesus-handle at the top of the passenger-side window as I drove them home - and he's been doing that since I was 16, so it's all good. Whew! He seemed OK with his obvious un-Frenchlikeness. But, c'mon, we all know the world doesn't need another 6'3" mime running around Florida, right?


I think my dad's nervousness might have been the result of me spending most of the ride home with my head spun backwards talking to Bing about all they'd eaten, seen, eaten, done, and eaten in Paris. It's a highway, it's mostly straight ... what's the big deal?

It's crazy, we don't actually see my parents that much, though they live in the general vicinity. But, when they're NOT here, I really, really miss them. Not just me, all of us really, really miss them. And, now, we're glad to have them home . . .

Bing and Pap were also happy to be home. They were punchy and funny and one would say something and then they'd both start cracking up. Honestly, it was like driving Dan and his-friend-that-is-a-girl around in a lot of ways. How many couples can boast that after 45 years? I'm so so so thrilled that they had such a great time.

Before they left for Paris, Andy asked them if Bing could bring him a baguette. Bing wasn't too sure about that. Tonight when I dropped them at home and helped unload their luggage (not because I'm nice, I needed their bathroom and I needed to steal a Diet Coke from their fridge), my mom pulled the most amazingly squashed croissant I've ever seen out of her carry on bag. It was from the airport bakery and she picked it up right before they left.

I'm thinking Andy needs to get out more. You'd have thought I brought home a puppy. He was so excited. He gave each of us a wee-tiny piece and then went off into a corner to snargle the whole thing down. It's ok to think it, he looked very Smeegle-ish.

Anyway, welcome home Bing and Pap - we missed you!!!!

Wheeee! It's growing . . .

Don't look yet, I'll have pics tomorrow BUT - the fall garden is growing. I can't believe how excited I am. I have been working hard at getting everything planted and making a goofy little bamboo walkway down the middle. Who knew things would start sprouting so quickly?

Last weekend, when I was working on the garden (I tend to work out there from 4 pm until there is no more light), Andy came out to help and take pictures. It was too dark for him to get many good shots. But, this one shot of him trying to get a picture of me doing a cartwheel cracks me up. You can tell I'm serious about the garden thing because I'm wearing overalls.

Well, we're not alone!

A few months ago, we (the whole family) went to one of the first tea parties to see what the deal was. Our experience was that it was a lot of real people, who didn't have a lot in common. It was a good, but strange, experience. We've never been protesters. The crowd was mixed - young folks, families with kids in strollers, the middle-aged people like me and Mike and the old people (who didn't seem all that old to me).

TODAY? The Tea Party movement took on Washington DC. The crowd estimates are from several thousand people to as many as 2 million people (ABC). Either way, it gives you pause, doesn't it? Me? In case you have never read here before, I'm kind of conservative. But, to know that other people are as ticked off as I am by being ignored (no town halls in my district) and by being treated as if we are stupid (or worse!). Who doesn't want some kind of health care reform? That's like saying you hate puppies. NO ONE hates puppies! I sure don't. But what is the big freaking rush? Why not make it good and right and sane?

I think the whole rushing thing is what has set me off. Just vote for it, don't read it and you're not accountable to anyone after you do vote. I've tried this before (as in Mike, we're going to raise our income by 20% while decreasing our spending), no one buys it. My teenaged boys will rush through explanations when they don't want to tell me what really happened. It appears our government is no different . . . I love my teens. I sure as hell don't want them running the country.

In the meantime, we have some stuff going on here that I am not quite comfortable blogging about yet. If I'm gone for a few days, it's nothing personal. If you're of the praying-persuasion, we could use those. If you're not a praying type, feel free to jump in with good thoughts, or whatever you have! We're happy to get anything you have to send.

I'm tah-rred . . .

Parenting multiple teens is not for the faint of heart - even if your kids are essentially good kids. Gah ... I'll for a trade a three-year-old any day of the week. Just email me.

The past two weeks have been weird. I know what I need to do, but I'm somehow paralyzed. And, I'm not doing it and it's making me crazy. Yes, easy enough to fix. But, it isn't.

At this moment in time, I want to shake everyone and scream "GROW THE HELL UP AND GET OVER IT." It's not really an option, but I'm sure it would make me feel good for 20 minutes. ;)

For those of you how have lived or do live with men and/or boys . . .

For years and years, I feared that this video was my future . . .luckily, the boys outgrew their clothing-optional years before it became a serious concern. However, there are some moms in Sweden who are quite possibly avoiding their neighbors and their local grocery store after this episode of 'Sweden's Got Talent.' (If you have little kids or have nudity issues, click off of the site now! If you are a homeschooler who pastes little leaves or uses a Sharpie to hide the naughty bits on naked statues in your history books, you're on the the wrong site this morning - but please come back, I'm generally not all that raunchy. If you're at work, it's probably not a great choice to watch this either - depending where you work. You've all been warned!)



LOLOLOL - it's a whole 'nother planet since I was 19 or so.

Hypothetical . . .

Wouldn't it suck if you decided to take advantage of your husband being home on a Monday morning and opted to stay up extra late doing laundry, listening to a good book on your IPod and making a few loaves of bread (knowing you could sleep in without fear of boy-children living in your house beating each other to death or setting the house on fire while you slept in) only to discover, after making the dough, after kneading the dough, after letting the dough rise for an hour and after punching it down and after sitting down to let it rise for another 30 minutes or so that you noticed two band-aids missing from your finger (say, if the band-aids were covering an oogy burn you received from making toast - in a careless fashion - in the oven because, unlike a normal person, you refused to buy a new toaster insisting that they are a gross, nasty waste of counter-space?)? A band-aid you'd applied several hours before deciding to stay up late?

Just thinking out loud here, but it would kind of suck if that actually happened to someone. Imagine, good dough tossed. Lack of sleep and no delicious bread in the morning. Whew! . . . glad that never happened to me.

End of a good day . . .

I love days when I get things done. The things I wanted to get done today all involved the internet. Poor Mike tried to act unfreaked-out as he wandered in and out of the house only to find me sitting here in my pj's and scary bed-head still typing.

But ... his tune changed dramatically when I let him know that I'd found:

1) We can 'rent' Danny's college texts for about 1/4 the price of buying them. Really, you rent the books for a semester, send them back in good condition and *poof* you haven't spent $500 or $600!!!! $127 math book? We can rent it for $14! For us, right now, it's kind of like winning a lottery. Check out http://www.chegg.com for details.

2) With the environmental allergies around here, Ian's are especially bad, I wash the kids' sheets 2-3 times a week. Same with the towels. Let's just say our sheets and towels are ugly-awful right now. Thing is, the kids don't use a top sheet so I'm loathe to buy sheet sets. Well, I found a place that sells bulk sheets and towels AND it's local! http://www.dptextiles.com/sheets_pillowcases.htm Here's the site. This is exciting stuff, folks if you're the type to buy things in dozens.

3) I spent much of last night drawing a grid of our fall garden. Late this afternoon and early this evening, I mapped it all out for real, you know in the dirt and stuff - with little bamboo stakes and yarn borders and little markers for each section. It's all so exciting. I even started building (but it got dark too quickly for me to finish, this evening gardening thing is going to take a while to figure out) a little bamboo pathway through the middle of the garden - it's very cool looking.

Tomorrow and Monday - the seeds go in and then we'll see what happens. Cross your fingers! Mike and the boys have done so much work getting the plot ready and making sure the soil was good. It'll be really disappointing if at least some of the stuff doesn't grow well.

Et tu, Home Depot?

It's been a while since a corporation ticked me off. Well, this week, The Home Depot ticked me off. Here is the letter that I will be sending to Mr. Frank Blake, CEO of The Home Depot on Tuesday morning. We know we're peons. We're ok with that. But, do peons deserve extra punishment because they are not the dregs of the Earth?

September 8, 2009

Mr. and Mrs. Michael J. Baker
our address

Mr. Frank Blake, CEO
The Home Depot
2455 Paces Ferry Road NW
Atlanta, GA 30339

Dear Mr. Blake:

As business owners we like to hear the good and the bad from our customers. Well, we really do not like to hear the bad, but who does? But hearing about the not-so-great things has helped us improve our level of customer service and, thus, improved our business. So, as former customers of The Home Depot, we’re writing to let you know why we are former customers. Maybe it matters and maybe it doesn’t, but it seems only fair. We always like to know why we lose a customer and we think you might like to know too. I doubt this letter will actually get to you personally, but maybe the person reading this will make a note of it.

We are a regular family. We saved and saved and saved and bought our first home about 12 years ago. We moved in with our three little boys and another boy on the way. It’s not a magazine kind of house, but we love it and, thanks in large part to Home Depot, we‘ve made it ours. Shortly after moving into the house, we got a Home Depot credit card. We used the card responsibly and understood that when we were forced to charge big purchases that the convenience of the card came with Home Depot making a profit in the form of interest. For a dozen years, this seems to have worked well for us and for Home Depot.

A few months ago, I (I being me, the Mrs. in the Baker name above, you can call me Amy) made the mistake of paying late. No excuse, times are tough and I did not keep track of the paper. We paid our bill and I arranged to have the Home Depot bill sent at a time when all of our other bills come due so that I would not lose track of it again. I received this month’s bill to discover that our interest rate had been raised to 30%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously????? 30%???????

I called to ask about the rate and spoke to an unpleasant young woman. Unfortunately I did not get her name. In my head, I’ve been calling her Nurse Ratched. I don’t know if I interrupted her morning snack or otherwise inconvenienced her, but she did not hesitate to let me know that my call WAS an inconvenience and that, yes, our rate was now 30% and please go away. I did go away. And I called my husband. And we rearranged some things and we will be paying our Home Depot account in full at the end of the month. (Luckily, my kids are ok with rice and beans for long stretches of time.)
And we will not be coming back.

Like most decent people, I’m tired of being treated rudely by large corporations. We’ve always been a Home Depot family in part because we have several close friends who work there, in part because we’ve learned so much over the years through your workshops and in part because it was the most convenient place to shop when we needed paint or gardening stuff or just about anything else interesting that we do around here. But, we cannot afford to support our friends or your company any longer. We do, however, have the option of driving an extra five minutes north or south to shop at Lowe’s or Ace Hardware or any assortment of local businesses and we will.

In the grand scheme of things, our balance is a drop in the bucket. It’s not going to make or break your company. But, if enough people like us (us being people who pay their bills and honestly use their credit cards with sincere intentions of paying off the debt) decide to stop shopping at your stores, you might have a situation. As I stated earlier, we have no problem with paying interest - that credit card has been a lifesaver for us sometimes and it’s a money-maker for you. However, 30% (really? 30%????? Is it rent-to-own paint?) is beyond the pale. It’s not like we just signed up for a card six months ago and immediately charged $5000. We have a history with your company and that counts for nothing. In fact, it merits ugliness from whoever is answering your phones.

We’re not asking anything of you or The Home Depot. We just thought it was only fair to let you know why we will no longer be doing business with your company.

Sincerely,



Michael and Amy Baker

Email: all4mine@bellsouth.net
Cc: http://www.myfoilhat.blogspot.com

Happy Birthdays!

Danny turned 17 yesterday. Isn't he handsome? I know. Part of me feels like it's not possible and part of me feels like "How is it possible that he's not 40?" For his birthday, we gave him a new backpack and some cash. The backpack was necessary since the only non-camping backpack he had was from back when he attended 2nd grade. Don't know why he was refusing to carry it. Dan was thrilled to find a pot in the backpack to hold his "imaginary laptop." A sense of humor goes a long way!

Mike found the amazing cake at Costco. It's a cupcake cake. It's ginormous. I've been sending it around the neighborhood because I can't seem to stay away from it.


And, today is Bing's birthday! Happy Birthday Bing!!!!! I can't tell you what her present is because we won't see her until tomorrow. It's not a backpack though. This picture is from 3-4 years ago, look how short Dan is!

Hope everyone is enjoying their long weekend.

Um? Yum! Everyone say Runza!

We had the best dinner tonight thanks to a mom on one of my email groups. Lately, I'm in search of filling dinners that don't cost a lot ... this one fit the bill and more. It takes a little time, but if you double the recipe, you can freeze at least one dinner or a bunch of lunches.

They're called Runza, but I think they have names that are regional - BierRocks is one I found. Whatever you call them, you need to eat these NOW!

RUNZAs:

Dough:
1 pk Active Dry Yeast (I used 4 tsp)
2 c. warm milk (room temp works)
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. shortening, margarine or butter
7-8 c. flour

Put yeast and milk in a large bowl. Let sit for 5 or 10 minutes. When the yeast is nice and puffy, add sugar, eggs, salt, and softened choice of fat. Mix it up a bit. Add flour until dough pulls together into a ball. Knead for 5-8 minutes until dough is smooth and supple. (A mixer with a dough hook is a nice touch here.)

Put dough in a greased bowl, cover with a towel and let it rise until it's doubled. Punch the dough down and let it rise again.

Remove dough from bowl and divide it into thirds. On a floured surface, roll one portion of the dough to 1/4" thickness. Cut into 5-6" squares. (Reserve dough you cut off to re-roll.)

Give each square an extra roll with the rolling pan before filling.

FILLING:
2 lbs ground beef
1 head of cabbage
LOTS of salt and pepper
(I added red pepper flakes as well)

Brown ground beef. Add shredded cabbage and cook over medium heat until cabbage is softened. Add salt and pepper - it takes a LOT!

Put a large mound of filling in the center of each dough square. Pull opposite corners of the dough together and pinch to hold. Pull the opposite two corners together and use your fingers to pinch all edges together to seal in filling. Turn Runza over and put it on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or sprayed with PAM).

Space Runzas about 1" apart. When cookie sheet is full put a towel over it and let it rise for about 15 minutes.

Bake Runzas in a 350 oven for 15-20 minutes - until they are a deep brown.

Remove from oven and rub butter on the top of each Runza (optional).

Cool on a cooling rack or eat right out of the oven. Runzas can be cooled and then frozen, too!

The variations on this recipe are endless - the dough is just delicious and well worth your time! The recipe as I've posted is delicious - not one of my boys realized that there was cabbage involved. Good stuff.

Nostalgia . . .

When I was a little girl, I LOVED this segment on Sesame Street. JUST loved it. Tim is in the process of building a "real" house for the guinea pigs, Esme and Jenny. He asked me if I thought they would like beds and this Sesame Street moment popped into my head. Anyway, I have to share the video with you! Who knew I was such a girl? I love the little dishes, the little beds, the little table, all of it. Do any of you remember this? Aside from Super Grover and the crashing 10-layer cake, this was hands-down my favorite Sesame Street TV memory. (OK, that and Mr. Rogers singing that "You are my friend . . ." I really was his friend, you know.)

The dollhouse video also reminds me of a book I TOTALLY loved as a kid. Anyone else read Suzy Squirrel? as a kid? She moved into a dollhouse after being terrorized by some mean red squirrels. And she liked to bake. :::sigh::: LOVED that book.

All that and a guinea pig house to boot, huh?

A Walmart kind of day . . .

I'm getting a little concerned. In the past two days, I've received a link to an insane site about the People of Walmart, a Walmart Bingo Card (click on the picture to enlarge it) and a a link to a story about a scary crazy man in Walmart. I'm sensing a theme. I am more than my Wal-Mart trips people. I think. Sadly, the highlight of my day is going to be, you guessed it, a trip to WalMart. Yes, I'll have my phone camera and bingo card handy at all times.

It's good to be human!

Today I woke up with no headache, no stiff joints and no urge to cry looking at the messy house. Yep. I'm better. MUCH better.

The older boys have been keeping up with their schoolwork and helping Andy as well. So all I had to do was jump back into the mix. I DO like homeschooling. I even like the subjects I don't like. It was so nice to have my brain back in working order.

After school, we went to the library. I just love the Friends of the Library bookstore. I was able to pick up about 1/3 of the reading list for our Literature course and I also found double copies of 5 of 8 of our Shakespeare reading for this semester. I tossed in a couple of books for me to read and a couple of books that Andy will like. $10.70!!!!! How exciting is that? That will save us about $150++ if we had purchased new books. Yay us!

In the meantime, things here are wonky. Good. But wonky. Danny leaves and goes to his college classes. Tae kwon do is no more. Ian and Dan are both closing in on their Eagle Scout projects. Gahh ... I can't handle unstructured. Before I had kids, I was all about unstructured. Funny how things turn around and bite you in the butt.

OK - I'm talking myself down for now. Change is good and we'll get over this hump and move on ... right???? In the meantime, I'm channeling my angst into scrubbing the house and rearranging furniture and micromanaging those inanimate objects that allow me to micromanage.