Prayers needed!!!!

My dear friend Joys' daughter, Amanda has had the flu all week. Yesterday, she ended up in the Emergency Department for some neurological problems. She will be going in for surgery at 1:30 (California time). Here is an email from Joy late last night:

Surgery tomorrow at 1:30 to drain the fluid in her brain (that is not draining b/c of the mass that is blocking the 4th ventricular area). They are going to set up some sort of drain at the third ventricle and going to try a biopsy during that scope.
It honestly doesn't look good; I saw the pic. on the CT.
More prayers, thanks!

Please keep Amanda in your prayers. Also her parents, Joy and Colin and her siblings Maggie, Sean and Ian need your prayers as well. And, feel free to pass this request along to anyone you know who prays.

UPDATE: From: Joy Hall Thank you everyone for your amazing support and prayers. Current report as of 9pm (Sat.);she has a drain tube that was placed to help the fluid draining at her 3rd ventricle (this is very basic human language the med. term is long!); they were NOT able to do the biopsy. Sigh. So, unfortunately, we are in limbo until Tues. She is getting a craniotomy (back of her head) on Tues. I'm at home; C is there tonight.

I know all of you can only imagine how scared Joy and Colin are right now for their baby girl. Please, please keep praying. Ask others to pray for Amanda Hall and her family.

Help a starving artist ...

*picture here - site won't let me add one right now* OK - I'm not starving - though a snack would be nice right now, but you all know what I mean . . .

I'm gearing up for NaNoWriMo (midnight tomorrow)! I think I have a story-line. Can't share that (yet).

But, I would be very grateful if you all would be willing to help me. Last year I got hung up on my side-characters ... I want to be better prepared this year. So, I am asking you to share with me your strangest moment, weirdest relative, memorable occasion or anything else that stands out in your mind that SHOULD be in a book (even a bad one). I won't use names and things will end up mixed up enough that you most likely won't recognize your own story, but it would be awesome to work from some other families' insanities instead of just my own.

I'm thanking you in advance for your help. When I finish my "novel" those of you who contributed will get to read it first (or not read it, your choice)!

OK, I wouldn't eat off of my floors . . .

I'm more of a "place for everything and everything in its place" kind of gal. My house is never sterile clean (well, it's happened once or twice, but it's not on my quest list), but the house is almost always picked up. I hate debris on tables, counters, chairs, etc. For whatever reason, I've always been good with my kids eating a bit o' dirt. Not so good with stuff all over the place. I'm not sure what this says about me as a person, but that's how it is.

That said, I put mail and important papers in one of three places. ONLY in one of three places. EVER. So, why, AGAIN, are the birth certificates of Ian, Tim and Andy gone. Poof! Vanished. Poor Ian and Tim are dying to get their learner's permits and they need a social security card to do that. But without birth certificates (which are not considered proof of identity by the social security administration only as the back up proof), we can't get the stoopid social security cards. Kill me now. I'm my own recurrent nightmare.

I figure when I turn about 80 I will finally find my safest, secretest place for all of this stuff and the boys and I will have a good laugh. Until then, send don't-hate-your-mom shields. Mostly, I think I'm a good mom, but when I am a bad mom, I'm really bad. :::sigh:::

In the meantime, WHO else knew that the time changed THIS weekend? I'm one of the weird, I love this time change. I thought it was another weekend away, though.

Great finger food for a party? Any recipes or thoughts? Kid-friendly is good but not necessary.

I'm waiting on the last load in the dryer. I know it's not a big deal, but I savor these laundry-conquering moments.

Finally, in broken-record-mode, I will have to impale myself (a la The Omen) if I keep seeing these nasty commercials about male enhancement. Gag. Someone make it all go away. NOW! Really.

I'm no good with secrets . . .

working on Andy's Halloween costume ... it's killing me not to share. I figured out a costume for myself too.

In the meantime, please enjoy Tim's latest video . . . it's not a secret. It's Tim's hand and it's not really severed. Whew!!!!

And . . . we have lift off . . .

Andy has picked a Halloween costume! I can't tell what it is, but it's very fun, affordable and I'm pretty sure no one else on the block will be dressed in the same costume!

Mike has found a costume (thanks to me) that does not involve dressing up, makeup or wigs. He's a happy camper.

Now, I need to figure out a Halloween costume for me. It's still hot here, so I don't want too much stuff or makeup. And, while I put the money aside each month to go get contacts again, something always comes up to eat that money. So I need a costume that will accommodate my thick glasses. Maybe I can be Mrs. Beasley? :::sigh::: No big deal, I've got the two main costumes figured out. Andy is over the moon with the idea of his costume. Cross your fingers I can figure it out.

The older boys are stacking movies on Netflix - scary movies. They'll be watching scary movies and handing out candy.

Gearing up for neglect . . .

I'm feeling a bit energized at the prospect of NaNoWriMo coming up in November. This will be my fourth year at attempting to write a novel in 30 days. I've finished two times, came close the other time. Nothing I've written is remotely publishable, but there is a strange satisfaction in just getting it done. I like the guy who created the whole messy project. His advice is to not think "bestseller," but rather "don't make anyone vomit." I can deliver there, I think.

But, with the years of this task behind me, I know that my family is looking at a month of neglect come the end of Halloween. I also know that my family is old enough to figure out meals and laundry for 20 out of 30 days. But, to assuage my guilt, I spent today attacking things that have been driving me nuts forever. One, because I don't want my poor family to have to face them (though they've never complained as I have about them over the years) and, two, because I'm trying hard to eliminate distractions around the house. Remember how clean and organized your room would suddenly become when a paper deadline was looming? Think 30-days and a whole house. I need to eliminate distractions NOW.

1) Boy fashion show! Woohoo! Show me what fits, what doesn't and let me know what you need. HUGE pile for the AmVets. HUGE list of things we need. 2) The garage. It's official, I'm out of the soap business. I will continue to make soap for our family and for sale every now and then, but the rest of it HAD to go. This was hard and kind of sad. BUT, I have some stuff up for sale, money is good, right? AND, we have tons more stuff for the AmVets and even more for the garbage men, come Monday. (Note to self, make cookies for garbage guys - they'll need them.)

WOW - we could park, in addition to the bikes/scooters/skates/surfboards, etc, two mid-sized mopeds in our garage now. A first. It's amazing to walk out there now. Danny said he thought he could do a cartwheel out there, but that he'd rather perfect his cartwheel than test his theory. I think he might be right.

Moving into the house . . . Tim offhandedly mentioned to Mike that French Bread pizzas might be good for dinner. Jumping on my avoid-guilt wagon, I found a recipe and made some French Bread. Ummm ... yay me! I used this recipe. I doubled it. And, WOW, I'm a French chef. This bread was not only beautiful to look at, it was fluffy inside, crusty outside, it was perfect!!!!

Now, partly to avoid guilt in November and partly because I cannot stand to sit in the same room as Mike and the boys during a Gator game, I also made granola and yogurt - extra points for wholesome and healthy, right? Danny let me know that his friend that is a girl is coming over tomorrow, so I used the 4th quarter of the Gator game to make some cream cheese/heath bar/fudge brownies.

Now, to be perfectly honest, I have been listening to The Thirteenth Tale on my Ipod. I read the book about two years ago. I have to say that this is one of my MOST favorite audio recordings ever!!!! Love the novel, love the story, love the narrators - I would have mucked out stalls today to keep listening. We don't have stalls, so I'm buying my family's love with food and clean laundry for now.

Andy and Mike spent the morning adding a fourth wall to the tree house. Now Andy and his buddies have to crawl under the structure to climb in through a trap door, or they can climb the rope ladder they made and enter the lower level through the upstairs trap door. Mike offered to put windows in - you know, because we live in Florida and it's HOT here all the time? No go. We had kids, of all ages, here all day today climbing in and around the tree house and adjacent trees ... I seemed to be the only one that noticed that it was 87 degrees and humid. Who am I to argue with fun?

Last night, we did our weekly cleaning of the guinea pig cage. Scout -our nearly 12-year-old border collie, going blind and deaf, is still the ultimate herding dog. Here she is containing the pigs. She nudges them, licks them and sometimes even swats them with her paws, but they do what she wants. It's kind of amazing to watch.

Stay-tuned for more frenzied activity as November creeps up . . .

Some days I love that we homeschool . . .

today was one of those days. Often we have days where we are just slogging through it to get it done and it feels mean and uninspired (and, yes, my unschooling friends, I'm just too big a wimp to go there). Today was NOT one of those days. Yay us.

Danny is finally getting grades on his first and second college work. (A couple of essays, an oral presentation, several tests) So far, all A's. (I should insert here that I would be a terrible community college professor - I would NOT have given him an A on one project. :::sigh::: My poor kids, I share it with you all, but not with them, I'll never be happy. Even when they do well, I just know they can do better. To what end? I'm not sure, but they can do better. For now, I just bite my nails and keep my mouth shut for the most part.)

Ian and Tim and I are slogging through Henle's Latin, Book II. I love Latin. I think it's something worthwhile for kids to learn. BUT ... the boys and I are into our 6th year now and we have all developed an intense hatred of Caesar. We're translating some of his writing this year and gah! Talk about someone who is full of himself? Ian wondered aloud today if they didn't have the Vulpi Network back then and couldn't we go back and read the easy translations from their site? (vulpi=fox in Latin). They are doing really well - this is hard stuff and they are working through it. I'm scrambling to keep up with them.

Ian and Tim also started their story-board for a Midsummer Night's Dream. They are going to put their version of Act V on film. Already a potato cannon is involved. I'll share the results when I see them. For now, I'm just sitting on my hands and trying NOT to comment. It simply kills me that my kids insist on doing things their own way. My way is so much less stressful for me. But then, I wouldn't be doing my job if I insisted on my way, would I? (Someone tell me I can do it MY way without damaging my kids, just a couple of votes are all I need . . .)

Andy is 9. Life with Andy is still simple. I'm good with helping/teaching the basics. We're studying the Civil War/War Between the States right now. It was such an awful, ugly war and I'm glad to gloss over some of the worst parts of it for now. We built a telegraph machine. I cannot even tell you all how fascinated all the boys are with this thing. It's kind of crazy in the age of Ipods, IM's and text messaging. They've refined the design and added wires and spent hours going back and forth between the East and West Wings of our house. Go figure. And, YES, we really do have an East and a West Wing . . . just don't bring your compass when you visit because the wings are too close together to get an accurate reading.

Today, Andy and I built a paddle wheel boat. Duct tape is your friend, folks. It actually worked! We were hoping it would float. Not only did it float, the paddle wheel thingie worked as well. (Why, yes, I AM the engineering mom!) It scooted right across the bath tub! Fun stuff. We just finished reading Iron Thunder, by Avi. It was about a 13-yr-old boy who worked and served on the Monitor. This boat project was a great tie-in. Andy named our boat the USS Oak Road. He rolled his eyes at me and said, "Yes, I know these boats were floating hospitals, but I just like the name."

In zombie news, Tim's nasty thing is complete. I still think it's creepy as hell, but I'm so glad it's not in the middle of the living room floor that I will live with creepy. Here are some pictures.

Nothing else new and exciting here, I don't think. What's going on in your part of the world? (Yes, that zombie IS in Mike's car. Won't he be happy and delighted at 5:30 am tomorrow morning?)

I used to love to jump rope . . .

but I could never do anything like these girls! It's a little long, but worth watching. They're pretty amazing.

A price must be paid . . .

In Florida, you can't just enjoy the beautiful weather with no consequences. You just can't. It's a rule when you cross our border. For me and Ian, the price is pollen. It is everywhere and it is miserable inside our heads. You know it's going to be a bad day when Mike gets up in the middle of the night (at least that's what I consider 5 am to be) sneezing and coughing. He doesn't even have allergies!!! The man has to roll naked through the lawn, followed by a headlong dive into the bamboo to even generate a polite sneeze most days.

As Mike was leaving, I got up, threw myself over the largest cinnamon bun (you know, because they might explode, better to eat it and sacrifice myself . . . for the kids sake) and took one of Ian's monster allergy pills. Not good. They work on the sinus headache/breathing thing, but they KNOCK me out. WAY out. I wasn't functional until nearly noon. Thank God for the older boys and their willingness to help Andy with his math and Latin while I sit on the couch drooling.

So that's how the day started. Nice, huh? It did pick up a bit. Andy and I finished reading Iron Thunder, by Avi, today. We've been studying the Civil War and this was a great tie in book. Good for grades 4-5-6. I do love when Andy and I read books aloud. As a rule, I hate being read to (though I love books on tape, go figure). But, Andy is so funny and enthusiastic. He has accents and inflections that might not quite fit the book, but they make books so memorable. We always end up laughing hysterically and (as I have learned from the older boys) this won't last forever and I want to get the most out of it while I can. Tomorrow we're building a milk carton steamship - cross your fingers!

One reason I love my kids? Meatloaf is their favorite meal - even Ian the vegetarian. We always have meatloaf with mashed potatoes. And, I think we all know that mashed potatoes (the kind with butter and sour cream) are the food of gods. I mention this only so you understand Ian's angle on the whole meatloaf thing. Go figure, though, meatloaf. Though, I have to say, it WAS delicious tonight. Really delicious!

After dinner, the three older boys left to meet friends at a record store (yes, they still exist, though barely) to meet friends for a Flight of the Conchords "listening" party - new album and all. There were snacks and goofy folks in abundance. Someone brought Veggimite. Ian liked it. Danny wanted to barf. Tim could take it or leave it. I live with the Three Bears! Mike and Andy took off into the cool night to walk Scout. (This was after Mike held a power-clean-the-kitchen-drill with all the boys - Yay! Mike.)

I was left on my own. Weird. I've been thinking about this year's NaNoWriMo November challenge. In case you're unfamiliar, it's an online challenge to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. I've done this for the past three years. I've finished bad novels twice. I'm going to try it again. If you have any ideas that you're willing to part with, please share! Anything! Even just a little scenario might get me started . . .it's the getting started part I have a hard time with in this challenge.

I decided to hit the local bookstore in search of inspiration. Alone. I wandered around the bookstore, not particularly inspired, but sufficiently distracted. However, I kept running into a creepy, disheveled man at every turn. It finally started to creep me out and I left. I was looking creepy and disheveled myself and the thought of someone seeking me out amidst the shelves was too sad and bizarre to contemplate.

So I walked out into the dark, still getting used to it being dark before 7:30, to loud, scary man-shouting and extra loud dog-barking. I watch 24. I know what's going on. My first instinct was to dive under the first parked car I saw. Then I noticed the little family standing at the edge of the strip-mall sidewalk. Their little girls were sitting nonchalantly on the edge. Then I noticed the guy with the video camera and the police cars. Oh! Then I saw the guy in full body armor with a GIANT German Shepard attached to his chest. It was a training exercise for the police dogs.

A couple of thoughts. 1) I know the dogs are well trained. Still, if I had two little people, there is no way they would be sitting THAT close to a training operation. EVER. 2) Is it too much to ask for a little sign stating this exercise is going on during x & x hours? People that hang out in bookstores tend to have active imaginations. They should not be subjected to Jack-Bauer shouting and barking dogs after 2 hours of floating among books. 3) I'm so glad I didn't dive under the Toyota closest to the store. I would probably still be laying there waiting for everyone to leave the parking lot. Talk about a walk of shame.

OK - it's time to go to bed. Unproductive night here. I had grand plans for baking a brown butter pumpkin cake. Does anyone know where my bundt pan is? Sure as I go buy a new one the old one will turn up.

Mummy/zombie update. Damn thing is laying in the middle of the living room right now. The laundry table was bad. The middle of the living room is really NOT a step up here. Tim keeps telling me it's just one more step until it's done. Is/was Stephen Speilberg's mom in a home for the insane because that's where this is leading for me.

Sadly, poor old Scout is strangely attached to this thing. She spends all her time snoozing on or near the zombie. In the meantime, while all the boys are sitting there watching TV, I keep glancing over from my computer perch and I see the stoopid mummy/zombie out of the corner of my eye (the part of my eye where the glasses don't help me) and think it's Danny flopped on the floor. Twice I've run over to revive the stoopid thing. Like the kids need more things to laugh about . . .

My family LOVES the cool weather . . .

When things cool off here and I can actually open windows and smell real air, I generally get inspired to cook and bake. We live in Florida, so these opportunities are rare and unusual.

It's cooled off here to the point where we're all freezing in the morning. Sure, we could close the windows, but where is the fun in that? Last night, surprise, I was up late. I stuck this recipe in the crockpot. YUM! Nothing like crawling out of bed to a ready-made hot-delicious breakfast. I didn't take a picture because it's NOT a pretty breakfast.

APPLE OATMEAL (4-5 servings)
(as usual, I tripled this and it worked fine)
2 c. milk
2 T. honey
1 T. butter (no substitutions!!!!)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. dry old-fashioned oats (in the crock pot the quick oats will dissolve into a nasty mush)
1 c. chopped apples (peeled and cored)
1/2 c. chopped walnuts (I didn't use these, they make my teeth itchy!)
2 T. brown sugar

1) Mix together all ingredients in greased slow cooker.
2) Cover. Cook on Low 5-6 hours. (If your slow cooker has a "Keep Warm" option you can use that and cook for about 8 hours.)
3) Serve with milk, yogurt or ice cream. (I won't tell my kids about the ice cream part if you don't!)


Tonight, another frigid Florida night - I think it's down to 58 or so. I made some Cinnamon Buns. OH OH OH . . . I got the recipe here at Recipe Zaar . For sure this is a special occasion recipe. At least it's special occasion if you have no reason to kill your family off with sticks of butter. Still . . . the dough is just amazingly silky. Did I mention butter? Ahhh. . . I smell a new Christmas morning breakfast.

Gardening 101

We are currently having PERFECT weather! This is the part about living in Florida that I love. I think today's high might have been 70. Jeans AND barefeet! It's enough to make you forget about May-September.

Andy has grown so much since last year that he no longer has pants, just manpri's. I think he's really looking forward to our upcoming shopping trip. All I had to do to convince him was promise NOT to run him over in the parking lot. (See post below if you don't get it.) The older boys have grown, but they're old enough that I can just send them out on their own to find things that fit. (Let's just hope they've outgrown pantsing mannequins.)

I spent a large part of the afternoon weeding the garden and listening to The Lost Constitution on my I-pod. I'm not entirely in love with the audio version I'm listening to, but the story is interesting, so I'm sticking with it. It's a combination of a modern mystery and a historical novel. Fun concept. I think I'll read his other books rather than listen, though.

Now, gardening has never been my thing, but it is fast becoming something I love. Funny how NO ONE approaches me when I'm out there. I don't think it's related to me asking for help as soon as someone shows up to tell me "just one thing," do you? Either way, it's very peaceful. It helps that everything is growing - well most everything. I'm encouraged. I planted a ton of stuff to see what would grow and what wouldn't. About 75% is growing. So far no critter problems, but we're going to have to think about a fence or something soon. I'm just sticking the pictures we took today into this post randomly so you get an idea.

Ian and I made French Onion Soup for dinner tonight. Lots of weeping, lots of carmelizing of onions. Overall, I'd give it a 4 out of 10. A small cup of the soup (topped with a crusty slice of french bread with melted provolone) would be perfect. A big bowl? Not this recipe - it was too sweet and the boys complained about the strong taste of wine. Oh well, can't win them all. Good thing we had the cheese bread and a big salad. No one starved. If anyone has a good recipe for onion soup, please share!

Finally, I picked up a bunch (6 lbs) of MacIntosh apples today at Aldi's - great price, I think it was $1.19/3 lb bag. Tim found this apple in the bowl a few hours ago. You can imagine the joy the butt apple brought our family. :::sigh::: The worst part is, these boys are all going to leave one day and I'm still going to be sitting here laughing at this kind of thing. It's pathetic!

What comes after finally? Well, this is it - whatever it's called. We've been watching the HBO movie John Adams via Netflix. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. The casting is great and the movie is an honest behind-the-scenes look at the American Revolution and its aftermath. We're about half-way through. We've all been watching and everyone is still interested. Even Andy has been watching, though, he's spent many minutes under a blanket when things get graphic.

And, now, you know as much about my weekend as I do. Hope you all had a good weekend too!

Date Night with Andy and Mike

The older boys went to a birthday party tonight. Mike, Andy and I decided to go see Harry Potter at the $$ theater. When it occurred to Mike and me that we only had one child, we tossed getting a pizza first into the ante. It felt so weird to order just one pizza (normally we get 3 or 4)! We watched the Gators, ate pizza and discussed Morse code (see post below). Good times.

I don't know what you are hearing on the news about the economy, but the fact that we went to see Harry Potter 3 months after it was released at 6 pm on a Saturday night and the dollar theater was sold out speaks volumes to me. Mike had not seen the movie before (along with probably 3/4 of the audience members) and Andy and I had been waiting forever to see it again. We had a great time. The lady behind us actually tossed her popcorn tub WAY up in the air when the hand came out of the lake. She was apologetic and hysterical at the same time. She kept saying "I knew it was coming! I knew it was coming!"

On the way home, Mike needed to put gas into the truck. Andy and I went inside the store to pick up some Reese's cups - I love popcorn and will pay the $ theater prices for popcorn and soda so that they can stay in business. I draw the line at movie candy. When we came out, Mike announced we were going through the car wash. It's high pollen season here and the black truck was looking decidedly yellowish green.

Now, normally, car washing (at the car wash or at home) is something I leave to Mike and the boys. Imagine my delight and surprise when Andy asked, as the car wash was ending, if he could get out and stand next to the power dryer thingies. I immediately said absolutely not. I'm a mom, it's what I do. Mike, on the other hand, unlocked the doors and said go for it. Andy was thrilled being blasted by the dryer (think reporter in a hurricane) when, for reasons still unknown, Mike backed up. Yes, backed up right over Andy's foot.

I was kind of spaced out in my own seat when suddenly Mike's dragging Andy into the car. Andy was completely freaked out. His foot was fine. I just glared at Mike. I now know he's been doing the car wash dryer thing since Danny was a toddler, but sheesh!

Knowing myself and my family, this is going to go down as a legend. "Remember the time Dad got really mad at Andy and ran over his feet over and over again with the truck?" Take heed, Dads.

Aside from Mike trying to kill our youngest son (or at the very least trying to maim him), we had a great night. Imagine if the Gators had lost? Oh the humanity!

Weekend Update

OK, I'm not Jane Curtain, but this is almost as exciting and I will never call you an ignorant slut (unless you deserve it).

I can't wait to get out and take pictures of the garden tomorrow. I'm amazed at how much and how quickly things are growing out there! We FINALLY got some cooler weather (it's a bitter 58 outside right now - compared to the midnight temp of 85 on Wednesday night!) and it seems to have perked up the garden.

In the meantime, it quickly became apparent that I am incapable of building a telegraph machine a al the Great Civil War Projects book. Fortunately, Dan was interested and he stepped in to help. Today Mike and Andy spent a fair bit of the morning perfecting things. We need more wire, but we can now send Morse code to someone in the next chair. It's pretty cool actually.

I had the boys dig out the Halloween decorations this afternoon. I spent this evening taping together my favorite Halloween book. I think we've had it since Dan's first Halloween. Everyone still gets excited when we take it out. It's a pop-up book that folds out into a kind of house - it's so much fun.

I made sure to decorate my computer desk to keep me in the spirit - I love my ghost, light-up pumpkin. Hanging above my screen (no picture, but stay tuned) is my beloved sock-monkey ghost. It's just the most ridiculous thing ever. Makes me happy.

Zombie-Tim-thing update. Mike and Tim went out last night to shop for queen-sized panty hose. Yes, Mike was delighted and surprised. Here are some pictures of my laundry table. :::sniff::: It's become the alien autopsy table or something. I'm afraid to go out there alone - y'all should be amazed and impressed by these pictures. It's not done yet ... I am dreading whatever Step Three is . . .

In other news, the three older boys spent the evening at the girl-that-is-a-friend's house. It's her birthday and she had a party. Ian made her eclairs as a gift. Yes, you can actually make eclairs - who knew? They were amazing - we taste-tested for Ian. I'm not a fan of coffee, but these had a coffee based cream/butter filling, fluffy dough around it and dark, bittersweet chocolate on top. OH MY. I'm now up waiting for the boys to arrive home safely - I hate that friend-that-is-a-girl lives so far away. No pictures of the eclairs - ummm ... we ate them too fast. Trust me, though, they were beautiful.

That's about it for this post. We're enjoying wearing clothing with sleeves and long legs and being our weird selves this weekend. (It feels normal to me, but I don't think a lot of people spend their time this way.)

Oh wait!!!! I got a new mop. I love it! Not only is it pink, it's washable and it works. I've been wrestling with my old mop for months. I'd forgotten how essentially quick and easy mopping the floors can be. (Once again, I'm asking someone, anyone to send me a life!)

Evolution of a Zombie . . .

So, the skeleton/zombie thing evolves. It's currently spread on my laundry table "drying." Imagine Mike's joy and delight when Tim asked him to drive him to the store to buy some Queen-sized panty hose after dinner tonight. Mike looked to me for help, I, unfortunately was busy with something and couldn't help him out. Bummer, huh? Tim took a picture of the zombie thing, but I cannot find it in my computer. Trust me, it's freaky and I am not doing laundry again until that thing is far away from my washing machine.

Inspired by my parents' recent trip to Paris and the movie Julie/Julia, I made Coq au Vin this evening. It was delicious, but it was a lot of work. Mike and the boys scarfed it up (and gave me the extra mushrooms), though. I think, now that I've done it, it won't be so involved the next time. Up next on our French cooking? Ian and I are going to give Onion Soup a shot this weekend (provided the weather folks are right and it finally DOES cool down here).

We're plugging along with school - everyone is doing well, but nothing too inspired this year yet. I hate that. Dan and Andy have plans to build a Civil War type telegraph machine tomorrow, though. Hope springs eternal. They're both excited about it - they spent a good two hours at Lowe's today getting supplies and asking questions. Cross your fingers the thing works and makes actual noise! Andy has grand plans of hooking all of his neighborhood friends into a telegraph network if it does.

I hope everyone else is having a good week. Happy Friday!

(I'm going to look one more time for the zombie picture, and then I'm going to bed!)

Why I kind of hate October . . .

Once upon a time, I made costumes for three dinosaurs. I made a ringleader, strongman, clown costumes ... You know, cute costumes.

Now, Halloween is out of my control. :::sniff::: Tim is WAY into Halloween - he makes movies, you know? He started a project tonight. It is currently flopped on the love seat and it's creeping me out. Worse? It's going to get creepier. Wah . . .

Anyone need help with a baby or toddler costume?

Quick catch up . . .

Danny had a great time at Homecoming. See the picture of him and the friend-that-is-a-girl. Aren't they cute? Bonus for me? He spent most of Saturday cleaning the Suburban (no small feat). In return, I have a mostly clean car filled with glitter from the dance's decorations.

Spent most of the weekend weeding the garden - pictures tomorrow. For the most part, things are growing and I'm encouraged. We waited until early October to plant most stuff because things usually start cooling off a bit here by then. NOT this year. We've had record temps all month. It's supposed to cool down a bit over the weekend (into the bitter 70-80 range) and I hope that will help. Send sweaters!!!!

Not much else here that is blog-worthy. We all just seem to be stuck in a boring rut right now. That and I'm still catching up on sleep and just getting back to normal. Boring, but kind of nice for now. I'm sure it will all change quickly, though. Bear with me.

The truth . . .

I loved this video. I love this girl. We've been homeschooling for the past ten years. I've met a lot of people during this time. I wholeheartedly respect those who choose to be different and who uphold their beliefs. At the same time, I think this video gets to the heart of things for most of us that choose to homeschool.

How cool is this?

Tim took this picture this morning in our garden. Sorry if spiders creep you out! I think it's beautiful.

So you think YOU are a bad mom?

Gah! I want the best for my kids, I'm sure most, if not all, of you do. So, if you read the post below (with the great pic of Andy and Bing) you'll know I declared today a beach holiday. Ahhhh ... I love the beach and I love the freedom of homeschooling that gives us the freedom to hit the beach on a random Friday.

On the way to the beach, we stopped at Wal-Mart. Not only is Wal-Mart fun and educational, it's the only place you can pick up random weird stuff in one stop. I was picking up ice, soda, water, pink thread, a light bulb for my exhaust fan and some hair conditioner. At the last minute, I added beer to our cart. It's bad enough I drive a world-sucking SUV, the least I can do is condense errands, right?

We went to the beach. On the home-front, Danny covered a LOT of economics, some math stuff, and even a couple loads of laundry. Strange how the desire for transportation will motivate a teenager. Even if it means he has to drive a tank.

We beached and had fun and returned home at around 5 pm. Dan was itching to leave for the high school football game (aka meet his girlfriend) but, there was unloading to do and the sorting of stuff and laundry to get going. And, to top it off, I made the poor boy eat dinner before he left. (I know, I'm waiting for the attorneys to show up at any minute.)

FINALLY, Danny was ready to leave the house. I was working on some sewing projects when he left and Mike was outside taming weeds. About 40 minutes after Dan left, Mike went in search of a cold beer. Hmmmm.....

Yep, my oldest son was driving around with an 18-pack of cheap beer. And he was headed for the high school that demands transcripts for non-students just to attend the dance. Poof!, there goes my son, loaded with beer into their homecoming football game. Yes, it was a PROUD mommy-moment.

I know, like you, I wondered whether to be proud he didn't crack open the 18 pack or to just cringe at my own stupidity. For now, I'm choosing to laugh and cringe.

I marveled when they let me just walk out of the hospital right after Dan was born. I knew NOTHING. 17 years later, I STILL know nothing. I'm sitting up tonight, sure they're going to come and repossess my giant, hairy baby.

Ahhhh the beach . . .

My nerves have been seriously rattled over the past few weeks. I know all of us were experiencing Danny's weird symptoms in one way or another. Getting the "all clear" has been beyond liberating. So, in celebration, I declared today a beach day. Ironic that Dan had to stay home and catch up on all the work he's missed with so many doctor appointments. But, I can honestly say that he was glad to be away from me and I was glad to be away from him. I love him, but there is such a thing as overexposure.

Tim, Ian, Andy, Bing and I set out for the beach late this morning. Absolutely perfect. We're in the middle of some kind of weird heat wave here, but the water was cool and the breeze was great. BEST part? No pollen at the beach ... the whole breathing thing is really underrated. Ahhhh . . .

I love this picture that Tim took of Andy and Bing at the end of today. (I didn't clear it with Bing first, but I think she'll be ok with it - if not, Mom, you can ground me and I'll take the picture down. I LOVE it! Please note, if you ground me, I will take up residence in your house for the specified period of time.)

Are we over-automated? My vote is yes.

Today, I had to call our insurance company to verify that, yes, we do not have additional insurance coverage for Danny or anyone in the house. I did this online last week, but this was a new billing . . . so I called to find out if I had to keep updating or would their system eventually catch on. Well, when I called, their systems were down and NO ONE could answer my question. OK, fine, 1 hour of messing with the automated voice mail later, I gave up. I am not full of confidence here. I updated online again and we'll see if it sticks.

The mind boggles at the endless amount of paperwork and postage and time spent mailing these requests to me. We're a pretty low-maintenance family (discounting the past few months - and even then, it's one kid with clear-cut issues, not terribly difficult to follow) ... I cannot imagine what folks with ongoing issues face and for what? It's clearly all automatically generated. No one is watching to say "Hmmm .... kind of dumb to send this family five separate notices when we could stuff them all into one envelope for the same amount of postage. . ." Just me thinking out loud.

This weekend, we received the strangest thing. See the picture above. Yes, we received a check for THREE CENTS. THREE PENNIES. This is from a 401(K) that we closed 2 years ago. THREE CENTS???? How much did it cost this company to generate, authorize and mail this check? Again, I think it was automatically generated and no one even knows it was sent out. GAHAHAHAHAH

And, we wonder why things cost as much as they do? It makes no sense . . . are we alone or do the rest of you deal with this kind of inefficiency and craziness too? Someone, anyone! Send me a check for $1.00. I'm too mortified to show up at my bank with a check for THREE CENTS as a deposit. It would cost our bank far more than that to just get those THREE PENNIES into our account.

Whew!

We're finally back from the neurologist. Danny in the clear! Good EEG. Good MRI. Good Brain X-ray. I cannot for my life remember what the doctor called it, but basically Danny's nervous sytem and the part of the brain that controls it are out of sync because he's still growing. Hmmm...luckily (not really, but I'm trying to put a positive spin on it) we had to wait nearly 2 1/2 hours before we saw the doctor. Yes, you read that right 150 minutes. I finished the last 270 pages of my book! But, by the time the doctor came into the room, Dan had been sitting so long that the doctor was able to witness an episode.

I really liked the doctor, despite the delay in seeing him. He suggested really upping Danny's salt intake. He felt certain this was something he'll simply grow out of but told us to call if things get much worse or there's no huge improvement in 6-8 months. Danny asked about driving. The doctor said he was clear to drive but for him to be very careful getting OUT of the car. LOL

I feel like I just lost 20 pounds! I'm sure I'll crash soon - i have really missed sleeping these past few weeks - but for now, I'm just so thankful and relieved to put this behind us.

Thanks to everyone for the prayers and support!!!! ((((Group Hug))))

In case you haven't noticed . . .

I have a bit of an imagination. We've been waiting weeks to see this neurologist. Wednesday at 2:40 PM (EST) is when we go. Part of me knows it's all OK, but the other part of me (thanks Grandma Liz!) is scared to death. If you are inclined and happen to think of it, I'd appreciate a little prayer/good thought that all is well and I don't become an idiot in the doctor's office. Just a few more hours, right?

In the meantime, I'm just going to keep being busy. Busy. Busy. Busy.

For now, here's a funny video. With three Tae Kwon Do black belts and a purple belt living here, we were all laughing. Watch, and keep your joo-dee chops to yourselves!

Muhahahaha. . .

Sure, it's all well and good to worry about your oldest child when he's having "issues." Sure, it keeps you up nights and makes you overall-ly (that should be a word) kind of weird. BUT . . . if said child is 17, is it wrong to kind of want to wring his neck at the same time you have convinced yourself he has a brain tumor? I hope not. What if he's a mostly great kid, but some days he's kind of a jerk?

Just thinking out loud. Personally, I would never think such evil things. Ever. Unless it was an even or odd day of the week, then maybe.

Shoppin'

That's right, we went shoppin' today. We are SO not shoppers. If you saw me and the boys in a store, you'd assume we lived 150 miles from the "big city" based on our behavior. We are truly that clueless.

BUT .. Danny was approved to go to that dance with "that girl" and he needed some citified clothing. Ugh. It's kind of a big deal when one of us puts on shoes that aren't flip-flops, forget pants, tie, shirt, belt AND shoes. Yee-haw!

As a young person without kids, I used to dress up everyday for work. I wore beautiful, expensive suits with beautiful, expensive shoes. I LOVED it. :::sigh::: Things change. Now, it's a big day if I'm wearing a bra. Funny how it all works out, isn't it?

We stopped first at Plato's Closet. If you have teens and have this chain in your town, it's worth checking out. Not thrift store prices, but your kids can find the "names" they think are important for a fraction of the cost. I only shop for boys and I can say the prices are awesome. While the boys browse, I have checked out the girls' side of the store. I dunno. I think you could probably do as well with department store sales, but I'm just guessing. Where moms of girls COULD save is on dresses - for dances, recitals, whatever. The store we were in today had the most beautiful dresses (and fancy shoes) for much less than retail.

Sadly, today all we found was a (hideous - but let's keep that between just us) tie. We moved to Kohl's. While Dan and I dragged the hideous tie around in search of a shirt that would match it (and, to be honest, it's not hideous, just not something I would have picked) Ian and Tim roamed the store. Fortunately, Andy was home with Mike. We found a shirt and started the hunt for pants. It's no small feat to find 30"W 32-34"L pants.

While Dan tried pants on, Ian and Tim popped up to discuss the shirts on the clearance rack. There's a reason they're on the clearance rack. Usually because they're hideous. Ian and Tim started talking with two guys who appeared to be shopping for a high school dance as well. The one guy had a $10 budget for his clothing. He already had pants and shoes. Ian and Tim and his friend were dead-set on him getting a hideous lime green bowling shirt. Yay!budget-guy for sticking to your guns. I wonder what he ended up getting.

Dan found pants that fit and we moved on to shoes and belts. God help me. Immediately, Dan glommed onto a $45 belt that had a buckle that looked like a cheese grater. He was trying to sell me on its usefulness ... I'll spare you the details. Not pretty.

In the meantime, I heard Ian and Tim shriek. I spun around in time to hear Ian announce he was trapped in the walls of shame. That would be the underpants aisle for normal people. Though, they showed me a wall of guy panties that seemed to be pre-formed. It really was kind of disturbing. Of course we were all quiet and respectful as we wandered through the mens' undergarment section and onto shoes.

Shoes! Dan found a pair he loved. Just loved. Only $95. This is a child that wears sneakers MAYBE five times a year. Mostly, it's flip flops or bare feet. I'm so sure I'm going to shell out $95 on a pair of shoes he'll most likely wear once.

We moved on . . . Payless had some decent dress shoes (for a one time wearing) and a belt. Danny is all set for his dance. Even still, taking my cheap route, this is a pricey dance, imo. $30 per ticket. $125 for clothes (his). There'll be a dinner involved. Another $25-30? It's crazy. Especially for my son who doesn't have a job right now! He's paying PART of his way with odd jobs he picks up, but gah!

Nevertheless, we're all a little wiser about options available in men's underwear - and I think we're all in agreement that this is important. So I guess that's a good thing. Right?

Best part, I remembered to grab MY I-pod before we got in the car. The boys were subjected to The Wicked and FAME as we drove. Nothing like a little negative reinforcement, huh?

PMS House - On Steroids!

Once upon a time I was a free spirit . . . now, I'm not. Pass the olives - quick!!! Sure, I have crazy curly hair, I make soap, I homeschool, I compost and I wear overalls a lot, but I kind of like things to be like they should be.

I want things to just be normal. Dan is still being weird about standing up and it freaks me the hell out. You'd have to see it to appreciate it. Tonight, while I was cooking, Tim walked in carrying Dan after his latest "meltdown." The boys all thought it was funny. Me? Not so much. The fact that NO ONE seems to know his EEG results is freaking me out even more, though I've buried that deep-deep-down inside of me (I call it heartburn). We see the neurologist on Wednesday. I REALLY know in my heart that whatever is going on is not life-threatening, but I want someone who paid for a lot of school to tell me this.

In the meantime, I can't sleep. Poor Mike. I climb into bed every night at a decent time, but I just flop there staring at him wondering HOW he can sleep. And then I start poking at him - just to see. He doesn't think it's as funny as I do. Eventually, I just get up. Insane, but productive. The house is super clean, we have loaves of bread, rolls (of bread), food all over the place sorted and portioned and frozen AND I've moved all of the furniture twice. It's now back to where it was. And, da dum, I conquered the laundry! Until someone wakes up tomorrow morning, I'm winning! Yay me!

I don't get like this often, but when I do, it's easy to tell I'm over the edge. Mike and the kids are NICE to me - really nice, not just polite nice. And, them being nice sends me further over the edge. It's a no win all around.

OK - It's 4:22 and I'm going to try to sleep again.

Sidenotes: Kate, not ignoring you, I just haven't had time to give you a thoughtful response to your email. Hope Riley had fun this weekend, though. Sabrina, email me your new address (all4mine@bellsouth.net) so I can send you the rest of the 24 seasons!!!! Lynne, I suck, I missed Jesse's birthday again, didn't I? If I send her a REAL pony can we call it good?

You MUST make this . . .

I tried a new Macaroni and Cheese recipe tonight. THIS is the keeper. It's cheesy and delicious, but the spices and other additions make it not-too-cheesy. Seriously delicious stuff. Personally, I think the addition of some nicely sauteed mushrooms would make this even better. Sadly, no one here likes mushrooms. Losers. We had a spinach salad on the side. We would have had the spinach salad either way, but it sounds grumpier if I mention it in context with NOT getting my mushrooms. I didn't get my mushrooms - and I'm only a little bit bitter. (Do you see me as a tempermental artiste now?)

From http://www.recipezaar.com - Kittencal's Creamy Macaroni and Cheese:

You probably won't search any further for mac/cheese after trying this one. This is something similar to Stouffer's mac and cheese (not!). I sometimes add in 1/2 c. of sour cream, but that is only optional. If you are not a garlic lover, omit it (but you shouldn't).

4-6 servings
2 1/4 C. elbow macaroni
1/4 C. butter
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp, onion powder
1 tsp, mustard powder
1/4 tsp, cayenne pepper
3 T flour
1.5 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1 (16 oz) pack Velveeta, cut into small cubes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 C. Parmesan cheese, finelyy grated

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Grease casserole dish (medium)
3. Cook pasta according to pkg directions. Drain, do not rinse.
4. Put pasta in a bowl (or if you have a strainer pot, dump water out of the main pot, melt 2 T butter. Mix with pasta.
5. Melt 1/4 c. butter in a large sauce pan, medium heat.
6. Add minced garlic, onion powder, mustard powder and cayenne pepper.
7. Add in flour and stir for 1 minute - no lumps
8. Slowly add cream and cook stirring constantly over medium heat until bubbly and thickened.
9. Reduce heat and add in cheese - mix until melted and smooth.
10. Add salt and pepper to taste.
11. Add in the cooked pasta and toss to combine.
12. Transfer to baking dish.
13. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
14. Bake @ 350 for about 20-25 minutes.