Oh-8 was really great!

It's hard to stay away from something you love for too long, things like chocolate, soap &, of course, blogging (also, mouse traps. Those would almost make my list if it weren't for the purpose they were intended.) Besides, there are just so many things that I've been thinking about lately, good things which 2008 has brought us, that I just had to share.

By now, you know me & my lists, ooh - that's another thing I love - lists! (If I wasn't already making one then I would go make one about cute men & the cute things they say.)

So, this is my list of favorite things in Oh-8 (trust me - this list is much shorter than it's nemesis. Who wants to read about things like darling {devil} children vandalizing your neighbor's garage with kitty litter, mouse infestations & hurting someones feelings & going into a depression over it? Hmmm. If you even know what I'm talking about then I guess you do.) Well, I'm not going there, this is happy list time & that's what I'm giving you. Happy. Now, shut up & read.... {Sorry, I can't believe I just said that, that's a bad word in this house - I totally belong on the naughty list - but for the sake of time & the gross misuse of parenthesis' which has already taken place, I won't go there either.} Here we go...

MEMO'S TOP 8 of Oh-8:

8. The birth of MEMOS (aka- blogging). Besides it being fun & meeting new people (in a not-weird way) it has been a great way for me to work on my writing skills, or lack thereof. It's an outlet for my own personal, public therapy sessions (also, in a not-weird way), & more importantly it is seriously helping me learn to balance my time & my undiagnosed OCD better. It's been very difficult these last few months, but I'm getting there..... my chillens are not nearly as neglected as they were 3 months ago.

7. My Publisher. com. This is one of my favorite finds of the year, thanks to my sister Jen. It's the perfect alternative for non-scrap booking, picture taking people like me who still want a nice way to display our pictures. It turns your photos into a book of art (I'm keeping my fingers crossed for some sort of endorsement prize). I'll be back.

6. The White Hornet:

{Please refer to You Know You're a Cheapskate When... for more details into the naming of the van & why I'm still in awe over driving a quiet, non-rattling van.)

5. Preschool. Need I say more?

4. Cost Rica. (side note - the pictures from this trip are now displayed in a beautiful hardcover coffee table book, thanks to My Publisher.com....{sorry, I couldn't resist.}) Manly & I visited C.R. in June. This is where he lived for 2 years, while serving a mission for our church. I got to meet some of the people he worked & lived with there, 16 years ago. Also, some of the beaches we visited were simply too gorgeous for words. I didn't expect to fall in love with the country like I did, but I simply love it there. The Spanish they speak is so clear & easy to understand, the people are genuine & the food was absolutely delicious. We'll be back!

3. This Christmas. This has been one of the best Christmases our family has had. Not that the others were bad, but this one has been different. It's been relaxing. I did my Christmas shopping the week before the big day with Manly & without stressing about how late it was. Instead of spending too much time shopping & worrying about shopping, I spent the time reading Christmas stories & watching movies with the kidlets. We didn't go anywhere Christmas day - we stayed home in our pj's, watched movies & played all day. It was also a more modest & more Christ centered Christmas for us. Nothing exciting - that's what was so great about it.

I think the best part of it this year was watching my 11 year old try her hand at being Santa, as she gave all of her siblings & parents unexpected gifts. She gave me her MP3 player, I checked & double checked to see if she really wanted to give it away & she was positive. She gave her dad some of her favorite sea shells from her collection & she gave her siblings things of hers which she knew they wanted. I was so proud of her as I watched her being thoughtful about the gifts & trying to make her family happy.

The other best part was later on in the day when my 7 year old, Epee, was sitting on my lap holding his new, big 'ol Nerf gun as we were watching a movie, & I asked him if he loved that gun. He turned around to look at me & said, "Yes, but not as much as I love you." Then he kissed me on the cheek. You can probably imagine how my heart melted & how that moment is burned in my mind forever! What more could I want (maybe a hubby who will learn to schmooze like his son...... hmmmm.)?

2. The adoption of Rocket. He has been a blessing to our family this year. It's amazing what a big, lazy, sweetheart of a dog will do for an angry 11 year old, & the rest of her family.

1.

You're smiling aren't you. How could this NOT make anyone smile?!

Crazy Horses = Lots of laughter & good, clean family fun. This has been, by far, my favorite thing this year! Thanks to an unexpected email from my good friend, Jaeme, earlier this year. My family & I have spent a lot of time watching this over & over & over again, laughing our heads off {including the angry 11 year old.}. Can you guess what is now downloaded on my new MP3 player? Yep. My new goal is too learn the smokin choreography & make my family learn it too so we can perform it at the next ward talent show. Yes!

That's my list & I'm sticking to it. I hope you've had a wonderful year too. See ya next year!

Tis the season

Hello all of my fellow blogging & non-blogging more like stalking friends! It's been a while. I've had to make some changes in the last little while to get my life back to normal, to get ready for Christmas & to combat this seriously gross mouse problem we have.

I know.

That last post I wrote about the mouse..... well, the mouse apparently wasn't a loner looking for some love ...... or food. It, & when I say it, I mean it in the most inflammatory, derogatory mouse slandering way possible, came with not only a family, but a whole neighborhood of mice camped out in various places around our home. I guess this is all part of living in the country (with fields all around you, which people decide to dig up to build homes on) & not having a cat. We've had mice before, but nothing this extreme & it's really getting on my nerves. You know it's bad when you walk out of the kitchen & one of your kids screams from seeing another mouse run across the floor (this has happened more than once) Why are they avoiding me?

Anyway, now that my life is feeling back to normal, Christmas is ready, we've caught about 10 mice & my house is so clean I hardly recognize it, I've decided to officially take a holiday break.

I'm giving myself permission to not blog for the next couple of weeks & not feel guilty about it. I know that sounds ridiculous, but seriously, you know you do it too. There's something about making a commitment to do something & then when you don't do it you feel guilty about it. That is so NOT what any mother, wife, woman, person needs in their life, & yet here I am doing it to myself.

So,

I'm not going to post for the next couple of weeks unless I really want to, & I won't feel bad about it. Hooray! That's my Christmas present to myself this year. I only wish I had thought of that years ago when I was feeling guilty for all of the other things I said I would do & didn't. Oh well.

I also want to wish each of you a very beautiful & Merry Christmas. This truly is a beautiful time of year. A time to reflect on the birth of our Savior - the best gift we could ever receive, a time to serve others with more gratitude in our hearts & a time to spend with our families. Isn't it wonderful?! I hope you have a wonderful holiday season. A line from my MIL's birthday song comes to mind...... "May you have God's blessings through the coming year!"

Enjoy!

Thankful Thursday

I am Thankful it's Thursday. Thursday is my favorite day of the week. I love the anticipation of the upcoming weekend, which means no homework or activities to run children to. Friday would probably be my favorite day of the week because that's the day when there is actually no homework, the bedtime routine is a lot more relaxed & it's date night, but Friday ends so quickly. It's usually over right after it starts. That bugs me. So Thursday is my day, it lasts longer than Friday & The Office is on.

Oh, The Office. I'm thankful for it too, as I've mentioned before, that show makes me laugh- that's the only show I watch these days. Around here t.v. has mostly become a thing of the past. I admire people like my husband & sister & bil who actually stop watching shows like T.O. because they get kind of crude at times.


It's true.

I'm just not ready to take that step yet, "...and the only way that I would ever let go of my *show* would be if you came over here right now and tried to pry it from my dead, lifeless fingers, okay? If you can get it from my kung-fu grip then you can come and have it!" (movie?) Until then I'm not giving it up. I so look forward to Micheal & Dwight, Jim & Pam & all the others with their crazy antics each week. That show almost makes me want to go out & get a job in a totally dysfunctional work environment.

Speaking of crude, I'm thankful that when I was in Barnes & Noble yesterday with my two little munchkins waiting for our lunch, we didn't have to sit there & look at a rack of dirty magazines (like you do in the grocery store when you're waiting in line). We only had to look at the dirty man sitting near us looking at his dirty magazine. BTW, why was he so jittery? Hmmm.

Also, Christmas is only 14 days from today, 2 weeks people, & I don't have any shopping done yet. I'm so thankful for that because I'm not worrying about where to hide the presents in our small house & wondering if the kids have found them yet (in our house, it's only a matter of time). It's so refreshing to be winging it. In years past I always made the goal to have my shopping mostly done by Thanksgiving. Why did I do that to myself? That was dumb. I'm grateful that there are only 12 shopping days left & I have the whole 9 yards to go. Woo Hoo!

Another thing I'm grateful for is a cute, gentle, sweet tempered, big dog. Big enough that other animals & small humans should be scared of him. He is the most laid back, patient creature I've ever known. Even when there's a mouse that runs across my bedroom floor & under my bed, he doesn't mind because that's just how he is. He doesn't let anything bother him. He only barks when he wants to come in & he never complains. I wish I could be more like that. Do you think I've been able to kneel down to say my prayers since that happened the other night? All kneeling & praying is done on TOP of the bed now. I'm trying to be more like Rocket, the dog. I think if I could let some of these things go then I wouldn't have so many weird dreams like the one last night about kung-fu cats. Weird.

Really though, I am thankful for getting pulled over twice last week because I have seriously slowed down (figuratively as well). My driving has been so good that my 11 year old daughter has started telling me that I can get pulled over for going TOO SLOW! Good. Then, I'm doing something right.

Finally, I am thankful for a hubby who doesn't read my blog.

It's not just mine, it's everyone's. The whole blogging world is foreign to him. But, this way I have the freedom to say whatever I want, like how much I love him, how handsome he is to me, how proud I am of him, what a good example he is to me & other gushy, somewhat disgusting things like that. Also I don't have the pressure to do a big blowout birthday post when it's the week of his birthday, like this week. So, I'm not going to worry about writing, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MANLY, I LOVE YOU! or posting about the things I would have gotten him, like a cool gun & awesome hunting gear, if he wasn't such a cheapskate. Just shirts, ties & books for you my dear (okay that's an exaggeration, it was more like a shirt, a tie & a book). Nope. I don't have to worry about any of that. Thanks hon, you've given me a lot to be thankful for!

A Year Ago....

My 3 year old (almost 4) daughter decided she wanted a new look. Who needs to make an appointment at a salon or with any of our many family members who cut hair, when Mom's scissors are, unfortunately, so easy to get to? There was no wasting time..... while Mom was in the shower.

When I got out, this is what I found, & when I say found I mean I had to follow a trail of white hairs around the house to her hiding place:

I don't think she was very pleased with her look.... What? Not the look you were going for, my little angel? I don't know, I kind of like it. The early'80's mullet is coming back...... if you're living in the woods in the deep south & married to your cousin. It's a good look.

Or maybe she was just worried about whether Santa was actually going to come to her house this year. This incident may have been the one that tipped the scales in favor of the naughty list.

Alas, my heaven sent hair-cutting family.....

Okay, my little pixie. You win. How can Santa resist that sweet face? You made it back on the nice list by letting Aunty fix it..... but don't do it again!

A year later.

Honey, I've got some advice for you, this look is working way better than the mullet. Keep it. Also, if you ever do it again, you will realize the reality of the naughty list.

BEWARE!

Thank Goodness for Home Teachers

So, this week I have been running around crazy, like a chicken with it's head cut off. Since Monday, morning at 8:00 am I have been busy with Christmas Tree Fantasy. UGH! - (ugh - in a good way.) It's a great community event that raises $ for needy organizations around the county, like the senior citizens center, the crisis center, the developmental center & so on. It's a good cause.

But. I'm on the board. The board being a group of lady's who plan this big fundraising event throughout the year & pull it off by the skin of their nose the week after Thanksgiving. We ask everyone & their dog for donations & volunteer hours & it's a huge deal. After it's finished (this Saturday, thank heaven above) & CTF has raised like $50,000.00, then we get together a couple months later & have a big cat-fight type meeting to decide which organizations are the most needy.

That big disbursement meeting & all the planning meetings up to this point are the kind of meetings where if you want to make a change to something you have to call it an 'amendment' & then you have to make a motion to do it & someone else 2nd's it & the board votes on it. I know. It's way above my head - like I've ever made a motion to do anything except go to the bathroom (& I only make those motions in my head).

Why do I do this to myself?

I have to admit, it's fun. I love serving & volunteering & working with people & getting to know the public. I'm a people person. I don't have a problem saying 'No' to things - good heavens, no one asked me to do it, I volunteered to fill this post! My problem is that I want to do everything & forget that I still have young children & a husband & home to take care of. This simply isn't the right time in my life to be doing these things. There is a time & season for everything, I believe it.

So, I've decided that this year is not only my 2nd year of doing this, it's also my last year.

Anyway, back to my original reason why I felt the need to take this time out of my crazy schedule (besides this being CTF week, 3 of my 4 children have rehearsals all week for their play on Saturday, seriously, I hope to still be alive by Saturday night - at this point I have to schedule breathing just so I don't forget to do it.) to post. For one thing this is like therapy for me. The other thing is, I feel the need to bear my testimony about good cops right now.

As I have been running around like crazy my speedometer keeps increasing. Hm, funny how that happens. I'm not normally a speed demon, but this week I have thrown all caution to the wind. It's not like I'm speeding on purpose, I just simply haven't been paying attention. I have to be everywhere, right now, so I'm just on automatic pilot mode, which unfortunately is set too high.

Last night as I was coming home from CTF at 9:30, I just wanted to get home & go to bed, but I still had some papers to print out & calls to make. I was going through the to-do list in my mind when I saw the lights flashing in my rear view mirror. Whoops! Also, those red & yellow flashing lights - Freak. Me. Out. Officer Friendly approached my vehicle in his extremely cautious way, we went through the drill, & he took my info back to his car. From the tone of his voice & the way he walked I thought for sure I was going to get a ticket. Sometimes, I can sense these things. And then, miracle of miracles, the kind officer gave me several warnings for things he could have ticketed me for, apparently speeding wasn't my only problem, whoops, again! But he didn't ticket me. Oh, sigh, THANK YOU, dear, sweet law enforcement man!

Then, this morning as I was headed back into CTF after dropping the twins off at preschool, I saw the lights again.

Are you kidding me?

I've just realized, I have a problem & no amount of denial is going to take it away. Speeding isn't my problem (clearing throat, & cough, cough), paying attention to what I'm doing, specifically my speedometer, is my problem.

This time, you can imagine my joy when I saw the officer get out of his car & it was a former home teacher of mine. It's been a few years since he visited us & since we go to the Spanish branch in our stake, I wasn't sure if he'd remember me.

Please. Please. Please.

At first he didn't. And then I saw it click. He was so nice! He didn't even take my stuff back to his car & even though I live here in this neighborhood & should know the speed limit by now, he just gave me a warning. Oh, sigh, where do I even begin?

Do you think someone is trying to tell me something?

If so, I got the message. I don't care how far behind I'm running today & from now on, I am going under the speed limit, just to prove I can.

Thank you police officers, I know the speed limit is true. I am grateful for it & both of you - I don't know where I would be without it, or you ..... probably in jail. I say these things in the name of law enforcement, Amen.

Getting home

Hey, everyone! We're back, I've missed you....... (although after more than a week of not reading blogs, I'm kind of scared to check my google reader).

After my last post, I've got another question for you.

What's the worst thing that could happen to your home while you're away on vacation?

It burns down.

Yeah, that would be bad.

What's the 2nd worst thing that could happen?

A flood.

Yeah, that would be bad too.

What's the 3rd worst thing?

A family of skunks move in while you're away and make their love nest right in the center of your living room.

Ew.

How about the 4th worst thing?

The fridge & freezer get turned off just before you leave on your trip, right after you stock it with 3 gallons of milk, several bags of various frozen meats & veggies & a variety of other fresh veggies, dairy & other delicious food.

Yeah, that's bad.

I'm sure glad #1, 2, & 3 didn't happen to us.

As for thing #4, all I can say is, my van story was almost nothing compared to it, although, the stink hasn't lasted as long this time. Unlike the stinky van, I didn't have an automatic fridge wash to drive my fridge through to magically clean it - Manly & I had to do it ourselves.

Double Ew.

But. We have an extremely clean fridge now.

Just one more thing to be grateful for.

Something To Think About

So, here I am sitting in my sister's backyard, on her laptop (don't get the impression that I have one of those because I don't), in sunshiny Phoenix (also, if you're wondering about hitting our place while we're gone, don't bother. If you read my last post you would know there is absolutely NOTHING worth taking that risk for in there), just enjoying the view. The view being, Manly & the young one's happily playing in the pool with their cousins & various other backyard activities going on. Sometimes I just get jealous of myself thinking about it. Okay, sorry, I just love it here!

Oh, Happy Thanksgiving! .......yesterday. I hope you had a wonderful day.


As I sit here next to my sister & Dad, listening to their conversation, I was just about to close the lid on this baby & kick my feet up, because I really don't have anything else on my mind besides how full my stomach still is & the Oreo's in her cupboard (am I really ever too full for a double stuff Oreo? That's a conundrum we can explore another time.).

Until now.

Something I just heard my 14 year old nephew ask Lundles made me think. So I have a different question at hand. The question is, & I quote, "Would you rather die by one of those bird-thingys or by a raptor?"

As in dinosaurs.

Hm.

I have no idea which would be a better, or worse, depending on how you look at it, way to die by dinosaur. Personally, I don't think we really have to worry about it, but that's just me. Apparently, there was no obvious answer to that question because her response was, "Huh, I don't know. That's a really good question. I'm going to have to think about that for a while."

Really?

Hm.

What I've decided is that, a) kids crack me up, & b) It's a treat to get a glimpse into their somewhat malnourished minds. Also, during this thankful season, I am grateful to be surrounded by kids whose biggest worries in life are about dinosaur survival.

What do you think?

You Know You're a Cheapskate When...

1. When you want to be unlisted in the phone book, but don't want to pay the delisting fee so you get re-listed under your wife's maiden name. It's a genius idea in a town where she didn't grow up & no one knows her maiden name. Not so genius when she calls people who do know it & when they see her maiden name on caller I.D. there's an awkward silence. You know they're thinking things like ......I knew it wouldn't last, it was only a matter of time!


2. When, between your choices of Walmart, the mall or the D.I., you choose the latter for your retail shopping enjoyment. Especially when you're on the hunt for suits & church/work attire. Let's face it, the D.I. does have the biggest selection of white button up shirts on the entire planet.


3. When you complain about the prices at the D.I.
   
4. When you look back on your dumpster diving days as a youth not with shame, but with longing.
5. When the only time you eat lunch is when the secretaries in the building across the street from you, have their weekly office party.
6. When you go on vacation to a third world country & refuse to let the eager bell boys take your bags up to your room, 3 floors above, because that requires giving them a tip & that goes against every fiber of your being.
7. When your nice car is considered the nice car because it's the only one that doesn't break down on a regular basis.
8. When finding a roll of cute ribbon on clearance for .25, at Walmart, gives you an unnatural high & you start singing Madonna's, Like a Virgin.
9. When you choose to live in a house with 1 bathroom & no garage just because the mortgage payments are so low you can pay more than the minimum payment each month. Because it's twice as fun to pay twice as much to the mortgage lenders. Whatever happened to living outside your means & good old fashioned debt?
10. When your kids beg you to take them to the bank every day just so they can get some (free) candy from the nice ladies there.
11. When your kids think your neighbors are rich because the grass actually is greener on their side of the property line.
12. When a big purchase is considered anything over $5.00.
13. When you still have clothes from the late '80's - not for sentimental reasons - because you actually still wear them. 'Waste not, want not' is your personal mantra.
14. When buying ice cream, not on someones birthday, is considered a big luxury.
15. When you don't have a cell phone, an I-pod, or cable t.v. because you don't "need" them. Who even thinks that way anymore?
16. When you go to the battery store to buy a special battery for your camera & the sales lady is trying to sell you extra batteries for things like your cell phone & you tell her you don't have one & she's so shocked that her mouth falls open. When she regains her composure she tells you, 'It's okay, I met another lady last week who doesn't have a cell phone either, of course she was 85 years old.', you take that as a compliment.
17. When you find an old pair of crutches out in the desert & you keep them to give to your nephew for Christmas, because what is more fun & says, I love you, like dirty, old, abandoned crutches?
18. When going into any kind of consumer debt makes your eye twitch, your stomach hurt & you start sweating in places you didn't know could sweat.
19. When you need a new van, because the old one (as in 15 years old) has a mind of it's own & only starts when it feels like it, so you frequent the government auction website (as opposed to reading the local paper or going to the used car lot in town) because you're not about to take out a loan for a vehicle, so you look for something you can buy in cash & find a *new* van (as in only 8 years old) which you bid on & win, only 5 days before your 15 hour drive to your sister's house for Thanksgiving. So you fly up to the northern part of your state to retrieve it & spend 10 hours the next day driving it home.
20. When you & your kids are so excited about your *new* van because it has bucket seats & a sliding door on the drivers side. You think it is the coolest thing to happen to you since you bought the $10.00 popcorn popper at Walmart 3 years ago.

Okay, I admit it, that's us - we're BIG cheapskates! Mostly Manly is, but he's kind of turned me on to his way of thinking too, some call it brainwashing, other's call it rude, I call him cheap while my friends & family call me a saint.

I do like the no debt part.

FYI, some of the list above may or may not be an exaggeration, it just depends on how much I distort reality - you'll never know.

Being the thankful season, I really am grateful to have a *new*, well - maintained (we'll see how long that lasts) working vehicle.

Not this one:

{Out with the old... sorry Big Red, we're replacing you with a younger model, one who actually puts out..... as in carbon emissions & all the other stuff that *working* cars actually do to add to the green house effect. }

{In with the new. Hello precious.}

{Do you see it? A real, live, actually working sliding door [not automatic, let's not get crazy here] on the drivers side. My poor, aching back thanks you for the strain you will save me each time I buckle my 2 kids in to their car seats. I love you.}

{Look! We even got a bonus - free hornets nests. This day keeps getting better & better!}

P.S. You know your husband's a cheapskate when he keeps the old run down vehicle to turn into his hunting truck - remember the mantra? Is that cheap or redneck (*cough* white trash *cough*)? You be the judge.

Thursday came early

It's 9:30 pm, the kids are in bed, the dishes are done (for once), the bills are paid & I'm waiting for Manly to get home, he's been on a looooong drive since yesterday afternoon.

So I thought I'd put something good on t.v. while I sit & fold laundry as I wait (I kind of like the big lug, plus if I'm still awake when he gets home then I can have him check to see if the front door is locked. It's dark & spooky & walking by the front door at night {even on the inside of the house} kind of freaks me out). The only problem is, I don't really like t.v. these days. I haven't watched t.v. on a Wednesday night in like forever & we don't have cable. And, I really don't feel like flipping through all 4, sometimes 5 depending on the weather, channels, to find out that there's nothing I want to watch.

So, I flipped through Youtube instead.

I just want to watch one show right now. The only show I like.

The Office

So, here at Memo's, Thursday 9/8 central came early. This is what I'm filling my head with instead of thinking about all the lurkers in the shadows around my house just waiting for me to walk by a window.

Oh, how this show makes me laugh. Enjoy!

A Poem

Sometimes, usually when I'm way too emotional or feeling muy reflective or just so happy I'm high....... {bipolar? I don't think so, not yet anyway.} words, lines, even whole poems will just appear out of nowhere & land in my head. On the days I'm thinking clearly I either grab a pencil & paper & start writing or I try to memorize them, but then I always forget it an hour later. Hm, go figure.

Since Kiersten suggested I post this on my own blog, I thought I'd take her advice, after all she has an agent now so she totally knows what she's talking about.

This is a poem I wrote about 2 1/2 years ago when I was holding my sleeping 2 year old daughter on my lap. Her head was by my nose, luckily she had been bathed that week, & all I could smell was her. I loved it & never wanted to forget that moment or her smell.

Nostalgia

I hold you in my arms

your head tenderly close to mine

as I breathe in your youthful slumber smell

it takes me back to your days as a babe;

So innocent and pure

your sweet scent lightly dances on my senses

lingers in my mind

and is planted in my heart forever.

How innocent and pure,

cherished youthful slumber smell,

as you grow and it slowly fades away

it will stay with me forever......

This story STINKS!

I enjoy going on drives around the neighborhood/countryside. Sometimes I even invite Manly along & it can be romantic. In fact, it just so happens that we went on one of these late night (late, as in 8:00 p.m. because the grown ups in the M.E.M.O.S. household are party animals) romantic drives a week & a half ago.

It was after parent teacher conferences. You know, the thing you go to at your children's school where the teachers try their hardest to say something nice about your children & all they can come up with is: 'Oh, crap.' & their shoulders slump. Then, afterwards, you go on your "romantic drive" around the neighborhood/countryside because, a) you're not ready to see your offspring face to face & b) you're not finished with your conversation about how you are going to work harder to "fix them".

On this particular late night, romantic drive something happened which I've dreamed about happening ever since we moved to the country. I can now check it off my, Things I don't want to admit in public that I kind of want to happen before I die list. It happened. I still can't hardly believe it, but each time I walk out my back door I'm reminded of our little incident when I walk by our van...... & get a whiff.

We were sprayed.

By a........................






yep, a skunk.

Okay, sure we were in the van, but still, we were definitely sprayed! Also, we ran over him. That was a big OOPS & it was sad... wait, NO! The sad part was us getting sprayed.

Remember the countryside part of this story? They haven't invented streetlights where we live yet (I'm just thankful to have indoor plumbing - even though our country cottage only has 1 bathroom, but that's a different post for a different time). We didn't see the poor, stinky creature until his white strip reflected in our headlights a second before we felt the bump, bump. Although, we did have time to see his eyes pop out of his head as he realized what was going to happen & then his tail point straight up & poof. It was so obvious, he meant to do it.

And then the smell hit.

OH MAN! It was not pretty.

After we stopped laughi..... I mean crying & the initial shock had ended, we turned around & drove back to the scene of the crime, the crime being the spraying part because seriously we didn't mean to do it. BTW, doesn't the stinking skunk know about jaywalking - even though crosswalks haven't been invented out here yet either, & he's an animal so therefore is probably not totally literate? That's just an obvious.

Anyway,

When we got back to see if he was still among the living we were greeted by a scene similar to the one in the movie, A Christmas Story, where Ralphie's little brother, Randy, falls down in the snow & pathetically rolls from side to side in a futile attempt to stand up because he's so bundled up that he can't hardly move. That persistent skunk looked just like that, only his problem wasn't too many clothes & snow it was more like 2 broken legs.

But. He did it.

We sat there in the middle of the road for like 2 minutes just watching & waiting - it was intense. Also, Manly did try, a couple of times, to put him out of his misery by running over him for real. Who does that? It's one thing to 'accidentally' hit a skunk, but to intentionally run him over to kill him just because you feel bad for him - that's inhumane. Luckily for Pepe Lepue, I was there to save his life. Plus, I didn't want the smell to be worse.

By this point we were hacking & wheezing & choking as if we had been smoking for the last 50 years.

It was bad.

I have NEVER in my life smelled anything quite like it.

BAD!

Once he got up though, he just glared. I felt so insulted - the ingratitude. It was just like a stand off. We were sitting in our big, old, red mini-van looking at him as he stood off to the side just glaring back at us. It lasted for a whole minute. I started doubting who I was because his glare was intense, he was scary. And then, he hobbled away. He walked as fast as he could, dragging 2 legs behind him, into the yard of the people's house where all of this took place in front of. He was ticked off!

I'm just glad I don't live in that house.

The smell was there for the next week, I know because, unfortunately, I have to drive by it on my way to preschool.

The van still smells.

After we got home that night & had a funny story to tell the kids, instead of our original downer, I took it immediately to the gas station & got the expensive $8.00 wash, this deserved the works. That $8.00's meant getting the 'under' part of the van washed & a wax. I was kidding myself. After the wash, I had to run to Walmart for my daily fix, & I was hoping beyond hope that the fruity smell, which filled the car, was enough to do the trick. It wasn't. As I walked out the magical sliding doors of The Big Evil (aka, Walmart. That's what my clever friend Jaeme calls it.) The smell hit me like a ton of bricks - only this time there was a hint of strawberries to it.

We've been living with that smell for the last 10 days now. Luckily each day it gets fainter & fainter. But, still. I'm ready for it to be finished. Even today, I got the faintest whiff of evil-eye Lepue. I was just so grateful that my clothes & hair didn't absorb the smell, that would have been the real tragedy of this story.

So much for our romantic, late night drive.

It was worth it.

Thankful Thursday, the end

Friends Graphic Comments

Thank you to everyone for the kind words of support you gave me after my last post. You really don't suck! There are a lot of nice people out there, who I actually don't know, but who gave me a fake bloggy shoulder to cry on & now I'm a little freaked out. That's okay, because I really am feeling so much better about life. Time does heal all wounds - including the ones I make. It's true.

And really, good things can come out of it too. So, I wanted to copy Kristina P. & do a Thankful Thursday post today - especially since the day will be over in about 2 hours. What? Are you calling me a procrastinator? I'm totally not & someday I'll get back to telling you more about how I'm not.

Today, I am thankful for the opportunity I had this week to cry so hard (& ugly) for about 3 days that I ran out of pee. It was the best! I'll tell you why.

On Sunday, I woke up with a red, painful, ugly sty in my eyelid. An eye sty. I haven't had one of those since middle school when I experienced some of the joys of sharing cheap make up with many girls. The sty hurt. It was really red. Did I mention it was ugly? Anyway, in the midst of my blubbering & self-loathing I did still have the presence of mind to worry about the effect all of those salty tears would have on my eye sty. I mean nobody gets that depressed. I was certain that it was going to get plugged up even worse & would get an even uglier infection which would involve green puss & an eye patch.

I'm so thankful I was wrong. I think the salty tears washed the infection away & by Tuesday night my eye sty was gone. Thank you dear salty tears for the gift of healing powers you bestowed upon my eye.

I am also thankful that the hard crying made me so sick to my stomach that I couldn't eat for 2 days. I'm pretty sure my abs have some definition now. It's great to cry so hard that not only do you lose your appetite, but you feel like puking & don't even want to think about food. So crying got me back in my jeans - that is until I ate for like 4 people today. I was hungry! But I am truly grateful for the way my jeans weren't so freaking tight on me yesterday.

I'm also thankful that I got a sinus infection so that I had a "real" excuse to stay in bed, all day, for 2 days. Since my son broke my nose 5 years ago when he was 2, the sinus passages on the right side of my face don't drain or work or whatever it is that they do, properly, & I get a sinus infection at the first hint of a runny nose. It's happened at least once a year since then. So, since my nose was actually a faucet running at full speed this week means I got a lot of alone time in bed & at the computer & a big pile of used tissues on the floor. I hope someone is going to clean it up soon because it's starting to gross me out.

Which leads me to my sweet Manly & how grateful I am for him. He had pity on me, which translated into extra help around here (not to imply that he's not helpful, he is - but I got even more!). He felt so bad for me, which seriously never happens even though I try to get him to feel that way all the time, that he actually volunteered to get the kids ready for & put to bed. Without me. For 2 nights in a row. I'm starting to feel like an evil genius.

But the thing which I am most grateful for, as a result of my blubbering like a baby (not even a cute one) for the last 3 days, is that I got my goal of at least 10 comments on my last post. Someone Else pointed that out & put a whole new perspective on this for me. That made it totally worth it!

Sad face

(Our dog, Rocket. This is what he had to say when I told him what my friend Mary said about dogs in China.)

Have you ever made a big, HUGE mistake, which no matter how hard you try to remember the magic spells you learned from Harry Potter, you can't make disappear? It will never go away. A mistake, which your small, malnourished, stupid brain made your big, fat, stupid mouth say & hurt the feelings of those you love?

I have.

It sucks. (I'm too tired & down to even make a reference to Edward here.)

I haven't cried this hard or this long since my niece died 3 years ago. I feel like I've been slapped, kicked, knocked down, then kicked while I was down & then run over by the garbage truck.

In time, I hope I will be forgiven (including by myself).

*Don't worry, everyone around me is still alive & well. This probably sounds worse than it really is (who said I was a little dramatic?), but I just HATE messing up & making mistakes - especially when it hurts other's feelings.

So, I'm going to take Motherboard's advice & say what I'm grateful for. I'm sure it will help.

I am so grateful for:

1. A kind, patient, loving husband (btw, it wasn't him I messed up with)
2. My children
3. A best friend who understands me better than I understand myself (not her either)
4. A sister who is the epitome of Christlike behavior
5. A loving family which I was born into.
6. Jesus Christ who has given me the chance to repent & do better next time.
   

Memo's 2

Memo
To: Sidysue
Subject: What would Barbie say?

Do you remember the last memo I sent you? I told you that I didn't think it was very appropriate for a 4 year old to say, 'Holy Cwap'. I didn't mean you should replace it with, 'what the H-E-Double hockey sticks...' I don't think your Barbie's appreciate that kind of language. When 2 Barbie's are having a civilized conversation, it offends the one to have the other one ask her, "what the h-e-_ _ are you talking about!?" So, don't make her say it again. Okay?

Also, where did you hear that? Have you been reading my mind again, because I would never say that out loud.
Love, Mom


Memo
To: Epee
Subject: Free Advice

I thought I had a financial genius on my hands when you told me what you would do if you won $10,000.00. "Security" you said. Security? As in savings, bonds, gold - the sure fire investment? That's a pretty smart thing to do with your $ especially in today's economy..... What? Not that kind of security?

Oh.

An alarm system for your bed. Complete with a net hanging from the ceiling ready to drop on the next intruder, i.e. Hoodee. Booby traps? You would spend $10,000.00 in booby traps, sirens & alarms? Oh & a b.b. gun. Okay, well, never mind. That's not a good investment.

How about if you just put your toys up (out of Hoodee's reach) instead of leaving them in a cool, inviting, set up - ready for action - on your bed? I can't be there all the time to stop him from reeking havoc - in his own room. Have you seen the neighbors garage lately? Remember, you two share a room. I know you try to forget that little fact on a daily basis, but here's the real advice - accept it son & live in reality. It's more likely that you'll win the $10,000.00 before he'll quit destroying everything he comes in contact with. Hope that helps.

Love, Mom


Memo
To: The chicken who crossed the road
Subject: Forgive me

From the time I was a child I always heard about you, but I thought you were nothing more than a joke. A few weeks ago, when I had to come to a screeching halt to let you pass, I realized you ARE real. I'll be darned. Forgive this doubting Tom. Seeing is believing.

BTW - Why did you cross the road? You looked like you were in a big hurry as you were waddling so fast to get to the other side.

Sincerely,
A believer


Memo
To: Lundles
Subject: You're beautiful

I understand you could care less what your hair looks like - all of the time. Even though I don't get it, I was totally vain by the time I was your age. At the rate you're going you won't even be vain until you're like 16. I know I should be grateful, that just means more mirror time for me. Anyways, Dad thinks it's wrong for me to bribe you with money to let me do your hair. I see his point, but it was totally worth the $2.00 I spent last night. Your hair looked really cute...... & I could tell you secretly enjoyed it.

Just remember - taking bribes for anything else is illegal & morally wrong, so don't do it! It's only okay when I want your hair to look nice. Also, you're beautiful no matter what your hair looks like.

But let's go brush it now, just for fun, k?
Love, Mom


Memo
To: Hoodee
Subject: What I didn't tell you

When we were talking about voting last week, do you remember who you said you were voting for? Here's a recap:

Me: Hoodee, who are you voting for?
You: Becky.

Giggles erupt from around the dinner table.
You looked down, slightly embarrassed.

Me: I would vote for her too.
You: I Love Her.

What I didn't tell you is she's a married woman, son, & your mom's best friend. That's just weird. And, if I didn't love her too, I would totally be jealous right now, because you're only supposed to be in love with your Mom at age 4 - it's a good thing I'm not the jealous type.
Love, Mom


Memo
To: Rocket (our dog)
Subject: Clean reading material

The next time you decide to look at the ads, from the garbage can, please don't take the ones which are covered in spaghetti sauce & then drag them across the carpet to your bed. I'm really happy you have an interest in current events, but tomato sauce is really hard to get out of those tiny, little polyester fibers attached to the ground. Thanks for your cooperation. Also, I know a cute Chinese girl who occasionally enjoys dog for lunch. Just keep that in mind the next time you are tempted to look at a dirty magazine (as in covered in sauce).

Love, your Master


Memo:
To: All who wash dishes in the M.E.M.O. household (aka, Manly)
Subject: Veggie scrubber

You know the little scrubby brush that I keep under the sink? The one which I have marked as, "For Veggies Only!!!" (the 3 exclamation points are not an exaggeration) Let me make sure we are all clear on what that means. Veggies (short for vegetables) do not include plates, glasses, utensils, pots, pans, lids, crock pot, Tupperware, pitchers, skillets, sinks, counters or floors.

Thanks for the effort though. I love when you do the dishes. I will bask in the good work that you do. There is no A for effort here. You do a darn good job. You're not a clueless husband who tries to do a job & does it crappy....... (can you tell he's been reading over my shoulder.....)

Love, your loving & adoring wife


Memo
To: Self
Subject: Reminder

Remember to send Motherboard a big, fat, thank you. She deserves it. She has changed your life for the better by introducing you to Google Reader (my newest Internet romance). G.R., where have you been all my life? How did I ever blog without you? I love you. My heartfelt gratitude goes to Motherboard for setting us up.

Thanks,
Aunty Em

I took her to court

I will always love Facebook. It has a special place in my heart. It was my first true Internet romance. But. I've been cheating on it with my blog. It just gives me more vain attention than Facebook ever could.

Comments.

Although...

Facebook gives me esteem (no matter how false it may be) when that little # of friends reaches 100 & keeps going.(be quiet you. You who have 200, 300 or more, friends. I can hear you mocking my pathetic # compared to yours, but you don't know how lucky I am that real people are actually willing to publicly acknowledge that they know me.) I had no idea I even knew 100 people. But still, I can't pour out my soul on Facebook or rant & rave & scare people off like I have the power to do on M.E.M.O.S.

It's a double edged sword. The blog takes away little pieces of my self-worth whenever I look at those little itty bitty # of comments & think they could be so much bigger. I wish I could get comment implants. Then I would feel really good about myself.

Falsies are a good idea.

Cheating never is. It's morally wrong.

What Facebook has done for me is brought me back to my roots.
From my parents struggle as slaves to their epoch, heroic journey of heartache, struggle & eventually freedom. It's a story of love, hope.........sorry. Wrong story. Portland. My roots were in Portland. But I've lost them. They've been dug up & are withering away in the arid, desert climate of S.E. Idaho. Not that I'm complaining.

What I'm trying to say is, I've found friends from high school, college, church (even former Y.W. leaders) & it's shameful to say, cousins who I haven't spoken to or seen in years. I even started a group on Facebook. I'm cool like that. It has been so great to find these long lost souls.

My weird dreams are way less frequent too. In recent history I was having these recurring dreams where I would be wandering in the halls of my high school looking for my locker (that could have also been related to the amount of skipping I did & at times really couldn't remember where my locker was). Or walking around the halls of the church building that I grew up in.......well, I didn't grow up there because that would be weird. But it's the same building I went to for 18 years. In my last dream, which took place there, I was putting on my makeup in the bathroom across from the chapel & was wondering who all these crazy people were in MY bathroom. It was getting crowded & they were really getting on my nerves. Get out of my bathroom you weirdos!

I think I needed closure & a bigger bathroom. I just kind of left the old neighborhood one day & never came back. I know, that's a little dramatic (that's totally not like me). What happened was, I went off to college & came home for breaks. After a while I got married & simply lost touch with so many people -most everyone from the good ole' days.

Until now.

The modern miracle we know as Facebook has brought my roots back to life. They're getting watered again. It doesn't rain much in Idaho. But it's pouring buckets of old friends on Facebook.

So, I made a short story long to tell you that I recently got to see an old friend of mine. You know her as the littlest hillbilly over at, something or other about Poison. I know her by her real name, but I'll never tell you. HA!

We were in the same ward as youth, her Dad was my bishop, & then she went off to Ricks College. A year later I followed her & we were roomies. I saw her a time or two after she moved on & then I followed suit. Eventually we lost touch. But Facebook, darling Facebook, brought us back together again. Little did we know that she has relatives, whom she visits yearly, in my neck of the woods. I've lived here for 8 years & never even ran into her once at Walmart.

I thought my town was smaller than that.

She was here, visiting, last week & we were able to get together. It's been like 11 years since we've seen each other, I think I was preggers (tamn, I know) with Lundles. I got to meet her hubby & girlies & hear about her family.......but mostly talk about me. It was so exciting.

Then I took her to court...........to go trick or treating, because that's the 'it' place to go. What? Don't you? (losers) Oh yeah, it was Halloween day, at least I got a picture of myself & my friend. You didn't want to see any pics of my kids anyway because they were so freakin cute that they would've burned your eyeballs with their cuteness & then you would be blind. It's better this way.

I've been in touch with several more old friends through Facebook & this blog. They haven't been crazy enough to actually agree to see me in person, something about a legal protection order? But eventually we will all get together. I promise.

No, wait! Don't be scared.

I'm ready

Okay. I'm ready to talk about it. And then I'll be done.

I wasn't surprised. I was expecting this result. I'm not scared either, I have hope.

But I still don't like it.

1st a side note, which I guess is more of a top note, politics is a big part of my life. It always has been. Someday I want to be the campaign manager for my best friend, Becky, when she runs for president. When she wins then I'll be the evil BFF advisor & slip a recording of my voice under her pillow at night, repeating over & over what she should do & say as the 1st female Pres. of the USA. Mind control. I'm not above it.

I digress.

I say this because sometimes I will talk politics. I think about it. It concerns me. It's in my head. Since this blog is about what's in my head, I think it's appropriate. But laughter is another big part of my life. I like jokes. I love humor. I adore laughing. Religion, family & Oreo's are also a big part of my life.

My point is, I'm not going to ignore a subject because it may offend someone. If it's important (or trivial) enough to me then it may end up on my blog. And that's okay. But also know that I don't do it to offend. I'm not a mean person. Can't we all have different opinions & still be friends?

But I would like to let you know a little more about me. Who I am. Politically.

I'm not sure what political party I belong to anymore. It's not just because of 1 single person. It takes way more than 1 person to mess up a country. Of course, I'm sure you've all guessed by now, I'm a registered Republican. But I don't know if I am one anymore, this transition has been happening over the last few years.

I'm definitely not a Democrat. (Like that wasn't obvious)

I don't know if I could be considered an Independent or even a Constitutionalist, or any of the other crazy 3rd parties. I'm definitely NOT a Green Party girl - I'll just tell you that right now.

I wish there was a Conservative party because that's what I am. I'm 1st a Conservative. Fiscally, socially, environmentally. Everthinglly. Straight across the board. Also, I make decisions with my head, but it doesn't mean I'm heartless. I think much if not most of the Republican party has left me on conservative issues.

It's also probably not hard to guess who I voted for. Did you read my Scary Story last week? But, it doesn't mean I was excited about McCain either. I was very disappointed in who the Republicans picked as their candidate, I was no supporter. I did vote for him though, because I'm one of those who really believed he was the lesser of two evils. And this country isn't forward enough for a 3rd party crazy president. Give it time. McCain definitely was no fiscal conservative. I don't think he was a real Republican.

I did like "Crazy" Palin....... a lot. I was excited about her. She was the closest one to my conservative values......... she got my vote.

My reaction down below wasn't because the guy I voted for lost. It's because of where I believe we are headed in this country - and where we've been heading for the last 30 years. There is no question that we are going to "Change" as a nation. Starting with the constitution. But I don't believe it's for the better.

What I do believe is (& I say this so you know where I stand, not to try to change your mind because I know that won't happen. Just like mine won't be changed as these are my core beliefs.)

The "Liberal" party is well on it's way to communism. There are certain rights they don't want us to have, including life & speech.

Obama is a Socialist. Of course he's not going to come out & admit that & neither is anyone who wants him to win. But from everything he's said as to how he's going to 'change' the economy, those are socialist values.

The Federal government has gotten WAY TOO BIG. It's out of control & in our lives & pockets way too much. That's not the purpose of the gov. I don't think that helping the poor or giving to those in need should be federally mandated. I think we have a personal, moral responsibility to do it, but the government has no business telling us to.

I believe the Democrat party wants people to be dependent on them.

We are in BIG economic trouble. Dark days are ahead. We did not vote in the right person to take care of it. Granted, I don't think the other one was the right one to take care of this specific issue either. But this one does not have the experience or the beliefs (from what he's said) to do it "correctly". And by correctly I mean, without infringing on our constitutional rights.

I believe we all have the right to keep & bear arms.

I don't think this is the right time to back down on national defense. Are you kidding me?! We need it now more than ever......especially if the terrorists are supporting Obama - I'm just saying....

I believe we should drill for oil in our own country & take care of ourselves. Stop the restrictions. We have the resources. Use them! We will have more restrictions under the new administration. Do we really want to be dependent on foreign oil?

I believe the "bail out" is wrong. I think it will breed more bad economic behavior & decisions. Let businesses fail. Let people lose their homes if they can't afford them. I know, I'm the devil. I just believe in living with the consequences of the choices you make. After the market crashes people will have to figure out where they went wrong & work hard to fix it. Then we'll be a better, stronger country & people & industries will be more responsible. BTW, I'll be the 1st one to help any neighbor in need. Because it's the right thing to do, not because the government tells me to.

I do believe if Obama's daughter makes a "mistake" she should have to pay for it. Killing is wrong - whether born or unborn. Have the baby & then give it up for adoption. I know plenty of people who would be happy to take it.

I don't believe the government should be telling companies how much to pay their employees or make them provide health insurance.

I don't think the government should be socializing medicine. Do you want to die? JK....not really. But, seriously keep it all private. We will all do better that way.

I believe this country is moving away from the core values of our forefathers. I'm passionate about the revolution & the founding fathers & the constitution. I don't believe the New Guy is.

Last night's speech? I wasn't moved. He is a great speaker, no doubt about it. But did you listen to what he was saying? He's already backtracking from what he's "promised".

I think the President of the USA should be an honest, forthcoming, trustworthy individual.

I have more to say, but for your sake I won't.

I have soup to make for the PTA - it's parent/teacher conferences. I need all the emotional strength I have left for that.

I hope we can still be friends.

P.S. I welcome all comments, whether left, right, right or wrong. Just be nice.

My reaction

I still can't talk about it........

The BIG day

Oh my heck! I feel like today is my birthday, wedding, Christmas & like I'm going into labor all shoved together in one crazy package. Like a big, hot, stuffed, delicious burrito, which will eventually leave you with heartburn. I'm really happy & excited yet totally nervous & nauseous at the same time.

It's THE day. Election day. Tuesday, November 4th, 2008.

Also, I have mutual tonight. I always feel a little sick on Tuesdays.


The 1st thing that's making me really happy & excited though, is your commenting skills. I'm so proud of all of you. I would like to thank all of my fabulous readers who worked so hard to get me into the double digits on my last post. Some bloggers have a gift for getting comments. The comments simply come to them like magic (I don't think it has anything to do with their wit or writing skills). Not me. I have to work, as in begging, pleading, coercing, guilt-tripping, really hard for each comment I get.

You exceeded my goal of 10 & got me to 23. It doesn't matter if 8 of those comments were from the same person & 2 of them were from me. The # is there & that's all I needed to feel good about myself. I feel like 23 bucks right now. And all of my wildest dreams have come true. Except for the one where my backside is smaller & not so squishy.

I just hope you guys didn't set yourselves up for failure. I'm going to be expecting at least double digits from now on. No pressure. But, good luck.

The other exciting thing is ...... drum roll please.......I got to vote today. Alone!

Where MY vote counts!

This is the 1st time in 10 years that that has happened. I have always had kids hanging off me, &/or messing/stealing with/from my purse (they learned at a young age that I can't multi-task, like hold a purse & vote at the same time) or bothering other voters by running around in circles screaming 'Look at me! Look at me! Look at me!' They totally get that from their dad. Show off.

In the last presidential election, I showed up with a car seat hanging from each arm, overflowing with 10 month old babies & all of the accessories that go along with them, plus a double stuffed diaper bag. Today I was alone. I could set my purse down - worry free. It was quiet, except for when I started yelling, 'look at me. look at me, look at me.' (I wasn't as loud as my kids though. I only had lower case 'l's & periods.) Unlike those around me, I voted in peace.

I love preschool.

I also love these cute ladies. The pollsters. How cool.

They are all neighbors of mine & they run the voting booths. I totally want to join their group. I asked a couple of years ago if I could, but I'm still waiting to hear back. Hmmmm.

When I mentioned it to them, again & told them that I was free for the next 2 hours & wanted to hang out, they looked at me like this.....

Okay. Maybe Not. I'll just go home & blog.

Well, I've done my part. It's out of my hands now. As far as I'm concerned the polls are closed.

I'm going to take a picture to prove that I voted, but 1st I need to make sure no one is looking & that weird guy is gone.....

Here it is, my proof of voting today. Hands off! It's mine. I worked hard for this sticker & I am going to wear it with pride all day long.

Can you guess what I'm going to do tonight?

After Mutual.

I'll give you a hint:

Chillax. Relax. Chill out. Hang out.

Except not at the pharmacy in Walmart. At home. On the sofa. In front of the T.V.

Watching. Waiting. Anticipating. Crying. Eating. Crying..........

HAPPY VOTING!!!

I'm hungry

I woke up this morning blogging in my head. It was going to be a killer post, I think it's one that would have won at least 10 comments, which is my goal for the month. If I could get at least 10 comments to a single post, that would make all my wildest dreams come true, either that or if I vote for Pedro. I know. I'm shooting high. Dream on you say. Is that a challenge? I think it is. I'm so going to do it.....

Anyway.

I don't remember how it ended. I don't think it did. I got distracted by trying to get myself & my children ready for church, while fasting on an empty stomach. I don't think straight under those circumstances. My brain is all over the place right now, but I've got a lot of good things to say (I just know it), things that you want to know. Maybe some things you could answer. So, I'm going to share, at random, my thoughts, which are more like questions that I can't answer.

***

Why didn't I take any pictures of my kids on Halloween? I remembered the camera this time, I just didn't think to use it. I'm totally kicking myself right now.

Ouch!

Now the rest of the cyber world will never get to see Lundles as a scary secretary (wearing my clothes!), or Epee as the smiliest grim reaper ever, or Hoodee as a terrified ninja, or Sidysue as.......as......I don't know what because I forgot to take pictures, so how am I supposed to remember?

Actually, I don't know what she was because she changed her clothes so many times during the day that I lost track. I remember she started out as Sleeping Beauty, then she was a pink poodle for a while, that turned into Snow White, but the one that stuck, which means the outfit she had on when it was time to leave, was some funky combination of whatever dress-ups she found in her box.

***

Why does my chest hurt & I feel like I can't breath when I think about election day, Tuesday, November 4th? I think I'm going to puke.

***


Why didn't I have a good hair day today? Why does my hair turn out okay on some days & others it just looks like poo? What makes the difference if I'm spending the same amount of time & product on it? FYI, 2 mins is a sufficient amount of time to spend on my hair. Have you noticed how it keeps growing shorter?

***
I'm so glad we didn't buy costumes this year. I would've totally been like the evil stage mother making the kids, & by kids I mean Sidysue, look how I wanted them/her to look.

Telling the kids to come up with their own costumes was the smartest thing Manly has said since he told me I was perfect.

***
Why is it such a big deal to me that someone I'm closely related to is voting for someone who I think is the devil.... for President of the USA? I know it shouldn't matter, after all that's one of the many things I love about this country - the freedom to vote, but it's killing me. Maybe I should be in charge of voting this year. I would feel a lot better about that.

***
I wonder if Manly knows about my secret crush on Rush Limbaugh (don't worry, he won't find out this way. He would have to actually read my blog. Like that would happen.) I can't get enough of that guy (Rush)- he's awesome. *Swoon. I totally cried when I found out about his addiction to pain killers, 5 years ago. I felt like my world had been turned upside down. It took me days before I could even talk about it without breaking into the ugly cry. That could have also been due to the fact that I was pregnant with twins.

***
Welcome November. I love the beginning of each month. It's always full of hope & anticipation & we have $...... at the beginning, unlike the middle & end. I really am happy to welcome in November, especially if it keeps on being 68-70 degrees like yesterday (remember, I'm in Idaho - brrrrr). I'll take it. Yesterday was awesome, even Friday night was pretty good for trick or treating. Today is rainy, windy & cold so I'm just going to keep pretending it's yesterday.

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Why does the government stick its nose in places where it doesn't belong? Like time management. Daylight savings is stupid. I'm glad we're off it now because it's stupid. But then why am I so tired today even though I got an extra hour of sleep? Or did I get an extra hour? It's a conspiracy.

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Why don't people I'm related to leave me comments? Don't they understand how my self esteem is wrapped up in that little # at the bottom of each post? It gives me my self worth. PLEASE!.......I mean, why?

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I'm curious if people are even still reading this. Maybe they'll leave me a comment to 1)let me know, 2)build-up my self-esteem &/or 3)both.

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It's kind of freaking me out that my 4 year old, Hoodee, just asked me if he can have some candy for his evil baby. Duh. No. Candy is only for good, righteous babies.

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This Halloween was the best one ever. Taking the kids to a neighborhood they don't know & setting them loose while Manly & I sat in my sis-in-laws warm house eating homemade chili & drinking hot cocoa while the kids worked for our dessert. What could be better than that?

***
I don't believe in child labor laws.

I'm finished. If you have any answers, ideas or just want me to feel good about myself......you know what to do.

Mormon Vernacular

Yes, I'm a Mormon or LDS (and I LOVE it!). AKA,
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

In case you're not familiar with my church, I wanted to make a list, or reference post to refer back to, of what certain phrases or words mean & what some acronyms stand for. Since it's such a big part of my life & I talk about church quite often it might help you understand me better on my blog. Or not. My husband is still working on that one.

I will continually update this post as I think of it.

Am I a christian? Yes, notice the name Jesus Christ in the name of this church. Christ is the head of our church & I believe he lives. He is the Savior & Redeemer for the world.

LDS - Latter Day Saint (the shortened name for the long one above)

B.O.M. - Book of Mormon. Another testament of Jesus Christ. This is a book of scripture which tells the story of an ancient group of people who lived on the American continents about 600 bc - 400 ad & of Jesus Christ's time with them. I highly recommend this book. You don't have to be interested in this church to read it either. It's really interesting.

Ward - The geographical area in which we live to know which church building to go to. For example: If there are 5,000 Mormons living in my town, we can't all go to the same building because we wouldn't fit. So the church would divide those 5,000 people up into about 6 or 7 groups, according to where they live, & then assign them which church building & therefore which ward they would go to. Did I make that worse?

Bishop - Every ward has a Bishop & each Bishop has 2 counselors. A Bishop is responsible for the welfare & spiritual needs of the ward members. He's also there to make sure the ward is running properly. And to give candy to the children who run into his office begging for candy (mine would never do that.) He's kind of like the father of the ward. His counselors help him do all this.

Stake - A bigger geographical area. Each stake in the church, is made up of usually 7-9 wards.

Stake President - All of the Bishops in each stake receive guidance from the S.P. He is responsible for the welfare & spiritual needs of the members of his stake.

Branch - A group that meets together which is smaller than a ward size.

Spanish Branch - No. We don't believe in segregation. It's for members of the church who only speak Spanish & want to go to church where they understand the language. We have a lot of non-English speaking people in my town. My family has been asked to go to the Spanish Branch in our stake, to help out where needed (I don't speak Spanish, but Manly does).

Branch President - The same thing as a Bishop, but for a branch.

District - Smaller than a stake. It's made up of several branches.

District President - The same as Stake President, but for a district.

Fast Sunday / to fast - It's typically the 1st Sunday of each month. Where we go for 2 meals or 24 hours without food or water. It's a common practice among many religions.

Y.W. - Young Women. 12-18 year old girls in each ward. I serve in the Y.W. in my ward. I'm the Beehive leader.

• Beehives - the 12-13 year old girls
• Mia Maids - the 14-15 year old girls
• Laurels - the 16-17 year old girls

Mutual - The weekly Tuesday night activity for each class in the Y.W.

R.S. - Relief Society

- Female members of the church ages 18+. There's a R.S. class on Sundays & usually a monthly activity during the week.

V.T. - Visiting Teachers - Each sister (what we refer to each other as, ie: Sister M.E.M.O.S. it's so nice to see you today. How is Brother M. holding up?) in the ward has 2 other sisters assigned to visit her on a monthly basis - her visiting teachers. Most every woman in the church has been asked to be a visiting teacher. The purpose is to visit one another & to make sure she's doing all right (temporally, spiritually & so on). It builds friendships too. It's been a real blessing in my life.

F.H.E. - Family Home Evening. It's typically every Monday night, we stay home & have a gospel oriented lesson & usually a fun activity. Also, a yummy treat, which is probably the most important part of FHE for my kids.

Hope this helps.