I don’t put much faith in horoscopes.  But I do like to read them for fun.  While entering some giveaways from my good friends, Stacey at Super Mommy to the Rescue, and Kim at Mission Mommy, I saw that Twittascope had updated on my twtter account.  It says “You are aware of the assumptions that are behind the current “.  Okay, so that always gets me curious.  I had to read more.   The full horoscope reads:

“You are aware of the assumptions that are behind the current veneer of social etiquette and you aren’t sure that you can meet the expectations. You can sense the pressure, even if others are going out of their way to be nice to you. Don’t give up today; just do the best you can and then move on to what is next. You may be surprised that the same people who were being negative earlier turn out to be your best allies later on.”

Today, I had an appointment with my chiropractor.  As a little background, I have known him all my life.  He started out working with his father.  My mother worked for his father for over 40 years, and I worked for them for a couple of years.  He is a great doctor and always tries to give helpful hints to improve your lifestyle.  Today, he hit me up with the diet spill.  He and his wife tried Jenny Craig earlier this year and lost 30 lbs within the first couple of months.  I tell ya, he looks great.  So he spent a good 20 minutes talking to me about it, in his very subtle way, and suggesting that it is something that I should look into.  If I keep on, I’m going to be 40 lbs. heavier this time next year.  Sigh.  Don’t I know it.   He put  me on the Spinalator and left the room.  I laid there for a little bit, then all of a sudden, tears came to my eyes.  Of all things.  He’s right, I know it.  I hate diets, and I hate dieting alone.  I could really use to lose anywhere from 30-60 lbs.  60 would be ideal, but I’d settle for 30.

When I got home, I checked out the diet systems he mentioned.  They look like they could work for me, but I just can’t manage it, financially, that is.  I would love to.  But that’s a lot of money to come up with in a chunk of change.  Now, granted, I didn’t delve too deep and look at all the plans offered.  I’m sure there is something there that I haven’t seen yet that I could manage.  But it was still very depressing.  My mother called and we talked about all we had going on this month and we were looking forward to maybe having a quiet November.  Ha.  If only.  I told her about what the doctor said today, and her answer was, “well, just put it aside and maybe think about it in December, maybe after Christmas.”

Aha….  see how the horoscope works?  It’s a little freaky.

As for the chiropractor, he really is my best ally.  I already know that.  The chiropractic treatments have worked (even though he tells me “I’m still a mess”).  It has definitely alleviated the bursitis in my hips, and decreased the pain in my low back.  The key is keeping the appointments on a regular basis.

Current Mood: Happy

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Today, I’ve been greeting new members over at Twitter Mamas.  I was hopping around visiting the new members blogs, and I spied a few posts that I think you should check out.

Megan  at Meg’s a Mommy, Christmas Cards Christmas Tradition.  She is in the Christmas mood and planning/making her Christmas cards for this year.  She also talks about passing on her Christmas traditions to little L.

Deborah at Preschool Professional, Halloween Safety for Preschoolers.  A great idea for teaching lights on/lights off Halloween safety to preschoolers.

Nica at Single Moma Diaries, Can of Worms.  Nica shares a moment of tackling the job of cleaning her son’s room.

Mommy in the Making at Operation Motherhood, Stage 1 of Operation Mommyhood Complete.   Congratulations and good luck on the next step.

Alli at Alli ‘n Son, Banana Oat Cookies.  Looking for a yummy cookie receipe?  Alli has one on her blog, and some cute kid photos too.

Stephanie at GeeZees Custom Canvas Art, Painting Kitchen Cabinets? Stephanie and her husband starts a weekend project.  I’m eager to see how the completed project is going to turn out.  It should be fabulous!

I hope you are having a great weekend, and that you are rested and prepared for whatever comes in the upcoming week.

Current Mood: Happy

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Today, I lost my best friend.  I haven’t known my friend for that long, a little over a year maybe, but a close, dear friend nonetheless.  Someone I will cherish forever, but  never be close to again.  I did not lose this friend to death, which might be easier to handle, but I lost my friend through a series of mistakes on both our parts.  A “comedy of errors” if you will.  I don’t see any hope of reclaiming the relationship, and it’s sad, very sad.  I know my friend is hurting too, and I’m so very sorry.  If I could ease the pain, I would.  Good luck to you and best wishes, my friend, my heart.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, I had a follow-up doctor’s appointment this morning.  I drove an hour and a half to get there, they took the vitals (temp of 99.2) and drew blood.  Then I promptly fell asleep on the table.  The doctor comes in, not for the first time finding me curled up, asleep on the table, but wants to know what is going on.  So I just flat out said, “I’m tired, so very tired”.  I sleep from 8 pm at night until 6 am in the morning, and I want to sleep all day.  It makes me grumpy and irritable, it makes me not want to do anything, and it seems as if the more sleep I get, the more I want.  I can’t take a short nap because I can’t seem to come out of it and shake it off.  My arms and legs feel heavy and I can’t move.  So I answered all the questions…  do you snore?  do you wake up frequently with sore throats?  do you wake up gagging or choking?  do you wake up with a dry mouth?  do you kick or thrash your legs?  do you have vivid dreams?  do you feel like you constantly have to move your legs to get comfortable?  do you feel like your skin on your legs is crawling?  do you have to fight sleep?  does it come on suddenly?  do you feel like you are in a daze?  do you fall asleep while reading?  do you fall asleep while watching tv?  do you get sleep when driving long distances?  do you fall asleep as a passenger on long trips?    Those are only some of the questions and I pretty much answered yes to all of them, except if I snored.  I don’t know.  I don’t have anybody to tell me if I snore.  The doctor is mumbling …hypersomnia, paralytic sleep, narcolepsy, it’s not a side effect to the Lyrica because you aren’t taking enough of it.  Depression?  maybe, but not likely.  You say you are sleeping all night and that you are sleeping good?  Yes, yes.  If I take the ambien, I don’t wake up during the night.  The doctor is shaking his head saying “this is not normal and something is terribly wrong.”  Yes, I want to scream, I’ve lost my best friend.  Oh, much better now.  Ahem.  Now, where was I?  Oh yes, the doctor says I’m going to start with a sleep study and that may tell me something.  What’s really weird about all this is that several months ago, and for years this had been happening, but I couldn’t sleep at all at night.  I would stay awake until 2 or 3 am because I couldn’t get my brain to shut down.  The doctor gave me ambien and it works but I still sometimes have to force myself to go lay down at night.  Weird.

Oh, and as a side note, I’m hungry.  I’m hungry all the time, and when I eat, I eat huge platefuls and I eat it all, and I’m still not satisfied.  I’m not having extreme weight gain, but I have gained quite a bit of weight since the beginning of the year, probably close to 14 pounds, maybe?  That is disturbing to me.  I’m also having another symptom, and I really don’t know how to describe it.  It’s not dizziness, but it’s like I’m having a spell (no, not a magic spell), but something passes through the front part of my skull, above my eyes.  At first, these “spells” were coming in very short bursts, but now they are occurring in longer waves.  He didn’t make any real comments about these symptoms, but he was steadily taking notes.

I go back to the see the doctor in 2 weeks and I’ve got to have a sleep study done between now and then.   So what’s the problem you may ask?  My schedule is the problem.   Between now and October 24th, my daughter has a pediatrician appointment, a pre-op hospital appointment, and a dental surgery.  My mama is having a colonoscopy, which for anyone else is a normal procedure, but for her, is not.  My daughter and I are going to have at least five chiropractic appointments.  I have a parent-teacher meeting, three after school field trips, and I have to come up with a 50’s costume for Leah by October 15.   That does not include the Wings & Wheels Car show (my son will be participating), the Mossy Creek Festival, and the Georgia National Fair.  Am I complaining?  Yes, I am.  I know, there’s nothing that can be done about it, but I’m complaining anyway.  I want to sleep, I want to sleep for a week, a month, please just let me sleep.

I’m complaining and I’m sad, but at the same time, I’m thankful.  The good news is that I have connected with another mom locally.  Her and her husband are the parents of one of the little boys in Leah’s class.   They also have a 4 year old daughter.  They moved here from Las Vegas just before school started.  I’m thankful because it appears we have become fast friends.  Her kids aren’t special needs, they are just ordinary every day kids, and they love Leah already, and she loves them in return.  We went over to their house on Saturday, only planning on staying for about an hour or so, and wound up staying almost 3 hours, I think.  And we talked on the phone for an hour and a half the other night.  They are a quirky family, but very friendly and very kind. and I have enjoyed getting to know them.

Okay, I’m getting drowsy now, I’m falling asleep, oh noooooooooo

Current Mood: Sad

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This is my favorite time of year.  Just a few weeks after school starts and a routine has set in.  The weather is cooling down, and the humidity is decreasing too.  I love stepping out the door and feeling that clip of fresh, crispness in the air.  It’s such a good feeling to draw in a deep breath and feel some of the cobwebs shake loose.

For me, this seems to be the time for renewal, instead of January 1st.  Along with school starting, our wardrobe changes, and we start preparing for the series of holiday events — Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  Plans of fall decorating form in my head.  Bronze and gold colors invade my sense of atmosphere to bring into my home.

It’s time to open the windows and let the fresh breeze flow through my home, swirling and curling, searching the nooks and crannies.  Spreading the crisp fall air everywhere.

Current Mood: Happy

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It is my privilege to dedicate my post today to honor Michael James Stewart, 42 years old, and living in New York in 2001.  He was born in Ireland and came to the States about 20 years earlier.  A dedicated rugby player/coach, working hard to provide for his wife and two sons, and finally graduating from Pepperdine University with an M.B.A.  He rose in the ranks of the banking industry, starting out as an entry-level position at the Bank of Scotland in New York City, and then working as an account executive for Carr Futures on the 92nd floor of 1 World Trade Center.  No one heard from Mr. Stewart the day he was killed in the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers.  He was working for Carr Futures on the 93rd floor, believed to be the point of impact of the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, on the North Tower at 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001.

His wife of 16 years, Diana, and his two sons, Eamon and Francisco, honored him by standing with 200 others in reading the names of those who died on that day during the 5 year annniversary memorial in New York.  The 2 sons ended their reading by showing a picture of their dad in his rugby uniform.  Diana believes “The notion of reading names we realized was very important, a sensitive issue and very honorable”. [Read more of the article from wcbstv.com.]

Remembrances by friends

My memories of you are still vivid—as a young first year joining the rugby squad. You were the captain and a leader by example both on and off the pitch. I had the highest regard for you.  Duncan Beckwith on 2009-06-02

I … will remember your husband walking down Lincoln Street in a suit with briefcase in hand with a smile. -Kira

Michael was incredibly passionate about everything he did. He was an accomplished and insightful banker, a rabid rugby player and, I have no doubt, a warm and loving father. As the anniversary of that terrible day approaches, I smile at the memory of Michael’s quick wit and ready smile, and grieve at the loss of a good friend.  ~Chris

He was a gentleman, smart and had a brilliant sense of humour. ~Michael

Michael and I attended Belfast High together. We took A level English and History together and I have fond memories of lively debates in the Sixth Form Centre.  ~Sara

I loved talking to him about poetry and literature. He was truly fun to be around and a great person. I have no doubt he was a great Dad. Michael thank you for always being there as a friend. You are truly missed. ~Kathy

I never even knew that he was a rugby star, or even an athlete. But he was certainly a great team player in the bank, and a real friend to everyone there. ~Peter

Mike was a great captain for our rugby team. He was an inspirational player in that he achieved so much on the field becasue of his mental and physical toughness. ~Jerry

I had the privilege of playing for the Old Blue Rugby club when Mike was our captain. I remember him as a true leader on and off the field, and as a friend who was simply fun to be around. ~Ken

I knew him as a tremendous rugby player then but I only really got to know him when we worked together in a labouring job for the local council in the summer of 1979. I remember he was great company and kept us all entertained with stories from his rugby matches at university. ~John

what a legacy you left! You were an incredible person that was loved and respected by many. You would be surprised how many lives you touched in your 42 years. It was an honor to have known you an considered you part of the family. ~Mark and Roxanne

He was once asked what he would like to be rememembered most as.  This man who was a successful banker and rugby player replied,  ”being a dad”.  It can’t get any simpler than that.

New York Times Tribute

Legacy.com Tribute

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Montclair 9/11 Memorial

September 11th is a new historical event for a country that is hundreds of years old, and outstrips such events as the burning of Atlanta, or the San Francisco fire and earthquake, or even Hurricane Katrina.

That day struck the spirit of America, that spirit which now charges on, witout flinching, to show the world we cannot be brought to our knees.

Today, it is my privilege to remember, no, it is my duty, as an American citizen to honor… Michael James Stewart.  Please join me, along with Project 2,996 in remembering the victims of 9/11.

Follow on Facebook and Twitter hashtag project2996 and project 2,996.

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I hope you all have had a great weekend.  I enjoyed my 3 day weekend, although I didn’t do much.  I stayed with my 83 year old aunt so that my 72 year old mother could go and play, errr, visit with her friends.  I just mostly chilled out all weekend.  I tried out my verizon wireless broadband access to see how that worked.  That worked out pretty good.  The connection wasn’t as slow as I thought it would be, but I was careful with how much time I spent on the internet.  I wasn’t sure how that affected the MB allowance in my plan.

On Saturday, I sat in the chair and just dozed off and on all day long.  I just absolutely had no energy.  Of course, Leah had plenty of energy for both me and my aunt.  She kept her pretty much entertained.  I overheard a conversation between the two of them…

AUNT:  My finger hurts where I had my surgery

5yo:  Right there?

AUNT:  Yeah.  Your little fingers feel good rubbing it, so sweet and light.

AUNT:  My fingers are so old, and brown, and ugly looking.

5yo:  That’s okay.  You’re my aunt, I love you just the way you are.

AUNT:  That’s the sweetest thing anybody has ever said to me.

Hmmm.  Maybe the 5 year old is an “old soul” at that.

Current Mood: Happy

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I really hate going to meetings, seriously, I dread it with every fiber of my being.  I hate making small talk and meeting  strangers.  I always have that awkward end of conversation thing going on, where I don’t know whether to just walk away, or say, it’s been lovely talking to you.  My theory is…  I was born breech, so I’m always getting everything backwards.  LOL.

But I have to make myself do it, especially to be an advocate for my child.

Tonight, there was a meeting for the parents of children receiving “services” in the public school system in our county.  I took Leah with me, which made my dread even worse, because I cannot get her to shush, because she is only 5, and we don’t do this kind of thing very often.  But I saw a mini-me when we were walking up to the door.  She was telling me she didn’t want to go and she wasn’t going to like it, and even asked to stay in the car.  When taking that step up onto the porch, she visibly and audibly gulped and said “here goes”.  I told her it was going to be fine, and she just had to sit still and be quiet for me to attend the meeting.

It was quite embarrassing when I walked in.  The coordinator asked me if I was the one that emailed with the child from R. Elementary School.  I drew a blank… I couldn’t believe it.  I couldn’t remember the name of the school she goes  to.  She has been to 4 schools since she was 3 (she will be 6 in a few weeks), and I’m constantly getting them all mixed up.  And, of course, Leah was no help.  She just said I go to “Kindergarten”.

There were about 7 parents there, plus the autism teacher, and the parent coordinator.  Most of the children had autism, speech delays, there was 1 with Cerebral Palsey and 1 with Down’s.  Leah was the only one with a rare genetic disorder.  All of the children were ages from pre-k to middle school.  I don’t think there were any there that are in high school yet.  Each mom was asked to tell their most difficult challenge and give a tip for the other parents.  Most everybody agreed, other people was their challenge, and the tip was just to breathe, and take it day by day.  All of them pretty much had a history of trying to do it all on their own, without seeking any support from others.

This was the first meeting of the 2nd year of the parent partnership, but I really didn’t feel that there were any real friendships formed from the parents that were around last year.  That didn’t leave me with quite a warm and fuzzy feeling.  But I’m always oversensitive to that type of thing.  If I don’t click with someone right away,  I’m kindof a “snob”… or so I’m told.  I know it appears that way, but I am extremely and painfully shy and, awkward, as I mentioned before.  One thing that has always been a barrier for me is that I’ve always been so much older than everyone else.

One thing the coordinator mentioned that I was pleased to hear was that her oldest child is 10 years old, she’s been through many, many IEPs, many experts, and she still learned something new from the guest speakers they had last year.  A couple other things that were mentioned…  1) the local civitan club is interested in providing some activities for not only the children, but the siblings too; 2) Monkey Joe’s will continue to be free year round from 6-8 pm every 3rd Tuesday of the month, just for the children; 3) smaller groups could be formed for more specific needs; and 4) there won’t be that many restrictions by the county, “the sky is the limit”.  All in all, I thought it was a very interesting meeting, but next time… I gotta get a babysitter.

I did connect with one of the moms out in the parking lot.  I had remarked that when I moved to this county, that I had researched the surrounding counties and their public school systems, especially regarding their developmental programs.  Some counties, there were no programs at all, and the other larger county nearby…  I refuse to live there.  But I kept hearing that this county is the best in the state, it’s the place to be for the types of services that Leah requires.  This other mother commended me for my diligence and doing the research and being an advocate for my child.  I finally found somebody that I “clicked” with.  Turns out, she had her son when she was 35.  That caught my interest.  We exchanged phone numbers and email addresses, and I “gasp” invited her to go to breakfast one morning.  I don’t know where I got the courage.  LOL.

I was already musing on the drive over that the rules in the school are so strict about giving birthday invitations to the teacher’s for the students.  It makes it really difficult to include those little ones when I don’t know anybody.  I wish there was something like a little Kindergarten parent social so that those mothers could introduce themselves to each other, especially in a setting where we didn’t have children hanging around our coattails, or rushing in and out the door, or attending a school event.  Some of these parents we are going to know all the way up through the high school years, and it would be nice to start getting to know each other sooner.

As I was driving home, my brain was whirling in a tizzy…  okay, parent social.  That sounds good.  But all those mothers tonight at that meeting just sounded so mentally tired, and feeling like it’s them against the world.  They needed a “pamper” party.  I could invite them all over to my house, and each could bring a little pamper gift, even if they only got it at the $1 store, and then we could draw for prizes (everybody would get one).   Then it could grow into having a foot “spa” event, or a hand “spa” event, or a “facial”.  We could start the introductions with telling one story about your child, good, bad, a traumatic surgery experirence, something recent, something past, and it would be timed, say only a couple minutes.  Then, that’s it, no more “special needs child” talk.  The rest of the time should be spent talking about things we like to do, or where we are from, or places we like to go.  A mental break from the worry and stress of the daily caregiving.  I think it could work…  sigh…. I’ll never get any sleep now.  I don’t have any intentions of doing this, but I’m just liable to open my big mouth and say, “hey, what about a…?”  GRRRR.  I’ve already volunteered to be on the parent partnership council.  What was I thinking?

I have to admit that I am looking forward to next month’s meeting.  Maybe it will be easier for me.

Current Mood: Happy

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I am looking for a few good partners (preferably other moms) to compete with in Brain Age.  I have had the Nintendo DS game for a while, and I started it with a Brain Age of 66.  Then I didn’t use it because I just did not feel like fighting my 5 year old for it.  But I’ve kinda gotten her out of the habit of playing Nintendo a lot, so I want to try to get back into doing it.  I’m not into serious competition, just want a few buddies to have friendly comparisons with.  I recently started it back again with a Brain Age of 60.  I haven’t been faithfully “training” every day, but I want to and I thought a few comrades would be fun.  It might keep me motivated.  I feel like my brain has gotten really stale with all the technology to add and subtract and think for me, so I want to get my brain recharged again.  Anyone else game?

Current Mood: Happy

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I cannot tell a joke to save my life.  It doesn’t run in my family, although both my parents are very social, but jokes, no.  My mama, she loves to tell jokes and tell funny stories, but most of the time she is giggling so hard, it takes her forever to tell the funny story.  And, then, of course, her giggling is so infectious, that you can’t help but laugh, no matter if the story is really funny or not.  Me, I think I’m going to keep my day job.

I have been posting a lot of somber things on my blogs lately, and I decided that I needed to tell something funny.  It’s a pattern in my life, actually.  I quit watching comedy shows on TV, and don’t even like watching comedic movies anymore, well, except for maybe romantic comedies.  I did go to see Paul Blart:  Mall Cop at the theater, and I did enjoy it.

Here are two funny things that happened to me and Mama, and the irony is that they both happened at the same place, just different times.  The first was about a year or so ago, I went with  my elderly aunt and Mama to Chili’s restaurant.  Now, you have to understand first that my mother and her sisters are true bred southern girls.  Mama, she’s got the bling goin’ on, with the matching jewelry and accessories, her hair is just perfect, and she is always dressed to a “T”.  You think I’m jokin’ about the bling?  Mama went to the ladies’ room just before we got ready to leave Chili’s, and she came back saying that she just saw Elvis finishing a meal at the bar.  I did not think she was serious.  I thought she was just funnin’ us because my 5 year old was with us.  But she was dead serious (even though she was trying not to crack up), and lo and behold, here he was coming towards our table.  Elvis, in his white, rhinestone jumpsuit, sunglasses, black hair.   My jaw hit the floor.  Of course, he was an impersonator, and a good one, too.  Mama had stopped to admire his “bling”, and he admired her “bling”.  There was a regular ol’ bling fest going on.  She told him she was there with her sister, her daughter, and her granddaughter, and he told us that he just had to come over and see if the rest of the family was just as pretty as she was.  Of course, we are <smirk>, and he wasn’t disappointed…  lol.  After he left, I was finally able to scrape my jaw up off the floor.  Now, those of you who KNOW my mother, you better scrape your jaw off the floor too, you’ll let the flies in.  True story.

The other funny thing happened just recently when she and I were having lunch at the same restaurant.  It was after one of my recent doctor’s appointments, and we were sneaking in a fast lunch before I had to go back to work.  We usually share the chicken fingers meal.  I eat the corn on the cob and half the chicken, with a side salad, and she eats the other half of the chicken with the fries.  It tides us both over until dinner time, and it’s a cheap lunch for both of us since we split the cost of the meal.  Anyway, It wasn’t really what happened to us that was so funny, it was what we SAW…  I can only attempt to demonstrate…

Can you believe it?   A waitress was walking around with a fork in her back pocket.  The damage that fork could do just boggles the mind.  You would think that one of the patrons or the manager or a co-worker would have said something to her?  Well, I guess we could have, but it was more entertaining watching her walk around with this fork stuck in her back pocket.  It wasn’t like it was one that had been picked up off the floor, then she had her hands full and stuck it in her pocket on the way to the kitchen.  No, she walked around the entire time we were there with that fork stuck in her back pocket.  You know how you walk around all day with a piece of broccoli stuck between your teeth? And nobody tells ya?  That’s what that must have felt like when she realized what she had done.  IF she hadn’t already destroyed a piece of upholstery with it.  OR worse, you don’t think she gave it to a customer?

It’s true that we don’t know what we’ve got until we lose it, but it’s also true that we don’t know what we’ve been missing until it arrives.
© 2004 Cool Funny Quotes

So, that’s about as funny as I can get.  Here are a few REAL funny stand-up comedians that I enjoy and I thought I would share them with you.

Southern Comedian and Farmer - Jerry Carroll

And, then, of course, I was raised listenin’ to Jerry Clower.

A Coon Huntin’ Story

One of my favorite comedians is Brett Butler.

I want to hear your funny story this week, care to share?

Current Mood: Playful

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Current Mood: Happy

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This has been the weirdest week.  I had a burst of energy at the end of the previous week through last weekend and into the first of this week.  I got a lot of cleaning done in my house.  I really have had no energy for the past several months to do anything except what I absolutely had to do—like grocery shopping and laundry.  I started going for morning walks, 3/4 mile each day, and even managing 1 mile on two consecutive days.  I even managed to spend more quality time with Leah Rose, working with her on the laptop, or reading books.  I was really excited about my new found energy, getting on a good schedule now that school had started.   But by the time Thursday came along, I was worn out.  I don’t know what happened.  I barely made it the 3/4 mile around the block.

Then I had a dentist appointment Thursday morning.  The appointment itself went well, it was for a filling.  Something that I haven’t had to have done in years, and I think it was just to redo an old one.  The dentist told me that this particular tooth seemed to be very weak and he didn’t know why.  He also told me that if it didn’t hold, we might have to put a crown on it.  My mind kind of reeled at that.  I’m already looking at thousands of dollars in medical bills I’m paying this year for dental surgery for my daughter, and for the physical exam I had a few weeks ago, not only for the fibromyalgia, but for the breathing problems I was having.  I’m also starting my chiropractic treatment again next Monday, and that is going to be more out of pocket medical expenses.  Sorry, don’t mean to bore you with the details of my financial woes, but here goes the rest of it…  dead beat dad owes probably $40,000 in court-ordered child support for a special needs child (I haven’t seen a penny from him), and ex-husband hasn’t paid court-ordered alimony in several months.  As a result, I’m unable to pay some of my credit card bills, thus I have been receiving a regimen of credit card bill collector robocalls, starting at 8:00 in the morning, and ending somewhere about 8:00 or 8:30 in the evening.

Okay, so enough financial misery, and back to the dentist appointment.  I’m in a funk over the possible crown, the whole side of my face is numb, and I’m drooling.  I’ve got a hole in my lip when I sip my Dr. Pepper.  I needed a bib, for goodness sake!  The dentist said not to eat for an hour, so I waited for an hour, and I really didn’t feel like eating.  Which is scary, because I always feel like eating,… something,… anything,… anytime.  I had no energy, was dizzy, and nauseated, and didn’t feel like I could close my mouth properly.  Did I mention that when I was putting my sandals on that morning that my foot slipped, and I twisted my ankle?  Luckily I was standing in the doorway of the closet, and was able to catch myself, but I hit my hand pretty hard.  My Blackberry went flying, but no damage, thank goodness…  errr, rather, no “new” damage.. lol.  I tried eating a very soft biscuit, but it was very hard to eat.  It felt like my teeth weren’t fitting together well with my mouth closed.  I’ve eaten nothing but soft foods for 3 days…  green beans, mashed potatoes, rice, soft biscuits.  It is getting really, really old.

Today, I am not nauseous or dizzy, but my tooth still feels weird.  I still don’t want to eat, and I got up at 7:30 this morning.  I never get out of the bed on Saturday before 10 or 11:00.  Good grief.  I’m feeling way out of whack.  My daughter has her cleaning appointment at the dentist on Monday, so if my tooth is still feeling weird, I may see if I can talk to the dentist about it while we are there.

I haven’t seen another adult human being, except the bus driver, the para-pro, and the lawn guy in almost a week.  I’m glued to the Wordscraper app in facebook  (Anyone up for a friendly game of Scrabble?)

Last weekend I had a disagreement with a friend and we said our piece to each other, then forgave each other, or so I thought.  I haven’t heard from this friend in a week.  It is a little disturbing because I don’t know if we are speaking now or not.  Then I read my horoscope for today.  I don’t put a lot of faith in horoscopes, but I read them for fun.  Sometimes… well, sometimes, they have a hint of truth.

Sometimes things we don’t want to deal with must be handled, and this is one of those days, Aries. It will probably start off with procrastination and attempts to talk yourself out of working this problem out, but eventually, you will find yourself in the midst of things. It is probably a relationship centered argument, and it does not have a very hopeful conclusion. If you are in a committed relationship, you may find yourself negotiating or discussing property matters, and there are other variants in this equation, but most of you will argue with a partner.   Daily Horoscope

You may feel as if you must stand up to a formidable person today, but actually it may be you who is the tough cookie. You might not even realize if you offend someone’s sensibilities because you are so determined to stick to your agenda and accomplish your goals. Nevertheless, you could be more effective if you soften your stance and take other people’s feelings into consideration, too.  Twittascope

Um, I’m difficult to get along with, I have moral standards that are on the prudish side, and I procrastinate — BIG TIME, and I have no concept of a financial budget.  I think my relationship with my friend may be over.  I think I’m going to be the “tough cookie” and just leave it be, no softness or relenting here.

One other thing on my mind this week is connecting with other families or caregivers of children with rare genetic disorders, not really the children on the autism spectrum, or ADHD/ADD, but with different issues.  Don’t get me wrong, the autistic mom friends I’ve made online have been great.  They are wonderful moms, but I need some interaction with those other moms in a different arena.  I’ll let you know how that goes.

Also, next week, I’m going to try something new.  I’m going to the open meeting of the MOMS club at the Methodist church.  This will be something out of my comfort zone.  I don’t do well in “group” settings.  Wish me luck.

I’ve got some product reviews I’m working on, and some paid surveys that I’m going to check out.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, I made a dress for Leah.  I’ve just got to add the ruffle, and it will be done.  I’m also going to start making some more of my antique angel jewelry pins this week too.

Thanks for sticking with my ramblin’ Saturday thoughts.  Hope you have a good weekend, and a great week.

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This is the updated technorati list from the Mom Bloggers Club Bloggin Moms With Technorati Authority group.

Updated July 13th
http://www.dominiquegoh.com
http://www.golfersmom.blogspot.com
http://jeanstockdale.typepad.com
http://annettepiperjewellery.blogspot.com/
http://momcooks.net
http://brainfoggles.com
http://conniesview.com
http://mychroniclife.com
http://mickeyfanatic.com
http://table4five.net
http://mainfo.blogspot.com/

July18
http://www.atticgirl.blogspot.com
http://artsnark.blogspot.com
http://table4five.net
http://momreviews.net
http://momcooks.net
http://www.myleahrose.com/blog/
http://www.ageorgiaangel.com/blog/

July 24
www.whenwelisten.blogspot.com
http://poshmomdiary.com/

http://www.hereallalong.blogspot.com
http://dominiquegoh.com/

Aug 1

http://www.anutinanutshell.com
http://www.thetamom.com/
http://childhood101.blogspot.com/
http://annettepiperjewellery.blogspot.com/2009/07/some-housekeeping…
http://lusciousdeals.blogspot.com

Aug 7

www.amymusings.com
http://childhood101.blogspot.com/2009/08/linking-love.html
http://www.thetamom.com/2009/07/mbc-technorati.html

Aug 14

http://iamharriet.blogspot.com
http://sitedandblogged.com
http://thecontesthub.com
http://mommynotguilty.blogspot.com
http://www.amymusings.com
http://ahensnest.blogspot.com/2009/08/mbc-technorati-link-love.html
www.ashbarnett.blogspot.com
http://www.thedivinemissmommy.com
http://www.crazysuburbanmom.com/
http://mommynotguilty.blogspot.com

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Wednesday Edition

My Pretty Yellowbird

Click here to view other participants hosted by Kdubs @ Wordless Wednesday and 5 Minutes for Mom.

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Technorati Tags: Memes, Photography, wednesday meme, Wednesday Memes, wednesday's meme, Wordless Wednesday

I haven’t written much in my blog lately because I’ve been busy with other time hogs… like facebook (playing UNO, Wordscraper, and Farmtown/Farmville), and twitter, and The Twitter Mamas.  I have also had another issue going on…  I’ve been having trouble breathing.  I mentioned it to my doctor and he did all the routine tests again that he did last year.  I’m fine, no problems, everything is the same…  but, the recommendation was to get some rest, exercise, and watch my diet.  Okay, I’m a convicted Dr. Pepperaholic, so that probably won’t change.  But I did take some action.  School started on the 4th of August, so I am just now getting into a routine of walking around the block.  I started on the 14th, then skipped the weekend and today I have completed my 1st 5 consecutive days of walking.  I don’t know that I will do it over the weekend because of my 5 year old, but we’ll see.  Anyway, I thought I would do a video log this morning and share a little something with you.  I really hope you enjoy it.

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Technorati Tags: fitness, health, vlog, walk

I’m launching a new website that showcases my poetry…  wanna take a sneak peak?

http://ga-angel-poet.blogspot.com/

Here’s a tip…  subscribe through the feedburner link and you’ll receive my poems in your email as I post them.

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I have been chosen as “Mama of the Week” on The Twitter Mamas.  I was so thrilled to receive the email from the group founder, Tiffany, when she told me I was going to be the first featured “Mama”.  Here are my answers to the questions she sent to me.

# How would you describe yourself?

Here are my vitals –

47 year old Arie
Cherry cola hair color covering almost a full head of long, gray hair
Bifocal wearing, slightly overweight, non-exercising, Dr Pepperaholic & chocolate lover
Georgia born, Southern bred (I can’t cook a lick, but I wannabe a homemaker)
Barefoot, country girl livin’ a simple, decent life
Quiet, conservative, shy, modest
Creative, Poet, Wannabe photographer and Writer
Twice divorced (former military wife), currently single, but don’t want to live alone forever
Christian raised in a very strict religious home, but currently not a regular church goer
Internet surfer, blogger, Facebook/Twitter & Paint Shop Pro & Blackberry addict
Somewhat of a hermit, but will venture out in short bursts
Only child in a very large extended family (22 aunts & uncles from both sides)
Dreamer of becoming self-employed
Avid reader of books

# Are you a Mama/Grandmama?

I am a Mama, but not a Grandmama. I’m not sure that I ever will be a Grandmama <sigh>.  I have friends younger than me who are Grandma’s, and I listen to them rant and rave about their grandkids, but only for a short time <smile>.  In reality, I’m old enough to be a Grandma, but don’t want to be called a Grandma…  thus the cherry cola hair color.

# How many children/grandchildren do you have?

I have a 21 year old son, named Ted.  He just bought his first home, and has all kinds of vehicles, from 2 wheels to 4 wheels, to sporty to show car to recreational.  He works full-time as an aircraft mechanic.  My mother says he is going to be 40, single, and rich as sin, and she’s probably going to be right.  He is a handsome young man, with a quirky sense of humor, and with a huge amount of common sense.  We haven’t been seeing as much of each other of the past several years as I would like to, but I’m hoping to change that.  Oh, and did I mention he is single?  <wink, wink>

I have a 5 year old daughter, named Leah Rose.  She is my “oops” when I was 40 years old.  I always said when I was pregnant that Ted was my quiet one, and she is going to be my wild child.  Boy, was I ever right.  She talks non-stop and is preparing to audition to be the next generation energizer bunny.  I also said when I was pregnant that I was going to have a tiny, delicate flower of a child.  It’s funny how moms can know these things when they are pregnant.  Leah was born with a rare genetic disorder called Freeman Sheldon Syndrome (FSS) and with a midline cleft in the soft palate.  A characteristic of the syndrome is a failure to thrive.  At 5 years old, she is about 41 inches tall, but only weighs 32 lbs.  She’s tiny in weight, but her personality is large in size.  She is definitely our social butterfly.

# Do you have a blog or website? If so, tell us about it!

I have several blogs, but I’ll only list 2 of them.

My first  website, Georgia Angel ~A Southern Aries Woman, was started in May 2007.  I started it because I saw other blogs on the internet and thought I would try it.  The biggest draw for me was to design the layout.  I have kept the same layout since 2007, adding only a few touches for the different seasons. I probably will keep it the same way for a very long time because it is definitely “me”.  I also started the blog as a way of keeping a journal, as a release for things going on in my life.  The problem with that is, I don’t easily open up about some things in my life.  So if you are looking for a constant stream of indepth soul searching by me, it probably won’t happen.  I blog a lot about my family, my photographs, my occasional poetry, and some of my creative projects, with occasional articles of my deeper thoughts.  I have recently started doing a little PR writing reviews and entering giveaways.

My other blog is dedicated to my daughter and is called My Leah Rose ~Princess in Training.  I created it in an effort to keep a detailed record of her progress and growth.  There are very few resources for the syndrome she has, so I’m also hoping that I can connect with other mothers/families/caregivers of not only just special needs children, but those dealing with FSS.

I have companion websites for my blogs at Georgia Angel and My Leah RoseThese are pretty much static pages that just have general information about us.

Here is a list of my other websites…

Angel in the Garden – memorial website dedicated to family members

Heart of an Angel – website displaying my web design & graphics efforts

Ivey Designs & Services – This is one of the first web sites I designed and I no longer keep it up.  The only reason why I keep it is because it has a lot of the crafts and things I have done.  I’ve moved some of it over to my Heart of an Angel site, and eventually I’m going to move it all over to one f my other sites.

# Do you work out of the house?

I used to work in an office, but I don’t anymore.  I work full-time as an administrative assistant for a technology services company.  The company I work for is a Fortune 500 company with over 40,000 employees worldwide.  I started working for them in 1996 in Northwest Florida, supporting a small group of analysts and engineers.  Today, I am supporting the same group of employees (with minimal tunover), but from my home in Georgia.  I have the unique situation of being able to telecommute.  When I discovered I was pregnant, and being single, I approached my employer about working from home since most of my interaction was via email and web applications.  When my daughter was diagnosed, we discussed my productivity with her therapy and specialist schedule and it was determined that it was to the advantage of all that I should work from home.  So far it’s working.  I don’t have a desire to advance in my career field, I’m happy for the most part with my job, and the employees I support are pleasant to work with.

# How do you spend your free time?

Free time…  is that the time considered not working to earn a full-time paycheck? Or free time when I’m sitting still?   I very rarely sit still, but I do enjoy spending time with my family and friends.  I don’t entertain much and I’m not much of a party-goer.  I’m a home body that likes to read and watch movies.  But I always have some type of a project going…  crocheting & sewing for charity groups, cross stitch and other needlework crafts, beading and jewelry design, and making Christmas tree top angels.  As I mentioned before, I’m addicted to the internet, facebook, twitter and blogging.  I love to read other mom blogs, and I try to be a faithful commenter on blogs that I visit.  I also love to network through social media.  It’s all very time consuming and facebook alone is a huge “time hog” as I’ve heard it mentioned before.  I also spend a lot of time learning web design and graphics with Frontpage and Paint Shop Pro.  Before I discovered blogging, that was my favorite thing to do, but it’s a lonely hobby.  At least with blogging I can interact with others, even though it’s not face to face.

My current charity project is volunteering with a group called Operation Helping Hand –  American Angels.  I crochet 12″ red, white and blue squares, and with other ladies’ squares, I assemble “heroghans“.  These heroghans are then sent to families who have lost military service members.  I also assist the group leader with building web pages to honor those service members.   There are ongoing projects, such as baby projects, and care packages, and the Christmas Tree project.  I’ve been with the group for several years and I think it is a very worthy cause.

I love to read books and I don’t always make time to do so.  I enjoy reading fiction, mysteries and thrillers, and science fiction.  My favorite author is Anne McCaffrey.

# Is there a fictional character that you identify with? If so, who and why?

I wasn’t sure how to answer this question, so I asked a friend how he identified me as a fictional character.  An idea immediately came to him, but he was hesitant to reveal his choice in the fear that it might offend me.  But I coerced him into telling me, and his reply was Rose, the old lady played by Katherine Hepburn in The African Queen.

I can identify with Rose, first dealing with the death of her brother, and having to travel via boat through a war to reach her destination.  I feel like that every day.  My immediate world includes health issues of my child, my health issues, my mother’s  health issues, and my aunt’s health issues.  Everyone warns me of the perils that awaits me ahead for the path I have chosen, but I am strong and steadfast in pursuing my goal.

# What is your most memorable moment with your child(ren)>

The most memorable moment I have had with my children was just recently.  My 21 year old son is a good boy, and calling him a “boy” isn’t right, but you know what I mean.  He has a good heart and he knows right from wrong.  Recently, he has been experimenting with hair styles that aren’t really the norm.  Now, first I must tell you that my son is 6′3″ and weighs 125 pounds.  My daughter is barely 3 feet tall.  The only thing I can do is share a photograph with you that tells you what our most memorable moment has been.

WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR HAIR?

# Which is the best vacation you’ve ever had?

I’ve had two vacations recently that I’ve enjoyed the most and it was hard to pick just one.  I posted on my blog about it here.  My family and I used to travel up to the Smokey Mountains all the time.  Before my daddy died, my parents made several trips just to see the leaves change in the fall.  I actually came back from this trip sick with allergies and asthma, and my friend got pneumonia.  It wasn’t cold, but I guess the change in the atmosphere was just enough to send us over the edge.  It took us a while to recover, but all in all, it was a really great trip.

# Which is your most cherished childhood memory?

My mother is a very talented artist.  She can paint just about anything she wants to.  I can paint by number, that’s about it.  I don’t have an “eye” for painting details such as eyes and shadows, and perspective.  I know this isn’t much of a childhood memory, but I wasn’t allowed to do very much when I was growing up, such as girl scouts, or going to the movies or concerts with friends.  I don’t remember how old I was, but I think I was in Middle school, and Mama enrolled me in an art & drawing class for the summer.  I remember having the best time drawing in chalk and pencil, but I think the one I enjoyed most was in pen & ink.  I actually still have some of those drawings.  I’ll have to dig them out and post about them one day.  I truly wish I had continued teaching myself to draw.  I do remember sitting on my bed for hours, drawing the objects in my room, on sheet after sheet.

# If given a complete freedom to start afresh, what profession would you choose and why?

If given the choice to start afresh, I would choose being a writer.  I have been told more than once that I have a talent for writing and I should do more with it.  My daddy always told me that with all my experiences I have been through, I could write a book.  Now you must remember, that my daddy does NOT know all the things that I have experienced <giggle>, but some of my friends who DO know some of my tales that I have shared with them, they say the same thing.  That I need to write a book.  I’ve toyed with the idea of writing an anonymous blog one day, just to put it all down, but I just can’t bring myself to that edge to cross over and just do it.  I would love to write a short story or a novel of just a regular girl growing up in the south.

I have published several of my poems on my blog.  I have ideas come to me all the time, but I just don’t take the time to sit down and write them out as they come to me.  I should, but I don’t.  I used to write all the time when I was much younger.  I wish I had kept all those things, but I can’t find them.  I don’t even think my parents knew about the things that I used to write.

# What is your idea of fun? If given a choice to skip work for a day, how would you spend the entire day?

My idea of fun…

Amusement Parks,  especially roller coasters
Ice Hockey games
People watching at major league baseball games
Exploring historical areas (I would love to visit Arlington Cemetery)
Attending muscle car shows
Attending live wraslin’events

# Which is your favorite time of the day, are you a morning person or a night person?

My most favorite time of the day is at night.  I am my most creatiive when it is cool, no phones ringing, no 5 year old chatter…  just quiet.  I come up with my best work anywhere between midnight and 4 am.  I am definitely NOT a morning person.  Don’t speak to me until after 10:00 am and only after you have confirmed that I’ve have consumed one Dr. Pepper, either by inhaling or intravenously.  My daughter has yet to learn this important aspect of her Mama.

# Which is your most favorite place in this earth?

The beach in the moonlight.

As I wander on the beach
In the sun’s fading light
My mind refreshes
And my senses delight.

I stop to gaze
On the horizon afar
And try to reach out
For the first bright star.

I close my eyes
to feel the breeze
Stirring my hair
And feeling at ease.

I dig my toes
In the sand deep
Where the days warmth
Begins to seep.

My ears turn to hear
Waves rolling on shore
And rolling out again
My cares to be no more.

I find a quiet place
To watch for the moon
And settle in to listen
To the ocean’s unceasing tune.

Settling over the waves
Is the moon light ray
Sending away my cares
To a watery grave.

I can now return
To my home and rest
In blissful slumber
And feel ever so blessed.

© Karen  ~ Georgia Angel 4/24/07

# If you were stranded on a lonely beach, what are the five things that you would want to survive?

Blackberry
Laptop
WiFi
Dr Pepper
Toilet Paper

Not necessarily in that order, but on second thought, maybe in that order.

Please add anything more about yourself you’d like to share!

******* Southern Belle *******

Always a bit mysterious
Witty and charming
They swoon and then faint when a Daddy Long-Legs spider comes within 25 feet of them
Never appears ruffled or stressed
Always calls her father “Daddy”, no matter how old she is
Graceful, elegant and charming
Kind, considerate and a Lady, through and through
Never loud, conspicuous or forward; a lady above all else
Always well groomed
Always a Princess
Would never dream of doing something today that she could think about tomorrow

******* ARIES *******

Blunt and to the point
Leaders of the pack
Bold, aggressive and courageous
Do not lack energy or vitality
Independent
May be construed as arrogant and domineering
Will have the last word
Strength is initiative, courage and determination
Impulsive
Passion and anger are a part of everyday life
Leads with the head
Does not respond well to threats and criticism
Seeks success and respect
Maintains high standards for self

My Favorite Quote:

I hope you have enjoyed getting to know me better.  I’m looking forward to meeting you too.

Visit twitter mamas

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Technorati Tags: Mama of the Week, The Twitter Mamas

Yesterday, I tweeted about my dinner that I was cooking in the crockpot.

#whatsfordinner >Roast in crock pot with potatoes & carrots, & field peas. I love how good the house smells, Maybe biscuits or cornbread.  http://twitter.com/ageorgiaangel/status/2933599514

As a result of my tweet, which also feeds into my facebook wall, I had 4 “virtual” guests… 1 who is a twitter follower, and 3 others who are facebook friends/followers.  For my virtual dinner guests, this is for you.  Not to rub your nose in my ever so excellent cooking, but to share with you “virtually” a meal.  I wanted you to know that I was wishing I was sharing this meal with you in reality, and getting to know you better.  By the way, I’m not really an excellent cook.  I’m mediocre.  I don’t enjoy cooking for just me, however, I do enjoy cooking for friends and family.  I did have one “real” friend over for dinner, and I was told the roast beef was pretty good and the vegetables were tender.  I did opt for Grands butter biscuits instead of cornbread.  I think I have finally found the secret to cooking a good roast…  smother it in beef broth and cook on low for at least 7 hours.  The field peas were frozen peas I found in the grocer freezer and I added a slice of bacon, then simmered in a small crock pot on low for about 7 hours too.

Just to show you that I really meant I was wishing my “virtual” guests were  here, I took a picture…

I really did set the table to take these pictures  :)

And, this is how good the meal was.

I cleaned my plate, and I never do that.  YUMMMEEEE.

So, to my “virtual” dinner guests, I hope you have enjoyed your “virtual” meal.

Current Mood: Happy

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Technorati Tags: Cooking, virtual guests

Due to the economy, everyone is becoming more conscious of savings and deals for their purchases.  I have a habit of shopping only at one store, just for the convenience.  At the same time, I need to be careful of turning my nose up at reviewing savings, because I may be missing out on a deal that would be beneficial to me.  Now is the time for me to start changing my habits.  When I am surfing the internet, I should be browsing for coupons.  For example, if I shopped carefully using drugstore.com coupon codes, I could be saving on purchasing name brand products that I use regularly, by utilitzing coupons, free shipping, and discounts for being a new customer.  It never hurts to save money when there is a deal offered.

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Technorati Tags: Coupons, Savings

Kristen at Hands, House and Heart Full is having a Girlie Bows Etsy Shop Giveaway on her blog this week, ending at 9:59 pm Eastern on Monday, August 10, 2009.  Kristen’s little Princess chose the cutest Minnie Mouse Disney Vacation or Birthday Pillowcase Halter Dress, and Kristen has posted a review of the dress on her giveaway.  She appears to be very pleased with the quality and the durability of the dress, so I thought I would enter her giveaway.

One of the requirements to enter is to blog about the giveaway and earn 5 entries, so I’m blogging about the item that I chose.  To earn 1 entry, I visited the etsy shop and Misty, the owner, has some of the most delightful little dresses I’ve ever seen.  My 5 year old daughter, Leah Rose, loves wearing dresses…  she wants dresses that are graceful and beautiful (I have no idea where she got that from), but these dresses are right up her alley.  I chose the Pink with Chocolate Brown Polka Dot Pillowcase Halter Dress, Size 5.  Leah is a “pink” girl and she also loves polka dots.  If you look at the bottom of the dress in the picture, you can see that is monogrammed with “Princess”.  That is just too adorable.

Kristen is offering extra entries to her giveaway for referrals.  I can earn 2 extra entries if a new reader comments on her post that they are now following and that they were referred by me (Karen ~Georgia Angel).  Or, I can earn an extra entry if a reader enters the giveaway without following, leaving a comment saying that “Karen ~Georgia Angel, referred me”.

Thank you for visiting my blog today, and I hope you stop by Kristen’s blog and browse her giveaways.  She also has a review and giveway from The Boy’s Store (ends 8/10), and a gift valued up to $74.99 from the CSN store (ends 8/4).  Hmm, I might have to go back and check out the CSN giveaway.

Good luck to you, if you enter, and don’t forget to leave a comment that I referred you, if you do enter.

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Technorati Tags: Giveaway Entry

If you follow me on Twitter, then you have probably seen my “Now Following” or “Following” tweets.  I thought I would post my list here on my blog so that others not on twitter could check out some great blogs.

Here is a glossary of terms for those of you not familiar with the twitter language…

RT = Retweet
FB = Facebook
#fb = twitter hashtag for facebook

RT @spiritjump Become a FB fan of Spirit Jump http://www.facebook.com/spiritjump http://www.spiritjump.org/

RT @bekjents Join the FAN PAGE! on Facebook, http://tinyurl.com/nckkdm http://www.falkenmedia.com/

I am a fan of @bcharmed01 on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/kl5sxv http://bugsandsnails.blogspot.com/

I am a fan of @girlgetstrong2 on Facebookhttp://tinyurl.com/kw3xzw http://www.girlgetstrong.com/

I am a fan of @HilLesha on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/6v7zcm http://welcometothemotherhood.blogspot.com/

I am a fan of @247moms on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/247moms?ref=s http://www.mombloggersclub.com/

I am a fan of @mombloggersclub on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/ldm3qk http://supermommytotherescue.com/

I am a fan of @a49erfangirl ‘Super Mommy to the Rescue’ on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/n59nfu

I am a fan of ChristianTwitters @christiantweet on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/lzuqvb http://www.christiantwitters.com/

I am a fan of Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation @asriveroflifeon Facebook http://tinyurl.com/ld2mgv http://www.andreriveroflife.org/

I am a fan of @SweetWordsBaby on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/lc7dnt http://www.sweetwords.etsy.com/

I am a fan of @mamapedia http://tinyurl.com/kkxcky on Facebook. http://www.mamapedia.com/

I am a fan of @peasandbananas http://tinyurl.com/lyf8m6 on Facebook http://www.peasandbananas.com/

I am a fan of 5 Minutes for Special Needs @5minutesformom http://tinyurl.com/m32htw http://www.5 minutesformom.com/

I am a fan of 5 Minutes for Mom @5minutesformom http://tinyurl.com/l64jda http://www.5minutesformom.com/

Now following @HelloNorthGA and #fb fan page http://tinyurl.com/nsolj6 http://www.hellonorthgeorgia.com/

Now following @GeorgiaAquarium and #fb fan page http://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaAquarium http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/

Now following @BabyZone and #fb fan page http://www.facebook.com/pages/BabyZonecom/37965191009 http://www.babyzone.com/

Now following @Kaboosedotcom and #fb fan page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kaboosecom/73038717681 http://www.kaboose.com/

Now following @JackieMacD and #fb fan page http://bit.ly/37B51W http://www.thesilverwhining.com/

Become a fan on Facebook of my blog Georgia Angel ~A Southern Aries Woman http://tinyurl.com/GAangel

Following @BigLittleBrain and #fb Fan Page http://bit.ly/nhufs http://www.biglittlebrain.com/

Following @3PsinaPod on @networkedblogs FB app http://bit.ly/YxgxR http://www.3psinapod.com/

Following @kwidrick on @networkedblogs FB apphttp://bit.ly/3bMjqe http://sillytatertot.blogspot.com/

Following @ToDoInDFW and #fb Fan Pagehttp://tinyurl.com/n33uyt http://to-doindfw.blogspot.com/

Following @Lissarankin and #fb Fan Page http://bit.ly/2tdTnV http://www.owningpink.com/

Following @Kidoons and #fb Fan Page http://bit.ly/q6o1B http://www.kidsfuncanada.com/

Following @HilLesha on #fb fan page http://tinyurl.com/kqh7nsand on @networkedblogs #fb app http://tinyurl.com/m6sbly http://welcometothemotherhood.blogspot.com/

Following @MomCentral and on #fb Fan Page http://www.facebook.com/momcentral http://www.momcentral.com/

Following @debthaxton on @networkedblogs #fb Apphttp://bit.ly/1lI9B http://www.websavymom.com/

Following @CarissaRogers on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/mhaw53 and @networked blogs FB App http://tinyurl.com/mtzuxm http://goodncrazy.com/

Following @GraceInMargins on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/kn69he and on @networkedblogs #FB App http://tinyurl.com/mk67nb http://nk-boysenblog.blogspot.com/

Following @KariewithaK on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/kjo2ow http://onefishtwofishfivefish.blogspot.com/

Following @showmethemom on @networked blogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/nnhgzo http://www.showmethemom.com/

Following @wishuponahero on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/nh9cbh http://www.wishuponahero.com/

Following @dailyessentials on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/kpgfuf http://dailyessentialsanddeals.blogspot.com/

Following @scrappinmichele on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/nbaa4v and @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/nj4bkc http://scrapsofmygeeklife.com/

Following @SITSGirls on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/mj4dla http://www.thesitsgirls.com/

Following Favorite Blogger @a49erfangirl on #fb Fan page http://tinyurl.com/ncb9×2 and on @networkedblogs fb App http://tinyurl.com/n6uzcx http://supermommytotherescue.com/

Following talented story teller @shellytucker on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/mjewgz http://thiseclecticlife.com/shellytucker/

Following @DebMomOf3 on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/kltbfp http://www.momof3girls.net/

Now following @ChildrensLink and on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/krnerm http://www.childrenslink.ca/

Now following @techmama on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/mkqgop and @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/mnxkjh http://www.techmamas.com/

Following @ChristianPoetry on #fb Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/lufcfo Blog http://christianpoetryholliswank.blogspot.com/ Poetry website http://holliswank.com/

The following tweets are bloggers that I started following through Blog Hop ‘09.  This isn’t a finished list because I haven’t finished blog hopping yet.

Now following Musings of a Housewife @dcrmom & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/m37jlt #bloghop09 http://www.musingsofahousewife.com/

Now Following PENSIEVE @BlogHop #bloghop09 http://www.pensieve.me/blog-hop-09/

Now following @lisaboyd & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/lnhpvg #bloghop09 http://simplyhis.org/

Now following @pittspilotswife #bloghop09 http://www.thepilotswife.org/

Now following @give_me_a_latte, we are JAW-JUH neighbors! #bloghop09 http://lattesandlife.com/

Now following @eatathomecooks, looking forward to crockpot ideas, #bloghop09 http://eatathomecooks.com/

Now following @Jenny86753oh9 & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/pdl7cn #bloghop09 http://86753oh9.com/

Now following @annmariedetav & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/lagop5 #bloghop09 http://www.annmariedetavernier.blogspot.com/

Now following @oohamanda, <another Georgia neighbor> & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/kmp2xx #bloghop09 http://ohamanda.com/?page_id=20

Now following @tasradawson #bloghop09 http://realwomenscrap.typepad.com/

Now following @MainlineMom & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/nls7wm #bloghop09 –>I need to take lessons from her on chillin’ http://waterwatereverywhere.blogspot.com/

Now following @couponsdealsand #bloghop09

Now following @mommiedaze & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/mxjt9m & FB Fan page http://tinyurl.com/kwgn82#bloghop09 http://www.mommiedaze.com/

Now following @erinclosingtime #bloghop09 http://herewegomoms.blogspot.com/

Now following @MammaMania & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/km8a36 #bloghop09 http://www.hipasiwannabe.com/

Now following @boxofchocolates & on @networkedblogs #fb App http://tinyurl.com/kn6wnt #bloghop09 http://www.melsboxofchocolates.com/

Now following @keepingupwmom #bloghop09 http://www.keepingupwithmom.com/

Now following @michpendergrass #bloghop09 http://michellependergrass.com/

Now following @kristi_runwatch #bloghop09 http://runwatchplaywait.blogspot.com/

That’s all I have twittered about so far.  I’ll write a new updated post in a few weeks after I’ve twittered more recommendations.  I do hope you visit some of these blogs and facebook fan pages, and follow them too, because they are well worth the effort of checking them out.

Current Mood: Happy

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Technorati Tags: blog recommendations, facebook fan pages, networked blogs, twitter recommendations

I dream…

I wake up in a room,

Lit only by the shine of a moon.

A room cold and bare,

As if no one had seen to its care.

I dream…

I walk to the door

My shoeless feet tiptoeing across the floor.

There is the door knob – do I dare?

The door glides open, but no one is there.

I dream…

I step over the threshold

And I’m no longer cold.

Not looking back, I step forward.

Not knowing what I am headed toward.

I dream…

I am walking on a narrow path.

No sign of anyone who had been there last.

There are no shapes or shadows in sight.

Only a clear, but starless night.

I dream…

I stumble and fall

But I stand back up, straight and tall.

Ahead, a fork in the road, I see.

Barely visible in the dawn, a choice for me.

I dream…

I sit, I watch, and I wait.

My future is ahead, but I don’t want to be late.

The wrong path chosen, dissolves my hopes.

Choosing the right path, releases my yoke.

I dream…

My decision is made.

The path I choose no longer fades.

The horizon, my eyes seek,

Searching for the mountain peak.

I dream…

I am gliding along the path I’ve chosen.

Time no longer seems to be frozen.

My heart beats steady and true.

Colors begin to shift in brilliant hues.

I dream…

I see the path widening ahead,

And a voice in my heart said

“You have chosen well, my child, continue on

And you will never be alone.”

I dream…

Of walking the miles of life,

Less the burden of stress and strife.

Knowing the joy in my heart

Will never again depart.

© 7/28/09 Karen ~Georgia Angel

Are you interested in reading more of my poetry?
Then click here, I hope you enjoy.

Current Mood: Happy

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Technorati Tags: Poetry

I’m a stickler for punctuality… really, but I never can seem to get in on the front end of the blog hop parties.  I enjoy them and I love exploring new blogs.  But I’m always a late arrival.  A few weeks ago, I wasn’t even sure that I would be able to continue blogging on a regular basis.  My doctor is trying to find the right meds for the pain I’m experiencing, he says “I think you have fibromyalgia”… okay.  So now I’m in my 3rd trial of a prescription, and guess what? It seems to be working, and I’ve only been taking it about 5 days.  I’ve even been told that I’m more “chirpier” since I started taking the new med.

So here I am, playing “catchup” with all the blog hop parties.  There are so many, and I think I’ll be busy for a month just trying to get everybody in my “follow” system.  There was the Blog Hop 09 hosted by Robin @ PENSIEVE,   BlogHer@Home hosted by Princess Jenn, #NotAtBlogHer Twitter Party last Friday, hosted by Robin’s Online World (which I totally missed).  Did you make it to the Non BlogHer Party, hosted by Mom of 2 Boys Wife of 1?  I missed it, but I’m going to try to get around to visit the blogs on the linky list.   Then there was the BlogNerd Bash hosted by Gariby Soup.

Oh, there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do all the fun stuff.

If you missed my previous post for the Blog Hop, you can visit it here.  Here are some trivial things about me…

• I have been wearing glasses since I was in the 3rd grade, then I started wearing contact lens in the 7th grade.  Last year, I had to switch over to bifocals…  sob…  I can’t wear the bifocal contact lens.  They don’t work for me.  :(
• I love chocolate and strawberry twizzlers.
• I’m happy being a “loner”, but I long to have a small group of local friends to entertain with, or shop with, or blog with.
• I’m twice divorced…  it’s been said “the men have been hard on her”, AND it’s been said “she’s been hard on the men”.  Well, which is it?  I don’t know.
• I love blogging memes.  I don’t always participate, but I  hop about occasionally checking them all out.  I have a very long list that I have collected that I plan to blog about one day.
• I’m addicted to  Dr. Pepper.
• I destroy plants and electronics, not intentionally, but somehow I just can’t seem to manage to keep them in “working” order.
• I’m very uncoordinated.  I have no groove, and I have 2 left feet.
• I yearn for peace and quiet (I do have a 5 year old), but I can’t get through the day without having a TV or radio on, and usually more than one on at a time.
• I am an extreme multi-tasker, just like any mom, I suppose…  work, twitter, work, facebook, work, laundry, work, lunch for Leah, work, work, watch Y&R, work, blog.. and on an on.
• I want to start my own business.  But I can’t focus on one thing to do, that’s a major problem.
• I love to play classical music on the piano, but I haven’t played in a million years.  I long for a piano again.
• I’m a southern, country gal, but I’m not a redneck.  I like to live in the country, but I can’t be more than 20 minutes away from Walmart.  I”m always “fixin” to do something, and am always caught off guard when someone mentions my southern accent. I tawlk funee?

So, there are a few quirky things about me.  Sometimes I think I’m an absolute “oddball”, then other times I think everybody else is “odd”,  lol <but really me 98% of the time>.

I’m looking forward to meeting other bloggers and learning about them.  Thanks for stopping by and come back to visit again soon.

Current Mood: Happy

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Technorati Tags: Blog Hop, Blog Party

Hey ya’ll, I’m a little late getting started with the Blog Hop.  Seems like I’m always running late meeting up with my internet friends.  I want to thank Robin @ PENSIEVE for hosting the Blog Hop, for us bloggers that can’t attend BlogHer ‘09 Annual Conference.  If any of you are following blogging friends at the conference on Twitter and Facebook, you know they are having a grand time and sharing all their adventures with those of us at home.  In the meantime, we at home are blog hopping to keep the spirit going.

As an introduction for myself, I’m 47 years old and a single mom of a 5 year old living in my hometown in Middle Georgia, USA.

Career – I’m an administrative assistant for a technology services company in Florida.  I am very fortunate to be able to telecommute.  When I learned that I was pregnant (at the age of 41, mind you) back in 2003, I was concerned about the health of my child, and approached my employer asking to consider the possiblity of working from home.  The company I work for is a Fortune 500 company, with over 40,000 employees world wide.  I did work in an office, getting dressed up every day, wearing makeup, having my hair styled, and my nails done, being the professional administrative type person.  The employees I supported worked in another location, so all of my tasks were basically via email and web applications and I visited them once a week n person.  When my daughter was born, the doctors discovered she had physical abornmalities and it took a good 3 months for them to diagnose her with Freeman-Sheldon Syndrome, a rare genetic muscuoskeletal disorder affecting one in a million babies.  At that time, my employer and I started serious dicusions about entering a telecommuting agreement.  I had been working for this company and for the same business unit for 8 years at that time, and had proven myself trustworthy and dependable, so my request was approved.  The arrangement worked out very well because  my little tiny daughter’s therapy and specialist schedule was quite busy and I could continue interacting with employees via email and web.  In 2006, I moved from Florida to my hometown in Georgia to be closer to my family, and my employer agreed to allow me to continue working from home.  The employees I support are easy going and pleasant to work with, and at the same time, I don’t have to deal with “office” politics.  The down side is that I no longer have face to face visits with the employees, and that I do kinda miss.

Family – I’m an only child, but I come from a very large extended family.  My daddy, who passed away in 1998 from colon cancer, had 12 brothers and sisters.  My mama is still living, and going strong at the age of 71, after 3 hip surgeries.  She had 10 brother and sisters.  Mama is the sole, full-time caretaker of her 82 year old widowed, childless sister, and I try to help her as much as I can.  I have a 21 year old son, Ted, who lives nearby.  I don’t see him as often as I would like, but I try not to invade his privacy.  I’m more of an “aunt” than a “mom” because his father and I divorced when he was barely 2 years old, and by mutual agreement, his father was the custodial parent.  Since I lived in Florida for almost 10 years, I didn’t see him very often.  Sometimes I don’t think we know each other very well, and that’s why I say I feel more of an “aunt” sometimes than a “mom”.  He has turned out to be a handsome, fine young man and I am very proud of him.  He works as an aircraft mechanic and seems to enjoy his job, but he works a lot, 6 days a week.  But he likes his money, and he is a conscientious hard worker.  Last night, we went out to eat dinner with him, and it was the first time in a very long time that we just sat around and just laughed and joked and had a really good time.  I enjoyed it.  It was an opportunity for us to get to know each other a little better.  I hope we have more of those moments together.  My 5 year old, well, she is my ball of energy.  She has a beautiful face, and a beautiful personality.  She is a little social butterfly.   When you see her the first time, you don’t notice anything, but when you take a second look that’s when you see that there is something slightly different about her face, or her hands, or her feet.  She is a delight some days, but an absolute terror on other days.  She thinks she rules the roost, but we all know who is really the top hog at the trough, that would be Me, the Mama, lol.   She is independent, strong willed, stubborn, and oh so very smart.  She really keeps me on my toes.

Home – I live in my hometown in Middle Georgia.  I’ve lived in this area all my life, except for the 10  years I lived near Fort Walton Beach, FL.  I loved it down there and I really miss it.  But being here at home with my family is more practical right now so that my daughter can know her brother and her grandmother.  I live in a 3 bedroom/2 bath home that I love.  I have a separate room for my office where I can close the door, either when I’m working or when I’m not working.  The rooms are large and it’s just right for my daughter and me.  I’m a horrible housekeeper, I don’t vacuum or mop regularly, and I really hate cleaning bathrooms.  I do have a secret desire to be a “homemaker” where I love to cook, and decorate my home, and keep it nice and sparkling clean, and to even entertain my friends on occasion.  But I still have to keep somewhat of a “child proof” home and after working and keeping up with a 5 year old, I have no energy for anything like that.  I’m always searching for the balance of keeping a home, taking care of a child, working full time, and having “me” time too.

Hobbies – I am interested in a variety of hobbies, and I’m always jumping from one thing to another.  I’ll get involved in one thing and neglect others.  Another balancing act… lol.  I love to read, mostly science fiction, crime mysteries, and sweet love stories.  When I was young, I was always at the library reading anything I could get my hands on.  Now I have to sneak in reading while sitting at the fast food drive thru, or in the bathroom,  or the doctor’s waiting room.  I also love to crochet.  For the past couple of years, I’ve been crocheting with a group called American Angels.  We make “heroghans” for the families of military members who have passed away  I also like to make afghans, laprobes, and baby blankets to donate for charity.   I also like to make anything to do with angels.  For a while, I was making angel christmas tree top decorations and antique angel jewelry.  I’ve also tried to indulge in a little photography.  I’m really not very good.  Some of my best shots I’ve taken, have been by accident.  I love to have little “photo shoots” with my daughter.  My biggest passion for the last several years has been web design & graphics, and more recently blogging.  I can spend all day on the computer, surfing the internet, reading blogs, keeping up with twitter, facebook and myspace, and the mom blog communities.  Some days I try to sneak in some activities during the work day, but most days I can’t wait for the end of the work time, so that I can sit with my laptop and just surf and read and play.  Since I really have no social life, the internet kind of gives me the connection with other people where I don’t have to sit face to face with someone.  Every now and then, I write a litte poetry when something comes to me.  I would like to sit down and write a short story one day, or a story about my life.  I could really tell some tales from my past that would probably shock some of the people that know me.

So that’s me, I’m very quiet, shy, and reserved.  On the other hand, I’m opinionated and stubborn.  I like to control all aspects of my life, and I stress and worry when things get out of control, which happens quite frequently.  I don’t like to ask for help, and it’s even worse for me to accept help from somebody when it is offered.  I’m a Christian, but my faith has been tried, and it seems I struggle daily to keep my faith.  I try to live a decent and non-complicated life.  I don’t like a lot of clutter or drama, but with my 5 year old…  that seems to be a daily or hourly thing.  I’m pretty much a homebody, just a country girl trying to be a good person and do the right thing.

I hope ya’ll come back to visit again and browse through some of my blog postings.  I love comments and I always try to visit those who leave comments.  Thanks for visiting and happy blog hopping to you!

Current Mood: Happy

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I think I have become addicted to Facebook.  It’s kinda scary, actually.  I’ve tried a lot of different social network sites, and always felt they were kinda boring.  But I have to admit, Facebook has a lot of applications that can keep you occupied.

This is Miss Priss, from Pet Society.  Today, I let Leah Rose play with Miss Priss and she really loved it.  I had to almost drag her away from the computer to get her to stop.  She got really upset with me.

I love playing Bejeweled Blitz.

I have joined a few causes…

I have sent a Guardian Angel to Distant Friends.

I also have 2 Farms, One is in Farm Town.  I have a donkey, and a goat, apple trees, a plum tree, a palm tree, roses, lilies, and forget me nots, all given to me by friends.  I have planted tomatoes and rice to sell at the market.  I already have some potatoes stored to sell at the market.  I let my first crops wither before I harvested them because I didn’t know what I was doing.  :(

The other farm is on Farm Ville.  I’m growing wheat, eggplant and soybeans.  In fact, I need to harvest my eggplant and soybeans, or I’m going to lose my crop.

I am also following my blogger friends on Networked Blogs.  Currently, I’m following 126 blogs.  If you have a networked blog, let me know and I’ll follow you.

I have also become a fan of their blogs if they have a facebook fan page.

It really has been a lot of fun, and there is so much to do and see.  Why don’t you come on over and join me?  Maybe become my neighbor in Farmville or FarmTown?  I’d love to see you.

Current Mood: Cool

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Well, I have busted my July NaBloPoMo challenge.  I didn’t post anything yesterday.  I was kinda tired last night and wasn’t feeling up to much of anything.  I came to the conclusion last night that I am going to give up some of my personal activities…  choosing the one that I would rather be doing the most of.  The problem is everything I love to do involves using my hands…  crochet, arts & crafts, blogging/web design & graphics.  That is one of the areas that I am experiencing the most pain right now…  my hands.  There are some days that I can’t even hold a book to read.  I’ve pretty much cut out the crochet work and arts & crafts I’ve been doing.  So now I have all these craft kits and supplies stored out in my garage that I need to do something with.

All of these boxes are stuffed full of all different kinds of crafts that I have been collecting over the past several years.  I haven’t made time to work on them because of having an infant turned toddler turned preschooler underfoot.  I was thinking late this year I could start working on some of them and not have to be too worried that she was going to mess with my “stuff”.  So, I guess I just need to get rid of it, either through ebay or etsy.  It’s going to be hard to part with all of it.  I’ll probably cry.

So that leaves my personal computer time.  I’m going to make myself spend less time on the computer, so I don’t know what that is going to do to my blogging or my comment challenges.  I so enjoy posting my photographs that I take, and occasionally writing an article.  But it does take a toll on me to spend the time composing and writing the blog post.  This morning, I tried to lay in the bed as late as possible, and I only managed to stay in the bed until about 10:30 or 11:00.  After being interrupted about 5 or 6 times by Leah Rose wanting something and having to get up and take care of it, then laying back down again.  It almost wasn’t worth the effort.  So I got up and laid on the sofa and just did some channel surfing on the  TV.  Not much was on and I got bored very quickly.  By about 3 or 4:00, I was about to go stir crazy from not doing something…  anything.  So I had to get up and play on the computer some.

So, here are a few things that I worked on.  I was checking out imagechef.com and created this image.  I thought it turned out pretty cute.

I love my fairy princess.

I took my baby to the hairdresser yesterday and got her to cut her hair cut.  Up until now, I’ve only been just getting her bangs and ends trimmed.  I think she has the prettiest hair, it’s got kind of a red tint to it that she gets from my maternal grandmother.

All this long hair on a 5 year old really is a pain to keep up.  She doesn’t care for wearing ponytails, but she always has her head down, and the sides just hang down in front of her face.  I finally got tired of looking at it that way.  So, here is what happened at the hairdresser.

She cut off about 5 or 6 inches.  It’s going to take me a really long time to get used to it.

I love my Leah Rose.

Current Mood: Happy

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Last month, I posted “Waiting for Test Results“, and today was my follow-up appointment.  Drum roll, please, the rest results are in…  negative for arthritis and lupus.  The doctor says, “I’m sorry to say this, but I think you have fibromyalgia.”  Well, doctor, the med you gave me didn’t work because I’m still in pain.  ”Not at all?  Okay”, the doctor says, “I have something else I can give you”.  Oh goody.  So, he asks, “What else?”.  I say, “I have pain at the base of my spine, where the waist of my jeans rub against my skin.  It feels inflamed, swollen.”  It’s tender to the touch.  The doctor says, “Keep an eye on it, and if you develop a rash, let me know right away… that could be shingles.”  Oh yeah.  This is just getting better and better.  ”What else?” he says.  You would have thought by now that I would just keep my flappy mouth shut, but nooooo, I have to mention the pain in my hip that was so bad I was limping.  ”Hmmm, gobbledygook, gobbledygook”.  Huh, say that again?  He asked, “did it get better on it’s own?”  ”Yes”, I say, “but I had to stay off of it”.  My doctor translation finally lit up, and understood what the gobbledygook was…  bursitis.  So, my visit was then complete.  Oh, wait, except for the “come back in 12 days” part.  I can take Alieve.  I’ve only been taking it at night and that really didn’t help much.  Sometimes a heating pad did more for me than actually taking anything.

I drive home, all the while, aware that every muscle, in my arms, legs and back were hurting.  I get home, and I’m exhausted.  I try to do some work on my laptop…  extreme pain in my right hand every time I touch the mouse.  Okay, it’s not shocking me, it’s not stabbing me.  It’s really annoying.  It’s really going to put a crimp in my personal computer time.  It’s already put a crimp in my volunteer/charity crochet work that I do.

I had originally planned to post a Tell Me Thursday today for my Wordless Wednesday photo yesterday.  But I’m too tired to do it.  Maybe I’ll do it next week.

So that’s my Thursday thadunk.  I’m off to take my meds and try to get some rest and hope that I wake up tomorrow with a brighter outlook.

Current Mood: Sickly

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This is a photo that my mother took a long time ago.  We used to drive up in the Smokey Mountains several times a year, and this is an old mill that is somewhere up there.  I scanned this photo and tried to manipulate it in Sepia, but nothing looked as good as the original.

Click here to view other participants at Sepia Scenes, hosted by Mary/theTeach @ Work of the Poet.

Current Mood: Happy

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Wednesday Edition

Be sure to come back tomorrow for Tell Me Thursday

Click here to view other participants hosted by Kdubs @ Wordless Wednesday, 5 Minutes for Mom, and MomDot.

Current Mood: Happy

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This week seems to be rushing by.  And I don’t feel like I have accomplished a thing.  Work has been a little busy.  When we came back on Sunday, I just unloaded the car and dumped our bags and things in the corner of my bedroom.  I haven’t even unpacked them yet.  Mama came home from the hospital on Monday.  She was pretty weak Monday evening, but yesterday she was much better.  She was out buying shoes for Leah Rose.  They are both shoe hogs, and have a closet full of shoes.  Oh well, at least I don’t have to buy them.  Mama also told me that she is ready to fill out a living will and a power of attorney.  The hospital gave her all the paperwork, so we are going to try to work on those soon.  I probably need to do one too.  I don’t even have a current will.  The only one I have leaves everything to my ex-husband, but I’ve been told that was voided due to our divorce.  I need to make some kind of plans for Leah if something ever happened to me, but I’m kinda in limbo about making arrangements for someone to care for her.

We found out more about our friend that was in the car accident on Saturday.  She was talking to her husband on her cell phone, and he heard the crash.  She was killed instantly.  That must have been awful for him to hear that over the phone.  We also found out she had the green light, and from witness accounts, the ambulance that hit her did not have a siren on.  Her friends in Indiana will be attending a visitation tonight, then the family is bringing her here for a visitation on Friday and funeral on Sunday.  That pretty much takes care of my weekend.

My aunt is doing pretty good.  Mama is making the arrangements for my aunt to have surgery on her middle finger of her right hand.  She has  a “trigger” finger, it’s very painful, and wasn’t successful with using the brace and therapy.  She also has a spur on her elbow that the doctor is going to put a shot in while she is asleep.  That will probably be coming up soon, and I’ll more than likely be helping Mama out.  At least that surgery will be in my town, and maybe I won’t have to be gone from work too long.

Tomorrow, I have my followup appointment with my internist.  I should be getting my blood test results to rule out arthritis and lupus, and to determine if I have fibromyalgia.  I have been taking the medication that he gave me, but I don’t think it has helped with the pain.  I can’t figure out if it is supposed to make my brain think I’m better, so I won’t hurt, or what, but I still have pain.  In fact, I’m still limping with a bad hip since Sunday.  It is better, but it is still there.  My aunt also has a follow-up tomorrow with the same doctor.  She will be getting the results from her sleep study from a couple weeks ago.

Yesterday, I got my first free couple hours this summer.  I had to go to the grocery store…  I was out of my morning IV fluids…   Dr. Pepper.  A friend was kind enough to come over and sit with Leah while I was gone.  I so enjoyed the peace and quiet.  My 5 year old is a chatter box, and she follows me around the house all day long, yapping at me, and I cannot get her to stop.  My ears really needed the break.  I didn’t even turn on the radio in the car, just so I could enjoy the total quiet.  On #GNO on Twitter last night, the girls were discussing what are the benefits of “me” time, and how do you get your free time.  I was feeling a little left out, because I don’t have a significant other where I can just walk out the door and say “watch the kid, I’ll be back later”.  Another suggestion that was mentioned was swapping babysitting with another mom.  I haven’t connected with another mom nearby for that option.  I need some “me” time, desperately.  I would so love a weekend to just lay in the bed until noon without being interrupted every 15 minutes with “Mom, Mom, I can’t find…”, “Mom, Mom, my computer won’t work… “, “Mom, Mom, where are my games…?”.  What a way to wake up every morning.  But my few little hours of solitude wasn’t enough.  I need MORE.

I watched the new series on SciFi last night called “Warehouse 13“.  That looks like it might be a pretty good show.  I’m looking forward to the new EUREKA series too.    And, did you know that the SciFi Channel officially became the SyFy Channel yesterday?  Oh, and by the way, I’m not going to admit that I listened to almost all of the MJ Funeral yesterday.

I hope ya’ll have a wonderful Wednesday.  Be sure to check out my Wordless Wednesday and Sepia Scenes posts.   While you are at it, why don’t you come by my Facebook page and Become a Fan?

Current Mood: Happy

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I love sunsets at the beach, but this was my first beach sunrise ever. This is one of my favorite photos that I took in February in Destin, Florida.

Current Mood: Happy

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