On Thursday, I went to DMV and took a written test to get my motorcycle permit. It rained all day Thursday and RF had to work on Friday and Saturday so today was my first time to get on a real bike. I've been riding my little scooter for a year but it only tops 30 mph going downhill with a tailwind. A 400cc motorcycle is way different! So I spent some time earlier this morning riding it around the parking lot. But there was an issue with the battery so when I killed (pretty much every time I stopped), it has to be push started which was a pain and eventually, even that quit working so RF pushed it home and plugged it in. It got charged a little bit ago so I spent another hour on it, practicing right hand turns and shifting into second gear. Woo hoo, I can now go over 30, even if it is just in the parking lot :)
I will practice riding for the next few months and I'm hoping to actually get my license by the end of summer. Once that happens, I'll being taking applications for bitches to ride with me :)
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Too random for Twitter
Too many little things going on and none of them deserve there own blog post or status updates but lots of things going on so I'm going to post them all here.
First of all, I have the BEST friends. They are super generous and just generally awesome. Big thanks to them for passing along their clothes as they don't fit them anymore.
I finally bought a new bra today. This is something I hate doing because I hate spending money on something that is basically a societal approved torture device. However, I found some at Karen's Closet that were discontinued stock from Confidentially Yours so they are brand new but they were only $7.99. If I could have found more in my size, I probably would have bought a couple.
Weight loss is going well. I lost 4 pounds last week and I'm down a total of 13 over all. I'm 2 pounds from my 15 pound goal and 8 pounds from my 10%.
I've joined another workout challenge at the gym and part of this one is actually losing weight. In order to get the full points, I have to lose 8 pounds in the next 4 weeks. I can SO do this! I wish my starting weight would have been what I weighed last week, so I'd be half way there but that is the way the cookie crumbles.
We went to Six Flags last weekend. It was MT's first trip and TB's since he was big enough to remember it. MT LOVED it. She went on every roller coaster she was big enough to go on and was really ticked that she couldn't go on the bigger ones. TB wasn't interested in most of the rides, although he did love the water rides.
Of course, the prices were outrageous but it was to be expected.
We ended up having a great day. The weather was a little cool and it was threatening rain all day so a lot of people stayed home. About 3, the storm broke, closing the water park and a bunch of the rides. We waited it out while we ate lunch and by the time we were done, it had absolutely poured but was basically done. Tons of people left the park then so we were basically able to walk on to rides after that. The longest ride we stood in all day was 15 minutes to ride the Batman (my dad and TB spent 30 minutes in line for Scooby Doo but we weren't in that line)
MT got to meet Batman and Robin! She was just thrilled senseless. My dad saw Batman at the theater and ran up the hill and grabbed her and took off back down the hill. I took off after them so I could get pictures of the big event. I'm sure we looked like idiots racing down the hill like we were being chased but it was well worth it to get the pictures. I didn't get pictures of Robin because I was in line for food when she saw him with my dad.
I ate like a horse all weekend but got right back on the wagon once I got home. I gained one pound while I was gone but I've lost that and a bit more since then. Hopefully, I'll manage at least a one pound loss this week. That would make me quite happy :)
I'm thinking about taking TB to see Night at the Museum tonight. It looks really funny and he has been begging to go see it.
School is almost over for the year. I'm ready for 1st grade to be behind us. Besides the fact that I'm ready to be done with his teacher, I'm REALLY ready to be done with getting up at 6 am!
He seems to be reading much better recently. At least stuff that interests him. He can read his Pokemon cards and know what each attack does because it is interesting. He doesn't seem to be able to read the early reader books they send home because they are boring. Quigs asked if I thought he was not being challenged and is some kind of evil genius. I told her I agree with the evil part LOL
He has started meeting with the speech pathologist at school because he stutters a little bit. I've been asking his doctor since he was 2 about it and have been told repeatedly that he would simply outgrow it. At 2, 3, 4, and 5, that was fine but he is 7.5 and still hasn't outgrown it. I emailed the SP and asked her about it. She observed him and said she agreed he needed intervention.
The SP met with him and then met with me and told me that she just wasn't sure what to do with him at this point (shock, neither am I but totally different reasons). She said he is aware of his problem but knows how to stop himself and get it under control. She was going to do some timed test for stuttering this week and we have a meeting setup for Monday morning to discuss the results.
She said that he has an advanced vocabulary and used advanced sentence structure and that basically, she thinks his stuttering is because he is too smart for his own good. She feels that the facial muscles aren't developed enough to handle his advanced speech patterns and doesn't want to put him in the IEP system if that is the case.
I tried the asparagus raw and it was kind of gross. I'm going to attempt roasting some on the grill this afternoon when I make dinner but I'm not holding my breath that it will improve that much LOL RF said it was fine but both kids agreed with me.
TB came home from school today complaining of a stomach ache. I told him I thought he needed to eat more fiber and that is why his stomach hurt. I told him he had to start eating veggies and he asked me to pick him up some celery at the store. So I did and he sat down and ate a big stalk of it. Madness!
First of all, I have the BEST friends. They are super generous and just generally awesome. Big thanks to them for passing along their clothes as they don't fit them anymore.
I finally bought a new bra today. This is something I hate doing because I hate spending money on something that is basically a societal approved torture device. However, I found some at Karen's Closet that were discontinued stock from Confidentially Yours so they are brand new but they were only $7.99. If I could have found more in my size, I probably would have bought a couple.
Weight loss is going well. I lost 4 pounds last week and I'm down a total of 13 over all. I'm 2 pounds from my 15 pound goal and 8 pounds from my 10%.
I've joined another workout challenge at the gym and part of this one is actually losing weight. In order to get the full points, I have to lose 8 pounds in the next 4 weeks. I can SO do this! I wish my starting weight would have been what I weighed last week, so I'd be half way there but that is the way the cookie crumbles.
We went to Six Flags last weekend. It was MT's first trip and TB's since he was big enough to remember it. MT LOVED it. She went on every roller coaster she was big enough to go on and was really ticked that she couldn't go on the bigger ones. TB wasn't interested in most of the rides, although he did love the water rides.
Of course, the prices were outrageous but it was to be expected.
We ended up having a great day. The weather was a little cool and it was threatening rain all day so a lot of people stayed home. About 3, the storm broke, closing the water park and a bunch of the rides. We waited it out while we ate lunch and by the time we were done, it had absolutely poured but was basically done. Tons of people left the park then so we were basically able to walk on to rides after that. The longest ride we stood in all day was 15 minutes to ride the Batman (my dad and TB spent 30 minutes in line for Scooby Doo but we weren't in that line)
MT got to meet Batman and Robin! She was just thrilled senseless. My dad saw Batman at the theater and ran up the hill and grabbed her and took off back down the hill. I took off after them so I could get pictures of the big event. I'm sure we looked like idiots racing down the hill like we were being chased but it was well worth it to get the pictures. I didn't get pictures of Robin because I was in line for food when she saw him with my dad.
I ate like a horse all weekend but got right back on the wagon once I got home. I gained one pound while I was gone but I've lost that and a bit more since then. Hopefully, I'll manage at least a one pound loss this week. That would make me quite happy :)
I'm thinking about taking TB to see Night at the Museum tonight. It looks really funny and he has been begging to go see it.
School is almost over for the year. I'm ready for 1st grade to be behind us. Besides the fact that I'm ready to be done with his teacher, I'm REALLY ready to be done with getting up at 6 am!
He seems to be reading much better recently. At least stuff that interests him. He can read his Pokemon cards and know what each attack does because it is interesting. He doesn't seem to be able to read the early reader books they send home because they are boring. Quigs asked if I thought he was not being challenged and is some kind of evil genius. I told her I agree with the evil part LOL
He has started meeting with the speech pathologist at school because he stutters a little bit. I've been asking his doctor since he was 2 about it and have been told repeatedly that he would simply outgrow it. At 2, 3, 4, and 5, that was fine but he is 7.5 and still hasn't outgrown it. I emailed the SP and asked her about it. She observed him and said she agreed he needed intervention.
The SP met with him and then met with me and told me that she just wasn't sure what to do with him at this point (shock, neither am I but totally different reasons). She said he is aware of his problem but knows how to stop himself and get it under control. She was going to do some timed test for stuttering this week and we have a meeting setup for Monday morning to discuss the results.
She said that he has an advanced vocabulary and used advanced sentence structure and that basically, she thinks his stuttering is because he is too smart for his own good. She feels that the facial muscles aren't developed enough to handle his advanced speech patterns and doesn't want to put him in the IEP system if that is the case.
I tried the asparagus raw and it was kind of gross. I'm going to attempt roasting some on the grill this afternoon when I make dinner but I'm not holding my breath that it will improve that much LOL RF said it was fine but both kids agreed with me.
TB came home from school today complaining of a stomach ache. I told him I thought he needed to eat more fiber and that is why his stomach hurt. I told him he had to start eating veggies and he asked me to pick him up some celery at the store. So I did and he sat down and ate a big stalk of it. Madness!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Now what?
I bought asparagus today at the store. Now, what do I do with it? I'm thinking about maybe grilling it but as you all know, I prefer veggies raw so suggestions for that would be good too :)
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Check out the package on that one
I can't wait to see what kind of referrals I get from that title :)
MT's birthday was last weekend and she got a lot of really fun presents from her friends and family. She has really enjoyed playing with all her stuff but I have a complaint to make about most all of them. No, they weren't too loud or needed batteries or covered in lead based paint. No, no, they were all packed in pounds of packaging and were practically welded to the boxes. She got a cute Barbie pool and while Nonni was putting it together, I thought I would start opening some of the LPS stuff because one was a bath set and I thought they could go in the pool too. Instead, it took me longer to open the LPS bath set and get all of the pieces out and unraveled from the stretchy cords that were choking them than it did for my mom to put together the pool. That didn't take into account the LPS beach set or the Barbie that went with the pool, which each also took forever to open.
MT really enjoyed the toys and she says the animals had fun in the pool so it was worth untangling them but, holy cow, what a pain.
In all honesty, I'm not that "green" of a person. It takes time and money and energy and I just don't have an over abundance of any of those things and my issue with excess packaging is simply from a convenience stand point. But even being un-green, I can still see how much impact the sheer amount of stretchy ties tossed every year has on the environment.
MT's birthday was last weekend and she got a lot of really fun presents from her friends and family. She has really enjoyed playing with all her stuff but I have a complaint to make about most all of them. No, they weren't too loud or needed batteries or covered in lead based paint. No, no, they were all packed in pounds of packaging and were practically welded to the boxes. She got a cute Barbie pool and while Nonni was putting it together, I thought I would start opening some of the LPS stuff because one was a bath set and I thought they could go in the pool too. Instead, it took me longer to open the LPS bath set and get all of the pieces out and unraveled from the stretchy cords that were choking them than it did for my mom to put together the pool. That didn't take into account the LPS beach set or the Barbie that went with the pool, which each also took forever to open.
MT really enjoyed the toys and she says the animals had fun in the pool so it was worth untangling them but, holy cow, what a pain.
In all honesty, I'm not that "green" of a person. It takes time and money and energy and I just don't have an over abundance of any of those things and my issue with excess packaging is simply from a convenience stand point. But even being un-green, I can still see how much impact the sheer amount of stretchy ties tossed every year has on the environment.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
These are a few of my favorite things
This is the paper that MT did of my and my favorite things at school. Pretty much has me pegged!
Monday, May 11, 2009
As plain as the nose on my face
Which does happen to be broken.
I went to Convenient Care this morning because it still hurt and I decided enough was enough. "Convenient" care wasn't all that convenient since they had a ton of people in there. Then there was an issue with my insurance having a different PCP listed than they had at Christie (insurance had me listed as having a Carle doctor, when I've never been to Carle in my entire life) but it got straighten out and I was finally scene by the doctor. She sent me to Xray and then I had to go back and see her again. According to her, it was broken for sure and I needed to call ENT to schedule an appointment to get it fixed. She also gave me a prescription for Tylenol 3. While that was being filled, I called ENT and was told they had a ton of patients to see today but they could work me in sometime after 1:15. By the time I picked up my prescription, the ENT nurse called back and said she looked at the Xray and couldn't see any sign of fracture. I called her back and she said the doctor still wanted to see me because even if it wasn't broken, they might be able to do something about the pain.
I got there about 1:10 and was told that he had an emergency at the hospital and had to leave, it would be at least an hour until he got back. Fine, I'll wait (plenty of people didn't, which was fine with me). He finally got back and poked and prodded at my nose and proclaimed in fully broken. He showed me the Xray as well and, although I'm no radiologist, it looked clearly broken to me. I'm not sure what that nurse was looking at. He told me that it was up to me if I wanted to have it fixed. Not fixing it could potentially lead to breathing problems. I decided to have it fixed because I have enough breathing problems without adding to it.
Tomorrow morning at 10am, I'm supposed to report to the hospital. They are going to put me under and then add additional numbing stuff to my nose once I'm out. They will insert an instrument up my nose and reset the bones and then I'll wear a little plaster cast for a week. In some cases, they have to pack the nostrils to keep the bones set right so I might have cotton packing too. RF is taking off to take care of the kids and my mom is picking me up from the hospital. I should be home before TB gets out of school.
I went to Convenient Care this morning because it still hurt and I decided enough was enough. "Convenient" care wasn't all that convenient since they had a ton of people in there. Then there was an issue with my insurance having a different PCP listed than they had at Christie (insurance had me listed as having a Carle doctor, when I've never been to Carle in my entire life) but it got straighten out and I was finally scene by the doctor. She sent me to Xray and then I had to go back and see her again. According to her, it was broken for sure and I needed to call ENT to schedule an appointment to get it fixed. She also gave me a prescription for Tylenol 3. While that was being filled, I called ENT and was told they had a ton of patients to see today but they could work me in sometime after 1:15. By the time I picked up my prescription, the ENT nurse called back and said she looked at the Xray and couldn't see any sign of fracture. I called her back and she said the doctor still wanted to see me because even if it wasn't broken, they might be able to do something about the pain.
I got there about 1:10 and was told that he had an emergency at the hospital and had to leave, it would be at least an hour until he got back. Fine, I'll wait (plenty of people didn't, which was fine with me). He finally got back and poked and prodded at my nose and proclaimed in fully broken. He showed me the Xray as well and, although I'm no radiologist, it looked clearly broken to me. I'm not sure what that nurse was looking at. He told me that it was up to me if I wanted to have it fixed. Not fixing it could potentially lead to breathing problems. I decided to have it fixed because I have enough breathing problems without adding to it.
Tomorrow morning at 10am, I'm supposed to report to the hospital. They are going to put me under and then add additional numbing stuff to my nose once I'm out. They will insert an instrument up my nose and reset the bones and then I'll wear a little plaster cast for a week. In some cases, they have to pack the nostrils to keep the bones set right so I might have cotton packing too. RF is taking off to take care of the kids and my mom is picking me up from the hospital. I should be home before TB gets out of school.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Chicago Mother's Day
We went up to Chicago this weekend for a couple of events. Last fall, we were supposed to go to Kiddieland but my mom broke her foot and was put in a cast about 5 days before we were supposed to leave. We ended up passing on it and promised the kids that we would take them in the spring. There is also a pirate exhibit at the Field Museum and, if you know me at all you know, I wouldn't miss a pirate themed anything LOL
Before we left, I went to Weight Watchers and found I lost 2.4 pounds. Yay me! I'm at 9 pounds total, which averages to 3 pounds a week. That is acceptable to me, I just gotta keep it up.
Once I got home, I was working on loading the van and as I was shutting the gate, I didn't get out the way in time and managed to smash it down on my face. I'm fairly certain I broke my nose but I didn't have time to deal with it then. It feels a little bit better as long as I don't touch. If I could just get the headache that accompanied it all weekend to go away, I'd be ok.
Anyway, we headed for Chicago to Kiddieland. I'll be reviewing it later for real but basically, it is a little amusement park. The kids both had a really good time. The Boy was big enough to ride everything by himself. Ms. Thang needed me to ride some of the stuff with her but mostly she could ride by herself. It was kind of cold and overcast, but I think it kept some of the crowds down. In fact, it was so slow that we could just walk on the rides. In most cases, they would let the kids stay on each ride and ride it agai.
They both LOVED the roller coaster and we rode it over and over and over
They both also really liked the "Frog Hopper" TB rode it on and off several times. MT got on and stayed on for 30 minutes. I sat next to it and read my book
Today, we went to the Field Museum. They had a pirate exhibit that I really wanted to see. It was a little disappointing because it was all looking and reading (which I was fine with but the kids were unimpressed) and we ended up kind of speeding through it. There were also no pictures allowed in the exhibit. However, I took one of the actual treasure from the wreck the exhibit was about on the sly :)
We also saw Sue, the biggest, most complete T-Rex ever.
TB asked why the museum had to be so lame but also said it was his favorite part of the trip. :)
Now we are home and very tired. Next trip is going to be in either June or July, so we have some time before the next one :)
Before we left, I went to Weight Watchers and found I lost 2.4 pounds. Yay me! I'm at 9 pounds total, which averages to 3 pounds a week. That is acceptable to me, I just gotta keep it up.
Once I got home, I was working on loading the van and as I was shutting the gate, I didn't get out the way in time and managed to smash it down on my face. I'm fairly certain I broke my nose but I didn't have time to deal with it then. It feels a little bit better as long as I don't touch. If I could just get the headache that accompanied it all weekend to go away, I'd be ok.
Anyway, we headed for Chicago to Kiddieland. I'll be reviewing it later for real but basically, it is a little amusement park. The kids both had a really good time. The Boy was big enough to ride everything by himself. Ms. Thang needed me to ride some of the stuff with her but mostly she could ride by herself. It was kind of cold and overcast, but I think it kept some of the crowds down. In fact, it was so slow that we could just walk on the rides. In most cases, they would let the kids stay on each ride and ride it agai.
They both LOVED the roller coaster and we rode it over and over and over
They both also really liked the "Frog Hopper" TB rode it on and off several times. MT got on and stayed on for 30 minutes. I sat next to it and read my book
Today, we went to the Field Museum. They had a pirate exhibit that I really wanted to see. It was a little disappointing because it was all looking and reading (which I was fine with but the kids were unimpressed) and we ended up kind of speeding through it. There were also no pictures allowed in the exhibit. However, I took one of the actual treasure from the wreck the exhibit was about on the sly :)
We also saw Sue, the biggest, most complete T-Rex ever.
TB asked why the museum had to be so lame but also said it was his favorite part of the trip. :)
Now we are home and very tired. Next trip is going to be in either June or July, so we have some time before the next one :)
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Strange Mother's Day gifts
I had intended to blog about the Mother's Day gift MT made at school but I never got the picture scanned (which you HAVE to see because it is so cute) and before I could get around to it, I got a new follower on Twitter. I remain curious how some of these people find me and what key words I'm using that clue them to follow me (this one made sense, it was parenting but I'm still curious). Anyway, I went to check them out and the one and only post was a gift buying guide for LINGERIE for Mother's Day.
Ok, first of all, if your kids are getting you this stuff, there is something way wrong with the WHOLE picture! Considering, they include lingerie buying tips for guys, I'm assuming they are targeting dads getting it for their wives. Again, I'm bothered because I don't think that dads should be getting their wives presents for Mother's Day. Helping the kids pick out presents? Sure. Buying a gift from the family? Fine. Buying your wife lingerie? Not so much.
I've wracked my brains trying to think of ONE of my friends that would want $100 (minimum, some of the stuff was as much as $400) underwear, instead of almost anything else, for Mother's Day. I mean think of all the pedicures you could get for $100! Not that I want a pedicure either. RF bought me a new telephoto lens for my camera, which made me very happy!
In case this idea doesn't disturb you, here the video with the buying guide
Ok, first of all, if your kids are getting you this stuff, there is something way wrong with the WHOLE picture! Considering, they include lingerie buying tips for guys, I'm assuming they are targeting dads getting it for their wives. Again, I'm bothered because I don't think that dads should be getting their wives presents for Mother's Day. Helping the kids pick out presents? Sure. Buying a gift from the family? Fine. Buying your wife lingerie? Not so much.
I've wracked my brains trying to think of ONE of my friends that would want $100 (minimum, some of the stuff was as much as $400) underwear, instead of almost anything else, for Mother's Day. I mean think of all the pedicures you could get for $100! Not that I want a pedicure either. RF bought me a new telephoto lens for my camera, which made me very happy!
In case this idea doesn't disturb you, here the video with the buying guide
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Make over
Earlier in the week, I got an email from Arkymom asking if I (and the other people she sent it to) wanted to go to a Mary Kay make over party with her this morning. I didn't really have anything better to do so I decided to go. Quigs demanded before and after pictures but Arky refused to pose for a before picture. She said that anyone that had seen her knew what the before looked like and she didn't need any pictures, thank you very much. I agreed, but stood firm on the after pictures!
Here she is, doing her "sexy pose" in the bad lighting in the room. Not a lot of change and you can't tell it from the picture but her skin looks very soft. Nice subtle colors, unlike the lady doing the class who looked like she got hit in the face with a make up gun!
Here is me, an hour or so later, in totally natural light. You can absolutely tell I spent an hour and a half putting on make up. Oh, you can't? Neither could I. This is why I don't mess with make up because other than my face being little itchy, I can't even tell I have it on.
However, I did have a good time, even if the soup and bread were screaming for me to eat them. :) Arkymom is always a kick to hang out with. Even if I have to go to "clown college" to do it LOL
Here she is, doing her "sexy pose" in the bad lighting in the room. Not a lot of change and you can't tell it from the picture but her skin looks very soft. Nice subtle colors, unlike the lady doing the class who looked like she got hit in the face with a make up gun!
Here is me, an hour or so later, in totally natural light. You can absolutely tell I spent an hour and a half putting on make up. Oh, you can't? Neither could I. This is why I don't mess with make up because other than my face being little itchy, I can't even tell I have it on.
However, I did have a good time, even if the soup and bread were screaming for me to eat them. :) Arkymom is always a kick to hang out with. Even if I have to go to "clown college" to do it LOL
Friday, May 1, 2009
Love and Marriage
We have been having some issues getting TB to brush his teeth. The other night I told him "Dude, if you don't brush your teeth, PK (the girl he has a huge crush on in his class) won't want to kiss you" I said this fully expecting the response of "eww, girls are gross. Instead he promptly turned and ran for the bathroom to brush his teeth! When he came back, he said "PK will never want to kiss me anyway"
Me: why not?
TB: because I'm 7 (said with all the "DUH" he could muster
Me: what does that have to do with anything?
TB: She's 6!
Me: Again, what does that have to do with anything
TB: We are different ages
Me: Daddy and I are different ages, Nonni and Paw-paw are different ages. It is ok to be different ages.
TB: turns and goes to his room "whatever"
The other day MT and I were at the grocery store and out of no where she says "I'm getting married"
Me: Who are you marrying?
MT: you
Me: you can't marry me, we are related. You have to marry someone you aren't related to
MT: well who am I not related to?
Me: X-man, PG (equal opportunity, of course), Bubba, Curious J, Lightening McColin...
MT: Oh, I need to go on a date with Bubba!!
Me: why not?
TB: because I'm 7 (said with all the "DUH" he could muster
Me: what does that have to do with anything?
TB:
Me: Again, what does that have to do with anything
TB: We are different ages
Me: Daddy and I are different ages, Nonni and Paw-paw are different ages. It is ok to be different ages.
TB: turns and goes to his room "whatever"
The other day MT and I were at the grocery store and out of no where she says "I'm getting married"
Me: Who are you marrying?
MT: you
Me: you can't marry me, we are related. You have to marry someone you aren't related to
MT: well who am I not related to?
Me: X-man, PG (equal opportunity, of course), Bubba, Curious J, Lightening McColin...
MT: Oh, I need to go on a date with Bubba!!
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