Well at least they're not supposed to....cause there's no one to take care of them when they are sick and have to take care of everyone else. I woke up last night shortly after falling asleep with a horrible stomach virus. Of course BD is on travel...the TTs have to go to school...there just isn't time for me to be sick right now. I'll be sick later when it's more convenient for everyone.......
I have to go and do some laundry.....
BD left today. We were able to snuggle with the boys this morning before they had to go to school....then BD and I went and had breakfast together after dropping them off at school. It was nice...just the two of us. That doesn't happen much so we savor those times that we can do that. Luckily the next few days that BD will be gone the TTs are in school, so I will be able to get some things done while they are gone during the mornings.
Before having my boys, I never thought about how hard things are to do when you have kids. You have to do things when they are asleep or at school so that you don't have them underfoot while trying to get things done...it's insane. I leave them for a minute and they start tearing up the house or each other. I would have never expected that before having them....now of course it seems like our own special version of "normal". Whatever normal means.
I'm preparing schedules for classes. I have a few things in mind that will be perfect for presents for teachers gifts, or just presents for that special person who appreciates a handmade gift. You know...when you care enough to make the very best!! I still have to work on the flyers but other than that and the supplies getting ordered I'm pretty well set.
I think I might go buy some paint....time to paint the bathroom....
+
The new Winter Mini catalog was posted today for the demos to drool over. I can't wait for this to be available. There are so many versatile sets that are in it...as well as a new tag punch!! The paper....the ribbon.....the drool puddle is growing ever larger under my chin!!
I already have ideas of stamp camps floating in my head....the projects abound!!
we went to the aquarium and the boys had a great time. We broke down and bought a membership....an incentive to go back more often. Most of my photos turned out to be crap...now that I know not to hold the camera at an angle...they should be better in the future...but here are a few of what I was able to get..
We had lunch at the Choo Choo Hotel and the boys of course loved riding the trolley. While heading to the Garden to eat, we ran into friends of ours that also had taken their boys up for the day. We decided to eat lunch together then we parted ways. We just thought it was funny that we were away from home and ran into each other.
Well the festival went off without any huge hitches. It was a great day weather wise and we had a good time. The parade was small, but the band of course got a great response. Hopefully next year we won't fall at the beginning of fall break and the crowds will be bigger. We're having our wrap up meeting to discuss what worked and what didn't so we can plan better for next year. You would think as this was the 26th year that this would be down to a science by now.
After the festival was over on saturday, I headed out to the camping rally that BD and the TTs were attending without me. They went up on thursday, so by saturday some of the other rally attendees were asking BD if "things were okay with us"...I find that slightly amusing. I calmed everyone's fears when I showed up that things are going well. We spent the rest of the weekend playing games and going for walks with the kids. We left on monday morning.
We were very sad to find out that one of the couples in our club is selling their unit and will not be camping anymore. They might make day trips to join the group for meals when we are out, but they won't be camping anymore. We know that Willard is having trouble seeing these days, and Viola can't haul the trailer, but they will be very very missed.
On Tuesday we were getting ready to leave and put the TTs in the van. I opened the garage door and got in....BD climbed in and we started to back up...I heard the most crushing sound that I have ever heard in my entire life. It was the noticeable sound of metal on metal, and it had the distinct twang of nails on a chalkboard. It was the sound of my van driving into my garage door. I'm almost in tears even thinking about it. The door came down just enough when it opened to catch the top part of my hatch door and leave a nice ding and a couple of clear coat scratches. We got the door (I say we...I mean BD) bent back into shape so that it would open and close without any problems. The people who installed the doors came out and said they could replace the panel for $150. The body shop said they can fix the dent for $350. I'm not fixing anything right now. But at least I know how much it will be if I decide to do it.
The boys are on fall break...we are planning on a day trip at the end of the week to the aquarium. We'll see how the rest of our week goes before we commit to anything.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
AP
The controversial anti-homosexual Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., plans to stage a protest at the funerals of the five Amish girls executed in their Pennsylvania school, according to a flyer posted on the church's Web site.
The church is protesting the funerals because of the attendance of Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who has spoken out against the church publicly, the flyer says. Both Amish and non-Amish residents of Lancaster County — where the shooting took place — have vowed to not allow any protesters anywhere near the funeral services.
But the daughter of the church's pastor, Rev. Fred Phelps, told FOXNews.com on Wednesday the church would cancel the protests if given media time on radio and television as a platform to espouse Westboro's beliefs.
"We're not going to any of the Amish funerals — that's the agreement we're making — that we won't go to any of them," Shirley Phelps-Roper told FOXNews.com.
Phelps-Roper defended the church's decision to protest at the Amish girls' funerals.
"Those Amish people, everyone is sitting around talking about those poor little girls — blah, blah, blah — they brought the wrath upon themselves," Phelps-Roper said, adding that the Amish "don't serve God, they serve themselves."
On Monday, Charles Carl Roberts IV killed five girls — Naomi Rose Ebersole, 7; Anna Mae Stoltzfus, 12; Marian Fisher, 13; Mary Liz Miller, 8; and her sister Lena Miller, 7 — in a rural Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster County, Pa.
Donald Kraybill, a professor of sociology at Elizabethtown College in Lancaster County, Pa., calls the church's plans a publicity stunt.
"I don't think there's any connection between the Amish incident and their agenda. They just want to get in the spotlight," Kraybill said. "It's giving them national attention and it's a cheap and easy and really terrible way to gain some visibility."
The church's latest flyer, posted on its Web site, www.godhatesfags.com, notes these protests will be against Rendell for "slanderous" statements against the church.
Westboro's latest rhetoric is in line with the other beliefs of it's 70 church members, who hold that the deaths of U.S. troops are God's punishment for America's tolerance of homosexuality.
The Westboro Baptist Church has made its name demonstrating at the funerals of soldiers killed in the Iraq war. Their controversial and colorful placards proclaim their anti-gay stance with slogans such as "Thank God for Dead Soldiers," "America Is Doomed" and "Soldier Fag in Hell."
Before it garnered national attention, the church made its name around Kansas, where 16 years ago, it started protested the funerals of AIDS victims. And while their demonstrations of late have focused on the funerals of U.S. soldiers, Westboro church members have taken their picket signs to the memorials for the 12 Sago miners who perished in January in West Virginia.
Earlier this year, prompted by the church protests, Congress passed a law that banned protesters from military funerals at federal cemeteries. More than a dozen states have passed similar legislation creating protest-free buffer zones around cemeteries during funerals.
Phelps-Roper told FOXNews.com in February that the church has a right to protest.
"We are delivering a message," Phelps-Roper said. "God is punishing this nation and he is using the IED [improvised explosive device] as his weapon of choice."
TT#1 came home from school last week and told me that we were having Benji over for the weekend. Benji we soon found out was the class mascot...a stuffed bear. We had to take pictures of activities with Benji and then write a journal entry about what we all did.
Easy right? You would think so. BD even made a comment about doing a pop-out page in the journal to make it really cool...you know....since I'm a scrapbooker and all.
Well let's see....last night I was printing out photos on some textured cardstock since the printer wouldn't take the photo paper (for whatever tempermental reason it has now to not work right)....doing a handwritten and chipboard title...no pop-out....no cool photos....just handwriting and chipboard.....BD said it looked nice...but we all know what that means....certainly not my best work by any stretch of the imagination.
Why is it that he's the one in school....but I'm the one doing the homework?????
Why do I let other people affect me this way. Why do I allow my own emotions to be tied into what other people do and say. I pray that I will someday be stronger in character and not allow these things to bother me.
But until that day comes I will piss and moan that it's not fair.....and as I tell my children...no one ever said that life was fair...and as my mother always says...whoever tells you life is fair is a liar!!
I'm big on follow-through. If you commit to something...then finish it. Don't tell everyone all about what you are going to do...then dump it on someone else to finish it for you becuase you lose interest. Grow the hell up.
Enough said.
not that it's a bad thing.....everyone needs time alone....but I have such a hard time sleeping when BD is away. I end up sitting on the couch watching television until I start to nod off...then I have to drag my half asleep ass into the bedroom. I can't just go and lay down in our room cause then I won't fall asleep...crazy. I end up so tired that I have trouble getting up early in the morning...usually I can get up before the kids...not when he's gone though. I usually get up when I hear them acting up in their room.....like today.
It's not going to be a good day when you wake up to the sweet sounds of "get offa me" and "mommy's gonna be cross with you" ... cause chances are that if one of them is doing something that the other can actually tell is going to make me mad....it is something that will definitely make me mad. Such was this morning...on the monitor I hear those sweet words...and as I trek down the hall I hear the *boom* of a 2 year old jumping off the top of his dresser.
Now if you don't know my kids...they are big...not fat...just substantial for their ages. They are both very tall and at the top of the growth charts. Most people who don't know them think that they are much older than they actually are due to their sizes. So the sound of my 2 year old jumping off the dresser sounded more like dropping a lead weight off the roof onto the driveway.
Since it's Tuesday they knew that they had school so after putting thier room back in order (they rearrange the furniture daily) they ran out to get dressed. Since BD is gone I had to get their outfits together for school (oh the humanity!) and get lunches together. I didn't realize how much BD did around here until he wasn't here to do it...(thanks BD). Of course the whole getting ready for school thing is pre-empted by the gotta go potty and feed me I'm starving (cause you know I never feed my children...they grew simply from an excess of sunlight and water).
Somehow we managed to get out of the house without any casualities and with everyone wearing clothes that match. They have learned how to get their own lunchbox out of the fridge and put it in their backpacks, so they have food for the day.....now I can sit back...drink my coffee....and get my street festival work done.
At least I can be thankful for the few hours that I have to myself to get things done....I might even unload the dishwasher the day is going so well!!
There are not enough hours lately....if I could just pick up an extra two or three I'd be set.
I need to finish the street festival assignments...last minute booths coming in and I need to fit them in somewhere.
I have to do the news next week....but there's a conflict with my son's school parent's lunch. I haven't missed an event at school since they started 2 years ago. I really hate to miss any now. Hopefully I can swap a day with someone else and not have to miss the lunch just becuase I am scheduled to be on television.
I need to really get hopping on my business. I need to schedule my open house and get that moving and then get some workshops scheduled after that. Time to make a little christmas present money!!
and of course I have my normal weekly stuff....church...sunday school...MOMS ministry...book club...bunko...street festival meetings...
just a few more hours...
The street festival is looming ahead and there is sooo much work still to be done. We have members who are retiring from the board and if we don't find new membership there won't be a festival next year. I would love to have a booth next year either as a SU! rep or just to sell my cards and crafts...but I don't know how that would work..as a crafter I can't promote SU!...as a SU! rep I can't sell at the festival only take orders....it's a bit of a quandry...I'll have to think about it some more.
BD is going on another trip...only for a few days though. Hopefully the boys and I won't kill each other while he's gone. Most days we all get along so well...but then there are those days (like yesterday) when they just don't listen and are so contrary. Nothin like having children that are just like you! Since he'll be gone for 4 nights I'll actually have to cook too...that should be interesting...better stock up on dino nuggets...the boys like those.
This friday is the monthly crop...I didn't get to go last month so I"m hoping that this week goes well enough that I can make it. I really need to get some stuff done...I've been slacking.
My SU! kit is on a truck as I type to be delivered today...I am so PSYCHED!!! I'm really looking forward to this being a business for me rather than being a hobby demo. I would love it if I could contribute to the house in some way (other than contributing to it's spending!!). Maybe if I do really well then by next year I can be paying for the TT's tuition on my own...that would be vundebar!!!
well all...gotta bounce..TTFN!!
I went to the local BK this morning to grab some coffee. I pull into the drive through lane after I order and there are two cars in front of me. The lady is out of the first car and standing at the driver's window of the second car. She is asking the driver of the second car if she's been saved and if she knows Jesus. She kept going on and on and sticking her head in the window. The driver (who I soon saw was someone I knew) finally came back at her and told her to get back into her car and leave. The woman kept going on and on...if it had been me my response would have been that she had better have Jesus with her when I get my ass out of my car....cause she's going to need his help. After the driver of car #2 opened her door and started to get out the lady got in her car and drove away.
I found out later that this lady had almost hit the other car not once...not twice..but three times. When the driver of car #2 said something (not realizing that she had said it so loudly that the other person could hear her) the lady got out of her car and started trying to prostelytize her right there in the drive through lane!!!
I was amazed at the brazen attitude of this woman...I'm all for being enthusiastic about your religion and giving a word or two to a person who needs it...but to do it in the drive through?? I have no idea what the heck she was thinking....but I bet she won't be doing that again anytime soon......
I am going to be a complete basketcase for the next 18-24 hours, so I plan on saying this several times during that period ~~~
Come Holy Spirit of Love and Peace,
we long for your healing touch.
On September 11, 2001,
our country was scarred
by hatred and revenge...
we long for your healing touch.
Hearts were broken and lives were lost,
and fear and anger prevailed...
we long for your healing touch.
Awaken in us, Holy Spirit,
a deep and respectful remembrance...
that you are a God of love, not hatred,
that you are a God of forgiveness, not revenge,
that you are a God of peace, not war.
Remembering these things, we ask you to
bless our country and all those defending
its ideals of freedom and liberty
and bring them safely home.
May your gifts of peace, love and forgiveness
transform our hatred, anger and fear,
so that peace on earth will be possible once again.
Come, Holy Spirit of Love and Peace,
we long for your healing touch.
Amen.
I'm signing up to become a Stampin Up! Demonstrator. I finally just decided that I will have a good customer base in my area and it will be so much fun to stamp with my friends. I have enough room here at the house that once the new family room is finished I can hold classes here or stamp camps. This is going to be such fun!!! I'm really excited...
Where ya don't wanna wake up
Everything is fucked, everybody sucks.
You don't really know why
But you wanna justify rippin' someone's head off
anyone else like Limp Bizkit?? I know ... old school .... bad language .... but as long as my kids aren't listening to it (and repeating it as they of course would at the most inopertune moment) ... it's not that bad.
But back to the topic...
Ever have one of those days?? I seem to be having them more and more often. No rhyme or reason, I just want to be able to tell everyone to go to hell. I end up acting like a complete bitch and piss off everyone around me.
My day will only get better when that happens, right?
Yeah, right...........
Maybe tomorrow will be a better day....
I have had so many people ask me how I mount my Stampin Up! stamps since I don't use the wood mounts that come with them.
The stamps come with the foam cushion already attached to the rubber. When I get my stamps I apply the image sticker to the foam cushion and then trim my stamp.
After I have trimmed the stamp I then coat the foam side with Aleene's Tack It Over and Over adhesive. This allows the stamp to be placed on an acrylic mount time after time without losing the tack on the stamp.
I also use CD jewel cases for storage for my stamp sets. I am able to see the stamp images through the cases and I also use the box labels on the cases so I can easily flip through my cases when they are stored to find the sets that I am looking for.
This makes storage so much simpler when you don't have a ton of space for all those stamp sets you just couldn't pass by. I love SU! stamps...I just don't have the space to accomodate all the wood that comes along with them.
Hope this helps explain the way I mount my stamps. If you have any questions feel free to send me an email!!
Two Preschool aged sons.
That about says it all doesn't it??
**eta***
yes...I know that I didn't say "Free to a GOOD home"... we figure why should we send them to a good home? To let them know what they've been missing all these years? I think not!!
tiring...but great nonetheless.
My daughter and her adoptive dad came down for the weekend. It was the first time in 3 years that we have seen them. She is so big...I can't beleive that she's 12 already. It seems like just a little while ago that I was pregnant with her.
It's amazing to see the similarities between her and the TTs....they not only look alike but they act alike. 
They all have the same eyes...and the same nose. My best friend told me I must be able to only make one kind of baby...cause they are all the same.
We went downtown and fed the ducks for a while...went swimming...checked out the botanical gardens...it was fun. Just spending time together and letting the kids get to know each other. Now the boys are looking for her and she's gone...how to you explain adoption to a preschooler? It's going to be a long week.....
A group of gals from church and I went to Applebee's yesterday for lunch. We got there just as they opened at 11 since some of us have preschoolers who have to get picked up at 1. So we are up for a nice leisurely lunch without the kids and some grown up talk.
About halfway through lunch the discussion turned to the teacher gifts that we sent our kids in with. It was fairly amusing that we all 4 sent our boys in with waterless hand sanitizer for the classrooms. Who knew that we were all on the same wavelength...
Anyways...from that I commented on the fact that my boys are simply walking breathing petri dishes and they need to be sanitized on an almost hourly basis...then my one friend started talking about when she was in college and working in the microbiology lab...
when suddenly the table behind us gathered up their menus and drinks and asked to be seated elsewhere.... Well I NEVAH!!!
in all the times that we have had our boys (all 8 of them and 2 girls thrown in for good measure) with us for lunches out...we have never had another table actually move away from us.
Now we know that it's not the kids that are the unruly ones....
