Pre Holiday shopping!

The stores were crazy today. The grocery stores I mean.

I tried to get all of my shopping done early, but inevitably there are always a few things we miss, so off to the grocery store we went. It was not too bad before noon, but man oh man, after 12:00 the roads and stores were getting wild. People not pay9ing attention while driving, in a hurry to get somewhere, etc. Road rage was rampant, and the grocery stores were packed.

I am very fortunate that I was able to stay home this afternoon, while my partner hunted for candy corn for our Turkeys to no avail. There was no candy corn to be found, so we will have to make featherless oreo turkeys tomorrow. I bet they all get eaten, even without feathers.

So it is bedtime for me, so I can get some rest before my 6 am wake up call to start baking yeast rolls and cinnamon rolls.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Will I continue?

So we are winding down to the final days of NaBloPoMo. I have only missed two days of blogging this month. I have had lots of great feedback. AND I have really enjoyed blogging. It is "cheap therapy" as some of my friends put it.

The questions is, will I continue. They say if you do something continually for 30 days it becomes a habit. I don;t know if I will blog every day from now on, but I have noticed that during the day while doing my errands, or sitting at my computer or working when I have an interesting idea, the next thought is : "I should blog about that."

I guess we will have to wait and see if a habit was formed.

Turkey Day Treats!!

While the adults (some of us) are watching football, the other adults are going to help the kids make these yummy treats:

You will need the following:

Double Stuff Oreos (2 per turkey)
Small Reeses' Peanut Butter Cups (1)
Whoppers (1)
Candy Corn
White Frosting
Black Frosting

First place your peanut butter cups in the fridge. They will cut cleaner cold. Then take an Oreo and carefully separate one of the cookies from the frosting. Gently press the pointed tips of 6 candy corns around one half of the Oreo. Take some white frosting and cover the frosting and re-attach the cookie.

Now, take the second oreo and lay it flat on the table. Pick up your Oreo with the candy corn and put some icing on the bottom of the oreo opposite from the candy corn and attach the Oreo onto the flat oreo so that it is on the back half. Prop the stuck together Oreos against a book or a wall to hold it up while the icing dries. If it does not stand up well, add some more icing.

Now take a cold peanut butter cup and cut a small section off of it so that it will have a flat side. Place some frosting on the flat section and the top of the peanut butter cup and attach it to the Oreo with the candy corn so that it becomes the body of the turkey.

Take the Whopper and put icing on the back side of it. Attach it so that it is right on top of the peanut butter cup and iced to the Oreo and Whopper. Add two drops of white icing for the eyes and a smaller drop of the black for the pupil.

For the wings, I cut the very tip of a candy corn and glued a wing on both sides of the peanut butter cup. For the feet, you can use the same tip you cut off when making your wings. Let dry for about 20 minutes before handling.

These would be so cute to give to a friend, child or neighbor. They would also be really cute holding a name place card for your Thanksgiving Dinner. You could just put the name card behind the candy corn on the top of the turkey. So cute and easy!

Random

So I like blogging. It is a way to get random things out of my mind. To write about mundane, ordinary things that I think many of us experience. I started blogging in earnest last November during NaBloPoMo when my friend Patti told me about it. My brother had died just a few months prior to that (April 14, 2009), and I was still in deep grief. Blogging helped me have a safe place I could write about what I was feeling. If anyone read it, that was fine, but it was for me, not for anyone else.

I have blogged about Brian a few times, my friends a few times, but mostly my blogging is just random. I sit in front of my computer and try to think about something to write. My wise friend Patti says I could try taking a shower or going for a drive. Usually random thoughts will come to you during those moments of solitude, and give you something to write about.

I have an ADHD brain, so there are always lots of thoughts in there, but sometimes I cannot latch onto just one. Even as I am typing now, I keep thinking of random things that pop into my mind. Maybe one day I will just type the thoughts that pop into my head. My brain can be a scary place, and the random things that float around in there may surprise you. Then again, maybe other people's brains work like that too. I can only inhabit mine, so I don't know how other brains work.

Last night when K was coming home from picking her daughter up from work, she said there was a bad one car accident on Respass beach road. She said the ambulance on the scene had put down flares in the Northern Shores Elementary School parking lot to mark a helipad for a life flight. Sure enough within 5 minutes we heard the helicopter approaching and watched it land in the school parking lot. About 10 minutes later it took off, and headed in the direction of Norfolk, I assume to Sentara Hospital. We didn't see anything about it in the news today, so I wonder what happened. If anyone knows anything, please let me know.

My chosen family

So my amazing friend Melissa H will have a birthday on Wednesday so we took her out for her birthday. By we I mean the wonderful people who have become like family to me. A.F., S.F., J.H., N.H., R.M., M.M., M.R., J.R., C.T., D.T. and of course the birthday girl and her man M.H. and N.H.

We moved into our neighborhood in June 2006. We did not know anybody in the neighborhood. We didn't know anyone in Suffolk for that matter. My partner K and I bought a house together and blended our families to make one family. We were the only two mom family that we knew, and we were definitely the only blended two mom family we knew of. We met S and A (with their two adorable twins) for dinner, and then we knew another two mom blended family. They were well established in our neighborhood and we have always felt indebted to them for "paving the way" in our neighborhood and local Elementary school.

S. and A. invited us oi a party at their house, and through them we met MR. and JR., and JH and NH. They accepted us without question, and we felt like we were immediately accepted into their fold. Through J&N we met MH and NH when they moved back to the neighborhood, and through MR and JR we met MM and RM. AF and SF 's son M was friends with CT and DT's son T and our son B became friends with those two boys.

Through the get togethers at A&S's house a family was made. There are 7 families in this tight knit group, with a total of 21 children ranging in age from 18 to 3. We see each other at least monthly, usually to celebrate birthdays!

It started out as family gatherings where we always had all the children with us. However, the children have gotten older over the past four years, (as children do), and now the older ones can babysit for the younger ones, and we have started having outings with adults only.

These are the people I choose to share my life with, my children with. We laugh together and cry together. We are helping each other raise our children. We complain about our spouses and toast their accomplishments. Some of the friendships within the group span decades, and some are more recent, but whenever we get together it is a wonderful time filled with love and joy.

We are born into a family, which we do not get to choose, and they are our family for life. Most of them we love, some we do not, but we are stuck with them like it or not.

However, sometimes in life we are blessed with amazing friends who become our family and this is the family we choose. We surround ourselves with their love, compassion, wisdom, and sorrows. We swap recipes, hand me down clothing and sometimes our kids. We support each other through good times and bad, and we love each other enough to be honest, even when it hurts.

I am the most blessed because I have these amazing men and women in my life. Thank you Melissa, Nelson, Angie, Sammy, Joell, Neil, Rikki, Merle, Charlene, David, Mindy and Jay for sharing the journey with me. You all are amazing people, and I love you all tremendously!! And especially thank you to my beautiful K for being the most amazing, loving, considerate, thoughtful, forgiving, and wonderful person I could ever hope to share my life with!!

Amish Friendship bread

I was too tired to blog last night, and I am so tired tonight.

It would be easy to say, hey I missed last night, so why keep going> Why keep blogging,? I am running out of ideas anyway.

But I shall persevere and blog anyway.
Tonight my friend Jenesci came over to help me bake Amish Friendship bread. I am baking bread to sell at a church Bazaar in December, and to give to teachers and friends for Holiday gifts. Tonight we made pumpkin cream cheese. It is a pumpkin bread with a cream cheese filling.

Tomorrow we need to finish the dough from today. I think we will make vanilla, vanilla with Chocolate chips and maybe some chocolate and double chocolate.

I used to make mini loaves and large loaves, but the large loaves never really sold, and the minis are the big seller, so we are going to make minis. I did make my partner a batch of pumpkin cream cheese muffins also. (that will save on the Starbucks bill). lol

If anyone is interested in purchasing any of the loaves, just let me know. I sell them for $3.00 each or 3 for $5.00. I can deliver locally to your home, or ship at your cost. The available flavors are:

Pumpkin
Pumpkin with Cream cheese filling
Chocolate
Choc with choc chips
Vanilla
Vanilla with choc chips
Banana
Banana with choc chips
Lemon
Pistachio
Cheesecake bread

I think that is all the kinds I usually make.

Do whales need sunscreen?

I had to blog for my Biology 101 lab today. 
This is what I blogged:

Research published in the "Proceedings of the Royal Society B" this week shows that whales exhibit skin damage that is the same as acute sunburn in humans. The research also shows that this skin damage from the sun is getting worse over time.

Scientists from Britain have been studying the effects of the sun on blue whales, fin whales and sperm whales in the Gulf of California. They are trying to determine how rising levels of Ultraviolet Radiation (UVR) arer affecting the whales.

It is possible that the depletion of the ozone levels, or a change in cloud cover is to blame for the rising UVR index, and the blisters that are appearing on the skin of the whales.

The scientists also found that sun damage was worse in the paler skinned blue whales, compared to that of the darker skinned whales.

The next phase of their research will examine the genes, and see if the whales genetic makeup is evolving to respond to the sun damage by increasing their natural sun protection mechanisms.

I think this research is important because as with humans, sun damage can lead to skin cancer, most of which is not lethal, however it can be unsightly and painful. Melanoma of course is a deadly form of skin cancer caused by sun damage to the skin. Whales are an important part of the Earth's Ecosystem, and protecting them in all ways is important.

Bloggers Block

So I have only missed one day of blogging. I am starting to have bloggers block. I am running out of things to blog about. I feel very boring today. I am very tired. If you are wondering why, read my blog from yesterday. I only had a few hours to myself this weekend. It seems like I spent more time in my car going from event to event, than I spent at home.

Guitar lessons, church events, working, C.A.R. meeting, church, bean soup sale, Mentor lunch.....I think that is it. No Boy Scout camping events this weekend. Oh I forgot school. How could I forget the Philosophy class I hate so much??? Maybe the hate moved me towards forgetfulness.

So I am hoping I have something more interesting to write about tomorrow.

Sickly....

I was really not feeling well today. I went to dinner at Olive Garden last night, and felt fine. About 3 hours after dinner, I felt bloated and queasy. When I went to bed I had heartburn all night, and felt like my stomach was full.
I took a prilosec at about 4 am, but still had heartburn. I woke up feeling full and queasy, and felt that way almost all day.

I thought maybe it was the food, but came to realize I must have a bug of some kind. I took a long nap this afternoon, and woke up feeling as though I could sleep 4 more hours.

Not to be. I had lots of things to do for both of my jobs, and it couldn't wait, so I sucked it up and sent emails, called patients, worked on Excel spreadsheets etc.

Now that the work is done, I am feeling a bit better, but I am going to go back to bed because tomorrow is a VERY full day, and I don't have time for illness.

This makes me go "Hmmmmmmm"

Not much to write about today. It was busy and boring. I worked, and worked, and took my kid to acting class, did some homework, ate dinner, played on the computer.

See nada exciting. Wait, there was one thing that piqued my curiosity...something that made me go "Hmmmmm"...

My 13 year old. He makes me go Hmmmm frequently. 13 is a tough age. Too old to be a baby, too young to get to do much, just right at the verge of major teenaged angst....a difficult tine for kids and their adults.

So my 8th grade 13 year old has this problem with his homework. Now before you go jumping to any conclusions, I will tell you that he DOES his homework. He does it on time, he does it well, and he writes so beautifully. So what is the problem you ask??? Well, the problem is my 13 year old 8th grader NEVER turns it in to the teachers!!!!!

I have had to threaten him on more than one occasion to show up at school, and help him clean out his locker to find his papers. That always does the trick. Can you imagine the horror and utter dread my kid has that his MOTHER might show up at school?? GOD FORBID!! I am like his teddy bear.... loved but best hidden in the public eye. (and for those of you who might read this and know my kid, he does not have a teddy bear). I will deny deny deny...

I am hoping that all of my yelling until I am hoarse will have a positive impact on something other than my doctr bill, and he will get his head screwed on straight and do better next semester at school. We shall see.

I may just show up at school just because. Do youthink I should show up in my slippers with curlers in my hair? Or nasty sweat oants and my makeup smeared? Which will mortify the kid the most??

Just sayin'......

School Days

So I decided to go back to college this past August. I tried to get into Old Dominion University, but I started the process late in the game, and could not get all of my transcripts there in time. Not to be defeated, I was able to enroll in Tidewater Community College, and get started in classes.

I decided to take Biology 101 with a lab and Philosophy 101. I thought to myself...Philosophy...how hard can that be...I should be able to ace that class.

Was I about to be surprised!! Philosophy is HARD!! It s kicking my butt!! I read the textbook, and listen to the recorded lecture done by my professor, but when I go to take my weekly online quiz I do horribly. I really think it is because the questions are in the double negative alot, and they confuse me. I understand the concepts, and sort of enjoy the class, but those quizzes do me in every week. I will be stoked if I get a "C" in the class. It will bring down my GPA, but at least I won't have to pay an money back to the VA.

Speaking of which I am using my Post 911 G.I. Bill money to go to school. That is an amazing program. I want to thank Senator Jim Webb for working so had to get that passed. I take online classes and the VA pays for my tuition and gives me a monthly stipend. I will get that for 36 months of school. That should be enough to finish my bachelor's degree.

I am doing well in my Biology class and my Biology Lab, but that darn Philosophy class is killing me. No more philosophy for me. I only have a few more weeks and I will be done with it thank goodness.

Next semester I think I will take Anatomy & Physiology, as well as a math class. Hopefully I can transfer to ODU in the fall of 2011, to complete my degree. Psychology Major and Women's Studies minor.

Does it count??

So does it still count if it is not midnight in the central time zone yet? And what about tomorrow when we set back our clocks?

Can I blog one minute after we set back the clocks? Will the time fly back an hour so it will actually be 59 minutes before the deadline??

So many questions! So much confusion. Could I have blogged by 12:00 am tonight? Probably, but I had a date, and that took precedence. I guess I could have blogged earlier in the evening, but I had to make an unexpected trip to Norfolk Naval Base to help a friend, and then I wanted to spend some time with a fabulous young lady for some girl time. I don't have any daughters of my own, so I borrow one now and then from a friend. :-)

So the bottom line is I missed my 12:00 am deadline to blog on November 5th. I guess I am just going to ignore that failure and try to blog every day for the month of November regardless of this hiccup.
I know you are all waiting with bated breath for my next blog, and are on the edge of your seat with anticipation about the question of the missing Halloween candy....

It really must have been Not Me, or I didn't do it that is the culprit because the candy has still not been found ANYWHERE. I wonder if my kids' school friends got to enjoy the candy. Was it passed out there? Who knows?? Oh I know who knows.....Not Me, that's who.

The case of the Missing Halloween candy.......

So my 11 year old went trick-or treating on Halloween night. He is the youngest of 4 siblings, and the only one young enough to still go get candy. We actually have a law in our town that makes it illegal to trick-or treat after age 12.

So anyway, the boy put in his costume, and went around the neighborhood looking for some tasty treats.

He came home with his pillow case of candy, and started to evenly divide it in 5 groups, one for each of his sibs, himself, and me. :-)

Today I couldn't find my candy bag. All of the kids have finished their candy, and mine was not yet touched. It somehow mysteriously disappeared from my bedroom today.

Of course each one of my kids has denied taking the bag o' yummies, but I don't believe them. tomorrow a comprehensive exhausting search will ensue, and the jury of his or her peers will decide what happens to the one found guilty of the pilfering.

Stay tuned....this is not over yet.....

Sick of drama

So I live in a house with my partner, 4 kids, 5 animals and a 18 year old. My 18 year old Step daughter thinks it is okay to treat us however she chooses (usually badly), and not do chores, or help out in any way. She is still in high school, so there is no option of helping her to move out on her own at this time
Sometimes I think she thinks she is a fairy princess and we are her slaves. It is our duty to provide food, shelter, electricity, heat, air conditioning, cable and internet for her pleasure. We are to do all of the household chores for her, and let her come and go as she pleases. And because we are such loyal slaves, she will occasionally bestow a smile or a than you upon us which we are to eagerly and gratefully accept, much like a starving dog accepts a bone.
She will usually speak to her mother in a snotty surly tone, but every now and then she will be kind and there is a glimpse of that sweet little girl with the sparkling eyes, quick laugh and happy smile. Those glimpses are few and far between these days, and we grow weary waiting for them.
People say, "oh, that is just how teenagers are". I refuse to accept that. I have three other kids that live in my house. They don't act as if the world owes them something. They do chores and happily participate in our family.

So the bottom line is I have to wait until July 2011 to help her move out on her own, and then my partner will spend months holding her daughter's hand as she navigates the world on adult terms. We try to teach her now while she still lives in our home, but she refuses to learn anything. We are stupid, and don't know anything. so we have nothing of value to teach her.

I suppose this too shall come to be a distant memory, but while living with it, life is difficult at best. I take comfort in the fact that we are not the only parent that have ever had to deal with issues like this, and we will survive.

NABLOPOMO

Okay, so I attempted this last year.  You know the National Blog Posting Month---which is what the rest of us refer to as November.

I tried this last year, but I missed a day or two, and then it was all she wrote, I was no longer eligible to win a prize.  And I was done.  After all, if you can't win a prize, what is the point of blogging every day?? 

I blogged alot more last year.  I blogged before the month of November, but not so much since then.  I have had LOTS of interesting things happen to me, but I guess I haven't really felt like blogging much.  So today begins my journey into the world of blog for a month.  A world of trying to be witty, or funny, or interesting or informative.  Hopefully.  I guess some blogs will just be plain boring.  Sorry.

Today is the first.  Welcome to Carol's NABLOPOMO>>>  :-)

Words from my friend P.

I SHALL PASS THROUGH THIS WORLD BUT ONCE. ANY GOOD THAT I CAN DO OR ANY KINDESS THAT I CAN SHOW TO ANY HUMAN BEING LET ME DO IT NOW. LET ME NOT DEFER OR NEGLECT IT, FOR I SHALL NOT PASS THIS WAY AGAIN.  


My friend P.  sent that to me.  I like it.  I would like to live that way.  I try.  I am not always successful.


More blogging soon.  Now I am wiped out emotionally.  My kids will be home from school soon.  They deserve a mother who is available to them.  Available physically.  Available mentally. Available emotionally.  Every kid deserves no less. I need to get ready to receive them with unconditional love.