Going to the Chapel

Well, it's happenened. Hell hath frozen over. I'm getting married. Wait just one minute...did I just agree to marry somebody? Does this mean I have to shave my legs more often? Do I have to share my hard earned money ? Do I have to let someone else in on my NASCAR Sundays? Do I have to take his feelings into consideration before purchasing the giant purple daisy bedspread? I think I might be sick...

My Student Council Star

Anakin got voted into Student Council! She is so proud. She ran last year but didn't get enough votes. She was of course, disappointed, but tried again. She was walking around the house practicing her speech for days. I think I could have rehearsed it by memory after about the 3rd day. I am so proud. She thinks it's cool that she started student council in the same grade that I was in. She has quite the social calendar already. She is in basketball 3 mornings a week, and student council meetings every Tuesday, and she is in the yearbook club one day a week after school. Akira also keeps herself busy at school. There have been a few notes sent home about her talking in class. When I ask her about it this has been her reply: "But Mommy, my friends and I don't have enough time to talk to each other!" Any ideas? This is going to come as quite a shock to some of you...she is in Art and Drama Club!!! Who'd ever guess?! Only anyone who has known her for at least 20 seconds! My dad has been warning me about her since she was about 3 months old. She got a guitar for Christmas and is absolutely loving it. Most days she can be found on our front porch with her piggy bank next to her, trying to earn tips! Seriously.

Elijah Bleu

6! My baby is 6. I feel as if he is leaving for college! If I close my eyes for just a tad too long, he will be gone. On the other hand, he still thinks he's going to marry his mommy when he grows up, so maybe I have a little more time. We didn't really have a party. I didn't feel like I had the energy to pull it off. Eli invited one friend, Ben, and we went to McDonald's. This was a bigger treat than it sounds, because usually if we go to McD's its only the drive thru and only the dollar menu. All the kids got Happy Meals and we sat inside and played for about two hours. The kids had fun, I left with a headache- signs of a good party! Mom flew into town that weekend so that was nice. Ben also had a birthday that weekend so we went to his party at Casa Bonita. It was the same day as the Bronco playoff game, so that was really fun, watching people steal glances at their watches. Had to get home in time for the game!!! If you ask Eli how old he is now, he will tell you "I'm almost 7!"

Happy New Year

I almost forgot to wish everyone a Happy New Year! I hope everyone had fun and was safe. After 5 years, Hoss and I actually got to ring in the New Year together for once. It was fun. I'm ready to take 2006 by the horns and wrestle this baby to the ground. Have set some goals, nothing with too high of expectations. I've already given up all my vices, so there isn't too much left. Unless of course anyone has some ideas, feel free to not weigh in. Here is the list:

1. This year I will read 5 more books then I did last year.
2. I will let down my guard, well maybe just lower it a little.
3. I will put laundry away as it is finished, no more digging through baskets.
4. I will take serious steps towards owning, not renting.
5. I will not go over my cell phone minutes.
6. I will be a better friend, no more hermit-ism.
7. I will continue to pray for my Dad's salvation.
8. I will volunteer less.
9. I will take a vacation.
10. I will get my Christmas cards out on time.

Happy New Year!!!!!!!

Graves Disease

Well, all the test results are in and my vampire doctor has had enough. I've been told I have Graves Disease. This is not a life-threatening disease, unless it goes untreated. This affects about 1% of the population, mostly women in childbearing years. The shoe fits. I have been studying Graves disease, and I've got to be honest, I'm a little relieved. It's nice to know I haven't been going crazy for the past few years. All the signs and symptoms are like reading a story of my life. I am on some new medication that is "helping" the symptoms. It makes me very nauseous. Imagine morning sickness x 10! So if you see me walking around with a bag of Saltines, don't worry. This is the 2nd auto-immune disease I've been diagnosed with in 2 years, so I am now seeing an Endocronologist. Also have learned how to take my own blood pressure, and I take my temp daily (orally of course). I have been taking 10 pills everyday, this is to prep my body for a Radioactive Iodine treatment that will basically kill off my thyroid and then I will be on Thyroid medicine for the rest of my life. I would like to investigate this procedure further before I consent to it. My new Dr would like to have this done within the next 6 weeks. So just thought I'd send an update. All is well on the homefront, the kids are getting real good at making their own dinner. Just kidding, kinda. Love and kisses to everyone.

Ashes of my ex-husband

I absolutely can't stand it when I get mail at my house addressed to my ex! A small thing I know, but still, it bugs me. That man has never lived here. This is MY home that I have made since my life with him ended. These stinkin companies that throw all this bulk junk mail into any old mailbox, they need to stop sending it to mine. Hey, send me all the junk mail you want, I've invested in a shredder- but it better be addressed to me, me, me. Nothing pisses me off more than the very thought of that man. As Hoss tells me 'Better to be pissed off then pissed on'. I've been told it's because I haven't forgiven him. Not so. I just can't stand when the bad guy wins. Stupidity should be painful, if you ask me.

Student of the Week

Anakin is student of the week in her class. She gets lots of special privileges at school. She took a collage of pictures of herself to show at school. It was fun looking at all the pictures with her and reminiscing. She was such a tiny baby and looked like she would never make it. Sometimes I look at her and she looks so small then with another glance she looks so mature and grown up.
She has a report on Mexico due on Friday, she is working hard and enjoying studying where our family came from. She and I are going to attempt to make my Grandma's tortillas. They don't turn out very well here, Grandma says its the altitude, yeah, we'll go with that.

Ah, the Power of Google

Fresh from a Google search: The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland you can feel at the base of your neck, just below your Adam's apple. Two lobes (the "wings" of the butterfly) fit on either side of your windpipe. Impairment of thyroid function affects about 2% of adult women and about 0.1% to 0.2% of adult men in North America.
These are just some of the many symptoms I found -
-decreased interest in daily activities
-concentration difficulties
-sleep disturbances
-reduced sexual interest.
Aha! Perhaps this is the explanation about why I have had insomnia for 4 years now. Damn you, thyroid!

The Not So Gentle reminders

I received a phone call Saturday morning from Texas. The second I saw the # on my caller ID, I knew something was wrong, otherwise they wouldn't be calling me. My sister's ex-husband was killed in a car accident. He was out Christmas shopping for his kids, (my niece and nephew) and apparently was going too fast for the icy road conditions. He ran into a phone pole and was killed instantly. His aunt called me and told me the news and asked that I be the one to tell my sister. I've never had to do something like this before, especially not from 1500 miles away. Stacey is the strongest person I know. She takes whatever S!*% comes and does what needs to be done. She is the strong one, not me. That was absolutely the hardest phone call I've ever had to place. And just like I thought, she heard the news and was ready to deal. She was only worried about how to tell her 2 kids. Kelen is 5 and Nevaeh is 3. Kelen took it pretty hard, and V (I call her V) doesn't understand. She is too young. I don't understand this stuff. Somebody please explain. Robert was so young, and just beginning to turn his life around. He had become sober and just got a new job and a new house, Stacey was getting child support on a regular basis. He had a conversation with his Aunt recently and was so proud that this was the first Christmas he "was gonna do right for his kids." Why is he gone? I know it's not a given that we understand Gods timing or reasoning, but COME ON! You've got to be kidding, what sense does this make? I'm at such a loss. The only thing that seems to come of all this is the reminder to be thankful, so thankful for my health and life, and the health and joy of my children and to love on the people in my life that mean so much to me.

Kaiser P- My hero

I have health insurance, I have health insurance! I feel like singing that from the rooftop. I haven't had coverage since E was born and it feels so good. Apparently it came at just the right time. I had some blood work done and some of the lab results came back not exactly picture perfect. A couple of #'s were lower than should be. I've gone in 3 different times now to give blood and quite frankly I feel like I don't have any more blood to give- I suspect my doctor is some type of undercover vampire. So I'm being sent to the Radiology department next week to have an MRI done on my thyroid. What exactly is a thyroid and is this what my vampire doctor is trying to get at? But- I can strut right into that Radiology dept and whip out that pretty little insurance card. I love my job that gives me health insurance. I love that I am overall healthy, and I love that I can Google "Thyroid" and get the answers I am looking for.

Akira's Birthday

I can't believe Akira is 7 years old already! You blink and time is gone. We had a party at home. We made sundaes and played karaoke. Too many little girls spent the night. I slept downstairs on the couch and well past 1 a.m. I could hear little giggles from upstairs. Boy was I tired the next day, we all were actually. It's always so neat to see my kids interacting with their friends. All of my kids are definitely leaders not followers. Now gotta prepare for E's party. At least he is too young for a sleepover!

I miss my Dad and Sissy

My dad is recovering great! I miss him tremendously. I'm still mad that I couldn't move out there, but it seems like it has worked out for the best, considering he is improving faster then anyone expected. His physical therapist says he is a star pupil. I wonder what it would be like if he lived here. The only thing I think would be weird is holidays. But it would probably be no different than when I was married and had to split holidays between his family and mine. It wasn't so bad. Stacey seems to be doing good out there, and Kelen really likes his school. I miss her too. I hope she comes back after Dad is 100% again. Dad will celebrate his 53rd birthday this Friday. What an old man!

Teenage drivers

I fell asleep watching movies at my parents house the other night. The kids were all crashed, so I figured it was easier to just stay the night than to load all the sleeping banshees into the car. My eyes felt like sandpaper so I had to go home to get my contact lens case and stuff. Chelsey has her drivers permit so she drove. She has had it for a while now, but has just recently started driving with me. Am I that old? Please, don't answer that. I remember her just being born yesterday. A little frightening. She does really well, but it tends to bring out the control freak in me. I imagine it comes out in anyone riding as passenger with a teenager. Gotta love the airbrake! We've only had one slightly scary, life flashing before my eyes incident. I remember my mom teaching me to drive. After one lesson we both raced into the house only to shout in unison "I'll never drive with her again!" Dad did the remainder of driving lessons. I better have a significant other by time my kids are driving age, I don't think I can handle it alone. They are great backseat drivers already, imagine them with a permit. More gray hairs - fun!

Thanksgiving 2005

Well, my plan for Thanksgiving didn't quite work out. I just wanted to stay in my p.j.'s, not shower, and watch some movies, maybe put up Christmas decorations. Heather and Angie invited me down to the Springs to celebrate with their family. Not really in the mood for other people lately, you know? I'm fast on my way to becoming a hermit. I love that family a lot, but it gets complicated. I didn't want to drive down there only to get the hairy eyeball from Hoss. One of these days he and I will finally work things out. But he has to be speaking to me for that to happen :) We ended up going to Mom and Dad's about 6:30. Had a nice time. Aunt Lin was there, yea!. We played Cranium and surprising my team lost. Hard. Very disappointing. So, I'm not that good at charades. Simone was there with her fiance and future brother-in-law, got to hear a little about their upcoming wedding. Dad seemed very happy to have her there, and hey- there was no bloodshed between anyone! Everyone gave 2 things we were each Thankful for. Anakin was thankful for Jesus and the Bible, Akira was thankful for her Mommy and her Daddy, and E was thankful for outer space and Emily. We watched Christmas with the Kranks, everybody laughed hysterically. I thought it was cute, but certainly not going to watch it again. My favorite holiday movie is Home for the Holidays. Really gets me prepped for the season. Can't wait to put up my Christmas lights. Going to put some outside this year. The kids want all blue, I'm not so sure about that. Much rather stick with plain old white lights. They are my favorite. They look just like twinkling stars, especially when they are covered in snow. I love staying up late, just looking at those lights. So peaceful.

A Bakers' Dozen

Heather invited me to a cookie exchange. My first one, I've finally arrived. It does make me wonder though...Does she know me at all? I can't bake. I CAN'T BAKE. I have to bake 5 dozen cookies and take 20 copies of the recipe with me to this event. After a frantic phone call to Stacey,(and the explanation of the difference between Cream of Tartar and Tartar Sauce) I've got the confidence to do this. Just the girls and I are going so I let E help me with the baking tonight. He doesn't understand why it's a girls only get-together. I don't understand either. All the men in our lives will help eat the cookies, why shouldn't they help exchange the cookies? I'm supposed to share why I chose this special recipe. Should I say I chose it simply because I had all the ingredients already in my cupboards? Great, my first exchange and I'm going to be kicked out. Can't wait to see how this turns out.

The Concert Event of the Year

All day last Saturday, Anakin shamelessly begged me to call our local radio station to win Clay Aiken tickets. As I was dialing the phone # to the radio station, I had a feeling we were going to win. We won. Ana couldn't sleep the night before, she was so excited. Except for getting stranded downtown after the show, we had a lot of fun together. She's a cool little girl. It was definitely an experience. We didn't get home until 2 a.m., but she got up for school the next morning. We got to go backstage afterwards for autographs and pictures with him. I said to Anakin "It's our turn, lets take our picture with him." She said right back to me, without even blinking- "No Mom, I'll just have my own picture with him" Hmmm...