Making an Offer...

Yes, folks, you read correctly...this is it! Eric and I went to see the house for a second time this morning, no children to distract us, and we loved it even more than the first time! There are plenty of little things that need our attention, but nothing major...well, except that pesky little problem of needing to refinish ALL of the cabinetry in the kitchen, baths, and laundry room. Other than that, it's a great place with minor issues! Again, it is a gorgeous 2,700 square foot home on three acres, nestled tidily between two "mountains..." more like hills really, but who's gonna' notice or care? There is a small creek running on the back side of the property and the neighbor on the back side has a small cattle operation...mooing and poo smell...just like when I was a kid! Ahhhhh!

I am a little concerned, however, about the new places I've spotted for spiders to weave their nasty webs of deception. You may wonder what in the world I'm talking about...it's those HUGE spiders that build their webs from the corner of a home's roof all the way down to the ground, sprawling and spreading out like the whole of a person's porch or driveway is theirs for the lounging. Then, unsuspecting children (or not-cautious-enough adults) amble through the spider's newly-claimed territory and BAM! Next thing you know, you're flailing and swinging arms about, clawing at the sticky web now seemingly permanently attached to your face and body, praying that the hairy monster somehow managed to crawl away...or get smashed in the flailing. Oh, well, at least that's how it goes whenever I go outside in the dark of summer evenings. Seriously, I have a standing rule...never go outside after dark in the spring, summer, or fall...spiders. ICK!

I'm thinking that I may have to do some serious investigating about irradicating arachnids because when I looked out across the beautiful property this morning, I was thinking what a splendid view it had, and would love to sit on the porch, sipping cocoa, taking it all in. And that's when the spider thoughts came creeping in...no pun intended. I want to be able to enjoy what's around me...not just hide out inside for fear of God's hateful, awful- though mosquito-eating- creepy, crawly creatures.
A can of Raid and a baseball bat will be a good start, but I may need something more powerful and permanent!

Anyway, wish us luck and continue to pray. We have to negotiate an acceptable price...their asking price just ain't gonna' cut it! We hope to close by the end of March and do some repairs before moving in April...

Whew...So Much Going On...

I'm a bad blogger...so much for treating it like a journal, right? Oh, I did...I dropped the journal thing, too, 'cause I always forgot to write in it! :0)

Anyway, we've been super busy getting together a t-ball team over at St. Paul and we've got a possibility for a new home! YEAH! It has three acres and a huge kitchen and I just LOVE it! I don't want to say too much for fear of jinxing myself the way I always do, but just please pray for our family. It's getting old flushin money down the toilet for rent on property we'll never own. And, my boys just need room to roam, and romp, and play! Hopefully, this is the one that qualifies for "something better will come along." I tend to get really down in the dumps when we find something, go to look at it, and then there are too many overhead power lines, or maybe the land lies low and stays wet, or who knows what else.

On a totally different note, my nanny has colitis, enflames and irritated colon. She and my mother were at the ER until four this morning. Now there's a pair that could use some prayer! Seriously, they're both tuckered out and Nanny needs thoughts and prayers. All of this and she's got to have her gall bladder out, too!

Oh, and Braden lost a marble at school Monday for cutting up the bear he was supposed to cut out. There were no details, just a long sentence he had to copy about not cutting up his work and then his father and I have to sign and return...guess I'd better get on that. It's already Wednesday. I know what happened, though. He is JUST like me! Cutting, cutting, cutting, BOOM! Bear loses a paw. Braden gets frustrated, escalates to madness, and the bear loses its head! Not to mention the other three paws. And, he gives up so easily. Poor bear...found the pieces in his folder last night. What was his teacher thinking? Like I didn't believe he did it? I know I don't want the left-overs...I trashed 'em and didn't mention it to Braden. Poor bear? Poor baby...

JESSICA

Jessica,
Thanks for the comment! I have tried and tried to get to your page and no luck. Please email me your blog address at my hotmail! :0)
S

Today is Friend Making Monday over at meetthemcfamily.com. Here goes...

jog or walk: Walk, but briskly
coffee or tea: Iced tea
pepsi or coca cola: Neither. I absolutely don't drink cola...if it's an emergency (no other choice, I drink clear soda only).
flats or heels: Heels! I love towering over those pesky jr. high kids...
fries or onion rings: Onion rings, but only from Cheddars. Otherwise, bring on the fries!
cats or dogs: Dogs, but I don't have either one.
skim or whole: Skim...can't wait 'till this diet's over and I can have my milk and cereal again!
small purses or large: Both.
van or suv: Luv my gas guzzlin' SUV! :0)
winter or summer: summer...I hate to be cold and it happens so easily!
1 piece bathing suit or 2: 1...two babies and it's miracle I get in one at all. Last summer was the first time in one in public in over six years!
sit down restaurant or fast food: Sit down...I love to be waited upon...and no dishes!
McDonalds or Burger King: Neither, but Mickey D's if necessary.
White Gold or Yellow: My wedding and engagement rings are both. I tend to lean more toward white, although I grew up through my early twenties wearing yellow every day.
Fish or Chicken: Chicken fried, fish fried, fish baked, grilled, broiled...I guess my answer's fish.
Edward or Jacob: Edward, all the way! NO contest!
Pizza or Burger: Pizza, but homemade burgers are the BEST!
apple or orange: Apple, sliced, drizzled with melted organic butter, sprinkled with cinnamon, a splash of vanilla extract and a hint of Splenda. Cook 'em in the skillet and come out with a great "diet" dessert!
Spend or save: Save, I guess. I wanted to go to T.J. Maxx on Saturday, but decided it wasn't a frugal choice, even though Jen and Cindy assured me they had stuff I was looking for...
1 story or 2 story house: Either, not picky. However, I've always longed to decorate a tall stair bannister for Christmas.

If you are joining in the fun all you have to do is copy and paste my 1-20 onto your site and then change my answers into your own. Have fun and I can't wait to get to know you all better!

Apologies to Eric...

I blogged some pretty heated words in reference to Eric's Valentine's Day slip of the mind. I was pretty harsh, I suppose. I guess Michael's phone call to make sure Eric was still breathing was my wake up call. So, Eric...I apologize.

You know folks, he really is a wonderful husband, he's just not as sentimental as I would have him to be. I swear upon the name of all of the unsentimental men in my family, live and deceased, that I will make sure my sons realize that a woman just needs a little something sweet at just the right time...like Valentine's Day.

Eric did purchase the cranberry Dooney for me at Christmas...secretly. And he did do the exact same thing last year with the hunter croc pattern Dooney...secretly. And he did agree to let me take a PRICEY photography class next weekend, even though we are in a deep depression in this country ( a girl's gotta' take good pics!). And he did drive all the way to NSU on our very first Valentine's Day to take me to dinner and suprised me with a necklace, earrings, and bracelet...ruby of course. Pssst...whatever happened to that guy? JK! :0) And he does so much for the boys and I, like take care of everyone's breakfast in the mornings and often packs my lunch. And he drives well on snow and ice. And he gives great bear hugs. And he's really good at math and science. And he tolerates my AWFUL "singing" in the car at the top of my lungs any time a Reba or Judds song comes on. And he loves XM satellite more than I do and is willing to pay for it. And he puts the toothpaste on my toothbrush sometimes. And he folds laundry. And he washes dishes. And he's a better chef than I. And he cleans bathrooms. And he vaccuums. And he reads to our children. And he sings in the church praise team. And he's coaching t-ball for the first time. And he's the role model, personally and spiritually, I've always dreamed of for my own children. And he apologized for overlooking the importance of Valentine's Day in my eyes. And he's my husband, and I made a mistake by posting our quarrel...my bad. I luv yuuu, BD!

SS Round Two...

Eric finally got around to heading back over to the Social Security Administration last Friday...the 13th...to apply for Braden's replacement card. All items gathered and accounted for, not to mention I had already been back to the pediatrician's office to have his medical records stamped. Guess what? Eric told me the gal didn't even want to see the medical records, of course not the birth certificate, but she did thank him for being so well prepared. Big deal.

He calls me at work just before 11:00 and tells me that he's taken care of everything and is on his way back to work...whole trip, less than 30 min. He only had to wait FIFTEEN MINUTES to be seen! OMG! So, I made the mistake of fussing about that when he replies, "It's just good clean livin'!" ARGH! So I asked him what that was supposed to insinuate about me and the way I live my life..."No insinuation, just that I've got good clean livin'." UGH! Such a man...

More Diet Info...

Ok, so, someone out there (I don't know who "Sara" is) wants more info. on the diet. No problem. It's from a company called Standard Process and it's supposed to be a colon cleanse type of thing. It's 21 days, 10 of which are strictly fresh fruits and veggies. In the evening, we sautee or stir fry veggies with organic butter or olive oil. We have a fruit smoothie twice a day, one for breakfast and one for either lunch or a snack. Protein powder goes in the smoothies since we aren't eating any meat. Along with the protein powder, we take all these capsules full of God knows what (and Eric, he knows). The great thing is that I thought I would be hungry all the time, but I rarely get hungry at all except right before bed when I stay up late. We can have all the raw fruits and veggies we want, but supposed to eat twice as many veggies as fruit. I'm not sure I'm doing that exactly, but I try. Also, you have to drink tons of water!

We have become very creative with our recipes, strictly vegetarian of course. Our new favorites, which we will continue to eat even after the "diet" is over, include spaghetti squash with fresh tomato sauce, sautee'd portabella mushrooms (large), veggie soup with cabbage and tomato base (will be even tasier when we can add chicken or vegetable stock), and homemade guacamole. Eric has even discovered that sautee'd chopped mushrooms with cumin and chili powder are a great substitute for fatty ground beef to make a taco salad! I have a newfound love of avacado and sautee'd red onions!

I wanted to lose ten pounds, but I'm not sure it's going to happen. I've lost four-and-a-half pounds so far. I really need to be working out more, but my after-school schedule just keeps getting more hairy by the day. It's insane at school and Eric is working later and later every night. It's very frustrating. I just keep telling myself that I'm glad he has a job! :0)

Tempted by Carbs...

Tonight was my nephew, Tyler's, fifth birthday party...yes, Braden just had one, too. Tyler is one month and one day younger than Braden. Anyway, the main course was Geno's pepperoni and sausage pizza! ARGH! I literally lifted the lid, stuck my head in, and sniffed for all I was worth! I managed to not even eat the tiniest bit or lick the nasty orange grease off of my fingers after serving the kiddos. Then, the cake! I was drooling, salivating, clenching and unclenching my fingers, licking my lips, curling my toes, and then...







I found out the cake was from Wal-Mart! NO PROBLEM! I didn't want it anymore! You all know that I am a cake snob and have come to the conclusion that a cake from a discount grocery chain is not worth the carbs! It was a nice-looking cake (Speed Racer) and the kiddies loved it...good for them, they don't know any better! :0) So, long story short, Eric and I survived the carb temptation party. We took our own dinner of sautee'd portobello mushrooms and curried veggies! YUM!

Day 3...In the Books...

Three days down, 8 days 'til I can have some meat! More specifically, fish or chicken, but meat's meat! Eric and I have already decided that an end to this "diet" warrants a trip to our very most favorite restaurant...DOE'S! Nothin' like a big, juicy steak, sauteed mushrooms, and those greasy biscuits with honey!

Eric and I both developed a headache of sorts after a whole day without the normal crap that we eat. Sometime during the afternoon today, mine went away and Eric said the same thing when he got home...interesting. I don't drink soda AT ALL, so I know I wasn't having a caffine crash, but it was something akin to it. Who knows?

We tried out a new recipe tonight of spaghetti squash, baked and scraped, with a made-from-scratch marinara on top...SO GOOD! I feel bad. Every night this week, I've eaten the last of the all natural, all veggie dinners Eric has made right from the pan. I clean my plate and then eat the little bit that's left. Honestly, after eating raw veggies all day, anything with the slightest bit of spice and/or taste...well, I just have to have it! YUM!

Eric weighed this morning...down 1 1/2 pounds already. I'm not weighing until next Monday. At that point it will have been a whole week on fruits and veggies. I'm very anxious to see what happens...

The SP Cleanse...

Eric and I are on a "cleansing regiment" for the next 21 days...well, I guess 20 now that day one is in the books. We eat only fruits and veggies (with tons of protein supplements and BIG capsules of stuff I don't recognize) for 11 days and then lean protein gets added in. This is supposed to make us think differently about food and what we eat. Already, I caught myself tonight about to inhale a biscuit, some of Garrett's spaghetti O's, and some chocolate chips. It's like being on autopilot. I am just so used to grazing that it felt natural. I really was caught off guard!
I thought for sure I'd be starving to death by now, but honestly, when lunch rolled around, I was full. I panicked! I called Eric right away and asked if I should have my fruit smoothie anyway. He said I should, and so I did. I also worked out with Jen this afternoon. It's getting more and more difficult to align our schedules. All these stupid meetings keep popping up out of nowhere. I detest meetings! I walked VERY briskly on the treadmill for 34 minutes and only burned 135 calories, but I did break a sweat, which is odd for me.