Well, I'm almost done with mastery of Fifth Grade math on Khan Academy (humbling, yes ... but I'm working for this. I'm hoping to be done all the way through 8th grade math by the end of the calendar year). And I'm working still on Spanish (Duolingo and Rosetta Stone) and German (Duolingo). And, since my kids are working on Typing.com, I've started there, too.

Michael got home early from work last night and took over being the heavy -- the front rooms look a lot better now. They're going to be working on their room this afternoon. And I need to finish dishes, laundry, clean the hall bathroom, and vacuum. Not that I've done any of that YET.

But Bubbles and I are going to run a couple errands and ... okay, we're back.

Yeah, AWKWARD SEGUE ALERT!

You know you love it. Or something.

But, after while feeling sorry for myself, I took some action.

I messaged one of my friends who I haven't seen in AGES.
And, yes, the message I sent her did sound kind of pathetic.
She'll write back sometime, I'm sure.

Then I checked in with my Roxy-sis ... and we set up a meet-up-in-person book date in a couple weeks. I'm pretty stoked about it.

My mom had called while I was mopey and mucusly-challenged ... and she could tell that I was upset.
She stated that, since old-friend and I had met, she'd gone through a lot that had changed her a bit.
(It's nice when your mom has your back. And, if it were my fault, my mom's cool enough to tell me.)
(Most times, anyways. And in a way that doesn't feel like she's ripping the rug out from under you. Pretty awesome mom, right? [Yes. The answer is YES. There is no other answer.])

And, yeah, that did help me to feel a bit better.

I mean, I still will wonder off and on what happened ... I don't want to blame everything on PTSD or anything. It could very well be that I'm not as good of a person/friend as I would like to be. And I have to live with that.

So ... yeah.

Michael also brought home pizza for dinner. Which meant that I didn't have to cook. Which was nice. And, since he was being the heavy, I could play good-cop. And that was nice ... even though between crying, not drinking enough water, and everything, I did have a headache (nothing that water, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, PastTense, and time couldn't fix.

We watched "The Beautician and the Beast," since it's soon to be off Netflix again. And it'd been ages since I'd seen it (over 15 years ... wow, I'm old). And it was as cute as I recalled. Michael even tolerated it well enough (Hey, he likes "Wing Commander," so I get to enjoy costume dramas and fluffy romances like this. And, yes, I'm willing to be in the room while he's watching his shows ... so it's fine.)

I did tell Michael that I was sorry for being all Mrs. Bennet ... and he got the reference.
(My kids didn't. Time to get them started on Austen movies.)

If you don't get the reference, here's a quick peek:

 

Yeah, not exactly who I want to BE ... though, easy enough to channel at times.

I still need to get caught up on ... many, many things. So many things.

But we (Bubbles and I) went out and returned library books (so that I SHOULDN'T get another fifteen-dollar-and-change fine for late books. *sigh* Yeah, that was last month. It always occurs RIGHT at that point where I start thinking that I have everything together. ... Well, OBVIOUSLY not, huh?) and we picked up milk and a few other things.
She talked me into getting her a book (Hard sell there, right? /sarcasm) which I read to her after lunch (it's a Big Hero 6 book. And I got her to take a nap by telling her that, if she DOES take a good nap, I'm willing to let her watch the movie. #PickYourBattles #Compromise)

Even though I haven't done any of the things that I put on my mental to-do list as I was blearing awake, I DID check the mail. And I cleaned off a good section of the junk counter.And Bubbles and I read through quite a few library books. So that's something ...

Between trying to fill my bucket with drops of awesome, so that I DON'T feel like a total loser and all, I do find myself channeling this video:

(Barats and Bereta - PC Fratboys, if the link's not treating you well.)

Okay, I should go be a little more productive. Those languages aren't going to study themselves. That floor isn't going to vacuum itself. Those dishes? Nope, not going to wash themselves ... no matter how hard I utilize those puppy-dog eyes. The laundry sure isn't going to wash, fold, and put itself away ...

OR, you know, I could just curl up on the couch with a book and watch Pioneer Woman on Netflix or something ... either or.

But I DO need to make dinner tonight for sure.

Yo-yo-yiggity-yo

Yeah, I know it's bad when my MOM says to me, out of the blue, "So, just how long has it been since you blogged?"

A long time.
A DANG long time.

So, let's see what's gone on, in a nutshell, since then.

CUE THE MONTAGE!

• My mom had another birthday. She's 29 again, which makes it awkward ... since I'm older than her. I know, I know ... She CLAIMS that she's 39 again now, but that only gives me four years and a few months until I catch up again.
  (Joking, joking ... she admits to her age. And not just because she gets a discount at the bread store. I just like to give her some ribbing about her being younger than me.)
  (And you have to realize that this is coming from ME ... the girl who still claims that her Nana is 57. Since Nana was 57 for YEARS. When she turned 80, I even sent her flowers that said "Happy 57th Birthday, Nana!" which REALLY confused her for a bit. And not just because she has dementia. Once I explained that I really DID know that she's NOT 57, she did think it was funny.)
• Bucket is worried about her Betta fish, Blue. His fins are getting really beat up. And he's not as active. But we've had him for a few years, so We're just going to make his end-of-life days as pleasant as possible. ... So I should probably clean out the fish tank.
• I was caught up in doing the dishes for a little while. Not anymore. And I have laundry up the wahzoo happening here (I have underthings in the wash so that I'll HAVE underthings tomorrow. Yeah, that's probably TMI ... but I WAS concentrating on getting the KIDS' stuff cleaned first. Oh well.)
• I was released from my calling as Nursery Leader in our ward (church congregation in Mormon-speak). I did FINALLY get that bulletin board (Apparently, they had installed a bulletin board MONTHS ago ... in some other room in the building. Ha! But ours was installed  on the 6th. And I busted my buns to get the bulletin board planned and put together before I was released ... which was officially done last week.)
• My new calling at church is Sunday School teacher for the 12- and 13-year-olds. There IS a manual, but it's online and there's just GUIDELINES as far as topics go. I feel quite ill-prepared ... but we'll see how it goes. (Hide yo' kids, hide yo' wife, hide yo' husbands, 'cause Allanna's in charge of teaching the youths!)
• I got together everything for Bruise and Bucket's registration for the local Strings classes. Bruise will be in the Beginners' level class again. Bucket has moved up to Intermediate. And I have their registration filled out, their scholarship applications done, the check written out ... so we're ready to turn this in before the due date!
• I started doing Khan Academy more. I've mastered K-4 math and am 74% through 5th grade math. (I had originally thought to start with Algebra. HA HA HA. No. My skills are waaaaay too rusty. But y'all should be proud of me for persevering. Math was not my forte ... because I feel quite intimidated by it. But I'm working my way through it.
• I'm also back into doing my DuoLingo ... but only German and Spanish. With my 15-day streak (so far), I got caught back up with all my skills and have even surpassed where I had been. It tells me that I'm 42% fluent in Spanish and 31% fluent in German. So that's nice.
• I FINALLY got our Rosetta Stone program installed on the computer. The main problem that I had was when I tried to install from online, the language packs were ALL incomplete. So I had to have their Customer Service help me (She deleted the incomplete packs and let me reinstall them anew from the discs I have). Phew!
• The kids FINALLY cleaned their room. FINALLY.
• Bubbles is starting "Mutti Preschool" -- My mom is now working with Bubbles to make sure that she's learning the skills she'll need for Kindergarten. Yesterday, they made a poster with a picture. They concentrated on words with the letter "o." Mom was actually impressed by how much Bubbles has already learned (huzzah!) ... though, little Homeskillet there really likes to make poop-jokes. So there you have it.
• I'm determined to change my hair again. People like the light blonde ... but, well, it really just doesn't FEEL like me. And the upkeep is a little crazy, since I don't like having visible roots that much. But it was a good experience.
• We went to the local Renaissance Faire last weekend. Bruise came home with a new wooden sword and shield. Bucket adopted a new "pet" dragon (I've taken to referring to her as "The Babysitter of Dragons."), and I got some perfume oils. Bubbles didn't make any requests, but she did wear her cloak from last year nearly the entire time.
• After the Faire, the kids went home with Mom C (who watched them) while Michael and I bought LEGO Minifigs (I totally have the banshee now. And she's awesome!) then went out to dinner with our friends Mark and Lacey (who are finally moving a lot closer than they've been!). It was lots of fun to get together with them.
• My van died on Thursday morning. Bubbles and I had driven (not far) to go shopping (Bruise needed a new watch -- and I got one on clearance for only a couple more dollars than just getting a watchband cost ... and I had bought and returned TWO watchbands by that point ... and I needed flour after having made 5 batches of playdough for the Nursery cupboard [If you really care, here's the rundown: Pink/Vanilla-scented, Orange/Wild Orange-scented, Blue/Peppermint-scented, Green/Lime-scented, and Purple/Lavender-Vanilla-scented]) ... so it was good that it was within walking distance and that I did have a stroller in the back. I locked up the van and left it in the parking lot and waited for Michael to get home from work to jump it so we could get it home. ...
  Friday, we took it to Les Schwab (after jumping it AGAIN) to see if it was the battery (which was under warranty) ... AND IT WAS. So, $3.55 later, I have a BRAND NEW battery in my van WHICH RUNS. I had such a crazy amount of relief running through me that it's a wonder I didn't faint. I know that it's totally a first world problem and all ... but I'm glad that it was fixed before I have to run the kids to Strings lessons (and, eventually maybe, LEGO Robotics in Bruise's case) AND that it was such a cheap fix. SERIOUSLY, it was awesome and I'm really thankful, since we'd been PRAYING a lot.
• Bad news - one of my aunts has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
  Good news - Her MRI showed that it's just that one bit and it should be taken out and treated and stuff soon. Another answer to prayers. Phew.
• Bubbles is a bit low in her iron-count, so I need to be working to get her to eat more iron-rich foods. But she's 28 pounds now (at 3 1/2 years), so that's good.
• Bruise had a few Cub Scout meetings. Last week was the bicycle rodeo. ... Bruise and Bucket have outgrown their bikes. Looks like Santa knows what to get them, huh?
• Michael got another promotion ... "But it doesn't come with a pay raise," he told me. And that was ... okay. I mean, it's great that they can charge more for his work and it's more responsibility ... then we learned that, no, it does have a raise. Which is nice. 
• We went to a friends' house for dinner Monday night. Another family in the ward who we like and have worked along with the parents in different callings. We had a BBQ and talked a lot and it was fun. The kids (theirs and ours) were jumping on the trampoline. Their 14-year-old son and I talked a bunch.
  (He's a joker, which is fun. I went to shake his hand and he finagled it so that I grabbed his forearm instead. Which made me laugh like when Robert Gere shuts the necklace box on Julia Roberts' hand in Pretty Woman. You can watch that on YouTube, that clip, if you don't know the reference.)
• Did I mention that Michael's spoiled me with LEGO?
  He bought me the Mystery Machine and the Big Bang Theory set. They're sitting on my printer right now. ^_^
• I was feeling so chipper friday, after the van's battery was replaced, that Bubbles and I baked Orange and Raspberry Sherbet cookies (it was out of a boxed mix). She had lots of fun. And I did, too, with my cute sous chef.
• Other, further back catch-ups: We met with my friend, Brooke, for lunch; we went to Pioneer Days in my hometown with my stepdad's nephew and his wife (both LOVELY people. Jeff, my step-cousin, REALLY wanted to buy "the princess" [Bubbles] cotton candy ... which he did. And, golly, that cotton candy was GINORMOUS. Jeff would have bought more than one, and I'm so glad that he didn't! It was big enough for our family to share ... I have a picture of Bubbles "helping" to hold it and ... well, it looks nearly as big as SHE is!); we went swimming at the local outdoor pool a bunch; Bruise and Bucket finished up their swimming lessons with Bob at the indoor pool ... We went to the Art and Air Festival (no henna tattoo this time). The kids and I went with Cousin Kathleen and her son to the Air and Space Museum in McMinnville. We got to visit Nana and that side of the family. We now have Nana's other couch. I had a PTC meeting (I have this month's coming up TOMORROW evening) where we met the new principal. We went to the kids' Open House at school and met their teachers. The kids have started school (Fourth graders. I have TWO fourth graders!). I got Visit Taught, which hadn't happened in a LONG time. We had a playdate over at Robyn's -- Bruise and Bucket played with her kids (Bubbles did for a bit then played on my phone) and Robyn and I got caught up and worked at setting up a shelf for homeschooling ... which is bittersweet, since Bruise and her son are besties and have always been in the same classes ... until now *sigh* ... It just means that I need to be more proactive about setting up playdates, right?
  Michael and Bubbles and Bucket also went to the Stake Daddy-Daughter camp-out last month. They had a great time.
  And Bruise had fun staying up late and getting to eat ice cream OUT OF THE CONTAINER, which was pretty awesome. ^_^
• We're working our way through The Chronicles of Narnia (saying that always makes me think of that SNL music video, "Lazy Sunday"). We're now into Prince Caspian, which means that (since we started with The Magician's Nephew) we're nearly halfway through the series.
• Michael and I are reading through the rest of L.J. Smith's Forbidden Game series. We just started the third and final book last night ... so, in a few more days, I can actually TALK to him about it. (TBH, he's still waiting for me to read through a few books [*cough**cough*The Scorch Trials, The Death Curse, The Kill Order, Hollow City, Jackaby, The Westing Game, etc *cough**cough*] so we can talk about THOSE.)
  He's also reading Code Name Verity and Ready Player One (we started that one together, so he's nearly halfway through it).
  I still need to also read The Night Circus before it's due back at the library. And I have, like, a metric ton of other books in my TBR pile. #BibliophleProbs
• I've been working to be better at reading my scriptures and praying and all ... so I have a prayer journal going. It seems to help me focus a little more as I'm writing my prayers down. I still say prayers, too. In case you were worried.
  I'm getting close to finishing Numbers in the Old Testament. Doctrine and Covenants were harder to get through, since it's not at all in chronological order. But, if I keep with this reading schedule, I'll be through the Standard Works by next fall.
  And I'm also more than halfway through the 40-day General Conference reading challenge. I try to stay a day ahead ... so when I got THREE DAYS behind, you know that I fell off the wagon there for a bit. BUT I'm caught up ... just need to get a day ahead again.
  

And so, you see that between taking care of kids, taking care of the house, trying to stay abreast of studying scriptures and foreign languages (well, just two for now), and getting sucked into Facebook and the internet, I didn't MEAN to neglect you. It just happened.

Now, I should do some math, German, Spanish, and then go shopping and drop off the kids' Strings registration and application for scholarships, then get Bubbles fed and down for a nap and read my scriptures and conference talks and pray and write in that journal and .... maybe take a nap, too.

Okay, it's been ages and ages since I last blogged.

And I don't even really know where I SHOULD start. So we'll go for the middle and flesh things out from there.

I looked at my last post ... the van was fine. When Michael got home, he turned the ignition and it started right up. Yeah, it must just like him better. Or I left a light on and then it was able to charge itself up enough or something ... But regardless, I got to take it out to the next town and have a by-myself-Ulta-shopping trip and come home. And we made it to pick up the kids from Strings practice and all. So that's that.

Since then ... it's been over a month ... Sorry.

Um ... okay, time for bullet points:

• Still in Nursery. I'm now the head honcho of the Nursery leaders (taking over for one whose life is ... a bit complicated right now. She's been trying NOT to get a divorce, but, well, ... yeah. I feel terrible for her. Especially since, on Facebook, her spouse is making it sound like she's being really unreasonable. And, as a child from a broken home, I GET that sometimes you do all the work that you possibly can, but if the other half of the marriage isn't willing to also meet you halfway, ... you get really burnt out.)
• Found ONE louse on Bubbles's head yesterday morning. Treated her (yay for Licefreee!, it's seriously THE BEST) and washed her bedding and all. Haven't seen anything else on the other kids. And, since my mom was up, she checked MY head ... we're all clear. Bubbles must have picked that one up from another Nursery friend OR from the carpeted floor (a gift from the previous ward's Nursery class, maybe?). Regardless, I'm glad that it was JUST the one and that it's over. ... If I never see another louse in my life, it'll be too soon.
• The kids are almost out of school. They had their big end-of-the-year awards assembly.
  Bucket was recognized for participating in the GOTR 5K (with Michael as her running buddy) and running the most laps in the PM group, participating in Strings, writing in English, reading in English, music, and good behavior and attendance. Bruise was recognized for participating in Strings, good behavior and attendance, and most laps run in Track Club.
• As mentioned above, Michael and Bucket participated in the GOTR 5K a couple weeks ago. They walked it, for the most part. But they had fun. Bucket's ready and excited for the next time she gets to do it. And I'm thinking that Bruise and I might also register for the 5K so we can do it as a family (with Bubbles in a jogging stroller).
• One of Bruise and Bucket's teachers this year was baptized into our church. We were able to attend her baptism ... since Mrs. K is ALSO the stepmother of one of our friends (Brooke and I have been friends since late 1999. And I only JUST put it together a couple months ago that they're family. Mrs. K and I are thrilled at the extra connection ... well, I think she's thrilled. I know that I sure am).
• We had a brush with Poison Oak. Good times. (NOT.) Last month, as we cleaned up one side of the yard, we pulled out a vine. And Michael started itching. He thought it was just hives from Oak or something. ... Then, the day of the kids' Strings Concert, Mom and I noticed a rash on Bruise's FACE. So I took him in. The physician's assistant knew right away from my arm and Bruise's face that it wasn't hives ... So Bruise went on Prednisone. And it cleared right up. Michael's hands and arms cleared up pretty well ... but my body freaked out. I had it on my forearms (I was wearing gloves but only a short-sleeved shirt), a bit on one ankle, and on one breast (from scratching, I guess). And then my left arm started to swell and was hot to the touch ... so I went in and saw my lovely, lovely doctor. And then I went on Prednisone, too. And WOW, it worked really well. I don't know if it was just the immensity of my relief at not ITCHING CONSTANTLY or what, but I was pretty loopy (like, VICODIN-loopy) for the next 24 hours or so. Good times.
• Bruise and Bucket are done with Strings for the school year. Bruise seemed to get a little burned out at not being absolutely awesome at it (but, if he chose to practice the cello, that'd go a long way). Bucket seems to have natural talent with the violin ... which is why she'd been asked to perform in a couple extra assemblies this year.
• Bruise did really enjoy participating in the 3rd-grade lunchtime LEGO Robotics club. He's already put in his application to join the official 4th/5th grade teams.
• You could probably already tell that both those two enjoyed running, whether in Track Club or Girls On The Run.
• Bubbles is talking more and more. She likes to laugh and dance. She feels that any day is vastly improved by wearing a tutu. And her tantrums and pouting are quite epic. ("Though she be little, she be FIERCE," as stated by Shakespeare.) But, for the most part, she's quite sunny and personable ... and, if she's wearing panties, she's staying dry quite well.
• Michael and I will be building her a new bed, since she's broken/bent-beyond-repair her (used) metal bedframe for her toddler bed by JUMPING on her bed.
• We've replaced our curtains in the front room with new curtains with NEW rods. The old curtains were patterned like the bark of birch trees. One was sporting a cut (thanks to a toddler Bucket). And the old rods were ... old and falling apart. We now have oil-rubbed bronze double rods (for the light-reducing curtains and the sheers -- now the kids can't bend/break the tension rods that the sheers used to hang from). It looks MUCH better. And we feel SO OLD/ADULT having actual window treatments and all.
  Michael also built me a bookshelf in the front room. We took down the kids' folding tables (that were just piled up with their STUFF) in the front room ... We have a LOT more open space now. It feels a lot less cluttered ... and we moved one bookshelf into the dining room, where it's filled with school-type things (workbooks, etc.). And I cleaned up the big bookshelf in the bedroom ... it's not at all organized, but you can SEE books now, so that's a good thing. And I'm surviving without it being alphabetized like it's always been. But that's a project for when we build in a bookshelf there instead, I think. 
• I still miss my friend, Kim M ... I know that it's been a while since she passed. But I keep finding myself missing her. A few days ago, I watched "The Decoy Bride," which we had watched when we made cinnamon rolls together ... not that she overly enjoyed it. Poor Kim. But I found myself missing her so much later that evening.
• One of my friends was in the state for a short visit. But she was busy enough that she didn't call or text me. And I hadn't called or texted her because I didn't want to interrupt any of her plans and visits with her other friends. I mean, I miss her, yes. But I get that she has a PACKED schedule and that it's not all about me. I don't want to be a needy friend. But I am bummed that I didn't get to see or talk to her at all. But, well, that's part of being an adult and all, right?
• Michael had his birthday. We got him the Blu-rays of the Jurassic Park trilogy. And a Jurassic Park shirt to go with it. We also ate cheesecake. And went out for a birthday lunch to eat Mexican food. It was a good day.
• Sunday, after church and some cleaning, I was just exhausted. So I ended up laying down for a nap. And I woke up nearly three hours later. Whoops.
• I've been working to keep up with Duolingo. I'm learning Irish, French, Spanish, and German. I find German easiest, since that's what I studied in high school and college. I've gotten much better with Spanish. I'm still not very good at French, but I'm getting better ... especially at reading it. And I'm rather pants at Irish. Its grammar structure and even word structure are so very DIFFERENT from any of the other languages that I'm learning. But I'm enjoying it all for the most part.
  Oh, hey, since I actually logged on to it on my computer (instead of my tablet, as usual), I can tell you that I'm 30% fluent in German, 47% fluent in Spanish (how did that happen?), 24% fluent in French, and ... not fluent enough to even GET a percentage point for Irish (not surprised, ha ha).
• I've also got Bruise and Bucket started on working on KhanAcademy.org ... I figure that earning new avatars AND competing with each other is a good way to get them to keep learning this summer. Maybe it'll even help them prepare for their school testing ... we'll see. and they can even work on learning to program (which will help Bruise with the LEGO Robotics club. IF he's accepted, that is).

Okay, I think that's most things. Hopefully.
I'm tired and out of the ability to craft words together well ... or so spellcheck is telling me. Ugh. Whatever.
Time to go do dishes or something useful. Maybe nap ... napping sounds good.

That's wack. And not wiggety-wack, just the regular kind.

Today started out fine ...

Got up, showered, dressed.
Had devotional with the kids, dropped Bruise off to track club.
Bucket got on the bus. I finished getting ready ...

Then, when Bubbles and I got into the car to go into town/shopping ... I go to plug in my iPod ... and then the car won't start. When I press on the brake, the dashboard clock fades away to nothing.

I don't know my neighbors well enough to feel like I can just go ask them for a jump.
mi...
Okay, I was going to say that Michael isn't picking up his phone (so I also emailed AND shot him a text), but he just called back.
And he'll come home at his lunch break, figure out stuff and we'll figure out what all needs to be done.
If nothing else, he'll stay home long enough to pick up the kids from strings (which means he'll just be staying home for the rest of the day) ... and we can either walk to pick Bucket up from her after-school running tomorrow. We'll see.

I'm hoping it's just that either I shorted out something that's easily fixable OR that Bucket just didn't close the stupid door quite well enough (it has a crappy sensor anyways) and the battery was just run down a bit.

Okay. I'm going to figure out dinner and read a book and go soak my head or something.

EDIT: And watch a bazillion episodes of Teen Girl Squad. And read my scriptures for the day. And probably do my Duolingo. Distractions galore!

Well, I'm not dead ... Just busy and lazy ...

Wowzers ... it's been a while. Like a WHOLE MONTH (and some extra days).

Whoops.

Now to TRY and get caught up on what all has gone on around here ...

Let's see ...
We'll start with Halloween ...

Bruise was the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith). Bucket was her own version of Madeline/Maddie Hatter (from Ever After High). Bubbles opted to go as Princess Sofia the First (it was either that or Princess Anna from Frozen). We went to the mall for their trick-or-treating, then stopped by a neighbor's house, then went to a local Halloween party for all the kids. Bruise and Bucket ran into their friends (that sometimes come over after school so I can keep an eye on them since their folks are both working for a while).

We helped my dad and L move some of their big things (like my dad's shop contents) to their new house. It was a (busy) day trip. They had ME order the pizza for dinner ... and I got two of their addresses mixed up, so pizza took just a little longer to arrive. Whoops!
(That'll teach them, right?) ... But, on the bright side, Michael and I got the wifi password for their new place. So we're ready for spending the night in the future. (And Bruise and Bucket LOVE the cupboard under the [garage] stairs. They feel JUST like proper Muggles, I tell you!)

Freyja-cat got her shots. And Bubbles got to pet the office cat at the vet's.
Bruise, Bucket, and I have all joined Bubbles in getting OUR flu shots (Michael never gets one).

We had a gamut of disease going on in our house: Bruise came down with a case of pink-eye. He shared it with Bubbles (giving eye drops to a toddler? AWFUL). Bubbles got a double ear infection ... right as she was done battling a case of impetigo (on her leg and back). Bucket also came down with an ear infection (just the one, though).
And I STARTED to come down with a cold. But, thanks to my array of DoTERRA samples, I kept that puppy at bay. Phew. Since I didn't have time to be sick anyways.

Bruise got to be in his first Veterans Day parade ... in related news, I got my first traffic ticket for making a right turn without coming to a complete stop as I RUSHED to drop him off (and, of course, I shouldn't have stressed/rushed, since NO ONE WAS THERE FOR ME TO DROP HIM OFF WITH so that the girls and I could go downtown and get a spot for the parade. *SIGH*).
This is my life.

It appears that Freyja-cat has more special needs ... in this case, besides her standing prescription for "kitty-Prozac," she also is showing signs of a food allergy ... so the fact that she'd licked off most of the fur on her hindquarters was related to the fact that she's my SPESHUL BAYBEE and I need to get her some non-poultry/non-corn based food at the local feed store.

The kids have had a lot of time off school ... two days for Veterans Day ... and a whole week for Thanksgiving. It's been nice, getting to sleep in and all that. But they were missing school ... what will they do later this month when they have TWO WEEKS away from class?
(Answer: They'll finish their second-grade workbooks, drink lots of hot cocoa, clean their room, and visit family! That's what!)

Bruise's picture retakes came back. They're ... better.
But this is why I don't pay full price for them (online coupons!!) and why we get FAMILY portraits done ... so that I can MAKE SURE he looks decent and actually SMILES with his eyes and all.
(I love my son. But if he brings back home ONE more picture where he looks like a stoned juvenile, OY TO THE VEY, Y'ALL.)

We had parent-teacher conferences before Thanksgiving week.
The kids are doing well in everything ... they are being progress monitored for Spanish. But their teachers are sure that they'll reach the standards goal by the end of the year.
Also, Bruise has been falling asleep in class.
I think that for the next session of Strings lessons, we'll be moving to the afternoon class.

We got our house decorated for Christmas. The kids helped decorate the tree for FHE (Family Home Evening) last night. I got my nativities set up ... and my Charlie Brown Christmas tree. And my Linus-as-a-shepherd figurine. Michael got lights up on the house.
We have a star on our tree this year ... it's time to try something new, right?

The other thing to write about is that Michael and I have been working on our bathroom. Two weekends ago, we textured the walls (finally) and I started painting. I put white primer on the ceiling (it was NEEDED) and spray painted the fan cover with white spray paint (it looks TONS better). Then Michael and I painted the walls. They're now the slightest whisper of blue.

Today, I put primer on one side of our (huge) cupboard in there and primed the window sill and frame. In a bit, if it's dry, I'll start to paint that the other color we picked out -- the cabinets and cupboard and trim around the mirrors will be a dove grey. And I'll need to spray paint the trim around the shower and tub white ... and OF COURSE it's started freezing, so I'll need to figure out how/where to do that.

Michael also put up some shelves for me. Now I can get all my stuff off the counters, right?
He's also putting up some shelves above the toilet. And he got me a shelf-thing for the bathtub, which is awesome. Once I get that window painted and the trim back around the tub, I can load that up and the bathtub will look tons better.

We really didn't do much Black Friday shopping this year. Just went out in the afternoon to pick up some stuff for the bathroom ... and we hit Target for the DVDs. (Great Gatsby, the Baz Luhrman version, for $4? Don't mind if I do!)

I also need to take the hardware off the cupboard doors so that I can spray paint it ... it'll either be white (to pop against the grey cabinets), brushed nickel (to coordinate with the tub shelving, our new toilet paper holder, and the towel rack we're going to buy ... and the new faucets we haven't bought yet), or oil-rubbed bronze (for added contrast). We'll see.
But, again, since the weather's turned, it's going to be a challenge to figure out how/where to spray them all.

Michael also put in a dimmer switch for the bathroom lights. And we'll be replacing the light fixtures (and the old fan) sometime.

It's really coming along, though. We've been in here for about seven years now. You'd hardly recognize the bathroom. And it's just getting better and better. (and it'll be amazing once I get stuff organized/get rid of a lot of junk ... HOARDER!!)

And I've been reading some library books lately.

One of our Christmas traditions is reading "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever."
We finished it last night.
I cried. Like I ALWAYS do.
Every year, I think, "MAYBE I can get through it THIS year without crying."
Nope.
And Michael says that he's glad for that. Apparently, my crying at the end of it is another of our Christmas traditions.
I'm also going to read the kids (again) "A Christmas Carol." ... And, if we can make it, "The Forgotten Carols," since I LOVE that story.

Since it'd been AGES since I last watched "While You Were Sleeping," (and technically, it's a holiday movie!) we watched it (again) last night. ... I'm still so very impressed with how awesome the writing is and how VERY well the casting is. Everyone plays their parts so darn well! And it's wonderfully quotable. Yeah, I adore it something fierce.

My Christmas present from my mom arrived -- She got me a DoTERRA kit. And I'm enjoying it quite a bit. Thanksgiving night, Bubbles was starting to HACK-cough. I got her home, slathered a few drops of Breathe and OnGuard on her ... she slept through the night without coughing at all. Pretty awesome. And I'm enjoying my diffuser. My DoTERRA gal came over to teach me about how to use my stuff and using the LRP (loyalty rewards points) for ordering and all that. AND to bring me some freebies and my bottle of Holiday Joy (Bucket's favorite. Bruise really likes Wild Orange. And Lemongrass).

I've only had them for about a week now, and they've come in VERY handy. So that's nice. And I'm saving a lot of the stuff for Christmas. Unless Michael needs me to get out the Deep Blue (muscle) Rub. But I'm looking forward to trying the OnGuard toothpaste and all.

Okay. Time to paint some more.

Fifteen Days Later ...

Yeah, yeah, I know. I know. It's been a while since I blogged.

I was actually going to blog YESTERDAY ... but there was a short in our phone line. Which meant that I had to spend about 24 hours with NO internet (besides the taste that I got with my data plan on my phone). Poor me, right?

What else has gone on ...

First and foremost, my friend Kim M (the friend I mentioned being on life support?) passed away last week. She had been moved to the ICU and was doing better for a bit. She was a bit responsive. She fought off a case of pneumonia and a staph infection. She got to see her girls and visit with them. ... but she really couldn't breathe. They had to make the hard decision to let her go.
And ... I understand it. I don't have to like the fact that I don't get to see her. That, like a lot of other people, she's gone somewhere that I can't follow yet. That I can't just text or call her. That I'm aware of how much her girls and husband are going to miss her.

A friend of the family started a support group  on Facebook. Its original purpose was to help pass along information and updates about her status. They organized a fast. There's a link to a GoFundMe fundraiser. The new Compassionate Service Leader in our ward (congregation) posted an opportunity to help clean up their apartment here in town and stock the freezer with some meals (Which is why I'm currently doing a few loads of their laundry. It's really the least I can do ... and it all still smells of Kim. She always smelled really nice. Even when I last saw her and she looked so sick, she still smelled so nice.) ... I took over a meatloaf for the freezer. I wrote the girls letters expressing my sympathy and that we love their mom, their family ... that we love them very much. And that their mom loves them so very, very much.

I cry a bit. When I cook (especially when I bake), I start to miss Kim a LOT. I still owe her a baking day. We were going to do it ... but I got busy, then she was in the hospital, then she was REALLY sick ... I had every hope and expectation that she'd kick this thing in the teeth, what with being up at OHSU with the best doctors around. I mean, if that young man in our ward pulled through hypothermia so bad that his heart stopped, what, six times? If he could pull through it, OF COURSE Kim could, too. I mean, I was praying, her family was praying, our wards were praying, friends of other faiths were praying ...

But, well, sometimes prayers aren't answered in the way(s) we'd like. And you have to accept that there's something bigger (and better) planned. And that, yes, it sucks ... but there's some reason behind it. Even though I just wish that I could know that reason right now. But... well... I don't.

Today was Kim's funeral. I didn't go. I kind of wanted to. But I couldn't.
Michael did. He's representing our family and our ward (along with some other members of our ward family).
But I have things here that I need to do. (Freezer meal and laundry for the family, taking the kids to their music lesson, watching T and L [friends and school chums of Bruise and Bucket]) ... things that prevent me from being in two places at the same time.

Besides, I keep crying. And I don't want people to think that I'm trying to say that this whole situation is MY grief ... Kim was loved by lots of people. LOTS. Because she's awesome. And, even though I really wasn't able to say goodbye in any REAL fashion, going to the viewing wouldn't be the same. She wouldn't smile or joke. She'd smell different. I couldn't give her a good, decent hug. It'd just be her body, not HER.
I figure that I'd rather cry by myself. This way no one thinks I'm trying to insinuate that I was closer to her than I was (friend and past Visiting Teacher) or trying to steal attention away from her family and closer friends. I know. I have issues.

.... I really wish that I'd been a better friend. For most of the summer, I wasn't aware that she'd be in the hospital. And, when she got out, I didn't know/realize that she was still so sick and could have really used a lot of help. I wish that the school schedules for her girls' school and my kids' school had been just a little more different, so I COULD have easily made pick-ups/drop-offs for both schools.  Because that would have been one less thing for her to fret about.

But ... well ... there's really no use griping about that now. It's not doing anyone any good.

But, yes, that's been a forefront thing on my mind.
And I realize that I need to get life insurance. Just in case.

Okay, okay ... other news. You don't come here to "listen" to me be all dour and melancholy. You come for the laughs, the sarcasm, the stories ... and I should get to all those kinds of things. Because writing about them is nice and light and fluffy.

This last payday, we've spent restocking our pantry and freezer. We've done so well at that, we hardly have room for all the good stuff. And I put together some freezer meals. We ate "Cafe Rio Chicken" last night (with a side of scalloped potatoes ... out of a box). It was good. Next time, I need to cut down on the cumin. There was quite a bit of heat to it. Good times. But I also have a few other meats-in-marinades in the freezers -- a pork roast with pepperoncinis, Italian-marinated beef roast, Chicken Tikka, French Chicken, Italian Chicken, Teriyaki Chicken ... stuff like that. (Gosh, I'm boring.)

These last few weeks have been pretty hard on our ward. One sister's father was in an accident. He barely survived. She and her sister are taking care of him. It's pretty stressful.
Our RS president's mother passed (she was of an age ... and was having end-of-life care at the home she was in. Still tough, but not entirely unexpected. Sister P is taking it rather well. But it's still not easy by any long shot). That funeral is Friday. ... One of the elders (guys) at church was canning tomatoes with his wife. There was a leak in the propane hose. His sons calculate there was a 30-foot fireball -- part of it got the house. This brother is sporting 2nd- and 3rd-degree burns. But he's in very good spirits ... and for how bad those burns could be, he's looking quite well (small miracles everywhere, you know?). He has a VERY strong testimony of the power of priesthood blessings and of the protection that wearing the garment can give (Seriously, I saw him shirtless. You can totally see where his garment was and was not. It's quite uncanny).

There's been a PTC (Parent Teacher Club) meeting. I chatted with our Principal a bit. And with the teacher that's the PTC-Site Committee liaison.

The kids had fun at the latest Kids' Club at the mall -- there was a magician. And origami. And painting. Bucket and I went to Claire's and I bought some peacock-feather earrings. Ended up being only a dollar (Clearance purchases for the win, right?).

Taught my nursery lessons. Those last three went SO much better than the first one. Oy.
I'm a little worried about one of the older kids in Nursery.
Seems like the child could REALLY use early intervention ... but, well, apparently that's not happening. I'm rather worried for this kid.

We fed the missionaries (sisters) dinner last week. Per Sister P's request, I made clam chowder. And cheddar biscuits and a salad to go along with it. Apparently, it's her favorite dinner ... but until lately, she'd been paired with companions who don't care for fish at all. Poor kid.

Grandma I and Aunt S (Michael's mom's mom and one of her sisters) have come out for a visit. We went over on Friday evening and spent some time visiting with them. Bubbles, not having had a nap, was a little stand-off-ish. Good thing they'll be staying for a couple weeks. That'll give us the opportunity to visit some more.
... And I've been charged to write letters to Grandma I more often. With requests for physical photographs. ... I'm given another opportunity for growth, see?

Like I mentioned earlier, Bruise and Bucket started music lessons this morning. He'll learn the cello. She's opted for violin. (Once we get a bigger house, I should practice the piano again. It's a nice outlet. Not as easy as singing, though. ... I should sing more. Just for practice and fun.)

I'm officially no longer ANY bit of the Compassionate Service Leader for our ward. I have a replacement. And she's amazing. Took off right away with everything. She and I even had a meeting where I passed on what I had ... and we talked about what I did. And she brought LOTS of GREAT ideas to the table. Sister P is very lucky to have Sister R as CS Leader. (Sister R ALSO brought over fresh apple crisp to our little meeting. Did I mention that I adore her?)

I'm about half-way through the laundry. It still smells like Kim.

(I wonder ... how do I smell to other people? ... I mean, I'd HOPE that I smell okay. But Kim always smelled REALLY GOOD. Her whole house smelled like her. Heck, I stepped into their apartment today and started welling up.)

Bucket and I went to the General Women's Meeting last Saturday. It was nice. I'm glad that they lowered the age to attend right in time for her to make it to the first one (in April). We continued what's now our tradition -- dinner out (at Applebee's so far) before the Meeting. Then she takes some cookies/treats home for Bruise and Bubbles. Sister R sat with us this time. (Last meeting, it was just Bucket and me on our regular pew ... creatures of habit. This time, we sat in a different pew.)

As I mentioned above, I had issues with the phone line this week.
I called, via my cell, yesterday morning as soon as the kids were off to school.
Talked to THREE different CSR (customer service reps).
The first one, Ashton, was nice -- personable and professional. "Hey, I'm going to butcher your name. Um ... Ah-LANN-ah?"

Me: "Actually, it's 'uh-LAW-nuh."
And he got it right from that point on. Friendly, kind ... good employee, you know?

He had to transfer me to another gal. (From all the scammer calls, it does not help that she has a bit of an accent) ... who called me "Allie-ah-na." REPEATEDLY. And had me doing contortions to unplug/replug lines from/into the wall socket (couldn't she just say, "Hey, if that's not really doable, just unplug/replug from the modem or phone itself"???? I mean, I haven't gone to modem-tech school or whatever ... but it's not rocket surgery, now is it?).

THEN I was transferred to ANOTHER GUY (also strong accent). He would talk over me and, even though I corrected him MULTIPLE TIMES (seriously, at least three. Maybe as many as five times), KEPT calling me Allie-ah-na.
"No, it's Uh-LAW-nuh."
"All right, Allie-ah-nah."
"*sigh*"

THEN, after we scheduled a repair tech to come out (because as I could have told them, nothing I do plugging and unplugging my modem will fix NOT GETTING A FREAKING DIAL TONE, y'all), he's all, "And before I let you go, do you have any questions?"
"Yes, I --"
"So, you have no questions?"
"But, I have a que--"
"If there's nothing else that you need ..."
"IF YOU'D STOP INTERRUPTING ME, I'D TELL YOU THAT, YES, I DO HAVE A QUESTION! IT'S VERY RUDE TO INTERRUPT AND TALK OVER YOUR CUSTOMER. IT'S NOT RESPECTFUL AT ALL, SIR. SO, ARE YOU ACTUALLY GOING TO BE QUIET FOR JUST ONE SECOND SO THAT I CAN ASK MY FREAKING QUESTION?!???"
"... yes."
"OKAY. *breath* If I need to cancel the appointment that MIGHT end up costing a minimum of $80 if the error is on our end, what phone number do I call?"
" ... ###-###-####."
"Thank you. *mutters to self* 'Was that really so hard? Really?'"
(Mom's right. I should ask to speak to a supervisor after a telephone conversation that irritating. And I should take names, for sure.)

I called Michael and vented/appraised him of the situation.
I had to repeat myself a lot, since I was VERY FRUSTRATED (i.e., crying).
He ended up bringing me flowers and chocolates when he came home.
(Also can you tell that someone just might, possibly, be having the painters in? [e.g., "I'm in a glass case of emotion!!!"])

This morning, I got the kids up earlier than usual (so we could be on time to music lessons). They got dressed, made their lunches, packed their backpacks, got teeth brushed, shoes on. We had our morning devotional-thing (Sing a hymn. Read the scriptures from the references at the bottom of the page. Read the history of the hymn. Have a prayer. Read a bit about etiquette). I packed up all the library books to return. We headed out for the car (the kids almost didn't grab their backpacks), took them to music lessons (at their school). Once they were settled, Bubbles and I ran by the library to return the books, then to the store to get WIC stuff (better last second than never). By the time we got back home, it was still about a half-hour before the window for the repair tech.

But he was there! Working on the phone box! We chatted. He came in and checked the jack (and had trouble reaching that. Went back outside to check things. Got a dial tone inside. Checked one more thing. Power-cycled the modem. HUZZAH! We're back in business.

Oh, I could have hugged him.
He was supernice. Very professional. Quite wonderful.
I did get his card and his supervisor's number. Called and left a message praising his work and manner.

He also told me that if it gets to the point where we need to power-cycle our modem often (like once a day), then replacing the modem is in the near future. Which is really good to know.

Then I fixed a freezer meal (a meatloaf, since Kim said that her husband is a real meat-and-potatoes kind of guy), chatted with Sister R via IM, talked to my mom ... headed over and picked up laundry to wash/dry/fold, vacuumed our front room (since Bruise and Bucket's friends will be over today).

Bubbles hasn't had a nap ... I say that, then look over to where she's on the couch. Asleep. She crashed while watching Wall-E. (It's a very soothing soundtrack.)

I should go make something yummy for the kids as a snack.
Or I'll just give them popsicles. Either or.

I'm about ready for a nap, myself. Not going to happen.

I should figure out dinner.

I don't know when Michael's getting back tonight.
Kim's funeral was at 10 AM in Hermiston. I don't know how long it lasts. I just know that he'll be home tonight ... and working tomorrow morning.


Is it just me ... or is it a common thing ... when things get bad, I just want to curl up in someone's lap. Maybe cry, maybe not.
But I'm far too ... um ... zaftig, per se, to be able to fold myself up decently, let alone fit in most laps.

Well, I have laundry to fold and dinner to figure out. And ... something ... something to bake.

I really like having working phone and internet. Even though I did get some reading done, I really like having wi-fi. It's just rather comforting knowing that I can look up things on my computer and my tablet without having to type it all on my phone or chance using up all our data for the month.

One thing good ...

As I was being a sadsack (AGAIN) last night, I said to Michael, "Is it bad that I do value my reputation? And that, according to two people now, I'm a manipulative, overbearing person? If it was just one, that'd be easier to brush off. But two ... I mean, I'd much prefer to have a good reputation..."

Michael: *with a bit of a Russian accent* "You know what is reputation? Is people talking."

Me: *taking up accent* "I have reputation."

Ah, that crazy Niska (from Firefly. Go watch "The Train Job." You'll see him there).

I mean, Niska DOES have a reputation. Just one that'd best used to frighten people.
Heh heh.

He and Jubal Early are both very interesting characters. Not people I'd want to emulate, mind you.
But very interesting.

Maybe if I just employ Firefly/Serenity and Princess Bride quotes today, I'll get over this ... fiasco.

When it's daytime, I seem to do better. At least I can shake my head and roll my eyes.
It's an improvement, right? Better than fester, fester, fester, rot, rot, rot.
(Maybe I should just watch "French Kiss" again, then ... if I'm going to quote it.
But it'd be better to watch it with my T or my Cynthia.)

Call this my "Zombie Post," 'cause I'm obvs back from the dead!

Dude, way to fall off the blogging bandwagon, there. Sorry for that.

Let's see, what all has happened since I last blogged?

There's too much. Let me sum up.

• Took some meals to people. Arranged a lot more meals for people ...
• We cleaned the church last month. I was the drill sergeant, teaching Bruise and Bucket how to clean the bathrooms. I've got a SYSTEM, you know. It's not the BEST. But it works.
• We had Bubbles' birthday party ... it went well. We used the air compressor to blow up over 150 balloons. We shoved said balloons into the kids' (clean) room as a balloon pit.
  Bubbles also surprised me by knowing EXACTLY how to blow out the candles. She didn't waste ANY time with that.
• Michael and I renewed our Temple recommends. Always an important thing.
  (As I'm trying not to snot all over and drinking herbal tea.)
• Been working at getting over this stupid sinus thing for a few weeks. Fun times!!
  This time, the new thing is that my ear plugged up inside ... so, when I talk, it's like being in a tunnel. I'm not wild about it. 
• Our ward choir performed for Stake Conference. At one point, Michael had to go sit with our kids.
  Another gal I was sitting next to, leaned over and whispered, "Your kids are so well-behaved!"
  "That's because I yell at them. A LOT." I responded back.
  "I don't yell at [her youngest's name]. That's why she's such a little brat." She concluded.
  I had to work really hard not to snicker like a loon, up there in front of EVERYONE.
  This gal is very sweet and soft-spoken ... for her to say that ... it still cracks me up.
• We had a local children's performing arts series. We missed all but this last one -- a wildlife presentation. A group brought a selection of endangered animals/wild animals to show the kids ... you know, to build awareness. Michael was impressed when I correctly identified the kinkajou.  There were also a Fennec fox (oh, I would love one!), a porcupine, a baby alligator, and a boa constrictor. I think that was everything.
  Then we took the kids to the local mall's kids club activity. They had an inflatable obstacle course. Bruise was in HEAVEN. Bucket enjoyed it (with a neighbor girl and a school chum) and then decided she was ready to make the craft.
• My friend, Bri, had a Pure Romance party at her place. I got lost on the way (what kind of a crappy friend am I, not knowing how to get to my friends' place ... especially since they've lived there over a year. *sigh*). It was fun. She's planning another ... so I had to invest in a cute dress (since she wants to do a Breakfast at Tiffanys/LBD theme).
• I volunteered at the kids' school for a day -- just fetching students for hearing assessments. Nothing huge. There was supposed to be another gal to volunteer, but things came up and she never showed up. It was nice. I ended up with a couple blisters from walking all over the school so much (I'm glad it's not a huge school!).
• Like I said, I bought a LDB (which I have to wear over a shirt, but it is nice. And for only $18, I'm not complaining!! I also got new sunglasses and a new bag. Yay for Ross and TJ Maxx, right? And, due to a good coupon, I got a pair of (clearance shoes) at Famous Footwear for $10. And they're really comfy.
• In other coupon-y news, I went to The Body Shop. Between their sale and the card I have, I saved over 50%. Made me happy. More body butters? How can I resist? And I'm liking their lip butters, too. I also got some of those new-fangled curlers over at Sally Beauty ... I had a $5 off coupon, my club card, AND a coupon for 15% off. So it was totally worthwhile to invest in the big pack.
• Michael and I celebrated our 13th anniversary. We left the kids with Mom and Dad C and headed up to Astoria. We stayed a couple nights at a very nice hotel. We went to museums and state parks. I was not the most fun (stupid sinuses = 2.5 hour POWER NAP, plus lots of saline rinses and decongestants!) ... but it was a great time. It was so nice to just hang with my favoritest ... and to be able to mosey through things ... and not change diapers or deal with gimmie-gimmies. ^_^
  (Don't get me wrong! We did miss the kids ... but it was nice to have a break. And they were being thoroughly spoiled at grandma's.)
• Once we were back home, it's just been usual stuff -- housework, taking Bruise to the dentist, RS activity, Visiting Teaching, church, birthday parties, ... the usual.

I've been working with Bruise on his Cub Scouts stuff. I'm hoping to keep the momentum that he can earn his Wolf badge by summer break ... then we can work on his arrow points during vacation. That'd be nice.

We've also fallen behind on memorizing the Articles of Faith. I was hoping that the kids would be through the eighth one by now ... but I think we're still on the sixth. My main goal is for them to have all thirteen memorized by the end of the year. Then I just have to have them recite them every so often to keep them fresh. ... After that, I think it'd be in their best interests to memorize the seminary scripture mastery verses. Just so that they actually DO it. I never did ... and I regret that. It'd be nice to be a Scriptorian.
Well, isn't that why we have kids? So that we have a second chance to do things right the first time? ;P

Okay, this house isn't cleaning itself ... so I'd better go do some housework. And run the errands that I need done. *sigh*

Stuff. And Thangs. And books.

So, I did miss some things in what we've been up to ...

Last Saturday, we went to the Home Depot kids' workshop ... because you get to bang things with hammers and it's free.
And this month's project was a desktop calendar. And, oy, it was NOT easy.

For the first bit, you had to hammer in nails on a diagonal.
Another little girl was in tears ... since even when you DID get the nails in correctly, the nails were really cheap and started bending (not such an issue when you can hold things squared).
I was doing my best to NOT curse and blue streak (there were CHILLENS around, y'all!!) and I was crying, myself.

Good thing Michael, the engineer, who once worked at making walls for manufactured homes, was there. He got the kids started. I helped another gal work on her daughter's calendar.
Then we bought some stuff to do a few projects around the house (and some more cleanser ... and a mop!! And a bucket for the mop!!)

Since I last posted, I have swept and mopped the floor. And vacuumed TWICE! Shocker.
Still, the house should be a LOT cleaner, since people might come over on Saturday.
I can do this. I hope.

Bruise met with the school's speech specialist. He does have a few issues. But nothing that'd qualify him to attend Speech classes. So, in a couple weeks, I'll be meeting with the Speech specialist and she'll teach me a few things to work with him on. And she's confident that, a few months to a year from now, he'll be speaking much better. If not, once he hits nine, then he could have Speech at school.

(It's just 'r's and "th" and, since he's not got his front teeth in, his "sh" sounds.)

Last night, Bruise had his first Pack meeting for Cub Scouts ... Michael had a meeting in the bad part of town, and he couldn't get out of it. So the rest of us went. And, after we got home, I texted Michael to make sure he wasn't lying dead in the gutter or got shivved or whacked or bumped off.
Thankfully, he was fine and got home about 10 minutes later.

Tomorrow, Bruise and Bucket turn eight.
That is crazy.

That peace lily that my Nana got me while I was in the hospital on bedrest before having them is still alive. It's not THRIVING, but it's still alive.
Also crazy.

Bubbles is getting another tooth. (Finally her canines start to come in!) This is making her cranky.
Which doesn't help MY level of cranky.

I have a ton of Michael Crichton books from the library to read.
There's a story behind this.

A few nights ago, Michael and I finished watching Season One of Once Upon a Time.
We were talking about stories and tropes and such.
Then we were looking at the tumblr "What Musicals Taught Me." Which brought up "Love Never Dies," which we didn't really enjoy.
Don't get me wrong ... I'm normally an Andrew Lloyd Webber fangirl. I really liked the music (especially "Devil Take the Hindmost" in this one) ... but ... the plot. It was like a BAD fanfic.
(And, as someone who's read some fanfic, I know that not all of it is bad.)

And, I segued onto how some fanfic is pretty awesome. (I got started once, reading some Labyrinth fanfic. There's some that I love ... and I came across a great Anne of Green Gables fanfic. It's the story told from Gilbert's perspective. So darling and sweet) ... which brought me to a regular statement that Gilbert Blythe is the perfect literary boyfriend/husband.

And Michael patiently puts up with that.
And he started talking a little about Matthew and Marilla ... and I ask him if he knew why Marilla is so prickly. And he stated that he didn't.

Me: "Spoiler alert. ... But, since the book's been around about a hundred years ..."

Michael: "What if I told you that I was actually reading it?"

BACKSTORY: I was aware that Michael would NEVER read the Anne books. He once watched part of one of the movies since his sisters were watching it. And he's always brought up how he was BORED OUT OF HIS SKULL with it (whereas I ... adore the Megan Follows DVDs. Well, the ones that ARE based on the series. My aunt once lent our VHS sets to a friend. And that friend moved OUT OF STATE without ever returning them to us. ... Yes, I'm still rather peeved. SOMEDAY, I will get them on DVD and watch them. ... I also need the Veronica Mars seasons on DVD, but that's another story).
    He also states, on a regular basis, how over the top everything is in Anne's world. So I knew that, love him as I do, he'd never share my interest in Anne Shirley and her world.

Me: "... ... ... ... Are you KIDDING me?!??!??"

Michael: *pulls out his tablet and brings up his Kindle app. I look at the page he's on.*

Me: "SERIOUSLY?!?? ... You're not joking me?!??"

So, yes, this is how much he loves me. And he admits that he's gained a LOT of insight to how I was when I was younger, since I LOVED Anne. She was one of my BOSOM COMPANIONS (since, well, I was an only child. And I was often grounded from playing outside since my room was a sty. So, instead of cleaning my room, I'd just read. And read. And read and read and read). And, oh, I wanted to BE Anne -- with her puffed sleeves and her bright hair and mind ...

And, it's the least I can do to read one of HIS favorite authors. ... And, since ALL my holds came in at once, I have my work to do, don't I?
(I mean, I did read "The Andromeda Strain" ... but that was ages ago, shortly before I started college. It barely counts. ... And, after I get through "Timeline," "The Terminal Man," "The Andromeda Strain," "Sphere," and "The 13th Warrior/Eaters of the Dead," I think that everyone would agree that a reread of some Anne books is quite earned.
(I've already shared "Jane Eyre" and Robin McKinley's "Beauty" with Michael ... so we're, pardon the pun, on the same page now.)

Still, though, I'm rather shocked. I'd NEVER have foreseen that he'd willingly read an Anne book. Much less do it without me nagging him (and I hate nagging people. I nag Bruise and Bucket to clean WAY TOO MUCH. So over that.)

But, yeah. I'm quite chuffed.

Oh, it's a jolly holiday ...

The fun thing about vacation is that I do tend to keep busy.

The even more fun thing (for me) is that Michael takes vacation time ... and we all get to hang out together.

This year was a little frantic ... He gets his bonus (which is partly used for Christmas shopping) just about a week before Christmas. And I get all OCD on what to buy for whom. (I like to get presents that people will like ... and I like to be able to spoil people if I can. Oh, for unlimited funds, right?)

And Bruise and Bucket's vacation started only a couple days before Christmas ... so I was booking it around town trying to get things done with pre-bonus funds so that I didn't have to schlep all THREE kids about.

And I wanted to get my Visiting Teaching taken care of.

And all sorts of things like that.

Our plans were to take off Sunday, after church, to visit family on the 22-25 (which, of course ALSO shortened the amount of time I had to get things done pre-Christmas). Our plans did end up changing a bit ... but it all worked out well.

So, I SHOULD start where I left off ... which was shortly before Christmas break started. ...

Let's see ... I cancelled my blood drive appointment so that I can donate at the one at church (a better time/closer place). Mom came up. I sent wrapped presents down with her for Christmas Eve/morning.
The school had rescheduled their Winter Celebration, so we didn't worry about that.
Michael had his company party (got his bonus! Yay!).
Bruise, Bucket, and Bubbles all had their dental check-ups. No signs of decay! YAY!! (I give a lot of credit to the Sonicare. I heart Sonicare.)

Taking Bruise and Bucket back to school after their trip to the dentist, we also dropped off cookies from Costco for their class party the next day. Bubbles, seeing the office staff TAKING AWAY THE COOKIES started to cry. But the principal saw and brought Bubbles and me (after Bruise and Bucket left for their classes) to the staff room to have a cookie from the array set out for the school employees. I also got to chat with the principal and Bruise and Bucket's teachers. Then Bubbles and I headed out to finish some errands.

Friday, Bruise and Bucket had their class party. Bubbles and I had a playdate in the morning ... and a change of plans for Christmas travel ... Michael and I ordered Thai takeaway for lunch as we finished wrapping presents and running errands before the kids came home.

Saturday, we cleaned house and prepared for Christmas travel. And ran last-minute errands.

Sunday, we had church ... and then drove down to visit my Nana, Uncle M, and Aunt I. The kids opened their presents (We broughr presents for Nana, M, I, and R, my cousin's son. And my great-aunt and her girls ... who had presents for our family).
We had a good visit and then headed down (with presents from M, I, and Nana ... and the ones we brought) to my Dad and L's to visit and spend the night.
In the morning, we opened presents and my Uncle S came over and was able to get his presents).
I worked on updating L's computers and helped her color her hair.
She gave me some nail polish and a tub of carnation-scented body butter (I LOVE the smell of carnations/carnation oil. Carnations from the florist, being kept cool, NEVER smell like a fresh carnation. So this body butter is a total treat).

Then, instead of heading over and spending a couple nights with Mom and C (my stepdad), we drove back home (They're working on fixing the well, a porch, my mom was getting better ... but wasn't up to clean the house. C hadn't ever brought in the Christmas decoration ... Mom was really bummed that they didn't even have a Christmas tree set up).

So, we had an evening to relax and get ready for Mom and C and maybe Aunt J to come.
It ended up being just Mom who came up for Christmas Eve, but it was a nice visit.
We got her the wireless keyboard she requested ... and a little Christmas tree. I found a little partly-decorated cypress tree (smelled very nice!) and we put some little red bead-string on it to make it look a tad more festive.

(While out getting that tiny tree and a few last-minute supplies, I ran into a sister from our ward. We had a nice chat. She told me something that simultaneously flattered and saddened me ... that I'm one of two sisters at church who stops and chats with her. She did say that the ward is really sweet ... but that the other gals are so busy. ... I really wanted to cry. Instead, I just gave her extra hugs in the middle of Safeway.)

The kids have been thoroughly spoiled by this point ... and it wasn't even Christmas morning.

Michael and I stayed up WAY too late (almost 2 AM), helping Santa set up the present he got our family. (Of course, he wasn't able to stay long. So many good boys and girls out there that he needed to deliver presents to ... so many stockings to fill. But he enjoyed the cake-batter cookies that the kids set out for him.)
After about four hours of sleep (for US, that is. The kids were asleep around 8:30 or so), the kids woke up and were ready for Christmas morning.

They enjoyed their gifts from us and each other ... and Santa brought them just what they wanted.
And a WiiU ... so Bruise settled in to play LEGO City:Undercover for a bit. Then I got to play Injustice (that and a tablet were my presents from Michael).

I went a little crazy in gifts for Michael ... he got a tablet, too, to replace his old one (cracked screen and all). But I also had a little too much fun over at ThinkGeek.com. The gift I was most excited about was a business card holder. It's Han Solo in carbonite. I know, I know. Totally geeky. But I love it.

After breakfast (a pastry-thing from Safeway ... see? I totally planned ahead!!), we got showered and dressed and headed up for Christmas dinner with Michael's side of the family.

Good times, good folk, good food.

Then we headed home to rest up ... since Boxing day was spent over at Michael's youngest brother's house, helping to renovate the garage into a bedroom.

Dad and J picked up Michael around 8AM or so. The kids and I got ready (played some Just Dance and they watched me play Injustice ... no, really, they requested it. Who was I to deny them?? ;P) and then headed out to J's town.
We first went to a children's museum (Bubbles LOVES the ball pit there) and then picked up drinks at a grocery store. (They didn't have the Rose Lemonade that I adore at this one ... but I tried a Cheerwine soda. Not bad. Tastes like Coke+Dr.Pepper) and a Watermelon Creme soda.

Then we headed to J's place. Due to some unforseen circumstances, the renovation is taking longer than it could. (Of course, I COULD say that it's because my husband, the engineer, wasn't asked to check the plans [no dimensions written on them. Sillies.] ... But, if Michael and C, his other brother, had been in charge, it would have been much further along. Oh well.)
Mom C and I helped to get things set up for when the rest of the family arrived for a late lunch. (Not much prep involved ... she had gotten Subway sandwiches. Just had to get things set out. No biggie at all.)

And we just kept the kids from getting hurt or wrecking J's house.
In related news, Bruise and Bucket can play on the trumpet.
This is nice, since Bruise has expressed an interest in playing the tuba when he's older. He also wants to play the violin.
Bucket has now asked for a trumpet. ... I don't know how the neighbors will feel about that. Because I'll be sending her outside to play that. Until we get a garage. And soundproof it.

Yesterday (Friday), we took the kids to his mom's (Dad C was still helping J on his garage renovation) and Michael and I went out for the day.

We did an endowment session at the temple. I'm not even going to guess at how long it's been since we've been to the temple. It's shameful.
But it was really very, very nice.

After that, we headed to OMSI for the Sherlock Holmes exhibit.
It was CRAZY CROWDED ... like, we had to park four blocks away from OMSI. And we waited in lines for about 45 minutes to GET into the exhibit. But we were behind a fun family ... They had all dressed up for the exhibit (They said that they like to dress up to go ANYWHERE). Now, it wasn't period-accurate (Yes, I'm a costuming geek. Once, I came back from a SOTW rehearsal when Michael was watching an episode of Doctor Who. I sat down, looked at the screen. "So, this is set in, what, the 1860s?" He looked at me and stated, "1864 (or 1865)." "I thought so." ... Yeah, I have a bit of an eye for this stuff. Too bad I don't sew with any confidence, huh?) ... Their outfits were a bit more steampunk inspired (corsets as bodices, gears, etc. One lady in their party had a Renaissance dress with a satin bustled section pinned onto the back. Turns out that one of the gals is a VERY good seamstress. They were really fun to talk to. It made the line seem to take less time.)

The exhibit was very good. It wasn't covered by the membership, but the discounted price was quite fair (unlike the Bodyworks prices. Those are pretty outrageous. Which is why I still haven't gone to one yet).

(There also was a trip to Deseret Book between the temple and OMSI. Some children will be getting some Baptism presents.)

The one not-so-great part of this last week is that we learned that barely any of Michael's family is able to attend Bruise and Bucket's baptism.
His parents will be out of the state with one of his sister's family.
One brother has to work that day.
His other sister's family is living in the midwest, so they probably won't be able to attend, either.

It's disappointing ... and I did cry about it.
We did offer the kids to move the date. Or to be confirmed (receive the gift of the Holy Ghost) the next day.
But both Bruise and Bucket were adamant that they wanted to be baptized as soon as they could and receive the Holy Ghost the same day.
Not that I can blame them.

I mean, when I was baptized, none of my three sets of grandparents were there. It was just Mom, Dad, and me ... and probably some folks from our ward. There were other wards with children being baptized, so it's not like I didn't have people there.

Michael only had one set of grandparents at his baptism.

And Bruise and Bucket understand what's going on.

It's a bummer, but it's not like they won't have some family there (My mom is coming. And probably my stepdad and aunt. Our SIL will bring our kids' couisins. Maybe J can come. Maybe their great-grandma can make it. I don't know if anyone from my dad's side of the family will make it ... but, well, I'm sure that other families that Bruise and Bucket want to invite might come.)

Well, I'd better close this up and finish getting ready ... and make plans for Bruise and Bucket's birthday party. *Oy* ... Seriously, I need naps. Lots of naps. And maybe chocolate. And some (medicinal) Cherry Coke. Good times, right? ^_^

Have a great fall! ... Oh, I did that.

So, you're probably wondering the reason for the blog hiatus THIS time.

And I actually rather have an excuse ... and it's a really decent one.

No, I didn't go on vacation or was hospitalized with ebola or was in prison or anything fun/exciting like that.

No ... nothing quite like that.

SO, here's how it started ... Sunday (Sept 29), there I am, getting everyone (except Michael, who's already at church in meetings) ready for church. We're running a couple minutes later than I'd like (which, by the by, is still early, because I'm a freak like that). I make sure to grab the sign-up sheet so that I can be sure to get rides for a sister in the ward. I hold that in one hand (so it won't get wrinkled, since we need to make copies), grab my purse (with my phone and keys), and follow the kids out the door to the van.

I lock the back door and then start to go down the three stairs to the carport floor so I can get Bubbles into her carseat. The kids have already unlocked the van earlier. Bruise is climing into his seat. Bucket is by Bubbles so Bubbles doesn't go running off into the road as is the wont of a nearly 19-month-old.

And ... I miss a step somewhere in there. I don't know if it was that top step or the middle ... but all I know is that I went down. When I'm next totally aware of what's going on, I know that I'm at the bottom of the steps, my purse is next to me, the sign-up sheet (eventually) is on the other side of the railing (slightly mangled), and I'm in a pile at the bottom of the stairs and I HURT.

I thought I heard some pops when I was in my (very short, very sudden) flight ... and I make sure to wiggle my toes. That's a good sign. I try to rotate my right foot ... OW OW FLIPPITYFLIPPITYOW.

I grapple to open my purse and dig out my phone and call Michael to come and get the kids, because I can't take them to church and I'vehurtmyselfandI'lltrytogetintothehouseandithurtsandI'msorry.

I have Bruise close up the car, Bucket take my keys and unlock the house. They usher Bubbles inside and I drag/crawl/hop into the house and get to my computer chair (closest place to sit) and put my foot up on the other computer chair and try not to cry.

Michael got home, got me moved over to the couch, elevated and iced my ankle, printed out a non-wrinkled copy of the sign-up sheet, ran back to the church to get some things done AFTER putting (cranky) Bubbles to nap and getting the kids settled building a LEGO version of Samuel the Lamanite and me into an Epsom salt bath (where I posted a picture of my ankle onto Facebook. ... I'm such a hussy. Those are the only nude pics that'll be online ... and you can only see from my knees down).

Michael got back home and got me to the other couch, so I could be more comfortable and watch TV. And ... well, for the couple weeks, that's what I did -- rested on the couch, keeping my ankle elevated and applying lots of ice and compression bandages.

One friend has lent me her family's pair of crutches. I've gotten decent at using them.

Monday, Michael stayed home and took care of me.
Tuesday, Mom C took Bubbles for the day, since the kids were at school and Michael was at work, so I could relax.
Wednesday, Mom came up and took care of Bubbles and me.
We took Bubbles to her 18-months check-up ... we made quite the parade: Mom, pushing Bubbles in her stroller and me, bringing up the rear on crutches.
Dr. R also took a look at my ankle and pronounced it a good sprain with very little chance of a fracture ... which is what Michael had told me (and he's had his share of sprained/rolled ankles).

Friday, Bruise was receiving an award at a school assembly for reading, so we went, in our same little parade. We had to park a couple blocks away ... and, with the crutches and everything, I was ready to cry by the time they announced that we could take pictures, in the hallway (on the OPPOSITE side of the cafeteria where the assembly was. By the time we got Bubbles, Mom and me HEADED to take pictures, the students were heading back to their seats. ... So I just had Bruise stand against the backdrop curtain hiding the cafeteria prep and took my damn pictures and Mom, Bubbles, and I headed back home.

Later, I took a Percocet (left over from my kidney stone almost two years ago) ... and I felt so good, I tried putting full weight on my ankle.
Bad idea.
Which required more ice, ibuprofen, elevation, and time. Grrr.

I've been really blessed in that the last couple of weeks have been easy, church-wise: We had General Conference (which you can watch/listen to at home), so I didn't have to get dressed up or leave the house at all. I was able to sit at my desk or the couch and take notes/listen/follow the Bloggernacle/TwitterStake.
And last week was our Stake Conference, where we go to church and have a two hour meeting where you don't have to move to any other classrooms (And Bruise and Bucket were pretty darn quiet!! I was pleasantly amazed).

Which brings us to last week:

• Monday - I try to take Bubbles for the day. No go. I can't chase her on crutches.
  Thankfully, Michael's having a really slow day at work and comes home shortly after lunch.
• Tuesday - Mom C comes and gets Bubbles again.
• Wednesday and Thursday - My mom's up and takes care of us until the kids get home from school Thursday.
• Friday - The kids don't have school, so we make do until Michael gets home from work (Friday is the early day) ... And we take the kids to the LEGO KidsFest ... and I get to trade in my crutches for a wheelchair.

The KidsFest was great. Even in a wheelchair.
We would have brought a carrier for Bubbles (who mostly sat on my lap or Michael carried her) and I'd have brought a smaller purse.
We also would have brought a bag for all the freebie swag that Bruise and Bucket got (totally cancelled out the price of their tickets) ... and it was totally worth the price, regardless.

But, yeah, now I know how to use crutches AND a wheelchair.

Saturday, Michael cleaned out the shop/storage shed. The kids lied about cleaning their room ... so they had to do that and are off of Netflix/DVDs/Wii for the week.
As the kids were "cleaning" their room, RIGHT AFTER Michael left for a meeting, Bubbles came out screaming ... and with a mouth full of blood.
Turns out that Bucket "accidentally threw" her into her bed.

My response: "How THE HELL does one 'accidentally throw' someone anywhere??"

So, as it REALLY turns out, Bubbles climbed up into Bucket's (top) bunk and, instead of enlisting Bruise to help Bubbles get down the ladder, Bucket just hung Bubbles over the edge of the bed and dropped her into her pack-n-play ... which resulted in Bubbles biting her tongue BAD.

I did some Google-fu (and called Michael) ... it wasn't bad enough to take her to the doctor's about ... even IF I could drive her there, or IF Michael came home. Seriously, the next day, her tongue only looked like there was a papercut on it. I don't even see any marks as of yesterday.

We had her suck on a wet rag with ice. She had some acetaminophen and a nap ... then popsicles.

But, yeah ... between THAT and her getting stitches a month or so ago (which you can barely see the scar) ... well, combining that with my ankle AND that I was JUST off  my cycle ... It's a wonder that I haven't had a heart attack ... like I ALMOST did when Michael came in Saturday morning and I was running a bath (ALL BY MYSELF) and was about to slide myself into it and then SUDDENLY, without my being able to hear him coming, there's SOMEONE in the room.

Seriously, my heart nearly skidded to a stop.
Then I started to breathe again.

This week, I've started sleeping in again a bit. I've been exhausted ... and it's not like I've been DOING stuff. Maybe folding some laundry. But getting up so early (so early = 5:50ish AM), not napping really, having a crap cough that doesn't let me sleep, plus waking up whenever I want to roll over in bed ... yeah, I'm not getting as much sleep.

So, I started not waking up that early (which I was so that Michael could help me in/out of the shower and get my clothes, help me out to the couch, make sure that I had a phone handset and my bag of stuff (stuff = cellphone, lip gloss, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, Vicodin, Percocet [both leftover from that kidney stone incident of 2012 and appreciated during this time ... and I made sure not to take them if I was the only adult in the house, regardless of pain level. So, therefore, I think my future as a junkie is severely limited], Aspercreme,  ACE bandages, my ankle brace, a nail file, a book ... things like that.) ... so that I'd only really need to get up to go to the bathroom.

Eventually, we got me a couple of boxes of cereal bars so that I'd have something to eat during the day on days that my mom wasn't here (or if Mom C didn't bring me a doughnut), since -- on crutches -- I couldn't carry anything.

Bubbles likes to race-crawl me if I'm on the ground.

Yesterday, I managed to take care of Bubbles AND myself for the day. She demanded that I help her unload the dishwasher. I also started a load of laundry. And I overdid it by carrying her to nap ... since I wasn't using crutches for that. Just the ankle brace.

I started being able to walk on Sunday ... I first practiced between the couches in the living room. Then I managed to hobble from bed to the bathroom and back.

I moved with all the grace of a geriatric with a hip replacement post-surgery. And it's exhausting.
Mostly due to the sheer mind-numbing terror when I have to first figure out how exactly do I trust all my (considerable, let's be honest) weight onto an injured, still-swollen joint.

So, yeah, I was hurting again by yesterday afternoon.
Today, I've realized that I don't put on my ankle brace well. If Michael puts it on, that's fine. But when I put it on, I put it too tight or something against a bruised spot on my ankle (right against a bone, even) ... so that makes it HURT to walk.

I've babied it a bit today. BUT I was able to STEP (not HOP on my good foot but STEP), with my weight on my gimp foot, into the shower today. That hasn't happened since the 29th.

I also loaded up the washer, after moving clothes to the dryer. Loaded the dishwasher. Fed the cat and gave her water. My RS President (and friend -- same person) came over and filled my crockpot with a lasagna AND helped me fold (and put away) some clothes.

I am not good at getting myself food for breakfast and lunch. Here, it's nearly 4:30 and I still haven't eaten anything. I've had water. And cough syrup. Maybe I won't totally lose my voice from coughing like almost happened yesterday.

It's rather hard to relearn to walk. Mostly because it can hurt. And I really don't like pain.

In other news, Michael can tell when my drugs (Percocet or NyQuil) kick in.
On Percocent, I just am talking ... then I stop and announce, apropos to nothing, "I really like rosemary. But I can't grow it in this house. It's just too dim. ... Rosemary and firs have very distinctive shapes. They're a little similar ... but not the smell. Not at all."

Yes, I am just that special.
And I'm completely aware that I act strangely focused and quite nerdy when on drugs. 

Another example: I'm sitting on the couch, my foot is elevated on a pillow on Michael's lap. I'm working at rotating my ankle in as big of circles as possible to work on range of motion.

I'm staring at my foot/leg ... "It's no wonder that the Romans called muscles 'muscles.' It rather does look like there's something moving around in there. Might as well be mice. ... I'm glad it's not mice, though."

So, yeah ... that's most of the last two weeks done up in one LONG, rambling (but this is me. What else do you expect, really?) post.

Long story short - I busted up my ankle falling down a couple stairs on the way to church. It looked like a zombie leg, with all the swelling and bruising. It's getting better. I know now how to use crutches and I can navigate with a wheelchair. I'm learning to walk again. And I can actually take care of Bubbles by myself for a few hours at a time (the kids help A LOT when they're home).

I'm really ready to have a leg with NO swelling, bruises, or pain ... but I'm trying to be patient.
I suck at patience ... especially with myself, since usually I'm the one that people describe as "Oh, don't worry, she's stronger than she looks." But this ... this is not something that I can just cop an attitude and stubborn my way through. Or I'd have been walking last week. DEFINITELY.

In closing, here's a joke that Bucket made up:

Q: How does a hamburger fart?
A: WITH ITS BUNS!

You've got to admit, that is a golden joke.

... Does anyone know where to buy Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses? I kind of NEED to try them.

Hey jealousyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy ...

So, I came to the realization that the reason why I was so down yesterday and why I'm taking this so hard is that ... well, that friend doesn't seem to be taking this distance that hard.

I know that she's busy and has every right to be happy and have her own friends and a life that doesn't depend upon my friendship being there.
(Only child problem #1: Realizing that it's NOT always all about YOU.)

But, dang it, it sucks for me. Because I have to realize that this isn't all about me.

And that -- as satisfying as it would be for her to look/sound as miserable as I feel -- isn't being at all realistic.

So ... I have to admit to myself that I had more invested into that relationship than maybe I should have.

Not that I've ever BTDT before. Oh no.
(Oh, yes. Like, nearly, EVERY crush I had before Michael. Ha ha ha. Bad habits die hard, right?)

So, yeah. I seem to have lost a sister-friend. And I'm just going to have to put on my (proverbial, not literal) big girl panties and DEAL with it.

Because, I have to face it: there are things in life that suck.
This, apparently, is one of them.

I have other friends who still love me. I have family that loves me. It's not like I'm some friendless orphan without any resources of my own or anything literarily tragic like that.

I can deal with this.
Apparently, it's going to take MONTHS and MONTHS to do it.

BUT. I'm just going to keep telling myself that "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and -- DOGGONE IT! -- people LIKE me!"
(Maybe more or less than I might deserve ... but I'll take it.)

In other news, I woke up feeling a lot better.
(Having a cry while actually ADDRESSING my FEELINGS and managing to put some stupid, tundra-esque storm into words with Michael, who sagely made Firefly-quote proclamations, did help. As did sleep. And prayer. ... I guess I just needed to find a reset button. Crazy body with  its brain full of FEELS.)

I should totally clean up the house. And I'll make an effort ... around a couple errands that NEED running today.
And I might paint Mom's and my toes. Something happy and bright and fun.
If I didn't have Bubbles, who isn't the best as sitting still for an hour or so, I'd take Mom to see Austenland ... if it's still at a local theater.

But ... yeah. I'm going to be okay.

And, obvs, I'm not immune to jealousy or the mean reds or all that.
As much as I'd like to be able to pretend that I'm totes all over that ... but it wouldn't be honest.
So ... yeah.

Today is another (hopefully better) day.

It's been one week ... since I blogged ...

Okay, time to catch up ...

Mom didn't come up last week ... which made the whole week seem a little off.
She's coming tomorrow ... so I'll be working at trying to remember that tomorrow is TUESDAY, not Wednesday.

The kids and I have gone to nearly all the places for their "passports" ... we just have two more places.
1 - A summer festival, which we have to WAIT for.
2 - The visitors' association ... which would be best to do at the very end.

The Orkin man came by again last week ... and good thing, too. Ants were swarming in the kids' room. Now it's reduced to a trickle.
Michael also trimmed back trees and cleaned out the gutters ... so the ants should REALLY ease off on the attack.

I got some Visiting Teaching done ... mostly by email and phone. We got new routes ... So, since I have a master list of who all is assigned to whom (so that all the ladies in the ward SHOULD get visits and know who to focus on), I let the gals that I wouldn't have anymore know who their new Visiting Teachers are. And I got in contact with the new gals on my route ... and it turns out that the new routes start in August. Still, I'd rather make sure that everyone knows that they're being thought of. So it's all fine.

I took the kids to a historic grain mill. BY MYSELF.
I wore Bubbles in her Moby wrap. Bruise and Bucket were really well behaved. We were the only people there (except for staff and volunteers), which was pretty cool. Then we headed downtown and got most of the rest of the stamps for the aforementioned "passports."

I also took the kids on the paddleboats ... Last year, Michael took them while I watched Bubbles. This year, we switched. And, since Bucket had a shoe that fell off last year, they were VERY trepidatious. Instead of being out there for about a half-hour, it was MAYBE 15 minutes. But, goodness, I got a good workout, peddling that boat.

We also went to a baseball game. The kids really wanted to catch a foul ball ... but that didn't happen.
They did love running the bases after the game was over.
Our team won, which was nice. And we got new hats for our "collection," since we opt to go on the free cap night.

We went out for pizza the next night. After Michael and the kids got the front rooms cleaned up.

I haven't been sleeping very well. I should take melatonin or something.
But I've gotten through some of my library books. Which is good, since I have a lot of holds that have all come in.

I should get caught up on the dishes and the laundry.

And watch that last episode of Season Two of Upstairs Downstairs. And I should finish Season One of Gilmore Girls, since that's a library one. *sigh*
And I should just go watch the rest of ALL the seasons of Doctor Who on Netflix (Just finished "The Lazarus Experiment" the other night with the kids, my little Whovians).

Not to toot my own horn, but I'm getting pretty good at picking out who's playing different characters.
As Michael and I were watching the previews for the next few episodes, I focused on one voice...
"That's Mad-Eye!!"
Michael was impressed, since the actor was done up as a giant cat-person.
Even in the preview for "The Lazarus Effect," I was struck by one actor ... "Mycroft!"
(Michael WAS impressed at that one, since in that episode, the guy is so BLOND-HAIRED.)

And, I also totally called another actor. "It's the COOK!! From Upstairs Downstairs!!"

Michael, checking IMDB the other night as I was watching Upstairs Downstairs, "Hey, she's been on Doctor Who."
"Yeah, I TOLD you I recognized her!"
"Oh. That's what you were talking about. ... Nice."
"Thank you."

I am nothing if not insufferable.

Also, yesterday, I was calming down Bubbles by putting music videos on for her.
Bucket came up as we were watching Adele's "Rolling in the Deep."

Bucket: Why is she sitting in a dirty house?

That, my dears, is a question for the ages. It's a question I often ask of myself, about myself, daily.

With that, I should go do more dishes, some laundry, and maybe organize some cupboards.
And grocery shopping or something.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

So, after how not-good yesterday was, today more than made up for things.

The kids and I hit the Old Navy $1 Flip-Flop sale ... with a 10% off coupon.
Yeah, I love it when I save about twice as much as I spend. That's really nice.

Then we dropped the kids off with Mom and Dad C and Michael and I headed up to the big city for my birthday present (Remember how he surprised me with tickets to Neil Gaiman's book signing? Yup!).

Since we got up there early (as planned) and finally found a good parking spot (for a good price, too!), we went to the Chinese Garden. It was our first time there without kids ... and, well, it's a lot nicer without a tandem stroller and impatient kids. ^_^

We moseyed our way around ... watched the koi, smelled the flowers (well, I did. Michael tried NOT to smell the flowers or be bothered by the pollen. :P), watched a Gray Heron swoop in and land on the top of one of the small bridges' roof (and, apparently, gargle for a quarter hour or so), and even went to the tea house ... for NOT tea.
Michael had the mango nectar. I branched out and tried the Sweet Winter Melon juice ... which is very different, but not at all unpleasant -- it's rather like a non-carbonated root beer with strong caramel flavor, but as thin as water (so not like a syrup, though it TASTES like it SHOULD be a syrup).
And, on the receipt, I was tickled that it was poetically called "GOURD JUICE."
And we ate Mao Do (edamame ... but with spices on the outside of the pods) and Bao stuffed with spinach.

And, well, it's a good thing that we ate then, since (after a quick side trip to Powell's bookstore) we were waiting in line outside the Crystal Ballroom for over an hour. And it was nearly another hour before things started.
A musician took the stage for three songs (my favorite was the accordion-accompanied letter to a giraffe-rancher about how the musician REALLY wants a giraffe. ... DUDE, did YOU have any idea that there's a GIRAFFE RANCH in eastern Washington?!?? But they don't do tours, apparently. That was a let down.) and then a gal spoke about Neil Gaiman's influence on her life and her career (drawing and writing).

THEN NEIL GAIMAN TOOK THE STAGE. Well, the dais, really ... but STILL!!

And his accent is even better in real life. And he was just as wonderful, funny, and brilliant as he is on the internet.

He told of how his latest book, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, was a bit of an accident. It was supposed to be a short story he wrote to his wife as she was across the world recording her album.
(Also she doesn't like fantasy ... which is what he writes. "But she likes me.")
It turned from a short story into a novelette ... then a short novella ... then a LONG novella ... then, when it was finished, he checked the word count and emailed his publisher that, sorry, it's not a novella, "I wrote a book by accident."

He also told of the real-life bits about the story (how, when he was seven, his family's Mini was stolen by a man who accidentally gambled his AND his friends' savings away at the pub ... then the gambler stole the Mini and crashed it to commit suicide ... And how the farm at the end of the road had been there since William the Conquerer came. And how he (Gaiman), as a child, figured that the brick farmhouse had ALWAYS been there and that the family living there had always had the farm.)

He answered questions from the audience:

• Q: "Who has the weirder fans? You or Clive Barker?"
  A: Clive ... to the power of a million.
  Gaiman's fans are NICE. Even when they scare little old ladies owning a bookshop in Dayton, OH (The ladies running the shop had NEVER seen such hair colors or piercings), they prove how nice they are (By the end of the day, the ladies were exclaiming what NICE people they were, how they'd never had such wonderful customers).
  Gaiman's fans have never sliced open their arms and demanded that the author sign the book with their blood.
  Gifts for Neil Gaiman are harmless ... like a giant stuffed My Little Pony done up as Death (from Sandman). Barker, instead, gets a carved wooden staff with SEVEN cats' heads impaled on it.
  Neil Gaiman loves his fans.
• Q: "In one to three words, describe your writing process."
  A: "Glare. Drink tea."

There were a couple other questions, including a sweet request from a fan for a kiss. (He complied with a peck on the cheek. She was thrilled. It was ADORABLE.

He read to us ... the third chapter of his book.
After questions, he allowed us to vote if we'd rather get to the signing right away, since it was SWELTERING, or if we'd want to hear from a not-yet-published book.

I'm sure you didn't have to guess that OF COURSE we wanted to hear more.

And he has a children's book coming out in September. And, from the excerpt, it will be AMAZING.
And, as Michael said to me, if/when they make it into a movie, Martin Freeman should be the lead.

We waited for about another hour to be put into line to have our books signed.
Michael's copy of "The Ocean at the End of the Lane" is made out to The [C] Family. And Neil Gaiman also signed out copy of "The Graveyard Book". And Michael called him "sir."
Neil Gaiman signed my copy of "Instructions"  and, in my copy of "The Ocean," inscribed my name and a heart.
I corrected him on my name's pronunciation. He thanked me for coming. I thanked him for doing this. He told me that he felt guilty, since it was so hot and we'd had to wait so much. I assured him that it was worth it.

I also have, among others, a picture of Neil Gaiman and I grinning at each other.

Yeah, this is a birthday present that's seriously hard to beat.

And, really, Neil Gaiman was SO charming and SO nice. The gal in line in front of us had him sign and inscribe a book for her friend. When he learned that she had one book for herself (which had just his signature), he made sure that he inscribed HER name on that one, too.
Such a nice, nice man.

So, yeah ... my husband made this possible by buying our tickets as soon as the site went live. There were 1,000 tickets ... and they were sold out THAT MORNING.

Yup, Michael is THAT AWESOME.
He made a really awesome day possible. Because he's amazing.

And, after all that, we went and grabbed some dinner, got the kids, and came home.
So that we can get ready for church tomorrow.

(Even though ... I am rather sorely tempted to read the rest of "The Ocean" ... the third chapter IS just so good, you see.)