Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Works For Me Wednesday
I've been trying to make things easier on myself by getting organized. Several weeks ago I cleaned out and organized my truck. While I was doing that I thought of a good idea. It seems like whenever I need gas I am always in a hurry and it's very inconvenient to stop and get gas when I'm running late. So I came up with a plan. Every Sunday we fill the tank up. We are usually driving somewhere that day anyway, and it's easy enough to stop and top it off. It's been so nice to not wait until I think I might run out of gas on the freeway before I stop and get gas. It's been a lot less stressful. So pick a day of the week and fill your vehicle up whether it's empty or not. You'll save yourself a lot of stress and not have to worry about running out of gas.
Go over to Rocks in My Dryer for a lot of great tips.
The Brown Girl
On Amaya's soccer team there are 10 kids, and only three of them are girls. All seven of the boys are Caucasian. I don't like to say "white" because even the palest Caucasian person (Mike's dad) is not white. I even had an aunt that was Albino and even she wasn't truly white. I mean, if you held up a white piece of paper to her, she was darker than it. Anyway, all three of the girls are not Caucasian. Two of the girls are Asian and the other girl is African-American. The very first day of soccer Amaya noticed the Asian girl and said, "That girl is a Chinese girl just like me." She has never said anything about the other girl, until Saturday. Amaya was sitting on the sideline out of the game resting, and she pointed at the girl, who was out playing. She asked me, "Why is that girl in a brown body?" It was so funny the way she phrased it. Anyway, I explained to her about how some people have dark brown bodies, some people have medium brown bodies and some people have light brown bodies.
The preschool Amaya goes to is not very diverse at all. In all the years my kids have gone there (this is the fifth) I think there's only been about three kids in my kids' classes that aren't Caucasian. That's one reason I want Amaya to have the only minority (Chinese) teacher there next year. I think it will be good for her to be around someone like her. The elementary school my kids go to is fairly diverse, which I really like. I think it's good for them to be around all sorts of different kids so they grow up knowing that everybody can be a good person no matter what color their skin is.
The preschool Amaya goes to is not very diverse at all. In all the years my kids have gone there (this is the fifth) I think there's only been about three kids in my kids' classes that aren't Caucasian. That's one reason I want Amaya to have the only minority (Chinese) teacher there next year. I think it will be good for her to be around someone like her. The elementary school my kids go to is fairly diverse, which I really like. I think it's good for them to be around all sorts of different kids so they grow up knowing that everybody can be a good person no matter what color their skin is.
Monday, April 28, 2008
There Is A Reason I Usually Don't Answer My Phone
When my phone rings, either my cell phone or my home phone, I usually don't answer it. I first look at caller ID to see who it is and then decide if I'm going to answer it. Usually I don't. It might be someone I don't want to talk to right at that moment, so I let them leave a message to see what they want and then I can call them back later. It might be someone, usually having to do with work, that wants to ask me to do something, so I let them leave a message so I have time to decide whether I want to do what they want me to do. I don't like being asked if I can do something and having to come up with an answer on the spur of the moment. I want to think things through before I commit to something. It might be a friend who I want to talk to but I just don't have the time right then, so I let them leave a message and then I will call them back when I have enough time to devote to a good conversation. It might be my neighbor that I don't like to talk to because he treats me like I'm his counselor and I should be able to sit and listen to all of his problems and then tell him exactly what he should do and exactly what he should say to people. I let him leave a message and I never call him back. Eventually he'll catch me outside anyway and then I have to tell him I'm in a hurry and can only talk for a minute.
The other day my neighbor was outside and was asking Mike how we are all doing and then Mike asked him how his mom is. She is almost 90 years old and is a very, very sweet lady. He told Mike he was worried about her because her health seems to be failing and he gets nervous when he has to leave her alone. Mike told him that he can call us anytime time he's gone and we (meaning me) can go check on her for him. Then he said to Mike, "But will anybody answer your phone?" I felt a little bit guilty about that. I don't know if he knows I avoid him on purpose or not.
Anyway the phone rang this morning and it was him. My initial thought was not to answer it, but then I thought of the conversation he had with Mike and I felt like I should answer it in case he wanted me to go check on his mom. So I answered it. Big mistake. Two hours later, after hearing an in-depth discussion about his ex-girlfriend who is an alcoholic and is getting a divorce and needed him help her but now he can't get a hold of her and what should he do and what exact words should he say to her and do I think he's weird (yes) and what would I do in that situation, I finally was able to get off the phone, but only because he got another phone call. He said he'd call me back and I told him not to because I was going to be busy. The only good part of the phone call was I got caught up on some neighborhood gossip. All I can say about that is we have some really weird neighbors.
I'm not sure what to do. I feel bad not answering the phone in case his mom needs something, but I do not want to get stuck on the phone with him for hours on end. He thinks that because I'm a court reporter I can give him legal advice. He always wants me to find out information for him and type things up for him, which I've finally quit doing after years.
YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! As I'm typing this he is calling me again. I didn't answer it and he hung up without leaving a message.
I have to say that in our circle of seven houses we've got the weirdest bunch of people (I'm not sure where we fit in), but luckily most of them are very nice and we get along great with them. I'd rather have weird neighbors that we get along with than neighbors that want to fight about everything.
Neighbors, you can't live with them (luckily) and you can't have them committed.
The other day my neighbor was outside and was asking Mike how we are all doing and then Mike asked him how his mom is. She is almost 90 years old and is a very, very sweet lady. He told Mike he was worried about her because her health seems to be failing and he gets nervous when he has to leave her alone. Mike told him that he can call us anytime time he's gone and we (meaning me) can go check on her for him. Then he said to Mike, "But will anybody answer your phone?" I felt a little bit guilty about that. I don't know if he knows I avoid him on purpose or not.
Anyway the phone rang this morning and it was him. My initial thought was not to answer it, but then I thought of the conversation he had with Mike and I felt like I should answer it in case he wanted me to go check on his mom. So I answered it. Big mistake. Two hours later, after hearing an in-depth discussion about his ex-girlfriend who is an alcoholic and is getting a divorce and needed him help her but now he can't get a hold of her and what should he do and what exact words should he say to her and do I think he's weird (yes) and what would I do in that situation, I finally was able to get off the phone, but only because he got another phone call. He said he'd call me back and I told him not to because I was going to be busy. The only good part of the phone call was I got caught up on some neighborhood gossip. All I can say about that is we have some really weird neighbors.
I'm not sure what to do. I feel bad not answering the phone in case his mom needs something, but I do not want to get stuck on the phone with him for hours on end. He thinks that because I'm a court reporter I can give him legal advice. He always wants me to find out information for him and type things up for him, which I've finally quit doing after years.
YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! As I'm typing this he is calling me again. I didn't answer it and he hung up without leaving a message.
I have to say that in our circle of seven houses we've got the weirdest bunch of people (I'm not sure where we fit in), but luckily most of them are very nice and we get along great with them. I'd rather have weird neighbors that we get along with than neighbors that want to fight about everything.
Neighbors, you can't live with them (luckily) and you can't have them committed.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Go Utah Jazz!
Last night we had tickets to the Utah Jazz vs. Houston Rockets game. Mike bought three tickets so he, Carson and I could go to the game.
At about 5:00 we dropped Hayden and Amaya off at my mom's house. They spent the night there since the game didn't start until 8:30 and it would be really late before we would get back. Both of them were excited to sleep over at her house instead of going to the game with us, so it worked out well for everybody, except maybe my mom since she had to babysit a lot last week. I think she's resting up today.
After dropping them off at my mom's, we decided to go eat at a Japanese restaurant not far from where we live. I've been there for lunch before but Mike's never been there, so we decided to go there. We didn't want to go eat downtown because we figured all the restaurants would be crowded with the Jazz crowd so we stuck to our own neighborhood. The restaurant opens at 5:30 and we got there at 5:40. They asked if we had a reservation and we didn't. They said they didn't have any openings, unless we wanted to sit at the counter. That was fine with us. Now we know if we want to go there again to be sure to get a reservation. The food was excellent. Neither Mike nor I like sushi or sashimi, so we stuck with tempura, which I know isn't the healthiest choice, but it is delicious. The shrimp we had were probably four inches long. Carson ate so much food I thought he was going to explode.
We decided we didn't want to have to find, or pay for, parking downtown so we decided to take the light rail train. We drove to the station and waited for the train. As we were driving to the station I commented about how nice and relaxing it was only having one kid with us. Carson was behaving perfectly. Mike said, "Maybe we should have stopped at one." I have to agree that having only one child is so much easier than having three, especially with our two wild boys, but then we wouldn't have as much fun and as much love as we have. Anyway, Carson was so good all night long and we had such a great time with him. It made me realize that we need to try to do things one-on-one with the kids more often. I think Carson felt good about the night and I think it made him feel older being able to go to a fancy restaurant and to the Jazz game with us. He had a great time.
We rode the train downtown and outside of the arena they had some activities for kids, a live band and some other things to do. I tried to get Carson to get an autographed poster of the Jazz dancers, but he didn't want to. Give it about seven or eight years and I'm sure he'll think differently. Carson played a basketball game and a football game and then we went inside. We got our drinks, beer for Mike, Coke for me and lemonade for Carson, and some popcorn and went to go find our seats. They were on second row from the top. Even worse than that was that we could only get two seats together. Our third seat was on the other side of the arena. The place was packed so Carson had to take turns sitting on our laps.
The game was great. The Jazz won, even though they almost blew it at the end in typical Jazz fashion. It was very exciting. Even though we were clear at the top, it was so much fun being there with everyone screaming and cheering. It is so much better than watching it on TV. We were hoping they would have won the prior game so we could see them sweep the series, but it wasn't to be. Now they have to go back to Houston for two games so hopefully they can pull another win there. I think we're going to try to get tickets for a game in the next series if they make it that far. The tickets sell out so fast, though, that it's tough to get them.
When we got home Carson was really tired. He wanted to sleep with us. I ended up sleeping with him because Mike needed to get up early to go to a golf course to do a job. Really, he went there to work, not to golf. He's doing a side job so he can golf for free all summer, so it's worth it. Carson and I didn't wake up until 9:30 and Mike was already gone. I haven't slept that late, unless I'm sick, for a long time so it was really nice.
Then Carson and I made banana pancakes for breakfast. He helped me make them and cook them and we had a really nice breakfast just the two of us.
Then we had to go pick up Hayden and Amaya from my mom's. After that the teasing and whining and fighting started. I felt a little bit guilty but I really wished Carson and I could have had a little more alone time. I think he needs more of that. But I did miss Hayden and Amaya and they were very excited to tell me all about their sleepover at Grandma's house.
The lesson I learned from this weekend was that we really need to set aside time to do things with one kid at a time once in a while because it's so nice to be able to interact with them without the others teasing and fighting and causing problems. Right now I think it's more important to have more alone time with Carson since he's the oldest and I think sometimes he feels he's treated like a younger kid like the other two.
Overall it was a great weekend and I really needed a fun, relaxing few days after the week I had last week.
At about 5:00 we dropped Hayden and Amaya off at my mom's house. They spent the night there since the game didn't start until 8:30 and it would be really late before we would get back. Both of them were excited to sleep over at her house instead of going to the game with us, so it worked out well for everybody, except maybe my mom since she had to babysit a lot last week. I think she's resting up today.
After dropping them off at my mom's, we decided to go eat at a Japanese restaurant not far from where we live. I've been there for lunch before but Mike's never been there, so we decided to go there. We didn't want to go eat downtown because we figured all the restaurants would be crowded with the Jazz crowd so we stuck to our own neighborhood. The restaurant opens at 5:30 and we got there at 5:40. They asked if we had a reservation and we didn't. They said they didn't have any openings, unless we wanted to sit at the counter. That was fine with us. Now we know if we want to go there again to be sure to get a reservation. The food was excellent. Neither Mike nor I like sushi or sashimi, so we stuck with tempura, which I know isn't the healthiest choice, but it is delicious. The shrimp we had were probably four inches long. Carson ate so much food I thought he was going to explode.
We decided we didn't want to have to find, or pay for, parking downtown so we decided to take the light rail train. We drove to the station and waited for the train. As we were driving to the station I commented about how nice and relaxing it was only having one kid with us. Carson was behaving perfectly. Mike said, "Maybe we should have stopped at one." I have to agree that having only one child is so much easier than having three, especially with our two wild boys, but then we wouldn't have as much fun and as much love as we have. Anyway, Carson was so good all night long and we had such a great time with him. It made me realize that we need to try to do things one-on-one with the kids more often. I think Carson felt good about the night and I think it made him feel older being able to go to a fancy restaurant and to the Jazz game with us. He had a great time.
We rode the train downtown and outside of the arena they had some activities for kids, a live band and some other things to do. I tried to get Carson to get an autographed poster of the Jazz dancers, but he didn't want to. Give it about seven or eight years and I'm sure he'll think differently. Carson played a basketball game and a football game and then we went inside. We got our drinks, beer for Mike, Coke for me and lemonade for Carson, and some popcorn and went to go find our seats. They were on second row from the top. Even worse than that was that we could only get two seats together. Our third seat was on the other side of the arena. The place was packed so Carson had to take turns sitting on our laps.
The game was great. The Jazz won, even though they almost blew it at the end in typical Jazz fashion. It was very exciting. Even though we were clear at the top, it was so much fun being there with everyone screaming and cheering. It is so much better than watching it on TV. We were hoping they would have won the prior game so we could see them sweep the series, but it wasn't to be. Now they have to go back to Houston for two games so hopefully they can pull another win there. I think we're going to try to get tickets for a game in the next series if they make it that far. The tickets sell out so fast, though, that it's tough to get them.
When we got home Carson was really tired. He wanted to sleep with us. I ended up sleeping with him because Mike needed to get up early to go to a golf course to do a job. Really, he went there to work, not to golf. He's doing a side job so he can golf for free all summer, so it's worth it. Carson and I didn't wake up until 9:30 and Mike was already gone. I haven't slept that late, unless I'm sick, for a long time so it was really nice.
Then Carson and I made banana pancakes for breakfast. He helped me make them and cook them and we had a really nice breakfast just the two of us.
Then we had to go pick up Hayden and Amaya from my mom's. After that the teasing and whining and fighting started. I felt a little bit guilty but I really wished Carson and I could have had a little more alone time. I think he needs more of that. But I did miss Hayden and Amaya and they were very excited to tell me all about their sleepover at Grandma's house.
The lesson I learned from this weekend was that we really need to set aside time to do things with one kid at a time once in a while because it's so nice to be able to interact with them without the others teasing and fighting and causing problems. Right now I think it's more important to have more alone time with Carson since he's the oldest and I think sometimes he feels he's treated like a younger kid like the other two.
Overall it was a great weekend and I really needed a fun, relaxing few days after the week I had last week.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Contact Golf
Is there a good way to tell the parent of a child playing at your house that one of your children hit their child in the head with a golf club? I didn't think so.
Today Carson had a friend from school over. The two of them and Hayden were outside playing. Hayden got his golf clubs out of the garage, which he's not supposed to be playing with. They are not just kiddie golf clubs. They are real golf clubs, just kid sized. Anyway he had a club and was swinging it around in a circle, when Carson's friend got in the way and got whacked in the back of the head. At least it was in the back of the head instead of the front. It hurt bad enough that he started crying. I quickly grabbed him and hugged him. Then I checked his head. There were no marks on it and he said he was okay. I kept asking if he was okay and he kept telling me he was. Just before his dad was going to come and pick him up I checked him out again and he had a small bump there, but he said it didn't hurt. Hayden spent the rest of the afternoon in his room. He really did feel bad about it because it was an accident, but he knows he's not supposed to play with golf clubs in that manner, and I told him he's lucky Carson's friend didn't get hurt bad enough to go to the hospital. That happened to my brother when he was a kid. His friend accidentally hit him just above his eye with a golf club. He had to go get stitches. He has a scar there now. At least it was an accident. The time the same friend (if you can call him that) hit my brother on the head with a hammer, causing him to get stitches again, was not an accident. Also the time the same kid tried to run my mom over with a tractor wasn't an accident. We were glad when that family moved out of the neighborhood.
Anyway, when the kid's dad showed up I had to tell him what happened. I felt like an idiot. Sorry, I let your kid get nailed in the head with a 7 iron. His dad didn't seem too concerned about it. Hopefully he'll let his child come to our house and play again. I'd hate for Carson to lose a friend because of his pesky little brother.
Today Carson had a friend from school over. The two of them and Hayden were outside playing. Hayden got his golf clubs out of the garage, which he's not supposed to be playing with. They are not just kiddie golf clubs. They are real golf clubs, just kid sized. Anyway he had a club and was swinging it around in a circle, when Carson's friend got in the way and got whacked in the back of the head. At least it was in the back of the head instead of the front. It hurt bad enough that he started crying. I quickly grabbed him and hugged him. Then I checked his head. There were no marks on it and he said he was okay. I kept asking if he was okay and he kept telling me he was. Just before his dad was going to come and pick him up I checked him out again and he had a small bump there, but he said it didn't hurt. Hayden spent the rest of the afternoon in his room. He really did feel bad about it because it was an accident, but he knows he's not supposed to play with golf clubs in that manner, and I told him he's lucky Carson's friend didn't get hurt bad enough to go to the hospital. That happened to my brother when he was a kid. His friend accidentally hit him just above his eye with a golf club. He had to go get stitches. He has a scar there now. At least it was an accident. The time the same friend (if you can call him that) hit my brother on the head with a hammer, causing him to get stitches again, was not an accident. Also the time the same kid tried to run my mom over with a tractor wasn't an accident. We were glad when that family moved out of the neighborhood.
Anyway, when the kid's dad showed up I had to tell him what happened. I felt like an idiot. Sorry, I let your kid get nailed in the head with a 7 iron. His dad didn't seem too concerned about it. Hopefully he'll let his child come to our house and play again. I'd hate for Carson to lose a friend because of his pesky little brother.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Even Big Boys Like to Cuddle
Today after I got home from work and the kids got home from school I had so much stuff I needed to do: clean the house, do laundry, edit transcripts, check e-mail, etc. I sat down for a minute in my rocking chair to decide what to do first and Carson came and sat on my lap and started to watch TV. I let him sit there and cuddle with me for a few minutes, and then I was tempted to tell him I was busy and he couldn't sit there anymore. But it felt good to have him sitting with me. He doesn't do it that often because he's getting so big. He is eight-years-old after all. So I let him stay and I just relaxed. He ended up cuddling with me for two-and-a-half hours. When he finally got up and went to do something else, my arm was hurting and my right leg was numb, but it was worth it.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
The Viewing
After thinking about it all day I finally decided I wanted to go to the viewing. I am really glad I did. It was nice to see my friend's family and talk to them. I really think they are kind of relieved that she died so they don't have to worry about her anymore and she can finally be at peace. Her brother told me that now their family can finally be at peace and move on.
She was on drugs for approximately 16 years. She would go through brief periods when she would be off drugs, but would always go back. There were many times when she would disappear for months at a time and her family wouldn't know where she was. Her parents were basically taking care of her kids most of the time, and a while back they told her she needed to turn custody of her kids over to them so she did. At least that was taken care of before she died.
The other day when we were going to watch the marathon we had to drive through a neighborhood and we drove right past the house where she and I used to live. I pointed it out to my kids and told them I used to live there. It's weird that we drove by that house on Saturday and I was thinking about her and she died on Saturday.
After Mike and I got home tonight Carson wanted to know where we had been so I told him. I showed him her picture in the paper and told him that she used to be my best friend, but that she had started doing drugs and that she died from doing drugs. I told him that the drugs made her want to take drugs more than she wanted to take care of her children, and that now her two children don't have a mom. I really didn't tell him all of that stuff to scare him, but I really want my kids to know, from the time they're old enough to understand, how bad drugs are and the damage they can do to people's lives.
It's so weird to think that she is dead. I just hope her family can move on and live a more peaceful and stable life and her kids will grow up knowing that she loved them, even though she wasn't always around.
She was on drugs for approximately 16 years. She would go through brief periods when she would be off drugs, but would always go back. There were many times when she would disappear for months at a time and her family wouldn't know where she was. Her parents were basically taking care of her kids most of the time, and a while back they told her she needed to turn custody of her kids over to them so she did. At least that was taken care of before she died.
The other day when we were going to watch the marathon we had to drive through a neighborhood and we drove right past the house where she and I used to live. I pointed it out to my kids and told them I used to live there. It's weird that we drove by that house on Saturday and I was thinking about her and she died on Saturday.
After Mike and I got home tonight Carson wanted to know where we had been so I told him. I showed him her picture in the paper and told him that she used to be my best friend, but that she had started doing drugs and that she died from doing drugs. I told him that the drugs made her want to take drugs more than she wanted to take care of her children, and that now her two children don't have a mom. I really didn't tell him all of that stuff to scare him, but I really want my kids to know, from the time they're old enough to understand, how bad drugs are and the damage they can do to people's lives.
It's so weird to think that she is dead. I just hope her family can move on and live a more peaceful and stable life and her kids will grow up knowing that she loved them, even though she wasn't always around.
"I Am Getting Tired of Looking at the Obituaries"
That's what Mike called and told me earlier today. I said, "Who died this time?" He said, "This time it's one of your friends."
I opened up the paper and looked. This time it is a friend of mine that I used to live with when we were younger. When I first moved out from my mom and dad's house I moved in with her. We had a lot of good times together. In fact, I was with her when I met Mike.
I'll admit that back then I used to party a lot, and her and I did some major partying together. Unfortunately, she took the partying a little farther than I did.
A few years after we no longer lived together, there was a period of three or four months that I couldn't get in contact with her. Her phone was disconnected and when I drove to her apartment it was empty. Finally, she called me and told me what was going on. She had met a guy, and for some reason he convinced her it would be a good idea to try heroin. Even though she was a beautiful girl, she had a low self-esteem, and whenever a guy was involved she would do whatever they wanted her to do. She ended up getting addicted.
She went through a lot of hard years. I know she went to jail once; although she never told me what it was for and I never asked. I had my suspicions. She ended up getting pregnant. She did her best to get off drugs while she was pregnant. Her doctor put her on methadone even while she was pregnant. When the baby was born it was taken away from her and her mom gained custody of her. Over the next year my friend had to prove she was a fit mother, and she eventually earned custody of her daughter back. A few years later she got pregnant again. Her son was born just a few months after Carson was. After I had Carson she came to see him. That was the last time I saw her. I talked to her several times on the phone and told her to be sure to let me know when she had her baby. He was born several months later but she never called me. I called her and talked to her once after that and I went and bought some things for the baby, and she never called me back. Then she abruptly moved and I couldn't get in touch with her. Over the next few years I talked to her mom several times and would get updates about her. She was doing fairly well. She was from a small town and she was living near her parents. Her mom always told me, "She'll be so excited to talk to you. I tell her to call you." She never called. I sent her Christmas cards with pictures of my kids and a note with my address and phone numbers and told her to call me, but she never did. Eventually I gave up trying to get a hold of her. She had my address and my phone numbers and if she wanted to contact me she could. There's only so much one person can do to hold up a friendship when the other person won't participate.
I don't know what she died from. I don't know if she went back on drugs, or if it was the methadone that she had been on to stay off of heroin, or something else.
I'm trying to decide whether I should go to the viewing or just send a card to her parents. It is tonight and it is about an hour away from here. I haven't seen her parents in years and they probably wouldn't recognize me. I can't go to the graveside service tomorrow because I have to work. It's a hard decision.
It's just such a sad thing. She leaves behind her two children. Hopefully they will be all right and know that even though their mom had some hard times, she was very smart, funny and beautiful.
I opened up the paper and looked. This time it is a friend of mine that I used to live with when we were younger. When I first moved out from my mom and dad's house I moved in with her. We had a lot of good times together. In fact, I was with her when I met Mike.
I'll admit that back then I used to party a lot, and her and I did some major partying together. Unfortunately, she took the partying a little farther than I did.
A few years after we no longer lived together, there was a period of three or four months that I couldn't get in contact with her. Her phone was disconnected and when I drove to her apartment it was empty. Finally, she called me and told me what was going on. She had met a guy, and for some reason he convinced her it would be a good idea to try heroin. Even though she was a beautiful girl, she had a low self-esteem, and whenever a guy was involved she would do whatever they wanted her to do. She ended up getting addicted.
She went through a lot of hard years. I know she went to jail once; although she never told me what it was for and I never asked. I had my suspicions. She ended up getting pregnant. She did her best to get off drugs while she was pregnant. Her doctor put her on methadone even while she was pregnant. When the baby was born it was taken away from her and her mom gained custody of her. Over the next year my friend had to prove she was a fit mother, and she eventually earned custody of her daughter back. A few years later she got pregnant again. Her son was born just a few months after Carson was. After I had Carson she came to see him. That was the last time I saw her. I talked to her several times on the phone and told her to be sure to let me know when she had her baby. He was born several months later but she never called me. I called her and talked to her once after that and I went and bought some things for the baby, and she never called me back. Then she abruptly moved and I couldn't get in touch with her. Over the next few years I talked to her mom several times and would get updates about her. She was doing fairly well. She was from a small town and she was living near her parents. Her mom always told me, "She'll be so excited to talk to you. I tell her to call you." She never called. I sent her Christmas cards with pictures of my kids and a note with my address and phone numbers and told her to call me, but she never did. Eventually I gave up trying to get a hold of her. She had my address and my phone numbers and if she wanted to contact me she could. There's only so much one person can do to hold up a friendship when the other person won't participate.
I don't know what she died from. I don't know if she went back on drugs, or if it was the methadone that she had been on to stay off of heroin, or something else.
I'm trying to decide whether I should go to the viewing or just send a card to her parents. It is tonight and it is about an hour away from here. I haven't seen her parents in years and they probably wouldn't recognize me. I can't go to the graveside service tomorrow because I have to work. It's a hard decision.
It's just such a sad thing. She leaves behind her two children. Hopefully they will be all right and know that even though their mom had some hard times, she was very smart, funny and beautiful.
Go Jazz!
It looks like Mike, Carson and I might be witnessing a sweep in person Saturday night. We are going to the Utah Jazz game and I think it's going to be pretty exciting.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
They Always Happen in Threes
Have you ever noticed that bad things always happen in threes? I've noticed that a lot of times when a celebrity dies, two more will die within a short time after. It's really weird but Mike and I've talked about this subject a lot. Well, this week the death in threes happened to people we know.
Last Saturday Mike's dad's best friend, Richard, died. He got up in the morning, sat down to read the paper and just keeled over. He didn't have any ongoing health problems, but he was a heavy drinker and smoker so that probably contributed in some way. When Mike's mom and dad were teenagers, some friends set Mike's mom up on a blind date. It was supposed to be with Richard, but for some reason Richard couldn't go so Mike's dad went instead. It worked out perfectly. I really can't picture Mike's mom with Richard. Anyway, everyone is pretty upset about Richard's death. He was a very nice guy.
On Tuesday, Mike's friend Tim's brother died. He was only 46 years old. He had been a heavy drinker in the past and had some health problems associated with that. We knew him years ago and he used to hang out with us a bit, but we hadn't seen him for quite a few years. He was a really nice guy also. He wasn't married and didn't have any children. He is the second sibling out of five to die. The first was his sister. She was only 19 years old when she died. I feel very bad for their family.
Also this week a man that used to work for Mike's dad died. He was 82 years old, so it wasn't as tragic as the other two, but it's sad just the same. He lived a good life and was a very nice man and a very hard worker. He was also a WWII veteran. His wife died several years ago and he had been sad without her.
I certainly hope that nobody else we know dies any time soon.
Last Saturday Mike's dad's best friend, Richard, died. He got up in the morning, sat down to read the paper and just keeled over. He didn't have any ongoing health problems, but he was a heavy drinker and smoker so that probably contributed in some way. When Mike's mom and dad were teenagers, some friends set Mike's mom up on a blind date. It was supposed to be with Richard, but for some reason Richard couldn't go so Mike's dad went instead. It worked out perfectly. I really can't picture Mike's mom with Richard. Anyway, everyone is pretty upset about Richard's death. He was a very nice guy.
On Tuesday, Mike's friend Tim's brother died. He was only 46 years old. He had been a heavy drinker in the past and had some health problems associated with that. We knew him years ago and he used to hang out with us a bit, but we hadn't seen him for quite a few years. He was a really nice guy also. He wasn't married and didn't have any children. He is the second sibling out of five to die. The first was his sister. She was only 19 years old when she died. I feel very bad for their family.
Also this week a man that used to work for Mike's dad died. He was 82 years old, so it wasn't as tragic as the other two, but it's sad just the same. He lived a good life and was a very nice man and a very hard worker. He was also a WWII veteran. His wife died several years ago and he had been sad without her.
I certainly hope that nobody else we know dies any time soon.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Sunday
Watching Looney Tunes
Riding bikes
Playing ball
Drawing on the sidewalk with chalk
Pretending to go camping
Having a picnic on the grass
Riding scooters
Hitting the driving range
Playing frisbee
Visiting with the neighbors
Getting cookies from the neighbors
Reading books
Having fun
Riding bikes
Playing ball
Drawing on the sidewalk with chalk
Pretending to go camping
Having a picnic on the grass
Riding scooters
Hitting the driving range
Playing frisbee
Visiting with the neighbors
Getting cookies from the neighbors
Reading books
Having fun
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Organizing Photos Coming Up
I realize I've been quite a slacker lately, but I don't have much to say.
Today we went to watch soccer games. Amaya's game was first. When she first started she would only go out on the field if Mike or I came with her and held her hand. Now she'll go out by herself, but she acts like she's the coach's shadow. She sticks right by him. If he walks, she walks. If he stops, she stops. It's so funny. Usually when her team is throwing the ball in or kicking off he has her do it because that's the only time she'll get near the ball.
Hayden does really well during his games. He gets in there and runs fast and kicks the ball. Today his coach wasn't there so Mike had to be the coach. He was not looking forward to it, but after a few minutes he relaxed and did great. Today was picture day, so without the coach there I was in charge of that. I can't wait to get the pictures back. They are going to look so cute.
After we got home Mike decided to start scraping the paint off of our eaves and around our windows. It looks pretty bad and we can't afford to get them replaced yet so we're going to paint them this summer. I decided to clean out and organize the truck because it has gotten so messy in there I'm embarrassed to open the doors if anyone is near me. Of course, the back seat where the kids sit was the worst. I took everything out, vacuumed it, wiped down everything and washed the windows. I found some interesting things. There were a lot of pairs of kids underwear under the seats. I'm not quite sure why that is. There were various socks under there, too. I found one of Amaya's winter boots that she went without all winter because I had no idea where it was. I am tired of having things roll under my feet when I'm driving, or not being able to find something I know is in there when I need it. I put a tote with a handle on it on the floor in front of the front seat right in the middle. Then I put several things in it that I need in there like tissues, my adapter to plug things in, sunscreen and an empty jar with pens and crayons in it. I've got a list on my computer of things I think we need to always keep in the truck, so I need to look that up and stock my tote up with those items.
Since I was organizing something today, it made me realize I need to start taking pictures of what I've organized so far in my house and post those. Since I can't think of much else to talk about, I will start doing that next week. Now if I could just find my camera.
Today we went to watch soccer games. Amaya's game was first. When she first started she would only go out on the field if Mike or I came with her and held her hand. Now she'll go out by herself, but she acts like she's the coach's shadow. She sticks right by him. If he walks, she walks. If he stops, she stops. It's so funny. Usually when her team is throwing the ball in or kicking off he has her do it because that's the only time she'll get near the ball.
Hayden does really well during his games. He gets in there and runs fast and kicks the ball. Today his coach wasn't there so Mike had to be the coach. He was not looking forward to it, but after a few minutes he relaxed and did great. Today was picture day, so without the coach there I was in charge of that. I can't wait to get the pictures back. They are going to look so cute.
After we got home Mike decided to start scraping the paint off of our eaves and around our windows. It looks pretty bad and we can't afford to get them replaced yet so we're going to paint them this summer. I decided to clean out and organize the truck because it has gotten so messy in there I'm embarrassed to open the doors if anyone is near me. Of course, the back seat where the kids sit was the worst. I took everything out, vacuumed it, wiped down everything and washed the windows. I found some interesting things. There were a lot of pairs of kids underwear under the seats. I'm not quite sure why that is. There were various socks under there, too. I found one of Amaya's winter boots that she went without all winter because I had no idea where it was. I am tired of having things roll under my feet when I'm driving, or not being able to find something I know is in there when I need it. I put a tote with a handle on it on the floor in front of the front seat right in the middle. Then I put several things in it that I need in there like tissues, my adapter to plug things in, sunscreen and an empty jar with pens and crayons in it. I've got a list on my computer of things I think we need to always keep in the truck, so I need to look that up and stock my tote up with those items.
Since I was organizing something today, it made me realize I need to start taking pictures of what I've organized so far in my house and post those. Since I can't think of much else to talk about, I will start doing that next week. Now if I could just find my camera.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Tackle It Tuesday
Today I have two things to tackle.
The first thing is the mountain of clean clothes that I need to fold and put away. The good thing is I'm caught up on washing and drying the clothes; I'm just behind on getting them put away. I am getting tired of having to rummage through a huge pile of clothes to find things for me and my kids to wear every day (I let my husband fend for himself). I've been doing one load of laundry a day so that has really helped me keep caught up on the washing; I just haven't gotten myself in the habit of putting each load away every day.
The second thing I need to tackle is getting all of my tax paperwork together to take to my CPA. Everyone knows that in order to get your big tax credit check soon you need to file your taxes by April 15th. If you file an extension you will get your check later. And for anyone who is a really bad procrastinator, you must file your taxes by December 31, 2008, in order to get the credit. If you don't file it by that date you won't be eligible for the credit. So everyone get your taxes filed ASAP.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
I'm Boring
I haven't been posting much lately because I can't think of much to say. Life's been pretty boring around here.
I'm still trying to get my house organized. I'm still trying to lose weight. I'm still trying to get caught up on my laundry. All three of those seem like never-ending projects.
Hopefully something exciting will happen this week. Otherwise I might have to do something goofy, like park my truck in front of my crazy neighbor's house and go in my house and peek out the window and watch her stand on her front porch in her bright red terrycloth bathrobe and stare my truck down for eight hours until I decide to go back out and move it. I'm just kidding. She wouldn't stare my truck down for eight hours. She would just stare it down for two hours and then come over to my house and tell me I have to move it because she has company coming over. Then I would go move it and her imaginary company would never show up.
Or maybe I could call the authorities on my other neighbors, whose house and yard look like they should be condemned, and point out the marijuana plants growing in their garden. Or I could just threaten to call the authorities unless they give me the antique cookie jar they have decorating their garden because it is the same kind of antique cookie jar I got from my grandma years ago. Maybe I'll just hold their cookie jar hostage until they clean up their house and yard. Since that will never happen, I will get to keep it and I will have a nice set of antique cookie jars.
All this talk about cookies jars is making me crave cookies, so I guess I'd better go to bed so I don't have to think about cookies I don't have but want really, really bad.
I'm still trying to get my house organized. I'm still trying to lose weight. I'm still trying to get caught up on my laundry. All three of those seem like never-ending projects.
Hopefully something exciting will happen this week. Otherwise I might have to do something goofy, like park my truck in front of my crazy neighbor's house and go in my house and peek out the window and watch her stand on her front porch in her bright red terrycloth bathrobe and stare my truck down for eight hours until I decide to go back out and move it. I'm just kidding. She wouldn't stare my truck down for eight hours. She would just stare it down for two hours and then come over to my house and tell me I have to move it because she has company coming over. Then I would go move it and her imaginary company would never show up.
Or maybe I could call the authorities on my other neighbors, whose house and yard look like they should be condemned, and point out the marijuana plants growing in their garden. Or I could just threaten to call the authorities unless they give me the antique cookie jar they have decorating their garden because it is the same kind of antique cookie jar I got from my grandma years ago. Maybe I'll just hold their cookie jar hostage until they clean up their house and yard. Since that will never happen, I will get to keep it and I will have a nice set of antique cookie jars.
All this talk about cookies jars is making me crave cookies, so I guess I'd better go to bed so I don't have to think about cookies I don't have but want really, really bad.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
April Fool's Day
Mike and I decided to play a few tricks on the kids today.
Our first trick was to switch Carson and Hayden into each other's beds so when they woke up they wouldn't know how they got there. They went to bed at about 8:00 last night. At about 11:00 I went into Carson's room and picked him up and carried him into Hayden's room and put him in bed, and Mike went into Hayden's room and picked him up and carried him into Carson's room and put him in bed. This morning when they woke up they were totally confused as to what had happened. The only way it would have been better is if Mike and I had woken up before they did and could have seen their faces when they woke up.
Our next trick was at dinnertime. I told the kids they were going to get a surprise dinner. When it was time to eat they came into the kitchen and were all excited because they thought they were going to be eating cupcakes for dinner.
Carson was the first to figure out they weren't real cupcakes. They were meatloaf cupcakes with mashed potato icing, and they were yummy. The kids really liked them, and I like them because they were very easy and fast to make.
Our first trick was to switch Carson and Hayden into each other's beds so when they woke up they wouldn't know how they got there. They went to bed at about 8:00 last night. At about 11:00 I went into Carson's room and picked him up and carried him into Hayden's room and put him in bed, and Mike went into Hayden's room and picked him up and carried him into Carson's room and put him in bed. This morning when they woke up they were totally confused as to what had happened. The only way it would have been better is if Mike and I had woken up before they did and could have seen their faces when they woke up.
Our next trick was at dinnertime. I told the kids they were going to get a surprise dinner. When it was time to eat they came into the kitchen and were all excited because they thought they were going to be eating cupcakes for dinner.
Carson was the first to figure out they weren't real cupcakes. They were meatloaf cupcakes with mashed potato icing, and they were yummy. The kids really liked them, and I like them because they were very easy and fast to make.
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