Drowsy

Well, I tried to post from my phone but I disremembered the email address I needed. I'll have to write it down today. Mark's court date was continued, for those of you who are wondering. It's going to be in December. Think we'll have money for a lawyer by then? I'm not holding my breath.

I still hate The Turd.

I am very grumpy today; the cold rainy weather and laryngitis and pain in my hip and the fact that I didn't sleep well can't possibly have anything to do with it. Lol. I will try not to make this a gloomy post because it was actually a good weekend.

The party was nice. Everyone was pretty laid back and just having fun for the first few hours. The bimbo who was causing trouble with Mark here a few months ago was there, and I didn't even recognize her. Haha! That made me happy. After all, out of sight, out of mind. Why would she merit a space in my memory?

She was every bit the shallow, nasty little whore I remembered though. And I didn't realize who she was until we left, and I asked Mark if his little brother's girlfriend was the one who left horrific black-and-blue handprints around his neck during sex a couple months back. He said, "No, that was Sandra." I'm like, "Who?" "You know, Danielle's friend." That's when it clicked. Good thing I didn't know before. I've been dying to get my hands on the bitch who did that. He should have called the cops.

One thing is for sure; any doubts I had about what kind of person she really was, with all the conflicting stories going around, are now cleared up. She's exactly what I thought she was. And I can't say I was pre-disposed against her, because I didn't remember her.

So, that may not sound positive to you guys, but please just trust me that it's a positive thing for me. It's good to have my instincts confirmed when things are so uncertain these days.

Everything was great for a few hours until Mark's buddy Leo found a bottle of Jack Daniels belonging to Mark's brother J.'s roommate (the party was at J.'s house). Apparently he is not the same person when he drinks and has some really serious issues going on. So we had to get him out of there in a hurry when he began to terrorize everyone. Other than that, it was awesome. :)

It poured rain all night though, and they got the birthday boy's car stuck in the middle of a field. Don't ask. After two days they got it out with the help of a friend who owns a massive truck, but now the engine is tapping really bad. It must be a bad year for cars.

On Monday night I got to go out with a friend who travels a lot. We haven't seen each other much, and we went to the mall and walked around and I stocked up on tea at my favorite store. Yum! I also bought a really nice hair clip and little presents for Mark and the boys. Mark's present was a pair of Phillies socks, hehe.

And no, before you ask, I don't really care if they win the series. I'm just catering to the fact that Mark does.

It's been a pain in the butt kind of week since then. My brother's truck broke down so he's been borrowing my mom's car which means I'm without a car all week. And didn't they pick this week to work on the water main, so they scheduled a shutoff on Tuesday that I didn't find out about until 45 minutes ahead of time. They never did shut it off, but I couldn't do any laundry or cleaning all day becuase I kept thinking it would be shut off any time. And I had to watch my neice and nephew at the last minute because their other grandmother's van keeps breaking down and she likes to wait until my SIL is on her way to meet them before telling her she can't pick the kids up. No time to call out of work or anything. And it is really hard for me to watch them at ou house. She pulled the same stunt again today, which is how I ended up here at my mom's typing and watching four kids. I feel so bad for my SIL. But at the same time, welcome to my world. This is why I'm not working.

If I can keep from getting sick, I'll be okay; but I feel it coming on hard and fast. And Andy is laying next to me with a fever. Yuck. I think I'll go grab some garlic. And pray my niece and nephew don't catch whatever we picked up.

Friday Fragments

Whaddaya know, here I am again! Lol. My mom needed a ton of raking done, and I love raking leaves, not to mention the boys love jumping in them. And it's going to pour rain all weekend; we had to get as much done as possible this afternoon. Now the temperature is plummeting and the wind is really picking up, so I'm ready to call it quits. It sure was fun though. I love raking and I love the weather when a storm is approaching, and today I got both!

***Yesterday was my youngest brother-in-law's 19th birthday, and tonight he's having a party at another brother's house. My mom and sister were kind enough to say that the boys can sleep over and Mark and I can borrow the car. These are the things that make all the difference. I'm so thankful I have a loving family even if we disagree on some major things.

***I've been trying to push aside my irrational fears that someone will think I am weird when I'm around other people, and it's working. On Wednesday one of the moms from my group had a playdate at her house just up the road, and I wasn't going to go because I didn't want to ask for a ride. But my sister said she could drop me off, and it turned out that two of the other moms were willing to let me split the boys up in their cars and bring us back. They have to pass my house to get home anyway. I guess I really should just ask more often instead of being afraid to inconvenience people. We had a great time and several other moms showed up; it was the most fun I've had in ages. I tried to remember not to overtalk people and that not everything that pops into my head is worth saying, lol. I chatter so much when I get nervous. I think I did better this time.

***I think I am smelling dog mess on my shoe. Maybe raking leaves has its drawbacks after all.....

***My Dad's mom has moved out here from Arizona, against her will, to an assisted living community up the road. She's in her 80's and was living in an assisted living facility out there, and sure she can live on her own. I'm torn about it. She wants to go back to Palm Desert where she lived before, and she won't accept that this is where she has to stay; and my mom is just telling her that she is out here until at least the wedding (I'll get to that shortly). Thing is, the wedding is not a set date yet, it's farther away than my grandmother realizes, and while I understand my parents' point of view with her being elderly and feeble and her memory slipping badly, I still feel that she does have some right to a say in her last days. If she would rather live alone and take the risk of being injured with no one around to help, doesn't she have that right? And I guess I was even more annoyed when I found out that her money is being used to pay for all this. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying my parents or aunt should be financially responsible for her if she has her own money. But I think if they want to spend her money, they should allow her to take her own risks if she sees fit. I hate to see her essentially locked up in luxury. So she's safe. That's awesome. She's not living, so what's the point?

***The wedding. My 3rd brother is not officially engaged yet, it has something to do with a deal they made with her parents not to make it official until the New Year. But I'm still very happy because I think his girlfriend is really awesome and will be a great addition to the family. Not to mention being very good for my brother. She's a really nice girl, a few years younger than him, the oldest of several kids. And they are talking about a wedding in the spring, but no official announcements or plans can be made until January. Still, I can't wait! Hopefully I will get to attend this one.

***At Longwood the first week we went, I got an amazing shot of the boys sitting on a hay bale with pumpkins in the children's garden. I like to send out New Year's cards, since we don't officially celebrate Christmas. This year I decided to do Thanksgiving cards, because I couldn't pass up such a good picture. It's not easy to get. My old boss at the camera shop designed a gorgeous fall border for the cards and I picked them up earlier this week. They look fantastic. I'm going to let Andy do leaf rubbings on the backs of the letters I send with them. He learned that at the Longwood class and loved it, and my mom's yard is full of big, beautiful leaves that would be perfect. He will love being part of the mailing process, hehe.

When I showed Mark the cards, he surprised me to no end by starting to cry. He said that they look so much like him and I have to make sure they don't turn out like him. He made me promise. I know what he means, but I told him that it makes me happy when I see him in our boys because I think there is a lot about him that is worth passing on. If we can keep their feet on the right track, I know that someday I will look at Andy and Hunter with pride when I say, "You're just like your father."

Try again

Okay, so I sent my first email to the wrong address. I never said I was perfect!Let's give this another shot. Wow, if I keep doing this I will definitely need glasses. Blast these tiny keys!

Phooey

Haha! Not only did it use two text messages, I see it posted them as two separate posts - and in the wrong order! Lol. I guess I'd better keep my comments short and sweet huh?

via email but that was a failure. Worst case scenario, I should at least be able to comment now. I wonder how that will work on non-blogger blogs.

This is a test post to see how blogger mobile works and if I will get charged for a million texts if I ppay a long one. I am supposed to be able to post

Friday Fragments

Wow, I'm actually able to do one! Lol. Although I only have about 10-15 minutes of typing time. Thanks to Mrs. 4444 for the idea, but I just wasted 3 minutes trying to link. Grrrr.

***Not having a car is a pain in many ways, but I'm getting a lot more done at the house. When I don't have the stomach flu, that is.

***Hunter is getting way creative with his imagination. He will definitely be our little nature buff.

***Andy is quite the little amateur cartoonist. And he's doing very well with his writing. He also loves math and numbers. Ugh. I'm doomed.

***For some reason I can't imagine, the township ungratefully chopped down a beautiful, healthy shade tree at the playground nearby. I'm so irritated. It was the only thing that kept you from going blind there in the afternoon. And there was nothing wrong with it! We saw the trunk even though all the branches had been hauled off, and it looked perfectly healthy. What is wrong with these people that they are too good for trees? And it was a big one too. Aaarrrghhh.

***I am really missing the chiropractor now that my two months of health insurance is over. My hip didn't stay in place (they told me it would take a while), and now I'm having a lot of back pain again. I hate taking Ibuprofen but you know what, it's all I can afford right now.

***I still hate The Turd. Enough said.

***All the cars are breaking down in Mark's family. First our transmission went, then my FIL's, then the truck got smashed up so my FIL fixed his trans, then his engine started knocking. Immediately. Now it's broken down completely, and my BIL's car is making horrid noises that indicate less expensive but still important problems. And my MIL's car is having major brake/strut problems. When it rains it pours. Only Mark's youngest brother has a car that runs decently, and it's a stick shift. I can't drive it. Lol.

***I bought a pass to Longwood Gardens with some of Andy's refunded tuition money, because they advertised a Kid's Garden Adventure class for preschoolers through October and November. I thought it would be perfect; Andy's love of flowers and colors combined with Hunter's love of digging in the dirt. Hehe. I was pleasantly delighted by the changes to the Gardens since my last visit; they have made it far more child-friendly and it was well worth the cost of the pass. We've spent three gorgeous mornings there already and there is a lot more to see. But the class was a real let-down. Garden Adventure my foot. It's your everyday kitchen table storytime and craft. Nothing special at all. No actual learning involved. Bleh. I could have done that at home. I'm going to talk to them and see if they will do a real gardening class next spring. At least it's free........

Well, I better go for now. Maybe I'll be back nest Friday, maybe not. Try not to miss me too much. :P