Thankful Sunday

I'm thankful for a long holiday weekend...for all of my kids to be home for Thanksgiving dinner...(including both of the girl's boyfriends and Ryan's girlfriend.) I'm thankful that Pat put up the Christmas lights and that we already got our Christmas tree today! The house smells so good...nothing like a fresh cut spruce tree. I got all my Christmas cards addressed and ready for mailing...Let me tell you...this is A FIRST! For all this wonderful organization, I am thankful. Sorry Sheila..."I'm kicking your Christmas ass!"

I know, all this before December first. I am quite shocked myself. Tomorrow the tree will be trimmed and Jennifer and I will be going out to do some shopping. We are trying to decide what kind of ornaments we want to make this year. Sounds like a fun little trip to Hobby Lobby.

Today we are getting dumped on with snow. It's so beautiful outside, even though it really stinks to drive in. (Oh, I am sooooo missing my SUV with 4WD!!!) My new car only has front wheel drive and it's so hard to get used to. It's not all that bad, but there is a sense of security in a big SUV. Darn those gas prices!

The desktop computer still isn't fixed but I'm feeling a little better about it today. I can't bring back all the kid's lost papers and pictures, but we will all have our own flash drives from now on so we can back everything up. Ugh. A lesson learned.

Jacob went over to Mady's house today. I'm not ready for him to have a girlfriend. It really makes me sad to think my little boy (who is 6'3) is not so little anymore. I guess I can't stop the inevitable...I mean, he IS adorable if I do say so myself.

I'm also very thankful to be approaching the 7 year mark post massive heart attack. Every December I am humbly reminded of that fateful day that I was struck with a 2 inch blood clot in my LAD artery while shopping in the mall. I (stupidly) drove myself down the street to the Ambulatory care Hospital and walked into that place as white as a sheet. A trip in the ambulance to the main hospital, clot busting drugs en route, angioplasty with 6 STENTS, and two cardioversions later...(including two near death experiences) I am thankful to be here to tell about it. Every year at this time, I am reminded of how precious life is. God is good. He knew I had more to do here on earth and has given me a second chance at life. Let's just hope I can do it right this time.

...Oh, and another thing I'm thankful for?

ELECTRICITY!



...because at 10:00 last night in the middle of composing my "thankful Sunday" post...the transformer blew and our entire neighborhood was left in total darkness. All night. And all morning until 12:30 this afternoon. It was a Silent Night and a remarkably enlightening beginning to my Advent Sunday. Perhaps that "awakening" will be the topic of my next post.



...in the meantime, I'm going to put another log on the fire and go make myself some coffee and toast. I now have a whole new appreciation for how the Amish live.

I got a virus

Let me just say one thing: I HATE COMPUTERS!!!! We went out shopping early this Black Friday morning to go to one store: OFFICE MAX...to get NORTON 360 Virus Security. I have spent the entire day trying to fix/remove a virus off our computers and I must say...I am not a member of the Geek Squad, that's for sure. I have seriously wasted a good day only to destroy all the files on my computer and now it's not usuable anymore. I am sooooo stupid. I wanted to back up all my files but didn't have an external hard drive because Pat convinced me he could get one from work. (They have a pile of them they are getting rid of because they just updated theirs.) Okay, okay...I can't exactly blame Pat...but now we have lost all of our pictures and documents because I was trying to be all smartypants. I just decided to reinstall Windows XP. I can't hurt it any more than I already have. UGH. I feel like Charlie Brown, I'm such a loser.

Thank Goodness the laptop just got fixed, although it wouldn't surprise me if this one got sick too. What the heck???

Randomness

The boys lost in overtime in the Semifinals...it was a huge disappointment but how many teams can say they had back to back state championships and numerous district and regional wins? It would have been nice to get to Ford Field once again... especially since it would mean all 3 of my boys had played in State Finals... but oh well, better luck next year.

It's snowing like crazy outside again today...and slushy roads make a momma nervous. It's one of those days you are happy to be inside with a roaring fire and a mug of hot cocoa. I hope Pat gets right on that roaring fire when he gets home.

My mind is racing to make up my Christmas list before the kickoff of the shopping season. None of the kids have really told me what they want or need, but I can assure them that the money will not go nearly as far as it has in the past. It's good to remember that it's not about the presents anyways. I do always like to cover a few bases from necessities, to fun things, to clothing attire and have probably spoiled them all once a year with far too many gifts from us, ""Santa", and grandparents... It's no wonder Christmas is such a magical time for them...even if they are all grown or tower over us.

It is in these moments when we must reflect on the things that really matter: Health, happiness, and all our basic needs being met. We have so much to be Thankful for and on this slushy Monday, I have decided to Chose to be Thankful.

TGIF

gee, I wished I looked that cute while I cleaned!

Yup, this is how I've been feeling lately.

Can't wait to crank up this bad boy and fire on some burgers or steaks for dinner. (okay...it's not my grill and we don't quite have that much snow...but you get the idea...) I need a camera for Christmas.

Thank God it's Friday! I got a little cleaning bug in me today...My house desperately needs it. I guess I've been a little preoccupied with life... Been doing some Christmas shopping...paying bills and getting things filed and shredded...after all we went through in October...I'm trying to divert my thoughts by crocheting...and then of course, the housework gets neglected... then I lay in bed at night and think of everything I need to do in the morning...it makes me crazy. It's no wonder I often find myself sleeping on the couch for the diversion of television. I swear all I have to do is turn it on and I'm zonked out. It's just enough to shut off all the demands in my mind and then I'm gone. (which is an incredible waste of electricity.)

Over the past few days I was feeling achy all over...I don't know if it's a flubug , costochondritis, or fibromyalgia... all I know is that I feel funky and would rather not do anything but sit in the hot tub...hmmm, maybe I will do that FIRST. I think I deserve a little soak. I have a burning sensation (like incredibly over exerted muscles) in my chest wall. Nothing like the pain of my heart attack...more like an exhausted muscle fatigue. It's in my neck, chest, and in my back across my shoulder blades. My joints/muscles in my elbows, knees, hands and feet are also feeling achy along with a nagging headache. It really doesn't feel like the flu... Anyways...I will pop an ibuprofen, soak, and carry on like I usually do. No time to be held down.

BUT Earlier today I had a little shot of caffeine in me and was zipping around sweeping and picking up and doing laundry. Ah...a woman's work is never done. What on earth am I making for dinner tonight?

No doubt it'll be something simple like burgers on the grill (it's snowing outside!) or steaks...neither one is thawed but thank heaven for microwave thawing features! I'm sure I can put together something edible.

Well, back to work...maybe I'll treat myself to the hot tub later tonight. Gotta run and get our tickets to the football game tomorrow. We are in the Michigan High school State Championship SEMI- FINALS and we play at 1:00. It's gonna be a cold one again like last year. (we played the same team at the same field last year.) Hope we've got what it takes to pull off the win.

Go Panthers!

Feeling a little under the weather...

It snowed here yesterday. It was one of those light, fluffy snows that never really amounts to anything other than a light dusting on the ground and gives you the feeling that "Christmas is right around the corner"; a feeling which floods me with a ton of mixed emotions. It's sometimes a feeling of sadness of "where on earth has the year gone?", but also a feeling of excitement and hope that people will soon be spreading "tidings of comfort and joy". I am often overcome with feelings of angst worrying about all the added expenses of winter from buying Christmas gifts to higher heating bills. I am often caught in the hustle and bustle of the holiday that I forget to stop and enjoy the beauty in the silence and the sheer enjoyment of giving of ourselves. I am often hit with a little bit of insomnia only because my crafty mind is in overdrive and wants to spend the season creating the perfect gift.

I love Christmas and making it a special holiday for my family...and I am hopeful that I can have the bulk of my shopping done before the beginning of December so I can craft and enjoy the season in its entirety. Had to laugh though...JoAnn Fabrics is already playing Christmas music...before THANKSGIVING!!! Oh people... I can't begin to tell you just how wrong that is on so many levels. Let's first give THANKS to the Lord...and then Celebrate HIS birth and His purpose in our lives.

Bring on the Turkey!

Back on the field

All Photographs and digital effects done by Jordanne.


Josh and Coach Boyd after the game.

Contemplative.

Brothers discussing the game.

The four captains back on the field together...post injury.

The three troubadors getting on their game face. Murphy, Jacob, and Joshua.

Okay...these pictures are not in the order I wanted them and for some reason Blogger is being all weird and will not allow me to arrange these how I wanted them for "the effect".ANYWAYS...

Yes, we are STILL playing football. We are just one game away from playing in the State Championship game at FORD FIELD. This will be Joshua's THIRD time if they can pull it off. Ironically, the game next weekend is the same team they played last year and advanced to Ford Field. Let's hope we can do it again.

So last week Joshua decided he needed some closure after having a season-ending injury. He did not want his memories of high school football to end with an injury. He talked to his dad and to his football coach and told them that he wanted to dress for his last "home game" at Boyd Field. This was a huge mental thing for Josh...it also played out to be a HUGE mental thing for the team. To see their captain dressed and back on the field was moving and inspirational to say the least. The coach promised Josh that he would put him on the field for a single play at the end of the game... I must admit I freaked out a bit. I was afraid someone would try to hit Josh and undo his ACL reconstruction.

There was less than a minute left in the game and we were on defense. (which Josh plays) They put Josh off in the corner and the other team had a man over there by him...the ball came his way and Josh tied the man up without actually touching him...the kid missed his assignment and we intercepted the ball. Game over. We won 35-10. Josh got an assist on the interception. It was an incredibly emotional ending to the game. Josh got the closure he needed.

He is finding out just "who he is"... Sometimes God has an interesting way of showing us what we're made of.

my oh my, where have I been?

Well folks...I have been on a computer meltdown sabbatical. MY COMPUTERS were all functioning at an incredibly s.lo.w. rate of speed and I, being exceptionally IMPATIENT...well, I opted for the easier route: Total blog withdrawl. I'm not gonna lie...I really missed spilling my guts to my blog. I really did...but I did what I had to do to get through this little crisis. I pouted until Pat took the laptop into work to be fixed. Yep, I'm not even one bit ashamed to admit it. I used the womanly art of persuasion. I told him I had no time to sit around on a super s.l.o.w. computer waiting for files to load so I could not enroll in our new benefits package until the computer was fixed. (oh, we had until the 14th...which happens to be TOMORROW!) So guess what I did when he walked in the door with the fixed laptop?????*wink, wink. Well I sat down and enrolled in our new benefits package, ya doofus! What did you think I was gonna say?

Now I have NO EXCUSE to miss more than a few days of blogging. I missed my daily fix of purging. Yes, as gross as that sounds...Purging my inner system is how I think of blogging. I am unloading and reloading daily. It's cathartic to say the least.

So what have I been up to lately? Hmmm well I have been sitting on my butt in my delightfully large yellow chair and ottoman. While I sit there, I have been watching medical television programs like "Dr. G- Medical examiner", "Mystery Diagnosis", and some real-life Trauma in the ER show that escapes me right now. I have been watching "What Not to Wear" and any decorating show that suits my fancy as well as "Jon and Kate plus 8", "Little People, Big World" some woman with elephant huge legs, and the world's grossest fat man. (oh I'm sorry, but he.was.gross.) I sure wish I could say it deterred me from eating, but all I did was turn the channel after I couldn't stand it any longer. ANYWAYS- my point is that I've watched anything BUT news programs relating to the recent elections because, quite frankly...it's OVER and my ass is tired. (did I just say that???)

While my tired ass sat in that over-sized yellow chair, I sorted, filed, and shredded paperwork that has piled up in mass quantities all around in cute little baskets, files, drawers, bins, etc. I have been procrastinating (yes, kids...procrastination is an inherited gene) and putting my head in the sand for a l.o.n.g. time and I finally had to come up for air. I'm still not done completely, but I have made a huge dent in my "hotspots". (for anyone who does the "flylady" method of housework you will know what I mean.) In between sorting and filing and listening to anything but NEWS programs...I have whipped up several scarves on my little coffee breaks. I seriously set goals and alloted myself small chunks of time to "play". It was totally needed to keep my sanity. Today I have taken care of a few loads of laundry while I parked my butt in the big yellow chair. Oh, and I finished another scarf for a special someone who shall remain nameless in case she is reading this.

Two days ago I treated myself to a "Connie Day". I went and got my hair cut ($46 with tip, is that INSANE????) I splurged on a Junior whopper and a dollar menu onion ring... I sat in a yarn store for over an hour, fondling yarn and reading crochet books in search of the the perfect scarf pattern. Then I left there and went to a heavenly little bakery and bought Pat a boston creme eclair and a small box of "num-licious" cookies to share with my kiddos.

Jen took Josh's senior pics and they were so good, I will not be able to pick my favorite ones. This was only just one photo shoot. When she gets back from Chicago, she will be doing more outdoor pics and then the studio shots. Feel free to check them out on her website: http://www.photographie51.com/. Click on "Enter the website" and then click on portfolio...Under Online proofs click on Joshua F. You don't have to type in a password for his. There are so many to chose from, I'm having a hard time weeding them out.

I have not been sleeping well lately and have been snoring like a fool when I do. I have been exceptionally crabby and headachey and disgusted with a lot of things. (I am happy about the price of gas coming down, though). Pat's paycheck was a thousand dollars short because of the workman's comp. claim when he blew his biceps tendon AT WORK...it seems a little crappy that a man would work right through his lunch break to get a job done and gets injured while working and it suddenly costs us a grand for him to be going through all this pain and suffering as well as the copays for doctor appointments and the surgery to repair it. Um, yeah...something's wrong with this picture and they haven't heard the end of it yet. I was thinking maybe they should be a little bit "nicer" to a certain worker when they get injured on the job and cannot work for a few weeks while they are "repairing" their injured arm.

Well...now that I have blathered on and on about all that upsets me and/or makes me happy...(did I say how much I love that sense of accomplishment when I can cross things off my "to-do" list? or how much I enjoy crocheting a scarf or a dish cloth? Or how happy I am that it only costs me $25 instead of $50 to fill my tank?)

Oh dear Lord, have patience with me. I know I'm a WIP. (work in progress)

*By the way... I still have not found the missing camera otherwise I'd be posting pictures of my adorable scarves instead of a picture of some poor soul's pile of paperwork that makes my pileup a little less daunting.

Happy 16th birthday, Jake!

Jacob and Josh all dressed up for homecoming.

Well, my little man is now the tallest man in my house. He's right around 6'4"... just a tad taller than Josh and Ryan. Jacob just turned 16 on Sunday and he is officially "allowed to date". Heaven help us all. Jake is loved by everyone... guys and girls alike...he is a very sweet kid and has always been special in his own way. Jacob has always been a very spiritual and prayerful kid...he loves God and isn't afraid to proclaim his faith...as a matter of fact, we always thought he might grow up to be a priest. Then puberty hit. 'Nuff said. First thing he said to me was, "does this mean I can have a girlfriend?" Oh bless you, my child.

We celebrated Jake's birthday with a family dinner and birthday cake. We got him the NCAA '09 video game for his X-Box. He disappeared for the rest of the night to play the game with his bro on the big screen TV downstairs. The cake was simply delicious...some triple chocolate threat I bought at Sam's club.

I still haven't fixed our computers. They are running extremely slow and aggravate the heck out of me. I haven't found my digital camera either. I cannot imagine where it went. My washing machine is leaking water from underneath. Right now it's up on some wood blocks so we can put a pan underneath it to catch the drips and the dryer takes for-ever to dry anything. (usually two dryer cycles per load.) It seems like everything is breaking down and I am on the verge myself. AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The weather has been beautiful and it is the only thing I can say positive about this week right now. I am just sick about the outcome of this election and the fact that both of the Michigan Proposals have passed. I am turning off the television and immersing myself in some projects to take my mind off this tumultuous world we live in. All I can say is thank God He is in control.

Random things I'm addicted to and other observations

So I've decided that blogging is much easier on me if I imagine I am only writing in my own little "dear diary"... after all, this is my blog where I'm able to spill my guts, muse about daily events, document special happenings with my family, projects I've been working on, etc... all for some future entertainment for my kids to read back to me when I'm in the nursing home. (oh dear God, please don't put me in a nursing home!) Let's just say, you can read it back to me when I'm old.
ANYWAYS....

That being said, I realize family members, friends, online friends, and total strangers peek in now and then...and I'm totally okay with that- but... if I imagine I'm writing for a specific audience... I am not necessarily "spilling my guts" without reservations. So I'm just gonna close my eyes and pretend nobody's there.

Random observations and musings:

I have decided that I really have an addictive type personality.
Right now I am addicted to:

Fox News on TV and on XM radio. Lately it's all I listen to and have since the Presidential conventions began. It's on in my car at all times. (unless my kids are riding with me...they crank on some whiny ass country music that makes my ears bleed.) Anyways...this Fox News "fair and balanced" media fixation will be coming to an end real soon. I will probably turn it all off the day after the elections. Especially if "my guy" doesn't win. I'm a sore loser like that.

My other addiction:
Crocheting. I cannot begin to explain how soothing and calming it is to my crazy life that primarily exists in my scrambled head. I have crocheted a bazillion dishcloths and now today I made my first scarf. It turned out awesome and Jordanne just walked out the door wearing it. It was made out of Lion brand Homespun yarn. It was quick and fun and so relaxing. I am seriously thinking about taking a run to Walmart to buy some more yarn. I'm addicted.

I am also slightly addicted to Tim Horton's hot apple cider. Some days I have to resist the urge to run out and buy one. I can generally quell the impulse by having a cup of my other addiction, which is coffee. I cannot live without it. (I drink half caff so it's not a physical caffeine addiction I'm dealing with here.)

And this week's temporary food addiction is Mrs. N's sugar cookies. MMMM mmmm. I frosted them in autumn colors and sprinkles...and when I ran out of powdered sugar, I melted white chocolate and frosted some with that. So anyhow...the white chocolate ones are tormenting me. They are seriously calling my name and like a herioin addict, I am drawn...drawn, drawn to the little BEASTS. I gave Jen and Josh a bunch of them today to take to the Notre Dame game tailgate party. (but alas, I hoarded those white chocolate frosted ones.) They should be all gone by tomorrow. Thank goodness there are others in this house who are addicted to them too or I'd be an even bigger fatty boomba-latty than I am now.

I have also decided that I am addicted to Chinese food. Anything Chinese sounds delicious any time of the day. Right now I am craving an eggroll and some crabcheese. I just ate at my favorite Chinese restaraunt yesterday for Pete's sake. What is in Chinese food that is so addictive anyways?

Over the years I have had odd food addictions and I've decided there are definitely some nutritional needs in the body that sparks a craving. Such as addictions to eggs, grapefruit, raw lemons with salt, tomatoes, cucumbers, liverwurst and toast, dried apricots and PRUNES!!!!!!?????? You know I'm quite certain I was just listening to my body when I indulged in thes odd cravings. Must be some vitamin I was lacking like iron or potassium or something.

Other times I have been addicted to websurfing the internet, listening to Christian music, reading mystery novels, exercising (gosh, I wish I'd get that addiction back), sewing, painting, crafting, just to name a few.

Glad they aren't bad addictions like smoking, drinking, sex, or gambling. I guess I'm a discerning addict.

I wish I was addicted to folding laundry because that's what I need to be doing right now.