I did NOT...

Since these things would never happen to me, I do not mind sharing them...
This week, a kid did NOT try to beat me up and then when she realized she was in trouble, she did NOT try to turn the next wallop into a High-Five. No, Pam's daughter would NEVER do that. She's way too sweet...
Tonight at Healthpoint Rehab, Emily did NOT propose to a male therapist she had just met. I'm talking about an all-out marriage proposal. I know my daughter would NEVER do that. That would be very embarrassing. I'm glad she would NEVER tell a man she was searching for a husband b/c she wants to have lots of babies. Earlier this week, Emily did NOT tell me she has a boyfriend in kindergarten. When she told me his name, I did NOT admit that he does belong on the cover of Child GQ. I did NOT tell her I approved of their eventual marriage b/c his mother is a speech therapist.
As a matter of fact, these tales are so outlandish, I will let you take a turn and tell me what you have NOT done lately.

Happy Anniversary!

Dear Scott,
Happy Anniversary. I am so glad you sent me that message on Facebook this morning, reminding me of what day it was...I had to chuckle at what 14 years of marriage has done to us...wishing each other Happy Anniversary online....not to mention the fact I had to be reminded.

Can you believe all that we've been through? I was trying to add it all up this morning. 4 houses, 2 kids, about 18 different pets, 7 surgeries (all mine), 10 years of daycare, 12 jobs (between us), 2 companies (1 yours and 1 mine), 2 sets of in-laws, about 12 different vehicles, 3 boats, wow, the list could go on forever.

We always say that one of the reasons we get along so well is b/c we started out our marriage with nothing. Everything we have, we got together. When I sent Emily to school this morning with our wedding cake topper for show & tell, I started wondering what we have left from that first year of marriage. Tigger immediately popped into my head...14 years of marriage and one thing we've got to show for it is a cat with Alzheimers.

We have moved up in the world, that's for sure. When we first got married, we lived in a 2 bedroom house...now we've moved on up to 3 bedrooms, now that's progress. All of our furniture was borrowed, now we can say we actually own the couch and the bed. We didn't have a garage at our first house. Now we have a garage-turned-into-playroom. Yeah, we've done well, that's for sure. We owned 2 tvs when we got married, hey now we have 3. Cryptically speaking, when we got married, we did not have a container to urinate in. Now we have 2 of those.

You sure have put up with a lot over the years b/c of me. Like the $500 mistake I made in the checkbook the day before our wedding. What a surprise we had when we picked up the mail after the honeymoon...all those bounced checks were quite a welcome home package. You didn't get mad at me then and you didn't get mad when I caught the car on fire, or when I wrecked the car last summer. And you always agree with me that my speeding tickets are a complete injustice.
You didn't say a word when I forgot to do my billing and didn't get paid...oh, wait I don't think I ever told you about that...and you are completely supportive of me when I come home from work and tell you about the life-threatening situations I have found myself in. You always keep (somewhat) silent when I bring home stray animals from work and you never say a word when I swear I won't bring home another animal EVER.

I know I used to complain that you didn't always show your love and affection for me. But when I got sick last year, I never doubted how much you loved me. You treated me like a princess and for that I'm forever grateful. You were so good to me!

I love you forever and I know we are a team together. I know that whatever comes our way, we can handle it and it's all worth it at the end of the day when I look at our beautiful daughters.

Love,
Michele
a.k.a. your "Campbell Peach"

I have a dream...

Is it terrible that I sometimes dream of what I'm going to do when my kids grow up and leave me? I love my kids, I really do but...lately I find myself sitting around thinking of all the things I'll have the freedom to do in, oh...about 12 years.
A few weeks ago I thought I would torture myself and sign up for email updates from the Fox Theatre in St. Louis, just so I'll know what shows I'm actually missing. Every semester, SEMO sends me informative brochures- informing me of what shows I'm not able to see at the River Campus. And of course I always check the movie listings to see which movies I won't be seeing. This weekend I went to the movie store and browsed all the movies I cannot watch in front of the kids and I'm too tired to stay up and watch after they go to bed. Sometimes I browse the 1000 photos I have thrown in boxes, just to remind myself that I won't be organizing them anytime soon. Sometimes I send my kids to school with a fever, just so the school nurse can call and tell me I have to leave work once again to fetch my sick child. If I'm really dreaming, I take a moment to check the balance in the bank account, just in case I forgot what I spent on the kids this month. But if I'm really desperate, I just take a look around the house to remind myself of how much space is filled with toys, school papers, backpacks, and FurReal Pets. Just in case I forgot.
So tonight, tell me what you dream of doing when your children grow up. Or if your children are grown, remind me of what you do to fill all that time.

Sad news

My friend Sandy passed away Saturday. Here is a link to her obituary.

http://www.semissourian.com/article/20090222/RECORDS01/702229893/-1/RECORDS

I did NOT...

Thank you for all the kind words after last night's post. As I said, it's been quite a week and I have quietly muttered under my breath at least hundred times "I did NOT" just say that, see that, think that or do that.
Do any of you have a LeapFrog Word Whammer? The toy that lets you put 3 letters in and then it pronounces the word for you? This week, at work, I did NOT sit and giggle with my friend/mom of a speech kid as we tried to figure out if this toy would pronounce naughty words! NO, I DID NOT do this!!! We did NOT discover that there must be a chip installed that does not allow the frog to say naughty words! I'm serious!!! He won't say them!
I am NOT going to shriek if I hear the phrase "in this bad economy" one more time. I am NOT tired of everyone in the media trying to make their point by using that phrase.
I did NOT complain about how far away I had to park and walk to get to the gym tonight. The GYM for Pete's Sake! Ok, it wasn't me getting the workout, it was Emily taking swim lessons but geesh, do you SEE the irony in that???
I did NOT get my house cleaned and my car detailed today by someone other than myself. I am NOT spoiled rotten, no, not me.
And here's something I would never do- I did NOT walk up to my friend Kellie H today at a meeting and say "Hi, I'm Michele". She did NOT look at me like I was crazy. I did NOT put my hands on her face and say "Kellie, is that you?" I'm sure she did NOT want to backhand me.
And finally, I did NOT leave the Word Whammer totally speechless this week when I realized I forgot to turn in a very big kindergarten project. The Word Whammer was NOT unable to pronounce all the words that left my mouth.

What did YOU not do this week?

Updates

If you're lookin' for laughs today, this is not the place to find them at this time. It has been an incredibly difficult week for me and my friends and family.

Last Saturday, my cousin Ginger was killed in a car accident. She was only 34 and she leaves behind 3 sons. Even though it has been many years since I saw Ginger, I have always remembered her spirit, her penchant for fashion and of course, her beauty. When I heard the news, I managed to keep my emotional distance from it for several days. Then my sister Linda posted a few words and some old pics. It started to sink in a little bit more. Then when I saw the online obituary, the reality hit me.


Many of you are wondering how Kevin is doing. I have talked with his wife Brenda and his brother-in-law Andy several times. Kevin's cancer has spread throughout most of his body. He is currently in the hospital, fighting the many complications that come with this horrible disease.
I can't begin to put into words how sad I am for him and for Brenda.


You have heard me talk about how I met my friend Sandy in this post. Sandy's health has declined rapidly in the past 2 weeks and hospice has been brought in. I went to see her yesterday. Although she is unable to communicate at this time, I hope that somehow she understood that I came to tell her how much I love her. I also had the chance to meet her husband, who is a wonderful man. So very kind and very good to Sandy. Mike knew that there a lot of people who have been concerned about Sandy's lack of blog updates but he did not know how to post so I was able to show him how. If you have followed her blog, feel free to post a comment on her site so he will know just how many people out there have followed her story.

I am sorry to post such a sad update but I felt like many of you would want to know what was going on.
Thanks to everyone who reads my blog. I love all of you.
Love,
Michele

A Few Things I Think Are Just Snazzy...

Rotorhead, get ready to stuff your man-purse...here's another edition of "A Few Things I Think Are Just Snazzy". Tonight, Emily is co-starring with me.

First on the list is this cool bag I picked up at Kohls around Christmastime. It comes folded and snapped up and fits easily into your purse...

Bring it to the store, unsnap it and use it in place of those NON-snazzy plastic bags...

While you're sittin' around, pleased about saving a plastic bag, take a sip from one of my favorite things to drink from- a Tervis Tumbler. Like the PedEgg, the Tervis Tumbler was a gift from my sister-in-law, Jenni. (She really knows how to pick out gifts). Don't know what a Tervis Tumbler is? Check out this link. My tumblers have dragonflies inside. This really creeps Emily out but I think they're gorgeous.

http://www.tervis.com/Category/JUST4FUN/Default.aspx

Finally, Emily wants to tell you about one of her favorite products. This was the first time I ever downloaded a video and I could not figure out how to turn the picture, so please tilt your head and let the show begin...

What are some of YOUR favorite things?

COMING SOON...

My blog is getting a makeover soon. I need a new title. Any ideas?

Surgery

Surgery went well. I had requested light sedation but I was still wide awake when he starting cutting me! So I said Hey, how 'bout a little more? That's the last thing I remember...I feel fine now, just really sleepy but trying to stay up so I will sleep well tonight. I haven't taken anything for pain, I'm just a little sore right now.

I did NOT...

This week, when I answered the nightly question, "what's for supper", Emily did not yell "Chili dogs suck!". She did NOT run to her room in fear b/c she knew she was in trouble. She did NOT then procede to yell "You do not do a good job of taking care of me!" My children would never be that disrespectful.
I did NOT yell at my daughter over homework tonight. I would NEVER throw a math book in the floor b/c I was so frustrated. No way would I do that. And you will NEVER catch me going to my room and slamming the door.
I did NOT get into a fight with a 2 yr old today over crayons. I did NOT become upset b/c she kept taking my crayons. And I certainly did NOT tell her I didn't want to color with her anymore b/c she was taking my crayons from me.
I did NOT gasp in horror when I read my sister Linda's blog tonight. You will NOT catch yourself wondering how she keeps her sanity.
I did NOT call the Surgery Center and question why I can't have liquids after midnight, if my surgery isn't until noon. I was NOT told "sorry, that's the rule". I did NOT ask if I could get up at 5 am and have a little coffee. And I am most certainly NOT going to work in the morning before my surgery.
I did NOT feel a little (tiny) twinge of sadness at saying goodbye to this little bump in my chest that I have had for 18 months. I am NOT feeling a little panicky at losing my "security blanket".

What have you NOT done lately?

Thoughts on Boredom...

The recent ice storm kept me cooped up in the house for several days. It made me think about all the things we do when we are bored...
I was recently enlightened by one of my work families that you can look up prisoner's pictures online in Missouri. So one night, we were sitting around and I said Hey Scott do you know anyone in prison? I can look up their picture! He laughed at me but he did spend a few moments thinking about it. This weekend, Emily and I found ourselves bored so we sang all the songs we could think of with the word "rain" in them, to see if our dog, Rain, would turn his head when we sang his name. Sure enough, he would turn every time. So we both started singing separate songs and before long, his head was whipping around pretty fast. It was hilarious! When we went to church yesterday and the opening hymn was "Rain Down", we burst out laughing.
I can see I have completely lost your attention right now. You are trying to think of who you can look up on the prisoner website. So here it is, go satisfy your curiosity...
https://web.mo.gov/doc/offSearchWeb/searchOffender.do

What do YOU do when you are bored?

Port Removal

Surgery Thursday to remove my port!

Good Intentions Gone Bad

I had good intentions. I really did. But when it came for preparations for the 100th day of kindergarten, I think I failed the test.
The assignment was to count out 100 items to put in a group snack mix. Of course, Wednesday night came and I had forgotten to plan ahead so the only thing I had in the house was Cinnamon Crunch cereal. I figured since the box was unopened, it would be ok to use it. Then Megan says Well....I opened it. Ok, I'll just ignore the fact the box was open. Don't ask, don't tell. Well, Wednesday night came and went and Thursday morning I remembered we hadn't counted out the cereal. So here we go. Let's make this a learning experience. So Emily begins to count out the cereal, sloooooowly; I turn my attention away for an instant and suddenly 31 pieces of cereal have become 78. Ok...let's start over...oh no, we're not going to cry over miscounted cereal...the counting begins again even slooooower...ok, let's make 10 rows of 10 pieces! I begin the cereal grid...Emily, you fill in the grid...watch the elbows, you're messing up the rows...10 on each row...ok, this isn't working...I'll make 10 rows both directions, then you can count the pieces after I'm done...ok, here's the finished grid, count them out...how did you end up on #33 at the end of the row...ok, JUST BAG THE CEREAL AND TAKE IT TO SCHOOL!!!

Unusual Suspects

Years ago, when I decided to be a speech therapist, I imagined I would be sitting in a classroom teaching all the Cindy Bradys of the world how to say She sells seashells by the seashore...
I was on my way to make a home visit today in Scott's truck (I drove his truck b/c of the snow and ice) and the Mom called and said "Hey, I'm running a little late, but I'll be there". I drive up and ponder where I am going to park. This house requires street parking but there are piles and piles of snow/ice along the roads. So I park and then change my mind, make a u-turn in the street, ignoring the cop I see, and park on the other side of the street. I sit, trying to decide whether the Mom has made it home yet. I cannot tell if the car is in the garage. So I get out, walk up to the door, ring the doorbell, no one answers. So I stand there and ponder...do I walk all the way back to the truck...stand there in 20 degree weather and wait....why is that cop still driving around...Then the cop pulls up behind my truck...pulls out...drives up to the house...rolls his window down. I figure, oops I parked illegally, in fact, that was my first question. He ignores my question...he has bigger and better things on his mind. He begins to question me about who I am and what I am doing. I tell him who I am and what I'm doing. He then tells me that there have been a string of burglaries in this neighborhood and several eyewitnesses reporting a white quad cab truck. JUST LIKE THE ONE I'M DRIVING!!! I was so scared! I began to blabber on about my job...my license...my name...whatever popped into my head... I do not remember what came out of my mouth. He radioed in my name and I promised to sit in my truck until the family came home. As you can imagine, I got in the truck and called the mom and said "PAM COME HOME NOW...THERE'S A COP HERE...HE THINKS I'M A BURGLAR...STOP LAUGHING...IT'S NOT FUNNY!" I don't blame the guy...come on...look at how suspicious I looked...all that parking and reparking...standing at the door...big heavy coat...gloves...I looked so suspicious, I was ready to arrest myself...I am still scared tonight that they're coming to get me...and I know I have a big red flag beside my name in the police computer...possible burglary suspect...or as Cindy Brady would say...potthible thuthpect.

Kevin

Some of you have asked how Kevin is, things have taken a turn for the worse, I do not feel comfortable elaborating without his permission. I will update when I can.