Gettin things done...

Lesley brings out the very-well-hidden OCD monster in me! I have always LOVED things to be organized. I love supplies for organization. I love reading books and websites about decluttering. I even loved FLY Lady for a time (not so much the shoe thing but I do still think of her when I shine my sink). So anyway, I got up this morning and started my homework right away so I could move onto cleaning. I cleaned my bedroom (can't wait for Scott to go upstairs and see it because it's going to be such a big surprise)! I rewashed all the clothes that had been on the floor and even put them away! I washed the sheets and comforter, too! I vacuumed upstairs and then did the entire downstairs. I even spent a few more minutes in my scrapbook room purging things! Can you believe it?? When Megan got home from school she said "Wow, you're doing a lot of cleaning, Mom!" and I was like "Yeah, it was time" and she replied "Yeah, Spring!"... LOL.... which isn't quite what I meant but hey, whatever gets me movin' in the right direction, right?

If you haven't been over to PDP yet, you will be SHOCKED to learn that I have completed and uploaded the April Sketch Challenge- two hours early in fact! :) Here is a sneak peek before you head over to snag it:
The design is based loosely on this layout I created for The Office Book in late 2005! You can't see from the scan, but the file opens up to reveal 2 photos and journaling on the inside. This has always been one of my favorite pictures of Dane! I love the colors and composition but most of all I love his big belly laugh!

Guess that's it for tonight! Have a good one! XO

What a weekend!

Lesley came up and brought the fabric she picked out for the boy's quilts. The plan was that I would help her cut it. Once we got down and dirty with the fabric (ironing, cutting, stitching, etc) we ended up finishing BOTH QUILTS in less than 24 hours! I actually brought my sewing machine downstairs and Lesley said I did so much that I can now officially call myself a "sewer" (hmmmm, is that how you spell a person that sews? Or is that sewer, like where NYC rats run wild??), LOL The boys are both thrilled and now have beautiful quilts to cuddle under!

We also took a field trip to the scrapbook store which was a crazy experience! It's been SO long since we shopped that things were finally NEW and exciting! It was SO exciting, in fact, that it *almost* made me consider doing some paper scrapping again! ;)

So speaking of scrapping, last night (or early this morning, I suppose) we headed up to bed and Lesley decided to poke her head in my scrapbook room. Mistake for her! The place is a DISASTER! I don't think I have been in there in like TWO YEARS... no joke! It was a mess and then it got even worse as the kids took it over for school projects, etc. So, anyway, Lesley decided that cleaning might be something we should tackle. Lesley is currently doing the Library of Memories class at Big Picture Scrapbooking and encouraged me to buy the Photo Freedom book by Stacy Julian while we were shopping. I think she knew how overwhelmed I was feeling about the room and the concept of trying to organize a lifetime of photos. This afternoon while I was finishing cutting the rag edges on Dylan's quilt, she headed into the room and just started going nuts. By the time I went up to see what she was up to, there was actually a path through the middle of the room! Over the course of the next several hours, she tried to walk away, but something would catch her eye and she would say "Well, I think we can do this one more area..." Can I just tell you... THE PLACE LOOKS FANTASTIC! She has given me a few "assignments" for the week ahead and I am hard at work uploading some pictures to have printed right now. :)

So, there you have it! What a fabulous weekend! I am so grateful for the chance to "hang" with Lesley before she has her surgery and am so proud of all we accomplished! :)

Avoiding taxes

I sat down and did my Dad's taxes, but can't file them yet because I haven't been appointed executor. I still have our taxes looming over my head so I decided tonight was the night. I logged into the site where I could efile and promptly decided I would rather blog than start our taxes, LOL. I am terrified we are going to owe money and even though avoiding filing won't change that fact, I am just not ready to know.

I am sitting in the dark right now, just the glow of the monitor. Somehow I ended up childless tonight... the kids are all having sleepovers elsewhere and I have nothing to do but the regular everyday stuff of life- laundry, dishes, homework... not at a bad thing I suppose, but I do hate being alone at night. I am 34 years old and still afraid of the dark, or rather things IN the dark!

Just downloaded the song "You're Gonna Miss This"by Trace Adkins on iTunes. First of all, I can't believe how much country music I have come to appreciate! Second, I really love this song, but I can't help but wonder if it's true. I don't for one second miss high school or my teen years. I knew then that I couldn't wait to be a grown up and I have never regretted for even a minute that I rushed that along. THESE are the years that I am going to miss.... for all the crap I have been dealing with, I know I will look back on my 30's as a time of growth and change. I know that everything that happens just makes me a stronger person. Trite, but true.

We are still plugging away sorting through my Dad's stuff. Last week I washed all of his Dalmatian stuffed animals and we each took one. His Roxy meant the world to him and I hope that having something so important to him will bring comfort to the kids. They have been real troopers about the whole thing but I know that it still hurts, especially little Dylan.

I attended Project Safeguard yesterday with Megan. I think the kids liked it because it was something different than the norm of school, but I was less than impressed. There was nothing discussed that I haven't already talked to Megan about. It's definitely scary to think that some of the info was new to parents.

Well, now that I have rambled on about everything current in our lives, I guess it's time to put off the inevitable and start those taxes! Have a great night! :) Call me if you're bored!

Tuesday

I finally got around to connecting my monitor to my laptop and the thing is freakin awesome! I love it! :) I can't believe I was able to do it all by myself- I even connected my EHDs. Now all I need to do is connect the printer and get a keyboard and I am SET!

My friend Lesley got more news about her diagnosis. (I won't waste your time with all the details, when you can just go directly to her blog and stay up to date- the link is in my sidebar). I am glad I got to talk to her today and hear it right from her because it really puts my mind at ease to hear her strength. (Yes, I know it's not all about MY mind being at ease, lol)

I had classes today but that's it for this week since I will be attending Project Safeguard on Thursday! Yeah! I booked my financial aid appointment and got my pre-registration for summer and fall classes signed off on! I can't wait! It's hard to believe I will be starting my third semester next month!

Time for bed now... hopefully a good night's sleep will have me awaken filled with energy for all the things I should get done tomorrow! :) Have a great night!

What a day!

The phone has been ringing like crazy all day! Updates of note:
*Scott's cousin Tina is not only pregnant, but found out today it's TWINS!
*Gram's surgery was postponed until Wednesday.
*Lesley sounds in good spirits and has an appointment with her oncologist tomorrow.

Happy Easter

I had a great time with my cousins last night! We drank Lemon Drops and laughed all night! :) Today we will be spending time with my family and I can't imagine anything better! Hope your day is great! :)

Thinking of Lesley

My friend Lesley received the news... she does have breast cancer. :( Even though I know she has what it takes to beat this, I feel sad that she had to deal with it at all. I feel frustrated because there is nothing I can say or do to change this. I don't know how to make things better and I stumble on my words when I talk to her. I know I am saying all the wrong things and I hope she will forgive me for being such a doofus... and know that in my heart, I care deeply even though I can't put it into words!

Gettin' things done!

I am feeling fairly normal today (well, except for when I fell down walking up my front steps, which was a little odd because as a general rule, I don't fall a lot, LOL)! I woke up early and laid in bed... my cutie Dylan came in for about an hour before we got up and got moving. Once the kids were off to school, I checked my email and then showered and headed out the door to pick up my dad's Will and take it to the Probate Court to open the Probate case! What a HUGE relief to have that process started. On the way home, I stopped by the library to pick up an Auburn Dollars for Scholars application and then I came home and did some filing! Crossing things off the to-do list is such an amazing feeling! :)

Last night was family Bingo Night at the school. For the third year in a row, we didn't get a single Bingo, but the kids had fun and that is what truly matters!

Megan found out yesterday she didn't make the softball team. :( This was devastating news to her! Afterall, she played in New York as one of the All Stars last year, so it's kind of odd that she now couldn't make a school team. Ah well, it's not worth going into the politics publically. They did offer her an alternate position but she declined and I have decided to support her decision. She is thinking about maybe trying lacrosse and I say GOOD FOR HER! Keep your chin up, Megan!

Hope your Friday is great!

Grouchy

I have been feeling in a fog so much lately... I sure hope I get adjusted to the medication changes soon because I hate feeling this way!

Yesterday was certainly not the greatest day! My cousin Jen let me know that Gram fell and was in the hospital. She didn't break anything but she was in so much pain, they kept her last night and maybe tonight, too.

A friend of mine (who shall remain nameless for the time being) found a lump in her breast and went to have a mammogram and ultrasound yesterday. She called me to let me know they wanted to see her back today for a biopsy because what they found didn't look good. :( I am praying with every fiber of my being that she doesn't have breast cancer. Not only can I not stand the thought of her going through chemo, but I don't want to shave my head which OF COURSE I told her I would do in support! :) *sigh* Why do bad things happen to good people??


In other news, I finally got the March Sketch Challenge up at PolkaDotPotato.com! You can find all the details right here!

Driving Instructor Check In

When we took Dane to trumpet yesterday we had about a half hour to kill so Dylan and I decided to be brave and let Victoria drive. She actually went on REAL ROADS! Wow- that was an experience! I was trying not to be the terrible mother who yells and freaks out but I think I gave commands the entire time the car was running... Stay on your own side! Don't worry about the cars on the other side. Don't drive on the sand! Not too close to the edge! Put on your directional! Stop! Don't stop this far back! Look for cars! Turn! Turn! Turn! Wow, that was a wide turn! Watch out for that pedestrian! Slow down and go around! Go a little faster! Slow down! Stay slow here. A little closer! Just another 29 hours and 35 minutes of practical driving time to go! LOL

Gotta scoot... need a shower before I head back to school! Have a great day!

Happy St Patty's Day

Jen and I hosted our first collaborative St Patrick's Day party this weekend! Despite a number of cancellations and no-shows we had a great time! :)


Today marks the last day of Spring Break for me and I am *so* ready to go back to school! I miss it! Megan has softball try-outs this week and soon will be the boy's turn for baseball try-outs and then we will be back in full swing! :)

Spring Break!

It's my spring break but you would think it was spring break for the kids! Last night I took them to see Disney's College Road Trip (haven't seen a movie in theatres in AGES). It was pretty predictable but overall cute!

Today I actually worked up the courage to drive to Boston to take the boys to the Museum of Science! They loved it!

Back to school for them tomorrow and back to the never ending to-do list around here for me! :) Have a great night!

FIRE!

Story of my life, right? Here it is 8 weeks to the day since we found my father and once again we had a house filled with firefighters. Here is the story...
I was downstairs changing over the laundry. Dane came halfway down the stairs and calmly said "Mom. There is a fire". I replied "A fire? What kind of fire??"... I started scurrying around not sure what to do. I yelled to Dane to get the fire extinguisher and I ran up the stairs. He opened the oven (where he had been checking on the chicken nuggets) and the flames were ROARING! I grabbed the fire extinguisher and tried pulling the lever- nothing happened. The flames were jumping around like crazy! I kept fumbling with it as I grabbed the phone and called 911. They transfered us to Auburn and just as they did that, we pulled the pin out and got the extinguisher working and the fire out. They decided it was best to send the crew just to make sure it hadn't spread outside the stove. There must have been 10 people crammed in our not-so-large kitchen checking things out. We had to open all the windows so they could put in a fan to get out the fumes. They kept checking wall temperatures and stuff. They were truly wonderful-- they didn't make me feel stupid at all for calling and were especially kind with sympathies about my father since many of them had been here that night as well. They disconnected the stove and offered to remove it, but I told them we would do that ourselves. So, off I go to surf online for a new stove.

In other less dramatic Saturday news, Dane's team won, so they move on to the next level of the basketball play-offs. Dylan's Derby car did pretty well this morning and he had fun so that is what really matters. Megan went to Aubre's for the night, so it's just me and the boys chillin' out. Hope you are having a great weekend!

Oops, got behind!

[Insert embarassed face here!] I seem to have gotten behind in my blogging... that would be a little bit like my real life, I suppose!

So, where have I been since last Friday? Let's see...
* Friday night- Dinner at Cotton with Scott
* Monday- Presenting Data and Information Course by Edward Tufte in Boston
* Tuesday and Thursday- Last week of classes before Spring Break! Midterm grades: 3 A's and 1 B (that I plan to bring up by the end of the semester)

Health wise I have been doing very well! The 3rd medication seems to have really made the difference in controlling my blood pressure. I have also completely cut out caffeine which seems to be a good decision on my part. I am meeting with the doctor again on Monday.

The kids got their 3rd quarter progress reports today and they are all doing well (though I would like to see Megan working a little more to her potential).

We have a busy weekend of kid-type stuff lined up but I hope to maybe sneak in a little scrapping! Have a great night! :)