Don't Blink, Life Goes Faster Than You Think.

We attempted to see Santa on a Thursday night but the line was so long & since it was a school night we bagged it. We promised my daughter we would return Friday after school and we did just that. We waited in line for about 20 minutes, only to find out that he was scheduled to go to dinner in 5 minutes. So we waited, and waited, and waited. So to pass the time, we people watched & took some pictures. But the 2 1/2 hour wait was priceless.

The holidays are quickly approaching. I have one of two trees decorated & the outside of my house complete. The outside is simple, just the wreath that I made, garland around the door & two tall topiary trees with clear lights. We strategically placed two spot lights on the house to bring out the wow factor. The Christmas tree is a nine footer in the entry way. It is decorated in all red & gold. However it is not complete, I am still looking for the right tree top.

So Hell must have just froze over this past weekend. If you know me & my family you know how dysfunctional we are. This picture was taken this weekend at my house. My sister came in from out of town with her daughter & we managed to get everyone together. It was not any easy task, but it happened. Just a few were missing from this picture, like my husband. He was the only one that was able to take the picture. Also missing was my brother-in-law & nephew. Oh yeah, my other sister, but that is another story for another time. Yes Virginia, their is a Santa Claus. Happy Holidays!

The energy you give off is the energy you receive. I am a firm believer in this. My son's football team lost to their rival over the weekend 46-6. The negative energy that has come off of the coach is unreal. He made the boys run extra laps at practice the past 2 days because of the loss. The coach yelled & screamed at the boys last night & droppe d the F bomb on them. This is not the pros coach, these are 11 year old boys. As a result of the coaches negative energy, my son has no desire to attend practice anymore. He doesn't start, he is second string. He took him & a few other kids off of special teams. The only time he plays is when they are kicking the crap out of the other team or when their is 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter & they are losing by double digits & no chance of catching up. Should we finish out the season if they make the playoffs or just end the year on Saturday for the last game? Or do we quit now? And another th...

Please keep my daughter's friend & her family in your thoughts & prayers. They lost their home & all of their belongings in a fire over the weekend.

Check out number 44. That's my boy!

Welcome back Troy. We missed you last year.

I wish people would stop thinking that I am their CTRL ALT DEL button for all of their problems.

We did it. We pulled the trigger & finally got a new vehicle. My husband & I knew it was a matter of time before the Blazer would die. We have been debating on what type of car to purchase. Friday night we looked at the Toyota Camry & the Hyundai Sonata. Well Saturday morning after doing some research on line, we ended up with this baby! It was a deal we couldn't pass up.

Wine is cheaper, than Therapy!

I'm going to make my own brand of beer called Responsibly. I'd get free advertising from competitors 'Please drink Responsibly"- Happy Friday everyone

Life is like one huge crazy roller coaster full of twists & scary turns but how you approach & deal with them only makes you much stronger!

Since when does it matter what the structure of your place of worship looks like? My mother in law watched the kids for the first time in about a year so my hubby & I can go out. She literally walked through the door & said there is mass at 5 pm up at the church, I am taking the kids, put some nice clothes on kids. Not asking if we minded taking them Saturday night because maybe we like to go as a family on Sunday morning. So as fast as the dust cloud rolled in, I got the kids ready & the dust cloud rolled out. So out everyone went, the grandparents & kids to church & the festival & mom & dad to the casino. We returned to our house by 9 pm or so (no it wasn't a long evening for us. We always feel rushed when the in laws actually watch the kids. That is a story for another time). We all sat & talked about our evening when my husband asked his devoted Catholic mother about our new church. Her response was "It reminds me of a Protestant chu...

So my son comes home with his playbook for football. Oh how cute. Yeah right, in the middle of the afternoon he said "Coach told us we have to know all the positions on each play." Say what? Your asking the wrong person to review this with you honey! It might as well been written in Hebrew. Oh the joys of being a football mom.

Are you ready for some football? We are around here. Football practice started Monday & is kicking into high gear. This is our first season for youth football. I'm sure that it will be very interesting. What a work out these boys get. This is exactly what he needs. He has so much energy & needs to release it on someone other than his sister.

Look what decided to pay me a visit at my sliding glass door. Isn't life incredible? How can you say there is no God.

This recipe was adapted by the one in Rachael Ray's cookbook. Chicken and Dumplings Ingredients: 4 chicken breasts 6 carrots 6 celery stocks 3 cans of chicken broth 1 small onion 2-3 cloves of garlic 2-3 Tbs flour Jiffy mix 2 teaspoons of olive oil (separated in half) Directions: Scrape carrots & then slice. Cut tops off of celery & slice. Combine carrots & celery & set aside in a bowel. Chop onions. Heat a large frying pain on low to medium heat & sauté onions until translucent. Peel garlic clove & chop. Add garlic to onion & cook for about 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn garlic. Clean chicken breast & pat dry. Cut chicken into cubes & place in a plastic bag. Add 2 tablespoons of flour to bag. Add a few dashes of salt & pepper to the bag. Shake chicken in bag, making sure that each chicken cube in coated with flour. Add chicken to the onion & garlic in the pan & brown. Once chicken is brown, remove the chicken from heat...

Yes, it is groundhog day at my house once again. If you follow my blog, you know about the ordeal that I went through last summer with my mom. Well last Friday at about 2:45 am my mom took a dive down our stairs causing her to break her wrist & arm. She is having surgery today & will go to rehab for some time. After that, I am not sure what will happen. I'm not sure I can put myself through the chances of her falling again. I have been in contact with some folks about assisted living. The madness just never ends!

How does that old Barry Manilow song go? "I've been up, down, trying to get that feeling again." I've been trying to get that feeling of my childhood back. Those were the days of no stress or worries. Or, when I first got married & we went on our honeymoon. I had a feeling of eternal happiness. Well, I have been trying so hard to get those feelings back. There have been days when I have caught glimpses of it but it runs away so fast. My question is, how do I keep that feeling?

For years I have tried different ways to make homemade pizza sauce. I think I finally found what I was looking for. Homemade Pizza Sauce Ingredients: Three cans of tomato paste (6 oz can) One can of tomato sauce (15 oz can) Half cup of chopped onion Three cloves of garlic (chopped) 2 teaspoons of olive oil 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar Dry oregano- a few generous shakes (alternative to use is pizza seasoning). In a sauce pan add 3 cans of tomato paste & tomato sauce, cook on low heat. Add onions, garlic, olive oil, sugar & oregano. Continue to cook for about 30-60 minutes, stirring occasionally. ENJOY!

How do you know when you are making the right decisions? I am looking for any input from those who have been through the process of caring for an elderly parent. I am a 40 something woman caring for my 84 year old mother, in addition to my two beautiful children ages 11 & 9. This confirms I am the sandwiched generation. Over the past year, my husband & I have been faced with many decisions regarding my mother's care. Last fall, I made the decision to place her in assisted living. It was not an easy decision, however it was the decision that I made. During her stay, all mom did was cry & say she couldn't stay there. We came to a compromise that we would build a bigger house & she would live with us. That is when the search for a lot began & through the grace of God, we found the perfect place to meet our wants & needs. In the interim, we moved my mother from assisted living to save on expenses. The living arrangements have been very tight in a tiny...

We are in & still unpacking. Is moving a long process for everyone or is it just me? Here are some pictures of the house now that we are in.

And of course, a turkey fight!

Here it is. This is an actual picture of my new house. It is not the model as shown on previous posts. The yard was seeded last Thursday & now we wait for grass. We also have new neighbors. They have a very active social life. I don't know how they do it but they seem to greet us each & every day.

Believe it or not but miracles do happen. Yesterday was our school districts annual Kennywood Picnic. For those of you not familiar with Kennywood ( www.kennywood.com/ ), it is an amusement park located near Pittsburgh, PA. As you wait in line for the ride, one always seems to observe the signs. Oh, you know what signs I'm talking about. "If you have a heart, neck, back condition or are pregnant you should not ride this ride." Well that's not me. What about the ones that say "Secure all loose article." This is the one I'm talking about. Very aware of these signs, I was constantly checking my pocket for my cell phone. We rode many coasters without any problems, cell phone intact in my pocket. It wasn't until we rode the last ride of the night, the Racer. The Racer was always a favorite with my kids. Hubby & son always get in on train & my daughter & I get in to the opposing train (If you are not familiar with this ride, i...

It has been a roller coaster of emotions the past few days. We will be completing our move this weekend & saying good bye to our old home. The old house was the house that I saved for & bought as a young single chick. Not long after that I married & started a family in it. Our family as experienced many ups & downs here. It is now time to move on to bigger & better things.

The day finally arrived! We closed back on May 10th. We haven't moved in completely, I think it would have been devastating to uproot the kids from their school with only a few weeks left this year. The moving process has been slow. In a way I don't mind. It gives me time to organize how I want things arranged. So as of June 12. We should be in permanently. Can't wait! This is a picture of the model home but ours is the same with the exception of the grass & landscaping. Right now there is only dirt in the front. And on rainy days, I have a pool. A pool of mud that is.

I'm speechless.

The answer to last weeks movie quote is: Gone With the Wind

How well do you know your movies? Here is a quote. Write you guess in the comment section. Who knows, you may win a prize. "As God is my witness, as God is my witness, they're not going to lick me! I'm going to live through this, and when it's all over, I'll never be hungry again - no, nor any of my folks! If I have to lie, steal, cheat, or kill! As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again."

Just off the top of my head some things that I have been up to. 1. Fifth grade recycling project. 2. Borough Days Project (grade 3 project)-entails making a poster to be elected for mayor & writing a speech to be elected as mayor. 3. Junior Achievement. 4. Job Interview-waiting to hear when my second interview will be. 5. Preparing for the closing on our house-this will occur May 10, 2010. 6. The daily adventures in babysitting my aging mother. Every day seems to be the same thing but different. I can't even begin to explain. 7. The everyday mundane house wife responsibilities. 8. Preparing the current house for sale. 9. Third grade field trip tomorrow.

The Kentucky Derby was wonderful this year. I went with my gut & bet on Super Saver. Well, let me just tell you that it paid off. I won $900.

Words to live by. A friend of mine opened his wife's underwear drawer and picked up a silk paper wrapped package: 'This, - he said - isn't any ordinary package.' He unwrapped the box and stared at both the silk paper and the box. 'She got this the first time we went to New York , 8 or 9 years ago. She has never put it on , was saving it for a special occasion. Well, I guess this is it. He got near the bed and placed the gift box next to the other clothing he was taking to the funeral house, his wife had just died. He turned to me and said: 'Never save something for a special occasion. Every day in your life is a special occasion'. I still think those words changed my life. Now I read more and clean less. I sit on the porch without worrying about anything. I spend more time with my family, and less at work. I understood that life should be a source of experience to be lived up to, not survived through. I no longer keep anything. I use cryst...

I have never been interested in horse races. That changed last year when my husband turned the pre-events leading up to the derby. I'm not sure if I got sucked into the hype or a fascination with over all training leading up to the event. Last year we bet on Pioneer of the Nile & Dunkirk. But it was the jockey, Calvin Borel, who lead Mine That Bird to a victory. I had a gut feeling that we should have bet on him. Why I didn't go with my gut, I'm not sure. This year I'm not sure who to bet on. Calvin is racing Super Saver this year. Can he do it again? If you have any input let me know. Do you place your bets on luck or stats? I would love to hear from you.

Have I ever told you how I met my husband? We met through the single ads in the newspaper. Guess what! I didn't place the ad. Turns out my mother placed it without my knowledge. We met for lunch on Saturday afternoon, dated for over two years, got engaged in Waikiki & it's been a wild ride ever since.

I had the opportunity of a life time. For three consecutive years in a row, I worked as the school nurse at the school my children attend. It started out just as a substitute position until the regular school nurse returned from a back injury. Turned out that I spent three years as the full time school nurse. I always hoped that I could have a positive impact on just one child. Well that hope became reality. Yesterday, I was approached by a mother & girl scout leader. She informed my that the fifth grade girls wanted me to talk to them about the sensitive topic of puberty. The girls approached her with the request. Unfortunately do to time restraints & busy schedules, I was unable to do this for these girls. This is a moment that live on in my heart & mind forever.

Up at 5 am. Got shower. Had a cup of joe. Watched the news. Got dressed. Woke up the kids. Got breakfast ready. Pack lunches. Helped kids get dressed. Final check of back packs & out the door. Dropped kids off at school (we don't have busing). Came home & kissed hubby good-bye. Got mom her morning meds. Loaded dishwasher. Did some laundry. Got mom's clothes ready & helped her get ready for the shower. Cleaned up the kitchen. Got mom breakfast. Get ready for what ever bizarre behavior my mother throws my way. Need I go on. This is a typical day in my house. I am so ready for a change. It is time to do some soul searching. Help!

I have a permanent scar on my heart. Just as it was healing the scab has been violently ripped open once again & it is bleeding profusely. My question is, "Why?" Why is God doing this? Over the weekend my son's best friend lost his mother due to a year long illness. She was only forty years old. She was a wife & mother of three beautiful children. Why? Why was she taken so young? I am angry! Angry with God right now. Why would you take her away? There is an eleven year old boy who's mom won't be there to see him go to the prom & graduate from high school. A young woman who's mother won't be there when she graduates in three years from college & help her pick out a wedding dress. What about the young man who's mother won't be there when he comes home from the service in two years. Maybe I'm selfish. I just don't think that it is fair. There are drug addicts & crack whores that walk the face of the earth. Why? She was a de...

Moving right along. The hardwood floors to be installed this week. Still waiting for a closing date.

Yesterday I dropped off my mom at physical therapy & had about an hour to kill. The sun was shining & the sky was blue & what clouds that existed were white (not the gray that we have gooten use to). I decided I was going to take a walk along the trail in the area. I have lived in the area for years & never had the time to explore the trail, so what better time than today. So off I went on the trail. I enjoyed the cool sunny walk with the view of the river over my shoulder. My stress started to leave for some time. I came to the end of the gravel trail & had to take the sidewalk to get to the destination I had in mind. However, the plans changed as I started on the sidewalk. I glanced down & began to notice something on the sidewalk & walked around it. I continued, & began to see more of this "something". As I walked around this "something" I noticed more & more. At this point I became sick & turned around. The entire sidewalk...

Recently I have come to the conclusion that the description of an elderly person is a cross between a toddler & a teen. Toddlers often toddle around, still unsteady on their feet. They continue to need assistance of a parent, but somewhat independent. A teen is often moody, stubborn and thinks they know it all. They will do what they want, when they want. Teens don’t understand that their actions can cause consequences. I am finding out more about the different seasonings of this generation the longer I am a member of the Sandwich Club. Each day there is a different spice or herb to add to your sandwich. Last weekend I could have used the herb of cannabis, for mom, to sedate her obsessive-compulsive bizarre episodes or for my husband & me. We had the “privilege” of cleaning out her house last weekend. Her house contained 60 some years of “collectibles”. Good grief, Charlie Brown.