Tuesday mornings are meant to be taken slowly

July 7th, 2009

I woke up early with a terrible headache this morning and even massive amounts of narcotics, caffeine, and a really hot shower have only manage to dampen it a bit.  However, I’m choosing to be positive.  At least it has eased enough for me to function and feel okay.  I have too much to do today to let a headache get to me.  I have to stay with my grandma tonight, so today has to be utilized, every minute of it.  Today has to have two days’ worth of activity squeezed into it because it’s the only way I can keep from feeling guilty about leaving the kids to fend for themselves like this every week.

Yesterday I spent the entire day teaching the social butterfly how to sew.  Naturally she’d choose a dress for her first project.  Not a scarf or something simple… a dress.  This might be a good time to remind you that I’m still basically a novice with the sewing machine myself.  Who knows what it’ll end up looking like, but we’re having fun.  Having fun spending time together, but by the time she got her material and pattern pressed and cut, she was exhausted.  I think she’s developing a respect for these kinds of projects.  I can remember times last year during the school term when she would pop up at bedtime and ask me to whip her out a hat or scarf to match a particular blouse she wanted to wear the next day.  And she would pout when I’d laugh hysterically at her.  (Although there was one night when I did it because it was my idea to finish a look for her.)

I also decided to lop off about six inches of IzzyB’s hair yesterday.  It was so stringy and hot and almost impossible to care for right now.  She’s such an energetic, don’t slow me down-type of kid.  It’s just easier this way, and besides, her hair is still down past her shoulders.  She didn’t want me to do it, but I told her weeks ago that she either started to do a better job of helping me care for it, or it was coming off… obviously you know how well she helped me.  She’s seven years old!  More than old enough to take some responsibility for her appearance.  It all worked out well.  Afterward she really liked the cut, and when we talked about it, she agreed to take better care of it as it begins to grow back out.

On a completely different note, I cannot express how glad I am that the memorial for Michael Jackson is today.  I have reached my limit on the life and times of the King of Pop.  I don’t mean this in a negative way.  In the ’80s, I was probably his biggest fan.  I absolutely adored his music.  I saw him in concert in Germany during his Dangerous tour on his birthday, and it was a spectacular show.  I can’t even describe it.  But seriously… let’s let him go now… rest in peace.  Give me my morning tv back, dammit.  For a few days, anyway, before his autopsy results are released and it all starts over again.

My husband was more upset over the death of Billy Mays, I think.  I’m pretty sure he has purchased everything Mays ever hocked.  He has always known most of that stuff is completely useless, but Mays’ drawing power was just too much!  You may not realize it yet, but  you will miss the words, “Billy Mays here…”!

So the sun is out, I feel better, and it’s time to get up and get busy!  Have a wonderful day.

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IzzyB said…

May 18th, 2009

It’s always scary and sad to hear when an area is hit by the wrath of Mother Nature.  So waking up to the news that residents of California were subjected to an earthquake last night was in no way funny.  Not funny, that is, until they interviewed a lady who happened to be in a movie theatre at the time of the quake.  She described how the building started to shake, pieces of the screen started to peel away, and the ceiling began to fall.  It was only funny when you find out the movie she was viewing was “Angels and Demons”.  (Cue creepy movie music.)  Seriously.  I love Tom Hanks.  I’d sit through an earthquake to watch any movie he’s in, as long as it’s a mild earthquake.
Thankfully there have been no earthquakes here and no tornados in a week!  The streets downtown were closed on Friday night due to flooding, but I think most of the water is gone now.  There’s an up-side to all this rain.  Our yard looks like a really cool jungle right now.  Don’t ask me how, but that evil man next door has manage to keep his mowed through all this rain.  I swear, there’s something just not right about him.  He may keep children in his basement or something.  At the very least, small animals.  I know I’ve posted about him and his perfectly manicured Stepford lawn before, but I can’t find the post because it was a long time ago, before tags here on Motime.  He must have an underwater lawn mower or something.  I hate him.
We’re in the final push to summer vacation around here, so the weather is actually a pretty big issue right now.  The kids are having field days and extra recesses.  Field trips, proms, graduation stuff, and just all around chaos.  It would help if the weather was supporting such a hectic pace, but come on, why give me a day when I don’t want mood-altering drugs, right?
Speaking of children and chaos, I’ve mentioned how crazy the man child’s life is right now with his final days of high school before him.  So I know you can imagine he has had moments where he has been truly emotional, almost hateful.  One day last week during a particularly grouchy spell, I heard IzzyB say, “Jarrod, what’s wrong with you!  Are you PMSing or something?!”  I don’t even wonder where she gets this stuff anymore as we have three teens in the house, and even though I’m constantly telling them to mind their language around her, occasionally something still gets through.  So our conversation went like something like this:

Me:  Isabella what does “PMSing” mean?  You used the word, and you should never use a word if you don’t know the meaning.  Do you?

Isabella:  Of course I know what it means, Mom.

Me:  Well then, you should know that’s not really something you should be saying.  It isn’t polite.  But since you said it, tell me what it means.

Isabella: Duh.  PMS… pee a mess…

I walked out of the room.

You would understand my inability to handle this without hysterical laughter if you knew the conversation we had week before last.  You know what?  I’m going to share it with you although she’d kill me if she knew.
 
Disclaimer:  This is a story with intimate female physical details.  Do NOT read it if you’re all fragile and stuff and easily offended by such things.

While sitting on the couch with my husband, I realize IzzyB is suddenly beside me with a very worried expression on her face.  To understand the fear her features held, you must first understand that Isabella has been very diligent with female cleanliness since a very early age.  She can be dirty from head to toe, but let me tell ya, she’s gonna make sure she uses half a roll of toilet paper on the coochie!  Okay, so back to the worried looking little girl standing beside me.

Isabella:  (not even bothering to whisper because she doesn’t know the meaning of “shy”) Mom, I have a big problem.

Me:  (Only half listening at this point) What’s wrong now? (Thinking there’s another little girl club fight outside or something.)

Isabella:  Well, I just used the bathroom… and Mom, there’s a hair stuck to my coochie, and I can’t get it off!

The husband who is sitting beside me gets choked, and  I have to put my head down between my knees to keep from hurling… or laughing… or crying… I can’t really remember now.  It’s all kind of blurry.

I don’t know how I got from the weather to that, but it’s Monday.  Surely you’ve learned to not expect much here on Mondays by now.

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Sittin’ Up In My Room

April 17th, 2009

So you know that room I’ve been pretending to be interested in fixing up for months now?  For those of  you who don’t, I won’t link back to previous boring posts, I’ll just clue you in really fast.  Three years ago I bought a big ole house that I absolutely love.  Back then my little IzzyB was only four so her room was purposely placed close to mine even though there is an upstairs room perfect for a little girl’s dreams to grow and come true.  We’ve never used this room for her because to have her way up there at the back of the house was just too scary for me (not her).  Not to mention there was black paint on the walls from a failed attempt at a teen trying to have a red/black Asian themed room.  There were giant holes in the walls.  We’ve been using the room as storage for months.

Nothing fancy or expensive was planned.  We did what she wanted from the very beginning.  The thing is, we’ve had to do all the work ourselves.  I have no creative talent whatsoever in drawing, painting, etc.  I’m not being modest.  I can’t draw.  I envy those of you who can.  We didn’t buy stencils, so be kind.  This stuff is free-hand, and at times, painted in by a seven year old!

Anyway.  I took “before” pictures of the room, but for some reason they didn’t save, and I didn’t realize it until it was too late to take more.  There is no way to describe what we took on when we began this project.  It took three coats of primer just to cover the black.  And that was after days of scraping and tearing down wallpaper that was used on the ceiling.  We had to plaster holes in the wall that ranged from the size of an eraser to big enough to put an infant in.  Yes I’m really proud of us because we didn’t bail after the first few days and get someone else to do it even though we really wanted to!
BR1BR2BR3BR4BR5BR6BR7BR8BR9

As I mentioned, nothing expensive went into our project.  Just to break it down for you, we didn’t buy any new furniture.  Our supplies totaled around $350.  They included primer, plaster supplies, all the paints, new bedding, cute floral wall hooks, and of course, all the brushes and cleaner.  We had the long curtains placed at the beginning of the hall but bought the small ones on the window.

The first shot is straight through the door into her room.  The bed is to the right and there is the little hallway to a drop down into a little nook of sorts.
The second shot is of our artwork to the right of the room with the little built-in drawers.  The ceiling is slanted there.  That wall is only about three feet high.
The third shot is to the left side of the room.
The fourth shot is to the front left side of the room.  It’s the corner to the to the left of the door.  She hasn’t finished putting her dollhouse back in order yet!
The fifth shot is of the slanted ceiling above the bed.  All the ceiling space has those big blue clouds with a “sun” painted around the room’s light fixture.
The sixth shot is through the hallway into her sitting room.  That long bench is built-in and I’m in the process of sewing a pad that will go all along it to make it a comfy sitting bench.  However, the top is broken into three compartments.  The top is on hinges and opens to show you all her toys!  That brown chest holds all her homemade blankets, quilts, etc.  I’m still deciding on whether or not to paint it.  Those windows are tiny.  This whole area is just a little room tucked into the house.  I can’t describe how cute the setup is.
The seventh picture is to the left of the bench.  This used to be another set of built-in drawers, but they were broken and unusable, so we pulled them out and made her a cute storage nook for all her stuffed animals.
The next one is a little built-in bookcase that’s on the left next to the doorway.  She hasn’t finished bringing her books upstairs yet.  I think she’s waiting for me!
Finally, the last shot is standing in the little room looking down the hallway out the door of her bedroom.  That hallway is only just over five feet high at the peak of the slanted ceiling.  I know this because, other than Bella, I’m the only person who can wall through it without bending over.

I purposely tried not to get too much of the floor in the pics because we have to do some work on it, too.  Not much, though.  To be almost a hundred years old, it’s in really good shape!  Just needs some sanding here and there to get up stains, etc.  For now, we have some area rugs with all the colors she chose for her room in flowers, bugs, etc.

I really wish the pictures showing the room before we began had saved.  It’s so hard to point out the changes we made and how much of a difference they made.  As you look at the pictures, just imagine that everywhere you see the white ceiling there was faded floral wallpaper and everywhere you see the green paint, it was black!

I’m absolutely thrilled to be finished.  She has been moved in for about a week now, and so far, she’s keeping it really pretty and clean.  So this should be the end of my ranting over this one particular project.  Aren’t you thrilled!  Of course you aren’t because if you know me, you realize it’s time for me to start the yard work which means rants, raves, and tears over that.  Just like every year, huh.  At least I’m consistent!

Thanks for going along with me!