Yeah, I know...same stuff as yesterday, but I added a quiz to the bottom...if you've read this already, just skip through...

So I'm driving home from Wal-mart with noone to talk to on my cell...so
I actually thought for awhile.  You know how there's so much
outside noise ALL THE TIME, be it music, kids, books, friends,
etc...that you don't really have to much time to just think about,
well, STUFF.
Questions for ya:
 
1.  You have 3 children...one is terminally ill, the other two
just fine and dandy.  The other two must miss a day of school, the
terminally ill child doesn't want to go to school alone, mom lets her
stay home.  You go into a store....you do anything to bring a
smile to ill childs face, even if it might possibly break the bank,
'cause if you buy for one, you buy for all. So the question here is
this:  Do you spoil all the children and let them do whatever
BECAUSE YOU REALIZE THE MORTALITY OF YOUR KIDS?  We all love our
childen and would do anything for them, of course...to a point. 
But what happens when you know you could honestly lose one tomorrow?

Funny thing son just did:  He's reaching into pants and underwear,
and says "I'm just pulling out my weapon."  He proceeds to pull
out this toy shooter thing, and says "ew...it's all hairy, now." 
Nice, hunh? He's 4, by the way.  NO sick thoughts, here, people!

Same wonderful boy on the way to pick up sis just asked if I could play
the song "Sweet Dreams Tomato Beans"  Hee hee...just think
Eurythmics and try to guess what he wanted.

You know what's amazing?  I had all these deep and wonderful
thoughts...now I have the children with me and it's all gone. 
Sigh....

My son has asthma...was pretty bad yesterday.  His test to see how
his air is doing is for him to say "My name is ...... (his full
name)...I want to teach him to say "My name is Enigo Montoya...you
killed my father...prepare to die."  I think that would be kinda
funny. 

This is for my friend blondie...took this quiz...look what it rated
me!  Thought you'd appreciate that! Couldn't get the code to show
up, though...sucks being computer slow...but got if off of KoffeKweens
site...(sp.?)

You're My Little Pony!! Sweet and innocent and happy, you make
people want to spew burrito chunks. Even a Care Bear could kick your
ass.

And ya know, I think my friends might agree with this...guess I'll have to kick their a**!

Weekends over and I"M STILL TIRED.  Friday night had my sis and
her kids over.  I think I need to throw my Hallmarkian ideals out
the window.  Our kids just don't get along.  They will for a
little while, don't get me wrong, but give the older girls time, and
there will be a personality explosion.  I think my sis and I have
decided to just get together when the kids are in school....they just
can't be around each other that much.  (It's basically just the
girls...one has low self-esteem, and the other high...bad mix - plus
the low self esteem is VERY EMOTIONAL - and believe me, she has reasons
to be emotional, what with her little sis being the brain surgery
child, divorce, moving, etc...she is seeing a counselor- I just hope
that she gets it worked out)  It really stinks that my sis and I
just reconnected and now our kids are working on damaging our new
relationship.  (not on purpose, of course) So here's a pic of what
happened at my house that night...me and sis sitting on couch watching
a movie...then down runs S in tears that Jess turned off the
playstation game during her turn, then A runs down saying "I never
wanna come here again", little A comes down calling Jess a meanie for
making her sissy cry, Jess runs down in tears saying how her cousins
hate her, and Jason calling big A a meanie for telling Jess he hates
her.  Fun stuff.  So my sis just picks up and says
"OK-everyone in the car".  And they left.  I try not to raise
my kids with the mommy blinders on, and I will be the first to admit
they can be a little bratty at times...but hers need some work. 
(and by work, I mean beaten with a rubber hose) JUST KIDDING. 

Saturday was pretty uneventful....cleaned house...Sunday was a
whirlwind. Went to church for the first time since we got stateside
(back in 98), my daughter joined the choir, so kinda had to go. 
Interesting sermon....it was about baseball and how baseball (namely
Hank Aaron) can be compared to Aaron (Moses' brother)...anyway...pretty
cool....Ran home after Sunday school, stuffed food down the kids
throats, then went to a local play. (Beauty and the Beast)  They
did a terrific job...one of Jess's best friends played Chip, and she
was adorable.  I , of course, cried like a baby...it wasn't THAT
terrific, I just love that story...went home and watched the Disney
version of it, and cried some more.  THEN made dinner, Got
daughter to Youth group, burned her dinner, (she didn't have time to
eat before youth), picked her up, went to Taco Bell ('cause that's what
dinner was only home-made) picked her up a couple of tacos, and Boo'd
my sis.  Which was fun, 'cause her neighbors saw me lurking
outside her house and called the cops!  Oops. Pretty funny...she
came out, 'cause her neighbors called to tell her about me and the
cops, and told me what happened, so I planted my "boo" and got the heck
outta dodge!  So that's Sunday...

Kids don't have school today in honor of Mr. Columbus...thanks,
man....wish you were alive to babysit my kids!  Yesterday, when
there was no time to play, my son REALLY wanted to just play his
sis.  TODAY, however, is a whole nother story.  Sigh...Happy
Monday, ya'll!

I'm tired.  Last night, around 3 a.m. or so (I guess I should say
this morning before the buttcrack of dawn), my son crawls into bed with
me.  He had to go potty which, of course, wakes him all the way
up.  So here's this kid doing acrobatics next to me, AND I forgot
to give him his allergy medicine, so we also have that sound being made
that sounds like a cross between a cat hissing and a cement mixer in
the back of his throat.  And constant clucking.  He, of
course, is full of energy today.  I just wanna crawl back into
bed, but I get to mow the lawn today, instead.  Hey-lookit that,
I'm a poet!  Did I say I was tired?

Friday...time for a new post before the weekend! So my friend wants me
to start a diet with her.  90% of me wants to really bad...the
other 10% wants another cookie!  Seriously, though, I definitely
need to lose this...it's getting gross (for me).  My sis and I
were having an "I'm so fat" contest, and I won.  That's bad...I
won with "oh yeah-it's gross to be sitting there, and something tickles
your thigh, and you realize it's your STOMACH!!!"  (I'm not that
bad, really, it was just too funny, we had to stop and grab another
cookie).  No, but I did buy a pair of jeans, size huge, put them
on, and I have a tummy shelf.  Eww. (for me)  I keep putting
(for me) in parenthesis there, 'cause some people are totally happy
with themselves the way they are...I am not. So, I think I'm gonna
start this Atkins thing with her, as soon as I make it to the grocery
store anyway, and see how that goes.  Done the LA Weight loss, it
worked GREAT, but I've gained it all back but 10 lbs, now. 
BUMMER.   I used to be such a work out nut just 1 1/2 yrs
ago...every day I was there for at least 2 hours. Crazy. Lost a ton of
poundage, though. 

My son wants to go plant acorns in the backyard.  We found the
coolest acorn things in the park today.  Thinkin' of making them
into something crafty...if I can keep him from planting them, that
is.  I think he's gonna be a plant guy like his uncle. His uncle
could tell you every kind of plant that exists, and how to grow it for
that matter.  Every time Jason finds a seed, it must be
planted...and he doesn't forget about it either. 

Can I ask everyone to pray for my neice?  (I've talked briefly
about her on here before) She's 5 yrs old, as cute as a bug...to look
at her and hear her talk you would'nt think anything was wrong. 
Under the surface, that kid's a mess. She has ataxic cerebral palsy
(affects her motor skills), juvenile rhumatoid arthritis, brittle bone
syndrome (not TOO severe), integrational sensory disorder (senses are
on overload), and, oh yeah, she's had 5 brain surgeries already, 'cause
she has a tumor in the middle of her brain that's the size of her
fist.  And hydrocephalus (water on the brain).  Anyway, she's
been having headaches again, (which is a sign somethings about to go
wrong) and the dr. wants to open her up and take a peek.  (new
dr.)  He doesn't like that they've just been tapping her shunt
every 6 months to drain the fluid out of her brain.  She's a
sweetie. My sis told me she wasn't supposed to make it past 4 yrs old.
She's even already done her Make A Wish...went to DisneyWorld to meet
the princesses.  Makes you wanna cry, doesn't it?  Definitely
puts things in perspective when I'm whining about my kids colds or
whatever.  So pray for her, please...the more the better. 

'K....here goes the tagged thing

10 years ago I was:
  1.  Living in Misawa, Japan
  2.  Adoring my 1 year old baby girl
  3.  Probably hating my constantly boozing husband
  4.  Smelling Walmart bags that were shipped in packages to me
  5.  Playing "get lost in Japan" - always fun, especially if you don't know Japanese

5 years ago I was:
  1.  Pregnant with my son
  2.  Back in the states in Illinois
  3.  Probably angry with my constantly working husband
  4.  Sittin' out back of the house with my 2 favorite neighbors
  5.  Playing trying not to get lost in E. St. Louis if I can possibly help it

1 year ago:
  1.  Trying to talk my husband into getting fixed
  2.  Coming to terms with the fact that I get to be a stay at home mom 'cause hubby works so much
  3.  Running around "booing" everyone I know (it's a Halloween thing!)
  4.  Getting harrassed by my crazy Gladys Kravitz neighbor
  5.  Missing my friend that moved all the way to DC

Yesterday:
  1.  paid bills
  2.  took a nap (what?! I had a headache!)
  3.  watched my friends lil boy
  4.  ran naked in my backyard (just seeing if anyone's really paying attention)
  5.  watched 3 hrs. of Survivor on the OLN network

Snacks I enjoy:
  1.  seaweed (Japan did it!)
  2.  raisins
  3.  marshmallows
  4.  right now, those yogurt burst cheerios
  5.  sigh...chocolate anything

Songs I know all the lyrics to:
  1.  Baby Mine (Dumbo and Bette Midler)
  2.  Stop Children What's that Sound
  3.  Time in a Bottle (Jim Croce)
  4.  Sweet Child of Mine (Guns N Roses)
  5.  Redneck Woman

What I would do with 100 million dollars:
  1.  pay for kids and my college tuition and make sure the kids were set for life but still had to work
  2.  start a community for the homeless
  3.  make sure all immediate family members were totally out of debt
  4.  get our dream house built
  5.  tithe (sp?)

5 places I would like to visit:
  1.  volcano fields in Hawaii
  2.  Africa
  3.  Japan (loved it there)
  4.  Maine in the Autumn
  5.  India

5 things I would never wear:
  1.  a thong
  2.  fur
  3.  pajamas to bed!
  4.  high high heels
  5.  my brothers underwear (now that I"m a grown up, anyway!)

5 bad habits:
  1.  getting on the computer for fun while my kids are wanting my attention
  2.  eating junk at night
  3.  eating junk during the day
  4.  leaving my keys and wallet in the car unlocked
  5.  losing my wallet all the time

5 greatest joys:
  1.  my babies
  2.  jamming to music in the car with the windows rolled
down, and no kids so it doesn't have to be G rated...(secret music
love:Nine Inch Nails-but only the album Pretty Hate Machine)
  3.  deep slow kisses from hubby
  4.  getting hugs from #1
  5.   wearing a sweater on a cold fall day

5 favorite toys:
  1.  my bunny rabbit...hehe
  2.  all my scrappin' toys
  3.  my pampered chef tools
  4.  my hubby's mustang
  5.  my hubby's ....hehe

5 people I tag:
  1.  Tejastotallybooked
  2.  lonelystarsabuv
  3.  askurmom
  4.  fairypngwn
  5.  flimflampapermom

Thank you all for your concern on my boy's bummy.  He's MUCH
better now, as we saw our REAL Dr. who actually HAS a brain, as opposed
to the one we saw on Sat, who possibly got her degree from a box of
cracker jacks. 

Tell me what you think about this.  His side of the family has
decided to draw names for Christmas.  THAT"S FINE...totally agree,
that works for me.  We already do it on my side of the family...I
have 4 other siblings, and 18 nieces and nephews.  (all below the
age of 18, so still giftable)  ANYWAY, his sister was the
drawee.  At first, she had the big Mom and Dad in the drawing, I
put my foot down, and said they are the big parents, we will be buying
them a present regardless.  I thought this was the end of
silliness.  She mailed us the drawing list that she has done up
THROUGH 2008, and guess who drew me this year from his side of the
family?  Yup, my husband.  He gets to buy me a present this
year.  How nice.  Oh, and he can only spend up to 60.00 on my
present, 'cause she established a limit on spousal gifts!  The way
we used to do it (for his side) was couple gifts.  (i.e., his sis
and her husband get a gift together, like a blanket or something) 
Not to sound like a big cheapskate, but this was a little cheaper
too.  'Cause now we draw for individuals.  And she set a
limit on that too.  40.00 bucks.  So potentially, you could
spend 80.00 on a couple.  I hate to have a problem with
this.  It's Christmas.  Last year, this stressed me out so
much, I actually got depressed at Christmas-time.  Did I say I had
18 nieces and nephews?  Not to mention my own two, who I like to
spoil unconditionally?  Ohh, and another thing that ticks me
off...no homemade gifts.  I LOVE to craft and give away, not only
is it nice, but it comes from the heart.  Grrrr.....I WILL NOT
LOSE MY CHRISTMAS SPIRIT IN OCTOBER!!!!  AND it's not supposed to
be about the gifts or the money anyway, and that's exactly what it
feels like they're doing! Poop.

My poor baby boy.   He has an itchy bum. 
Seriously.  It started Friday with me not being able to keep his
hand out of his pants, then Friday night no sleep at all- he'd scream
about every hour or so, I'd walk in and he'd have his pants down,
himself bent over, and begging me to throw water on his bum, it was on
fire.  Poor guy.  Saturday I take him to the Dr. (not his
normal one, but another dr. in the practice who I think personally is a
big yahoo), and she says he has itchy butt (pro. name pruritis
ani).  So he keeps getting worse and worse all weekend, so that
his little bum-hole is about as red as my Cardinals Tshirt, so I take
him back in today to our normal Dr.  who says he has anal
strep.  Poor little guy!  So now we're on real meds that will
make this go away, thank goodness.

Jess has sold over 200 boxes of GS cookies, so far, and sales only
started Friday.  She's tuckering me out, though....we were out all
weekend selling, and she's already asked to go back out after she's
done with her homework.  I'm glad she's determined and all, but
Good Lord, gimme a break! 

I've been tagged to do this thingamajig, so will probably get around to
it later, or not, depending on stuff.  (Thanks, V!)  Thing
is, it starts off 10 years ago, after my fun no kids life ended. 
(now it's fun with kids and married....fun, just not as interesting in
the same way)  I'll work on it, though!

I love this tracker thing.  I have no idea who anyone is or how
this really works or anything...but it does show people are reading
me!  (now they can comment too, if they want-hint hint)

Not a whole lot going on...got in another silly string fight today with
bro in law...kids think you must have silly string at someones bday
now.  I have found it stains woodwork if allowed to dry. 
Interesting, hunh?  Glad I got a tracker...now I can see how much
this is really gonna bore people today!

My daughters selling GS cookies...she is a maniac with these
things.  This year she apparently has a challenger for troop top
seller...her cousin.  S called Jess up today and told her she
"already had 100 boxes sold".  Her dad bought 100 boxes. 
This should NOT be a competition, but if it makes the girls sell more
to help make the troop money, is it wrong?  2 years ago Jess sold
518 boxes and has always been the top seller...other kids in the troop
have kinda given up trying to beat her...they don't realize that every
box counts as money towards their troop to do cool things. 

Wow...there is totally nothing going on.  People shouldn't be allowed to post when nothing has happened. 

My son is nuts.  I've often thought he was "different", but he's
truly a unique character.  Does anyone else's children tape up
their parents, I wonder?  He'll tell me to hold real still, cross
my arms and legs together, and then tape them up.  He wanted to
get rope for hisHalloween costume, I thought that might be a bad
idea.  He is awesome, though, aside from being a potential
maniac.  Though, I do think preschool is calming him down a little
bit. Yeagh!  At playgroup, he'll actually play quietly, he shares
much better. 

I"m done.  Good night.

EDIT:  I have no idea who Evan Dando is or the song for that matter, it just fits well tonight!

So only one person on xanga (or those who read mine) watch Amazing
Race?   Feeling unloved again, people...please, pretty please
say hi and comment! 

I really only have one thing to talk about tonight...my 11 yr old
daughters faith was shaken for the first time yesterday.  They're
talking about the Big Bang theory in science class right now. 
She's never even questioned the existence of God, and now a teacher is
telling her that God didn't create the universe or man or anything, but
it was just stardust and atoms.  Nice.  She was in total
tears.   I told her check out the third word -
"theory".  Meaning someones IDEA.  Not to mention if that's
what the teacher wants to go with - ummm...who created that stardust
and atom?  I also told her that some people are going to
constantly try to argue the idea of God - and that that's where Faith
comes in.  It is hard, though...when you have questions of your
own that your logical mind tries to come up with.  What irritates
me, too, though...is that every other religious or non-religious group
finds most of their needs met (i.e., No celebrating Christmas in
school-might offend non-Christians, lets strike "In God We Trust" off
the dollar, 'cause we might accidentally offend those who don't believe
in God, etc...) but in the quest for deleting God from education, we
must shake the faith of the most trusting and open minded people among
us...our kids.  What do ya'll think about this?

EDIT:  I forgot to say how much my friend V sucks and she's such a hag!    (beat you to it!)

OK....who else is ticked off that that nice family got last place in
the Amazing Race, and that horrible family with the twit boys who kept
talking mean to their mom got 6th place?  BOOOO!  I swear
that mom should have reached up a couple of times and just smacked him
in the head.  So who're YOUR favorites?  I like the 3 bros, 1
sis team the best for now.  I"d like to root for the underdog with
the little kids, but that little girl strikes me as kind of a brat,
so...

Hey, if you didn't read the post below, or answered the question of
credit counseling, give me your ideas on that, please. 

Went to school with son today.  LOVED IT!  They said little
prayers all over the place, and sang little songs, and they were SO
CUTE! They loved Jason's Flytrap...thought it was just the coolest...it
was currently eating 2 flies, and the one that was open just matured,
so it wouldn't close for the kiddos...bummer...really wanted to show
them how it snaps shut.  And of course, Jason loved being the
center of attention, and line leader, and snack guy...took ritz
crackers and cheese whiz for snack....needless to say, that was a huge
hit!  Anytime you can draw with your food, it's a good thing! 'Nother bummer thing...MY CAMERA BATTERY DIED IN THE FIRST 15 MINUTES OF CLASS!!!