Out with the old.....

This is Friday - the beginning of the garage sale organization.........this is nowhere near the total we were getting rid of...Mike had yet to drop off his Ford F150 FULL of stuff, yet.

I was planning on taking pictures right before the sale but dont you know even though the sale started at 7am, we were bombarded at 6am.

It was chaos from 6 - noon.....

Aside from some attempted robbery (Janee busted someone who stole her gameboy she was selling) and some jerky ladies I thought I was going to end up in a fist fight with, it was super sucessful.

And I was able to buy Harlee her new carseat (Fats is .5 lb away from outweighing her seat weight limit), a stroller, since we cant use the snugride frame anymore, AND go grocery shopping with the cash - still having enough to "donate" some to Jesse's football. And I only felt like a partial jerk for paying for over $200.00 of groceries with 1's. Hey - the economy sucks - we are broke...at least I am not yet having to buy gas with pennies and dimes like when I was 16.....Money is money.

It is so freeing to be getting rid of all this baby/kid stuff.............only 17 years, 2 1/2 months more to go! :)

What a Cluster*

My husband got on my butt to clean up my language in this blog.........so I am planning to say farewell to cuss words. I hope. Aside from that my kid is now picking things up so I may as well work on that in my verbal language as well. But, let my last cussword in this blog be this - from my favorite movie - "Jesus, what a clusterfuck".........

The J's nonsensical mom called 4-5 weeks ago. NOT to wish HER daughter a happy birthday (mind you she hasn't contacted HER kids in 3 MONTHS) but to tell Mike, that she will be moving to Texas in August. Hmm.

Aparently SHE got in ANOTHER car accident, that was NOT her fault (nothing is) and since that happened her "employers" (aka people who loan her a car and a house with utilities) HAD to take away her job since she could no longer be a nanny for their kids (ironic right?)

Aside from all that...........I am frantically trying to change careers. I have been doing online school at a normal pace for months now - but things are weird with Mike's work, and we just aren't very comfortable financially right now - who is? - so I have been putting in 8 hours minimum of school a day - mixed in with having all 4 kids home.....

And a random Harlee update: She FINALLY has TWO teeth poking through - Please Jesus let this calm her the hell down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She sits up and army crawls across the entire house. She puts her butt in the air and rocks as if she is about to crawl but just cant figure out how to work those ham hocks yet. So she pulls herself everywhere. I cant set her down to go to the bathroom without her being somewhere else when I get out. Time to re-baby proof.

Random Updates

I have been busy.

:)


To start, we got home from our weekend camping trip in Temecula 2 weekends ago to Mike receiving a phone call from the J's mom. It was about 6 seconds long and it was her telling M July 31 was her last day in California, and that she would be moving to Texas.

Considering she hasn't spoken to the kids in over a month, we are trying to figure out what to do with that information. I should rephrase, we know what we are going to do with that information - nothing. But more, what her plan is for us to do with that info? Are we supposed to tell the kids and then they are supposed to be sad so that we feel bad and convince her to stay? What the hell?

Whatever.

Mike is back to work. He was working in Irvine which seemed to good to be true at the time as far as the commute goes. However, is was shortly moved to downtown LA. He came home the other day telling me there were shots fired across the street from the jobsite. Ah, I remember those days when sirens all day was normal. <3 love construction.

I am still doing my school and still hating every minute of it. I totally miss my old job, but realize there is no way I can pull that off with all 4 kids...and all of their activities. Nor deep down would I want to...but sometimes, I miss it. And sometimes I miss it more.

Jesse graduates 8th grade tomorrow. He started wrestling practice at his high school yesterday and football starts for him this coming Monday. I love it because he came home realizing he is not as tough as he thought he was....hopefully it works with his attitude at home as well. This coming from me, who got yelled at by him yesterday morning for asking him what he was going to wear to practice and he told me "his nice button up shorts with zippers" and I told him no, he will wear his workout shorts. Wow was he annoyed at me for being so ridiculous with THAT suggestion. :)

Anyway, after Mike picked him up he walked in the door and the first thing he said was "Christy sorry for acting that way towards you this morning" - not prompted by Mike, I later found out.

Janee is still in soccer...............and we are over it. But don't tell her I said that.... :)

It has been a year now of every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday and random Sundays. We were talking to some other parents from the team, and we all kind of think that the team is not getting much better. They are good, but it is like they have maxed out, or are over it too or something. Anyway, she is signed up for Fall as well, but Mike talked her out of it...Telling her she should focus on starting Jr High and that Jesse has sacrificed 3 years of weekends for her sports and now lets give him this year. She agreed.

Her 12th birthday is Saturday so she will be having a slumber party here. 15 people were invited. The RSVP date is tomorrow and like I expected, 1 person confirmed is coming. We have heard from no one else. What is with people?

Brody is "our C student" as Mike calls him.

He is all over the place - full of ADD - has no fear - just like Mike...this one is Mike's son for sure.

But he is so freakin adorable I just want to squeeze him, except he wont let me because that would involve him sitting still for 3 seconds.

And he talks. Boy does he talk. Alllllll day long. And you cant not answer him because he will repeat himself over and over again, till he gets a response.

I cant tell you how many times a day I hear "Mom, what are you doing"

Again - Sorry mom!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Harlee is getting better. She falls asleep on her own, in her crib, and sleeps about 12 - 13 hours.

She pretty much sits up on her own.

She hates all baby food. I think it is because she is like the hulk at 20 lbs and just wants to move straight to steak.

She still screams LOUD when she is happy and most people around us think she is upset.

And she absolutely LOVESSSSSS the swimming pool.

Anyway - that is the update on us...lets see if I can keep this thing updated now that the kids are out of school and can help out around here~

Stay at Home Mom?

Why do they call it that? I pondered for the 3 hours I was driving around yesterday.....

Janee had soccer practice and Mike was working late, so I left B & H with Jesse assuming I would be home in 20 minutes....

Little did I know the nonsense I was about to embark on. The offramp was blocked because of an accident....Not sure if you know the area south of here, but there is like one convenient way everywhere and, if you are lucky, 1 backass road in......So, when the offramp is blocked, there really is no easy way around it...

So, having left my house at 4:40 for her 5:00 practice, and having this debocle, put me at the field at 5:25. Of course, everyone else was delayed too, so I hung out till 5:45 when the coach made it..and left to come home. I thought..

Not so much, the ramp is still closed and now the "back" way is completley stopped both ways....I decided to turn around and go back to practice and wait it out, but got stuck in the traffic the other way...and finally made it back to the field at 6:40. What the hell?

My thoughts are, if I have a babysitter at home, and I have no kids, I should be at the theater watching Sex and the City 2...but no, I am sitting in my car.

I finally made it home from practice...with Janee....at 7:45 pm.

But while I was out in the chaos...I called my dearest husband who had been at work from 6am to 6pm....and asked him to PLEASE PLEASE put Harlee in her PJ's and PROP a bottle for her so she can still be on her schedule....because I KNOW how important her schedule is and how much of a PITA she gets when she is off of it...

He agrees kindly.

What do I come home to?

She is in a long sleeve onsie with no pants on. Wide awake in her swing like she is ready to party like it's 1999.

I ask him about it and his response? What is wrong with that? well, first off - SHE HAS NO PANTS ON!

Whatever -

So, as I am sitting here trying to figure out how to get 1 kid to bed at 7pm, while driving the other one home from soccer practice at 7pm all the while being across town for a 6:30pm football meeting with Jesse, I ask, why the heck they call it a "stay at home" mom?

One of my worst nightmares as a parent

happened on Thursday.

And for the record, I have lots of nightmares, so don't think this one takes precedence......but still.

Janee comes into the kitchen 15 minutes past her bedtime and says

"Christy, my hamster looks dizzy and can't really walk, and keeps falling down"

What I am thinking: Thank god! Maybe it will die and my house can stop smelling like the San Diego Zoo. Aside from last minute trips to Petco for food because "I forgot".

What I say: Ummmmmm?

Here's the problem.....she only likes him about 5 % of the time.....so am I supposed to comfort her?

Also, What the F am I supposed to do? Operate? Prescribe it some pills? Or tell it to lay off the alcohol?

So she stares blankly and me, and I stare blankly at her....

Thank god father of the year, Mike, stepped in with "Try giving him a carrot?"

That satisfied her enough to get to bed - but before going asking us if we can take it to Petco to get checked out.

???????

BTW - if you know Mike, he doesn't do the vet....with dogs. Let alone a hamster.

Much to our dismay/delight...it is still alive.

Still wandering around like a drunken sailor.

Thank god she had a soccer tournament all weekend to keep her sidetracked........

B's first trip to the ER

I spent most of the day irritated......

I have yet to figure out a schedule for having these two kids home as well as teaching Mike to use Excel over the phone......

Aside from the fact that I am now 100% positive I CANT finish one task at a time....

For example: It took everything I had on Sunday to finish 2 loads of laundry. I would put the clothes in the washer, and go get B milk, then realize the trash needed to be taken out, now Mike has a question about Excel, Wait - did I put soap in the machine? Or start it? No!

So, last night I was super excited to finish everything EARLY! I poured myself an after dinner drink, and went out to sit in the sun....B started chasing Janee up a hill and fell. And hit his head on a rock. Bad.

So, drink untouched, we were off to get his head stiched.

We got into the room and the Dr. followed quickly....she scrubbed up, and then answered her cell phone.

WTF?

So, she scrubbed up again, all the while telling me how she spent the morning in Divorce litigation afrter 2 years, ect. ect. the lawyer was expensive. Ect. Ect.

Um, not appropriete!

B's worst nightmare is being held down. he hates hugging, unless it is on his terms. He hates snuggling, unless it is on his terms...ect. And when I say hates, I mean, HATES!

So, when I had to hold him down for what the Dr said should have been 3 stitches, that didnt go so well. Jesse was holding down one side, I was holding him from the back, and the Dr. barely got one sttch in.

She decided rather than try to put anymore in and traumatize him further, she would stick the rest together with steristrips.

So, he came home with 4 steri strips, and 1 stitch.



Excuse the cookie all over his face - I guess I could have waited to clean him up before taking the picture. But I am mean like that......

TV Wall

We moved the TV to the other wall and hung it.....the wall is not completely finished because M started work. Maybe on a free weekend of his...



And all this took place in 1 year. Not your average year.

M got a job with a new company and started last Monday. To celebrate M's last weekend of being a slacker ;) we had Jennifer, Donny and little P over for a BBQ. Love to see them and gossip as always...and H had a good time teaching P how to jump.

M started work in Irvine. When he first got the job, he was told he would be doing something at UCLA....which is not exactl around hte corner from us. But a job is a job. So when he called the super to make arrangements and was told he would be working in Irvine, we were stoked!

Apparently this job is on an impossibly tight schedule..so on his first week back, he worked on a Saturday...and I am told the whole job will most likely go like this. Back to reality.

Same goes for me, who, by the way, has never been home ALL DAY with both little kids. Last time I was home alone, it was just B - now I have the two of them.

It is interesting.

I just need to figure out a schedule and teach my Brody to behave and it will be all good.