We Like To Take Our Time

Our garage is detached from and sits behind our house. There's a narrow driveway along the side of the house that leads back to it and a large parking area in front of it. It was paved with old, cruddy, cracking asphalt when we bought the house in December of 2005. It was in really bad shape and was in great need of replacement. So, in early November of 2006 we ripped out the entire back parking area (leaving the narrow drive in asphalt) and poured cement in half of it. We figured we would pour the other half in the spring (of '07). Well, spring came and went and we didn't pour any cement. We thought we would wait for some cooler temps and do it in the fall (of '07). Fall came and went without any cement poured. And so, we again planned on spring (of '08). Spring came and went and we didn't pour any cement. We decided to wait again for the cooler temps and said we would do it in fall (of '08). It didn't happen then either and this meaning to do it thing turned into a vicious cycle that lasted for three years. It just kind of turned into this thing where if we had the money to do it, we didn't have the time. And then, when we did have the time, we didn't have the money because we had spent it on other projects. But now, thanks to my father in law, 3 brothers in law, and some others ☺, we now have a parking area completely covered in cement. Hooray! I'm so glad it's finally done. Better late than never is what I always say. We're determined to get the asphalt in the driveway ripped out and cement poured in the spring (of '12). Or, maybe in about 4 1/2 years. We'll see.

Thank you so very much to all who helped with the work! It means the world to me and it feels wonderful to finally have that entire back area done!

P.S. I was holding Peyton yesterday when he tipped his head up and I could see up his nose. I said, "ewww! You have a lot of nasty boogers in your nose!" He said, "they aren't nasty boogers! They're tasty boogers for eating!" He then proceeded to stick his finger up his nose. Oh, my.

I'm Already Thinking About It

It's really ridiculous, but I'm already thinking about and preparing for Halloween. In fact, I've already bought costumes for Peyton and Avery. (Hey! Don't start with me. I know it's ridiculous to be buying Halloween costumes in July, but if you want to get what your kids want, you HAVE to shop this early.) Avery wanted to be Princess Peach (Super Mario Bros.) again. (She's asked to be her for about 3 years.) Unfortunately, I've only been able to find slutty, adult Princess Peach costumes. (I had no idea that Princess Peach ever wore short, short skirts with thigh high stockings and hooker heels, but apparently she does when she's all grown up. Whatever.) This year, however, a mighty miracle happened. I found, online, a child size, Super Mario Bros. licensed costume that isn't slutty. I snatched it right up and decided I would have Peyton wear something that coordinated with her. (They'll probably hate me for it when they're teenagers. Oh well. ☺) He's going to be Toad. Yay! They're done.

Cameron wants to be Deadmau5. I think it has something to do with raves (he doesn't know that) and techno music. I think. I'm not hip and in touch with what the young folks like. Cameron just thinks the mouse head is cool. I googled costumes for that and did find some on places like eBay. And guess what? They were only.........$275.00!!! No siree. I flat out to refuse to pay that much. I don't care how cool he thinks it is, or how happy he says it will make him. I'm a waaaaaay mean mom like that. He says that if he can't be that, he doesn't want to be anything. So, it looks like I'm going to have to figure out how to make the silly thing. (Google it if you have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about.)

Tyler thinks he's too cool for Halloween and at the moment, says he doesn't want to dress up. I'm sure he'll change his mind. Especially since this will probably be the last year for him to do it. At least, it will probably be his last year to wear a costume to school. He'll be in 6th grade this year and I'm pretty sure that you don't wear costumes to the big, bad junior high. He needs to take advantage of his last year of elementary and wear something. We'll see what happens.

Tom Hanks and Jane Austen Have Been Helping Me Get By

I woke up feeling like crap this morning. Why? Well I decided that I was tough and could get by just fine if I didn't take my pain meds in the middle of the night. (I've had to take some around 4:00 every morning.) That was so stupid of me. My throat and ears were throbbing by the time I woke up at 6:30. I think what I was experiencing was more never pain than simply sore throat pain. It still hurt like a son of a bee sting. Apparently, it happens because there are nerves running between where your tonsils sit (or, in my case, sat) and your ears. So, experiencing pain in your ears when you have pain in your throat, or severe the connection of the nerves to the tonsils, is perfectly normal. I've learned my lesson and will continue to take the meds every 4-6 hours for the next few days. I don't want to take any chances and experience that kind of pain again.

I've been watching a lot of Tom Hanks and movies based on Jane Austen books during my convalescence. Let's see, movies of the Tom Hanks variety I've watched are: Castaway, The Burbs, The Terminal, The DaVinci Code & I think there was one other, but I can't remember right at the moment. As far as Jane Austen goes: Pride & Prejudice (2 times), Emma, Sense & Sensibility (2 times) & Persuasion. I don't get to have movie marathons like those very often. It's been lovely.

On another note, I really like Giada DeLaurentis' recipes and her cooking. But.....I can't stand her over-pronunciation of Italian words. It's so flippin annoying. We all know you're Italian. Okay. Over-pronouncing the words doesn't make you sound more legit, or make me respect you more. I almost have to watch with the sound muted because it bugs me so much. Okay, enough of me being a jerk.

Putting It Out There

I'm just going to put this out there into the universe. Just in case people (Ryan) are wondering, "hmmm? What should we/I get Christa for her birthday or Christmas?" (Just so you know, I would do a hyper link these items, if I could. Stupid Blogger STILL won't let me do ANYTHING!!!! I was trying to think of how long these atrocities have been occurring and it seems like it's been happening ever since Blogger had their big collapse and it was down for a couple of days. I think almost everyone had problems at that time, BUUUUUUTTTTTT......their problems were fixed. MINE HAVEN'T BEEN!!! Enough of my whining.)

Here's one thing that I would really love to have:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CBK1L/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=mallmakethin-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0000CBK1L

And while I'm being a brat and asking for things that I really don't need, just want. Here's another:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JQM1DE/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=mallmakethin-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000JQM1DE

My sewing machine is basically out of commission. I don't sew tons, but I do just often enough that not having a working one really bites. I've always wanted a Serger and I figured, why not whine and beg for one at the same time I whine and beg for a new, regular sewing machine. I have quite a few projects in mind I would like to do, but can't unless I have these things.

There. Enough of me being a spoiled brat.

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I really can't wait until I can again eat solid foods. I tried eating a piece of bread on the 21st. Big mistake. I thought that since I was numb from the pain pills, I would be able to get it down. No.flippin.way. I was barely able to gag down 2 bites before I had to stop.

I was able to eat a very, very, very (like about as thick as a cracker) thin slice of bread yesterday. It took me 15 minutes and I had to chew until it was liquefied, but I got it down. So, I figured it would be no problem to eat something at Avery's birthday dinner. (She chose Ckick-fil-A.) I ordered the chicken salad sandwich. I nibbled on the chicken and got down about 5 bites. Tried the bread and just couldn't do it. So, I gave up. I took everything home, including the fries, to try again another time.

I was able to eat about 4 bites of the birthday cake because it was extremely soft. So, I decided around 9:15 to try to eat one the fries. I even broke off all of the edges and only ate the softest part from the center. HOLY COW! I thought I was going to die. It was like swallowing broken glass. I started to cough/gasp/cry/gag. It was truly, truly AWFUL! I think it's because I had pushed my luck and tried to eat too much. I had to take 2 pain pills and 800 mg of Ibuprofen to kill the pain. I also lay on my bed and cried for a while. It didn't help with the pain, but I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. So, I'm sticking to a very soft and or liquid diet indefinitely. I'm really missing solid food.

Seven

My little girl is 7 years old today! She's been so excited she has hardly been able to stand the wait. She's been counting down for about 364 days. (She'll start counting down to the next one tomorrow. She's especially excited for that one because when she's 8, she'll be able to be "bathtized".) She's a little worried about the present thing this year because I've been laid out for more than a week with my tonsils. She's pretty sure that since I've been so sick, I haven't had the opportunity to get to the store. She even offered to call her dad yesterday and tell him what she wanted. You know, so he could go shopping on his way home from work. (Little does she know, I planned ahead (something I very rarely do ☺) and did all of my birthday shopping more than a week ago.)

She's really is such a sweet, kind, loving, helpful, thoughtful, fun & silly girl. We are truly blessed to have her in our family. Happy Birthday Avery! May all your princess birthday wishes come true!

He Must Love Me

Ryan has been taking such good care of me these past few days. He's been making sure I take my pain meds. He makes sure that I always have something cold to drink or suck on. He keeps me comfortable. He lets me sleep when I need it. He's been a wonderful nurse and I love him so much. ♥

P.S. I'd also like to thank my parents for taking the kids for several hours on Wednesday evening so that I could have a quiet house to sleep in. I love you so much! ♥

P.S.S. Finally, another big thank you to my in-laws for taking the kids to a family reunion from Thursday morning until this afternoon. That was such a big help, too. I love you so much! ♥

Heck, I love everyone right now! And that's not just the pain meds talking. I am a very lucky girl to be surrounded by such kind and caring people. ♥ Thank you so very much everyone!

No Kidding

The nurse who took care of me while I was having my tonsils removed, told me to expect to feel "okay" for the first couple of days after surgery. She said there would be pain and discomfort, but nothing that would be too terrible. She told me when I could expect to feel the real pain/swelling/discomfort would be day 3. And then it would be bad, probably very bad, until day 7. She said after that time, I could expect a great improvement and things would feel better. Well, today is day 3 and, oh boy, was she not kidding! Today, I feel like gum stuck on the bottom of a shoe. My throat hurts. My tongue hurts. My ears hurt. The roof of my mouth hurts. But...I will never say that having my tonsils removed wasn't worth it. I'm so very glad that they're gone!