A few posts back I talked about "Car Chat" and in that I had said that my mom wrote a poem about all of her years of driving my sister and I to our activities. She emailed me the poem this morning and I thought I would share it with you.
Although I am glad she (my sister) will be able to drive soon, it is also a very sad time for me. . . . my taxi and carpool days are over! I put in a good 20 years (from the time Household Executive was born until the time AM was able to drive). 20 years, whoa, that seems weird. So, that means I am a retired Taxi driver? Although the monetary pay was not good, I would highly recommend the job to anyone. For the rewards are priceless.
The Old Retired Taxi Driver
I wouldn't trade anything in the world for:
The conversations I have heard in my Taxi,
The laughter that bellowed out loudly,
The sneaky little giggles,
The excitement shared when news of a possible boyfriend developed,
The hushed whispers of secrets too private for Mom to know about,
The joy, the fun, the grumpiness, and silence so thick you could cut it with a knife.
The spilled drinks, and the spilled tears.
The tears caused by disappointments, school frustrations, mean boys, and catty girls.
The tears left me feeling helpless and inadequate as I would search for ways to help my passengers.
The wheels of my Taxi turned daily for 20 years.
The pay I received was awful.
The rewards I received are priceless memories.
written by Big Mama*
November 13, 1999
*name has been changed to protect the identity :) And, yes she goes by Big Mama...pretty funny considering she is 5'1".
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Menu Plan Monday
Well, over the weekend I have gotten a touch of the stomach flu, so I haven't really felt like eating. But, the fam must eat so I must serve. Not really if I felt bad enough I would call something in. :)
Monday: Lasagna (had in the freezer)
Wheat bread
Asparagus
Tuesday: Carmelized Pork Chops (have had these in the freezer and they were on the menu previously but we never got around to eating them)
Wild Rice
Wednesday: Homemade Vegetable Beef Stew
Thursday: Date night
Friday: Out to eat (we have a function at church and kids will be with sitter)
Saturday: Out to eat
Sunday: Chicken, Mushroom, and Wild Rice Casserole
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Dear You
My friend does these "Dear You" entries on one of her blogs and I really like reading them. So, I will try it here. I think the idea is that you write a "Dear You" to someone in your life or someone you encounter throughout your day. Basically an anonymous way to share or vent your feelings. Most of which will never really get to the person you are taking to.
Dear You,
Thank you for your kindness today. I have never been in and out of the Dept. of Revenue in less than ten minutes. And, I have never had someone as nice as you. What a relief! The major shocker...I didn't have my inspection ticket with me and you still let me get the car registered. WOW! Huge thanks to you!
Sincerely,
Mouth hitting the floor that I was in and out in less than 10 min.
Dear You,
Why did you not show up for your child today? Almost all of the kids had a parent there and the look in her eyes waiting for you to come to the door just broke my heart. I was there for her while you weren't. I don't even know her, but I tried to make her feel special. I sure hope you have a good reason for not being there.
Sincerely,
Heart broken
Dear You,
If you are going to smoke on your break, please brush your teeth before clocking back in.
Sincerely,
Shopping while plugging my nose
Dear You,
You are turning into such a great young lady! I am proud of you!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
Thank you for accepting me as your own! You have filled a role in my life that I have never truly had!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
Your smile brings me such joy!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
You wear me out. I have never experienced anything like you. You wear me thin but steal my heart at the same time. How can you make so many messes in such little time? I could eat your cheeks and kiss them over and over.
Sincerely,
Head over Heels
Dear You,
Thank you for your kindness today. I have never been in and out of the Dept. of Revenue in less than ten minutes. And, I have never had someone as nice as you. What a relief! The major shocker...I didn't have my inspection ticket with me and you still let me get the car registered. WOW! Huge thanks to you!
Sincerely,
Mouth hitting the floor that I was in and out in less than 10 min.
Dear You,
Why did you not show up for your child today? Almost all of the kids had a parent there and the look in her eyes waiting for you to come to the door just broke my heart. I was there for her while you weren't. I don't even know her, but I tried to make her feel special. I sure hope you have a good reason for not being there.
Sincerely,
Heart broken
Dear You,
If you are going to smoke on your break, please brush your teeth before clocking back in.
Sincerely,
Shopping while plugging my nose
Dear You,
You are turning into such a great young lady! I am proud of you!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
Thank you for accepting me as your own! You have filled a role in my life that I have never truly had!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
Your smile brings me such joy!
Sincerely,
Grateful
Dear You,
You wear me out. I have never experienced anything like you. You wear me thin but steal my heart at the same time. How can you make so many messes in such little time? I could eat your cheeks and kiss them over and over.
Sincerely,
Head over Heels
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Menu Plan Monday
It seems I have every intention of following my menu that is planned for the week and then during the week things start to come up and I am not able to follow the plan as I had intended. So, I will post this for the week and there is little "at home" eating because we are busy with evening activities.
Sunday: Jeremy's chicken
Baked Beans
Green Beans
Monday: Creamy Potato Soup
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Tuesday: Chicken and Rice casserole
Peas
Wednesday: Out to eat
Thursday: Lasagna
Friday: Out to eat
Saturday: White Castle Burgers or Out to eat
Sunday: Chili
Cheat Sheet
Fall is in the air...well, almost. The weather man says that this week it is supposed to be in the upper 50's, so we will soon be leaving this summer like weather behind us. So, Fall will be in the air and football is definitely here! Nothing I love more than football on the TV, candles burning, cuddled up by the fire, with a warm pot of chili cooking in the kitchen. Well, there are probably a lot more things I love more than that, but you get the drift. It is something I really enjoy! Something I have noticed and has really peeved me this football season is the quarterbacks who wear their play lists in some form of booklet on their arm WHILE playing football. I can't even believe this is allowed. Isn't that a form of cheating. I don't think I have ever seen a HS quarterback wear one of those silly things, but this college season I have seen my fair share of QBs wear them. Come on...if you can't get those plays memorized then bring in the second string guy, I bet he has every play memorized forward and backward. I think the "cheat sheet" really discredits these guys and I think it looks darn right stupid when you see them going to the huddle flipping through their plays. I would have a lot of confidence in that guy...NOT! I am sure that one of my friends, SS, that played football in college could maybe give me a good reason for these guys to wear their "cheat sheets", then again I can hear him making fun of them right along with me. So, for now everytime I see a QB flipping through his plays while on the field during a game I will have to make fun of him.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Car Chat
I know that my mom has always said that she learned so much about us, my sister and I, as far as what was going on in our lives while driving us around in the car. She even wrote a poem about it titled Taxi Driver. She is out of town right now, but when she gets home I will try to remember to post it. AA and I were talking on the way to dance this evening when I had yet another "Out of the Mouths of Babes" moment.
AA: Mom remember when Auntie told us that she swam in that fountain. (Referring to a fountain in front of an office complex at a busy intersection in town)
Me: Yes.
AA: Are you supposed to swim in that fountain?
Me: No.
AA: Ohhhh, she must have been in high school when she did that.
Me: She sure was.
AA: Yep, goes you do naughty things in high school.
Me: Well you're not supposed to do naughty things in high school.
AA: Sometimes you just have to break the law. (With a little mischeveous look on her face)
Hmmmmm. What does this mean for her teenage years? Could be interesting!
AA: Mom remember when Auntie told us that she swam in that fountain. (Referring to a fountain in front of an office complex at a busy intersection in town)
Me: Yes.
AA: Are you supposed to swim in that fountain?
Me: No.
AA: Ohhhh, she must have been in high school when she did that.
Me: She sure was.
AA: Yep, goes you do naughty things in high school.
Me: Well you're not supposed to do naughty things in high school.
AA: Sometimes you just have to break the law. (With a little mischeveous look on her face)
Hmmmmm. What does this mean for her teenage years? Could be interesting!
Monday, October 15, 2007
Update
Just a few updates on some past posts...
1. The BBQ went well. I got everything done that needed to be done, ahhhhhh.
2. The "Are you a slacker mom" quiz has got to be fixed somehow. Everyone that I know that has taken the quiz comes out as a Zen Mom. My sister in law caught on to this early. I didn't think I was the "calm" in the middle of a storm to my family. It must be an advertising ploy to make moms feel better about themselves so that they'll buy whatever product it is that they were advertising throughout the quiz. It boosted my self esteem...briefly, but I certainly didn't buy their product just because they told me I was a Zen mom.
1. The BBQ went well. I got everything done that needed to be done, ahhhhhh.
2. The "Are you a slacker mom" quiz has got to be fixed somehow. Everyone that I know that has taken the quiz comes out as a Zen Mom. My sister in law caught on to this early. I didn't think I was the "calm" in the middle of a storm to my family. It must be an advertising ploy to make moms feel better about themselves so that they'll buy whatever product it is that they were advertising throughout the quiz. It boosted my self esteem...briefly, but I certainly didn't buy their product just because they told me I was a Zen mom.
Friday, October 12, 2007
So Much to do So Little Time
I really feel like posting a funny or inspiring entry on my blog today, but instead all I have is my many "to-dos" running through my mind. So, for my benefit I will list those so that I have a track to run on today. Some are bigger tasks then others, but none the less they have to be done.
1. Get my butt of this chair and get dressed.
2. Get my kids ready for school.
3. Pack their lunches.
4. Take AA to school and the younger ones to Mother's Morning Out.
5. Come home and start picking up the house. We have a BBQ here tonight for TW's office so EVERY room has to be picked up. Not a lot of stuff in every room, but still something in every room has to be done.
6. Get my hair colored.
7. Go to the grocery store to buy stuff for tonight.
8. Pick up kids from Mother's Morning Out.
9. Back home and put the little ones down for a nap.
10. Continue to pick up the house and back patio.
11. Decorate the deck with lanterns.
12. Clean off the furniture on the deck.
13. Prepare cooler with bottled water to take to...
14. Go to team building event with TW's office.
15. Oh yeah, still don't have a babysitter for that. Need to find a sitter. This needs to be moved to #1.
16. Back home to start getting the food and drinks ready for the BBQ.
17. Entertain our guests.
18. Put kids to bed.
19. Clean up after the BBQ.
20. Ahhhhh, Bed! :)
1. Get my butt of this chair and get dressed.
2. Get my kids ready for school.
3. Pack their lunches.
4. Take AA to school and the younger ones to Mother's Morning Out.
5. Come home and start picking up the house. We have a BBQ here tonight for TW's office so EVERY room has to be picked up. Not a lot of stuff in every room, but still something in every room has to be done.
6. Get my hair colored.
7. Go to the grocery store to buy stuff for tonight.
8. Pick up kids from Mother's Morning Out.
9. Back home and put the little ones down for a nap.
10. Continue to pick up the house and back patio.
11. Decorate the deck with lanterns.
12. Clean off the furniture on the deck.
13. Prepare cooler with bottled water to take to...
14. Go to team building event with TW's office.
15. Oh yeah, still don't have a babysitter for that. Need to find a sitter. This needs to be moved to #1.
16. Back home to start getting the food and drinks ready for the BBQ.
17. Entertain our guests.
18. Put kids to bed.
19. Clean up after the BBQ.
20. Ahhhhh, Bed! :)
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Slacker Mom?
I was reading my friend's blog and saw that she had taken the quiz "Are you a slacker mom?" I have seen this quiz advertised before, but I never took it. Well, she got my curiosity ticking so I clicked on it and took the time to do the quiz. My results:
Zen Mom
How do you do it? Even when explosions are all around, you are able to take a deep cleansing breath and chant your mantra "this too shall pass." You are a calming influence on your kids in a hectic world.
Not really sure this is true of me though. Hmmmm. I will have to ponder that some more!
www.areyouaslackermom.com
Zen Mom
How do you do it? Even when explosions are all around, you are able to take a deep cleansing breath and chant your mantra "this too shall pass." You are a calming influence on your kids in a hectic world.
Not really sure this is true of me though. Hmmmm. I will have to ponder that some more!
www.areyouaslackermom.com
Monday, October 8, 2007
Menu Plan Monday
So, the last week's menu didn't pan out as well as I thought. Life got busy and we didn't eat at home as much as I thought. We will see how it goes this week!
Monday: Move over Rachael Ray Salmon (this is my new name for the dish, it is the salmon I posted about a while back)
Tuesday: Crock Pot BBQ chicken, baked beans, peas
Wednesday: Jeremy's favorite (this is a pasta dish and very easy to make!) and garlic bread
Thursday: date night
Friday: Company BBQ at our house
Saturday: out of town
I had a request for my recipe for homemade White Castle burgers. I make this like a sloppy joe consistency.
2 lbs. of hamburger
2 packets of dry onion soup mix
American cheese
Brown the hamburger and drain. Sprinkle two packets of soup mix over hamburger and add three to four tablespoons of water. Mix and let simmer for five to ten minutes. Add in slices of american cheese until you get the consistency you like. Serve on buns.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Power of Prayer
The following is an email I had sent out to some friends last Thursday following a horrible day. You never know what is going to happen when you wake up!
As the kids and I were headed out the door for me to take AA to school and then for the rest of us to go to Bible Study our morning took a quick change for the bad. Bubby had gotten his shirt wet while he was eating breakfast, so I took it off of him and threw it in the dryer. I finished getting everything packed up and then took him out to the car. I sat him in his car seat and noticed that I had not put his shirt back on him. For some reason that I will never know or forget, I didn't buckle him in his car seat. I sat him there and then turned to go get his shirt out of the dryer. At this point my Denali is parked in the garage and his car door is probably fifteen feet away from my dryer which is right inside our door. As I turn my back to him and head to get his shirt I heard Addisyn scream. I turned around to see Bubby laying on the concrete garage floor. He had fallen out of the car onto the ground. My heart started racing. I picked him up expecting to see blood, but didn't. He cried for a very short amount of time. I couldn't find a bump on his head anywhere. He got very disoriented and started to get pale. I am now cuddling him frantically trying to call KK to ask her what to do and to get my girls to her, all while trying to find his shirt in the pile of shirts inside the dryer. I rush over to KK's house, right around the corner, and drop off the girls and then head towards our pediatricians office. On the way to the Dr's office Bubby threw up and his eyes were rolling in his head. At this point I got frantic and hysterical. I called TW and he left the office to meet me at the Dr's office. We went into the Dr's office and our Dr. was not in yet, he was still at the hospital checking in on the newly born babies. After waiting with the nurse at the office TW and I decided to head to the hospital because Bubby was getting worse. While at the Dr's office I called KK and asked her to go to the prayer room and pray for our little guy. While on the way to the hospital he projectile vomited and became extremely groggy. I was even more hysterical and completely scared. I was trying to keep him awake by tickling him. He would smile but could barely get his little eyes open. I took him into the ER with throw up all over him so now all over me. They got him back in a room right away. As soon as we got into the room in the ER he made a huge turnaround. He was suddenly alert and looking around, smiling, pointing, and engaging with us. For some reason I remember looking at my watch and it was around 9:20 or 9:30. This would have been right around the time that the faithful prayer warriors would have been leaving the prayer room to head into the morning study. This was a GOD MOMENT for sure! I didn't put all of those pieces together until after leaving the hospital. But, there is no other explanation for his complete turnaround other than the Grace of God! Our pediatrician came to the ER and examined him and even suggested that we didn't need any tests ran, but being the anxious ridden gal I am I insisted they do a CT scan to be sure everything was okay. They did the CT scan and everything was normal. Praise God! We walked away with a slight concussion and a happy baby. Oh, how easily it could have ended up differently. The amazing power of prayer and God's loving and healing hand is my complete explanation of our good news. This will be something that I will never forget. A true miracle I believe. How great is our God! I am just in awe of him at the moment. Trust in the Lord for he is good. That was my lesson learned along with ALWAYS buckle in the baby. :)
It was a long emotional day. Feelings of guilt have come and gone and come and gone. I will never forget what my poor baby looked like in that hour of hysteria for me. It is a picture that seems to be haunting me at the moment. But, I must concentrate on the good.
I cannot thank each of you enough for your prayers! It saved my baby! The very fact that I knew I had the greatest friends and a room full of ladies that would be praying for our little guy was something I took comfort in during all of this crisis. That is all I kept telling myself "get someone to that prayer room, get someone to that prayer room!" I don't even think I asked KK to go to the prayer room, I am pretty sure I demanded she go! :) Community is great and I am thankful for each and every one of you!
As the kids and I were headed out the door for me to take AA to school and then for the rest of us to go to Bible Study our morning took a quick change for the bad. Bubby had gotten his shirt wet while he was eating breakfast, so I took it off of him and threw it in the dryer. I finished getting everything packed up and then took him out to the car. I sat him in his car seat and noticed that I had not put his shirt back on him. For some reason that I will never know or forget, I didn't buckle him in his car seat. I sat him there and then turned to go get his shirt out of the dryer. At this point my Denali is parked in the garage and his car door is probably fifteen feet away from my dryer which is right inside our door. As I turn my back to him and head to get his shirt I heard Addisyn scream. I turned around to see Bubby laying on the concrete garage floor. He had fallen out of the car onto the ground. My heart started racing. I picked him up expecting to see blood, but didn't. He cried for a very short amount of time. I couldn't find a bump on his head anywhere. He got very disoriented and started to get pale. I am now cuddling him frantically trying to call KK to ask her what to do and to get my girls to her, all while trying to find his shirt in the pile of shirts inside the dryer. I rush over to KK's house, right around the corner, and drop off the girls and then head towards our pediatricians office. On the way to the Dr's office Bubby threw up and his eyes were rolling in his head. At this point I got frantic and hysterical. I called TW and he left the office to meet me at the Dr's office. We went into the Dr's office and our Dr. was not in yet, he was still at the hospital checking in on the newly born babies. After waiting with the nurse at the office TW and I decided to head to the hospital because Bubby was getting worse. While at the Dr's office I called KK and asked her to go to the prayer room and pray for our little guy. While on the way to the hospital he projectile vomited and became extremely groggy. I was even more hysterical and completely scared. I was trying to keep him awake by tickling him. He would smile but could barely get his little eyes open. I took him into the ER with throw up all over him so now all over me. They got him back in a room right away. As soon as we got into the room in the ER he made a huge turnaround. He was suddenly alert and looking around, smiling, pointing, and engaging with us. For some reason I remember looking at my watch and it was around 9:20 or 9:30. This would have been right around the time that the faithful prayer warriors would have been leaving the prayer room to head into the morning study. This was a GOD MOMENT for sure! I didn't put all of those pieces together until after leaving the hospital. But, there is no other explanation for his complete turnaround other than the Grace of God! Our pediatrician came to the ER and examined him and even suggested that we didn't need any tests ran, but being the anxious ridden gal I am I insisted they do a CT scan to be sure everything was okay. They did the CT scan and everything was normal. Praise God! We walked away with a slight concussion and a happy baby. Oh, how easily it could have ended up differently. The amazing power of prayer and God's loving and healing hand is my complete explanation of our good news. This will be something that I will never forget. A true miracle I believe. How great is our God! I am just in awe of him at the moment. Trust in the Lord for he is good. That was my lesson learned along with ALWAYS buckle in the baby. :)
It was a long emotional day. Feelings of guilt have come and gone and come and gone. I will never forget what my poor baby looked like in that hour of hysteria for me. It is a picture that seems to be haunting me at the moment. But, I must concentrate on the good.
I cannot thank each of you enough for your prayers! It saved my baby! The very fact that I knew I had the greatest friends and a room full of ladies that would be praying for our little guy was something I took comfort in during all of this crisis. That is all I kept telling myself "get someone to that prayer room, get someone to that prayer room!" I don't even think I asked KK to go to the prayer room, I am pretty sure I demanded she go! :) Community is great and I am thankful for each and every one of you!
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