Lord give me strength...

As mother's I'm certain this is a phrase that we all find ourselves saying from time to time.

Last night was one of those times for me....

Out of sheer frustration I find myself, standing in the middle of the kitchen, with a puzzled look on my face. Puzzled because I knew she ate it - even though I specifically told her no; I knew she did; but, as usual, she feigned innocence.

I am so frustrated with this problem - this sneaking of the sweets. I don't understand why she does it.

I can not tell you how many times I have gone in to her room to clean, already irritated because of the state its in, only to find food wrappers stuffed in drawers, under her mattress, in the pillow cases, in the jewelry box, behind pictures on the wall and once in the battery compartment of a snow globe.

It's gross! Just plain nasty - like sending an invitation to all of the neighborhood bugs: "Psst! Hey you, ant dude...Yeah, you. Come on over to my house. Oh, and bring your friends; it's an all you can eat buffet in here!"

It's disconcerting, as a mother, to know that this is going on with your child but not understanding the reasoning behind it or how to resolve it.

I am afraid for her.

Already a few well wishers have commented to her about her belly.

I cringe every time I hear those types of remarks.

She is not fat but she is growing - FAST!

I don't want her to be self conscious about her weight; at the same time, I also don't want her to have a weight problem.

Being a kid is hard enough without that added to it.

My mind is fearful. What if this is just the beginning of what could turn into an eating disorder?

That is really my number one concern.

If she can't learn to control these urges, of sneaking sweets, and she does begin to grow heavy, what's to say that she won't take the next step and start purging??

I have tried absolutely everything I can think of, including a putting a pad lock on our pantry.

I don't know what else to do.

Last night, I found myself throwing my hands up in the air and asking the Lord to please give me strength. The strength to not break down. The strength not to fail her. The strength to deal with the situation accordingly.

Maybe I'm praying for the wrong thing... Instead of praying for strength, maybe I should be praying for wisdom; for it is that which I am truly in need of.

Maybe, if I prayed for wisdom, He would grant me the knowledge that I so desperately need in order to understand the reasoning behind this issue. And if I had the knowledge, I might be able to find a solution....

"T" things I love

My friend Tina from Golden Goodness played this little game on her blog today.

The 'tagger' gives the 'taggee' a letter...any 'ol letter...and the 'taggee' has to write 10 things they love that begin with that letter. So I requested that she give me a letter and she granted me the letter 'T'.

Here goes! 10 Things I Love -- using the letter 'T'...



The Lord: Who should be the first LOVE in all of our lives.

Psalm 23

1The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.


Trucker: Or should I say “Super Trucker”, as in the hubby - who works very hard as an over the road truck driver to provide for his family.

Two Tenacious, Talented, Tiresome, Trendy, Theatrical, Tender Tykes: As in my two beautiful girls; the joys of my life and the holders of my heart.

Time Off: As a full-time working mother of two and wife to a husband who is often away, time off is always treasured.

Talking to my Friends: You probably couldn’t tell this about me through the computer; but, I’m a bit of an extrovert. Shocking, I know but it’s true! I’ve never met a stranger. I consider myself very fortunate to have so many wonderful friends, and at the top of that list is my Mom; others include friends from work, from the good ol’ days, in ‘real life’ and in ‘Blogville’ – I have a very eclectic group of friends; they come from all different walks of life, they have all different types of personalities, religious beliefs and backgrounds. I love them all and enjoy getting together with them, talking, giggling and acting silly.

This House: and the peace of mind that moving here has given my entire family.

Target: I know, I know, this one was a given…Hey! Did I tell you about the time that I went there and didn’t spend any money?? ;)

Turkey Sandwiches: My favorite sandwich - minus all of the yucky stuff, of course! ;)

Taking Naps: Whenever I get my much treasured time off, one of the things I like to do is catch up on some sleep.

Turtles: I’ll bet you didn’t know that one, huh? ;)

Grilling Goodness #15

It's time once again for some more of Tina's Grilling Goodness. Anyone is welcome to play, just don't forget to go back to Tina's and sign Mr. Linky so she can come check out what you had to say. And now, on with the Goodness...

1. Have you ever ridden a horse?

Yes; once, when I was about 13, my friends big sister took us to the park where we could pay to go on a horse ride.

Since I had never ridden a horse before the guy who picked my horse assured me this horse is the perfect horse for a beginner.

"He's very calm and gentle." He told me as he helped me into the saddle and gave me my instructions. Then he gave the gentle animal's rear a pat to send us on our way along the trail.

Just a few feet into the ride and several feet from the trail, my horse decided he was going to stop and graze. Nothing we did could get him to go any further than a few feet before he would stop again to graze a little more.

Gentle was right. This horse was so gentle he didn't want to move....or so I thought....

The next thing I know, this gentle animal turned in to a wild beast! He started bucking at the horse behind him and then took off running - FULL SPEED. We got the attention of every onlooker in the park, him galloping full pace and me holding on for dear life. I just knew this would be the end for me. It was like I was living out a scene from Urban Cowboy.

Since then, riding horses hasn't really been high on my list of things to do...

2. Have you ever run out of gas?

Nope, good thing they make gas-x ;)

Ohhhh! Tee-hee! Like, you mean have you ever let your car run out of gas?!?!

No, I have never done that either; however, there have been times where I have made it to the gas station on nothing more than a wing and a prayer.

3. How many different schools did you attend growing up?

Two private schools in elementary, until we moved at which time I went to the neighborhood elementary school. Then I graduated from the eighth grade and moved on to the neighborhood high school. That makes four!

4. Do you have, and use, a library card?

I love, love, love to read!

I could go broke buying books so I did finally break down and get a library card. However, we have since moved and I haven't gotten a new one yet. But don't you worry...I will have one soon. We have a wonderful library here!! The girls love it!!

5. Hand-wash or dishwasher?

Dishwasher

6. Does your alarm clock beep or play music?

My alarm clock beeps, ALOT! Me being a big fan of the snooze button and all ;)

7. Do you know how to roller skate?

Do I know how?? Yes

Am I any good?? No

Am I stupid enough to get on skates to see if my skills have improved any throughout the years?? HELL NO!! You aren't about to catch me on anything with wheels, where I could fall down and bust the concrete my butt.

8. What would you consider one of your biggest accomplishments?

Did I tell you about the time that I left Target without spending a single dime?? I'm just sayin' ;)

Arts and Crafts

In school they're learning about the Native Americans and how they believed that each animal had a spirit. They were given a chart with a list of animals that were used on totem poles because of their special talents and the stories they told.

The assignment was for them to create a totem pole using the list of animals to represent each of their family members.

Here is how Sugar's project turned out:

It's hard to tell in the photo just how well this turned out but I am so proud of her on this one! I think she did an excellent job.

Unfortunately, one of her classmate's accidentally knocked it down and the base of it broke. She brought it home so we could try to patch it up.

After the patch work, she decided to give it another coat of paint.

I sure hope she gets an A!

Today was craft day at the local library - what a fun idea!! The kids can do arts and crafts and the mom's don't have to clean up the mess. It doesn't get any better than that!

We found out the schedule and I plan on us being there each and every time.

Here is the craft that Spice made:

She is so proud of her little snowman and she made him all by herself!

Looks like that crafty gene that runs in my family was passed along to both of my girls :)

She's Created A Monster

For as many ways that we differ, there are equally as many where we are the same.

At times our relationship can be tumultuous , to say the least.

Other times its smooth sailing.

We complete each other.

She is the Yin to my Yang.

And now, she's blogging! (I told you it was addictive)

Her blog is called The Diary of a Pre-Teen Drama Queen.

Of course, with her only being twelve I have taken precautions to keep her protected. Therefore, her blog is set to private and it can not be located by any search engines.

However, I would like her to have some supporters to give her positive words of encouragement and/or direction - my thoughts are, if she hears the same things that I'm telling her from others maybe she'll listen (hard headedness coming from her father's side of the family ;).

If you would like to be invited as a supporter, please let me know.

Grilling Goodness #14

Guess what time it is?!?!?

Yep, you got it!! It's time for some more of Tina's fun Grilling Goodness, which actually has nothing to do with receipts or even food - sorry to disappoint, mom; although, you should have realized if I was participating it must be a double entendre ;) I'm just sayin'

This is a Friday meme that my friend Tina came up with where she asks (a.k.a. "grills") us - us being whomever would like to play along - eight random questions from her noodle.

Okay, now that we've got that all cleared up... On with the goodness:

1. Do you like scary movies?

Absolutely! I love anything scary.

Unfortunately, they don't make very many good scary movies. I can't tell you how long it's been since I've seen a scary movie that's actually scary. *sigh*


Of course, it doesn't help that I'm not easily scared. I've been told that my 'scare meter' is off the charts so what might scare others is just silly to me.


2. What kind of cell phone do you have?

I have a blackberry pearl - very sleek!

And I'm waiting for someone to invent one with a checkbook feature - like a one stop shop for everything right there on one little devise - where you could balance your checkbook on your phone; effectively eliminating all those darn check registers that they never give you enough of when you order checks.... Think Green, people. Think Green. I'm just sayin' ;)



3. Do you have a passport?

Nope, no need for a passport when you never go anywhere - right? :(



4. Has anything sad happened in your life this week?

One of the seventh grade teachers at Sugars school passed away in her sleep last Monday night. While I did not know her and this didn't directly impact our family, it is still very sad. My prayers are with family and friends during this time of need.


5. Have you ever broken any bones?

According to the doctors I haven't.

I fractured my wrist once, when I was younger, playing smear the queer with the boys and I bruised my tail bone really, really bad when I fell down a flights of concrete stairs at work.

I also 'jammed' my toe when I kicked a tree stump, playing soccer barefooted - they said it wasn't broken; but, to this day, I don't believe that. My toe hasn't been the same since and I'm no longer able to sneak up on anyone because it pops every time I move it.



6. Did you do anything this week that you don't normally do?

Yes, I hope no one goes into shock upon hearing this news; but, I left Target without spending any money. *GASP!*

Can you believe it??

I got nothing, from Target: nothing, nada, zero, zilch.

Total Amount: $0.00!!

Someone call the Guinness Book of World records!!



7. What's the worst thing you ever had in your wardrobe?

Gosh Tina, what a question!

The fashion styles that I grew up with included, but were not limited to: Bell bottoms, Chic and Jordash jeans, Parachute pants, stirrup pants, anything neon, leg warmers (worn over your jeans), jellies, and banana clips.

I'm certain that through all of that, there have been several horrible things in my wardrobe. ;)


8. Did you have braces on your teeth?

Yes, I have the million dollar smile. I've had lots and lots of work done on my mouth - including four years of braces.

Maybe Next Week

The light of the moon still shone in the early morning sky, as she was wrenched from her sound sleep, by the constant shrilling beep of the alarm.

She shuffled across the room, to where the annoying offender sat atop the dresser, and depressed the snooze button, effectively ending the noise that had so abruptly ended her slumber.

"Thirty more minutes." She thought to herself, as she made her way back to the comfort of her bed.

She crawled back in to her cocoon of warmth, where her electric blanket was set on high, and snuggled up so that she was firmly tucked against her husband, who instinctively threw his arm around her, offering yet more heat from the bitter cold of the early morning air, and let sleep once again claim her.

"Noooo!" Her mind screamed when the thirty minutes quickly passed, seeming like only five , and her alarm once again rang out.

"I'm not ready to get up yet; it's too darn cold." She rationalized, as she made her way back towards the dresser to once again smack the snooze button and hunkered back down under the inviting covers.

By the third time the alarm went off, she had resigned herself to the fact that she had to get up - if for not other reason, the girls weren't stirring and she didn't want Sugar to miss her bus; but, she tested the limits by pressing that little white button once more, putting off the inevitable for just a little longer.

Now, at ten minutes past here cut off time for getting up, she finally dragged herself away from the pleasantness of her bed and hurriedly dressed for work.

Gone were all of the good intentions of getting up early in the mornings to make time for exercise on the elliptical.

Being a big fan of pressing the snooze button each morning until the last possible minute - and sometimes, on days like today, even a few minutes longer - I don't know why she thought she could actually be disciplined enough to wake up, in the mornings, before it became absolutely necessary, just so she could do something so wild and crazy.

And with the temperatures outside dipping down into the low teens and the highs barley climbing into the twenties, did she honestly believe that she would be willing to forfeit all of that warmth that enveloped her each time she lay back down under her heated blankets and next to her 'hot' husband ;)

NOT!!!!

Maybe she'll try again next week :)

The Third Time's a Charm??

You know what they say: “The third time’s a charm”

Well, for me, maybe it’s the fourth or fifth time…

As many of you know, my family and I have recently moved. And, since we crossed over States, the hubz and I both had to get new car tags, as well as new drivers licenses. Talk about timing – all of this had to be done during the busiest, budget stretched to the max, season of them all: Christmas time. UGH! Our timing could not have been worse; but, that’s not what this story is about so, moving on...

This State is very strict about their tags. The schools require you to have a State tag, in order for your child to attend. You have thirty days (as allowed by the State) to get this done. If you don't have it done, that could lead up to some very hefty fines - maybe even more hefty than the amount of the tags themselves, which is no small fee (depending on the car you drive). For instance, together, our tags and licenses cost around $1,000.00.

Yep, you read that right. That's one thou-sand dollars! One thou-sand dollars in our family unit is nothing to blink at, and one thous-sand extra dollars, around Christmas time is unheard of.

I put in a call to my own personal Santa Claus and asked if (s)he would consider buying my car tags for Christmas.

Now it's four days before their winter break and the school calls, wanting me to provide them with proof of registration.

"Ummmm, okayyy. I haven't had a chance to get that done yet."

"Oh, well can get them today?"

Yeah, sure. I'll get right on that!

"Ummm, No. I'm sorry, but my work schedule doesn't allow for me to just up and leave like that."

"Oh, okay. Well, when do you think you could provide us with that information?"

"I have a couple of vacation days scheduled during the holidays. Can I get them to you the first day back after the Christmas break?"

"Oh no, we would have to have them before the break."

"Alright then, I guess I'll get them to you before the end of this week."

Don't know how that's gonna happen but I guess I'll figure out a way to make it work.

So, I hang up with the lady from school and immediately call my Santa mom, just to vent.

Little did I know, Santa listened when I called in my request and must really love me, because (s)he sent me a Christmas card - that was in the mail, when I got home that evening - and inside was a check that covered not only my car tags but his too, as well as the cost of our drivers licenses. (Thanks mom Santa!!)

Okay, back to the story; sorry...

I take time off of work to go in the very next morning and get my tags and license.

I get my tags, no problem.

Next stop, the Drivers License office. I have all the necessary documents and then she says, "That'll be $20.00 cash."

"Cash? You don't accept a debit card?"

"No ma'am. Cash only."

At this point, I look in my purse, knowing that I never carry cash but hoping against hope that I might be able to scrounge up the necessary twenty dollars to get this finished today.

Yeah well, obviously there was no such luck; otherwise, I would not today be writing this story.

Not only were they closed from Christmas, they closed early on Christmas eve and they were closed the day after too.

Second attempt: January 2nd - CLOSED

Third attempt: last Thursday.

I woke up that morning, put on a cute outfit, my face was free of blemishes and my hair was looking cute.

What are the odds of all three of these things aligning on the same day that you will have to get your picture made?

I don't know, but they're still in tact because it didn't happen that day either.

I left work early, picked up Spice, and headed to the Drivers License place. We head in, I pull my number and we sit down and wait to be called.

It's 4:30, I'm the next person in line and then she walks up and asks what I'm there to do. I tell her that I'm there to transfer my license to which she says, "It's too late for that today. We don't do transfers after 4:30. That's a long process, you'll have to come back early in the morning for that."

Are you kidding me????

Now, for those of you who 'know' me; you will be amazed to hear that I walked out calmly and quietly.

I know, I know! What is the world coming to, right??

Never fear. All the things that you imagine me saying were screaming through my mind. But, since I had my four year old daughter with me and the things that I wanted to say were not that pleasant, I chose to bite my tongue and exit the building - As a side note: I get my stitches out next week. ;)

The fourth and final attempt happened the next day, Friday morning.

The wind was strong that day.

My hair got blown all over my head on the way from the car - that tried to roll off, because I forgot to pull the break - to the building. And I woke up with a blemish - Of course!

This is the day that all my ducks lined up, for a picture that I will have to live with, for the next four years.

But I'm not complaining, though; because for a minute there I questioned whether or not I was going to pass the eye exam. :)

Whew! I sure am glad that monkey business is out of the way.

Grilling Goodness #13

It's Friday night and you know what that means.....Time for some more Grilling Goodness.

Feel free to play along, if you would like, and don't forget to go back over to Tina's and sign Mr. Linky to let her know you played. I'm sure she would love to hear what you have to say.

And now, on to the goodness:

1. What's your 'dream machine' - as in vehicle? Do you think you'll ever own it?

Throughout the years, as I've grown, I have had several different ideas as to what my dream machine would be.

For instance, when I was is my teens I thought my dream machine would be a Jeep.

Then, when I was in high school and my dad decided to surprise me by purchasing my first big old banana boat car, a Ford Granada, my dream machine was anything that I didn't have to sit on a phone book to see past the hood and I wouldn't have to veer to the left in order to turn right.

Not to sound ungrateful, but...you know what I'm sayin'? ;)

As a side note: I never actually had got to drive that big old banana boat car. Unfortunately - or fortunately for me, depending on how you look at it - that big old banana boat car was a lemon and never did work again, once he brought it home. So..... we traded it in for my second first car, an Oldsmobile Firenza - which I loved and named Phoebe Firenza. Whew! Dodged that bullet ;)

Later in life, as I approached my thirties, I had dreams of owning a Yukon so the hubs and I went out and bought one. Then his pay went way down and the gas prices went way up so we traded it in for something else.

Now, as I near the forties, my dream machine is anything that is paid for and I'm working towards that goal with my VW Jetta - that I absolutely LOVE!! My plan is to drive it 'til the wheels fall off, so I guess that also takes care of the second part of this question, huh? ;)


2. Can you water ski?

Hmmm?? Don't know....never tried.

If this question would have been posed to me about twenty years ago, I wouldn't have had a doubt in my mind that water skiing would be something I could excel in; but now, twenty years later and a few pounds heavier, I'm not so sure.

3. What kind of milk to you prefer?

How about chocolate milk ;)

4. Have any of your pet peeves 'gotten your goat' this week?

Oh yeah, that goat of mine is in constant abandonment. Do you think that means that I might need to loosen up a little?? Just curious ;)


5. How do you prepare your taxes? HR Block, Turbo Tax, by hand - or does someone else do it for you?

The thought of doing my taxes has always given me great anxiety. Until one day, many years ago, a co-worker referred me to the lady who does her taxes and we've been going to her ever since. That's not to say I don't still have some anxiety around tax time but it has lessened considerably. She's wonderful. I love her :)

6. Did you start a workout program this New Year?

I haven't joined a gym or anything crazy like that, but I am watching what I eat and plan on making an effort to find time to either work out on my elliptical or to play our Wii fit more often.

Wish me luck...

7. Do you have a certain meal that you cook each and every week?

Yes, I usually have the #2 with no onions at McDonald's.....

OH! you asked about a meal that WE COOK each week. Ha, ha, ha! Very funny, Tina!

8. When do you normally write your blog posts?

Usually in the evenings, after a long day of work, dinner and sixth grade homework.

Happy New Years, Everyone!

Helloooooooo Blogville!!!

Welcome to 2009!

This was the best Holiday season that I can remember our little family having in many, many years. Granted, my memory is not what it used to be and I have slept a few times since all of the Holidays of the past have come and gone, so those memories may be dulled; nevertheless, I still believe this will go down as one of the best.

As you all know, we simplified Christmas this year by cutting the amount of gifts we exchange down to three each (plus whatever Santa brought).

I will admit that I was a little nervous about the outcome of this 'cut back' but I am pleased to report that it turned out to be an excellent decision. It really helped to put the focus back on what Christmas is all about. As we opened our presents we discussed the birth of Jesus and what each of the gifts represented.

With a limited amount of gifts, it didn't feel as overwhelming as it has in years past and there was more of an appreciation towards what was received.

On top of all that, this was the first year that we were able to comfortably enjoy Christmas morning. By that I mean that we were warm!! Our old house was freezing in the winter time - yet another reason that we absolutely love our new home :D

So, what was received you ask??

Well, funny you should inquire....I just happen to have a couple of pictures. :)

Here we have the Laptop and Dollhouse from Santa

(Do you think they liked what he got them?)

Speaking of Santa, he even brought a few things for daddy - like this DeWalt drill set (complete with drill bits).

Wow! That Santa must be one cool dude - either that or Mrs. Claus wants a few things done around the new house. ;)

This year, Santa even had a chimney that he could come down; and he didn't even have to worry about burning his big butt - as I explained in this post. ;)

By the way, Santa coming down the chimney was a huge topic of conversation with the four year old this year.

The stocking stuffers were a couple of Webkinz that Santa bought for Christmas last year and forgot about.


And you'll never guess who else made an appearance....

That's right! Beyonce was stuffed in daddy's stocking.

By the way, this isn't exactly the same face that my dear, sweet co-worker had when she got this CD during the Dirty Santa game that I told you about here.

Gift #1 - Representing Gold

Age appropriate Digital Cameras!

Gift #2 - Representing Frankincense

Leapster games and the Boogies Superstar Wii game

Gift #3 - Representing Myrrh

A Goodnight Dora Doll and the Disney Channel Sceneit game

Then from Mimi we have...

A jewelry box, complete with jewelry, and the Tag reading system, with two new books.

Celebrating the holiday's in our New House has given me a New Outlook for the New Year.

My motto for 2009 is "This will be our year!" and already we're off to a wonderful start ;)

Frankly, Scarlet You Better Watch Out

There's a new Peacock in town...

...and her name is Betsy ;)

Grilling Goodness #12

Another year has come and gone. I hope everyone had a Happy New Year.

As I'm sure you've noticed, I took a little blogging break over the holiday season - as did most of blogsphere ;)

I'm certain that I'll be back to the regularly scheduled program sometime in the next week and at that time I'll tell you all about our Christmas holiday in the new house - who knows, maybe I'll even have some pictures to share ;).

Until then, how about a little Grilling Goodness to start off the new year?!?!?

For those of you who don't know what the Grilling Goodness is all about: this is a fun little Friday meme that my friend Tina created, as a way to get to know you better.

Feel free to play along, if you would like; and after you finish, don't forget to go back over to Tina's and tell Mr. Linky - I'm sure she would love to hear what you've got to say.

In the meantime, on with the first Grilling Goodness of 2009 - Let the fun begin!

1. If you could have done something different in 2008, what would it be?

I wouldn't have waited so long to move. :) Have I mentioned how much we love it here??

2. What is something that you know will happen in 2009?

In the fall of 2009, my youngest (Spice) will begin kindergarten - also known as the highly anticipated 'big girl school'

[GULP]

Where did the time go? It seems like just yesterday we were awaiting her arrival and now she's a hard headed, full of spunk, can't tell her anything, little miss independent four year old.

3. What is something that you hope will happen in 2009?

It would be nice if I lost a couple of pounds or 20 or 30 or 60.....

4. Do you already have a vacation planned for this year?

If you count Friday - since that was the official first work day of the new year and I took it off, then yes. ;)

Other than that, I have made no vacation plans for this year; however, if anyone wins a trip to somewhere fabulous and is looking for a friend to take along, I'm sure I can make myself available.

I'm just sayin' ;)

5. Are you relieved that the holidays are over?

Yes, I must say, I am glad they're over. As nice a Christmas time is, it is also a very stressful time of year.

6. Did you make a resolution? Will you share it?

I resolved several years ago not to make resolutions, that way I don't get upset with myself on January 2nd when I fail to meet them ;)

So far, that's the only one I've ever been able to keep.

7. How old will you turn in 2009?

A lady never tells and a gentleman never asks... However, since you're not a gentleman and I'm not a lady....I guess it's safe to say that I will be 38 in '09.

Now, should this question have been about my weight....

8. What did you do to celebrate the New Year?

I brought in the New Year doing one of my favorite pass time activities.

Any guesses as to what it might be??

No? Alright then, I'll give you a clue.... It involves the bed ;)

Okay, yeah, so I fell asleep.

What can I say? I guess I'm getting old - Try as I might, as soon as Lawrence Welk cues the bubbles... I'm off to dream land.