Ramblings of a SAHM

Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Is it just me or does it feel like it should be Friday already?

Katie at 6:19 PM

I don't usually do this (some call it "pimping the comments") but what activities are your children in? Plus their ages and why you (and the kids) choose those activities?

I'm trying to get a feel for what's normal. Zach just joined Tiger Cubs (Boy Scouts) and is signed up for ice hockey for fall/winter. I'm currently looking for a Brownie troop (Daisies?) for Em and Ally and I'll sign them up for a YMCA fall soccer league next week. As much as my sister-in-law and I loved dance as children, the twins aren't interested. *sigh*

And my other issue... We're still planning to move out of the area next year. I hate the idea of getting involved with activities here just to leave all their newly made friends next year. But it also doesn't make sense to keep them out of everything this year just because we plan to move. Which is why when the Girl Scout coordinator said "oh, maybe we'll start a new troop in your area!" I kept my mouth shut and didn't volunteer to be the leader (which I'd love to do). I hate limbo land.

Katie at 10:18 AM

Monday, August 30, 2004

I love being Irish...

May those who love us love us.
And those that don't love us,
May God turn their hearts,
And if He doesn't turn their hearts,
May he turn their ankles,
So we'll know them by their limping.
--Irish curse (although knowing the Irish, they probably consider it a blessing, hehe)

May your glass be ever full,
May the roof over your head be always strong,
And may you be in heaven half an hour before the devil knows you're dead.
--Irish drinking toast (I'll drink to that!)

Want more?

Katie at 6:44 PM

Today is "sort through all the kids' clothes" day. It's really not the major undertaking that you might think. I'm actually 90% done already, I need to resort the garbage and Goodwill piles again and put the hand-me-down boxes back in the closets. I do this at least twice a year, usually once in late summer and again in early spring.

I'm really lucky that my children's birthday fall close together, Zach in Aug, Kyle in Sept, Kelly in Nov, Em and Ally in Dec. Why, you ask? Well it means hand-me-downs are in the correct size for the correct season and bonus, the correct gender. See Kelly is going into 3T this winter. Em and Ally were also in size 3T at 2 years old over the winter. If Kelly had been born in say, April, she would need 3T summer clothes, not 3T winter ones. Be frugal when you plan your children's birthdays. *winks*

This day always makes me a bit melancholy. I've already done the big traumatic baby clothes give away so today's not as bad as that. But there's still no need to keep Kelly's or Kyle's outgrown clothes so I have to give them away (I have extreme anti-pack rat policies). I have no clue why I'm so sentimental about clothes though. Maybe it has something to do with great memories happening while they were wearing those outfits. Or the outgrown outfits remind me how big they are getting and the fact that they aren't my babies anymore. *sigh*

Blah, two less than cheery posts in a row... I'll try to be snarky or annoyingly happy tomorrow. *winks*

Katie at 11:36 AM

Sunday, August 29, 2004

There are some times that are better than others for contemplating life. Our lives are usually too busy for us to catch these moments and if forced, often nothing comes out of those tries. But sometimes everything comes together and you just open your mind and wonderful thoughts and realizations come to you.

Like a summer evening riding in a Jeep with the top down on an interstate past rolling fields of green. The sky is partially cloudy so the sun doesn't hurt your eyes, the hum of the engine comforts, the breeze tickles and cools the skin, the smell of ripening corn on the stalk calms the soul. There's nothing demanded of you, instead you are given time to feel, see, think, be.

It's then when you can see clearly. That life is not daily commutes to work, papers to fill out, bills to pay. It's not dishes to wash, clothes to fold, toys to pick up. Life is the moments when you love someone, listen to a friend, hold your child's hand. It's the excitement on Christmas morning, the awe on your child's face at a fireworks show, the cooing of a baby in your arms. Life is truly lived in those moments when you wish with all your heart that you could stop time and stay in that moment forever.

May your life be filled with so many of those moments that they outnumber the stars in the sky.

Katie at 10:21 PM

Saturday, August 28, 2004

Random Stuff:

Greg is home from St. Louis for another 36 hours before he flies back to St. Louis for the week. I should go wake him up so we can soak up his Greg-ness. LOL

The kids did it, I knew they would. All week I've had to wake them up at 8am to get ready for school. This morning... You guessed, up by 7am. *yawn*

My writing muse has flown back to the Bahamas with her fruity drinks and cabana boys. So please accept her apologies to all of you who seem to think I'm witty or something goofy like that.

Zach read a Shel Silverstein poem yesterday for Show-n-Tell, I'm so proud. (Santa and the Reindeer from Where the Sidewalk Ends, in case you're a fan. My personal favorite is Ickle Me, Tickle Me, Pickle Me Too.)

Em and Ally had to draw pictures for what they did to get ready for kindergarten. Emily drew a picture of buying a water bottle. Ally drew a girl hanging wallpaper. I have no idea where that came from but it's an excellent picture of a girl hanging red polka dot wallpaper.

Kyle is well, Kyle. He's taking over Zach's place as the child who talks my ear off. And "uh huh" and "okay" are not appropriate responses to whatever he's rambling about: "Mommy, don't say 'uh huh' or 'okay'!"

Kelly is such a cutie pie. She likes to hold my index finger where ever we walk. I need a picture of that. Which is ten times better than Kyle who runs off willy nilly through the school parking lot and about gives me a heart attack every time. (Kyle is the kid they invited child leashes for...)

I guess that's it, I hope you all have a lovely weekend. I'm off to scrounge up some breakfast. I really wish IHOP delivered.

Katie at 9:49 AM

Friday, August 27, 2004

If you have a minute, could you please send a prayer, light a candle, send good thoughts, whatever to Greg's grandpa. He had a heart attack yesterday (not his first) and Greg's mom flew down last night to Florida. I haven't heard any more information yet. His grandparents are the ones who had the 50th anniversary party earlier this month although their actual wedding date is tomorrow. And Grandpa will turn 70 on Kyle's birthday, Sept. 11th. Thanks.

Edit to update: I received an email earlier, Grandpa's heart rhythm and blood pressure have been stabilized and he's in good spirits. The doctors are grumpy with him that he didn't come in sooner (he went to bed even though he knew he was having heart palpitations) and they are changing his heart meds. So pretty much, he's okay and they are keeping him for observation. *whew* Thanks for the prayers, good thoughts, and everything!

Katie at 8:26 AM

Thursday, August 26, 2004

The headache is mostly gone. The Big 3 all had a wonderful day at school. Kyle is a bit lost without his siblings (Kelly naps in the afternoon). We played Mr. Potato Head for at least an hour. And then he followed me around the house while I picked up. Poor little guy...

But I have to admit, I miss the kids too. If you've ever been to my house, between the hours of 8am to 8pm (and sometimes later), it's loud, it's fun, it's my normal life. Now it's way too quiet. It bugs me. I don't know how many times I started to say "Hey Zach, you wanna..." Or "Em Ally, ready to go outside?" and they aren't here. And it freaks me out a bit, they are missing! But then my rational side takes over and reminds me that they are safe and sound at school and probably not giving me a second thought. I don't remember ever worrying about my mom while I was at school. It's just a big change and I tend to hate changes. Who knows, maybe in a few months, I'll be accomplishing so much during school hours that I'll laugh myself silly at having missed the kids. Or maybe not. *shrugs*

Totally unrelated but I feel compelled to mention: I adore steamed brown rice with soy sauce. I could eat this stuff all day long. I'm thinking about buying stock in Kikkoman. It even makes broccoli palatable. Yum, yum. Going to make me another plate!

Quote of the Day: "It's hard for me to get used to these changing times. I can remember when the air was clean and sex was dirty." -George Burns

Katie at 6:09 PM

Ow, my head hurts. Not migraine type pain, more like a strained muscle ache as if I had overused my brain yesterday. I also didn't sleep well last night with stressful "it seems like real life" nightmares. Those always leave me in a funk for a few hours as I sort out that it really was a dream and I have no reason to be upset with the real life person who treated me terribly in the nightmare. Ow, my head hurts.

Katie at 10:02 AM

Wednesday, August 25, 2004

Ally and Emily's 1st Day of Kindergarten

OMG... My morning:

8am- Kelly took her PJ's & diaper off and wet the sheet. *groan* Make breakfast for the kids and then get everyone dressed. It's PE day for Zach, we can't find a pair of shoes that fit (we all wear sandals all summer). Note to self: go shoe shopping this weekend. Put sandals on Zach and rush everyone into the van. Grab myself breakfast, a can of Mountain Dew. Send Zach back inside for his backpack.

8:38am- Drop Zach off at school and curse all the parents who park in the drop off lane so they can walk their kids 25 feet on the sidewalk to the front door.

9am- Drive by Target being built 15 minutes from my house. *rejoice* And then grumble because it won't be open until October so I have to shop at Wal-Mart today (a rant for another day). Go to Staples first. Zach has two supply lists, the one for general 1st grade (which I bought on Sunday) and then a specific classroom list sent home yesterday. Item #1 on second list- dry erase markers. But not any type, the vis-vis fine point. Grumble because of the $4 dollar price difference. Buy 3 packages because the same markers are on the girls' donation lists. Load back into van.

9:30am- Unload kids to go into Wal-Mart. Force a smile as the greeter gives the kids stickers. 8 rolls of Bounty paper towels for $5, toss one package in cart. Find a package of inexpensive white socks (see previous post under weird required supplies). Let Kyle pick out new underwear. Go to the dreaded toy section for required alphabet magnets. Can only find numbers. Tell Kyle to leave the ball display alone. Toss balls back into ball display. Give up on the letters and head over to housewares for water bottles. The school isn't air conditioned and the kids are allowed to bring in water. Find water bottle display. Emily: "Hey Mom, letter magnets!" Huh? Sure enough, a display of alphabet magnets right next to the pots and pans. Go figure. Pick out 5 water bottles (cause Kyle and Kelly want one), make sure they all work (sports bottle spouts). Look for last item on weird required supply list: small flashlight. Find only pastel ones. Blah, he can deal with periwinkle. Check out. Cringe at $45 total.

10:30am- Arrive home. Put donation items in the girls' backpacks. Wash water bottles.

10:50am- Flip through paperwork to make sure I filled everything out. Oh drat, I didn't! The girls have homework too! Due today! Don't panic, it's just a little "About Me" page. Call Em and Ally over, we fill in the papers. Notice there's a spot for the picture. Find a cute picture on the computer. Send it to the printer. Change Kelly's stinky diaper. Check printer. Panic! An abstract picture of Emily is not going to work. Print again. Results even worse.

11:15am- Evil perfectionist takes over. A normal person would say, "darn I'll have to use a picture from last year." Or even, "I'll drop the memory card off later for overnight prints and send in the paper tomorrow." But no, my perfectionist side takes over. I want this picture and I want it now. Call Krogers Photo Lab manager, she can do it (Barb and I used to be real close when I used 35mm exclusively). Upload pictures to compact flash card (I also tossed on a couple of pictures that Zach needs for his "About Me" project due Friday). Load kids into the van. 10 minute drive to Krogers.

11:45am- Arrive at Krogers. Rush all the kids inside. Drop off card, 15 minutes, she says. Hmm, decisions. We're cutting it really close to get the pictures, drive home, eat lunch, and get the girls ready to be at school no later than 12:45. (originally I wanted to leave the house at 12:30) Should I? Can I be a bad mommy this once? Walk the kids over to the lunch meat aisle. "Pick out a Lunchable." *cringe* Pay for 4 Lunchables ($10, same price as lunch at McDonalds), take the kids back out to the van to eat. Open up the packages, watch them cheerfully eat.

12:10pm- Everyone back inside Krogers. Pick up pictures. Drive home.

12:20pm- Home. Rush in to stick photos on papers. There! But perfectionist mommy is not done yet. Iron girls' first day outfits. (Yeah, I'm even rolling my eyes at myself now). Get the girls dressed and brush their hair. Dress Kelly again since she pulled off all her clothes while Em and Ally were changing. Wait on Kyle to go poopy. Fill water bottles. Wait on Kyle. Check backpacks one more time (folder with paperwork and homework, package of dry erase markers, box of tissues, roll of paper towels). Wait on Kyle. Take Em and Ally's pictures outside. Wait on Kyle. He's finally done! Load everyone into the van.

12:38pm- Leave the house. Thank God that the school is only 2 minutes away. Pull into the last parking space. Rush the kids out of the van. Crap! Kyle squirted the remains of his Lunchable Go-gurt down his leg. Grab a handful of tissues and wipe the mess up. Try to act calm as we walk past other Mom's with cameras, Dad's with video cameras, Grandparents and assorted other relatives. I think the Titantic had a smaller send off.

12:40pm- Go to Ally's room first. Teacher doesn't know which one is Ally, greets Emily. Correct mistake and laugh with her. Take a picture of Ally at her seat. Give her a kiss. Em and Ally cheerfully hug.

12:43pm- Go to Emily's room. Pass Zach in the hall on his way back from lunch. *smile* Emily's teacher is way too excited by the roll of paper towels. Help Em put her stuff away. Then we can't find her seat. Hmm... Check with teacher. Another kid was sitting in her seat. Take markers away from Kyle. Take picture of Emily in her seat. Take markers away from Kyle. Give Emily kiss. Take markers away from Kyle.

12:50pm- Leave school and try not to cry. *sniff*

I'm just glad I didn't have triplets. *winks*

Katie at 2:18 PM

Help! I'm drowning in paper work!

I have filled out the same set of 9 papers 3 times. I have sorted Box Tops, read through the 30 page handbook, thrown away approximately 100 sheets of repeated papers (duplicate lunch menus, handbooks, etc), and sifted through 3 different required school supplies and donation lists. Weirdest required items: a clean white sock, a small flashlight. Weirdest donations requested: blue painters tape, fishing line, salt.

Wait a second, aren't the kids suppose to be the ones with homework?

Katie at 10:44 AM

Tuesday, August 24, 2004

*sniff*

Zach's 1st Day of 1st Grade
It's going to be very weird having him gone all day. Who's going to tell me when to make lunch? *sniff*

Katie at 8:55 AM

Monday, August 23, 2004

Whew! We survived the open house. And everywhere we went, people knew who I was: "You're the mom with lots of little kids!" Okay... I'm trying not to be freaked out about this since I knew none of these people previously. I'm not sure if they knew the tie to Greg as a village council member but since this is such a small town, they probably did and I'm just clueless.

Anyway I really like Zach's 1st grade teacher. She already has a plan to put Zach and a few other advanced readers in a more challenging setting. If you missed my post in June, Zach tested at the 24th level and the average for kindergarteners going into 1st is level 4 (next highest score in his class was 8). I'm concerned about his overall reading comprehension however so I mentioned it and she said she'd keep an eye on that.

I really want to be involved with the PTO this year. Kelly's not nursing and the meetings have volunteer babysitters so even if Greg's not in town, I can go. And I'm going to pay the dang $25 to get fingerprinted so I can possibly volunteer in the school if the stars and moons align and Greg is home to watch the little 2 (younger siblings not allowed during school hours). Course we did donate to a bunch of the fundraisers last year: Box Tops, Nut sale, Halloween Carnival, Spring Social... Oh and the funniest one of all: Last year the PTO joined Meijers (Super Wal-Mart type store) Community Rewards plan. I signed up since I love shopping at Meijers (they swipe my card which says it goes to the PTO and the store donates 1% or 4% of what I spend there monthly). Well the PTO newsletter I received tonight says only 5 families participated last year, raising $200 for the school. I check "My Meijers" webpage and $68.20 was from us! LOL

Anyway, one open house down, one to go. I'm off to finish filling out paperwork. Have a nice Monday evening!

Katie at 7:25 PM

Well today's off to a bang off start. *grumble* I love waking up to pee soaked sheets (Kyle's, he definitely not ready to go without a diaper at night), bills to pay, trash to take out, and no baby sitter for the school's open house tonight (or for tomorrow night's kindergarten open house either). *sarcasm* The kids have had 3 babysitters, one can't do it either night, two won't call me back, and I don't have three's number because two won't call me back. Really I don't think my kids were heathens for any of them. *sigh*

I need to watch myself better, I've been putting too many things off: "I'll do it Monday." And then today rolls around and I have the to do list from hell. Greg's in St. Louis for this week and next. Everyone wave to Greg! *waves* Anyway I should start that to do list, the fridge doesn't fill itself with groceries on its own. (Can someone work on that for me? Along with that self cleaning house?)

Quote of the Day: "The real problem of leisure time is how to keep others from using yours." -Arthur Lacey

Katie at 8:54 AM

Sunday, August 22, 2004

Quote of the Day: "I read recipes like I read sci-fi fantasy. I get to the end and think "Well, THAT'S not going to happen!" -Author Unknown

Yeah so the Quote of the Day usually goes at the end of the post... But I'm doing the above quote to myself again. I love good food. I love eating good food in my home. I love watching the Food Network (mostly Good Eats). And reading recipe books. For not being a "cook", I oddly have a good size collection of cook books. I think my MIL (an awesome chef!) gave them to me years ago in hopes that I would feed her darling son and grandchildren better. Ha! Read above quote again. And then again. Got it? Let's move on...

I have many issues with cooking, the first being slicing and dicing. I hate chopping things up but I'm too darn cheap to buy pre-cut anything. I mean, $6 a pound for cut watermelon when I get the whole dang thing for $2.50? And it's mostly water anyway. Who in their right mind pays $6 for chunks of grainy red water with seeds? Oh and pre-cut frozen strips of meat? The biggest rip off ever! One day, some marketing asshole who expenses all his 5 star restaurant meals on the company came up with this gem: "Sure we'll take this one little chicken breast, grill it up, slice it, freeze it, and sell it for $10!" Convenience food, they call it. Only convenient if you have Bill Gate's wallet.

My other big issue (you don't have enough time for all of them, trust me!) is the time it takes. Last night I decided to make a good dinner. Baked pork chops, glazed carrots, noodles, and salad. Easy enough, right? But you have to remember to start an hour and a half before you want to eat. Put the pork chops in the oven. And then an hour later, steam the carrots. And then 15 minutes later, boil the noodles, mix up the butter/brown sugar glaze, and make the salad. An hour and a half of work for 10 minutes of eating? That ratio is way wrong in my opinion.

While breakfast is quick, it literally requires too many pots going at the same time. Start the bacon or sausage. Get the biscuits in the oven. Pour pancake batter. Is it too soon to start the eggs? Flip the pancakes. Cook the eggs. Remove the meat too early. Burn the biscuits. Forget about the pancakes. The eggs are too runny. Pretend pancakes are suppose to be dark brown to match the syrup. I can never get it all together at the right temperature at the same time. Which is why 99% of the time we have Cheerio's. On the other hand, lunch is usually okay, I stick to sandwiches and no-need-to-cut fruits. The work/eat time ratio is decent and the correct temperatures at the same time is a no-brainer. That's it, we're having Cheerio's and lunch for every meal from now on!

And don't forget the fun addition of the children. While I'm cooking, Kyle will help himself to a ~~cup~~ gallon of milk, 24 slices of American cheese, and 4 handfuls of Cheerio's. Try working in the kitchen with Kelly attached to your legs and stepping on your toes (wasn't 9 months inside of me enough?). And with Zach (aka Rainman) yelling from another room: "It's 5 minutes until 6 o'clock!" Two minutes later: "It's 3 minutes until 6 o'clock!" Three minutes later: "It's 6 o'clock, dinner time!" And I just put the water on to boil...

Plus Em & Ally have their own bizarre Abbott & Costello routine, one of the two will begin: "What's for dinner?"
Me: "Chicken, green beans, and rice."
Twin 1: "I don't like chicken."
Twin 2: "You don't like green beans, I don't like chicken."
Twin 1: "I don't like green beans?"
Twin 2: "I don't like chicken, you don't like green beans."
Twin 1, clearly upset with this identity crisis because they obviously both can't not like the same thing: "So, I like chicken, you don't like green beans."
Twin 2: "And I don't like rice."
Twin 1, wailing: "But I don't like rice!"
Twin 2, wisely: "It's okay, we can both not like rice."
Twin 1 and 2 together: "MOM! We don't like chicken, green beans, and rice!"

Bill Gates is still married, right?

Katie at 4:29 PM

Saturday, August 21, 2004

I'm a blog designer! Well Greg pointed out that I designed my own blog layout but that's not the same as designing one for another person! I'm such a computer geek, I am way too excited about how it turned out. I still need to add her comments and fix the post titles. Oh and I need to make a little graphic for "Designed by katiefleck". hehe

Sports Theme Blog

Thank you TBOMM and Greg for the input!

Quote of the Day: "If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other." -Mother Teresa

Katie at 5:38 PM

Friday, August 20, 2004

I "heart" my new cell phone.

The one Kelly threw in the bathtub still sort of works but the zero key is broke and it turns itself off occasionally when I try to answer a call. Plus the phone was made in like 1998 so I figured I deserved a phone that was at least this century (I have children younger than that cell phone!).

Have you shopped for a cell phone lately? What a pain in the ass! First I didn't want a camera phone. I already have a very nice digital camera. Or PDA hybrid. Franklin Covey day planner, thank you! Or walkie talkie capabilities. People who use those who aren't on a construction site are so pretentious. All I want is a plain jane cell phone that has caller ID and vibrate. What's a frugal gal to do? eBay!

First I googled "Sprint PCS flip phone external caller ID" and found a cute LG model. Reviews were mixed on the phone but hey, it was manufactured in 2002! Plus new in the box were going for less than $50 on eBay. Buy It Now!

And I love it! Compared to my old one, it's the same thickness closed but lengthwise half the size. I've had issues with borrowing other flip phones and when opened, I felt they either didn't reach my ear or my mouth. But this one curves perfectly to my face. And it's so cute! I could cuddle it forever in my hand... *ahem*

Shiny! I'm keeping this one far, far away from both Kelly and bodies of water...

Katie at 8:56 AM

Thursday, August 19, 2004

I am such a dumbass.

So I spent most of the day vacuuming, cleaning the kitchen chairs (yeah, they are fabric covered, someone is a bigger dumbass than me!), and sweeping & mopping the kitchen and dining room floors.

And then I bought white icing cookies with sprinkles for snack for the kids. Sweets are rare around here, I was feeling generous. Well that sure as hell isn't going to happen again! I have white icing smears all over the chair fabric, cookie crumbs all over the kitchen and dining room, and sprinkles all over the entire house. ARGH!

The cookie crumb that broke the mommy's back. *sigh*

Katie at 5:23 PM

Uh, hi!

*whispers* I'm suppose to be cleaning. *sigh*

Maybe I should install a PayPal button here so you can all donate to hire me a maid and then I could write all day and read your blogs. Oh wait, I'd probably need a nanny too. And a cook! Hmm, this is getting expensive. I should just clean the house myself and you can spend your dollars on some more worthwhile cause. Like Krispy Kreme donuts and trashy paperback novels. *winks*

Katie at 9:59 AM

Wednesday, August 18, 2004

For those of you who aren't gamers or know what a MMORPG is, you might wanna move right past this post... Go browse through my archives or something under "Writing" in the left hand column.

Still here?

Okay, I'm way too excited about this but *drum roll please* EQ2 is coming out soon! That's the second EverQuest for any of you non-gamers that stuck around to this point. Greg and I played the original EverQuest several years ago and we even made a great online friend. Greg moved onto Star Wars Galaxies but his business traveling (and maybe lack of interest) caused him to quit after a few months.

But EQ2, woohoo! I'm looking forward to gaming again. Who knows when I'll have the time (I really need Herimone's "Time Turner") but it'll be fun when I can play. Greg has pre-ordered two sets of the game and is planning to build two new computers. So we'll get to do what we couldn't with the original EQ, play at the same time! Plus I'll have my own new faster better computer! Currently we have this main computer and Greg's business laptop. Soon we'll have my computer, the new main one (aka Greg's), the kids' computer (this one), and Greg's business laptop. See, it's win-win all around!

Oh back to the pre-ordering... If you do this, you get a free bonus character making disk right now (release date on the actual EQ2 game is November). Kinda like making your own Sim but with fantasy creatures. Back in EQ1, I played a wood elf warrior chick named Kierana (name sound familiar? lol). So why mess with perfection, I plan to play another in EQ2 but with a different name.

If any of you play a MMORPG (Massively Multi-player Online Role Playing Game), leave a comment about it. Especially if you plan to play EQ2, we could hook up in the game and go kill a Dervish Cutthroat or something. hehe

Katie at 10:04 PM

Days like these wear me out... Kids' baths, meal times and cleanups, doctor appointment (Zach's yearly check-up, he's great), an hour at the park, an hour at my in-laws, driving in pre-rush hour interstate traffic. I'd like to call it a day but it's only 5pm and the kids probably won't allow it. *yawn*

So I have the kids set up on the Playstation and Nintendo right now. I figure the hour at the park will counteract the TV/game time. I'm trying to think of something quick and easy for dinner. Spaghetti and meatballs were the original plan but after reading Mir's post on the meal, I'm not so sure.

*yawn*

*droopy eyes*

*nodding off and hitting desktop with forehead*

*ouch*

(Is it bad to be falling asleep at 5pm? Where's that caffeine IV drip?)

Uh, there was a point here somewhere. Oh yeah, long day, yada, yada, yada... My plans for the evening include hooking up the scanner, cleaning up my scrapbook desk, and maybe scrapbooking one more page. And laundry. The excitement of it all overwhelms me. *sarcasm*

Have a Happy Hump Day!

(It is Wednesday, right?)

*yawn*

Katie at 4:56 PM

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

We survived the errands and Greg just may be right about the weather (the sun came out shortly after my last post) so my mood has vastly improved. Therefore I thought I'd share a cheerful note: today is my sister Sarah's 21st birthday! So Happy Birthday dear sister and I'll have a vodka shot here (after the kids' bedtime, hehe) in celebration!

Katie at 12:27 PM

*grumble, grumble, grumble*

I hate being woken up before 8am. I'm okay with getting up before that time if there's a good reason but 3 stampeding children at 7:15 is not a good reason. *grumble*

Greg's flying out to Mississippi today. So since I was lazy and didn't foresee this problem yesterday, 5 children will accompany me on my errands to the grocery store, library, dry cleaners, and scrapbook store. *grumble*

And there's a 70% chance of rain. *grumble*

One good thing... At least I'm not going to the dentist today. *waves at Greg* hehe

Quote of the Day: "I personally believe we developed language because of our deep inner need to complain." -Jane Wagner

Edit to grumble some more: Blogger/Google just added a lovely (annoying!) new toolbar and I had to fix my code seconds ago. Looks like I really need to talk to the computer guru (aka my brother in law and katiefleck.com host) and set up Blogger on a FTP server to get rid of the toolbar. *grumble*

Katie at 8:14 AM

Monday, August 16, 2004

Okay I think I have the vacation pictures uploaded to view (only posting 10% of them). I stored them through BloggerBot (what a pain in the ass, I don't recommend it). I've also put the link under "Pictures" for future reference. Enjoy!

Katie at 12:58 PM

Gator Land

Kyle eating chocolate (Anniversary Party)

Kelly and Zach dancing (Anniversary Party)

Girls dancing (Anniversary Party)

Kelly as a Parrot Head (Margaritaville restaurant, Universal Studios City Walk)

Kids as Parrot Heads (Margaritaville restaurant, Universal Studios City Walk)

Us at Magic Kingdom

Kids with Zerg, Buzz Lightyear ride (Magic Kingdom)

Ally and Emily with Pooh (Crystal Palace lunch at Magic Kingdom)

Kelly and Piglet (Crystal Palace lunch at Magic Kingdom)

Kids with Mickey Mouse (Magic Kingdom)

Ally and Emily with Minnie Mouse (Magic Kingdom)

Rain! (Magic Kingdom)

Kyle with Daisy and Donald Duck (Downtown Disney)

Kelly and Kyle with Potato Heads (Pop Century Resort)

Zach standing by pool (Pop Century Resort 80's)

Pop Century Resort Pool and 90's building

Rubix Cube stairs (Pop Century Resort 80's)

Katie at 10:05 AM

Sunday, August 15, 2004

After nearly a week of forced computer down time, I'm having a hard time getting back into the swing of things online. The last few days I've practically had to force myself to sit down at the computer desk. Sure I've been checking my email (but not replying), reading forums (but not posting), enjoying blogs (but not commenting). And worse, I seem to have lost that inner voice saying "hey, you should blog this." To my chagrin, my visitor stat numbers here have dropped but with reason. No posts, no visits. *sighs and shrugs*

But I'm happy. And thankful that we are safe here at home and not in Florida this weekend (*sends prayers and good thoughts to those in Florida*). Greg's grandparents are fine, without power but their home is okay in Orlando. Last night, Greg and I bravely left the kids with 2 teenage babysitters (first time ever!) and went to a friend of the family's birthday party. I had a wonderful time! The break from the kids and night out with Greg (and free drinks! *winks*) couldn't have come at a better time. This morning I woke up refreshed and ready to face the world. The house is clean, my to-do's lists are ready for the week, and I'm relaxed for the first time in weeks.

I really enjoy living in moments like this, with sunny skies, healthy kids, and a good outlook on the future. I'm not stressing about school starting next week because there's not much to be done and my to-do list neatly outlines it all. Instead I'm looking forward to a couple of quilting projects, some scrapbooking, a basket weaving class, the cooler fall weather, and *crosses fingers* making a book outline of my "Unofficial Guide."

I need to remember to just enjoy it all. This is my life, it's happening now. I had a surreal moment last Monday at Magic Kingdom. The date had been so long in planning, I had looked at the little square marked "Disney World" on my calendar a million times. It was hard to believe that those penciled words were happening now. It was no longer some future event, this was it.

I think we all need moments like that, the ones that pull us out of thinking "I'll be happier when this happens" or "it'll be easier after we buy this" and so forth. Live now, not in the future. And be happy now because even though we think the future will be bright, it might not be.

So in short, service here may be a bit spotty until I find my groove again. As much as I love the computer and internet, there's so much more out there. Hugs and kisses, I'm off to enjoy a beautiful August evening. *smiles*

Quote of the Day: "The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet." -James Openheim

Katie at 8:45 PM

Friday, August 13, 2004

By request, Me, DMouse, and Evil One. Baby and Little Girl belong to Evil One. I think mine were all trying to jump in with the alligators.

DMouse has a wonderful accent, I kept asking her questions just to hear her talk. hehe And the Evil One isn't so evil in person. *winks* The kids were adorable together. And it was hot. Very hot. But that's what you get in Florida in August. Well that and hurricanes (see previous post).

Katie at 7:52 PM

Thursday, August 12, 2004

Random Thoughts from our trip to Florida:

My camera case smells like jambalaya. (The camera thankfully does not.)

How come my kids all have to eat at 8am, 11am, 3pm, and 6pm but their bladders are programmed to work 5 minutes apart? Or just long enough for me to pull back onto the interstate and see "Next Exit 32 miles"?

There is nothing funnier than watching Kelly do the chicken dance. Unless it's Greg and his brother Patrick competing at Dance Dance Revolution. (Yes, I have pictures!)

The Magic Kingdom really is the Happiest Place on Earth but only if it's 76 degrees, before it gets crowded and with a babysitter and a full diaper bag of bottled water and fruit snacks. When it's 97 degrees with more people than a small European country, the babysitter back at hotel with napping Kelly, and an empty diaper bag, Hell begins to look like Club Med...

Em and Ally should not be let loose in a Disney store with Daddy. Kids, you're eating raman noodles for the rest of the month. *winks*

Meeting internet friends is so cool. I hope I can meet all of you someday! Even if it has to be in the presence of alligators eating dead chickens.

Kyle thinks we stayed at a "Show and Tell".

We have 30 of the McDonald Teenie Beanie Bears but not a full set of 12.

Zach's 7 years old! And the awe on his face at watching the Magic Kingdom firework show at the end of day makes me misty.

17 hours is a long time to be driving. We pulled into our driveway at 1 this morning. But sleeping on our california king pillow top mattress and down comforter (with lipstick stains...) was so worth it.

I spurged and did a load of laundry while at Disney ($4!) so I only had 3 loads to do today. I'm dead tired from the drive yesterday and 4 kids' dentist appointments this morning (note to self: do not schedule appointments for 8 hours after returning from a week long trip). So I promise I'll post more details and pictures tomorrow. Of the 187 pictures taken, I'm in 3. *rolls eyes*

Katie at 7:31 PM

We're home! Overall everyone had a fabulous time. Disney Pop Century Resort didn't have wireless internet access so sorry there weren't any updates before now. And I'm still going to make you wait for updates because I have a million and two things to do!

The question of the day: When is my vacation?

Katie at 12:12 PM

Sunday, August 08, 2004

The anniversary party was a success! (Greg's grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary) Kyle and Kelly were a little nutty at the end of Mass (quiet but wiggly) and I'm not sure how great the family picture will turn out (approximately 45 people) but the party itself went very well. The kids danced their hearts out and Kelly finally fell asleep without a fuss at about 11:30. Overall it was a lot of fun! I think the threat of no Disney World did the trick. (evil mean Mommy...)

Later today (eek!) we plan to go to Gator Land and hopefully meet the Evil One and DMouse. Oh and so I don't forget next year when I'm finally scrapbooking this trip: on Friday we went to a mall and then to Universal City Walk where we ate at Margaretville. Friday's night pizza and pool party went well, Kelly thinks she's a fish and obviously no one has told the girl she can't swim. Saturday we went to Bahama Breeze for lunch where Ally had a mini meltdown deciding between chicken nuggets and grilled cheese. After lunch we relaxed in the hotel room before getting ready for the party.

Now I'm really tired and going to bed!

Katie at 12:46 AM

Friday, August 06, 2004

We're here! The trip down went much better than I expected. We stayed overnight in Macon GA. After we arrived in Orlando yesterday afternoon, we went to a two story McDonalds and played putt putt golf. Today... I don't know. We really didn't plan anything for today or tomorrow (before the anniversary party). Plus the kids and I have various stages of a cold. Kyle, Kelly, and Zach have coughs and runny noses plus Zach has snot in his eye (it's not pink eye yet). I'm stuffed up and have a sinus pressure headache. I did bring meds but when I'm dosing out to so many, a bottle runs out quickly. So sometime today, we're making a trip to a drug store.

Blog note, I'm almost to 10,000 visitors! I'd really like to see the number myself but more than likely I'll be sweating and chasing kids somewhere. If anyone can get a screenshot ("print screen" on your keyboard and then open up Paint or Photoshop program, chose "New" and then "Paste" and "Save"), there might be something in it for you. *winks* You can email me at katiefleck AT hotmail.com

Happy Friday y'all!

Katie at 9:56 AM

Wednesday, August 04, 2004

And we're off! Weeeeee!!!

Are we there yet?

Katie at 7:56 AM

Tuesday, August 03, 2004

I'm getting nervous now. Not because we aren't packed because we are. I've checked my list twice and I have everything! Including $75 worth of snacks and bottled water... But everyone tells me it would cost at least twice that much in Orlando. Maybe they are smoking something.

I'm really not one to contemplate "what if's" to the point I drive myself insane. But I always get nervous before a trip. I think it's the "certain uncertainties" that bother me the most. Plus I psyched myself up that I'm going to have a miserable time. I do this so that when things go wrong (and they will, I'm related to the Murphy's, remember?) I won't be disappointed like I would be if I was expecting to have a great time. But then I begin to dread the trip. And as much as I love seeing new places, part of me is still scared because it's not familiar. Travel involves letting go of a lot of the control I have when we are all here at home. Besides being a control freak, I'm not a huge fan of change. The hermit in me like to rear its ugly head at these times and try to convince me to stay in my hermit hole (aka home).

*deep breath* But we'll go and I'll be okay after a day or two. Once we get there, I'll feel a little more calm because some of the uncertainties will no longer be. The hotel and area will be a bit more familiar and I'll have as much control as possible. And when all else fails, my mantra for the trip: "It's for the kids and Greg's grandparents."

Katie at 7:14 PM

Quick, I call together a meeting of the Procrastinators Unite! Club.

Today's To Do List: grocery shopping (yeah, didn't go yesterday), my hair cut, trip to the library, post office, bank ATM, clean gerbil cage, finish laundry, pack, and clean the house (mostly empty trash and fridge). We leave in less than 24 hours and I have packed nothing. So here I sit on my butt in front of the computer burning music CD's. hehe

Quote of the Day: "Millions long for immortality who don't know what to do on a rainy Sunday afternoon." -Susan Ertz

Katie at 10:28 AM

Monday, August 02, 2004

It's that time again! Blogging for Books #2: Servitude

"We've all either held jobs or done some menial work for others that was degrading, demoralizing, and (in hindsight, at least) funny as hell. For this month's Blogging for Books, write a blog entry about the worst experience you've ever had working for someone else." Read The Zero Boss's full entry

Crap. I'm so screwed this time around. I have had exactly 4 jobs my entire life and they have all been entirely too pleasant.

Fast food during high school. Menial but boring.
Secretary helper in psychology department at college. Again menial and boring.
Hostess at a restaurant (where I met Greg, woohoo!). Boring although the atmosphere was cool.
Counter girl at flower shop (occasionally I made arrangements). Mostly fun except a bit stressful around major floral holidays (Valentine's, Mother's Day, Christmas).

My work history barely spans 4 years and according to the Social Security Department, I have made a whoping $7400 my entire life. Pitiful I know. I guess I'll be sitting this round out. Blah...

Katie at 6:03 PM

Thankfully I'm feeling much better today, a good night's sleep works wonders.

Today's to do list is insane. I just tossed in two eye doctor appointments this afternoon (Em and Ally, required for kindergarten). I've made all my phone calls (woohoo!) and started the laundry. Next up, emails. When Kelly takes her nap, I need to go grocery shopping, get Kyle's hair cut, change in the kids' coins at the bank (they have $70 in quarters alone), and drop off Greg's drying cleaning. And continue pestering Greg about buying a new memory card for the digital camera (I have my eye on one at Best Buy, 512mb Compact Flash for $80). I'm trying to do as much "running" as possible today so tomorrow I can pack and clean.

The weekend went very well, we all had a great time. And I'm better at Texas Hold'em than I thought I was. LOL The kids all had so much fun, I think mine are a bit grumpy that they just have each other to play with again today. They are looking forward to leaving on Wednesday although I have to keep explaining that we won't be at Disney until Sunday night. They seem to think that the minute we drive into Florida we'll be at Disney World. It might be a long week and weekend...

Anyway back to Zach's party, our gift to him was a new bike. You'll actually see his old bike in the pictures below, it's Kyle's now. So yesterday after all the guests left, we took a picnic dinner and the bikes to a local park.

Zach and Greg

Kelly, Kyle, Ally, Emily

Yeah I know Kelly isn't wearing a helmet. One, she's doesn't actually ride the bike, more just push it around. Two, do they make helmets for 18 month olds? Three, if she falls while pushing the bike, it's no different than her falling like she does a million times at home. So call the CPS on me, I dare you. *winks*

Alright, back to the grind (I've just been yelled at that Kelly stinks!). Have a safe and happy Monday!

Katie at 12:28 PM

Sunday, August 01, 2004

Mantra of the Day: "I cannot get sick!"

This morning I woke up with a stuffy head plus have "that time of the month" cramps. So I hope I feel like crap because I'm tired from all the entertaining and not because of a virus. Ugh...

Katie at 3:38 PM

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