okay...

Okay, so we finally have a new camera (yea!), but I have been too busy to play around with it and learn the ropes. It's just a point and shoot, but I want to do this right, you know? And the last three weeks have been pretty much just me taking care of the kids because of a few trips R had to make. So, I haven't had a lot of down time. I'm hoping that tonight I'll get to finish up my telling of how we got the new van. In the mean time, I hope you all have a wonderful Saturday!

Why we needed a new van Part 3...

While that was the end of my not so wonderful driving in college, I was still in for some just wonderful stories to tell (note the sarcasm). While there was the time I let the tire get too low, tried to drive it to a gas station to put air in it, realized the air wasn't staying in the tire, drove it back to the apartment complex where I called my husband from work to help me and who came to help only then to have the car fall off the jack while trying to change the tire which resulted in the car sitting for several days until having it towed to get fixed, that's not really significant. What is significant is the time I backed into a parked car. We had just moved into our new rental house and I was showing my SIL around. It was time to leave and so I buckled the kids in, buckled myself in and proceeded to back out. I honestly never saw the car. It was such a jolting surprise to look back behind the van(we had a van by now - two kids in two years was what did it) and see this parked car I'd just hit. Everyone was fine, but S was upset because, well, it was a bit upsetting. I got out to look at the car and it had a sizable dent in the driver's door. And as for the van, the fender was hanging down on one side and I had broken the passenger side tale light. Of course, my new neighbor saw everything. He was really sweet, though, and let me know that it was illegal to park directly behind a driveway. I had no idea, but I also had no idea this car had been parallel parked directly behind my van. That might be why I just didn't see it. Anyways, I left the owner a note about the accident, but I never once received a call. None of the other neighbors knew who the car belonged to; it was just sitting there. And then one day that next week, it was gone. Just like that. I still am somewhat amazed by it all. As for our van, our neighbor, a retiree, was eager to help repair the bumper, so we let him jimmyrig it back in place, but there was still a nice crack and a busted tail light. Then two years ago, I think, I was driving home from picking up Chinese takeout and it had gotten dark pretty quick. It was in the winter when it gets dark by 5 pm. So, as I turned around after having to deal with something with my kids in the back, I saw a dog lying in the middle of the street. It was one of those big golden retriever dogs; big. Anyways, I didn't see it in enough time to swerve and rolled right over the poor thing. My van immediately sounded funny and wouldn't let me accelerate much. I pulled over onto a neighborhood street and balled hysterically for a few minutes, then called my husband because I didn't know if I'd be able to drive the van. But it started back up just fine and accelerated alright, so I drove home all the while trying to explain to my kids that the dog had already been hit by a car and that's why he had been lying in the street in the first place and yes it is very sad. I know I didn't kill the dog, but I felt absolutely rotten and had the vision of that poor dog in my head for weeks. I can still picture it. And lest you think that was it, I have one more. I don't have great eyesight. I've worn glasses since the age of six, so you can probably understand why I'm not too fond of driving at night. I can see fine, but the glare of the headlights just makes it incredibly hard to see. But this incident didn't have to do with the glare of headlights, but, rather, the lack of lighting period. The street was being expanded and had those tall orange cones along one side to prevent falling off the side of the road. Well, I couldn't see very well in this poorly lit street and accidentally hit one of the orange cones. It definitely knocked my side view mirror out. W never fixed it, instead just duck taping it. So, as you can tell, we needed a new van. We were driving around looking kinda ghetto. So, next time I'll tell you about how we got our new van.

Update: Still no new camera, so it's just me, tellin' stories. But, Mr. M turned 5 and I must say that I really can't believe it. He is such an amazing boy and I just want to squish him with hugs all the time. :0) I made this cake, which turned out really good and that Mr. M loved. We went bowling and used the kids bowl free program (you must sign up for the program first and then print off the coupons. A woman didn't know she was supposed to do this and had about six kids there ready to bowl. she was getting ready to spend a lot of money without those coupons for free bowling. So sign up first.) The kids had a lot of fun! I am also in the process of making a superhero cape for Mr. M. S will want one, too, so I'll have to get around to hers soon. I am also looking for some fabric that will work for S's backpack. Yup, she will be off to school three days a week this fall and will need her own backpack. Oh, and I am aware that my banner is seriously old, but without a camera, I haven't been able to change it the way I would like. Soon, God willing.

Why we needed a new van Part 2...

Here's some more back story. While in high school, I drove very little. Really, hardly ever. So, when my grandmother gave our family her old Crown Victoria while I was in college, I was not the most confident of drivers and was especially leery of large vehicles. But the good thing about a Crown Vic is that they're so big, I wouldn't be the one to get hurt in an accident. :0) Well, accidents naturally did happen. I had recently started a summer job working in a daycare and my parents decided to let me drive the car since the daycare was clear across town, though close to the university I attended. I think it was about two or three days into my driving when it started pouring down rain as I was leaving work. On top of this, I was making a blind left turn - couldn't see the cars coming from the left because they were coming up and around a curved hill; couldn't see from the right because of some low tree branches. I couldn't scoot out very far because the Crown Vic is huge and would have gotten hit. So, I eventually just jumped out there. Looking back, it all would have been fine had I not done a few silly things like turning left, but then continuing to turn into the oncoming traffic. Or then over-compensating and swerving back into my lane, but then continuing on into the sidewalk where I proceeded to run over a Stoplight Ahead sign. Thankfully the light was green and I sped through and pulled over. There was something really wrong with the car. But it turns out, I would've had to pull over anyways because the cop that pulled in behind me said he saw everything! To this day, I don't think I've ever been more scared in my life. I could. not. breathe. I am so thankful that this police officer stopped me. Though he was stern with me at first, he didn't ticket me or anything, saying that I would have enough to deal with when my parents found out. He let me call my parents, who called AAA and sent out a tow truck. All it was was a busted tire, so my spare was put on and I was sent on my merry way. As I'm sure you can guess, my parents were not very happy with me. I had to pay for the tire. And I still had to drive to work. But I was freaked out and didn't want to, so that was punishment, too. I wish I could say that that accident made me a better driver, but alas, that was not the case. I had another accident that summer, about two weeks later. A fender bender. It wouldn't have been so bad except that you remember the Crown Vic is huge and this guy drove a wimpy truck who's bumper sat lower than mine, which pulled his bumper almost completely off and that I was cited for and then had to pay to fix. This is why I had to go downtown to the courthouse to take care of the ticket. Funny thing, though. I didn't know they required women to wear skirts or dresses in court. I was in shorts (pre-hijab days) because I was heading to work to play with the kids at the daycare. So, to add to all my humiliation, I had to borrow a skirt that they provide for women like me. Thankfully, that was the last accident. During college. I'll get to the rest next time. In my defense, I am, now, a much better, much wiser driver. Honestly.

Why we needed a new van Part I...

We got a new van! I would tell you about it now, but there is way too much back story for that. So, let me get you started. It all began that first time I went driving with my dad. I only had my permit, didn't get too many opportunities to practice driving, and my dad made me super paranoid. But of course, he needed me to get onto the highway. I had never been on the highway and was incredibly nervous. So nervous, in fact, that I managed to have a miniature panic attack while getting onto the highway because I realized just then that I didn't have my seat belt on. Now, you need to understand that once that became law here in Oklahoma, you best believe my parents were enforcing it. We didn't leave the driveway unless everyone was buckled in. How I managed to forget this one time is still a mystery, but I did. So, I'm already nervous because of my dad (he was an imposing presence) and even moreso because I didn't have my seat belt on. But there wasn't anything I could do. I couldn't pull over; I was just pulling onto the on ramp. Needless to say, I managed to get us to our destination, but not before nearly getting us killed, and me without my seat belt. See, my dad gave me the name of the exit and I knew the exit, but until you start driving and need to pay attention to those things, you don't really. If you were like me, you read in the back seat or sang along to the music; you didn't pay attention to names of exits on the highway. Well, it just so happened that I was in the inside lane as I approached the exit, but was unaware until my dad reminded me. Know what I did? I simply turned my signal on and scooted us across three lanes of traffic to the exit never once noticing the semi that was barreling down the highway at us, nearly hitting our backend. Wait, maybe I didn't even have my signal on 'cuz the guy would have at least tried to slow down. So, I guess there was no signal. Of course, you know this freaked out my dad. Since I wasn't aware of the danger we were in until after the fact, I wasn't quite so freaked. As it was, I barely made the exit and barely had time to turn to see what my dad was so upset about. ` This story is just one of many that lead to the reason we kinda sorta needed a new van. More tomorrow...

Weekend Update...

This past weekend was a really nice one. My aunt came into town and I was really glad to see her. I haven't seen her since Mr. M was born. I always knew we had a lot in common, but when she asked if I'd ever heard of Amy Butler and said she's read all the Michael Connelly books, it just solidified it for me. :0) It's very rare that I get to fling back my closet doors to my sewing space and show off my fabric or works in progress to an actual live person. So it was really cool to share that. Then I mentioned that I was needing a bread box for my homemade bread and my mom and aunt found one while antique shopping. It does need to be painted, but it's great and I managed to find room on my counter. Yea! I have Father's Day projects in the works - this tie - for R and my dad this laptop cover - for R I'm pretty sure I'll get the laptop cover done in time, but the ties I'm not so sure about because there's quite a bit of hand sewing at the end and I'm not that speedy at hand sewing. I'm also going to join a gym so I can get more exercise in. Looking forward to that. Oh, and related to that is this site SparkPeople. It is super motivating, has meal plans and fitness trackers like Weight Watchers, has a really big community support like Weight Watchers, but it's free. Check it out if you're trying to lose some weight. Now, watch this video for some crazy, Matrix-like stunts. It's crazy/cool. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MeiwLLZjDo&feature=player_embedded

It's me, on a Thursday...

Okay, so I never really thought my blog had come to depend on photos, but I guess that must be true and would explain why I've written several blog posts in my head only to realize that I don't have a camera to take a picture to explain said blog post. But, here's the thing. I don't have pictures and I haven't posted in a week or so, but people still visit my blog. So, maybe my words are sufficient or something. So, we'll give it a go until we get a new camera. Things I would have told you about sooner had I not been self-conscience about my picture-less post: It was actually a blessing that that little vole ate my tomato plants because my zucchini plant is huge and would have prevented the tomato plants from growing. Now I know to give zukes some room! We ate our first yellow zucchini squash from the garden yesterday and it were pretty darn good. :0) I can not tell you how neat it was to go out and cut it off the vine and bring it in to eat - cut up and roasted with a olive oil and salt. I've got five more growing now and am wondering if yellow zukes taste as good in zucchini bread as green one's. Hum. I have been trying to clean out my sewing closet in the hopes that that will get me back in there again to sew. I can now see the floor and our cat, Izzy, is very thankful. Now I just need to clean off the desk area and then I can tackle the many half completed projects I've got goin' on. This cleaning has also lead to purging of clothes and reorganizing other closets. And I finally pulled out our spring/summer comforter, which we really need to replace. It was from college, 'bout 10 years ago and doesn't look all that great. We get to buy a new dish washer. Yea! Well, our landlord is paying for it, but we get to pick it and everything. I'm so thankful because our old one has many things wrong with it - one of my kids took off the front panel that tells you all the cycles, etc. and so now to start the thing, you have to just turn until you hear it click into action; there is mold growing inside the dishwasher despite my many attempts to clean it; it now thoroughly stinks and makes my kitchen smell bad; when I have tried to run it recently - about a month ago - the smell is horrible, like sewer water and my dishes would smell like it, too. Yuck! So, I'm going today to order the dishwsher. Yea! I really probably should go get my kids up seeing as how it's about 9:30 now. Okay, I'll talk at ya later.