MY KIDS THINK I'M STUPID - WARNING WARNING - RANT FORTHCOMING

When I make a threat my kids don't believe that I will follow through with it. I guess because they usually straighten up just in time to avoid the worst.  But this time something seems different.  I don't think  they believe that I have arranged to have their phones turned off on Friday unless I cancel the order. All they have to do is keep up with their chores and catch up on the ones they are behind on.

They have until Friday and I told them about it on Monday and they have done nothing but sit on their butts and play on the computer. This is going to get fun. I will also be disconnecting wireless internet and taking the modem for myself.

It seems that I have one child who thinks she is 18 already and paying rent so she doesn't have to help out with daily tasks around the house. Tsk Tsk Tsk.  She is still under 18 and pays absolutely no rent so she helps out whether she wants to or not. So I guess on Friday she will lose her communication device to the outside world. No skin off my back, but maybe she will learn a lesson - or maybe not. Only time will tell. (Oh and the phone still has to be paid for even if service is suspended)

And it seems like I have another child who thinks she only has to help out if everyone else does their share.  I don't care if the other kids don't do their job as long as long as she does hers she will be fine. But if everyone isn't all working at the same time she has a freak fit. Frankly, I'm so tired of all this crap.  Do the job you were assigned or asked to do and be done with it.  Everybody has different schedules you don't have to all work at the same time!!!!

The sad part is, it's not that much work - some dishes, some laundry and some simple pick up divided between 5-6 people. 1/2 an hour per day if there are no chores to catch up on. And of course there is their bathroom. I can't even go in there without gagging so I insist they clean it themselves.  If they want to be pigs, they are old enough to deal with it!

We do have the little ones try to help a bit with general pick up after all they are part of the mess making crew. But you know they are only 5 and 6 so if I feel like letting them play outside rather than  spend ten minutes picking up then that is my prerogative.  I won't be so lenient when they are older but they will still have plenty of opportunity to be kids.  And what pisses me off the most, and I don't think the older ones realize I know this, is that they have slowly tried to turn their chores over to the little ones.  I'm sorry 5 and 6 are way too young to have that responsibility so I won't put up with it.  EVERYBODY in this house has their responsibilities and they damn sight better do it and not try to pawn it off on someone else.  And I'm sorry, if you constantly get the baby to want you so you can get out of chores, don't complain when she wants your attention all the damn time.  You need to live with it!!! You create a monster and it becomes your lover, your best friend, your responsibility....PERIOD. END OF STORY!

Until Next Time...It is natural for kids to think their parents are stupid, but that doesn't mean that we as parents can't teach them how it really is. I've been alive almost 43 years, you've been alive under 20, you do the math.

HEALTH UPDATE - Feeling good physically but still can't do the diet because of the problem with my throat.  Have to pop way too many pills and have a hard time eating sometimes.  Sigh....I'll get there someday.

MY LITTLE JOY

In a house full of misery there has been one bright spot lately. And that bright spot has a name - Little Butt.  Her facial expression, her use of sentences and her tone of voice has been a great joy to me recently.

Like the time she walked up to me and said "mama I have boobee, I need to go to doctor."  If you hadn't guessed, boobee is booboo. She was in a way telling me that we had been to the doctor way too many times in the last month!  I love it when Mr Insane and Miss Crazy are misbehaving and she will sigh as if the weight of the world is on her shoulders and then yell "Stop it beebee and brubber!
One day I just about peed myself laughing when one of the younger kids got 'hurt' and started unnecessarily screeching, Little Butt sighed that ever present sigh and said "you big faker"

And then there are the times where the kids will be listening to music and she starts singing along.  She sounds so cute singing the words in her own little two year old accent. And then I look at her and smile and she turns all shy and ducks her head and stops singing.  That part makes me sad because I want her to sing all the time, toddler accent and all. The song that she seems to like singing the most lately is In My Head by Jason Derulo. I use it to help increase my typing speed and she picked up on it and will have us play it multiple times in an hour.

And then there is the cute as hell smart assery. The other day she asked for a popsicle and I said "you don't need a popsicle" and she said "I need popsicle." and I said "why are you hungry?" and She said "No, I need popsicle cause I want one. Now! Mommy." Yeah, cute but after we had a 'being polite' talk I sent her out of the room and laughed, again, until I almost peed. (give me a break, I've had 5 kids, I pee when I breathe too deep.)

My oldest daughter and I spent most of last evening just looking at Little Butt and smiling over her antics.  I didn't' think to write down stuff she did and my memory sucks lately but I remember my smile rarely leaving my face all because of the cute little girl who steals my heart again and again every time she opens her mouth.

Until Next Time...enjoy the fun things your kids do and don't forget to write some of them down for future memories.  You'll be glad you did when you can relive the good times.

Update on my health product adventure - 

Well I've had to postpone the  weight loss stuff because I can't swallow very well with this sore throat i've developed so it will have to wait a few days.  I have started on the other supplements and boy am I glad I did.  I'm sleeping great!  My legs are strong again (hips still bad but that will be all weight loss). I can actually go shopping without pooping out after a couple of aisles.  My legs were strong enough for me to go to my son when he was crying out. I didn't have to send Gwen to do it!!!!  I can actually get up and prepare my supplements or prepare a drink without being in so much pain I can't function http://www.omnitrition.com/jjellis

afterwards.  I think I am on the right track with this product and I can't wait to try more.

MY WEEK ROUNDUP

MY KIDS ARE DRIVING ME NUTS FINALLY. WHEN DOES SCHOOL START? Does anybody want a whiny little boy to reprogram after having been influenced by the devil neighbors for two weeks? (They were sent home to NM because everyone refused to babysit them.  I don't think they will be allowed over here next year, they have gotten twice as bad as normal. Thank goodness they are gone, but now we are back to trying to get Mr. Insane outside during the day. It never ends!

We celebrated our anniversary on Tuesday this week with dinner out and a lot of time together just hanging out and doing nothing. They key was that we were together.  We ended up going to Olive garden which was great because we hardly ever get to go there and they have great White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake. I rarely eat dessert so that was an extra bonus.  We did a free giveaway of my latest novel that day too and had a great response.  Why not celebrate love with a free Romance book! http://www.writerjjellis.com 

So, about the new products I'm taking to boost my health, well I took two of them on Thursday for the first time and I felt so wonderful all day!  Of course my hips were still messed up so I couldn't do much physically, but I felt like I could move mountains even if I really couldn't. I did get a lot of work done on my next novel because my mind was clear and I didn't get sidetracked as easily.  I can't wait to see what more use of these products does for me!  Today I started the third product and am waiting to see what it does for me.  This is the multi vitamin one and I understand that this will make the biggest difference until the weight starts to come off. Tomorrow I start the weight loss program (I hope, my cough hasn't been allowing me to hold food down for long so we have to wait until that goes away.)

Next week I hope to have a report back to you on how I am feeling overall and then in a couple of weeks I will have my report on how my weight loss is coming along.  After my first cycle I will have a before and after picture for you. This ought to be interesting.  If you are interested in learning more about the products I'm taking I will give you the web address and you can read it over. OMNITRITION

We had Gwen at the cardiologists today and he doesn't think there is anything to be worried about but he wants to do one last test - she gets to wear a monitor for 48 hours. If that doesn't find something then she is in the clear.  I guess the things she is experiencing can be normal for girls her age.  I'm just glad they are being thorough!

TIME FOR A CHANGE

So, I woke up this morning gasping for breath and decided that I am so glad I'm in the process of making a change for my health.  Yes, I have allergies and yes that played a huge role in why I couldn't breathe. But you know what else played a role?  My weight.  If I didn't have all this extra weight weighing down on my lungs and nasal passages, my breathing wouldn't have been as bad this morning.  I can't tell you how long it has been since I have been able to sleep on my back. I'm done folks, really and truly done.

My biggest problem ?  How do I get healthy if I can barely move.  Well a couple of years ago (I think) I came across an old friend from college on Facebook.  We would comment on each other's posts and stuff, you know, like usual facebook friends do.  But one day I saw her start posting about this amazing weight loss she was going through. Can you say jealous? OMG I wanted some of the action, but I just wasn't ready yet.  Then I saw her start posting about health benefits of the products she was using and how her WHOLE FAMILY was benefiting.  The Jealousy increased greatly and I would occasionally 'like' a post about her (and her husband's) weight loss, but I still wasn't ready yet.  I watched her post about this for months and I really wanted to try what she was doing, but something kept holding me back.  And then one day I comment one of her posts and she messaged me about how I could accomplish what her family had.  Whatever was holding me back, started to wear away.

We would discuss it occasionally and I would look at the before and after pictures she posted and I became more and more interested.  Then one day, I woke up in pain and I felt fat and useless and I wondered if I would be here to see my youngest graduate high school like i'd just seen my oldest do. And I wondered if I would even be here to finish the series of 5 books that I am writing. And I checked the balance on credit cards and talked it over with the hubs.  We decided that I had to do something and since traditional diet/exercise routines were out of the question for me, we decided to take a chance.  I could just buy the product which isn't super cheap for a poor girl like me, but i've seen worse, or I could become a distributor and save a bit of money.

In the end I decided to try to sell the product.  If it works half as good for me as it did for my friend then I will be more than willing to shout it from the rooftops ten times over every hour on the hour.  You should see my friend, the transformation she and her husband have gone through brings tears to my eyes.  It's not just the amount of weight loss (They are a very good looking pair no matter what their weight) but you can see the glow of COMPLETE ABSOLUTE HEALTH coming off of them.  It is truly amazing.  What do I want to get out of this?  1. Health - i.e. better allergies and overall health, better sleep, help for my two kids who have attention problems 2. Weight loss 3. Less pain - this one isn't guaranteed because I just have bad hips/back, but without all the extra weight there could be some improvement- minor or major I will take it. 4. That little bit of extra money that I can make by selling this product.

So what will be my next step?  Get the product (ordered today) and have faith that it will work for me.  After that? Share it with all of you and keep you updated (not every blog, but once in awhile) to let you know how healthy we are getting.  I won't mention the product yet because I myself haven't used it and I want to be able to say 100 percent for sure that it works for ME before I share it completely. I bet you I will be back on here within 3-4 weeks with a good report.

Until Next Time...So, will you still love me if i'm no longer broken?  I sure hope so because my sense of humor will be intact and the antics of my kids will be the same (just most likely more healthy antics, less icky sickies!)  and I will still be a wife and mom who isn't perfect, but is doing the best she can to share ideas with you and entertain you.  Take care and be healthy!!! <3

GOOD NEWS, GOOD TIMES, GOOD DAYS!

So, I was sitting here on the couch fuming because I am not getting the drive free summer I had planned, and no one was listening to my directive that I would not be giving rides, when my phone rang.  I had no clue who it was, but I answered it because the first three numbers indicated it was from the school district. Boy am I glad I did answer it!  They were calling to let me know that they now had room for my son in our school of choice!!!  Woo hoo, that means I don't have to drive all over the place next year getting both of my smaller kids to different schools and different activities at the exact same start and end times. (You know it would have been painful having to get Little Butt in and out of the car an extra time when I would have to take my son into the school because he's not quite ready to just go himself.

I cried tears of joy. Really, I did. You guys don't realize what a relief this is to me.  With the snowy roads that aren't plowed worth a crap, and having to drag a sleepy, cold two year old everywhere, my life will now be so much better and easier and better, and did I say easier?  :D :D :D :D Oh yeah, and less painful too!

And in other great news, Gwen got a clean bill of health from the doctor. We are thinking her feeling 'off' is caused by stress and low blood pressure, which she is treated for.  That is a huge relief and weight off of our minds.

So now that the family is (maybe) finally getting healthier, we can move on to have a good summer.  I am going to be busy getting Mr. Insane ready for Kindergarten and writing my books - I have decided that I am completely insane.  I am writing the last three books at the same time.  I wrote chapter one of all three books and then onto chapter 2 of all three books and so on.  Oh, and I am also still writing that book with my daughter.  Did I mention that I am completely insane?  I do believe I did above and have many other times. :)

I am also starting a new program to try to get healthy.  I will tell you more about it when I get everything finalized, but I must say that the change I have seen in my college friend who is helping me get involved in this, is amazing.  I think she is down 121 pounds now and is feeling great. Her whole family is much healthier and that is exactly what I am hoping for my family too.  Stay tuned for details!!!

Overall things are going good now...thank goodness. I'd hate to have to bore you with my complaining again. ;)

Until Next Time...Please, please, please, enjoy the good times to the fullest!

COMPLAINING ABOUT A BAD DAY, WHY YES, I WILL

I had two kids at the doctor today. And of course the day I have to be out and about a lot, it is supposed to be 95 degrees, which means I will be getting sick. Runs to the doctor, the lab, the store for prescriptions and then to pick Gwen up from work means I will probably NOT be enjoying dinner tonight. Then this evening, we will be babysitting the neighbor kids again so I will have aching hips, an upset and hurting stomach, and a very annoyed temperament.  Oh joy!  The good news - This will be the last night we have to watch the neighbor kids.  It seems my kids overheard us talking about not doing it anymore and they told the neighbor kids who told their grandparents and woo hoo, we are free again!

I was kind of hoping that getting out of babysitting would be a punishment for my older two children who volunteered me, but hey, it's too hot to hold a grudge right now. I'm sure someday, somewhere, somehow I will punish them for their bad deed. hehe. But until then I will be trying to keep cool.

We never should have complained about winter lasting so long, because now summer is here early.  Casper, WY in the mid nineties in early June...yep we are being punished. And rightly so, I will never complain about long winters again...maybe...probably not...ah hell, I'll complain, but then I will suffer. At this point, I really don't care. I'm just trying to get through this day without hurling. So, a note to my kids - if you need to go anywhere or be picked up from anywhere tomorrow, you're on your own.  When it's hot, I stay inside so I can survive. Period. End of Story.

You may be wondering what is wrong with my two who were at the doctor. Well Miss Crazy has developed a sinus infection and sores on her throat (no strep though) thanks to the nasty coughing crud we had.  And Gwen went in for testing to see why she is feeling a bit off. They are testing for diabetes, thyroid, hemoglobin and a few other things.  Hopefully it is just a normal cycle of stuff for the end of her major growth.

Until Next Time...I just felt like complaining today.  I have had some pretty good days here recently with the release of my new book and stuff so I figured if I have a bad day thrown in here and there it's okay to complain.  It's okay for you too. Sometimes bad days are just plain hard to take. Let it all out and be happy again!!!

MY WEEK IN A NUTSHELL - 10 STEPS TO INSANITY

Okay, so I have a favor to ask. If you have bought one of my books, please leave a review somewhere - on your blog, on goodreads, on amazon, anywhere they will let you.  If you haven't bought it (I understand money can be tight) but would still be interested in reviewing it, I am willing to provide 10 PDF copies to people if they will review it on their blog (and any other site that will let them without having purchased it there).  If you are interested, please let me know at my email. To find out more about my books go here.  I only want my romances reviewed (I have two) I will warn that they are said to be sweet (romance) and spicy (sex). They are by no means erotica, but they do have their fair share of sex.  Thank you all so much!  Now on with the fun.

10 STEPS TO INSANITY

1. My 6 year old is driving me nuts.  She will not behave, she is relentless in teasing her siblings, no matter what punishment I dole out, she is driving me mad. So I send her to the neighbor who has a little girl she likes to play with. She behaves there. :/

2. My 5 year old boy has been hanging around girls too much.  He has turned into a complete cry baby whiny butt. I have got to get him out of this stage quickly - he  starts school in a couple of months!!!

3. My pain has been through the roof because of my wonderful coughing fits.

4. My two year old has also become a whiny butt.  If she doesn't get what she wants, she freaks out and can cry for an hour. If you finally offer her what she wants, she changes her mind and wants something different. (We don't give in, but sometimes when we misunderstand what she wants and finally offer her the right thing, she changes her mind.)

5. Allergies are going to kill us, all of us, dead as can be. They need to go away and leave us alone.

6. Thanks to my older daughters we are babysitting the neighbor boys five hours a night, five nights a week and I really don't want to.  I was almost in tears by the time they left the last time. I hate babysitting for one and for two when you get both of them together with both of mine, they don't know how to behave, or be quiet, or stay outside or.... yeah. I am thinking that since the teens accepted the job for me, I might have to make them go over and break the news that we can only do it for this one more week and then they will have to find someone else.

7. I had a release party for my newest novel. It was fun and we are seeing a smattering of results, but only time will tell if it was worth the work it took.

8. The hubs and I are still working on a top secret project (and hell no, it is not another damn kid).

9. I discovered that I hate hate hate marketing my book.  I'm so tired of it. This is something you don't get immediate results from usually so I will be doing it for years to come until I build my fan base. What happened to my patience....oh I covered that in another blog didn't I. ;). I guess it is a good thing I didn't follow my degree to a career (PR- business) Ah crap! I did follow it in the end. Only this time I added writing to the mix.

10. It's hot outside, the kids are driving me nuts, except for my writing, I'm bored out of my mind. Yep, sounds like a typical summer week to me!

Until Next Time...TGIF  We all need a break from a crazy week. But then my weeks lately run from Friday to Friday so I don't get a break. Sigh.....Enjoy the weekend anyway. :D

BUSY BUSY BUSY - EXPLODE!

Do you ever have so much to do that you think you might explode? And there is an order that things should be done in, but you don't want to do them in that order?  Yeah, that's me right now.  There is so much to be done with my book coming out in June, a short story coming out in June, working on a book with my daughter to be released in August (or maybe sooner), doing at home preschool with my son, being sick, a super secret project with The Hubs,

and doing the blog three days a week. I just feel like I am  going to combust, I know it doesn't seem like there is a lot to do, but the job of getting my book ready for publication in June still has about twelve steps and I have about a week to do them in.  

I would much rather play around making a cover for the book that doesn't come out until August, ummm maybe I should just concentrate on finishing it first. Right?  But doing the cover is so much more fun! Doing pre school with my son is like pulling teeth. Not that he doesn't want to learn new things, but my kids just don't like it when I'm the one teaching them. :/

I know I need to set a schedule, in order of importance and stick to it, but I DON'T WANNA!!! I know in the end I will get it done, but sometimes I just get overwhelmed and want to stop what I'm doing and have some fun. Sometimes I tell myself not to sweat it, because it all needs to get done and as long as I keep busy working I will be fine.  Sometimes that works, but when I have projects spread out so far, that doesn't work so much.

On the other hand, I love, love, love being busy.  It is so rewarding when I cross multiple tasks off my list every day. And I guess, deep down inside I wouldn't change a thing. Is it possible that I actually thrive on feeling like I'm about to combust?  Yeah, I think it is. I'm crazy like that. ;)  So I will just take it one step at a time and get it done.  I can't ask for more, my fans can't ask for more and my family can't ask for more.

Until Next Time... Work hard and do your best. That is all anyone should ask from you.  That is what I am going to do and I know, in the end, it will all work out perfectly. :)

THE CRUD - IT CAUGHT ME!

Ugh! We have had a creeping crud going on around her for over a month. We were told the cough could last for weeks but to watch out for signs of an infection.  Well The Hubs and Gwen got the
infection but I had only a mild cough for a few days and thought I'd gotten off lucky because after all, I am the mom and I am needed to take care of everyone else. And then all of a sudden the cough comes back.

Cough is not good when you have bad hips. (Unless by some miracle it were to pop them back into proper place). Right now my hips feel like they have been stabbed with a million knives, but luckily it doesn't hurt worse to walk so that's good.  Then there are my ribs.  I have to hold my body just so, as to not knock my hips out so my ribs take the brunt of the force for my coughs.  OMG I feel like I've been kicked in the ribs a hundred times.

Should I even mention that I am the mother of five and my bladder is weak?  No, I won't go into detail, but I'm pretty sure  you get the idea. I am so ready for this cough to be done and I thought I was getting better, but nope, I was up most of the night last night coughing.  You know, just doze off and hack hack hack. Then calm down and just doze off and hack hack hack and repeat. It has been years since I've had a cough this bad. The last time I remember was shortly after we moved here to this town almost five years ago.  Back then I still had the chronic pain, but not the constant feeling of being out of whack and stiffness so it wasn't so bad.

I think I just have to not ever get sick again. After all the stiffness in my hips started after a bout of the stomach flu caused me to wretch almost continuously for two days.  That's it, that is my plan, do not ever get sick again....and then I remember that I will have 4 kids in 4 different schools bringing home many different viruses...Sigh. I think I will be sick for the rest of my damn life. But at least I have my blog and my novels to keep me busy in times of sickness (Unless I'm coughing too much to keep my pen straight on the paper or the laptop on my lap!)

Until Next Time...Beware of the crud! I hear it is going around everywhere. If you do get it, I recommend heating pads, pain pills and a good sturdy back.  Take care and stay healthy this summer! <3

WHAT'S HAPPENING? JUST STUFF!

My kids actually made liars out of me this morning.  In my last blog I said they wouldn't let me sleep in and that they would wake up between 7 and 8 every morning. Well, this morning they didn't wake up until 8:35 and that is only because the trash trucks came and woke them up.  Damn trash trucks!!!

Well, we had a lot happen over the last week some good, some bad. Of course you all know that the oldest graduated a week ago, on Thursday The Hubs had to go to the doctor - the man who never gets sick was sick as hell, on Friday the other kids had their last day of school for the year and on Saturday, I developed the coughing crud that everyone else has had over the last month and a half and something else exciting happened and I can't remember what...Crap, what was that?...hmmm, it's coming back to me...I completed something I think....oh yeah, I FINISHED MY SECOND BOOK!  Book 2 in my series is done (except for editing of course)  I read through it yesterday and loved it.  I have a couple of small additions to make and then it is sent off to editing. When that is done, well it will be on 'shelves' for you to'grab' and read.

This is book two and I still feel as accomplished as I did with book one. I wonder if it will always be this way. I sure hope so, I love this feeling! It is so addicting.  I just wish the hubs hadn't been so sick.  It is hard to be excited about something when the one you love is so sick they can't rejoice with you. Really guys, I have never seen his so sick - Severe sinus infection, cough, high fever, body aches, shakes and shivers, sleeping whenever the need hit him. That just isn't how it's supposed to be for my love. He is healthy and strong a majority of the time.  He was so bad they made him take three days off work.  He is back there now and I hope he is doing well, I think he should have had another two days or so to rest, but I'm not a doctor.  He is gradually getting better and was even joking with me yesterday.  I just hate seeing my romance hero ready to go to sleep at 7 p.m. (How are we supposed to act our my scenes if he's asleep?!) Umm I mean, how is he supposed to help me beta read my book if he's asleep...yeah, yeah, that's what I meant ;)

Until Next Time...When your loved one can't help you celebrate, it really sucks.  You have to learn to live with it and still be happy. It can be done, it's just not as fun!!! :)

PREVIEW OF ALASKAN AMBUSH

Check out 11 excerpts on http://www.writerjjellis.com

“…I still love you.”

A two year relationship that ended because of a difference in lifestyle left Olivia Mannon and Alex Paige missing each other. Though they still loved each other, they lost all contact.

A sprinkling of matchmaking dust, a cruise to Alaska, and a floatplane tour of Misty Fjord National Monument brings them back into each other’s lives; for better or for worse.

Can Olivia change her ‘suite at a five star resort’ lifestyle to agree with Alex’s ‘camping outdoors’ way of life, or will they lose each other again? This time forever…

ON SALE JUNE 2013

MILESTONE - A HARD PILL TO SWALLOW (PLUS A BONUS POST!)

Today I will give you two posts for the price of one...Okay for the space of one since you aren't paying to read this. Post 1 is a normal mom's adventures with kids post and Post 2 is an article I wrote for my writer's website JJ Ellis, Romance Author that delves into the mind of a writer. I have two other articles on that site too if you want to check them out (Courage was the first and Imperfections was the second)

POST 1
Okay, so I am big about milestones right?  I talk about them a lot (remember when I was all emotional because my little man preferred more grown up kids shows to Mickey Mouse?)  Well, it seems we have hit another one.

Allergy season is upon us - hardcore and since most allergy medications are over the counter we spend a fortune on them every couple of weeks.  The little one is doing well on zyrtec so she has her own bottle of liquid children's zyrtec and the only antihistamine that doesn't turn Mr. Insane into...well, Mr. Insane times 100 is Claritin so he and Miss Crazy have a bottle of liquid children's Claritin to share.  Then The Freshman decided she was tired of refusing her medicine and wanted to feel better so she needed something to take. (Zyrtec turns her into a crazy woman too). My pocket book started to ache along with my heart in watching my kids suffer.


So, The hubs and I came up with a plan.  The Claritin pills (age 6 and up) are tiny so why not see if Miss Crazy can take them. We get those at his work in bulk for cheap!. So Miss Crazy was given a try on her very first pill.  Could she swallow it? Would our experimental work?  YES!!! My baby girl is no longer a baby girl.  She is a big girl.  She can take pill forms of medicine. She is growing up, I am feeling old, this is an exciting day, I am feeling old, what a cool milestone, I am feeling old...yeah, you get the picture.  Once again this is one of those bittersweet milestones.  (I'm not even going to think about the fact that in 22 days I will be the mother of a high school graduate, and in 26 days the mother of a high school sophomore, a second grader and a kindergartner.)

So now I am happy/sad and my pocketbook is thrilled.  We can buy 400 pills really cheap for The Freshman and Miss Crazy to share and a small bottle of medicine will last Mr. Insane a long time as does the medicine we get for Little Butt.  See, there are advantages to your kids growing up!!!  Rejoice in it :)

Until Next Time...ENJOY LIFE :) There are a lot of benefits to our kids growing up and to us getting older. Embrace it or you might just drive yourself crazy. I have had to learn that lesson the hard way but I finally did. Yes, I get a bit teary eyed at milestones, but I no longer dwell on them to distraction.  There is too much fun to be had, too much life to live to dwell on how old my kids and I are getting.

POST 2

A few weeks after I published my first book, Virgin Voyage, I came to a realization that really stung, but in a way made so much sense. The story I had practically lived, and loved like a child, would never bring me reading pleasure like it did others.

In the first few weeks after publication I truly can not tell you how many times I read the book. I had this urge to see if it was a pleasurable, enjoyable read. I wanted to enjoy it (or hate it) the same way a stranger who purchased it would.

There were short periods of time where I could blank my world out and get caught up in Mari and Graham's, but my world always came crashing back in. (And I'm not talking about  my kids bother me or the phone ringing or someone knocking on the door)  You see, I can never not be the author of Virgin Voyage. I will always read it with a critical eye. 'Should I have done this, or written that, or left that out. Or will my readers enjoy this or that better.' Truthfully I just wanted to live in Mari
and Graham's finished world for fourteen chapters. I guess you could say that I was craving the ability to just be a reader to my book.

I couldn't help how I felt. I knew I shouldn't feel that way but I did. It almost felt like a betrayal to the characters. I created them, I loved them, I nurtured them,  I put them to paper and I enjoyed it thoroughly. But I couldn't experience them as they were meant to be enjoyed.

And then my first reviews started to come in. Not only on Amazon, but through people contacting me personally to tell me how much they loved the book. All of a sudden, everything I've mentioned above didn't seem to matter anymore. Friends, family and strangers were reading my book the way I wanted to, and I realized something, the whole reason I wrote the book in the first place was so people could live it, love it and enjoy it.  Low and behold, they actually were!!!!  I never betrayed Mari and Graham, I gave them a happy life, in more ways than one.

I know I will most likely have the same feelings about future books, but now I will know how to handle it - just sit back and wait, someone will enjoy it and tell me they did, and then
the world inside that book will be complete.

WHAT IF I FIX WHAT'S BROKEN?

So, what happens if I am not so broken anymore?  Does my writing career go downhill? Do I become less funny (looking?)? Do I lose my ability to write? Do I lose my ability to come up with blog ideas?  Do I lose my fans?

These are all things that have crossed my mind at some time or another because I always dream of finding out exactly what is wrong with my hips and getting it fixed.  Yes, I am broken in many other ways, but if I only had good hips I could function so so so so...much better!

I do research on hip disorders, bone diseases etc. all the time.  I have even done a bit about the pelvis because mine occasionally pops and after all I did have five children bearing down in it. And then, just by chance I came across some articles about asymmetrical pelvis problems and low and behold I think I finally got it!!!  My pelvis is so far out of whack it isn't even funny and it is causing many of my other problems.  Well Hell's Bell's why didn't I think of this sooner.

Now for the bad news.  It's going to take time and money to fix it.  I have lots of time, but absolutely no extra money yet. (Now if I sold 1,000,000 books... haha yeah.) Anyway, I decided to do some exercises that I saw on a website that is supposed to help.  Problem?  Yeah, I have to be able to get down on the floor to do them.  LMFAO yeah, right. Me? On the floor?  hahahahahahahahah.  Okay, once I stopped laughing I had to do something and then I remembered what an old doctor and an old chiropractor once told me.  They advised me to let gravity do the work.  So now I lay on the edge of the couch or bed on my side and let my top leg drop off and gravity slowly works things into the right place.  I have done it three or four times today and I do not feel anywhere near normal, but I really feel much better. (And since I am writing this the night before I publish it, we will have to see how the morning goes and see if I am sore as heck or not.) I am able to bend to my right while sitting, I was able to get up quickly with no pain twice today and I actually stood for five minutes straight without feeling sore, nerve pain, or tired.

So what is next.  More gravity work of course! And then once I am able to make it on the floor without the possibility of being stuck there forever, I will start the other exercises I found on that website.  I sure hope it works.  I want to be productive again, Yes, I will probably still have my foot problems so I won't be able to work a standing job and I will still have my migraines and sinus problems so there will be days when I am down for the count, but I will love being able to get three little ones in the car without aching for days afterwards or risking throwing my back out and not being able to get back inside. Heck I will be grateful to be able to get up and get my own drinks (My kids never put the right amount of ice in, you know?)

I do not know what the future will hold. I may someday become the formerly broken housewife and mom, or I may find that it will take more than just these stretches and exercises to get better, but one thing I do know is that I will still be me, deep down inside, no matter how broken I am or am not, I am still me - a mom, a housewife, a writer, a blogger.

Until Next Time...A lot of times I have thought that if circumstances change I will change, but that isn't always the case.  Outward things and ideas may change, but deep down inside you will always be you.

GERMS AND BUGS - AND WE THOUGHT OUR KIDS DIDN'T SHARE

Well we have reached that point again.  What point you may ask?  The point where Miss Crazy is at the age when life is all about lending, borrowing and sharing stuff with friends at school.  Now, I know we all tell our kids not to share drinks, brushes and other 'personal' things because of the possibilities of bugs and germs, but there are also the harmless things like Miss Crazy letting a friend wear her precious Hello Kitty ring until the last bell, or her friend lending her a bracelet until that same last bell - harmless stuff.

Now if you have a child that is perfect and does everything mom or dad says, I commend you for being a super parent.  But in my experience, THEY DO NOT LISTEN, especially about the 'personal' stuff. The senior came home with strep in third grade.  I asked her if she shared food or drink with anyone and she said no. I asked her again and she said no. Come to find out she and her best friend had swapped gum because they each didn't like the taste of the gum they had. SMDH.

I can't remember which kid it was, but one of them came home with lice. I asked them if they had shared a brush or hat with someone and they said no.  I asked again and they said no. Turns out they had swapped jackets with a friend and wore the hood.  (Although I am pretty sure this case of the nasty bug started elsewhere - here in Wyoming in the younger grades Jackets, hats and scarves are an absolute necessity and they are all kept in close proximity so those little suckers just jump on over to everyone) My point is, the little devils don't listen (kids and lice), they are sneaky little buggers that know every which way to get around the rules. ;)

Here are some of the excuses I've heard for blatantly not following the rules. But mom my hair was a mess and tangled.  I didn't want to look like a dork so I used  'so and so's' brush.  Or how about But mom, my head was cold and she had an extra hat in her locker. And then there is But mom I was so thirsty and my drink was gone so she shared hers. And of course being the smart ass I am my responses are - haven't you ever heard of using your fingers as a brush, well maybe next time you shouldn't lose your hat and haven't you ever heard of a water fountain.

But in the end, I have just kind of learned to go with the flow.  If something serious comes out, disease or bug wise, I will strictly enforce and punish for breaking the 'rules' but until then we just have to go with the flow. I can't be with my child 24/7 and I will never know everything they do when I'm not there.  But I now expect the occasional strep throat or lice outbreak or cold or stomach bug because it really is a part of life (x7 for our family :/) Remember, severe sore throat, a sore throat that doesn't go away quickly, or sore throat with a fever should always be looked at by a doctor!

Eventually the kids will develop their own sense of what is okay to share/borrow and that will be brought on by my constant nagging when they were younger. Although I know for girls, that special group of best friends doesn't seem to apply to the no share personal stuff rule because you know, they are immune. It doesn't matter if they are hacking up a lung, they are a best friend so it doesn't count. And the same applies to boyfriends (And if you are lucky you end up with a kid who thinks everything is gross and you don't have to go through any of this. Right?) Perhaps we should rejoice in the fact that our kids are actually sharing??? Or not. ;)

Until Next Time...As long as kids are allowed to roam free in public, whether at school, the mall, sports practices, dance lessons etc. they are going to come across some unsavory things and we as parents just kind of have to deal with it as it comes and keep reinforcing what is safe/safer/safest.  Most of them will get it eventually. Aside from reinforcing, just keep a box of lice treatment in the cabinet and the doctor's phone number in your phone and you are doing what needs to be done.

DEHYDRATED

I think I have made a discovery about something that has been going on for years.  I have suffered with dehydration for as long as I can remember. I have never been able to drink much (well maybe when I was really little).  If I drink too much whether in one sitting or throughout the day I feel sick. Sometimes just taking one little sip makes me feel way too full (even though I'm not) and I get nauseous. So, I solved that problem by drinking only what I could handle (day to day) and playing make up and feeling like crap (once every couple of weeks)  I guess you could say I've pretty much lived my life dehydrated.

[[[And yes I do realize that some of my other problems might not be quite as bad if I cold be hydrated.  But then I know the problems wouldn't go away completely because there are times (when giving birth) that I am super hydrated and have the same problems just a bit less]]].

So what is the problem you might be asking?  GERD - simple as that. Gastroesophageal reflux disease

When I was pregnant the last time (with Little Butt) I had acid that almost drove me to quit eating and I was getting physically sick for a lot more than just typical 'morning sickness'.  My doctor asked me my symptoms and if I had any before the pregnancy.  I told her of every digestive problem I've had since I was a child.  She told me it was GERD and gave me some super prescription strength acid reflux meds. They kind of worked, although pregnancy complicated the situation. I was able to eat and nourish my baby and not completely dehydrate.  I was good.  Well, after I had the baby the acid was barely noticeable again (heartburn isn't always the foremost symptom of GERD). So guess what I did?  Yep, I stopped taking my medication.  I could deal with the occasional tummy problem again, it was no big deal and it was nowhere near as excruciating as when I was pregnant.

And then comes the other day.  I'd been having problems with a bad flareup and I just couldn't drink.  I literally got so dehydrated that my body started to seize up and my muscles started to cramp. It was bad.  I seriously started to think I was going to have to do the one thing I've dreaded and feared my whole life - go to the hospital to be rehydrated.  The last couple of days I have been able to re hydrate myself a bit and am feeling much better.  My plan now is to (even though I will feel like crud times two) overload myself and get completely hydrated and start back on the refux meds.  Thankfully they are available over the counter (I just hope not too expensive).

So now I have a plan of action!  It will be a pain having to take the medication at certain times before I eat, especially with 6 other people in the house who like to be able to eat on a whim.  But I am so scared of ending up in the hospital with dehydration that I will live with a bit of inconvenience.

Until Next Time...If you have something that needs medication by all means take it! It was prescribed or recommended for a reason.  Don't stop just because you are feeling better!  That is a big mistake that a lot of us make. You never know when it might benefit you in more ways than one.