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January 30, 2004
We Are Way Behind
Sleepy Hollow was released in 1999 and we just got around to watching it tonight. Pretty sad, huh! It wasn’t what I would call a scary movie, however it was very bloody. The story line strayed wildly from the original, but that gave it a certain twist; you never knew what was going to happen.
On another note: Today was the sixth snow day of the year. It looks like the kids will be going to school in June :(
Posted by tami at 10:51 PM Comments (1)
January 29, 2004
Spend Some Money ;)
We just put a few things on ebay last night. You can click HERE to see my auctions.
Posted by tami at 2:35 PM Comments (1)
We're Getting Some Back
Our taxes have been filed for the year! We are complete! We bought the program TaxACT and filed electronically. We did this last year too and had our money by February 15th. You just can’t beat that! The form is very easy to fill in and everything is explained, so you can’t really mess it up. We also get our refund check automatically deposited to our checking account for even faster service. It’s hard to believe that it didn’t cost us anything except the cost of the program ($19.95).
Posted by tami at 8:19 AM Comments (2)
January 28, 2004
Little Girls
Normally I don’t like mushy stories like this, but for some reason this one appeals to me. Maybe because I know that I would have never overreacted like the mother in this story did. I truly cherish every day that I have with my daughter. In light of THIS story that happened here in Kentucky only last week, this story is even more poignant. That little girl never had a chance.
The story:
Some time ago a mother punished her 5 year old daughter for wasting a roll of expensive gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and she became even more upset when the child used the gold paper to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree.
Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift box to her mother next morning and said, "This is for you, Momma."
The mother was embarrassed by her earlier over reaction, but her anger flared again when she opened the box and found it was empty. She spoke to her daughter in a harsh manner. "Don't you know, young lady, when you give someone a present there's supposed to be something inside the package?"
The little girl had tears in her eyes and said, "Oh, Momma, it's not empty! I blew kisses into it until it was full."
The mother was crushed. She fell on her knees and put her arms around her little girl, and she begged her forgiveness for her thoughtless anger.
An accident took the life of the child only a short time later, and it is told that the mother kept that gold box by her bed for all the years of her life. Whenever she was discouraged or faced difficult problems she would open the box and take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, each of us, as human beings, have been given a Golden box filled with unconditional love and kisses from our children, family, friends and GOD. There is no more precious possession anyone could hold.
Posted by tami at 10:29 AM Comments (1)
January 27, 2004
Be Aware
I know that I’ve posted three times already today, but someone just sent this to me in an email and I thought it was important. I know that I had never thought of this before:
Keep a watch out for people standing near you at retail stores, restaurants, grocery stores, etc., that have a cell phone in hand. With the new camera cell phones, they can take a picture of your credit card, which gives them your name, number, and expiration date.
Identification theft is one of the fastest growing scams today, and this is just another example of the means that are being used.
So...be aware of your surroundings.
Posted by tami at 10:21 AM Comments (1)
Brrrr!
It has been spitting snow for about an hour now and my car is covered. The house felt so cold this morning! I kept meaning to turn up the thermostat, but would forget. Just now, I went to turn it up and nothing happened. I knew that it should have clicked on, but there was no sound at all. Come to find out, someone had turned off the wrong switch in the utility room. Someone named Ashley. We have two switches one right next to the other that look identical. One turns on the light, and the other turns on the heat/air. Needless to say, this one stays on at all times. I had asked Miss Ashley to take the clothes out of the dryer last night. I guess when she left the room, she turned both switches off. I hope it doesn’t take too long for it to heat back up in here. Oh, I just got our gas bill and it was $147!!! It just kills me!
Posted by tami at 10:11 AM Comments (0)
The Latest Message
If any of you are Anne Rice fans like I am, you will want to read her latest Website Message. It is a bit shocking to me. Don’t think I didn’t notice that she never mentions what genre of book she is working on either; only that she plans for it to be out in the fall. The suspense is killing me.
I would also like to hear how she is doing since she had gastric bypass surgery. There have been so many changes since the death of her husband, Stan that you just begin to worry. And now she stated in her message, “My new address won't and can't be publicized. It's pretty inaccessible.” I understand not telling fans where you live. I just hope that she really keeps in touch with her friends. Some isolation is a good thing, but too much can cause some pretty deep depression. I’m definitely not trying to suggest that anything is wrong; I’m only shocked at all of the changes. I guess I'm just a worry wart!
Posted by tami at 8:31 AM Comments (0)
Room To Grow
Because of the ice received on Sunday, yesterday was our fourth snow day. I thought it was a smart decision to call school off. The roads were hazardous and we have lots of small, winding country roads around here. I can’t even imagine school busses going down some of those roads when the weather is good, much less icy or snowy.
We stayed in all day watching out the windows as the ice melted away from the cars, bushes, roads, etc. The sun did begin to shine and it looked lovely. Come to find out it got up to 60 degrees yesterday! Wow! Ice one day and summery the next. As for tonight, it’s supposed to snow. Oh well, it is winter so it can be expected.
Since we have a smaller house with only three bedrooms, Ashley’s room is packed with furniture and toys. I have been very nice and let her use the living room to keep her Polly Pocket dolls in. I figure we don’t get company very much anyway (don’t laugh Lynne) so it really doesn’t matter too much. But, yesterday Ashley decided that she would just make the living room her play area. Here is how it looks this morning:
Believe it or not, this is not a tenth of the toys still in her room. She was being selective when she brought those in, however I have no idea how long my nerves will let me handle this. I like things in their place: nice and tidy. The child needs a play room! I have had friends that have taken their dining rooms and put all the toys in there, but we don’t even have that option. We have an eat-in kitchen. Don’t get me wrong, I am very grateful for what we have and I love our house, we just need to add on a bit :)
Posted by tami at 8:10 AM Comments (0)
January 26, 2004
A Tale Of The Bizarre
Okay, let me just get THIS story straight. He murders one woman while having sex, but then hides her body to protect his girlfriend from losing her unborn twins. Have I about summed that up? Too bizarre!
Posted by tami at 9:26 PM Comments (1)
January 25, 2004
On Thick Ice
The ice hit Winchester at a rapid pace this morning. Churches all around were canceled. I took the following pictures from the porch. The ice was so thick that I was afraid of falling. Hopefully you’ll be able to see it even though some are at a distance.
This is the front walk right in front of where I was standing.
Here is the Weeping Willow. It’s REALLY weeping now!
Beyond this tree is our street. The snow plow has been down it several times, but it hasn’t helped at all.
This is the sidewalk leading to the driveway. It looks pretty treacherous to me! I doubt the kids will have school tomorrow.
Posted by tami at 4:47 PM Comments (1)
January 23, 2004
Somebody ...
A friend sent this email to me. I have no idea who wrote it, but it is very true.
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby . . somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, normal is history.
Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct . . . somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
Somebody said being a mother is boring . . . somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.
Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good"
... somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.
Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices . . . somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.
Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother . . . somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math.
Somebody said you can't love the fifth child as much as you love the first. . . somebody doesn't have five children.
Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing questions in the books . . . somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery. .
. somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten . . or on a plane headed for military "boot camp"
Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back . . somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies.
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married...
somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home...
somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her . . . somebody isn't a mother.
Posted by tami at 11:16 AM Comments (2)
January 22, 2004
Huck Finn
I said several months ago that I was going to try and read some of the “classics”. I just finished Mark Twain’s: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Overall, it was a good book. Honestly though, it’s a guys book. Let me put it another way. I believe that it was a guy’s book back before the 50’s when little boys used to use their imaginations and play cowboys and Indians. I think that it would be hard for a boy in today’s society to relate to any of this. This is an adventure book about a boy who lies constantly and gets into one mess right after another. He likes to talk about the Injuns (Indians) and the setting is back when we still had slaves here in the U.S. It was written in 1918 if that helps indicate the time period.
I think it was hard for me to get into this book because I am a girl and the adventures and characters didn’t really appeal to me. This to me was along the same lines as Uncle Tom’s Cabin which I wrote about HERE. Some books can touch you very deeply and others miss the mark. I could have lived without either of these. I would never want to discourage anyone else from reading either of these books, but I do believe that they are geared toward a certain audience and that audience did not include me.
I now return to Agatha Christie :)
Posted by tami at 12:04 PM Comments (1)
January 21, 2004
Paper Dolls
When I was younger I enjoyed playing with paper dolls. My mom taught me how to cut pictures of living room, bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen scenes from the Sears catalogue and glue them inside the cardboard folders that the paper dolls came in. This way, I could sit them up and they would have their own houses.
Paper dolls are still around, but not like they used to be. I don’t hear of many girls playing with them these days. I recently got my old ones out for Ashley to play with and here is one that I thought you would be interested in:
I still have all the clothes and hats that came with her too!
Posted by tami at 7:17 PM Comments (0)
January 20, 2004
Etiquette Lesson
Okay listen up! I’m getting on my soapbox now and I don’t know how long I’m going to be there, so if you’re not in the mood to hear it I would suggest you skip this post altogether. You have been warned.
I was brought up to believe that you ‘call before you come’. Meaning: give me some warning before you come to visit. Now, I realize that all people don’t have strong feelings about this like I do, but let me tell you I DO have VERY strong feelings about this rule of etiquette. I don’t believe that it applies to close family members though. My parents are welcome to come over whenever they please.
It may seem as if I’m being overly sensitive, but checking with my copy of Amy Vanderbilt’s Etiquette, I see that I am not. Mrs. Vanderbilt says, “It is a considerate thing to phone any newcomer on whom you plan to call to ask when it will be convenient for her to see you. Choose the afternoon between three and five or, if it’s an informal home and an informal neighborhood, in the early evening after dinner, first making sure you are welcome.” I couldn’t agree with this more.
For the past two Sunday’s we have attended a new church. They strongly suggest that you fill out a visitor card and drop it in the offering plate. They also have a guest book that you can sign when entering or leaving the building. Kevin and I never fill out these visitor cards. We know that once you fill them out, someone is bound to “come calling” on you and they never call first. I have no idea why church’s think that they are exempt from this rule. It would be lovely to be asked so that I might have time to straighten things up a bit, burn a candle, put on a bra, etc.
Okay, so I have established that Kevin and I never fill out these cards. Skip to us on the way home from church this Sunday. Ashley is in the back seat telling us how everything went: the games they played, how they talked about Baptism, how she filled out a visitor card, how they sang. “Back up! What was that? Did you say you filled out a visitor’s card?” I asked. “Yes, he said it was very important and he wants to meet you.” She replied. Okay, I thought to myself, we’ll meet him next Sunday morning. “Did you give our address?” I asked. “Yes and he said that he lives just a few streets over from us!” I knew. I knew right then we would be having company; company that was not invited and that had definitely not called to see when it would be convenient for us. Church people never do. Some people say, “Well if you know when they’re coming, you’ll make sure your not at home.” Hmmmm. Let’s just think about that statement. Might that mean that they don’t want to be bothered?
Tonight we ate dinner a little early. Normally we’re sitting down to eat at 6, but tonight it was 5:45. By 6:10 I had finished the dishes, but I knew that it smelled pretty funky in there. We had eaten fish and it keeps the kitchen good and smelly for at least two hours afterwards and that’s with the help of an incense stick. The garbage was piled high, but I had planned to wait until dinner was over because I knew plates would need to be scraped and then the fish smell would be in the garbage. (There is reasoning behind my madness). Ashley’s Polly Pocket’s were all over the living room and the TV was blaring Clean Sweep when the doorbell rang. It was 6:15. Once again, I knew. I knew that it would be someone from church because they never call first. I hadn’t even lit an incense stick; I hadn’t had time to get to it just yet so the house was good and ripe. If I hadn’t cooked an early dinner, we would have still been eating. Now how rude is that? I quickly begged Kevin to please get the door and I ran to the bedroom. It was Ashley’s Sunday School teacher. I guess he couldn’t wait until next Sunday to meet us; although I stayed in the bedroom the entire time.
After he left I asked Kevin how it went. He told me that he kept him right next to the door, so he probably hadn’t seen the pile of garbage or the toys all over the floor. But, he will probably forever associate that fish smell with us whenever he sees us. Oh, well, I’m sure he is a very nice person, but he should have called! That goes for anyone outside the family. No one likes to be caught with their pants down (or their fish breath).
Posted by tami at 8:40 PM Comments (5)
January 16, 2004
What Famous Leader Are You?
Posted by tami at 9:48 AM Comments (1)
What Classic Movie Are You?
I have never seen this movie, but now I’ll definitely have to watch it.
Posted by tami at 9:47 AM Comments (0)
January 14, 2004
Boots For Lynne
Here are those new boots Lynne :)
Posted by tami at 9:30 PM Comments (1)
January 13, 2004
I Remember
Several years ago my best friend was murdered. We met because she had a child in the same class at school as Andrew. While I was pregnant with Ashley, she was also pregnant. She was only four months behind me.
Throughout our friendship she told me how horrible her husband was and naturally, I believed her. That’s what friends do; they believe and they blindly trust and love. I knew that her husband was gone a lot, but I thought it was because he was selfish and wanted to be alone. When I saw him, I was always nice to him, but I secretly thought he had to be the biggest A-hole on earth.
At the time of her death, she and her husband had been separated for about two months and she was seeing someone else. Her husband had moved to another town and left her with the house.
While her four children were on a weekend trip with their dad, the new man in her life strangled her to death. The cause of death was asphyxiation. It also came out in the newspaper that she was doing cocaine and drinking and they had had an argument. I knew that she took pills for depression, but the cocaine information was a very big deal to me. In the years that I knew her, I never would have suspected cocaine. Her mother later told me that her daughter had had this problem for years. I would like to believe that had I known she had this problem when she was alive, I would have done something to try and help her. Someone should have done something. For goodness sakes, her mother knew and apparently stood in the sidelines. Maybe she tried to talk to her, but apparently whatever she did wasn’t good enough. But someone else knew too; someone who lived with her every day; someone that should have had her committed to a program. That person was her husband.
When she died, I went to the visitation and that was it. I didn’t feel comfortable enough to talk to him about anything. I had been gullible and I had believed everything that she told me about him. Some of it may have been true, who knows. It doesn’t really matter now anyway. I can’t even imagine having to live with a person who has a drug habit, especially one as bad as that one had to be. Looking back I should have known that something was wrong. There were instances with the children that should have never happened, but I blamed it on her depression, or she hadn’t taken her pills that day, etc. I wish I had looked her in the eyes and asked her what was really going on. I just didn’t see it being her fault. I thought that she acted the way that she did because of him. He was supposed to be the bad husband and because of that he made her act the way that she did.
It had been years since I had seen him. I would run into the kids every now and then at school, but they didn’t remember me. It’s sad to say, but young children really don’t remember a lot unless they are around you on a regular basis. For the past two weeks in a row I have seen him in the same restaurant with two of the four children and his new wife. He just remarried in November. The first time I saw him, he didn’t speak to me at all. The second time, he said hello and commented on how big Andrew had gotten. Just tonight I saw one of the kids at a local gym where we walk. She was there for cheerleading practice. About a half an hour later, I ran into him entering our local Wal-Mart. He made quick small talk and kept walking.
I would love to tell him that I am truly happy for him. That I understand why he left, why he could no longer cope. That I don't blame him. That she was my friend and I loved her, but no one should have to go through that. I’m happy that the kids have a mother figure to look up to. I would love to wish him all the best if I only had the nerve. It would make me feel better, but let’s be honest: he couldn’t care less what I think. He’s probably mortified that he keeps running into me. I keep wondering if I’m missing some opportunity.
Posted by tami at 10:34 PM Comments (2)
January 12, 2004
Arm Anyone?
I probably sound like a terrible person, but I found THIS news story incredibly funny.
Posted by tami at 8:11 AM Comments (1)
January 9, 2004
#3
We had our third snow day today. Andrew shoveled the sidewalk as you can see below. 
Here’s another picture of Ashley playing in the snow. We got her some new Diva Star boots, so she got to put them to good use today.
We pretty much relaxed all day. Andrew played on his PS2 and the rest of us read. Ashley and I both finished our books.
Tonight we watched Road to Perdition with Tom Hanks and Paul Newman. I do realize that most movies that I mention on here you have probably already seen. I am terrible at staying up to date when it comes to my movie viewing. There are so many that come out on a weekly basis that I just don’t see any way to keep up. But, back to the movie: it was very interesting and worth seeing. This is a different role for Tom Hanks as he plays a hit man, but he was very convincing in the role.
Posted by tami at 11:04 PM Comments (2)
January 8, 2004
The Grandmother
At Ashley’s school they have a program called Accelerated Reading or AR for short. In this program you read a book and then get on the computer and answer questions about that book to earn points. You can read as much or as little as you want; the choice is yours. There have been many times when Ashley has finished a book and then gone to school the next day to take the test only to find that the computers are down. This is frustrating to both her and me because we are both worried that she will forget the information.
Cut to this morning: They changed the lunch menu to corn dogs and Ashley doesn’t like corn dogs so she called and asked if I would bring her a lunch. I said yes and showed up at the school fifteen minutes later. When I walked in the office to sign in, it just so happened that the computer teacher was sitting at the front desk. I started talking to her about the AR program. I was wondering if the tests could be taken online at home when the computers were down at school. She told me that they couldn’t because it was an in-school computer program. All was fine until Mrs. Principal walked out of her office and butted into our conversation. Let me describe Mrs. Principal for you. She’s tall with very erect shoulders, she seems to wear no make-up, and Lord forbid she smile or even pretend to actually like you. If you’ve ever read the book Flowers in the Attic, she would be THE GRANDMOTHER. The computer teacher and I continued to talk about the computers sometimes being “down” or out of commission. Mrs. Principal didn’t like this at all. She all but called me a liar and said, “The teachers panic when their computers aren’t working and they report it to us so there must be something else going on here.” I told her that even my fourteen year old son had been in when the computers were down and she just wouldn’t believe me. I was livid to say the least!
When I went down to Ashley’s room I informed her teacher that I was all but called a liar. She told me that she doesn’t always report when her computer is down, but that it did go down often. She said that she was surprised that Mrs. Principal would act like that though.
I’m not surprised at all. She always acts as if there’s a stick up her butt as do most of the office workers there. There is one blonde headed lady that’s nice, but the rest are as mean as rattle snakes. I don’t know how they got jobs working around parents and children.
Posted by tami at 9:14 AM Comments (3)
January 7, 2004
Even With The Heat ...
Here in Winchester it’s been a warm 10 degrees outside. Ooh lets break out the bathing suits! NOT!
Even with the heat turned on, with these cool temperatures you can still count on some things staying the same. Some of the things that drive me batty:
1. Cold bed sheets: They don’t get warm until our bodies warm them.
2. When you wash your hands, the water is ice cold for the first three minutes. About the time you get all the soap off, the water heats up.
3. No matter how warm the house is, the toilet seat is always cold! EEK!
4. You have to warm up the car in the mornings. We don’t have a carport or a garage so I have to clear off all the ice and snow. What a joy this can be :)
I hope it is warmer where you all are!!!
Posted by tami at 3:34 PM Comments (3)
January 6, 2004
A Little Different
I decided that I would do something a little different and show you some of the oil paintings in our home. Though not terribly expensive, they mean a lot to me. I have no idea who painted each one; I just cannot read the handwriting at the bottom.
This one is in the living room. I call it “The Parlor”.
This one is also in the living room. I call it “The Time Machine” because it reminds me of the movie by the same name.
This fairy is in our hallway. She was the first oil painting that I bought.
This “Goddess” is on another wall in the hallway. She is beautiful!
I hope you enjoyed these as much as we do!
Posted by tami at 9:06 PM Comments (4)
January 5, 2004
You Lookin' At Me?
Have you ever met anyone who when they talk, never take their eyes off of you; ever? It’s daunting to say the least. Years ago at one of my first job interviews, the interviewer was like this. I was in her office for a total of thirty minutes probably and she never took her eyes off of mine. It was uncomfortable and very warm in there and I could hardly wait to leave. By the way, I did get the job. I know that it is considered good manners to keep eye contact, but isn’t there a time frame when there is too much eye contact?
I had a conversation with someone today which lasted for a total of fifteen minutes. She never took her eyes off of mine – not even for a second. This in turn, made me stare at her the entire time too because I didn’t want to seem rude. I guess when some people are starred at they tend to look in a different direction. As for me, I stare right back. It’s like I’m mesmerized or something. I have nothing to hide, it just feels creepy somehow.
If Kevin were to stare at me during conversation, I wouldn’t think a thing of it. If one of the kids did it I would be shocked, but it wouldn’t bother me. Other people, particularly strangers, are another matter entirely. It’s just something to think about.
Posted by tami at 4:00 PM Comments (4)
January 4, 2004
Skool Daze
After two weeks off from school and work for the holidays, it is now time for everyone to return. The kids will return to school and Kevin will go back to work. We will all get up between 6 and 6:30 in the morning. I know it has to be done, but I do dread getting up. We have gotten used to 3AM bedtimes and 11AM beginnings. Things are about to change drastically to say the least.
In order to try and help, we got up at 10:00 on Saturday and 9:30 this morning. Do I think that will help? Not really. 9:30 is still a far cry from 6:30. I would say that we will all be ready for bed early tomorrow night.
It’s hard to believe that half of the school year is gone. The kids only have about 4 ½ months left. Hopefully they won’t have more snow days. I’ve told them both that snow days equal more days tacked on at the end of the summer. Andrew says that he doesn’t care, but believe me he will care when it’s hot enough to go swimming and he’s stuck in school.
Posted by tami at 6:57 PM Comments (3)
January 1, 2004
Removal
Since I first started this blog I have tried to be very mindful about copyright laws. No, I have never read up on the laws, but I always attach an author’s name to the work if I know it. Whether it is a song, poem, etc. everyone deserves credit for their work. With that said, I have gone back through this blog which I started in February 2003 and I have removed ten “cartoon” pictures. I wasn’t asked to remove them. I’m honestly just afraid of getting in trouble for having them on here. They were pictures from a day-by-day calendar that I bought last year. But, get this: When I pulled off the last sheet (on the 31st) it said that no part could be reprinted without written permission. Hmmm, shouldn’t they have put that at the beginning of the calendar? Oh well, I read that and got worried; maybe needlessly so, but it’s my butt on the line here. So, to make a long story short (too late!) if you look through the archives and the pictures don’t appear, you’ll know why :)
Posted by tami at 11:02 PM Comments (2)