Yessss

Editted:

I've finally found an idea that doesn't have twenty million other books out there. And I'm totally going to use it at tax time to write off some horsey crazy-ness!

If you're not into horses you probably know (or think) that the hobby is incredibly expensive and only for the uber well off.

Not true, not true! There are ways to be thrifty and there are areas you absolutely must NOT skimp on... I'm an expert! I was allowed to have riding lessons as long as my dad didn't have to cut a check, I bought my own saddle (with tons of research), and know the difference between alfalfa, grass hay, square bales, round bales, and why every other equestrian should know this too.

You got it... I'm writing a non-fiction about being an equestrian on a budget... I figure in these times others would probably appreciate it too.

(Of course... if they're like me- every time I see a book about cutting expenses or budgeting I think, "The number one rule is: You better have gotten this from the library!" LOL)

For Rudy... A Man's Guide to Having a Female Equestrian in His Life

EASY TO LOCATE. She's either off on the horse or out in the barn. (Or reading a horse book or writing on a horse blog :-o)

UPHOLDS THE DOUBLE STANDARD, Smooches with the most bewhiskered beast, but quickly recoils when you need to shave.

OWNS ONE VACUUM CLEANER and operates it exclusively in the barn.

A SOCIAL BUTTERFLY. Providing the party is given by another horsey wife. Falls asleep in her soup at all other functions.

ECONOMY MINDED. Won't waste your money on permanents, facials, or manicures.

A CULINARY PERFECTIONIST. Checks every section of hay for mold but doesn't blink when she petrifies your dinner in the microwave.

OCCASIONALLY AMOROUS but never leaves lipstick on your collar, at worst, slight trace of chap stick. (Gotta love that tinted chapstick, now!)

EASY TO OUTFIT. No need for embarrassing visits to uncomfortable little boutiques. You can find all she wears at your local tack store.

FEATURES A SELECTIVE SENSE OF SMELL. Bitterly complains about your sticky-sweet cigar smoke while remaining totally oblivious to the almost visible aroma of her boots drying next to the heater.

UNMISTAKABLE IN A BATHING SUIT. She's the one whose tan starts at the nose, ends at the neck, and picks up again at the wrists. (Note to self- wear sunblock)

A DEDICATED CLUB WOMAN. As long as the words "horse" or "riding" appear in its name. (There are other clubs?)

HAS YOUR LEISURE AT HEART. Eliminates grass cutting by turning every square inch of lawn into pasture which, in turn, converts itself into mud.

A MASTER AT MULTIPLICATION. She starts with one horse, adds a companion, and the next time you look there are five. (Ooooo- companion! Good one!)

KEEPS AN EAGLE EYE ON THE BUDGET. Easily justifies spending six hundred dollars on tack or feed but croaks when you blow ten on bowling.

AN ENGAGING CONVERSATIONALIST. Can rattle on endlessly about pedigrees, training or breeding.

SOCIALLY AWARE. Knows that formal occasions calls for clean boots.

A MOVING FORCE IN THE FAMILY. House by house, she'll get you to move closer to horse country (and farther away from your job). (OMG- I didn't create this one but it's so true!)

EASY TO PLEASE. A new wheelbarrow, custom boots, or even a folding hoof pick will win her heart forever. (Mother's day is coming up you know... I could use a new soft brush)

SENTIMENTAL FOOL. Displays a minimum of six 8x10 color photos of the horse in the house and carries a crumpled snapshot of you (taken before you were married) somewhere in the bottom of her purse. (Red face... I don't think I have a picture of us at all!)

SHOWS HER AFFECTION IN UNUSUAL WAYS. If she pats you on the neck and says "you're a good boy", believe it or not, she loves you! (The dog mommies I know probably agree with this one!)

MOTHER HEN you say you feel bad , she says she is sorry , take some meds and go to bed ,essentially your on your own. the horse(s) get sick or injured you may not see her for days as she has temporarily moved in the barn

Grrr....

I tried to enable the mobile posting so that I could post from my crackberry but for some reason the posts aren't making it. Believe it or not I thought I had posted a few times. Darn technology!

I'm totally sick. It's icky.

I either have food poisoning, swine flu, or I'm pregnant... I better not be pregnant. H will be getting the Big V if I'm pregnant with an IUD. Tee hee.

I've been working on getting the house super organized. You'd think it wouldn't be hard in a bigger house for everything to have a place and everything in it's place.... but you have to have STUFF to put things in apparently. *sigh*

I've been working with Amassa twice a week to kick my weight loss in the butt. I've been plateaued for a while and it sucks because I could eat really well and the scale wouldn't go down and then get depressed and head to Braums for a super greasy burger and malt and the scale wouldn't go up. I think that's the definition of depressing plateau! LOL Amassa is kicking my b-u-t-t! I meet with her twice a week, do weights once a week on my own, and cardio 5 times a week. I lost 2.5 last week so I think we've caught onto something.

I bet I lose something with this lovely stomach bug too. Hey- who said I wasn't an optimist?!?

Yumm-O

So you may have noticed that I haven't been posting as much.

If you really want to stay up to date with me you should be on facebook... I'm addicted to facebook.

I'm trying to be good and stay up with myspace so that would be a second option.

In keeping with the diet and fitness obsession I seem to have contracted (like a friggin disease) I'm going to start posting my food diary here. I figure if you guys SEE when I'm bad then I'll be less likely to go through that drive-thru! LOL

3/25/09
Kashi Vanilla Oatmeal
Banana
Portabello Palo Alto from The Grotto (picture coming)
Cheddar quakes (instead of falling to my Dorito craving)
Greek salad
Boca burger on double fiber bread

Tomorrow is going to be tough. I'm heading down to Tulsa with the munchkins to pick up my mother at the airport and then help my grandmother move.

THEN I'm coming back to town (1.5 hours from there) with not only my two kids but my parent's dog and cat... since the CG is nice enough to move their household goods three months before they leave FL they'll be staying in a furnished condo... no pets.

Me, two kids, two pets... and not enough sanity to go around. Pity.

Spring Cleaning

I know this warm front is making everyone feel like spring cleaning... but ummm... what ever happened to 'Out with the old, in with the new' and referring to just our stuff?

At this moment in time I have no less than 4 friends facing their marriages going down the Slip'N'Slide for the last time. 1 is a definite done and 3 are edging toward that darn piece of vinyl like my brother has them caught between a pool and one of those pump up water guns.

2 out of 4 H's are also MD's... Something must be in the air... Mariage-itis gentleman?

1 is at the cusp of finishing a long(er) residency and making big bucks and he's starting to get that Oh-So-Wonderful complex... You ladies know the one- the one that says, "I am man hear me roar... and let me trade up to a 20 something lithe blonde too"

1 is more established, with older kids. This one worries me more because I think my H respects and really responds to this man. I'm not saying it's entirely his fault... it takes two to tango... but the fact that H kept it to himself and didn't want to reveal any deets (I had to ask him specific questions to get answers) worries me. Well, that and the fact that I stopped asking after he blithely said, "She has psych issues." I'm sure every woman facing divorce has psych(o) issues according to her H.

Another friend is at that same transition period with her H... but of the military sort. It's hard, I know. My dad was in the Army and did the whole, "I've gotta get out now" thing... for him it lasted only long enough to get his Bachelors and get into the Coast Guard. But it was a big change and believe me the fights my parents had still ring in my ears.

My last friend's marriage has been rocky for a while and all I can do is send her love and support via emails and blog-responds. Big hugs K... You're one of the strongest woman I know.

Now that I think of it I know more people than that and you all have my support- no matter the decision, I'm here for you.

Alot of people don't spank because their parents spanked them and it was awful, mind boggling, etc etc... My parents arguing was awful. Being shuffled into a car and looking at houses in a new town and finally feeling closure that the fighting would stop... and then didn't was awful. (Just don't do it that way, ok?)

It makes me appreciate what H and I do have going for us sometimes... there's not a lot of arguing in our house. Maybe because I'm lost in a book most of the time and he's passive aggressive most of the time... it doesn't get much done- but it's not loud and messy.

Hello boot, I'm the walkway.

The Temptation of the Night Jasmine

"Since my knowldge of agriculture is limited to the fact that milk comes from cows, and cows say "moo" (thank you Fisher-Price), I didn't have much to contribute on that topic."
-The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig

As with the previous books in Willig's botanically named series the Night Jasmine is original and at times captivating despite her Harvard tendencies to talk down to the audience (especially during the modern setting) and superfluous writing.

I mean seriously... I know I went to a state college but I'm pretty sure I didn't need a whole paragraph describing Red light, Green light. It's not a complicated game- my 2 year old plays it.

Would it be too much for her to write a heroine that has more on her brain than Manolo and thesis papers? Or maybe one who doesn't live in the prerequisite New York and/or London?

Three out of five stars.

All better

Sort of.

The kids are finally better after doctor's visits and hospital visits (for Gracie) and x-rays and antibiotics. Finally they are back in preschool and- hopefully- happier because they don't feel like crap as much as they did.

BUT- they've been sharing their germs. I freeze 24/7 inside the house with clothes and socks and extra sweatshirts... still freezing. Brrrrr. Thankfully no fever so far- but I feel the nastiness in my chest when I'm walking on the treadmill.

I did workout today... walked, did a dance aerobic dvd, and 30 day shred... so I don't feel as awful as I did the last couple of weeks when I couldn't

I also got to talk to my doc a little bit ago and she is going to call in a change in my Rx because my Zoloft has been making me crazy dizzy. I didn't take it yesterday or this morning and I feel better- but she doesn't want me to go off and switch immediately so I'm supposed to take 1/2 a pill for a week and then switch to the new stuff. Seems kinda silly to me since I'm already on day 2 of not using it... but whateva!

Big hugs to all my gals having H issues!

Congrats to Allison for her happy news!

And big hugs to Jackie for having car issues... sometimes those are just as stressful as H issues!

The cost of being sick

It's a good thing I dropped that A&P class when I did because, as I predicted, both of my children have come down sick since then- so the school would have dropped me with no chance of a tuition refund!

This time, it's Daniel. And it's not a little cold, or an ear infection, or pink eye. This time it's pneumonia.

The poor guy was absolutely despondent yesterday. Wouldn't eat. Wouldn't drink. I was forcing tylenol and motrin down him to try and keep his fever down- but even alternating them every 4 hours he was still running a 102.9 fever. So I called the doctor.

They couldn't get us in until 2- but we went in early in case they had a cancellation. The whole time we were at the office he literally laid in my arms like a newborn. Remember those days when the baby didn't move too terribly much? It was almost scary. My kid doesn't do the no-wiggle-worm thing!

They sent us to the hospital for an x-ray and we got a call very soon after that Daniel has right lower lobe pneumonia. Because his fever was so bad and the x-ray confirmed the pneumonia we went back to the clinic for a rocephin shot in each leg- yay us!

He's doing much better today. His fever has broken (with tylenol this morning) and he was starting to act more like a wild preschool-beast... so normal.

We left to go pick up his Augmentin at Walgreens and he was doing ok still. I grabbed some more motrin and tylenol- we got the tablets because he's starting to dislike the syrup flavors. He started melting down because he wanted to take one before we left Walgreens and I said no.

The melt down pursued once we got to the car and it was time for something anyway so I broke open the motrin and gave him one. I got in and started the very short drive home and Daniel was still trying to catch his breath from his tantrum.

1 block from home I hear: cough... cough... BLECH.

Lovely.

Office co-pay...............................................................................$25
X-ray co-pay...............................................................................$31
Augmentin Rx.............................................................................$40
Cuddling with your baby when they need you......................priceless

Daniel and Gracie's first snow

Kids pictures misc.