Just a quick hello

Well, it has been a full week since the surgery and all is going as well as possible. There was a little more damage to the right knee then they previously thought so my Doctor beat that side up pretty good. From my knee up there is a lovely explosion of purples, yellows and greens. Very attractive, let me tell ya!! My first physical therapy session was today and I am really anxious to get going with that. The faster I am back to 100%, the better! My therapist was really nice and not at all the 250 lb brute I was expecting. I'll keep you updated on the progress!! And special thanks to everyone that has been babying my butt this last week. My family really does rock!! Love you all!!

The big day....

Well tomorrow is the big day. Finally going to get my old lady knees fixed. Well, not fixed really but it will at least be a temporary solution and I am all for whatever makes them better for awhile. Since they are both bad, and I am not too excited about the surgery, I am having them both done at the same time. Sounds a little insane, huh. But my reason is simple....if I did just one, and the surgery totally sucked, I would be WAY less likely to go back in 3 months for the other one. This way I cant chicken out. And, it is more cost effective this way too. Who wants to pay all that "out of pocket expense" twice? They are going to be getting too much of my money the way it is!! My way of stickin' it to the man. :) So wish me luck, and thank the gods for good meds!! I'll let you know how it goes.

Adjustment

The politicians have all left and Iowa has returned to peace. Went to the caucas for the first time in my 62nd year. Quite an experience. Hilary had cookies, Richardson has stickers, Obama has ardent supporters, Edwards had supporters with quiet determination. Saw the election up close and personal. Didn't change who I support, just changed the way I look at elections.

Got an I-Pod for Christmas. That has been quite the thing. After some struggle figured out how to use I-Tunes. Quite an accomplisment for someone as technically deficient as I am. Now have about 400 songs on it. According to the grandkids not one is something they want to hear. Got a dock for it and some stuff to make it work in the car. Got the dock figured out and am now ready to take on the car stuff. All this modern stuff is great, but sure is something to work my way around. I call my daughter a lot and she has had lots of patience with me. Granddaughter even came over to see if I needed help.

One Nation, Under Guy...

Happy (belated) New Year

Hope everyone survived the holidays, and got something wonderful from Santa. It was pretty great here. Critter got to be home for quite awhile, and it was great to wake up with him in the house again. I miss that. It has also been nice to have Burda and Little Man on Christmas Break. I enjoy the noise in the house! Having a little peace and quiet every now and then is wonderful (for my sanity) but I couldn't have it long term. I like the noise and chaos that a house full of people brings. The Hubby hasn't had the best of holidays....he is fighting several kidney stones. He has been able to pass 3 of them, but the CAT scan showed "several" so not sure how many more he will have to deal with. The upside is they are all small enough to pass without medical intervention, the downside is they are all small enough to pass without medical intervention. Thank the gods for pharmaceuticals!! Now if I can only convince him that it is ok to call in sick once in awhile...
In other news....I have ordered a Flip video recorder from Amazon. Should be here this week. It is a super simple (only 3 buttons!) DVR so I can record little videos to post here. The best part though is it is easy enough for the little kids, so I plan to bring it along to family stuff. It will be fun to see what the kids create!! I am sure Little Man will make lots of wonderful videos...just bring the Dramamine when you watch!
Hope everyone has had a great start to 2008!!

Politicians

Who is Emily and how did I get on her list? Seems like promises from politicians are a dime a dozen. I have decided to vote for the person who calls me the least. I get flyers, letters, notes and pamphlets by the pound. Somewhere a forest has been cut for this nonsense. This will go on for another whole year............A monarchy looks better and better. No elections, no promises, no lies. Maybe we could ask Queen Elizabeth if she would consider taking us under her wing. Okay, that wouldn't work. Almost scared to go to the store, there are politicians under every rug. Wish they did windows though. If I promise to vote for one of them would they do my windows?

Makes me think of my sister.....(except the part about the flappy arms and lost waist line....damn her anyway!!)

Dear Santa,

I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned and cuddled my children on demand, visited the doctor's office more than my doctor and sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground. I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I'll find anymore free time in the next 18 years. Here are my Christmas wishes: I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache (in any color, except purple, which I already have) and arms that don't hurt or flap in the breeze, but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store. I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy. If you're hauling big ticket items this year I'd like fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music, a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals, and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone. On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says, "Yes, Mommy" to boost my parental confidence, along with two kids who don't fight and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools. I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting "Don't eat in the living room" and "Take your hands off your brother," because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog. If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container. If you don't mind, I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely. It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family. Well, Santa, the buzzer on the dryer is calling and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door. I think he wants his crayon back. Have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the door and come in and dry off so you don't catch cold. Help yourself to cookies on the table but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet. Yours Always, MOM...
P.S. One more thing...you can cancel all my requests if you can keep my children, healthy, safe and of course, young enough to always believe in Santa.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

The holidays are rapidly approaching. If you stand outside and be very quiet you can hear the call of the wild politician......They sqawk, chatter, and otherwise make rather soundless noise. Not sure how I plan to vote for, but it will not be the fool who calls my home 4 + times a night. Also all the flyers are a waste of a good tree. Lately you can't go to the store and not run into one of them. They are your best friend too. Probably shouldn't buy the new outfits to go with the invitations that are casually cast out. Iowa during election times........such foolishness......promises that cant be honored.........raising taxes.........lowering taxes..........I promise change.........no me, I will do more change......I find it beneficial to just not listen to them. This to will pass. Who knows......someone might fight through the crowd and actually be a good choice

But, is it REALLY greener over there??

I have been thinking and talking about the old saying "The grass is always greener over there" a lot lately, and it got me thinking....why is it that when we see "a greener yard" it always seems to us to be an invitation. Isn't it more likely that it is a reminder instead? Maybe, just maybe, it is meant only to let us know we have been neglecting our own yards recently. And, lets be honest...nothing and no one is perfect, no matter how they might appear on the outside. Every person comes with their own problems and quirks, and running from one to another as an escape is almost never the right answer. No man (or woman) is an island, and every decision we make has consequences for us, and the loved ones in our lives. And very often there are consequences for others that we never thought about until it was too late. I see it as a ripple effect...you throw a rock in a pond and the ripples seem to go on forever. The choices we make today will affect any number of people and there is no way to know what they may endure because of our selfishness. Now let me be clear here....I am all for finding your own happiness. God knows I have, finally. But sometimes finding that happiness is as simple as looking into the eyes of the person next to you, and knowing they are in it for the long haul, for better or worse. And realizing that when you focus more on what you have than what you don't have, you might just be surprised at what has been there all along.

The Daily Coyote

You have to visit this blog. The pictures are amazing and I am so very jealous! I would love to know this woman and her pets, but it seems very wrong to call Charlie a pet. And after reading her posts, it is obvious she doesn't see him that way either.