Here I am....

 Good afternoon from Jacksonville, Florida! It's a balmy 75 degrees with sunny skies above.

I have been detained with the mother in law. She arrived yesterday, and we've been going non-stop since. Today dh and I took a break while she was playing with my youngest, and went on a little motorcycle ride. The weather is just perfect for that sort of thing. Now, I am sitting here, waiting to here when we will be going out for dinner.  We are going to a restaurant which is just a few blocks from our house, on the St. John's River. It's a seafood place and you can sit outside by the water. Tomorrow after the girls go to school, we will be heading off for a day of sightseeing and shopping in St. Augustine.  The forecast looks good for the week, here in FL. Sunny and in the mid to upper 70's. Mrs. Cheesestix tried to tell me I'd be sweating and miserable, while she is cool and comfortable, enjoying her 50 degree weather.....but I think she is just jealous....

Well, I hear the annoying patter of little husband feet, coming to tell me to get my butt off the internet and visit.  What the heck? I can visit her anytime....but I NEED my daily dose of journal land!

Friday night fiesta....

 This is how I'm feeling right now....spinny and giggly....well, maybe not giggly....possibly nauseated. Martha took the night off and we ordered chinese food....it was wonderful. I had the general chicken, which was so spicy that my lips were burning! Let me tell you, if you have a cold with a stuffy nose, that is the thing to eat.  So now, it's nighttime, the girls are in bed, dh is sleeping in front of the tv, and I am here playing in journal land. But, there is no one out tonight! Where is everyone? My usual playmate got lost in cyberspace somewhere and disappeared. No one else seems to be out either. So that leaves me here, alone, with my mini bottle of Riesling and nothing to do. I'm so disappointed. *Sigh....

If Martha hadn't given up her beer, we could be drinking and running the streets of j-land like two wild Florida women! We could run around in our bikini's and sarongs, sipping suds and hunting pelicans! Kara would be sitting on the couch, smoking and playing the tunes....Michelle would be in the street doing donuts on her motorcycle, and Lisa could be cooking us some mozzerella sticks! Karen would be sitting in the corner, not being able to pull herself away from her new computer, and Cheezy, well, she would be dressed in full Cat in the Hat attire, giving a Seuss-like reading....

"At Wal-Mart I will not shop, I will not buy toys or pop. No insurance do they give-to elders, migrants or little kids. Prices yes, they might be low, but to that store I will not go. I will not go I tell you all, to the mart that they call Wal.  And to that smiley face some daily pass, I say to you, Kiss My A$$!"                                 

 

The countdown begins....

And so, the countdown begins. My mother in law will be here tomorrow evening. Sigh. So much for my evenings on the computer, lounging about all day with my pj's and bon-bons, etc., etc. Actually, she is not hard to entertain, and we get along well. It will be a nice visit.

Today is "hat day" at school. My youngest decided on her fishing-style hat, (you know, the ones with the floppy brim), that has the power puff girls on it. It's very cute, and she looked adorable in it. Her hair is down to her butt, so the hat looked really good....and it will keep fly-aways at a minimum. I am not a "hat person". I would love to be, but I just don't look good in them. You see those moms who run around with the baseball cap and pony tail, dark glasses and size 0 Tommy Hilfiger jeans, and it makes me want to be able to pull off that look....well, I'd have to grow longer hair, lose 50 lbs, and, well, I do have the dark glasses....but it throws off the look if you don't have the other components.

As I was sitting at the bus stop, my daughter pointed out the little squirrel window cling I have in the upper left hand corner of my windshield. She remembered that it was from her Spot book she has when she was small. She asked me why I kept it up there, and I told her because it was cute. In actuality, I keep it there to remind me that I'm not that far from being nuts....lol. Actually, it reminds me that no matter how nuts you may be feeling, there will always be someone who loves you for you. (The squirrel loves nuts....lol). I know, it's weird....but it gives me a strange sort of comfort.

Okay, now I really do have to get going with my morning. I need to clean and wash and pay bills....busy day, busy day!

*Warning: This entry not suitable for younger viewers....

Okay, I will give you a moment to get the children out of the room....

In our neighborhood, we have a problem with cats. Specifically, the lady next door to me who is in her 60's and has over 20 of them. They breed and breed and breed. I am going to call the humane society....soon. Especially after these antics.

This morning I was in my youngest daughter's room, gathering garbage and any dirty clothes she may have forgotten to put in the wash. I turn and look out the window and what do I see?  Yes, two cats about 10 feet beyond our fence, "gettin it on". I am appallled! There they are, in plain sight, buck naked and going at it. Now, I'm no prude but shouldn't this kind of love be kept behind closed doors? This is not what I expect to see when looking outside my daughter's bedroom window!

I turn from the window, and continue on with my chores. As I'm walking through my family room....there they are again. Still going at it. I have to give the male cat credit, he was taking his time, making the female feel loved and cared for. At one point, I think he was actually whispering in her ear....but from my point of view, I could have been mistaken. Again, I look away, and continue on.

As I walk into the kitchen, I look out and....they are still at it. Now, this is getting ridiculous! They were obviously not married, because we all know he would have been sleeping by this time. As I'm contemplating turning on the Barry White CD in the boom box on the back porch, another cat approaches. Oh no....it's not going to turn into a feline fetish frenzy out there. I don't want my backyard to become a literal "cat house". So, I begin to unlock the sliding door so that I can yell at them to go away....however, they apparently are finished. It is at this point I turn from the window, and without realizing it mutter, "f**** cats". 

****Disclaimer: I am not, nor have I ever been a voyeur of "cat love". I saw them for a total of about 30 seconds while doing my cleaning. Next time, I will clean before opening the blinds!

 

Get my motor running....

Well, the wee one is home sick today. She has a bad cold, complete with sniffles, sneezing and snot. (Sorry, I couldn't think of another "s" symptom). As we speak she is in her room, playing her Simpsons Road Rage game on the PS2. I let her choose her breakfast since she didn't feel well. The menu consisted of macaroni and cheese, and kool-aid....which we made fresh this morning. I also gave her some generic dimatapp for her stuffiness. So, she will be relaxing for the day as I begin my cleaning.

I have so many things to do today, that I'm not quite sure where to begin. I have a ton of ironing, the usualy Wednesday mid-week clean up, and I have to begin my sewing. I need to read 7 chapters of my bible study book, and finish an assignment for my online class. I am a horrible procrastinator! I am also itching to finish the 2nd bathroom and start on the girls rooms. Not to mention the fact that it's time to start focusing on the lawn again. I get all of these things in my head, and I don't know where to turn! I suppose I will figure it out.

My mother-in-law will be here Saturday night, which means a week of "entertaining". So far it will be a day at St. Augustine, a boat ride, a trip to the imax theater, a return trip to Blue Springs (the oldest has already tried her "get out of jail free card" on that one), and various other places. Not only that, but as I'm traveling about, I will have to have dinner thought out and prepared in advance. I don't want to rely on pizza and burgers! I am very lucky, as she is someone who is relatively easy to please, and enjoys outdoor activities. The girls are in school all week, but dh will take Monday off. Of course he will be gone Th-Sat....which leaves the entertaining to me. Any suggestions????

I tried to get a hair appointment to have my highlights freshened up....but my stylist is booked. Crud. I thought it would help me feel more like sticking to my "healthy living plan". (No diets for us, right Martha? ;o). You know, when you look better you feel better....yeah right. I'll try anything!

So, that is my story. It is almost 10 am and I need to get going. I did spend the morning cuddled in bed with my sniffley girl, and we had breakfast together and watched Tom and Jerry. So no excuses....I need to get to work!

The aftermath....

Well, decisions have been made and feelings have been hurt. I declined the invitation to fly and spent the morning crying my eyes out. Dh was mad for a long while, being inconsiderate and selfish. But then, I went into work to see him, and he took me out to lunch. He finally "got" it....I wasn't saying I didn't want to spend a weekend with him. I wasn't saying I didn't feel safe flying even with him next to me. It's something that is beyond my control. It's a phobia that I know someday I will have to overcome. But for now, I can't do it. And I don't want to ruin a trip with him because I'm worried about the return flight the entire weekend. So, he is going alone, and coming home a day early, since his boss (my uncle and his wife) are staying the extra day to sight-see. I feel like an idiot to a point, but it is who I am, and if he loves me (which I know he does) he will love me....warts and all.

Sooooo, now I am in the middle of making dinner. The pineapple casserol is in the oven and the pork chops are breaded and waiting. Too bad I'm not hungry! LOL....

I'm so proud of myself....I went to the grocery store and they have two baskets overflowing with Russel Stover and Whitman candy hearts that were left over from Valentine's day. They were the big 1 lb. boxes, 2 for $8.99. I stopped, picked them up, thought about it, and walked away. Go ME! Of course, I then went into the wine aisle and bought myself a little treat to relax with this evening. So, if my next entry is slurred and indistinguishable....you will know what happened.

Ooooh....the timer is dinging....time to check the goodies!

Fear of Flying....

Well, I may be flying to MA next week.....and I'm not happy about it. Dh has to go on business and his boss (my uncle) has decided to make it a employee and wife trip. So, while I would LOVE to go and see the northeast....I am petrified of flying. I have only flown once....and that was plenty, thank you. I am already worrying about it. Here's the deal....

My mother in law is coming next week for a visit. She is supposed to go home on the 6th which is Sat. But as we speak, dh is talking to her, seeing if she can stay an extra day, so that he can see her after the trip (Th to Sat). I was praying that she would have to go home to work....but he just asked me to look up her flight info....which means she can probably do it. Crap. I don't want to fly. I tried taking xanax for the trip the last time, and I got such bad heart palpatations, that I couldn't take it for the flight. (I tried it beforehand to make sure I could handle it). Crap. The only thing I can think to do is tell them it would be an extra $200 to change the ticket. Maybe that would keep her from saying yes. Am I bad? I don't care. I'm paranoid. And of course dh is like the typical man....(not you Lanny), "What are you afraid of? I'll be there." Yeah, small comfort as we are BOTH going down in flames. Of course I could look on the bright side and say perhaps I could become a memeber of the "mile high club"....yeah right.

Well, he is sitting here trying to change the itennerary. Shi*. I guess that means we will have to go. He reacted just as I said he would. The specific comment was, "Oh grow up." How sweet and caring.

Well, I'm off to begin worrying. What a lovely night this will be!