Dear God

If I could have a one on one with God today, the conversation would go something like this:

Hey God! Ummmm…remember last week when I was told my friend that I wanted the flu to jump start my diet? Well, here are my thoughts.
I was kidding.
If I wasn’t kidding, I would have appreciated the flu with vomiting and diarrhea, you know, the type that makes you drop 5 pounds in 2 days! THAT flu! What you gave me is something else altogether.

OK…seriously, you know I would only be so sarcastic with the George Burns “God”. But I have learned a few things this week.

1. Ask and you shall receive. Yep, I did ask for this!

2. You can create snot when there is none and successfully turn the flu into a cold. Just take Dayquil for your cough and voila! Snot will appear!

3. Sponge Bob is always on. Always.

4. At least 2 commercials at every break are for fast food. Perfect, I can’t even stomach the thought of soup and I continually get to watch greasy square Wendy’s burgers sizzling on my TV screen during People’s Court.

5. The best medicines, the ones they save for when you are begging like a two year old, those cost the most, which is fine unless you throw them up every time you take one because you can’t keep any food down to help avoid the nausea! It stinks to see an 8 dollar pill come back up in the toilet!

6. There are times that you are sick enough that you don’t care. You just don’t care. Ok, I’ll admit, I did not care about lying on the floor of the doctor’s office. I did not care that I was curled up in the fetal position the entire time the doctor was talking to me. I did not care that I was wearing sweats and a t-shirt literally covered in big fresh wet sweat spots (my husband did though so he made me change). I did not care that I hadn’t brushed my teeth, put on lipstick or even wiped my nose in about 5 hours. Sometimes, you really don’t care!

7. Somehow, the World will go on. I have about 15 projects going at any one time, somehow this week, it all managed to get taken care of (mostly thanks to my anal planning ahead which meant I had almost everything in order and ready to go before hand so no one actually had to “do” the work for me, just had to deliver it for me)

Thank you to everyone who called to check on me, took care of my kids, offered to help and covered for me while I was down and out. I am still pretty down. I think by Monday I will be back in the game. Until then, steer clear of the Michell’s, we stink!

Sick Sick Sick

Jon and I have both been sick since Sunday night. It is the strangest illness I have ever had. It is a combination of cold and flu without the vomiting. We have been profusely sweating, freezing to the point of violently shaking, had debilitating migraines, head and chest congestion and an aversion to food. Really, it has been quite pathetic. We have tried to take turns sleeping but there was a point today when we locked the doors and turned on a movie for Megan so we could both sleep. I have never felt so sick in my life!! The doctor gave me some drugs which have lifted to fog this evening. I stink from all the sweating so I am showering and going back to bed. I am praying we don't pass this along to the children. I am also praying you and your children stay healthy!

All I'm Missing Is...

...A Margarita!

I am sitting in the tailgate seats of my van, 72 degree sun shining on my skin, light ocean breeze blowing on my face.
I am watching my kids run around the neighborhood with their friends.
It is times like these that I LOVE living in California.
Did I mention it's February?
Really, you can't beat it!!

I am also reminded of my childhood when I would run the streets with my friends. The only difference was, my Mom wasn't outside watching us...she didn't have to be. Sometimes I am sad for my children that they will never have the freedom we did to walk to our friends houses, ride bikes alone to school, spend the night 3 nights in a row at your best friends' house. But once I REALLY think about it, I am a bit releaved that my kids won't have the same freedoms. Sure I would like for them to live without fear of kidnappings and burglers, however if they were able to play alone outside, I would be missing all the laughs, squeals and happy noises of children bonding with their friends. And as they grow into teenagers, I will again be releived that they do not have as much freedom as I did. I hope it will spare them some of the rediculius choices and heartaches I experienced.

This reminds me to be grateful for a husband that works is tail off so that I can be home raising these kids, a luxury I was not afforded as a child. My heart aches for him as he drives down the street. The kids and I are often outside running the streets, socialing with neighbors, preparing for another afternoon of fun while he is away. I know he would rather be home with us, yet he leaves with a smile, going to do what he has to do so I can be home. For this, I adore him!

My children are truely blessed to live in this neighborhood. There are so many friends on this street, again reminicent of my childhood. I hope and pray that they will continue these friendships in their adulthood. I often wonder about the childhood friends I had on my street. Like some many others, we let those relationships slip away when distance separated us in college. I would like to think that my children are truely friends with our neighbors and not just forming bonds out of convience of addresses. Either way, I am so joyful sitting here watching them all play that it almost doesn't matter.

Now, if someone would just bring me a margarita!!!

The Globetrotters

For Christmas my Mom gave us tickets to the Globetrotters. Today was the big day! The kids had no idea what to expect and were even a bit reluctant to go at first. They ended up having a great time laughing and cheering the way I remeber doing when I saw the show as a child. And if their giggles wern't enough to convince me, Dylan whispered something magical in my ear that sealed the deal:

"Mommy, sometimes when something is funny, I pee in my pants"

Dummy Family

The electrician will show up.

Very Late.

He will plug in the dryer.

It works.

She will feel like a dummy.

She will blame hubby for unplugging the dryer.

Story developing...

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie!

My Sister-In-Law recently called me and compared her life to this book. I too have felt caught up in my own version of this story. Mine is called If you Give a Mommy Some Flooring.

If you give a Mommy some flooring

She will save for a year to buy it.

She will save money in the form of gift cards.

She will begin planning the project.

Then, she will discover she has a slab leak.

A big one.

She will spend two weeks interviewing companys.

She will have it fixed.

She will have to pay a lot of money since the company does not take Lowes gift cards.

Having it fixed means living somewhere else for 2 days.

After having it fixed, she will again begin planning the floors.

She will find a great deal on the flooring of her dreams.

She spends 2 days packing up the entire house.

She picks an installer that works 7:30am-7:30pm.

She thinks it will take two days.

It takes 8.

Her family lives in the car for 8 days.

They eat at a lot of restaurants.

She spends 2 days unpacking the house.

She discovers the dishwasher does not work.

She whines...a lot.

She spills wine on her hubby's keyboard.

She buys him a new one.

This whole time, her hubby has been working.

A lot.

So much he gets a bonus.

He buys her a new dishwasher.

And an oven (did she mention her other one has been broken for a year?)

She tries to have them installed.

The company gives her the run around.

Her hubby tries to install them himself.

It doesn't work.

Her Father-In-Law tries to install them.

He only gets the dishwasher to work.

Her hubby messes with the oven again.

He blows the circuit to the oven.

And the dryer.

She can't do laundry.

She can't cook.

She calls the electrician.

He'll be here Wednesday.

Story to be continued....

Having said all that I would like to follow up with this.

I am grateful for all I have. 

I am grateful for my new pipes...that means I own a home.

I am grateful for my cold new floors...that means I can walk

I am grateful for living in my car for 8 days...that means I own a car

I am grateful for eating out for a week...that means I am well nourished (and a bit heavier too!)

I am grateful to wash dishes by hand...that means I have money to buy groceries

I am grateful to have a new oven...that means I can (eventually) cook those groceries

I am grateful the laundry baskets are overflowing...that means I can afford clothing for my children

I am grateful to be waiting for an electrician...that means I can afford electricity.

and finally

I am grateful for the snoring log that sleeps next to me...that means he is home with me and not off working a second job so we can have more stuff that will mostly likely just break.