Andrew's Birthday

Today we had Andrew's 8th birthday party. There were supposed to be 7 kids in all, including Andrew and Sam, but since no one knows how to RSVP anymore these days I had no idea who was coming. I planned for 8 to be on the safe side. As it turned out, the three who didn't RSVP didn't show, so I guess they did what they were supposed to do. I know that one of them was out of town, but the other two were home and just didn't come. I always worry that the parents feel like they HAVE to send a gift with their kiddo. We always request their "presence" not their "presents", but I still feel that probably comes into play.

Either way, we had a great day. Andrew is all into pirates so I went all out with the pirate gear at the party store. I even got one of those stand up, stick your head through the hole thingies for taking pictures.



I took pics of the three who came and emailed them to their parents. I thought they'd enjoy that. When everyone first got here though we had a massive treasure hunt for the kids' goodie bags. Yesterday I ran around the house snapping pics of good hiding places and then printed them out and cut each picture into fours. I took each one and put it in a ziploc and then hid it. Each puzzle/picture was the location of their next clue. I had separated the kids into two teams and I told them that the first team to get back to me with their bags got to choose a prize from the treasure chest first. I got a few pirate odds and ends (swords, hooks, pirate jewelry) to put in the chest. It was a riot watching them scurry from clue to clue, but it really didn't last as long as I wanted it to. Next time I'm gonna use clues further from the house, maybe different spots around the neighborhood so they'll be at it longer. They had so much fun! They all got to choose from the prizes in the end so it was mostly just fun. After that we played "pin the flag on the 'X'", which is the pirate variation of the donkey game we all know and love. The pirate cup you see in the above picture was the prize for that one, but when I was telling the kids about the prize I referred to the cup (in my best pirate voice) as the "highly coveted pirate chalice." At the end of the day when the little boy who won was leaving he yelled, "Wait a minute so I can get my coveted chalice!" I was tickled to say the least.

Andrew made out like a bandit this year on gifts. He was very happy and played intently with all of his pirate things for the rest of the day. I, of course, had to remove the pirate decorations from the dining room and promptly transport them to Andrew's bedroom per his request. So now there are 'Beware of Pirates' and 'Landlubbers Keep Out' plastered all over, but as long as he keeps order in that shipwreck of a room I will gladly sustain from making him walk the plank! Oh Lord, forgive me for my cheesy humor this evening. I know not what I say!! All in all we had a lot of fun. Oh and if anyone in my Fort Hood area needs to borrow pirate gear just let me know!!

Our weekend away

Well we're back from San Antonio! Yes, I know I didn't tell anyone I was leaving, but that's just me. When I was in college I used to just leave for the weekend without ever telling my roomies anything about it. It was really about what I felt like doing. I realized how inconsiderate it was when I came back from a weekend away to find them on the verge of filing a missing persons report because I hadn't gone home to my family. I would usually just go to Mom's house and they could call me there to see if that was, in fact, where I was, but the one weekend I had gone to stay with old friends and they were scared shitless that I was dead somewhere. I apologized and laughed a lot and they explained the need for me to let them know when I'm going somewhere. I told them that that probably wouldn't happen because back then I pretty much lived by the seat of my pants, but I would consider leaving a note.

Anyway, we had a great time this past weekend. We stayed at an RV Resort called Blazing Star in one of their cabins. There were seven of us altogether - Nick's parents and then us five. I'm not going to review our cabin on here, but I'll just say that it was nice, but I've stayed in better for cheaper. The best part, though, was the RV park itself. We brought the boys' scooters and there was a pool and an arcade and a ping pong table!! They made friends over the weekend and never complained even one time about wanting to play Xbox! It was awesome. Sam, who is usually my biggest gaming whiner, said he wants to go there for every single vacation EVER. I was so happy to see them have fun. We also went to Sea world on our Salute to the Heroes pass, but that was kinda miserable - thank God it was free. The water park part of it wasn't open yet this season so that was really the main reason Sea World didn't rock so much. Now, the shows were awesome - even Olivia (18 months old) sat through them and watched attentively, but she didn't wanna ride in the stroller and would only let me hold her. It was really hot Saturday and I was just beat down by the time we left. Nevermind the fact that it was also supposed to be mine and Nick's night out without the kids so after Sea World we went back to the resort and got all cleaned up. We were going to have dinner and maybe a drinkie poo on the Riverwalk and I was stupid enough to wear heels. Who the hell knows what I was thinking other than I had a date and heels were required. When we got downtown we discovered a St. Patty's Day celebration underway. The entire riverwalk and Alamo Dr. were all decorated, there were bands playing everywhere, fire eaters, light shows, glass blower, you name it and it was there....oh and there was beer.......lots and lots of beer. I'm not a beer drinker, but I got one and halfway through I just gave it to Nick cause me no likey. Dinner was awesome. We went to a place called Landry's and I had the stuffed flounder - mmmmmmmmmmmm. Nick had the steak and lobster. His lobster was flippin' awesome but I made him send the steak back because it was like rubber!! I've seen the movie "Waiting" and I pray they did nothing to his new steak, but hell, it was $37.00 a plate - you'd send it back too if it wasn't perfect. His new steak was alright, but just not as good as it should have been. We ended up home by 10:45, which is very late for us these days so I was happy with a day well done.

Ok, I gotta go get my hair done now - yippee!!!

Update on Nathan

For those of you who may not know who Nathan is, here's the original story: How Does This Happen?

Okay, so Nathan is finally out of his body cast and is still in foster care. Family Services wanted him in foster care until they could complete their entire investigation so for the past month and a half he has been bonding with strangers. I'm not mad that he's there - I just wish he could have been with me instead. In the meantime my brother and his stupid girlfriend are up their old tricks. Brad found out Beth has been cheating on him so they broke up for like 4 days. I guess that's all it takes to regain trust in someone. Both of them are supposed to be paying child support, but Brad is the only one working while Beth runs around as she pleases in Brad's car. She won't "let" him take the car anywhere. She makes all the decisions while Brad just puts his head between his knees and takes it. During their little break he called me because we hadn't talked since last summer and he really convinced me that he was done with all the craziness. Unfortunately, Beth has turned up pregnant again and so she's used that to lure him back in. Not to mention, his uncontrollable need to "be with" someone.

Anyway, my sister was FINALLY approved as the ONLY person who could take Nathan. DFCS realized that they did not know who it was that actually hurt him. Angie and her husband were the only ones who had never kept him for any extended period which meant that they were the only people who obviously did not do it. My mom was stupid enough to let Brad convince her to lie to DFCS about where the incident happened. She told them that Nathan was hurt at her house because Brad and Beth were worried that Section 8 would find out he was living at her house and Beth would lose her housing benefits. I yelled lots and lots at Mom for doing this because it was a stupid lie to begin with. They weren't even comparing apples to apples, but when you pile lie upon lie upon lie you become paranoid of everything, so now Mom isn't allowed to be around her own grandson. I told her. I told her. I told her. I even told her to call and tell them that they were lying but she wouldn't. So I dropped it. So this morning they all went to court so that Nathan could be placed with Angie and Jim. Know what happened??? Beth got mad because she doesn't like Angie (because Angie and Jim don't do drugs, drink or go to prison, u know) and her and Brad's attorney requested that Nathan STAY in foster care. The judge plainly looked at Brad and Beth and said, "Okay, let me explain. If Nathan stays in foster care, we will proceed with termination hearings in 15 months. BUT if he stays in family care that time clock stops and you have no worry of actually losing custody of your son. Also remember that the longer he stays in foster care, the stronger the bond he will develop with that family." And how do you think Brad and Beth responded? "We understand and would still like for him to stay in foster care." The judge nodded and set another placement hearing for two weeks from today. My sister and her husband were just dumbfounded. I would have cried, but Angie is much stronger than me. Brad and Beth are just plain evil. Maybe I shouldn't judge. Nope. Evil. Angie didn't say anything in court because she's expecting that Beth is going to try and start trouble during this two week interval so that she can point and say, "See, this is why they shouldn't have the baby." It ultimately boils down to the bottom line: is the court going to continue to pay for foster care when they could place him with family for free? I don't think so. I am literally so mad at my brother that I just laughed when Angie called this morning. The whole thing has become ridiculous. Beth is obviously unstable and Brad is obviously unwilling to leave her. It is my opinion that the court should just proceed with termination and either let me or Angie have him. Do I really need child #4? Nope. Does that really matter? Nope. Will I love him with all my heart and soul? Yep. They just need to do something before his "attachment meter" is all screwed up and he ends up with some serious, serious psychological issues from his parents being idiots.

Nevermind

OK, so not so much "yay for surgery" on my mind today. I guess I forgot my stomach's intolerance for pain medication of any kind, save for Aleve. GRRR....I've spent all of my resting time leaning over the toilet. It doesn't matter what I do to try and avoid the nausea. Yes, I ate before I took the Percocet, but it didn't help any. Guess I'm gonna have to stop taking that and just stick to the Ibuprofen. I thoroughly enjoy being able to fall asleep in the middle of the day though. That's the best part of it. My routine is 1) eat 2) take medicine 3) vomit 4) pass out. The passing out part if my favorite...lol. Well, that's all I can force myself to type today. Maybe more tomorrow. Night, night!

Yay For Surgery!!!

In January I posted about meeting my new doctor. The post is called What's Up Doc?
Anyway, I wrote about pain in my side that I attributed to my gallbladder. My TSH and everything else was fine, but after the doc ordered an ultrasound and we waited for that to come back we discovered that it needed to come out. All was well when my civilian doc told me that he was sending me to the civilian hospital for my surgery. BUT two weeks later I received notice from my insurance that I did, in fact, have to go to the Army hospital on post for the procedure. I was so mad. I've have three surgeries at military facilities and they just don't stack up against the civilian hospitals. Either way, that is the hand I was dealt for this procedure as well.

So, I get a call from the hospital and they scheduled me for my consult for my surgery.....A MONTH AWAY!! I couldn't believe I was going to have to deal with the pain for another whole month. Did they give me any pain killers to tide me over till then? Nope. Did the offer suggestions for pain management? Nope. Just deal with it till then. So for the past month I have lived on Aleve and a shot of Jim Beam mixed in a Diet Coke just before bedtime so I could at least sleep through some of the discomfort. Let me clarify, the pain is not gut wrenching. It's more like a constant pressure on your ribs and aching in your back ALL THE TIME!!! I compared it often to my husband to that of being 9 months pregnant with a foot stuck in your ribs all the time.

Finally the time is here!!! I went to my consult Monday and explained to the doctor that he needed to "get this damn thing outta me TODAY!!!" Miraculously he asked if Friday would work. I was floored, but I couldn't be happier. Having surgery at this hospital is like having a job though. Here's been my week: Monday - consult, Tuesday - paperwork, Wednesday, pre-op appt., Thursday - call Same Day Surgery to find out what time to be there, Friday - D-Day!!! Needless to say, it's been a crazy week. Nevermind the fact that today I also have a doctor's appt. for my son and two parent-teacher conferences to go to. I don't care though cause tomorrow I will be in Lala Land for at least 8 hours. My mom asked what I had to be excited about aside from the relief from the constant pain. I very plainly explained to her that I like having surgery because it gives me a valid excuse to do very strong drugs with permission from a doctor. YAYYYYYY!!!! I'm not a pill head, people. I haven't done drugs (oh lord, this sounds bad) in over ten years. When I say drugs, I mean the experimental stuff that many, many people do in college and the like. Anyway, I gotta go get my kid for his appt, but everyone all at once yell, "YAY FOR DRUGS....I mean SURGERY!!!"

Child molested in local daycare

I am copying and pasting the story to make sure that no one overlooks the link. For my mommies in our local area - BEWARE!!!!

Little Blessings daycare on 10th st, suspected molestation of a 4month old lil girl.
ARTICLE from KWTX.com

(February 25, 2008)—Killeen police were investigating Monday after doctors determined that a 4-month-old girl had bruising consistent with a sexual assault that may have occurred at a local daycare.
The bruising was discovered after doctors at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center examined the infant last Wednesday evening, police said.
The girl’s mother took the infant to Darnall after picking her up from Little Blessings Daycare at 803 N. 10th St. and asked doctors to check for “unusual bruising,” police said Monday in a press release.
Officers were dispatched to the medical center around 9:45 p.m. Wednesday.
“The detective working this case has identified an employee of the daycare as a suspect in this case; there has not been an arrest as this case continues to be investigated,” police said in the press release.
Police asked anyone with information to contact either Killeen police at (254) 501-8807 or Killeen Crime Stoppers at (254) 526-TIPS.

God help this individual should they be discovered.

Find me a theme song

Everyone remembers the theme song from Annie, right?

"The sun'll come out....tomorrow!! Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there'll be sun."

I have sung that song to myself probably my entire life and I just came to realize that that is MY theme song too!!! I sang that song for our sixth grade graduation. Oh my gosh I was so scared, but I stood there and belted it out and desperately waited for fruit or applause. I didn't know which would come, but luckily everyone clapped. They just thought it was cute - lol- the only time I sing now is if I'm more than slightly inebriated or in the car. I used to watch the show Ally McBeal religiously. I started watching my junior year of college and was a devoted fan up til the very end of the show. It was hilarious!!! I loved how when she became self-conscious of a certain part of her body, it would grow giant. Like, when she felt sexy her lips would get HUGE!! Anyhow, her therapist (the wonderful Tracey Ullman) told her she needed a theme song that she could sing in her head to give her confidence. It was hilarious cause she'd strut down the street with "Tell Him" by The Exciters playing in her head. I think I need to get a new theme song. Tomorrow is full of hope and all and it's great when I'm pissy, but it doesn't have much of the "pick me up" vibe to it. It's more like "shut up and do what you gotta do today and just wait for tomorrow to come" kind of vibe. I don't know....any suggestions?

My title, by the way, is a clickable link that will take you to an Ally McBeal devotee.