Writing in the Closet

New Website

2011-07-19T12:53:00.000-05:00

I loved this site. I may just be fooling myself, but I'd like to think I'll still post here occasionally. But I have moved out of the apartment into my own house.

SusieCStone.com

Sin Boldly

2011-06-30T22:21:00.000-05:00

Last weekend, I was a woman with a goal. And a deadline. The goal was two-fold: get Let Go under 140k words and launch my new website. The deadline was July 1st. If I met the deadline, I was going to take off for the Fourth of July weekend. No writing, no editing, no blogging, no laundry, no drinking... wait, scratch that last one. You get the idea.

Late Sunday evening, I was two minutes away from announcing and launching my website. Then, in a fit of vanity, I launched it right into itself. I forwarded my site to my site. I imagine it was spinning in cyberspace inifinity. Through much technical ignorance and even more stubborness, I kept making it worse. Yes, it's true. When I sin, I sin boldy. It's the only way to go.

Then, I kept sinning. I'm not going to get technical, but lets just say all of my content was deleted in the process. By me. On purpose. Sin boldly.

Through the good grace and kindness of some whipsmart techies, I am back up and running. Without content. And, during a three hour slash fest, I took Let Go down to 139,817 words.

And, I'm taking the weekend off. My goals might not have been completely met, but hey, I sin boldly.

Back to the Closet

2011-06-20T21:57:00.000-05:00

Since returning from conference, I've been editing Let Go. It's very hard for me, because I really want to work on The Eli Project. TEP, as I have come to notate it, is at that point where I can't seem to get it out fast enough. I stand in the backyard, walking Luna Lovegood and I think: Deborah Adams is twenty-seven. A perfect cube, the age of so many who died too young, and so forth. It flows through so hard and fast. My life is surrounded in posties and my notebooks are the ramblings of a madwoman. I know the longer I wait, the easier it will come. But, I am devoted to the editing of Let Go. I have promised myself to have this pass at the manuscript finished before the end of July. That's going to be tough. I haven't even considered we might go away for a week in there somewhere.

Why do I need sleep?

Tomorrow, I'm going to be a good girl. I'm going to check my email and Facebook once, just after dropping Hoot off at daycare, then I'm going to get busy. No TweetDeck, no phone calls. Just me and Let Go. Well, maybe Pandora. And a post it note or two about TEP. And a pot of coffee. Definitely a pot of coffee.

Further Tales of a Conference Virgin: The Matrix

2011-06-16T10:39:00.000-05:00

On Saturday morning, the conference held its Taco Tweetup. After a welcome and overview of the conference by Writers' League of Texas Executive Director Cyndi Hughes, we were turned over to a panel of experts moderated by Rusty Shelton of Shelton Interactive. Topics varied from synopsis and pitch to Facebook and Twitter itself.

I enjoyed the session, but left with only one sentence in my notebook. It was underlined. Three times. "Jack your ass back into the Matrix!"

Which is funny because in 2009, I purposefully jacked my ass part of the way out of the matrix. I was shifting my focus away from being online trying to save a buck to rewriting my book. I spent my precious online time trying to shift from putting the physical book in a customer’s hand to showing them how to get digital content. I found myself trawling tech gurus and searching for a way to keep my day job relevant in the retail world. But, that was trawling, not connecting.

This whole conference is about connecting. How do I hook my readers? How do I keep them connected to my characters? How do I get an agent? How do I build a platform? How do I find people who are in the trenches with me? See, connecting.

I know a few authors came away from the conference saying they needed to stop blogging and concentrate on their writing. In some situations, this is absolutely true. It's a delicate balance to say the least. As I write this post, I have an alarm that I've snoozed three times. My jacked-in part of the day is at an end until later this afternoon. Its no different than juggling the laundry, the family, the work schedule, and my book. It's a struggle to be sure, but what's another chainsaw into the juggling mix?

I had already started back into the matrix before the conference. I retooled the blog (and I will keep retooling it until I'm happy) and dusted off my Twitter account. Sure, there's lots of work to be done, but I'm already used to TweetDeck chirping away on the desktop. And, I've disconnected the computer in the closet for uninterrupted work. But, life is full of dualities, that's what overlaps and gives us lovely shades of gray.

As I sat reworking my notes late Saturday night, I realized that every penny I spent for the entire weekend was justified between the Taco Tweetup and the Back to the Future: Where Social Media Meets Traditional Literary Publicity panel. Sadly, as I had a quick chat with Rusty before the First Pitch session on Saturday night, I wish my CPU had processed it enough to thank him.

Tales of a Conference Virgin

2011-06-14T10:30:00.001-05:00

Before I attended the Writers' League of Texas Agents Conference last weekend, I did some research online about what to expect, what to do before I got there, and general tips. I thought I had a decent handle on the thing as I generally have a fear of half-assing anything. Okay, maybe a large freakin' issue with half-assing, but that, alas, is another post for another day.

Here are a few of the things I wish that I had known, or even if I knew them, I shouldn’t have ignored them!

Get there early! It doesn’t matter if you’re staying on site or you live in town. Get there, get the lay of the land, decompress from any traffic, whatever. Use this time to shift from your daily life to focused writer. I underestimated how much time it would take to shift from “Did the boy have a good day?” to “Let me tell you about my novel!”

Look at your name badge. Now, look at the badge on the person handing you your badge. Notice anything different? They probably aren’t the same. They may be bigger or different colors. Use your reception to spot the differences so that you zero in on your targets. And use it to thank the volunteers for all their work. You would not be there without them!

If you’ve done your homework, you’ve studied the tiny photos of the agents. If you’ve mastered the homework, you’ve researched them online. Be prepared for hairstyle changes, new glasses, or missing goatees. Again, this is where name badges become important. If there’s a wagon train circle of attendees anywhere in the room, you can bet there is an agent campfire inside. Get in there and see which one!

Hustle. Assume that every single opportunity is the only opportunity outside of the scheduled consultation. Join that wagon train and listen as you wait your turn! I made a huge error here because I wanted to watch. This was my biggest mistake all weekend! The only other opportunities for me would have been at rude and inappropriate times. Every conference packet tells you not to pitch during agents down time, elevators (it’s just called an elevator pitch,) or if they are juggling a plate of food. You will do more harm than good. Restrooms are a particularly bad choice. Don’t be the woman who finds herself pitching at a urinal. The only thing you will achieve will be urban legend status.

Pack your business cards and keep them on you. I was shocked by how many people didn’t have cards on them. Or, in paranoia land, didn’t want to give me one. It’s called a printer, people. Don’t have one? It’s called Vistaprint. There are plenty of other places, just drop “cheap business cards” into your favorite search engine if you don’t want to venture out to your local business supply store.

Talk. Listen. Repeat. Walk right up, say hello, ask about their book. This is easy to say, but for some people it’s harder to do. Funny how I do it so many times during the day at the bookstore, but it took some practice at the conference. Even if you’re tired, suck it up and go Nike.

And my final tip for opening receptions: You didn’t shell out all that money to be a wallflower!

You know, it might seem as if my opening night reception wasn't successful, but I would be remiss if I didn't say what a great time I had. I was surrounded by so many people in the same boat. I met some wonderful people and made some great friends. So many times we are alone as writers, conferences are all about connections. Your co-workers, friends, and family might say they know what its like to be a writer, but unless they are one, they really don't know. Be greatful for their support, but find someone down in the trenches with you. I love the people in the trenches!

In the throws!

2011-06-07T23:50:00.000-05:00

I've spent the last few days in the throws of preparation for the writing conference this weekend. It's been a lot of fun getting ready, but juggling the chainsaws of prep, work, and family has left me wrung out. In the midst of it all, I discovered a little something something that makes me happy.

The Best Damn Creative Writing Blog will be publishing short fiction every single day in July! How cool is that. With no reading fee and electronic submissions, this is a no brainer. Well, not really. Use that brain to polish up your best short fiction. Start here to get to their submission page!

If you end up getting picked, please let me know. And if you're not submitting, cross some body parts for me! Now, what to send, what to send.... Alas, I shall have to table my personal submission until after this weekend! Good Luck!

The Blogover

2011-06-02T22:28:00.000-05:00

I've been attempting a blogover, a pick-me-up, a little sprucing of the closet, if you will. I have tried out a few new looks, and for now, I shall have to leave it alone. It's just too close to conference to be tinkering with it, and yet, that's why I'm tinkering with it. I shall do my best to leave it as is, and focus on the waxing to-do list and the waning timeline.

The Other Closet

2011-05-31T11:53:00.000-05:00

There is another closet that I write inside, one with far less clothing, but more dust bunnies. The cranial closet.

My cranial closet is big. Strike that. My cranial closet is enormous. Ever read House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski? My cranial closet is a lot like that house: much bigger on the inside than on the outside. There are dark places, light places, hidden stairs that send you plummeting into abysses, and delightful rooms peopled with friends, family, and characters of my own creation. My favorite room contains an upright piano. My id reclines on this piano, looking fabulous in a slinky cocktail frock, drink in hand, doling out the things my filter must stop before they come out of my mouth. I love her. She’s proof that there are no real mind readers. Someone would have mowed me down by now.

Fear carpets the floor in my cranial closet. Thick, lush, sink your toes in it, shag carpet. And it’s loud. Casino loud. Fear of judgment, fear of rejection, fear of the unknown. You name it, there’s a pattern in the weave for it.

The wallpaper is ever changing. Most days, the closet is covered with my insane belief that if you say it, you must do it. The art of dreaming out loud is something I have lost from the walls. Sure, I say things I don’t do. I’m human. But, to say this thing… this writing thing, and not do it. I would never forgive myself. (Yeah, that’s in there too.)

My day career, as I put it, has only added to my closet. Working in books, I am naturally surrounded people who write, want to write, and dream of writing. I do not knock them. It’s just not me. (See above paragraph.) So many of them say they are going to write a book or talk about their book, and nothing comes of it. I don’t know if I could stand it if nothing comes of this.

I venture outside the closet every once in a while. I joined the Writers’ League of Texas. I’ve been forcing myself out at least once a month for the journey to Austin for The Writers’ League 2011 Third Thursday Series. I’ve talked about my book more, dabbling the light with my toes.

At the end of next week, I will be spending three days out of the closet. I’m attending the Writers’ League of Texas Agents Conference at the Hyatt Regency Austin. My id is already packed. I hope there’s a bellhop to carry the piano.

Writing in the Closet

2011-05-26T14:39:00.002-05:00

Back in the Summer of 2007, I began a thread on a popular budget forum. It focused on controlled spending and money leaks. It blossomed like I couldn’t believe, and like a well reared child, continues on without me. In January 2008, I began blogging here, mostly about the same topics as well as some family issues. My last post was in August of 2009.

A little while after that post, I pulled out a novel that I had finished back somewhere in 2003. I had trunked it, as it were. Dusting it off, I set out to read it and a magical thing seemed to happen. I couldn’t put it down, sure there were some major issues to be dealt with, and it needed a huge overhaul, but it was like it wasn’t mine. Maybe number three wasn’t so bad after all.

In 2010, we had some major juggling of priorities and I realized I wanted to finish what I then referred to with the working title of LollyJacked. I hacked it to pieces, tore it apart, and rewrote it. It was tough. Mommy, house, work, wife, hell, it’s a bitch. Our computer is adjacent to the living room so there is no peace when someone else is home. So, I upgraded the family computer and went to move the old Dell. Alas, there was nowhere for me to go. Our bedroom is too small to support a desk, our guestroom is overrun with amps, guitars, yodelers, and banjoes. In a fit of despair, I bought a cheap, tiny, student desk and moved into my bedroom closet.

If you are envisioning some walk-in closet turned tiny office, ditch it. It was a simple sliding door affair, and was barely deep enough for the smallest desk I could find. The doors had to come off just so I could work at the desk. The old Dell is so big, I have to balance the keyboard on my knees. Extension cords power the whole damn mess, and have to be put away to keep the tripping hazards to a minimum. Pin Up Girl posters and a Harry Potter standee line the back wall, empty hangers go above the computer, and the ever present Einstein wardrobe of black clothing flank the left. Life is good. I finished the first major overhaul huddled in there.

Before I could waffle, I printed the book on my ancient, expensive printer, spent an hour poking holes in it and dropping it into a three ring binder. I promptly gave it up to my first reader in years. She read it quickly, just a few weeks and told me it was good. Not a lot of feedback, but it was positive. I started my rewrites in the late fall and finished another version at the beginning of the year.

I promptly asked a few people to be my beta readers. Like a proud Mama, I printed, poked, packaged, and mailed them off. Crickets. Nothing. I’ve gotten a tiny bit back from one person, but that’s it. Not a single word. I was in despair. I was also slowly coming out of the other closet as a writer. I tried to talk about it some. I voiced my frustration to two others and in February, I presented two more copies to the world. Crickets. Nothing. One of them had started it, one had never bothered despite giving me his word. Crickets. Nothing.

In the meantime, my husband read it, loved it, and gave me encouragement. But, oh my heart, isn’t that what he’s there for? So, here I am. I’ve sent it out again to someone else I trust and am waiting to hear back. But, I’ve undergone a few more changes.

I’ve joined the Writers’ League of Texas and paid to go to their 2011 Agents Conference in June. I’ve gone to two of their events in Austin so far, and I can’t tell you how good it feels to be just a little out of the closet. It is daunting, and damn, conference is getting close!

My Next Post:
Why I Wrote in the Other Closet

The Gall of it all!

2009-08-17T23:15:00.002-05:00

Back in early June, we spent the last night of our beach vacation at my parents' house. My mom made a yummy chicken fried steak. Later that night, I was sure she was trying to kill me with the horrendous bout of indigestion. Seriously, I can't remember being more miserable.

But, oh, that was nothing baby. Absolutely nothing.

A few weeks later, several people at work were battling a tummy bug. Okay, one manager was loosing to a bizarre strain of virus that can explain a famous early episode of South Park, but still others were having a few mild issues. One Sunday, I got up, was feeling fine, then BAM! I ended up yaking at work, but afterwards I felt much better.

Fast forward to Harry Potter night. I had gotten a big bucket of popcorn that turned out to be greasy without "butter" added and chock full of kernels. In the wee hours of the next morning: BINGO! Major indigestion that required me to wake up DH and send him to CVS for Pepto Max. Yeah. BAD! I even had to have my mom take Hoot to school and spent the morning in bed.

But, it all paled in comparison to the last Sunday in July. Paled.

I was having a great day, when out of the blue I was smacked down. In under 10 minutes, I went from fine and dandy to moaning and writhing. After a puke, I thought it would all be well, but it didn't help. I FLED work a little after 2.

After much Pepto, GasX, and everything else I could think of, I was beginning to get really worried. I resolved to call the doctor in the morning and tried to just go to sleep. At eleven that night, I called the nurseline service provided by my insurance company. After ten minutes of going through my symptoms and day, she suggested I get myself to the emergency room as soon as possible.

I left the boys in bed and took myself. Life was much better with some nausea medication mixed into a morphine drip. Yep. I hurt that bad. At two a.m., the sonogram tech came and got me. I didn't want to go. I just wanted the morphine/anti-nausea cocktail in the iv bag. But, I took a little ride.

Four days later, a rather talented surgeon ripped my gall bladder out of my belly button.

The surgery wasn't bad at all. In by 10, home by 2. A few staples, a big batch of pills, and yippee! By Monday, I was thinking I'd be back at work on Friday. I was on the mend. Except, it was really hot, and I was a tad irritated around my incisions. I had been warned about developing a sensitivity to the adhesive in bandages. I figured that was it combined with the super heat.

By Thursday morning, if I hadn't had an appointment with the surgeon for my follow up and staple removal, I would've called and begged for one.

Turns out I am totally incompatable with surgical stainless steel. *Good thing I've never had anything, um, delicate pierced!*

I finally made it back to work last week, but haven't had a chance to catch my breath since then. But, life is so much better. Who needs a gall bladder anyway?

Current slavish devotion to a genre:
Scandinavian Crime Fiction. How have I lived without you? Seriously, I can't imagine how sad it would've been if I had never read Stieg Larsson. I've just finished The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson. It is the second in the trilogy, but can be read alone. When I was out sick, I dreamed of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo several times. It was what I was shelving during my surgery. I was able to put my hands on Fire first. I am saving Dragon Tattoo for vacation in September. Maybe. I don't know that I will be able to wait. I just started a Henning Mankell mystery today. Which reminds me, I should get to book, um, I mean bed.

Beat by the heat

2009-07-09T23:46:00.003-05:00

I am feeling just beat down by this merciless heat. Not quite as bad as my yard, but still. It makes me want to do nothing. Nothing, I tell ya! Oh, that exclamation mark really took it out of me.

I'm doing No Buy July, but only to moderate success right now. We went off to my parent's house for the Fourth, so I had several days of exemptions there.

Oh, and I got pulled over for going 66 in a 55. Story to follow soon. I just need to get a hold of a few pics before I can tell it properly.

Ugh! Maybe I can find the pics tonight and post about the weekend in the morning. No promises. It's hot and that makes me pretty lazy.

At the bookstore:
Do you have that Miley Cyrus book?
Miles To Go?
Yeah, I finally have enough money and momma said I could buy it, but I've been everywhere and can't get it. I've been to Target and Walmart. I finally asked momma if we could go to a bookstore.
Here it is.
I just love real bookstores
*Me too, baby. Me too.*

Victory is mine!

2009-06-23T10:36:00.002-05:00

I love my car. Her name is Sally, but really it's Penelope. Originally named Penelope after Penelope Pitstop, Hoot calls her Sally because she is the same color as Sally from the movie Cars. So, Sally it is.

Unfortunately, Sally recently burned out her low beam headlight on the driver's side of the car. Sad. The dealer here, which I refuse to patronize, charges $80 or more to replace the bulb. Our wonderful local mechanic charges only $25. However, I just spent almost a grand replacing the master timing belt, water pump, and thermostat. Not because it broke, but because I hit the 100K marker on the odometer. I will need tires and an alignment soon, so I really didn't want to have to take it in for a headlight.

Years ago, one of the No Buy gals on the Disboards sent me a link with instructions on changing the bulb myself. I tried it and fought with it for several hours. Then, I gave up and took it to my mechanic.

Today, I decided to give it another go! For $6 and some bruised fingertips, I changed that dang bulb myself! Hooray! I can't tell you how happy I am! It took quite a bit of work, but I managed to get the assembly out, bulb changed and the assembly snuggly back into its tracks. However, I don't have the brutal man strength to get the knob back in place, but no worries. It is snug enough for now... yes, really. Trust me that bad boy is not going anywhere. I will have big man slide the latch back in place tonight.

Wow, if I had learned this skill 7 years ago, I could have saved a bundle. I had them changed at least four times at a dealership (at least $80 a pop) and once at our family mechanic for $25. That's $345 I could've saved over the years! Never again! LOL!

And now, I can take the main roads home tonight!

At the Jellyfish Ranch: Hoot is doing so well. He's not the picture perfect student, but he is so much better. He loves them; they love him. Life is good for the Hooter Bear! And, sleeping at night is so much better. We may be able to transition back out of the night time pull ups again soon!

At the bookstore: I keep forgetting to pick up the new book by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. I loved The Shadow of the Wind so much, it became one of my top five books of all time. Now, I finally have another one of his books within my grasp and I can't remember to bring it home! Bad Susie. Bad, bad Susie. Tonight, I will start The Angel's Game. I promise!

Jellyfish at the Beach

2009-06-16T09:05:00.005-05:00

Do we really have to wrinkle our nose every time someone stops us to take a picture?

Yes, I guess we do!

This past weekend, we went on our annual trip to Corpus Christi so that we could frolic in the surf at Mustang Island. And, wow, what surf it was! I can't remember the last time the waves were that big! We watched a few surfers go way out and actually surf for a very long time. We do love the beach!

Our usual budget for this trip is $500. That includes everything and we take my parents. This is a trade off of Mother's Day and Father's Day for myself, my mom, DH, and my dad. So, $500 for four presents isn't bad. This usually includes two hotel rooms for two nights, most meals, gas money, annual beach pass, and any miscellaneous flotsam and jetsam picked up at the beach stores. My mom would usually bring a cooler full of drinks and sandwich stuff for picnicking on the beach.

This year, due to the not thinking before speaking habit of DH and a whole lot of family politics, we ended up only spending one night in Corpus. Yeah, I'm not really going to go there, it'll just make me angry again. So, we had a new plan. A cheaper plan. Ah, hindsight, baby, hindsight....

We drove to my parents' house on Thursday night, as they live just under 2 hours from Corpus. We spent the night and headed out late the next morning. Along the drive, my mom kept Hoot busy in the back seat cutting paper and making tiny crabs with her paper punch kit. They must have made close to 100 of those little crabs as we found them all weekend long!

Upon arrival, we had lunch at Joe's Crab Shack over the water along Shoreline Drive. It was a blast and Hoot jumped up to join the floor show when the waiters danced. It was wonderful. I spent $93 including tip for the five of us. Not bad, as this was supposed to be our big expensive meal out for the trip.

After lunch, we headed out onto the island, but didn't want to change into our swimsuits in a gas station bathroom. So, we spent $16 to get us into the State Park. We changed, but since the park was busy, decided to head back out to our usual spot off of Beach Access Road Number 2. We love being able to back right up to the water with all our gear to set up camp. Thankfully, my mom's new Trailblazer had four wheel drive. The sand was so loose this year because they've had no rain. (I made her drive. I haven't driven on the beach since I had to get a beach hunk in a big truck pull the bug out in 2006!... but, oh, what a hunk....) Then, we popped off another $12 for our annual beach parking permit.

The water was fantastic and we stayed for hours. Hoot is still so fearless in the water. The waves knock him down, he pops back up. Lather, rinse, repeat. I know people always stare at him in his life vest, but he's too quick and fearless to go without it. We'll have to upgrade a size before next year.

We checked in to the Holiday Inn Convention Center out by the airport. This is a very nice hotel, and I Pricelined two rooms for one night and it came out to $114 with taxes. We cleaned up and headed out to dinner, stopping to put $48 in gas in the Trailblazer along the way. Wow, what a big improvement over the money in gas we put in their old truck last year!

No one could quite decide what they wanted for dinner, but we were super hungry! I don't know who spoke first, but when the word OUTBACK came up, everyone got excited. Um, not quite the budget meal I had hoped for, but okay. I mean it's vacation, right? Yeah, $123 later, I announced that I hoped everyone enjoyed it because tomorrow meant bologna on the beach. And you know what? They didn't believe me! Will they ever learn?

After dinner, we headed out to the cheesy beach shops on North Padre Island. We were looking for shells to take to Hoot's Jellyfish class. I spent $28 on 20 shells, two t-shirts, a metal Space shuttle toy, and a light up shark. Not too bad, really!

Back at the hotel, DH took Hoot for a swim, slapped him in jammie's, and we dropped him off with the old people. We then headed off to the bar. Wow, out for a drink. Just like grown ups! We spent $20 on four drinks and enjoyed the last period of the Stanley Cup finals. In a bar. Just like grown ups. Oh, had I mentioned that? Sorry. (just like grown ups.)

After checking out, we headed back out to the beach. I stopped at CVS and spent $15 on drinks, chips, and bread. Unfortunately, they didn't have any sandwich meat or cheese, so we had to stop again at another small store for those, which came out to $12. They laughed at me, but for lunch, I fed them bologna sandwiches on the beach!

We had a great afternoon, but then everyone got really tired. At the last minute, as I was breaking camp, the wind snapped one of our beach umbrellas into an early retirement. Well, I say early, but the thing was at least ten years old. I shall search for a replacement at the end of the season, or maybe upgrade to a small canopy if the price is right. My dad kept coveting the neighbors canopy, even though I know they can be a pain to anchor in the sea breeze.

Everyone was snacky hungry as we left, and we wanted to wait until we got back to my parents' house before we ate, so we pulled in to Whataburger for a round of shakes that set me back $14.

I also need to add in the gas for my car ($28), two convenience store stops on the road (totaling $16), dinner when we got back late Sunday night ($13), and the kennel costs for Miss Luna since we took our dog sitters with us on this trip ($78.)

So, let's see how we did. I figure we were way over in our quest to save money.

Yep. WAY OVER! The grand total comes out to $630. See, sometimes to save money- like staying only one night in a hotel, makes you seem like you have more money to burn. That sure seemed to be our attitude this time. Its almost easier to stay two nights, take two cars, and bring more picnic stuff from home. That makes us a little more careful. Lesson learned.

We're gonna love being a Jellyfish!

2009-06-03T23:34:00.002-05:00

Wow, my last post was April 8th! I'm shocked but not. Life has been so very tough for Team Stone. Like, Super Tough. Hoot had started preschool around March 15th. Last week, we removed him from his old school. Poor Hoot. He could be a poster child for what Preschools should not do. As a parent, I am ashamed that I allowed it to continue for as long as it did. Honestly, I just didn't know better. Looking back, I should have seen the signs.

On his first day, I had to go get him. Sure. Happens to a lot of preschoolers. But, here's what really went down. Daddy walked in with Hoot and it took several minutes before the "teacher" acknowledged them and showed Daddy where to put Hoot's nap mat, blankie, and pillow. Daddy gave Hoot a hug and left. "Teacher" never bothered to introduce herself or talk to Hoot about the rules. He immediately began to move a play stove so that it was next to the sink. "Teacher" tried to put him in time out. Meltdown.

We went half days the rest of the week. Then all day the next. Then, he got a new "Teacher" and we learned that this was the real teacher (yes, she was the one we met when we toured the school). From there, we had so many meltdowns. And I began to really watch. He was in the office every single day. They would knee jerk timeout for every tiny infraction, and not just with my kid. And they would pounce you on Fridays with every tiny detail.

Then, we had another new "Teacher" at the beginning of May and that's when the nightmares began. And we had the hair incident....

I received a call that I had to come and get Hoot. He had cut a "hunk" of hair off of a little girls head. Now, cutting hair is a bad thing to do. I will never deny that. But, I had to totally rearrange other manager's schedules to get my shift covered. Then, when I got there, I was shown the "hunk" of hair. Well, as I'm posting, I'm listening to my Ipod. The cord on my ear buds are about twice as thick as the "hunk" of hair. Really? And seriously, isn't this the teacher's fault? Where was she? Again, not denying guilt, just questioning the environment.

When I went to pick up Hoot for the hair incident. I asked the owner/administrator if she thought this was going to work out. She said she honestly didn't know. Not the right answer. You really just said you don't have faith in my child. I began shopping for schools again the next day.

Then, I found the Jellyfish. Really, they had been my first choice all along, but they NEVER have openings. They are a hippy momma chain based out of Austin. They are so wonderful and optimistic that I cried when I signed him up. But, I had to wait until the beginning of June. Surely we could make it one more month.

Right?

But, time out wasn't working at home anymore. TV banning and rewards/punishments with video games were DESTROYING my family. I didn't even want to go get my child from preschool because I was tired of being beaten down.

The next week, Hoot was sent home for peeing on the playground. Um, yeah, again not right, but boys do that. Really, on some level they don't really grow out of that. And, it all went downhill from there. Yeah, I didn't know we could go any lower. We did.

Every single night, we had nightmares or night terrors. The night terrors were the worst with the thrashing and screaming and hitting. As they occur outside of the REM cycle that nightmares occur in, he didn't remember them and you had to wake him up to break the cycle. Not an easy task. Like waking a sleepwalker.

Every meal was a battle. Every morning a fight. Every night sleepless. Our household was riddled with landmines and pitfalls.

Then, I had six days of vacation. I kept Hoot at home and you know what? After four nights, no more nightmares or night terrors. And, after a few days, he was a delight to be around. Really, he was a great kid.

But, he had three more days of the old school left between my days off and the new school.

We could make it three more days, right? Just three days.

No. On Wednesday, he had a really rough day with another kid that had been one of his big problems in the fighting category. (This kid's name came up in our screaming nightmares most of the time.)

On Thursday, I received a call to talk to Hoot on the phone as he had been in trouble again. The ***** in the office was super nasty to me and we had a few words on the phone. I had absolutely no one to take Hoot for me. When Daddy arrived to pick him up that evening, he was on the bottom of a dogpile being hit and punched by other kids. He came home with a giant goose egg on his forehead, a gouge out of his neck, his brand new shirt from Tee had its neck stretched out beyond wearing, and bruises up and down his legs. It is such a good thing I didn't go get him. They would've had to take me out of there in cuffs.

Thankfully, Daddy's boss allowed him to work a half day on Friday and Hoot never went back.

On Monday, we became Jellyfish together. Hoot and I went around 10 am and stayed with the class for an hour and a half. It was awesome. We explored the room together and set down some boundaries. We learned where his cubby was and met everyone. It was awesome. There is even a kid that matches Hoot's height! Yeah! He's not the only "giant" in class. Before we left, Hoot told me, "Momma, you go home! I'm gonna stay!" But, we had a lunch date so he came home with me.

Tuesday was his first day. He was excited and nervous, heck, so was I! But, he showed no anxiety at me leaving. When Daddy picked him up from school, the teacher said it was a great day. Now, I'm sure it wasn't crime free. Heck, sharing and rules are what preschool is about! And the other kids tried to rat him out to Daddy, but Daddy knows to listen to the teacher.

Same story today! Again, I'm sure he did something naughty. But, this school gets that. It gets kids. It knows that kids are what you think they are. If you think they are monsters, they will be monsters. If you keep a positive winning attitude, you will get positive winners.

I had a lovely dinner tonight with a positive winner. He was polite, talkative, and, when dinner was over, he put all our plates in the sink without having to be asked. At bedtime, Team Stone gathered for story time on the big bed and had a great time. No fights. No sass. No stress.

I'm gonna love this Jellyfish thing.

Bee's Business

2009-04-08T08:48:00.002-05:00

Now that I am getting back to my blog, (oh, how I've missed it!) there is so much I want to write about: money triumphs, troubles, family issues, upcoming trips, finishing an old trip report, the list goes on and on. However, this post won't be about any of that.

This post is about a book that I read last week. Yes, my favorite thing. A book that won't let you go. And this book will probably never let me go. Ah, my favorite kind.

Little Bee by Chris Cleave is an amazing flower that is so steeped in the real world that it will not matter that it is a work of fiction. When I first read the back cover of the advanced reader, I was skeptical. The blurb suggested that if I read it, I would want to tell everyone about it. Then it asks you to not tell too much about the book. But, these book jacket promises don't always deliver. This one delivered and oh, I want to tell you absolutely everything. I'm just bursting!

Originally published in the UK as The Other Hand, this advanced reader was handed to me by another manager who was also just bursting. As I read it, we had a few conversations where she was very guarded. In fact, every conversation began with, "So, how much do you know?" Its a very adept way to talk about this book when someone hasn't finished it. But, you still have to be very careful. Last night, I recommended it to one of my booksellers. I can't wait to see her again so that I can ask the same question.

I know, you're thinking, but what about the book! Get back to the book. But, really I can't tell you much. But, I will tell you a little. And, I'll give you a link to the author's website posting of the first chapter.

Little Bee is a Nigerian refugee. But it is not just her story. It also belongs to a highly successful London magazine editor and the people who populate her world. The relationships between these characters are intense, special, and real. We get gripping narration from both sides of the story.

The story begins in the middle, and the past is woven into the future so that each petal of steel is revealed slowly. But, as the beautiful flower is opened, handle it carefully, the truthful ugliness is not just in the thorns.

And that's it. That's all I'm going to say about the book. But, know this, when I am at work, I will be saying it over and over and over. Chris Cleave deserves to have this book on every bestseller list out there. You can bet I'm going to do my part.

Oh, and one last thing. If you seek out more reviews of Little Bee, please be careful. You really, really, really don't want spoilers and there are many out there.

Dare I say... Routine?

2009-04-06T23:52:00.002-05:00

Do I dare say it? We may be establishing a routine? This whole preschool thing has turned us upside down and inside out. But, we're on our fourth week, and we had a good day.

Okay, so I haven't spoken with his morning teacher, but I am declaring it a good day. Why? Because he didn't go to the office today! Hooray! No horrible, Hitler's mommy feeling when I went to pick him up!

Seriously, I have felt so down and depressed with this whole preschool thing. And it wasn't all about missing my Hooter Bear. Sure, I missed him horribly, especially while I was on vacation last week and home all day. But, what was getting to me was that dread pit in my stomach when I went to get him every day.

I would get so horribly rattled by the things that they would tell me:
Hoot hit his teacher.
Hoot told his teacher he was "gonna get her fired!"
Hoot ran with scissors. (Yes, really.)
Hoot poked a kid in the eye.
Hoot slapped at the pregnant teacher.
Hoot wouldn't stop barking. (I never got up the guts to ask if it was a Chihuahua bark or Bolt's Super Bark.)
Hoot had to take his shoes off because he wouldn't stop kicking the door while in the office.
Really, this list could go on and on.

Then, I got in trouble for not signing him in one morning. That really got to me. I mean, I'm not stupid. I run a five million dollar business. I am an intelligent adult. I successfully got him to school, helped him put away his things, told the teacher good morning, got a progress report, then kissed and hugged my love goodbye and left. *sigh*

I know it is all still new, but I felt a little hope this afternoon. There were papers in his box, and they showed very promising work. He hadn't gone to the office. He was polite and in a good mood. Yeah, it felt really good.

Oh, then I followed through with my desperation promise: I returned the power cord to the Game Cube. Yeah, I know. Desperate times, desperate measures. I hated it the whole time they played because Hoot becomes so dang obsessed. But, sometimes you have to take a horrible thing, throw it in the forge, then pound it against an anvil until it becomes something good. It is hot sweaty work, but I guess I can live with it.

Now maybe I can start getting control back into the other areas of my life.

Preschool Blues

2009-03-25T08:46:00.004-05:00

I'm back! Wow, talk about forever since I last posted. But... I have a serious case of the preschool blues.

With all the talk about my bookstore changing its hours, and DH's plant talking about some new contracts, we began to seriously talk about Hoot going to preschool/daycare. We found a place we loved and Hoot REALLY wanted to go there and be with other kids during the day.

I thought he'd be a model citizen.

Turns out he needs Mr Bubbles to make him a model citizen.

Seriously, I thought it might have a few challenges and would be rough for a few weeks. I did not know he would turn feral. On the first day, he moved furniture around in a fit of rage. On the second day, he tried to hit a teacher and told her he was going to get her fired. On the third day, we didn't have to go to the office until almost noon.

This week, we are just shooting for noon. Every day. Get him through the morning routine with a few successes under his belt, since I really felt like, in the end, we had set him up for some big time failure with this one.

Next week, we're going to try and make it through the entire day. God only knows what nap time will bring.

This morning, I'll be sitting here by the phone until noon. With a huge pit in my stomach. Jumping out of my skin every time the phone rings.

Where in the world is Siouxstone?

2009-03-04T00:58:00.002-06:00

Home. Off of her computer. Sad. But, there is hope! After some tough decisions, we are sending Hoot to preschool/daycare full time starting on March 16th. I can't really write about it yet because I am totally devastated, even if I do feel like it is the right thing to do.

So, with all this change coming at me, I feel like I have a third full time job getting it all planned out and well, just dealing with it. I've been planning to post for a while that I will be taking a hiatus until Hoot starts school. I will be taking the first day off so that I can cry all morning. But, then I will be back posting and kicking on Tuesday March 17th. I promise. I even have a goal to get back to a minimum of three posts a week. (Lord knows my sanity needs it. I kind of fall apart if I don't write regularly.)

In the mean time, I will be spending gobs of time with Hoot and making him a custom cover, blanket, and pillowcase for his nap mat. Nap mat. I have to get a nap mat for my baby. Somebody hold me...

nowalle

2009-02-18T00:38:00.002-06:00

Which means No Wall-e!

There are several new dirty words in my household. All seem to be causing massive chaos, and even a little destruction.

Dirty word #1- Opossum. Yep. You would've thought he would move on once Luna came on site, but it didn't happen. Here recently he's taken to taunting her merciless every single night. It is already a big enough pain in the butt to have to walk your dog on a leash when you have a fenced yard. Did we have to add the extra grievance of marsupials hanging out in low lying limbs as well? Seriously folks, it needs to move on and find a new home. The squirrels did.

Dirty word #2- Video game. (Yeah, I know its technically two words.) Back in January, when I was trying desperately to stay off my leg, I drug out the newly rediscovered Nintendo Gamecube. I was looking for Hoot entertainment without subjecting myself to hours of Snow Buddies on the DVD player. I take full responsibility for the initial introduction. My bad. I never should have done it.

Dirty word #3- Sandstorm race. During the same time period, I also downloaded a playable "preview" of the Wall-e video game for the PC. I claim Momma Madness, it strikes us all.

Dirty word #4- Butt. As in "I'm gonna kick some bad guys' butts!" I totally forgot that DH plays video games like Beavis and Butthead. Now, Hoot sounds like Beavis and Butthead playing video games.

All these dirty words have descended us into a pit of chaos like we haven't seen in a while. The game we had for the Nintendo was a Spyro game rated E for Everyone. Yeah. Not for little kids who can't distinguish fantasy from reality. Especially not for the ones who have parents that take them to large theme parks to meet these fantasy characters for real, and then back it up with photos of them giving out birthday cakes. Super bad idea.

Then, when we cut off the games cold turkey (or so Mom thought) we have to listen to whining, crying, and ridiculously polite asking every hour on the hour. That mouth goes off like Old Faithful. "Momma, can I play Spyro?" "Momma, can I play Spyro? Pretty please?" "Momma...." You get the idea.

Then, the PC comes under attack. Turn your back for a minute and he's launched the Wall-e demo to play the sandstorm race portion of the game. *sigh* Eventually, I learn how to lock my keyboard. Oh, the frustration and the agony. So, Hoot starts hard booting the computer to get it to come up. It takes two days and many trips to the naughty mat to get that under control.

So, this week it has officially been two weeks since we pulled the cord. I put the Nintendo's power cord back into the closet with the game unit. I figure we have about another week before Hoot moves on to his next obsession. Yeah. Right.

Monday night, I come home and Nathan announces, without any prompting from Hoot, "I let him play the game." Just like that. Now how do you do, fine how are you. Nothing. So, once again I am the bad guy. I have to remove the power cord from the house. Then, I begin to wonder has he played the Wall-e game on my PC? Yep. Found out today when I checked just before I removed it permanently from my hard drive.

And all of that leads to:
Dirty word #5- nowalle. This is the new password to my keyboard. However, it makes doing anything, even paying bills online, virtually impossible unless Hoot is gone or asleep. That means all my late night online time has been filled with bill pay and such. Not fun. Maybe that'll be my next password: notfun

Phone call to the bookstore:
I see on my receipt that you only give store credit for text books when you return them within 14 days, but I got the wrong book and need to get another one.
You did say you have a receipt, right?
Yeah, I have my receipt, but I got the wrong book and I want to exchange it not get a store credit and its a textbook.
What's the book?
Well, I got an LSAT book, but like, I'm not supposed to take the LSAT. I supposed to take the GRE and if you give me store credit I won't be able to get the right book. So, I just want to exchange it.
Just bring your receipt and we'll get you all taken care of.
And I can get my GRE book?!

Hope she does well on that test....

Gumbo, Groundhogs, and Diggers, oh my!

2009-02-04T23:22:00.002-06:00

This last weekend, the old people (my parents) came down to watch the Super Bowl with us and take a day trip on Monday. We had a lot of fun, but it was a little bit of a budget buster.

For Sunday, we chose to make gumbo for our Super Bowl Sunday meal. Now, my family loves homemade gumbo, and I don't mind a day in the kitchen, but if you've ever stirred a roux until it turns brick red, you know it turns your arm to jelly. But, thanks to Alton Brown, there is a kinder, gentler way to make roux... in the oven. Yep. This recipe will give you all the instructions for oven roux. I didn't make this exact recipe, as I didn't want to peel shrimp so I bought wild gulf shrimp that was deveined, shelled, and cleaned before being frozen. I supplemented the homemade shrimp stock with store bought chicken stock. It came out fabulous and I am now a huge fan of oven made roux! I didn't fret over the substitutions, because using what you have is what gumbo is all about! I did receive rave reviews from the family.

The next morning, to celebrate Groundhog Day, we took a day trip to the zoo. Luna was due for her big check up at the vet, so we dropped her off at "daycare" so we didn't have to worry about her being alone all day. But, we did have to be back before 5:30pm. Sadly, we departed a full hour and a half after our goal of 7:30am. And it would effect our day later on, that's for sure.

The Houston Zoo and Hermann Park are undergoing a huge, and sorely needed facelift. The train in the park is new, but the new station will not open until March. But, most importantly to Hoot, you have to walk through a full fledged construction zone before you get to the Zoo entrance! Holy cow! Frontend loaders, back hoes, cranes, and lifters! It was a little boy's delight! He was beside himself before we even paid for our tickets.

We only did about half of the zoo, but it took two hours. My parents just don't move as quickly as they used to, so we took it slow and easy. A little after 1:30 pm, we headed off to buy our train tickets. By the time we rode the train and hit the road, it was just after 3pm! Holy cow, Scoob, we've got to get out of the perimeter like NOW!

Our late escape put a decent meal in peril. Normally, when we go to Houston, or Austin, or anywhere else for that matter, we try to eat someplace that we don't have at home. We needed someplace fast or we would have to drive-thru and eat in the car. Well, it was a far better Luby's than the one at home. Though, poor Hoot, he never did get to eat groundhog....

We made it to the vet's with about 15 minutes to spare...

Total cost for the day:
$8 convenience store junk
$38 Zoo entrance- 2 adults, 2 seniors, 1 child
$6 ride for 3 on carousel
$12.50 for five train tickets
$1 for train whistle
$63 for super late lunch at Luby's
$206! for Luna's vet bill

$335 for a groundhog? Unbelievable!

I love all the trappings....

2009-01-28T00:30:00.003-06:00

Tonight, I was reading an article on MSN about tourist traps. You can read it here. It got me thinking about my love for travel, love for tourist traps, and well, I guess you could say my love for cheese. So, I thought I'd go over my favorite (so far) tourist traps.

Gatorland- Located just miles from Mickey's house, Gatorland is a throwback attraction that is tops in my book. I have several photos of DH at Gatorland during our 10th anniversary trip to Orlando in 2003 on my fridge even today. Oh, how I wish I had those photos scanned onto disk. The Gator Jumparoo is really a site to behold. Raw chicken (yeah, this isn't for Peta lovers) is rolled out over the water and gators jump astonishingly high to get them. The only thing I love more than the Jumparoo is the gift shop. Great souvenirs that go beyond the fantastic line of t-shirts and such. Really, take your dog sitter some gator jerky or maybe your mother-in-law needs a real taxidermy alligator head. I haven't been to Gatorland since before the fire in November of 2006. Mostly because I have declared that Hoot be at least 6 before I will take him to Gatorland. He's just too fearless and forge ahead to get him keen on the idea of feeding wieners to alligators. Well, that and he needs to be big enough to fight off emus, as this is also one of the more notorious sites of Susie gets attacked by birds. (Oh, I don't blame Gatorland, I blame the birds.)

Stone Mountain Park- Yeah, I could wax nostalgic on this one for a while. I could even do a SMP employee retrospective. Of course my favorite things pre-date the evil privatization of the park: the carving, the skylift, the railroad, the riverboats (both the Scarlett O'Hara and the Henry Grady), the plantation, and the carillon. But, mostly I still go gaga over the lasershow. (Yes kids, if I am alone in the car and Ray Charles starts in on Georgia, I may have to pull over.) There is also a ton of new stuff in the parks that have been embellished or added since my last visit in early 2004.

Graceland- My only visit to Graceland occurred during what we like to call the Post-Olympic Viva Los Delta tour. We hit Tupelo for the Elvis birthplace on the drive to Tunica Mississippi. Then, we stayed and gambled a few days, driving up to Memphis to visit Beale Street and Graceland. I had a minor fit at the Walkman guided tour when I was given a nasty pair of earphones, but an employee hooked me up with a fresh pair. I really wasn't prepared for how well the recorded tour and history came together, which resulted in tears as I listened to Elvis sing "How Great Thou Art" when I stood in front of his grave. Someday, I'll have to take DH to stay at the Heartbreak Hotel. They have 24 hour Elvis movies on the television!

Well, I wasn't quite prepared for how nostalgic I would get when I started this post. I originally meant to plan out February's budget tonight, but my love of tourist traps just kind of kept me going. I do have plenty more to post on the subject, but maybe on another night.

Consider it a Public Service Announcement

2009-01-25T21:16:00.002-06:00

Tonight, we were channel surfing with Hoot, when we hit the beginning of the PBS series Nature as it debuted: Is That Skunk? Halfway through the show, as Hoot showed no sign of boring with skunks, they gave out the secret mystical formula that will erase the odor of the spray. As my four year old son was so excited, I glanced over to my one year old dog on the couch. Needless to say, I paused the show, grabbed a pen and paper and wrote it down. I'll call it:

Skunk Juice
(never to be made inside a house or building)
1 quart 3% hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup baking soda
1 teaspoon detergent (dish or laundry)

mix in a very large, very open bucket as it will pressurize. Keeping away from the eyes, coat the victim liberally. Let sit for five minutes and rinse. This will totally break down the molecular structure.

PS: If I die and you inherit or find my recipe book, do not make Skunk Juice for your Halloween or Super Bowl parties. I simply needed a very safe place for this recipe. However, it does fall right after Alton's Cocoa Mix.

Ack! Just when you think you're in the clear....

2009-01-23T00:27:00.003-06:00

Or maybe Achoo! would be more appropriate. You know the old adage if momma ain't happy, no body's happy? Well, apparently if momma ain't well, no body's happy. I've had a nasty cold for the last week and while I'm in the final throws of snotdom, I realize just how much it effects everything. Laundry piles up. Dishes pile up. Groceries become sparse. Husbands become useless. Menus get tossed to the wayside. Yep. It is true.

However, there is a very silver lining. Even though he repeated drinks after me, and honestly, no unattended bottle of water is safe, Hoot hasn't done more than sneeze a couple of times. Go figure. I guess my body is still more shot dealing with my leg than I thought. I've upped the vitamins and plowed through an entire tube of Airborne but alas, I still became the grouchy snot monster.

And, speaking of monsters... I hear that Cookie Monster will not be so Cookie Monster anymore. If I look on the Sesame Street website, I see he is still Cookie Monster there. Hoot is not a big fan of SS, so I haven't seen this for myself, but oh, I lament if this is true. See, Cookie Monster is my favorite. He's very special to me. He's blue. He loves cookies. And he is a Scorpio, with his birthday nestled the one day that is between my birthday (November 1st) and my mom's birthday (November 3rd.) If he truly has become the Veggie Monster, I will be so very sad. I hate political correctness.

My Vision Board

2009-01-15T00:56:00.003-06:00

I've just finished a lovely run of three days off. Merry Christmas to me, it's my holiday time. I was planning to work on my 2009 plans and finalize our big yearly goals, but I have decided to try a different route this year. Instead of a spreadsheet (oh, don't fear, I'm not leaving excel, what would I do?) I am creating a vision board.

Don't know what a vision board is? Think of it as a giant collage of everything you want in your life. Travel, money, love, new furniture, a working dishwasher... you name it, get a photo of it, and paste it down. Yes, I know. Its a very law of attraction kind of thing, Hippy guru nonsense, right? Well, I don't think so.

I believe that focusing on any thing, good or bad, will only magnify that thing. Don't like the idea of the law of attraction thing? Think of it more scientifically. Most Psychology 101 classes get introduced to self fulfilling prophecy. Cling to that if you need to. Or, heck, jump on that placebo effect thing. The power of absolute belief can be an enormous thing.

So, I put down my Napoleon Hill and picked up a piece of white foam board. I felt a little like I was about to make my charts and explanations for the science fair, but who cares, right? I've spent a little time with my magazines and some scissors. I've cut out all kinds of things. Furniture, a Wii, an entire kitchen, appliances and such. Most of what I considered my foundation was travel related and that is as far as I've gotten.

Right now, standing up against the fridge is the foam board covered with travel pictures. The drawings from my Disney Vacation Club packet for Animal Kingdom Villas make up a large part of the base. There is also photos from Australia, Paris, Tuscany, Las Vegas, Hawaii, and Scotland. Pretty good basis, I think. There is only one non-travel related item on the entire board so far: a picture of a brand new kitchen that is the basis for how I want to redo mine.

So, while I have quite a few things to add yet, I am enjoying the board just as it is right now. Hoot loves it, too. Oddly, on some level, I think he gets it. He keeps asking me to put the new vacuum picture on it. What a strange boy. He's been asking me to buy him a Dyson for over a year now.

January Goals

2009-01-08T23:29:00.002-06:00

I finally have nailed down my January Goals, if not the budget. Officially, January will be Recoup, Reconnect, and Re-Introduce Month. All three items have multiple meanings towards my quest for an ever improving life.

Recoup-
I totally need to take the time to focus on healing my ankle. I also need to recoup some of the energies that have otherwise been zapped by my late health problems. I've got to get rest, TAKE MY IRON (I really began to wonder if the anemia wouldn't be the end of me), and keep my leg elevated as much as possible. Sometimes this is a little unorthodox. This morning, I spent an hour and a half playing inside Hoot's Mickey Mouse tent with my leg propped up. We also do quite a show with cars on my bed.

Reconnect-
The holidays may be all about family, but I always feel a bit estranged when they are over. Then, there's the weird sensation when I haven't seen a co-worker lately, but I spent so much time with them in December that is odd. Kind of a roll reversal, if you will. So, reconnecting with Hoot & DH is a biggie for me this month. I also have to reconnect with family that I usually talk to on the phone several times a week. That just didn't happen as much.

Re-Introduce-
Ah, the big three parter.
Re-Introducing the almost vegetarian/vegan diet we'd been eating until mid-December. It's about eating better for us, not the politics. Getting rid of the crap like refined sugars and white bread- oh, sorry, same thing- really made a difference on us as a family, and we are almost full tilt back on board.
Re-Introducing the budget. It's not that I didn't have one for December, it's that it got so crazy around here, it went out of control. The crappy take out food didn't help the pocketbook either.
Re-Introducing a goal based lifestyle. We went nuts. We drifted. We drove thru. I think you get the picture. Our only goal was to "get through it" and we did. We just got through it.

Overheard in the bookstore:
I really need to get a book on statics since I'm taking it this next semester.
What's statics?
You know, when you use numbers and charts and graphs and stuff to figure things out.
Oh, statistics?
Yeah, statics.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-07T10:33:00.002-06:00

Yes, I know it is already the 7th day of 2009, but today seems like one of the first normal days of the year. I've spent so much of the last week and a half laying down with my right leg elevated. I was warned back in November when I hurt myself that without rest and elevation, my wound would take many months to heal. Well, it was impossible to get off my feet back then, so I resolved to take to my bed anytime I possibly could. It has made an amazing difference. Already, the wound has made more healing progress than in the last two months combined. However... yeah, bed rest is boring. Any TV watched has to also appeal to the four year old of the house. And, I've been really, really wishing for a laptop.

Yesterday, I did manage to take the Christmas tree down and pack it away. The living room looks a little naked, but naked in a good way. I also worked a little on my budget before I headed back to the couch. I've gotten some of January worked out, but the spreadsheet is pretty sparse after this month. I wish that the rest of the bills from the ER trip would go ahead and get here. Some of them haven't even been presented to the insurance company yet. What a pain.

I've also plotted out my vacation time for the rest of the year. Starting August 1st, I get four weeks a year! Combine that with my holidays and personal days, I get a little over five weeks off a year. Yep. I get a month. Smokin', huh? All that for a job I love. Life is good.

So, I guess I've started my 2009 planning, but just haven't gotten that far into it yet. I should to be back to at least two posts a week, but am aiming for an average of three as part of my New Year's resolution. That makes me very excited. I'm always happier when I'm writing something. Writing or planning. Or planning to write. I think it may be a sickness.

Combination for Christmas

2008-12-30T21:49:00.002-06:00

This entire month, it seems like everything has just been a little off. If I think it is Tuesday, it is Thursday. If I think its Thursday, well, it is only Wednesday, dear. Its like I'm an old time safe cracker with my ear up to the wall of the safe, listening desperately to hear a tumbler fall in to place. Lots of tumblers did not fall in to place.
Christmas cards sent- nope.
Christmas in a box created and sent to close family members- nope.
Mele Kalikimakas made and sent- nope.
Mele Kalikimakas made for the store and family- nope.

Alas, with tomorrow being New Year's Eve, it is almost over. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a horrible holiday season. We had a fantastic Christmas, as defined by Hoot having a fantastic day, complete with a hippopotamus from Santa. But, when we get this close to a new year, I get impatient for it.

A new year is like a blank piece of paper. A cosmic do over. Oh, the plans and goals and the planning of the goals. In fact, I have my first goal as planning the year and putting up a goal board before January 15th. I gave myself a little extra time because I banged my bum ankle again the other day. While I have three days off in a row (can I get an amen!) this week, I really need to stay off my feet and keep the ankle elevated.

I also intend to spend some really decent Hoot time. Today, we played cars on my bed for two hours, built blocks in his floor for another two hours, and watched Herbie Rides Again. Hoot is really turning into a Herbie fan. He only discovered old 53 when I left the TV on one morning about a week before Christmas. Herbie Fully Loaded had just come on and Hoot had gone into the living room in search of a Hot Wheels car. When he didn't come back, I went to investigate. I fell in love with my son falling in love with Herbie. Yesterday, we watched The Love Bug. Oh, how I wish I had the other Herbie movies. And, you know the best thing about it? Hoot has no idea that in the top 10 things to buy when I win the lotto is an exactly restored Herbie. Yep. Apple, tree.

Christmas at the bookstore:
Hi, my girlfriend sent me in to the get the new vampire book.
Do you know which vampire book?
No, I just know it's the newest one, only in hardcover.
Is it Eclipse or Breaking Dawn?
I don't know.
Okay, let's try this: when your vampires walk out into the sun, do they sparkle or burn?
Burn.
Are they Black Dagger Warrior vampires?
Don't think so.
Are they Southern Vampires?
YES!
Here you go.

Some Christmas Book thoughts... Part Two with interruptions!

2008-12-11T01:03:00.006-06:00

I've been trying really hard to get back and post the other half of my Christmas gift thoughts from the book selling trenches. Really. I promise. I just haven't had a day off in a while, and well, it's December. Thursday and Friday of this week will make up two of the three days off I have between now and Christmas. If pity helps at all...

Seriously, I do have a few more recommends.

For your mystery/thriller lover- Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell. Yeah, I know, but hear me out, you know I'll be honest. First of all, I don't really read Patricia Cornwell. I've done a few of her books on audio, and it was entertaining. But, my booksellers are RAVING about Scarpetta. Yeah, they are Cornwell fans and they read everything she writes, but they have been a little disillusioned with the last few books. However, all of them agree that this is the book they have been waiting years for her to write. If you've never tried her, or if you have strayed away from the series, give this one a try. My booksellers are guaranteeing that you will not be disappointed!

Movie trailer sales push- I don't know anyone who has been far enough under a rock to have missed Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, but the movie trailer seems to be finding them. You can watch it here. You know I always want to sell books, but seriously, who doesn't already own, or know someone who already owns this book?

For NEW international and historical trills, Katherine Neville's follow up to The Eight is in stores now! It's called The Fire and I have a dedicated, signed first edition just calling my name. (Yes, somebody loves me!) But, here's a little secret: I almost hate to start it. I've waited so long for this book. It's like a very beautiful cake. You know it's gonna be so good your eyes will roll back into your head, but once you cut it and take that first bite... well, you are on the big fat road to OVER. I'm saving this game for after the holidays.

There are tons of others, and when Christmas is over, there will be a wave of self improvement books just in time for New Years. I promise to do a post on what I call the Fat, Broke, and Disorganized season. There are several good looking titles headed this way.

And now for something completely different.

On the home front:

IT SNOWED! Yes, real snow. From the sky and everything! The boy was beside himself. At first, we got a dusting overnight. Hoot woke me up going on and on about it. He wanted to sled. He wanted to build a snowman. He wanted to make snowballs. When I pointed out that there was not enough snow to do any of these things, he said, "It looks bigger on TV."

Then, this afternoon, it really began to snow. Ab Fab, baby! Sadly, I was at work. But, I called and woke Dad up from his nap and made him take the boy outside. They got a few pics, but this is my favorite.

And this little snowman of love, left on my car outside of the bookstore, really made my night. I was so worried he'd fall off before I could get home to my camera, but he made it! The little guy just latched right on to my sunroof and hung on for dear life!

Since I have the camera out, here's one of Hoot and Luna that we took right after Thanksgiving. (Hoots chin is not dirty, it is a bruise left over from getting tangled up in dog leashes and falling on my mom's coffee table.)
Overheard at the bookstore:
19 or 20 year old girl on her cell phone: But Mom, its snowing. How am I going to get home?

Some Christmas book thoughts.... Part One

2008-12-04T23:38:00.004-06:00

In the last two days, I've managed a rough draft of a December budget and a potential last minute December budget buster. Here's the score:

1 suddenly continual running kitchen faucet
+1 four year old boy
+1 eleven month old dog
+3 mismatched wrenches
+1 dead flashlight
+1 semi working duct taped flashlight
+2 aching shoulders
+1 trip to Lowes
+6 hours of continual interruptions
+4 rounds of "how can that still be dripping!"
= day of plans shot to heck

Yet, VICTORY IS MINE! Honestly, I had to win. It is December, Christmas cometh, and I've already paid the plumber enough money this year. Yeah, that whole gas line thing. So, I may have stopped to help wipe the boys bottom, walk the dog, and track down tools that disappeared miraculously into the trunk of a Cozy Coupe, but I did get it done!

Then, tonight, I was going to blog about my budget, but I decided to reward my victory with writing about that which I love... books. So, I've made myself a heaping big mug of cocoa, and waited patiently for all of the rest of Team Stone to commence snoring.

My favorite new Christmas book this year seemed to take me by surprise. I plucked it off the cart in receiving in late September or early October and fell in love with it. It is a picture book by Carol Heyer entitled Humphrey's First Christmas. The link is to the author's website and it will give you a peek at the incredible illustrations. The story is as endearing and beautiful as the art. Who is Humphrey? Well, lets just say the wise men didn't walk... and it gets cold at night when you don't have a blanket.

My favorite book to give to book lovers would have to be The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I did a blog about it months ago. You can read it here. I still hand sell it every chance I get.

Newest book I've been waiting for, but haven't put my paws on yet: Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher. She has fictionalized parts of her life in to books before, but this is the first time she's calling it a memoir. It is based on her one woman show and I'm itching to get to it. OK, confession time, I just added the link from the Simon and Schuster website, and I couldn't help myself. I clicked the "read an excerpt" link. Been gone awhile. Went back to check my spelling of excerpt. Was gone another little bit. Sorry. Didn't mean to leave you hangin'!

I've pawed up quite a few others this season. I picked up Glenn Beck's The Christmas Sweater. I had read several reviews. I gave it a good try. Even though it is based on a true story, it was a little too Lifetime movie for my tastes. I'm kind of over Marley and Me by John Grogan. I guess it was all the movie hype. Sometimes I can stomach it, sometimes I can't. With this one, I can't. However, I am so excited to have a real blockbuster series, I've been calling it my Big Fat Teenage Vampire Christmas! Rock on Twilight!

Here's another bit of brutal honesty. I spent so much time reading parts of Wishful Drinking that I am now up way too late to finish my thoughts! So, I guess I'll make this part one!

The December without a plan

2008-12-03T00:20:00.002-06:00

Since it just passed midnight here, I am wondering how it got to be December 3rd, and I still don't have a plan for Christmas. I have no budget worked out for December, no set date for my shopping trip with my mom, no hidden presents, and no idea what I'm getting anyone at all for the holidays, not even Hoot.

Crap.

Seriously, I'm in big trouble here. I do have a plan to get a plan. That's going to happen over the next 48 hours, while I'm off, but here's the big kicker. I have exactly five days off from work between now and Santa time. Yep. And the first one started ticking away about 45 minutes ago.

So, the first step is going to be to do the budget for the month, and meal plans for the month. I'll get with my mom to schedule our trip, and that will give me the leg I'm gonna need to stand on for the rest of the month. I didn't have a set budget or meal plan for November, and well, you see what that got me! Well, you didn't see, because you couldn't read the blog that wasn't there. Without the budget and the plan, I get pure chaos, and it has been running amok here for far too long.

The next step will be to utilize the budget to figure out what gifts I need to get and where I need to get them from. I'm lost with Hoot because all he wants is Mickey Motor Racing Speedway. Yep. Asks for it at least five times a day. Oh, and a hippopotamus. (Don't really know where he got this, I only introduced the song after he started asking....) The live hippo probably gets better reviews than the Mickey Motors, if I found a place that reviewed hippos. Poor Mickey, his race track is just overpriced junk.

I was considering a Leapster, or Leappad, or Leaping anything. But, again I am lost. I just don't really know the differences between the systems, but a learning game of some sort would make me most happy. I guess, again, it will all come down to budget. So for now, it's back to square one!

Overheard in the bookstore:
Have you ever heard of some book about a teenage girl who falls in love with a vampire?

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-25T21:52:00.002-06:00

What do Mike Huckabee, an ambulance ride, an animal shelter, Esquire magazine, and the birthday blues all have in common? Well, they've all been a part of why I haven't been blogging lately.

First, I was totally plagued by the low down, no good birthday blues. Sad, yeah, I know. They even started just before my birthday! Truth be told, I'm not so sure they've been completely shaken. Maybe I'm just too tired and busy to tell.

On the Wednesday after my birthday, in a feeble attempt to conquer the birthday blues, Hoot and I took a trip to the local animal shelter. You know, the dog pound. The canine clink. We took several dogs out into the yard, and then we met her. Luna. Oh, sweet baby bag of fur! It was love at first site. We paid our fee, loaded her up, and took her home. We went into the back yard, she found a hole in the fence (that was ridiculously tiny) and promptly ran away. Yep. Three times on the first day. Now, we go out on a leash, even in the backyard. But, it is still love and I will take pictures and blog later. I promise.

Exactly one week later, I managed to have a tiny accident. I nicked my ankle with a knife. I was busy. Washer going. Sink full of dishes. The end of breakfast still on the table. Morning number seven of an eight straight day work streak. I decided on a jammy day and parked Hoot in front of the Curious George movie so I could catch up. Knife slipped. No time. Slapped on a band aid and kept going. About an hour later, I sat down at the computer to pay bills online. Got up about 20 minutes later and found a giant pool of blood under the desk. I had nicked one of those lovely varicose veins I have left over from my pregnancy. When I pulled off the band aid, blood shot across the room with pulsing regularity. Hm, look like a fool and dial 911? Look like an idiot and bleed to death for not getting help? Wow. Hoot enjoyed his ambulance ride immensely. DH freaked out when he got home and saw the bloodbath. Seriously, slasher movies don't show this kind of carnage. Blood loss was the entire reason the EMTs and firemen talked me into the ER.

Low point of my month: standing outside the ER in my pajamas waiting for my mother, who said she was 5 minutes away.

Even lower point of the month: realizing she was about 20 minutes away.

Under the barrel, about two feet: finishing the crappy job DH did cleaning up the bloody footprints through out the entire house.

During the last few months, but especially this month, I have been preparing for the Mike Huckabee signing that happened yesterday at my store. Last week, as if we weren't already in a tizzy, we received a call from the home office. Esquire was coming to do the photo shoot of the book tour. He already did the interview, but they picked our store to feature for the pics. So, look for me in the February issue! (Honestly, I kind of hope I'm not there. Not exactly at my peak right now, you know!) Did this take an already crazy event and kick it up a notch? You bet your sweet ### it did! Did we pull it off flawlessly? You bet your sweet ### we did! I really enjoyed it. He was wonderful to work with, and his team is awesome. Ditto for the Esquire team. It was a ton of fun!

So, I'm tuckered out from it all and baking for Thanksgiving. I really wanted to not do anything big this year, but Tee's hubby, Bullet, is coming with her and I haven't seen him in forever. So, I did the Christmas Coconut Cake for him. Yes, it's a pain in the hiney. But, I had a little fiasco with my birthday cake, so it was good to make a great come back! Plus, Hoot and I got to take a hammer to a coconut on the back porch. Really, I needed the fun.

Tomorrow, after DH comes home from work, we're off to my parent's house. I hope every one has a great Thanksgiving. If you need me, I'll be at The Antler Inn in Cuero tomorrow night!

Yeah, I'm sure it's a four star kind of place...

Day Five: How many hills can there be at Animal Kingdom, or straw hat wearing fat lady pushes same in wheelchair!

2008-10-22T00:27:00.006-05:00

After our delightful brunch, we headed over to Animal Kingdom. We love Animal Kingdom, but it is the largest park. Tee was doing well with her foot, but she would definitely need a scooter here. Alas, when we arrived at the rental counter, all of the scooters were gone. We put our cell number on a waiting list and hoped. In the mean time, we convinced her to hop into a wheelchair.

I must confess that I was a little apprehensive about pushing her. I had memories of Tee pushing my other sister in a wheelchair to the parking lot on our 1994 visit. They were not pretty memories. However, the chair moved easily and she wasn't tough to push at all. In fact, Hoot had developed a nasty little habit of putting his feet down to stop his stroller and she was much easier to push than him. Of course, as soon as we were off, I leaned down and whispered in her ear that if she put her feet down to jolt us to a stop like Hoot, I would pull her out of the chair and whip her *** right there in public. She laughed and demonstrated that she couldn't even touch the ground without leaning off the front of the chair.

We headed back to Hirambe to pick up our fast passes for Kilimanjaro Safaris. We had a small wait, so DH took Hoot through the Pangani Exploration Trail. While they were gone, I wheeled Tee over next to Tusker House to sit in the shade while I found us some refreshments. While I was gone, Brian, Tee's hubby, called her and laughed because even though he was back home from Africa, the rest of his traveling party had arrived in the real Hirambe that morning. When I returned with our iced coffees, the drummers came out and we enjoyed a great show. They had several dancers that were coercing guests out to dance with them and we watched an old man really get down! It was a great show and in no time at all, the boys were back from seeing the animals.

Kilimanjaro Safaris is one of our favorites at WDW. The trucks have a real driver because the animals, or at least the safe ones, roam on their own around the Safari. Never before had I seen such a demonstration of this.

We were in the truck and moving along quite nicely enjoying the animals and the sights. We came around a corner and saw a herd of giraffes on the move. We were very excited because one of the babies was out and about with them. The truck in front of us had stopped to let the giraffes meander down the road. Then, the baby had a change of heart, stopped, and just stood in the road. We waited patiently for about five minutes, but still the baby stood there. At this point he was maybe fifty yards in front of us. After almost ten minutes, a green pickup came driving down the road and stopped near the baby. I think something was said to the giraffe by a handler, and the baby began to back up off of the road. Then, the pickup turned around and went off a ways in the distance to watch. As soon as the ride truck in front of us started to inch forward, the baby went back to his original spot in the road. This caused a lot of laughing among the guests.

Once again, the green pickup drove down and the driver appeared to speak to the animal. The giraffe backed away, the truck left, the ride truck began to inch forward, and the baby returned to the road! We all thought it was terribly delightful! The next time the green pickup returned, the driver positioned herself between the ride trucks and the baby giraffe. As we were passing by them, the baby was beginning to inch around the back side of the pickup. I suspect she was trying to get back into the road.

After our Safari, we moved on to Asia. DH had mentioned riding Expedition Everest, but he never got around to it. We also considered Kali River Rapids, but the line was about 45 minutes long. (Yes, I know that's not really that long, but we are off season people.) The boys went off in search of tigers and bats, while I parked Tee beneath an umbrella for a photo or two.

Ha! She couldn't even complain! After all, I had been pushing her all afternoon! However, one doesn't really know what she'll think about it being posted online! HA!

After Asia, we dined at the Flametree BBQ, where Hoot had fowl issues. He refused to stop feeding the ducks that were gathered around our dining area. Eating with ducks underfoot is even more annoying that eating with bad mannered dogs under foot. I still don't know for sure, but I'm pretty sure he fed chicken to the ducks! Did my son make these poor innocent ducks into cannibals?

Dinoland USA was our next destination, but we were feeling pretty tired. Hoot kept sneezing and was a little on the surly side. The boys took a few spins on Triceratops Spin (Dumbo, but from the Cretaceous Period) while Tee and I enjoyed poking around the delightfully cheesy shop there. Honestly, I love Dinoland. It throws you back to the wonderful world of roadside tourism in the fifties.

DH really wanted to take Hoot on his first ride of Dinosaur, but I was concerned that the storyline might be a little too much for him. Just because he is physically big enough to ride a specific ride, it doesn't mean he could emotionally handle the ride. We did decide against it, though. And, we decided to throw in the towel. Hoot was sneezing, we were bushed, and there was laundry waiting back at the Pop Century.

As we left Animal Kingdom, we detoured outside of the World to pick up some cold medicine for Hoot. No sense in a runny nose making him miserable on his birthday. So, we stopped at Walgreen's, where I spent way too much time trying to figure out the new guidelines for kid's cold medicines. I eventually settled on an allergy medicine and we gave him a dose as soon as we got back to the room.

Can I just say how much I like laundry at WDW? You get to leave the boys behind in the room. The laundry rooms are always very clean. Oh, the resorts all have bars! Sadly, it was too dark to read by the pool as I waited, so I just kind of zoned. It's a nice little midweek mom break.

When I got back to the room, I was a little upset to find Hoot still awake. We had plans to be at Magic Kingdom at 7:45 for morning extra magic hours so that we could have Fantasyland under our belts before the birthday lunch. I put him in bed and laid down with him a bit, but he wasn't falling asleep. The DH kept going on and on about how the medicine wasn't doing anything and how Hoot was going to be miserable on his birthday. (I was thinking "I'm miserable now with all that bitching!") But, Hoot was obviously still awake and leaking. Eventually, at around 11:30 pm, I got dressed and went down to the gift shop to find a different cold medicine. On my way down, I stopped and told Tee what was going on. I promised I'd let her know if she needed to drive me back to a drugstore.

I bought Hoot some Tylenol Cold, but the label did not state that it was safe for him. However, I knew that I had used it before and that at home, I had a half full bottle in the medicine cabinet. I made sure the ingredients wouldn't conflict (that is most of the problems with children's cold medicines) with the allergy medication we had given him hours before. On the way back to the room, I talked with Tee and we agreed that we would not be able to have an early morning. We would plan our arrival just before our early lunch reservations. Then, I tip toed back into our room.

And, you know what? Hoot was sound asleep!

Up Next: Day Six: The Birthday! Don't Feed the Bears!

Day Five: Ohana means trouble!

2008-10-17T00:24:00.017-05:00

After our late night at MNSSHP, we planned a bit of a sleep in for Wednesday. Our park for the day was Animal Kingdom, and we had extra magic evening hours there, so we scored a great breakfast, er make that brunch, ressie's for Ohana at the Polynesian Resort. This was my first time to set foot at the Poly, having never gotten any closer than the monorail, so I was very excited. See, the Poly is my lotto resort. It's were we will stay when we win the lotto. Well, until we sign the Vacation Club papers, anyway!

We parked easily and strolled into the front doors around 11 am for our 11:20 ressies. The walkway was beautiful and plenty of people were stopping to take their pictures near the waterfall. We bypassed photos and headed upstairs to Ohana to check in at the restaurant's podium. They checked us in and gave us all pink and white leis. They were much prettier than the crappy plastic ones we wore the night before at the Halloween Party. Then, they took our pictures in front of tiki masks, and Hoot thought they were fantastic. Then, DH took Hoot and strolled into one of the gift shops while we waited for our table. In this shop, a small Etch-a-Sketch was purchased.

Finally seated, our server brought us a basket of breakfast bread, which was kind of like a Cinnamon roll meets pineapple upside down cake, and some of their special juice blend containing mango and papaya and whatever. I think I was the only one who really liked the juice. He explained how everything was served family style and that it was all you can eat. Blissfully, he also brought us some coffee. Later, he brought out a giant skillet with scrambled eggs (they add half and half, and it is truly sinful) large sausages Hoot kept calling hot dogs, fried potatoes with caramelized onions and scallions, and the obligatory Mickey shaped waffles. It was all very good.

Hoot is not a stranger to character meals. He knows how it works and he kept one eye glued to Stitch as he made his way closer. When it got to be his turn, he was quivering with delight.

As Stitch came up to the table, Hoot held out his new toy to show him.

So, Stitch being Stitch, he immediately snatched it!

Which lead to a lovely, enchanting moment when Stitch, seeing our waiter approaching, decided to give it back to Hoot. After we explained to Stitch that Hoot was a troublemaker just like him, he showed us how to keep him under wraps!

Our next visitor to the table was Lilo. Hoot suddenly became very shy and quiet. He wouldn't get up to give her a hug, in fact, he wouldn't get close to her at all. He finally got brave enough to show her his new toy. She seemed quite taken by it. Right after Lilo left, there was a parade around the restaurant. They played Hawaiian Rollercoaster Ride from the movie soundtrack and passed out morroccas to all the kids to shake as they marched. I took Hoot on this parade, and it was a lot of fun. However, shy Hoot was still there! Man, I gotta get this kid into some preschool!

Back at the table, Pluto came around to play. We offered him sausages, but our waiter had told us to make sure we didn't feed the dog any table scraps. Sorry Pluto!

Somehow, the idea of a "stinky dog" had gotten stuck in Hoot's head, so he said something to Pluto about it and Pluto went mad sniffing the boy over!
Mickey came by shortly after Pluto, and was a big hit as always. Instead of the new toy, Hoot showed Mickey one of his new toy buses, that are designed to look just like the buses used at WDW. They played around, and something, I still don't know for sure, just cracked them up!
After Mickey finished playing around with Hoot, he took an extra minute to pose with DH. It's a shame that fun loving attitude didn't last the entire trip. I've been a good DW and editing out the petty nasty stuff. However, you can always look back at the prior post of him giving off nasty vibes at my Granny's house!
We never did get to see the pictures that were taken when we came into the restaurant. We asked one of the photo people about them, and they muttered something about phoning in, told us they'd be right back, and then didn't. We eventually gave up and left. After all, we had a date with some wildlife over at Animal Kingdom!

Here's an observation that I made while basking at the Poly. They have two ply toilet paper in the lobby. Let me tell you, they don't have two ply over at the Pop! We kept laughing and ranking resorts. Someday, I wanna stay at a two ply!

Up Next: Day Five: How many hills can there be at Animal Kingdom, or Straw hat wearing fat lady pushes same in wheelchair!

Day Four: MNSSHP, a giant black horse, and a smoking crocodile!

2008-10-16T01:03:00.002-05:00

Totally dazzled by fireworks, we continued through Fantasyland for a fitting trip through the Haunted Mansion. It's our second time through since the big rehab last year, and we do love it so! Doombuggies totally rock!

One of our biggest disappointments last year was that we missed the parade. This year, we made our way to the route early for the second parade. We were hanging out around the Liberty Tree Tavern and Christmas shop, when we spotted one of our favorite costumed groups of the evening. They had fantastical costumes from Peter Pan. The little girl, a toddler, was Tinkerbell, Grandma was Mr. Smee, Dad was Captain Hook, and Mom was Tic-Toc Crocodile. Now, when I say she was a crocodile, I mean it. A full out plush costume complete with long tail and a snout that stuck out almost two feet in front of her face. It was amazing. But, what made my night about their costumes was that when we passed them, they had stopped for a smoke break. It's just not every night you see a smoking crocodile. I did stop and ask them if I could take their picture, and they said yes, but sadly the flash didn't fire. We were in too big of a hurry to try and fix it, but I can assure you it was awesome. I think the crocodile was relieved. When she had said yes to having her picture taken, she had said "Only if this doesn't end up online." Of course I lied to her. If that shot had come out, I would've posted that baby in a heartbeat!

Tee was sitting in the roped off area for the handicapped guests. Now, she may have a tag in the car, but she wasn't on a scooter or in a wheelchair. So, the Cast Member had asked her to move if anyone else needed the area. We went ahead and moved to an extremely sweet spot near the Liberty Bell replica. We were right on the corner where the rope line makes a small row right at the bend in the street. We didn't have to wait long either.

At most WDW parades, the Cast Members try to keep you behind the ropes, but a little late maneuvering is usually allowed. Not at Mickey's Boo to You Parade. Nope. You stay put and there's a dang good reason. About 10 minutes before the parade begins, there is a huge surprise, even if you've waited years to see it, and you know it's coming, it's still a huge surprise. The Headless Horseman gallops down the street on one super huge black horse! You can see a picture of him here, about halfway down the page. It was amazing. The rider can't really see, so the horse is totally trained to run the route. He came barreling right at us, then he had to take that turn and we were literally closer than four feet from him. Honestly, if I didn't know what was going to happen, I probably would've peed myself. After he was gone, you could see the prints from his horseshoes on the pavement and they were way bigger than a dinner plate.

One of my favorite moments of the parade was during the Pinocchio segment. Honest John and Gideon were out and about walking around. (You may remember them from the story, Honest John, the fox, and Gideon, the cat, convince Pinocchio to ditch school.) Tee was watching the parade advance to her left, when Honest John came up behind her on her right and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and he offered her his hand. As she reached for it, he pulled it back. He managed to psych her out three times in a row. I was howling!

My other favorite moment was the dancing gravediggers from the Haunted Mansion. The danced along with their shovels, and would strike the ground in unison. The metal hitting the street would give off huge sparks. Then, they would drag the shovels and give off even more sparks. Oh, how I do love villains and spooks!

Of course, when Goofy came by at the end and they filled your trick or treat bag, that was pretty awesome too! We didn't do as much trick or treating as we could, but there's still a fair amount of candy in the bag on top of the fridge.

Before we knew it, we were all bushed and heading out of the park. It was a fantastic night and Hoot wasn't the only one whining that it was over! But, here is a list of the most memorable costume sightings from the evening:

A poor little boy in a vinyl Buzz Lightyear costume. It was hot and I'm sure he was roasting in his own juices.
The aforementioned party from Peter Pan.
A super tall and skinny couple that pulled off Jack Skellington and Sally incredibly well.
A woman in a Queen of Hearts outfit on her scooter which was made up like a throne.
A herd of Dorothy's in identical, perfectly made dresses, complete with aprons, and when you got close to them you could tell that half of them were men.

For next year, I think I am going to make all of us Wal-Mart type vests with the Buy N Large logos from Wall-e. However, Tee did say that if I made her a Queen of Hearts dress, she would wear it... Hm, I may have to rethink that!

Up Next: Day Five: Ohana means trouble!

The gas is back on!

2008-10-14T20:47:00.002-05:00

$1910. That's just the plumber's bill. It doesn't count the fresh food I didn't get to cook, or the eating out bill, or the gas that pumped out of that line before the gas company shut it off. However, I did get my gas back on. Ack! I'll have to blog about it later, after I've figured out the true cost of the entire incident.

The plumber is here!

2008-10-14T13:32:00.003-05:00

The plumber is here! The plumber is here! Cross everything you've got! Here's hoping for hot water, hot food, and warm dry clothes! Oh, and a little easier than thought on the checkbook would be great too!

Day Four: Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

2008-10-14T00:30:00.011-05:00

We donned our Hawaiian shirts, put Hoot in his Stitch belly shirt and headed off to the Magic Kingdom early for our date at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP). Like silly theme park lemmings, when we got off the monorail, we proceeded to the nearest turnstiles for admission. Our tickets didn't work, and after a moments panic, a lovely Cast Member pointed to a large sign that pointed to the other side to use party tickets. We picked up our trick or treat bags and park maps and stopped for the obligatory potty break before heading down Main Street.

We found a Photopass photographer, and had a series of shots taken in front of the castle. Sadly, Tee's lei had already started to come unraveled, but we made her keep it for the photos. I liked this one after we added the real Stitch to our shot.

As we were headed to Tomorrowland for our first date with Buzz Lightyear and Evil Emporer Zurg, we saw another Photopass photographer set off to the side of the castle and stopped for another round. I love the "shy Hoot" photo the most.

Once we were done, it was off to ride Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. This is my favorite ride in the Magic Kingdom, so I'm awfully glad that Hoot has made it his favorite as well! We rode twice and had a blast. Then, we took the gamble, which paid off, to give Hoot his first experience with Stitch's Great Escape. We also posed for a picture with Pleakley and I got my favorite picture of Tee during the entire trip. I didn't realize how much our shirts' motif matches his here. I also didn't realize that Tee and Pleakley were the same height!

We had a quick bite to eat at Cosmic Ray's and some trick or treating in Tomorrowland, we headed off to Fantasyland. The boys took a spin on the Tea Cups, then we began to work our way systematically through all the attractions there. As we were getting into the queu line for Winnie the Pooh, Tee turned to me and said, "I wonder if we'll get to see Snow White out with all her boys this year?" And, wouldn't you know it, here they came! All seven of them, mostly in step and marching right behind Snow White herself. Their own little parade! We didn't get a good picture, but it was one of the big highlights for us. You never see them out like this, and we only saw them do it last year at the big soggy MNSSHP after the rain began to clear out.

When we got to Cinderella's Carousel, the horse between mine and Hoot's was very low to the ground and we were able to coax Tee into getting on board instead of sitting in the old people chairs. It was a blast, with all the horses racing neck and neck! Just as we were beginning to slow down, I jokingly told Tee she had better pray that her horse ended up low to the ground. Like a well timed curse, her horse ended up as high as it would go! I just laughed and laughed. DH tried to get her to let him help her down, but seriously, this horse was high! We told him we'd just take another spin around, but he didn't believe us and the boys got off! I couldn't believe it! He didn't let Hoot ride the carousel again! What a big meanie!

However, on that second, girls only ride, I learned a little Tee trivia. It seems that once, when she was about 7 or 8 years old, at Six Flags Over Texas, the ride operators had to stop the carousel and make her get off! Why, you may ask? Because she was standing on the saddle, holding on to the pole with one hand, and throwing kisses with the other! (Have I ever mentioned that she wanted to be Calamity Jane when we were kids?) I howled with laughter at this little tidbit! Sadly, or luckily, either way, our horses landed low to the ground after our second ride, and it was off to the second half of Fantasyland for us.

The time for Hallowishes, the fireworks extravaganza, was drawing near, and after a cruise that proclaimed that our globe was not quite as big as we had once thought, we found some seats with a great view of the back of the castle. There was much debate as to how good or bad our view would be among the others nearby, but we figured we had a clear view of the castle, we'd be alright.

Now, I have seen more than my share of fireworks over the years. I grew up with Tee working for Six Flags. I worked at Astroworld and Stone Mountain Park. I've been to Disney World ten times. I can honestly say I have never, ever seen a show quite like this one. I was dazzled.

We started out sitting, but the fireworks were also coming in from behind us. I snatched Hoot up and darted to the middle of Fantasyland, out to the side of Dumbo and the carousel. The entire show was happening right around us, and even right above us! I wouldn't have been surprised if my neck had hurt the next morning! It was truly amazing. When the finale was blasting right overhead, it was so bright Fantasyland was honestly lit up like broad daylight. Talk about some serious fireworks! I think this was my favorite part of the whole trip. Hoot and I totally immersed in fireworks!

Up Next: Day Four: MNSSHP, a giant black horse, and a smoking crocodile!

Hoot's Birthday Party

2008-10-09T00:23:00.010-05:00

After sleeping in until about 8 am (hey, by our Disney standards, this is really sleeping in...) we got up and started getting ready for the trip out to Plant City to see my Granny. DH is surly. Hoot is grumpy. And there is "no white yogurt" to be had, only berry yogurt with the "wrong colors." Surprisingly, we managed to hit the road west right on schedule.

We pick up the cake that Tee ordered from Publix, toodle downtown, and snag a sweet parking spot right outside Granny's assisted living apartment building. Score. Hoot refuses to participate in hugging and kissing. He has met Granny before, but he was only 16 months old at the time. But, Granny's got his number. She had four boys of her own, and a big bunch of brothers. Really, she's not going to be phased.

We took Granny out for lunch to a place she likes called Buddy Freddys. We knew DH would love because he would be able to get good fried chicken. Hoot, well, we just crossed our fingers and hoped that he wouldn't go ape ****. After all, it's not like Granny wouldn't be watching. (Insert all kinds of family issues such as judgement and fear of failure.) Since it was early, the place was pretty empty, but the food was loaded on the buffet tables. After we order sweet tea all around, we load Hoot down a plate with a fried chicken leg, mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese. You know, full tilt kid food. My mantra the entire time, "please be good, please be good, please be good..." I fix my own plate and have to uncross my fingers to make sure I don't drop anything on my way back to the table.

OK, I don't really know what happened there. Maybe it was skipping breakfast. Maybe it was getting a day of Disney under his belt. Maybe it was divine intervention. Hoot was so nice and pleasant throughout the entire meal. I was stunned, but attempted to act like this was just how he always is in restaurants. Home made fried chicken, rutabaga, sweet tea, and angel child! I was on cloud 9. As the rest of us were finishing lunch, Mr. Surly even took Hoot out to rock on the front porch!

Back at Granny's we commenced with cake and presents. There wasn't a lot to open, but Hoot didn't seem to care.

Oh, how did there ever get to be FOUR candles on his birthday cake?
Taking these candles off was a very serious job, indeed!

Hoot sat in Granny's lap to open his presents.
I even got a fairly good picture of the two of us at her house. Hoot loved crawling on Granny's walker. Anything with wheels....

Sadly, there was a madman, aka Mr. Surly, aka DH in the background of this one. I cropped the copy I'll send to Granny! We may have been taking a girls only picture, but Hoot was up to something. Granny's really keeping her eyes peeled, though.

Eventually, he did start to get a little on the wild side, but we had passed a couple of very good hours where he said please and thank you enough to make me proud. So, we wrapped up our round of family photos.

After walking us downstairs, we said our goodbyes and Hoot really made Granny's day. He gave her a big hug and lots of sugar! Oh, happy day! I feel like we scored an A on this one!

Up next: Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! Ooh, I can't wait to write about it! What a blast we had!

At the home front: City won't give us a permit until the gas company fixes their meter. Gas company says their meter is fine. Plumber says to call when it is all worked out. Many, many cold showers in my future...

I just wanna wash my hair without freezing...

2008-10-08T01:11:00.003-05:00

I guess I'm not going to be able to keep on track with my trip report. I love writing it because it helps keep my trip fresh in my mind. But, it has already been a long week, and it's just Tuesday night!

Hoot came down with a cough Sunday night. He didn't sleep very well that night, and well, if Hoot doesn't sleep well, no one sleeps well. By Monday, he was running a fever and miserable. Again, a long night, and even longer morning as a storm rolled into town.

Once up this morning, I was going to make him hot tea, but the stove wouldn't light. No gas. The gas company came out and found a huge leak in our line. Now, our gas line runs across a drainage creek that is maintained by the city. Or maybe I should say is supposed to be maintained by the city. So much debris, mostly tree branches and trash, caught up against our pipe, that with the force of the storm water, our pipe busted.

So, who pays for this? Me or the City? I still don't know. We finally found a plumber that came out late this afternoon, but he can't do anything about it until tomorrow. I hope it doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I really do. Honestly, I think the city is responsible, but who knows how long it will all take. Time is not what I want to think about right now. I want to think about hot showers, dinners from the stove or oven, and laundry drying in the dryer. That's what I want. At least it isn't winter!

Overheard at the bookstore:
You have puzzles, right?
Sure, they are this way. Did you want a jigsaw puzzle?
That doesn't sound right, I want a puzzle.
(walking customer to the puzzles and games section) A jigsaw puzzle is the kind with the picture that you put together, but we have puzzle books like sudoku and crosswords as well.
No, I want a puzzle.
Okay, here you go: Jigsaws are here, but anything in a book will be there. (For what its worth, she chose a jigsaw puzzle... then she proceeded to try and pay for it at the Information desk.)

Day Three: A Potato Head, a tow truck, a race car, and Dad's Electric Lemonade... or Why Hoots and Liquor don't mix....

2008-10-02T22:59:00.008-05:00

Back at Pixar Place, we saw that the wait time was listed as 50 minutes. Since it was less than an hour, and earlier we had gotten in a lot quicker that the 40 minute wait time listed then, we decided to go for it. As we approached the entrance, there was a large group standing off to one side. We walked in and joined the line. Soon, all kinds of people were behind us, and at least 10 people plowed right past us to join their parties. Yep. Rude, and it put us all in a mood. Seriously, if your party is going in and you want to ride with them, GO IN WITH THEM! The mood killer really bit it. I tried to lighten up, but we all let it feed off of each other.

But, once we were flinging pies, eggs, and such, we were all happier! I rode with Hoot, and it was a Super Blast! He giggled and fired and laughed and fired. He literally shook with delight. Our ride had to pause several times and after each scene, if we paused and were still in front of the midway games, we got to shoot with the full effects, but didn't score. We didn't care! We got to play longer. I would say we added almost another five minutes to the ride! What a treat!

Assured that we had one more ride on the Midway with our fast passes, we headed off to see a Frog about a Pig, or that's what we kept telling Hoot. But, on our way, Nathan decided to take Hoot to play on the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground. Tee and I sat outside on a bench and did the obligatory phone call to Meme. Eventually, the boys were spit back out of the giant blades of grass and climb nets and we went off to find this Frog and Pig. Unfortunately, we had an episode of Honey, I lost my sunglasses, so we stopped again at Youse Guys for a replacement pair. I swear that man always looses something at WDW... sunglasses this year, brand new hat last year.

Hoot was still a bit confused, but once he saw the Muppet fountain, he knew what was up. As we headed into the waiting area, I wanted to show Hoot where the Muppets keep the spare key, but the Cast Member hurried us along as they were starting to go in! Alas, instant gratification is an awesome thing. Here's Tee, Hoot, and some wet Muppets:

The next Must See Must Do on our list was the meet and photo opportunity with Mater and McQueen. We grabbed a Coke and ditched Tee at some shady benches and joined the small line that was already gathering. It was a miserably hot wait, with almost no shade, but you know what? That boy can wait a long time when it involves his favorite race car! When the two biggest stars from Radiator Springs came out, we had a grand time watching the crowd as we waited our turn. On the far side of the area, the meet and greet was separated out with a giant row of hedges. We had several good laughs as two little boys tried to claw their way through from the other side. They never made it all the way, but the little faces were fun to watch. I can only image the scratches they would have to endure later.

Sadly, the pictures weren't as good as last year. But, if you look at last year's picture just below, you can see just how much Hoot has grown compared with Lightning.

Now that we've gotten our Cars fix, we head off to one of my favorite places at WDW. The 50's Prime Time Cafe. I've been lusting after Dad's Electric Lemonade for quite some time, and I can't wait! We're about 15 minutes early when we checked in (as instructed) but we waited a little over 30 before we were able to be seated. We did get to spend some of that time on a couch in Dad's Lounge on a love seat. Nathan turned into a grumpy old man who just kept asking me how much longer it would be. Yeah, if I knew that, I'd focus on lotto numbers instead of dinner tables. I was ready to trade him in for a new model. Hoot started playing with a floor lamp, but I figured plenty of kids have jacked with this stuff, it was nailed down, and I didn't have the will or energy to tangle with it.

We were happily seated at a kitchen table (I have never sat at one before and they are like a counter dinette with a TV!) and our "sister" came over to take our order. Now, Nathan has never been here, so he didn't really know there was supposed to be some shtick with dinner. Our "sister" however, wasn't the best at the entertainment though. When she asked how we were doing, Tee & I told her our side of the table was good, but the other side was grumpy. She called Hoot Grumpy McGrumperson but he was blissfully coloring his menu. We ordered drinks and I asked for the magical concoction that would make it all better: Dad's Electric Lemonade. We were in, we had a kitchen table, my drink was coming, Hoot was occupied! Things were looking up!

Soon, our drinks were out and my blue glowing ice cube had caught Hoot's eye. When sis came back to take our order, I had been fishing out the cube for Hoot, and wiping off the alcohol. We ordered, she left, and dashed the crayon she had used to write our order back down on the table. Alas, when I set my drink back on its napkin, I didn't see the crayon and it spilt everywhere. Yes, everyone was grumpy, but Nathan had moved on to just plain nasty. I threw my napkin on the mess and went to the ladies room.

I won't go in to the next fifteen minutes or so.

I did return to the table.

I did have another drink waiting.

I did attempt to be social.

After dinner, we headed off to find Rocket. We never made it to Playhouse Disney (sorry Hoot!) but I knew we'd get some pictures with Rocket anyway. Oh, he was so happy!

As we finished with Rocket, I spotted a movie poster for Wall-e! So, we took another picture.

When we left Animation Courtyard, we went back to use our Toy Story fast passes. This time Hoot got to ride with Tee. DH & I rode together, but it was seriously frosty in that car. Sixteen years: You would think he would've let me win. Winning would've gone a long way towards my mood. It was good that we were headed back to the Pop!

Up Next: Day Four: Hoot's Birthday Party

Interlude for those who don't know how to rope a deer

2008-10-02T02:01:00.002-05:00

This is from a forwarded email, so I'll just say the author is anonymous.

I had the idea that I was going to rope a deer, put it in a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill and eat it.

The first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed while I am in the back of the truck not 4' away), it should not be difficult to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then hog tie it and transport it home.

I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at the end with my rope. The deer were not having any of it.

After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up -- 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope. The deer just stood there and stared at me.

I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would havea good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation.

I took a step towards it...it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope and then received an education. The first thing I learned is that, while a deer may just stand there and look at you funny while you rope it; they are spurred to action when you start pulling on that rope. That deer EXPLODED.

The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down with a rope and with some dignity. A deer-- no chance.

That thing ran, bucked, twisted, and pulled. There was no controlling it and certainly no getting close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an idea as I had originally imagined.

The third thing I learned, the only upside, is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals. A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my feet and drag me when I managed to get up.

It took me a few minutes to realize this, since the blood flowing out of the big gash in my head mostly blinded me. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to get that devil creature off the end of that rope. I figured that if I just let it go with the rope hanging around its neck, it would likely die slow and painfully somewhere. At the time, there was no love at all between that deer and me. At that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was mutual.

Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer's momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in, so I didn't want the deer to suffer a slow death, so I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder - a little trap I had set beforehand...kind of like a squeeze chute. I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back.

The fourth thing I learned, did you know that deer bite? They do! I never in a million years would have thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when I reached up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist. Now, when a deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and then let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head--almost like a pit bull. They bite HARD and it hurts.

The proper thing to do when a deer bites you, I have now learned, is probably to freeze and draw back slowly. I tried screaming and shaking instead. This method was ineffective.

It seems like the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only several seconds. I, being smarter than a deer, (though you may question that claim) tricked it while I kept it busy tearing the bejesus out of my right arm. I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose.

That was when I got my fifth lesson in deer behavior for the day. Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back feet, strike right about head, and shoulder level, and their hooves are surprisingly sharp. I learned a long time ago that, when an animal -- like a horse -- strikes at you with their hooves and you cannot get away easily, the best thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggresive move towards the animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape.

I immediately learned that a deer is NOT a horse. Such trickery would not work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed like a woman and tried to turn and run.

The reason I had always been told NOT to try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance that it will hit you in the back of the head.

Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as strong and three times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right in the back of the head and knocked me down.

Lesson six....Now when a deer paws at you and knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and covering your head. I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away.

Day Three: Scream as loud as you want...

2008-10-02T00:48:00.007-05:00

It was time for the dreaded trip to First Aid. I was pretty sure I knew the area First Aid is located at Hollywood Studios, but wanted to double check. As we headed through the Streets of America, I stopped a pair of Cast Members and inquired. They were all over us! What do we need? Are we okay? Can they help? Do they need to take us there or call someone? We convinced them we were okay and they let us go with just confirmation of our directions.

At First Aid, we were greeted warmly and asked to sign in. I explained that Hoot had a splinter in his heel and that we were looking for tweezers, a needle, and possibly a magnifying glass. Oh, and a place he could scream. We were shown into an exam room. The nurse laid out a pair of tweezers, a needle type instrument with a wide base to make holding it easier, and sprayed several pieces of gauze with sterilizing stuff.

Now, have any of you ever read the email about how to rope a deer? It's made several rounds on the Internet, and if I can dig it up, I post it after this report. Totally hilarious and totally a bad idea.

So, I turn around and Nathan has Hoot up on the exam table with the shoe and sock off the hurt foot. Tee has jockeyed around to the foot of the table and is near the lighted magnifier. I am stuck staring at the instruments, and all I can think is "I'm about to rope a deer!" I decided that quick is the tactic I am looking for and swab the boys foot with the gauze. I try to position the light and the boy decides he's just not gonna have it! The light won't quite stay in place, but I can see through the magnifier, and I start to work with the sharp instrument.

Holler is the word that comes to mind. A Hoot is a hollerin'! There was thrashing, there was yelling, there was scuffling, and there was a tiny bit of blood. Nathan pinned Hoot's body, Tee threw herself on Hoot's other leg while trying to hold the hurt foot still, and somehow, I managed to poke out the splinter with the sharp thingy. Great. Now, I really wanted a bit of a breather, but you know, time was of the essence, so I grabbed the tweezers and managed to get it all out. Oh, the tears. Oh, the hollering. Oh, that was me! Well, almost. It seemed like it took a year, but it was really all a blur and I think we were in and out of First Aid in under 10 minutes.

Since we are right next to Guest Relations, I pop inside to pick up the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party tickets that we got from last year's rain check. It was super easy and I was helped by a lovely girl from Japan who was doing the college program. I wanted to chat, but wasn't sure if Hoot was still holding a grudge, so I quickly went back outside.

I found Hoot just kind of wondering around under the First Aid sign waiting on me, while Tee watched from a bench.

He may have hollered like a madman, and thrashed like a fish in the bottom of the boat, but he was already over it. Can I get an Amen?

We decided to head down to the Great Movie Ride and as we strolled down Hollywood Boulevard, we saw there was a bit of a "disturbance in the park." A "police officer" was trying to convince a woman who he had found sleeping in the park that she needed to leave. As we stopped to watch, she grew louder about becoming Hollywood's next big thing. She was going to be a star! When I got out the camera to snap her pictures, she told the cop that because I wanted her picture, it proved that she was really a star! So she did a few poses for me!

Isn't she fabulous! I totally loved her. She made me think of my mother, but don't tell my mother that! LOL!

After our journey through the Great Movie Ride (we had the cowgirl bank robber, not the mobster), we headed back to Pixar Place to see if we'd get lucky with another trip through Toy Story Mania.

Up next: A Potato Head, a tow truck, a race car, and Dad's Electric Lemonade... or Why Hoots and Liquor don't mix....

Day Three: What a ride!

2008-09-30T23:50:00.008-05:00

After the long night, it was good that we slept in a bit. Hoot stayed curled up until we were almost ready to go. That allowed us to get packed back up and ready to transfer hotels. Soon, we were off and on our way to Pop Century!

We pulled in and parked outside of Classic Hall. The boys went off to find the restroom and explore while Tee & I checked us all in to the resort. We had a wonderful Cast Member and everything went quick and easy. We did get our connecting rooms and we were assigned into one of the 80's buildings. One of the rooms was already available, so we decided to go ahead and dump everything instead of coming back midday.

Tee & I got a kick out of all the pictures on the wall. I totally had that twirler's outfit. (Yes, now you know. I was a twirler). The walls of Classic Hall had so much trivia and memoribilia. It was a shame we didn't have enough time to truly enjoy and explore it all.

At the 80's section, but parked in the 70's because it was closer, we found our elevator behind the giant Sony Walkman Sport. But, our stairs were in the Rubik's Cube. I didn't get photos of them, but if you ever want to see what any Disney resort looks like, Deb Wills and her crew have the photos and answers at AllEars.net!

Before we knew it, we were on our way to Disney's Hollywood Studios. Now, this is probably my least favorite park at Disney World. Sure, there are things about it that I totally love, like Fantasmic and The Great Movie Ride. But, I picked it because it was an easy park for the first day. We had evening extra magic hours (when the park is only open to people staying on property) and we really were looking forward to Toy Story Midway Mania.

We made a beeline for Toy Story and snagged some Fast Passes for later. Then, we saw the wait was forty minutes and decided to go for it. I can't say enough about how enchanting the queu line for this ride is! The premise is that you have shrunk down to toy size and you are in Andy's room. There was so much to see:
I really loved the details such as the Viewmaster reels being from Disneyland. And then there were the great things to find such as the Card Shark behind Tee, Hoot and Nathan.

We had a lot of fun discovering it all and playing around. Tee yelled "Sorry" when she found this game piece.

At the front of the queu, Mr. Potato Head holds court telling jokes, singing songs, and making general mayhem. He's dressed like a midway barker and it is one of the coolest audioanimatronics I have ever seen. Sadly, the picture we took of him wasn't very good.

Before we knew it, we were picking up a pair of 3-D glasses and getting close to the ride. Nathan took Hoot for his first spin, while Tee and I rode behind them. It was so cool. You rode through and stopped at "games" and played them. The first was a pie throw so that you would understand how the game worked. Then we launched eggs, threw darts at balloons (some full of "water", so you got sprayed a little!), pitched baseballs, tossed rings, and shot targets. The entire ride is a full five minutes, but it goes so very quickly!

We couldn't wait to go back for another ride on Toy Story Mania, but alas, it was lunch time and Hoot was hungry. We ate at the Studio Catering Company and had a wonderful lunch. Tee & I tried the grilled chicken with black beans and rice. It was amazingly good. Nathan had the pulled pork sub and Hoot stuck with his kid's meal chicken leg.

Now that we had checked in to the resort, ridden Toy Story Mania, and had lunch, there was no more putting it off. Time to torture the boy with a trip to First Aid.

Coming Next: Day Three: Scream as loud as you want...

Day Two: In the battle of Boy vs Man, Momma wins!

2008-09-30T00:50:00.002-05:00

We crossed under the Welcome sign, Tee's birthday CD full of Disney songs blaring, and I got that little Disney tickle in my throat. Oh, it was so very exciting. Even just a trip to the Downtown Disney Marketplace can do it for me. On most trips, this is what we do our first night, so the tradition is alive and well.

Food is the first order of business, so we head off to the Earl of Sandwich. The line moved quickly and we found a big table outside, near the fountain by Once Upon a Toy. DH had the Caribbean Jerk Sandwich, and it should have been called the Royal Jerk Sandwich. I had a fantastic Mediterranean Chicken Salad that is one of my favorite things to eat in the entire World. Hoot refused to eat a warmed PB&J, that when you tasted it, your eyes rolled back into your head. He had other things on his mind.

At first, he gulped down his milk and kept all eyes on Tee. As his attention began to wander, she brought out a Lightning McQueen kaleidoscope, which kept the savageness in check for a little longer. Then, he began to slip further and further away from the table. His eyes were on that fountain and all the kids playing in it. It's a popular play spot, with the jets shooting straight out of the ground, and kids screaming and running about getting soaked. I told him that if he would sit down and eat just a few bites, I would let him play in the fountain after we had shopped. Yeah, no deal.

Again, he attempted to bolt, but DH was right on him. He brought him back to the table and we waited painfully for Tee to finish eating. (This is nothing new, she eats ridiculously slow, she knows it, and nothing will change it.) As we headed towards the toy store, Hoot bolted again. This time he made it all the way to the fountain! Hooray! Um, or not. DH tore after him like a madman. Just as he reached the boy, the crocs DH was wearing betrayed him and he slid into home plate.

Now, in the flash of an eye, all manner of things popped through my brain. DH throwing his back out doing NOTHING at the Atlanta airport BEFORE we departed for our Christmas trip in 1999. The chaos even a twisted ankle would throw into our entire week's schedule and plans. The location of the nearest ER. Images of bloody, twisted limbs. Then, as DH hauled himself up, snagged Hoot and drug him away, ridiculously inappropriate Mom laughter. Lots of it. Oodles, if you will.

As a unit, we retreated to the nearest restroom and regrouped. The boys did their thing, Tee & I did ours, and we soon found ourselves outside the toy store on a bench. And, then, the Jerk sandwich really kicked in. DH did not want to reward "that kind of behavior" with anything. No train ride, no carousel, no toy store. Sadly, we went a few rounds before I realized we were that family, melting down and fighting at Disney. Poor Tee, she was a Southwest Airlines "wanna get away" commercial.

Yes, Hoot was behaving horribly. Yes, he had bolted. No, he wouldn't get to go play in the fountain. But, I still wanted him to have the train and carousel ride. I mean, come on. We spent how much to get here? We get here how often? I had planned this night for how long? And this little not quite four year old had endured a hurricane, a sleepless night in Dallas, a flight, and being shuffled along all day. Give me a break, and cut one for my little guy too!

In the end, I won. But, I didn't push for all of it. We did some shopping at Once Upon a Toy, where Tee bought and stashed away a bag of plastic robots that we would rely on time and time again. I bought the boy an Eve pin and a Wall-E cup. Then, we did a brief visit to the super big World of Disney shop before we called it a night. Looking back, I should have pushed harder. I missed going in Pooh's Corner, the Mickey Mart (everything under $10), and most of all, the Art of Disney store.

After a quick good night, we put Tee safely back into her room and tried to head to bed ourselves. DH was still showing signs of his sandwich, and refused to turn off the TV early. But, I curled up with the boy and tried to get him to relax. After all, we needed to be up super early so we could check in to Pop Century and get to the Hollywood Studios before rope drop.

As I was snuggling with Hoot, I ran a hand over his right foot and felt a bump. I pressed on it to see if it was tender, and he just about jumped out of the bed. We turned the big lights on and took a look. Poor thing had a splinter in the heel of his foot. I rummaged around in my bag, but couldn't find my tweezers. DH was being a freak about having to get it out right away. So, I dialed up Tee and asked to borrow hers.

Hoot struggled and endured while I tried to get it out. We eventually gave up when he began to scream bloody murder. Honestly, a visit from security or even the cops would've really capped off the day! So, I convinced DH to wait and we would stop at First Aid when we got to the Studios the next morning.

Then, seeing how late it was, we made our first change to our touring plans. We decided to sleep until 8 am, check out, go to Pop Century, check in, and get to the park whenever we could. It was a hard decision to make, but a very good one. I knew that Toy Story Mania would be crazy, but really, something had to give.

Up next: What a ride!

Day Two: Tee Time!

2008-09-25T01:07:00.005-05:00

After what seemed like hours, but was only about 30 minutes, I received a text from Tee telling me she was at the gate. We rounded up our stuff and headed over to her baggage carousel. We left grumpy DH with our bags, and Hoot & I headed over to the bottom of the escalator. It had been since November since we'd see Tee, but we have pictures and he talks to her on the phone, so I was interested to see if he could pick her out of a line up, or escalator down, if you will.

It took Hoot a little bit to spot her, but he did and he was very excited. Only Tee was talking like a madwoman to no one inparticular. This is when we devised the no Bluetooth rule. It turned out that Bryan had just called her from Africa and they had the best connection that they'd had for his entire trip! Soon, the call was over and Hoot was able to get his hug. Hoot & Tee, together again.

We loaded into the rental car (an Impala with New York plates that proved to help with identification) and we were on our way! Lunch was our first order of business and we'd picked out Steak N Shake because we don't have one at home. We went right to the one on Orange Blossom Trail and it wasn't busy at all. That was a good thing.

Hoot was an absolute nightmare at Steak N Shake. He refused to sit down, refused even a milkshake, and did something he's never done in public before: HE BOLTED! The bubblegum machines near the entrance had really struck his fancy and after the first time he bolted to it, it was all I could do not to strike his fanny! So, we walked outside and sat on a bench and had a long talk about manners and what was expected behavior. He was calm and collected when we got back to the table, but it didn't last five minutes. Not even Tee could entice him into decent behavior. I guess my steakburger was good. I'm not sure. It was a blur. Maybe I chewed.

Back in the rental car, we set off in search of a Target. I had $110 in gift cards so I could purchase the McLaren Volo that we would use on the trip. Of course, I was supposed to search the product on line before we left so I would know which store had them in stock and have directions, but again, that whole panic shut down thing scores another run. Eventually, we realize that we aren't finding a Target on Orange Blossom Trail, so we head over to one across from the Holy Land. Just before we arrive, we notice that Hoot has nodded off in his booster seat! Can I get an AMEN! So, I quietly sneak out of the car to get the stroller while Tee circles the parking lot. Alas, that Target was sold out.

Our next order of business was to stop at the Character Warehouse Outlet for all the marked down Disney merchandise, but you gotta let sleepin' Hoots lie. So, we headed down to the one nighter hotel, the Ramada Orlando Celebration Resort and Convention Center.

I had won this hotel on a Priceline bid of $30 for each room. I wouldn't exactly say this was a great resort, but it was fine for one night. Ramada recently acquired it, and it is an older property. I doubt that Ramada leaves it as is for very long. The land and location has to be worth much more than the revenue this place can generate as is. It was a ghost town, and I didn't even drag out the camera for a single shot.

After dumping our luggage and leaving the boys behind to swim, Tee & I set off again on the great stroller hunt. We found a Super Target, and even though they didn't have the stroller, we went ahead and bought water, breakfast foods, and snacks for the week. It was a quick but enjoyable shopping experience, and I really miss having a Super Target back home.

I snagged the stroller at the next Target down the road, and we headed back to pick up the boys for dinner. When I entered the hotel room, (we were on the ground floor) Hoot was all atwitter. They'd had a good swim, and when they returned to shower, there was a fat frog behind our toilet. I asked to see the frog, but it had already been released into the wild.

After checking Tee's bathroom, at Hoot's insistence, for fat frogs, we all loaded up to cross that magic line onto Disney property! Downtown Disney was our destination, and we couldn't wait! I was super excited. We would eat at the Earl of Sandwich, let Hoot ride the little train and carousel, and do some shopping. Or that was the plan, anyway...

Up next: In the battle of Boy vs Man, Momma wins!

Day Two: Planes, trains, and where did I just park my automobile?

2008-09-25T00:05:00.002-05:00

After the ridiculous stress of the previous days, was I really surprised that we didn't get much sleep on Saturday night? No. Was I sad about it? Heck, yeah. I just kept telling myself that no matter what the morning and flight brings, we'll be in Orlando before lunch. It helped... some.

Oddly enough, with all the flights I have taken out of and to DFW, I've never had to park long term. At George Bush Intercontinental Airport, we have a great place down off of Greens Road that we love. The people are fantastic, the service is awesome (gotta love it when they pick you up at your car and they load the luggage) and it is cheap, cheap, cheap. Like $4.50 a day cheap. So, I was traumatized when I realized that the remote parking is $7 a day at DFW, and you have to schlep to the bus station, and you have to haul all your luggage. However, you know me, will schlep for money. Besides, almost all the private off lot places were $9 a day and higher. The plan was to park in the South remote lot and ride the bus to our terminal. However, in the big computer shut down, I did not print the airport map. In fact, I never made it back to look at the airport map.

I spotted The Parking Spot on our way to the hotel Saturday night. I tucked it away in the back of my mind in case I got confused on Sunday morning. A distant voice in the back of my head said that it was perhaps one of the cheaper private lots.

After much snapping and snarling at each other, DH & I were loading Hoot into the car and on our way to the airport semi on schedule Sunday morning. As we were leaving the Super 8 parking lot, I made the snap decision to use the Parking Spot lot so that we would have some help with the luggage. We headed off in the right direction and passed the Parking Spot right up. I got off on the next exit and we whipped it around for another try. I never saw the sign to enter the lot, and the next thing we know, we've passed the darn place again. Really? This was supposed to be taking the easy way out here! DH kept swearing he saw the entrance to the Parking Spot, but I was just swearing. I pulled into the next pay lot and took the first available spot. Hmm, it was a covered lot. Holey moley, what was this going to cost me? Only after our driver deposited us at the terminal and brought out the luggage did I have the guts to ask how much it was per day. $9.50! (Insert more swearing.) But, what is done is done, and I resumed my mantra!

After checking our bags and going through security (really, I thought they would've at least asked about the PlayDoy) we sought out some breakfast. I had a $10 Burger King card from MyPoints and we spotted a Burger King. Alas, they took no gift cards, so it was out of pocket for breakfast. Hoot, of course, ate nothing. He sucked down the elusive chocolate milk (we don't ever let him have this at home) and would be enticed by nothing else. Already a grumpy monkey, but what did we expect since we were so snappy ourselves.

On the plane at last, I settled us in and got a spill proof sippy cup with some juice in it for take off to help with Hoot's ears. (Yes, a sippy cup. I know he hasn't used one for ages, but I didn't really want to wear the juice.) Just as we were about to start taxiing, Hoot pipes up with "I gotta go pee-pee!" chants. (I had no idea just how much foreshadowing this chant would mean.) We explained that he wouldn't be able to go until the Captain had turned off the seat belt sign, but he wasn't buying it. I spent the next twenty minutes telling Hoot about all the flights he had taken before and that this was his eleventh time in the air. We counted to eleven a couple of times so that he could realize just how many times that was, and it seemed to do the trick. So, of course he shifted his worries onto something else: Tee. Where was she? Wasn't she flying with us? I thought we'd see Tee today! As you can tell, it was a restful flight.

In Orlando, we checked on the status of Tee's flight. There was a slight delay, so rather than wait for her at the gate, we decided to head off for our luggage. Hoot loved the ride on the faux monorail! We collected our Mickey head splattered luggage (we stamp a different color Mickey head all over the bags for each trip we have taken) and waited for Tee to arrive.

Up next: Tee Time!

Day One: Oh, my aching Ike!

2008-09-24T00:04:00.002-05:00

Saturday was supposed to be a relaxing, stress free day full of laundry and packing. I had done so much prior to that week, it really shouldn't have been bad. Our plan was to pack it all up, load the car, eat an early dinner and head out to our $8.88 room at the Grapevine Super 8 hotel. We'd swim a bit and turn in around 8:30pm so we'd be fresh and ready for our 7:15 am flight to Orlando.

Not.

Hurricane Ike was barrelling towards us and beating a path similar to Rita's back in 2005. This was not making anyone happy and adding a ton of stress on the family. Suddenly, we had to change our focus to stowing away Tonka trucks and lawn donkeys. (Yes, I have lawn donkeys, and the last thing we needed was a flying ass through a window.) We needed to fill the water bottles, check flashlight batteries, and start the generator so it could run for a bit. To make matters a little more stressful, I worked until almost midnight on Friday.

Luckily, we ended up on the better side of the storm. This was much clearer on Friday morning, so we just had to worry about potential flooding, general stormy weather, and some heavy wind gusts. So Friday night, we watched some Ike TV and powered down the computer for safety's sake. Sadly, I did not print my last minute to do list before we shut it all down. I would pay for that later.

I slept poorly as the wind began to pick up and worry overtook me. I slept about 5 hours, getting up at least three times during the night. When the sun came up, I hauled myself out of bed and began to try and wrap things up. By the time the eye wall was about fifty miles to our East, I was in full throws of packing. Then we heard a giant crack and the house literally shook.

This sent Hoot into a tizzy. We ran to the front window and saw the neighbors across the street come running out of their houses. Within a minute, there was a firetruck out front and firemen swarming across the neighbors back yards. They had lost a huge tree that took down a transformer and left live power lines sizzling around the rooftops and yards. Soon, power was cut on that side of the street and the power company was on scene. Really, I was very impressed by the quick reaction time. I felt very blessed that we still had power and no one was hurt.

I kept packing with one eye on the suitcases and one on the TV. The bands of wind and rain continued to sweep across the area, but the eye of the hurricane never crept any closer. It was hard to keep on task, and I wasn't nearly as organized as I usually am. Eventually, I just declared the packing was done and over. I knew I would be forgetting things, but I didn't really care. Now we just needed to get out.

We loaded the car and carefully tracked Ike on the radar. Eventually, we headed almost due West until we hit I-35. This added quite a bit of mileage to the trip, but feeling like we were on our way really helped to improve everyone's mood. We pulled into our hotel at almost 9pm, and were all keyed up. It took forever for poor Hoot to unwind. He really had picked up a lot of stress from us and the situation. I thought he'd never go to sleep. All I wanted to do was sleep!

Coming up next- Day Two: Planes, trains, and where did I just park my automobile?

Back at home, back at work!

2008-09-24T00:00:00.002-05:00

We made it home super late Saturday night, or early Sunday morning, if you will. The trip was a huge success and now we are digging out from under laundry and housework. I am always a bit overwhelmed when I get back to work because it seems like we always have a ton of new books come out when I'm gone and I never know where they are!

I've downloaded some photos, but haven't had a bit of time to retouch them. I also haven't uploaded them onto our Photopass CD, but I have a day off on Saturday. I am anxious to start a trip report because it will be the very first one I have ever written. With that, I'm going to start it in a new post. Once I get a few days into the report, I'm also going to post it over on the Disboards.

Epcot today!

2008-09-19T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today we are going to Epcot. We will spend the morning in Future World. We're excited because we haven't ridden the new Spaceship Earth and Hoot is big enough for Test Track.

We'll spend the afternoon back at the resort poolside and return to the park in time for our dinner reservations in Morrocco at Restuarant Merrakesh. We can't wait. Hoot loves dancing girls, so I'm sure he'll love the belly dancer.

Tonight is Illuminations and extra magic hours after the show. I don't know how long we'll last and its our last night, so packing up our gear is a consideration.

It's a Hoot Day!

2008-09-18T08:00:00.001-05:00

On tap for today:

Early entry to Magic Kingdom! We'll hit Fantasyland first and work our way as far as possible until our lunch ADRs.

We'll meet Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and Tigger for lunch at the Crystal Palace. We have an early ADR for 11:30 am. After lunch, we'll spend some more time in the Magic Kingdom before heading back to our room for a bit of a rest, we're gonna need it.

At 6:20, we will be at Disney's Contemporary Resort to dine at Chef Mickey's. All of the bigwigs will be there: Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and Donald! What more could you want on your 4th birthday?

Okay, maybe a night time parade? How about some fireworks? Okay, both! We'll see the Spectromagic parade followed by Wishes. Afterwards, every single dime we spend on that Volo stroller will pay for itself as we wheel a super sleepy Hoot out of the park. Hey, can I get one of those for me?

Animal Kingdom

2008-09-17T08:00:00.000-05:00

We will have a late morning again today. I'm hoping to get our Ohana ADRs changed to this morning instead of Saturday, but haven't had luck at the time I'm writing this post. I'll keep trying. If we don't get them, we'll be at the Whispering Canyon Cafe for lunch at noon.

Today is Animal Kingdom. We have evening Extra Magic Hours again today, so we'll save some of the big attractions, with the exception of Kilimanjaro Safari for later. DH can't wait for Hoot to ride Dinosaur but I'm a little concerned it'll be too intense for him. Yes, he loves a lot of scary things, but I'll just wait and see. He's also tall enough for Expedition Everest, but that doesn't mean he'll get to ride that either.

Even with the later hours, we should be back at Pop! before 9pm. It'll be off to bed as tomorrow is Hoot's 4th Birthday!

A not so scary day!

2008-09-16T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today, we have a bit of time to sleep in. We'll leave the resort around 10 am (yes, that is sleeping in to us, especially at Disney) and head off to Plant City, Florida. We will pick up Hoot's birthday cake from Publix (Tee ordered it ahead of time) and head over to Granny's apartment. We should get there around 11-ish.

We'll all go out to lunch and return to Granny's for cake and presents. I really wanted Hoot to have a real cake and get to open some presents in a fairly normal setting. He associates the candles, cake thing with birthday. And my Granny will now be present for one of his birthdays. Yeah, I'm a big fan of the two stones thing.

This evening, we will attend Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. Disney came through with our raincheck tickets so we only have to buy for Hoot! Yeah! $150 saved! It will probably be a late night, but that's okay! I can't wait to see the Headless Horseman!

Hooray for Hollywood!

2008-09-15T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today, we will arrive at WDW's Pop Century Resort around 7:30am. We'll check in and receive our Keys to the World. We hope to arrive at Disney's Hollywood Studios around 8:30 am.

At rope drop, I will leave DH, DS, & Tee in the dust! I'll make the dash to get Fast Passes for Toy Story Mania, the new 4-D ride. If Tee's foot hadn't been having problems she would've made the dash. We both have finely honed Theme Park skills, but she still uses hers all summer long. We still amaze DH that we can just vanish into the crowds! LOL! Years of practise, years of practise.

We'll spend a good portion of the day here and when our rooms are ready around 3, we will leave and head back to the Pop! We'll lug it all to our rooms and get settled in just a bit. Depending on the time, we may even take a dip in the pool.

Tonight is our first ADR (Advance Dining Reservation) and we are eating at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. Our ressie is for 5:50, so we need to be in the parking lot by 5:30. This will be DH & Hoot's first time there. Last time I ate there was September 11, 2003. I had two of "Dad's Electric Lemonades" and wow, they really kicked some butt! Hands down, it was the best cocktail (and strongest at WDW!) I have every had! You can bet I'll have at least one tonight! I seriously hope DH gets picked on!

After dinner, we will do a few attractions and wait for Fantasmic! After, we hope to score another ride on Toy Story Mania. It's evening Extra Magic Hours here, so only resort guests will be allowed to stay in the park after 9pm.

It's a Travel Day!

2008-09-14T08:00:00.001-05:00

We leave our Super 8 around 5:15 this morning to head out to DFW. We're on Airtran Flight 916 and are scheduled to arrive in Orlando just after 11:00 eastern time. Everyone is super excited. Tee's flight is scheduled to arrive just 5 minutes after ours. Cross your fingers that Ike doesn't mess with our flights!

On the schedule today:
Pick up the rental car
Lunch at Steak N Shake (we really miss them)
Stop at Target and pick up the McLaren Volo stroller
Quick trip to the Disney outlet where park merchandise is cleared out
Downtown Disney
Check in to Ramada Orlando Celebration Hotel & Conference Center for one night
Wal-Mart for water, snacks, and sunscreen
Pool time followed by an early bedtime for all

Where am I today?

2008-09-13T08:00:00.001-05:00

Hopefully this works. This is my first attempt at writing something to post later.

Today, I am packing like mad. I've got one eye on the television (Hurricane TV) and one on the suitcase. We scored a hotel in Grapevine for tonight, so it'll be an easy shoot over to the airport. We'll leave this afternoon and head up so we can get some decent sleep. I had to drag both boys out of bed at 6am so that we can get to bed early tonight. Cross your fingers for me!

Because getting ready for a big trip isn't stressful enough...

2008-09-11T10:25:00.003-05:00

I awoke with the sounds of a Hooter Bear prowling in the kitchen. It seems that Daddy didn't lock the door at the end of the hallway. So, I found Hoot playing in the bubbly water in the dirty crockpot that I left soaking overnight. Before I can get his hands washed the phone started ringing.

My parents went to Abilene yesterday for my sister's birthday. Great. I thought that got them out of the path of Ike (they live in DeWitt county, which was partially evacuated yesterday) and I wouldn't have to worry about them. Apparently, my sister has rats. And I don't mean the cute Japanese Hooded variety I used to keep in a cage. My mom was sorely disappointed in her granddogs. A border collie and a cow dog can't keep that under control? So, that freaked them out. Then, they've been on a steady diet of Hurricane TV and that has my dad flaired up. He does so well on his medication, but stress totally brings out the worst of his Lewy Bodies demetia and his Parkinsons shaking.

So, what are they doing? They are leaving Abilene. *sigh* Are they coming here? Well, I wish they would. That way they aren't alone in the middle of nowhere. However, they are more likely to be in the thick of it here that they would be at home. But, they aren't sure they can get home. So, they may be coming here. Right now, they are headed out of Abilene and when they get to Temple they will make the decision. I'm glad they weren't going through San Antonio. Who knows, they may be here before dark anyway. We'll just have to see.

I still hope that we are able to leave for DFW on Saturday. With that sucker hooking north, there may be a chance. However, if the storm looks like it will be safer to travel in the wee hours of Sunday morning, we will do that. All I know is that I need to keep doing what I need to do to get ready to go to Florida. It would take major house damage to cancel the trip and if we can get there, we will be there!

A little perspective

2008-09-06T22:42:00.004-05:00

As I am getting ready for our big trip, a little over a week away, I am reminded just how well we live our lives. I am not much of a bible thumper and I cannot remember the last time I set foot into a church without it being Christmas Eve, a wedding, or a funeral. My sister Tee and her husband Brian, who goes by Bullet, are very religious. Bullet is currently on a mission trip in Africa. Yesterday, I received a postcard from R.E.D. Ministries, which is the organization that he is traveling with through Africa. It brought a little perspective into my life when I brought up their website tonight and read their blog entry.

The entry really moved me as I read about their encounter with young survivors of the current tribal genocide. I get so caught up in our daily lives that I forget to consider the rest of the world. I am not trying to get preachy. I guess I am just emotional to know that something I have provided some small financial support to is really out there making a real difference. When we gave money, I only considered how much their travel and supplies would cost. I wanted to aid them with that. After reading about their travels so far, I am really proud of my brother in law and all they are doing in Africa.

Overheard in the bookstore:
Today we had the mouse from If You Give A Mouse A Cookie join us for storytime. Mouse did not have the hat inside its head, so it would just flop around. We were terrified that Mouse would be decapitated in front of 20 preschoolers. It was a bit stressful, but my favorite line was this:
It's okay, shuffle your feet, I have your head.

Chant for the day

2008-09-03T23:51:00.001-05:00

I will not watch the Tropics.
I will not watch the Tropics.
I will not watch the Tropics.
DAM, I'm watching the Tropics...

As if packing and preparing to move the boys through an array of planes, trains (well, trains at airports), and automobiles wasn't enough, I know have to keep one eye on Ike and the other on Josephine. But, we are brave travelers. As long as we can get there, we will go there. We have a rental car and we have tons of family nearby. We also know where the nearest Wallyworld and Bass Pro Shop is if we need full out rain gear. But, still I watch.

There is also the usual pre-trip drama. Tee went to the ER last night with a severe upper respiratory infection. She's all hopped up on antibiotics and steroids. We're still a good 10 days out, so that should give her time to heal. I bought the wrong memory card for my new digital camera and had to go exchange it. I still haven't painted Hoot's t-shirt for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and now DH can't figure out what he did with Hoot's t-shirt that I need to send to Tee so she can put the birthday transfers on it.

And me? I can't turn off the Weather Channel! Arrrgh!

Quote for the day, stolen from one of the posters on the Disboards:
You should live your life so that every morning, when you put your feet on the floor, Satan trembles and says, "Oh SH**! She's awake!"

Overheard in the bookstore:
Does it have any questionable passages in it? I guess I'll just read it first. My son is only sixteen and I have to approve everything he reads.
I hope that boy has a college fund that allows him to afford something out of state.

What I should be doing vs what I'm doing....

2008-08-27T23:51:00.003-05:00

Tonight, I should be working on finalizing monies for our upcoming trip. I have bank balances to check, bills to enter into my Excel spreadsheet, old car rental reservations to cancel, wallets to empty, and a giant Disneyland Tokyo popcorn bucket full of change to count.

After we finished an episode of Lost (we're on Season 3 now) I left the tv turned on. Big mistake. Tonight on PBS, they ran a little documentary entitled Ferrets: The Pursuit of Excellence. Now, don't get me wrong. Ferrets are cute and I guess they could be lovable, well, for a weasel. I totally understand how much people love their pets. Miss Lissie was like my first born child. But, when they started talking about the "rainbow bridge" that ferrets cross when they die, I just lost it. I laughed so hard I couldn't get my breath. I paused Tivo so that I could regain my composure and then this part of the film happened.

Now, a first, I was laughing hysterically at the deep freeze. I have a coworker who has a "morgue" in her freezer sometimes because they "don't have time" to bury a dead cat. At one point early last year, I believe there were at least 5 cats in the morgue. (They have over 30 animals, so I guess it is hard to keep up with....) But, by the time I got to this lady talking about dividing up ashes with teaspoons, I honestly peed a little. However, I did admire her frugality. Honestly, who wants to pay full price for ferret cremation?

So, I'll leave you with the lovely trivia that a dead ferret equals two teaspoons of ashes when cremated, and a little ditty from the documentary.

At least it is over!

2008-08-27T00:53:00.004-05:00

The weekend has come and gone and with it the dreaded visit of DH's family. It wasn't as horrible as some of their visits, but then again, I really wasn't here! You know, I love my job. Sometimes I love my job more than usual. That was definitely this weekend.

However, I did notice that when I was here, my MIL wasn't as openly critical as usual. Which is kind of sad. Tee, who normally doesn't give a lot of unsolicited advise, and never advise of this nature, told me, "You need to snap at her. And you need to snap at her hard! Give her every bit of *****iness you can cram down her throat." Secretly, I felt like a bull facing a red flag, I was stamping the ground and ready to charge. But, I was also a little scared of myself. I mean, I had been keeping a close reign on my tongue for sixteen years. I was a little afraid to pull my finger out of the dam. I never got the chance to find out.

DH said he had a good visit, but was pretty glad to see them go. He had a little bit of a moment with his brother, who is autistic and spoiled (at 35 he gets whatever he wants). His brother was in the chair at the computer and DH needed online for a moment. (I'll call DH's brother "C") C wasn't going to get up because he is used to getting his own way every time. DH asked him nicely, but was ignored. DH told him to get up and C shook his head. DH shouted at him to get up and C came up shaking his fists like he wanted a fight. DH told him he wouldn't tolerate it in his house and asked him if he wanted his *** kicked. C moved but it was tense for a bit.

Then DH said, "At least it didn't cost us anything." I could've kicked him. Ha! So I ran down the list of expenses:

$65 at Target for cleaning supplies, new shower curtain, shower rod, shower rings, and rug for Hoot's bathroom (She really picked at me about his bathroom last time and I never finished fixing it up because of my No Buy. They also don't really respect our treat it like it is one bathroom law when we have guests.)
$80 dollars at HEB for food, when I had plans to eat from the pantry and freezer last weekend. They aren't like having my parents here. When my parents are here, I cook like I always do, but we don't have leftovers. DH's brother and stepdad eat more than DH does!
$25 for dinner on Friday so we didn't have to mess up the kitchen and spend time away from the cleaning frenzy.
$8 on lunch out for me on Saturday because they showed up almost 2 hours earlier than they had said and I didn't come home for lunch.
$12 at Denny's for breakfast on Sunday morning because C and the stepdad slept in the living room.

So their "didn't cost us anything" trip down cost us $190 that I definitely wouldn't have been spending this close to our Disney trip.

Overheard at the bookstore:

I'm sorry, that is a textbook and we really don't carry textbooks.

But, aren't you a bookstore?

Yes, we are a bookstore, but not a textbook store.

But, I thought you were a bookstore.

2008-08-22T16:42:00.000-05:00

The best laid plans...

2008-08-22T01:17:00.002-05:00

Today, Hoot and I were having a great time together. I had the day off followed by another day off and open shifts for Saturday and Sunday. With my schedule, this meant a dose of some decent family time. You know, four nights in a row with me being home for my baby's bedtime followed by that all too rare TV time. I had it all planned out. Today would be play day. We'd do very little work around the house and Hoot could help me make a pizza. Tomorrow, we'd do the chores. Each night would have a little Olympics and an episode of Lost that we've been getting from Netflix. Then, the phone rang.

My mother in law never calls. In the first ten years of our marriage, I can remember her calling us about five times. That was just fine with me. It averaged out to be a call every two years. Usually, this meant someone got married or died. You know, big stuff.

When the phone rang this afternoon, I looked at the caller id and let the voice mail have it. It was my MIL. When I checked, she didn't leave a message. Okay, no big deal, I guess no one died. Then she called again five minutes later. This time she did leave a message. It said that unless she heard from us, they would assume that it would be fine for them to come down this weekend. By this weekend, I knew she meant tomorrow.

Now, to give you an idea of the relationship with my MIL, let me say that I have been married over fifteen years. She does not know how to spell my name. I used to be tolerable and nice. Used to be. When I gave birth to Hoot, I had a few complications. I crushed my femoral nerve in my right leg and two disks in my lower back. For the first four weeks, I was told to not lift anything over ten pounds. Um, the baby was ten pounds, so this advice wasn't always followed. But, I spent the first three months of his life walking stooped and dragging around my right leg. My MIL came to see us when the baby was a little over three weeks old.

I made a nice dinner (which was totally tough to do) and while I was finishing it all up, she sat in my kitchen and dug through my drug basket asking me what everything was for. Then she pointed out that I was going to have to keep my floors cleaner now that I had a baby. Now, if this woman was a modeled after Bree Van De Kamp, I would've taken it. But this is the same woman who stored homemade preserves in a box next to the toilet in the back bathroom that doesn't have a door. The same bathroom where you couldn't wash your hands because there was too much clutter spilling into the sink. And, despite me setting all the plates, napkins, glasses, and silverware in front of her, didn't even offer to set the table. On that visit, I decided to just stop trying. I was officially over it.

And, guess who's coming to dinner. But, actually, there is a small ray of hope. We declined letting them come tomorrow. We told them they could come on Saturday and leave Sunday, but they are on the fence because they don't want to miss church on Sunday morning. So, everyone, cross your fingers and root for church! However, as it stands, they will be coming in to town on Saturday and spending the night with us.

I am not happy.

Things I'd rather do than have my in laws step foot into my house:

Root canal
Followed by a second root canal
Natural childbirth
Attend a rattlesnake roundup (I hate snakes)
Spend Saturday night at a Kingdom Hall brushing up on why I'm going to hell

Oh, I could go on, but you get the idea. Now, I have so many things to do tomorrow. I just hate it. I don't know what DH is going to do to compensate, but it better be good. And he better make sure she doesn't feed Hoot any of her preserves!

Overheard at the bookstore:

From in front of the Libros en español section:

Hey look, Skinny Bitch is Skinny Bitch in Spanish, too!

Oh, and on a side note: Bryan, TGIF!

25 to go!

2008-08-20T00:45:00.002-05:00

We have only 25 days until we leave for Hoot's Walt Disney World birthday trip. Seriously? It is very hard to believe. But, things are starting to really come together nicely.

On the rental car front, we are now down to $138, including taxes, for a full size car for the entire week. The latest deal was scored off of the Thrifty website. We put in the dates and when the results came up, I clicked on the yellow Hot Deals banner planted right in the middle. It took our rates before taxes down to $97.75! We'll keep using Priceline and Hotwire to eyeball and see if we can't score a little more pocket money, but still we're very happy with this rate if that's what we end up with.

On the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP) front, I received a call today from WDW's executive offices. I spoke with an incredibly nice cast member who agreed to extend our rain check until the MNSSHP on September 16th, which is two days after the rain check expired. Honestly, it wasn't something they really had to do, but they did it and it makes me very happy. Now I just have to mail off our old tickets and the cast member will call me back to confirm we have new tickets at the Guest Services window at the Magic Kingdom! Can you say I just saved another $157! Yippee and hooray for the Mouse! It looks like I'm going to get that view of the Headless Horseman after all. Now, if we can just keep the monsoon rains away....

I've also come up with a plan for a stroller. I know that Hoot is super big, and honestly, he has plenty of energy. But, with our plans for 7 days, if he has the option of a stroller, he will be much happier. And, I know I said this about Momma in one of the last posts, but if Hoot ain't happy, then nobody's happy. So, in the interest of sanity, I have been planning a stroller. But, stroller rentals have gone up quite a bit at WDW. A rented stroller would run us $65, using a length of stay option. And, we wouldn't have it Sunday at Downtown Disney. So, after some deliberation and lots of online poking, prodding, and review reading, I've decided to buy a Maclaren Volo Stroller at Target.com. The weight limit goes all the way up to 55lbs, so even my big Hoot will fit. I've redeemed some points at MyPoints and I have $45 in Target gift cards on the way. I also have a Target gift card that I have been adding small amounts to every time I go inside. So, this will cover my stroller after we land in Orlando. This does make the Volo cost roughly the same amount as the rental, but if we decide we don't want to keep it, it has great resell value.

However, as with everything in life, it seems like each time one item gets checked off of my to do list, another two or three pop up to take its place. And that makes 25 days seem very short indeed!

Hooray for Tee!

2008-08-16T00:50:00.002-05:00

In my hallway, tacked up close to the ceiling, is a paper chain with rings in different colors. Each ring represents a day left until we depart for Walt Disney World. After brushing teeth and donning jammies, DH lifts Hoot up and he snips a ring to get us closer to his birthday trip. Suddenly this chain is way too short.

Somehow, I managed to loose a couple of weeks in the countdown. One item on my to do list was to find a dirt cheap hotel for the Saturday night before our crack of dawn flight from DFW to Orlando. If we stayed at home that night, we would have to get up at 2am to make our flight reservations. Not something I really wanted to do.

So, I've Pricelined a few times and pulled up Hotwire almost every day. I really wanted to keep it below $40 and still be decent. But, I hadn't gotten too serious or concerned. Then, I learned about Super 8's $8.88 sale. On 8-8-08, at 8pm Eastern time, the first 800 people could book rooms for $8.88. And wouldn't you know it, I had to work and the DSL was still unhappy.

I called Tee and asked her if there was any way she could try for me. Since it was opening night of the Beijing games, she was having a house full of people. I was a bit sad, but I let it go and told myself I would get serious on the room as soon as I had the computer back in action.

On Sunday night, I was at work and Tee called me. She wanted my credit card info for the $8.88 sale. I told her I thought it was over, but she said it was for several nights. She said she wanted to give it a shot for me. Well, it wasn't 7:05 when she called me back to say it was my lucky night!

So Hooray for Tee! She scored us a room at the Super 8 in Grapevine for the night before our trip. Total with taxes: $9.95! Now, we get to sleep in until 5am on the morning of our flight. This will make a ton of difference in the quality of our Hoot on that Sunday.

Now, about the rest of that to do list....

Blue is the new red

2008-08-13T00:07:00.002-05:00

Early last week, Tropical Storm Eduoard blew through town. Not a huge storm, but it brought us a little relief from the heat and some much needed rain. He also took a limb out of one of the trees and ripped a phone line from the back of the house.

Yes, it is odd as we seem to have been the only people around to get any damage out of the storm. It was mostly rain when it got here, and really didn't even dump much of that, and just a few wind gusts. So, I was totally shocked when DH called and told me we had a giant limb down out front. But, sure enough, it took a giant live limb out of one of the front oak trees.

Now, both boys were in a state of high excitement over the limb falling. Yes, it was a big live limb blocking most of the front yard. No, it didn't hit anything, cause other damage or block the driveway. And yet, they were on full tilt freak out mode. Hoot kept saying we needed to get Beaver, who is a character from his favorite show Dragon, to come and chop it in to pieces. DH was all atwitter that we didn't have a giant saw. In the end, the boys chopped most of it up and had it to the curb in time for pick up by Thursday.

The phone line wasn't discovered until later in the week. I had been super busy and didn't try to get online until Thursday evening. Alas, the DSL wasn't working. After a long bit of trouble shooting, I discovered that it was the phone outlet behind the desk that was bad. We only use it for the computer and for Tivo, so if I hadn't tried to get online I might not have noticed for a few more days. Once I looked out back during the daylight, I could see that the line had come off of the house and it was so old the insulation had rubbed off. Hence the crappy signal.

Saturday I traipsed down to Lowes and picked up everything I thought I needed to run a new line from the phone box. Then, I started to fix it all up. But, as usual, I had far too much help and way too much frustration. Seriously, why does everything have to have so much drama? A middle aged man and a small boy ought to be able to entertain themselves without me for about an hour. Sure.

Three hours later, the men had been banished from the house and I had misplaced the phone jack that I had just bought. (Never did find it either!) I found myself at Home Depot picking up another one and a "plan b" kit consisting of 50' of phone line to string through the wall from the guest bedroom. Once I got home, it took me only 10 minutes to get the jack working. The jack from Home Depot had a "color chart" that explained that blue is the new red and white is the new green. Well, lets just say "Who knew?" Does this apply to anything other than phone lines? Will it change the major color schemes of Christmas?

Now the DSL is happy, Tivo is happy, and well, I guess that makes Momma happy. And we all know what happens when Momma is happy. It is good to be back in cyberspace.

What a long weekend.

2008-08-04T23:05:00.002-05:00

What a long weekend! I swear it has been August for weeks now. The Breaking Dawn release party was a super smash hit! The attendance was at least double what I had expected and if Stephenie Meyer ever releases Midnight Sun, I know that full out riot, er, I mean Potter gear will be required.

I can't take all the credit for our success. I had a fantastic staff who executed our battle plans down to almost the minute. Yes, there was one who just couldn't wait another minute, but I am trying desperately to let that lapse of judgement go. My registration table rocked the pre-line and gave out all available unreserved copies. My decorator took fantastic pictures against her creative back drop. And the soon to be married couple practiced by passing out slices of wedding cake.

Tee even helped from Atlanta. She finally corralled a wolf for me, and he looked fantastic on the wedding cake. Wal-mart did a surprisingly great job with the wedding cake. It had tiny drops of red that looked a little like blood sprinkled on the icing. The cheap chess pieces, the white queen and the black king, made great toppers. And Tee's howling wolf looked up at the happy couple with the appropriate amount of anguish in his tiny plastic eyes.

And it is only out of tiredness that I don't post my lovely video of Stephan drooling on his tux as he attempted to install his vampire teeth. Well, that it would be totally ungrateful after all of his hard work. Of course, that doesn't mean I won't be ungrateful later. LOL!

As for the book itself, I really enjoyed reading it. I plowed through it very quickly so that I could discover things on my own and not be spoiled. I must say it was her gutsiest of the series and it had quite a bit of adrenaline. I still can't believe some of the issues she skirted. I will definitely read Midnight Sun when it comes out, but I can't really say that I will go back and carefully reread Breaking Dawn as I did with Potter 7. I know the story and I have other pressing items to read.

To everyone who helped, a great big thank you! I can plan, plot, and instigate strategies, but I can not do it myself.

Current reading:
The Eight by Katherine Neville. Reading in anticipation of the sequel The Fire which is coming out in October of this year. It has taken a little over 20 years for the sequel to come out!

Overheard at the bookstore:
Spoken by a man eating wedding cake surrounded by 400 teenage girls sporting vampire teeth:
Hey do you have something special going on tonight?

A whole year?!

2008-08-01T00:31:00.002-05:00

August 1st marks the anniversary of my whole No Buy budget thing. I still don't know what to call it. Experiment? Awakening? Penance? And if it is penance, am I absolved now? I know one thing, what a long strange trip its been!

Our first month, in August 2007, seemed to be one of the longest months of my life. Hoot landed his first ER visit within the first few days with a badly twisted ankle and knee. It kept us there through the afternoon and into the evening and marked our first off the bandwagon fast food meal. Honestly, though, the hardest thing was to give up my coffee at work. It was a daily habit, and I still miss it.

But, all in all, the fall went very well. The Fall family birthday season was fairly controlled and Christmas was less stressful for the most part. January ushered in New Year's resolution season, and my thread on the Disboards was booming. I even had a hard time keeping up with every one.

Summer has seen some quiet time on the thread, and we seem to be slowly dying out. I am considering just letting it die a quiet dignified death, but we'll see. With it being August, and our trip to Disney World for Hoot's birthday will keep us on a pretty even keel. I know that my wardrobe is far shoddier that it should be, so I'll have to do some work clothes shopping soon. Honestly, I seem to hate shopping for clothes now.

My best success has been to really examine each month before it begins. Now, I plot my pitfalls carefully, and put caution tape around danger areas.

Ack! My Breaking Dawn counter is out of days! Heavens to mercutroid, even. I best get myself to bedfordshire soon. Oh, and if you haven't heard, there is lots of news in Potterland these days. The Tales of Beedle the Bard will be out on December 4th and the new trailer for Half-Blood Prince has been released. (It is delightfully dark and yummy.) All in all, I'd say Harry had a pretty good birthday!

Dog Days of Summer

2008-07-28T23:37:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, after I got off of work at 4, I picked up the boys and we headed out to see if Penney's still had any children's clothing left on the clearance rack. There was almost nothing, so we strolled down the mall to look at puppies.

It is so easy to resist buying a puppy at the mall pet shop. The prices are ridiculous. If I'm going to pay for a pure bred dog, I'm going to meet the parents, you know? What kind of stock does that $400 bloodhound come from? Where did it come from? But, it was super fun to watch Hoot check out all the dogs. Man, when we get back from Orlando, there is definitely going to be a chaotic, four footed addition to the family. I recently gotten into the habit of pulling up Petfinder.com and browsing for a potential fur ball. I'm a bit sad that the dog we thought might happen at the beginning of the month didn't work out, but it will be much better if we wait until after the trip.

But, here in the dog days of summer, it's also good that I don't have to keep opening and closing the back door for four footed family members. It is hot, hot, hot and there is no real relief in sight. We've been over 100 for several days, and the forecast is for more hot weather. Yesterday, the temperature gauge in the car said 109. Now, I know she exaggerates, but still, that is as high as I've ever seen her register. Heck, I haven't seen a squirrel in the backyard for days. Not even first thing in the morning. Mr. Opossum doesn't seem to mind too much, but I guess he has that nocturnal thing going for him. I just hate it when it is even too hot to go to the pool. Miserable, really.

To help keep the house cooler, I've declared it the week of salads for dinner. I bought plenty of lettuce, tomatoes, dressing, cheese, and quick cooking meats to add on top. Tonight, I boiled a dozen eggs and am considering cooking the chicken for tomorrow night's Caesar salad. If the weather keeps up, I may look into adding a toaster oven into August's budget. That way, I can make quick mini-pizzas and such without heating the big oven.

I am also scared for my electric bill. Our June/July bill was super high, but not the highest we've ever seen. Just the electricity came in at $290. Our record for electric alone was somewhere in the neighborhood of $350. If the streak of 100+ days keeps up, I'm totally afraid we will break it. I budget it to be super high in the summer, but I love that it never uses all the money budgeted for it. I really wish our co-op participated in an equal billing plan.

One surrealistic, coincidental thing about the weather, though. I've finally started reading Stephen King's Dark Tower series. I first bought The Gunslinger when it came out. Before I read it, I loaned it out and never saw it again. Now, its super hot and dry as I'm reading about the gunslinger trek across a blazing desert. Kind of fitting, huh? But, I have a few days off from the bookstore, and I've been wanting to do this series for years, so I'll just take it as a sign that I should be reading it.

Hoping for Pixie Dust!

2008-07-25T00:43:00.002-05:00

Last year, on our "Last Free Hoot, Free Dining" trip to Walt Disney World, we chose to go to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party on September 14th. It was the night before we left and I had seriously looked forward to it for months! It was hard for me to buy a separate ticket for an evening in the park, but I really wanted to go. I justified the expense by giving Tee her ticket for her birthday and getting my ticket for my birthday, using the Halloween tie-in. Then, I spent hours making our costumes.

So, after a quiet day, we donned our Lighting McQueen Pit Crew costumes, and set off to MNSSHP around 4:30ish. We had a great dinner at the Crystal Palace and just before 6pm, we set out into the park to find some trick or treating. By 6:15, we were huddled under the walkway in front of the Baby Care Center. Being Florida vets, Tee lived there for years and we have numerous relatives within an hour of the World, we figured it would pass. Maybe an hour tops. So, we donned our ponchos and set out.

Eventually, we began to realize this wasn't just any old garden variety Florida rain storm. This was more like Forrest Gump's rain in Vietnam. You remember, "and sometimes, it even rained straight up." Our candy turned in to a soggy mess. We didn't dare get out our cameras and we spent way too much time on It's a Small World. When we got back to our rooms, we all looked like we had be pushed into a pool.

Disney rarely issues a rain check. So, when they do, you know the weather was truly awful. But, on that night, they passed out postcards saying that our MNSSHP tickets would be good for a single day entrance into the Magic Kingdom. But, the offer would expire in one year. So, I tore up the house trying to find the MNSSHP tickets before we booked our September 2008 trip. I never found them, and eventually gave up. We booked our trip to start on September 15, 2008! One year, and one day after our soggy disappointing night.

Today, I was getting out one of the suitcases and I found a wad of ponchos in the side. Mixed in to the mess, was a MNSSHP ticket! I couldn't believe it! Tee had found hers about a week ago, and I had asked DH about 15 times if he knew where they were, and then ta-da! So I was telling DH that I had found one of the tickets and I was going to email and see if they'd let us use them for the September 16th party. Now, I know I accuse him of not listening a lot, but seriously this is why: He immediately said, "Oh, hang on." He then went into the guest room and returned with his MNSSHP ticket! I was too happy to be angry!

I emailed the address on the postcard and I am eagerly awaiting their reply. Yes, it is two days past the deadline, but hey, it is Disney. I really hope they live up to their customer service standards on this one! Then I would only have to buy Hoot a ticket for the event. (He was still under 3 last time.) So, if they say yes, it will save me $147 out of my vacation budget! I have my Tinkerbells crossed!

Overheard at the bookstore:
Team Edward or Team Jacob?

But seriously folks, I'm up to my fangs in teenage werewolves and vampires...

Current reading:
I picked it up sometime back when I used microfiche to look up books for customers, but I've just started Stephen King's The Gunslinger. I am hesitant and excited at the same time. It's been years since I read anything by him, and the last time it was a novel, it had to have been a 19-something.

Round in Circles

2008-07-22T00:00:00.002-05:00

It all seems to go round and round in circles. Especially money. We ended up spending about $440 on DH's Saturn. It wasn't as bad as I initially thought, but the out of town towing totally bites and we added a new tire on top of the deal. I may actually turn this receipt in for towing with my insurance, which is something that I almost never do. I will have to think it over, because we've been claim free for quite some time. But, it was $95 and that's a chunk of change.

My parents came in to town this weekend so that we could take Hoot to his first rodeo. We had a blast, even if we didn't get to stay for the entire show. They had pony rides and a petting zoo set up in the exposition hall. Hoot was beside himself. I've never seen such well cared for and clean animals in a petting zoo. Not even at the zoo! In addition to the usual sheep and goats, these people had four deer, still young and spotted, a llama, a wallaby, and a kangaroo! Seriously, what kid comes home for a rodeo talking about a kangaroo? Well, mine.

The pony rides were also a big hit. This was the first time for Hoot to ride a real pony and he was super excited. The first ride was awesome. DH walked next to Hoot and he did really, really well. Later in the night, Hoot was a little tired of the rodeo, so we walked down to see if the petting zoo and pony rides were still open. After more kangaroo petting and chasing sheep, we went for another spin on the pony ride. I guess he was a natural, but got just a little too cocky. He did well for a bit, but then decided to go hands free. Seeing how much fun that was, he then began to lean back and be cool in the saddle. As there were no kids lined up to ride, it lasted quite some time. Perhaps too long. Hoot then began to try and spur the pony on. He kept telling it to pass the other ponies and go faster. We were tactfully and carefully told that he should enjoy his last ride of the evening. Dang. My son got blacklisted from the ponies! At least he didn't realize it.

I also spent too much money over the weekend. It's hard to not spend when my parents are here. They bought the rodeo tickets, so we bought dinner. I also spent a little more on groceries than I would've if we'd been alone all weekend. There is a chance they might be back later this week, depending on Dolly's projected path. But, we'll deal with that storm when it happens.

I made some progress on the rental car. I made reservations with Enterprise for our September trip with a rate of $19 a day. This was the first time I had seen this rate and be able to make a reservation that could be cancelled without penalty. So, I did that on Sunday morning. Then tonight, I found the same car through Hotwire, with Enterprise for $16.95 a day. Again, it wasn't a Pre-pay, but a reservation so I feel like prices are creeping down. I really hope to get to my $15 a day goal before we go.

Hoot's First Pony Ride!

2008-07-21T23:57:00.001-05:00

Saturn Freak Out

2008-07-19T00:36:00.003-05:00

I can't really complain when DH's Saturn breaks down, but I want to. Oh, it doesn't matter that it has almost 200K miles on it. Who cares if it was an original part! I want that car to last forever and never cost more than a set of tires and an oil change. Yeah, I know.

Of course that means DH's Saturn broke down today. He coasted into the parking lot at work, with all the dials and gauges going crazy. He phoned our wonderful mechanic who sent a tow truck and it will be back up and running tomorrow. It seems the tensioner rod broke, so the belt came off. It shouldn't be bad, but it put me into a slight panic this morning.

I spent a bit trying to figure out how much cash I could come up with, how much was open on the credit card and so on. But, really it shouldn't be an issue. Maybe $300 on the outside, so I relaxed when the mechanic called. Now I just have to deal with DH driving my blue bug to work tomorrow. Oh, do I cringe when he drives my car! I always imagine him a wild man. Windows down, tongue out, eyes bugging, stereo blasting, flames shooting from the exhaust... you get the idea. Seriously, I do want him to drive the Saturn until there is nothing left but burning ash on the side of the road. One day, I want to get to where I can keep my bug under a protective cover in the garage and tell my grand kids, "This is what I drove when we could still get oil!"

Overheard in the bookstore:
My ex husband is getting remarried tomorrow.
You gonna give him away?

For my comment leavers:

Hazel, for comics, you might try Mutts by Patrick McDonnell. His comic strip has been around quite some time and the animals might have great appeal. Get Fuzzy by Darby Conley might also do the trick. You should be able to find some of their books at your library. I know if you get down to your local big box bookstore, that I don't name, you will be able to find books of each of the strips. Plus, they should have some Calvin in the bargain area. As for Dodie Smith, how did I never foist her on you in college? I still have the same copy of 101 Dalmatians that I got in elementary school, and I must confess, it's only been about three years since I've read it. I loved I Capture the Castle, and I've been meaning to try the movie version that came out in recent years. As for the Guernsey book, I neglected to mention that it will be released on July 29th. I am still thinking of it very often during the day. Love and kisses to all.

Bryan, it looks like the dog may be a no go for now. Thanks for the thoughts about Baxter. When we get back from our September trip, I am going to seriously go on the hunt. Maybe another Mohawk Mel will come about! :) I did see our Slinky opossum tonight, so at least there is something furry in the yard.

Canis rental carrius

2008-07-16T00:37:00.003-05:00

Some days, my life seems full of surreal quests and actions. Today, was definitely one of them. Because of Stephanie Meyer and Mickey Mouse, I have two tasks that I really want to finish soon. They are ongoing quests, but both of them have deadlines looming nearby.

The first part of the morning involved our upcoming trip to Walt Disney World. We will be there for the week of Hoot's fourth birthday. Our first night in Orlando is off park at cheap hotel I Pricelined for $30. This is due to the Hotwire deal on airfare that allowed all three of us to fly non-stop, round trip from DFW to Orlando for $432 (including taxes and fees.) We don't check in to Pop Century until the next day. On Tuesday of that week, we will be driving over to Plant City to visit my grandmother, take her to lunch, and have Hoot's birthday cake and presents. So, we need a rental car for at least the first three days of our trip.

Tee is meeting us in Orlando, and originally, she was going to drive. Now, she is flying in and her flights match our times very well. The poor thing is back in a walking boot due to her foot problems and her car now sports a handicapped sticker. She is all about having the rental car option for the entire week. I really don't mind. Disney transportation is good, but with the exception of the Magic Kingdom, handicapped parking is super close and makes transportation very quick.

Here's the issue. I can't find a deal cheap enough to suit me. Yep. Imagine that. I can find a full size car (gotta be full size or we won't fit when we pick up Granny) on Hotwire for $19.95 a day, but I want it to be cheaper. I've been bidding every night for over three weeks, and I still haven't gotten a hit. I've even gone as high as $17. Last year, we won with a $15 a day bid for full size. I've spent hours trying out different coupons, AAA rates, and codes for all of the major car rental agencies. It's making me nuts, because even though I have roughly two months to go, I'd love to have this all sewn up. So, I spent another hour or so this morning, repeating the drill, but hitting nothing.

This afternoon, I change tactics and quests. Hoot and I set out to look for a wolf. Who knew it would be this hard? I need a simple plastic wolf figurine. I've found several that I like online, but thought I could just pick one up today and be done with it. Well, canis plasticus is proving to be as difficult as rental carrius. But, that Breaking Dawn ticker over on the right side of your screen tells me that I am running out of time.

Why do I need a wolf? Well, if you haven't read the books, in Breaking Dawn, Bella is about to marry vampire Edward, but the werewolf Jacob seems to still be an unresolved issue. For my release party, we are having a wedding cake with two chess pieces, a white queen and a black king, as the bride and groom toppers. I really, really want a wolf to add to the bottom layer.

Seriously though, I have been to Michael's, Hobby Lobby, Wal-mart, Target, and Toys R Us looking for a single decent plastic wolf figurine. Honestly, I think it tried Hoot's patience far more than mine. The only ones I have found were in tubes and looked horrible. When Tee does her vendor service at Zoo Atlanta next week, she's going to look for me. I'm pretty sure she can find what I'm looking for and she'll drop it in the mail quickly.

As for the rental car, I guess patience is required. *sigh*

A Booklovers Book!

2008-07-14T00:11:00.002-05:00

About two weeks ago, I picked up an advance reader's copy of a fantastic novel. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows was lying quietly on the break room table when I spotted it. I knew nothing of the book, but seriously, I totally had to handle it with a title like that. I think others had looked it over as well, but for what ever reason, it was still there and ripe for the taking. I couldn't be happier that I did!

Every once in a while, what I call a true book lover's book comes about and I fall in love. It's been some time since that happened for me. The last time, I believe, was The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, and that was several years ago. So, my heart is all a pitter-patter over my newest book lover's book.

Set just after World War II, in England, the story is told through letters, telegrams, and other various communications between the characters. An author, Juliet Ashton, is attempting to get a grip on her post war existence. She receives a letter from a stranger requesting suggestions on reading materials and a bookshop. The stranger is a member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, who has chanced upon a copy of a book that Juliet once sold, but neglected to remove her bookplate. A correspondence is struck up, and soon there are letters flying back and forth from Guernsey to London.

Soon, you discover the book group was formed almost accidentally due to the German occupation of the Channel Isles. But, as sometimes happens in life, accidents can lead to wonderful things such as the discovery of books and their power in our life. The group members all form vastly different attachments to vastly different written works. Before the sudden invention of the society, most of them had never read a book since they had left school. Circumstances require them to continue their little group until it had a life of its own.

A great book reaffirms something you already know, teaches you something you didn't know, and never lets you finish it, long after you have read every word. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society reaffirmed my belief in the power of books, gave me a sharp, almost graphic lesson in history, and indeed, I have thought about it every day since I finished it.

In fact, I may have to put the Islands of Guernsey on my to do list.

Overheard at the bookstore:
It's a good thing there was a witness, though I am terribly glad he didn't look at me, as I would have burst into booming laughter at the time.
Man on cell phone in Science Fiction/Fantasy:
So, how much did that monkey end up costin' ya?

A Call to Action!

2008-07-10T00:43:00.003-05:00

Life has been crazy around here, as usual. I'm all caught up in planning our September vacation to Walt Disney World, balancing my budget, chasing Hoot, and planning my Breaking Dawn release party at work. But, tonight, I am going to put all that on hold. Tomorrow, I will be mailing out a few letters. Sure, there will be a few bills in the mix, and a birthday card for my brother in law, but three letters will be at the top of my list.

It all started with an email from AirTran. I opened it up thinking, "Yippee! A sale!" But, I got something far better. I got a swift kick in the butt about not doing a thing about oil prices. Yep. A few airlines kicked my butt. (You can read a copy of this letter here, on the AirTran website.)You see, there has already been a lot of discussion with family members about oil speculators driving up the already high costs of our oil. But complaints and discussions weren't doing a thing. I was too wrapped up in my daily life.

Our oil shortage is just part of the problem. Oil speculation is a giant chunk of our pump pinching. Sure, we can all get greener. We can all start conserving. We can all jump aboard the Pickens Plan. But, in the mean time, we can get enough pressure on Congress to stop the oil speculators. By stopping the speculators, we can help our economy while we figure out alternative fuels. Congress has this power, but they are not using it.

What did it cost you to fill up last time you were at the pump? Really? That much? Would it be worth twenty minutes of your time to reduce that cost? Seriously, twenty minutes. Give over twenty minutes of your time to read through this website: Stop Oil Speculation Now. Use the information provided to email your congressmen. It doesn't take long at all, and if enough of us do it, we really can make a difference. Me, I'm not going to email. I'm going to stamp those letters myself. The money you save will be your own.

Around the Household:

Why is it that when you open a brand new Barrel of Monkeys, you think, "Wow, there aren't many monkeys in that barrel!" And yet, when you are trying to vacuum, you think, "How many blasted monkeys came in that barrel?"

Dependence Day

2008-07-08T00:26:00.004-05:00

For the Fourth of July, we had a simple plan. It was frugal, it was fun, it was shot to heck. Our plan involved sleeping late, or at least late to us. I was then going to do the grocery shopping alone. We would use the pool pass to keep ourselves cool and entertained. For dinner, we'd dine on homemade hamburgers. The day would be finished off with the small fireworks display that happens locally. No fuss, no muss, no extra money spent.

So, I did get to sleep late. Well, late for me, anyway. Then, at around 11 am, the phone rang and innocently enough, I answered. Meme. Meme with a plot. Trouble. With a capitol T, it rhymes with P and that stands for Plot. Who knows how many days this had been cooking up in that brain of hers? But, typical Meme, she calls at 11 that morning.... Did we want to meet them in Shiner?

Shiner, Texas, home of the Spoetzl Brewery, hosts the Half Moon Holidays every year on the first weekend in July. The Spoetzl Brewery is home to Shiner Beers. (A little history here: Shiner Bock is the beer I went to college with.) I had never heard of the Half Moon Holidays, and I looked up the website that my mom emailed me. I finally told her we'd call her back.

After arm twisting and teeth gnashing, it was decided that we would indeed, drive the 120 miles to Shiner and meet them at the festival. I can't even go into all of the reasons without making myself crazy, so lets just say we did it.

It was a great drive down. We even went through a pretty heavy rain storm, which had us very confused as it had been so long since we had seen rain in person. It seems to only happen on tv these days. The weather was very nice for the Fourth and it wasn't hot at all. We arrived at the Half Moon Holidays to find that almost everything that had been listed in my mom's newspaper was happening on Saturday the 5th, and not on Friday the 4th. *sigh* No pony rides, no tornado slides, not much of anything really.

I spent most of the time on a nice shady park bench shooting the breeze with Pop. DH and Hoot trolled the few craft booths and played on the playground. They had an old fashioned merry-go-round that thrilled Hoot to no end. It also reinforced our belief that he is fearless. Every time he flew off, he laughed and got right back on.

DH gave in to his shopping gene and bought me a homemade toy and Hoot a wooden frog. We shared a nice cold Shiner. Then we all went to dinner at a little steakhouse called Werner's. It was a great dinner, but when the waitress asked if we wanted the check split, DH said, "No, I'll take it" with way too much gusto. So, that was another unplanned expense for an unplanned expensive day.

The Old People, (which I'm not supposed to call them anymore, but hey, what the heck) had a great time. Hoot had a great time. So, really we all had a great time. But, it was a $111 great time. So not planned.

At the bookstore:
To the lady who painted her toenails in my Children's Department:
I'm not sure what impressed me the most. That you were incredibly limber and took up very little floor space during your toe painting? That you didn't spill a drop of paint on my carpet? Or that you pulled toe separators out of your purse?

Ain't No Cure...

2008-07-03T00:20:00.004-05:00

It's barely July, and I seem to have those dreaded summertime blues. *sigh* Really? My budget has too many variables for comfort this month. But, then again, I have too many variables for comfort this month. I guess that's just it in a nut shell.

I have a few days off for the Fourth of July, then a few more at the very end of the month. Extra time off without plans makes me crazy. Even if I just plan to stay home and play with Hoot, I like to have some idea what I'm going to do. I also have a weekend off right in the middle and the word "beach" has come up more than once. Hello? You know there's a budget right? Well, if you peruse my budget, you'll see what I mean.

$300 for miscellaneous? WTH? Okay, I'll tell you. There is a small chance we may add to the household soon. We've been talking dog for quite some time and our life just isn't complete without fur on the furniture. It's been over 3 years since Miss Lissie passed away and there is constant talk. I've been trying to hold out until after our September trip (yes, I have said this for the last few years) but this year I really mean it. We want to get a dog that is still young, but maybe past the big chew. There is way to much to be chewed in this house, and heaven forbid we get a puppy devoted to eating Hotwheels. So, we have talked a lot about a rescued dog. I'm not even sure it will work out, but there is a chance a basset hound mix might need a good home soon, and if that is the case, we're going to meet him. I wanted to make sure that if it happened, I was covered. I have no idea if he would come with a bed, or kennel, or whatever he's used to having, so I pumped out a miscellaneous category of epic proportions. If the pup doesn't work out, I might (that's only a might,) consider using part of this budget to spend a weekend at my parent's house and go to the beach.

The birthday budget is also quite large this month. My brother in law is going on a mission trip to Africa this fall. We want to help, so we are giving him our check for $100 as his birthday present. Two birds and all. My niece is having her 16th birthday, even if she is anything but sweet. I feel like 16 is a marker that needs a little bit more of a present, even if I can't decide what that will be. She has gotten a car, so it may be as simple as a gift card for gas.

I've added an eating out category for this month. I wasn't going to at first, but I have a big event to plan at work and let's face it, when it's super hot outside, who wants to cook? Hopefully this will just be a one month thing. I guess I'd rather budget it than face it being over budget due to circumstances I'm too lazy to control.

Liquor store budget. Did I mention my melancholy? Well, there's always a bit of a perk for me when I get some alcohol into the mix. A trip to Spec's can really improve my mood. No, I don't drink often and with the whole No Buy thing it is even rarer. But, there's just something about summer that calls for cold beer and margaritas. I haven't been to Spec's since Christmas Eve, and well, that was over SIX MONTHS AGO! Don't I get points for that? Honestly, I really wanted to give myself a $100 budget for this and put some beer and wine back in the fridge. But, concessions have to be made even if I want to give a liquor pushing rabbit (a reference to their super cute, yet retro mascot) some serious cash.

What's for dinner?

2008-06-28T00:22:00.002-05:00

Another month is practically toast. I can't believe it. I never even got around to posting my June budget onto the blog, and I'm working on July. As is my custom at this time in the month, I try to look and see what was a success and what wasn't quite up to custard. Overall, I've had a pretty good month, especially since we took our little vacation and stayed pretty close to our goals. But, as always, I want to do better.

One of my most successful budget months ever occurred in December of 2005. We were saving for Hoot's first trip to Disneyworld in January 2006 and it was going to be tight. It was also my first holiday season to have an active toddler in the house. I was very concerned about time and money. By mid-November, I had devised a calendar of dinners for the entire month of December. You could see what was for dinner every single night of the month, and if you switched worksheets, you could see the weekly shopping list that was attached. If a recipe was new, the notation on the date told me where to find the recipe.

Ah, it was bliss. It did take me quite some time to make my "master plan" but it was well worth it. I didn't get overly excited about making every meal budget and I didn't clip a single coupon or search a single weekly ad. I made a point of having dessert several times a week, and I made two "open in case of dinner emergency" envelopes that held a twenty dollar bill each. Heck, I even bought a bottle or two of wine. Yet, the entire month ran like clockwork and I was completely blown away by how much money we saved.

So, I am toying with doing the same thing for July of this year. I have three days off next week and I am seriously considering it. I know that when I am in a pinch for time, I hate going to the store. I also start rationalizing the drive-thu. Bad, bad Susie.

Think it sounds cool, but you don't know where to start? One of my saving graces is this website: Menus4Moms. They only list five meals each week, but it gives me some great ideas. I also like that you can pull up the shopping list for each week and their archives give endless possibilities. I find myself at this website often and there are others out there if you search around a bit.

Overheard at the bookstore:
Two patrons were playing a demo of a board game that is similar to a word search with a Scrabble board.
I am not giving you points for that.
Why? It's a word. Give me my points.
No way, that's disgusting.
Whatever, it's not like you don't have one.
Still not going to do it.
R-E-C-T-U-M, that's six letters, give me my points.

Did you leave the $$$$ running?

2008-06-25T23:03:00.002-05:00

Today, it became official. Summer is here. 100%. I received my first utility bill with summertime, all the time a/c. At least I was expecting it. These things are always nastier when you least expect them. You know, Spanish Inquisition and all that.

My total utility bill, including electricity, water, sewer, and trash, was $318.97. This time last year, it was $287.33. So, there was quite an increase. Of course, last year, I wasn't much of a bill watcher. I was just a payer. Now, I'm a watcher and a payer.

In fact, it wasn't until late last summer that we realized that we had a massive water leak on a faucet out back. The faucet next to our a/c drip pipe went unnoticed because there is always run off from the a/c, so soggy ground was nothing new there. That leaky faucet was tripling our water bill. It wasn't until I became a bill watcher that I investigated the money leak in the back yard. Amazing, it was fixed for $6 and 15 minutes of DH's time.

So, as soon as I ripped open the big bill today, I pulled up my energy consumption from the last twelve months to see how I did. In the last billing cycle, we used 2,379 KWh. (Suffering from insomnia? Click on that link and you'll be out, well, like a light. Holy Cow! I thought I'd get a little info to help me with my blog, and wow, after two minutes, I remember why I cut high school science classes to smoke behind the fine arts building. But, I digress.) So, I'll stop trying to understand kilowatts, and just know I want to use less of them.

Last year, for the same time period, we used 1812 KWh. That's a pretty big difference. So, I asked myself what was different. Well, it rained and rained and rained last June. So much rain, it was like the Vietnam scene in Forrest Gump when he talked about the rain. In fact, it rained so much, Hoot and I about killed each other. It was too soggy to get out and go any where and the parks were all mud pits. We stayed indoors a lot last June.

This June, we have had .02 inches of rain. It's been hot and dry. The air is filled with dust and dried pollen, the grass crunches under your feet, and it is generally miserable outside. Weather wise, Hoot and I are at the opposite end of the spectrum this year, but spending about the same amount of time indoors this year. I hope this is not the way we spend our entire summer.

Now, our family tag line has been, "Did you leave the money running back there?" We frequently move from one end of the house to the other, and are bad about shutting off lights. Over the last few months, we've gotten better, but it still happens. Even Hoot shuts off lights when he leaves a room now. It is a fantastic habit, and I hope we keep it for good. Shutting off the water is also something I have to be conscious about. I'm bad about using the water full blast whenever I brush teeth, do dishes, shower, or even just wash hands. I can't say I remember every time, but I try to remember most of the time.

In the mean time, I'm going to hope for some rain. It might accidentally cool something off for even an hour or two, and hey, we can retire the water hose for a while.

Pics from the beach, Now with sharks!

2008-06-21T02:24:00.001-05:00

Beach Budget Bingo!

2008-06-19T00:47:00.003-05:00

I'm sitting here with a pile of receipts wondering how close I came to my $500 budget. I feel like I did great, but I forgot my trusty moleskin notebook. I just kept stuffing receipts into my purse pocket instead of my usual running tally that keeps me on track.

I filled up the Beetle on Thursday evening. I didn't want to have to worry about it on the way out of town and I was leery that it might go back up in price on Friday morning. I had some gas in the tank, so the damage wasn't too bad. I also made sandwiches for a picnic on the drive and loaded the cooler for drinks and snacks.

I really didn't want to spend any other money on the way down. However, DH is a convenience store fiend. Have you ever seen the beer commercial where they guy buys his girlfriend (or possibly wife, I don't really remember) a greeting card from the register at a convenience store? Of course, he never opens it up, but she absolutely loves it. Well, DH missed the point of the commercial altogether. He did not notice beer being sold, or any social commentary. He only saw validation of convenience store shopping. Overcoming this when we travel is always a bit sticky. Case in point, we stop at Kort's Korner in La Grange (a favorite of ours) and I was planning on buying a bag of their fresh baked chocolate chip cookies after using the restroom. They are 3 for $1.99 and would have been a great addition to our picnic. Well, DH was already in line and purchased $7.46 worth of drinks and candy. Hello, cooler full of drinks in the trunk, bags of M&Ms and beef jerky in the picnic bag. *sigh*

Dinner out was at Joe's Crab Shack, as planned. We had four adults, one child, and no alcohol on the tab. Our total including tip was $77.56. I was pleasantly surprised and even told my mother that I thought we would've done more damage. She promised to make it up for me later.

We spent Friday evening out on the beach and it was gorgeous. We didn't stay out long, but really wanted to give Hoot some time to run out all his trapped energy. After the beach, we made a quick fresh food run at the HEB down the street from the hotel. We purchased yogurt for Hoot's breakfast and cinnamon rolls for us. Throw in some milk, cookies, antacids, and something I am forgetting, and it comes out at $17.43. This rounds out Friday's totals (including gas bought the night before) at $133.09.

Saturday morning, we had breakfast in our room. My mom made us all sandwiches to take to the beach, so lunch was covered by her. We hit the beach around 11am. We stayed until around 1:30 and headed back to the hotel to chill for a while. It was a great time, however, my DMom put the sunscreen on my back in such a manner that I have a giant red amoeba right in the middle. Oh, it hurts. I haven't had a sunburn like that since I was a kid.

For dinner on Saturday, we went to Wings N More. We had a great time, and I indulged in a margarita on the rocks. I did however limit myself to one. When the waitress asked if I'd like another, I was honest. I told her, "Yes, about six of them, but I'm not going to let myself, so could I get a sweet tea?" The tab included two margaritas (my mom had one) and a beer as well as food for five. Total with tip was $74.00. Hey, that's great! However, Hoot was less than thrilled by our dinner choice. We kept promising him we'd go back to the beach, but he wanted to stop at the Shark store.

So, here's my DH, Hoot and DMom at the shark store:

Sadly, my dad stayed in the car. Sometimes it's hard to get the old man to take a picture.

After the beach, we stopped at another store. Hoot picked out a gorgeous turtle bamboo wind chime, complete with a bobbing head. We were going to ask my Mom if she wanted one, but on the way to check out, I saw that she had a handful of merchandise. I decided to just pay for her stuff instead of offering a matching set of chimes, but didn't convey that to DH. So, I told her to put her stuff in with mine and I would buy. The DH walks up and offers to get her the matching chimes as well. But hey, it made the old woman happy. Cheesy souvenir shop: $78.97. Saturday's total: $152.97.

Sunday morning, we packed it up and headed home. I put $35 even in the gas tank, DH spent another $10.84 in a convenience store, and we bought lunch at Whataburger for $13.13. Sunday weighed in at $58.97.

So, our grand totals for a family of five for Father's Day weekend at the beach:

$170 for two rooms, two nights

$133.09 for gas, groceries, and dinner out on Friday

$152.97 for dinner out and a trip to the souvenir shop

$58.97 for gas, drinks and lunch for the trip home

Grand total: $515.03

Over budget: $15.03 which equals almost the exact amount DH paid in convenience stores or four cents more than my mom's turtle wind chime. So, I guess my mission was accomplished! I know we had a great time and the only out of pocket expense that isn't listed is the gas we used in my Mom's big red truck. I shall declare it a success.

Courage on the beach

2008-06-12T00:17:00.003-05:00

Hooray for weekends away! Honestly, I've been looking forward to this for quite some time. I know it's a Father's Day gift for DH and my dad, but I'm gonna enjoy the heck out of it! I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to beach time, hotel time or eating out the most, but I'll take all three, thank you very much!

I have a budget goal of $500 for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. This covers all meals out for us plus my parents. It might be a little tough, but I hope to squeeze two decent meals out into this budget. My mom is cooking a brisket to bring, so that should help a lot as we will get several picnic meals out of it. I will also go pick up drinks and snacks tomorrow before I begin packing. The cooler is definitely in on this road trip. Once we're in Corpus Christi, I'll pick up milk and breakfast items to keep in the room.

Friday, we are meeting my parent's at the hotel around the 3 pm check-in time. This will give us a little time to settle in and unload the car. We hope to eat at Joe's Crab Shack for an early dinner around 4:30 or 5ish. I hope to hold dinner to around $120 for the five of us including the tip. I will use my AAA card for a 10% discount, which will help cover most of the tip.

After dinner, we will head back to the hotel, change and hit the beach. Unfortunately, I'm not sure which beach we will hit now. Our usual spot out on Mustang Island is possibly a no go. A sperm whale washed ashore near our favorite access road on Tuesday afternoon. Several marine biologists examined it and decided to euthanize it. Unfortunately, they did not have enough chemicals to totally euthanize it, so they sedated it and bled it out. This caused the beaches to be closed as the blood can attract sharks. The story can be read here.

Ah, sharks. A magical word in our household. Oh, thank you Discovery Channel for your twenty years of Shark Week! It took me years to get DH into the water, Peter Benchley! ARGH! Steven Spielberg, I hold you and your Bruce accountable for DH's complete and utter transformation into Courage the Cowardly Dog every time we wade in salty water past our knees. And just to cap it off, DH went off to bed rambling on about the whale being bled out onto the very beach we have been talking about for over six weeks. His last mumblings sounded close to those immortal words from Police Chief Brody "Come on down here and chum some of this ****!" Which is the line just before popcorn rained down from the top of the theater for those of you old enough to have seen Jaws on the silver screen. But, I digress....

On Saturday, we will hit the beach again early in the day. There's just no sense in us getting roasted by the sun and tossed about by high tide in the middle of the day. So, we'll either eat our picnic on the beach or back at the hotel. Then, I hope again for an early dinner somewhere in a slightly cheaper venue before a third trip out to make DH shark bait.

Since I have already paid for the rooms, I know the total there is $170. With meals out being around $190, that leaves me $140 for gas, groceries, and any souvenirs. It should be doable, even with gas as high as it is.

I'll post how we come out... if we come out! LOL!

Curtains, I tell ya! Curtains!

2008-06-09T09:37:00.004-05:00

One of the things that I truly love about my house is its windows. In the living room, I have five large windows across the back of the house. When I gaze out them, especially in the summer, it feels as if we are out in the country. I have thick trees across the top and the fence is obscured in honeysuckle and trumpet vines. With the slope at the back of the yard, from my chair in the living room, I can gaze upon the treetops. I also love my trees. I have a decent size magnolia, which was a surprise as they aren't usually seen here, and when they are, they are usually very small. Just off of my back porch, I have a giant crape myrtle. It is so big, that it towers over the roof and when you are in the front yard, it can be seen. When it is in full bloom and the wind blows, it litters the back yard with its delicate petal snow.

With such a view, I have always shied away from covering my windows. I keep saying that when we finally paint over the odd turquoise blue and choose some new furniture, I will make some nice roman blinds for my windows. Since this is still quite some time away, I have always had some guilt over the electric bill in the summer and heating in the winter. The windows are original to the house, and the early fifties didn't produce the energy efficiency that is available now. So, I came to the conclusion that I should go ahead and cover them.

I spent a few days trying to decide my plan of attack. Hoot is very much a curtain destroyer. Since he was old enough to stand, he has pulled down curtains around the house. He easily bends normal curtain rods until they snap, or wither enough to reward him with the prize. In the bedrooms, I have given over to using metal straps, like they use to hold conduit to walls, on the curtain rods. But, I don't want to go that route in the living room. At the same time, I wanted to keep it below $10 a window since this isn't a long term solution. I decided to make light colored curtains that would easily come down if Hoot was to pull them. I spent just under $3.50 for some simple rods on sale. Then, after cruising fabric departments at several places, I found myself looking at twin sheets. Walmart had their cheap twin sheets for $3 each. The dimensions of the sheets would easily allow me to split each sheet into two curtains, so I would only need one sheet per window. So, I spent $7.50 for each living room window.

I hung a rod, and stood back to try and picture what I wanted, hoping to plan out my attack on the energy bill. To help me out, I slung a sheet over the rod and pulled the back down so that it was doubled. As if by magic, Hoot immediately came over and pulled the sheet off of the rod. Ha! The rod stayed and the little angel came away with nothing more than the sheet! I figured this was a good starting place and that I could cover all the windows as such until Hoot gave up trying to uncover the windows every time I turned my back.

So, I hung the three rods that I could easily get to and covered the windows. I put off two windows until this week when I would have some time to move furniture and vacuum up any dust elk that might be lurking. Then, I remembered I still had two tension rods tucked away and put them up with my curtains. So, voila, my windows were covered and my beautiful trees were gone. Oh, it was sad, I miss my view something fierce. The living room is darker and sadder. But, the next day, I was folding clothes when I realized the air conditioning shut off. My immediate impulse was one of horror! It was almost noon, and usually the a/c runs non-stop for most of the day in the summer. But, when I checked it, I learned that the curtains had done their job. The a/c wasn't broken, it just shut itself off for a bit. Hm, maybe I can learn to live with this new taupe view after all.

Now, I just need to put up the rest of the permanent rods in the living room and tackle my dining room windows. Those shouldn't be too bad as they are short and mostly covered with shade from our big trees out front. I will drag out the sewing machine for those curtains as the windows are visible from the street. Really, I already feel redneck enough with the curtains that no one can see being sheets, I would hate to pull into the driveway and be greeted with the like from the front of the house.

Overheard in the bookstore:
Did you know Susie is on vacation?

Hip to be square

2008-06-07T09:14:00.003-05:00

Lately, with gas prices and every newscast throwing chicken little themed stories about the economy at the public, it has started to become hip to be thrifty. Huh? Am I getting hip again? I suppose this is a good thing.

I know that Clark Howard has commented on his show that he is getting a lot of requests for articles and appearances in the media. I've seen more than one article online, such as this one at MSN, that has mentioned family vacations and Greyhound in the same paragraph. Yeah, like I'm going to spend all that time on a bus with Hoot.

Just for kicks and grins, I put in our travel information for next weekend's Corpus Christi trip to see what it would cost on Greyhound. $290 round trip. Huh? It will only take around two tanks of gas for our entire trip. Even if gas was to jump to $4.50 a gallon, it would only cost us $117 for the trip.

Hey, I only paid $432 for our September plane tickets! I guess if we were going a long way, it might make a difference. But, again, for kicks and giggles, I put in our September vacation information: $630! Let's look at that. I have 3 round trip tickets from DFW to Orlando's MCO that I bought on Hotwire a while back. We leave September 14th and return September 20th. I paid $143 for each seat including taxes and fees. We fly non-stop. I have budgeted $160 for gas, (including oil prices at worse case scenario), parking, tips and travel meals. So, we will spend around $592 for transportation for our September trip. That's $38 less than Greyhound tickets, which wouldn't include meals. That's just crazy.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for saving money. I think it's great that frugality is "in" because maybe it doesn't make me seem so freaky. But, please, enough of the articles that don't really give any info, okay?

Overheard in the bookstore:
I'd like to return this map of Europe.
Is there anything wrong with it?
Yes, the cities are all listed in foreign languages.

2008-06-04T00:08:00.002-05:00

For Father's Day this year, we wanted to take a long weekend at the beach. We didn't want to drive too far, but we didn't want to endure the murky water at Galveston, either. So, we settled on Corpus Christi.

Corpus Christi is where we took Hoot to the beach for the first time. Well, not the Corpus Christi beach, but out on Mustang Island, which is just above the top of North Padre Island. The beaches are nice and clean, and some of them are still open to vehicles, which is super nice. Ok, well, not if you get stuck, but then the hunky guy in the truck pulled me right out and made my day in so many ways. But, I digress.

Now, we picked where we really wanted to go, but I had to make it happen. We are paying for my parent's hotel room as well, as a Father's Day present, so I really didn't want to break the bank.

As with all travel, I always start with what I really want. That way I know if I'm being realistic, and it doesn't always work out, but I'm not just going to say I can't afford it and not try. So, for the last four or five weeks, I've been surfing the web. I would really like to stay here, at the Holiday Inn SunSpree Resort. It's right on the beach out on the island and self contained. Not that I want to eat every meal at the restaurant in the hotel, but heck, I could if I wanted. No driving, just get up, hit the beach, shower, relax, go back and so on.

The cheapest I could find at the SunSpree was Pre-paid at $153 a night for a regular room. Total for two rooms, two nights: a whopping $704 when the fees and taxes were added. Um, no thanks. I could cut it in half and only spend one night, but that still leaves it at $352 for the hotel, plus we would only be there from 4 pm on Saturday until 11 am on Sunday. That's only 19 hours, which makes their rate just under $19 a hour for two rooms.

I kept looking. Directly across from the Holiday Inn SunSpree, is a Comfort Suites that I stayed in with Tee in the fall of 2006 when it was brand new. It's still out on the island, with the beach across the street. The price was a little more manageable than the Holiday Inn, but still it the price tag came to around $600, but the next time I checked, the hotel was sold out.

I dug around some more on all my favorite travel sites, especially Hotwire. On Hotwire, I was looking at a two star out by the airport for $49 a night. It's not on the island, but I've shot that price range to the ground. Two rooms, two nights plus taxes and fees would cost me $227. That's way cheaper than our other options! But, you know me. I've got to do better!

Priceline is a thing of beauty in my eyes and pocketbook. I've loved it and used it for so many years. I get a buzz off a great Priceline steal. I really do. So, I decide I'm going to start bidding. I know I can get a two star for $49 off of Hotwire, so I won't go over that price when I bid at that star level. But, I want to see if I can land a bit nicer of a hotel. So, I start out on the 3 stars on the island for $49 a night. Nope. I progress through the areas, never going above $49 and never below a 2 and a 1/2 stars. I'm not really bummed that I'm not landing anything because it's the first day of bidding. Heck, I've got my eye on that Hotwire deal so the pressure is off. So, when I have only one bid possible (I never go below a two star), I click on the two star option and decide to low ball. I bid $35 a room, a night. And I get one!

We'll be staying at the Extended Stay Deluxe Corpus Christi. I know some people don't care much for the apartment type hotels, but as a budgeteer, I love them! We'll have a full kitchen, and while I don't want to cook every meal, hey I am on vacation, it does save a chunk of money to have a few groceries in the fridge. We especially love to keep breakfast items on hand!

Of course, I have to know just how good of a deal I've gotten, so I price the same hotel on Travelocity. Two rooms, two nights, plus taxes and fees: $486! Priceline bid, two rooms, two nights, plus taxes and fees: $170! Roughly a savings of 65%! Oh, I just got that Priceline buzz again!

Current reading:
The Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer

Close Encounters of the Wii Kind

2008-05-28T00:15:00.002-05:00

On Friday, Hoot and I went to Wallyworld to buy me a new watch and pick up a few sundries. We rarely go to this particular Wallyworld, because we have a Super Wallyworld nearby. I'm not a huge fan of Super Wallyworld, but when you need a few quarts of oil, sunscreen, toothpaste, a yard of white fabric, bread and yogurt, you can definitely get it in one stop. Couple convenience with low (but not always the lowest) prices and I can get over it.

One of DH's and Hoot's favorite movies is The Three Caballeros. We've owned it on VHS forever and it gets regularly played. So, we noticed that it was quietly released onto DVD earlier this month. DH put it on his birthday wish list. I've been watching for it because with it's low key release, I was afraid the PC police would chunk it back into the vault quickly. We were also concerned that they might have changed the movie. On the Gran Fiesta Tour ride in Epcot, Panchito noticeably does not have his guns! I am still scarred by the gun being changed to a radio during the re-release of ET a few years back.

With the birthday wish list tucked away, and after the Caballeros release date, I thought I'd just pick it up the movie when I saw it. I had made a trip to Target, but no Donald, Jose, or Panchito were around. I had dropped into a Disney Store the next week and there were no birds. I strolled down to Best Buy one night on break, and if they were there, they were in the back having a siesta. Alas, they were appearing to be elusive.

So, when I found myself at the other Wallyworld, I decided to stroll through their electronics department with a roving eye on the DVDs. Alas, no Caballeros. As I was working my way back towards the exit of the department, I noticed several employees unloading a flat of stock. On the top layers were several Wiis. Now, I may have been lusting quietly for a Wii, but last I knew they were still illusive creatures that required getting up early and hoping they were still in stock by the time you got to the store. I still have no idea if the market is finally flush with stock.

Quickly, I look around. No one is rushing over to snatch the Wiis from the employees. No big mob, nothing. I realize it's very possible that the true craze has past and it's just a normal Cabbage Patch Kid now. But, I definitely thought "Here's my chance!" What, seriously? I'm going to make a $250 impulse purchase? On a video game console? Do I look like I have that kind of time?

I must confess: I struggle with the Wii for at least 30 minutes. I left the department, circled the store, returned to gawk at them some more, but eventually left Wii-less. Sadly, it wasn't even my No Buy stance that stopped the deal. Honestly, the longer I thought about it, the more I realized that I knew the video game game. The console is just a tiny part of the cost involved. Soon, you will want a second controller, so two people can play. Then, you want a new game or two. Then controller chargers, memory cards, and a Wii Fit. Alas, the madness will never end.

Again, I finally asked myself, "Do you have that kind of time?" The answer, sadly enough was no. However, I am keeping a line of thoughts open about potential Wii purchases in the future. But, it will be budgeted in before the beginning of the month.

Where have you been?

2008-05-19T23:15:00.002-05:00

Gosh, it seems like I haven't been posting much lately. It also seems like I haven't been home much lately. The household is out of whack, Hoot's schedule is out of whack, my Quicken account is out of whack (nothing dangerous, just behind on entries), and therefore, I am out of whack. I hate it when someone shakes the snow globe. Well, someone other than me, that is.

In the last three weeks, I've taken two overnight trips for work. Actually, you could say I've worked two overnights for work, as both involved late night inventories. I love getting away, even for a quick night. I also love shaking the work snow globe just to keep it all interesting. But, late April and May were probably not the best times for me to be shaking anything. With Mother's Day, our 15th anniversary and DH's birthday, it's just a crazy month. Usually it's like December, but with less time at work. This month, with it's overnights, it has seemed even more like December.

I did have a fun trip to Houston. Dinner was a great treat at Pappadeaux, followed by a glorious breakfast at la Madeleine. I adore their French Country breakfast with its eggs, potato galette, crisp thick bacon and croissant. But, really, I lavished myself with cup after cup of the French Roast coffee. This cafe/bistro is definitely a happy place for me. I spent a little more than the covered amount for my expense reimbursement, but what the heck. I don't get here often.

However, such indulgences are dangerous to the budget. While I am still going to be "up" monetary wise in the budget once the expense checks roll in, I am still wanting to be in spend mode. I'm definitely an all or nothing kind of gal, and taking trips and eating in nice places makes we want to be in "all" mode.

It was also my 15th wedding anniversary, so before I left Houston, I stopped into The Cheesecake Factory for a small cake to celebrate once I got home. We also had a great dinner at a local steakhouse, which was blissfully empty as the college students have all left for the summer.

To complicate matters even more, we still have DH's birthday this week and the weekend off for the combined Mother's Day/Anniversary/Birthday/Family Fun celebration. There has been much talk of going to the beach, or possibly just to Austin or such for the weekend. I will confess that with Memorial Day being early this year, I didn't realize it was the weekend I had requested off for this little celebration. That means everyone will be on the road and hotels will be a bit higher. I may poke around on Hotwire for a bit before we decide. Maybe we'll just stay home and clean house. But, really how celebratory is that? It's certainly not what I would classify as "Family Fun."

Oh, Mother!

2008-05-17T16:02:00.002-05:00

I was approaching Mother's Day with a bit of trepidation. I had originally asked to work the early shift on Mother's Day, since I was going out of town for work later in the week. I imagined getting up while the house is quiet, having a nice simple, quiet breakfast, then I'd go off to work. The morning would be quiet in the store, then the day would pass quickly. I'd depart and go home to find a nice cleanish house and perhaps dinner waiting on me. Alas, it was not meant to be. My boss, without asking, deemed that I should not have to work on Mother's Day. Talk about complications.

Then, a little guilt settled in on me. I called my Mom on Saturday, and asked her if she wanted to meet us in San Marcos for a few outlets and some dinner. We would meet at the Pottery Barn outlet, browse, then go to a very early dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. It would be great, we all love seafood, and Hoot could blow off some steam at the playground. So, when I arrived home Saturday evening, I found a few emails throwing a ton of kinks into the plan. My mom lives near San Antonio and she discovered that I-35 was under major construction that weekend right in front of the outlets. As traffic is always nasty in there on the weekends, it was a major drawback to our plans. Then, a second email revealed that she had called Joe's to check their hours and discovered it is now a Saltgrass Steakhouse. Not quite the same Hoot-friendly environment, especially without the playground. So, we scrapped San Marcos.

We briefly considered going to Katy and meeting the parents at the Rainforest Cafe. But, I knew we would have to be there before they opened since it was Mother's Day. So, we factored in how much further it would be for my parents to drive, and scrapped the meeting idea. C'est la vie.

On Mother's Day morning, we awoke to the unwelcome sound of water dripping somewhere in the house. Oh, boy. The pipe coming out of the garbage disposal was letting loose to beat the band. Any remaining chance of a day trip was scrapped. Flashlights were found and the cabinet under the sink was cleared.

I managed to remove most of the rotten pieces myself, but I would have to take the p-trap out to get it clear for replacement. I asked DH to use a little muscle on it and he kind of freaked out. I don't know if it was that it was Mother's Day, and I was on my back like a plumber, or if he really thought I couldn't do it. I'm still not sure. It doesn't make much sense to me that he is intimidated by plumbing, he builds million dollar oilfield equipment, but now that I think about it, he was awfully difficult when I wanted him to replace the faucet out back last summer. So, we did what all married couples do at some point. We fought. Not too many fireworks for us, but a few. I simply wasn't going to call a plumber, especially not on a Sunday, much less Mother's Day. Talk about expensive!

Eventually, he calmed down and helped me get the entire part clear of the disposal. After a quick Mother's Day outing to Lowe's, and a few more bits of bickering, we got it finished. Hooray! I have kept a bucket under it all week, just to make sure, but it's still high and dry!

We did go out to eat for wings and made a trip to Sam's for a few groceries. I also got two nice cards and some beautiful lilies. So, all in all, it was a pretty decent day. I hope all the moms out there had a nice Mother's Day as well.

Overheard in the bookstore:
Hi, I just graduated this weekend [from college], and I think I'd like to take up reading.
What kind of books do you like to read?
I don't know, I've never read one.
You've never read a book?
Not from cover to cover.

The Price of Milk

2008-05-08T23:36:00.003-05:00

For Christmas last year, Tee gave me a subscription to Real Simple magazine. It was a magazine that I really enjoyed in my pre-Hoot years. I loved to read it cover to cover. The subscription was initially hung up and I didn't receive my first issue until almost three weeks ago. I get so little time to devote to it (yes, I know, log off and read!) that I am just now finishing off the issue.

On the cover is what seems to be the ever present "Save on Groceries" tag line. It's getting as much cover time as Brittany Spears and Harrison Ford these days. Hey, guess what, we all know groceries have gone up lately. Hey, guess what, we all want to know how to save. Hey, guess what, I bet we all knew the six tips Real Simple printed to save you money on groceries!

For those of you who don't know:

buy cheese in the dairy aisle, avoid the deli counter
go to a discounter like WallyWorld for shampoo, deodorant, and toothpaste
buy frozen, not fresh, fish
buy meat in bigger family packs
buy produce in bulk bags
look at the shelf sticker

Wow, really? That's amazing. Hey, and I bet if I don't drive my car, I'll save on gas, too! Yes, I know, I know it's just an article. It's just that it's the same old tired advice that has been rehashed and rehashed and rehashed. And, it has been rehashed by every magazine out there. I still love my Real Simple and I enjoyed reading it. I can't wait for the new issue, which will probably be out before I truly finish this one. But, I wish they had run an article that had some real information.

You want to save on your grocery bills? Get a Sunday paper. If you live in a small city, try to get the nearest large city's paper, as the coupons will be better. (Our local paper's coupons are full of tomato trees and old lady stretch pants ads.) Clip your coupons. Go to The Grocery Game and spend $1. That will buy you four weeks to learn how to match to ads. If you love the savings, but don't have time to match ads, at the end of your four weeks, get a real membership. It really will save you money. Heck, before the Grocery Game, I didn't know that our local Kroger tripled coupons up to thirty nine cents! I only thought they doubled to fifty! And if you do it, remember I sent you! My referral email is Siouxstone@gmail.com. (You can also use the email if you just want to drop me a line as well!)

One tidbit out of the May issue has stuck with me for over a week now. I just keep pondering it! In 1958, the average price of milk was $1.01 a gallon. But, that wasn't the WOW part. If you adjusted that amount for inflation, in today's dollars, it would mean $7.40 a gallon! That makes my Hoot's organic look cheap! Of course, a man in white doesn't leave it on my doorstep either!

Oh, and if you ever see The Price of Milk on any indy film channels or the like, I love that movie. It's quirky and from New Zealand. The Jacksons always seem to have something of mine! If it wasn't for the No Buy thing, I'd probably be searching for the DVD online since I just thought about it!

Current Reading:

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. Pick it up, check it out! I've enjoyed it far more than I would've ever thought.

May Decisions

2008-05-08T00:22:00.002-05:00

May is shaping up to be a very expensive month. It always is, but it still catches me by surprise when I see my totals and goals. There is just so much going on with gift occasions and Spring activities. I'm super glad there isn't a graduation somewhere in the mix as well!

Mother's Day is somewhat of an annoyance with me. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great to honor moms everywhere. Heck, I'm a mom! But, as with Christmas and my birthday, I hate doing the budgeting work for my own presents. This year I budgeted $100. I've already spent $18 on cards and a small gift for my mom. So, that leaves $82 in that category for DH & DS to buy me a present, or take me out to dinner, or whatever. I also keep thinking I should maybe try and meet my mom halfway between our houses for lunch or something on Sunday. That would further cut into the budget.

Our 15th wedding anniversary is on the 15th. I will be getting back in to town that evening and with the work trip, it was too chaotic to try and take that following weekend off. I do have the weekend of the 24th off, so we've thought about doing something then. But what?

DH's birthday is the 21st, so there's another $100 to put with the usual suspects. Can you see it adding up now? I also budgeted $100 for our Family Fun day because we hadn't decided on what we wanted to do. We talked a little bit about rolling Mother's Day, Anniversary, DH's Birthday and Family Fun day all into one weekend, but it's kind of driving me nuts. Collectively, that would put $382 in play for a weekend away. When I see that number, that big, and it's under the No Buy title, I just shake my head.

However, I am not one to get upset by doing things rather than buying presents. I'd much rather go somewhere and spend quality time with my family than own a piece of jewelry or a dreaded thing-that-must-be-dusted. The traditional 15th anniversary gift is crystal. (I read that as a thing-that-must-be-dusted.) The modern 15th anniversary gift is glass or watches. (Hey, I could actually use a new watch!) And according to About.com's guide to anniversary gifts, we should have booked a trip to Switzerland or Austria. Yeah, right. More like Fredericksburg or Schlitterbahn.

Overheard in the bookstore:
You got them home schoolin' books?

That's the night that the lights went out in Stoneland

2008-05-03T09:43:00.002-05:00

We have always had great luck with our electricity in this house. Two years ago, when the entire city went dark during a blackout, ours was off for a grand total of twenty minutes. At work, the lights were out so long, we ended up closing. Parts of the town were out for five or six hours. Every other time we've lost power, our little part of the neighborhood is the pocket that comes back on first. I chock it up to the fact that we have two ambulance bays and a fire department in that little pocket of electricity. They always come back up first, while the people behind us stay dark for much longer.

While I was at Ikea on Wednesday, as we were browsing through the candle area, I almost picked up a large packet of candles for our emergency box. My mom has recently been checking the temperatures of the Gulf of Mexico on a daily basis. Because she's near the coast, it's in her newspaper along with the weather. About a week ago, they also ran an article about how the gulf is warmer than it has been this early in over a decade. This puts her in a state usually reserved for small poultry and she emails out her Hurricane prep lists. So, I stood there in Ikea staring at a giant box of cheap candles and thought about my mom. Then I thought about on of Tee's best friends, who is as far inland as we are, who lost power for over three weeks after Hurricane Rita. Then, I thought about No Buy, ran over my Ikea list, which did not contain candles, and moved on.

So, of course, we lost power for over five hours last night. Not the entire city, not even our entire little section that usually comes on first. It was just our side of the street. I'm not sure what happened, but as DH cruised the neighborhood, there were a bunch of utility trucks and downed lines.

The bonus side of this resulted in dinner out. Unplanned and unbudgeted, but good anyway. It was a great excuse. DH did a great job making sure that they did not open the refrigerator, which I think helped keep everything okay. I was a little worried about the amount of food in the freezer but it's all good as far as I can tell. I'll use caution when thawing, but the milk was just fine this morning so I feel we are okay. But, I think about the 72 hour rule. You know, the one that says you should be prepared to go 3 days on your own emergency supplies. I'll have to go through my box soon and make a few lists. But, I wish I had picked up two packs of those candles on Wednesday.

At the bookstore:
We are in the middle of finals, so we have boneless college students everywhere, draped in aisles, under tables, sitting at tables full of merchandise...
Do you have a strategy for getting a place to sit?

2008-05-02T23:57:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it's been that long since I posted! It's been a busy week here and I had a nice little work trip out of town for two days.

On Tuesday, I picked up a co-worker and we drove to Houston to help another store with their annual inventory. It was a very nice day and a smooth trip down. We were put up in a very nice Holiday Inn Express, and it worked out so we each had our own room. Hooray! I love my boys, the big one and the little one. I really do. But, it was so nice to just have a little space to myself. In fact, I usually get a little overwhelmed by quiet time because there are just so many possibilities of things I'd like to do in peace.

We had a great dinner at Joe's Crab Shack and it was awesome to eat out. Funny, something I used to do so often and take it for granted. Now, a simple dinner at Joe's classifies as a fantastic treat! The next morning, I again was made happy by a simple breakfast at IHOP. Holy Cow!

Since Wednesday was our day off, my co-worker & I didn't rush home. We went to Ikea and I had a small list of things I have been wanting for a while. I bought Hoot some replacement utensils (his are very worn, but he loves them) and some cups. I also bought my mom a cutting board for Mother's Day. I wanted to buy the Frost folding drying rack for the back porch since I do not have a clothesline in my backyard. But, it looked way too flimsy for Hoot. I think it would've done a great job and it folded very easily, but in the rough and tumble world of our backyard, I think it had the life expectancy of 5 minutes. So, I spent about $23 out of an original $40 budget there.

Our next stop was The Galleria. When we had decided about a week before the trip that we would go to The Galleria, I really took stock of my cosmetics cabinet and made my self a list and budget for this possible splurge.

I love Philosophy skincare, and I have carefully, carefully milked every single drop of the Purity cleanser (which I've been out of for 6 weeks), The Present (a matte primer I use under my foundation during the summer and have been out of since last Fall), and Hope in a Bottle, which is my moisturizer. I decided I was going to spend the money to buy another bottle of The Present, which would've been around $25 and a small size Purity for $10. So my Sephora budget was $35 plus tax. Really? Did I just say I was going to budget my money in Sephora? Honestly, I have always had a play now, pay later attitude in that store. In the end, I spent $11. The packaging of The Present had changed from a bottle to a tube. That had me a bit concerned because I really love this product and it's always been in a bottle. The consistency was also like skim milk. The new package was a tube and it felt like a lotion. After much consultation, including a call home just to make sure I wasn't crazy, I passed on the item. If I'm not sure, I'm not going to spend on it. So, I saved $25 of my Sephora budget.

I bought Hoot one of those smash packaged wash cloths at the Disney Store and a pair of $3 sunglasses. I also spent $45 of my birthday budget for a present for DH. So, there was $50, which was right on target. At the San Rio store, I didn't find a replacement for my Snoopy key fob that Hoot broke, so nothing there, another $5 added to the unspent funds.

I will confess that I literally shook at the entrance to the Coach store. I saw this little beauty just about 10 feet from the entrance, poised on a small round table with a come hither look. The color was divine (the navy, not the tan), and I knew the leather would be oh, so supple. Please, Lord, if I ever get to own this purse, let this be the one they bury me with....

Now I have $17 saved from Ikea, $25 from Sephora, and $5 from San Rio. I decide it's splurge time, take my leftover budget and head to L'Occitane en Provence, which is a soothing experience for me to just wander around the store. I love to touch everything, smell everything and just bask in the lotions, soaps, and trinkets. In my cosmetics at home, I have only one bottle of Lavender lotion from L'Occitane. I received it for my birthday in 2005. I have portioned and rationed it so that I still have some left. I start to look for a replacement. The saleslady was wonderful. She introduced me to their new Cherry Blossom line and I fell in love with the scent. I settled on a $22 bottle of the Cherry Blossom lotion. I also bought a gift, which for now shall go undisclosed, as I haven't decided if it shall be a birthday present or a Mother's Day present, but as soon as I decide, I will deduct it from the appropriate category of my May Budget.

So, I walked away from this treat of a shopping trip with $25 in leftover funds and the $20 I was allowing if we had dinner in Houston, which we did not. I shopped and it felt great. I kept money back, which was even better. I got several gift items that I needed for May checked off my to do list. What a great day.

Current Reading: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. You need to read this book. You really, really do. I know it's gotten lots of hype. I know it's simple for the most part. But, you need to read this book. Libraries are picking it up. Get on a list now so that when it comes available, you can read it.

This week in Stoneland

2008-04-26T23:24:00.003-05:00

Wow, the end of April is already upon me and I haven't even begun to polish up May's budget. I also haven't gone over all we spent in April. I'll be out of town for work on Wednesday and Thursday of next week, so I'm going to have to spend some time this weekend and Monday going over it all.

April appears to be shaping up about right. I know I am under budget on our Grocery/Household category, so that's always nice. I also saved money on our tax budget. We had a few unexpected expenses when Hoot needed a present for a birthday party and we've planned out our September vacation and I scored a major deal on our airfare. I've also paid one of my sister's bills. But, all in all, it's coming out just about where I wanted to be. I like that a lot!

May is an overwhelming month for us. There is so much going on and it's hard to pre-plan. We have Mother's Day, our 15th wedding anniversary, and DH's birthday all within a ten day mid-month span. I am also taking another small work trip right in the middle of that time frame. Boy, I'm really going to have to think it all through. And is it silly that I am already trying to figure out how we can get out to see the new Indiana Jones movie? We really miss going to movies and have vowed to not wait until this one is out on video.

May is also going to be tough on DH's income. With my two trips, our schedules are not going to allow him to work as much as he normally does. I've traded away a couple of opening shifts and I hope to trade away a few more. I had originally asked to open on Mother's Day, but was given it off. I'm sad about that because it is the week I am going out of town. It means one more day that I'm off where DH cannot work.

We have several bright spots on the horizon over the next five months. I discovered our Homestead Exemption was never applied to our house when we received a letter from a third party agency notifying us that for only $200 they will correct this error. Yeah, right. I downloaded a form and walked it into our county tax office for free. That should give us a nice chunk of money back from our escrow account and reduce our house payment. Last year, we received our escrow check in August, so I can only think it is going to come around the same time this year. I also make my last car payment in August. One of our debts was recently put to rest and our tax rebate is going to cut our back taxes in half. It's all looking up and doing well.

I'm starting to work on the plans for our September vacation. I'll have my vacation budget finalized soon and am already working on having it paid for well before we go. I am pre-funding a Wal-Mart gift certificate to use for gas during our vacation. Every time I go in to buy something, I'm going to add $10 to the card in my wallet. I really want to have $100 on it by September 1st. I've paid cash for our plane tickets and saved right at $250 from what I estimated. But, I'll blog my vacation plans soon. Maybe I'll get one of those snazzy savings tickers so I can watch my progress. Yeah! I love tickers.

On the home front:
Hoot broke the lock on DH's door to his music room. Then we fixed it and he broke it again. He was using shear brute force and snapped the chain! He also has a new trick where he moves my dresser out into the hallway. He's three and a half and moves furniture, and puts his shoulder to the door until the chain snaps. What am I going to do with this kid when he's big?

I also spotted a opossum. Awesome opossum! I don't think he is our opossum as he hasn't peeked in a single window yet. Since we had "Old Opossum" when we moved in, "New Opossum" who peeked into the window, we've decided to give this one a proper name. We shall call him Slinky.

It's a family thang

2008-04-24T00:14:00.002-05:00

Money always seems to be a family thing. If you have been raised with poor money values, it's hard to get past them. One of my biggest struggles has always been to get past the poor money values I was taught, or should I say not taught, as a child. Kids are aware of so much more than we give them credit for. If you really want to know how you are doing with your money, ask your kids. Sure, they may not want for much, or lack an allowance, but they can be pretty good indicators. If they say you are rich and you struggle with your credit card bills, maybe it's time to have a chat. If my mom had ever bothered to ask me, I would've told her a lot of stuff she didn't want to hear. Still could, for that matter.

For my mother's last birthday, I gave her a Christmas shopping trip. We set aside a day in early December so that my dad could hang out here with my hubby & Hoot. Then, we drove over to Austin for the day. We hit the outlets and Ikea in Roundrock. It was a blast. I had set a strict budget for my shopping and had money set aside for dinner and gas. I had used my think it through before you go strategy and gave myself a dollar amount exemption for my No Buy December. It was a lot of fun. However, I think I kept puzzling my mother because every time I made a purchase, I wrote it down in my notebook. She kept saying things like, "We don't have to have a nice dinner." She didn't quite follow my idea that I can have anything I want, if I plan for it. It was part of my present to her and to myself. I didn't even spend much. Gas, dinner, everything came out to $105. Not bad and we had a great time. But, I think because I kept a tally, she thought I had broke the bank!

So now, as I am examining my own habits and thoughts about money, I am also taking a look at my siblings and parents. We all have poor money habits. This is no pot calling kettle. I know I am the well seasoned skillet on the stove. That's what I'm trying to change. I am grateful that I am able to make these changes in my life. I am grateful that I haven't put myself into a situation where I can no longer see the light of day.

One of my favorite things about Larry Winget's book Your Broke Because You Want to Be is the accountability he shoves into your face. Yes, I know there are reasons that keep people in poor financial situations. I know that my sister is really unable to work for health reasons. I get this. However, when things aren't so great, isn't there still something that can be done?

I guess I'm thinking about this stuff because I am going to help out my sister by catching up her gas bill. And, I really don't mind helping. I've been in situations where I've needed help. I know that it happens and we all need a little help now and then. (Well, she needs a lot of help.) But, when I called and asked her what was about to be cut off, she told me to take my pick. She was on final notice on the electric bill, water bill, gas bill, satellite bill and phone bill. I told her I would pay the gas bill. It may seem harsh, but she can live without TV and a phone.

Holy cow! What a bummer post. Let's see if I can lighten it up! Things at home are going well and we're having a great week. I've just learned that the pool is open on weekends, so that's a bright spot on the horizon. I didn't budget it into April because I thought they didn't open until May, but I'll spot myself for the 25 swim pass this weekend if the weather is nice.

Overheard in the bookstore:
I'd like to return this please (handing over a copy of Baby's First Book of Prayers)
Is there anything wrong with it?
No. I just found out the baby's parents don't believe in God.

Taxes & my Stimulating Non-Rebate

2008-04-18T00:41:00.002-05:00

Alas, the familiar email from TurboTax. I have been accepted once again. Or, at least my electronicly filed taxes have been accepted by the Internal Revenue Service. Pardon me if I don't leap to my feet in excitement. But, well, I didn't fall to my knees and beg for mercy this year either, so I guess that's something.

Tax debt has been a major issue for us for the last several years. Okay, much of this decade so far. When my DH was laid off in 2001, we foolishly, foolishly cashed in his 401k. It was just another warning sign that should've told us how we lived financially was not healthy. We made very good money, but dang, we spent very bad money. When I think about it now, DH made a lot more a year than the both of us make combined now. However, that's not the point. The point is that it was one bad mistake after another. Lather, rinse, repeat. If I had a time machine, I'd slap myself.

So, we owed the IRS a big wad of cash. We owed everyone a big wad of cash. We did not have a big wad of cash. The IRS will kindly take payments, for huge interest and fees. So, we set up the payment plan and mailed a check each month. Then, two years later, we owed the IRS a smallish wad of cash. No worries, they will tack on payments. I resign myself to paying the IRS until I die.

Then, DS comes along and Hubby is working as contract labor until he has completed the first 3 months of work. But, we strike our deal with his employer to stay part-time contract labor if they will work around my schedule. It's totally awesome and we're excited because we don't have to use day care! But, now we have to get our hands around this tax thing. I foolishly listened to people tell me that now we have the kid, we'll have to pay a lot less taxes. Well, as DH is self employed, it didn't work that way. I think I've got enough to cover the next tax bill and I miss it by two grand! Holy Cow! I've almost got the first big bill paid off and I'm about to add another!

Then last year, when I filed our 2006 taxes, I was shocked again. Really, I thought I had done a much better job with keeping up with everything. I paid a chunk and since I'd paid off the first two installment agreements, I was able to tack on another one.

But, in the fall of 2006, DH became a regular employee. You know those taxes everyone complains about coming out of their check? We wept in joy to have them taken! It was glorious. And these 2007 taxes weren't hardly painful at all! It took less time to prepare them and the bill was $145. Yippee! Talk about glorious.

Then, I began to wonder about the Economic Stimulus Rebates that everyone is spending before they can even get their hands on it. What would happen to it? So, I dug around on the IRS website and found my answer. We will be getting a Stimulating Non-Rebate. We qualify to "receive" a stimulating $1500. But, it's a Non-Rebate for us. The IRS will keep against what we owe and I couldn't be happier! By the time the rebate kicks in, it will pay almost half of what we have left.

On the homefront:

DH did indeed clean some residual baby powder last night, including the stripe behind the door of our bedroom. However, I am not entirely pleased. In true man fashion, he brought the leaf blower inside and worked over the room-sized rafia rug in our bedroom. True, it got more out of the crevices than the vacuum cleaner did and it was far more effective that I would've guessed had I known about the plan before hand, but really? The leaf blower? He claims he blew it all out the window. Explains why I need to clean windows today.

A Bit of Rebellion in the Ranks

2008-04-17T00:36:00.002-05:00

It seems we have a little bit of rebellion in the ranks lately. Possibly even some from the Quartermaster herself. Little purchases seem to keep slipping in and it's making me nuts!

We still have baby powder drifting through the house. It just seems to keep coming from nowhere in particular and dusting our lives. I wipe off the dresser, it reappears in the morning. I wipe down the ceiling fan, it's back again with in a few days. I guess it's just going to have to work itself out. But, it doesn't make the housekeeping any easier.

Sometimes, I find myself teetering at the brink of full blown chaos. The baby powder just seemed to give me a good shove towards the abyss. Behind the master bedroom door, a white stripe has appeared along the wall and gathered fluffy white dust bunnies. I am afraid the white stripe is going to be our cheese in the suitcase if not our giant fork and spoon nailed to the wall. The references I am making is to an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond that I love entitled Baggage. Actually, its one of the few episodes I've seen all the way through. Debra and Ray are both ignoring a suitcase filled with cheese because they both believe the other one should unpack it after a trip. It goes on for a really long time and they find out Ray's parents have a giant fork and spoon nailed on their kitchen wall for similar reasons. Am I going to have a white stripe behind my door forever?

Then tonight, when I came home for dinner there was Fast Food! I couldn't believe it! We were supposed to have fish sticks and fries. Yeah, I know it's not exciting, but the kid is 3. He loves fish stick night! And, the excuse for getting Fast Food? He was cleaning up baby powder! Hey, I don't think we get to use that one anymore! And, when I looked before I went back to work, the white stripe was still there! Argh! To be honest, the price of a cheeseburger would've been worth someone else cleaning up the baby powder, if that would be the end of the baby powder!

Hopefully, the stripe is now gone, the urge for fast food is gone and we can get back to our No Buy ways. I hope so. It's very discouraging to have to continually post that I didn't make it for a $0 day. It kind of takes the winds out of my sails. We potentially have big plans for Hoot's 4th birthday, and that's gonna take a lot of wind.

Overheard in the bookstore:
Do you have the Encyclopedia Britannica on audio?

2008-04-10T00:21:00.012-05:00

Sometimes, it just doesn't pay to buy in bulk. Sure, I love my giant buy twice a year box of commercial paper towels. I love it when it comes out cheaper to buy 900 rolls of toilet paper. The savings is a large part of that love. Not having to continually go to the store is the other. I love that I haven't bought shampoo in years. (Though, yikes, I'm almost out!) Bulk items allow me to have more days when I don't spend a dime. I like those days. I've had three in a row this week.

So, when is it not cool to buy a giant container of something? Well, when your son gets something he shouldn't, if it's Jumbo Sam's Size, the mess is well, Jumbo Sam's Size.

We'd had such a nice morning. I was getting things done. Hoot was playing nice. Then, I left him on my bed with his tub of Mr. Potato Head parts and went to make lunch. I was gone just over five minutes. Two minutes to microwave leftover chicken. One minute on pasta. Two minutes for frozen corn. I made lemonade and set the table while waiting for the microwave. Then, I heard the giggles. As I opened the hall door, the first thing that hit me was the smell. If you are a J.R. Ward fan (she writes delightfully edgy, trashy vampire romance novels) you will get me when I thought "Do we have Lessers in the house?" Ah, the sweet smell of baby powder. Well, my baby sure got powdered!

No need to adjust your monitors, folks. That's just fall out. In truth, I wasn't so too terribly angry when it happened. I knew I had to grab the camera. I knew I had to have photographic evidence of the crime or no one would believe the magnitude.

No place was safe. Not my bed.Even poor Don Quixote (or Donkey Oty, as DS calls him) wasn't safe. He got his booty dusted.

He even attempted to make "snow angels" as I took pictures. Boy, you can bet these pictures will re-appear when he least expects it. Maybe prom night!

So, I just decided it could wait until after lunch. So, we had a nice lunch together and then dug out the vacuum. God Bless Hoover! But, I ended up having to use the wand attachment with the brush on the end. Yep, the entire back of the house with a two inch brush. And, I had to be at work in under two hours. Let's just say we did the best we could. Actually, I think it took hours just to settle. It seems to be kicking up again every time someone walks by a crime scene. Honestly, it could take days to get it all back to normal.

So, baby powder in giant bulk container: NO

Vacuum bags in giant bulk packages: YES

Overheard in the bookstore:

The conversation was about Billy Ray Cyrus:

Yeah, but wasn't he really good looking back then?

We were all good looking back then.

Routine of the Quartermaster

2008-04-09T00:31:00.003-05:00

It seems like I've been out of my routine for weeks and weeks. We had the trip to my parent's house for Easter. I was on vacation the next week. We had the big garage sale. Then, it was my first week back at work, which is always surreal, ending in a trip to the circus. What a crazy couple of weeks it's been. But, I think it's starting to settle down a bit.

Yesterday and today, I had two $0 days in a row. This makes me very happy and helps things seem calmer. We've gotten a good routine going at home and it's just easier when I'm not spending money. Of course, DH would probably beg to differ. He keeps coming at me with things he wants or, in his words, "needs." Yes, I know he needs things for work. He supplies his own welding gloves, helmet, jacket and tools. I get that. However, I also know he knew he only had a few pairs of gloves left last month. I simply asked him to review his equipment before the end of the month so that I could budget it all into my No Buy exemptions. Is this too hard? He began to refer to me as "Quartermaster." I laughed it off, but there was just a little something I couldn't make out as he walked off and mumbled it again.

In the US Army, the Quartermaster Corp supplies the troops with equipment and provisions. I am sure that this is what he meant. However, a quick Wikipedia search later and I learned a lovely little tidbit I can't wait to share with him:

Pirate quartermasters
Through a historical oddity, pirates during the Golden Age of Piracy elevated the rank of quartermaster to much higher powers and responsibilities than it had aboard any merchant or naval vessel.
Pirate quartermasters, like pirate captains, were usually elected by their crews. The quartermaster ranked higher than any officer aboard the ship except the captain himself, and could veto the captain's decisions whenever the ship was not chasing a prize or engaged in battle. The quartermaster also was chiefly responsible for discipline, assessing punishments for crewmen who transgressed the articles. It was generally also the quartermaster's responsibility to lead the pirate boarding party when coming aboard another ship. Several quartermasters, notably Calico Jack Rackham, succeeded to command and became captains in their own right after the previous captain was killed or deposed.

Yep, I highlighted the lovely part in red. Think I'm gonna print it out and stick it on the fridge, too. Maybe make out a lovely Excel spreadsheet supply requisitions form. Make him submit it in triplicate by the 28th of the month previous to when he'd like supplies.

Honestly, he has made several comments about how much less stress there has been in the house since I started the No Buy routine. But, the man is just a spender at heart.

On the home front:
I am sad to say that I have not seen the opossum in about a month. I am choosing to believe he ran off with the silver opossum and that little babies will be around soon. I am not choosing to believe he was on the side of the road "playing" in traffic.

In the bookstore:
OK, I've had the "Where's your Non-fiction?" question two times in the last week! What's the deal? It happens, we laugh about it, but seriously, twice in the last week?

Big Top Budget Buster

2008-04-05T00:02:00.004-05:00

Tonight, we went to the Circus. It was our Family Fun outing for April and we've been looking forward to it for months. We've spent many bedtimes reading Circus McGurkus by Dr. Seuss and today, DH & Hoot used their afternoon quiet time to watch Dumbo.

We attempted three times to buy advance tickets at the local Appletree supermarket, but their booth was closed twice (once a four in the afternoon!) and this morning, the tickets had already been picked back up. Because we'll have to buy them at the gate, we're already a little off from my budget. But with the free child's ticket, it's still only going to cost $32 for the three of us.

When we arrive, we pay our $5 for parking and slog our way from the oh, so soggy parking field to the front gate. We're pretty impressed by the big top and there is a menagerie area just inside the gate. There are elephant, camel, and pony rides just begging to be bought. There is also a semi-petting zoo where you can buy feed to give to goats, llamas, and a donkey. We met this lovely lady there:

Her big smile caused Hoot to do a little jig!

And immediately, I'm wondering how much llama food costs! But, I push the impulse aside and we eventually enter the Big Top itself. We bypass the clown selling programs at the front door, but stop at the concession trailer as we had promised Hoot one of those elusive sodas he likes so much. So, there was another $2.50, but hey, that's okay. We're only up to $39.50 out of our $50 budget.

As we head towards the stadium seating, we notice a woman with a cash register is selling reserved "preferred seating" for only $4 extra. There is also "box seating" for $5 extra. The box seating consists of plastic lawn chairs right down front and center on the floor level. The preferred seating is just behind it and the seats have backrests. It's now almost 7:30 pm and I've been up since 5:30 am and those backrests are looking very, very appealing. Then I realize how much easier it would be to keep Hoot contained if we had back rests. I suddenly find myself wondering if I will choose $12 extra or $15 extra. Remember a few years ago, when an elephant went mad at a small circus? I can still play the video footage in my head. Okay, preferred please, I would like to have a buffer or two between us and center ring. And that's it. Our circus budget is blown by a buck fifty.

But, of course, it doesn't stop there! We're in our seats and it's almost showtime and the concessionaires are out in force with light up swords, fiber optic wands, and what we called "The Wand of Power" because we thought it had the power to keep Hoot entertained until the show began. It was a blue wand with a spinning globe of lights on top. When you pushed the button it made a zinging noise and the lights went crazy. Circus budget blown by $11.50.

Halfway through the show, we hit intermission. Or should I say, half-time capitalism? Step right up ladies and gentlemen! In ring one, the ever popular Pony Ride! Only $4 for a round! Now showing in ring two: The amazing Drape A Giant Snake Around Your Baby, What a Christmas Card This Will Make Photo Booth! Only $5 a photo, kids! And in ring three: Elephant rides, $6 a pop! Needless to say, I was quite happy we made it through intermission only spending $3 on cotton candy. The boys were totally eyeing those elephants!

The cotton candy was the last purchase of the night and we all had a blast. The budget was blown by $14.50. But, considering how bad DH wanted to get pictures of Hoot on a camel and an elephant, at least it wasn't shot out of a cannon.

Beginning of the month

2008-04-02T00:15:00.003-05:00

It's April 1st and time for a clean slate. I like the first of the month a lot better than I used to, that's for sure. Before my No Buy and my Master Plan budget sheet in Excel, I dreaded starting over. *sigh* It was just another round of new bills. Didn't I just pay these people? Again? Really? Does it ever end?

April brings with it my 9th month of No Buy. My attitudes towards money, finances, and bills have changed so much. It's not a dreaded chore anymore. It's a challenge, and dare I say it, kind of fun. What has happened to me? I guess my inner planner has taken over.

This month has some different bills than usual. The Saturn's registration is due and the taxes on Tara are due (Federal income taxes). The "other bills" as I used to call them always sent me into a tizzy. What, like I didn't know cars got registered and tax day fell on April 15th? It used to seem more like random acts before my excel spreadsheet was born. When I hit September of this year, it will be even easier to plan for these types of bills. I'll have made a full 12 month circle on the spreadsheet and be able to look at last year's expenses.

We also have a bit of fun coming up this month. For our family fun exemption, we're taking Hoot to the circus on Friday. I know it's not very P.C. but I love the circus. It's even cooler because it's a real big top circus. His first circus is going to be under the big top! That's too cool. I even scored a free child's ticket!

Current reading: It's Not About the Money by Brent Kessel. I've just picked it up today and I've only made it through the introduction. Pretty interesting so far. I wonder if it'll be a Zen and the Art of the Bank Account Maintenance kind of thing?