30 Before 30 List-Item #2
2
Sep 2009
**Road Trip To Pennsylvania to visit Amish Country**
I have been been talking about taking a cross-country road trip since Ian and I got married! Every Summer we talk about doing it, and every Summer it gets pushed off until the next Summer. Well, finally we are going to do it! I think part of the problem is we could never figure out a real destination that we wanted to travel too. It had to be somewhere fun,that we would enjoy, but not so overly expensive that it would take us FOREVER to save up to go. We talked about places like Mt. Rushmore, or The Grand Canyon but none of those were really far enough for us, and honestly they are not super exciting enough that I would base a whole road trip off of going to see them.
There are few things in the world that I love more than the Amish. I once saw a group of Amish people in a Chili’s and pretended to go to the bathroom three times just to see what they were eating. Those of you that read my blog know that they were eating Fajitas. I love reading books about the Amish, I love their simple ways and prudent living. I have even taken a semester of German to prepare me for any small chance that an Amish person actually speaks to me. One did smile at me at Winco before, one of the highlights of my life. My Mother told me this weekend that my Great Great Great Grandmother was Amish. Unfortunately, she is a big LIAR. My Mother, not my Great Great Great Grandmother. That’s right Mom, I am calling you out. My Mother was only kidding when she said that, but I got so excited that I might possibly somehow be connected to the Amish, I may never forgive her.
I have decided that this road trip will consist only of music written by American song writers, preferably songs that have the names of States in them. Playlist to come soon. Also, when we do reach Amish Country I will of course be respectful and not intrude and simply appreciate them from afar. There will also be no pictures of the Amish from my trip, as they do not believe in having their pictures taken. I will, however, try to get some to sit for me to draw a portrait. I will let you know how that goes.
This road trip will also consist of the following games from my childhood: Car Bingo, State License Plate Game, Slug Bugs, How long can Heather go without talking Game (My parents favorite game, and surprisingly the one I was the worst at…) and my personal favorite, How many times can we get totally lost and somehow still find our destination without asking for directions. There may be a GPS purchase in my future.
So there you have it, an item for my list that combines two goals-Road Trip and Amish Appreciation! Maybe on the way back we can trade our car for a Horse and Buggy! Also, Jon & Kate and their 8 live in Pennsylvania, however we will NOT be stopping by. Too much Drama. We will, however, be swinging through Arkansas so I can say Hi to the Duggars! But, that is only if Ian lets me, as he is convinced you get pregnant immediately if you even step on their land.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
2
Sep 2009
Everyone must read this:
www.twitter.com/shitmydadsays
Hilarious! It’s this guy tweeting things his 73 year old father says! I have been cracking up all morning!
And while you are there, follow me on twitter! www.heymae.com
But I am not nearly as funny as the 73 year old Dad.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
30 Before 30
1
Sep 2009
Okay, here is the deal. In 3 and one half years I will turn 30. To 99.99% of you, that is no big deal. To the .01% that is me, it is a HUGE deal. I always imagined 30 as this terrifying entrance into the tunnel of adulthood that I have been avoiding entering. Now, I know life doesn’t ACTUALLY end at 30, but I have always some what felt as if 30 was the time I had to stop being a wild and crazy kid (with a husband and 2 kids mind you) and start buying life insurance. Okay, I kid. It is not actually that bad. There are just certain things I want to do while I am still in my twenties, and my list for my thirties is very different.
Now, I can already hear some of you saying, “But I am 30 and I am still doing Wild & Crazy things!” Well, that is Awesome for you. Now go get your own blog and you can write all about that. This blog is about me.
Also, still shopping in the Junior’s department doesn’t count as wild or crazy, and neither does going to parties with your kids. You are embarrassing them, and most importantly, yourself. It is time to Stop. That is what your twenties were for.
A while ago I started making a list of things I wanted to do before I hit that big 3-0. Some of them may seem silly to you. Some of the ARE silly. I am a silly person, get over it. Honestly though, I have given this list a lot of thought and I really want to do every single thing on it, as small and trivial as some of them may seem. I decided to blog one of the thirty things everyday through the month of September, since, well, it has 30 days in it. My goal is to then be able to continue to blog through my journey to complete each thing on my list, for the next 3 and a half years. That’s right, if you are reading this you have now committed to reading my blog until the year 2013. That is, of course, assuming the world does not, in fact, end in 2012. If it does, that will give me 3 less months to finish my list, and that is not very fair. I NEED 3 and one half years exactly to finish this list.
Now for the exciting part- #1! These are of course in no particular order, it just depends which one I feel like writing about today. Well, today I was thinking about Halloween, and that just so happens to directly relate to one of the items on my list. Drum Roll Please…..
30 Before 30 List: Item #1
*See the Rocky Horror Picture Show Live at Midnight on Halloween*
I have always wanted to do this!! I really enjoy the movie, and have always wanted to experience it Live, which I hear is a whole experience unto itself! Plus, they put it on every year in Chico at Midnight on Halloween and I just cannot think of a better time to go! Now, those of you that know me know that I am not a “stay up late” kind of girl. I can count on one hand the number of times in the last year that I have made it past midnight. I enjoy my beauty sleep. Well, what better time to stay up late than when you are young?! I will, of course, be learning the Time Warp dance in preparation. If you are lucky, there may even be a video blog. Im not promising anything, but maybe.
So there you have it, the first of many. I told you that they were not all going to be profound, life changing experiences! Sometimes, you just want to do things, for no reason at all other than you think they sound neat. Those life experiences are what I hope to remember when I am old and senile and living in a nursing home and Ian has to read this blog to me to remind me of all the fun I had. And then I will remember everything again for about 5 minutes, but in my version we do not lie in each others arms and peacefully pass into the afterlife. In my version we tell That’s What She Said jokes and laugh until we both have heart attacks, but not before we had a chance to pull some crazy practical jokes that no one will discover until we are long gone. That is how I want to go down. That’s What She Said.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
30 Weeks!
31
Aug 2009
Great Weekend!
First off, I am now 30 weeks pregnant!! Isn’t that insane?! There is a little excitement in the air around here as we are all starting to realize that Rocky is really going to be here soon! I was down at my parents house this weekend and brought back up some stuff we had left there for my sister when her baby Kaleb was born. We brought back a swing, bathtub, bouncer and a bunch of clothes! I am starting to feel like we are going to be able to find everything we need! We have been really lucky with people giving us their hand me downs for the baby, so we almost have everything we need! YEAH!
This weekend we traveled down to Lockwood for the wedding of some friends from High School! Mr. and Mrs. Jon Conatser had a beautiful ceremony at Mission San Antonio, and the bride was absolutely gorgeous! I absolutely LOVE weddings! I wish them all the happiness in the whole universe!
Zane was a very lucky little boy and while we were attending the wedding, he got to have a weekend slumber party with his cousin Linkin. I am pretty sure he had the best time ever! He did not want to leave! This is the conversation we had last night before bed:
Me-”Zane I am so happy you decided to come back and live with us again!”
Zane-”I didn’t. I wanted to stay at Linkin’s but you made me come home.”
Me-…heart broken…
Really though, he had the best time and we are so thankful that Chelsea and Seth were able to have him! Thanks Guys!! It was nice to be able to enjoy the wedding without having to keep Zane from jumping into the fountain or doing headstands in the aisles!
In other news, I seem to have misplaced my Camera. This is seriously holding me back from posting some very interesting blogs. I am hoping to find it today, my only hope is that one of the kids did not pick it up and put it in some random cupboard or in the dress up box or something. More likely, I moved it up so they couldn’t reach it and now I can’t remember where.
I have many things to blog about this week, so hopefully I will find my camera soon! Stay Tuned!!
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Must Keep Eyes Open.
25
Aug 2009
I am so tired. I hereby officially take back ANY other time I ever complained about being tired. My whole body is aching to go to sleep. Sadly, the sleep does not seem to cure the tired. I wake up just as tired, if not more, than when I went to bed. I have been trying to convince Ian that it is prefectly healthy for pregnant woman to drink Energy Drinks in their third trimesters. So far, he is not buying it.
The second I found out I was pregnant Ian began to get crazy about my caffeine intake. Which means I have not had a sip of soda in almost 30 weeks. Now, Ian is not usually that interested in what I eat, and he would never try and control it, but for some reason he is crazy about this caffeine thing. I am not sure if he read something online about caffeine leading to crazy mutant babies or maybe he just knows someone who drank a lot of caffeine and their baby came out really hyper but he is convinced that caffeine equals certain disaster. If I even mention drinking some soda he gets this really worried look on his face that says, “sure sweetie, if soda is that important to you go ahead and ruin our unborn babies life.” Of coure, he says this with a 40 ounce of Dr. Pepper in his hand.
Seriously though, I have got to get some decent rest. Luckily, today I only had 2 babies so I was able to put them down for a nap at 11 so that I could lay on the couch and attempt a quick power nap. This was only semi-successful. The little girl I watch likes to sleep for 20 minutes, scream for 10, sleep for 20….even when the house is completely silent. Not the best napping environment.
Okay, I am off to attempt another night of frequently interrupted, uncomfortable sleep. Goodnight.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Daycare Kids!
24
Aug 2009
The kids in my daycare are cracking me up today!
There is a little boy I watch that just turned 2! He is starting to talk more and more, which is really exciting! One of his favorite things are cars. Only, whenever he says the word “car”, he combines the first part of car and the last part of truck. The end result is a word that sounds like “cawk”, which is not a pleasant word to hear. Right now he is walking around the house saying, “more cawk, more cawk!”. It doesn’t matter how many times I try to teach him the word car, he still wants “more cawk”. It is especially humorous when we have visitors or are out of the house!
There is also a little girl in my daycare that has a new baby sister! She is very very proud of this, and loves her new sister very much. However, I think she may have be harboring some subconscious feelings of resentment. Last week I got a new 1-year old baby in my daycare and she does not like this baby. The first couple of days she would be in the middle of playing, and then just walk over and hit the new baby on the head! This week she has resorted to “accidently” dropping blocks right next to the babies head. Hopefully they are keeping a close eye on her with her sister!
Also, why is it that when kids say something to you in a quiet voice, and you tell them you can’t hear them, they decide to speak in an even quieter whisper?! Every single kid I have watched has done this! It is infuriating! The more I try and speak louder so they will understand that I cannot hear them, the quieter they speak, until they are just mouthing words at me! I think next time I am going to try talking back to them in a whisper and then maybe they will speak louder since they cannot hear me! I will report back on my findings of this scientific study.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Good News Gorillas!
21
Aug 2009
I am writing this blog from my laptop!!! It is working!!! The only issue is the battery does not seem to be holding any charge, but as long as it is plugged in there seems to be no problems! YEAH!
On a side note, Today I was driving down the road with my cell phone on my lap, when it slipped and fell on the floor of the car. Now, normally this would be no big deal. I would simply bend down quickly and pick it back up. Well, I attempted to do just that, but quickly realized that my ability to quickly bend at my waist is gone. I tried and squirmed, but my big belly was completely in the way. I ended up having to drive all the way home with my cell phone sliding all over the floor, hoping it wouldn’t end up under the brake pedal. I made it home safely none the less!
Also, I am so excited because today I finally bought some stuff for Rocky!! I had this great coupon for JC Penney’s, so I went and they were having a great clearance on baby clothes! I got Rocky 5 outfits, 2 onesies, and 4 pairs of shorts all for 19 bucks! Plus, all the clothes are super cute! I added this to the staggering 3 onesies and 2 pairs of socks and 1 pair of little baby leg warmers I already had for him, and now I am on my way! It is finally starting to feel like we are getting ready! Zane and I have a giant countdown in our kitchen, and today it says 79 days until Rocky! We are so excited!
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Bad News Bears.
18
Aug 2009
A cup of water was spilled on my laptop today. I will not go into details, as I know the person responsible feels horribly, but needless to say it is a sucky thing. I am typing now on an old computer we have that runs ridiculously slowly, it is also sits on a desk and I usually prefer to do my blogging sitting on the couch watching bad reality TV. I will try to make this blog interesting none the less.
It is amazing to me how attached I am to my laptop. Everything I need is on it, my address book, my pictures, email, calendar (which I never use), tons of documents and lists. What did I do before I had a laptop? And a bigger question, what did we do before we had the internet?
My parents just got high-speed internet last month and they love it. Atleast, we think they do. No one has actually heard from them since that day, but I do get occasional notices on Facebook that my Mom has harvested her crops in Farmville, so I assume they are okay. Mom and Dad, if you are reading this, we love you and we will talk to you again once the excitement wears off.
When my Mom first got an email address at work she started forwarding me every single one of those chain emails people usually delete. You know, the ones that say “Forward this email to 9 friends or your dog will bite you” or something along those lines. Only, my Mom did not have nine friends that had email, so she just forwarded me the email 9 different times. Needless to say, she is yet to get bit by a dog.
Now, just because I usually use this blog to vent about a lot of things that have me stressed, tonight I have 5 things for you that I am Happy about!
#1-My daycare has the perfect number of kids that allow me to make enough money and still be able to transport Zane to and from School and Gymnastics! They also all get along and are around the same age and Super Fun! Yeah!!
#2-One of my dear friends is getting married next weekend and I found a dress that does not make me look like a huge beached whale!! YEAH! Plus, I get to go to Lockwood for the wedding and see my Family, including my wonderful Sister! Double Yeah!
#3-Rocky will be here in 12 weeks!!! Triple YEAH! Zane and I made a calendar to count down the days, 82 and counting…
#4-I don’t have anything to do this weekend except relax! Yeah!
#5-Zane’s new teacher told me today that he is Wonderful and she loves having him in her class! I know she probably says that to everyone, but it made me smile! Yeah for Zane! (who also did a headstand for over 2 minutes today, but I made him stop, that cannot be good for his brain..)
Lots of Happiness here, even with a wet laptop!
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
The Colony…Or Why I Would Never Make It On A Reality Show
17
Aug 2009
Tonight Ian and I watched this new reality show on the Discovery Channel called The Colony. Well, really Ian was watching it and I was rolling around on the living room floor trying to find some way to pop my back, but the show was on at the same time so I got the basic gist of it. Basically, the show sets up a mock global catastrophe and then tests to see how a group of regular citizens would rebuild society. They have to find shelter, food, water, and protect themselves from all sorts of different scenarios. Now, keep in mind this regular group of citizens included an electrical genius, a martial artist, and the token naked, balding old guy. On a side note, does every reality show have to have an old guy that gets naked? Is it really necessary? As a society, is that something we enjoy in our reality TV? I really think its time we take a stand and let the networks know that this is not something we find appealing.
So this group is faced with all sorts of “real” scenarios. Random people keep showing up at the shelter banging on the walls at night, which of course causes everyone to jump out of bed and freak out. Now, this is where I realized I would never make it on a reality show. If that was me, I would simply tell everyone to calm the heck down. WE ARE ON A REALITY SHOW. What are the people banging on the walls really going to do? Go back to bed. Everyone is also very concerned about running out of food and water. Well, If it was me I would simply follow the camera men. They must be eating and drinking somewhere. There was also a whole situation involving figuring out how to get electricity so that could see in case there was an emergency at night. Now, obviously we had no problem seeing when the camera men were filming you at night the night before, so I am guessing we are not talking about solid darkness here. At some point things always start to get really hard on the people involved, there is a lot of crying and screaming and complaining. Well, guess what? You can go home. The world did not really get blown up by a nuclear attack. You are in a warehouse right outside Los Angeles. The second things started to get hard, or they ran out of Spaghettios I would say see ya! I would just ask one of the camera men to borrow his cell phone and call a cab.
Now, that being said, I did actually enjoy the show. It is an interesting thing to think about. Are any of us prepared for the type of global catastrophes this show is trying to create? It really does make me think. Do I have enough cans of Spaghettio’s on hand to survive if there was a real crisis?
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Do you think she is mad because she can see what he is drawing?
15
Aug 2009
see more Fail Blog
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
This Week
14
Aug 2009
So, this morning My Sister told me that she thinks my playing Mafia Wars is interfering with my Blog Posting. So, I pulled out my M16 and shot her.
Only in the game, of course.
Really, this week has just been swamped! I have lots of new kids starting, which I am so grateful for! I have been working all week on figuring out how I am going to be able to get Zane to school, back from school and to gymnastics and back from gymnastics while I have all the other kids with me. I ended up having to take less kids than I am actually licensed for and I had to let 2 kids go since the times they were here did not work out. I feel like there is a Mini-Van in my future. This is not a good feeling.
Zane is simply loving First Grade. However, he did already have a situation that he is dealing with. He shares a table with one of his good friends that we LOVE. However, this good friend is very talkative, and surprisingly, Zane is very serious in class. Yesterday he told me that the teacher had to tell his friend to stop talking a couple times, and one of the times she included Zane in the request. Zane is having none of that. He HATES getting in trouble, and he told me he does not want the teacher to think it is him talking when it is not. So last night he decided that he was going to tell the teacher he wanted to be moved. Well, he must of spent last night really thinking about it, because this morning he decided he was going to give his friend one more chance. If his friend was talking, he was going to ask him to please stop because it was very distracting. Zane said if his friend would not listen, he was going to talk to his teacher at Snack Recess about moving desks. I thought this was a very grown-up decision Zane made and I was very proud of him.
I made the rookie mistake of eating a Chimichanga from a Taco Truck and seriously regretted that choice. My stomach is finally starting to forgive me. I, however, will never forgive Ian for picking a Taco Truck for his birthday dinner. Is that a dig at my cooking skills?
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
First Grade Report!
12
Aug 2009
Zane’s first day of First Grade went Awesome! He gets to share a table with one of his best friends from Kindergarten, he got a popsicle and there are three recesses! His only complaint was that they didn’t do any science today, but I told him I was sure they would do it soon! He said that they wrote about what they did this Summer, and drew a picture. He drew himself swimming! He said he really likes his teacher, and got to play with some of his other best friends at lunch.
So, I thought I had explained to Zane about eating lunch at school, but I guess I failed. About a half hour after Zane got home, he asked me if it was time for lunch! It was past 3! I reminded him that he had lunch at school, and he seemed very confused. He said it was too short for him to eat his food. According to the contents of his lunchbox, it was only too short for him to eat his sandwich, not his snacks. I tried to explain that lunch recess is actually a lot longer than his earlier recess, he probably just didn’t realize because he was playing. I told him there is plenty of time for both, and tomorrow he should sit and eat all his lunch before he goes to play and he will see that there is PLENTY of time! It will be funny to see if he actually eats his lunch tomorrow, especially after the whole camp lunch debacle we had last week!
I am really excited for Zane! I think he is going to have a great year, once he figures out all of this eating lunch at school business!
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Happy Birthday Ian!
12
Aug 2009
Today is Ian’s Birthday, but you are not allowed to make a big deal about it at all. In fact, it is better to not even MENTION it. In fact, I should not even be making this post, but since I know Ian never reads my blog, I think I am safe. Since you already had to read a horribly sappy, mushy post on our Anniversary about how wonderful I think he is, I will simply say Happy Birthday Ian. I love you.
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
Hello First Grade!
12
Aug 2009
Zane started First Grade today! Last night we went down to the school to find out who his teacher is going to be and which of his friends are going to be in his class! We got really lucky because Zane’s new teacher was the only one having an Open House so the parents and kids could meet her! Zane got to see his classroom and his teacher and it really helped him not be nervous at all this morning! He even has a few of his friends from Kindergarten in his class, so he is Happy! I realized this morning that boys are much easier than girls! I remember my sisters and I always making my mom take us school clothes shopping every year before school started, and we had to have EVERYTHING new, new lunchbox, new backpack, clothes, everything. The only thing Zane wanted was new shoes, because his no longer fit, and a new lunch box, because his was falling apart. We will eventually have to buy him new pants when it gets colder, but for now he was perfectly happy in his shorts and t-shirts he already had. He just wanted to wear his star wars shirt. Boys are so easy.
Here is a picture of him this morning, and then one from the first day of Kindergarten for comparison. He is so big!
Posted in The Kitchen Sink
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