The good ole days...

Wanna hear something really funny?

I have a monthly women's bible study group that I am very involved with- these are my closest dearest friends. I share my life dreams, sorrows, joys and concerns...sometimes my biggest fears or secrets. One of the girls lives really close to me in the country- about 5 miles and we have really bonded this past year.
She started inviting her sister-in-law, AJ, to join us and I have really gotten to know her in the last 6 months or so.

At last week's meeting we had our yearly Christmas party and we were being silly and goofy. In the middle of a conversation (very meaningful and important, I am quite certain) I blurted out- AJ, where are you from? She says Jackson. I said- me too! What part?

She says South Jackson. I said- me too! I went to school at 'WES' and my brother graduated 'WHS' and my sister went to 'PJHS'. AJ said- yep, I know all of those places, went there too.

I said- I only did 1st and 2nd grade there and then we moved but I remember it like yesterday. My first boyfriend was Scotty Petty. I will never forget him. AJ said- ha! My first boyfriend was Scotty Petty but he was 2 yrs younger than me and I taught him how to kiss!

How crazy is that? I didn't know her then, I don't think. We are gonna try to look ourselves up in a yearbook and drive up and visit the old school. But we went to school together, at the same time... she was just 2 grades ahead of me. And a year or two after I moved she taught my boyfriend how to kiss. I never did get over that boy. Shew. He was a cutie.

This Year

And here is the photo of her this year at Thanksgiving.
Boy has she grown. But she is silly as ever.

She jumps on command and I got her mid-air!

We went on a train ride to Alabama, we did a 6 hour ride in about 8. On the way home it was longer. It was our first adventure on the train with Madison. We decided we would splurge for the sleeper car next time. When we got on the train to come home, it was very very hot. Apparently there had been an electrical problem before we got on and there was no air. So we hung around the lounge car all day next to the smelly restrooms, drunk men and cranky passengers.I am here to tell ya- it was definitely an adventure!

We stayed at a B&B in Alabama and it was wonderful.
http://www.thevictoria.com/
No one had to cook, no one had to clean and everyone relaxed and had a peaceful, relaxing holiday.

We spent one day in Anniston's down town area shopping and eating. I give it 2 thumbs up!

ERROR

I have been trying since last Sat to post!!!

There are errors everywhere... so hopefully I will get to post again soon.

Last Year/This Year

I want to start a new little something called Last Year/This Year. I will post a photo of GBK from last year at this time and a photo of her at this time.

We will start with last year.

Please give a warm round of applause to...

http://www.thepier.blogs.com/



He is my pastor, minister, friend... yet none of the above.

He used to be my pastor until he moved on to a new job... he is really my husband's friend. I don't care for him much. I just let him baptize my child.

Actually, he is funny and smart- he thinks he is SuperMan and somedays we wonder if maybe he really is under those glasses of his...

so check him out, leave a few comments, tell him I sent ya and I promise that I will post something interesting sometime soon.

What are your T-Day plans?

We are starting a new family tradition this year. I will tell you about it after it happens.

~RM

I am in love with the bug killin' man

Do you know how long it has been since I have been given excellent customer service from a service company?

A long time.

A week or so ago, we heard a critter in the attic.
A few days later, I discovered mouse droppings. EEEEEK!!!

I immediately called the pest control company in town and begged them to send someone right away. They promised to come the next day. HOORAY!

The man showed up 15 minutes *early*. I can't remember the last time someone showed up on time, much less early!

He sprayed my whole house, as well as the perimeter. He got poison in the house to get rid of the rodents...

and all quickly and with a very good attitude.. nicest man ever.

And then he looked up and saw the dead love bugs that I had not gotten out of the cathedral ceiling in the foyer- I mean, I had no way to get them down without a leaf blower or hose!

So with a quick one, two, three he ran to his truck, grabbed his cobweb duster extender thingie and in 5 minutes flat had it completely cleaned up. Wow. That is what I call customer service!!

He didn't act like we were a bother or like he was in a rush to get to the next house or anything. In fact, he was going to lunch after our house and didn't act like he was gonna die of hunger if he didn't get out of our house immediately.

This is why we moved to the country. We wanted a more laid back way of life. We were killing ourselves in the city. And everyone around us was always in a huge hurry.

I hope that I never get stuck in that rut again.

Thank you bug man for the reminder.

GBK and I have the stuffy nose- sinus yuckiness. At least we have been able to sleep. We are still putting up Christmas decorations... yes, we are insane. It is the never-ending project. And I keep finding cheap little trees and decorations that I just can't live without! So here is a photo of GBK helping me string balls. She is a little OCD about lining them up in a row on one section only.

~RM

Toot toot! All aboard!

I couldn't choose just one... we went to Meridian's soule museum and train museum last weekend for a family outing.

Picture one: GBK is on the phone with (??) NoOne telling him/her all about the band-aid she had to put on Daddy's bo-bo that very morning. They are hanging out in the waiting area at the old train depot.

Picture two: GBK and I are testing out the train simulator. I am honking the horn (boy, was it loud) but GBK thinks that she is doing it.

Picture three: the train conductor gave GBK a paper hat that is supposed to make her look like the conductor or engineer or whatever (I don't know technical train terms). She looks more like an armored guard. She wore it this way for a good five minutes, keeping us laughing.

Isn't she the cutest?

~RM

Costume Number 2

She found our friends' M&M container. They ended up giving her the entire container to take home! She is showing us the different colors she found.

Yes, I have been tagged...

Yes, I have been tagged...
by two people! I am feeling so loved.

So thank you Rebekah and Sunday School Rebel.

The assignment: name five foods, dishes or otherwise, that were part of your childhood, that you sometimes miss when nostalgia gets to you...


(drummer drumming...)

Number 5:
spiessbraten-- this is a German dish that my Dad learned from his brother. Basically, they tie up a piece of beef or pork and slow cook it on a spit over an open fire. It is so good. And even better cold the next day. I used to wrap leftovers in aluminum foil and carry it in a brown paper sack for school lunch.

Number 4:
cinnamon toast
My brother (10 yrs older than I) taught me this one. Mix cinnamon and white sugar. Toast your bread. Slather with butter and sprinkle the sugar mixture on top. Fold bread and stuff half in your mouth as butter drips all over your face. If any sugar falls off in the meantime, simply sprinkle more on top.

Number 3:
nerds cereal- grape and strawberry. Back in the 80s, Nerds candy was all the rage. I loved strawberry and grape and was excited to find their cereal version at our local grocery store- Jitney Jungle. They packaged it in two separate bags- so each box contained 2 flavors. Every morning before school for at least a year or two, I ate a bowl of grape followed by a bowl of strawberry. I never liked to mix the two. Talk about sugar rush!

Number 2:
sweet potato casserole- My Granny's version. We would go to my grandparents' place in NC every year for Thanksgiving. And my Granny made the best sweet potato casserole. I will post the recipe at the bottom in case you want to try it this year at Thanksgiving.


And Number 1:
mac n cheese out of a box- it has to be the Kraft Cheese and Macaroni kind. Some nights when I am really down and depressed (which hasn't been in a while) I can eat the whole box by myself. No wonder I gained so much weight after my divorce- so many years ago. Geez.

My Granny used to cook it and have it ready for us when we would visit her. Ya know, I am not too crazy about the made from scratch version of M & C... I mean, it is ok and I will certainly eat a good helping of it... but I am so in love with the box dinner that that is what I always cook.

My husband's favorite childhood food/meal was Mac n Cheese (my version) with a hamburger patty with a squirt of ketchup on the side. We used to make it quite often. We still have it at least once a month.




Sweet Potato Casserole(My Granny's recipe)
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 stick margarine (melted)
3 eggs, beaten
salt to taste (about 1/2 -1 teaspoon)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla flavoring (or a little more)
1 cup Angel flake coconut

Mix well, spread in a baking dish (personally, I don't like the coconut and I am allergic so I leave it out)


Topping
1 stick margarine, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup Angel flake coconut
2 cups crushed corn flakes
chopped nuts, if desired (pecans are best)

Mix well and spread over sweet potato mixture

Bake 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees

costume number 1

Coon Eyes

(singing) do-do-do- lookin' out my back door


yes, my 2 crazy dogs chased this racoon up this fence post this morning.

He is looking at me like- if you come one step closer I am just gonna end my life and jump.

He has been sitting there for about an hour now.



And yes, Halloween pictures are coming...

Trick or Treat or Ho Ho Ho

I am crazy. I know it.

I have been laughed at. I am aware that people are talking about me behind my back.

You do not have to tell me, I already know it.

I started packing up the Halloween decorations and started putting up Christmas decorations.

OK. There. I said it. Laugh away. I don't care!

I inherited some new decor this year- just this week. Instead of packing it all away just to pull it back down in a few weeks I decided just to go ahead and get it all out and sift through and pick out the stuff I wanted to keep and give away what I didn't want.

So at least there was a valid reason!!

Well, it went very well. I will believe it when I see the check in the mail however. :)

It sounds like they are going to cover everything that we asked for and more. The contractor was here while the adjuster was here and they got everything worked out.

So RD and an employee started piling debris in the burn pile. Of course, we are still on a burn ban but at least we will have it in one area and not scattered all over the place.

I filed for unemployment a few weeks ago since we have no business left after the hurricane. RD is still working to rebuild... slowly but surely.The Unemployment office told me to be sure to call in weekly to keep getting benefits and I should hear something within a week or two. A week or so later, they sent me a denial letter. So I thought to myself "I guess there is no need to call in".

A few days later, I got a little check!! Actually, it was more than I was expecting. No complaints here. I tried to call to check in and see what was going on, but they told me that my case was closed because I didn't call in.

I said- well, I didn't call and check in because you sent me a denial letter!!!The nice lady said- well, yes, we automatically send those out.

OK- now I am thinking.... why in the heck are they wasting taxpayer money to send a letter that screws everything up so badly that it more than doubles the amount of time that the worker has to spend on the case as well as all of the extra time and gas money for me to drive down there to straighten things out. With a 20-month-old on my hip. Do you know how hard it is to keep her from running through the maze of cubicles? And the pens and papers scattered around the office were calling her by name. "come play with me!" "I have pretty purple ink!" "I have pretty black ink!" "I fly really far when you throw me!"

She is so strong, it is hard to keep her out of everything. She can pull herself away from me so quickly. I am losing control quickly. And she isn't even 2 yet!

Now do you know what she is gonna be for Halloween?

RM

day 17 and counting...

The Count From Sesame Street:

... 15 days... ah haha

16 days... ah haha

17 days... ah haha

Yes, 17 days since we last talked to an adjuster!

Ah hahahahahaha


*******
Yes, today is day 17 and we have an appt for this afternoon. Hopefully she will be able to find our house.
Send good vibes our way please.

Have you ever noticed?

Have you ever noticed that beautiful women always drive beautiful cars?

Take the time today to count the number of beautiful women that you see driving old klunkers.

I saw one girl the other day while I was waiting for Sam at the elctric company-
she was the cutest little thing. Perfect hair, perfect weight, great complexion. Not too dressed up, but her clothes were nice enough.

She was driving an old beat-up pickemup truck with the worst paint job, crumpled bumper, no AC, windows rolled down, muffler half-on, half-off...

and I thought to myself- yep, she must be borrowing her papaw's truck since her BMW is in the shop. Bless her little heart. Well, at least it was nice outside, not too hot or cold.

Take the time today to count the number of beautiful women that you see driving old klunkers and send me your numbers...

Another huge milestone

GBK is trying to potty train- she was saying tee-tee and poo-poo and going to get a diaper and wipes anytime that she thought she needed them.

SO... we bought her a potty training chair to sit on. She likes to sit on it naked and pretend... only, this morning, she did it for real!!

I was upstairs and when I came down she was naked with tee-tee in the potty!!! She grinned up at me and laughed. I wasn't even there when she did it!!

Maybe she wanted her privacy.

What a big girl.

BOO!

That is what she was screaming.

These were the pumpkins that we picked out the other night...

Quality family time

Sorry folks, those were the only decent pictures I really had of the wedding. The bride will have to tell you the link to view the professional pictures... I talked to her today and they should be home Sat. or Sun at the latest. Pray that Hurricane Wilma does not head their way before then.

Last night, GBK and RD and I went into town and found a church with a Pumpkin Patch. (You know you live far out when you refer to it as 'going to town')
She had her face painted- a huge orange pumpkin with a green stem. (I forgot to wash her face when I put her to bed and now there is orange paint smeared on her bed sheet)

GBK picked the biggest pumpkin as you can see. We brought them home and decorated them and played with them. GBK kept pulling the bat wings out and reinserting them. That lasted a good 30 minutes.

She also randomly screams BOO!
One time she did it to a sweet little old man in Wal-Mart. I was afraid he was gonna have a heart attack. BOO! Yep, just that random.

Hopefully I can post more pictures tomorrow. This is the 82nd time I have tried to post this so I am a bit weary of posting. arghhh

Aren't they the cutest couple ever? He caught the garter and she caught the bouquet... maybe they are destined to be together? That is what we are working on...
This was at the rehearsal dinner. Fancy schmancy. And the finest steak I have eaten in my life. It was so scrumptious!


Ya know, I didn't take the first wedding/reception photo. Where did the time go? It's also hard to conceal a digital camera in the bridesmaid bouqet we were given. But oh how beautiful they were!

So here we are- Bella Belly and I trying to get Stella the Second on the bride. Isn't she beautiful? (yes, Stella *and* the bride) I will let Bella Belly explain what she is doing here.

I had to stand on a chair to get the dress high enough so that it didn't scrape the ground and get dirty.
Due to the hurricane, we had no carpet in the "gettin' ready room" so we had to make due with borrowed rugs.

I have 1082 stories about the wedding but they will have to wait.

The GBK did great walking down the aisle but forgot to throw the petals after she saw all of those people watching her! She did walk to Beaux and then just set her basket down on the ground like "yes, I take him to be my husband, forever and ever amen."


RM

Cheers!

Please send your friends, bloggie pals, etc here to leave a wedding toast to the bride and groom- Sunday school rebel and Beaux. Some of them may be read at the wedding, ya never know!

They will wed Sat at 4pm. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

I will be first... check out the comments section.
RM

update on the plane crash

OK. So it wasn't a plane crash, just sounded like one.

We live not too far from the airport and about once a month, they fly over or near our house. I guess a plane was just flying really really low making it sound loud about the same time RD hit something or moved something while he was puttering around on the tractor.

Scared the bejeebies out of me.

Anyways, I drove to the church to change the church sign for 'the wedding'.
It is so cool to see both last names on that beautiful sign.
I had so much fun doing that for them! I wish someone woulda taken my picture!


So here is the question of the day, I need advice.

If there is a person in your circle of friends that you used to be friends with... actually really good friends with (opposite sex but not a sexual relationship in any way) that has hurt you so deeply that you are not able to be that person's friend until he gives you a huge apology...

DO YOU:
A. Ignore him in public and private. Because really, why waste your time *pretending*.

Or

B. Pretend that nothing ever happened and you are cool with anything and everything because hey, you are easy to get along with and be around and nothing is gonna ruffle your feathers, including some jerk that thinks that the world revolves around him.

I don't do either very well. I already tried to confront him. He ignored me. I tried to send him an email explaining how I felt. He didn't respond. We go to church together and this is a very awkward situation.


GBK has been practicing her pedal throwing. She especially likes to throw them in the pews. I am so anxious to see what she does on Sat. y'all!

I have a feeling she is gonna see GF (that stands for godfather, I am all about the abreviations lately) and run up the aisle and beg him to pick her up and never let go. And someone will have to find the fruit snacks and pry her fingers from his neck bribing her to leave him. It may not be pretty.

news from the countryside

She thinks she is taking a picture with my pedometer. She is obsessed with taking pictures.

We had a contractor come out to give us an estimate for our roof. $4000. Quite a bit more than the $200 that the insurance gave us to repair it. What an insult. So we are counting the days that it will take for an adjuster to come out.

Today is DAY 3 and counting...


*****

Yesterday was a fiasco. We were to have our yearly family photo taken. HA. It never happened.

I called and got an 11:30 appt. We got there at 11:20. There were 2 people in front of us when we got there.

At 1:30, we were finally next in line. So we started getting dressed. RD in his tux, GBK in her flower girl dress and I in my bridesmaid dress. Did we ever look smashing!

While the person in front of us was checking out and paying, RD was obsessing over the fact that his shirt was too big (I told him to try it on before we left the house!!!) and GBK was running around the store burning off energy. She was trying so hard to be so good those 2 1/2 hours that we had waited...

at 1:45 we still had not been called back and GBK ripped her flower girl dress!!!

Read that last line again.
One more time.

Now you understand why I had a nevous break down. I went to the dressing room, changed my clothes, ripped GBK's clothes off until she was nearly naked. I grabbed everything we had and left the building.

Of course, RD and I exchanged a few words and we nearly divorced over the whole situation. It was ugly, people!

So here we are. Still no family portrait. GBK and I may have to go alone. RD had wasted a whole day of work on pictures that never happened. For that I feel bad. But that was out of my control.

The afternoon was even more bizarre. But that is for a later post.

I just heard a weird sound that sounded like a plane crashing in our back yard. I better go investigate.

She will be a swimmer or plumber

Yes, she is swimming. I am *not* dunking her in this picture. Don't you dare stare at my fat rolls. I really couldn't care less about them at this point- I have gotten over them. And I have lost 15 lbs this summer for Saturday's wedding, so I am proud!

And here she is helping Daddy install our new kitchen sink!! Thankfully, this one doesn't leak all over the place. I love it.

Dave will have to give me permission to post his bra picture.

RM

My Aunt Barbara... that I wrote about 2 days ago

OK people. I just figured out the posting photos thing. Yes, you are in trouble, because I love to take photos.


So we will have a vote today.

Would you rather see a picture of the green bean kid, Hurricane damage or Dave with a bra draped around his neck? Talk quick- you have less than 12 hours.

Hahaha... I love this.

RM

my friend Dave

Yep. We got the insurance check today. It was exactly what the lady told me yesterday. I had to live it all over again.

I got an email from my best friend from high school yesterday (hi Dave). He was telling me about his job promotion (HOORAY!) and I told him about the damage to our property. He was willing to get on an airplane and be here this weekend to help me (but I have this friend who is getting married this weekend... so I am booked this weekend- haha) (HOORAY Sam!)

Anyways- it made me realize how awesome it is to have a friend that you can talk to every 6-12 months and when you get back on the phone, it is like no time passed and you realize that you would literally do anything for that friend.

I have to tell you a few things about my friend Dave:

We were in high school band together, I think that is how we met. I played flute and he played trombone.

Sometimes I call him Dave and sometimes I call him David. Isn't that funny... like I am his mother or something.

He invited me to church camp all through high school. I woulda rather roomed with him but got stuck with the girls. Damn rules.

Dave lived in the same neighborhood as my family during high school, about a 5-10 minutes walk.

Dave used to walk this dog around the neighborhood... was his name Chuffy? Something like that. (Dave, help me out.)
What kind of name is Chuffy? I hope I am wrong about that. Was that his neighbor's dog? I think so but can't remember.

Sometimes I used to walk with him and we would share stories, dreams, rants, whatever. He was my best friend... although I don't know if either one of us realized it at the time.


And now on with the story...

One day, Dave came over (I don't think that we went for a walk but maybe we did, I don't remember). I had on cream colored panty hose and a cream skort, short- just above the knees. This was probably in 1992 or so.... I don't really remember the year. What I *do* remember is having a huge run in my pantyhose. And I started making more runs and picking at it while we sat in my living room talking. My mother was right there in the kitchen the whole time cooking supper. Before I knew it, I had most of one leg of hose completely ripped open!
I guess I was bored. Or tired. Or just acting kooky.

But I really started getting into it. And then Dave really started to get into it! Next thing ya know, Dave and I managed to rip the whole pair of hose completely off of my body without removing any of my clothes.

Hmmm... I am not sure what that means. And I have no earthly idea why I am telling you this. But it is just one of those weird moments in life that you just don't forget.

Looking back, I can't figure out why my mother allowed that to happen. She was so strict and everything, ya know.

So anyways, everyone raise your glass as we congratulate Dave on his big time job promotion!

(Note to Dave: I love you sweetie, thank you for putting up with me during those growing up years. You have no idea how you influenced my life. And I am so proud of the great man and wonderful daddy you have become. And oh yeah, I still have that picture of you with the bra wrapped around your shirt. Should I post that here?)

My insurance company is on crack

I had a great day today. Thank you to all of my new friends that left me comments!! Wow that felt great. I never knew what I was missing out on.

The only bad part of my day was when I discovered that my insurance company has been smoking crack. Yes, I know this for a fact because I went by to check in and see why it has been almost three weeks since I have heard from- only to be told "the check is in the mail'.

"What check?" I wanted to know. How could they send me a check when they had no details on the damage- I mean, how did they know what brand of carpet I had (that has to be replaced) and where I bought it? So I asked for an itemized receipt from them.

Just what I expected. Total bull shit. Can I say that here?

The estimate was for $2400. And we have a $500 deductible. So they are sending us less than 2 GRAND!
People, my new carpet (that we just got in June, by the way) was almost $2500!!

Who is gonna cover the roof, 50 feet of wooden fence that must be replaced, the debris in the yard, the trees that still have to be cut, the barbed wire fence that is down, the stained ceilings/wall where rain leaked in, the 2 sets of french doors that must be replaced, the hardwood floor that has to be ripped up, and all of the other damage that I have no energy to write about right now?

They also forgot to add the refrigerator and freezer that have to replaced since you can not kill mold in a frig that sat for 3 weeks with no electricity!

Yes, this is my first rant on this blog. Probably not my last.

But at least I didn't let it ruin my day.
I will just collect my thoughts and make notes and share them with the new adjuster that I demanded that they send.

Madi is 19 months old now... almost 20 months.

She discovered the poker set this morning. So she has every die, chip and card scattered downstairs.

I am not sure what this means. A potential accountant, professional gambler, or maybe she just knows how to have a good time! Or maybe she is just showing me that she will be messy like her daddy.

One Down, Four to Go

My mom's daddy is one of 13 children. In other words, more kids than you can name in under 10 seconds, especially in order. One of his brothers lives on the coast and is married to the coolest woman I have ever known.

When I was young we would go to their house for family gatherings, usually a fish fry on Independence Day. I have great memories of them. One reason that I remember those days so well is because they live 2 blocks from the Gulf of Mexico and we would visit the beach after a fish fry. I hate the beach- the sand, the salt water, scary sea creatures. I was not meant to live at the beach.

In the Spring of 2004 I learned that my aunt was diagnosed with cancer. CANCER- my worst fear for any of my family members- and worst personal fear- since so many family members have died from it (including my mom's daddy back in the early 80s) or at least suffered from it.

But she has survived and is in recovery. Doesn't she look great? Just before I learned of her diagnoses, my husband and I visited her home and planned to stay in her guest house. My husband's brother and daughters accompanied us. We arrived and Aunt Barbara informs me that instead of staying in her guest house, she has made reservations for us at the local *fancy schmancy* hotel. With complete water park for hotel guests only. So we took the kids and had a great time.

While we were there, my aunt asked me how many children I wanted... because I had such a great time with my nieces. I told her nine- but my husband wouldn't go for it... and we compromised at five. She laughed and said she would ask me again after I had one or two.

Up until this time, I was unable to get pregnant, even on fertility pills. While we were on this mini-vacation, I forgot 3 of my pills. But decided not to stress over it... we would just try again the next month. But after this very enjoyable, relaxing weekend, we got pregnant within weeks. And nine months later, Madison Leigh was born.

My parents took Madison and me to visit my aunt and uncle this week. Little did I know that on August 29 Hurricane Katrina would come and go, taking their house with her.

But that last time that I saw her, she asked me again- "so how many more?"- And I said "Well, one down, four to go!"