yipee skippy

This picture is of Nancy and me at my graduation from college. Hope to do it again in about a year!

• Quick updates:My camera is fixed! happy happy oh so happy- just needed a new card.


• Jay won with the cable company- he will find out tomorrow how they will settle this.


• I got an "A" on a paper from a prof who said he doesn't give "A's".


• Our new blinds are up and look really nice.


• My eye, although not back to normal, isn't any worse.

Bureaucracy is a way of life today

• I called several bookstores including the University one. "Yes, I'm calling about a book I need to order for my class. Oh, there is no book?" Move ahead a bit. Then I get wind that I do have a bunch of books needed for this class.
• I call the bookstore back and get another surly person. Your professor's fault not ours, he says. Ok. thanks. I order it online. Take that bookstore!

• I got another letter from college addressed to the wrong address. Thank goodness my aunt is good about getting mail to me. Somehow she is my permanent address. I have called Kent several times to change this. She is your next of kin, they say. Why is this even in there to be confused? They say it is fixed.
• Call back to change address AGAIN because my aunt keeps getting mail for me from school. Another surly operator. It is changed, she says. And you need to call another department. I did, I say, and they both sent me to you. She then gives me an address where I change it myself. Fine.

• I call my doctor and inquire why they haven't given me the doctor referral. They say the doc was supposed to call me by now. You call them, they say. Of course I will. That's what I do.

• Professor says to go to special web site for tests, etc.. This site is not there. Of course it isn't because this is the Twilight Zone where nothing goes right today. E-mail for help and haven't heard back yet.

On a positive note: All whining aside, I am still grateful that I am able to be in college at all. This must not be forgotten.

Jay's turn at the bureaucracy wheel:

• In July, 2005 we enrolled for a premium service for our computer/cable. This upgrade has been billed and paid for since that date. At this stage it appears very likely that our service was never actually activated; but we were certainly billed for it! Jay explained this to three different representatives today and all three are united in their exquisitely simple response. "It looks like you have the service because you are being billed for it." This is followed by hair pulling frustration. How do you argue your way out of a circular argument? Oh, and we are talking about hundreds of dollars in dispute. The cable company, ironically brought this to our attention when we were inquiring about a separate issue. They said there was a service order back in '05 that wasn't put through but still charged. Now they are back peddling.

No camera blues

Uh oh. I broke my camera. I feel dizzy. I feel sick. No camera? This can't be happening! And I have stuff I really want to photograph. Geez, I sound like a junkie.

I just finished another paper for school. Only 204,574,197 more to go!

We just moved around all the furniture in the living room and got blinds to replace some really old, musty curtains from before I was born. That is really fun. Some people keep their living room the same for years. Others change it up. I can't imagine keeping it the same. How boring.

Clearly I have nothing to say. ha ha. So good night!

The Paaarty

If you only knew how much she loves Sheri!

The "cake"

Visiting in the yard, watching Tara ride her bike.

You guys are saints.

Who doesn't like throwing a ball?

I love her expression here!

All the way from New York. I love this picture of them reading with her.

Tara cashed in big. I mean big. :) She even got a bike from my dad and mom. She was reticent to try it at first but my cousins and aunt and uncle got her up and on it in no time, although they bribed her with 1 dollar each to try. I want that deal! Try something fun and get paid! That's the life for me.


Tom, I bet you will be sore tomorrow after schlepping her up and down the street four hundred times. Uncle Jim, you are a wonderful person for putting the training wheels on and teaching Tara AND Emily how to break on their bikes and to balance.


Tara got all kinds of cute clothes that passed her fashion test. And I don't know how everyone knew just what to get her. She got balls and Dora things, books and stuffed toys. She went to bed tired but happy and with the full knowledge that she is loved. Thank you for that, Dee, Jim, Dad, Mom, Joe, Sheri, Tom, Kathy and Hank.

Tara had, oh about 6 clothes changes today, which is above average even for Tara! Oh, the laundry.

The cake I made looked pretty funky but tasted alright. I am not a baker. Mommy tried Tara. Next year I bet you won't ask for homemade. Those Giant Eagle cakes are looking a lot better to you now, huh Tara? :)

And it was good to see you too Nancy, although you don't read this blog. You stayed till 1 am so I am tired but glad to have seen and visited you.

Words to live by

IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER - by Erma Bombeck (written after she found out she was dying from cancer).

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner." There would have been more "I love you's." More "I'm sorry's."

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute...look at it and really see it . Live it and never give it back.

Fun was had by?

Week one of school - done.

Jay's new job- moving along nicely.

Em had a thing at school today for me to come and have doughnuts. Sounds nice, huh? Not so fast. Without sounding like a complete whiny baby, I'll stick to my biggest grief with the event. When Jay had his Em and Daddy time at school last week, they sat; they visited; they had a doughnut; they bonded. Move ahead to today and my turn. No bonding, no visiting, no chair to sit.... why?... we had a PROJECT to do. Oh, and it was a math project. Oh, and we had like 3 minutes to accomplish it. Oh, and it involved coloring, measuring, gluing, solving and otherwise stressing over. Oh, and it was for a grade. Oh, and the teacher came in the room in a snippy mood. Oh, and Emily had to present our project after I left. Oh, and she said we did it wrong when she got home. Yep, It was a swell time.

Happy Birthday!

Coming in from school with stories to tell about her day.

Homework on birthday? Not fair.

Emily calls her MP3 player an "IPad" We're working on it...

What a day!

Em took this of Tara and Debi yesterday.

Em took this of Tara watching herself on screen. Cool.

Dad reads Tara's award. Another Emily photo

We are officially celebrating Tara's birthday on Sunday but here are some pictures from her birthday today. Why? Because it's fun and I love pictures.
Oh and we got back the photos Em took. Not bad at all! There were some pictures with heads cut off and walls and such, but some were actually cute. Good job Emmy!

Kindergarten ceremony

Tara with her awards and beloved teacher

Tara hugs buddy

Tall Tara performing in the back row.

The whole bunch

My baby's going to be six tomorrow. I kept telling Tara to tell me how old she is since I'll never hear 5 again after today. Sniff sniff.

She had her Kindergarten graduation today. My parents and Debi went. Emily took pictures on a disposable. I can't wait to develop those to see what she took. Debi said she saw her take a picture of the wall once....

Debi took great pictures. I'll post a couple. You rock Debi.

Tara got two awards, one for reading and one for gym. Fun was had by all, except me at school and Jay at work. :)

I have to stop now. I am in sentiment overload.

T's letter to teacher

I know I just posted but Tara just dictated a letter to me, to give to her teacher. It made me laugh. I don't know if I'll give it to the teacher, though. Here's what the letter said.

Dear Mrs. L.

You are the sweetest, nicest teacher in the whole universe. I wish I could marry you , but you're a girl and you already have a boyfriend.

Love,
Tara.

:)

So you'll be there right? Well...

Ok so here's the thing. I am not going to my own daughter's kindergarten graduation and neither is Jay. We both feel pretty bad about this. I have school and can't miss, and Jay has work and can't miss. BUT my wonderful dad and mom and my best friend Debi are going in our place. I have been feeling like the worst mother and then my good friend Sheri reminded me that Tara was only 1/13th of the way through school. And that's why I love Sheri. She keeps things in perspective.

Anyway, I was thinking of giving Emily a one-time-use camera to capture the moments that her parents won't see. I am curious what an eight-year-old's pictures might turn out like. Being shorter than the crowd, she'll probably capture the back of someone's head.

Debi and my dad will use my camera, I hope. It only likes me, though. Everyone else gets blurry pictures from it. Jay does have a video camera from 1987. I wish I were kidding. It looks like a newsman's camera compared to all the video cameras of today. We are so unhip.

I'm not a bad mother, just a busy mother. I'm not a bad mother, just a busy mother.... I still feel bad.

Photo op and me with no camera

We had a great time today with friends. We went all over today. I had forgotten my camera and went into withdrawals. There were so many times when the kids ( four cutie pies ) were doing something adorable or the nature was beautiful and I wanted to capture it. Oh well, it was easier to stay in the moment and not try to stop everyone for a photo op every five seconds like I usually do.

We went down to a farm display sort of thing. It wasn't easy to find. But they had all kinds of animals to pet and we saw adorable baby goats born just this morning! The highlight for the kids and I'll admit it, me too, was a display of grains in baby wading pools. We played in those for quite a while. Then we all piled back in our van and went to Stan Hywet for a display of tree houses. Many of them were rather lame. My friend and Jay would back me up on this one. These tree houses were more artsy than practical fun places for children. Some were even kind of dangerous with high ladders and weird exits. But we got lots of exercise, had lots of fun laughing and dealing with more children than adults. Tara has a powerful crush on one of the children with us. He's her new squeeze du jour.

I've got to go now and take some pictures of odds and ends to get my camera fix for the day! ha ha.

Craving a good movie

Is it just I, or have the movies coming out lately been kind of blah? Does anyone recommend a good movie rental?

Tell me again, how many teeth do kids have?

Tara lost her first tooth yesterday.Well, she had one pulled before so it isn't technically her first tooth. Anyway, we have been watching this loose tooth like the Apollo Moon Landing. It was the topic of I'd say 98% of my latest discussions with Tara.


Bath finished and warm in her bed, I thought the Tara tooth stand-off 2007 was done for the night. Nope. Out she ran, itty bitty tooth in hand. Jay was at work but the rest of the street and part of Akron heard her shouts of delight.


Emily immediately took over the Tooth Fairy part of this equation. She, knowing that Tara can't spell very well yet, took it upon herself to write to the Tooth Fairy. In my day, there was no need to write to her. You got what you got. But the thing that made me laugh is that Em asked for another 5 bucks! She then signed it "Yours truly, Tara." Such schemers!


Then we put this mini tooth in a Ziploc so that the Tooth Fairy could find it better under her pillow.** wink wink.** Tara went happily to bed. Then she just couldn't resist opening it and thought she lost the tooth in her bed. We looked for it (I can't even do its size justice; it is that dang small)for a few frenzied minutes before realizing it was still in the bag! Crisis averted. No wonder I have eye problems. Stress, thy name is child with loose teeth!

(Oh, and yes she got the five bucks.) Somewhere in cyber space I just heard a few people say "sucker" under their breath. :)

zoo and eye

Tara went to the Akron Zoo yesterday with her school. Today she came home with a disc of pictures that her parent leader took of her group. I have to say I don't know this mom but I love her! What a very sweet thing to do for us.

They all wore the same neon t'shirts so they wouldn't get lost. It was a kind of -if lost return to the-kindergarten-group kind of thing. They all looked so cute.

It was just the nice thing I needed. Between yesterday and today, I have been to three doctors and had lots of tests. The short of it is that I have central serous chorioretinopathy. It's an eye disorder that causes fluid to leak through a small break in the retina. It causes me to see a black circle in my left eye. It is no fun. The good news is that it will probably go away over a few months. The bad news is that it may not go away. I was told this mostly happens to men with Type A personalities. I am neither. The exact cause of this is unknown but it is linked to stress. It is also quite a case of it I am told. I was in a room with a retina specialist and an ophthalmologist today who were having a go at my fluorescein angiography results. I felt like I was in a surreal episode of ER. I never thought I'd see the inside of my eyeball. The problem was clearly visible on the computer screen, even to my untrained eye. No puns intended. The doctor, who was very competent but had breath like a donkey's backside, told me to reduce stress. How exactly does one do that? It's not like we wake up and go- Gee today I am going to stress myself into an eye disorder!

field trips and lunch

Both the girls have field trips tomorrow. They both need packed lunches. The lunches must be completely able to be thrown away at the end warns Tara 600,000 times. I GOT IT! "Oh, and Mom?"
Yes Tara
"It has to be so that I can throw it away."
Sigh...
Field trips make school worthwhile don't you think? All the class work is made up for those couple times a year when you get to go somewhere. You can see this excitement in their eyes.

You know about noon on this field trip, when everyone sits down to eat and inspects each other's lunch? When I was a kid, the lunches were the thing that could make or break you socially. There were all kinds of lunches. There were those kids whose lunch looked like it was catered. Then there were the kids that had every kind of snack cake, treat, and sugary something. I wanted to sit next to those kids. :) In my school it was Laura H. who had that kind of lunch. She had lots of friends at lunch time. Then there was the kid that had all the health food. He had celery and tofu and nuts and boiled eggs and a container just for a dip for his apple slices. No one wanted to trade with him. But as a parent, I can't help but be a bit impressed now thinking back on it. He is probably all grown up now with no cholesterol and running marathons.

I had all this in mind as I packed Em and Tara's lunches a few minutes ago. Intellectually, I know it doesn't really matter. Just give them something to eat. But I want them to open their lunch and smile. So.. I totally over packed for both of them. Their lunches weigh about 10 pounds each. kidding....sorta. They have a sandwich, of course, since this is a staple. Then they have cheese curls for the trade factor, and a snack cake so they'll be popular. ( I do realize that I am being shallow ), string cheese and raisins for health and a drink.

I just know I am going to forget to give it to them tomorrow and they will be that one sad kid whose parent didn't give them a lunch. :(

Of course, I may be over thinking this a tad.

Fun day

This was the best mother's day ever for me. I loved my day from start to finish. I feel really grateful. I woke up and immediately got McDonald's, which has really tasty egg sandwiches. I also got a huge bouquet of roses with a vase and a sign and hand made cards.

Then we took a sign over to my mom's house for her to see when they get home from Pennsylvania tonight.


We went to Michael's craft store and just looked around. We also went to Berean, a Christian store. I got a devotional book that we can do as a family every day. We'll see if I can be disciplined enough to actually do that every day. :)


The girls wanted to go to Seiberling Nature Realm so we went and walked a trail. Tara was carried by both of us at some point. Boy, she was heavy. She declared that she had walked enough for a five-year old. She won't be able to say that for much longer. Her sixth birthday is May 24th.

Then we drove through the valley and ate at Rocco's pizza in the Falls.


Right now the girls are playing outside. Jay is watching Mad Money. Sopranos tonight-can't wait. My laundry is actually caught up and put away. You can't ask for anything more.

Happy Mother's Day Mom.

You are an inspiration to everyone who knows you.


You are intelligent, dignified, beautiful and unique.



I love you.

Mother's Day early

Tara came home with her Mother's Day presents and immediately gave them to me. I asked her if she wanted to wait until Sunday, but she wanted me to have it now now now. The bag it came in had her family, or famriey as she wrote it, pictured and named: Dad, Mom, Tara, Emily, God, dog - in that order. That just cracks me up.
She gave me a picture of herself in dress up clothes with a hand made picture of herself all in a frame. There was also a book with all the kids in her class responding to questions. The spellings and answers were, um creative. Here is what she wrote about me.

• I love my mother. My name is Tara
• My mother's name is Joan ( backwards J)
• My mother is 30 (backwards 3) years old. That's exactly right Tara. :) One kid wrote that his mother was 3 and another wrote hers was 514. hee hee
• My mother's favorite food is BSkadey (spaghetti)
• My mother likes to Play wif my dog
• My favorite food that my mother makes for me is makawoney and caes (macaroni and cheese). Yes, I am the chef of the century.

Ahhh. Tis fun to be the mama sometimes.

We just got back from a thrift store where I got the girls clothes and dolls for very cheap and they are happy as clams. Thrift stores rock.

Milifred and stuff

Millie ,or Millifred when she's bad, is doing about the same. My dad doesn't think she is hurt too badly. I would like her to have an MRI and CAT scan immediately. Ha ha. Animal health care should be free. Who's with me? Let's lobby Congress. That aside, she is limping but does manage to get where she wants albeit slowly. Millie looks at me with this pitiful, do something, kind of look. Jay doesn't see the look. ha ha

Jay's job starting was delayed a few days because the trainer wasn't ready.

My first class starts soon. It is an accelerated class between Spring and Summer sessions. I have five classes this summer. I hope I don't get the professor who says, "Well since you probably are only taking this course this summer let's go ahead and have you write 10 papers and read these 16 books for next week. mmmkay?"

Millie was lost part 2

Now we are worried that she might have been hit by a car when she was "on the run". She is limping around. I am worried. We are going to watch her tonight and take her to the animal hospital if it doesn't get better.

Please think good thoughts for Millie....

Millie was lost for a second.

Blogging for anxiety reduction...

I went outside to get Millie off of her leash and she wasn't there. I thought at first that Jay must have taken her to the store with him. Then I found the clip from her leash. I called and called and nothing.

I'm still shaking- and I'm not kidding. The thought of her going missing is really awful to me.

Then I opened the window in Tara's room and from the corner of my eye, way down the street I see a flash of white. I was happy and scared all at the same time. Would she come to me from that far away and is that, in fact Millie? Jay had not taken her to the store after all and she was roaming free.

I called her, or maybe screamed her name (sorry neighbors) and she started running home. I bolted out the door and ran around the house as she came up the walk. She looked like she had been having a grand ole time up on K. road- a very busy road right by the highway.

I am giving God the glory for this one. I would not have spotted her, I don't think, without some divine intervention.

Gotta go and shore up her leash and pet her and be thankful that I still have my precious dog.

Tara's peach tree in the making

Tara planted her seed in true Tara fashion- wearing a dress and a t-shirt with a picture of herself on it! That is so Tara. She would like if I would let her pick her own outfits every day for school, but as of now she picks only on weekends. Otherwise, she'd wear a prom dress to school every day.

She planted her seed finally and really wrestled with the shovel. It was almost as big as she is. She also liked to pose for pictures looking a bit like a mini diva- ha ha. Pretty soon she'll be instructing me to only photograph her good side and watch out for the perfect lighting. I think I have created a camera hound with all my picture taking. Case in point- today she told me she is the prettiest person in the universe. With a smile, she then asked me what the universe was. Now that's confidence. She doesn't even know what the universe is but is convinced she is the best looking one in it! You gotta love her.

The trip to...

...the ballet today was great. The costumes were beautiful as was the Civic Theatre. This was the prize Emily had won from Radio Disney. The amount of work and practice it takes those dancers to do what they do is amazing.

I was worried the girls would get antsy.. and they did a little. But overall, they were well behaved. At one point I looked over at Jay and saw him taking a quick siesta. He is a good sport for going.

Ready to leave for the ballet.

The debutantes outside the theater.

On our way in.


Stand still for your mugshots.


Would you please stop taking pictures, Mom?

Debi and her cats

I went to see my great friend Debi yesterday. Debi and her husband have a dairy farm in Homeworth. Debi also works full time in drafting.
Her cat, Louis, has been sick and was in the veterinary hospital. He had some kind of bacterial thing but is better now. He sure gave Debi a scare.
We did little things around the farm. Debi lifted these big things of food for the cows. I could barely drag them and she was hoisting them effortlessly into the truck! I can't believe how strong she is... or maybe I am just weak. ha ha. It was good seeing her and Todd and all the farm animals. If I could've found a way, I would have put this one goat from another farm in my car.... so loving and cute.

Debi with Sam the Scrapper

Louis AKA The Feline Patient
sunning by the barn

Barn kitty

One of the barns
and the milk house.

making a swing set

The tongue is necessary for balance. :)

The frame going up.

I am supervising and taking my own picture.

Finally it is finished! Neighbor Paul trys out new swing with girls.

Just some of what was on the roof!

King of the mountain.

Jay made a swing set for the girls from the ground up today. He had cut boards and painted them, and today put it all together. He and I were outside ALL DAY doing this. It was more work than you'd think at first glance. There were chains and screws and boards and sawing.... Mostly I just supervised. :) I was instrumental in cheerleading and tea fetching. I even held up a side for about a minute. I am exhausted. ha ha.


The kids came home as we were still working on it. They played with the neighbor boys for a couple of hours. At one point they all had water balloons. It's fun to be a kid in nice weather like this. Then they tried out the new swing. There were minor adjustments.


I took a quick trip to Taco Bell, did homework with both girls, cleaned up dirty faces and hands, cleaned up the yard...

Jay also got on the roof and got down an ENORMOUS amount of sticks and dirt that had accumulated over the year. Our roof is flat so everything just stays up there.


After I post this, there will be baths and bedtime stuff for Em and Tara and a back rub for my hard working Jay.


It was a happy and productive day.

Open mouth insert Tara's foot

We met some very nice people from our church a couple of days ago. We went over to their house for a small group Bible study. The kids ran around and played with other kids.

Later, we got in the car and were halfway home when Tara said that she had taken the host aside in her kitchen and said, " I don't mean to be rude but my house is bigger than yours."

Jay and I cringed. A wave of horror and embarrassment came over us and I said, "Tara, you can't say that to people!" She looked puzzled and said, "But I said that I don't mean to be rude first!" Teaching manners to a five-year-old is an uphill battle.