Spring is HERE!

I truly hope that Spring has arrived here in Dixieland. The leaves are beginning to sprout,my plum bush is blooming,and the daffodils are spreading yellow pollen over everything. We've been having some super soaker showers around here too. Last night I woke up and thought I was in a car wash.The rain was hammering,and the wind was blowing. On the vinyl sidding that covers our home, it truly sounded like a car wash! Then I went back to a fevered sleep.Full of odd dreams,and no smoking signs. I know its Spring,b/c Ive got a sinus infection. Last week it was the flu with the kids,this week,its me and Neil,witht he drips and fever and headaches. AHHHH spring! Its baseball practice and windy. Its yard toys strown all over the yard.THe early purple clover has taken over the front yard,and it needs to be cut. Ours,and most of our neighbors.Its time to start planting early summer crops of stuff. Its beautiful. Its painful too.With all the things blooming.Its reeking havoc on my nose and head. AHHHH!!!!! Spring!

I think we're going to QUIT!

Neil and I had a serious disccusion about quitting smoking. I bought 3 packs of smokes yesterday at a cost of 14.95. YES! 15 bucks for 3 packs of smokes. When I signed the debit card slip,my eyes bout bugged out of my head. It is NOT worth it to me! Ive siad Im cheap, but I smoke. Ive said he and I want to save money. Well continuing to smoke aint helping the cruise fund at all! He and I were on the porch before he went to work yesterday,and I told him how much 3 packs cost. Ive been smoking Basic Menthol lights.THey are normally cheaper than Marlboro,and for a menthol, to me there is none better than a Basic. For Non Menthols,we both prefer a Marlboro light. I laughingly told him,we were either gonna have to quit,or start smoking less,or smoke cheaper cigs. He said he didnt like the cheapies,and he'd just rather quit. Hmmm, I thought. MAYBE we can quit. I know succesful former smokers. My Mom for one. Her husband helped her a lot through it. He didnt smoke, but he sure detest it! I'm not sure exactly how she did it,but I will be finding out! I know she dont drink coffee too much anymore. For me coffee and smokes are family.I start every day with a cup of joe and a smoke. Im not much of a late day smoker,or night smoker.Unless Im in a social situation. IE, alchohol. I dont do that hardly at all anymore either. For Neil,its smokes and beer.We've had manya morining on the porch or patio,me with coffee and him with a cold one. Just smoking and talking. {he works nights,so beer at 8am aint a big deal}.He barely drinks anymore too.
Someone asked me one time,WHY,I smoked. I point blank siad b/c I enjoy it.And that still is the truth. I enjoy smoking. I dont know why that is. I know its HORRIBLE for you,and your body.And I figure,Im not doing meth,so cigs ain't that bad. Well,maybe they are. They're just legal.{For the record,Ive never done any hard drugs. I do think "pot" should be legal.If you grow it in your own yard,and dont sell it.} So...There are many benifits of quitting,health wise. Yes,I know this.Every smoker does,contrary to popular believe. Reading about cancer and emphaseyma {sic} dont scare me.
aside: Levi just walked up and hurled all over me and the floor.I slid the laptop out of harms way before he errupted! EEEEEWWWW! GROOOOSSSSS!!!! Clabbered strawberry milk and grapes. Talk about an apetite suppresant. Fortuantly Neil was home,so he scooped him up for a dunk in the tub. I cleaned it up with paper towels and a cloth napkin. Firgure one less cloth napkin aint gonna break us. So the susequent kitchen strip down probably gave my neighbors a show,since there aint no leaves yet.Ahhh motherhood. Now,BOTH boys have a doc apt at 2 pm today. ANd thank God,I have a great husband. Oh,we're all up n love.But sometimes having a partner who will scoop and bathe is more important than "taking care of mama".For that momnet at least! So now the puked on clothes are in the washer,and I will be washing my own tail sometime between now and 1pm. Dam,I need a smoke!}
Ok,so I hope no more puke for today.I will hurl right along with Levi if he does it again. I think I will for sure not be eating anything for breakfast! I dont know if this is hte right time for me to quit. I googled,duh. ANd got some great tips. PPL are either Gung Ho about cold turkey or theyre not.I dont think I am.For myself,I think Ill use the cut back method.It owrked when I got pregnant with Levi.It took me longer to quit with him,than it did with Jake.With Jake the mere mention of a smoke would have me hurling,but not with Levi. I can only imagine how big hed have been if I had not smoked for 3 months! Bad mom,I know.On these diet pills Ive been smoking up to a pack a day.Off the pills, a pack would last me like 4 days.So I really need to slow down! But I use my smokes as a reward system for myself.Like,I'll pick up and vaccum,then unload and reload the Dw,and maybe start a load of clothes. then go smoke while the washer is running.Maybe more than one,esp if im on the computer or reading a book.
I think that first thing in the moring smoking will be my worst,and driving. I do ok if Neil is driving,but when I drive,I just jam out and chain smoke.Yes,sadly with my kids in the car. I roll down my window almost all the way,and crack a back one.My mroning smoking is at the kitchen window "office". As in the laptop perched on a bar stool,and me in one of the extra folding chairs we have incase theres extras at supper. At least I have a view.Bad Sarah! I do ahve a fan blowing it out,or at least thats what I tell myself. The LR window is cracked,b/c even with the window open it will still smoke up in here.Its just been such a long winter! I had to get creative! And since I have been getting up before daylight,its nice to sit here,cup of half decaf,and a smoke.I like watching the sun come up! I guess Ill have to change my habits!!! I have a handme down bike,that I need to fix up,but its been too cold and sticky to do that.
Ok,Ive rambled enough this morning.Ive totally lost all train of thought.My kids are sick,so that distracts me! Im sure it does other moms too. No,far as I know,they arent deathly ill,but it does rock the boat.Sometimes I have issues going along with the waves.....

Some Beach....Somewhere....

Blake Shelton sings a song called , "Some Beach". Man I wish I was there right now! It was a gloomy ,nasty,COLD day in Dixie yesterday. THe sleet began the day before. Not to get caught unawares again,I did go get a few essentials. Like milk and bread. Which I needed.But other than that,I behaved! I did get me some more light pop corn to ride out another blizzard. Seems like the "blizzard" has past us now,so yall eastward can HAVE IT!lol. I kept Jake home from school, b/c I just knew they'd call it early.What do ya know,I was right? they cancelled school at noon30. I guess thats a good thing though,so the kids dont have to make up yet anothr day,next week. I seriously thought that after the snow last weekend,we were done! UM NOPE.But I am happy to report,my Mama got her snow! But she said it was a wet sticky mess! I reminded her that she'd been hoping for snow all winter. Ill call her this morning to see how much stuck. THis morn ing,schools are in around here. And Im sure there are a few patches of ice here and there,but nothing major.Todays hi is 45. We go from 75 to 25 to 45 in 3 freaking days.Its no wonder ppl stay sick all the time! {Fortunatly we have not been that sick this winter,but others sure have!}
SOme Beach....Ive joined a website called www.cruisecritic.com. It ,to me, is the BEST one out there for novices like me. Ppl have already asked all the silly lil questions that have run through my mind. Miss E said Id be a dern expert by the time we sailed. lol. I sure hope so. I hope in the coming year I can have all my qeustions answered,so that when we get on the ship,I can relax. Part of me wishes it was THIS march,not next March. But thats ok too.I think Im just sick of winter! I see members pictures of their vacations,and I think ahhhhh....... SOON! as in 371 days soon. I dont plan to wish a year away,but I am looking forward to it.
But theres a lot more going on than just cruising these days. I got my acceptance letter to return to college in the fall. I applied at a local Community college,as well as UT. I have to get them both my high school and college transcripts in. I wont know about UT until I do. Im trying to get Neil to go back to school too. At least one online class. I will be doing all of mine online in the fall. I hope to be fininshed with my degree in 3 years. I figure I can take 2 classes this fall and buck up and go full time in the spring. All from the comfort of my laptop and kitchen table. If there comes a time when I have to go to class,Ill cross that bridge when I get there. I think Im still a ways off from that. Im anxious to see what hours will actually transfer. THeyre gonna take a look at my transcripts and go....well....aside from Math,if she didnt stop going to class she did ok. But the F's b/c it was too late to drop,or if I had dropped I'd have had to pay back my pell grant,are not going to help me. Im not sure what classes Id like to take in the fall. Aside from my required Maths Ive got most of the basics out of the way. Like English,and some electives. THe good thing about being a transfer student,is the ones that the new college do not require,will most likely transfer as elective towards my degree. But I know Ill have to take some more History classes. Yay! lol. And I think Im done with all my English. I would like to take BRit Lit 2,just so I can come full circle with that knowledge. I made an A in lit 1. So theres more Id like to learn. I also want to take Sociology. It has nothing to do with my degree,but It does have my own personal interest. Ive taken Phych 1 and 2,and they were facinating to me. I just dont want to have to get my Masters,so I wont be changing to counseling or Phychology. So History it is.I need to look at the Comm College's website to see what else I may need to take...Ive still got a few minutes before Jake has to get up for school....
Ive also lost 22 lbs since Christmas. Only 18 more to go before the big ten year reunion. But being cooped up is not condusive to weightloss. But sweeping and vaccuming are! So far....I guess thats about it for today. Stay tuned......

Some Frugal Tips

While I don't claim to be the Queen of Frugality, I do have some cost cutting tips Id like to share.Neil and I have been in bind after bind.And somehow,{with HELP} made it through the times when we get behind on our housenote,car notes,whatever note.We live paycheck to paycheck,like most of our friends.We got waaay behind just before we got our refund.The thinking of,well thats not due unitil next week.....ANd we'd blow it.Not on useless stuff,but not alocate money for bills BEFORE anything else.Thats where we've screwed up. I watched my parents fight about money as a kid,and I swore I wouldnt be that way. Oh sometimes we have "serious discussions" about how to spend money,but not fuss. I used to think that marriages where one paid the bills,and the other just knew they were paid was silly.Wrong,I think they were on to something I didnt want to listen to.Neil and I are both dreamers.And for some reason that does not make for good finacial choices.Well,those days are over,{I HOPE} around here. I have the checkbook! He makes the money and I spend it.Meaning,that I pay the bills now,and let him know when they are paid.We have a tight budget.This week theres 60 bucks for groceries.That includes diapers.But thats ok.All I NEED is bread,some rice,and diapers.I may run out of milk later in the week,but since I dont plan to spend my 60 today,the 3 bucks will be there for a mid week gallon of milk. Instead of paying the small bills first,and getting behind on the house,I now put the money into a sperate savings account.There is a certian amount a week that MUST go put up for the housenote.Everything else comes after that.We have to have a place to live.Then the cars come next.Thanks to a benefactor,Neils truck note has been taken care of for a while.Not anymore.I told the benefactor that it would be paid on or around the first from now on.I truly hope that our new plan of action works. We've failed miserably so many times before.I pray that we will continue to make it.Not even putting any aside really.THe aside money until Dec will go to pay for our NonMoon next March.So,we've cut back! I look at EVERYTHING as a want or need.{excpt for that mad PMS dash last week}.So here are some of my tips:

1. Make your own....I make my own dishwasher det. with simple ingredients, I use baking soda and a few drops of essential oil for carpet fresh, use baking soda and vinegar for fabric softner, whatever you can hang outside to dry,do it. Today its blankets that need a wash,and since its warm and windy,they are outside hanging over lawn chairs.Use vinegar to mop with.I have a bottle of lysol concentrate I use a few drops of with the vinegar.Both clean well.

2. Plan in advance: that means groceries and diapers.I try to only make a Walmart run once a month. I buy the big boxes of Parents Choice diapers,and they work fine. Buy bigger size packs of meat,and divide it. I can strech 5 lbs of hamburger into about 7 meals.I put it in zippy bags wrapped in foil,and there ya go. I make extra servings of rice or pasta at one time to save on energy,and time. You can add the leftovers into a diffrent meal later in the week.I also have a "soup bag" in my freezer.I add whats left of veggies into that bag,and when it gets full,I make a pot of soup.And NO,I dont have a big freezer or deep freeze,so its always packed!

3.Stock up: If your favorite dish soap is on sale for a dollar,buy more than one.You know you will use it.And you wont run out. If Kroger has bread for a buck a loaf, buy a couple of them and put one in the freezer.Bread freezes well. Its getting to be spring,and we grill out.So buy the biggest bags of charcoal you can.You can even,this time of year buy the double bags for great savings.Shampoo and deoderant is the same way...

4. Use off Brands: I like Colgate toothpaste.But its like 3 dollars for the whitening kind.But Ultra Bright whitening is only a dollar.And its made by Colgate,so its the same stuff,IMO.You grew up on Kraft cheese.the block kind,well,Great Value or Best Choice taste just the same to me.I prefer Community Coffee.But since I cant get it here,with out paying hordendus shipping,I buy Great Value Brand,and its great.I also use Suave shampoo and conditioner.The "professional" line.Its not .99c, but 2 bottles of that at 1.97 is better than 3 bucks for Herbal Essences for one.I like the off brand body washes too.And cheap disposable razors.Not the one blade kind,and NEVER again the Noxema brand,I think it called Personal Choice.I also use the Dollar General toilet paper.Its 5.25 for 12 double rolls,and not like sand paper at all.And one pack last over a month.

5. GEt it on Sale: I like Bath and Body works body spray.I dont wear perfume too often,so I splash on the spray. BUT,I only buy it during their semi annual sale.I can get 6 months to a years worth of spray,and yes,even body wash and lotion, for what I owuld regularly pay for 3 bottles.There are some items I dont like off brand of,like garbage bags.But I buy them on sale and stock up.Our grocery store in town will have these meat madness sales.I got enough meat for a month for only 45 dollars.

6. USe handme downs: Kids are dirty little creatures! They put holes in the knees,and get koolaide on clothes. So why spend the big bucks on clothes they will simply outgrow and at times,ruin. I give and get. I gave a ton of baby clothes away,and then another friend gave me a hefty bag full of summer stuff for Jake. We aslo get Handme downs from Neils cousin who has 2 boys not too much older than Levi. I inturn will pass them on to Tam,who now has a baby boy.

7.Shop THrift Stores: Neil got a suit,a whole suit,at Goodwill last week for 17.00 bucks.ANd yes,its very nice,and I will be seen in public with him in it.I needed a tube pan for cakes.I looked at Walmart and they were anywhere from 15.00 and up. I got an identical one at Goodwill for 1.99. I brought it home and washed it,and waaaa laaa,cake pan. I dont reccomend them for shoes though.I have a thing about shoes fitting the child,or even adults feet right,and foot funk.

8. Buy needs not wants: I need to take my own advice here. Im working on it,lol. Ok, you see that cute shirt at Cato. Its so darling,its onsale,and its in your size. Do you need it? I mean really need it?

9. Learn from others: We can all help each other with tips these days.Wether is money tips or potty training tips,we can all teach each other things that we didnt know before.and like they say,Talk is cheap.and you never know how it may help you along the way.

Ok,I think Ive said enough for now.Neil and I by no means are finaicial whizzes.If we were,we wouldnt get behind......But maybe these tips Ive learned the hard way will help someone else whos just like me.....

Today,I AM A true DOmestic Godess

Just a few minutes ago I made my first ever batch of home grown laundry detergent.Yes,I did! It was easy! the ingredints simple,and cheap,and readily available in my area.{but at diffrent stores}. So in light of the economy,and things not getting any cheaper,and Niel not getting any over time,Ive had to get even more frugal.{ I say this today,after yesterday's Cruise blog,go figure.I gotta cut corners to pay for the dern thing!} So yesterday I googled and googled and googled somemore.After reading a ton of diffrent recipes,it came down to 3 basic ingredients.

Washing Soda ~ available in West Tn at Kroger
Borax~ everywhere,even in PoDunk where we live,&
A Bar of soap~ Some used Ivory,others,Zote,and any other kind you prefer.

Yesterday in my googling one lady reccomended airing out your bar of soap.Esp if you're going to be making the powdered kind,like I intended to do. So,I opend up this big pink bar of Zote that cost me .75 at SaveALot,and put it on the back steps.Last evening,just at dark,I went to retrieve my now freshly aired soap bar.ANd it was NOT there.The paper wrapper was in the back yard,but the bright pink bar was nowhere to be found.The dog had been let off her chain yesterday,so I went looking where I had seen her digging.Nope,Not there. I looked all over my yard! It was MIA.I thought,how in the hell could I miss seeing a big hot pink bar of soap? I aksed Jake if he had seen it.His reply was simple.Yes,he had.In the next door neighbors yard! And when I looked out the bathroom window,I saw it glowing in the twilight.The dog had taken it,but I was not looking in the right places.So,I retrieved the errant bar of Zote,complete with Dog teeth marks,and grass,and brought it home.I laid it on the counter to air out even further.Thinking it would crumble on my grater today.
UM WRONG. I think dog saliva has binding abilites unknown to man. The grass was dug in deep.Almost as deep as the cainine marks.So I managed to scrape it off. Ever in Racheal Ray form,I laid out the other items I needed. Essential oil, washing soda ,Borax,and baking soda. I began to grate the soap and these prettty pink ribbons appeared! Ahhhh,purdy....But they were too soft.So I broke out the handy dandy mini chopper. I measured the slivers to be sure I had 1 cup. I tossed them in for a good zap! UM NO.It looked like cheese curds stuck to the bottom of this thing. {Its supposed to be very fine for powedered det.}.THen a LIGHTBULB!
I thought I would go ahead and mix in my dry stuff and essential oil in the coffee can that I had planned to store it in.I mixed and Mixed. And SNeeezed and Sneezed.I already had the window open,per someone elses suggestion.Then the lightbulb plan came into play.I put the detergent,in 2 sperate batches,back into the mini chopper.Then I thought,Shit! Where am I gonna put the now refined stuff? Lightbulb! The Daisy sour cream container! I keep those things to double as tupperware.We're hi class,let me tell ya!
Well,after I zapped and Zapped the first batch,it didnt look very diffrent.When I took off the top I noticed the slivers were still curdled looking,only smaller. Screw it!!!I poured it into the large Daisy tub,and zapped the 2nd batch.It all fit! Yay,more space saving tips,brought to you by Sarah! SO,since I had made this lavender,lemon, concoction that promised to clean my fonkey clothes and what not,I had to start a load.I knew from googling that it would not sudz up.Ok,fine,.but another reccomendation was to run hot water in the washer for just a minute or so,so it would help break down the slivers.Did that! I didnt see any breakdown.Just hot pink floaties....Theres some sheets in there we let the dog sleep on,a teeny rug from the ktichen and one of Jakes sleeping bags.So we will see if the FONK is gone.
I also made up some new fabric softener yesterday too.Ive been just adding baking soda to my Gain,and vinegar in my downy ball.The clothes dont reek,but I do.Im a spiller! So I found a super easy recipe to use vinegar,hot water,and hair conditioner. if you know me personally,you know that Im sensative to stuff,and I always have extra crap like that around.So,I used some stuff that makes my head itch,and made up a batch. We will see......
But today,I feel like a Godess.Even in my braless,pajama clad state!!!I was going to mop the floor in just a minute,but I will have to teach Neil a lesson when he gets up.A Libman wonder mop head will not dry,even outside,if you dont move the sqeeze part up,and let the mop head hang.So since the wind is blowing here to beat the band {when is it not,really?} I hope it will dry out and I can mop tomorrow.I guess Im done for the day.....


3/6/09 Update! IT worked! The FONK is GONE!!!!

Going Cruising

On March 20,2010 Neil and I will embark on our first cruise.I'm calling it the Non-Moon,since we didnt take a honeymoon.We bought a house,a car,and had a baby.I'm so excited.

Neil and I have been talking about taking a cruise since we first met.I think it was even brought up in convo before we met. Neither of us have ever been on one. I was thinking the Bahama's, Jamaica,and like Turks and Caico's. But Neil had other ideas...He wants to take the Amtrak to New Orleans,La. {NOLA~for future reference}.So in light of the fact that we've never taken a vaction alone since we got married, we got to looking at cruises. Since he wants to take the train, it limited us to either NOLA,Mobile,and a strech of maybe Galveston,Tx. He said he flat didnt want to drive anywhere once we got to NOLA, and that limited us even more. As did a time frame. This year he has a hunting trip planned in the fall with his buddies. That will eat his vacation time this year. We also had to think about money too.As in,we dont have much,and cruises aint cheap. His mom has a friend,Miss E,Ill call her, and she is a travel agent out of her near Atlanta home. SO we knew that when we were ready to do this thing,we'd hit her up for booking and information. I emailed her and told her what we wanted to do. The advice started transmitting! She is a WEALTH of information. And she kinda knows,since Im a SAHM,that money would be an issue. With the tax refund I stashed some cash away,just for a deposit on a vacation for us. Whether it was a weekend to St.Loius,which is in driving distance,or a resort like Sandals, or wherever we wanted to go....So Neil and I began the process of narrowing it down. When I say "we",I mean "I". Im the traveler here, and the priceline junkie.lol. Some ppl shop for RV's, others guns, me? Its plane tickets baby! You never know when they may be having a sale you cant afford to pass up.
So,thanks to Miss E. we found Carnival Cruise line,and they leave from NOLA. As does Norweigen {sic} but looking at their prices,we could not afford them.Not right now,and not for a vacation we may or may not like. We knew we didnt want a long cruise,and we knew we had to wait until next year. As in pay on it all year, and use next years refund to pay for the extra's. I looked at Sandals in Montego Bay,Jamaica. Too much for our meager funds,even paying on it for a year. So Carnival it was. I called it the Clearance Rack of cruise lines. I think I mis said that though. From what Ive read on Cruise Critic.com theyre great. Not some fancy dnacy, stuffy cruise line,all about formal nights and pom and circumstance. Neil and I are not those kinds of ppl. I hope we never are. So, after hit and missing a few times, we chose the Carnival Triumph. It basically is the only ship { I called it a boat,and buddy did I get corrected!} that leaves NOLA that we could afford. Its an older ship,but has recently been refurbished.
Im cheap when I travel. I figure if I can save on accomodations,I can go more places. So I was thinking an ocean view room,nothing fancy.Just eating 24/7. Laying in the sun,and sipping somehting with an umbrella in it for a few days. Then Miss E told me you cant open the windows in an ocean view room {yes,my dumb redneck ass asked}. So,we booked a balcony room. And I cringed! Not that we didnt get a good deal,or even a great room {I hope}, still...Ive never spent this much money at one time for a vaction in my life. If you add up everything, train ride, hotel one night in NOLA, crusie, crap on the cruise, alcohol, and tips..Ive probably spent that much combined on every trip Ive taken as an adult. That includes 2 trips to Cali and one to Philly.and everywhere else in between Ive gone. So probably right at what has been spent out of my won pocket. That does not include the things on these trips that have been paid for in my behalf. But still. I guess Im going through what car buyers call "Sticker Schock". And its still cheaper than 5 days at an all inclusive resort. I told my mom I was having some "buyers remorse". She reminded me #1 that you only live once, and #2,that we're doing this smart. as in not putting off bills to go on vacation,and we're booking so far in advance that surely we can pay off the balance before the Dec 31 deadline.
The kids,tentavily will be staying with grandparents. Jake with the ExMil, and Levi with the my current {and rest of my life}MIL.On an aside note,is it once a MIL always a MIL? Thats how I feel about my ex one.Anyway. We've yet to ask Neils folks if they can keep Levi. I guess if she reads this she will see...lol.
So now I have over a year for my anal retenvie self to plan plan plan.Im a combo of both. Ready to go anywhere,anytime,if I can afford to,and then if I can plan,I google until Im crosseyed.I got a copy of Cruising For Dummys,the 07 edition on amazon for .75 plus shipping. So I cant wait for it to get here. The main plan is to RELAX with my wonderful hubby. Miles out on the ocean,out on our balcony,and call room service at 3 am ,just cuz we can.......

Hell No!No MORE SNOW!

The National Weather Serivce in Memphis Tn yesterday issued a Winter Storm warning for West Tn,East AR,and North Ms.....
They've done this before,and not much has come of it.The report said rain in the morning and turing into snow in the afternoon.Up to 6" in the extreme Northern Counties {which we live in}. I honestly didnt think too much of it.Well, I should have! Yesterday afternoon,I was running low on bread,milk,and eggs. The major components of the mad dash to the grocery store. I said,snow?Pshhh! Welp,I was WRONG!!! When the golf ball size flakes began to fall yesterday afternoon,I made that mad dash to the local grocery store.Me and everybody else! I detest driivng in snow.It literally makes me dizzy.But I had to.I had 2 pieces of bread left,and less than a half a gallon of milk.and like 3 eggs.I made the mistake of running in there hungry and hurried.I wound up spending 100 bucks on blizzard junk! three diffrent kinds of microwave popcorn,a coke,chips,and fruit roll ups.Funny how fast that stuff ads up.The week before I had only spent 95,and got enough essentials for 3 weeks.But htis was not essentials.This was FEAR promptiing me....But I was NOT alone. Every loon in my country who had not given NOAA their credit was there too.That place was a mad house! As Ive said before,we have tornado shelters where we live,not snow plows.Well,I think the teeny town I live in,now needs one. I will be writting my alderman!:) Oh,sure,I got coffee and smokes.Im not crazy or anything.So personally,thats all I really need to ride out a blizzard.I can live on Ramen Noodles.But the kids and hubby,not so much.lol.
Im sitting at my kitchen window perch,screen still off,so I can hold my smoke out the window,cup of hot half decaf in had,and a key board in front of me.Im looking to my left and what do my wandering eyes do I see? TEN inches of snow! Tam and them,farther south about an hour have 15 inches in places. I have yet to venture down the back steps,but Im sure we have 15 in a few places.This is a wet sticky snow.Its on everything that aint nailed down,and even stuff that is. It is abosolutly BEAUTIFUL too.THis is the prettiest snow we've had all year.After the ice we had,not so long ago,I'll take the snow anyday. I have a dear friend who lives in the Upper Pen of Michigan.I'm sure shed be laughing at my hysterics over a measly 10 inches. they get 5 feet at a time! Ya'll can hang that mess up.My Mama who lives in Bowling Green,KY was jealus last night! Jealus! she wants just one good real snow,so she can take pictures.I told them to come on down! Im sure Tam and I both owuld let her take pics at our houses,lol.
I know Ive blogged about winter storm readiness.But this time I was aboslutely caught unawares.Im one of those people that when they call for snow on Saturday,Im shopping on Tuesday to stock up! Not this time,and NEVER AGAIN! I will have a loaf of bread stashed in my freezer, a bar of soap {as one of my unnamed buddies didnt realize she was out of,and didn't like the idea of using her hubby's manly body wash} stashed in my bathroom closet. CRap! I just remembered,Im running low on dishwashing liquid. But I will add water to the already generic liquid I have in my purdy palmolive bottle and make it stretch. I have stuff to make my own laundry detergent if need be.And the clothes are all clean.The dishes from last night are the only ones in the sink. SO I guess in my cleaning house respect,I'm fine there. THe cable has not gone out,and if it does,we have a DVD player and DVD's for the young uns. I have a copy of The Filthy Thirteen, my next WW2 biography.SO Im good to go.My only real concern is Neil.Its his weekend to work.So he has to drive the 8 miles home from work in this mess.But he assures me he can do it.He aint let me down yet,but I will pray every minute from the time his shift ends at 7 AM until he gets home for his saftey.
I do think I will FINALLY get Levi out to play today.Its supposed to get above freezing,and hes not been sick.So I guess I will bite the bullet,bundle him up like a bed bug {think Ralphie's little brother in A Chirstmas Story} and let him frolic and leap in the white stuff. He see's Moose A. Moose talk about it on Noggin.So I think today is the day. Jake,ever my early riser,asked if there was enough to build a snowman.I told him Yes,there was enough to build a whole snowman FAMILY!lol.
THe SUnrise this morning is so beautiful.THe snow drifts are beginning to glisten,and the birds are coming out. I have a bag od bird seed stashed for just this day. I normally feed them old chips,cereal,and yesterday it was bashed up stale preztels.I do what I can,:). I really hope this is the last of the winter weather,at least until Novemeber. But maybe not.Last year,it snowed 6 inches the 2nd week of March! I came home from my weekend in PHilly,to the next weekend getting snowed in in Dixie! One thing I will say,Im glad Crystal got her snow.She lives 3 hrs south of me,and gets mad that the weather misses them so much. We ALWAYS get it she says.Not this time! She called me justa giggling last night.Happy as a clam to be getting snowed in! I told her she was crazy,lol. Im so sick of it.But I guess that hormonal Old LAdy,named Old Man Winter is just doing its job! Im ready for it to take a sebatical!