Waiting for the Cable Guy

We bought a new cabinet for our TV and all the other electronic equipment Hubby can’t live without. We got a great deal on it at a local trucking warehouse that sells the furniture they drop for cheap. It’s not the exact color I was looking for, but I really like it anyway. It goes well with the sofa and love seat we purchased at the warehouse last year for $250.

There is a really, really long story about moving it in the house last weekend but I’ll spare you the details. Basically the darn thing is so heavy it takes two very strong men to move it and for some reason Hubby decided he and I could do it alone. We (which really means Hubby with a hand cart) managed to move the cabinet out of the garage and up the stairs into the living room. I might also add there was no swearing or new dents in the wall either so he did well.

After the cabinet was in the living room Princess and I went to town for groceries and Hubby started the “move”. He had most of it done by the time we got home but the high definition channels were not working. Apparently there is an HDMI cable that makes all that stuff happen and it wasn’t doing its job.

Hubby is allergic to the telephone, have I mentioned that? If something has to be done that requires a phone call I have to do it. Normally I don’t mind but when it comes to the cable it’s not my favorite job. I have to call the tech line and speak to someone who is asking me all these questions, which I have to turn around and ask Hubby and then repeat back his response back to the technician on the phone. I dislike being the middleman.

I….actually we….spent about 20 minutes on the phone with the technician unplugging this and resetting that to no avail. He finally decided we may have a bad cable, or damaged it somehow in the “move”, and we need to have someone come out and replace it. I took the 9:00 – 11:00 slot this morning so here we sit.

So the cable guy showed up and replaced a bunch of cables so I’m back online. It snowed quite a bit last night and the poor guy had to shovel the patio off to get to the cable box. I wonder if that’s in his job description?

Pillow Talk

Homestead brought up the subject of pillows so I thought I’d chime in.

We have nine pillows on our bed. Five are functional and four are decorative.

We painted our bedroom blue last winter and then went shopping for a new duvet cover. By some miracle we found a set that both Hubby and I loved and went with the new paint. Then we walked around the corner and found the wall hanging that matched. It wasn’t one of those “sets”; it just happened to catch our eye and the colors were exactly what we were looking for. To this day I’m still amazed we went to one store and found everything we needed to completely redecorated our bedroom.



Back to the pillows. I have three and Hubby has two. We both have one flat form thing that goes on the bottom of the pile. Then we both have a fluffy feather pillow, which I can’t recall where they came from but they may have been wedding gifts. They are hand made by Hutterites and I love them. I also have my feather pillow. It’s a tiny pillow, also made by the Hutterites, which belonged to my mother. She used to have two, but as a child I latched on to it and I can’t sleep without it. Seriously. I take it everywhere. My mom has a picture of me as a toddler sitting on her bed with these totally 70s sheets (wild colors with a turtle print). I always used those cases on my pillow so it’s called my turtle pillow. The cases didn’t survive my high school days, but I still call it my turtle pillow. I’m sure you are wondering where the other pillow from the set went. My sister took possession of it and it lives in Arizona with her.

We also have four decorative pillows….two in shams and two small pillows. Princess made our bed today and I think she did a pretty good job.

Just Another Way to Say "I Love You"

As you already know Flower has been a little under the weather lately. Nothing major, just a little fever, vomiting, and last week the diarrhea started. Luckily it was pretty minor and short lived so I didn't think much of it.

Grandpa and Grandma came to visit last weekend and it wasn't more than 30 minutes after they left on Sunday that Princess made a quick trip to the bathroom. You guessed it, now she has the runs. Again, they were short lived and by Monday I thought we were in the clear once again.

Monday was a holiday so we stayed home. Hubby came down with a cold. I too thought I was getting a sore throat but it subsided and I gave Hubby a hard time about being sick.

Our beloved daycare lady is out of town this week on family business so I had a nice schedule worked out with Nana, Hubby and I to cover Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We each took 2 half days so I didn't have to use all my vacation this week. Hubby was on the schedule Tuesday morning so I got up and went to work around 7:00 am.

About 7:30 my stomach started doing weird things and I thought I must be hungry so I grabbed my yogurt. By 8:00 I was beginning to wonder if I might have picked up the little bug the girls had. By 9:00 I was started think I really was sick, but my brain was telling me I can't be sick because this was my only full day to work this week and I needed to get a lot done. At 10:00 I called home to check on the kiddos and tell Hubby I was coming down with something but I was going to try to tough it out. At 11:00 I had to run through the office to get to the bathroom and at that point I knew I was sick. The bad stomach virus sick. My co-workers would have helped me out the door but no one wanted to get that close and I don't blame them. I called Hubby and said I give up, I'm coming home.

So I've spent the last 72 hours laying around moaning in pain and running to the bathroom. The girls have done their best to take care of me. Princess follows me from room to room with the bucket in case I need to puke and my pillow and a blanket. Flower has perfected the phrase "What's wrong?"

I was finally able to eat dinner tonight and after a hot shower I'm feeling much better. Hubby is scheduled to fly out of town on Tuesday to attend a conference. I hope he can avoid the bug because vomiting in the airplane bathroom does not sound like fun.

So, I just want to end by thanking the girls for caring enough to give me their very best....

An Early Birthday Present

The three people who read my blog know my birthday is coming up. Last week Hubby ordered a couple things from one of his favorite websites for me. To make a long story short, he has made numerous attempts in the past to purchase clothes for me, some online and some local, and 9 times out of 10 he nails it. I don't know of many guys who would even attempt to purchase pants and jeans for their wife in the first place, not to mention get the size and fit correct. I know, I know, I am incredibly spoiled and I know it!

A few weeks ago we were downtown at our favorite brewery enjoying a pint with my sister and I commented on a pair of green cords another girl was wearing. So my dear Hubby went shopping for a pair of cords for me. They arrived last week and he wanted me to try them on to make sure they fit. Unfortunately they were a little too snug.....nothing that losing a couple pounds would fix but I just don't time for that right now so we returned them for the next size up. They arrived Wednesday and I wore them to work yesterday. They are fabulous! It still amazes me that Hubby has such a knack for picking pants for me.

I'm not the type to do much online shopping, and I've never written a review for an item I have purchased. I like to read reviews written by others when I'm interested in making a purchase, but I never write anything myself. So today I filled out the review form and posted it. I guess this blogging thing is making me a little more adventurous! My review is below for your viewing pleasure.

My Review of Mountain Khakis Cottonwood Corduroy Pants (For Women)

Sierra Trading Post

Closeouts . Super-soft Cottonwood corduroy pants from Mountain Khakis hail from the heart of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and bring with them exactly the kind of laid-back style and comfort you'd expect from the West. Flat front Hand pockets Button-through back pockets Contour waistband Sit jus...

Mountain Khakis Cottonwood Corduroy Pants (For Women)

Great pants!

kae Montana 2/13/2009

 

4 5

Waist: Feels true to size

Inseam: Feels true to length

Pros: Quality Material, Attractive Design, Comfortable

Best Uses: Casual Wear, Going Out, Travel, Business Casual

Describe Yourself: Casual, Bargain Shopper

Love these pants! They are incredibly soft and really comfortable.

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The Peanut Butter Recall in a Nutshell

At dinner last night we were discussing our day. The usual questions. What did you have for lunch? Who did you play with? What did you do when you got home?

Princess was telling us how Nana took them to the store on the way home to pick up new snacks because the peanut butter crackers they had were dirty. She informed us the factory that makes the peanut butter crackers did not clean the machines for a long time so it was really dirty. Then it made dirty crackers that made people sick. Now it's clean so we can eat peanut butter crackers again. According to Princess it's safe to eat peanut butter again.

Sick Again

Flower has been under the weather lately as I’ve mentioned. Last week was a fever. This week she threw up in her sleep around 2 AM Monday morning. Poor little thing didn’t know what hit her.

It happened something like this. She cried out and I got up to check on her. Everything was still “fresh” because I didn’t smell anything initially when I opened her bedroom door. She was standing in her crib. I reached for her and felt something wet. That’s when the wheels went in motion and my nose started working. I immediately called for Daddy to come rescue us….he’s my knight in shining armor…as I peeled Flower’s pajamas off and left them in her bed. I wrapped her in a blanket and we snuggled in her rocking chair as Daddy did the dirty work. I should also mention Daddy isn’t the best in these situations but he powered through it like a champ. I did offer to switch with him, snuggling Flower is much nicer, but he allowed me to handle the snuggling.

New pajamas, a saltine cracker, some water, and an hour later Flower was ready to resume her slumber. I, on the other hand, did not fall back asleep quite so easily because I had lists of things I was supposed to do at work that day running through my head.

Flower woke up unscathed and ready for another day. She is a resilient little one. We stayed home and played the morning away. Nana and Papa came by at noon and took the afternoon shift while I went to work.

I mistakenly thought I was out of the woods when it came to bodily fluid clean-up for the week. I came downstairs this morning to do a few things in the kitchen before the girls got up and didn’t turn the main light on. As I turned to set something on the table I stepped in a fresh pile of puke, courtesy of Keilie dog. Now I’m beginning to wonder if there’s something in the air around here.

No DNA Testing Required

Flower was a little under the weather earlier this week. Nothing major just a low grade fever and general crankiness. We suspect a molar might be the cause of the problem but she's fine now.

Wednesday we were not sure if Flower would feel up to daycare. She woke up once every hour all night (seriously, I'm not exaggerating) so we figured she might be a little tired and still not feeling like her jovial little self. I got up early and headed to work while Daddy let the girls sleep in. The plan was to let Flower sleep and then evaluate her mood to determine if we should subject our beloved daycare lady to the little grumpster. I'm telling you this only as background information and to let you know our normal morning routine was severely disrupted.

Upon awakening Flower was a little crabby. After a few minutes of her favorite cartoon, Max & Ruby, she was feeling like herself again, or at least it appeared so to Daddy. He dressed the girls and headed out the door. About half way to daycare Princess exclaimed from the backseat "Daddy, turn around, we have to go back home!" Certain he had remembered all the required gear for the day, Daddy asked "Why? Did you forget something?" Princess replied "No, I forgot to make my bed!" Ladies and gentlemen, may I present myself, in a 4 year old body.

Our Snow Bunnies

We decided to skip the Super Bowl festivities last Sunday and take the girls skiing. Princess skied a few times last year and really enjoyed it. Flower is still too little for skis, although we're sure she will have a blast next winter.

It always takes Princess a few minutes to remember she likes to ski. After the initial "I don't want to!" phase she settles in and the "I don't want to!" is replaced with things like "Daddy, I want to go faster!" and "Daddy, can we do it again?" Flower and I hung out at the bottom of the bunny slope and watched Daddy push Princess up the hill and run down backwards. Princess hasn't quite mastered the tow rope yet, although they did use it a few times. Maybe next time she will figure out it's much faster to ride the tow rope up the hill and Daddy won't be so sore the next day.

The Search Has Begun

We are considering sending Princess to preschool this fall. Princess will miss the kindergarten cut-off date by a couple weeks which is OK with us, but we’re afraid she’ll be a bit bored at daycare for another year. Especially since her best friend L has been attending preschool this year. It seemed like an easy decision on the surface, but after further review, there’s a lot more to it.

When? Hubby can’t really adjust his work schedule and mine work schedule has a little breathing room but not a lot. We’ll have to work out a different drop off time, pick up time, shuttle back to daycare (pre-k is only mornings), etc.

Where? Nana heard of a program very close to my office which makes me very happy so I’ve been asking around for other references. Turns out this is where best friend L and her siblings attend/attended and the have nothing but wonderful things to say about the teachers. I’ve also found a few others who speak highly of the program. Hubby and I met with the principal last week. She was lovely. I left the meeting wanting to start bringing Princess to preschool immediately because everyone was so friendly, the rooms had lots of great projects, and the children in the classes we visited were having a great time. I went into the meeting with a long list of questions….I suppose it was more like an interview….and the principal answered everything and left us with more information to make our decision easier.

Cost? Yeah, there’s that issue. It won’t be so fun next year because we’ll be paying double for Princess because she’ll still be at daycare so preschool will be an added expense. Also, I may need to adjust my work schedule and cut back a couple hours because preschool drop off is almost an hour later than daycare drop off. We’ll be crunching the numbers….a lot.

We’ve decided to register Princess for the pre-k program this fall. Registration starts this week and we have to wait until Wednesday because the first two days of enrollment are for families with children already in the program. It makes sense, but it makes me a little nervous. Princess heard from best friend L that Hubby and I were at her school this week so now she knows school is in her future. I was hoping to delay telling her until I knew she got in and I can get my work schedule arranged. Now I’m just praying it all works out and I don’t have to start looking for another preschool.