It's like this...

I had an interesting conversation with my seven year old last night after dinner. Well, it was during my dinner. She'd rejected eating any of the four different stuffed brats that hubby had cooked on the barbecue in favor of one slice of juicy watermelon. She obviously finished her meal much earlier than I did. Ashley: "You said you'd take me to the Dollar Store" Me: (Reaching over to select a tomato and basil chicken brat) "Did not" Ashley: "Did too!" Me: (popping a bit into my mouth) "I never said I was going to take you today" Ashley: "You said you were going to Goat Hair!!" This was followed by a lot of facial movements and several stomped feet for punctuation. Me: "Goat hair?" Ashley: "GO THERE" Me: "Goat hair? I don't get it. Why would you want goat hair?" Ashley: "I didn't say GOAT HAIR!" (more stomping) Me: "Well, I suppose goat hair might be nice, exc...

I've been blessed to have married into a family that has a beach cabin in Kingston. We are all able to use it whenever we want, as no one lives there. It's simply there for the extended family. There are always big family BBQ's on holidays. Here is where we spent Memorial Day with my friend from Venezuela and her daughter. This is Annabella and her daughter. Ashley made a beautiful sand castle. Ashley loves her beach time. We drove to the cabin, but took the ferry back over to Seattle on the way home, as Annabella hadn't ever been on a ferry before. While we were waiting in line, Tom (Kimberely's boyfriend) treated us all to ice cream cones. Here is Lance eating the remainder of Ashley's. I think she got rootbeer float. Ashley looked out at the water from the ferry as we pulled out of Kingston on our way to Edmonds. It was a beautiful ride. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful four days with my friends. I haven't laughed like that in so long. We...

Last thursday I willingly, and with foresight, climbed aboard a little yellow bus, crammed with forty or so 1st graders. We went to the zoo. What was I thinking? Before leaving, I took all the drugs I could lay my hands on medications I was safely allowed to consume in order for my spinal column to function in a manner consistent with life. We were greeted at the bottom of first of roughly half a billion stairs the steps by this gorgeous creature. It was at first admired, then feared by the little macho men who thought they could chase it. It went on the attack and scared them half to death. This elicited giggles from me which, being the serious adult that I am, were muffled behind my hand. This little jewel is the reason I risked life and limb to go on this field trip. She so dearly wanted me to come, and despite her sister's best attempts at being sick, I managed to make it. First we went to the fish place. I'm sure they have a clever name for the place, but I was too ...

They're making a comeback! Perhaps it's just here, but still. Every time I mention it to my Stephanie, she rolls her eyes and laughs at me. Which is not unlike her reaction to most things I say to her. This makes it difficult to know if she's not interested in the idea, or if she (as usual), believes that I'm off my rocker. Mmmm. Rocker. I'll need a nice new rocker to sit in to rock Stephanie's and Adam's first baby. You have to admit that this whole arranged marriage thing takes away some of the difficulties that a great many newly married couples experience. The groom's mother and I are exceptionally good friends. The groom's mother adores Stephanie, so that nixes any mother-in-law to daughter-in-law conflicts right in the bud. What more could they ask for? Oh sure, they'll have to meet for the first time. I'm sure everything will work out just fine. As it's Memorial Day here in the colonies, we're planning on heading ...

Having lived in that country for some time, I consider myself an honorary citizen. I've spent the last two days with an old friend from there. She and her daughter drove up here from Utah. She has two children, twins, a boy and a girl. They are twenty. Annabella (my friend) and I have decided to take a step back into the old days when marriages were arranged. Stephanie is going to marry Adam. A match made in heaven. It has the added benefits of the mother's in law already being great friends, plus we'd laugh like crazy at the reception and spoil our future grandchildren crazy. We're already fighting over who will be the best grandma and spoil the babies the most. I think I'll win. At any rate, I'm spending the day up in Seattle with my friend so we can go to all our old haunts. She was with me when I started dating my husband, so she knows all my dark secrets. It's been a great time talking more Spanish. I've missed having someone here that s...

It began when our computer wouldn't connect to the Internet. You'd have thought that I, personally, had reinstated the Spanish Inquisition (no one expects the Spanish Inquisition!!) and was torturing my very own children. I swear it wasn't my fault. I still don't know why it won't work. Husband: "Did you pay the Internet bill?" Me: "Yes" Husband: "Are you sure?" Me: "Yes, as our cable and Internet are on the same bill and our cable is still working, right?" Husband: "Hmm. Did you unhook anything?" Me: "Now why would I unhook anything?" It was then that my teenagers wanted to know what I'd done to the computer. Why is it that everything is my fault even when it isn't my fault? I mean really. It was kind of nice after the second day. We began communicating with each other more. My daughter text messaged me more than she usually does. If that's not a sign of family togetherness, I...

I'm sure you've heard by now that blue is the new black, forty is the new thirty and they're lying through their teeth when they say that last thing. Also, imaginary childhood friends (you know you had one) have been replaced with online friends. They're the same in that no one ever really sees them, but you talk to them, you play with them, your other friends and family think you're just this side of a restraining jacket and you're a lot older than you were when you first had friends you never saw. Sure they're real you might say in that mocking tone you have . Well stop that. Save your mocking for later on when I tell you all about my Internet friends. No, I can't see them, or touch them, although some of them have asked me....um, well, we'll go into that later. People have become friends with other people across the world, sometimes they've become friends with people they'd never become friends with in RL. That means real life for ...

Ok, there was only drugs and a little bit of rock. I realized why I was such a waste of space this weekend. Drugs. Now normally I'm not a drug taker. Unless of course they are prescribed medications, and then watch out. I'm Pill Poppin' Pammy. My back had been cooperating with me for a while and then went back to it's old tricks so I took some muscle relaxants in order to...well....relax. I was hoping this would ease my pain as well. I was rendered unconscious for most of Sunday. I could not lift my head off the bed, I was that far gone. Groggy, groggy, groggy. So, I have decided not to take those little pills unless it is right before bedtime because taking one in the morning (on an empty tummy no less) has the effect of causing me to sleep the day through. This morning I woke up at my usual five a.m and got Stephanie up. Then I crashed again and awoke to find hubby asleep beside me. Hmmm. Odd. Wasn't he supposed to be long gone at work? Why yes, he...

We brought Cassie home this afternoon and she's soooo incredibly different. I'm glad we took her in because she was so sick. Now we feed her cottage cheese, boiled rice and boiled hamburger for two days to make sure she can keep it all in. Plus we get to give her two pills in the morning, two pills at night. This ought to be fun! I took my two youngest to the pool this morning for the family swim. Hubby had to work, so we were on our own. The girls had such fun. As we were walking to the pool, someone in one of the lap lanes started waving at me and calling my name. "Pam!" Splash. "Paaam!" I decided this woman had to know me, as she was calling out my name. I hadn't the foggiest idea who she was so I squinted in her direction and made the universal face-sign I Have No Clue Who You Are. She splashed some more and yelled something that sounded like Janet. So of course I went 'Ooooh! Janet! Hi!' with a big wave. I don't know anyone ...

But then, this isn't news for those of you that know me. My computer died on Thursday evening. Not sure why, but it simply didn't 'go' when the 'go' buttons were pushed. The children were unhappy, I was mildly miffed and hubby didn't know about it until late last night when he came home and plugged in the plugs that had come unplugged behind the computer and made it 'go' again. Isn't he amazing? Just one of the many reasons I keep him around. So, with a computer-free day yesterday, you might wonder what interesting things I embarked upon. Did I spend the day out and about? No, I spent the morning in bed being quite dizzy for no apparent reason. It was disconcerting to lift my head from the pillow and watch the room go in circles. I'd have blamed it on being over medicated, but I'd taken no medications whatsoever, despite the back pain I was suffering. Due to the impairment I was experiencing, I wisely decided not to drive to the...

Ok, I lied. There will be no madness today. Just the usual chaos. I've been to the gym, where for some reason I was very distracted during the class. I kept up, but my mind kept wandering off into the great beyond for some reason. It didn't help that my back was giving me fits off and on. Dang spinal column. I did, as always, feel better after my workout. I was so absentminded that I neglected to pack my bra so after the pool, with towel around the neck and hanging down over the front of my shirt, I skedaddled home instead of running a few planned errands. No one needed to be seeing me in that condition. They'd need therapy. Today I've got Ashley's IEP. The meeting with her therapists to discuss her progress and set new goals. Measurable Goals. I've done a lot of thinking about this meeting, and I have concluded that I will not agree to them cutting off her occupational therapy simply because of budget cuts. Ashley has the legal right to both physic...

Look who's back home! Angel Puss was adopted out a couple of weeks ago, but her owner is on vacation so I took her back in for a few days. She's (the kitten) is loving being back with her brothers. They've been playing like crazy and having such fun. I still need to convince this woman that she needs to take a sibling with her when she picks up Angel Puss. We don't want any lonely kittens, now do we?

I've been asked to facilitate a Writer's Guild for our women's group at church. We'll be meeting in different homes once a month. The first meeting is tonight. I've been up since five, working on some things for it, plus doing the gym thing, then Coscto and then picking up Ally from school. I knew when I sent her this morning that I'd more than likely be bringing her home again. She feels warm, her tummy is hurting a bit and she just doesn't feel right. This child tugs at my heart strings when she's ill. The past several years she's been so healthy that I've been holding my breath in the dreaded anticipation of something to come. You see when she was born, they weren't sure she had a functioning immune system. She was constantly sick at home and when she wasn't at home, she was in the hospital. We were not allowed to take her out in public for the first six months of her life. When she was three days old she spent a week in Childr...

I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I love Mondays. Just got back from the gym and my workout, which has left me feeling great about the day. All except for one thing. It's going to hit 87 or higher here today. This will force me to put ice cubes down my shirt in order not to have a near death experience. I'm not one to enjoy sweltering heat waves unless I can carry ice packs in my clothing. It's also nice that our new baby has air conditioning. I'd live in it this summer, but gas prices prohibit that sort of fun. I'm hoping that hubby can get the AC hooked up within the next week or so. It's that or risk me getting frostbite again.

After I posted below I got a phone call from my sister telling me that our niece Heather was in labor. We went to church for sacrament and then I took Ally and Ash off to the hospital. (Lance had to teach a class so he couldn't go) We weren't there very long and little Taylor Christine Hunsaker was born. If you look closely at this picture you can see my sister Julie. Julie was hovering like any good great aunt. Taylor Christine Hunsaker, weighing in at 6 lbs 9 oz a bit over 11 inches long. Tiny little girl with lots of dark hair and an adorable face. She was covered in the white stuff though, as she was a couple of weeks early. Mom and baby bonding. I've always loved this poem by William Wordsworth as it says so much of what I feel about our mortal birth here on earth. Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting: The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar: Not in entire forgetfulness, ...

This morning I was awakened to breakfast in bed on a silver tray. There were wafffles smothered in whipped cream and fresh strawberries, scrambled eggs, link sausages, more fresh strawberries and juice. My girls gave me gifts they made at school and at Achievement Days (a church sponsored group of girls 8-12) Ally is holding five chocolate suckers she made in molds with different colored chocolates. They are all flowers and are so beautiful. Ashley is holding an angel window ornament in stained glass. My in-laws sent me a card with a wonderful surprise. A check! She wrote 'gas money???' I laughed and laughed. Then when my hysteria subsided I collapsed on the floor moaning 'what have we done...what have we done' over and over again.

It had to happen. Every baby gets it's first bath. Today was our baby's day. Lance decided to wash the new vehicle. Ashley was helping until her little fingers got frozen so she dashed inside to get warm. Hubby had to use a step ladder to reach the top of the roof. All in all, baby's first bath turned out well. I even brought hubby some hot chocolate in a big mug to help him warm up.

Ahhhh. Just got back from the gym and it was wonderful. I needed that today. I've been pondering the merits of starting a Writer's Group here. I'm facilitating a new writer's guild starting next Tuesday evening for the women in our church, but I'm also considering forming a non-profit group aimed at helping people tell their stories, be they fiction or non-fiction. There would be subgroups within the main. For instance, I think it would be incredibly rewarding to have the mothers and fathers of disabled children tell their stories. I know that I've experienced a great deal of healing as I write about Ashley and her struggles and successes in life. It's helped me and I believe it would help others, regardless of whether or not they've ever put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) before. I know that women have a great deal to say and teach other's about their lives. Men would benefit from this as well. I'd also like to sponsor a child...

Ashley was bored. She was whining. She decided that being sent to her room for throwing a fit wasn't in her best interests. so she stopped. Then she decided that she could bake cupcakes. But first she had to find the cupcake tin with her daddy. Then when they were in the oven baking, she insisted on sitting by the oven door on her step stool to watch over them. The cupcakes turned out quite well so she shared them with the neighbors. All on her own! What a sweetie she is. Now if we can just keep her from pitching fits we'll be just fine.

Anyone who knows me, knows that we were the lucky recipients of four kittens a couple of months back. Four delightful, furry balls of fun and mischief were born into our family. Oh yes, lovely little hairy creatures with sharp pointed teeth and wicked slicing claws that can knock over any plant or glass vase in the house by merely looking at it with their bright yellow eyes. Wild eyed, racing balls of fur that use my semi-new living room furniture as scratching posts or as spots to hork up nagging hairballs from their tummies. I just love them. And not because they'll be the cause of me getting brand new couches sometime in the near future. No, I love them for other reasons. If I had enough time I'm sure I could come up with those reasons and explain them in excruciating detail to you, but that's not what I wanted to talk about today. Today I want to discuss males. Not just males of the human variety, but males of the feline species specifically. You see, the ...

Most people moan and groan about Mondays but I LOVE them. I know, I know. If I were working outside the home I would probably feel differently about things. However, since I work at home, in the home, around the home, I can like Mondays all I want. I went to the gym this morning, daycare boys in tow as usual. Then we dashed over to Top Foods to pick up some things for our chicken stir fry for dinner this evening. Then I dashed Daniel to his speech therapy at the grade school, dashed home to put the groceries away, dashed back to pick Daniel up and then dashed back home again. How many calories can you burn in a dash? Hmm. This bears more pondering. My father called me a bit ago. Dad: "Do you have gas in your suburban?" Me: "Yes" Dad: "Good. Do you have a gun?" Me: "No, why?" Dad: "I want you to drive out here and shoot me" Me: "Dad, it's just a cold. You'll feel better soon, and when you ...

One of our kittens has been named Twitchy by our children. This is due to the fact that the poor thing tends to twitch in his sleep. He's also the sweetest, most cuddly kitten I've ever encountered. For the past three nights he's curled into the crook of my arm and slept with me all through the night like a newborn baby. It's so precious. (yeah, yeah, I know. Awwwwwww) Last night I had to get something going for the kids and so I took the kitten and placed him on Lance's chest. He stretched out and slept there for a while. Naturally I had to get some pictures. When I came back to bed I took the baby off his chest and it curled up with me till around four or so. Sleeping with the kitten is just fine. Sleeping with my daycare children in the room is something else. Dillon and Daniel spent the night (as they will do the next two nights) while their mom and dad are in Las Vegas having some fun. Dillon, who is two, didn't want to sleep through the night...

I got a call from Ashley's physical therapist at her school today. She wanted to set up Ashley's IEP (indvidual Education Plan) for this month. We talked for a while and she mentioned to me that her OT (Occupational Therapist) was going to drop Ashley from services after this meeting. I must have gotten very quiet because the PT asked me if I was all right. No, I wasn't. They want to stop her therapy? How can that be? In my mother's heart I cried but she's not all right yet...she's not...better . My head knows that she never will be a typical child with a right hand and leg that works properly. For some reason this just stabbed at my heart and I could feel my eyes getting ready to spill tears. All the physical and occupational therapy in the world won't ever make her physically perfect. Ever. My head knows this, my heart can't bear it. We talked some more and I told her I'd like to have the OT call me so we could discuss our options. I...

I have gotten up every morning for the past couple of weeks, with daycare kiddies in tow and I go to the gym to workout. So far I've lost nearly ten pounds. Yay me! I'm feeling better as well, which is nice. I'm making healthier meals for the family as well. They don't really notice that I've cut most of the fat out of their dinners, which is good. It means the meals are still flavorful. I've been searching the web for good low-cal recipes. I have a couple of WW cookbooks here as well. It's been fun to try new things on the masses. Mostly they have enjoyed it. Tonight, chicken fajitas. If only the gym was close enough so I could walk there instead of driving. I nearly fainted with shock when I filled up the suburban yesterday. What were we thinking....

My sister and I took our father out to a Mexican place for his birthday lunch today. I generally speak to the waiters in Spanish, so while I was talking to them I mentioned that it was my father's birthday and would they do something special for him? A bit later they snuck up behind him and placed this rather large sombrero on his head, put a fried ice cream in front of him and sang happy birthday to him. His face was so red. I wish the picture was larger so you could see his expression better. It was nice to spend some time with him. Even though it cost $97 to fill my gas tank to get there! When I left I told them I'd see them at Christmas.

It's been a while since I posted an update on the construction going on behind our home. It was brought to my attention today because whatever it is that they are doing has been shaking my entire house! I usually don't mind the noise, but the shaking gets to me. It looks like they've put in the sewers for nearly every homesite. But then I could be wrong. I know nothing about construction. Lucky me, eh?

We did something a week ago Saturday that I have not written about here because I didn't want my father to hear about it before I had a chance to show him. I purposefully didn't tell my sister about it, because I wanted to surprise her as well. Friday night hubby and I went to the temple in Bellevue. My sister and her husband were there as well. It was so hot that night I was considering spontaneously bursting into flames on the spot. Thankfully there was a Dairy Queen nearby for us to put the flames out. As we were leaving the restaurant we saw a new shiny black suburban parked in front. It's horn alarm was going off. "That's annoying" I said. Then I held up my key ring, hit a button and turned off the alarm. "Wow, did you do that?" my sister said, eyes wide. "Can you open their car with your thing too?" "Sure!" I replied. I held up my keyless entry remote and hit 'unlock'. Immediately the four doors of the new s...