Long and Winding Road

Not really. Just a long winded me. I've got another rambling blog. I can't seem to settle on one topic, so you get whatever happens to come out of my mouth. Or out of my keyboard.

• Last night was book club. I had a really good time. I like having the opportunity to maybe read some things I haven't read before. I also got to see some friends that I haven't seen for awhile. And the best part, I've already read the book for next time. I am really glad I do not have to fight the library. I am so tired of fighting them. At least the kids have turned in their books and are fine free. The people that work there drive me crazy.
• I have felt a little off kilter lately. I'm not sure why or what to do about it, but I have this foggy feeling. I don't feel disconnected, I just don't feel completely connected. Hubby said he's noticed, but he knows I get this way sometimes. I wish he knew why so I could fix it. If I've been a little snarky with you, sorry.
• I still have a hole in my backyard where the pool is supposed to go. I told hubby I'm done. I cannot be attached to the thought of a pool in our back yard. I have half a mind to ship the liner back and get my money back. I'm ready to fill it in and ge have my yard again.
• It's rained so much I haven't been able to use my clothesline. It is a blessing to have the rain, but my electric bill is higher now. On a bright note, it was so sunny today, I got to hang two loads out. I even managed to get them both in the house by the time the sky opened up and let it fly. Gotta love the rain.
• Lots of rearranging going on here. I have to clean out the big girl's closet, clean out ours, move a computer and a desk, get rid of a computer and move another desk, and buy a couple of dressers. Yeah, that shouldn't take long. I'll squeeze it in between bonbons and soaps. I don't remember the last time I watched a soap. I don't think I've ever had bonbons. I did just have a piece of ice cream cake that was really good. But it was dessert after dinner, not a mid day snack.
• I couldn't text for two days. I could receive, I just couldn't send. Hubby and I were looking at something and realised that some how some of the numbers weren't quite right. We fixed it and I can text now. I love texting. I hate paying for it, but I like having the option.

It wasn't too bad, was it? I tried not to keep you too long. Of course, after the boredom sets in, trouble shows up. I feel like that Mayhem guy in the Allstate commercials. Only cuter.

Random Blog

I'm in a rambling mood tonight. I've been watching too much Fox News, too much reality TV, and reading too many books. Wait, scratch that last one. There is no such thing as reading too many books. On with the show...

• I have read and read this summer. It has been wonderful. I can't even tell you everything I've been reading. I did read the Sookie Stackhouse books. Those were a fun read. I saw the HBO series before I ever knew there were books. I've requested the season 1 and 2 from the library. I did finally get to attend a book club meeting. I've been on the email list for at least a year now, but couldn't make the meeting. I even read the book. I've been reading the next book while I read about two or three others as well. I've read a lot of smut this summer, too. Just some really quick reads that are a little fluffy and some super sexy stuff. Books, books, books. I could never have a Kindle. I love holding the book, feeling the pages, hearing them turn.
• I've been watching a bunch of trash on TV. Summer is not good for me. I spend my days lazing around reading books and watching TV. It's too stinking hot outside to do anything else. I have to say that I am a Real Housewives of New Jersey fan. My favorite has to be Jacqueline. I like them all, but I seem to relate to her better. It is like watching a train wreck. You just can't stop watching while things just get crazier and crazier. I like most of the Real Housewives, except Atlanta. I just can't relate. It's a great marketing tool, but it's not for me.
• Computers suck. My desktop blew the modem somehow. We're having issues getting one to work. I find that funny since hubby installs them on almost a daily basis. I need a printer for my laptop, and I can get online with my laptop and print, so the modem thing is no big deal, except it IS a big deal, and I want it to work. Everytime I turn on my laptop for the last two or three days, my McAfee tells me it's having issues, but every time I try to fix it, it doesn't fix. Aaaaaahhhhhhhh! Like I said, computers suck.
• It's been raining here. It's not just the nice gentle showers I like. It's that pounding, blinding, scare the wits out of you thunder storms. I guess a storm isn't a storm without lots of lightning. We have had some serious boomers over the house. We love to have the rain since June and July were so blasted dry. It's been extra hot here, too, so the rain feels good in the afternoon. At least it feels good until the sun comes back out and it gets ultra sweltery. The rain keeps hubby working, though, so all I have to say is rain, baby, rain.
• I was having a conversation with someone one time and we were discussing writing and I think I got dissed. The comment was "I don't write all that flowery stuff." I have some pretty long sentences that tend to be flowery, so I was wondering if this person was talking about me. I'm pretty sure they've read my stuff. If not, sorry I brought it up. If so, to each his own. I still enjoy the way you write.
• I have been downloading songs left and right. I know there are tons of sites that I could get free music from, but I still choose to use iTunes. I get a gift card every couple of months and pay for it that way. That way I don't get a surprise on my credit card. The big girl has asked for some songs. Hubby even asked for one. Ok. I like having new stuff to listen to. I did splurge and buy Eminem's new CD. It is fantastic. I really wanted the not so much potty mouth version. I know that's weird coming from me, but it just gets to be too much. I couldn't find the clean version so I can't listen to it with my kids, but I can put it on my iPod.

That's about it, I guess. Just stuff. I'm sure I've left out a lot like my opinion of the first lady's trip to Spain. I told you I've been watching too much Fox News. You should check it out sometime. Curl up on your couch, grab a bowl of popcorn and a good book, and flip between the housewives and the news. There's an idea.

Oh, Baby

I want another baby. I have had baby fever for quite awhile now. I have wanted another baby pretty much since I had the last one. As the doctor was tying my tubes, I was bawling my eyes out. Hubby was the one that didn't want any more and he talked me into closing the factory. Lack of funds and poor management, two factors in today's economy as well, were both important, but not the main reason, hubby wanted to do that.

I do great pregnancies. It's the delivery hubby doesn't much care for. I do C-sections. Frankly, after 48 hours of labor with my first baby, mostly in my back, and an epidural that took awhile to take, I have no interest in natural childbirth. That is so not my thing. My next two were scheduled. I loved that part. I had a date. I knew when I had to have everything done by and most of it was. So much easier than the waiting around of natural. But after three, hubby was done with me being opened up. It was too much for him.

I would love to carry another child, but we are very open to the idea of adopting. The issue with adoption is the money. Please know that when I say we can't afford it, that means that I have $36.24 in my checking account until payday. We cannot afford adoption. Unless, by some miracle, a baby fell into our laps, that option is limited to us. Foreign adoption is really out of the question. We wouldn't mind that, but once again, fundage is prohibiting that route.

I have a couple of friends that just found out, or have known for a little bit and are just now sharing, that they are pregnant. I see pregnant women everywhere. I miss that feeling of moving baby inside me. I miss holding that little squiggler. Or a little snuggler. I miss the milestones. I miss the bottles and the diapers and the up all night. I miss taking the huge diaper bag everywhere we go. I miss trying to change the poopiest, messiest diaper with 2 wipes and prayer. I miss the baby food and first tastes. I miss it all. I feel like I could do one more, and I was cut off too soon.

If it's meant to be, it will happen. I'm not sure how, but if not, then it wasn't meant to be. My heart is ready, my body is ready, my soul is ready. I'm ready.

Traveling Feet

One thing that hubby and I have always had in common is our love of travel. We love to go here, there, and everywhere. I really wanted hubby to stay in the Air Force so we could travel for free. It wasn't what he wanted, so he didn't, and I'm good with that. You would think that as much as we like to go, we would at least have a passport. We don't, but we have some new ideas about traveling.

When we take a vacation, we usually visit family. That's great, but we don't usually go anywhere. Well, we go to dinner and shopping, but we don't go see local historic sites, or even some not so local. We just hang out and talk and visit with people. We are planning on doing some different things next time.

When we go to Texas, we are going to take a couple of days to go to Austin and the capitol. I would love to see the Governor's mansion and all that stuff. I would like go to the bridge and watch the bats, if you can still do that. I would like for the kids to see UT. It might give them Longhorn fever, you never know. And then a drive down to San Antonio to see the ALAMO. I would love to go to the River Walk and La Villita. And, of course, a huge mall. Is the mall still on the River Walk? See, it's been so long, I don't know if half of that stuff is still there. I would love to stay at the hotel right there on the River Walk. We could take the little boat tour. Lots of stuff to do.

When we go to Tennessee, we are going to Pigon Forge and Gatlinburg. We have been to Cade's Cove and seen the little town that's there and all the pretty deer. We didn't see any bears, but there's always next time. But I want to go to Dollywood. I really like Dolly Parton. Gatlinburg is so much fun. I might suck it up and go on the tram. I'll need to be highly medicated, but valium is a great thing. I just want to walk the shops and exhibits and take the kids to Ripley's. Yes, I know there is one close to here, but it's not the same.

Many of my friends this summer have been traveling fools. I have one friend whose husband sells insurance for a major company. They have incentives to meet to win trips. They went to Vienna this year after a two week camping trip up the East coast and a day in St. Augustine. Last year they went to Italy. What a great way to travel. One friend has a hubby that is an accountant. He had to go on a business trip to NYC. She got to go, too. After his meetings they got to visit and do the tourist thing. I have another friend that makes a two week trip to the Keys every year. I know yet another traveler that goes on a vacation with her in laws every summer. Their excursions are cruises to Mexico and the Carribean, among other things.

Hubby and I want to travel our great country. After our Hawaii trip we are saving for round two and three and so on. We want to go to South Carolina and rent a beach house. We would love to see Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. The Grand Canyon is another place we want to take the kids. Crater National Park in Arkansas and Grandfather Mountain in Georgia are two more. Our ideal life would be to travel the country in an RV and school on the road. The things we could see, the places we could go. What an amazing adventure that could be.

The Simple Life

I think that it's ironic that as I sit here listening to my iPod that is about to die so I must type quickly on my computer while my air conditioner is blowing nicely, I'm about to post on a simpler way of life. I'm nothing if not oxymoronic, or just moronic. It is what it is, whatever that is.

But seriously folks, at the park on Friday, a couple of friends and I were talking about a simpler, easier, slower life. Of course, by simpler, I mean so much harder than the life I live now, but more meaningful. We talked about each of us having a 20 acre plot and living a life closer to Little House on the Prairie than the current 2010. We can't afford it on our own, but together, pooling our resources, we could give it a go.

We talked about growing our own food. To have control of what goes on our food as it grows, to know the seeds haven't been genetically modified, to use compost we created, is a dream of ours. We are working on our compost first. We are researching compost bins. We are looking at different designs and different bins to try and decide if we want to build or buy. Right now, building is winning, but we aren't done yet. I dream about how beautiful my grandmother's garden always was. I think about what a great gardener my mother is. She can make dead plants come to life. I kill house plants.

We talked about having our own animals. We want goats and chickens. The kids and I want alpacas, but we need to start small. Farm fresh eggs are the best. And if you feed your chickens organically, they are so much better. And I am over the "not eating the chicken I named" thing. If it comes to eating or that chicken hanging around, I know which one wins. The goats we want for milk and hair. You can make cheese from the milk. I wonder if you can make butter? I've never heard of goat butter. Maybe there isn't enough fat? That's a research topic right there. We talked about cows, but that is a lot more work than I am after. They need more room than I want to give them.

Hubby talked about fruit trees and bushes. We can't grow apples because it's way too hot here. But we can grow citrus (duh), and avocados, and pomegranats, and some nuts (there's a bunch of those in our home), and some others. We can grow most veggies as well. He talked about a small orchard. We could can and pickle and jam and jelly.

We talked about a hard way of life. We talked about the care and tending the animals would need. We talked about the care and tending of the gardens and orchards. But we talked about the freedom that way of life offers. We talked about working hard, but reaping the benefits of eating food you grew. We talked about slowing down and spending time with family.

Do I think I could ever do that? I think I would like to try. I think I would like to try to garden successfully and raise animals. We are trying those things one at a time. We are starting with compost, then a garden, then chickens. We'll see how it goes, though. Baby steps, baby steps. My next one is home made bread. I hear there is an art to it. We'll see how I do.

Treat Us Like Mushrooms

I heard a very disturbing statistic a couple of days ago. It started as ways the government keeps us from focusing on what they are doing. For example, there was a total of 22 seconds of coverage on all three of the major networks regarding the man that is taking over the Medicare and Medicaid systems. On the flip side, a used-to-be-star going to jail got over 50 minutes of coverage. Why is this man important? This doctor is all about redistribution of wealth. He wants to take what we all earn and give it to other people. You do understand that's what redistribution means? It doesn't matter if you have nothing, your nothing will be evenly divided between the rest of us. Instead of putting this man front and center of the American people, he was slipped in the back door. And instead of fixing a broken system (again), the current administration would rather break it down further. Are you paying attention?

The POTUS keeps asserting that he was in charge of the Gulf oil spill from the beginning. That's scary. It has lasted more than 80 days, and may still be going on if this recent "fix" isn't right.But he's been there and aware of it from the start. Which is why he went on vacation, as did several high ranking officials that should have been taking care of this problem. He's taking care of it by going on vacation again. I cannot imagine the difficulties involved when you hold such a high ranking position and have young children. I cannot imagine how difficult it must be to try to explain to your children that the family cannot go somewhere or take a vacation or whatever because daddy has to run a war, or clean up the oil spill, or attack one of the 50 states that belongs to this nation because they support immigration laws. I also cannot imagine how you could go on vacation with all of this going on. Doesn't it make you, Joe Public, feel important?

And speaking of immigration, let's talk about the "sanctuary cities" that are being touted in California. Apparently you can be illegal there and they won't hunt you down and throw you out of the country. Wow, but Arizona is getting a bad rap. Did you know that Tennessee recently passed a similar law to Arizona's? Where was that in the news? It wasn't. I didn't even hear one little blurb about it. Wait, yes I did, but it wasn't on one of the big three. It was on Fox News, though. Arizona is being treated as the red headed step child, but the handful of other states that are worried about this country and it's borders and who comes across those borders are OK. I know where my vacation dollars are going. I would rather support states that have this country's best interest at heart than one that is sucking up to the commander in chief. Hear that, California?

The thing I don't like about things like blogs is that you don't hear the tone that all of this was meant to be read with. You can add a vicious tone that makes me seem like I'm spitting acid. Or a sing-songy tone that makes it seem like I'm not taking this seriously. Take this somewhere in the middle. Or, if you have my number, call me and I'll read it you. I really am just trying to educate people. You know my mantra: find the facts for yourself. Do you own research. Make your own decisions. Just don't be one of the sheeple.

Spanking

I know I've blogged about this before, but I couldn't find it and I got tired of looking for it. I was watching the national news this morning and there was an interesting story about spanking. The debate started when a couple got mad at the grandparents for spanking their two young boys. Apparently, Grandma got a little irritated at one grandson for pulling her plants out of the ground. Then, the second grandson did something and she spanked him, too. The parents were "outraged" that she had done that and it started a rift. Then, of course, the experts weighed in on spanking and other methods of discipline. The general consensus was that spanking is bad and you should do other things so as not to ruin the delicate psyche of children. Whatever.

My mom was a spanker. She spanked for every offense, and sometimes just because. There were times when we definitely needed a good butt whooping. Sometimes, not so much. Time out was not very wide spread when I was growing up. My dad, on the other hand, only spanked us once. It was harder on him than it was on us. He never did it again. But Dad had the look. One of those and you knew you screwed up. It was worse than a beating, not physically, but mentally. Here's my take.

Spanking was and is a great discipline tool in our home. I was a big spanker for many years. Because of that, my two older kids know that I mean business. The baby took a little while to get the picture, but she has come around. The two older kids know that the serious tone in my voice and the elevated level of that voice is just a warning. I will only take so much and then I'm done. I will only be pushed so far.

We do incorporate other means of discipline. We do use time out. The problem with that is, once again, the big kids know the fundamentals. They are so good about standing in time out, I forget they're there. And they don't ask if they can come out, they just stand there. I have to set a timer to remind me. The reason they are so good at it is because they got spanked while they were in time out for not listening. Or the threat of a spanking instead was always good at getting them to stand. The baby on the other hand is stubborn just like her mama. I could have beat her every minute of time out and it didn't matter to her. She was going to do things her way. You're killing me, here, Baby Girl. She does have it down now, thank goodness. She will stand there just like the big kids. Whew!!

We also take away their fun stuff. Actually we take away any and all fun they might think of having. That means all video games, electronics, TV, movies, whatever. If we had planned something fun for them, they miss out. If that doesn't work, then we definitely spank. You can only take so much crap before you start throwing it back.

The experts' view was that you scar your children and make them unproductive members of society by laying your hands on them. I do not condone beating or abusing your child(ren). But I also think that without the proper discipline for your child, you are making them unproductive members of society. I think that if you coddle your children, if you do not make them responsible for their actions and/or words, you are doing them a great disservice. We are making another generation of people that feels like they are owed something by society in general. They will have no sense of responsibility, no sense of right and wrong.

Children do not fit into a mold. One size does not fit all. Isn't that the way with all of us? Find the way that works best for your child. Find what works best for your family. Just don't tell me what works best for mine.