Day 31

Long, long ago, in a galaxy not so far away, we played cards every Saturday night with Tim & Sarah. We've known them for nearly 20 years now and I really think we might be part of a dying breed of card players who play Pinochle. Scott taught me the game soon after we started dating. Let me tell you, I didn't pick up on it very quickly. We tried to teach my parents & THAT was a total disaster!!

Incidentally, we DID teach my parents the most STUPID game every created. The "real" name of it is "Oh Sh*t!" but there was no way my parents would learn a game w/that name so we changed it to "Oh Pooh Pooh!" It is sooooooo stupid but my hubby, my parents, Tim & Sarah and the kids LOVE it. I really, really hate it and would much rather play Pinochle. When my parents lived here we would play Oh Pooh Pooh w/Tim & Sarah every week. When my parents moved, we went back to playing Pinochle. Then Tim & Sarah (Hiram & Bernice as my dad liked to call them, I don't know why) got a summer "cottage" on the lake & spent every weekend there. Scott still plays cards w/his Mom, Aunt & Uncle every other weekend. We're getting back into the groove of playing w/T&S but, 4/15 the cottage will be open again.......

Day 30

This is a tiny little tree that the kids' school planted last year. It looks so, well, let's just say it, Dead! I hope it's comes out come spring!

Day 29

This is a bush in front of my house. I think it's a boxwood. It's HUGE!!! I love snow covered greenery. I wish my holly bush was more dramatic 'cause I LOVE holly covered w/snow!

Day 28

Well, I got my wish! After Scott went out & tried to snowblow the 1" of sleet (didn't work!) it started snowing. Real snow. Big fluffy flakes of snow. It snowed for hours. Both my school & the kids' school canceled classes before 10pm! We woke up to a winter wonderland (I slept in until 7am!! That NEVER happens!) It was soooo pretty!


Scott had to work yesterday but was able to leave really late so he missed the icky roads. The kids and I got out to run to the Post Office, the bank, the library and the LSS (which was closed :( ). The roads were really clear. The street dept really did a great job.

Here is my favorite pic of the day tho. This time, the snowblower worked! Well!

day 27

We were supposed to get a huge storm yesterday. Well, we got sleet overnight. There was supposed to be more snow in the morning so all the schools were canceled, just in case. Nothing happened all day. We did get about an inch and a half of sleet. Seems like we never get snow anymore. Cold weather, yes. Ice, yes. Snow, not so much. Global warming at work?? If I buy a Prius & replace my light bulbs w/CFLs, will I get more snow???

Day 26

No big story for this. Jack dissappered for a bit last night & we didn't know where he'd gone. When we turned on the lights, this is what we found. Goofy cat!

Day 25

Here is today's pic. And, there is a huge long story to go with it.

My kids are responsible for cleaning the litter box. One week Becca does it, the next, Nick. Needless to say, they aren't thrilled w/the job. Nick accepts it better than Becca but Becca does a better job. LOL.

So, last week was Becca's week. She and Jack (the cat) have a love/hate relationship. She likes him when he's asleep and is TERRIFIED when he's awake. To be fair, Jack does seem to chase her a bit more than any of the rest of us. So, when it's her week to clean the poopy, she yells, screams, runs and generally tries to lock him away from her while she's completing the job. Usually, that just means closing the door from the family room to the laundry room thus keeping Jack out of the garage where the litter box is. Apparently, she either decided to lock the kitty door or by coincidence it got locked. But, for several days, Jack was locked away from his potty. Neither Scott nor I realized this. Jack was extremely vocal but, it's not like he was standing at the door crying. He sat in the family room & whined.

So, Thursday afternoon I'm tired & cranky & I sneak out of work early. Scott meets me at the door when I get home. This is NOT a good sign. He has discovered that Jack was locked out of the garage and his discovered that Jack finally couldn't hold it anymore & he pottied in the laundry room. Somewhere. So, being as Jack is "my cat" (just means he doesn't want to take care of him), I have to find the poopy (behind a roll of gift wrap), clean it up, wash the items that were under the poopy and spray the room to rid it of the delightful smells of kitty crap.

Ok, seems odd that Jack would have pooped but not peed anywhere. We're thinking that maybe he was only locked out for a couple hours & that's why we can't find the pee. We notice that Jack will not sleep in his kitty bed. He doesn't sleep in it during the summer but during the winter, he loves it. So, Scott tries to put him in his bed. He immediately jumps out. Scott puts him in again, out again. Finally, Scott picks up the pillow in the bed to turn it over & the whole thing is wet. Jack used his bed for a litter box?!?!?!! WEIRD.

All this to say that we pitched the old bed & bought Jack a brand new kitty bed! He's having problems getting used to it & won't go in there volunentarily. If we put him in it, and he's sleepy (he's a cat, when is he NOT sleepy?) he'll stay in there & sleep. I guess time will tell if he will get used to it or not.

BTW, we are now checking the kitty door several times a day to make sure it's open.

Day 24

Here was the plan yesterday: I was going to the SU Open House, Scott was taking his mother shopping and the kids wanted to go with him. I was going to lunch w/my girlfriends, Scott could figure out what he wanted to do when lunchtime rolled around. I was going to spend the afternoon going thru my new catalouge and eating the coconut cream pie I brought home from Josephine's.

All went well until Scott got back to his mom's house and I was sitting down to look thru the catalouge. Scott calls me & his mom's computer was messed up. I tried to talk him thru it over the phone but it didn't work. So, I jump in the car, meet him there. We look at it together for awhile. He leaves (w/the kids and the $130 worth of junk he bought at WalMart. WHAT????) and stay another hour trying to figure her computer out. Never did happen. Now, I have to go back, call my bro in law while I'm there & try to see if I can find out why her desktop icons are in her "contacts" folder and why her internet favorites are missing. There ought to be an age limit for people to have computers!!!

ETA -- I finally ate the pie. It wasn't that great. I gotta stop BUYING pie when I know I can make better & its probalby CHEAPER. $6 for one piece of pie??? What was I thinking???

Day 23 Late & it's Basketball, AGAIN!

Yesterday was a supremely bad day is oh so many ways!! I left for work at 7am, worked until 1:30, came home & took a 15 minute nap, drove to South Roxana to pick up the kids, drove them to Edwardsville (to run into Michael's for just a minute :), drove to Collinsville, found the school, drove to Culvers (yum!), drove back the the gym, waited, waited, waited, waited, finally someone else figured out the the gym was in the CHURCH, not the SCHOOL, watched the boys get creamed (which is good 'cause then Nick gets to play) in a gym that had NO ROOM FOR CHAIRS -- while sitting on the sidelines, our feet were "in bounds", drove back to Culvers for ice cream (w/my nephew), dropped Andy off, came home & pretty much fell asleep at 9:30. I do have pics of the game but, nothing that interesting. I guess I could post one of those & be done for the day. Hmmmm.

Day 22

(What am I going to do when February hits & I won't be able to easily figure what day it is????)

Last night the kids had sports pictures taken after school. This is the first time that both kids have been involved in a sport at the same time. This is good & bad. I spend ALOT of time waiting around for practices and driving to home & away games. But, I digress.

Since I had no idea what time we would be done w/school, I talked Scott into eating out. We went to Jack in the Box. I LOVE JitB. Yummy burgers & tacos, so-so fries. Until a few years ago, I didn't realize that they were not a national chain. I'd seen them in the StL area and I'd seen them in California so, I assumed they were everywhere. They're not! Shame, they have terribly funny commercials & the cutest antennae balls. Hmmm, a pic idea for another day?

Oh yeah, my kids (and in the last few years, my hubby) are addicted to ketchup. Scott usually only eats it fast food resturants (the ketchup at home is cold, he likes his at room temperture). So we get ALOT of ketchup.

Day 21 pic

Found my purse & my camera wasn't in it. It was down here the the whole time. Suprise! I'm lazy. LOL

Anyway, here is my view when I got to work yesterday. Wasn't the pic I had hoped for but I think it turned out pretty good. One of these days (when the sunrise is earlier, I'll take one from my house!)

Day 20

For Inaguration Day, all the teachers were allowed to take their classes into the gym or library and let the kids watch the ceremonies. For us, this meant we needed a portable lunch that the kids could take w/them tot he gym or library. So, what's more portable than CORNDOGS!! We packed them into their sleeves (not shown) and put an apple, carrot sticks, Teddy grahams and milk into a paper bag & off they went. Apparently, one of the classes either didn't stay long or couldn't find space 'cause they came back & ate their lunches in the cafeteria.

Day 19 (for real this time)

On MLK, my Florissant girl friends got together & invited me! Woohoo! Stamping on a Monday. So I pack all my stuff but, when I got there, I worked on a project they had done & wanted to replicate. We had such a good time. Marge showed up a bit late as she had to take her hubby for a minor medical procedure. We always have so much fun when we get together. I wish I lived closer to them so I could get together more often!

Day 19

Ok, this is really bad: I took my pics today, I crafted today. Both the pics (ok, the camera) and the project are upstairs & I'm too lazy to go get them. I'm seriously thinking of packing it in & going to bed at 9:16pm!!

So, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm posting this drivel. Tomorrow, early, before anyone (at least anyone in the US) is up, I'll edit this post with the pics & the "real" blog entry. The date & time will show tonite & no one will be the wiser. Unless someone is up late & actually READS my blog.

Until tomorrow then.....

Day 18

Well, it's the end. End of Sunday football. Yes, I know there is still the Super Bowl but, that's different. I will no longer be a football widow. I will no longer have something to sleep thru (I'm sure I can find something). Dh will be available on Sunday afternoons for other projects. Until Spring Training games start.

Can you see the Hubby decorating touches? The books of baseball cards? The Cubby bear? The Cubs blanket? The framed pic o Wrigley Field above the baseball cards? Above the TV, there is a cross stitch pic of a Cubby Bear & a Football Bear. I made it for Scott when we were still dating. Technically, the big screen, HD tv is dh's contribution so he can see the baseball games in HD. Guess what? WGN is NOT in DH thru DirecTV.

Day 17

I drove up the "River Road" to Elsah today. I love the river road. For some reason it makes me feel peaceful. I think there is a deep, psychological reason for it but I'm not about to delve into it here :) Anyway, I was looking for eagles but didn't see any that I could easily take pics of.

I did want to take some pics of the frozen river. It was really cool looking I thought. The ice was not smooth & flat and, in some places, it was very free flowing. A number of barges were going up and down the river. I don't think the river freezes solid anymore. I still remember reading the Little House series and learning about people driving across the frozen river before there were bridges (and cars for that matter!)

After I got home, I picked up the kids & we went back downtown to look for eagles. They have an eagle at the Alton Visitors' Center. The kids were unimpressed. They agreed to drive along to the dam but I think it was just to kill time until 2 when they thought I would buy them sodas at Sonic. They were disappointed.

Day 16

Well, tonite, they lost :( BAD!! This is Nick's first year and he's not what anyone would call athletically gifted. He's having fun & that's all that matters. I'm sure ALL the boys would like to win more but, I hope, somewhere in their minds, they know they are learning something.

Day 15

I'm going to remember to post TODAY'S Pic today!!

Even tho Alton (and every other school here-abouts) cancelled school today because of the bitter cold, Bethel still had school. The kids weren't please 'cause mom got a day off & they had to go to school. Nick was less disappointed 'cause he had a basketball game. So, we traipsed out into the cold for his game. The JV team is still learning how to play an organized game of basketball. I must admit, they've lost every game but one tournament game & the very first game of the season.

Well, tonight, they won!!!! It was a very good game & the teams were very evenly matched. The final score was 35 to 18. My nephew (who just transferred back to BCA) sank a 3 pointer just before the buzzer. Pretty Awesome!! Nick did at least TOUCH the ball this game. He knocked it out of bounds but, whatever.

Day 14

Ooops, missed this one. Here is my pic for Wednesday.

When I left to take the kids to school on Wed, it was still dawn, cold but the sun was coming up. When I got to school the sun was shinning. When I looked outside again after the breakfast rush, no sun!! No sun the rest of the morning & into the afternoon. When I left to pick up the kids the sun was shinning brightly again. Odd weather that turned MEAN later on. Down to zero overnight. School was canceled for Thur before 2:30pm on Wednesday!!! Weird.

Anyway, when I got home from the "bus run" the sun was shining thru the window making this pattern on the wall. It's from the snowflake light in the window (see Jan 8 blog post). Thought it looked neat.

Day 13

Scott decided I needed an iPod for Christmas. I made the mistake of asking if I could add 2GB of songs to his 7GB that he has on his 30GB iPod. I thought that way, when we are on vacation, I could listen to MY music. I might have just as well asked to use his spleen! I had a MP3 player but he had the car adaptor thingie and it seemed my MP3's battery was ALWAYS dead!

Anyway, I ended up w/an iPod, a car adaptor & a charging/playing "dock". It's cool but I was not overjoyed w/it. I wanted stamping stuff!! (which I did get but, as you know, you could always use more!)

After having it now for 3 weeks, I don't know that I could live with out it. I used to listen to the radio when I picked the kids up from school. Now, I listen to my iPod. I used to listen to the music on my computer while at home, now I listen to the iPod. I even downloaded games so I can play on my iPod when I'm waiting around. I think I like it!