The Case of the Missing Bread

Have you seen our bread? It looks like this:

Or at least it used to look like that. It's gone. And we have no idea where it is.

The facts:

- Todd went to the grocery store on Wednesday.

- Todd bought a loaf of bread at the store.

- I saw it was placed on the countertop on Wednesday.

- I noticed it was gone on either Thursday or Friday, but I didn't say anything because I figured Todd took it to school for some reason.

- It is still missing today.

Through my investigation, I have learned:

- Todd thought I had the bread.

- Said bread is not in the freezer, fridge or in any cabinets. I have checked every room in the house.

- Todd saw the wrapper of the old bread in the backyard.

- I found a card game, hat, & can koozie in the backyard this morning.

- We have three dogs, two of whom steal things.

Todd asked me, "Don't you think there would some bread outside if the dogs took it?" I doubt it. Guess who won't be having sandwiches today or toast tomorrow? That's right. NOBODY.

Superhero Update

DeafBoy arose from the ashes (bed) this morning with his hearing restored. Fear not, for he shall continue his reign as DeafBoy. We're just glad UnDeafBoy received his miracle cure without coming under attack from other superheroes.

BurnGirl didn't fare as well. She is still in pain and wielding stupid questions from children. Examples would include:

Child: "Are you sunburned?"
BurnGirl: "No, I went crazy with the blush brush this morning."

Child: "Did you go to the beach this weekend?"
BurnGirl: "No, why do you ask?"
Child: "Never mind."

Child: "Did you get burned by the sun?"
BurnGirl: "No, I sat in an oven."
Child: "WHAT?!"
Other children: She's being sarcastic.

Ya think????!!!! :)

BurnGirl's colleagues said she was getting more purple throughout the day. Lovely. UnDeafBoy slathered more aloe on BurnGirl's swollen, hot burns after she fed him this evening.

Perhaps BurnGirl can become BurnGirlEggplantWomanSarcasticTeacher. What a superhero THAT would be! ::preparing comic books full of color, hawt & skinny BurnGirl -yea!, and lots of onomatopoeia::

POW! SINGE! ZAP! BURN! OUCH!

Two New Superheroes

I'm going to tell you a story about two superheroes . . . DeafBoy and BurnGirl.


Once upon a time there was a girl named Kristin and a boy named Todd. Todd was once a mild-mannered man who enjoyed hanging out in the pool drinking cold beer. One May weekend he played in the pool, diving underwater, sitting on floats, throwing children into the pool, entertaining by splashing "cannonballs", and drinking his drinks. He spent too much time in the pool and with one too many underwater submersions, he filled his left ear with water. Strong as he was, his ear became plugged and much of his hearing went away. He became frustrated and tried many things to clear his ear and restore his hearing - but to no avail. This is the weekend he became DeafBoy.

Kristin was once a fair maiden who enjoyed hanging out on a float in the pool with a tasty beverage in hand. She couldn't swim, so she preferred her float to drowning and spilling her drink. One May weekend, she relaxed on a float for four hours while enjoying her Malibu and Limeade. Knowing the fair maiden she was, she applied sunscreen at the beginning of her afternoon and naively thought it would protect her. After much time and many beverages, she realized that her lips were hurting and the sun felt much too hot on her lovely, delicate skin. She learned later that night that the skin on her chest, arms, face, lips, scalp, and back were a purplish-red. This is the day she became BurnGirl.

So DeafBoy and BurnGirl helped each other. She put drops in DeafBoy's ears, gave him a heating pad, aspirated his ear, spoke a little louder than usual, fed him and loved him. In return he rubbed aloe gel and lotion on BurnGirl's skin. They began crusading the Earth together by sharing the stories so others don't have to join them in the world difficult of Super Herodom. We don't yet know the end of this story, but we do know they live happily ever after . . .

Following the Crowd

I'm playing along like many of my blogging friends! Bbaaaaaa . . .

A - Attached or Single: Attached
B - Best Friend(s): Todd, Cindy & Sylvia
C - Cake or Pie: pie!
D - Day of Choice: any day I don't work
E - Essential Item: my husband & animals
F - Favorite Color(s): black, navy, pink, white, red, khaki
G - Gummy Bears or Worms: either
H - Hometown: Richardson (Dallas)
I - Indulgence(s): afternoon nap
J - January or July: July - no school!
K - Kids: come hell or highwater
L - Life is incomplete without: my family, friends and pets
M - Marriage Date: 3.10.07
N - Number of Siblings: 2 older sisters & 2 younger brothers (and I'm an only child)
O - Oranges or Apples: either
P- Phobias or Fears: heights
Q - Quote: "Be kinder than necessary for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle." - unknown
R- Ring size: 7.5
S - Season: Fall or Spring
T- Tag 3 Friends: Laurie (update your blog!), Newtie, and "A"
U - Unknown fact about me: It might gross you out. :)
V - Very favorite stores: Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Kirklands
W - Worst Habit: procrastination, cursing
X-ray or Ultrasound: had both, whatever
Y - Your Favorite Food(s): Mexican or Italian
Z - Zodiac: Pisces

This Week & Update

This week has been a busy one! With only eight days (two four-day weeks) of school ahead, life has become a whirlwind.

An update on Mary: First of all, thank you so much for all of the prayers, emails, comments, and calls. I know that Mary feels them as do the rest of us. Please continue your prayers as this is a rough road ahead for my little grandmother.

Because I want her to rest and Fritz to stay sane, I haven't been calling the hospital. I don't think it's fair for Fritz to be the conduit of information while also taking care of Mary. So, I get updates from my mom every couple of days.

Mary may go home from the hospital today. That will make this stay a week-long one. Her pain has eased some. Doctors removed her NG tube a couple of days ago and hopefully she was able to drink some apple juice that she has been requesting. (Mary was NPO - nothing by mouth - no food, drink etc. since she was admitted.) Chemo will cease as her body just can't handle it. However, doctors will put her back on Femara which is a drug she has taken in the past. I am hoping to see or talk to Mary directly in the next few days. I'll post more updates then.

Todd and I are headed to Tyler in the morning to spend time with family and friends. Miss Karen is coming to stay with our four animals, and they love her as much as she loves them. We are very blessed to have such an awesome pet sitter and friend! We are looking forward to the short break, seeing everyone, and relaxing. Hopefully this will reenergize us for the upcoming two weeks, as we are both completely burned out and ready for summer.

I hope everyone has a fun and safe Memorial Weekend. Remember to take a moment to honor those of us who have served our country in the past, lost their lives, lost part of their lives, and those who are serving us now. They deserve it.

Blogging About Blogs

I've decided to add another blog to my repertoire. It is focused on pregnancy loss and infertility (mine and others). The link is http://www.fertileramblings.blogspot.com/. Visit here & there plus add both blogs to your blogroll. Don't forget to leave your comments! :)

Now I'll suffer from being a bi-blogger. Oh dear.

New Arrival

Our new dining set is here! It's big, but I think it also looks that way because the old table was so scrawny & crummy looking. The delivery process was SO smooth! When Salvation Army knocked on the door & took the old table & chairs, Macy's pulled up and started unloading.

Before:






During (naked!):






AFTER!!!







Can you tell how excited I am?! Now we have to figure out how to redo the wall and what (if anything to put on the table). Tonight will be our first dinner at our new table!

Cancer Sucks

Anyone reading this that has cancer, survived cancer, lost a loved one to cancer, or have a loved one with cancer can wholeheartedly agree with that statement.

My grandmother, Mary, has cancer. (You can read more about Mary in previous posts: Mary the Great and Prayers for Mary.) She's actually been battling cancer off & on for 28 years. There have been more years of remission and health than not, but we're now entering the final countdown.

Mary is presently doing injection chemotherapy, and it's kicking her ass. Last night, Mary was admitted to the hospital for pain. Doctors suspect that the pain is due to the chemo (gosh, ya think??). I think the next part of the plan will be to discontinue chemo and begin hospice care. Mary is so very strong, but these last months have made her weak and frail. She is a little, tiny thing now and trying so hard to maintain a positive attitude. When you ask Mary how she is doing, she typically responds, "I'm okay." When she does complain, you know it's been really bad for her. My grandfather, Fritz, is still trying so hard to take care of Mary, but I feel as if he is wearing thin as well.

When you look at Mary, you don't think, "Gosh, she's dying of cancer." But she is. I know we are all dying and that death is inevitable, but I hate that Mary has to suffer through this. She has always had such a zest for life and living, and watching her slowly wane away is painful for all of us. The one thing Mary's always wanted is to maintain a quality of life. That is slowly going away as well. And I know she hates it.

Luckily we were able to spend the night before Mother's Day together as a family. It was Mary & Fritz, my Mom and Rick, my brother Jeffrey, my brother Michael & his wife Danielle and their kids Aeva & Will, and Todd and me. That night was the first night we were all together for over a year. And I feel it was probably our last.

Mary will continue to have ups and downs, but we are all realizing that our time with her is limited more than ever now. I just pray (and ask for you to join me) that God will provide her peace and comfort in the upcoming days/weeks/months - however long we have with her.

I love you, Mary, and I always will.

I'm Animaled Out Tonight

I love fresh air during the spring, so I left the back door open for a few minutes when I got home. A fly must have gotten in at that time because Pippin the Flycatcher Pup is running around looking in corners and snapping at the air. She has me so paranoid that more bugs are in the house that I actually thought I felt one crawling on my arm. Note to self: Start looking for screen doors.

As I was fixing MY dinner (Ghetto Ham Sandwiches - yum!), the four animals were at my feet begging for anything. I finally settled on small pieces of cheese and fed them to the dogs first. Mackey was instantly thrilled and ran from the room in delight. Pippin waited for more as did Steve. Then I gave the cat a bite. That's when Steve barked so loudly that I may be deaf in my left ear now. Idiot.

I shooed naughty dog & his entourage out of the kitchen and attempted to give Mindy her cheese again. In came the beast ready for a repeat performance. I shooed Steve out again with him only to prove his vigilance. Mindy and I finally gave up. Luckily she got a teensy-tiny, little-bitty bit of cheese. While I think Mindy would hate him, I think she secretly likes the attention he gives her. I've had a couple of roommates that had pets, but no animal has ever wanted to sniff Mindy's butt as much as Steve. Stevie is such a bad boy.

Then there were the two instances of barking in the house (which is rare) - one by Pippin and the other by Steve. They both scared the crap out of me. Pippin's barkfest was brief, but Steve got them both going and they flew out of the house to go kick some butt. (Have I ever told you that we have a dogdoor that has saved our sanity?) Barkfest #2 ensued for a few minutes, but I was too tired to go tell them to shut it. Plus, I knew my efforts would be fruitless.

After all the antics of the past couple of hours, they all appear to be tired for now. I'm sure something else will happen very soon. I hope Todd is home by then so he can deal with it.

Out with the old, In with the new

We are finally replacing the furniture in our breakfast area! We currently have a mismatched table with chairs & it's in a pretty sad state. I recovered the chairs a couple of years ago & they look better than they did, but still.




The chairs aren't the worst part of the "ensemble". The table is almost like a fake table because you just can't really sit around it. Anyway, Salvation Army - take it away!

On Saturday, our dining area will take on a new look. Something exactly like this, in fact:



It's a wonderful counter-height, cherrywood table top (no veneers!) with black legs and black chairs. We opted for the leaf and eight chairs instead of four. While I'm not overly hip on the chair covers, I know how to recover them when we're ready. :)

I can't wait for our first dinner at our new table!

Will the Real Queen Please Stand Up?

Many of my "bestie" internet pals and I went out for a 2nd Chance Bachelorette Party. What a night we had! It's taken me all of this time to recover and post. :)

Here are a few of us - L to R - Sarah, Dianthe, Jessica, Meg, Kelly, ReJana, Rebecca & me. Oh, and don't forget the huge chunk of wall above and behind us. Thanks dude that took the photo! (and to me for being too lazy to crop it)

We started at the Embassy Suites Hotel at Market Center. We started getting ready and having a few cocktails before cocktail hour began. The hotel offers a free cocktail hour for guests, so we (of course) had to oblige that opportunity as well.

After cocktails & cocktail hour, we headed to our rooms to finish getting ready some more. I'm sure there were a few cocktails consumed again.

For dinner, we went to the Victory Tavern in Victory Plaza. It was my first time down there since it's become such a hotspot around the AAC. Dinner & drinks were overpriced but fairly tasty. The hummus and pita chips were awesome!

From there, we headed to Oak Lawn's Rose Room at S4. They offer a fabulous drag show that we really enjoyed. Then we headed downstairs for more dancing - oh - and more cocktails. :) Here are a few of the ladies/men/whatevers that entertained us. Some of them looked good!

After closing the place down, we went back to the hotel. Many of our friends were already there and asleep (*ahem* passed out), so our hungry selves walked down the street to Whataburger. For those of you that have known me (and known me well) for a long time, you realize heading to Whataburger after being at a bar was a bit scary for me to do. However, I was (once again) pretty sober and needed some sustinence.

Finally, a little after 4am, I unfolded my very uncomfortable sofa bed and crashed. The morning came quickly, as did the week ahead of me.

The one thing I learned is that I am officially old.

Duck, Duck, BARK!

Pippin & Steve had an absolute fit when we had a visitor atop our roof this evening. You would have thought the aliens had landed and were coming for all of us. Instead, it was this:



Yep, it's a duck. (a mallard in fact)


Get off MY house!! I am Steve and you can't be on my roof! WOOOOFF! Don't you understand "dog"?


I don't want to bark at you because my spray collar will get me. Oh well ----- WOOOOFF!


I know, I know . . . Such excitement in our home. You gotta take what you can get!