Tagged!

Been having fun reading everyone's blogs & their fun facts about themselves. Can't believe I've been tagged---especially by my "idol" Laura! So here goes....

Here's the rules which must be posted on your blog if you are tagged. link to your tagger and post these rules. share 7 facts about yourself (some random, some weird). tag 7 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them). let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

1. I am very anal about organization & everything being in "it's" place however I don't keep up on things & put things away when I should.
2. My pantries (yes I have 2) are FULL of food because I ALWAYS over buy BUT there's nothing to eat in the fridge!
3. I would rather bake then cook anyday (the proof is on my hips) although I do like to cook just not the "usual" things.
4. I LOVE to entertain but stress over it WAY too much until it starts then wonder what I was so worried about. (see previous blog postings)
5. I have to keep myself from running to the mailbox everyday as soon as I see the mailperson so I don't seem so silly but I just want to see if there is any "happy mail".
6. I spend too much time online checking out other people's layouts THEN wonder WHY I'm so far behind in my own scrapping.
7. I buy things online because I HAVE to have it then don't use it as soon as I should (ie-scrap supplies...see #6 & #5)

So there you have it. My quirkiness unveiled for all to see. I think if I thought about it more I could've come up with more crazy facts but I don't want to scare anyone (who actually might be reading my blog) off!! I don't know anyone that blogs other than the people whose blogs I lurk on so I officially end the tag & not tag anyone back. My friends & family don't even know that I have a blog (except Joe but I haven't let him see it--too personal!!! LOL!!!) If I were to mention this to my sisters they would tell me I have "too much time on my hands" which is the same reply when I talk about my scrapping!! So if you're up for it & you are like me & "have too much time on your hands" then please feel free to share your quirkiness with me!

On a happy note...today was our parent-teacher conference with Marissa's teacher & it went so well!! She said Marissa was right where she should be in the class. She's very excited about learning new things. She's eager to learn & isn't a follower. She's a bit competitive but in a good way in that she wants to learn & get it right. Really a great meeting! Not to sound like my kid is perfect or anything but she does need to focus on her reading comprehension skills & pronoun use. Just in case you think my child is a child prodigy! LOL!!

Today was Gianna's school pictures.

She looked so friggin' CUTE! She said she smiled & demonstrates with this totally cheesy smile. Time will tell. I had to take pictures of her when we got home. She looked so different & I can't figure out why. BTW-last night she went to bed in her underwear--no pull-ups!! She did wonderful!! Tonight should be good too. I have to report there haven't been any accidents since the last time I posted about her having an accident so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

I'm just about done cleaning for the party tomorrow night. I have a whopping 7 people (including me) coming & 2 maybes!! Oh well we'll still have fun! Now I'm off to slice up the brownies I baked & finish cleaning the bathroom...I would just like to skip the cleaning part & get to the baking & setting up the table/food part. It's times like these that make me want to get a cleaning service...but that would mean I would have to let go of my anal quirkiness (see #1)!

Weekend Update

We had a relaxing sort of weekend finally. Marissa had off from school Thurs & Fri so she had a 4 day weekend but, I think we all took advantage of that. Fri night we went to my sister Marie's house for my B-I-L Danny's 41st birthday. As we drove up it started snowing! It wasn't by our house but she lives 30 mins north of us so that had a lot to do with it. She made dinner & we had cake & coffee. Afterwards we watched Spiderman 3 which looked pretty cool with the special effects even though I'm not into "Spidey" that much. It was nice...until little Miss Gianna had not 1 but 2 accidents in a row! AAARRGGGHH!!! What is with her these past few days????

Sat. we slept late & lounged in our pj's for most of the day UNTIL....my F-I-L called telling us he & Marlene were stopping by for a little while & would be here in 30 minutes! So much for the relaxing weekend!! We scrambled around getting showered & dressed. I took my time knowing that the longer I took the more of their visit I would miss!! When I came downstairs I said hello & Marlene started jabbering telling me all about her dieting & that she's on Weight Watchers now...blah blah blah. Luckily Marissa dug out some board games & challenged her to checkers. Love that little girl!! To keep busy I made a pot of sauce then went around doing things I should have done during the day but was being too lazy to do. FINALLY after 3 HOURS instead of the aforementioned "little while" they left. We ended the night by watching "Deck the Halls" which was an ok movie. I think the un-expected visit killed the mood.

Sun was a repeat of Sat. (without the intrusion) & after getting dressed we went to BJ's to do a little shopping. Then we went out to the diner to eat. After putting the girls to bed we watched Desparate Housewives then Brothers & Sisters & went to bed. Nothing exciting, but relaxing.

I had a dream about the jewelry party I'm throwing Fri night. I dreamt that only a few people came & Carolee didn't display her jewelry so no one bought anything. I REALLY want this to go well. I don't think I will ever host another party like this again!!

Speaking of hosting a party. It's been settled I'm doing Thanksgiving here again. **SIGH** I don't mind the cooking & all that, but it's the torture of listening to Joe's dad complain how "this country needs a depression" "everyone spends money they don't have" blah blah blah. WHY does he CARE???? It doesn't affect him at ALL so why does he bitch about it so damn much!! Sorry but as much as I love him he's gotten far too annoying for me & I think I'll be drinking heavily that day--you know 1 beer & I'm toast!! LOL!!!

No good deed.....

I've survived another Thursday night with my F-I-L. Luckily he was in a good mood tonight & Gianna kept him occupied for awhile so that's a plus. He's got this annoying habit that he'll tell you a story & then immediately after telling it he'll REPEAT it...SEVERAL times!!!! AAARRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!

Other than that it's been a nice day. Today & tomorrow the kids (Marissa) have no school. So Marissa got to go to work with Daddy & Gianna went to pre-school...that means Mommy went....SHOPPING!!! No nothing for myself unless you count that skin cream from Bath & Body Works but no I did a little Christmas shopping. Marissa also needed some jeans because around this time of year she gets a growth spurt & the jeans fit her around the waist fine BUT are TOO short. Hopefully the jeans will fit her fine for awhile or the poor kid will be wearing capri's during the winter!!! LOL!!

I did get a little happy mail today. I found this COOL bag on Shaunte's blog
http://www.joann.com/joann/shop/shop_tszoom.jsp?path=http://63.210.199.180/13/15/6/131564.jpg.fpx

I figure I can use it on vacation to carry my cameras & video cameras & paraphernalia around now that I don't need a diaper bag anymore. I can't wait to play with it & fill it up!!

Today was a weird kinda day with Gianna. I can officially say she's been potty trained for a couple of weeks now (I forgot to mention that in previous posts). She now does both #1 & #2 on the potty on her own. YEAH!!! HOWEVER....today when I picked her up from school I was told that she got up from her nap & went & sat herself in a chair & REFUSED to join in any activities or circle time or snack time. I also noticed that she didn't have any lunch...why? you ask...because today was the dreaded---FISH STICKS. YUCK! My daughter is stubborn beyond belief & will REFUSE to be coerced (sp?) into eating something she DOES NOT LIKE! When I questioned her in the car about her day I asked why she was in the chair by herself & she told me that she didn't want the other kids to take her Aurora dolly. That's the doll that I let her take to school to help her over me leaving her there. PLUS that's who she was for Halloween PLUS she's a possessive child PLUS I've noticed when I drop her off in the morning some of the kids kinda get in her face & annoy her. So I think I need to talk to the teachers & explain that she might be feeling a little bullied (if that's the right term). My heart just about broke when I realized that my little baby went practically all day without food! Nevermind that she had a rotten day! I told you that story because...... To make matters worse when we got home she had an accident & wet herself. She hasn't done that in ages but I changed her & moved on. Later as I'm cooking dinner she comes in & tells me she did "stinky" in her underwear. That's 2 accidents in 1 day!!! Is she regressing because of her rotten day today???? I feel horrible about it!!

Today is also my B-I-L Danny's birthday. He's my FAVORITE B-I-L but he's also my ONLY B-I-L!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DANNY!

WARNING: A little venting.....
Earlier this week I booked a Silpada jewelry party with my girlfriend Carolee for the 16th. I started sending out invites but so far have gotten more declines than people coming. I'm really frustrated with this!! I feel like I have no friends!! I'm really trying to help Carolee out because the more parties she books the more commission she makes (I think that's how it works) so I REALLY hope I have a good turn out & not have to cancel the party! The venting part is I feel that my so-called friends are just "users" (I won't mention names). They use me because they know that I'm a SAHM & according to THEM I have LOTS of time to kill! I admit that I have a hard time saying no to people BUT I'm just trying to be a "good" person by treating people the way I would want to be treated. Is that so wrong?? This has been bothering me A LOT this week & really bummed me out (that's why I haven't posted in a while). I feel better now BUT I will be re-thinking how I respond to people from now on. Times like these I wish I could move & become a hermit!! Some people SUCK! As Joe says "No good deed goes un-punished" or that other saying "Mean people suck!" Yeah I'd have to apply both to this....

I want my mojo back!

I still haven't scrapped in awhile. Don't know what's with me. Sometimes when I feel REALLY guilty about not doing housework I tend to feel less creative. That's probably what's got me all bothered. In the hopes to get some inspiration I've been re-organizing my ribbon drawer. I've got all those yummy ribbons I got from Michael's $1 bin that I keep separate from the rest because the spool are bigger & don't fit nicely in the drawer. I've finally decided to take them off the spools wind them up & put them in the cropper hopper boxes. It'll make searching for ribbons a little easier.

As for little Miss Gianna-she had ANOTHER fit when we got to school. The only way I got her out of the car was to tell her she could put the check in the "mailbox" for me. After she did that she threw a fit & cried. I brought her into class & got a lot of sympathic looks from the center directors'. **SIGH** On the flip side when I picked her up she was still dressed in the clothes she had put on in the morning-that means she was accident free.....until dinner time! I was cooking Joe's FAVORITE dinner of veal parm when Gianna comes to tell me that she did a stinky in her underwear. ***SIGH*** I made her wait a few minutes while I finished frying the veal. I asking her if it felt disgusting hoping to make her more aware & she said yes. After I cleaned her up & made her sit on the potty anyway. I've heard this helps so I'll give ANYTHING a try!

Marissa had a good day at school. She told me she had art & gave me a guilt trip for forgetting to send in a smock for her. The NERVE of me!! Like she can't frickin' REMIND me ahead of time! Last week she forgot her library books at home & did the same thing when I picked her up. I told her that we have to work as a team & I'll help her but she's got to remember too. This girl needs a secretary! Then when she doesn't remind her of something she can pull a Donald & say "You're FIRED"! LOL!!

Rant...

So what's with kids & their fear of being potty trained?? I. AM. SICK.TO.DEATH. of cleaning of crap-literally! Tonight right before bathtime Gianna had an accident. The killer? She was RIGHT IN the bathroom when it happened! Why can't she just sit on the potty & be done with it?? For punishment I took her blanket way from her. For those of you not in the know it's her security blankie that I took away. I told her it's only for one night but she has to poop on the potty! I've already mentioned to her that tomorrow she has school. She said she doesn't want to go. I told her she has to go & no crying or accidents when she's there. AARRRRGGHHH!!!!!

On another note...I have scrapper's block. I have no desire to scrap & the last LO I finished was eh. I only finished it to get it off my desk. I need a break of some sort.

Since I didn't mention it yet, the block party was ok. It wasn't as fun as last year. Someone had the bright idea to bring out a tv because the yankees were playing. That means a bunch of people sat in front of the tv & watched the game---they can do that at home!! At a block party you should have fun, mingle & talk! I had to miss Desparete Housewives-why can't they miss a frickin' ball game!?!?

Did I also mention that my coffee maker is broken?? I have been without coffee since Fri!! Joe tried his best to replace it but that didn't happen. AAARRRGGHHH!!! So that's it. I'm done ranting & raving like the lunatic I am...for now!

Drama

It's weird...Gianna has been really good about getting dropped off at school except for today! I have some reasons as to why but it's all hypothetical. Let me back track a little....

Yesterday was her 1st full day at her new pre-school. Unfortunately her teacher Merideth was out & there was a sub. No big deal though I warned her that Gianna needs to be reminded about the potty. OK. I kissed Gianna goodbye & told her I loved her & she waved goodbye...GREAT!

I called after lunch to see how she was & the sub told me that she was fine except when lunchtime came she was given applesauce but of course MY CHILD doesn't like it & got mad. The teacher took it off her plate BUT the damage was done & Gianna wouldn't eat. I don't think she would have eaten it ANYWAY because they were serving Quesidillias & she's a pretty fussy eater. After lunch it's naptime. She napped & everything was ok. So I got off the phone feeling ok about her 1st day. It's not the 1st time she's gone to sleep on an empty stomach.

When we picked her up she comes running to me & I could tell by her face that she had been crying (her eyes were puffy & red). The teacher told me that Gianna was doing the "pee pee dance" but refused to go to the bathroom so finally she carried her to the bathroom & stayed with her in case she wanted help. She started crying but she peed. Yeah I can see that happening-she's a stubborn little kid. The teacher told me that she was fine & had pretzels at snack so she was ok.

TODAY in the car going to school Gianna told me she wanted to go home. I told her she had to go to school & she would have fun. OK no problem we get there & we walk in but as soon as I try to leave she starts crying! I gave her a hug but then she was clinging to me & refused to let go. AARRGHHH! I feel bad but I know I can't be weak or then she'll play me all the time! So I told her I loved her & gave her to the teacher & left. I know she'll be fine.

Now here's where I have my theories as to WHY this happened.

1. It's all new to her & it's hitting her that she's there to stay ALL DAY.

2. She was forced to pee when she didn't want to & realizes that she's not going to get her way here.

3. Today was ballet day & a lot of little girls were dressed in their tutus. I had asked her if she wanted to dance too (I'd sign her up in a month after she was acclimated) & THAT's when she started crying. So maybe she got upset that she didn't have a tutu too. (say that real fast!!)

When we picked her up today the teacher, Merideth told me that she had an accident & wet herself. She made it to the bathroom but that's when she couldn't hold it anymore & let loose. So her shoes were soaked but she had fresh clothes on. I think the teacher will be keeping a closer watch on her from now on. LOL!! Today for lunch were hamburgers-you know what my daughter ate? The BUN! She'll eat steak but NOT hamburger! She's got TASTE!! LOL!! One of the directors of the school Danielle (who happens to be Marissa's old teacher) filled me in more about what happened when I left.

Gianna threw an all out FIT on the floor crying. They tried talking to her but it didn't work so they left her there (yeah I would too) finally after 20 mins. Danielle finally picks her up & takes her in the office & tells her to stop crying & asked her "Do you want to stay in here & cry or go back & listen to a story"? Gianna stopped crying & said she wanted a story. What a DRAMA QUEEN!! Danielle also noted that Gianna tries to play up her cuteness to get her out of trouble. Yeah I warned them! So they are all on to HER! I wonder what will happen tomorrow when I drop her off. Hopefully she'll realize she can't pull that shit with them there & she'll straighten out! Yeah not MY CHILD..but I can dream can't I?!?!?!

Knots so sure....

This morning I went to visit the preschool that I'm thinking about sending Gianna to. Turns out one of the teachers I know. Her daughter was in Kindergarten with Marissa last year. So she talked to me about the school & told me everything up front about fundraisers & what's expected of the parents. While I feel more at ease I'm still just second guessing myself!! Part of me just wants to go back to where we took Marissa even though it's 15 minutes away & that'll add up to an hour a day of driving back & forth (although it would be a full day for Gianna). What to do...what to do!! I'm debating going to visit other schools as well. I did all that when I was searching for Marissa's preschool. I know things change so I'm not sure if I should.

Regardless, when I picked Gianna up at school today I told the teacher that she would no longer be going there. I *lied* & said that my husband's office assistant gave notice & I'm going to have to go to work so I wouldn't be able to bring her there anymore. I feel terrible about lying BUT I couldn't tell them the truth that they demand more of my time than I'm willing to give. Well I could tell them but I don't think I could be nice about it! The teacher's aren't the ones I have the problem with so the lie was the way to go.

HOWEVER I still have a knot in my stomach! I don't know if it's from withdrawing her from school. Or if I'm doing the right thing. Or if it's because Gianna had her 1st accident at school!! While they were playing outside the teacher saw that she was holding herself & when she asked if she had to go potty Gianna said no but started crying & let loose all over the playground. UGH!!

Drained...

Yesterday was our 1st Tricky Tray committee meeting. In case you're like me & have never been to one...you go to a hall where you have dinner (you pay an entrance fee) & buy tickets. Then you put your tickets in to win prizes that are displayed around the room. The committee has to solicit prizes from businesses. So I have to go around a certain area & bother people. If you ask Joe the whole thing boils down to gambling. He's really annoyed that I've got to spend so much time "working" with the school. SO. AM. I. He says that for the time Gianna's in school it doesn't pay to have her there if it's going to eat up so much of my time. We're seriously considering taking her out of this school. I'd rather pay more than all this crap.

The only reason I'm dealing with it right now is I feel the school is more focused on educating the kids rather than a daycare like place where it's more playtime. Also I don't know what kind of effect it will have on Gianna if we switch school's on her so soon. These tricky tray meetings will be once a month until the event which will be towards the end of Feb. There's also the school monthly meetings to go to as well. Not for nothing but who's going to watch my kids (since some of these meetings are at night) & make sure they get to bed ontime??? Joe sometimes doesn't get home until 7:30-8:00 so can you see how crazy this is going to make my life?!?!

At the meeting Gianna had 2 other little girls to play with & for the 1st half of the meeting everything was fine. At one point she comes to me & says she has to go potty so I find out where it is but she doesn't want to let go of the toys she was playing with. There was another girl that wanted to play with those toys & Gianna felt she wouldn't get them "back". Finally I just pried her fingers loose & carried her into the bathroom. As I knelt down to help her she let loose!! I quickly put her on the toliet to finish but her panties were soaked! I cleaned everything up & tried going back to the meeting. Gianna however didn't like the little girl having the toys she was playing with & supposedly hit the girl. I don't doubt that she did hit her but the little girl was hovering around like a vulture & sounded like a whiner. I tried getting Gianna to apologize but she is one stubborn kid! I finally apologized to the girl (let's call her "whiney") & she repeated AGAIN that Gianna hit her! If she kept it up I think I would hit her (no not really)!! Finally the woman whose house we were at turned the TV on for the kids & I sat Gianna down on the couch & told her not to move. She wasn't happy about it but sat. HOWEVER "Whiney" kept hovering because Gianna had a little toy house & wouldn't share. You'd think "Whiney's" mother would step in but NO. I was so embarrassed!!

When it was FINALLY over we left to pick up Marissa from school & she fell asleep in the car. We come home & find out that Marissa was accepted into CCD at church (there was a waiting list believe it or not!!) & last night was the 1st class. So I helped Marissa with her homework which was draining since she fights me on it. Then I started dinner so I could drop her off at CCD & come back to finish cooking. I was SO stressed last night! I tried talking to Joe but he just says we should take Gianna out of the school if it's going to stress me like this. He wouldn't understand that I was stressed more about her behaviour when we're out than about school.
So now I'm sitting at home feeling DRAINED. I don't know what I should do. I want to scrap to regain some sanity but I have no energy & either want to cry or go back to bed. All this drama & it's only lunchtime! I'm ready to soak my head...again!

Countdown commencing....

2 more days until the 1st day of school! Marissa will start 1st grade on the 5th. If you ask her if she's excited she says yes but she doesn't really act excited. I know I'M excited! She's lucky because her Kindergarten teacher got moved up to the 1st grade & she got her AND her best friend in the same class! How cool is that?!?! I just loved her teacher last year & knowing that she knows Marissa's work/study habits already makes me happy.

Gianna doesn't start pre-school until the 18th. It'll be good for her to play with kids her own age & I'll enjoy having some "me time". I'm happy she doesn't start school yet only because she's still not done potty training. She's doing GREAT most days except for when it comes time to do #2. The school says if the kids aren't potty trained yet they'll have to wear a pull up & if they pee they stay that way for the 2 hour class but if they poop then they will call you to come & change them because they are not allowed by law to change the kids. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she will do good! I don't want to put a pull up on her because she'll be taking a step back & has no problem staying in a wet/dirty diaper to a degree. I can't wait for this phase of childhood to be OVER!

So I have to admit that I started blogging not only because I intend on using my posts for journaling in my scrapbooks BUT also I haunt a few blogs from people I admire on 2 Peas. Stalking comes to mind but it's much simplier than that - I just really love their scrapbook style. I know their lives are non of my business.

I spent some time yesterday re-organizing my recipe binders. I had a HUGE one about 4" thick but decided to break it down into 2 binders -baking & -everything else! I love finding new recipes in magazines & online but I ran out of space in the binder. By splitting the 2 up I have more room. I'm still not done it's going to take some time to finish it to my liking plus a trip to Staples to get some more binder tabbed dividers. I split things up into easier to find categories....call me anal but it DOES make it easier to find things! So maybe I'll come up with some tasty new dish the whole family will love! I know I'll find something YUMMY in the baking book!!