This is how we do it

I'm sure I've mentioned in the past that I love to shop. For goodness sakes, I have a "Shopaholic" label on more than one post! As much as I love to shop, I also love a good deal. The other night I hit the mother load of good deals.

My midgets went back to school this week. A-fucking-men!! But unlike most of their friends, my kids went back to school with, gasp, old tennis shoes! Major fail on my part, but in my defense, we hit some financial bumps earlier in the month that we are rebounding from. That may or may not be related to that "shopaholic" label I just referred to.


So anyway, let's forget about that bump and continue with my kick ass deal, k?

I took the midgets to Payless. Back to school means a huge buy one, get one half off sale. On everything. I also scored a 20% off my entire purchase coupon.

Each child found a pair of shoes that suits (and fits) them perfectly. Since I had that extra coupon, I though I would get myself a pair of shoes. I resisted the urge to buy yet another pair of boots. Not only would the husband kill me, but none of them had heels. Seriously, where can a girl get a gorgeous pair of sleek black boots with a heel? Sheesh!

While I was looking, my girl found herself a pair of boots. Must be hereditary. The pair she found were the exact ones she wanted last year but could never find in her size. I sent a text to the husband about a budget. Once I had a number, I did the math and we went ahead and grabbed the last pair of those lovely boots in her size. I also grabbed myself some pretty pink tennis shoes and a few extras for my boy.





Let me break down everything in that picture.....

What we could have paid, rounded to the nearest dollar to make the math simple for me...

Boy shoes $14
Girl shoes $15
My shoes $21
Girl boots $37
Umbrella $10
Sunglasses $6

Total $103

That's really not all that bad, but I expected to pay closer to $75 with the discounts factored in.

What I actually paid.....

$50

I was nothing short of stupid excited when I saw that 5 and the 0. Somehow those $37 boots rang up as $14. Maybe it was a glitch, but I surely wasn't going to say a word.


What's the best deal you ever got on something?

White knuckles

I must admit I had so much fun writing Friday's post, Time to Let Go. Reading all the link ups for Writing On Edge that day was also a blast. It's amazing how much meaning can fit into 140 characters.

I know I left those who visited hanging because I didn't explain what I was referring to. It was interesting reading what everyone guessed. Many guesses were for a child's first ride on a roller coaster. Since I am a coaster fanatic, that wasn't it. Only one person guessed correctly, and that was CDG from Move Over Mary Poppins.

There were also many guesses that my tweet post was a parenting metaphor. In a way, this was true. Those who guessed that make me want to write a completely different post about letting my children go as they grow, especially with today being their first day back at school (hallelujah!!). Perhaps I'll save that idea for another time.

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I don't remember having many fears as a young child. My mom always tells me the story of her and I going to the World's Fair in New Orleans when I was a few years old. My uncle, who happened to be afraid of heights, took me on the monstrous ferris wheel. Me bobbing around checking out all the sights from that height certainly didn't do anything to calm his nerves.

A few years later, this all changed. My mom met my dad and the three of us started doing things as a family. This included going to a local carnival. My dad loved to take me on the ferris wheel. From the carnival at my school, you could see my Grandma's house from the top. If him and I were lucky enough to get stopped at the very top, he would distract me by pointing out my Grandma's house. As I would look to find it, he would start to rock the car we were sitting in. I quickly grew to hate ferris wheels.

Now that I am grown with my own children, I love to take them to carnivals. However, I rarely take them on the ferris wheel unless I absolutely have to. I have had operators ask me if they need to stop the ride because my white knuckles gripping the safety bar match the color of my face.


Last week was the annual carnival at the church by our house. I took the kids up earlier in the week to check out the flea market and play a few games. Later in the week, the husband joined us. The kids wanted to ride the ferris wheel and he knows it's his job to go on that ride with them.

While we were there, we ran into my friend J, her kids, and another friend of theirs. The next 2 hours were spent watching our kids bebop between all the rides and games. Our boys, who are 5 and 6, kept asking to ride the ferris wheel. J feels the same way about that ride as I do, so we did everything we could to distract them. Finally we couldn't take anymore of their begging.

Our girls and another friend they ran into proclaimed they were riding that horrible ride together. J and I decided to let our boys ride with the other friend who was already in our group. He is older than our boys so we knew they would all be fine. It was us who were worried.

We watched our boys stand in line, proudly holding their little red tickets. As I watched them board the ride, I felt my heart jump into my throat. My knuckles turned white around the prizes I was holding as I watched them go up, up, all the way to the top. Our boys peered over the edge to try and find us below. I wanted to scream out "Sit down and hold on!"

Down, down they came and I realized it was time for me to let go.

My son is 6, but he is still the baby. As much as I miss the days when he (and his sister) crawled around the house, I know that I need to let them go and watch them grow.

Time to let go

Up, up they go. All the way to the top. They peer over the edge. Fear has consumed me. Down, down they go. Time for me to let them go.


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Red Writing Hood prompt:

This week’s assignment will require the fewest number of words ever: we want you to write a story – your choice of topic – as a tweet.

That’s right. One hundred and forty characters. Not words. Characters.

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Wow! This was a lot harder than I thought!

I'm a tweeter (@_MamaJules_) and I think I'm pretty good at putting my thoughts out there in 140 or less. Or at least I thought I was. By the way, yes I did use Tweet Deck to make sure I stayed within my character limit.

If you think you know what I'm talking about, leave me your best guess in the comments below. I'll be back on Monday with the full story.

Jealousy

Jealousy is an ugly thing. It can also be a crushing thing. It crushes your spirit. It elicits fear. It can make you think ugly thoughts about people.

There is no one particular person that I am jealous of at the moment, but my husband keeps coming to mind. His professional career is really starting to take off. I am so unbelievably proud of him and I will continue to support him every step of the way, but I have to wonder. Why can't that be me?

I want my name to be out there. I want to be known for what I do. I want people to come to me for advice and direction.

I am a mom. I am very proud to be a mom and I love my children dearly. If someone has a parenting question, I will do my best to answer them. But there is more to me than just a mom.

Part of my feelings stem from blogging. You get what you give and while I am making an effort to give, I do have a life outside the computer. Those who are well known around the blogosphere and other social network sites have put a lot of time into getting their name out there. I respect that and they should be proud. I am trying to follow suit, but it is not easy. And I am not a patient person. Patience is a virtue I have yet to learn.

Blogging is not the only aspect of my life that brings out the jealous side of me. I am a crafter. Mostly crochet. I put a lot of work into what I create. A Lot! Someday I would love to be successful at selling what I create. I could go the Etsy route, but that can be a pain in the ass. I make things, I pay to post pictures of my creations, I promote, and wait. If nothing happens, I pay and promote again. I know it's not expensive, but how many time do I have to post before to really starts to feel like I'm losing money and it's no longer worth the effort?


When people ask what I do, I want to say something other than a SAHM. I am very thankful that I am able to be a SAHM, but I also want something that is just me. Something that I can showcase to the world and hope to get more than a "Good job" before they walk away.


I realize this sounds like just another woe is me post, and I suppose that it is. But I do have a plan. I am going to carve out some time for just me.

My midgets start back at school next week (thank god!). I have some major work to do on organizing this house (help!). Some of my time will also be spent volunteering at the school (wine, please?). In between that, I am going to get crafty and find a way to promote myself. I know it will take time, and I need to constantly remind myself of that, but I am going to find a way to make a go of this crafting thing that I am so passionate about.

Quarters

I love a good deal. This is no secret to anyone who knows me. This is why I get stupid excited for the flea market at our annual carnival. I didn't get there as the doors opened, which was my plan, but my arrival wasn't that far off.

I won't lie, there is a ton of junk at this flea market. But if you take the time to look, there is always something you need.

Like an ice scraper for the car. It only cost me a quarter!

Or perhaps 2 skeins of Christmas colored yard that only cost me 2 quarters. I've even started to put one of those skeins to good use...




For only 3 quarters, my daughter found a magic trick book and a skein of yarn she can make something out of. Pink, of course.

The very last quarter I spent was the best quarter I have ever spent.

I bought my boy a guitar. This is no ordinary guitar. This toy is every parent's dream. Why, you ask?


IT. DOES. NOT. MAKE. NOISE


I know. I'm awesome!


That last quarter that was way down in the bottom of my pocket? Best thing ever. My boy is over the moon.

Led Zeppelin, alive and touring?

Led Zeppelin - that's the band I went to see the other night. At least according to the Subway employee.

It has become a tradition to stop at a particular Subway for dinner when we head out to see a favorite band at our favorite concert venue. While waiting in line, a customer not from my party asked an employee if there was a concert that night. He was probably suspicious due to the higher than normal amount of traffic driving through Middle of Nowhere Town. The employee ever so nicely answered this man's question. There was a concert on this night in question and the band playing was Led Zeppelin.

Luckily me and my crew weren't quite as clueless and were able to avoid the disappointment at the ticket window once we arrived at the concert venue. Although we all like Led Zeppelin, the four of us were really looking forward to...




The husband and I went to watch Def Leppard last year and it's quite possible that it was one of the best shows I have ever seen. Not only do I love their music, but their stage show was fucking awesome!

A few months ago, when I heard the announcement that they were coming back, I begged and pleaded for the husband to buy tickets. When I mentioned the concert to my brother and sister-from-another-mister, drool spilled from their mouths as they asked to join us.

It would have been an awesome show without them, but those three people made the whole night that much better. I haven't laughed like that in a long time and my throat still hurts from all the talking, singing, and screaming.

I also need to thank my brother, again, for being so prompt in paying us back for his ticket. Because of him, I was able to purchase the t-shirt in the picture above. I also made another purchase, but it's only for the eyes of my husband. *wink, wink, nudge, nudge*


So if you ever want to go see one of the best concerts ever, I highly suggest Led Zeppelin, er Def Leppard!

Could this be it?

I stand on the sidewalk. I watch my kids weave around the picnic tables. The heavenly scent of burning wood and bar-b-que sauce from the smoker fills my nose. Then I hear it.

My phone.

My mom is calling. I know it's her without even looking. Those close to me are privileged enough to have their own unique ring tone. It never occurs to me that it is well before 5 o'clock and she is still at work. She may text, but she rarely makes cell phone calls from her office.

As I answer the phone and hear, "I'm calling to let you know...".

This is not good.

My mom was leaving work because an ambulance was on it's way to take my Grandma to the hospital. The Sister from my Grandma's building had called my mom, who was now relaying the situation to me. She was having chest pains. Again.

My Grandma has already had a heart attack, a stint, and open heart surgery. She is still an active woman and other than her heart, she is in general good health. But she is 87 years old.

She has always been a big part of my life. Although I am grown with my own family and we don't see each other as often, our relationship is still very close.

Outside of her heart attack, this was not the first time my Grandma experienced chest pains and trouble breathing. It scares the hell out of me whenever I get that phone call. The one where an ambulance is on it's way.

Could this be it?

Could this be the big one?

Will I once again lose someone who I hold so close to my heart?

How will I help my children understand the finality of death?

My daughter is a sensitive soul. News like that will absolutely devastate her. My son is 6 and while he has talked about death, I'm not sure he would fully understand. The pieces of my already broken heart will only shatter more when I see that same pain in my children's eyes.



This time my Grandma has been spared. Tests came back with positive news and she will be cleared to go home later today. But how many more of those phone calls will there be?

I am not ready, nor will I ever be.


update: My Grandma had another episode and is staying at the hospital another night so the doctors can figure out what is going on. I hate this!!

The Beast

Exactly two months ago I posted about a project that I thought would be the end of me. I am quite proud to say that I have finally finished it.


But not without many, many bumps along the way.

Looking back I can say that a lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into making this sweater, aka The Beast, for myself. Blood because I stabbed myself with a needle quite a few times sewing on the buttons. Sweat because The Beast is one heavy son of a bitch. Combine that with summer weather in a house with no AC and I sweated having it on my lap. Tears because I royally screwed up the trim last week. I cried as I took out 4 hours of hard work. Luckily it's didn't take nearly as long to redo what I tore out.

I have never made anything as complicated as this sweater. The husband, amazed at the amount of detail, asked how I did it. I couldn't really explain how. It would have been like him explaining some programming language to me. It wouldn't be understood. But I could share that the Beast contained 8 different kinds of stitches, most of which I never heard of before I took the project on.




All I need now is for the weather to cool off just a bit so I can wear it.

Wants and needs

Everyone wants it

Everyone needs it

Some don't get enough

Some can't get enough


Slow and sweet

Like eating a popsicle

one lick at a time


Hot and heavy

Like a rich chocolate mocha

with whipped cream on top


Two people in love

Or strangers in a bar


Sometimes for a purpose

Sometimes just for fun


From your head to your toes

You can feel it


Everyone wants

Everyone needs

The pleasure that comes with it

Red Dress Club prompt ~ Let's talk about sex, baby.

Without actually writing about the act.

I don't know if I accomplished that, so please be kind with concrit.

But I do know I am in the mood for something like a dark chocolate mocha ;)

So much to say - I feel like DMB

I love linking up with Shell's Pour You Heart Out. It's a safe place to say whatever I want without worrying about being judged or criticized. I may not link up every week, but the weeks where I do I always have a specific thing that I need to get off my chest. This week I just don't know where to start. It feels like there is so much going on. Too much.

I have a resale event coming up in 2 weeks and I really need to get my ass in gear with getting everything together. But I just don't have it in me. Because of certain policy changes, I swore I wasn't going to participate this time around. In the end I decided "just once more". I'm regretting that decision. The money I will get at the end isn't even motivating me at the moment.

Add the resale stuff to returning from vacation and having a to-do list not even 24 hours later and I may lose my mind. Not only do I have to unpack, but I have so much I want to get done around the house. School is starting in a few weeks so I have to get the kids ready for that. Our Girl Scout year will be starting soon as well and we have to plan that out. Phone calls to make, emails to reply to, doctor appointments to go to... I may go insane.

All of this is probably why I completely freaked out the other night over the sweater I am making. I have put in a good 4 hours on a certain section of it. Monday night I realized I completely screwed it up. Do I continue and hope I can make the proper adjustments? Or do I rip those 4 hours of work out and redo them? I ended up ripping out all of that section and starting doing it over. I admit I cried a few times over something so silly as a sweater.

I know I will get through this. At least I hope I can. I have so many other things to worry about. Yes, there's more than the freak out I just rambled about. I guess it's a good thing that I'm not some big shot blogger. I'm not sure I could handle the fame. Although sometimes I think I might not mind it so much.


I think I'm done rambling. For now anyway. If you made it this far, thanks.

Freak the freak out

Last week was absolutely crazy! One of my kids had a birthday. In this house, at least for the kids, birthdays are more than just a day. There's a party with just the four of us, little things throughout the week to celebrate, and finally a family party.

Lucky for me this whirlwind of celebration is followed by a vacation.

I won't be around much during the next week. Just because I'll have my computer with me doesn't mean I'll actually get the chance to use it. By the end of the day, I'll probably be too tired to form a coherent thought. Or I'll turn into a puddle of goo. I keep checking the weather for where we are going. According to the Weather Channel, we are traveling to Hell. Lovely!

I am so excited to go on a family vacation because it's been 6 years since we've done so. As excited as I am to go, I am starting to freak the freak out. Since it's been so long since we've gone on a proper vacation, the panic of forgetting to pack something is setting in.

What if I forget someone's toothbrush? What if I get a head ache and don't have any Tylenol? How many pairs of shoes should I pack?

Stupid things, but in my mind important. Add that to my mile long to-do list and I fear I may go insane before we even leave.

I know everything will work out and I know we all will have a wonderful time. I just have to keep reminding myself that.

I promise to come back next week with a full report as I try to play catch up.


Peace out!