I'm back ....

This past summer was crazy!!

Now ....where do I begin? 

I think ...
instead of playing catch up .. I'll just start blogging and as I share I'll do some back stories.

For example ..

Brooke started college in August ...
meaning ...
she moved out.

Yes, I cried ....for days (weeks)!!

But I'm all better now.
She's been coming home on Friday's .....
doing some laundry ...
then heading back to her dorm on Saturday.
I'm just happy to see her!!

We had Parents Day at the Kansas City Art Institute this weekend and we got to spend the entire weekend with her.  It felt like old times!!

Here's a picture of Brooke and I ..taken with my hubby's iPhone (we've gotten horrible about taking pictures with our iPhones .. but we're happy they take decent pics).

  Dave mainly took this picture to show off our crazy colorful umbrellas....
and after looking at this picture ...
I'm going to buy myself a black umbrella ....or maybe I can find a clear one!!  Too bad he didn't get a picture of my purse ....

I should save this story for another day ...
but just let me just say ...
make sure you have the right Coach Outlet before you purchase a Coach bag online!!
Last week I was called STUPID ...by the company that sold me a FAKE  and I guess they are right .. I had a stupid moment.  Another lesson learned .....the hard way.

I've since found the real Coach outlet and received a beautiful Coach bag (that's the real deal).  If you need an invite to the real store let me know (it's the only way in ..is to be invented either by a friend or by a Coach outlet store).

Gotta run ..... I have five video tutorials to film now that Dave is out of town .....
having him at home is like having young children .. or barking dogs. 

See ya!

Brooke

I just have to share this with you all!  Brooke brought her portfolio into my room last night and when she brought out her self portrait I about flipped.  I had no idea she wasn't capable of this.

Chase is really good at drawing machinery and cartoons .... and Brooke has always been a great photographer and photo manipulator  (photoshop).  But I had no idea she was good at drawing faces.   I know that sounds funny but I remember my mother always being able to draw nature but she couldn't do faces.  But maybe Brooke has a knack for it?

I know it's been a while since I posted .... I've been spending all my time working (trying to get caught up) and spending time with Bella.   I LOVE her so much!  The smiles and laughter is just what I needed to get me out of that funk I was in!!

I think I may have enough pictures of her to fill up a Scrapbook already ....but no time for that!  Brooke starts college in the fall and we're sorta freaking out about how to afford both kids in college.

Gotta run ... need to take Miss Bella outside :)

A, B, C, D Family

I just remembered something and thought I would share with you.....
have you ever noticed:  Angie, Brooke, Chase & David are A,B,C & D?
I swear didn't know until a few years after they were born!

I was signing cards one day (probably Christmas cards) and I usually sign them Dave, Angie, Chase & Brooke ...but I accidentally wrote my name first ....and then I thought .... lets do the girls names first ....so I added Brooke's name ....and it hit me.

As you can imagine for a few years I signed our cards like that :)  I wonder how many people thought I was a nutcase?

Hopefully I made you laugh!!
See ya,

p.s.  Did you know that Dolly Parton has a niece and nephew named Chase & Brooke?  I read that in her book ....... I loved her book!!! When I read it ...it sounded just like she was talking!

Christmas shopping

I know it sounds crazy ..... but since I'm restricted to taking it easy I thought I'd start my Christmas shopping.

First on my list .... a GPS for both of my children (don't worry they never read any of my blogs...remember they're teens).
  Chase is like me and he does okay.  Brooke ..... she has no since of direction.  I don't know how she can be my child and be like that :)  I'm joking of course but seriously I don't think any of us Kennedy's ever get lost.  (After saying that.... watch me get lost.)


So.... my question is do you own a GPS and do you like it?  And why do you like it?  the model number?  would you buy it for your child?

I've had a bad experience with one ...will share that later ...... and I really want to make sure I don't get my children one that won't send them off to space :)

See ya!

I did it!!

I looked on my Stampin' Up! activity statement and I just noticed I earned the Fiji trip a couple days ago. How very exciting! I sure hope I get to go! Since we weren't able to go on the Alaska cruise and I'm not sure about the Disney trip I feel like I'm due for a Stampin Up vacation..... but we'll see.

My goal to earn the trip was October and I achieved it a month early.  Now that the career plan changed ..I received points for going to Leadership, going to Convention, sales and downline promotions.  I owe a lot of thanks to a lot of people.  If you're one of them "Thank You!!" 

I don't usually share this kind of info because I never want to sound like I'm bragging ...but since I've shared so much gloom & doom ...I figured it was time to share some positive things in my life. 

I read each and every comment a couple times ....sometimes even more and although the last few months have been difficult ... I'm still a very blessed person and I'm not forgetting it.  My husband is employed, we have a roof over our heads, we  have our health (for the most part) and our children are doing well.  For years and I do mean years ....my prayer every night was please let my children be happy in their hearts.  As long as they are happy .... everything else will work itself out!!   They are both doing well and that means I am too. 

Speaking of Chase .... today is his third day at Best Buy ...in fact he's worked 24 hours in just three days.  I'm very proud of him!! and I enjoy when he gets home from work and I can grill him about his day.  His very first day ... a couple behaved badly ...lucky for Chase his supervisor was there to handle it.  But also on his first day a gentleman was very nice and even gave him a compliment. 

I remind him every day before he goes to work that there are people that complain about their jobs every day ...don't be one of those people.  Concentrate on the positive and you'll do great. 

Gotta run ...I at the very least need to check some emails today!!

Chase

Chase's appointment went okay yesterday ..... but it was painful!!  They removed the staples and stitches and put it in a boot ....but that darn boot doesn't keep it stabilized the way the cast did.

He and I have had zero sleep all night! In fact about 4am I started crying ...I was so tired and he was hurting so bad.  Not sure why we couldn't get the pain meds to kick in.

He's been asleep now for about 2 hours .....the most he's slept since Monday.
It's crazy .... if you had ask me yesterday I would have said he's doing better every day.  But last night was the worst!!

I took pictures yesterday ...but they are to graphic to put on my blog ...if you want to check them out....here's the link to the pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/113395466053551202055/Chase?feat=directlink.... or click here to go there.
There's no blood or anything like that but when you see the picture you can imagine the pain.  I'm not sure which is worse ...his ankle or the heel?

The highlight of yesterday was when Dr. Horton whipped out his iPhone and showed me the pictures from Chase's surgery (since I watch CSI & House I've gotten use to seeing all that stuff).  He actually showed me the tumor and everything.  Technology is just amazing!!!

Gotta run ...need some advil or coffee ...maybe both!!

I'm in the mood to talk/type .......

When I'm tired and emotional I find myself always wanting to talk or write ....it must be the journal keeper in me.  I guess it can be said you're either a journal keeper or not ....maybe we're even born that way.  I started my first diary at age ten and look at me now ...a full fledged blogger.   Just saying I'm a blogger still sounds funny ...couldn't there be a prettier name? 

Oh well, Chase's surgery was on Friday and there's lots of details I could share but the one that I want to share today is kinda strange ...... All of his nurses had names that started with M.  His first nurse was  Marley ....she was very nice to us and she was very patient with Chase and I.  The hardest part for me was just leaving him!!

Once we were taken to his hospital room....... his nurses name were Micah (I may have spelled it wrong)...... next was Mina and after that Mike.

Isn't that so strange that they all had names with M's?

I'm just thankful that everyone we encountered was nice and that he came out of surgery okay!! 

I started this post yesterday and then Chase needed me so I put it on draft ...but now I'm back. (Yesterday was his first shower ..... and let me say we've very thankful to the person that invented shower chairs!!)

The past few days have been crazy ...but Chase and I have had moments that we've laughed like crazy...for example I dropped his entire bottle of pills and had to crawl around his room making sure I found all 85 of his pills (yes I'm keeping track of how many pills I give him everyday).  Next .....was one of his trips to the bathroom .....resulted in him banging his head against the wall ...by accident of course!
Then ...this morning .....he accidentally whacked his cast with the crutch ..... when he did that..... he had to say "he is my child"  :)

The biggest laugh of all has been .... the doctor called this morning and said it was time to take out the nerve block thingy .... dang it ...I'm the person that has to have my husband hold my hand at the dentist. Why is he always out of town when I need him?
 
So ...Chase starts to pull off the tape ....and proceeds for the next 10 to 15 minutes making Jim Carrey sounds and expressions.   At this point we're both wondering if maybe his leg should have been shaved...let me just say..... I warned him the removal of tape would be as painful as the surgery.  Maybe not quite that bad but you know what I mean.

Once he removed the tape ....it was time for the catheter  ..... I had to walk away a few times and Chase said I'll do it ....and then he proceeds to pull it out.  Turns out it wasn't so bad after all ....I bet when I ask the doctor "if there was any way I could screw it up" made him laugh when he got off the phone with me.  Or maybe all the episodes of House we've watched this week has me thinking all sorts of weird stuff.

By the way ..... we've brought Brooke over to the dark side .....she joined us yesterday on our House crusade.  She even instructed us that we can't watch another episode without her.  That's not realistic ...what are we supposed to do all day?

I bought the series Firefly and I'm trying to convince Chase to watch it with me ...but we're reluctant to start knowing that it ended with season one ...just like Moonlight.  That reminds me .... what is Joss Whedon working on now?  Dollhouse ended last year ... and I haven't seen his name come up lately.  I guess I have a new subject to google or bing.

If you're trying to figure out who Joss Whedon is ...we can thank him for Buffy the Vampire Slayer ....and I'm pretty sure he did Angel as well ...or maybe he started it and then departed.   Can't you tell when the writer changes on a show?  For example after the writers strike a few years back ....the writer for Moonlight changed ...of course we all knew it ...but we still loved the characters enough to deal with it (Watch the first 6 episodes and compare them to the last ....night and day different).

Remember the title of this post?  I'm in the mood to talk or type ..... I was totally telling the truth!!
While we're at it ...I had a thought ....I'll share it with you  ...plus how many people lost interest after the first two paragraphs of this post?

My sister and I were talking yesterday about new TV programs and how they decide what shows to air.  We're both huge Friends fans and we both love Chandler (real name is Matthew Perry ...or that's his famous name).   But ever since Friends he can't find a hit .... I'm pretty sure it's not him.  Much like Alex O’Loughlin after Moonlight (Hawaii Five O works for now but we miss the dark and dangerous...and the romance).
So, here's a thought .....just maybe whoever is in charge of pilots ..... they need to start running them by normal people.  Sometimes a fresh perspective is what they need.  For example ... Mr. Sunshine .... I hate to say it......as much as I wanted to like it .... I did not!  I love comedies but it was more than that ...it was crazy....and not in a good way.  I knew it on the first episode and I forced myself to watch

  Are you cracking up?  Who the heck am I?  No one really ....except that I depend on those shows to distract my brain every night so I can go to sleep ... that makes me a fan of prime time TV ... and who better than me to have an input? 

I think the key is all this is "TRUTH" ... we all want to be nice and that interferes with the truth.  But time and money can be saved if more spoke the truth.  How could you test a show and not know before it's aired that it doesn't fly?  Or is it me?  I know we all have different tastes .... for example some may have hated Buffy and I loved it ...but you can recognize a good show between a bad show .... even if it's not your cup of tea....or can you?  If they were to ask me ...I could do it :)

If anyone makes it to the end of this post ... sorry ....I promise I haven't lost it ..... sitting with Chase since Friday has made me a little stir crazy.....and I'm not leaving his side until we see how much pain he's going to have without the nerve block.

See ya later (if I haven't scared you off)!!

p.s. you already knew I was an opinionated person didn't you?

Family stuff

One of the reasons I've not posted as often on this site is I've been spending more time with Chase and Brooke.
I said last year that now that they are 18 and 17 (Brooke will be 17 in a few weeks) I'm started to freak that my time with them is about to be limited.
So, Brooke and I have been going to movies and watching TV programs together.  Chase and I are watching episodes of House and chatting.  I'm trying convince him to stamp with me ...I think it would be a hoot. 
And I've been dealing a lot with the medical stuff with Chase.  I'm happy the doctor found the bone tumor!!   Instead of re-posting all the details here you can read it on my other blog.  Click here for the details.

His surgery is schedule for April 18th and we'll have him on homebound for his school work.  I'm thrilled that his resource teacher is going to be his homebound teacher.  That will eliminate a lot of stress!! 

Gotta run ....

Brooke

It's late .....1:18am...and Brooke showed me this picture of herself earlier today and I just had to share it.  It's one of those things that I normally share with my sisters but they've been in the hospital with my mother today and they're tired...so I'm sharing it with you all.

Not sure why I love this picture...I just do.

I told her I loved how she used photoshop and made it look all cool...and then she told me she didn't edit it at all...she just used her webcam.  Gotta love the mac!!   And she taught me something I didn't know........ I'm so excited.  If you have a  mac...you can drag any picture off a site right on to your desktop.   (unless the picture has been locked...I don't lock mine...I figure if I've posted it online....why lock it...you know what I mean.)
So, she posted this picture on facebook and to get it on my computer ...all I did was drag it over....I can't wait to tell Kim tomorrow (middle sister) and if I convince daddy to get a mac I'll be sharing it with him too .....when he was in town I took him to the Apple store ...I love that place!!!

Good night!

p.s. In the past few months I've started streaming live on UStream...started a virtual club on My Chic n Scratch Classroom and if all goes well ....in the next month or so I'll be announcing another new adventure.  I swear my brain is learning so many new things.... I'm sure Dave just wishes I would re-organize our closets or do the spring cleaning I didn't do :)

Homecoming 2010

Homecoming was yesterday and I had a great time being mom!!  

I painted Brooke's toenails and fingernails and tried to do her hair.  We both agreed next year I'm taking her to a salon.  It's not easy, she has thin hair and no matter how much hair spray I used I couldn't get it to hold.....sorry Brookie!!!  

Next year it will be better because that awkward stage of growing the bangs out will be a thing of the past.  


Here's a picture of the two of us :)

 I'll have to check her camera and see if I can find another picture or two.


See ya,

p.s. I picked Brooke up from the after party around 2am this morning and as we're driving down the road an animal runs out....to me it looked like a wolf...Brooke says it was a fox.  I passed it too fast so we turned around to see what it really was...and it was gone.  I swear it was a wolf...but maybe it was a Coyote (it looked too big to be a fox).

Brooke

This week Brooke said two things to me this week that just cracked me up!!  I love a good laugh and she did it not once but twice.
Remember she is 16 and being a teen you never know what will come out of her mouth!!


#1 I was working in my office and I yelled up the stairs "hey Brooke, come here I gotta show you something".  She yelled back "I don't want to see one of your cards or anything about Lee DeWyze". 
For her information.....I wasn't going to show her either.   Although she's right I made my first quilt this week and I should call it my Lee Quilt .... because I was jamming to his music every single minute of the process....even at 2am.  (Remember Dave and Chase are gone that means I can crank up the tunes....so loud it makes the books fall of the shelf....I know TMI.)


#2  I finished the front of my quilt and I said "hey Brooke, since this is my first quilt do you want it".  She says "no I want my butterfly quilt back" ...I of course said "no, that's mine".  Then I said they will be the same....she said.  No, I love the smell of the butterfly quilt.  The smell?  I thought she was going to say how soft it was.   So, then I explained to her that we all have a scent and I'll use the flower quilt for a while and before you know it will smell like me :)   Are you laughing?  what a hoot!!  I then ....went into the detail about how not everyone has a good body odor.... here's where I'm stumped....how do we get that?  Is it the products we use or what?  I've mentioned this subject before and some have said it's my fabric softener but I don't think that's it....or is it?
When we go out of town..... and come home....we walk in and it's the smell that is so HOME :)


Oh well, gotta run I'm headed out to the quilt shop to get my batting & backing so I can finish my quilt.


See ya,

Photography Class

I'm super excited today ... even though I'm months behind on everything in my life!!
Today is my first day of an online Photography class. 
I received my first week assignment this morning and once Dave left I ran out and bought a new lens..... 50mm 1.4 for my Nikon D90.  I've always used a zoom lens so this one is going to take some getting used to.

I'm eager to get started with the learning.  When I was younger I wanted to be a photographer ...just as Brooke does now.  I swear we are a lot alike....hence the reason I went ahead and let her color her hair today....dark.   (I did the same to my hair in 10th grade...went dark brown for a few years and then went blond.)  

That was a big lane swerve wasn't it.....getting back to my photography.  I took a few pictures for the homework but it's cloudy today and I think it would be best to do it on a day when there is sunlight.  So now I'll go back to getting some work done.

But, before I do here's a picture of Brooke :) 

See ya,

Chase & Brooke

I was going through my pictures today so I could load them on my ipad and I ran across this picture of Chase & Brooke in Hawaii last year.

Doesn't Chase's hair kinda match those trees?
I almost used this for our Christmas card last year but I was afraid that not everyone would find it funny.
See ya later,

Chase candy

When I burned my finger a few weeks back.....Dave had to drive me across town to the only pharmacy in our area that was open 24 hours.   As we waited for my prescription we walked around & shopped.  And to our surprise we found some Chase candy :) 

I instantly snatched it up and couldn't wait to give it to Chase!   Can you believe he ate the whole thing in one setting?   Teenagers!!!  I wish I had bought myself some too :)


See ya,



p.s.  Speaking of burning my finger....I burnt it because my right arm has been hurting me for a few months and I've been trying to use my left arm/hand more.  Reaching into a hot oven with my left hand...not such a good idea.   If it had been my right hand I probably wouldn't have touched the hot element....from now on I'll make sure I have the oven mitt on!!

Asperger's

I was watching the Today show this morning and Curt Schilling and his wife was there speaking about their son with Asperger's.  It was great hearing their story and I'll be rushing out today to buy the book.   
" The Best Kind of Different " is the name of the book & I could get it for my Kindle...but I'll want to mark it with my pencil and highlighter. 


If you have a child with Asperger's or know someone who does.  It looks like this book contains a similar story to ours and maybe even yours.   

See ya,

Brooke & the DMV

I just had to share this story......

The state of Kansas is changing the driving limit to 17 & if you have your permit by Dec. 31st, 2009 you are grandfathered in and you can get your license at 16.

So, with everything going on we waited until the last minute to go to the Department of Motor Vehicles.

We saw on the news that the lines were long...but we thought if we got up at 5am and got there by 7am we wouldn't have to wait.

Wrong!!

We woke up to a couple more inches of snow on the ground.....it was still snowing. I'm not comfortable driving on the roads...but it was important to Brook.  (Dave can't drive for 6 weeks because of his surgery). 

We get to the DMV and the line was huge!!! We had to wait outside for 2 1/2 hours...took us almost 3 hours for Brooke to get her driving permit.

Like Dave said....this is one story we'll be telling for years!!  

It was still dark when we got there....it was still snowing and boy was it cold.  We bundled up ....but failed to wear the proper shoes...our feet were frozen!!  In fact I sent Dave a text message with a picture of the line and my words were "my feet are frozen and I'm in pain".   :)

See ya!