In a world where, frivolous lawsuits abound...

Starbucks has to write this on their straw wrappers.

Whatever works

What's that??--- You'll be quiet if I let you get in the sink naked and brush your teeth with Jack's toothbrush??

Ok!

Caroline's Sports Class

Caroline started a 10 day class today that will teach her a variety of sports. Today was T ball.

I question whether or not the teacher has ever worked with 2 year olds. His instruction went like this:

[in one long breath] "Ok, Caroline, I'm gonna need you to stand on the green spot. When I call your name, you're gonna come up to the tee and hit the ball. Make sure you hold the little end, and hit the ball with the big end of the baseball bat. [holding up the bat, I guess he felt the need to say--] This is a baseball bat. After you hit the ball, be sure to drop your bat. Then you're gonna run the bases like this... First, Second, Third, then Home Plate. And go back to your spot. Got it? Ready. Go."

In that time, Caroline looked at me, picked her nose, showed me her belly button and then looked back at Coach Chris, like "Are you talking to me?"

I'm sure she heard, "Caroline, blah blah blah GREEN blah blah blah BALL blah blah blah BALL blah blah blah HOME blah blah blah GO."

I've said it before and I'll say it again, she's not the greatest talker. I know that. Other 2 year olds would probably track right along with that. But she certainly doesn't understand instructions that are in paragraphs.

I'd have said, "Caroline, stand on your green spot. Green spot. [as I'm pointing to and probably actually touching the green spot]"

Then, "Caroline, come take the bat. Want the bat? Here's the bat. Ok, now hit the ball. Hit it. You can do. Hit it. Yay!! Good girl. You hit the ball!"

"Ok now follow Mommy. We're gonna run to this red square. Touch it. Can you touch it? Good! Ok, let's go to the next square... "

I'm willing to admit I baby her to a certain extent and talk to her in a high pitched voice with short sentences, almost as if she's a dog. But at least she halfway listens to me.

Instead, today she was not understanding anything, so I had to do everything with her. I don't know that she got a good workout, but I know I did.

And I appreciated the refresher course on the rules to T ball, since-- of the 2 of us-- I'm the only one who knew what the heck was going on.

Hasta la vista, stringy damaged hair.

On Friday I got a haircut. Six inches... GONE. And it feels good :) But I worried that I never talked to Jason about my plans. I worried that he was going to come home Friday night after a very long week and say, "What did you do??" But I don't feel that this is a controversial length.

Now if I went to chin-length or shorter, that might require a conversation. Just a quick Q&A to see how he felt about my hair being that short.

I know some guys love girls to have longer hair. Some guys want their women to always be blonde. Or they prefer curly hair over straight hair. But I was determined that I didn't need permission or the stamp of approval to cut my hair.

And I was right. Jason likes it. :) HOORAY! (Or at least that's what he says. He'd have to be pretty stupid to tell me otherwise.)

thoughts

~ Shelly on Big Brother. I liked her. I no longer do. I understand, to a certain extent, where she was coming from, but I still don't like her.

~ I hired a guy to come out and mow the grass and trim some trees so Jason wouldn't have to worry about it if he comes home this weekend. I loved how fast a yard crew works.

~ I'm a little bit concerned about the new "normal" that is going to happen here. How many times will Jason travel down there? What will his employer think if he takes off as many days as he just did? What will the next several months look like? I want to be supportive, but I'm still a little concerned.

~ I'm getting my hair cut today. At Elizabeth Arden. I'm going there because last time I got it cut, I spent $8 at Great Clips, so I think I deserve a salon experience this time. ;) (
I tried to be cheap; now I want some service.)

~ I'm teaching Preschool Sunday school this Sunday and I think that the 11:00 hour is pretty easy. All we have to do is review the Bible story, take them to the playground, and then take them to a music class. I can handle it!

~ Sarah told me she wants to quit taekwondo. She's been once. I refuse to let her quit. I told her she has to go until Christmas, and then she can quit. I'm so frustrated with her. She's quick to give up on things.

~ I think bottles of bubbles should come with a clip or a holder of some kind for the bubble wand on the OUTSIDE of the bottle.

I don't like reaching in for that wand every time. Either my fingers are too fat and I have to tilt the bottle and bubble solution spills out. Or it's a big bottle with a little wand at the bottom, and I have to stick my entire arm in. And if I hand the wand to the kids, the first thing they do is accidentally drop it back in the bubbles.

I just think a holder on the outside makes sense.

~ I also think bubbles are kinda boring. And Caroline would want me to blow bubbles for an hour. So sometimes I purposely spill bubble solution on the driveway. Such a horrible shocking confession, I know.

~ Obviously we did bubbles this morning.

~ I think some people look good without makeup. I'm not one of those people. I don't wear alot, but I at least need mascara or I'm scary.

~ Jason may be coming home today. It's a possibility. I think he needs to come home. I think he's drained. And I think he needs to be at work next week.

(Can you tell I'm worried that his employer is not gonna understand a lot of absences, and we don't need to be looking for a job in this economy?)

~ I'm excited that I don't have to do a lot of grocery shopping this weekend because I didn't end up cooking much this week. :)


That's all for now.

What I'm loving right now

Ok, to totally change the mood of my blog....

Here are 2 things that I tried this week and LOVE.

1. Black out bags.




Trash and food messes really do look less offensive in a black bag. Our big garage can has always had a black bag, but I'm loving having a black one in the kitchen.

2. Lean Cuisine snacks




I've learned this week that I eat HORRIBLY when I'm stressed. But I've tried these Lean Cuisine snacks and they're great. I've had spring rolls and spinach artichoke dip with pita bread. The problem is I ate so much of each thing that it's no longer low on calories.

It's about time that we had good snacking options in the freezer section. I love 'em. :)

Update-- And the word from the surgeon is...

Jim's tumor is malignant and inoperable. If he chooses chemo/radiation and he responds well, he has 2 years to live. If he chooses chemo/radiation and he doesn't respond well, he has a year. If he chooses no treatment, he has 3 to 6 months.

I know Jason's not a 10 year old but, even at 37, he's a kid that doesn't want to lose his dad. And I think it's taking everything in him to not completely shut down right now.

Medical Minds

It's so important to have a medically minded person in your corner when you're going through a medical crisis.

I don't know how people do it without someone like that.

I'm blessed that my brother's a doctor. Jason's sister is a nurse. I have friends like Jennie, Michele, and Kisha that are nurse practitioners/PA's. When you're in a situation like Jason is you really need someone who understands medical terms to be listening when the doctor comes in to talk. You need that translator.

And all the machines and wires are intimidating. I don't know what they do. I know if they start to beep or an alarm goes off, that's bad.

I still don't know what basic numbers in vital signs mean... for example, blood pressure. You can tell me my blood pressure is [whatever] over [another number] and I still look at the doctor and say, "Is that good?" Because I don't know.

Plus I think-- and this may not always be the case-- that nurses/other doctors, etc can get more out of doctors than an average person, like me, can. Medical people who are friends or family of the patient know exactly what questions to ask. They know if you've been waiting for an unreasonably long time for test results. They know options of treatment sometimes.

My brother called me and just gave me a heads up before we found out that Jim's tumor was not metastatic. (I'm trying to learn medical words like metastatic.) Brian said, "They may run tests on Jim that seem weird to you or Jason. Like they may do a colonoscopy or something and you're thinking 'What's the point of this?' What they're doing is seeing if the tumor originated in the brain or if he has cancer somewhere else too."

To have someone understand the methods behind the madness-- or what appears to be madness to me-- keeps me calm and helps me learn. And a lot of the fear comes from not being informed. Knowledge is power, as cheesy as that expression is. But it's the truth.

So if you don't have friends or family in the medical world, go hang out by a hospital and introduce yourself to someone who walks out in scrubs. They could be your new best friend and greatest ally. Assuming they don't think you're really weird and creepy.

Way to go, working moms!!

With Jason being gone unexpectedly and for an indefinite amount of time, I've sort of been thrown into doing my stuff AND his stuff around here. And I'm making it, but I'm not doing the greatest job at it all.

I just did a post on being a single mom, but let me just say to all of you working moms, WAY TO GO!

I complain/vent/discuss the challenges of staying home and doing it as long as I've done it. But my job is only all of the junk that happens at the house and with the kids. And although it drains me, I don't know how you take on the house stuff AND hold down a job... especially a 40 hour/ week job.

If the kids get sick, who stays home? Is it always your job to cook and clean even though you've been working all day too?

I can tell you right now-- because I know my attitudes and my shortcomings-- if I had to make dinner every night just because I got home a little earlier than Jason, I'd be bitter.

If I had to grocery shop on my weekend, EVERY weekend, then Jason better be doing some chore as well.

I would insist that we split laundry duties. I'd spend part of the money I make on a maid. I'd want my money separate from his because in my mind, I'd be doing more than he is. I guess that's not really fair since, for the last 6 years, I've spent his money.

I'm such a scorekeeper in that way-- and I know that's wrong and not loving-- I'm just being honest. And that is really what makes me nervous about going back to work someday.

I think if I go back, I need to ease into it by subbing or working at a preschool. Something where the demands aren't crazy. I won't be staying late for staff meetings or up at school at night for meetings with parents. Something where, if the kids get sick, I can very easily be the one to stay home with them.

Jason is so used to all the things I do around here. And I'm used to it too. And if things got shaken up and I went back to work and we had to redistribute duties at the house, I think it would be a rough transition time.

Everything that you moms who work outside the home have to balance makes my head spin.

If I were a single mom all the time...

my kids would eat junk food constantly.

my kids would be expected to do more around the house.

I'd have a list of babysitters that I would call... regularly.

I might not make every meeting they have up at school.

I sure as heck wouldn't be a volunteer up there.

I'd be tempted to use Sunday morning as a time to sleep in and just send the kids to church.

I'd find somewhere in the budget to hire a maid.

I'd tell my kids "no" a lot more because my patience would be gone.

or maybe I'd tell them "yes" a lot more because I'd be so run down, I just wouldn't care.

I'd have to be more organized.

I'd have to figure out how to do guy things all the time, like servicing my car, fixing things around the house, knowing when I'm being charged too much by a workman and arguing with him.

.............

Jason helps with and does a lot around here. I have a lot of respect for single parents.

Update on my FIL

The surgeon looked at the MRI of Jim's tumor and said that he won't know anything definite until the biopsy, but the shape and size etc of the tumor is most likely a malignancy.

It's in a spot that makes operating and fully removing it dang near impossible. It's in the middle of the frontal lobe. Best case scenario: They can remove 99% of it. They'll still leave behind cells that will multiply again.

So Jason's wrestling with the real possibility that this will be how his dad dies at some point.

Jim doesn't know that he's in a hospital. He's tried to get up and go to the kitchen to make a sandwich a few times.

The hardest part for me has been trying to keep it together and be strong and do normal stuff here, but I'm super stressed out inside on Jason's behalf. Jason doesn't cry a lot, and he has broken down with me over the phone. I think he tries to stay strong for his family, and he gets away to call me and loses it. And then that makes me cry and then I hang up the phone and try to act like everything's fine around the kids.

The hardest part for Jason is that this is his dad. His favorite person ever. His best friend. And he's a shell of who he was even 3 weeks ago.

And I hate that for him.

And I'm a crabby mom right now. I'm snapping at the kids and they don't know why. I'm frustrated. I'm on edge. I don't know when Jason will be home. He said it depends on the biopsy results.

And we're such medical morons that we don't understand the words that the doctors are using. So when he calls and gives me an update, he's not even sure if he's explaining it well or using the right terms. There's been sort of a communication gap.

I'm going to go to bed and get some rest. Everything's always better in the morning. Jason was headed to do the same thing. They have some friends in Temple, so he was going to sleep in an actual bed tonight. So that should really help his outlook tomorrow.

I'll update when I know more...

Good riddance to yesterday

Yesterday was filled with mistakes. Frustrating mistakes. I'll do better today.

.............

Mistake #1. I'm trying to fit in my workouts in the mornings before Sarah goes to school.

And I'm very out of practice when it comes to waking up at 5:00.

Mistake #2. Caroline didn't take a nap yesterday afternoon.

I couldn't figure out how to make it work and still pick up Sarah on time. So she skipped it. And I knew by 3:00, that THAT was D-U-M-B of me. But there was nothing I could do at that point. I was committed to the decision.

Mistake #3. I left too late to go pick up Sarah.

I left at 2:20. She doesn't get out until 2:45, but I was still stuck in the longest line. That never seemed to move.


Mistake #4. I was in the wrong line to pick up Sarah.

Part of the reason that the line never seemed to move is because I was in the wrong line. Grrr.

Mistake #5. I let a non-rested Caroline have ice cream at Baskin Robbins with Sarah and Jack.

2 yrs old. Tired. Irrational. And sugared up. Yep, that was stupid of me.

Mistake #6. I didn't get the right size uniform for Sarah's TaeKwonDo.

So when we showed up yesterday to practice(after ice cream and with an un-napped Caroline), the first thing the four of us had to do was cram into a bathroom and change Sarah's uniform.

Mistake #7. I remembered Leapsters for Jack and Caroline to play with while Sarah was in martial arts BUT... I forgot to make sure they had batteries.

Which they did not.

Mistake #8. I don't have an iPhone or any type of phone that kids can play with, but they still like to send texts and stuff.

But my phone was dead yesterday while we were stuck at TaeKwonDo.

Mistake #9. I should've have done a crockpot dinner last night.

We got home from martial arts at 5:15. I have to leave at 6:00 for Celebrate Recovery, and I still had to make dinner for everyone. Not well planned.

Mistake #10. I let myself get all riled up once I got home from Celebrate Recovery over Jason's dad.

Instead of staying calm and going to bed, I got very emotional and didn't fall asleep until after midnight, knowing that my alarm would go off at 5:15 to go workout.

When I went to bed last night, my left eye was twitching. I was soooo done with the day.
............

I did wake up early today and run. Then I found out that Jason would be out of town for a little while with his dad.

Then I remembered that Jack has Taekwondo today and Mom and Dad are coming over to keep the kids tonight so that I can be at Sarah's school by 6:00 for Curriculum Night.

I have got to figure this schedule thing out. And hopefully I'll make fewer mistakes today.

Jason's dad

Yesterday Jason called my father-in-law to wish him a HAPPY 67th BIRTHDAY and to discuss hunting on opening weekend of dove season. Jim made very little sense in their 45 minute conversation. He kept saying that he felt tired.

Jason got off the phone in tears, knowing that something was very wrong. He called his mom last night and she confirmed that he hadn't been himself lately. Sleeping a lot. Not motivated to do anything. Forgetting lots of stuff.

His mom's plan was to stay at home more and focus on him and to get a sleep apnea test done on him to see if they could figure out why he wasn't sleeping.

But last night, while Jason was on the phone with his mom, Jason's Aunt Marilyn (a woman in her 70s with some medical training) took Jim's vitals and insisted that he go to the ER.

This morning Jason got a call that Jim was in a hospital in Temple with a mass on his frontal lobe.

We had seen them a few weeks ago and knew that Jim's personality seemed different. He was crabby and obstinate. What we DIDN'T know is that he had persistent headaches, had stumbled, and had even run his car off the road a couple of times. Had we known all of that, we probably would have made sure he got checked out by a doctor. Instead, we assumed he was getting cranky as he was aging.

Jason's scared. I know the drive to Temple will seem to take forever this morning. I told him that I'm sorry that I couldn't go with him but to rest assured that I have everything under control here and that he can stay as long as he needs to.

We told the kids that Daddy was going out of town because Jimpa was sick and in the hospital. Jack asked, "Is it the same hospital I went to?"

I said, "No, baby, that's a hospital just for kids. Jimpa's in a hospital for adults."

Then he asked, "Well, is it a mental hospital?" :)

What? Random. Hahaha. I needed that comic relief this morning.

No, it's not a mental hospital, but they will be checking on his brain. :(
Please keep him in your prayers.

Keeping the tradition alive

Today I took Sarah for ice cream after her first day of school. It's our tradition. On the first day and the last day of school, we head to Baskin Robbins. The home of 31 flavors. Where she usually orders vanilla.

Here we are today. The first day of first grade...




And here we are at our very first ice cream celebration when she was 3. The first day of preschool...

A woman after my own heart

I love Mrs. Salmon's decorating sensibilities.

As you would expect, her classroom has a fish theme. Duh. She's Salmon. And being a former Miss FISHero, I appreciate her aesthetic. :)

Bulletin boards make me want to claw my eyes out. I hate trying to figure out how to decorate them, but there are so many great (and by "great", I mean "cheesy") things to do with fish.

You can get "hooked on math" at my math centers. I could be "fishing for good readers" over by my guided reading table. Good work could be on a bulletin board with a heading "Catch of the Day".

And don't even get me started on how perfect it is that a group of fish is called a "school". I mean, fish are begging to be in a classroom. :)

With fish as your theme, there are 101 lame puns. Not so much you can do with "McGlamery".

Deletions

I've had comments and posts on facebook deleted. I've had at least one post from the last 2 or 3 pages of my blog deleted.

????

Is it the kids? I guess??

Oh well.

I'm not an engineer

I remember when Sarah was about 3 years old, she asked Jason to play Barbies (or some type of dolls) with her. And Jason came to me and said, "How do I play Barbies? Am I supposed to make them talk? What should they say?"

I laughed at how funny that questions was. I thought, "What do you mean 'How do you play Barbies?' You just play Barbies. They're friends that hang out together and drive a pink convertible. It's easy."

I never fully understood the confusion... until today.

Jack wanted me to put his Geotrax together.

Oh. my. gosh.

I worked for half an hour and this is the best I could do.




All those leftover parts by the beanbag chair serve a purpose, I'm sure. And I don't think that lone gray piece was supposed to go where I put it. I don't know.

I've seen Jason make an entire city with tracks going under Jack's dresser. A track with hills and guardrails.

How in the world did he do it?? He made it seem so easy.

From now on, I'll stick to playing Barbies and Jason can handle the train tracks.

Joke Time with Jack

These are jokes Jack tells DAILY and then waits for us to laugh. If you don't laugh hard enough, he'll tell it again. And if you try to walk away, he'll follow you....


How do you get a bull to stop from charging?

Take away its credit card.

...................

What did the hot dog say when he won the race?

I'm a weiner.

....................

What's small and gray and has a large trunk?

A mouse going on vacation.

...................

Where does an astronaut park his spaceship?

At a parking meteor.

...................



There's more. I just can't think of them right now.

Tell your friends. He'll be here all week. Don't forget to tip your waitress.

Oh hey...

I think I just figured out why my pictures look grainy and out of focus. I've been uploading them as "large" pics. I think if I go back to "medium" they'll look better.

I could reload all my grainy, out of focus ones but I'm sure you'll understand when I don't.

:)

I'll just try "medium" next time and see if things look better.

And she's off...

Happy 1st day of 1st grade!! :)






In every picture, she tries to show off her missing teeth.

And I'm still bugged by tennis shoes and dresses. :)

Little one on one time

Baking with Caroline




We made cookie bars, chocolate cake, and snickerdoodles as fun desserts for the first week of school.



I was tired. :)

Meet the Teacher

I went with Sarah to meet Mrs. Salmon today. She looks to be about my age, maybe a little younger. That's fun! :)

Sarah has friends in her class from last year. That's good! :)

Sarah is "Sarah M." this year, at least for a little while, because there's another Sarah in the class. "Sarah P."

I thought maybe Mrs. Salmon knew Sarah because she was like, "You must be Sarah M," when we introduced ourselves. But then I realized that Sarah P. is Sarah Pham, and we're clearly not the Phams.

She has a real desk this year. No more tables and chairs.

She has a poetry book and spirals. Dry erase markers and red pencils that I'm guessing will be for proofreading or grading or checking things. ??

She has a great schedule, I think. Her curriculum block is first thing in the morning. Then she takes a break for lunch. Comes back and finishes up Language Arts and then her Specials are at the end of the day. So lots of learning happening while her brain is fresh.

I already had to sign up for October conferences. I just wrote down a time. How the heck do I know what I'm doing on October 21st?

And I signed up Jason to volunteer on Pumpkin Math Day. I'm sure he'll be excited about that. :) hee hee

Here's our pic before heading out. No pics in her classroom because she didn't want me to embarrass her with picture taking. Excuuuuuse me.

Really?

I saw this on the lid of my turkey when I was making a sandwich. It's a recipe for an "Awesome Turkey Sandwich".




A recipe.

For a sandwich.

I don't know if you can read it... since it's turned sideways and I don't feel like fixing it..., but it tells you to spread mustard on the bread. And put turkey on it. And some tomataoes and cheese. And avocados...

If you need a play-by-play on how to make a turkey sandwich, you need to be slapped.

Finally...

My argument for getting a maid, summarized in a flyer.

Out with the old

Today I finally got rid of the rest of my maternity clothes.

Yes, I've been holding on to some tops. And some shorts. And even some undergarments.

You know Jason is thrilled when I put those babies on. ;)

It was harder than I thought it would be to let everything go. I think I'm so paranoid about staying a certain size. I've yo-yo'd so much in my weight over the last 6 years that it makes me nervous to commit to a size in my clothes.

But my youngest is 2. It makes no sense that I still wear nursing bras, maternity tops, and shorts. I look pitiful.

I also have a lot of Jason's clothes that are too small for him. When he throws them away or puts them in a giveaway pile, I take them out and keep them. Why? I'm not (nor have I ever been-- just so we're clear) a man. I'm not built like a man, but I wear men's Tshirts and shorts and sweatshirts.

I seriously belong on "What Not to Wear". I break all of the rules when I'm home. But no more.

Today is the day. No more maternity. No more XL and L shirts. I don't need shorts that are XL tied hopelessly tight with drawstrings and come down to my knees.

I can do better. It's time for me to try to do better. I think the people that have to look at me every day would appreciate it. :)

Getting through that 5:00 hour...

I'm not a big drinker but I'm a regular drinker. I have one or two drinks (either mixed or a glass of wine) almost every night. It's my "Cheers to you, Julie, you made it through another day without completely going insane." time. But I've realized that it makes me grouchy too.

My kids go to bed at 8:30. I'd prefer it to be a little sooner than that, maybe that's something else I need to work on. By the time things are picked up, kitchen's clean, the TV's off of Nick Jr, it's 9:00. And I don't want to have a drink at 9:00. I want to brush my teeth and wash my face at 9:00. I'm usually tired.

So I have a drink at 5:00. (Eh, 4:30 or 5:00.. let's be honest.) But what happens is... (and I don't know how many of you are wind-down drinkers)... I pour a glass of wine and I want to get in this spaced-out, chilled-out, whatever-I-don't-care, my-day-is-DONE zone. But I can't at 4:30 or 5:00. I still have approximately 2 hours before Jason gets home. And I have to make dinner.

And yall know how crazy dinner time is with kids. They're hungry, asking what's for dinner, whining about when Daddy's gonna get home, etc etc. Which is usually what prompts me to get a drink.

But instead of relaxing, I feel like the drink takes the edge off, in a bad way. I start to move a little slower... because I'm trying to relax. I get frustrated that I can't relax completely. I get behind on dinner which makes the kids crazy. So sometimes I let them have a small snack at 5:00 so that I can finish making dinner and drink my glass of wine in peace. But that, of course, ruins their appetite. And then by the time it's 8:00, that one drink that I had 3 hours ago has made me REALLY tired and I just want everyone in bed and to leave me alone.

That's not good.

So yesterday I decided to skip the drink. That might not seem like a big deal to you, but it was for me. And I felt better. I was just as stressed out as I usually am at the end of the day, but I handled it fine without the alcohol. I felt like I was nicer... and I felt better about not drinking 300 calories. :)

I don't know that this will be a permanent change. But I think I'm going to try it again tonight. Leave that box of wine in the fridge... :) LOL... and power through the day.

It's the little things...

I went to the store for a few things this morning around 7:00 AM. Ah...

It was so peaceful. No one was there. It was quiet and clean. And fully stocked.

And I have to tell you, when I went down the juice aisle, it was really pretty. I guess because it was fully stocked and so every juice bottle was at the very edge of the shelf. But all the different shades of juice were magnificent in the fluorescent light. :)


And I got in and out of there in under 20 minutes. Good way to start the day.

Forget it. Someday I'm gonna die anyway.

I was watching "Dr. Oz" yesterday.

(I realize I reference lots of TV shows and you must think that all I do is watch TV. And that's kind of true, but I'm usually doing something like folding laundry or cleaning something at the same time. Usually.)

Anyway, he's going through this looooong segment about how Omega Fats are good for you. But we're getting too many Omega 6's and not enough Omega 3's. And Omega 6's are essential, but don't eat too many. I'm still not sure how many is too many.

And then we're supposed to eat fish, but don't eat tilapia unless you're just wanting protein because it's not as good for us as it could be. Low fat. High protein. But limit my intake?? It's tilapia, not a cheeseburger. How can he criticize it?

Then he switches to bad habits that we're doing every day that are DESTROYING our health. (A bit dramatic, I think, but a good way to hook me into watching.) And it was stuff like... We're not stretching our backs before we get out of bed. We're not using the right kinds of moisturizer on our skin. Antioxidant moisturizer is for nighttime only. SPF moisturizer is daytime.

And then he harps on the importance of all these supplements. So an audience member stands up and says she takes all the vitamins he recommends. But then he says to her that how and when she takes her vitamins could be killing her!!

Calcium/Magnesium blocks absorption of certain meds, etc etc.

Look... I don't do well with conflicting and/or overly dramatic segments. First you're telling me to take supplements. Then you're telling me to only take them a certain way. Then you're telling me that I'm not reaching my fullest health potential because I'm not stretching BEFORE I get out of bed.

(BTW, he wants us to stretch and then curl up in a fetal position and then sit up and then put our hands on our legs to boost us out of bed. Really? Now I'm having to think about the way I get out of bed?)

It's too much information for me. I'm confused. I'm not encouraged. I feel like I'm doing everything wrong, and even if I try to be healthy-- by taking supplements let's say-- according to him, I'm probably swallowing them wrong.

I turned off the TV and thought, "Forget it. I give up. I'll just eat what I think is right and exercise. I'm gonna die anyway one day. And if I keep watching this crap, I'm gonna die from my brain oozing out of my ears."

No more nap?

Let me start off by saying that I'll figure it out. It's not that big of a deal. I know that this, too, shall pass.

But this school year is going to be a mess schedule-wise.

Before you remind me that, as an adult, I control my kids' schedules, I already know that. But here's my deal...

Sarah was in dance at 2 years old. Jack has done nothing but school ever. It's his turn to get to do something. Taekwondo will be 2 days a week at 4:00.

Sarah is my sweet firstborn who is CONSTANTLY being asked to "take one for the team". She's my helper for everything. I put a lot of responsibility on her-- which I feel guilty about-- to entertain Caroline or not antagonize her little brother or sister or clean up things. She does a lot.

So, in an effort to repay her and not dump on her once again, when she begged me to pick her up after school this year so that she didn't have to ride the bus again, how could I refuse?

She gets out at 2:30. Jack gets out at 2:00 on Tues/Thurs.

The kicker is: Caroline goes down for a nap at 2:00/2:30. I can't put her down later than that because we'll have after school activities and because she'll stay up til 9:00 if I do. And she's DEFINITELY not tired before then.

But I guess I'll need to move her nap and push it up to 12:30 or 1:00 if I can. And I HATE redoing nap schedules. HATE IT!! It's a terrible few weeks while we transition.

And the truth is she's trying to give up her nap. She throws a fit about going to bed. She's an angel on the days she skips. But she just turned 2 and I know it's too soon to kiss the naps goodbye. (Although it would be helpful if we didn't have naps anymore in a way.)

Then as I was thinking about it.. Jack gave up his naps at 2 yrs old. He was 2 1/2 when C was born and he was no longer napping at that point.

I don't know. I guess this is what it is to have a few kids. Someone's always giving up something. And for Jack to do Taekwondo and Sarah to not have to ride the bus, Caroline may have to rearrange her naps, which means I have to rearrange my day.

Such a pain in the neck.

Ramble, ramble, ramble... Sorry...

Taekwondo

That's the extracurricular activity this year for Sarah and Jack.

The main motivation for signing up was to increase Jack's confidence and coordination. And team sports was not going to be the way to do that this year. Maybe next year. Not this year.

If he played soccer, he wouldn't fight for the ball. He'd just watch everyone else kick it up and down the field. If he played T-ball, he'd be bored waiting for his turn to bat or standing in the field, waiting for a ball to be hit to him.

Sarah's not doing dance and soccer wasn't going to work out. The team she wanted to be on with her friends practices on Monday nights, and that's when I go to Celebrate Recovery. And there was a chance that they'd have games on Sunday mornings, and that doesn't work for us either. So we had to shut the door on that for now.

Martial Arts was something that Jack actually asked about, and we thought it would be great for him. It's an individual achievement type sport. (Is it a sport? I don't really know.) It's great for discipline. "Yes sir" and things like that.

My big concern was finding the right place. Martial Arts classes are everywhere around here. I wanted to find an instructor who would command respect and discipline without yelling and intimidation. Jack shuts down when you raise your voice, and I don't want this to be like swim lessons where I'm fighting with him to go to Taekwondo. Besides Jason and I are the only ones who get to yell at our kids. ;)

I'm sure there are TONS of places that would be perfect, but we found a place in Frisco that I'm super excited about. The man who leads it is slightly taller than me.... so not intimidating AT ALL... but when the kids met him, he expected them to look him in the eye and shake his hand, which I LOVED. If he doesn't teach the class, then his wife does. And she's great too. There was something about the way he talked to me and the way he talked to the kids that made me feel very much at ease with his personality and like this would be a good fit for us.

Jack is still too young to be in the class that tests for belts, but Sarah will be in a class where she can. So that's kind of fun.

I still have to learn all the lingo. And I'm slow to understand that Taekwondo is not Karate which is not Jujitsu, etc etc. Don't ask me the difference. I have NO idea.

But I'm thinking this will be good for both of them.

And--hey-- no recitals or games to suck up Saturdays. HOORAY! :)

Another brain dump...

I don't have anything going on that merits a full post. So here's the little stuff...

1. When Caroline was born, the first thing we commented on was how LOUD her cry was. She's still just as loud. That girl's got a set of lungs on her like you wouldn't believe.

2. Wednesday we get the name of Sarah's teacher. Friday we meet her. (I finally got the phone call to let me know what's up. Whew.)

3. I'm ready for Sarah to start school... More importantly Sarah is ready to start school, but I know that I'll still have Jack home. He doesn't start preschool until September 6, and Caroline doesn't go anywhere at all this year. So I still have one more year before I get a full break from the kids during the week.

4. Since Sarah isn't going to Kindergarten and Jack isn't starting preschool for the first time (which is huge and monumental), I'm NOT going to post first day of school pics on facebook like I did last year.

5. But I will be blogging about it. Haha! So, my facebook friends, you won't totally escape the "back to school" post.

6. I went to CostCo and bought some socks. Thought about buying a pack of cheap bras while I was there. They don't sell any that are small enough for me. Ouch. :(

7. CostCo is finally proving to be a good deal for us. Jack is going through a growth spurt, I think, and man-- that kid can eat!! It's fun to have a boy in the house that can really put some food away.

8. Jason bought running shoes. He's going to try to get in shape and do the White Rock Half Marathon with me this year. I've never raced with anyone. So we'll see how that goes.

9. He ran a mile for the first time in 7 years last night.

10. I want to buy new exercise clothes. I think it's motivating to wear something cute while you work out.

11. I'm wearing my hair curly today, and I don't recognize myself every time I walk past the mirror.

12. Caroline is getting easier and easier to understand. We're having actual conversations now. That's fun. :)

Speaking of... She's here now and wants me to put a movie in for her. So gotta go....

Tip Time

I hate having the hiccups! I don't get them very often, but when I do, it seems like a) they take forever to get rid of, and b) I'll get them 2 or 3 other times in one day.

I have a works-all-the-time-for-me tip for getting rid of the hiccups.




YOGURT!!

Eat a cup of yogurt. But with each spoonful, swallow it whole. Don't "chew" it. (You don't really chew yogurt, but you know what I mean. Don't move it around in your mouth.) And those pesky things will be gone by the time you put down your spoon.

My aunt taught me that and it works every single time. For Jason too. So try it next time you're stuck with the hiccups.

I spend the same amount of money in my head multiple times. Does that make sense?

Example:

I save $50 at the grocery store. I'm really happy about that. But then I go to the next store and spend $20 more than I meant to. "Well," I think, "I just saved $50 so going over by $20 isn't a big deal."

And then I'll want to get a pedicure for $25. "I can afford that," I tell myself. "I saved $50."

And then the kids will want Happy Meals; I'll see a cute pair of shoes; Jason will tell me he wants a new gadget from Home Depot; and something will break on the van...

But it's all ok... because I saved $50 at the grocery store.

..............

Maybe this is why Jason took over the finances in our house.

First Grade is not Kindergarten

Soooo--- I have no idea when I'm supposed to head up to Sarah's school and get her school stuff and find out who her teacher is.

I guess I'll get an email? Or a letter? Or I'll drive by the school and read the scrolling sign...

This time last year, I had already gotten 2 emails, had a letter from the school, and had already had 2 meetings with the Kindergarten team, explaining procedures and such for the first day of school, etc.

They must figure I know everything by now which is why I haven't heard anything. I hope they're right.

Last year Sarah rode the bus. This year she won't be, so I will need a refresher course on how to do the carpool line. I bet it's not too tricky though. ;)

March of 1983

I'm on the far right, in case you can't tell. 3 1/2 years old.

And I used to worry that it was taking Sarah a long time to grow hair. Apparently my hair didn't fully grow in until elementary school. :)

Fruit Roll Ups

Never been a fan of Fruit Roll Ups. You know why? It's the way they stick to your teeth. Gummy things always stick, but Fruit Roll Ups stick on a whole new level.

And I have flashbacks from childhood of people eating them, getting them stuck, and then taking their index finger to scrape the back of their teeth. Then they'd pull their finger out of their mouth, with the stuck-on goo attached, and then-- ugh, I think I might throw up just typing this-- suck the half-eaten, sticky Fruit Rollup remains from their finger.

And they would do it as if that's normal and not gross.

But I bought a box of this disgusting-ness for the kids because they wanted them and I'm a pushover and they know it. And as I unwrapped them for snack today, the smell brought me back. Blech.

One final complaint-- It's 2011. How are the machines still incapable of accurately rolling those things on to the plastic sheet? 20 years ago they would get all mashed and stuck together and were impossible to unroll. You'd think they'd have made progress since then.

We can put a man on the moon, but we can't line up the fruit snack with the sheet of plastic BEFORE it's rolled up. *sigh*

One...

One finished project... Ah, ah, ah....

Please tell me you can hear The Count's voice in your head.

Jason finished this...



...and in about 2 days really. I mean, those 2 days were done over the course of 2 weeks. Ya know, work on it 1 day this weekend. Finish it up one day next weekend. That kind of thing. But I'm not complaining because this is a FINISHED PROJECT!!!

In case you can't tell what it is-- It's a platform like they had at swim lessons for the kids to stand on in the middle of the pool.



One of the crappy parts of our pool is that it's not deep enough to dive in and yet not shallow enough for the kids to stand in. Our pool goes from about 4 feet to about 5 feet. And Sarah (our tallest) is 3'9". So when they swim from the steps, there's really no place for them to go, except to the side or to an adult, to stop and catch their breath.

And I can't always be the adult for them to swim to because I have my hands full with Caroline. This is just another step in making swimming easier when you have 1 adult and 3 kids.

And even though summer's kinda almost over, we all know it'll be hot here until Thanksgiving, so I'm hoping we'll get lots of use out of it.

We don't have the shade sail up. The shower still needs fresh caulk. And one could argue that those are actually more useful projects to have completed. But--hey-- we're heading in the right direction. Things are getting finished. :)

Snack, anyone?

It's HOT here in North Texas!!! And today we made cookies in the van to prove it.

I've seen a ton of news specials about how hot it is around here. Hot enough to fry an egg on a sidewalk. Hot enough to bake cookies in a car.

Well, we wanted to prove it!!

The key, I think, is pre-heating the cookie sheet. So at 8:00 this morning, I stuck a cookie sheet in the van.




And then around noon, I pulled it out and stuck some cookie dough on it.





I continued to run my errands like normal, cookies in tow. I can't let my cookie making experiment stop me from doing what I need to do.


And at 4:30, I pulled them out of the oven.. AKA my car.




I ate one. It was nasty! But it was fully cooked.

True, it took all day, but the point is-- it's too hot here!!!
And don't leave your kids or pets in the car!

Splitsville

Friday night Jason and I went to Splitsville in Fairview.

We hadn't bowled in ages, and for some reason, it seemed like a fun thing to do. (Although I do see some irony in going to a place called "Splitsville" for a date.)

It takes a couple of games for me to warm up and get the form down and start doing well. Unfortunately we only played a couple of games, so my score sucked. BUT I know if we had played just one more game, I'd have killed it! ;)

I was also sore the next morning from bowling with an 8 lb ball. :( Pathetic.

If you haven't been, you should go sometime. It's a nicer bowling alley than what you're probably thinking. The food was good. The drinks were good. :) And after 9 PM, you have to be 21 years old to get in, so you can use it as a way to get away from small children.

We had a great time.! Aaaaannnnd that's my plug for Splitsville. :)

But next time we go out to Fairview, I wanna go to that movie theater where you can sit in fully reclining chairs. And I wanna see "The Change Up". That looks pretty darn funny.

Young and fun

Most of y'all know that I met Jason when I was 22, and he was 28. We are not college sweethearts. He thought he would marry the girl he dated all through college, but she broke his heart. I was engaged to the guy I dated in college, and I called it off.

(Word to the wise: If you think it might not work out, it's easier on everyone if you break off the relationship BEFORE you get a ring.)

I've been jealous of couples who have that bond of college memories and college friends.

When we first started dating, I loved that Jason was older than me. Guys my age were stupid. 22 yr old men are still in college or still figuring themselves out. Still drinking too much and treating girls badly.

But Jason was different. He had a career. He had partied and done that whole thing and was beyond it when I met him. He was doing triathlons. I loved that he was so serious and focused and that our conversations were so much more than surface level.

Flash forward 9 years and I tend to complain about Jason being so much older. I complain that we don't have fun. All of our conversations are so serious. How unfair of me to complain about the things that drew me to him in the first place!

Besides, marriage lends itself to serious/not fun conversations... kids, inlaws, finances, schedules, to-do lists, etc. That's not his fault.

If Jason's not partying it up, it's because he's working hard to support me and the kids. If he's not that outdoorsy guy with a tan-- (believe it or not, Jason used to have a tan)-- it's because he's got a desk job now that pays our bills, and he gave up those hobbies when money got tight. I can't fault him for being a responsible guy. I don't want to be a spoiled brat about how much more fun other couples appear to have. That's craziness, and it's mean. And it's destructive to our marriage.

I was flipping through one of his old photo albums and scanned in a bunch of pics of Jason in college at Texas Tech. And I printed them out and framed them. In part, so that the kids can see Daddy when he was younger and had a full head of hair. ;) And in part, so that I can remember that THAT IS the guy I married. He's still in there. He's still fun.

He's not an old man. He's not a drag on me. (The truth is I can be mean to him as if he pulls me down. Like I'm so much cooler and younger, which is ridiculous. And I'm ashamed of that.)

Jennie, Kisha, and I did a study on "The Battlefield of the Mind" once. It's all about taking your thoughts captive and realizing how your thoughts can be destructive. I don't have these pictures of Jason around the house as a reminder to him that he's changed. I have them up as a reminder to me of who he is.

We're a young, fun couple. :) We just have lots of responsibility that makes us forget that sometimes.

This is my alarm clock...

Banged up, scratched up. I've had it since MIDDLE SCHOOL. Took it to college. And still have it.

I thought I'd get rid of it when I got married. Somehow I envisioned we'd share an alarm clock. ??? What was I thinking? Of course we need a clock on each side of the bed. And I never saw a reason to get rid of mine.

I was just thinking about it because it's kinda like my coffee pot. I'm very loyal to appliances/basic electronics. I'm not a coffee pot/alarm clock commitment phobe. No siree.

And why do $10 alarm clocks last so long but expensive things like A/C units go out and you have to spend $14K replacing it?

BTW, not to boast, but I'm very good at waking up to an alarm clock. Pretty much the instant the music turns on... I hit snooze.

Ok-- So I'm not good at getting out of bed with the alarm, but I am good at turning it off quickly so as not to disturb Jason. I would just like to say that some people aren't as considerate or quick to wake up, even when the alarm is BLARING.
*ahem*
*I'm not bitter though*

Fort Worth Children's Museum

Or as Sarah says, "Forth Worth".

On Wednesday, we went to visit my grandmother with my mom at the nursing home. Bless her heart-- her memory is really going downhill. I told her 3 times that we were going to the Children's Museum after we visited with her. And she asked a few times the names and ages of my kids. She never called me by name. I kinda wonder if that's because she wasn't sure of my name.

:(

But on to the happier part of the day... While we were in Fort Worth we went to the museum. We went last year, and Sarah and Jack loved it, remembered it, and BEGGED to go back.

(Funny that last year I went by myself with all of the kids. And this time I can't imagine having done it without my mom to help watch where they were going. Now that Caroline is so independent and mobile, it's tough to keep 2 eyes and 2 hands on 3 kids.)

C still loved the hand thing...



Ok, not to be obnoxious, but in case you didn't click on the link that took you to the post from last year, look at this bald baby in May 2010 compared to her this week. Wowee!




Sweaty, looking at a tortoise...



Looking at Xrays and taking care of babies...






Driving the ambulance...



FREAKING OUT because somebody else wanted to drive the ambulance... It sorta looks like she's laughing. She's not. (I use the words "share" and "be nice" ALL the time lately. This was one of those times.)



Shopping in the grocery store...








And then the girls ran around and pretended to be fairies-- or butterflies if you asked Caroline, while Jack played a computer game. And unfortunately all I got were quick shots of C.










We looked at dinosaurs. They did a tornado experiment and a momentum ride. We went to the cattle museum and they rode electronic horses and herded cattle. But I have pictures of NONE of it. I got enough to document the trip and then thought, "Forget it. I'm just going to enjoy the day and not worry about a camera."

Picture taking STILL doesn't come naturally to me. ;)

Oh and the last highlight of the day is that I got measured at one of the stations, and it turns out I really am 5'4". I thought I was. I always say I am. But I never really knew for sure. :)

Crash Course on Big Brother

If you're not watching, this post is for you. And START WATCHING!! ;)

So let me run through the cast of characters for you... in case you wanna jump on board and tune in.

Up until last week everyone had a partner. Now they're playing as individuals. At the start of the game, 6 were returning houseguests and 8 were brand new players.

I'll start with the veterans.

Jeff and Jordan

They met a couple of years ago when they were on Big Brother the first time. They've been together ever since then. They've also done Amazing Race together.



Jordan. Super cute. Great southern accent. Everyone loves her. Everyone trusts her. With good reason. She's very upfront and doesn't play the game dirty. She's genuinely nice. She won the $500K grand prize on her season. So even though everyone loves her, I don't think anyone wants her to win again.




Jeff. *sigh* I like Jeff. To me, he's easy on the eyes. (I can't be the only one who thinks that.) He's a pretty good competitor, and he also plays the game fairly. Everyone likes him but they all want him out too. Because everyone likes him, he stands a good chance of winning. So he's got a BIG target on his back. He won $25K as Fan Favorite on his first season.

Rachel and Brendon

They also met on Big Brother and are now engaged. They are FIERCE competitors and socially awkward. Everyone would see them as a threat, just because they're good. But they're also really hated because they're jerks. They think they're the smartest, toughest, BEST.

They do win a lot, but everyone is ready for them to leave. If they had been nicer to people, it may have helped them in the long run.



Rachel. Thinks she's hot. I would tend to disagree. Competitive. Crybaby. Awkward mess.



Brendon. Working on his PhD...( and he'll tell everyone he is, over and over.) He's pretty proud of the way he turned out in life. Gag.

Dick and Daniele

This is a father/daughter duo. They too are from a previous where Dick took home the half million dollars. Their relationship is ALWAYS strained. They are EXCELLENT players because they're manipulative and don't care. They always remember that it's just a game and play without emotion.

I don't really like them because I like Jeff and Jordan so much. And these 2 pairs play the game VERY differently. But when Dick and Daniele were on the first time around I really enjoyed watching them play. They were great.




This is Daniele. The veterans are really mad at her. They had an alliance with her, but she was playing the game a little aggressively and planned to back-stab Jeff and Jordan. Now the only person who likes her is Kalia. But everyone is kissing her butt this week because she's the Head of Household. [I'll go over all the Big Brother terminology in a minute. ;)]




And this is Dick. Dick is not on the show anymore. He had to leave for an unknown reason. Crisis at home or something.

.....................

Ok.. Now the Newbies. It's kinda sad that they were forced to pair up without even knowing their partners. But those are the twists and turns of Big Brother.

Shelly and Cassi

Both from the South. Liked them both a lot. Cassi's been evicted.




Shelly. Married, mom. A grown up tomboy. I think she works in the hunting/fishing industry. She is working with the veterans right now, and I LOVE HER. I wouldn't mind if she won it all. The new cast members have figured out that she has teamed up with the veterans, so we'll see if that causes problems for her.



Cassi. Model. Refused to play the game. Didn't want to tell people what they wanted to hear. Didn't want to sell out. Unfortunately she must've missed the part where this show IS a game. And so if you wanna win, you MUST play!! Oh well. Liked her, but she's gone.

Adam and Dominic

They teamed up because they were kinda the last 2 left. So not much of a choice there.




Adam. Seems like a biker dude, but he's really into classic episodes of Beverly Hills 90210 and is a huge fan of Tori Spelling. ?? No one really trusts him, but no one's really afraid of him either. He plays both sides. He hasn't shown himself to be either a strong competitor or a smart strategist. He's what people would call "a floater".




Dominic. Still lives with his mom. Cute guy but teamed up with Daniele early on. And she had a huge plan in the works to get rid of Jeff and Jordan. And when the veterans found out about it, they got rid of Dominic. Simply because he was her partner in the plan, and they couldn't get rid of Daniele that week.

Lawon and Kalia

They're the oddest pair of all.



Lawon. Flamboyant but very funny. Not at all an athlete or a competitor but very likeable. Also "a floater".



Kalia. Sex columnist. I really don't like her. I think she THINKS she's more important than she is. Right now she's teamed up with Daniele. And I hope she's kicked out soon. For some reason, I can't stand her.

Keith and Porsche

They teamed up because he thought she was hot. Period.



Keith. Youth minister [but didn't act like one]. He ended up being the very first houseguest to be evicted because his alliance turned on him. He was too cocky and trusted too much. Big mistake.



Porsche. [I find it hard to believe that's her real name but I can't say for sure that it's not.] VIP Cocktail waitress. She hasn't played a lot because of one of the twists, "The Golden Key". [I won't get into that.] But when she does play, she's always one of the last ones standing. I think she's tough. And I don't have a reason to not like her. Right now she's teamed up with the veterans.

.......................

Big Brother Vocab:

It's the lingo that I think makes people not want to tune in because there are a lot of acronyms and junk. So I'll break it down for you.

HOH (Head of Household): There's a competition each week to determine who gets this title. It's the biggie. It's the one you want. You are in control of who is nominated for eviction. People make deals with you. You have a lot of power in the game. You can be HOH for one week. You can NOT be HOH 2 weeks in a row.

Making deals: That's basically when you go to the HOH and say, "Hey, if you don't nominate me this week for eviction, then if I win HOH next week, I won't nominate you." or "I won't vote for you if you don't vote for me." etc etc.

Nominees for eviction: These are the 2 people that the HOH has put up for eviction. Only one will leave. It's up to the houseguests to vote on which one. The HOH does NOT vote, unless there's a tie. Sometimes the HOH wants either of the nominees to leave because the HOH hates them both. OR sometimes the HOH has nominated 1 houseguest that she hates and 1 that is a pawn.

A pawn: This is someone who is nominated for eviction but the HOH never intends for the houseguests to vote for him to go home. At least that's what the Pawn believes. And of course, the HOH can't control how the houseguests vote. So it's possible for the HOH to put up a Pawn and for the Pawn to be evicted.

The block: Short for chopping block I think. If you've been nominated for eviction, you're on the block. No one wants to be "on the block".

Veto competition: It's competition each week that involves the HOH, the 2 nominees for eviction, and 1 or 2 other houseguests that are usually picked randomly. The winner of the veto competition wins the POV.

POV (Power of Veto):Once the HOH has nominated 2 people for eviction, there's a veto competition to win the POV. The Power of Veto is exactly what it sounds like. Whoever wins that competition has the power to CHANGE the HOH's nominations. Whoever has the POV can take one person off the block but they don't get to decide who replaces that nominee. The HOH does. So it's risky to use the Power of Veto. You could take one person off the block and then the replacement nominee is someone that you really like. So you have to be careful. You can always choose NOT to use the POV and leave the nominees as they are.

Trying to backdoor someone: The ULTIMATE betrayal. Some players refuse to play this way, but others don't care. And it's an effective way to play.

How it works (for example): 2 people are nominated for eviction as always. But the plan is for NEITHER of them to go home. The plan is to nominate those 2 people, so that everyone else feels safe--like they're not going home this week. Then the veto competition comes and everyone participating knows what the secret plan is. The plan is for whoever wins the POV to use it to take one person off the block. Then the HOH, seemingly backed into a corner, will put a strong unsuspecting player up on the block. And the houseguests will end up voting that strong player out. It's a backstabbing, tricked-you, you-didn't-see-that-one-coming type of move.

Floater: Someone who doesn't ruffle feathers. Doesn't make big decisions. Never wins HOH or POV. Just flies under the radar and watches all the strong players fight and vote each other off the show. No one likes floaters.


Haves and Have Nots: Each week the players are divided into 2 groups: the haves and have nots. "Haves" can eat anything in the house. "Have nots" have to eat slop and disgusting crap for a week and sometimes they don't get hot showers either.
.................

I think that's all. Are you thoroughly confused? Did you really read all of that? ;)

Obviously I really like the show. Haha. And I want you to get sucked in too. That's why I'm filling you in.

And NOW-- if you haven't been watching-- hopefully you feel all caught up and can tune in on Wednesday.

Daniele has nominated Brendon and Rachel for eviction. On Wednesday Daniele, Brendon, Rachel and (I think) 2 other houseguests will play for the POV. I really don't want Brendon or Rachel to win. If either of them wins, they'll obviously take themselves off the block and then Daniele will nominate someone else. And I'm afraid it might be Jeff. :(

So you'll be seeing the veto competition if you tune in on Wednesday. And then Thursday there will be the eviction and a competition to see who the new HOH will be.

And then you'll be hooked and you will have see one full cycle of how this game works. SO TUNE IN :)