Ahhhhh, my last day of vacation...

Last night I was nearly having a panic because all of these things kept running through my mind that were all important, that all had to be done, and I was so worried I'd forget any...so...I made a list :) Pick up paycheck, get $ from Ela & Becky, Mail $ to Toni, Pack Xmas gifts for Mom & Cassie, Mail internship appraisal to Weeden, Mail Xmas cards, Mail braces estimate, Aubrey 11:00, take dead fish back, buy new fish, buy crickets, find missing Carl Cole card, chasi notes and to do list, pick out paint colors for family room, buy the paint, check stock of paint supplies, call about entertainment unit, pu United Way packet, go to bank, pick up truck, go to Sopora, Steph to babysitting, finish cheer dog, there that ought to about do it! So...that's the Friday list. I will feel SOOOOO much better when all of that is off my plate! So far today, I have picked out the paint colors and it's 11:00! Wow so much accomplished! JK...I am definitely a 2nd shift person. After I got the kids off to school this morning...I surely passed out for a nap. Now, I feel ready to take on the list! So, here are the new paint colors...

I will paint one wall of the stairway, the entryway, and the upper part of the family room the khaki color...the fireplace all and the bottom half of the family room will be the brown...hopefully completed pics will be on line by Sunday night! But for now...baby girl just arrived, and must have my undivided attention :) :) :) Until next time...

TRANSITION!!!

Do you hear it? Listen closely...the winds of change are blowing :) As I sit her at the computer tonight I am a little bit glad that my kids went to bed at 10:20 instead of 11, 12, 1 or whenever because I got to say, "You better get in bed, you have school tomorrow!" Ahhhhh, the last two days of my vacation sans children. Hmmmmm, what to do....how about work?!? Ok, I'll put in 8 hours at Chasi tomorrow, but only after I pick the new paint color for the family room, and Friday...well, how bout invite some kids over !?! Sounds insane, um, I mean fun doesn't it :) My husband doesn't really understand the attraction I have to children, but I can't really get enough of them! (Although I still enjoy bedtime after being home with mine for 10 days:) So, tomorrow, I have to start cramming in all of the things I didn't get done that are on my to do list...Like today for instance I did 6 loads of laundry and counting Hooray! Tomorrow, I have to be at work at 12 til 7 or so, but REALLY would like to paint the family room ceiling first. (And wouldn't ya know it, I just scheduled a client for 6 and an hour later the cheer leading coach calls and says there will be practice at 6) Wow, and so my life resumes! Friday, I have Aubrey :):):) Brennan has the shrink, and after that I am taking Zoe, Jason, and Ethan to Sapora....FUN!!!! Enough about the to do list...the real purpose of this post is two fold.

First, to talk about transitions in life. The other day when my little one's ortho told me she would be getting her braces because alas, (wait...my daughter said never to say alas, it makes me sound old) so, the other day when my little one's ortho told me she would be getting her braces because, {can't think of a word other than alas} all of her baby teeth had fallen out, I immediately thought: WHAT? No more tooth fairy is needed at the Ruch house? Why, it can't be. I came home from the ortho and had my son open his mouth wide. Nope, there was not one baby tooth to be found. WHO SAID THAT WAS OK? WHERE WAS MY WARNING? I mean, really, when you're youngest child's last baby tooth falls out, shouldn't someone say...uh hem, take note here, this will be the last tooth placed under a pillow in your home. No one said that to me...so I didn't take pictures, there will be no terrific scrapbook page to follow and the tooth fairy is officially retired. Unless, does the fairy come when you get your wisdom teeth pulled? (When I got my wisdom teeth pulled, my mom brought me a kitten...I'm not sure if that counts) Really...she brought me a kitten. Although I didn't live at home then, so putting them under my pillow would have produced nothing. Darn it. Wait one moment please daughter
is yelling to be tucked in...Ok, she has been dutifully tucked in and kissed goodnight. Anyway...back to the song lyrics, "Don't blink, it goes faster than you think..." Enough said.

The second purpose of this post is for a "Mom" update. Wish I had her password, and I'da (that's slang for I would have...probably should patent that word) updated her blog. My Mom had her angio something or other today and they found a blockage. So, that is really good! I mean, not the blockage but that they found it BEFORE the heart attack, and so now they will fix it: First thing (or 10:00) tomorrow morning. So, I was very relieved to talk to her this afternoon and know that all was well. Her husband is fighting a cold and I felt badly for him as he sounded very stressed. I was waiting for the call today while sitting in the dentist chair and man did that ever make my dentist visit so long! (As if it's not long enough :D) My teeth are all shiny now,(although I still need a root canal, as soon as the budget allows--I'm pretty sure that will be some time after my daughter's 12th birthday, because really we MUST have our priorities in order!) my kids go back to school tomorrow, my mom is well, and wait! I have a new quote of the day. Instead of the old adage, one day at a time...I prefer..."Just take it one gigantic, earth shaking, crisis at a time! Love that one... or, here's one I saw the other day that I thought might be good for my new office..."I'm not really good at advice, would a sarcastic comment do?" I crack myself up. OK, so evidently I'm a bit tired, or giddy, or have been on vacation for too long, or perhaps have done too many loads of laundry in one day. Time for bed you ask? Well no, because after 6 loads, my darling daughters asked, "Could you wash this for me for school tomorrow?" Hmmmmm, [insert sarcastic comment here] Until next time...

It's official!!

I can now officially say that I graduate NEXT year!!! How exciting is that?! When I'm actually into the last 12 months I anticipate being just a bit giddy! It seems most of the world goes back to work tomorrow and I do too for a little bit. I have some catching up to do at CHASI and my weekly staff meeting there...So, it'll be nice to get out of the house. I wanted to maybe check on a new coat at Kohl's (since I'm tired of wearing Kevin's) tomorrow too. Kristina and I were there the other day looking for me a coat, but we ended up finding a super cute one for her (of course) -- it's just the one she has wanted and of course her birthday will be upon us in 10 short days, so perhaps for her birthday? We'll see. We have started to plan her party and I think it will be on the 2nd of February. It just seems so hard to have it 2 weeks after Christmas. Most people are still in the 'reentry' phase of the new year then and it seems so hectic. February allows for better planning and a better financial outlook after the drain of Christmas. :)

Now, for New Year's Eve. Every year my kids make me feel so old by having to wake me up at midnight to wish me happy new year! So this year, I vow to stay awake for the big event :) The biggest event of the night was by far this...

Robert Tuesday!!!! The dysfunctional side finally decided it was ok to expose him to me, so he got to stay overnight last night :) Oh, how I loved it. When we pulled into the driveway Robert said, "Baf? Baf? Baf?" I said, of course you can take a bath! To which he replied, "Cars? Cars? Cars?" Yes, my love you can have a bath with your cars. So...he played for a bit and we made fudge frosted brownies, Yumm!!! And finally it was bath time. He was so sweet playing with his cars---and lining them up. Kevin and I watched "The pursuit of happyness" (spelled wrong intentionally according to the movie title) -- we had chips and dip, and enjoyed Robert's company. Brennan was at the World of Warcraft New Year's fireworks (on the computer of course) and Stephanie & Nina were both at their bff's house. So...it was a peaceful night, but we enjoyed it AND we stated awake to see the ball drop! Woohooo...perhaps I'm only 25 after all?!? This morning Robert got up and emptied my cabinets before I woke up...I heard the crash of silver ware out of my china cabinet and thought it best that I get up...at 7:00 UGH! The good thing about early rising 2 year olds is that they are early nappers and I sure enjoyed the 12:00 nap! The girls all returned home and are getting ready to go back to school on Thursday...organizing new Christmas clothes to wear, catching up homework, etc. etc. I am grateful for a few days to myself before work on Monday. (Paid work anyway!)

As I look forward to the New Year, I am not a person of resolutions per se--I tend to change things as they need changed or as I become aware of them. Overall, however there are a few things I aspire to do in the new year. Perhaps lose 10 more lbs. (I lost 17 last year, but gained 7 back--so perhaps a goal of 10 a year wouldn't seem so overwhelming!) Continue the various professional pursuits I have going on (and live through it!) Ease my youngest into Junior High, Ease my oldest into getting her driver's license, Accept the fact that I'll be missing a lot of softball games this summer, but will be sure to attend every one next year! SCRAPBOOK MORE!! I'm not sure how that will happen, but I'd sure like it to! Learn to say no when necessary :) Learn to say yes when necessary :) Appreciate the great life I have and enjoy my terrific husband and kids...Perhaps get a new job? Effective June 1st when I start my new internship at UIC, this will become my number 1 priority...landing a new UIC job. Having these past two weeks off, sure gives me a taste of doing what I want when I want to, and man am I ready for that! Also, I mean really, if I can't find anything else to do, I'd like to finish my application for Deal or No Deal! So...lofty goals? Time will tell...until then Happy New Year and Keep on Blogging!

PS, OK, the cat music had to go...even I had to hit the mute button when I opened my blog!

Busy Saturday

We started out early yesterday to Chicago. Steph, Nina and I went to see Poppy and wish him Merry Christmas. He said to me, "Oh, was it Christmas?" :( He looked good in spite of himself and had had his first haircut in about 3 years! His hair was surprisingly darker with less gray than it had when it was long. We brought him lots of new boxers, organized his clothes to separate them from his new roommate Larry, bid Poppy farewell until next time. It seems he doesn't know who we are, but likes to have visitors for about 5 minutes :) I wish he was close to home so we could see him more often. I did find a home here willing to take him, but they were very sure that the move would be quite disruptive and confusing for him, so I chose to leave him where he's at...at least for now.

After Poppy we were off to John Robert Powers where Kristina had her acting audition. She did well, although was surprisingly shy?!? John Roberts of course is an acting school...with fees that start in the $2000 range! I told my little budding actress that if she really wanted to do that, I would pursue it once I got out of school and had a much more flexible schedule. When Steph was little and dabbled in modeling, we often got a 4 or 5 hour notice to be in Chicago for a commercial read. Ummmmmm, yeah...I just don't see that working in my life today. After graduation I plan to work 3 long days a week and perhaps every other Saturday...so that will free up some more time. So for Kristina's acting dream...not no honey, just not today. Thanks for your patience in letting me pursue my dreams first.

We headed home in hopes to meet up with Carlene, but technical difficulties didn't allow for that. Bummer...I hesitate to say I can't wait to get back to school...because I can't wait to see my friends, but I can SURELY wait for the additional burden on my schedule and time. I have so enjoyed my time off and love the fact that I still have a whole week left :) :) :)

After a nap, we all joined forces to tidy up the house before my scrap night. Before everyone arrived, I finally got the kids new computer set up that they got for Christmas. Tim is going to come to the technical part of getting it exactly as they would like it, but the first step has been taken...it's out of the box! Sarah, Candi, me and our new member Shana :) had a good time. We had Chen's (Thanks Shana for picking it up) and everyone got a lot done. Sarah is making the cutest valentine book...I will for sure need to purchase one! Candi worked on her new years cards, and Shana worked on Aubrey's first year tin that I made her for the baby girl and Stephanie worked on a Christmas paper bag book. I, well, I worked on making a new outfit for Kristina's cheer bear. (Not scrapbooking I know, but something that needed to be done and soon, so I'm glad I got started!) I will finish that today and make the necessary accessories. Sarah and Candi had ran to Archiver's and bought some new treasures. Very neat. We ended about midnight with our gift exchange. I got some really neat family themed coasters that I really love and some boy/girl chipboard people that I can use in my new love book. We planned our next night for January which is very exciting because we also have a scrap weekend planned for February. Fun!

So, what's on the agenda for this week? I have to get caught up on case notes and my billing for December at Chasi, I want to read ahead for the beginning of classes, I have a few assignments from my new internship-- VERY exciting! {more on that later}, Thursday I have clients all day, Friday I have baby girl :) (I think) and then I'm taking Zoe and Jason to Sapora playworld and out to Pizza, Saturday Kristina has practice and a game, and then Sunday we have Aubrey :) I also want to get my Family room painted this week. Perhaps today I can get to Walmart for some paint chips. I have to call the floor guy to schedule the refinishing of the scraproom and hallway, so that I can get my stuff moved (a long time goal) I really want to get the carpet cleaned on Saturday AND my new entertainment unit should be here on Wednesday I think, so I definitely want to have the family room painted by then! I need to hunt down some new wireless phone jacks to ease the wires running all over problem, but first! Today, I promised my brother I'd cook a turkey for him...so that's the project of the day.a I plan to spend the whole rest of the day reading...the newspaper, my new schoolbook, and my new project for my new internship. It is a beautiful frozen day outside and the weather is supposed to hit the deepfreeze for the next few days. Sounds like a good time to sit by the fire with a good book, or two, or three:)

Ms. Senior Arizona

I added a new link to my faves and friends today.. Ms. Senior Arizona. this pageant is quickly coming up on March 1st, 2008 AND my mom is a contestant! Although they don't have the 2008 contestants listed yet, keep an eye out for my mom! Good luck mom :)

Get your adjustments!

So, tonight I went to Kohl's to use my Kohl's cash hopefully to purchase some flip flop slippers...no such luck...HOWEVER, I did buy 5 super cute ornaments with my Kohl's cash AND I gave them all my receipts for the past two weeks and they gave me back $30!!!! Cuz, did you know....you can take your receipts and since almost the whole store is on sale, they'll give you the difference between what you paid and the current price! Can't really beat that with a stick now can ya?! Ok, there's my financial wisdom for the day...now grab your receipts and run to Kohl's!

Aubrey Thursday?

Yup! Today, we got to watch the precious baby girl again :) I told my niece that although I would never want another "full time" baby, I sure love having her over. She is just the best baby! Comes from being well cared for at home :) I just marvel at her amazingness {is that a word?} (Pardon her broccoli face) Every time we see her she has a new word...she barks and meows now ~ We had so much fun today-- she played with her new remote I got her for Christmas that says hello in 3 languages...she still wanted to play with my Tivo remote but settled for hers when I gave it to her :) When her mom came to get her she had to say bye really loudly!!! Too funny!



I was finally able to kick the kids off the wii long enough to watch 3 days of Y&R, I'm only a week behind now! After my second lazy day...I've decided it's back to the grindstone for me. Laying around is really only pleasurable to me for a short period of time. When Kevin came home last night it was too odd saying things like, "Hey did you know Whoopi is on the view?" I felt like I should have on a robe and slippers and rollers in my hair! At least I took a shower yesterday :) Well, since that's really not the life for me, it's back to this...My $290 worth of books for my next two classes! I have clients all day tomorrow and then I have my paperwork appointment at UIC for my next internship. Hope all goes well there, since that is really where I'd like to work when I leave Circles. I long for the days when I set my schedule AND I don't have to be somewhere at 6 AM! (Oh, did I mention the pay increase won't be too bad either) I have three more college educations to pay for very shortly and am hoping the new income will be a boost! I start teaching child development classes in 2 weeks at the Y for a little extra money. They pay twice as much as my day job, so I really couldn't say no to that. And hey, I get one night off a week, why not teach classes!?! I did get my butt out of the house today to take Kristina to the Ortho, and yes it is time...almost 6k and she will have a nice straight bite and straight teeth to go with it! I have to send the forms into my insurance to see what they'll pay and then she should be wired up in about 6 weeks. She said, "I guess I'll have to stop sucking my thumb" (Nothing would make her Dad happier by the way) I said, yeah, I guess it's time [cough, cough]-- I'm going to get some cleaning and homework done here tonight. I have my scrap party Saturday night, and thought (silly me) that I would clean and prepare Friday and Saturday...well except I have clients all day tomorrow and Kristina has an acting audition on Saturday in Chicago. It's ok I guess, I needed to meet up with my friend Carleen, and I have to drop new boxers off for Poppy, so at least I'll get those errands accomplished. Tonight I want to get to Kohl's to spend my Kohl's cash. I am the worst at letting it expire and vowed not to do it this time. I want to get some flip flop slippers and see what they have left for snowman ornaments. Better run! Until next time...