I survived.

I survived. I survived Thanksgiving and Mister's 12th birthday party, all in the same week. My baby is now 12. A preteen. It's hard to believe. I won't say time has flown by, but I clearly remember holding this tiny being in my teenage arms and thinking, "It's just me and you, kid." I'm so glad that he is growing into such a good person, and has a wonderful father to guide him and be an example. He is healthy, happy, and smart. And today, he had a great day.

He had about 15 guests over for some games, cake, and hanging out. That kid ended up with a few toys and $62 in his pocket. I'd say he did pretty well. I made his cake with icing light sabers and lego star wars men atop it. It was all chocolate, inside and out. I keep wondering at what age he will tell me that homemade cakes and games are too "little kid" for him. I hope not too soon. I do, however, sense that it won't be long before his birthday parties have the word "dance" on the invite and I'll be banished to another room for the duration. I think I did that at about 13 or 14. My mom was a good sport though.

Thanksgiving also went great. We had dinner at H's brother's house with his family, another brother and his family, and a friend from church. The food was worth the wait. I made my deviled eggs, candied yams, and mashed potatoes. Can't go wrong with any of those.

I hope you each had a great holiday too and didn't stress on Black Friday too much. And I hope you have plenty of turkey leftovers.

What's your blog's personality type?

I found this fun website, Typealyzer, that is like a personality test for your blog. I found it through the lovely and hilarious Lemon Gloria. Just type in your blog's web address and voila...you have your blog's personality. Here's mine:

ISFP - The Artists

The gentle and compassionate type. They are especially attuned their inner values and what other people need. They are not friends of many words and tend to take the worries of the world on their shoulders. They tend to follow the path of least resistance and have to look out not to be taken advantage of. They often prefer working quietly, behind the scene as a part of a team. They tend to value their friends and family above what they do for a living.

Yep...they grow up so fast.

Little Man actually slept through the whole night last night. This is significant. Even if it doesn't happen every night from now on, it's still pretty big for me. I still remember when Tiny started sleeping through the night...almost 8 years ago. It's sort of like a milestone. And the beginning of much more uninterrupted sleep. And, of course you know what comes next...driving, shaving, and college.

Just so you know

I am so tired. I am tired of this economy. I am tired of the sucky housing market. I am tired of fielding off creditor's calls every day. I am tired of putting $10 of gas in my van at a time. I am tired of the stress and worry. I am tired of putting the bills in a pile, knowing that I don't know when they'll get paid. I am tired of wondering what will happen next. I am tired. I'm not going to elaborate on all of the above because I am the kind of person that keeps such personal things just that, personal. But I needed to put this out into the cosmos...I AM TIRED OF IT!

Did you know...

that I still cry when Cedric Diggory is killed in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire"? Yeah, I'm a dork. :)

Turning over a new...er, another leaf.

I am pursuing a new interest. Tiny has a BFF whose mother, I have come to find out, also graduated with an English degree. And like me, she also found that there was an abundance of uses for that degree in the job market...(sarcasm intended). Anyway, she decided to look into graphic design. The more she discussed it, the more my interest grew. It sounded like a job that would make good use of my English background and my creativity. So, she lent me a book that she used to begin learning photoshop. I have already started fiddling with it and have to say that I am having fun. My perfectionism might cause me to spend quite a bit of time on it, but I like what I've worked on so far. I have been following the tutorials in the book and have made these:
I just followed the instructions and the examples and it was pretty simple. The hard part will be remembering all the tools and ways to change things. I'm not even finished with the first chapter. I'm sure I will be learning a lot. Who knows? I may be able to use it for something lucrative...like a job.

Measuring my excitement and gratitude...

I meant to post about this exciting news last night, but, alas, I once again fell asleep while trying to put Little Man to bed. Anyways, I WON SOMETHING!!!

DIYdiva had a contest for her readers and I won! The prize, you ask?

This awesome diy 100% stainless steel tape measure, with two-sided grip and numbers on BOTH sides. I got so excited when I saw this on her blog that I posted a comment immediately and won! I can't wait for it to arrive. I am mentally measuring things all around the house already.

And to prove that I was meant for this measuring tape...a DIY job popped up this morning. Could be good news...or bad, depending how you look at it. The upstairs shower seems to be producing a small leak that is dripping into the downstairs kitchen when someone takes a shower. Now, my first thought was...."No, we really can't fix this right now!" However, when mentioning it to H, he seemed excited for an excuse to replace the prefab shower stall with a new tub/shower. I must admit that I would love to see an old fashioned tub in there, with the claw feet. Maybe it'll come true. In the meantime, I'll wait for my new tape measure and then measure every inch of the bathroom for the new tub.

OH MY GOSH!!!

I awoke to this headline on the internet:

"'Girl Next Door' Engaged"

Turns out that Hugh Hefner's ex, Kendra Wilkinson, became engaged to Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Hank Baskett. I hardly ever blog about anyone famous, so what's the big deal, you ask???












Well, I went to school with Hank Baskett. He and my brother were close friends in elementary school. My brother even broke his arm in Hank's front yard. So, it's just a bit weird to see this guy we grew up with engaged to a Playboy Bunny. A little odd. But it's also a bit odd to see him as a big, buff, famous football player when the last time I saw him he was still a skinny kid, all knees and elbows. But I wish them much happiness and luck. Hank was always a nice guy.

I am so proud...

to be an American. And I am so excited and full of hope for our new President-Elect Barack Obama. I feel like my vote contributed to an important part of history. I think that so many of us are looking toward the future with a renewed hope and prayer. God bless this nation and its leaders.

Carpe Diem

I thought I would seize the moment to post while Little Man snoozes in his swing. There's so much on my mind.

It's November now and, besides it being the beginning of the feast and thankful seasons, my Mister is turning 12 this month! It's hard to believe that 12 years ago, he came into my world. I will definitely post a mushy message closer to his day.

It's Election Day! Did you vote? You NEED to vote. I think this will be a close one and every vote will count. Not to drop hints of who I voted for, but:

Doesn't matter who you like....EVERY VOTE COUNTS!

Tiny went to the orthopaedic specialist yesterday and did great. She now has a purple cast that is already donning some extensive signatures...with a silver metallic marker, of course. She really wanted me to buy her the marker before she headed back to school so all her friends could sign it. While putting on the cast, the doctor put some pressure on her arm to help straighten out the bones. According to the x-ray, it seems to have helped and he will check her again in 3 weeks. She didn't make a peep, just took some deep breaths and squeezed my hand. She's a tough cookie.

H is plugging away at his new job. It's a start up venture capitalist company that is owned by a man that has made a mint in many businesses. H is doing sales, recruiting small and large businesses for capital loans. He seems to like it and it's keeping him really busy.

I better go...Little Man is saying my time is up.