Wii News

We are really enjoying the Wii. I thought I would like it and just let the kids play. I figured Wii Fit would be ok. I never counted on addiction! The kids have twice stayed up until 10 because we all just wanted to play one more game. Bowling seems to be our current favorite, mainly because we can all play. The training games are quite useful and I find myself actually able to hit a tennis ball and an occasional homerun. I think I am going to love boxing once I play more. I know my arms will look great if box a lot!

I am not ashamed to admit my Wii age. My Wii fitness (part of Wii Sport)age is 33 and my Wii Fit age is 40. Wii Fit relies on a lot of balance skills I don't seem to have mastered yet, but I keep working at it. My original age was 54! Wii Fitness is a lot easier to figure out, but I started out at 40 on that one! My favorites on Wii Fit are ski jump, tightrope, and soccer ball. It's impressive that I can jump on a tightrope without falling off. I'd never make it in real life!

We have played the Family game night, and the High School Musical 1 & 2 Singalong. Nothing Knew and hubby did a nice duet at NYE, and there wasn't that much alcohol involved. Hannah Montana's game is a little more involved, but I think Trinks will like it once we find a block of time to work on it with her. Poor S just wants to play with Mr. Potatohead and doesn't realize he is just the host of family game night.

Computer issues

Well, I have almost completely killed this computer. I have too much crap on it - kind of a theme in my life. I purchased an external hard drive - Seagate something or other. It's cool, but it came with no instructions and I am way too lazy to look it up on the Internet. By screwing around, I think I have freed up tons of memory. What does this mean? It means I will post pictures tomorrow. It is way to late to do that tonight.

Wii playing, trash talking four year old

My dear, darling son has picked up Wii playing rather quickly. When he pays attention, he is a darn good bowler. This weekend, he got a little bored, went up the stairs to the kitchen at Nothing Knew's house. When it was his turn, he stood at the top of the stairs and bowled from there. Rather creative. He has also taken to bowling from the couch, which really defeats the purpose of having a Wii.

But, the funniest thing happened this morning. I heard him tell Trinks he was going to kick her ass. For some reason, he is a natural trash talker. At the NYE party, he was talking trash to a three year old. Hubby and I don't talk trash, so I'm not sure where he picked this up. I think the harshest thing we've said is - I'll beat you like a rented mule. We are working on teaching appropriate sportsmanship. In the mean time, I will choke back my laugh and give S a stern lecture.

It's not cancer

So I finally got the results of my skin biopsies. I wasn't worried about the mole from my arm - the dr. didn't really want to remove it. It was the spot on my stomach that worried me. She seemed concerned. I called yesterday evening to get the automated results - benign moles. Phew! Next appointment - November 2009.

Burn, Baby Burn

Trinks helped make breakfast today and has the scars to prove it. She took the waffles out of the toaster oven, with a potholder, but managed to burn her wrist. Isn't it ugly? She's a good sport, though.

2009 Project

Just because I have so much free time, I decided to take on a new project. The four of us will explore the great state of DE over the next twelve months. I even set up a new blog to track our progress. Click on Trinks and S explore DE to the right and catch up on DE news.

Our proposed trips include: Pea Patch Island, Bombay Hook, any state park we haven't been to yet, Jake's Burgers, various museums, and numerous places in slower, lower DE.

I witnessed this

And have no idea how the driver in the Mitsubishi is still alive. There was nothing left of the car. I looked up as the car was in midair, disintegrating, and watched in horror as it smashed into the pavement. I had to pull over because I couldn't breathe. Hubby missed it because he couldn't understand my frantic pointing because I couldn't speak.

Thanks Nothing Knew - didn't catch that!

Holiday pictures

Merry Christmas!

So Christmas Eve started with a bang - literally. Hubby was allowed to leave work with me at 4:50. We hit Wawa for gas prior to picking up the kids. It was crowded and hard to find a pump. I was doing my usual back seat driving and hubby was getting annoyed. He flung the car in reverse to go back to an almost open pump. He didn't see anyone behind him and didn't hear the frantic honking as hit hit the gas HARD. CRASH! In MY CAR!!!! Thankfully there was no damage, but I drove up to my parents after we got the kids.

Christmas Eve dinner was great - a nice late turkey dinner with my parents and grandparents. I have no idea who the little boy sitting next to me was. Instead of "I hate turkey", S kept saying how much he loved everything. Then he downed two apricots, a couple pieces of pear and a cookie. I guess he was hungry. We exchanged presents with my grandparents and then Trinks read us The Night Before Christmas. Santa was given cookies and milk, carrots were left for the reindeer, stockings were hung and the kids went to bed at 10:30. Then the fun began. We quickly put the presents out and it occurred to me to hide Trinks' big Santa present behind S's Thomas set from Santa. I put the small Samantha doll in front, so it looked like that was all she got from Santa. Then I went to bed.

When the kids got up this morning, they contained themselves and waited until we were downstairs before tearing down after us. As per tradition, they started with the stocking presents. Then they moved on to the Santa gifts. Trinks was happy with just the miniature Samantha doll and didn't complain. As she moved on to the wrapped presents, I pointed out her other Santa gift. She shrieked! She didn't ask for a Nintendo DS, but loved it on sight! She was excited about the two games - Tinkerbell and Cooking Mama 2. S was happy since there were enough things with wheels, or were Spiderman. Both kids were pleased. Trinks split her time between the DS and running her dolls outside in the triple stroller that will be kept at Mom Mom's house.

The rest of the day was spent hanging out, visitng my great aunt, and having dinner at my sister's house. They got a Wii from Santa. Then hubby and I got on the road because we have to work tomorrow. Ugh! At least the kids are at my mom's house. Hubby and I have a date night tomorrow. I think we're trying out the new burrito place down the street. He's been there, but I haven't. Can't wait!

And before I sign off - guess what my best Christmas present was? S is switching classes on Jan 5. I am so happy. He should do well in this classroom. I'm also looking into Kung Fu for him. He needs a confidence boost!

You'll be with me, like a handprint on my heart

Am I wimping out, or did I find something appropriate? You be the judge. A couple of weeks ago I started a draft of a post for Karen on the one year anniversary of her death. I kept getting hung up on the unfairness of her dying so young. I am finally beyond the anger and the crippling grief. It seems pointless to harp on what I can't change. For my sake, I need to move in a positive direction. I remain sad, but I can see the blessing in having her as a friend for seventeen years. Even if it were fifty years, I would be greedy and want one day more. So without further ado, this says what I am looking to say.

I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you

Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good

It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend...

Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
Because I knew you

I have been changed for good

And just to clear the air
I ask forgiveness
For the thing I've done you blame me for

But then, I guess we know
There's blame to share

And none of it seems to matter anymore

Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood

Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a bird in the wood

Who can say if I've been
Changed for the better?
I do believe I have been
Changed for the better

And because I knew you...

Because I knew you...

Because I knew you...
I have been changed for good.

Wii Fit

So far, I have determined Wii is a rude system. When you are trying to figure out how the hell the system works, the last thing you want is to hear nasty comments. Once I figured things out, all of a sudden, the Wii voice was nice. I would think a little patience with novices would be better.

But, in spite of that, I did a bunch of balancing exercises, some strength training, and a couple of body tests. My personal information is guarded by a password I hope I remember. I set goals for the next 3 months and got my calendar stamped. I hit several soccer balls with my head and ran through numerous gates on the slalom.

"Lighting" the menorah

We "lit" the window menorah.

Wii Wish you a Merry Hanukkah

I won the first round of bowling, and then gave up my Mii for hubby. He needed something to distract him from the Eagles' loss. The only complaint I have is sharing the controller with the kids. But bowling is fun. Trinks hit the people behind us about 15 times, and S took a game to understand when to release. By game two, they really had it down.

Tomorrow I am taking my last vacation day to celebrate Karen. I didn't think I could handle functioning politely at work on the year anniversary, so I decided to stay home. Karen and I used to go out to breakfast right before Christmas. Sometimes we would do last minute shopping together, popping into each other's car to watch the kids while the other ran into a store. It's the simple things like this that really defined our friendship. Tomorrow I will be thinking about her, posting something if I can get it to sound right and tackling the Wii Fit.

And the tree came down

It was all in slow motion. The tree slowly pitched forward and ended up as a crumpled mess on the floor. Surprisingly, only one glass ornament was broken, and it's easily fixed. Getting it back up was a little close to impossible. Hubby had to come in and help me. Then my mom pulled up as we were struggling to get it stable so I had the kids run out and tell her to leave everything in the car and come rescue us. It's still a little lopsided, but it seems stable. I think I need to find a new stand.

Evil Child?

Can a child be evil? I am convinced a child can be pure evil. And no, it's not my child. S has a classmate that has driven me crazy since they were both one. At conferences I would have to hear about how this evil child distracts S and how much better he does when this child is not at school. If S gets hit, or bitten, or kicked, it's because of this evil child. Having gone through this age with Trinks, I know this is normal to have children acting out. But this child is always tormenting my child. No other classmate has ever done anything to my son.

Things started to unravel for me after the latest conferences. Evil child started back full time, instead of the nice half days we were enjoying. A couple of weeks ago I walked into the aftermath of this child pulling my son's pants down and spanking him. Last night I walked into S crying and screaming "No thank you, evil child" Ok - he used the kid's name, but I am calling him evil child. This child had picked up S's train and thrown it on the floor to smash it. It was in several pieces on the floor and S was heart broken. I patiently told S that this child is NOT his friend because friends don't do this to each other.

On the way out, I ran into the school's director. She was getting ready to leave, so I felt badly in delaying her, but I asked if S could be removed from the class. I want him in the class across the hall with the older pre-K kids. I explained I can't leave him in his classroom because of this child. The teachers are awesome and I really hate to leave them, but I have to protect my son. There is no room in the other classroom, but when a spot opens, S will have it. I may lose patience in January and put him in another school. I hope I don't have to, but I am willing to do almost anything to get S out of the way of this child. And I know that there will always be a problem child. I just think I have been very patient putting up with this child for three years. I'm done.

I really love my new camera!

Longwood - last weekend.

Mammogram Results

I finally checked my voicemail at work. Yup - I have an obnoxious message advising I am not taking calls. But I had a message about my mammogram results from yesterday. Apparently I have benign calcification, but I'm ok. Well, I don't think so. I need more info than that. I called back the technician and left the following message:

I received my results, but I am confused. I don't understand what benign calcifications mean. Are they lucent? Popcorn? egg shell? group? cluster? linear? And how do I know that it's not Ductal Carcinoma in situ? In short, how do you know this is benign?

I didn't mean to be rude, but am I really supposed to be reassured by someone who can't tell me why I'm fine? So the tech called me back and advised it's milk in calcium and the calcifications are in my skin. I feel better. And she made the dr read the films again - I guess they don't write down the type of calcification if it's in the benign range. And I will schedule next year's as soon as they send the reminder.

So my advice to anyone undergoing medical tests - question everything until you are comfortable.

Happy Birthday to me!

I celebrated by getting McD's breakfast, killing a squirrel, turning my work phone off, getting 2 skin biopsies and having one piece of two different cakes that were made in my honor. All in all - not so bad. I even requested that tonight be junkfood night - hot dogs and tator tots. Can someone get me a salad? Now??? Please??

Merry Christmas Kathi

Today I went for my first mammogram. It wasn't as horrible as people say it is and I was giggling through a lot of it. It's not the squishing that is uncomfortable, it's the awkward positions you stand in while holding one boob this way, squishing the other and putting your arm over the top of the machine. I felt like I was playing adult twister. My only complaint is I WAITED, and WAITED, and WAITED to be seen. I think sitting around for 45 minutes before anyone brings you back is inexcusable. If a dr did that to me, I would never return. My time is too valuable to waste, even on medical tests. I'll give these people a second chance before I find another place.

Mrs. Grinch

I have been very Grinch like so far this month. This afternoon I really felt like Mr. Grinch, except it was when his heart grew three times its size. Having Forrest home after eleven days missing is a treat! And then we decorated outside and put up our three Christmas trees. Yes, a Christmas hater has three trees inside. I had a cute tree in college, which became Trinks when she was old enough. This year I sprang for a nice sized one for Scott's room. And we have my sister's old tree in the office.

Back in the day, we used to go out in the back of my grandparents farm on THE COLDEST day of the winter and wander around until we found the perfect tree. Then we would chop it down and drag it back to the car. Then, it would have to be evened out, and watered regularly. My sister and I had our own tree, possibly so we could keep all the hideous "store bought" ornaments away from the handmade ornaments. My mother has a beautiful felt and sequin Nativity Character ornament set that a secret Santa made for her one year back in the 70s. One year we took styrofoam ornaments and stabbed them with pins and sequins to make bizarre (mine) and beautiful (my mother's and sister's) ornaments. So the concept of separate trees was nothing new to me. What changed as I got older was a dislike of real trees. They give me hives and need water. I've already admitted I can't even take a vitamin every day, so watering a tree ain't gonna happen!

As I type, I see what a great job the kids did on the tree. And I see how short they are. A good two feet at the top is naked. S was so excited when we lit the tree. He squealed and clapped his hands. Trinks was able to help me in the attic - ok I made up things to do up there because she really wanted to help me bring the boxes down. She was also able to help put the tree together and string lights. This year I set up the remote for the lights. Nope - I have no use for the remote, but my mom got it for me last year and it is really fun to use it. The kids made the tree go on and off so many times it looked like we had blinking lights.

So we had a good weekend. The only major problem we ran into was S hates both types of cookies I made. So he inhaled two out of three of my pears. The third was safely stowed in my lunch bag. Tomorrow I'll make him chocolate chocolate chip. YUM!