Feeling a little spacey

We visited the Space: Dare to Dream exhibit at the university today. It was great given that nothing like this ever comes to our rural town. It was certainly not Kennedy Space Center, but Carson enjoyed it.

Never mind that man behind Carson in the first picture. Carson wasn't quite tall enough and I haven't ventured in to the world of Photoshop yet. I'm thinking I may need to learn photo editing this year.

Greg went geocahing in Perryville all morning. Carson and I hung out at home until this afternoon when we all went to the museum. After the museum we headed to the mall to pick up some Wallflowers at Bath and Bady Works. Big mistake. It was like Black Friday in the store, with people waiting in line to check out half way out the door. They were having their semiannual sale. I gave up and browsed the other stores. Finally, I gave in and got in line. My house smells yummy like Brown Sugar and Fig.

When we got home, I ironed all of the curtains I washed last weekend, then finished the calendar I started last night. It took longer than I thought, but I am loving my Cricut. I still have a lot to learn to be able to understand all of the features.

Borrowing this from Heather's blog:

{2007 in review}
1. What did you do in 2007 that you have never done before? hmm..I went to Orlando during peak season...I will never do that again

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions and will you make more for 2008? not at all. I am starting over this year

3. Did anyone close to you give birth in 2007? yes, my sister-in-law, Rachel, gave birth to Riley Todd in November. He's a cute little dude and very cuddly.

4. Did anyone close to you die in 2007? yes, my cousin, Todd. He had been very ill for a very long time.

5. What countries did you visit this year? none

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? patience and financial peace

7. What date from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? no particular date stands out. We had lots of great days!

9. What was your biggest struggle in 2007? To commit to getting healthy and follow through.

10. Did you suffer any illness or injury in 2007? Nothing unusual

11. What was the best thing you bought this year? Our van. Now we have plenty of room for traveling.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Carson. We have very high expectations for him and he does pretty well given his vision and motor difficulties.

13. Whose behavior dissappointed you? Carson's teachers. I'm not quite sure that they enjoy their jobs.

14. Where did most of your money go? To eating out. This will be changing in 08.

15. What did you get really really excited about this year? Our vacation.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007? nothing stands out

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: much happier, much nicer or richer? Definitely not richer. I'm working on being nicer and happier.

18. What do you wish you had done more of? Stayed home and enjoyed time wth my family.

19. What do you wish you had done less of? Stressed out about things I have no control over.

20. Did you fall in love in 2007? I realized that Greg and I sure have been through a lot and we still laugh at each other every day.

21. What was your favorite TV Program in 2007? LOST..it's finally coming back on this month!

22. What was the best book you read this year? Eat, Pray, Love. It's good. Read it.

23. What was your greatest musical discovery this past year? The Wicked soundtrack. Made even beter when Becky and I went to see Wicked in December

24. What did you want and get? My Cricut.

25. What was the best movie you saw this year? I didn't see hardly any movies this year. I should go to the movies in 2008.

26. What did you do on your birthday and how old did you turn? I turned 31. We went out to dinner.

27. What one thing would have made your year more satisfying? If I would have lost at least a little weight and got back in the exercise routine.

28. How would you describe your personal fashion statement this year? Stqandard work outfit (black or khacki pants or capris with a colorful shirt or sweater). Jeans and t-shirts after work.

29. What kept you sane this year? Playing Bunco once a month, croping at least once a month and going on vacation

30. What celebrity did you fancy the most? I don't give a lot of thought to celebrities.

31. Who did you miss this past year? The girls I met in Utah in 2006. I would love to get together with them again soon.

33. Who were the best new people you met this year? I had some great students that I still hear from.

34. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned this year: Things really will look better in the morning, no matter what.

Tomorrow is church, then I'm planning to work on lesson plans for Carson and for my college class that starts in a few weeks. I'd like to scrap too if I have extra time. I'm also thinking pot roast may be on the menu after reading this on the Pioneer Woman Cooks blog. Yum!

No rest for the wicked

Some of you may have noticed that you received an email from me at 1:48 this morning. That would be because I was still awake at 1:48am. I was still awake at 4am. This does not happen. I'm usually in bed by midnight at the latest and asleep 30 seconds after my head hits the pillow. My head was hurting and I have a hard time going to sleep when Greg is already sleeping in the bed. He messes up my covers and makes weird annoying noises, like breathing. I'm a little anal about the whole bedtime routine. I go to bed first, or we go at the same time and I fall asleep way before him so I don't have warm, noisy breathing in my face. Aren't you glad to know all this?

Anyway, I was finally asleep around 4, then awakened at 7:40 to the tune of, "Mommy, get up! I want cereal!" My reply was, "Open the cereal drawer and eat it out of the box." That lasted 5 minutes until he returned to inform me that he needed a drink too. So, I was up. It's been a rough day, but I seem to have my second wind at almost midnight.

Carson and I took the day off from school work and hung out watching TV and playing this morning. We had lunch at Casa Mexicana, then headed to my office where he watched movies in the conference room for an hour, then proceeded to move from cubicle to cubicle entertaining the staff.

We stopped at the used book store to make some trades on the way home. Carson got a new Magic Tree House book and several other science themed books. I picked up Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner and Plain truth by Jodi Picoult.

We rushed home in time for me to pack up my scrapbook stuff and head to the local scrapbook store to crop with my buddies. I didn't get much done, but did get paper and pictures matched for an 8x8 calendar. I'll have time to finish it tomorrow. Becky and I chatted a lot and as always got far less done at the crop than we would have scrapbooking at home. The visiting is the best part though!

That's what I look like after getting less than 4 hours sleep. It ain't pretty, but I had to have proof that I got something done tonight. Becky looks cute though. She got 4 12x12 pages done. I got 3 8x8 pages done. Did I mention we were there for 5 hours?!?! Something is not right.

Tomorrow I am hopefully sleeping in. Greg is going geocaching in the morning. We're taking Carson to a NASA exhibit at SEMO University (where I work) in the afternoon. Nothing is on the agenda for Sunday. Thank goodness!

I'm borrowing this from Becky's blog. I think I've still got time for a New Year's List.


2008 New Year's Wish List:
1. One habit you'd like to break totally. Eating out due to laziness. I really need to plan ahead more.

2. One person you'd like to get to know better. I hope to meet all sorts of new people this year. I'll talk to anyone, so it's usually not a problem.

3. One random act of kindness that you'd like to make a habit this year. I'd like to make more time to have friends and family over for dinner just because.

4. Something that you'd like to own by the end of 2008. Completed scrapbook albums.

5. Something that you'd like to get rid of by the end of 2008. About half my body weight.

6. One change you'd like to see in your life in 2008. Actually getting healthy instead of just talking about it.

7. One thing you'd like to memorize in 2008. The freakin' computer keyboard. I still watch my fingers when I type.

8. Something that you'd like to improve on in 2008. Having more realistic expectations of people. Apparently not everyone is as driven to occupy every minute of their time as I am.

9. Something new you'd like to learn in 2008. How to say no to more commitment. This will probably never be mastered since I am so inept at trusting others to get the job done. (this is not without good reason...I've been burned a few times)

10. Something you're looking forward to this year. Vacation...hopefully to Disney World in December

11. One thing you're going to make sure DOESN'T happen this year. Weight gain. It has reached the point of absurdity for me not to deal with this.

12. One person that you want to be closer to this year. Carson. It seems like it's time for bed as soon as we get dinner, baths and school work done. I really want to have more time to hang out with him and enjoy his awesome little personality.

13. One place you want to visit this year. The Smithsonian when I'm in D.C. in April

14. One thing that you'll move from 2007's to do list to 2008's to do list. Getting in shape for baby #2

15. One old acquaintance that you'd like to reconnect with this year. Randy..I haven't seen him since the night of my wedding almost 9 years ago and I'd like to know he's still alive

G,night! I'm off for some sweet sleep.

Smells Healthy in Here

So, I decided to head back to Weight Watchers. In 2006/2007 I gained back all of the weight I had lost a few years ago on Weight Watchers. They kept mentioning something about a lifestyle change that apparently didn't manage to stick in my brain.

I spent New Year's Eve eating chips, dip, chex mix and bacon appetizers until the stroke of midnight. I was in heaven until about 2 am when I woke up with horrible nausea and heartburn. I guess I can thank God for reminding me that a change to healthy eating is certainly in order.

I've been on the wagon since 12:01am 01/01/08. I cleaned out the fridge, stocked it with healthy goods, and gave up my Coke cold turkey. So far, so good. (Although I did have a minor anxiety attack when the sticky bun episode of Throwdown with Bobby Flay came on tonight.) :)

We've also done a major overhaul on the clutter in our house. Greg hauled 2 van loads of stuff to Goodwill and numerous bags of trash to the curb last weekend. It feels great to be living in a clutter free house. It also felt great to deliver a huge box of my scrapping stuff to a single mom on a limited budget. She was delighted with the delivery.

I stayed home with a migraine today, most likely due to junk food withdrawal. This means I will have to take Carson with me to work in the morning while I finish a report. That's always interesting. Tomorrow night I'm cropping with friends, which is always a great time! Have a great Friday!

We now resume our regularly scheduled blog already in progress.

Hi. Yes, I do realize it has been more than a year since I typed a blog post. Things got really busy over the past 15 months. Not that busyness doesn't happen to everyone, but I really seem to attract it. Anyway, I'm back!

Several big events happened since the last post. Here's a brief rundown.

In November 2006, my sister, Juli got married to Ashley. We were all in the wedding party.

Don't they look cute!

In June of 2007, my brother, Jeremy, got married to my sister's best friend, Rachel. Long story on that one. We were all once again in the wedding party.

In August, we took a really great vacation to Siesta Key, Cocoa Beach, and Orlando, Florida. We visited Kennedy Space Center, Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure,and Sea World. It was fantastic! (other than the 16 hours in the van!)

In October, Carson turned 6. We made the difficult decision to take him out of school and begin homeschooling. We have our days, but overall, he's learning so much more.

In November, my nephew, Riley, was born to Jeremy and Rachel. He loves to snuggle with his Aunt Amy.

In December, Carson lost, and swallowed, his first and second teeth. He informed us that he smelled the Tooth Fairy when she visited and that she smells very much like a baked potato. He's nothing if not imaginative!

We also had a great time celebrating Christmas and New Year's Eve with family and friends.

That's the very abbreviated version of our lives since the last post. Greg still works for Drury Hotels and I still teach college courses and work with children with special needs. Our family is happy and healthy and looking forward to a new year of loving, laughing and learning together! Look for more new posts soon!

Such a busy day today. I started at the dentist's office and walked out with a treatment plan totaling $1100. A cleaning, three fillings, and a crown. We'll begin the procedures in two weeks. Yippee.

After the dentist trauma, I met my mother-in-law for lunch where we swapped Carson and dined on yummy Mexican food. After lunch I took Carson to school, then followed the buses to his class field trip at the fairgrounds. We had a great time with all of the other preschoolers and parents from his school. He and I stayed at the fair and waited for Greg to meet us after work for some fair food and a few rides. We had time to see literally every exhibit in the entire fair. It was a long wait for Daddy. I have never willingly watched a cattle show, but today I was ready to sit down and that's where we ended up. Lot's of mooing. Here are some pics from our day:




Every year when we first see the little monkey in the outfit, I wonder why I didn't come up with the idea to dress up a monkey and take quarters from people all day. That guy is a genius. For $5 you can get your picture with the monkey and an autographed picture. Crazy.

In other news, my plans to apply to the doctoral program have been put on hold. I saw my ob/gyn on Monday and she advised me not to take on too much if I plan on having any more children in the near future. With Carson turning 5 next month and me turning 30 this year, it's going to be sooner rather than later on the plan to expand the family. I am under doctor's orders to get in shape this year so we can discuss Franklin Baby #2 at my next appointment next September. I'm feeling pretty good about the plan, though it's pretty daunting to think about the amount of work I have ahead of me to really get in shape in the next twelve months. I am feeling relieved about postponing school and focusing on my health. I was in graduate school when Carson was born and that ended up being a mess when he came so early. The doctor also diagnosed me with a slight heart murmur. I think I've been given a pretty loud wake-up call to get my act together.

The rest of the week is packed with work and Bunco tomorrow, a crop on Friday, and work all day Saturday in St Louis. That will be my third trip to St Louis in 6 days. I'm thinking it would be cheaper for the university to rent an apartment for me. Next week I have an overnight in Jefferson City and then I'm done traveling for at least a few weeks,, other than my very last Festus class on the 26th. Yay!

A recipe and some rest

Here's the recipe for the first of our freezer meals. The pan is currently defrosting in my fridge just waiting to be popped in the oven tomorrow night. If this all works out, I may just start cooking one weekend a month and filling the freezer. Tonight I came home late from class and had some cheap, yet pretty good, Hamburger Helper ready in 10 minutes thanks to my precooked, frozen ground beef. I'm looking forward to some blueberry pancakes straight from the frrezer in the morning. This is pretty cool so far.

King Ranch Chicken

1 package corn tortillas
2 cups chicken -- cooked and shredded ( I just baked about 5 boneless, skinless breasts)
12 ounces cheddar cheese -- grated
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1 can tomatoes with green chilies -- (Ro-Tel)
1 1/4 cups milk
1 onion -- chopped

Directions
Shred cooled, cooked chicken meat with two forks. Tear tortillas into 1-inch wide strips.

In a large baking dish, alternate layers of tortillas, chicken meat and cheese (reserve 1/2 cup of cheese for topping) until all the chicken is used. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over the layered mixture. Top with reserved cheese.

Cover with plastic wrap, then seal with aluminum foil.



To prepare: thaw casserole before baking. Remove plastic wrap, then replace foil. Bake covered casserole at 350-degrees until hot and bubbly. You may remove aluminum foil 10 minutes before taking the casserole out of the oven to melt cheese.

Allow to stand 5 to 10 minutes, then cut with spatula and serve.


That's it for tonight. I caught a pretty severe head cold from Juli this weekend and I've felt terrible all day. The drive home from class was awful. I'm off to take some medicine and get to bed.

What a weekend

Here's a rundown of our Labor Day weekend. We packed a whole lot into the past three days.

Saturday we slept in and watched TV for a few hours in the morning. We hardly ever get to do either anymore, so it was great to stay in PJ's until midmorning. Greg and his dad finished putting the metal roofing on our front garage. His mom stopped by with some new Levi's for Carson and we all had pizza together for lunch. I cooked the first of my freezer meals, (more on that later), then prepared a scrumptious dinner of poppyseed chicken, broccoli rice casserole, mashed potatoes and gravy and rolls, then waited for my sister and her fiancee to get here. We stuffed ourselves, then played two games of Apples to Apples, which was hilarious. They left late and we went straight to bed.


Sunday morning was church, then to Ruby Tuesday for lunch, thanks to a buy one entree get one free coupon. We then bought a birthday gift at Toys R Us for a party next weekend, browsed in Big Lots, then went home to get ready for the Karaoke/Ziti party. I also printed all of the bridal shower invites. Juli came by on her way to Mom's from work and stayed for 2 hours. We assembled the shower invitations together, then left for the party. At the party I ate a little bit of Ziti and a whole lot of marshmallows and cake chunks dipped in the most delicious chocolate sauce pouring from our friend, Missi's, chocolate fountain. Greg wants to install one permanently in our kitchen. I think it might be a good idea. :) Our friend, Barb, also made a small replica of Juli and Ashley's wedding cake for the party. She makes all of the cakes for our family events and her cakes are the best ever. Yum-o! My oldest friend, Angie, and I sang a few songs together (Young Love, Redneck Woman, and Somedays You Gotta Dance). We were quite the hit. I sang a few songs by myself, including a moving rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow, which of course my mother missed because she was too busy talking, as usual. Carson crashed at my mom's and Greg and I got home around 1:00am. It was a great party.

Today we slept in again. Carson stayed at Mom's most of the day and I worked on invites for the rehearsal dinner. Juli and Mom brought Carson home at 3:00 and all of us girls went to Kohl's to help Juli with her bridal registry. We had a great time and swayed her toward quality cookware and high thread count sheets. I got home around 6:00, made a yummy casserole, finished up my freezer cooking, ate, got Carson to bed, filled out our paperwork for the family dental appointments this week, wrote a note to Carson's teacher, cleaned up the kitchen, checked my message boards, and did a load of laundry. I am beat.

I have decided that we eat out entirely too much and waste a ton of food at home. I've been researching "freezer cooking" recipes and methods in hopes of getting our meals more organized and our bank account more full. So, this weekend I cooked and cooked and cooked and now have all of this yummy food in the freezer waiting to be eaten on hurried nights:

1 King Ranch Chicken casserole
1 Tater Tot Casserole
1 pan of lasagna
1 pan of ravioli lasagna
2 bags of Lipton burgers
3 bags of ground beef starter for tacos, spaghetti, etc
7 bags of 3 pancakes each

I so put my advanced degree in Home Economics to work this weekend! I am feeling like such a domestic goddess. We'll see if I remember to get those casseroles out 24 hours ahead to defrost. :)

Tomorrow is work, then teaching in Festus. Only 4 more classes! Have a great week!

Close Call, Couth, and Karoke

I spent Monday at a child care center and saw some very unsettling practices taking place. It's upsetting to think that I've been working with this center for several months and they aren't making much progress. Child care in Missouri is so pathetic. Children are pretty much at the bottom of the list in this state. Our legislators have some pretty twisted priorities, but from what I've seen, this is pretty typical of children's issues in our country. I think that hoping to someday see a change in how we treat our children in this country is what keeps me and my coworkers plugging away at our jobs. We're certainly not there for the pay. I'll step off the soapbox for now!

Monday afternoon I had a very scary moment. I was on my way to an appointment at a home I had never visited before near Marble Hill. I reached forward to set my trip odomoter and when I looked back at the road, I was about a foot away from a traffic sign warning of a drop off on the side of the raised road. I overcorrected, went across the center line and nearly off the other side of the road, overcorrected again and went back across the center line and nearly off the side of the road, overcorrected once more and crossed the center line for the third time, then hit a gravel driveway, spun 3 times and came to rest facing the direction I had just some from. I was about a foot from smashing into a huge brick pillar at the entrance of a park. By the grace of God, no other cars were in sight when this happened, which is truly a miracle, given that school had just dismissed right down the road. A man stared at me from across the street, but never approached my car. No one else saw it happen. I still made it to the appoinment on time. I'm still not sure what I was supposed to learn from this, but I was feeling pretty close to God as I watched the brick pillars spin in front of me.

I had a hard time getting through the child's assessment. I kept getting distracted by this huge, hot pink, wooden sign on the family's entertainment center that said "I Love Sex!" I couldn't bring myself to ask her where she got that fine piece of home decor. There are 4 kids in the house, two of whom sleep in their parents' bedroom. Personally, that would really deter my bedroom activity, but to each his own. Just when I think I've seen it all.



Not much else is going on for us until the weekend. We bought the game, Apples to Apples, on Sunday, so we plan to invite my sister and her fiance over Friday or Saturday to play. They are game nuts, especially my soon-to-be brother-in-law. On Sunday, we're having a Karoke party at my parents' house. Mom needed to see how much baked ziti she needed for the wedding reception, so we're having a "ziti run through" on Sunday. The groom is a huge fan of my mom's ziti and asked for a pan of it to be served at the reception. It doesn't exactly go with the rest of the menu, but I guess they can do whatever they want at their wedding. My family and lots of friends are coming over to eat ziti and sing some karoke. I haven't decided what tunes I want to sing yet. Any requests!?!:)


Tomorrow I visit a Perryville center in the morning and see a little guy for developmental therapy in the afternoon. I am looking forward to getting my house clean and working on Carson's birthday invites tomorrow while Greg is at band practice. Hopefully things will go as planned. Thanks for checking in!

Pirates and Showers

The grand plan for today got shot to hell quicker than the downpour we had all afternoon. After church we went to Red Lobster for lunch with my mom. Lunch was good and Carson pretty much behaved, which is unusual these days. I think he was too busy peeling all the breading from his popcorn shrimp to get in trouble. He's weird.


We went to Barnes and Noble to pick up a birthday gift for the brother of one of the kids I see for therapy. I'm still debating whether to go to his party or not, but wanted to give a present either way. It's not that I don't want to go, but there is a fine line between being a professional and being a friend when you visit a family in their home each week. I really like this family, but I'm afraid things may seem a bit too "familiar" if I go to a family birthday party. I went to my other client's party, but we know their entire extended family, so that's a little different. I'm rambling.


By this point, Greg and Carson had reached the "we'll just sit in the car and wait" stage of shopping. I tackled Dollar Tree and Factory Card Outlet on my own for the rest of the things I needed for Carson's pirate birthday party. I still need material to make bandana's for the kids. It seems like I keep thinking of "one more thing" that will make the party really great. I should really be stopped. Carson's parties have gotten a little over the top, but oh well. I only have one kid.

We headed home, where the grand plan was for me to make all of the birthday invitations, print Juli's bridal shower invitations, and wrap 2 birthday gifts. It started pouring as soon as I decided to rest on the couch for a few minutes. I woke up at 5:00. So much for today! I'm off to read a bedtime story and watch a little Discovery Channel with Greg.

Time Off

So I had these big plans to get a lot done today. I always think I can get a ton more stuff done than I actually do. We started the day with Carson's physical therapy in Cape until 10:30. He and I then went to Target to look at my sister's registry list and grab some lunch before he went to preschool. Somehow, we ended up getting out of the store with a package of Cars underwear lodged under his butt in the seat of the cart. Normally, I would have gone back in to pay for it, but seeing as I had just been charged $7 for a bag of Hershey's kisses that were advertised for $3.50, I decided that Target and I were even and threw them in the car. I never thought the day would come when I would willingly shoplift size 3T undies from Target. I am so jaded. The fact that we had 10 minutes to get to school on time had a lot to do with it too. We were still late.

After dropping him off, I got to browse leisurely at the scrapboook store for about an hour. I hadn't been there in almost 2 months and it was like a whole new store with all the CHA stuff coming in. I picked up a few things to make favors for Juli's rehearsal dinner and some paper and embellishments to finish up the New Orleans pictures from our cruise album. I've been stuck on these pics for quite a while and I really want to be finished with the album. Hopefully I'll get to scrap tomorrow night and Sunday afternoon.

Tomorrow I'm headed to St Louis to teach my child development class all day. We're going on a field trip to several places in South County, St Louis so it should be fun. I'm ready for it to be finished. Only 5 more weeks of driving to Festus every Tuesday night. I am not signing up for this again.

After class I'm looking forward to doing a little shopping by myself. We have several birthdays coming up and I need a few more things for Juli's shower. I really enjoy shopping by myself, especially in St Louis. I like shopping with others too, but it's nice to take my time and go where I want without worrying about anyone else.

I'm off to spend some time with Greg. He put Carson to bed a few minutes ago and I feel like we haven't really spent time together this week. It seems like one of us has something to do every night. Have a great weekend!

Technology, Teaching, and Travel

Long day today. I got to work at 7:30 and already felt tired. It seemed to take forever just to get to the office. I'm still not used to the school traffic. I have to remember to leave earlier from now on.

Late in the morning we lost all internet connections at work. It turns out that a large portion of eastern Missouri lost internet connections for several hours due to a line being breached somewhere. It was still not on when I left at 3:00. Strangely enough, Greg said our home connection was fine when he came home for lunch. Weird. I ended up getting almost all of my reports caught up at the office since I couldn't do anything on the internet. It was a blessing in disguise because I feel so much better about being almost completely caught up at work.

At 3:00, I drove 90 miles from Cape to teach my class at Jefferson Memorial hospital. I ended up staying an extra hour to help some students with a room layout for their childcare center. I am pooped! I finally got home around 10. I'm off to talk with Greg for awhile before I crash for the night. Nothing exciting on the agenda for tomorrow, but you never know what might come up!

Return of the Queen

I'm back. I never really left. I haven't blogged since I turned 30, but not for lack of blogging material. I have been so incredibly busy since turning 30 that I literally have been asleep when my head hits the pillow for the past few months. That leaves little time for blogging, but I promise to be better from now on. (ok...I promise to try to be better!)

The past few months have flown by. I still have my 4 jobs. I still play Bunco. I still scrapbook. I no longer go to Weight Watchers, but am eating much more healthfully and losing some weight. I still suck at getting my exercise in.

Carson took swimming lessons this summer and did great! He loves going under the water. He also started having physical therapy in the pool and loves it. He's now seeing an occupational therapist at Healthpoint in addition to the OT he sees at school in order to help him cope with his limited depth perception. The therapy is going well.

Carson started attending school all day on Tuesdays and Thursdays last week. He just goes in the afternoon on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He is very tired after a full day at school, but he loves it. When I told him to get ready on Thursday morning, he was standing with his huge backpack on, waiting for me. He smiled this gigantic grin and said, "I am so big!" He is one pretty amazing 4-year-old.

Two weeks ago we took a family vacation to St. Louis for a few days. We went to the Magic House, Grant's Farm, The Anheuser Busch Brewery, Eckert's, Purina Farms, St. Louis Mills, Laumeier Sculpture Park, Chuck E. Cheese, the transportation museum, and Union Station. Here are a few pics. The rest of our summer pics can be viewed at www.carsonfranklin.net. Click on "photos". For some reason I can't link from my blog. We had a great time until we got a flat tire on the way home. Carson's favorite part of the trip was helping load our car onto the tow truck to get towed to the tire store. That was not my favorite part.







The first photo is Carson with Bailey, my friend, Christy's daughter an the birthday girl, at Chuck E. Cheese. The second is Carson having a blast taking an order at the Italian restaurant inside the children's village at The Magic House.


In July, I met 18 of my closest online friends for a private scrapbooking convention in Salt Lake City. I had a blast and had so much fun meeting all of these girls that I get to talk to online everyday. I also came home with a ton of free scrapping stuff!!!! You can see more pictures on Carson's website. Click on photos and browse the QFK album.


In June, we went to Pensacola, FL for Greg's cousin, Christy's, wedding. We hit the beach and learned several lessons about traveling with extended family members. As in, we probably won't again. These pictures are also on Carson's site.

For now, I'm glad to be back in a routine and looking forward to being in my sister's wedding in November. We bought Carson's tux while we were in St. Louis and I have my choice of three different dresses hanging in the closet. I keep finding very reasonable, very pretty black formals, so I have 3 sizes to choose from. Hopefully, I'll fit in to the one I like the best.

I'm also studying to take the GRE test. I am going to apply for a doctoral program through the University of Missouri that would start next summer. I won't be crushed if I don't get in, but I think I would like to be a full professor some day. We'll see! Thanks for checking back in with me! Let me know you stopped by!

On Turning 30

I turned thirty at a little after 1:00 this afternoon. This has been the longest birthday celebration I can remember. So many people did so many wonderful things in my honor and I feel truly blessed. Here's a rundown of my week long birthday lineup:

Last Thursday: A friend gave me 2 tickets to see Bombay Dreams at The Fox Theater. The theater is gorgeous and the show was unusual, but very interesting. Greg and I enjoyed the chance to get away for the evening.

Saturday: My mom, sister, and I traveled to Kimmswick, MO for lunch at The Blue Owl. The food is heavenly. We then spent the afternoon shopping in St Louis, where I was allowed to choose my own birthday gifts and made out like a bandit. At exactly 3:30 pm, my mom suddenly gets very antsy to get on the road. I was under the impression we had to get back for a benefit concert at our church. Little did I know that more than 50 people were waiting to surprise me at our church with a fabulous birthday party. Greg did so well and put so much effort into organizing the party. He had 3 different singers/bands play music for me, had a meal and 2 beautiful cakes, collected an offering for our church nursery, (which I manage), had flowers for me, and really great door prizes for my guests. At the end of the party, he showed a video slide show of my life from birth to now, that he put together on his own, complete with a perfect soundtrack. I was so proud of him, given that he was able to keep this a total secret since last Fall and that he was brave enough to talk on a mic on stage, which he hates to do. He's a keeper!

Sunday we celebrated Easter with family and went to dinner at our brand new Olive Garden.

Today, my coworkers decorated my cubicle, showered me with presents, took me to lunch, and bought me a yummy ice cream "log" from DQ. My internet buddies left me lots of happy birthday wishes online and Carson made me a birthday card all by himself. My friend, Becky, snuck into my house and left a beautiful geranium and a delicious birthday cake while I was at work. My inlaws took us to dinner at Shogun, a hibachi restaurant, and gave me a great present. My little brother called to wish me a happy birthday and I even received a birthday email from one of my college students, (she may get bonus points!) Greg waited until the very last minute to get my gift and ended up running into me at my local scrapbook store after work, where I was shopping and he was rushing in to get me a gift certificate. Too funny!




I must admit that this birthday has been hanging over me like a grey cloud. Not a black cloud, because I don't feel older, but just a little reminder that the years are passing very quickly and I still have a lot I want to accomplish. It's now 11:45 and I've survived the first day of my third decade. My only wish is that my next 30 years are filled with as many blessings as my first 30. Happy Birthday to me.

A weight lifted

I had just finished typing an incredibly long explanation of my childhood friend's wedding that took place yesterday, but since I am trying to be a better person and Christian, I am leaving it at this:

My dress was very pink, the temperature was very cold, there was lots of wind, the bride drew lots of obvious attention to herself and I'm glad it's all over. I rewarded myself with 8 beers at the reception. I rarely drink, especially in excess, but the past year of waiting for this wedding and being made to stand outside for 3 hours in 50 degree weather with a sinus infection and wearing a sleeveless gown, warranted a little public drunkeness.

And with that, I stayed in bed until 10:30 this morning and am looking forward to starting a new week!

In Mourning

That's where I've been. In mourning. Mourning the loss of many things. Here's a list of things that I'm grieving over:

1. The loss of my money. My tax bill was so astronomical that I am not even going to let you take guesses as to how much money I owe the IRS. Put it this way, I'm looking into refinancing my house. Yes, it's that bad.

2. The loss of my birthday trip to Chicago. See loss number 1 for explanation.

3. The loss of my trip to the Florida beach in June. Refer again to loss #1.(I'm now riding with my in-laws to Pensacola, going to the beach for one day and driving back home as soon as the wedding is over.)

4. The loss of the dream of a trip to somewhere tropical and remote this December. I detest taxes right now.

5. The loss of my youth. I will be 30 in 16 days. I had planned to be much thinner, wealthier, and have another child by this point in my life. I'm chubby, broke, and the parent of a single child. 31 better be a freakin' fantastic birthday to make up for this year.

I guess that's enough bitching for one post. I'm off to convince myself that 10:00 is a great bedtime and that rising at the crack of dawn to exercise is a fabulous idea. This could take a lot of convincing. 'Night.

A little Tuesday update

I'm home today enjoying my last day of peace for the week. Carson and Andrew, my nephew, are playing relatively quietly, which gives me a chance to print my hotel information and hopefuly catch up on my internet favorites while I catch up on the laundry and decide what to pack for my trip to Jefferson City tomorrow. I'm looking forward to a night at the hotel by myself to do some scrapping and enjoy some quiet.

Thursday is my quarterly state Inclusion Specialist's meeting, whcih means I'll probably not be home until 6 or 7 on Thursday. I somehow managed to totally screw myself out of reduced Spring Break hours this week by scheduling late meetings and a Saturday training this week. Figures.

I plan on stopping by Marshall's and the big Barnes and Noble in Jeff City tomorrow night to shop for baby and wedding gifts. We've gone a few years without wedding or baby showers and suddenly I have three wedding and two baby showers to attend within the next month. I'm thrilled to get to shop for some pink frilly things since both cousins are expecting girls. I always try to get a book for each new baby too, so Barnes and Noble couldn't be more convenietly located right next to Marshalls.

Friday will be half day at work and then an appointment to eval a child in St Gen that afternoon. This may warrant a side trip to the St Gen scrapbook store!

Saturday I will be conducting a 6 hour training on how to include kids with special needs in regular child care programs. It's a ton of work, especially considering that only 3 people have signed up so far!!! It's harder to work with such a small group since they easily tire of answering every question. We'll see how it goes.

Sunday I am hoping to chill out and do nothing. I think it will be well deserved. Have a great week!

Because this blog has been very neglected...

53 more things you need to know about me...lol

stolen from Dawn

1. How tall are you? 5 ft 8 inches

2. Do you own a gun? nope

3. Rehab? not so far!

4. Have you ever killed an animal? unintentionally while driving. I hit a huge dog on the way to my first day at my interniship. It was not a good morning.

5. Are you Irish? no, English and German

6. What do you think of hotdogs? all beef ones are nice, I'll pass on the multiple animla variety

7. What's your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night

8. What are your favorite sound(s)? ocean waves, Carson's sweet little voice

9. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? a 44oz water with lots of ice

10. Do you do push-ups? not yet, but it's only my first week at Body Pump class

11. Have you ever done ecstasy? no

12. Have you been shot? honestly, how many people who are of the mindset to fill out these silly things are going to have been hanging out where they will get shot?!?!

13. Have you ever been hospitalized? just to give birth and due to pregnancy complications

14. Do you like painkillers? if I'm in pain

15. What is your secret weapon to lure in the opposite sex? I don't know. They just always seemed to show up and be interested.

16. Do you own a knife? the kitchen kind

17. Do you have A.D.D.? no, but some of my relatives and cowrkers seem to

18. Do you love the pain a tattoo brings? wouldn't know. I detest tattos.
19. Whats in your cd player? Jim Gill...The Sneezing Song and Other Contagious Tunes

20. What's under your bed? whatever Spanky has drug under there

21.Current Hair? cut and highlighted about a week ago...much shorter than I was planning, but still cute

22. What are you wearing? sweaty workout clothes..an old t-shirt, track pants and tennis shoes

23. Current Worry? how big my tax bill is going to be

24. Current Love? hmmm..Girl Scout cookies?

25. Current Hates? being behind at work

26. Favorite Place To Be. the Caribbean

27. Least Favorite Place To be? getting my taxes done

28. If You Could Play any Instrument? Piano or guitar so I could sing along!

29. Favorite Color(s)? I like lots of them

30. Person(s) From Your Past You Wish You Could see again? nobody...I'll see them soon enough

31. Where Would You Like To Go To College? I would like to teach at a college near the Caribbean Sea

32. Where Do you want to live? see above

33. favorite food? right now? Mexican..I'm thinking Tacos for dinner

34. Number of pillows you sleep with? 3

35. What do you wear when you go to sleep? a nightgown or sometimes PJ's

36. What were you doing 12AM last night? reading a magazine in bed until 1:00am

37. What do you think you'll be doing in 10 years? hmmmm..maybe have a PhD and another child

38. Are you paranoid? I think about what might happen alot, but I don't really worry about it

39. First piercing/tattoo? ears, that's it

40. last person you yelled at? probably Greg, but it's been a pretty yell-free week

41. Last thing you ate. a Rice Crispies treat

42. If you could be a pirate, would you? no. I hate violence

43. Do you have an iPod? no, but my birthday is April 20th if anyone wants to contribute

44. When and why and where did you last vomit? yesterday. Ate bad shrimp. End of story.

45. What's in your pockets right now? i don't have any

46. What color are your eyes? blue

47. Do you have any piercings? two in each ear, but I only wear one

48. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? hot pink

49. Have you ever won any awards? Lots of sales awards when I sold Papmered Chef and a scholarship to college

50. How many TV's do you have in your house? 2

51. Have you ever sprained/broken/fractured a bone? numerous sprained ankles, one broken toe that grew back very crooked
52. Who do you tell your dreams to? whoever will listen, I talk a lot!

53. If you could pick one person to make out with who would it be? Greg, unless I happen to meet Keith Urban tomorrow.

A brand new week

Thank goodness a new week is here. With my inlaws out of town last week, things went south in a handbasket very quickly. The week started ok, but by Wednesday afternoon I wasn't feeling too well and after Ash Wednesday service in the evening, I had the full blown flu. The whole "sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever" flu. It was worse on Thursday, which is the only day I didn't have a sitter lined up. Carson was very good given that he had to stay inside with me and be quiet all day. Friday was my class field trip to St. Louis Children's Hospital and the St Louis Teacher's Recyle Center. All went well, with every student showing up on time and behaving relativelty professionally (other than our office practicum student who had boyfriend drama and showed off her large low back tattoo every time she bent over. Nice.) I felt well enough to scrapbbok Friday night and threw a fabulous shower for my friend on Saturday. I was very diappointed that only 12 of the 30 people on the guest list showed up, but she still had a good time.

Yesterday was church and small group study in the morning. At 1:00, I made the monumental return trip to the gym that I have been postponing for the last 5 months!!!! I actually felt terrific after my workout, even though I was so congested I could barely breathe. My friend, Lisa, met me at the gym and she is now a huge motivation for me to get back on track. She looks great!

Today I'm working in Oran and then at the office this afternoon. I have a hair appointment tomorrow, a few scattered appointments the rest of the week and I leave to present at the Conference on the Young Years Friday. I'll return Saturday evening.
I'm off to start the day!

Destinations

My inlaws are here:









They set sail an hour ago on this:








I am here.






Life is so unfair.
:(

Reason number 9,427 to lose weight!

My little sister is getting married. This year. November 11. This was decided yesterday and I now have 264 days to become the slinkiest matron of honor this side of the mighty Mississippi. (or at the very least fit back into my black strapless formal from the cruise, which is most likely what I'm wearing). I have 47 days left to fit comfortably into the Pink Blush ensemble for my matron of honor duties for Mary Catherine's wedding. I bombed on the Atkins diet due to some strange gallbladderesque pain coupled with the horribly limited food choices I'd grown sick of. I'm resorting to my old standby, Weight Watchers and exercise, which has proven to work to the tune of a 70 pound loss in the past. Too bad it's so slow to lose weight the healthy way. I'll be starting my new "walk and kick" video in the morning. I hate the process involved in losing weight.


Carson has agreed to assume ringbearer duties and has promised me that he will agree to potty training before the big day. I explained that Pull-ups just don't compliment a tuxedo and that only big boys get to deliver the wedding rings. He's stoked for the time being.

Greg and I had a great weekend away, even though everywhere we went was super crowded. We saw the Harrison Ford movie, Firewall, which was predictable, but ok. We managed to get our of Harrah's casino with a loss of a mere $30, so all in all, we had a great time. I'm ready for another weekend away.

This week is only semi-busy with a meeting for me tomorrow night, church on Wednesday and class on Thursday. So far we have no weekend plans. Yippee! Our house is suffering and needs a good cleaning, so maybe it'll actually get done this weekend. I'm off to do Bible study and get some shut-eye so I can "walk and kick" in the morning! G'night!

A very lovely day!

I had a great Valentine's Day! Carson and I had a blast at his party, then came home for lunch and a nap for him. When he woke up we made chocolate playdough, which turned out smelling so yummy, and waited for Greg to get home so we could exchange gifts. Greg did not get me the candles that Carson led me to believe I was getting, but he got me something that was very creative and meant a lot. Our very first date was dinner at the Pasta House followed by the movir "The Rock." I was little confused when I opened my gift to find a Pasta House Menu and "The Rock" on DVD,then it clicked. What a sweet guy to think of something so sentimental. I was very impressed!

Today was work and Bible study, both of which were great. Tomorrow I have be at a child care center at 8:00 and I have a 2:00 meeting where I'll be presenting info about the services my office offers to community members. Should be a fun day. Tomorrow is night class, then only one more workday until we leave for St. Louis! I am so ready to go! Enjoy the rest of the week!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'll be trading gifts with my big guy and the little guy this evening. Carson told me that he and Daddy got me candles and a card, so we'll see if he's telling the truth! I'd love to hear everyone's V-day plans and surprises, so send me a reply today!

Here are some ?'s borrowed from Dawn's blog. (www.daybreak1012.blogspot.com) Gotta love seeing that live Disey cam when you visit her blog!

1. Eggs? Fried or Scrambled? Depends on the morning. I'm eating a lot of eggs on this diet!
2. Chocolate covered cherries? Yum on the filling and choclate, yuck on the actual cherry.
3. When eating a salad, what type of dressing do you prefer to use? ranch or sweet onion if I'm at Ruby Tuesday
4. Peanut Butter? Creamy or Crunchy? either. This is making me want carbs!
5. If you HAD to eat only one flavor of ice cream for the rest of your life, what flavor would it be? cheesecake from Marble Slab creamery-absolute heaven
6. Thick or thin crust pizza? I like both
7. Salsa? Hot, Medium, or Mild? medium
8. Toast? Lightly toasted or practically burnt? Just enough to be considered toasted with butter applied right away so it melts into the bread
9. What is your FAVE food item at Taco Bell? I don't go to Taco Bell often, but when I do, I get a taco salad

AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST

10. When are you MOST LIKELY to pig out during the course of a day? these days, never. I am having major appetite suppression from the Atkins diet.
--------------------
these are also from Stacy

1. What time of day is too late to telephone someone? I'll call my mom after 10. I don't ususally call others after 9:30.

2. Have you ever looked up the lyrics to a song online? a few times

3. What’s your favorite dessert to order at a restaurant? I loved this bananas foster cheesecake we had at the Cheesecake Bistro in New Orleans last May. I often wonder if the restaurant is still there.

1. What are your favorite pizza toppings? List your favorite 3 (or more). Pepperoni, onion, mushroom, grean peppers

2. What was the last movie you saw (theater or rented, your choice, or both)? The Mask of Zorro on DVD on Saturday-I fell asleep about halfway through.

3. What is your favorite fruit? crisp apples


I think I'll send a Valentine's Day Tag to Becky, Bob and Brooke, and Theresa Marie, who just started blogging! Have a great Valentine's Day!

A fun week is just around the bend!

I am pumped about this week. So many fun things going on!!!

Monday I will be traveling to Fredericktown (an hour away) to present a training on Positive Guidance for Preschoolers with my colleague and buddy, Christy. We always have a good time and we've got a fun training planned. I do not do many things that aren't fun, and if something isn't fun, I try to make it hilarious. We'll be making "clean mud" as a demonstration for the teachers. It involves soap and toilet paper. That sounds fun!

Tuesday I will be attending Carson's Valentine's Day party at school. (or Valentimes, as he says) He made his Valentine box at school by himself, so I am anxious to see it. We have the treat bags made and I'm looking forward to the party and then spending the rest of the day with my little guy. I still need to wrap my gift for my big guy. We're planning on spending the evening at home so we can go away for the weekend!

Wednesday I have a slow day with a meeting in Cape. I need the time to catch up on my report writing.

Thursday, I get to go to a child care center I've never been to before and observe a child in the morning. I'll take a lunch break, then head to a Chamber of Commerce meeting to discuss my agency with a group of "future leaders of Cape Girardeau." I like doing stuff like that, so I'm looking forward to it.

Friday, I'll be in the office all day, then Greg and I are heading to St Louis for the weekend. We'll be staying at the newest Drury Suites (at the employee rate of course). We're headed to the City Museum on Friday, sleeping in on Saturday, then going to St Louis Mills Mall, maybe seeing a movie, and maybe going to the casino if we feel lucky. We're not sure what Sunday holds. I can't wait. We haven't gone away by ourselves for awhile and we have such a good time when we go.

I'm off to rewad Carson a bedtime story and grade 18 more papers on childhood diseases. Yay!

Wow! It's Thursday!

The week has flown by. I have almost made it to the end of my first low-carb week. The cravings for flour and sugar have nearly disappered. In fact, the caffeine free Diet Coke I just drank tasted like syrup. Amazing what a week will do. Not to say I wouldn't love a piece of cake right now, but I'm not thinking about food nearly as much. I just finished off 3 pieces of pizza, no crust. Not the same as normal, but not too bad. Definitely have to use a fork.

Carson and I went to St Louis for his eye appoinment today and had a few hours to shop. We went to TJ Maxx, the St Louis Galleria mall, and Trader Joe's. I thought Trader Joe's would be much more low-carb friendly, but they seem to just be in on the "lowfat" and "organic" gimmicks. Carson's eyes are slowly progressing and we'll head back for another appointment in a month.

I let my class out early tonight since I'm just getting over laryngitis and an upper respiratory infection. I felt fine, but my voice is still squeaky and hoarse. I took the extra time to treat myself to haircut and a well deserved manicure and pedicure. I picked a soft pink shade that is very Valentiney. It looks great and my feet feel great.

Tomorrow I'll be getting my tooth crowned and then heading to work for a few hours. They're calling for 1-3 inches of snow, so I may go home early if the roads get bad. 3 inches can be a big deal here. It was 65 degrees last month! we have a birthday party on Saturday at the same time as my scrapbooking club. Hopefully, I'll at least get to drop by for a few minutes. I'm off to search for low-carb recipes!

Carb Free Livin'

I have gone carb free. I started the Atkins diet on Saturday and as of this morning, I am down 10 pounds. This doesn't seem possible, or healthy, but I'm desperate to look decent in the pink bridesmaid dress I picked up Friday. I need to lose at least a size for it to look good. I have until April 8. So far, so good. I felt terrible on Saturday, but the detox was over by Sunday and I've felt much better until today. I'm now suffering from a horrible upper respiratory infection and sore throat. Looks like I'm headed to the doctor tomorrow.

I'll be spending tomorrow catching up on my Bible study before church tomorrow night, provided I feel well enough to go. Thursday I'll be taking carson to visual therapy in St Louis and heading back in time to teach night class. Friday I'll be getting the tooth that I cracked on a blow pop crowned. Not fun and very expensive. Thank goodness for dental insurance.

Greg and I went to parent/teacher conference tonight and we're so proud of how well Carson is doing. His preschool teacher wants to move him from the special needs class to an at-risk class next fall. I was praying that she might say that. There are more typical kids in the other class and he really excels around other kids. Yay for my little peanut!

I'm off to read blogs and get some sleep! Good night!

The Good, the Bad, and the Really Freakin' Expensive

In a word, today sucked. Yesterday, we made the final payments on our car. Yay! No more car payments. Things are great! This morning, I got an $80 speeding ticket. That's what driving 60 in a 45 mph zone will get you in Cape Girardeau, MO. I wasn't in any kind of hurry. I was simply jammin' to my very uplifiting Mark Schultz CD and going on my merry way. I was 30 minutes late to work and down $80 by 8:30. This morning started with Carson pooping in his pants approximately 1 minute before his preschool bus was due to arrive. Things were not well in the Franklin household.

By lunch, things just kept getting worse. I somehow managed to lose 2 hubcaps in a month's time. Greg called the junkyard, no hubcaps, so we ordered 2 from the Mazda dealer. They totaled $95. They're plastic. So one day after paying off the car, it has cost me $175!!!!

On top of everything else, my poor friend Becky had to unexpectedly put her cat to sleep this morning. So far, February isn't looking real great.

I did go to Bible study tonight, which is always calming. I'm now home and have to read the 3 chapters I'm lecturing on tomorrow night and prepare some type of activity to convince the students I'm prepared for class and have some idea what I'm talking about. I may let them go early, whcih will cancel out any doubts about the quality of my lecture. Woe is me today. Tomorrow will be better. 'Til then!

Just another day in paradise

Hmmmm...what did I do today? I made a yummy soup for the girls in my office. It is actually a recipe of one of the other girls I work with, but I happened to have all the ingredients in my kitchen. It was deeeee-lish! Here's the recipe:

1 large package frozen, shredded hashbrowns
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 container (16 oz?) sour cream
1 package shredded cheddar cheese
1 stick butter or margarine, melted
1 bunch greeen onions, chopped
milk

Combine everything but milk in crockpot. Add milk to your liking-more for soupier soup, less for thicker soup. Cook on high 4-5 hours or on low all day. Top with real bacon bits and additonal sour cream if desired.

I've added a second bag of hashbrowns to stretch for a crowd, and it's still good. You can also cook on the stovetop until heated through for a speedier dinner.


After lunch I ran errands on campus, including getting keys to my new classroom, (which I was locked out of last Thursday night) and checking out some books for my class at the library. Apparently, Child Life in Hospitals is not at the top of the university's spending list. I had trouble finding books published after I was born. I'll be 30 in April. Sad, but true (on both counts!) So, I read a book to my students tonight that had pictures of nurses who, quite literally, closely resembled the flying nun. Huge hats. Little white uniforms, and pantyhose. It was good for a laugh if nothing else.

I have one guy in my class this semester, which adds a whole new dynamic. I'm still getting used to it. He seems pretty easygoing given he's the only source of testosterone in a room of 25 women. We like to give him crap for being a "general studies" major. I may sway him to the world of child development before the end of the semester. We definitely need more men in the field.

Bible study is going great. I have a wonderfully diverse group of ladies to "lead", and I am learning so much from all of them.

For a change, we have NO PLANS this weekend! Hallelujah! I hope it stays that way. Have a fantastic Friday and share a recipe with me if you have a chance. My budget needs us to eat at home.

Recipe Challenge!

A challenge from Heather D White's blog:

Post your never-fail-simple-most-popular dinner recipe on your blog today. I challenge each of you to do the same!

Crock Pot Kettle Beef (for those of you not from Southeast Missouri, I think you call this beef and gravy or roast beef-kind of.) Kettle beef is served at most area wedding receptions along with chicken and dumplings, green beans, corn, mashed potatoes and homemade rolls. Can you tell we're very rural?!?! Yum!

2 pounds beef stew meat
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope Lipton Onion Soup mix
water

Place beef in crockpot. Combine soup mix, mushroom soup, and 1 cup water. Pour over meat. Add water to cover meat mixture and allow for evaporation during the day. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. Serve with mashed potatoes.

Another one:

Cheesy Vegetables

2 packages California blend vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, carrots)
1/2 block Velveeta, cubed
1 can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
1 sleeve Ritz crackers
1 stick butter, melted

Cook vegetable in microwave until cooked, but crisp. Combine vegetables, soup, milk and Velveeta. Place in a greased 9x13 pan. Combine crackers and butter. Crumble on top of vegetables. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes until cheese melts.


On a yucky note, my family was struck with a nasty bout of the stomach flu this week. Caron got sick late Sunday, Greg on Monday and I felt terrible yesterday morning. We're all back at work and school today and feeling much better. tonight is Bible study, tomorrow is class, and Friday begins our weekend of no plans! We haven't had a free weekend in a long time. Enjoy the recipes and have a great week!

Tagged!

Dawn tagged me!


The rules for this particular tagging are as follows: Remove the blog name in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add yourself to the bottom slot.


Traci
April
Andie
Dawn
Amy

Then you get to select five people to pass the love on to.
Bob and Brooke (that's a twofer)
Becky
Sorr! I need more blogging friends!


What were you doing 10 years ago?

Let's see...January 22, 1996. I was a sophmore in college. I was either working at the hospital as a phlebotomist or as a cashier at Rhodes convenience store, I can't remember. It was t-minus 5 months until I met Greg. I was dating no one in particular.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

working very part-time and loving it. I miss being at home.

Five snacks you enjoy (in no particular order, as all snacks are created equal):

1. Chips and french onion dip
2. chocolate
3. cheezits
4. cheese
5. apples-crispy, Gala only-I'm on a mushy apple boycott

Five songs to which you KNOW all the lyrics:

1. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
2. You are my Sunshine
3. When the Sun Goes Down by Kenny Chesney-the theme song of our cruise DVD slide show
4. Me and You by Kenny Chesney-our first dance song
5. All Songs on most Mark Schultz CDs

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:

1. have no more debt at all
2. set up a trust fund for Carson
3. open a chain of high-quality child care centers that accept kids with special needs at no cost to their parents
4. buy a house in the Caribbean
5. make a lot of deserving people happy

Five bad habits:

1. procrastination at work-I hate report writing and I have tons of it to do
2. saying whatever is on my mind, even when the truth hurts, I should probably shut up once in a while
3. wanting more than what I've got
4. intending to scrapbook...and then getting distracted
5. obsessing about food-it's my "crack" I think about what to eat or not eat way too much

Five things you like doing:

1. relaxing at home
2. shopping by myself
3. going to Disney World-maybe another trip next year
4. watching As the World Turns on TIVO-much faster w/out commercials
5. going out to eat

Five things you would never wear, buy, or get again:

1. fat free butter-tastes like Crisco on toast
2. cheap shoes-they make my feet hurt too bad
3. a room in dowtown St Louis on New Years's Eve-way too loud
4. a tank swimsuit- not too many people really look good in a basic tank
5. non-underwire bras-have you seen a pic of me? Enough said.

Five favorite toys:

1. Computer-I'm addicted to blogs, recipe sites, scrapbooking sites, Ebay.....
2. Cell phone
3. TIVO- I love not having to watch commercials
4. My new scapbook tool tote from All My Memories
5. My scrapbook backpack for crops

First time you got kissed: How was it?
I honestly don't remember, so it must not have been too great. My first kiss with Greg was rather unexpected and totally out of character for him, but great!

First time you drove a car: What kind of car?
My mom's huge white boat, on our gravel road, the night before my first driver's ed class, so I wouldn't be the only one who had never driven a car

First time you scrapbooked: When you look at your page do you love it?
Um, no. Who ever thought it would be a great idea to cut pics with deco scissors?!?!

First time you went on a date: Where did you go and with who?
First date with Greg was to see "The Rock" and to eat at the Pasta House on 06/07/96.

First time you fell in love: How did you know?
It was gradual. I'm not a love at first site kind of girl.

First time you cooked for someone: Was it yummy? What did you make?
I have no idea. My Grandma Mungle always let me help cook and I cooked for my family all the time growing up.

First time you got on a plane: Where did you go? Were you scared?
05/24/1999 from St Louis to Chicago and Chicago to Honolulu. I was excited, not scared, but very sick.

First time you shaved your legs: Did you cut yourself?
I have no idea. I cut myself last week!

First time you put on make up: Looking back how did you do? Did you look good or like a clown?
I have no clue.

First time you moved out of your home: Was it an apartment, house, etc?
I moved in with one of my best friends from high school our freshman yearof college. We had a raunchy, tiny apartment near campus where you could hear what everyone in the building was doing at all times. She and I no longer speak due to our horrible experience living together.I moved back home after 3 months and stayed until I got married.

Weigh Day Update and Misc Ramblings

I am one tired mama.It's 12:30am and I am finally finished with my course outline and requirements for the ever-so-popular course "Child Life in Hospital Settings." It starts this Thursday. This is the first time I'll be teaching graduate students along with undergrads. Big change of pace from the freshman course I've been teaching. Don't tell the students, but I still feel like one of them! A student addressed me as "Prefessor Franklin" in an email tonight and I literally cracked up. I'm only 29! (For a few more months ;) Oh my, this is going to be a challenge.

I had 12 ladies join my Bible study, "The Frazzled Female: Finding Peace in the Midst of Daily Life," last Wednesday. I'll see how many come back this Wednesday. There was a good mix of ages and backgrounds, so it should be a great study. I'm definitely frazzled these days!

I lost 2.6 pounds at the big weigh-in today. Not bad for attending 2 birthday dinners this weekend. I'm looking more like a goddess every day. I think a vacation will be in order to celebrate my efforts come December. Somewhere warm and sandy. We're kicking around some ideas.

The Mazda is home and running great and all for under $50. I'll say goodbye to the white bomb in the morning. It was actualy very nice to have an extra car to drive. I'll shut up now. Nighty-night!

Tagged by the Four of Clubbs

I was tagged by Brooke, so here goes:



4 Jobs You Have Had in Your Life:
1. Cashier/Skate Attendant at the now defunct "The Ice" in Cape Girardeau
2. Phlebotomist at Southeast Missouri Hospital
3. Autism Technician at The Southeast Missouri Autism Project
4. Inclusion Specialist and part-time instructor at SEMO University

4 Movies You Could Watch Over and Over:
1. Dirty Dancing
2. The Sound of Music ( I played Marta in 3rd grade :)
3. Anything Disney
4. Napoleon Dynamite (I know, I know, it's stupidity at it's finest, but it almost makes me pee my pants)


4 Places You Have Lived:
1. Jackson, MO
2. Cape Girardeau, MO
3. Burfordville, MO
4. St Louis, MO
( How boring. I really need to check into that early childhood position in Italy)

4 TV Shows You Love to Watch:
1. CSI: Miami (the first episode aired when we were in our room at Disney World and we've been hooked ever since)
2. As the World Turns-(I grew up watching this with my Grandpa-I periodically took breaks from it, but now I have TIVO!!!!)
3. Paula's Home Cooking-yum! yum! yum! I don't even want to think about how many Weight Watcher points Paula's meals would devour.
4. Good Eats. Alton Brown is a funny guy.

4 Places You Have Been on Vacation:
1. Disney World
2. Hawaii
3. Mexico
4. Pensacola, FL -I'll be back there in June for cousin Christy's wedding. I love the beach!!!

4 websites you visit daily:
1. Crazy Croppers-a scrapbooking group I started about 3 years ago
2. twopeasinabucket.com
3. weightwatchers.com
4. A private MSN scrapbooking group that I have made a New Year's Resolution to be a bigger part of. So far, so good!

4 of your favorite foods:
1. biscuits and gravy
2. tortilla chips and cheese dip
3. apple pie with ice cream
4. chicken and dumplings

All of which are horrible temptations when trying to lose weight!

4 places you would rather be right now:
1. Disney World
2. On a cruise ship in the Caribbean
3. Upstairs watching a movie with all of the chores and paperwork completed that I have to get done today
4. El Torero (see favorite foods list)

4 Bloggers You are Tagging:
I only know 4 bloggers that haven't already done this!
1. Becky
2. Dottie
3. Dawn
4. Heather D. White

I'm really not sure they even ready my blog! If any of my readers have blogs, please post a reply and let me know. I'd love to read'em! -Amy

weigh day

Tomorrow is the moment of truth. After a full week completely on program, I will weigh in at 9:30 am. I stayed exactly the same last week. At first I was surprised not to have a loss, but when I was really honest with myself, I had cheated several times. That last Franklin family Christmas on the 9th was really tough on the scale. (Dang, Cheryl's potato rolls are good!) My home scale is showing a decent loss, but I've been fooled before, so we'll see what happens in the morning.

In other news, God continues to humble me when I need to be knocked off my pedestal. I was daydreaming of a new minivan a few days ago. I was actually picking a color and fantasizing about Carson sitting ever-so-quietly in the backseat watching the flip down TV screen as we drive to Florida in June. Then came the inevitable. Yesterday morning my car wouldn't start. I have one payment to go and it will be paid for. It is currently in residence at Roy's Tire and Auto awaiting a check-up on Monday morning. Luckily for me (insert heavy sarcasm here), my in-laws just purchased an "extra" car for times like these. I am now the proud borrower of a 1990 white Toyota Camry in not-so-pretty condition. I was leary of being seen in the white bomb at first, but it's CD player works great, which is a switch from my Mazda, and it actually drives decent for being 16 years old. So much for my minivan dreams. My car can be fixed and I will enjoy not having a payment for a year or three. :)
I will be spending tomorrow afternoon re-working the course requirements for my night class. I was informed late last week that I will have 5 independent study students in addition to the 25 students enrolled on Thursday nights. This means a ton more work and a little more money for me. I hope it's worth it, but I guess it doesn't really matter since I have no choice! The extra money will be nice since we're headed to Florida in June. I'll quit complaining now.
We'll be leaving for Texas Roadhouse in a few minutes to celebrate my mother-in-law's birthday. Happy Birthday Betsy! I'd better go wrap those presents!
Wish me luck at the scale tomorrow! Have a great MLK Day.

The rear is in gear

I am back at Weight Watchers and have honestly journaled every morsel that went into my mouth this week. I worked out Wednesday, took yesterday off due to intense heel pain from working out Wednesday, and I'm getting ready to go upstairs to Walk Away the Pounds in a few minutes. My goal is to look great next New Year's Eve. I've changed my goal from "I will lose X number of pounds" to "I will have the body of a Goddess." I can live with that. I don't care to ever look athletic, just healthy with a lot of curves. That's doable. In accordance with my resolution to become debt-free, I will be showcasing my Godessesque physique in something sparkly and slinky while basking in my new found financial freedom next New Year's Eve. There will be a party involved. You may be invited.

I am journaling this to keep myself on track when the going gets tough, as I know it will. When I want to spend $20 on a dinner out that will ultimately cause me to gain weight, I hope I remember to reread this post and remember that Goddess body and feeling of freedom as I walk to the fridge to prepare a healthy and budget conscious dinner. I may need reminding, so feel free to refer me back to the 01/06/05 blog post!

I'm off today and planning to attend a crop tonight with several friends. I am so looking forward to the time to scrapbook something for myself. I also need to go to David's Bridal to order a bridesmaid's dress. That April 8 date is looming and I am looking forward to needing alterations in late March as I head toward that new body. I'm of to work on that physique now! Have a fantastic weekend! I have one last Christmas party to attend!

Resolutions

Hello Readers! Long time, no blog. We had a wonderful Christmas and I'm looking forward to getting back in a routine.


I spent today getting the house back in order and thinking of what I hope to accomplish in the new year. Here are my 2006 resolutions:


1. Plan our meals and stick to the plan. We spend entirely too much money eating out. It shows on my check register and my butt. I spent today cleaning out the pantry, fridge, and freezer. I found mustard that expired in 2004. Scary.
2. Use my gym membership and my Weight Watcher dues. I have to lose a lot of weight and get my blood pressure under control if we're going to have any more babies. I also feel like crap and can't fit into my clothes. That's pretty good motivation. I'll be having my "Last Supper" on Sunday. Probably something really greasy that will make me feel horrible and remind me how much I need to lose weight and exercise.
3. Get out of debt. We want everyhing but the mortgage paid off. We'll be driving our beater cars and eating at home in our little starter house for awhile. Oh well, I have enough scrap stuff stockpiled to outlast armageddon. I'll be fine.
4. Say "NO" more often. I would like to feel far less "obligated" this year. My family misses me.

I think that's plenty to shoot for. Good luck to you all whatever your resolutions may be!

The 13 days of Christmas

I am freeeeeeee!!!! 13 days off with pay. This is why I went to school for so long. I am preparing to wrap the last of the presents in a few minutes and then I should be finished, save for my nephew's scrapbook. That will be the project for the next few nights. Thankfully, my nephew won't be here until the week after Christmas.

Carson is so excited about Christmas this year. He shouts, "Mommy, look at those pretty lights!!," every time we're out at night. He opened the first of his many gifts on Sunday and was so appreciative and excited, it made me proud. I hope he's as enthusiastic at the rest of our "Christmases". We've got 3 down and 4 more to go. Makes me tired just thinking about it.

I've cut way back on my holiday activities this year and it feels pretty nice. I've onlt baked 2 batches of cookies and I've left the fancy homemade ribbon bows off of the gits this year. They usually fell off by the time they reached their destinations anyway.

Carson and I will be attending his preschool Chirstmas pajama party in the morning. He had a blast last year and the kids look so cute dressed in their PJs. I'm already pictureing hte scrapbook page. :)

Keep warm and be merry! It may be awhile before I get back to blog. Have a fantastic Christmas!

4 things I'm thankful for today:

1. an easygoing boss...I came in at 9:00, took a lunch, and left at 3:00.
2. My goofy, sweet husband who is willing to go back out in the freezing cold several times a night to fetch things I thought I left in the car, that were actually under my rear end.
3. My coworkers-what a crazy bunch of girls. Man, do we have fun at work!!!
4. Christmas-the best gift of all.

Gratitude

It's late and I've had a wonderful day. Here are a few things I'm feeling very thankful for.

1. My husband. We laughed so hard, so many times at each other today. We are both crazy and I'm glad we can appreciate each other's wacky sense of humor. Also, how many other husbands would put the Christmas lights up in the snow just to make their wives happy? I'm a lucky girl. :)
2. My goofy little guy. He showered me with sweet kisses today.
3. My girlfriends. I love you guys! Long live the Crazy Croppers!
4. My in-laws. How cool that I'm as comfortable in their home as I am in mine.
5. My mom. She's taking me to a dinner theater show tomorrow and I love doing stuff with her.


Gotta hit the hay! I have to be at church in 7 and a half hours. Have a fabulous Sunday!

It's been a long time...

I am still alive. Christmas preparations, 4 jobs, church work, a husband and a 4-year-old are not leaving me much time to do anything but eat and sleep lately. The trees are up, the house lights are up, the presents are wrapped and the cookies will be baked this weekend. I am looking forward to Christmas more this year than I have in a long time. 12 days off!!! With pay!!!!! I plan to stay home and catch up on my scrapbooks, with very minimal leaving the house. Yay!!!!!

On a depressing note, I have completely and totally fallen off the Weight Watchers wagon. Did you hear the thud? It grows bigger every day. I have lost all motivation for journaling and exercise. I feel like crap, but the efforts seem futile this time of year. Hopefully, the realization that I'll be wearing a pink bridesmaid's dress in 3 1/2 short months will hit me soon. Pray for it to hit me hard!


Carson and Greg are well. Carson just got a new set of braces for his legs and we'll be starting visual therapy the week of Chirstmas to help with his lack of depth perception. He has visited with Santa twice so far and has told everyone that he wants a Thomas the Train roundhouse, mittens, and candy canes. I think that can be arranged. :)


Well, time to head upstairs. It's freezing in our basement and I still have to finish my nephew's scrapbook album before Christmas. I'll be starting on it a few minutes. Nothing like scrapping a year's worth of pictures in a weekend! Be Merry!

What a Girl Needs

This is a complete steal from Dawn's blog, a blog I enjoy reading for her witty observations and because I have total envy of the fact that she lives close enough to Disney World to trot on over to Epcot any given night of the week.

The basic idea is to google what you need--for instance i googled "Amy needs"--and then post the first 10 results.


Amy needs to either wake up or start getting some extra will-power. I don't
believe that Amy needs sex.* I am fully awake. I definitely do need extra willpower. No comment on the sex.

Amy needs support from others who have been there.. Is this a major hint to get my ass back to Weight Watchers?!?!?

A fellow Amy needs your help. Not a problem. I hardly ever say "no"

Amy needs a new pair of shoes I agree.

Amy needs help for life hmmm...I do?

We have fought for seven years to get the
attention that Amy needs to be found Well, I've been here in Jackson for about 29 years.

Amy needs to learn to start helping around the house Hah! I think this should read "Greg"

This site hopes to be your number one source for all of your Amy needs, This must be a site that offers purses, shoes, jewelry, and scrapbook supplies

If, however, Peter won't compromise in this way, Amy needs to decide if this
fits her idea of a good relationship," I don't know anyone named Peter

Amy needs to get another facial expression for deep ponderance - I haven't had time for deep ponderance for several months




Go "google" yourself. Ya know you want to! I'm outta here until Sunday. We'll be in Nashville all weekend taking in some shopping, celebrating my nephew's birthday and visiting the fabulous Opryland Hotel's Christmas lights. Have a great long weekend!

Brought to you by the letter S...

S stands for lots of things. This week it stood for shopping, singing, seeing, sleep, and unfortuantely, snot. Sorry if that's too much info.

Let's start with shopping. In a span of 72 hours, I made 2.5 trips to St. Louis and shopped at 3 different malls and various specialty stores. It was a very successful shopping venture. I only have Greg and his brother left to buy for on my Chirstmas list. The 2.5 trips were not by choice.

On Thursday, I took Carson to see his eye specialist in St Louis. We'll be starting a home therapy program with monthly vision therapy visits to St. Louis. The doctor thinks Carson only has about 60% of the peripheral vision that he should and very little depth perception. There's nothing we can do to make it better, so we'll be helping him learn to compensate for what he's lacking. We stopped at Crestwood Mall on the way home.

On Friday, I had to work in Arnold all day. My coworker dropped me off at South County Mall, where I shopped for 3 hours while I waited for Greg to drive up from Cape so we could go see Mark Schultz in concert. (No point in me riding to Cape just to turn around come back when I could be shopping!) The concert was awesome (hence the "singing" I mentioned. I sang really loud to try to drown out the horribly tone deaf man next to me. It didn't work.) We spent the night at the Drury Inn and shopped at West County Mall Saturday. This is where the sickness and snot come in.

I am sick. I've felt bad all week, but last night on the way home, I really felt bad. Today I felt worse. I started an antibiotic and some heavy duty decongestants today and I'm a little better tonight. I have to leave for Jefferson City on Tuesday and won't be home until Friday. It's going to be in the 20's at night. I'll probably get sicker. Hopefully, not. My friend, Heather, and I are sharing a room, so for her sake, I really hope I'm not snoring all night from the congestion. I bought her some earplugs just in case.

That's pretty much it, kids. I'll be back late Friday night. I have one more week long work trip in a few weeks, then I should be finished with overnight travel for a long time. Yay!!! I have no laptop and the Fairfield Inn has no business center, so be good while I'm gone.

Friendship, Construction, and Christmas Songs

I am so lucky to have so many friends. I've had a pretty rough week at work and have been super busy at home. My friends are so good to me and if it weren't for them, I'd probably be curled up crying in the corner by now! Without going into the boring details, I'll summarize my work week by saying that I felt very overwhelmed and underappreciated this week. My friend, Heather, stopped by my desk this morning to let me know that she thinks I'm doing an awesome job and the reason I'm so overwhelmed with requests for help is because the last two people who had my position screwed things up so badly. That made me feel much better. I can handle fixing other people's screw ups as long as I know that I'm on the right track.

Today was another not-so-great day. I was stuck in construction traffic for 45 minutes this morning and had a mountain of reports to write at work. Luckily, I had plans to go to a party with my good friend, Becky. (Hi Becky!!!) We had a blast spending the night out together. We went to the party (a SHOPPING PARTY!!!!!), ate at Red Lobster (where we each had a yummy Bahama Mama), and then took our time going ailse by aisle through Target until they turned the lights out. I purchased several more Christmas presents that I'll be staying up to wrap tonight. On the way home, we noticed that 104.7 FM is playing Chirstmas music. I really like Christmas music, but isn't it a bit much to start the Christmas tunes 4 days after Halloween?!?! It did help me get in the mood to wrap the presents that are piling up in our basement. Ho! Ho! Ho!


I also got the chance to stop and chat with Greg's cousin, Rebecca at her store this week. I always have a good time talking with her and I hadn't seen her since Carson's party. We talked for over an hour. It was great to catch up.

In the morning, I'll be heading to St Louis with one of my oldest friends, Mary Catherine, to look for bridesmaids' dresses. I'm going to be the Matron of Honor in her wedding next April. I can't wait to hear everything she has planned and help her with the things that still need to be done.

So all in all, I've had a great "friendship" week. Thanks to all of you that I call "friend". I love each and every one of ya!