Teaching Mrs Madoff About Macaroni

I'm through with all the antibiotics and steriods and I still feel yucky. I go back to the doctor tomorrow to have the chest x-ray repeated. I just feel like I need some major vitamins, an oxygen bar, a personal trainer, energy drink, something!

I finished Twilight and New Moon and am reading Eclipse. Again, I still can't believe I like these books, and I LIKE these books. No, you won't see my running around in a "Bite Me" t-shirt (ha).

I've pared my packing list down to the necessities, and I am still debating whether to check one bag and take a large purse on the plane, or try to carry on my bag. I hate dragging luggage around in an airport, especially with a long layover, but while I've never had luggage lost, this would be a very bad time for that to happen with me leaving Seattle for good two days after arriving.

My son had a very promising phone interview (two actually) yesterday with a company in Huntsville. It would be good if he found a job here soon. I think he'd feel better about moving. They want to interview him in person as soon as he gets here.

My husband plans to put down the new floor in the living room (along with help from my friend's son) while I am gone. I will be so excited to come home and it already be done, and thrilled to say bye-bye to carpet.

I stayed up late to watch Amercian Idol (we Tivo'd it, is that a verb?) and, although I love that black fingernail polish guy's voice, he must have been smoking some heavy duty something to get up and sing "I Walk the Line" in a sitar-type arrangement. It sounded like a guru on crack.
The little blonde who sang "Jolene" was pretty bad. I was pleasantly surprised by the Indian guy and the girl with the flu. So if you don't watch Idol, none of these comments make any sense at all.

Now for my take on the Madoff scandel. I don't feel as sorry for the rich folks as I probably should, but I really don't. However, I would love to see his wife have to shop at K-Mart like the rest of us, and see her excited over a blue light special. I've had my "living on mac and cheese until payday" times, and I know how to cook a million hamburger dishes to stretch a five pound chub pack. I could teach her a thing or two.

The Pups New Do's

Bedroom Re-do

While I was out and about yesterday, killing time while the cleaning lady was here, I decided to re-do my bedroom. I went to Walmart and found a $79 comforter set, marked down to $40 (King size, too!), found two pillows that look like silk for $5 each, bought black out curtains ($16 a panel, four panels). Then I went to Hobby Lobby and found a poster I liked, bought a frame for it (17 and 25) and then picked out flowers to arrange in a vase to match (22). I ended up with a new bedroom, which I really like much better than the stuff I had in there (black and cream toile with dark red drapes, too goth). So here are the pics.

Taco Soup and a Tot

I've been in a cooking mood this week. Today I made taco stew. I will post the recipe below.
Tomorrow, our new cleaning lady comes for the first time. I am going to get up early and take the dogs to the groomer so they won't be underfoot. Then I plan to go to the library and have lunch with my friend.

I'm reading Twilight. I never thought I'd like a teenage vampire book but I'm actually loving this. I sat up late last night reading in bed with my book light.

My granddaughter is getting so big. I couldn't resist posting her vacuuming photo. She looks less baby and more little girl. She is very active now in playgroups, so she's quite a social butterfly. It's hard to believe she will be two in a few months.

My husband and I celebrate our sixth anniversary the end of this month. I'm so glad I finally found a good one. There are a lot of frogs out there.

Taco Soup:
1 1/2 pounds ground chuck, browned and drained
28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 cans beef broth
2 cups frozen whole kernel corn
2 cups salsa
1 medium diced onion
1 medium bell pepper, diced
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 pkg Hidden Valley ranch salad dressing mix

Simmer all day in crock pot. Then add:
1 can creamed corn
1 can pinto beans, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 lb Velvetta cheese, cut into chunks

Continue to simmer until cheese melts. Stir well and serve.

Looking Forward to Spring

I sit and look at the screen, and I think I really should do a new post. What about? Let's see...What has been happening around here lately? Nothing. Well nothing interesting. Well, what is on my mind? All My Children coming on in a little while, highlight of my day since I've been sick, but no one wants to hear about that either..Hm...My life is awfully boring.

Does anyone else do that? Sometimes blogs can be so much fun, but they can also be one more thing on my "Would-a, Should-a" list to do.

Ok, I finished World Without End and The Reader. Started The Curing Season. Trying to figure out what to read next. I went to the beauty shop and that girl swears by the Twilight series, even though she's not into Vampires. So maybe I'll give that a go.

I went "inactive" on Facebook, because I was getting so much email from them everyday and I couldn't figure out how to do most of the stuff on there. Then several people actually missed me being on there, so I reactivated. I also linked my Associated Content material to it, I think, so maybe that will help my page views.

I hate daylight savings time. My internal clock does not like being tampered with. I found this in an article this morning that comfirms that it's a bad, bad idea. ha.

"There's a spike of 5% in heart attacks during the first week of daylight saving time, according to another study published last year. The loss of an hour's sleep may make people more susceptible to an attack, some experts say. When daylight saving time ends in the fall, heart attacks briefly become less frequent than usual."
See?

I'm feeling better post pneumonia, but am still weak. I get up doing things in the house and get winded and tired, but each day I'm able to do a little more.

I am a real germ phobe about motel rooms, and since I know my cross-country trip with my son may end us sleeping in some cheapo places, I decided to get a sleeping bag to lay on the bed to sleep in. I found one and had it shipped to his house. He called today and said, "Geez, it's pink and has fur. I'm glad the UPS dude didn't see it and think it was something I ordered." Hey, the price was right.

I'm still trying to pare down my packing list to only the bare essentials. I ordered three pair of yoga pants that are super comfortable to wear on the trip, so I can just take shirts to swap up. Of course, I'll have to have my Kindle and cell with their chargers. I'm still debating makeup. Who am I going to see anyway? I cut my hair so it's quick and easy to do. I want to maket his trip as easy as possible.

Our governor has decided not to accept the stimulus money for Alabama. I hope he has plenty of his own to kick in when things get worse, which they will. My youngest son is worried about losing his job. He said they are getting rid of people left and right at his station and other stations they own. We may end up with both boys back home before this is all over. I'm so glad my husband works for the government. Job security means so much right now. So does having our mortgage paid off. Still, we are thinking much more seriously about purchases. I guess that is just a sign of the times.

I miss my granddaughter. I'm going to have to take a baby day and go up for a day visit before my trip. I wrote and reminded my daughter to post more pics and video. Maybe I just need to catch them on Skype soon.

I won that writing contest back in October, and since it was more than 600, they sent us a 1099. But they didn't send it until the middle of February, which is the first time I even remembered that money, and after we had filed our taxes. So my husband is busy at the kitchen table today amended both state and federal returns. No matter what, it seems the "extra money" I earn ends up causing us tax problems of some sort, either putting him into a higher tax bracket or something. Still, when a little check comes in, I'm happy. I'm now making an average of $62 a month from Associated Content for past articles and their page views. $62 in mad money is a lot to me. Buys a lot of Kindle books, especially the .99 up to 3.99 ones. Hey, as long as I have books, I am happy.

Dawn Rises on a Whole New Day

Yesterday, the rolling pin thing seemed like a really big deal, and today I don't care as much. I think blogging is a great way to vent and put things in perspective.

I went to the dr today and I have pneumonia, but it's "early" and he loaded me up with yet more medicine. I'm sure it will knock it out this time around, because I have to be well for my trip to Seattle and the drive back to Alabama the 24th of this month.

I'm finishing World Without End, and trying to decide on my next book. I watched the Oprah show today and ordered the Simplicity workbook the girl there had written. I found out it was illustrated and had dividers, and they had me at sold.

I can't seem to sleep without coughing, so I'm sitting up for awhile, hoping I will eventually get really sleepy and then be able to sleep later tomorrow.
We actually got snow on Saturday night, and woke up to white rooftops and yards. It melted off by noon though, but was pretty while it lasted.
Well, i'll make this one short, as I feel crappy and am going to try to go to bed again.

Duck! Here I Come With a Rolling Pin!

Ok, so I did a whole post on how healthy I've been emotionally, how far I've come. Then God showed me to have some humility and that I don't know everything.
I have a rolling pin that belonged to my grandmother. It's old, wood, with red handles, worn and weathered from many years of use. If you had asked me a few days ago, I would have said my grandmother gave it to me, because I thought she did. She gave me a dish towel, an apron, and the rolling pin, I think. Many, many, many years ago.
My niece has a cooking blog, where she posts family recipes and the stories behind them. It's really good. In one recipe she posted recently, she said her mom visited me, and I mentioned having my grandmother's rolling pin, but my sister was shocked. She said Mom had given her a rolling pin, and said it was my grandmother's. So she confronted Mom, and Mom said she didn't want us to not each have one, so she bought an extra from an antique store. Who has the real one? That was my niece's question. I could have been happy from now on, just contently using my rolling pin and thinking of my grandmother. But no. It was not to be. Now I'm wondering if my Mom did give me the rolling pin at some point, and not my grandmother. And it bugs me. REALLY bugs me. I feel hurt, and I wish they had just left well enough alone.
So, you see, they can still hurt my feelings no matter how much therapy I had. I haven't come so far after all. One visit to my house from my sister and I'm back to feeling like a little girl that lost her dolls to her sister during the divorce, because Mom left in such a hurry with me in tow.