Withdrawls

A few months ago I decided to kick my Diet Coke habit. I did really well for about 2 months. Then for some reason, I started up again. I don't remember why though. I do remember that the first few days were tough. The withdrawl headaches were intense.

I haven't had a Diet Coke since Sunday. For the past two days, my head feels like it is going to EXPLODE!! I know I need to cut back. I've been addicted since it first came out in 1983, my junior year of high school. But this is my coffee. I wake up with a Diet Coke. I feel like I literally need one at times. I guess this is my drug.

Anyone know where I can go for Diet Coke rehab???

Free TV!!!!

5 Minutes for Mom is hosting another contest. hey are giving away an Insignia® 37" Flat-Panel LCD HDTV from Best Buy! This TV retails for over $700!! You can even use it as a PC monitor!! So head on over there for your chance to win!

Vegging Today!

I have spent the ENTIRE day in my jammies, in bed, on my laptop, watching a marathon of Bridezilla on TV! I LOVE it!

Let me back up a bit. Yesterday, we had friends & family over for yet another BBQ. Seems like we spend most of our lives feeding the masses. We had Danny's famous baby back ribs & my famous roasted potatoes w/ cheese and bacon. Yummo! By the time everyone left and I had picked up all the the mess & done the dishes, it was almost midnight. My body hurt and I just wanted to sleep. So I went to bed, popped 2 Benadryls and was out like a light!

The neighborhood dogs started going crazy at about 9AM. Literally non stop barking. My body kept telling me that it needed more sleep, so I tried to ignore the noise. At 10:30, I am startled wide awake by the doorbell. When I peek out, I realize the it's the J.Witnesses! I was so ticked! I was so tempted to open the door in my pj's but Danny held me back. I have had words with them before. After trying to be polite many times and not getting my message across, I once asked for their address so that Danny could visit them at his convenience when he was not on a call at work. I said that he could stop by around 3AM. So please do not come knocking on my door on a Sunday morning, invading my privacy. I can't stand that! This is my home! Leave me alone! Obviously, they started at 9 since that is when the dogs started going crazy. Shortly after they were at my front door, the storm rolled in. I hope they got drenched! Call me mean. I don't care. Do you all get those morning preachers?? How do you handle it?

Anyhoo, I haven't slept past 10 in a long time! I vaccumed & mopped the mess from yesterday, took a shower, put on fresh jammies and vegged! Pure joy! It rained all day, so I had an excuse for the lazyness!

Here is a picture from yesterday. My girls being all mean & not smiling pretty for the camera!

Drumroll please.........

This has been a fun week! I have visited a ton of fun blogs and entered some awesome contests. I have typed a gazillion comments and twice as many word verification thingys (since I always, for some reason get it wrong the first time). I have bookmarked many blogs that I would like to keep visiting as well. But quite frankly, I am ready for a little blog break! I'm sure that it will only last about a day or so though.

So without further ado, I will announce my winners!

Giveaway #1 for the Storyteller Photo Book Creator, the winner is Janelle. She is not a blogger, so I can't link to her.


Giveaway # 2 for the Scrapbook Organizing Book, the winner is Chris Reeder

Thank you all for visiting and joining in the fun. Special thanks goes to Random.org for making my life easier :) With 133 entries in one & 69 in the other, I really needed their help.

I will be emailing the winners shortly. If don't hear back from them by Monday, I will draw an alternate.

You've had a bad day, er, week...

Kat has not been having a very good week. She got into a fender bender yesterday. Fortunately, no one got hurt. I chuck it up to inexperience for the most part.

Today, she was let go from her job. She has only been there 3 weeks. When she interviewed, she told them right off the bat that she was starting at the university and taking full time credits. They hired her and said that would not be a problem. She signed up for early classes that would get her to work by 11:30AM on 3 days and by 10AM on the other 2 days. The office is open till 5:30PM. The way she explains it, it sounds like major office politics and drama. Apparently, some of the agents had refered another girl for the job and were upset that they did interview her before hiring. Huh?? They let another girlgo as well who had just started a few months ago for the same reason. Why hire them in the first place?? She turned down another offer in favor of this one. Now she has no job.

Two major learning experiences in one week. Poor kid.

Full House

So far there are 124 entries in my first giveaway. First of all, I didn't expect so many entries eriod. I also did not forsee so many freaking visits to my blog. Accrording to my counter doohickey, from Monday evening till right now, I have had 923 visitors. I'm normally happy to get 10 a day. So when this big open house party ends tomorrow, I hope that a few new friends will still visit. At least once in a while. Tune in tomorrow when I post the winners. Random.org is a great tool!

Just one more....

***This giveaway is now CLOSED.***

*** I will announce the winner by 5PM EST***

Since I got over 50 participants for my first giveaway, I decided to add another one. Same rules as the first one except this one I am opening up to International friends as well!! So, what am I giving away you ask?

This drawing will be for the Memory Makers book,
How to Organize Your Scrapbook Workspace: Storage Solutions for Any Budget

How's that for a long title?

Anyhoo, If you would like to be entered for this drawing, just comment on here. If you haven't entered my first giveaway, head on over there as well. Only one entry for each prize please.

The Dog Days of Summer Bloggy Giveaway is Here!!!

***This giveaway is now CLOSED.***

***I will announce the winner by 5PM EST***

Since I LOVE Giveaways & Prizes, I just could not pass this one up! Today is the first day of the Dog Days of Summer Bloggy Giveaway! They already have 307 giveaways posted!! Holy moly! That is heaven for me. So in the spirit of the game, I am offering up a little prize of my own.

I am giving away a Storyteller Photo Book Creator retails for about $25. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post by Friday, July 27. I will draw a winner @ 5PM EST. That's it. Easy Peasy. Please be sure to leave a valid email so that I can contact you if you win. This contest is open to both bloggers & non-bloggers. But unfortunately, I can only ship to US addresses due to the high cost of shipping. Sorry :(

If you would like to participate in more giveaways head on over to Rocks in My Dryer and take a look at all the great giveaways. Fun!

** While you're here, please sign my guestbook at the bottom of the page**

Barbie is that you?

Growing up in the 70's I had a gazilion barbies. They all looked identical, mostly all blonde with a few brunettes. Pretty much wholesome looking except for the tini tiny waists and the big boobs. Oh, and they were all on their tippy toes! Unfortunately, that is what most of us aspired to look like. But aside from the perfect body idea, there was nothing wrong with Barbie. Really.

Today I saw a commercial for the new 2007 Barbie Top Model. Ok, I was not very happy with those gawd awful Bratz dolls. Now, Barbie has hopped on the bandwagon. I have seen little girls at the mall dressed like little Bratz. Make up & all. When I say little, I mean 7 or 8. No where near the age to wear make up and dress like that. So now, I should probably expect to see them dressed & made up like these Top Models!

They come with full make up & streaked hair. Plus you can make them walk just like Miss Hilton! Oh, joy! Barbie, what have you done to yourself????

Cry Baby

I took Kat, my freaking 18 year old, to the pediatrician today. She needed a check-up & her immunization record to register for FIU. So we sit in the waiting room full of babies & toddlers for a while. Then we are taken into a room to wait for the Dr. in total we waited for an hour and a half! Lucky for the doc, we like her. My girls like her. If it were up to them, they would go to her forever. in any case, I'm sure that I have commented on how much I hate making appointments yet not being seen anywhere near that time, so I won't go into that.

So while we are waiting you hear tons of screaming, hollering & crying. I jokingly ask her to please not cause a scene when the dr. sees her and act like a big girl. When the dr. walks in she does a quick check up and sends her to the lab, where they prick her finger. She then gets three shots and starts crying! Funny thing is, she never cried when she got shots when she was younger. Plus, she donates blood every 3 months or so. Go figure! She came out of there with 4 Elmo band-aids, but I have no proof because she would not let me take a picture!

Doing the Happy Dance

I haven't been blogging much. I have been making my daily Target runs since Saturday. Hunting down Patio stuff. I LOVE Target sales. I bought one new set @ 50% last week. But today my manic dedicated hunting paid off. I went in at about 9AM but patio stuff was still at 50. So I stroll around getting junk necessities and head towards the registers. Suddenly, I see a parade! A parade of flatbeds full of patio stuff rolling towards the registers with the store manager as the Grand Marshall. So I follow. The GM,was buying all the stuff!! So I ran back towards patio and it was all at 75%!!! And the best part..... I was the only one there!! I was in heaven. I got another set and a few other things. It's the little things that make me happy. I am still on a hunt for new cushions, but tomorrow is another day and I will be there bright and early.

I will post pictures soon.

They're Baaack!

The yucky frogs are back. We get a few months reprieve every year but then they come back in full force. Today I walk out and there were 3 floating in the pool. Danny has to scoop them out because I won't get near them. With my luck they are only playing dead, then they will jump out at me.

I am open for suggestions on how to get rid of them. Obviously the pool water kills them, but not all of them are stupid enough to jump in! "Oh, and I've heard it all before. "Don't try to rid yourself of the frogs. They eat the creepy crawlies" Blah, Blah, Blah! I don't need frogs to get rid of bugs. That's why I pay Orkin. I HATE frogs! I love my yard. I want to be able to enjoy it.

Kristyn Michelle

Today would have been my daughter's 16th birthday. Kristyn was my 3rd baby. She was a cutie patootie. She was a happy baby. She rarely cried and was usually smiling. My sweet baby girl was called to heaven too soon. She was only 4 month old. It was very unexpected. We lost her to SIDS. A piece of my heart is gone & I still miss her dearly! I will miss her till the day I die.

A CHILD OF MINE

I’ll lend you for a little while
A child of mine, God said
For you to love the while she lives
And mourn for when she’s dead.

It may be six or seven years,
Or forty-two or three.
But will you, till I call her back
Take care of her for me?


She’ll bring her charms to gladden you
And - should her stay be brief -
You’ll have her lovely memories
As a solace for your grief.


I cannot promise she will stay
For all from earth returns,
But there are lessons taught below
I want this child to learn.


I’ve looked the whole world over
In my search for teachers true.
And from all beings that crowd life’s land
I have chosen you.


Now, will you give her all your love?
Nor think the labor vain.
Nor hate me when I come to take
This lent child back again.


I fancied that I heard you say
“Dear Lord, Thy will be done.
For all the joys Thy child will bring
The risk of grief we’ll run.


We will shelter her with tenderness
We’ll love her while we may -
And for the happiness we have known
Forever grateful stay.


But should the angels come for her
Much sooner than we planned.
We’ll brave the bitter grief that comes
And try - to understand.”


~Author Unknown

It's getting hot in here!

So for all you whiners out there complaining about the heat where you live,

I just wanted to let you know that Miami has you all beat!

Although we are hot as hell, Danny insists on heading up to Orlando because his cousin is there from NY. What that means for us is going to jam packed theme park, sweating like pigs, and being among other cranky, sweaty pigs! The girls and I are so over theme parks but Danny is as I have always said, my third child. Looks like this one won't be growing up any time soon!

**Oh, and if you haven't already done so, please sign my guestbook at the bottom of the page. Thanks!**