Friday High Five

Happy Friday folks! It's early and I've got a big to-do list again, mostly because I suck and didn't get yesterdays list done, but I'm determined to get started early today. Here are the five things on my mind at this very moment:

• Sims 2. So I'm minding my own business last night, playing Sims. I've created Andy and I with no kids. Neither one of us have jobs and we are independently wealthy (mostly because I know cheat codes so I get $50K by merely pressing a key stroke combo). So in the afternoon, while the kids are entertaining themselves of course, I'm decorating our new house. Putting in plush white carpet and beautiful art on the walls. Adding in every top of the line stainless steel kitchen appliance, a big fancy flat screen that hangs on the wall, a big ole game room with a pin-ball machine, dart board, chess table. I've even installed a pool in our backyard. The house is amazing! I get started on actually playing the game. Almost immediately Andy knocks me up and I'm waddling around the house like a fat cat only interested in peeing, eating and sleeping. Good thing I don't have a job. I give birth to what I think is a girl, we name her Kara Michelle (Andy picked the name) and then winter hits. I'm carrying around this baby and then a message pops up "Kara Michelle is freezing. You better keep her warm before the social worker shows up!" It's then I realize I didn't put a roof or any ceilings on our beautiful 3-story home. And because the house is already built, I'd have to tear it down and start all over to get the ceilings in there. This took me HOURS to build! So we moved.
• It's grocery store time. I hate... despite... loathe going to the store on the first of the month. To avoid the crowd I'm packing up the kids and heading out as soon as I'm done with this post. There is now way we would make it through the weekend with no food if I didn't go today. Nisha is going to her dad's for the weekend, but we get DD, Baby Love and Monkey Boy, along with their cousin, this weekend. It's going to be a mad house around here mostly because the yard is muddy and it's supposed to rain all weekend, so I can't just put them all in jeans and throw them out the door. Mother Nature hates me.
• Holy shit it's MAY! It seems like just yesterday it was the beginning of April when I got my sister's flight info for when she would be here in May.... and I wrote up the list of crap I needed to get done before she gets here. HAY-SUESS! (That's how we say Jesus around these parts, so we don't offend, of course.) I haven't accomplished anything on that list. In fact I don't even know where it is. On the back of a bill's envelope I'm sure, but WHICH bill is the real question. My garage is still a pit, I haven't waxed the floors, there are about 4 pictures up on the walls in the entire house (excluding the kitchen because that's my favorite room and it was the first, and only, room that was finished a week after we moved in), my seedlings are still sitting on the back patio waiting to be planted in the garden beds, my quad room (laundry room/office/den/dart room) is a complete mess, and I've got about 25 days to get this place ship shape. On a good note, I get a present this month. It IS Mother's Day month right?
• Is it just me or what? Am I the only anal retentive person that thinks it's rude and disrespectful for a service technician to park in my driveway? They are here to perform a service, they don't live here. So don't be pulling up in my driveway like this is YOUR home. That irritates me to no end. I had the phone guy come out yesterday to fix my land line because my cell phone bill is $265 AGAIN because we needed a home phone and that moron just whipped into my driveway like he was coming home for lunch or something. Grrr! And to top it off, he wasn't nice. He wasn't rude either, but he wasn't nice. Very curt and to the point. No additional information was given and I had to ask a million questions just to get him to tell me what the hell the problem was with my phone line. And his answer was, "Cox converter, sign here." That's it. Go park in someone else's driveway you zit faced geek!
• This morning I get dressed, like usual, in the quad room (because I've boycotted doing laundry and all of my clothes are now in the dungeon) and come into the living room, where Andy is ready for work, feet perched up on the coffee table, enjoying whatever is on HBO, and ask him to fix my bra. I've got one arm out of my t-shirt and my hair is all tangled in my bra strap. I just wanted him to fix the flipped over strap. Easy task. He's fumbling around back there for what seemed like an eternity, cold ass hands all over my shoulder and back, and he finally says "THERE! I did it!" and then proceeds to pull the strap all tight, because I guess it looked like it needed to be flipped AND adjusted. Now I'm walking around with one boob at chin level while the other is sitting over there all comfortable and laughing. Thanks Andy. Thanks.A.Bunch.

So that sums up my High Five Friday! The highlights of my morning, and what looks to be the beginning of another adventurous day. I'm off to the God-forsaken grocery store on the first of the month. If you all don't hear back from me by mid-afternoon, call the President. Seriously.

High Five Friday

TGIFreakinF! This has been a long and trying week for me. I didn't even participate in Mama Kat's Writers Workshop, but I did read a lot of them. I've been sick and my precious Andy kept the house flowing after he got off work each day so I could poop out and head to bed early. He takes such good care of me.

To here's my ^5 to Friday and the 5 random things going on in my head today!

• American Idol - of course I'm happy Lil is gone, not so happy about Anoop though. He wasn't going to win, but I loved his voice. I'm quite pissed off at America for putting Allison in the bottom 3 though. She SO didn't deserve to be there!
• Our 15y/o had managed to bring ALL her grades up to As and Bs. I am SO proud of her. Her last report card sucked big ones and after a long 3 hours at parent teacher conferences, Andy and I devised a plan, along with the help of the asst principal who I love and adore, to get this child's grades back on track. Her trip to California this summer depended on it.. and that in itself was enough motivation for this kid. She's a complete slacker, and it's all my fault. Now I'm freaking out because I've got a little over a month to get a flight booked for her lol. Crap. Secretly I was hoping to save that $300. Horrible I know. But now my greatest fear in the world is coming true... I'm going to shove her on a plane ALONE, being the first time she's flown EVER, and hope for the best. She's dingy. I'm scared to death she's going to call me from Alaska and tell me she got on the wrong plane.
• Tonight we get to throw darts at a tourney with our best friend and his wife. I'm excited, but I'm worried about how I'm going to breathe in a smoke filled bar. Ugh. I'm finally feeling like getting out of the house and where do I want to go? To the emphysematous hell hole where I can sneak an inhaler in the bathroom. Smart. I'm a real smart cookie I tell ya!
• Running through my head at this very moment are all the things I've got to get accomplished before my neat freak sister and her perfectionist Dick show up in May. I wish I had a friend who would come help me. So I'm making the lists: things to get done, things to buy to make our house pretty, and places I can shove stuff so my sissy won't see them.
• And the 5th and final thought for today: I'm giving myself a ^5 for being disciplined and actually working. It's hard working at home, especially when you have 2 little ones constantly needing attention. I have to wear headphones so I can actually hear what the doctor's are saying and it's hard to hear the kids scream with them on. It's definitely a challenge, and sometimes I have to work at night, neglecting my own family, to get work done. But in the longrun I know that an additional paycheck makes a big difference in the plans we have, so I keep trekking along. This is the first "real" pay period I've been back to work and I'm right on schedule with my production. Go me!

That's all I got folks! We are almost kid-free this weekend (the teen decided to stay here instead of going to her bio dad's), and it's my scheduled weekend to work so I probably won't be around much. Hopefully next week I'll be feeling back to my normal self and can add some humor to this drab blog.

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend and are able to enjoy the beautiful weather!

High Five Friday: Five Random Thoughts

Here's my morning routine. I get everyone shoo'd out of the house to work and school. Then I duck down in the office to read some blogs and log in to work. The babies show up and I turn on Dora, praying they will fall back to sleep, duck back down into the office to ignore work and read more blogs. Babies scream and need attention, so I stop my ever-so-important blog reading to tend to the needy little creatures. And finally, when they are situated again, I duck back down in the office to again ignore work and post my daily after I've read more than enough.

So here's my Friday High Five (if I was really cool I'd get one of those fancy schmancy button thingies to post here, but I digress, because I'm a blog-tard).

The divorce is done! Yippee! I'm no longer shacked up with a married man. He keeps saying he's "a single man", but we'll see what tune he sings next time he wants to Woo-Hoo (I'm a pathetic Sims addict, I know). Pffft! He went to the courthouse yesterday, met up with lovely ex-wife, signed the papers, went before the judge and VIOLA it was over. Amazingly simple. I've heard so many horror stories about divorces, but when adults act like adults, it's amazing what can be accomplished.

Why is it that when I take a pen out of the handy dandy pen cup on my desk and it doesn't work, I just shove it right back in the cup. Is it secretly going to produce some ink by the next time I reach for it?

Let me introduce you to Mike. He works with Andy. At one time he was seeing two ladies and asked my precious Andy for advise. Ha! He can barely handle me, let alone TWO! So Mike always praises Andy and I for our relationship and thinks Andy is the luckiest man in the world to have a hot plate and coffee sent with him to work every day. I, being the nice *cough* thoughtful *cough* lady that I am, sometimes send extra food with Andy so he can share. Nothing beats homecooked meals, and Mike appreciated it. Well... this all came to a screeching halt as of yesterday. Stupid Mike and his stupid man-power decided it would be funny to invite all of the single ladies in the office over to Andy to try and grope him prior to his leaving for the attorney's office for the divorce. He lured them with saying something about how Andy will be a bachelor when he gets back, so they better get their claws in now... and by the way Andy, tell Denise I'm just kidding. Pfffffffft! I told Andy to mention to Mike that I know how to use Ex-Lax and he should be cautious eating anything I send for lunch. Jackass!

Speaking of Ex-Lax... is coffee a natural poop-enhancer or what? How come after I drink just one cup in the morning, I'm running to the bathroom? Gross huh? Feel my pain. I LOVE the smell of coffee, and I'll take a frap any day of the week, but for some reason hot coffee gives me the squirts. We're just that close. Figured I could share. Your welcome.

And finally, I'm all too excited that Andy has found a little old lady at work who used to can veggies and the likes and has TWO pressure canners. I told him to make out with her and get me one of those canners. I'd even send over some of my applesauce that I canned last week to help seal the deal.

I hope you all enjoy your Friday!

High Five Friday: The Five Love Languages

Over turkey break I read this book. It's really a worthwhile read. Oddly enough, this is a book Andy had and shared with me. Not your typical man-book, but this man is full of surprises and is actually one who cares about communication and how to make a relationship better. I tend to be the "I don't want to talk about it" one in our relationship, while he's much more open and likes to get things out on the table. I think he feels if we aren't talking about something, there is a barrier and that's not healthy in a relationship. I agree, but I still suck at the communication part.

Anyway... this book made me realize something imperative to all relationships, whether it be significant other, children, parents, friends, work relationships - anyone. We don't all process or show our needs the same way.

Gary Chapman actually has a website dedicated to this idea. I urge you to check it out. Might even be able to do the quiz on there. I'm the queen of quizzes. I love the quizzes in magazines and online that tell you what kind of lover you are, if you are romantic, if you are an under-cover freak, etc. I LOVE quizzes. I know they aren't based on anything scientific and are just mutterings of another bored person, but I still think they are fun lol.

So... what are the love languages you ask? (Just pretend you asked dang it!)

1. Words of Affirmation: Receiving words of adoration, comforting words, ego-stroking words, words of praise and kind words. Is it really important to you that your s/o (significant other) write you love letters or poems, give words of praise to your strengths, and compliment you in front of your friends and family? Does it mean the world to you to overhear your s/o telling someone else how great you are?


2. Quality Time: The central aspect of quality time is togetherness; not proximity but focused attention. Quality time doesn't only include the minivacations or weekend getaways couples sometimes take to renew their relationship. Is it important to you that you receive eye contact when you are trying to talk to your s/o? Or that they are not multitasking when you are speaking to them and concentrating only on the conversation you are having, without them interrupting? What about them recapping the conversation, showing you that they fully understood your feelings. For instance if they were to say, "It sounds to me like you are feeling ______ about this situation." Is it important to you that your s/o and you have a devoted time each day to talk about the daily goings-on in your life? Do you feel more secure in your relationship when you do quality activities together? Are lunch dates, picnics at the beach or strolls at the park important to you?


3. Receiving Gifts: Do you feel more loved when you receive gifts? Not only material things but the gift of your s/o's time and attention as well? Is it important to you that your s/o leave a box of chocolates for you or bring you home a rose for no apparent reason? What about a book they thought you might enjoy or a handmade gift, a painting or family picture collage? What about a Hallmark card professing their undying love for you out of the blue? Of course, we would all be excited at the thought of a new car, but what about new miniblinds for the livingroom that you set your eye on or an electric drill b/c the old one isn't quite functioning right anymore? Or even the gift of their time and presence spent at a community event they said they weren't going to attend with you?


4. Acts of Service: These are simple and yet to some are so very important. Is it important to you that your s/o help with daily duties at the house? Making the bed in the morning, fixing coffee for you even though they don't like it? Packing a lunch for you to take to work? What about helping out with cleaning up the kids' bedroom while you are fixing supper so you don't have to do it later? Fixing supper for you? Cleaning up the kitchen after supper? Washing the car or taking the car to get the oil changed instead of waiting on you to do it? What about before you are expecting company and they help get the house tidied up? Do things like this mean the world to you?


5. Physical Touch: Is it meaningful to you to have your s/o reach for your hand while you are in the car together? Or sitting on the couch watching the tube? Or walking around the department store? What about during times of crisis, do you feel like the situation would be much better if they held you? What about foot massages and back rubs? Do you feel most secure and loved when there is mind-numbing foreplay before sex? What about during supper at the table and your s/o plays footsies with you? Or when lying in bed, is it important that your s/o drape a leg over yours or have a hand on your back? Fiddling with your hair or caressing your neck? What about hugs and kisses every time they leave the house and again when they come back in? Or even when you are out in public, is it important to you that your s/o put their arm around you or shower you with kisses and pats on the butt?

I know all of these things are important in relationships, but put each of these five in order of importance to you. It's interesting also to see how your s/o puts their list in order. Your first love language may not be the same as your s/o! And even if you are single, it helps determine what you expect and how to address what a potential s/o expects!

Apparently we all have a "Love Tank" and when our needs aren't being met, our love tank isn't full. Sucks to be running on fumes man, it really sucks. The point is, what works for me may not work for Andy. For instance, if you are more of a Physical Touch person, but your s/o is Words of Affirmation... rubbing his shoulders isn't going to fill his Love Tank like telling him he's the bombdigity will. If you are the type who likes to Receive Gifts... when he tells you he loves you, it isn't going to do the trick.

I'm selfish. I have a hard time processing the needs of others any different than I would process mine. I have to actually step back from the issue and left-brain think it through before I know which way to go. It's not a natural thing for me. When folks are down, more specifically, when Andy's Love Tank isn't full (and you definitely know when your man's Love Tank isn't full) I tend to think of what I would want in that situation. Ba ha! Wrong answer! This book focuses on us giving them what they need in that situation, and how to effectively communicate what we need.

And to top this wonderful "ta-da" type moment book... there is a quiz! Yippee! You fill out your answers, and your s/o fills out the same quiz. Then you have this revelation of knowing for all these years (or months in our case) that you've been trying to fill their tank with what you would fill your own tank. It's like putting unleaded in a diesel engine. Just doesn't work.

Ok I'm done rambling about this. I just kind of had one of those step back moments last night when I realized my poor Andy is feeling neglected. I've noticed for the last couple of days his mood was different, but it didn't hit me until last night... that man is living on a half-empty tank. Shame on me because my tank is full!

If you are reading this Andy (because yesterday I finally gave him the link to my blog lol)... I love you very much and this weekend I'm gonna fill your tank baby! I'm gonna fill it up real good! *wink wink*