I'm a winner!!!

So - about ten days ago, I entered a contest over on this awesome blog ::waving - Hi Liz!:: hoping I would win. My girls are BIG readers and T.A. Barron's books are right up their alley. We are all big readers. I used to have to take their books away from them because they would stay up way past their bedtime, reading in bed!

Imagine my surprise when I got a congratulatory email from Liz, telling me I won the contest!! YAY!!!

So - guess what was at my door when I got home today?? An entire box of lovely books!! Hello beautiful!!

Thank you again Liz and T.A. Barron for the big, beautiful, box of books!!

Xmas Jammies

You KNOW you want to sing along...



Love them.
(h/t to Young Conservatives for the link)

I don't want ANY of these for Christmas!!

Whilst browsing my Facebook feed, since I am home and unemployed, I found this gem: What NOT to F'ing buy my kids this holiday.

It definitely made me laugh out loud. I remember those days, now, fondly. I have two teenage girls so my house was awash in Barbies (usually naked in a box with the other poor naked Barbies), mountains of My Little Pony - both toys and ponies. I am still not allowed to give away the ponies - here's the proof:

You should see the amount of Legos and blocks we still have around the house. At least I can say we still have them around for when my young nephews visit.

What were YOUR kids big requests this year? Mine asked for Beats (no way), a cat (HECK no), and all kinds of assorted clothing, boots, music, and gift cards.

Never thought I'd say this but I kinda miss buying toys. My babies are growing up.

Health and the Holidays

Well, what happened to my week? Poof!

I've been so insanely busy and have somehow managed to catch a cold. Ugh. It could be worse. I do remember having pneumonia before & during Christmas about three years ago - what a disaster. My Mom had called me, not feeling well at all. With her cancer and all her other health issues in mind, I rushed her to the ER where she spent an long time before finally being diagnosed with pneumonia & was admitted for several days. Of course, I stayed with her and, once she was placed in a room, I went back down to the ER for myself and ended up being diagnosed with the same thing!!! Lasted about ten days and it was horrible. I think Christmas dinner was leftovers - my poor family!!

Lately, I've been dealing with my (not) stepdad's health issues. [sidenote - he was my mother's significant other for twenty + years. He could be my stepdad if they had ever married.] His own children do not live close but they do check on him. I live ten minutes from him and I go over to clean occasionally. He's definitely reverted back to batchelor style living. My mother would be horrified at the amount of stuff and papers all over the place. He had a tendency towards hoarding so I try to ditch the junk as much as I can. He's a good guy, was always good to Mom but he's starting to really age and it makes me sad.

:::wiping eyes:::

Ok - enough heavy stuff for now... Time to walk away from the blog... 

Relaxing Sunday Snowmageddon!!

A little wacky here in NJ - it was out first official snowfall today! We got about 5 inches dumped down on us. Not that much snow but it did come down quite quickly, causing a mess on the roadways.

Olivia and her friends were in and out of the house - playing in the snow, making a mess. I got to run the dryer several times (thank goodness for dryers!), make popcorn, and hot chocolate. Paul shoveled the walkway and I cooked dinner, even grilling a steak in the snow flurries. It was awesome :)

The highlight of the evening - watching The Little Mermaid with the teenagers. Can you say fantastic? Made me reminisce about the times when they were younger. We would set up all the blankets and pillows on the floor, with all the stuffed animals, snacks, drinks, and fire up the VHS player. Ahhh - the good old days.. back when the girls looked like this..

My babies!! Now, they are so old and grouchy.. dang teenagers...

20 days 'til Christmas...

(also titled as All I Want for Christmas is a Job)

Unemployed. Between assignments. Unworking. Jobless.


It really sucks.


I left my job on July 19th to care for my mother. She had cancer and I think we both knew that the end was approaching. I was missing so much work in order to take her to appointments, cleaning her place, food shopping, cooking.. it was just too much to handle. Paul and I discussed it and he was 100% behind my decision to leave my full time job (office manager for a small business in town) in order to take care of my mom.

She died August 22nd.

Not shocking but still devastating. I miss her every day. (this will be another post.. sometime..)

Fast forward to December - still no income coming in from me.

There are a few positives to not working - I am home when my teens are done with school. That's a big bonus. By the time Paul and I would get home, there would have been multiple arguments (yay for sisterly love!), chores never completed, homework not EVEN started most times.. just your average disaster. Every. Damn. Day.

(Take a few minutes to check out Bill Cosby's comedy routine - The Same Thing Happens Every Night. This is my life.)

I was home to take care of Paul when he completely blew out his back. He was out of work for 8+ weeks.. He could barely even walk never mind sit or stand. Driving was completely out of the question. Thankfully, he has slowly been able to feel better. He's not 100% but he's leaps and bounds better than he was in September.

We had several college visits planned for September, October, and November for the 17 yr old. Again, I was home and available to drive her to those visits. I didn't have to worry about missing work. Paul was unable to attend those visits and was home with the 13 yr old, who took excellent care of him.

I have been trying to really keep our expenses as low as possible. I will have to go back to work very soon. There is not enough cushion to keep me home. I don't necessarily NEED to stay home but, heck, it's pretty nice to be able to food shop early in the morning and to get laundry done while no one is home. Dinner - everyone is happy now that I am preparing dinner every night.. too bad tonight's meal will be leftovers. Ha.

I've started eBaying. Clothes, books, collectible dolls, whatever I can unload, I'm trying to get it out the door. Heck, it's a start. If it isn't nailed down, I'm gonna sell & ship it outta here!

Well, off to do my mommy duties and finish making the beds. I feel like my life has turned 360 degrees since I originally started this blog 11 years ago. I was a SAHM, home taking care of my girls, cooking, and cleaning.

It never ends.

Who me? A Tiger Mom?

Even thought I am currently unemployed (and broke since we live in NJ), I do like the fact I am home for the girls. Yes, they are teenagers but I do enjoy the extra time with them.

The 17yr old is a senior in HS, she is running in many different directions. Staying on top of college apps, school clubs, horseback riding, AP and honors classes, then homework, homework, and more homework. I don't know how she balances it out. Well, yes, I do - she doesn't have a job and a car. So, I end up driving her around like she is Miss Daisy - lucky me. I can't complain.. she is a good girl and works so very hard. Still a bit scattered but slowly getting more organized every day. I hope she has it all together for college next year. WOOHOO!!

My 13 yr old, she's another story. Brilliant... but lazy . Soooo lazy. I hate having to nag her. When she turns everything in - boom! Straight A's. Other times, it's just crusing along... What the hell kid?? I am hoping that by the time she gets to HS next year, she will be more motivated. Husband and I are on top of her this year..thank goodness grades are online and it's just SO easy to contact teachers and guidance counselors.

I was just informed by my 17yr old that, in her circle of friends, I am referred to as the "white" Tiger Mom . I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not... I will take it as one :)

Photo test

It's gonna take some time to get used to this template.. I've been Facebooking for so long now. I still follow bloggers like Liz at This Full House. She's my hero.. my inspiration for blogging. Angie from MoodyMama is flat out amazeballs. Jenn from Mommy Needs Coffee is another amazing bloggy lady. Rachel from Pereiraville who is Just.That.Brilliant. My dream sistah from another mothah Housewifey Kate

And, of course, a shout-out to my friend Erin aka The Gigglechick whom I have known since, like FOREVER and helped me write code wayyy back when I had NO clue ::boy, things look so different in the bloggy world!::

A little about me as an update to the now four readers I *may* have :::waving::: Hi there!

•  Married for 20 years... to the same guy even!!
• Two daughters - a senior in HS and an eighth grader - Lord help me
• Currently unemployed - I left my job to care for my terminally ill mother who recently passed away from Non Hodgkins Lymphoma - Yeah.. cancer really freakin' sucks ass.
• My dad passed away in 2004 due to complications from Colon Cancer. Again, cancer SUCKS.
• We now own a dog (see previous post for a pic) and he has his own Instagram (@finnthecairn)
• Still living in Southern Ocean County
• Still dang boring

So, if you haven't followed me on Facebook or Twitter, I guess this is gonna be a surprise to you!!

I'm back!

:::tap tap tap:::

Well - looks like I may be starting up this old blog again.. only 11 years later!!

I have been reading my through my archives and laughing.. I had forgotten SO much about the girls. Unreal. My parents were still alive, I was still in my 30's... man.. how time does fly.

::sigh::

I will be updating the visual look of this blog. Heck, I think my hand-coded blog roll is most impressive but unfortunately, 95% outdated. I started blogging in November 2001. Holy cow.. seems like a MILLION years ago.

Now, it's Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Let's see if I can merge current with the past....and if any one else is even interested..

Hey - meet my buddy Finn - isn't he adorable?