TGIF

I voted today. I decided to do it early cuz I've been seeing on the news how long the lines have been in other areas of the country. I worried that if I showed up on Election Day to a wrap around the building kind of line, I might have thought "screw this" and gone home. I mean I'm patriotic and all. But I don't know that I have the stamina to wait 8 hours in a line. Which I saw on TV some are doing. And that's to vote EARLY. Luckily, I timed it just right and went a little after 10am. I was in and out in 40 minutes. It was easy peasy. Now I don't have to worry about it.

I finally admitted defeat and went to the doctor today. For the second time in thirty days, might I add. Some bad sickness ju ju has been following me lately. Don't know what I did to deserve it. But ready for it to be done. My sinuses are so jacked up that it's spread into my ears. You know that feeling when your ears pop on an airplane? Both of mine are like that. They're so clogged up it feels like my head is gonna explode. And the end of my nose is a big ole ugly bunch of shredded dried up skin from too much nose blowing. I'm having to vaseline it up. Lovely.

I plan to spend the evening in my jammies watching Grey's Anatomy and Survivor. I missed both last night since I chose to go trick-or-treating with the T's. I'll have my neti pot and my hot pack close by. The doc suggested the hot pack to put on my ears and sinuses to help with pain. A nice cup of hot tea sounds nice, too. What an exciting way to spend a Friday night.

A far cry from my party girl days of coming home to nap on a Friday night. Only so I could go out clubbing at 10pm, dance on tables, close the bars, go to breakfast and then crawl my ass home at sun up. Ahhh... those were the days. I doubt I'll be doing that again anytime soon. Although the thought is much less appealing to me now that I'm just a few months shy of my 37th birthday.

Speaking of my neti pot, the T's and trick-or-treating....
I knew after spending a couple hours outside I'd have a fully congested head. So I took the neti pot to my sister's last night. Plus she had never seen one. So I demonstrated. But first I told the kids I was going to perform quite the magic trick. They were all captivated as Aunt Krista poured water up one side of her nose and made it come out the other side. They thought it was way cool. What can I say? Pouring water outta my nose for sheer entertainment value. That's just how I roll.

Now it's picture time. Tanner decided he was not only too cool to smile for a photo but he also bailed on us to go trick-or-treating with his friends instead.Here are the middle T's starring Teagan as a puppy, Tatum as a witch, and Travis as a disgruntled race car driver. Okay. I was just kidding about the disgruntled part. He just refused to smile for the pic.Tatum has been a witch in years past as you can see. But when given the choice of costume, she decided she wanted to be a witch again this year.But this time she wanted to be one with a green face. The problem was I think she may have gone to school with the remnants of that green paint still on her face. Cuz when I left the house last night her daddy couldn't get it all off. No matter how hard he tried. And he really tried. LOL!Now isn't this just too stinkin' adorable? She looks like one of those Anne Geddes dolls, doesn't she? This was actually a costume bought for Mia by Aunt Carla back before Tess was even a glint in her daddy's eye. You know, cuz of the whole ladybug-China adoption thing. But since Mia is still just a dream in all of our hearts, the costume got passed down to Tess. Kind of a twisted irony, eh? That Tess gets her cousin's hand-me-downs cuz "the idea of Mia" is older than "the idea of Tess".... but the "real life Tess" is going to be older than the "real life Mia". Now that's a brain teaser.Trick-or-treat action shot. LOL! I kept accidentally stepping on Teagan's tail. Which pissed him off to no end.This is why I love to go trick-or-treating with the kids. Just to see the look of sheer joy on their faces.Okay... maybe the candy has a little to do with it, too.Tess doesn't get what all the fuss is over candy. Oh just you wait, little one. It won't always be only all about the breast milk.All tuckered out after a hard day of being pushed in the stroller and carried everywhere. It's a rough life.

I've Become A Pot Head

Now don't go calling my social worker. It's all perfectly legal. My brother had mentioned these things to me awhile back. He has sinus issues like I do. But I never got around to getting one. Today at work after blowing my nose (or attempting to I should say) for the gazillionth time, another person suggested I try a neti pot.

So what is this thing, you ask? I'm sure some of you already know. But for those that don't, here's the deal. You take this little tea pot looking thing and fill it with lukewarm water. You drop in a saline solution. Then.. now get this... you stick it up your nostril and pour the water up your nose. Uh huh. You heard right. Make sure you lean over the sink though. Cuz the water comes right back out the other nostril.
Now let me tell you. There's nothing natural about pouring water up your nose. And the first time I did it the sensation of the warm water traveling up the side of my nose, across my forehead and back down the other side totally freaked me out. I accidentally swallowed a little salt water, too. Rookie mistake. Don't open your throat while you're doing it. I figured that out.

But see how the chick in the pic has a nice steady stream coming out the other nostril? My sinuses are so congested I had a drip. Like a leaky faucet. Drip drip drip. But the whole sinus rinse thing did help some. I'm breathing through my nose a tiny little bit now.

Oh and be warned... the things you'll blow out of your sinus cavity after this treatment... yikes! Who knew my head could hold that much snot? Sorry... TMI, I know. But you're reading about nasal irrigation. What did you expect? LOL!

I'm off to try again once more before bed. Maybe I might be able to sleep tonight if I can clear an airway. So who else is a pot head?

Tuesday - Bullet Style

• I just got done watching this show. With a big smile on my face cuz it brought back memories of my childhood. I called the T's to tell them it was on and the oldest T said they'd never seen it. Can you believe that? But I did see in the end credits that it was copyright 1966. It's older than me! I'll have to check back and see how the kids liked it. Considering how low tech it is compared to the stuff they're used to nowadays. Man... that totally made me sound like an old geezer, didn't it? Snoopy is my fave. I just love him. I have a raging cold. I know... sick again. I'm not having much luck with my immune system lately. My nose is so congested I can't breathe out of it most of the time. And no amount of blowing will help that situation. The only thing I've managed to do is make the tip of my nose red and raw. That should look great when it starts peeling.
• I lost my bullet up above. It just disappeared and I can't get it back. Hmmmmm....
• My raging cold caused me to miss a dinner invitation with Robin, Marty and Maddy, Paulette and Annalise, and Pipo. But since Annalise was heading to the hospital yesterday to prep for her surgery, I obviously couldn't risk exposing her to my germs. They'll be in town for awhile so I'm sure I'll get to visit with them at some point. Say some prayers that her surgery and hospital stay goes well.
  
• Speaking of Pipo... I think I know what she's naming her daughter. It came to me in a dream. Ya wanna know? It's Olive. Shhhh... it's a secret though. LOL!
• I'm sick of all the campaign commercials. I can't wait until this election is done. So over hearing about it. And yes ... I know it's the most important election of my lifetime...blah blah blah. But I'm still sick of hearing about it. Especially on my sibling's blogs and then watching them go at each other. My sister, the die hard Democrat, and my brother, who's just a die hard instigator. We all know who you two are voting for. And you won't change each other's view point. Done. New subject please. :)
  
• Gas is down under $2 a gallon in a few places locally. Yee haw!
• I hurt my knee at work today and had to go have an x-ray. It's not broken. But I have to wear a brace and go back in a week. If it still hurts I get an MRI. No I'm not gonna tell you how I did it. I'm thinking of making up a really dramatic story about chasing a mass murderer and tackling him. Whatcha think? That sounds like a good one. Much more impressive than the stupid thing I really did.
  
• I bonded with the nurse practitioner who treated me. We had two things in common. We were both married to lying cheating bastard policemen who we then divorced. (But we're not bitter. LOL!) And she has a very close friend adopting from China. Small world, huh? She's checking on her friend's LID to report back when I go for my follow up.
  
• I got to go watch Tatum at ballet practice yesterday. Normally it's behind closed doors. But it was "observation night". Unfortunately, her momma had to work. So I got to be the stand in. I'll try to post the pics tomorrow maybe. I must say... she's really very good. Yes, I'm a little biased. But seriously... she listens and follows direction very well. She knows almost the whole dance routine already without prompts from the teacher. She's a natural.
  
• Speaking of my sister, I'll be glad when she gets that damn Halloween music off her blog. Bette Mid-ler's cackling voice is driving me crazy. I'm subjected to it every time I go over to check out all the cute pics of my nieces and nephews. Not that I don't appreciate the Divine Miss_M. But the Hocus*Pocus music is a bit much, Carla. :P
• I've shed some tears over this whole tragedy involving Jennifer Hud-son's family. Such a sad, sad story. She's truly a bright shining star. It's just a shame this has happened. My prayers go out to her.
  
• And to end on a slightly happier note.... it's been reported the CC-AA is matching as we speak. Or as I type and you read, I should say. Here's to hoping they get thru the end of February. Okay.... long shot, I know. How about just to Ozimum and Pipo this batch then?
  

Fall Festival Pics

A couple weekends ago my sis and I took the 3 youngest T's to a Fall Farm Festival. The older boys were having a sleepover at Grandma's house. And Daddy got a free day of peace and quiet all by himself. So now I subject you all to our day of fall fun.... even though it was 80 degrees outside.

Tess is thinking... "Am I gonna like this place?"

Tatum, Teagan and a couple of cute (expensive) painted pumpkins.

On top of Monster Mountain waiting to go down the big slide.

They were loving this thing.

Tess just hanging around with Mommy.

I think they would've done this all day if we'd let them.

The traditional pic of our heads in the farm sign. LOL!

Teagan enjoying a donut.

Check out the hair on all 3 of these T's. Now do you see why we were so surprised when this one came out with the head full of dark? Daddy is still questioning Mommy about that. LOL!

Tatum eating a cookie.

Grooming the goats.

Tatum just adores her little sister. I think she's just happy she's no longer the only girl in the family.

Looking very ornery in the hay loft.

That's why. A hay cannonball. Or maybe it's a belly flop.

Hope Your Weekend Is Happy!

Cool, eh?

I haven't been shopping for Mia in awhile. Every now and then if I see something that looks interesting I'll pick it up. But for the most part, I'm over the whole shopping thing. At least until this adoption becomes a little more real, ya know. Like I might actually have a baby someday to go with all this baby stuff I've managed to accumulate over the past 2+ years. Anyway, I digress.

I was bored the other day so I decided to check out all things penguin on E*Bay. And look what I found. He's a mesh bag that suctions on to your bathtub wall to hold bath toys.Perfect for me, isn't it? I mean, for Mia........
:)

The Candle Controversy

Remember a couple of weeks ago when the family got together to celebrate my mom's birthday? And how my smart ass sister decided to put 60 actual birthday candles on the cake? Well, you'd expect she'd still have some of those candles left, right? Especially since there were some brand new ones in those boxes that didn't get burned.

But we all know how wives communicate things to their husbands. And then how husbands actually interpret those words into something maybe slightly different than what the wife meant. Right? I was married once. I remember how that stuff works.

So my sister told the hubs to throw out the candles. Meaning the burnt up, half melted ones that were on the cake. He interpreted that to mean literally what she said. Throw out the candles. All of the candles. Even the unused ones. Well, that's a guy for ya.

Last night while the family was over to celebrate my brother's birthday it came time to do the cake part. And here is where the controversy began. No candles. Well, you can't have a birthday cake and sing the birthday song without the ceremonious blowing out of the candles. So what to do? What to do?

We began searching the house for something acceptable to burn on top of the birthday cake. Lil' Travis thought we should use this holiday pillar. Uh...... no.
Everyone waits with anticipation as we try to figure out a solution to this dilemma.
Hmmmmm..... any ideas? We need to improvise here, people.
Here's the candle-thrower-outer himself. But you have to give the experienced father of five credit at least for being able to juggle a baby in one hand and light candles with the other. That's right. We solved the problem.
With tea light candles! A little ghetto maybe but they get the job done. LOL! Hey... that's just how we roll.
Travis finally got to blow out his candles. With a little help from Braeden, his step-son. If my brother were actually married to his girlfriend, I mean. (No pressure though.)
For some reason, Braeden needed to smell the cake. Which I thought was funny and decided to snap a pic of.
Hope you enjoyed your birthday party, little brother.

PS. By the way.... did you check out the mad linkage in this post? That's cuz we're a blogging family. We all have our own blogs. It's quite addicting, you see. But be warned, if you click over to my brother's blog you may be offended. Unless you have a sick, twisted, raunchy sense of humor like the rest of my family. It's definitely not your typical blog. And some of the inside jokes you won't get. Cuz no matter how old they get, little brothers never grow out of annoying their sisters.

Neighbors, Bad Guys and Dirty Roofs

• What do they all have in common? Nothing really. But they're the subjects of my bullets today. So read on.
• My wonderfully amazing awesome next door neighbors finally sold their house .... much to my chagrin. I hated to see them go. Their son was the same age as Tanner and their daughter the same as Tatum. After all the years they've lived next door, the kids had finally become friends just within the last year. The T's will be sad they've moved away. Plus the wife was pregnant again and due in January. With a girl. I was so excited to know I'd have a built in playmate for Mia right next door. Damn... this sucks. Not to mention all the times the husband mowed my grass, shoveled my snow or just helped with little odd jobs. I'm really really gonna miss them. But we've vowed to stay in touch.
• The new neighbor is a single guy. Haven't met him yet. But he closed on the house at 4pm. And at 2am woke me up when he decided to move a few things in. Not the best way to make a good first impression in the neighborhood. Seriously. I mean who is this guy? Dracula? Who moves into a house in the middle of the night?
• I got called in to work this morning to help with a bank robbery. It seems only one Robbery Detective was willing to give up their Saturday. They pretty much always call in 2 detectives for anything. So the Robbery Squad Sergeant called the Burglary Squad Sergeant to see if any of us were willing to help out. And he still went thru the 4 more senior people on the squad before getting down to me. I guess no one wanted to work on their day off. Hey... overtime is overtime, people. I've got a baby on the way. If someone wants to throw money at me, I'll catch it.
• The bank robber said he did it cuz he lost his job, his house was in foreclosure and his wife just left him. I kinda felt sorry for the guy. I guess it's just a sign of the times. But he didn't plan it very well. The getaway car was his own. And he robbed a bank that was inside a grocery store. Which means double the surveillance cameras. And extra time burned trying to run from the bank, thru the store to the exit. Pretty dumb idea. Maybe he wanted to get caught. Maybe he decided jail was a better alternative for him at this point. Like he had nothing else and nowhere to go. Sad. Very sad. We let him make a phone call to a family member cuz he was very cooperative with us. He told them to box his stuff up and put it in storage because he wouldn't be home for years. Can you imagine being on the receiving end of a phone call like that? I mean how do you react to that news?
• Here's another crazy story. Myself and another detective served a search warrant on Thursday to recover a bunch of stolen property. This female and her boyfriend had broken into a house, brought a U-haul with them and then just basically went shopping inside this person's house picking and choosing what they wanted. Took a couch, loveseat, chairs, end tables, lamps, mattresses, and other odds and ends. She said she just moved into a new apartment and needed furniture. Seriously. But she didn't admit to breaking in to the house. She came up with this bullshit story about buying the furniture from the guy who lived in the house. She was nice as pie until she realized we were taking her to jail. Then she became a raging bitch spitting out insults at us. As she was being escorted into the jail by the corrections officer she said something about how we were probably even gonna vote for Mc-cain. The other detective and I just looked at each other and cracked up laughing. I've been called a lot of things in this line of work but that's the first time a suspect has brought politics into it. Guess you had to be there..... but it was funny. That line just didn't fit with all the other nastiness she was spewing. Unless you're like my sister and a die hard Ob*ma supporter. Then I guess that would've been totally offensive. LOL!
• Sea Star just called to chat while I was in the middle of typing this post. She was on her way to Home D*epot to buy bleach to clean her roof. I know her IRL and have been to her house. So I've seen firsthand that she's a little OCD with the cleaning thing. (love ya babe.) But I was like WTF? Who the hell cleans their roof? I'd never even heard of such a thing and can positively say I've never seen any of my neighbors do this. Nor have I done it. So it started a discussion about how Sea Star's neighborhood requires homeowners to clean their roofs. Which I thought was absolutely insane. I mean the thought of climbing up on my roof to power wash it. No freakin' way am I doing that. Sea Star was shocked by my reaction and asked "But how do you get all the mold and stuff off it?". To which I replied "It's a freakin roof! Who cares?!". So she and I decided I should blog this story and ask the very important questions.... Do you clean your roof? Do your neighbors? Or do you agree with me that it's a ridiculous idea? We're both very curious to see the responses.

Happy Birthday Little Brother!

Today is our baby brother's birthday. Okay ... maybe the "baby" part doesn't really fit anymore. But he was the youngest when we were growing up. Not counting my dad's 2nd marriage kids, of course. But since they were born when the three of us were in our teens we didn't really all grow up together. It was just us three musketeers for the most part. This is a pic from a couple years ago. The family is getting together this weekend to celebrate. So until then.....

Happy Birthday Travis!!
P.S. For those of you who pay attention.... yes my sister's 2nd born is named Travis also. Travis Ryan actually. After both of our brothers. Nice touch, eh? We siblings have a thing for that naming our kid's after each other deal. Teagan Christopher's middle name is for me. And Mia Renee will share a middle name with her aunt, Carla Renee.

We Did It!

I just got this e-mail from JCICS. It looks like we won the fight!

Joint Council Update
Program Advocacy
Date October 14, 2008
Regarding I-600A Process

Dear Families & Friends,
After advocating on behalf of adoptive families for the past 6 months, Joint Council is very pleased to confirm that USCIS has announced a very positive ruling concerning the I-600A process.

In summary, it is our understanding that, effective immediately, families who filed Form I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition, prior to April 1, 2008 and whose USCIS approval of that petition (aka the I-171H) has not expired, will be able to proceed with their adoption under the I-600A process if they take certain steps while their approval remains valid. This means that families with valid Form I-600A approvals will not be required to transition to The Hague process via Form I-800A. In order to maintain their status as ‘grandfathered’ cases, families with non-expired Form I-600A approvals must request a one-time free extension. Then, prior to the expiration of the one-time free extension, families must file a new Form I-600A and pay the appropriate fee.

It is also our understanding that families with a Form I-600A approval that has expired and who have not obtained an extension or filed a new Form I-600A, will need to undertake the Hague process. The Hague process will also apply to any petitioner who has not completed their adoption by 2014.

Woo Hoo!! This means I can stay with the I-600a. I don't have to switch to the I-800a!!! Unless my adoption isn't completed by 2014. Let's just say... I can't even imagine that! You have no idea how happy this makes me. I feel like a weight's been lifted off my shoulders. I can breathe a little easier now. This ruling will save me money, time, effort and an unlimited amount of stress and worry. I'm so grateful.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who supported this fight not just for me but for all waiting families.

PS. I can't think of any better way to celebrate my 28 month log in date anniversary than with great news like this!

Important Stuff Here

I'm taking a break from the fluff and nonsense that I normally post. This is serious business here. No seriously..... it is. Those in the adoption circuit are already hearing about all this I-600a/ I-800a stuff. I probably don't really need to explain it all.

I will say that it directly pertains to me and could adversely effect my adoption if I'm forced to switch to an I-800a. You see, my agency is not Hague accredited. From what I'm reading, if I have to switch to an I-800a that means I have to be with a Hague accredited agency. Since I'm not, I'd have to switch agencies. Which could mean that I have to start over from scratch. Which would really suck since I've already been in line for 28 months. But more importantly, I don't qualify under China's new regulations. So I can't start over. I'd be out. Done. No adoption. No Mia.

The only thing I know for sure right now is that everyone... and I mean everyone ... is interpreting this thing differently. I've read all kinds of theories and opinions on the internet from individual bloggers, from message boards, from Rumor Queen, from the JCICS, and from the USCIS websites. My agency has their own theories but have not put anything in writing to me and quite frankly I'm not sure that I completely trust what they're saying. My homestudy agency doesn't even know what I'm talking about. That's not comforting but par for the course it seems.

The bottom line is things would just be so much easier if those of us who started their adoptions pre-Hague and pre-China's new regulations were "grandfathered in" and allowed to continue extending their I-600a until the adoption is completed.

I'm not even saying for free. I've already gotten my one time free renewal. I have no problem paying for another one. Well, I mean it sucks and is not fair...but with this whole adoption process I've pretty much gotten used to that. Haven't we all, right? I just don't want to switch to the I-800a.

Anyway I'm adding some linkage here for all of you to get involved. I've already done my part. And I can tell you that it really truly only takes a few minutes to do. So do it.

Sign the petition here before October 16th. The goal is 20,000 signatures.

There's also a blog devoted to this issue and fight. Find it here.

Read about the Joint Council On International Children's Service Position on I-600a Renewals here. Most importantly look at the 5 ways you can help here. Send your e-mails and contact your Congressional representatives on October 14th, 15th and 16th.

As adoptive parents, we all need to stick together and support each other. Even if you're already home with your children. These changes are effecting all of us that are still waiting in one way or another. And if we're forced to switch to the I-800a it could be bad. Potentially very, very bad for some of us.

Friday Catch Up

I'm finally starting to get over this bird flu or whatever it was that I had. I'm telling you ...this stuff really laid me out. I was so exhausted I was in bed some nights even before 9pm. That's so not like me at all. Thank goodness my throat no longer feels like I'm swallowing razor blades and my ears aren't throbbing. Unfortunately, I still can't lose the cough and all the drainage. Sorry... TMI. But the doc said I had a bad sinus infection and that might take awhile to work it's way out. Whatever the case may be... I think I may be nearing the end of this. Finally.

The bird flu caused me to miss my get together last weekend with PIPO, Sandra, and the polar bear chick. I was disappointed. But after reading about their day, I knew I made the right decision. There was no way I could've hung all day without a nap thrown in. LOL!

I had to qualify yesterday. Which means shoot for score. I have to do it twice a year to remain in my job. I kinda sucked this time. I shot an 88 with my duty gun and a 90 with my off duty gun. Not happy with those numbers. But I'm blaming the bird flu since my stamina hasn't been up to par the last couple weeks. Oh and I coughed through the entire hour which didn't help either. Today my shoulder is sore cuz we have to shoot a shotgun course, too. That shotgun is brutal. It's heavy and it'll knock you on your arse if you don't handle it properly.

I thought I scored big time the other day when I filled my tank for $3.16 a gallon. But yesterday I drove by a station with gas at $2.95. Damn I shoulda waited. But at least the price is going down.

I'm off work today cuz I had to work last Sunday. Happy I got to sleep in this morning. I'm still in my pj's. Love that.

This week I've gotten a couple of cases that didn't sit well with me. Not that any of them do...but these bothered me more than usual. One involved an 84 yr old man who was awakened by a burglar trying to get his wallet from between his mattress and box springs. Yes... while the man was sleeping in the bed. Ballsy, eh? The burglar hit him a couple times with something that left him with a completely swollen shut eye and stitches in his head. Now why is that necessary? To hit an old man like that? The other involved an 82 yr old man and 2 young punks who forced their way into his home at gunpoint to rob him. They didn't hurt him but he was very shaken up. Understandably so. I really really hate cowards who target children or the elderly. What has this world come to? Some days I wonder where we're all going to end up when there are so many people running around with no conscience. And it worries me.

Geez... that was a downer. I need to think of something happier for my next bullet.

I know... referrals are up to February 15, 2006. But a bloggy buddy of mine just got notified that she's getting a referral today even though she was told her LID is 2-16. What's the deal? Referrals came out last week. So is this another batch? A mistake made by someone at CC_AA? Or maybe her agency told her the wrong LID and all this time she thought she was 2-16 but was really 2-15? Whatever the case may be... it's good news!

So that means there's only 4 months worth of people in front of me in line. Seems so close... yet still so far away. I'm still guess-timating a referral for me in summer of 2010. But that's okay. I'm back to my zen place with the wait. Mia will come when she's supposed to. I'd like her sooner rather than later. But I've made peace with mid-2010.

Alright... that's about all I can think of for right now. I'm off to find something to eat for lunch. And I think I'll pull my Fall decorations out this afternoon. I didn't put them out last year cuz I was in a major not-in-my-zen-place-about-the-wait funk. But I think I wanna decorate now. I love this time of year!

Happy Birthday Mom

Technically this post is belated birthday because it was actually yesterday. But the family got together to celebrate the day before her birthday. So it all evens out , right? Anyway... my mom turned 60 on October 6th. 60 years old, peeps. That's huge! My brother and I took her out for a nice steak dinner. Then we went over to my sister's house for cake and presents.

My smart ass sister was in charge of getting the cake. She decided she wanted 60 individual little candles on it. Seriously. It was no easy feat to light all of them. It took 3 of us. And even so there was still candle wax dripping all over while we were burning our fingers and singeing off arm hairs. Here's the finished product. This pic cracks me up. Can you see the look on mine and Tatum's faces? Our mouths are hanging open in sheer astonishment of all that fire. That thing generated some heat!
She managed to blow them all out in one breath. But then we all started coughing and choking on the smoke. LOL! We thought the smoke detectors might go off at any second.

This homemade birthday card is hysterical. If you like raunchy humor, I guess. But ya gotta give the 11 yr old props for artistic creativity. I like how he captured the aroma of the fart with the deep green color. And the chef holding his nose just makes the illustration seem so realistic. But just in case you couldn't see the small details, he pointed out the "lighter in hand" so there was no question the guy was actually lighting the fart on fire. LMAO... no pun intended.
This is the cake after we slaughtered it. Everyone was very precise about which piece they wanted. Some wanted corners. Some wanted flowers. Some wanted the middle. This was the end result. The birthday cake massacre.

I forgot my camera so there are just a few pics that I swiped from my sis. It was a nice evening with the fam. I hope you enjoyed your birthday mom! The big 6-0!!

Crud, Crud, Crud

Well, going back to work on Tuesday was a little premature. I was trying to avoid having 2 sick leave occurrences within 2 weeks of each other. But I failed. I'm still down for the count. I haven't been this sick in a really long time.

I finally caved in and went to the doctor yesterday but only because I was so miserable. I hate going to the doctor and try to avoid it at all costs. No offense to any doctors. But avoiding it was a really bad call on my part. I have strep throat, a double ear infection and a really nasty cough. And if I just hadn't been so damn stubborn I probably would've been rid of this by now. Instead of on day seven of crud.

I saw these pretty pink and green flowers while I was waiting for my prescriptions to be filled. I brought them home to cheer me up a little. Since I'll be spending several more days staring at them from the couch. I'm off to watch the debate and have some hot tea. Should be an interesting evening.
PS. I'm really hoping to be well enough to keep my plans with some bloggy buddies on Saturday. But I'll be playing it by ear. So we'll see.