I'm Back!

Just got back from being away for 6 days. Went to Philly to see my younger daughter Stephanie. She's in Grad school there. Then hubby and I saw my sister in NJ just across the river. After that drove down the highway to the D.C. area to visit a friend that I haven't seen in 10 years!! Couldn't believe it had been that long. We saw her and roamed around down on the Mall in D.C. to see the Korean War Memorial and the World War II Memorial - we hadn't seen those 2 before. Then, on to Luray Caverns. I was there when I was a child with my family. They are so magnificent!

And, would you believe that seeing all of these people I actually forgot to take pictures of them?! I really wanted a picture of my friend and me together and even mentioned it and totally forgot! One time I even left my camera in the car. Now, what kind of scrapper am I anyway?

Along the drive I got to stop at 3 different local scrapbook stores in 3 different states. Before I left on this trip I googled scrapbook stores and then called them to find out their hours and to see if they were actually still there. Most of them had closed up or were on vacation! So, I only got to go to 3 but I got some papers and things that I can't find in the stores at home so I'm a happy camper.

Now, back to the real world and home to rain, rain and even more rain and back to cooking.
:0)

Emergency Room

So, yesterday was a pretty typical sick day here with the 2 sick big kids. John did lots of sleeping a little eating and some drinking too. He seemed to have a little energy to look on the computer for a little bit, but he felt pretty crappy all day.

Tracy woke at 5 a.m. and, pretty much, coughed ALL day! Sure, there were short reprieved throughout the day but she couldn't sleep at all because whenever she tried to lay down the coughing would get worse and the cycle would start all over again. She was asleep on her feet. She was looking forward to "bed time" because then she could take the Nyquil and we thought for sure that would knock her out and then she'd really sleep.

Nope! She took it about 11 PM and by Midnight she still couldn't sleep. It was such an emotional night and she was just at her wit's end we decided to hit the ER.

I think only Tracy's wit can truly give the ER justice but in the end we came out of it with an Rx for a much stronger cough suppressant that would knock her out (and it did) and an inhaler for the Bronchitis. I need to get those filled this AM.

Would you believe that after we got into an ER exam room and waited for over an hour the coughing finally stopped?! Then when they gave her the medicine before we left, it started up again!

We got home at 4 AM. It's now 8:30 on Wed and she's still sleeping. They say, "never wake a sleeping baby." So, I'm not waking her. She's hasn't slept in so long. I feel so bad for her. Hopefully she'll feel rested when she does get up and she'll tackle the 2 page paper that's due today. At least she'll be able to email it to her teacher.

She's so worried about school! Well, that's another post.

Sick Day

What a day yesterday! First I take Tracy (octopusouphut) into the Immediate Care Center type of place because her doctor doesn't have time to even fit her in. I guess everyone is sick on Monday morning! We sit there for just over an hour before we're even called back and then she's seen by the doc for about 3 minutes and we walk out with a diagnosis of Bronchitis and an Rx for an antibiotic and a sheet of paper explaining that bronchitis is most likely a viral infection and that antibiotics will likely do nothing! So, why do they give them out like that??

Ok, so while we're waiting in the waiting room, Tracy gets a call from her boyfriend telling her that he's going home from work because he's got what she's got! Big surprise because he was nursing her all day on Sunday. So, instead of him taking the bus home and staying there by himself, I go and get him and take him to the same care center, get the same diagnosis and bring him to our house so I can look after both of them in the same location.

By the time all of this is done (oh yeah, I've also gone to the market for some immediate supplies) it's about 4:00 and we started about 9:30! What a day yesterday! The evening was a bit better but I was doing laundry most of the afternoon. But, that was my own doing. Since Tracy was sick over the weekend she couldn't get her laundry done, so I started doing it and a bunch more. I'm tired.

She woke up this a.m. coughing and the Robitussin just isn't cutting it. I will call the doc a little later. I guess no scrapping or errands today. At least John isn't coughing his head off like Tracy is.

Hopefully there will be a better post later. Thankfully this is not a serious illness and her diabetes hasn't played a critical role. :0)

So Much To Say!

First of all: No more March 12th Deadline for finishing Steph's college album. That's just not enough time to do it all in. I found even more pictures on the computer!! But, there are a lot of duds in there so I'm going to be pretty picky with those. She's coming home at the end of April, for a few days, so I think I can have it all finished by then. That will give me time to do some other scrapping and get caught up on other projects and other challenges. That should cure me of some of the color boredom.

And, YAY, I get to go to the SIS even in Tennessee in June! That is if I can get in when registration happens on Thursday. Hubby will drive down with me and then go off on his own. Not sure what he'll do but he can go exploring on his own. I wonder if Adam will go along and then they can have some "male bonding" time together like they did that one time in GA. :0)

I finally got the Doodling Formula book and it's really very helpful. I've started some practice stuff but only in my little journaling book, not on loose paper. I need to do a full sheet like she suggests, so I can run it through the copier.

I should probably get some things listed on Ebay soon. I know their policies have changed but I have all this stuff here to sell and they are my only outlet for my non-CPK things. So, the strike is officially over and I wonder what impact, if any , it has had. Probably not much and things will go on for them as usual. Too bad. They really do seem to have a hold on the on-line auction market.

Well, it's Sunday morning and I'm off to bake some banana muffins.
:0)

Adam's Home!

YAY! Adam came home on Friday. Did I mention that Adam Luther's been visiting his friends in Colorado for the past 3 weeks? Yes, Adam Luther, my main little guy, has his own circle of friends and he's been traveling on his own. After all, he is nearly 20 years old! Well, I've already written about all the ice around here last week. I had to meet the postman at the garage to get the box so he wouldn't have to walk up the icy front steps.

Adam really doesn't like traveling by box but when he goes solo he doesn't have any other choice. He really loves airplanes! But, when he goes by box he has to have his flashlight with him and a toy or something to help pass the time. This time he took Buster, the new puppy he got from friends at the holidays. Buster has been a constant companion since December. He got that toy frog while he was in Colorado. It was good to have him home. Whenever he's away I always get nervous about the US mail service and him getting damaged or lost. I'm sure I'll be posting more about Adam's adventure later on.

Weekend scrapping always gets put aside a little for me. Gotta spend a little time with my husband while he's home. I don't want him to feel neglected. So, we went bowling again. That makes 2 weeks in a row. Woohooo! I'm getting better, at least. First week no better than 65. This week I broke 100! We're going to try to keep this a weekly thing. He's gone on business till Wed so I should get some serious scrapping done in between a few short appointments (dentist & haircut).

So, gotta go and get it all started. Bye.

Pain in the Neck

I fell on Thursday morning. I felt fine afterwards. No bruises, no headaches, no concussion, no nothing. Now I have a real pain in my neck. I have normal neck stuff going on anyway but this feels different. I wonder if this could be some sort of delayed symptom and I could have jarred something in my heck when I fell and hit my head on the concrete?? But, of course, now it's Saturday and I can't call my doctor. So, if I really want to find out I'd have to go to an immediate care center type of place.

But, I DID get 3 more layouts done yesterday! YAY! At this rate maybe I will get Steph's album finished on time! After all, isn't that what's important?!

The Ice Man Cometh...

It's just not a good thing when you look out your window and the world looks shiny and glazed over! We had a terrible ice storm settle upon us yesterday. And so what did I do, or try to do? At dinner time (not earlier in the day) I attempted to go out to retrieve the mail from the mail box...at the curb. Have you ever seen the cartoon of a person slipping on a banana peel? That was me slipping on the ice, but I had only taken one step outside my garage. Yes, it did look shiny and glazed. Yes, for some reason, I did think I could make it to the grass. And, yes, my feet flew up in the air and I landed on my butt and then my head hit the concrete!. Luckily, I think, I had my hood on so I had a small bit of padding on my head. I'm okay but I do have a bit of a headache this morning! You would think my 50 year old self would have been smarter than this!

But I did get 3 1/2 layouts done yesterday! YAY!

P.S. As my DD posted in her comment, yes indeed, she did suggest that I take my cell phone with me when I attempted to go to the mailbox. That was using her noggin! Fortunately, I didn't have to use it. But it would have been a sight to see me, flat on my back, trying to get back into the garage. I had no traction! I couldn't push back into the garage. I couldn't stand up. I finally was able to roll over and crawl the few inches back to dry concrete. What a sight that must have been! Thank you OctoTracy!

TOTAL ECLIPSE!

This had to have been one of the coolest thing I had ever seen in my life - and I'm getting on there! I was even surprised more people in the neighborhood weren't out looking at this wondrous event! Their loss! I was out with my daughter, her boyfriend and a girlfriend. It was great, right outside our front door! Truly amazing to watch! (I took that photo!!)

On to books...just finished Water for Elephants. What a great, easy read but all about circus life in the depression era, but more! Highly recommended!

Now to my favorite subject du jour...Scrapping!!! I have finally finished Steph's senior year of college! YAY!!! One more year to go. Yes, she went to college for 5 years. So, what do we call it? Super Senior, Bonus year, Victory Lap? Any other ideas? Hmmmm.... Now, I'm on a mission to get it completely finished before we leave for Philly on March 13th. I know I don't need to but I would really like to. I love doing this for her but there are other projects I'd like to move on to. Not only do I need to get her 5th year finished but I need to add a little pizzaz to the pages I did in the beginning when she was really adamant about "no embellishing". Now, she likes it and says I can add some. I can really see how my style has changed through the book, though. Kinda neat.

Let's Try This Again...

Grrrrrr.... I typed this great post this morning, expressed myself wonderfully and then clicked the magic button and then....nothing...nothing saved. I lost it all. Not the greatest tragedy but I really liked what I wrote. Oh well. Let's try this again.

Today was President's Day. That meant that my husband was off of work. That meant that my normal routine did not happen today. But, we went bowling! I suggested it. I really wanted to scrap all day long but I knew that that wasn't going to happen. I hadn't been bowling in about a year and I really enjoy it. I know it's not major exercise but at least it's something.

Scrap, scrap, scrap. That's really all I want to do lately. Actually I really want to get my daughter's college album finished! I'm just about finished with year 4 with 1 more year's worth of precious memories to go. I love doing it but I'm getting a bit bored with the color scheme. All of it is basically done in black, white & red, with occasional cream and grey. It's a bit challenging to come up with new variations on the same old theme but I am getting really tired of it. I have to take breaks now and then and do something else for a day or two. But, I would like to have the whole thing completed by mid March as we're driving to Philly to see her and I'd like to bring it with us to give to her - just can't mail a thing like that.

I hope to be going to a scrapping convention in Philly in August sponsored by Creating Keepsakes. My sister lives in the area and I'd love her to go with me. I've been getting lots of great advice on what type of classes to take, etc. I've been wanting to do something with her this summer and this may be a good "something". I've also heard that there may be another scrap something going on in Nashville, TN in May or June. That would be great for my daughter and me - I like doing things with her also and there aren't too many things we have in common anymore. Scrapping is one thing we both really enjoy. I hope to find out more about that soon.

Yay! Off to scrap. I hop I don't lose this post too.

Scrap Happy

I found it. I found it. Thank you OctoTracy...you saved me1 I didn't know that Blogger saved my post as a draft. But, now I know. So, here's my original post. Yay. :0)


Scrap, scrap, scrap...that's all I want to do. Well, I do have to take time out to shop for scrap stuff too! Oh, and groceries, but that's it! No, only kidding...well, sort of. I even have my hubby doing the ironing and dishes. Good deal. Well, actually, I want to finish my daughter's college album before we leave to visit her in mid March so I guess I'm on a time crunch. Great reason to scrap day and night! But I really have my drawers chock full of great stuff to create with so I'm a happy camper, for a change.

I'm trying to impress on my husband that I'm really not spending all that much because I'm not spending on anything else. I've not gone to Macy's in months!! No new clothes at all...no shoes, no nothin'! So, it could be worse..........I could be gambling or something much worse. :0)

Hubby is off work today for Presidents Day. It cramps my style a bit but just a bit. I'll survive. We're going bowling. I'm supposed to move more. Scrapping doesn't have much exercise to it except going up the stairs to print pictures! Bowling isn't exactly strenuous exercise but it is something. I asked my Weight Watchers leader and she said it certainly does count, so I'm counting it. I like it because it is indoors and I really do enjoy it (and I don't have to break a sweat), so, we're gonna go.

Found out about some scrapping events going on this summer. There's one in the Philly area at the beginning of August sponsored by Creating Keepsakes magazine. That one sounds promising. I'm hoping that my sister, who lives in the same area, will go with me. The other one is in the Nashville, TN area...not exactly sure what it is but some people at Scrapinstyletv.com keep talking about it. I'm hoping to find out more. It's supposed to be in May or June. That would be great too because them maybe my daughter would be able to go with me. I like scrapping with her.