Wordless Wednesday

Because I Take My Alcohol Seriously

I shared with you that Michael and I went to North Carolina & to the beach on Bald Head Island. But did I mention critters? Not the cute fuzzy ones. The kind that bite and make you itch?

I first noticed what appeared to be mosquito bites. Each day I had a few more. I found 2 on my face on the plane ride home. I couldn't wait until I got home and could sleep in my own bed. But the next day, and the day after, I had new bites. So I did what any of you would have done. I got on the internet.

I searched for words like scabies, ticks, bedbugs, sea lice...anything that could possibly explain the red, itchy welts. I didn't like the things I read. Paranoia seeped into my being. I began cleaning like crazy, but I couldn't figure out why I was the only with spots. Michael and I sleep in the same bed, just as we did on vacation.

It didn't matter. I was determined to make sure no critters came home with me. In addition to Bendadryl gel and Cortisone cream, I began rubbing my spots with alcohol. I ran out of alcohol, so made a quick trip to the store. Once there, I grabbed a bottle and was about to leave when I noticed this:

I've always bought 70% Isopropyl alcohol. But wow, 91%!? More is always better, right? I snatched up both kinds of rubbing alcohol and brought them home.

I also decided to wash all of my clothes. I don't normally mix whites with colors or darks, but I did. Afterall, they were MY clothes. It turned out to be a small load, so at the last second, I threw in 1 shirt and pair of jeans that belonged to another family member. They'd be fine. And they were fine. It was my clothes that weren't. Who puts an ink pen in their pocket???

It went right through the wash and straight into the dryer-where I didn't notice. But when I pulled the clothes out of the dryer, including 2 new shirts, boy were they decorated prettily with indigo blue ink. Ugh!

I was so happy that I'd bought two new bottles of alcohol, especially that 91%. These are the spots:

I poured a bit of the alcohol and look at that ink dissolve. (And this is a week later when I got around to it.)



Would you look at that?! It's like a miracle.


A close up of the bigger spot:


I did use half a bottle. Like I said, I take my alcohol seriously.

My bites are gone. And so is the ink. I love alcohol.

6 Truths No Lies/UPDATED

Hi Mom! We’ve hijacked your blog. Surprise!
As your children we so thoroughly enjoyed being stumped by your truths that we figured you would enjoy a good stumping in return.

6 kids and 6 truths that have, until this point, remained secret
Some of them are funny, some of them are naughty but all of them are incidents that you don’t know about…which if you know anything about yourself; it’s pretty hard to keep a secret from you.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to correctly match each kid to his/her secret truth.
Your prize: the satisfaction of being right…again…like always…

1. When I was 16 I was pulled over for going 15+ mph over the speed limit after curfew and talked my way into a written warning.

2. After being involuntarily placed in the back of a cop’s car I was able to talk my way out of it.

3. I got suspended from school for skipping class and talked the administration into letting me sign the parent notification form.

4. I was handcuffed by cops when they broke up an underage drinking party but talked my way out of it by fabricating a bogus medical condition.

5. I violated numerous traffic laws when I drove the wrong way on a street and in the process damaged one of your vehicles to the point of needing repair.

6. When I was 16 I snuck two six packs of Smirnoff Ice into my bedroom and drank them by myself.


THIS WAS NOT WRITTEN BY JOANNE (LIVE4TRUTH) BUT BY HER CHILDREN
Christina, Christopher, Lauren, Elisabeth, Sarabeth, Hilary
(Elisabeth's comment in revealing the answers:WELL! Mom you didn't do very well, but, you and dad tied for first place with 2 correct answers. But I guess you have waited long enough, here are the correct answers:
1. Hilary
2. Lauren
3. Christina
4. Elisabeth
5. Sarabeth
6. Christopher
The good news is, none of us got in trouble for these incidents..
Hahahahaha We love you :))
Originally posted 6/2/09 8:07 p.m.

Mom Wants In On The Action

Okay, these were too good not to post. My mom (grandmother to lots of you) made these comments, and in case you missed them, this is what she had to say:

"Okay, your Dad directed me to your blog about the 9 truths and 1 lie. I had it down to two and one was the lie. I think I would remember if a child of mine came home hurt. But how well do you know your mother?????"

1. I was sitting behind my boyfriend on his motorcycle, when he took off so fast that he left me sitting in the middle of the street.

2. I once jumped off the roof of our garage and hit my head on the clothesline pole and knocked myself out.

3. After attending an all night party I went to sleep in the backseat of a car in a parking garage while my boyfriend was taking a three-hour test for a job.

4. I spun around 360 in my car on the freeway but did no damage to the car.

5. I once had a major toy company steal one of my creative ideas. I found out about it when it was published in a toy trade magazine.

6. After being pulled under the water in the ocean by an undertow, I was washed ashore.

7. I had an out of body experience during childbirth with my fourth child when I stopped breathing.

8. While eating a salad in a restaurant, a worm crawled out of the lettuce.

9. After wearing out the sole of my shoe, I had to stuff newspaper in my shoe to wear them.

10. I once was pulled over by a police office for going too slow on the freeway.

I'm not going to say what I think the answer is right away. I want to hear from others, especially grandkids, what they think is the correct answer. Then I will share my guess (since I do know some that are true for sure.)

Thunk Thursday

At the grocery store, on the cereal aisle, I noticed like cereals were not place next to each other. They were sorted by size. I took a picture of a 12.2 oz. box of Apple Jacks on the left, and a 17 oz. box on the right.

Why would I buy the smaller box, when I can buy the bigger box for 40 cents cheaper and get nearly 5 oz. more??? Oh wait, maybe the free camera I can send away for costs more than the free Disney Pal that is already packed inside the box.

I'm going for the cheaper price & the free toy, lol.

The First Day Of Summer

Thursday May 28th, 2009
I slept in this morning. I was very tired last night, but that didn't keep me from staying up late. After watching the Denver Nuggets lose to the L.A. Lakers, I watched the George Strait special. For those who don't know, while in North Carolina we went to a George Strait concert. Did I mention how much I love George Strait's music?

And then I stayed up later, just because I can. Today is the first day of summer vacation. No getting up at 6:15a.m. to an alarm clock. No lunches to pack. Blissful sleep.

Tuesday June 2, 2009
It doesn't feel like summer. It is 46 degrees outside and raining.

Creatures of N.C.

Furry Friend


A friendly fellow

Turtles

One armed crabs

Sorry, blurry beatle

This is supposed to be the alligators

But it was cloudy and they didn't come out that day.

When it was good and dark, we went to see bioluminescent plankton. It was the most amazing thing. I've never seen a firefly before, but this is a similar phenomenom. After the waves of water would wash ashore, if you stirred up the sand just a tad, it sparkled like stars.

Some beach finds.

We had a lesson in Poison Ivy & Michael had a run-in with a tick.

Tuesday Truths Revealed

So, the Nuggets lost.  Very disappointing loss.

Now for the answer to Tuesday Truths.  I threw the winning guesses into a basket and drew out the winning guess.  The winner is....Lauren!  She was the only one to guess correctly. Congratulations Lauren.

There you have it.  My secrets revealed.

Truth Test

For anyone who is still wondering what I lied about in Truth Tuesday, I've decided that I will reveal the false truth tonight. Right after the Nuggets win. So anyone who wants to guess has from now until the end of the game, which begins at 7:00p.m. Mountain Standard Time.

After the game, I will take all of the correct guesses, put them in a basket, and draw out a winning answer. If the Nuggets lose tonight, I won't be in a celebratory mood. So the winner will receive a $5.00 gift card to Starbucks. But if they win, I will make it a $10.00 card. I said only U.S. residents could win, but Lauren mentioned she has a Starbucks near her. I just am not sure whether or not they would take a gift card.

So see you all later tonight if you are interested.

Not-so Wordless Wednesday

Michael asked me last night which one of my truths was not true. I laughed as I hadn't thought about whether or not he knew the answer. I'd also considered letting everyone guess and taking all of the right answers, throwing them in the hat, and sending the winner a $5.00 Starbucks gift card. (Provided that person lives in the U.S.)

And then I realized that to reveal the answer might cause me to explain a lot of stories from the past, lol. What-to-do.....I'll let you all guess a little longer.

In the meantime, this would have been my ww post for today:

Truth Tuesday

I started to write a Monday Musings, but realized it was Tuesday. What can I do for Tuesday? How about Truth Tuesday? Just for fun, I'm going to list ten truths and 1 untruth. See if you can figure out which one is not true.

1. Growing up, I was painfully shy.
2. I've never shoplifted.
3. I had a pet boa constrictor snake and carried him around in my shirt pocket until he got too big.
4. On a first date with this guy, I stepped off a curb, and fell face down in a parking lot, scraping the skin off of my nose. The guy was laughing so hard, he didn't even help me up. And I was dumb enough to go out with him again.
5. In junior high, I set a school trash can on fire.
6. One of my kids was born with a knot in her umbilical cord.
7. I've walked naked on the beach before.
8. I don't have a favorite child, even if my kids think I do.
9. In high school, I asked my boyfriend if I could hold the keys to his Camaro. My girlfriend and I drove it to McDonald's for lunch, even though she couldn't drive a stick and I didn't have a license. I shifted while she worked the clutch. That boy must have trusted me.
10. I've fallen asleep at the movie theater before. Okay, more than once.
11. I love escargot, but haven't eaten it in almost 30 years.

Thunk Thursday

While driving through North Carolina, we passed a gas station/convenience market. We laughed when we noticed their sign:



Yum! Worms with my coffee please.

Reflections

Here I sit, soaring through the night sky. The droning engine roar dulls the lively banter of the passengers in the row behind me. But not enough. I pull out my ipod, close my eyes, and reflect on this past week. The music soothes and I drift back over the events and places I've experienced. I lived the life of someone else for 7 days, an unfamiliar journey.

We boarded a similar plane back in Denver last Monday. After a brief stopover in Atlanta, Georgia, we landed in Charlotte, North Carolina for my first trip to the East Coast.

At this moment, Brad Paisley's song "Better Than This" sings in my ears. I find it amusing. A group of men sitting around enjoying the moment and proclaiming, "it don't get better than this." He responds, "it could get better than this." But adds outlandish, impossible scenarios to point out the only way to improve their experience. Pretty much sums up my time in North Carolina. I'd be hard pressed for it to have been any better.

I'm not sure I'm ready to go back to my life. The last meal I prepared was 154 hours ago. Cooking meals is a part of my life, but that seems so far away.

I am laughing now. My ipod is set to shuffle. Brad Paisley again, "I'd like to check you for ticks." I wasn't sure this was a real thing. Seriously. But while on Bald Head Island, after an adventure in the woods, our brother-in-law was teasing us about checking for ticks. Or so I thought. A few minutes after returning to the condo, Michael found a real live tick on his leg. It wasn't the highlight of our trip, lol. Here is Old Baldy himself:

Wordless Wednesday Remote

Bald Head Island

Be back next week.

Wordless Wednesday

Christina & Ethan at the Autism Walk

(I haven't seen Ethan for a few weeks. He looks so tall.)

Apparently I don't know the meaning of wordless post.

Lifelines

I hope to get back to normal thoughts soon. I find myself spending ridiculous amounts of time checking labels on foods, running to the computer to check if ingredients are gluten-free, and rethinking/reworking meals and recipes. If you've dropped by Recipes4me recently, you have an idea. Thanks to everyone who has offered links, suggestions, etc.

Have you ever watched the television show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? The contestant is asked questions and given 4 answers to each. When he finds himself unsure of the correct answer, he can use a lifeline. A lifeline can be the audience, a friend, or 2 of the wrong answers will be eliminated, leaving 2 choices instead of 4.

Life is like this. Along the way, we make choices. Sometimes we choose wisely. Other times not. We receive plenty of information and input to help us along this journey. Some may be striving to achieve fortune, as in the t.v. show. Others success in business. Many operate in survival mode, hoping they don't run out of lifelines, knocking out their chances at life.

In the televised gameshow, eliminating choices helps to minimize the chance of making an error. In society, have we caused ourselves greater destruction in allowing the all-ecompassing "tolerance" stand? We can now choose destructive lifestyles that should never have been allowed as an option.

Getting feedback from the audience often seems like a wise choice. The few times I've watched the program, the majority of the audience picks the right answer. "There is wisdom in a multitude of counselors."

Who is our audience? Where do we seek guidance in making decisions? Peers? Do we watch and listen to the media, where perversion begins to appear normal? Everyone does and acts this way so as long as the majority seems to accept this it is ok to do?

Who is the lifeline that we choose as our closest confidant? Contestants choose friends or family members they believe will have expertise or knowledge in subjects. They can then choose to call on that person to ask the question and receive that person's answer. Then they have the choice of using it or not.

How many of us walk through life without having a sure lifeline? It seems obvious to me that God is the perfect, one and only lifeline to run to for help in making life choices. When we are in close contact with Him, we don't have to ask as often. The choices are clear. But when we are stumped, do we dial him up in prayer to ask? And when He gives us the answer, do we accept it? Or do we doubt and say, um...no, I think I'll go with this answer over hear. The audience groans at the response, knowing full well, the person just chose the wrong answer. Is this the day he will be eliminated from the game of life? Could he have stayed in the game a little longer, been more successful, if he'd only listened to his lifeline?

Still Learning

Learning is a good thing, right? My brain is overloaded at the moment. The internet is both a blessing and a curse. I'm thankful the information is out there, but wading through it causes me to sink to drowning point. While my head spins from trying to swim, I'll share my enlightenment.

I learned yesterday, that my daughter Elisabeth, has Celiac Sprue. After all of these years, it is nice to finally have an answer to her many symptoms. Unfortunately it feels like a lifetime sentence. Over the weekend, I read about this disease. The puzzle pieces started to form a picture.

I was shocked at the vast number of ailments CS can cause. Elisabeth exhibits so very many of them. A part of me was hopeful. A simple diet change could alter her life in a positive way. Just remove wheat gluten from her diet. Life is good again. I was almost elated when she received the diagnosis yesterday. But then the reality of it began its hostile takeover.

Breads, pasta, cookies...ok, that sounds hard, but we can do this. (Elisabeth, if you are reading this, stop. You've already thought about this.) Pizza, ramen, chex mix, frosted mini wheats, triscuit crackers-a sampling of favorite snacks that are banned. Breakfast burritos, Chick Filet, Cheeseburgers, Burger King Chicken Sandwiches; the quick fast-food fixes are out. This is getting harder.

I had no idea the foods which might contain wheat gluten: sour cream, yogurt, french fries. Apparently condiments can also hide this now evil ingredient, so labels have to be read for salad dressings, ketchup, mustard are just a few. Soy sauce, that I cook with so frequently, has a major wheat component.

Sigh.

I'm also thinking that Elisabeth's bout with "shingles" was actually not shingles, but a symptom caused by CS.

Whatever am I going to do with my recipe page? It might receive a transformation, with a new section of gluten-free. I'm open to advice from anyone who has successfully embraced a gluten-free diet.

Maybe this is a new opportunity for adventure. I need to come up with the perfect gluten-free diet. While I'm at it, I might as well make it casein-free too. Then Ethan will greatly benefit too.

What I've Learned

Some fish don't float when they die. They lie dead at the bottom.

I have nightmares about fish. Fish I had when I was 13.

I don't like having live fish in the house. Or dead ones.

I should remember these things.

I remembered today why I love Colorado so much.

Yes, that's me washing my car.

I remembered how fast the snow melts and how green the grass gets.

Monday Musings

I was impressed with how coordinated the kids were with their clothes. Ties match the dresses rather perfectly. You'd think it was time for a wedding.

And did you notice how lovely the weather was for prom? I was thrilled. Do you see anyone shivering? Nope! That's because it was warm.

Today, not so much.

Notice the sidewalk. It's the same one where Hilary and David are standing in the above photo. The weather forecaster said snow above 6000 feet. He missed the mark. Again. It just goes to show it doesn't matter how sophisticated technology becomes, we can't control or foresee the future.