The good, the bad, the unknown...

Do you want the good news or the bad news first? Its all the same news and I don't know if its going to be good or bad yet.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070531/wachovia_a_g_edwards.html?.v=14
I really hope they don't lay off any AGE employees, one in particular. When I worked at AGE with Mike the company was always dead set against merging or selling. I leave and they lose their minds. Just kidding. Looks like no immediate changes are on the horizon, but when something like this happens there will ALWAYS be changes. Sometimes good, sometimes not. Only time will tell. So keep your fingers crossed and the prayers coming.
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Grey Day...

Its raining and grey outside. Good thing I wasn't planning on going anywhere today! The laundry monster in the basement has me shackled to him anyway.
This coming Saturday we are off to Alton, Illinois to visit my brother and sister-in-law, along with my two nephews and my NEW neice! I'm so excited. Its been a long time since we have gone out there for a visit. Usually Roger, Ruth and the boys are stuck having to come all the way out here.
Alton is a pretty cool town. Its right, I mean RIGHT on (and sometimes under) the Mississippi river. They have quaint little shops and eateries overlooking the river, Underground Railroad tours where you can actually go through the tunnels and a lot of ghosts. A lot of ghosts. One particular house, http://www.mcpikemansion.com/ is so haunted that after probably hundreds attempts to renovate it it sits crumbling and attracts tons of people every Halloween. The ghost that lives there is a man with a very violent temper who chases off anyone in the home.
I have a pretty strong aversion to ghosties and spirits of unknown character. I used to have this chime that I would keep with me wherever I lived. I would hold it in each corner of each room, closets too, and if the chimes sounded that meant there was a ghost present. When we moved here for some reason I didn't do that. I didn't need to, this place had the first basement I've ever been able to walk into without the hairs on the back of my neck sticking up. I did keep it hanging on the front door for the longest time though, just to make sure no unwanted guests showed up. But after my muther kept coming in I figured it didn't work. Yeah, thats a joke.
I think when Gryffin is older we will take him on a historical tour of my old home town. But I'll let Mike take him through the tunnels and haunted spots while I hit the antique shops.
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Humidity -even in the Midwest- ain't all bad.

I've long suffered with dry skin and sore throats. I never knew but these are usually caused by low humidity. Using a humidifier in the winter and on chilly nights helps quite a bit. I found this really cool site that gives a lot of useful information and advice on whole house humidifiers as well as single room.
I didn't know there were different types of humidifiers, http://www.humidifierinformation.com/different-types-compared.php. Nor did I know that
there were so many features, http://www.humidifierinformation.com/desirable-features.php. There is also a lot to learn about the perfect humidity level, http://www.humidifierinformation.com/optimum-humidity-levels.php.
Check out this site and learn how you can stop having to deal with cracked lips, itchy eyes and even sinus headaches, along with dry skin and sore throats.

Need, want, save...

As you all know, we are moving. One would think that with already having a house full of stuff more stuff would not be needed. In reality, it only looks that way on paper. Currently we have our kitchen trash in a cabinet. The new kitchen lacks a space for that so in search of a new trash can I went. Of course I perused the stores online. I hate GOING shopping, not the shopping in and of itself. I came to one of my faves, Linens 'n Things. http://www.couponchief.com/linensnthings
Ooohhh, a stainless steel trash can with bonus bathroom size one too! At a good price , a price only made better by the use of one of my favorite online coupon code sites. Coupon Chief has online coupon codes that I am amazed by every time I visit. Its almost to the point where whenever I need something that can be purchased online I find a coupon for it here. They have tons of stores and offers to choose from- I'm addicted. Check them out for yourselves, online coupons codes

PPP Direct Wants You!

As many of you have noticed I have been using PayPerPost. If you are not familiar, PayPerPost is an a site that actually pays you to blog. Yup, get paid for what you are already doing. Now they offer PPP Direct which lets you get offers for reviews and topics direct from the source. Advertisers may now contact posites and can negotiate a rate for special blog posts. PPP makes sure the advertisers are on the up and up so you know you're going to get paid for all of your hard work. And they ensure that the advertisers get what they are looking for as well. There are a lot of pay-per-post companies out there. I did my share of research before going with PayPerPost. They were the most user friendly and offered a lot more opportunities and better pay. Now with the PPP Direct the overhead is slashed, which means they spend less and I earn more all while I still know that everything is secure. You see, a lot of the pay-per-post sites charge a markup of anywhere between 50-100% and keep up to half of the money you work hard for. PPP Direct only charges a low 10% fee. Half of this goes to transaction fees for PayPal and credit card processing. Now that is reasonable. Its a situation where everyone makes some money and happiness ensues.
Here is how you can make money too!

Sidenote:

Wells Fargo Financial sucks. They can kiss my shiney hiney and go to somewhere really, really hot and uncomfortable. And I don't mean Florida. Their customer service can't even spell service let alone offer it and their online access is a joke. Why yes, I am bitter. Answer me this, why would my account show delinquent when they sent me a refund check for the exact same amount of the debit in my account? Hmmm, seems they may be trying to charge me for their own stupidity. Jokes on them- I don't have that much money. No one does! Grrrr, I send them negative energy and evil thoughts. That'll scare 'em.
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The holiday weekend is over and its back to work. We did enjoy a nice day at Dianne's Sunday, eating and playing in the pool. Well, Gryffin and Mike played in the pool. Anyone who knows me knows I don't get in any body of water bigger than a bathtub. Yesterday was pretty laid back, Mike visited Pa, I worked next door and we ran some errands buying stuff for the new house at super-duper holiday discounts. Hey, I can't think of a better way to honor our soldiers than bargain shopping. Thats sarcasm by the way.
Today its make a bazillion phone calls and laundry day. And I'm hoping to get Gryffin to cooperate and work next door with me. Its almost ready for paint! I'm so excited. When I was there yesterday I just kept picturing how pretty it will be when the walls are clean and painted to our liking, with our furniture moved in and my clothes in a HUGE closet instead of a four foot wide armoire. But I can't get ahead of myself... the inspection on our home is next week and I am sweating bullets, buckets and beagles! Other than ridding the basement of the extension cord spider webs, I don't plan on doing anything to prepare. What they catch, they catch and we will fix. I don't want to do any more work than I have to. I just hope the inspector is in a good mood that day- maybe some good coffee and cookies will help?!
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Tip of the day...

I'm going to have to try this one as I have the patience of a second hand. I haven't successfully made bread in a long time as I got rid of my bread machine. I never used it to bake, only knead. It was an older model and the loaf was vertical instead of horizontal. Although, we did come across one the other day that was a convection bread machine that could even be used for canning. I've always wanted to learn how to can and make jams. Too bad is was almost $100. I may have to break out the old stand mixer and give it a try kneading that way. Yes, I'm lazy and avoid getting my hands doughy at all costs. Besides, have you ever tried to knead dough with a two year old? Just when you get into to the rythm someone decides to rip off his poopy diaper and sit on every surface he can find. I'm speaking from recent expirience, recent as in this morning. Needless to say, the bread didn't turn out. But our furniture and rugs have been cleaned!

Must try tip....
Proofing Yeast DoughsYeast doughs that normally take an hour or more to rise at room temperature can be proofed in the microwave in about 15 minutes. Place the dough in a very large bowl and cover with plastic. Place an 8-ounce cup of water in the back of the microwave with the bowl of dough in the center, and set the power as low as possible (10 percent power). Heat for 3 minutes, then let the dough rest in the microwave for 3 minutes. Heat for 3 minutes longer, then let rest for 6 minutes. The dough will double in bulk.
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Whats your Procrastination Justification?

Procrastination has been a life long battle for me. Its almost like an addiction in that sometimes I just can't help it and I don't really know why. I do have a perfect excuse though. I would much rather play with my son than just about anything else in the world. But that excuse doesn't always hold water in that if I play with him over cooking a nutritious meal then we eat junk, or if I play with him over cleaning then we live in a dump. Even the perfect excuse isn't perfect. I've been procrastinating on so many things around here I'm starting to feel overwhelmed. From cleaning the tub and laundry to working next door and getting ready to move. The idea of cleaning a house I know I won't be in for much longer isn't exactly helping. Someday I am going to jump into Diagon Alley and get a wand, man being a muggle sucks.
I used to follow the FlyLady, http://www.flylady.com/index.asp, program but the page got so convoluted and well, cluttered (how ironic) that I just stopped reading it. But today I am taking a page from them and declaring it Antiprocrastination Day. I am going to be a Nike commercial and 'just do it'. I've found that if I don't think about it and just get up off the old porta-cushion and do it I am more successful. I guess its the mental buildup of it, kind of like knowing your most reviled relative will be at a function you are attending and you allow just the idea of it to ruin your chances of enjoying yourself. (Yeah, I have no experience with that scenario as my loyal readers know)
What is your Procrastination Justification and what is it that you ALWAYS put off doing? Let me know, maybe we will start our own support group.
Anyway, I am off to divide and conquer. Divide the laundry loads and conquer the soap scum. Well, after I finish my coffee anyway. A girl can't be expected to stop procrastinating until the caffeine is consumed.
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Ahh, can't you just smell the sunshine? Perfect weather forcasted for today and enjoyed yesterday. Saturday we rose early and went to the Soulard Market again. Then we went to Lowe's to pick up a couple things and gander at paint for the new house where we ran into Dianne, my MIL. Gryffin loving refers to her as 'mugger', I guess that is the sylables of grandma switched around- a form of toddler pig latin. Mugger offered to walk Gryffin around with her so Mike and I could argue over colors. We didn't really argue, it was probably the easiest time we have had of choosing colors for rooms. Lets see, the living room and dining room will be a pale beige with white trim and an accent wall of red. We couldn't live in a house without any red walls, its our trademark! The kitchen will be a slate blue, the guest bath will be green- a shade very similar to chalkboards and the tile refinished to white. Gryffin's room will be a medium shade of blue with navy and white accents. Our bedroom with be a medium beige with accents of blue/grey. Our bathroom will be blue/grey with accents of black and white. The BIG family room will be khaki beige with bright white trim. The guest bedroom will be whatever color of paint we end up with the most of. Afterall, we don't want the guests to feel too comfortabel, ya know? Now I wish the actual painting would be that easy too. We also went to Art on the Square, our towns annual art show, ranked #5 in the nation. Yeah, our little podunk town can put on a artsy fartsy shindig. It wasn't as impressive as years past but it was still pretty good. It did make me want to break out the camera, take a picture of a flower and slap a $300 price tag on it though.
Today Gryffin and I are off to the grocery to pick up the bread and milk we need for the week while Mike mows. Then who knows, I think someone said something about getting the wading pool out for Gryffin.
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Cleaning up the planet

So I'm sure you all remember the Econoclean Challenge. I mean, who could forget such investigative journalism, right? After doing more research I discovered that Borax is chlorine free. I've decided to try it out, hopefully without need of a hazmat suit and ventilator. I went to a couple places close to home to find it and couldn't. I asked the sales people and they didn't even know what it was. Granted they were the age where if it wasn't advertised on MTV it didn't exsist but geez! I did find it and was shocked that a 4lb box cost $5. Heck, I used to pay that much for one little spray bottle of the premixed, diluted stuff. If it works this box will last quite a long time. Well, maybe not that long since I do have a lot of cleaning coming up with moving and all. Of course, I will post the results as I am sure you are all teatering on the edge of your seats in anticipation. Wow, I think I woke up on the sarchastic side of bed today, think?
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Good clean fun

Yesterday was the last day of Day Out for a while. I guess everyone deserves a little summer break. I did the food shopping then and was happily amazed at our grocery bill. Last Saturday we went to the Soulard Farmer's Market in St Louis. I L-U-V this place. We encouraged (bribed) Gryffin to behave by telling him that we were getting baby doughnuts. They have a stand just inside the entrance that makes fresh mini doughnuts. A dozen for $2 is enough to feed us. We picked up those plus a couple danishes, all the veggies for a week, three bars of homemade soap and some extra treats like sugar snap peas for snacks and some Silver Queen corn for Mike. All this for the price of what just the veggies would have cost at the grocery. We are going back this Saturday too. There is a really nice playground at the market so after breakfast Mike and Gryffin will be off to explore that while I get the shopping done. I don't think Mike really likes doing this with me as I have a habit of wandering and just looking for awhile. I have a system though. Do a quick run through checking price, selection and quality. Then hit the stands with the best deals. This keeps me from buying something at one stand and then seeing it for 20 cents less a pound a few stalls down. Yup, learned it the hard why when I used to do all my shopping at the market a decade ago.
I do have to tell you about the soap we bought though. Their name in Hermann Handmade Soaps and I think I may be addicted. Their soaps are made with all natural ingredients like tallow, olive oil, lavender, oatmeal, etc. I bought their soap called School Days, its for acne and poison ivy. I've always had bad skin and have over the past few years resolved to buying a generic version of Proactive. It worked but it had a tendancy to burn and bleach everything, and it wasn't cheap. The School Days soap cost $3.75 a bar or 3 for $9. This stuff smells so good and it really works. Mike got the Sportsmans soap which is antibacterial and antifungal and smells awesome. The other bar we bought is called Daybreak and is an exfoliator with lavender and oatmeal. Everyone will be getting this soap from us as Christmas presents this year.
Hey, maybe I will go all hippy and give them a basket of a few bars of soap and some home made cleaning products. Then again, that would make them feel that I think their hygene is lacking. I can just hear Mike eyes rolling with the realization that I'm already thinking Christmas presents so I will shut up now.

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Hot Bacon Dressing recipe

Eventhough my Dad has more salad dressing in his fridge than Kraft, I promised...

Hot Bacon Dressing
8 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 cup sugar
3 tsp cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup vinegar

In a large deep skillet brown the bacon evenly. Remove, drain and set aside.
In a bowl, whisk together sugar and cornstarch. Slowly add water and vinegar, whisking constantly.
Add mixture to the skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickend and add bacon.
Serve warm over salad.

It can be stored in an airtight container in fridge. To serve, warm in microwave for about 30-60 seconds, stirring regularly.


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Success!

The ravioli turned out awesome last night. We decided that the crab rangoon filling was the best. It was also the cheapest, yeah. They froze and cooked up very well and fast. I also tried a recipe for a hot bacon dressing. A restaurant close to us serves this on a spinach salad with egg and mushrooms. I just did it on regular leaf lettuce with grape tomatoes but it was just as good.
Here is the recipe for the ravioli:
1 pkg low fat cream cheese
1 can crab, drained well
green onion, sliced thin
1/2 Tbsp sugar
4 slices of bacon, crumbled
won ton wrappers

Mix all but the won tons. Place about a Tbsp on filling on a won ton, moisten edges with water and lay another won ton on top. Seal tight making sure no air is in with filling. Crimp edges with fork. Lay on a wax paper lined baking sheet and place in freezer for 15-20 minutes or until frozen hard. Place in freezer bag. To serve, place a few raviolis in boiling water just until they float. Voila!
I think next time I may just fold them in half instead of putting another won ton on top though.

If anyone wants the recipe for the hot bacon dressing posted just send me a comment!

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The Mad Scientist's Daughter...

On vacation Mom and I joked that Dad is a mad scientist in the kitchen. He never uses a recipe and adds a little of this and a little of that and ends up with a masterpiece. Me? I'm the one who thinks recipes are good guidelines. I rarely stick to one- even the first time I make it. Tonight is no different. I don't really feel like cooking, it's hot. I took a look in the fridge to inventory my supply of eyes of newt and dragon tongue. Nope, all out of those. But I do have left over crab rangoon filling and won ton wrappers along with ricotta cheese and a jar of pasta sauce. Hmmm, I think I feel and idea coming on. It kind of tickles too. So in my lab I chopped some bacon, browned and drained it and added it to the crab rangoon. Then I mixed the ricotta, parmesean, garlic, basil and oregano. I dropped about a Tbs of one of the fillings onto a won ton wrapper, brused the edges with water, put another won ton on top and sealed them up tight. Then I flash froze them on some wax paper. Tonight (hopefully) just boil some water, add the sauce and throw together a salad and dinner will be done. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
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The deal schpeel

Looking for a new book, CD, DVD, bed linens, running shoes? You get the idea. Brad's Deals is a great site to visit before you shop online. This site has all the major stores and some you will wish had found sooner. We used this site to get a great discount on an alarm clock/CD player. Not to mention all the times I have used it to buy books and even a few Christmas presents.
Now I've come across another great site for online coupons. It's Coupon Chief. they have tons of online coupon offers and stores to choose from. What I really like is the fact that they have coupons for some of my favorite catalogues too! Now I can really find good deals for all the stuff we will need for the new house. Curtains, towels, art, heck- even furniture!
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CouponChief.com

And the winner is...

The winner of the Ecoclean Challenge is...
Vinegar!
For the cost, time and scrub factor there really wasn't all that much competition. This is what I used and where I used it. Please try this for yourself and let me know what your results were! Also, if you have any other tried and true home made cleaners please post them. Since our government isn't doing much for the environment maybe we can. Oops I got political, sorry I'll stop.

Formula
1 c white vinegar
1 c water
1 cap lemon juice

Tools
spray bottle
dry Trader Joe's cleaning cloth
damp TJ's cloth
Dobie

Where
Stove- I hadn't cleaned our stove in about a week. Shame shame, my apron will be revoked. It was dirty, caked and dull. I sprayed the solution on, waited a few moments and scrubbed with the Dobie. I then dried with the dry TJ's cloth. I was truely amazed. It worked just as well as the commercial stuff in the same amount of time with the same amount of elbow grease.

Microwave- again, Martha Stewart will wag her manicured finger at me, but it hadn't been cleaned in a while too. I did the same as the stove and got the same results.

Dining table- at least I can say this gets cleaned almost daily. Sometimes even several times a day. I sprayed on, waited a few moments, wiped with the damp TJ cloth and buffed with the dry. It got off spots that I thought were part of the tables distressed finish!

Ok, this one is just jaw dropping. Remember the Root Beer Exposion? Well, this stuff even got it off the walls. I couldn't even try the commercial stuff because its not to be used on painted surfaces. I just couldn't believe it!

Bathroom sink- worked like a charm and polished the fixtures wonderfully.

Toilet- didn't even need to use separate cleaner for this. I did the outside and the bowl all with the vinegar solution and again, it worked great.

Tub- this was the only place where I was slightly disappointed. We have a real problem with hard water and tub rings. The solution worked easily everywhere but the tub ring, that took some elbow grease. It still came sparkling clean after I scrubbed with the Dobie.

The only real difference that I noticed was that I had to apply with a damp cloth and then buff with a dry one. Not a big enough deal to make me buy more commercial stuff though. Now, my nose is very sensitive to vinegar smell so that did take a little getting used to but with the added lemon juice, I ended up adding another capful, it wasn't bad at all. The smell goes away once the solution dries.

Another trick I'm trying:
We keep our kitchen trash can in a cabinet which is between the fridge and stove and has a vent running under it. As you can imagine, it can get stinky. I put a small bowl of baking soda in the back to help absorb the smell. Its working, a little. Maybe I don't have enough soda, I don't know. Anyway, it is better than without the soda.









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The good, the bad, the weekend.

Friday night we were to host a Fight Night party. DeLa Hoya vs. Mayweather, the fight of the century. We used to be BIG boxing fans but since there really hasn't been any worthy fights in years we hadn't seen one in a long time. Still haven't either. Mike ordered the pay-per-view two days in advance to make sure we had it. Come Friday night all that showed up on the screen was a message saying that the program would be available shortly- shortly must mean never to Charter Communications. We tried calling their customer service line several times and can I just say that it doesn't help my temper when the automated system hangs up on me. Even their online customer service 'chat' was down, along with their email service and online bill service. The only person I was able to online 'chat' with was their internet customer service who was of no help. What fool thought that if you had internet problems you could still 'chat' online for customer service? Anyway, our guests were pretty cool about it since there was plenty of food and an assortment of various brews, even after Mike put in Jackass 2. Luckily, I had decided to turn in by then because someone had to be able to be there for Gryffin when he woke up in the morning.
Saturday we spent running errands. The ever popular Lowe's run and the mall. We had some discount coupons for JCPenney and Macy's so Mike got a couple dress shirts and some new flip flops. He made me look at bras. And I do mean MADE. Everyone keeps telling me that I've lost a lot of weight recently, I don't really see it except that I know none of my clothes fit anymore. especially my bras. So I tried some on and after almost losing it with a very inconsiderate old broad in the fitting room I called it quits and decided to come back the next day.
I did go back on Sunday. Tried on three dozen- no lie- and bought one. The only one that fit, they didn't have anymore of that style or size left. Mike was pretty disappointed but I told him that it was one more than I had and that I would keep at it. I think I would rather go to the dentist than shop for bras but teeth don't sag as you age.
Today I'm just looking forward to not having to go anywhere or do anything. Except pray that I become an Aunt again to a healthy, happy, beautiful little girl this week. The first little girl to be born to this side of the family since me! Luck and prayers are with you Ruth! I guess you too, Roger- eventhough you don't have to do any of the hard work. Hee hee hee.

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The Ecoclean Challenge

I've seen a lot and heard a lot about all these home made cleaners. I think I'm going to put them to the test. Normally I use Mr. Clean concentrate diluted with water in a spray bottle. I use this everywhere. Now I think I'm going to try 1 part white vinegar with 1 part water. I will probably add just a pinch of lemon juice concentrate for that fresh smell. Then again, who wants their toilet smelling like lemons? Granted its better than what toilets usually smell like. I would love to use just diluteted bleach but I'm allergic to it and it's fumes.
A long, long time ago in the land of filth (aka my muther's house) I got sick of living upstairs with the mess so I decided to clean out a room in the basement and move there. Easier said than done. Once I did get the boxes of crap moved out I still had to contend with a cement floor covered in kitty mess. She had a cat that was always sick, maybe that was because she never cleaned up after him? Anyway, I tried one cleaner after another and being the dumb teenager I was thought, "Well, if this one sort of works and that one sort of works if I combine them then they will really work." The result: a clean cement floor and chemical burns on skin and lungs. But at least I had a place to live that was clean and out of the way. Until I realized that winter in basements with no heat are COLD. Luckily I can leave all the stupidness behind because I am now older; therefore, wiser. Ok, you can quit laughing hysterically, maybe that was a bit of an overstatement but at least now I know enough to never mix commercial cleaning products.
The criteria for the tests will be:
1. Does it work as well, better or worse than the commercial stuff.
2. Does it take more, less or about the same elbow grease.
3. Is it really that much cheaper.
4. Is it worth switching permanantly.
I will post the results of the 'Ecoclean Challenge' once they are finished.
Sidenote to Catherine- I think we watched the same episode. I can even understand what they are saying now!
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Dreams can come true...

Every year we go to the same place for vacation. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing my parents in the desert and would not give that up for anything. However, I would really like to add a second vacation to the yearly travels as well. Now that Gryffin is getting a little bit older it would be good to expose him to more the world. I would hate for him to turn out like me and have only been to three states. That and lets face it, if you haven't been to any of the major theme parks in this country you really haven't lived.
Browsing around today, mostly dreaming, I came across this site. I never in a million years would have thought that we, a family of three, could go to Orlando for less than $500 per person. Including air fare on US Airways. That is not staying at some hotel where the only stars are the ones in faded paint on the vacancy sign either. It is for the Wyndham Orlando Resort, a three and a half star hotel. I have never stayed in a three and a half star hotel in my life. That in and of itself would be enough of a vacation for me. The Wyndham has it all, forty two acres of peace, located close to everything and complimentary shuttles to Universal, SeaWorld and Wet 'n Wild. This way we wouldn't even have to rent a car and deal with traffic nightmares. Now I could take or leave the water park. With my coloring there is no such thing as fun in the sun when water is around but Universal and Seaworld I would love to visit. Just for poops and giggles I checked out how much Mike and mine's dream vacation would be. I was incredibly shocked, in a good way though. A four star hotel in Dublin, Ireland for less than a $1,000 a person. Come to think of it, that may not be such a dream afterall. The possibilities are limitless too. Just using this one site can take us anywhere in the world with so many different lodging choices, rental cars, air fare and price ranges we could become world travelers. I can see myself as a jet setter, the big Audree Hepburn sunglasses and shoes that were never created to be comfortable but look so good I wouldn't care.

href="http://www.HotelReservations.com">Hotel Reservations

Shh, I'm trying to think.

I think I may be on sensory overload. After not hearing all the little, and not so little, noises around me for so long its overwhelming. Last night I had a really bad headache from all the noise and its still with me today. But- that is OK with me! The audiologist said that this could happen and will go away once my ears adjust.
I don't know if Mike is going to be so happy that I can hear once I tell him about all the doors squeeking around here and the ceiling fans being out of balance. It was kind of funny last night I kept telling him he didn't have to yell everytime he said something. I was in the bedroom putting laundry away and he was in the kitchen putting dishes away when I walked up to him and told him he didn't need to slam the dishes around. It really did sound like he was too. Without my hearing aides I wouldn't have been able to hear him at all. Now we won't have to scream across the house or make sure we are in the same room before speaking. This is so wild!

House Next Door Update:
Cleared out and ready for paint: Master Suite, what is to be Gryffin's room and guest bathroom
In progress: family room, kitchen and dining room
Not started: front bedroom, formal living room and basement.
Believe it or not there isn't too much in the basement other than tools and Christmas decorations. There is a spare refrigerator and a deep freeze along with a washer and dryer though. After using the washer and dryer to do the bedding I discovered that we will have to switch those. I like mine better, I can do up to three loads at once because of the super capasity. I still need to call the HVAC guys to have them take out the AC and water heater they just installed last year and replace them with gas ones. They will also need to run a gas line for a stove as I refuse to cook on electric. Unfortunately, we can't just switch the stoves because we don't have a 220 line here and our appliances are black where as the one's over there are white. Luckily gas stoves aren't all the pricey. Now the big thing will be picking out paint colors. Argh. I hate doing this because its the one thing Mike and I never agree on. Now I went to college for interior design so I know what will work and what won't. However, convincing a color blind husband that the colors will look good is another story. The bathroom over there is (cringe) peach tiles with blue accents. They are original to the house so I don't want to change them. Mike wants to get some of that tile paint and get rid of the colors but I'm just affraid that it will peel off after awhile. I will find something that will work. Most likely a high gloss white and make it all mesh with a new shower curtain. Oh yeah, and our current house will need to be painted too. I don't think there are too many people out there that will like a dark red livingroom or faux finished dining room as much as we do. That will be much easier as everything will go a nice neutral, ahem-boring, beige.
It looks like the angels are getting ready throw a tantrum outside so I better go close some windows before the rain gets in.
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I can hear you all the way from here

Hey did you know that keyboards make noise? How about the sound that comes from a pen writing on paper? I didn't. Until now!
I got my hearing aides today and cried when the audiologist tested them. I can hear. Holy crap, I can hear. They are going to take some getting used to though. It feels really weird to have something sticking in my ear all the time.
I met Mike for lunch at work today. He didn't know that I was getting them today but he sure was happy. I could hear people in the cafeteria but still hear Mike over all the other noises. It was incredible.
I can't hear everything just yet because they are set on the lowest setting so my ears can get acustomed to them before they are turned up to normal. Yup, no more talking behind my back anymore because I can hear what you say now.
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