RRRRRG!

I MISS MY SIMS!

The powers that be keep tormenting me. I was lucky enough to get the game "The Sims 3" when it first came out, and for the first couple months was perfectly happy to do nothing in my spare time but play my Sims, but then one problem after another came up finally culminating in my CD/DVD drive no longer reads CDs or DVDs. I had a portable CD player but I could not install it without first putting the drivers on my computer via CD drive. WELL I DON'T HAVE A CD DRIVE ANYMORE (*cries*). So my husband went out (after I threatened to install Sims 3 on HIS computer) and got me a portable CD reader that supposedly doesn't require you to have an actual CD drive on your PC.

Well I followed the directions and I STILL can't figure out how to get my computer to recognize the darn thing! I am nearly in tears every time I try cuz it's extremely frustrating. #1 I miss my Sims, #2 I've been wanting to put all my created videos on a DVD and all my thousands and thousands of pictures on CDs to make room for more! (10,955 files, 162 folders - it's time to start making some CDs already!!)

For now I am at least able to play applications on FaceBook - but I really REALLY miss my Sims - I am even considering going back to my original Sims game (I've never owned Sims 2) which would be a problem since I was so happy with Sims 3 that I told my oldest I'd give my original Sims to her.

Why am I being punished? I didn't spend every waking moment on Sims! (Most days, anyway) Why will my portable CD drive not work?

I'm ubersad. :(

If anyone has any suggestions on how I can get my portable CD drive to work PLEASE PLEASE let me know!!

what the crap?

I walked the dog this morning. No big whoop, I walk him two or three times a week now. It's cold outside (it is January in Illinois so I wasn't expecting a warm day). It was tons of fun trying to keep my dog at heel on sidewalks covered in a slick layer of ice just thin enough to be dangerous and not quite thick enough for people to go out and salt them.

When I got home my legs started burning. I ignored it because when it's cold my hands often burn while they're warming up (no I did not wear gloves - I guess shame on me!). But then they kept getting worse. They burned and burned and it felt like someone threw acid on my legs. I started freaking out so I took my pants off and then I got very concerned because it LOOKED like someone threw acid on my legs! They were freaking COVERED in hives!

What in the world?

I did some major cleaning yesterday (as I believe I posted about - see below) and I did get hives on my arms from the mouse poopies I was cleaning up, but I wear jeans all the time. I decided today since I didn't want to rewear the jeans I cleaned in I would wear my husband's jeans (I don't often wear my "good" jeans around the house). So did I have a reaction because I was wearing my husband's jeans or a reaction from the cold?

Hmmmm, either I'm allergic to my husband or I'm allergic to Illinois (as I've suspected for the past 15 years).

Alack!

STRESS!!

I'm already upset because my computer's CD drive doesn't work.

I'm also somewhat edgy because I start my "Spring Cleaning" in winter (since I can't go outside and do anything with my garden!). I decided today was a good day to empty my toilet room closet and clean it all out. That means dust and mouse "leavings" which means I can't breathe much at all and I have hives on my arms.

I already KNEW Teddy had a volcano project coming up (ya build a volcano and put crap in it so it "errupts" and the whole class "oohs" and "ahs"), but we spent a great deal of time on making Poinsettia's volcano (from last year) a permanent structure so the successive child who needed it could make any alterations they wanted and use it over and over again.

Of course, nobody thought to tell Teddy NOT to tell his teacher that was our plan

sooooooooo

tonight Teddy informed me that his teacher forbid him to use Poinsettia's and he had to build one from scratch.

DANG IT! It's due TOMORROW!!

I had all the ingredients we needed so I helped him make the dough and we slopped it on a juice bottle. It looks like absolute crap but hey, I had 12 hours notice on this. If it dries in time (it's on the oven now so the heat will help it dry) then I may paint it for him. He won't have time to do it himself. However it looks like he'll just have to take it the way it is to school tomorrow.

The worst part of all is even though I have two vehicles in my driveway neither one of them functions.

Which means I'll miss his volcano erruption.

Fail.

Today sucks!

I don't hate the GaGa!

First of all, I like Lady GaGa. I even like her music.

I do NOT listen to her music when I'm with my kids (as in the car where I hear most of her music) because I don't feel anything she sings is in any way appropriate for my children.

My daughter Angel walked up to me and asked me why I hate her. I did the Vulcan eyebrow raise and told her I didn't hate Lady GaGa and asked her why she thought I did.

She said whenever one of her songs comes on the radio I change the station (true story). I told her I didn't think kids needed to listen to "grown-up" themed music and the GaGa happens to be one of the people that cause me to switch the station in my car within the first few notes or beats.

Angel then informed me that she thought Lady GaGa was "perfect" and she LOVES her.

#1 how does she even know who Lady GaGa is? Obviously I change the station sooo
#2 how does she know her music?

I'll admit she may have seen a video or two on MTV since I usually watch music videos in the morning. Still, it's kind of disturbing that my SIX YEAR-OLD idolizes a sex symbol.

Presents for me!!!

If you've ever played Sims 2 or 3 you know that sims LOOOOOVE getting new stuff! I AM LIKE THE SIMS! I love getting new stuff! Whether it's something I actually needed or just a new set of stationary (anything I can use in a scrapbook is a plus!) when I get something new I am just happy.

There's been a few things on my "I want" list for a while. One thing was a snow shovel. After eight years of living here (and 15 years in this state) I have finally decided I want one. I never had one before. I had this nifty little dustpan that I used to move snow. I called it my "redneck snow shovel" and it was remarkably effective. Unfortunately this year it finally broke and now I would like an actual shovel designed to move snow. I haven't gotten it yet but I plan on going shopping this weekend ;).

The other thing I really wanted was a scale. I need to know how much I weigh. It's an obsession of mine. I'm convinced if I don't know what I weigh then I will do nothing but GAIN! My previous scale had a digital readout and I kept it in my wash closet because I knew that right after I woke up in the morning and right after I did my morning "business" that would be my "actual" weight since I hadn't eaten or drank anything in the past eight hours. Then suddenly one year it started reading five pounds UNDER what I actually weighed (proved by a doctor's visit), then a few months later it started reading TEN pounds UNDER what I actually weighed. Finally one day I stepped on it and it read "98." I started laughing my butt off. There's no way I would ever weigh 98 pounds again - my boobs alone are 20! (lol)

So I finally gave up on the stupid thing actually working right and I immediately started bugging The Mr about getting me a new one (I tend to not leave the house much in the winter so I depend on him to buy me things no matter how girly and he does a fine masculine job of doing it and I love him for it!). I didn't get one for Christmas so I told The Mr. he could buy a crapload of "Magic: The Gathering" cards if he would just go out and buy me a scale already! I didn't care HOW cheap it was I JUST NEED A SCALE!!

Well he finally got me one!! Except it's not JUST a scale....it gives me a readout of my weight, my body fat percentage and my hydration level. (Basically it tells me I'm unhealthy in THREE different ways instead of just one!! LOL!) I love this thing! I've already programmed my stats into it and found out what I basically already knew - I'm 156 pounds, my body fat percentage is too high and my hydration is a little too low.

I was so happy with the thing that The Mr. got on it, too. His body fat % was a little too high and his hydration was a little too low, too - so we match!

Yay!

Big Strong Men ....

My Mr. likes to brag about how heavy things are that he messes with at work considering he's a heavy equipment mechanic.

Our Christmas stuff has been packed up into boxes and plastic tubs with lids, but since I haven't been able to get down the lights that are up outside I haven't moved the boxes into our storage area yet (our storage area is a loft up in our garage which we can only get to by going downstairs, going into the garage and then up a flight of stairs up to the loft because our front garage doors are both broken).

The Mr. decided he didn't WANT them cluttering up his downstairs (although technically the Christmas stuff was in the boy's play room area - but we won't get technical lol) so he started moving the boxes and tubs into the garage so I can move them to the loft tomorrow.

He asked for help moving the tree box and refused to move it until I could help him.

I found this incredibly amusing because not only do I take the tree box down out of the loft and then drag it through the downstairs, carry it upstairs and bring it to the living room ALL BY MYSELF, but LAST YEAR I carried it downstairs and through the garage and put it back up in the loft all by myself also. Why does my big burly muscular husband need help with it?

][_, ({}) ][_,

Smart or ????

I was busy folding laundry in my bedroom, halfway watching "Star Trek: The Original Series" when my four year-old son came running in. He had been watching "Dora the Explorer" in the living room while eating his lunch.

He ran in and told me "Grandpa's knocking on the door!!"

So I went to the front door and opened it.

No one there.

My four year-old son then doubled up laughing his little tiny butt off. He all but rolled around on the floor laughing his butt off.

I said "Did you just TRICK me?"

In between baby gufaws, he said he did indeed trick me.

Is a four year-old really smart enough to pull this kind of trick off? And is he really smart enough to understand the humor of seeing his mentally sound mother staring out a door at nothing but snow when she expected to see her father in-law there? Or did somebody TEACH my little boy to do this? Who was it? Let's just see how I get YOU back .....

In the meantime I'll tell this story to everyone I know because it's just about the funniest thing that's ever happened to me personally - and I'll have to watch out for my four year-old who is apparently becoming smarter than me .....

Pudding Anyone?

I suddenly had a craving for pudding. To let you know how often this actually happens, the last time I craved pudding I was pregnant with Bossman (now four years-old). Since it's not that often I crave pudding I was pretty sure we didn't have any - The Mr. usually buys those little plastic cups that are made for school lunches.

The craving wouldn't go away so I began searching on the internet for pudding recipes. I came up with a lot! As I went through the various puddings I found I had all the ingredients and I had the time so after about half an hour of searching I picked about ten recipes to keep for future reference and I selected one I was really excited about making. I got up into one of my cabinets to make sure I still had cornstarch and when I picked up the bag guess what I found?

Two packages of Jello Pudding!

LOL I took the lazy way out and had pudding in five minutes. But for next time I have the recipe!

HAPPY 2010!!

Things I'm pondering on this day, the first day of the new year (and the last year of this decade!):

#1: Why the Mr. insists we eat this superstitious concoction of PLAIN sour kraut and PLAIN black-eyed peas.... Who came up with this tradition? Can't I at least cook them into some other dish to make them more palatable? Have you ever seen "Fear Factor?" That's what my poor kids look like trying to force down a bite of this stuff. As for myself, I don't mind the beans too much - they're all right. But that sour kraut - uk! I had to eat mine with a bite of hamburger.

#2: Why my six year-old daughter is asking me if Jason is dead. Jason is some guy in a hockey mask who runs around with a chainsaw in a series of movies called "Friday the 13th" and I have never EVER seen even one of those movies. Since I have never seen these movies I can't say if he's dead or not. I told her he's from a movie and all movies are pretend but where did she hear about Jason in the first place?

#3: Why my nine year-old BOY is walking up and down the hall draped in sparkly strings of beads from my recently dissassembled Christmas tree popping his hips like he's a supermodel strutting down the catwalk.

#4: Why my eleven year-old stepson is telling me when he dies (he said assuming I'm still alive) he is going to decide to stay in my house and will follow me if I move.

#5: Why my stepdaughter (12) is trying to convince me to believe in ghosts and wants to know "what could we do to prove it and make you believe in ghosts?" (I said if God Himself came down and said "YOU - BELIEVE IN GHOSTS" I would certainly believe in ghosts then - and that made all my kids laugh at me ...)

#6: Why I am actually eating the superstitious concoction of black-eyed peas and sour kraut since I am not a superstitious person at all (I constantly walk under ladders and I own a black cat ... and I've broken MORE than my fair share of mirrors!); although I think the main reason is because The Mr. is SO SERIOUS about each child at LEAST eating ONE BITE of this stuff that I'm eating it for show so that the kids don't get mad that I "don't have to eat it." So since he is making them eat it I am bravely scarfing down as much of it as I can so they don't feel bad. But boy am I going to have some yucky tasting burps later!!

As for everything else on this list I can blame the waning full moon. It affects my kids apparently!