The perfect storm.

1:52 this afternoon, I sat down and had NOTHING to clean - it was all done - I could have done a load of laundry - but that would just start up the whole "must fold & put away" bull-oney - sooooo - I sat for a whole hour starring off into my completely clean house (dusted, mopped, windexed, sanitized, shiney and QUIET house)- Rossi was napping (didn't feel good - headache) Brynn was napping - the house was quiet...I was sitting in partial shock, but mostly trying to memorize the feeling. Like the first time I kissed the love of my life - butterflies - you don't get that feeling very often. This was true love - quiet house, clean house, no cleaning left, I am 100% done...sitting...memorizing the surroundings, soaking in the sounds - of - nothing - not even my brain was making sounds - it, too, was reaching for something to think of doing - but there was nothing. Memorizing...burning it into my head...mental camera snapping off pictures...high speed...am I in the twilight zone? No...this is my house, it is clean, it is quiet, it is so nice. Then it happened....

2:55 the first wave of kids came home from school & unmopped the floor (think ramen noodles too hot to carry all the way from the microwave to the table without sloshing a few times), 3:12, Rossi woke up, 3:22, Brynn shows the whites of her eyes, 3:25, the second wave came home from school...the older quartet had left their broken ramen noodles all over the counters and floor, their shoes, socks & backpacks books, stacks of "mom sign this" papers strewn throughout the house and --- exchanged their school clothes for a swim suit - threw the clothes on the floor & went out swimming, then they dripped all over my freshly ramenly-unmopped floor & into their bedroom where they proceeded to rip off their cold wet clothes lay them on the ground & put new warm & dry clothes on (it's not quite 70 outside today) and finally - finished the evening off with ripping their freshly donned clean, warm & dry clothes off to put jammies on - thus shoes, socks, two sets of clothes & a wet swimsuit - (times 4) and a damp towel for each lie methodically placed on the floors of two bedrooms, as well as backpacks, floor drips, once wet, but now dry cemented to the floor and counter ramen noodles & dirty socks in the family room & kitchen. It was like someone had pushed the fast forward button in my life - as I watched all of this take place within a 12 minute window as I sat in shock and dismay watching my "to do" list get longer and longer.

That was the nicest hour in the history of my parenting today - between the hours of 1:52 and 2:55 p.m. mountain standard time...recording this for posterity.

Heaven help me with the mess when the girls start their ladies days...that's alls I gots to say on THAT!

What's in YOUR wallet?

I had one of THOSE days. I love the capital one commercials w/ the vikings! BUT I actually experienced one.

Long story short, I ended up w/ the paycheck in my account instead of Ross'. So instead of Ross writing a check to himself from my account & mailing it up to his bank, he opted to just write the bills from my checking account, which is fine. HOWEVER, apparently that threw a stick in the fan of bill paying.

Since a majority of bills paid are done on-line, he had to change the "auto" check and bank numbers - which - fine, whatever...just an extra step...BUT I got a text from T-Mobile that told me to contact them regarding the recent payment.

So I called.

"Enter your cell phone number"
I go : doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop
"enter the last four digits of your social security number"
me: bop bop bee dop

it goes on - I finally get a rep - "what's this message about?"
"Oh - looks like your payment was rejected"
"Why"
"I don't know, ask your bank"

Okay - so I call.
"Enter your debit card number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop
"If you have a phone access code, enter that now, otherwise enter your social security number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop
"I'm sorry, the debit card number and the security number do not match our system, Please enter your debit card number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop
"If you have a phone access code, enter that now, otherwise enter your social security number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop
"I'm sorry, the debit card number and the security number do not match our system, Please enter your debit card number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop
"If you have a phone access code, enter that now, otherwise enter your social security number"
me: doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop doop dee dop dee doop doop dap dap dee dop
"I'm sorry, the debit card number and the security number do not match our system, Please hold while I connect you to a representative"
"Hello, I'm teenage representative, how can I help you"
ME: "Hi, why was my payment rejected?"
"You have too much money in your account"
ME: "Uh, why was my payment rejected?"
"Unusual activity"
ME: "Uh, paying bills in unusual?"
"Well, after your deposit, there were several withdrawals"
ME: "Am I contracted to keep the money there?"
"No, there was just too many withdrawals"
ME: "Do I have a withdrawal limit?"
"Not really, you have unlimited capeability"
ME: "Why was my payment rejected?"
"It looks like you've never paid T-Mobile before"
ME: "I've never bought anchovies at the grocery store, either, would you stop payment on that debit?"
"No, not likely, we just wanted to make sure that you wanted to make that payment"
ME: "Do I have to call you every time I make a payment for permission?"
"I'm sorry, I should have verified this, what is your name?"
ME: "Heidi"
"What is your date of birth?"
ME: "September 3rd"
"I'm sorry, you're not authorized to get information on this account"
ME: "This is my account, why not?"
"That's not your birthday"
ME: "were you there? Cause I was"
"Sorry, our verification goes through check rite, and they indicate fraud on your birthday"
ME: "Were they there? Should I conference in my mom?"
"Ma'am, if you're going to be rude, I will have to terminate this call"
ME: "If the owner of the account were to run the debit through a second time to pay a t-mobile bill, would that be a problem, hypothetically?"
"I can't answer that until I speak with an authorized person on this account"

Housekeeping tip:

Always keep several get well cards on the mantel..... so if unexpected guests arrive, they will think you've been sick and unable to clean.

Warning: Tampon talk

I thought all tampons (aka T's) were created equal. I always purchased mine at Costco - they used to have those cool multi size packs, but now I just get the 100-pack...they normally run the coupons on those - SOOO I notice yesterday (as I was wondering WHY I was yelling at the children with such passion?) that I was out of tampons. Costco was closed, so I ran to *~gasp~* a non-Costco store.

I went down the isle - and HOLY HANNAH - there are approximately 40 different kinds of tampon styles (not including the size varieties!)! There's the sleek, the shiny, the fashionable skirt, the fully expandable, the pearl, the flushable pearl, the pearl wannabe, the tampon with wings, the sports model, the large women model, the young girl model - I had NO idea there were so many options! SOOO I'm thinking - I'm feeling a little SPORTY - so I get the sports one (because don't sports help you lose weight?)

Normally I go through a super an hour & I need some kind of SHIELD besides that - BUT after using the sporty model-T, you've seen the commercials, the upside-down skirt - and it catches EVERYTHING - I wore it for 3 hours - YES THREE HOURS - and not even a drip! Yes, it was full - but WOW - I love how much it holds & KEEPS and I can go to the movies w/out being interrupted by a nasty little bathroom break!

So I went to Costco today to put in the "suggestion" box to get sporty tampons - and walked by the pharmacy to get some Thai Mangosteen juice - and WOWZA - they have THE SPORTS MODEL T - I never noticed that before....I feel like I'm going right back to the days when I converted from twin blade to quattro! I'm a brand new woman!

Hit #2!

This is the ONE, I can FEEL it! Our second "viewer" came to look at the house today. We got a call around 11 & they said they'd be here at 1:00 - so we went into white tornato mode & cleaned it all up! Rossi helped, so I took him out to his new favorite restraunt --- some kind of buffet place - I don't remember the name. Anyway - We haven't heard back from our realtor, I'm sure he's waiting to hear from the other realtor. Hopefully he'll get back to us tomorrow! I'll know as soon as he knows!

It only takes ONE! (or in my case two!!)

Fun week

Monday, Kiersten had a SPRING concert at he school. It was a duet concert...she played duets w/ a few groups & the concert went on about an hour. I was very impressed w/ her talent! I mean-- I hear her playing at home all the time, but it's fun to hear it put w/ another part - and she's REALLY good compared to the others! We got a few simple duet pieces to play around the house with eachother. That was a lot of fun!

TUESDAY - We planned a zoo trip w/ Tamara & her family! But since time slipped away from us - we ended up swimming here & doing a dinner at Carabas! Her little Rebecca LOVED the water & didn't even notice the temperature! The rest of the kids made short work of some fruit & corn dogs - later, Brynn introduced the delecate precision eating of DING DONGs to Sariah. Notice how she gently opens her mouth to show Sariah the proper indulgent techinque of the ding dong. They also were able to fit a pacifier into their mouths - incredibly they have the same size mouths - the paci fit PERFECTLY in either one! (as did the ding dong!)


Wednesday, since the children were denied the right of "zooage" the day before, I had to make it up to them - so they each got to bring a friend - 10 kids & two s and 6 hours later, lunch care of COSTCO, we headed home - very dusty & very thirsty! The kids got to feed the lory's and the giraffes...we saw the white alligator and the twin cubs born just 3 months before! We also rode the sky ride - that was a blast!

Thursday - was reasonably uneventful - spent a wad of cash on UV shirts for the kids - which I'm glad because - well, no more sun screen film in my pool! We also got Kiersten a new swim suit and a pair of board shorts (she gets special treatment since she's perfect, as you know)

Friday - Kali's friend's mom called to see if her daughter to come spend the day with us - seems as though mom & day care lady had a riff...so I played free daycare and entertained the s in the most boaring house in the world - (since toys are packed away!)

Saturday - interestingly, I must have a sign posted outside my front door - because Kiersten's friend's mom called to see if her daughter could come spend the day with Kiersten since her other children pick on this particular child...sure, why not, after all, Kiersten shouldn't be denied the fun that Kali got to have the day before, in the MOST BORING house in the WORLD.

Sunday - HALELUIA - Kali lost her tooth that made her cry and cry and whine and cry for the last 5 days - it had been hanging on by a thread - and despite my threats to write the tooth fairy a note & tell her to only leave her a penny, she got a shiny new golden dollar coin - and has asked if I would take her shopping today to spend it. Nothing like changing out a gold coin for 3 candy bars on sale at the check out isle of the local grocery store.

Which brings me to today.

Ross forgot how to school...he can't get back into doing things. I made him sit on my lap while I read his science work. He's heavy.

Closed for Spring Break!

Be back on the 19th!

I have a teenager! 13 years ago today

at 5:04 they swept my newborn first child, a son, up to the NICU because he was blue. His lungs were "sticky." Estimated due date was 2.5 weeks away, so he wasn't considered premie. At 6 pounds 11 ounces and 20.5 inches long, he was the biggest baby in the the NICU, but he was also the sickest. The well babies, or premies, they'd put in an incubator. Ross was put on a big bed, one arm tied down with monitors on it, IV fluid line going into his umbilical chord and the other arm tied down (because he was pulling his IV line out of his ubmie!) He had a respirator in his mouth & a feeding tube down his nose.

I didn't actually get to see his face (all taped up) or hold him until he was 5 days old, when they pulled the respirator out. I had no idea what to name him. Preliminarily, we named him Joshua Nathanial...because, according to his great grandmother Luekenga, anyone who names their child "Roscoe" has rocks in their head.

As it turns out, Butch, the paternal grandfather, who asked to have his name changed at the age of 5 - from Carey (after Carey Grant) to Roscoe Wayne Luekenga, Jr., after his father, was looking forward to a posterity of Roscoe Wayne Luekenga's all the way down to the XXXII. Butch, as his mother called him because she neither liked the name Carey, nor was she fond of the name "Roscoe," proudly named his first child, a son, Roscoe Wayne Luekenga III. As his first son, the third, brought HIS first son into the world, a lot of thought went into naming the child. We had no opinions from anyone, except grandma (married to the "first" Roscoe) who said "Anyone who names their child Roscoe has rocks in their head." Thank heavens for a grandma with feet planted firmly on the ground, right?

(11th birthday)
Wrong. As it turns out, my father-in-law came to visit me in the hospital the day after my first born came into our family. He brought me a beautiful bushy green thing (which I cried the day it finally gave up the ghost - 19 months later!) Turns out dad walked from his office to the hospital during his lunch hour, just in time to spend a few minutes with me, as my nurse walked in to get his birth certificate information. "What are you naming your child?" With a big smile on my face, (as this was the first time we actually had said his name out loud after choosing it - with my FIL in the room to witness...) "Joshua Nathanial" Well, she wrote the name down, and a few seconds later Roscoe Wayne Luekenga, Jr. got up and left the room. I figured he needed to start heading back to work.

Meanwhile my first born lay upstairs with tape & tubes covering more of his tiny body than not...I was discharged from the hospital...all alone. No baby in my arms, just a bunch of flowers and balloons and an empty car seat.


8 days later, however, I was able to take him home. My father in law didn't hold him, didn't want his picture taken with him, nothing. I couldn't figure it out - he said "He's not my grandchild, he doesn't have my name" uh - woah! Then Uncle John (the third, with a son who was John IV) told us when this boy is 14, they're going to take him out hunting and tell him that his mother didn't love his daddy enough to name him after him.

I'm not going to have a lifetime of razzing from his family, so at 3 weeks old, we changed the boy's name to Roscoe Wayne Luekenga IV. Yes, I caved, but it should be noted I called him "son" for the first 9 months of his life. I tried to call him "Butch" after the tradition of his great grandmother, a woman who didn't like the name from the start...but as my mother-in-law so poignantly worded it "Butch is a dogs name." Turns out when Great Grandma (remember "ROCKS" if you name your child Roscoe) heard that we changed his name she said "Well, it's the first true Luekenga great grandchild" WOAH! Why can't people just come right out & say what they want?!

I did eventually start calling him Ross, and eventually Rossi. What I loved the most - is when he turned 7, he told me that he wanted to change his name on his 8th birthday because he didn't like the name "Ross." (Claiming When I called out "ROSS" he didn't know who I was calling for, him or his dad!!)

so Here he is - 13 years after the whole fiasco of getting him here...taller than his mom, with feet as big as his dad and with a name from his grandpa!

Blue Ribbon Home of Tour!

Yep, I get to wear that sign proudly on my "for sale" sign. 9 realtors went through the little home tour which consisted of 10 homes...mine was one of them. This is supposed to be a good thing - you get various opinions of various realtors (people who see homes all the time) here is some of the feedback...they love the landscaping front and back - they say it has nice curb appeal (uh - not a big fan of the looks of the house, but we have some pretty nice landscaping, if I do say so!) The best was curb appeal, landscaping front & back - the worst was exterior paint? Yah, what's that? We just repainted it last year - it's not like it's chipping? maybe just the stupid colors we had to do it in cause of HOA? One dude didn't like my interior faux wall (it's two tone earth purple ish) That's an either love it or hate it feature...but just one wall, and it can be painted! I needed some kind of accent...The general consensus is price - they think I should go under $300K to capture the viewing public going up to 300K (since it's priced at 303K - it wouldn't be much of a change in price - and get a bunch more "hits")

House shows great - some people said the cleanliness (excellent, good fair, poor) was just "good" while there were a few marks that said "Excellent ++" (written in) so why would someone not think it was clean enough - and IMO it's immaculate! No dust, no clutter - there's ONE spot in the boys room on the carpet that I should rug doctor up...but yah, other than that - I thought it was clean! Anyway - I may bring it down to below 300K to get those other hits...I guess it would be better than the 1 hit we've had so far?

Sometimes you just have to mark things WRONG

But he's right? Perhaps if he didn't spend his time doodling the elephant, he would have come up with the correct answer? LOL!

CoNgRaTuLaTiOnS, You're the 1,000,000th visitor to this site

By way of slacking, the electric grid in which I reside went down this morning. I had to re-vamp my whole morning. I actually chased Brynn around playing tag with her, picked up some piles that were starting to get on the verge of clutter and cleaned out the fish tanks! WOW - the things you can do when you don't have electricity. I kind of liked the "change up" I had to step out of my addictions & routines and find other means of entertainment for the nipper and myself.

Rossi was at school for specials this morning - I kind of got all claustrophobic-ed up trying to get out of the garage (electric door opener) it took a solid 30 seconds before I realised I was not LOCKED in my garage, but that I could actually MANUALLY open it.

Then I got to thinking how long could I live w/out electricity? I would definitely not be excited about the laundry w/out electricity, but other than THAT, I think I would rather enjoy it! Of course, this time of year is FANTASTIC weather, even when the summer heat comes around, I've got the pool...which, hmmm, wouldn't be able to keep itself clean w/out me running the pump? And then how would I get chlorine into it? EEK...well, during the non-summer months...I'm happy to say I'd be 95% effective (sans laundry issues) without electricity! (course my water heater is GAS!! HAHAHA!) You?