Amen!

Well, we finally made it back to church this morning ... what a great feeling. We went to Dante Baptist, where we are still members, even though we haven't attended regularly for over 5 years. Everyone seemed happy to see us, and they couldn't believe how Logan has grown. The service was really great, and we got to see a new performance team that was AMAZING!! They did sign language as a group and were dressed in all black. It was very moving and a whole new church experience. Overall it was a great feeling to be back at our "home" church and all 3 of us really enjoyed it. I think we're about to head over to Levi's Field to watch the more athletic members of the congregation play a little softball. This has turned out to be one of the best weekends I've had in a long time - and I've spent it all with my family. Who woulda thought? LOL

Fun Saturday

Well, we had a fun Saturday too. What an anomaly. We got up early and went to a subdivision sale. (For those of you yard sale novices, that means several houses in one subdivison all having yard sales at the same time). It was fun and we found several neat things. Then I went to have a pedicure and Artie & Logan continued yard-saling. They found a computer for Logan for $50! It's a good one too, a new Compaq Presario with a lot of bells & whistles. I've already set it up and it works perfectly. :) After they picked me up from my pedicure, we hit a few more sales and loaded down the back of the car. We found a scooter for Logan, some candles and decorative items for the house, and as always, clothes for the nieces. We also bought some antique Christmas ornaments cheap - since we have 5 Christmas trees now, we need all the help we can get.
After a yummy lunch at Austin's, we headed to the Great Smoky Mountains Flea Market and found more cool stuff, including a new laptop so I can work while on the road. (Yippee, more work!) LOL It was a fun day. We then headed home, made a couple more pit stops, and called it a day. Last night Artie and I tried to make our own "queso blanco" at home, but it didn't quite turn out great. It was edible, but it didn't taste like El Chico's cheese dip, that's for sure. It was a fun and productive day. We came home, hooked up the new computers and recovered from our busy day. It was a fun family day - the first time the three of us have spent all day together without anyone else in a long time! :)

Fun Friday Night

Well, I had a more fun than usual Friday night tonight. I got to talk to my friend Candice on the phone, whom I hadn't talked to in about a year and a half. That was very nice. And then me, Artie & Logan went to the movies and saw "RV." It was a cute family comedy with Robin Williams and we had a good time. Simple things can be so much fun and so rewarding. It was a very good night. :)

Need to Perk Up

I'm feeling a little down and out this morning. I think I have a sinus infection or something because my sinuses and head have been bothering me all week. And I'm very tired this morning - I think some days my crazy schedule catches up with me more than others. My senior boss at job 1 is out of town for the next couple of days, which usually is a little bit of a stress break for me - but he leaves me so much work to do 'so I won't get bored while he's gone'! It's been raining for days and days, we're still waiting on the gutter guy to come and the concrete guy to repair the pool pad so we can put our pool back up ... and I still have to deal with all these stupid health insurance issues, the alarm system needs checked, the dog needs groomed, I need to reschedule Logan's dentist appointment ... I'd love to just go to bed for a whole day and turn off the phones, the tvs, the computers and the lights and just hide. Maybe I just need some caffeine ...

Easter Pictures

Just scanned in Logan & Hannah's Easter pictures. Aren't they adorable? Kristi and I have such cute kids, it's a shame we can only handle one each. :)

Change of Plans

Nope! No Pigeon Forge. Seems as though we're going to S.C. instead. Oh well, there's always another weekend I suppose. And we haven't been to S.C. to see his family since Christmas. It's always fun to see the nieces. Hopefully we'll stay in a motel instead of at his mom's so my back won't be thrown out for 2 weeks after we get back. LOL

Pigeon Forge

I think me & Artie are going to Pigeon Forge by ourselves Friday night. Mom is going to keep Logan and we're going to all meet at Dollywood on Saturday. Artie & I used to go to Pigeon Forge for romantic weekends all the time before Logan came along; now it's obviously harder to get away, but that's okay. The family trips are fun too. However, when Logan is with Mom, we can go to the Old Time Pottery and craft stores without Logan being "soooo bored..." LOL He only wants to hit the arcades and rides. Hopefully we can have a nice dinner alone Friday night and do a little shopping. And then Saturday we'll break in our Dollywood season passes. We added Splash Country this year. Has anyone been? I've never even been there yet. I hope it's fun. Of course, I can't imagine a water park that a 7-year-old wouldn't like.

Making Time for Scrapbooking

As much as I enjoy scrapbooking, it is so hard to find time to actually work on it. I have this great home office that has a dedicated scrapbooking area, a huge table and tons of very well organized supplies. I have a bright lamp to illuminate my work area, at least two ongoing scrapbook projects at all times, and a supportive husband and son who don’t mind losing me to my “creativity” now and then. If I only had the extra time to go with all these other things …. Hmm.
I work until 4:30 or 5:00 on job 1, rush to pick up Logan and get home, change clothes, check the mail, and start on job 2 as soon as Artie gets home. Then I work on job 2 from 6:00 until 8:00 while Artie makes dinner, picks up the house, and deals with homework and the gaggle of friends coming in and out of the house all evening. After that I try to reacquaint myself with my husband and son for a few minutes, and at 9:00 we all head to bed and Logan time until 9:30 or 10:00. Saturdays I work from 8:00 until noon and then its errand time. Sundays is supposed to be for church … we’re trying to get back on that routine. So … anybody got any ideas for me on how to squeeze in scrapbook time?

Nightcap

Well, it's technically past my bedtime, but I'm trying to get my blog off to a good start. It came a quick thunderstorm earlier this evening and knocked the power off for a few minutes. I thought I might have to miss work for job 2 tonight (no power = no computer), but it wasn't off long enough. Oh well, missed work is missed money on that job anyway. I rushed to watch last night's CSI Miami as soon as my shift was over. Thank goodness for DVR. That's one of the best inventions ever! I'm looking forward to tomorrow at job 1. It's secretary's day and they're taking me to lunch at Olive Garden, one of my VERY favorite places. I had a good therapy session today - more talk about weight. But Saroj says I'm making good progress and she's proud of me. :) Artie and I are trying to decide whether to go to Dollywood with mom & dad on Saturday and break in our season passes or go to SC this weekend since it may rain. Kristi has decided to write a fiction story based on The Dunsmores' family travels. She sent me the first page draft and it's pretty good. When our lives are a best-selling novel, I'll let you read that instead of my boring blog. LOL

My Husband

My husband, Artie, and I have been married for over 19 years. I can't believe we're still together sometimes - especially looking back over all we've been through. I'm not sure why he's still around - I'm certainly no "joy ride." Whenever I ask him why he's still around, he usually says "I guess we were just meant to be." How unfortunate for him. LOL

I do have to confess that my busy home & office life would not survive without him, though. He does all the housework, most of the laundry, most of the cooking, and always manages to make our home look like something out of Arhitectural Digest or Better Homes & Gardens. He gives Logan a bath every night while I pass out after my last shift on job 3, and he gets Logan ready and takes him to school every morning while I'm already gone to job 1. Hmmm... now that I think about it, maybe I should stop asking him "Why are you in such a bad mood?"

He's pretty cute, too, isn't he? ;)

Dad's Illness

One of the things foremost on my mind these days is my dad's illness. He was recently diagnosed with Pick's Disease, which is a form of dementia very similar to Alzheimer's. (see my links for more info). Dad was forced into retirement after 38 years of working at the same job after the company's entire retirement fund was embezzled and the company was forced to close down. He did pretty well the first year, staying busy with projects at home. Then we started to notice gradual personality changes, quicker temper, childish behavior, inappropriate comments in public, etc. Finally Mom persuaded him to go to the doctor, where cognitive testing showed a severe deficit. After an MRI, EEG, blood work and further testing, his neurologist diagnosed him with Pick's about six weeks ago.

Dad's temper is getting worse, he's very quick to anger now where he used to be as laid back as they come. It is also very difficult to carry on a conversation with him, as he has difficulty finding words. This is hard for me because he was my debate opponent for so long, the one person I felt safe really arguing with.

This is me & the heart of my existence, Logan. He's 7-1/2 going on 15 and rules the roost at our house. Everyone keeps telling us we will regret that one day, but for now it's just the way things are. We waited a long time for him and had plenty of time as a couple before we became parents, so now we feel like it's his time. No, I'm not selfless, I definitely crave ME time... but Logan is worth the sacrifice.

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