Thank you...

...to my hardworking man.  Thanks to Magnum's incredible work ethic, and constant drive to be successful at his job, I was able to spend an hour working on this today.  (yeah, I can't believe I'm letting you see my back fat and big rear end, either!)

I actually spent two hours "sunning" today, an hour on each side.  I spent most of that time thinking about how very grateful I am that I was doing that instead of still working at a job that was slowly killing me.  And, thanks to Magnum's generosity, kindness, understanding and love, I was able to relax in my chaise lounge, instead of working at a job that doesn't make me happy.  He told me last year that he didn't even expect me to LOOK for a job for at least a year since I "have post-traumatic stress disorder from all those years at The Hell-Hole!"  He wasn't trying to be funny, he was being completely serious.

And, he's been completely on board ever since.  It's not just something he said in passing, he really meant it.  He has not once, in the year I've been unemployed, said a single word about me looking for a job.  Or, not looking, as the case may be.

I know I haven't been here much lately, and there are LOTS of things that have been going on around here at Casa de ChiTown that I haven't filled you all in on yet.  Clearly, one of those things is that Magnum found a job!  Woo hoo!!  He's been there for two months now, and he LOVES it!  He's been working like a madman, and one of the reasons is so that I don't HAVE to go back to work.  Well, unless I want to, of course, or I'm ready to, whichever the case may be.

God, I love that man!!!  I'm so very lucky, and blessed, that God has chosen this path for us, and our "story."  Yeah, I like to tease him, and facetiously tell him that he owes me 18 years of being at home, for the years I should have been home with our son, but most of the time, he agrees with me.  How great is that?

I mentioned a few posts ago (wow!  was my birthday really almost 6 weeks ago already?!) that things were starting to take an upswing around here, and thankfully, that continues.  I've continued to formulate many, many posts in my head, and I take pictures on a daily basis, with the intent of posting about them.  I think I'm just about ready to jump back into the Blogosphere.

Some of you will be annoyed to know that naturally that means LOTS of posts and pictures of my Monkey!!  Sorry, I can't help it.  I just the love the HELL outta that kid!!  I'm going to leave you with a quick candid shot I snapped yesterday at the Father's Day picnic where we all celebrated with my Daddy.

Wow, look how's she's grown since LAST Father's Day!  (STLL no hair though!! Oy!)

Well, I'm still here to talk about it...

I survived my first 5k!  It was actually kind of awesome.  We already signed up for our next one. =)

My crazy SIL went all out to make this a memorable event for me.  She secretly videotaped me as we crossed the finish line.  (I won't be sharing that since it's the most embarrassing 30 seconds of my life!  I look like I'm being pushed along with a cattle prod!)  She made a secret sign that she passed off to Magnum and Stud to hold up as I crossed the finish line.  AND, she made me a freakin' medal!

I can't believe I'm even letting you see me looking like this.  Can you tell Stud was thrilled to be up and out at 7:15 on a Sunday morning?!  hahaha!

The boys presented me with these after the run.

Sweet, right?  After the run, we had just enough time to get home, shower and head to church.  The pastor had called and left a message on my phone earlier in the week, to let me know he'd be praying for me for the run.  Again, sweet, right?

I wasn't as thrilled with him when he took time during the service to completely embarrass me by having me STAND UP while he told the whole church about how I had just completed my first 5K that morning!  Aye!  They were all very sweet, and most found me after the service to offer their congratulations.  I'm thinking I probably should have told them ahead of time, and maybe I would have been able to bump up the total amount of funds raised for the Ronald McDonald House! :P

Anyhoodles, like I'm said, I survived, and I'm just glad I'm still here to tell you about it. =)

The next one we're going to do is The Biggest Loser 5K.  I believe it's in August.  I'll keep you updated.  You're welcome!

Best birthday presents ever...

I got to spend the whole day with...

While we were in the yard playing, these arrived from Magnum...

Last night, Stud presented me with this, since I never read it...

45 still sucks, but these things made it a little easier.
If any of my dear Bloggy Buddies are dying to help me celebrate my birthday, you can go HERE.  And even if you don't give a rat's ass about my birthday, go anyway.  It's for a phenomenal cause.

Thank you to all my Bloggy Buddies who keep checking in with me, and sending love and support.  I'm not ready to jump back into the Blogosphere with both feet quite yet, but I think things may finally be on the upswing.  (JWG, what happened?  I'm waiting...)

Email of the (other) Day

My dad sent this to me about a month and a half ago.  I saved it to share with you guys, and obviously never did.  I was just cleaning out some email folders and found it again.  They made me giggle...

We're having a first real snow storm here today.  We're supposed to get 8-12 inches.  There were already school closings announced last night.  About an hour ago, I received an automated call from Stud's college, saying that the school would be closing at 2:00.  About 15 minutes later, he walked in the door.  He had his first class at 9am, but his second class was obviously cancelled.  He's not happy, since the second class is one that he really loves.  Actually, the first class is the one he likes the least.  Poor thing.

Since I have the unexpected pleasure of having my son home early, I think I'm going to make him hate me by dragging him to Sam's Club.  I missed my Saturday trip, and the cupboards are a little bare. 

A far cry from the last pictures I posted of this island, right?  I ate that last apple for breakfast, by the way, so there's basically just a basket of Cuties, and a bulb of garlic! 

On the way home, we'll probably stop at my parents' and shovel a bit.  When Magnum left this morning for his parents' house, he asked me to wait until he came home, so he could help me.  That may or may not be because I was teasing him last night about this snow.  He was more or less pitching a fit about the impending snow storm, since that means more work for him.  The last time it snowed, he ended up plowing his parents' driveway, of course, and then the neighbors on both sides of them, as well as across the street.  His dad has a honking big snow blower, so once he had it running, he just kept going.

Anyway, he was bitching like an old man last night while we were watching the news in bed, and said something really supportive, like, "Quit your whinin'!  At least you have a snow blower.  I'll be doing my parents' driveway by hand!"  Yeah, I'm thoughtful like that. 

But, I'm going to make Stud do it, instead, so his old father doesn't have to do it.  I haven't gone there yet because the snow is still coming down hard.  It's supposed to continue until about 9 pm, so it doesn't make sense to do it too early, since it'll just keep snowing.  I'm wondering if we should even do it after Sam's Club, since it's only about 1pm.  Guess I'll play it by ear.  We'll probably still stop there to say hello. 

Ok, time to find my boots, and get out into that beautiful winter wonderland!

Sunny Sunday

It is gorgeous outside right now!  The sun is shining, it's warm (well, warm for ME.  I think it's like 38?) and I'm going to go meet my Bestest Friend for breakfast.  I'll probably be back later.

***

Ok, I'm back.  Bestest Friend and I ended up at a restaurant we've never been to before.  Breakfast was delicious!  And, we ended up sitting there for nearly 4 hours!  We just don't get to see each other, or even talk, nearly enough.  She's so busy with work that it's hard to get together during the week, and on the weekends I usually see my family while Magnum is working, and then I try to spend time with him when he gets home.  Anyway, we talked, and talked, and talked for hours.  It was so nice! (And, listening to how miserable she is with work [she's also a CPS teacher!] just reminded me that I absolutely made the right decision by walking away!  I just wish SHE wasn't so miserable.)

When we finally left the restaurant (which only happened because they closed!) I went straight to my in-law's house, where Magnum was, as usual.  He didn't have to work today, so I was afraid he would feel obligated to spend extra time at his parents' house.  Don't get me wrong, I love that he takes such good care of them, however things are reaching a breaking point.  I see him less now than when he was working, and most of you probably remember how much he worked.  Now, he's at his parents' 7 days a week, sometimes 8-10 hours a day.  Pretty much the only time he's not there is when he's at work, and even those day, he's goes to his parents' first for a few hours.  I know I've been alluding to how stressful and unhappy things have been around here lately, and this is a big part of it.  But, I don't really want to get into all that right now, so I'll just leave it at that.

I went there hoping I could convince him to leave.  On Sunday, he goes there so that his mom can go to church.  Well, church is an hour, hour and half at best.  He usually convinces her to run errands afterward, since he's there anyway, and she needs the time away his father.  But, still, we didn't leave the restaurant until 3, so that's plenty of time to run errands, since church lets out at noon.  (And, yes, I realize this probably sounds bitchy, but trust me, HE needs a break, too!)

I was shocked when he didn't even argue with me when I said he should pack up and come home.  His dad was sleeping when I got there, so there wasn't much to do at the moment.  He already prepared something for dinner (he cooks lunch and dinner for them every single day) so there wasn't much for his mom to do the rest of the night.  Actually, he made her a big bowl of popcorn, and made her park herself in front of the TV, since all the pre-Oscar shows were starting.  Then, much to my surprise, he packed up his stuff and we left!

When we got home, I made him an early dinner.  Well, more like reheated dinner, since there were pork chops from last night.  I did make a salad and some veggies, though.  He and Stud ate while I did dishes, and then we settled in for the evening.  Right now, I've got the pre-Oscar show on, Magnum is reading, while glancing up every once in a while to check out the women in their pretty gowns (tee hee!) and Stud is down in the basement, ignoring us as usual. ;-)  Sounds like a great night to me!

The Oscars are going to start in less than 10 minutes, so I'm going to go make some tea and settle in for the show.  I LOVE Seth McFarland, so I'm excited to see what kind of hosting job he does.  Whether you're watching the Oscars tonight, or doing something else, I hope you're enjoying your Sunday evening as much as I am.

Silly Saturday

Today  I got to spend time with my Monkey AGAIN!  I went to my parents' with Stud after the gym to hang out for a while and play.  She's so hilarious, she just keep us in stitches all day.  She's a little parrot and repeats EVERYTHING you say to her.  I love this age.  I need to start taking video when she does it.  Usually I'm too busy laughing to grab my phone.

We didn't stay the whole time Monkey was there because Stud had plans with one of his friends.  He went out with George for dinner at their favorite Chinese buffet place.  It's actually way more than just a Chinese buffet.  It's HUGE, and has many different kinds of food.  One big buffet table is all Mexican food, one is Italian, one is "American" [hots dogs, hamburgers, chicken nuggets, fries, etc.] and there are a few that are Asian.  There's also a dessert table, and ice cream.  I know there's more that I'm forgetting, but you can see why they love this place.  This is the place I mentioned before that has the spinach Stud LOVES, so he was happy.

Anywhoodle, Stud left as soon as George came over, and I made dinner for Magnum.  Really, the main reason I cooked is because I had pork chops in the fridge that needed to either be cooked or frozen today, and I was feeling too lazy to properly prepare them for the freezer.  So instead, I oven roasted the entire family pack from Sam's.  Oh, don't worry, they won't go to waste.  Magnum will eat when he gets home, and Stud will probably eat one or two later tonight.  Whatever is left will be lunch tomorrow.

I'm going to enjoy the quiet going on in my house right now.  Like I said, Magnum is working, Stud is out, the chops are in the oven, salad is made, veggies are ready, so I can go sit for a while.  Oo, I just flipped on the TV, and Dream Girls is on!  Guess I'm outta here!

2/22/13 TGIF!

Friday, February 22, 2013
Aristotle said, "Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies." Do you agree or disagree?

Completely agree!!

Long day today.  Wasn't all bad, but still, long.  I'll skip the junky stuff, and tell you that I got to see my Monkey for a while.  Oooo, why does she have to be so damn CUTE!!??  I can't even believe I didn't take a single picture of her today.  I'm slipping.  But, we all know how adorable she is, right?

Ok, just in case anyone forgot, my brother sent these the other day, with a subject line that said, "What?!  Can't a girl play dress up in the morning?!"

We got snow here overnight, so you know I'm one happy penguin right now!  Even Monkey got out and played in it for a bit.  And, I didn't even have to really shovel, thanks to my awesome neighbor.  He was out there with his snowblower bright and early this morning.  I planned to still shovel at my parents' house, and threw my boots in the car before I went to the gym, but my brother beat me to it.  Truthfully, I was a little disappointed, as I was looking forward to the workout.  I didn't get to do my own giant driveway (although I did have to do a little that my neighbor couldn't get to with our cars in the way), I didn't get to do Jean's (my sweet 89 year-old neighbor) because Magnum did it, and then I didn't get to do my parents', either.  Poop!!  Good thing I really pushed it at the gym today.

But, not having to shovel gave me more time to play with my Monkey, so that's a good thing.  Out of the blue, Magnum popped in to see her while he was working*, and she was SO happy to see him!  She literally RAN to the door when I told her he was coming, since I saw him pull up in front of the house.  She ran, screaming his name, to greet him.  She so damn cute with him.  I don't know what it is, but she's a bit obsessed with her Uncle Magnum.  I'd be lying if I said the feeling wasn't mutual.  He's really funny with her.

Stud happened to pull up right behind his father, so they both got to see her for a while.  Stud can't get enough of Monkey, either.  I know I mentioned the other day that he wanted to go "steal" her.  He has this upcoming Tuesday off, so I have a feeling he's going to try and spend some time with her then.  He'll have to fight me for her, though. =)

Well, I'm beat.  I'd love to keep giving the mundane details of our lives, but I've got to hit the sack.  See you tomorrow!

*Ok, don't get excited.  No, Magnum didn't find a job yet.  But, back in November, after being out of work for a month, he was freaking out about not finding a job.  So, he took a pizza delivery job just to get some cash flow going.  It was killing him to not have a paycheck, and he's not above doing whatever it takes to take care of business.  He's kinda awesome like that.  It certainly isn't a full-time gig, but he usually works 3-4 afternoons/nights per week.  Every little bit helps right now.  I'm on Month 8 without a job, he's almost on Month 5. =(

Sunday Funday

Did a bunch of running around today taking care of this phone nonsense for Magnum.  Let's just say, it was not a great day.  Once again, none of MY errands were accomplished.  But, his phone needed to be taken care of because today was the last day of his contract with his current provider.  He had it out with them on the phone a couple of weeks ago, and told them to just cancel his service when his contract expired.  Anyway, I took care of it, and he has a new phone now.

I was supposed to have lunch with Bestest Friend today, whom I haven't seen in almost a freakin' month.  I had to cancel at the last minute (I'm not even kidding, I was literally walking out the door to meet her!) because Magnum called and he had a chunk of time to do this phone crap.  Even though I totally blew her off for lunch, she still wanted to do dinner.  She's awesome like that.  We went to a place that's kinda becoming one of our favorites.  This was only the 4th time I've ever been there, and,  I've been really happy every time.

While we were at dinner, my mother called to see what I was doing, and if I wanted to come over for dinner.  I told you yesterday that my daddy retired Friday.  His friends at his gun club threw a huge surprise party for him this afternoon.  Then, they sent all the leftovers home with him!!  My mother was freaking out a bit.  "There are trays and trays of food here!  Who's going to eat it!?"  Like I said, I had already eaten, and for some reason, she couldn't get a hold of Magnum or Stud.  But, I told her I'd come by anyway, and at least take some of it home for them.

When I got to my parents' house, my sister and her boyfriend were there.  That's a good thing, as her boyfriend can EAT!  He's 6'6", about 350lbs.  He seriously looks exactly like this:

Wait, I think I might actually have a nice picture of them saved on this computer.  I'll be right back.

SEE!  I wasn't kidding!  And, what about that gorgeous sister of mine, huh?  I think I hate her.

Anyhoodles, I ended up staying at my parents' way too late, visiting with the gang.  I almost forgot to come here for my NaBloPoMo obligation!!  But, now I have GOT to hit the sack.  I'm exhausted.  Good thing tomorrow is a holiday, huh, so I don't have to go to work.  Oh, wait, EVERYDAY is a holiday for me these days!  Bwahahahahaha!!  Yes, I know, I'm a dork.  Good night!

Happy Valentine's Day

Thursday, February 14, 2013
How do you feel about Valentine's Day?

Truthfully, I feel kinda meh.  That's one of Stud's favorite words to use - meh.

I know I've mentioned in the past how we always rolled Magnum's birthday (which was yesterday) and Valentine's Day into one big celebration.  Of course, when we were young and in love, it was a BIG deal.  Cards, candy, flowers, jewelry, and so on.  Then, we had all those years apart, and honestly, some of those Valentine's Days were hard.  Well, it was the being alone part that was hard.  But today is now the third Valentine's Day since we got back together, and really, it pretty much is just another day.  A Hallmark Holiday, as some people call it.  I would much rather we show each other how much we love each other every day, not just on Valentine's Day.  I'm sure there won't be any cards or gifts exchanged today.  (To his credit, all those years we were apart, Magnum always had a card and a gift [flowers, candy, etc] for me from Stud.)  And, that's fine with me.  We certainly shouldn't be spending money frivolously right now, anyway.  I'll probably make a nice dinner, like I mentioned the other day.  We may be going to the AT&T store later to get Magnum a new phone (whichever one is FREE with a new phone line), so that's probably the most exciting thing that'll happen tonight.  We live on the wild side, don't we?

I hope you all have a lovely Valentine's Day, and that it turns out exactly how you want it to be.

2/13/13

Wednesday, February 13, 2013
If you could send out valentines this year as you did back in grade school, what type of valentine would you send out to your blogosphere class?

 Ok, I'm taking the lazy way out of this one.

 These were just a few more that I liked.

Today is Magnum's birthday, but I got the gift.  I got to spend the afternoon with my Monkey!!

This is what she looked like when I got to my brother's.

 I love how her little butt is up in the air, and how her feet are crossed.  So damn cute!!

She's been a bit under the weather the past week or so, which is why I went to my brother's.  He didn't really want to take her out if he didn't have to.

After she woke up, she had lunch.  Naturally, lunch included a banana (duh!) and some of it ended up in her hair.  When she finished eating, I washed her up, and couldn't resist playing with her wet hair.  I thought I'd see how she looked with the same hairstyle as her favorite cousin.  I was laughing so hard, I almost couldn't take these pictures!

Pretty close, right?

 I know this video sucks, but I took it, so you're stuck watching it.  Or don't.  I'll never know!

When my brother got home, I left right away to get home to Magnum.  He actually got home earlier than I anticipated.  We went and picked up some soup for my mom, who's been sick this week, (it's her favorite beet soup from the Lithuanian restaurant down the street) then brought it to her.  Then we left to meet Stud for dinner.  We had a lovely dinner, and now I'm ready to hit the sack.  I'm pretty sure Magnum is already asleep. :(