Katezteam

Beginnings

2011-09-01T20:48:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't blogged in...Oh, about a year now. The princess has graduated and is an adult all her own. I'm enjoying it!! I'm pretty excited I don't have to dump any more money into the school system just to disappoint me and her. I don’t have to deal with anymore teenaged drama…nope. Now it’s adult drama. Ha ha! I am pretty proud of her and excited for her! She starts beauty school next week!

After a few months of looking for a job, I’ve got a new perspective on interviewing. What the crap do some of those questions mean to the interviewer? I read online that the meaning of: “What is your weakness?” question shows the interviewer how you handle the stress of answering the question. It shouldn’t have anything to do with the answer that you come up with….although I don’t think that the interviewer knows that, because they all seemed to be hung up on the answer…. I also looked up online how to answer that question so I could be armed with the goods for the next interview, only to not even be asked the question!

The good news is that I don’t have to interview anymore (at least for a long time, I hope!) because I got a new job!! My summer is over and now I feel like my first day of school is coming up just after Labor Day! Except it isn’t school…it’s a new job. I so enjoyed my summer off, sleeping in, having lunch with my girlfriends, hanging out late on weekday nights and reading, sewing, talking on the phone and just hanging out… I’m going to miss my freedom… BUT let’s face it, I’m broke and I’ve been very irresponsible, so back to reality!

In my little town, it’s all we got.

2010-10-17T16:30:00.000-07:00

Fall Friday nights most of the town meets up at the field, rooting for our high school boys, heckling the referees, watching the girls dance and cheer and listening to our award winning band perform at the half.

Most people that live here went to the high school here. They all talk about how it was when they were there. “We never won a game the whole time I went to school”, “I was the band major when I was in school”, “We won state my senior year”… All of this can be heard just sitting in the stands. (I’m kinda jealous that I can’t really share my experiences…because I didn’t go there).

It’s funny how times have changed and frozen at the same time for them. Homecoming brings past graduates back to the field for the game and to be introduced on the field before the band plays at half time.

It also means that the Princess was nominated by her senior football players to be on the royalty court (again). This time she was able to wear the honored white (reserved for seniors) billowing dress and compete for the coveted Queen title. Someone else got that, but she was just so happy to be on the court and happy that she was a real Princess for the whole day!

Our “Boys of Fall” won their homecoming game making the day pretty perfect!

The List

2010-10-08T22:59:00.000-07:00

My “To Do” list after Laid-Off-Dom:

Clean out the Closet – And throw some of my hoarded crap away!
Wash the walls throughout the house
Paint my bedroom – I’ve been planning to for about eight years now!
Put my feet up!
Turn off the TV and turn on the radio
Do some sewing
Smell the Roses

And if my some miracle this list is ever completed, that’s when I will hit the pavement and look for another job! Is it kind of a bad thing that I’m looking forward to being laid off?

I think that being a working wife and mother means that I have to do everything and not just women’s work (or for the feminists: “Domestic Duties”).

I think a lot about what the world was when my great grandma was a wife and mother. I think about how she wore a dress, worked hard at home with laundry (not in a machine), cooking, cleaning, taking care of her children and some of her neighbors too. She cared for sick relatives and took in family members who lost their spouse and father. She was always beautifully dressed and had a smile on her face. Times in the 30s were tough for everyone, but in today’s time, we as women are dealing with some of the same issues of financial woes, sick loved ones, children’s needs and we have to add a boss to all of it.

A friend of mine recently started substituting at her son’s school after working about five hours a week at a newspaper. She asked how other mom’s deal with working all week and keep the house clean, kids fed and homework finished…

and the response from the “mom’s” painted a very real picture for me. We all pick our own battles. House cleaning and cooking loses in the big tug of war of work and children. It was eye opening to me. I never expected to see that other women feel the same way that I do. The feeling of coming home at dinner time and just wanting to sit down for a few minutes, but your children are hungry, so we either force ourselves to stand in front of the stove or we run through McDonalds drive thru.

In my heart, I want to do it all. I want to cook, and have a beautifully clean home, and hang out with my Princess and Hero when ever they need me. Keeping everyone including myself happy while working a full time job is not an easy feat! I’m certainly looking forward to the break before I start applying for another job.

Slang

2010-09-26T11:19:00.001-07:00

In the last few weeks I’ve over heard some slang that has seriously taken me back in time, all the way back to junior high school, high school and a blast to the 90s.

Just this morning, my Hero told the Princess that he would get a “Killer Green Tie” this week. When was the last time you heard the word “Killer” used to describe something is a positive way? It’s been a long long time for me.

One day last week I was talking to my friend in the news room about an hour before our news was to air for that day. Usually, the news room is abuzz with last minute details and late breaking news coming in…One of the reporters was running to one of the edit bays, and my friend says, “Everyone Spazzes an hour before news time”! Spaz is one of my favorite words ever! I couldn’t stop giggling over it!

Another friend of mine was talking about some really great find she had on facebook…described it as Righteous!

I guess that I’m one to talk, because I regularly use the word “totally” and I didn’t think that aged me, until I saw and heard the afore mentioned words. I’m pretty sure to my teenager I sound extremely old, but in my heart I’m still sixteen years old. Nowadays, my teenager is saying Sick, Holla and Bad… Thanks to the eighties slang, I understand the positive / negative thing.

Hoarder Confessions

2010-09-21T22:35:00.000-07:00

Inspired by the fire that threatened my folks’ home town of Herriman and the couple of families that lost their homes as well as all the contents in them, I’ve wondered if I’d be alright losing all the items in my home since I’m a hoarder. Not the kind where there are pathways lined with crap throughout the rooms of the house. I’m the kind that cannot part with anything that may have the slightest sentimental value that I’ve added to it. I’m emotionally attached to every piece of paper that enters my house! I don’t have pricey items, I don’t have extravagant items, but I do have stuff that mean special things to me.

Maybe it was the way I was raised with a food storage filled with canned goods to last at least a week and mom’s old graduation dress in the basement closet. I don’t remember my parents tossing out their hoarded items, even junk mail. I come by it honestly.

Now that I live in “Tornado Alley”, my Hero frowns upon too big of a food pantry because he said that no one wants to get killed by a can of green beans being hurled at their head with tornado force winds. So, my hoarded items are more of the paper type, shoes and purses.

What would I grab in the moments before knowing that I may lose it all to a tornado or impending fire?

I’ve actually left my home before fearing a tornado and didn’t take anything with me except my purse and my family. I left my beloved scrapbooks and genealogy book. I left all my clothes, shoes, important papers, jewelry, even my car. My family ran for my husband’s car and drove to the nearest tornado shelter and never looked back for our crap. None of it even crossed my mind at the time.

Why can’t I just throw it away? Actually choose to toss it? My Princess has no problem throwing out unwanted items. Each year she goes through her whole room and takes out bags of out dated belongings. I cringe at the thought of what could be in those bags! There will be items in those bags that I will be emotionally attached to. I don’t even look anymore, because they are her items and I’m trying hard to learn from her how to throw my crap away!

Today, if I had to run to the car in fear of losing it all, I bet I’d just go with my family and not let any of my hoarded crap cross my mind.

In The News

2010-08-04T19:20:00.000-07:00

Triple digit heat folks! It’s been twenty three days and counting with no end it sight! This is the true meaning of “long dog days of summer!” Heat indexes of 115 degrees some days! The lakes and old swimming holes are warmer than bath water and not refreshing. My first experience of Rudy Creek was two hours and a sun burn that resulted in “Sun Poisoning”! It looks like I’m having an allergic reaction all over my shoulders and chest. Next time I vow to use the highest amount of sun screen that SPF offers!
Shores Lake a couple of weeks ago was a little better. I used a SPF of 70 and the water near my toes was a little cooler, but I was rewarded with blisters on my feet from a walk up the road while sweating to death in sandals I haven’t warn in quite a while.
On the news today a mention was made that the heat in Louisiana resulted in the street buckling! It looked like a fault line had run through the road. In Atlanta the heat index was 120 degrees and in Tulsa the Red Cross has set up cooling centers.
Mother Nature needs some ibuprofen!

Also in the world of news is that I’m being laid off soon. My company has decided to centralize the accounting department of all the TV stations they own across the country. While this is not the best timing, I’m looking at it as a blessing. Some days I’m jaded and others I’m looking forward to it. We haven’t been told of the actual day, but I’m secretly hoping to get through the rest of the year. That would allow me to be at home the remaining six months of the Princess’ senior year and then figure out what I want to be when she grows up. It would be a blessing to be home savoring the last six months that my daughter is a child.

I'm so excited!!

2010-02-13T17:19:00.000-08:00

Do you know what I love about the South? Just about everything! But most of all, I love that when you tell people that you are going to the Daytona 500, most people actually know what I'm talking about AND they are jealous!!
I'm so dang excited for the race tomorrow that I can barely stand it! I'll take lots of pictures for all of you to share in our "People Watching Fun!"
Can't wait!!!!

We Work Hard! lol

2010-01-08T19:14:00.001-08:00

When there is a pretty boy in the room...we can't help but take pictures with him....
Even if it's Edward Cullen....cut out.

Doesn't he look like he is thinking: "Yeah I'm awesome, why is she touching me?"

"Is she going to lick me?!...sick!"

"I'm too sexy for my snuggie...and why did I need one anyway?

The Weather Outside is FRIGHTFUL and other new going ons!

2010-01-08T18:45:00.000-08:00

The newest thing going on around here is the weather! We had a white Christmas (apparently the first since 1975!) and with the new year single digit temperatures! It hasn’t been this cold since I moved here seven years ago!! After Christmas I always think “Ok, Christmas is over now it’s time to warm up!” This hasn’t happened yet…darn.

I feel like I’m back in Utah! Last winter we were lucky to have freezing temps one or two days! Everyone in my area has been complaining with their facebook status’s and my personal favorite was from my friend Kim who noted that it was so cold that she had to defrost her hot flashes!

Thursday, school was cancelled due to the threat of snow…we didn’t get any! But the kids had a snow day anyway! Arkansans just are woosies when the weather dips below 60 degrees…and I’m right there along with them!! I just don’t like winter…even on Christmas!

I’m also happy to announce that the Princess got a job! I’m so excited that she gets to experience the hard work along with a paycheck…a little one. When she got it, she said “All that work for eighty bucks?!”

That was my cue! I jumped in with both feet! : “All the more reason to make sure you go to college and get a really good job, my love!”

All I got was the teenage eye roll! But at least I got to add my two cents!

My Hero and I are still trying to eat right, exercising has gone south with the birds, but we will get right back to it as soon as the sun thaws this place out!

So, Happy New Year ya’ll! May it be prosperous and healthy for all of you!

Some Things I Learned from a Snowman

2009-12-08T16:26:00.000-08:00

It's okay if you are a little bottom heavy.
Hold your ground, even when the heat is on.
Winter is the best of the four seasons.
It takes a few extra rolls to make a good midsection.
Wearing white is always appropriate.
It's fun to hang out in the yard with your friends.
It's embarrassing when you can't look down and see your feet.
We're all made up mostly of water.
Avoid yellow snow at all times!
Too much sun is not good for you either.
The key to life is to be a jolly happy soul!

Ornament Magic

2009-12-07T21:52:00.000-08:00

Some of my most magical memories are around the way my mom decorated for Christmas. The season would start by visiting the Christmas Tree lots where mom searched for the perfect tree for the perfect price. Sometimes it would take a few lots in frosty conditions, but she always picked out the most beautiful tree with the best scent. The tree would be trimmed, and set up in the house undecorated for at least 24 hours, so that it would open up fully. Mom and Grandma made most of the ornaments on her tree. Mom painted wood trains, dolls and nutcrackers and made quilted Christmas balls. Grandma and mom painted ceramic Christmas mice in moons, wreaths and candle sticks. Grandma’s string snowflakes rolled in glass snow added to the collection. Later, my sister made Christmas angels of ribbon and lace. An old pink star (had to of been bought in the 60s) donned the top of our tree each year…that was dad’s job as he was the tallest and could reach. Always colored lights and never blinking.

The mantle (on the wall, not over a fireplace) held Mr. and Mrs. Snowman, again hand made by mom, and the ceramic acrobatic snowmen dolled up in glass to sparkle like a fresh snow glitters in the sun. It was the only time she lit the silver candles. On Christmas Eve, our stockings would be hung from that mantle. All of our stockings were the same ones year after year. Mine didn’t have my name on it. It was red with the white collar and three angel stickers placed right on the white puff. Amazing that those stickers remained for eighteen years!

Mom would have me help wrap gifts that were for my sister or my dad. She would put pieces of tape along our table, she would make the cuts and folds and tell me where to place the tape.

Now, Christmas morning was the only time I was allowed to jump into bed with my sister and call out to our parents for permission to get up. Dad always had to “Check” on things before we were allowed to see.

Adding to our wonderment, the tree was always lit up revealing the treasures laid out for us. Santa only brought the big gift and filled our stockings. He didn’t wrap for added Santa effect.

One year, I went back to my room and there was a beautiful Christmas dress laid on my bed. It wasn’t there when I got up, but mom insisted that Santa must have still been in the house and left it there for me…and my sister had one on her bed too! Sneaky Santa!

Some of my favorite gifts from Santa were a family pinball machine, an Atari System, an electric child size organ, Alphie, Speak’n Spell, Moppet’s Doll House, A Cabbage Patch Kid named Ola and when I got older a rainbow comforter for my bed.

The old Christmas record played Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole and Sam Cook’s renditions of the timeless classics. They remain some of my favorites and take me back to the days when I wasn’t the Santa and didn’t have to do the shopping, wrapping, decorating, cooking or making the traditions.

Magically, my mom made it to Christmas 1995. That year I decorated the tree because she was too sick to, but we listened to that old record together and had a fun conversation as I placed the sweet old handmade ornaments on the tree. That night was such a gift because the next day she wasn’t herself and didn’t even know it was Christmas.

My sister and I divided up the hand made ornaments and I have the old 1960s Pink Star. I haven’t used those ornaments in a couple of years, but I’m so glad that I have them. I used to proudly boast that every ornament on my tree was made by my grandma, mom and sister. I plan on passing them down to my daughter when she grows up and has a family of her own…and maybe add something to the collection that I make. That might take a little magic too!

Photo Tag

2009-11-15T17:03:00.000-08:00

Here are the rules:

*Open your first photo folder.

*Scroll down to the 10th picture.

(if you dont have 10 in that one, then go to the next folder that does).

*Post that photo and the story behind that photo on your blog.
*Tag 5 friends to do the same.

This picture was on Easter 2007 when the Princess and her cousin were both just thirteen years old!

My Hero's family has a house in Ozark, AR that his grandmother's grandparents lived in. Through the years, the house has stayed in the family, most recently owned by his uncle Milton since around 1970.

This little truck has been driven by my Hero and his brothers when they were little kids! I have seen pictures of them sitting on couch cushions on top of the driver's seat! The boys were allowed to drive to the farm about 5 miles away from the house.

All the grandkids, the Princess included, has driven this little truck around the large one acre yard since they were young!

I'm so thankful for wonderful Parents!

2009-11-09T18:31:00.000-08:00

Even being thirteen hundred miles away from my dad and heaven and earth away from my mom, they are still there for me no matter what.
I have the best step mom anyone could ask for. I've learned so much from all of them. Each one has touch my life so deeply and taught me things that are unique to them.
Mom taught me to be a mother. Dad gave me advice passed down from his father: to help others and make their jobs easier. Kim taught me to have fun and work hard.
I'm just so blessed to have them!

My Hero. My Sweetheart. My Husband.

2009-11-04T18:55:00.000-08:00

Words cannot express how thankful I am for my wonderful husband. He treks all over with and for me, from trips to Wal-Mart to trips across the country. He cooks, he cleans, he fixes, he makes calls when I’ve had too much. He rescues me.
He’s finishing up the small touches on the bathroom project, repaired a water main break, put a new motor in the washing machine that was way too new to be worn out, worked in flower beds with me, and held my hand when my I felt like my world had ended.
At Grandpa’s funeral luncheon, my Hero sat at the little girls table and played with them.
The Princess’ sweet sixteen birthday party would have been a total flop if it weren’t for him keeping everyone entertained as Vern (his alter ego).
He didn’t freak out when we learned that if we turned on our heater we would die from carbon monoxide poisoning and made arrangements to have the whole heat and air package unit replaced.
Even though our cars are as old as the hills and we started shopping for a newer one in July, he hasn’t just bought the first one that came along. He wants to make sure that it’s something that we both want to drive.
He encourages me to go for walks and to eat less fattening foods and makes coffee for me almost every morning!
He keeps me smiling with his fun sense of humor and sometimes gives up his Sunday NASCAR race to spend time doing things that I want to do.
He is a nurturer, giver, and my best friend.
My Hero!

November means Gratitude!

2009-11-03T18:05:00.000-08:00

I’m learning all the new ways I can be “Thankful” this year. After reading a friend’s recent blog of all the things she is thankful for, I think that I too can commit to posting some of my own gratitude throughout this month.

First and foremost, I’m deeply grateful for unanswered and answered prayers. So far, this year has been a big leap of faith. I’ve had to trust God to show me the way, listen and be patient when the answer was no. It’s hard to be understanding when you know all the way down to the pit of your stomach that an answer to a prayer is no. When a yes got sent down I had wonderful elation! Each answer is a blessing. Somehow. I’ve learned a lot about faith and for that I’m so very thankful.

You're Having Chocolate Cake For Breakfast?

2009-10-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

So, the pants are a little looser, but now I’m just in between sizes (grrr). I guess the chocolate cake breakfasts while my parents were visiting didn’t really pay off for the diet program. But oh how I absolutely LoVeD having them here and spending time together! We visited the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, ate lunch at the River Market, drove through the self guided Civil War Battle Site tour at Pea Ridge, went junking on Van Buren’s Historic Main Street and ate out every night! The trip wouldn’t have been as exciting without going to Toad Suck, AR and having our picture made with the sign just to prove that it really does exist! We went, we saw and we bought the t-shirt! All the fun couldn’t end without going to Th e Big Dam Bridge! The walk was a total of 1 & 2/3 mile round trip! At least I got the exercise in!
I enjoyed every minute that they were here and can’t wait until they visit again when we can explore other sites of the state! Hey, maybe next time we can go to Smackover!

The Presidential Library looks like a huge single wide, but it was cool to see.

Too pretty a scene to pass up at Pea Ridge

My Cute Folks!

Civil War Cannon at Pea Ridge.

Me and my Hero

Arkansas is amazing in the fall! It's a blast of color!

Toad Suck, AR really does exist! We found it!

Had to get the full experience!

Chapter One

2009-09-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

…And so begins a new chapter in my life. It may not be as I would like it, but it’s what I have to do. I’ve been trying to figure out what in the world to do with myself since for the last sixteen years I’ve been on “mom duty”, running here and there, getting this and that, trying to keep up. Now? Nothing. I don’t HAVE to do anything except go to work and come home. The problem with not having to do something (anything) is driving me crazy.

I’ve thought about writing a romance novel, or taking a yoga class, or painting my bedroom…but what I have done is made flower beds in front of the house with my Hero. We bought some of those decorative concrete border blocks from Lowe’s. What a sport that was! Both of us are perfectionists and so we both took turns standing back looking to see if each row was nice and even and level…it took about eight hours! My poor bottom and knees hurt from being worked (and I might add here that I don’t work out. I sit on my toosh in an office all day and when I come home I sit it on the couch until it’s time for bed!). Even though the next day, my body complained with every move, it felt good to do something that had a pretty reward. I’ve been trying to decide which plants will best suit each side of the house and I’m happy that I have two good months to dedicate to it.

Together, my Hero and I have also decided to change the way we eat. We lost our appetites over the summer anyway, so we decided to continue to reduce our calorie and fat intake. So far my Hero has lost 10 lbs! Me? As a rule, I don’t weigh myself. If I’ve lost any weight at all, I will not know until my clothes don’t fit anymore. So far they still fit great (dang!). This evening after work, we went for a walk instead of sitting on my rump in front of the TV. I’m hoping that we can continue on this streak of doing things that are good for us and make us happy.

My Princess called me yesterday to tell me that she was asked to a homecoming dance at her new school. I’m excited that she gets to experience the Utah tradition of being asked out in a fun and unique way, but I’m also pretty sad that I didn’t get to be there to be a part of her excitement. At least she called me to share the experience with me. That meant the world to me. I’m also super sad that I won’t be there to scrapbook her Junior Year and all the fun dances and activities she will participate in, but I can’t dwell on that. I’m just trying to get through this the best I can.

Mourning

2009-08-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

My summer was turned upside down when My Princess called me from her dad’s house in Utah to tell me that she plans on staying there to finish high school. I did not agree to her plan. I felt horrible. Summer was ruined, because my daughter is my whole life! She is my only focus, the reason why I do anything…

The day that she was supposed to fly home, she didn’t. Her dad didn’t even take her to the airport. He told me that he could not physically put her on the plane and he wouldn’t make her.

It turned into a legal battle.

The police department there would not enforce the law that protects custodial parents from the other parent keeping their kids, all because she is sixteen. I guess Utah law enforcement officers think that sixteen is the new eighteen!

In the end, my attorney and I put together an agreement for a year. The first day of school came and she wasn’t here… I’m still in shock. I’m just so hurt.

In a matter of two months my life has changed drastically and I know that it’s not going to be the way it was ever again.

I don't even know what to name this, so I didn't.

2009-08-09T14:45:00.000-07:00

I miss you.

I hate how quiet the house is without you in it. It’s missing the music that pours from your soul. The laughter and joy are gone, in its place darkness and doubt, shock and hurt. It’s just too quiet.

There’s no song left in me. I can’t sing. I can’t eat. I can’t think.

I’ve lost my purpose. I’m lost completely. Plans have changed and I loathe change. I fear it.

I feel like such a failure.

Why is beyond anything that I can comprehend. Manipulation?

God is so Great! I’m truly is awe of His magnificence. I’m learning faith as I go through the sadness, knowing that all things are possible through Him. He is paving the way, whatever the outcome and teaching me as we go. His blessings have not gone unnoticed and I’m so very grateful.

Sometimes You Have to Fight

2009-07-02T17:31:00.000-07:00

I’m just pooped out.

I’m exhausted from trying my hardest and never being able to attain the “good enough” status.

The expectation is set incredibly high.

I do…and buy…and sacrifice…and do more…only to be disappointed at the end of the day. It’s impossible to give everything I’m made of without losing all that I’ve put blood, sweat, and tears into and sacrificed so much for.

I just tired of it.

Knowing the regret will be inevitable makes risking the resentment a small price to pay.

I signed up for this. This is what I chose.

I never thought about the trials or heartaches, I just jumped in. It was my responsibility and for responsibility sake I’m willing to meet up at the flag pole.

You are worth it to me.

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T10:06:00.000-07:00

Dad,
Thank you for showing me the lighter side of life,
for making my childhood full of magic,
Thank you for being there when I need to talk, or a recipe, or to move home,
for sharing your love of Mexican Food with me,
for the sarcasm,
Thank you for teaching me to be a better person,
to make somebody's job easier,
to say yes sometimes to the Princess,
to find adventure.
I Love You and I Miss You!
Love,
Kate

Confessions Of A Teenage Mother

2009-06-19T22:28:00.000-07:00

Sixteen years and 9 months ago, I was seventeen years old and a brand new senior at Skyline High School. I was thin to the wind, blonde and a bit on the wild side. It was going on my third year working at Hardee’s and hanging out with the older crowd that worked there. I drove a little, black, soft top Suzuki Samurai that I had bought myself. Freedom from home and high school were just a school year away. I looked into going to college in Rhode Island, but didn’t take the necessary steps to make it a goal, it was just a dream.

In October my mother begged me to go to the doctor… I couldn’t, for the life of me, think of why she wanted me to go. She made an appointment, telling me that she thought that I was pregnant. I denied it. Matter of fact, I felt great! I didn’t even consider the idea.

Well, the doctor confirmed it. I was pregnant.

Graduation became a priority.

As the semester wore on, my body started changing. Thank goodness that big shirts and stretch pants were in style, because hiding it those first few months would have been interesting. I was exhausted and getting up and ready for school was challenging, even more difficult after I was married in December.

Because of being pregnant, married and commuting from West Jordan to Skyline each morning, I asked my counselor if the school would allow me graduate with my class if I received the second semester’s credits from Bingham High School’s Program for Young Mothers. It was approved by the school board and I was relieved.

At Bingham’s Young Mothers Program, I met other girls who were expecting and some who already had their babies. I met girls who were married, and some that were not. Some girls were keeping their babies and some were facing adoption.

I learned from them and their experiences, listened to what they went through during delivery and how hard their pregnancies had been for them. I am grateful to them.

I marched with my class in June, nine months pregnant. Two weeks later, I delivered the most beautiful girl I’ve ever met.

I’m not able to have any more children, so she is my miracle. It just happened at a weird time in my life! I was lucky to have an easy pregnancy, and an even easier labor and delivery, but I’m so blessed to have this wonderful daughter!

Happy Sweet Sixteen, my Princess!

It's alright not to share with your teenager list:

2009-06-10T19:29:00.000-07:00

My friend Darci posted on her blog her top ten list of stuff that is alright not to share with her kids. I’m inspired to do my version of it because her kids are still little and mine is a teenager.

So, here is my list of things that are just fine not to share with your teenager:

Your grades when you were in school
The rental car
Your hairspray, hairbrush, or deodorant
Your income and debt
Your credit card
Your social status in high school
The name of your first (or any) crush
Your Creamy Chicken Alfredo
If you like or dislike her friends
Your Shoes!!
That we love it when she gets invited to a sleepover
Things we do on date night
That I really don’t want to hear what so and so said or did
Your Frosty and Fries
Your curfew when you were her age

My Stint in Radio

2009-06-07T16:05:00.000-07:00

…and the time of most of my embarrassing moments, life changing events and serious learning experiences!

My “dream job” interview was located in downtown Salt Lake City on South Temple in the afternoon on a beautiful, warm weekday. I was a bundle of nerves, parking was interesting and it seemed like I was going to be late if I waited any longer for the elevator. The seventh floor didn’t seem like that long of a trek up the stairs, but I soon realized that there were two flights of thirteen for each floor.

I was out of breath, gasping for air as I pounded on the locked seventh floor door at the back of some office filled with cubicles. A nice lady opened the door, and I croaked out, “I. (exaggerated inhale) Have. (inhale) An. (inhale) Interview. (exaggerated inhale).”

She showed me the way to the lobby, where I sat trying to catch my breath and gazed as the elevator opened up to fresh smiling faces sizing up my near faint, exhausted display. I just knew that this was the worst interview impression ever in recorded history!

A few days later, knowing that I embarrassingly bombed the interview, I sent a Thank You Letter and swallowed my lump of hopefulness.

To my amazement, I got the job!

Later my boss told me that it was the Thank You Letter that won her over. Wow. Who would have known?

From the day of my very awkward interview to the last day that I spent with Simmons Radio Group, strange, but unique to say the least, events took place.

On a sunny Thursday in April 1999, a gunman walked into the Family History Library kiddie-corner from our office building and started shooting people. The buildings within two city blocks were in lock-down mode. So, we all plastered ourselves in the windows of our high rise office building and watched as the armed SWAT Team crept along the rooftops in black ant formation. We heard of a suspicious truck parked down the street that was being investigated for a having bomb inside. We watched as the wounded were loaded into awaiting ambulances and later as a field trip of elementary school aged children (my niece being among them) were escorted out of the building to an awaiting school bus. Not much work was accomplished that day.

Four days later (which happened to be my boss’s birthday), we listened to CNN’s account of the horrible Columbine High School Shootings. Our emotions were still raw from our own too close for comfort shootings across the street. Again, it wasn’t a real productive workday.

For several years there was construction along South Temple for TRAX, a new commuter train to prepare for the extra visitors coming for the 2002 Winter Olympics. In 1999, construction was complete and TRAX was up and running. Since I had to park at a hotel down the block, I had to across the street at the corner of West Temple and South Temple. On a summer afternoon, my ankle twisted out from under me and I went down…face first…right in the middle of that intersection! In pain and embarrassed as the cars stopped at the red light had front row seats to my graceful performance. An elderly lady helped me up and cursed the construction as I hobbled to the sidewalk. When I looked around it donned on me that the construction was over! There wasn’t any in sight! It was like cursing the ice in the summer time!

We dubbed Monday as “Bride Day”. Temple Square was right across the street from our office building and as we walked along the street, we ogled in awe of all the beautiful brides on Monday mornings about to take the plunge into eternity.

Working with Nevah, my boss, was an experience that I can only explain by saying that I was spoiled rotten! She made work fun and I learned more about myself than I ever had before. Of course, the radio environment was exciting and I’m sure deep in my heart that I was meant to work there. Learning the radio lingo was a delight and each day was a new challenge, so it was never boring! I met some interesting people and some semi-famous people too. It was a job that will forever be marked in my memory as the one that I wish I had forever!

One rule that Nevah had was never to talk to her while she was on the phone. I usually respected this rule, except for one day in August 1999! A management meeting was going on in the northwest corner office on our floor and I was filling in for the receptionist as she took her lunch break. All of a sudden, a man burst out of the meeting, running up and down the hall, screaming for everyone to get away from the windows!

“Tornado, everyone get away from the windows!”

I left the receptionist desk to warn my boss who was on the phone. “Nevah, we need to get out of here, there’s a tornado coming!” I whispered to her. She only glanced at me so I said it again.

She replied in a hushed voice, “Kate, I’m on the phone!!”

I could already see the debris circling around in the sky and I was so scared that I just said, “I’ll be in the stairwell if you need me.”

Once there, I started thinking about how I needed to get to the bottom floor. I started running down the stairs, pulling each door shut that was open. When I arrived on the main floor, I heard the storm approaching and I stayed where I was until I heard it pass. Then I watched as it seemed to bounce over the Temple.

In disbelief and a mess of nerves, I rode the elevator back to my office. Nevah was sitting at her desk quietly working and I was afraid to ask her if she stayed there during the storm. So, I just sat down and tried to concentrate on some paperwork. Soon she looked over at me and said, “I can’t believe that I didn’t take that tornado more seriously!”

I was speechless.

A couple of years later our offices moved to Trolley Corners. The commute was just a little different with the freeway construction over and the 2002 Winter Olympics coming up within a year. We missed the Monday Brides, but welcomed better eating establishments at Trolley Square and the much needed parking in the back of the building! All the entertainment of the down town shady characters were replaced with the busy 700 East and BMWs. Nevah was in her element! She was so chic and comfortable in new posh surroundings.

Most everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing on the morning of September 11, 2001. The two hour time difference promised that we were all at home when we first learned that something had happened. Nevah is from the DC area so that was her “home” and she took the news hard!

At work, we sat in the downstairs lobby most of the day, glued to the television set and learned together that this had been on purpose. In the following days, Simmons Radio Group held a radio-a-thon and listened to others pour their hearts out on air. It seemed like everyone in the country needed a grief counselor. My most profound memory of that week was that the cast and crew of 'Touched by an Angel' brought in their payroll checks and handed them right over to support our country!

I was in awe of the down right 'good' in people those few days and weeks after 9/11. It made me so grateful to be there to witness it.

I never would have thought that the event would have an intense impact on me personally, but I was laid off due to the budge cuts and economic pressures that it placed on our business. Nevah was expecting her third child and she was quitting anyway. I was so sad to say goodbye! I’ve always felt I happened onto that job too early in my life. How was I supposed to get a different one after already having had my dream job?

No one in the Salt Lake Valley was hiring after September 11^th! I tried and tried to find a job. Just months before being laid off, I had gotten divorced and moved back in with my parents. I thought that I could save some money to get my own place to live, but those plans changed.

I ended up working at a bakery in Reams Grocery Store. I went from a wearing a suit and pumps to work everyday to jeans, ratty old t-shirts and black comfort fit shoes….but that’s an other story for another post!

Ready?

2009-06-02T17:25:00.000-07:00

I’m just not yet ready for my princess to be “Sweet Sixteen”.

I’m not ready for the state issued curfew of 12:30 am which she fully expects will be bestowed upon her. I’m not ready for those nights when I tell her to be home at 11:00.

I’m not ready to allow “driving around” just so she can feel the breeze in her hair or to listen to music as loud as possible. I am surely not ready for a car load of teenagers listening a thumping bass rap mix and texting while screeching down the street!

I’m not ready for boys to pick her up for dates or the inevitable conversations about why he should come to the door, introduce himself to me and my Hero or why I would prefer him to walk her to the door after the date is over. Heaven help me when she gets a steady boyfriend!! I’m so not ready for that yet!!

I’m just not ready for her to get a job where she will be under some boss’s rules about what time the shift will end or trying to explain the privileges and responsibilities of having her own money. I’m not ready to see what purchases will be made with her own money.

She’s growing up so fast. I only have two precious years to instill all the things I want for her before she’s an adult. Before she leaves this nest for college or wherever life takes her.

Spell Check

2009-05-27T16:12:00.000-07:00

Spell Check usually saves us from looking stupid when sending emails to important business associates….and then there are the times when Spell Check is the reason why we look like morons.

Case in point, my business email signature BEFORE Spell Check :

Kate Mc2
A/R * Credit * Collections
KHBS-KHOG TV & The Arkansas CW+
Fort Smith – Rogers
Arkansas

And my business email signature AFTER Spell Check:

Kate Mc2
A/R * Credit * Collections
CHUBS – HOG TV & The Arkansas COW+
Fort Smith – Rogers
Arkansas

I know ya'll in LA are wonder'n about us down home country fried folks fix'n to go to Wal-mart!
And I fit right in! Ha Ha Ha!

River Festival

2009-05-26T18:43:00.000-07:00

First of all, I have to say that I am in love with Little Rock! It is such a charming city! And it’s been too long since my Hero, the Princess and I have gotten to really enjoy time away from the house, work and school. Memorial Day weekend is the kick off to summer vacation for most school going Arkansans and what a better way to celebrate than a festival along the river front!

I had plans to allow the Princess to go with her BFF and another gal on Friday to her BFF’s mother’s house in Little Rock and join up with her on Saturday. Plans changed on Friday at work while I was chatting with a friend about the fact that I was going to miss Willie Nelson because my reservations were on Saturday. My friend asked why I had made those plans instead of the ones that I really wanted. I explained that Friday night I wanted to clean the house and do some grocery shopping etc…. “Ok. Let me say this out loud for you: You are missing Willie Nelson to clean your house!” she said.

I changed the reservations, called my Hero who said that he would run home and throw in some laundry (sigh, he’s so cute) and called my Princess’ BFF’s mom who we were hanging out with to tell her that I get to see Willie Nelson!!! Yay!

When we were on our way, I mentioned to my Hero that I would love to stop in Ozark at my favorite restaurant for a pulled pork sandwich. He informed me that we were pressed for time if we were going get there in time see Willie take the stage at 9:00. So, we called in and ordered out (ahhhhh yummm).

Along the river front there were three different stages filled with big named acts. I passed up the B52s to see Willie Nelson, a speck up on the stage, in between us a sea of people. The Princess trio went to see Gavin Rossdale (who?). I enjoyed Willie alright, even with the sea of ten gallon hats on the tallest men I’ve tried to see over or through.

Saturday was so laid back with the Princess trio at the pool, my Hero at his laptop and me and Ellie cracking up on the deck. The girls later designed their own River Fest 2009 shirts…that they decided to omit the letters so they can wear them again another time.

That night the concerts were Heart, Hinder and Jason Aldean. All of us went our different ways. My Hero understands and shares my love for Heart. As I started rocking out with them the heavens opened up raining on a slant just so that it was hitting the band right in the face! I felt bad for them. A few songs in Ann Wilson said that they were still gonna rock it! The crowd went nuts! They are so incredibly talented and I’m so glad that I got to see them!

Since I was still on cloud nine and not ready to go back to the hotel and to sleep, my Hero and I went out for some late night IHOP. The place was packed even though the streets were virtually empty! Most of the crowd was high school kids that graduated from area high schools that night. Three sitting across from us as we all waited to be seated were telling another friend the colleges each were accepted to. One sang out Tulane, another said University of Kentucky and the third and only boy said in a quiet voice Princeton. The girls rolled their eyes and said we can’t take you anywhere, just Princeton, I hate you! I wanted so bad to tell him congratulations, but I thought it might freak them out since it was so late in a crowded IHOP not to mention that I was eavesdropping.

Sunday we hung out for a little while as the sky poured and poured. The Princess trio decided to get dolled up and go out to eat. Their later concert events were canceled and my Hero and I said our good byes and drove home.

Monday I woke up sick most likely from standing in the rain and screaming my head off for Heart. I never think of the consequences! Ha Ha Ha!

It was worth it though! One of the best weekends I’ve had in a long time!

Momma's Day

2009-05-19T19:47:00.000-07:00

Mother’s Day hasn’t always been my favorite holiday. While the Princess was little it was fun and cute. She would insist on breakfast in bed and flowers. Sometimes, a home drawn, darling card would be included. She would lay in my bed as I ate the breakfast that my Hero helped her cook and beg for some too…I never understood why they just didn’t make it family breakfast in our bed…oh well.

I lost my mom when I was twenty one, when I was still in the selfish, independent, not wanting to believe that 'momma knows best' stage. I lost her before I could really honor her at Mother’s Day. Not the breakfast in bed with flowers way, but the “thank you for all that you have done for me, & put up with from me, & sacrificed for me” way… I have always felt guilty for that, thus one of the reasons for my dislike of the holiday.

This year, my Hero asked me what was on the agenda for Saturday. I told him that I was having my hair done at noon with Whitney (my hair chick). I saw a fleeting deer in the head light look, but it was so quick that I thought I must have been mistaken. That night while at dinner, he said that he had to tell me something and he was happy that we were in public so that I wouldn’t yell at him (I had no idea that I have a habit of yelling at him, but that’s his story). He slowly said, “I made you a hair appointment with Whitney at one. It’s our Mother’s Day present for you.” I laughed! Oh, he’s so sweet to me! And soooo the reason why he is my Hero!

Teacher Appreciation

2009-05-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

Let’s just face it, I’m a rebel.

I have rebelled against the whole schooling institution from preschool to graduation. The Princess however, is a really big butt kisser! When everyone else in the class prays for the teacher to get distracted, the Princess is annoyed by it. I know…FREAK!

I keep to myself that I’m not as respectful toward teachers as I should be because I would hate for her to be disappointed.

When she was in the fifth grade, I was asked to join the PTA Board. Me?!? To me, it was like joining the military! Signing over my life! The other board ladies didn’t grow up with me and my lack of educational interest. They can’t be blamed for the poor decision to beg for my involvement. The stint only lasted a few weeks, maybe a month at most. With all my flakiness, I walked in, told the ladies to give my VP Pin to the President because I wasn’t going to do this anymore. As I left, I heard one say to another, “I think she just quit!”

Well, no kidding?! Do ya think?

After that experience, I’ve avoided all PTA crap on purpose! Sure, I’ll send in my three bucks because after that they usually just go away. Until two weeks ago when KARMA sent the following email:

“The PTA Board quit in the middle of the year and is out of money. Can you please bring a gallon of orange juice and a 5lb bag of oranges for The Teacher Appreciation Breakfast?”

Teacher Appreciation!

Maybe someone is trying to tell me something….?

My Princess is everything in school that I wasn’t. She’s involved. She’s driven. She “appreciates”. And because I’m the adult with the job and consequently the money to buy the orange overload, I’m forced to appreciate too! For her sake. Because she makes me a better person. She helps me have appreciation.

Breathtaking

2009-04-10T22:12:00.000-07:00

On the one year anniversary of the hail storm that left the pock marked complexion of my Hero’s poor car, another severe storm system rolled through our area and left destruction in its path. Some of the suburbs in Oklahoma City were destroyed by fires, and four tornadoes touched down in our area. One mile wide twister leveled a town called Mena, which is about an hour south of where we live.

In our area the sirens were blaring and we (of course like idiots) were on the front porch with our noses to the sky in awe of wind and buckets of rain. Within minutes the storm had passed and the sky turned a brilliant orange! Then my Hero sighed and said “Oh, it’s the sunset!” I ran for the camera.

Knowing that somewhere there was sadness, this is the joy. It was breathtaking. And seconds after that we learned of the loss of an entire town…

Below is a slide show from the town of Mena:
http://www.4029tv.com/slideshow/15841393/detail.html

Home for the Holiday!

2009-04-04T17:40:00.000-07:00

I got to be home for St. Patrick's Day this year! I count that a blessing because St. Patrick's Day is a lot like Thanksgiving at my dad's house! Each year he cooks a huge Corned Beef or two, a few heads of Cabbage and bakes his famous Soda Bread! My whole family gets together and listens to Irish Folk Music and settles in for some of the best eats in town! No one dares show up without the necessary amount of green on.
This year he and my step mom made a trip to Ireland to see where his father had been born and raised. They wanted to get the real experience of the country, so they stayed in Bed and Breakfasts. Dad said that his 6 foot 3 inch frame didn't fit into some of the rooms! After about three weeks of it, he couldn't take it anymore and the last few nights they stayed in a hotel.
He told me that the roads were so narrow that sometimes they had to back up to let the on coming traffic pass! And the hedges on the sides of the roads often had rock walls right behind them. He said that his rental car was all scratched up from the branches hitting the sides of the car!
On the menu in most restaurants was fish. Dad said that his fish and chips was pretty different since the skin and bones had not been removed.
They showed us the beautiful pictures that they had taken and dad said that Ireland draws you there. He can't wait to get back there! It must be as magic as they say!
I just know that for me it was wonderful to be home for the holiday this year!!

I'm numb....

2009-04-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

There are three of us girls in my department at work. Each of us had a loved one who was either terminally ill or in a nursing home dealing with old age.

At the beginning of March as most of you know, I lost my hero, my Grandpa. I rushed to Utah to be with my family and speak at the funeral (as I promised him that I would). I cannot express how tough this trip was for me.

The week that I returned to Arkansas, my office mate and friend lost her Granny. She was incredibly close to her. They were joking with each other a few nights before and knowing that the end was near was difficult for my friend to bear. Last Thursday she was just heartbroken.

Just four days after my friend lost her Granny, on Monday, our beloved co-worker and friend to everyone, Marilyn, passed away from cancer. Marilyn was my boss’s best friend. We knew that she was sick and she accepted her fate better than all of us could. Even knowing that time was short, we still had a hard time accepting.

Then, at lunch time today, my boss’s mother, who is sick with cancer lost her fight too! The bittersweet comments, they’re out of their pain and no longer suffering, they are with other loved ones and with God now….still hurts.

I’m numb. Loss and hurt is all around me. Every time I turn around, I feel like I’m buying a sympathy card or sending flowers or consoling a devastated friend. I wonder if this is what a disaster feels like…

Train Rides

2009-03-27T15:39:00.000-07:00

Last summer, we learned that driving to Ogden during rush hour was a two and half hour stint filled with road rage and impatience. As we crawled along with other motorists, we were in awe of the new Front Runner passing all of the cars and envious that we didn't utilize it's services.

We were again faced with the rush hour commute last week as we made dinner plans in Ogden. The stop and go traffic was something that I did not want to endure again. I thought how wonderful it would be to take Trax to down town and then Front Runner to Ogden. The stop in Ogden is just down the street from where my sister in law works so it would be kinda fun to just try it out.
We started off on Trax from Sandy at about 4pm. People on the train were making snide comments about me taking pictures...they must have thought that I was a real tourist.

When we got to the down town station to change trains, I was really impressed with the cool satchels protruding out of the rocks here and there. I thought that it was pretty neat that Trax, Front Runner, Amtrac and Greyhound were all in the same place!

It wouldn't be the city without it's share of colorful people. There is always someone! The above man yelled at me for taking his picture! He screamed that he knew I worked for the State and I had no right to take his picture. I assured him in the thickest southern accent that I could muster up that I didn't work for the State, but I do work for the media!

We got on the Front Runner at the same time that we were supposed to be in Ogden. It had taken an hour to get from Sandy to Downtown. We were confident that it would only be about half an hour away from dinner because of how fast we saw it moving last year.

Well, we were wrong! It was 5 o'clock and I-15 was speeding right along! The train moseyed along the tracks like a Sunday Drive! Cars were flying toward Ogden much faster than the train courtesy of Legacy Highway! I wonder how in the world the transit is making any money at all. A man on the train told us that a monthly pass is about $175.00 for about a two hour ride to his work on 33rd South! We figured that price and a longer commute just doesn't seem to be worth it.

With nothing but dinner to do, we didn't mind this trip and it was actually pretty fun. We met some nice (except for screamy photo-phobic guy) people and I got some really fun pictures! Now we know that if we ever move to Utah that the trains should not be used for anything but leisure. We finally arrived in Ogden an hour late and thank goodness we decided to leave Ogden at 9pm because we caught the last Trax train back to Sandy without even knowing it!

Kate Needs

2009-03-11T10:14:00.000-07:00

By googling "your name needs", you can find some funny stuff!
The below are ten of the funniest ones that I found:

1. Kate needs a shave.

2. Kate needs a date.

3. Kate needs a pinup photographer in Chicago!

4. Kate needs to back the hell off of Carly!

5. Kate needs kisses.

6. Kate needs a rehab in a new home.

7. Kate needs a hammer.

8. Kate needs some flowers.

9. Kate needs your advice.

10. Kate needs to think before she speaks!

I sincerely hope that I don't need a shave or a date! But these cracked me up! I had to do it since my friend's "Needs" Blog post was hilarious!!

I hope that you do it too!

Reasons

2009-03-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

I just want to thank all of you for your support about my “Decision” post. The conversation with my Grandma helped me to relax and take a breath before I jumped on an airplane. Together we decided to wait to see how my Grandpa was the following day.

Much to my dismay, my phone rang early the next morning. My sister was calling to let me know that Grandpa had past away Saturday morning.

I wouldn’t have made it there in time.

By staying, I’ve had time in the comfort of my own home to grieve and cry and reminisce. I do believe that things work out the way that they do for a reason. Accepting and learning from those reasons are all part of the big test.

So, I’m off to Utah with most of the hurt dealt with in privacy so I may be strong for my Grandma and the rest of my family.

I’m so grateful for my friends! Thank you so much for being here for me! Your kind words have been just what I needed!

Decisions

2009-03-06T21:13:00.000-08:00

For the last 24 hours I’ve been killing myself with the decision of whether to fly home to see my Grandpa before he passes away or if I should stay in Arkansas until he does pass.

Going sooner than later would be for totally selfish reasons, allowing me to say goodbye to him. Feeding my own selfishness, because (Grandma assures me) he wouldn’t know if I were there or not. To wait would mean that I have more time to spend helping out in any way that I can, as well as the time off from work to attend the services.

I’ve tried to help Heavenly Father’s schedule since mine happens to be booked solid with the Princess’s end of school tests, a dance performance at the Jr. High School pageant, and a mandatory parent meeting with the dance coach for next year’s dance team selection. I’ve tried to compromise, but I know that He knows what’s best and that I can deal with it. Nonetheless, all of this has made the decision making so difficult.

This man is one of my unsung heroes. He’s my mom’s dad, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York and one tough cookie. Noteworthy these days, he and Grandma have been married for 65 years. They made their life and home in Utah after his honorable discharge from the military in the 1940s. This must have been a hard decision since he and his mother had such a close bond.

I can’t imagine being far from home without the modern technology of the internet, long distance minutes on my cell phone, easy direct flights (getting more costly as the economy suffers) and UPS. Yes, the decision to stay in Utah during the 40s must have been a great sacrifice. He also liked the family lifestyle and the fly fishing.

The loss of his daughter (my mom) also marked the loss of his eye sight thirteen years ago and the loss of his independence as a result.

At the end of the day, my Hero called the airline to see if they have a bereavement discount for flights. He bought three tickets that can be booked, cancelled and rebooked anytime. With the trip purchased and a two hour phone conversation with Grandma, I’ve resolved to waiting until the inevitable comes to pass.

Mother

2009-03-03T20:32:00.000-08:00

My sister in law sent me this in an email today and I love it! Had to share:

Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back
to normal after you've had a baby..... somebody
doesn't know that once you're a mother,
'normal' is history.
* * *
Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by
instinct ... somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
* * *
Somebody said being a mother is boring....
somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.

* * *

Somebody said if you're a 'good' mother,

your child will 'turn out good'...

somebody thinks a child comes with
directions and a guarantee.
* * *
Somebody said you don't need an education to be a
mother.... somebody never helped a fourth grader
with his math.
* * *
Somebody said you can't love the second child as
much as you love the first.... somebody doesn't
have two children.
* * *
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother
is labor and delivery....
somebody never watched her 'baby' get on the bus
for the first day of kindergarten ...
or on a plane headed for military 'boot camp.'
* * *
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her
child gets married....somebody doesn't know that
marriage adds a new son or daughter-in- law to a
mother's heartstrings.
* * *
Somebody said a mother's job is done when
her last child leaves home....
somebody never had grandchildren.
* * *
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so
you don't need to tell her....
somebody isn't a mother.

Peculiar Concept

2009-02-22T16:59:00.000-08:00

Have you ever done a Facebook search using your own name?
Out of total boredom, I began to search for friends that I lost touch with and when I couldn’t find them, I typed in my own name. A list the size of Texas came up! I instantly wanted to ask them all to be my friends just so I could get to know them. It was an array of women young and old, from all over the world. Some had photos and some didn’t. I wonder if I could be related to any of them, linked by some distant ancestor on my father’s side (since I searched by my maiden name).
I didn’t ask any of them to be my friend, but it would be a neat concept: To have a Facebook page and all the friends are all the same name but different people from everywhere.

Blue

2009-02-18T20:38:00.000-08:00

It’s just one of those days when the “blue” creeps in for a stay. It’s gorgeous outside, the birds are singing, the sun is bright but I just can’t seem to let the slight breeze carry my heavy heart and make it smile.

I know that serenity will not be regained unless clemency is bestowed. The sorrow and rejection loom on and on. Exhausted from disguising my unvoiced sincere thoughts where the question of cruelty, blunt opinions and the ever present foolish pride are so intrusive. The silence is not a peaceful stillness but a screaming interruption, exaggerated so that the intention is hurtful. Staying neutral is misinterpreted as unsympathetic, uncaring and heartless. Forming an alliance excludes precious individuals significant in my life. I cannot relate.

So far away and still the echoes sneak up, repeating over and over.

When will I ever learn?

Yammering

2009-02-16T13:06:00.000-08:00

What the heck happened to the easy decline of “No thank you”? Why do people feel like they have to lie when they want to decline an invitation? Is it because they feel obligated to tell the reason they’ve declined, so it’s easier to tell a lie about why they don’t want to attend something?
If I invited someone to join me for dinner and they just said, “No thank you, not this time” and didn’t offer any explanation, I’d feel better than learning later that they had fibbed just to get out of going. Do we as a society expect a reason for a declined invitation that pressures our friends to lie to us? Can we handle the truth if the answer is simply, “I just don’t feel like it today”?

I heard a neat quote last week when I asked how our sales team is getting pumped up in this economy and my friend said that in his last sales meeting the boss said, “There are two factors behind motivation: Desperation and Inspiration.”
I guess this is why my yard looks so crappy. Since the neighbors haven’t complained about it, I’m not desperate (yet) to clean it up and I’m certainly not inspired to get out there and clean it up…

If you buy a bottle of Benifiber for the first time ever and miss read the dose as 2 table spoons rather than 2 tea spoons can it make you sick? Is it possible to overdose on fiber and vitamin B?

When I “ignore” the stuff that is sent to me on facebook does that little notification thing tell the person who sent it to me that I’ve ignored it? Sometimes I like getting new facebook gifts and sometimes I don’t. It depends on the day and if someone sends me twenty five things in one day it annoys me. I feel like I don’t always have time to go through it when I just want to get on to check in with my friends. Does that make me ungrateful? Do people just send everyone on their friend list stuff in hopes that they will return the favor so they can collect facebook junk?

Why doesn’t everyone name their cars? I named mine Betsy, the Princess’ car’s name is Pocho, and Uncle Milton belongs to my hero. I want to name my house but I’m unsure what to name it. I’ve seen some blogs that name their houses cute names such as “Willow Manor”. Mine is a far cry from a manor but it deserves a name because it has such an awesome history. Did you name your house? What would you name it?

What in the world is Twitter? Do you belong to it? How many more social networking sites are there? It seems like a fad…first there was myspace. I only joined myspace to spy on my Princess who has one and now that she is a little older and seems more web responsible I don’t spy as much…or at all. I joined facebook. She refuses to join facebook for some strange phobia of moving on. While I joined facebook to view photos of my sister and her children, I was pleasantly surprised to find old friends. My new old friends on facebook propelled me into the lovely blog world which is now my favorite past time. Am I going to wake up one day to see that no one comments on my facebook anymore because they have moved over to Twitter?

Why him?

2009-02-12T19:01:00.000-08:00

Because:

We met on the phone through a business situation and he introduced me to a picture of himself as Vern via the internet. At the time, I wanted to meet someone that I could have some fun with. While my step-mom and I scrutinized the online photo, she stated that he’s definitely someone to have fun with!

As we dated, he asked thought provoking questions and my incessant honesty allowed me to consider my answers not only for him but also to learn for myself. We talked about serious relationship topics, unconsciously quizzing our compatibility.

Still, I was skeptical as I’d been hurt before and consequently let him move 1300 miles away. The moment that he drove out of sight, I knew that he was “The One” and about a month later I moved to Arkansas to be with him.

We were married on April 23, 2005, a date that he chose because it was the anniversary of our first date three years earlier. I love that he recalled the actual day and it made all the more special.

He doesn’t leave the household responsibilities up to me by choice. I don’t have to nag! We do them together, or on a schedule that rotates to insure that we have days off from chores. Grocery shopping is also something we do together which he makes pretty funny because he knows that shopping isn’t my thing.

We love to cook together and host dinners for his family or friends once in a while. The three of us have “Friday dinner out” night each week, which has become challenging since now the Princess dances at the high school ball games. We’ve moved it to Saturday night so that all three of us can keep the tradition, also tricky with a social teenager. This was his idea when I first moved here and making the attempt shows us that we’re both important to him.

My Hero keeps tidbits of information stored up, such as where certain brands of goods are made or distributed from. His favorite shows on TV are the educational type as he can never have enough facts! He is self taught computer programmer and if he doesn’t know an answer to a question he will not rest until it has been resolved.

He displays a rather cool exterior but I know that he’s a big softy inside. He can negotiate his way out of any disagreement that may come up and still melt my heart by making me laugh!

We laugh a lot together and I’m so very lucky to have this wonderful man as my husband, best friend and Valentine! He has made my life so special and fun!

I love you, Kez! Happy Valentine's Day!

For the love of chocolate and roses!

2009-02-07T19:49:00.000-08:00

I’m really trying to figure out what kind of Sweet 16 birthday party to do for my daughter. She has expressed several times that she doesn’t want a party where there will be dancing because she says that her friends don’t dance. They huddle in their little cliques with smirky stares at each other while she dances and enjoys herself all by herself.

She told me that she didn’t want to invite just a few of her close girl friends either because how could she choose which girls to invite and which ones to leave out. Surely someone would have hurt feelings and drama would break out at the most inconvenient embarrassing time!

She has a list of about 65 girls and boys that she wants to celebrate with at a nondancing party with games and food that everyone will have fun at, but what? I’m so lost, because I feel like no matter what I come up with she will have some complaint as she did for the following ideas:

There’s the option of renting a local water park, which includes a huge pool, wade pool, and two water slides, but she didn’t like the idea of it only being for 2 hours at night. She’s too old for a skating party, at the movies no one will be able to talk and cut up, and if they go bowling they will be spread across several lanes. At Logan’s Stake House, they have a party room big enough, but they don’t allow private parties on weekend nights! I can’t win.

Any ideas? I’ll send you chocolate and roses if your idea is something we all agree with!

Sometimes I see something that just screams "Take a picture!"

2009-02-06T21:38:00.000-08:00

There are always fun things lurking in the "newsroom". As I walked through the door this morning, I saw this chair. It is definitely picture worthy.

The below picture is a huge ball of tape...tape used as labels from videos that are being recycled. I asked one of the producers where they are going to put it when it's as big as the desk. He said, "Out in the yard."

Good Morning!

2009-02-03T18:42:00.000-08:00

Mornings are not my thing. I push the envelope with the snooze button and cram as much preparation into an hour resulting from snooze button manipulation. It’s habit that I get out of bed, head straight for the shower (after I say good morning to the Princess) and end up back in bed, hoping that by some miracle, I can just go back to sleep.

This morning I got up, said “Good morning” to the Princess and as I attempted to get into the shower I turned on the faucet and just a trickle of water came out!

In my sleepy stupor, I struggled to recall paying the water bill. …Uhm. Yes. Yes, I did. Ok. What else could it be? I groggily stumbled back to the bedroom to get my Hero who asked “Did it freeze last night?”

I dunno. Frozen water pipes could mean broken water lines under our house.

Whatever the problem could be was infringing on my over scheduled, already delayed morning routine!

My wonderful in-laws invited us to shower at their house. A great debate took place in my head. Should I call in sick or should I go into work? I ended up feeling obligated to continue feeding my nasty eating habit, so the angel on my shoulder won the contest.

On our way to the in-law's house, we saw the city water workers repairing a main water pipe about a block up from my house.

We showered, chatted and drank coffee. By the time I was supposed to be at work, we left to go back home so I could finish my hair and make up for the day. As we neared our driveway, my Hero expressed how unhappy he was going to feel if the water had been restored to our residence upon our return. We walked into the house and he flipped on the kitchen faucet to learn that he was just going to be unhappy.

Some days I wonder if the snooze button should just be avoided and the whole alarm just turned off so I can again dangle in dreamland!

Facebook "25 Random Facts"

2009-01-27T19:50:00.000-08:00

I was tagged on facebook to list 25 Random facts about myself and have LoVeD reading everyone's answers! So, if you read this please post your Random 25 facts so I can get to know you better!
Below are mine:

1. I love the lighter side of life and have a strange sense of humor. I'm not attracted to people who don't have a funny bone.

2. People either like the way I laugh or make fun of it. I inherited it from my Great Grandma who had the same laugh and the same reaction from others around her.

3. I'm addicted to photography, genealogy and scrapbooking.

4. My favorite color is green...all shades will do.

5. I have a strong need for music in my life. It doesn't matter what kind it is. It feeds my soul and rejuvenates my senses. Better than aroma therapy!

6. I didn't go to college, because I became a mom really young. I've made a goal to go someday and become something, but I still don't know what.

7. I have a unique relationship with senior citizens. Sometimes I think that I was born in the wrong time.

8. Bear Lake is my most favorite place on Earth. I'd rather be there than anywhere, and sometimes I "take" pictures from what others have posted on KSL so that I can see it whenever I want. It's the hardest part of living so far away from UT.

9. I moved to Arkansas for a man. Three years after I moved here, we got married. It was the best move of my entire life!

10. I used to hate history, but now I like it, especially when I'm in places where significant things happened in history.

11. I lost my mother 13 years ago and I'm sad that my daughter doesn't know her or have her as a grandma. I'm very grateful for the time that I had with her.

12. I've been accused of being stuck up because I never notice people I know when driving. Even when they are hanging halfway out of the window, waving and honking their horn.

13. I read the entire collection of "The Work And The Glory" and loved it. But I don't attend church.

14. I hate drama and when people make a big deal out of small things.

15. I have a love for the theater and arts. I consider it a "Treat" when I get to go. I'd rather not go to the movies because I don't enjoy them as much.

16. The best advise that I have ever gotten is: " Always try to make someone's job easier no matter how big or little it is." I live this everyday of my life and I'm happy to do so.

17. I don't like road trips. I'd rather fly wherever we are planning to go.

18. I get bored and impatient easily. That is the answer to #17.

19. I have a super hard time making up my mind. It may take hours to decide where to go for dinner or what to wear, but once my mind is made up there is no changing!

20. I really love the whole blogging thing and wish that I had more traffic on mine. Sometimes I get writers block and it takes a long time to snap out of it, so maybe I loose people. Want to hang out on mine? www.katezteam.blogspot.com

21. I love to collect money. State's quarters, CD accounts, Money Markets. I just think that it's fun even if I start out with $5.00.

22. I'm a news junkie. I love to watch KSL online and CNN for national news just to stay updated on what is going on in the world.

23. I think that first impressions are important. I think that people should know the families that their kids are spending time with and trust their gut feelings about people and situations.

24. I think that guilt is a useless emotion but it doesn't seem to change the fact that I feel guilty over things I've done or said.

25. I like astrology and numerology but don't base my life on it. It's just fun.

Out of the mouths of...er...86 year olds?

2009-01-25T16:40:00.000-08:00

I’ve called my Grandma and Grandpa every Sunday since I moved to Arkansas six years ago. We talk about all the things we did over the past week, such as what we made for dinner, how the weather was or what new sites they discovered on their daily “drives”.

My Grandpa lost his eyesight about ten years ago, so my Grandma has mostly been taking care of him and recently he went into a nursing home. She hasn’t done much with her friends, but finally a couple of women that she used to work with talked her into going with them to visit a friend who bought a new home.

“The house was as big as a castle, Kate!” She said as she recalled her trip to Provo. I know that some of the homes in Provo are large and beautiful, but I was just excited that she got to go with the girls and get out of the house for a change!

“It has six bedrooms and an elevator in there! It took about 20 minutes just to tour the whole house! Her refrigerator went from floor to ceiling, and her bed is really tall. I’d need a step stool to get into that bed!”

I asked, “What does her husband do?”

“I don’t know!” She said. “But I bet that house had to cost a hundred thousand dollars!”…. I tried not to giggle. I didn’t try to correct her way of thinking. I just marveled in the innocence of this wonderful woman. I love her so much and I’m so grateful to have her as my Grandma!

Possibilities

2009-01-21T17:48:00.000-08:00

I’m happily optimistic about the possibilities that President Obama offers our country.

There’s no doubt that President Bush made some mistakes, the fact that Bin Ladin is still alive is proof enough, although he has some good qualities. I liked the way his shoulders shake up and down when he laughs, like he’s exaggerating, and I thought it was really neat of him during the 2002 Winter Olympics that he sat next to a surprised girl and spoke to her parents on her cell phone. I don’t think that he is a bad man. He just didn’t make beneficial decisions for America.

I remember feeling the same way I do today as President Clinton left office; excited for someone new to hopefully restore America’s image, especially after his blunders. President Bush offered possibilities too, and it appeared to be a promising endeavor until one September morning. No one knows what is going to be thrown at you, or the impact that it will have on your action and reaction. It truly changed the course of his presidency. He allowed anger and revenge to manage his judgment and for a few years afterward I was angry too. However, I’m confused why our soldiers were sent to Iraq. The target was missed, and it was obvious. Several other countries disagree with the war there too, making me, an American afraid to vacation outside the country at all.

Now as President Obama’s truly historic inauguration, I know that there is much work to be done to mend the economy, resolve conflicts, establish new allies, heal Mother Earth and regain trust. But just as President Bush’s stride was stunned into a different pace, no one ever knows what challenges he and us as a nation may face. I wish our new President luck, health and safety as he makes difficult decisions and marches on to the possibilities of change.

This is dedicated to my friend, Mary-Lyn.

2009-01-11T08:54:00.000-08:00

When I started working at KHBS, I was told that in the news room you are considered “Momma Marilyn”. I had no doubt about it when I heard that you had taken a reporter to the ER after one of her numerous stumbles, or when you picked up Mike’s car after an oil change, or that you were puppy sitting for vacationing co-workers. You must’ve had them whipped into shape too, because I’ve always been awed by your talent to achieve the payroll deadline for all of them! Then one day, you rescued me from a horrible hair day!

When businesses and schools were closing due to inclement weather and I didn’t have much to do, you asked me if I’d like to help out. That was the first time that I got to witness the impressive energy of the news room! When your position changed and you had to move to the other end of the building, I worried that after years spent with all the action, that you would become lonely and bored, but you met the challenge with ease and seemed delighted that you got your own “GM Assistant’s” parking space!

Teaching you how to enter the deposit became a highlight since most of the time we giggled like little school girls, talked about music and little Nevada towns…hardly having anything to do with the deposit!

You have a knack for dealing with all types of people and I have to admit that I was one who transferred weird phone callers with bizarre questions to you! And I’ll never forget the guy who came into the office saying that the government put a device in his ear and the alarm in your voice as you said “Don’t touch him!” He was the reason we learned together that Susan is terribly allergic to Lysol!

During school tours of the station, I look forward to when you near the accounting office because it makes me smile as you explain to the kids that “This is a business and just like any other business, we have a business office…” In this way, you make us feel important and our job interesting.

I had the joy of seeing your elated reaction to your birthday surprise at Dave and Cheryl’s restaurant, especially when Mayor Baker made an appearance to declare August 20^th “Marilyn T.... Day!”

I thoroughly enjoyed the night at Bella Italia and teasing Mo. I didn’t believe for a second that you guys put him up to telling me that you had left! Serves me right for showing up late! And speaking of Bella Italia, I’m particularly sad that I missed the night you and Susan celebrated her birthday. It sure was fun hearing about it!

Sometimes when the debate over a reality show across the hall became boisterous, I’d yell out, “Are you talking about Amazing Race?” or “Are you talking about Dancing?” and then run in there just so I could share in the opinions of who should be going home, who was getting an unjustified ego or who was going to win! After you pointed it out to me, So You Think You Can Dance’s Marc really does look like Gregory Peck!

Sending a co-worker off to their next adventure was always bittersweet and the farewell wouldn’t be complete without the anticipated poem you’d compose with memories of their stint at the station. When Kim left, we made signs together for her friends to hold up during the news cast to express how much they were going to miss her.

When I felt kind of lame in my photography class, you encouraged me and told me about your art class that you had signed up for. Sharing your talent of beautiful drawings with all of us!

I get a kick out of seeing you walk around the front office while Susan is at lunch. It reminds me of your Pedometer and how you would walk a step forward, a step backward as we chit chatted about work projects or whatever. I wondered where you got all of this energy from!

I love the idea that you pay a car payment to yourself each month so you can pay cash for the next one. That must take a lot of discipline that I haven’t found in myself yet.

I just want to thank you for all the conversations about I-80, Minna-Snowta, San Diego, Provo and Yuma.

As I walked toward the door each night, I’d say “Have a good night” and you would say “Sounds like a great idea”, but then we would discuss the real workings of the intriguing Chia-Pet. Who knew?!

Marilyn, I’m not good at poetry, but to write a story I have a little more confidence. I hope that you can forgive me that my lines don’t rhyme, because I really do know it, I’m just not a poet…ha ha ha!

I miss you and I’m thinking of you. I will keep you in my prayers.

Love,

Kate Mc2

The City Of Luck

2009-01-02T21:19:00.000-08:00

Drama graces us each and just about every time that we go to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Today was no different. The trip there today was unavoidable however because I had to meet my daughter at the airport. She was flying in after spending the Christmas break with her dad in Utah.

She called me to tell me that the flight may be diverted to Oklahoma City due to weather. I asked her to make sure because...well… Below is a picture of the beautiful, cloudless sky.

We were already on our way to Tulsa so I called the airline. The lady was obviously not in the area because she said that reports show that it was misting in Tulsa. I explained that it was totally cloudless. Not even windy. She told us that we should go to the Tulsa airport because she really had no idea what was going on or what was going to happen.

Two hours away and I was a nervous wreck! If we went to Tulsa and the plane went to OKC we would be an hour and a half still away from my child. She would have to wait until we drove there.

When we got to Tulsa, the ticket counter lady said that the plane was scheduled to be there (in Tulsa) on time! Thank goodness! What is it with all of our luck with the city of Tulsa?!

By the way, we found this little number on the side of the Muskogee Turnpike. I just had to stop and get a picture. I wonder what the story is here...hummm.

If you don't like the weather now, just wait 24 hours. It will change!

2008-12-27T20:12:00.001-08:00

It was 70 degrees the day after Christmas!

This was the warm (I can't call it "Calm" because it was really windy) before the storm! The weathermen were preparing us for "large hail". Since we are now "hail shy", we crammed as much of the Princess's car in the carport with mine as we could, just in case! We didn't want another damaged car!

Thankfully it was just a bad thunder storm with tons of heavy rain and wind. No hail! The really sad thing is now, 24 hours later it's 30 degrees colder!

I'm really about Women's Lib!

2008-12-25T14:30:00.000-08:00

As a 1930s wife, I am
Average

Take the test!

The Gift of Giving is Really a Gift for Me!

2008-12-20T10:57:00.000-08:00

I love Christmas. I love the music, the decorations, the smells, the food, wrapping, and my most favorite is the surprised, thrilled looks on the recipients of mysterious gifts. I cherish the wonderful pictures of a shocked and delighted Princess on many a Christmases.

I love the magic of Santa and how he really knew me when I was a little girl (He must have had an informant). Santa only brought our big gift, never wrapped and always set it up or put it together for special Santa effect. He also filled our stocking with little things and always a family traditional orange.

I love the miracles and special things secret Santas are doing for other families in need. I love the food drives, Toys for Tots, Shop with a Cop, and those Salvation Army bell ringers that are camped out at the entrance of most major chains.

I love the beautiful message of “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” (I kind of relate to Imogene), the wonderful fantasy of “The Nutcracker” and the lighthearted comedy “The National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation”. I love gingerbread houses, snowmen, lighted court houses, Nativity Scenes, Christmas carols, and fruit cake (my neighbor wins the prize for the best fruit cake in the world!).

I love how Christmas entwines families together from fleeting decades by weaving old traditions with new ones. Reminiscing of Christmases past with Grandparents and sometimes Great Grandparents.

When the Princess was little, I loved that she called it “Chrimas” and each year she wore a big beautiful Christmas dress (sometimes it was hard to get her to not wear it all year long). She has since decided that those billowy dresses should be reserved for Prom and no matter how much I beg she refuses the candy cane tights all together!

I love that she has about a hundred people that she wants to give a gift to. Maybe she gets the same euphoria that I get from watching displays of delight and shock…but my checkbook still doesn’t understand!

Hair Affairs

2008-12-19T21:49:00.000-08:00

When the Princess goes to get a hair cut, she sits in the beautician’s chair and says “Just a couple of inches off, please”, while I’m begging them to take about four off to keep it healthy.

For a while she has been telling me that she wants to cut her hair and have a style. She is required by the dance team to keep it long enough to pull up into a pony tail, so I was reluctant for her to cut it too short.

She asked me to make her an appointment at the Beauty College because a girl that she knows (somehow) has a cute hair cut and will be able to cut her hair the same way with her instructor’s help. (Yikes!)

I didn’t go with her. I let her drive there herself and get her hair cut by herself by her friend. I was a chicken! I thought that she would surly cry after it was lopped off. But she LOVES IT! And so do I! And so does her dance coach! Who also told her to make sure that it is long enough to pull into a pony tail by competition next year! So I guess that she is already on the team again next year! Yay!

To my amazement, she was able to donate eight and a half inches to Locks For Love!

2008

2008-11-30T20:50:00.000-08:00

Looking back at the last eleven months, I find myself looking forward to 2009. I have been tested, rewarded, and tested again. I can hardly believe that I’m staring at 2009! Where has the time gone?

I’ve learned more about myself this year and hopefully I’ve been there for others during their struggles too. I know that I’m blessed and in everything there is good. Sometimes it’s hard to see at first, but there is always a lesson in it.

Last February I took the princess to the Ophthalmologist to learn if her daily headaches were caused by poor eyesight. The eye doctor insisted that we meet with a Neurologist who prescribed some anti-seizure medicine that made her feel awful. Her blood pressure dropped so low that she couldn’t get out of bed! I was at my wits end! I cried a lot and prayed to figure out where to turn for help. I ended up taking her to my Chiropractor because I know him and trust him. He told me that he couldn’t legally tell me to stop giving her the medicine…twice. Then he adjusted her neck and explained that her heavy school bag was pulling on her neck thus causing the headaches. I threw the meds out and four adjustments later she was headache free!

We had two major spring storms that brought several thousand dollars in damage to our home and car. The hail storm in April was amazing! I’ve never seen baseball size hail before in my life! I happened to be watching the station that I work for on TV that night. The Meteorologist, my friend was on-air giving my little town the ten minute warning to find shelter. I told my husband that I wanted to go to one of the many schools that have storm shelters. As soon as we made our way into the partially filled safe room, the hail hit. The shelter is made out of several layers of steel reinforced concrete walls and ceiling. The siren that was sounding right out the door could not be heard, but the hail hitting into the building was deafening! We waited out the storm for a few hours in the shelter and when we decided that it was safe to go home we waded through knee deep water that was rushing around our car in the parking lot. Our poor car had several hits on the windshield, a through and through hole in the hood, as well as many pock marks. Our house was one of many that needed a new roof, however not near as bad as some had with all of their windows blown out as well as water damage from the rain. The second storm was in June. I happened to be in Little Rock with a friend while the Princess was at dance camp. It was a wind storm that uprooted hundred year old trees and flung them into homes in my neighborhood. We were without power for a week after I returned home. As my daughter and I drove round looking at all the damage I couldn’t help but be grateful that I wasn’t in town the night that it happened. The root systems in almost all of the trees were as tall as my house. The trunks and branches fell on homes as old as the trees themselves. It was again serious for some families. Some of which haven’t been able to remove the trees from their homes yet. My home was spared. Thank Heaven! The items in my freezer were not as lucky…

In May my stepmom, Kim lost her mother. Myrna was an artist that lived in Craig, Colorado until the death of her husband a few years ago. That is when she moved to Herriman to live in a basement apartment in my dad and Kim’s home. It has been really hard on Kim and when I visited there in July she was heartbroken. I lost my mom thirteen years ago and I am still lost for words when someone looses a parent. I only know that I thank God for my faith that one day I will see her again.

Battle of the fleas was a two day disaster we had in August that will forever have an awful imprint in my memory! I don’t have animals, but there are several stray cats that have adopted our yard as their new home! I think that is how it all started. I’ve learned that some people, such as my self, are highly attractive to fleas. My hero called the exterminator who sprayed the house and yard. My car got a good layer of Seven Dust which killed the rest of them. With this new education, I plan to have the yard sprayed again next year for precaution!

My car is fifteen years old and has never had major trouble until this year. But again my hero saved the day and fixed it a few days later. This happened the same day that we were going to Tulsa for a show and his car’s windshield wipers stopped working on the way home.

I know that all of these obstacles could have been much worse than they were. I’m blessed with the lessons that came with each situation. For every predicament that we had, we also had joy around each turn. And we had each other. My mom told me once that sometimes the hard times are the best times. I truly believe that.

"Friends"

2008-11-19T18:26:00.000-08:00

The whole reason why I hooked up with facebook is because my sister talked me into it so I could see pictures of a boy that my niece was dating. She and my niece were my first friends. Then a few more were added, which led me to my blog friends.

Personal note here: I’m not one who has a lot of friends.

Most of my facebook friends are from the past. A few shared the elementary school experience with me. One even reminded me of my most horrid memory of 5^th grade! Man, I’m still trying to live that one down. However, it was something that she remembered of me, even though it wasn’t my most stellar moment.

As I’ve added new friends some have actually became…well, friends with me all over again! It’s led me to my blog friends which I’m really enjoying and another friend that chats with me via text or cell phone (different states), but if I never signed up for facebook I wouldn’t have all of you, my new old friends! And I cherish all of you! You all have made me feel friend worthy!

The motivation for this topic is an article that I read on MSN about people who don’t want to reconnect with people from the past on facebook. When I read it I was sad for them because it’s sometimes hard to make new friends anyway. I can understand the various reasons behind why someone wouldn’t want their past mistakes drudged back up (like mine from 5^th grade) if they are remembered at all, or why someone wouldn’t want an enemy to get info to hurt their reputation etc…

But what is the harm with reconnecting to see if you can actually be friends? If not they can be deleted and no harm done…I know that some of my facebook friends might not even notice if I delete them because we haven’t exchanged one comment.

I’m grateful for all of you who I have reconnected with! Thank you for your friendship! Even if it is over the internet and we don’t get to physically hang out. If you ever find yourself in Arkansas please tell me, we’ll have dinner!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27775484/?GT1=43001

Grocery Follies

2008-11-15T21:14:00.000-08:00

It’s a Saturday thing at my house. Weekly grocery shopping! Most women don’t have their heroes doing the shopping with them and for myself, I’m truly blessed with a man who shares in the household responsibilities. I personally don’t enjoy to shop, unless it is for craft stuff. Groceries are not my favorite, but my hero makes it entertaining.

Wal-Mart Fun #1: Wal-Mart worker waved to us that her line was open and started walking toward the other side of the store. A lady in a red sweater weaving in and out of various lines saw the wave. She obviously was looking for a “quick for her” check out. In attempt for an interception she started speed walking with her heavily loaded down cart toward our waving checker...and….in hot pursuit my hero started to brisk walk along side her with our packed cart, occasionally looking over at her and back to the isle, again at her, and back to the isle. The faster she went, the faster he went. The race was on, it was neck and neck. She actually started running!! And so did he! It was interesting watching the other shoppers taking in this crazy contest between two people that had never even met. The lane before the waving checker’s lane was empty. My hero stopped there instead and let the lady go. Not dropping the competition, he egged our checker to go faster. He kept calling out to the red sweater lady that our checker was faster. Major attempts to ignore him, but each and every time that her curiosity overtook her, my hero waved, and told the checker to hurry. We were finished first and my hero had to walk by her and tell her that he won. Just saying…

Wal-Mart Fun #2: It never starts in the check out lane, it’s just worse there. He starts up conversation with them…usually the girls. We buy a lot of water, usually the big Sam’s Choice case. Unsuspecting check out girl thanks my hero for not making her pick it up and scan it, but rather keep it on the bottom rack of our cart. My hero asks, “What? Aren’t you strong enough?” Check out girl says, “Well, not that strong!” This is where the true fun gets started. Hero suggests that she is stronger than the man standing behind her in the next to our check out lane. She giggles, but doesn’t answer. He suggests that they compare. She turns beet red while giggling! Hero says, “Excuse me, Sir?” The blush deepens on embarrassed check out girl. “Sir” ignores him or doesn’t hear him, I can’t really tell. Check out girl is trying to find a “happy place”, because hero is loudly asking man behind her to compare muscle tone with her. Each check out girl then turns to me and asks in different ways “Do you bring him out often?” My answer is usually the same, “It’s never boring!” Seldom does the check out girl clue in that the person behind them knows my hero and is playing along with his outrageousness. He says it’s talent. They think he is creepy, I’m sure. I’m there for entertainment. It’s cheap and well, funny!

Another must know!

2008-11-15T21:04:00.000-08:00

Princess: Mom, watch this commercial.
Thinking to myself: Great, another one!
Princess: What is Male Enhancement?
Thinking to myself: Great, another one!!!!
Princess: Is this for car insurance?
Thinking to myself: Why me?? Car insurance? How in the world did she come up with that one?
Me: What? Why?
Princess: Look, he's in the car. The person talking sounds like that guy for car insurance.
Thinking to myself: It kinda does sound like car insurance commercial guy...
Me: No... It's not car insurance.

Bragging Rights

2008-11-10T19:51:00.000-08:00

The princess' High School dance team "The Prancers" made history this weekend! They won the first State Championship for their school ever and the first year that dance is recognized by the Arkansas Athletic Association! It was fun to see the girls proud of themselves! They have such school spirit that when it was announced that they won they all cried and then they sang their school's Alma Matter!

I've heard of Christmas in July but this is ridiculous!

2008-11-10T19:35:00.000-08:00

We are “schedule” people. Monday through Friday are work days. Up at seven, leave by eight fifteen, home by five, dinner is usually served around six or six-thirty and we sit as a family. The Princess is in bed by ten. We are in bed by eleven or twelve depending on what I’m doing. There are also the shows on TV each night and are DVR’d so we can forward through the commercials later.

Until the recent addition of Friday night football games, Friday was “dinner out” night and we rotated who chose the restaurant. Saturday is whatever days. So if my friends call and want to go shopping or scrapbooking that day is wide open! Sunday we rotate who cleans what room, and in addition I’m always blessed with laundry…(sarcastic undertone) my favorite!

I used to decorate for fall the first weekend in October, but then I started working full time and I haven’t since. That was three years ago. I miss it because I have such a cute witch, but haven’t put her out to enjoy.

I never put my Christmas tree up until after my birthday, December 3^rd and never had the desire to, until this year! I’ve had the itch to put it up NOW! (it’s gotten to me too! EEEK!)

Two days after Halloween I went Christmas (décor) shopping with my friends. One of them already has her TREE up! And her Christmas Village is already strategically placed in her window! Each store already has Christmas music playing! I noticed that Wal-Mart had a “Before Black Friday” Sale on Saturday November 8^th! It included “Online Specials” which are now (Monday) out of stock. Of course!

This is totally out of my routine! My hero has specifically asked me not to put up the tree…but it may stimulate the economy if I do….(grin).

Because Inquiring Minds Want To Know!

2008-10-29T18:58:00.000-07:00

When children are 15 years old, they are still innocent to most adult situations. Of course, they hear stuff at school and use crude language that is used by others in their peer groups, but for the most part they don’t really have all of the information, only bits and pieces of it. So when a racy commercial airs over and over again, the 15 year old is compelled to call their parent at work and ask what it all means… “because I must know now mom!”

To the makers of the KY Pleasure Jelly For Him and For Her Commercial: Please know that 15 year olds watch MTV and whatever other Cable, Dish, Satellite, channel that air your adult oriented commercials! I will forever be horrified with memories of an office filled with smirky, wide eyed people who always have a perked ear for information (I work at a News Station for heaven sake!!) and over heard my end of the conversation explaining to a young teen what they use that for!

Panic! Thoughts of the mandatory sexual harassment training video came flooding into mind and all the raised eyebrows staring at me…can I get into trouble talking with my child on my cell phone at work about this? Hummm… I told her that we could talk about it when I got home. Big sigh when we hung up, but sad that I couldn’t tackle the subject right then.

I’ve always told her that she can ask me anything and get the straight and honest answer. Sometimes I wish that I never said such a thing and sometimes I brace myself and wince, buying time to offer a prayer to get me through this delicate conversation without turning her onto the subject or scaring her for life! It’s a difficult balance!

"Off With Your Heads!"

2008-10-27T18:59:00.000-07:00

The King and Queen of Hearts! And in my humble opinion, the best dress couple at the Halloween party on Saturday night!
I don't think that the Queen has ever seen the movie "Alice in Wonderland" so we looked online what the Queen of Hearts was all about.

The relationship between the King and Queen of Hearts is oddly familiar with the relationship of these two! She's not as dramatic as "Off with their heads", but just as grumpy! And he seems to be behind the scenes trying to smooth ruffled feathers and keeping the peace.

They are always teasing each other and self promoting to each other! It really cracks me up! I'm so glad that they are such good friends!

Parent Teacher Confrontation

2008-10-23T17:37:00.000-07:00

I have such a gripe!

My poor child has horrible test anxiety and always has. Last year, in her Algebra 1 class she had 114 points (extra credit is her specialty) but didn't pass the standardized test at the end of the year (as usual). Today at the dreadful parent teacher confrontation, I mean conference, we learned that she has to take a semester class to make her proficient in Algebra 1 and if she doesn't they will take her Algebra 1 credit away from her. WHAT?!?
The class to make her proficient is a "No Credit" class!! So she can't even earn an elective credit for it!! Again WHAT???!
I about hit the roof! I cornered the principal and asked her what this was all about. She expressed that this is a new state law and encouraged me to write my state legislator! What a crock of crap! She told me that there is nothing she can do to help us! She said that she will try to see if she can make the it an after school or before school thing because she knows that other kids are going to be dealing with the same issues as we are, but she will not know for sure.
I'm so not happy about this! Based on her ending grade in the class last May, she doesn't need another no credit Algebra 1 class (by the way the high school doesn't even offer Algebra 1!) she needs a class to improve her test taking ability!

This was such a blow to a girl who has struggled to adjust to high school and in the last week or two has lost some self esteem because of her 9 weeks grades. She is so hard on herself and has literally come home from school depressed and hopeless. I have never seen her this way, ever! This just adds to the stress and disappointment in high school!

Hooray for my Real Hero!

2008-10-22T16:56:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to brag to you that my Real Hero fixed Betsy!!! HOORAY! I'm Free! It's just the strangest feeling when you don't have a car. I felt trapped and had to rely on my real hero to let me drive his car (which isn't my favorite!). So when I drove into the driveway and saw that Betsy had been moved to the carport, I just about jumped out of my skin with happiness!
Thanks Hunny!

Heather's 5 of me tag

2008-10-22T16:33:00.000-07:00

5 years ago I was:

1. I had lived in Arkansas for one year.
2. I went to Florida for the Pepsi 400 Nascar Race.
3. I bought my first dining room set.
4. I painted the bathroom.
5. I remodeled the princess' bedroom.

5 things on my list for today:

1. Work.
2. Make Dinner.
3. Go to Walmart.
4. Sew the straps on the Queen of Hearts Costume for K's Party on Saturday.
5. Blog.

5 Snacks that I enjoy:

1. Chips and Guacamole! YUM!
2. Chocolate anything!
3. M&Ms and Popcorn
4. Cheddar Jacks Cheezits
5. Dr. Pepper

5 things that i would do if I were a millionaire:

1. Save enough money for K's college and law school.
2. Buy Sally her new house...the one that she really wants.
3. Volunteer instead of work.
4. Buy a scrapbook store for me
5. Buy a flooring store for Kez.

5 Places that I have lived:

1. Salt Lake City, UT
2. Bountiful, UT
3. Herriman, UT
4. Magna, UT
5. Van Buren, AR

5 Jobs that I have had:

1. Hardee's Clown! LOL!
2. Customer Service Rep for a food distributor.
3. National Sales Assistant for FM-100
4. Media Coordinator for an Advertising Agency
5. Collections for Hearst Argyle Television.

5 people I tag:

1. Sally (I think that you already did this, but I don't think I have 5 so I put you!)
2. Darci
3. Debbie
4. Kim
5. Anyone else who reads this! LOL

"Tales of the Crypt"

2008-10-20T20:48:00.001-07:00

This last weekend I went to “Tales of the Crypt” located in Fairview Cemetery by my house. What a way to learn about the history of this little knock about place!

I learned that the cemetery was recently placed on the National Historical Registry. It has Confederate soldiers, slaves, criminals, and the town founders buried there. The earliest grave there was one of De Soto’s men from as early as the late 1700s.

Tales from the crypt is the reenactment of six persons who are buried in the cemetery. They dress as the person did when they were living and tell a story about their accomplishments, trials, family, and anything else about their lives. It was fascinating learning about each them. One in particular was a man named Dr. Addison Bourland. He was born in Alabama 1825 and lived all over the south. His grandfather was granted some land in Arkansas before it became a state. He went to University of Nashville, which is now Vanderbilt. He spoke six different languages and even though it was taboo to educate girls in his time period, he taught his daughter and she grew up to become a French scholar. He passed away in 1913…the year that my grandpa was born.

All of the “actors” stood above the graves and talked about their loved ones and it got me thinking of all the wonderful stories that I have of my own ancestors buried in the cemeteries in Utah. I love genealogy and know so much and yet so little about them.

It would be really fun to hear stories of yours and see pictures of them if you have them. Maybe our ancestors were friends or helped each other on their way to Utah. Maybe they were together in Far West or Nauvoo. Maybe they were friends with Joseph Smith. Maybe they shared food with each other during the depression. Maybe they took one another in when they arrived in Utah for the first time. Maybe they were accomplished and maybe they were just a fruit farmer.

Google Tag

2008-10-16T17:37:00.000-07:00

Here’s what you do: Image Google your answer for each topic and pick the picture you like best from the first three pages. I had a lot of fun, but it was really hard to pick something I liked for some of the topics, and I actually left a couple off (A pet’s name and your best friend’s nickname) because it was so hard! So now I tag anyone who has not done this yet!

1. My Name: Kate

2. My middle name is my maiden name...I've also used X but for this I used my maiden name.3. My last name:

4. My bad habit: Tardy. I'm terminally late everywhere I go!
5. What I'm doing right now: Relaxing

6. My Grandma's name is Fay and this woman looks like she did when she was younger!

7. My first job: I was the Hardee's Clown! My clown name was Bubbles and my daughter makes fun of me by saying it in a scary voice "Hi kids! I'm Bubbles the clown!"

8. My age: I haven't had my birthday yet this year!
9. I grew up in Cottonwood heights, UT.

10. A past crush: Who didn't like Patrick Swazy?

11. My favorite place to be: Bear Lake!!!!

12. If I went back to school, I'd study to be a Forensic Scientist.

13. A place that I'd like to visit is Ireland:

14. My favorite color is sage green:15. My favorite food is Guacamole:

A Blessed Day

2008-10-15T19:34:00.000-07:00

We haven’t had a super bad day in a long time, so I guess that yesterday was just our turn.

7:30am: Sister (daughter) decided to tell me that she had yet another (4 in two weeks!) project to do for school. But since we had tickets to the “So You Think You Can Dance” Tour in Tulsa she didn’t think that she would have time to do the project. Unfortunately, we didn’t have all the supplies so before work, I went to Wal Mart to pick up the Styrofoam balls and drop them off at the house for her to work on when she gets out of school…But no! Everyone and their brother must have had the same project because there wasn’t one Styrofoam ball to be had in the whole store!

Hobby Lobby opens at 9am…it’s about a 20 minute drive…She needs to get a good grade…I’m the mom who comes to the rescue…I’m already late for work…I could just get them and ask my hero to pick them up from my work…she can just work on project in the car on the way to the show….he has a busy work day…I could stop at Sonic on the way…

They were $3.79 for 12 at Hobby Lobby! I got 2 bags just in case!

Back in the car, I figure that I’m late to work anyway! It would make my husband and daughter’s lives easier if I just take them back home for her to do the project when she gets home from school.

Getting on the freeway, Betsy (my car) does a kinda chug chug thing and once I get going it seems alright…

As I exited the interstate I get a phone call from my other Hero at the driver control office who tells me that Sister was approved for her age waiver driver’s license! (YAY!) During which Betsy was acting really strange, chug chug chugging and then my other Hero tells me to have a blessed day…at those very words, Betsy pulled it’s last chug and completely died on the side of the road! Blessed huh? Ok.

I called my real hero to rescue the rescuer of science project paraphernalia who is extremely later for work that originally planned. An hour and a tow later, my hero promises to pick up Sister at 3pm from school so she has a least an hour to do the project. Betsy will be dealt with over the weekend.

At work, Sister (daughter) sent a text that she gets out of school at 2:00! Pros say she has an extra hour to work on project and cons tell me my real hero might have a problem getting her an hour earlier than planned. Hero picks her up after learning that the real time changed to 2:30pm…

4:30pm: project done and we depart for the show in Tulsa. Cell phone strangely powers down during the drive and refuses to turn back on. The show was spectacular, minus the rude people who kept standing up during dances and not at the end of dances! Other than that, the show was amazing! Glad we went! We noticed at the show that Sister’s camera’s LCD has been shattered! We still took pictures just to see if it actually worked.

11:30pm: On the interstate in Tulsa, it’s raining buckets, hero’s car windshield wipers stop! Blind to everything on the road, hero exits highway. In the rain he looks under the hood, bangs around, turns them on again and nothing. Hero asks for directions to the nearest Wal Mart…it’s a neighborhood market…nothing there to help. The nearest Super Center Wal Mart is 5 miles…blindly we crawl there in the pouring rain.

12:30am: RainX and Wal Mart are our friends! Hey, there is a Hilton across the parking lot! Hero said let’s see how the RainX does.

RainX on the windshield and 7 miles from Wal Mart it stops raining! Onward with the 2 ½ hour drive home!

2:30am: Home again, home again jiggity jig!

It really was a blessed day!

Shake'n Bootie!

2008-10-13T19:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday was what we used to call “Regional” Dance Competition. At the end of last year The Arkansas Athletic Association decided to recognize dancers and cheerleaders as athletes. Many rule changes have taken place, for example: “Regional” Competition is now called “Invitational” Competition.

22 dance teams squared off on Saturday at K’s high school. It was really exciting that it was in our hometown because the last two years we’ve had to travel to both Regional and State. It was more work but well worth the savings in gas, food and hotel!

The Prancers won first place for their Jazz, Hip Hop, and Pom dances, and second place for their Kick dance! And the Blazerettes’ (K’s junior high school team) won first place for their Jazz, Kick and Pom dances too! It was a really entertaining day. All three of us were exhausted from all the hard work that we put in that day!

Congratulations Ladies!

Free Handbag! Check it out!!

2008-10-13T18:46:00.000-07:00

This site is giving away a free handbag every hour to celebrate its grand opening. Check it out!
www.handbagplanet.com

Photo Tag!

2008-10-12T18:57:00.000-07:00

The rules: Go to the fourth picture folder on your computer and post the fourth picture in the file. Mine is a picture that I "took" from someone who posted it on KSL, of my beloved Bear Lake.
I'm not proud that I "took" it, but it's the only way I get to see the beautiful blue since I live so far away from it now. Also, why do most people upload 15 pictures of flowers that they have taken, but only 1 picture of Bear Lake?!?
You're turn!

Are we scaring our kids? Or is TV scaring us?

2008-10-05T13:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.rd.com/living-healthy/is-it-just-me-lets-stop-scaring-our-kids/article101787.html

I read an article about a woman who let her nine year old son navigate the New York City subway system alone. He was begging her to allow him to find his own way home from anyplace in the city. Buying into the adventure (and their basic way of life) she let him. She gave him a subway map, a transit card, $20 for emergencies, and 2 quarters just in case he had to call her. No cell phone, because she said nine year olds lose things. (uhmm, like the times they lose their way?).

The article goes onto telling how after she was on all kinds of talk shows and radio programs, people inundated her with letters about how they don’t allow their kids to play in their own driveway, or walk to their friends house without calling home with news that they arrived there safely. Her answer to this was and I quote “Playing has morphed into an act of daring, like shark hunting in a hamburger suit.”

Ok, I agree that kids need to be able to play outside, but how is allowing a nine year old unattended on the subway an act of play?

Programs like Oprah shows about human trafficking, and the many amber alerts over the internet has made me into a paranoid parent. I have no plans of taking a cruise because someone may take my daughter off the boat and force her to be a sex slave (Thanks Oprah!)! I do let my daughter go to her friend’s house but usually we drive because they don’t live within walking distance. I have allowed my daughter to walk alone to school for the last three years because it is down the street. No other kids do you see walking to school or playing in our neighborhood.

Here are the stats listed in the article: “Crime against children is down to levels that we haven’t seen since the ‘70s” - Is that maybe because the kids are less accessible? “The typical child abuse case involves an acquaintance of the child” - Again is that maybe because the kids are less accessible except for perverts who know people with kids?

What “play” do you allow your kids to participate in alone? And what do you find to be a bit over the top?

All of my vicarious dreams are coming true!

2008-09-28T11:14:00.000-07:00

On the second week of high school, the princess was nominated by the sophomore football team to be on the “Homecoming Court”. On the day that everyone learned who was chosen to be part of the royal event several kids congratulated her before she knew it herself. She thanked all of the congratulators, but naïve to high school tradition she whispered to her friend, “What IS that?”

The dress requirements were school colors, which are Kelly Green, Black and White. The senior girls warned her that white is reserved for them. She looked beautiful and that dress popped more than any of them on the field!

Jake escorted her during the pep rally the morning of Friday, September 26, 2008. His parents asked how we talked him into getting a haircut. All we said is that we were on our way and asked if he needed us to pick him up. He said that he would meet us there…

One of the seniors asked what kind of car would be parading her around the football field. When she told her that it would be a Bug, the girl scoffed at her because it wasn’t a pretentious Vet!

Kevin looked sharp donned in suit and tie, walked with the beautiful princess as the commentator read, “Sophomore Maid is Ms. Kamille W. Tonight she is being escorted by Mr. Kevin M. She is a member and All American Nominee of the VBHS Pointer Prancer Dance Team, member of FBLA, and Spanish Club. She attends First Baptist Church of VB. Ladies and gentlemen, sophomore maid, Ms. Kamille W.”

There is no dance for homecoming. It is for the alumni to come back home to their high school for the football game and are honored there at half time. They get to tour the school and have a type of reunion. By the way, this was the first game that they have won in a few years, so it was even sweeter (vicariously) being part of the homecoming court.