Mom, I can't find my cell phone

I heard these words from my RESPONSIBLE child. Yikes. She spent the night with her girlfriend. She and Abby have been best buds since they were 3. They attend different schools. Live across town. They don't even look alike. Abby is blue eyed and blonde haired. Morgan is brown and brown. But they get together every month or so for a sleep over. Abby and Morgan. Peas in a pod. Anyway, Abby's mom had a moment of insanity and offered to take the tweeners to the mall for a shopping spree. (Not something I would just volunteer to do, but hey, to each her own, right?)

Morgan got home Sunday afternoon. We didn't think about her phone. Because, well, we didn't.
Yesterday morning was when she uttered those little words which incited panic in our home. "Mom, I can't find my cell phone." She needs her phone. Not to talk to her friends. But so that "I" can get in touch with her when "I" need/want to. So we combed the house from top to bottom. Looked in the garage. Dad's car. (he picked her up from the sleepover) She even looked IN my bed. ????? Anyway, the phone was not found. She thought she remembered texting in the car on the way home. Dad confirmed that he saw her texting in his car. So, it HAS to be somewhere. Right? Wrong. Not found.

On a fluke, because mom's can be weird this way, I had her call Abby and ask if she had by chance left the phone there. No one answered, so she left a very stressed out message. We didn't hear anything by the time we went to bed. Sigh....

I got the call at work this morning at 7:08am. Abby's mom called and confirmed that the phone was there. Whew. I am breathing easier. I can once again reach my daughter when "I" want to.

As to Dad confirming that he saw her texting, well, I just can't address that right now. Maybe when I get this BIG grin off my face....

The Creativity Project

I have had a slight bump on my creative road lately. I have had spurts of creative genius. But I have also had bursts of creative slumps. Lisa Day is putting The Creativity Project out there for all.

First of all, I love the picture of the colored pencils. Just so vibrant and fun. Second, her take on creativity fits right in with mine. Her project is to do something creative everyday. Simple. Doesn't have to be a layout. Or to make a project. Just something. It really isn't hard. You are already doing it. Go to her blog and read more about it.

I have long been a believer in creativity in ALL aspects of my life. Starting with my shower in the morning. I sing, offkey, but I sing. I draw in the steam on the walls. Sometimes it's just a doodle, sometimes I sketch layouts, sometimes I will leave a love note for my hubby. Next comes the ensemble for the day. Talk about getting creative. I have to cover all these extra pounds with the same close that were bought for a smaller me. And it just goes on and on...

Creativity is part of who I am. If I don't feel like I have expressed myself in some way during the day, I fell like I am wilting. It is tied into my spirituality. It needs to be fed everyday.

Today was a combination of creative endeavors. It started with the singing shower and progressed to breakfast. We were going to go out for breakfast, but it was raining so hard that we decided to stay home. French toast. Yummy. I started loading my music library on my computer. I helped a fellow Girl Scout adult load boxes of "stuff" into her car. I freed up a hugh amount of space in my garage. I dabbled a bit in my scrap room. Then I took leave of my senses and went to SAMS. Did I mention that it was raining. A lot. I got soaked. But we now have enough meat to last until New Years Eve. Unless the girls have another growth spurt. Then were only good until next weekend. Dinner tonight was Chicken Parmesan with whole wheat spaghetti. I made dinner without a recipe. It was good. A bit too much salt. But tasty. Everyone agreed. No pictures. Sorry.

Ch, ch, ch changes.....

I have done it now. I am trying new things and in the process have managed to wipe out the bloggy goodness from my blog.

What you are seeing is the result of my failed attempt to get a custom background.

I am going to keep trying. Check back later for progress. (I hope.)

Wednesday Night

Well, I made it more than half way through the FULL week of work.
Don't get me wrong. I am not complaining that I have to work. I am very blessed to have a job that I love. Heck, to have a job at all. I am just amazed that I have not fallen out due to the strain of having to work for 5 whole days in a row. I am just not used to this.
I am holding up quite well.

So, you can all relax a bit.


Just stand by.

In case.


Cuz you never know.


There are two days left.

Megan !!!!

I love my daughter. She is a beautiful young woman. She is a teenager. We are going to have disagreements. She is going to test her boundaries. I am going to pull my hair out.

She has taken me on a roller coaster ride this month.

Last week DH and I found out that she lied to us about turning in an application for a couple of the High School Academies. She was interested in the Performing Arts Academy and I was interested in her attending the Math and Science Academy. The applications were due on February 2nd. She had been acting as though she had turned in the form and had no clue as to why she hadn't been given a audition date or a test date. DH took the lead and called the school to find out this information and was told there was NO application for Megan.

I am disappointed that she lied to us. Turns out she was insecure, as teenagers are prone to be.

But, if she had only talked to us about this....

Anyway, she has been grounded. The lying has got to stop. She will have no fun for the next two weeks. She can't even hang out in her room. She is being forced to spend ALL of her time with us in the family room. As for the poor academic choice: Her cell phone taken away. Her iPod gone. Same with the rest of her luxuries. After all, as her parent it is our responsibility to prepare her for life. And if these are the choices she is going to make, it falls on her father's and my shoulders to make sure she is ready to live in the style in which she can afford. If she isn't willing to work a bit harder to ensure a higher paying job, well I wouldn't want to have her jolted into a reality in which she can't afford the same luxuries..... Sounds mean. I know. BUT, if she thinks she can get these things back, she will play the "NICE KID" until she does, and then it will be back to the same old crap.

On a nicer note, she HAS been more pleasant to the family.

And can now use chopsticks pretty well.

Make-up Day from Blizzard 2009

I am laughing my butt off this morning. Earlier this year the schools were closed as Blizzard 2009 was approaching. Inaugural Day 2009 would be a Snow Day for the kids in our school district. As you know, that snow storm was a bit of a disappointment. Not a snowflake fell out of the bright, blue sky that day.

Today was a scheduled Holiday for our school system. The school board decided to use this as a make-up day for the Snow Day we had earlier this year. Well, we woke up to this:




Not enough to stop school. Not enough to do anything really.
Except make me laugh.

Happy Late Valentines Day - Let's go with Valentines Week

I was a bit pre-occupied last week with Melissa. Her sudden illness and high fever had me ever so worried. Valentines Day was not something I really thought about. Luckily I had already gotten the materials needed for Danny and the girls' Valentines. Danny got a box of chocolates, the girls got these little mailboxes full of goodies from Target. Missing from the loot picture is a pair of socks. Green with one eye-ball. Think Monster Inc. Mike Waszowski. The girls really liked them and wore them yesterday, so I opted to not include them in this mornings pic. I had planned on decorating a bit more, but given the circumstance, I think I did pretty well.

The girls didn't complain. So I think they must be A-OKAY.

Here's what Danny got for me. Along with a very personal sentimental card. Ahhhh. I didn't realize until I saw the picture that the hearts on the wall go perfectly with the Valentine's Day theme.

Morgan's boyfriend walked over a mile and a half to deliver candy, a little stuffed bear and a flower to her. I can't imagine what people were thinking when they saw him walking. Talk about sweeeeeet. He is SO head over heels for her. I love him just for that. Plus it doesn't hurt that he gets good grades and doesn't get into trouble.

Melissa made this card for Danny. It is a picture of his motorcycle and his eyeball helmet. Too cute.

Friday was Melissa's last day home sick. She wasn't really that bad, but I wanted to ensure that she was healthy before sending her to torture the teacher. So we dropped her sisters off at school and headed to Krispy Kreme for some donuts. Somehow, a few evaporated on the way home. I can't believe it happened. But when we got home this is what we found:

We went ahead and had a donut anyway.

What else were we to do??? Do you think we should let Krispy Kreme know how volatile their donuts are? Oh, and just brush the sprinkles onto the floor next time you get into my car.