Jody's Blog

February!

2012-02-04T15:30:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Here we are in the month of February already! Time just keeps marching on....

Not much to report, but thought I would check in here with you all. Drove to Santa Fe last night after working at the bank and came back to a snow storm on the mountain of Los Alamos!! Traffic was at a dead stop coming up the hill, almost to town, so I sat in my car for 45 minutes watching one car at a time get towed up the hill. I had 4-wheel drive, so I was fine to go, but waiting and waiting was ridiculous! Finally the police showed up and were pushing people to get them moving. The car in front of me finally got going and then stopped for some reason and then of course, couldn't get going again. ugh...so the officers let me go around him... I got up to the top and there were cars off the road, spinning to go forward, stuck in the middle of the road and little Ravy just chugged along and weaved between all these crazy folks and finally got home. I had to shovel the driveway...we had about 5 inches of snow. My neighbor, Justin, came out right after I finished shoveling and said "I was just gonna come out and shovel for you"...what a sweetie! I told him, sure, you probably watched me do it from your house and THEN came out to offer. LOL Him and his wife are divorcing and they had moved out of their trailer and were renting it out, but now he moved back in! He's helped me a lot with repairs at my place. His wife, Tabatha, I have known since she was 14 when she worked at McD's with me. She's now 29!

I'm working at the gym today, then going straight over to the High School for the Topper Revue (talent show) that the kids put on every year. Tyler has been a participant when he was in school, as most of you probably remember. Tomorrow am, I need to bake a cake for the Superbowl party at Kent and Carrie's at 4 and then at noon, I'm going to the Courtright's to do my weekly cleaning over there. Busy, Busy weekend and I had hoped to watch the movie 50/50, but not sure when I will get a chance. I bought it so I suppose I can watch it at anytime!

Things are going well with me and kids, so I'm happy about that. Tyler always keeps the house so neat for me and so we make great roommates!! Have a great weekend everyone! Until next time....

Not much...

2012-01-29T07:52:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Just wanted to say hello to everyone! Nothing exciting going on here, just working as usual and enjoying my new ride!

I do have to pay taxes, so not too thrilled about that. I adjusted my withholding for next year, so that's all taken care of. I'm single and no kids to claim anymore, so they hit ya, right where it hurts, don't they?

Had my ultrasound and they found nothing, so the doctor thinks it's just hormonal stuff that I'm going through. Hopefully not an early menopause?? I'm not ready for that, I don't think? :) I saw a homeopathic doctor for my tummy and she gave me pills to take when I eat. Seems to be working cuz my tummy does not grumble, grumble like it used to in just a weeks time. Very happy about that.

I go to the Courtright's today. She's been having me go every Sunday and clean for just a couple of hours, so that will help with paying my taxes! I immediately put the money from her into one of my savings accounts. I was hoping to use it for something else, but oh well.

Still planning my drive to Minnesota/Wisconsin in mid May! Can't wait! I'm trying to talk my mother into flying here and then we will both drive up there and she can fly home from there. I think a road trip for Mom/Daughter would be fun!! She is concerned about me driving back alone, but trust me...after all that family time, I will be ready to be alone!! LOL :)

I'm going to church this morning, so probably should go get ready. Keep in touch and hard to believe it's almost February!! Wow! Until next time....

MLK day! 2012

2012-01-16T08:44:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well, it's been a pretty uneventful,long weekend! I was supposed to have plans with a couple friends and none of it ended up working out, so I spent my evenings catching up on tv shows and/or movies, which was really nice! I watched "Black Swan" and "Horrible Bosses", last night. I went to a movie Saturday night with my friend, Winters. He's like going out with your gay guy friend....very nice guy, but not one you would probably date. He's pretty cute too, but oh well...he was the only one I could get to go with me to see "Contraband". I had a movie giftcard so paid for both movies with that. :)

I had to work at the gym Saturday afternoon and then yesterday morning I cleaned for the Courtright's. In the time between all that, I just cleaned the house, got rid of some stuff and organized a few things. I'm constantly going through things as my taste changes....things I've had laying around, I finally put away or get rid of (or reminds me of my "previous" life). I also drove down to Walmart in Espanola on Saturday morning. Haven't been down there in FOREVER! I had to return a poster frame that I had bought for Tyler, that was too big, so found a smaller one and got some new picture frames for the living room. Came right back home, cuz I had to work at 1 at the gym. But, it was a good time!

This week and next I'm real busy with work and appointments! Tomorrow, my new car is getting an early oil change. The guy I bought it from recommends an oil change at 1000 miles cuz of the new wear on the parts, etc, so he said there's metal pieces and such in there, so I will have that done tomorrow and then not again for another 5000 miles. I have a haircut appointment and also a couple of doctor appointments thrown in there. My doctor thinks I may have fibroids so we're gonna check that out by ultrasound this week. They said no surgery is involved and they will just have to go in and clean things out. I noticed an issue after I workout, so brought it up to the doctor. I also have a tummy that likes to grumble, grumble constantly, so I'm going to see a homeopathic doctor and she will test me and see if we can alter anything in my diet to help with that. I've tried some pills you take after or before you eat, but doesn't help all the time. I have to be really careful of what I eat also...even healthy things like peppers and such, I can hardly eat. If it's spicy...forget about it! lol So, those are my fun things going on.....

Kids are doing fine. Kalyn will be starting to get her school loans in order soon and she continues to work at Piercing Pagoda. She is looking for another job closer to home and not so strict with sales and such. If she doesn't make enough sales or sell enough warranties, they let you go. January has been slow, so she is worried about the "firing" thing. Tyler keeps working and finally starting to save some money and continues to practice guitar here and with friends. His girlfriend Sydney, just had her birthday yesterday.

I'm trying to figure out my vacation for this year. I get 5-6 weeks off, so thinking about what my options are. I really want to drive up to Minnesota/Wisconsin for a couple of weeks, but then my other time off, I will probably have to stay home, but just be off. (Mom, if you are gonna come down, let me know so I can take that time off) I'm really wanting this year to be better for me, financially. Last year was a nightmare with all the money that I had to spend. Not gonna do it again...

I bought Brooke Burke's new DVD's to workout to...I tried one this morning and man-oh-man...I am feeling it!! It's a great workout and gets ya sweatin'!! I also bought Rob Lowe's new paperback book "Secrets I only tell my Friends"...I plan to get reading on that today! If anyone wants to read after me, let me know. I also have a book that Jennie White's (Tj's daughter) hubby Ryan sent to me to read "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand. I've had it for about a year and have not started it yet. It's supposed to be real good. I'm not much for reading, really, but if I find a good book or hear about it, I will read it. I record "Live with Kelly" and saw both Brooke Burke and Rob Lowe on her show and got the idea to get their stuff. I had some Christmas money to spend, so there you go.

Is it bad that I have my kid's Valentine gifts all ready to go?? LOL I also have Auntie Jacque's birthday gift waiting to mail and also am sending her some fabric to make me some kleenex thingees to hand out. I love that idea! I hope she doesn't mind whipping some up for me. :)

Still sad about the Pack losing, but oh well..they had a great season...now my weekends will be back to normal and I can workout more! And go to Bible study!! :) Love to all and until next time....

Football!!!

2012-01-08T20:18:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Been a wild and crazy weekend with the Wild Card games this weekend. All I can say is...WOW! Teams I didn't think that could pull it off, did and so I am just flabbergasted about the teams that are moving on. I suppose it is a good thing that the same ol' teams aren't playing next week. Becomes a little "predictable", if you will. Packers play the Giants next Sunday. Looking forward to that!!

Kids are doing well. Kalyn signed up Sasha for doggy lessons starting this week and she also got a new tattoo with her Uncle Dave and Aunt Heidi. They all went and got new ones. Tyler is just working away and having a lot of band practices. I really missed his music when he wasn't living here. It's really nice to come home and hear him playing! Quite the musical talent!!

Not too much going on with me. Just working like usual. Mrs. Courtright is needing me a lot more these days...decided to put all the money from her in a separate savings account to see what I come up with by year end. I also put $1's in another savings and use that for the kids' birthday and Christmas gifts. For 2011, I saved up $600 in $1's..can you believe it?? They each got $150 for their birthday and also for Christmas. It is such a relief to not have to worry about coming up with the money, I just save and save and voila....I've got a good chunk sitting there to give them.

Had a pretty good weekend...didn't workout, but I will be Mon, Wed and Fri this week, so that is fine. I had my dental appointment and mammogram last Thursday...not at the same place or time...My teeth are in excellent shape and I will get a report in the mail in regards to the mammogram. Trying to get all my appointments done and out of the way. I also need to figure out my vacation for this year. I get 5-6 weeks, so I need to decide what and where I'm going this year. I'm thinking of driving up to Minnesota/Wisconsin and take 2 weeks for that. We shall see how the funds go the first part of this year.

Thought I would change up my blog picture and also updated my profile. Thanks for reading and keep in touch! Love to all, until next time...

Lazy Cats...

2012-01-01T10:43:00.000-08:00

The cats wanted to say have a "lazy" New Year! :)

Happy New Year 2012!!

2012-01-01T10:03:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Here's wishing you all a wonderful, joyful New Year!!!

I ended up staying home last night...all...alone...for the first time in a long time! It was very nice, to be honest. I actually was lazy most of the afternoon and evening from 4:30 on...I think I needed it!!! I laid in my bed and watched tv (my new 32" I got a few weeks ago to replace the 19" I had in here...very nice to actually SEE what's on the tv now!!) and napped most of the evening. I did wake up about 11:45 just in time to ring in the new year. Reuben called me at exactly midnight, so that was sweet!

This morning, I got all caught up with the scrap booking that I do for nieces, nephews and my own kids. That was a good feeling!! I then went through my dresser drawers and organized, got rid of stuff and looked to see what all I had for workout gear and what to replace etc. I just need a few pairs of running shorts and I will be good to go! I did not go to church, but I made sure to read my daily reading instead. Next Sunday I do the coffee service, so I will be sure to go.

Looking forward to football today! Go Pack and Go Badgers!!

I clean for the Courtright's at 1 today, so that's good I will earn a little bit of money today! Tomorrow I am going to Santa Fe and ABQ. My hair color lady lives in Rio Rancho, which is about 30 minutes from SF and since I was going to SF anyway tomorrow, I figured another little drive wouldn't hurt to go get my hair lightened. I am also going to spend the rest of my giftcards and pick up some wine from Trader Joe's. Should be a fun day for me! Then, I am eating with a co-worker from the SF office at the Olive Garden and maybe a movie! Looking forward to a great time!

I am loving my new car and the registration already came in after only two weeks! I pick it up on Tuesday from the people that I bought the car from. They are the middle guys, pretty much, in this process....they sell the vehicles for this dealership down South, and act as the go-between and also do maintenance as well, if needed. They are also good friends of mine...Buddy and Beth. If you remember, a couple of years back, Reuben and I went down to their lake house for the weekend and went boating and skiing, etc. I got to drive Buddy's boat, back then! The Jeep got paid off too, so everything is finished with that. Very joyful about all this. :)

Well, I wish you all a wonderful, wonderful Happy New Year and I love you all very much! Keep in touch and let's make this a great year! Until next time...

Merry (day after) Christmas!!

2011-12-26T19:19:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Hopefully you had a wonderful Christmas out there!! Tyler and I opened gifts around 10:30am. I had the corn casserole almost all cooked by then and then shortly after, I put the ham in the oven. Tyler doesn't eat ham, so he ate the corn casserole, cranberries and rolls. He also made himself a quesadilla and then had seconds of the corn stuff. He's vegetarian these days and has been for about 3 years. We ate about 1. After we ate, I decided to go ahead and put all the Christmas stuff away. We couldn't enjoy the lights I had put up cuz the breaker would keep flicking off, if we had the tv on, so we stopped plugging in the tree and lights. While I did all that stuff in the living room (dusting and moving things around and vacuuming), Tyler cleaned his room, did laundry AND cleaned up the spare room (his old room). So, here we are...on Christmas...cleaning away together! I thought it was funny and cute! We had an awesome day! In the evening, I watched football and Tyler left and went and spent the evening with his girlfriend, Sydney. She came back from ABQ last night so he wanted to go see her.

Today, I got up a little early and had to make a couple of phone calls and then got ready to go workout. I went uptown and stopped at Smith's for a few groceries and then headed over to the gym to workout. It was really busy, so I did my run and then left. Went home and got in the shower and got ready to drive to Santa Fe. Tyler got home about 12:30 and then he got ready and went along with me!! He had gotten a sweatshirt for Christmas and wanted to exchange it and I had a few items to purchase! We made it a real quick trip and then stopped at Taco Bell and got food for the drive home. It was REALLY nice that he went along. We got some good time together this weekend and chatted. :)

Here is my list of Christmas items I received this year!!

Body lotion and hair gel, Peanuts Thanksgiving movie, couple of Packer items (toothbrush and sticker and title towel), Skullcandy headphones for working out, $350 cash, nut assortment, Eton/American Red Cross radio, Farberware kitchen knife set, stuffed puppy and sterling silver necklace (Kalyn and Sasha), wax burning pot, movie gift cards (totaling $60), Olive garden gc ($50), stuffed Christmas moose, sweatshirt, scarf, kitchen towels, Christmas towel and tweezers, calendar, mug with goodies inside and 2-$25 giftcards with which I purchased a new digital camera!! Got a lot of nice items and I'm very thankful!!

I also am attaching a new pic of the Rav that I took today. I had sent it to Gram so she could see my new car!

That's all I've got!! My fantasy team is in the running for 3rd place and I think I may have gotten it. So I did pretty well for my first year of Fantasy Football, I think. There were 10 of us playing so coming in 3rd, isn't bad!! Until next time...

More Snow!!

2011-12-19T13:45:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

The past 3 Monday's, we have had a significant amount of snow fall upon us! Been kind of nice, I must say! We got to close the bank early today and head for home due to weather. I have been shoveling ever since I got home! Good exercise though! Here are a few pics to enjoy! The Rav did great in the snow too! I'm off from the gym, but they needed someone to cover from 6-7, so I might do that. The girl working from 7-10 has another job, but the event that is going on may get cancelled, so in that case, she would show up at 6. I may lay down now after all my hard work!

Until next time....

It's a brand...new....car!!!

2011-12-17T14:50:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

I got my new car on Thursday evening!!! It's a 2011 Toyota Rav4!! I absolutely, positively love it!! They delivered it on a trailer so they didn't even drive it here, which I thought was really nice. Saves on the mileage for the vehicle. Then, the guy loaded up my Jeep on said trailer, and away it went. I sure will miss the Jeep, but it sure was beginning to have issues!!

I got insurance right away for the Ravy and then scheduled an appointment at "The Tint Shop" in Santa Fe, which was today, to have the windows tinted. The tint sure helps in the summer when it is hot outside! I also had them put a strip across the front windshield and boy all that tinting makes it look a lot different!!

I got really emotional thinking of how tough the past two years have been for me...the kids getting older, filing bankruptcy, the divorce, kids leaving, kids coming back...and I realized how very lucky I am and how much I deserve this new vehicle. It makes the past two years all worth it. All the hard work and persistance paid off!! I'm slowly rebuilding my credit and for it to be so good as it is to get pre-approved for the loan, is just amazing! I ended up going with Chase Bank, as they gave me a much lower interest rate than Zia was going to, with no cash down! I thank God for all of this because He is the one that makes it possible! :)

I've gone on a few dates with a very nice guy. He's 10 years younger than I am, but super guy...a little quiet...but super!! I can't really say a whole lot on here about it cuz he works for the bank, but in the Santa Fe office. I think its actually forbidden we date, so we have to keep it quiet. We've seen each other about 3 times now and it's been fun! I've known him for like 7 years or more. So, that is my news on that!

Kalyn will be alone at Xmas time at her Aunt and Uncles house so she got herself a small little tree and decorations and then I sent her those stockings so she has a cute little section of her room displaying her Xmas items! She mailed out a package to me and Ty and then a separate one for her Dad and Stephanie, with Xmas gifts, all by herself! I'm so proud of her for doing all this stuff on her own.

Tyler drove to Santa Fe a little bit ago...he is up for renewal on his cell phone, so he took his Xmas money that I gave him and is buying himself a new phone. He needs to buy himself some clothes and then he needs his car fixed, so those are his next items on his agenda! He's doing really well.

We had some good snow this past week and more to come this week! Work will be a short one this week. I work at the bank Mon -Friday, but we close at noon on Friday and the gym on Wednesday evening and then Saturday 1-5. Will be nice this weekend to be off a lot and then we have Monday the 26th off too. I'll have to take down my Xmas decorations at that time, I suppose! Good time to do that kind of stuff, I think.

I cleaned for the Courtright's on Thursday evening and then I go back tomorrow to finish up. She has company coming for Xmas so she wants it all looking good! I want to just get it done, so I offered to go over on Sunday, my day off, to finish it up. If I go during the week, then that forfeits a workout session at the gym, which I hate missing! I'm sure she will give me my Xmas bonus too, so that will be nice. Sunday evening, Catrina and I are going to go to the movie "New Year's Eve"! Should be fun! Been seeing a lot of movies lately and I love it!!

Well, have a great week!! Merry Christmas!! :) Until next time...

Stockings...

2011-12-12T16:14:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Here is a pic of the stockings I sent Kalyn and Sasha. I mailed the box out today, so she can enjoy them hanging in her room with plenty of time til Christmas! LOL I am convinced THAT was my last box I am mailing for the season....I hope! I'm pretty much done with shopping now. Maybe pick up a couple of small gifts, but that is it...I'm finished! AND, I have finished passing out all my baked goods too. I believe about 16 people got to enjoy the goodies!

Nicole, my loan chick over at Zia Credit Union, is working on my loan for me!! She said I will need 10% down, but my trade in should help, so I'm getting closer to my goal! Very excited! Buddy and Beth are helping me find a car. If I can't get a loan big enough for a small SUV type vehicle, I will have to go with a front wheel drive car. That's ok, as long as I get something reliable with no alterations, I'll be joyful! :)

Heading to work and it's snowing!!! Until next time...

Jeep and other items of interest.....

2011-12-10T15:57:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Hope this finds you all well and happy out there!! Remember how I said I would scream if anything else broke in my life?? Well....I didn't scream, but I seriously thought about screaming and here's why....

My Jeep was fixed in November...it was the 1/2 shaft problem that I told you all about. Well, now it started making a knocking noise in that same area but only as I would go uphill or accelerate. It would make the noise whether i was in 4 wheel-drive or not. I had Brian look at it again and he heard the noise and said he would replace the 1/2 shaft again in case that part was defective, but if THAT didn't work, it would be the drive shaft, which could cost a very pretty penny to replace. Well, I was just hoping and praying (alot of praying) that it was just the 1/2 shaft and nothing else. All of this is due to the lift that Shane put on the Jeep about 5 years ago. The Jeep is really not meant to be lifted so the parts are suffering under there! lol Brian finally got to changing out the shaft yesterday and said he looked at the drive shaft and it "looked" fine, which is good, but still worrisome...if anything else happens, I won't be able to afford to fix it, so I decided to trade it in!! I've got some friends helping me look for a smaller SUV type vehicle. These friends would be Beth and Buddy that own an auto shop and also sell cars out of Alamogordo, NM for a family member. They always have cars up here for sale and Reuben actually bought his Honda from them. I will keep you posted on that!! I'm hoping to have a new vehicle by the new year!!

Kalyn quit her Spencer's job at the Roseville mall and then got a promotion and raise at her job at Piercing Pagoda!! She is so excited and happy about this promotion and she will be working ALOT from what she tells me. She's kind of a manager figure now. Very proud of her! She turns 19 tomorrow!!! My baby girl!!! LOL

Tyler is doing well. Keeps plugging away at work and playing his guitar and going to practices, etc. His girlfriend Sydney is real nice. She comes over alot and they watch tv or play PS2 in the living room. Whenever I'm home, I usually hang out in the kitchen/my bedroom area so I don't disturb them! I quite enjoy having him around!

So, my computer (HP) that I bought a little over a year ago from Cliff, broke a week ago on Friday night!! LOL....I called Cliff right away and he had me drop it off to him and also my Dell computer that I had in my closet! He said the HP, motherboard, went out and was angry with me that I had this "very nice" Dell, hiding in my closet!!! So, he hooked me up big time and fixed the Dell and now I'm back in business again. He said the Dell should be just fine for a long time to come. He saved my pics and music too, so he is a godsend and only charged me $75! I gave him a $100 cuz he saved my life! lol Then, our computer modem has been acting up and I even had the Qwest guy come over and he said all the internet lines work just fine so it was my modem that I bought at Radio Shack that was broke. So, I took it back and exchanged it for another modem (same one) and it worked for a bit, but internet kept going up and down, up and down..ugh...I was frustrated, Tyler was frustrated...so finally...the other day we hooked up the free modem that the Qwest guy gave me (he's my neighbor and felt bad I was having issues...didn't charge me for the home visit either!!) and oh....my....goodness....the internet works soooo fast, and efficient and almost faster than we can handle!! Now why did I let that modem sit around for two weeks??? I have no idea...scared that it might actually work??? LOL so, now our internet is back to normal! I took the modem back to Radio Shack and the owner gave me store credit, but I know what I'm gonna buy with it...its that new radio thing for emergencies that has a USB charger, radio, flashlight stuff on it..made my the Red Cross or something?? But its a cool thing to have when the power goes out, which it does a lot here!! I'm excited to go buy it!!

Catrina and I went and saw the movie "Tower Heist" the other night. It was really good!! Then, last night, right after work, we drove down to Santa Fe for dinner and then to finish our Xmas shopping. We hit good, good deals at Kohl's and then Target and our final stop was Best Buy so she could buy a new, huge tv! She got a 46" for $750. Its a Samsung and very nice! We closed down Best Buy and went racing back and forth between there and Target to get the best deal! Quite hilarious, to be honest! We had a great time..got home about 11:30 pm, then I stayed up wrapping gifts and such. I got stocking stuffers for me, Ty and K. I got K and Sasha matching stockings and will send that box up to her here soon. I wrapped all her little stocking stuffers to she has stuff to open. I may post a pic. I got Sasha a toy and treats to put in her stocking! I'm such a good "grandma"! lol K will be alone as Dave and Heidi go to her parents house for Xmas, so I figure I better send a little love from home to her! I've sent her like 3 boxes in the past couple weeks too! I was gonna send K her stocking I have here at the house, but figured it would be better if her and Sasha had matching ones there in MN. They are huge and long. Kalyn's has a "K" and Sasha's has an "S" on the front of the stocking!

I mailed about 6-7 boxes total then of cookies and gifts to people! I think this is the most ever, that I have shipped! I truly enjoyed it all though. I love the baking and then sending the finished products for people to try! I almost had a fight here in the gym over my cookies!! Chuck, my friend, told me "thank you for the cookies, they were delicious", right in front of my other friend, Manny. Manny got all hurt and thought I "gave away HIS cookies" to Chuck! I said "no, I've got your cookies at my house still", well he was all hurt and teasing me that I "gave away his cookies"! ohman...boys!!! :)

Jobs are going well! I've been working 3 days a week at the gym again and not hardly cleaning for the Courtrights lately as Mr. C is in a rehab in ABQ now. Mrs. C has been keeping the house clean as she is hardly there now. She's gonna use me before Xmas, I'm sure. Bank is doing really well and we are having our Xmas dinner on the 22nd at DeColores! Catrina is gonna be my date as neither of us have boyfriends right now! Catrina got hired at the gym now too, so we both have two jobs, at the same places! She's a good friend. We also go to the same church so we get to see each other a lot! Our football teams play each other tomorrow, so there is a bit of rivalry going on!

I had an awesome massage today with a new lady, and it was really really good, so I plan to go back to her!

Well, i will end this now. Until next time.... :)

Christmas Time!!

2011-12-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Hope you are all well out there!! I'm working at the gym tonight, so that gives me a chance to get on here and type away!!

I'm excited about the holidays this time of year. Everyone seems to be in better moods and out and about and all in a holiday spirit!! I've got all my baking done, except for some regular sugar cookies that Tyler has requested, and all of my shopping done except for two people, Tj and Diana! I always have the toughest time trying to figure out what to get them. I'm also sending them some baked goods in their box, so they should enjoy that! I'm very glad to be done with everything, so that I can relax and watch everyone else scurry around!! Catrina and I are going down to Santa Fe next Friday night, to finish up shopping and have dinner. Should be a good time! So, I have mailed out 4 boxes and about 70-80 Christmas cards. I didn't think I was gonna do that many, but I did. I figure this is the one time of year where you should hear from everyone. With the technology we have these days, most people don't even do cards or pictures anymore. I enjoy it :)

Tyler is enjoying his new guitar and writing songs! He also keeps working away at the Coffee Booth.

Kalyn went to Wisconsin this past week since she had off from both jobs. I hear she had a great time and today she went back to work. I sent her a package with cookies, a couple small gift items for her birthday, birthday card and then a toy gingerbread man stuffie for Sasha to play with. Kalyn really appreciated her package from home!

My friend Sharon spoils me..she brought me cookies here at the gym a couple weeks back and now tonight she brought me brownies!! Not that I need em, but they were delicious!! My friend Carrie and I are going to see the movie "The Muppets" on Sunday! Should be fun. Catrina and I saw "Breaking Dawn" and then Sharon and I saw a movie a few weeks back too. It's fun to have friends!! :)

Well, I better get going. Have a good weekend!! Until next time....

Tyler won!!

2011-11-26T14:42:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

Been another busy week, but a good one nonetheless. I say a prayer every morning thanking God for the day ahead and for my kids and family....it always makes the day go better once you have your moments with God. :)

Tyler placed 3rd in the guitar competition held on November 12th!! He drove to Albuquerque and picked up his guitar the other day!! I promise to take a photo of it and post here, but I keep forgetting!! LOL Then, when I remember, Tyler is playing it. I suppose I could snap it then, but he would probably frown upon that! They had the guitars all listed wrong for each winner, so when he got there, he didn't get the guitar he thought he won. He had brought with him another guitar that he's been wanting to sell...soooo...he sold his orange one and sold the one he won and then bought the guitar he originally thought he won!! So, he did end up with the one he wanted! So proud of that boy! He is very talented!

Kalyn is doing well. She is working alot and that is to be expected when one has two jobs!! She also got her hair cut short, but it looks so cute on her. She takes Sasha for a walk everyday and then is busy with work. She is really liking both jobs. They are both in the same mall, so she doesn't have to go too far if she works at both on the same day.

Had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! I went to Carrie and Kent's house (owners of the gym) for lunch and then went over to my friend Catrina's for dinner. I made sure to take small portions at each place, so I didn't overstuff myself! The plan worked and I'm very thankful for that!

The bank closed at 3 on Friday, so I went home and got my house all decorated for Christmas and the tree up. Then, I whipped up cookie dough and thought I was gonna just make the dough, but I figured I may as well have them baking while I'm making the dough! So, I ended up baking all the cookies last night. I made chocolate chip/m&m, oatmeal, peanut butter and then the peanut butter with the chocolate kiss in the middle. I was getting low on flour, but was able to whip up one small batch of sugar cookie dough today, so that tonight when I get home from work, I can work on those. I'm sending out cookies to Kalyn, my Mom, Reuben and my Dad, so I want to get all those "mailing" cookies done and out so I can concentrate on passing out my plates of cookies to friends and co-workers here. I also whipped up banana breads and pumpkin breads during the week, so I'm pretty relieved to almost be done with the Christmas baking. It's always fun to do this once a year! And of course, I always wear my apron that my Auntie Jacque made me!! ;)

Well, that is all for now....until next time....

Seattle Trip 2011

2011-11-19T13:35:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

I had a GREAT time in Seattle last weekend!! I flew out Thursday night, the 10th. I left work at 4pm and drove to Albuquerque and parked my Jeep for the 3 days I would be gone. (remind me to tell you the Jeep story too!) I had a straight flight on Southwest to Seattle and Reuben picked me up at the airport with flowers in hand...can we say awwww?? Now you must remember we are not dating anymore, but it was a very sweet gesture and I also got a great big hug out of the deal... (I think he misses me!) We drove 45 min to his mom's house in Edmonds, WA and got settled in and went to bed. Reuben's mom, Esther, was already in bed for the night, when we arrived, so didn't get to see/meet her until the morning.

Friday a.m. I woke up early cuz Reuben and I were going to go site-seeing in Seattle!! We had breakfast and got to meet Esther, his mom, and also the cat, Orange. Reuben packed us up some snacks and sandwiches and waters and we headed out!! Our first stop of the day was Puget Sound! We took pictures and watched a couple of para-sailers out on the choppy water, which was really neat. I also picked up a seashell and later Reuben told me that you're not allowed to take things off the beach...I guess he felt I wasn't committing too much a crime so he didn't mention it while I was in the act of taking it! Reuben got a stick and wrote "11-11-11" in the sand and took pics. When we were in St. Thomas, a year ago, we had written "10-10-10" in the sand there. So, we joked that next year, we have to go to another beach for 12-12-12. I suggested Hawaii..Reuben says South Texas! lol

Next stop was downtown Seattle!! We had a difficult time finding parking, but finally did and headed over to the monorail. We rode that and walked around a small mall for a little bit and then headed over to the Space Needle! Went to the top of that...it was mildly cold and sprinkling, but fun! Took some more pictures and then left for our next stop...The Coast Guard Museum!! We had a heck of a time getting to the museum with road construction going on, but finally made it and then had to get cleared to go ON the base since the museum is on base. We drove over to the museum and went inside and the guy greeted us with a million dollar bill!! Of course, it was fake and had Coast Guard stuff all over it, but it was cool nonetheless!! Reuben gave me his so I have two now! We took lots of pictures and then before we left, I bought a CG sticker and a CG sweatshirt! We went outside and took pictures of the boats and such and also of the Polar Sea boat! There are two of those huge red boats that we learned about in bootcamp, so it was nice to actually see one of them! The other is the Polar Star.

Our next adventure was the Pike's Place market! Very famous place downtown Seattle where there are vendors selling everything under the sun...flower bouquets made out of vegetables, seafood, fruits, cheeses...everything! They give you samples and such and the atmosphere is just awesome! It's a very busy, bustling place! We also stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe and just looked around. We walked around and down the pier area and saw all kinds of ships and took more pictures! We decided it was dinner time so headed back to Edmunds and stopped at a fastfood fish place and ate there. It was delish and took something home to Reuben's mom too. She was very glad we did!! We hung out that night in the cozy, warm house and Esther showed us pictures, I got a shoulder rub and had great convo and many laughs. Reuben and I stayed up late watching tv and chatting.

Saturday, was our day to take the ferry over to another part of WA and to meet up with my friend Kim, from my McD's days here in LA. Kim lives in Berenton, WA. I think that was the name of it. lol So, we got to ride the ferry (it carries your car too!) and Reuben and I stood out on the deck and yes, it was freezing cold and probably the reason why I came home sick, but it was fun to be out there in the cold moving fast across the water! We drove down to Berenton and stopped at this pier to see the USS Turner Joy. We didn't pay the $12 admission, just took pics and went inside the gift shop. We met Kim around noon at a Starbucks and she brought her granddaughter, Sierra, with her too. It was great to catch up with her for about an hour and then we headed out for our drive up North! We drove and drove and enjoyed the scenery and mountains and finally got to Port Angeles, WA. Cute little town and it was a little overcast so couldn't see the Olympia mountains too well, but it was cool to be there! Had a brought my passport, we could have taken the ferry from there over to Victoria, British Columbia...aka Canada! Oh well...there's always next time. We headed back to the ferry and took the 5pm over back to Edmunds. The water was SOOO choppy and wavy I was frightened!! They even announced the emergency procedures over the intercom which was also frightening!! lol I didn't think we were gonna survive, but we did. :) Reuben drove us to a brick-fired pizza place and we placed a to-go order and then went into the bar and he bought me a drink! Reuben paid for everything while I was there, which was really sweet of him. We waited an hour and finally got our pizza (they had a large group in there) and headed back to eat pizza with Esther. We had another warm, cozy night at the house chatting and picture looking and hearing stories. Reuben's mom is hilarious!!

Sunday morning, it was time for me to get packed and ready to head back to NM!! I got to sleep in a bit and lounge around and then finally had to get in the shower and packed up! Reuben packed me some snacks for the plane trip and also packed leftover pizza for us to eat before I left too. I had cried all morning cuz I was really going to miss them and had a great time there! Wasn't quite ready to go home! Finally said my goodbye's to Esther and Orange and then we headed out to the airport! We got the airport, got my boarding pass and then we went to a sitting area and ate our pizza and chatted. Finally, it was time for me to get through security so Reuben and I said our goodbye's...lots of hugs and tears. He waited until I got all the way through security and then I saw him leave. It was a wonderful time!

The flight got into ABQ about a half hour early, so that was good and then I gathered the Jeep and headed back to LA. I stopped at Smith's and then got home about 7:30. I was able to get all my laundry done and cleaning up around the house and ready for the work week! I've been recovering from that cold all week and today finally feeling better!!

So, the Jeep got fixed right before I left for this trip. It had been making an awful noise down by the tire for a long time and finally after two mechanics, we figured out it was the half shaft, down by the CV joint. The lift was causing it to work in a awkward way, so it finally gave out. I had Brian fix it for me cuz he was the only guy in town that wasn't too busy to get it done before I left town!! Brian owns the Coffee Booth where Tyler works too. Brian also fixed Kalyn's car and is good friend with Reuben. It cost $800 but it runs so smooth now and I can finally enjoy the new brakes and tires I had gotten this summer. I hope it lasts awhile now cuz it has cost me some dollars this year! It just turned over to 70,000 miles a couple weeks back.

The kids are doing great!! Tyler had the guitar competition last Saturday and became one of the 6 finalists out of 70 people! They named 6 finalists and 3 of them were from LA!! Tyler's friend Thomas is one of the finalists. 3 guitars will be given away and they took down the voting thing today, so hopefully we find out soon who won!! I'm enjoying having Tyler around and he keeps everything all neat and clean at the house like I do. Kalyn got two jobs....she works at Piercing Pagoda and also Spencer Gifts, both at the Roseville mall in MN. She bought herself a new outfit for her first day today at PP. Kalyn also had to go get Sasha's Xmas present yesterday, early. Sasha had chewed 3 of the metal bars off her crate and could fit her head out and through the opening she created!! Kalyn went to Petsmart and got a different kind of crate that Sasha can also fly in (to come visit in NM). She will keep the other crate for trips to WI. I believe she got the kind that is all plastic and only has smaller bars on the front that she can't get her teeth around to chew them. lol That dog is crazy!!

Thanksgiving is coming up! My bosses here at the gym are having me over for lunch on Thursday and then in the afternoon I'm going to Catrina's for dinner! We plan to watch those undefeated Packers play the Lions!! Should be a fun time! My friend Sharon is baking this weekend and just brought me some of her cookies to try!! Yum!!

I've got all my Christmas cards ready to mail, some gifts purchased and then need to do my baking so that I can send a care package to Miss K! I'm sure my Mom and Dad will want some of my baked goods as well!! Can't believe in a few weeks Kalyn will turn 19!! My babies are all grown up!!

Well, this is my 2nd time typing this, so I hope I didn't forget anything. Lost the first draft. LOL Luckily I'm at the gym and have time!! Until next time...

November!! brrr....

2011-11-05T14:20:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Can hardly believe how fast this year is going! Soon it will be the holidays...I've got my kids' gifts (money) but not anyone else's yet, so I'm working on that!

Finally got my house sold and lease signed! I'm very grateful that it is finally done and over. I think once Bruce gets the title, we will have to do a couple of things, but the main part is over. Bruce will be sending someone over this coming week to cover up the swamp cooler for the winter. I had Kevin lined up to come do it, but now that the sale has gone through, Bruce can have his maintenance guy do it. I didn't make any money on the deal and actually had to come up with the 4 months of payments that I didn't make on the house so that he could finalize the deal with Greentree. I signed a year lease @ $725 month. That includes the water/sewer, so not a bad deal at all. I am saving about $55 a month. I know some of you can't understand why I would not want to own the home, but I figure, it's getting older and things will start to break. I cannot afford to buy a new furnace or fridge or what have you, if it goes out. This way, Bruce can fix anything that happens and I can sit back and save some money. If I ever move, I won't have to worry about the house at all. Just trying to think ahead, you know. :)

I leave for Seattle on Thursday evening for a quick weekend trip. We have Friday off at the bank due to Veteran's Day, so I thought I would take advantage of that and go see the sights up there and Reuben and his mom. I also got a VERY cheap ticket on Southwest, so couldn't pass it up! Still haven't told Tyler yet, that I'll be gone. I guess I better!! :)

My Jeep is going in the shop on Monday. :( It has a noise underneath and after several inspections by mechanics...I finally got my friend Buddy to look at it and he found the issue in 2 minutes!! It's the right front outer differential bearing. I've got Brian from AutoDoc lined up to fix it. He fixed Kalyn's car before she left and also Tyler's wheel bearings, recently. He also owns the Coffee Booth that Ty works at. I like to give him business, apparently. The Jeep has been making this noise for quite awhile, but more recently getting worse and worse. I'm not even driving it this weekend cuz I'm afraid!! People keep telling me i should not be driving it. I drove it to Albuquerque last weekend and by the grace of God, I made it there and back and didn't even realize how bad this was!! So, Merry Christmas to me, cuz it's going to be expensive!! I swear, this year has been the worst for spending money on fixing things. But, the good news is that in 2012..I shouldn't have to spend any now that everything will be fixed!! LOL

Today at home, I worked on finishing up the Xmas cards and got them separated for the ones that just get mailed and the ones that will go with gifts, etc. I think I've got everything figured out as to who is getting what. It won't be much, but it will be the thought that counts. :) My kids always want money, so that is easy. Kalyn will just have a deposit put in her account so that way I won't have to mail it and Tyler will get his early cuz he wants to buy a new mini laptop. His is WAY old and slowly not working anymore.

Jobs are going well. I got a raise of 25 cents an hour here at the gym starting in November and I got a raise at the bank last month. I'm doing ok financially and hope to start saving again after all these expenses. I paid for all of Kalyn's moving and box shipping up to Minnesota too. I'm just glad I was able to make it happen. I didn't want her struggling and asking for money and this way, she can live on what she has until she starts work. She should find out this week if she got the job at Caribou coffee. She starts school March 20th. So proud of that girl, she even painted her whole room by herself up there!!

Well, I suppose I will end this. You all take care and write when you can! I keep up-to-date on all the blogs on here, even if I don't make a comment. Love you all, until next time....

Back From Vaca!!!

2011-10-19T18:04:00.000-07:00

Hey all!!

Did ya miss me?? lol... I had a wonderful trip for two full weeks!! I got to see almost my whole family except for a few cousins and Aunts on my Mom's side!! Very fun and relaxing and getting to spend that last little time with Kalyn was absolutely the best!! We had a lot of fun on the drive and her car drove really smooth. Couldn't even tell I was driving 85 mph!

I typed up a synopsis of my trip, by day, but it is waaayyy too long to post on here, so I will just make a little paragraph about each part of my trip instead.

First of all, Tyler took care of the house for me and did a good job with the cat feeding too. I'm sure he was glad to have the whole place to himself!

First part of my trip was driving Kalyn's car with myself, Kalyn and her dog up to Minnesota!! We spent one night at a hotel in Nebraska and the next day we arrived in MN. Perfect trip, no problems and alot of great conversation. We spent one night at Dave and Heidi's (where Kalyn is now living) and then we were off to Eau Claire for 5 days! We stayed with my Dad since he could house Sasha for us. He no longer has his dog, so I knew we would be safe having Sasha there. Dad and Lori loved Sasha to death and Sasha loved them in return. It was quite funny how they interacted. Dad hosted a pizza party for Jenni for her birthday the first evening we were there, so that was fun. The next day, we spent the whole day with Jenni, eating and shopping. We ate at Gram's house for dinner and it was delicious sloppy joe's. Grampa went and played pool and we chatted with Gram. That evening Kalyn and Jenni got matching tattoos on their wrists. Lori took Kalyn and I to Taco John's on Wed. for lunch and then that evening we went to Pizza Del Re and rollerskating with Jenni and Trent. Thursday we spent time with Sasha alot but did go over to Gram's to see Aunt Julie and eat leftovers from Tuesday! That evening we met the Wilson gang for dinner. Ann, Haley, Dick, Brenda, Lori, Sis Jenni, Kalyn and my friend Jenny Logan Delkamp all ate at Azul Tequila. Aunt Kathy stopped by just to say hello, which was nice! Dad didn't wanna come. Friday we headed to Gram's again cuz Cousin Matt and his gf Tiffany came to town to surprise Gram and fix her computer. Aunt Julie bought pizza and fruit and we had a great time! Soon, it was time for us to go back to Minneapolis! We drove back to Dad's and loaded up and away we went. It was so great to see everyone there. Gram, Gramp and I snuck over to see Aunt Bev too, for a little bit on Wed.

At Dave and Heidi's I got Kalyn settled in. We went grocery shopping, cleaned up her room, washed her new bedding and made her bed, explained to her how to refill her prescriptions and got her clothes hung up in the closet. D and H took us to eat downtown Minneapolis to Hell's Kitchen, which was delish!! We also hit up Mall of America for just a little while. Sunday the 9th was Sasha's 1st birthday and I flew out that morning to Baltimore....I cried and cried all morning leaving Kalyn and Sasha. Probably one of the hardest things I've ever been through besides the divorce. :( I still get teary-eyed thinking about it (and typing this!)

I arrived safely at Phillie, raced to catch my next 20 minute flight to Baltimore and boy was I starving when I got there!! I grabbed a quick little Chinese meal and walked down to baggage to meet Mom and Jon. They were laughing at me as I was saying hello, giving half hugs cuz I was holding my food! It was wonderful to see them!! We drove straight over to Jon's to see kids and Minerva. M cooked enchiladas and they were delish! Kids were good and then we headed to Mom's. Mom needed a little help with getting rid of things so we did that one morning, toured Frederick, ate good meals and toured DC one day! When Mom had her class on Tuesday night, I stayed with Minerva and kids and got some quality time in there. We went to eat and shopping at the post for an Army t-shirt. Earlier in the day, Mom watched the kids and M and I went and did a spinning class at the gym. It was brutal. They are stationary bikes that you workout on. You have an instructor that tells you what tension to be at and to speed up or slow down! We spent one whole day at Jon and Minerva's cuz Jon was off work and they took me and Mom to lunch and then the Mall there. Minerva cooked the last night I was there also and it was a great dish called Bulgogi. Got some quiet time with Mom at her place and it was just so nice to be there and see them all too. :) Then, it was time for me to fly back home on Friday the 14th! After my flight from Baltimore to Abq, Tyler picked me up and we did a little shopping and headed back to LA. I didn't leave the house the rest of that day or Sunday. I spent that time cleaning, washing, scrubbing, organizing everything that I could. Had to catch up on two weeks of duties!! I got it all done!

I want to thank everyone for feeding us and housing us for the entire trip! We couldn't have done it without the help of some of you out there!

It's been really quiet at home with just me and Ty. It's nice to be home and back to work though! I did go back to ABQ on Saturday. My former co-worker, Christine, was back in town for her baby shower! She married an Army guy she met in college, almost two years ago. Their baby is due in Feb. They are going to name her Lucia. It was great to see C again and meet all of Pat's (her hubby) family after hearing about all of them from time to time when she worked at the bank.

Well, I suppose I shall end this...I'm working at the gym and gotta start cleaning!! Hope all is well out there! Until next time... :)

First Day of Fall!

2011-09-23T21:40:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, the weather is turning a bit nippy in the mornings now and then by the afternoon it is 70 degrees!! Gotta love Fall in Los Alamos!!

Mailed off 9 boxes this week via USPS/FedEx/UPS full of Kalyn's clothes and books and shoes and jackets and gloves and scarves...whew the list goes on and on!! Her room is just about empty and ready for Tyler to move in!! She's leaving a few things here and so either myself or Tyler will help ourselves to the extra junk she leaves behind!! She's very excited to be moving on and she will be missed dearly around here.

Tyler and I moved him last weekend, so we are glad to be done with it. We borrowed Kevin's truck and went and picked up the couch and his bed and stuffed whatever else would fit along the sides of those big items. Then last Sunday, we each drove down and got the rest of his stuff!! We took it all to his storage shed...well, except for the stuff he wanted at the house...and now his shed is full of his goodies. He is thinking of staying for a year and then move again. Depends on if he gets his bills all paid off. He is absolutely loving his job at the Coffee Booth and the manager there, is in the process of purchasing the place, so he asked Tyler if he would like to be one of the managers when HE owns it! I thought that was very flattering! Tyler is really pumped about it! He will be watching the cats and house while I am away. Hopefully no parties will be thrown!!! :)

Work is going well at the bank. I had my annual review and got a small 2.5% raise, so that will help a little bit. Comes out to $40 a paycheck right now, but after December is when our medical benefits change, so hopefully it won't dig into my new wages too much. Gym job is good too. I asked about a raise there when I get back to my regular schedule in November and the owner told me to remind her and we will chat. :) Haven't gotten a raise there in over 2 years, so it's time.

I'm also getting really excited about the trip and seeing everyone! Should be a grand time!

Tj and Diana will be here early next week. They will be here a couple weeks for Balloon Fiesta in ABQ. We will get to see them probably one evening before we head out early next Saturday am. Will be nice to see them too.

Well, I am getting sleepy so will cut this short and go to bed. Stay well everyone and until next time.....

Labor Day!!!

2011-09-05T08:46:00.001-07:00

Hey all!

Had a very productive weekend and still movin along with it!! I got a couple of cupboards reorganized, general cleaning done, work outs, yardwork, watched a season and a half of "Dexter" and now on my way to go clean for the Courtright's!! Today, Kalyn is off so we will be packing up boxes to mail up to Minnesota. We will be driving her little 2001 Honda Civic up there with her dog and then a little puppy to drop off with Shane, so there won't be much room for anything but clothes and essentials! I hope there is room for my stuff that I need to take for traveling too! LOL I will be packing very light as far as I can tell!

Things are going well. Tyler has been here a lot more and he needs to get all his stuff moved in here and to his shed before the end of Sept. from his house in Santa Fe. He is really loving his new job. I'm sure it's very hard for him to have to move back home. I'm trying to be easy on him and not say too much. He comes and goes and does his own thing which is totally fine. He's a quiet guy and I'm sure everything will work out for him.

Kalyn has three more weeks of work at the pizza place and she has 4 weeks of babysitting. She took on a babysitting job when the college started here for a friend of mine who has two little girls, ages 3 and 2 or something. The girls really like Kalyn so I'm glad we were able to help out my friend with a babysitter issue. Kalyn babysits on Tues, Wed and Thurs for Sara and then the other days of the week she works at Home Run. Kalyn got her account opened at US Bank on Friday. She needed an account for up there and she will keep her account here open as her "emergency car fund" account.

Well, I must run and go clean for a bit. Mr. Courtright has had some health issues and is not doing well. He is pretty much bed-ridden now so Mrs. C needs me more now that they have all these people in and out of the house to help Mr. C. I also went and saw Keith! He is at Sombrillo which is a nursing home. He was very glad to see me and I may try to go see him today too.

Talk to you all soon...keep in touch..until next time...

Been busy!!!!

2011-08-20T09:19:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Things are going well here. Thought I better catch up with things!!

Tyler got the job here in town as a barista at Coffee Booth/Coffee House Cafe!! He starts on Aug 25th!! He is way excited to work there! He plans to stay here when he has to work and then drive to Santa Fe, when he is off. The lease comes due at his place at the end of September, so he plans to move back in with me to save money and pay off his debts and THEN move on to what he wants to do (go to school, move or whatever!) I told him that is totally fine since Kalyn will be leaving around that time as well. I want to get her room cleaned up before he actually moves his stuff in, but we will see. He's gonna take her room cuz the futon is already in there and the room is bigger than his old room. I think he will get a storage shed up town for his other stuff that won't fit. The shed will run him about $50 a month, so that's not bad! Tyler is here now and is real sick!! Yuck!! Tyler got a lot of money for his birthday and plans to buy some clothes and shoes. Hopefully he is working on that! :)

Kalyn is doing well. She is working away at her job and saving every dime she can for her move, etc. She is gonna buy my HP laptop from me so that she has a computer. I've only had it a year so it will be a good computer for herself. I still have my little Dell that I can use. I am never on those laptops anyways, unless it is a really slow night at the gym. I usually have my phone to check email and Facebook, so not a big deal. She will pay me what I owe on the computer and then that loan will be paid off. It's that zero interest loan I got at the bank I work at, to help build my credit back up after the divorce/bankruptcy. So, it helps me and it helps her too!

I am doing well....keeping real busy with the jobs and such. I've got a couple of little projects I am working on at the bank, so that helps with passing of the time. It's pretty slow there most days and of course whenever Lesley is out, I don't wanna do any kind of work!! I like to stay busy when she's there, but otherwise, as long as I'm caught up with my work, it doesn't really matter what I do while she's gone. LOL Gym is making some changes with things, not sure if they are for the better or not. We will see how it goes. I will disclose as they come up!

Reuben is doing well in Seattle. I talk to him pretty much everyday. I would like to go see that area over the long weekend in November, so I've been looking at ticket prices here and there. One time I looked, it was $360, then the next time it was $300 and then the next time it was over $400!!! yikes!! Shoulda bought the $300 one, but then again, he isn't for sure if he will still be there at that time or what. So I would hate to buy it and then he's not there.

I gotta work at the gym this afternoon. We got a lot of good rain yesterday so the ground here is just soaked...so much for my mowing the lawn before I go to work! :) It can wait until tomorrow!!

I've been able to exercise more lately and that makes me happy!! I had a really nice run last night so that's got me motivated!! I've been going after church now too since I'm already up town. That seems to work pretty well!!

Okay, must get going. Hope all is well out there!! Until next time!!

Furniture pics!

2011-08-10T06:15:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Thought I would post my pictures real quick here. The kitchen shows my new table and bakers rack to match. The living room is my new couch and the two big pieces of furniture are from Reuben's office. And also some plants he had in the office. Enjoy!!! Until next time....

Pretty good week....

2011-07-23T15:32:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Had a good week, this past week. Getting things done around the house as far as getting things moved around, sold on the internet or gathering items for the yard sale. Kalyn is making great progress on her room. She did her desk a couple of weeks ago, the closet about a week or so ago and now lately going through drawers and crap she has laying around. LOL She has some more clothes to go through and then basically separating out what she is taking along with her or mailing or storing with me.

I've got my new baker's rack coming, that matches the new table and then I will need to rearrange my living with the new furniture that Reuben is moving in for me. Don't think it's gonna work the way I want it unless I do move the couch so we shall see. Just busy, busy, I tell ya...

Tyler won't be moving in then until further notice. He is working now and can afford his place and so far is getting along with everyone there. I think his roomies were getting frustrated with him having no job or anything. It's fine with me that he may not move back in yet...I want to get things cleaned and organized. I figure I will shampoo carpets and the new couch once K and Sash leave too.

Barb is planning to come down and get her cabinet from me. It will be good to see her!!

Last night, Catrina and I went to see the movie, "Friends with Benefits", with Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. It was hilarious!! Great movie!! Then, we stopped at the Canyon bar and each drank 1/2 a beer (we sure are partiers!!) and chatted with folks we hadn't seen in forever!! Pretty fun time for once!! Girls night out is always a good time!! Today Catrina picked me up and we went to a few yard sales and then we picked up lunch and then she took me home just in time to get ready for work! Her and her boyfriend broke up too, so we are leaning on each other right now!

So, tonight, we are gonna pop a pizza in the oven and probably relax. I would love to help K go through more of her stuff, but she has to be in the mood for that!! lol I've kinda given her a time frame to get it done cuz Reuben is leaving and I need his assistance to get her bed taken apart and delivered up the street and then take apart the futon and move in her room and put it back together! Lots of work and I don't wanna be doing all this on my bday either. We are planning to do the yard sale in the am next Sat and then go to ABQ for the day in the afternoon. Should be a fun time.

My dad had to put his dog down on the 16th. I feel bad for them!! Malley was a good dog and very excited all the time.

Tj and Diana and them are getting ready for a family reunion/anniversary party for Tj's folks the first week of August. Everyone is flying down to stay and party on the beach! It is Tj's parents 60th wedding anniversary! Diana mailed out 3 boxes to my house for Tyler. It is Jesse's clothes and such so hopefully he finds a bunch of stuff he can wear.

I got renter's insurance on the house then and switched companies. I still have not had the Greentree peeps out to take pics like that lady said they would. I did call last week and let them know I had not heard a word. Hopefully soon!!! I'm still not gonna pay them a dime. That may get the ball rolling!!

Jobs are going well. We've got the Bodybuilding show coming up two weeks from today. They usually have it in Sept, but they moved it up a month to see if they might get more competitors. I'm gonna work the snack bar again and I think Kalyn took off from work so she can help me too. :)

That's all I've got for today!! Reuben just brought in a huge beetle in a container to show me!!! ick.....until next time....

New kitchen table!

2011-07-21T20:17:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Thought I would throw a pic up of my new kitchen table. Ordered a baker's rack to match it today! Can't wait to get it next week. Can't take a pic of the couch yet as it's all covered nicely with sheets so Sasha doesn't ruin it!! LOL I promise to take a pic soon!!

Speaking of Sasha, if you hadn't heard, she jumped or fell out of Kalyn's bedroom window the other night!! Very scary. Apparently Kalyn jumped out of bed and went to rescue her outside and Sasha was all happy to see Kalyn!! The screen was down on the ground, the flower planter spilled and then the metal bar was all bent as well!! Sasha had quite the fall, but seems fine!!

That's all I've got for right now....catching up on household duties tonight!! Love to all and until next time...

Mid July...

2011-07-17T16:59:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, I survived my busy week and made some money and spent some money!! I sold my couch and kitchen table/chairs all on Craigslist in one day! I also went to Santa Fe that same day and picked up my new/used couch from the same place I got my dryer from last Saturday! When I got home with my couch, the old couch was already gone and sold so that worked out well! My new table/chairs from Walmart will be here this week. I needed something smaller for myself, since I will be alone after mid-October. I really am looking forward to being by myself. It's a good time for reflection and having fun without anyone around to stop me!! LOL

So, Kalyn and I pull out from LA on Oct 1st. We plan to be in Minneapolis the evening of the 2nd and then sometime on the 3rd, we will drive over to EC and stay. Not sure how it's all gonna work out yet cuz we will have Sasha to contend with and not sure the Aunt and Uncle in Minneapolis will be up to doggy sitting for a few days while we go to EC. We will see, but I plan to be in EC most of that week. I fly out to Baltimore on Sunday the 9th to see Mom and Jon and then fly back to ABQ on Friday the 14th. So, basically that first week in October, i will be in EC.

There is finally action going on with the house now too!! I called Greentree to check the status and spoke with Brandi our new chick that is handling this. She was so apologetic for the lack of help I've been getting for the past few months and she is on top of things!! We plan to have this done by end of July and I am done with my house payments!! She told me there is no need to make anymore payments!! I was glad cuz I have another story to tell about the house insurance.....

The house insurance is through American Bankers, which is a company through Greentree. I pay Greentree the house payment and the insurance payment all in one. That is part of the reason why I kept paying even though I had put this house in the bankruptcy...I was worried if I didn't pay, I wouldn't have coverage and therefore if a fire broke out...I would lose everything!! So, I kept paying the full amount. Fine with me cuz I didn't wanna screw anyone over, basically (ie: my landlord for the lot, etc) and just felt obligated and also wanted a place to live. Now, with the fire/evacuation we just had, my insurance guy told me I don't have coverage and will not be reimbursed for the hotel/food I spent during that week out of our house. I was irate with him...what a jerk!! So, I was on a mission to cancel that insurance...I called up Allstate (who I have my cars with) and got renter's insurance since I #1-don't own the house anymore and Reuben told me, "who really knows if that company would cover me since the house was written off" or anyone for that matter and #2-could not stand my current coverage or the guy I spoke to!! LOL

I couldn't bind the insurance with Allstate until this past week cuz the fire is still going, but she called me and now I'm all set up with that!! I have $40,000 worth of coverage for my belongings in case of fire and I believe it starts next week. It's only $20 a month also. So, this house and insurance thing all kinda is working out at the same time. Very awesome! I have to sign a years lease with Bruce and I'm sure he will discuss with me all the in's and out's of the place and what I get to keep, etc. I'm gonna be so relieved to not have this expense over my head. He gets to fix anything that goes wrong. :)

This weekend I washed all the window coverings and blinds and also the actual windows and then did the floors. Today after church, I went thru my shed to find stuff for the yard sale we are gonna have and also got rid of a bag of trash and also moved and swept things up so it's better organized. Had to make room for Kalyn's storage tubs that she will be keeping in there too. It looks good. I've got a bed in that shed I'm selling for Barb (she had given me that pine log bed) and also we will sell Kalyn's bed and then put the futon in her room. That futon is roomier for her and then that room will be the guest room when she leaves. Kalyn went thru her closet today too and got rid of 3 garbage bags full of clothes!! She has to have her room mostly done before we move the futon in so I think she's beginning to get going on that now.....Man does that girl have a lot of stuff!! We gave Catrina's mom that bookshelf that was in K's room, on Friday night and then Catrina is getting my shoe rack too. I will have a box of goodies to mail to Mom for the kids' playroom at Gram's house! That may be awhile as K goes thru more and more stuff. Kalyn is giving her desk to her friend up the street and the rest she will leave here for me to store. Reuben is leaving in two weeks so we are trying to do alot of this big moving stuff while he is here. fun, fun!! :)

Well, that's about it for now...just wanted to update ya'all. I will send pics of the new couch and kitchen stuff after the table gets here. Love to all! Until next time...

Replacing things....

2011-07-09T16:07:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

I must say...this is the year for replacing things in my home. I got all new computer stuff that I mentioned how cheaply I got it....had Jeep repairs last year and now new tires...now my 2 year old dryer quit (didn't renew the warranty cuz my landlord is in process of buying the house and didn't wanna spend the money if i didn't need to....needless to say...I have now added warranty to the washer but you must wait 60 days before making any claims...lets pray it hangs in there!), new tv at Xmas time, water line breakage at New Year's and then Kalyn's graduation stuff, medical bills, etc....are we done yet?? I'm hoping this is it now....with the evacuation (and finding out my home owners policy doesn't cover any of it!!) I'm almost tapped out here...I am just very thankful I had money saved to do this and have to praise God for that blessing!! I did find an organization here, Self Help, that is helping me with the 10 hours of work I missed from working at the gym and also with the dryer purchase!! I won't find out until Monday what they can do, but at least they CAN do! whew...

Tyler is finally employed! He got two job offers...one for Servicemaster and then another as a waiter/busser at Amavi (downtown SF)...he is gonna take the restaurant one, i believe! Hallelujah for Tyler! I was getting worried there.

Kalyn is getting nervous about her October 1st departure to Minneapolis!! I don't blame her, but this will be a good experience for her! She will do just fine.

I'm working at the gym today and getting back into the swing of life again after the fire. I've got the Courtright's to clean for this week and also Keith needs help with his place too. He is government subsidized so they inspect his place every so often.

I've got my flight booked from Minneapolis to Baltimore to Albuquerque!! Very excited to come see everyone in October!!

Reuben leaves in 3 weeks for Washington. He is getting sad about leaving now and we are sad to have him go. I think it will be a good opportunity to have some breathing room and seek other opportunities for each of us. He's such a great person and I wish him well!! We will still keep in close contact and he wants me to go up and visit him and see that part of the country. Never been up there except for the airport, so that will be fun. Maybe in November over that long weekend, I will go.

So, that's about all for now...very thankful no one lost their homes during this fire!! There are still little fires all over and they are still fighting a big portion of it, so it can get smokey here at times depending on the winds etc. Thanks to everyone for your prayers and thoughts too!! Until next time....

HOME!!!

2011-07-03T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Made it home just fine after being evacuated from town for almost a week. Very scary to have to go through and we did it 11 years ago also...didn't think that would ever happen again in my lifetime!!

The first night, I stayed with my co-worker Kathleen down in Santa Fe. We rode together to work the next day also. Kalyn stayed with our friend Dana (she worked with me at McD's, when she was a teen!) for that first night. Then, while I was working, I called hotels and especially the one right next door to the bank, to make it easier for me to get to work and also so that Kalyn would have access to me during the day. I got a room booked for 6 nights at the Hotel Santa Fe...very nice place and we ended up only staying 5 nights!! Sasha did really well there and I think we all enjoyed ourselves as best we could. Kept a close eye on the news for any indication that we could go back home!!

We got to come home today and only had to stay 5 nights at the Hotel, so that was a nice surprise on my pocketbook. I have put all my things away, did laundry (had to drive to someone else's house to dry the clothes, as my dryer quit working right before the fire!!) and now I am settled for the evening to relax. What a week!!!

While we were in Santa Fe, I took the Jeep to get the tires rotated and I KNEW they were gonna tell me I needed new tires!! Well, of course they did and of course I got 4 new tires. They kept the spare on the back cuz it was the best looking one and boy oh boy can you tell a difference with these tires!! They actually have TREAD!!! So, that was my birthday gift to myself, I suppose. LOL I'm gonna keep the Jeep for awhile and it was long overdue for new tires, so what the heck huh?

Reuben did an amazing job with the house! He had it all clean, the cats actually looked plump, the yard was all trimmed, watered and mowed!! It looked soooo green and amazing when I got home today!! He did a wonderful job!! I told him several times too!! He missed all of us and Sasha really missed him!!

Well, that is all for tonight...just wanted you all to know we are home...I get to deal with the insurance adjuster next week. He told me I have a $600 additional living expenses clause, but only if the house burnt down.....WHAT?? If the house burnt down, I would have a totally different coverage!! What is he thinking!? Of course, they don't wanna give up money, but come on...I've paid my payment every month on time for how long now?? You've got to be kidding me...this guy isn't gonna know what hit him when I'm done with him!! :) Until next time....

Working Saturday

2011-06-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

I'm cleaning my house today and then later work at the gym!! Fun times!

It's been very hot here! In the 90's which is a bit unusual. The weather this year has just been weird. Very very cold temps in the winter and then we jumped right to summer with record high heat! We also still have fires burning around us and it is so, so dry here. We are hoping for rain soon!!

Still no word on the house. I called Greentree the other day and the guy told me that the pictures we sent in, haven't been "imaged" yet. I said, does that mean you got them? He said, "probably" and to "call next week". Ugh....they are being so so slow on this. We've been working on this since March. I'm getting to the point that I just want to stop paying on it (which I can) and then see how quickly they move! As long as they are getting payment, I'm sure they don't care how long this takes! They tried to tell me that before it can sell, the payments have to be current..well that is not true cuz this place was written off in the bankruptcy and I do NOT have to pay them anything, but I do. :)

A friend of Tyler's helped him pay his rent for June and the check she wrote him came back "insufficient funds"! They had to put that check against my account cuz Tyler had no money in his account. I'm so furious with that lady. I've been talking with her since Thursday about this. She got paid yesterday, but "couldn't get to the bank, cuz of an incident at work" and now today she tells me they are at a "basketball game all day"...I finally texted her and told her to get to a Western Union and either send me the money that way (plus fees I have incurred) or get a money order in the mail asap. She was gonna wire the money to my bank account yesterday, but couldn't get away from work. She promises to do it Monday. This is just crazy...if it were ME...I would have gotten this done right away. So, she stopped responding to me now via text so I probably made her mad, but it's like geez!!!

Kalyn is healing very nicely from her wisdom teeth removal! It's been a little over two weeks now. She is working alot also. Works just about every night of the week and she is saving all her tips for a laptop. I may sell her mine since I don't use it that often plus I have the smaller Dell mini that just needs a new memory system cuz only having 1GB on there makes for not much of anything to be put on there, but I like it cuz it's so tiny!

Tyler may have to move back home if his job situation doesn't perk up here. He's still job searching after all this time (April) and I'm gonna have to put my foot down and tell him by mid July if he has no job, he needs to come back here. No one is gonna be able to keep helping him like this. Another situation I'm not happy with right now.... LOL

My happy news...I got a new printer for my computer!! it's an HP and it prints photos and everything, if you want it to. I got it on sale at Best Buy and it's very nice. Our other one was very old and would not feed the paper anymore...you would have to hold each slice of paper and guide it along for it to grab it and you would have to do this for EVERY piece of paper you wanted printed!! LOL I finally got so frustrated and figured it was about time for a new one. So...I've gotten a whole new system (CPU, monitor and printer) within the last year and a half for about $370!! Not bad!! The CPU is a rebuilt HP and the monitor is an Acer brand. Love it!! My other happy news is that my trip to Baltimore, etc is all booked!! Kalyn and I drive to Minneapolis on Oct 1st (in her car) and then we will get there probably evening of the 2nd. We plan to head over to Wisconsin on the 3rd (maybe later in the day) and see Jenni as it will be her 40th birthday!! We also plan to spend time with Wisconsin fam and then I fly out of Minneapolis to Baltimore on Sunday Oct 9th. to see Mom and Jon and his family until the 14th when I fly back to Albuquerque. Really looking forward to seeing everyone (or almost everyone!) while I'm there! Woo!

My jobs are going well...I have one cleaning job now for the Courtright's and it's whenever she calls and needs me...I work only two nights a week at the gym now and then full time at the bank. The bank changed it's Friday hours to 5pm now, so no more staying until 6pm! Love it!! I'm very grateful and thankful for my jobs!

Kevin has rhubarb growing in his yard, so I had him cut me some and last night I baked 4 little loaves of the bread and then 2 small cake pans of rhubarb crisp!! ohman...they turned out YUMMY!!!! I promised to take Kevin some goodies, so I've got all that ready to go. He's never had rhubarb anything!! He said he threw alot of it out cuz he didn't know what it was and it was irritating him! LOL

Well, I must go now...gotta mow the lawn and get ready for work here shortly!! Kalyn is still in bed and Sasha is running around outside!! Until next time...

Saturday in Los Alamos

2011-06-11T15:15:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

I am working at the gym, so thought I would keep you all updated on my life!

Today was Chamberfest in downtown LA, and for once, I didn't have to work the gym booth!! The owners are usually out of town and so they recruit me and another worker to man the booth. This year, they are in town, so they decided to do the booth themselves! I had another job this morning, so it worked out well. I had to do the Courtright's two-level deck this morning. First I round up the hoses, then I connect the hoses, then I figure out if the hoses I have connected will reach the longest point of the deck, then I turn on the water and make sure there are no faulty hoses and then I can begin!! Whew...I always bring my own sprayer and then this year I wore my water shoes so that my shoes would be ok. I have worn flip-flops and you end up sliding all over the place in your wet shoes and then with tennis shoes, you hate getting your feet soaked. It is a propanel type material so its slippery, but the water runs off nicely. She has me do this once a year in the Spring and also Kalyn would typically join me, but she is still getting over having her wisdom teeth out and can't really be doing any kind of strenous labor yet. It only took me a 1/2 hour more than usual, so not too shabby!! I got home just in time to get ready to work here at the gym. :)

So, we discussed vacations at the bank yesterday. We were trying to figure out between the four of us, what everyone needs to take off before the end of the year. I will be taking the first two weeks in October off!! I will be driving Kalyn and her dog Sasha to Minneapolis in Kalyn's car on October 1st!! We plan to take two days to get there and then we will go over to Eau Claire and visit peeps for a few days!! I will then go back to Minneapolis and fly to Baltimore to see Mom and then fly back to New Mexico after visiting for a few days. I am really excited to see everyone on this trip and to help Kalyn get settled. I plan to get back home, regroup and then start a cleaning frenzy!! I want to have the couch cleaned after having Sasha around and things like that. It will be different not having anyone at the house with me, except for the cats, but it will be a new chapter in my life. And as Tj so brilliantly put it, I need to get a life!! LOL

Reuben is leaving Aug 1st to go take care of his Mom for awhile up in Washington state. He plans to be gone for several months, so he will be missed around here and in town. Everyone loves his massage work!! Hopefully he finds the answers he needs while he is up there. He said the hardest part will be leaving me behind. I told him you never know what can happen!! We are keeping our hearts and minds clear. We still do things together, so its been going really well. Last night, we went uptown and listened to music (Gordon's concerts on Friday nights) and then ran into friends down there and also went to Smith's to grab a couple of groceries. We enjoy each other's company very much.

Tyler is hanging in there, but needs a job desperately!! Hopefully he finds anything soon!! I mentioned to him that he COULD move back home and save money and get a job up here. He is "thinking" about it and really wants to be in Santa Fe for his music scene and stuff.

My landlord called me yesterday!! He said he called Green Tree and they still were in process of having pictures taken. Bruce, my landlord, told the guy at GT that "we've heard this before and have been waiting since March for these so called pictures to be taken"...the guy understood and said "well, I suppose you could take your own pictures and email them to us"...DUH....that's what we kept asking them!!! ugh...so Bruce had me take pictures and I sent them to him via email yesterday on my lunch break. Bruce responded today saying he got them and they were good pics and that he would forward them to GT. I had called GT earlier into my vacation and the pictures had been "cancelled" for some reason....so the lady I talked to ordered them up again. I don't know what they are doing, but I'm glad Bruce called them and is getting the ball rolling!! I have to sign a year lease once we get this done. I'm very excited to be rid of the mobile home. I just don't want to be financially responsible for it. It's been a great home to us for 13 years!! I don't plan to move out of it either unless I have big life-changing plans or decide to move out of town. Bruce told me he would charge me a little more a month, but not more than what I'm paying on the lot and the payment right now, combined. He said it would come out less than what I'm dishing out now. Very sweet of him!! The maintenance guy put a latch on our house by the gate now so we don't have that piece of wood in front of the gate anymore for the dog. Our little gate had no pole to attach to, but it would stay put, but we had to blockade it so the dog couldn't get out OR have another dog get IN the yard. Now with this latch, the gate won't move either way unless you lift up one piece of the latch. VERY nice!! Now Sasha can't get out and any kind of other animal cannot get in. It's about time!!!

Tomorrow is church and then we have two picnics to go to. My friend Catrina's mom turns 50 tomorrow so she is having a big bash at one of the little parks in town and then at 6 at the same park, our church is having a cookout. I think we plan to go for a little while for both. Maybe catch the tail-end of the party and then have the cookout.

Well, that's all I can think of for now. Keep in touch and until next time...

June!

2011-06-01T14:57:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

So, Kalyn graduated...everyone left....house is clean...now what?? LOL I'm enjoying my last week of vacation by getting some errands done, finishing up paperwork/filing, etc and spending some time with Kalyn and Sasha! Last night, Kalyn and I went to the movie "The Hangover 2", it was pretty funny. Kalyn is also having her car fixed this week. The mechanic said whomever had the car previous to Kalyn, took excellent care of it! Since it has over 203, 000, he suggested she swap out the water pump and the belt and then 3 tires needed to be replaced. He said other than those couple of things, all is great with the car. I've never seen Kalyn so happy in her life!! Car should be ready to pick up tomorrow!

Kalyn is now beginning to pick up more hours at Home Run Pizza. She worked Monday night and again tonight, tomorrow night and her usual Saturday evening shift. Her plans are to leave in September for Minnesota! She's very excited to have a lot of family around her too.

Graduation and all that went with it, went wonderfully! It was a great day!

Tyler is still job-hunting, but doing well. We got to see him a lot in the past week so that was nice.

I go back to work on Monday the 6th at the bank. I work at the gym this weekend.

Love to all...until next time!

Memorial Weekend

2011-05-29T06:55:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

So, Friday, me and Mom hung out here at the house for quite awhile, then headed up town to Smith's to pick up Kalyn's grad cake and some lettuce. We came back to the house and waited awhile before we left again and went to visit my friend, Keith. He always likes to see Mom and see how she is doing. He gave us $11 to spend, cuz he knew we were going to Gabriel's to dinner, so he told us to each have a margarita on him!! So, it was a very relaxing day around here on Friday. Did some watering of the lawn and took care of Sasha cuz Kalyn was gone spending time with her Dad and then went and had her nails done down in Espanola with Gram Diana! I think Kalyn was also showing off her new car!! :)

Friday evening we all headed down to Gabriel's!! Our group of 10 was, Kevin, Kalyn, Dani (K's friend), Tyler, Gramp Tj, Stephanie, Shane, Diana, Joyce and myself. We had a great time and took pics! The food was wonderful too! Yum!!

Saturday am, we got up bright and early and got ready for the graduation! We were/are so proud of Kalyn for getting all her online stuff done and achieving this wonderful goal. I'm so relieved she finished!! We got to the High School early and got our seats. Me, Mom, Tyler and Reuben all sat together and then Diana, Tj, Shane, Steph and Kev all sat together a little further down from us. We took pics after (all pics are on Facebook) outside and it was so nice, weather-wise!! When Ty graduated, it was a downpour of rain!! Then, we headed back to the house and Carrie and Kent from the gym came over with a tent/canopy, tables and chairs so that people could sit and eat outside too. That really helped out alot!! Shane came over to eat too, so that was nice. Stephanie thanked me for inviting them. I really appreciated everyone coming over and having a good time! We served Frito pies, with homemade chili, homemade cookies, cake, chips and homemade salsa, fruit salad and pasta salad made by Aunt Jill, and punch to drink. We had about 24 people in and out and finally the crowd fizzled right around 3. I got everything put away and cleaned up and then later Reuben and I packed up the tent, tables and chairs and took all those back to the gym. We did good!!! :)

At 6pm, me, mom, Reuben, Jill and Tim all headed down to Buffalo Thunder, aka Buff T, and ate at the Turquoise Trail restaurant and then did a little gambling. I had a $1 bill, so I popped that into the BIG machine by the restaurant and ended up cashing out a $22 ticket!! Then, I had $8 credit on my Buff T card (from gambling previously) and cashed out another $23 ticket!! Then Reuben gave me some cash to spend and ended up cashing out another $5.22 or something like that so I left with a $50 bill!! Not bad!! Jill and Tim ended up ahead too. I think Mom lost $5. We had such a fun time!!

Today we are going to church. Mom is coming with us. We will eat first at the Coffee Booth and then church starts at 10:30. Jill and Tim want to "tour" Los Alamos, so we will do that afterwards and then they plan to leave town, with Mom in tow, around 2pm. We had such a wonderful, relaxing week!! Loved having Mommy here!! Kalyn is sleeping today as they had the Senior Appreciation Night last night. She got home about 3:30 am.

For Memorial Day, the church is having a hike up the ski hill, so in the morning, Reuben and I will be doing that until about noon. I still have this next week off, so I've got a few things going on. Dentist appointment on Wednesday, take Kalyn's car to the shop to get all fixed up with new tires, etc and then I work at the gym at the end of the week! Kalyn's wisdom teeth surgery is June 9th, so I will be taking that day off to drive her and take care of her!

That's all I've got for now...until next time... :)

Mom is here!/Graduation!

2011-05-26T17:04:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

So, Mom got here just fine on Tuesday! We picked her up, as planned, at the downtown train station in Santa Fe. She enjoyed the scenic ride from Albuquerque! Previous to us picking her up, Kalyn and I (and Kalyn's friend Dani) had some time to shop and also to go to Kalyn's wisdom teeth consultation. Kalyn only has 3 wisdom teeth so the VERY nice surgeon told us that SINCE it was going to be cheaper for Kalyn's parents to pay for this...Kalyn deserves to buy a new pair of jeans with the "extra" money her parents would now have...I told him, "shh...thanks alot"!! LOL Crazy dentist!! Kalyn's surgery is scheduled for June 9th. :)

Kalyn also got a car this week!! Been busy getting it, having it inspected for any issues, licensing it, etc. Been quite the week with everything! The car is great! It's a 2001 Honda Civic, 2 door coupe. She absolutely LOVES it!! The mechanic said whomever had this car, has taken very good care of it. It needs new tires, plugs and a new belt/water pump. He said after all that, it will run for quite awhile. He said the engine is great!! The tires are really bald on the rear, so we are taking the car in next week for the tires and then the week after that for the other work. I've never seen Kalyn so happy between graduation and getting her own vehicle!! :)

Yesterday, we had lunch with Mom at Quizno's and then did a little shopping here in LA downtown. We headed home and then did some things around here and then decided to go uptown again and get all the party food, so that we were done with all that. We got home and then it was time for me to work at the gym.

Today, I got up bright and early (after staying up REALLY late last night watching the DVR version of American Idol and also the last Oprah show) and got in line at DMV to register Kalyn's car in both our names. Reuben and I went to breakfast and then I came home and Kalyn and Gram Joyce were getting ready to go to Santa Fe with me! We drove down and hit the Ross store so that Gram could find a nice/cheap outfit for the graduation...she had success and I also bought 2 new tops for work. Then, we headed downtown SF and hit a couple of souvenir shops. Gram was looking for t-shirts for the little grandkids and stuff. Then, we finished up there and headed over to Horseman's Haven for a late lunch with Tyler! We drove immediately back to LA, as Kalyn had to work tonight. Long, but good day! Tonight we are chillin', cookin dinner here and then I'm going to whip up the chili for the party tonight and hopefully get some rest tonight. Reuben plans to come over and have dinner with us too.

Graduation is Saturday am, so really looking forward to that. Shane will be here to see Kalyn, which will be really nice. Also, Tj, Diana and Kevin will join us too! Tomorrow, we are picking up the graduation cake and having a wonderful dinner down at Gabriel's with the whole family!

All in all, everything is going really well...lots of fun spending time together! Take care all...will post pics when I have some...Until next time...

The break-up!

2011-05-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Reuben and I broke up this past week on Tuesday evening. Been quite the week, if you ask me. Lots of tears and sadness...so much so...that yesterday I was finally at my breaking point. I hadn't eaten much, slept much, cried TOO much, so I had a tummy ache, headache and felt hot and dizzy. I managed to make it through the work day and then came straight home and went to bed. It helped alot!! Then, I just sat in my chair the rest of the evening. Reuben got dinner for us, so that helped with the lack of food in my stomach and I felt much better by the end of the evening. Had a good night's sleep and then got up about 6:30 cuz I had so much sleep! It really really sucks when two people love each other, but just can't make it work at the moment. We will still be in contact and seeing each other for various events so maybe if we really take our time, things will work out. I think we both need breathing room right now! He commends me daily for having the strength and courage to bring our issues to light and taking action on it. We will see what happens, but will take one day at a time!!

I'm officially on vacation from the bank for two weeks! Woo!! Kalyn and I are going to a different bank on Monday to apply for a small car loan for her and I work that evening at the gym, Tuesday we go to Santa Fe to drop off stuff to Tyler-Kalyn has her oral surgery appointment-then pickup Mom from the train station and bring her back to LA!! Wednesday I work that evening at the gym and then Friday we pick up Kalyn's cake, get party food ready and Friday evening is our meal at good ol' Gabriel's restaurant with Diana/Tj/Kev and whomever else wants to join! Saturday is the graduation at 9am! Aunt Jill and her bf Tim will be driving here on Sat. and get here around party time at noon! Really looking forward to the week with Mom and getting things ready for the graduation!

That's about all for now! Until next time...

Forgot!!

2011-05-15T07:08:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

I suppose I should fill you in on Kalyn's plans!!! At first she was gonna stay here in LA and take classes at the little University here. Well, then she figured out that she would probably have a tough time with classes and such. She just doesn't feel ready to have a full class load with tough college classes...sooo...she's been thinking about Cosmetology school!! She had first thought of moving to Moab and stay with Stephanie, but go to school in Grand Junction, CO, during the week and stay with Steph's daughter Aly, there. Well, then she figured her Dad would return from duty and then she would have to finish school and just stay with Aly. Then, she thought well, i could go live with Dad in Kansas after he is back and go to school in Manhattan which is about 30 min away from Ft. Riley, KS. NOW....she's been talking with her Aunts and Uncles and one set is in Colorado Springs (with a 5 year old daughter) and the other are in Minneapolis. She has a high school friend that is going to be in MN for her college and then Kalyn thought she would be real close to family in WI if she went to MN. So as of right now...she is thinking of doing the MN thing. We told her to make sure what the "expectations" are of living with them, etc. Will she have to pay for anything?? We hate for her to go there and have false expectations and there she is stuck, you know? That's what she is contending with at the moment. She plans to move there in the Fall sometime after getting a good car and saving up money from working. I will probably take time off work and get her up there and then fly home.

Just thought I would fill you in.... :) Until next time...

Weekend

2011-05-14T15:20:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, my dear Reuben is gone this weekend until Tuesday up in Washington state, visiting his 91 year old mother, whom he hasn't seen in 15 years!! His family had a falling out a bunch of years back and he just didn't connect back up with anyone until a couple of years ago. A client of his, gave him a free round-trip ticket (stand-by) to go see her!! I hear they are having a wonderful time catching up and today they are out sight-seeing and he said it is just gorgeous there!! She lives in Edmond, WA.

Sooo... while Reuben is away, I am cleaning and working!! I am doing some deep cleaning and organizing around the house to make sure all is well before company comes for Kalyn's graduation! My house, on the surface, is clean, but with 4 pets, there is a lot of pet hair in corners and such so I am working on that and dusting ceiling fans, window ledges, etc...all the detailed cleaning one hates to do....well anyone but me, that is. :)

I also plan to bake cookies for K's party and put those in the freezer so that they are ready for the party in two weeks. The weather is great so I watered and mowed the lawn last night. I think I have a couple of cupboards that need organizing so I will whip those up in the am before church. I'm working at the gym right now. I am soooo glad I am not cleaning for Angie anymore...makes my Saturday mornings so much better!!

Tyler is still job hunting. He is applying for pretty much anything he can get his hands on, at this point. Hopefully something comes along soon!!

Kalyn has one week of school left!! Woohoo!! She turned in all her books yesterday and then she just has a few finals to take and she'll be finished. The Seniors get the last week off from school so that they can do the picnic, hand out their gowns, have rehearsal, stuff like that. My Mom comes to town on the 24th so that will be nice to finally have her here too!! Kalyn has her consultation appointment on the 24th for her to have her wisdom teeth removed here within the next couple of weeks. We want to get it done before she is gone and before she no longer has insurance....her Dad may be getting discharged from the Army so we are trying to get this done quickly. Shane has real bad depression and PTSD from being over in Afghanistan. He was supposed to go back after Jesse's funeral, but he had really bad symptoms and didn't go back. He went to the VA hospital in Grand Junction, CO for treatment and then they recently sent him back to Kansas to his doctor there. That's about all I know....

Monday night there is our Bloom event again at the church. Its a ladies event that they have about every 3-4 months. I'm taking two friends with me, so that should be fun. Last time they had a shoe fashion show...this time it is kids modeling clothes that this lady makes. I made and donated one of my bracelets as a raffle prize. Reuben donated a massage coupon. They always have great things that they raffle off! They serve you dinner and it is sooo much fun. It only costs $10!!

Well, that is all for now...keep in touch and love you all! Until next time...

Mother's Day!

2011-05-07T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just thought I would whip up a few lines here while I am at work today!!

First of all, happy Mother's Day tomorrow, to all you mother's out there. I hope each and every one of you have a wonderful day!!

Today I got to sleep in a little bit, then did some laundry and dusting around the house, showered and then decided to go do yardwork after being all clean!! LOL Not sure what I was thinking, but I did some raking and then got the lawnmower going and cut the grass out front. We need to water really badly. The rains this year have been non-existant. Reuben is still working on the water line that is broken. We hope that this is it and it will be fixed so our swamp cooler can run and the lawn can get watered. It is dry, dry, dry.... I'm praying for no rain for Kalyn's graduation though. lol

Sasha the puppy is still doing great. She is very good and doesn't bark hardly at all.

Tyler is here in town for a bit. He is picking up some items that he left at Gram's townhouse to store until he officially moved into his room at his new place in SF. So, it was good to see him as he needed to get the house key from me. He is still job hunting and hopefully he finds one soon!!

That's all for now. Love to all....until next time...

ahhhh....almost May!!

2011-04-30T16:01:00.001-07:00

Well, my fellow bloggers...thought I better catch you up to date!!

Jesse's funeral/memorial all went well. People arrived...then people left....everything went really well and it sure was great to see everyone!! There is not a day that goes by that we don't say something about Jesse. We loved him so much and he will be missed dearly!

Jennie, Ryan, Katy, David, Heidi, Ellen and Meira all stayed at a friends house of Jennie while they were here. The house just happens to be empty (still has furniture) and is used as a get-a-way home for Jennie's friend Allison. It was the house that Allison grew up in and her mother passed away two years ago, but they still kept the house and all the belongings in it. So, long story short, Allison was happy to have someone staying there to keep an eye on things. The washer and dryer apparently do not work well, so they all asked me if I would mind washing the sheets and towels....i had no problem doing that for them. Jennie gave me a key and I went over there and made the beds again and put the towels away. Now I am working on getting the townhouse in order. I spent an hour over there one day on my lunch this past week and made a big dent in the cleaning. I had to take all the trash up to the street and then some more bags to the bank trash bin as there was so much of it!! I also gathered up the dirty sheets and towels from there and got all that done also. I should be done with the cleaning tomorrow and should only take another hour.

I stopped cleaning for Angie!!! I was just getting too frustrated with that place and not finding it enjoyable to help her anymore. She is divorced now, her kids have moved away, but now she's got a homeless family living with her temporarily and it just seems odd for me to be there when that lady that is living there should be cleaning for her instead, you know? I just can't see cleaning for her for so little money and its always messy and this last time I was there I could tell she was frustrated with her guests and expressed that to me. She actually was being quite rude to me and I decided...enough is enough. Reuben even quoted some quote saying "insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results"... I still clean for the Courtrights and usually she only needs me once a month, so that is perfect for me. Plus, I need to get back into working out more religiously and this free time on Saturday am will help with that.

I've been working on graduation announcements and have those all ready to mail out!! Kalyn only has 3 more weeks of school! Her graduation and party will be May 28th. Graduation is with a ticket only and then the party will be at our house from noon to 4. I am off work from the bank from May 23-June 3rd. I'm hoping to get the house clean for the party, cleaned after the party and then get Kalyn ready for her wisdom teeth removal during that time.

Tyler is putting the finishing touches on moving to Santa Fe this weekend. He borrowed my Jeep yesterday to take a load from ABQ to SF. He's got friends helping him today get the last big furniture and such. He is still job hunting so hopefully he finds something quick. I think his money supply is getting low!!

Mother's Day is right around the corner...had to get all my cards/gifts ready to send out for this next week also. You should see all the cards that need to go out between Mother's Day, Graduation and birthday's coming up that are all sitting on my counter ready to go out!!! lol

I'm hoping to make it to Maryland sometime this summer to visit with my Mom and then Carole Schultz wants Kalyn and I to go up to Denver for a weekend this summer and hang out with her. I know Reuben wants to go camping too and his daughter is setting up a family camping event for Father's Day weekend. I don't think Tyler or Kalyn will want to go and I really don't wanna go for 4 days. We shall see....

So, Reuben and I are doing ok these days. He has dedicated his life to God and got baptized in March. I think he is finally seeing that I am not ready to dedicate my life to God like he has and so we are unsure of our future right now. I am taking it a day at a time to help me get through this. He is such a wonderful person, very caring, very concerned about me and my kids and would do just about anything for me. But, when Kalyn and I were at the Jason Aldean concert, I thought to myself, there is no way Reuben would come to this concert with me. If there is an event that doesn't honor God, he will not go. I barely got him to go with me to the Easter egg hunt for church and afterwards he told me that he probably shouldn't have helped with that. So, I told him/asked him that I need to have someone in my life that will do things with me otherwise I have to find someone to go to these events with me. He understands that it is a legit claim that I have. It got him thinking that we may not be together because of his dedication to the Lord. He doesn't wanna pressure me into anything, which is very nice of him, and I think this is really hard for him cuz we were so close before he re-dedicated his life and now we are moving further and further apart. So, time will tell....I'm excited for some family to meet him at the graduation. I don't think he will be at the party though. :)

Well, that is all for now...I'm looking forward to seeing family the end of May. I'm hoping May is a good month also!! 2011 has not been a good year for me, so far. I'm staying positive though and hoping for the best!! Love to all...until next time....

Jesse

2011-04-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

I'm sure you have all heard the news, that my dear, dear former brother-in-law, Jesse W Schultz, passed away on April 12th. He was 30. His birthday is next Saturday the 23rd and I was just thinking about what to send him for his birthday, when we got the news. His memorial will be next Saturday, here in Los Alamos. Very sad times for everyone. We had just seen him in Florida, two weeks prior to his death, so it is really hitting us hard. Little did we know, that time we had would be the LAST time. We have good days and bad days around here...I'm sure next weekend will be a tough one. Words just can't describe how it is so hard to believe he is gone. I look at our Florida pictures with him in them, and it's just crazy that he is no longer there.

That's all I have for now....too sad.... Until next time...

April!!

2011-04-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just a quick note while I'm here working at the gym today...

Called Green Tree yesterday and they are still waiting for the guy to come take a picture of the outside of the house before they accept my landlords offer. They have no idea when the guy will come take the picture and it didn't sound like they really cared when he would get it done. Kind of strange, I think. I emphasized with the lady on the phone that I have this man interested in purchasing the home as soon as possible so if they could do anything to speed it along, I would appreciate it. She had no clue.... lol oh well...I will just keep calling and find out the status of it all.

We returned safely from Florida on Thursday at about 4pm in ABQ. We dropped Tyler off at home and then me and K ran a few errands and then headed up to Los Alamos. Friday I spent most of the day at home cleaning, getting organized, paying bills, etc and then had my annual eye exam appointment. He dialated my eyes this time, so that was kinda fun..not!! I couldn't read my shopping list when i went to the store afterwards!! LOL The doctor said my far sightedness is going very very slowly, but its nothing to worry about right now. He did print out my prescription in case I decided to get a pair of glasses for distances. I don't really see the need at this point. :)

All is going well here...I worked over at the Courtrights this morning for a little bit. She is having me start some Spring cleaning over there. That usually involves spraying off the two story deck outside for an afternoon, cleaning ceiling fans, vacuuming furniture and then polishing the wood cupboards. I did the furniture today. In the cleaning department, I am thinking of quitting my cleaning job with Angie. It is becoming too much over there. She lives alone, yet it is always such a mess and she keeps stacks and stacks of stuff everywhere, that it is really hard to clean around her mess and then it makes me feel like I'm not doing a good enough job for her. I may let her know that as of July 1st, I will no longer be cleaning. I will still do the Courtrights cuz she only needs me once a month and its so easy to clean for her. She only pays me $17 an hour, but Angie only pays me $15.

Kalyn is getting closer and closer to graduation!! Very excited for her!!

Tyler is doing well. He is getting closer to moving to Santa Fe. His job ends April 10th and he is vigorously looking for a new job in SF, as we speak. He put in his notice to the coffee place without having a new job, so I hope he has this figured out!!

Well, that is all I have for now. It is slow today at the gym..probably cuz most folks aren't back from Spring Break yet. The weather is really lovely, but there is a cold front coming in tomorrow. Love to all...keep writing...until next time...

No news yet....

2011-03-24T18:48:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, I talked with my landlord today...he hadn't heard anything from Green Tree, so he called them...the usual lady is out, yet again, so another lady helped him over the phone. She said it looks like someone is going to be coming out to the mobile home to take pictures, then they will send those off to corporate and then they will figure out the deal on his offer. Well, no one told us this was going to take place, so we were a little blindsided by this new developement..oh well!! I will call this lady tomorrow and see if I can take the pictures and email them to someone for them. My landlord said to go ahead and throw mud all over the house and get my neighbors to dirty up the yard so it looks good for the offer he made. lol...he is such a comedian!

well, me and the kiddos take off for Florida on Monday!! So, so excited about this trip! Should be a grand ole time. We leave Monday and fly back into ABQ on Thursday, so it's a quick one!! Been saving my money for this, so we should really enjoy ourselves!

That's all I've got for tonight...I'm working at the gym, so gotta run...Until next time.....

updates...

2011-03-13T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

So in two weeks, me and kids leave for Florida!! Very excited about that!! Should be a great time!! We will only be there 2 full days and two partial days. I'm looking forward to the fun and the sun!!

My landlord put in an offer then, for the house, but haven't heard back from him yet as to what they are doing. He said he would up the offer if they deny it.... for all I know they have been battling back and forth all week!! lol I told him to keep my posted and I know he will.

Went to church this morning..Kalyn started going with us now too. Next Sunday is the baptismal service. The church got a new baptismal tank so that ought to be exciting!! Reuben is getting baptized so he has invited his 4 daughters and his son-in-law and his friend Kim. Should be a packed house next Sunday as there are 15 people getting baptized.

Busy week ahead for me, that's why I'm trying to get all my cleaning and stuff done this weekend. Did alot of organizing and deep cleaning in the bathrooms and stuff. Gotta get prepared for company in May, you know!!

Well, that's all I've got...Happy St. Patty's day on Thursday!! Until next time...

More updates!

2011-03-07T15:58:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

So, yesterday, my current landlord came by and looked over the house. He is VERY interested and is going to put an offer on it tomorrow, Tuesday!! He just has to send a fax to the mortgage company and then they will accept or deny. He doesn't want the other guy to outbid him, so he is going to be careful, he says! He said his overall goal is to make my payment to him, cheaper!! Isn't that sweet of him?? I pay $490 right now for the lot and then $280 for the trailer/insurance. He said I will have to get renters insurance on my own (I expected that!), but other than that he just wants me to sign a year lease, but we will be here anyways with Kalyn going to college and working. I'm really excited that I won't have to move. I am not telling the other guy anything yet until this is complete. My landlord wants to get this finished up before April 1st, he says, so that is good also.

That's it for now...will keep you updated!! Crazy snow, rain, thundering and lightning today!! Until next time..

New info on house

2011-03-02T18:42:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Got some new information to share about the house...

I informed my current landlord of my situation with the house, etc and he has offered to purchase the home so that the home doesn't move and also to keep me there. He would like us to continue renting there because of my good standing with him!! I thought that was really nice of him. I gave him all the info he needs to inquire on how to purchase it, etc. Meanwhile, the other guy, Mr. Weir, continues to figure out his situation and brought a family over the other night to look at my house. I'm kind of stuck here....do I tell Mr. Weir that my landlord may buy it now or do I tell him anything??? I don't want to lose him as a buyer, but I feel like I owe my current landlord the opportunity first. I am open to suggestions!! Plus...if I stay with my current landlord, I won't have to move. Let me know what you think please!!! :)

Until next time...

House showing!

2011-02-20T13:29:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

We had a wonderful church service today and here pretty soon, we go to NBU class. It's a 6 week class we take to learn about the church, people and its mission. It's at 4 and it's a pretty interesting class. Reuben and I are staying after class to chat with the pastor and his wife. Reuben and I have some issues that we need to figure out and we want to talk with them about it.

I just showed my house to some folks that bank at my bank! I technically don't own this house anymore, due to the bankruptcy, but I do lease the lot it is on. I still make the monthly payment for both, because A..I have a lease on the lot til May and B...I need a place to live!! SOOO...I figure if I ever up and leave the house, I would still be responsible for the lot rent and then would have to pay rent on a new place and the lot. If I can get these nice folks to buy the home from the mortgage company, they might get a really good deal due to the fact that the house is technically "written off" by them. I have called the mortgage company already and they said anyone that is interested in purchasing the home, can call and request a "short payoff" for it. It takes some time to accept the offer, etc. It seems these folks that came by are really interested in the house and I have already asked them if I can be sure to stay here thru May because of the graduation and everyone coming down. Plus, my lease isn't up until May 1st anyway. So, I think this is a good idea cuz then I won't have the burden of this place anymore, etc. Now I get to house-hunt!! or apartment hunt!!

Well, that's my exciting news for now...glad to have tomorrow off too!! Until next time...

Puppy!!!

2011-02-18T12:45:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well, Kalyn won the war of "can I get a puppy", last Sunday. Her and her friend Jennifer drove down the Santa Fe Animal Shelter and she adopted a puppy and named her Sasha! Sasha is so wonderful, cute and so well behaved!! She is 4 months old and already spade. She is a lab mix. We have enjoyed her so much this past week. Kalyn just loves her to death!! Kalyn spent a pretty penny (or two) on her as well. She bought her a large crate to keep her in during the day while she is at school and such. Every other day, Kalyn only has two classes so she is able to come home and play with the pup for most of that type of day and then either I am home at night or she is, to watch her in the evening. There are some nights that we both work, but Kalyn gets home at 8:15, so Sasha isn't alone for too long. So far it is working out well.

It is windy today, but warm here in NM. Kind of strange weather for February! Haven't had a lot of snow this year, so the Spring should be interesting!

Shane and Stephanie are in town. They stayed at Kevin's for two nights and now staying at Diana and Tj's townhouse. Kalyn went to a movie with them last night. I think they plan to see Tyler on Saturday and then they leave sometime Sunday. I guess since I have Monday off, i will stop over at the townhouse and clean up after them. Should only take about an hour to get it back to normal. They also brought their dog, Sadie, so Sasha got a friend to play with also.

I did my first evaluation today, as a supervisor, with Catrina. Lesley and I did it together, so that helped and it was a good evaluation!

I bought tickets, today, to go see Jason Aldean in concert in Abq on April 9th!! So excited about that!! I've been wanting to see him and also want to see Daughtry at some point, as well. I got 4 lawn tickets, so it will be myself, Catrina, Kalyn and one of Kalyn's friends of her choice.

That's all I've got today. Have a wonderful 3-day weekend!! I work a lot this weekend.....today I work at bank til 6, then go directly to gym and work til 10. Saturday a.m., I clean for Angie and then work at the gym 1 to 7. Sunday, we have church and then church class at 4. So, really Monday will be my only day to goof off and catch up. Until next time...

Fafsa....done!!

2011-02-12T11:25:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

This morning I worked on getting the kids' FAFSA paperwork done. It is a government form you fill out, online, and you put in all your tax info, etc and at the end it tells each kid, what kind of grants/loans, etc they are eligible for, off of my income. You have to have your taxes pretty much done to figure all this out. They typical, or colleges rather, would like parents to file them by 3/1. I got both of them done today, since each of them is interested in taking colleges courses in the Fall. I'm proud of my self for getting it done already.

When I got done with that, I had a quick facial over at my friend Tatiana's house. Her and Reuben trade services with each other (he gives her massages, she gives him or me facials) so I am able to do this for no cost!! Today she did a microderm abrasion and boy does my skin look great!! Never had that done before!

I got back home and then began doing dentist research for Kalyn. She is having her wisdom teeth out by June and I need to make sure that both insurances she has, will cover and how much etc. I think I've got everything figured out, just waiting to hear back from the Army insurance to see if I need a pre-auth from them. The dentist we have in mind, Dr. Carlberg, is covered under the Army one for sure and then for my insurance, they said they would file for me. Hopefully we won't have to put too much money down on this.

All this fun stuff is a little time consuming so I made sure to do it this morning when it was quiet around here! I'm heading to work now and then I've got another busy week coming up.

Shane is deploying by the end of the month, so him and Stephanie are coming to town on Wed and stay through til Sunday to see the kids. I believe they are staying at Diana and Tj's townhouse. They are bringing their dog, Sadie, with them too. Kalyn loves that dog!!! lol

That's about all I've got for right now. Love to all...until next time....

Packers!!

2011-02-07T16:33:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well the Packers won the Super Bowl!!!! Woooooo I'm so excited!! I'm wearing my Rodgers jersey to work at the gym tonight, just to make my peeps mad that were rooting for the Steelers and making fun of ME!! lol

I did not take any pictures during the party, but there were 11 of us. Small little group and we had fun. A few people had to back out at the last minute, so that wasn't good. Oh well....we had a great time!!

I did take a pic of the cupcakes I made and then Kalyn decorated! She's a great decorator!!

Well, I'm off to work now....love to all...until next time...

Super Bowl Weekend!!!

2011-02-05T09:37:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well, I'm pretty super pumped for the Super Bowl tomorrow. Why.....do you ask? Well, because only my favorite team in the whole wide world is playing!!!!! Go Green Bay!!!! woo!!!

I've got about 11 people showing up for my Super Bowl party tomorrow at 4pm!! Should be a grand time. I am baking cupcakes this morning and then tomorrow after church, will stop at Smith's and pick up a few last minute items for the feast. Then, go home and make my chili in the crockpot so peeps can have chili or frito pies!! Frito pies is more or less a chili salad with fritos on top. Delicious!! I'm also serving queso with chips, homemade salsa with chips, nuts, cupcakes and punch. Plus I will have all the trimmings for the frito pies. Someone else is bringing wine/beer, some kind of frito dip and chips. I didn't really feel the need for everyone to bring stuff. I just wanna have a great time without trying to figure out who's bringing what!! Really pumped about this if you can't tell!! We all will watch on our 32" tv we got back in November as an early Christmas gift. My other tv had finally crapped out.

Today I just work at the gym, so I got the cupcakes made, some cleaning up around the house, laundry and me and the kids' taxes all filed this morning!! What an awesome feeling to have all that done! Next, I'm gonna work on birthday/Valentine cards for February. I do need to file the FAFSA stuff for each kid before March 1st (it's a college report thing to see what kind of aid Tyler and Kalyn are eligible for, for college), but I will do that next weekend or on the 21st when I'm off work.

Reuben is out of town and that's probably why I'm getting so much stuff done!! LOL his youngest daughter, Cosette, had moved to CA with her boyfriend back in September, but has never been able to get a job and now her bf, may be getting laid off, so they decided since their lease was up on the apartment, that they better figure stuff out now. She is moving back home to her mom's house, here in town. Sooo, Reuben flew to LA (Los Angeles, not Los Alamos) yesterday and today they are driving back in her red PT Cruiser! They should get to town about 10pm tonight. Reuben has been sick the past couple of weeks so he hasn't been working much. Not good when you are self employed!

Kalyn went to a concert last night, Blind Melon and Candlebox, at the Hard Rock Hotel in ABQ with a coworker. She had a great time! I was all alone last night, which was kind of a nice break! I worked at the bank til 6, went and worked out, went and got me some BBQ from Bob's Bodacious BBQ and then went to Keith's and ate and visited with him, then went home, straightened up some stuff, got settled in and watched "Saw 7: the Final Chapter". It was pretty good! I like all those Saw movies!! Then, I tv surfed and went to bed. Kalyn got home about midnight, just as I was getting settled in bed. Kalyn had dinner with Tyler last night too and I guess they had fun.

I told the kids about our plans for Spring Break yesterday!! I asked them to please keep it between us so that no one's feelings out there, get hurt. I am taking both kids and myself to Florida on March 28th and we come back on March 31st!! We are staying with Tj and Diana and they are gonna take us to Universal Studios, Disney World, the beach and whatever else we can fit in!! Should be fun as Uncle Jesse is there too. I'm so excited to be able to go somewhere with them and it should be a fun time!! We are flying Southwest so there are no bag fees or anything too. That is a big help!!

So, that's our happs around here. The weather has been sooo cold that parts of NM were without gas since Thursday!! I can't even hardly imagine what that would be like. Los Alamos is on a separate pipe system so we didn't have any disruptions, thank goodness!! We would have had broken pipes all over the place!! ugh.... but yeah, all is well up here in LA.

I will take pics at the party tomorrow and post as soon as I can! Hopefully, the Pack do well tomorrow!! I'm just happy they are there! I got my new Rodgers jersey ready and clean to put on...actually....we get to wear them to church tomorrow too!! It's Jersey Sunday!! LOL

Love you all....until next time!

New chair!

2011-01-24T06:18:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

Thought I would post a pic of my new chair I bought with Xmas money, etc. Finally got it put together yesterday. You see, I got the chair the beginning of January, but the box was all tore up and the instructions and screws all must have fallen out of the box during shipment, so after several phone calls to Sears (I won't order from them again), they gave me the manufacturer number and THEY sent me the hardware and I got the instructions via email. SOOO...another piece of furniture to sit on!!

Oh...and the PACKERS are going to the Superbowl!!! Wooo.....Until next time.... :)

Packers and Bears today!!

2011-01-23T13:02:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

had a pretty busy week this past week and now another one is approaching. My boss, Lesley, will be gone most of the week, so I will be covering for her by opening the bank and closing. I work at the gym Wed, Fri and Sat nights again, so that isn't any different from last week!! I've got a Church event tomorrow night....it's called Bloom and they do this about every quarter. It's for ladies and last time they modeled jewelry. This time, it will be a shoe event!! I invited two friends outside of church to go along and my one friend, Kim, broke her leg yesterday, so she's not going. :( My co-worker from the gym, Sharon, will be going though. The cost is $10. Should be a good time!!

Reuben and I and Angie all went to the play "Go back to Murder" by Agatha Christie last night. At the beginning of the play, you vote for who you think is the killer. I voted correctly and at the end of the play, they have a drawing out of the correct votes and you win a book. I did not win. LOL It was a good time!!

Church was really good today. Reuben and I signed up to take classes the next 6 Sunday's (not Superbowl Sunday though) and it's called "Allies". They find out where you are with your beliefs and such with God and explain how this church works, etc. This church is an Assembly of God church. The people are really great there. We plan to take a "relationships" class after this one.

Kalyn went off to Santa Fe today with a co-worker of hers. Kalyn had bought a ring in SF and had it sized so she picked that up today and then returned some stuff to Best Buy and things like that. Kalyn's tattoo on her shoulder is mostly all healed now!! Looks good!! You can see pictures on my Facebook.

Tyler is doing ok, living in his studio apartment. He told me the other day he wished I lived there so he could live for "free" and save money. I told him he can come back up here and go to school too, if he likes. I told him Kalyn will be staying here another year and go to college up here. He thought it was a great idea!

A surprise for the kids is still in the works....I will say that the airline tickets have been purchased...just haven't told them where we are going yet. Tyler thinks it is Wisconsin. I thought that was nice that he suggested that we may be going there. LOL We leave March 28th and return home on Mar 31st. I have that whole week off from both jobs. That is Spring Break week.

I'm working on my taxes today...I owe $200 to Fed and get $500 back from State, so that is good!! At least my State refund will cover the Fed one. Whew....I did change my withholdings last year, so I'm glad I did that. I owed $800 last year and got $45 back from State.

Well, I must get back to the game...Packers are winning!!!! wooooo!! Until next time...

Woohoo Packers!!!

2011-01-15T21:07:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Soooooo pumped about the Packers advancing the the NFC Championship game next week!! Woohoo!!! Gotta love 'em!!!

We have Spring Break here the end of March and I may/may not have a surprise for the kids!! Will let you all in on the secret if it happens!!

Remember how I have mentioned that since October, I have had to fix my Jeep, get a new TV, swap out my DVR Dish system, buy a new computer monitor, fix my frozen pipes, get a new computer.......well I finally have everything fixed now and I'm hoping that is it for awhile...I would really like to start saving some money, rather than spend it!! LOL

Things are going along just fine here....Kalyn has one semester of High School left!! She is agressively working on her online stuff and regular school classes! I could not be more proud of her!!

Tyler moved into his studio apartment and then we found out that yes, he and Emily DID break up. Poor guy...he doesn't talk to me about those sorts of things, but Kalyn told me that they are still friends, they just want to do different things. Tyler mentioned maybe moving to Phoenix someday. For now, he's doing well and trying to get his bills paid/paid off. Good for him!

Church is going well...we had our pictures taken for the directory last week, so I will have to post me and Reuben's picture on here when we get them back. We got a free 8x10 and then Reuben ordered a couple of 5x7's.

Jobs are going well...been at the gym 3 years this month! Hard to believe. I'm back to running after taking 3 weeks off due to a cough I had. I need to get my butt in shape for Spring Break and Graduation!!

Well, that's all for now.... Gooooo Packers....Until next time!!

Gifts from a Godmama....

2011-01-04T19:38:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

So awhile back, I sent my Auntie/Godmother Jacque, some material to make me an apron..... and she did.... then I also had sent her fabric to make me a bench cushion/mat.....

and she did.....THEN....to my surprise......she made me my very own quilt!!!! With colors that I LOVE!!!!.......

and it goes so well with my stuff......

I'm so thankful to her and so very honored to display her great, great work in my house. Thank you so much Auntie!! Enjoy the pics and until next time.... :)

Happy New Year 2011!!

2011-01-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

Wow...well I must say, 2010 was a pretty good year for me. I'm hoping 2011 brings all that is pleasant to us all!!

The past couple of weeks haven't been all that great. It seems everytime I turn around, something is breaking around the house. We got our new 32" tv back in November and could NOT figure out how to attach the DVD hookups to it. Well, on Christmas day, when Tony and Nicole were here, Tony hooked it up and now it is working!!! Then, I've had to replace my computer, back in October and had to fix my Jeep that same month. NOW....my home computer monitor went out, I got a huge pit in my windshield driving to Durango yesterday, Friday night, my hot water in the house stopped working (still not working...but my fix it guy, Joe, will be here tomorrow to see what is up), and my DVR receiver broke too!! The DVR replacement is on the way, but only after I return the unit that they are sending me as it is the WRONG one!! LOL I couldn't believe they shipped me the wrong unit. So...I'm trying to be grateful and thanking God that all of these problems could be much worse. My pipes could have bursted under the house, the pit in the windshield could have been bigger and started to spread....you know the drill. So, that's my whining for today...

Kalyn had a wonderful time with her Dad and Steph. They went to Moab and Colorado for a few days. In Colorado, they ice-fished, rode snowmobiles and sledded. Tyler got to have dinner with them in Santa Fe, before they picked up Kalyn.

I got to see Tyler at Christmas, so that was really nice!! He just moved into his own studio apartment. His new address is 1701 Lead Ave SE Apt 4, ABQ, NM 87106.

I got a ton of really nice gifts this year for Christmas and feel so blessed to have such great family and friends. Thank you all for your gifts and cards. They are much appreciated!! I got new kitchen dishes, bathroom towels/washclothes/handtowels, new silver Fossil watch, a ruby ring, calf-skin Bible, shirt, candy and a rocker glider chair with ottoman!! I'm so excited to have new and different things around the house.

Well, that is all I have for now. Take care everyone and keep in touch. Until next time...

Almost Christmas!!

2010-12-19T14:23:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well, we are just all doing fine here in NM. Got to see Tyler last weekend for Kalyn's birthday, so that was nice. We had a great time in ABQ. Went to a couple of different malls and had dinner at El Patio and then spent the night at a cheapee hotel. I got a discount because of where I work so it was $40 for the night. Kinda nice eh?? Kalyn had a nice birthday and got mostly money which is what she wanted. She's doing really well saving her money and also in school. She leaves Thursday to go spend the rest of her Christmas vacation with her Dad. Shane and Steph are driving here from Kansas. They will stop on Wed and see Tyler for the night in SF and then come get Kalyn on Thursday morning and then head to Utah/Colorado for Christmas. I think I have to get her in Durango the weekend of the 1st, but haven't found out that part yet. Will keep you posted. That's really all I've got right now. We've been going to parties, parties, parties, which is really fun!!! lol Hard to believe 2011 is right around the corner. Can't wait to see what the next year will hold!! Until next time...

Christmas time!!

2010-12-04T14:36:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Not toooo much to report....kinda bored these days with cleaning less and got all my Christmas cards done and mailed out!! I do need to bake still and I plan to make all the dough tomorrow and then slowly get them made this week. You see, we are going to Albuquerque next weekend to shop and have fun for Kalyn's 18th birthday, so I want to be able to give Ty some of the homemade cookies that he just loves!! I made some chocolate chip/m&m cookies this week and took some to work. They turned out so soft and delicious!! Yumm!! So, yes, I have a Christmas party this coming Friday, the 10th, then Saturday we head to ABQ for the night and come back sometime on Sunday. Should be real fun.

I didn't have to clean for Angie, this morning. She's been cleaning all by herself!!! LOL she is having a mold problem in one of her bathrooms, so she said she's been staying on top of the cleaning. I'm so proud as I'd like to get away from cleaning for her. I'm slowly weaning her down to once a month cleanings. Typically, its been every third week, which is fine. I still have Mrs. Courtright to do and she is usually once a month. She brought some jewelry by the bank yesterday and she has a gorgeous little ruby and diamond ring that I want. She's asking $200 so we shall see what Santa brings me!! I also need to pay my Grandma for a sweater she is knitting me. I can hardly wait!! I'm so thankful for all the people around me!!

This weekend is holiday fun weekend in Los Alamos. We've got breakfast with Santa, arts and crafts events and then the light parade tonight at 6. I work here at the gym til 7, so I will have to watch it while it goes by, from here. It's gorgeous weather today also!! I remember bundling up, some years, cuz it is soooo coooold for the parade. It's nice to see people actually here in town doing things and shopping. Most people head down to Santa Fe or ABQ to do stuff.

Well, that is about all I have for now. Take care and look forward to hearing from ya out there. Until next time....

Jody, Tyler and Kalyn

2010-11-26T05:49:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful!! We had a great time with Tj and Diana, Kevin and Jesse too. Here is our annual family pic. It was nice to see Tyler!!! He is soooo tall now. LOL Take care and enjoy the weekend!!

Until next time....

Woohoo for turkey!!

2010-11-23T18:15:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Well, our dinner went wonderfully on Sunday evening and we still have plenty of leftovers. The pies turned out great and the turkey was so juicy and moist!! There were 8 of us for dinner. Now this week, Tj and Diana are here and they brought Jesse up with them from Albuquerque, so on Thursday, there will be Tj and D, me and K, Tyler and Emily and then Jesse and Kevin all for Thanksgiving dinner at the townhouse! Should be a good time. I plan to bring veggies and then the pie that I won at the Turkey trot race on Sunday.

Tj and Diana leave early Friday am to drive to Arizona for granddaughter Tamra's wedding!! Kalyn decided she wanted to go also, so they are taking her along too!! I will take K over to their house on Friday morning and then they are either returning to ABQ on Sunday eve or Monday eve and will drop off K at Tyler's house and then I will fetch her from there. They will be taking the interstate back to Florida so they are coming up as far as ABQ, which works fine. Will be nice for K to go see her cousin's wedding and all the family on that side. Tamra is Wes's (Shane's brother) oldest child. Wes and Mandy had 5 kids. Tamra is 3 months older than Kalyn, so she is still quite a young bride...but can any of us really talk about that?? lol I think not...been there, done that.

I'm working at the gym right now, so thought I would update you all. This place is a mess tonight, so I better get cleaning!! I swear, nobody does anything around here!! lol Until next time...

Pies!!!

2010-11-20T10:18:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

I got the pies baked and potato salad finished as well!! I snapped a couple of pics for you all to see!! Enjoy!! I also took a pic of the cats on their electric blanket...they love it!! lol Then, the Thanksgiving day display is what I have out at work. Gotta head to work here soon....until next time everyone!!

Big weekend happs....

2010-11-19T16:17:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

Well, it's Friday night and I'm on my way out the door to work!! I work tonight and Saturday afternoon at the gym this weekend. Our big weekend plans are as follows:

Friday-work at gym til 10pm, go home and start some laundry.
Sat. am- make two pies, one pecan, one pumpkin and potato salad and maybe clean up the house and more laundry.
Sat. pm-work at gym til 7, come home and more laundry and cleaning up of the house.
Sun. am-go to church, 2pm run the 2.5 mile Turkey Trot up at the Mid School and then at 5, we are having our turkey dinner!! Turkey, stuffing, potato salad, cranberries, rolls, corn casserole, mashed potatoes with gravy, and pies with whipped topping. There will be 7 of us for dinner. Myself, Kalyn, Reuben, Nicole and Tony (R's daughter and son in law), Kalyn's friend Cara and also Simone (Reuben's daughter). Should be a great time and it's also Nicole's birthday so I think Reuben is going to pick up a small cake for her.

That's our plan and also fit in to watch the Packer/Viking game on Sunday!!

I will take pics!! Until next time...

Thanks!!

2010-11-14T14:49:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

Well, my post yesterday got some big responses, so I wanted to say "thank you" to those of you who commented. It really means alot to me. I appreciate the hugs too!!! lol I'm basically fine, you know you just get down sometimes and that's just life. Church helped this morning. (that darn pastor always knows what to talk about!!) We have been discussing "joy" in our lives and today it was about if you are a "shallow" pool swimmer or a "deep" end swimmer. He asked what type of friends we have. People that bring us down or people that stand behind us no matter what. He also mentioned that one needs to "swim the other direction" when you are friends with people that try to steer you in the "wrong" direction. So, one can apply this to almost any situation. I mostly had tears throughout the sermon. It was quite spiritual today and was nice.

After the service, the church was taking donations for 14 baskets of kindness to give to families for a Thanksgiving meal. Reuben and I bought a turkey to donate!! Then, as I'm home cleaning, I had a thought...we have this 19 year old girl that works at the gym, that is pregnant (due in a few weeks) and was just put on bedrest as of Friday night. I thought...hmmm...wouldn't that be nice if we put a box out at the gym (cuz everyone knows her) and kind of have a "donation to the baby" box for her!! I texted my boss Carrie and she said that was a WONDERFUL idea and she will start working on it tomorrow at the gym. I plan to get diapers and wipes at first and then see what the other members of the gym and co-workers can bring. I'm very excited about this and it is putting me back to my "joyful" self!!! I even texted another coworker, Sharon, and she was all excited to help as well. So, look what I've started and it sure makes you feel good!!! Until next time!!.....

Just life right now....

2010-11-13T16:22:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

Well, October was quite the busy month!! Went on my trip, taking care of Kalyn's things for her graduation and working all my jobs. November hasn't been quite as exciting, but still busy. I've been in kind of a "slump", if you will. Part of it has to do with my job and another has to do with not being able to workout as much as I would like to. Most days I just don't even wanna do any working out. I've decided today that it has to do with my bank job. I was really disappointed in the raise I got for this new position. Of course, it didn't help that my boss was bragging to everyone that she got such a large raise that her husband can now quit his job if he wants to. Ok....so I thought...well if SHE is getting that than I should be getting a good raise as well. She told me the amount of the raise and I about died.....not anywhere even CLOSE to what I was thinking. I wanted to be able to quit my gym job or maybe even just the cleaning jobs and cut back at the gym...well that didn't pan out, so I'm a little sad about it. This past week I decided to just "hang in there" and do the best job I can. She assured me that after 90 days, we would chat and see how it's going. It's alot of report work, managing the tellers and just have more responsibility on my shoulders. I'm basically getting $100 more a paycheck which comes to $2400 a year and that is after taxes. I feel it should be double that, at the very least. ugh..... :( So, I did accept this position and I told her flat out that I was not happy with the amount at all and I still have to work my other jobs. I've been pretty grumpy at work too. It's just really hard to be happy when I'm not. you know?? But, I am trying my hardest...just so you know...I also put some new songs on my ipod to get me more motivated and that is helping me.... soooo.... I should be back to normal soon, i think, I hope, i pray!!

We are still going to church every Sunday. It's really nice there and a small crowd of folks too. Reuben seems to like it alot too and even bought himself a new, hand stitched, calf-skin Bible as an early Xmas gift to himself. It is beautiful!!!

Kalyn is still getting straight A's and doing so well in school. She is having issues with her gallbladder so next week we will be looking into "natural" meds that may help dissolve these stones she has. Reuben works with a naturepath (??) person that can give her herbs and healthy stuff in a drop form to get rid of them. We figure it won't hurt to try this (and she has to watch very closely what she eats) first and then if it doesn't help, we can always consult the surgeon about surgery.

Tyler is doing well. He is having car issues (brakes) so he is asking for his Xmas money early to take care of that. That little car of his is something else. Gets great gas mileage and has lasted him a couple of years already. It's a 1987 Honda Civic.

So, that is my saga for today...I guess sometimes life throws things at you and you have to learn to sink or swim. My whole life I have gotten through a lot of different issues and have survived, so I'm sure I will be fine. Just one of those times, I guess. Maybe I just need an extra hug?? lol Until next time....

Almost Halloween!!

2010-10-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just a little quick note about the happs...

I cleaned at Angie's today and then now I am working at the gym until 7 tonight. I'm sleepy-sleepy today. Not sure why, but I am surviving the day!! We got K's pictures back in the mail so I got those all cut up and separated out. I also got all my Xmas cards in line and stamps purchased and labels made so all I have to do is sign them all, get pictures put in the cards and then ready to mail!!! I wanted to send the pic of kalyn and I that Andy took in the Xmas cards, but it is kinda dark and K said she would rather we took a different photo. So, we will have to work on that. lol

My friend Joe came back to my house yesterday and got the new thermocouple installed on the water heater. He said the color of the gas, etc looks much better now. The water heater is 12 years old and has always worked fine but he said it was starting to blacken something towards the back of the water heater and the flame didnt look healthy. He only charged me $25 to come check out my furnace, lay my water pipes nicely and replace that thermocouple. I gave him $50. It would have cost me a ton more to have someone else do it for me. He's great!!

Kalyn is getting straight A's, has one online class done and is doing really really well these days. I'm so happy with her...Now only if she would clean her room!!??

It has been one year already that Shane and I have split up. Hard to believe how time flies. Kalyn has progressed so much in the past year. She was a mess when the breakup happened and now she is just more happy than ever. I think she is thinking of graduating and how grownup she almost is and so that may be helping her. Graduation will be here before we know it!!

Reuben and I are doing really well. He is a sweetheart and takes good care of me. I have never in my life been treated so well and been so happy. He respects me, lets me be me and is very supportive of everything I do. I had no idea that someone like this could ever exist. I'm very happy and I think we plan to be together for a long time. He tells me everyday and I mean everyday, how lucky he is to have me. awww...I know....

Well, thats all I've got for now. Can't think of anything else to bore you all with...OH....Halloween...duh...the reason for my title!!! Friday the 29th is our Trick or Treat Main St where all the businesses participate and hand out candy to about 1000 kids. Well, we, at the bank, are dressing up as "The Flintstones". I got my Betty Rubble costume and tried it on and it looks good!! Catrina will be Pebbles and Lesley is Wilma. Carl was going to buy his Fred costume today, so hopefully he did. I will take pictures and post here and on Facebook.

Until next time....

Back to normal....

2010-10-17T15:13:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

I had a wonderful trip, got home safe and Kalyn had the house all nice looking for our return!! I did a ton of laundry and catching up with cleaning, bills, Kalyn's graduation stuff and then packaging up some souvenir purchases I had made for a few people. Couldn't afford to get everyone something..unfortunately!! Finally, today, I am able to watch football, while I finish up last minute stuff around here. I think I'm pretty well organized now and got things whipped up. LOL

Kalyn and I went through her pictures and she chose the ones she wants people to have, etc, so we got the order placed at Walmart.com. They should come next week!! We also had to sit down and order her announcements, cap and gown for graduation. I had to write a deposit check and mail that off, but first had to make copies of it all to send to Shane so he can reimburse me for half. I'm so happy Kalyn and I got all that done. Whew!!

Well, that's about all. I have all my trip pictures on Facebook, so go take a look there. Back to work tomorrow!! Love to all. Until next time...

Nicole and Tony's wedding!

2010-10-13T11:06:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, here I am again with another great update!!

Tuesday we got up early to try to see the big ship, Oasis of the Seas, come into port, but we only saw 3 OTHER ships pull into port that morning. Oasis is soooo big, they docked at another port right up the street from us. Since we had no idea they were docking there, we went ahead and got a taxi to Magen's Bay and just decided to meet them there where the wedding was to take place. We wandered around and around the beach looking for Nicole's wedding site. We finally found it (the nice minister lady asked us if we were there for "Nicole's wedding!! lol) and plopped our stuff down in the shade. The humidity here is just unreal plus we had already gotten sunburned from being outside so much, we were a little sick of it at this point. lol

The first truck load of peeps arrived. It was Tony and his parents, brother, two of Reuben's daughters, Nicole's aunt, hubby, their two grown kids, their spouses and then the one daughter has 3 little girls. Plus a couple of random friends of theirs. Then, Nicole's truck arrived with her one sister, her mom, stepdad, stepdad's parents and I think that's it. Not too many of us. They had Tony turn around so he couldn't see the bride and at this point, we were all on the beach, under some trees to be shaded with. Reuben was called over and he walked Nicole down the "aisle" and also gave Nicole to Tony. I had forewarned him that he may get to do that and his response was "well, they haven't mentioned anything like that to me"... I'm glad he was caught offguard! lol He looked so nervous. All went well and afterwards they took a ton of pictures while everyone dipped their feet in the ocean. Then, we all climbed in the truck and headed to the court house so they could file the marriage license. Then, we continued on to the boat docking area and with our passports in hand, we were able to board the boat, tour it and then attend the reception!! We took a lot of pictures on the boat and during the reception, etc. Had a terrific time.

Around 5, we took one last guided tour with Tony, Nicole, Cosette, Simone and Tony's brother Joe. They took us to the climbing wall, the chapel, and to the deck where you can overlook the swimming areas and stuff. We took more pictures of the ship and Tony and Nicole and then it was time to leave!!! They only docked here for the day. There was not a dry eye when we left. Reuben and I stayed and watched the ship leave and then started walking to a restaurant we've been wanting to try called Oceana. Very high priced seafood, but it was delicious. We shared an appetizer and main course and it still cost $100 with the tip. lol Oh well, we didn't go out to eat the evening before because I wasn't feeling well, so I guess this made up for it. We got back to the room around 8:30 and kinda crashed after a shower. Reuben had a lot to drink so he was out right away for the night around 9. lol

Today, we slept in, strolled down the street and got some last minute souvenirs and then stopped at Bumpa's for a nice croissant breakfast sandwich, then had a little ice cream. We found a taxi to take us up to the Sky Line view place, but he said he would drive us around the island for cheaper!! He gave us a history lesson and also took us to a few new places we hadn't seen yet. We took more pics and then decided it was too hot to be outside so after the tour, we came back to the hotel. We plan to go explore later, when it cools down. Plus, we are so sunburned, we hate to get burned any more. It is a beautiful clear day today!!!! Tomorrow morning we head to the airport and fly most of the day. We should return to Abq by 5pm and then drive to LA. It will be nice to be back home!!

Until next time....

Coral World

2010-10-12T03:58:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

So, Sunday evening, we ate at the Greenhouse Bar and Restaurant. We had walked down there and got a good table next to the open window. Our server, Dale, was awesome!! He liked how giggly and fun WE were also!! It was still happy hour, so we got 4 drinks and appetizers and then had dessert. Didn't really have "dinner", if you will. LOL We had a great time and Dale told us we had BETTER be back to see him!! Most of our servers have been just wonderful folks!!

Monday, we ate breakfast at Glady's restaurant. Much better than the hotel breakfast we had on Sunday. We ate at Glady's for lunch on Saturday, so we figured it would be delightful and it was!! We also shopped at some of the shops again and then got a taxi to Coral World (we called ahead and YES they were open!). We wandered around there and saw all kinds of birds, sharks, fish, iguanas (just roaming around freely) and then headed to the Observation area where you can go do the "Sea Trek", where you put this 75 lb helmet on and walk under the water and have sealife swimming by you and you get to touch small creatures in the sea. We were sooo happy we did that!! Took about an hour and then we were done. We purchased the jump drive disk so we could have the pics they took and also had videos too. We ate a quick lunch afterwards and then caught a taxi back to town. This taxi driver took us the back way of the island, so we got to see MORE of the island than before. These drivers are just awesome around here. Showing and telling you about the island!!

She dropped us off downtown at the little vendor tents and I bought a Prada purse and wallet for $60!! The guys price kept coming down the longer I stood there thinking about my purchase!! lol Couldn't resist $60!! lol We then walked down and stopped at the Big Kahuna Bar (again...happy hour), had a couple of drinks and then went back to the hotel. It was still early, but I was feeling sick from the drinks and just couldn't eat anything. I went to sleep around 8:30!! I woke up at 10:30 and Reuben was sound asleep as well!! LOL

Right now, we are awaiting Tony and Nicole's ship to get here. We can see them pulling into the dock from our hotel room. Pretty amazing to watch those huge ships come in. The wedding is today at Magen's Bay and it has been closed, so hopefully it is open today!! Until next time....

St. John!!

2010-10-10T14:04:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Well, we took the taxi to Coral World this morning, after an awful breakfast at the hotel restaurant, only to find out that it was closed today!! That's how things are here...you probably need to call ahead and make sure places are open before you go there. The little shopping places are only open from like 10-3 also. If you don't get up in the morning and get around, you won't get to shop!! Crazy how that stuff works around here. So, the taxi driver suggested we take the ferry boat over to St. John's. We got to the ferry station, just as the hourly boat left, of course, so we had to wait another hour before the next ferry left. I played a couple of slot machines and then we checked out the local maps, while we waited.

Finally, got on the ferry and rode up front and snapped some pics of St. John's ahead of us, as we approached it. Very cool to ride the ferry over to another island. We could see the British Isles in the distance also. They greeted us at St. John's with a rum shot. You could choose mango or regular or BOTH!! We took one of each and then visited a couple of shops. We stopped at the visitor's center and decided we would go ahead, find a taxi and take it to Trunk Bay Beach, since it is one of the most poplular beaches on St. John's. It is actually a part of Virgin Islands National Park, so you have to pay to use the facilities and such. Very beautiful beach and I took lots of pics and then more pics of the beach from higher spots of the island as we took the taxi back to the ferry station. We got to the ferry station in time to take the very next ferry back to St. Thomas! We got back to St. Thomas, got another taxi and talked to some very nice folks from the East coast. They were staying at the Marriott so we got to see another part of St. Thomas, which was very cool. We got back to our hotel and are relaxing, showering and getting ready for another fun evening in St. Thomas. Last night was very cool once the sun went down, so that was lovely to walk back to the hotel in.

Really loving the time here and wish I could post some of my lovely pics, but they will have to wait. Talk to you all soon. Until next time....

In St.Thomas!!!!

2010-10-09T19:22:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

So, thought I would keep you up to date on the happs here in the US Virgin Islands!!! LOL It is so nice here!! Everyone we talk to is really friendly and offer to suggest places to eat, shop, etc. Very helpful.

The weather is hot and humid!! I bet the humidity level is at 80%!! ugh...not used to that at all!! Surviving it though by just wearing very little clothing!! lol

We got in last night and it had just stopped raining. They had gotten dumped on from tropical storm Otto. They say Otto is swirling around still and may come back. Hopefully we are gone by that time. They said they haven't had that much rain here in five years. We caught a taxi and got to our hotel, the Windward Passage. The room was ok, we have switched rooms since last night due to the fact that we had a leak by the entry doorway, non-working hair dryer and no working vent fan. This room is much nicer and with an ocean view now too!!!

We got settled last night and then decided to look around town for something to eat for Reuben. Well, it was like 9pm and we began our journey walking across town!!! We walked through dark streets with creepy guys either sleeping on benches or just popping out from nowhere. I was scared to death, but didn't show it!! I think with Reuben's size, they didn't dare mess with us!! lol I bet we walked a few miles and would go from restaurant to restaurant until we found one open and serving food, not just drinks. We finally found one out at Havensight, which is a big ship port area, almost across town!! We went to the Shipwreck Tavern and it was so cool!! Our waiter was awesome giving us tips on stuff around town, etc. We decided to take a taxi back to the hotel, since our walk there was so sketchy and scary!! Cost $8 to take the taxi back.

Today we slept in late and then got ready and started walking again, but went to the downtown district this time and shopped for souvenirs and ate at Glady's pub. Very quaint little place. All the shops/restaurants have huge doors for when they have hurricane's predicted, to protect the windows and such. Kinda cool. We also hiked up this hill to Blackbeard's castle and to "99 steps", which is actually 103 steps!! We went up and down them. Lots of walking and picture taking!! Then got back to the hotel, relaxed by the pool, switched to our new room, freshened up and headed out to get our free hotel drinks and then to find dinner!! We chatted with some folks here at the bar and they told us to try "Hook, Line and Sinker" in the Frenchman's area. It's only a couple of blocks from here so we walked there and had an awesome dinner/drinks and a fabulous waitress, Val. Val suggested we go to Betsy's bar afterwards to shoot pool, etc. We went there and played 3 games of pool. The locals are so nice and smiley and friendly, its unbelievable!! We had a great time and then walked back. Betsy's bar must have a Packers fan, cuz there was Packer stuff in a few places. I took a pic with me next to the stuff and will post sometime!! lol

We are back at the hotel early tonight to rest up for tomorrow and to shower and relax!!! Not used to the humidity and such. I'm very thankful for the walking we've been doing!! Then maybe, I won't have to use the fitness center here!

That's all I've got for now. Until next time....

St Thomas bound...

2010-10-07T15:49:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Haven't written much here lately...too darn busy!! ha-ha

Been on vacation this week and next week also from the bank. Had to work a couple of evenings at the gym, but now, tomorrow, I'm heading off to the island of St. Thomas!!! I have Kalyn all set as far as phone numbers to call if she has an issue and food in the cupboards and fridge! Hopefully she remembers to feed the cats....

I hope to have a ton of pics to post when I get back. It's supposed to rain while we are there, but the temps will be in the 80's!

Worked a lot on the house this week, getting it ready for winter. I had my friend Joe stop over. He checked the furnace, the water pipes and the water heater. The water heater needs a new thermo coupling so he's gonna purchase it and install it next week when I'm back home. He also suggested I take the water heater out and put a metal plate under it cuz right now it's just that board under it. He said when they get wet, the water heater falls right to the ground!! I hope that doesn't happen as long as I live here. I may ask how much a project like that would cost me. Got the roof patched, the Jeep fixed and purchased a used/rebuilt computer from a friend and also a new router for the computer. ugh....all these purchases make me crazy!! But, it all had to be done. When it rains, it pours. Hopefully that is the end of that for awhile.

Kalyn got her Senior pics done and they turned out wonderful. I will have to work on those when I'm back also. Kalyn wants to be a part of picking out who gets what pictures and the sizes, etc. I will need to order her announcements and gown here soon also. Then, the Yearbook!! She's doing so well this year!! She's also working really hard on her online stuff too. She has to get those done in order to graduate. I told her to get 3 of them done by Xmas and then she will only have 1 to do before the middle of May. So far, she has one almost done, another half done and then one to begin. I'm so proud of her!!

I got a promotion at the bank and after a week of deliberating, I took the position although I did not approve of the amount of money they offered me. It's a 10% pay increase, which I think is not very much at all for the duties I now have. I am a Banking Operations Supervisor!! I am in charge of the tellers now and will be doing some of Lesley's duties also. I get to have my own office, if I like also. Lesley is now a Vice President and is over-seeing all 5 bank offices. We have Catrina back as a teller and then we hired Carl back in May, so we are fully staffed with us 4 peeps there.

We are doing Flintstones as our theme at the bank for Halloween!! They haven't told me what is left to choose from yet!! lol Should be fun!!

Must go now and maybe do some packing!!! Until next time......

Senior pictures!

2010-09-26T17:00:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Drove Kalyn and our previous neighbor, Andy, up to the Jemez Mountains today so Andy could do his photography magic and take awesome shots of Kalyn for her Senior pictures!! So far, from what we saw, he did a great job!! Photos to come!! We were gone 4 hours and I predicted it would probably take that long to drive up there, pick out several locations, have Kalyn do a few different wardrobe changes and then drive back. It was awesome weather, awesome company and it was a grand time!! He's charging me alot more than when he did Tyler's so, not too thrilled about that, but oh well. A lot cheaper than what it could be, I suppose.

Saturday the 25th, me and some friends ran the Yum Run 5K race. We had a great time and got our workouts in for the day just by participating in it!! It was a chilly morning, but perfect for running!!

This week at the bank, I should find out the money offer for the new position they are offering me. I hope it's enough to quit my other jobs. That way, I can dedicate more time to Kalyn and working out. Hopefully, they offer enough.

Made fajitas tonight in the crockpot, so I best go and tend to those. Make sure you all watch Monday Night Football as it is the Packers and daaaaa Bears!! Until next time....

Mid September....

2010-09-18T13:35:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Yeah, yeah, I know.....it's been awhile since I last wrote...just didnt have time or feel like updating!! I'm working at the gym today, so I may as well take the time to type away!!!

I'm up for a promotion at work...still haven't been told how much or anything yet. Hopefully they get on that soon so i can figure out my life and my jobs!! I may be dropping a night or two at the gym and also only clean for the Courtright's. I'm excited and scared, but I do need more work to do and the experience will be wonderful for me. Also at the bank, Catrina is back full-time as a teller!! She quit 4 1/2 years ago and I took her position over at the Customer Service desk cuz she had it sooo organized!! Cat will back me up at work and also help Carl at the teller line. Lesley got promoted to manage all 5 offices of Community Bank and so she will be very busy with that. I even get my own office if it all works well.

Kalyn is doing really well and really getting anxious to graduate!! She had her ultrasound and xray of her stomach yesterday and we will find out the results soon. The doctor said he couldn't see anything on the xray, but would wait to take a look at the ultrasound too. She doesn't have any pain if she stays away from spicy foods, which she has been. Poor thing...

Tyler is good...we went to ABQ and saw his place, went to lunch and also to see his new kittens, Zoe and Mikey. They are cute.

The state fair is going on right now, but I don't think we will make it this year. I've never been to it, so I'm ok with that!!

Three more weeks until Reuben and I leave for St. Thomas (virgin islands) for his daughters wedding on 10-12-10. We are both so excited. I think I am ready as far as any necessary clothing etc. I will get to use my new luggage, all 3 swimtops, hobo bag, beach towel, water shoes...lol...that's all the stuff I have bought since Xmas cuz I knew I would need them for this trip. Lying on a beach sounds REAL good...right now!! lol

Can't think of anything more exciting right now. Just working away as usual and I've been exercising more too, so I'm feeling the good effects of that. I'm hoping when I cut back down on jobs, I will have lots more time to workout!!

You all take care!! Until next time...

Another weekend upon us...

2010-08-21T12:55:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Well, I got Kalyn home safe and sound from her travels to Moab, Kansas, Dallas, Oklahoma City and back. She had a fun time, overall. I got her home and sure enough, the spending began!! Had to buy her school supplies, shoes, pay for her school fees, food, personal items (hairspray, etc)...it is neverending. Shane was able to give her $30 towards her new exercise shoes, which I appreciate so much! We had to order some "unmentionables" online and then I think that was all I could afford for the moment!! I had ordered her jeans before she left for her trip, so she is good there for a bit. Kalyn came back home with a really good attitude and was ready to get herself set for her Senior year, this year. I'm happy she is all gung-ho. I hope she realizes this is it...she has to get her stuff taken care of or no graduation! Her classes are all real easy, so she should be able to get her online stuff done also.

Tyler had a good birthday. He got a lot of money and I hope he is out buying clothes with it all. Him and Emily moved into a new place just right up the street from where they were AND they have a roommate. He said the electricity is NOT included with rent like his past place, so I'm hoping he doesn't freeze this winter!!! lol

I'm keeping super busy right now with all my jobs. Mrs Courtright just called me today to have me come over on Wednesday again. She was walking her son's dog while they are out of town moving their kids to their respective colleges, and the dog saw an animal and jerked her and down she went and broke her arm!! I feel so bad and she has a houseful of company for a family wedding today. Ugh...so I'm going there Wed after work. Tomorrow I do Tj and Di's house on Barranca and maybe Monday evening too if I don't finish tomorrow and then work at the gym Tues and Thurs nights. Busy!! But the money will be nice.

Next weekend, Reuben and I got invited to a friend's lake house for Saturday and Sunday. Should be a great time!! It's about 2 1/2 hours south of here. No kids invited though..its adult weekend, they said. LOL There are other couples going as well. Reuben is off backpacking this weekend with his daughter and her fiance. He won't be back until Monday afternoon. He always looks forward to getting out in the wilderness so I'm happy he is doing this. He wanted me to go also, but I just couldn't take Monday off from work and I have all these other obligations going on right now. Oh well...there is always next time.

Went to Angie's today and cleaned for her. She just got back from being in South Dakota for 3 weeks so she had her wood floors all redone while she was away. It looks really really nice. 4 guys from her church showed up to move the furniture back in for her. I could only get the kitchen, 2 baths and the living room done today. We got a lot of dust and walls cleaned before the guys showed up, so that helped. I brought over my last Magic Eraser cuz I knew she had a ton of scuff marks along her walls and I'm sure glad I brought it over. The walls look amazing now. She really needs to paint some areas and I told her she should do that now while the house is still pretty empty. She likes to keep alot of things she really doesn't need so I'm trying to encourage her to go through things and rid of them!! Her divorce still isn't final quite yet, but getting closer!! They were married over 20 years!

The bank has lost several key players in the last weeks, so they talked to my boss, Lesley and may start having her do some more stuff. She asked me if I might be interested in doing some more things and I told her sure. I won't do anything else unless there is a raise involved!! lol

Well, that's all I have for now. I'm working at the gym and doing the deposit, so I better keep moving on that. Until next time...

First day off!!

2010-08-13T16:24:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Here is my very first fleece blanket that I actually made today!! I'm trying to decide to give it to a friend that had a boy back on St. Patrick's Day...OR give it to a complete stranger next weekend for whom I had been invited to the baby shower, but can't go due to working at the gym. It's actually the gym owners brother that has a girlfriend that is pregnant and that's who the shower is for....what to do ....what to do... I hardly ever see the other friend, but thought it would be a nice gesture to give them something for the baby. I wanted to do a St. Patrick's Day one, but haven't found fleece this time of year. Maybe I could wait until his first birthday?? lol

My first day off is going well. I started, last night, cleaning the house, making the cookie dough and things like that. I'm glad I did cuz this morning I did have to go into the bank and open, etc for Lesley. I told her that was the least I could do since it's just her and our new teller, Carl, there all alone, while I am off. So, then I stopped at the gym and said hello to Reuben, cuz I knew he was working out, ran into Smith's for some stuff, dropped off mail at the mailbox, came home, baked cookies, baked brownies, looked at a couple of necklaces I need to fix for Mrs. Courtright, did laundry and some other odds and ends. Then finished with all that and went and visited with my friend, Keith, then stopped at the Post Office for the bank and dropped off the mail to them and some cookies, worked out, ran into Smith's again (!!), came home, threw food in the crockpot and now just made that blanket...whew!! I still need to go out to the shed and see what I can conjure up to sell in the yard sale over at Tj and Diana's tomorrow. Maybe some older beanie babies!!

Tonight, Reuben and I are taking his youngest daughter, Cosette, bowling. She leaves for California on Labor Day weekend, so he wants to spend some time with her. I decided to join them for a little bowling.

Sunday, we get to drive and see Four Corners and then up to Cortez to meet with Barb and pick up Kalyn!! She's been gone 3 weeks. They had a lot of fun going to Six Flags in Dallas and she got another tattoo!! It's on her foot this time. We will then drive down to Durango and meet with Aunt Julie, see her place and eat lunch. Reuben wants to stop in Pagosa and go to a bow/hunting shop. He's looking for a bow.

On the home front...my living room tv is going kaput!! Soooo....looks like I will have to get another one. It's not like I'm short on tv's or anything around here, but it's nice to have a larger one in the living room!! I had my couch shampooed the other day (professionally), so it looks and smells cleaner!! Tj and Diana will be picking up their dry sink next week, so I will move that curio cabinet where the dry sink was and then put my treadmill in the living room in that corner. Barb will eventually take the curio cabinet and I will need to get a new one. They aren't too expensive, but nothing like how they used to be made!!

Well, I better get in the shed....take care.....until next time....

More new stuff!!

2010-08-04T16:37:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Wanted to post some more pics of the things I got with my birthday money.

The precious moments, "Mom, your love makes me blossom", is from Kalyn and then the bedset and valances is what I got with some of my birthday money. I also moved the furniture around in my bedroom (yes, again) cuz I thought the tv would be more cozy in the other corner of the room. My treadmill will eventually move to the living room once Tj and Diana take their drysink back to their new townhouse here in LA.

That's all I've got for now....on my way to work. Until next time....

Birthday stuff

2010-08-01T11:46:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

I had the most wonderful birthday ever!! I had about 15 people over on Friday night and we threw some hotdogs on the grill, we had a ton of cake (Tj made me one, Reuben bought me one and I had made cupcakes already!) and then a cheese/fruit platter. Of course, we had beer and then a few people brought more over! We all had a fun time and then around 9:15, those of us that were heading down to the casino, got ready to go and we left! 5 of us went down to the casino and I won a bit of money over the course of the evening, so that will be nice to spend with any actual birthday money I received. It was the most perfect day! Thank you to everyone out there for all the birthday wishes....that was really sweet!!

Reuben got me that Hobo bag that is in the 2nd picture of my blog. It is from a client of his that makes things and sells on Esty.com. (I figured Aunt Jacque might want to check it out!!) Anyways, he got it for our trip to St. Thomas in October!! I had just been thinking about what I will bring to carry things in, etc. Perfect idea he had!!

On Friday, we went to Santa Fe during the day and I had my first mammogram appointment. It went well and didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would. I will hear back in a few days from them about the results. It went very quickly and we were out of that office in no time. Loved it!!

Kalyn sounds like she is having a fun time with her Dad. That's good!! I hear Six Flags is in her future!!??

Tyler is moving this weekend and don't have his new address yet, but I will get it!!

I had the entire weekend off, so yesterday I just hung around here and recovered from Friday night...today we may go to Santa Fe again. Tomorrow at the bank is my party and it's also Christine's last day. She is off to go see her hubby graduate from SOCOM school and then join him at his duty station, which they don't know where that is yet. We hired Carl, a few months back so he will move up to full time like Christine was. He's not that good and his 90 day probationary time is up on the 19th of August. Catrina applied for the part-time teller position (as you may or may not recall she used to work there before) and also my friend Angie did too. I'm hoping Lesley hires one of those ladies to make our lives a lot easier than having someone brand new come in. We shall see what happens.....

That's all I've got for now...Happy August!! Until next time....

Hike today

2010-07-18T15:02:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Today, Reuben and I, went to one of the various hiking trails around town and tried out my new hiking boots that he got for me for my birthday. They were pretty expensive, but when you are out hiking and backpacking you have to have comfortable foot gear. He also got me socks and then a rain pants and jacket set for hiking too. I still need to get some hiking shorts and a couple of shirts (that are not cotton, he says) for hiking/backpacking trips. I will get those with any birthday money I get. We had a nice two hour hike and man...I was/am beat!! We are still gonna go hit the gym and do some weight lifting anyways. Don't need the cardio workout today!!

Kalyn was gone most of the weekend to ABQ for the Mayhem concert. There are like 12 bands or so that play all day. She stood about 10 ft from Rob Zombie and then got to meet some of the members of the band, Korn. She also had them sign their CD for her. She bought a t-shirt as well.

Tyler was in town again, so him and his friend Matt came over and ate dinner last night with me and Reuben. They were hungry, he said, and had no food to eat at Emily's, so Ty called me up and asked what I was makin' for dinner!! What a funny guy!! I told him, anytime he is hungry...give me a call!!

We are just kinda chillin' right now...I've got steak fajitas cookin' up for dinner in the crockpot and doing laundry!!

Next Sunday, we are driving up to Durango to meet Barb and Steph for the Kalyn drop-off. She will be gone almost 3 weeks. That will be a nice time for Kalyn to spend with her father. Reuben and I will meet Julie for lunch and then drive back. Takes up most of the day driving up and back, but it's enjoyable.

Have a good week!! Until next time....

The Happs....

2010-07-10T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just thought I would let you know what's happening with us lately....

Today I got a wonderful massage first thing this morning since I didn't have to clean or work at the gym until later today. That was very nice...

Last night, myself, Kalyn, Tyler, Emily, Kev, Tj and Diana all met for dinner at DeColores. We gave Tj his Father's Day gift cuz they weren't around for the real event. We had a lovely time and they filled us in on their wonderful trip and how the house is doing on the market. They have a couple of real interests on the house, so they are hoping something comes through. Kev and them are looking at a house for him in Santa Fe today.

Kalyn will be going to Moab on the 25th of July. Reuben and I will drive her to Durango to meet up with Gram Barb and then we will have lunch with Auntie Julie. We go back and get her around the 13th of August. Kalyn will be in Moab for a few days and then will drive to Kansas with her step-mom Stephanie and Steph's daughter Cassie for a visit with her father when he gets back from California around the 2nd of August. Should be a good time for them.

It was good to see Tyler this weekend and last weekend. He's happy cuz he gets fed and his clothes cleaned for FREE!! LOL Love kids!! He is in town cuz of the Jemez Mountain Music Fest. Their band is playing today and then my friend Dave (and former coworker at the bank) is playing with his band on Sunday so, myself, Kalyn and Christine are all gonna wear our shirts with his bands' name on it and head up and see them play!! Tyler's band is Kamikaze Death and Dave's is Obelisk. I will take pics!!

We may have had a bear in the neighborhood last night. There was a tipped over trash can and then wood chips scattered and then also bear droppings out in the street!! Scary!!

The 4th was great. Had a good time with the kids and the food was abundant and the race was fun!! We had an awesome fireworks display and were able to get out of traffic and get home by 10:15!!

That's all I've got for now!! Eagerly anticipating my 40th birthday and to see how my Auntie Jacque whips up my apron and cushion!! Love to all!! Until next time...

Happy 4th of July!!!

2010-07-04T14:28:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Did I ever mention how much I LOOOVE the month of July?? Well, it has my favorite holiday and it also has my Birthday, so it IS my favorite month!!! So far the month is going along just fine!!

I ran the annual 5k race this morning. I did ok, but had a really good time with some of my friends there!! 3 of them had never run a 5k before and 2 of them beat me!!! LOL oh well....I was just out for a leisurely jog!!

Reuben invited over his daughter Nicole and her fiance, Tony, to come grill out with us here at the house. I made sure to ask K if it was ok with her. Tyler dropped by and he and Emily may join us also!! Should be fun and then tonight drive down to White Rock for the Fireworks spectacle...can hardly wait.

I have Monday off, so R and I plan to drive to Santa Fe real quick for a few things that he wants to check out at REI. He is also test driving a Honda Civic that he may buy and it will be nice to take it for a drive out of town to check how it handles, etc. It's a 2005 and would be very economical for him. He drives a 1989 Jeep Wrangler right now. Not very reliable and hard to get out of town in. LOL he will still keep the Jeep for getting in the mountains, etc. Kalyn gets to be the proud driver of his Jeep which makes it nice for ME to have MY Jeep back.

That's all I've got for now. Hope you all have a wonderful day!! Until next time....

Almost July...love summer!!

2010-06-29T18:49:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, it is now summertime in LA! Lovin' the warm sun beating down on us. I usually walk to the post office for the bank on a daily basis to check the mail, so it has been wonderful enjoying the heat beating down on me while I go there and back. Sometimes, Kalyn has the Jeep so I am unable to drive around for my lunchbreak, so in those cases, I have been walking as well. It's quite enjoyable!! lol

Speaking of Jeep, finally got my plate and registration yesterday!! Woohoo, it is officially MINE now!! So, so happy about that. I checked my credit report (everyone can check their credit for free online at annualcreditreport.com from all 3 agencies...just fyi..) and Zia shows up on my credit as me paying them for a vehicle loan. Very nice!! Everything on the credit report looks good. Had a few things under Shane's account that I am an "authorized signer" on, so I called those peeps up and had them remove my name. I have no obligation to them, but just in case, I wanted to cover my tracks.

All jobs are going quite well. Can't complain too much about that.

Went to the Isotopes baseball game on Sunday with Kalyn and Reuben. We had a great time and we also did some clothes shopping before the game. It was nice to be out of town for the day and do something fun.

Kalyn is working out the final details of going to see her Dad and Steph when he returns from being in California for the month of July for training. Steph will meet us in Durango to drop off Kalyn and then havent heard how she is getting back from Kansas yet. Steph is staying in Moab for the month of July while Shane is gone. She still has a 14 year old daughter that lives there and wants to spend time with her. Steph will drive her daughter and Kalyn to Kansas and then they will greet Shane home and then both girls will be there for a week or so. I think we are planning the dropoff in Durango for Sunday, July 25th.

I'm running the annual 4th of July 5k next Sunday. Looking forward to competing in it. I talked a couple of co-workers from the gym to run it also, and they signed up!! The power of persuasion!! hahhaha

Okay, well, that's all for now. Until next time....

Father's Day!!

2010-06-20T09:25:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Happy Father's Day to all you Dads out there!! I took some pictures of some "wild" flowers that grow around here. Enjoy!! Until next time....

Roses!!

2010-06-09T18:08:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Here are some pictures I promised you!! The first one is the house with the top trim painted brown to match the rest of the trim!! We also took "The Schultz'" sign down and painted the house where that was mounted.
These are my beautiful roses that are blooming in the front walk/driveway area. I trimmed them back this year and been watering them religiously and look what became of all that hard work!! (not really that hard of work!!) I'm pleased how pretty they are!!

Thought you might enjoy those!! Off to Kev's house!! Tj and Diana put it on the market today and they had two showings already today and an open house is set for Sunday!! Kalyn had to go over and make sure the dogs were put up for the showings....so here we go!!! LOL

Until next time...

Sunday doings

2010-06-06T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, I got the three things done today that I had hoped to get done, so I'm a happy girl!! I mowed, painted the trim of the house and touch-ups by the windows, etc and got my workout done. I'm exhausted, but now complete with all jobs on the outside of the house!! Woohoo!!

Had a really nice weekend finally getting some things done around here for a change. This coming week I will have to be over at Tj and Diana's more to make sure all looks good for house showings and then I have to clean for the Courtright's at some point and then also my friend Angie. Always someone's house to clean. One of these days I hope to be done doing that. Once Tj's house sells, that will be one down, the Courtright's only need me once a month unless it is Spring cleaning time like we are doing now and then Angie twice monthly, but sometimes only once. Kinda sporatic, but it seems like usually they need me ALLL at the same time!! lol

Gonna watch "Night at the Museum 2" and do my toe nails and eat dinner (turkey brats), wish me luck!!

Until next time...

Pretty good week

2010-06-05T10:00:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well the time is just flying by with Kalyn gone. I'm working and such and barely have time to be home to enjoy the quiet!! She should be back Tuesday or Wednesday and Barb will stay here overnight with her 3 little dogs. Should be fun. Barb will also pick up some of Shane's stuff he left behind at Diana's and also a couple of house decorating items here at my house.

My house was egged Tuesday night so I was pretty upset. Stayed up late cleaning up the mess outside. It was BAD!! K's bedroom window was just COVERED in egg and way up top of the house got it too. Ugh....I got through it. I finished cleaning up the grill cover today cuz that got hit pretty hard too. Plus, that egg smell STINKS!!! ick...

Today I changed out some screens for my windows. That was pretty fun and easy!! Tj gave me the screen and I bought the tool you use and some more cord, but didn't need the cord. I just recycled and used the cord already on the screen. I gotta work this afternoon so thought I would get some of this other stuff done around the house. The only thing left to do is mow the yard and paint the very very top of the outside trim on the front of the house. It never got painted when we painted a couple of years ago, so I will do that also tomorrow. All that should take less than an hour. Supposed to be really hot this weekend so that will be nice. I can go take my run in the sun!!!

Speaking of run, my new shoes are wonderful!! I should really be getting them a lot more often than I do. I can REALLY tell a difference in the running and the distance with the new shoes. Very nice. I like the Brooks brand. Very comfy and fitting for my foot.

Went out to eat with Tj and Diana before the Memorial weekend and now last night we went down to El Paragua in Espanola. They leave Tuesday for about a month long trip. They are driving up the Pacific coast highway from California all the way up to Vancouver. They will stay in Colorado with Jennie, Ryan and Katy for the 4th and then they will be back in LA until Aug/Sept. It's nice to have them back in town. They put their house up for sale and we shall see what happens. Kev and I are in charge of putting the dogs up when the realtor needs to show the house. I also have to go over there about every other day to make sure all is neat and clean for showings. Diana had the window people come and then they are coming back to clean the house (like take cobwebs down, take apart their big light fixtures and get all the bugs out, etc) so it should look really nice and then I can keep up with it after that for sure!!

Reuben helped me last weekend with things around the house. We got the swamp cooler going, the water all hooked up for the outside faucets, etc. He was a big help. I think I see a painter in my future for tomorrow while I mow!!! Until next time.... :)

New Rooms

2010-05-28T16:11:00.000-07:00

Hey all, Well I promised pics of the two rooms that I've been messing with and here they are!! The picture above is looking into my room from the doorway. The corner desk is new and that is my treadmill sitting next to it. And of course, Sugar laying on the bed!!

This next photo is the new tv stand. I put my dresser inside the closet to make more room. I spared you all and didn't take a photo of inside the closet (even though I REALLY wanted to and yes it is clean!!)

This is the new guest room/craft room. I love the new futon cushion. It is VERY thick!! It looks very classy!! Tyler was the first one to try it out last weekend.

I got to stay home today so I got a lot of stuff finished up. I cleaned up Kalyn's room, now that she is gone until the 8th. I also did some small things around the house and finally that Mr. Fix-it guy, Joe, came over today and put my new exhaust fan in the kids' bathroom. He only charged me $25!! I told him NOOOO....I will give you $50. He drove to Santa Fe to buy the fan, had to go to two or three different places to get it and then it took him an hour to install. I figured $50 would be the cost of just the fan!!! So, that was nice of him.

I'm about to go workout, so I better go. Enjoy the pics!! Until next time....

Almost Memorial weekend!!

2010-05-26T10:09:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Well, I've been real busy working on my days off from the bank!! I've been doing cleaning jobs, working at the gym, doing things around the house...It's never-ending!! I'm having a good time though.

Reuben and I drove to Santa Fe on Monday and did a bunch of different kind of shopping. I had to get a couple rugs, some things for the swamp cooler, flowers to plant...things like that. We had a good time and ate at Panda Express. We had to be back so that I could work at 6 and we got back to town about 4:30.

Tuesday, I planted my flowers, I got my haircut, met Catrina for lunch, cleaned for the Courtright's for two hours, went and visited with Keith and then took a short nap before working at the gym last night.

Today, I mowed the lawn, trimmed all the grass around the house and shed, got the ladder out and went around the entire house caulking all the cracks and washing all the windows, turned the water on for the hoses for outside and then watered the plants. I had yardwork planned for today and that's what I've done so far. I'm gonna make lunch for me and K and then she needs me to get her hair dyed for her. I also need to run some errands uptown, but may wait until I drop her off at work to do that. I work at 6, so will get it all done before that. I don't work at the gym after tonight until next week, so that leaves me the weekend to do whatever. Pretty excited!!

Thursday I have to be at the Courtright's to clean more. This time the main level. She is having me do the "spring cleaning" now. I did the upstairs yesterday. She had me polish all the wood furniture, dust all the blinds, dust off the 3 ceiling fans, clean both bathrooms up there and then vacuum. Then, I will come home, have lunch and then head to Angie's for the afternoon. I can't clean for her on Saturday due to me going to the graduation, so she is having me Thursday and possibly Friday for a little bit. She has a renter in her basement now and needs help getting that all ready.

Friday, I have a guy coming over to finally fix my fan in the kids' bathroom. We keep postponing him coming over, so hopefully he does Friday!! LOL Kalyn also leaves Friday for a week to go to Clovis with her Grandma Barb. Shane and Stephanie are coming here to LA for the weekend. They are staying at Tj and Diana's house. Tj and Diana got back here yesterday and we saw them in the parking lot at the gym when K was dropping me off to work!! lol Anyways, I also took a load of Shane's stuff over to T and D's house in case he would like to take it back home with him and that way he won't need to come over here for any reason.

So, that's what I've been up to.....busy, busy, but it's so nice to get some of this stuff done. I won't have another vacation until August, so I better enjoy this now!! I pretty much have everything done now. All the big stuff anyway....well we still have to do the swamp cooler, but that's not too much of a big deal.

That's all I've got for now. Until next time...

May stuff.....

2010-05-15T13:42:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Well, not much going on around the 2 Schultz' house these days. I'm working on changing up some of the items of furniture in my house. So far, I got the futon in the now "new" guest room/craft room and also got a corner computer desk (to make more room for me in my bedroom) and also a tall tv stand for my bedroom as well. Stayed up late last night putting the tv stand together, but got it done. Looks good too. I promise pictures when I get everything moved around. I have to put the treadmill in my room now due to the futon in the guest room. I really couldn't pass up a free, very nice looking futon, so I'm putting up with having the treadmill in my room. oh well...

I moved my regular dresser into my closet instead of having the tv sit on that. I got the new tv stand setup and it is ready to go. Leaves a lot of room already in my bedroom. I left the computer desk at the bank (thats where I had it delivered) so I will need to go by there and pick that up to begin assembling, etc. I'm real excited to have a "change", you know? Now, I will just need to find time to enjoy my craft room and new look in the bedroom.

I'm helping K this weekend with some catch-up schoolwork and also her defensive driving class (online). We need to get it all done this weekend, so I'm taking tomorrow and just dedicating it to helping her. I told her today that I have the whole day to help and get it done. Her final test for the DD has to be proctored, so I want her to do that on Tuesday with my boss, Lesley, at the bank. The proctor has to be a notary. The DD course is due the 25th and so is her community service. She has done 6 hours of the community service, so we are almost there!! So proud of her!!

Until next time.....

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-13T06:20:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

I had a pretty wonderful Mother's Day and wanted to share with you....

I got this soft, soft Gund bear from Kalyn and the card too!! She surprised me with it by saying (as I walked in the door from getting my Mother's Day facial!!)...."Mom, will you put my laundry in the dryer please?"....so I said "sure!"...and proceeded to walk to the washer/dryer area. I opened the door and look what was sitting there to greet me!!! I thought that was really cute!! I can't stop talking about how soft this bear is. She knows me too well!!

Tyler called me around 6:30 while we were eating dinner. We chatted for a few minutes and then we were finished. It was really nice of him to call and I was hoping he was going to!!

Kalyn took me to a movie "Furry Vengeance" and then we had steaks on the grill for dinner. The whole day was really nice!!

Until next time.... (did I mention the bear is soft????)

Happy May!!

2010-05-02T14:43:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Wow!! This year sure is flying by. The weather here has been cold and snowy!! Not what I predicted for the beginning of May!!! As we speak, I'm wearing a sweatshirt cuz I'm chilly!! Soon it will warm up and I think it is supposed to sometime this week.

Not much going on today. Had to clean for Angie and now feeling lazy, lazy. I laid down for a bit, but now feel like doing something to feel motivated!!! Ah well....it's Sunday!! I can be lazy if I want. Already went and visited Keith for the day. He's had company so I haven't seen him since Wed or Thurs.

Kalyn is off seeing the play "The Wiz" over at the High school. She gets extra credit for going so she decided to go. I'm proud of her.

That's all I've got for today!! Until next time...

Wednesday, my last day off!!

2010-04-29T06:12:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Had a busy Wednesday. Took Kalyn to the doctor for a follow-up. They will be sending her to a nutritionalist. The lady has called me already to make an appointment, but I was on the phone with Dish network trying to get our new replacement receiver hooked up. I will call her back though. Got back to LA, had to go mail a few packages and then Kalyn went to school and I went and worked out! Had a good workout, then drove home, did a few things and then headed uptown to mail back the old receiver. I got a call from Nicole at Zia and she said to come in and sign the papers for the Jeep!!!! I was soooo excited!! Got all that done and then came home again and then had a massage at 5. Reuben took me to the Blue Window to eat to celebrate the loan that I got. It's so unbelievable that I got it!!! Had a really awesome day!!

Back to work today!!! But thankfully, it's Thursday!! Until next time...

Tuesday, my day off!!

2010-04-27T19:11:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Today was not as eventful as the past few days, so that was nice. I went uptown in the a.m. and opened an account at Zia Credit Union. If I get a loan, they are going to suggest that I do that anyway, so thought I would get ahead of the game here. I saw my former co-worker, Natalia, over there. She is now in charge of the tellers at Zia. She's originally from Russia and a very nice friend. She worked with my at Community Bank. So, chatted with her, opened the account and left. I then went over to The Blue Window to wait for Catrina to show up for lunch. We had a wonderful lunch (she paid...cuz she said she owed me) and we had good chats!!

I went home and had lunch ready for Kalyn when she came home for her school lunchbreak. She had asked me previously to do that for her!! After she left, I got on the computer and such and then went and mowed the lawn. Didn't feel like doing much else so I laid down and took a nap!! Woke up feeling refreshed and then got ready for work.

I will let you know how the loan goes tomorrow. I sent her an email stating that I dropped off the papers to her today while she was out and that I opened an account too. Until next time...

Monday, my day off!!

2010-04-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Had a busy, wonderful Monday off!! Kalyn went to school and Reuben went down to DMV to take care of some stuff, so I was at home, car-less, and decided to make some phone calls and take care of odds and ends. I save change in this one jar, so I got that out and was rolling the coin and then Reuben got back, so we headed out for our adventure down at Ojo Caliente (hot springs!!). It's a place that has several hot tubs/hot springs and then a regular swimming pool...all outside!! (His co-worker Kim had a punchcard for that place, so we got to go for free!!) It was a gorgeous, clear blue-sky day, a bit windy, but great!! We both got sunburned and we were only there 2 hours!! It was nice and relaxing!! We drove back to Los Alamos (Ojo is down the Espanola way) cuz Reuben had a 3 o'clock massage appointment for himself. He is supposed to get a massage himself for every 10 he gives other people. Kind of impossible sometimes.

Dropped Reuben off at his appointment and then headed over to Zia Credit Union to see if they could help me with a loan, now that I am officially debt-free!! The lady told me that everything looks really good to go ahead with the loan. She said she explained to her boss that due to the divorce, I had these issues and previous to the divorce, all my payments to creditors was phenomenal. SO...the nice loan lady is off today, but will get a hold of me tomorrow so we can get this done!! I'm so, so, so happy, you have no idea!! I go back to the bank on Thursday and can't leave Thursday or Friday cuz it will just be myself and Christine there, so I'm hoping we can take care of it all tomorrow!! Or possibly, someone could come to my bank and we could sign papers there. What a relief!!!

Kalyn requested chicken alfredo last night with garlic cheese bread, so that's what I made last night. Turned out really good. Kalyn has one month of school left!! She's excited. She got her jury duty part of her punishment done (for speeding) and now needs to work on her community service and defensive driving class. Both need to be done within a month, so I'm hoping she gets on that soon.

Today I'm going to lunch with Catrina and then I work at the gym tonight. It's supposed to be a nice day so will probably just mow the lawn and things like that.

That's all for now....take care!! Until next time....

Days off.....

2010-04-25T07:12:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Just an update to say hello and that my days off are going wonderfully!!! Friday I spent the a.m. vacuuming out the Jeep, then went to Kevin's and cleaned for 2 hours. (I've been trying to dust all the book shelves, etc and finally finished that project) I drove home and began cleaning at my house!! Got some walls washed, picked up cat hair along the walls on the floor, mopping, cleaning up K's room, bathrooms, etc. Got a lot accomplished on Friday. I stopped at lunchtime and picked up some tacos for K's lunch and picked her up from school. She drove back to school, so I was stuck at the house and decided it would be a great time to just clean. I did watch "Precious" in the afternoon, which was an ok movie.

Saturday, Reuben and I had to go to Santa Fe quite early. He had a 2 hr class to take for the duathalon that is going on today down in White Rock. (He is volunteering as a helper/masseuse for the racers. I was going to help too, but got asked to work/swap shifts with people at the gym. I'm working 10-6 today at the gym, which is the entire day that the gym is open!! LOL We usually have two people split it up, but both of them needed to swap and so I just offered to work the whole day if someone took my shift on Saturday. So, in the end, I get two extra hours which is always a good thing.) We went to IHOP, first thing, to eat, then went to Target as he had a giftcard and I wanted to get a few t-shirts and a pair of shorts. I ended up getting a new swim top (one I almost bought last time, but it was too expensive. This time it was 1/2 price!!), zip-up sweatshirt, bermuda shorts and some t-shirts, all for very little money. We then left there and had time to stop at Kohl's. EVERYTHING was 1/2 price!! Oh man...wish I had extra money yesterday!! LOL I did get 3 tshirts that were $5 each and another pair of shorts. I had a $10 off card from them, so only spent $20!!

I drove Reuben over to the massage school and then left him there. I then drove over to Walmart, looking for K's hair spray. She uses Fructis and they keep changing the style/formula so it's really difficult to find now and eventually we will have to switch to a different kind, but for now, this was my mission....to find the hairspray!! No luck at Walmart, all they had was the new stuff. Ok...next...

Drove up to Smith's.....no hairspray, but bought a magazine....Drove to Payless Shoes...nope no hairspray AND no shoes I liked....Drove to Kmart (thought of my Aunt Jacque)...nope, no hairspray. Drove to Walgreen's (thought of Aunt Julie)....YES, hairspray!! AND they had 2!! Bought both of those up and still had time to drive across the street to Bed Bath and Beyond!! Finally time to go get Reuben and head back to LA. He had a client coming in at 1pm and I had a facial scheduled at 2. Picked up some Taco Bell for K and headed back!!

The rest of the day was really nice. Had the facial, went to the gym and ran on the treadmill, then we came home and cooked ribs on the grill. Learned a new trick!! With the pork ribs, if you boil them slightly (like brats) the inside gets cooked and then you throw them on the grill!! You get rid of excess fat on the ribs this way. They turned out very moist and yummy!!! Saves grilling time too!!

Well, enough of my rambling....as you can see I am stalling to get ready to go to work!! LOL Looks like a gorgeous day today!! You all have a nice one! Until next time...

Winnings!!!

2010-04-21T06:25:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Every quarter at the gym, the owners draw two names out of this "kudos" box that we have at work. The employees receive the "kudos" when they do something extra around the gym like cleaning or a task she wanted us to do, etc. So, you put your little "kudos" in the box and then after the quarter is over, she draws two winners. Well, last quarter it was myself and Katie (an instructor) that won. We each won a $25 Chili's gift card and Reuben and I used it on Valentine's Day. THIS quarter, I won again!!!! I won a $40 gift card to the clothing store Beall's here in town and the other lady, JoAnn, won a $40 massage gift certificate to go see Reuben!! I'm glad I didn't get the massage coupon!! I think the owners know better!! LOL So, I'm all excited about my gift card.

Until next time....

My Friend Keith

2010-04-18T16:57:00.001-07:00

Hey all,

Just thought you all would like to see the "other" man in my life!! He is 82 and his name is Keith Kelley. I try to stop over at his place for about 20-30 minutes every night that I am off from the gym. I check to make sure he is doing ok. Sometimes I have found him well and sometimes I have found him sick as a dog!! He is a very famous artist. He has his paintings all over the country, in museums, hospitals, etc. He has one that will be put in the Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City soon. I took a pic of him today and some of his paintings to share with you all. We tease each other all the time that we are probably related as my grandmother's maiden name is Kelley. Spelled the same and everything. Kinda funny. Enjoy!!!

Until next time...

Blah, rainy Saturday.

2010-04-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Not a lot happening, but wanted to post about the day. It was a bit rainy this morning, but now the sun is out, so that makes me a bit happier today. Just feeling a little blah..not sure why..no reason to be down at all!! Oh well, I guess everyone is entitled to a "down" day.

I got to Kev's house about 8:45 this morning, started my dusting back in Tj and Diana's room and bathroom, then at 9:25 had to leave for my haircut appointment. Had a good chat with my stylist, Ruby, and then left and went back to Kev's to complete the cleaning. Got a lot done over there, but had to hurry at the end as it was getting close to noon and I had to be to work at the gym at 1. Got home in plenty of time to change, make my lunch and throw a load of laundry in the washer. Now I'm still working and it's almost time to call it quits.

I think I am making tacos and tostadas tonight. It's quick and easy and sounds good!!

Not sure what tomorrow holds....Gotta do laundry and then Reuben wants to go watch a group of people rock climb, so we may go do that. He is getting a facial at 10:30 so I will probably go for a run while he does that.

I have another small vaca at the end of the week. I am off Friday the 23rd and go back on Thursday the 29th. I have to work a full day at the gym on Sunday the 25th to help cover some people. I have a couple of appointments while I'm off so I'm hoping to do some scrap booking this time since I don't have a whole lot going on. I didn't request off from the gym cuz I would only work part of that time I'm off anyway. No big deal...

Okay...enjoy the day out there and love to all. Until next time...

Not too much....

2010-04-12T06:32:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just a little update here....

Had a good weekend. Went to see "Date Night" on Friday night. That was really funny and we enjoyed it. Saturday I had to work all day. I cleaned at Angie's and then had to work at the gym at 1 until 7. Hung out at home for the rest of the evening watching "Couple's Retreat". Sunday, I cleaned my house, did laundry, went for a run outside in the beautiful weather and did a few things outside. Me and Reuben went to the store and bought stuff to make cheesesteak sandwiches. They turned out really good, quick and easy!! Then, I went to visit my 83 year old friend, Keith Kelley (yes, we might be related) and then came home and watched "Celebrity Apprentice". I only watch very few shows and that is one of them. It's pretty interesting.

Kalyn spent all day watching Lifetime shows in her room and doing homework. She is doing really well. School is almost over for the year. Only 6 weeks left!!

Well...gotta get going....love to all. Until next time...

Happy Easter!!! (and 100th blog post!!)

2010-04-03T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just wanted to wish you all out there a very Happy Easter!! Here is a pic of Kalyn's basket I put together for her. I hope she likes it!!

Love to all...Until next time...

Happy April....Fools!!!!

2010-04-01T17:21:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Not much to report but thought I would type a little something anyway...

Had a nice mini-vaca...I got a whole list of items checked off my list except for two things, so I'm very happy. Got some raking done, organizing, cleaning...you know..my usual duties all complete. I told Aunt Julie I'm ready for her to come visit now!!

I'm a little down today....but now I'm working at the gym so hopefully my mood improves. I can't be Miss Chipper ALLL the time!!! lol

Auntie Ann texted me today saying she won $10,000 on a scratcher lotto ticket. I replied.."no way"...then she replied..."april fools"...ugh...I totally fell for it!!! lol

For Easter, I am cooking some ham, scalloped potatoes, corn goo, rolls, fruit cocktail with coolwhip and then cheesecake for dessert. Sounds yummy and easy!! I think it will just be Kalyn, myself and Reuben eating. Was thinking of inviting Kev over also, but he has a girlfriend now so he may be doing something with her.

That's all I got folks...Until next time...

Easter is approaching!!

2010-03-26T06:13:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Just a quick visit on here today....we are doing well. Kalyn has Spring Break next week and I will be off from the bank Mon, Tues and Wed to get some things done around the house and hopefully spend a little time with Miss K (if she's not sleeping all day). I've got a list of things to try to complete. Some of it is just doing raking and things outside. I will probably wait on some of the outdoor stuff unless it is super nice outside. I hear the weather is supposed to be pretty decent here next week. Today it is windy!!!!! Yikes!!!

Had a good dinner with Ty and Em last Sunday. Emily had Spring Break a week ago and now was back at school this past week. Her parents will be gone for a month in July so she will be up here watching their house etc. Tyler has some concerts this summer he is playing for and he plans to work alot. He also said he is looking into taking at least 2 classes next Fall!! I'm so happy for him. They are also moving into a house at the end of July with two other people. It will be the same rent, but a bigger place. Still close to campus too. They seemed in real good spirits. We ate at Fuddrucker's...yum!!

Kalyn had a fun trip with her Dad and Steph and I'm so happy for her. Kalyn says there will be another wedding for them this summer, but didn't know when. They are having it in Moab, so she plans to be there for that.

That's all I've got for today...must finish getting ready for work!! Until next time....

The New Room!

2010-03-20T19:17:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

Here are a few pics of the newly renovated craft/exercise room I have made out of Tyler's former room!! I also put up a pic of my new luggage set!!! They both have a handle with wheels, etc. Got them really, really cheap at Ross. It's a discount clothing store and has household items too. I hadn't really gotten a chance to spend all my Christmas money due to paying for other things, so I made some recent purchases for myself. Let me know what you think!! :) I got everything either on sale or a discounted price, so I did really well getting everything I wanted for the room.

Until next time....

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

2010-03-17T06:38:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

Hope you are wearing green today or you will be pinched!! hahaha

Working half the day at the bank and then driving Kalyn down to Albuquerque to the airport. She is going to visit her Dad and step-mom Stephanie in Kansas until Sunday! I'm happy she gets to go and have a little fun. Her Dad told her they will take her to the Wizard of Oz museum and things like that. Kalyn's Spring break isn't until the end of this month, but we decided it would be ok to miss 2 days of school to go see her Dad. Kalyn did really well this last quarter of school, so I'm so proud of her!! One more quarter left for the year. Can't believe she will be a Senior next year!! Wow!!

Tyler is doing well. We hope to hookup with him on Sunday for dinner, hopefully.

Not much else..just working, working as usual. Love to all!! Until next time...

It's March!!

2010-03-04T05:45:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Not too much going on with us, but thought I would make a post anyway!!

Lesley, at work, redid our whole aquarium by taking EVERYTHING out of it, cleaned it all up and ordered new pumps, etc. I took a couple pics of the finished product. It looks really nice now. No fish in it yet as it has to settle before adding "life" to it. She's thinking of getting some oscars. I wish she would get a bunch of more tame fish than that, but oh well. There is only 3 of us in our branch now, so things are run a little tight right now. There has to be 2 of us there at all times, so the other day when Lesley took the day off, Christine and I had to be there all day without leaving or anything. It's kind of a pain, but this will only last until April, when they can hire someone, but only at part-time status. Our bank is doing really well, but I think they want to keep it that way!!

We are working on our vacation time at work. Lesley has like 10 weeks to take this year and I have 7! Don't really have the funds to go off and do something REALLY fun, but the time off with Kalyn will be nice. I'll have to get down and dirty with the house or something and just go on a cleaning/scrubbing walls expedition.

Kalyn had a wonderful concert the other night! It's their last one for the year already.

Haven't spoke to Ty, so don't know what he is up to....I'm sure he's doing well though.

Enjoy the pics. Until next time.....

Saturday just working....

2010-02-27T12:53:00.001-08:00

Hey all,

I'm having a decent Saturday, so far!! Spent the morning being a bit lazy...then made some elk chili to make frito pies tonight. I have it simmering in the crockpot as we speak. I went over to Kev's and cleaned up a bit there. Right now I'm working at the gym and working on the deposit for them. Fun, fun.... I also did a few things with the Jeep before work. Kalyn had it all day yesterday so there was sand everywhere in it and I vacuumed all that up, washed the windows and then put some grease into the front end by the tires. Since we have the lift, I have to grease the A-arms now and then. Not sure why or anything... LOL

Kalyn is doing well. I think she finally signed up for her online courses so hopefully she will get moving on that. She is doing well with counseling and now her new interest is church with her friends. I think that is a great thing for her.

Tyler is doing ok. Working a lot more and he got his taxes back so he's pretty pumped about that.

Not much else to report....it's a bit cloudy outside and supposed to snow tomorrow, but we shall see. :) Until next time...