Battle Wounds

Meet my baby... and her battle wounds. Ashley has now been bitten 3 times at daycare. The last occurrance being today. Oooooh am I mad and oh aren't I glad we gave 2 weeks notice on Friday (school policy requires this) as she will be starting a new school on September 4th. The little boy that did this also bit 3 other children today. He has been suspended from school for the rest of the week which I feel good and bad about. We have to ask and wonder if a week from school at 1 year old is really going to teach a child they have done wrong and that "biting hurts". Here's to days without wounds.

Early Start to the Day

When my alarm clock goes off at 6:30 a.m. (really 6:10 a.m. as it is set 20 minutes fast), I never ever ever actually get out of bed. I spend the next hour or so, until the very last possible minute before I'm going to be late and then wait 10 more minutes, before I actually get out of bed. It is then that I run around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to get out of the door on time... to which never occurs. My hubby asked me why this is today when I made the comment that I really should get up that early every morning. My response: "Because I like to sleep more than I like to be on time". I guess I've been lucky so far, but not everyone likes to get out of bed minutes, much less a hour or so earlier than they really HAVE to. I am a sleeper, have always been a sleeper and will most likely remain a sleeper for the rest of my life. At any rate... here's the reason as to why I actually did get up when my alarm went off at 6:30 (6:10 really) this morning. Because Hubby, who was up and getting ready for work said to me, the split second my alarm went off for the very first time, "you might want to get up".

Me: "Why"

Hubby: "Because the hot water pump is leaking"

Me: "How bad"

Hubby: "not too bad"

Me: "Well is there water everywhere"

Hubby: "No, the washing machine was open so it's leaking into there"

See... that's the beautiful thing. I always wondered why the damn hot water heater was suspended into air, 2 feet or so above my washing machine, boxed in, in such a fashion that I managed to hit my head at least once during each laundry session. And I always wondered how or why my husband hadn't managed to get us a new washing machine hose so that the washer and the dryer could swap places so the dryer would be on the right as nature intended. Now, I know why, so when the hot water heater leaks the water doesn't flood your garage and into the house... instead it just goes straight into the washing machine after which time you can hit the "drain" cycle and wa-la... problem solved.

So... on to my next wa-la... the most beautiful, ever useful Home Warranty. When we purchased our first home, a townhouse in the ghetto in Virginia, I insisted, without caring what hubby had to say that we would be purchasing the home warranty. Total up front cost is around $400.00 and each time you need a repair that is covered there is a trade fee of $55.00... TOTAL. When we sold that house, warranty went with it, unused, of course. When we purchased our house in N.C. I insisted, once again, that we would be purchasing the home warranty. Cost was round about the same as the first warranty. The warranty lasts a year and can be renewed. You may think... but $400.00 is a lot up front and $55.00 each time something breaks? Do not kid yourself. It costs way more than $55.00 get get a plumber or electrician to your door. Not to mention the cost of replacing said item that is broken and labor for the man with his crack showing to fix it should you not wish for your husband to tear something up worse trying to do so himself. That means, should our hot water heater need to be replaced today, which I just found out it does, instead of being sick over it, crying wanting to die... it's going to cost us $70.00 (the warranty people say we have to have some sort of valve installed that wasn't there before so we need to have it installed and they won't pay for it... $15.00 extra (I know that this really does need to be added because it is a safety thing we had to have installed to sell our home in VA). I shall keep a list of the items our home warranty, which has now been renewed one time, has so wonderfully replaced:

1. On/Off valve for refrigerator water. Hubby and FIL managed to strip it while turning it on. You see... WE broke it... but for $55.00 they fixed it;
2. Built-in Microwave. The house had a built in microwave that began cutting out occasionally after 2-3 seconds. Damn-it. Then you'd have to reset the time & date before you could begin cooking your food again. Try that happening 3 or 4 times when you are trying to warm something for 30 seconds. They replaced our 4 (or so) year old built-in microwave with a new one, Home Depot value of: $299.00;
3. Hot Water Heater; plumber said the value on this would be $360.00. I asked hubby to ask him how much his total "parts, repair & labor" bill would have been put I have not heard the results as of yet.

Now I shall keep a list of the items that I think I wouldn't mind if they broke:

1. Dishwasher. It has begun making this terrible, awful crying/groaning/whining sound as it transitions between cycles.
2. Heat Pump... I think it might be kind of old... but please, please, please on a wonderful spring afternoon!

I have told Hubby that we will be renewing this warranty every year until they tell us "hell no". You see. Right now. I am laughing, I am care free over this, I'm not about to go over the deep end because of "one more thing that we can't afford but can't afford to live without". Oh the joys of owning a home. So for today, until tomorrow when I move on to other subjects I'm itching over such as motherhood or pressure washers... Here's to Home Warranties and fully operative appliances!

Just another day

Although I wish I had something interesting to blog about, I can not say that I do. Same old stuff really.

I do have to comment that every time, without fail, that I take a day off work, my daughter ends up sick within the next week. I am currently awaiting a call from My School, my daughter's daycare, saying that I need to come and pick her up. They called me earlier and apparently she has been laying down all day and has already had one bad poopie. If she has another I will have to go and get her... and guess what... in the middle of that last sentance... as if I were psyhic... the call came in. I have to go get her. She's had another bad poopie and she didn't eat any lunch! Now I know for sure that she isn't feeling well. This baby is quite the chow hound! So I guess that cuts this short as I am off to get my darling baby from My School. Good afternoon and here's to un-sick days!

Back to the grind...

So hubby, my daughter, puppyboy and I went to VA for the weekend. What a wonderful time but I am so sad today. We left NC on Thursday night around 7:15 p.m. and arrived in VA around 2 ish on "Friday morning". I know it sounds "ugh" but it really wasn't a bad drive. On Saturday we all had lunch with my Mom (she had to work) and then we took the kids to the neighborhood pool. My daughter didn't care much for the water, I think she would really like it is we had the chance to go more often, but we don't have access to a pool in NC so I can't blame her, at 22 months, for fearing it. Come to think of it, I'm glad she fears it at least a little. At least she doesn't try to walk right off into the edge of the deep end as my mom tells me I did when I was little. On Saturday we... well... what did we do... I can't honestly really remember and on Sunday, yesterday, we left to go home around 4:30 p.m., leaving us to pull into the driveway around 11:15 last night. It was a nice long weekend, however, the nice long weekend ended way too soon, leaving me teary and sad today. #1. I miss my "VA" family and #2. I am very sad that I will not have the chance to even think about seeing my "TX" family until next summer. The moments I remember the most this weekend are those spent talking. It's fun to get together, reminisce and tell stories and learn things about those close to you that you didn't already know. And oh yeah, if I do say so myself, I made the most wonderful oatmeal chocolate chip cookies this weekend. I have been craving them for weeks now but don't have all the stuff to make cookies at my house, so I hadn't been able to but since Mom & Dad's house is full of all the necessities I baked some up and boy were they yummy. I have the recipe and plan to bake more sometime soon! Also, at Mom & Dad's house it is always the BEST EATS of all time. Steak, Kabobs, homemade french fries and Klondike bars! ALL the yummies!

I think one things that I will take away and laugh to myself from time to time about it how INCREDIBLY funny my nephew, T, is. That kid, now I tell you has a promising future in stand up and the best part of it all is that he does not intend to be funny, which would make him not funny, it's just natural. For example:

My hubby was upstairs in the bathroom shaving. T came up and was flicking the light on and off. Hubby jokingly says to him "if you don't stop that I'm going to tell your mom". His reply... "or you could just give me a wedgie". Now that's great.

Then there was the time that T asked my hubby if he could stop his work (he had house drawings to do on the computer for work - he is an AutoCad drafter). Hubby replied that he was really busy right at that moment. T replied that he could "always stop for family". Wake up call... for the record, Hubby agreed and obliged.

Another time, my sister, Mrs. Happy, was telling him something she did or did not want him to do. His reply... "end of discussion". And the best part of it all is that is was not disrespectful, it was not rude. It was just sweet, innocent, hilariousness.

T was full of the best comments and tidbits to add to conversation all weekend long. Quite the entertainer. I get the feeling that he gets it from his Dad, Mr. Happy, who, although I've only met once, I'm sure has just the same delightfulness about him. After all, I have heard that he is "delicious". lol.

E, my niece, is also quite the cutiepie. She is so mature for her age and my daughter absolutely ADORED her. They had the best time (my daughter did anyways) playing together. I mean come on, who else on this earth could my daughter possibly get to climb the stairs with her over and over and over again just cause she was too sweet to say "no" until after the 100 millionth time? Too bad its a 20 hour drive from our house to TX (yes, I've already mapquested it and looked at the price of plane tickets for next summer) or else she would make the most wonderful babysitter here in a couple years!

I've also been amazed, even further than I was before, regarding the similarities that my sister and I have despite the fact that we did not grow up together. At the pool we discovered we have the same bodies (lol, sorry sis) and although some other things may be considered coincidence, the similarities move right on down the line from parting on the odd side (although my Mom does this too) to which pickles are the best.

So I had the best time, seeing my Mom, my Dad, my brothers and sisters and my niece and nephews. I love them all so much and wish for many more visits.

Until then, I think I'll be sad... Here's to a better afternoon than this morning.