Bought the DAMN glasses!!

So I bought the glasses. I was looking and looking. Made my friends and my hubby go into the eye glass place like it was an optical emergency a few months ago (pre spinal fusion). Well, happy to announce my eyeballs are one step closer to health. Not to mention the drivers in our little town are one step closer to me seeing them. I bought regular glasses and sunglasses. Both of them are cool and I can't wait to get them. I ordered them online and got a great deal on gooptic.com. I was going to get the sunglasses that match (note the cute daisy flowers on the outside arms. They have pink rhinestones in the middle.) but they didn't fit as well as another pair. Either way, I am happy.

Hmmm, need a good catch phrase/sign off for this blog. It bugs me every time I am ready to sign off. I had one for the It's About Time blog, which was "Happy Scrapping". I'm not doing the blog for them anymore. Sad for me but I understand certain luxuries (like someone bloggin for you) are not so affordable these days. Any way, I need to come up with a sign off for my blog. Anyone have any ideas??? Post a comment and help a girl out!

Ok, here I go....

Signing off without a cool, catchy, lovable phrase....

I know, it''s really really really boring to just say see ya.....

Maybe I can just say La La out? No, not really me. Hmmmmmm

HHHHHHHH EEEEEEEEEEEEE LLLLLLLLLLLLLL PPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Me :O)))

So I can't wait!

So this is not my latest photo. I know, don't be alarmed. It's not my twin either. It's FERGIE. My hubbs and I have been fans for a long time and we love rockin out to her tunes. I feel so lucky because he got a crazy bug and decided we need to go see her in concert. No, this is so not a regular thing for Matt. What, spend money?????? Especially because we are on a limited income because if Matts injury. I think he's just going stir crazy being home. We jumped online and bought ourselves a pair. Well, charged a pair. So, don't worry about me being sad and bored on Friday because we are going to see the Fergs!! Not a name that anyone has given her but me but I feel we need to be on a nickname basis since we are going to meet on Friday and be intstant friends. Wish I could bring you all with me. The date night will be good for us. Funny how my kids want to go too. Hmm, maybe I should rethink the music I play in the car??

Ok, gotta go do my Monday night tv with Matt. Catch you all later. I want to write about the PDW crop I went to (sorry Holly) and the recent trip to Havasu. Oh, picked new glasses finally too. I can hear Holly in the back of my head (buy the damn glasses). They are cool. I just need to find them on the net so they are half the price.

See ya'll later.
Lauren

So a long time ago...

My friend Ally " tagged" me. I tried to participate but for some reason I didn't do it justice. Now that I'm trying to plug back into life, i figure I'll catch up on my blogger responsibilities. You know, throw in some, links, do challenges, and actually post! So for my tag.

The tag was to write seven random facts about yourself. I did start. Here's what I wrote:

1. I am the youngest of six. Is that boring? Hmmmm, maybe a need a new #1.
1b. OK, this might be something....I can't stand to eat meat on a bone. Nope, no ribs for me. No chicken wings either. The thought on gnawing on a bone just seems to make the whole meat eating thing seem so much more barbaric. If I do happen to get meat on the bone for a meal, I have to take all of the meat off and get the bone off of my plate before I eat. Weird huh? Luckily my hubby has been sensitive to that one. He is always kind enough to make sure no bones hit my plate. Love the hubbs so much for this.
2. I take pride in being a good friend. A good person in general. The day people are sitting around at a funeral for me, talking about my life, I hope that kind is a resounding thought in the minds of people. I try to treat others, blah blah blah, you know. But really, it's true. Not too much bothers me and I really look for the good in everyone.

Now to finish this....

#3. I have to sleep with at least one foot out. I guess it's more in the summer than winter. But I can remember as a kid my mom tucking me in to bed where she literally tucked my comforter around my legs, nice a tight. I loved it because I knew she was giving me a special few minutes of her time, but I can remember breaking out of my covers almost the second she left my room. Funny thing about all that is my hubby is the exact opposite. He always has his feet covered. He says you don't want anything to bite your toes. He's been telling my kids that since they were little but I still catch them with a toe or a foot out as well.

#4. I love to watch Poker After Dark.

It's on NBC almost every night at 3am. I guess that's morning, huh? It's not that I really love to play poker or anything. I think I originally started watching because I would have the TV on NBC from watching The Tonight Show and Conan O'Brien. I keep the TV on for noise. I actually started paying attention to it because of the phrases like "on the river" or "takes the flop". I guess I just found it strange that there was a whole new world of terms that I knew nothing about. I still don't know much about poker but I do know what the lingo means. Hmm, guess it's not too late to learn new things.

#5. I have always thought I would die young. It started early. I remember thinking I'd never make it to 18. Once I hit 18 I was sure I'd never make it to 21. It keeps on going still. I'm not sure why. The feeling are worse now that I have kids. I pray every night that I make it long enough to watch my kids have their own kids, their own spouses, their own lives. I try not to think about death but it still hits me so heavy sometime. I worry that I'll leave behind things out of order and that someone will have to deal with my stuff. I even worry about my scrapbooks. Silly huh? I have had a deal with Holly for years now. The deal is simple. I die, she is in charge of scrapbooking my kids. You think that would have made me feel better but then the worry changes that I need to journal a bunch so she will have my thoughts, my memories, my vision to put on those pages.

To add into that, I worry all the time about my parents. The thought of living without them makes me sick to my stomach. It's already harder than I thought having them so far away.

#6. I think if I had to choose just one other way my life could have gone, I could see myself as an executive in a big city. Urban living! I'm not sure why but it just feels like that would have been a good place for me. Ok, well minus the dirt, the crowds, and the high rises. Hmmm, maybe I just like visiting big cities! See, nothing interesting here!

#7. I love riding dirt bikes. Motorcycles is something my husband has been into since he was a little boy. He's REALLY talented and one of my fondest pre-children memories with Matt is when he took me on a ride on a motorcycle. We rode all kinds of trails and had a great time. Once I started riding myself, I understood why he loves it so much. No, I'm not ever going to be a super rider like he is. I do love it though. I have had two bikes. My first was a Yahmaha TTR125. We bought that bike for me to learn on. Once I rode better, I upgraded to a new, bigger bike. The Honda CRF230. The perfect bike!

I have to admit I am really sad to say I don't have it anymore. Matt and I decided with three kids it was time for me to take a break from the motorcycle. Once I was preggers with Evan, the bike just sat. Funny how the desert season changes once you can't ride. Here's a photo of how I spent my time in Ocotillo. I know this picture will warm a few scrappers little hearts!

I LOVE this photo. Gives the phrase "riding the cooler" a whole new meaning.

OK, so although painful and terribly long to write, I think I finished my "tag". Part of the tagging thing is I need to pass along the pleasure.

So here are the rules:

(1) The winner can put the logo on their blog.

(2) Link the person you received your award from.

(3) nominate at least 7 other blogs.

(4) Put links of those on yours.

(5) Leave a message on the blogs of the girls or boys you’ve nominated.

So here goes:

Holly- I know she'll come up with good stuff to write and it won't take her hours like it took me. Partially because her pictures are so darned organized there will be hardly a second for her to find pics to add to her post.

Christi- My old friend from playgroup years ago with Megan, her son Jordan, and Holly's son Dylan. Can't wait to read her answers!

Jason- Holly's man. I bet he'll have some good stuff to say. Apparently not only do we share Holly, he shouts from the same soap box I do.

Heather E.- Would love to know more about you! We live so close we need to get together and scrapbook. Let's get books going for your babies!!!

Ali E. - OK, reaching for the stars here but I love reading her blog and maybe just maybe she'll play along. I do have a picture of her on my blog. She is so very nice. Made my day meeting her at CHA Anaheim last year.

Kristie- I'm not sure if she ever played after Ally tagged her.

Shelby- What a great way to get to know each other better.

OK, ladies and Jason, get rolling! Can't wait to read your blogs!!!

Lauren

So the big post I need to do.....

Not Happening!! Every time I want to sit down and post I think I need to go into a long explanation of what has been going on with us. Really, that could be two years of writing, or at least it feels that way. So, I'm not putting it off any more. Here's a little recap.

The guys from the fire department have been so awesome to us. They brought Matt two chairs, one for the bedroom and one for the living room. You'll see how Matt looked here in his chair for weeks. Notice the cooling system on his neck. What a simple but effective gadget to keep the swelling down. Our friends Dan and Alison Henderson lent us an ice machine to keep up with the ice we needed for the cooler. It's funny how a guy who rarely ever sits goes from not sitting to doing not much more than that. He's for sure caught up on all of the racing and truck tech shows for a while! Here are a few pictures of when the guys came over to put in shape. Talk about a humbling experience! At one point Matt leaned over, neck brace and all, trying to help. Bill told him there was no way he'd win in a fight so he might as well stop trying to help. Thanks to Bill, Dave, Dan, Jeremy and Jason for all of your hard work. You guys really went above and beyond.

Speaking about above and beyond, the tremendous support we have had from our friends, especially from the fire department, has been nothing less than amazing. We have to shout out thank yous to all of the guys that have called to chat with or check up on Matt. Thank you to the the families that provided meals, including the Landis, Puhek, Aden, and Morton families, the crews from station 1A and 4A. Thank you Melissa and Jeff Landis for organizing the meals. A special thank you to the Lang family for their generous gift. What a huge help!! More than you can imagine.

To our family, friend's from the neighborhood, school, and our everyday life. Thank you so much for all of the help with the kids, the phone calls, and everything you have done to help make this time a little easier. We love you all and really know we have the best friends ever!

Matt's feeling a lot better. Still at home. We see the doctor in a week or so for his next check up. He still has pain but only needs his pain meds at night. We are curious about how is physical therapy will go and exactly how much and what type he will need to get back to 100%. He is still not allowed to drive.

Since he has been feeling a bit better, I have tried to get things somewhat back to normal for the kids. I camped with the girls at Lake Skinner with their girl scout troops last weekend. Here are a few pictures from that.

It was only a one night stay but all of the girls had a great time. We even had one mom who graciously offered to camp when we weren't sure if I was going to get the chance with Matt's situation. Even though I camped, she came too. Her first camping experience ever. Wow, what a trooper. Thanks Martha!

Ok, well I hope to give you more to read tomorrow. Matt wants on the computer.

Talk to you all soon.

Lauren

PS- I get to work at the store tomorrow! Yeah, I haven't been there in a month at least. I hope to see some of my favorite customers!

Ok, so maybe I did fall of the face of the Earth but I''ve been dragging behind hanging on for dear life!!

Yes, things have been completely insane around here. I feel weird because it's been crazy but SLOW crazy. For all of us stay at home moms, or not so stay at home moms, that might sound like an oxymoron. But as for as much as I've been home with Matt, you'd think all of my t's would be crossed and my i's dotted. NOT!! Life has been crazy even in slow motion. I will explain but it will be a long post, and really, it's been 3 weeks. I'll throw this up in blogland and really give you a good post tomorrow. Here's a little teaser of what life has been like.

Those are pictures of Matt's new hardware in his neck. Cool huh? Well, kind cool. Painful. Look at those screws....they look long like wood screws. OK, more tomorrow.

Lauren

NO, I didn't fall off the face of the Earth!

Man, if I wasn't with me, I might even wonder where I am or why I haven't been anywhere close to my computer. But, since I know where I have been, I guess I'd be a good person to tell you.

First, let me say, it's been a wowzer of a week (or so). Matt has been laid up since last week and he is miserable. I have been shuffling him from doctor to test to doctor and back again. He can't get comfortable in any position and he is a lot of pain.He is B R O K E Well, technically he has a 7mm protrusion at C7 with moderate spine pressure. He has numbness and pain in his left arm. He can't sit, stand, lay down, or anything really. He is in his own little hell because he has all that plus severe headache, nausea, tingling, all that annoying stuff. The worst part is Evan doesn't understand why Daddy can't play. The girls are being strong but you can tell they are missing him. We are lucky if he can get out of bed to sit with us for just a few bites of food. He has no appetite and no energy.

After about a zillion pone calls yesterday morning I found him a doctor that could see him right away. All the others wanted him to wait a month or more for an appt. Surely it was the grace of God's hand that guided me to the spine specialist we saw. They got us in yesterday, were very good to us and we have a plan for surgery on Monday. He will be out of work for two to three months! Man oh man is he sad about that. He's in so much pain that he is willing to do anything to get some relief. Basically they are going to completely take the disc from his spine that is protruding. They will put in a composite made of cadaver cells and insert a titanium plate as well. We were hoping for some better pain management in the mean time but the doctor said there is no room for injections because of the severity and the size of the protrusion. Matt's going to have to suffer for almost a whole week more before he can feel some relief. I can't believe how life can change it's course in a matter of a day.

Well, that's about it on that front. Luckily, I was able to spend last Sat with my person., My Holly. I call her my "person" and that is a compliment. It's hard to explain but just let me say how great it was to spend the day with her. We did our semi-annual trip to Scrapbook Expo. This time we were in San Diego. We had a great time. It was nice for me to have the break from the house and all that is going on here. My in-laws came to watch everyone and it was nice to know Matt and the kids were in good hands.

I didn't get nearly enough scrapbooking done. I really only completed two layouts. Even that is technically wrong because I had an issue with the cricut. You won't believe it. First, I have told you before that I have a black cloud that follows me?? Well, it followed me to Expo. Here's why I say that. I was buzzing up to the "cricut station" to cut my title to put the finishing touch on my layout. I took the "pooh" cartridge out from the machine and put my "Doodletype" cartridge in. Seems normal, right? WRONG! The machine re-wrote my cartridge to make it a Pooh cartridge. Not kidding. Tried it in other machines and still the same. Bummed me out that night but I'm better. Cricut Dan made it right today. He called provo craft and they are stunned and have NEVER had this happen before. Hmmm, remember that black cloud??

But that's where it ended. Really it was a great day to just hang out, with Holly and Tracey. I wandered the floor looking for the next "thing" to make me itch to create. Not that I need an itch but I really wanted something to excite me. I found it. I'm planning on playing with it and I will show you soon. We enjoyed walking the gas lamp for a tiny bit while looking for dinner. I really was loving being in the urban setting. I kept on saying how I felt urban. I will throw a few pics your way tomorrow.

Speaking of showing you.. here's my kids layout for Sept. Have you seen it in the store yet? It's cool because you can customize what grade number you want for each child. Check it out.

This class will be from 4:30-5:30 on Tuesday Sept 16th at It's About Time Scrapbooks and More in Murrieta. Call the store at 951-304-3422 to reserve a spot.

Because I'm playing a game of blog catch up, here's yet a bit more for today. I was "tagged" from Ally Serrato the other day and I really want to play and get the ball rolling for more people to play. So the deal is I'm supposed to write about seven interesting facts about me. Hmmmm Can I even find two??????

Okay, here goes....

1. I am the youngest of six. Is that boring? Hmmmm, maybe a need a new #1.

1b. OK, this might be something....I can't stand to eat meat on a bone. Nope, no ribs for me. No chicken wings either. The thought on gnawing on a bone just seems to make the whole meat eating thing seem so much more barbaric. If I do happen to get meat on the bone for a meal, I have to take all of the meat off and get the bone off of my plate before I eat. Weird huh? Luckily my hubby has been sensitive to that one. He is always kind enough to make sure no bones hit my plate. Love the hubbs so much on these days.

2. I take pride in being a good friend. A good person in general. The day people are sitting around at a funeral for me, talking about my life, I hope that kind is a resounding thought in the minds of people. I try to treat others, blah blah blah, you know. But really, it's true. Not too much bothers me and I really look for the good in everyone.

OK, well I'm just too tired to think of interesting facts. Guess I'll have to "play" tomorrow when I'm not so drained.

TTFN,

Lauren

Love you Holly!

I spent the evening scrapping with the world's best scrapping buddy ever. Funny no matter how much I get done, or how much coffee I drink, or coffee stomach I end up with, I wonder why we aren't together all of the time scrapping the night away like we did tonight. I am just putting the final touches on my layout but I did have the best time just hanging with my friend. Love you Halls!



Me.