Are You a Foodie?

First off, I'm not even sure I know what a foodie is! Essentially I think of it as someone who likes food, loves food, enjoys food. Is that close enough?

So, hubby and I have been chatting about pizza. Our #1 son's all time fav food. Me, I like it too, and don't mind having it once a week. Hubby, not so much. He says he gets tired of pizza. A few years ago, I felt like I could eat mexican food every day of the week. Now, not so much.

So this begs the question that everyone wants answered: What food could you eat everyweek, or do eat? How bout everyday? Chocolate, for sure, everyday for me! And I hear all those amens, treasured female readers. How bout your husbands? Kiddos?

So, am I foodie? Are you?

New Bike for Josiah???

Since last fall, I have had a picture of an adaptive bicycle that we would like to buy for Josiah on the sidebar of this blog. Its the one up at the top of this post if you haven't seen it before. Because its for special needs kiddos and adults there isn't as much demand for it as for regular bikes, so the price is quite a bit higher than a bike off the rack of the local "shopmart". And out of the price range for our cash strapped, starving student family. But ever since I found this bike on the internet, I have been dreaming of family bike rides on the Boise greenbelt this spring and summer.

I have been brainstorming for months on how I can get my hands on this bike for Josiah. Not being much into fundraising, or begging on the street corner, Josiah's service coordinator and I came up with the idea of applying for it thru a special group here in Idaho called the Family Support Fund. This fund is for families who have special needs kiddos to help them with things that will help their kiddos in life, whether it be respite, adapted equipment, or whatever.

So tomorrow I am taking my paperwork over to the agency and handing it in. Hoping and praying that they give the "ok" and the funds, to purchase this bike for #1 son. And why, do you ask, am I sharing all this with you, my treasured reader? Because I have a request. Yes, I'm not above begging for favors from my readers. If, and only if, you believe in praying to the God Almighty and Jesus Christ, His son, would you send up a prayer that the people who approve or deny these requests, would decide to approve this application for a bike for Josiah? See, that wasn't too much to ask, was it? If it was, just go along your way, I don't want to hear about it. I can only handle so much rejection in one day. And I think I've reached my quota for today.

But if you do pray, leave me a comment. And Josiah and I thank you from the bottom of our little, thumping hearts. I'll let you all know whether he's getting the bike or not, when I find out.

does that early bird really catch any worms? or is he just faking it?

today is the first day of the new scheduled wake up time. i need to preface this post by saying: I AM NOT A MORNING PERSON!!! did you get that? if i could i'd sleep in late and stay up late, but unfortunately, the world is run by those crazy types like my husband who don't need an alarm clock and bound out of bed anywhere between 4-6 am!!! crazy, i tell ya!

but i digress. on the plane ride over to seattle i had an hour and a half to myself. to read, to think, to doodle .... it was wonderful. so i set about planning what priorities i need to adjust. after writing down all that i want to accomplish as my roles of wife, mother, and Christ follower, it was clear to me that my days of sleeping in and lounging in bed were numbered. so i told hubs when i got home, that i was going to start setting the alarm clock for 6:30am! its not even light out then, but a girls gotta make some sacrifices in life, ya know?

so last nite as i was getting ready for bed, i headed over to the alarm clock. but i just couldn't do it. 6:30 just seemed too ... too ... EARLY! so i cheated and set it for 6:42am. i figure i'll get used to that for a few days and then set it for that unseemly hour of 6:30. sigh ....

well, the alarm went off and after hubby reminding me to get up 5 minutes later, i struggled to put my feet on the ground. i stumbled out to the cold kitchen floor to start my espresso machine (yes, i'm from seattle! i must have my espresso!) thankfully, it takes awahile to make my coffee so i had a chance to rest my eyes and slowly wake up. slow is good at 6:53am.

so all this to say: i am making it a priority and a goal to wake up early each week day. weekends will be a whole 'nuther matter. but i need help. will you keep me accountable? will you check in and ask me how i'm doing? will you pray for me to fight the urge to crawl back in bed once the boys are gone? i know i'm not strong enough to do this on my own. but with God's help, and your prayers i can conquer this lifelong habit of sleep!

car update & would you look at the price of gas now ...

if you were here earlier in the week, you heard me whining about my car. i am happy to report that all is well with the silver bullet. i am not happy to report that, being neither blonde nor dumb (and no offense to those who are either) i managed to act like a dumb blonde.

it all started sunday morning when we couldn't get our car to start. after our n'bor gave us a jump, we sped off to church. the car seemed fine, but i'm paranoid. i was listening for any little sound that might mean trouble. we got home with no problem, but i still wasn't convinced.

that afternoon i decided to take some books back to the library. i told hubby that i would take #1 son so hubby could study in peace. that was good with him. thankfully, the library is only about 6 blocks away. why is that important? cuz when i got to the library and shut the car off i couldn't get the key out! i tried everything. i tried turning it back on, but no. i tried wiggling and jiggling the key, but no. i tried everything i could think of, and then i said, "to heck with it" i left the key in the car and went inside. #1 son and i got our new items and returned to the car. no go. nothing, nada. it was getting on in the afternoon so i said, "let's walk" we headed towards the greenbelt which has a nice trail away from roads and cars and walked home. #1 son decided to whine and sign pizza all the way home. i counted 14 pizza signs even after telling him that yes, we could bake a pizza in the oven when we got home. it was a nice brisk walk and not too daunting.

upon getting home, i told hubby what had happened. i was sure that our battery was toast, or our alternator was going out or some other weird gremlin type problem had occured.

we decided i would call someone the next day to get a jump. so the next day comes, and i HAVE to get something out in the mail to my sister. i had told her i'd mail it friday and i hadn't. i knew i didn't have an excuse so i had to get it out. i went to the campus apt office to see if they had a scale so i could weigh the small package. no such luck. they directed me to the fed ex place near the library. i bundled up in my coat and gloves, but forgot my scarf. oh boy, was that a dumb move. i walked to the fed ex place and missed the mail pickup there by 15 minutes! yikes. by now the wind is starting to kick up and its getting cold. my hands and arms and legs are warm enough, but my nose and ears and cheeks are freezing!

so from the fed ex place its 4 plus blocks to the post office. in the cold, in the wind, on a day where i'd rather be driving my car. when i get there, my glasses fog up in the post office. i weigh the package, put on the right amount of postage and pop it in the box. mission accomplished. that took me 30 minutes. as i decide on my route home, i decide it might be quicker and will certainly be nicer to take the greenbelt home. its just a jog and a skip from the post office to get on the greenbelt and away i go. yes, much nicer, but it takes me a full 30 minutes to get home.

that afternoon the campus security guys help me with a jump, but i still can't get the dumb car to start. i ask one of them to try. he looks down and sees that it isn't in PARK!!! it was in gear, all along! and that's why i couldn't get the key out nor could i get it to start. tho by that time it really did need a jump. so i get in the car, say thank you, and drive off. i'm sure they must have thot i was the ditziest woman they've met.

and all that walking in the frigid, cold of Idaho was cuz i had forgotton to put it in gear when i turned off the engine. in my defense, i have only driven this car since june/july and i'm still getting used to it. (cough, cough) so no, there's nothing drastically wrong with the silver bullet. only with the driver ...

but, on the bright side, have you seen the price of gas lately? here in little ol idaho we are under $1.50 wowsers!!! i spotted a sign reading $1.48/gallon a couple days ago. too bad my tank is still full and i don't need to fill up. but actually, that's a good thing.

what's gas going for in your area? do you miss those days of $3.72/gallon? who knows, they may come back next summer ... for now, i'm enjoying filling up my tank for less than $20.

anyone have any cheese to go with my whine? gouda or provolone would be good ...

as you can see from my title, a littel whining will ensue. if you don't care, leave now. if you are curious as to what could be so bad, stay tuned.

hubby decided last week that #1 son only needed melatonin for sleep, that his drug we give with him wasn't needed anymore. and no, he is not a medical doc. the first couple nites were so so, then the nite before last was a bit worse. last evening i asked hubby if he thot we should go back to the drug. his answer: No. so melatonin it was. now you have to know that our son doesn't produce the melatonin and other hormones needed for sleep in the amounts needed for a good nite sleep. so he has to have something to get him to sleep and keep him there.

so last nite around 3am he crawls into our bed. he's awake. i try cuddling with him to get him back to sleep as hubby slumbers on. no go. hubby gets up early to go study for his class. #1 son hears daddy leave the room and starts asking for cartoons. i say no and try to get him to sleep again. no go. so around 4ish i give in and turn on the tv. i try to go back to sleep, but its a half way sleep, always somewhat conscious of what son is doing. at 6 i wake up to see son taking off his pj bottoms. i ask if he has to go potty and he says yes. we go potty and just barely make it in time. i change him into sweats and undies and take him out to living room where hubby is. hubby understandably tells me to go back to bed. i wake up again at 7:30 when they come in to bedroom to get son dressed for school. finally the leave and i try to go back to sleep. wake up off and on for the next 2 hours and finally get out of bed around 10am feeling like crap.

the culprit, all smiles of course

i NEED my sleep! and i need it all one lump sum! all at the same time! without interuptions. it takes me back to the first 3 years of our sons life when we didn't know he had a sleep disorder and he was waking up 2,3 & 4x a nite! and i was getting up with him and trying everything to get him back to sleep.

so today i'm a walking zombie. no intelligent, coherant thots. no complex projects.

now, who has that cheese?

cell phone no more

we have had a cell phone in some form or another for the last 18 years. and yes, they have been around that long! my husband had one of those large brick phones that had the atenae sticking out of it. it got sketchy reception, but it was for his biz. it wasn't until the late 90's that we added a phone for me. our son came along, we had the money and i was just sure i would need a phone for those emergencies that happen with kids. i got the cute red nokia and loved feeling important enough to have a cell phone. ya, i'm that shallow.

over the years we would change our phone plans. more minutes when we had lots of calls to do or when we used our cells as our only phone. it was nice not having a landline at times. less minutes when it just got too costly or didn't seem to be needed. we got a few new phones over the years, some good and some not so good. and we had the unexpected need for new phones after the dog ate ... not one ... but two! ... i said TWO phones in ONE week. not only did we get a new phone, but we found the dog a new home. and yes we warned the new owners of the dogs desire to eat cell phones among other things.

about a year ago we started thinking about cutting the umbilical cord to the cell phone. we contacted our service provider to find out when our contract would be up. not til fall they told us. unless we wanted to pay their outrageous "get out of jail free" fee.

i counted down the days to when we could get rid of the cell phones and the monthly payment. the university apt we moved into provided a free landline with the apt so our need for a cell phone was not as big as our need to decrease our cost of living. when we were finally able to send in our last payment, i was overjoyed. our last day happened to fall on a friday. that weekend something felt off. it wasn't until a few days later that i realized that i had used my minutes to call long distance to friends and family scattered far from boise. i know there are answers for this problem, but i hadn't bought a long distance phone card yet at that point. and i noticed that when i'm driving to and fro, i often think of a phone call i need to make. old habit of making calls while driving which i'm probably better off not participating in.

eventually when funds allow we'll probably get a cell again. but i don't plan on going back on an overpriced 2 yr plan with one of the big companies. rather i'm toying with getting one of those pay as you go phones. no contract, no paying for minutes i'm not using, no hassle if i decide i need to cut costs for awhile.

so how bout you: are you cutting back? have you reviewed any long standing habits to see how you might cut corners? i'd love to hear your story.

ps: its kind of nice not to be interupted all the time too.

I Need A Haircut!!!

it has been way too long since i've had my hair trimmed. i really, REALLY need a haircut. my hair is brown, and its past my shoulders. i wear bangs and glasses. so i'm thinking of going into a salon and asking for sarah palin haircut! do you think the hair stylist would even know who she is?

my need for a haircut is part of a bigger issue tho. i haven't really settled into a new, fall routine since the move. the month of august was upheaval. with joe out of school and limited help for him, trying to get settled and unpacked, getting michael ready for his classes. whew! now with both boys in school i have a bit more time to get settled, tho it still seems like its slow going.

i have yet to make out a weekly dinner menu as is my custom. my grocery shopping is sporadic. on the plus side, i have been able to use my breadmaker a couple times and yes, we are eating every day. but i have high standards for myself.

so next week i've promised myself that i will find a salon and get a haircut. and maybe i will ask for the sarah palin haircut!

A Sure Cure For High Gas Prices

after a week of vertigo, i have finally got back behind the wheel. i'm doing better tho i still don't feel "right" all the time. i'm hoping tomorrows trip to the chiropractor will put my equilibreum back to normal. anyway, i noticed that being sick for a week, i didn't go anywhere! and therefore, our gas tank doesn't need filling. i figured i saved $20 or more in gas and latte's alone. i don't recommend it to everyone, but if you're in a real pinch, being sick will help on the gas budget. at least for awhile ...

i'm doing a little better each day. i knew it could take a long time to get better, but i must say i'm a bit disappointed that it IS taking this long ... i told the hubster that i don't know if i'm getting any better, rather i'm just gettting used to walking like a drunk.