Big Brother 11 Season Finale

If any of you all are interested, I will be hosting a Big Brother 11 season finale chat on Tuesday, September 15th from 9-11 pm EST in The Lobby on ALIGab.com. Mark your calendars.

College

I spent the majority of my time in high school working and dealing with family drama to really pay attention to my grades in school. Some things I did great in, like Child Development, other things I didn't care about, like English. Believe it or not, I never turned in a term paper my entire time of high school. My mom was too busy gambling at the casinos to help us study at home. We didn't have a computer back then either.

Growing up, I often thought I would be a teacher. I love working with children. I decided not to go down that path because I thought the pay and stress wouldn't be worth it. Plus, I never even considered going to college because my parents never talked about helping us pay for it. I just assumed we would graduate high school and just go to work somewhere. It didn't help that when I was a freshmen in high school, the guidance counselor told me since I didn't start on the University path, I would never be able to go to college.

Sometimes I feel like NYEBoy wishes I would have more ambition for a higher education. Not because he thinks I'm stupid, but because he knows I can do it. I haven't really thought about going back to school until I started registering K for classes, buying her books, and helping her with her homework each night. I realize, maybe I can do it. Maybe I'm smarter than I give myself credit for.

The only downside to having these thoughts in my head, is knowing I can't go to school right now. I can't go because we're down to one car, we already have two of three of us going to school full-time, and someone also has to watch A. Maybe I'll try to get in next fall when A starts preschool or maybe I'll just wait until NYEBoy graduates, but maybe by then I'll be a Mom. If I'm a Mom, I'll be too busy to go until the kids get into school. Who knows what the future holds. I know I want to be a Mom above all else, but maybe I'll have the chance to go to college one day.

Show & Tell: Rice Cooker

Since the girls are living with us now, we've I've been cooking at home at least once or twice a day. A year or so ago, I bought a Crofton Rice Cooker from Aldi's, similar to this one. I've never been able to make good rice before. I was a little skeptical it could even be done at home. I mean really, there must be a magical rice wizard at Asian restaurants, right? To my surprise, the rice turned out perfect the first try. In fact, we've had rice every night since.

Now I know exactly how Bubba Gump felt. There's tons of things to do with rice. There is plain rice, brown rice, long rice, short rice, wild rice, vegetable fried rice, cheesy broccoli rice, cocoanut lime rice, mexican rice, rice... ah, you get my point. If rice is cooked properly, your options are unlimited. Otherwise, improperly cooked rice just ends up in the trash.

The only advice I would have to say is, if you have lived in an Asian country for an extended amount of time, please do not tell your girlfriend cook that their rice isn't that great even if her white girl from Tennessee ass thinks it's the best thing since sliced bread. It's rude and she might cry and she might remind you that you are in AMERICA and over here THIS IS HOW WE ROLL! Or at least, this is how she cooks rice. I'm just say'n...

Don't forget to see what the rest of the class is sharing.

The Cycle of Motherhood

When K and A first moved in with us, it didn't take long for us to notice that K yells, screams, pinches, and spanks A a lot. It's no surprise really. K has spent the majority of A's life working one or two jobs to support Thugboy and A. She hasn't had any real time to be a real mother. She only knows how to parent from what she's learned from our mother, which isn't to say much. Every time she yells, screams, pinches, or spanks, I'm instantly transported back to my childhood. I'm even beginning to notice when K does these things to her, A immediately reaches for her mother, the exact same way I did. She just wants her mother to love her, not yell, scream, pinch, or spank her.

Parenting is a hard gig. I've never said child rearing was all rainbows and sunshine. I won't even lie, there are some days where I think maybe God made me infertile because I'm not cut out for this. Yes, there are days when one wants to crawl into a hole, alone, to rock back and forth chanting "la-la-la-la I can't hear you!" But, you also have to stop and think why is my child acting the way they are? Are they tired? Have they eaten? Do they need attention? Have they been watching too much tv? Why are they getting on my nerves?

Children need a schedule. They need consistency. They need to know what to expect. They need to be fed healthy foods. They need to be given naps. They need to go to bed at a decent time. They need attention and love. If they don't get these things, then you can't be mad when they act out at anyone but yourself. I've been slowly trying to teach K these things, but I think she thinks I'm just blowing smoke up her ass. You know, because I don't have kids because I'm biologically fucked up, I can't possibly know a damn thing about parenting. Duh, didn't you know, as soon as you pop a kid from your vagina you're automatically a know-it-all?

Yesterday, K came home from school and slept all afternoon. She even kicked A out of her room twice when A tried to go lay down with her. Tonight, I rolled over in bed to get back in NYEBoy's arms, when I looked into A's bed to check on her, I noticed she was gone. My heart stopped. I hit NYEBoy and damned near screamed "A IS GONE! A IS GONE!" I ran downstairs to K's room and opened the door to see if A was with her. K said she couldn't go to sleep so she came upstairs to get A.

Are you fucking kidding me? Because YOU can't sleep you're going to get a SLEEPING child out of bed knowing YOU have to be up early to get ready for school. Now, I get the joys of dealing with a child who's sleep was fucked up all day today while her mother is at school. When she comes home from school, she'll be bitching at her because she's got homework to do. She'll need to decompress.

K is a selfish parent. She only wants her when it's convenient for her. She's fine with how you parent, until she's ready. Then, you don't know anything and she knows everything. She didn't believe A could go to sleep on her own. As she told NYEBoy, "She only goes to sleep right away for me, because I'm her Mom." Despite that after a week of getting into a routine of brushing teeth, going to potty, reading a book, and turning on some light music, she's able to fall asleep on her own with very little protest on her end.

I just wish she would make a better effort at this parenting gig. She mumbles several times a week that she can't wait until she's done with school and out of here and how she can't wait until I have a kid. I wish she would appreciate this chance we've given her. Not many people get a chance like this. It's not easy on the relationship between NYEBoy and I, either. I'm completely risking my relationship with a man I know I'm supposed to be with for the rest of my life, to give her and her child a better chance at life than her own parents or Thugboy ever has.

The shitty mother cycle has to end somewhere. It's not fair for A to have to grow up this way because she was unluckily brought into this world by two dumbasses. I can only hang on to the hope that if this doesn't work out, that despite all of the trials she may have to go through, she can over come it just as I have.

Healthcare, Shemelthcare

Wednesday, my Uncle G was in a car wreck. He declined to go to the hospital, in part because he didn't want to have to worry about a hospital bill even though he had health insurance and worked full time as a truck driver. Over the course of the next 36 hours, my Uncle G was in a lot of pain. His sister told him he really needed to go to the hospital. With his back and abdomen hurting more and more as the hours passed, he finally decided to go. He told his sister he needed to get dressed first. About that time, his abdomen began to swell. He looked at his sister and said, "Don't be mad at me." As he got up to get ready, blood poured from his nose and mouth, his knees buckled, and he fell to the ground. His sister ran to call 911. My Uncle G starred at her husband as he died by choking on his own blood.

Friday, my father called me to tell me he had passed out a few times while doing landscaping, but was home now and taking it easy. About 30 minutes later, he called me to tell me he wasn't feeling very well, and wanted to know if it was okay if he passed out as long as he was laying in his bed. I firmly told him to go unlock the door and call 911. My father called me from his hospital room Sunday to ask me if I had heard back from the financial aid for my sister since shes starting college. Instead of relaxing and getting the medical help he needs, he's worry about being able to pay for his two day stay in the hospital, even though he's insured.

Why should we care about Healthcare Reform? We should care because the health care industry shouldn't be a for-profit industry. It's a conflict of interest. There shouldn't be someone sitting in a cubicle deciding who is worthy and who is not, based on how many Doritos they've had in their lifetime or how lucky they were in the gene pool. Health care shouldn't only be for the very rich, very poor, seniors, children, military, or government. It's a human right. It should be for everyone.

Not only is it a human right, but it should be affordable. Although there may be nearly 50 million uninsured Americans, there are many Americans who have health insurance, but are afraid about how big their bill will be if they use it. If you're worthy of getting health insurance, they rape you with the premiums even before you step foot into a doctor's office. What good is health insurance if you have to decide between paying your mortgage, sending your kid to college, or taking the risk of dying?

Today, my Uncle's cold dead body will be placed into the ground and my father will wake up early to go landscape again because he knows the hospital bill will be in the mailbox before the end of the week and his daughter's tuition bill won't be far behind. For all of you who are out there protesting the Healthcare Reform or don't care about the right to affordable health care, please go to sleep tonight with the image of my uncle choking on his blood as he died because he was worried about a hospital bill. I hope all of the chanting and childish screaming in the townhall meetings are worth it because my family sure doesn't think 51 years was long enough with him in our lives.

THE Big Announcement

I've been saying for several months now that I have a big announcement to make. Every time I've made plans to make the announcement, something has come up, throwing a wrench into my plans. In fact, I planned to make the announcement this afternoon when I got two unexpected phone calls this morning telling me my uncle was dead and my father wasn't feeling well. He passed out several times. After sternly yelling at him on the phone, he agreed it was time to call 911. He's in the hospital and stable. I will blog more about both of the phone calls tomorrow. Like I said, plan to make announcement, beware of the wrenches! Despite the bad news, I'm ready to make my announcement.

A few months ago, I realized, although we have blogs to tell our stories, there isn't a place for the ALI (that's, Adoption, Loss, & Infertility, for those of you who didn't know) community to chat with each other live. After many, many, many, many, many, many, many months of waiting, begging, and crying, I'm pleased to announce the opening of ALI Gab. A free chat site specifically designed for the adoption, loss, and infertility community-- for you, for me, for us. ALI Gab has over 25 rooms ready to help you connect with others.


[Click the logo to enter the site.]

ALI Gab will also have special 1 hour chat sessions we're calling Gabbing with... at least once a week with a special guest. More information will be made available soon on the main page for that.

So go ahead, sign up (for FREE!), and come chat with me. Spread the word to your friends and/or blog about the site. The more, the merrier. There is even a badge you can copy/paste to your site/blog on the main page.



Thank you for being patient with me. I hope it was worth the wait.

Show & Tell: 4th Blogoversary & Book Giveaway

For Show & Tell I am giving you the chance to celebrate the story of a blog and the chance to win a book about blogging.

Today my blog turns 4 years old. Wow, what a difference four years makes. Four years ago, I was with M. We had been TTC for 13 months. I had spent the first 13 months of my TTC journey on a BabyCenter board for 20-Somethings TTCer's. I had seen woman, after woman, after woman join the board, become pregnant, and even some deliver. It was becoming increasingly harder to be an active part of the group while I watch people obtain the one thing I wanted most in life, the title of mother, after only a month or two of babydancing.

A little over four years ago, two of the girls who had been TTC about the same time as I had from the board made their own blog. I thought blogging would be a better outlet for me. Unlike the board, blogging is your own space. Sure, people leave comments, but you choose what you want on the front page. Shortly after I began my blog, my teenage sister became pregnant with A. It was a tough time in my life. I needed the alone time. Things were dark. At that time, I didn't really have anyone online (or at home, for that matter) to talk with.

I have spent the past 4 years meeting hundreds of women going through the exact same thing as me. They, you, feel the exact same thing I do. I don't feel weird for saying I am hurting because I want a child. You get it. You don't tell me I'm too young or to get over it. You don't tell me to shut up. You don't tell me it's what God had planned for me. You get it. You're going through it, too. Or at least, have gone through it, too.

I've been through a lot over the past four years, including my teenage sister having a baby, finding out I'm infertile, finding out I have PCOS, breaking up with M, finding love again with NYEBoy, and hitting my five years of trying to conceive. You've all been there for me, reading me, offering support or advice, laughing with me, and crying with me. You've been there. Thank you for your support. If it weren't for you, and you, and you, and you, I wouldn't be here.

I may have not accomplished getting pregnant in the first four years of the blog (5 years TTC overall), but I have managed to stay alive. I'm not sure if the next four years will bring me the title of a mother, but I'm sure I won't be alone.

On a side note, thanks to this blog, I have had the chance to meet two local bloggers, Kristen and Deb. Although I bought a new shirt to meet Kristen, I knew I would have to buy new panties to meet Deb. Deb and I met up this past weekend to see Julie & Julia. Shortly after we sat down, we both realized seeing a movie two seconds after meeting a blogger probably wasn't a good idea, because we both wanted to talk to each other. After the movie was over, we drove down the street to have a cup of coffee. We chit-chatted for a bit. Deb gave me a copy of her book, 5 Ways to {Blank} Your Blog. I begged asked for another copy to give away to one of my readers. (I have no shame. Don't judge me!) She was nice enough to give me an extra one. (Thankfully. OMG, how rude would I have been if she said NO!?) I couldn't put this book down until I read it completely. Some of it I laughed at and some of it made me want to run to my blog to make sure I wasn't doing.

It's a must read for every blogger. Even if you don't win the giveaway, you should totally buy a copy. It's only $10, shipping included! It's never too early for stocking stuffers!

Here's your chance to win a copy of Deb on the Rocks book, 5 Ways to {Blank} Your Blog.



Leave a comment on this post. You can earn an entry by tweeting or blogging about this contest. (Leave a link in the comments for me.)

Comments due by August 31st, 11:59pm EST. Winner will be announce on September 1st. The lucky winner must contact me within 48 hours or another winner will be selected. Got it? Got it.

Thank you for being here for me for the past 4 years. Don't forget to go see what the rest of the class is sharing.




As it goes, this is In Due Time, the rantings of an infertile waiting for her time.

Resolution

Sometimes I like to talk/blog about things because I feel like I need other people praying or sending positive vibes our way with hopes the outcome will be in our favor. Sometimes I don't talk/blog about things because I'm afraid it will jinx it or something. NYEBoy didn't want me blogging or talking to the family about his school issues. He wanted to keep it between us. With it coming so close to the start of school and listening to him stress out about it every night, I decided I couldn't handle it any more. I needed to tell my friends (you) and family in hopes of good vibes and prayers. Yeah, I'm one of those positive (or negative) thoughts, positive (or negative) things happen, sometimes, kind of dorks.

We heard back from the school today. Everything is settled, NYEBoy starts school on Monday. The school will pick up any outstanding bill that overlaps due to the new law. The only problem we have now is, his schedule was blocked/on hold during all of this drama and the classes (mainly, one) he wants is full. I told him to contact the professor who emailed him today to see if he could help him out with that. So, if you could pray/send good vibes for this one little wrinkle in our lives, I would be ever so grateful!

Bureaucracy

As you all know, NYEBoy was accepted to graduate school a year ago. Last year, he was able to get an out-of-state tuiti0n waiver, with the understanding that after one year, he would be considered in-state for tuiti0n purposes. Apparently, in July, a new Fl0rida law was passed stopping out-of-staters coming to school and getting the in-state rate, even after they've been here for over a year. We can't afford the out-of-state tuiti0n because he's not allowed to work while getting a stipend from the school, even though that barely covers rent and utilities. Forget about gas, food, car insurance, health insurance, cable, internet, and the other bills we have.

We've contacted a lawyer since this law was just passed a month ago and last year we would have never moved here knowing we would have to pay the out-of-state, even after the first year. (You can get an out-of-state waiver, which is what we did for the first year, but they only give those out once. Period.) We have four options. A.) Everything works out fine. B.) He stays out a year and reapplies next year, but isn't even promised being able to get in-state, even then. C.) Pay up. (Ask his father or get a loan, neither of which is truly an option.) D.) Fuck F$U, reapply to other graduate programs and move next year. We'll know by Friday which way we're going to have to go.

NYEBoy doesn't want to move. He enjoys the school and the program. It's just a bunch of bullshit bureaucracy as always. K and A will go with us if we have to move. I really hope it all works out. I just can't deal with having to reapply, move, and having to get K into another school else where. I am exhausted just from the past month. In fact, when kristencmcd and I had lunch the other day, she asked how I was doing with everything and I almost lost it. I wanted to cry with a bunch of chicken nuggets and strangers watching me. I'm about at my limit of how much more I can put on my plate right now.


(Excuse all the $ and 0's. I really can't have my blog picked up by other students googling about this issue, for NYEBoy's privacy.)

In His Arms

I'm not sure if it's because we have the girls in the house now or not, but it appears NYEBoy and I are a bit more affectionate towards each other. He's been coming upstairs to watch the Big Brother feeds with me in my office for hours at night after the girls have gone to bed. We talk about what's going on in the game or things going on in life. Some time around four or five, we'll crawl into bed quietly as to not wake A, who sleeps in a toddler bed beside ours. We just lay there, he and I, talking about the day or even our future, our future together.

I'll lay in his left arm, with my head on his shoulder. Sometimes I'll place my left hand around his stomach, other times I just lay there as he is my protector. Sometimes he'll rub my left arm with his left hand, other times he'll play with my hair. Sometimes he pulls me closer to kiss my forehead, other times I'll lean up to kiss his lips. Sometimes we make out. Sometimes making out leads to making love, sometimes it doesn't. When we're ready to go to sleep, just before the darkness fades into light, we'll both roll over with me in his arms.

Being in his arms is the most wonderful place to be. I feel safe. I feel loved.

President Obama

A was beside me doing her "work" while I was attending to my neglected email box. I decided to see what was on Keith Olbermann since the live feeds were down while I got caught up, when out of no where A nonchalantly points to the television and says "That's our President!" After that, she went back to work. You know how busy those three year olds can be.

Of course, being one of the few liberals in a mostly Republican family, I grabbed the camera and asked her to repeat herself for a picture. You know, to send to the Republican grandparents.

This one is for you, Mr. McCain and Mrs. Palin.





But really, this one is for you, President Obama.

Show & Tell - Popcorn

Last week I bought a new popcorn maker at a consignment shop. I really didn't have the extra bucks, but this was too fucking cool to pass by. We've made popcorn in it almost every night since. I prefer to have just a dash or two of salt on my popcorn, so this is totally up my alley. I've never really been a fan of movie theater butter any way.



How do you like your popcorn? Plain Jane or Lots o' Butter?

Don't forget to see what the rest of the class is sharing.

Big Brother 11

Big Brother is absolutely my most favorite reality show, ever! This is my 11th season watching. I am addicted. I love watching the live feeds. I even have NYEBoy coming into the office every night to sit beside me to see what's going on in the Big Brother house.



We're on team JJ! I love Jeff and Jordan. I think they are so cute together. We hate Chima, Jessie, and Natalie, though. NYEBoy likes Michelle because she has a PhD, but we both think she's fucked up her chance at winning because she doesn't know when to shut the fuck up! We like Russell, too. I hope he teams up with JJ. Lydia is cute and funky. Kevin is boring. We're so glad Ronnie is gone, talk about a fucking loser! The house hasn't been the same since Casey left. We wish there was a way he could come back. He's fucking awesome, too!

It's sad to know that this season is about half way over with. I haven't been able to enjoy the live feeds as much as I normally do with all of my family drama going on this past month.

Do you watch Big Brother? Who's team are you on? Do you watch them on the live feeds or catch them on Showtime?

We Should Get Out More Often

Remember me saying that I needed a beer? Well, I finally got one this weekend. Saturday, NYEBoy and I left the girls home alone for the first time since they've moved in with us. His boss was on his vacation with his family 3.5 hours West of here. We got a late start due to our sleeping schedules, but it ended up being perfect timing because we made it there a few minutes after they got back home from visiting someone else. I was a bit nervous when we first arrived, especially since the girls were home alone and I've never met his boss before. Anxiety!

Shortly after we arrived, they offered us a drink. Before I could exhale one syllable, NYEBoy pipped up that I would probably enjoy a beer. Whew! Talk about not feeling guilty for enjoying! (Thank you, honey!!) The view from their condo to the coast was just fucking awesome. If we don't have a beach house one day, I'm going to do my damnedest to talk him into getting a condo. Heh. The breeze from the ocean in addition to the ice cold Corona made my heart skip a beat. It didn't take me long to get comfortable and forget all about the girls. Just kidding. Sort of.

We walked a few feet away from the condo to a delicious seafood joint for dinner. It was all going great until his boss' teenage daughter accidently spilt her sweet tea all over me. I was covered with sweet tea and ice from my left breast all the way down to my foot. Thankfully, the iPhone was on the other side of me. I don't think NYEBoy would have appreciated having to buy another. I'm not sure who was more embarrassed, me or his daughter.

After dinner was over, we spent a few more hours talking and getting to know each other. We finally left a little after midnight, but because of the time zone switch and the 3.5 hour drive, we didn't arrive home until a little after 5 am. Boy did we feel like a couple of teenagers coming home way past curfew, hoping our parents wouldn't be awake when we got home. Heh.

Having such a wonderful time with another couple made me realize how much I fucking hate being away from all of our friends and family. I would enjoy hanging out and having a beer with other couples more often. Too bad my only other gal pal in this city is a Mormon. *cough*Kristen*cough* I guess that means if I want to have a beer with another adult, I need get hurry up and get Deb to scribble me in on her calendar.

By the way, I only had four Coronas. Aren't you proud?

Cussing

Whether you've been reading my blog for days, weeks, or years, it only takes reading the first page or two to learn that I cuss. I cuss as much offline as I do online, depending upon my mood, sometimes more, sometimes less. I'm not ashamed of it. Some people say that means one has a limited vocabulary, but I disagree.

One of the complaints* my mother argued with my sister about her moving here was that A didn't need to grow up in an environment where people cussed. You know, because pinching and yelling at your child means you're a great parent, but saying fuck, shit, or bitch around your child is abuse. I don't understand the big deal about a child cussing, as long as they use it properly**. I would much rather my child say "What the fuck?" at something crazy, versus yelling at my child and pinching them when they won't listen in public.

Funny thing is, when A gets on K's nerves, K doesn't think twice about yelling at her and saying "Shut the fuck up, A!" I don't cuss at A, but I'll be honest, I do cuss around her. NYEBoy cusses and he's getting a PhD. What a fuck up that boy is, right? If cussing is the worst my child does, I'll think my parenting skills were pretty damn good.

*What complaints, you ask? My entire family is against K and A moving with us. I should blog about it. My family sucks.
**Mr. PhD student, NYEBoy agrees.

Lil' Homewrecker

In high school, I didn't really date anyone at school because I was too busy dealing with my home life. After all, who needs man boy-drama when you have plenty of family-drama at the house?

In our school district, you can't graduate without taking a physical education class. During my freshman year, I started talking to a guy in my P.E. class. He was a senior that transferred from another city, but didn't have a P.E. credit. My BFF bestie best friend from middle/high school was also in that class. The three of us usually hung out together during that class, especially when it was the part of the semester that was in the classroom instead of the gym. I knew he had a girlfriend, who was in his grade level, but I really didn't care. My best friend started calling me a lil' homewrecker.

Eventually the relationship moved beyond the gym doors, to walking together in between classes, or at least meeting briefly between classes if we didn't have classes in the same building. We tried our best to never cross paths with his girlfriend. There was one part of the day I knew we all had classes in building A, so I would have to wait until she left, to walk up to him. That was the same building he would eventually give me my first kiss in, moments after his girlfriend walked away to go upstairs to her class.

One day, he finally asked for my phone number. We began talking to each other at night, sometimes for hours. One morning, after I talked to him for several hours the night before, I woke up from a dream in which he broke up with his girlfriend. I was a bit sad when I woke up, because, well, it was a dream! When I called him to tell him about my dream, he told me he couldn't talk right then, but would call me back in a few. When he called me back, he apologized for having to get off the phone earlier, but that he just broke up with his girlfriend. After he told me that, I told him about my dream. He thought my dream was interesting considering that morning's events.

After school let out for the summer, we never saw each other again. We talked off and on during the summer but life got in the way. It wasn't your typical high school sweetheart type relationship because he was a senior and I was a freshman. He was a really nice guy, an escape from the realities of home.

He worked part-time at Fazoli's at the time. Still to this day, I can't help but think of him when I go back home and order a pizza baked spaghetti and an Italian ice. It's strange to see how much I've been through and grown since those days. My homewreck'n days.

Show & Tell - Deep Fried Bacon

I was watching the Travel channel the other night when Food Paradise was on featuring all things deep fried. One of the stops included Sololak's Oringinal Country Inn in Snook, TX. What's so great about Sodolak's? Three words my friends: Deep. Fried. Bacon. Holy fucking clotted arteries Batman! I won't even mention that they serve it along side country white gravy. Oh fuck, I mentioned it. Oops! Someone call my cardiologist! Stat!

Being the resident fat ass at casa de In Due Time, I decided I had to try to make it myself, especially considering we've put a tad over 5,000+ miles on this car since the end of June and we're a good 810.42 miles away. Not that I looked that up on Mapquest or anything...

After watching the special on television, I knew the first step was to dip the bacon in milk...


Then, you lay the fucking delicious piece of meat bacon onto a plate with self-rising flour mixed with a dash or two of pepper and seasoning salt. You know, because bacon isn't fucking good enough by itself, silly!



Flip that bad boy over; one side isn't good enough.


Drop the deliciousness into the hot grease. Once you notice it starting to curl and turn golden brown, flip it over until the other side is golden brown, too.


After removing the bacon from the grease, place it onto a napkin to remove any excess grease. You know, because this is a totally healthy snack! Eat swiftly. Others will come running once they smell the goodness.



Next up on my to-fry list are candy bars. I'll be sure to be a fat ass blog about that in the future.

Don't forget to see what the rest of the class is sharing!

Back To School

It's that time of year again, back-to-school time. As a child, this time of year was filled with going to the mall with my Aunts and Mom for back-to-school shopping. It was our favorite time of year, besides Christmas and our birthdays, it was the only time of year we got new clothes. Being poor sucked. Our other favorite thing about this time of year was getting school supplies. Having three kids in three different grades made it a bit hard on a single mom not to spend an arm and a leg. We usually ended up buying the school supplies packet from the PTA at school. It wasn't as fun as picking out cool new folders or pencils, but the smell of new school supplies supplies just smells so, new.

A few years ago as the stores were beginning to be crammed with school supplies I had an idea. I decided I would post online on my local Freecycle group offering to purchase one child's school supply list. I didn't want to hear any woah is me stories, I just wanted to help another parent. Maybe a parent like my mom, who could barely make ends meet, but would never ask for help unless it was family. Instead of being surprised by the number of people emailing me to pick them, I was more surprised by the people offering to donate cash, a case of paper, or a box of extra school supplies to help me help more than one child.

I drove around the city to collect the money and supplies the generous people had donated. After I pooled together the donated supplies and the supplies I had bought, I emailed a handful of the respondents to give me their list. A few days after that, I was able to email the parents back letting them know I had bought everything on their child's list and they could meet me at my house to pick them up. A few people looked like single mothers, one lady was a grandparent raising her grandchild, but they were all appreciative. It made my heart feel good. I knew I had done a good job.

I did that for a few years, but the last two years I decided to help someone from my work instead. Both of the ladies were single parents trying to do the best they could with what little they had. I knew which schools they were going to and which grades they were going into. After I went shopping, I put the supplies into bags and placed them at their desks. I didn't even leave my name, just a card saying someone was thinking about them.

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They're Here And I Need A Beer

We met my Aunt halfway between 0rlando and Tallie to pick up K and A Saturday. It wasn't too terribly awkward, thankfully. The night before we picked them up, NYEBoy was having reservations about getting the girls back so soon, maybe we really hadn't given my family enough time to help them. On the way home though, K told us some other things that had been going on at their house that made us feel like we were doing the right thing. Nothing abusive, but rather them treating K left a red-headed step child instead of an adult trying to get her life on track.

Sunday we spent the day removing all of the boxes out of the downstairs bedroom. I'm not really sure where I thought I was going to put all of the boxes, but I started pulling them out and lining them in the living room and hallway. There are still about 15 boxes in the bedroom that we can't find room to put. I wish we had a garage or storage shed.

Monday we had a lot of errands to run. NYEBoy had to check on residency for tuition purposes. We took K to register for school, but after we got home she started talking to us about wanting to go to cosmetology school. We also had to deal with the leasing company from hell about rent. Then, we ran to get a few groceries. After we got home I cooked and we ate dinner. After that, I fell asleep while putting A to bed.

For the first time in my entire life, I am craving a beer. I'll be honest, it scares me. My father is an alcoholic. I'm not sure if it's because I'm stressed out and actually want a beer or if it's because it's just been a long time since I've been able to go out with girlfriends. Whatever it is, I'm craving a cold one!

CVS Bandaids

This is A's leg after I took off a CVS brand bandaid. It happened to NYEBoy and I as well, but when it happened to the babygirl, I wanted to cry! Can you believe the bandaid did that? I'll never buy that brand again. I guess that's what I get for trying to save money.



Although it doesn't look like there is a wound, it's there. It was more of a small rash thing that we were putting cream onto.