by Sarah | Jul 1, 2014 | All About Home, All About Me, All of Us, Crap, Random, Redefining Perfect, Top Ten Tuesday
Just over five years ago we gave up cable. Then, after a year I caved and got it again, only to cancel it again after our discount rate went away.
We sure don’t miss the cost, but there are a few things I miss .
With regular stations, Netflix, and Amazon Prime, we have plenty to watch and shows to catch up on, and other shows we can catch after a year, but some things just aren’t the same.
- DVR. There are so many times I simply forget a show is on, or something comes up and I’m not at the TV when it comes on. Worse, some shows (Hell, SYTYCD) just don’t let me catch it online “next day”. I miss the convenience of in-box DVR.
- Ghost Hunters. Inarguably the one show I miss. It’s also the one that SyFy refuses to stream in any way.
- The Dead Files. Another favorite. (Are we sensing a theme here?)
- My Ghost Story. (Seriously, I need help.)
- Nick at Night. It’s showing MY old favorites now…good shows, great reruns.
- Hell on Wheels. Yes it’s on Netflix, but first run is better.
- American Pickers. Yeah.
- Nat Geo. ‘Nuff said.
- FX.
- 100’s of channels. Always something on. (this is both a blessing and a curse. Harder to turn off the TV and, oh, I dunno…WORK.)
In the end, life is better without cable. But some days I do get waxing poetic over the whole thing.
What about you? What is your favorite thing about having, or not having, cable as the case may be? If you don’t…what do you miss most from cable?
by Sarah | Jun 11, 2014 | All About Denver, All About Family, All About Me, All of Us, Crap, Random, Redefining Perfect, Special Needs, The Teenager
The past two weeks have been overwhelming.
It’s been one thing after another.
Denver got sick.
My dad’s Parkinson’s has reared its ugly head something fierce.
Denver’s teenage life blew up into all sorts of drama.
Husband had some big decisions to make at work, and the end result was the exact opposite that we’d been hoping for over the past few years.
I think my head might have exploded at one point.
I’ve been short tempered.
I’ve slept too much to cope.
I haven’t eaten enough.
I’ve only eaten crap.
I haven’t written a word.
But I’m still here.
I’m hoping this is the other side of hell week(s).
I’m putting one foot in front of the other.
Trying not to make a sound.
Trying to remember that positive side of me and find that silver lining.
Trying to not reawaken the dragon.
Because life doesn’t wait for you to cross the tight rope.
It keeps going on.
And so will I.
by Sarah | Jun 4, 2014 | All About Denver, All About Erik, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Anger Issues, Autism, BiPolar with Hypomania, Crap, Cystic Fibrosis, Random, Redefining Perfect, Special Needs
There are minutes.
Hours.
Days.
When it’s all too much.
When everything hits at once and I just want to collapse.
Cry.
Crawl in a hole.
Run.
One child with autism – now on ADHD meds.
Two with CF.
One of those that’s currently ill – and facing possible hospitalization for the second time in a year.
One of those that also has behavioral issues that make me wonder just how to handle it all with her.
A dad with Parkinson’s…which is rapidly growing worse.
A mom I want to help, but am clueless as to how.
A brother I haven’t spoken to in 2 years, with whom I’m now making baby steps to repair that relationship.
Finances.
A new job I never wanted, but needed to get.
A surgery to “Fix” a problem…that didn’t work at all, and might have made it worse.
The list goes on.
And on.
And I forget how to breathe.
I forget which way is up.
But I move on.
I continue on every day as I have every day.
Eventually I remember how to breathe.
My brain remembers how to process.
I find solid ground again.
Today I’m upside down.
Tonight sleep won’t be easy.
But maybe tomorrow…
Tomorrow will be better.
by Sarah | Mar 30, 2014 | All About Family, All About Home, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Blogging Life, Redefining Perfect, Sponsored
*Today’s post was sponsored by Fruitshoot. All opinions and lunch ideas are my own.
I have this special treat I love to do for my girls.
I don’t do it as often as I should, but then it’s not a treat, is it?
I like to make bento-style lunches for them.
I create sushi rolls out of sandwhiches, or just the meat and cheese. I add in vegetables and fruits, and the best part? They are so excited by the fun take on the food, that they happily eat all the healthy food I can pack into the meal…and even better? They eat more than they would if I just offered them a sandwich.
Today we’re heading out on an adventure for our first day of spring break. For my new job (more on that later), we’re heading out to a farm to check out the baby animals. The girls are so excited, but I’m going to surprise them with their favorite kind of lunches.
I’ve got all their favorites in there. Tomatoes, cheese, carrots, bologna, craisins, strawberry’s, yogurt covered raisins, and hard boiled eggs. I rolled the bologna and cheese into sushi-like rolls, and then made the [amazon_link id=”B00CDPNA70″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]kitten and panda faces[/amazon_link] out of them, too. I went with a “round” theme with the carrots to match the rest of the fruits, and mixed all the fruits, dried and fresh, together for them.
All of that is topped off with their (and my) newest favorite drink. Apple Fruitshooter’s!! They love the tasty drink, and that they can open them themselves (that whole independent streak they’ve got going) – and I love that handy little note at the top of the label “No Sugar Added”.
It’s a fun and easy way for us to all get what we want…and it’s a great way to get a drink into their lunches.
So how do you like to fun-up your kids lunches?
*~*
Like Fruitshoot on Facebook
*~*
*Today’s post was sponsored by Fruitshoot. All opinions and lunch ideas are my own.
by Sarah | Mar 27, 2014 | All About Ripley, All of Us, Redefining Perfect
I’ve known for some time (years, really), that we would get a dog. I was just waiting for Erik to catch up in his thought patterns.
It took years.
But here we are. A family of 6. Two adults, 3 children, 1 dog.
Ripley.
I also knew when we got another dog, it would be a rescue. That way it wouldn’t be a puppy, and we would “know” their behaviors.
But then we went and found Ripley.
Beautiful, sweet, Ripley.
Ripley, who had only been with her foster family for a week, so “Behaviors” weren’t an entire known.
But she was beautiful, and perfect, and she has fit into our family like a glove.
Not to say there hasn’t been a learning curve.
There has.
For all of us.
We’ve learned that she is a most insistent lap dog. No matter what you’re doing, if she wants attention/affection, she is in your lap. (at this exact moment as I write this, her muzzle is on my keyboard.) For a 30 pound beagle, this is no small feat.
We’ve learned (to our chagrin) that she is a trash picker.
We’ve learned that she is a lover. Not only will she be a lap dog, but if you get on the floor, she sets her chin on your neck. She’ll do anything to be close to you, just about anything.
We’ve learned that she has separation anxiety. While we tried for a while leaving her home alone with free reign, it didn’t last. The first few times, when I was gone only a short time, she did all right. Then came the trash picking. Then came the day I was gone two mornings in a row…and she pooped on the floor.
She has a kennel now.
She’s handling the addition well, and even chooses to sleep in in from time to time (because we put her bed in there).
At night she still sleeps with us or Denver.
Which reminds me, we’ve also learned that she’s a dreamer. Down to growling and yelping and running…which is always fun when you’re trying to sleep.
But the most important thing we’ve learned in all of this?
Is that she’s family.
Yes, behaviors are going to crop up.
But our home would be empty without her.
Her presence has brought a calming factor to the house – for the kids, for Erik, and for me. We’ve all noticed a change.
A very good change.
*~*
We always worried our home would be too small to add another creature, but she fits in like a puzzle piece. One I knew we were missing, and one I’m glad she filled.
by Sarah | Mar 26, 2014 | All About Kennedy, All About Me, Blogging Life, Pour Your Heart Out, Redefining Perfect, Top Ten Tuesday
I’ve never been a confident person (except on the stage).
I’ve never had that “it” factor that makes people popular, and I’ve never understood it.
I remember all too well the pain of being left out. The last called. The one no one liked. The one called “nerd”. The one told, by the one she thought was her best friend “I don’t like you,” after a bone-deep betrayal.
The pain that cuts deep in the eyes of youth. The pain that lingers long into adulthood and taints memories for years to come.
I remember so clearly the torture of late elementary and middle school. I was terrified to send my boy to middle school because of my experiences (but he survived unscathed).
*~*
Out of all my kids, I never thought I’d have to worry about Kennedy.
Despite her quirks and tendency toward tempers, she’s a bright and shiny, happy girl. One I thought was brimming with confidence and cheer.
I never thought she would look at me with tear-filled eyes and whimper those heart-wrenching words…
“Nobody likes me. They won’t play with me. They said they wouldn’t be my friend anymore.”
A shot to the heart that brought up so much pain for myself.
Worse, because it’s my baby.
And I want to fix it.
But is it fixable? How?
After a few weeks of contemplation, discussion, and talking, I attempted to email the teacher. I explained the situation, what had been told to us, with the full acknowledgment that I knew sometimes K’s temper could be a stepping stone. I asked the teacher for HER insights and observations…if she’d noticed anything. The only response? The guidance counselor calling to suggest Kennedy be placed in “Friendship Group” again…a group she’s been in every year that’s designed to help kids w/ issues making friends for various reasons.
No insights.
No help.
K seems happier now. She’s said that her friends agreed to be her friends again.
But I watch.
And I wait.
Praying that she comes out the other end on the good side of the emotional wall.
Knowing that I’ll be there whatever happens. Either with deep understanding of her pain, or joy that she has a freedom and happiness I never felt.
*~*
Written for Things I can’t Say’s Pour Your Heart Out
Just over five years ago we gave up cable. Then, after a year I caved and got it again, only to cancel it again after our discount rate went away.
