All I wanted for Christmas was... (and catching up)

Seems like everywhere I've looked lately I've seen kittens, and I got pretty kitten hungry, to the point that that was all I wanted for Christmas (which came early this year on 12/6), and this is what I got:

In the top picture that's Merry on the left and Chrissy on the right I also dressed up some of the critters for the holidays:

And, us:

I even did a little Christmas crafting:

Wish Bones

The other day Jesse was de-boning the turkey that we cooked the Saturday after Thanksgiving; and he came upon the "wish bone." He held it out to me to grab one side, and it got me wondering: WHY DO WE WISH ON A BONE??? And, how did this become a holiday tradition? So I did a little research, amd this is what I found out...

First, the "wish bone" is actually the collar bone of a bird. Second, back in the day, people believed that chickens were fortune tellers, and capable of granting wishes. Third, when the pilgrims migrated to what is now the United States, they brought the idea with them. Fourth, since turkeys also have wish bones the tradition eventually crossed over to them. Fifth, and I did not know this, the two wishers are supposed to pull with their pinky fingers, and neither should press their thumb against the "head," as this is considered cheating. Sixth, the winner of the pull is the one who gets the bigger piece of the bone, or the piece with the head. And, aseventh, never, ever tell anyone what you wished for, cuz if you do you will not get your wish, and according to some, it could give the "loser" their wish!

States I've Visited

I like to blog-surf, and tonight I found this cool sight that maps the states you've been to. Since visiting all 50 states is my big goal in life, I had to check it out, and here are my results!

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Yep, that's right, just 8 to go!!!

Tug-of-War

Ever since I brought Dexter home, he and Rudy have been best of friends. One of their favorite things to do is play tug-of-war... Here's proof!

I'm Tired! Tired! Tired!

A week ago, November 6th, the United States (by way of the electoral college), re-elected Barack Obama as President of the United States. This year the race was between President Obama

and Mitt Romney,

the republican candidate. The fact alone, that Romney is a Mormon made this election year very exciting... A Mormon president would be AWESOME! Just thinking about the way the United States treated Mormons back in the day, it would have been sweet justice! However, I did not vote for Romney. Why? Well, a couple of reasons: First, I don't think Obama has had a chance to make the change that he promised during his first campaign. For the past 4 years he has been fighting against a republican congress to get anything passed. And, they (congress) rejected everything he offered, not becuz they necessarily disagreed with his plans, or that they were doing what was best for American citizens, but becuz they were republican and didn't want the democrats to get their way... GGRRRRR!!! This to me is CrAzInEsS! I admit, I am probably a democrat at heart, but if I see a repulican candidate that I agree with, I won't hesitate to vote for him/her based on their political affiliation. Second: I think too many Mormons jumped on the Romney band wagon simply becuz he is, in fact, Mormon. Trust me, I thought about doing this, too, but in the end I didn't feel that Romney was ready for the White House. By election day I felt Romney was doing and saying things that didn't really represent what a Mormon should be like. I can't give specifics, but he just seemed too arrogant and self-righteous, and I didn't like it. Now, that being said, should Romney decide to run again in 2016, and if he is able to do a little refining (maybe be a little more humble), I am willing to consider voting for him. So, why am I "Tired! Tired! Tired???" Some people are just not letting this go... Seriously! Obama won fair and square! He didn't fix the vote, or determine that the electoral college was the means which Americans decide a president. Rather, he waited out the night (just like Romney) waiting to see who won. Now there are people out there (you know who you are) that are determined that the world is coming to an end. That, literally, states should secede from the union, becuz Obama is the president. Hellllllllooooooooooo people! You should know that NO president (Obama or otherwise) can pass laws by themself... That's why we have a 3-fold democracy! Quit complaining already! If you don't like what you see happening in Washington D.C. you have other options, than removing your state from the United States. How about GET INVOLVED?!? Let your voice be heard. Contact your senators and congressmen(women). Run for office (there's a novel concept!). Be involved in politics. If you're a "true" democrat/republican (you know, the people that only vote for candidates from your political party) help back your candidate early in his/her campaign (funding, phone calls, working in their campaign office... ). How about PRAY for our leaders, that they will make wise decisions based on what is best for the American public?!? You Mormons out there that are insistant that Romney was the better choice should already know and DO that! Whatever you do, please STOP COMPLAINING! I'm tired of it, and I'm sure I'm not alone!

My Best Friends

I absolutely LOVE this cat!!! He has the sweetest personality and he's soooooooo smart! I swear, he knows how to talk! He wakes me up almost every morning (if I'm not already up) at 4:00am. If I try to ignore him, he taps me on my chin or licks the tip of my nose. He truly brings me great joy!

What a weekend!

This all started on Friday - September 28th, when we became foster parents to Dexter, an 11-month-old pit bull mix puppy.

We've been progressively introducing him (and his bubbly, over-active personality) to the cats. It's been pretty slow going, but on Friday - 10/5 Dexter met Sassy.

Sassy wasn't too excited about that, but he managed to get away from him... UNTIL Rufus got involved.

Rufus is a doxie, and trained to hunt, and he was not about to give up on Sassy, so I decided to get involved... MISTAKE! Sassy totally SPAZZED! He bit me like 5 times and then CHOMP! On both sides of my right thumb. It hurt so incredibly bad; I literally screamed out when it happened, and immediately dropped Sassy. However, I still had to protect him from Rufus. I had Jesse get me a big towel so I could wrap Sass up like a burrito and take him to the bedroom, where I held him for an hour hoping he would calm down. Eventually, I let him go and he ran under the bed for the night. It's 5 days later, and he's still pretty apprehensive. In the meantime, my thumb blew up and turned bright red (as well as several of the other bites), but I've been bit by a cat before, so I knew to keep an eye on it to make sure I didn't get blood poisoning. We bought epsom salt, so I could soak it, and a brace to keep it from getting banged around, but neither were really taking the pain away. Then, on Saturday - 10/6 I was trying to take a nap, and one of the cats threw up on their blanket on top of my dresser. I didn't want the mess to fall to the floor, so I got up to clean up the mess, and that's when the trouble started... I got really dizzy, so I stopped and hung onto the dresser, but apparently I blacked out for a second and landed on the floor. All I remembered was hearing a cracking sound in my foot. Well, I called for Jesse, for help with the messy blanket that I was now lying next to on the floor, and managed to crawl myself back into bed. I was sore from falling but wasn't concerned until I got up from my nap and had trouble walking on my right foot. Throughout the night the pain got worse and worse, and by 2:00am I was begging Jesse to take me to the hospital. The ER people were not very pleased with me... They couldn't figure out why I didn't go in for the cat bites. I didn't go for the thumb, I went for my foot... I really thought I had broken it, by that point. But, because I have a history of blood clots in my legs they insisted that I have an ultra-sound of my leg, first. (They did find a blood clot by my knee, but that still wasn't my problem.) Then, they finally did several x-rays of my ankle and foot. The results came back negative for a break or fracture, but I severely sprained my right ankle... It is sooooooooooooo painful... From my toes to the ankle hurts! And, because I didn't (and still don't) know why I blacked out, they insisted I needed to be admitted to the hospital. The interesting part of that is that they did not determine what happened to me, other than I was having trouble stabalizing my blood pressure... It would hit rock bottom and then slowly return to normal. So, now I have a brace on my foot, and I'm getting around using a walker (because OT/PT showed me how much easier it is to use over crutches). They released me from the hospital around 1:30 on Monday, and now, I have follow ups with doctors for the cellulitis from the cat bite and the recovery of my ankle, AND... While I was in the hospital they ran some tests (why I do NOT know) that said my kidneys are only working at 33%, so now they're all worked up about that! I'm really ready for this mess to be over, especially since I can't drive myself any where... It's not fun! Any way, that's

Being Unemployed

I've been pretty seclusive lately, and the reason is this: I'm depressed! For years I wanted to quit my job with Avondale School District. After the nightmare they put me through 3 years ago, going there was almost to the point of torment. For whatever reason, they didn't "trust" (for lack of a better word) and I definitely didn't trust them. But, Jesse said I had to prove a point with them (basically prove them wrong), plus he was concerned about the economy and me being able to find another job. Then, finally, earlier this year, Jesse finally realized that working there was pushing me toward a nervous/mental break-down, and agreed that I should NOT sign my contract. At this point, I wasn't concerned. Even before the end of the school year I had TWO interviews! One in Pendergast district (teaching 4th grade) and the other in Litchfield district (my district of choice, teaching 5th grade). Unfortunately, I didn't get either of these jobs. I kinda summed it up to the fact that I hadn't interviewed in a long time, and probably didn't present myself the best I could. In late June we went on vacation, and the whole time I figured I would get more opportunities the closer we got to the new school year... And, I did. In fact, over the next month I had at least 9 more interviews. Two of those interviews pretty much offered me the job... Said I was the only candidate, only to recieve phone calls later, letting me know they gave the position to someone already in the district. This obviously did NOT make me very happy. Then the school year began, and I still did NOT have a job. This in turn meant we were running out of money, as we had gone an extra month without me getting a check. Lucky for us, Jesse's job started offering over-time, but it was tiring for him; literally working 60+ hours a week, while I continued to search for a job. The problem is: I have all this free time, but no money to do anything. Even visiting with friends is difficult because I feel embarrassed about not being able to find a job. I mean seriously, what is wrong with me?!? I am highly qualified in middle school language arts, and have 12 years of experience, so why are they NOT hiring me? Jesse thinks Avondale has placed something on my record, ruining my reputation. And, considering that's exactly what they tried to do 3 years ago, I wouldn't be surprised, either. Then, 2 weeks ago, I received a phone call from Tolleson district offering me a substitute position. It pays pretty good... $105 a day, and so far I've worked 6 days. Yessterday, I took a 7th/8th grade job and WHOA! Talk about some disrespectful 8th graders! I'll be working with them again on Tuesday, and they better watch out, cuz now I know what to expect! I'm not sure it's the ideal job, but it's better than nothing for now. In the mean time, I'm still looking for a cubicle job. I just want something that I'm given a job to do, I do it, and go home... Is that really asking for so much?!?

Milton

Jesse and I made an unplanned trip to Utah, because Milton (Jesse's mom's husband) passed away around 9:30 on Sunday - July 15th. We kinda got a heads up, as Milton first went to a nursing home, and then had to be admitted to the hospital. On Saturday we were told he had 24 - 72 hours to live. I feel bad for Rosaleen (Jesse's mom)... Burying one husband was hard enough; I can't imagine burying two. On top of that, Milton's family is not treating her very well, but I won't get into that here. Milton lived a good looooong life; he was born on May 7th, 1914, which meant he was 98! He was truly a wonderful man! Karen (Jesse's sister) came in by train (from Iowa), and Dot (Jesse's aunt) came in by plane (from California), and we drove up. We all stayed at Rosaleen's.

Summer Vacation 2012

This year Jesse and I took our vacation along the Gulf Coast. Why? Well, I have basically one goal in my life, and that's to go to all 50 states. Two of the states still on my list were Louisiana and Alabama, so to basically, "kill 2 birds with one stone," that's where we went. (I'm now up to 42). So, on June 26th we boarded our flight at 6:24 AM; that meant getting up at 3:30AM to get to the airport on time. We flew to Los Angeles, first, with an hour and a half lay over, then took a direct flight to Louis Armstrong Airport in New Orleans. We rented a car from Hertz (through Hotwire... We got a great deal!), and after a few directions from the people at Hertz we headed to the Lafayette Hotel, at 600 St. Charles (corner of Girard). We were pretty tired by the time we got there, so we decided to eat at the restaurant inside the hotel. Jesse was all excited about having gumbo... Literally, he was gushing over it! There were only a few other things on the menu, most of which had fish... YUCK! I ended up having blackened chicken. Let me tell ya, they use waaaaaaaay too much black pepper! Afterward we walked to Lafayette Park (right behind our hotel) and then over a couple of blocks to a grocery store to buy Pepsi, and then spent the rest of the evening relaxing.

This is the front desk... I thought it was pretty.

Two views of our room... It was really nice.

That's the Lafayette Hotel behind Jesse. Our room was on the 4th floor.

This tree is in Lafayette Square... It just amazed me.

The next day we wanted to see everything! We had intended to ride the cable car, but by the time it came we were already to Canal Street (where the cable car ended) and Bourbon Street, so we decided to walk.

This was both good and bad. Good becuz we got to see lots of the French Quarter (12 x 12 blocks) and trinket shops. Bad becuz OMGosh... It was soooooooo HOT and HUMID! Thanks to a map we got in the hotel lobby, we managed to find our way to St. Louis Church and the French Market. One little detail we learned before we left: No buildings in the French Quarter can be taller than the steeples of St. Louis church.

By this time, we were getting pretty hot and tired, so we decided to take the riverside cable car back to Canal Street and attempted to find our way to Mardi Gras World. I'm so glad I had my cell phone, cuz the directions I got online were totally WRONG! And, for whatever reason, I got very sick! Any way, we called Mardi Gras World, and they sent a shuttle to come pick us up. Aaahhhh... Air conditioning!!! Mardi Gras World is where they make and store Mardi Gras floats. We watched a video, and took a tour. We saw floats being taken apart and refurbished to create new floats for next year. It was really quite interesting!

If you look close, you can see Jesse is getting "slimed" by the alien!

Batman and Robin **snicker!** Since I wasn't feeling so good, we decided to go back to the hotel for a shower and a nap, but afterward we caught the cable car (right across from the hotel) and took it as far south as it went. We weren't really going any where, other than for a ride, but it gave us a view of the BEAUTIFUL houses in New Orleans! We then took the cable car back as far north as it would go, which is Canal Street and transferred to another cable car there.

When we got off the cable car there was a brass band playing up a storm, right on the corner of Bourbon and Canal Streets.

Jesse wanted to go to Harrah's for a buffet dinner... Note: He's eating giant shrimp! On Thursday (6/28) we headed southeast to Jean LaFitte's Swamp Tour. This is something I REALLY wanted to do!!! And, it was AWESOME!!! We saw lots of alligators and several types of heron. The boat took us down a couple of canals and then into a bayou. And, the very best part... We got to hold a live alligator!

After the swamp tour we headed east to Gulf Shores, Alabama. I LOVE Gulf Shores! It's BEAUTIFUL!!! Once we found our motel and unloaded the car, we headed to the beach to see the sunset. We didn't go swimming but enjoyed some time just watching the surf. But, the next day I got up early to see the sunrise,

and then went back to the motel to get Jesse. We had sooooooooooo much fun playing in the surf!!! We bought a little inner tube and bobbed around in the waves! LOVED IT!

When we looked at the map we noticed that Florida wasn't very far from Gulf Shores, so we decided to take a quick trip in that direction. We literally went as far as the Florida sign, in Floribama! And, right there by the Florida sign was a trailer with an advertisement for parasailing. I have wanted to parasail for a long time, and this was the opportunity I've been waiting for, so we went to check it out. Once we paid and got on life preservers we rode a banana boat out to the boat with the parasail. OMGosh... That was a blast! Then, we had to transfer from the banana boat to the parasail boat... That was pretty tricky! Jesse didn't want to go up, so he just went for a ride, but once I was on the boat they had to put a harness on me. It was all pretty simple, really. They had me walk up onto a platform on the back of the boat, buckled the harness to the sail, and then sit down. Once I was all situated on the platform the boat took off and I went up! Up! UP! They took me up 500 feet, and it was AWESOME!!!! Right before the end of the ride they brought me down and dipped me in the water. That was scary!

Another picture slideshow by Smilebox

On the way to Gulf Shores we could see the USS Alabama in the port of Mobile. So, on the way back to New Orleans we took a little detour to get a closer view. A little history on this battleship: This battleship was one of 4 battleships sunk at Pearl Harbor, on December 7, 1941. The navy thought they would only be able to scrap the ship, however they experimented with an under water welding process that resulted in repairs being made so quickly that the ship was recommissioned in 3 months.

This is a DC-3

B-52 (largest and fastest bomber)

It's hard to see, but this is the "Welcome to Mississippi" sign along I-10

When we got back to New Orleans we found a (VERY expensive) parking space, and walked along the Mississippi River until we got to the dock for the Natchez Riverboat. We bought tickets for a 2-hour tour, which included lunch. Unfortunately, lunch was fish (again, YUCK!), rice, gumbo, red beans, jumbalaya, french bread and bread pudding. I was hungry, but all I ate was rice, bread and pudding... That made lunch kind of expensive.

St. Louis Church

The New Orleans cityscape

This is the Crescent City bridge After our river cruise we had planned on walking up to the St. Louis cemetary, but it was sooooooooo humid, and soooooooo hot, that we decided to just find our motel. Since we were only going to be in New Orleans overnight we made reservations at a motel near the airport. Once we found the motel, getting to the airport was EASY... It was right across the street! We had such a good time traveling to the gulf!