Chatterbox Thread-Cmon in and Jabber! Everyone is Welcome!

[kelmac284]

Morning and happy Sunday.

B that is scary about your neighborhood. It is truly sad how that happens and unfortunately it is happening more and more everywhere. We live in a farily decent rural area where there are more "rednecks" then anything else LOL. So you get the occasional domestic problem or someone shooting off their gun in their air etc but about a mile from us is our local mall and a lot of kids hang out there and the mall that is "known" for the gang bangers is downtown and it is known that you really don't go there anymore ESP at night. Well OUR mall is ok but last weekend they had a shooting and several people were injured. There ARE some really scummy apartments down the way from the mall and lots of drugs and such that happen there but normally there isn't too much that goes on but it was really sad to hear that that kind of stuff is getting so close to home.

Megan enjoy your visit with your sis-in-law and good luck with keeping her "non-pg"

Yesterday my mom called and asked us to go with her to pick up this kitty that she "adopted". I had three cats when I moved back from WA and they were all REALLY Old. Like 18. Well one died about 5 years ago and one just passed about 2 weeks ago and there is one left but she is on her last legs. So ironically this little kitty showed up at our office and he is the sweetest little cat. My mom thought he was only about 6 months old but it turns out he is 1 to 2. He was starving and he had an abcess on his leg. It ended up costing my mom like 400 bucks to get him all fixed which was more than she wanted to spend but I think it was worth it cuz he was SO sweet!

So we went and helped her pick him up and then the girls swam for a bit and then we went with her to go serve some papers on a new REO client. Talk about depressing. When the bank forecloses on a house we have to serve papers on the owners. The bank gives the listing to our office but WE have to not so lovely task of serving the eviction papers on the owners. Some of these people haven't made their payments in over a year and this particular woman said her daughter had cancer and that is why she hadn't made the payments although she had a brand new mercedes in the driveway so I didn't feel TOO bad! But it IS sad. We have had some MEAN people who have thrown the papers in our faces and some really sad stories but it is a sign of the times and unfortunately we are just the messengers. My mom always takes me in case someone gets violent but luckily other than having the door slammed in her face or papers thrown at her no one has ever gotten really ugly. NOT a fun part of our job for sure.

Anyway it was pretty warm yesterday and after that whole episode I was getting a headache so we never made it to the store.

We just came home and the girls and I watched some disney movies. Pinoccio and Lady and the Tramp.

Now today I am hopefully finally going to take them to Walmart and we have to run to Big 5 to get their soccer cleats.

So that is about it for our day.

Tomorrow it is BACK to work and then not much else planned for the week. Just work tomorrow and Friday and NO swim so we can actually have a normal week for a change!!! And then next weekend my cousins may be coming down from WA to visit so I am looking forward to that.

Anyway have a good day all and take care.

 

[funnygarcia]

OMG. I hope she doesnt get pregnant on my watch!!!!!

Justin is off to do a parade this afternoon, going "up north" to band camp after that.
I had to go outside and grumble, stomp around as he was driving me nuts with his laissez-faire attitude this morning.

Took him all day to pack yesterday, had to hound him a few times to finish it up. This morning he takes his sweet time getting up and pulling his junk together. Even E was peeved, but he had a better attitude "If he doesn't have what he needs, it's his own fault." and pointed out the only reason we travel well organized is because of years of habit and my "husband training"

J didn't know what time he was being picked up by a friend, what time he was expected at the school to load up.
UHHHH shouldn't you have checked that ahhh maybe yesterday??

Waiting around as he "thought" it was 8:30, they didn't show, we started worrying and our neighbor offered a ride.

One of the band parents lives nearby (she went to college with E and also worked as a long term sub at the same school last year as E ), I noticed her drive by with her daughter. She saw me outside the apt.. turned around and offered J a ride. "Oh it's early yet, you don't need to be there until 10, didn't you check your email?" Justin sheepishly rolls his shoulders and admits he hadn't done that yet.

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGH!

Noah is friends with the family that offered the ride originally, he called them up. No harm no foul.

But geesh! Be more organized and know what the heck is going on!
He's going to be gone for a full week. Sad to say.. I'm happy that he will be gone. Save me from teenagers!! Please!

Oh yeah.. and we teased him to be "safe" this week.
He blushes and laughs, "yeah mom they already gave us a lecture on the door needs to be open if a girl is in your dorm, no laying down on the floor, no sitting on beds." Ha! Sounds like the same rules I had in Job Corps dorm rooms, not that it stopped us.

 

[staley7580]

GAH!!! Im gonna gripe about my family for a bit. YES.. I am a stay at home mom.. I GET that I am supposed to do everything. And I do. I take care of the kids, and my husband, and my house from sun up... to sun down. But just one day... ONE FREAKING DAY... Could my family see something on the floor and pick it up. OR.. COuld my husband walk into the kitchen and see dishes everywhere and actually DO THEM??? Sheesh! I lost my monkeys today. I started bawling in the kitchen, and told my husband that I was done with all of them. If I have to wash one more sippy cup, or change one more diaper.. I swear I am going to string up the lot of em.

Of course after I flipped out my husband rushed around the house and cleaned his booty off. To late Mr.! Im still mad! Sigh... I think I just need some pizza.

 

[sameyeyam]

Argh!

Incredibly frustrating and lesson learned to keep better records.

Was he using the medical insurance from school last year? If so you could see the claims online. If it was SS wouldn't they also have a list of all of his claims?

 

[sameyeyam]

OMG. I hope she doesnt get pregnant on my watch!!!!!

Just slap a patch on her bottom and don't worry about it.

 

[eatmypixiedust]

Hi Alison!

 

[staley7580]

Just slap a patch on her bottom and don't worry about it.

I told dh that our first stop on the way home from the airport was going to be planned parent hood.

 

[kelmac284]

Morning and happy Monday all.

Bernice enjoy your week sans child!! I'm not quite to that point yet. In fact I was just thinking today that there is only like 4 weeks of summer vacay left and this summer has gone way too quick. My girls are at a great age and they are my buds right now. Sure sometimes they get on my nerves when the two of them are fighting etc but mostly we like to hang out and talk and they still like to be with me and we have a lot of fun together and I enjoy having them home with me. So I am not ready for them to go back yet. It seems like school JUST got out and it is almost time to go back!

Megan I SO feel you! My dh seems to think that because he works full time he doesn't have to do ANYTHING around this joint. Well I've got news for him I work too! I may not work full time but that doesn't give him the right to be a PIG! I mean I do most of the house cleaning but like you said he can at LEAST clean up after HIMSELF!! Pluse the girls are 10 and 9 and I am forever after them to clean up. I mean it is ridiculous how messy these guys are. The point was proven yesterday too when dh needed to find these gift cards he received last year as a coaches gift. The year before we got a restaurant gift card and I had it in my purse and when we finally used it it was RIGHT there nice and safe. But he took the gift visa cards and put them SOMEWHERE and now of course they are lost. He saves all kinds of worthless paper and CRAP and there are papers and junk EVERYWHERE and that drives me nuts. I HATE clutter and am forever trying to tidy up. So then he had the nerve to try and accuse me of throwing them out and I was like uh NO! First of all I said if you would have put them somewhere safe in the FIRST place this would not have been a problem and second of all I don't throw ANYTHING out without looking at it first to see what it is! GRRRR But I feel your pain for sure. Somedays I just want to run out screaming at the messes cuz I can clean this whole place and take HOURS to do so and they can seem to go behind me and screw it back up in 5 mins! UGH!

Anyway yesterday was shopping day! And what an exciting day it was. First we finally went to walmart and we picked up the birthday gift for the girls friend and then the girls each got some stuff they had been needing and then on the way to the sporting goods store one of our main streets was completely blocked off.

Apparently there had been an officer involved shooting and they had an entire block cordoned off. So we had to go around and then we went to Big 5 and got the girls soccer stuff and then went to the grocery store and then home.

So got all our errands run and then just hung out at home and relaxed! It was nice.

Now today I am off to work and then my cousins from WA are coming this week for a visit so I am excited about that.

Anyway hope everyone has a good week and talk soon.

 

[XTinabell]

GAH!!! Im gonna gripe about my family for a bit. YES.. I am a stay at home mom.. I GET that I am supposed to do everything. And I do. I take care of the kids, and my husband, and my house from sun up... to sun down. But just one day... ONE FREAKING DAY... Could my family see something on the floor and pick it up. OR.. COuld my husband walk into the kitchen and see dishes everywhere and actually DO THEM??? Sheesh! I lost my monkeys today. I started bawling in the kitchen, and told my husband that I was done with all of them. If I have to wash one more sippy cup, or change one more diaper.. I swear I am going to string up the lot of em.

Of course after I flipped out my husband rushed around the house and cleaned his booty off. To late Mr.! Im still mad! Sigh... I think I just need some pizza.

How many times did I hear my mother screaming that same thing when I was a child. HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU HAVE TO WALK PAST THAT ON THE FLOOR WITHOUT PICKING IT UP? I always thought she was crazy but now that I'm living with a man (without kids) and see how useless men are, and then you add on useless children I can completely understand her (and your) insanity. I've been sick for a week and guess what, the house looks like a bomb went off in here because I haven't been feeling very well to keep up with the mess. You'd think my very capable partner might help out at least while I'm sick. NOPE. Anyway, point is I understand you're frustration.

 

[eatmypixiedust]

Hello,

Hope you all had a good weekend. On Friday my aunt flew in from SF for a wedding. I got to take her to Yogurtland on Saturday night for the first time. She ended up liking it and was surprised how cheap it was I told her it was yummy and now she knows why I love it so much!

Saturday morning I went to DTD. I saw a line in front of the Quiksilver store and asked a CM what was going on. Apparently you could wait in line for a chance to spin a wheel inside the store. The best prize you could win is a chance to meet Tony Hawk. They also were giving away a foam finger, sticker, pencil set, a t-shirt and a $25 gift card. They had a couple of tickets to give away to meet Tony Hawk.

The thing is, some people waited in line over and over again. There was a dispute with one family because they waited in line 6 times and ended up winning the meet and greet with Tony Hawk. I don't know what happend but I think the store employees did not find it fair.

I decided to just try my luck and if I didn't win, at least I could win something else The 2nd group ahead of me won the last ticket to meet Tony Hawk. Darn! I was told that you could bring a guest to meet him or bring your family or something. I thought that would be cool.

I ended up winning an event t-shirt, but it's too big for me. I wonder if I could wash it and shrink it? I should have picked a smaller size but I wasn't sure of the fit. I also got a free double-sided Tony Hawk poster (not sure what I will do with that).

I shopped in WOD and then I felt really hungry. I didn't go into the parks this time because I thought it would be crowded. I didn't plan to stay long there anyway since I had to meet family later that day.

I went to The Block and ate at Cafe Tu Tu Tango. I liked the one in Citywalk but it closed and turned into a Samba Steakhouse. This is the only location left in CA. Here are some pics of the food I ordered (I couldn't finish it all and ended up bringing it to my family):

-stuffed mushrooms-

-5 Cheese Pizza (I added grilled chicken on top)-

-hummus with crackers and pita bread- Their hummus is sooo good!!

-some artwork that is for sale (painted by local artists)-

Before I left, I bought an apple from Marceline's Confectionery. They said they would only have it for 1 week (this design). I thought it was really cute:

I also bought a laptop skin and put it on myself (really simple to do and you can cut it):

On Sunday my aunt wanted to celebrate her b-day early and my uncle's b-day, so they chose to eat at Macaroni Grill. The food was okay but I think I like Maggiano's better for Italian food

Afterwards I went to Camarillo Outlet with my little sister. I only went to GAP to look for denim capri pants but they were all sold out. We also checked out the Disney Store outlet there. I noticed that they carry some items from DL at discounted prices. They had pins from DL that were on sale too from $4.99 to $5.99.

Last week a friend of mine gave me a gift card to my favorite shaved ice place. I didn't know how much was on the gift card until I paid for my order and my little sister's. My friend gave me a $50 gift card! I was so shocked and surprised and I felt bad because she spent so much. I messaged her and thanked her again and she said she knows I love going there.

Here is my order (cherry flavored ice with vanilla bean ice cream):

There ice cream is sooo tasty and is really good. You can add it to the shaved ice or you can just eat the ice cream by itself.

 

[dizzyami]

GAH!!! Im gonna gripe about my family for a bit. YES.. I am a stay at home mom.. I GET that I am supposed to do everything. And I do. I take care of the kids, and my husband, and my house from sun up... to sun down. But just one day... ONE FREAKING DAY... Could my family see something on the floor and pick it up. OR.. COuld my husband walk into the kitchen and see dishes everywhere and actually DO THEM??? Sheesh! I lost my monkeys today. I started bawling in the kitchen, and told my husband that I was done with all of them. If I have to wash one more sippy cup, or change one more diaper.. I swear I am going to string up the lot of em.

Of course after I flipped out my husband rushed around the house and cleaned his booty off. To late Mr.! Im still mad! Sigh... I think I just need some pizza.

I so feel your pain there!!!

I still get that crap from my DH - granted he can be pretty dang useful when he needs to be with a little bit of harrassment. Problem is I work 40 hours a week too!!! (But that pales in comparison to his 45 a week, and he makes more so that counts for more).

 

[eatmypixiedust]

GAH!!! Im gonna gripe about my family for a bit. YES.. I am a stay at home mom.. I GET that I am supposed to do everything. And I do. I take care of the kids, and my husband, and my house from sun up... to sun down. But just one day... ONE FREAKING DAY... Could my family see something on the floor and pick it up. OR.. COuld my husband walk into the kitchen and see dishes everywhere and actually DO THEM??? Sheesh! I lost my monkeys today. I started bawling in the kitchen, and told my husband that I was done with all of them. If I have to wash one more sippy cup, or change one more diaper.. I swear I am going to string up the lot of em.

Of course after I flipped out my husband rushed around the house and cleaned his booty off. To late Mr.! Im still mad! Sigh... I think I just need some pizza.

Awww Staley! I don't blame you for being stressed out. I would be too! I am glad that your DH helped you. He was probably just oblivious to you needing help and didn't think of it (not intentionally or anything but I think guys do that sometimes when it comes to things sometimes)

Just a suggestion, but what if you created a chore chart (a simple one) where your older kids could do little things to help out around the house? Maybe after a certain # of chores is completed, they could be rewarded with something like a new book or maybe a trip to the ice cream shop or something small? Sorry, just throwing out some ideas.

 

[XTinabell]

mmmmm pix your pictures look sooo good. THose stuffed mushrooms and the ice cream are sooooooo what I want RIGHT NOW!

I'm having such a lazy day today, I have to open a bank account, meet with a trainer, I'm supposed to go to the gym and go car shopping. I just want to watch tv. Oh and I need to re-do my resume and start job hunting.

Yesterday we did some car shopping, we need a vehicle. I don't feel safe in a car so I thought I wanted an SUV but then sitting in the suv's I realised how long they are and I have loads of blind spots. So now I think I want a crossover but I've been told that crossovers don't have good sellback. So what am I supposed to do? I'm a terrible parker so I don't want a truck or mini van but I feel scared in little cars so I want to be high up. I should get a hummer!

 

[staley7580]

Im glad you guys feel my pain! We have tried chore charts with the biggers, and it did not work! But it might now that they are older. Maybe I need to bust that out! It was to funny.. My husband hid outside all day yesterday, because he was afraid of me. He kept peeking in at me, and I would give him death stares..

When it comes to cars... I like small and sporty. I hate SUVs... and I cried like a baby when we had to get our minivan. YUCK!

 

[funnygarcia]

Was he using the medical insurance from school last year? If so you could see the claims online. If it was SS wouldn't they also have a list of all of his claims?

I thought of looking at the claims online, but then realized with his other insurance it's been a big mess. No matter how many times Davita dialysis is told Medicare first, insurance secondary and medical assistance third (though at that point there shouldn't be anything left and not sure if it is even legal in MN to charge to three parties??) they screw it up. The latest EOB's from the state show medical assistance is being used as secondary. His insurance hasn't paid a dime for months.

And don't get me started on Medicare. As much as you would think they would "communicate" info to SS, they really don't. It takes months for each of the offices to speak to each other.

He qualified for Medicare Part D "extra help" (low cost scrips, $1 to $5 each and no doughnut hole) based on eligibility for state medical assistance.. they sent us a letter recently "You qualify for Extra help as of June 2006" uhhh what??

Snail pace to process medicare claims too....EOB's for services that were JUST paid that actually occurred over a year ago.

So yeah, when I say I don't pay any of the medical bills it's true.. somewhere along the line someone will pay for them. I just tell them resubmit primary, secondary, tertiary.. someone will pay it on their own weird time line.

Asked the neph about why the clinic wouldn't have the requested info. He told us there are holes in the electronic charting system as it currently stands. There is no way to pull past hospitalizations and referrals.

E's care plan was due again, that makes two years of home hemo! We paged thru and yep.. under hospitals stays and referrals in the past year it was blank. Heck they still had our phone number from when we lived in St Cloud, 5 year ago.

And that lack of info scares me. No wonder people are able to go clinic to clinic, receiving unneeded medical care. No wonder medical errors occur as patients get meds and have a bad reaction, they forgot they were allergic or it failed to get in the current chart.

I realize having one medical file for any clinic in the US to use is kinda creepy.. big brother watching kind of thing.. it makes sense. Better care, cost effective care.

It pisses me off that E's dialysis clinic sent him to different hospitals. Not even part of the same system.
His primary is part of a different system, different set of hospitals.

Even his insurance thru work encourages you to seek out the most cost effective hospitals and clinics, they charge by the Tier system. Your doc (Tier 1 = lowest cost, you pay 20%) wants you to have X surgery, he has privileges at M Hospital (Tier 3 = most expensive, you pay 40%+ $500 copay). The insurance company's online list shows Y hospital (Tier 1) as the cheapest location for your X surgery.

hmmm, what do you do???

Crappy way to do health care!

 

[eatmypixiedust]

mmmmm pix your pictures look sooo good. THose stuffed mushrooms and the ice cream are sooooooo what I want RIGHT NOW!

I'm having such a lazy day today, I have to open a bank account, meet with a trainer, I'm supposed to go to the gym and go car shopping. I just want to watch tv. Oh and I need to re-do my resume and start job hunting.

Yesterday we did some car shopping, we need a vehicle. I don't feel safe in a car so I thought I wanted an SUV but then sitting in the suv's I realised how long they are and I have loads of blind spots. So now I think I want a crossover but I've been told that crossovers don't have good sellback. So what am I supposed to do? I'm a terrible parker so I don't want a truck or mini van but I feel scared in little cars so I want to be high up. I should get a hummer!

The stuffed mushrooms were tasty I brought them to my parents house and my brother devoured them I only ate 2.

Im glad you guys feel my pain! We have tried chore charts with the biggers, and it did not work! But it might now that they are older. Maybe I need to bust that out! It was to funny.. My husband hid outside all day yesterday, because he was afraid of me. He kept peeking in at me, and I would give him death stares..

When it comes to cars... I like small and sporty. I hate SUVs... and I cried like a baby when we had to get our minivan. YUCK!

I love my car. It's a good size for me and it's fun to drive I like how the seats fold down in the back and give me lots of room (not that I buy huge items often but it's good to have).

I can just picture your DH waving a white flag!

 

[funnygarcia]

Just slap a patch on her bottom and don't worry about it

Most awesome idea!

GAH!!! Im gonna gripe about my family for a bit. I swear I am going to string up the lot of em.

Of course after I flipped out my husband rushed around the house and cleaned his booty off. To late Mr.! Im still mad!

Yeah what is with that?? Dude, raising kids is a full time job too! Cut me some slack here. Part of it is they just have no clue and wonder why we are going crazy.

I still get that crap from my DH - granted he can be pretty dang useful when he needs to be with a little bit of harrassment.

It's not harassment, it's husband training.

Yesterday we did some car shopping, we need a vehicle. I don't feel safe in a car so I thought I wanted an SUV but then sitting in the suv's I realised how long they are and I have loads of blind spots. So now I think I want a crossover but I've been told that crossovers don't have good sellback. So what am I supposed to do? I'm a terrible parker so I don't want a truck or mini van but I feel scared in little cars so I want to be high up. I should get a hummer!

We liked our RAV, it had good resell value even with all the problems Toyota was having. However, now little economy cars seem much too cramped and too low to the ground for comfort.

Eloy test drove a hummer (for a gift card offer), we both hated it and quickly gave it back to the dealer after a short drive round the block. Way too much power, too high.. too expensive for us!

--------------------
We walked up to Walmart to pick up my order. I truly detest Walmart's site to store online shopping. But I hate paying for shipping even more.
It's sunny and HOT.. ugh. Not horrid humid, just the burn your skin off hot.
Back home with the AC, waiting for a clinic to call back. Finally E will see an orthopedic surgeon and determine when he will need a hip replacement. We would like to put it off until next summer, by then we will move to the lower apartment. One family downstairs is waiting for their lease to expire before buying a house. One very short flight down VS three very long flights up.

 

[funnygarcia]

I plan to make frappucinos today with my new blender.. YUM!

 

[Funball]

I had the best time EVER at DCA this weekend, and I got this cool shot from the roller coaster!!

 

[eatmypixiedust]

Most awesome idea!



Yeah what is with that?? Dude, raising kids is a full time job too! Cut me some slack here. Part of it is they just have no clue and wonder why we are going crazy.



It's not harassment, it's husband training.





We liked our RAV, it had good resell value even with all the problems Toyota was having. However, now little economy cars seem much too cramped and too low to the ground for comfort.

Eloy test drove a hummer (for a gift card offer), we both hated it and quickly gave it back to the dealer after a short drive round the block. Way too much power, too high.. too expensive for us!

--------------------
We walked up to Walmart to pick up my order. I truly detest Walmart's site to store online shopping. But I hate paying for shipping even more.
It's sunny and HOT.. ugh. Not horrid humid, just the burn your skin off hot.
Back home with the AC, waiting for a clinic to call back. Finally E will see an orthopedic surgeon and determine when he will need a hip replacement. We would like to put it off until next summer, by then we will move to the lower apartment. One family downstairs is waiting for their lease to expire before buying a house. One very short flight down VS three very long flights up.

That's cool about the apartment downstairs. That will definitely be easier for your DH after the surgery

My co-worker just had a 2nd hip replacement a few days ago. She suffers from lupus and had to have a hip bone replacement a couple years ago and I guess she needed to have it done a 2nd time. She is out on medical leave for 6 weeks. She is able to get paid by the state since she filed short-term disability. I believe unless it's maternity leave, our company doesn't pay for medical leave absences.