Weekend in Idaho.....

This last weekend we spent in Idaho with my sister, her family, and my family. It was great. We all had such a wonderful time and according to Harley that is our new home. It is so funny when he says "ok, let's go home" I say "we are almost there" then he goes "no, our home is in Idaho now." How funny is that? I know that he wants to be around his cousins a lot more and maybe someday, but right now we will just have to plan more trips up there.

Friday, we left a little late, but made it in time for Harley to start playing with his cousins. Teancum wanted to show Harley his new video game. It was pretty cool. It was Lego Star Wars. I thought it was great because when the bad guys would die instead of blood and such they just broke apart into little pieces of Legos. Wonderful!! I know that I am a paranoid mom, but what can I say....I like games that doesn't have that much blood and guts in it.

While these three was working on defeating Darth Vader....I was, of course, holding that cute little niece of mine and Kathy was working on making hair clips for tomorrows pictures.




Isn't she just the cutiest thing you have ever seen??






On Saturday morning, we all woke up and got ready. Let me tell you that was fun.....six kids and seven adults running around trying to get everything ready for pictures...it was great entertainment, I'll tell ya what.

After we all got ready and in the car, we went over to the photographer's shop and ended up following him out to the location where we were going to shoot the pictures. It was only about 15 minutes away which was great. Kathy and Nephi ended up having all six kids with them and Dave and I had my parents and Blair with us. Here are some pictures which I took with my camera. It was a gorgeous site and very peaceful. Dave and I have fallen in love with this area of Idaho.





























Below is the backdrop of many of our photos.









After pictures we all went up on the bridge and had fun playing on it. I was also able to take some amazing photos of the bridge. I wish I would have had the photographer do some of us up there. They would have been amazing!!

After all the picture taking was done, we went back to Aunt Kathy's house, changed our clothes, and then headed out to the ranch for lunch. When we got out there we were amazed to see this great big huge shop on their property. It was big...oh, yea, I already said that, but it was HUGE!!! Three car garage with a little semi house attached to it. I believe they are going to have a master bedroom down stairs with a bath room and then upstairs that is going to be the kid room. Right now it is all unfinished except for the outside and the frame work. I now wish that I had a picture of it, but alas I don't. Maybe next time.

After playing in the fire, dirt and on the big construction equipment out on the property we went back to the house and either fell asleep for a little nap or played a game called get BLAIR!!!

We had a lot of fun seeing all the kids going after Blair...Harley was excited at first to get in on the action, but then he wandered over to the video game and I had to tell him no. Not now. After the fighting with Blair we had the kids run and get their swimming suits on for showers and baths. It was great getting them all washed at the same time. Saved a lot of time. After all the kids were all cleaned up (yet again) we all piled into the cars and headed over to Jackson Hole for the Bar J Chuckwagon. That was so much fun. The dinner was great and the entertainment was wonderful as well. The kids were a little restless by the end of it all and we were all ready to go. Grandma took all the grandkids on the little train ride right before dinner was to be served. It was wonderful to partake in the western hospitality.


It was a great weekend and we had so much fun. When we asked Harley what was his favorite part about the weekend he told us that it was "getting the pictures taken." Go figure that one out.

Venting.....

So, I know that my job is not that tough and I have been doing this job for almost the past 10 years, so I tend to think that I know how to do my FREAKEN job. I have this one client that I swear if he goes missing I would not mind in the least. Maybe I shouldn't say that, but really?? When you have been in four accidents and you think that your last case is my top priority let me just tell you now that it is not. I have 85 other clients that are just as important as you and calling me every day to bitch me out for something that is BEYOND MY FREAKEN control will not help matters. I do my job. I call the person. I call the person every day. I am not about to call the person 7 times a day and then spend what additional time I might have tracking someone else down to see if they could help me work on your stupid case. I feel that I have done everything to the best of my FREAKEN ability and I do not need you condescending voice to tell me that I need to work harder for you. LET ME TELL YOU......YOUR CASE IS NOT WORTH MY TIME!!!!

Thank you for letting me vent!

Accountibility.....

I now know why I have this blog....it is to help me vent my frustrations out and not at everyone else right?? I hope so. I am so freak'n pissed right now...I just need to write it all out...so if I offend anyone, right now I am sorry, but later I might not be. Just take it with a grain of salt and move on.

So, yesterday, I dropped Harley off at school (like always) and then when Dave called me to see if he could pick him up from daycare you would expect him to be there. Well, yesterday, that was not the case. Dave got over to the daycare place and found out that he was not there and no body knew where he was. SERIOUSLY?? You are telling us this. After the staff member called the school to find out if he was there or not...Dave rushed over and picked him up. He was so brave. The first things out of his mouth was "I am sorry, Daddy, but I missed the bus, but I didn't cry." Talk about melting your heart.

I didn't know any of this until I got home from work. I was about 15 min behind Dave picking up Harley. I can not begin to describe how furious I was when I found out. At first I didn't know what to do or what to think. Later on as the night progressed I found myself getting more and more mad about the whole situation. I kept thinking...Harley was sitting in the school office for 45 min and no one freak'n called me to tell me that he was there.....what the hell???

Needless to say, I didn't sleep very well last night. I kept having nightmares of things that could have happened and then a dream about me getting everyone into a room and yelling at them until I couldn't yell anymore. The one thing that I didn't know was what really happened. I just had what Harley told us, which let me tell you isn't much...he is six after all and he thought he had done something wrong.

So, this morning I got up and wrote down our phone numbers on a card for Harley and told him any time he needed me or something happened that he needed me he had my number to call me. Then we had time when I tried to drill my number into his poor little head. He said enough and said that he had the card in case he couldn't remember it. I finally relented and told him how much I love him and that I just want him to be safe. He said I love you too.

When we got to school, I still didn't know what I was going to do or who I was going to talk to about my concerns. So, finally I called my mommy!! Yep, even at this age in life, I do need my mommy. I talked to her about what I should do. She told me to go into the school and talk to the principle and that is exactly what I did. I marched myself in there like a big important person and demanded to see the principle. The secretary there told me that the principle was out with some students and that there was another person before me. Then they asked me if they could help. I decided that really they are the brains behind the school and they would probably know more than the principle so I relayed my plight with them and asked them if they knew why no one called me to let me know that my son was in the office. They told me that they had seen Harley come in and he told them that he missed the bus. The secretary told me that she called the daycare and they said that they were stuck in traffic and would be there shortly. She told Harley to go outside and wait for them at the usually spot. He did and then 15 min later he came back and told them that the bus didn't come. He ended up waiting in the office until Dave got there. After I heard this I was even more mad, but I think that it was more towards the daycare.

I got to work, mad....I called the daycare about 11:00 a.m. to find out what really happened. When I called, I had to wait for the director come on the phone so I could ask her. The hold time I was trying to calm down. I asked her what had happened yesterday. She told me that the bus that usually picks up Harley from school was in a little fender bender and that she had to go to all 10 schools to pick up all the kids and she guesses that Harley wasn't where he was suppose to be to meet them. She then told me that she never received a call from the school and by the time she got all the kids back to the center and calmed down Dave was there to pick up Harley. She told me that she didn't know that he was not on the bus, nor did she ever get a personal phone call from the school letting her know that Harley missed the bus. During our whole conversation did she ever say, "I am sorry that I left your son at school. We are making sure that this never happens again and I am looking into new procedures so this will never happen again." Instead she ended up blaming everyone else for the miscommunication between the school and the daycare.

I was so appalled that here is a director of the daycare that I entrust my child to telling me that it wasn't her fault for them leaving and not being aware where my child was. When we first went looking at this place, I was a little hesitant, and I wasn't sure why, but when we went back to have Harley check it out and get his approval, the director told both, Dave and I, that within 15 min of not picking Harley up we would be getting phone calls from the daycare asking us if we had possibly picked up our son. The way that she told us of all the security measures that they had in place it really impressed us. Guess what?? NOT IMPRESSED any more. I don't know what I am going to be doing now. I would hate to pull Harley from another stable environment, but then I would never want this to happen again. He is my everything and so help me if anything were to happen to him there would and is one angry momma bear here to protect him.

X96 - Morning from Hell Radio Show....

So, I am not much for talk radio or really radio for that fact. Since I have found this new little invention called an iPod....radio has become something in the past for me....but, like all good things....my iPod found its end....in a washing machine....Really? How could I have checked everyone's pockets except for mine?? Now I am iPod less and have been begging Dave for a new one ever since. He has this cute little thing that he does....."what? I can't hear you? I don't know what you are saying." whenever the subject of replacement is approached.

So, where was I going with this post....oh, yea...Radio. I have now become a mom that has to be to school early to make sure that her darling young son can get to class on time. So we sit in the car and wait....and wait.....and wait. (It is so weird, I can be late for everything in the world, but when it comes to taking Harley to school...get this....I am 20 min early.) Well, recently we have been listening to the radio (when Harley isn't pushing every single button in the car) and one of the radio shows that I have been prone to stop on is X96. I must confess that I usually don't listen to this station, but occasionally I press on it to listen to a song or comment.

This morning was one of those exceptions. I was listening to them talk and then they got on to this topic of things that must go....so, of course, I want to do this. I want to sit here and type all the things that must go. It was funny listening to them because they would sit there and argue about some of the things that one person thought should go such as people who put dog sweaters on their dogs.

So, here is my list of things that must go:

1. People that get into the far left lane only to cut everyone off in order to make a right hand turn.
2. People who boast about having a secure day care and then ending up leaving your child at the school and don't notice that he is missing until you go and try to pick him up.
3. People who are in the administration office of a school to allow a boy to sit in their office for an hour and a half without calling their parents.
4. People who don't call you back when you have left 10 messages.
5. People who say they are going to come in and sign some paperwork and then never show up and don't return phones calls.
6. Tracking down people to make arrangements to see their kids.
7. Ketchup
8. Annoying coughs
9. Getting up at the butt crack of dawn
10. Not feeling refreshed.

Mental Patients and Texans....

So, one day we were watching a movie called "Bad News Bears." It was a cute show with a lot of grown up humor...BTW I wouldn't let young kids watch it.....and in one of the scenes you have the baseball team going out for lunch after a game when the coach says something to the affect of "good lord, do you have to have that much ketchup" an other kids pipes up and says "My mom says that the only people to love that much ketchup is Mental Patients or Texans..." Ever since that day I know which is my family.

Yes, I did marry a Texan with an offspring of himself. Last night it was every evident which they were. I made dinner and it was beautiful, lovely cooked chicken to perfection, mashed potatoes, and peas. It looked so gorgeous on the plate. Then it happened...."Honey" "Yes, dear" "Could you grab the ketchup for me?" WHAT?? Seriously?? Yep, both of them, ketchup over everything. I was so heartbroken that they thought that putting on ketchup would help improve the flavor of this wonderful meal that I had just spent the last 30 minutes making. GRRRRR...Texas Men!!!

This might give ya an idea of what it almost looked like before the ketchup was added. Everything was beautiful.....then, the aftermath of the attack of the ketchup......










What a sad day for me...and my cooking.