Mar. 17, 2009 Civil Air Patrol Ball 09
So I have this one patron that comes into the library that always brings a smile. She'll come in to pick up books that she ordered, and is just so very excited that they've arrived! She cheers, she kind of bounces, and she acts like I just handed her a million dollars. To her, I am a hero, and all I did was call and tell her the book arrived!
I've decided that everyone needs someone cheering for them. Even when it's something so simple, people need to know that you appreciate what they do.
Some of the patrons will get annoyed when I call. They ordered the book, and there's no way for them to know it's arrived unless I call. Yet they act like I've ruined their day by calling. Well then, stop ordering books! Or put a note on your account that you don't want to be called. How hard is that.
I'm just saying, a smile and a thank you cost you nothing, but are very valuable to the person you give them to. Throwing in a little "yeay!" doesn't hurt, either. |
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Dec. 15, 2008 How Walmart Killed My Christmas Spirit
OK, so they didn't actually kill my Christmas spirit, but they certainly did try. Sit back and enjoy the tale of the Bag Nazi...
I was doing some very last minute shopping for the Church's Christmas program, which included 18 bottles of soda. In the interest of time and not making the cashier's head explode, I told her that I could just leave all the soda in the cart, and bag it at the van, saving the unloading onto the belt, and loading back into the cart again. She thanked me and we chatted about Christmas plans, etc while she finished ringing up my purchases.
She puts some bags in my cart, letting me know that she put enough for me to double-bag them, so there wouldn't be any disasters. How sweet of her! I'm thinking to myself, "Life is so much nicer at the holidays when people are just kind and helpful to each other."
At that moment, one of the long-time employees (who was later dubbed a Nazi by another customer) comes running up and yells at the cashier. The dialog follows:
Nazi: You can't do that!
Cashier: Do what?
Nazi: Give her those bags
Me: Oh, I'm just going to bag them at the car.
Nazi: NO! You can't do that, it's a security risk.
Cashier: *blank stare*
Me: Are you serious?
Nazi: *glare* It's a security risk. A BIG security risk.
Cashier: I was just trying to be helpful.
Nazi: Well you weren't, and you CAN'T do that, it's a security risk!
I should note that at this point, the Nazi has ripped the bags out of the Cashier's hands, and is putting them all back on the rack, all the while muttering about security risks. She has drawn quite a crowd of onlookers, as they all want to know what great security risk is going on... Also, the cashier has already signed out for her lunch break, and someone else is at the register, processing another customer.
Cashier: Well, I guess we'll have to bag them here.
Nazi: Yes, you will. It's a big, BIG security risk.
Me: You caught me. I was going to make bombs, but now you've foiled my plot.
Nazi: *glare, sputter something more about security risks*
At this point, Nazi goes away and the cashier and I team up to bag all of this soda, while the family behind us (with a whopping 4 items) looks on in horror.
While this is going on, I hear the Nazi's voice again, "WAIT!!!! I need to verify that signature!"
She is talking to the man standing at the next cash register, and this is how THAT conversation went:
Man: What? Why do you need to verify it? Who are you?
Nazi: I need to verify it, you can't leave until I verify it.
Cashier 2: *dumbfounded look*
Man: Boy, you are right on the ball, you caught the bag thief, and now you've stopped me from paying for my item. Nice work.
Nazi: I am going to verify this signature.
Man: You must not have had enough fun ruining her day (pointing at me.) And hey, the staff was having WAY too much fun doing their jobs. You're a good little bag Nazi.
When we finally finished bagging the soda, I passed the man who was STILL being verified. He looked at me and just kind of shook his head and laughed. I told him if he needed something to pass the time, find out what the great security risk was with me taking the bags.
I'm telling you, even the other employees were aghast at her behavior. If I wasn't so pressed for time, I would have gone directly to the manager. Probably better that I didn't, because I was in a very sarcastic mood by that point. Wouldn't have ended well. |
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Dec. 3, 2008 Awards Night 08
I have some general pics from the Awards Night, but first I have to brag on my kids.
For Moriah:
2 year service ribbon
Mitchell Award
Squadron Cadet of the Year
For Seth:
Wright Brothers Award
Most Improved Cadet of the Year
Honestly, the whole squadron did so great. The kids worked themselves really hard this year and earned an amazing amount of awards, and surpassed personal goals.
This officially launches us into awards season, where we start competing with other squadrons. Wheee!!!
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So I ordered my new camera from Amazon.com. I really agonized over spending extra to have it shipped faster, so I could have it for Awards Night on Tuesday. Finally the miser in me won out. I would just have to have someone else send me pics, because it wasn't a good use of money to spend $20 extra to get it here by Monday.
I got the UPS tracking info, and it was due to arrive on Wednesday, the day after the ceremony. Oh well.
Not 30 min later, UPS arrived with the camera!! Woohoo!!! |
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Nov. 27, 2008 Thanksgiving Catastrophe '08
If you are unfamiliar with the Great Thanksgiving Catastrophe of '07, you can read about it here: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Rivendell/465943/.
Meanwhile, let me give you the latest and greatest, because really, what is a holiday without a story of chaos and mayhem from LeniLand?
I spent the week preparing for the family to invade. I paced myself, so as to not burn out or cause a huge flare. I planned the cooking, the cleaning, the arranging...it was perfect. It was beautiful.
Everything was going according to plan, and we were down to 15 minutes to arrival. The food in the oven was perfectly warmed, the last minute things on the stove were set out, and about to be finished, the rolls were perfectly risen, awaiting their turn in the oven.
I stepped away from the stove, and as I did, realized I left a cupboard open. I swung it shut, and as it was closing, I heard an unfamiliar sound. With that, my world, exploded, literally. The cupboard in question held all of my glass and ceramic bakeware. And a shelf had just given way. As the items came crashing out of the cupboard, some of them collided with others in midair, causing explosions of glass to go flying in every direction. Others hit the floor, only to have heavier dishes land on top of them. Some dishes were really sturdy and did not break, but did bounce, right into my ankles. Others flew into the next room.
I admit it, there was screaming. I had breaking glass all around me, and it just kept coming and coming, I was screaming for it to stop! I was also waiting to see how bad the bleeding would be. (Can you believe I did not get one single cut???) When everything came to a stand-still, there was broken glass covering the entire kitchen floor. The WHOLE THING. In retrospect, it was actually quite a beautiful array of colors. "This artwork brought to you by Pyrex and Corelle." If only I had taken a picture. I was too busy getting my heart rate back to normal.
Of course, that's when I notice the broken bits in the rolls and the pans on the stove. Thankfully, the gravy was covered and safe. All in all, not too bad. I had not yet removed the food from the oven, so it could have been SO much worse!
The clean up took forever. Sweeping, then vacuuming, followed by mopping. And we're still finding glass.
Finally, we were able to back track, wash out the dishes, and start again.
So here are the real blessings in all of this.
* I stepped to the right, just as this happened. This all would have come down on my head, otherwise.
* There were no children in the room. They had all vacated moments before.
* The puppy was not at my feet. She is almost always at my feet when I am cooking, and I really shudder to think what would have happened to her if she had been.
* Only one tray of rolls were ruined.
* This happened when my husband was home to help me with it. He really is my hero. He always swoops in and rescues me.
* Company had not already arrived. I'm thinking especially of my 6 yo nephew.
* The cut-crystal dish my mom got me for Christmas last year was sitting on the edge of the counter, and I really don't know how it survived, but it didn't get hit! It's just stuff, but I would have been bummed if it had broken.
* We found the shard of glass in the dog's water bowl (which was across the room) before one of them drank out of it.
I'm sure there's more, but that's a good list there, so I'll be happy with that.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Hope your day was amazingly uneventful! ;o) |
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Nov. 26, 2008 Hormonal Train Wreck
Here's a pretty good sign that you are in a horomonally-driven emotional meltdown.
When you burst into tears upon hearing a news report from the local grocery store, declaring that the store will be open at 7 am on Thanksgiving morning, "in case you've forgotten that one special ingredient that makes your holiday tradition."
What's truly sad, is that I have NOT forgotten any ingredients. I've been crying all day. I lost it when I read Michael's update on his cancer treatment.
On that note, you can keep up on Michael's treatment here. Please keep praying for this young man as he heads down the chemo road.
Happy Thanksgiving, all. I hope your day is blessed. |
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My daughter has been HARASSING me about my lack of blogging lately. She seems to forget that life has been more than a little chaotic around here!
Last week was dh's birthday week. My sweet baboo turned 40! We had a nice evening out with friends, while all of our kids stayed back at our house, baking cake, making pizza and decorating for our return. It was great!
I won't bore you with the details of recent weeks, until I can remember the significant things I was going to share. Maybe the harassing daughter will remind me what I should have written about.
Ooh, I am trying a new brine for the Turkey this week, I'll update on how it turns out. |
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Nov. 6, 2008 Settling Into a Routine
I think I've finally found a routine that works for me.
The biggest problem with fibro and day to day life is that I can't get up and get going in the morning, and then I can't fall asleep at night. When I first wake I am very foggy, stiff and sore. It takes me hours just to be able to move around well, and that's on a good day. I really start hitting my stride around 2 pm.
Interestingly, on the days that I work, I start at 2. Great for work, not so great for home. I've been working all this week, and it actually helped me set up a pattern that seems to be working well for me.
I do my normal stuff in the morning, and try to do the kid's corrections right after lunch. I go to work at 2, and am usually home by 5:15. Then I serve dinner that either dd put in the oven or I left in a crock pot, and after dinner I start preparing the next night's meal. By that hour of the night, I'm at my prime, and enjoy puttering around the kitchen while I'm watching tv. Dh is usually at school or studying, so I'm not disrupting our time together either.
Can't believe I didn't think of this years ago! |
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We had some promotions this week at Civil Air Patrol. I'd post pictures, but some lovely cadet of mine broke my camera. Which is why he's selling his playstation, but that's a different story.
Seth promoted to Cadet Staff Sergeant, his first milestone award! He earned his Wright Brother's Award, which he'll receive next month at the award ceremony.
Moriah promoted to Cadet 1st Lieutenant!
I am now the Squadron Activities Officer. Woohoo!
If JT emails me the pics I took on his phone, I'll add them in. |
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Nov. 4, 2008 Memo of the Day Oct. 31, 2008 Bipartisan Humor
While I was at work last night, a guy brought in a copy of this picture (which he led us to believe he had made, ahem...) and wanted copies of it. One of my coworkers informed him that she could make a copy, but we could only do black and white. "But I don't want black and white!"
A mom who was walking behind him said, "Um, it's already black and white!"
LOL! She shocked herself, because she didn't mean to say it out loud. heehee
Not sure where it originated from, but I wanted to give credit where credit is due and also to offer the disclaimer that I have no other reason to ever be on a democratic site! |
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Oct. 28, 2008 Five Things I'm Trying to Teach My Children
In no particular order:
1. You cannot demand respect, you can only earn it.
2. You will never impress me by doing what wasn't required until you first do what was required.
3. You will never get ahead in life by doing the bare minimum. Strive for excellence.
4. No one wants to hear what you have to say as much as you want to hear yourself say it. Hush up and listen to what other people are saying. You can't learn if you're running at the mouth 24/7.
5. Invest in other people. If all you ever focus on is you, you are all the company you'll ever have. |
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Oct. 26, 2008 Fall Bloggy Giveaway!
This year's giveaway is a trio of parenting books.
First-Time Mom by Dr. Kevin Leman
(ISBN 0-8423-6039-5)
Raise Your Child's Social IQ by Cathi Cohen
(ISBN 0-9660366-8-9)
Men of Honor Women of Virtue by Dr. Chuck Stecker
(ISBN 0-78144-259-1)
Here's all you have to do to be entered in the giveaway:
1. Leave me a comment between 10/27 and 10/31.
2. Leave an email or link where you can be contacted if you win. (Leave your email in a spam-blocking manner: Lenicooks at gmail dot com)
3. Enjoy the fun!
Good question was asked...this giveaway is open to US residents only, sorry.
Be sure to stop in at the Fall Giveaway Carnival to see what else is being offered!
http://www.donttrythisathome.typepad.com/bloggy_giveaways/
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Oct. 25, 2008 George Takei Insists William Shatner Invited to Wedding Oct. 16, 2008 Leni Gets an MRI
It's time for another adventure into Leni Land.
So I went for the MRI on my knee today. I get there at 1:30, only to be told the MRI has been down since early this morning. Apparently, it never occurred to anyone to call and tell people that. So she sends me back to radiology to reschedule. When I get there, I get reprimanded for not having paper work, and am told to go back to reception. I inform them that I've just been sent from reception. "Oh, I must not have told them that the MRI was back up. Go back, I'll call them."
Back I go. I get there just in time to see the receptionist hanging up the phone. She turns to me and says, "Do you know how many patients I've sent home today because the MRI was down???" (People seem to feel comfortable venting to me. I'm trying to figure out how to change that.)
I get registered and go back to radiology with paperwork, which redeems me in their eyes. I went in almost immediately. I was concerned about how long I would have to lay there, due to the pain in my back, but the tech assured me that it would only take 17 minutes. Good, I can handle that!
Of course, being me, will anyone really be surprised to find out that the pics didn't come out well, so they wanted to redo the test? Sigh. By the end, I was praying that God would just help me to hold still so that I didn't mess up the pics.
I got done, and went to the store to get a couple of things. I wasn't in the store five minutes when my right hip completely gave out on me! The pain was so bad, I couldn't even walk on it. Ugh. I stood there trying to stop crying without drawing attention to myself. I figured that I had to get out of the store one way or another, so I started shuffling my way towards the entrance. When I got there, I saw the electric carts, and decided I might as well finish my shopping. Off I went.
I was half-way through the store when the battery died! Can you believe that? It was such a Dee Moment.
I hobbled my way to the pharmacy, and one of the techs called for help. Pretty soon a manager and another employee came along with a new cart and many apologies. They loaded my groceries into the new cart and I was off again.
By the time I got to the cashier, I was completely whooped. She asked me if I wanted Helping Hands to assist me. I've never done that before. I looked at her and said, "You know what, I would like to have them assist me!" She just chuckled and said, "Well, I'll get right on that for you!" And along came young William, just as chipper as can be, and he loaded my bags into the van for me, and returned the cart.
That whole store experience took over an HOUR! An hour for 4 bags of groceries.
Oy. |
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Oct. 14, 2008 Leman-izing My Children
Yes, I've been at it again. Here's what I've been up to this time.
Mo has a new puppy. New puppy wakes before 6 am. Last night, we moved the puppy crate upstairs, so it's just outside her bedroom door. When the pup started whining in the wee hours, her loving siblings banged on her walls til she got up and took her out. ;o)
Seth keeps forgetting to empty the bathroom trash, which has been his job every day for at least a year. The other night, when he got home and went to bed, he discovered the garbage pail in the middle of his bedroom floor. This grosses him out tremendously. We made sure to close the door so any special odors could build up in there. He hasn't forgotten since. Mission accomplished.
Noelle was so happy to see that her favorite shirt made it through the wash! Not happy enough to put the shirt away, despite being told repeatedly. When she next puts that shirt on, she will find that I have sewn the arms closed. *evil grin*
Parenting is fun again! |
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Never one to do things the easy way, I am not content to just have shingles. I must also have a torn meniscus. These things will of course bring on a fibro flare. Then there are other unmentionables...ugh! It's the Smith Factor.
So I've just been trudging through, trying to ignore the pain.
It occurs to me that no matter how hard I try to cut back on my schedule to rest, there's still just so much! I stayed home from so many things, but there were still things that just had to be done, you know? Had to take Mo to Greek, laundry and cooking needed to be done, etc... The kids helped a lot, and I'm so thankful! We were sick with throat/cold viruses for two weeks before the shingles outbreak, and I'm going on week 4 of illness here. I've kind of depleted my frozen meal supply, and I feel bad for the fast food and thrown together meals that everyone is having to deal with. God bless 'em, they continue to tell me how good it tastes. lol
I bought myself a Knifty Knitter on clearance and thought since I'm sitting around, maybe I'd learn how to use that. Think I remembered to buy some yarn? Nope! lol
I've gotten my Christmas shopping going. I feel victorious every time I have another package arrive from Amazon. I'm using my Amazon credit card to pay for gas and groceries, then using the bonus gift cards to do my holiday shopping! I'm clever like that. I'd list some of my great finds, but I can never be sure who might read this...
Mo's new puppy is doing well. She looks like Bambi. All legs! Today Mo and JT took Pippin to meet JT's dog, Jenna. Here's hoping Jenna doesn't eat her! Mo has been missing the golf course. Ever since JT started college, there's been very little time to go over to his parent's place.
We had our annual trip to Stokoe Farms last weekend, it was wonderful! Sunshine and cool temps, families and dogs (lots of dogs!) and yummy snacks combined with all the outdoor fun a kid could ask for!
How about some pictures?
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