Night~(Re)Cap

Thursday night. Time for a recap of the week already! Today was the Monthly Ashtabula County Board of Realtors meeting at the lodge. Last month we heard the people running for some public office all talking about weather or not they want to shut down the Geneva Lodge. At the meeting I asked our president if she had a spot for me somewhere, because I wanted to get more involved with Board of Realtors. Sure she said. Never heard from her. Even contacted the Vice-President and Past-President. Nothing. I speak with the Vice and Past on at least a weekly basis if not more. Slightly annoyed, but figured if they don't want a volunteer, I can volunteer elsewhere or join a different board (like Lake/Geauga). Today the president told me she been meaning to email me back, but has had a full inbox.. (don't know how she is doing much business if she can't email anyone..?..) so she has put me with the lady in charge of the cake toss. I tried to explain the cake toss to Liz last week.. it's something for hospice. we throw cakes at the Ashtabula Mall and somehow money comes from it. I asked Vicki, cake tosser chief, what she needed me to do. Thinking some cake baking was probably my job (good job for me!). No. She wants me to go around and get sponsors for the people getting cake hurtled at them. If there is one thing I really am not good at, really don't like to do.. fundraising. I told her I need information, like pamphlets, on hospice and what they use the money for and such. Someone over heard me and said, "What you want to parade a dying person around and ask for money?" Couldn't hurt. For some reason I was hoping to do something more real estate related over hospice related. Almost like I am a volunteer snob. Hm. Yep.

Got a new (to me) Mac Powerbook G4 and IPod Mini (6GB)! Still don't really know how to work them, but I'm slowly learning! Am getting the iPod down faster than the laptop. I love McLean. He is just the most generous gifter there is! Enough on that, because everyone who reads this has probably heard me rant and rave about the new electronics in my lives since the first box appeared on my door!

I also have been thinking that monthly a bunch of us are going to be getting together to cook/bake whatever (add alcohol) and just enjoy each other! Some have agreed to do it, I just have to get it set up. Easy enough.

Another deal dropped in mid-air today. The lending program this guy was qualified in was shut down in Ohio today. Am hoping someone buys one of my houses soon. Had a board of buyers filled up last month. One ended up being not qualified, another's lender told her to only work with a particular real estate agent (not really right), the rest dropped off the planet. This month, nothing except to keep trying with the fallen "buyers". It's really frustrating. I have houses listed for 17,900 (duplex) and a house that we are trying to drop down to 19,900. It's so ridiculous how low the prices are and they still aren't selling! That's Ashtabula for you! Thinking about switching offices, maybe companies. Since our old manager had to leave (health issues) our new manager and the economy has run us into the ground. We lost our advertising, our receptionists, and seem to pay more.

Mc left like over 700 songs on this thing.. Thriller.. This is GREAT!

Box of Surprises!!

I come home from work and there is a mysterious box on my front step. .. It's from a cousin in Malibu.. but that cousin doesn't live in Malibu.. hmmm.. well I get the boys inside and open 'er up.. and inside is a bunch of mac stuff. Curious, because I don't have a mac anything! Then I see an iPod and think well this must be all the stuff that goes with an iPod.. seems like an awful lot of stuff for that little music maker.. and it is missing some of the essentials (power cord stuff).

Then I check the mail. There is a slip that I need to pick up a package from the post office. Well, granted, my mind isn't always as sharp as it once was, but I am getting excited! Really excited!! I think my cousin is sending me his old Mac laptop!! I could be wrong, but after talking to the only other Mac user I know (Gretchen, of course!!), me thinks I am getting an upgrade!

I tried to call my generous gifter a couple times now.. but he is driving through the canyons of California. Caught him in the same spot twice! I will just have to go to the post office tomorrow and see if my suspision is right! I can't wait. Wish I could just go now, darnit! It would be so fun to play with right now! Wonder if I can go into work late (hit the post office first..)

!!!!!

Snip Snip

Well I finally did it. I cut Nathan's hair. His beautiful curls are now in a bag and he looks so different now. I had asked him, "Do you want me to cut your hair short or leave your beautiful hair alone?..." He wanted me to cut his hair. Half way through he told me to stop and they were his hairs. Unfortuanatly it was too late. So it's a little choppy right now in the back, but i will fix that when i have reinforcements! I admit I did cry a little when his beautiful curls came off. He does look different, but at least he has his chubby cheeks still. He's not a big boy.. yet.

Mixed Emotions

Something about this "holiday" has me seeing red half the time and floating the rest. It's been a whle since I've floated.. but i did have a good time today.

Started out with the boys getting to stay in from school today which was actually really nice. We broke out the smocks and easle and RED paint on Pink paper, of course. Nathan was really intense about it. It was really fun to paint with him. Sam colored all the hearts (some black, green, and pink wasn't dark enough of a color!). He gave all 8 of them to Pa! It was precious.

The boys got out every single toy they owned today. We had fun cleaning and playing with everything. It's funny how I had one of the best days I've had in a long time.. and to anyone else it must read as pure boredom! *Smiles* The day was filled with "Huggies" and Kisses and me calling Sam a sweatheart and him replying, "me no sweatheart, you sweatheart. Me Sam Miller, Sam".. followed by "Me need you" and more endearing statments from both. Nathan even attempted to say Thank You today ("ou" -after much prompting)!

Well I'm off to watch a movie and gush about the love stuff that I used to have on the big Hallmark Holiday!

Superhero Firemen

It has been one strange sickness or another here at the homestead. "Strange?" you ask.. yes! One little person will bring me home a sickness and they will get sick, very sick on a Friday night.. for example.. then they feel better the next day and a few days later I get sick. After about a day of feeling better (and the sicknesses last short periods of time with the children mind you), the other little person will bring a mutated form of the illness home to share with me some more. Damn those diseases.

In between the "every kind of stomach bug you can get" sicknesses, we have been up to a little liveliness! On last Saturday, I was officially losing my mind. Sam had been, refer to the Friday episode above.. okay.. so Saturday comes and Sam announces loud and clear that he is all better by 6:30 in the morning. I can not believe my ears and feel this is a very cruel punishment for being an attentive mother all through the night. Around 2pm I am ready for bedtime. The children did not take naps and had been up all night.. oh and at like 6:30 in the MORNING. For those of you who go with no sleep for days at a time.. well I don't work like that. For those of you who wake up early all week long.. agian, sorry but on Saturday I am ready to sleep until 7am. Yes, that 1/2 hour matters a lot to me! *smiles* 2:05Pm.. I have to do something or someone isn't going to make it until the real bedtime (at this point I'm looking at 5:30-6pm-ish).. Remember that it is the Winterfest festival in Geneva.. and it is a warm-ish (at least 40 degrees) day. We go to see the magic show. The boys don't get it and think the magician (Ronald McDonald) is "not-nice".. okay.. see my dad there, and he goes with us to get a cookie for the boys. Next I want to take them to the firestation. Backing up a bit, last week I watched Lilly and she and Sam decided they were firemen. Nathan even got to tag along! Lilly decided they were "Superheros".. Sam disagreed. "Firemen".. Then they compromised.. Superhero Firemen. What do Superhero firemen do, you ask.. from my observation.. a person collapsed on the floor got drug around by the firemen until they jumped up to all go fight a fire together! This repeated for a while, varying which person was being "saved".

Fast forward back to last Saturday afternoon, Sam and Nathan don't know what I am taking them to do. We walk into the firestation and there is a very nice fireman (he has actually helped me put in my car seats a couple times and came once when I called for an emergency) who puts a small REAL firecoat on Sam. Sam was unsure about this man who called himself a fireman at first. The coat started warming him up and then when he asked if they wanted to get into the fire truck and push all the buttons, turn on the lights, and generally play in the truck for a while.. well you'd think Sam hit the lottery! He was steering that thing and going to fight the fires in a HUGH truck. They both gave me a kiss and said good bye as the ventured off to save the world.

Sledding Possiblities

It is finally going to warm up enough that I think we can go sledding! I hear the temp is going to go up to almost freezing! How exciting! Right now it's snowing pretty good. Sledding was my dad's brillliant idea.. maybe Liz would want to come too! Might need a little extra help with the young one's first time sledding. Wow.. Sam is three and this is going to be his first time sledding. I guess my kids are kind of deprived!

I need to get them out and use up their energy.. during the wee morning hours Nathan pulled his trim off his door in his room. Nathan also just took apart one of my chairs. I need to run that child until he can't think about being destructive anymore. I understand it is just curiosity.. but goodness he gets into everything! *smiles*

Speaking of Nathan, he just climbed into my lap.. Currently rearranging my desk.. we are off to do an art project!

Market Reports and Mental Illness

So I don't really know where to start. I have decided that all who have mental illnesses need to stay away from me unless medicated (esp. those with Bi-Polar disorders). Guess what? Them there people are just crazy. I'm not trying to be a judgemental person or anything.. but if you be crazy.. I don't want anything to do with it.

okay, now that that is out of the way: I am bothered about the damn day/pre-school. Still. But can't seem to find somewhere else with a comparable program that is close by. So I am stuck. The boys like it just fine.. well until they get sick every other week if not more. Nathan was up so much last night, whimpering sort of and I asked him what was wrong.. "ME" (pounding chest) "ME" (pounding chest), "ME" (pounding chest).. :( ...

In the morning he started taking off his jams (pjs), mind you my house is not the warm enough in the winter that you just want to take off your clothes!, and I felt his head.. burning up. Temp 102.6. It's official, sick baby. No School. No officially going into work. time to shine as momma of sick babies.. very tired this morning.. didn't help.

*After yet another phone call* As stated earlier, please just leave me alone if you have mental issues! (skip over next paragraph if not wanting to read the venting!)

Okay so luckily I work part time as the secretary of that church.. if I worked anywhere else, I would have lost my job ~ again! So Nathan's father called (after he has been saying how he wants to prove that he can be a GREAT father and all this bullshit for the past week or so) and I told him Nathan was sick. He told me I had better keep giving Nathan Motrin (hmm.. I'm all out and the boys are in the tub and it is pretty damn cold outside). I told him I was out and maybe he should go pick some up. He starts telling me how Nathan has been sick for days (news to me) and I have been out and about all day (again, very interesting... seeing how that is not right either) and how could I have not picked up Motrin for Nathan. I tell him he is more than welcome to go get some on his way home from work. He tries to guilt me, some more, into packing up the now wet headed sick children (Sam's getting an intestinal funk as well) to take them to the store to buy Motrin.. nope not going for it. I tell him he can go get it himself or I'll have someone else do it for me. (Seeing how I kind of forgot about Motrin's magical powers!). After some unnecessary huffing/puffing, he says it will have to wait until he showers and eats and stuff (it takes him roughly 3 hours to get his boots off, shower, & eat). I told him to forget it. I'm getting the boys upstairs for early bedtime and Sean shows up with a 1/2 used bottle of Children's Motrin. Not really what I had in mind. Kind of wanted a new bottle of infant Motrin. I had just dosed him with Tylenol. Then he calls and tries to validate his point some more. ARGH.

okay enough of that.

I completely forgot about a market report I should have done earlier this week.. am trying to do it now, but can't concentrate. Finished up the other one this afternoon. Then, probably since I forgot about the one that is late, I agreed to take one that will actually pay me (in a month anyway).

Oh and I have a showing tomorrow morning around 10am. The other agent I had on call for a backup showing agent asked me yesterday if they were safe to make other plans.. I am just not a fan of virus's right now.

I can't believe I have wasted 2 hours trying to finish these things up, but I am so tired (the fact that my office light won't turn on isn't helping) I can't concentrate.

Good night!