Nothing Like Waiting til the Last Minute....

We had beach portraits done at the end of August. They are fabulous! I work for the photographer and have paid for them, but not printed them out yet.... Today, I finally picked the portrait that will be the 24x30 canvas print.... but.... I don't think I will be able to get a frame for it.... they don't have those just laying about... and that is all I really wanted for Christmas... I am kicking myself in the booty now!!! Even if I get one from work, it has to be ordered... sigh....

A "normal" day in the life of me...

It started with a call from a friend in need. She and her husband both had to leave the house @ 5 a.m. and they needed K2 to stay the night, get the kids (K, M, B) ready in the morning and asked if I could get K and M to school and B to daycare. Sure! What are friends for! So K2 stays the night and I show up at 7 a.m. K2 is first to school because if she misses the bus at the High School, then I have to drive her to New Bern! We get her to the High School about 7:30. Next K and M go to AWE, but can't be dropped off until 7:45, so we hang out in the parking lot until it's time to get them in school. Then B and I go to Wal Mart to waste some time because he can't be dropped off until 8:15. I got lunch out of the deal and B got a new hot wheels car! We get B to daycare, then back to their house to drop off the booster seats so mom can pick them all up from school in the afternoon. All this and I am only 15 min late for work (arriving @ 8:45 with permission from the wonderful boss!) Today I only worked until 1:30 and while not a busy day, it was hectic with picky people who want something for nothing and then try to complain, but I just kept smiling and making it right :) (only making faces when I was in the back LOL). The reason I only worked til 1:30 is because K1 K2 K3 and K4 had dentist appointments beginning at 3:30. After criss-crossing Havelock all morning (friends we helped live on opposite side of town than we do, High School is on our side of town, AWE back on other side of town, B daycare in the middle, then back to their house for the booster seat drop off, then off to Morehead) I drove to New Bern (where K2 goes to school) to pick her up so I could be back in Havelock (half way between Morehead and New Bern for those not in this area - mom :) ) in time to pick up neighbor carpool child and K3 and K4 for the dentist. I get to New Bern, K2 is taking End of Class test in Geometry so I wait as long as I can and end up leaving K2 in New Bern and getting back to Havelock just before police are called for abandoned school children (not really, but it makes it exciting!) all the while it is pouring rain... after picking them up, I drop K3 and K4 off at the dentist, explain why K2 will not be here ( I love our dentist office, they didn't make a face or anything when I cancelled one appt at the last minute! - esp. when they heard what I have been through up to this point LOL!) and then go get K1 from the High School. We make it back to the dentist. I actually got to sit for a few minutes! K3 and K4 have 2 cavities each... gggrrrrr but K1 is cavity free once again! YAY!! We are all finally done just in time to pick K2 up from the High School where the bus drops her off after school and make it home about 5:30. After a quick potty break I was back out the door to fill up the gas tank and pick up the pizza for dinner. Tonight will definitely be an early night for me!! Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday! and WOOHOO the hubby is coming home for a visit! Oh, and he was supposed to get his check up Monday, but due to the work schedule had to cancel his appt, so now K2 will be taking his spot on Monday... @ 10... so now I am pretty much only working T and Th next week due to a gazillion appts... poor K2... dentist Monday, Orthodontist and Neurologist Weds and then just my dr appt on Fri... it will be kind of nice to have them out of school and a little break from all the activities... I think the car will be glad too! Oh and I am kind of freaking because there are only 14 days til CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Christmas Time

Today K2 and I conquered putting the lights on the house with a little help from K4 and a smidge of help from K1. K3 was at a friend's house - calling every half hour or so to see if I changed my mind about letting him drive his dirt bike a couple streets over...ummmm, NOPE! But thanks for asking!
We got all the lights out of the garage and tested them a couple nights ago. Yay! All but one section works! But that is okay because we don't need that section as long as we put it at the end of the house. The last part of the lights get tucked in the gutter where no one sees them anyway! (When will they plan houses so that you can put the perfect set of lights on??)
Today was a very nice day for putting lights up. I only wore my jacket to have pockets to keep the gutter clips in. We started with the biggest peak. We got the ladder out and I started and got two clips on. Then we had to extend the ladder and move it over. Two more clips, maybe three and repeat... for the peak, we had to extend the ladder all the way... that ladder sure is wiggly when it is extended all the way... I wondered quite a few times if people I knew were on duty today at the Fire Station... also, made sure I had good undies on - you know... if it's people you know rescuing you, you don't want to give them anything else to talk about besides the stupidity that caused the accident they are rescuing or saving you from! Anyway, made it up and over the peak and lowered the ladder and moved it a couple times. K4 helped by holding the lights and making sure they were not tangled and the icicles were straightened out. He also tapped them against the house, but failed his attempts to frustrate his mom by breaking any of the little lights :). He left us to play legos then came back outside later to play football with the neighbor. We proceeded to the porch area and it went fairly smoothly. Finally the smaller peak. K2 asks if she can do this one, so I said "sure!" (also I figured if she fell, at least we were in the yard now and not the driveway and the yard is still soggy and squishy so if either of us fall there is somewhat of a cushion!). At this point, we also realized that one set must have been broken last year and we were going to be a string of lights short. So, we hopped in the car, drove to Walmart, grabbed a new set of lights (after making sure the cord color was right!) made our purchase and walked out of Walmart with only what we went in for! Only a half hour delay and back to work. She did a great job! We proceeded much the same as the big peak, just not extending the ladder as far.
K1 walked out while K2 was at the top of the ladder so I mouthed to her to get my camera. She sneaks back out and we switch places (she holds the ladder for me). I get a picture, then K1 leans forward and a little roughly puts her hands on the ladder, scaring K2... so much so that K2 asks "can you see any brown in the seat of my pants?!!"(Totally implying what you think she is implying!) K1 apologizes and told K2 she didn't realize how wiggly the ladder was. At least there wasn't an argument and it really was funny once K2 realized her life was not in danger. She finished putting up the lights and then I hung the new 42" snowflake. We think it looks great! We have decided, however, that DADDY will be taking the lights down!!!