fun shmun

I had quite the night and just have to document it for future generations....or just for my family to refer to at some inopportune time over Christmas dinner.

I was getting very bored sitting around the house this evening and entertained the idea of loading the kiddos in the car and heading to the gym for a bit of a workout. After much coaxing and begging on my part, the kiddos still didn't want to go and sit in the nursery while mummy burned a few hundred calories. sigh. In efforts to get them moving as well, I resorted to acting thrilled with my new idea for some exercise.....jumping on the trampoline.

The kids went crazy because they are always begging me to get on, but I know just how big a workout it is, so I more often than not....decline. (and if you haven't jumped on a trampoline in a while, please don't scoff until you've jumped for a good straight ten minutes. Trampoline mats are tighter than they use to be. That or my muscles are a bit looser)

So we head to the trampoline and I hop on ahead of the kids to sweep the sand off. When they get on, Bub decides that we should play chase. *chase on a trampoline involves running around in crazy fast circles, in half bounce mode* we take turns and I am now the chasee *the person doing the chasing*. I round one "corner" and go to grab ahold of Bub's shirt when somehow my foot catches in the net. I jerk because for some strange reason it scares me. (the whole hand reaching from the grave and grabbing your foot experience in broad daylight while the kids were watching kinda thing) When I jerk, I somehow bring down half of the net with me. The kids scream, I fall and become even MORE entangled in the net. When I try to stand, I find my ponytail is now also trapped in the twisted mess.

Recovered from their initial shock of the net falling around me, the kids are ecstatic, thinking mommy planned the whole thing. They are laughing and jumping as hard as they can, in turn bouncing me in such a way that I am becoming more wrapped up by the second. My first instinct is to yell bloody murder at them and demand for them to stop....but I am laughing too hard. That's when I realize that my backyard neighbor has stopped sweeping his back steps to watch me....and he is laughing as well. It was my sobering moment.

I somehow got the kids off and untangled myself from the net. I then spent a good 15 minutes trying to re-tie the net to it's posts....which I succeeded in doing minus one side of the net (which my hubby will tend to when he gets home this week)

All said and done, I am sure I burned at least 300 calories......on sheer laughter alone :)

coming soon.....

Brooke got her ears pierced yesterday....I'm posting pictures later :)

Family fun.....

We went to Saluda Shoals today for Trane's family fun day. We had a BLAST! The kids played in the splash falls, on the bouncers, in the park (they LOVED the rock wall), and got their face's painted. Brandon and I played bingo (with the help of the kids) but we didn't win anything. We DID win in the raffle though.....actually, all four of us did!!! The kids won toys, I won a Spin Spa, and Brandon won an MP3 player (which I have already laid claim to!! HEY! I need it for the gym!! lol) We had a really great time today.....I enjoyed spending the entire day with my little family, meeting some of the people Brandon works with, and having fun in the hot hot sun!

letting out a (long held) breath

I am so excited for tomorrow night!

Greys's Anatomy and The Office are baaaaaaaaack!!!! I have been impatiently waiting all summer for my favorite shows to come back on, and the wait is finally over! yehawwww

Ok, today....here's what is on my mind.

My big pet peeve of the day/week/ok, of my LIFE, are people who say they are one thing, but then prove themselves wrong when something trivial happens. If you say you are an easy going, devil may care person, don't get yourself tied up in knots when things don't go your way (because you've just contridicted yourself BIG time). What is even funnier to me is when people "proclaim" to wear a certain "tag" but so blatantly do and say things that go totally against what they SAID they were just a week earlier.

Me for instance. I am one of those rare people who don't get offended by other people. The only people that can offend me or hurt my feelings are people that I ALLOW to hurt me or offend me. Those people are only those that are closest to me, those whose opinions matter most :) I like to be able speak my thoughts and share my beliefs without fear of ridicule or harassment. Maybe this is reaching for something greater than what most people are.....but I respect the thoughts and opinions of others. While I may not agree with what they say, it doesn't change my feelings of them as a person, as a friend. We are a world full of people with billions of varying thoughts and opinions. If we all shared the same ones, wouldn't our world be so boring? and wouldn't it be so George Orwell??

Back to what I was saying..... I guess I just wish that when people say they are one thing...when people point out to others that they are a certain "type" of person......that they would realize that there are other people out there just like them, and other people out there that are totally opposite them~~and we all need to respect each other's thoughts and opinions. Don't get upset when someone points out something that you're doing wrong....don't get offended when someone says something that you don't agree with.


No matter how outspoken or brazen I can be, I've learned there is a time to keep my mouth shut. There is a time and place for EVERY conversation.....I guess learning that comes from experience....experience of hurting others with my words, experience of being hurt by others words. And have now fear......sometimes keeping your mouth shut even HELPS you remain true to yourself :)

cleaning....as usual

So I am taking a short break from cleaning out my garage....AGAIN! Why do I feel the need o clean my garage once a month?? Let me tell you....

My kids love love LOVE to play in there and drag things out of boxes....discover "new" things that mommy has hidden away for birthdays or Christmas. They love to look at our Chirstmas ornaments, and play with plastic Easter eggs that I save so I wont' have to buy new ones next year. So there is always a mess in my garage.

This week I have been doing some serious purging.....I had a yard sale with some friends yesterday and made 40 dollars. :) But I STILL left with a few boxes of things that no one else wanted :( So I freecycled it all :) and it's now on my porch waiting pickup......my garage is looking better and I am feeling GREAT about getting rid of more things.

I am soooo not the packrat. I hate saving most things....I don't like the kids to keep their toys more than a year (unless of course it's a FAV or it's something special), I like to clean out closets and purge often.....only when I "purge", most things end up in the garage only to get pulled back into my house NEXT year (or when the kids find it)

So I am proud of my little self. Now I have more room for more stuff.....and that means....

I get to go shopping :)

questions, always questions

My stepmom's sister, Bonnie, is in the hospital. She was admitted on Thursday after she passed out at home and stopped breathing....two times. She was brought in and her family was told that she'd had a heart attack. She regained consciousness and seemed to be stable when she pretty much just crashed. hard. She is now in a coma, on a breathing machine (life support technically), and the doctor's can't explain what is wrong with her. There has been talk of an irregular heartbeat, but nothing certain.

So there lies a 36 year old mother of three. Two girls, 15 and 13, and a boy, 2 weeks old. A good mom. A stay at home mom who has homeschooled her children, teaches them the basics of life and church and a belief in God. An amazing example to her daughter and other young moms around her.

See her? There she lies in a hospital bed, her fate unknown and her life depending on the electric lines that keep her machines on.

I have had a number of things happen in my life that lead me to question God and His "plan"....I spend much of my days wondering where exactly do I fit in in His great big scheme of things. Why do GOOD people die, so senselessly, unexpectedly, or so terribly.......when there are child molesters, rapists, perverts, murderers....who contribute NOTHING to humanity, who go on to live for YEARS? Where is the justice? What is the reason? I have heard SO many times that "God has a plan" "There is a reason for everything"......but after losing my brother so unexpectedly....quickly...and then losing my mother so slowly, painfully, and terribly.....I am at a rope's end trying to understand the meaning of it all.

Sure I"get" that we all live, and in order to "live" we all must one day die. But why is it that so many of the good people I know and love are the ones leaving before the "bad" people I know? There are people in my own famliy that I sometimes scratch my head over as I see them doing horrible things...living horrible lives....yet they are whole and healthy.

And why WHY do I get stuck tossing questions like this over and over in my head. Is this MY purpose in life? To be constantly searching for the answers to questions that I know can never be answered in the way that I want them answered? Why is my heart, MY soul in a constant unrest missing my mom, my brother......is it MY purpose to keep their memories alive? to remind the people that I love that my mom and brother didn't LIVE in vain....that I still think about them and miss them everyday?

I just want to find MY purpose.....and after the 9 years that my brother has been gone, 2 my mother....I still feel like I am wandering aimlessly through life.....doing things that don't add up to much, not contributing enough to the world around me....not doing MY part as a human. I remember how inherantly GOOD my mom and brother were, and I know that I am not like that. I wish I could be and I am constantly trying to find a way to make a difference in SOMEONE'S life. But would I KNOW that I were making a difference?

I'm just tired of questioning God.....sifting through my list of reasons......and they all fall short of good enough for me.

I worry today for Bonnie. For Hannah, Lindy, her husband and her new baby boy. This family that is being ripped down the center over something that is above their control....I worry for those girls who will surely have questions....and I worry that they will end up like me.

Cynical, searching for faith and something to believe in........and questioning everything I do.......

back in the blog of things

Ok, so I have to admit...I got caught up in the hype of "myspace" and have since abandoned my old place here on Blogspot....but I have decided to make a comeback!!! I know you're clapping and cheering.....but really, don't hurt yourself....hehe

So, today I went to the gym and was sorely disappointed when I realized that I didn't get there in time to claim my spot on a bike. I have become addicted to spinning class (hellllO, burn 500 calories in 30 minutes!?? not many legs are being pulled to get ME there!) anyhow, I walked in and there was one lone bike in the corner and it had a "broken" sign lying on top. ughhhh. SO I spent 30 minutes on the treadmill, half of which I spent in a nice incline....ten minutes of which I spent in FULL incline. I burned 200 calories I think....bummmmmer, esp since I could have burned MORE in spinning class. But I have learned my lesson and will show up super early next class :)

The kids bus was THIRTY minutes late today. paranoid freak that I am....I borrowed Casey's phone (she lives in front of the stop) and called the school to find out what the heck was going on. This was day two of the bus running late. This was day THREE of me being Adderall free, so needless to say, I was (AM) running super low on patience. I really hope the bus is on time tomorrow or else the bus barn will be getting a very nasty phone call.....

Dinner tonight I made gizzards (nasssssty, but the hubby loves them. this from the pickest eater in the world.....oddly enough, he adores chicken innards. go figure) and salmon patties (croquettes for those more sophisticated than I). I have been craving them for a while so I gave in and suffered through the smell....and was rewarded with the sweet taste of salmon patties dipped in syrup. Salmon patties are a serious comfort food in my book. My momma always made them for me when I came home to visit.....along with french fried sweet potatoes. I miss those meals made by mom, but I am happy to say that I have perfected her recipe.....she'd be proud and would probably make me cook them for HER when I were to visit next...lol

Alrighty, day's over, kid's bathed, hubby ironing tomorrow's clothes, and now it's time for story. Tomorrow begins another "grueling" life in the day of Alisha.....stay tuned for more~~good night and good luck :)

So you had a bad day

please excuse my last post. I was having a realllllly bad day yesterday and for NO apparent reason at that. Some friends and I went to Wild Wings yesterday for a little mom's day out deal. We were there from 1230-200 and I hate to tell you, but I don't remember much of the conversation! I was so out of it yesterday b/c before I left the house I had a KILLER headache. So I took two Midols to knock it out....and quick (that's the only thing that really works for me...) but the hitch is, Midol makes me hyper and jittery and OUT of it. I don't know WHY I took TWO of them!! I do remember talking about hair and movies. that's about it. so I left there and went to Home Depot because I needed 10 more bricks for my flower bed. Wouldn't you know it, there were only NINE left. I am not kidding you. GRRRR. Then to make matters worse, this nosey old man and his cocky looking teenage son were loading up some bricks right below me (same color, same pattern, DIFFERENT shape, mine were curved, his were STRAIGHT!). When I got to the checkout counter I asked the woman when they would be getting a new shipment in because I need ONE more, when that man came up behind me and said "Ms I think you overlooked the HUNDREDS of those bricks that were right below you." Now, usually I wouldn't be so snippy, but I was already irritated that there were only nine of my bricks left and this man had the gall to talk to me like I was some poor stupid blonde girl who didn't know A from Z. So I said, ever so politely, "Sir, if you look at your bricks and my bricks, you will see that mine are CURVED and yours are STRAIGHT. If you can find me ONE curved brick in all of those HUNDREDS of straight bricks, I'd pay you to shop for me." I pulled out of that parking lot feeling like a heel. ARGHHH. Well, I am a glutton for punishment, so instead of heading homeI ran by KFC to pick up some chicken for B and the kids. I pulled in the drive through and placed my order, waited a good 15 minutes in line, and when I got to the window the cashier told me they don't accept debit cards. (i never carry cash).ARGHH (again!) So I told HER, "Well, maybe you should think of putting a note on the sign saying you DON'T before someone waits 15 minutes in line, just to hear SORRY, YOU CAN'T EAT! Mad and tired and headache coming back full force, I went to Bi-Lo and got a bag of chicken and a box of mac and cheese and took my bum home. I added some mashed potatoes and gravy to the mix and called the family to the table. And wouldn't you know it, no one liked the chicken.

moody

ever have a day that just can't go right, no matter what you do? when everything and everyone rubs you the wrong way and all you want to do is crawl in your OWN little PERSONAL hole and stay there until your funk is over? when you have zero patience and even LESS tolerance for the most mundane things? ahhh, you guessed it, I am having one of THOSE days 2day. i need a lonnnnnnnnnnnng hot bath, door locked, NO LIGHTS ON and just SIT. in QUIET. i'd settle for TEN minutes!!!! ARGHHHH. i wish there were some magic pill that could just TAKE me O-U-T for a nice little lilac filled walk

mmbop

*u have so many relationships in life, only one or two will last. you go through all the pain and strife, you turn your back and it's gone so fast. it's gone too fast. so hold on to the ones who really care, in the end they'll be the only ones there. when you get old and start losing hair, can you tell me who will still.....care??? plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose. plant any one of those, keep planting to find out which one grows...it's a secret no one knows.....*

ok, call me a cheeseball, butIstill enjoy listening to this song. It's simple, but Ising it to myself everytime something goes wrong in my life. Funny how relationships are like the flowers in a garden.....Today I was showing a friend some flower's that are coming up in my garden.I have tulip bulbs that are prob on their last year and I'll have to replace them next spring. I have some pretty (sometimes pesky) lillies that come back every year and bring new ones with them, andI have some dead spots where I planted impatiens and the frost killed them, so now I need to fill in the empty space.I have two holly bushes that stay green and seem as if there are ALWAYS small red berries all over them. I have 2 gardenias that blossom and are soooo pretty for about a month then the flowers start to brown and turn to seed and fill w/ small bugs.
My flowers are like the relationships in my life. There are old friends that once upon a time shared a good piece of my life and my heart, but like the pretty little impatiens, when life got in the way, we simply drifted apart. When I see them now, we simply smile in passing. Ihave old friends who come and go in and out my life like the tulip. They pop up unexpectedly, bloom very quickly, and before you know it, POOF they're gone until next year. I have a lot of lillies in my life. These are the friends that I add everyday....sometimes they stick around and leave bits of themselves around to pop back up day after day. They are beautiful and fresh when in bloom, but more often than not, seem to wilt and fade before I even remember to take a picture...and don't we all have gardenia's? you know, the *friends* who start out great but then something goes wrong and ewww, you are stuck with a bush full of ugly rotting flowers. Then I have the lovely holly friends who are always there...they come with their own set of prickly leaves, but they also come with the most vibrant of personalities that make my life better and brighter because they are there and they are constant. I have my family....that tall oak tree standing off somewhere in the background....you know the tree I am talking about. The ones' whose roots are deep and firmly planted and it would take the strongest of God's winds to stir them.The one that no matter how long you are away, when you come back, it always feels just the same. The tree that is the stronghold in my life.......

I love this garden of life and I am in constant wonder at the beautiful realtionships that I have in it! Sometimes it's almost too much to wrap my mind around, how certain people come into our lives and make it so much better and others are there for just a short while just to teach you a lesson.

This blog is for a very special friend of mine.....I am so blessed to have come across you! You, who listens and puts up w/ my endless chatter....she's a beautiful trumpet vine that has wrapped herself around my tall oak tree...I hope to carry a piece of you with me where ever life may take us