Friday, September 19, 2008

**as i live and breathe**

she posts!! i know, i know it's a miracle. life has been strange lately and this has seemed like a chore so it kind of got put to the side for a while.

back to school got kicked off on a positive note. both kids were totally ready to head back. cj is a social fanatic and he totally missed all of his friends (read girls here). he also missed the weight room and has decided to wrestle this year. he met with all of the coaches and was thrilled to learn that he doesn't have to cut his hair....he just has to wear a funny hat-thing under the other funny hat-thing that wrestlers wear. it's going to be strange going to a sporting event rather than a choir concert. talk about opposite ends of the spectrum.

bailey was excited to go back because this is her senior year and that in and of itself is just way too cool. plus she is kind of a nerd (like me) and likes school. btw, she is taking HealthOc and one of the things that they get to do is go to the hospital and see a cadaver. i had her ask her teacher if i could tag along and she said yes. i am so excited. based on the schooling that i am doing and the fact that i have always wanted to be a nurse this is right up my alley. i can't wait!

angela took bailey's senior pictures last week. they turned out great. towards the end of the session i added cj to a few of the pictures and then had her 2 best friends in for a couple pictures as well. as soon as i get the final prints i will post some pics. angela is amazing and she was so fun to spend the time with.

i know this is kind of nerdy but the kids and i have been doing jigsaw puzzles at the dining room table. we get the 1000 piece eye-spy ones and they are a lot of fun. it's kind of "our thing" and i think that's really important right now. it's so funny to see the kids' friends jump on in when they are over...needless to say we get them put together at a pretty good rate with all the help.

speaking of the kids' friends, my house has officially become the house. a lot of the time i have 5 teenagers here making a lot of noise. but you know what? i love it. cj and his friends are playing "halo live" and the girls do what girls do. sometimes they get in the car and make a dutch bros. run...i wish starbucks was open later because i am not a dutch bros fan. all i can say it thank goodness for the little caesar's $5 pizzas. they are a lifesaver. the $5 footlongs from subway aren't too bad either.

well, i cut my hair. short. did i say short? if not i will say it. short. here is a pic of my inspiration. we are still tweaking it a bit and i go in next week for a color and touch-up cut.












this is vicki boutin. she is a great scrapbooker and i read her blog regularly. as far as i can tell she lives in canada which is a bummer because she teaches scrapbooking classes. i would really like to take a class from her. here's a link to her blog. check out her scrap room. it's too cute. vicki boutin i did copy her in the vinyl wall art of the owl on the wall and the birds above the door. they are so cute.

did i mention that i have a fat dog with acid reflux?? yeah, ummm how weird is that? jack apparently is about 4 pounds too heavy. dr. reid says you should be able to his ribs. yikes! he put jack on an extremely bland dog food and i give him a 10mg Pepcid in the morning and one in the evening. bug is queen of the "i am going to itch my face off" so we have her on some kind of cortizone/prednizone mix. pugs are a pain in the ass. seriously. if it wasn't for this....





















i am really missing this girl right now. funny how a plane ticket is all that separates us from the laughter and long talks over coffe and tea. bummer.





















well, the divorce is coming along. i didn't realize all that is involved in separating items. when both of your names are on everything it takes a lot of time to change all of that. the power bill, the gas bill, the phone bill, the cable bill, and the list goes on. i am doing just fine. it's an adjustment but it's the right adjustment.

Some think it's holding on that makes one strong; sometimes it's letting go. --Sylvia Robinson

peace.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Thursday, August 21, 2008

**happy, happy, happy**

17th birthday my sweet girl. i love you to the moon and back.






















this is Bailey at the top of the Eiffel Tower this July on her trip to Europe. she is so brave...i would never had climbed that thing.

















and this is Bailey in Monet's Garden. she said his house is the most amazing home....and she loved his yellow kitchen.

i hope you have an amazing year!

peace.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

**why are we ALWAYS portrayed this way?!**

click the following link and scroll down through the pictures WITHOUT reading any text. can you pick out the oregonians??

total stereotyping

do i look anything like that? i don't know ONE person that looks like that. they are frickin' bee keepers for goodness sakes!! sure,people like that are out there but i think every state might have people like that. there isn't anything wrong with looking/living like that but oregon is always shown that way. chaps my ass!!

now, mind you, i will watch the show just to see if they will edit out the times when these 2 are smokin' some good ole' oregon-grown weed! and so will everyone else i am sure.

peace.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Saturday, July 19, 2008

**my name is susanne and**

i am addicted to following blog links.

basic grey fabric
ice cream scoop
mixed tape
makes me wanna have a party
would go perfect in my kitchen
been into owls lately & love these
mad scrappin' skills that make me want to scrap
everyone needs one of these in their town

and other times i find on blogs things that hit me to my core. as i go through my divorce this really speaks to me and lets me be OK with it all.

i eat.
i sleep.
i scrap.
i love.
i refresh.
i drink.
i watch.
i waste.
i make.
i destroy.
i find.
i lose.
i seek.
i search.
i try.
i fail.
i am.
what i am.


peace.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

**mexican proverb**

the house alone does not rest upon the ground; but upon a woman.

**a passport and 1000 tears**





















i thought i was going to be able to be strong but the tears just came. at one point she told me to quit crying. right now she is 3 hours into a 14 hour flight from St. Paul MN to Europe. be safe baby. love mom.

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

**spoiled much??**












my mom took pity on me and got the kids a working computer. i guess she got sick of me freaking out that the kids were going to break my computer with all my pictures on it. now they have a rockin' computer that's better than mine. do you think they would notice if i switched them out during the night?


my baby is leaving for Europe on sunday. i can't believe i am going to pack her up and put her on an international flight to another country. i am so scared. speaking of packing...i kill myself every time i travel to keep my ONE bag under 50 pounds. for international flights your checked bag AND your carry-on together cannot weigh more than 44 pounds. that girl is gonna' have to wear the same frickin' clothes every day. LOL


i finally got my "library" so to speak of medical books that i need to help with the actual transcribing of doctor's notes. it was like the first day of college when you go buy your books. it was so cool! i was/am one of those geeks that loved the first day of school, school supplies, and buying the stacks of books that you needed when you registered for college. my favorite line in any movie is in you've got mail when tom hanks says to meg ryan in his email "i would send you a bouquet of newly sharpend pencils if i knew your name and address." go ahead, call me a geek and laugh. i'll wait.


anyway, here are the books i got:



  • Medical Abbreviations & EPONYMS

  • Davis's Drug Guide for Nurses

  • Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary

  • The AAMT Book of Style for Medical Transcription

  • a really good regular dictionary

swoon....



the weather has been gorgeous lately. it really helps my mood. i have been fussing over my planters and they are so awesome. except one that i think i burned a little but with too much fertilizer. oops. my dad came over on sunday with his super edger and made the front lawn look great. at least the edges look great. the color is awful. if i have to kill and reseed that bad boy i am going to stick needles in my eyes!














see the progress on one of my planters? i am so proud of this baby! i just look at it and smile! i think the big pink geranium in the middle is my favorite.


peace.

Thursday, July 03, 2008

**krinkles?**

i stumbled across this line when i followed a link that was posted on a friend's site to Dept.56. i LOVE these!




















and these.




















and i need these to go with those.



















and for my cake divas Sara and Anne these are to die for!!






















as per usual they aren't cheap!

peace.

**he switches it up so dang fast!**

Friday, June 27, 2008

**freddie freddie froo froo**

i will miss you....terribly.


fred was an amazing cat. gorgeous. friendly. cuddly. the best nap partner around. we will all miss him. he died today.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

**wipeout!! you just gotta' watch**

OMG!! the kids and i were laughing so hard at this show on tuesday night. it is the best in a long time. it's like an hour-long AFV clip! we keep going to abc.com and watching the episode again.

**sometimes you just gotta' laugh**

i thought i would share this with you. it cracks me up every time i see it.





Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

lost her today

















the best grandma in the world.

Sunday, June 01, 2008

and so begins june

birthdays, grad days, father's days, and wedding days make my money go away! and it all starts to-day!!


  • 6/1 my neice graduates

  • 6/5 my dad's birthday

  • 6/6 my birthday

  • 6/9-6/14 visit danea (this rocks!)

  • 6/15 father's day

  • 6/21 cj's birthday

  • 6/22 berto's mom's birthday

  • 6/24 berto's birthday

  • there's a wedding in there some where but i can't find the invite


i think i need to make a run for my local hallmark store! july looks a lot like this as well. plus, this july bailey is headed to europe for 14 days. i am starting to have panic attacks already. putting her on that plane is going to be one of the hardest things i have had to do yet.



the other day i had the urge to take a few pics of the things that were making me smile these days as i walked around my house.


i am loving this awesome potpourri and glass dish i got at pier one.





i finally got a cover for my coveted red kitchen aide mixer.







my mom decided that i needed a couple new appliances in my kitchen. this is the stove top/oven. it had a warming drawer on the bottom (which i never knew i needed but let me tell you i do!). it is also convection so i have to learn how to use that. i hear good things about it.






this is the other appliance i got. a dishwasher that is from the heavens i am pretty sure. i love this thing! i could put a pot roast on a plate in there and every thing would come out clean!











and finally, my fruit rack that is in the center of my island. the red apples are fake but the rest is real. this is my favorite decoration in my kitchen. i have had it for 5 years and i still love it. they say that when something in your home stops making you smile it's time to let it go. i think this one is a keeper for me.








we are getting pretty close to having the outside done. just some edging to define new lines in the back yard, re- planting some perennials that we lost, hanging out baskets, and spreading fresh bark dust. i love it when it's done and all i have to do is water, fertilize, and prune/dead-head.

my herbs. clockwise: parsley, cilantro, basil, and thyme. the parsley is actually the wrong type. my mom picked up the right one and i just have to go get it.







this is my favorite tomato. it produces cherry-sized orange tomatoes that are sweet like fruit. we all like them and i am the only one in the house who likes tomatoes. my mom's dog eats them of her plant so she has to plant hers out of reach.

my seating bench with 3 planters. mom plants these up for me every year and they get huge! by august only one person can sit on either side and is usually touched by a plant on one side or the other.

one of my two deck planters. these are huge and end up trailing down to the deck.


ole' pokey here is still working on school. i never thought i would take so long. i guess my inner procrastinator is finally showing itself. i am actually transcribing now, using the foot pedal and listening to doctors dictate. i like it other than when they use actual "medicines". it's like i should know all of the medications out there and know how to spell them. not to mention they don't sound anything like they are spelled. my scores are good but that is where i get knocked down on my work. i am still struggling with that part. uugh.

my grandpa fell and broke his pelvis so he had been in the hospital. he had some complitcations that arose from that so they put him in a nursing home so he can get physical therapy. he seems to be responding well. my grandma, whom i adore, is about to pass. she hasn't had anything to eat or drink for at least 10 days and her kidneys have shut down. i wish God would take her so she wouldn't have to suffer anymore. i know my grandpa is waiting for her. i will miss her terribly. i hope she passes peacefully. say a prayer.

this this the last full week of school. the kids have 8 1/2 days left and they are dying for it to be over! bailey has some killer finals and she is stressing out. i have been emailing cj's teachers like crazy and getting him in to work with them after school and at lunch to make sure all his work is in so we don't end up with any Fs. cross your fingers.

mom and dad have started their summer ritual of spending thursdays thru sundays in Newport with the fishing clan. it makes them so happy and relaxes them. dad fishes with his buddies and mom hangs out with the wives. they head up to Lincoln City and hit the outlet mall. dad has been catching fish already. we get a lot of fresh fish and fresh crab this time of year and it is great.

well, that's all for me right now. i just wanted to check in with you.

peace.

Friday, May 02, 2008

adorable story

i found THIS on another blog and thought it was so sweet.

peace out.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

remember me???

i'm about 5'4", have hazel-colored eyes, and my weight is....oh, no you don't, you aren't going to get me to tell you that one.

seriously though, things are going well around here. i am doing good, hubby is well, kids are doing great, and the animals are annoying. i do wish we would get some sunshine for more than 36 hours at a time. finally today we planted our sweet pea plants in our front trellis-planters and weeded the back flower beds. i only lost 2 astilbe plants and one hosta. yay! those are easy to replace. i am going to add a few more hosta plants in one of my front flower beds since i have a few open spots. then all i have to do is strategically plant a wave-petunia here and there for color and spread some new bark and i am done.

have you seen these? YUM!! this is my favorite scent though i have others that i like as well. they work great and since i learned that things that are plugged in but aren't being used, like toasters, still use electricity i am switching to these instead of the "glade plug-ins". plus i think in the long run these will be cheaper.

i found a couple really cute websites. looking at various scrapbooker blogs i stumble across the coolest sites. i think this one is great. Three Potato Four These are especially cute. Bottles And this blog. decor8 she finds the coolest sites for design ides that are cool for your home but could also work as inspiration for scrappin'.

we have had a couple proms lately. after seeing these pictures i think i am definately going to try to get a spot in one of karen russell's online photography classes. here is her blog post answering some questions about the class (scroll down a little bit) karen's photo class info and her website specifically for these classes snapshots of a good life well, here are the pics are they are.

cj and his girlfriend, hannah, had a winter prom that had a retro-theme. they went as the "cool sandy" and danny at the end of the movie grease.




















sure wish i could have pulled off that red lipstick and those leather pants in high school. she is so dang skinny. what a cutie.














i had to bribe cj to get him to let me grease back his hair. i don't know how the 'greasers' did it everyday.














what a goofball. and guess what they didn't count on? that the dj would be playing 'retro' music at a 'retro' dance. i went and picked them up an hour after hannah's parents dropped them off. all that grease for an hour!! he's lucky he's so cute!


bailey went to the jr/sr prom last weekend. we totally lucked out on finding a dress that she loved right here in albany! no driving around all over the place. thank goodness.




















the theme of the prom was masquerade. we rented the mask at the costume loft downtown. they didn't have 'exactly' what she wanted so the girl there made one up just for bailey. it turned out perfect.













all of the girls got a group picture at the dance but here are some pictures of bailey and kelsey after they got ready at our house. i think they looks so beautiful.














peace out.

Thursday, April 03, 2008

Evolution of Dance

This totally makes me happy!

I would like to thank the Academy...

for this Shitty-Blogger Award. it means so much to me. i didn't prepare a speech but there are a few people i need to thank. first of all, let me thank my 2 teenagers. without them i would blog more. ha! i would also like to thank mr. laundry. he never fails to build up which prevents me from blogging. ha! of course then there is dinner. always there EVERYDAY!! i would blog more if not for dinner. ha! and most of all i would like to thank mr. TIVO who, without a doubt, keeps me captivated every evening. without TIVO i would blog more. ha! gosh, it feels like i am forgetting someone....oh, i know. ms. school. she is constantly kicking my butt. she has me in the home stretch now, which is turning out to be the hardest part. without her i would blog more. ha!

i'm alive.

peace.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Tom Cruise Parody ala Scrapbooking

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this woman!!

FINAL-ly

i took my final exam last week for my transcription course and passed. finally. it feels really good to be finished. i have a small course to teach me the process of transcription, using the equipment, and learning methods of interpreting different accents that doctors may have. then i can earn some muh-la!! my family will be so happy!

i have been feeling great lately. i was in the kitchen loading the dishwasher a couple days ago. i had all the windows open to "blow out the stink" as my Mom would say, LOL. i heard a bird singing....and it was wonderful. sounds sappy, i know, but it was great. it means to me that spring is coming and i can't wait. i could really use some warm, sunny days.

berto has used an indoor seed-sprouting kit to raise Sweet Pea plants for our front planters that have lattice on the back. we have one on each side of the garage door. i can't wait to get these planted so they can weave their way up the lattice. it's been kinda cold in the mornings so we are going to wait a few weeks.


i have been cooking and baking a lot lately. it's great to finally get back to that. i love it so much and it seemed to be something that i "used" to do. i was concerned that i was going to never get back my love of cooking but......i was wrong. i have a great cookie recipe!!

JUMBO DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

2 sticks butter

2 sticks butter

1C sugar

3/4C firmly packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp instant espresso coffee powder

2C flour

2/3 C cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

3/4 C white choc. chips

1/2 C semisweet choc. chips

pre-heat oven to 325 degrees

cream butter and sugars. add eggs, vanilla, and espresso powder. mix well. sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. mix this into creamed mixture. stir in the chips.

line baking sheets w/ parchment paper or spray with cooking spray. scoop the dough into 12 large (2/3 C) mounds, arranging them, 4 to a sheet, at least 3" apart. Bake until cookies are flat, 20-25 minutes. ( i made the cookies smaller so i would have more and it worked just fine. i set my timer for 18 minutes. your over may be different so adjust as needed.)

i want to share something that swells my heart with pride. cj wants to join the STARS program at the start of next year. STARS is Students Today Aren't Ready for Sex. it is a peer-based program and he wants to be able to talk to younger students and help them be able to say no, giving them the tools the need to be strong.

STARS program

i will leave you with a few blogs that i am in love with right now:
Confessions of a Pioneer Woman
dooce
Christine Middlecamp

peace.

Friday, March 07, 2008

irritated

berto and his friend john had to work on my computer and save all of my stuff onto my 2 external hard drives. (yes, i have 2 so if one tanks i have another, and yes, i am paranoid) they could wipe my computer clean and put it back to factory settings. we think i had a virus or something.

but...now my pictures are in a different place and photoshop elements isn't loaded onto my computer yet, so i can't crop/alter my pictures. irritating i tell you!! i have a few pictures i want to post and i can't. bother!!

i do have this...and it totally makes me happy.



bailey and i are totally fighting over him. she says she saw him first. lol my daughter and i are in love with the same guy.....what is the world coming to?? though i also love this guy:



it might be the accent. what is it about men with accents?

peace.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

earth

did you think i had fallen off of it? no, just hanging by the skin of my teeth. i am doing better. things are becoming clearer. thank goodness for the spring-like days. they are wonderful. i just wanted to let those of you who read my blog know what is up. maybe i can let someone else explain it:*

*Bipolar II is a version of Bipolar Disorder: depression is obvious but mild phases of high energy ("hypo-mania"), which can just look like anxiety and insomnia, are also present. This doesn't look at all like "manic-depression", just big mood and energy swings. But Bipolar II can be as severe as other forms of Bipolar Disorder, maybe even more prone to suicide. Bipolar II is an "official" diagnosis in the Bipolar Disorders group.


they are getting ready to shut down this site for maintenance in a few but i will try to blog more from now on. things are lookin' up. =)