Giving this another chance

So it's been like 9 months since I have updated this thing, oops....

Here's the scoop..

December Ry lost his job, and also my brother in law Erik. Then Pops got laid January 5th, suck suck suck....that poor guy. It seems like he is always taken a beaten. January is also when we found out that Little Mary is PREGNANT!!! It is the 1 niece or nephew, the 1st grandchild!!! This child will be spoiled! Erik did get a job shortly after they found out they were pregnant so that was a big relief. Other than that its been a pretty crappy year. Pappy's house sold which I thought was a good thing, turned out to make him even more sad. He's been living with us since March, I think?? It took Ry almost 7 months to find a job but he got one and is now working at Lowe's. It's not bad, a pretty big cut in pay but at least it's a pay check and health insurance. Pappy on the other had has even worst luck...he was able to get a job working in a factory but the guy said it is not a permanent job. He started off working nights 11pm - 7am, that sucked...then he got moved to 3-11pm. Still not great but better than what it was.

Mary's pregnancy has been pretty good. She has been pretty healthy so far and the baby is doing well. I have gotten to hear the heart beat a few time and let me tell you that child has "got a loud thumper" as Mary and Erik put it. They did not find out the sex so I am excited to find out whether I will be spoiling a little boy or a little girl. I really don't care what it is as long as it is healthy. Oh and she is due in like 5 weeks!!

And I guess for the crappiest new....Pappys is more than likely moving to Virgina, in like a matter of weeks. A guy he knows offered him a job and as long as it's a decent amount of money Pappy pretty much has to take it....This really sucks!! He won't even be able to be here for the birth of his 1st grandchild. I feel soooooo bad for him and everytime I think about it I wanna cry. Can't the guy catch a break?? At least let him see his 1st grandchild.!!??

I guess that pretty much gets everything caught up....I will try to update more often from now on. :O)

I'm moving to Sweden

I often wonder if Great Grandpa Axel knew what he was doing when he can here to the U.S.? Why did he leave Sweden?? Was he just wanting someplace warmer to live? What was it?? Would he be pissed if we moved back??

This is Kringle, I didn't take any pictures of her with my real camera ( stupied me ) but I took this video of her with I cell phone. I've never posted a video before so I hope this works. Rest in Peace sweet little meow face. I hope the angels are loving and playing with you. xoxoxoxox

So Very Sad

I knew when I got in the pet saving bussiness that it wasn't always going to be sunshine and roses, but then again you don't really expect saving an animal to go "bad". When it does it hits you - HARD!!!!

This past weekend Ry and I rescued an aprox. 9 month old kitten. She was at my cousin Adam and Steph"s house. They had seen her around for the past couple months and once in a while Steph would feed her, especially now that it was cold. I went to their house for their daughters 1st b-day ( i made the cake ) and when I went to leave here was this kitten meowing, trying to walk through the deep snow with little frozen mittens. Even thought she was cold and had ice and snow stuck to her paws she still pounced on a little snow ball the she had kicked. It broke my heart. I cried on my drive home. I knew that if I would have taken her Ry would have been mad. But I decided to tell him about her even if he wouldn't do anything to help her. To my surprise he was like " lets go get her". Sometimes he really amazes me.

So Saturday night we go pick her up. She was soooooo loving, and even on the car ride home if she started to cry Ry would tell her to "be a good meow face" and she would stop crying. We set her up in our garage. She had a bed with lots of blankets to keep her warm, food and water and a little litter box. She was soooo happy. She couldn't decide what to do first. She would "chow down" for a bit while looking at us out of the corner of her eyes, then run over to us to be petted but would keep looking at her food then would run over to the food and eat some more them run back to us. It was like she wanted both so bad she didn't know what to do first. It was cute too, when we would open the door to the house to check on her she would get scared and run under the car but as soon as you called her she would come right to you and want to be petted. She wanted to be loved sooooo bad. Anyways last night we put her in the basement so she could be extra warm and she loved it. Ryan played and played with her. We decided to give her to Ry's mom. We thought she would be perfect for her because she was such a happy loving kitten. We named her Kringle, as in Kris Kringle, cuz its Christmas time. We though it was very fitting.

Well Ry took her to the vet today to get her checked out. She didn't look or act sick but it was just a precaution. And sure enough they had to put her down cuz she was sick with feline AIDS.
Ry called me at work to tell me the bad new, he thought I should know. I cried. It broke my heart. I just don't get why?? She didn't deserve to be sick. She was soooo beautiful and loving and great full. Plus I feel double bad cuz I didn't even get to say good-bye. I was running late this morning cuz I snoozed for 10 extra mins so it was totally my fault. So I didn't even get to play with her this morning. Thats all she wanted was to be loved and played with.

I know - if your in the animal saving business sometimes things like this happen, but come on, why this one!!! I didn't even get a good pic of her. Today SUCKS!!!! Now i feel like I need to save something else to make up for this one. I just pray that she is playing with the angels, she deserves to be happy in heaven. She was a very good meow face. Rest in Peace Kringle, you sweet little meow face. We loved you xoxoxxo :O(

Where Had November Gone??

Good Lord, it feels like November has just flown by and that Christmas is just around the corner.
Ry and I started out this month with the thought of possibly trying to start a family in January. Now we are ending the month with him being laid off, Circuit City is closing, me working 3 part-time jobs and trying to figure out what to do next. For now he is still working, everyday that he can work is 8 more hours of pay. One day he will come home and say "thats it, it over". In a way I'm kind of terrified of that day. I don't know how to take it. Will he be relieved, depressed, happy?? He HATES working there. He says that no one cares anymore and the customers are HORRIBLE. He has gotten death threats. DEATH THREATS!!!!! because the fucking customer doesn't get the deal he wants. So they will threaten to kill you, your family, the whole store. Oh and not to mention the scum of the earth telling him how much he sucks cuz the store is closing, and how worthless he is, how he sucks as a man cuz he won't be able to provide for his family. Whatever, they can all jump off a bride as far as I'm concerned. So I guess it goes without saying that he isn't a "happy camper" these days. But we will get through it. We always do. We might not have a pretty marriage on the outside but it's pretty dam strong on the inside.
Oh and not to mention that my sister and her husband are also going through this too. My Ry and my sisters Erik work or should I say worked together at the same store. On the bight side we get to go through this with our best friends. I don't know where I would be with out my little sister. She the M in my M&M's :O) Its actually cute, Ryan and Erik are very close and so are Mary and I. We see each other at least 4times a week. We are always sharing dinners and going places together, and the boys stick together at work. I think Ryan thinks of Erik as the younger brother he never had. He is very protective of Erik like I am of Mary. I also think its funny that I can't call them little sister or little brother cuz they both tower over us. I love those two. :O)

So as for my 3 jobs. I now get up at 5am so I can leave my house by 6:30am to get to work for 7am to work with our accountant. So I guess you could call me an accounting assistant?? I'm doing all the invoices, health care and dependent care financial stuff, credit card stuff, billing, check writing, bank records, ect... Oh and did I mention that I don't have a degree for this stuff. I really don't even have a high school diploma. Nuts !!! So I do that for 2 hours before the office opens, then I move to the front desk where I continue some of the accounting stuff plus I become the receptionist. I'm a busy little beaver. Then probably at least 2x a week sometimes more I work the aftercare program at St. Judes. So I am there from, well on half days I do the museum stuff leave at noon and drive straight to the school and I am there till 6pm. Other days I have time to go home, eat change, clean a bit then I work 3-6pm. Then I go home and still cook a lovely dinner. For now I am surviving. Coffee is my FRIEND!!! The only real crappy part is that I still don't sleep. Grrrrrr.

Other than that all is well. The deck is done - well all except some sticks but those aren't a big deal. I will post pictures soon. When I have time. It is BEAUTIFUL!!!! I love love love my deck!!! I have the bestest daddy. The kittens are good, they love the house. They are a bit spoiled. They each have their own twin size beds in the spare bedroom. Plus Tinky has her own Leather Reclining chair and Bootsie owns our closet. Not the mention all the other nest Ry has made for them all over the house. We still have BoJangles and Baily. They are good. All that is left this month is to get through Thanksgiving. Yeah for a day off Friday!!! I could use one, I'm excited for it too. Mary and I are going to hang out while the boys are at work, have a fire, make gingerbread people, string popcorn and berries, drink hot coco, and watch all the Christmas DVD's we can!!!! I can't wait!!!!!! Its just the kind of day I need.

What is it with Fall

I love Fall. It makes me LOVE everything and appreciate things more. I find myself looking at the clouds and admiring how beautifully they are painted in the sky, how the color of the sky is like no color I have ever seen before, how the air smells so clean or how you can catch a hint of the smell of leaves burning far off in the distance. How its chilly but but to chilly, the way the sky explodes with color when the sun sets, sinking down behind the magnificently colored tree tops. I love how each leaf knows the exact shade it need to change in order for the tree to be a complete work of art & how no matter how small or big a tree is they are are beautifully decorated with no help from mankind.

I love how the fall makes you what to slow down. A walk down the street or just sitting outside doesn't seem like a inconvenience like it does in the summer. I love how fall makes you feel like the rush of summer is over. I love how it makes you want to snuggle closer. How Ryan will throw his arms around me when we are outside, wrap his arms in mind and block the wind from hitting my back. I love how I'm just the right height for him that he can rest his chin on my head. I love the feel of my soft sweaters and fleece. I love how Ryan will put his cold hand on my tummy to warm them up, & how we both giggle. He giggles cuz he thinks its funny, I giggle cuz it tickles. I love how we will watch t.v all snuggled up under a blanket our cold toes playing footsie with each other trying to get the other ones feet warm. I love how he will make me hot coco. I love snuggling my cold nose into his warm neck. I love warm comfort food. Stews, chili, corn bread muffins, warm baked apples, meatloaf, I could go on and on.

I guess most of all I love my family. My wonderful husband who cares so much. I love how he is always concerned with the little things, always telling me "not to worry", how he snuggles with the meow faces and plays with them like they are children. How he makes nests for them to sleep in so they aren't chilly. How he is always asking me if I'm hot or cold. I love how everything is Bee's. I love how he laughs and smiles. I love my sister and how everything in life can be a game. How even though she is an adult she still has the innocents of a little girl. I love how she is upbeat and positive and how she is always willing to help everyone. I love my brother in law Erik how even thought he isn't my "brother-brother" he feels comfortable enough in our family to treat me like his sister. I love how he is a brother to Ryan. I love how he is aways willing to help too. I love how even he tells me to "stop worrying so much". I love that he loves Mary. I love my Pappy. How he is sooo smart and doesn't even know it. I love how he is always willing to put his stuff aside and help his kids even though we are grown. I love how he and Ryan get along sooo well. I love that I can talk to him about everything and he is honest. I love my Mom, brother and sister in law too. We just aren't that close but I would love for that to change.

So what is it with fall?? There are 3 other wonderful seasons but why does fall effect me sooo much??

You Know You Work For A Non-Profit Organization When..

First off I love my job. I love the people and the art and the students and what I do in general. But that is not to say that working for a non-profit organization doesn't have its, well lets just say challenges. Some are "fun" challenges others are so ridiculous that "normal" businesses would think we were still in the stone age if they actually knew what we have to do ourselves and not have a fancy computer or a machine to do it for us. So this is my attempt to bring some humor to the non-profit world I live in.

10 SIGNS THAT YOU WORK FOR A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION

10- there is a budget for Kleenex & instead of being able to order it someone must go out & buy it.
9- your phone is sooo old that they no longer even make parts to fix it and most technicians have never seen "that model"
8-not only is your phone from the stone age but most buttons no longer work do to the large amount of coffee, water, soda, and juice that has been spilled on it over the years.
7- Our mailings are actually created by us, typed by us, copied by us, and stuffed in to envelops by well me :O)
6 - In case it didn't sink in we actually have to mail out our own stuff & I'm talking folding over 2,000 letter by hand, labeling over 2,000 envelopes by hand, sealing over 2,000 envelopes by glue stick (cuz I'm sure as hell not going to lick them), and putting stamps on over 2,000 envelops by hand.
5- Yes we actually use stamps it is not in our budget to get a meter thing that would just weight it and stamp it for us.
4- When we changed our name this year by dropping the regional part "it was a very big deal"!!
3- There is no one to cover for you if you are sick. Your job either just doesn't get done that day or your boss does it and is happy to since it is a nice change for a day.
2- When the office need a change instead of actually hiring a company to come in and paint and decorate the staff actually paints their own offices.

And the #1 SIGNS THAT YOU WORK FOR A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION....

THE RECEPTION DESK JUST GOT IT'S FIRST COMPUTER EVER!!!! It is a used computer we don't have the budget to buy a new one but you would think it is the first computer ever made but the way people act about it. Every one has too see it, touch it, talk about it.

Don't get me wrong it is very cool to have a computer at my desk and I did just type this blog on it and got paid to do it so I guess I am one of those people that is super excited about the computer. Now I feel like I have a real job - isn't that what most people do surf the net at work?? :O)

Be Free Little Mouse Face

Last Thursday we let our healed little mouse face go. Ryan had the day off and since we wanted to do it together it was a good day to do it. The sun was shining, it wasn't to hot so it seemed like the right kind of day to let a mouse go.

I'm still going to miss the little guy. He was a cutie. :O)

We decided to let him go out in the cemetery that my grandparents are . I know it sounds creepy but my thought is that 1. it is a very quite place 2. there are plenty of plants to eat and 3. it is surrounded by fields. And the fact that its like 5 minutes away from us didn't hurt either. So we drove there parked but my grandparents grave walked out a bit and let the little guy go. ( this is not my grandparents grave in the picture ) We also said a pray for the little guy & asked Grandma & Grandpa to look after him. Although I'm pretty sure my Grandmother was turning in her grave, she wasn't one for mice. So I hear :O)

He did need a bit of encouragement, I don't think he liked the car ride.

But he jumped out, see the little guy? He is just to the right top corner of the cage in the grass. So he ran off, we poured out the bedding from the cage on the ground and put a pile of seed there, but I'm pretty sure he didn't come back. He ran away...Fast!!

Our New Addition Is Not Staying

Ryan and I have talked it over and after much consideration we have decided that we are going to let our new little friend go. He is getting better and we think its just the right thing to do. Mr. BoJangles situation was different - he came to us and it was the dead of winter when we rescued him so there was no way we could have let him go with out knowing for sure he wouldn't have frozen to death. But after the rain passes this week we are going to take him out to a field and let him our new friend go. I guess we could let Mr. BoJangles go to but Ryan really wants to keep him and he is fun to watch and he has been with us for a while now so he will stay. Plus we can't really have put the 2 little guys together with out knowing for sure that they both are 2 little guys. We really don't need an army of mice. Or what if they didn't like each out and one killed the other I would feel horrible. So the decision is made, our new friend well be set free. He is doing much better too. When we first brought him home he would just sit in his toilet paper tube with his little hands curled up I think cuz they hurt him so bad, but now he is moving around pretty good and I think he is feeling better. The hair on his face is even starting to grow back and it isn't red or pink anymore. He are a few pics.

Isn't he cute??

See his hands all curled up. Poor little guy :O(

This is how we found him today, he made himself a "hiding palce"

He's a sleepy little guy

This is Mr. BoJangles running in his wheel.
He is such a little mouse face.

Something New To Rescue

So this whole "we must rescue and help all creatures" thing has taken a turn. We now save frog. Yes frogs. Toads too. We were outside working on our deck with Pops and we see this little frog. Actually Ryan almost stepped on it!!! So he leads its, more like pushes it or guides it with a stick by poking its butt all the way from the back of our house to the pond that is like 130 feet back. Yes it is a 130 feet back we have measured it. He was soooo proud of himself for saving this frog.
A while later I went to get another board and what do I see. Yes another frog!!! So this one too gets rescued and taken to the pond. Although I picked him up, I didn't poke his butt for 130 feet. Oh but that's not the end of it. So Erik comes over and he is out helping us, looks down one of the holes we dug for the posts and what does he see. YES Another FROG. The poor little guy must of accidentally fallen down it. So Erik lays on the ground reaches down the hole and grabs the little guys and takes him to the pond.
The sad thing we realized later is that these little guys more than likely came from the pond, jumped/hopped all that way just to be taken back down there but some stupid humans that think they are helping. And I'm sure we will be rescuing them again some time soon.

I have also realized that maybe I shouldn't question God on the whole saving mice thing. Cuz there are always frog that need help too.

We have a new addition to our family

If they call me Snow White because of the way I am with animals then what should they call my husband?? Friday morning I get a call at work and its Ryan telling me that he has a mouse stuck to one of those horrible sticky mouse traps. He wants to know what to do. He says it is bleeding and is really hurt. I wanted to throw up. I have seen those mouse traps and what they can do to a mouse - basically it is designed that the mouse will rip himself to death trying to get off. Its very sad and the makers should be stuck to a pad just like it - naked!!! Maybe then they will know what it feels like. Anyways the first thought that come it mind is there is nothing you can do and that you will just have to put it out of its misery. Ryan did not like this answer. You can't just pull him off cuz you will pull its skin off too. Maybe you can cut him off. So that the sticky stuff is still attached to him but at least it will be free. He says he will try that and call me back.

About an hour later he calls me back telling me that he got the little guy off he cleaned him up with an alcohol swab, he is now in a box and I need to come get him on my way home from work. Not only did he cut him off he very carefully got all the sticky stuff too. What a guy :O) So we get him a small cage and put food, water and bedding in it for him. I feel sooo sorry for this little guy. He has no whiskers cuz he ( not Ryan ) pull them all off trying to get his face off the sticky pad, he had be bleeding from his mouth, his feet were all red and bloody and he can't walk right. I think cuz they hurt. But he is doing better. We have him in our room where it is quite most of the day, and he is eating and drinking and hiding out in a toilet paper tube. Seriously God, is this our/my calling to rescues mice. I'll do it, you know I will, I can't help it I love little critters but really mice??

That bring me to story #2 our first rescued mouse from January - Mr. Bojangles. Remember him?? The little shit bit me :O) And drew blood. We were trying to clean his cage which is just about impossible cuz he jumps around everywhere and we can't catch him. The only way is to trap him in side his toy jeep. ( Yes, he has a toy jeep to sleep in ). So we get him to run in it and Ryan sticks his hand over the opening and starts to lift it out of the cage and I see he is trying to squeeze through a small hole Ryan's hand didn't cover so I stick my hand there and he bites me. So we drop it back in the cage and close it. OK so here is my idea - maybe I am only to rescue them and help them, then let them go?? So i mention to Ryan that maybe we should let him go?? What do you think his response will be?? A. - Great Idea honey B. - But I don't want too but we will cuz he is a wild mouse after all C. - No!! And the answer is C!!!!! He actually got mad at the idea of letting him go!!! But it's not like we can let him go now anyways cuz what if he has rabies or something and since he bit me we need to keep him for at least 2 weeks. Good Grief!!! Oh and so I have proof I have told Ryan that I think it would be a good idea to let our new little friend go once he gets better. But he is already is set on keeping him too.

** For the record he has found and threw out allllll and any sticky traps he found at work and has told his boss that when ever he see one its throwing it away.

I am My Fathers Daughter

I am my fathers daughter is sooo many ways. I see it all the time. When I was a kid we had a hard time getting along but I think it was because we are so much alike. Nothing is impossible, everything can and will be fixed, and we are both very optimistic. And we both have patience of GOLD!!

Ryan and I built our first house and have been in it for 3 months now. During the building process my dad was sooo helpful in determining what to pay to have done and what we could do ourselves. My dad saved us a ton of money by doing this. We put our money into making the home big and saved money by going with the basics for flooring, counter tops, paint, things that we can change later after we have kids, and putting in our own closet shelving. One of the BIG things we decided to do our selves was the deck. They wanted way too much money for a small deck and dad and I knew we could do it bigger, better and it would still cost less. So a couple of weeks ago we decided that with summer ending we wanted to start this deck thing. We drew out the plan and have begun the work. It is taking a bit longer than we had thought it would but then again my dad and I think alike and everything we came up with was "we can totally do that", "no biggie". Well now that we have been working on the deck we have realized that it is a biggie :O) This deck is going to be Massive!!!! Its 12ft by 20ft by 28ft by 8ft, and wraps all the way around the sun room. We are even adding extra support for a hot tub. It is going to be AWESOME!!! Its even big enough that when we have kids we can lock the stairs off and it can be like a huge play pen. A child could easily ride a bike on this thing and have plenty of room. My dad is AWESOME!!! We joke all the time that we have the same disease - optimism!!! But I am totally cool with taking our time and it will be great. I am sooo excited!!! I guess God knew what he was doing when I got to be my daddy's daughter :O)

My Beautiful Sister

My little sister got married. Her day was soooo beautiful! But not as beautiful as her!!!! I am soo blessed to have a sister like her and her new husband is AWESOME!!!! (Not that he is that "new" he's been in the family for almost 5yrs. ) Here are some of my favorite pictures of her and Erik. These are just some there are more, I'll try to post them later. We are still pretty busy.

Isn't she BEAUTIFUL!!!!!

Putting in her vail

I think this is my Favorite picture of her.
The Most Beautiful Bride In The World!!!!

Erik & Mary at Hacienda to do some pre-reception drinking

Strawberry margaritas and they are both wearing white.
" Thats my Little Mary" :O)

Way too Busy

It has been a month?? I can't believe it. Oh well :O) Life is really busy and exciting. Lt. Mary is getting married in a month ( oops OMG!! I mean a week, good lord what am I thinking?? ) and I am sooo happy for her. We have been spending sooooo much time together and loving it. I don't know what I do with out her. Working together on her wedding stuff has really brought us closer. The memories we have made in the past 6 months we will have forever. I hope some day if I have daughters that they can be as close are we are. The only down side is that I have been trying to writing a toast for her wedding and I keep getting all teary eyed. I promised her I wouldn't make her cry and if I cant even write it without crying then we have a problem. Well back to it, just needed a break :O)

I truly am Snow White

What is it with me and animals?? Do I give off a vibe that says "hey little creature if you need help I'll help you."?

So I am walking in my back yard looking to see how much our grass is growing and I see this little bird sitting on this big rock just a chirping away. No big deal, right. All of a sudden it flies up to our sun room windows circles around and heads right for me!!!! I just stood there hoping it would just fly past me and IT LANDS ON ME!!! A BIRD LANDS ON MY HIP!!!! I am standing there looking down this cute little gray and yellow bird clinging to my dress. It was actually really cool. It was just looking around and surprisingly I wasn't scared :O) It "rested" on me for a good minute I would say. It might have stayed longer but I had a brilliant idea to try to take a picture of it with my camera phone. I almost had it too but as soon as I moved my hand to the button to take the picture it flew away. Well not away but to the ground like a foot from me. So of course I see this as a sign that the little bird needs something so I run inside grab Mr. BoJangles food (remember the mouse we rescued) and pick out all the bird seed and proceed to throw it all over the back yard for the birds. God I need help :O) At least this one we didn't take in and "save".