Bad drivers

Dear Terrible Driver,

In case you aren't aware, you do NOT need to suddenly veer left in order to execute a right hand turn. The same goes for veering right in order to turn left. You especially do not need to go so far in the opposite direction of your turn that you take half of my lane, coming precariously close to my car.

Also, my signaling my intention to change lanes, therefore putting my car in front of yours is NOT an invitation for you to speed up in order to block my maneuver. That's just plain obnoxious and completely rude. If you don't want me to drive in front of you, at least pull up fast enough and far enough for me to move over behind you.

And finally, a question, terrible driver. Why do you feel the need to drive ten m.p.h below the speed limit until the upcoming traffic signal turns from green to yellow which prompts you to step on the gas and fly through the intersection doing at least 15 over the speed limit? If you were in such a hurry that you can't stop for the three minutes the light will be red, drive faster!!!

Thank you.

So....what's your driving pet peeve?

Growing up

Today was Day 3 of Vacation Bible School!

And today was the hardest...for me. It was a day of letting go, of watching the little girl transform even further into a big girl.

Vacation Bible School was an exciting new adventure for us. Miss Mac is homeschooled, and therefore has missed out on the separation-anxiety that comes with the first day of school or even day care. The closest thing she has experienced was the play room at the gym and she was only away from me for, at the most, an hour. VBS was key because later this summer she has other day camps and classes scheduled.

Day One, we were both a bit excited and nervous, but after walking her to her group and getting her settled in, I did manage to let go of her hand and leave. Day Two was easier because I overslept, and we were running late so I had to walk her to the classroom and leave quickly so she didn't miss anything.

But today. Oh, today. We were on time when we pulled into the parking lot, and she saw other children walking up to the door - most with mommies, some older ones by themselves. And she said, Mommy, can you just pull over there (points to curb by the steps) and drop me off so I can go in by myself?

*gasp, swallow, try not to cry*

I did. She got out all by herself, ran around to the steps, waved, then pulled open the heavy doors. To everyone else, she appeared to be just another child going into VBS. To me, she was a little girl going into a new chapter of her life - one filled with confidence and self-assurance.

ABC's of Me

Yea I totally stole this from Meadowlark because I'm just far too tired. My morning started at 8am as opposed to the 10:30 am that I usually tolerate. Can you tell I am not a morning person? Anyway, I digress. Here are my answers for your reading pleasure or entertainment, whichever you prefer:

A - Age: Physically I'm 40, mentally I'm still in my 30's somewhere and some days I behave worse then my 5-year-old.

B - Bed size: King. We need a new one but good gravy it's expensive to buy a king-sized mattress. And yea, we're still paying on the one we have, so you can figure why the hubby won't splurge on another one!

C - Chore you hate: Chore? As in I have to pick one? Ok...I hate chores. All of them. Equally. Well, not totally true. I pick the one I hate so much I would rather pay someone else to do it...bathrooms. Blech.

D - Dog's name: Sherman, and Meg

E - Essential start your day item: Coffee. Preferably by IV, thank you.

F - Favorite color: PURPLE!!

G - Gold or Silver or Platinum: Yes!

H - Height: 5'2

I - Instruments you play: I can play anything. Oh, you mean, so others can tolerate listening? Piano.

J - Job title: Chief cook and laundry washer, aspiring writer and photographer.

K - Kid(s): 3

L - Living arrangements: My dream house. I just wish we had a lot of land to go with it.

M - Mom's name: Psychotic Bitch.

N - Nicknames: most aren't printable on a family-friendly site. My friends call me T. yes, just T. It's a laziness thing that started with me calling my friends Karen "K". See, somethings are just better left unanswered.

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: Hospitalized with pregnancy-related heart failure after Miss Mac was born.

P - Pet Peeve: Oh, I have FAR too many to list here. I could sum up most of them by saying arrogant, inconsiderate, stupid people.

Q - Quote from a movie: "I'll have what she's having" from When Harry Met Sally.

R - Right handed or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: No, I'm an obnoxious lonely only. Surprised? No, I didn't think so! :)

T - Time you wake up: usually about 10:30 but this week Miss Mac has vacation bible school so I'm up around 8am, and I'm NOT liking it! The only way I'll be a morning person is when mornings start at noon.

U- Underwear: Do you really wanna know? No, I didn't think so...

V - Vegetable you dislike: Broccoli, unless it's steamed, then pureed, and used to batter chicken nuggets, then it's all good. And yes, I do use it this way because my kids and I will actually eat it.

W - Ways you run late: I try not to be late. Usually I'm late because of someone else, like another person not doing their part to get ready to leave.

X - X-rays you've had: Yearly teeth x-rays, and chest x-ray when I had heart failure.

Y - Yummy food you make: II'm learning new recipes all the time so it's hard to narrow it down. I'm going to copy Meadowlarks' answer and say it's all good; otherwise, why would I make it? ;)

Z - Zoo favorite: I don't like most zoos because I don't think animals should be kept in captivity for human entertainment. The ones that actually serve a purpose, like research or to help endangered animals, that's different...and you can see the difference. My favorite animals are koalas.

Ok, well, you made it through to the end. Thanks for playing. No, you don't win a prize. But, if you post on your blog, post a message for me here so I can read your responses.

Kid Logic

My youngest daughter, Miss Mac, is currently upstairs cleaning her room. Well, that is what she is supposed to be doing. However, it is far to quiet so I believe she is playing rather than cleaning since every toy that normally resides in two pink storage buckets in her closet was scattered throughout her room and in order to putthings back in the buckets, and then back into the closet, noise must be made. You know, the sound of toys hitting against toys as you toss them into the storage bucket? Yea, it isn't.

So, I call up to her:

Me: Miss Mac, you need to be cleaning, not playing.
Miss Mac: I AM cleaning!
Me: It is too quiet for you to be cleaning.
Miss Mac proceeds to walk very heavily across her floor.
Miss Mac: Can you hear me cleaning now?

Now, before you think her a spoiled, sassy child, she isn't. She didn't say or mean it maliciously. It was honest, innocent...and just adorable.

Track? What track?

You mean there is some sort of track I'm not only supposed to be on, but manage to stay on?

Yea, right. Okay.

I'm so far off track, it has passed the point of even being remotely funny. My "to do" list is growing into a "to do"pile. I cross one thing off only to find five more things to take its place. I'm praying I have a next life, or five or six, because it will take that many just to complete the things in this life I didn't get finished!

This past week was insane. Nothing else could possibly describe this week except pure insanity. First, I started a new medication to help me get rid of the lovely water retention (yea, you *know* you wanted to know...just wait, it gets better), only to have it dehydrate me to the point that I got sick at work on Wednesday and spent the rest of the day in bed praying for either a quick death or instant improvement. Thursday was spent taking Miss Mac to her homeschool girls group, going to see a replica of the Liberty Bell, having dinner, then going to CPR training and finally getting Mac to bed. I have no clue how Friday was spent so it was either insignificant or such a chaotic blur that my alternate personality stepped in to take over (joke..please laugh).

Saturday was so hellish it deserves its own paragraph. I should recount, but I don't want to even remotely relive it. Besides, I already posted an explanation over on the NPWA forums (for all my police wife friends!).

But now, life is good, and I'm back on track. Yea, there is a track. And it goes in a never-ending circle just like the ones in high school. Like a big ol' hamster wheel for humans.

Days Like This...

Ugh.

Days like this just suck. There is no other polite way to describe them.

And on days like this, I seriously think that if I could go back in time, I would opt to join the circus instead of being a mom. At least you can train animals.

Ugh. Just ugh.

Mission Accomplished!

A HUGE thank you to my oldest daughter who unknowingly helped me accomplish my mission of getting a picture of the TIV (Tornado Intercept Vehicle) 2 from Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers show.

Surprisingly just a few days after posting my mission, a chance run-in with my oldest daughter at the gym provided necessary information to finding TIV. She went to have her car inspected, and what should happen to be at the automotive shop? You got it! The TIV 2 is there getting some work done. The best thing is my husband worked with the co-owner of the shop years ago (pre-LE days!), so not only did I get to take pictures of TIV 2, but the Little Miss got to actually sit in the driver's seat!

So, missioned accomplished beyond wildest possible expectations!