This morning I went to the Volunteer way fund raiser "pre Christmas" sale. I got a flyer, advertising it, at a fall festival we went to a few weeks ago. It was crazy insane in that place! I'd say it was worse than any Black Friday I have ever went to! The place was PACKED...it was hard to even get through the people. Anyhoo-I toughed it out and I got some great deals. I can not say EVERYthing that I bought...since my kids read my blog! But they had EVERYthing imaginable there! From soap, razors, household items to toys and appliances! I got 3 boxes of Kleenex tissues (with the metallic Christmas designs on the box) for .25 cents each. I bought a scented candle, 2 HUGE storage bags (the kind that you can put blankets in and the use a vac to "suck" out the air), face lotion (I do not even know HOW I wound up with that! I found it in my bag when I got home....I do not even know if I paid for it or not!)...and the rest of the stuff I bought can not be mentioned! I spent $11.00 total.

This afternoon, I took the kids to the library and we picked out some new books and movies...we are getting ready to watch a movie now. After we picked Brooke up from B-Ball practice we ran to Walmart to return a movie from that "red box" (the movie rental vending machine....ALL rentals are only $1.00! We have only used it 2 times-but I love it!)-while we were there I wanted to check out that "Little Mommy" doll. I was told that it said "Islam is the light"-I checked it on snopes and it said it was "false"-but on the snopes sight it has a link to listen to the audio from the doll, and it sure sounded like that is what it said to me! Of course the company is saying that it is "suggestive"-since that is what we "perceive" it is saying. Anyhoo-I wanted to hear it from the actual doll and it sent chills up my spine. I never heard anything that said "satan is king"-which is another phrase that people say it says. Here is the link if you want to check it out! All the way at the bottom of the page there is a spot to click if you want to hear the audio file. At the END of that short clip you can hear the part that says "Islam is the light". http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/dolltalk.asp

Tomorrow night is supposed to be our "date night" . Brett told me to set aside $30 for our date...I asked him where was he planning on taking me for $30! LOL. I guess we will go to dinner? It has been waaaaaaay too long since we had a date! I really miss our monthly date nights :( . I always feel guilt about spending money that we do not absolutely HAVE to spend-but since it has been so long since we have gone out-I am going to try to let go of the guilt and have fun!

Well-we are gonna start watching the movie now!! Hope you are all having a great weekend!

MRI

I am home from my MRI appt. I am so glad it is finished! Ya'll know how much I hate those things! I prayed through the whole thing! I prayed for my Sister and Brother and I prayed for Liz's Sister and Brother in law. It helped me to keep my mind off of being in the "coffin" (as I call it!) Liz came over for coffee this morning-I really enjoyed having her over and getting to know her better! She was a "life saver" during my recovery...she took me and Bubba to his doctor's appt and she came over several times and just sat with me all day! I know that it helped me to stay sane during my bed ridden days! THANKS LIZ! I really have enjoyed spending time with her.

Yesterday Bubba and I made some "Chex Muddie Buddies" together. We were at the grocery store and Spencer saw a box of "Corn Chex" cereal....he said "Corn flavored cereal....that sounds like it taste good!". So, I bought a box and we made the muddie buddies together as a treat. He loves to help out in the kitchen and it was something fun for us to do together-since it was just the 2 of us at home. When the girls got home they wanted to know what was IN them...but I told them it was a secret recipe and only me and Bubba could know. Of course Maddie just HAD to know (sound like anyone else we know? LOL!) and she got it out of him! Anyhoo-these things are sooooooo good! If you have not tried them-makes some today-they are seriously delicious! Here is the recipe...since Bubba already revealed our "secret recipe"!

9 cups of Chex cereal (corn, rice or wheat...or combo of all)
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

Put measured cereal into a large bowl.
In another bowl microwave chocolate chips, PB, and butter-uncovered for 1 min.
Stir and microwave for about 30 more seconds-until mixture is smooth.
Pour mixture over the cereal, stirring until evenly coated.
Pour into a 2 gallon Ziploc food storage bag
Add powdered sugar, seal bag, and shake until well coated (I added some extra sugar after shaking it the first time)
Spread onto waxed paper (or cookie sheet) to cool.
Store (yeah right!-There will not be any left TO store!) in and airtight container in the refrigerator.

It is a simple, easy recipe that the kids can help with and it makes a great lunch box treat!

Injections

As you can imagine...I fell asleep early and I did not get to finish watching the CMA awards! I am going to start where I left off as soon as I finish this post!

This morning I had my facet injections. It has been a crazy, stressful morning! For starters...I was supposed to be at the outpatient center at 8:00 am for my 8:30 am appt. Well-I knew that would not be possible so I told them I could be there by 8:15 am-once I got the kids off to school. Well....something REALLY crazy is going on with US 19-they have it completely blocked off for several blocks! I had to turn around and go a back way to get to my doctor. That put me there at 8:45 am! Good thing the doctor ALSO got caught up in it and he and I made it to the outpatient center at about the same time! On the way back ..I noticed about 7 cop cars...and ONE large tool delivery truck, but NO accident! When I passed the scene there was a police officer ON THE GROUND-under the tool truck (as though he was fixing it!)-anyhoo, hope it makes the news, not knowing what happened drives me nuts!

My injections were not that painful-the did 6 shots total in my neck-all guided by CT scans. The doctor told me, before he started, that this was not "a pleasant experience"-I told him that I knew that it could not be any worse then what I went through with the surgery! When he was finished, he said that I was the easiest patient he has ever preformed that procedure on-I told him that I have a high tolerance to pain and he said "well, you must! You have not even flinched!" He said that he was having a hard time getting the needle through the muscles because they were knotted up (they are always knotted up from the spine issues)-he had to use some force to break through. It really was not bad-not as bad as I figured it would be! They did not do the injections on my mid back-they did a CT scan of it only. They said they do not preform them on the thoracic spine-only cervical. I was kinda bummed about that since by the end of the day the pain, in that area, is so intense that it hurts me to BREATHE (literally!) ! They said that the injections in my neck may help that since some of the medications may travel to that part of my spine. They expected me to feel results immediately. I am a bit disappointed because right now-the pain is worse than it was when I went in. The muscles in my neck are so tight and stiff that it is hard for me to move it! She said that she had to tell the insurance company if I got immediate relief or not and I had to be honest and answer "no"-I hope that it does not prevent me from being able to get them in the future (in case the pain DOES get better through out the day). Anyhoo-I wanted to let ya'll know what was going on-please pray for me! I really had hoped this would be the answer to end my "medical madness"! I have orders to "take it easy" for the next 72 hours (I'll have to do the math and figure out how many days that is...LOL!)-so today I am going to do NOTHING! :)

UPDATE: I could not stand NOT knowing what was going on on US 19-so I called the local news. They told me that the tool truck had hit and killed a child pedestrian. :( Please pray for the family and all those involved. I knew that it was not an auto accident-since there was only the tool truck there-but I did not think about it being a pedestrian. My heart is always heavy when I pass an accident or see the medical chopper flying. I always start praying! It always reminds me that we are not promised tomorrow. Love your loved ones..with ALL that you have! Always!

CMA Awards

Tonight I have the house to myself....it is QUIET! I have some things that I need to get done (supper dishes, make lunches for tomorrow....), but then I am going to take a long, hot bath and get settled in to watch the CMA awards ! Brad Paisley (oh MY!) is hosting the show this year (along with ........what's her name).....yippee! Karen called me last night in a frenzy-to tell me that he was on dancing with the stars....singing "ticks"! I may have rubbed off on her a bit-lol! I have every one of his CDs-I have been a fan since the very beginning! I have to say, I do not like ALL of his songs...he's got a couple of "doozies" that I wish he'd left off of his CDs (alcohol ,bigger fish to fry...)! I wish he would have stayed true to his original style and only make wholesome, sweet songs....but, I skip the couple bad ones to get to the good ones. My FAVORITE song (I think) is "Ain't Nothin' like"-just a great, song about the simple things in life! His newest CD-titled "Play" is awesome! He can play the guitar like "no body's business"!! It is mostly instrumental-but I really like it! Anyhoo...before I get myself in any trouble with Brett (he does not listen to ANY secular music-and he knows that I am "gaa gaa" over Brad!)...I'd better stop! :) Anyway...I have been going FULL speed today and I did not get a chance to rest at ALL! I am gonna Tivo the awards-in case I do not "make it" through them!

Coupons!

Today I saved $136.01 in coupons/sales! In addition to that, I saved a ton of money at Sam's club too! At Sam's club right now, they have a 6 pack of Nike socks on clearance for $2.01 per pack! I have am stocked up and my kids are stocked up on socks for a looooong time! I got 2 tubes of new "Maybelline XXL extensions mascara" (which I have been wanting try!) for $5.99......just ONE tube at Walgreen's was $7.99! At CVS, I got 4 tubes of "Colgate Total" toothpaste for .35 cents each! Anyhoo...that is just a few of my great "finds" from my shopping trip!

I am beyond tired...I do not know how I am even alert enough to type! I woke up at 2:00 am (because "Pooh Bear" had to go outside), then once I got settled back in bed a "chopper" was circling our neighborhood (THAT is always reassuring!). I finally gave up and came into the living room and watched TV until 6:30 am, at that point I got back into bed and rested until 7:15! So...I have literally been away since 2:00 am! I wish I could just take a nap-but I have to pick up the kids at 3:00-then I have to take Bubba to therapy! Oh well....bet I sleep good tonight!

BTW-please pray for me as I go to the doctor to get several "facet blocks" done in the morning! It is basically an epidural injection into my spine. I am not at all worried about the procedure but I am praying that they will work!

Sponge docks

Today I took the kids to the Sponge docks and on a "nature cruise". I got 4 tickets, about 2 years ago, from a silent auction at the school-and we just never took the time to go until today! We picked up my "2nd son" from school and took him along with us....the kids had a really great time! It sure beat being home all day-with the kids out of school! Anyhoo-I wanted to share the pics from our adventure! My boys "gave out" and 1/2 way through it! They were both exhausted! More pics can be viewed at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=69706&l=4ddcf&id=691061014

Yesterday was an awesome family day! After church, we rested for a bit (Brett worked until after 2:00 am Sunday morning), then we headed out to Citrus park mall. Maddie had something that she needed to exchange, Brooke had a charm that was recalled (due to the amount of lead),we had a $24 gift card for The Disney Store & I had a $10 coupon (off ANY $10 or more purchase) at Victoria's Secret. So, we decided to go to the mall to take care of all of that stuff. Maddie and Brooke put their $ together at Limited too and bought a set of "text messaging" gadgets and the HSM3 soundtrack. At the Disney Store the girls got HSM t-shirts ($4.99 each!) and Bubba got a Narnia play set ($7.50!)... and I bought Karen a Christmas present there (YES at the Disney Store!)-the girls say that I will NEVER be able to wait until Christmas to give it to her! (Being as stubborn as I am...NOW I WILL wait!-gonna be hard though!) I just can't help it! I can not stand waiting for anything...I LOVE to give surprises and I can not handle NOT knowing what I am getting! (I am REALLY bad at this...REALLY! Our kids go to the dollar store to buy Brett and I gifts....I can have to even peek at THOSE ! And yes, I am ashamed to admit, I even peek at the handmade gifts they make at school! I told you I was BAD!)
Anyhoo-not gonna share what I bought at VS ;) (Ha! You know you were wondering!)-but the kids got a lot of goodies-without spending the money! I told Brett that we did not teach Bubba a very good lesson about $. On the way to the mall we went through McD'a drive thru and bought hamburgers to keep us held over until we got home. Spencer started whining about not being able to get a "happy meal"-so I told him that if he wanted to spend his allowance-then he could get one. Well, I never dreamed he'd do that since he knew we were going to the mall and that would leave him flat broke! He handed over his $3.00 and bought himself a happy meal and yet he STILL got a toy at the mall! (We did not mention to the kids that we had the gift card-so he did not know that he'd still be able to buy something.)
Oh well, I felt guilty about him having to buy his own food anyway-and since the girls had a ton of $ to spend at Limited too....I guess it equaled out. (Oh great! Now I have "MOM guilt"!).

We had a free movie ticket, so we ended up taking the kids (BRETT) to see the new Madagascar movie. Brett could not wait for it to come out-he is such a nut! I thought that it was funny-but I was a bit disappointed by the reference made about "a witch doctor" and the "god of water". It was not something that "took over" the whole movie, but I still did not like the fact that it was in it at all! We are very picky about what we allow the kids to watch-seriously picky! My kids have never even see "The little Mermaid" because there is a witch in it! Anyhoo-aside from that-it was pretty funny! Alright...I have rambled on enough. time to start cuttin' coupons!

Daddy

My Daddy and his fishin' buddies....puttin' a "whoopin' " on some mullet!
(My Daddy is the one in the orange "slickers", driving the boat)

Today, Carol (my friend from high school) came over to my house to have coffee with me. We had such a great time-she is a lot of fun to be with! The rest of the day I did not have too much else to do......but managed to stay busy ( ?-how does THAT work?!). Tonight I started editing the pictures I took at Pioneer village-I was supposed to have them edited by last week-oops! Maddie's teacher requested copies of them-so I need to finish them up and put them on disc for her. Tomorrow is gonna be NUTS! I am going to wake up early (5:55 am) to go for a walk, then I have to take Maddie and Brooke to school, take Bubba to the doctor,take him to school-then turn around 2 hours later and pick the kids up early to take them all to the dentist! I am tired just thinking about it!

I am recommitted to my weight loss ( NOT as committed as YOU Carol!-you are a woman on a mission!) -it has stalled since my last 4.6 lb loss! At least I did not GAIN...amazing considering all that I have cheated! Anyhoo...tomorrow is a brand new day and I shall begin again! I have kinda been doing my own version of WW "Core"-which basically means (WHEN I have been being "good") I have been limiting myself to "whole foods"-except my beloved "Fiber One Chocolate/ Oat bar for breakfast...I just can't give it up! So...I begin again! I'd really like to make "goal" by January...we'll see!

Coupons!

Today I did our grocery shopping and I saved us $138.00 in coupons/sales! Yeah me! I spent $144.00 total. I wanted to share one of the great finds I had today..so you can go do the same! If you cut your Sunday coupons this week-you saw $3.00 off of any Bic Soleil razor with cartridges, AND $3.00 off any refill cartridges. At Walgreen's this week they have a STORE coupon for $3.00 off either one of these items. So, if you put the two coupons together...you get a $6.99 razor for only .99 cents! I bought 4 papers this week so I got 4 razors and 4 refill packs for .99 cents each! So, for $7.92 + tax , I got $55.92 + tax worth of razors! FYI-if you do go out to Walgreen's to snatch up such a great deal...know that you ONLY need ONE of their store coupons, no matter how many you purchase! When it gets scanned at the register it will automatically deduct $3.00 for EVERY razor/refill you bought! It saves you from having to cut out multiple store coupons! You will still need one manufacturer's coupon for every item you purchase though.
Another great deal I got today was 450 Ziploc baggies for FREE! This one will depend on the area you live in and the Target you shop at though. My Target had 25 count Ziploc baggies on clearance (they are packaged strangely...in a bag, not a box) for .50 cents. Well, there was recently a coupon for $1.00 off of ANY 2 Ziploc baggies. So, I had 9 coupons and I bought "18" -25 count bags for FREE!! Many people (including the cashier) do not realize that it is the WORDS on the coupon NOT the picture that matters when using a coupon. The Ziploc coupon had a picture of "boxes" of Ziploc bags...but it said ANY Ziploc baggies. Remember to READ the print. The cashier called a manager just to make sure and of course the manager said it was perfectly fine! Just a couple of tips for the week! Happy savings!

2:54 am

It is now 2:54 am as I type this. I am up this late (or early!) for 2 reasons. #1 being that I fell asleep early last night (thanks to that new prescription the doc ordered my to take 4 times a day!-NOT happening again!) and #2...since I did not get to see the election results, I was tossing and turning (in dread..fearing the worse), so I figured I just get up and look for myself. I think it is a sad....sad day in American. I can not express how disappointed I am in our country and the "Christians" who helped vote in such an evil man (yep.....I said it! EVIL! All you have to do is take ONE look into his eyes, with the discernment of a..........tree!). Now what? I pray that God has mercy on His people. And I pray that we are not here much longer to see the results of such a tragic decision our fellow Americans have made! God was not surprised by last night's election...... I am going to look at this as our pastor does...he said that GOD appoints leaders-it is there..in the Bible. However, on Sunday, our pastor said....(I am not quoting him-but giving you an idea of what he said)-He could appoint one who He uses to continue to pour out His mercy or He could appoint the one He uses to pour out His judgement. I guess God has had ENOUGH! Can you blame Him? Slam me if you want to.....I am really not up for debate!


it is NOW 8:17am...I have thought about the situation our country is in and I am enraged by everything I see or hear from the media-so I turned the TV off! Several things anger me....#1 being how everyone keeps saying Obama will be our first "black" president-when we could just as easily say he is a "white" president...right? Half is half now matter which side of the half you are on! I am not racist IN ANY WAY...if you know the work that Brett and I have done in the inner cities of our area..you would be assured of that! But...I have found myself becoming more and more angry over this whole mess and that is one thing that I would like to remind everyone! This election should NOT have been about race...if I had voted simply because a candidate was white...that would make me racist! And if you voted for a candidate simply because he was 1/2 black....that would make YOU a racist! So, I have been praying (for weeks now) for God to help me see the situation through HIS eyes and not allow me to become bitter.......or racist (that was really tough for me to say!). This morning...I felt like I got an answer from Him. God spoke to me and told me to hate the SIN not the sinner...to hate the blindness, not the people who are deceiving! People really are blinded and I am asking God to break my heart for them, and to help me pray for them to have their eyes opened. The Bible says "be angry and sin not"...well-I am furious and I am asking God to help me direct that anger to the SIN of our nation...not to the people who are the sinners!

My appt today

Today has been busy-I went for my walk this morning. I walked up to Walgreen's to fill a RX that my surgeon prescribed for me yesterday. Then I came home, got all my films/reports ready, showered and headed to my doctor's appt. After that, I ran home and ate some lunch, ran by the store and then to the school. I had to set up for a party for Maddie's class (I am the class "Mom")-we just got home from that...now I am going to rest for a bit-until I need to figure out what we have left in this house to eat for supper! (I have to go shopping tomorrow!).

My appt with my new primary doctor (Dr Strobbe) went really well! I am SO thrilled with her! She took the time to listen to me and answer my questions! She even had Christian music playing in her office! Anyhoo..she order (yet another!) MRI on my neck (for Monday)and she ordered epidural injections for my neck and upper/mid spine(on Wednesday). I am so amazed that I got all of those appts set today! If you have ever had to see a specialist or have an mri-then you know that sometimes it takes a while to get the appt set and even longer to actually get IN! She also wants to have an ultra sound on my kidneys and see what comes of that..she said she may send me to the urologist/nephrologist-depending on the outcome of the ultra sound. I go back to her in December-so I will take care of all of that then-gotta enough to do now! I am just so happy to finally have a doctor that I feel comfortable with and one who did not "rush" me through the appt.

I forgot to tell you!

I forgot to mention that I asked the doctor if I was feeling the screws or if I was just "crazy". He said I am absolutely feeling the hardware! He said that when patients are really thin (then he said "and I put you in that category"-THAT made my day;), they can feel the screws from the outside AND inside of their body. I notice it most when I am laying flat or when I am sitting back in a chair. Anyhoo-I feel better knowing that my mind is not just playing tricks on me! He did say that he may remove the hardware once I am 1 year post op-but, as you can guess, I am going to try to avoid that...I can live with a little irritation!

UPDATE!

My 12:30 appt with the neurosurgeon ended up being a 3:00 appt-since he was called into emergency surgery. After being in Tampa all day...I am worn out! The doctor was busy and rushed and not in a very good mood! :( He told me that there was bone growth...he did not tell me if there was MORE than last time or not. I do not know if he even saw my first set of x rays, since I saw his PA last time and not him. He told me that by 5 months post op I should be "indestructible"! So...that is good news-just 2 more months to go! He said that I can start "weaning" myself off of my brace..over the next 2 weeks I should be out of it for good! Of course, he told me to save it-since he thinks I will need surgery on the discs right above my surgery site. I am praying that I don't! Never the less...I will save it-esp. since it cost $1,500! He referred me out to another doctor for treatment for my neck and mid-back. We'll just have to wait and see what comes of that. I have another appt in the morning...for my new primary doctor-I will see what she says too. Anyhoo-I am tired, tired,tired...and yet I have to get ready for a PTO meeting now. I just wanted to update everyone on my appt.

ALRIGHT!! Our door bell just rang...and when we answered there was a LARGE bag full of bread and rolls and a WHOLE cake on our door step! Better fess up!

Thanks.......the kids dug right in!

Does that make me a bad mom?? Maddie says "well, what if there was such a thing as a bread stalker? Look it up!"

Ya'll pray!

Today I am going to see my surgeon for my 12 week check up! I do not know why...but going there makes me physically ill! I am praying for more bone growth and praying that there are no "screws loose" (Brett loves to aggravate me by saying "Honey, they are NOT going to x ray your HEAD!"-sweet huh? See...now you know why I "dish it out" so much on HIM!). Anyhoo...I am terrified of the THOUGHT of having any more surgery..so I guess that is the reason why these appts make me so crazy! I am going to ask him today about what OTHER options I have for the rest of my spine..I know there are lots of things "out there" that may help me. My low back was beyond the point where any other treatment would have worked...I was told that about my neck too...but, since I am able to deal with that pain better, than I was able to deal with the low back pain, I am going to exhaust all my other options first! I do NOT regret having my back surgery though...not at ALL!! I already feel so much better than I did before my surgery! Most of the time there is just an "ache".... at night, once I take off my brace and lay down I have more pain but STILL...NOTHING like I had before! What I had to go through, the first few weeks after my surgery, is enough to make me hold off on ANY other surgeries though. EVEN if I was GUARANTEED a 100% recovery.....I think I'd still wait as long as I possibly could! Yes...it was THAT bad! Someone said to me the other day..."you do not complain much"...I replied "There is just no sense in it! It does not change anything!". Now, I happen to know that the person who said that...has never read my blog (he does not know anything about computers)-if he HAD read my blog.....he may think differently! I do use this blog as a chance to vent my frustrations and complaints...but I try (TRY!) to limit it to this "place". So.....those of you who do not really know me may think that all I DO is complain! LOL!
Anyhoo...if you think about it, say a prayer for me today!