Mother of the Year

And the Mother of the Year Award goes to......(drum roll please)

MY MOTHER!!!!

A few months ago when I learned that I'd be having surgery on my other hip and the date I told my mother.  Her response was, "Oh, I'm probably going to travel that week."  Whatever.

This weekend she phones me and tells me how she's taking off of work Monday-Wednesday next week (my surgery is Monday) to bake cookies for my Aunt (her sister) and her two kids (who are grown adults only a few years younger than me.)

I wonder if I'm too old to be adopted by my soon to be "new" mom????

Perspective

Well, I met dad's "fiance" this weekend.  It was, well, interesting to say the least.  I'm really not sure what to think.  My first impression is that she is nice but trying to push too hard.  Right away she asked the kid if she would like to be the flower girl.  (Don't get me wrong, I think it's great that they considered her, but she couldn't wait a couple of weeks?)  Then when we were leaving she gave the kid big hugs and kisses.  It kind of turned me off because I am protective like that.  I thought, "Back off bitch, you don't even know us well enough to do that yet."  Yes, I have my guard up.  In all honesty though, I want to like her.  There is just something that is not sitting right with me but I can't pinpoint it.  Maybe it's just that she's moving in too fast with me and my kid.  I don't like that.  We'll see how it goes.  The last time I saw her this weekend I asked her for her phone number.  I have to keep tabs some way, right?  She gave it to me...but I STILL can't find anything on the computer about her!  How is that possible?  Oh well.

Went out Sat. night with some friends.  Had soooo much fun and got to see an old friend too.  Yay!  We started off at a dueling piano bar that pretty much sucked.  I think after being down here and to the one we went to months ago, we were very spoiled.  We decided to leave that one and do a pub crawl back to the hotel.  Managed two bars and then stayed in the third one until the end of the night.  They had a pretty good band and DJ when the band was breaking.  There was a good mix of people there.  Dancing.  Drinking.  Talking.  It was all good.  And bonus, I got bought two drinks by two men.  I know, it's a real heart stopper.  But nothing came of that...most likely because they figured out I wasn't going to go home with them.  Then we met Hot Dog Aaron out on the street.  I'm telling you, drop dead gorgeous!  I was in love...with the hot dog vendor.  And I hate hot dogs.  LOL.  But he was sooo cute...but um, only 24.  So would that make me a cougar? 

Finally got back to the hotel and one of the girls went to bed and the other and I stayed up talking.  So in one sense, it was good reassurance that other people's families are just as, if not more, disfunctional than mine.  But in another sense, I worry about my two friends.  They are both married to husbands that are total jerks and it really bothers me.  I hate to see them hurting, but I can't change their situation.  Only they can, right?  Dad just says I should be there for them to vent, but it still hurts.  I love my friends dearly.  I don't know how we all ended up together (they are like the sisters I never had (considering the caliber of real ones I do have)), but it works. 

Going out back home makes me miss home so much.  I literally felt like I wanted to vomit driving home today...and no, I was not hungover.  I miss everything about home.  I was thinking today how stupid I was at 18 doing everything I possibly could to "get out of here" and only now almost 15 years later feeling sick with a need to move back and not being able to. 
One more week of work this week and then surgery.  I'm starting to get nervous all over again despite knowing what I'm in for.  Is that even normal?  (Although I was never claiming to be anything of the sort).

I Missed the Tornado

First....my picture post!  Drum roll pllllllllleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaassssssssssssssseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

I HAVE NOT BEEN THIS SIZE SINCE PRE-PREGNANCY...so count 'em...it's been EIGHT long years! 

Just got home from shopping and bought three pair of pants, and YES, ALL IN A SIZE 12!  I think the grin on my face might actually be a size 18 though. 

Anyway, what's been going on?  Ugh, this might be a novel. 

Surgery is two weeks away.  What it will feel like to have two new hips!  What a concept.  I have to say, I'm thrilled to have the second one done, with the first one done I have noticed such a difference.  Even the herniated discs in my back don't give me trouble anymore (or rarely).  Which is huge because my back would hurt so bad before.  So while I'm happy to finally be getting fixed, I'm getting quite sick of the "bionic" woman jokes.  Like I asked for this body???  If it had been up to me, I'd have gladly taken Angelina Jolie's.  Well, maybe with a little bit bigger boobs.

My dad is getting married again.  WTF is that?  He knows this lady from church and asked her out on a date like 2 weeks ago and now they are getting married?  Seriously, who's dying?  When did the tornado blow through town?  I think it's wayyyyy too fast and you think he would have learned from the ride the last one took him on.  But who is he to listen to me? I guess all I can say is that I hope this time he knows what he's doing and it's forever.  I'm going to meet this bimbo this coming Wednesday.  I know, I need to be nice, but....come on!

Well, ok.  I guess I'm done.  I hear the beaters calling me from the kitchen to go make Tiramisu Cupcakes.  YUMMMMMM.....(size 12, size 12, size 12...Give them away.  Don't eat them!)

Changes

I've decided to stop taking the chemotherapy drug the doctor put me on.  I don't care what she says, I'm done.  I've had it this week.  I got really sick (and yes, I'm blaming the drug because it lowers your resistance to infection, etc.).  It started off with a double ear infection and strep throat and then progressed to bronchitis.  Despite being on two steroids and an antibiotic for a week, I am still sick.  I'm done.  This drug increases your chance of getting pneumonia by 60%.  My chest is still in pain, I've considered today going in to beg for a chest x-ray because I'm afraid there is something more than just bronchitis wrong with me.  But I haven't gone because I don't want to be "nuts."  The only thing I can say is that my chest has NEVER hurt like this before. 

In addition to the whole pneumonia factor, I have been exhausted and cranky since starting the medication.  I can't function any more like this.  I could literally go to bed by 7pm every night and still be exhausted the next day within an hour of waking up.  I know too, that I have been snappy at the kid, and that just doesn't work.  It's not fair to her.

Anyway, I have to get/be healthy now until Dec. or the doc isn't going to clear me for surgery on the 6th.  I HAVE to have the hip surgery this year because the insurance is paying for it 100%.  If I end up waiting until next year I have to front $3000.00.  Here's to keeping my fingers crossed!

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This weekend I got a new computer.  I finally sucked it up and bought one for my personal use.  I was using my work computer for all of the internet surfing, but was stuck when it came to downloading photos.  My old laptop is a piece of crap and I was just waiting for it to crash.  I decided to go and buy a laptop this weekend after looking and looking.  I don't know why, but I feel like I've got a year left in my position before they start "re-orging" and I'm looking...so I also thought now, while I have the money, was a good time to get one incase I need to start looking in a year. 

I love my new computer so far.  Right now I'm busy backing up all of my photos.  I'm paranoid, since everything is digital, that one day all of my pictures of the kid growing up will be gone.  I've got them on my piece of crap computer, on an external hard drive and now I'm working on uploading them to a photo website.  The only problem is is that I have 3000+ photos to upload.  Sounds like it may be an all day project tomorrow to finish.  Ugh! 

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So big news...I bought a dress AND a skirt - wait, make that two skirts this weekend.  I haven't owned one or the other since, well, probably since pre-pregnancy.  I think I like them.  I think I'm going to wear one skirt to work this week.  I'm expecting to be appropriately embarrassed by my co-workers because they know I'm totally boring and conservative in the "hip" dress department.  We'll see how it goes...I'll probably want to hide under my desk.

Maybe when the kid comes home I'll post a couple of pics and see what you think?

OOOO!!!  I forgot to also mention the kick-ass pair of boots I got too!!!  I LOVE THEM!!!!  They are awesome and I got a great deal on them too.  They are LEATHER and I had a 30% off coupon to boot! (No pun intended.)

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Oh yes, and I got my hair cut today.  Just about 2 inches shorter with a slight layer to it so it swings and flips.  Had to get rid of the straight boring, hang there hair.