The Browns

Tomorrow I am going to see the Cleveland Browns. They are playing the Colts. The Browns aren't expected to win but they did beat the Giants so maybe there is some hope. Unfortunately, Brady Quinn is out for the rest of the season. But, I will get to see Peyton Manning. When he goes into the Hall of Fame I can say that I saw him play!.
Last year I went to see the Browns play San Francisco. Quinn played about ten minutes. It was the last game so it was exciting to see him. The Browns won that game.
It will be cold as the stadium is along the lake but the seats are under the overhang so the wind will be blocked out (at least that is what Dee says). Dee has season tickets but her husband would rather watch the game from the AmVets Club. Dee sells the other ticket. She can always find someone from work to go. I was hoping to see the Patriots but they didn't come to Cleveland this year. I do like the Patriots but I guess I am a true Browns fan. They are fun to watch.

Christmas Decorations

The girls and I are going through the decorations to see what we have, what needs to be tossed and what we want to replace. Lat year we had a white tree(the girls choice, not mine). We are going to get a green one this year.
Now that the girls are older I am hoping that when a decoration is placed on a shelf or table it will stay there. They were always moving stuff or holding them and the decorations would end up lost or broken. There isn't anything of great value but I don't want anyone to hurt themselves.
Yesterday the girls were making paper snowflakes to hang in the front window. Even Don was cutting some. We will be doing more today-it's a big window!

Dinner

We just finished a wonderful dinner. Dessert will have to wait. Don and the girls made turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and homemade gravy. We also had fresh greenbeans with bacon, yams cooked with fresh cranberries and pure maplesyrup.(a recipe from Goodhousekeeping Magazine). My contribution was the brown and serve rolls.(I bought them today and Allie put them in the oven!) Don made a bunch of pies yesterday. We have a pumpkin cream pie in the fridge but it will have to wait until later. We are all pretty stuffed!
The store was pretty dead. Once John and I put stuff out, we didn't have to refill. I have my order mostly written for tomorrow. John went home 2 hours early. I think they paid out more in wages than they took in.
All in all it was a nice Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving one and all. It looks like it is going to be a nice day. I have to work today but that's OK. It will be a quiet day at work. A few last minute shoppers but for the most part it will be quiet. I have to work tomorrow too but it will be even quieter. Everyone will be at the Mall and not thinking about groceries.
It has been a difficult year but I am thankful for a lot. I am of course thankful that we are all healthy. We have a roof over our heads and food on the table.
I hope everyone has a wonderful day.

15 Pounds

I have lost 15 pounds in the past two months!! I knew I had lost some because my new jeans were now baggy on me. When I weighed myself on the scale at work it only showed a 2 lb. loss. I just figured I was toning up and building a little muscle from riding my bike to work everyday. I just weighed myself on my home scale and it showed 15 pounds less!!! Woo Hoo!! My scale here at the house was covered up in the bathroom and to be honest, I just didn't want to step on it. When I weighed in at work the other day, I was disappointed but I knew something was happening. Anyways, I feel better and people have noticed.

Productive Saturday

Well, for a snowy and cold Saturday, today was my most productive day off in quite a while. I went to lunch with Tracy and it was really good. I should have had something different than what I did have(cheeseburger, fries and onionrings) but I did drink iced tea with splenda instead of coke. The large coffee from Dunkies was totally unneccessary but really good.
After I got home I started with the crap in the living room. I sorted clothes and threw away stuff that didn't fit anyone, no one ever wears or stained beyond ever being clean again. The livingroom has been vacuumed although I broke the belt (darn) and rearranged the music room. Actually the music room is a corner of the living room but it had to rearranged so the love seat could be moved away from the heating vent. It is a smaller area but still room enough for Allie to practice her piano and leave her bells set up. Maggie parks her trumpet there on the weekends as it usually stays in school throughout the week. The kids get marked down if they leave their instrument at school over the weekend. Then the band director knows for sure that they didn't practice!
The girls were actually pretty helpful. I put their music on and they usually get stuff done. Done isn't crazy about music in the background. He would rather have the TV on. However, when the TV was on, no one was moving. They were caught up in the show. I changed back to music! Don has a roast in the oven and he just finished puting together a shelving unit for the girls so I let him turn his shows on.
I am on a break right now but after dinner I'll be heading into the girls' room. When I'm in the mood I can get things done!

Snowy Saturday

I am off today and I actually have some plans. Tracy and I are going to Mary's Diner in Geneva for an early lunch. I've never been there but I have heard that they have good food.
Maggie is going to the highschool to help paint sets for their Willie Wonka production. Her friend Trent is part of the stage crew and asked her if she was going. She wasn't but now she is. That means Allie is my babysitter for Chrissy and her friend Aleigha. Aleigha spent the night. It's too cold for them to go out so they will pay with the Wii. Allie is a good babysitter. I'll have to pay her though.
Allie has a sleepover/birthday party tonight at Meredith's. They are going to Score's in Painesville to play Laser Tag. Allie is very excited. Meredith is her BFF. She has a sleepover every year and Allie is the first one she invites.
I'll probably be home around 1PM. My only plans are lunch. Then It will be the usual-laundry, housework, etc. Chrissy appears to have no clothes to wear to school at all so we will be sorting things today to see what fits and what doesn't. My girls have more clothes than any 10 people I know. I never know why they can't find things.

It is pretty cold and windy today. The LE snow warning has been lifted but it is snowing out there. It looks like we are in for a cold one this year.

Thanksgiving Shoppers

As most of you know I work for Giant Eagle, a supermarket. I have been there for over 9 years. Before that I worked for Shaw's Supermarkets for over 14 years. My brothers and now my nephews work at Shaws. Anyways, it is that time of year when the customers go crazy. They spend more money on one meal than they do for a week's worth of groceries. They also become very picky when they buy stuff. For example, we have a huge display of yams. They are .59/lb. The people pick through the pile like they are buying a car. They inspect each yam before they put it in the bag. They inspect each bag of cranberries before putting it in the cart. You wouldn't believe how many people think they can get fresh cranberries in the summer. They would probably pay an arm and a leg for a tiny bag in the summer. Now that cranberries are in season and on sale, they need a bag full of perfect berries.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate all of our customers. The regulars are terrific. It's the ones that come in just to cause trouble. They are the ones who tell me that Walmart has yams for .39/lb and that Marc's(another market in town) has celery for .99. Well, buy it there then! I don't decide what the prices will be. I just order it and put it out. I know what the prices are at our competition. I read the ads too!
So, when you shop this week, remember, the clerks and cashiers at your local market only work there. They probably do most of their shopping there and are also aware of the other prices. If you can find a deal elsewhere, we won't hold it against you. Chances are we will be going to that store later to get a deal too.

Lake Effect Snow

There are only like 5 places in the entire world that has Lake Effect Snow. I happen to live in one of those areas. Right now we are under a lake effect snow watch until 4PM tomorrow.
Lake effect snow happens when the cold air moves over the a body of water. If the water temp. is warmer than the air moving over it, it sucks up the warmth and then creates pacipitation and drops it a little bit south of the lake. We live on Lake Erie and the cold air comes across from Canada. The temp. of the lake right now is still in the 50's. Therefore, we will get snow. Now, there is a better explaination for lake effect but that's it in a nutshell.
Many times the snow drops about 5 miles south of us. However, the wind right now is coming off of Lake Huron so the clouds will really be saturated and that means we will probably get the snow.
Lake effect season runs from Nov. until Feb. By then Lake Erie will be frozen. We can get some sping storms when there a thawed parts of the lake and the right wind blows through. I just wait and see what it looks like when I get up in the morning. The weather people get all excited. My feeling is when it comes it comes. I don't like snow anymore but there's nothing you can do about it when you live an an area known as the snow belt.

Third Grade Reading Books

As my third and last child has completed the first term of third grade, a series of books has raised it's snotty head in my home again. Captain Underpants is back.
Maggie brought home Captain Underpants back in third grade. I always read the books that Maggie was reading. I wanted to see what they were like. Not this one. The name of the book was something like Captain Underpants vs. Professor Poopy Pants. Sorry, I don't read books with the word "poopy" in them. Some of the other characters are Super Diaper Baby, Wicked Wedgie Woman and my favorite, Bionic Booger Boy.
I really thought that they wouldn't go through that "nasty nine year old stage". You know what I mean. The stage where the mere mention of burp or fart brings on fits of laughter. I have girls. My theory was that nine year old boys are the nastiest creatures on Earth. My children have proven me wrong. Girls can be pretty gross themselves. Maybe because you don't expect it from them.
Now my #3 is entering that stage. Although I haven't heard or "smelled" anything, the presence of Captain Underpants on my coffee table is the first sign. Although she just turned 8, she is in the third grade. She also has the right audience (her sisters).
I survived the first two, I guess I'll get through this one too!

Veteran's Day

Happy Veteran's Day a couple of days late. I really wanted to blog about Veteran's day and it's significance however, I just haven't had time. I was off but I was part of two programs that day. The first was at the elementary school where the girls go. Every year they have a very nice program. It starts with a flag raising outside. The kids sing songs and the principal talks to the kids about veterans and why they are important. There are always members from the American Legion and the VFW there but parents and family members are also invited. They are encouraged to stand around the flagpole. The kids love it when Mom or Dad are up at the flagpole. The flag is a flag that flew at the Capitol in Washington. Rep. LaTourette presented it to the school a few years ago. (His daughters went to HNK and are now Seniors at MHS.) The flag is kept in its case all year and is only flown on Veteran's Day! The flagpole at the school is really big. Th school probably replaces it's flag once a year. That's why this flag is kept in a special case and flown once a year.
The 2nd program was at an assisted living complex here in Madison. We went there to honor the vets that lived there. The Hospice of the Western Reserve presented each of the veterans or widows of veterans with pins and a little card. It was very nice. There were a couple of women veterens there too from WWII. It was nice.
Later that afternoon I had parent-teacher conferences at the elementary school. Allie and Chrissy had all A's this first term so the meetings went well.
After dinner, Don and I went to Quigs. Since it was Veteran's Day, we didn't pay for any drinks. People kept buying them for us. I left with 3 chips in my pocket because I couldn't keep drinking. I had work in the morning.
So, Happy Veteran's Day. Remember, if you see a vet, thank them. We enjoy our freedoms because of them.

Boring Sunday

Today I enjoyed a rather peaceful and semi-productive Sunday. I was off today which doesn't happen very often. The kids were at a friend's house all night and Don had to be to work at 4:30AM. I woke up around 7:30 and went up for breakfast at the diner where Don cooks. I had my usual (coffee, 2 eggs over easy, homefries, bacon and rye toast.) I had some pleasant conversation with Steve (a regular) and Joyce (the owner). When I got home I watched some TV and did some housework. After the girls came home we got a bunch of laundry done. Right now the girls are getting their things together for school in the morning while we wait for dinner to be done. Don has ribs in the oven.Yummy!!
This may be a rather boring entry but I had a nice day. Too bad more of my days aren't this boring. Tomorrow, there's school, drama rehearsal and in the evening will be the assorted musical instument practice sessions. Don and I both have to be to work early which means the girls are on their own to get themselves up and out. Maggie has the most to do sice she is the last to leave. She is the on that has to "Madison proof" the house. Maddie has to be fed, walked and all of the doors need to be closed tight so she can't get into anything. The livingroom blinds need to be pulled up so the don't get destroyed. Maggie likes to look out the window and if the blind is down, she'll nose her way through the blind so she can see.
The ribs are done. I've got to go.

Middle School Conferences

The other night I had conferences at the Middle School. I wanted to talk to Maggie's algebra and language arts teachers. She got a B in both classes and I wanted to see what they had to say. I also talked to her other teachers as it wasn't very crowded. The earth shattering news that I received from three of her teachers: Maggie needs to be more organized. She also has terrible penmanship.
I have been working on Maggie's organizational skills since kindergarten. I have been told that Maggie's absentmindedness goes hand in hand with her "gifted abilities." I have handed Maggie her homework, told her to put it in her bookbag and then I have found it in the bathroom or on the floor. It can take Maggie two hours to look up 20 vocabulary words because the dictionary also contains other interesting facts besides definitions. When Maggie is missing homework assignments it is not because she didn't do it. She just can't remember what she did with it. Math homework can be found in her social studies folder or in her health folder. Her health homework is probably in her math folder.
As for her penmanship, Maggie will never be able to write anything that anyone else can read. She learned to read 3 years before she ever learned to correctly make her letters.
When Maggie was learning cursive, it would take her a long time to do a practice page. Now she just slaps stuff down on paper. She can read it so everyone else should be able to.
She types papers and stories on the computer.
I know that I am lucky that the only "bad" things that my daughter's teacher have to say is that her writing is sloppy and her organizational skills need improvement. She is a smart, happy and loveable young lady. She actively participates in class and is always very willing to help another student if they don't understand something. She always has a smile on her face and gets along with everyone. There were parents there who's kids were failing or are behavior problems.
I will take my sloppy and absentminded Magpie over anyone elses's kid everytime!!

Election Results Part 2

Well, Obama is President. As a matter of fact, after I finished blogging the other night, I got ready for bed and turned the news on and there was McCain giving his concession speech.
Let's hope that we see some changes in the next 4 years. The economy has to get better. The soldiers need to come home from the Middle East. Those are the major issues that I feel need to be addressed.

Election Results Part1

Well, it looks like Barak Obama will be our next President. As I write this he is leading in electoral votes by a pretty good margin. I am tired and coming down with a cold but I'm still watching the returns. I will now shut off the TV and go to sleep. There will be a new president when I get up at 4:30. The official power handoff doesn't actually take place until January. Unlike a number of countries in the world, our change in leaders will be smooth. They will be no military coup bringing in a new leader. The tanks will not be rolling down Pennsylvania Avenue. Oh, I'm sure there are many people who aren't happy with Obama becoming President. They will watch and critique his every word and deed. If McCain were to be elected, a different group of people would be unhappy. This is the United States of America. Today's vote expressed the feelings and ideas of the miilions that make up this great country.

Election Day

After today it will be done. No more ads, phonecalls or mailings. I am so tired of the whole thing. Don't get me wrong. It is important to vote. It is your right as an American citizen to participate in the election process. More importantly, it is your responsibility as an American citizen to participate in the election process.
I have been a registered voter since I was 18. I first voted for Ronald Reagan. (yes, I'm old!) I have always voted in elections whether it was for President, Congress or some other local issue. All elections are important. I strongly believe that. So today, whether you are a Democrat or Republican. Liberal or conservative. Please, VOTE. It is your responsibility.

More Halloween Pictures

The girls and the Shrunken Head. Notice the bullet hole in Mag's head?

Here are the girls and George the Dead Guy. George is hanging from the neighbor's tree.

I hope everyone had a great Halloween. We sure did!!