My favorite Christmas things

CHRISTMAS!....It is my most favorite Holiday EVER!!! Of course I get excited about getting all the loot...Who doesn't like presents, right?!?! But presents are not the reason I like Christmas, Christmas in our family has always been special, even when money was tight...My mom made all kinds of fun traditions!

• We are a baking family. You name it, we can make it turn out perfect. Every year though there are specific things we bake and give away as little gifts to those that mean lots to us (and of course snarf as we bake!) Cookies cookies cookies, Special chocolate covered Toffee (a very secretly guarded family recipe...could win a contest against anything out there--hands down), Peanut butter balls covered in chocolate, Fudge, and Great-Great Grandma's secret Butter Rolls...Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!
• Christmas Decoration Rides in the car: Exploring all the fancy and not so fancy neighborhoods with all their cool decorations...Growing up it was Peacock Lane in Portland, Oregon for our family. LOVE LOVE LOVE all the pretty lights...
• The Christmas Pickle...a controversial German-American family tradition of sticking a pickle ornament in the tree and whoever finds it gets an extra present. Being an only child most of my life I never had much trouble fighting my way to the tree to find it. It still was always fun to get a little something extra and spend the morning looking for it hidden in the tree!
• CHRISTMAS MOVIES! I absolutely love Christmas movies! My yearly must-sees are: White Christmas(I wanted to be a Broadway singer when i was little and I know EVERY word to EVERY song!), Holiday Inn(I just love the old classics!), Home Alone, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story, The Family Man...I know there are more i just can't think of all of them at the moment
  (I'm at Lar's parents place and have yet to watch all of them...usually my parents and I do a whole marathon of movies while we bake and wrap.)
• Christmas songs: It wouldn't be Christmas without Amy Grant's first Christmas album...it was my favorite when i was 5 and somehow i still for some reason like it, however 80s it sounds. Mariah Carey and Bing Crosby along with many others are staples in our household.
• The Nutcracker. Every year growing up my mommy and I went to see it. I absolutely LOVE it!
• Christmas Carols: I love love love to sing Christmas songs in church. Some of my favorites are: O Holy Night, O Come all ye Faithful, It came upon a midnight clear, and Angels we have heard on High.
• Last but certainly not least is spending it with family and friends. Growing up, most Christmas' were spent with our very very good family friends(practically family), The Adams'. The last Christmas we spent with them was in 2000. They moved down to California and a year later my parents moved out here to the Midwest to be closer to my grandparents. I miss Charlotte's Apple Pie and most most favorite: her amazing, one of a kind, mashed potatoes. Mainly though, I miss them all and cherish all the fun memories growing up!

This year I'm spending Christmas with Lar's parents, his brother, his sister and brother-in-law and 18 mo. old nephew. With all the stockings hung, presents wrapped beneath the tree, and me in my Pjs the only thing left between me and Christmas morning is a good nights sleep.

to quote Jimmy Stewart and my best friend who mocks him in his raspy garbled voice:

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

I Got Tagged!

Alright...Amanda tagged me with this...shame on her...but i did it...crazy how the songtitles actually work themselves in quite well with the questions...others...well...they kinda leaving ya scratchin your head a bit...haha.

all in good fun...

MEME Rules:

1. Put Your itunes/ music player on shuffle

2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.

3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER WHAT

After you’ve answered all of the questions, tag 5 other people and then let them know they’ve been tagged to do the meme themselves!



IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?Rise and Fall--Craig David


WHATWOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY? My Immortal--Evanescence


WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL? Happy Ending-- Little Mermaid Soundtrack


HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY? A winter romance--Dean Martin



WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE? All she wants to do is Dance--Don Henley



WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?I'll grow old with you-- Adam Sandler


WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? Can't get you out of my Head--Kylie Minogue



WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS? I love you always forever-- donna Lewis



WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? Toilet Tisha--Outkast (bahaha...how weird!)



WHAT IS 2+2? Amazed--Lonestar


WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND? Changes --Three Doors Down



WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE? I am aware--Seether



WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? inaudible melodies--jack johnson



WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? Fighter--Christina Aguilera



WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?Never Gonna Let Go--Caedmon's Call



WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? Come Clean--Hilary Duff



WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?To you lover--Savage Garden



WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? Return To me--Dean Martin (Creepy!)



WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?You Can Fly You Can Fly You can Fly!--Disney Classics



WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? I wanna know--Joe



WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?I Could not ask for more--Edwin McCain



WHAT SHOULD YOU POST THIS AS? YOU--the afters



Im not tagging anyone since Amanda already tagged most of the people that read my blog...maybe i should try to expand my networking within my blogging as well...
hmmm....

A-WOL

Alright...so i've been gone for what...like two weeks!?!?! what the heck happened to me?
ANSWER: EVERYTHING
--shit has hit the fan with g'rents...Lar and I are trying to find a place for ourselves sometime soon....it it just getting to be too much!
--I'm now DESPERATE for a job...I feel so worthless not working. Everyone says my resume looks great...what am I missing? I spend most of my online time(which hasnt been much) combing through the crap on job search engines and mulling over WHY ON EARTH I live in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE! I NEED NETWORKING!
--Lar and I drove through a storm Saturday night with 30 mph winds, sleet, snow and freezing rain...all so he could get to work on time Sunday morning at 8am...(which he had forgotten he was working and we had gone to visit my parents...) no prob...we returned to berrien...at 3:30 am....and after 5 hours of driving (which normally takes just over 2 hrs)
--Thanksgiving was interesting. It was my first one out at the University. My grandparents really really really like to eat at Andrews...the meal was ok...better than the cafeteria food, thats for sure...hard to believe it came from the same room. I'm really just not one for buffets though and i HATE HATE HATE boxed mashed potatoes...EW. There should definatly be a crime against them....ugh...they just Grossssssss me out!
--Lar and I FINALLY bought our tickets to go to New Hampshire to see his family. SO SO SO excited! We will be there the 19th through the 28th! Nice long trip should be exciting! And the Northeast is soooooooooo QUAINT!:) CANNOT WAIT!
--did I mention im desperate for a job and my own place????!?!??!?!?!
Hope all is good with everyone else...
I promise I shall return with more rants and raves soon!
BISOUS A TOUS!

"Rules for the New Couch"

Man....I am on fire this week with my blogging!

Woo-hoo!!!

Anyways...now that i got that out of my system. I have a slight irritation that has been building for weeks.

My sweet loving grandparents. I know i shouldn't repeatedly bitch and moan about how weird they are getting in their old age. I really love them. I swear. It's just that the older i get, the older they get and the more I realize my values and beliefs, their ways of doing things just completely DON'T MAKE SENSE!

This one has been brewing for awhile....

My grandparents recently purchased this:

It's the new sofa called "Haley" by La-Z-Boy. We are currently awaiting it since they special ordered it in this really odd teal-ish/forest green color. The color is besides the point...its their sofa, so I really don't care how it looks.
However, since my grandparents already have their La-Z-boy recliners, they will not be the ones occupying the sofa with their bums. Their bums already have homes. Lar's and Mine however, do not. So the only seating available in the house for us will be on this new couch and it's friend (the matching ottoman). Cool that we get the fun, new stuff, right?
WRONG!
Nope....ever since the stupid thing was ordered, at every opportunity she gets, my Grammy seems to be telling what things Lar and I will not be allowed to do on the new couch. Now before you start thinking dirty things, get it out of your head! She hasn't even gone there, and neither will we....no worries. Now, I understand it's their first piece of new furniture in probably 15-20 years, but that doesn't mean they should be treating me like an irresponsible 10 year old child. Or even like I have the intention of "ruining" their precious couch.
My mom has always raised me that people are more important than things. So below is a list, things that Grammy has verbally been giving me since we ordered the damn thing that Lar and I are not allowed to do (along with my side notes)....

1. No eating or drinking on the new couch and ottoman
Now this would be fine if the kitchen table wasn't constantly littered with cats. Also...everyone has eaten in the living room for years since my grandparents really don't have the space like they used to, to accommodate meals in the kitchen(if we were brave enough with all those damn cats....ew) or even in the dining room.(my Grampy has since put a huge organ that he plays daily in the dining room and there isn't space now. And lastly, we don't spill like they do. We are a lot cleaner and more coordinated....so what's the big hairy deal?

2. No wrestling or rough housing on the new couch
What, are we 5? Besides the small occasional ticklefest which doesn't result in mass destruction of anything, why would we thrash about and jump like monkeys? For the last time, we aren't going to break the couch!!!! Honestly we really don't even feel like sitting on the damn thing now!

3.Proper sitting on the couch only! There will be no relaxing, laying down and putting our feet up on anything.
And yes, before you ask, she means even with no shoes (we don't even do that with the crappy old couches) And really...what the crap are couches for? Sitting with our knees bent at a 90 degree angle with our back straight up and down? Apparently.

4. There will be no nap taking on the new furniture!
No, I'm not joking. I was actually told that. Lar and I have enjoyed some naps on the old couch. In fact, I used to come over for lunch a lot when I was in college, when I wasn't living with them. I'd eat and usually end up taking a 30 min siesta. It was always a nice jump start to the rest of my day. Lar has enjoyed coming home from work, taking his shoes off, kicking back and "resting his eyes" after a long day at school and work. Guess those days are gone.

5. The couch will not be used as a temporary storage facility for shoes.
so yes, we are guilty of kicking off our shoes when we get in the living room and kicking back. But seriously? There isn't a shoe rack or mat on the inside of the door to place our shoes. Old people trip a lot cuz they don't have the mobility to raise their feet high enough to get around things or move side to side around them. Plus as i mentioned in another previous blog just a couple days ago, Grampy rides a scooter around. Lar had his shoe eaten by it once when Grampy ran it over. It snapped his lace in half. So we always make sure our shoes are out of the way. What better place out of the way than either underneath (if they fit) or beside the couch between it and the wall? I always thought i was being helpful by keeping them out of the way. Apparently "helpful" now will require that I take my shoes off up in my room and then come sit down for comfort. If I should need my shoes again soon, too bad. I will have to go up to my room to put them on again. I guess part of that is me being lazy. I think it's also a bit ridiculous to actually not allow me to store my shoes downstairs even temporarily. And to actually have the nerve to say that to us! AGH!

I'm sure there are more "rules" we have been given than those above but I'm really wound up thinking about all of this and can't seem to think of anymore. I think more than anything it's the constant side notes Grammy says to me on "I hope you don't think you're going to do that on the NEW couch."
Yes, Grammy. I have every intention of spilling grape juice and spaghetti sauce and all other things that leave bad stains. I have no plan on trying to be careful of the new couch. I plan on ruining the whole brand new set the first week.
Come on. Who plans on that? And furthermore, I respect their stuff, I will treat it as my own. Me saying that should be enough to reassure her. Its not. And it would be different if they sat us down with their concerns one time and explained things in a nice manor . BUT every single day she has to say something, snotty, like I have every intention. If they want to sit on it, fine, but they have their chairs we arent supposed to sit in. So what are we supposed to do?
Lar makes jokes that we will just go buy some blow up furniture and not use theirs. I'm sure the stupid cats would find a way to poke holes in that though a lot faster than Lar and I would ever ruin their stupid couch. If anything they should be concerned about the cats ruining their new couch first. One of the cats has torn the end off the old one. And EVIL sammy has his crappy long fur all over the other furniture, making it hard to clean it off and make it look nice. How do they not even care about that with their new furniture and instead don't mind making Lar and I feel unwelcome and risk hurting our feelings?
AM I the the only one who thinks this is completely selfish and illogical?
I WANT A JOB. MY OWN APARTMENT. MY OWN LIFE.

Lost shoes anyone???

I went and worked out this morning. I brought my laptop along so that after I was done I could sit in the parking lot of Lamson Hall at Andrews and use their internet, since I dont have access to it at home (which is why I dont blog as much as I'd like to--and yes I realize how truely budget it is...)

Anyways, as I pulled out of the parking lot to go home and grab some grub I saw this:

Now if you're thinking.."Whaaaaaaaaaaat???? Is that a random glove and a pair of shoes?!?!" You would be correct.

What I don't understand is...
Where is the poor barefoot girl running around in 30 degree weather? (yes, its already THAT freezing here! brrrrrrrrrrr!)

But seriously...

A randomly lost glove...i can understand that...I've had that happen to me before. But....a lost complete pair of shoes? I would never abandon or forsake my shoes in a freezing cold parking lot outside a girls dorm.
Knowing Andrews University, whoever those shoes belong to will be lucky to get them back, if she hasnt realized they are MIA at this point.

Grammy's Crap Day

It's Friday.

Ugh.

Most people say, "YAY!"

I say, "Ugh!"

Why you say? Oh well...as my Bestie used to call Thursday's--"Tammy's Crap day!" I lovingly refer to Friday's now as "Grammy's crap day!"

It's due to the my unfortunate loathing of cleaning.

I guess I don't really mind cleaning most of the time, especially if someone is there to keep me company. Cleaning my grandparents' house is a different story.

Old people are messy. And it's different when it's not your mess your cleaning up. Grampy has a scooter that he rides around outside, then rides it inside when he's done. In doing this, he always finds a way to bring in little bits of nature. Usually just grass, dirt or the occasional leaf. There was the incident where we had a whole herd of raccoons come and take a big berry dump up against the back storm door. Hilarious unless you happen to have to be the one that has to clean it up after Grampy has driven through it several times and left poopy berry tracks all through the house. gross.

Crumbs also seem to be a problem in our house.

As you get older, eye hand coordination just isn't what it seems to be. Eating is always a funny thing in our house. Jokes on the maid: Miss Myrna.

Crap.

I think my very least favorite cleaning thing happens to have to do with cats. They have cats. Stupid cats at that. I like my parents cats...they are sweet, playful and fun. My grandparents cats are reclusive, and well, assholes. Sammy, a loooooooooooooooong haired asshole cat is my arch enemy. He really is the nastiest one of them all. Only problem is, he is my grandparents favorite, and most precious. In their eyes he can do no wrong.

Thankfully he is de-clawed.

Sucker.

He is definitely the main reason i hate cleaning though. Somehow this cat manages to get litter ALLLLLL over the house. And his blasted stupid friggen hair. It is so long! It collects itself into little dust bunnies, but it's so fine it makes it hard to clean up...it likes to just float away when you come at it with a broom, vacuum cleaner, whatever! I have yet to find something that is efficient in cleaning it!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

So this is me, off to Grammy's Crap Day.

Cleaning.

I'm sure it will give me a plethora of blog material.

Especially if I have to deal with this one....

THURSDAY THIRTEEN #3

Thirteen STORES I love to shop in! 1. Nordstrom-- A store that I was VERY spoiled in having within 20 minutes of my house while growing up. I have come to miss it so much....if you have a nordstroms, you better count your blessings because shopping online just isnt the same! 2. Wild Oats-- I love health food stores, and this one has one of the bestest deli selections. I love getting ingredients from their olive/marinated bar. Mmmmm...makes great and healthy pizza toppings or salad accessories (especially since you dont have to add dressing once you have some of them in there!) 3. Urban Outfitters-- They have the funniest and best graphic tees and all other kinds of weird and off the wall accessories. I'm still waiting for the day when i can finally go buy my fisheye camera! 4. Aldo-- I love shoes. Need I say more??? 5. DSW--When I have the patience to actually sort through bajillions of designer shoes, this is true heaven! 6. TJ MAXX-- My bestie and I love hanging out, sorting through all the fun things they have in there. Especially their house and kitchen sections! Its like a treasure hunt...but in a fun way...and something i really dont like to do all on my own. 7. Hobby Lobby-- I absolutely love scrapbooking and crafting...If I could I would so be the next but way hotter Crafter extrodinaire...Move over Martha, Myrna Snicklefickle is taking over! 8. World Market-- I love international stuff...I literally can spend hours in here looking at all the fun foods imported, I love their poster section and of course, all the fun kitchen accessories! 9. Williams Sonoma-- I can never get enough of this store...between all the fun cooking things they have good dips and all kinds of gadgets! 10. Crate and Barrel-- Every trip to Chicago can only be complete if I wander through here picking out my future glasses and silverware along with other fun glasses! I recieved the most Adorable martini glass set that i had eyed for years from a bartender friend of mine for my birthday a couple years ago...its one of my most prized possessions! 11. Dick's Sporting Goods-- I love kayaking and just about anything outdoors-y so shopping here is always fun...and it's also a store that my boyfriend doesnt mind being dragged through or complain when purchases are made! 12. Mango-- One of my favorite store's from Europe....i've seen them slowly coming here to the states...chicagoland area just got two that I know of...I can't wait to go and see! They have the hottest clothes! 13. Zara-- My favorite of all favorite clothing stores! I loved shopping til I dropped, especially during their seasonal sales while I was living overseas! They have them here...but no where close to me. So Sad:( Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1.Amandastales 2. Tales of a Former Michigander (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Pauly Shore I'm not....

As I added my blog last night, I got a call from my mom. She was calling with some rather irriating news. Just what I needed with the mood I was in last night.
Not.
Apparently I had recieved a letter in the mail from the Federal courts of Michigan stating that I had been pre-selected to be considered for jury duty.
EWWWWWWWWWWWW.
What made it worse was the fact that my mother actually read the whole ding blat letter to me. Can you believe they actually try to pull on your heart strings? "It's an honor and your civic duty to appear in court as a juror, helping set our judicial system apart..." or some crap like that....
EFF that!
It's a waste of my damn time.
I don't care if it is a good civic duty to uphold.
I didn't even vote this year.
Luckily my parent's house isn't my residence.
So my mom stuffed it back in the envelope and wrote, "not at this address, return to sender"
BAHA!
Take that MICHIGAN!
Hopefully they dont track me down in time....

Geriatric Anger Management

I'm Grampy's little girl.
Always have been, since i was a teeny bitty little thing.
That was, however, until this morning. I was ready to renounce my title, pack my bags and move out. (oh yah, for those that don't know, i live with my grandparents, and have quite peacefully for the past 3 years).
I woke up this morning around 8. I don't wake up very quickly. My eyes were barely open, and i hadn't even bothered to put my contacts in yet when i stumbled downstairs and into the kitchen. Normally, I enjoy a large glass of water when I first wake up. I feel it really helps to get me going. It also somewhat replaces my most favorite pastime of drinking a lot of caffeine, mainly coffee, that I have since given up now for about a year. (*tear* --i do so miss it!)
Not this morning.
Hell. I didn't even make it two steps into the kitchen before i got barked at.
This did not make me a happy camper, not in the least.
I mean, come on! I don't drink caffeine anymore. My eyes were barely open. And I didn't even get a "Good-Morning."
Nope. Nothing. Nada. Jack-crap. Rien de tout.
Bugger.
What pray tell was i getting yelled at about?
A stupid effin' window my grampy had special ordered through Lowes with the help of my boyfriend (who is close with my grandparents). Oh yes I guess it would help to know that my boyfriend works at Lowes.
Yes, I know, a window, Stupid.
Apparently the window came in and was not the desired dimensions to what my Grampy thought he had ordered. Lar (my boyfriend) had taken it back to talk to the guy in charge of the special order. This guy, Josh, unfourtunatly had taken some time off and the problem could not be dealt with right away. A few days passed, Lar and I forgot all about it and when Josh returned I had Lar's truck and of course, the window. whoops. So yesterday Lar finally talked to Josh about the window, they measured it and found out there was nothing wrong with the specifications. The windows are made larger to account for installation. Makes sense. To me, to everyone else. Everyone apparently, but my grandfather. Lar had told me this information about the window, i passed along a portion of the message to my Grammy last night. Grampy apparently heard about it this morning from Grammy. Great. Yippie.
So I'm standing there in the kitchen, squinting, because i'm blind as a bat without my contacts and feeling very irritated that this is how my morning has started out.
What does this have to do with me you ask? Well, those were my exact thoughts this morning. In fact, the only real correlation is that it's MY boyfriend who got my grandparents the discount at Lowes. And it was MY boyfriend that was taking care of the communication on what went wrong.
After digesting some of the anger-fueled words my Grampy had to say, decided i had had enough. Just before I could say anything though, my Grampy stated how he was going to Lowes this afternoon and was going to raise holy hell down there. This made me mad. It's Lar's place of employment and how could anyone want to go down representing someone, practically family and "raise holy hell."So I yipped back, nothing mean, but definatly making my point on how this was not my problem and not Lar's and left to go take a shower.
The problem however was now the festering going on inside me.
I was mad. I was irritated. No, I was furious. Who does he think he is? My mom raised me with some serious core values that I always try to abide by:
1. It is better to be kind than right
2. People are more important than "things"
3. Respect your elders
I was trying to respect my Grampy as my elder, but it was proving to be more difficult than normal. Also, I didn't understand how my mother's father, could just be SO RUDE!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Lar stopped by between his classes and work. His talk with Grampy went fine. As he put it, "Grampy was just a big Teddy Bear to me."
So what, I get blasted in the morning and thats that???
Apparently.
Well....me and the poor Lowes crew.
He did go to Lowes, and he did cause a ruckus with Josh. The problem with the window seems to have been nothing more than a miscommunication and miscomprehension of what the window he was ordering was. Things like this happen.
Me, personally. Sure I'd be irritated at possibly waiting another 3 weeks for a new window, but i wouldn't be mad. I wouldn't raise "holy hell", and I certainly hope I'd act more respectful of other peoples' feelings, no matter who's to blame.
I had tutoring to go to. I also helped a friend out at the university who is conducting a study. So I managed to avoid them for the rest of the day. Not without ruining my whole day though with the dark cloud of all the anger billowing down on top of me and my attitude for the day. It was hard to just get past all of this. I guess a big irritation that follows this is why elderly people, seem to think that because they are old, they can treat people like crap. When I was younger, I never understood why people were so mean to old people. Now im beginning to think it's just the younger people giving crap back to the old people who are dishing it out first! I have a friend in a doctors office that is always having bad days because old people come in and think they can throw their weight around because they are old and frail. They feel they deserve special treatment because they are 85. God bless them for having such a long life...but gees, that is no reason to treat other people like they don't matter, or like they don't have feelings too. Just because they are old doesnt mean they can treat people however they want to. Just as a person any age shouldnt.
This was definatly not a way to start out the day!
So, now as I write this, I'm still irritated. I feel better though. Mostly that today is almost over. Its almost 10pm and I will certainly welcome the end of today.
Hopefully tomorrow will be a good day.
I feel like scrooge.
bugger.

Simone and applesauce!

So I've been meaning to write about what I spent part of last week doing....

I got to babysit my aunt's adorable little miniature dachshund named Simone. She is the greatest and definitely a big reason why i want a little mini dog just like her!

(CAN YOU BELIEVE SHE WEIGHS ONLY 8LBS????!!!!!)

Also...I was reaching out to my inner Martha Stewart and went to Chicago where my friend's mom Carolyn and her Grandma taught me how to make applesauce!!!!!!!!!!!! We cut and cooked 2 bushels and a peck of apples. I used 5 varieties of apples that I bought from various farms around here in the fruit belt of Michigan: Northern spy, empire, melrose, idared and golden delicious. It was most definitely a fun experience, but EXHAUSTING!!!!

So the steps I went through were:

number 1, cutting alllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll those apples up, which unfortunately i didn't get a picture of! Let me tell you, it was quite a site seeing bowls and bowls of cut up apples all over the kitchen!!!!!

Step number 2 was putting them in 3 pots on the stove, 2 slow cookers set on high, and one gynormous electric skillet all to cook down.

Step number 3 involved taking all the cooked apples and putting them through the sieve attachment on the Kitchen Aid --you can see they already look just about like applesauce in this bowl, except there are still seeds and the skins by this point have the consistancy of construction paper and are just plain nasty to eat (i tried!).

Step number 4 went onto the stove in a pot again, to warm it up to temperature so it could be put in steralized canning jars.

Step number 5 is the cans going into the canner (the biggest pot on the stove), depending on the size--for 15-20mins

Step number 6 is in place of step 4 if I am putting them in freezer containers. which is just letting the applesauce cool down enough to put in those containers, mostly to prevent melting the containers and also to prevent freezerburn later.

The finished product after about 10 hours in the kitchen non-stop was 12 pints and 11 quarts canned and 10 pints and 10 quarts frozen!!!

I AM sooooooooooooooo Martha!!!

Next year I plan to make my own tomato sauce!!! yippie!!!!!!!!!!!

Amazing Race Season Premier!

So one of my favoritist shows ever has come back again for their 13th season!!! I absolutely love this show and am jealous of everyone who has been on this show! This week they went to Ireland...somewhere unfourtunatly ive never been able to go in my travels.
So for this weeks episode...there are the typical odd couples and some outrageous ones, along with the typical bitchy whiny couple that you wonder how they ended up dating anyways (Nate and Jennifer) She got on my nerves so bad, crying cuz she just couldnt run anymore. And then she felt that yelling at the donkey they had to pull wood with would be effect. Apparently she missed out on how animals react according to your emotion level. What a retard. There are also some blonde beauties determined to use their womanly assets and whatever else it takes to win the million dollars...I just hope they have brains and the ability to drive a manual car to go along with that....otherwise they might not get that far.
If you've never seen the show, check it out...it truely is amazing seeing the places they get to go and the funny antics...
check it out next sunday at 8pm!

Thursday Thirteen #2

Thirteen Movies I love: 1. The Princess Bride 2. French Kiss 3. Clueless 4. Benny & Joon 5. Life is a House 6. The Notebook 7. How to Lose a Guy in 10 days 8. North by Northwest 9. The Prestige 10. The Illusionist 11. The Bachelor and the BobbySoxer 12. The Little Mermaid 13. Dangerous Beauty Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Tales from a former Michigander (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Kids...

Alright...well...yesterday was an interesting day....
Lar woke up and realized he had slept through a class. Unfourtunatly it was a class that is taught by a total douche-bag who is not at all understanding. All semester Lar has talked about how this guy literally goes out of his way to make fun of the kids in his class, and even goes as far as locking the door at 8 o'clock on the dot when class officially starts. I'm all for being on time, and quite frankly i used to get annoyed at people who just 'waltzed' into class 15-20 min late like they had more important places to be. But I also think its a little ridiculous when teachers cant be understanding in the least when it comes to a first time offenses. So Lar missed his class...and I came up with the bright idea...I had to take my grampy to his dr's appt...what better excuse than one from a dr?!?!? So that was that, we went to the dr's, all four of us, grammy, grampy, Lar and I. Sure enough, the dr was great and wrote a note simply stating "Please excuse Lar from class today due to a drs appt." with the date and signature at the bottom. YES! Take that snotty teacher!
Well...my grandparents like to combine their outings...so it was a family trip to Walmart for groceries and other fun stuff. While there, I ended up getting some organizing tubs for my nicely re-organized room and my next project: the bathroom. I then wandered over to the candy section where i picked up a pack of my new favorite gum. As I walked away, I overheard a woman on the phone...being the snoop I am, after a few key phrases that caught my attention, proceeded to totally look engrossed in the candy and evesdrop.
"Yah, G-G...Ronny is 45 lbs...the doctor said he weighed in the 95th percentile of his age group. Yah, he's supposed to be on a new diet...restricted to good whole foods, lots of fresh foods and vegetables. hahaha...yah i know, we'lll be lucky if we can find anything that he'll actually eat. oh yah, I know G-G, he's doing so good, growing like a weed....*giggle giggle* We'll you take care....Ronny and I are at the candy aisle...yah time for him to pick out some treats! *giggle*" (gets off the phone)
"Alright Ronny...what do you want...pick some candy out..."
ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!?!?!?!
Did that woman even listen to herself and the doctors orders that she just repeated? Loud enough might i add that it obviously caught my attention. This 'little' kid was a chubby cheeked, double chinned big-butted redhead and probably was less than 4 years old. It's SO SAD! We live in a society where we are just setting our children up to be grossly obese adults. Come on people, we really need to get it together, read food labels and teach our children healthy living habits, not just easy ones.ARGH!

After our little adventure...we decided to go on a walk once we got home. It was a beautiful fall evening; crisp with the hint of burning leaves in the distanc--one of my favorite things of fall. The leaves have definately started to change and are looking more gorgeous by the day. Upon our walk around the neighborhood, we came upon a bunch of little boys--probably 4 or 5 of them. They had a football and earlier we had seen them throwing it around. Although, as we approached them, we witnessed these little ragamuffins throwing themselves on the ground, screaming in exhileration, "thats the funniest thing i've ever seen!" They were all laughing uncontrollably and looking and pointing up at the house they were playing in front of. So..I looked up....in the big front window of the upstairs were two little girls.....pressing their little bajingas (or as oprah calls it, their va-jayjay) up against the glass and pelvic thrusting and dancing around, then turning around and showing the world some 'pressed ham'. Little 8 year old girls or so...It was kind of funny...but also sad at the same time...Where are these kids parents? At least they were still all young enough there wasnt much to show....
Kids....
funny ones they are....

THURSDAY THIRTEEN!!! Yippee

Thirteen Places I'd rather be than here 1. In my favorite cafe in Collonges, France: Eating the best ever apricot danishes and drinking the most amazing espresso. I used to go down early in the mornings, especially during vacations. Sometimes I was alone, sometimes I was with my roomie Linda. My own kind of "Cheers" atmosphere...where i could just sit, read, people watch or ponder...nothing but pure relaxation! 2. Sunning myself on the beaches in Maui with my bestie from high school Desi (who just returned from there. poo....too bad ive been so busy with my family drama and low finances that i couldnt go:( 3. Down at my bestie's apartment in Mishawaka playing her new wedding present Wii. Instead im waiting out a tornado warning at my Aunt's house while Lar is in class. 4. Eating at Lar's and my favorite restaurant in Carlsbad, Cali The Armanian Cafe Man do i miss eating there! They have THE BEST middle eastern food....I absolutely LOVE ethnic food! I really miss Lar being stationed there and my frequent vacations out to sunny SoCal! 5. At a spa...with my bestie, perhaps here 6. Visiting friends down in Houston...Hells yah Melissa and Rudy!!! Along with of course Ben and Megan....its been too long since the 6 of us got together! 7. Playing with puppies....anywhere....:) I want a minature long-haired dachshund so bad!!!! 8. On a cruise with Lar...:) 9. In Greece, on the Island of Paros, skinny dipping in a secluded cove at 2pm in the afternoon 10. Studying Italian in Italy...I want to so bad!!!!!! 11. In the Seychelles islands....I've always wanted to go there... 12. Scuba diving in the Galapagos Islands...it's been too long since i've dived! I miss it! 13. On the show "The Amazing Race". I love that show...and with all my travels, im pretty darn sure i'd kick some major booty! Links to other Thursday Thirteens! It's My Life Tales from a Former Michigander (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

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update

Well it has certainly been too long since i last blogged...over two weeks. This of course would not have happened if my computer had decided NOT to crap out on me. ugh. So while I still have not gotten my computer fixed, life has certainly not stopped along with my blogging. So I guess an update is in order.

The wedding went beautifully. I had a blast and much enjoyed getting all gussied up and pretty for such a great occasion. My bestie looked beautiful, as i knew she would. Lar wore his uniform and was handsome as ever....rawr, gotta love that man in uniform! haha. There were only a couple snafu's that happened: 1) One of the flower girls puked right in the middle of the ceremony (ew!) right in front of amanda and I while we were standing up front. 2) I later caught some of the rambuntious rugrats messing with Jessica's makeup case, her favorite Nars Bronzer left half destroyed with the center gaping with a hole dug out of it. Other than that, everything went swimmingly and things were just gorgeous!
As for everything else...Lar doesnt have his recall thing now until the 27th of October. So my nerves won't be too strained until that day gets closer, no use in worrying right now. We are in New Hampshire currently, visiting his parents. Lar had another non-related military engagement this morning, a muster, as they call it. Nothing big, just something that had to do with accountability or something. Anyways...we have a 15 hr drive back to michigan tomorrow....:( yucky. But we should be back sometime in the middle of the night monday morning.

CRAP!

Along with the rest of my luck this week....as things would happen, my dingblat computer got all messed up and won't turn on. CRAP! I dont even feel like dealing with it this week. My bestie's wedding is this weekend so for the next few days ill be running around like crazy getting nails done, tanning, hair, and all the other prep done. FUN:)
Also there is the lingerie party, rehearsal, rehearsal dinner and all kinds of other goodies. Hello Weekend, goodbye sleep. Ill post pics once my dumbdumb compuper is fixed....prob sometime next week.

Loves to all and congrats to Jessica NayeNaye!

F**K you George W. and your troop surge!

Well.... This kind of goes along with last week's crap week... I couldn't bring myself to write about it though since i was a little too emotional at the time. I've hardly been able to talk about it since we found out. Where to start...

Well, first i guess i should explain to everyone how the military really works. When you sign up, you sign up for 4 years of active duty--most people know this part. What most people don't realize is that when you sign up, you also agree to 4 years of inactive duty. Meaning: most go about their daily lives as if their contract with the military is up....but in all actuality they can be recalled at any time during those 4 years of inactive duty if need be.
So last thursday, my bestie Jess and I were out and about getting some last minute things for the bachelorette party and her upcoming wedding. While browsing and playing endlessly with makeup in our Mecca (also known as Sephora) I recieved a call that drained every ounce of color from my face and left me gasping for air. Lar had just recieved a phone call from his mother delivering news of my ultimate present-day worst fear: Consideration for Reactivation orders.
So...that's where we stand now. Currently, Lar is awaiting tickets from the U.S. Government to fly to Kansas City, MO where he will meet before a committee. There they will i guess interview him and try to figure out if he is elligible for recall. It makes me so mad...Lar has definetly paid his debt to society, made his mark in assisting with this war. He has 3 deployments under his belt...he was among the first of the marines that went to iraq early 2003. He spent his 21st birthday as the official day the war began and has spent half his military career, 2 years, in Iraq. Not that I would wish this on anyone, but it makes me so mad that he's spent so much time over there and so many of his buddies did only 1 or 2 deployments! Why do they have to pick him? Just as we were getting our lives together and creating a normal dating relationship. I thought all the tears were behind me. I just can't stomach the idea of being alone, again. I hated playing 3rd wheel to many of my friends while he was gone, waiting all night...sleeping with my phone by my head on its loudest ring just hoping i'd get a phone call that night and dropping everything when i finally did. As if it couldnt get worse, it can....these deployment recalls are for much longer than normal marine deployments that last around 9 months. If he is deployed again it will be for 12-18 months. Just as sad is the fact that now my hottie military uniformed date will not be able to attend my bestie's wedding this weekend since he will be in Kansas City. So now im dateless, and sad. Please pray for us. I know Lar doesnt want to leave the life he's just settled into here. Thinking back to those long lonely days while Lar was deployed last time makes me sad, so im not sure i can handle another one, especially for so long! Lar's mom who underwent serious heart problems ( a rare virus that caused her heart to die and her to get a transplant), she can't handle the extra stress...she's already made it through 2 more deployments with him than i have, and I certainly know her health will take a toll worrying about him for so many more months. She just doesnt deserve that kind of added issues.
Please, again, keep us in your prayers. Pray, God willing, that Lar won't have to go through all of this, again.

TGIF....

Okay so i started this blog what...a week and a half ago or so and i meant to be super diligent. So LIFE happened...like it usually does, especially in my life. I have to say....TGIF...this week has been just about the worst week ever!
I had a great labor day weekend. I went up to a friend's lakehouse. I love spending time in the water and the sun, and last weekend provided plenty of sun to go with the great lake that we play in. I got a nice little end of summer glow on my skin and even had a funny incident happen in the middle of the lake late one night after our bonfire when i fell in the lake fully clothed! HILARIOUS! Especially to those who were there! I'm close with my friend's family and carry many traditions with them. Its grape harvesting season here and her mother is determined to teach me all the tricks of the trade in being the ultimate Martha-Stewart-do-it-yourself-type. We pick all kinds of fruit all summer long but grape season is by far my favorite. We make preserves (the kind with no sugar, just the fruit) and homemade grape juice. So we started on that...its a long process since there are several types of grapes we use.... usually takes three or four weekends to pick all the grapes and juice and preserve them.
so that was my fun weekend.....
Tuesday morning my grammy woke me up to tell me she was taking my grampy to the hospital. I somehow made it downstairs fully dressed to leave before i my eyes opened and was made aware of what time it really was. YUCK....it was 5:45am. We left and got to the hospital around6:15am. What followed was about 7 hrs in the ER while we waited for the doctor to say anything. Then I spent another i think 6 or 7 hrs in the room with my grampy after he was admitted. Needless to say, by the time we got home it was super late and Grammy and I were super exhausted. ugh.
So basically all week I've had the fun duty of making sure my grammy is doing ok, eating and taking care of herself while my poor grampy is stuck in the hospital. I've also taken on a new role as chauffeur for my grammy as in the emotional state of distress she's in, we all agree she shouldn't be driving.
I'm exhausted and looking very much forward to this weekends events: SLEEP!, church, and Jessica's Bachelorette Party! WOO HOO! And then of course, hopefully more sleep!
As for my grandfather...his gall bladder is infected, he is on heavy antibiotics and they are trying to reduce the inflammation. They want to operate sometime in the next month. I don't know how i feel about that since he's already had so many operations. The poor man can't take much more. :(
So please keep Grampy in your prayers.
Thanks.

Any Given Dumbass...

Hey everyone...I've succumb to the world of blogging. Mostly because i see the benefits my bestie Ginger gets from her venting...
I didn't intend for my first blog to be such a serious one but while flipping through channels today in my laziness, i saw a clip that caught my eye on one of those forever-cheezy-mundane-paparazzi-induced celebrity gossip shows. Jamie Foxx took the time out of his busy Hollywood life to comment on the latest trouble in the world of sports. Yes, that's right, he's talking about the now infamous dog-fighting conspiracy charges that Michael Vick is now facing. Now, I get the gist of what dogfighting is...but i looked it up just in case anyone else doesn't, and also to really show how real and sick it is. There is a lot of premeditation behind dogfighting, don't believe me? Click here. For those of you that might have been living somewhere way out in Timbuktu and haven't heard of the animal cruelty case surrounding Michael Vick This article at CNN.com should fill you in. As for Mr. Foxx and his ill-placed thoughtless, ignorant and heartless remarks, they shot so much anger through my veins i envisioned some weird out of body experience of me throwing a nearby glass through the TV and it shattering in his face. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGGGGGGGGGGH!

“It’s a cultural thing, I think,” Jamie said. “Most brothers didn’t know that, you know. I used to see dogs fighting in the neighborhood all the time. I didn’t know that was Fed time. So, mike probably just didn’t read his handbook on what not to do as a black star...I know that cruelty to animals is bad, but sometimes people shoot people and kill people and don’t get time,” Jamie continued. “I think in this situation, he really didn’t know the extent of it, so I always give him the benefit of the doubt.”

EXCUSE ME?!?!?!??!?!?! First of all, dogs just 'fighting' in the neighborhood is one thing. The beef is between them, and most likely someone should step in and break it up. Dogfighting, however is a crime. How any normal, caring human being could see otherwise, is beyond me. To address Jamie Foxx's words on how he didn't know it was fed time': PLEASE! Just because other people do it and somehow get away with it doesn't make it right. Vick got caught, he messed up, he DESERVES to be punished. Not only did he have this dogfighting ring on his property, he is also admits to participating in killing some of the dogs that didn't perform well. The humane way to have dealt with that would have been to find them homes, or i guess in a last resort have them put down by euthanasia. Did he do that? Hell no or I wouldn't be this mad. CNN.com says:
"Peace, Phillips and Vick agreed to the killing of approximately 6-8 dogs that did not perform well in 'testing' sessions at 1915 Moonlight Road and all of those dogs were killed by various methods, including hanging and drowning. "
HANGING AND DROWNING!!!! Does this sound like someone who shouldn't be prosecuted?!?! HELL NO! He deserves everything and more. I love any and all animals, but i want a puppy more than anything else in the world! It pains me to read about this...it physically makes me sick. I just can't understand how anyone could be so cruel. Back to Mr. Foxx's precious words... too address his 'cultural' blame....i say BULLSHIT. Culture, sub-culture has nothing to do with cruelty. We cannot be allowed to brush off every stupid thing in life as, "oh that's just a black thing" or "only white people can do this". With every other thing wrong and apathetic in his statement, why oh why does he have to bring race into the issue?MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS JAMIE!
Unfortunately, Vick has already started working with the prosecutors and has struck a deal so they will not be seeking full punishment of $250,000 in fines and up to 5 years in prison. Most likely, as with most celebrities as of late (Lindsey, Paris and Nicole) he will get off, practically Scot-free.