It's time for Friday High Five where you can gather your thoughts into five random things and post.

It's easy.

You can do it.

Today I'm trying to wrap my head around all of the stuff I need to accomplish in the next 20 days! That's right. Christmas is right around the corner and what have you done?

I have minimal shopping completed and not a thing wrapped. Here's what I would like to check off my list for the weekend.

1. Decorate. We have outside lights up but that's it. No tree. No decorations. Nothing. The outside of my house looks festive, the inside of my house looks like February.
2. Write my newsletter. Mock me if you must, but I write a family newsletter. Yep. I'm that person. The one who sends you the cheeky letter every year. Except mine is in the form of a newspaper page and it tells it like it is instead of pretends how rosey things are. This year it will include a Cafeteria Corner section and a tribute to the grandparents I lost this year.
3. Use my Kohl's cash. I have $80 in Kohl's cash that expires on Monday. Hello. We can't let that happen.
4. Finish up Teacher presents: Every year I make Thank You cards for the teachers at Christmas. I figure it works to ways. It says thanks for putting up with my kid on a regular basis and it allows them to thank everyone else for their stupid gifts.
5. Holiday Names: Every year we participate in a Christmas Cheer program that provides gifts for some needy kids in our school district. I always buy for three kids and try to involve my three. Those gifts need to be turned into my school district by the 14th and I'd really like to finish them up.

Let's not even talk about wrapping....

What do you have planned this weekend?

Are you watching Glee? Are you as obsessed with this show as I am? I know it is cheesy and the actors hardly look like high school students, but I can't get enough of Glee.

Here's why:

~ Finn is so cute.

~Glee club director, Will, is even cuter.

~The music is awesome.

~Jane Lynch is the funniest, most under-rated actress currently working in Hollywood. I loved her on 2 1/2 men and in the movie 40 year old virgin. She is hilarious as the cheer leading coach on Glee.

~Very seldom does someone die. I'm so tired of dramas/comedies that feel the need to randomly kill off people. What ever happened to happy endings????

I LOVE GLEE!

Help! I'm trapped in my craft room and I've made such a mess of the place that I can't find my way out! Only three more wreaths to go until I've made a dozen. There are cards drying all over the place. Stickles are setting, google eyes are drying. It's quite the scene.




Here are some of the completed and almost completed items.

1. My children: They are ornery, healthy and always underfoot. Sometimes I take that for granted.
2. My husband: We can get on each other's nerves just like any married couple but when it comes right down to it, he usually knows exactly what I need.
3. My sister: Growing up it was fun to torture her, now that she live 8 plus hours away I miss her more than anything. How can I explain this to my kids. It is so true that you don't know what you have until it is gone.
4. My dog: Of course, if you tell him I will deny this statement. He begs for food, he smells, he has the loudest bark in the entire world, but he lays with me when I am sick, he knows when I am sad, and he thinks going for a walk can cure anything. He may be right.
5. Bloggy buddies: I think you are awesome. Those who comment, those who follow, those who stop by regularly and those who just like lurking. Words of affirmation is my love language and this blog provides a lot of them.

Have a happy and safe Halloween. Keep your fingers crossed that our trick or treat doesn't get washed out or I am going to have three very sad little blessings on my hands.

To read more Friday High Five Posts click here.

It's time, again, for Friday High Five and this week I'm listing five events we have going on this weekend. It the time of the year where it's go, go, go around here.

• Tonight is B.O.B. What is that? That is Battle of the Buildings. Our elementary vs. my daughter's intermediate vs. the middle school vs. the high school. I think you get the picture. The problem is...where do we sit. With the elementary and wear purple or with the intermediate and wear pink....I think I'll sit with the elementary and let my oldest sit with her friends if she wants.
• Soccer. Don't tell anyone but I'm getting a little bit tired of soccer. Especially rainy cold soccer starting at 9:30 in the morning.
• Birthday party extravaganza. It's my son's sixth birthday party. Here's hoping that my headache isn't migraine status by the end of it.
• Parties bring guests and out of town company. My in-laws will be staying over night until Sunday.
• Football fun on Sunday: Here's hoping the Steelers win and Baltimore and Cincinnati lose.

What are you planning for the weekend?

1. On the menu: Fish nuggets and mac and cheese. Nuff said.
2. Not on the menu: alcohol.
3. Monday is a holiday. Can you say four day weekend?
4. Scrappin all weekend.
5. Beach view, beach house, beach buddies.

• Finish Little G's birthday invites: I need to finish these up if I expect to have a party on the 17th. Hello...note to self it's already October.
• Survive early a.m. soccer: Why oh why do we have soccer at 9 a.m. and have to be at the field at 8:30 a.m. on a Saturday???? It's Saturday. It's October. It's Pennsylvania. It's cold.
• Grocery shop: This is self explanatory. However, I need to stress that we really have NO FOOD. I haven't a clue what we will eat this evening for supper.
• Determine what scrapbook supplies I need for my trip: I said last week that my trip to the beach was falling apart around me, but we managed to pull our sh** together and rent a place and stop bitchin'. Which, with a large group of women, isn't as easy as it sounds.
• Go to Target: I need some supplies for my laminater and Target is the only place that carries them.

If I haven't bored you to death...share what you have planned this weekend.

On a completely separate note, hilarious blogger Jenners is hosting a new game. Which is to write a version of William Carlos William's poem, This Is Just To Say,

Here is the original

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving for
breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold


Here is my version of the poem.

I have
decided not to
listen to
the drama

which you
were no doubt
surprised to
learn

that mommys
can indeed ignore
whines and wails
it's true.

It's time for Friday High Five over at Angela's blog and you should be playing along. Why aren't you? It's fun?

Today I had a yard sale.

Ugh.

I hate having yard sales and I'm not sure why I waste my time with them. Every time I do, I always say "I'm not doing that again."

1. I need a small army to get ready for a yard sale. Small armies are not easy to come by so I always end up doing everything myself.
2. People will try to barter over $1.00. I had two bar stools in my garage forever. I put them in the sale for $1.00 a piece and someone actually asked if she could have them both for $1.50. I realize that getting a deal has some bragging rights but really...seriously. Who you gonna brag that one to? After all of that she has the nerve to ask me if I can break a $10.
3. A quarter here and a quarter there equals 50 cents. I mean seriously if you add up the hours it took me to get ready and the hours I wasted sitting there I made about $1.25 an hour.
4. What you think will sell will not. Why did someone by my random miscellaneous box of string but not my daughters old bike? I have the bike listed for $5.00 frickin dollars and someone had the nerve to offer $3.00. Seriously? Do you want me to break a $50 for ya too?
5. I can never sell enough. And by enough I mean every piece of crap I hauled out to the driveway.

What did you do today? I made $18.25 and I'm thinking about drinking it.

It's Friday and time for Friday High Five. How do you play you ask? You make up a list of five things, whatever five things you want. Post them to your blog and link them here.

Sounds simple enough.

My brain has been racing a lot this week. I'm not sure why. I feel overly emotional and easily annoyed. Again, I'm not sure why. Here are five things I've thought about far too often this week:

• To lunch lady or not to lunch lady: I was offered the PT everyday job at the elementary school two of my kids attend. Though I have accepted the offer I have mixed feelings about it. First it's everyday and I am lazy and there is also the fact that I'm pretty sure I was 3rd or 4th fiddle on this. Just how many people passed on this job before you offered it to me? What does that say about 1) the job and 2) me??
• My beach trip is falling apart: Twice a year I go to the beach with a bunch of girlfriends. It's better than therapy and so much fun your face hurts from laughing when you come back. I don't know if it's the economy, the timing or just everything but a lot of people can't come and this makes me sad.
• My book. I am writing a book, I am writing a book, I am writing a book. Why is this so hard to do? Why can't I be more disciplined? When I start this every day work will I ever take time to write?
• My hubby: He has not been a happy camper this week and I'm not sure what I did to wrong him. He didn't even acknowledge my "job" offer and he has been working like a dog. Maybe it's not me, maybe it's just his super early mornings catching up to him.
• My mom. She is so sad and I'm not sure what will ever make her happy again. She had to get rid of her dog and she is really taking it hard. Any suggestions on how to bring her out of her funk?

What has been weighing on your mind this week?

1. Have supper at the fair: When I say supper I really mean a fried Oreo.
2. See the crafts: I love to walk through the building with all the crafts.
3. Dance through the raindrops: Seriously--no kids and good friends--who cares if it rains
4. Try to keep my camera dry: H.A.T.E. getting my camera wet.
5. Sing this song as loud as possible: I love, love, love this Kelly song and I'm hoping she belts it out tonight!

1. Pack, pack and pack.
2. Rig up the video player in the van (love that thing!)
3. Fill the van with gasoline.
4. Wrap and try not to forget my nephew's present.
5. Clean up the entire house so I don't have to do it when I get back.

Anyone want to come over and help?

What do you have planned this weekend?

It's Friday!

You know what that means. It's time for Friday High Five over at Angela's Adventures and Minor Mishaps. Are you playing along? Why not?

I'm burned up a little at A.C. Moore and I want to take this time to give five tips to the management of my local craft depot.

Dear Manager:

I am concerned that you are neglecting your real customers and feeding the frenzy of reselling sale items on Ebay to make a profit. Here are some tips I think you should implement, follow and adhere too.

1. If you put it in the flyer, order extra. You should not be sold out of anything in your sales flyer by Sunday afternoon. Your sale started five hours ago and lasts all week. Not acceptable.
2. Hire knowledgeable staff: Why is it that your staff quite often has no idea what a glue dot is; can't tell me where you keep the Prismacolor pencils; has no idea if there is any wizard themed paper in the entire store.
3. Limit product purchases: This goes back to my number one point. You shouldn't be sold out five hours into your sale. People are reselling your sale items and making a profit. That is wrong. Especially since my southern friends don't have A.C. Moores and can't buy the sale items. Do not let anyone buy more than three of the same cartridge at one time. I know they will come back and buy more later, but at least it will be more difficult for them.
4. Honor your rainchecks: If you are going to offer a raincheck, you should be required to honor it no matter when the item comes into the store.
5. Offer your sales items on your website: This seems like a no brainer.

Sincerely,

An irritate customer

It's time for Friday High Five over at Angie's. Why aren't you playing along? Stop over and see what all the fun is about. My week has been filled with highs and lows; some worth discussing and some not.

Here are the five highlights of the week I've deemed worthy to make Friday High Five:

• Kindergarten Orientation: On Monday, my son and I got to meet his teacher. He also got to walk through a school bus. His response, "They are dangerous! There are no seat belts!"
• Reba's 1st solo album in 6 years "Keep on Loving You" released: Mock me if you must, but I have been a Reba fan for more than 20 years. I couldn't wait to get her new album. My favorite.. Consider Me Gone, which happens to be her upcoming single
  .

• Our library visit: My library is a double wide trailer. No, I'm not making that up. That being said, the librarians know us, love us, and go out of their way to get all the books my kids love and even books they think they'll love.
• Park play: We went to the school playground to play this week and the kids had a blast. It actually has some shade and we didn't melt. Plus, we got to meet up with some kids and some moms we haven't seen in awhile.
• A great play date: My son's little girlfriend invited us all over for a play date. I wasn't sure how it would go with my older girls as the other kids were 5 and 6; but surprisingly all of the kids played very nicely and we spent the better part of the day there.

Some of the lows of the week:

• Realizing that summer is ending: I've been feeling a little "empty" about the end of summer. Hoping that I find myself once I put all of my kids on that big school bus.
• Last swim lesson: I love my son's teachers and they only teach during the day. That being said, he will have a different teacher come the fall.
• Two pointless meetings: I worked three nights this week and two of those meetings were pretty pointless. I hate going to meetings that don't fruit any news!
• Thunder: This act of nature has been causing a lot of havoc at our pool. Get in; get out; stay in; stay out.
• Dumpster diving: Not by me, but by my dog. Seems he's has an uncanny ability to find the garbage and destroy the garbage in a matter of minutes. He's highly aggravating.

What were the highs and lows of your week? Don't forget to come back tomorrow for Let's Get Crafty Saturday.

Today we will be discussing strange things we have heard this week and odd conversations we have had. Here are my top five:

• I noticed I had a large amount of charges on my credit card this month and I thought, "That can't be right." Sure enough I was charge for a hotel reservation that I cancelled. Great. I called the hotel. They said, "Oh your name was spelled wrong." Seriously. You spelled my name wrong but still managed to bill my card for a room I never checked into. Incredulous. They are crediting it and it should appear within five business days. Unless they give the credit to the person's who name appears on the bill. Lesson learned: Check your credit card statement.
• After telling my doctor I couldn't sleep, he responded with "Are you depressed?" No. I'm. Tired. Isn't that what I just said? Lesson learned: Repeat everything you say to your doctor at least six times.
• Cashier at Walmart asked me: What are you going to make with those AV-E-ODD-Os? Are you serious? They are called avocados. I'm making guacamole. The oddest thing about this...I had this very conversation at a different Walmart a few months ago. Lesson Learned: Cashiers at Walmart don't eat avocados.
• On the phone with dog groomer: Dog Groomer: "Has he ever had his toenails clipped?" Me: "No"; Dog Groomer: "What did he do when you tried to cut them?"; me: "yelped." Dog Groomer: "I don't stop if he yelps. I just keep going. I have stuff here to stop the bleeding." Lesson learned: Find the a different groomer.
• Oddest conversation of the week: At the dog park some guy walks up to me and says "Are you interested in any bull dicks? I have them in extra large, large and small." Me: "What?" Odd guy: "Yeah I can get them in any size you want. Dogs really like them but they kind of smell. They're actual bull penises. I'd only let him have them outside." Me: "No thank you." Lesson learned: You just never know who might show up at the dog park.

What is the oddest conversation you had this week?

For this week's Friday High Five, I thought I would share some of the things I learned at camp this week.


Taking time to stop and actually look a the sunset is refreshing and spirit renewing. Especially when it is not raining.




I love pictures where my husband is actually smiling. His sister and her kids came to camp for the day and we went on a little hike around the lake. It was so fun! We found these big boulders and took this awesome family photo.




No matter how old I get I just can't seem to get enough butterflies. They are so pretty and the fact that they get to morph from their old self and turn into something new shows us the promise of change.




Though I will admit to all of you, I don't enjoy sleeping in the woods, I still find the forest a wonderful place. As Disney would say...there's something enchanting about being in the words.

Other things I learned over the course of the week include:

• Geese wake up very early. They are louder than most alarm clocks.
• The harder I try not to have to pee in the middle of the night the more likely I will have to pee multiply times.
• I should sit by the fire with my family more often.
• It is true...I am a fair weather camper and my spirit is affected by the weather. Thankfully we only had one late night storm and the days were all pretty.

How was your week? To read more Friday High Five blog entries click on the button below.

Can you believe it? I actually got the shot I wanted to get yesterday. See....her tongue is hanging out! How cool is that? The zoo has this new giraffe section that allows you to go in and feed the giraffe. How awesome is that? My son was soooo excited. He was screaming "Look a giraffe, a giraffe!" and then he was saying "I love your birthday mom!" It was really funny because their was a HUGE sign saying "shhhh, please be quiet while the giraffes are on exhibit."



I know this doesn't look like much, but this is Samson--the baby elephant. He's only on display for a few hours a day and even though he was already in the back with his mama, he came out to say hello.









To read more Friday High Five posts or to play along, click on the button below.

1. The Dentist: It is no big secret that I'm not a big fan of the dentist. I have had my share of dental work (including three root canals) and visiting him generally puts me into a funk. But this particular visit on Monday was for a filing (my first in 4 years) and the tooth he was filing wasn't bothering me at all. Therefore, I was of the mindset that if it doesn't hurt I shouldn't let him mess with it. But alas, I didn't follow my gut on that and now my tooth is sensitive, annoyed and generally pissed off, sort of like the rest of me.
2. My kids. Don't get me wrong, I love those little buggers, but this week they have been pushing all of my buttons. I can remember holding those sweet little infants and I never once pictured them spitting on each other, screaming I hate you, or destroying the house. I think we may have reached our summer "fun" limit.
3. My husband. He seems to be in a bad mood this week, too. Maybe my funk and his funk are creating a superfunk. Kind of like a supergerm only worse because you can't just spray Lysol and kill it. Or maybe it is all just a figment of my funk filled mind.
4. My house. It is a mess and we are expecting a houseful this weekend. Friends of ours are visiting from Ohio and my in-laws are coming for the day on Saturday. I think I need a Redbull if I'm going to tackle this monster. Of course, it doesn't help that no one can go outside right now and play while I clean because they are currently working on the roof and siding damage we experience from the holy hail storm we experienced in March.
5. My dog. He is barking at every bang, bump and movement. I realize that he is a dog and that expaning roof/siding work to him is pointless, but damn it is getting old. Anyone have a fenced in yard I can lock him in until they are done raining mine with siding, shingles and nails??? Warning: He is part goat and recently ate my neighbors swimming pool. You may want to move your patio furniture.

Here's hoping my funk dissipates along with this cloudy, chilly, just plain yucky weather. My birthday is next week and I want to be in a better mood.

P.S. Don't forget to enter my adhesive giveaway and to tell all your friends about it.

P.S.S. Come back tomorrow and share something you made this week for Let's Get Crafty Saturday.

1. Remain Sane. I am camping with hubby, my three kids and our dog. Add that to the fact that my sister, her husband, their two kids and their dog are also coming and I'm seriously wondering if I'm going to return home with all my marbles.
2. Stay Dry. I H.A.T.E. camping in the rain. For many reason, but the main ones being a) trapped in the tent or the van; b) nothing ever dries completely again.
3. Not resent the dog. I have a valid fear that because the dog isn't allowed at the pool, or can't go into ____________ fill in the blank, my husband is going to spend most of his vacation relaxing at the fire pit "watching the dog".
4. Have fun. I really want to have some fun with the kids and not be the grumpy parent.
5. Get into the picture. I tend to be the photographer and because of this I am seldom "in the picture". I want to get into the photograph on this trip.

What do you have planned this holiday weekend? I will return with a lengthy post about our adventures sometime next week.

The campground has WiFi and my husband informed me that he may have to do some work. I'm trying not to be annoyed by that. I'm doing my yoga breathing and permanently planting a smile on my face.

I'm avoiding my email and my blog for the next five days. My hope is to return with more followers and tons of comments. (hint, hint)

If I do anything electronic over the next few days it will most likely be updating my twitter status which you can read along the left hand side of my blog.

Pray those updates do not include "Three days of rain and I've decided to eat my left arm for fun."

to read more Friday High Five posts visit Angela and tell your dropping by from my site.

All the kids standing at the beach entrance. And, Yes, we took all 8 of them to dinner and they were soooo well behaved. I think everyone in the restaurant was amazed.

The mommies on the beach right before we high tailed it out of there due to the looming storm in the background.

• ear pain should not be ignored. Seriously if you are reading this and your ear hurts, stop reading and go to the doctors.


• The last day of school is still exciting. Even when you are the mama, the last day of school is still an event to remember.


• Being sick sucks. My son and I have been passing a virus between us for awhile now and he is quite miserable.


• If Little G doesn't sleep, no one sleeps. In relation to the above, my son is not sleeping and because of that, no one is sleeping.


• Planning a birthday party causes me stress. Deep breath, the cake is made. Isn't it cute? The party is tomorrow. The good news: forecast is looking promising. Pray for healthy kids all around!