Now it's official!

Michael and Bryttan announced their engagement yesterday. Sometime in 2010 I inherit another daughter. Makes me a MIL x 2.

Cool. Guess I better get my butt back in church on a more regular basis so I can go.

Not what i was expecting.

Yesterday I threw the ingredients in my bread maker so I could have some nice, warm, fresh, fluffy bread to go with my bowl of broccoli cheese soup at dinner last night.

One problem. I forgot to put the yeast in!!

I got a brick. Hard on the outside.... doughy on the inside. Total mess. Had to throw it away. So I will attempt to do it again today, and I have a big sign that says "Remember YEAST!"

The long weekend is over. Wow it has been nice to be a total couch potato. I've accomplished absolutely nothing.... other than some laundry. But it's ok.

If Brian brings David home today then I will have him haul up the tree and I will at least get that decorated.

I have a busy weekend coming up. Our company party is Friday night and I am going to see that movie "Blind Side" (I think that is it?) and have sushi with Pam and Polly on Saturday.

Work is going to be outrageously stressful for the next 4 weeks. I hardly dare think about it. I really need to find a Friday that I can get another epidural injection on my neck, but it has to be a day I can take off.... and I don't know if I will have any days I can do that.

But I should do it before the new year because then I have another $1000 deductible before insurance covers anything.

Nice long weekend.......

Even though I have been battling a head cold or allergies, or something.... I am enjoying this nice long weekend all to myself.

I slept from 6:30 pm last night until almost 9 am this morning. I REALLLLLY needed it I guess. Though the cold medicine probably helped.

I've been watching marathon movies.... and just taking it easy. It is nice.

I haven't been answering my phone though. I just don't feel like talking to anybody. I had plans to go to a movie and sushi with Pam and Polly today, but I cancelled. Or rather, postponed it. I just don't feel like going out. I just want to be all by myself.... do my own thing..... not have to talk to anybody.....

Take a nap if I feel like it.... just hibernate. My head is still pounding. My neck pain has come back and I have spots of numbness on my back, which is really weird.

I am making some broccoli soup and homemade bread today. Yum. I am so officially sick of turkey now.

Well, I guess it is time to go and get on with my day.

Christmas Movie Marathon....

Ha...normally I do not allow Christmas music or movies or anything until the day after Thanksgiving. But since I had my thanksgiving last Sunday... I bent the rules. I've been watching all of my favorite Christmas shows.

The House Without A Christmas Tree (which David nicknamed "the grumpy daddy" movie)....








Rudolph.... where I get to sing "There's Always Tomorrow"....












Home Alone. One of my favorites.








The Santa Clause -- nobody could have played that part better than Tim Allen.









My favorite Scrooge version is the one with George C.Scott.







Santa Clause is Coming To Town..... with the Winter Warlock that used to scare me.










The Year without a Santa Clause -- probably my MOST favorite movie from childhood. Love Heat Miser and Snow Miser. And though I have seen this movie a hundred times... I still get teary eyed when they sing "I Believe In Santa Clause".







Watched this movie last night. One of my favorites and very difficult to find. I am so lucky I got a copy.

And of course..... Christmas is not Christmas without watching "It's A Wonderful Life"..... I have the black and white version, the color version, and the remake that Marlo Thomas did entitled (It Happened One Christmas".

Soon I will dig out my Christmas CD's and start playing the music all day at work. I'm trying hard to feel the spirit this year. I just don't have it. The Christmas spirit just is not in my heart. I just don't want to put up decorations, or buy gifts, or anything. I feel like I just barely did all this. It can't possibly be a whole year already!!!

I've turned into my mom. LOL

Wasting Time Today.

Some days when I come to work, I am so busy.... and other days..... I have nothing much to do and this is one of those days.

Plus, my stomach is not feeling great. Probably a result of being off my Protonix for 4 days already. Insurance won't cover it anymore and I cannot get in to see my doctor until Dec. 2.

So I took a Zantac this morning but I don't think that is what I need. I think I need Prilosec, or something.

I am going to meet Fernando's daughter, Ana, on Friday. She goes to LDSBC, which is my college. We're just going to grab a bite at Crown Burger, and chat for a few minutes. It's kind of funny to be "checked out" by the daughter. LOL. Hope I pass inspection.

LEVEL 8

My neck has not hurt this bad in MONTHS. I seriously may schedule another epidural before the end of the year.

Yesterday I took a Lortab 10 (finally broke down and took it. So you know the pain was BAD), AND I took a Xanaflex.

Did NOT help the pain at all!!! I tried my best to hide it from everybody, but I kept finding myself clenching my teeth, which then started my jaw hurting.

You know what would feel good? To have somebody just beat me really hard on the neck/shoulder area. I just want to HIT it.... HARD.

It hurts bad enough that it is making me sick to my stomach. I don't know what I did... if I slept wrong, or if the epidural injections have just worn off... But I think that even if it is going to cost me hundreds of dollars... I need to have another injection.

The question is WHEN??

Productive Day in Many Ways.

My Saturday started out just like any other day..... waking up at 6am. I guess my internal clock just will NOT allow me to sleep in anymore. I went to TSFKAA (the store formerly known as Albertsons) and shopped the empty aisles.... grabbing the items I needed to bake 5 pies today.

Came home and made two pumpkin pies, 2 apple pies, and 1 pecan pie.

Michael stopped by for a minute and declared the place smelled heavenly with all the pies baking. Wait till tomorrow when the turkey is roasting. I missed that last year because my oven was broken, and I had to cook the turkey at Karin and Brett's. (they were out of town).... and I think dinner last year sucked because it just doesn't work to cook one place and transport to another.

I am going to make mashed potatoes a little differently tomorrow. I am making them in the morning, and then keeping them in the crockpot all day.... see how that works. I'm also putting some cream cheese and sour cream in them..... which I never do, but found a good recipe.

I've been scaring myself silly the past 2 days. Last night Riss and I went to see "The Fourth Kind." It really kind of spooked me. But it was not thinking it was aliens that scared me.... the footage they showed of the so-called "actual" experience -- reminded me more of a demonic possession. And THAT scared me to DEATH.

Then today I watched the movie "Orphan" and man oh man.... that was TENSE. Not scary... just tense.

So to get that stuff out of my mind, I watched the Sound of Music while I was baking... and tonight as I clean, I will probably listen to "It's A Wonderful Life".

I feel like I am such a couch potato. But I am working while I am watching.... I baked 5 pies today, and did 5 loads of laundry... and cleaned my bedroom. Shopped, etc.... and now I am at work.... so I can use the computer.

Well, tomorrow is turkey day. Looking forward to it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sunday will find my home filled with the aroma of roasting turkey, stuffing, yams, potatoes, gravy, and food spread from one end of the counter to the other. Pecan pie, pumpkin, and apple pies..... with homemade whipped cream slathered on top.

The sounds of chatter, teasing, singing, piano playing, laughing, and murmurs of "Oh, I'm STUFFED"........

will float on the air.

Perhaps I'll haul out the Christmas tree? I usually put it up the day after Thanksgiving. Not really in the mood this year. But maybe that will help the mood.

Maybe we'll watch a movie, or play a game, or haul out the Wii.

Whatever the day holds, it will be a day of Thanksgiving for all of the blessings we have been given. I'm am most thankful for my wonderful children, who have all grown into such amazing adults (or in David's case, teenager). I am thankful for our relationship. I have observed so many of my friends' families who just fight and bicker, and say the meanest and nastiest things to each other. Families who don't laugh together -- ever. Families who just push each other's buttons or who can't stand to be in the same room with each other. It makes me sad, and it makes me so grateful that my family is not like that.

So for this thanksgiving, I don't give thanks for an abundance of food as much as I give thanks for an abundance of love....................

What a precious smile!

Talk about cute! The newest little Kramer has got the most precious little smile. Her whole face lights up.

David asked me if I was baby hungry.... and I said, "HELL NO!" I might be GRAND BABY hungry..... but I am DONE with raising kids myself.

Wow..... life is funny.

Last night was hilarious in some ways. At one point in time I was getting texts from 4 different people, phone calls from 3 different people... all at exactly the same time and I kept accidently hanging up on the callers....

But I ended up having two really awesome conversations. One with Esteban and one with Fernando. Both of these men are so nice. Fernando gets bonus points because he is LDS and VERY active. He is ward mission leader in his ward right now, and he has been a bishop and Stake Pres. He knows that I am struggling with church at the moment and he is just so sweet about it.

Both of these guys are dying to come to Salt Lake and meet me. And my fear is they are both going to come at the same TIME!! Fernando wanted to come for Thanksgiving, but decided that was too soon for him because he was just here in Oct for conference so he is thinking he will come at Christmas to visit his daughter.

Esteban has tons of money so he can come whenever he wants and I am not sure how soon that is going to be. Can I lose 75 pounds in two weeks? YIKES.

Anyhow, both of these guys are just very nice. Esteban speaks perfect english and is very easy to understand. Fernando speaks perfect Spanglish.... He speaks english better than he thinks he does. But he prefers spanish.

Anyhoooooooooooooo. Let's see who I am supposed to end up with (maybe neither?).

But it's nice to have attention.

Ha ha ha ha ha I knew this would happen.

There is a woman at work, who is the Nazi police when it comes to following "procedures". After she was hired, she wrote so many Procedures that have to be followed, that the office joke was that we are not allowed to fart unless it is in a procedure manual and then we have to document where we farted, how long it lasted, who smelled it (and get signatures) then make file copies and electronic back ups.

It is utterly ridiculous.

And now it is coming back to BITE this woman in the ass. (excuse me... in the BUTT) because NOBODY is following half of the procedures because they just are not feasible and are totally ridiculous and don't really apply to our company!!

But because they are not being followed, then when we get audited, it shows we are in violation for not doing something that she said we should be doing... but it is something that is MOOT for our office! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So NOW.... she is being forced to "Obsolete" all these procedures that she instituted. Which makes me laugh my butt off.

And so many people are mad at her because they have been written up for not following the procedures, but they are such stupid rules that make no sense.......... and should NEVER have been put in place.

This is the EXACT thing that caused me to go off and SCREAM at this woman a couple years ago. (I never lose my temper, but I sure did let loose on her over these procedures because I saw this coming at the time she instituted them). I was yelling at her so bad that people were coming out of their offices to see what was going on.

And now it takes every ounce of strength to bite my tongue and not say "I TOLD YOU SO!" when I see her.

Golllllly just thinking about it makes me get so stressed out and keyed up that I am already in a foul mood.

General procedures are essential in our business. But HER procedures were so thoroughly detailed that seriously... they just were not appropriate at all. I mean... it's like we were not allowed to think for ourselves, and we are not allowed to adapt to individual circumstances.... and if I chose to do something she would always say "Is that in our procedures? Show me where it is." And I would say "NO, it is NOT in our procedures and I don't CARE! This is how I am doing this! Because THIS IS HOW IT MAKES SENSE AND HOW IT WORKS!" We are talking stupid things here... like little index cards that I keep notes on for the engineers. If I forget to update one.... which happens a lot because I get busy.... then oh dear, I am in violation! Heaven forbid! (Nobody uses the cards anyway.... they just ASK me for the information).

and oooooh there were cards from back in the 1980's that had the wrong information. Well, la-dee-da! Big freaking deal! I have only been here for 5 years and obviously those cards were NEVER used even once during the past 5 years or I would have found the error and corrected it!!!

I am responsible for almost 10,000 Master Records/documents/ drawings..... and over 60,000 copies ---- does she seriously think I am on top of every single one for the past 30 years???

Well, anyhow.... she is having to get rid of all these stupid things she wrote, by making them "Obsolete" because they are stupid and dumb and not feasible and it just makes me want to dance with glee and set the stack on fire.

Saturday musings.....

I went to bed at 11pm last night, and woke up at 5am so I got up and came in to work to use the computer. I really need to get a computer at home that works.

I have been having some really bad neck pain the past week or two and it's been a battle to not turn to the last couple of Lortab I have left. But there is this fear in me that if I open that door, then the monster will come out and grab me. I don't want to go there.

So I started using a "Happy Light" at work. It's made by Verilux. It's supposed to make your brain think it's getting natural sunlight so you are more energized and happier. Well... I am definitely more energized lately. I keep waking up at 4, 5, and 6am bouncing out of bed ready for the day. But mood-wise, I think David would tell ya that I am CRANKY as a bear.

At work, I feel fine. But at home I am feeling so cranky and out of sorts at night. And I'm letting stupid little things get to me (which I hardly ever do), and I am mad at people that I hardly ever get mad at, and it's just weird. I don't think the light has anything to do with my crankiness. I just think I am feeling stressed out because it is the end of the year already and this year has just FLOWN by in a blink of an eye.

Well, I have a lot to do today. I need to bake brownies for a family baptism, and go to the store to get the stuff for broccoli soup, and make it (because it tastes better the next day), and I need to do laundry, and go to the baptism........ My bathroom needs to be cleaned.

I need a maid. Oh, wait. I used to be one. huh.

Please tell me when ----

this economy is going to TURN AROUND!! My stocks are worth nothing. My investments suck. My retirement account is going to allow me to live for about 6 months of retirement.

Christmas is coming and seriously... I am not shopping this year. David is growing out of his clothes faster than I can buy them. My car insurance jumped from $400 a year to $1800.

I need money to get a couple of surgeries done next year.

Geez. I think I am going to seriously start living on food storage for awhile. This is just nuts.

It's scary too. I have cut back on all I can. (Oh wait.... impulse buying would be an area I could definitely modify).

I'm behind on my church donations..... and that is a place I do NOT want to be.

An Interesting Read-----

I just finished reading this book. I really cannot say that I "liked" it.... but it was interesting. It's about a man whose little girl was abducted and murdered by a serial killer in a shack in the woods. The father, after years of grief, receives a letter in his mailbox from God inviting him to go to the shack for the weekend.

The man goes to the shack and meets the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, but NOT at all what you might expect. However, over the course of the weekend, the man goes through a rebirthing process, lots of therapy, so to speak, to come to terms with WHY this happened to his little girl.... why God let it happen, and ultimately his relationship with God on a very personal level.

It's indeed a work of fiction, and sometimes extremely sacriligious in my opinion, but it does present the Godhead in a way that I have NEVER thought of before. If you can get past the physical appearance and delve into the relationship apect it is interesting.

I suppose for someone who has no concept of religion, or a very basic one... they would enjoy this book. Since I already feel I have a very personal relationship with Diety and envision them in my OWN way..... I was sometimes put off by their portrayal in the book.

SPOILER ALERT:

Basically God the Father is portrayed as a sort of "Aunt Jemima" black woman..... Jesus is a redneck in a flannel shirt, and the Holy Ghost (named Sarayu) is a lot like Mrs. Whatsit in "A Wrinkle In Time".... a shimmer.

However, it is an interesting read, but you won't gain any deep insights or life changing bits of wisdom from this book. At least I didn't.

Merry Christmas Melly Belly

David and I were out last night and I saw this dress and could NOT resist it. I said, "I wish I had a little girl to buy this for!" and David said, "Well, why not Melanie?" So I said, "Hey! Yeah! Let's give it to her for Christmas!"

Pictures do not do it justice. It is just a gorgeous, sparkly dress.

It's a size 2, which is the smallest they had, so she is not going to be able to wear it for awhile. But when she does, I hope she gets a picture in it that I can have. LOL

LOL

Why didn't they make pacifiers like this when MY kids were little?

Too funny.

So for Halloween my friends Pam and Polly and I went to see the movie "Cirque de Freak: The Vampire's Assistant". It was ok. I wouldn't see it again.... but it was "ok". Not scary or anything. David is reading the book and says the book is better (the books always are better).

Then we went to Tepanyaki for sushi. There were like 20 people in the whole restaurant. The waiter said it was costing them more to stay open than what they were making. Well.... guess Halloween is not a night most people want to go out to dinner. Except the bah humbugs like me. LOL

I had bought the most amazing looking severed fingers to do a joke at work for Halloween and I totally FORGOT about them. Guess I will have to save it for April Fools. Tsk Tsk.