Halloween is by far my NOT favorite holiday.

I don't know why, but I have always felt like halloween was kinda like teaching my kids to beg for handouts.

I know that since I was about 13 years old, I have had a hard time with the whole concept of "trick or treat". Why should someone have to give me candy just because I have the balls to put a mask on my head and stand at their door? That stuff costs money! A LOT OF MONEY!

Screw that noise.

I understand where halloween comes from, and all the crap associated with it, but seriously, I don't like this holiday. The parties tacked on to it are lame, with the same stupid cake walks and fishing over a bed sheet. throw the bean bags into the pumpkin shaped peice of plywood, and all that jazz. 

If I could skip halloween, I would. In fact, I did one year. I put up my christmas lights on october 25th. Two months before christmas. I loved that holiday season.

Anyways, this is my gripe, I don't like halloween. You can keep it. Just be sure to send the sweet-tart jellybeans to my house. I LOVE those things.

Oh yeah, also, I HATE candy corn. The stuff is CRAP!

Scripture moments

So, I don't always have the mushy thoughts that my wife does. And I have a little more focus than my kids. But tonight, I'm planning on talking about something interesting I picked up on earlier.

I was sitting on the couch reading the scriptures, and while I was in the book of Mosiah, I was reading about Abinidi. That guy was cool. Most everyone has seen the picture of him chained up in front of King Noah with the jaguars and the grapes and the evil priests, but, tonight while I was reading it, I picked up on a couple of little insights and tidbits that I hadn't seen in the past.

First: I knew that Abinidi came to the people and was run off. That was kinda  mean thing for the Lamanites to do. But, at this time, Noah has put a bounty out on Abinidi's head. I was always under the impression that Abinidi came back reletively soon. I was wrong. It was a space of about two years before he came back to the city. There was plenty of time for Noah to cool off and plenty of time for people to forget about the bounty on Abinidi's head.

Second: I have read this story a few times, but I hadn't really paid very close attention to it. Either way, I knew that Abinidi had preached something to Noah and the priests, but I never paid much attention to what. It was the Ten Commandments. Go figure. That's what I get for not paying attention.

Anyways, I thought that was cool.

About this time, while the priests are getting ready to haul Abinidi off and he stops them with threats of a smiting, this is where the Arnold freeburg picture with the jaguars hits my head. I thought that the picture was kinda nice and it DOES fit the story quite nicely.

Anyways, that was my journey in the book of Mosiah tonight. I know most people probably don't care, but it entertained me and I got a kick out of it.

Anyways, lets see, what else is going on...

Uhm, Hayden refusues to sleep. He just whines about not wanting to sleep each night. But, then, 9.7 minutes later, he's passed out. But that 9.7 minutes really sucks.

Oh yeah, I'm trying to get an up to date temple reccomend. I know of one or two people that aren't big fan(s) of the idea. But, thats between me that the person(s) in question. Either way, I'm looking at making a trip to the temple in the near future. I'm thinking of hitting the Seattle temple. So far, it's my favorite.

Wife: If you are reading this, the offer for you to come with me is still on the table. ::rose::.

And now, just because I can't have a post with out some sort of non-sensical gibberish.

I LIKE SOUP!

Broken Bottles and Bedroom Sets

So a little over a month ago Garen and I purchased a new bedroom set from our local furniture store. After quite a few screwups on the store's part, what should have taken a week took 4. However, the furniture finally got here and the delivery boys took a good two hours to get it in the house and put together, but not without putting an extra hole in the headboard. Annoying, but not something to throw a fit over.

Somewhere in the last week Garen and I saw a new show called Time Warp where they slow down cool looking stuff and show you how it happens. In one particular episode, they broke a beer bottle by slapping the top with their bare hands. Garen thought he'd be cool and tried to do this with a lidded apple juice. He was disappointed when nothing happened and went in the house. I picked up the bottle and took it inside. Hayden decided he wanted some so he handed Garen the bottle, and once he unscrewed the lid, the bottom fell out like it should have.... spilling apple juice all over my carpet. I was laughing so hard I cried, but Garen looked more sad then amused.

Otherwise, I've been working on some no sew blankets for the Blankets of Belief drive. On top of that, my dad has asked for a green and gold scarf and a Green Bay Packer Quilt for Christmas. We'll see what I can get done before then. I've been so busy with school projects that I haven't really had time for much of anything else.

Speaking of, I should be working on those

Slacking

Yup. I admit it, I've been a slacker. Its not that I've been really all that busy elsewhere, just distracted, and tired. So here's whats new in Andrea-Land.

I've lost three more pounds, bringing me down 40 total. Im thrilled about it really. On top of that, I ordered a corset for "fun" of the website www.hipsandcurves.com and bought what I thought was gonna be a good fit. Turns out its one size too big! That made me smile. 

On Saturday we got to go down to the pier downtown here and welcome in the USCGC Healy. Its a giant ass icebreaker out of Seattle. And don't worry, there's no OPSEC for this one, I asked the guys on the ship before I said anything. We took pictures and stood out in the rain for a few hours. I'll have to upload them later, they're on my hubby's iPhone. We were also there though because Garen needed to be, he was the responding IT for his ESD. Always fun to be on duty.

Sunday (today) was my 6th wedding anniversary. I decided I didn't want anything as we've spent enough money recently. However, Garen still took me out to dinner at Ocean View where I had some meh angel hair pasta in a garlic butter sauce and shrimp. They also brought me the wrong kind of ice cream, but I was just glad to have some quiet time without the kids. After dinner we went to see Eagle Eye. I enjoyed it, but then again, I'm a terrible film critic.

Somewhere along the weekend we picked up new shoes for both the kiddos and some new coats as it is starting to get really cold outside. We also stopped by the furniture store to find out why the hell our bedroom set we ordered 4 weeks ago isn't here yet. Turns out they forgot to order the bed itself or some noise like that, and it'd be at least another week. Garen demanded compensation in the form of some lamps, they gave him pillows instead.

Finally, this past week Garen keeps stealing my sewing machine, which is really deturing me from actually finishing the projects I start. So... he picked me up a newer, and better, sewing machine. Its yet another thing I never thought I'd be excited about but I was. It's still a Brother brand, but this one has all kinds of special features including some decorative stitches and the ability to support a free motion foot. It should make my quilting projects much more fun. 

Well it's getting late here, so Im gonna be off, but before i do...

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GAREN! I have loved every moment with you and look forward to our future!

Emergency Preparedness

Well, I have this rushes where I like to go on kicks for stuff. Like cleaning the house, or getting SUPER religious instead of just regular religious. Or food stoarge, or other cool stuff that I don't work on at a regular basis. 

Anyways, I recently got caught up in a Conspiracy thing that got my blood pressure up and while I was at it, it sparked my urge to have my family ready for anything that could come our way.

So, tied in to my wanting to get Family Home Evening (FHE) back on schedule, I plan on doing something fun for the next one that we do.

72 HOUR KITS!

Okay, so here is what I'm doing.

there are 4 people in my family and one car. I know that the car isn't a person, but having one in the car is always smart. That means I'm putting together 5 kits.

Each one will consist of the following:

• A 5 gallon bucket (Possibly 3 gallon, who knows)
• Water for three days.
• Non-perishable staple food for three days. This will proably consist of 9 dried meals. Not quite sure how I'm gonna pull that one off, but I will!
• Snacks for said time period.
• A simple first aid kit.
• A flashlight.
• A change of clothes.
• 
  

Anyways, there will be a kit for each person and a big kit for the family. This will have things like this:

• Consecrated oil.
• Matches.
• Tinder for a fire.
• Utensils.
• Toilet Paper (Everyone ALWAYS forgets that one, but not me, cause I'm smart).
• Spare batteries.
• Oil for the hurricane lamps.
• Oh, and a Hurricane lamp!
• And probably some other odds and ends.

Anyways, this is my plan. Also, I'm working on my food storage. It's a bit of a pain in the butt, however, the prophet said to do it, and last time I checked, he was smarter than I am.

So, I'm doing it!

Anyways, I'll report on how that one turns out later.

Rawr

For the record, new computers are intersting.

They keep people busy.

On the flip side, I'm getting to take my computer to work again. I'm excited about that.

There you go Andrea... an update!

Ramblings from the heart

Okay, this has nothing to do with ACTUAL events, so Andrea, if you are reading this... please don't hit me.

I love you.

Okay, so, everyone should know by now that as I go about my day to day business, I have this sound track that plays in my head. 

Usually, it's not a big deal, but ocasionally if things get boring, I'll start playing music, or have a car chase, or some other good stuff happen in my brain. This one time... there was a hobbit born that had dragons for hands. Thats kinda off the topic, but meh.

Anyways... the soundtrack is usually just white noise with an occasional buh-dum-bump-do-do-di-dump. 

entertaining... right?

Well, andrea and I were talking today. Apparently open communication is the new thing and we're trying it. This is cool and all, but it means I have to do more and more tlaking, and it prevents me from doing any real good background noise in my head.

What does this mean? 

It means I have to come up with some really high quality background noise for when I get the opportunity to do it.

So, it goes a lot like this.

A: Garen, we need to talk.

G: fffssshhhhhhh.......ssssshhhhhh.... click.... ssshhhhhhhhh..

A: GAREN!

G: Huh... uh.. What?

A: You weren't listening. 

G: Yes I was.

A: What was I saying? 

G: (Crap... I wasn't listening.. .think of something quick)

Garens Brain: Uhm.... ASPARAGUS!

G: Asparagus!

A: What?

Garens Brain: Slam Dunk! She'll never expect a thing!

G: So, whats up?

A: We need to talk more.

G: I agree

A: So, I was thinki....ffffssshhhhhhh.....sssshhhhh...click......grrrrgggrrr...sssshhhhh (This is about the point the cool stuff happens)

[The following takes place inside garen's head]

The Admiral: Garen, Sir, we have a problem.

G: What is it admiral?

The Admiral: Sir, the fire ants have built up a... WHAT THE?

G: Don't mind my bulging muscles admiral, they are impressive, but not too impressive as to be worth showing off.... like this  (/flex)

Andrea: GAREN! 

G: huh?

A: So? Can I?

G: Aboslutly. I totally agree.

A: Good.

This is merely a snippit of how my brain works.

At one point, I'll probably be fiddling with a garbage can lid, or a paperclip, or chasing a bird. I'm never quite sure.

But in the long run, I get a hug, she smiles and goes to wal-mart to buy something. We're all happy, hayden gets a drink, and I put lillie in bed so I can sit on the couch and stare at the ceiling fan. (I love that thing).

Anyways, we're talking more. Discussing things that normal people don't talk about. And in the long run, we're doing better. And this makes me remeber why I love my wife so much.

Also, it was a good chance to explain how I met Grover Cleaveland. See? Be like me? Meet a dead president.

Always a plus.  ;)

Laters.

Where Does The Time Go?

Oh man have I been busy, and it seems I've accomplished nothing! However my laptop should arrive today or tomorrow and I am quite excited for that. I finished two hats, one for Lillie and one for Hayden. I've started one for myself using that furry yarn. It looks cool but is a royal pain in the butt to use. However, I'm excited to see how it turns out. I also have been working on some quilts, but it has taken a back seat as husband has stolen my sewing machine and took it to work with him. Who knew there'd ever be a husband and a wife who fought over use of the sewing machine, huh? But we do!

So I also ordered a laptop table so I don't have to have this desk out in the living room anymore. It's a decent table I ordered from Walmart.com, but the shipping cost just as much as the table did! Oh well, I tried to find one on the island and couldn't, so whatcha gonna do? Finally I also ordered a pretty little corset from Hips and Curves.com. Why did I do that? Because I've lost 37lbs so far and I wanted to reward myself and feel pretty! Not to mention I'm sure husband will love it.

I've got lots of schoolwork to be doing though, so I guess I'll be off to do that now. Until next time!

Just A Day

We really didn't do much. I made a baby hat last night for the www.savethechildren.org drive Knit One, Save One. However I don't think it turned out good enough so I will do another. Today though I ended up standing out side for two hours talking to my neighbor today, and while I was only a wall away from the kids I felt terrible that they were alone in the living room for that long. They however, seemed unbothered.

Garen ended up with some early liberty today, which I am ALWAYS greatful for. He even picked up the living room and ran some dishes. I am a very lucky girl. He also made me a nice chicken stir fry dinner, and it was tasty.

I really spent most of the day sitting around. I am feeling much better, but I think I still needed a day of blah or something, because I didn't want to move much. Lillie is suddenly becoming difficult. She is being demanding of attention, and hitting her brother. Hayden so far just kinda takes the beating, and will cry for her to stop. I'm waiting for the day he pops her back, and I don't intend to punish him. I keep warning her he might hit her back someday, but I'd never encourage him to. I'm actually fairly sure he never will... He's just too emotionally aware of others and how it would hurt them.

I had my parent teacher conference for Hayden yesterday. I find that so weird to do. I've been helping him with homework and such at home and sending it with him every day, and he turns it in fine, but he is FAILING at school still, because he is refusing to do the work the teacher tells him to! I'm not sure what to do about that? I've told him since meeting with her he needs to do as she says, but I don't know if that is going to work.

I also supported the school with their book drive. I bought forty dollars worth of books. I hope it helps. I got one that looks intresting for me, called "Confessions of a Slacker Mom". Maybe I'll feel better about myself after that one ^.^

I have so many things I want to get done. I realize I've become terrible unmotivated and I don't accomplish much. I need to do something. I'm just not sure what that something is. I hope I find it soon though. Either way, it's getting late and I would like some quiet time with hubby.

Having three chevrons never meant that much apparently....

I've been in the Coast guard for 6 years now. I love my job. I've been in awesome places and not awesome places. I've had good supervisors and not good supervisors. Regardless of the situation, I've always done my best to keep a chin up to the situation and enjoy what I do.

Well, 4 years ago I got promoted to IT3 (E-4). Not a big deal to some but it was big to me. I was a petty officer now. I did my job. I was a subject matter expert. I was better than a non-rate now. I was excited. Well, E-4's arent that impressive when lined up to non rates unfortunetly. Anyways, I had this IT1 who became my chief. I worked for him for a good while.

I got promoted to IT2 (The hotel manager called and told me to stop hooting and hollering when I found out I was getting promoted. It was funny)

Anyways, I promoted. Now I was excited about this and I did my job awesome. I still worked with a bunch of thirds and we did good work.

Fast forward a year. I get promoted again. (Kinda lackluster, but exciting)

Anyways, the line between Second and First is a big deal. Well, I was still working with the same chief and the same thirds (One of them now a second). 

So far, the story is kinda lame. But it all boils down to this. 

ANDREA MADE SENSE TODAY! 

Seriously... she really needs to stop doing that.

Apparently, I'm not being respected as a first and that's frustrating. Well, it's supposedly being fixed in the shop, and people are starting to call me IT1 instead of Garen. Andrea is saying I'm going to be VERY excited about the newfound "Respect"... but im not sure.

The Chiefs are saying the same thing, but again, im really not sure.

The next few months are going to be interesting because im going to experience some things that I haven't experienced before and they are supposedly good... so we'll see what happens.

No, it's not funny.

It's not entertaining.

And it probably didn't make any sense. 

But, thats kinda the thoughts that were in my head. 

And now... the world can read them.

P.S.

If you work for me, you shouldnt be reading this.

Also... I made someone cry yesterday. Is it bad that I'm smiling over that?

Feeling a Little Bit Better

So my fever got pretty high, and I was miserable the entire day yesterday. But Garen did everything he could to help me out. We had an appointment with a consulor yesterday that I think went really well. I'm fairly confident it will help us. After that Garen stayed home to take care of me. I was able to take a nap while he picked up Hayden from school.

He took the kids to Walmart to pick out some gifts. Garen got me a pretty and simple ring, and Hayden got me the movie Sex and the City. Lillie got herself some crocs, but I can forgive her for being a shoe kinda gal.

Garen also insisted that I go out to dinner as planned, and by then, my fever was starting to come down. I hadn't eaten in two days so I was starving. So once the babysitter arrived we went off to dinner.... that I didn't really eat. But it's the fact that he tried.

My old friend from high school called to wish me a Happy Birthday. I hadn't heard from Ryan in a long time, and the fact that he remembered my birthday amazed me. It was really nice to hear from him again.

Finally I came home to flowers. They are pretty purple Lilacs. My hubby is so wonderful and I appreciate everything he did for me to make my day special, even though I was sick.