Getting to know me - Have I ever?

Have you ever...?

• Eaten an entire box of Oreos Yuck no.
• Thought about eating an entire box of Oreos No
• Baked a cake Yes!
• Cooked Thanksgiving Dinner for a group Yep.
• Eaten sushi Ew no!
• Been on stage Yes
• Gone skating Yes
• Made homemade cookies Yes
• Gone skinny dipping Maybe?? Can't quite remember for sure
• Dyed your hair No
• Broken a bone Yes
• Been hospitalized overnight Yes
• Had your name appear in the newspaper Yes
• Published a story, poem, novel... Yes
• Played a game that required removal of clothing Yes
• Gotten drunk or extremely intoxicated No
• Been arrested No 
• Changed your name Only my last name 
• Changed your "look" Not really
• Changed who you were to fit in Not really
• Traveled outside the country Yes

Getting to know me - my creative outlets

Creative outlets: Do you...

• Paint or draw Not nearly as much as I'd like
• Sculpt, do pottery, mold clay... No
• Build scale models No 
• Collect... (what?) Not really
• Write (what?) Yes. I write what I need to write. My posts here, fiction, writing to express something I need to get out.
• Compose music No
• Choreograph dances LOLno.
• Dance I wish
• Develop software Not a chance. That's a language I don't understand.
• Meditate I don't think I'm capable. 
• Daydream All the time.

Getting to know me - leisure time activities

Leisure Time: Do you like to...

• Read Oh my goodness, yes
• Go out, anywhere! Sometimes
• Go dancing I used to - not so much now
• See a show can be fun, at times
• Rent a video Does anyone do this anymore? Netflix family here :)
• Listen to music Certainly yes
• Go for a walk Definitely
• Watch television Yep. Favorites are Sherlock (BBC version), Doctor Who, Sherlock, The Blacklist, Sherlock, Castle, Supernatural, Bones, and I can't forget Sherlock.  O, and Arrow, and Orange is the New Black. 
• Surf the web um... duh! 
  
• Chat with friends online Yes. Great way to keep in touch with long distance friends!
• Meet people for coffee and conversation Not nearly as often as I'd like!
• Go to a party Do kids' birthday parties count?
• Stay home Of course.
• ...? I'm guessing this is for what else I do for leisure? Write. Play The Sims (or more accurately, build amazing houses and then never play the families). Do yard work (yes, I enjoy it). 

Frustration.

I'm at the frustrating part of my recovery. Yesterday, I had my post-op checkup and my staples removed. Then I stopped by a kids' consignment store and finished up Sophie's fall & winter wardrobe, visited my husband at his office, and then to Target next to his office for some ointment because my skin's reaction to the adhesive tape was worse than the incision itself and I was going crazy with the itching. Since it was my first day out and around, and driving independently, since my surgery, I ended up spending an hour in Target. Then, I visited with a coworker and had another errand to run before picking Sophie up, then picking up my oldest from school and taking her to work. I ended up being gone for over 7 hours. And I felt GREAT all day long.

Then, I went to bed. I fell asleep rather quickly, but woke several times overnight with my muscles aching and spasming, from my back to my toes. And this morning was just as miserable. I took a muscle relaxer to help, but it didn't. I was hurting, and so lethargic I couldn't even hold my kindle to read. Finally Sophie woke up and brought me the glass of iced coffee I had in the fridge and I took my pain pill. We snuggled in my bed for another hour and a half before I was able to get up for the day.

Then, grocery shopping. I couldn't even make it through the store without stopping to rest in one of the chairs at the pharmacy. I know I did too much yesterday, but I felt great all day! The limitations in what I can do is so very frustrating to me.

Thankfully, the actual back pain is GONE. The surgery was a success. I know it will take time for my body to recover - I mean, the surgeon operated on my spine! I just am impatient to get back to normal again. I've felt useless for too long.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Princess Sophie has a fun day

Once upon a time, Princess Sophie and her big sister, Princess Emma, decided to spend a fun day together, since it was summertime and school was out. They started out by playing with their dogs, Sir Angus and Sir Tucker, in the garden. Then, they took the dogs to the park.

They walked the dogs in the park, but Sir Angus kept chasing the ducks! He chased them right into the lake! The girls laughed and laughed. Sir Angus ran back to the girls and jumped all over Princess Sophie, getting her all wet. Princess Emma laughed at her dripping wet sister, until Sir Angus turned and soaked her, too!

Since they were both already wet, Princess Emma called and asked a palace helper to bring them towels and dry clothes, then the girls tied the dogs to a tree to keep them from running away, and jumped in the lake themselves. They had fun swimming and playing in the water.

When they finished swimming, Princess Emma and Princess Sophie went for ice cream. It was so yummy. After eating their ice cream, they went to the library. Dogs were welcome in all buildings in their kingdom. Princess Sophie picked out four books to read, since she was four years old.

Princess Sophie and Princess Emma finally went back home to the palace, where they read books together. It was a very fun, happy day.

The end.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Princess Sophie has a party

I wanted to rush Sophie's bedtime story last night, so I told her I'd make up a story. Her reactions to each detail were so wonderful that the story kept continuing, and she has asked for more made-up stories. Here is the first Princess Sophie story.


Once upon a time, there was a little princess with red hair and blue eyes, named Sophie. She had a big sister, Princess Emma, and two faithful dogs, Sir Angus and Sir Tucker. She played with them in the palace garden, playing chase and fetch, and having a great time. The palace cook brought Princess Sophie her lunch in the garden, with enough to share with Sir Angus and Sir Tucker.



One day, Princess Emma was going to a ball. Sophie thought this was wonderful, and asked her sister if she could go to the ball also. "Don't be silly," Princess Emma said to her. "This ball is for grown-up princesses only!" Princess Sophie was not happy. "You're not a grownup either! I'm going to ask Mommy and Daddy!" So Princess Sophie asked the king and queen if she could go to the ball. Her mommy, the queen, told Sophie that the ball is for big princesses only, but Princess Sophie could have her own ball with her friends!



Princess Sophie was so excited. She got a beautiful new dress, a pretty pink ballgown with sparkly earrings and sparkly crown, and silver sparkly shoes. Her friends, Princess Addison, Princess Shanna, Princess Audriana, Princess Mia, Princess Jada, Princess Amaya, and allllll her princess friends all came over. They danced and danced, and had a tea party. They ate pink sparkly cookies, cupcakes and cakes with beautiful frosting, and had tea in pretty cups. The best part was that the king and queen outlawed artificial colors in the entire kingdom, so Princess Sophie could eat anything she wanted, without worrying.



When their party was over, the king and queen let Princess Sophie and all her friends make a giant pillow fort in the palace living room, with all kinds of fluffy pillows and cozy blankets, and they had a sleepover! The next morning, the palace cook made pancakes and bacon for the princesses for breakfast. Princess Sophie and her friends had such a good time, she wasn't sad at all that she couldn't go to the other ball with her big sister.



The end.

Forgive me while I rant a little.

I am so sick of all the hatred in social media lately! It's reached the point of ridiculousness. It's like our whole country is full of people trying to outdo each other with their "rightness" when the real world just isn't that simple.

Even the weather isn't safe. Yes, it's hot outside. But is it really necessary to share photos of blizzards with the caption "for everyone complaining about the heat?" The fact that it gets glacier-worthy cold in winter does not negate the fact that temperatures in the 90s with off-the-charts humidity is freaking HOT. Neither one is pleasant. Stop it.

Then a couple days ago I saw a photo shared on Facebook that had, on one side, a photo of Muslims praying at a mosque. The other side showed a football player kneeling on a field during a game. The caption said "why is this ok (praying at the mosque) but this isn't (football praying)?" Well, for starters, the two have nothing to do with each other. We live in America, land of religious freedom. That's why it is okay. It's okay for Muslims, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Sikhs, Native Americans,  Pagans, and everyone else to pray however they choose. Also, it's not okay for any of them to pray in the middle of a football game. That's just football. Nothing to do with religious freedoms at all. The only purpose of the image is to create hostility and portray an "attack" that isn't even happening.

And the political divisiveness is off the charts insane. I seriously worry about the future of our country, not because of either Right-wing or Left-wing extremists "winning" anything, but because of the fact that each side thinks they are absolutely right and the other is absolutely wrong. In actuality, both sides are right on some things, wrong on others, but neither one is willing to compromise. The all-or-nothing attitude is going to lead to disaster.

This isn't even the tip of the iceberg. Our society is so hate-centric lately that I could list examples all day long, but for my own sanity I won't. Just please, be a little more respectful of our fellow humans! It doesn't compromise your beliefs in any way to treat others with politeness and empathy.