Toilets!

Yes, I am dedicating a post to toilets. I always say that you can tell a real slob from a dirty toilets. In general toilets are very easy to clean. So here is my two cents, yes on TOILETS!!! So this is my blog dedicated to toilets and in general directed at Men/boys. I had no idea but now that I live with all males, I know how bad it really is.

• Replace your toilet seat, every year or so. This is something I didn't do when I first became a home owner. Then voila, it hit me... Why try to clean and clean and clean this seat when I can purchase a new one for $22.19 at my local Costco. Also, always replace your toilet seat if you are moving into a new place. I don't know about you but I would prefer not to sit where some other man/boy/women has done their business thousands of time. New toilet seats are a must. Never ever ever look at what has coagulated where the toilet seat screws in, please take this advice.

• NEVER, and I mean NEVER buy a cushioned toilet seat. Think about it... are you done thinking? Cushioned has well cushion!  I don't know about you but I have never really wanted any bodily secretion in any cushion.

• Don't leave blue toilet cleaner on the toilet for any amount of time except IN the bowl. Unless you like your toilet seat with dyed blue streaks down it. Blue toilet cleaner is about as powerful as red kool-aid. It doesn't come out, EVER.

• When cleaning your toilet please please please lift up the lid and clean under the lid and ring that you sit on. Do you know how many toilets I have not been able to even squat close to because of the under side of the "sitting ring". Seriously, it's not hard just clean it every single week. EVERY single week.

• Take that little rag you are cleaning that toilet with and wash around the floor. Ya know where the toilet hits the ground. Wash the bottom of the toilet and the ground. Again, not a difficult thing but one that most men never think of. "O, you mean that this stuff that can house a small child is not suppose to be around the toilet?"

• Wash the top of the tank of your toilet. I know you have playboys, plants, extra toilet paper, the last 4 months of dental picks, and whatever you may keep on your toilet tank but dude, wipe it off.

 

• Look to the right. Those are the best invention since sliced bread. Let me repeat that, BEST INVENTION SINCE SLICED BREAD. Gentleman (I use that word loosely) if you happen to tinkle on the seat pull one of these little wipes out and get rid of it. I guarantee no one wants to ever see ANYTHING (except maybe a stain of blue cleaner, because then at least we know you have cleaned it) on, under, beside, around your toilet seat. I promise!

So there my friends is what I have learned the last 20 plus years of cleaning my very own toilet. Toilets are a big deal to women. I would rather pee outside than on a gross toilet... So get your toilet wands, you Clorox wipes and go tackle that toilet. MAKE ME PROUD!

WANTED...THERAPY!

Debbie:  "Sam, I hate to tell you this but when I put my car into 4 wheel drive I can't back up very far, it just wont go."

Sam: "The transfer case is going out in it, Debbie it is crazy to put any money into that car, lets get rid of it. It is time, go look at new cars."

Debbie: "I don't want a new car. I like this car. How much will it cost to fix a transfer case?"

Sam: "Too much, Debbie... It is time to get a new car, Lets go look at new cars."

Debbie: "I don't want a new car, I want my car"

Sam: "You are going to get stranded on the side of the freeway some day. Go get a new car..."

Debbie big sigh and then the damn of emotions that surround that car flooded out of my mouth...

Debbie: "Sam, I have an emotional attachment to that car, It's the only thing I have left of my old life. I don't even have the same furniture"

Sam: "WTH?, Where did that come from. Well do you want your old life back???"

Debbie: "NO, I don't want my old life back but its like everything in my life is new. I live in a new town, new house, I don't have ANYTHING that was mine before the marriage any longer. I don't even have the same dishes, towels, furniture, ANYTHING."

Sam: "The new cars will be YOURS, It will be YOUR car!!! All yours."

Debbie: "I don't want a new car, I want THAT car, I could sleep in that car if I had to."

Sam: "I promise you that you are never going to half to sleep/live in your car! Are you struggling with independence?"

Debbie: "Yes, it is the ONLY thing I have left of my life BEFORE you"

Sam: "Can we just start to look at new cars????, just look. Maybe you will find something that you love and you will WANT it."

Debbie: "Why can't we just fix the car?"

Sam: "You may need therapy!"

Is a BOY!!!

Is the correct terminology "Its a BOY!" or "Its going to be a BOY!" since he is not born yet? hah

There are some things that happen that just kind of seems to take over our little worlds and injects excitement (among many other emotions lol) and completely changes our paths. A number of weeks ago one of those things happened. Cassidi and Mike are having a BABY!!!!! We are so excited for them and US. We are proud and happy for Mike and Cass to be starting up their lives and building a lil family.
Just a quick story.....  a few months ago we got some living room furniture and have 2 rocker swivel chairs now. After it was delivered and set up, we sat in the chairs and looked at each other and Debbie said "We have the rocking chairs now we just need grand babies" and BOOM... here comes our first one. So we now say "Buy the rockers and they will come"

Oh and the boy's name? As it sits as of last night he will be Boston Michael Barlow. Cute!!!



This first pic was around the first of September



This second pic was Sept 24th when they found out he is a boy. I dont see the tallywhacker in this pic though.

Awkward Family Photo's...

 Okay, It's been awhile and instead of going through tons of what we have been up to blah, blah, blah I am just going to dive right in..

I have to say, I don't think we are TERRIBLE picture takers. We are all pretty photogenic we can smile and poise for a picture, smile.. Well this night was not our best family picture taking moments.. HOWEVER, PLEASE NOTICE SAM... HE IS ALWAYS CAMERA READY.. makes me laugh!!

Sam is all ready, Debbie put down you hand, Brock and Tay, LOOK at the Camera!!!

Sam is again all smiles and looking all GQ... I don't even know what to say about the rest of us!!!

Um what is happening at the bottom of this picture.. Taylor only has one leg, HOWEVER.. Sam knows that a nice hand on his hip will make him look slender and more photogenic.. Good Sam!!

OOOOO, so close. Brock OPEN YOUR EYES.. Looking Good Sammy!!!

Taylor, you look like you just farted, Brock is horrified at the smell and Cassidi is trying to smell it.. I am ready though!!!

Okay, We got it right here.. However we were missing Sam!!!


Here is to a better photo experience next time we try this!!! :-)

Thailand???? I think YES!

"How do you chase your dreams from your front porch?"

Sam and I have heard 1,000 times. How do you dare go there? How do you dare travel? Those people don't like "us", you couldn't pay me to travel to "that" place.

Well, DON'T...

I knew in 1994 when I stepped off a plane to a foreign country for the first time, that I had the travel bug. I knew I would see the World,  it was in my blood... It makes me refreshed, it makes me wonder, it makes me dream big. IT JUST IS IN MY SOUL!!!  I just don't want to see things, I want to experience them, smell, feel, get knee deep, love, laugh, marinate in LIFE and in this beautiful WORLD that God has created. I don't want to stay with 200 miles of my house... I want to travel!

Yes, going to different countries come with danger. I am not that naive. However, you wouldn't find me in downtown Detroit, New York, Miami, or Gary Indiana without some common sense.

The number one killer of people traveling to different countries... Traffic accidents....

So where is this blog going... Sam and I's next big adventure is in February. We are going to Thailand.

So we have heard already!!

• That is where the Tsunami was...
• There are a lot of Earth quakes there...
• The prisons in Thailand are terrible, (that is not part of our itinerary)
• What about the immunizations you have to get?
• Will you get Malaria?
• Do you like Oriental people?
• What about the food?

So we know the dangers, we know how long the flight is, we know it. I am not willing to live my life afraid of the unknown. So if Sam and I are to die  on vacation, know we died doing exactly what we love.

I can't wait!!! For 14 days this winter you will find us on Elephants in the jungle, in the temples of  Bangkok, or on a beach in the Orient.. HOW FRICKEN FABULOUS!!!

but next week you will find us at our Happy Place... REDFISH LAKE, HERE WE COME!!!



Nostalgia

Nostalgia: A sentimental longing for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations!!

I have a handful of friends, some new (within the last 10 years) some that I have known my entire lifetime that I have their back and visa versa.. The obvious calls here are Alison, Sally, Hidee, Cheri, etc.  ya know the ones you have read about over and over in this blog, I love these women and they love me. They know my every mistake, my every pit fall, my every success and have loved me through it all. Next to family they are my rocks.  Some I see weekly, some I see monthly and some I see yearly but they are beloved to me. They are my stepping stones, don't mess with them, and I wont mess with you.

and...

I also have those friends that hold nostalgia for me, the ones I love and want the best for them, you don't need a shovel to figure out our past but you need a back hoe and a forensic scientist to go through our history together. When I see them something draws me to them, something longs for them to be in my life, something deep routed... but also something or something"S" have happened in the past that makes me hold back and make me withdrawal and be very careful what I say or do around them because I know that it is not held as "dearly" as I hold them. I know what I tell them will some way, some how, make its way back to the beauty salon chair and that is not where I want my biggest failures and biggest fears to be displayed.

So when do you draw a line in the sand, when do you say.. "What the hell?" well let me tell you when Debbie Campbell, says "What the hell"...:-)

I ran into an old "friend" this weekend, the same old friend that holds all that nostalgia, the one that holds so many great memories and also the one that I hold back with, the one I am very careful with, the one I have learned better with. So the evening started the same as it usually does... she starts with everyone we know in common and completely TRASHES them, she moves from one person to the next, she goes on and on and I agree with some of it, I listen to other and then... . THEN... she hits something or someone WAY TO CLOSE to me and I bristle... There are boundaries I have, close knitted boundaries of people I love, people I cherish, people I believe...and she crosses it.. and I buckle.. I told her several times.. "QUIT...I am not having this conversation".... she continues... I say
"THIS NEEDS TO STOP".... she continues with the bad mouthing and then I looks at my husband and say, "WE HAVE TO GO." so we leave... dinner, drinks and everything and just walk out the door.

So the moral of the story... "I am not into bashing everyone, everything and everybody". I know better to judge to rapidly... I don't have spiders in my closet, I don't even have skeletons, I have something much much bigger. I know how it is to be "judged", I know how it feels to be the brunt of every ones gossip, I know, I have been there and DONE that.. So don't sit with me and start on someone I hold in my "inner circle". Wont fly with me.

So this weekend, would I go back and handle things differently? ABSOLUTELY

Would I tell her more deeply how she was hurting me? OH YES

but on the other hand does it matter to people like this????? and my answer to that question is... NOT AT ALL...
so I walked away from a life long friend,  associate, that has never had my back doesn't  and probably will  never have any ones back. I didn't lose my composure, I didn't holler, scream, or pitch a fit. I just made a educated decision that I was DONE with all of this.
Parts of me hurt, because I have so much history, but for the last 10 years every single time I have not heald my dealt hand very very closely, she has buried me. So I am moving on... feeling good about the friendships I have, new and old.

So my husband said to me when I was telling him how I felt. You have boundaries, you have a line, it was crossed and you stood up for what you believed. So I move on, I am sure I will be the conversation at EVERY table she is at the next few years but this is my chance to say...

"GO FOR IT"...

For once in my life, I am that sure of who I am, who my friends are, and who my family is...

Beautiful Daughter Number 4 Graduates!!

 Time doesn't seem to slow down for anything and kids keep growing up. Taylor graduated recently and actually finished high school early. As we were sitting and the faculty was going through stories, awards and scholarships we hear Taylor's name called with a few people, she goes up and accepts one with the others. We go through a few more announcements and then they say "we have one final scholarship to give out.... TAYLOR HAWES please come up!"  She was awarded a $12,000 dollar scholarship  to any school of her choice!!!!!  We are so happy and proud of you Taylor nice job and congratulations!  We love you!

My funny wife... I always have to post her pics :)

A year of emotions!

Mike and the kids watching for fish. LOVE THIS PICTURE. Cassidi is on the far right.

A year ago May 6th my brother, Mike Dahle, passed away. If you want to read about some of the "stuff" that was dealt all of us that last few weeks you can read this blog, I am not going into all of that now. It was a long journey and a very difficult one. The last year has brought so many emotions... learning, coping, grieving, crying, anger and about every emotion you could think of. So now a year has passed, I have been to his grave twice in the last year. Once on Memorial Day last year and I was super surprised how easy  unemotional it was. I put flowers on his grave, didn't shed a tear and walked away with a pretty calm feeling. Second visit to his grave was last August, it was not so easy, in fact it was terrible. I spent about 20 seconds there and cried so hard I couldn't breath. I couldn't shake it, it haunted me and it haunted Sam even more. He watched the melt down of the century.

So where am I going with this. Do I even know?? Ummmm!!!, not really.

My family is going to dinner on Sunday, the 1 year anniversary of his death. Not to be sad but to reminisce about life and just all be together. My Mom wanted us to all go to the grave together. At first I thought that was a WONDERFUL idea. We could all go there and be happy and talk about him and take pictures, etc. etc. etc... However, I know that is something I cannot do. I can't go with my kids, husband, Mom and try to keep composed of the Anniversary of something that has hurt so bad. I don't want to be strong for my Mom or not let it bother me because my kids will be there or see Sam's heart breaking because I am sad.

So, what is a girl to do???

Maybe not the best idea I have ever had I am taking tomorrow afternoon off. To drive to Idaho, ALONE, and to go to his grave and try to get some kind of handle on this emotion. Spend some alone time and just get a grip on everything.

I am usually an open book!!! I am not a private person, but during Mike's death and the weeks following I liked my privacy, I liked ALONE, I didn't answer phones, have friends come over, I dealt with it by withdrawing and doing exactly what had to be done to get through that time. So that is what I am doing tomorrow. I am going to go into my own little world, with Mike, take some flowers and memories and reflect on the last year, and cope.

Doesn't that sound like a hell of a good time!!! Wish me luck!

Once in awhile!!!

Those awesome teenage years are not my favorite time in a child's life to be their Mom.

Go ahead and judge me, I will wait...

Anyway, once in a while those awkward, back talking, know it all, friend loving, zit faced, opposite sex crazy, teenagers melt your heart.
Brock got his braces off last week. Sounds like the start of a simple story. We go to the orthodontist he gets his braces off. While at the orthodontist office the orthodontist ask me
"what kind of things are Brock into?".
I said to him "I don't know he is kinda the typical teenage boy!"
so we go about our appointment and its time for Brock to design his retainer.



*side note...retainers have came along way. Now-a-days you can get, pink, purple, blue, sparkled, checkered, orange, or all of the above. On top of that you can get any logo, picture, anything you can imagine put on your retainer.

back to heart melting story.. So Brock brings me over the "idea" poster of what you can get. There are Superman Logo's, Football Team Logo's, College Logo's, Cool designs, you name it they have it. The rest of the story is where my heart started to melt.

Brock hands the orthodontist back the poster of designs and says to the orthodontist.

"I want my retainer to be all white with the Breast Cancer pink ribbon."

The orthodontist looked at Brock, all the assistants looked at him and the room went quiet.

I said to Brock "You don't have to do that!"

he said "No, that's what I want!".

Brock goes back to get his final xrays done and I go to the waiting room and Brock's orthodontist comes into the waiting room and says to me.

"That was a first for us, brought a tear to every one's eye. We didn't even know what to say to him except, COOL!! My assitant looked at me and with tears in her eyes mouthed the words WOW to me!"

At that point the orthodontist said he assumed I had breast cancer and asked me some questions about it and he started walking away and said.

"That is an impressive young man, nothing like a typical teenager."

So a simple thing like a retainer reminded me how much these teenagers have their mamma's back, how much I still am on their mind, and that they actually do love me.

Our first cruise and first time in the Eastern Caribbean

We LOVE to take one vacation every year just for us. An all inclusive resort in Mexico South of Cancun is usually our favorite place to put our ass in the sand. This year our good friends were all booking a cruise to celebrate Linda Palmers 70th birthday so we joined them. Now Debbie and I have been all over the place but have never gone on a cruise... on purpose. We HATE to be hurded and ran by some one elses schedule, wait in line, rush rush rush... hurry and get back to the boat etc... you get the picture. We decided to give it a shot and you know... we really had a good time. Its still not our favorite thing to do but it was a great way to see several different places in one trip... it was kind of like camping... you have all of your things in the room and every day you get to go to a different place but always come back to the same room with all of your stuff there with out having to unpack and repack. We have so many fun pictures and memories. Here are just a few memories and notes to share with you. I have SO much fun with my wife in anything we do... love that woman :)

We spent 3 days in Miami right on the Miami beach! We had so much fun and I have never seen so many topless women in all my life. I had no idea it was legal in the US. Hate days like that hah

First stop was in Half Moon Cay. Absoolutely beautiful.

US Virgin islands..... one of our most favorite places on Earth! LOVE St John and will go back just to spend a week on that island...

The scenery on Grand Turk is just amazing isnt it?? :)

LP's birthday party at dinner

Isnt she just BEAUTIFUL?!

After the trip on our last leg home :) She is still beautiful

We are still here.

Ok, I miss blogging, I miss the memories we will have for a lifetime, but a girl gets busy, I will be better.

A lot has happened in 2 months.

-We went on vacation.

- new job offer.(we didn't take it)

-Kids visiting, coming, going, and staying.

-A lot of memories.

-Maverik March maddness and we Are still married.

Now I Will start blogging on some of this stuff... Tomorrow.

Tying a knot and hanging on!

Everyone that knows me well knows the last month has been tough. It is so refreshing to me to have my "go to" people that Love me, care about me, and are always there for me. I have a group of them that every time I am kind of at the end of my rope I pick up the phone and call. A, S.O.S,. call of "hey, I am not doing really good right now". So if your one of those people thank you from the bottom of my heart for last week. I am still standing!!!

Then on the flip side of the people that love you, you have the people that DON'T. The people that rub salt, judge fast, and are very busy telling you how wonderful they are and rotten you are that they may forget, that believe it or not, I also have true feelings. I always have been pretty resilient to this, not letting things get to me, not letting "those" people that truly believe I am the spawn of Satan take me down. Well I didn't do such a good job of that last week. It got to me, BAD.

.

I am not perfect, however, my intentions are good. I do not sit home and plot nasty revenge against people. I truly am just trying to help my family the best way I know how. If that is not good enough for you then I am sorry for my short comings.

remind all of you that "WORDS FRICKEN HURT" be careful how you use them

Sam and I am still standing, maybe leaning a little bit but at least we have each other to lean on, but never the less Still Standing! :-)

MAKE THIS... TONIGHT.

*disclaimer: This is not figure friendly!
I am not a huge mac and cheese lover. However my husband is (It's the Southerner in him). I ran acrossed this recipe by Paula Dean. I tweaked it here and there and let me tell you.. It is YUMMY.. It is rich, and it is fattening but it is awesome. I love crock pot meals, this one you have to stir quite often but it is Heaven sent. Go get this stuff and make it. I doubled the recipe. That will be about a big crock pot full.

GO BUY THE STUFF BELOW, DON'T BUY FAT FREE ANYTHING, DOUBLE THE RECIPE AND EAT IT... RIGHT NOW!!!


CROCK POT MACARONI AND CHEESE

• 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni



• 4 TBL butter



• 2 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese



• 1/2 cup sour cream



• 1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup



• 1/2 teaspoon salt



• 1 cup WHOLE milk



• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard



• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Put Crock pot on high and put butter in crock pot while Macaroni is boiling. Just to get it melted a little. (doesn't have to be entirely melted)

2. Boil the macaroni in water for six minutes. Drain

3. Combined all ingredients into crock pot and stir stir stir till mixed together (either melt the butter a little before you put it in the crock pot or cut it up into 1 inch pieces).

4. Cook on low for 2 1/2 hours. stirring occasionally.

Do not buy the pre grated Sharp cheddar. Grate your cheese yourself, it is just better cheese. AND remember this is all about the cheese... buy good cheese. But remember this is a rich rich recipe to begin with so don't go haywire buying richer cheese. Just good Sharp Cheddar Cheese works dandy..

Home Base!

You know when you have a really really bad day, week, month... etc.. and you just want that place to land. That place you know your loved, that you know they will take care of you??? I know that place and it's usually where my Mom is.

To say the LEAST this week has been rough and to make it rougher my Mom and Nolan have moved to Vegas for the Winter, and my Dad and Judy have gone to Lake Mead for the winter. So I don't even have a place to run. I have Sam and I have my kids and I have my home but sometimes you just need your Mom!!!

so I was given some motherly advice and boy does the shoe fit this week... My Mom is still my home base.

BE HOME BASE!
You are home to them. When they learn to walk, they wobble a few feet away from you and then come back, then wobble away a little farther and then come back. When they try something new, they will look for your proud smile. When they learn to read, they will repeat the same book to you twenty times in a row, because you're the only one who will listen that many times. When they play sports, they will search for our face in the stands. When they are sick, they will call you. When they REALLY mess up, they will call you. When they are grown and strong and tough and big and they feel like crying, they will come to you; When their hair is turning grey and they miss their Mom, they will think of you!

so here is to your home base!

The rest of the Holiday

One of our hardest thing to do over the Holidays is get all of our kids together in one spot. We were able to do it for about an hour 2 years ago but I would someday really like to get a family picture lol. So this year Josh, Sarah and Jordan couldnt make it to Christmas day but we were able to see them before the year ended. We saw Josh the day after Christmas at Peggies party and he is doing great.
We then went to Sheridan Wyoming to see Jordan and Sarah. They are doing great as well and have busy lives. We had dinner with them before we left. Sitting next to Sarah is her friend Cole. We miss all of our kids and love them all so damn much!!

The last picture is New Years Eve with a bunch of the buddies in Sheridan. Great time..