Too, too funny!

My friend told me the funniest story this morning - I had to share.

"Lisa" (I don't remember her real name) was planning a big to-do for a ladies golf club somewhere in Utah County (can't remember where - but it is either new or newly remodeled).  She spent weeks planning the day and the breakfast menu.  Lisa and two friends spent the entire day before the event cutting up fruit, getting muffins, juices, and anything you'd put out for a nice breakfast.  All day.

Here comes the day of the event.  They set up bright and early that morning and then head out to do their golf thing.  They come back - and most of the food is gone.  Yes, gone.

Apparently, the hispanic workers thought it was for them.

I could have peed my pants laughing.  I would have been livid to find the workers ate most of it. 

Lisa, apparently, is a kind and gentle woman who never cusses or raises her voice - but all her friends saw a different side of her that morning.  She cried and then lost it.

When the workers were asked about it, they tried to deny it (but 2 male golfers saw them loading up their lunch boxes as fast as they can) but then said they thought it was for them.

Way. Too.  Funny.

(but that is because I didn't spend time preparing it)

Decisions decisions

Man, some decisions are just so hard to make!

For the past couple of weeks, Tim and I have been going back and forth on a major decision.  I am positive I've complained about our neighbors behind us - and the last couple of weeks we've been at a breaking point.  If Tim wasn't about to snap about them, I was.  We'd had it with them.

Soooooooooooooooo...we almost signed papers to build a house.  Almost.  We had been pre-approved and basically we would have started if we put down $1,000 and signed some papers.  Almost did.  But we just couldn't quite do it.  I fell in love with the house plan - it was absolutely perfect!  I wouldnt have changed a thing.  Not a thing.  The layout was perfect.  It was on a half-acre lot.  3 car garage (for Tim).  Nice area.  We could start fresh with landscaping.  Because interest rates are low right now our payments would have been around the same as what we have - only we'd have a house much bigger than what we have now.  But we just couldn't do it.

When I walked through the model house last night, I just didn't feel what I did when I walked in this house.  When I thought about leaving this area, I just wasn't happy.  (Seriously?  I have neighbor issues but I want to stay?)  I wasn't happy with taking Ster from his 2 whole friends in the neighborhood.  I wasn't happy with his long bus ride to school.  And I really wasn't happy with the thought of someone else in this house!

See, in order to build the house, we'd have to lease this house out.  The construction company has a deal going on right now that they will pay a property management company to lease out our house for 3 years.  So, for the next 3 years we'd be guaranteed rent money (which they agreed to match our house payment). We'd only be responsible for utilities if the house stayed vacant.  And maintenance if any problems arise.

We talked back and forth on what we need to do to this house - or what we want to do.  And it all adds up.  It seemed to us that if we built a house we'd be able to forget about all the things we need to do (windows, AC unit, re-do the fireplace, windows, carpet, re-do the hardwood floor, re-do bathrooms, concrete patio, trees, new shed.  Get the picture?

It seemed like a perfect opportunity!  We could afford to do this.  But, if we had to pay utilities for 2 houses for more than a month then funds would be very, very tight.  At the end of 3 years we would be responsible for 2 houses and what if the market didn't improve?  We'd have 2 house payments if we couldn't rent the house.  We'd have been able to barely squeek by if that happened.

After talking and going back and forth, we finally decided not to do it.  I don't know who is more disappointed - me or Tim.  Ster's happy.  It is a relief knowing that I won't have to worry about two houses (yes, I would worry).  And I really do love this house.  It needs some work - but it'll be fun to fix it up.

Now, if I can just get Tim to agree to build me a headboard and two bedside tables, life will be back to normal.

Sterling

I think I have one of the cutest kids around.  He may be stubborn and opinionated and knows how to push my buttons - but he is adorable!

When he was in 2nd grade, we had major issues with him.  Major.  He was very cranky, very active, very emotional, very wiggly.  He would get so frustrated and then shut down.  He was struggling in school.  He was struggling at home.  I had him with a reading tutor (since he was on an early 1st grade reading level and not progressing) who told me that he had an attention problem. So I started to watch him and observed that he couldn't sit still.  He couldn't focus AT. ALL.  He couldn't catch on to anything he was being taught.  He would then get frustrated and shut down.  With his emotional rollercoaster, we took him to his pediatrician to talk about that and his inability to focus on anything for longer than 10 seconds.

So we did what a lot of people are totally against.  We put him on medicine.  I don't care what anybody says about "drugging children".  Are there alternatives?  I think there may be other options that help - but with Tim and I both working, our options are limited due to finances and/or time.  Do I regret putting him on the medicine?  HECK NO!  It was the best thing we did for him.  We put him on a low dose which helped him to focus - he improved in school, he improved at home.  He could focus on his school work and didn't shut down.  We had a little boy that was cute and fun to be around.  One who would actually listen to me - really listen.  He wouldn't pitch his usual 10 minute fit when we tried to get him to understand something he couldn't quite grasp.

We had an enjoyable year.

But then things started to change.  Our cranky, struggling boy returned.  He was always cranky and uncooperative and argumentative.  So we took him off his medicine and our happy, cute son returned!  Is he super active?  Yes - but what child isn't?  Can he focus for longer than 10 seconds?  The jury is still out on that one - I can see he isn't as wiggly and doesn't sit still for long, but he isn't cranky.  He just started school and so we won't know how well he can focus on his homework until we meet with his teacher in a couple of weeks.  We'll see how well he does in the next few weeks

Do I regret putting him on medicine?  No.  Will I do it again?  If necessary.  I'm hoping we don't have to - but as soon as his school work starts to suffer we may have to.