It's Been One Year

It's been one year ago today that my mom passed away. 

This was taken at my daughter's 19th birthday party. My mom is in the white shirt, my step mother is behind her and my daughter is wearing the dark longer shirt. 

It's been a tough year, a very hard year. I miss having her here to talk to and chat about everyday things that come up. I miss having her come over for the holidays and birthday's. 

I don't know what moving on looks like. I know that's what everyone says, we must move on. I miss her everyday, so I can only hope that moving on means missing her but not hurting quite so bad as time goes on. 

My Week In Review

So this week *month* has been interesting to say the least. Hubby was gone for an entire week, helping my baby brother remodel his bathroom. It was nice to have the place to myself. I read an entire book in one sitting, cleaned out my computer drawer, had cereal for dinner a couple of times...lol and cleaned my apartment.



This is my nephew. He graduated high school this month. My brother couldn't be happier. A few days after graduation he told my brother that his girlfriend was pregnant and he was going to be a dad. My brother is not ready to be a grandpa but things always have a way of working themselves out.



Brodie, my tiny sickly rat has started eating a bit more. Here he is eating some yogurt off a spoon. The downside to all this eating is that he no longer wants to eat it off the spoon...he wants to eat it off my finger. Oh and if I don't hand feed him 6 times a day...he won't eat at all. Yeah he's spoiled but he's doing better so that's all that matters.




I had to share these pictures. My hubby drew the top one and painted it with water colors, for me. The skull on the bottom, Ken took an existing picture that someone drew for him and blacked out the back ground and then painted it with water colors.

I call the top one The Mushroom Planet. I love it, it's so pretty.

Freebie Friday

Here's the free samples I received from Bzzagent.com  If you visit the site and sign up to become a Bzzagent you may get samples like these. Frizz-Ease® Sheer Solution™ Lightweight Frizz Control works great.


And another freebie from Bzzagent.com is the Lawrys season salt and marinades and apron..

It was a pretty good freebie week. Here's what else I got.

Taste Me by Tamara Hogan. I won this over at Aloha On My Mind.

Cutex Nail Polish Remover cloth.
Tully's Coffee sample.
Quaker Oatmeal Squares Cereal...all three of these samples I found on Hey It's Free.

Reach Dental Floss- This full size free sample came right from their website. I signed up for it a loooong time ago and for some reason it just came this week. They probably had thousands of sample requests and were back logged.

So have you received any free samples lately?

Disclosure: I received some samples and full sized bottle in exchange for my truthful review and/or feedback but all opinions and feedback remain my own.

Happy 21st Birthday To My Baby

This is Ken and I when I was 3 months pregnant with our daughter. It's hard to believe that was 22 years ago.

21 years ago tomorrow I was on my way to the hospital because the little alien inside me was trying to work her way out. This isn't about a horror movie or another of those crazy posts I've made about monsters, no this post is about my greatest achievement to date. My little girl. 

Most babies are cute, just look at Ken when he was a baby. Yep that's my hubby.

And take a look at me. Dang, but I was adorable. 

And then the alien who took up residence in my belly for 9 months and 2 weeks. (She was 2 weeks late..this kid started making me wait even before she was born)

And then after 2 days of labor and an emergency C-section my little angel was born on June 22nd. 

Poor kid had 2 seizures right after she was born and went through some tests to make sure she was alright. The tests were harder on Ken and I than they were on her. She slept right through the EEG and hardly cried at all the 9 days we spent in the hospital. 

I think she kinda looks like both of our baby pictures put together. 

Sure there were many sleepless nights, many trips to the doctors office when her fever would get really high. (First time parents are always neurotic about sick babies) But Elizabeth was a wonderful baby. She started sleeping through the night when she was 3 months old, wasn't a fussy eater and always laughed at the silly faces Ken made. Just look at her staring at Ken in the picture below. I wonder if she was trying to figure out why he was always making funny faces at her? It didn't matter to her how silly her daddy was, she always giggled at him. She still does on occasion. 

I remember her playing with dolls, writing on the walls with crayons, making her teachers crazy because she had so much energy and wanted to talk to her friends all the time. I remember the skinned knee's, the broken arms, (yes she broke both arms at different times) the playing in dirt and the imaginary friends. 

I sometimes wonder where my shy little girl went. The little girl who cried when she started first grade because the days were longer and she didn't want to be away from me that long. The little girl who believed in Santa, the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny and ran around the apartment so full of excitement when she received a present from one of them. 

And then I look into her eyes, I see her smile or hear her laugh and know she's still in there. I see flashes of that little girl every once in a while in my adult daughter. She's no longer a baby and tomorrow she becomes an adult. 

Tomorrow my little girl is an adult. 

Happy 21st Birthday, Elizabeth.

Breeding Rats

People who don't have rats don't realize that there are arguments about people who breed rats. These breeders usually call what they have, rattery's. Like a nursery, but for rats.

Now this is actually a controversial subject for a lot of rat owners because there are so many unwanted rats out there in pet shops, shelters and people who need to give away their 'oops litters'. Oops litters happen when a person who has no rat eduction let's their male and female rat get together and make babies either on purpose or by accident. The Doe gets pregnant and then they need to find homes for the up to 14 babies.

I had an oops litter of hamsters a long time ago when I bought a dwarf hamster from a pet shop, brought her home and a few days later I had 5 tiny pink babies in the cage with her. I never once thought about giving those babies away. Once they were born in my care, they were my responsibility and I took care of all of them.

I understand that a lot of people want to make sure they are adopting rats that have been raised in a good environment and not abused, because sometimes abused rats will have health and social problems. Rats that have been left in shelters may be old, in bad health and you have no idea who the parents are of the rat you are adopting, you have no way of telling if the rat is a product of incest or what their pedigree is like. If you want to breed the rat you adopt and don't know if there are any genetic abnormalities in his line, you should not breed them, which is why a lot of people adopt their rats from rattery's because they keep records of the rats genetic line and you'll know what breed, colors, coats and abnormalities are in their genetic line.

The thing is, I don't support ratteries at all. There are too many rats in shelters and being given away so that even if you don't want to support pet shop and I don't..that you could adopt a rat or rats from people who have oops litters or shelter pets who are looking for a nice home.

So anyone looking to adopt a rat..think twice about adopting from breeders or ratteries and instead adopt from your local shelter or rescue group. There's a rat waiting for you that needs a good home.

Frizz-Ease® Sheer Solution™ Lightweight Frizz Control

I'm a Bzzagent and get free samples and samples to hand out to my friends to try new products. This time I received this Frizz-Ease product shown below in my pictures. I tried it and it works to well at controlling Frizz. My hair is long, down to my butt and I love a product that can tame the little frizzies and fly away hairs. And don't forget to visit this How To Video, to learn more about this product.



Here's a picture of the full size bottle and samples for my friends I received from Bzzagent.


Here's a close up picture of the full size bottle I get to keep. All you have to do is shake it to activate it and you can see the shiny particles floating around inside the bottle after shaking it. Not only did it work great are taming the frizz, but it smells really good too. It didn't leave my hair sticky or weighed down, my hair felt smooth and looked shiny and with Long black straight hair, I really like that.

Disclosure: I am a bzzagent and received free samples in exchange for a truthful review. All feedback and opinions remain my own.

Freebie Friday

I'm always talking about the freebies and free samples I get so I thought I would start a weekly Freebie Friday and show you all what I got each week for free and how I got it.



The Pink pouch filled with Tampons, pads and liners are from Vocalpoint on behalf of the Radiant collection

Biore cleanser, scrub and a nose strip.
Coupon for a one FREE Gillette Fusion Shave Gel with any purchase of the new Gillette Fusion ProGlide Styler. I was sent this coupon by Vocal Point.
Book : Taste Me by Tamara Hogan. I won by visiting Aloha On My Mind.

Happy Freebie Hunting.

Top Ten Things I hate To Do

There are some things that I just hate doing and though your list may be a little different than mine but I have a feeling there's at least one of these things most woman hate doing. 

1. The Annual Pap Smear- you know I had to put this at the top of my list..it's probably one of the most dreaded days a woman has..

2. Cleaning The Bathroom- Seriously if I could hire a cleaning crew...I would. 

3. Taking The Kids To The Doctor- Is there anything worst than taking the kids to a doctors office especially when they aren't sick? They just need their immunizations or a check up for school but you know as soon as you get there they are going to pick up some snot nosed brats super bug that's going to get them, you, and your entire family super sick for the next month. Not only that the kids at school are going to get sick and it's going to be all your fault. 

4. Cleaning Out the Closet- That closet you have put all the junk from the past 5 years in and now don't know why you kept it in the first place. 

5. Taking the Car To The Mechanic- if you are a woman and are alone when you take the car in..they look at you with a smirk like you don't have an idea in your damn head worth listening to. 

6. Taking A Pet To The Vet's Office- After taking a dog or cat to the vet's office the first time they know you are taking them and will fight you to the death before you get them back there. Ever try and get a 100lb dog in the back seat of a car to come out when he doesn't want to? My dad's dog is like that and will whine the entire time we are in the waiting room, after spending an hour getting him out of the car. 

7. Going On A Car Ride With Young Kids- I did it once...only once and will never do it again. Especially if the little one's have to be in car seats and don't like being strapped in. The crying, screaming, fighting if there are two of them and the throwing of food in the back seat. 

8. Vacuuming- I hate it. I have long hair so there always seems to be hair balls on my floor that get stuck in my vacuum...lol 

9. Laundry- nuff' said. 

10. Giving Birth- It hurts!

Posting Death on FB

In the past year I've seen several death's posted on fb, I have even posted about my own mother's passing last year. But it seems sometimes the death postings either are in bad taste at least to some people or friends are in such a rush to be the first one to offer a R.I.P. to someone that they forget that the person who passed away has a family and all of them may not have been notified as of yet. 

If you post a R.I.P. and get a comment back like, "What do you mean aunt Ethel died? What the hell happened to her?"

You may have posted your condolences too soon. 

There's one more thing I have wondered about after a person dies. Why does their family find it necessary to take down their fb page after all his fb friends have said their condolences on it? I had a friend who passed away and dozens of his friends and family said their condolences on his fb wall over the course of a year then all of the sudden one day his account was gone, deleted. His friends thought it was kinda rude of his family to take the page down without no notice whatsoever. 

I kept my mom's fb page up and our family and her friends still go and post messages on it, I don't see the need to take it down. 

Epi Ratty

The EpiRatty

Tired of shaving your legs? Fed up with razor nicks and rashes? Can't afford the expense of professional waxing?

Then this is the product for you! The EpiRatty(TM)!

The EpiRatty(TM) is a large cute agouti rat. No batteries required, just rub his butt and he will barber your skin, delicately ripping

out those unwanted hairs in seconds! He even has a built in lick mode that soothes the skin afterwards.

Phone 555 EPI RAT. Our operators are standing by.


Source:
http://www.dapper.com.au/humour.htm

Ratty Rights

Ratty Rights!

Just managed to nab your naughty escapee rat? Caught your bad rat chewing on the rug? Found your studly buck illegally liaising with the girls? When you take him into custody, remember to read him his rights:

"You have the right to squeak wildly.
You have the right to squirm and scratch and bite my hands.
You have the right to expel your bodily excretions all over my shirt.
Anything you do or say will be taken down and used against you when you're returned to your cage...
where you will plead innocent, we will crumble at your cuteness and you will be offered a yogurt drop."

Funny Tweets

I don't use Twitter as much as some of you but I noticed that some tweets are pretty funny when you don't know what's really going in a conversation or what the tweet is about. So I thought I would post a few tweets I've seen this week on Twitter. I've left off the links and the names in case they don't want me making fun of them...lol

RT New blog post! I'm Almost Naked! Please Don't Take My Picture!

Why am I watching Locked Up Abroad????

He killed without remorse. Hell, that's how he survived; a guy's got to eat right?

Blind Date? Check him out, baby!

how have my bulgy lovers been? i've been so busyyyy...i need stop being so active ;)

Ugh went to my room to freshen up before booksigning and just sprayed myself full in the face with hairspray. Eyes are stuck shut now

How (Not) to Be Awesome on Social Media

Don't lick the toast. No paws in the cereal. Don't drink the cream. Get away from the bacon. You people really know how to spoil breakfast.

I got told I'm a bitch and too much [on twitter...] but meeting me in person explains so much and makes it better? O.o

I would like to be a person who wakes up & says, "I think I'll go to Paris today." Instead of "I think I'll do the laundry today."

Baahahahahaha! RT  2pm: *Bible verse*...1am: *drunk status*

oh goodness...ya slap and spank one..ya gotta slap and spank them all...*slap* *spank* no go to sleep all you bitches ;)

I get a lot of email & tweets telling me I'm funny. I try not to mentally add "Looking" to this. Especially at deadline time . . .

Her mouth craned open in horror and something—maybe a tiny piece of bone—fell on her tongue.

I got outta bed this morning...why isn't that enough?!?!

heres the thing that I love about this book (besides the conversation about BDSM) it shows just how BIG the market can be.

Chihuahuas drive me crazy! Woooof!

lol so there you have just some of the funny Tweets I've seen recently. I might just make this a weekly thing since I found this so much fun.

We Repainted The Bathroom

A while back I posted pictures of my new pretty green bathroom walls after we repainted the bathroom. I bought a really cute frog shower curtain that matches my walls but I needed a few more green things to accentuate the new pretty green walls. So I made a few things. 

I bought this little wooden flower holder at Joannes and painted it green to go with my new walls. I also bought the pretty white flowers to use in it. I had the little white mouse and tiny teddy bear but the brown mouse on the far left, I made out of sculpy clay. It was my very first attempt at making something out of sculpy clay. lol 

I had some small sea shells and these little glasses. So I painted some of the sea shells yellow and some green and mixed them in the glasses and put them on this glass shelf. The rock in the middle is a rock my dad gave to me that his father, my grandfather found while he was rock hunting way back before I was born. It's a super pretty green geode of some sort of rock, but it's green and matched the walls, so it's in the bathroom now on the shelf. 

Here's a pictures of that flower pot. When I bought it, it was an unfinished, unpainted wooden box. That little thing on top is a tiny wooden lady bug I bought and glued up there. I thought it was cute. 

I even glued on a small animal pin I had to the bottom. I took the pin off the back of it and glued him right there in the corner. Not exactly sure what kind of animal he is, might be a gopher..lol But he's cute.

—A member of @NescafeUSA Tasters

Are You A Marsupial?

If the answer is no and you don't carry around a huge purse big enough to carry a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread in...you probably expect to get a plastic or paper bag when you buy those things. Right?

So then why do the cashier's or bag people ask the silly question, "Would you like a bag with that?" Like we're going to suddenly stop, take notice of our empty hands and say, "Why no, I think I'll try to carry the milk by the handle even though it's 45F outside and the milk is freezing cold and I might have frost bite by the time I get home, but please don't let that stop you from asking me if I want a bag with that." Not to mention the poor loaf of bread is going to be a squished mess by the time we get it home after having to juggle the freezing cold milk from one hand to another and try to make sure the bread doesn't get squashed in the process.

So cashiers and bag people, here's a little heads up for you.
1. If I don't have my own reusable bags with me.
2. I am not carrying a purse big enough to store the titanic in.
3. I don't look like a Kangaroo with a pouch to carry my groceries in.
4. My entire purchase consists of a pack of chewing gum or a pack of breath mints.

Please don't ask if I want a bag with that. Because of course I want a bag with that. That's how we carry our groceries home.

Is this not common sense?

Do you get charged for each bag you give away to a customer or something? Have you given the bags names and are sad to see them go? Have you had a bad bag experience and touching the plastic gives you PTSD type symptoms and you're afraid you'll lose your mind in front of me? No? Then what the heck is the problem..just bag up my groceries and let me walk out without asking me if I would like a bag..because of course I want a bag.

Now in the event you get one of these weirdo, "I'm not giving you a bag unless you beg me for one" type of cashiers...please do the following when they ask if you'd like a  bag with that.

Lean over very slowly into their space and whisper to them, "The bags come alive and smother you in your sleep, don't they? That's the only reason I can think of that you'd ask me if I want a bag for my groceries. I'm right aren't I?" Then look the person up and down and shake your head as he hands your bagged groceries to you. As you are walking away you should also turn around and hold up the bag for him to see and point at it and then at him and then just quietly walk out of the store like nothing has happened.

The next time you go in the store, go to the same checker...I can almost guarantee they won't ask you if you want a bag with that.

My Rats

For those who don't have rats as pets, you don't know how funny they can be. So here are a couple of pictures to show you their antics. 

Here's Hades on his back, just lazing around sleeping without a care in the world. Next to him is jasper who passed away recently. He was my big rat who loved to cuddle with me on the couch. They love the baby blankets to lay on so I always make sure they have a couple in the cage. 

Here's Ares winking at me. lol 

And just a minute later looking at me like, "Aren't you done taking pictures yet?" lol A second later he turned fully around and went to sleep. This was right after having a snack at dinner time and they always take a nap after dinner. So funny. It's such a hard life being a rat..

And here are all four of my boys on the couch eating a little dry cereal. In the back is ares and Brodie and the black and white one is Hades and right up front is my big boy Jasper. I miss Jasper's little face so much. I'm glad I have all these pictures to remember him by. 

My Week In Review

It's been a heck of a week. For some reason a family of rolie polies, their extended family and all their friends decided to make their way through my kitchen and bathroom. Now, I'm not scared of the little critters and if you don't know what I'm talking about, they are the little black beetle looking bugs that roll into a ball when they feel threatened. 

If you were anything like my brother, you played with them like marbles when you were younger. No? Yeah, me either. 

After a few days they seem to have come and gone. I don't know if it was the weather heating up and they decided that traveling through my kitchen and bathroom was the easiest way to get to where they were going or what, but they seem to be gone now. 

Oh summer time. The time of year when I can expect all sorts of bugs and little critters to venture into my apartment. I found a little *ken thought it was pretty big* spider in my apartment the other day. I let him crawl on my arm as I walked him outside and let him crawl into the bush outside my door. If all the spiders I've put in that bush over the years are still there...that's be a scary thought because there would have to be at least 150 of them, plus other bugs I've put out there. 

Just call me Mary, the saver of spiders and other creepy crawlies and cuddler of rats. 

*just keep the bee's away from me and everyone will be fine*

This week I found myself with quite the haul of free samples. 

Shout Color Catcher

                                                         Degreaser and no rinse floor cleaner

Laundry detergent

Body lotion

Mucinex

Tide Pods

Downy Unstoppables

Downy Dryer Sheet

That's just the ones that I haven't used yet. I also received a Honey Tea mix, Fiber One chocolate chip bar and a sample of a new cereal.

I was able to read one book this week. I barely had any time to myself so I had to read a few pages here and there and it was hard to do when I started reading this book, because it was so good I didn't want to put it down. 

I just want to say thank you to the publishers of this book for putting such a nice cover *With a full face and eyes* on this book. I love covers like this. The background is really nice, and the guy is super hot. Not to mention his eyes...look at his eyes. I've been ranting about the headless covers for so long my fingers are starting to bleed, so when I find myself reading a really good book with a cover I really like, I have to say so. 

If you haven't read this book yet...get to it. I loved it! If you like shifter books and very Alpha Males..this is the book for you. Seriously. I'm not good at writing book reviews, so I'm not going to try..I'm just going to tell you that this book rocks and leave it at that. Now go get it. 

I also got a little writing done this past week and published a few articles. 

How To Make A scrapbook For Your Pets.

How I Live With clinical Depression.

Ailments in Older Male Rats.

Well there you have it. My week in Review. How was your week?

Music Videos That "Do It" for Me

Are there some music videos that you watch and think..."Omg, that so hot." are there some music videos that have subtle sexual overtones that feed your fantasies? Of course there are, we're only human after all. This video always did it for me. I don't know if it's the guy in the mask, because guys in masks really do it for me...let me tell you. Or the fact that when he finally gets her in her bedroom he grabs her by the back of the hair and gently forces her down, while she looks up a little scared. Yeah, it's probably all of that and more..but in any case, this video does it for me. This is one of those videos that have a really good looking guy...and omg he is good looking, those eyes! *falls out of chair* Not to mention all the sexual innuendo going on in this video..Oh goodness. Watching guys dance is another thing that does it for me. Especially when they are dancing sexy like the guys do in this video. I liked this song before I ever saw the video and when I watched the video, I was like...omg wow. I replayed the parts with the group of guys dancing together just so I could watch them bump and grind..whew. Now this is a good one. it's dark, kinda scary and the lead singer David Draiman is sex personified. He has a lot of time right up close in front of the camera so you see he looks a little scary at times, he's hot, and he seems like a bad bad. And who doesn't like a bad boy? Am I right? So there you have it. My top picks for music videos that 'do it' for me. :)

How To Give A Rat Medicine

I know I've talked before about how my little guy, Brodie had an upper respiratory infection and now have him on antibiotics. Sometimes the upper respiratory infection does permanent damage to their little lungs and they will need to stay on antibiotics for the rest of their lives. I know a lot of people will put the liquid antibiotics right into the water bottles but doing that lets all the rats in the cage take the antibiotics, so what I have done is put the drops into a small spoonful of pudding or yogurt for Brodie and he has no problem eating it. 

My daughter put Bunny ears on Brodie and all the other rats in the cage on Easter and took pictures of them. None of them cared at all. Brodie just started cleaning his face and didn't even try to get the ears off. They are such laid back little guys. This picture was taken while he was cleaning his face. It looks like he's putting his hands on his face, telling my daughter..no, no more pictures. lol 

Brodie loves his hammock. 

Look at that little face. So sweet. 

I have also had to give the boys mite medicine a few times. I tried putting that stuff in so many different foods and so many times they just weren't having it. It must taste really bad. But I added it to a small spoonful of chocolate pudding and they ate it up no problem. 

So that's my tip to all you rat mommy and daddy's out there. Add the medicine to something sweet like yogurt, pudding, ice cream, cake or frosting. It works every time. 

Photo Album Memories

I realize that with the digital age most people aren't buying actual photo albums anymore, but I have so many old pictures that have to be put away that I needed a few more photo albums. This pretty black one is the latest one I've bought. I still have several hundred of my mom's old photos to put away in either photo albums or in scrapbooks. I also have post cards from my grandmas trip to Germany back in the 80's. 

I like my digital camera but nothing beats a picture that you can hold and put into an album. Yes, I'm old school. 

This is my mom and step dad. 

My brother went to california and took pictures of our grandfathers grave. This is my mothers father. I know you can't really see what it says but it says..

Charles C. Sherman
US Army
World War II
1923-  Feb 19 1984

Here's my mom with her dog Cupcake. I'm really glad I have all these pictures. I'm known in my family as the picture keeper. I have over 20 large photo albums and many more digital pictures saved on disks, photo bucket and in my email but I still like the printed pictures the best. I like photo albums that I can take out and share the pictures with others. My daughters likes them too and she told me when she gets older she wants to inherit all my pictures, which is fine with me. I'm glad to hear someone else wants to carry on what I've been doing. 

—A member of @NescafeUSA Tasters

A New Scrapbook Page- Hamsters

I have so many loose pictures laying around, especially since my mother passed away and I inherited all her pictures. I've been putting some in scrapbooks and some in albums and I've got about 400 pictures put away at this point. 

But while I was doing all that I cam across a few pictures of the hamsters we've had as pets and knew I had some fun scrapbook pages, cardstock, cut outs ect.. in my bag. so I put this page together the other day and wanted to share it with you. 

This was Sniffy, he was such a character. he was the most lovable little hamster. 

I thought the 'fleas' thought bubble went really well with the look on his little face. 

This is what the whole page looks like.

As you can see, we've had quite a few hamsters. 

I found a tiny picture of Buster, our big hamster and put a small cupcake sticker in his paws. You can't really see if from this fuzzy picture, but it's adorable. 

This is Cuddles peeking out from atop a hamster cage. She loved the space on top and always made it her bed. I bought her from a pet store in the mall, even though I don't usually buy from pet stores. But the store was going out of business and she was going to be going to the shelter the next day. The thing is a few days after I brought her home...she gave birth to 5 healthy little babies. I didn't even know there were babies in the cage until I heard the squeaking. I kept all the babies their entire lives. 

We ended up with three boys and two girls. It was so much fun raising babies to adulthood. Cuddles was a great mama. 

—A member of @NescafeUSA Tasters