Gigglesnorts

So today was my 42nd birthday. The kids came up and J played videos games with Bill and Sam and I went to town...

It started at Kohl's. In the bathroom to be precise.... apparently Sam got a wet seat. LOL So in the quiet of the bathroom she says... Do you ever wonder how the seat gets wet and poop gets on the walls (gross I know). I said I HOPE the poop thing was a child! Then we decided that in order for a woman to get the seat wet that she must spray like a cat... then we laughed about someone marking her territory in a Kohl's bathroom stall!

That is how the day started....

Then we are washing up in the same bathroom and I needed a paper towel... Thinking it was an automatic despenser... I stood there like an idiot waving my hands in front of it.. when Sam reaches over and pushes the bar and I FINALLY get my paper towel.... one of THOSE moments!

Then we are walking through the store ... when we noticed this....



We decided that shirt must cost ALMOST and arm and a leg! Then we got tickled...

We made our way to petsmart next... we looked at the dogs and talked about how you hardly ever see two cats that look alike... and that progressed to... The momma cat is like a gumball machine... the kind that gives out chiclets.. you put in a quarter and you get like 7 pieces of gum.... no two alike. So now momma kitties are gumball machines.... lol

Then we went to target... and we found theses...




So we wore them all through the store the whole time we were there! People looked at us like we were nuts ... but the kids were jealous! So then a man walks up to Sam and says... is it almost Easter? we tell him yes, and when it is... He starts to share his life story with Sam! Apparently ... he likes rabbits... and raised them... expensive ones not the cheap ones (his words) but they kept disappearing... he said he thought it was a hawk but after 10 minutes of his story we decided they ran away from him. Hos daughter comes up and says... oh you are getting the rabbit story. I have to tell you that I am doing my darnest to NOT laugh! Let's just say that it is a good thing I went to potty earlier!

So J's family was at their house over the weekend too and the baby was going through separation anxiety and cried almost the whole time... So we are walking through the book section and all of the sudden there is a baby crying.... sam makes such a face and whips around to discover that someone left a motion sensor doll there... and she set it off... she said she swore she was still hearing Laura lol!

Then there was Sam's choice of clothes... they were ALL the same MAWMAW clothes.... so of course she didn't like anything I picked out! I even tried on a couple of bathing suits... and target is STUPID! That little tag they give you to keep track of the number of garments wont fit on any of the little hooks! So we were past the point of sanity at that point and decided that the only place for them was the floor... which set us off again... but I got so tickled that couldn't stand up straight...which Sam off.. Just one of those silly things that makes no sense later but kills you at the moment...

So we decided that we needed to head home at that point.... we are tired!

I never learn

So my sisters found me on facebook... and I just couldn't ignore their invites... so I added them... well one of them... the other one sam talked me out of adding.... TYVM sam.

The that I did add... immediately stated the drama and insinuating status... in regards to me and sam not adding the other... and just other drama filled crap...

I am removing her... but also I am just going to be scarce on Facebook... you all have my email if you want me and I can play lexulous from my iphone without ever having to get on the page.

Self protection Gina... repeat after me... SELF PROTECTION

Thoughts

I had believed that the direct way was the best way. The no pulling punches, the lay it out and if people didn't like it tough. I believed in honesty and no sugar coating things.

I don't know what I believe anymore.

People don't like to be told the truth. The truth hurts.

In the bible God doesn't pull any punches... he says what he means. He doesn't care if you don't like it. It is His way or hell.

So why as Christians are we supposed to there there none believers? Why are we supposed to ok and accept behaviors that the bible says are wrong?

God of course forgives us, when we repent.

We want those behaviors more than we want God. So we make thinks ok. We say well there is no God. We say... well God loves me anyway.. which is true... BUT he doesn't condone the behavior.

I don't know maybe this is just rambling...

I just think that the direst way is better than back patting...

SUSHI!!!!!!!!!

First off ... Sam you are SOOOO fired! You were supposed to be the photographer... there are no pics of the ingredients... lol goober! So I will show you the best I can...

We made sushi... we did NOT use anything raw... not all sushi is raw! It is however all tasty! LOL



If you want to try your hand at sushi on a small scale... with little work and expense you can get this at walmart... it contains a bowl of sushi rice, soy sauce and a couple of small pieces of nori. It isnt bad.. I keep a couple in the pantry for a fast, healthy snack.




Now you want to do it the more traditional way then you are going to need to make your rice.... you can NOT use regular rice you need sushi rice. It is not oblong, it is almost like little pebbles.


You want to rinse it until the water runs clear then you want equal parts of water and rice.. you cook it the same way as regular rice, heat to boil then turn to low until the water is gone.



While the rice is cooking you want to do the vinegar mixture. In a small saucepan combine 3 tbsp of vinegar, 3 tbsp sugar and 2 tsp of salt and heat until the the salt and sugar dissolve.... do not boil!



Put the rice in a large bowl and add the vinegar mix... work it into the rice



You will need a bamboo sushi mat...



Cover it in plastic wrap...



This is nori... toasted seaweed.... trust me it is tasty!... it is dry, thin, and fragile. The rice will make it pliable.

This is were the girl child is fired.... the stuffing.... we used avacado, cucumber, cooked salmon (left over from the night before) shrimp, and cream cheese. You can use really anything.. I have seen asparagus, carrots, onions.. you name it. You can use any seafood that you want as well. If you like and have access to the raw salmon (or smoked) the raw tuna then by all means do that. We also had soy sauce... we are not fans of wasabi (japanese horseradish --- holy cow that will clear your sinuses!)

Ok so on to the show...



Lay a piece of nori on the mat and add some rice... now this rice is STICKY... I mean REALLY STICKY. You want to be careful to not add too much rice because then you wont me able to roll it once you add the stuffing. It is ok to see little bits of nori under the rice.



Add what you want it your roll.... a word about this... you want small pieces... so if you are using avacado or cucumber slice them thin and like matchsticks.



Now start to make your roll... tuck and roll it in quarter turns. Squeezing it tight as you roll... you want the rice and stuff to all stick together..



One last tuck and roll to round it up...



Tada!!!!!!



Slice it and see how pretty it is!




Now you can also make it rice side out... start with just putting rice on the plastic wrap...



Top the rice with a sheet of nori and the stuffing you want...



Tuck and roll the same as you did with the other one...



Isn't this PRETTY! Good job J and Sam!!



Eat with soy sauce and chopsticks! YUM!

MISC

Sam is fussing at me for not posting lol... I used to post daily and sometimes a couple of times a day. I know it is weird to not hear from me. I guess I just don't have much to say these days....

Let's see what I can tell you. I am still sleeping GREAT... I think that makes such a huge difference is how you can deal with life. I never thought of myself as a person that gets cranky when I was tired... but I see now that I am. LOL that can explain a lot of things...

One of my nephews has been talking to me... he faces many of the same ones I did... I try to talk to him and guide him. I hope that he can learn and avoid some of the things I stumbled through, and even got lost in for a while.

I have really fallen in love with sushi. I can't get enough. Now I am not a person that eats the raw stuff. There is some misconception that ALL sushi is raw fish... not true. I love the cucumber roll and the avocado roll. The wasabi encrusted roll with salmon. I love the shrimp rolls... I am willing to try most things once. I started to crave it ... I realized that what I was really craving was the Nori! lol the seaweed. THAT is what I was wanting... Anyway so rather than eat out all the time... it is expensive... I am learning to make my own. Rolling it is ... challenging. lol Sam and J are coming over tomorrow and Sam and I are going to make some... We are planning to do a blog on it... looking forward to it. I might even pop into the bookstore and get a book on making sushi...

I am going to go meet Sam for lunch in a bit, there is a place down there that is a big salad place... should be fun. I try to get down there once a week to have lunch, we have so much fun together and giggle and be girls. I am thankful that the little girl I raised turned into a young woman that is my best friend and that I want to spent time with. That is how it should be.

The house has been decluttered and cleaned and is now on a maintenance schedule .... not much to do on that anymore. It was a big job, but I actually kind wish there was more to do .... lol sick I know.

It is so nice here, 60's and sun... so much better than last week and the snow. They are talking about more snow next week. There is something SOOO wrong with this winter! SERIOUSLY.

I am for the most part happy and in a calm place... I look back about a month and see how far I have come... it was a climb to get back to a good place but it was worth it.

I am looking 42 in the face in a little over a week.... age has never bothered me. It doesn't affect how I feel, I don't even think about it much except this time of the year. The number doesn't mean anything ... especially where maturity is concerned... lol

I guess that is really all that I have to tell right now... lol life is good and a little boring right now.. it is a good thing!

Hello!

Well I haven't blogged in many days.... probably the longest time between blogs since I started blogging years ago.

Maybe it is a good thing, I don't have as many things that I need to write about. Maybe I am just dealing with things better...

I cleaned out two of the last remaining rooms of the house yesterday... the junk room and the other computer room. My sitting room is full of junk to haul to the dump. So much stuff accumulates over time ... just junk that you should toss at the time but don't for some reason. Well it is going away ... hopefully today if more of the snow melts.

Which brings us to the snow... 15 inches out here... insanity. I have never in my almost 42 years seen that much snow. It is lovely but confining... I am not good confined! I don't always want to leave the house... but I want the option! lol

So I got out and went to get a tea at sonic yesterday and a couple of things at the store, it wasn't slick just deep, it was a new experience and I will say give me tons of snow over ice any day.

It was so white, and bright and clean that my eyes hurt. Made me think about how He will wash our sins white as snow....

That made me think... you can see a place that is a total dump and cover it in snow and it is postcard beautiful. It just covers ALL the ugly.

It is funny because I saw the slush and sand ... and I thought about how we as humans try to deal with stuff and how all we do is make a nasty mess... and what a stark difference that slush is to that beautiful white snow.

Those piles of nasty sand and mud is our sin, and the snow is his blood and forgiveness... and you just get such an amazing image and I think that God gives us these moments just so that we can understand a tiny bit of what He sees....


By the way that picture was taken at about 6 inches of snow, it snowed for hours after that!

dreary

We have had so many days of rain, snow and just cloudiness that I have seriously forgotten what the sunshine looks like. Right now my yard is a lake. It is cold and gray. Leaving the house is a pain in the butt. Frankly it is depressing. It has been months of this. Last year it rained 1 out of every 3 days.. that isn't counting the days that were merely cloudy with no rain. We are not used to this and I don't think most of us are equipped to handle it.

Trying to housebreak a puppy in this weather is almost impossible. Speaking of impossible... keeping the floors clean.... muddy prints everywhere .. I can wear myself out by mopping every time they go outside or I am live with the mess. After all the hard work to clean the house leaving the floor a mess is trying.... sigh

I am frustrated about my health. I feel like it is starting to slip. I am anemic again... so I take iron supplements ... those make my sick to my stomach... cramping even.... then constipation. So I take a laxative to help with that. I take medicines for allergies that dry me out which causes muscle cramps... so I have to take muscle relaxers for that. It is exhausting, and those are just 2 things... there are others that I won't take the time to tell you.

I feel like after 4 years of this my body is depleted. That any extra vitamins or minerals that I had in stores in my body have been used up.

I need to work on my health. I really do eat healthy. I just don't know what else to do. I have fatigue that is off the charts. The cold makes me want to just sit here by the heater all day.

In the last week I have thrown up 4 times.... eating things that I normally eat... not sure what is going on with that either.....

So today I feel low. It is not my depression, it is just feeling down. There is a difference. Feeling beat down and exhausted. I will admit that I wonder if it is worth it... all the medicines and vitamins and the fighting to keep everything up and working...

Sorry this one is a downer but I needed to get it out.

Girl Scout Cookies

When I was in the 5th grade I was a girl scout. We sold cookies for about 2 weeks. We each got a little carry box, and in that box was an assortment of 12 boxes. We took our best friend and we went door to door and sold cookies. If someone wanted a box you didnt have or more of a certain cookie, you wrote it down. When you got home you called your leader and you got the cookies that wanted and took it back to them the next day. We had an envelope to put the money in and they were 50 cents a box.

That year I sold the most cookies in our troop ... I got a certificate. I sold 75 boxes.

This year I get accosted every time I go to town. Mothers are selling them, sometimes there isnt even a little girl around! They have everything you want... boxes and boxes of them. The girls aren't selling those cookies! Can they even know how many each girl sold?

See after 30 odd years I remember that number and that certificate and the pride of having done it myself....

Do you think this girls will look back in the future and remember that as fondly? Some how I doubt it...

struggling

I guess the way the last blog ended has left such a bad taste in my mouth that I have been hesitant to write much about anything that isnt sunshine and roses.

The last few days have been neither.

For the last few day.... 5-6 I have had shoulder pain. It is muscular, but it brings me to tears.. the act of trying to hold it in a way that doesnt hurt is causing the pain to and muscle pain to spread. Sleep at night isnt easy. I have tried all I can... so I am going to the dr in a few mins.

I love the new medicine.... I DO sleep and I mean deep and if I dream I don't remember. However, I am having almost nightly leg cramps ... my shins, in the calf and thighs. I have done everything that has been suggested.. I am drinking Gatorade, taking supplements .... you all of it... no dice. I can't say it is related to the new med... but it does have a drying effect.

Day before yesterday we put down our oldest dog. She was 16 years old... a lab. The vet said she was ANCIENT. She was on borrowed time, we just couldn't bring ourselves to do it before now. She had heart worms, she was deaf, I don't believe she saw very well. She had those fatty tumors, and arthritis. Tuesday she just wasn't strong enough to hold herself up anymore.

We got her when she was 8 weeks old, we went into a feed store to get a lawn mower blade sharpened and came out with the cutest dog ... she smelled like peppermint! (it was her flea collar) she was a great dog. I can tell you that in her whole life she spent less than a month away from us. I was the last thing she felt, heard or saw as she closed her eyes and went to join our other pets at the rainbow bridge.

I am struggling a little... sadness over Gracie, but also the shoulder pain is exhausting. It is cold and rainy ... so things are harder right now.

I am going to set up blood work for next week.... I am bruising like crazy. I am due for the yearly work up.

So that is it...

All the emotions

I went through old pictures this weekend and scanned many of them. I ran the gamut of emotions. This one of my Granny made me smile.



This one stung by heart just a little. I miss my daddy.

This one made me a little sad, and regretful that things are the way they are. That is my sister Jami.


This one made me smile... my Daddy on the Mississippi River... he was so young and SKINNY! lol


This one makes me wonder.. were my parents ever happy together...


This is Bill and I in high school when we were just dating.... it makes me remember happy times...



This one makes me happy that is Sam at a few days old.


I LOVE this picture.. Daddy and Sam... He worshipped her.




This one made me giggle ... something tells me I spent a good deal of time in that playpen.


These two pictures.... oh ... the make my wonder. When you look at them it looks like my mother just loves me to pieces... and I wonder if she did. I wonder what happened and why things went so very different... I just wonder...

I have to admit that I am a little sad and down after the pictures... I am aware of it and I wont wallow for long I just needed to get it out there.