From Inmates to Playdates

Posts Tagged ‘The Saturn Sky’

For this week’s You Capture challenge, we had to go outside and get creative.

So, instead of the ceremonial pictures of my sweet boys, I thought I’d change things up a bit.

This little feller poked his head out of the grass and I snuck up on him from behind. IF he would have decided to jump while I was all “National Geographic Photographer” on him, you probably would have heard me squeal no matter where you’re located.

Because. I. hate. frogs.

Actually, I’m not a fan of anything that makes its home out of doors, but frogs are way up there near the top of my list.

Just under birds.

I snapped about 14 pictures of this booger trying to get all creative with the macro setting, but I never got it to come out just the way I wanted.

Oh Nikon.

You are calling my name.

I’d love to take credit for these beauties, but alas, they are not mine.

Because beautiful flowers require watering, and well, that’s something I neglect to do when I have flowers.

Lazy, much?

While I have no earthly idea what my child is doing, I couldn’t resist this picture of the sun shining betweeen the trees.

And no picture of the great outdoors is complete without a picture of the sky.

You knew that was coming, didn’t you.

If you are by chance the owner of this car, can you call me, please? Mkay. Thanks.

Head over to I Should Be Folding Laundry to see some more of the great outdoors.

NEXT WEEKS CHALLENGE: Mornings

I haven’t had a good rant for awhile, so you should have seen this one coming. I’m telling you people, the 36-year hormones do not play around.

—–

Dear Hampton Inn – Maysville, Kentucky,

Folks, your hotel staff was delightfully friendly and the beds, of course, were wonderful as always, but I must tell you that the temperature in the pool um, was a little much. We froze our patooties off, well, obviously the patootie is still there, but lets just say it was miserably cold. Please, on behalf of all of your future guests, please turn up the heat in the darn pool.

Sincerely,

A cold mama and her two shivering boys

——

Dear West Virginia Humidity,

Enough. Is. Enough. Seriously. I have felt like a thanksgiving turkey roasting in my own juices for much of the summer. You and your BFF, heat, need to get a life and go somewhere else.

Hot and Bothered,

Julie From WV

—–

To Anyone Out There Who Still May Be Employed By Saturn,

If you are reading this, I would love for you to hang around for a bit. In fact,  you should click on the words “THE SATURN SKY” over in the ‘tag cloud’  and see just for yourselves, how often I mention your sweet little almost extinct ride. If there is one laying around, ANYWHERE, I’d love to take it off your hands. Pretty please with sugar and sunroof on top!

Crossing My Fingers,

The Crazy Mommy Blogger From WV

—–

Dear Hotmail,

While visiting your site a day or so ago, I discovered that you went all haywire and changed the layout of my inbox. Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t like change? Because I seriously don’t. The very least you could do is offer a few choices where layout and fonts are concerened. Choices. And fonts. Yes, I’d like that a lot.

Annoyed,

BehindBars

—–

Dear Steve Jobs,

You are a brilliant, innovative, inventor, yet, my beloved iPhone needs to be charged every couple of hours. Why is that?

Perplexed,

A loyal iPhone user.

—–

To The Guy Who Spoke To Me That Day At The Gas Station,

The reason “I looked familiar” to you is because you used to be in jail and I used to work there. Just so you know, I never offer up that information to folks who mention that I look familiar to them because where would the conversation go after that? Would we discuss what kind of activities you participate in? Would we talk about old times when you hung out in “B” Pod? Would you cuss me like you did back in the day because you didn’t get the visitation slot you wanted? See? There’s no good outcome. I sure hope you’ve got your life on track. Society does too.

Not So Fondly,

Counselor Mc.

—–

Dear Facebook Friends,

I just spent the better part of twenty minutes ignoring, blocking and deleting application invitations. For the record, I couldn’t care less about the nails or flax that you need. I do not care about any of those games, nor will I ‘click here’ to find out my stripper name, my Desperate Housewife name, or my angel name. I am not Bejeweled, Farkled, or interested in playing for fast money. I’m not sure how so many people have so much free time on their hands to play Farm Wars, Mafiaville, or Restaurantworld. All I really wanna do is share pictures of the McFamily and nose in people’s business.

Just keepin’ it real,

JKM

—–

To The Maniac That Drives The Silver Car On Our Street,

Pal, you need to slow yourself down and act like you have some sense. Every other resident of our street (well, except you and *Smiley*) has the decency to share the one-lane road and scoot over when necessary.  Have you ever considered the fact that you could cause an accident someday? Slow that car down. And your attitude, too.

The SAHM in the Minivan

—–

Dear Loyal Blog Readers,

On Tuesdays, I host a bloggy carnival called “What I Learned This Week.” I would love for you to join me because seriously having just four or five linkers each week gets old. I’m imploring (dramatic much?) you to join me on Tuesday for another great edition of WILTW.

Sincerely,

Julie From Inmates

—–

End Rant.

The McFamily is currently in Maysville, Kentucky. McDaddy is here on business and me and the boys are here on monkey business, you know, swimming, playing, shopping, and touring the area.

For that reason, my options for shooting everyday things for this week’s You Capture are limited.

For instance, typically I’d be snapping pictures of the stove, my favorite cookbook (ahem!), the Tivo, and lots of other everyday things. Instead, I’m limited to the things that are with me here in the hotel.

In the words of Simon Cowell, Off we go.

A big part of my everyday life is my laptop, mostly because of this here blog.

Then of course, there’s the one item I never leave home without – my purse,

which carries my precious iPhone.

And speaking of my iPhone, no post of everyday things would be complete without a shot of this,

my new favorite past-time, Words With Friends. (I’m Juliewv if you are looking for a competitor.)

And of course, there is my bling.

which I wear daily, and even when test driving this sucker.

For more everyday things, visit You Capture.

Well look who’s arriving late to the party!

Better late than never, I guess.

First off, I hate to be late.

For anything.

If this is your first visit to ‘From Inmates To Playdates’, I’d like to welcome you to my humble abode. I dish out a daily dose of crazy here everyday and I’d love for you to have a look around. I am a quirky girl who loves Jesus, her fellas, the Saturn Sky, and Dr. Pepper.

That whole Inmates to Playdates thing up there? Before hanging up my handcuffs to be a stay-at-home-mom, I was an inmate counselor in Jail. Oh, and just for the record, I did not find love in the jail, I only worked there. Now that we have that out of the way you can breath a sigh of relief and read on.

I am 36 and am married to McDaddy who happens to be the most patient man on the planet. He is a control systems genius engineer and also a member of the WV Air National Guard. He was recently deployed for six months to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where he diligently protected our butts, our freedoms and whatever else needed protecting. I talk about him often here at Inmates and I am so proud to be his wife.

Oh, and did I mention he is hot?

I have a seven-year old son named Stevie. He is a cool kid who loves Transformers, Lightning McQueen, Monster Trucks and his beloved DS. He is one of the sweetest kids I’ve ever known and I’m not at all just saying that because he is mine. He is thoughtful, polite and loving. (He’s also very smart but I don’t want to sound like one of those mothers).

I also have a four-year old son named Alex. He has two speeds. Asleep. And wide open. It is comical to watch him in action. He loves to run, jump, climb and bulldoze. He also likes Transformers, Lightning McQueen, Monster Trucks and his Leapster. He is sweet, stubborn independent and cute as a button.

My boys are the joy of my life and I am thankful for the privilege of being a [stay-at-home] mother. Even though I always thought I would have a daughter, I am thrilled that my boys are the best of friends and wonderful playmates.

As my tag-line reads, I am a self proclaimed princess who gave up a career in corrections for stay-at-home-mom royalty. I have a truck-load of quirks and I am gifted in the art of conversation. Just ask anybody. I enjoyed my time in jail very much but I enjoy motherhood even more.

This blog is like a bag of chex mix. Sometimes you get a boring ole raisin and sometimes you get the M&M. Either way, it is my life.

I have talked at length about my funeral, the fun I had while riding in a police car, watching an embalming, and even pap smears. Some days I talk about my sweet boys, my hubby or my Jesus.

Feel free to look around and enjoy my daily dose of crazy. Believe me, there is plenty to go around. Thanks for hopping by.

Carry On!

A big thanks to Robin over at Pensieve for hosting this shin-dig!

SUMMER IS…..

Sitting beside your brother on a ride at Busch Gardens

Going to a Yankee game with Uncle Dave

Many miles in the minivan as we travel the East Coast.

Music Camp Water Fun

Evening sunrise on the beach

Riding in fast cars

(You knew that was coming, didn’t you?)

This post is linked to You Capture.

It’s another post from the road. Can you believe WE ARE STILL DRIVING?

We are still ONE WHOLE HOUR AWAY from the hotel.

At least sixty more minutes.

Stella has lost her groove.

And she’s grumpy.

Thought this might be a great time to share lessons I’ve learned from the passenger seat. I need to warn you though. The information shared will be of no use to 94% of my reader population.

1. I really like Bonnie Raitt. I had totally forgotten about her until I heard her song, Let’s Give Them Something To Talk About.

2. The new Ford Taurus is not on my list of cool cars.

3. The stretch of North Carolina that one must drive through when driving from West Virginia to Florida, has not 3G. This makes playing Words With Friends and looking at pictures on the Facebook challenging unless you enjoy starring at a screen watching a white circle go round and round and round.

Which I don’t.

4. Cheezit Snack Mix is pretty tasty but should not be eaten without something to wash it down with.

5. If the Dodge Caravan allowed about two more inches between the passenger seat and the dash board, I could comfortably rest my feet on there without bending my knees.

6. I love the song ‘Give Me Your Eyes’ by Brandon Heath. It is among my top five favorite songs.

7. There is more JUNK on the radio than there is actual music.

8. Safelite must spend millions on their radio advertising because we’ve heard their ad three times in the past forty minutes.

9. I hate traffic. Especially the stopped kind.

10. When my feet are propped up on the dashboard and my laptop is on my lap, I have about 9.3 minutes before my feet are totally asleep.

11. The iPhone is a great little gadget to have on long trips. Words With Friends is a must.

12. I often wonder if the invention of the GPS put a hurtin’ on Triple AAA’s business. Our GPS is a Garmen and McDaddy calls it Carmen.

13. I have not seen even one Saturn Sky in 862.9 miles.

14. 862.9 miles is JUST ABOUT MY FREAKIN’ LIMIT folks.

There. I said it.

What did you learn this week? I’d love for you to share! Please link directly to your WILTW post, and not your blog in general.

It occurred to me recently that some of you folks are newcomers to this here blog.

For that reason, I thought it might be fun to visit a few of my favorite posts. I’m diggin’ deep in the archives today because that seems easier than filtering out some of the nonsense rolling around in my brain tonight.

Enjoy the crazy. Clearly, there is plenty to go around.

1. The one where I watch an embalming – What I Learned At The Funeral Home.

2. The letter I wrote to the naked lady – Y Are You Naked?

3. Very often here at From Inmates To Playdates, I write letters to crazy people. On days that I’m feeling, oh, I don’t know, particularly crazy, I might even write a letter to myself. – Dear Me.

4. The longest post ever and one you’ll certainly want to read if you’ve ever considered getting Mirena – A Long, Windy Tail.

5.  A post about what ails me – The Heels And The Spurs.

6. My first trip to The Price Is Right - The Price Is Right, But The Fashion Was All Wrong.

7.  About my time in Jail - I Spent Five Years In Jail. Really, I did!

8. One of the few times I’ve blogged about the Saturn Sky – This Is How I Roll!

9. Kicking deployment in the booty, after six long months – Taking A Deep Breath.

10. Topless and Shoeless - all in the same night.

11. The crappy job you’ll have if your child swallows a coin. – This Too Shall Pass.

12. Because I’m a control freak, I’ve planned every detail of my funeral. – Over My Dead Body.

13. Visiting McDaddy during his deployment on Guantanamo Bay – It Don’t GTMO Better Than This!

Happy Thursday, y’all!

And happy reading, too!

I talk about vehicles a lot here on the blog.

So, as one might imagine, I was pretty excited about this week’s You Capture challenge – Vehicles.

I know for certain that McDaddy expects at least one picture of the heap, er, I mean Jeep to show up here today.

And y’all know how crazy I am about the nearly extinct Saturn Sky.

Ahem.

Can you believe I drove by a parking lot and snapped this series of pictures trying to be all secret squirrel because I feared if someone saw me they would think I was some sort of private investigator or stalker or whathaveyou.

Not nearly as sexy, but just as cool, is this vehicle carrying two little Amish boys. 

 And definitely not as sleek and sexy as the Saturn sky, but with just as much horsepower as the previous vehicle is McDaddy’s favorite vehicle.

May, I introduce you to The Heap, ahem, I mean Jeep.

McDaddy loves his Jeep and very often goes “wheelin” with the JeepinWV Jeep club. Sometimes I go too, if there are other wives going and I’ve been properly medicated. It’s a good time for the whole family.

Givin’ some knuckles!

For more vehicle shots (which I’m sure McDaddy will take a peek at) head over to I Should Be Folding Laundry.

It is no secret that I have a boat load of quirks.

I do not try to hide it, rather, I embrace it. My quirks and I have been through a lot. In fact, we entertain each other.

Take this evening for instance.

McDaddy is out of town (again!) this week and when that happens, the boys and I get into a tight routine where anything goes. If we want to see a movie, we see a movie. If we want to go to Toys R Us at 7 PM on a Tuesday evening, we go. And we normally eat dinner out somewhere because any reason I can find for not cooking is reason enough. What can I say? That’s just how we roll around here. That’s not to say that McDaddy doesn’t like to have fun or do those things too, it’s just that when he works all day and comes home, there is an expectation of oh, I don’t know, some form of dinner and relaxation in between yard work, domestic projects and playing in the garage with his heap, er, I mean Jeep.

Another thing that happens when he’s gone, is that I very often feel like a lost ball in a field of weeds. Not that I mourn McDaddy’s absense or anything, it’s just that I get bored easily. Especially when the boys are watching Tom and Jerry or fighting over batman toys. There are times when the urge hits me to take on a project and if I have any sense at all, I DO the project when the urge hits because Lord knows it might be another three years before the urge hits for that particular project again.

I took the boys to see Despicable Me after Stevie got out of music camp today. The second I walked through our Laundry room (which is a stretch because it is more of a walk-way connecting a “soon to be mudroom” and the new playroom) the urge hit me to sort toys. The boys helped me sort the twelve multi-colored buckets, the bins, and the toy box and before long, it was done.

Then I looked over at my laundry area and another urge surfaced. I kicked off my shoes and got busy. I would have taken a picture of the mess pre-urge, but really, it was embarrassing, and I was afraid y’all would judge so you’ll just have to believe me when I say it was a mess and has been a mess since the laundry room / toy room project got underway. The dryer was covered with all manner of wall fixtures and hanging stuff. A broken toy that needed fixing, a pile of stuff that needed to be taken to Goodwill and who knows what else was there. Immediately beside of the dryer was a microwave stand that housed a small television that we really no longer need along with a VCR (For you twenty-somethings, the VCR predated the DVR) some old coasters, three sleeves of paper cups (another of dad’s “too good to pass up at the auction” finds) and an envelope containing what appeared to be loan papers for a vehicle.

The urge to straighten the mess smacked me in the face and before I knew it, I was swarpin’ and tossin’. Then, I heard the kids going bananas upstairs and knew from the excitement in their voices that paw-paw stopped in for a visit. My dad pops in at totally random times and that’s just fine with me because he can’t sit still either and loves to tackle a good project. I put him to work putting together a dryer rack because my bras and shirts are shrinking at an alarming rate and also because there’s a big dryer funnel looking thing ont he floor that I thought wouldn’t be so obvious if there were a drying rack resting in front of it.

Like I said. Quirks.

Because the dryer rack was about four inches taller than my dryer, I was bothered.

Not the kind of bothered that makes one go, “shoot, I wish that was a bit shorter, oh well!”

I’m talking about the kind of bothered that me and my OCD knocks around that says, “That thing will either be sawed off or I will march it right back to the Wal-Mart tomorrow!”

In a matter of minutes, my daddy had the bottom portion of the dryer rack sawed off and put back in place and I’m sure I heard the hallelujahs roll. We spent the next hour cleaning the windows over the washer and dryer because neither of the TWO! discount dollar stores had blinds long enough for the window. Funny thing is, now that the window is clean and bright, I don’t think I need a blind there.

See for yourself!

What’s that?

Oh that picture?

I thought you’d never ask.

Indeed it is. Yours truly in a Chili Pepper Red Saturn Sky. From the test drive, of course.

My reasoning involves making the laundry room a more enjoyable experience.

And that works for me!

Visit We Are THAT Family for more WFMW entries.

While sitting around the campfire tonight, we talked briefly about the bucket list. I don’t really have a bucket list, but I do spend a fair amount of time thinking of things I would like to do before I um, you know, pass.

This isn’t necessarily a bucket list, because? Hello? I’m already 36 and these are things I’d like to do before I’m forty, not before I’m dead but it’s certainly a list of things I’d like to accomplish before I have the birthday that comes after the thirty-ninth.

And just before the one that starts with forty and ends with one.

1. Give up my love of lists.
 
2. Lose a lot! of weight.
 
3.  Learn HTML code.
 
4. Go to Australia with McDaddy
 
5.  Get a full ten-hour night of uninterrupted sleep (without waking to pee!)
 
6. See a Broadway Show
 
7.  Share McDaddy’s love of off-roading without irrational fear or panic attack.
 
8. Own a Saturn Sky even if only for a short time.
 
9. Purchase the empty lot beside of our house so that McDaddy can have the garage of his dreams.
 
10. Finish the basement. I mean completely finished and mess cleaned up!
 
11. A new deck (We need one sooner rather than later or else we’ll have our very own drop zone!)
 
12. Worry less.
 
13. Get a full night of uninterrupted sleep.

What?

I already said that. Yes, I know. I’m just reminding you!
 
14. Go to the dentist and get a good report without getting the dreaded floss lesson. (Which means I should actually floss each. and. every. single. day. Thankyouverymuch!)
 
15. Visit Alaska
 
16. Worry Less
 
17. Get off blood pressure medicine. This could probably happen by achieving at least seven of the items on this list.
 
18. Declutterize our house completely!
 
19. Learn how to start the lawn-mower. Not cause I really want to mow, but, because its the responsible thing to do.
 
20. Find the perfect bra. Why is that we can put a man on the moon, but we can’t make a bra for every woman’s size and body shape that is comfortable?

 21. Actually pay attention every. time. someone. speaks. to. me.  {Huh, what did you say?}
 
22. Learn how to make a perfect batch of no-bake cookies just like my daddy!
 
23. Read the Bible allthewaythrough.
 
24. Have a really easy, great haircut that is easy to style.
 
25. Be free of my addiction of caffeinated Beverages {Could someone warn the folks at Dr. Pepper that in four short
years there could be a slight decline in monthly sales}.
 
26. Get rid of everything in our house that has not been touched for a year.
 
27. Let my boys be – BOYS. Without fear of injury or something worse!
 
28. Learn more about stuff I know nothing about. Knowledge regarding things like stocks and HTML Code could be very helpful to me some day!
 
29. Cook more. {Enough said}.
 
30. Buy flowers for spring and keep them alive all summer by watering them instead of depending on prayer and God to bring them back to life.
 
31. Find the perfect purse. I have purchased at least twenty perfect purses, yet, they find their way to the bottom of the purse pile when the next ’perfect’ one hops off the shelf and onto my arm.
 
32. Get rid of stuff in the loft that we have not touched since we moved here seven years ago. {Anybody out there have a need for old diaries or one or two or twenty backpacks?}
 
33. Do every. single. thing. on my long term To-Do List. Or just shred the list.
 
34. Be caught up on scrapbooks with NO pictures in the pending basket. After all, someday these boys will be grown and may actually want to take them when they leave.
 
35.  Think. Before. I. Speak. {Sweet Hallelujah, is it possible?}
 
36. Take the boys to Lake Powell to spend a week on a houseboat. We’ve made this trip twice – before kids, mind you – and it is the most relaxing vacation in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited.
 
37. Have patience.
 
38. Successfully back the van into the garage on the first try. It’s been seven years – and every single time I back in crooked I think about the fact that the guy who built it, (ahem! Glen) designed it just off center. I’m sure his botched calculations are the root of the problem.
 
39. Lose FIVE! sizes. And never find them again as long as I shall live!
 
40. Change my freakin’ attitude about things I have no control over.

WHEW! It’s a really good thing I have three years, five  months, and nine days to get this all figured out. I am no doubt going to be a busy girl.

What about you? Anything you’d like to do before you hit your next ‘milestone’?

Talk amongst yourselves!