Just trying to survive

We LIVE Hockey.. its Buffalo!!

2012-02-11T22:23:00.000-05:00

Me and the girl child at a Sabre's hockey game. This is something I am very fortunate to be able to do for her. I won the tickets and when I can win them, I take her. I never went to a hockey game as a kid because the tickets were so expensive. So are these ones. There is NO WAY I'd buy tickets to see a game in the seats we have (they are really nice seats... just about center ice).

But what kills me is the price of the food. $4 for just about all the food and pop. $4 for a freaking bottle of pop. Really? But hey.. I take her maybe once or twice a season so I will splurge on it. But anyone who has season tickets... how the heck can you afford to eat there?

And parking???? $15 -$20 for parking right near the arena. You can chance it by parking near the arena on the side streets but with the recent snow, that was going to be a challenge. So our other option was to park further North near the convention center and either park free on the street on in the ramp. We had to go with the ramp because all the free parking was taken (Auto show was going on too!). $5 for parking isn't so bad. And we got to take the train down which is always an adventure for the kiddo.

All in all, we had a good night. Girls night at the Hockey game. Now, we defrost. Its cold out there!

Bread!!!

2012-02-03T12:28:00.000-05:00

Bread!!! Look! I made Bread!!

Its the No Knead Recipe and I've made this before. So yummy and easy. I want it.. now. But no.. Its too hot to eat. Drat.

maybe?

2012-01-26T09:51:00.001-05:00

We are looking for a dog. Why? It's time. And we found a little guy who melted our hearts. His name is Barley. He's a pup still so size is a question. He won't be huge, but its a mystery still. Now.. we don't have him. There is a process we have to follow but we were lucky to meet him in person. He gave the sweetest puppy kisses. And how could you abandon this?

People amaze me as to how stupid they can be.

Regardless... Erin is in love with him and is really trying to grasp we MAY NOT be the right fit for Barley. Trying to get her to understand we have to do what is best for the dog is a challenge. She wanted to take him home last Saturday and was ready to cry when someone else was looking at him. We have talked to her and she "says" she understands and there will be a dog out there for us. But she wants him.

The cats know something is afoot. We cleared out a spot next to my chair and placed a blanket with some dog toys. They sniffed.. but left it alone. The funny thing was were petting a bunch of dogs on Saturday and when we came home... the cats insisted on laying on us. Reclaiming us apparently.

If this little guy does join our family, we'll be very happy and lucky. But if its not a good fit, I really hope he finds a good forever home.

happy new year

2011-12-31T19:27:00.000-05:00

Sometimes life throws you a curve ball. Every year for the last say 6 years we have celebrated New Years with Tim's Sister and the family. Now, everyone needs a year off so we're on our own this year. Not a problem in the slightest.

We originally were going to see friends this year. Notice the past tense. I have a sinus infection that has moved to my chest. My head is killing me and my throat is screaming. But I have the bestest Husband in the universe. He got us seafood for dinner. And summer sausage. He's the best.

So its movie night for us and i'm sure Tim will be taking bets to see how long I last.

Happy New Year everyone. Stay safe...

grand

2011-12-22T22:42:00.000-05:00

I just love this shot of her in the Poinsettia room. The colors were fantastic.

different

2011-12-22T22:41:00.000-05:00

I opted to do something differnet this year. For the last 10 years or so, I have made a Polish Coffee cake for every sibling family on my husbands side.. and then some. Thats a lot of coffee cake if you know our family. Well, this year I couldn't do it. I have been seeing the salt dough ornaments all over the internets (yeah, thank you Pintrest) and I thought "Why not?".

Oddly, it's harder than it looks. The dough was sticky. It didn't roll right and drove me batty.

But I managed to make it work somehow. I have 3 designs overall (the last batch I had the worst time with so I got creative).

#1 is a Celtic Cross
#2 is a Celtic square
#3 is a dove of peace with a star.
I didn't count how many I cut, stamped, dryed and modpodged. But they are done.

Here's the recipe I used
2 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 cup water

Mix together. Roll out as best you can. I did it on parchment paper first then switched to wax when I ran out and knew the oven wouldn't be an option to dry them. You can toss them in the over for a couple of hours (depending on thickness) at around 200 degrees F once you have the cut out, stamped, whatever. Make sure you put a hole in it so you can run string or a ribbon through it.

I did use ink for my stamped ones. I had a nice black in that worked the best. I tried red and green - horrible. The cheap gold one I had worked ok too. In a different batch, erin and i painted them with water color after they dried.

Overall, I like them. I think I need a different mixture. I just hope the family likes them. Erin and I worked hard on them.
anyways.. Merry Christmas kids...

a year in the making

2011-12-22T22:28:00.000-05:00

I started this quilt last November..as in 201o. I was almost done with it by Christmas 201o. All that needed to be done was the binding. It was bought and I started pinning it. And there it sat. Until this past week. I finished the bloody thing finally. Its really simple. 12 flats connected. Thats it. Nothing fancy. I wanted to see if I could do it. And I did. It sure does add color to the room. I made a pillow as well from the sheets I used to make curtains (flannel snowflakes - red and blue). I am pleased with it. Its not perfect but thats ok. It will keep us warm none the less.

Poinsettia

2011-12-22T14:13:00.001-05:00

SAM_1314
Originally uploaded by melblackrose

I took the girls to the Botanical Gardens.. really it was for me. I wanted a nice shot of the Poinsettia plants they have. I have never seen the display there. It was so pretty. I need to keep it in mind next year when I want to take a family photo.

Our Tree

2011-12-16T08:48:00.000-05:00

Erin picks the tree out every year.. just because she's really good at it.

stress during the holidays? Noooooo

2011-12-16T08:27:00.000-05:00

I'm lying of course. I had promised myself this year I wouldn't let the normal Holiday stress get to me. With 2 families, a group of friends and a strict budget, things have been .. well.. stressful.
1) I lost a good 10 days due to a commitment with my hobby. I'm not saying its bad, but I used those 10 days for that and not baking or making gifts thus putting me behind
2) With as big as a family as we have on my husband's side, there is bound to be some clashing of will and expectations and fighting. Every year I have made a Polish Coffee cake to give to each family. I have done this for 10 years. I am not doing it this year. Oh, fear not those family members who read my blog. I will make one for Mom's house so we can enjoy it then. But no family Placzeks this year my darlins. I expect to get backlash for not doing that this year.
3) We needed to introduce Krampus into the mix this year. Apparently coal in the stocking didn't shock her enough to staighten her up from this past week attitude fest. I have known about Krampus for years and I was holding back on it.. now granted there were a few years he could have easily made an appearence but didn't. Well, this year, I have placed the fear of hell into her. I know, I know. But this is a bigger issue with Kids today.. they don't understand that actions have consequences and big ones sometimes. I grew up knowing that if I messed up, God would be pissed and I was going to Hell. You do not piss off the Big guy. So Old School it is...
4) It doesn't LOOK like Chirstmas. Yes yes, its not about the Snow.. but it makes everything look clean.
5) Back on the family thing - big family = tension. So many freaking people in one place. I love that family but boy, its loud and hot and I'll be drinking for sure to keep me sane (mental note - get wine).

On a good note, I made cookies and fudge. The cookies came out AWESOME (here's round 1). I keep making trips to the kitchen and grabbing one. That has become my breakfast and lunch. Diet? Yeah, my doctor just needs to understand this is a minor setback. Its Christmas for Christ's Sake!

So this weekend is the push to finish a surprise present and make the family gifts. And find my dining room after the laundry room adventure. That's a blog another day. As soon as I charge my camera, i'll show you my new ...oops OUR new toys.

wait for it........

2011-11-21T15:15:00.001-05:00

The kid's hives didn't let up all weekend. Off the doctor's office today to find out ... she has.... wait for it.. hives.

When will they let up? eventually.
What is the cause? Dunno. Could be anything but its likely the Soy milk.
Keep doing what we have been and yes, she can go back to school.

Sleep dep.....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

2011-11-19T10:43:00.001-05:00

yeah.. so more lack of sleep. Erin was up most of the night again but at least she threw up finally. My money is a viral thing which with her would be no surprise. Some of the kids at school have been sick and Erin volunteered to take a friend's homework home this past week (she lives on the next street over) who has the flu.

Gatorade has been made.... Disney is on. She seems to be in ok spirits but is complaining her stomach hurts. The hives are calming down so we'll be vegging and napping today.

all nighter

2011-11-19T05:41:00.001-05:00

Yep. awake. I've been awake on and off all night. Funny story - 1:40am Erin comes into my room and needs her meds or something. Tim was still up... on his PC... she totally walked by him. To wake me up.

Let the battle begin

2011-11-18T21:05:00.001-05:00

Even though she slept most of the afternoon, the hives came back. Different spots. And to male matters worse, she's panicking. Knowing what I know about hives, it could a few hours to a few days. Her stress level is what is causing the repeat bout I think.

So how do you calm an 8 year old? Not a clue.

The movie THOR seemed to help (she has a crush on him) and now CAPTAIN AMERICA is in and she fell asleep after her last dose.

Now we plan for a week of sleeping and doses and sleeping. As long as I get a nap too, I'll be happy.

can't catch a break

2011-11-18T10:44:00.001-05:00

the 8 year old is going through a rough bout of life. First, she's lactose intolerant. so we constantly have to watch ingredients for milk. we are learning what she can and can not have and its a hard learning process for her. repeated trips to the bathroom is not fun.

next, she had her foot stepped on last night by her musical teacher. that hurt. then she couldn't sing her favorite christmas song. she came home in tears.

so we were up most of the night - the complaint of a pulled muscle in her ab (totally possible as she had gym and dance in one day).... and then the issue to top all others..... hives. this is new for us. she had some breakfast (cheese and pretzels) and broke out into hives. a quick call to the doctor's office and some benedryl later.. she's asleep. hives are going down. my poor girl.

apples

2011-10-22T19:13:00.000-04:00

Every year, Erin and I go to Blackman Homestead Farms in Cambria. And every year, I take a picture of Erin picking and eating an apple.

How stinking cute is she!!!!!!

sounds

2011-09-28T09:19:00.001-04:00

Now that I'm working from home, I have a distraction. The window. I used to have a window in my old office downtown where we'd keep them open (we weren't supposed to) and let the lake breeze into the office. I had a wonderful view of City Hall and river. I could watch some of the ships and barges come through. We'd watch the storms roll in off the lake. When the fog would roll in it was horror movie. The sounds of city were my background noise.

When we moved to the Larkin building, the windows were sealed shut. I'd get up occasionally and look out. Just look. On a windy day, all we could do is watch.

Next me now is the office window. Quite often there is a cat in it. Today, its open. The breeze is coming in and its cool. Fall cool with a hint of moisture. There is rain coming. The chorus of crickets is still singing. The birds stop by and squabble for a bit then off they fly. The murder comes and goes. And I know I'm safe when I hear Burt barking next door. I know when the kids are home from school when the yelling and games begin.

Its calming to hear the sounds of the neighborhood while I work. And its nice to breath in normal air. It may be filled with pollen but I don't care.

Back to work. The squirrel is yelling at me again. He's such a task master.

week one.. DONE!!

2011-09-24T11:18:00.000-04:00

I survived! Working from home is... different. I start at the same time I did in the office but I some how work longer... and I still eat lunch in front of the PC... I really need to stop that.

So this coming week I get the phone installed and along with that a cable upgrade. I can't wait. With Halloween coming up, I get to watch the Chiller Channel and Travel Channel.... And SyFy, WOOOOHOO!

Such a small bit of happiness. Now for a kid's birthday party and then jaunt to Bemus Point for an event. Time to get my butt in gear!

Day 3

2011-09-21T23:15:00.000-04:00

I have survived day 3. I think its the silence that got to me yesterday. There wasn't enough background noise. I am so used to Matt randomly talking to me, I needed something more. So I plugged in my netbook and played some tunes and had Hulu going in the background. That worked.

Its odd working from home.. Its totally doable, but weird.

new adventures

2011-09-19T07:03:00.000-04:00

Today is the first day of the rest of my work life. I start working from home. HOME! Due to a very large space and not enough bodies, options were weighed and decisions were made. We are remote now with a collaboration space so we can meet if we need to.

I'm excited. I don't have to worry about driving in crappy weather or rushing home to make sure I get Erin in time. Tim helped me with my setup and I am ready to go. All I need is to get the kiddo on the bus. Here I come!!

taste test Oat Revolution

2011-09-09T08:50:00.000-04:00

I love to try new products.. especially food. Well, anything really.

Better Oats has a line of oatmeal out that is cool. I have tried the Maple and Brown Sugar Oat Revolution... and its yummy. Sweet, which is what I like. Its not so much the taste I love but the packaging.

The oatmeal bag itself is is measured to 2/3 cup. THE BAG!! Pour the oats into a bowl. Measure the water in the oat bag. Nuke for 90 seconds. DONE! NO MEASURING CUP NEEDED!

How neat is this for the office? I took a measuring cup in specifically because during the winter I'll bring in oatmeal.

Lets review the taste now. I just finished my bowl and it was good. Its better oats and... heartier. The odd texture to me was the addition of the Flax seed. You get used to it. Overall, I'd get this again. Thank you Better Oats...

2011-09-03T22:26:00.002-04:00

We were walking along the river last Friday night and Erin was in charge of taking pictures. Tim and I were holding hands while we walked and Erin was prancing ahead of us and getting in between us. She snapped this picture after some careful posing.

sunset on the lake

2011-09-03T22:25:00.002-04:00

took these... One reason why I won't move out of the area. The lake, as mean as she can be during the winter, is our saving grace in the summer. The breeze off the lake is best treatment for a hot humid day.

I turned on the Sunset feature on my camera for these next 2. What a different effect.

A girl and her goats

2011-08-08T21:18:00.000-04:00

This is as close to living on a farm as she's gonna get. Petting zoo. But she loved the goats.

thrill

2011-08-08T21:16:00.000-04:00

I am finally getting around looking at my photos from the summer. Not many but a few stand out. This one is from our trip to Fanstasy Island. Spot my kid in this picture.... go ahead.. can you guess which one it is???